Edge Davao8 Issue 144

VOL. 8 ISSUE 144 • TUESDAY, OCTOBER 20, 2015

P 15.00 • 20 PAGES

www.edgedavao.net

EDGEDAVAO 12 SETTLERS ARRESTED Suspects nabbed for burning bulldozer Serving a seamless society

BIO DONE. College students from the Davao City’s Third District walk out of the satellite registration center after having their biometrics taken at SM City Davao yesterday.

The Commission on Elections (Comelec) is giving voters until October 31 to have their biometrics taken to be allowed to participate in next year’s national election. Lean Daval Jr.

INSIDE EDGE

Bets can withdraw COC anytime P2 DCWD seeks stoppage of private water firm P2

EDGEDAVAO Sports

Manny can’t play for Pilipinas Aguilas in ABL P15

in UP Min sports complex project

By ARMANDO B. FENEQUITO JR.

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abf@edgedavao.net

WELVE settlers around University of the Philippines-Mindanao (UP Min) were arrested by the police for burning heavy equip-

ment of one of the contractors of the city’s sports complex yesterday morning.

Tugbok Police Station identified the suspects as Bon-

nleey P. Pailan, 35; Michael J. Rafuls, 30; Jayson R. Vedeflor, 33; Raul M. Galindo, 40; Cresencio N. Macarayo, 59; Jonathan C. Sudaria, 25; Andres I.

Igbali, 51; Diosdao I. Igbali, 51; Allan C. Logronio, 41; Rodrigo M. Alaba Jr., 22; Floramea B. Carmina, 36; and Rosita T.

F12 SETTLERS, 10

2 NEWS EDGEDAVAO

VOL. 8 ISSUE 144 • TUESDAY, OCTOBER 20, 2015

SAFETY CONSCIOUSNESS. This man dozes off while in transit on board a truck conveying concrete electric posts along Panacan, Davao City, yesterday unmindful of the risk. NJB

NGCP warns of perils of power transmission lines in Mindanao

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HE people in Mindanao would suffer longer power outages until the government acts on structures illegally constructed under the network of power transmission lines, the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP) warned Monday.

Beth A. Ladaga, NGCP regional communication officer in Mindanao, said the right-ofway (ROW) woes reached critical level last Saturday, which resulted to power tripping of its Agus 2-Kibawe Line 1 in Mindanao due to fallen trees that cut the power line conductors.

“The incident leaves NGCP with only one line catering to the Agus 1 and 2 power plants, which threatens the entire Mindanao with complete iso-

lation from hydropower plants once the remaining line becomes unavailable,” she said.

Ladaga said the situation was aggravated after landowners prevented the entry of NGCP personnel, tasked to clear and restore the affected power transmission lines vital to the grid, in the private properties.

Thus, NGCP is seeking immediate assistance from the military and government officials in negotiating the issue of the ROW in areas where power transmission lines are affected because of illegal structures and trees planted directly under the transmission lines.

The military and government assistance are needed because lot owners inten-

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DCWD announces service interruptions October 22

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AVAO City Water District (DCWD) has scheduled two separate sets of water service interruption to give way to completion of service improvement projects.

First set is on October 22 from 9:00 AM to 9:00 PM. Affected are these Catalunan Grande areas: portion of Sitio Awa, Sitio Felomina, Sitio Guadalupe, Mira Village, Samantha Homes, Sitio Toril, Restauro Village, Matina Pangi Relocation, SGR Subd., Stone Rock Subd., Villa Monte Maria Subd., Ruby Subd., Caflor Subd., Skyline Pag-ibig Subd., Skyline Subd. Phases I and III, Diagro Compound, Lozano Compound, Monte Maria Village Phases I, II and II-C, Hacienda

Village, St. Francis Xavier Village, Bahay Pag-ibig Heights, Sea Gems Village, Forest View Village, Holy Spirit Adoration Convent, Roman Catholic Apostolic and St. Francis Xavier College; and these Bangkal areas: portion of La Vista Monte Village, Mountain View Subd., Countryside Subd. I and II, Hillcrest Subd., Peralta Subd. and Valgosons Subd.

This water service interruption is needed to give way to the tapping and looping of the newly installed 350mm diameter and 250mm diameter Mortar Line Coated Steel Pipe and 150mm diameter Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC) pipeline to the existing distribution lines

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Bets can withdraw COC to sub for another post

By ARMANDO B. FENEQUITO JR.

A

abf@edgedavao.net

MID speculation that Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte had missed his chance to be a substitute candidate for president by not withdrawing his certificate of candidacy (COC) for mayor at the closing of the period of filing COCs on October 16, the Commission on Elections (Comelec) said a candidate can withdraw his COC any time and become a substitute for another post.

“If you have an ally in your party who is running for a certain position he or she can withdraw the candidacy and still be substituted on or before December 10,” Comelec third district election officer Monalisa Mamukid told EDGE Davao in a telephone interview yesterday.

While not speaking specifically about Duterte, Mamukid said the person substituting for the candidate should also

withdraw his or her own COC if they had filed one.

Mamukid said the substitute candidate must submit a certificate of nomination and acceptance (CONA) from the party.

Talk of a possible substitution came about when Volunteers Against Crime and Corruption (VACC) vice chair Martin Diño filed his COC for president for the PDP-Laban (Partido Demokratiko Pilipi-

no-Lakas ng Bayan) a few minutes before 5 p.m. on October 16.

Rumors have it that Diño was fielded as a place holder so that Duterte could substitute for him in December.

And last Sunday, Duterte himself told online news site Rappler that he does not want to substitute for another presidential candidate “but also said that the substitution gives

against Helpmate while the case is in progress.

He said the complaint is for premature exploration, development, and operations as water utility.

Delima said the trouble started when Helpmate installed an infiltration gallery in the river bank without an NWRB permit and an environment compliance certificate.

He said the private water company laid pipelines in areas where there are existing DCWD lines, adding most of these were installed on top of DCWD’s pipelines without coordination.

“This will be a major concern later on during maintenance and repair of DCWD pipelines. If there is a leak, it will be hard to determine

which pipe is leaking,” he said.

Delima said in one instance last week, a cement mixer truck got stuck in an excavated area in Tigatto and people blamed DCWD for reckless excavation. “People mistakenly thought the pipes were ours,” he added.

Delima said Helpmate’s website, the company already urged the public to apply for water connection even in the areas where DCWD has service lines.

“This is not what it represented when it sought for City Council endorsement. This is doing business without certificate of public convenience (CPC). The getting of CPC requires public hearing which includes rate structure presentation,” he said.

Delima said when the Helpmate sought endorsement from the City Council, the company said its operation will focus only in areas outside of DCWD service areas.

“The City Council endorsed the same based on that representation, with condition that it will secure clearances permits needed,” he said.

Delima said under section 32 of Presidential Decree 198, the DCWD can commence and maintain an action to prevent interference with or deterioration of water quality or the natural flow of any surface, stream, or groundwater supply which may be used or useful for any purpose of the water district.

He said the NWRB can

FBETS, 10

DCWD seeks cease, desist order vs private water firm

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HE Davao City Water District (DCWD) has asked the National Water Resources Board (NWRB) to issue a cease and desist order against private water concessionaire Helpmate, Inc. This after the DCWD filed a complaint against the company before the NWRB on October 15 for violation of the Water Code of the Philippines which states “no person shall divert or appropriate water from any public water source such as rivers, creeks, spring, lakes or groundwater or seawater without first securing a water permit from NWRB.”In a text message yesterday, DCWD spokesperson Bernardo Delima told EDGE Davao that the DCWD requested NWRB to issue cease and desist order

FDCWD SEEKS , 10

EDGEDAVAO

VOL. 8 ISSUE 144 • TUESDAY, OCTOBER 20, 2015

Tagum City ready for BSP Jamboree A

LL roads will lead to Tagum City this week for the commencement of the 16th National Scout Jamboree of the Boy Scouts of the Philippines, which is considered the largest scouting conclave in the country, slated on October 24 to 30, 2015.

As of this writing, a total of 18,600 scouts have officially registered for the week-long activity that is jointly hosted by the City Government of Tagum and the BSP Tagum City Council. Organizers, however, expect the number to swell to 19,000 – way above the expected target of only 10,000.

With the large bulk of participants coming to the city, Mayor Allan L. Rellon, who also serves as the camp chief of the Jamboree, said preparations and contingency plans are on full swing, especially on maintaining peace and order.

Rellon said 575 security personnel will be deployed in strategic areas and in Energy Park, the main venue of the Jamboree.

This consists of policemen from police stations in Davao del Norte, members of the Armed Forces of the Philippines, Security Management

FTAGUM, 10

SC asked to junk plunder vs. GMA

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ORMER President and now Pampanga (2nd District) Rep. Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo has asked the Supreme Court (SC) to dismiss the plunder case filed against her and several others before the Sandiganbayan for approving the release of more than Php365 million in Confidential/Intelligence Funds (CIF) of the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO) during her tenure as Chief Executive.

In a 115-page petition for certiorari dated Oct. 15, 2015,

NEWS 3

through her lawyer former Solicitor General Estelito Mendoza, Arroyo asked the SC to expedite the proceedings and to set the case for oral arguments.

She also asked the SC to suspend further proceedings of the case before the Sandiganbayan, through a temporary restraining order (TRO), particularly a hearing to receive the evidence of the accused by way of defense.

Arroyo’s petition was filed several days after the United

FSC ASKED, 10

PLANNING. BSP Acting Secretary General Wendel Avisado presides over a meeting held at Miko’s Brew in Tagum City last October 5, 2015 attended by National and Local Organizing Committee Members prior to the opening of the 16th National Scout Jamboree on October 24-30 this year. Kelvin Palermo/CIO Tagum

DOTC fails to answer queries on Sasa Port E

VEN after a lapse of one month, Transportation and Communication Sec. Joseph Emilio Aguinaldo Abaya Jr. continues his failure

to answer questions asked by the Regional Development Council (RDC) based in Davao or Region 11 on the controversy that haunts the P19-billion Sasa Port Modernization Project in Davao City.

Davao del Norte Gov. Rodolfo del Rosario earlier told reporters the RDC 11 which he heads past a resolution last September 21 asking the DOTC secretary to meet with the development council to answer why the DOTC has not yet complied with conditions stipulated the by the RDC in earlier endorsing the controversial multi-billion peso project to the National Economic and Development Authority (Neda).

“The endorsement to Neda was conditional,” del Rosario said, adding that the RDC approves of the project for as long the DOTC, the proj-

ect proponent, comply with five conditions.

He said the conditions are as follows: --purchase of 6.5-hectares adjacent land in addition to the current size of the Sasa port area; --ensure payment to owners of the additional land; -- see to it that the terms of reference in the purchase will specify who should pay the real property tax involved; --transfer of informal settlers occupying part of the port to a suitable relocation site; and --ensure that the project will benefit the shareholders of the port in terms of economic benefits and in providing opportunities for employment.

