The Standard - 2015 March 13 - Friday by Manila Standard

CYAN MAGENTA YELLOW BLACK VOL. XXIX  NO. 29  3 Sections 32 Pages P18  FRIDAY : MARCH 13, 2015  www.manilastandardtoday.com  editorial@thestandard.com.ph

Farm girls eye crowns from beauty boot camps

Junjun Binay refuses to leave Makati City hall

FINALLY, REPORT ON SAF 44 OUT Next page

Countdown. Manny Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather pose during a press conference on March 11 in Los Angeles to launch the countdown to their May 2 super-ﬁght in Las Vegas. (Story on A16) AFP

Spring fling

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February car sales rose 22%

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BOI report on Mamasapano out THE Philippine National Police board of inquiry finally submitted its report Thursday on the Mamasapano incident, 47 days after the covert operation that resulted in the death of 60 people, including 44 police commandos. “We are confident that we were able to seek out the truth,” said the board’s chairman, Police Director Benjamin Magalong, chief of the PNP Criminal Investigation and Detection Group. “We can face the people without shame, including the families of those who lost

loved ones,” he told reporters in a press conference where he, Director Catalino Rodriguez and Chief Supt. John Sosito signed a copy of the final report. Magalong denied accusations that the board was being guided to a specific conclusion when President Benigno Aquino III, who has admitted involvement in the operation, publicly blamed sacked Special Action Force commander Getulio Napeñas for the debacle and disavowed any fault on his part. “There was no pressure. We did not mind [Aquino’s public remarks],” Magalong said, adding that the members of the panel could “look straight into the eyes of the family members of the SAF 44.” Magalong, however, did not provide journalists a copy of the report because they needed to get permission from Interior and Local Government

Secretary Manuel Roxas II, who ordered the investigation. Aside from Roxas, acting PNP chief Deputy Director General Leonardo Espina, the House of Representatives, the Senate, and the Justice Department received copies of the report, he said. Magalong said the families of the slain SAF commandos will also be given copies once Roxas approves the release of the report to the public. He also said they were still printing 60 to 70 sets of the final report. He said the people accountable in the incident are identified in the report. ”We are confident, for the sake of the truth , that (the report) will enlighten everybody,” he said. The board was originally scheduled to submit the report on Feb. 26 this was moved to March 6 and again to March

9, and was completed after a three-day extension. Magalong said the delay was due to the volume of evidence that the board’s operational audit team had to scrutinize, including the results of investigation in the field and statements from interviews. Communication Secretary Herminio Coloma assured the public that the board’s report would be made available. Coloma noted that President Benigno Aquino III has yet to see the report. Coloma again defended the President against criticism for publicly blaming Napeñas even before the board released its report, and said these were the President’s “personal thoughts” and “an overview” of the Mamasapano oepration. In the House of Represenatives, lawmakers hit the PNP for keeping the public in suspense over the board’s final

report. Reps. Gary Alejano and Ashley Acedillo of Magdalo partylist, Leopoldo Bataoil of Pangasinan, Romeo Acop of Antipolo and Samuel Pagdilao of ACT-CIS partylist also said the report was crucial for the House to resume its own investigation into the Mamasapano massacre. “Every day of delay casts a shadow of doubt and dilutes the BOI of its credibility and further the flames of distrust on the presidency,” the group said in a statement before the media at a forum Thursday. “Our own inquiry in Congress had been put on the back burner, in suspended animation, just to give way to the BOI,” the group added. An administration lawmaker, meanwhile, asked President Aquino to disclose everything he knows about the Jan. 25 Mamasapano operation and to avoid giving

Report on Mamasapano. Police Directors Benjamin Magalong (C) and Catalino Rodriguez (L) and Chief Supt. John Sosito sign a copy of their report

on the Jan. 25 incident in which 44 police commandos were killed in an counter with Muslim rebels in Mamasapano, Maguindanao, during their operation to arrest the terrorist Marwan. AFP

piecemeal information that tends to raise more questions. Valenzuela City Rep. Sherwin Gatchalian warned that failure on the part of the President to reveal what he knows about Operation Exodus will further erode the commander-in-chief’s credibility and will ultimately result in the chief executive’s political death. “The more President Aquino talks piecemeal about the Mamasapano incident, the more he buries himself in the political quicksand of his own doing. And if the chief executive can’t extricate himself from this quicksand, he will be politically dead sooner than expected,” said Gatchalian, a member of the Nationalist People’s Coalition, which is allied with the administration. Gatchalian added that President Aquino’s “unstatesmanlike” and “unpresidential” remarks against relieved SAF Director Getulio Napeñas were indications that he was confused about who to blame for the botched operation. “The most glaring inconsistency on the President’s statement before Christian leaders was his admission that suspended PNP chief Alan Purisima was the one texting him about the developments on Oplan Exodus based on the information being relayed to him by Gen. Napenas,” Gatchalian said. “This fully contradicted the President’s Jan. 28 statement before Malacanang reporters that General Purisima was directly involved in the Mamasapano operation only up to the time that he was suspended by the Ombudsman December of last year.” Gatchalian said finding scapegoats and pinning the blame on the likes of Napeñas will not do the President any good since his own statements reveal that he knew about the SAF operation and as commander-in-chief, he had command and control over both the SAF teams and the Army units in Maguindanao. “What the President should do is to tell all, be humble enough to assume responsibility for the fiasco and render justice to the SAF 44 soonest,” Gatchalian said. – Francisco Tuyay, Sara Susanne D. Fabunan and Maricel V. Cruz

Palace vows to keep peace panel members intact PRESIDENT Benigno Aquino III will not change the government’s peace negotiators despite calls for their dismissal, a Palace official said Thursday. In a privilege speech Wednesday, Senator Alan Peter Cayetano urged the President to replace presidential adviser on the peace process Teresita Deles and the head of the government’s chief negotiator, Miriam CoronelFerrer, for their bias toward the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF). But Communications Secretary Herminio Coloma said Thursday the President had no intention of changing the

composition of his negotiating team. Asked to comment on Cayetano’s allegations that the MILF coddled terrorists, Coloma said that information should be referred to the Senate committee on public order, which investigated the Mamasapano incident in which 44 police commandos were killed while trying to hunt down Malaysian terrorist Zulkifli bin Hir alias Marwan. Coloma said the Aquino administration remained committed to the peace talks, despite the doubts that Cayetano raised about the MILF’s sincerity.

Coloma added that negotiations with the MILF have gone well for the last five years, and were marred only by the Mamasapano incident this year. But Cayetano warned Thursday that the Bangsamoro might become a terrorist haven once the Bangsamoro Basic Law (BBL) is passed, because the MILF does not want peace but power. With funding for the first year of the BBL, the MILF could join forces with other Muslim rebel groups and make the Bangsamoro a haven for armed groups, Cayetano said. Cayetano also said that earlier peace talks that resulted

in the creation of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARM) failed to bring peace because of the MILF. “The MILF did not want peace. They wanted power, They wanted to lead ARMM,” he said. He said the same thing that happened with the ARMM could happen with the Bangsamoro, with other groups such as the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters continuing to fight. In the House, the 75-member ad hoc panel tasked to scrutinize the BBL announced a new deadline for the resumption of deliberations on the measure.

Cagayan de Oro Rep. Rufus Rodriguez, the panel chairman, said his committee would conduct a series of executive sessions on the BBL from April 8 to 16, even though Congress is on a break during those dates. Rodriguez said the panel moved the date to April 6 from March 3 after the Philippine National Police (PNP) board of inquiry failed to submit its report on time. He said the report would be useful in their discussions of the BBL. 1-BAP party-list Rep. Silvestre Bello III, a member of the ad hoc panel, said he was not aware of the April 6 to 16 closed

door meetings, however. An administration ally who asked not to be named slammed Rodriguez for being “the poster boy” of the government peace panel headed Deles and Ferrer, who have been criticized for lawyering for the MILF. “Is Malacanang again pressuring Congress? Is hat why Rodriguez keeps giving a timeline for the BBL deliberations? Why the rush?” the lawmaker said. The source also criticized Rodriguez’s decision to hold the sessions behind closed doors. – Sara Susanne D. Fabunan, Maricel V. Cruz and Macon Ramos-Araneta

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Bello: Aquino runs govt like fraternity By Maricel V. cruz and Joyce Pangco Pañares AKBAYAN party-list Rep. Walden Bello said Thursday he resigned from the House effective March 19 over his party’s continuing support for President Benigno Aquino III, whom he accuses of being responsible for the death of 44 police commandos in Mamasapano, Maguindanao, on Jan. 25. The 44 were killed during an encounter with Muslim rebels as they were pursuing the terrorist Zulkifli Abdhir alias Marwan. Bello said his resignation was accepted by the Office of the Speaker Wednesday night. He said he personally handed over his resignation to Speaker Feliciano Belmonte Jr. He maintained that President Aquino III must be held accountable for the death of the SAF 44. “The President should admit responsibility,” he said. “In fact, that is what the Filipino people have been demanding from him. It might be late but better late than never.” Bello said one of the flaws of the President was his stubbornness. Another was his loyalty to his friends.” “He is very loyal to subordinates who are either corrupt or incompetent,” Bello said. “The Cabinet is like a fraternity. Instead of competence, instead of considerations based on rational discussion, loyalty is what counts.” Bello made his statement even as Malacañang said there was no need to conduct a loyalty check on its allies after Bello’s withdrawal of support over Aquino’s handling of the Mamasapano debacle. “[Bello’s decision] is an internal matter for the Akbayan party-list group. We do not see a need for a loyalty check,” Communications Operations Office Secretary Herminio Coloma Jr. said. “Bello’s decision was personal, and this does not mean our alliance with Akbayan has weakened because they continue to serve the government and

they remain an ally of the Aquino administration.” Bello earlier said he could no longer support Aquino because of his “brazen cover-up” of his role in the Mamasapano tragedy. “I am withdrawing support from the President because I can no longer support a President who is washing his hands of responsibility in a mission he planned and executed. I cannot support a man whose behavior is a disgrace,” he said. Bello was supposed to deliver a privilege speech last Wednesday but the session was adjourned a few minutes after it was opened at 4 pm due to lack of quorum. Magdalo party-list Rep. Gary Alejano, one of the members of the Saturday Group, said Bello’s withdrawal of support for the President “weakened” Aquino. Bayan Muna party-list Rep. Carlos Zarate said Bello’s resignation showed that even Aquino’s rabid allies could no longer stomach his “brazen lies, cacique arrogance and atrocious incompetence.” But House Majority Leader Neptali Gonzales Jr. denied Alejano’s view that Bello’s resignation weakened Aquino. He said Bello’s replacement would be sitting as soon as Akbayan partylist’s next nominee was proclaimed. He said Bello’s resignation as representative of Akbayan was between him and the party. “That’s internal to them, but he is a big loss to Congress because he is a very intelligent congressman,” Gonzales said. Bello is the first nominee of the Akbayan party-list and Rep. Barry Gutierrez is the second representative. The Akbayan party-list group is considered a power bloc in the Aquino administration as its stalwarts are among the President’s appointees, and they include Presidential Adviser on Political Affairs Ronald Llamas, Commission on Human Rights chairwoman Loretta Ann Rosales and Philippine Health Insurance Corp. board member Risa Hontiveros.

Sleeping bag. Embattled Makati Mayor Junjun Binay shows off his sleeping bag that he used in his office Wednesday night after the Ombudsman released its order suspending him for six months for allegedly overpricing the Makati City Hall Parking Building 2.

Junjun refuses to leave city hall By Joel E. Zurbano and Macon Ramos-Araneta

MAKATI Mayor Jejomar Erwin Binay Jr. stayed overnight at the Makati City Hall accompanied by his family, including his father Vice President Jejomar Binay, in defiance of the six-month suspension order of the Office of the Ombudsman.

At a press conference, the mayor said he was prepared to remain at City Hall as long as necessary to thwart any attempt by political opponents to replace him with his vice mayor, a member of the ruling Liberal Party. “We will stay here. We will not allow a member of the Liberal Party to take this place because of that order,” Binay said. Aside from the Vice President, the mayor spent the night with his four children--Jejomarie Alexi, 12; Maria Isabel, 9; Jejomar III, 7, and Maria Kennely, 5, and sister Senator Nancy Binay. The Ombudsman suspended Binay and several other persons while they are being investigated for the alleged overpricing in the construction of the Makati City Hall Building II. Vigil. Makati residents continued their vigil outside the Makati City Hall Assistant Ombudsman Asryman on Thursday after the Ombudsman released its order suspending Mayor Rafanan warned Binay that he could Junjun Binay for six months over the allegedly overpriced Makati City Hall be cited for contempt and arrested if Parking Building 2. Ey AcASio

he defies the suspension order. Interior and Local Government Secretary Manuel Roxas II, the Vice President’s bitter political rival, said he had no choice but to carry out the Ombudsman’s order. “The law is the law, and we are all covered by the law,” Roxas said. He also assured Makati residents that the suspension would not result in any interruption of city services. The suspension of Binay and 22 others was ordered nearly a week after a special panel of investigators from the Ombudsman filed the complaint against the Vice President, his son and other city government officials. The younger Binay said there was apparent haste in the issuance of the preventive suspension order. He said the concerned government agencies tasked to look into the case have already been given all the documents they want relative to the construction of the building. “They got all the documents they want. The contract for the architectural design was done during the previous administration. I was not the mayor then and my involvement was only to pay the obligation of the city government,” said Mayor Binay. Both the mayor and the camp of Vice President Binay have maintained that the allegations of overpricing did not have any factual or legal basis, and were part of an organized demolition campaign against the Vice President, who is leading the opinion polls for the 2016 presidential elections. Binay’s lawyers earlier filed a petition for certiorari and asked the Court of Appeals to issue a temporary re-

Pork-less lawmakers slam DBM fund policies By Maricel V. cruz CONGRESSMEN sought the approval of a concurrent congressional resolution rejecting policies of the Department of Budget and Management that purportedly threaten the independence of Congress as a co-equal branch of government. House leaders, including Speaker Feliciano Belmonte, Jr., House Majority Floor Leader and Mandaluyong Rep. Neptali Gonzales II and Minority Leader and San Juan Rep. Ronaldo Zamora, filed House Concurrent Resolution 10 affirmed the fiscal inde-

pendence of Congress. Complaining that over the past 15, Congress was only allocated an average of ½ of 1 percent of the national budget, the congressmen assailed the DBM for policies that restrict the release and use of government funds. “The present budgetary policies formulated by the Executive, through the [DBM], threaten [Congress’] independence, encroach on its exclusive domain and violate the principle of separation of powers, upon which the entire fabric of our constitutional system is based,” the proposed resolution read. Belmonte said he is confident

the Senate will support HCR No. 10 “affirming, ensuring and operationalizing the fiscal independence of the Congress of the Philippines.” “The imposition by the DBM of restrictive policies, rules, procedures, guidelines and conditions relative to the release and utilization of appropriations, applicable only to executive offices and agencies, on the Congress of the Philippines, is an undue encroachment on the exclusive domain of the legislature and a violation of the principle of separation of powers,” HCR 10 read. The resolution noted “the Ju-

diciary and other constitutional bodies, to safeguard and guarantee their independence, enjoy the full control of their financial affairs while Congress is subjected to regulations similarly imposed on executive agencies.” “The legislative power vested in the Congress of the Philippines is plenary, complete, unimpaired and subject only to such limitations as are found in the Constitution,” the resolution said. In an effort to ensure and operationalize the fiscal independence of Congress, the HCR proponents said the following policies and procedures need to be adopted:

straining order against the Ombudsman. If the court turns down his petition, Binay said, his lawyers would explore other legal rememdies. Late last year, Binay exposed a plan of their political opponents to unseat him and members of the city council to pave the way for the designation of Vice Mayor Romulo Peña Jr., a Liberal Party member, as acting mayor. He added the plan is to have him and the entire City Council suspended to pave the way for the designation of their LP ally and a council filled with LP, Nacionalista Party and other personalities who have not won a single election in the city. Binay also lambasted his detractors for not including in the evidence submitted to the Ombudsman an ordinance showing the names of their political allies as principal authors to fund the City Hall Building 2. The mayor said the complainants failed to provide the Ombudsman a copy of City Ordinance 2008-035, which he said, was principally sponsored by a number of councilors, including Peña, then a sectoral representative for the Liga ng mga Barangay, and former Vice Mayor Ernesto Mercado. Peña is the incumbent vice mayor while Mercado ran for mayor in 2010 as official candidate of the Nacionalista Party. “This is no different from the 2006 suspension of my father and the entire City Council ordered by the Arroyo regime to get back at my father for being the leader of the opposition,” the mayor said. – With Nelson Flores, Francisco Tuyay, and Maricel V. cruz REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES

COMMISSION ON APPOINTMENTS

ANNOUNCEMENT President Benigno S. Aquino III has submitted to the Commission on Appointments (C.A.) for confirmation the ad interim appointments of the following officials: Department of Foreign Affairs Bernadette Therese C. Fernandez – Chief of Mission, Class II; Shirlene C. Mananquil – Foreign Service Officer, Class I; Ferdinand P. Flores and Dominic Xavier M. Imperial – Foreign Service Officer, Class II Armed Forces of the Philippines Cornelio P. Pelaez – Brigadier General The public may submit any information, written report or sworn complaints or oppositions in forty (40) copies on the above appointments to the CA Secretariat, 6th Floor, PNB Financial Center, Roxas Boulevard, Pasay City, Metro Manila. For the schedule of the public hearings, the CA Secretariat can be reached through telephone numbers 551-7532, 8310893, 831-1824, 834-2706, 831-1566 and 834-2713. 12 March 2015. (TNS-MAR. 13, 2015)

ARTURO L. TIU Secretary

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Farm girls eye crowns from Manila beauty camps By Joel Guinto Pageant school. Aspiring

beauty queen Janicel Lubina (center) and two other candidates practice their moves in one of Manila’s beauty pageant boot camps, where shy, lanky teenage girls from remote farming provinces are transformed into poised Barbie dolls who can preach about world peace in six-inch heels. AFP PHOTO / NOEL CELIS

PH posts 2.8% increase in new jobs, Palace says By Joyce P. Pañares

MALACAÑANG said the country’s employment rate grew by 2.8 percent year-on-year in January, which translates to more than a million additional Filipino workers in the labor force. “The Philippine Statistics Authority has announced the results of the January 2015 Labor Force Survey, which pegs our employment rate at 93.4 percent. In real numbers, this translates to a year-on-year addition of 1.04 million workers in the employment force, for a total of 37.5 million employed,” presidential spokesman Edwin Lacierda said. Lacierda said the increase is almost four times the 281,000 jobs created during the January 20132014 period, which posted an annual growth of only 0.8 percent. “According to the January 2015

survey, employment grew across all classes of workers, except those in family-operated businesses,” he added. The survey also showed that year-on-year underemployment rate went down to 17.5 percent, from 19.5 percent in January last year. The January 2015 Labor Force Survey, however, did not include data from Region 8 to make it comparable to the previous ending in January 2014. No survey was conducted in the area last year due to the devastation caused by super typhoon Yolanda, the PSA said.

“Since 2010, driven by our belief in good governance as good economics, the Aquino administration has continued to enact widespread reforms, which have increased public trust in government and spurred economic growth. This has led to a surge in investor interest in the country, beginning a virtuous cycle of empowerment and inclusive growth,” Lacierda said. “The new opportunities generated by these investments have resulted in not just more jobs but also more meaningful livelihoods for our citizens, as indicated by the lower underemployment rate.” “Amid concerns about increased global volatility and slower growth, the Philippines has continued to buck the trend and surpass expectations. Moving forward, let us collectively work toward further entrenching our good governance reforms and making permanent the gains we have achieved,” the Palace official added.

The government survey came a day after a separate poll conducted by the Ibon Foundation showed that seven in 10 Filipinos have rated themselves as poor and had difficulty meeting their basic expenses in the past three months. The survey, conducted from January 19 to 30, showed that 65 percent of the 1,501 respondents saw their families as poor. Majority of the respondents (59 percent) also believed that their livelihood has not improved compared to a year ago, while 21 percent said their livelihood became worse. “Asked how their family met household expenses in the past three months, 59 percent said they had difficulty in paying for electricity, 53.6 percent said that they had difficulty in buying enough food, and 50.8 percent said they had difficulty buying medicines or paying for medical treatment,” Ibon Foundation said.

3 relatives of bomb maker Usman slain in ﬁghting By Florante S. Solmerin THREE relatives of terrorist bomb maker Abdul Basit Usman were among the casualties in the fighting that raged for most of Wednesday morning in Shariff Aguak, Maguindanao, according to Armed Forces spokesman Brigadier General Joselito Kakilala. “Our commanders on the ground just reported to the AFP

General Headquarters about developments. We are still counting the number of casualties as closequarter battles are ongoing,” said Kakilala, concurrrent head of the miltiary’s Civil Relations Service, said Kakilala said Usman’s relatives were among the 20 Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters (BIFF) who were killed in the fighting and he identified them Rene Masabpi and Kunudi Simeon.

“Our troops on the ground were still trying to identify the third one and all of them were reportedly buried somewhere in Sitio Ilang, Barangay Tina in Shariff Aguak,” Kakilala said. The third relative was supposedly killed in clashes with Marine troopers in the swampland of Barangay Pamalian in Shariff Saydona Mustapha. This brings the number of BIFF killed in the military offensive, that

started last Feb. 25, to 116 and 63 wounded. The three fatalities were buried by retreating BIFF forces in shallow graves in Sitio Ilang, Barangay Tina, Shariff Aguak Civilian informants pinpointed their burial sites to government troops. The operating troops under Marine Battalion Landing Team8 spotted more or less 20 bandits who were either dead or wounded during the series of firefights.

AS A child she waded in muddy rice paddies, now teenager Janicel Lubina struts down runways for the country’s top designers and is hoping to be crowned among the world’s most beautiful women. Lubina is a star recruit in one of Manila’s beauty pageant boot camps, where shy, lanky teenage girls from remote farming provinces are transformed into poised Barbie dolls who can preach about world peace in six-inch heels. Beauty pageants are hugely popular with women in the Philippines, with many taking part in the hope it will lead to luxury living, success in high fashion, and movie stardom. “My mother was a maid. I can’t be a maid forever and get stuck in the province,” 19-year-old Lubina told AFP before she auditioned for this year’s Binibining Pilipinas (Miss Philippines) contest. Lubina mastered what is dubbed the “duck walk” at the Kagandahang Flores (Beauty of the Flower) training camp in Manila, where students are taught to perfect their beauty queen strut by swinging their hips from side to side like ducks. Camp director and “duck walk” inventor Rodin Gilbert Flores approaches training with the precision of a scientist. He is a licensed chemical engineer who worked for a major glass company before shifting to entertainment. “It’s is all about muscle memory. It’s calculated down to the movement of the hands,” he said. “The girl should also show her personality. She can’t be like a mannequin with no expression on her face.” Flores ruthlessly watches as his students, wearing two-piece bikinis and high heels “duck-walk” from one end of a dark covered basketball court to the other. Sweat drips down their cheeks but they are not allowed to sit down until they perfect it. “We’ll take in a girl, she will be in pain because of the duck walk, but the end result is she’ll be a head-turner,” he said. Towering at six feet in heels, raven-haired Lubina hopes to represent the country in the Miss Universe pageant, which has a huge following in the Philippines. But Lubina’s camera-ready smile fades when she talks about her struggles back home in Palawan province, where she worked as a maid like her mother, while her father was recovering from a mild stroke. “One time, I mopped floors for an entire day and my boss made me do it all over again because she didn’t like my work,” she said. Lubina was discovered by a local make-up artist while she was out on an errand, walking on a dirt road. The beautician was amazed by her towering frame, she said. She won P3,000 ($68) in her first pageant three years ago and has never looked back—for her the money has flowed in to the extent that she can support her family and pay for stroke treatment for her father. AFP

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IN BRIEF 16 senators seeking JPE house arrest WHILE Senate Minority Leader Juan Ponce Enrile opted to remain at the PNP General Hospital in Camp Crame, sixteen of his colleagues in the Senate asked the Sandiganbayan to place him under house arrest. The senators, both belonging to the majority and minority blocs, signed a letter addressed to the anticourt’s third division which is hearing Enrile’s plunder case over the pork barrel scam. “Compassion is urged to be extended to Senator Enrile on account of his health condition and his being 91 years old already,” read the letter. The signatories to the letter were opposition Senators Vicente Sotto III, JV Ejercito, Nancy Binay and Gringo Honasan. Macon Araneta

Manila RTC tapped for Taiwanese slay case THE homicide case against eight Philippine Coast Guard personnel who figured in the fatal shooting of a Taiwanese fisherman off the coast of Balintang Island in May 2013 from Batanes will now be heard by a Manila City regional trial court. The Supreme Court’s second division granted the request made by the PCG officers in June last year to order the transfer of the trial venue to Manila after the accused complained that the present venue would be |burdensome not only for accused but also for the prosecution.” In a three-page notice of resolution, the SC also directed the Basco, Batanes regional trial court Branch 13 to forward records of the case to the executive judge of Manila RTC who will raffle off the case. Rey Requejo

Yolanda update. President Benigno S. Aquino III , Finance Secretary Cezar Purisima, Agrarian chief Virgilio delos Reyes and other members of the official family pray together before the Cabinet meeting on “Typhoon Yolanda Updates” at the Aguinaldo State Dining Room of the Malacañan Palace on Thursday (March 12, 2015). MALACAÑANG PHOTO BUREAU

Palace allays fears of rehab fund misuse By Joyce Panares

MALACAÑANG has shrugged off a report of the Commission on Audit that the government kept in banks P48.8 million in local and foreign donations for victims of super typhoon Yolanda instead of using these for recovery efforts. Communications Secretary Herminio Coloma did not address directly the observation of CoA that the actions of the Office of the Civil Defense and the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council defeated

the purpose of the donations for Yolanda victims. “There is nothing to worry. The money is safe in the banks,” Coloma said. “The donations will not be misused. These will be used for

their intended purposes,” he added. The CoA report, released on Wednesday, stressed that the donations were intended to assist the Yolanda victims and not for safekeeping in banks. “Donations for Typhoon Yolanda remained intact with the depository bank. There were no disbursements out of the donations received,” read the audit report. “What the victims need is speedy delivery of basic goods and services as temporary relief from their unexpected plight. We believe that this is the very essence

of the prompt donations entrusted by the donors and NDRRMC should actively play the very important role lodged to it in times of disasters,” it added. CoA directed the OCD and the NDRRMC to utilize the donations for the intended purpose by determining the actual needs of the typhoon victims. It also recommended that the OCD and the NDRRMC coordinate with other agencies and other relief providers on the grant of assistance already extended to the victims to avoid duplication.

