October 2013 b issue

UK & Europe Edition

October 2013 / Fortnightly

STRONG QUAKE STRIKES VISAYAS, DEATH TOLL CLIMBS TO 49 THE death toll from the magnitude 7.2 earthquake that struck the Visayas Tuesday morning has climbed to 49, according to the Police Regional Office 7 (PRO7).

“Dito meron kaming records based sa initial reports ng ating mga provincial directors at city directors. Ang casualties natin ay 49, mga namatay. Sa Cebu ang reported na patay 9, sa Bohol 39, at isa sa Siquijor [We have here records based on initial reports of our provincial directors and city directors. There are 49 deaths: nine were reported dead in Cebu, 39 in Bohol and one in Siquijor],” PRO9 Director Chief Superintendent Danilo Constantino said in a phone interview.

Constantino said some residents in Cebu apparently panicked during the earthquake.

He was apparently referring to earlier reports of stampedes in two places in Cebu where the DSWD was distributing the latest tranche of the 4Ps’ program subsidy to poor families. Thousands were lined up when the quake struck.

He said their list of the injured now totals 164 persons: 57 in Cebu, 104 in Bohol, and the balance from other affected areas.

The earthquake struck past 8 a.m. on Tuesday, with the US

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Geological Survey reporting that the 7.2-magnitude quake’s epicenter is located about 2 kilometers south of Carmen, Bohol.

The National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council earlier said 20 have been confirmed dead: 15 in Cebu, 4 in Bohol, and 1 in Siquijor.

In a news briefing at Camp Aguinaldo in Quezon City, NDRRMC spokesman Maj. Rey Balido said scores were injured.

Balido said this is initial data and his office expects the numbers will increase in the next few hours.

Collapsed billboard. Minda Amorente, director of the Office of Civil Defense 7 (OCD7), said four people were wounded when a metal billboard collapsed on them in Cebu City.

“We expect damages sa malakas na lindol sa Central

Visayas,” Amorante said minutes after the earthquake struck.

A man was reported killed in Mandanue City after a portion of the public market collapsed and fell on a group of market goers.

Another confirmed fatality was in Barangay San Isidro, Talisay City, where a factory building collapsed. Rescue operations are ongoing to save 2 more persons trapped under the debris.

In Mandaue, the injured were rushed to the Mandaue District Hospital where some patients also had to be evacuated outside for safety.

Red Cross at the scene Gordon. In an interview with Radyo5, Philippine Red Cross chairman Richard Gordon said they are still verifying reported casualties but two were confirmed dead in Mandaue. They have also

Volume 4 - Number 20

set up welfare desk in hospitals to assist the wounded.

The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) said it is coordinating with local government units (LGUs) affected by the earthquake. Standby resources worth ₱8.7 million are available, broken down into ₱5.9 million for Region 6 and ₱2.84 million for Region 7.

In an interview with Radyo5, Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology Director Renato Solidum, said an intensity 6 quake was felt in Negros Oriental, intensity 5 in Iloilo, while the Bicol region and Northern Mindanao felt the earthquake at around intensity 3-4. No danger of tsumami was seen given that the quake was tectonic in nature.

This was also felt in Bacolod City, Negros Occidental where it

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registered magnitude 5. The quake was felt for a minute, enough to sway picture frames on the wall to sway, residents said.

National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council Undersecretary Eduardo del Rosario told Radyo5 the quake was felt in Davao City were it registered at intensity 3.

He said they are still monitoring damage and validating reports of casualties.

A 5.4-magnitude aftershock has hit Nueva Fuerza, Bohol at 8:29 a.m. The third magnitude-5 aftershock was registered in Canmaya Diot, Bohol, the following aftershock coming in at magnitude 5.2 in Loon, Bohol. So far 18 aftershocks ranging from magnitude 2 to 4 were recorded since 8:20 Tuesday morning.

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NEWS

October 2013 / Fortnightly – No. 20 • UK & Europe Edition

STRONG QUAKE STRIKES VISAYAS...

Collapsed buildings. According to Cebu City residents, buildings along N. Bacalso Ave. have reportedly collapsed.

Other buildings in the city include Gaisano County Mall in Banilad, Cebu Technological University, One Citilink Terminal, Cebu Doctor’s University in Mandaue. A two-storey building near Cebu Technological University reportedly has totally collapsed.

Class suspensions. Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama has suspended classes on Wednesday as the local government starts inspecting buildings for damages.

Classes in all levels, public and private, have in fact been suspended for Wednesday in both Cebu and Bohol.

In a TV interview, Bohol Governor Edgar Chatto said there are many requests for assistance as old churches and municipal buildings sustained damages.

He also confirmed two bridges, a mall, and Tagbilaran City Hall were damaged.

Electricity is also down in the provinces of Cebu and Bohol, the Philippine Information Agency - Central Visayas tweeted.

According to the region’s PIA, there were initial reports from Bohol that Lindaville subivision phases 1 and 2 sustained damages, with a number of houses destroyed.

Bohol’s historic Loboc church severely damaged. Robert Michael Poole, whose Tweetpic of Bohol’s famous Loboc church captured the heartbreaking damage, was riding a motorbike when the quake happened.

“The damage is very extensive. I’m sitting on the side of the church right now; the front end and one end of the building is still standing, but the middle part has completely collapsed,” Poole told ANC in a phone interview.

The tower on the side of the church has collapsed onto the street. The building on

the side of the river has collapsed, parts of it falling into the river, Poole added.

No one was inside the church at the time as far as he knew, said Poole.

Poole said people were “surprisingly calm” and a white tent was set up near the damaged church; people are seeking shelter there now, as many aftershocks are still being felt.

Phivolc’s Solidum said at intensity 7, there is a big possibility of buildings collapsing and landslides occuring.

Radyo5 Cebu correspondent Ryan Sorote said a van in Talisay Cebu was crushed by falling debris, with four people trapped inside. Rescue operations are ongoing.

In Asiatown Industrial Park, Cebu City’s central business district, employees were evacuated and were not yet advised to go back to their respective office buildings.

Radyo5 also reported that a footbridge in a mall in the city also collapsed.

Tagbilaran airport temporarily shuts down, re-opens. The Mactan Cebu

International Airport has been cleared for operation following the strong earthquake that struck Central Visayas Tuesday morning, Secretary Joseph Emilio Abaya of the Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC). In an interview with Erwin Tulfo over Radyo5, Abaya said Tagbilaran airport was temporarily shutdown as the Air Transport Office was conducting clean-up operations.

He also said he received reports that the Tagbilaran Port sustained heavy damage and that operations were temporarily suspended.

“We received reports that there were cracks at the Cebu Airport, but I think the fact that it has been cleared for operations means there’s no problem with the runway,” Abaya said in another interview with DZMM. Radyo5 also reported Cebu Pacific has already cancelled trips to and from Tagbilaran. Cancelled flights are 5J-617 MNL-Tagbilaran and 5J-618 Tagbilaran-MNL. Philippine Airlines/PAL Express said flights to Tagbilaran are also suspended.

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Two domestic flights were diverted with Cebu Pacific 5J617 returned to Manila, Zest Air flight Z2 350 diverted to CebuMactan while Pal Express flight 2P773 Manila-Tagbilaran, Seair flight DG7004 Manila-Cebu, ZestAir flights Z2354 ManilaTagbilaran and Z2380 Manila-Cebu flights are still on hold at the NAIA Terminal 4.

The Philippine Coast Guard said it has suspended ferry trips in Tagbilaran, Cebu City and nearby provinces as precautionary measure.

Deputy presidential spokesperson Abigail Valte said based on the information coming from the Department of Transportation and Communications, the Tagbilaran and Mactan airports are now both operational.

Children still trapped in collapsed school in Talisay City. According to the Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (PDRRMC), one school, the St. Benedict Children’s Center collapsed, and a number of children were trapped. Rescue oeprations are ongoing, according to Neil Sanchez of the Cebu Provincial Risk Reduction and Monitoring Center (PDRRMC).

Continuation from page 1

The operations center of the Cebu PDRRMC also suffered some damage, forcing them to set up a command post outside the area.

The PDRRMC is still focusing on the southern and northern parts, particularly near the Bohol area.

PIA Mindanao in its Facebook page said the PDRRMC reported that the earthquake caused a house in Siquijor to collapse, injuring a couple that was immediately brought to the hospital.

Department of Education Undersecretary Tony Umali told Radyo5 their Region 7 office recommended to LGUs to suspend all classes in Bohol and Cebu on October 16 due to the damages sustained by buildings. He said the official declaration must come from the LGUs. The Department of Health meanwhile has put all public hospitals in the said provinces on red alert.

No Britons. In a related development, no Briton has been monitored to have been affected by the killer quake that struck Central Visayas Tuesday morning, the British embassy in Manila said.

British Ambassador Designate Asif Ahmad said: “Reports of the earthquake in Bohol and Cebu reached me as it happened this morning. I am saddened to hear of the loss of lives in the region and it will be some time before the full extent of the damage becomes known. Whilst there have been no reports of injury to Britons, this is a region that has proven to be hospitable to many British nationals over the years. Everyone familiar will the affected parts of the country will join me in the hope that the community recovers from what has been a difficult day.” ■ With reports from Jaime Sinapit, Lira Dalangin-Fernandez, and Darwin Amojelar / InterAksyon.com and Radyo5 /

October 15, 2013 / Updated 6:22 PM

‘Makapili’: TRC chief lies to save skin on pork barrel scam—Revilla lawyer MANILA, Philippines — Noting that Technology Resource Center (TRC) Director General Dennis Cunanan has applied to be a state witness, Senator Ramon “Bong” Revilla Jr., through his lawyer, on Friday denied Cunanan’s allegations linking him to the misuse of billions in PDAF by diverting them to bogus NGOs. He reiterated his claim that his signatures were forged on papers Cunanan insisted he had signed, adding that Cunanan would say anything now to avoid prosecution.

Cunanan earlier confirmed Revilla’s signature on an endorsement letter to funnel huge pork funds to dubious nongovernment organizations (NGOs) allegedly owned by businesswoman Janet LimNapoles.

The woman dubbed “pork barrel queen” is facing two separate plunder charges at the Office of the Ombudsman in connection with misuse of the Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF) of three senators and five congressmen. Revilla is one of the three senators, the others being Minority Leader Juan Ponce Enrile and Sen. Jinggoy Estrada. The other plunder charge against Napoles deals with the diversion of ₱900-million Malampaya funds released in December 2009 to the Department of

Agrgarian Reform, ostensibly as assistance to typhoon Ondoy victims.

In a statement on Friday, Revilla lawyer Atty. Joel Bodegon said that Cunanan’s recent statement is clearly an afterthought and he is lying through his teeth to escape prosecution from plunder and graft cases lodged against him in connection with the ₱10-billion pork scam.

“It is only natural for an accused to say anything just to get out of his problem. In fact, everybody would understand that a person in his situation would sacrifice others to save his skin. Kahit ano sasabihin niyan at kahit sino ituturo, basta may pangako na malululusutan niya yung kaso niya. Hindi ba’t ‘yan ang istorya ng mga makapili [He will say anything and will point to anybody, just to wiggle out of his case. Isn’t that much like the makapili]?” Bodegon asked. The “makapili” were Japanese collaborators in World War II who wore native bags (bayong) over their heads as they went from village to village pointing out to Japanese soldiers the Filipinos who are allegedly guerrillas, or guerrilla supporters.

Bodegon said that Revilla could not follow up a fake transaction based on fake documents; he didn’t know that TRC was working with Napoles NGOs; and the

senator doesn’t know Cunanan, whom he never met nor talked to.

“This is a contrived testimony with the end in view of having himself absolved of the charges against him. Sumusunod siya sa mga taong may ipinapasabi sa kanya, sa pangakong hindi matutuloy ang kaso laban sa kanya [He is parroting the lines foisted on him by certain officials, on the promise thaht charges against him will not be pursued],” Bodegon said.

He reminded people that Cunanan had earlier applied to be a state witness when he was included in the Justice department’s complaint at the Ombudsman; and it seems curious that now he is spouting things he did not even raise when he appeared before the Senate Blue Ribbon committee chaired

by Sen. Teofisto Guingona III. Bodegon also denied that Revilla scolded Cunanan for the delay in any project being implemented by TRC coursed through Napoles NGOs. “Cunanan made no such claim before the Blue Ribbon Committee or at any time before or after the hearings of the Committee. The reason is obvious: Cunanan is lying,” Bodegon said.

“By his declarations against Senator Revilla, Cunanan confirms that he is part of

the syndicate with Benhur Luy who stole the people’s money under the PDAF,” Bodegon said.

He said Revilla is including Cunanan in his countercharge of plunder against the syndicate with the Office of the Ombudsman.

News reports said that Cunanan had confirmed Revilla’s signatures in the endorsement letters to funnel his pork barrel to Napoles NGOs. Cunanan made the confirmation in his sworn statement submitted to the National Bureau of Investigation, where he

specifically referred to Sen. Ramon Revilla Jr. “Normally, the legislators themselves and in rare occasions their chiefs of staff confirmed the signature and endorsement letter in favor of their NGO of choice to implement their PDAF-funded projects through TRC,” Cunanan said.

“I sometimes personally make the calls to verify signatures, and in one occasion Senator Revilla scolded me for the delay in the release of his PDAF to a designated NGO when I called his office,” he said in news reports. ■ Ernie Reyes / InterAksyon.com / October 11, 2013 / 3:59 PM

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BUSINESS & FINANCE

October 2013 / Fortnightly – No. 20 • UK & Europe Edition

4 Philippine banks get ratings boost as well from Moody’s MANILA - Following its upgrade of the Philippines to investment grade, Moody’s Investors Service today also hiked the credit ratings of four local banks.

In a statement, Moody’s said it upgraded the respective ratings of BDO Unibank Inc., Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI), Land Bank of the Philippines and Metropolitan Bank & Trust Company to Baa3/Prime-3 from Ba1/Not Prime.

“The credit strength of the government is an important input in our assessment of the government’s capacity to provide support in times of stress, and we believe that due to their systemic importance these four banks are more likely to fully benefit from the higher rating of the government,” Moody’s said.

Likewise, Moody’s assigned a positive outlook on these banks’ deposit ratings, in line with that of the Philippine government.

A positive outlook means the ratings could further be increased in the next six months to a year.

Moody’s also raised the three banks’ baseline credit assessment (BCA) with the improvements in their standalone credit profiles, including two that reached investment grade on a standalone basis.

Earlier today, Moody’s upgraded the Philippines from Ba1 to Baa3 -- or from junk to investment grade, which means the country has ample capacity to service its debt and so avoid a default when external funding conditions deteriorate.

Moody’s said the main driver of the

rating actions is the improved operating environment for the Philippine banking system, particularly its major banks.

This was supported by the robust growth performance of the Philippine economy -aided in no small part by steady remittances -- despite slowing global external demand.

Moody’s also cited the banks’ healthy credit growth and profitability, wellanchored inflation and no strong signs of overheating in asset markets, which underpin the banking system’s improved asset quality.

Moody’s said the improved creditworthiness of the Philippine government also resulted to stronger capacity to support the banks.

This has resulted in the upgrades to

Baa3 of BDO’s and Land Bank’s deposit ratings.

For BDO, the bank’s senior unsecured debt rating was upgraded to Baa3 from Ba1 along with its deposit rating, as well as its bank financial strength rating (BFSR) to D+ from D, which maps to a BCA of Ba1.

The revision of BPI’s and MBT’s BCA to

baa3 from ba1 considers the banks’ track record of above-industry average riskadjusted profitability and their dominant presence in the domestic corporate and consumer segments.

This also reflected robust capital and liquidity profiles, which in our view, reflects the banks’ discipline and prudence in business growth.

Overall, Moody’s view the credit profiles of BPI and MBT to be among the most defensive and best positioned to withstand a cyclical downturn among Moody’s rated banks in the Philippines.

Overall, the two banks have credit metrics that compare well with other baa3 banks in the region. ■ Maricel E. Burgonio / InterAksyon.com / October 3, 2013 / 4:38 PM

ATM fee hike: DOJ cautions banks against anti-competitive behavior

AirAsia PH seeking Congress approval of Zest Air takeover MANILA - The local unit of Southeast Asia’s largest budget airline is seeking the Philippine Congress’ approval of the takeover of Zest Air. “We have already submitted our application to the Committee of Franchise. [But] we haven’t reached the official inclusion in an agenda for Congress deliberation,” Joy Caneba, AirAsia Zest executive vice president and chief operating officer told reporters.

Caneba said Philippines AirAsia plans to acquire more than 51 percent of Zest Airways Inc., which has been re-branded to AirAsia Zest.

“Hopefully, we can get it [by the end of the year,” she said.

Philippines AirAsia holds an 85 percent economic stake and a 49 percent voting interest in Zest Air, which in turn owns a 15 percent stake in the former.

AirAsia group owns 40 percent of Philippines AirAsia. The remaining 60 percent is held by Marianne Hontiveros, Michael Romero, Antonio Cojuangco and former ambassador Alfredo Yao. Caneba said the Securities and Exchange Commission, Civil Aeronautics Board and Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines already approved the rebranding of Zest Air into AirAsia Zest.

“Effective last week we were able to roll out a new brand, so Zest Air is now rebranded to AirAsia Zest. With the Air Asia

name on board, we feel that we are able to offer better service and convenience to the passengers. There would be a lot more product and services that will be rolled out in the couple of months and years to come,” Caneba said.

With the rebranding, she expects an increase and improvement in passenger traffic.

“Zest has a very good brand but I think with Air Asia name backing up, that should give more leverage and comfort to the passengers. So, we expect an increase in traffic for both domestic and international route. For 2013, we expect to grow at least 15 to 20 percent,” Caneba added.

The airline will launch flights between Cebu and Puerto Princesa, Davao and Cagayan de Oro starting November 15 with an all-in promo fare of P553. Also, Cebu-Kuala Lumpur flights would be offered at a promo fare of P680.

AirAsia Zest serves Kalibo (Boracay), Puerto Princesa (Palawan), Cebu, Davao, Tagbilaran, and Cagayan de Oro in the Philippines and international points in Asia including China and South Korea.

AirAsia Zest operates a fleet of 13 servicing nine domestic and four international routes from Manila’s Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA). ■ Darwin G. Amojelar / InterAksyon.com / October 11, 2013 / 4:48 PM

MANILA - The Department of Justice has warned banks against pursuing an industry-wide increase in automated teller machine (ATM) fees and charges on grounds that this may be tantamount to cartel-like behavior.

“We believe that there is a need to increase transparency in the imposition of interbank withdrawal charges. Raising consumer awareness on which banks charge the lowest fees and why they are paying such fees will lead to an informed choice and will promote greater competition among banks,” Justice Secretary Leila M. De Lima said.

“In this regard, we strongly caution banks to ensure that there is no coordinated action on their part to increase their interbanking charges without any link to the costs of their operations and pass these charges on to their customers as this may be deemed anti-competitive conduct,” de Lima said.

Under the law, anti-competitive actions, such as monopolies and combinations

in restraint of trade, are punishable by a penalty of prison correccional, or a fine ranging from P200 to P600, or both.

A number of banks, including the country’s three biggest -- BDO, Metrobank and BPI -- last week announced that they would increase interbank ATM withdrawal fees. Shortly after the announcement, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) however ordered the lenders to suspend the increase, pending the results of a review

the regulator will undertake.

The DOJ, through its Office of Competition, is tasked to guard against uncompetitive behavior that would hurt consumer interest. President Benigno Aquino III issued Executive Order No. 45 in 2011, designating DOJ as the competition authority and creating the Office of Competition, which is headed by Assistant Secretary Geronimo L. Sy. ■ Perfecto

Raymundo / PNA / October 4, 2013 / 9:38 AM

Philippines adopts Japan standard for digital TV MANILA - Its official. The Japanese standard will be the sole platform for the Philippines’ migration to digital TV. In a draft memorandum circular, the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) said Japan’s Integrated Services Digital BroadcastTerrstrial (ISDB-T) standard would be the sole standard in the delivery of digital terrestrial TV (DTT) services in the Philippines.

ISDB-T is a flexible digital TV transmission system that is capable of providing audio, video and data services to fixed, mobile and handheld terminals without the need for an additional

transmission facility. It also has an early warning system for earthquakes and typhoons.

NTC issued the circular adopting the ISDB-T after President Benigno Aquino III promised Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe that the Philippines would adopt Japan’s standard. Aquino and Abe held talks on the sidelines of the Asean Summit in Brunei.

The NTC said adoption of the Japanese standard was based on the re-evaluation of the latest and most appropriate and suitable DTT standard, to include the emergence of the secondgeneration DTT standards and the update of the prevailing market price of the settop boxes.

The NTC said the stakeholders of the TV industry and the Kapisanan ng Broadkaster ng Pilipinas also recommended the adoption of the Japanese standard.

The regulator’s technical working group will immediately convene to draft the implementing rules and regulations and frequency planning for the

implementation of digital TV. The regulator in 2010 issued an order adopting ISDB-T as the standard and released draft implementing rules and regulations in July 2011, but Malacañang ordered a review of Europe’s Digital Video Broadcasting-Terrestrial 2 (DVB-T2).

Besides Japan, other countries that have adopted ISDB-T are Brazil, Peru, Chile, Venzuela, Ecuador, Costa Rica and Paraguay.

The Philippines had planned to migrate from analog to digital TV come 2015. Free-TV or non-cable households comprise 90 percent of the country’s 17 million viewers.

The NTC will hold a public hearing on October 29 for the circular on the Standard for Digital Terrestrial Television (DTT) Broadcast Services.

The hearing aims to reconfirm with the industry stakeholders the Technical Working Group’s recommendation to adopt the Japanese DTT standard as the country’s digital TV standard. ■ Darwin G. Amojelar / InterAksyon.com / October 11, 2013 / 4:23 PM.

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BUSINESS & FINANCE

October 2013 / Fortnightly – No. 20 • UK & Europe Edition

Cocktales: With eyes on 2016, Kris Aquino establishes base in Tarlac

PRESIDENTIAL sister and top celeb Kris Aquino has been nominated to the board of the Central Azucarera de Tarlac, the sugar refinery within Hacienda Luisita that is majority-owned and run by her uncles and aunts, amid speculation that she is preparing her legal residency in her parents’ province for the 2016 elections.

The actress and TV host will join another presidential sister, eldest Ma. Elena Cruz, who is the treasurer and one-time director of the publicly-listed refinery, according to the company’s regulatory filing.

Aquino, 42, admitted during the last campaign that she was considering running for governor of Tarlac, and that she had already sounded off her family and relatives about her political plan.

A registered voter in Makati, Aquino’s election to the Central Azucarera board would establish her a legitimate business base and a semblance of a legal residency in the province despite her actual residency in the luxury One Roxas Triangle condominium in the country’s financial district.

The board nomination of Aquino comes ironically at a time when the family refinery is under trading suspension at the Philippine Stock Exchange for various and continuing regulatory infractions.

The refinery is scheduled to finally hold its five-times postponed annual shareholders’ meeting on October 29, during which the actress will be formally voted in the board.

Faulty legal advice costs BPI ₱102M. The Bank of the Philippine Islands has been ordered by a Makati court to reimburse the

listed Philcomsat Holdings ₱102 million in deposits plus interest that had been dubiously withdrawn by the previous GMAPCGG holdover directors.

Makati Regional Trial Court Judge Selma Palacio Alaras found BPI negligent after the country’s oldest bank allowed the group of Arroyo-era nominees Manuel Andal and Masonic leader Enrique Locsin along with socialite Concepcion “Tata” Poblador to clean up a Philcomsat deposit account despite pending litigation from a parallel board led by the private majority shareholders.

“At the first sign of an existing conflict, the bank is expected to act with extreme caution to ensure that it does not release the deposits to one not entitled to it,” Alaras said in a decision released earlier this week.