The appearance of Secretary Abaya will give RDC 11 a chance to know wether the

DOTC has complied with the conditions in the resolution of endorsement.

Del Rosario said the RDC 11 to look for some of the contentious aspects of the project, specially its huge cost.”

“We are all for the improvement of this vital facility, but we would like to see to it that its cost will not be detrimental to its users,” Del Rosario said, adding that it is natural for whoever will build the project to recover the huge development cost by increasing the fees of the port.

Del Rosario who was himself twice a member of the Cabinet aside from being member of the House of Representatives for several terms said that failure of the DOTC to comply with the RDC’s suggestions will become the project’s “technical problem.”

AMA

Barangay at Simbahan or UBAS. “We mainly agreed to collaborate our efforts to promote good governance at the barangay level,” he said.

UBAS, which is supported by the DILG, is a tripartite linkage involving the government, church and the barangays.

In South Cotabato, Yungco said they initially agreed to jointly monitor the implementation of community-based projects that were funded under the national government’s Bottom-Up Budgeting (BUB) scheme.

He said they will ensure that BUB projects within the province’s 10 towns and lone city are implemented in the proper manner and benefit the targeted beneficiaries.

In a briefer, UBAS said its

main objectives are to uphold good governance at the barangay level as well as help solve common local concerns and issues such as problems on disaster preparedness, solid waste management, peace and order, among others.

In terms of the BUB projects, the DILG central office has tapped UBAS to assist the evaluation and monitoring of the implementation process.

Yungco said the group will not be a watchdog but will converge efforts to ensure that the projects are implemented according to accepted standards and processes.

Through the partnership, he said the community can be assured that the projects are fully implemented. (PNA)

Barangays, religious groups link up for project monitoring

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OVERNMENT and religious leaders in South Cotabato province have forged a partnership to strengthen the promotion of good governance at the barangay level.

Vicente Yungco Jr., Liga ng mga Barangay provincial federation president, said Monday they have signed a memorandum of agreement with the province’s interfaith association and the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) for the launching of joint initiatives aimed at empowering local communities through transparent and responsive governance.

He said such move is mainly in support of a nationwide initiative dubbed Ugnayan ng mga

4 NEWS

EDGEDAVAO

VOL. 8 ISSUE 144 • TUESDAY, OCTOBER 20, 2015

2 unscathed in Tungawan explosion, suspect arrested

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WO people, including a militiaman, escaped unscathed in an explosion and the grenade thrower was arrested late Sunday in Tungawan town, Zamboanga Sibugay province.

Chief Insp. Rogelio Alabata, Police Regional Office-9 (PRO9) information officer, said the incident occurred around 7:30 p.m. Sunday in Barangay Lower Tungawan.

Alabata identified the two men as Boyet Liozo and his mechanic helper, Doque Basa, 39, who is also a militiaman.

Alabata identified the arrested suspect as Sahid Yusop, 20.

He said investigation

showed Liozo and Basa were having a drinking spree at Liozo’s residence when they heard an object fell and rolled on the roof.

He said no one among Liozo and Basa were wounded when the object that turned out to be a grenade exploded after it fell to the ground.

He said the responding policemen managed to arrest Yusop, who was identified by Barangay Councilor Fe Luna as the one who lobbed the grenade into the residence of Liozo.

He said Yusop was detained while appropriate charges are set to be filed against him. (PNA)

No violence during filing of COCs

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HIS small municipality at the border of the two Lanao provinces became a virtual ghost town last week as residents feared violence would break out during the filing of Certificates of Candidacy (COCs) by two warring clans.

But no violent incident happened as intermediaries got the two camps to agree which clan would file on what day to avoid an encounter at the Commission on Elections office: Monday to Wednesay for this camp, Thursday and Friday for the other.

The police and the military had prepared for any eventuality, deploying tanks and troops to prevent the followers of incumbent mayor Magondaya Tago, and former mayor Mohammad Exchan Gabriel Limbona, from killing each other.

Police Insp. Wilson Dimaflores, chief of the Lanao del Norte police Public safety Company said at least 200 policemen and soldiers arrived to provide security when Limbona and his opponent filed their COCs at the Comelec office at the municipal hall.

Tago did not seek reelection but fielded his nephew, Jabbar Tago, 29, an ukay-ukay trader, to run for mayor in this fifth-class municipality in Lan-

ao del Norte.

Dimaflores said six Simba armored personnel carriers were deployed around the Pantar municipal hall and along the known routes the warring clans would use en route to the Comelec office.

But no untoward incident happened because of the agreed schedule: Limbona and his candidates filed their COCs from Monday to Wednesday while the followers of Tago filed theirs on Thursday and Friday.

“That way we were able to prevent any violent incident,” Dimaflores said.

Still, the atmosphere was very tense the entire week.

Traders closed shop and residents left their homes temporarily to make way for the electoral exercise.

Jabbar Tago was escorted by a convoy of relatives when he filed his COC last Friday.

Along the route, armed men clad in military uniforms with assorted patches identifying them as Army, Philippine National Police, Moro Islamic Liberation Front and Moro National Liberation Front, were deployed to secure the roads that the convoy took on the way to the municipal hall.

(Froilan Gallardo / MindaNews)

COUNTDOWN. The most joyous season is really just around the corner as this Christmas Day counter at SM City Davao shows. Lean Daval Jr.

Paga-asa: Haze not dangerous

By CHENEEN R. CAPON

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crc@edgedavao.net

HE thick haze that blanketed Davao City and the rest of Mindanao for two weeks poses no danger to one’s health, the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pag-asa) assured.

“The smoke is actually up in the sky and there will be no health risk,” Pag-asa-Davao City station bureau head Gerry Pedrico said.

He said other parts of Mindanao like North Cotabato and General Santos City are also experiencing the same phenomenon which, he explained, as being experienced every five

years.

The thick haze that made the Davao skies cloudy was believed to be caused by either the wild fire creating smog in Kalimantan, Sumatra and Borneo in Indonesia and the light vapor caused by Typhoon Lando.

“The haze we are experiencing right now is not dangerous. It is actually negligible,” Pedrico told EDGE DAVAO in a phone interview yesterday.

Pedrico said haze is usually formed by accumulation of smoke and dust particles in the air. Their station has been observing the haze since October

17. He, however, did not specify until when the phenomenon will last.

In fact, the Department of Health (DOH) 11 here did not have any record of incidents related to the presence of haze which is causing the obscuring of the sky in the past few days.

However, DOH 11 regional director Dr. Abdullah Dumama Jr said long exposure to haze can cause upper respiratory tract infection to human which is manifested by cough.

“Also others nay experience eye and skin irritation,” Dumama said in a text message yesterday.

The proximity of Mindanao from Indonesia lessened the city’s exposure to particulates which can cause irritation and diseases.

However, the smog has already affected several children because of respiratory illnesses in Indonesia.

Resports from GMA News Online said Pag-Asa displayed satellite images that showed that the smog has already reached Mindanao and Visayas.

The smog is expected to worsen and last until next month due to the El Nino, the NASA said.

injured 12 persons including then Governor Abdusakur Tan, now vice governor.

Temogen “Cocoy” Tulawie of Sulu stepped out of the Manila City Jail on July 20 this year, ending three years, six months and six days of imprisonment — in Davao City and Manila — for a crime the court said he did not commit.

The Court ruled that evidence and circumstances surrounding the case point to a concerted design to focus the prosecution on Tulawie, with the use of rehearsed witnesses to falsely testify against him for allegedly committing multiple frustrated murder and multiple attempted murder.

Tulawie, whom movie ac-

tor Robin Padilla described as “Pag-asa ng Sulu” is running for Governor under the Laban ng Demokratikong Pilipino (LDP).

He filed his certificate of candidacy for governor at around 9 a.m. in Sulu, along with Munib Estino, his running mate. Estino was a former

Human rights defender runs for Sulu Governor

A

HUMAN rights defender who was detained for three and a half years for a crime the court said he did not commit is running for Governor of Sulu against reelectionist Abdusakur Tan II, son of the former governor who sent him to jail for his alleged involvement in the May 13, 2009 bombing in Patikul, Sulu that

Al-Qaida leader killed in US airstrike in Syria: Pentagon

M

RESPITE. An exhausted scavenger falls asleep on the pavement in Sta. Ana Wharf yesterday due to the daily struggles just to make ends meet. Lean Daval Jr.

FHUMAN, 10

OHSEN Adballah Ibrahim al Charekh, the highest ranking leader of the network of veteran al-Qaida operatives called the Khorasan Group, has been killed in a recent airstrike, the Pentagon announced Sunday.

The Oct. 15 airstrike killed Charekh, also known as Sanafi al-Nasr, in northwest Syria, the Pentagon said in a statement.

“This operation deals a significant blow to the Khorasan Group’s plans to attack the United States and our allies, and once again proves that those who seek to do us harm are not beyond our reach,” the Pentagon said.

The statement called AlNasr “a long-time jihadist experienced in funneling money

and fighters for al-Qaida.”

Al-Nasr moved funds from donors in the Gulf region into Iraq and then to al-Qaida leaders from Pakistan to Syria; he organized and maintained routes for new recruits to travel from Pakistan to Syria through Turkey; and he assisted al-Qaida’s external operations in the West, the statement said.

Al-Nasr previously worked for al-Qaida’s Iran-based facilitation network, and in 2012, he took charge of al-Qaida’s core finances before relocating to Syria in 2013, the statement said.

He is the fifth senior Khorasan Group leader killed in the last four months. (PNA/ Xinhua)

5 ECONOMY

EDGEDAVAO VOL. 8 ISSUE 144 • TUESDAY, OCTOBER 20, 2015

Conversion of cooking oil into biodiesel studied

By CHENEEN R. CAPON

U

crc@edgedavao.net

SED cooking oil from homes and establishments in Davao City will soon be converted into biodiesel fuel instead of proceeding to the city’s drainage and sewerage systems, a city government official said.

Davao City assistant administrator Atty. Tristan Dwight Domingo said this can be done through a project being eyed by the city with the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) and Biomass Japan, JICA’s private partners in providing necessary technology for the conversion of used cooking oil into a biodiesel fuel.

“Representatives from JICA and Biomass Japan will be here in the city by November 14 for their third visit. They will be here to assess whether the city has enough supply of used cooking oil,” Domingo said during the Kapehan sa Dabaw at SM City Davao Annex yesterday.

Domingo said the availability of used cooking oil in the city will determine whether the project is feasible or not.

If the project pushes through, Domingo said this will be the first of its kind in the whole Philippines.

“The initial plan is to use the converted used cooking oil to power engines of garbage collector trucks or other city government vehicles,” Domingo said.