Coalition pushes TRO vs K-12 By Rey Rquejo and Macon Araneta

Detour. The Public Works and Highways has called on the public to use alternative road as the southbound lane of Ayala Bridge in Quiapo will be closed starting March 13 from 10:00 am to 5:00 am. DANNY PATA

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SEVERAL groups including Senator Antonio Trillanes IV have asked the Supreme Court to stop the government from carrying out the K-12 law for being unconstitutional. In a petition filed before the high court, Trillanes and the Coalition for the K to 12 Suspension sought the issuance of a restraining order against K-12. They said that the law violates the Constitutional rights of education workers and fails to provide for full protection to labor and promotion of full

employment and equality of employment opportunities for all as mandated in Article XIII, Section 3 of the Constitution. “The Constitution promotes work creation or protection and not work displacement or loss. In the implementation of this law, education workers face the risk of early separation, forced retirement, constructive dismissal, diminution of salaries and benefits, labor contractualization and a general threat to selforganization,” the petitioners stressed. Trillanes for his part stressed that the educational system “does not need

the K-12 program and the people cannot afford it.” The present system worked for the earli generations and there is no reason why it shouldn’t work for for the present crop of students, Trillanes said. “We just need to fill in the shortages in classrooms, teachers, desks and books and increase the salaries of teachers.” The petitioners said the IRR, Joint Guidelines and DepEd memo that were subsequently formulated had no basis under the K-12 Law, particularly in terms of the provisions on lower compensation (upon transfer to senior high school) and retrenchment.

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Marcos panel okays bill to name streets for Aquinos By Macon R. Araneta The panel of Senator Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos, chair of the senate committee on public works and highway, on Thursday approved bills which seek to name two roads after the parents of President Benigno Aquino III. Approved at the committee level were hBN 4400 naming as “President Cory C. Aquino Avenue” the circumferential road at the junction of the Iloilo-Dumangas Coastal Road in Balabago, Jaro District, Iloilo City and hBN4398, naming a stretch of the national highway along the Iloilo Diversion Road as “Senator Benigno S. Aquino, Jr. Avenue”. The Marcos panel also gave its nod to house Bill No. 4400 which asks to call diversion road in Tacloban City, Leyte as Gov. Benjamin T. Romualdez Diversion Road. The three bills were among the nine proposed measures which originated from the house of Representatives that seek to name or rename roads in various parts of the country. Marcos’ panel likewise agreed to the committee’s omnibus action to hBN 1247—Naming the diversion road in Sorsogon City, Sorsogon as Salvador h. escudero III Diversion Road and hBN 4215—Naming the Camiguin Circumferential Road in the Province of Camiguin into the Pedro P. Romualdo Circumferential highway. The other approved measures were hBN 5204—Naming “St. Paul Avenue” the road beside the St. Paul College of Ilocos Sur (SPCIS) high School Department Bantay, Ilocos Sur and SPCIS College Department in Bayubay, San Vicente, Ilocos Sur; hBN 1140—Naming the national road from Barangay Abangay to Barangay Poblacion, Dingle, Iloilo as ‘Board Member Rufino A. Palabrica, Jr. National Road’; hBN 4013—Renaming the Acop Tublay, Kapangan - Kibungan - Bakun - Sinipsip, Buguias Secondary National Road in Benguet to Gov. Bado Dangwa National Road and hBN 4012—Renaming the Gurel - Bokod - Kabayan - Abatan Road, Benguet to Cong. Andres Acop Cosalan Road.

Senator Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos (right) exchanges plesantries with (from left) Leyte (1st Dist) Rep. Ferdinand Martin “FM” Romualdez, Ilocos (1st Dist) Rep. Ronald Singson and Iloilo (2nd Dist) Rep. Arcadio Gorriceta during the deliberation of House Bill 1042 naming the Diversion Road in Tacloban City, Leyte as Gov. Benjamin “KOKOY” T. Romualdez Diversion Road authored by Cong. Romualdez. The late Gov.Romualdez is the father of Cong Romualdez VeR NoVeNo

Ombudsman dismisses cases filed by Stradcom By Francisco Tuyay The Office of the Ombudsman dismissed the graft and criminal case filed by an Information Technology (IT) firm, Stradcom Corporation, against 47 people, including former Land Transportation Office (LTO) chief Secretary Virginia Torres in connection with the alleged illegal takeover of its office five years ago. Also exonerated from the charges were LTO head executive Assistant Menelia Mortel; Assistant Solictor General Renen Ramos; Police Supt Constante Agpaoa and former police Sr. Supt Rodrigo D. Bonifacio, president and chief executive officer of the Unilateral Se-

curity and Safety Solution, Inc. The others were those claiming to be the new officials of Stradcom Corp: Bonifacio Sumbilla, president and CeO; Dolney Sumbilla, Treasurer; Aderito Yujuico, board chairman; Rodolfo Millare, assistant corporate secretary; board directors

Ronnie Bilang, enrico Bilang, and egy Geron; Jer Samson, corporate secretary and Narciso Inlong. The 34 other respondents were security guards of the Unilateral Security & Safety Solutions. Stradcom filed the graft case against the respondents for violation of Section 3 of Republic Act 3019 (AntiGraft and Corrupt Practices Act), but the Ombudsman dismissed it due to insufficiency of evidence. In a 40-page joint resolution approved by Ombudsman Conchita Carpio-Morales, the administrative cases of grave misconduct and Conduct Prejudicial to the best Interest of the Service against the respondents were also dismissed. The finality of the resolution was

dated July 14, 2014. The cases stemmed from the complaints of Cesar Quaimbao and Ric Gene Pilapil of Stradcom Corp. who alleged that the respondents conspired with each other in trying to take over on Dec. 2 and 9, 2010 the Stradcom IT office inside the LTO compound. The complainants claimed that in the early morning of Dec. 2, 2010, the Sumbilla group attempted to enter the Stradcom compound to take control of the company but were prevented from entering the said facility. The Sumbilla group then went to respondent Torres informing her and introduced themselves as the new officers and directors of Stradcom and that they were prevented from taking over the IT facility.

Shabu-carrying commuter arrested in Cagayan Valley By Florante S. Solmerin

Call to resign. Members of the Alliance and Concerbed Teachers (ACT) demand for the resignation of President Benigno Aquino III as they claimed that the Aquino government’s poorly-planned K to 12 program only resulted to more complicated problems for the students during a press conference held recebtkt at the Vinson’s Hall University of the Philippines in Diliman, Quezon City. MANNY PALMeRo

A 28-year-old man who just arrived from Manila on board a passenger bus was arrested Tuesday after a kilo of shabu worth P5 million was found in his possession at the terminal of Barangay Lbertad, Abulug, Cagayan, a late report from the Philippine Drug enforcement Agency (PDeA) said Thursday. The suspect was identified as Francisco Torres, a resident of Gonzaga town, which is located more or less 70 kilometers from Abulug. In a phone interview, Cagayan provincial police director Senior Superintendent Ronaldo Olay said Torres was arrested by the elements of the anti-illegal drug units of the Police Regional Office 2 and

provincial police with the support of the regional office of the PDeA. he said the police received tips from anti-illegal drug assets on the arrival of Torres who was allegedly in possession of an undetermined amount of shabu on board RCJ Bus Lines with terminal in Abulug. “True enough, the bus passed 6 o’clock in the morning when Torres was caught red handed with shabu,” Olay said. PDeA director Arturo Cacdac Jr. said the recovered shabu from Torres has a street value of P5 million. “Torres, who reportedly arrived from Manila, was at the waiting area of RCJ Bus Lines in Barangay Libertad, Abulug, Cagayan carrying the contraband when intercepted by the operating team,” Cacdac said.

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NEWS

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IN BRIEF Pangasinan govt bans smoking in ofﬁces, hospitals LINGAYEN, Pangasinan March 12—Smoking is now strictly prohibited in all government offices, hospitals, building, work areas, grounds and canteens within the Capitol compound and inside hospital grounds and premises provincewide. Gov. Amado T. Espino, Jr. recently signed a memorandum calling for the implementation of the smoking prohibition in compliance with the Civil Service Commission Memorandum Circular No. 17, s. 2009 or the Smoking Prohibition Based on 100 % Smoke-Free Environment Policy and the CSC-DOH Joint Memorandum Circular 2010-01 or the Protection of the Bureaucracy Against Tobacco Industry Interference. In line with this, the Provincial Government of Pangasinan has adopted the guidelines relative to the circulars to ensure a smoke-free, safe and healthy environment for employees as well as its clients. The Circular also strictly prohibits smoking in government vehicles to ensure that employees and clients will be spared from the serious negative effects of firsthand, second-hand and even third-hand smoke. It also ordered to remove ashtrays or any receptacle for dispensing cigarette refuse in different government offices to prevent officials, employees and even the public from being tempted to smoke. Dexter A. See

Petitioners question RTC jurisdiction on recall case By Orlan L. Mauricio

MALOLOS City—Petitioners on Thursday questioned the jurisdiction of the Regional Trial Court of Bulacan, as their lawyers raised the issue of ‘forum-shopping’ against Gov. Wilhelmino SyAlvarado at the resumption of the hearing on the recall election proceedings here. Branch 83-RTC Judge Guillermo Agloro, who issued the temporary restraining order last Friday that stopped the scheduled validation of petitioners signatures and thumb marks set last March 9 to 23 in connection with the recall proceedings, gave the petitioners until today (Friday, March 13) to answer why recall-petitioner Perlita Men-

doza should not be allowed to participate in the hearing as an intervenor. Atty. Bernadette Sardillo, Mendoza’s counsel, filed a ‘motion to intervene’ and ‘motion to dismiss’ last March 10 before Agloro’s sala arguing that the petition for the issuance of a TRO and injunction against the recall proceedings violates the rule on ‘forum-shopping’.

Sardillo also questioned the RTC’s jurisdiction over the Comelec citing the resolution of the Supreme Court issued last Feb. 16 dismissing Alvarado’s petition for the issuance of a TRO which in turn gave the green light for the Comelec en banc to order the immediate holding of the recall elections before May 9 this year. However, Alvarado’s lawyer were able to secure the TRO last March 6 citing the noncompliance of Mendoza with the procedural guidelines on the posting and publication of the “Petition for Recall”. Alvarado accused Mendoza or railroading the procedures when she herself caused the publication of the ‘petition’ instead of the Comelec Pro-

vincial Election Supervisor who should have performed such official acts. Alvarado also raised the issue of non-compliance with the jurisdictional requirement of Sec.16 of Comelec Resolution 7505 when Mendoza published the ‘petition’ in the tabloid Rekta, a flyby-night weekly newspaper which is not accredited as a newspaper of general circulation in the province as certified by the RTC-Office of the Clerk of Court. Alvarado’s lawyer also filed this week an amended-petition praying that the Court include all the 24 Election Officers (EO) in the 21 municipalities and three (3) component cities of Bulacan, namely Malolos,

Meycauayan and San Jose Del Monte, as defendant-respondent in the TRO issued by the court. Bulacan PES Atty. Jerbee Anthony Cortez, the main respondent-defendant in the case elicited laughter at the courtroom when he replied “no comment,” when asked to comment on the manifestations of the opposing parties. Judge Agloro, however, said he will issue on Monday, March16 a ruling on all the pending motions before the Court. Meanwhile, a huge-crowd of some 10,000 showed their support for Gov. Alvarado leadership during a ‘Day of Prayer for Unity’ at the Provincial Capitol compound last Wednesday afternoon.

Mindanao regions top DepEd ‘zero dropout rate’ DIPOLOG CITY, Zamboanga del Norte —For recording the most number of public high schools with student “zero dropout rate” (ZDR) in the soon-to-end school year (SY) 2014-2015, three Mindanao regions—including Western Mindanao (Region 9) were recently cited by the Department of Education (DepEd), a former WM education official here said Thursday. Newly-retired DepEd Region 9 Director Walter Albos said a memorandum he earlier received from Education Secretary Armin Luistro attributed the feat “to intensified implementation of the agency’s Dropout Reduction Program (DORP) in Mindanao,” the country’s second largest island region. Albos said Luistro’s memo listed Caraga (Region 13) with the most number of HS, 187, with ZDR, among the DepEd’s 17 regions while Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) and WM (R-9) registered 99 and 98 HS with ZDR to place second and third, respectively. Luistro’s memo, Albos said, listed the other regions and their respective number of HS with ZDR as Central Visayas (R-7), 87 HS; Ilocos (R-1), 84; Cagayan Valley (R-2), 84; Central Mindanao (R-12), 60; Calabarzon (R-4A), 60; Central Luzon (R-3),56; Western Visayas (R-6), 41; Mimaropa (R-4B), 35; Bicol (R-5), 41; Northern Mindanao (R-10), 42; Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR), 39; Southern Mindanao (R-11), 32, and National Capital Region (NCR), 24. A. Perez Rimando

Heavy load. Edwin Cabulana, 37 years old, walks along the island of Lapu lapu City in Cebu while carrying a piece of furniture in the hope of selling it to residents of the city. Cabulana has to endure the hot temperature reaching 31 degrees. The furniture seller starts walking at around 4:30 a.m. and ends his day at 7 p.m. The furniture, which was built by his uncle in Pardo Cebu, sells for 3,500, P500 of which goes to his own pocket. RALPH PIEZAS

Baler to deploy 151 ‘bgy firefighters’ By Ferdie G. Domingo BALER, Aurora—The Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP) here said it would deploy 151 barangay fire brigades in the province to boost its over-all firefighting capability and minimize fire occurrence and loss of lives and properties during fire outbreaks. Provincial Fire Marshal Bryan Pocyao said the fire brigades aim to involve the entire community in the fire prevention efforts. “As we all know, preventing or putting out fire requires not only the firefighters of the BFP but also concerted efforts among the citizenry. As the basic unit in society, the barangays should also be involved and

fire brigades should be the first reactionary forces or responders during the occurrence of fire,” he said. Pocyao unveiled the plan to deploy the barangay fire brigade as he discussed the BFP’s preparedness in dealing with fires, particularly as this month is being observed as Fire Prevention Month under Presidential Proclamation 115. In line with the observance, Pocyao said that they have intensified fire safety awareness campaign by training more people in fire-fighting techniques and the holding last Monday of a Baler Fire Olympics (BFO). The BFO is highlighted by activities on fire hose management, fire extinguish-

ment, bucket relay and tugof-war participated by more than 200 individuals from this town’s 13 barangays. He said the 64 fire personnel in the province have been touching base with barangay people through the regular “Barangay Ugnayan,” to strengthen and evaluate the capabilities of every barangay, especially barangay volunteers, in responding to fire and other related emergencies. To further improve firebusting efforts in Aurora, Pocyao said they are planning to put up three satellite fire stations in the northern part of this province covering the so-called Dicadi area involving the towns of Dinalungan, Casiguran and Dilasag.

E-learning. Chevron Philippines Inc. (CPI), marketer of the Caltex fuel and lubricants, and Chevron Holdings Inc. (CHI), a pioneer multi-functional shared services center, in partnership with the American Chamber Foundation Philippines Inc. (AmCham Foundation), turn over 48 computers and 2 printers to the 20 public elementary schools in San Pascual, Batangas to help raise the level of education of at least 2,763 Grade 4 to Grade 6 students in the municipality. Photo shows (from left) AmCham Foundation Program Manager Melque Caspe together with Project Coordinator Daisy Palor, DepEd Batangas Schools Division Superintendent Carlito Rocafort, CPI Policy Government and Public Affairs Coordinator Cherry Ramos, and DepEd San Pascual District Supervisor Joel Lubis.

CYAN MAGENTA YELLOW BLACK

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opinion [ EDI TORI A L ]

Nasty weather ahead

The weather bureau has just forewarned Filipinos. Less rainfall will be experienced before the onset of the wet season because of a mild dry spell, but stronger typhoons could hit the Philippines this year as a result of the same weather phenomenon The Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration, or Pagasa, conceded that the el Niño could make storms “stronger” and more “erratic” in 2015 amid climate change. “el Nino may cause the behavior of tropical cyclones to become erratic,

affecting [their] tracks and intensity,” weather bureau chief Vicente Malano said in an advisory. “The tropical cyclone tracks are expected to shift northward and [their] intensity could become stronger.” Recent typhoons in the Philippines have increased their ferocity and tended to strike even outside the traditional rainy season and hit once largely untouched areas. Climate change, meanwhile, has become more noticeable. The weather bureau expects below-normal rainfall this month in most parts

of the country but more rains over the western section of the country in July. Many parts of the Philippines had already been experiencing less than the normal amount of rainfall as early as November 2014 due to the el Niño. The national government, especially those in charge of planning and disaster response, should heed the warning of Pagasa to minimize damage and loss of lives when the typhoon seasons sets in. Super typhoon Yolanda, the strongest ever to hit land, left over 7,000 people dead or missing in the Visayas in November

2013 after dumping tsunami-like waves on coastlines and wiping out entire villages. The government this early must permamently relocate those living along the waterways of Metro Manila and people sheltered in disasterprone areas. River and other water systems should be declogged once and for all to partly solve flooding in Metro Manila. Climate change, as shown by recent strong typhoons and the more frequent occurence of el Niño, requires a more active response from authorities.

F R I d aY, M a R c h 1 3 , 2 0 1 5

OPINION

adelle chua EDITOR

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VIRTUAL REALITY

Jakarta days

TONY LOPEZ

I met Sondang tampubulon in about the availability of WiFi. None PENSEES my graduate school class on the was available -- and it turned out to FR. RANHILIO Philosophy of the Civil Code. I be a grand experience for us all and CALLANGAN did not know then that she was an abject lesson on our irrational deAQUINO an Indonesian. And after having pendence on being wired! At breakvisited Indonesia I am quite sure that anyone else fast time -- the only meal we had in residence (the would be hard put to distinguish between a Fili- rest were in various places Sondang took us to) -- we pino and an Indonesian by features alone. It was talked with each other. We would otherwise have only later on when she approached me to seek my been pathetically oblivious of each other, friends in approval of her thesis title -- she is writing on the lived space, preoccupied rather with keeping our archipelagic doctrine, Indonesia being one of its ‘friends’ on Facebook informed of our goings on. I principal proponents -- that I knew. Aside from told the youngsters of the group that such was life in maintaining a reputable law firm, she is very our simpler, iPad-less days. The good news is that much into politics. Garnita malahayati is her po- none died from internet starvation! litical party that forms part of the incu0mbent InThe march 7 concert was a beautiful experidonesian President’s coalition. I asked her what ence for us, and, we were told, it was for our audishe thought of the idea of my choir, the Coro de ence as well. Senior high school students, wearSan Jacinto, visiting Indonesia for a concert, and ing the costume of Aceh Province, performed a she was enthused. I needed no dance number -- not really a further prodigy. God, I was pidance that consisted in foot ously convinced, had made his movements, but rather in will known through Sondang, rhythmic gestures, and we although this faith was sorely were pleasantly surprised that put to the test when in Novemthe young Indonesians could ber, when we had first set the easily express themselves in Indonesia visit, after we had english. Our numbers were purchased tickets on budget very warmly received and evfares aboard Cebu Pacific, I was ery song, our kind audience stricken by dengue. Flights had rewarded us with applause. to be rebooked -- normally impossible for bud- We opened with Close to You, sang Bituin get fares -- but thanks to Prof. teddyboy Locsin’s Walang Ningning and Bato sa Buhangin as our powerful intercession, the CebuPac management Filipino numbers, and surprised our hosts when graciously waived penalty charges for rebooking. we sang an Indonesian song beloved to them all: And so it was that on march 6, at close to mid- Bengawan Solo, that had been expertly arranged night, a group of thirty-three, our Coro family, for choral performance. left for Jakarta. But I had another mission too. Bahasa at first sounded strange to us all of Sondang had earlier told me that professors of us. Then we recognized many words: lakilaki, law who sought higher degrees often had to go ruangan, dorong, that are familiar words in the to Singapore or, more frequently, Germany. We languages of Northern Philippines, Iluco, for one were set to discuss the broad strokes of bringing but unknown to tagalogs. And then it dawned San Beda’s Graduate School of Law to Indonesia! on many of us: Does not Waray sound as foreign I was surprised to learn that Indonesia is approxi- to the Ibanag, or Bisaya to the Itawes as Bahasa mately eight to ten times the size of the Philippines. does to us, and are there not enough words and It straddles three time zones and since it was obvi- sentence-patterns nonetheless to remind us that ous that we neither had the time nor the where- we come from the same corner of the world? So withal to tour all of this huge archipelago, our host it was that after only two days, the younger membilleted us at a government facility -- taman mini, bers of the Coro had picked up enough Bahasa to the Indonesia answer to our erstwhile Nayong Pili- haggle with street-vendors -- and to poke fun at Continued on A12 pino. Immediately upon arrival, almost all asked each other!

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Ousting nOynOy PhILIPPINe history’s most popular president ever to be elected is now facing the worst crisis of his presidency. there is a growing clamor for his resignation, if not outright removal. From the pinnacle of popularity and power to the pit of calumny and ignominy – that has been the fate of Benigno Simeon (BS) Cojuangco Aquino Jr. Noynoy Aquino was elected on may 10, 2010 with 15.2 million votes – the greatest number of votes ever garnered by a winning Philippine presidential candidate. the 15.2 million is 42 percent of the total votes cast for president and 5.7 million more votes garnered by the second placer, the come-backing deposed former president Joseph ejercito “erap” estrada who had 9.487 million votes (26.25 percent of the votes). Before Aquino, Gloria macapagal Arroyo grabbed the most number of votes cast for president, 12.9 million – 40 percent of the vote – and 1.123 million more votes than the second placer’s 11.78 million (36.5 percent) polled by actor Fernando Poe Jr. in 2004. When he first ran for president, in 1998, Joseph estrada won with 10.722 million votes, 6.4 million more votes than the second placer, former Speaker Jose de Venecia’s 4.268 million. erap had 39.86 percent to JdV’s 15.83 million (15.83 percent). In terms of winning margin, erap’s 6.4 million and 24 percentage point-lead over his nearest rival remains unbeaten. Alas, a huge popular mandate is no guarantee of stability in the presidency. After only 30 months in office, erap was ousted by People Power II in January 2001, and replaced by thenVice President Gloria macapagal Arroyo. People Power I defanged strongman Ferdinand e. marcos who was succeeded by Corazon Cojuangco Aquino. She never won the presidency but was installed by a People Power revolt. Will BS Aquino be ousted by People Power III? that is not clear at the moment. With 15 months and a half before the formal end of his presidency on June 30, 2016, the odds are stacked against those seeking Aquino’s ouster by People Power, by a coup, or by a forced resignation. Resignation is out of the question for Noynoy Aquino. that is not in his genes. that leaves a coup or People Power or a blend of both – the kind that ended marcos’s 20-year reign and estrada’s 30-month presidency. marcos had four years remaining in his presidency when removed in February 1986. estrada had three and a half years to go before his term was abbreviated in 2001.

