The Standard - 2015 March 16 - Monday

CYAN MAGENTA YELLOW BLACK VOL. XXIX NO. 32 3 Sections 32 Pages P18 MONday : MaRCH 16, 2015 www.manilastandardtoday.com editorial@thestandard.com.ph

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Facing the troops. President Benigno Aquino III stands at attention during the graduation ceremony for the 2015 “Sinaglahi” class of the Philippine Military Academy at Fort General Gregorio del Pilar in Baguio City Sunday. MalacaÑang photo

Pacman may be framed in drug test

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PAL flies to New York City

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Aquino mocks elite forces

By Florante S. Solmerin

FORT DEL PILAR— President Benigno Aquino III on Sunday took a swipe at the PNP-Special Action Force after praising a neophyte soldier here, suggesting the elite group was less than competent during the graduation rites for the PMA Class of 2015.

He bestowed the Distinguished Conduct Star on Second Lieutenant Jerson Sanchez, a member of the PMA Class of 2014, for leading his platoon in an assault on a communist encampment in Sarangani that resulted in the killing of seven rebels.

“Let me stress: Lieutenant Sanchez is a new soldier and not a member of

an elite unit,” Aquino said alluding to the PNP-SAF. “But in the short period that he has been in the service he has shown great courage and effective leadership,” Aquino added.

“It is clear to him that if he persists in pursuing the enemy, they will have second thoughts about doing operations because the soldiers guarding them are first-rate.”

But many senior officers were surprised by the award bestowed on Sanchez. They said they had been expecting recognition for the troopers that helped extricate the beleaguered SAF commandos who were on a mission to arrest the terrorist Zulkifli Abdhir alias Marwan in Mamasapano, Maguindanao on Jan. 25.

Forty-four of the commandos were killed during a firefight with Muslim rebels, and they were killed because they received no support while being surrounded by the enemy.

A report by the PNP Board of Inquiry released on March 12 said the commandos were killed apparently

because the chain of command was broken, and that Aquino broke the chain of command.

Meanwhile, the group Bagong Alyansang Makabayan said the web of lies being spun by Aquino was getting bigger and bigger after the Palace criticized the findings of the Board of Inquiry for saying Aquino, the commander in chief, broke the chain of command during the police operation in Mamasapano.

Former Police Chief and senator Panfilo Lacson also defended the BOI after presidential spokesman Edwin Lacierda said it “introduced innuendos and resorted to speculations to reach some of its conclusions.”

“The BOI was created by the Interior secretary to perform a factfinding mandate and nothing more,” Lacson said.

“In their report, did not hold anybody, much less the President, liable for any violation of the law. They simply stated the facts and evidence as they gathered them. I don’t see any

innuendos and speculations in their report.”

Aquino has put the blame on the Mamasapano debacle on sacked SAF director Getulio Napeñas, claiming his poor planning led to the carnage after the 44 commandos were waylaid by the MILF and BIFF rebels while withdrawing after neutralizing Marwan.

However, he has not explained why suspended National Police Chief Alan Purisima was part of the operation in Mamasapano when he under suspension.

The families of the 44 commandos have been demanding justice for their slain loved ones.

Meanwhile, Aquino on Sunday was all praise for Sanchez.

“We do not expect a neophyte to be an expert, and that is why Second Lieutenant Sanchez is admirable,” he said.

“It has been less than a year when he graduated, but the ability he has shown is unique.”

Sanchez led his platoon in an assault on the encampment of about

30 heavily-armed communists Datal Andas village in Alabel, Sarangani, on Feb. 16 this year.

Aquino said he wanted Sanchez to be promoted outright to first lieutenant, but the military procedures must be followed.

Meanwhile, Senate President pro tempore Ralph Recto said on Sunday that it was clear from the BOI report that Aquino should not have ordered his close friend Purisima to participate in the Mamasapano operation.

“I don’t know if you want to call it chain of command, but Purisima should not have been ordered. He has nothing to do with Oplan Exodus,” Recto said.

Justice Secretary Leila de Lima earlier said that Aquino did not break the chain of command because there is no such concept in the PNP. Senator Ferdinand Marcos Jr. had described the violation of the chain of command as the “root cause” of the lack of coordination between the police and the military. With Joyce Pangco Pañares, Dexter A. See and Macon ramos-Araneta

For the 44. Members of the 105th Special Action Force join a 10-kilometer fun run in Quezon City Sunday, which was organized by the Upsilon Sigma Phi fraternity to raise funds for the families of the 44 commandos slain last Jan. 25. ver noveno

Malacañang criticizes BOI report for implicating PNoy

By Sara D. Fabunan MALACAÑANG has questioned the Board of Inquiry report indicting President Benigno Aquino III for approving the budget for the covert operation to get the terrorist Marwan in Maguindanao and for breaking the chain of command In a statement released Saturday night, Presidential spokesman Edwin Lacierda slammed the report and said that the BOI led by director Benjamin Magalong did not send a formal request to hear the side of the President.

“The BOI in its efforts could have asked the President to clarify matters,” Lacierda said.

“The President would have an-

swered any questions they may have had. But no official request was made.

“Instead, it [the BOI] introduced innuendos and resorted to speculations to reach some of its conclusions.”

Lacierda made his statement even as Justice Secretary Leila de Lima said Sunday her department will expand its investigation of the encounter between Muslim rebels and members of the PNPSpecial Action Force that resulted in the death of 44 police commandos in Mamasapano, Maguindanao, on Jan. 25.

She said an investigating team will look into the possible liability of resigned PNP Chief Alan Purisima and SAF director Getulio Napeñas Jr. in the debacle.

Communication Secretary Hermino Coloma Jr. has said Magalong

never mentioned anything about the necessity of interviewing Aquino on the operation that resulted in the killing of the 44 police commandos.

“According to PNP spokesperson Chief Superintendent Generoso, who was present during the press briefing of the PNP-BOI and Camp Crame yesterday, and I quote, he was quoting, in turn, director Magalong: ‘Wala po siyang sinabi na kailangan pa talagang kausapin ng BOI si Pangulo’,” Coloma said.

However, although there was no necessity for Aquino to be interviewed, Coloma said, the President had already shared his account and participation on the botched mission during his previous speeches before the public.

Lacierda said that during a meeting with the President, Magalong, togeth-

er with other senior PNP officials, had all the opportunities to raise questions or seek further clarifications to Aquino, but the probers failed to do so.

“This is all the more unfortunate because the head of the BOI, together with other senior officials of the Philippine National Police, was present in a meeting with the President where Senior Superintendent Benjamin Magalong had the opportunity to ask the President questions or seek further clarifications,” Lacierda said.

“As head of the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group, Senior Superintendent Magalong should be particularly aware of the need for due process to be observed.”

Lacierda appealed to the public to separate the facts in the BOI report

from the “hastily-made conclusions and opinions.

“A case in point is the portion where the Board of Inquiry arrives at certain conclusions about the lines of authority in the Philippine National Police,” he said.

He said Aquino did not break any chain of command since, as chief executive of the country, he had “full absolute control and supervision” over every official in the PNP. The BOI may have recognized in its report that it was the President’s prerogative to issue a direct order to SAF head Getilio Napeñas but it subsequently contradicted itself when it suggested that the President should have followed the PNP chain of command. With rey e. requejo

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Court junks Dimaporo bail bid

By Vito Barcelo

THE Sandiganbayan junked the motion for bail of Lanao del Norte Rep. Abdullah Dimaporo, who was accused of malversation of public funds and falsification of public documents.

Mar’s behind it. Vice President Jejomar Binay explains his belief that Secretary Mar Roxas is persecuting him during a dialog with local officials Sunday at the Pacoy Ortega Gym in San Fernando City, La Union. Christine Junio

Binay hits Roxas again for his problems SAN FERNANDO CITY, La Union—Beleaguered Vice President Jejomar Binay told local officials and residents here that his political rival, Interior and Local Government Secretary Manuel Roxas II, was behind his troubles at the Senate and before the Ombudsman, which are both investigating allegations of corruption against him.