But, before the third meeting that will determine the continuity of the proposed project, Domingo said the private partners had requested the city government to conduct an initial feasibility study to identify the amount or supply of used cooking oil that can

be collected in the city.

In line with this, the city government met with big private establishments like Gaisano Mall of Davao, Abreeza Ayala Mall, SM Malls, Robinsons, NCCC Malls, Damosa and associations of restaurants and hotels here two weeks ago to confirm their participation in the study.

Domingo said the project was lauded by these establishments, which also face problems in disposing properly their used cooking oil.

According to the Ecological Waste Management Act of 2000, used cooking oil should not be disposed directly to drainage and sewerage systems without undergoing any treatment.

In Davao City, Domingo said observance of the law is one of the challenges they are facing.

“One of the earlier studies conducted by the city revealed that improper disposal of used cooking oil has caused clogging of city’s drainage and sewerage system resulting to flooding,” h said.

Domingo also said since the city do not have any capacity to collect and process used cooking oil some companies here contract a Misamis-based company in collecting and disposing used cooking oil.

“It was agreed during the meeting that we need to drum up the proposed project to get the participation of other private establishments and even households,” he added.

Aside from its effort to disseminate information, Domingo said the city government through the City Environment and Natural Resources Office (CENRO) has already started

its collection of used cooking oils here.

The used oils were collected and will be temporarily stored at the city’s motor pool area in Maa and will be assessed during the visitation of Japanese partners next month, according to Domingo.

If there’s enough amount of used oil, the equipment that will convert the used oil to biodiesel duel will be then shipped from Japan to Davao to start the one month trial.

Not only will the city save from its gasoline expenses, but also its environment.

“With the fast development of the city, it is important to ensure that the city is doing efforts to conserve its environment,” Domingo said.

BIG PLAN. Assistant city administrator lawyer Tristan Dwight Domingo bares a plan by the city government to convert used cooking oil from homes

and establishments in Davao City into biodiesel fuel during yesterday’s Kapehan sa Dabaw at the Annex of SM City Davao. Lean Daval Jr.

CHANGE THE GAME

SSS opens web facility

S

OCIAL Security System (SSS) members reaching the technical retirement age of 65 can now file their benefit applications electronically through the SSS Website (www.sss.gov.ph), giving retirees a fast, convenient and paperless alternative to the manual submission of claims at SSS branches.

SSS Vice President for Benefits Administration Agnes San Jose said this new SSS web facility also enables senior citizens to submit their retirement benefit claims without traveling to and lining up at SSS branches, which saves them time, money and effort.

“Members should first have an email address ready and register with the SSS Website so that they can file their technical retirement claims online. Retirees can view the status of their application through our website, and we will notify them through email about the approval of their

claim,” San Jose said.

Apart from the minimum age requirement of 65, claimants must also have at least 120 posted monthly contributions to be eligible for the online facility. Members cannot file their technical retirement claims online if they have canceled or multiple Social Security or “SS” numbers, pending cases with the Social Security Commission, dependent children, or employed as an underground mineworker.

“The retiree-applicant must also have no unpaid SSS loan, unless this outstanding loan balance pertains to an SSS calamity or salary loan, including those borrowed under our Salary Loan Early Renewal Program,” San Jose explained.

After receiving the benefit claim application, the SSS web system will verify whether the member has met the qualifications for the online facility. The system would either accept

FSSS, 10

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6 THE ECONOMY

EDGEDAVAO

VOL. 8 ISSUE 144 • TUESDAY, OCTOBER 20, 2015

DATE 2015 nets P142M in sales

By CHENEEN R. CAPON

T

crc@edgedavao.net

HE Davao City Chamber of Commerce and Industry Inc. (DCCCII) recorded an increase in sales during the three-day Davao Trade Expo that highlighted Mindanao’s poultry, livestock and aquaculture industry.

DATE 2015 event chair Engineer William Teves said the staging of this year’s DATE at the SMX Lanang Convention Center recorded P342 million net sales,

higher than the P142 million sales in 2012 when the organization also held the DATE with the same focused industries.

“The amount is combination of both actual and contracted sales recorded from September 25 to 27,” Teves said during the weekly Kapehan sa Dabaw at SM City Annex yesterday. DATE 2015 attracted a total of 8,665 trade exhibitors.

Phl supports SDGs T

he Philippines joined more than 150 United Nations (UN) member states in support of the adoption of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and pushed for urgent action to combat climate change and its impact.

“If we are to achieve our development goals, we need to take urgent action to combat climate change,” said Economic Planning Secretary Arsenio M. Balisacan during the closing session of the 70th UN General Assembly on September 27, 2015 at the UN Headquarters in New York, USA. “As president of the Climate Vulnerable Forum, and as one of the most disaster-prone countries in the world, we will also work in the upcoming Paris Conference to ensure that we adopt a new legally binding climate agreement, that is universal and equitable,” he said.

Balisacan emphasized the need to put in place climate change adaptation and mitigation measures particularly in the local levels and increase investments towards a climate resilient economy.

“We have seen extreme weather disturbances occurring with greater frequency and intensity. These calamities can negate our gains in reducing poverty, and even push back development,” he noted.

He also expressed the country’s appreciation of the emphasis placed on the SDGs’ Goal 14 to conserve and sustainably use oceans, seas and marine resources for sustainable development.

“Enshrining this as a global agenda obliges the community of nations to seriously acknowledge challenges to conservation, such as destruction due to massive reclamation as a common concern. These challenges need to be collectively addressed using a rulesbased approach in international law as reflected in UNCLOS (United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea),” Balisacan said.

Furthermore, he welcomed the inclusion of Philippine priorities in the 2030 Agenda, including collective action for conservation, vulnerabilities, and inequality of opportunities.

“There’s no true devel-

opment if inequalities arising from lack of access to opportunities by the most vulnerable remain. We aspire to achieve education for all, universal health coverage, food security, and social and economic inclusion supported by quality infrastructure,” Balisacan said.

The Cabinet official also recognized the potential of the 2030 Agenda to continue the unfinished business of the Millennium Development Goals, as it is now embedded in the more ambitious and comprehensive SDGs comprised of 17 goals and 169 targets.

Moreover, Balisacan called on the other world leaders to mainstream migration in the development process, reduce remittance costs, and fully respect the human rights of migrants.

He likewise noted the pressing need to address maternal and reproductive health to accelerate the fulfillment of women’s human rights and the demand to strengthen the capacities of statistical agencies to make official statistics more disaggregated, frequent, timely, and accessible.

To meet the financial and technical requirements of the SDGs, the Philippines sought partnerships for expanding access to resources for domestic resource mobilization capacity-building, leveraging private sector participation, and achieving resiliency.

“To move forward and achieve the overarching goal of eradicating poverty, we must now develop our national plans and budgets for its (SDGs) implementation and monitoring. In doing so, we will collaborate with civil society and all stakeholders in line with the principle of inclusiveness and accountability,” Balisacan said.

The 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda will define international, regional and national development agenda priorities over the next 15 years. It pronounced the SDGs, also known as the Global Goals, which aim to eradicate poverty, hunger and inequality, take action on climate change and the environment, improve access to health and education, and build strong institutions and partnerships, among others.

Teves attributed the sales increase to the increase in the number of exhibitors which reached to a total of 132 from different sectors.

This was higher than the 75 exhibitors who joined in 2012.

Aside from local exhibitors, Teves said there were also exhibitors from India and Indonesia that joined the three-day event.

The increase was also a

result of the efforts of industry players from different parts of Mindanao to increase their competitiveness in light of the Asean integration by the end of the year, he said.

“Many companies in Mindanao are now into modernizing their operation to make it more efficient,” Teves said.

Many livestock and poultry raisers here are now improving their production areas with the usage of tunnel

ventilation and evaporation cooling system to make production process move effective and efficient, according to him.

These technologies were also being adopted to mitigate the impact of the long dry spell to the livestock and poultry industry of Mindanao.

Although these three sectors will not be heavily affected by the El Nino, Teves said

industry players are worried that the long dry spell will cause an increase in the price of feeds for animals.

Meanwhile, the organizing team of DATE agreed that this year’s focused industries will be highlighted in every two years to ensure that there will be continuity in the promotion.

Next year’s DATE will highlight the region’s agriculture sector.

DATE 2015. Davao Trade Expo (DATE 2015) chairman Engr.Wilfred Teves says the Davao City Chamber of Commerce and Industry Inc. (DCCCII) recorded an increase in trade exhibitors’ sales during this year’s Davao Trade Expo. Lean Daval Jr.

Davao ICON at SMX to focus on real estate, manufacturing A

ROUND 200 to 500 participants are expected to join the 3rd Davao Investment Conference (Icon) on November 4 to 6 at the SMX Convention Center, a big business event that highlights Davao Region as an investment area for tourism, ICT-BPO, real estate and manufacturing.

“Aside from local participants there will be also foreign participants invited for the three-day event,” Davao ICON event chair Architect Daniel Lim said during the Kapehan sa Dabaw at SM City Annex

yesterday.

With the theme “Invest in Davao: Live. Work. Play. Invest.,” the three-day event will feature exhibits, conferences, investors’ night, business matching and a housing madness activity that will offer the lowest rates and big discounts in housing packages.

Organization of Socialized Housing Developers of the Philippines (OSHDP) president Carlito C. Dublan said in the same event that the region’s has a huge opportunity in the real estate sector, espe-

cially now that other industries are also booming.

Dublan said other industries are just interdependent to real estate industry because any development would require land development.

In addition, the region’s housing backlog is another problem of the society that remained unsolved, “The 4 million housing backlog 20 years ago is still unresolved,” Dublan said.

In the city, Davao City Investment Promotions Center (DCIPC) chief Ivan C. Cortez

said the city has still more than 40,000 housing backlog that is still being solved by different government agenciesand various industry players and developers by constructing socialized housing projects.

Meanwhile, Lim said aside from exhibition there will be also a two-day conference which will be highlighted by nationally and internationally-acclaimed speakers and experts who will discuss topic related to the focused industries.

Among the topics in the

HE Social Security Commission, the policy-making body of the Social Security System (SSS) has approved the grant of a calamity relief package for SSS members and pensioners affected by Typhoon Lando for calamity areas declared by the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC).

SSS Assistant Vice President for Member Loans Boobie Angela A. Ocay said SSS

members and pensioners residing in areas to be declared by the NDRRMC under a state of calamity due to Typhoon Lando can avail themselves of the agency’s calamity relief package. The tentative start of the program is on October 26 depending on the NDRRMC declaration.

The SSS calamity relief package consists of the Salary Loan Early Renewal Program (SLERP) which allows members to renew their loans ear-

lier than the prescribed date; the SSS Direct House Repair and Improvement Loan Program, which offers a lower interest rate of only six percent per annum; and three-month advance payment for members receiving pensions under SSS and Employees› Compensation Program.