“But sadly, such standard was not met by BPI when it allowed continuous unauthorized disbursements in favor of purported officers, persons or entities whose legal authority to represent the principal had been put in clear serious doubt,” the judge said.

The irony is that BPI had all the reasons to file an interpleader to protect itself from the competing claims but refused to do so until eights months after the contested bank account had already been nearly emptied.

“It was plain and simple unsound and bad corporate governance,” Alaras said.

In his defense, then BPI president Aurelio Montinola III admitted having been forewarned by the now victorious group, represented by Philcomsat Holdings

president Ramon Jacinto, apart from the 11 letters to him and the BPI board from the Jacinto group, but that he eventually relied on the bank’s in-house counsel as to how to proceed.

The chief BPI counsel who gave what now turned out to be a wrong and costly legal advice, Alfonso Verzosa has since retired from the bank and resurrected as counsel to the vice rector of the University of Santo Tomas.

BPI’s chief risk officer, Cesareo de Leon, has also left and moved to Security Bank, also as chief risk officer with the rank of senior vice president.

What further complicated the situation for BPI, and a major risk it had failed to

foresee, was that Philcomsat Holdings had not only been a major depositor, it was also the bank’s landlord, with BPI renting its Pacific Star branch office space from Philcomsat Holdings.

With the ouster of the Locsin group, the new Philcomsat Holdings management terminated the lease and dropped BPI as depository bank, leading to the closure of its Pacific Star branch and the transfer of the suddenly branch-less manager, Joy Rodriguez, to the Rockwell branch.

Locsin, despite his motion to intervene, ironically failed to show up during the court proceedings and has not made an accounting of their group’s withdrawals, contrary to a commitment that he gave in

a paid advertisement in the Philippine Star during the height of the much-publicized feud.

As to Poblador, who appeared during the hearings accompanied by political columnist Amando Doronila, the judge found “her credibility, similar to that of her testimony, is scant,” especially after she had difficulty remembering even her group’s supposed office address.

In reviewing the long drawn-out case, Alaras also noted that the Locsin group had even “forum-shopped” a temporary restraining order from the Court of Appeals by filing two identical petitions in a their attempt to keep them in power.

That irregular order, with Associate Justice Magdangal de Leon as ponente, for some unclear reasons could not be found in the archived online decisions.

BPI was represented in the hearings by AccraLaw, the Locsin faction by Tolentino Corvera Macasaet & Reig and the Jacinto group by in-house counsel Dennis Manzanal.

Heard through the grapevine. Public Works Secretary Rogelio Singson has agreed to start the construction by hopefully April 2014 of a four-lane vehicular underpass along Buendia to declog the intersection at Makati Avenue.

Costing ₱1.2 billion, the underpass could be the lone impact project of the Aquino II administration in Metro Manila that would be finished before PNoy steps down in mid-2016. ■ Victor C. Agustin / October 5, 2013

/ 8:02 AM

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NEWS

October 2013 / Fortnightly – No. 20 • UK & Europe Edition

‘Santi’ leaves 13 dead, millions without power

MANILA, Philippines - Typhoon ‘Santi’ (international codename: Nari) barreled across northern Luzon early Saturday, uprooting trees, bringing down pylons and leaving more than two million people without electricity, officials said.

The National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) said the typhoon left at least 13 people dead.

“While there were relatively few casualties, a lot of areas are still flooded,” Eduardo del Rosario, head of the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council told a news conference.

Witnesses in the coastal town of Baler, near where Nari made landfall, said many large trees had been felled and clean-up crews with chainsaws were clearing the roads.

Government clerk Glenn Diwa, 34, said she and her husband spent a sleepless as the typhoon roared through the town of Capas, 90 kilometres (55 miles) north of Manila.

“It started close to midnight and lasted three hours. The wind was very strong and there was a whistling sound. After a while we heard torn roofing sheets clattering across the yard,” she told AFP. As Nari moved inland, dumping rain, a wall of mud fell on a police barracks near the town of Magalang, killing an officer awaiting deployment to rescue typhoon victims, the civil defence office in the region said.

Elsewhere in central Luzon, an old woman and four minors were crushed to death when trees crashed onto two houses and a vehicle, while the wall of a school collapsed and crushed an old man to death.

Another man was electrocuted by a loose power line while yet another died of a heart attack in an incident that disaster officials also blamed on Nari.

Two children and an elderly person drowned in the province of Bulacan, which suffered widespread flooding, provincial governor Wilhelmino Alvarado told a TV news program in an interview.

Soldiers, police, and local government workers used military trucks to rescue residents in flooded communities across the towns of San Miguel and Minalin, the regional civil defence office there said.

“The wind picked up very quickly, very dramatically. We had the wind coming right off the ocean for four hours,” said one witness on the east coast.

Even as Nari blew out to the South China Sea Saturday, with peak winds of 120 kilometres (75 miles) an hour according to the state weather service, the danger had not passed.

A farmer and a woman on separate motorbikes were nearly swept away and had to be pulled back to safety by policemen when they tried to cross a street that had turned into a raging river.

Farmer Frankie Gracia, 30 said he had been forced to butcher one of his

pigs after it fell ill from exposure to the rain and wanted to cross the streaming floodwaters to take some of the pork to his relatives.

“I needed to reach the other side soon, otherwise the meat would spoil,” he said.

The typhoon blacked out 37 towns and cities across the region.

Road and utility crews were out clearing roads and restoring power, but it could take up to two days before electricity is restored and major highways are reopened to traffic, Nigel Lontoc, a disaster official for the region, told AFP by telephone.

A total of 2.1 million people live in the areas now without electricity.

Four people were listed as missing, including a fisherman on the country’s east coast who had been sleeping in his boat that was swept out to sea.

Three other fishermen who put to sea elsewhere before the typhoon have also failed to return, officials said.

About 3,000 people moved into government-run shelters amid warnings their communities could be hit by flooding and landslides, Lontoc said.

Several hours before Santi made landfall, the Philippine Coast Guard closed down all ports in affected provinces.

The NDRRMC said 2,000 passengers, 24 vessels, 277 rolling cargo, and 19 motor bancas were stranded at different ports in Luzon.

©AFP file photo

Santi sliced across Central Luzon before dawn Saturday and later blew out to the South China Sea with peak winds of 120 kilometers (74.5 miles) an hour, the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration said.

The typhoon also toppled power pylons, blacking out the province of Aurora and about half of Tarlac and Zambales provinces, Lontoc said.

Among the towns that lost power were Aglipay in Quirino; Alfonso Castaneda, Dupax del Norte, Dupax del Sur and

Aritao, all in Nueva Vizcaya; and San Agustin and Jones in Isabela.

The typhoon spared Metro Manila, where PAGASA had warned on Friday about possible widespread flooding.

No major floods have been reported in the metropolis of more than 12 million people by early Saturday.

The Philippines is hit by about 20 major storms or typhoons each year that occur mainly between June and October. ■ Agence France-Presse and Jaime Sinapit / InterAksyon.com / October 12, 2013 / Updated 6:34 PM

October 2013 / Fortnightly – No. 20 • UK & Europe Edition

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Comatose OFW repatriated from UAE after two years AN overseas Filipino worker (OFW) in the United Arab Emirates who has been comatose since September 2011 was repatriated Tuesday night with an assurance of government support for her hospitalization.

Solaya Dabpagan, 42, a native of Kabacan in North Cotabato, arrived via Etihad Airlines and was brought to the Philippine General Hospital (PGH) emergency ward shortly after midnight by personnel from the Overseas Workers Welfare Association (OWWA).

“When (Solaya) came home, we did not know which hospital to put her in. Thankfully, the PGH did not hesitate to accept her,” said Vice President Jejomar Binay, the presidential adviser on OFW concerns.

Binay said the PGH will care for Dabpagan, with OWWA head Carmelita Dimzon coordinating with PGH “to determine how she will be cared for.”

Dabpagan’s brother, Janudin Sumai, will also be taught nursing care “so he will be able to take care of her needs,” Binay said.

In the meantime, Binay promised to shoulder the cost of Dabpagan’s confinement at the PGH and asked the public to help as well. “Our government does not abandon our OFWs suffering from cases like this. That is why we invited you here, to show you that we are ready to assist OFWs who are in need,” he said.

Unconscious. Sumai, who is also a domestic helper, said his sister was

found unconscious on a sidewalk and was brought to Sheikh Khalifa Medical City’s charity ward on September 9, 2011.

Citing hospital records, Binay said Dabpagan suffered an intracranial hemorrhage, acute renal failure, acute respiratory failure, and stage 3 chronic kidney disease.

PGH director Jose Gonzales said Dabpagan suffered a stroke after blood vessels in her brain burst and she is now in a vegetative state.

Illegally recruited. Sumail said Dabpagan was illegally recruited and left for Abu Dhabi in 2011, using the name Monera Galay Kamad. He said Dabpagan’s employer did not shoulder her medical expenses.

Citing information from the Department of Foreign Affairs, Binay said Dabpagan was supposed to be repatriated in September 2012. However, she could not be repatriated then as no hospital was willing to accept her at the time.

Meanwhile, Binay thanked the UAE government for processing and shouldering Dabpagan’s repatriation as well as her medical expenses.

“She was bedridden in UAE for two years. And you will admire the treatment they gave here because the doctors there were able to revive her. And for two years she was cared for by the UAE government in Abu Dhabi,” he said. ■ KBK, GMA News / October 9, 2013 / 3:50 PM

Vice President Jejomar Binay on Wednesday, October 9, visits OFW Solaya Dabpagan, who has been in coma since September 2011 and who was finally repatriated from the UAE on October 8, at the Philippine General Hospital. Binay, the presidential adviser on OFW concerns, said the government will help shoulder Dabpagan’s hospitalization. ©Danny Pata

23-year-old Pinay is youngest contender for Global Awards for Fundraising

WHEN Alexandra Eduque first read the e-mail from Resource Alliance informing her that she is a finalist to this year’s Global Awards for Fundraising, she had to press the refresh button twice to make sure it was real.

“It was so surreal,” said the 23-yearold youth leader and Habitat for Humanity Philippines ambassador who became the first Filipino to ever make it to the finals of the Global Awards for Fundraising.

“I thought I was dreaming. I never expected them to even notice me, much less to be a finalist,” Eduque added.

Global Awards for Fundraising is an international awards program endorsed by the national associations of fundraisers around the world. It is organized by London-

based nonprofit global network to recognize and celebrate the outstanding achievements in fundraising.

Short listed from more than a dozen entries from all over the world, Alex will be competing with two other finalists for the Outstanding Volunteer Award category this October in the Netherlands.

This award gives value to individual volunteers whose work creates significant impact on the fundraising success of an organization.

Eduque is being recognized for her achievements as a Habitat youth volunteer for eight years now, and for being the founder of the Habitat Youth Council.

Since its inception four years ago, Eduque

and her Youth Council have raised more than P100 million, and have mobilized over 8,000 youth volunteers to build over 500 homes for Habitat. The youth council also pioneered disaster relief, and has served over 28,000 families.

“I created the Habitat Youth Council with the vision of giving the youth an opportunity and a platform to help out,” Eduque said.

“I believe that the youth plays a vital role in raising awareness and thus, can be instrumental in generating funds to address the issues of poverty and housing in our country. I truly believe that so many are willing to help out, they just need to be shown how.”

Eduque, who just graduated from Barnard College of Columbia University,

said she believes that “issues on shelter have direct and indirect effects on the young generation in their journey to develop to their full potential.”

Asked why she decided to participate in the Global Awards for Fundraising, Eduque said, “I wanted to show the world that in our own small way, young people can be instrumental in creating social change.”

“By working together and with more informed youth, we can improve the lives of many and instill in them a sense of pride, dignity and hope,” she said.

Regarding her feelings days leading to the awarding ceremony, Eduque said, “Right now, I am still so overwhelmed, and it hasn’t fully sunken in to me yet that I have made it to

the finals, and that on its own I already feel is an achievement enough.”

“However, if I am lucky enough to bring home the first place prize, then I think it is a very prestigious recognition to Habitat for Humanity Philippines in their plight to serve the less privileged, and allowing the youth to play a role in it… But right now, it’s only something I can dream about,” she added.

The Global Awards for Fundraising 2013 ceremony will be held on October 16 at the International Fundraising Congress in The Netherlands. Four awards will be given: a) Big Idea, Small Budget Fundraising; b) Innovative Fundraising Campaign; c) The Global Fundraiser; and d) The Outstanding Volunteer.

■ KBK, GMA News / October 9, 2013 / 5:04 PM

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October 2013 / Fortnightly – No. 20 • UK & Europe Edition

Bill seeking to ban Pinay helpers from working in HK slammed A political party in Hong Kong is planning to push a bill that will ban Filipina domestic helpers from working there, to force President Benigno Aquino to apologize for the 2010 Manila hostage tragedy.

But this early, the move is not getting support from groups in Hong Kong, even as a Filipino group there branded the move as “racist.”

“No political party is willing to second (the) motion to ban Filipinos from Hong Kong – and even relatives of the Manila hostage victims have rejected the idea,” Hong Kong’s The Standard reported Thursday.

It also quoted Tse Chi-hang, brother of slain tourist guide Masa Tse Ting-chunn, as saying victims’ families do not want the lives of Filipino maids in Hong Kong to be affected because of the issue.

Earlier, a report on Radio Television Hong Kong said “People Power” party legislator

Albert Chan pushed for the ban.

He also pushed the Hong Kong government to penalize Manila for its continued failure to apologize.

During the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in Bali, Aquino did not apologize to Hong Kong for the death of eight tourists during the Aug. 23, 2010 incident.

In the 2010 hostage crisis, a dismissed policeman took a busload of tourists hostage and demanded his reinstatement but he and some of his hostages were killed in a botched rescue operation.

Last Sunday, reporters from three Hong Kong media outfits had their APEC press credentials revoked after shouting questions at Aquino, an act which APEC staff described as rude.

On the other hand, RTHK said former Security Secretary Regina Ip, who now chairs

the New People’s Party, said the proposal is technically feasible, but could also hurt local people.

3-stage ban. The Standard said the planned ban proposed by Chan and party colleague Ray Chan Chi-chuen involved three stages and could be implemented in two weeks.

First would be a halt on the issue of new visas for domestic helpers, then a stop to renewals of existing contracts.

A third stage would be a block on all Philippine nationals going to Hong Kong.

Chan himself has a Filipino domestic helper, but said the bans should remain until Aquino apologized, those involved in the botched rescue of the hostages were punished and survivors and the families of victims compensated.

“If the government refuses to debate the motion in Legco, Hongkongers will

NCCA contingent to help Pinoy youths in UAE reconnect with roots

A contingent from the National Commission on Culture and the Arts is going to the United Arab Emirates to teach Filipino students there about Philippine culture.

The cultural workshop seeks to reconnect at least 32 students in four Filipino schools with their ancestral roots, according to a report on Gulf News.

It will be the first workshop in Dubai and Sharjah and the northern emirates, the report said.

Lu Cimafranca, wife of the Philippine Consul General, said the workshop will have drama, music, and dance to be taught by internationally acclaimed Filipino artists.

She said the workshop is a “good opportunity, especially for Filipino students

born and brought up here and are not aware of their roots.”

“They often do not know about our country, our culture, our identity. We are all transients in the UAE. At the end of the day, we will all go home to the Philippines.

It would be difficult for these children to turn out strangers in their own homeland,” she said.

The workshops will be from October 13 to 19 at the consulate in Al Qusais. A recital will be held October 24.

Classes, workshops. The drama class will be arranged by theater and music director Lutgardo Labad, the head of NCCA and a member of the Philippine Educational Theater Association.

Alma Taldo, musical director of the internationally acclaimed Loboc Children’s Choir, will lead the music workshop.

Indigenous dance artist Raymund Marcaida, an expert in Asian movements such as Balinese, Javanese, ballet and jazz, will handle the dance workshop.

Teachers will also be taught to train other students in the future, Gulf News said.

“Filipino students born and brought up here often have questions about Filipino culture. If this is not corrected, this could result in them feeling alienated in their own country,” said Jenny Gonzales, from one of the participating schools. ■ Ibarra C. Mateo /

October 10, 2013 / 7:50 PM

Pinay who buried dead baby at UAE beach loses appeal AN unmarried Filipina who buried her dead baby at a beach in the United Arab Emirates lost her appeal as a court there upheld her one-year jail term.

The Dubai Appeal Court junked the appeal of the 30-year-old Filipina cleaner on Wednesday, according to a report on Gulf News. But Presiding judge Saeed Salem Bin Sarm also junked prosecutors’ appeal for a heavier punishment.

“She will be deported following the completion of her punishment,” the report quoted the judge as saying.

The Filipina, accused of having a child with a Filipino with whom she had a relationship, is expected to be released and deported soon, as she has already been in

custody since April.

The baby was born prematurely, became seriously ill, and died.

The Filipina said she could not afford the Dh26,000 needed to admit the infant to a hospital. She pleaded for a lower punishment, saying she did not endanger her daughter’s life.

“I did not endanger her life… but I could not afford the overpriced medical fees to admit her to hospital. When she died, we buried her at Jumeirah open beach,” she told the court as she entered an innocent plea.

The Filipina, in an earlier hearing before the appeal court, also said she did her best to provide her daughter with care.

Court records showed the baby died a day after the Filipina failed to provide her with proper medical care.

The Filipina cleaner was found guilty of having sex outside marriage with her boyfriend, endangering the life of her baby and then burying her in a shoebox on the beach.

She said she and her boyfriend were asked to pay Dh26,000 for the baby to be admitted to hospital. She confessed she had unmarried sex that resulted in her getting pregnant.

A Pakistani policeman testified that a lifeguard picked up the baby’s body from the sea at around 11:30 a.m. on January 11. ■ KBK, GMA News / October 11, 2013 / 1:32 PM

Envoy: Over 2,000 Pinoys in Riyadh repatriated during Saudi grace period

MORE than 2,200 Filipinos have been repatriated from Saudi Arabia during the grace period for foreign workers to correct their status, the Philippine Embassy there said Friday.

Philippine Ambassador to Saudi Arabia Ezzedin Tago disclosed this during a meeting with Prince Khaled bin Bandar bin Abdul Aziz Al-Saud, Emir of Riyadh Region, last Oct. 9.

In a statement, the Embassy said Tago told the Emir that “thousands” of Filipinos benefited from the amnesty period, and at least 2,221 Filipinos from Riyadh alone as of

October 6 have been repatriated.

He said some of the Filipinos got tickets bought by the Philippine government, while others left on their own expense.

Also during the meeting, Tago conveyed the appreciation of the Philippine government and gratitude of the Filipinos in Saudi Arabia who benefited from the amnesty period.

The Saudi government initially gave foreign workers in the Kingdom until July to correct their status or leave without incurring penalties.

But it eventually extended the deadline to Nov. 3, following requests by employers. The correction period started April 6.

Meanwhile, Tago sought the Emir’s help for other cases, including the admission of females who have no documents and their processing at the Saudi Social Welfare Authority.

He also sought a mechanism for males who no longer have their original iqama or passport and are not registered on the fingerprint database. ■ KBK, GMA News / October 11, 2013 / 8:19 PM

continue to be humiliated by the Philippine government,” he said.

Criticism. However, the plan drew criticism even within Hong Kong.

Lawmaker Ip Kwok-him of the Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong warned against any rushed move.

Regina Ip Lau Suk-yee, chairwoman of the New People’s Party, voiced fears the proposal would affect the middle class, and the Philippine government may not see it as a threat.

She added the Hong Kong government, she added, “may seek funds from Legco to compensate the survivors and families of victims.”

Against the proposal as well was League of Social Democrats lawmaker “Long Hair” Leung Kwok-hung, who said domestic helpers should not be blamed.

“The government might instead put pressure on the Philippine government through commerce or tourism,” he said.

Meanwhile, Hong Kong Employers of Domestic Helpers Association chairman Joseph Law Kwan-din warned of a “language barrier for employers if they suddenly had to switch to domestic helpers from other countries.”

For his part, Asian Migrants’ Coordinating Body spokesman Eman Villanueva said it would be “racist” to ban Philippine maids.

“Filipinos are not the same as the Philippine government,” Villanueva said.

Secretary for Security Lai Tung- kwok said any action that might affect Hong Kong residents, especially the employers, “will have to be carefully considered.”

“We will not do anything that would affect residents,” he added. ■ LBG, GMA News /

October 10, 2013 / 7:35 AM

Stiffer penalties now await illegal recruiters ILLEGAL recruiters can now face up to 20 years in prison following the amendments in some provisions of the Republic Act 8042 or the Migrant Workers Act, the Deparment of Labor and Employment (DOLE) announced Friday.

Aside from increasing the jail term from 12 to 20 years, the amendments also increased the civil liability of the illegal recruiter from ₱500,000 to ₱2 million, the DOLE also said.

“The express provisions of Republic Act 10022 (amended RA 8042) articulating the new penalties for acts of illegal recruitment provides specific sanctions for such violations which are stiffer, both in civil and criminal liabilities aspect,” said acting DOLE secretary Danilo Cruz.

“Illegal recruitment violation carries the penalty of imprisonment of up to twenty years and civil liability of up to ₱2 million in fines,” he added.

The Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA), which regulates overseas recruitment activities, is tasked to enforce the anti-illegal recruitment provisions.

The stiffer penalties are intended to curb illegal activities relating to recruitment and placement of workers, said Cruz, who described illegal recruitment as a “perennial problem” in the country.

“We need to sow fear in the hearts of violators that they face heavy penalties for their illegal activities,” Cruz said.

Among the persistent illegal recruitment violations were cases of misrepresentation, violation of employment contracts, violation of contractual obligation to employees, excessive collection of processing fees and documentation expenses, and unauthorized operation of recruitment and placement agency. ■ KBK, GMA News / October 11, 2013 / 5:31 PM

PNoy: PHL ready for possible HK backlash on Pinay helpers THE Philippine government is ready for any backlash stemming from its decision not to apologize to Hong Kong for the 2010 Manila hostage crisis, including the possible ban of Filipino domestic helpers there.

Interviewed in Brunei late Wednesday where he was attending the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) summit and other summits, President Benigno Aquino III said Hong Kong has a right to come up with any decision regarding Filipino workers.

“Kung ano ang kilos nila doon sa ating mga workers, siyempre may kalayaan silang desisyunan kung ano ang gusto nila sa lipunan nila,” he said. “Palagay ko naman nakahanda rin ang DOLE (Department of Labor and Employment).”

Aquino made the statement following reports that a political party in Hong Kong is planning to push a bill that will ban Filipino domestic helpers from working there to force Aquino to apologize for the 2010 Manila hostage tragedy that left eight Hong Kong tourists dead.

Aquino was quick to note that he is not challenging the Hong Kong government with this statement.

“Kung sasabihin naman parang hinahamon ko sila, hindi ko sinasabi yun. Pero ang gobyerno itinatag para pangalagaan ang lahat ng mga mamamayan natin. So kung sino ang namomoblema, sino ang may kailangan ng kalinga, dapat nakahanda ang gobyerno all the time,” he said.

Aquino, in Bali, Indonesia, earlier this week, met with Hong Kong Chief Executive C.Y. Leung but did not offer an apology for the 2010 incident. He said he expressed to Leung his regret for what happened but said he cannot apologize for something they are not directly responsible for.

“Ang posisyon natin merong isang tao na, shall we say, at that point in time mentally unstable that did this act practically on a solitary basis. Paano tayo aamin ng kasalanan na hindi atin?” he said.

He was referring to dismissed policeman Rolando Mendoza, the hostage-taker in the crisis who was later killed by law enforcement authorities. Mendoza then was demanding that he be reinstated in his job.