“My only mistake is that I declared to run for presi-

dent in 2016 too early,” Binay told media at the Ortega Sports Complex, after meeting with San Fernando City Mayor Pablo Ortega, La Union Rep. Eufranio Eriguel and his wife, Agoo Mayor Sandra Eriguel, Luna Mayor Vic Marron, and other residents.

“I thought politics was clean, but it isn’t,” he said.

Binay denied the accusations against him, and said that when he was mayor,

Makati became one of the country’s most progressive cities, a record of governance that qualifies him to be the next president.

“Mar Roxas is behind the investigations at the Senate and the Ombudsman,” he said.

Roxas ran for vice president in 2010 but lost to Binay.

The Ombudsman has ordered the Vice President’s son, Makati Mayor Jejomar

Erwin Binay Jr., suspended over the same graft allegations, but he has been holed up in the city hall in defiance of the order.

He, too, has blamed Roxas for what the Binays say is state persecution of their family.

The Vice President was set to go to Baguio City today with Valenzuela Rep. Sherwin Gatchalian and Mitos Magsaysay, who are reportedly running for the Senate in 2016. – Christine Junio

With no pending motions to decide, the antigraft court said it would proceed with Dimaporo’s arraignment.

Dimaporo is also facing a plunder charge for allegedly channeling his pork barrel to a bogus non government organization that the lawmaker created.

Justices of the Second Division said life imprisonment was the penalty prescribed for the crimes with which Dimaporo is charged, so bail cannot be granted.

Associate Justice Oscar Herrera Jr. wrote the decision. Justices Napoleon Inaturan and Rodolfo Ponferrada concurred, while Presiding Judge Teresita Diaz-Baldos and Justice Samuel Martires dissented.

The case stemmed from information filed by the Ombudsman on alleged irregularities in the allocation and use of Dimaporo’s Countrywide Development Fund (CDF) or pork barrel in 2004.

Dimaporo is facing two criminal cases for malversation of public funds and graft for allegedly setting up ghost projects valued at P5 million in 2004.

He and former provincial agriculturist Isabelo Luna and private individuals Felizardo Dragon, Evangeline Ontiveros, Rosalinda Bisenio and

Elmer Sayre are accused of conspiring to cause the release of government money for the purchase of 10,000 bags of organic fertilizer under a farm program of the Agriculture Department.

The Ombudsman indicted Dimaporo in 2013 after learning that no deliveries of fertilizer were made and that the money went to the Lanao Foundation Inc., a non-governmental organization which Dimaporo established in 1994.

Public prosecutors asked the Sandiganbayan to commit Dimaporo to the Camp Bagong Diwa detention center, instead of the hospital arrest at the Cardinal Santos Hospital where he was confined for almost two years.

Even the San Juan police, citing lack of manpower, asked the anti-graft court to transfer Dimaporo to a government detention center.

Prosecutors pointed out that while former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo was in a government hospital, Dimaporo continued to enjoy all the privileges of a moneyed patient in the private hospital.

They also cited the case of Senators Juan Ponce Enrile, Jinggoy Estrada and Ramon Revilla Jr., who were detained at the PNP Custodial Center.

No reelection for me, PNoy says By sara susanne D. Fabunan FOURTEEN months before his term ends and in the midst of his most serious political crisis, President Benigno Aquino III declared Sunday he no longer plans to seek re-election in 2016.

In a speech at the graduation rites of the Philippine Military Academy, Aquino revived the possibility of seeking a second six-year term, a move that is barred by the Constitution.

“Now that the mandate you bestowed on me in 2010 is nearing its end, more and more people have been asking with greater frequency: Who will continue the excellent progress we have begun when I step down from office? There are even some who have suggested to me: Why don’t you do it again?” he said.

But Aquino said that while there would be benefits to his

continuing to govern, it would set a bad precedent for his successor, who might be encouraged to seek to be president for life.

“There may come a time, after I step down from office, when the person who replaces me may think that he can remain in power for the rest of his life,” the President said in Filipino.

Last year, Aquino hinted in a TV interview that he may try to amend the Constitution to allow him to serve a second term so that he could continue his reform program, but his remarks drew a firestorm of criticism.

Now buffeted by calls for his resignation over the botched Mamasapano operation in which 44 police commandos were killed, Aquino said his administration has “achieved so much on the straight and righteous path.”

In his speech, Aquino focused on past crises and said

he had remained level-headed and rational in its decisionmaking.

“We will not stray from our vow to promote the common interest, especially of those most in need,” Aquino said.

“Not to be self-indulgent, but at this stage, we can truly say that our country’s situation is much better than we found it. We cleaned up the bureaucracy, pursued the corrupt, revitalized the economy, and opened new doors of opportunity for our countrymen,” he said.

Aquino’s popularity ratings have begun to slide, however, particularly over his perceived mishandling of the covert Mamasapano operation and its aftermath.

The President did not touch on the topic, but warned his critics and those who would oppose reforms that the administration would go after them with the full force of the law.

road race. Two boys take advantage of Manila’s traffic-free streets on Sunday by racing their bicycle on a public road. ey aCasio

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Spontaneous fires. Forest fires rage on Mt. Santo Tomas in the Amliang watershed in Tuba, Benguet. Record-level heat has been causing fires on the mountain. DAviD C. LeProzo Jr.

‘Verify Jeane Napoles sightings’ By rey e. requejo

Petilla watching power situation

By Alena Mae S. Flores eNeRGy Secretary Carlos Jericho Petilla is closely monitoring the power supply in Luzon during the shutdown for maintenance of the Malampaya oil and gas fields off Palawan which began on Sunday and will last until April 13.

Since last year, the Department of energy has been regularly holding meetings with the power industry and the Malampaya operator for purposes of coordination.

The department is optimistic about the power condition during the shutdown despite forecasts that show thin power reserves during the period.

“For as long as [other] power plants do not go on unplanned or forced outage, we should be okay. Otherwise, we will experience intermittent disturbances during the time when plants on forced outage are down,” Petilla said in a statement. he said the intermittent power disturbances would only cover the days when these power plants are down and not for the entire dry season.

Part of the preparations also include a campaign for energy efficiency and conservation.

The department is urging the public to turn the thermostat of cooling systems to 25 degrees Celsius, particularly during the peak demand hours of 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Recently, the department released a memorandum addressed to all its attached agencies to wear casual clothes and “cool attire” during the hot months.

The department hopes this initiative will be replicated in all public and private offices.

Apart from energy efficiency, the department heavily promotes and invites prospective participants to join the Interruptible Load Program.

The Manila electric Co. has already had two dry runs to test the operational efficiency of the system.

“With all efforts geared towards the safeguarding of the sufficiency of the power supply for Luzon, the DOe anticipates that there will be a normal power situation and that there will be no major power interruptions in the region during the summer season,” it said.

Justice secretary Leila de Lima yesterday ordered the National Bureau of investigation to verify reports that Jeane Napoles, daughter of alleged pork barrel scam mastermind Janet Lim Napoles, has returned to the Philippines.

De Lima issued the directive after reports indicated that Jeane was seen dining at a five-star hotel in Pasay City with her father and siblings last Thursday.

De Lima said records of the Bureau of Immigration, which is under her office’s administrative supervision, would also be checked.

The younger Napoles, who is studying in California, is facing a

P32.06-million tax evasion case before the Court of Tax Appeals after being indicted by the DOJ in September last year.

De Lima said the NBI would also check on status of the tax evasion case to check if a warrant of arrest has already been issued against Jeane Napoles.

Bruce Rivera, lawyer of the Napoles family, has refused to comment on the reported

sightings of Jeane.

The younger Napoles was earlier charged in court by the DOJ for violation of the National Internal Revenue Code for the years 2011 and 2012.