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F R I D AY, M A R C H 1 3 , 2 0 1 5

OPINION lettertotheeditor@thestandard.com.ph

No to tax exemptioN, yes to peNsioNs Are our legislators sincere in exSenator Panfilo Lacson whose filipino empting the world’s first and only previous public performance had eight-division world champion pensioner turned him into a statesman and Manny Pacquiao from paying taxa formidable presidential timber horace es for the $80 million prize money in 2016 until he carelessly took templo that he would get in his upcoming that Herculean challenge to befight with undefeated, five-divicome PNoy’s rehabilitation czar in sion world champion Floyd Mayweather, Jr.? Yolanda-ravaged Tacloban City. They better do it before May 2 when the two PNoy gradually showed his dislike –not conwould fight at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in tempt, maybe - of Tacloban, and never supported Las Vegas, Nevada to decide who the undisputed the senator’s sincere efforts to help the city stand welterweight champion of the world is between up on its feet again. the two of them. At the end, Senator Lacson had to resign withOther than to inspire him to win for the honor out accomplishing anything except to submit a reand glory of the country, their main purpose – no habilitation blueprint. By that time, he has become doubt - is to gain “pogi” points for their exclusive a forgotten ex-senator who could not even express tax measure in favor of their colleague Congressman his true sentiments on national issues. If he did, he Manny. would have sounded as if he were ungrateful to his They all can use in the coming 2016 elections once-boss president. any endorsement from him despite his lackluster Manny attracted more adoring fans when he election record. told the well-intentioned author – Senator Koko Wasn’t it a woman – rep. Darlene Antonino- Pimentel - to “instead focus on other achievers, Custodio - who made him taste his first defeat in who bring honor and glory to the Philippines, in the political arena? He absorbed this loss in his the field of sports as well as in the arts, science, 2007 political debut to represent South Cotabato culture, and other fields instead of giving him tax in Congress. Only after he moved to his wife’s exemption in his forthcoming megabuck fight.” nearby province of Sarangani did he win as conGamely, Senator Koko promised to file such a gressman in 2010 over wealthy and politically bill or resolution. well-entrenched roy Chiongbian. But by 2013 But shouldn’t he file instead a bill that would when he ran for reelection, nobody dared oppose grant pensions for life to sports greats? him anymore. For instance, eugene Torre – Asia’s first chess In his fight with Floyd, what are at stake? grandmaster –has brought so much honor and Win or lose, Manny would receive unimagina- glory to the country in the last four decades that ble sums of money – despite tax deductions - while the trophies, medals and citations he had brought a clear victory would catapult him into joining the home could fill up a museum room. greatest boxers of all time club and the Senate in He barely makes any income now from playing 2016. chess and would not benefit from any tax exemption. But for simple-minded and adoring Filipino What he needs is a pension for life similar to boxing fans like us, we would commit to him in what national artists get. advance our votes for his presidential bid in 2022. But a national artist status is granted only after Does boxing champ Manny need any tax ex- a long, tedious process that requires at the end the emption privilege? final approval and conferment of the award by the Perhaps he could enlist as an overseas Filipino president. worker and be exempted immediately from paying On the other hand, eugene and other athletes taxes. The fight prize, after all, is income earned —especially those who remained amateurs—have outside the Philippines - in the USA. brought honor and glory to the country by winThe amount of tax exemption he could save is ning in prestigious international competitions. worth one-third of this income, but in return, it This is equivalent to the national artist selection would earn him critics for life in addition to the Bureau of Internal revenue’s Kim Henares. They process. Perhaps, Manny meant that we show our apprecould always accuse him of having taken tax monciation for our outstanding achievers in sports – as ey that was intended for the poor. we do now for our national artists and scientists Actually, he had rejected outright the idea of through pension grants at retirement, disability his exemption from paying taxes. He had foreseen that it would only blemish his image as the peo- and death when they and their dependents need ple’s champ who does not stop sharing his good those most. fortunes with the poor. Otherwise, eugene and Manny would end up Clearly, this is a demonstration of his well-de- receiving only P500 as social pension. This is veloped instinct for survival, this time in the po- much inferior to those received by public servants litical arena. whose contributions of honor and glory to the This reminds me - with sadness - of former country were not as significant.

ousting..From A11 As much as possible, people want a peaceful transition of power, the kind that ousted both Marcos and estrada. That is difficult to maneuver today, given an election in May 2016, which is barely 13 months away. People would rather wait out the remaining bumbling years of Aquino’s presidency than resort to violent means of change. Still, a coup remains a possibility. There are rumblings within the ranks of the 130,000-strong Armed Forces and the 148,500-strong Philippine National Police. Aquino’s blame throwing after the Mamasapano Massacre has shamed the leadership of the PNP, insulted the 44 PNP Special Action Force commandos who died in Mamasapano on Jan. 25, 2015, and exposed rifts between the top echelons of the PNP and the AFP. Senior and battle-tested generals of the AFP have also been made to appear stupid, incompetent, and cowardly, unable to come to the aid of their brothers in arms when the SAF commandos were beleaguered by thousands of enemy forces in Mamasapano. The sacked chief of the PNP SAF, two-star police general Getulio Napeñas, has been made to appear

stupid and incompetent by his own commander-inchief, Benigno S. Aquino, using the slang and lingo of gangsters and crime syndicates words—like “binola” (lied to), and “kulang sa pagiisip nang maayos” (short of right thinking). A highly educated and decorated officer, Napeñas by this time, is not inclined to take the presidential insults and blame game sitting down. Initially, he has hired a lawyer to do the verbal counter-punching for him. At the same time, AFP Chief of Staff, Gen. Gregorio Catapang (his name means “courage”); the chief of the Western Mindanao Command, Lieut. Gen. rustico Guerrero (his name means “warrior”), and the chief of 6th army Infantry Division Major Gen. edmundo Pangilinan (his name means “fang”) are by now uncomfortable by the recent turn of events. Their once sterling records as the military’s top career men and combat officers have been tainted by a scandal that is just now unraveling. The way to approach Aquino’s ouster then is like demolishing a building the slow motion way – piece by piece or brick by brick, until there is nothing left of the structure but a leader shorn of credibility, followers, and power, except a fancy title. biznewsasia@gmail.com

Who Will challeNge hillary? Bloomberg editorial THe relentless controversy surrounding Hillary Clinton’s use of e-mail during her time as secretary of state raises a question: If her candidacy for president (not yet announced, but widely assumed) falters or implodes—as sometimes happens to frontrunners—will her party have an alternative? For voters’ sake, the answer should be yes. That’s just one reason Democratic politicians—the more, the merrier—should take on the daunting task of challenging Clinton for the nomination. At the moment, four Democrats are playing presidential footsie. Vice President Joe Biden has visited Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina this year and indicated that if he were to run, it would be as the “sticking with what works” candidate. Former Maryland Governor Martin O’Malley is positioning himself as a bit more liberal than Clinton without all the baggage, a fresh face from (slightly) outside of Washington. Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders is an independent who calls himself a Democratic socialist, crusades against the influence of money in politics, and appeals to the party’s ideological Ben & Jerry’s-eating activists. Former Virginia Senator Jim Webb is a populist who is as critical of Wall Street as he is of foreign military intervention, and his attacks on affirmative action and defense of gun rights speak to white voters who have been deserting the party—or feeling deserted by it. Others could yet emerge. Senator elizabeth Warren might change her mind, and the Al Gore chatter has already begun. The field should be diverse. Primaries offer the best opportunity for parties to conduct a national debate over their goals and ideals. And a lot has changed since Democrats last did this in 2008. In recent years, the party has been battling over how to approach education reform, income inequality, public-sector unions, trade, climate change and other issues. A contested primary would force candidates to take sides, allowing voters to determine the party’s direction. “Let a hundred flowers bloom, let a hundred schools of thought contend,” Mao Zedong said to encourage critics of the Communist regime to come forward with new ideas. True, some who spoke up in China in the 1950s were later executed or sentenced to hard labor. But the price of challenging Clinton is not so high: frustration and defeat, perhaps—or, worse, the vicepresidential nomination.

Jakarta...From A10 Ambassador Maria Lumen Isleta, who has just taken up her post in Indonesia after a tour of duty in Laos, received us with the warmth, hospitality, and graciousness that we thought we would never receive from the Philippine Diplomatic mission in Indonesia. earlier attempts, before Ambassador Lumen took up her post, to involve them in our visit did not augur well for us, but she not only sent a contingent from the diplomatic mission to the concert. She was in attendance at the Mass at St. Catherine Church in Taman Mini where we sang on Sunday, joining us for the breakfast to which the parish priest so kindly treated us. The very next day, we were her guests for dinner at the embassy, and we treated the members of the Philippine diplomatic mission to Kahit na Magtiis, Canseco’s Ikaw, the immortal Nahan and Bituin Walang Ningning. As important I think as the legal framework for ASeAN integration and the attempts at linking economies, industries and professions are the ties forged in less structured but none the less equally felicitous ways as visits made, cultures appreciated, academic links established and friendships nurtured! If it is to mean anything significant for the ordinary Filipino, or for the Indonesia on the street, integration has to be about people coming together! rannie_aquino@sanbeda.edu.ph rannie_aquino@csu.edu.ph rannie_aquino@yahoo.com

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sports sports@thestandard.com.ph

Polo sidelights. Accompanied by wife Sheila (back row, seventh from left) and children, Globalport owner Mikee Romero (ninth from right) poses with the patrons and players of the six teams that took part in the recent 3rd Philippine Polo Open. The Romeros staged several activities during the week-long event, including a gala show for the benefit of the families of the “Gallant SAF 44”.

Ateneo batters score 3-peat ATENEO overcame hitting struggles to frustrate De La Salle, 3-2, and claim its third straight title yesterday in the UAAP Season 77 baseball tournament at the Rizal Memorial Baseball Stadium. Dio Remollo had a beautiful sacrifice bunt to move up Enzo Orbeta and Matt Laurel, followed by a Ryon Tionloc fly out on to Andre Palacios. Then, first base Carlos Munoz committed a throwing error, which led to runs by Orbeta and Laurel to give the Blue Eagles a 3-2 advantage. The Green Batters never recovered from there, ruing that

costly miscue that cost them Game 2. Ateneo swept the best-of-three series, 2-0, to cement its baseball dynasty. The Eagles’ victory gave a grand send-off to six graduating players, led by Matt Laurel, who bagged the Best Slugger, Most Homeruns and Most RBIs awards. “It’s my seniors, who delivered.

They don’t want to lose,” said Ateneo team manager Randy Dizer. “I think it was our composure that won it for us.” The Eagles, despite the loss of their key players, who have completed their playing eligibility, are looking forward in continuing their domination with some prized recruits coming in. “I think I go for four, five, six... hopefully. It’s my dream that I’m working on it,” said Dizer. La Salle’s Boo Barandiaran claimed the Rookie of the Year and Best Pitcher plum, while his teammate Dino Imperial shared with Matt Laurel for the Most RBIs award. University of the Philippines’

Jose Miguel San Juan and Adamson University’s Manuel Luis Navasero bagged the Best Hitter and Most Stolen Bases plums, respectively. At the end of softball eliminations on Wednesday, fivepeat seeking Adamson jumped straight to the Finals with its 60th straight win with a 13-2 win over National University. UP beat La Salle, 7-0, to force a playoff for the No. 2 spot in the stepladder semifinals against University of Santo Tomas, a 7-0 winner over University of the East. The Lady Bulldogs and the Lady Batters will clash in a playoff for the last semis berth on Saturday.

Seno, Llamas banner Consolacion net cast JAN Godfrey Seno and Tracy Llamas try to make it two-inrow as they headline the field in the Consolacion leg of the Palawan Pawnshop-Palawan Express Pera Padala regional age group presented by Technifibre at the Consolaction Tennis Club which gets going today in Laray, Cebu. Seno and Llamas racked up two victories each in last week’s LapuLapu leg of the nationwide circuit with the former, a Bogo, Cebu native, installed as the player to beat in the boys’ 18- and 16-and-under classes. Llamas, on the other hand, seeks to score a repeat in the girls’ 14- and 18-U categories with the La Carlota mainstay also vying in the 16-U section of the Group 2 tournament sponsored by the country’s leading pawnshop, remittance and claim center. Llamas, however, will have her hands full in the centerpiece event top-billed by Ma. Dominique Ong, Shyne Villareal, Zethley Alferez, Kristin Salimbangon and Queene Tunacao. Villareal, Alferez and Salimbangon are also seeing action in the 16-U

side of the five-day event sanctioned by the Philippine Tennis Association headed by president and Paranaque Mayor Edwin Olivarez. “Despite the presence of the big guns, we expect a number of reversals that has been the norm in all our tournaments with new faces andd promising players emerging,” said Palawan Pawnsho COO Bobby Castro. Meanwhile, the 10th leg of the 38-stage circuit will be held March 20-23 at the Ouans Resort Tennis Courts in Lucena, Quezon. Registration is ongoing. For details, call Bobby Mangunay, PPS-PEPP Sports Program Development director, at 09154046464. Lyra Repollo and Tifanny Nocos banner the girls’ 12-U cast while Sebastien Lhuillier, Harland Hogan, Edgardo Angara and Vhenz Alforque are tipped to slug it out for the boys’ 14- and 12-U diadems. The chase for the 10-unisex crown is also tipped to go down-to-the-wire among Nocos, Ethan Quino, Josh Abad and John Coderos.

Freestyle champ. Christian Tio performs his tricks en route to ruling the Freestyle event of the ICTSI Philippine Kiteboarding Tour-Season 2 in Puerto Princesa, Palawan recently. The Boracay-based Tio, who also topped the Camarines stop last month, went on to bag the overall crown in his pet event at the close of the four-leg circuit organized by the Philippine Kiteboarding Association.

Maynilad holds World Water Day Run 2015 MAYNILAD Water Services, Inc. is presenting the “World Water Day 2015: Let’s Run for Water and Sustainable Development,” organized by Runners Republiq and RG Events this March 22 at the CCP Complex, Pasay City. The run is part of a weeklong celebration from March 16 to 22 of World Water Day, in coordination with government agencies and private organizations. The event is expected to draw some 4,000 runners, including employees of 25 private organizations and government agencies led by DENR. As culminating activity for the week-long celebration of World Water Day 2015 from March 16 to 22, the run aims to inspire Filipinos to do their part in promoting greater access to clean water and environmental responsibility. The initiative also aims to create awareness on the role of water in meeting all development needs. Race categories include 1K and 3K for fun runners, as well as 5K, 10K and 21K for competitive runners. A special touch to the event shall be a symbolic 1K fun walk, wherein the participants shall be carrying saplings throughout the race. These saplings shall be the planted in Maynilad’s La Mesa Water Treatment Plant Compound, the facility that produces drinking water for 8.9 million people daily. For more details about the run and other Maynilad-led WWD events, visit FB/MayniladWaterWarrior or FB/runnersrepubliq.

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SPORTS sports@thestandard.com.ph

No. 1 PSL pick gets rave reviews By Peter Atencio

FILIPINO-American spiker Iris Tolenada is keen on bringing to local soil her unique brand of play when the Philippine Superliga All-Filipino Conference gets going on March 22 at the Mall of Asia Arena. “I expect to elevate the game here with my experience,” said Tolenada after she was selected by Philips Gold as its no. 1 draft

choice during the PSL’s Annual Rookie Draft at the third level of SM Aura in Taguig City. The 23-year-old Tolenada,

according to team manager Anthony Ty, was picked because she had special hands in her game as a setter. “We realized she had special hands. When she sets, sobrang ganda ng palo niya. Parang import,” said Ty, who had a glimpse of how good Tolenada was during the Rookie Camp a few weeks back She carries an impressive resume after becoming the first player from San Francisco State University to win the Most Valuable Player award in the highly

REPUBLIKA NG PILIPINAS

Bids and Awards Committee J.P. Rizal St. corner F. Zobel St., Makati City Tel. No. 870-1000 Fax No. 899-8988 www.makati.gov.ph

INVITATION TO BID IMPLEMENTING OFFICE

APPROVED BUDGET FOR THE CONTRACT (ABC)

Dental Kits for the use of Preschool to Grade 3 pupils of various schools of Dep-Ed Makati

DEP-ED

P4,931,283.75

Laptop Computers for the implementation of Information and Communication Technology Education of various schools of Dep-Ed Makati

DEP-ED

P98,406,000.00

VITEK 2 GN and other laboratory supplies for the use of Ospitalng Makati

OSMAK

P9,548,000.00

HemaAnalyzer Diluent and other laboratory supplies for the use of Ospitalng Makati

OSMAK

P8,966,944.81

Special Phosphate and other laboratory supplies for the use of Ospitalng Makati

OSMAK

P6,500,908.48

Blood Agar Base and other laboratory supplies for the use of Ospitalng Makati

OSMAK

P5,025,610.43

ABG Syringe and other laboratory supplies for the use of Ospitalng Makati

OSMAK

P4,002,888.00

Evacuated Tubes and other laboratory supplies for the use of Ospitalng Makati

OSMAK

P2,494,022.45

Polyvitex Mixtures and other laboratory supplies for the use of Ospitalng Makati

OSMAK

P2,374,365.15

Tris Buffer and other laboratory supplies for the use of Ospitalng Makati

OSMAK

P2,269,781.38

HIV Ag/Ab Combo Reagent and other laboratory supplies for the use of Ospitalng Makati

OSMAK

P2,191,898.00

12 13

NAME OF PROJECT AND BRIEF DESCRIPTION

Fan Aerobic Culture Bottles and other laboratory supplies for the use of Ospitalng Makati Fetal Heart Doppler System and other medical equipment for Makati Rescue Medical Support Services Program

23-year-old Alexa Michek found a team in Petron as an opposite spiker. In the second round, Philips Gold chose NU’s Desiree Dadang, while libero Denise Lazaro of Ateneo got picked by Foton. Diane Ticar of Arellano University went to Cignal, and CSB’s Daniel Cheng will play for Shopinas. Shacman got Far Eastern University’s Samantha Dawson and Petron called in NU’s Ivy Perez.

Astana’s Guardini does it again

LUNGSOD NG MAKATI

NO.

competitive California Collegiate Athletic Association. Angeli Pauline Araneta of the University of the Philippines was the second pick (taken by Foton), while College of St. Benilde’s Rica Jane Eclona of the College of St. Benilde, the third choice, went to Cignal. National University spiker Riza Jane Mandapat will play for Shopinas, while CSB’s Therese Maureen Veronal is with Shacman. Another interesting player,

KUALA BERANG--Andrea Guardini again proved unstoppable in a bunch spritn when the Astana Pro Team rider took his third win of Le Tour de Langkawi 2015 in a bunch sprint in Stage Four from Kota Baru to Kuala Berang today. Guardini, 27, beat Team Southeast’s Jakub Mareczko to the finish line, with OricaGreenEdge’s Caleb Ewan finishing third this time but held on to both the overall general classification and points classification leads. This was also Guardini’s 17th ever win in the race’s history, extending even further his already impressive record. “I am happy with the way the sprint went. I managed a really

Astana rider Guardini wins another bunch sprint at the end of Stage 4. RAMON BOADO

good sprint to take this win. Today was a really fast paced stage with the speed in the earlier part already very high at 50 to 60 kp/h,” said Guardini.

“I then had a good lead-out and I took a good risk, then the job was done. For the moment, this is a good result. But for now, I think I can do more than this.”

REPUBLIKA NG PILIPINAS

LUNGSOD NG MAKATI

Bids and Awards Committee J.P. Rizal St. corner F. Zobel St., Makati City Tel. No. 870-1000 Fax No. 899-8988 www.makati.gov.ph

INVITATION TO BID NO.

OSMAK

P5,723,636.06

DRRMO

P3,676,900.00

Glucose and other laboratory supplies for the use of Ospitalng Makati

OSMAK

P8,871,582.24

Teacher’s and Instructor’s Fee for S.M.A.R.T. 2015 Program

P3,256,352.00

The MAKATI CITY GOVERNMENT, through its Bids and Awards Committee (BAC), invites interested bidders to apply for eligibility and to bid for the above projects, with Approved Budget for the Contract (ABC) indicated, inclusive of all taxes, such as, but not limited to, value added tax (VAT), income tax, local taxes and other fiscal levies.

NAME OF PROJECT AND BRIEF DESCRIPTION

IMPLEMENTING OFFICE

APPROVED BUDGET FOR THE CONTRACT (ABC)

UMAK

P8,876,778.00

Furniture and Fixtures for the use of University of Makati Administrative Building and 4th Floor Academic Hostel

Interactive Whiteboard for the use of various schools of Dep-Ed Makati

DEP-ED

P50,040,000.00

Toners for printing and reproduction of instructional / test materials of various schools of Dep-Ed Makati

DEP-ED

P5,489,613.00

Printing of Student Diary and other materials for the use of elementary pupils, high school students and teachers of various schools of Dep-Ed Makati

DEP-ED

P5,270,452.10

Bids received in excess of the ABC shall be automatically rejected at Bid Opening. 2.

Bidding will be conducted through open competitive bidding procedures using a nondiscretionary “pass/fail” criterion as specified in the Implementing Rules and Regulations (IRR) of Republic Act (RA) 9184, otherwise known as the “Government Procurement Reform Act”.

Bidding will be conducted through open competitive bidding procedures using a non-discretionary “pass/fail” criterion as specified in the Implementing Rules and Regulations (IRR) of Republic Act (RA) 9184, otherwise known as the “Government Procurement Reform Act”.

Bidding is restricted to Filipino citizens/sole proprietorships, partnerships, or organizations with at least sixty percent (60%) interest or outstanding capital stock belonging to citizens of the Philippines, and to citizens or organizations of a country the laws or regulations of which grant similar rights or privileges to Filipino citizens, pursuant to RA 5183 and subject to Commonwealth Act 138.

A complete set of Bidding Documents will be available one (1) day after posting / publication of the above projects up to Closing Date (before the deadline of the submission of bids),weekdays only from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. from the address below and upon payment of a non-refundable fee for the Bidding Documents in the amount stated on the issued order of payment to the City Government of Makati Cashier.

The BAC will hold a Pre-Bid Conference on March 19, 2015 (02:00 P.M.) at PiodelPilar Conference Room, 21st floor, New Makati City Hall Building, F. Zobel Street, Brgy. Poblacion, Makati City to discuss Eligibility Requirements and the Technical and Financial Components of these projects. However, only those interested Bidders who have purchased the Bidding Documents are allowed to raise and submit queries or clarifications regarding the Bidding Documents.

The BAC will hold a Pre-Bid Conference on March 24, 2015 (02:00 P.M.) at PiodelPilar Conference Room, 21st floor, New Makati City Hall Building, F. Zobel Street, Brgy. Poblacion, Makati City to discuss Eligibility Requirements and the Technical and Financial Components of these projects. However, only those interested Bidders who have purchased the Bidding Documents are allowed to raise and submit queries or clarifications regarding the Bidding Documents.

Deadline of Submission of Bids shall be on or before March 31, 2015 (02:00 P.M.), atPiodelPilar Conference Room, 21st floor, New Makati City Hall Building, F. Zobel Street, Brgy. Poblacion, Makati City.

Deadline of Submission of Bids shall be on or before April 14, 2015 (02:00 P.M.), atPiodelPilar Conference Room, 21st floor, New Makati City Hall Building, F. Zobel Street, Brgy. Poblacion, Makati City.

Opening of Bids shall be on March 31, 2015 (02:00 P.M.), at Pio del Pilar Conference Room, 21st floor, New Makati City Hall Building, F. Zobel Street, Brgy. Poblacion, Makati City. 7.

Bids will be opened in the presence of the Bidders’ representatives who choose to attend at the said address. All Bids must be accompanied by a bid security in any of the acceptable forms and in the amount stated in ITB Clause 18. Late bids shall not be accepted.

The MAKATI CITY GOVERNMENT reserves the right to accept or reject any bid, to annul the bidding process, to reject all bids at any time prior to contract award, or to reduce the corresponding ABC and Terms of Reference (TOR), without thereby incurring any liability to the affected bidder or bidders.