Last August, survivors and the families of the hostage victims sued the Philippine government over the incident. ■ Kimberly Jane Tan / KBK, GMA News / October 10, 2013 / 2:19 PM

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PHL hairdressers, make-up artists win honors in Malaysia tilt PHILIPPINE hairdressers and make-up artists brought honor to the country after winning awards at the 17th Asia Pacific Hair and Make-Up Olympics last October 6 and 7 at the Kuala Lumpur Convention Center.

The Philippines won third place behind Taiwan and host country Malaysia, the Department of Foreign Affairs said Wednesday.

Make-up artist Ronald Esperanzate won third place in the bridal make-up category while hairdresser Jason Hisola won fourth place in ladies’ designer haircut and men’s avant-garde haircut, the DFA said.

“Filipino skill and artistry is again recognized in the Asia-Pacific. On behalf of the Embassy, I congratulate the winners and the members of the contingent for their excellent showing, and I hope that this would inspire our hairdressers and make-up artists to excel more in their craft,”

Ambassador Jose Eduardo Malaya III said.

Malaya also congratulated hairstylist Ricky Reyes “for bringing this talented delegation.” Reyes is the overall President of the Asia Pacific hairdressers and Cosmetologists Association (APHCA) for the past 15 years.

The Asia Pacific Hair and Make-up Olympics has been held yearly since 1997, organized by APHCA. The event seeks to strengthen and unite the hair and beauty practitioners in the Asia Pacific region.

APHCA is the biggest association of beauty practitioners in Asia Pacific.

Its members include Australia, Cambodia, China, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Japan, Macau, Malaysia, Mongolia, Myanmar, Papua New Guinea, Singapore, South Korea, Sri Lanka, Taiwan, Thailand, and the Philippines. ■ VC, GMA News / October 9, 2013 / 4:47 PM

Bodies of two missing Pinoy seafarers found in North Sea

THE two bodies recovered in the North Sea have been confirmed as those of two Filipino seamen who were reported missing after a maritime collision last Monday, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said Friday.

In a statement, DFA spokesperson Raul Hernandez said the Philippine Embassy in Hague has already informed the families of the victims that their bodies have already been identified.

The DFA, however, withheld information

about the identities of the Filipino fatalities.

Hernandez said repatriation procedures for the bodies will now be undertaken.

The two Filipino seamen were among the three crew members of the Maria, a ship deployed to guard an oil drilling platform off a Dutch navy port, who were reported missing following the vessel’s collision with fishing trawler Texel 68 on the North Sea early Monday morning. ■

Xianne Arcangel / KBK, GMA News / October 11, 2013 / 4:13 PM

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Pinoy teen, Emirati rescuer drown in UAE ONE of five Filipino children died after encountering strong currents while swimming in choppy seas at a beach in the United Arab Emirates, a UAE news site reported Friday.

An Emirati youth who managed to save the other children also died after being carried away by the strong currents, according to a report on Khaleej Times.

“By the time the police rescue team, ambulance and Coast Guards reached the scene and saved the others, the Emirati had breathed his last,” said Brigadier Ghanem Ahmed, Director of the Police Operations Room.

The report said the incident occurred off Ras Al Khaimah last Wednesday evening.

It said the Emirati and two companions tried to get to the children — five Filipinos and one Sri Lankan — who were drowning in the seas.

Khaleej Times did not name the Filipino boy who died but described him as 13 years old.

Police said the rescued boys and girls were aged between 11 and 13. They were brought to a local hospital where they are recovering.

Police also said the rescued Filipino children were related to each other.

On the other hand, the report said the bodies of the Emirati youth and the Filipino boy were brought to the morgue.

Khaleej Times also cited school

sources who said the students were on preparatory holidays, adding the visit to the beach was not organized by the school.

“We were not aware of it and it was not organised by us. It’s shocking that it had to end this way,” it quoted a school official as saying.

The Khaleej Times report cited sources who said the UAE national was swimming with three fellow Emiratis and plunged into the turbulent waters when he saw the children struggling to stay afloat amid rising waves.

At the time, the children were being sucked deeper into the sea. ■ LBG, GMA News / October 11, 2013 / 7:46 AM

Saudi King to host 50 Filipino Hajj pilgrims

SAUDI Arabia’s King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz will host 50 Filipino Muslim pilgrims for the Hajj program in the oil-rich country this month, according to the Saudi Embassy in Manila.

A send-off ceremony for the 50 pilgrims was held in Manila on Friday by the Saudi Embassy. The pilgrims will visit Mecca where they will perform their Hajj and Umrah.

The Hajj program “emphasizes the leading and prestigious stature of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in the Islamic world level, considering that it is the direction of prayers ‘Kiblah’ of all Muslims and as a leader in all Islamic endeavors benefitting the Muslim nation ‘Ummah’,” said Charge d’ Affaires Abdulelah Aljebreen

of the Saudi Embassy during the ceremony.

The 50 Filipino pilgrims are among the 1,400 pilgrims from 80 countries who were sponsored by the Saudi King to perform Hajj, which is known as the fifth pillar of Islam.

Aljebreen said Saudi has been persistently exerting continuous efforts to achieve Muslim unity and to alleviate their status.

A special program and arrangement for the guests to allow has been prepared by the King for the pilgrims “to perform their pilgrimage completely in accordance with the virtuous Islamic manner,” said Aljebreen.

“Working teams have been deployed and assigned to look after the guests by providing them luxurious accommodations

and other services that befit them as guests,” he added.

Besides performing Hajj and Umrah, the 50 Filipino Muslim guests of the Saudi King will also visit Madinah Al Munawwarah for them to pray at the Holy Mosque of Prophet Mohammed.

The Saudi envoy said there have been more than 22,000 Muslims across the world who have been sponsored by King Abdullah in performing their Hajj in Saudi Arabia.

Commissioner Mirkarl Allian of the National Commission on Muslim Filipinos (NCMF) said a total of 5,600 Muslim Filipinos will go to Saudi this month for the Hajj program. ■ KBK, GMA News / October 11,

2013 / 4:40 PM

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October 2013 / Fortnightly – No. 20 • UK & Europe Edition

Cebuanos gather more online support to save century-old trees MANILA – Cebuanos gathered more signatures for a petition on Change.org calling on the public works and environment secretaries to save 154 trees along the 3.1-kilometer highway from Naga City to Carcar City, south of Cebu.

Petitioner Balbino Guerrero, a tour guide, said Public Works Secretary Rogelio Singson and Environment Secretary Ramon J. P. Paje should recognize that “these trees were planted at the turn of the century, ordered by then Cebu Governor Dionesio Jakosalem.”

The increase in the number of signatures came amid an email and social

media campaign and after feature stories came out in three major regional papers.

Guerrero, known in tourism circles as “Ka Bino”, said Paje should “reconsider the ‘permit to vut’ issued by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources Central Office.

“We are all aware of the importance of the trees in our ecology. These trees had been the mute witness of Cebu’s history and development. Please spare these trees for our children’s sake,” Guerrero said.

Another Cebu City petitioner, Joseph Patrick Lim, recalled his mother’s stories “about traversing this road during World

War II and how the trees shaded them from the heat on their long journey fleeing from the advancing Japanese soldiers.”

Cherry Piquero-Ballescas, who writes a column at the Cebu-based Freeman newspaper, urged Cebuanos to sign the petition. “This Save the Tree petition is not just for the trees. These trees represent history, life, sustenance. More importantly, the trees remind us about God who is the only One who can make, create trees,” the writer said.

“To cut trees in order to proceed to their road widening project. Then what? Plant again more trees and cut it again? It’s like

having sex again and again and deciding to have an abortion,” said Sheira Travero, another petitioner.

Those who signed came from beyond Cebu, from as far as Reykjavik, Iceland. Lilja Vedis Holmsdottir said the trees give the highway landmark “a breath-taking view.”

Hazel Monte de Ramos of Bayugan City in the CARAGA region said Cebu’s fame as a tourist destination partly stems from “it’s wonderful natural beauty.”

Cutting down these trees would diminish that beauty, she said. “It is easy to build a road, widen it, move it, replace it — trees that are a hundred years old are not so easily

replaced. As a former resident of Cebu and a regular visitor, it saddens me to think that you would destroy God and nature’s artwork in the name of supposed ‘progress,’ though it doesn’t sound like progress to me.”

Guerrero said DENR 7 executive director Isabelo Montejo Jr. earlier approved the tree-cutting permit for the DPWH as long as three affected barangays would endorse the move. The regional environment office also said a study is needed to ensure that tree-cutting would not affect biodiversity, carbon sequestration and water storage capability. ■ InterAksyon.com / October 12, 2013

5:01 PM

Feisty Faye: Pinay ex-journalist gets hurt fighting off knife-wielding attacker during prayer rally

Canada-based Faye Arellano in a happy moment at the beach.

MANILA - Never in her worst nightmares did Filipino-Canadian Faye Arellano, a former journalist now based in Toronto, imagine “that taking a stand for the unborn on a Sunday afternoon during a silent protest” would send her to the hospital.

Until now, Faye, her family and friends are amazed — and grateful — that she survived the vicious, unprovoked attack of a knife-wielding, unidentified attacker who suddenly assaulted Faye as she quietly stood outside a Catholic church in Toronto, holding up a pro-life placard and a rosary.

“The peaceful mass action turned ugly when I was suddenly assaulted viciously by an unknown bystander. Grabbed by the

hair, smacked on the ground, kicked and punched repeatedly. I grabbed the man by his jacket and was yelling for people to call the cops,” goes her recollection of that fateful Sunday in her Facebook account.

Her instinctive courage to fight back — obviously honed from years of covering events in Manila, where she met husband Nestor Arellano, former reporter for Tempo, Malaya and TODAY — kicked in during the first few seconds of the attack. It got ugly soon after, however. Faye continues: “But when I finally saw the attacker pull a knife I just had to muster all the courage to get up and run for safety. Everyone froze at the sight of the knife. A good samaritan came

Credit assistance sa OFWs, isusulong sa Senado DAPAT na ibigay ng gobyerno sa OFWs lahat ng suporta bilang mga bayani at katuwang sa pagpapa-angat sa ekonomiya ng Pilipinas.

Sa pag-aaral ng World Bank, malaki ang suporta sa ekonomiya ng remittances na ipinapasok ng OFWs sa bansa na tinatayang nasa $24 billion kada taon.

Mahigit 10 milyong Filipino ang nagtatrabaho sa abroad, nangunguna ang Middle East sa pangunahing destinasyon, kabilang ang Singapore at Hongkong base sa national Labor Force Survey noong 2012.

Ang pinakamalaking bahagi ng OFWs o 32.7 porsiyento ay laborers at unskilled

workers, nangunguna ang household service workers sa listahan.

Dahil dito, inihain ni Sen. Grace Poe ang credit assistance para makaagapay sa mga gastusin ng OFWs sa recruitment, placements at documentation fees at airfare bago pa man makaalis ng bansa.

Kasama na rin dito ang panggastos na iiiwan sa kanilang pamilya bago pa sila makapagpadala sa mga unang buwan ng kanilang pamamalagi sa ibayong dagat.

“Many of our OFWs are neck-deep in debt even before they leave the country due to high cost of deployment fees,” ani Poe. Sa ilalim ng Senate Bill No. 1421, pwedeng mag-loan ang OFW ng P50,000

mula sa Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) kung sila ay may valid certified contract ng Overseas Employment Administration (POEA).

Babayaran ang loan sa loob ng 12 buwan (installment) sa interest rate na hindi tataas sa 6%.

Ang OFW ang pipili ng bangko na doon ide-deposito ang buwanang hulog mula sa kaniyang remittance.

Pagtitibayin ang loan ng OWWA kapag naisumite ng OFW ang kaniyang employment contract, plane ticket, bank account (certified in writing by the recruitment agency) at ng POEA. ■ Linda

(GCG)—the body that oversees state-led entities—or endorsed by Malacañang, these “incentives” are “an affront to ordinary workers, the SSS members, for such huge bonuses are even way beyond what these workers would earn during their usual working lives.”

The group also scored the SSS—which pays out pension to its retired members— for its unfunded liabilities worth ₱1.1 trillion,

thinks that I don’t do anyway, hehehe) while under observation.

“I intend to get better sooner and get on with life as normal as possible. I thank you all (and you know who you are) for your thoughts and prayers. I shall overcome.”

Nestor said Canadian police have taken a videotaped statement from Faye and her attacker remains in custody.

In a subsequent exchange of notes with FB friends, Faye is hit by the coincidence: “The unprovoked attack happened on the eve of the feast of Our Lady of the Rosary.

Come to think of it, I lost my placard during the assault, but when I was rushed to Sunnybrook I still had a rosary on my hand. Holy Mary Mother of God, pray for us sinners now and at the hour of death.

Amen.” ■ InterAksyon.com / October 9, 2013 / 1:15 PM

Bohol / LBG, GMA News / October 12, 2013 5:14 PM

Labor representative in SSS has rejected his one-million peso bonus, group says

ONE of three labor representatives to the board of the state-run pension fund for private employees has rejected his onemillion peso bonus.

Daniel Edralin, who is also a leader of the Alliance of Progressive Labor (APL), “has not accepted his bonus” from the governmentled Social Security System (SSS), the group said in a statement on Friday.

The APL, which is part of the newlyestablished Sentro ng mga Nagkakaisa at Progresibong Manggagawa (Sentro), also called on the nine members of the Social Security Commission (SSC) to do the same.

Members of the SSC “owe it to their members or the workers and SSS members that they represent to reject these unreasonable bonuses—or return them to the SSS coffers if they already received them,” the group said in the same statement.

Even though it may be sanctioned by the Governing Commission for GOCCs

and shielded me while I could see the assailant looking for me. The police came and the attacker was arrested.”

The feisty Faye said that while she survived the ordeal, “the experience was one harrowing moment in life that will be etched in my memory. However, knowing that my assailant is now behind bars awaiting trial for charges of assault with a weapon was a consolation. At least the streets are safer.”

Recovering from home after being discharged from the Sunnybrook hospital, Faye even manages to crack a selfdeprecating joke. It’s an endearing trait of both husband and wife. “In the meantime, I am achy all over and the doctor ordered me to take things easy because of the concussion that I sustained. No exercise, no intense mental activity (which Nestor

which includes future financial obligations to SSS members who are currently remitting their payments but will retire soon.

“Thus, is the granting of generous if not appalling perks a case of “premature celebration” among SSS executives?” the group said.

It also asked the SSS Commission to disclose all the emoluments its members enjoy. ■ InterAksyon.com / October 11, 2013 / 2:59 PM

Religious leaders join a simultaneous ringing of bells in more than 1500 churches nationwide to reaffirm their stand against the pork barrel system and alleged corruption in the government. ©Benjie Castro

Church bells toll nationwide vs pork barrel CHURCH bells in several parts of the country were rung Friday to call for the abolition of the pork barrel system.

The Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines said many churches had their bells rung simultaneously at 1 p.m. Friday.

“The churches are demanding government’s action against abuses of public funds and for the Congress to scrap the Priority Development Assistance Fund and the Disbursement Acceleration Program,” the CBCP said.

“The prophetic ringing of bells represents call the leaders of the country to repent and stop deceiving the people with criminal schemes means to steal what belongs to them,” said Fr. Ben Alforque, convenor of the Church People’s Alliance Against Pork Barrel.

He added this action signals their “deep

attachment” to the cries and struggles of the poor for justice, peace and prosperity.

“The prophetic ringing of bells affirms our condemnation of the acts of bribery, corruption, and abuse of power,” he said.

At the CBCP chapel in Manila, a nun rang the bell for three minutes, “in solidarity” with the national sounding of church bells against the pork barrel system.

In Sta. Cruz in Manila, a Mass was held before the ringing of the church bell there.

In Bataan province, the Balanga Diocese’s 34 parishes sounded their church bells as well.

Earlier this week, the Church People’s Alliance Against Pork Barrel asked churches to ring their bells as a sign of solidarity against the pork barrel. ■ ELR, GMA News /

October 12, 2013 / 4:37 AM

EVENTS DIARY UK & EUROPE

www.hello-philippines.com

14

DATE / TIME

EVENT

VENUE

October 2013 / Fortnightly – No. 20 • UK & Europe Edition

ORGANISER

19 October Saturday 6:00pm

20th Anniversary Annual Charity Dinner & Dance

Radisson Blu Portman Hotel, Portman Square, London W1H 7BG

Batangas Association UK (BAUK)

20 October Sunday 3:00pm Matinee 7:00pm Evening 21 October Monday 5:30pm – 7:30pm

Dances of Paradise Islands Performed By: Lahing Kayumanggi Dance Company Launching of Neil Medina’s Book – Timmy and Friends: The Adventure of the Alarm Clock Boy 2013 PartyPoker.com World Pool Masters

The Venue MK, Walton High, Fyfield Barrow, Milton Keynes MK7 7WH

Wright Ideas

25 to 27 October Friday to Sunday 26 October Saturday 6:00pm to 11:00pm 26 October Saturday 6:00pm 2 November Saturday 2 November Saturday 6:30pm to Midnight 10 November Sunday 6:00pm to 10:30pm 16 November Saturday

Halloween Night Mr & Ms. Philippines Europe Goodwill Ambassador A Day of Pilgrimage to Our Lady of Caversham and A Day of Prayer with Our Lady of Mary Mediatrix of All Grace Halloween Party Zamboanga Relief – A Benefit Concert

CONTACTS / REMARKS Gloria Diaz – 07572 795 321 Julie Villanueva – 07956 422 068 Ched Gomez – 079800 66 209 Tita Leus McCarthy – 07958 732 406 Tel. No. 01908 270 333 / 07756 258 895 / 07581 692 767 Email: afrw@hotmail.com

Philippine Embassy, Rizal Room, 10 Suffolk Street, London SW1Y 4HG

RSVP: Neil Medina 07984 288 933 / author@neilmedina.com

The Metrodome, Queens Ground, Queens Road, Barnsley, South Yorkshire S71 1AN St Matthias Church, Rushgrove, Avenue, London NW9 6QY Maritim proArte Hotel Berlin, Friedrichstrasse 151 , 10117 Berlin, Germany 1. Caversham 2. Bicester Village Designer Outlet 3. Catholic Church, Bicester East Malling Village Hall, New Road, West Malling ME19 6DD Scream Lounge, 20 South End, Croydon CR0 1DN

For Limited Complimentary Tickets please contact HELLO PHILIPPINES on 07944 026 968

Miss Pearl of Asia UK 2013

The Camden Centre, Judd Street, London WC1H 9JE

16 November Saturday

Plymouth Bantay Bata 163 Charity Concert

16 November Saturday

Couples For Christ – UK 17th Year Anniversary

30 November Saturday

Annual Dance Competition 2013

7 December Saturday 6:00pm – 1:00am

20th Annual Christmas Dinner & Dance

The New Continental Hotel, Millbay Road, Plymouth PL1 3LD Holiday Inn Maidenhead, Manor Lane, Maidenhead SL6 2RA Sion-Manning RC Girls School, 75 St Charles Street, Ladbroke Grove, London W10 6EL Copthorne Tara Hotel, Scarsdale Place, Kensington, London W8 5SY

Pinoy Brits Organisation

Romeo 07810 186 273

Ms. Philippines-Germany and Youth Cultural Group e. V The Community Prayer Crusade – West London

msphilippinesgermany.berlin@hotmail.com / www.msphilippinesgermany.org Betilda 07919 380 513 / Merla 07939 684 558 Price of Trip: £25.00

Kent Anglo Filipino Association

Tickets: Adult £10.00 / Teens £5.00 / Children under 12 years old Free

Whiskey Lima in association with 3Rhythm Productions Miss Pearl Of Asia

Ticket £10.00 18+ Only / All proceeds to Tzu Chi Foundation Zamboanga Chapter / www.screamlounge.com Email: enquiries@misspearlofasia.com

Filipino British Association in Plymouth (F.B.A.i.P)

Email: fbaip@fbaip.co.uk

Couples for Christ (CFC)

Chris Mautsi 07956 281 337

Camarines Sur Filipino Community UK

Junart Nieva – 07980 557 467 Arthur Nieva – 07947 344 422 Elizabeth Villaflor – 07584 411 180 Mathie Smith – 07908 581 062 Zanie del Mundo – 07733 781 858 / 07886 881 432 Estella Gomez – 07817 200 444 Erroll – 07429 187 991 Omie – 07832 597 530 Nilda Dean – denil123@hotmail.com

Aguman Kapampangan UK

Chasewell Community Social British & Filipino Community (BRITFIL) Club, Avoce Way, Cherwell Height, Banbury, Oxon OX16 9YA FREE LISTING of your events on the HELLO PHILIPPINES newspaper and if you know of any Events please contact us and submit your event via email to the following at info@hello-philippines.com

21 December Saturday 6:00pm

BRITFIL Christmas Party

DISCLAIMER: The Events Diary Listing does not necessarily constitute or imply its endorsement, recommendation, or favouring by Hello Philippines newspaper. The views and opinions of authors expressed herein do not necessarily state or reflect those of Hello Philippines newspaper. This is merely an Events Diary Listing of what is happening within the Filipino Communities in Europe. This is for general information only.

2013 Monthly Filipino Community Masses in Greater London 1st Sunday

2:00pm

1st Sunday

5:00pm

2nd Saturday

4:00pm

2nd Sunday

2:00pm

2nd Sunday

2:00pm

2nd Sunday

4:00pm

3rd Sunday

3:00pm

3rd Sunday

3:00pm

Last Saturday

6:00pm

Last Sunday

2:00pm

Every Sunday

5:00pm

First Wednesdays

6:30pm

Five Precious Wounds Parish, Brentfield Road, Stonebridge Park, London NW10 8ER Mervic Monocillo – 07894 636 140 Our Lady of Sorrows Catholic Church, Friary Road, Peckham, London SE15 1RH Allen Abeleda – 07713 625 888 St Peter the Apostle Catholic Church, 103 Woolwich New Road, London SE18 6EF Moises Espanola – 07894 648 639 English Martyrs Church, Chalkhill Road, Wembley Park, Wembley HA9 9EW Becky Sarinas – 07949 857 699 / 07425 761 519 / Lina B – 07579 418 510 St Dominic Catholic Church, 243 Violet Lane, Waddon, Croydon CR0 4HN Merlie Mirto – 07722 216 462 St. Anselm and St. Cecilia, 70 Lincoln's Inn Fields, London WC2A 3JA Feliciano Ramirez – 07733 680 748 Sacred Heart of Jesus, New Priory, Quex Road, Kilburn, London NW6 4PS Sheidrick de Leon – 07738 210 202 Blessed Sacrament Parish, 157 Copenhagen Street, Islington N1 0SR Christy Sangalang – 07709 119 969 Our Lady of Dolours, Servite Parish Church, 264 Fulham Road, London SW10 4EL Fr Allan Satur – 020 7352 6965 / fulhamroad@rcdow.org.uk Roland Adap – r_adap@hotmail.com St. Joseph’s Catholic Church, 218 Roehampton Lane, London SW15 4LE Rafael Santiago – 07795 254 451 Holy Redeemer Catholic Church, 20 Brixton Road, Oval, London SW9 6BU Ben Ortiz – 07723 318 486 Filipino Mass and Novena to Our Mother of Perpetual Help, Farm Street Church of the Immaculate Conception (Jesuit House Chapel), access on 114 Mount Street, London W1K 3AY Josie Ramos – 07723 024 591

16

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INTERNATIONAL / GLOBAL NEWS

October 2013 / Fortnightly – No. 20 • UK & Europe Edition

Kidnapped PM slams ‘coup’ bid in lawless Libya BENGHAZI (Libya) - Prime Minister Ali Zeidan said Friday his hours-long kidnapping was a coup attempt, as a car bombing outside Sweden’s consulate in second city Benghazi underlined Libya’s increasing lawlessness.

“I do not think that more than 100 armed vehicles can seal off the hotel district (in Tripoli) to people without a command being given,” he said in a televised address.

“This bears the hallmarks of an attempted coup d’etat against legitimacy,” said Zeidan, who was abducted on Thursday from the Corinthia hotel, where he had been living for several months for security reasons.