After a preliminary investigation, the DOJ found that Jeane was able to acquire a condominium unit at the Ritz Carlton in Los Angeles, California worth P54.73 million; and has a share, equivalent to P1.49 million, in a Pangasinan property purchased in 2012.

Prosecutors said an analysis of the evidence showed there is probable cause to charge Jeane for violation of Sections 254 and 255 of the National Internal Revenue Code of 1997.

The two sections pertain

to attempts to evade or defeat tax, and failure to supply correct and accurate information, pay tax, withhold and remit tax and refund excess taxes withheld on compensation.

Jeane Napoles did not file any income tax return in 2011 and 2012. There were also no records of returns filed that will prove that the properties were gifts to her.

The younger Napoles became controversial after photos in her social media accounts showed a lavish lifestyle, including expensive cars she supposedly received from her parents for her birthday, debut and graduation from college, as well as luxurious watches, jewelry, clothing and shoes.

PH to purchase 3 Spanish military transport planes

Dancing throng. As part of the celebrations of

Women’s Month, an estimated 26,000 residents of Mandaluyong City gathered to join the All-Women’s Aero Dance 2015, whose organizers are seeking entry into the Guiness Book of World Records for the most number of simultaneous dancers. MAnny PALMero

The Philippines will buy three new transport planes from Spain to strengthen its poorly equipped military in handling external threats and natural disasters, the military spokesman said Sunday.

The first of the three C295 planes will be delivered this month in a deal costing a total of 5.29 billion pesos ($119 million), said Brig. Gen. Joselito Kakilala.

“One will be delivered by the end of this month... for hADR [humanitarian assistance and disaster relief], military transport and other [uses],” he said.

The C295 is a twin-turboprop aircraft capable of carrying up to nine tons or 71 soldiers, using short, unprepared airstrips according to the Web

site of the manufacturer, the Airbus Defense and Space arm.

The Philippines, which has one of the region’s weakest militaries, has been trying to modernize its armed forces amid growing tensions with China over disputed territory in the South China Sea. Last year, it signed an agreement to buy 12 South Koreanmade FA-50 jets for about $421.12 million.

The country also suffers from frequent national disasters.

Disasters such as supertyphoon haiyan, which killed more than 7,350 people and ravaged an area as big as Portugal in November 2013, have frequently required the mass transport of relief goods and personnel to different parts of the archipelago. AFP

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Govt troops take over BIFF camp govErnMEnT forces, mostly members of the Marines, have overrun a two-kilometer fortified trenches of the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters BIFF) after a series of close-quarter battles Sunday morning in Shariff Saydona Mustapha, Maguindanao. camp aguinaldo said the fierce skirmishes started at around 10 a.m. in the boundary of Barangay Pusao and Barangay Tina that lasted for 15 minutes.

The military said BIFF elements together with some followers of abdul Basit Usman suffered undetermined number of casualties and left behind an M79 grenade launcher.

There was no reported casualty on the government side.

“The troops overran a large encampment at Barangay Pusao. It has fortified trenches as long as 2 kilometers with concrete overhead bunkers. These trenches are parallel to the irrigation dike with road pathway that can accommodate one vehicle,” a military commander in the area said.

The ground commander asked not be identified as pursuit operations were ongoing. citing personal; accounts of civilians in the area, the commander said the BIFF and their terrorist allies call their camp al-Khalifa Islamiya. Florante Solmerin

Storm Bavi threatens

TroPIcal storm Bavi hovering over the Pacific ocean is forecast to enter the Philippine area of responsibility tomorrow, according to the Philippine atmospheric, geophysical and astronomical Services administration. aldczar aurelo, Pagasa forecaster, said Bavi once inside Par, will be named “Betty,” the second typhoon to hit the country for the year.

Packing maximum sustained winds of 85 kilometers near the center and gustiness of up to 100 kph, Bavi was estimated at 2,780 kilometers east of Bicol.

The storm was moving west northwest at 30 kph, but was still too far to affect the country, aurelio said.

But a ridge of a high pressure area is affecting north luzon and triggering a generally fair weather condition in many parts of the country in the next two to three days, he noted. RIO Arajaj

The Philippine National Railways, which has a new lease on life, has to be revitalized with fresh capital to keep it running profitably and curb its losses, according to Ejercito’s proposal.

‘More trips, more losses’ PNR needs upgrading, says senator

By Macon Araneta

SENATOR Joseph Victor G. Ejercito has filed a bill seeking to revitalize and upgrade the operations of the Philippine National Railways by way of revising certain provisions of its charter.

While the Pnr’s corporate life was extended for another 50 years on June 16, 2014, Ejercito said it continues to run a “loss-leader” operation, which means the more trips the train runs, the more losses it incur.

He attributed his situation to Pnr’s purely manual operations and its aged and obsolete train system, equipment and facilities.

These have been resulting in poor operating potentials and high

leakage rate, the senator said.

For the first half of 2014, the senator noted the Pnr incurred P85,464,170.00 cash deficit which translated to a monthly loss of P13,244,028.00 while transporting 12,240,498 passengers on its Tutuban to Sta. rosa/Mamatic commuter line and naga/Sipocot commuter line.

Ejercito’s measure under Senate Bill 2690 also adopted the 8-point proposed amendments

to the Pnr charter as enunciated in Board resolution no.

065-2014. The amendments include increase in the authorized capital stock to P50 billion, allowing the Pnr to enter into a joint venture with qualified private sector partner that will provide the operation & maintenance, and reaffirming Pnr’s tax exemption, amending the allowable term of the general manager to 6 years.

His measure also provides that all loans, credits, and indebtedness contracted by the Pnr in local currency are to be guaranteed unconditionally by the government and that the Pnr be granted the power and authority to deputize/obligate lgU’s to enforce and imple-

ment the restoration of its right of way.

Ejercito is the chairman of the committee on Public Services sub-committee on Transportation and an advocate of mass transportation in the country.

He, together with other lawmakers, labor and partylist groups, earlier filed a petition in the Supreme court seeking a Temporary restraining order (Tro) against Metro rail Transit (MrT) and light rail Transit (lrT) fare hike.

He stressed that the Pnr should not pass the burden on the commuting public due to the failure of the Department of Transportation and communication (DoTc) to do its homework.

Palace sees trade surplus after 20 years

By Joyce Pangco Pañares Malacañang says the country may post its first annual trade surplus in close to two decades on the back of robust exports and lower global price of oil.

“We expect a continuous improvement in our trade balance. There are indications that there may be a trade surplus for the first time in 20 years because of our high volume of exports and low price of oil in the global market,” communications Secretary Sonny coloma said on Sunday. coloma said this was despite an earlier forecast by the Department of Trade and Industry that exports could slow down in the first half of 2015 because of the weakening of currencies of trading partners such as Japan and the European Union.

He said the Philippine economy is also expected to benefit from the downward movement of oil prices.

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“according to the DTI, our gross domestic product may reach 8 percent if the price of crude oil remains lower than $60 per barrel,” coloma added.

Balance of trade is the difference between the value of exports and value of imports. a country has a trade surplus if it exports more than it imports.

Data from the Philippine Statistics authority showed the country posted its last trade surplus in 2000 at $3.587 billion. last year, export revenues grew 9 percent to $61.81 billion, surpassing the government’s 6 percent target.

For 2014, the country’s trade deficit also narrowed to $2.1 billion or less than half the shortfall of $5.7 billion in 2013.

“President Benigno aquino III is determined to further strengthened the country’s economy to uplift the welfare of our people through good governance and better macroeconomic fundamentals,” coloma added.

Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office Vice-Chairman and General Manager lawyer Jose Ferdinand M. Rojas II (second from right) visited on Mar. 13 pediatric biliary atresia patient Armand Gabriel Fulgencio (center), who underwent a successful liver transplant recently at the Medical City Hospital in Mandaluyong City. PCSO extended P1.5 million in financial assistance for the four-year-old child’s operation. Parents Armand and Eleonila Fulgencio (left) thanked Rojas and the charity agency for the assistance. At right is Medical City transplant team head Dr. Vanessa De Villa. JOSEPH MUEGO

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New recuits. Fire volunteers from Manila go through their first training in line with the Bureau of Fire Protection’s month- long fire prevention awareness campaign. EY ACASIO

Comelec junks TRO vs recall

By Orlan L. Mauricio

MALOLOS CITY—The Commission on Election En Banc has trashed the Temporary Restraining Order issued by Bulacan Regional Trial Court-Branch 83 Judge Guillermo P. Agloro stopping the validation of signatures and thumb marks of some 319, 707 petitioners in connection with the recall proceedings against Bulacan Gov. Wilhelmino SyAlvarado.

The Comelec resolution also addressed concerns raised by acting Provincial Election Supervisor Jerbee Anthony Cortez regarding the lack of personnel and teachers to perform the scheduled validation and verification procedures required to meet the tight deadline of the recall elec-

tions.

The Comelec also moved the scheduled validation of signatures from March 9-23 to March 14 to 28.

It ordered the investigation of relieved Bulacan PES Elmo T. Duque for possible filing of charges for allegedly delaying the recall proceedings.

Elections Officers (EO) from the four districts of Bulacan said that none of the 107 Validation Centers (VC) that was proposed

by PES Cortez have commenced the verification of signatures and thumb marks, a mandatory requirement pursuant to Comelec Resolution 7505.

In a separate Order issued last March 10, Comelec Chairman Christian Robert S. Lim also ordered Judge Agloro to comment on the petition of former provincial administrator Perlita Mendoza to cite the RTC judge and Alvarado for “indirect contempt for wilfully, maliciously and unlawfully interfering with the processes of the Commission en banc.”

Lawyer Bernadette Serdillo, counsel of Men-

doza, earlier argued before the issuance of the TRO that the RTC has no jurisdiction over the recall proceedings as the Supreme Court on February 16 has also spoken and dismissed the petition for a TRO earlier filed by Alvarado before the high tribunal.

Judge Agloro and Alvarado were ordered to appear before the Commission En Banc on March 25.

Provincial Attorney Jeff Cruz, however, said they are confident that the TRO issued by the Court has a strong legal basis to stand on. The TRO zeroed in on the defect and legal infirmity when Mendoza herself caused the publication of the ‘Petition for Recall’ in the newspapers Tribune and Rekta, a task which the Bulacan PES should have

performed under the law.

As this developed, Joe Villanueva, convenor of Philippine Crusade for Justice (PCJ) which is closely monitoring the recall proceedings, is asking the commission to put under Comelec control the entire province to ensure peace and order in the implementation of the recall proceedings amid tension brought about by the contradictory orders of the RTC and the Comelec.

PCJ cited reports that some of the signatories, who are beneficiaries of the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program, in the recall petition are being harassed to disown their signatures or face cancellation of the money they are receiving from the Department of Social Welfare and Development.

Vizcaya duns Aussie firm over unpaid taxes

By Brenda Jocson BAYOMBONG—The provincial government of Nueva Viscaya has slammed an Australian mining company for its alleged refusal to settle its local tax obligations.

Gov. Ruth Padilla expressed dismay over the failure of Melbournebased OceanaGold operating in Didipio, Kasibu town to honor its commitment to the province.

“This is unfair, unjust and a disrespect to our authority as local government units. They did not keep their promise as they have been telling us when they were still pleading for their business permits from local government units,” Padilla said during

the launching of the province’s Environment Code.

In 2013, OceanaGold Philippines, Inc. paid its excise tax amounting to P70 million but filed an interpleader case before the Regional Trail Court in Makati City.

OceanaGold officials said they filed a case seeking a court order to determine which province Oceana Gold should legally pay its tax obligations.

The provinces of Nueva Vizcaya and Quirino are both claiming local taxes from OceanaGold. The two provinces have a standing boundary dispute over the area in Didipio village where OceanaGold is conducting its gold and copper project.

With the interpleader case,

OceanaGold’s tax payment has been frozen by the RTC pending the settlement of the boundary dispute.

“It would have helped both provinces if OceanaGold earlier filed its interpleader case before the start of their project instead of doing it in the middle of its operations,” Padilla lamented.

She said OceanaGold’s legal action shows their disrespect and a runaround betraying the trust of local officials and the people of Nueva Vizcaya.

“This is unthinkable because our province has not benefited, not even with road developments which the company has promised. Our present situation is contrary to what we have ex-

pected,” Padilla said.

Earlier, Oceana Gold (Philippines) Inc. said it was paying in full its tax obligations to Nueva Vizcaya and to all other government entities.

Bradley Norman, OceanaGold country director, clarified a report published by a Manila-based daily that OceanaGold had an unsettled obligation with Nueva Vizcaya.

“The misimpression that OceanaGold is remiss in the payment of real property taxes arises from the fact that the issue of where to pay them is currently uncertain and is yet to be decided by the court,” Norman said in an article that was carried by the MST Online edition on January 13, 2015.

Zambales emulates Pangasinan on health practices L I NGAY E N—Hea lt h officials and department heads of the provincial government of Zambales have expressed interest in adopting the best practices of Pangasinan in hospital management and health care services.

Dr. Noel C. Bueno, Provincial Health Officer II of Zambales expressed this intent during a courtesy call on Pangasinan Governor Amado T. Espino Jr recently.

Bueno, together with Chiefs of Hospitals Eduardo Passi (Candelaria District Hospital) and Nicolas Guiang (San Marcelino District Hospital), who are both Pangasinense, lauded the Espino administration for integrating innovations and reforms in the 14 hospitals managed by the provincial government.

Ramon Morden, who welcomed the delegation from Zambales, told the health officials of Zambales on the “Point of Care” program that Pangasinan has implemented in partnership with the PhilHealth.

Dexter A. See

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news

editorial@thestandard.com.ph

Villagers scoff at pro-MILF branding

By A.Perez Rimando

FOREIGN TUNA buyers from member-countries of the European Union view the 80-kilo yellow-fin tuna caught by Mamburao fishermen from Mindoro Strait. ROBERT A. EVORA

Mamburao tuna festival ushers in Lenten season

By Robert A. Evora

MAMBURAO, Occidental Mindoro—“Feast on fish this Lenten season,” a reminder from the government’s Food and Nutrition Research Institute said.

The Philippines’ devout Catholics observe the religious tradition of Lent with fasting or the denial of one’s lavish lifestyle and extravagant spending. It also includes the sacrifice or abstaining from eating meat.

Abstaining from eating meat, like pork, chicken, and red meat, and substituting it with fish is not at the expense of nutrient content.

Fish caught from the sea is considered by many as the healthiest food.

“Eating fish may help lower risk for stroke, heart disease, cognitive decline, cancer, eye disease and mood problems due to the omega-3 fats they contain,” the FNRI said This is the season that reminds the Filipino people to participate in and commemorate the sufferings and sacrifices Christ endured while hanging on the Cross in Golgotha.

This is one of the reasons why the islanders of Mamburao, the provincial capital town, held a simple celebration over the weekend of “Tuna Tonelada Festival,” a mixed showcase of faith and a fledgling but thriving tuna industry in this part of the Southern Tagalog.

Townsfolk, most of them fishermen, joined tuna-cooking and eating events, mardi gras, and street dancing as part of the festivies. Participants came from Mamburao’s several fishing villages.

Mamburao Mayor Voltaire Anthony C. Villarosa, 44, told newsmen that he initiated four years ago the

annual celebration of the festival to promote the newfound livelihood of his people.

“Although it coincides with the observance of the Holy Season, the fish festival also focuses on the town’s emerging sustainable tuna fishing industry that has found a global market in Europe and elsewhere in the VILLAROSA world,” Villarosa said.