For further information, please visit or contact: BAC SECRETARIAT OFFICE Makati City Government 9th Floor, New Makati City Hall Building F. Zobel Street, Brgy.Poblacion, Makati City Tel. No. 870-1000 loc. 1331; Fax No. 899-8988 website: www.makati.gov.ph (SGD.) Atty. ELENO M. MENDOZA, JR. Chairman

CYAN MAGENTA YELLOW BLACK

(MST-MAR. 13, 2015)

Opening of Bids shall be on April 14, 2015 (02:00 P.M.), at PiodelPilar Conference Room, 21st floor, New Makati City Hall Building, F. Zobel Street, Brgy. Poblacion, Makati City. 7.

For further information, please visit or contact:

(SGD.) Atty. ELENO M. MENDOZA, JR. Chairman

BAC SECRETARIAT OFFICE Makati City Government 9th Floor, New Makati City Hall Building F. Zobel Street, Brgy.Poblacion, Makati City Tel. No. 870-1000 loc. 1331; Fax No. 899-8988 website: www.makati.gov.ph

(MST-MAR. 13, 2015)

4 Pinoy shuttlers to SEAG THE Philippine Badminton Association will send the country’s top two men’s doubles’ pairs Paul Jefferson Vivas/ Peter Gabriel Magnaye and Philip Joper Escueta/Ronel Estanislao to the 28th Southeast Asian Games in Singapore from June 5 to 16. PBA-Smash Pilipinas national head coach Paulus Firman explained that the joint task force of the Philippine Olympic Committee and the Philippine Sports Commission provided badminton with 10 slots each for men’s and women. But in his latest meeting with 2015 SEA Games Chief of Mission Julian Camacho, PBASmash Pilipinas decided to trim its entries to four and send only two of the country’s best men’s doubles’ team, with the possibility of winning at least a bronze medal. “SEA Games badminton competition level is definitely high. It’s too much for us since it’s still a long, long process before we can compete there. Then, we were given four slots. I just wanted to be realistic, that’s why I will only send players who have a chance to win at least a bronze,” coach Firman said.

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SPORTS sports@thestandard.com.ph

No animosity between Pacquiao, Mayweather Al Thornton of NLEX (right) makes his move against Joseph Yeo of Ginebra. Thornton, an NBA veteran, banged in 50 points, to carry the Road Warriors to a 96-90 victory.

Korean holds off Superal KOREAN Hwang Ye-nah dispatched Mia Piccio with a solid start then matched amateur Princess Superal’s six-under 66 to wrest a two-stroke lead over the reigning US Girls Junior champion as the rest reeled back with over-par scores in the second round of the rich ICTSI Ladies Open at Southlinks Golf Club yesterday. Hwang birdied the opening hole and rattled off four straight birdies from No. 3 to drop erstwhile joint leader Piccio then added two more birdies at the back to negate a lone bogey mishap on No. 10, seizing the solo lead at 10-under 134 with 18 holes left in the $75,000 event serving as the kickoff leg of the ICTSI Ladies Philippine Golf Tour and fourth stage of the Taiwan LPGA. Kanphanitnan Muangkhumsakul actually shot a three-under 69 but the Thai bet stood seven strokes off Hwang at 141 for third, virtually yielding the top $15,000 purse to the 21-year-old Korean as Superal, just two down at 136, isn’t qualified for the money purse. “I want to win,” said Hwang, who banked on her solid iron game and putting to piece together two superb rounds on the dreaded tight, hazard-laden layout that took the fight out of a number of fancied bets in the event presented by Champion Infinity and sponsored by ICTSI. Piccio, impressive with a leadsharing 68 in the first round, stayed in the hunt with two birdies after six holes, but lost her rhythm and focus after a bogey on the seventh. She parred the next two but stumbled with a double-bogey on No. 10, dropped another stroke on the next and made another bogey on No. 15. “I was really off,” rued Piccio, who did hole out with a birdie but hardly bounced back into contention, her 74 dropping her to fourth at 142, now eight shots adrift.

CYAN MAGENTA YELLOW BLACK

Painters, Bolts eye share of lead By Jeric Lopez

EYEING to regain a share of the lead, Rain or Shine and Meralco plunge back to action against separate foes as play resumes in the homestretch of the 2015 Philippine Basketball Association Commissioner’s Cup elimination round. Currently tied at second spot playing consistently, entering tonight’s with identical 5-2 slates, the Elasto contest with the Beermen having won Painters and the Bolts four of their last five outGames Today are both looking to net ings and three in a row to Araneta Coliseum) find themselves in a good another win for them (Smart 4:15 p.m. •Meralco vs. to be able to keep in position near the top. Barako Bull step with league-leading 7 p.m. • San Miguel vs. ‘’We’re starting to Rain or Shine Talk ‘N Text (6-2). play better now. We’re Rain or Shine faces a finding our way and tall order against desperate Philip- we finally got the right import that pine Cup champion San Miguel Beer fits us more in Chism,’’ said Rain (2-6) at 7 p.m., while Meralco will or Shine coach Yeng Guiao. ‘’We’ll find itself in a tussle against Barako need to continue this to hopefully Bull (4-4) at 4:15 p.m. in the twin-bill finish in the Top 2.’’ at the Smart Araneta Coliseum. Contrary to Rain or Shine’s sucThe Elasto Painters are suddenly cess this conference, the Beermen

went from pre-tournament favorite to a team fighting to stay alive. San Miguel needs to win and sweep the rest of its games to even have a crack at a berth in the quarterfinals. ‘’Our latest win was good for us and our confidence. Chances are still there for us and we have to play really hard,’’ said San Miguel coach Leo Austria. Both the Painters and the Beermen have won their last game and those came at the expense of the Energy Colas, 103-91 for Rain or Shine and 102-91 for San Miguel before the All-Star break. After winning their first five games, the Bolts suddenly hit a skid and have lost their previous two assignments, with the last one coming at the hands of streaking sister team NLEX, 89-76. Meralco is aiming to snap that slump against Barako Bull, another team which started out well but is starting to fade a bit.

New faces emerge. A lot of new names and faces with a sprinkling of familiar ones emerged winners at

the recent Kidapawan City leg of the 2015 Cebuana Lhuillier Age-Group Tennis Championships, a nation-wide grassroots developmental tennis program of Philippine Tennis Association Chairman and sportsman/businessman Jean Henri Lhuillier. The only double winner in the individual competitions was Isulan, Sultan Kudarat bet Carlyn Bless Guarde, who annexed both the 16-under and 18-under girls’ titles, while GenSan’s Jarry Endangga ruled the 18-under boys’ division, while teaming up with Duma Hakim Boloto to take the 18-under boys’ doubles crown. The event, hosted by the Kidapawan City Tennis Club, attracted 116 entries from different provinces in Mindanao, a rich source of fresh and young tennis talents. Photo shows the different age group champions.

DENNIS PRINCIPE

SPORTS CHAT

FOR nearly six years, people talked about the much-ballyhooed bout between Manny Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather, Jr. And when the deal was finally sealed, promoters of both camps agreed, those six years of continuous debate among fight fans and boxing experts would be enough to sell the fight and make it as the richest event in the history of sport. Pacquiao and Mayweather held their only press conference Thursday morning (Manila time) in Los Angeles in what is deemed as just a formality to announce their 12-round welterweight title fight on May 2 at the MGM Grand Garden in Las Vegas, Nevada. Mayweather’s handlers and Pacquiao’s trainers said all of their focus and energy will be spent throughout their whole training camp, thus assuring fight fans of a top-quality fight between two superbly conditioned fighters. The press conference started with Pacquiao and Mayweather being introduced towards the stage and later on stood face to face for more than a minute. “It felt good. I’m ready and he’s ready. This is a very important and big fight. It’s going to be a historic fight,” said Pacquiao. “I know this is what you’ve been waiting for since five years ago. The fight is on and I know you are very excited.” Mayweather, meanwhile, took the presser as an opportunity to thank those involved in making the dream fight become a reality. “It’s been a long road but we’re here now. May 2nd, fight of the century. It’s all about the best, fighting the best,” said Mayweather. “Pacquiao is one of the best fighters of this era and everything is about timing and you know, I think we couldn’t choose a better time. Our game plan is to be smart and take it one fight at a time.” Mayweather, 38, was surprisingly mild mannered the entire presscon, a contrast to his previous pressers, where he would usually brag about himself. The undefeated American boxer also professed the importance of this bout in his 47-fight career. “Unbelievable match-up. Actionpacked fight, I’m in the gym working right now dedicating myself to the sport pushing myself to the limit because I never wanted to win a fight so bad in my life. And I’m pretty sure he’s gonna push himself to the limit because he wants to win the same way I want to win,” said Mayweather. Meantime, Pacquiao said nothing much will change in terms of how they prepared for Mayweather five years ago when compared with the kind of training camp they are now having at the Wild Card Gym in Holloywood. “The same. More hard work in training to make sure. He has a good defense but I’m not worried about that. I can easily break that defense,” said Pacquiao. Mayweather, on the other hand, said Pacquiao’s past defeats may turn out to be a huge obstacle the Filipino sensation may face once they start their battle. “When you lose, it’s in your mind. If you lost once, it’s in your mind. If you lost twice, it’s in your mind. From day one, I was always taught to be a winner. No matter what, be a winner,” said Mayweather. The media conclave was held at the Nokia Theatre in downtown Los Angeles were about 700 media members were given credentials to be at the invitation-only news conference. Email me: densprincipe@aol.com

CYAN MAGENTA YELLOW BLACK F R I D AY : M A R C H 1 3 , 2 0 1 5

A16

RIERA U. MALL ARI EDITOR

REUEL VIDAL A S S I S TA N T E D I T O R

sports@thestandard.com.ph

SPORTS

Korean grabs 2-shot lead. Korean Hwang Ye-nah (right) chips onto the green on No. 9 en route to a 2-stroke advantage, while Princess Superal attacks the long par-4 No. 11 with a 3-wood for her approach shot in the ICTSI Ladies’ Open at the Southlinks Golf Club. Story on A15

The world stops on May 2 By Ronnie Nathanielsz

UNDEFEATED pound-for-pound No.1 Floyd Mayweather Jr., who for years scoffed at the achievements of eight-division world champion Manny Pacquiao, yesterday conceded that their May 2 multi-million dollar showdown matched the best against the best in what he described as “the Fight of the Century,” even as he recognized the Filipino “as one of the best of this era.” In an unusually amiable press conference at the Nokia Theater in Los Angeles, both sides at least openly showed that the animosity and rhetoric of the past had been put aside. “It’s been a long road. But we are here now,” Mayweather said.

Both fighters were nattily clad in suits, but while Mayweather appeared to mirror an underlying tension and struck the first psychological blow, Pacquiao was all smiles and his usual humble self. Mayweather gloated over his unbeaten 47-0 record, while

Guardini does it again in Langkawi TURN TO A14

CYAN MAGENTA YELLOW BLACK

pointedly drawing attention to Pacquiao’s defeats when he said: “The thing I know about any sport, when you lose, it’s in your mind. If you lost once it’s in your mind. If you lost twice, it’s in your mind.” He added: “The world stops on May 2.” Pacquiao has lost five times, including an unmitigated robbery in his first fight against Timothy Bradley and a crushing sixth-round knockout against Juan Manuel Marquez, but on each occasion, the Filipino returned with a vengeance. Mayweather’s strength is his defense, but Pacquiao confidently said “he has a good defense, but I’m not worried about that. I can easily break that defense.”

Pacquiao

Pacquiao received a glowing introduction from Top Rank promoter Bob Arum, who praised the courage and compassion of the Filipinos as exemplified by Pacquiao. Arum was at his articulate best and added a touch of humor, when he leaned over

Painters, Bolts eye share of PBA lead TURN TO A15

to Mayweather and said “you missed me, right,” bringing a big grin as they shook hands. Pacquiao addressed the crowd, which included 700 accredited media men and women. “I just want the fans to be satisfied. I’m so happy we could make the fight happen. The fans of boxing were waiting for this for five years. We are both going to train hard and we will do our best on May 2 to make you happy,” Pacquiao said. “The most important thing is the Lord. I want to let people know that there is a God that can raise someone from nothing to something,” Pacquiao, reflecting his religiosity, emphasized, pointing to his

own rags-to-riches’ journey as an example. Mayweather Sr., the father and trainer of Floyd, was merely recognized, but not allowed to speak, indicating a desire by the American boxer’s camp not to risk letting the mutually respectful atmosphere to be eroded. “I love challenges. This is the biggest challenge of my life. It’s finally here. It’s finally in front of me. I’ve been looking forward to this for a long, long time. I’m going to get my fighter as ready as possible. We are in the toughest fight of our life. We are fighting the best fighter in the world. We are going to kick his ass. Sorry, Floyd,” celebrated trainer Freddie Roach said.

LOTTO RESULTS

6/49 00-00-00-00-00-00 P0.0 M+ 6/42 00-00-00-00-00-00 P0.0 M+ 6 DIGITS 00-00-00-00-00-00 3 DIGITS 00-00-00 2 EZ2 00-00

CYAN MAGENTA YELLOW BLACK

FRIDAY: MARCH 13, 2015

RAY S. EÑANO EDITOR

RODERICK T. DELA CRUZ ASSISTANT EDITOR

business@thestandard.com.ph extrastory2000@gmail.com

BUSINESS

Underspending cut 2014 deficit to P73b By Jennifer Ambanta

THE government said the budget deficit dropped 55 percent in 2014 to P73.1 billion from P164 billion in 2013, as public spending fell 13 percent short of the target for the year. Data from the Finance Department showed the 2014 fiscal deficit represented 0.6 percent of the gross domestic product, lower than the 2-percent goal and the actual 1.4-percent ratio recorded in 2013. “The smaller deficit is due to serious government underspending,” former Budget Secretary Benjamin Diokno said. The budget deficit in December amounted to P46.3 billion, after the government posted a twomonth surplus in October and November.

Revenue collection in 2014 grew 11 percent to P1.908 trillion, but fell 11 percent short of the target for the year. Expenditures rose 5 percent to P1.98 trillion, but also missed the program by 13 percent. “The country’s tax to GDP ratio further improved to 13.6 percent, up by 0.3 percent from 2013,” Finance Secretary Cesar Purisima said. “I am pleased to say that the Philippines continues to stand on firm fiscal footing as we grow at a

sustainable pace, owing to the reforms that we have put in place,” Purisima said. The department said netting out interest payments from expenditures, the government achieved a P248.1-billion primary surplus in 2014, exceeding the target of P86.4 billion and better than the P159.4-billion primary surplus in 2013. Debt interest payments reached P321.2 billion in 2014, slightly less than the P323.4 billion paid in 2014. Economists said the lower budget deficit in 2014 was due to underspending of the government, as a result of issues surrounding the Disbursement Acceleration Program and the Priority Development Assistance Fund. Diokno also said the deficit could have been trimmed further,

if the Bureau of Internal Revenue and Bureau of Customs were able to meet their targets. “The deficit could have been much smaller as a percentage of GDP had the BIR and the BOC collected what they were programmed to collect,” Diokno said. Both the BIR and BOC failed to meet the targets set by the Development Budget Coordination Committee, which stood at P1.456 trillion and P408.1 billion, respectively. BIR collected P1.335 trillion in 2014 while the Bureau of Customs collected P369.3 billion. University of the Philippines economics professor Ernesto Pernia said the failure to maximize the allowable deficit was due to lower expenditures on the part of the government due to the freezing effect of DAP and PDAF.

PSe comPoSite index Closing March 11, 2015

8000 7500 6840 7500 6180

7000

5520

6500

4860

6000 4200 3860 5500

7,839.82 49.12

PeSo-dollar rate

Closing MARCH 11, 2015 45

P44.250

43 42 41

HIGH P44.230 LOW P44.330 AVERAGE P44.271 VOLUME 705.300M

P508.00-P728.00 LPG/11-kg tank P37.95-P43.30 Unleaded Gasoline P27.50-P30.80 Diesel

oPriceS il P today

P36.75-P43.42 Kerosene P23.70-P24.40 Auto LPG Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas Thursday, March 11, 2015

F oreign e xchange r ate

PAL contract.

Philippine Airlines awarded a two-year base maintenance services for its Airbus fleet to Lufthansa Technik Philippines Inc. LTP will handle all heavy maintenance visits for the A320s, A321s, A330s and A340s of PAL for calendar years 2015 and 2016. LTP is also the line maintenance service provider for PAL’s Boeing and Airbus aircraft. Signing the PAL-LTP agreement in Pasay City are (from left) PAL president and chief operating officer Jaime Bautista, PAL chairman and chief executive Lucio Tan, LTP president and chief executive Burkhard Andrich and LTP senior vice president and chief financial officer Edison Que.

Currency

Unit

US Dollar Peso

United States

Dollar

1.000000

44.3420

Japan

Yen

0.008238

0.3653

Pound

1.493500

66.2248

Hong Kong

Dollar

0.128813

5.7118

Switzerland

Franc

0.991867

43.9814

Canada

Dollar

0.785484

34.8299

Singapore

Dollar

0.720305

31.9398

Australia

Dollar

0.758208

33.6205

Bahrain

Dinar

2.652520

117.6180

Saudi Arabia

Rial

0.266645

11.8236

Brunei

Dollar

0.717721

31.8252

Indonesia

Rupiah

0.000076

0.0034

Thailand

Baht

0.030395

1.3478

UAE

Dirham

0.272257

12.0724

Euro

1.055400

46.7985

Korea

Won

0.000884

0.0392

China

Yuan

0.159686

7.0808

India

Rupee

0.015934

0.7065

Malaysia

Ringgit

0.270490

11.9941

New Zealand

Dollar

0.722178

32.0228

Taiwan

Dollar

0.031539

1.3985 Source: PDS Bridge

January jobless rate fell to 6.6% as 1m Filipinos found jobs UNEMPLOYMENT rate eased to 6.6 percent in January this year from 7.5 percent a year ago, as more than 1 million Filipinos found jobs over the past year, the Philippine Statistics Authority said Thursday. The National Economic and Development Authority said the results of the latest labor force

survey showed the labor market was improving, fueling hopes the incomes of poor families would also increase. “The reduction in unemployment rate was indeed buoyed by economic growth last year, which also saw positive growth in the services sector,” said De La Salle University

GSIS to invest more in stocks

CYAN MAGENTA YELLOW BLACK

professor Angelo Taningco. The gross domestic product grew 6.1 percent in 2014. Data showed employment grew 2.8 percent to 37.5 million in January from 36.4 million in the same month last year. “This means an additional 1.04 million Filipinos were employed from January 2014 to January 2015,

almost four times the 281,000 jobs generated in the previous year,” Neda said. “The labor market got a boost from a stronger growth in all sectors mainly driven by services which grew by 3.9 percent, contributing a 766,000 net employment gain in January 2015,” said Economic Planning

February car sales rose 22%

Secretary and Neda directorgeneral Arsenio Balisacan. The employment data in January excluded Region 8 due to the devastation brought by typhoon Yolanda, which made it impossible to conduct the survey and gather data in the Eastern Visayas region. Unemployment improved from 7.5 percent in January 2014, but was higher than 6 percent registered in October. The number of jobless Filipinos reached 2.6 million in January, lower than 2.97 million unemployed individuals in January 2014. However, it was up from 2.5 million in October. Jennifer G. Ambanta

FRIDAY: MARCH 13, 2015

BUSINESS business@thestandard.com.ph extrastory2000@gmail.com

MST BuSineSS Daily STockS Review Thursday, March 12, 2015

52 Weeks

High Low

STOCKS

2.7 75.3 99.4 105.2 63 2.3 4.2 15.98 19.6 31.6 22.5 2.95 1.01 92.9 1.65 30.5 99 140 392 59 146.8 1700 130 2.8

AG Finance Asia United Bank Banco de Oro Unibank Inc. Bank of PI China Bank BDO Leasing & Fin. INc. Bright Kindle Resources Citystate Savings COL Financial Eastwest Bank Filipino Fund Inc. I-Remit Inc. MEDCO Holdings Metrobank Natl. Reinsurance Corp. PB Bank Phil. National Bank Phil. Savings Bank PSE Inc. RCBC `A’ Security Bank Sun Life Financial Union Bank Vantage Equities

42.6 6.1 1.66 2.3 17.98 17.2 15.8 56.8 4.57 39.5 14 12.98 8.15 12.34 17 27.1 90.5 27 0.014 15.74 9.4 199.8 10.98 5.2 30 90 14.7 317 5.37 14.48 7.5 14.5 7.03

1.55 63.5 67.5 82.5 50 1.9 1.1 8.58 14.5 23.2 6.84 1.75 0.175 69.35 1.2 20.45 76 119 276 41.5 105.1 1281 116 2.25

Close 6 69.5 113.90 99.30 47.05 2.25 2.47 10.5 16.6 25.05 8.20 1.79 0.520 93.85 1.01 18.46 82.00 95.20 354.8 46.15 165.8 1350.00 69.50 3.08

Low

FINANCIAL 6.05 5.85 70 68.5 114.10 113.70 101.10 99.30 47 46.8 2.29 2.25 2.48 2.40 10.04 10 16.6 16.5 25.35 24.8 8.22 8.13 1.79 1.79 0.530 0.520 94.35 93.85 1.06 0.98 18.46 18.36 83.20 81.50 95.30 95.30 356 352 46.3 46.1 167 164 1340.00 1335.00 70.00 69.50 3.1 3.08 INDUSTRIAL 45.75 45.4 1.72 1.72 1.11 1.09 2.11 2.05 8.29 8.17 18.9 18.78 22 21.6 60 57.1 1.86 1.79 11.36 10.72 20.450 19.86 11.70 11.12 8.48 8.32 9.99 9.60 18.8 18 30.05 28.95 104.5 101.3 14.10 14.08 0.4850 0.4650 14.76 14.76 6.7 6.63 214.80 213.40 10.14 10.04 2.52 2.52 27.2 26.9 28.5 27.7 8.110 8.030 276.20 275.00 4.55 4.5 10.64 10.42 5.82 5.4 12.30 11.90 4.01 3.95 2.95 2.89 5.92 5.88 205.8 205 1.75 1.72 0.197 0.186 1.53 1.52 2.27 2.25 217 212 4.68 4.5 0.75 0.72 1.55 1.52 HOLDING FIRMS 0.480 0.480 58.80 57.80 25.90 25.00 7.25 7.12 1.60 1.52 2.73 2.61 2.9 2.9 758 741 9.36 9.12 15.50 15.34 4.79 4.70 0.435 0.405 1309 1260 6.40 6.40 66.50 65.05 9.19 8.88 0.7 0.68 16.14 16 0.64 0.61 4.89 4.81 5.28 5.28 0.0400 0.0400 0.710 0.710 75.00 74.00 2.80 2.80 915.00 905.50 1.33 1.22 105.50 105.00 0.6200 0.5800 0.2700 0.2650 PROPERTY 10.300 9.940 10.28 10.28 1.04 1.03 1.410 1.340 38.75 37.55 4.43 4.36 5.1 5.06 0.98 0.94 1.01 1.00

Net Foreign

Change Volume

Trade/Buying

6.05 70 114.00 100.50 47 2.29 2.40 10 16.6 24.8 8.22 1.79 0.520 94.15 0.98 18.46 81.64 95.30 352 46.15 166 1335.00 70.00 3.08

0.83 0.72 0.09 1.21 -0.11 1.78 -2.83 -4.76 0.00 -1.00 0.24 0.00 0.00 0.32 -2.97 0.00 -0.44 0.11 -0.79 0.00 0.12 -1.11 0.72 0.00

138,000 63,380 3,336,070 1,450,980 37,800 38,000 176,000 1,300 464,700 526,500 24,100 1,000 993,000 8,867,880 303,000 104,000 66,850 2,000 4,930 76,400 739,020 210 106,760 657,000

45.5 1.72 1.09 2.1 8.2 18.8 22 58.7 1.8 11.28 20.150 11.50 8.44 9.77 18.4 29.5 103.5 14.08 0.4800 14.76 6.7 214.80 10.12 2.52 27.15 28.15 8.050 275.20 4.55 10.50 5.4 12.04 3.96 2.90 5.90 205 1.72 0.194 1.53 2.27 217 4.68 0.74 1.54

0.22 2.99 -0.91 1.45 -1.20 0.00 -0.23 -2.09 0.00 -0.53 0.75 3.42 1.44 -1.11 2.22 -1.17 2.37 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.45 0.37 0.80 -4.91 1.69 1.81 0.25 0.07 -0.44 0.77 -6.09 1.18 0.25 0.00 -0.34 -0.39 1.18 4.86 0.00 0.00 0.93 4.00 1.37 0.65