The assailants had presented the hotel with a fake arrest warrant allegedly issued by the prosecutor general.

Zeidan said “a political party” was behind what he termed the “criminal and terrorist act.” He appeared to be referring to the Justice and Construction Party, the political wing of Libya’s Muslim Brotherhood and other Islamist blocs.

The prime minister, regarded as a liberal, said the unnamed party had tried but failed earlier in the week to garner enough votes in the National General Congress, Libya’s highest political authority, to have him dismissed.

“When they failed to bring down the government through democratic means, they resorted to the use of force.”

Zeidan said his political detractors had blocked legislation on a national budget and efforts to establish a new army with the aim of “pushing the country towards chaos.”

Zeidan was kidnapped just days after US commandos angered the government by capturing senior Al-Qaeda suspect Abu Anas al-Libi on the streets of Tripoli and whisking him away to a warship in the Mediterranean.

The capture of Libi embarrassed the government, which claimed no prior knowledge of the operation, and Tripoli has come under increasing criticism, notably from former rebels.

One such group, the Operations Cell of Libya’s Revolutionaries, said earlier this week it was on high alert “in light of the deterioration in security and damage to the country’s sovereignty by foreign intelligence bodies.”

It blamed Zeidan for Libi’s capture and said it had “arrested” the premier on Thursday.

But later, the Brigade for the Fight against Crime, a police division made up of former rebels, said it was holding Zeidan.

Libyan police and bystanders gather at the scene of car bomb explosion outside the Swedish consulate in the eastern Libyan city of Benghazi on October 11, 2013. Photo by Abdullah Doma ©AFP

The government said it suspected both groups, which are loosely connected to the defence and interior ministries, of being behind the abduction.

Benghazi blast targets Swedish mission A car bomb set off a loud explosion Friday in front of the Swedish consulate in Benghazi, causing serious damage but no casualties, Colonel Abdullah Zaidi said.

The incident highlighted Libya’s security breakdown since the NATO-backed 2011 uprising that ousted dictator Moamer Kadhafi.

The Swedish mission is one of the few remaining diplomatic offices remaining in the eastern city of Benghazi, which was the cradle of the uprising but now frequently sees attacks

on security forces.

The Swedish mission is not far from the Egyptian consulate, which was bombed in August.

The worst attack was on September 11, 2012, when armed men assaulted the US consulate, killing ambassador Chris Stevens and three other Americans.

Such attacks are routinely blamed on Islamists, but have never been claimed. No group has yet claimed the attack on the Swedish consulate.

Two years after the revolution that toppled Kadhafi, Libya’s new authorities are still struggling to rein in tribal militias and groups of former rebels.

Public anger in Libya is growing as widespread violence — including assassinations — proliferates, particularly in the east of the country.

Many Libyans blame political rivalries for the problems plaguing a country awash with militias and weaponry left over from the 2011 war. ■ AFP

Nazi war criminal Priebke dies aged 100 in Italy

Rome — Nazi war criminal Erich Priebke died Friday in Rome aged 100 after serving nearly 15 years under house arrest for a World War II massacre in Italy for which he never expressed remorse.

Priebke was sentenced to life in prison in 1998 for his role in a bloodbath at Rome’s Ardeatine caves in March 1944 that left 335 people dead, including 75 Jews.

Because of his age and ill-health he was allowed to serve out his life sentence at the home of his lawyer Paolo Giachini, who told AFP the former SS captain had “died aged 100”.

He will be buried near his wife in Argentina, where he fled after the war, Giachini said.

Nicknamed the “butcher of the Ardeatine caves”, Priebke always insisted that he had

only ever obeyed orders.

“The order came directly from Hitler in Berlin,” he told the Italian military tribunal which staged his first trial in Rome in 1996.

“Anyone who refused to obey would have been tried by the SS.” The victims of the massacre were executed with a bullet to the neck, killed in retaliation for an attack by the resistance movement on SS soldiers.

At his appeal in 1998, Priebke again refused to repent for his actions, which he described as “a horrible thing, a personal tragedy”.

“If I could have stopped this horror I would have. My death would not have allowed for those innocents to be saved,” he said, adding that he would not exchange his dignity for a

“public display of repentance”.

Priebke managed like so many Nazis to escape to Argentina at the end of World War II, evading the 1948 trial in Rome of other perpetrators.

There he resumed his former profession of hotelier, living under his own name and becoming a respected member of the local German community.

He retained his German passport, even travelling to Italy, Germany and the United States.

He lived in Argentina for more than 40 years before being extradited to Italy in 1995, and every year on April 20, he and former comrades gathered to celebrate Hitler’s birthday.

In April 2011, the Italian magazine Oggi

sparked a scandal with photographs showing the former Nazi officer dining at a restaurant with friends, riding a motorbike and shopping at a supermarket.

Priebke joined the Nazi party in his native Germany soon after Adolf Hitler came to power in 1933, and became a policeman.

The following year he joined the SS, the elite military unit of the Nazi party.

He was posted to Italy in 1943 as a deputy to the SS chief in Rome, LieutenantColonel Herbert Kappler, who was to be jailed for life after the war for his own role in the executions.

Soon after the Ardeatine caves massacre Priebke was ordered to Verona, then appointed head of security in Brescia, where according to resistance fighters he

Former German SS officer Erich Priebke, seen at the a Rome military justice court on July 30, 1996.

Photo by Gerard Julien ©AFP

commanded round-ups which resulted in executions.

Priebke’s death sparked an angry reaction from Italy’s Jewish community whose leader, Riccardo Pacifici, said the war criminal would have to account for his actions in the next life.

“He never confessed the sins of his youth... never took pity on his victims or their families,” said Pacifici. ■ AFP

Tragedy brings hope for Italy immigrant rights Rome — In the wake of last week’s shipwreck tragedy in Italy, refugee and immigrant rights advocates are hoping for a change of heart in a country that is struggling to accept a new multi-cultural identity.

After visiting Lampedusa island where over 300 migrants died, Prime Minister Enrico Letta announced a reform of asylum laws and said Italy should abolish the crime of illegal immigration.

“It is now or never for things to change,” Khalid Chaouki, a Moroccan-born lawmaker

An Italian student in Rome holds a paper boat reading “How many tombs without names in Lampedusa, No to Bossi Fini” in reference to the tragedy where at least 311 immigrants drowned and the Bossi Fini immigration law, October 11, 2013. Photo by Filippo Monteforte. ©AFP

from the centre-left Democratic Party in the Italian parliament, told AFP in an interview.

Italy’s current laws on immigration “were put in place in a climate of fear by right-wing governments over the past 20 years,” he said.

At the centre of the debate is the “BossiFini Law” which considers all irregular migrants “suspects” liable for steep fines and punishes people who come to their aid, including fishermen who fear having their boats seized by prosecutors.

Chaouki said he believed it was possible “to overcome ideological rifts” within Letta’s left-right coalition government and find a majority in favour of reforming the law.

But immigration activists are less optimistic, particularly since the coalition includes Silvio Berlusconi’s People of Freedom party which helped vote the hugely controversial law in place.

“The government seems very stalled,” said Igiaba Scego, an Italo-Somali writer who heads up the association “Meetings of Civilizations”.

An announcement by the EU’s executive

that it plans to beef up the Frontex border guard service has also proved contentious, with charities saying the organisation is more steered towards fighting illegal immigration than saving lives.

Italian divers said the death toll from the refugee shipwreck last week had risen to 309 after seven bodies were recovered on Thursday.

Sandro Triulzi, a historian of Italy’s colonial past in Africa said many Italian officials remain stuck in a “security” approach to immigration.

“The difficulty for Italy is to accept its multicultural character,” he said, adding that largescale immigration only goes back 20 years in a country that used to be a land of emigration.

Triulzi said Italy “had not settled with its past and the loss of colonies is seen as a wound”.

“The migrant is still seen as a colonial subject, good for picking tomatoes or looking after elderly people for not much money,” he said.

For these immigration rights advocates, another key step in the cultural revolution they

want to see is a reform of a law that grants Italian nationality on the basis of parentage.

Reform would be good news for the 500,000 children of foreign-born parents in Italy who have to wait until they are 18 to become Italian.

Italy also has a way to go on views about the five million foreign-born people on its soil — around 7.5 to 8.0 percent of the population — who represent some 12 percent of its gross domestic product (GDP) even in an economy hit by crisis.

“The presence of foreigners is not discussed in pop culture, in television shows.

In films, black women are prostitutes or maids, black men are drug addicts, gangsters or migrants at sea,” Scego said.

Campaigners also criticise the media for frequently mentioning nationality or skin colour in crime stories, reinforcing negative stereotypes.

But immigration also has a lot of success stories like the thousands of small businesses set up by foreigners. “Mohammed” this year became the most popular name for business

owners in Milan.

There is also the story of Rashid reported

by La Repubblica daily — a young Moroccan who lives by selling handkerchiefs and lighters and has just earned a doctorate in engineering.

The nomination of Cecile Kyenge, Italy’s first black government minister, who is in charge of integration, is also seen as a major improvement.

But the appointment has evoked strong reactions from anti-immigrant parties. She has had bananas thrown at her at a political rally and was compared to an orangutan by a leading senator.

Chaouki has called for less indulgence from the authorities in outright cases of racism.

He has also asked for the neo-fascist party Forza Nuova to be banned, along with other “who want a return to old ideologies of identity.

“They are trying to stir up young people, the unemployed, all the victims of the social crisis.” ■ AFP

Congratulations 2013 Marks the 20th Anniversary of the Batangas Association United Kingdom (BAUK).

It gives us great pleasure to thank and congratulate each and every member and officers of the Batangas Association United Kingdom for their unwavering dedication, loyalty, perseverance, hard work and successoverthelast20years,itisquiteanachievement to reach this momentous milestone and it speaks to the quality of the organisation who has set a shining example for others to follow.

More Power and Blessings to the Batangas Association United Kingdom.

God Bless You All!

UK & EUROPE’S LEADING FREE FILIPINO NEWSPAPER

18

NEWS

www.hello-philippines.com

October 2013 / Fortnightly – No. 20 • UK & Europe Edition

Focus: In midst of pork’s evil, scholars and medical indigents give PDAF a decent, human face MANILA, Philippines - For all the evil deeds that have been exposed in connection with the misuse of billions in pork barrel beneficiaries, beneficiaries of the untainted part of the Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF) have become the human face of hope amid the poverty, hunger and lack of social services in the country.

It cannot be helped, however — as a lawyer for petitioners seeking to strike down the PDAF for being unconstitutional said in open court on Tuesday — that beneficiaries have to bear the brunt of the Supreme Court’s temporary restraining order stopping PDAF releases.

Among the hardest hit are medical indigents who have availed of funds lodged with state hospitals by certain lawmakers; and an estimated 400,000 scholars whose tuition is paid for out of a portion of their respective congressman’s PDAF. It is on behalf of the latter — who have till next week to reckon with payments for second semester enrolment — that the Office of the Solicitor General earlier asked the SC for a partial lifting of the freeze on PDAF releases, at least only insofar as those pertaining to scholarships are concerned.

Cynie Pataueg, 22, and Stephen Louise Cac, 18, both studying college courtesy of educational assistance from lawmakers, are no longer certain if they can pursue their studies next semester.

Zosimo Dumangeng, 32, was lucky to have undergone a heart operation using the PDAF allocation of several congressmen and senators at the Philippine Heart Center, but is now worried about how to continue his maintenance medication.

There are a total of 248,072 scholars of 73 congressmen who will be affected by the non-release of the PDAF for the second

half of the year, according to records collated by Eastern Samar Representative Ben Evardone. Of the number, 3,741 scholars are beneficiaries of the pork barrel of Evardone, vice chairman of the appropriations committee at the House of Representatives.

Cynie Pataueg goes to school because of the scholarship grant using the PDAF of Ifugao Representative Teddy Baguilat Jr. She has been a scholar since 2011, and is now in her senior year looking to earn a Bachelor’s degree in Secondary Education at the Ifugao State University.

Pataueg receives P4,000 per semester to pay for her tuition and miscellaneous expenses.

“May sukli pa po ito, mga ₱200, dinadagdag ko sa panggastos pang-arawaraw,” she said in a phone interview.

She gets her allowance for her daily expenses such as fare and food from the P1,000 per semester she receives from the university as a Student Assistant, which requires her to work for 50 hours in different offices in the school.

“I cannot expect money from my parents. They’re both jobless, now retired,” she said. Her three siblings all have families and are living separately.

Pataueg said she was saddened by the scandal hounding the use of pork barrel, but said she believes the program was not all bad.

“May ganun nga na pangyayari pero hindi naman lahat ay gumawa ng masama. Ilan ang nagkasala, ang daming naapektuhan. Kawawa po ang scholars, lalo na iyong mga papasok pa lang, nawala kaagad ang pag-asa nila [Some bad things happened, but not everyone misused the funds. Just a few committed offenses, but

so many innocent ones are affected. I pity the scholars, especially those who are just in their first year — their hopes were dashed right from the start ,” she said.

Last week, Pataueg said beneficiaries of Baguilat’s PDAF scholarship gathered in a meeting to discuss possible options amid the halt in pork barrel releases.

“The option was either to reduce the amount of assistance or reduce the number of scholars. ... We decided we will just get lower assistance so that the number of scholars will not be cut,” she said.

It was not certain, however, how much each would get without the PDAF releases.

Pataueg said there are about 800 scholars from the Ifugao State University alone. The number is among the 1,500 beneficiaries of educational assistance from his fund, according to Baguilat.

Asked what will happen to the scholars this second semester, he said, “Most will remedy by borrowing, some will stop, and a few, I’ll probably sponsor personally.”

Stephen Louise Cac of Concepcion Uno in Marikina City goes to college at the Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Maynila with the help of a scholarship from the pork barrel of Marikina Representative Romero Federico “Miro” Quimbo.

Cac chose to express his sentiment about the high court’s temporary restraining order on PDAF releases by executing an affidavit that was among the documents submitted to the Supreme Court for its evaluation.

“The scholarship grant ... eases the financial burden on my parents and allows them to focus their meager income on our family’s basic needs,” he said.

He said the scholarship assistance will allow him to finish a degree, which he would

PORK WAS GOOD FOR HIS HEART: For 32-year-old militiaman Zosimo Dumangeng, pork barrel proved to be life-saving, after pooled funds from several lawmakers’ allocations lodged directly with the Heart Center allowed him to undergo surgery. He is now recovering at the rehabilitation division of the PHC. Photo by Bernard Testa ©InterAksyon.com

use as passport to finding a decent job in the future. “Now that there is an issued TRO on the release of the PDAF, I worry about the status of my scholarship grant,” Cac said.A total of 6,097 scholars have so far benefitted from the PDAF of Quimbo.

Zosimo Dumangeng of Hungduan, Ifugao said he could not have afforded the cost of a heart operation even if he saved all his allowance in his lifetime.

When he heard late last year that indigent patients could avail themselves of medical assistance from the PDAF of lawmakers, he immediately went to the Philippine Heart Center to inquire.

A member of the Civilian Armed Forces Geographical Unit (CAFGU), he receives only ₱2,700 as monthly allowance.

Dumangeng said he hoped to avail of the assistance from the PDAF of their congressman, Baguilat, when he went to the Heart Center. But he discovered that he needed to pool money from several lawmakers, including the Vice President, to raise the amount that would subsidize his operation.

“Marami na akong kaklase sa pila sa Heart Center, sa kanila ko rin nalaman na sa maraming pinto pala dapat kumatok [I

learned from other patients who were in the queue at the Heart Center that one must knock on as many doors as possible in order to tap various sources of funds to pool together to meet the required amount,” he said in a phone interview.

After completing the documentary requirements, he finally underwent a heart operation in August this year and is now recovering at the V. Luna Medical Center.

He said he received assistance from Baguilat, Vice President Jejomar Binay and Senators Pia Cayetano, Franklin Drilon, Teofisto Guingona III, Antonio Trillanes and Francis Escudero, who have PDAF lodged at the Heart Center.

With the TRO on PDAF releases, Dumangeng said he will have to look for help from somewhere else for his maintenance medicine. He said he believes news reports that some of the pork barrel of lawmakers went to the politicians’ pockets, and not to the people, but added that strict and ontime audit could have prevented this.

Dumangeng said lawmakers should also voluntarily tell the public how they spent their PDAF every year to allow people to verify. ■ Lira Dalangin-Fernandez / InterAksyon. com / October 9, 2013 / 3:50 PM

Lepto rampage: Leptospirosis cases in Olongapo City rise to 401

MANILA - The deaths from leptospirosis have risen to nine in Olongapo City, where the total number of cases now stands at 401, the Philippine Red Cross (PRC) said Friday.

Philippine Red Cross Chairman Richard Gordon said about half of total cases, or 226, were admitted in hospitals; the rest were sent home after being treated for the deadly bacteria-caused disease, which afflicts people who have waded in floodwaters tainted by rats’ urine.

Gordon, a former Olongapo City mayor and first chairman of the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA), said he expected the number of cases to rise, since “patients keep coming in for treatment” and the incubation period for leptospirosis is usually 10 days, which means symptoms will not be manifested right away.

Gordon’s office has been coordinating with the Department of Health (DOH), especially as they expect to have more requests from patients needing dialysis. The most severe complication of leptospirosis is kidney failure.

James Gordon Memorial Hospital, where most patients treated, has a dialysis unit, but Gordon explained that there are already other dialysis patients being seen

Former senator and Olongapo Mayor Richard Gordon, seen in a file photo in an earlier press conference of the Philippine Red Cross.

there, so they may need to refer leptospirosis cases to state hospitals pinpointed by DOH, or arrange for government doctors to see those requiring peritoneal dialysis.

In the cases of peritoneal dialysis, where a machine is not needed — as in the case of hemodialysis — only a doctor needs to go and see the patient. “So gagamitin na naming yon para masiguro na yong

kailangan ng dialysis ay makakakuha agad,” he said.

Dialysis allows an unhealthy kidney to clean the blood of harmful waste.

“Peritoneal dialysis uses the lining of your abdomen, called the peritoneal membrane, to filter your blood,” the Medline Plus, the website of the National Institute of Health of the United State National Library of Medicine, said.

Zamboanga flood aftermath watched for lepto cases. Meanwhile, it’s not just Olongapo where recent flooding has spawned fears of leptospirosis. In Zamboanga City, where floods followed five days of steady rains, health authorities are bracing for reports of Leptospirosis following the usual incubation period of 10 days.

The number of cases may still rise in the flood-hit areas, said Assistant Health Secretary Eric Tayag earlier, warning that even if floods have eased, the risk of contracting the disease remains.

He explained why: “People can still, especially if there is mud, there’s wet soil, be infected,” he said, because “the bacteria can be found in these kind of habitat.”

The DOH is hoping that the spread of the disease in Zambonga City will be averted with the distribution of prophylaxis Doxycyline, an antibiotic that prevents leptospirosis.

The agency is making sure that Zamboanga residents will have enough supply of the antibiotic and ensure that there will be no repeat of what had happened in Olongapo. Zambonga has not yet recovered from the stand-off between government forces and the Moro National Liberation Front.

Nationwide, 2,084 leptospirosis cases were recorded from Jan. 1 to Oct. 5 this year, or 68 percent lower than the same period last year (6,439), DOH data showed.

Overall, the death toll from Jan. 1 to Oct. 5 was 141, much lower than the 318 deaths in the same period last year. ■ Jet Villa / InterAksyon.com / October 11, 2013 / 5:19 PM

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October 2013 / Fortnightly – No. 20 • UK & Europe Edition

Make the Philippines your investment, retirement destination, Koreans asked KOREAN retirees and investors were invited to either stay for the long-term in the Philippines or invest in the country.

The invitation came on Friday, days before President Benigno Aquino III is set to pay a visit to Korea on Monday for a two-day meeting to boost both countries’ economic and trade relations.

The challenge is to lengthen the average stay of Koreans in the Philippines, said Alex Veneracion of the Philippine Retirement Authority’s (PRA) retired activities office. Plenty of Koreans, who use the Special Resident Retiree’s Visa (SRRV) Smile, only stay for six to eight months to accompany their

children who study in the Philippines for one year.

Meanwhile, some interest about the Philippines has been generated from Koreans who attended the 26th Korea Emigration & Investment Fair 2013 at Busan Exhibition & Convention Center (BEXCO) last October 3 in Seoul, said Ray Sousa of the PRA’s marketing department.

For his part, Commercial Attaché Nicanor Bautista said that the Philippines has a huge potential in Korea in setting up “silver towns,” or premium retirement villages, in anticipation of the retirement of the current middle-aged employees of conglomerates such as Lotte, Samsung, and Hyundai.

“What is needed is a complete product package that considers location, security, facilities, climate and insurance portability. If the various Philippine government agencies can cooperate to put together a package, then it is feasible to attract any of these firms or Korea’s National Pension Service to invest in the Philippines,” Bautista suggested.

Sousa added that Koreans expressed interest in a number of SRRV Products, with SRRV Smile for young retirees 35 years and up and a visa deposit of US$20,000 being one of the most popular.

On Monday, President Aquino is scheduled to fly to Korea on October 17 to 18 after accepting the invitation of the Korean President

Park Geun-hye, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said in a statement.

“President Aquino and President Park will hold their first summit meeting to discuss bilateral issues,” the DFA said in a statement.

The two leaders will discuss political, defense, economic, and development cooperation, and to exchange views on regional and international challenges, among others.

Aquino will also meet with the Korean business community to promote further trade and investment in the Philippines and interact with the Filipino community in Seoul.

The Philippines and Republic of Korea has established relations on March 3, 1949.

During the Korean War in 1950, the Philippine

Expeditionary Forces to Korea (PEFTOK) joined the UN-led coalition in defending the Korean people.

“Until today, both countries recognize this as the bedrock of Philippine-Korean relations,” the DFA said.

Over the years, the two countries have developed dynamic economic relation.

To date, Korea is among the Philippines’ leading partners in trade, investments, and development cooperation.

Korea also remains the country’s top source of tourists reaching more than a million in 2012 or nearly a quarter of total tourist arrivals to the Philippines. ■ Pots de Leon / InterAksyon.com / October 11, 2013 / 6:46 PM

Microcredit is a business to help the poor, not make money off them—Nobel laureate YOU cannot make a profit out of poor people.

That’s what Nobel Laureate and father of microcredit Professor Muhammad Yunus said during a recent roundtable discussion in Manila. Corporations entering microcredit as another means to make profit is “problematic,” he told reporters on the sidelines of the 2013 Microcredit Summit.

“We’re always trying to emphasize that microcredit is a business to help poor people. It is not a business to make money out of the poor people,” he said.

“When we talk about corporations, corporate bodies they are looking for opportunities to invest money to make money. We don’t want to attract that kind of money into microcredit because it’s not the place to make money out of the poor people,” he added.

To avoid dependence on for-profit corporations, a fund called BKSF was created in Bangladesh that can provide microfinance institutions (MFIs) with money

File photo of an informal settlers’ community in Tondo, Manila. Photo by Bernard Testa ©Interaksyon.Com

to lend to others at very “reasonable” interest rates.

If companies are interested in microfinance, then it should be done within the “social business” framework, which is “to solve problems rather than make money,” Yunus said.

The Nobel Laureate said the way to change the mindset of those in the corporate world is to change the structure, not the people, by putting humanity alongside the money-making structure of private companies.

“The person in the corporate world,

just like any ordinary human being, is not a different kind but the moment they sit in their chair, they become part of a robotic structure. They behave in a certain manner.

The moment they come home and mix with their children, their family and everybody else--they worry about the same things we worry about,” Yunus said.

“But sitting in that chair, he has a screen and he has a thing that [how he] looks at the world, how he’s supposed to act. So he cannot normalize and cannot see what other people see,” he added.