“This is our way of providing immediate assistance to our members affected by Typhoon Lando. They can renew their loans or advance

their pension even before they are due for renewal or payment,” Ocay said, “We hope that through this calamity package assistance, our members would be able to provide for their basic needs like food, shelter and health care.”

Ocay said the grant of salary loans under SLERP will be subject to the same eligibility guidelines of regular salary loans. “To further help them in their recovery, we will waive

FDAVAO, 10

Calamity aid to Lando-hit SSS members T FCALAMITY, 10

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VOL. 8 ISSUE 144 • TUESDAY, OCTOBER 20, 2015

EDGEDAVAO ARTS AND CULTURE

Island Dreams I

Islands and emotions The artist and his works on exhibit at The Art Portal Gallery for Contemporary Arts.

Island Dreams II

FROM bright and gaudy to sublime with hints or light and energy, there are are how one could describe the works of abstractionist Benjie Isla Cabangis featured on his first solo exhibit in Davao City that kicked of last October 8 at the Art Portal Gallery for Contemporary Art .

A well-respected abstractionist with twenty-four solo exhibitions and numerous local and international group exhibits under his belt, Benjie’s latest exhibit, Archipelago,is a play of the artist’s name and at the same time, Benjie admits that it is his way of exploring the many colours and characteristics of the islands of the Philippine archipelago.

From cool and tranquil compositions to creations that evoke an energetic fiery sunset, Benjie shows that he is a master in abstraction and in evoking feelings from his works.

“Abstraction has an allurement which for years has

From left: Sanctuary 8, Sanctuary 10, Sanctuary 9.

Benjie Isla Cabangis’ Archipelago enthralled me as a painting idiom.

Concerns for paint and surfaces, chance and spontaneous renditions, the accidental and planned bring forth clues when I conceive of ideas for my paintings,” says Cabangis, “The landscape as a visual archetype is apparent in most of the works for the Archipelago exhibit. The horizontal bands, colours, shapes, textures, spatula and brushworks, stains and glazes can rediscover location, climate, topography and territory that may hint at our present uncertainty.”

Benjie Cabangis is currently a full professor at the UP College of Fine Arts where he also graduated with a BFA in Painting in 1978. He chaired the UPCFA Studio Arts Department for three consecutive terms. Cabangis received the Cultural Center of the Philippines Thirteen Artists Award in 1978, the Gawad Chanselor as UP’s Outstanding Visual Artist in 1999 and more recently the UP Arts Productivity Award. He is currently the curator of the UP Fine Arts Gallery. Cabangis works are

represented in various public, private and corporate collections in the country and abroad.

The Archipelago exhibit is ongoing and will run until the 22nd of October at The Art Portal Gallery for Contemporary Art. Art Portal is located at the 2nd floor BGC Complex2, McArthiur Hiway, Matina, Davao City (across GSIS).

Follow me on Instagram or n Twitter at @kennethkingong for more travel stories, foodie finds, and happenings in, around, and beyond Durianburg.

EDGEDAVAO

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VOL. 8 ISSUE 144 • TUESDAY, OCTOBER 20, 2015

TRAVEL

THE 17th Lubi-Lubi Festival kicked off on Oct. 01, 2015, followed by the opening of the Glan 101 Mercato & Trade Fair and Glan Street Party.

Loads of activities during Glan’s 101th year like, Tabo sa Glan (Livestock Auction), Horse Fight, Championship “Glan 101 Amatyurista”, Mutya ng Glan, Boxing, with every night street party, featuring local bands and guest bands, Banda ni Kleggy, Moonstar88, and Rico Blanco.

On Oct. 08, the Glan 101 Culmination Program, amongst all the activities was the most anticipated one, because on the same day the Isang Silo at Isa sa Glan Lubi-lubi Street Dancing Competition was held, and the grand stand was packed by locals and visitors, to witness the performances vying for the championship title and the Php 350,000 cash prize, 1st runner up Php 250,000, 2nd place Php 200,000, and Php 100,000 consolation prizes. Yes the prizes are immense, all thanks to

Glan celebrates the

LUBI-LUBI FESTIVAL

Cong. Manny Pacquiao.

I had a blast watching the street dancing competition, seeing them at the streets with old houses at the background and at the grandstand even one of the performances gave me goosebumps. Even though it was a bit hot at that time, I didn’t mind, was awed by the performances that the heat didn’t even bother me that much. I was truly impressed on how much work and creativity that was put into all the perfor-

mances, both the contestants and the organisers.

The winners of the street dance competition are, Champion - Landan National Highschool, 1st place - Glan School of Arts and Trades, 2nd place Christian School of Polomolok, and Brgy. Calabanit & Brgy.

Tango got the consolation prizes, no one went home empty handed.

After the much awaited street dancing competition, the people of Glan took it to the

Disco sa Baywalk to celebrate, and to top it all of a grand fireworks display infront of the Municipal Hall illuminated the sky on the last day of the !7th Lubi-lubi Festival.

Follow me on Twitter or Instagram, @kyriekoutre for more adventures in and around my wonderland that is Gensan, Tuna Capital of the Philippines.

VOL. 8 ISSUE 144 • TUESDAY, OCTOBER 20, 2015

EDGEDAVAO

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Seda Abreeza F&B Team finishes Certified Restaurant Server Training

Participants undergo hands-on training

The urban lifestyle hotel concludes its series of trainings for its associates with the Certified Restaurant Server course dedicated to the F&B department.

AFTER three runs of various trainings, Seda Abreeza ends with the Certified Restaurant Server Program for the F&B service department, along with representatives from Seda BGC and Seda Centrio.

A total of fifteen participants have undergone the training from September 5-9 held in the Davao property of the hotel chain.

Still under the American Hotel & Lodging Educational Institute (AHLEI) and Asia World Hospitality (AWH), this training “recognizes the skills and knowledge needed to succeed as a food service profession-

al at a front-line position in a dining facility.”

The certification is under the START (Skills, Tasks, and Results Training) program. According to AHLEI, START “presents concise instructions for training new or prospective employees on how to perform key tasks correctly, along with the general hospitality knowledge, and soft skills needed in the hospitality industry.”

The week-long program was mentored and facilitated by Mr. Daniel Lorenzana, Director of Operations and Administration of Gweilo Corp.

– known for its numerous restaurant brands in

the country. Lorenzana is a free-lance consultant and trainer for food & beverage operations since 2001 and is credible for his contribution in various premium hotels and restaurants in the Philippines.

Among the topics discussed include employee responsibilities, safety regulations, quality guest service, and hands-on experiences on pre-meal preparations, during the meal, and how to provide standard service on alcoholic beverages and service. It also tapped important discussions and mentoring on handling guests and giving

them a memorable experience with the hotel and a comprehensive course from an associate’s start of shift up to the end.

Keeping the promise of providing the best feelings in the world, the training aims to upgrade and further enhance the skills of Seda Hotels’ F&B associates for exquisite guest dining experience.

The last day of training was dedicated for their NCII assessment.

This is the last training set under the grant provided by the Asian Development Bank, Department of Tourism, and the Canadian Government for 2015.

Mr. Daniel Lorenzana on one of the sessions

Miriam receives bestseller award for ‘Stupid is Forevermore’ NATIONAL BOOK STORE bestowed Sen. Miriam Defensor-Santiago with the Certified Bestseller Award for her book, “Stupid is Forevermore” during the meet and greet event held on October 13 which was attended by hundreds of her cheering fans.

The book, sequel to “Stupid is Forever,” was released last June 15 on Sen. Santiago’s 70th birthday. Since then, it has sold over 120,000 copies nationwide and has since been number one in the Bestsellers List of National Book Store. “Stupid is Forever” meanwhile, has broken records with sales of over 450,000 copies in only eight months. “Stupid is Forever” and “Stupid is Forevermore” contain Miriam’s clever one-liners, pick-up lines, and moving speeches. Both books are published by ABS-CBN Publishing, Inc., publisher of the country’s bestselling books.

October 14 – 20, 2015

THE PRENUP Jennylyn Mercado, Sam Milby PG

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

BRIDGE OF SPIES Tom Hanks, Alan Alda PG

1:00 | 4:00 | 7:00 | 10:00 LFS

PAN Hugh Jackman, Levi Miller PG

R-16

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

CRIMSON PEAK Tom Hiddleton, Jessica Chastain R16

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

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EDGEDAVAO

VOL. 8 ISSUE 144 • TUESDAY, OCTOBER 20, 2015

UP AND ABOUT

Callbox to hold Insomnia Music Festival on Oct 24 GHOSTS AND GHOULS, the time has come to choose - step aside OR step to the beat, because it’s about to take over Davao City.

Callbox is inviting all Dabawenyos to Insomnia: A “Spooktacular” Music Festival. Get your rave on at the city’s biggest prehalloween EDM party happening on October 24 at Lanang Business Park, Lanang, Davao City. Held every July 4th in Iloilo City since 2014, Insomnia has drawn thousands of party goers who moved to the music of the country’s top DJs, including DJ Ron Poe and DJ Ace Ramos from Manila. Not even the rain could stop the fun, and this October, it’s your turn, Davao! Come with all your friends (there’s enough space for everybody!) and party with DJ Jet Boado, one of Manila’s best and our very own DJs from Davao City. Get ready for one big laser light show, complete with dancers, laser light

costumes, LED sticks, black lights - the works.

We like to give back in many ways so we’re also holding a charity event a couple of hours before the party. 100 children will attend the grand launching and become long-term beneficiaries of All Above The Line After School Project, a program funded by Callbox Davao to help kids learn how to speak English fluently and to tutor them after school for free. Beneficiaries of the program are selected from pre-schools and elementary schools in the city. All Above The Line is Callbox’s community outreach initiative that addresses poverty by engaging in programs that promote livelihood

and education.

A bazaar will also be open on the same day until October 25 at the Lanang Business Park Parking Area. Davao entrepreneurs are welcome to introduce and sell their products.

Join us at these events, and be sure to party amidst the colorful lights and step to the EDM beat at Callbox Insomnia onOctober 24. Gate opens at 5PM. Tickets are available at P350 General Admission (with 1 cocktail drink from Bacardi) and P500 VIP (with 2 cocktail drinks from Bacardi plus LED Foam Stick). Contact us for tickets at (0932)2657152, (0916)8623789), or call the Callbox Davao office at (082) 2242035.

EDGEDAVAO VOL. 8 ISSUE 144 • TUESDAY, OCTOBER 20, 2015

7 BIGGER PICTURE

Pass the patis and bagoong, please

By HENRYLITO D. TACIO

Bagoong alamang with mango (from the net)

M

ORE than one billion people rely on fish as their main source of animal protein in Asia -- and that includes the Philippines. Dr. Veravat Hongskul said this when he was still the regional fishery officer of the UN Food and Agriculture Organization.