3,859,500 6,000 549,000 6,703,000 400 18,900 442,700 37,910 101,000 1,179,900 3,341,600 17,162,400 45,312,400 1,212,500 41,800 6,444,700 705,740 2,100 170,000 700 162,800 337,710 418,200 3,000 2,375,300 758,700 169,800 195,090 70,000 2,485,800 53,700 410,900 203,000 3,189,000 596,700 850 14,000 16,970,000 3,000 1,561,000 1,398,440 11,000 382,110 1,327,000

0.480 58.30 25.90 7.18 1.60 2.73 2.9 754 9.22 15.36 4.79 0.410 1305 6.40 65.95 9.18 0.68 16.1 0.64 4.84 5.28 0.0400 0.710 74.50 2.80 915.00 1.28 105.50 0.5900 0.2650

2.13 -0.51 2.78 1.84 3.23 0.00 7.01 1.21 0.88 -0.26 1.48 -2.38 3.57 0.00 1.46 3.38 -1.45 0.50 6.67 -0.82 0.19 0.00 0.00 0.61 -1.75 0.72 6.67 0.38 0.00 0.00

40,000 1,088,080 22,566,900 38,700 46,000 13,000 38,000 845,880 2,392,700 3,867,000 26,000 11,750,000 7,800 11,200 1,361,370 5,162,200 206,530 1,813,600 1,736,000 26,177,000 10,000 500,000 10,000 75,130 3 85,890 156,000 1,900 6,629,420 1,600,000

9.950 10.28 1.03 1.340 38.60 4.39 5.1 0.97 1.00

-3.40 2.80 -0.96 3.08 2.25 -0.23 1.59 3.19 0.00

578,800 1,000 215,000 370,000 11,422,400 712,000 35,100 8,782,000 152,000

2,126,325.00 40,843,385.00 43,569,173.00 -9,360.00 -24,800.00 7,322,700.00 -10,649,755.00 822

52 Weeks

High Low

STOCKS

0.201 0.98 1.09 0.370 2.25 1.77 1.6 4.88 0.180 4.45 24.8 2.06 3.6 19.62 1.02 6.66 1.96 6.5

0.068 0.47 0.87 0.175 1.22 1.18 1.19 2.75 0.070 2.5 18.72 1.45 2.9 14.1 0.58 3.05 0.87 4.37

Crown Equities Inc. Cyber Bay Corp. Empire East Land Ever Gotesco Global-Estate Filinvest Land,Inc. Interport `A’ Megaworld Corp. MRC Allied Ind. Primex Corp. Robinson’s Land `B’ Rockwell Shang Properties Inc. SM Prime Holdings Sta. Lucia Land Inc. Starmalls Suntrust Home Dev. Inc. Vista Land & Lifescapes

3.25 43.7 1.09 12.46 14 0.1640 4.05 71 12.3 3.28 9 1700 2008 9.04 2.02 118.9 12.5 0.0653 2.2800 6.99 9.67 2.85 2.2 4.32 1.97 2.45 14.46 0.62 1.040 22.8 6.6 2.85 107 11.3 3486 0.710 2.01 48.5 74

1.55 27 0.59 10 8.28 0.0960 2.97 44.8 10.14 1.99 4 1080 1580 7.12 1.2 94.4 8.72 0.026 1.560 1.95 5.82 1.15 1.1 1.9 0.485 1.42 10.14 0.35 0.36 14.54 5.2 1.85 81 4.39 2572 0.250 0.26 32.2 48

0.87 11.46

0.59 7.78

2GO Group’ ABS-CBN APC Group, Inc. Asian Terminals Inc. Bloomberry Boulevard Holdings Calata Corp. Cebu Air Inc. (5J) Centro Esc. Univ. Discovery World DFNN Inc. FEUI Globe Telecom GMA Network Inc. Harbor Star I.C.T.S.I. IPeople Inc. `A’ Island Info ISM Communications Jackstones Leisure & Resorts Liberty Telecom Lorenzo Shipping Macroasia Corp. Manila Bulletin Manila Jockey Melco Crown MG Holdings NOW Corp. Pacific Online Sys. Corp. PAL Holdings Inc. Paxys Inc. Phil. Seven Corp. Philweb.Com Inc. PLDT Common PremiereHorizon Premium Leisure Puregold Robinsons RTL SSI Group STI Holdings Travellers

0.0086 5.45 17.24 12.7 1.2 1.73 10.98

0.0028 1.72 11.48 6 0.5 0.76 4.93

0.46 0.455 0.730 0.024 0.026 8.2 48.85 3.35 1.030 3.06 0.021 0.023 12.88 10.42 0.042 420 9 0.016

0.385 0.3000 0.2950 0.012 0.014 1.960 14.22 1.47 0.220 1.24 0.016 0.017 7.8 6.5 0.031 123 4.3 0.0087

High

Low

0.157 0.470 0.900 0.234 1.61 1.76 1.46 5.56 0.129 7.21 27.45 1.75 3.20 19.30 0.97 7.29 1.030 7.500

Net Foreign

Change Volume

Trade/Buying

0.160 0.154 0.154 0.480 0.475 0.480 0.910 0.900 0.900 0.228 0.228 0.228 1.63 1.59 1.59 1.85 1.77 1.83 1.53 1.42 1.51 5.65 5.46 5.63 0.131 0.125 0.125 7.35 7.21 7.3 28.95 27.45 28.50 1.77 1.75 1.76 3.20 3.20 3.20 19.90 19.44 19.60 1 0.96 0.97 7.3 7.12 7.15 1.050 1.020 1.050 7.500 7.390 7.500 SERVICES 8.43 9.24 8.3 9.15 64.4 64.95 64 64 0.690 0.690 0.680 0.680 12.88 13.12 12.94 13.12 10.44 10.62 10.50 10.50 0.1100 0.1120 0.1090 0.1090 4.14 4.21 3.98 4.1 86 88 87.5 87.8 10.94 10.94 10.94 10.94 1.8 1.68 1.67 1.68 6.39 6.48 6.44 6.48 1020 1020 1015 1015 1939 1945 1925 1939 6.85 7.10 6.85 7.00 1.58 1.62 1.58 1.61 113.2 113.5 112.8 113.5 11.14 11.96 11.8 11.9 0.305 0.315 0.305 0.305 1.3500 1.3600 1.3200 1.3300 2.73 2.73 2.72 2.72 9.15 9.19 9.12 9.14 2.00 1.95 1.95 1.95 1.69 1.69 1.45 1.5 2.20 2.29 2.25 2.29 0.700 0.710 0.690 0.710 1.95 1.95 1.95 1.95 10.64 10.66 10.24 10.26 0.365 0.375 0.360 0.375 0.510 0.520 0.520 0.520 18 18.4 18 18 4.45 4.60 4.45 4.60 3.5 3.31 3.31 3.31 100.50 105.00 101.00 103.00 13.80 13.80 13.76 13.80 3092.00 3008.00 2990.00 3002.00 0.590 0.590 0.580 0.590 1.580 1.640 1.580 1.590 41.20 41.50 40.90 41.00 86.70 88.50 86.50 88.00 10.62 10.86 10.60 10.68 0.73 0.73 0.71 0.73 7.4 7.44 7.32 7.32 MINING & OIL 0.0062 0.0062 0.0060 0.0061 2.90 2.89 2.85 2.85 9.70 9.60 9.51 9.51 7.4000 7.0300 7.01 7.0100 1.09 1.13 1.09 1.12 0.94 0.96 0.93 0.94 7.68 7.98 7.60 7.80 2.62 2.65 2.53 2.55 0.350 0.350 0.340 0.350 0.249 0.250 0.245 0.245 0.250 0.255 0.250 0.255 0.0150 0.0150 0.0140 0.0140 0.0150 0.0160 0.0160 0.0160 5.68 5.75 5.67 5.68 27.9 28.25 27.6 27.75 3.35 3.47 3.36 3.4 0.7300 0.7400 0.7300 0.7300 2.300 2.330 2.260 2.260 0.0130 0.0140 0.0130 0.0140 0.0140 0.0150 0.0150 0.0150 7.93 8 7.88 7.88 3.12 3.39 3.06 3.06 0.016 0.016 0.015 0.016 159.80 163.60 158.40 160.00 4.25 4.4 4.21 4.39 0.0110 0.0110 0.0110 0.0110 PREFERRED 65 65.9 63 63.95 510 510 510 510 519.5 519.5 519.5 519.5 510 510 509 509 6.72 7.08 6.79 6.79 1.08 1.09 1.09 1.09 107.5 108.5 107.8 108.5 1031 1050 1050 1050 1065 1075 1070 1075 1015 1044 1011 1020 76.7 76.7 76.05 76.05 81 81.6 81.15 81.6 82.2 83.5 82.6 83.5 WARRANTS & BONDS 4.020 4.090 4.010 4.010 SME 7.8 7.78 7.68 7.7 3.6 3.63 3.63 3.63 69 69.9 60.3 60.3 11.12 11.34 11.1 11.32 EXCHANGE TRADED FUNDS 126.1 127 126.3 127

-1.91 2.13 0.00 -2.56 -1.24 3.98 3.42 1.26 -3.10 1.25 3.83 0.57 0.00 1.55 0.00 -1.92 1.94 0.00

20,590,000 530,000 1,023,000 20,000 3,183,000 50,974,000 1,372,000 49,454,200 2,640,000 1,122,700 2,815,900 220,000 62,000 13,307,800 4,099,000 16,669,500 90,000 10,320,500

7,850.00

8.54 -0.62 -1.45 1.86 0.57 -0.91 -0.97 2.09 0.00 -6.67 1.41 -0.49 0.00 2.19 1.90 0.27 6.82 0.00 -1.48 -0.37 -0.11 -2.50 -11.24 4.09 1.43 0.00 -3.57 2.74 1.96 0.00 3.37 -5.43 2.49 0.00 -2.91 0.00 0.63 -0.49 1.50 0.56 0.00 -1.08

3,369,300 12,340 180,000 100,100 4,743,300 14,210,000 877,000 37,283,577 600 13,000 13,300 205 50,610 833,500 156,000 452,450 162,700 27,950,000 445,000 44,000 126,200 6,000 924,000 18,000 11,000 50,000 51,775,712 150,000 4,000 16,100 12,000 5,000 13,360 144,000 119,045 275,000 5,712,000 5,667,500 3,170,650 3,143,200 3,198,000 707,900

-1.61 -1.72 -1.96 -5.27 2.75 0.00 1.56 -2.67 0.00 -1.61 2.00 -6.67 6.67 0.00 -0.54 1.49 0.00 -1.74 7.69 7.14 -0.63 -1.92 0.00 0.13 3.29 0.00

447,000,000 420,000 155,400 3,500 585,000 909,000 31,100 232,427,000 400,000 23,710,000 2,090,000 3,900,000 100,000 423,400 2,999,100 4,296,000 128,000 658,000 2,800,000 300,000 1,424,900 954,000 8,000,000 937,110 201,000 4,000,000

-1.62 0.00 0.00 -0.20 1.04 0.93 0.93 1.84 0.94 0.49 -0.85 0.74 1.58

251,100 1,410 60 8,465,900 447,200 1,000,000 44,800 930 4,920 27,515 61,100 207,152 413,710

-3,800,560.00 -4,752,190.00 18,589,569.00 22,684,815.00 -94,750.00 24,315,794.00 32,840.00 3,176,222.00

MST Aboitiz Power Corp. Agrinurture Inc. Alliance Tuna Intl Inc. Alsons Cons. Asiabest Group Century Food Cirtek Holdings (Chips) Concepcion Da Vinci Capital Del Monte DNL Industries Inc. Emperador Energy Devt. Corp. (EDC) EEI Federal Res. Inv. Group First Gen Corp. First Holdings ‘A’ Ginebra San Miguel Inc. Greenergy Holcim Philippines Inc. Integ. Micro-Electronics Jollibee Foods Corp. Lafarge Rep LMG Chemicals Manila Water Co. Inc. Maxs Group Megawide Mla. Elect. Co `A’ Pepsi-Cola Products Phil. Petron Corporation Phil H2O Phinma Corporation Phoenix Petroleum Phils. Phoenix Semiconductor 4.88 RFM Corporation 210 San Miguel’Pure Foods `B’ 1.7 Splash Corporation 0.102 Swift Foods, Inc. 1.6 TKC Steel Corp. 1.37 Trans-Asia Oil 111.3 Universal Robina 1.58 Victorias Milling 0.550 Vitarich Corp. 1.33 Vulcan Ind’l.

45.4 1.67 1.1 2.07 8.3 18.8 22.05 59.95 1.8 11.34 20.000 11.12 8.32 9.88 18 29.85 101.1 14.08 0.4800 14.76 6.67 214.00 10.04 2.65 26.7 27.65 8.030 275.00 4.57 10.42 5.75 11.90 3.95 2.90 5.92 205.8 1.7 0.185 1.53 2.27 215 4.5 0.73 1.53

0.7 61.6 31.85 7.39 2.7 3.29 2.05 747 11.34 84 5.34 0.23 1060 7.1 59.8 6.55 0.9 19.9 0.75 5.4 5.35 0.0550 0.84 88 3.5 866 2.2 156 0.285 0.245

0.46 45.75 21.95 6.3 1.550 1.8 1.04 508 7.470 47.25 4 0.144 706 5.3 36.7 3.95 0.58 12.96 0.580 4.06 4.5 0.027 0.355 54.5 1.5 680 1.04 58.05 0.158 0.150

Abacus Cons. À’ Aboitiz Equity Alliance Global Inc. Anscor À’ Asia Amalgamated A ATN Holdings A ATN Holdings B Ayala Corp À’ Cosco Capital DMCI Holdings Filinvest Dev. Corp. Forum Pacific GT Capital House of Inv. JG Summit Holdings Lopez Holdings Corp. Lodestar Invt. Holdg.Corp. LT Group Mabuhay Holdings À’ Metro Pacific Inv. Corp. Minerales Industrias Corp. Pacifica À’ Prime Orion San Miguel Corp À’ Seafront À’ SM Investments Inc. Solid Group Inc. Top Frontier Unioil Res. & Hldgs Wellex Industries

0.470 58.60 25.20 7.05 1.55 2.73 2.71 745 9.14 15.40 4.72 0.420 1260 6.40 65.00 8.88 0.69 16.02 0.6 4.88 5.27 0.0400 0.710 74.05 2.85 908.50 1.20 105.10 0.5900 0.2650

9.03 26.95 1.99 2.07 35.3 6.15 6.1 2 1.5

5.51 12 0.99 1 23.7 4.41 5 1.22 0.97

8990 HLDG 10.300 Anchor Land Holdings Inc. 10.00 A. Brown Co., Inc. 1.04 Araneta Prop À’ 1.300 Ayala Land `B’ 37.75 Belle Corp. À’ 4.4 Cebu Holdings 5.02 Century Property 0.94 Cityland Dev. À’ 1.00

6.68 275 2.25 0.191 2.5 2.68 188.6 5.5 1.3 2.17

High

31.75 2.51 0.88 1.25 9.58 14.6 9.82 21.5 0.82 17.3 5.98 9.05 4.25 8.68 8.61 12.2 48.9 16 0.0097 12.8 2.05 150.8 8.55 2.8 20.35 12 10.1 246 4 11.56 5 9.94 4.33

Trading Summary FINANCIAL INDUSTRIAL HOLDING FIRMS PROPERTY SERVICES MINING & OIL GRAND TOTAL

SHARES 18,179,250 134,624,971 93,545,081 220,223,783 86,355,217 738,866,880 1,293,626,601

253,940,247.00

25,704.00 129,713.00

-308,022.00 -2,693,720.00 54,086,111.00 280,950.00 7,069,540.00 -52,700.00

-10,074,320.00

-6,660.00 519,560.00

-330,000.00 268,892.00

-8,719,372.00 -13,338,829.00 31,354,768.00 -7,503,991.00 -6,893,097.00

-13,885,270.00 -26,009,984.00 -15,508.00

-17,953,956.00 -1,224,562.00

33,429,530.00 -1,277,650.00 -55,959.00 -17,521,526.00 -3,117,210.00 47,920.00 58,750.00 29,200.00 178,361.00 600.00

22,500.00 -105,997,996.00 45,000.00

-6,141,348.50 297,411,950.00

170,027,855.00 6,799,588.00 -19,529,156.00 -125,000.00 78,739,945.00

6,753,841.00 19,515,191.00

-1,230,694.00 278,880.00 -25,939,210.00

1,883,706.50 84,000.00 16,744,440.00

-52,542.00

-1,103,080.00 0.00 132,600,895.00 1,907,070.00

44.1

26.3

60 511 9.04 9.67

30 480 6.76 5.82

77.3 78.95 81.85

74.2 74.5 75

Abra Mining Apex À’ Atlas Cons. À’ Benguet Corp `B’ Century Peak Metals Hldgs Coal Asia Dizon Ferronickel Geograce Res. Phil. Inc. Lepanto À’ Lepanto `B’ Manila Mining À’ Manila Mining `B’ Marcventures Hldgs., Inc. Nickelasia Nihao Mineral Resources Omico Oriental Peninsula Res. Oriental Pet. À’ Oriental Pet. `B’ Philex À’ PhilexPetroleum Philodrill Corp. À’ Semirara Corp. TA Petroleum United Paragon ABS-CBN Holdings Corp. Ayala Corp. Pref `B1’ Ayala Corp. Pref ‘B2’ GLOBE PREF P GMA Holdings Inc. Leisure and Resort MWIDE PREF PCOR-Preferred A PCOR-Preferred B PF Pref 2 SMC Preferred A SMC Preferred B SMC Preferred C

2.42

0.0010 LR Warrant

10.96 15 35

2.4 3.5 7.74

Double Dragon Makati Fin. Corp. IRipple E-Business Intl Xurpas

119.6

First Metro ETF

2,341,680.00

T op g ainerS VALUE 1,534,998.286 1,944,501,674.8712 2,115,662,588.64 1,587,615,831.10 1,318,254,243.26 880,507,923.706 9,402,910,599.3012

STOCKS

FINANCIAL 1,800.83 (up) 6.87 INDUSTRIAL 12,735.58 (up) 93.79 HOLDING FIRMS 6,952.50 (up) 71.57 PROPERTY 3,166.72 (up) 61.60 SERVICES 2,182.15 (down) 28.44 MINING & OIL 16,090.47 (down) 35.83 PSEI 7,839.82 (up) 49.12 All Shares Index 4,550.54 (up) 26.92 Gainers: 105; Losers: 67; Unchanged: 40; Total: 212

-0.25

210,000

-1.28 0.83 -12.61 1.80

779,400 3,000 3,330 1,016,300

0.71

29,330

-11,292,269.00

-300,560.00

703,300.00 5,931,786.00 -438,790.00

14,629,910.00

17,318,989.00 4,950.00

889,013.00

-58,500.00 1,993,418.00

1,162,510.00 -63,489,800.00

-2,430,020.00 -213,853,750.00 -33,788,053.50 -10,521,378.00 -1,460,000.00 -337,472.00

-1,201,210.00 -393,915.00 40.00

70,019.00 8,342,000.00 -2,500.00

-49,324,475.00 540,800.00

8,690.00 18,900.00 -3,200.00 -69,959,733.00

-16,042,763.00

-622,915.00 -171,130.00

4,303,655.00 -1,445,506.00

84,700.00 4,268,678.00

T op L oSerS Close (P)

Change (%)

STOCKS

Close (P)

Change (%)

2GO Group'

9.15

8.54

IRipple E-Business Intl

60.3

-12.61

Oriental Pet. `A'

0.0140

7.69

Lorenzo Shipping

1.5

-11.24

Oriental Pet. `B'

0.0150

7.14

Discovery World

1.68

-6.67

ATN Holdings B

2.9

7.01

Manila Mining `A'

0.0140

-6.67

IPeople Inc. `A'

11.9

6.82

Phil H2O

5.4

-6.09

Manila Mining `B'

0.0160

6.67

Paxys Inc.

3.31

-5.43

Mabuhay Holdings `A'

0.64

6.67

Benguet Corp `B'

7.0100

-5.27

Solid Group Inc.

1.28

6.67

LMG Chemicals

2.52

-4.91

Swift Foods, Inc.

0.194

4.86

Citystate Savings

-4.76

Macroasia Corp.

2.29

4.09

Melco Crown

10.26

-3.57

FRIDAY: MARCH 13, 2015

BUSINESS business@thestandard.com.ph extrastory2000@gmail.com

Why? GREEN, yellow, blue, tan. The stretch of road MAYA BALTAZAR between the LaguindHERRERA ingan airport and Iligan follows the line of the coast. It is relatively unspoiled land. The green blue of the ocean is never very far away. In places, the road turns into bridges, straddling streams and rivers, a reminder that Iligan is a place of waterfalls. It is a place of meetings, hills on one side and coastlines on the other. The one hour road trip between airport and city is a time for pondering. Rhythms This week, I am in Iligan to visit a plant. The plant lies in Kiwalan cove, near the small port where ships dock to deliver raw material and to pick up finished goods. Across the road and up the hill are the staff quarters. It is an unassuming white structure, with a wooden sign saying “Guest House 1.” Inside, guests are greeted by the warm smiles of those who attend to the house and those who stay in it. They ask for your name and motion you to the general direction of your room. It is a small house, four rooms. Everyone who comes in writes their name in a little logbook, with the date of arrival and the expected date of departure. My companion takes care of this. I go check doors and find the door with my name on it. There are three other names on the door. I open the door and there are three beds. One bed clearly has an occupant, the other two seem vacant. I claim one by putting my bag on it. I go outside and briefly wonder how four people will sleep in a room with three beds. I figure there is some sort of system and stop worrying. Worrying is a thing of concrete buildings, busy roads and traffic. I left my worry behind in the city. Here on the outskirts of Iligan, worrying about beds seems out of place. I figure it will get sorted out. There is a roof and there is water. That seems all I really need for the moment. We go down to the plant and attend to work. At the end of the day, we go back to the staff house. In the open area, there are many faces. Some people are chatting, some working on their laptops. It has the easy rhythm of people used to being with other people. There are greetings and questions about whether you have eaten. In the bedroom, the third bed now also has a bag. It is a curious thing to share a room and a bathroom with people you have never met before; to sit down to a meal around a table and get absorbed into a conversation with strangers and yet not be treated like one. There are no sharp, hard edges to these interactions. Even the awkward moments are somehow round and soft. Like me, the guests in the house come from far Manila, but the culture they have is from the islands. The conversation is punctuated by Bisaya, the language most spoken in the company after English. It is the language of the company’s roots. They have an easy rhythm about them. When I step out to gaze at the waters of the cove, I wonder how much of the peace is the place and how much is the rhythms of the people. Ease On the way back to the airport, I watch the coastline. Here at the water’s edge, you can see where water meets earth, where sky meets water. You can watch the white froth of the waves churn up into the air before breaking on the shore. It is possible to look at these edges and think boundaries, think separations. But these edges are really places where things meet. They are interfaces, places of meetings and interactions. I remember the conversation I had with my company contact. I had commented on the pictures of their managers on the wall. The picture of their CEO was clearly not a formal portrait. He had on a little toy crown. “Oh, I think that’s from the last Christmas party. It’s a good company to work for,” he said. “Our CEO really sets the tone. You know how, in other companies, even during parties, the managers are at a table by themselves and the rest of the employees are somewhere else? That’s not us.” I realized that the rhythms of that little guest house were also the rhythms in the meetings I had had and those rhythms began at the top. I know it is not an easy company though. It is not a place for laziness or mediocrity. The standards are high and people work hard. But there is an ease about the people who work there. I do not know all their stories. I only know one. He was recruited for something new. The company trained him and challenged him. When the company moved headquarters, he uprooted himself, a sign that he values his job and is willing to make sacrifices. Why As the road neared the airport, I remembered another friend from Iligan. She also has an ease in what she is doing. Her path is not easy but it is one she loves. There is a joy in the rhythms of her life. As the one hour ride to the airport nears its end, I remembered a question posed by my son. “Mom, why are you still working?” When I was young and fresh out of school, the answer to why do you work seemed clear. I worked to earn money. Work was how I made sure there were funds for the other things I valued. Sure, work was sometimes fulfilling and occasionally enjoyable but mostly it was for the salary. Over the years, I have had jobs that were exhilarating, moments when I was getting paid to do things I would probably be happy to do even without pay. My thoughts flashed back to my friend who works on her true passion and realized that there was the key. In class, I always say that, in dealing with people, managers have two essential paths. There is fear and there is love. There is always a bit of amusement about this and not a small amount of discussion and debate. I always end the class with an observation: Fear is fast, but love lasts. Work is the same, I suppose. We can work out of fear, fear that we will not have funds, fear that we will lose our place, fear that we will not be the sort of person other people expect us to be. It is so easy to respond to fear. Our brains are programmed to respond first to danger. But we can also work for love, work on what we believe in, work on what excites us. Not everyone is lucky enough to have a choice. But if you do, if you do have a choice, shouldn’t you choose to work on what you love?