Since making money is built into the corporate structure, adding another layer, like social business, into the mix provides people with a choice as to what kind of business they would like to buy into, Yunus said.

Media’s role is to show to the world what this alternative mindset is and get people to talk about the alternative business structure for those who would want lift millions out of poverty, the Grameen Bank founder said.

Microfinance has empowered women,

improved healthcare Microfinance has not only allowed poor people to have access to affordable credit but it has also changed the lives of women in Bangladesh, who are among the most marginalized in the country.

Unlike Filipinas, Bangladeshi women do not enjoy similar liberties that Filipinas have, Yunus said.

“But microcredit has shaken the system loose in getting women [to] participate in business. That has been a dramatic change in Bangladesh as far as women empowerment is concerned,” he said.

Microcredit has also improved healthcare in Bangladesh, which was at the bottom of the South Asian region 25 years ago. As a result, Yunus claims that his country is now ahead of its neighbors India and Pakistan in healthcare.

Birthrates have also gone down dramatically from 3.2 percent 25 years ago to the current 1.4 percent because of women empowerment brought about by microcredit.

Yunus also said that his country was able to achieve one of the elevent Millenium Development Goals in June this year by having reduced poverty by half, two and a half years ahead of target.

He said the debate can go on whether or not microcredit or government intervention was responsible for this but the fact remains that poverty reduction was made possible by empowering women.

Grameen Bank has $1.5 billion in loans, which are lent in small amounts, and about $1 billion in savings. Yunus said these savings are a source of financial strength for these women. Even if the banks would no longer lend to them, they have enough to keep them afloat when disasters strike.

“Bangladesh is a country of disasters— cyclones and floods very frequently—so they need to fall back on their savings to start all over again. So all these things fit very well because the financial structure of the poor families is built in a very sustainable way,” he said. ■ Likha Cuevas-Miel / InterAksyon. com / October 12, 2013 / 7:50 PM

PDAF, President’s Special Fund shouldn’t be lump sums, justices say MANILA - The Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF), the President’s Special Fund, and the Malampaya Fund should not be in lump sums, as checks and balances are impaired by having these government resources exist in such form, Supreme Court justices said Thursday.

At the resumption of oral arguments on the constitutionality of PDAF and the other funds, Senior Associate Justice Antonio Carpio told Francis Jardeleza of the Office of the Solicitor General that the President has been given the “line item veto power” under the Jones Law of 1916..

Carpio said this veto power was bestowed on the executive to “control wasteful spending”, specifically in the case of the so-called pork barrel system, which the Philippines inherited from its American colonizers.

“But how can the President veto a lump sum [such as President’s special funds] when there is no line item?” Carpio asked the Solicitor General.

Social Watch Philippines, led by former National Treasurer Leonor Briones, has been contesting the lump sum nature of the aforementioned funds, rendering these ‘vulnerable’ to abuse and misuse.

Carpio said that the President, in performing his function of providing checks

and balances to the legislature, has to veto the entire PDAF, or even the Malampaya fund amount since the veto power is on a per line item basis. The same goes for the President’s special funds.

He said this would then become unfair to those indigent patients who are dependent on the President’s social fund or PDAF for medical expenses while the chief executive conducts investigations on the use of these lump sums.

“That’s why there is a corresponding duty of the Congress to line items [in these funds],” Carpio said.

Jardeleza, however, disagreed with Carpio, saying that the President’s special funds have specific purposes such as for socio-civic and infrastructure projects.

“How do you define line item budgeting?

Is this even mandatory? This is what we are confronting with the pork barrel,” Carpio said, adding that the lump sum nature of PDAF is the reason “we have a problem.”

Sweeping Executive power over Malampaya. Justice Roberto Abad asked Jardeleza whether or not the President’s role in appropriating Malampaya funds for various projects is already unconstitutional, given that there is an encroachment on the functions of the legislture.

The OSG said such function is legal

under Presidential Decree 910, which has authorized the President to use the funds for energy exploration, development and exploitation and “other purposes” that may be directed by the President. “[But] what is the constitutional basis of a law that appropriates about 1.5 percent of the national budget to the President and says ‘it is up to you how you want to spend it’ but it does not tell us how many hydroelectric power plants would be put up,” Abad said.

To which Jardeleza replied that the Malampaya fund and its disbursement is based on the power of the purse as stated in the Constitution.

“But this [PD 910] is not an appropriations law; this is a lump sum,” Abad pointed out.

The justice again pointed to the same problem with the PDAF, where the line between Congress’ functions to appropriate the budget and the Executive’s function to implement the budget, is already blurred.

Abad asked Jardeleza whether or not this should now be declared unconstitutional since lawmakers have a say in the implementation of their pet projects.

Another problematic issue with the PDAF, according to Abad: the appropriations should be done by Congress as a body but not by lawmakers as individuals. This

happens when the ₱200 million in the PDAF is disbursed to each senator’s office, and ₱70 million to each congressmen--and the identification of projects and implementing entities is done at the individual level.

“And the President has not even vetoed this,” Abad said.

The Philconsa vs. Enriquez case, Jardeleza said, has provided the lawmakers power to name their projects post-execution of the General Appropriations Act (GAA) and this has been the basis for all the actions of Congress when it comes to the PDAF. Abad, however, said the Philconsa ruling has apparently not foreseen the consequences of yielding to the legislative the power to participate in the execution of the budget, as in the case of PDAF. “Yes, you [OSG] provided the restrictions but it was a long list and it contained everything Congress wants. It’s better than the menu of Glora Maris [where] you can choose almost anything,” Abad said.

As such, he added, the restrictions on the use of PDAF provided by the OSG are not really ‘restrictions’ as a lawmaker can decide to spend all his money on NGOs. Justice Teresita de Castro, for her part, observed that the list of projects and programs where PDAF can be used is “quite short” in 2010 and the amount allotted is only ₱10 billion. However, this more than doubled to ₱24.7 billion in 2011 and the list became four pages.

“This practically included all services covered by frontline agencies,” de Castro said.

Jardeleza justified the list by saying that under the Philconsa ruling, legislators are given the ability to steer projects to their districts so constituents would not have to wait for such services to be given by national implementing agencies.

“But in this instance, the appropriations have ballooned, and the list is very long.

Juggling of funds is very easy to do,” de Castro said.

The OSG, however, said they are not in a position to say why the amount has ballooned.

“Isn’t this a clever way of going around the Constitution that prohibits the transfer of funds?” the justice asked. ■ Likha Cuevas-Miel / InterAksyon.com / October 11, 2013 / 1:01 AM

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‘I want to exercise till I’m 100’ BETTY Shaw, 93, from Hessle, East Yorkshire, has attended the same fitness class for over 30 years. She says exercise has been the key to helping her to continue living independently.

How active are you? I consider myself quite active for my age. I live on my own and can do all the usual daily chores of cooking, cleaning and laundry by myself. I can walk to the local shops although I have just started using a walker when I’m on my own – more for confidence than necessity.

Describe the exercise that you do each week.

I have been attending the same weekly “shape-up” class, in a local village hall, for over 30 years – since I was about 60. The class starts with a weight check followed by exercise to music, including line dancing and the occasional floor exercise. The class lasts for about one hour and 15 minutes, of which the actual exercise session is no more than 45 minutes. This is continuous exercise, starting with a warm-up and finishing with a relaxing cool down. The exercises are gentle, consisting of bending, stretching, rotating all parts of the body to music.

What do you enjoy about exercise?

Going to the class each week and exercising makes me feel more lively and invigorated. The members of the group are mostly of retirement age and upwards – I’m the eldest and one of the longest serving members. We’ve all become friends over the years and are growing old together, although we do have new members coming and going all the time.

There are about 25 ladies in the group, and any funds generated are given to a local charity annually. We have a weekly raffle – the prize being something healthy like fruit packs, yoghurt or healthy drinks.

We all go out for a meal and theatre visit once a year, which I enjoy very much and always look forward to.

Are you aware of the importance of being active as you get older? I am, and I intend to keep going to my weekly class until I’m 100 at least! I try to walk as much as possible and use the stairs whenever I can rather than the lift. I always feel better for having had my weekly shape-up session and I look forward to going.

Have you always been an active person? In my teenage years I used to

HEALTH and Lifestyle

October 2013 / Fortnightly – No. 20 • UK & Europe Edition

regularly walk, cycle and dance. I also played a little tennis. Later, after my family had grown up, I started to play a bit of golf with my husband. We also took walking holidays together. When my oldest grandson was very young we helped to look after him during school holidays and initiated him into the golf as well. We would also play other ball games with him in the park.

What keeps you motivated to exercise? The main motivation is the enjoyment of exercising. It makes me feel better generally and lifts my spirits. I always feel more flexible for having exercised. I can still touch my toes. The social aspect also motivates me to attend the weekly sessions.

Is being independent important to

you? Yes it is. I’m still able to live on my own and look after myself. My daughters are there for me and help with any more arduous tasks. I live in an apartment block for the over-55s with a 24-hour emergency pull cord “care line” facility. We also have a part-time house manager who organises various activities and keeps an eye on us all without being intrusive.

Do you watch a lot of TV? I do try to avoid sitting for a long time as it can often lead to me having swollen ankles or cramp.

When sat down, I often rotate my feet or put them up on a stool. I go to bed by 11pm and get up about 7-7.30am. I rarely lie down during the day – but may put my feet up now and again.

Apart from exercise, what else do you do to stay healthy? I try to ensure I eat

healthily and follow the 5 A DAY regime. I have three meals a day, my main meal being at lunchtime. I take daily food supplements and medication for my blood pressure. But that doesn’t stop me from enjoying the occasional glass of wine or gin and tonic. I also like to keep my brain active by doing cryptic and general knowledge crosswords and other puzzles.

What would be your advice to someone who is thinking about getting more active? I would suggest they take a walk, or do some form of exercise every day, use stairs rather than a lift, join a local class for social activities or exercise.

And keep moving as much as possible throughout the day. If they’re not too good on their feet, using a walking stick or walker will give added confidence. ■ NHS Choices

“If your symptoms are not severe and you generally feel OK, then you can exercise. If you feel absolutely rotten, then it’s best not to go.”

However, it’s important not to exercise if you have a fever. A fever is when your body’s temperature is 38°C (100.4°F) or above and is rarely a symptom of a cold. “If you exercise with a fever,” says Dr Hopcroft, “it’ll make you feel worse. In very rare cases, exercising with a fever can lead to the virus affecting your heart, which can be dangerous.”

If you have asthma, take extra care when exercising in winter as cold air can trigger symptoms. Dr Hopcroft recommends using your inhaler before you exercise and taking it with you during your activity.

Something you enjoy. Choose an

activity that you enjoy. Now might be the time to try something new that you can do indoors, such as: • archery • badminton • bowls • cycling • dancing • curling • fencing • fitness classes • five-a-side football • handball • judo • pilates • racketball • squash • swimming

• table tennis • tai chi • yoga Use our directory to find activities near you.

You don’t even have to stop doing outdoor activities.

If you enjoy running, don’t let cold weather put you off. Get tips on running outdoors in winter.

You could take a long walk at the weekend or go for a bike ride. Just wrap up warm and be careful if it’s wet or icy. Get tips on walking for health.

If being outside when it’s windy, raining or snowing doesn’t appeal, rent a fitness video and try doing some exercise at home.

Exercising in the cold

AS the days draw in and temperatures drop, you may be tempted to hang up your exercise gear and hibernate.

Don’t! Stay active throughout autumn and winter to beat those seasonal blues and feel on top of the world.

If you’re short on ideas for getting active, try our popular Couch to 5K running plan and Strength and Flex exercise plan, which are ideal for beginners.

And if you’re not keen on exercising outdoors, check out our 10-minute home exercise routines: • 6-minute warm-up • 10-minute home cardio workout • 10-minute home toning workout • 10-minute legs, bums and tums home workout • Stretching after exercising If you’re looking for something less energetic, these exercises for older people are ideal if you want to improve your health, lift your mood and remain independent.

Don’t worry if you’ve not done much for a while, these exercises are easy, gentle to follow and can also be done indoors.

More energy. Regular exercise will make you feel more energetic, which should make it a little easier to get out of your warm bed on cold, dark mornings.

Your body’s defences will also benefit.

There is some limited research suggesting that moderate exercise can strengthen the immune system, thereby reducing the risk of coughs and colds. However, more research is needed in this area.

If the shorter days are affecting your mood, being active can improve your sense

of wellbeing.

You may be tempted to eat more during the colder months. Exercising will help you manage your weight better and keep your body in shape.

Get tips on eating a healthy balanced diet and taking regular exercise to maintain a healthy body weight.

Warm up. If you’re starting a new exercise regime, don’t overdo it. Slowly build the amount of exercise you do. If you can’t manage 30 minutes in one go, break it up into 10-minute chunks.

Always warm-up for up to 10 minutes before you start. Walk at a brisk pace, or jog in order to warm your muscles.

Make sure you’re warm if you’re going outside. Wear several layers to keep the heat in. A lot of heat escapes through your head, so consider wearing a hat as well.

Stay safe. If you’re exercising after dark, keep to well-lit areas and wear bright and reflective clothing. Ideally, exercise with a friend, but always tell someone where you’re going.

Avoid listening to music while running outdoors. Not hearing what’s going on around you can make you vulnerable.

If rain or ice is making exercise dangerous, do it another day. The weather might be better tomorrow, but an injury could take weeks to heal.

If you have a cold. Colds are more common in winter, but you don’t necessarily have to stop exercising if you’re feeling under the weather. According to Dr Keith Hopcroft, a GP from Basildon in Essex, use common sense and listen to your body.

■ NHS Choices

October 2013 / Fortnightly – No. 20 • UK & Europe Edition

HEALTH and Lifestyle food

FROM defrosting turkey to using leftovers, these food safety tips will help stop your turkey from knocking the stuffing out of you this Christmas.

Avoid cross-contamination. Keep all raw food, whether it’s turkey or vegetables, separate from ready-to-eat foods to avoid cross-contamination.

Use separate chopping boards for raw food and ready-to-eat food. Raw foods can contain harmful bacteria that are spread very easily to anything they touch, including other foods, worktops, chopping boards and knives.

Set the fridge to 5°C. Store food that needs to be chilled in the fridge until you need it. Make sure the fridge temperature is below 5°C. Don’t pack food too tightly, as the cold air needs to circulate to cool food down. If you’re storing food such as fresh vegetables outside in a garage or shed, keep them in a sealed container.

Wash your hands. Always wash and dry your hands thoroughly before and after handling food, especially when handling and preparing raw meat and poultry. You also need to remember to wash and dry your hands after going to the toilet, touching the bin or touching any pets. Bugs are spread between food, surfaces and utensils most effectively on wet or damp hands.

Defrost turkey safely. Defrost the turkey on a large dish and cover, preferably in the fridge. Remove the giblets and the neck to speed up thawing.

Alternatively, defrost the turkey in a cool, clean place where the temperature is fairly constant. Keep in mind that the temperature of where the turkey is kept will affect thawing times.

Turkey defrosting times. It can take up to 48 hours for a large turkey to thaw.

To work out the defrosting time for your turkey, check the packaging. If there aren’t any defrosting instructions, use the following times as a guide:

the thickest part of the bird (between the breast and the thigh) reaches at least 70°C for two minutes.

Goose and other birds. Other birds, such as goose and duck, have different cooking times and temperatures. The oven should always be hotter for duck and goose in order to melt the fat under the skin.

• goose should be cooked in a preheated oven at 200ºC/425ºF/Gas Mark 7 for 35 minutes per kg • duck should be cooked in a preheated oven for 45 minutes per kg at 200ºC/400ºF/Gas Mark 6 • chicken should be cooked in a preheated oven at 180ºC/350ºF/Gas Mark 4 for 45 minutes per kg plus 20 minutes Wash your veg. Most of the bacteria on vegetables will be in the soil attached to the produce. Washing to remove any soil is therefore particularly important.

When you wash vegetables, don’t just hold them under the running tap. Rub them under water, for example in a bowl of fresh water. Start with the least soiled items first and give each of them a final rinse. Washing loose produce is particularly important, as it tends to have more soil attached to it than prepackaged fruit and vegetables.

Know your dates. Sniffing food is not a reliable way of telling whether food is

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Twelve tips for a healthy Christmas • in a fridge at 4ºC (39ºF), allow about 10 to 12 hours per kg • in a cool room (below 17.5ºC, 64ºF), allow approximately three to four hours per kg • at room temperature (about 20ºC, 68ºF), allow approximately two hours per kg A turkey is fully defrosted when there are no ice crystals inside the cavity and the meat is soft when you insert a fork or skewer. Once thawed, store it in the fridge until you are ready to cook it. If this isn’t possible, you should cook it immediately.

Don’t wash the bird. Eighty per cent of people say they wash their turkeys before cooking them, but this significantly increases the risk of food poisoning by splashing germs around the kitchen.

Don’t wash your bird, because it will only spread germs. Thorough cooking will kill any bacteria that might be present.

Cook turkey properly. Seventeen per cent of people aren’t sure how to tell when their turkey is cooked. Make sure your turkey is steaming hot all the way through before serving. When you cut into the thickest part of the turkey, none of the meat should be pink. If juices flow out when you pierce the turkey or when you press the thigh, they should be clear. If you’re using a temperature probe or food thermometer, ensure that

Always wash and dry your hands thoroughly before and after handling food, especially when handling and preparing raw meat and poultry.

Other birds, such as goose and duck, have different cooking times and temperatures. The oven should always be hotter for duck and goose in order to melt the fat under the skin. still safe to eat. Some harmful bacteria don’t always change the way foods smell, taste or look. Food with a “use-by” date goes off quite quickly and it can be dangerous to eat after this date.

Food with a “best before” date is longer-lasting. It may not be at its best quality after this date but should be safe to eat. Eggs can be eaten a day or two after their best before date, as long as they are cooked thoroughly until both yolk and white are solid, or if they are used in dishes where they will be fully cooked, such as a cake.

Preparing a buffet. Cold items for a buffet should remain covered and in the fridge until the last minute. Don’t keep them out for more than four hours.

Food kept out for longer could be open to harmful bacteria if left to get warm at room temperature. Foods which are

cooked and intended to be served cold should be cooled as quickly as possible, ideally within one to two hours. You can cool food down faster by separating it into small batches, placing it in a container and placing the container in a shallow dish of cold water.

Cool leftovers. Cool leftovers as quickly as possible, ideally within 90 minutes, then cover and refrigerate.

Splitting food into smaller portions can help cooling. Use leftovers within two days and reheat until they are steaming hot all the way through. Don’t reheat leftovers more than once. If you want to keep leftovers longer than two days, you can freeze them instead. Cool leftovers as described above before putting them in the freezer. Once defrosted, don’t refreeze the leftovers unless you cook them again first. ■ NHS Choices

ready-to-eat foods such as salad, fruit and bread. This is because these foods won’t be cooked before you eat them, so any bacteria that gets on to the foods won’t be killed.

Store meat on the bottom shelf Always cover raw meat and store it on the bottom shelf of the fridge, where it can’t touch other foods or drip onto them.

Cook food thoroughly. Cook food thoroughly and check that it’s piping hot all the way through. Make sure poultry, pork, burgers, sausages and kebabs are cooked until steaming hot, with no pink meat inside.

Keep your fridge below 5°C. Keep your fridge temperature below 5°C. By keeping food cold, you stop food poisoning bugs growing.

Cool leftovers quickly. If you have cooked food that you’re not going to eat straight away, cool it as quickly as possible (within 90 minutes) and store it in the fridge or freezer. Use any leftovers from the fridge within two days.

Respect ‘use-by’ dates. Don’t eat food that’s past its “use-by” date label. These are based on scientific tests that show how quickly harmful bugs can develop in the packaged food. ■ NHS Choices

Ten ways to prevent food poisoning THE UK has more than 850,000 reported cases of people experiencing food poisoning a year, according to the Food Standards Agency (FSA).

If you’ve ever had food poisoning, you’ll know how unpleasant it can be, even for a fit and healthy person.

Sometimes food poisoning can cause serious illness and even death.

Most people assume that food poisoning comes from restaurants, cafes and fast food outlets, but according to the FSA you’re just as likely to get ill from food prepared at home.

“People don’t like to admit that the germs might have come from their own home,” says Dr. Andrew Wadge, chief scientist at the FSA. But it’s a common myth to think that food poisoning only comes from a dodgy takeaway.

Follow these tips to reduce the risk of food poisoning at home.

Wash your hands. Wash your hands thoroughly with soap and hot water and

dry them before handling food, after handling raw foods including meat, fish, eggs and vegetables, as well as after touching the bin, going to the toilet, blowing your nose, or touching animals, including pets.

Wash worktops. Wash worktops before and after preparing food, particularly after they’ve been touched by raw meat, including poultry, raw eggs, fish and vegetables. You don’t need to use antibacterial sprays: hot soapy water is fine.

Wash dishcloths. Wash dishcloths and tea towels regularly and let them dry before you use them again. Dirty, damp cloths are the perfect place for bacteria to breed.

Use separate chopping boards. Use separate chopping boards for raw food and ready-to-eat food. Raw foods can contain harmful bacteria that spreads very easily to anything they touch, including other foods, worktops, chopping boards and knives.

Keep raw meat separate. It’s especially important to keep raw meat away from

“People don’t like to admit that the germs might have come from their own home,” says Dr. Andrew Wadge, chief scientist at the FSA.

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MISS PEARL OF ASIA UK 2013

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October 2013 / Fortnightly – No. 20 • UK & Europe Edition

First Prestigious Miss Pearl of Asia UK MISS Pearl of Asia UK is a luxurious beauty pageant that will represent a diversity of young aspiring women aged 16 – 28 years old from countries in Asia, who will be involved in a top-end production that will acquaint spectators with their beauty, personality, ambition and diversity.

The event aims to reach an occupancy of 1000 guests, comprising of supporters, VIP guests and other businesses who will be given the opportunity to network and showcase their business at and prior to the event.

The primary cause of Miss Pearl of Asia is to help raise awareness for sponsoring children in need by donating funding to a chosen charity every year.

The crowned winner will receive funding to sponsor a child.

Details of each Candidate: #1 - Rosy Tu – Chinese #2 - Kristina Bates – Filipina/British/French #3 - Maria Dang – Vietnamese/Chinese #4 - Amber Joseph – Indian #5 - Rowena Arekens – Filipina/Belgian #6 - Asma Sami – United Arab Emirates #7 - Vivienne Roa – Filipina #8 - Karmen Tang – Chinese Hong Kong #9 - Nicole Tham - Malaysian/Chinese/English

MPOA Team Members (from left to right: Diana Bieles, President & Founder; Khim Tran, Co-Founder & Multimedia Executive; Mirella Rambuyon, Managing Director; Michelle Trotter, Director of Marketing & Events; Krystle Tolentino, Director of Business Development; Thomas Graham, Director of Sales; Jennifer Umali, PR & Marketing Manager; Louise Tolentino, Management Assistant; Levenia Obligacion, Sarah Jane Salvador, Ashley Bautista, and Sharon Lin Harwood, Online PR & Marketing Assistants)

Event Details

Venue: Camden Centre, King’s Cross, London Date: Saturday, 16 November 2013 Time: Doors open 6:00pm Tickets: £15 before 30th October, £20 thereafter/door £45 VIP tickets (front row table seated with canape food and drinks) Buy your tickets now at www.misspearlofasia.com/tickets Facebook/misspearlofasia Twitter/misspearlofasia #MPOAUK Instagram/misspearlofasia

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Love Sees No End in GMA Pinoy TV’s groundbreaking series Genesis THIS October, Kapuso Primetime King Dingdong Dantes topbills Genesis, an original, groundbreaking series that will take the audience on an emotional and inspiring journey towards a new beginning. It gives a glimpse of the triumph of the human spirit despite the looming destruction – that when hope falters, love is the greatest refuge. Dingdong portrays the role of Isaak Macalintal a morally upright military detail entrusted with the welfare and safety of the Vice President, Edgardo Sebastian.