Mayor Villarosa initiated the holding of the Tuna Tonelada Festival every full moon of March 7 every year to give chance to tuna fishermen to be recognized as major contributors to local economy.

Fisherfolk and their families participate in the town parade with their yellow-fin tunas on floats.

By tradition, fishermen do not set sail to sea during full moons.

Fish are few and scattered all over the ocean because they are attracted by the bright moonlight.

“Yellow-fin tunas, so with the other fish species, are attracted by the light of the full moon, the reason why they are hardly caught,” explains Christopher Mauhay, 37, of Bgy. Tayamaan.

“Fishermen have a better and lucrative catch of yellow-fins during “tagdilim” (dark nights) or new moons. The fish gather together in

schools under fish aggregating devices (FAD) or “payaw.”

School of yellow-fin tuna gather together under the “payaw” to feed and seek shelter (kanlungan).

“They are attracted by bright artificial lights beamed from the fishermen’s boats the reason they are easily caught. Kung tag-bilog po ang buwan (full moon), sila ay wala sa ilalim ng payaw kaya mahirap hulihin,” Mauhay added.

“You can actually catch it anytime of the year,” Villarosa said.

The Mindoro Strait covering Occidental Mindoro is part of the West Philippine Sea. Mindoro Strait, according to the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) and the government’s Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR), is a “tuna highway” or the “natural pathway of various tuna species,” including the popular yellow-fin tuna, a gastronomic delight among European and Japanese fish eaters.

Investors from member-countries of the European Union visited Mamburao earlier this year to see for themselves how the yellow-fins are caught and processed.

“Europeans dislike tuna caught by pursein nets because they are damaged and do not taste well.

They like our yellow fins caught here in Mamburao because of its high-quality. Our fisherfolk harvest them through the traditional use of ‘kawil’ or the handline method,” the mayor said.

Mamburao, a second class mu-

nicipality, is the first local government unit in the Philippines to export handline-caught yellow fins to EU member-countries, such as Switzerland, London or the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, and Norway, he said.

As a top producer of rice in the Southern Tagalog region, Occidental Mindoro also thrives on its fishing industry. Out of the province’s eleven coastal municipalities, only five of them, Mamburao, Sablayan, Paluan, Sta. Cruz and Rizal, have “prevalent tuna handline fishing industry.”

Out of the five tuna producers, the WWF and the BFAR singled out Mamburao and Sablayan as the “gateways for tuna landing and trading.” This is so because Mamburao has 636 tuna handline fishermen while Sablayan has 917.

“The reason why Mindoro Strait is identified as a tuna highway because it lies in the natural path of three productive seas, namely, the West Philippine Sea, Sulu Sea, and the Verde Island Passage,” explains Mayor Villarosa during the recent Tuna Partnership Forum attended

by EU foreign investors, WWF, and LGU Mamburao.

The stakeholders, including fishermen, signed a covenant under the theme: “For An Improved Fishery, I Support Tuna Sustainability.”

Mamburao, as the epicentre of tuna production in Occidental Mindoro through sustainable management, is the primary source of yellow-fins being exported to member-countries of the European Union because it is caught by handlines.

Jhoann Binondo, WWF-Philippines project manager, said by 2015, the fishery will enter into the Maritime Stewardship Council (MSC) certification process which aims to reach MSC certification in 2017.

ZAMBOANGA CITY, Zamboanga Sibugay—Barangay leaders and concerned residents of Santa Catalina this city have strongly objected to their Muslim-Christian populated village being branded by the Office of Presidential Advisers on the Peace Process (OPAPP) as a “Moro Islamic Liberation Front community.”

They expressed their adverse reaction through a resolution passed by Santa Catalina Sangguniang Pambarangay headed by village chairman Jimmy B. Villaflores, a former mediaman.

Villaflores said his area was tagged as “MILF community” by OPAPP member Senen Bacani in his recent letter sent to City Mayor Ma. Isabelle Climaco-Salazar based allegedly on its earlier panel survey.

Bacani’s letter reportedly cited the so-called Sajahaira Bangsamoro Program’s (SBP) alleged “commitment to deliver health, education and livelihood services to priority MILF communities and targeted individual beneficiaries reportedly signed by President Aquino and MILF Chairman Murad Ibrahim, said Villaflores who denied the conduct of a barangaywide survey indicating his co-residents alleged acceptance of the branding.

Basilan turns 14 ISABELA CITY—The island province of Basilan marked its 14th founding anniversary which was preceded by week-long activities with native Yakans, and Christians and Tausug settlers taking part.

Gov. Jum Akbar said the celebration, focused on the theme “Many Cultures, One Basilan—Diverse Tribes in Harmony, Moving Forward with One Goal”, was joined by thousands of residents from 10 municipalities at the capitol grounds in this capital city.

Akbar said the turtle-shaped province, where the Abu Sayyaf Group is based, was originally an island city headed by the late mayor Leroy Brown. It was created in early 1992 through a legislative measure authored by then Congressman Juan Alano.

The occasion was ushered in by week-long activities including an agro-industrial fair which displayed the area’s prominent local farm, marine and trade products as well as traditional events such as cultural presentation and civic-military parade of local government officials, employees, educators and students, police and military personnel, and leaders of non-government organizations.

A. Perez Rimando

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opinion [ EDI TORI A L ]

Liar-in-chief FOR several weeks now, the Palace has urged the public to withhold judgment and simply wait for the police board of inquiry to release its report on the covert Mamasapano operation in which 44 police commandos were killed.

That day arrived last week, and the board’s conclusions differ dramatically from the “personal observations” and “general overview” offered by President Aquino, who has used his bully pulpit to pin all the blame on sacked Special Action Force (SAF) commander Getulio Napeñas and to absolve himself of all blame.

Among the police board’s conclusions: 1. The President gave the go-signal and allowed the execution of Operation exodus, which was presented to him by Napeñas.

2. The President allowed the participation of suspended national police chief Alan Purisima in the planning and execution of the operation despite the suspension order of the Ombudsman.

3. The President dealt directly with Napeñas instead of the Philippine National Police (PNP) OIC Leonardo espina. This bypassed the established PNP chain of command.

4. Purisima violated the preventive suspension order issued by the Ombudsman when he participated in the planning and execution of Operation exodus. He also violated an order from espina directing him to cease performing the duties and functions of his office, until his case is settled.

5. While the President ordered Napeñas and Purisima to coordinate with the Armed Forces, Purisima told Napeñas that he would take care of this, and did not.

While the police board did not explicitly state it, the President’s role in the Mamasapano mess was much more serious than a generalized notion of command responsibility as the country’s commanderin-chief.

His decision to entrust the covert operation to his close friend, the suspended PNP chief, directly led to the lack of coordination with the Armed Forces that was to have a deadly consequence for the 44 police commandos who waited for hours in vain for reinforcements and artillery support that could have saved their lives.

Compounding his poor judgment, the President tried to cover up his role in the two months after the Mamasapano massacre, offering us one lie after another.

Purisima, he first told us, was merely “consulted” and only until his suspension came into effect in December. We now know this to be an utter lie, and that the President was issuing orders to Purisma even in January.

In his speech before his Christian supporters, the President again lied, saying that Napeñas acted on his own, and that he alone was responsible for the tragic loss of lives during the operation.

The President’s allies are lying too, offering various untruths to shield Mr. Aquino from the consequences of his foolish and ultimately deadly decision to put his disgraced friend in charge of the covert operation. His Palace lackeys now insist there was no chain of command in the PNP to violate, because the organization is civilian, not military. This parsing of words fools nobody.

Through the screen of lies, we can all discern that the Mr. Aquino short-circuited the established system with disastrous results.