IntegratIons

You can email Maya at integrations_manila@yahoo.com. Please like the Integrations Manila Facebook page or visit her archives at manilastandardtoday.com/author/maya-baltazar-herrera/ or integrations.tumblr. com or www.mayaherrera.aim.edu.

GSIS to invest more in stocks THE largest Philippine pension fund wants to increase the amount it can invest in stocks as returns from bonds shrink. The nation’s benchmark equities index gained. The Government Service Insurance System, which has about P860 billion ($19.4 billion) of investable funds, plans to ask its board to raise the cap on equities to 30 percent of assets from 20 percent, president Robert Vergara said in an interview Wednesday in Manila. Equities currently account for about 18.5 percent of the fund’s investments, he said. The benchmark Philippine Stock Exchange Index has risen 7.8 percent from end-2014 through Wednesday, the best performance among Asian equity gauges, on expectations falling oil prices will boost consumer spending and propel economic growth. Peso- denominated government bonds have returned less than 1 percent, versus 6.6 percent in 2014 and 17 percent in

2011, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. “Bonds right now are just digging a big hole for me,” Vergara said. “As we approach the 20 percent threshold, we want to ask for an increase in the weighting that we can have in equities.” The fund’s plan to boost stock holdings echoes that of regional peers. Japan’s public retirementsavings manager more than doubled its target allocation for equities in October, while Thailand’s biggest government pension fund said in January it’s seeking approval to reduce sovereign debt holdings. GSIS, as the Philippine fund for more than one million state workers is known, needs at least an 8.5-percent return on investments to meet its obligations to

members until 2048. Last year, its investments returned 8.9 percent and that may have lengthened the fund’s actuarial life to 2050, said Vergara, who is 54. Profit at the pension fund more than tripled to P139.9 billion last year from P44.3 billion in 2013, boosted by a shift to fairvalue accounting of its assets and returns from its local equity and fixed-income investments. At the end of 2014, about 48 percent of GSIS’s funds were in fixed income, 26 percent in loans to members, 17 percent in equities and about 4 percent in real estate, Vergara said. The balance was in cash. The Philippine Stock Exchange Index has advanced in each of the past six years, a record winning streak and the longest stretch of gains among 73 equity indexes worldwide. The gauge has rallied more than 310 percent since the end of 2008, outpacing the MSCI Asia Pacific Index’s gain of about 60 percent in the same period. Bloomberg

Airbus A330 delivery. Cebu Pacific, in cooperation with the Airbus Corporate Foundation and

Aviation Sans Frontières, transported 2.4 tons of donations, including clothing and medical supplies, onboard its newest Airbus A330 aircraft. The aircraft took off from Toulouse, France on March 10 and landed in Manila on March 11. The donations loaded in CEB’s new Airbus A330 include new clothes and shoes for children and babies, teddy bears, pens, and schoolbooks, as well as blankets and small medical supplies. These will be forwarded to communities affected by severe flooding and typhoons in the Philippines.

Shares rally; Alliance Global gains THE stock market rallied thursday, led by gains in Emperador Inc., the world’s biggest brandy maker, and GT Capital Holdings Inc., which owns shares in finance, energy and automotive companies. The Philippine Stock Exchange Index gained 49.12 points, or 0.6 percent, to 7,839.82 on a value turnover of P9.4 billion. Gainers swamped losers, 105, to 67, with 40 issues unchanged. Alliance Global Group Inc. of tycoon Andrew Tan climbed 2.8 percent, while unit Emperador advanced 3.4 percent to P11.50. Unit Megaworld Corp., the biggest lessor of office spaces, rose 2.4 percent to P5.63. Ayala Land Inc., a major property developer, increased 2.2 per-

cent to P38.60, while Eneregy Development Corp., the largest steam energy and win power producer, added 1.4 percent to P8.44. GT Capital of tycoon George Ty advanced 3.6 percent to P1,305. Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co., the biggest telelcommunications firm fell 2.9 percent to P3,002. The dollar, meanwhile, edged closer towards parity with the euro Thursday after the European Central Bank kicked off its stimulus program this week, while Asian equity markets recovered slightly from a recent sell-off. Sydney shares were given a lift by data showing Australia’s unemployment rate had eased slightly, while South Korea became the latest country to cut interest rates as

it struggles to fight off deflation. Tokyo rallied 1.43 percent, or 267.59 points, to 18,991.11, Sydney added 0.98 percent, or 56.97 points, to close at 5,850.17 and Shanghai rallied 1.78 percent, or 58.42 points, to 3,349.32, while Hong Kong advanced 0.34 percent, or 79.99 points, to 23,797.96. However, Seoul fell 0.52 percent, or 10.24 points, to close at 1,970.59. Traders brushed off more losses on Wall Street, where the three main indexes have given up all their 2015 gains on expectations the Federal Reserve will raise interest rates as early as the summer. The Dow fell 0.16 percent, the S&P 500 shed 0.19 percent and the Nasdaq eased 0.20 percent. With AFP, Bloomberg

FRIDAY: MARCH 13, 2015

BUSINESS business@thestandard.com.ph extrastory2000@gmail.com

K-Pop trouble in the offing? WE don’t want to burst the bubble of this young network talent who’s being touted as the first Pinoy artist to be trained under the K-Pop system, but it would seem that trouble is in the offing for one of his backers who we hear is about to be served a warrant of arrest for misappropriating the money of his business partners. Stoolies who claim to be in the know said a case of estafa had been filed against Alfredo delos Santos, who was identified in photo releases early this year as the CEO of JU Entertainment Music and Contents Inc. Buddies who are updated in the music scene say delos Santos, also nicknamed “Doc,” is also the big boss of All Access Production, the group that has been bringing those Korean pop artists to Manila for sell-out concerts. Informants say Doc started out in the business through Sound Qoncepts that he put up with his twin brother Alfonso (nicknamed “Ponga”), providing sound systems and equipment for concerts, theater shows and corporate events, before branching out into concert productions themselves. One of those concerts was the K-Pop Republic in September 2013 at the Araneta Coliseum featuring SHINee, Exo-K and Dal Shabet that sent Pinoy K-Popster wannabes screaming and jumping to high heavens. And this is where the trouble presumably began, because the money for organizing the concert reportedly came from an investor who was convinced to part with P15 million for the K-Pop concert. In the complaint filed before the Office of the City Prosecutor of Manila, Doc delos Santos entered into an agreement with the financier wherein profits would be equally divided after the capital/investment had been returned. In case the concert failed to make money, the losses would be equally borne by the partners. Like any businessman, the investor wanted to examine the profit and loss statement, but what do you know – Doc allegedly flatly refused and only relented after several demand letters coursed through lawyers, replying through his counsel that the September 2013 K-Pop Republic concert did not make money. In short, a financial loss, and that out of the P15-million investment, only P10 million remained. But instead of returning the money, the All Access exec allegedly appropriated it to pay for the talent fee of another Korean pop group Super Junior-M three days after the K-Pop Republic concert with SHInee etc. as performers. True enough, Super Junior came to manila in October 2013 – but the problem is that delos Santos reportedly refuses to return the money of the investor, first claiming that the September 2013 K-Pop Republic concert was a failure (a big fat lie, those in the know refute), and that the investor approved the use of the remaining P10 million as nonrefundable advance for the talent fee of Super Junior – a claim that the complaining investor also refutes. Worse, delos Santos allegedly told the investor to go after Araneta Coliseum to get back the P10 million! Stoolies claim that there are at least two people who were allegedly duped by Delos Santos to pony up P15 million each but were left holding an empty bag. The investor who filed the criminal case of estafa against Delos Santos has every intention to pursue the case, stoolies informed us, and that another complaint also of estafa is about to be filed against the concert producer. Meantime, we wonder how the network execs and the young talent will react when they hear about the standing warrant of arrest issued against Delos Santos. Hopefully, this development will not (K)pop the young man’s budding music career. For comments, reactions, photos, stories and related concerns, readers may email to happyhourtoday2012@yahoo.com. You may also visit and like our Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/happyhourmanilastandard. We’d be very happy to hear from you. Cheers!

Pure Foods in talks to acquire Asean firms By Jenniffer B. Austria SAN Miguel Pure Foods Co. Inc., the food manufacturing unit of conglomerate San Miguel Corp., is on the look out for acquisitions in Vietnam and Indonesia as a part of expansion in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations. “We are talking to several [companies], but can’t be disclosed because of confidentiality agreement. But we are focused on acquisition because that is one way to fast track the growth of San Miguel Pure Foods,” SMPFC president Francisco Alejo told reporters at the sidelines of the

listing ceremony for P15 billion worth of preferred shares. He said the company was looking at acquiring businesses engaged in processed meat, dairy production, feeds and poultry. The company is also interested in condiments and snacks food business, which would be good for its flour business, he said. Alejo said the company was now looking at Vietnam and Indonesia for possible investments in processed meat production. He said the company was hoping to close the acquisition deal in Vietnam within the year.

Pacquiao’s pick. World boxing champion Manny Pacquiao (second from left), in the midst of preparing

for his long-awaited fight with Floyd Mayweather, signed a new endorsement deal with EastWest Bank, a subsidiary of Gotianun-led Filinvest Development Corp. and one of the country’s fastest-growing banks. Signing the endorsement deal are (from left) Solar Entertainment chief executive Wilson Tieng, EastWest chief executive Antonio Moncupa Jr. and EastWest consumer lending head Jacqueline Fernandez.

February auto sales rose 22% By Othel V. Campos

VEHICLE sales jumped 22.6 percent in February from a year ago, amid the brisk demand for all product categories, two industry groups said Thursday.

The Chamber of Automotive Manufacturers of the Philippines Inc. and the Truck Manufacturers Association said in a joint report vehicle sales reached 20,663 units in February, up from 16,859 units sold a year ago. Sales in February also increased 11 percent month-onmonth from 18,662 vehicles sold in January this year. “There seems to be no letup in sales. With fewer calendar days for February, the industry is surprised to see sales reaching a level normally achieved during the peak month of December,” said Campi president Rommel Gutierrez. Campi said based on industry forecast, sales in 2015 might reach 310,000 units, higher by 15 percent than the 269,058 units sold in 2014. “If this trend continues, industry may again exceed its target for the year,” said Gutierrez. Data showed that total sales in the first two months increased 21 percent to 39,325 units from 32,506 units sold in the same period in 2014. Campi said all product categories enjoyed brisk sales. It said in the passenger car segment, consumers continued to take

advantage of the offers attached to models introduced since the fourth quarter of 2014 as sales grew 44.4 percent to 8,149 units from 5,644 units, year-on-year. Sales of commercial vehicles also rose 11.6 percent year-onyear to 12,514 units from 11,215 units in 2014. Among commercial vehicles, light trucks grew 22.6 percent from 349 units in February 2014 to 428

In BrIef Hot money nets $1b

FOREIGN portfolio investments, or “hot money,” posted a net inflow of $1.19 billion in February, a reversal of the $354-million net outflow recorded a year ago, after foreign investors returned to the country, data from the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas show. Gross inflows reached $2.549 billion in February, up from $1.497 billion a year ago while gross outflows dropped to $1.359 billion from $1.851 billion. The February figure was also higher than the $591-million net inflow recorded in January this year. “About 66.4 percent of investments registered in February were in PSE [Philippine Stock Exchange]-listed securities, mainly holdings firms, property companies, banks, food, beverage and tobacco companies, and utilities firms,” Bangko Sentral said. Singapore, the United Kingdom, the United States, Luxembourg and Hong Kong were the top five sources of foreign funds in February. Foreign portfolio investments are overseas funds that are temporarily invested in local stocks, government securities and money market. These are also called “hot money” because of the ease they are invested in and taken out of the local markets. Julito G. Rada

PSC earns P873m PHILIPPINE Seven Corp., the local franchise holder of convenience store chain 7-Eleven, said net income in 2014 increased 27.9 percent to P873.3 million from P682.6 million in 2013, on continued store expansion all over the country. PSC said in a disclosure to the stock exchange retail sales climbed 19.3 percent to P20.6 billion from P17.2 billion a year ago, as it increased its

units last month while category 4 trucks and buses increased jumped 22.2 percent from 126 units to 154 units, mostly due to higher demand for new public utility buses. Heavy duty trucks and buses or category 5 showed robust growth of 140 percent from 40 units in February 2014 to 96 units in February this year, on continued strong demand from the construction sector. stores by 27.1 percent. It said as of end-2014, it was operating 1,282 stores. It opened 273 stores and closed down 13 stores last year. PSC president and chief executive Jose Victor Paterno said the company took steps to protect and expand its leadership in light of increased competition. “This involves not only an increased pace of expansion in areas contested by competition, but strategic entry into new territories. The latter may be unprofitable for the first few years due to the high fixed costs of logistics, but we believe we will later be rewarded with strong first mover advantages,” he said. Jenniffer B. Austria

Aboitiz selling bonds CONGLOMERATE Aboitiz Equity Ventures Inc. plans to sell up to P20 billion worth of retail bonds, as it continues to explore investment opportunities in infrastructure and transport sector. AEV chief finance officer Stephen Paradies said the company planned to issue the bonds with possible tenors of 7 to 12 years by the second half of 2015. “We have already sounded off to banks our intention to raise retail bonds,” Paradies said. Paradies said company remained interested in various public-private partnership projects the government might bid out, including the P123-billion Laguna Lakeshore Expressway Dike project and the LRT 2 operation and maintenance project. AEV is part of a consortium composed of Ayala Land Inc., SM Prime Holdings Inc. and Megaworld Corp. For the LRT 2 project, AEV forged a 60-40 joint venture with Singapore-based SMRT International. The conglomerate is also studying other PPP projects including the bundled airport projects, particularly the Bacolod-Silay Airport (P20.26 billion) and Iloilo Airport (P30.40 billion) as Bundle 1 and the New Bohol (Panglao) Airport (P2.34 billion), Laguindingan Airport (P14.62 billion) and Davao Airport (P40.57 billion) as Bundle 2. Jenniffer B. Austria

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CesAR bARRIoquInto EDITOR

mst.daydesk@gmail.com

Cops shot in flash-point town Savants transmit energy wirelessly TOKYO—Japanese scientists have succeeded in transmitting energy wirelessly, in a key step that could one day make solar power generation in space a possibility, an official said Thursday. Researchers used microwaves to deliver 1.8 kilowatts of power— enough to run an electric kettle—through the air with pinpoint accuracy to a receiver 55 meters away. While the distance was not huge, the technology could pave the way for mankind to eventually tap the vast amount of solar energy available in space and use it here on Earth, a spokesman for The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency or JAXA said. “This was the first time anyone has managed to send a high output of nearly two kilowatts of electric power via microwaves to a

small target, using a delicate directivity control device,” he said. JAXA has been working on devising Space Solar Power Systems for years, the spokesman said. Solar power generation in space has many advantages over its Earth-based cousin, notably the permanent availability of energy, regardless of weather or time of day. While man-made satellites, such as the International Space Station, have long since been able to use the solar energy that washes over them from the sun, getting that power down to Earth where people can use it has been the thing of science fiction. But the Japanese research offers the possibility that humans will one day be able to farm an inexhaustible source of energy in space. AFP

world

Home from space. Expedition 42 Cosmonaut Elena Serova of the Russian Federal Space Agency rests in a chair outside the Soyuz TMA-14M spacecraft just minutes after she and Astronaut Barry Wilmore of NASA, and Alexander Samokutyaev of Roscosmos, landed in a remote area near the town of Zhezkazgan, Kazakhstan, on March 12. NASA Astronaut Wilmore, Russian Cosmonauts Samokutyaev and Serova are returning after almost six months onboard the International Space Station where they served as members of the Expedition 41 and 42 crews. AFP

WASHINGTON—Two police officers in the flash point US town of Ferguson were shot early Thursday during a new protest over the treatment of blacks by the mainly white police force, an officer said. One officer was shot in the face and the other in the shoulder as a protest rally outside the police station in the Missouri town was dispersing, St. Louis County police chief Jon Belmar told reporters. He said the officers were conscious but that their injuries were serious. Ferguson in recent months has been one of the hot spots for the longstanding US problem of harsh treatment of young black men by mainly white police. Earlier in the day, the Ferguson police chief resigned over a scathing US Justice Department report into the fatal shooting of unarmed black teenager Michael Brown by one of his officers back in August. Brown was shot and killed by white police of-

ficer Darren Wilson, igniting angry protests and a national debate about race and law enforcement in America. Wilson was not charged in that death. Belmar said the protest that formed Wednesday night was dispersing when at least three shots were fired. “The police officers were standing there and they were shot. Just because they were police officers,” Belmar told reporters at the scene of the incident, adding that the officers were alive and conscious. Witness Markus Roehrer told CNN that the atmosphere at the protest was tense and that when he first heard the gunfire he thought it might be firecrackers. AFP

Smart’s digital units get nod of global ﬁnancial community WIRELESS leader Smart Communications, Inc. (Smart) reinforced its presence in the global arena for digital financial services with a series of partnerships and discussions at the sidelines of the GSMA Mobile World Congress held early this month in Barcelona, Spain. Voyager Innovations, Inc. (Voyager), a digital financial and commerce unit of Smart, has forged a strategic partnership with Cash Credit, a financial technology company based in Bulgaria, to aggressively roll out a mobile-based microfinance program within the first half of 2015. Applying big data analytics, the partnership will deploy innovative financial services to Smart’s combined subscriber base of over 75 million. “Cash Credit’s pioneering expertise in aggregating, analyzing and applying data to offer innovative microfinance solutions will further promote electronic financial access among the underbanked and unbanked segments of the Philippine population. It will leverage on the prevalence of mobile phones in the country with over 100 percent penetration rate,” said Orlando B. Vea, president and CEO of Voyager.

Global partnership on microﬁnance. Voyager Innovations, Inc. (Voyager) and Cash Credit of

Bulgaria signed a strategic partnership for the rollout of innovative mobile-based microﬁnance services in the Philippines. Voyager’s president and CEO Orlando B. Vea (4th from left) and Cash Credit executive chairman Georgi Krumov (3rd from left) have formally signed the partnership. Cash Credit executives are joined by Smart eMoney execs Lito Villanueva, VP and head of ﬁnancial innovations, digital inclusion and alliances (2nd from right); and Paolo Azzola, chief operating advisor (rightmost).

The agreement involves Cash Credit bringing in its expertise on lending to individuals through innovative partnerships with mobile network operators (MNOs) around the world. Based on big data analysis, Cash Credit’s proprietary decision-making model for credit scoring includes subscriber call and texting usage, payment, and behavioral data. The credit services to be offered include micro-credit loans, airtime top-up credit, utility bill payments and credit for

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airtime resellers. The Sofiabased firm will be responsible for underwriting the loans, and managing all the risks with their advanced data analytics technology. Meanwhile, executives of Smart eMoney, Inc. (SMI), the digital payments arm of Smart, also announced a global partnership meeting with VISA. Vea, who is also president and CEO of SMI, met with VISA global president Ryan McInerney to explore further collaboration in the field of digital payments solutions.

Smart has recently launched the Philippines’ first contactless payment and credit product known as Charge2Phone (C2P) with Citibank using VISA’s PayWave technology. C2P will be available to Smart and Sun postpaid subscribers through near field communication (NFC) stickers attached to the mobile device for in-store transactions. This latest innovation will allow subscribers to use their mobile phones for face-to-face payments as well as online purchases.

SMI will also roll out this product to key markets worldwide. Smart also showcased its financial innovations in the Philippines. Lito Villanueva, VP and head of financial innovations, digital inclusion and alliances at SMI, was a panelist in a thought-leadership session focusing on disintermediation of financial services that was attended by key executives from the world’s leading banks. “Given the advancement of mobile technology, there have been digital disruptions in the banking and finance industries, which altered business

models. Banks and financial institutions need to embrace these changes as a natural progression to stay relevant and still be in competition. It was concluded that mobile will remain and will be at the core of everyone’s digital lifestyle,” said Villanueva. The other panelists were Cristina de Villenueve, global head of Hello Bank of BNP Paribas Group; Greg Baxter, global head of digital strategy of Citi; Michael Sutcliff, group chief executive of Accenture Digital; and Derek White, chief design and digital officer of Barclays.

Global collaboration for innovative payment solutions. Smart eMoney, Inc. and VISA had a high-

level meeting to discuss further collaboration aimed at revolutionizing digital payments at the sidelines of the GSMA Mobile World Conference. In photo are from left, Lito Villanueva, SMI’s VP and head of ﬁnancial innovations, digital inclusion and alliances of SMI; SMI president and CEO Orlando B. Vea, VISA president Ryan McInerney; Paolo Azzola, SMI chief operating advisor; and Vish Sowani, VP of MNO partnerships at VISA.

F r i D aY : M a r c H 1 3 , 2 0 1 5

WORLD

cesar barrioquinto EDITOR

mst.daydesk@gmail.com

Australia offers to pay for Bali pair’s jail time

Elvis, Elvis, Elvis. Dorotheum Auction House expert Fatma Kayrul presents record albums of 159

SYDNEY—Australia has offered to pay the cost of life imprisonment for two drug smugglers on death row in Indonesia if they are spared the firing squad, as the pair’s latest appeal was Thursday put back until next week. Foreign Minister Julie Bishop made the offer in a letter to her Indonesian counterpart Retno Marsudi as Canberra explores all avenues to convince Jakarta not to execute Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran. They are among several foreigners, including a Frenchman, a Brazilian, three Nigerians and convicts from the Philippines and Ghana, who could be shot dead any time for drug-related crimes. Bishop suggested a prisoner-swap with Indonesia in a tense phone call with

Marsudi on March 3, which was rejected, and in a followup letter said Canberra was willing to pay for the pair’s life imprisonment costs. “As discussed, the Australian government would be prepared to cover the costs of the ongoing life imprisonment of Mr Chan and Mr Sukumaran should a transfer not be possible,” Bishop wrote in the letter, released by her department. “The vast majority of Australians very strongly support the government’s efforts to seek clemency for Mr Chan and Mr Sukumaran. “We would not want to see their execution compromise the strong ties we have worked so hard to foster over many years,” she added. In a reply, also supplied by Bishop’s office, Marsudi again rejected a prisoner

swap but did not touch on the reimbursement offer. Australia has repeatedly called for clemency, fraying ties between the neighbors. Asked by reporters if Jakarta had given up listening to Australia because it was fed-up with being told what to do, Bishop said: “We are not telling it what to do. “We are asking in the most respectful way that President (Joko) Widodo show the same mercy and forgiveness and humanity to two Australians on death row as the Indonesian authorities ask of other countries who have Indonesian citizens on death row.” Sukumaran and Chan, ringleaders of the so-called “Bali Nine” drug trafficking gang, were sentenced to death in 2006 for trying to smuggle heroin out of Indonesia. AFP

items of the largest private Elvis Presley collection on March 10, which was to fall under the hammer at a branch of the Dorotheum Auction house in Vienna on March 11. AFP

Iraqi forces finally enter IS-held Tikrit

TIKRIT, Iraq—Iraqi forces have entered Tikrit, dodging bombs and sniper fire in search of their biggest victory yet against embattled jihadists who tried to light new fires elsewhere in Iraq and Syria.