Kapuso leading lady Rhian Ramos will prove that love sees no end as she breathes life to Isaak’s childhood sweetheart and fiancée Raquel, whom he will save and protect until the very end.

To show that in the midst of destruction, love is the greatest salvation, grand-slam best actress Ms. Lorna Tolentino plays the role of Sandra Sebastian-Trinidad, the principled president who will sacrifice anything for the sake of the country and its people just like her father, Edgardo.

Playing equally vital roles are versatile actor TJ Trinidad as Paolo de Guzman, the controlling and almost tyrannical husband of Raquel and seasoned actress Jackielou Blanco as Ramona Escalabre, the cruel, manipulative and dishonest former President.

Completing the powerhouse cast are Irma Adlawan as Tiya Fely, Raquel’s auntie who plays a second mom to Raquel; Ronnie Henares as Emil Trinidad, Sandra’s supportive and committed husband; Carlo Gonzalez as Waldo, the warden that will make Isaak’s life miserable; Betong Sumaya as Tolits Dimagiba, an ex-convict who will be Isaak’s friend; Luane Dy as Jill Galvez, a resilient, audacious and persistent journalist who will investigate everything about Operation: Genesis; Sasha Baldoza as Osie de Guzman, the smart, charming and loveable love child of Raquel and Isaak; Rainier Gison as MJ Trinidad, the eldest son of Sandra and Emil; and Annette Samin as Summer Trinidad the daughter of Sandra and Emil who has Down Syndrome.

Aside from the stellar ensemble, there will also be special participation of respected TV and movie stars: Robert Arevalo (as the Vice President and Sandra’s

Photos by Jojit Lorenzo ©GMANetwork.com

father), Bembol Roco, Gardo Versoza, Snooky Serna, Shamaine Centenera, Mark Anthony Fernandez, Angel Aquino, Pauleen Luna, Lauren Young, Lito Legaspi and Laurice Guillen (as Isaak’s parents) among others.

Under the helm of superb directors Bb. Joyce Bernal and Mark Reyes, Genesis is a journey that will showcase the basic

goodness of mankind; that we are all capable of love, hope, faith, forgiveness and sacrifice. The show will draw viewers to believe that no matter what adversities that would come along the way, there is hope for the future and that love sees no end.

Don’t miss the much awaited premiere of Genesis on October 15 on GMA’s flagship international channel GMA Pinoy TV. ■

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Lorna Tolentino on being the President of the Philippines LAST October 11, 2013, at the press conference of Genesis, GMANetwork.com sat down with the multi-awarded actress Lorna Tolentino for this exclusive interview.

The Kapuso actress plays an important role in Genesis.

“I’m playing the role of Sandra SebastianTrinidad. Ang father ko ‘yung Vice President, noong namatay ‘yung father ko, ako ‘yung pumalit sa kanya,” she shares.

She adds,“’Yung role ko is kung paano ise-save ‘yung buong Pilipinas dahil sa mga disasters at end of the world.”

Kasama ng Kapuso actress sa bagong adventure-drama series na ito

sina Dingdong Dantes, Rhian Ramos, TJ Trinidad, Jackie Lou Blanco, Luanne Dy, Carlo Gonzales at iba pang mga naglalakihang pangalan sa industriya ng show business.

“Napakalaking production nito, puro magagaling na artista ‘yung sinama nila.

It’s not hard working with them because there’s teamwork. “ How is this role different from her other roles in the past?

“This time kasi merong about sa government, ‘yun ‘yung difference, ‘yung nangyayari sa gobyerno, ‘yung paggunaw ng mundo.”

As the President of our country, what will she do to save her constituents in Genesis?

“Bilang Presidente dapat gagamitin mo rin hindi lamang ‘yung puso mo kundi ‘yung isip mo rin, kung papaano ang gagawin mo na diskarte para maaayos mo kung ano man ‘yung disaster na dumadating.”

She also adds that being the President

is not easy because the lives of many is at stake and in her hands, ”Dadalawa pa lang ang naging president natin na babae sa Pilipinas so alam natin na mas marami ang lalaki talaga, because being a president is really a guy thing.”

She says, “Kailangan meron kang leadership na tinatawag. Kailangan din tough, ‘yung character na pagiging lalake pero ‘yung heart is on the woman’s side.

You have to be really tough but with a heart. ’Yun ‘yung pinaka-importante dun.”

If the world will end now, who will she save first? “Pamilya, siyempre,” she quickly answers.

What if she becomes the president of our country and she has to choose over her family and our country?

“Uunahin ko siyempre ‘yung bayan kasi ikaw na ang ina ng bayan dahil ikaw ‘yung president. Automatic naman na magkaroon ng pribelihiyo bilang presidente na maisasama at mailigtas ang kanyang pamilya because of the position.”

Catch the multi-awarded actress Lorna Tolentino as she plays Sandra SebastianTrinidad in Genesis which will premiere on Monday, October 14, 2013 after 24 Oras. For more updates on your favorite shows and stars, keep visiting www.gmanetwork.com. ■ Eunicia Mediodia / GMANetwork.com /October 11 2013

GMA’s Prime Leading Man on empowering the Filipino youth BEYOND his numerous acting awards and his Kapuso Primetime King title is a man with a big heart. Dingdong Dantes, more than anything else, is a philanthropist dedicated to empower the Filipino Youth through YesPinoy Foundation.

According to yespinoy.org, the foundation’s official website, “YesPinoy Foundation (YPF) arose out of the simple yearning of an EDSA baby named Jose Sixto “Dingdong” G. Dantes III to help others, especially the youth, achieve their dreams of having a better life despite poverty and powerlessness . With the support of his friends in the entertainment, business and nonprofit sectors, YPF Founder and Chairman Dingdong Dantes established the foundation last Aug. 21, 2009.”

In an interview with Dingdong during the pictorial of his latest GMA Primetime series, Genesis, he talked about YesPinoy Foundation and said, “Basically, we just want to provide access to education to the underprivileged. In a nutshell, that’s what it’s all about, and under that is giving scholarships, and providing different types of seminars to students.”

When did he realize that he wanted to push through with this advocacy?

The award-winning actor replied, “I’ve always wanted to do this. Education, I believe is the most powerful tool, so if you have the opportunity to give it, why not?”

Besides supporting educational causes, YesPinoy Foundation also seeks to extend a helping hand during trying

Photo by Bochic Estrada ©GMANetwork.com

times. When Typhoon Ondoy hit the country, YPF held relief drives in several affected areas and launched Oplan Restore Paaralan.

Other endeavors by Dingdong’s YesPinoy Foundation include the Paskong Ligtas para sa Batang Kalye Program which offered alternative activities to street children in Metro Manila to protect them from the dangers of begging and caroling along busy streets.

Official website, yespinoy.org also states that “During the 25th Anniversary Celebration of the Edsa People Power Revolution, YPF successfully spearheaded the Edsa Baby Ako campaign geared to instill to the youth the lessons and gains of the People Power revolution, 25 years ago as well as to challenge today’s generation of Edsa Babies to carry on people power in their daily lives.” YPF also came up with campaigns like Pilipinas Got Bukas and Edsa Babies Expo, both geared at empowering the youth and encouraging them to make a difference.

With a heart of gold and bright ideas for the future of the youth, it is no surprise that many blessings are coming his way.

May Dingdong continue to inspire and thrive in his endeavors. ■ Samantha Portillo / GMANetwork.com / October 11 2013

Photo by Jojit Lorenzo ©GMANetwork.com

Photo by Jojit Lorenzo ©GMANetwork.com

Photo by Bochic Estrada ©GMANetwork.com

Megan Young to come home Thursday, toss ceremonial jump ball at Rockets-Pacers game AS she herself posted on her Instagram account four days ago, the much-awaited homecoming of Megan Lynne Young is finally happening on Thursday when the newly crowned Miss World 2013 finally arrives from London where she proceeded to after her victory in Bali, Indonesia two weekends ago.

In a communiqué furnished to Interaksyon by Miss World Philippines franchise holder Cory Quirino, Megan will have a very busy schedule in what is billed as the first stop of her world tour beginning with a press conference upon her arrival at 5PM. Immediately after meeting the press, Megan will proceed to the Mall of Asia Arena where she is scheduled to toss the ceremonial jump-ball in the first ever NBA game to be held in the Philippines that will see the Houston Rockets battle the Indiana Pacers in a preseason contest.

She will also have a homecoming victory dinner party at the Grand Ballroom of Solaire Resort Hotel to cap her evening.

The following day, October 11, Megan will spend the morning at Malacañang Palace for a courtesy call with President Noynoy Aquino. This will be followed by a motorcade victory parade that will kick off at Makati Central Post Office en route to Ayala Avenue and EDSA. Her rendezvous with well-wishers and the general public will continue at the SM Mall of Asia in a meet-and-greet affair,

which will include a short program and photo opportunities.

“The public is invited to participate in the parade, escort Miss World’s motorcade and attend the program in MOA. Miss World fans are requested to wear something blue which is the color of the crown and meet Megan along the route of the motorcade.

There is a request for the office workers to shower blue, aqua and white confetti as the motorcade passes their respective office buildings,” Quirino said.

On October 12, Megan will spend the weekend at her hometown in Olongapo City where she will also pay a courtesy visit to Mayor Rolen Paulino. The next day, Megan returns to Metro Manila for scheduled TV appearances on ABS-CBN’s “ASAP” and GMA’s “Sunday All-Stars” and

should bring joy to those who can’t see her in person.

As part of with Miss World’s “Beauty with a Purpose” mission, Megan will cap her scheduled activities with a charity visit at the Philippine General Hospital on Monday, October 14. She will also be conferred a commendation from both the Senate and the House of Representatives that same day.

Accompanying Megan on her triumphant homecoming to the Philippines is Miss World chair and CEO Julia Morley, Steve Douglas, and Victoria Cameron.

Those interested to be part of Megan’s activities may call and register at Miss World Philippines Secretariat Office at telephone number 4945949. ■ Edwin P. Sallan / InterAksyon.com / October 9, 2013 / 12:43 PM

Screenshot of Megan Young’s announcement of her Manila homecoming on Instagram.

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Miss World Megan Young overwhelmed by rapturous homecoming welcome

MEGAN Young couldn’t help but wax emotional upon seeing the throng of wellwishers that greeted her much-anticipated homecoming at the NAIA Terminal 1 Thursday.

“These are tears of joy. I’m just really

happy to be home. I’m just really happy to see everyone,” exclaimed the newly crowned Miss World 2013 during a minipress conference upon her arrival.

The 23-year-old Filipino-American actress and film student admitted that

she still couldn’t believe she was the new Miss World even after she had proceeded to London following her victory in the prestigious pageant in Bali, Indonesia.

“First time ko sa Europe. Hindi ko maimagine na magta-trabaho pala ako doon

Megan Young reacts to meeting the media upon her arrival at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport on Thursday. Photo courtesy of the ©Miss World Facebook page

as Miss World. It still hasn’t sunk in to me yet,” she confessed.

As she learns more of her upcoming activities in her scheduled world tour, Megan said she now has a better understanding of the “Beauty with a Purpose” mission of the pageant.

“Ang gusto ko lang sanang hilingin, hindi lang ako ang nandidito para sa Miss World, sana lahat ng Pilipino dito at everyone worldwide kasama ko sa journey bilang Miss World. Hindi lang po ito korona, malaking bahagi ng puso bilang Miss World ang ibinabahagi namin sa buong mundo,” she pleaded.

She later revealed that she intends to raise funds for the charitable projects of Miss World, particularly for the children of Africa who have no access to clean water.

“I was very excited when they told me we were going to Kenya and Ghana because I’ve always wanted to go to those parts of Africa,” Megan said during another press conference at Solaire Resorts and Casino that preceded her homecoming victory dinner party.

As for her own countrymen, Megan’s schedule for the next four days will be capped with a charity visit to the Philippine General Hospital. She said she also hopes to do charity work for street children here while reiterating her concern for the recent typhoon victims in her hometown of Olongapo City which she will visit on Saturday.

“Para sa mga kababayan ko rin po sa

Olongapo, I just hope everyone’s okay. I will visit my fellow Batang Gapo during my stay here,” she added.

Although she did not make it on time to toss the ceremonial jump ball in the equally anticipated NBA Global Game between the Houston Rockets and the Indiana Pacers, Megan was likewise greeted with loud cheers upon her arrival at the Mall of Asia Arena.

Aside from her visits to Olongapo and the PGH, Megan’s busy schedule include a courtesy call with President Noynoy Aquino at Malacañang this Friday. This will be followed by a Grand Fans Day that will commence with a motorcade victory parade from Makati to SM Mall of Asia where a meet-and-greet affair will immediately follow.

With regards to personal matters, the reigning Miss World was asked if there was anyone special in her life right now. Megan replied in the negative but did not rule out the prospects of meeting one in the course of her travels as Miss World.

Prior to her winning Miss World Philippines this year that led to her crowning as the new Miss World, Megan was romantically linked with GMA Network talent Mikael Daez. Neither Megan nor Mikael have publicly admitted being in a relationship.

Megan managed to post a lone tweet early Friday morning that expressed what it means for her to finally come home. ■ Edwin P.

Sallan / InterAksyon.com / October 11, 2013 / 10:02 AM

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KC Concepcion watches Chandler Parsons as Rockets rout Pacers AFTER confirming on Thursday morning that she and Houston Rockets power forward Chandler Parsons had gone on a dinner date Tuesday night, KC Concepcion watched him play with his team against the Indiana Pacers in an NBA pre-season game at the Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay City Thursday night.

The 28-year-old actress and a friend had courtside seats courtesy of tickets provided by the NBA heartthrob with whom she had forged a Twitter friendship earlier this year.

“Great seats to a great game + my 1ST live basketball game EVER. Salamat, @

chandlerparsons GO #Rockets,” she said on Twitter and Instagram. Her Instagram post came with a photo of herself and her unidentified female companion standing courtside. “@kcconcepcion, your [sic] welcome. hope you enjoyed!!” Parsons, 24, replied early Friday.

The Rockets won the game, the first ever NBA match played on Philippine soil, 11696. Parsons played 29 minutes and scored 15 points.

On Thursday, Concepcion posted on Instagram photos of their date, their first

personal encounter since their Twitter correspondence stirred up speculation of a brewing romance. It was a group date at a sports bar with a few friends and Concepcion’s half-sisters Garie and Cloie.

“We had a mutual friend who put us in contact, and hopefully we can do some work together in the future here. She’s a great girl, and I had a good time last night,” Parsons said when he told local media about the date on Wednesday.

However, the NBA star reportedly has a girlfriend named Robyn Crowley. ■ InterAksyon.com / October 11, 2013 / 1:14 PM

October 2013 / Fortnightly – No. 20 • UK & Europe Edition

KC Concepcion and a friend pose courtside at the NBA pre-season game between Houston and Indiana at the MOA Arena on Thursday. Photo from KC’s ©Instagram

KC Concepcion posts photos of dinner date Power rock trio Paramita with NBA heartthrob Chandler Parsons disbands after almost a decade KC Concepcion posted the above photo collage of her dinner date with NBA heartthrob Chandler Parsons early Thursday morning, less than 24 hours after the Houston Rockets power forward confessed to local media that he went out with the 28-year-old actress Tuesday night.

Parsons, 24, appears in five of the seven photos in the collage, which documents their first personal encounter after they forged a well-publicized Twitter friendship earlier this year. The two are shown having a good time at a sports bar, in the company of a few friends and Concepcion’s two half-sisters, Garrie Concepcion and Cloie Syquia Skarne.

“Mabuhay! So much to see, so little time!

Fun night with my ladiez & the big boys,” she said in the caption on her Twitter and Instagram accounts. She tagged Parsons’ Twitter and Instagram accounts with her message.

“We had a mutual friend who put us in contact, and hopefully we can do some work together in the future here. She’s a great girl, and I had a good time,” Parsons told reporters Wednesday.

Parsons is in Manila to play in the Rockets’ NBA pre-season game against the Indiana Pacers on Thursday. ■ InterAksyon.com / October

10, 2013 / 9:50 AM

THE power rock trio Paramita is no more, band founder and vocalist-drummer Ria Bautista announced on Paramita’s Facebook page Thursday night.

“After 9 years and 3 albums, I have decided to let Paramita go. Me, Marco and Alsey are going to part ways as bandmates, but we are still very much good friends,” Bautista said of the decision agreed upon by guitarist Marco de Leon, bassist Alsey Cortez and herself.

“It’s painful, almost unthinkable, especially to me, but it has to be done and there is no other person to do this task but me for I started Paramita and it is fitting that I be the one to end it,” she said in her statement.

Bautista thanked the band’s fans for their support and and assured them fans that all three members will continue with their music careers.

“The band may be gone but me, Marco, and Alsey are definitely not retiring. Not anytime soon at least.

Marco has a couple of projects with Alsey and they’re gigging actively around the metro,” she said.

She then declared her plan to go solo: “I, on the other hand, plan to pursue a solo

career, release a solo album, and collaborate with some of the local scene’s young, aggressive, and talented artists.”

Paramita released their debut album “Tala” in 2005 and became known for their signature single “Hiling”. They released their self-titled sophomore album in 2008 under Terno Recordings and their third, “Liyab”, in 2010 under Blaster Music.

Last January, the band emerged as one of the three finalists in Jack Daniels’ “The Chosen One” band competition. The contest was eventually won by Mr. Bones and the Boneyard Circus, which represented the Philippines in “The Jack Daniel’s South East Asia Event” in Cambodia in April. ■ InterAksyon.

com / October 11, 2013 / 4:44 PM

Paramita members Marco de Leon, Ria Bautista, and Alsey Cortez.

Plus-sized Pinay models are ‘fatbulous’, ‘fatshionable’, and in demand TWINS Danah and Stacy Gutierrez may be plus-sized, but their combined confidence can give garden variety fashion models a run for their money. These days, these two young models are very much in demand.

“We just wanted to show women that you can be fat but still be awesome,” said Danah in a “News to Go” video.

Likewise, fellow plus-sized model Rona Samson shows no trace of qualms about her body type. Though she doesn’t fall into the skinny fashion model mold either, she once weighed 250 pounds after an accident that crushed her knee.

“I lost 100 pounds in 15 months...kung kaya ko, kaya mo din,” said a grinning Rona.

She seemed comfortable in her own skin, even showing a little of it in her interview on “News to Go.” The long road to confidence. Before they became an awesome twosome, the Gutierrez sisters were besieged with problems with self-confidence and self-perception. Stacy, in particular, battled against both anorexia and bulimia some years back.

“Naging alarming na kasi,” she said.

“Napansin ko na nalalagas na yung hair ko, tapos nagiging black na yung nails ko. Sobrang bumaba yung grades ko.”

At the time of her accident, Rona was living in the US and had no exercise, leading to her eating nonstop.

“Kahit anong kain ko, big portions,” she said.

Life coach Ali Gui explained that these problems in self-image could impede social interactions with others and lead to depression.

“It’s the mind game—how you talk to yourself,” said Gui, then added, “Alam mo, napaka-ideal na maging payat, ‘di ba? It’s ideal kasi nakikita natin sa magazines. Ang realidad is. . .different people have different body structures.”

It isn’t just about body structures; location and prevailing cultural norms have something to do with it as well.

For instance, in other cultures elsewhere in the world—among which number Mauritania, Nauru, and Tahiti—fat is what’s considered sexy.

In certain periods of history, such as the Greek and Roman eras, curvy and plump were also the height of attractiveness—just take a look at the statues of their goddesses and noble women.

One famous, rather plump persona of that time was Cleopatra, the Queen of Egypt who managed to ensnare Julius Caesar and Marc Anthony, the two most powerful men of her time. Renaissance era women, who were voluptuous, were considered attractive.

Drive forward and outward. With the help of their loving family and by writing in their blog The Plump Pinay, Danah and Stacy were able to inch toward self-acceptance. Now, with their “Fat Revolution” advocacy, they are helping others toward their own journey to confidence as well.

Danah said, “When you really love something, you take care of it, ‘di ba? I mean, it’s a basic principle.”

“You should be able to live your life the way you want it,” quipped Stacy. “Kasi, alam mo ‘yon, it’s a gift.”

Rona, meanwhile, was determined to walk

crutch-less. Armed with a positive attitude and sterling determination, little by little, she changed up her diet and began an exercise routine. Those 15 months she spent losing 100 pounds were far from easy, however.

Rona shared, “You’re your own cheerleader—talagang, ‘kaya ko ‘to, kaya ko ‘to’ kasi some people will say ‘hmm, dalawang linggo lang ‘yan.’ Pero talagang ikaw eh—ikaw talaga yung magmo-motivate sa sarili mo na parang, ‘kaya ko ‘to.’”

“They have to challenge yung maling perception nila sa sarili nila,” said Gui. “Don’t

always look at your size. Aside from your size, you have other skills—kayang-kaya niyo.”

Remember, what is considered sexy now may not be sexy tomorrow. The important thing is to love and take care of yourself—not just because you want to become beautiful, but also to keep yourself at the peak of health and cultivate killer confidence. Sexiness comes from within.

Or as Rona put it, “[Sexiness], beauty, and confidence—it’s not a size. If you feel like you’re sexy, you’re sexy!” ■ Vida Cruz / KDM, GMA News / October 12, 2013 / 2:19 PM

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After local theatrical run, ‘Babagwa’ headed to Warsaw, Hawaii film festivals

WITH the conclusion of its recent theatrical run and its surprise inclusion in the little promoted Quezon City Film Festival, Cinemalaya 2013 New Breed box office hit “Babagwa (The Spider’s Lair)” is off to Poland and the US where it will be in competition in two prestigious international film festivals.

The provocative film about a con artist who swindles lonely gay men and matrons using a fake Facebook profile will compete at the Warsaw International Film Festival in its section for first and second feature films. “Babagwa” is the sophomore feature of independent filmmaker Jason Paul Laxamana.

It will also be screened on October 16 and 19 at the Hawaii International Film

Festival where it will vie for the Halekulani Golden Orchid Award in the Narrative Category. Earlier this month, “Babagwa” also competed in the Vancouver International Film Festival in Canada.

Laxamana admits to being elated at being selected in these film festivals. “I’m very happy and excited, of course. I made ‘Babagwa’ without thinking of foreign festivals. Local audience lang talaga ang main target ko. Nung nalaman ko na kasali siya sa international filmfests tapos competing pa, mas lalo akong naging excited kasi makakapupunta ako sa mga bansang na hindi ko pa napupuntahan,” the young director told InterAksyon.

As one of the surprise hits of Cinemalaya 2013, “Babagwa” won

the Best Supporting Actor award for Joey Paras, who charmed critics and audiences with his compelling portrayal of a Facebook scammer in cahoots with Alex Vincent Medina’s lead character.

Although it has concluded its local commercial run where it was released in both R-16 and R-18 versions, “Babagwa” still has an upcoming special screening on October 17, 6:30PM at the Natividad Fajardo Auditorium of De La Salle University in Taft Avenue, Manila.

Produced by Quantum Films, the film also stars Alma Concepcion, Chanel Latorre, Kiko Matos, Nico Antonio, Sunshine Teodoro and Garry Lim. ■ Edwin P. Sallan / InterAksyon.com / October 11, 2013 / 7:46 PM

Alex Vincent Medina and Kiko Matos in a scene from ‘Babagwa’.

Alice Dixson, 44, wears two-piece swimsuit for first time in career in ‘For Love or Money’

DURING the recent trade launch of TV5’s “Everyday All The Way” line-up of new shows at the NBC Tent, eagle-eyed attendees were surprised to see something in the audio-visual presentation of the primetime entertainment line-up.

It was a blink-or-you’ll-miss-it glimpse of Alice Dixson wearing a two-piece red swimsuit in a scene for her upcoming weekly drama series, “For Love Or Money”.