“Fish protein is generally recognized as a valuable ingredient in a balanced diet,” Dr. Hongskul said. “It is of high biological value and contains essential amino acids not normally found in staple food.

Fish oil also contains essential fatty acids, which are necessary for the proper development of the brain and the body.

“Where staple foods are available,” he continued, “a small quantity of fish can contribute significantly to increasing consumption by improving the over-all palatability of the food and add to its nutritive value.”

In the Philippines, people love to eat their foods somewhat salty.

The most popular among the salted fish products are patis and bagoong. Aside from being widely used as condiments for flavoring local dishes, these two are also the only salted Philippine fish products which have entered the international market.

Patis is actually a fish sauce, an amber-colored liquid extracted from the fermentation of fish with sea salt. The earliest known reports of fish sauce are from ancient Greece, between fourth and third century BC. It was made with a lower salt content than modern

fish sauce.

Fish sauce is a staple ingredient in numerous cultures in Southeast Asia and the coastal regions of East Asia. In Southeast Asia, fish sauce is generally use as a cooking sauce. In Thai cuisine, it is used both in cooking and also served as the table for use as a condiment. In parts of southern China, it is used as an ingredient for soups and casseroles.

In the Philippines, patis is nearly always cooked prior to consumption -- even when used as an ingredient to salad or other raw dishes.

It is also utilized as a component in cooked dishes, including arroz caldo, mami and luglug. In some instances, it is used as a condiment for fried fish.

There are also Filipinos who use patis in lieu of salt in meals to enhance the flavor of food, where it can either be dashed from a dispensing bottle onto the food, or poured into a saucer and mixed with calamansi and used as a dipping sauce.

The website of Business Diary shares some ideas on how to make patis. The materials needed are fish (of assorted species), enzymes from microorganisms and salt. The equipment needed is fermentation vessels provided with stirrer.

The assorted species of fish are washed first to free them from undesirable dirt. After washing, these are grinded to facilitate hydrolysis of the protein content. The ground fish are placed into clean fermentation vessels provided with stirrer.

An appropriate amount of

salt is added and these are mixed uniformly to inhibit the growth of microorganisms during fermentation. Enzymes obtained from microorganisms of plant animals are introduced to fortify the natural endoenzymes present in the fish. The mixture is stirred. The pH requirement of the particular enzyme used is adjusted.

Fermentation is done for 13 days. The digested mash is cleaned by filtering. The clear reddish brown liquid is collected and placed in the bottle. Now, you have a patis ready for use.

Bagoong, or fish paste, is a salted fish product that is considered as a main source of protein for low income families in some parts of the country. It is used as flavoring in some well-known Filipino dishes like kare-kare, pinakbet and bulanglang or eaten as a viand together with rice.

Bagoong is usually made from a variety of fish species, including the following: round scads (known as dilis, monamon, bolinao or guyaran), redbait or rubyfish, ponyfish (sapsap), rabbitfish (siganid), herrings and silver perch (ayungin). In Southern Visayas and Mindanao, bagoong is more popularly known as ginamos. In other parts of the country, people call it as bagoong isda.

Bagoong can also be made from krill or tiny shrimps. This type of bagoong is called bagoong alamang. In Southern Philippines, it is called uyap.

The Wikipedia shares the fol-

Patis for sale (from the net)

lowing information in preparing bagoong isda: It is prepared by mixing salt and fish usually by volume; the salt and fish are mixed uniformly, usually by hand. The mixture is kept inside large earthen fermentation jars. It is covered to keep flies away and left to ferment for 30-90 days with occasional stirring to make sure the salt is spread evenly.

The preparation of bagoong alamang is similar, with krill cleaned thoroughly and washed in weak brine solution (10%). As in bagoong isda, the shrimp are then mixed with salt in a 25% salt and 75% shrimp ratio by weight.

Is eating bagoong alamang good for your health? A study conducted by two Filipino scientists showed that bagoong alamang contains “a relatively high level

of an essential fatty acid known as docosahexaenoic acid (DHA).”

Mary Charlotte O. Fresco, in an article published by the Bureau of Agricultural Research, wrote: “The DHA is a fatty acid essential for neural development in infant during its first few years. The acid components also perform a vital function in brain and retinal development.”

Here’s a surprising discovery from the study: “(DHA) also plays an important role in preventing stroke, heart disease, arthritis, and non-dependency on insulin for diabetic patients. This fact may be attributed to the presence of essential water-binding solutes such as proteins, peptides and carbohydrates.”

Pass the patis and bagoong, please!

EDGEDAVAO

8 VANTAGE

EDITORIAL

H

On mudslinging

E may be out of the running for President, but Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte has still managed to open up the can of worms that politics is in the Philippines. A day after missing the deadline for the filing of certificates of candidacy (COCs) in which he was expected to file his for the presidency, Duterte trained his sights on presidential candidate Mar Roxas, who he said was behind a series of attacks several weeks ago focusing on the mayor’s health. To recall, a former journalist had written on his social media account that Duterte had throat cancer, a key detail that would have chiseled away the people’s confidence in their leader. Incensed, Duterte had fired back at the writer and accused him of being in the payroll of Roxas, noting that the same person had written about candidates Grace Poe and Jejomar Binay before -- but not about Roxas.

Last Saturday Duterte repeated his accusation against Roxas, and in so doing he gave a glimpse of why he was reluctant to make a run for the presidency. Politics in the Philippines is a dirty proposition not just because those who are in it are corrupt but because they also tend to throw mud at each other in order to

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promote themselves. Roxas has publicly denied being behind the mudslinging against Duterte, but that does little to address the root of the problem. If it was not Roxas, then it was somebody else; either way, mud is being thrown around, and it debases the entire political exercise and brings it to levels that really have no place in a civilized society.

This is probably the result of having a political system that stands not on ideas, principles, and platforms of government but on personalities. Save for a few candidates, most follow the same script in their campaigns: maka-Diyos, makabayan, makatao (God,country, people). They are unwilling to deviate from this because this is what the people want to hear from them. To a large extent, then, we the people are to blame for how campaigns are run in this country.

We take hook, line and sinker the promises of each candidate to put God, country, and people first and proceed to watch as they entertain us with song and dance and as they attack each other on a personal and not ideological level. We have demanded so little of our candidates that they no longer even try to explain themselves; all it takes nowadays is to spread rumors about their opponents.

ANTONIO M. AJERO Editor in Chief

NEILWIN JOSEPH L. BRAVO Managing Editor

AGAPITO JOAQUIN JR. Associate Editor

CHARLES RAYMOND A. MAXEY Consultant

PHILIPPINE PRESS INSTITUTE

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VOL. 8 ISSUE 144 • TUESDAY, OCTOBER 20, 2015

VANTAGE POINTS

9

Nuisance bets — symptom of bad precedence

B

Y the end of October 16, a total of 130 aspirants had filed their certificates of candidacy for the presidency. Is this a symptom of active political engagement or a mockery of the Philippine political landscape?

Most of these people have been tagged as ‘nuisance bets’ because their platforms don’t seem serious or utterly absurd, but the Commission on Elections (COMELEC) accepted their certificates saying that they deserve to be first heard.

Some presidential aspirants like Arturo Pacheco Reyes said he wants to lead “an exodus to the promised land of tomorrow” and said that he wanted to legalize the four seasons in the Philippines.

Another one, Romeo John Reyes, claims to have been chosen by his “master” to lead the nation and calls himself “Archangel Lucifer.” A farmer named Alfredo Tindugan plans to establish a “divine government” as president.

Not all who filed a COC, however, had ridiculous platforms. Some have valid concerns like Alejandro Ignacio who wants to end hunger and poverty and believes

“T

HE difference between failure and success is doing a thing nearly right and doing a thing exactly

right.”

Those words of wisdom, which come from the pen of Edward Simmons, came to my mind as I read an article written by Larry Dorman, which appeared in The New York Times. The event happened in 1996. That was when millions of people watched Greg Normal blow a huge lead in the Masters golf tournament, losing to Nick Faldo.

After the debacle, Norman said he experienced “the most touching few days” of his life. People from all over the world contacted him with words of encouragement. He received four times as much mail as when he won the British Open three years earlier.

“It changed my total outlook on life and on people,” Norman says of his defeat.

“There’s no need for me to be cynical anymore. My wife said to me, ‘You know, maybe this is better than winning the green jacket (given to those who win the Masters golf tournament). Maybe now you understand the importance of it all.’ I never thought I could reach out and touch people like that.

And the extraordinary thing is that I did it by losing.”

How true indeed were the words of the late American president Richard M. Nixon: “Success is not a harbor but a voyage with its own perils to the spirit. The game of life is to come up a winner, to be a success, or to achieve what we set out to do. Yet, there is always the danger of failing as a human being. The lesson that most of us on this

that an MY MILLENNIAL MIND ordinary person like him, self-described as clean and honest, can best run the govVanessa Kate Madrazo ernment.

This has generated diverse reactions from social media – some are entertained, likening some of the candidates to Game of Thrones and Clash of Clans. Some are angry, while others even went out of their way to defend their right to participate politically.

These nuisance bets can be taken from different perspectives. They can be seen as a source of trouble in the electoral process, but they can also be seen as a symptom of a poor political atmosphere.

This massive surge of presidential aspirants – both with absurd platforms,

and good intentions – implies that the government has set a bad precedence.

Many citizens are losing faith in the government’s ability to deliver what the people need.

The ridiculous platforms also imply that the positions in government are perhaps not seen as serious and as credible as they need to be. People claiming to be an archangel and wanting to lead the nation to the promise land makes the highest position in the executive some sort of joke.

On the other hand, several citizens have also been desensitized to the promises that many politicians have made but broken, and to the dirty politics they play to gain the votes they need to be kept in power.

This behavior may be put in a context where for the last decade, people have been fed up with news of the Hello Garci scandal, the Pork Barrel Scam, and corruption in the judiciary – where not in one, not two, but the three branches of the Philippine government have been fraudulent and have fooled Filipinos and

have stolen from the hard-earned taxpayers’ money.

They have heard so much about power-hungry political dynasties and mismanagement of funds even during times of crisis that perhaps they don’t perceive the government as being serious about its job, too.

But even so, this is not the proper response to the current political atmosphere because the presidency is not a joke. He or she is the country’s representative in foreign affairs, one involved in the execution of laws and appropriating the national budget, and one making decisions in the direst of times. The government is far from perfect, but running for president wanting to legalize winter does nothing to correct it.

But this record-breaking number of candidates deserves to be reflected upon by both government officials and voters. It can be used as a starting point of discourse. What urged these nuisance candidates to run? How do Filipinos see their own government? How do voters perceive the integrity of elections?

voyage nevTHINK ON THESE! er learn, but can never quite forget, is that to win is sometimes to lose.”