The Islamic State group has suffered stinging defeats in the heart of its self-proclaimed “caliphate” recently, but its ultra-violent ideology has inspired attacks and recruits globally. With IS brutality and population displacement reaching new highs, Washington sought increased powers from the US Congress to take on a group threatening to reshape the

Middle East. However, it was without direct support from the US-led coalition’s air campaign that Iraqi government and allied forces punched into parts of Tikrit on Wednesday, marking a new phase in a 10-day drive to wrest the city back from IS. A combination of army, police and volunteer forces moved into northern and southern Tikrit, the hometown of former Iraqi president Saddam Hussein and a main IS stronghold. A major general told AFP on condition of anonymity that government forces were battling “to cleanse the neighborhood of Qadisiyah” in Tikrit. “But we are engaging in a very delicate battle because we are not facing fighters on the ground, we are facing booby-trapped terrain and sniper fire. Our movement is slow,” he said. An army colonel said forces coming from another direction had also retaken the main hospital on the city’s

southern edge. Early in the offensive, in which up to 30,000 men were initially involved while IS is believed to have just a few hundred fighters inside Tikrit, most outlying areas were reconquered. The town of al-Alam, a flash point north of Tikrit along the Tigris river, was fully under the control of progovernment fighters and local anti-IS Sunni tribesmen Wednesday, an AFP reporter there said. On the back foot in eastern and northern Iraq, IS tried to seize the initiative elsewhere, including with a spectacular coordinated attack in Ramadi in the west. Twelve car bombs exploded almost simultaneously around the city after dawn, with at least seven suicide bombers targeting government security installations, police said. At least 17 people were killed and 38 wounded, according to a police lieutenant colonel and a doctor at Ramadi hospital. AFP

China convicts over 700 for terrorism BEIJING—China convicted and sentenced 712 people for terrorism, separatism and related crimes last year, the country’s top court said on Thursday, saying such offences were its top priority for 2015. Violent attacks and unrest have been on the rise in recent years in China’s remote Xinjiang region, home to the mostly Muslim Uighur minority, and Tibetan areas, where reports

of self-immolation in protest against Chinese rule often hit global headlines. China has vowed to step up punishment of what it calls “violent terrorists” and is drafting its first-ever anti-terrorism law. Rights groups have warned it would grant the Communist Party even greater powers to “define terrorism and terrorist activities so broadly as to easily include peaceful

dissent or criticism” of government policies. The number of people sentenced last year for crimes such as inciting secession and terrorist attack was up 13.3 percent from 2013, the Supreme People’s Court said in its report to the National People’s Congress, the country’s Communistcontrolled legislature. It put “maintaining national security and social

stability” at the top of its agenda this year. “[We will] actively participate in the fight against terrorism and separatism and firmly punish violent terrorist crimes according to the law,” it said in the report. “[We will] seriously punish the various crimes that gravely harm the people’s safety, resolutely maintain national security, ethnic unity and social stability,” it added. AFP

11 presumed dead in chopper crash MIAMI—Seven US Marines and four aircrew were missing and presumed dead Wednesday after their army helicopter crashed during a night training exercise in Florida, military officials said.

The UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter was reported missing Tuesday around 8:30 pm (0030 GMT Wednesday) near Eglin Air Force Base. The area was under heavy fog but it was not

immediately clear if that played a part in the accident. Base spokesman Andy Bourland said rescue teams located debris from the aircraft around 2 am and an investigation was ongoing.

“The thoughts and prayers of everybody here at the White House are with the families of those who were killed in this that occurred apparently overnight,” spokesman Josh Earnest said. AFP

(TNS-MAR. 9/10/11/12/13, 2015)

OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT NATIONAL HOUSING AUTHORITY

Request foR expRession of inteRest The National Housing Authority (NHA), through the NHA-Board approved Corporate Budget for the year 2015, intends to apply the sum equivalent to the Approved Budget for the Contract (ABC) to payments under the contract: Ref. No. 201503-115

Projects Survey Works and Lot Titling for Area H-2, DBB Project, Dasmariñas, Cavite (Re-bid)

ABC/ Source of Funds (P)

Duration (Cal. days)

Work Description

1,498,384.68 / Corporate Receipts

Survey Works and Lot Titling

Bids received in excess of the ABC shall be automatically rejected at the opening of the financial proposals. The NHA now calls for the submission of eligibility documents for the above-cited project. Checklist of requirements for eligibility is available for examination upon submission of a letter of intent addressed to the BAC 2 Chairperson and upon payment of a non-refundable fee of P1,000.00/contract at the BAC 2 Secretariat Office, 2nd Floor NHA Main Building, Elliptical Road, Diliman, Quezon City. Interested Consultants must submit their eligibility documents on or before March 24, 2015, not later than 09:00 a.m. at the office of NHA-BAC 2 Secretariat, 2nd Floor NHA Main Building, Diliman, Quezon City. Opening of Eligibility Documents shall follow immediately after the deadline of submission of eligibility documents. Applications for eligibility will be evaluated based on a non-discretionary “pass/fail” criterion. The BAC 2 Secretariat may be contacted at Telephone No. 928-82-72. The BAC shall draw up the short list of consultants from those who have submitted eligibility documents/Expression of Interest and have been determined as eligible in accordance with the provisions of R.A. 9184, otherwise known as the “Government Procurement Reform Act”, and its Implementing Rules and Regulations (IRR). The short list shall consist of maximum of seven (7) prospective bidders who will be entitled to submit bids. The criteria and rating system for short listing are: a) b) c)

Applicable experience of the consultant and associates, considering both the overall experiences of the firm and the individual experiences of the principal and key staff including the times when employed by other consultants; Qualification of personnel who may be assigned to the job vis-à-vis extent and complexity of the undertaking; and Current workload relative to job capacity.

Bidding will be conducted through open competitive bidding procedures using nondiscretionary “pass/fail” criterion as specified in the IRR of RA 9184 and is restricted to Filipino citizens/sole proprietorships, partnerships, or organizations with at least sixty percent (60%) interest or outstanding capital stock belonging to citizens of the Philippines. The NHA shall evaluate bids using the Quality-Cost Based Evaluation/Selection (QCBE/QCBS) procedure. The weights to be allocated for the Technical and Financial Proposals and the criteria and rating system for the evaluation of bids shall be indicated and provided in the Bid Data Sheet. The NHA reserves the right to reject any and all bids, annul the bidding process, or not award the contract at any time prior to contract award, without thereby incurring any liability to the affected bidder or bidders.

(SGD.) VICTOR C. BALBA Chairperson, BAC 2 NATIONAL HOUSING AUTHORITY (TNS-MAR. 13, 2015)

F R I D AY : M A R C H 1 3 , 2 0 1 5

MOTORING

RAMON L. TOMELDAN EDITOR

mst.daydesk@gmail.com

Champ’s son also races, steps up to F4

Northern conquest with Nissan

Text and photo by Dino Ray V. Directo III

Barely a month after launching its newest sport utility pick-up, Nissan Philippines threw caution to the wind and staged a ride and drive event up North to put the Nissan Navara through its paces. With 77 media personalities representing the different sectors of the motoring beat, NPI head honcho Antonio “Toti” Zara rolled up his sleeves and gamely took part in the day-long event that saw participants driving the Navara in a fuel economy run, and some play time at the famous Sand Dunes of Paoay, Ilocos Norte. “The All-New NP300 Navara is the truck that

will make you proud no matter what the situation, be it a rough road drive or a relaxed cruise in the city. This real world test drive will prove that this Navara is tough and smart,” says Zara, who drove from Manila to strategically visit Nissan’s dealer network along the route going to Ilocos. “It was also a great way to see the rural side of the country and to personally see

The historic Paoay Church is the perfect backdrop for the innovative Navara.

what how my dealers are doing up north,” he says. Powered by a new generation 2.5 DOHC in-line four cylinder VGS diesel engine, Nissan prepared a fleet of Navaras for the media which took us to the aweinspiring views of Ilocos in the guise of an economy run. First stop was the Windmills of Bangui, where we sampled the local “pancit”. SJ Huh, NPI’s head of marketing marveled at the windmills of Bangui, a project which generates electricity to the ten towns of Ilocos province. Built in 1998 under the watch of then Ilocos Governor Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr, the Bangui wind farm uses 20 units of 70-metre (230 ft) high Vestas V82 1.65 MW wind turbines, arranged on a single row stretching along a nine-kilometer shoreline off Bangui Bay, facing the West Philippine Sea. From there, the Navara convoy proceeded to the centuries old Paoay Church, where the contingent partook of the famous “Bagnet and Dinuguan” pizza across

The lowdown on fake wheels Text and photo by Dino Ray V. Directo III Fake, according to the Webster dictionary, is something that is not genuine, a forgery, scam and something that is passed off as the genuine article. In essence, once you buy a replica or something that is not original, you are committing a crime in violation of Republic act 8293 otherwise known as the Intellectual Property Rights Law. This trademark infringement is the unauthorized use in commerce of a registered mark or a colorable copy thereof which results in the likelihood of confusion among the consuming public. The elements of trademark infringement are: (1) validity of a plaintiff’s registered mark, (2) plaintiff’s ownership of the said mark and (3) use of the mark or imitation thereof by a third person which results in likelihood of confusion.

Counterfeit goods come in many forms, and performance wheels are one of the most pirated consumer products. The local market is flooded by affordable knock off wheels which are being sold at low prices. Brands which are regarded as the most pirated are BBS, Volk Rays engineering, and recently Black Rhino Wheels. Manufactured in the United States, Black Rhino Wheels are offroad wheels for trucks and SUV’s. Their design inspiration is the Rhino, one of the toughest animals in the planet, hence their aggressive looking design. The brand is distributed locally by Wheel Gallery, and since its introduction in the market three years ago, Wheel Gallery has invested a lot of time and money in promoting the brand. “The problem with counterfeit products in general is that they look the same in the outside, but in reality, these counterfeiters often cut corners with the raw

material and workmanship. Their aim is to make money, hence they don’t care about quality and their products don’t have warranty,” says Sam Liuson of Wheel Gallery. Black Rhino wheels undergo stringent testing and backed up by millions of dollars in research and development to make the genuine product reliable, safe and have the right fitment. Unlike counterfeit wheels whose goal is to sell, they ensure the lowest manufacturing cost possible and fit a wide variety of models they were not originally designed for. These fake wheels don’t undergo research and development because counterfeiters simply don’t have the financial capacity to do so. “It is not worth taking the risk of buying counterfeit wheels especially if it involves road worthiness and the safety of your family,” adds Liuson. Your wheel looks good, but will it not break in the next pothole?

the historic church. Our group composed of Botchi Santos of the Inquirer, Ira Panganiban, Olson Camacho of Autocar and the author rode in a Navara 4x4. It was the perfect vehicle for the afternoon event of driving through the Sand Dunes. Nissan prepared a two kilometer course which enabled the participants to enjoy the 190PS and torque of the engine, the smooth shifting shift-on-the fly sevenspeed automatic gearbox and the rigid five-link coil suspension with stabilizer bars. It was experience that allowed us to realize our WrC dreams, as we hit the sand dunes with reckless abandon because we were behind the wheel of a technology driven pick-up. “Nissan pick-ups are not just vehicles, they are the lifeblood of communities and we are catering to that need by improving this much loved pick-up. Nissan lives up to the promise of providing innovation that excites and that’s what we have been doing for the past 80 years,” explains Zara.

FAKE

BerlIN—Mick Schumacher, the son of seven-time Formula One world champion Michael, will appear in Formula 4 from April with Team van Amersfoort, the Dutch outfit said. “He spent a full day in the simulator at our headquarters in the Netherlands. Then we witnessed him during a test session at Valencia and eventually, we reached an agreement to compete together in this year’s ADAC Formula 4 series,” team chief Fritz van Amersfoort told the team’s website. The 15-year-old was second in the German kart championship last season. He will make his first appearance in Formula 4, a series for young talents, at Oschersleben in northern Germany on April 25 and 26, with the last race set for Hockenheim in October. The Schumacher family’s spokeswoman Sabine Kehm confirmed that Mick would be quitting karting to focus on the singleseat category. Formula 4 was created last year as a championship for young drivers hoping to eventually take the step up to Formula One. Michael Schumacher is still recovering from the serious skiing accident in the French Alps in December 2013 that left him with life-threatening head injuries. AFP

MICK SCHUMACHER

ORIGINAL

CYAN MAGENTA YELLOW BLACK

F R I D AY : M A R C H 1 3 : 2 0 1 5

BAMBINA OLIVARES WISE EDITOR

g l w e e ke n d @ g m a i l . c o m

LIFE

FASHION

SPRING FLING Balenciaga’s Spring-Summer 2015 Collection contrasts the trademark austerity and purity the house is known for with a layer of opulence. But it’s an opulence delivered the Balenciaga way. Luxurious calfskin or alligator “Frame” bags are detailed with a linked bicycle chain handle, meant to be carried either as a top-handled bag or, with a quick twist of the frame, worn as a subversive clutch. So like Balenciaga, chic, ordered, but always with a touch of rebellion. Balenciaga at Greenbelt 5, Ayala Center, Makati City

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LIFE

BAMBINA OLIVARES WISE EDITOR

g l w e e ke n d @ g m a i l . c o m

FASHION FLASH POINTS ZOOLANDER STAGES A WALK-OFF AT VALENTINO

Remember the infamous supermodel walk-off in the movie Zoolander, in which Ben Stiller’s Derek Zoolander and Owen Wilson’s Hansel duelled to the bitter end to see who had the better runway style, with David Bowie as the judge? Stiller and Wilson reprised their roles and strutted down the catwalk the other day during Valentino’s show for Paris Fashion Week. Their appearance, complete with chiseled cheekbones, coiffed hair and Anna Wintour in the front row, was a teaser for their upcoming movie, Zoolander 2, which is slated for release in early 2016. In a cheeky backstage interview with Anna Wintour posted on vogue.com, Stiller and Wilson, still in character, talk about prepping for their roles. Explaining his walk, Zoolander says, “I’m going to keep it simple today. Usually, I go rightleft-right-left-right-left. But today, I’m going to start left in honor of how the sun rotates. People want me to start right. But I said, it’s 2012, it’s time for something different. They said, it’s 2015. I said, I agree to disagree because it’s one of those things you can never really tell.” Right. Whatever, Derek Zoolander. We can’t wait for Zoolander 2!

WELCOME TO BRASSERIE GABRIELLE

Karl Lagerfeld does it again. After converting the Grand Palais into a supermarket with all Chanelbranded groceries, a grand boulevard with Chanelclad protesters, he decides to present the Chanel A/W 2015 collection in a chic French brasserie. Complete with a bar, bartenders and barstools. In short, a very bourgeois Parisian backdrop for clothes that were quintessentially Chanel - tweed suits and coat-dresses, bicolore toe-cap slingbacks, big bows, knitwear, mousseline blouses... There were even Chanel sequinned aprons and napkins, and, in echoes of Manet’s famous painting, A Bar at the Folies-Bergere feel. What does Karl have in store for us next season? Chanel at the disco? A Night at the Museum? At 82, Karl Lagerfeld certainly has one of the most fertile imaginations in the industry.

AFTER A FASHION

It’s pret-a-portea season at the raffles hotel

affles Makati launches its second Prêt-à-Portea series at the iconic Writers Bar. In collaboration with Italian luxebrand Furla, this delightfully designed Afternoon Tea will be offered from March 16 to May 16. Available daily from 2:30PM to 5:30PM, enjoy a tête-à-tête as high tea recreates Furla’s Neo Pop collection for confectionary connoisseurs at Php 1550++ for two. Sip on a tea of choice while nibbling on an ambrosial medley of teacup sandwiches. From a timeless ham and cheese layered in an apricot chutney spread to a bruschetta tapenade topped with finely sliced olives and cherry tomatoes, this savory selection will surely satiate the palate. Chocolate aficionados are also in for a

delectable treat with orange coated macarons, luscious lip-shaped truffles, and divine nutty pralines—all inspired by Furla’s Spring Collection. Relish the taste of the season with a three-tier assembly of raspberry beignets dusted with pink snow powder, apricot-flavored scones, and a vanilla éclair donned with edible silver leaves. The highlight of the day are the toasted marshmallow macarons flashing Furla’s Neo-Pop print design and the Candy Bag taking form in a black and red religieuse. Add the classic touch of a sparkling glass of Rosé champagne for Php 1000++ to end the afternoon. For more information and reservations, please call the Raffles Makati Restaurant Reservations at 795 1840, or email dining.makati@raffles.com.

HITTING THEIR STRIDE

It was only a couple of seasons ago when shockwaves reverberated throughout the fashion world. Alexander Wang was replacing Nicolas Ghesquiere at Balenciaga; Ghesquiere was then appointed Marc Jacobs’ successor at Louis Vuitton, while Raf Simons assumed the disgraced John Galliano’s mantle at Dior, and Hedi Slimane took over from an unceremoniously booted out Stefano Pilati at Saint Laurent. And then there’s Jeremy Scott at Moschino, J W Anderson at Loewe. A couple of seasons in, all these designers have consistently presented commercially viable collections, proving that the houses had made the right call in selecting them, as far as the bottom line is concerned. Frida Gianini’s shock exit from Gucci put the relatively unknown Alessandro Michele at the helm; he has not as yet shown his own collection. But what about the brand’s heritage and DNA at these historic houses? A new designer at the helm can revitalize a brand’s image, sometimes at the expense of its identity. As Alexander Fury writes in The Business of Fashion, “Slimane, however, is the blueprint for label revival - revival without responsibility or respect. It’s paying dividencds. Saint Laurent’s sales have doubled during Slimane’s tenure; Moschino sales grew 7 per cent last year. There’s a customer for this. Perhaps those customers don’t care whether the designers fit the label, but only whether the clothes fit them. Maybe they don’t care what the label is at all.” SOURCES: VOGUE.COM, BUSINESSOFFASHION.COM

BAMBINA OLIVARES WISE

BIRDS, BEES & BUTTERFLY SHADES Designs play with light and color, with clean, modern frames in bright flower and insect hues. The style features butterfly-shaped one-piece lenses in tinted acetate. Clean lines are complemented by tonal transparent acetate arms with check engraved metal detail. SCAN Burberry Butterfly Shades are available to purchase THIS ICON TO SEE MORE and monogram exclusively on Sunglasshut.com for delivery in 8 weeks. Lenses can be monogrammed with FASHION ACCESSORIES up to three engraved initials.

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LIFE

BAMBINA OLIVARES WISE EDITOR

g l w e e ke n d @ g m a i l . c o m

FASHION

SARTORIAL PIVOTING BY ED BIADO

In Silicon Valley patois, to pivot is to change directions. It’s often used to refer to startups whose original ideas don’t turn out to be as promising as initially thought. But plenty of companies, big or small, established or starting, profitable or otherwise, that have pivoted. Within the tech industry, we have Nokia and HP and almost every Internet-based app and service. Offline, a notable example is Starbucks, which used to be an espresso machine retailer. This week, chatter has it that a new pivot might be underway. Apple, one of the world’s most valuable brands and arguably the most admired tech brand, could be moving forward with its pivot from high-end consumer tech to highend fashion—an idea that pundits have been throwing around since the company began hiring fashion execs almost two

years ago, notably former Burberry chief Angela Ahrendts as head of retail and former Yves Saint Laurent chief Paul Deneve for so-called “special projects.” Apple products have always been stylish. Their designers have always considered the form factor of each device they put out in the market. They were the first to move away from boxy and clunky devices in favor of smoother edges, luxurious-looking finishes and understated minimalism. The clean polished and refined look of everything from the original iPod to the latest Mac undeniably exudes style and superior levels of taste. One could actually talk about the design of a new Apple product like they were reviewing the pieces on a Paris runway. As it is, Apple is perhaps the most sartorial of the major tech players. Therefore, it comes as no surprise that the company now advertises on Vogue magazine and is “in talks” with upmarket fashion department store Nordstrom to peddle its wares. With headlines such as Mashable’s “How the Apple Watch could reinvent fashion as we know it” and the Los Angeles Times’ “Apple Watch could become latest musthave fashion accessory,” it’s becoming more

AH CEBU BY DR. MILA C. ESPINA

GRANDEST WEDDING OF THE SEASON

Some 3000 constituents from Cebu’s District 6 and Mandaue and Cebu cities, and selected 600 guests from the business and civic sectors, gathered at the St. Joseph Parish in Mandaue City, and Radisson Blu respectively, and shared the overflowing joy when District 6 Congressman Luigi Quisumbing,( grandson of prominent business leader, Norberto and the late Britta Quisumbing); took ‘high school crush’ Carmela Hofilena from Silay City, as his bride. The bride wore a Carrie Santiago gown, while the bridal ensemble donned long and cocktail gowns in blue and aqua hues. Let the photos on this page show part of Cebu’s grandest wedding of 2015. 1 Luigi and Carmela with groom’s parents Louie and Betsy Romualdez Quisumbing. Carmela is the daughter of the + Luis; and Marilou Hofileña. 2 At St. Joseph Parish, newlyweds with their principal sponsors: Senate President Franklin M. Drilon and Senator Grace Poe- Llamanzares; Speaker Feliciano R. Belmonte, Jr. and Chairperson Teresita J. Herbosa; Secretary Jose Rene D. Almendras and Mayor Teresa P. Alegado; Secretary Florencio B. Abad and Dr. Maria Emelina Q. Panuncialman; Justice Hector L. Hofileña and Dr. Marie Antoinette L. Ortaliz; Mayor Jonas C. Cortes and Dr. Leny O. Ruiz de Luzurriaga; Mayor Adelino B. Sitoy and Ms. Lourdes Y. Hofileña; Atty. J. Antonio R. Nierras and Mrs. Amelita O. Cordero; Mr. Bernardo Y. Hofileña and Mrs. Olivia V. Yanson; Mr. Felix Y. Hofileña and Mrs. Lorie Fe R. Bangloy. 3 Most applauded principal sponsors were Senate President Franklin Drilon and Senator Grace Poe

4 The “newlyweds” Carmela and Luigi at the St. Joseph’s Parish. 5 Guests from the social and showbiz circles: Carmel de Pio, Teresin Mendezona, Dingdong Dantes, Marian Rivera and Pinky Chang.

6 Glitzy guests: Mike Acebedo Lopez,Congresswomen Gwen Garcia and Imee Marcos and socialite and civic leader Kit Yeung. ( Photo courtesy of my friend,Mike Acebedo lopez )

7 Veil sponsor and dinner reception bubbly emcee Cutie del Mar, daughter of Congressman Raul del Mar (who was also in the event). 8 From the business and community sectors of Cebu City and Mandaue led by Jeruel Roa, Mandaue Chamber president; construction wizard Peter Dy, past president of We Care Foundation; Kenneth Cobonpue; Glenn Soco; Consul and Mrs. Sam and Emily Chioson.

8 6

evident that Apple is re-positioning itself as a fashion brand. Particularly, the top-tier version of the Apple Watch, aptly called Edition, is a luxury smart wearable drenched in 18-karat gold (either yellow or gold) and strapped to a leather band. It costs between $10,000 and $17,000, similar to a Rolex. Now, Apple is no longer targeting the “fanboys” and the techies who care about the CPU and the memory capacity and the responsiveness of the touchscreen. Their attention has shifted (or pivoted) to those who covet the season’s must-have even if it’s a tech device that they don’t know how to use. They’re also eyeing more discerning individuals who have over 10 grand to spend on something they’ll wear on their wrist for—at most—a year because by then, the Apple Watch 2 would have arrived. While the Edition will never be a topselling piece due to its prohibitive pricing and the assertion from Apple that it will be produced in limited quantities, the fact that it exists is a clear sign that the tech giant-turning-into-fashion house is trying to be aspirational and exclusive. What they’re essentially saying is that the Apple Watch Edition is not for everybody. In fact, it’s only for a select few. And that is what makes it a truly fashionable piece.

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FASHION

PAINT IT SPRING Superga launches its Spring Summer 2015 Collection

uperga is as Italian as mozzarella. The iconic footwear brand, whose signature shoe is the 2750 tennis shoe in canvas in a rainbow of colors and a white rubber sole, can be seen on the feet of every Italian, from babies to senior citizens. Not for nothing is Superga called “shoes of the Italian people.” It’s a brand with heritage, founded in 1911 when the company Anonima per Azioni Walter Martiny began producing waterproof rubber-soled boots for agriculture, as well as vulcanized rubber-soled footwear. Today, Superga is on its way to becoming the shoe of the world, as it conquers new markets with its versatile designs in a wide spectrum of colors, from neutrals and basics to eye-popping brights and floral prints. The brand has also embarked on highly successful collaborations with bloggers such as Chiara Ferragni of The Blond Salad and Leandra Medine AKA The Man Repeller. Said Ning Kan, Sales Manager for BasicNet Asia, Ltd., which owns Superga, “We’ve undergone a huge expansion, and Superga is now present in many countries all over the world. Suddenly, you can see Superga everywhere. The company is growing very fast worldwide. The collaborations - the cobranding with designers and bloggers - have helped a lot to bring an awareness of the brand, keeping it relevant and current.”