There is a legal maxim falsus in uno, falsus in omnibus, which means false in one thing, false in everything. The principle suggests that a witness who willfully falsifies one matter is not credible on any matter. Certainly, Mr. Aquino’s record of lying to save his own skin is extensive enough to suggest that anything he says is suspect.

What other lies has Mr. Aquino fed us? towards the end of its conclusions, the police board says that artillery support from the 6th Infantry Division of the Army was not delivered because its commander “considered the ongoing peace process and protocols in the use of artillery.”

Did these considerations spring from an order from the Palace to stand down while the SAF commandos were being slaughtered, in deference to the peace process? The Palace insists there was no such order, but how can we now trust the word of its liar-in-chief?

Talking abouT one’s legacy pensées fr. ranhiLiO caLLangan aquinO LISteNING to presidential speeches, particularly of this president, is not usually one of my preferred activities, but my mom was waiting for lunch by surfing tV channels. There were three channels that carried PNoy’s address to PMA’s graduating class, and so I listened in. It is not difficult to tell the difference between a message from the heart and

reading out a script. The Queen of england addresses Parliament by reading a speech prepared for her by the government. One knows that no matter how useful it may be for policy, it is not from the heart. except when he hurls his vitriol at critics and diatribes at his enemies, it is almost always reading from a script in the case of PNoy. Most of what he said is, as usual, utterly forgettable, but much of it was intriguing, to put it more kindly. (Annoying would be more like it!) He reminded his audience that his term was com-

ing to an end, and he wondered aloud about who would take his place and capably bring to fruition what he had commenced?

I was aghast. Was he cracking a joke? It was obvious that he was deadly serious, and even if it was on his prepared speech, out of a becoming sense of modesty and the humbling realization that there was not much to crow about, he could have deleted those irksome portions written there by an obviously jaundiced speech-writer. Alas, it will take a direct intervention of the Divine Spirit to infuse modesty into the present administration!

“Initium disputandi, definitio nominum...Before discussing, define your terms”, a salutary precept of classical rhetoric. The

certainly, this state of affairs is not one any decent filipino would like to perpetuate!

trouble with PNoy’s challenge about his ‘legacy’ is that we do not know what the word means exactly for him and how we should take it. The much maligned Gloria Macapagal Arroyo left PNoy’s administration a legacy—the economic gains that most foreign Philippine watchers have attrib-

uted to the foresight of the predecessor he has made his prisoner.

In his case, from the embarrassment of the Luneta hostage crisis to the tragedy of Mamasapano, and a string of reversals before the Supreme Court that included clear judicial findings of funds misappropriated and misspent, that should not be too difficult a ‘legacy’ to bring to its ultimate extent, God forbid! Is he referring perhaps to the numerous cases filed against his predecessor and his political adversaries? But if we are to heal as a nation then the vendetta that takes on the guise of legal process must stop.

Matters get even worse when one goes over newspaper archives to collate the reports on how quick Malacanan has always been to ab-

M O N D AY : M A R c h 1 6 , 2 0 1 5

opinion lettertotheeditor@thestandard.com.ph

ADELLE chuA eDiTOr

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pLumbLine pasTOr apOLLO quibOLOy

The BOI repOrT

solve the President’s men (and women) when any are implicated or so much as named in scams and scandals of which we certainly have had no shortage these past five years!

But I do not blame the President for what is obviously a seriously skewed perception of things. At the same time, we should learn from this problem of presidential optics what we need from the next president. He or she should be one who is capable of breaking through barriers, as courageously as Pope Francis has. A

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president who does not decide after having been importuned by those who surround him would be a great president. A president who heeds criticism, leaves the press and the media free of sequestration, who turns to the counsel of the wise and shuns the company of the foolish would be a president capable of leaving a truly worthwhile legacy.

On the grounds of Fort del Pilar, before the young officers of the Armed Forces of the Philippines, the President continued musing, sharing us his vision from terri-

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bly distorted lenses. Should he not continue on so that he may truly bring his aspirations for the nation to pass? And the obvious retort should be: What were the five years you have spent in office thus far for? It is even wrong to raise the possibility of what the Constitution itself forbids, for that is nothing less than saying that among one’s options is that of violating the fundamental law of the land. A truth commission, Malacanan had vigorously maintained, was not necessary, as the Continued on A11

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tHe Board of Inquiry’s 130-page report on the Mamasapano operations makes for a thrilling read.

What makes it riveting is the concise way it is written, the attention to detail, and the linear narration, which makes the events, from the tabletop planning to the late firing of phosphorous rounds, easy to follow.

Initially, I expected a report which would read like a police blotter full of truncated sentences. I was wrong.

If you read the portion on how the commandos half-swam, half-crawled their way to the targets, you would feel your feet sinking on a muddy ground.

The report is packed with details, and the writers let the facts they unearthed speak for themselves, which rendered the need to go overboard or editorialize unnecessary.

If police efforts to catch criminals were as half as good as the way this report was prepared, then crime charts wouldn’t be painting a bad picture.

The BOI report covered all bases. While it fleetingly touched on some, it stomped hard on others.

Nobody was spared—from the President who broke the chain of command, to a suspended police chief who exercised command, to the ground commander who from time to time lost his ability to command, to the rebel leaders , whose ceasefire call was ignored by their own men, who were never in command after at all.

Some say that the BOI leaned hard on others, like Napenas, but poked others with a feathery touch, like the Cabinet men who’d been told of the crisis-in-progress just after sunrise.

It might have minced in its words on some aspects, and went the whole nine yards on some.

But that is the way the report should be appreciated. While comprehensive in scope, it still needs to be read between the lines.

And that is the BOI report’s other strength : It shows other unexplored areas which have to be probed.

Right off the bat, the BOI admits that it lacked the time, the resources, and the cooperation of important actors to come up with a report more comprehensive than what they’ve cobbled together within the restrictive one month timetable they’ve been given.

There are large swaths of the report which need to be elaborated, and if the Senate report would do just that, then it has the BOI to thank for showing the way.

For example, the dynamics of the MILF paralysis, when the ceasefire order its central command allegedly issued early on Continued on A11 Rolando G. Estabillo Publisher Rolando G. Jojo Estabillo Publisher A. Robles Editor-in-Chief Jojo A.L.Robles Editor-in-Chief Ramonchito Tomeldan Managing Editor Ramonchito L. Tomeldan Managing Editor Chin Wong/Ray S. Eñano Associate Editors Chin Wong/RayJoel S. Eñano Associate Editors P. Palacios News Editor Francis Lagniton CityCity Editor Francis Lagniton Editor Arman Armero Senior Deskman Arman Armero Senior Deskman Romel J. Mendez Art Director Leo A. Estonilo Senior Deskman Roberto Cabrera Chief Romel J. Mendez ArtPhotographer Director Roberto Cabrera Chief Photographer

MONDAY: MARCH 16, 2015

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OPINION lettertotheeditor@thestandard.com.ph

THE MAMASAPANO REPORT (PART 1)

I INITIALLY thought I was lucky to have been able to RITA LINDA access a copy of the V. JIMENO lengthy summary of the 121-page Mamasapano Report. But sometimes ignorance can be bliss. Reading it turned out to be a tough act as I could not help being overcome with strong feelings of regret, sadness and anger for the loss of the lives of the 44 SAF 44 commandos. The tragedy could have been averted had there been a more adequate analysis of the area of operation, an understanding of the character of the various rebel groups inhabiting the area, better planning, efficient coordination, support in artillery and better communication equipment. And, lest I miss it, had there been a better state of leadership in the mission to arrest high value targets such as terrorist.

I will resist making my own conclusions any further. I will be presenting in two installments in this column excerpts and the most salient findings of the Mamasapano Report and leave you to form your own opinion.

• Based on the report, Oplan Exodus was approved by President Benigno S. Aquino and implemented by suspended Chief PNP Purisima and the Director of SAF Getulio Napeñas. The goal was to neutralize high value targets who were international terrorists, namely: Zhulkifli Bin Hir/ Zulkifli Abhir (Marwan), Ahmad Akmad Batabol Usman (Usman), and Amin Baco (Jihad).