Turns out the surprise was justified.

InterAksyon recently caught up with the 44-year-old actress during the recent media launch of the Network for Enterprising Women (N.E.W.) where Alice has agreed to be one of the speakers for its Fashion and Beauty Fair at the Rockwell Tent on October 12-13 and October 19-20.

When asked when was the last time she actually wore a two-piece bikini in any film or television project in her entire career, Alice said “For Love or Money” was actually her first time.

Co-star Derek Ramsay was in fact just as thrilled to see the knockout figure of the actress he refers to “Miss A”.

“She’s got a better body than most teenagers. When you saw me taking photos or whatever the camera caught, I wasn’t acting in my reaction. Kung na-shock kayo sa trailer, mas lalo na ako sa totoong buhay. She’s the best definition of 40s being the new 20s. She’s in great shape and hopefully, she’ll movitate more women out there to get off their butts and work out,” the actor enthused.

One has to go as far back as the 1986 Binibining Pilipinas beauty pageant where she won Bb. Pilipinas-International to recall

Alice ever wearing a swimsuit in public.

“But that was one-piece. I decided to go for it here because the role called for it. And I thought, you might as well flaunt it while you still have it,” she quipped.

That role is that of a mysterious millionaire who offers a hard luck couple ₱10 million in cash just to spend 10 days alone with the husband. The series, which director Mac Alejandre admits to be partly inspired by the film “Indecent Proposal”, is one of the most intriguing offerings by TV5 for the last quarter of the year.

“Yes, yes and yes” was Alice’s quick reply in an earlier interview when asked if she would actually do what her TV character does in real life given the opportunity. “Idol ko si Robert Redford, in this case mas mayaman ako sa kanya”.

Taking on a more serious tone, Alice further describes her role as “immoral, tempting and exciting at the same time.”

Without mentioning names she added, “I think I know somebody in real life would actually do that.”

Blessed with one of the most beautiful faces that has hardly aged in a career spanning more than two decades, Alice also has one of the most cheerful demeanors in the industry which, given her outspoken nature, is remarkable in itself.

Last year, she shocked a few people when she arrived at the press conference for TV5’s “Enchanted Garden” wearing a T-shirt that said “Fuck Cancer”, which revealed her anti-cancer advocacy in a rather bold statement. And early this year, she calmly opened up about the end of her 13-year marriage to businessman Ronnie

Miranda in another TV5 media gathering for “Never Say Goodbye”.

Still, Alice has never looked more radiant and beautiful which could be attributed mostly to her active lifestyle that includes engaging in varied activities such as yoga, boxing, shooting (guns, not basketballs) and archery. But the actress says it has more to do with her positive outlook as of late.

“Your thoughts can be a powerful thing.

If you decide how you’re going to feel good that day, then that’s how your day will be. If you mind is set on having fun, then you’ll have a lot of fun for that whole day,” she told her mostly female audiences in her talk at the N.E.W. event.

She also has no qualms about taking on more challenging roles either. Aside from “For Love or Money”, Alice has also wrapped up “TV5 Presents: The Lady Next Door” where she co-stars with “Artista Academy” alum Mark Neumann.

“It’s a May-December affair kind of love story and directed by Joel Lamangan.

Mark here plays a balikbayan Fil-Am who fell in love with his neighbor. I like the treatment and I enjoyed doing it but I don’t know when they’re going to air it,” she revealed.

Alice added that she doesn’t at all mind playing these “cougar” type of roles.

“I’m no spring chicken and I cannot play a

teenager anymore. I find these roles very challenging and I’d love to play characters that have more dimension”.

As for her co-stars in “For Love or Money”, Alice said she’s very thrilled to work with Ritz Azul again after “Glamorosa”.

“I love Ritz. She’s an angel and I’m so happy to work with her again. She’s so sweet, who cannot love her?” she mused.

And Derek? “I recently worked with him before in ‘Undercover’. He is everybody’s crush so it’s a pleasure to be together again in this new project. I know this is going to be a really good show,” she confidently declared. ■ Edwin P. Sallan / InterAksyon.com / October 10, 2013 / 7:47 PM

Alice with ‘For Love or Money’ leading man Derek Ramsay. Photos by Paul Mata ©TV5

Geneva Cruz hospitalized due to delicate pregnancy, but says ‘baby is okay’

Geneva Cruz posted this photo of herself in her bed at the Asian Hospital and Medical Center in Alabang, Muntinlupa in her Facebook account on Thursday morning.

GENEVA Cruz was hospitalized on Wednesday evening, two days after she announced that she was in the family way and asked for prayers to help her deal with her delicate pregnancy.

“I had some spotting yesterday afternoon & I panicked a little knowing that I’ve a bad case of UTI, 2 huge myomas & hemorrhage in my uterus,” the 37-yearold posted on Facebook from her room at the Asian Hospital and Medical Center in Muntinlupa.

Nevertheless, Cruz assured her friends and fans that she and her baby are safe.

“Thanks for the prayers, it worked…

The hospital did another ultrasound on me and found out that the baby is okay.

Little bubba is fighting strong, heartbeat is a little fast but doctors say it’s normal naman daw,” she clarified.

The singer posted a photo of herself in her hospital bed (see above) on Thursday morning with this message: “Hospitals, IV therapies, injections stress me out…

Scares the heck out of me. But I know I have to be more patient for the sake of my unborn child.”

The baby would be Geneva’s second child and her first with her FilipinoAustralian fiance, Lee Paulsen. She has an 18-year-old son, Heaven, from her first marriage to musician Paco Arespacochaga.

She was also married to TV host KC Montero from 2004 until early this year. ■ InterAksyon.com / October 10, 2013 / 10:35 AM

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PHILIPPINE EMBASSY AROUND THE WORLD

www.hello-philippines.com

October 2013 / Fortnightly – No. 20 • UK & Europe Edition

UNDP Under-Secretary-General Lauds Phl Ambassador Discusses OFW Cases with Riyadh Emir Phl Leadership in Development Issues UNITED Nations (UN) Under-SecretaryGeneral and United Nations Development Program (UNDP) Associate Administrator Rebeca Grynspan called on Acting Foreign Affairs Secretary Rafael E. Seguis at the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) on October 09. Ms. Grynspan conveyed the UNDP’s appreciation for its dynamic and exemplary partnership with the Philippines.

Ms. Grynspan commended the Philippine Government’s national consultation process on the Post-2015 development agenda, particularly in actively involving citizens in its discussions. The Philippines is one of 66 countries tapped by the UN to conduct multi-sectoral dialogues on the agenda. She lauded the priority given by the Philippines to key elements of development agenda, namely health, education and good governance.

Ms. Grynspan also praised the Philippine Government’s partnership with the UN system on utilizing the Humanitarian Cluster Approach for cooperation on disaster

response and recovery, which has been recognized as a global best practice.

The UNDP Associate Administrator also invited the Philippines to share its developmental experiences with other countries in the context of South-South cooperation, stating that “South countries are looking for South solutions” for their problems.

Among the particular areas proposed for such Philippine-led South-South cooperation are inter-faith dialogue, early recovery from crises, disaster management and peacebuilding.

Accompanying Ms. Grynspan were members of the UN Country Team lead by UN Resident Coordinator Luiza Carvalho.

Also joining the meeting was Foreign Affairs Assistant Secretary Jesus R.S. Domingo. Ms. Grynspan is in the country for a three-day visit, including an inspection of UNDP projects in Davao.

Before her appointment as UNDP Associate Administrator, Ms. Grynspan was the Vice President of Costa Rica from 1994 to 1998. ■ October 10, 2013

DFA officials with the UN COuntry Team representatives during the call of UNDP Associate Administrator Rebeca Grynspan.

Acting Secretary of Foreign Affairs Rafel E. Seguis exchanges views with UNDP Associate Administrator Rebeca Grynspan.

PHIBLEX 2014 Supports DFA Legazpi’s Community Outreach Program THE Philippine Naval Forces Southern Luzon (Navforsol) and the US Marines Corps (USMC), joint participants in Phiblex 2014, and DFA Legazpi organized a community outreach activity at the Banquerohan Resettlement Elementary School (BRES) in Legazpi City on October 8. The Philippine Army and the Albay Provincial Police also lent support to the activity.

The community outreach activities for the more than 300 students of BRES included feeding program, Palaro ng Lahi (Filipino indigenous games) and hair trimming. The USMC distributed multivitamins, coloring books and also did storytelling activities in the classrooms.

The joint efforts of Navforsol, Philippine

Army, Albay Provincial Police, USMC and DFA Legazpi were described by USMC’s Major Grace Janosek as ‘an activity with interoperability’.

BRES is the beneficiary of DFA Legazpi’s community outreach activities under the DFA Volunteer Program.

The RP-US Amphibious Landing Exercise or Phiblex 2014 is designed to improve interoperability, increase readiness and enhance the ability to respond to natural disasters or other regional contingencies.

PHIBLEX will also enhance local infrastructure and quality of life and build upon vibrant professional and personal relationships between Philippine and U.S. Marines. ■ October 9, 2013

PHILIPPINE Ambassador to Saudi Arabia Ezzedin H. Tago was received on October 09 by His Royal Highness Prince Khaled bin Bandar bin Abdul Aziz Al-Saud, Emir of Riyadh Region.

During the meeting, Ambassador Tago conveyed the appreciation of the Philippine government and gratitude of the Filipinos in Saudi Arabia who benefited from the Royal Decree by King Abdullah bin Abdul Aziz, Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, granting a correction period from April 06 to November 03, which also allows transfer of employment or repatriation for those affected.

The Ambassador noted that thousands of Filipinos have been able to benefit from the correction period and that as of October 06, at least 2,221 Filipinos from the Riyadh region alone have been repatriated on tickets

shouldered by the Philippine government in addition to those who left on their own expense.

Ambassador Tago sought the help of the Emir for other cases, including the admission of females who do not have documents and

their processing at the Saudi Social Welfare Authority. Ambassador Tago also made representations for a mechanism for males who no longer have their original iqama or passport and are not registered in the fingerprint database. ■ October 11, 2013

President Aquino Calls for Adherence to Rule of Law to Ensure Peace and Stability in the South China Sea PRESIDENT Benigno S. Aquino III today emphasized that rules and norms anchored on international law are fundamental in promoting trust and confidence among nations, and in ensuring stability and peace in the international community.

“At the core of the ASEAN-China Strategic Partnership is the belief that our actions should adhere to the rule of law,” President Aquino said at the 16th ASEAN-China Summit in Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei Darussalam.

President Aquino said that the Philippines has taken a two-track complementary approach to disputes in that sea with many names that is both peaceful and rules-based.

“First, to manage tensions, we are advocating an expeditious conclusion of the ASEAN-China Code of Conduct. Second, to resolve disputes, we are pursuing arbitration for the clarification of maritime entitlements.

Both tracks are legally-binding and anchored on international law,” the President explained.

The President said that there is a collective problem in the sea known by many names: territories in a sea which is west of the Philippines, east of Vietnam, north of Malaysia, south of China are claimed in whole, or in part, by all.

“These claims have led to tensions, and these have created problems between us,” the President stressed. However, “a problem can be turned into an opportunity if we have the will to act now and not pass on the burden to succeeding generations.”

Noting that the first official consultations between ASEAN and China on the Code of Conduct were held last month in Suzhou, China, the President stressed that the early conclusion of a legally-binding Code

of Conduct is necessary to foster peace, positive engagement and stability in the region.

“As we look towards finalizing the COC, we urge all parties to observe implementation of the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the sea known by many names in all its aspects,” the President said. ■ October 10, 2013

Government to Attract More Korean Retirees to Philippines REPRESENTATIVES of the Philippine Retirement Authority (PRA) called on Philippine Ambassador to South Korea Luis T. Cruz on October 07 to report on their participation in two exhibitions in Korea’s two largest metropolitan areas to attract more Koreans to migrate to or set up small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in the Philippines as retirees or as investors.

Ray Sousa, Division Chief III of the PRA’s Marketing Department, and Alex Veneracion, Retirement Assistant Officer of the PRA’s Retired Activities Office based in Subic Bay, said they were able to attract some interest from Korean attendees of the 26th Korea Emigration & Investment Fair 2013 at Busan Exhibition & Convention Center (BEXCO) on October 03 and COEX in Seoul from October 05 to 06.

Mr. Sousa said Korea ranked second among the number of foreign retirees, with 1922 percent of the total figure as of 2012, after China with 29 percent. He added that Koreans expressed interest in a number of Special Resident Retiree’s Visa (SRRV) Products, with SRRV Smile for young retirees 35 years and up and a visa deposit of US$20,000 being one of the most popular.

The challenge, Mr Veneracion said, would be to lengthen the current average period of residence of Koreans that now stands at 6-8 months. Many Koreans are using the SRRV

Representatives of the of the Philippine Retirement Authority (PRA) (2nd and 4th from left) Ray Sousa, Divison Chief III of the PRA’s Marketing Department, and alex Veneracion, Retirement Assistant Officer of the PRA’s Retired Activities Office based in Subic Bay—reports to Embassy officials, led by Ambassador Luis T. Cruz (center), on the potentials of attracting retirees from Korea after attending the 26th Korea Emigration & Investment Fair 2013 at Busan Exhibition & Convention Center (BEXCO) on 3 October 2013 and COEX in Seoul on 5 to 6 October 2013.

Smile to benefit their children interested in studying English in the Philippines for less than one year.

Commercial Attaché Nicanor S. Bautista described a huge potential in Korea in setting up “silver towns” (premium retirement villages) in anticipation of the retirement of the current middle-aged employees of such conglomerates as Lotte, Samsung

and Hyundai. What is needed, however, is a complete product package that considers location, security, facilities, climate and insurance portability. If the various Philippine government agencies can cooperate to put together a package, then it is feasible to attract any of these firms or Korea’s National Pension Service to invest in the Philippines. ■ October 11, 2013

October 2013 / Fortnightly – No. 20 • UK & Europe Edition

NEWS

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To vindicate itself, Congress must use ‘real power of the purse’ in scrutinizing 2014 budget MANILA, Philippines- For Congress to vindicate itself, lawmakers should fully exercise their “real power of the purse” and scrutinize the ₱2.268-trillion national budget for 2014, including ₱947 billion in “pork” for President Aquino, according to an official of independent research group IBON. In an interview, IBON Executive Director Sonny Africa expressed concern that if

senators and congressmen intentionally waive their rights—nay, their duty—to scrutinize the general appropriations bill, then next year’s national budget will again be “vulnerable to abuse.”

“Budget hearings nga pero may magpapasikat na individuals at kunyari mag-iingay sila [In budget hearings, certain individuals often create a lot of noise, but nothing substantial]. They just

want to exert leverage over a particular issue,” he said.

Africa, who once worked for the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) and later as a congressional officer for the party-list Bayan Muna, noted that in discussing the proposed budget, the lawmakers must first look at how the national allocation for the previous year was spent.

“Ang pinaka-rationale doon kung nagset ng bagong budget ang Presidente for approval ng Kongreso, mayroong kaakibat na kung paanong ginastos ‘yung budget nung nakaraang taon [When the President presents a new budget proposal to Congress, the presentation includes a report of how the previous year’s budget was spent],” he said.

But according to Africa, this “never happened in the history of the Philippines.”

He added with some concern: “It’s really a big problem since Congress never really tried to exercise its real power of purse.”

Timely release of full audit reports needed. To establish irregularity, Africa said, it is the Commission on Audit (COA)

that should furnish the public a report. The problem, he pointed out, is that COA “has not been completely transparent” in its findings.

“Tingi-tingi ang inilalabas na audit reports [Release of audit reports is piecemeal]. As far as their group of analysts is concerned, “ito ang pinakamahalaga ngayon [this is the most important issue now],” according to the London School of Economics-trained Africa.

“Once funds are used, they should be audited thoroughly to determine if use of the funds was in order, and where exactly they were used. That’s the only remedy to the problem,” he added.

To illustrate the problems arising from a long time lag between actual spending and release of audit reports, he noted that the Aquino administration’s flagship conditional cash transfer (CCT) program already “suffers billions of pesos worth of problems in its accounts,” and yet President Aquino hailed it as one of his administration’s major strategies for achieving inclusive growth when he spoke at the recent Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Summit in Bali.

According to Africa, the CCT program had already figured in a controversy before Congress as early as 2011. In a statement distributed at a media forum at Hotel Rembrandt Saturday, IBON even cited a COA report on the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), which found billions of pesos worth of problems in the 4Ps/CCT programs: unliquidated disbursements, grants released to nonbeneficiaries, and grants released in violation of established guidelines, among others.

If an irregularity is established, IBON said, “this could mean that at least ₱3.76 billion in Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps) funds including those under the current administration have been used as a pork barrel either for patronage purposes, lost to corruption, or both.”

And yet Congress continued to approve its budget, Africa said. Now, he said the 2014 budget has programmed ₱63 billion for the CCT. “Categorically we can say that Congress does not approve proposed budgets based on assessment of past budgets,” he said. ■ Joel C. Paredes / Special to InterAksyon.com / October 12, 2013 / 9:38 PM

US says captured top Pakistani Taliban leader WASHINGTON – American troops have captured a senior leader of the Pakistani Taliban, a US official said Friday, in what could prove a major blow to the Islamic militant group just as Kabul is trying to arrange peace talks.

“I can confirm that US forces did capture... terrorist leader Latif Mehsud in a military operation,” State Department deputy spokeswoman Marie Harf said, describing him as a senior commander in the Tehreek-eTaliban Pakistan (TTP).

She gave no details of the operation and did not say where or when his capture took place, as the news filtered out as US Secretary of State John Kerry landed in Kabul for a surprise visit.

Pentagon officials however said Mehsud was still inside Afghanistan, without specifying where.

“As part of the armed conflict against Al-Qaeda, the Taliban, and associated forces, authorized by Congress in the 2001 Authorization for the Use of Military Force, Mehsud was captured and is being lawfully held by US military forces in Afghanistan,” said Pentagon spokeswoman Commander Elissa Smith.

The Washington Post reported however that he had been seized recently in eastern Afghanistan, and was snatched away from Afghan intelligence operatives who had been trying to recruit him as a possible gobetween for peace talks between Kabul, Islamabad and the Taliban.

Kerry landed in Kabul for difficult talks about leaving a residual US force behind in Afghanistan after international forces withdraw by the end of 2014.

President Hamid Karzai, who said earlier this week that he was prepared to walk away from the talks on the bilateral security agreement if Kabul was not satisfied with the deal, was reportedly livid about Mehsud’s capture.

“The Americans forcibly removed him and took him to Bagram,” a Karzai spokesman, Aimal Faizi, told the Post.

Bagram air base is a military base that includes a detention facility where the United States continues to hold more than 60 foreign fighters among about 3,000 detainees.

Mehsud had only agreed to meet with agents from Afghanistan’s National

Armed militants of Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan, stand next to a graffiti which read as “Long Live Tehreek-eTalban Pakistan” at a camp in a Pakistani tribal district of Mohmand Agency on July 21, 2008.

Photo by Tariq Mahmood ©AFP/File

Directorate of Security after months of conversations, he said.

Afghan authorities believed their contacts with Mehsud has been one of the most significant operations carried out by Afghan forces, who are gradually assuming sole control for the country’s security, Faizi told the Post.

“Mehsud is a senior commander in TTP

and served as a trusted confidante of the group’s leader Hakimullah Mehsud,” Harf said.

She told reporters the TTP had claimed responsibility for the attempted bombing of Times Square, New York, in 2010.

The group “had also vowed to attack the US homeland again,” Harf said, adding it had also been behind attacks on US

diplomats in Pakistan as well as incidents that killed Pakistani civilians.

It was not immediately clear if Latif Meshud is related to Hakimullah Mehsud, who took over as the commander of the Pakistani Taliban in 2009.

Karzai in August asked Pakistan to help arrange peace talks between his government and Taliban insurgents, during a visit to Islamabad for his first talks with newly elected Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif.

Botched efforts by the United States in June to launch peace talks with the Taliban infuriated Karzai when the Taliban opened up an office in Qatar. The office has since been shut.

The US and the international community have been working to shore up the Afghan security forces as they take on greater responsibility for security.

The United States has repeatedly pressed for the security pact to be signed by the end of this month, so the US-led NATO military coalition can schedule its withdrawal of 87,000 combat troops by December 2014. ■ AFP

Syjuco files plunder raps vs. Drilon, DBM chief Abad and his solon-wife MANILA - Former Iloilo congressman Augusto “Buboy” Syjuco, Jr. Friday filed before the Office of the Ombudsman criminal charges against Senate President Franklin M. Drilon, Budget Secretary Florencio “Butch” Abad and his wife Batanes

Rep. Henedina Abad, in connection with the alleged questionable release of hundreds of millions of funds.

In two separate complaints, Syjuco asked Ombudsman Conchita Carpio Morales to prosecute the three respondents for plunder, violations of the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act and Code of Conduct and Ethical Standards for Public Officials and Employees. He is seeking as well their preventive suspension.

Drilon allegedly gave ₱70 million in Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF) for the Iloilo Esplanade I project, claimed Syjuco, who is also former director general of the Technical Education and

Skills Development Authority (TESDA).

“Adding altogether the construction of the retaining wall, slope protection, landscaping and amenities to complete the Iloilo Esplanade I is overwhelmingly incredible. This ₱70-million Iloilo Esplanade I project is absolutely a windfall to the pocket of respondent Franklin Magtunao Drilon,” the complaint said.

Syjuco said while the Esplanade has been furnished and equipped with lighting, interlocking block pavement and landscaped with ornamental plants, another ₱13.5-million PDAF was allocated

by Drilon for its improvement in August 2012.

“Obviously, the hasty allocation of another ₱13 million from PDAF of respondent Drilon under the guise of the Esplanade project is a scam to fund a nonexistent project,” he said.

‘Drilon okayed release of ₱752.5-M to Mrs. Abad’. In a separate complaint, Syjuco said, Drilon, together with the Budget Secretary and his wife should be prosecuted for plunder and violation of the Anti-Graft Law for the questionable release of ₱752.5 million to Mrs. Abad, which is 10 times her regular pork barrel allocation for the lone district of Batanes.

He said it was released upon the approval of Drilon who was then chairman

of the Senate Finance Committee.

In return, Syjuco said, Budget Secretary Abad provided for the release of ₱1.010 billion as “incentive” to the senators who voted to convict former Chief Justice Renato Corona.”

“Hence, it is respectfully requested of this Honorable Office to immediately order the preventive suspension of all respondents and to conduct the necessary action on the matter leading to the immediate filing of the necessary administrative and criminal cases as the evidence warrants,” he said. ■ Perfecto Raymundo / Philippines News Agency / October 11, 2013 / 9:05 PM

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NEWS

October 2013 / Fortnightly – No. 20 • UK & Europe Edition

Real work: Foreign NGOs help put up disaster risk reduction projects in 12 provinces across the PH NO thanks to Janet Lim-Napoles and the scandal that she allegedly helped orchestrate by funneling public funds to lawmakers via non-government organizations, NGOs have become a bad word.

However, six international NGOs doing real work in the Philippines have become scandal-proof, escaping the brunt of this bad rap so far.

After all, these NGOs are in the thick of implementing a disaster risk reduction project in 38 municipalities over 12 provinces across the country.

One of these provinces is Camarines Sur, which was visited by European Union Ambassador Guy Ledoux last week.

Ledoux dropped by the province to witness how grant money from the European Commission Humanitarian Aid (ECHO) department was put into good use by local communities in partnership with Care Nederland, Action Against Hunger, Plan International, Oxfam, Christian Aid, and Handicap International.

Residents erect a seawall at a tenth of its cost. In coastal Barangay Cagsao of the municipality of Calabanga, Care Nederland was able to erect a seawall of stones and wire mesh together with the cooperation of residents and at a tenth of the cost of the initial seawall the government wanted built.

It has been standing for five years now.