I d e a s about failures abound.

Emmett LeHenrylito D. Tacio Compte conhenrytacio@gmail.com tends, “He who has never failed has never tried.” W.A. Nance says, “Failures can be divided into those who thought and never did, and those who did and never thought.”

Charles Kettering has this to say: “You fail because your ideas aren’t right. You should be afraid to fail, but you should learn to fail intelligently. But that I mean, when you fail, find out why you failed, and each time you fail it will bring you up nearer to the goal.”

The world is replete with stories of men and women who thought were failures but became successful anyway. Isaac Newton did very poorly in grade school. Walt Disney was fired by a newspaper editor for lack of ideas. Henry Ford failed and went broke five times before he finally succeeded.

In some instances, parents discouraged instead of inspired their children to become successful. “You care for nothing but shooting, dogs and rat catching,” the father told his son, Charles Darwin, when the lat-

ter gave up his medical career. But this did not deter him to become the father of the Theory of Evolution. In his autobiography, Darwin wrote, “I was considered by all, my master and by my father, a very ordinary boy, rather below the common standard in intellect.”

Teachers were no help at all. Ludwig van Beethoven handled the violin awkwardly and preferred playing his own composition instead of improving his technique. His teacher called him hopeless as a composer.

Albert Einstein did not speak until he was four years old and didn’t read until he was seven. His teacher described him as “mentally slow, unsociable and adrift forever in his foolish dreams.” He was expelled and was refused admittance to the Zurich Polytechnic School.

Oftentimes, those so-called “experts” may be wrong at all. “Can’t act! Slight bald!

Can dance a little,” said the memo from the testing director of MGM of the first screen test of dancing sensation Fred Astaire.

Eighteen publishers rejected Richard Bach’s 10,000-word story about a “soaring” seagull, Jonathan Livingston Seagull, before Macmillan finally published it in 1970. But 1975, it had sold more than seven million copies in the United States alone.

Richard Hooker worked for seven years on his humorous war novel, M*A*S*H, only to have it turned down by 21 publishers before Morrow decided to publish it. It became a runaway bestseller, spawning a blockbusting movie and a highly successful television series.

All these “failures” have one thing in common though: they didn’t quit. An unknown poet says it well: “When things go wrong as they sometimes will, when the road you’re trudging seems all uphill, when the funds are low and the debts are high, and you want to smile, but you have to sigh.”

“Rest if you must, but don’t you quit,” the poet continues. “Life is queer with is twists and turns, as every one of us sometimes learns, and many a failure turns about when he might have won had he stuck it out.”

Some people, however, can dismiss failures humorously. Comedian actor W.C. Fields once said: “If at first you don’t succeed, try, try again. Then quit. There’s no use being a damn fool about it.”

There’s no better education than one’s own failures. There is a true story about a project manager at IBM who lost the company ten million dollars. Dejectedly, he walked into the president’s office and said, “I’m sorry. I’m sure you’ll want my resignation. I’ll be gone by the end of the day.”

The president’s response showed his understanding of the value of failure. He said, “Are you kidding? We’ve just invested ten million dollars in your education. We’re not about to let you go. Now, get back to work.”

William A. Ward points out: “From failure can come valuable experience; from experience – wisdom; from wisdom – mutual trust; from mutual trust – cooperation; from cooperation – united effort; from united effort – success.”

The line of least persistence

10 NEWS 12 SETTLERS... FROM 1

Montilde, 48.

All are residents of Purok 117, Barangay Bago Oshiro, Davao City.

The suspects and other residents in the area made a human barricade in the area and posted a tarpaulin stating “117 Bago Oshiro Farmers Association Davao City Ipaglaban namin ang karapatan sa lupa (We will fight for the right to this land).”

Police arrested the 12 at around 9 a.m. after suspect Sudaria allegedly threw a Molotov cocktail at the driver of the backhoe of CLTG Builders, the contractor doing the road project for the sports complex.

The Molotov cocktail injured the driver and caused a fire that burned the backhoe.

The fire then spread to the adjacent backhoe. The total damage was set at P1.9 million.

Operatives recovered a “katana” (short sword), two bolos, a lighter, gasoline container, and a multicab from the

crime scene.

In an interview yesterday, Davao City Police Office (DCPO) spokesperson Chief Inspector Milgrace Driz said the group was led by Logronio.

Driz said the suspects will be charged for arson and grave coercion because of the commotion made by the group.

“Although, there were negotiations made before, there were two people who still throw a Molotov to the equipment,” she said.

She said because of the incident, the DCPO will deploy the City Public Service Battalion (CPSB) in the area so that the safety of the contractors, students, and other settlers will be assured.

Earlier, the settlers said they will fight for their rights to the property in the area even though the City Council had already approved the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the city and UP Min for the establishment of the sports complex.

tionally plant trees or build structures under high voltage transmission lines and demand compensation every time NGCP personnel enter the property for maintenance work.

Ladaga said the frequent dips in voltage severely affect both household appliances and industrial equipment.

She said the interruption and power outages caused by trees and plants on power transmission lines affect not only the operations of the hydropower plants, which is the source of the bulk of power supply, but all the power consumers in Mindanao because of longer power interruptions.

(PNA)

at Brgy. Catalunan Grande.

Once completed, said project will allow for increase of water supply and accommodation of additional service connections in Tugbok Water Supply System, and increase water pressure of immediate environs.

Second set is on October 22 from 9:00 AM to 4:00 PM affecting a portion of Brgy.

Ula, Tugbok particularly Rose Street, Santan Street and Centennial Village II. DCWD crew will tap and loop the newly installed 6-inch diameter PVC pipeline to the existing 6-inch diameter and 4-inch diameter PVC pipeline for the mainline improvement at Purok 3, Rose Street in Brgy. Ula, Tugbok. Once completed, said project will allow for accommodation of additional service connections.

DCWD general manager

Edwin V. Regalado asks for the understanding and cooperation of would-be affected customers. He also advises them to store enough water prior to the scheduled water interruptions. Water supply may be restored earlier if work goes smoothly or later if unforeseen problems arise.

The general public may visit DCWD website (www. davao-water.gov.ph) and official Facebook page (www. facebook.com/davaowater) or call the Central Information Unit / Call Center through the 24-hour hotline 297-DCWD (3293) and press “1” on their phone dial to listen to latest daily water updates. They may also call / text 0927-7988966, 09255113293 and 0908-4410653 for other updates, complaints, queries and matters pertaining to DCWD services.

(JamaeG. Dela Cruz)

the one-percent service fee charged on proceeds of said loans,” she added.

For the advanced pension payments, Ocay said pensioners, whose present address is different from the address in the SSS database will have to submit a barangay certification to prove that they reside in a declared calamity area.

“To our members whose houses need repair after the typhoon, they may avail of cash assistance through our Direct House Repair and Improvement loan window, which now only carries an interest of six percent per annum,” Ocay said.

Ocay said qualified SSS

members and pensioners have until December 31, 2015 to apply for loans and advance pensions while deadline of application for the Direct House Repair and Improvement Loan, is up to one year from issuance of its corresponding circular.

As of October 19, the NDRRMC has not yet declared calamity areas affected by Typhoon Lando which made landfall over Casiguran, Aurora last October 18. Based on the latest NDRRMC report, a total of 4,892 families were evacuated to evacuation centers due to the typhoon.

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DCWD seeks... FROM 2 issue an order stopping Helpmate. The NWRB may also require both parties to compromise.

“As to matter of compromise, that will still be discussed by both parties,” Delima said.

Armando B. Fenequito Jr.

Officers of the local government and volunteer force multipliers.

Tagum policemen, on the other hand, will be concentrating on their respective stations.

Aside from Filipino Scouts from 118 local councils nationwide, 100 scouts from 10 countries will also participate as visiting delegations, which include India, Nepal, Ghana, Singapore, Malaysia, among others.

Vice President and BSP National President Jejomar C. Binay is set to deliver the keynote address during the opening program on October 24 at Energy Park, where he will also lead the unveiling of the scouting monument designed by renowned Mindanao sculptor Kublai Milan.

The week-long National Jamboree which is anchored on the theme “Peace and De-

velopment through Scouting” will provide a progressive, safe and enjoyable learning environment for the Scouts in order to enhance their physical, social, mental, emotional and spiritual potentials.

Participants are expected to undertake high-adventure activities, including community service projects related to the current thrusts of World Scouting: Environment Education, Peace Education and Development Education through the Messengers of the Peace Initiatives, World Scout Environment Program and the Scouts of the World Award.

It can be recalled that the hosting rights for the National Jamboree was awarded to Tagum City last July as an offshoot of the daring bid of the local government and the local BSP Council during the Annual National Council Meeting last May. Louie Lapat/CIO Tagum

Nations (UN) Working Group on Human Rights ruled that the detention of the former president is arbitrary under each and all of the three categories of arbitrariness.

“Mrs. Arroyo was denied bail on grounds that are not compatible with international law; she did not benefit from the presumption in favor of bail; she was denied bail exclusively on the basis of the alleged strength of evidence against her; measures alternative to pre-trial detention were not considered and there were undue delays in considering her bail position in the proceedings against her as a whole,” the UN ruling said.

“Accordingly, the UN recommended the reconsideration of Mrs. Arroyo’s application for bail in accordance with the relevant international human rights standards,” it added.

In her petition, Arroyo asked the SC “to render judgment annulling, reversing, and setting aside the resolutions of April 6, 2015 and September 10, 2015 denying petitioner’s Demurrer to Evidence dated August 27, 2014 for having been issued with grave abuse of discretion amounting to lack of, or in excess of jurisdiction[.]”

In lieu of this, she also asked the SC to dismiss the criminal case against her and acquit her of the offense charged therein.

Besides Arroyo, also charged with plunder by the Office of the Ombudsman (Ombudsman) before the Sandiganbayan were former PCSO General Manager and Vice Chairman Rosario Uriarte; Board of Directors Manuel Morato, Jose Taruc, Raymundo Roquero, Ma. Fatima Valdes; Budget and Accounts Manager Benigno Aguas; Commission on Audit (COA) Chairman Reynaldo Villar; and former COA’s CIF Fraud Audit Unit head Nilda Plaras.

The complaint alleged that they conspired and confederated with one another to unlawfully amass, accumulate and acquire ill-gotten wealth [the said amount], through any or a series of criminal acts.

However, all of the accused who were indicted before the Sandiganbayan had already been granted bail for their temporary liberty except Arroyo.

Because of this, Arroyo also sought equal justice under law.

“The Sandiganbayan resolutions denying petitioner Arroyo’s ‘Demurrer to Evidence’, as shown heretofore, in creating a new criminal offense without authority of the Constitution and the law, and applying the newly created criminal offense ex post facto to petitioner Arroyo, on their face do not render ‘Equal Justice Under Law’,” the petition said.