• Napeñas and Purisima ignored the established PNP Chain of Command by excluding OIC-PNP Espina in the planning and execution of Oplan Exodus. Napeñas and Purisima also failed to inform the Secretary of the Interior and Local Government, Mar Roxas, about Oplan Exodus, and made no prior coordination with the AFP. • The participation of suspended PNP Chief Purisima in Oplan Exodus was carried out with the knowledge of the President. Purisima and Napeñas met with the President several times and communicated with him via SMS regarding the execution of Oplan Exodus on January 25, 2015.

• Purisima failed to deliver his assurance that he would coordinate with the AFP. At a crucial stage in the crisis, Purisima provided inaccurate information from an unofficial source, which further jeopardized the situation of the 55th SAC and 84th Seaborne in Mamasapano.

• Napeñas chose to employ a “way-in/way-out, by foot and night-only” infiltration and exfiltration concept of operation. He admitted that key variables for the success of Oplan Exodus, such as the coordination with the Sixth Infantry Division of the AFP, the Coordinating Committee on the Cessation of Hostilities and the Ad Hoc Joint Action Group were not thoroughly considered in the mission planning. The established protocols and Standard Operating Procedures of the AFP, the Committee on the Cessation of Hostilities and the Ad Hoc Joint Action Group in providing reinforcement and effecting ceasefire were not sufficiently discussed.

OUT OF THE BOX

A GRACE-FUL EXIT IT WAS exactly one month and ten days sine she bowed out ADELLE as chairperson of CHUA the Commission on Audit. On that Thursday afternoon, Maria Gracia Pulido Tan was upbeat and candid, talking about her stint in government at the Integrity Initiative forum organized by the Makati Business Club and the European Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines.

She denied that her legacy at the COA consisted solely of the special audit reports they produced on the Priority Development Assistance Funds.

These reports called attention to certain practices in what is now known as the pork barrel scam and eventually helped send three senators and other lower level officials to prison.

No, Pulido Tan said. What she considers her legacy at the commission after a stint of three years and nine months are the empowering thoughts she hopes she has imparted to its men and women. “I came to do my job for a fixed period of time; I had no other agenda. I simply wanted to have a COA that our Constitution meant to be, with people who are not blinded nor intimidated by anyone.”

During her time, there were numerous administrative investigations initiated against COA’s own personnel.

She also sought to do away with the practice of relying on endorsements for appointments and promotions. “There were quite a number of lawmakers who were angry that we did not accommodate their requests.”

But Pulido Tan was firm: “We should not rely on endorsements; we should stand on our own merits. Who else would be aware of our capacities but we ourselves?”

These days, the former COA chair tends to her garden, dotes on her grandchild, and does all the things she has always wanted to do but did not have the time for, before. These, and attending forums such as the one by Integrity Initiative, sharing her thoughts on what ail us as a nation and how we could do our part to help make it better.

Among Pulido Tan’s thoughts, both on the commission and for the country in general, are: On the residency system—and COA’ logistical

CHASING HAPPY

limitations. One of the things Pulido Tan finds most objectionable in the commission is the residency system -- auditors staying in the premises of the agencies being audited and eventually developing relationships with people from that agency. It’s easy to say this practice must be stopped because it compromises the integrity of the auditors.

The reality on the ground however is that the commission does not have the logistical support for this. “Where will they hold office? Do we have funds to build separate offices?” Pulido Tan cites the time they requested for provincial satellite offices, only to be turned down by the Department of Budget and Management.

On the content of the audit reports. People also expect the COA to go to town with its findings of corruption. In reality, that is not the case. The most they can do is to identify red flags and then refer these to the Office of the Ombudsman for further action.

There, too, are different kinds of audits performed by the COA, and most of these are financial or compliance audits which simply say whether the agency in question rendered a fair representation of the facts. According to Pulido Tan, there should be more special audits, meaning performance or value for money audits that would look into whether the funds are actually spent as intended.

On the private sector’s dealings with the government. Pulido Tan reminded private corporations to live out their integrity pledge when dealing with the government. “It takes two to tango,” she said.

Finally, on the culture of mediocrity and tolerance. We don’t expect much from our leaders nor hold them up to the highest standards. “We have to stop making excuses for failure!” she said.

We are also tolerant as a people -- for instance, while we observe so many irregularities, all of these do not get reported. We are afraid to tell on our boss or colleagues. We think we will just get frustrated with the judicial system. We end up being silent when in fact we should be speaking out.

Her time may have been up, but Pulido Tan’s words sure give us plenty to think about -- and, for some of us, act on. adellechua@gmail.com

mitigating action was the com• Napeñas proposed to the Presimissioning of the peace process dent the adoption of the “Timemechanisms to facilitate ceasefire.

On-Target” concept of coordi• However, Napeñas failed to connation for Oplan Exodus which sider that the Time on Target stratmeant that the disclosure of information to a limited number of perI leave you to form egy would make the planned mitisons would be withheld until the your own opinion from gating actions unachievable because these excerpts and the AFP and the Joint Action Group target is engaged. Napeñas’ prisalient points. on Ceasefire were not informed of mary consideration for adopting the operations until the hostilities the concept, which was shared by had ensued Purisima, was operational security • Napeñas appeared to have rebecause some AFP men had interlied heavily on the verbal commarried with locals. The President mitment of suspended PNP Chief was informed about the adoption of the Time on Target concept for Oplan Exodus Purisima that he would arrange for the needed AFP support. Had Napeñas himself coordinated but remained silent.

• One of the survivors, Police Superintendent with Brig. Gen. Carlito Galvez about the plan to Raymund Train of the 84th SAC attested that, in resort to the peace process mechanisms if a fire case of heavy enemy fire, the first planned mitigat- fight intensifies, he could have learned that, ing action for Oplan Exodus was indirect artillery based on p ast e x p e r ie nc e s, a c e as e f ire c an fire support from the AFP. The second planned Continued on A11

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OPINION

adelle chua EDITOR

lettertotheeditor@thestandard.com.ph

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Disappearing like a Dictator By leonid Bershidsky Russian President Vladimir Putin has disappeared. Well, not literally, but he hasn’t been seen in public for a full week and reports about his schedule on the presidential website seem suspect. The Kremlin denies that he is ill, and the Russian blogosphere is abuzz with speculation. it’s still impossible for an outsider to tell where Putin is, or what he’s up to. But it isn’t too early to draw conclusions from this episode. it offers evidence enough that Russia has become an outright dictatorship. no other kind of state would be so opaque, nor its citizens so preoccupied with their ruler.

Putin’s predecessor, Boris Yeltsin, was prone to disappearances: He liked to drink and had a weak heart.

Yeltsin’s health became a particularly serious issue during the run-up to the 1996 presidential election, in which he competed against a strong Communist candidate. not long before the vote, he suffered a heart attack that his aides hid from voters. after he won, Kremlin spin doctors became increasingly creative in answering any questions about the president’s health. On august 19, 1996, presidential spokesman sergei Yastrzhembsky initiated a meme when he said in response to such a query that Yeltsin’s handshake was strong.

Last week, an Ekho Moskvy radio reporter evoked it in an interview with Putin’s spokesman Dmitri Peskov, asking him about the president’s handshake. “it breaks hands,” Peskov replied sarcastically.

Peskov has never previously had to account for unexpected absences by

his boss. Quite the opposite. Putin has tended to be unnecessarily demonstrative about the strength of his handshakes, taking pains to always appear fit and energetic. He has not dropped out of sight for more than a day since the early years of his 15year rule, when he briefly went off the radar after the submarine Kursk sank in 2000 and when terrorists seized hundreds of hostages in a Moscow theater in 2002. The two incidents were major crises for Putin, but he has since weathered others of similar magnitude without dropping out of sight.