A mangrove was also reforested at an initial cost of ₱30,000, and now serves as another barrier between the barangay and the sea. No longer are the residents afraid during heavy rains when the sea rises, as the waves crash into the vegetation instead of their homes. They deserted the area years ago after Typhoon Rosing flooded it in 1995 but they have now returned, thanks to the mangrove.

The mangrove also serves as a marine sanctuary, where fish species that have been gone for a long time thrive. The residents say their catch has increased, too.

Initially, the reforestation was received with very little enthusiasm, Care Nederland representative to the Philippines Celso Dulce Jr. said, adding that some residents even destroyed the plants.

However, when an ordinance coupled with an awareness campaign made them realize the importance of the mangroves in the long run, they stopped the destructive practice.

As a result, the community now earns from selling mangrove seedlings to other barangays which are replicating the project.

The municipalities of Bombon and Magarao will soon have similar mangrove forests.

Ledoux was also able to observe the first evacuation drill of Barangay Palo in the municipality of Canaman, where designated persons rode their bikes around the island village with sirens, alerting families families to either line up to board small boats which took them to the mainland, or move to higher ground, depending on where their homes were located. Those that went to the mainland were transported by jeepney and truck to a school that served as an evacuation center.

These initiatives were part of the NGOs’ “Scale Up, Build Up” project, which, according to Dulce, uses the “landscape approach” so that municipalities belonging in an ecosystem, say, those lying along the Bicol River basin, and are confronting the same problems are forced to work together towards the same goal.

Filipinos are excellent at pilot projects, he noted, but these end up as just that.

Replicating these best practices, said Dulce, was the challenge to both local and national governments.

This is why the consortium of NGOs came up with the websitewww. drrknowledge.net or the “DRR (disaster risk reduction) Knowledge Center”, which any city, municipality, or barangay in the country can tap into to see the best practices they can incorporate into their own DRR plans.

Dulce added that the NGOs worked closely with the local government units as they implemented their DRR projects. This was because NGOs were only present in the areas short-term. An initiative had better chances of sustainability if the LGU and the community “owned” and “embraced” it.

Calabanga, in particular, showed this, not only being responsible for its own constituents but helping its neighbors in DRR, too, said Dulce.

Meanwhile, Office of Civil Defense Deputy Administrator Ret. Brig. Gen. Romeo Fajardo said LGUs did not just wait for instructions on what needed to be done, but actively searched for ways to make their communities resilient. He thanked the NGOs and the EU for helping make such knowledge-sharing and capacity-building activities possible.

It is his office that Care Nederland consults to see which areas are vulnerable and need urgent help. The Office of Civil Defense does hazard-mapping, which LGUs then use in their plans so that any development they do is not at risk or will not aggravate the risk, explained Dulce.

So far only 28 provinces have hazard maps, prioritized because these are where 16 major river basins are located, said Fajardo.

Disaster preparedness more important than disaster relief. Ledoux’s visit was capped off by a regional forum on “replicating effective disaster risk reduction practices”, which was attended

Residents of Canaman, a municipality in Camarines Sur, practice an evacuation drill.

by representatives and officials from Albay, Camarines Norte, Camarines Sur, Catanduanes, Masbate, and Sorsogon Wednesday.

While the EU contributes millions in disaster relief donations, Ledoux stressed that disaster preparedness was much more important.

“Disaster preparedness does unfortunately not attract much attention of the media while it is of such crucial importance to reduce the number of victims of natural disasters that regularly affect the Philippines,” he said in his speech. “With today’s change in climate patterns, it is important that all the regions of the country, all the municipalities and all the barangays, have a population that is well-trained to react to early warning signals, that the local authorities have an appropriate rapid reaction plan, and that mitigating measures are put in place.”

The EU, he said, is particular about giving aid to municipalities with the least resources for DRR. This does not mean, however, that the LGU does not do anything about it. It just

means, said Ledoux, that they need help.

The NGOs funded by the ECHO department only partner with LGUs willing to work with them, said Dulce. This is because their money comes from the taxes of the European people, and they know that they must make good use of it.

ECHO Program Officer for the Philippines Arlynn Aquino said that they refused to partner with “epal” government officials who wanted projects to be named after them. There was to be no politicizing of the projects, stressed Aquino.

There were no “Napoles NGOs” involved, either, said Aquino, as the EU had a “very strict” approval system of partner NGOs. These were even classified into two groups, those which were tried and tested, and those which were not yet at that level.

The scrutiny these NGOs were placed under also depended on this.

Aquino added that the EU did not gamble on NGOs that had not yet proven themselves to be reliable. They also had a rigid accounting system, she said. ■ Patricia B. Aquino / InterAksyon.com / October 8, 2013 / 2:10 PM

Tiangco scores Palace fiscal control over budget of 5 constitutional agencies

MANILA, Philippines - Navotas Representative Toby Tiangco scored the brazen move by Malacanang to have fiscal control over the budget of five independent government agencies noting that the act is against fiscal autonomy guaranteed by the 1987 Constitution.

Tiangco has taken up the cudgels for the five offices of the Constitutional Fiscal Autonomy Group (CFAG) composed of the Judiciary, the Ombudsman, the Civil Service Commission, Commission on Audit, and the Commission on Elections, by seeking amendments to the proposed 2014 General Appropriations Act. Tiangco cited that the proposed 2014 National Budget is full of “unconstitutional provisions” disguised as “Special Provisions” in the budget of the five offices.

“There are provisions in HB 2630 (2014 General Appropriations Bill) which are patently unconstitutional. These provisions are a blatant attempt to control the five independent members of the CFAG and circumvent the system of checks and balances set in place by our Constitution,” the Navotas solon stressed.

The Palace’s decision to strip the judiciary and other constitutional bodies of their fiscal autonomy by controlling the 2014 National Budget is tantamount to fiscal dictatorship.

“In the news they’re calling this a fascist dictatorship. May I add that it’s really amounting to a ‘fiscal dictatorship’—an attempt to control every part of the national government through its budget. We must prevent any attempt by the Executive Department to meddle in matters only

exclusive to these Constitutional bodies,” Tiangco said.

Malacanang has inserted special provisions in the proposed 2014 National Budget by “either limiting the fiscal independence or grossly expanding the fiscal control over these five offices.”

According to Tiangco, he already has raised these issues during the committee hearings and submitted his proposal that these repugnant provisions be deleted from the 2014 General Appropriations Bill.

“For being in violation of the Fiscal Autonomy provisions under the pertinent

provisions of the 1987 Philippine Constitution and for being inimical to the principles expressly set forth in the fundamental law of the land, I hereby propose the DELETION of the following lines from House Bill No. 2630,” Tiangco said in a letter to Committee on Appropriations Chairman Isidro T. Ungab, citing specific pages and lines under the budget of the Judiciary, CSC, COA, Comelec and the Ombudsman.

The move by the Palace to control the budget is seen as an intrusion into the intended guarantee of separation of powers and the independence granted to these constitutional units from the other branches of government.

“I have contested these so called ‘special provisions’ in the General Appropriations Act, imposed on the CFAG group. If the majority in Congress elect to allow this fiscal dictatorship to be set to law then I am ready to bring my case to the Supreme Court,” Tiangco vowed, noting that “fiscal autonomy is a constitutional matter that neither the budget secretary nor the President can change what is expressly stated in the Constitution.”

The 2014 National Budget passed the second reading at the House of Representatives last September 27 and is set to be taken up for the third reading when Congress resumes on October 14. ■ InterAksyon.com / October 12, 2013 / 5:15 AM

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October 2013 / Fortnightly – No. 20 • UK & Europe Edition

Pork a la PNOY: PDAF wins elections, favors political parties AMID the public outcry for the abolition of the pork barrel system, Malacañang and Congress have agreed to delete the Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF), by name at least, from the 2014 national budget.

Yet behind the harried efforts to now design “a new mechanism” to implement what would be PDAF in substance, behind closed doors lawmakers and Cabinet members have talked about how to salve the political values of pork, the less flattering nickname for PDAF. One senior executive official who declines to be named says that at a recent executive session of the Cabinet, it was understood by the conferees that “for sure, congressmen will not give up pork for scholarship and KBL (kasal, binyag, libing),” or the retail financial aid lawmakers give constituents pressed for dole, for emergencies and family events like the wedding or baptism of children, or the burial of kin.

A congressman from the ruling Liberal Party (LP) coalition reveals as much.

Legislators, he says, are “likely to rise in mutiny (against Malacañang) if you take out the health assistance, livelihood, and scholarship assistance from PDAF in the new budget.”

The reason, says the congressman, is not so much because lawmakers care deeply about the poor — even as some probably do — but because projects and largesse from pork have helped them win elections on and on.

Budget Secretary Florencio ‘Butch’ Abad, interviewed by PCIJ in July 2012, put it most succinctly: Pork, he said, thrives “in the framework of patronage politics” and “unless we can change our politics, PDAF will always be a necessity.”

PDAF is a give-and-take between politicians and citizens, he said. Observed Abad: “Poor people will always be coming to politicians, and they (politicians) should be the most responsive. There’s a political value to it.”

Pork and May 2013. Indications are pork worked its wonders in the May 2013 elections, judging by the value and volume of PDAF releases to the senators and congressmen from January to May this year.

Twenty-one senators, including six re-electionists and four others with son, brother, or wife who were senatorial candidates, received from January to May 2013 at least ₱1.4 billion of PDAF monies.

On parallel track, nearly all the members of the House of the 15th Congress — a majority of them re-electionists or candidates for local positions — altogether received ₱8.77 billion of PDAF from last February to May. Worse still, of the 392 Special Allotment Release Orders or SAROs that the Department of Budget and Management issued in May 2013, at least 13 were released on May 14 (day after election day), 38 more on May 15, and another 10 on May 16.

The Commission on Elections (Comelec) had issued En Banc Resolution No. 9385 on April 3, 2012, covering the calendar of activities for the May 2013 elections.

It set the election period for the May 2013 elections from January 13 to June 12, 2013. It reiterated that among the “prohibited acts” defined in the Omnibus Election Code (Batas Pambansa Blg. 881) are the following: “construction of public works, delivery of materials for public works and issuance of treasury warrants or similar devices for a future undertaking chargeable against public funds,” “release disbursement or expenditures of public funds,” “giving donations or gift in cash or in kind, etc.,” and “giving, accepting free transportation, food, drinks and things of value.”

For candidates to the Senate, the same Comelec resolution defined the 90-day campaign period to commence on Feb. 12, 2013, and to close on May 11, 2013. For candidates to the House of Representatives and local positions, the 45-day campaign period started on March 29, 2013 and ended on May 11, 2013.

Exempted pork. But a week before the local campaign period began, on March 22, the Comelec en banc allowed the qualified exemption of pork-funded projects in its Resolution No. 9660.

The Resolution said that “the release, disbursement, or expenditures of the PDAF and other state funds are allowed,” on the following conditions: “Projects/programs sought to be implemented during the ban were established prior and was duly reported to the Commission on Audit (COA)”; “In no instance shall the implementation be used as an opportunity by any candidate, family member, and political parties to further their candidacy through their personal appearance in such events, posting of campaign propaganda materials containing their names/slogans/initials/ images; support for candidates/partylist being made as a condition for the entitlement of the benefits of the project/ program.”

Senators examine a report from the Commission on Audit regarding pork barrel funds. (PRIB)

Should the program involve cash or goods distribution for scholarship, burial assistance, health care, or calamity, “the candidates and their family members are prohibited from participating directly or indirectly.”

And whyever did the Comelec have to issue a Resolution that negates the very law that defines its powers and duties as a constitutional agency? Apparently, an unspecified number of lawmakers from the House had asked the poll body to exempt pork projects from the ban.

Project specs. Without the lawmakers’ lobby, such PDAF projects and doleouts during the election period should have earned a multitude of lawmakers either penalty or time in jail. The Omnibus Election Code states that violation of the ban is an election offense that carries a penalty of one to six years imprisonment, removal of right to vote, and disqualification from holding public office.

Indeed, based on the lists and specifications of projects funded by the PDAF of the senators and congressmen during the election period, there is a preponderance of evidence that a great majority of the lawmakers who ran in May 2013 may have violated election laws.

The bulk of the PDAF-funded projects during the period involved the construction of multi-purpose buildings, road repair, financial assistance to health indigents, scholarship assistance, and even the purchase of sports equipment for intramurals.

Former President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo’s list of projects during the period stands out for its stark candor. By then aiming for a second term as representative of the 2nd district of Pampanga, Arroyo set aside her PDAF as “Social Services — Assistance to indigents or victims of calamities in the Province of Pampanga” through multiple SAROs all dated Feb. 22, 2013, but specified that variable amounts of ₱300, ₱200, and ₱100 each be given to certain numbers of residents in certain barangays.

Pork for parties. Political fortunes change, however, election after election in this country. And by all indications, a lawmaker’s access to pork servings changes, too, with his or her political party affiliation.

In her heyday at the Palace, Arroyo was “really very partisan, she really used it (pork) as a political tool,” according to Abad. As President, Arroyo had denied some lawmakers from the former political opposition their pork shares.

But the tables have since turned and Abad, a former congressman from Batanes and a stalwart of the Liberal Party (LP) of President Benigno Simeon C. Aquino III, now represents the ruling coalition.

When asked if pork has flowed more to administration allies, and less to the new political opposition in Congress, under Aquino, Abad offered an interesting remark: “It’s really more historical justice… There were some that really got a lot before.”

A PCIJ review of data disclosed by the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) shows that under the Aquino administration, ₱60.4 billion of PDAF had been released for 85,534 pork-

funded projects of 21 senators and 284 congressmen of the 15th Congress, from July 2010 to June 2013.

Of this amount, ₱8.57 billion or 62 percent was released to implementing agencies for various projects chosen by 22 senators. This figure includes the projects of then Senator Juan Miguel ‘Migz’ F. Zubiri, who was replaced by Senator Aquilino Martin ‘Koko’ L. Pimentel III in 2011.

Former senators Panfilo M. Lacson and Joker P. Arroyo are excluded because they had both opted not to use their PDAF. Each senator could have gotten as much as ₱600 million from July 2010 to June 2013, at ₱200 million per year.

Pork winners all. Then senators Francis ‘Kiko’ N. Pangilinan and Edgardo J. Angara and incumbent senators Antonio ‘Sonny’ F. Trillanes IV, Lorna Regina ‘Loren’ B. Legarda, Francis Joseph ‘Chiz’ G. Escudero, Manuel ‘Lito’ M. Lapid, and Vicente ‘Tito’ Sotto III each managed to get more than or nearly half a billion pesos of PDAF during this period.

Senator Franklin M. Drilon got the least amount: ₱293 million. But his pork plus the ₱100-million that was released to his credit from the Disbursement Acceleration Program (DAP) in 2012 makes Drilon’s share a significant ₱393 million.

Drilon — now Senate President — and Speaker Feliciano Belmonte Jr. of the House of Representatives are both vice chairmen of the President’s Liberal Party.

By party affiliation, the members of the Nacionalista Party (NP), LP, and the Nationalist People’s Coalition (NPC) got the highest amount of PDAF in total. ■ Malou Mangahas and Karol Ilagan / Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism / October 11, 2013 8:49 PM

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Manny Pacquiao rehires former After boxing training, Manny Pacquiao plays hoops with RR Garcia, Jamelle Cornley conditioning coach Justin Fortune MANNY Pacquiao will take in Justin Fortune, his conditioning coach from 2003 to 2007, as part of his training team for the November 24 clash with Brandon Rios.

Pacquiao’s Canadian Mike Koncz said Fortune will replace Alex Ariza, who is now working with Rios.

Fortune left Pacquiao in 2007 after he had a spat with Freddie Roach, but Koncz said the two men have decided to let bygones be bygones, paving the way for the 47-year-old Australian fitness guru’s entry into Pacquiao’s fold once again.

Roach will follow Fortune and is arriving

on October 7 since he is still heavily involved with Miguel Cotto, who has a fight scheduled this weekend in Florida.

Roach will tag along another sparmate to beef up the local cast that Pacquiao has right now.

Another sparring partner, Fredrick Lawson of Ghana, hit town over the weekend and might even start sparring with Pacquiao on Tuesday.

Lawson is undefeated in 21 fights with 19 KOs and is thrilled to be in the country to bang bodies with Pacquiao. ■ Lee Jimenez / InterAKTV / September 30, 2013 / 5:47 PM

Azkals suffer upset against Chinese Taipei in Peace Cup opener THE Philippine national men’s football team suffered a huge blow in its title defense bid after Chinese Taipei pulled off a 2-1 upset against the Azkals in the 2013 Philippine Football Peace Cup Friday night at the Panaad Stadium in Bacolod City.

The Azkals had several chances at goal early in the match courtesy of Angel Guirado and Stephan Schrock, but it was the visitors who hit the back of the net first.

Li Mao capitalized on an Azkals miscue at the 14th minute and sped his way for a counterattack. Expecting an offside call, the Filipinos failed to chase the opposing player.

But the referee didn’t blow his whistle, allowing Li to bury a high-looping shot that Neil Etheridge couldn’t prevent for a 1-nil Chinese Taipei lead.

The Azkals quickly recovered as James Younghusband scored a header off a Patrick Reichelt dish at the 45th minute to tie the

Photo by Lee Jimenez ©InterAKTV

MANNY Pacquiao trooped to the gym — the basketball gym that is — after working out a sweat on Monday in preparation for his November 24 clash with rugged slugger Brandon Rios in Macau.

Pacquiao was warmly welcomed by Philippine Sports Commission chairman Richie Garcia, who was on hand to see the practice of the women’s team.

Just before Pacquiao’s team took to the court, Garcia left the venue but was thanked by Pacquiao for allowing them to use the facilities.

Among those who played along with Pacquiao were former Rain or Shine import Jamelle Cornley and Far Eastern University star guard RR Garcia.

Pacquiao will return to the MP Tower Gym, formerly the L&M Gym, on Tuesday for another round of training.

Pacquiao will head back to General Santos on Wednesday to await the arrival of Justin Fortune, who was rehired to act as conditioning coach.

Fortune will fly in on October 6, while Freddie Roach will arrive the next day. ■

Lee Jimenez / InterAKTV / October 1, 2013 / 1:12 AM

No excuses for San Mig Coffee’s Game One loss, says James Yap JAMES Yap offered no excuses for his performance in San Mig Coffee’s loss to Petron in Game One of the Governors’ Cup finals on Friday.

“Wala akong excuse sa laro ko,” said Yap, who struggled for 2-of-9 shooting from the field. He scored just eight points, all of which came in the final period.

match at halftime, 1-1.

Chinese Taipei wasn’t finished yet, however, as it scored another goal at the 65th minute to grab a shocking 2-1 lead.

Azkals coach Hans Michael Weiss switched to full offensive mode late in the match after subbing in Misagh Bahadoran and Mark Hartmann for Younghusband and Jerry Barbaso in their attempt for an equalizer. But they failed to score for the remainder of the game, allowing Chinese Taipei to pull off the upset.

The result was a shock for the tournamentfavorite Azkals, who beat Chinese Taipei, 3-1, to hoist the Peace Cup crown last year.

The Azkals will hope that Chinese Taipei loses to Pakistan on Sunday before notching a victory against the South Asian squad on Tuesday to get a shot at the tournament crown. ■ Karl Decena / InterAKTV / October 11, 2013 / 11:10 PM

Photo by Nuki Sabio ©PBA

While he was suffering from flu coming into the game and played just 22 minutes, he refused to use that as a reason, noting instead that it was their lack of effort on defense that doomed the Mixers.

“Kami talagang lahat we need to work on our defense,” he said. “Marami kasi silang scorers. Hindi mo alam kung sino ang puputok. Ngayon halos lahat sila pumutok.”

After allowing just 59 points in the first three quarters, San Mig Coffee was torched for 41 points by Petron in the final period.

“Kailangan talaga ma-stop naming yung mga shooters nila,” said Yap. “Kailangan naming maging consistent sa defense. Kasi yun lang naman yung ginagawa talaga naming, secondary na lang yung offense.”

Marc Pingris echoed Yap’s observation.

“Na-frustrate kami nung fourth quarter nung nagsimula na silang maka-shoot sa labas,” said Pingris.

For Yap, having defensive breakdowns in the title series is a sin.

“Mayroon kaming mga lapses sa defense. Pagdating kasi sa finals, kailangang i-limit yung mga lapses,” said Yap. ■ Rey Joble / InterAKTV / October 12, 2013 / 12:22 AM

UFL bans reigning MVP Rufo Sanchez amid tug-of-war between Stallion, Global Chris Lutz catches fire for Petron Blaze in first PBA finals appearance

STRUGGLING with his shooting for most of the conference, Petron Blaze wingman Chris Lutz caught fire at the right time, helping the Boosters to a 100-84 victory over San Mig Coffee on Friday.

He scored all 11 of his points in the fourth quarter, hitting three shots from beyond the arc to spark Petron’s 41-point explosion in the period.

“It’s been a while. Everybody played real well, especially in the fourth quarter. We just got going and knocked down shots,” said Lutz, who was averaging just 6.3 points in the tournament.

His longtime teammate Marcio Lassiter underlined how big Lutz’s contributions were.

“When they sagged, Chris made them pay. He just caught fire when he’s supposed to at the right time,” said Lassiter. “It’s been a while, but we always have confidence in him.”

It was an impressive debut for Lutz, who was playing in his first PBA finals game.

“It’s the finals, but it’s not too much

different. It’s still basketball,” he said. “We go out there to compete and keep it simple.”

He noted that it wasn’t just him who stepped up for the Boosters.

“We played team basketball. We kinda struggled to find our spots in the first half. We just kinda settled down in the second, picked our spots and stayed aggressive. We made simple decisions, team decisions,” said Lutz.

■ Rey Joble / InterAKTV / October 12, 2013 / 12:12 AM

Photo by Pranz Kaeno Billones ©Sports5 file

THE United Football League has slapped a one-year ban to reigning Most Valuable Player Rufo Sanchez, who is still a subject of a tug-of-war between rival clubs Global FC and Stallion Sta. Lucia.

UFL general manager Cesar de Larrazabal confirmed to InterAKTV that Sanchez is suspended for the upcoming season after “repeated violations and failure to respect and comply with the directive” of the league.

“The UFL Disciplinary Committee has sanctioned you with a ban from all competitions of the UFL for a period of one year with immediate effect,” De Larrazabal wrote to Sanchez in a letter obtained by InterAKTV. De Larrazabal wrote that the suspension came after Sanchez joined Global during its semifinal campaign in the 2013 Singapore Cup last week. The UFL has apparently barred the Spanish striker to train and play “in all competitions, tournaments, leagues and other events with Global FC and any other football club” as Sanchez has yet to secure a transfer certificate from Stallion Sta. Lucia.

Global announced last September that it already signed Sanchez to a contract. But

Photo by Isko Jose ©Sports5 file

Stallion claimed that it still has the rights to the Spanish striker, who helped the club win the Cup and League titles last season.

Global earlier was forced to forfeit all of its preseason matches involving Sanchez, who still played with the team despite him being regarded as a registered player of Stallion by the UFL. The UFL has earlier warned Sanchez

that once he continues to play with Global, his actions “will be met with severe sanction including a possible ban from all competitions of the UFL.” Sanchez has 10 days, or until October 14, to appeal his ban, the UFL wrote.

However, he will remain suspended as long as his plea is not granted. ■ Karl Decena / InterAKTV / October 9, 2013 / 6:19 PM

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sport No excuses for San Mig Coffee’s Game One loss, says James Yap Story on page 38

Azkals suffer upset against Chinese Taipei in Peace Cup opener Story on page 38

UFL bans reigning MVP Rufo Sanchez amid tug-of-war between Stallion, Global Story on page 38

MANNY PACQUIAO REHIRES FORMER CONDITIONING COACH JUSTIN FORTUNE Story on page 38