The petition added that there is no enough evidence to indict the former Chief Executive.

“In point of fact, not a single exhibit of the 637 exhibits offered by the prosecution nor a single testimony of the 21 witnesses of the prosecution was offered by the prosecution to prove that petitioner amassed, accumulated, or acquired even a single peso of the alleged ill-gotten wealth amounting to P365,997,915.00 or any part of that amount alleged in the Information,” it said.

The petition said that implicitly confirming and aggravating its error, “on the basis solely of the ‘petitioner Arroyo’s authorization of the release of the Confidential/Intelligence Fund (CIF) from PCSO’s accounts, the Sandiganbayan ruled that she has committed the offense of plunder under [Republic Act. No. 7080 of the reason that her release of CIF Funds to the PCSO amount to a violation of Sec. 1(d) [1] of R.A. No. 7080[.]” (PNA)

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candidates a window.”

“I do not like [that], parang scheming. Well, let us see.

I don’t know. I leave it to God. If he wants me there, he will place me there. Ganoon iyan.

It’s God’s play. It’s not ours,” Rappler quoted Duterte as saying.

Some have speculated, however, that Duterte should have withdrawn his COC for mayor on October 16 to qualify as a substitute.

A source close to Duterte, who asked not to be named, said even the Comelec seems

to be unsure about this.

For his part, Integrated Bar of the Philippines (IBP) Davao City chapter president lawyer Caesar Europa said, no law or Comelec guideline requires a potential substitute to withdraw a COC for another position before October 16.

“Wala koy mahinumduman nga prohibition sa withdrawal after sa period for filing (I do not remember any prohibition on withdrawal after the period of filing),” Europa told EDGE Davao in a text message.

vice governor of Sulu and former mayor of Panglima Estino town.

Tulawie and Estino will be facing the son and mother tandem of the Tans — Abdusakur II for a second term as Governor and his mother, Nurunisah Abubakar Tan for Vice Governor, under the Liberal Party.

Nurunisah, chair of the Sulu Provincial Women Council (SPWC) is the wife of incumbent Vice Governor Abdusakur Tan, former Governor and father of the incumbent Governor.

In his Facebook post, Tulawie said he is running for governor to “heed the strong clamor of the people” for him to “lead the grassroots movement for new politics, good governance and total human development for Lupah Sug.” “InshaAllah, we shall be able to seize back the power from the monopoly of one family and bring it back to where it rightly belongs — the people of Lupah Sug. Along with running mate Hji Munib Estino, let this be the first significant step for a brand new Sulu.” Tulawie

said.

The Tan patriarch served as councilor of Jolo, Sulu from 1981 to 1987; served as Representative of the 1stdistrict of Sulu from 1987 to 1992; Governor of Sulu from 1996 to 2001 and 2007 to 2013; was elected vice governor in 2013; and last week filed his COC for Governor of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM), against reelectionist Governor Mujiv Hataman of the Liberal Party.

Tulawie said his platform of government will focus on ensuring basic services like education, water and electricity are provided. “Ang dilim ng Sula at ang dumi ng tubig.

(Sulu is so dark and the water is dirty),” Tulawie said.

Peace and order will also be a priority “and we will promote reconciliation among the feuding clans,” Tulawie told MindaNews.

He said they will also work for an investment climate that would allow businesses to thrive in a fair competition.

(Carolyn O. Arguillas / MindaNews)

the member’s application if all of the requirements were met, or the retiree would be immediately informed of the lacking requirements.

“For example, if a member is below 65 years old and has a canceled SS number, a message will pop-up on the computer screen stating that he is ineligible for the online service due to the said deficiencies. In this case, the member must personally file his claim at the nearest SSS branch,” San Jose said.

Once the online technical retirement claim application is successful, the SSS will provide an acknowledgment receipt which the member may print. Members whose applications are accepted online must not submit another

application in an SSS branch to avoid problems in processing their retirement claim.

“Similar to paper-based applications, retirees applying online can also avail themselves of the advanced 18-month pension which they can use for a new business venture, leisurely travel, and other personal endeavors that they want to pursue post-retirement,” San Jose noted.

The state-run institution has 1.08 million retirement pensioners at present, who account for over half of the nearly two million SSS pensioners to date. For queries about the online facility, members can contact the SSS Call Center at 920-6446 to 55 from 7a.m. on Mondays all the way to 7a.m. on Saturdays.

two-day conference are: Recent Trends and Developments in Real Estate Investment Industry by David Leechiu; 3rs: Remmittance, Real Estate, and Retirement

by Surewell Equities, Inc., chairman and chief executive officer Bansan Choa ; medium Term Global and Philippine Economic Outlook and Impact on the Davao Region by Wallace Business Forum ceo Peter Wallace; Earthquake Hazard Mapping with Insights on the Regional Risks of Philvocs director Dr. Renato Solidu.

Lim also said there will be also presentation on the

new Comprehensive Land Use Plan (CLUP) with the a focus on available public-private partnership projects for the region which will be discussed There will be also discussion on topics like Tourism Opportunities and Challenges in Asean integration: Davao Region Case by Department of Tourism undersecretary Benito C. Bengzon Jr; The Philippine Health Tourism by DOT director Cynthia C. Lazo; and Philippine Retirement Program to be discussed by the Philippine Retirement Authority information officer Ketslynn C. Tan. Cheneen R. Capon

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11 COMPETITIVE EDGE

EDGEDAVAO VOL. 8 ISSUE 144 • TUESDAY, OCTOBER 20, 2015

AEON LOFTS. This two-level loft unit is one of the various home ideas offered by Aeon Towers, the signature project of homegrown developer FTC Group of Companies. Aeon Towers units are being offered for a minimum of P10,000 reservation fee.

Honda issues preventive measure campaign for select vehicles: DTI H

ONDA Care, Philippines Inc. has issued a Preventive Measure Campaign covering selected Honda City, Jazz, Civic, and CR-V vehicles due to a suspected defect in the airbag inflators comprising the driver side airbag/supplemental restraint systems.

In a letter to Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) Undersecretary for Consumer Protection Group Victorio Mario A. Dimagiba dated September 10, 2015, Noel M. Barachina, Division Head for Administration, said the particular vehicles affected

are the Honda City which were produced from 2003 until 2011, Jazz which were produced in 2006 and from 2009 to 2012, Civic which were produced from 2006 until 2011, CR-V which were produced from 2003 until 2011, and Insight Vehicles were produced 2011 and 2012.

Barachina said the preventive measure campaign covers 25,301 units of City, 7,752 units of Jazz, 19,782 units of Civic, 12,730 units of CR-V, and two units of Insight Vehicles which are affected by this preventive measure

campaign in the Philippines.

The airbag inflators comprising the driver side airbag/supplemental restraint systems may have been installed by their supplier with unstable pressure, which may raise safety concerns in the event of a smash-up.

“As a preventive measure, we will replace the Supplemental Restraint System (SRS) Airbag Inflators, free of charge in any 33 authorized Honda dealers and 3 authorized service outlets nationwide,” Barachina said.

HCPI has committed to contact the affected custom-

ers through notification letters and invite them to bring their vehicles to authorized Honda dealers/outlets for vehicle servicing.

Meanwhile, DTI-Davao Regional Director Maria Belenda Q. Ambi said Davao residents who bought a Honda CR-V, Jazz, City, Civic and Insight vehicle produced during the said periods may also contact the nearest DTI office at telephone number (082) 224-0511 local 417 should they have clarifications or some other concerns relative to this advisory. DTI11/NCL/jmm

ry-free,” adds Fernandez.

Carmudi offers listings of over 25,000 vehicles on its website and mobile app, which can be searched using different parameters such as make, model, price, and condition to suit every vehicle hunter.

SafeZone aims to connect businesses to consumers by offering free internet access to partner mobile sites and apps.

SafeZone was launched last February, 2015, and is now the number1 community site in the Philippines according to Effective Measure, with more than 17 million page views last August. SafeZone also has a base of more than 2 million registered users.

“Partnering with the big-

gest digital innovator in the country is a privileged for us.

With this SafeZone partnership, we will able to connect with customers and expand our online reach,” said Subir Lohani, managing director of

Carmudi Philippines.

“Users of Carmudi no longer have to worry about having load or an active data subscription to search for a car,” explained Lohani.

Carmudi is backed by Rocket Internet, a German startup company based in Berlin.

SafeZone is currently available for free to subscribers of Smart, Sun, and Talk ‘N Text.

For more information, please visit http:// www.safezone.ph/ free-services/#carmudi

Carmudi partners with SafeZone O

NLINE car classified Carmudi recently announced its partnership with Voyager Innovations, the digital arm of PLDT and Smart Communications, Inc. (Smart), through its SafeZone platform that will enable enterprise to open their website and mobile applications for FREE of data charges.

According to Benjie Fernandez, Chief Operations Officer of Voyager Innovations, “SafeZone allows consumers to access partner mobile sites and apps for free, making internet browsing more enjoyable. For enterprise this means relationships with customers are extended 24/7.”

“Services are delivered by enterprise through its difital assets in an effective and cost efficient manner. With our latest partnership with Carmudi, Filipinos can now search for a brand new or used car wor-

NGCP seeks gov’t, military help as Mindanao ROW issue escalates

T

HE National Grid Corporate of the Philippines (NGCP) is seeking the immediate assistance of the government and the Philippine Army as its right-of-way (ROW) woes breached critical level with the sustained tripping of the Agus 2-Kibawe Line 1 in Mindanao at 9:39 a.m. on October 17.

“The tripping of the line was caused by a fallen tree cutting the line conductors.

This leaves NGCP with only one line catering to the Agus 1 and 2 power plants and threatening the entire Mindanao island with complete isolation from these hydropower plants should the remaining line become unavailable,” the company said in a statement.

NGCP said the situation is further aggravated as landowners are refusing entry to NGCP personnel deployed to clear and restore these lines which are vital to the grid.

“It has become the practice of some uncooperative landowners to intentionally plant trees or build structures under high voltage transmission lines, and demand for recompense when we seek entry into the property to conduct maintenance activities. The trees and other structures under our facilities breach our safety clearances and endanger the reliability of the entire grid,” NGCP said.

The company is sending an urgent request to the Department of Energy (DOE)

and the Philippine Army to assist in the negotiations with landowners and clearing of the lines, respectively, as soon as possible. The frequent dips in voltage and frequency severely affect both household appliances and industrial equipment.

“NGCP is seeking all avenues of support, from the DOE to the military to the public. We are also appealing to the local government units for a resolution prohibiting tree-planting and building any structure under transmission lines. This does not only affect NGCP or the hydroplants, which form the bulk of their power supply, but all the power consumers in Mindanao stand to bear even longer power interruptions,” the company said.