At the recent launch of the Spring Summer 2015 Collection, Superga went interactive - literally - setting up an area with artists ready to customize Superga sneakers with personalized patterns painted on the shoes. Not that the collection as it already is isn’t funky enough. There are six different ranges within the collection this season: ● COLOR MIX, which is dedicated to color, to fluo and to the strongest chromatic contrasts ● FLOWERS, which presents a world of floral fantasies of all kinds, from the most romantic with little flowers to the modern prints wit bright color combinations. ● TAPESTRY, which presents the vulcanized shoes from the classic 2750 to the 2790 with the 4 cm platform, in damask fabrics typical of couches and armchairs, or in cotton with prints that are reminiscent of antique tapestries. ● EMBROIDERY, which comes in broderie anglaise made of satin and in cotton embellished with embroidery ● HEMP AND ROPE, which consists of ballerina shoes and espadrilles in jute and in woven cotton in fashionable colors ● SPECIAL CRAFTS, which is the most refined Superga offer, featuring laser-cut synthetic fabric, perforated cotton or woven suede

BAMBINA OLIVARES WISE EDITOR

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ISAH V. RED EDITOR

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STREETDANCING IN TV5’S ‘MOVE’ BY SEYMOUR BARROS SANCHEZ

Alex Gonxaga is paired with Matteo Guidicelli (left) and Kean Cipriano in Inday Bote

MATTEO, KEAN, & ALEX MAKE MONDAYS MAGICAL ON ABS-CBN Kapamilya TV host-actress Alex Gonzaga will open the magical summer season of TV viewers as ABS-CBN’s newest fantasy-drama series Inday Bote premieres on Monday. In the series, Alex will be paired with Matteo Guidicelli and Kean Cipriano. “The story of ‘Inday Bote’ is perfect for the whole family this summer season. In the teleserye version, viewers will get to know Inday as a person, daughter, sister, and a young woman who learns to fall in love. The youth, especially teenagers, will surely learn a lot from Inday’s determination and her belief that there is nothing you cannot do, if you will follow your dreams,” said Alex about ABS-CBN’s TV adaptation of the masterpiece of veteran komiks novelist Pablo Gomez. In “Inday Bote,” Alex will portray the character of Inday, a joyful young woman who has many dreams for herself and her family. Inday’s life begins to change when she is given a magic bottle inhabited by dwarves who have superpowers. Completing the powerhouse cast of “Inday Bote” are Aiko Melendez, Alicia Alonzo, Smokey Manaloto, Nikki Valdez, Malou Crisologo, Jeffrey Santos, Nanding Josef, Alora Sasam, Biboy Ramirez, Izzy Canillo,, and introducing Alonzo Muhlach. The series part of the magical summer campaign of Dreamscape Entertainment Television, the group that created toprating TV masterpieces such as Walang Hanggan, Ina Kapatid Anak, Juan dela Cruz, Ikaw Lamang, and Bagito,, which will air its finale today.

The series also featurs Alonzo Muhlach as a dwarf and performances by Aiko Melendez and Biboy Ramirez

Nocturnal Dance Company

n Jan. 25, TV5 launched a new Movement is the 2011 and 2012 back-todance competition called Move It: back champion of the World Supremacy Clash of the Streetdancers.” Hosted Battleground before FMD Extreme took by Jasmine Curtis-Smith and DJ over their reign. PUP Power Impact Dancers is a dance group based at Tom Taus, the show aims the Polytechnic University of to revolutionize dance the Philippines and winner contests by highlighting and promoting the art of Streetdancing is of different university-based streetdancing. evolving and slowly dance contests. Next to InHalfway through the becoming a form nocence Kids may be the competition, only six solo of art, far from the youngest among the contesbut they have proven to performers and five dance days it was looked tants be capable of outperforming groups remain from the original 10 contestants in down by formally other groups such as FCPC trained dancers Baliktanaw, Kana High, Tha each category. Airing evin ballet and jazz. Mist, F.O.S. 417, and Autoery Sunday night, the show will award P1 million to the Today, even formal nomicass Crew, which have group champions and P500 dance classes are already been eliminated from the competition. thousand to the best solo act. offering it as a Alternately judging the As of this writing, the subject contest in groups of three remaining solo performevery week are streetdance ers are former Wowowillie masters Lema Diaz, Terdancer and co-host Lovely rence “Hitmaster Fish” WilAbella, former TV5 talent Anykka Asistio, world champion A liams, Ken Johns, Vimi Rivera, Miguel Team dance crew member Dhztine Ber- Colon, Prince Paltuob, Christian Lao, nardino, The Manoeuvres member and cho- and dance diva Regine Tolentino. “Move It” also has a segment called reographer RJ De Claro, actor and Anim-E dance group member Sergio Garcia, and “DANCEtionary of the Day” to inform Job Zamora, a member of The Manoeuvres and educate its viewers about the history like De Claro and an alumnus of the La Salle of streetdancing and its different forms. Competing dance groups are required to Dance Company (LSDC) – Street. Already eliminated from the solo catego- try various streetdance moves like House, ry are former Mocha Girls member Anne Dance Hall, Krumping, Vogue, B-Boy, HiSotelo, TV5 Artista Academy finalist and phop, Wacking, Popping, and Locking. There Tropa Mo Ko gag show fixture Chris Leon- is also a new theme every week like Michael ardo; commercial model and former GMA Jackson’s dance moves, disco, African dance, soap opera bit player Charlotte Hermoso, salsa, and tapdancing, among others. Streetdancing has steadily evolved and and John Wayne Sace, a former ABS-CBN talent and member of the Anim-E dance is now a mix of various forms and dancers come up with different styles, which they group like Garcia. Still slugging it out in the crew catego- can call their own. With the talents featured ry are FMD Extreme, Nocturnal Dance in Move It: Clash of the Streetdancers, FilipiCompany, Pangasinan Movement, PUP no dance groups are definitely on the right Power Impact Dancers, and Next to In- track as we continue to assert our dominance nocence Kids.. FMD Extreme is the 2013 in the world streetdance championships. and 2014 back-to-back champion of the World Supremacy Battleground in Sydney, Australia. Nocturnal Dance Company is a former Talentadong Pinoy Worldwide Battle Royale Hall of Famer. Pangasinan

Pangasinan Movement

Tom Taus And Jasmine Curtis-Smith

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JIM PARSONS’S VOICE IN ’HOME’

ive-time Emmy winner Jim Parsons, also widely known as Sheldon in the hit television sitcom The Big Bang Theory stars as the voice of a purple alien called Oh, in the delightful and colorful family film, Home, from DreamWorks Animation. Oh’s race, the Boov are looking for a new home. They invade Earth, take over the planet and dispatch all the humans to a far-flung community. But Oh, who is quite different from the other Boov, makes a big mistake that could lead to an intergalactic catastrophe. Hiding out from the rest of his species, led by the weak and vain Captain Smek (Steve Martin), Oh encounters Tip (Rihanna), the last human girl on Earth. She has avoided capture but is separated from her mother Lucy (Jennifer Lopez). Both are on the run, team up and embark on a thrilling road trip … in a bright red flying car! Home takes Oh, Tip – and the audience – on a worldwide journey, from the United States to France to China, and finally to Australia. It’s an epic expedition encompassing millions of Boovian spaceships, and technology that switches off gravity across the entire planet. An enormous Gorg mother ship also

Jim Parsons of The Big Bang Theory voices Oh, a blue alien, in Home

lends impressive scale. “The goal from the start was to make Home a big global adventure,” says director Tim Johnson. “Tip is hostile toward Oh, but as they embark on a global journey, they realize they have more and more in common,” adds Parsons. “You never know where, and with whom, you’re going to find friendship,” continues the Emmy® winning star. “Making lasting friendships with people – or visitors from afar – who couldn’t be more different from you, and with whom you’d never expect to connect, is

not only possible, it’s necessary.” Oh and Tip are an intergalactic odd couple of friends. “They’re from two very different worlds and couldn’t be less alike,” says global music star and seven-time Grammy® winner Rihanna, who voices Tip. “But they slowly discover common ground and become amazing friends.” “The Boov are unilateral,” Parsons adds. “They’re all of one mind. Initially, Oh believes in that philosophy and he’s really enthusiastic about being the best Boov he can be. But unlike the rest of them, Oh wants to have a good time.” Parsons makes his animated feature debut in “Home.” The classically trained actor embraced the challenges of working in the genre. “It’s the most interesting ‘playtime’ I’ve ever had as an actor,” he explains. “It feels like you’re going down a mysterious but joyful black hole, where you’re alone with the character. Once you relax, it’s really fun to see what happens. I never left the recording studio without being a sweaty mess!” “Home” (2D and 3D) opens in cinemas nationwide on March 26 from DreamWorks Animation and 20th Century Fox and distributed by Warner Bros.

HBO, CINEMAX ORIGINALS PREMIERE SHOWS SAME TIME AS U.S.

Lena Headey as Cersei Lannister and Ian Beattie as Meryn Trant in the new season of Game of Thrones

Starting with the new season of Game Of Thrones, viewers in Asia can watch HBO and Cinemax Originals at the same time as viewers in the U.S. On April 13, subscribers in Asia can catch the worldwide premiere of three new seasons of HBO Original series – Game Of Thrones, Silicon Valley and Veep as they debut back-to-back and simultaneously as the U.S. from 9 a.m. with primetime encores from 9 p.m. the same day on HBO / HBO HD. “The wait is over. Subscribers in Asia will now have the choice to watch their favorite HBO and Cinemax Originals the same time as the U.S. or during the primetime telecast that same evening. Or if they prefer, via broadband streaming anytime, anywhere on HBO GO2 or our on-demand service, HBO On Demand2,” said Jonathan Spink, CEO, HBO Asia. “The simultaneous airing of new seasons and brand-new Original programs as the U.S. will help with our continued fight against piracy and end the angst of reading about show spoilers on social media.” HBO Original programs that will premiere at the same time as the U.S. on HBO / HBO HD include the new seasons of the Emmy®winning True Detective, with Vince Vaughn, Colin Farrell, and Rachel McAdams; The Leftovers, starring Justin Theroux and Liv Tyler; and Getting On, the offbeat comedy that follows the dysfunctional staffers at a female-geriatric ward; as well as highly-anticipated upcoming new HBO Original programs like Westworld, a drama series starring Anthony Hopkins, Ed Harris, and Evan Rachel Wood; The Brink, the dark comedy series starring Jack Black and Tim Robbins; and HBO Films’ Bessie, starring Queen Latifah.

CELEBS UNLOCK THEIR #DISKARTE

From left: Chico Garcia, David Guison and Delamar Arias

en of #Diskarte from the showbiz world proved they have the ability to get through any situation during the launch of Nivea Men’s Test your #Diskarte challenge at Trinoma Activity Center. Teaming up with bloggers and journalists, Troy Montero, Karen Bordador, Divine Smith, Franco Mabanta, Julz Savard, and sportscaster Jinno Rufino took on challenges around the mall, while being introduced To NIVEA MEN’s newest range of products designed for today’s quick-thinking males. Among these are Nivea Men AntiPerspirant roll-on, suited for adventurers, Nivea Men Invisible Black and White

CROSSWORD PUZZLE

ANSWER FOR PREVIOUS PUZZLE ACROSS 1 — Marquette 5 Cutie-pie 9 Succotash bean 13 Cousteau’s middle name 14 Bumpy 16 Sheik or sultan 17 Dangerous tides 18 Game-show host 19 Quick snack 20 “So what — is new?”

21 22 24 26 27 30 34 35 36 37 38 39

Mole, maybe Set free 1940s auto False witness Like a good slogan Motown trio Drama awards Irene of “Fame” Kind of straits L. — Hubbard Gave a hand to Hebrew T

40 42 43 45 47 48 49 50 53 54 58 59 61 62 63 64 65 66 67

Anon’s companion Matrix “— Davis Eyes” Water or oil Ravine Ancient colonnade Kinks’ tune Agency Sinbad’s transport Link site Drop Type of surgeon It has rings Catch sight of “Abra-Ca- —” Millay or Ferber This, in Barcelona Employs Kind of bunny

DOWN 1 Ceremonial fire 2 Harm 3 Gym iterations 4 Flower petal extract 5 Like evening gowns 6 Get-up-and-go 7 Miss Van Pelt 8 Opposite of sm. 9 Toiled 10 Orchid-like blossom 11 Jane, to Tarzan

FRIDAY, MARCH 13, 2015

12 15 23 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 35 38 41 43 44 46 47 49 50 51 52 53 55 56 57 60

Retired Chopper’s place Thole filler Sighs of relief Enticed Kitchen tool On top of Antler branches — Hawkins Day Fictional Walter Muse of poetry Prime time hour About, datewise Wrong way to run Hieroglyphics stone Checkbook amt. Put into law Ms. Hagen Winter quaffs Peter of “Casablanca” Big name in speakers Strike callers Mob scene Burnishes Karachi language Quagmires Tour de force — de cologne

which helps dapper guys’ white clothes stay white and your black clothes stay black for longer, the Nivea Men Silver Protect fights body odor for 48 hours, and the Nivea Men Whitening Deo not only controls sweat, body odor and gives long-lasting dryness, but also renews skin and reduces accumulated underarm dullness. There’s also the Nivea Men Extra Whitening Moisturizer Pore Minimizer SPF30 that stimulates skin regeneration and protects against sun damage, Nivea Men AntiAging Q10 Moisture Gel that also fights visible signs of stress and aging, and the new Anti-Acne Brightening Mud Serum

Foam which contains carefully selected active mineral powder from Japanese Fuji Volcanic Mud. The challenges culminated with each team picking bets from the crowd to match with model Jinri Park, who surprisingly likes men who are not too muscular and can be serious and funny when they need to be. Celebrity or not, when it comes to grooming, the wide range of NIVEA MEN skincare products is with no doubt the Pinoy guy’s trusted partner and ultimate wingman to boost the #Diskarte he needs. For more information on NIVEA MEN, visit http://www.niveamen.ph .

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ISAH V. RED EDITOR

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PEOPLE CRAZY BEAUTIFUL YOU

...ARE TALKING ABOUT

As of this writing, this romantic teen flick has already earned more than P225 million. And Star Cinema is very confident that this figure will double. It has been two weeks since it was released commercially and yet people are still trooping to the closest movie house despite the movie tickets costing even higher than Hollywood movies. You see, KathNiel fans are not all scream and shout, they also pay for their tickets at the tills.

RICHARD GOMEZ

Richard Gomez

Who needs a PMPC Star Awards trophy if you’re given a more prestigious one? Goma wasn’t even nominated at the recently concluded Star Awards for Movies in a category both won by Piolo Pascual and John Lloyd Cruz. The 48-year-old former matinee idol won best actor in the Directors’ Week competition for Michael Tuviera’s The Janitor at the 35th Oporto International Film Festival in Portugal.

ALEX GONZAGA

From movies to television s, and from television commercial to concert stage, she is undoubtedly ubiquitous. The Kapamilya star is going to play the role Maricel Soriano played in the movie. Gonzaga essays Inday Bote in its TV incarnation. The budding comedian considers her being almost everywhere as an advantage. The fact is, not everybody in the entertainment industry experience the same kind exposure, so why worry if this could bring more fame and ultimately make her bank account even most people in showbiz? Alex Gonzaga

...ARE NOT TALKING ABOUT

JULIA BARRETTO

She’s ripe for picking as she is now 18. What we mean is that Julia should be starring in her own series paired with popular and young leading men. She shouldn’t be settling for support roles. Besides she came from a clan of lead stars. But wait, the Kapamilya Network has already given her that opportunity. Apparently she was outshone by the likes of Liza Soberano and Nadine Lustre. That’s a bit embarrassing for someone who was launched to be the next big thing.

SHARON CUNETA

Sharon Cuneta

She’s determined to show that she really prepared for her comeback to the Kapamilya Network. In fact, she lost 40 pounds before inking an exclusive contract with the network she left four years ago over a billion worth of contract with TV 5. They say ABS-CBN obviously loves Sharon, but that doesn’t reflect on her first project with the network. Given her caliber, we thought she’d be given her own show. But no, she’ll just be a judge in a reality singing show featuring other celebrities.

VIN ABRENICA

Vin Abrenica

Aljur’s less popular brother said with conviction that his older brother’s standing in showbiz has not changed since the recent brouhaha that left the Machete star literally jobless for months. The younger Abrenica said that his brother was never out of the public’s radar and was able to keep his supposed stature. That explains why Vin is still a bit player. He’s in denial and doesn’t know if there’s room for improvement, which is crucial in showbiz.

GMA Network Chairman and CEO Felipe L. Gozon received the prestigious Global Leadership Award for Excellence in Media Sector on March 5 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Joining him in the photo are (from left) Chris Wong - CEO of the Leaders International; Arthur Carmazzi - Global Top 10 Most Influential Leadership Guru, Secretary General of ALDA; Tengku Suleiman Shah Alhaj Ibni - The Royal Chief Major of Selangor; and HE Abdulrahim Hassan Naqi - Secretary General of the Federation of GCC chambers (FGCCC).

GLOBAL LEADERSHIP AWARD FOR KAPUSO BIG BOSS

MA Network Chairman and CEO Atty. Felipe L. Gozon bagged the prestigious Global Leadership Award for Excellence in Media Sector, reaching another milestone in his distinguished career as a broadcast executive. The awards’ ceremonies were held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia on March 5. Gozon made histor y by being the first Filipino recipient of this international award, which recognized his excellent management of the Kapuso Network and the Company’s contributions to the local broadcast industry. “This award is significant to me not only because I did not apply for it, but more importantly, I am told that I am the first Filipino to be given this award,” Gozon said. Considered the man who turned GMA Network around to become the leading local broadcast company today, Gozon believes that the Network is headed towards a greater future. “My vision for GMA Network is for its programs to enrich the lives of all Filipinos everywhere in the world and for the Network to become the number one TV station in Asia,” he said. The Global Leadership Awards cited Gozon for his “keen involvement in spearheading the corporate business and community development, and for the continued effort and contributions done towards steering [GMA] to greater heights.” Moreover, Gozon was honored for “the leadership values that he had consistently imparted to move forward and transform according to times and needs.” Described as the “[ASEAN] Region’s most impactful event,” the Global Leadership Awards is organized by The Leaders International together with the American Leadership Development Association (ALDA). It aims “to convene and show-

case the highest levels of Global Leaders representing the diplomatic, business, government, philanthropic, media, celebrity, and social sectors.” ★★★★★ For the first time in Wagas, the audience will get the chance to know about the love story of Gabriela and Diego Silang. In 1872, both Gabriela and Diego were prisoners. She was trapped in an unhappy marriage; and he, a slave and a captive of the Spaniards after surviving a shipwreck. Meeting each other, the both felt what freedom was like. Their first meeting was in a church, where it was love at first sight for Diego after seeing Gabriela, who was then wearing a black veil. It took him five long years before he finally won the heart of Gabriela. Despite the Spanish occupation, their love freely endured. Together, they fought for their fellowmen in Ilocos, ignited by their love for their country. Still, this was not the only battle that put their love to the test. Tomorrow, GMA News TV will air the first of two parts of the Gabriela and Diego Silang love story. Glaiza de Castro and Marc Abaya play the illfated lovers in Wagas, 7 p.m. on GMA news channel ★★★★★ Rated K soared high on national ratings in the first quarter of 2015. The top-rating weekly magazine show hosted by veteran and award-winning broadcast journalist Korina Sanchez-Roxas celebrating its 10th anniversary. Kantar Media Philippines’s survey data showed Rated K as the most watched Sunday television program in the country from January to February this year. It is also the 5th most watched television show in the country for the month of February with an impressive and sustained rating of 24.6 percent viewer share on a weekly basis.

Glaiza de Castro and Marc Abaya play Gabriela and Diego Silang in the two-part love story of the heroes in Wagas on GMA News TV

In the last 10 years, the show consistently featured a diverse line-up of stories that mirror and highlight Filipino culture – from inspiring stories of both celebrities and ordinary Filipinos to the latest trends in technology, food, and fashion to unusual tales of mystery and suspense to the hottest entertainment and lifestyle and leisure venues around the Philippines to even funny and trending events and personalities. Rated K’s flagship advocacy, “Korina’s Handog Tsinelas Campaign,” continues to give free rubber slippers to all underprivileged children in Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao since its conception some eight years ago. Today, Korina and Rated K have given children over two million pairs of rubber slippers across the country with the hope of restoring each child’s dignity. Korina’s dream has been no child will walk barefoot ever again. Korina is currently touring the country along with Rated K team in giving away not only rubber slippers to children but also rice and bracelets among mothers in poor barangays throughout the country. She is also touring the country to share inspirational messages to loyal fans and supporters, and to the youth as well being a favorite guest speaker in campuses and universities. Rated K also partnered with retail giant Puregold for “Handog Tsinelas Campaign.” Supporters may drop off their rubber slipper donations at Puregold outlets nationwide. “It is such a blessing that Rated K has stayed on-air this long and maintained its no. 1 status nationwide on its timeslot consistently. With stiff competition on weekends it is something to be proud of. I owe this to all the staff of the show,” says Korina. Rated K airs on ABS-CBN every Sunday evening after Wansapanatym.

Korina Sanchez-Roxas continues to distribute slippers to children across the country for her Handog Tsinelas Campaign for People...

F R I D AY : M A R C H 1 3 : 2 0 1 5

ISAH V. RED EDITOR

isahred @ gmail.com

SHOWBITZ

SATURDAY IS THROWBACK DAY IN NEW SHOW SIMPLY RED ISAH V. RED On social media, Thursday is throwback day, which means users can post anything from their own photos or images, that remind them of their once-upon-a-timeyears as young persons. Sometimes these images or photographs elicit chuckle or laughter, others can make people snicker with loathing, while some simply ignore them as they, perhaps don’t want to remember of something they had encountered or situations they had been in. But throwback images are generally fun, not necessarily funny. GMA Network is riding on this craze about looking back. But the people in the production department want something definite…funny. So, they engaged to funny guys, naturally, to host the show. And who among the talents on the Kapuso network fit easily into the category? No, not Michael V who is tight with Pepito Manaloto and Bubble Gang, and definitely not Vic Sotto or Jose Manalo who are both engaged seriously with Eat Bulaga and other comedy shows like Vampire ang Daddy Ko for Vic and Celebrity Bluff for Jose. The production people tapped two comedians who are in comedy shows, too, but are not playing central figures, which to them is excellent because they can focus on the new show.

Sef Cadayona, an alumnus of StarStruck artista search, and Betong Sumaya, a former production assistant but was discovered to have a knack for cracking funny lines after he joined the Survivor celebrity edition, were the natural choices. The two are the new laughteam as they are called now. They will also host the show that is premiering tomorrow afternoon. Talking to Cadayona, I asked him what this show is all about. The budding comedian whom you also see every Saturday in Vampire ang Daddy Ko and every Sunday in Bubble Gang doing gags that can make anyone pass gas, said, “We have videos of scenes or events that some people may find funny. We will present them in a fresh and comedic manner. They may be presented based on their categories, as a countdown, a mash-up of different scenes, and many more. It can surely make the viewers reminisce the past and make the young generation connect with the older ones.” Betong explains in Filipino, “I am sure viewers will enjoy watching the scenes that they may have forgotten but definitely made them laugh. The younger generation can also watch these scenes. So, with us there on screen, we will try to make things wacky as they say now. “It’s going to be funny. We’ll do our best to keep the viewers glued to their television watching the show. There’s going to be lots of colors, lots of love, and lots of high-fives,” added Sef.

Sabado-badoo will air every Saturday before Pepito Manaloto on GMA

The Kapuso network has a new laughteam. Sef Cadayona and Betong Sumaya hosts ‘Sabado Badoo,’ a takeoff from social media’s #Throwback Thursday craze

★★★★★ This summer, BUM’s “Black Summer” campaign gathers all of the label’s ambassadors –Jane Oineza, Ella Cruz, Nash Aguas, Miguel Tanfelix, and Bianca Umali – who are all opinionated and expressive, especially when it comes fashion. Asked about her favorite item in the brand’s latest collection, Jane singles out the #SorryNotSorry tee because “she is fond of statement shirts.” Nash, meanwhile, is a big fan of Black Summer Graphic Sando in black and white not just because it looks good but also because it is comfortable, especially for someone like him, who is a skater. “The new collection of BUM matches the look that I want,” he says. “I’m

Sef Cadayona and Betong Sumaya host GMA’s Saturday early evening gag show Sabado Badoo!

happy that they have those kinds of clothes.” With this summer campaign, BUM has once again gathered their celebrity endorsers for a fun-filled day of shooting, sharing laughter and conversations in between shots. Since they have worked altogether for the brand’s Holiday campaign, Jane, Ella, Nash, Miguel, and Bianca are happy to be reunited with their fellow young style ambassadors. This summer season; forget about dressing up like everyone else. Be the rebel of fashion and do your own thing by going for the dark colors, statements, and designs that you really like. BUM’s 2015 summer collection is now available at BUM boutiques and leading department stores nationwide. For more information about BUM’s Black Summer, visit www. bumequipment.com.ph or follow us “@officialbumph” on Twitter, Instagram or Facebook. Continued on C7

BUM’s brand ambassadors, from let, Miguel Tanfelix, Bianca Umali, Jane Oneza, Ella Cruz, and Nash Aguas in the label’s summer collection