NGCP is a privately owned corporation in charge of operating, maintaining, and developing the country’s power grid. It transmits high-voltage electricity through “power superhighways” that include the interconnected system of transmission lines, towers, substations, and related assets.

The consortium, which holds the 25-year concession contract to operate the country’s power transmission network, is comprised of Monte Oro Grid Resources Corp., led by Henry Sy, Jr., Calaca High Power Corporation, led

by Robert Coyiuto, Jr., and the State Grid Corporation of China (SGCC) as technical partner.

12 CLASSIFIED

EDGEDAVAO

DAVAO CITY MAIN OFFICE JOCELYN S. PANES Director of Sales Door 14 ALCREJ Bldg., Quirino Ave., Davao City Tel: (082) 224-1413 Telefax: (082) 221-3601 GENERAL SANTOS CITY MARKETING OFFICE EDMUND D. RENDON Marketing Specialist Mobile: (Smart) 0909-424-7990 MANILA MARKETING OFFICE ANGELICA R. GARCIA Marketing Manager 97-1 Bayanbayanan Ave., Marikina Heights, Marikina City Tel: (02) 654-3509

VOL. 8 ISSUE 144 • TUESDAY, OCTOBER 20, 2015

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NEWS 13

‘Lando’ maintains strength as it moves slowly toward north Luzon T

YPHOON “Lando” (international name: Koppu) maintained its strength as it moves slowly toward the provinces of Ilocos Norte, Abra and Apayao, the state weather bureau said in its 11 a.m. weather bulletin.

As of 10 a.m., the center of typhoon “Lando” was located 20 kilometers west of Vigan

City in Ilocos Sur and packed with maximum sustained winds of 120 kph near the center and gust of up to 150 kph.

It is forecast to move northeast at 5 kph, the Philippine Atmospheric Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) said.

PAGASA weather forecaster Glaiza Escullar said the

EXTRA-JUDICIAL SETTLEMENT OF ESTATE WITH DEED OF DONATION

Notice is hereby given that the estate of the late EVENCIO G. FILIPINAS has been the subject of an EXTRA-JUDICIAL SETTLEMENT OF ESTATE WITH DEED OF DONATION executed among his heirs per Doc. No.262; Page No.53; Book No. XI; Series of 2015, of the NOTARY PUBLIC FAIRY FAITH B. RABAGO-AGUSTIN 10/13,20,27

typhoon is expected to linger in the country with its slow movement due to the presence of a high pressure area.

“Lando” is expected to be in the vicinity of Claveria,

Cagayan on Tuesday morning.

Meanwhile, storm signal number 2 is hoisted over the provinces of Ilocos Norte, Ilocos Sur, La Union, Abra, Apayao, Kalinga, Mt. Province,

Ifugao, Benguet and Cagayan including Calayan and Babuyan group of islands.

Storm signal number 1 is still raised in the provinces of Pangasinan, Zambales, Tarlac,

Pampanga, Nueva Ecija, Nueva Vizcaya, Quirino, Aurora, Isabela and Batanes.

Meanwhile, the storm signal in the National Capital Region has been lifted. (PNA)

14 EDGEDAVAO Sports

VOL. 8 ISSUE 144 • TUESDAY, OCTOBER 20, 2015

ANOTHER EXPLOSION HEAVY TRAFFIC. Francis Gabriel Escandor of Ateneo de Davao University stretches for a layup against a Jose Maria College defender during the Ateneo-JMC encounter in the ongoing Gaisano Grand Cup last Saturday at the Gaisano Skygym. Lean Daval Jr.

Escandor explodes for 49 as Esdevco Genesis wins 5th straight match Results: Saturday, October 17 Premia d. KADSIA 78-62 DASIA d. Globe 9082 Sunday, October 18 White House d. Mesa (Default) Esdevco-Genesis d.

TRMH 96-74 DASIA d. KADSIA 91-66

W

ALA boxers shine in US debut

F

LAMBOYANT Albert Pagara put on a dazzling show in his first US fight after scoring an entertaining knockout win over William Gonzales on Saturday night (Sunday morning, Manila time) in Carson, California.

The rising Filipino fighter put his Nicaraguan opponent down for good with a solid right from which Gonzales never recovered.

Time was 2:20 of the sixth round.

Pagara raised his unbeaten record to 25-0 (18 KOs) as he won the vacant WBO Intercontinental Jr. featherweight championship in the main undercard of Pinoy Pride 33.

Also making mark in their respective US debuts were Jason Pagara and

Mark Magsayo, respectively.

Pagara was simply too much against Santos Benavides as he knocked down his opponent thrice in the second round to win by knockout in their 10-round non-title match at junior welterweight.

Magsayo meanwhile, kept his unbeaten record by churning out a first round technical knockout against Yardly Suarez.

The end came at the 2:00 minute mark of the opening round as the Filipino won the International Boxing Federation (IBF) Youth featherweight title.

Fil-Am Bruno Escalante set the tone for the Pinoy boxers early on after scoring a unanimous decision over Nestor Ramos, 60-54, 59-55, 59-55.

HEN Francis Gabriel Escandor is on fire, he is virtually unstoppable.

The youthful forward of Esdevco-Genesis detonated 49 big points to carry Esdevco-Genesis past The Royal Mandaya Hotel 96-74 for its fifth win in a row in the 2015 Escandor Group of Companies basketball tournament over the weekend at the Genesis Gym. The six-foot-one Ateneo de Davao University stalwart torched the hoops from virtually all angles for his biggest output so far in the tournament. He had 43 and 39 points in the

BIG DEBUT. Mark Magsayo kept his unblemished record.

TEAM STANDINGS ESDEVCO-GENESIS WHITE HOUSE DASIA PREMIA TRMH KADSIA GLOBE MESA previous two games of the Realtors. On Sunday, he hit the 8 from downtown, 4 coming in the third period where he scored 18 points.

Not to be outdone, his father Glenn added 16 points including four conversions from rainbow country. Glenn fired 8 in the final period including two triples.

Esdevco-Genesis now has a 5-0 win-loss record to tie White House at the top with similar

W 5 5 4 2 1 1 1 0

L 0 0 1 3 3 4 4 4

cards. White House won without dropping a sweat after a no-show

by Mesa.

In Saturday’s games, Premia defeated KADSIA 78-62 and DASIA turned back Globe GMI 90-82. Sunday’s other game saw DASIA beat KADSIA 91-66.

The Inter-company tournament is sanctioned by the Samahang Basketball ng Pilipinas Region 11 under Regino-Boy’ Cua.

EDGEDAVAO

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SPORTS 15

Manny can’t play for Aguilas:PBA

STICK TO THE PBA. Manny Pacquiao, who now co-owns the Pilipinas Aguilas team in ther ASEAN Basketball League is covered by a PBA rule disallowing players from playing in another league outside the PBA.

PBA resets opening day

T do.

HE PBA cancelled its opening ceremonies for the 41st season scheduled on Sunday due to typhoon Lan-

The festivities slated for Sunday at the SMART-Araneta Coliseum, which includes the opening game of the Philippine Cup between Rain or Shine and Star, will instead be re-scheduled to Wednesday, the league announced.

“The PBA decided to postpone today’s opening due to bad weather. Instead, we shall have the formal opening on Wednesday with the same game to be played. The safety of our people is our priority. Thank you,” the PBA wrote in a statement.

Lando already made its landfall on Sunday in Aurora where storm signal No.4 is now raised.

Metro Manila is now in signal No.2 as the typhoon brings torrential rains to affected provinces.

The opening ceremonies will be moved to the Mall of Asia Arena on Wednesday at 5 p.m., while he Rain or Shine-Star tiff will be played at 7 p.m.

M

ANNY Pacquiao cannot play in a team outside the PBA at the same

time.

PBA president and chief executive officer Chito Salud stressed the existence of a Uniform Player’s Contract (UPC) prohibits the playing-coach of Mahindra Enforcers from playing for any team, more so in a league other than the PBA. Salud made the clarification in ight of talks that the 36-yearold Pacquiao is set to see action for the Pilipinas Aguilas in the coming season of the Asean Basketball League (ABL).

The Aguilas is co-owned

by Pacquiao with the Pilipinas Legends Group headed by Dick Balajadia.

In the official team roster submitted by Mahindra to the Commissioner’s Office for the coming 41st season of the league, the Enforces conspicuously put Pacquiao’s name under the reserve list.

Still, not even that would allow the congressman from the

province of Sarangani of suiting up for the Aguilas, according to Salud, a former PBA commissioner.

“Remember, he’s coach, head coach of Mahindra. And he has an existing UPC with the PBA, so let’s not deal with speculations,” said Salud.

“We have not received any formal request on that. In fact, he is listed as head coach of Mahindra and he has an existing players’ contract with Mahindra.”

A Pilipinas Aguilas insider said that Pacquiao has not been listed as part of its team roster since the franchise isn’t certain about the possible technicalities involving his existing contract with Mahindra.

But the same insider seemed to disagree with Salud’s contention that being on Mahindra’s reserved list still bars Pacquiao from playing for the Aguilas, citing a previous move

by San Miguel allowing its ‘reserve players’ in the PBA to suit up for the company’s ABL fran-

chise.

League deputy commissioner Rickie Santos however, was quick to dispute the claim.

“I don’t think reserve players ng San Miguel yun. They are what we call unrestricted free agents or those players not included in the team’s official 14-man lineup plus the reserve list,” Santos explained.

“They are still under the team’s salary scheme but not officially part of the team, kaya pinapayagan silang maglaro ng teams sa ibang liga. Now pag may ibang teams na kumuha sa kanila, yung bagong team na nila ang magbabayad ng suweldo nila.”

Besides unlike San Miguel which owned both teams in the PBA and ABL, Santos noted Mahindra and the Aguilar are obviously two different entities.

At the most, according to Salud, Pacquiao, who will be seeking a seat in the Senate in next year’s national polls, could asked his mother ballclub and the PBA Commissioner’s Office

their consent if he’ll insist on playing for the Aguilas.

As of now, Mahindra board of governor Tomas Alvarez said the eight-time world division boxing champion has yet to ask management about any plan to play in the ABL. “First he has to notify the mother team, gets its consent, and then notify the Office of the Commissioner,” Salud said of the procedure.

“Now, whether or not the commissioner/and or the mother team will allow that player who still has a live contract with the PBA is another matter.”

Santos agreed.

“So provided na pumayag yung mother team and the commissioner, what will happen now with his contract? Will it be voided? Will it be bought out?

Ang daming puwedeng mangyari kaya dadaan talaga ng husto yan sa Commissioner’s Office,” said Santos, who is among the longest-serving executives in the league.

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EDGEDAVAO

VOL. 8 ISSUE 144 • TUESDAY, OCTOBER 20, 2015