This month, however, he has again disappeared. The last time he was seen was a week ago, on March 5, when he met with italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi in Moscow. since then, he has canceled talks with the presidents of Belarus and Kazakhstan, the signing of a treaty with south Ossetia and an appearance at a meeting of top brass at the FsB, Russia’s domestic intelligence service.

The daily RBC undertook an investigation into Putin’s meeting schedule and claimed to have discovered discrepancies on the official site, Kremlin.ru. according to the paper, Putin’s meeting with the governor of the northwestern region of Karelia, reported on the site as having taken place on March 11, had actually occurred a week earlier. indeed, a Karelian website wrote about it on March 4.

Last week, according to Kremlin. ru, Putin spoke on the phone to armenian President serzh sargsyan. sargsyan’s website echoed the information with an identical readout. The Kremlin says that’s the only March

THE BOI... From A9 the day went unheeded, should be fully examined.

This is important if only to give us preview of how cohesive it is, and to belie suspicions that in reality it has loose control over its men, which if true would raise doubts on the discipline of its rank-and-file to follow peace plan conditionalities, like the giving up of arms.

We also need to get a complete picture on who else on the government side endorsed and enforced the MILF’s assurance that the ceasefire was in effect and must thus be reciprocated.

To me that was one of the big fatal errors of that tragic day. The fiction of an MILF ceasefire which was observed, not by its men, but, ironically, by government forces, even, if you read the BOI report, by the pinned down 84th SAC. It was that ceasefire order which stopped the Army on its tracks.

It could have boldly pushed forward to help their beleaguered brethren, by hurling rescue armor and artillery, but stood down when told that rebels would cease hostilities.

Other findings which need more elaboration are the dud bullets and the faulty ordinance; the role of the foreigners in the project, something which can be viewed on a positive light; the absence of other field equipment, like their reliance on talk-and-text to communicate or gunshot echoes to fix their positions because their radios have failed.

As I said, the BOI report is a lesson plan which should not only

THE MaMaSaPanO... From A10 only be achieved after at least six (6) hours of negotiation. At the time the AFP was informed, however, a hostile encounter between the SAF Commandos and various armed groups in Mamasapano had already ensued. There was also no plan for close air support.

• During the site survey in Mamasapano on February 24, 2015, the PNP Board of Inquiry chaired by Director Benjamin Magalong, observed the unfavorable terrain faced by the reinforcing

12 event Putin participated in -- an unusually light schedule for the energetic Russian leader. For example, on Monday, March 2, the official site reported two working meetings with Russian officials and a telephone conversation with the leaders of Germany, France and ukraine. somewhat worryingly, and unlike Yeltsin’s spin doctors, who were willing to admit that the president was unwell while downplaying the seriousness of his condition, Peskov has firmly denied that anything at all is wrong with Putin. That has set up a feast for conspiracy theorists. andrei illarionov, a former Putin aide, has suggested in a LiveJournal post that the president may have been overthrown by hardliners, including his chief of staff sergei ivanov, in a palace coup.

Konstantin Remchukov, a journalist and publisher with top-level access at the Kremlin, has tweeted the rumor that Putin’s friend igor sechin, who runs Russia’s biggest oil company, state-owned Rosneft, is about to lose his job, which would either mean that Putin is conducting a major shakeup of his inner circle, or that he’s on the way out himself.

There have been hundreds of tweets and Facebook posts suggesting Putin might even be dead -- and, this being Russia, numerous attempts at black humor.

The Russian stock market, the ruble and Russian bonds are all up today, as if Putin’s absence from the radars were good news for the economy. in ukraine, many are watching the news with bated breath, wishing the hated Russian leader would somehow disappear for good. “apparently,

someone else controls the situation in Russia now, if anyone controls it at all,” ivan Yakovina wrote on the ukrainian website nv.ua. in short, Putin has managed to induce Russians into a state of obsession simply by removing himself from their sight. Russians, including Putin opponents, are as worried about his week-long absence as kids would be if their father had wandered off somewhere and not come back for days. They watch the Kremlin website with a mixture of distrust, apprehension and hope, wondering how, or whether, the steep pyramid of power Putin has built over the years can function without him at the top. if that is not a sign that Putin has become a fully-fledged dictator in the nation’s collective mind, what is? after all, a democratic nation’s leader couldn’t go missing in the first place: u.s. President Barack Obama’s schedule is always posted on his official site, and German Chancellor angela Merkel’s website keeps up a steady stream of news about her public appearances. Their spokespeople don’t try to hide it when they suddenly feel ill or have a sore throat. Only a dictator is secretive about his bouts of flu -- or about a full week’s worth of meetings, which Peskov suggests have been taking place all this time. it’s time to do away with euphemisms like “authoritarian ruler” or “strongman.” Putin is a dictator who runs Russia through fear and stealth. Whatever the reasons for his absence, the country can’t function without him in the driver’s seat. irrational fears surface instead. and so do irrational hopes.

Bloomberg

guide us toward solutions, and, though we are fatigued by them, toward more probes, because although it answered a lot of questions, the BOI report raised more of them too.

This is now the challenge to the Poe Committee, whom the people expect to come up with a more exhaustive report which embraces and synthesizes all available information, the BOI report included, to finish what the police probers had started.

One area is the plight of the many civilians killed. Have they been indemnified? What “comfort packages” have government offered their families to assuage the pain of their loss? When succor is given, the non-combatants must be the first in line.

While we wait for the Senate to tie all loose ends, the last recommendation of the BOI must be the first that the government must heed.

And that is “to give one-rank promotion” to all the surviving members of the 84th and 55th Companies and “the posthumous promotion of the Fallen 44.”

Read the following excerpts of the report (on Page 22) which capture their courage under fire : “They were under heavy rifle and mortar fire at this hour. The team pinned down by hostiles familiar with the terrain, returned fire. From time to time, (Police Colonel) Train would hear groans and cries from his wounded men. He recounted screams of ‘I love you, mommy,’ ‘ I love you baby,’ and ‘I love Seaborne,’ from his comrades in the hours that followed... The Commandos were already bidding goodbyes and entrusting their families to each other.

They all resigned to their fate that it would be their last stand.”

troops. The wide terrain between their location and that of the 55th SAC was literally flat without adequate cover and concealment. Tactical maneuvers, such as the “Bounding Overwatch” technique, would have been difficult and may have resulted in more casualties. According to the platoon leaders, enemy fire was coming from all directions which prevented them from maneuvering and reinforcing the 55th SAF. To be continued this week Email: ritalindaj@gmail.com

Visit: www.jimenolaw.com.

TalkIng aBOuT ... From A9 Board of Inquiry would tell the truth. And when the board’s report pointed at a serious lapse in presidential judgment, the President’s Secretary of Justice, ever quick to muster a defense no matter how bizarre, labeled the report’s premise erroneous. Certainly, this state of affairs is not one any decent Filipino would like to perpetuate!

In a recent consistory, Pope Francis named as cardinals prelates from places that do not figure in the map of notables. What he has done, with the insight that is born of profound spirituality and pastoral sincerity, is to break the circle of bureaucrats (and yes, kleptocrats even!) and the cordon of expert functionaries who have stymied any serious reform initiatives. His new advisers—who will no longer be referred to as ‘princes of the church’—will tell him what the world is like, the language it speaks and the beat to which it marches. What we need of the president to be elected in 2016 is the same resolve. We shall then, I pray, talk meaningfully of legacies! rannie_aquino@sanbeda.edu.ph rannie_aquino@csu.edu.ph rannie_aquino@yahoo.com

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Shibata top-scorer in jungolf KEN Shibata of Manila Japanese School emerged the highest scorer, with his 155 points that also won him the boys’ Class D plum in the recent opening leg of the ICTSIJGFP School Season series held in various courses.

Shibata, a fourth grader at MJS and a former Junior World agegroup champion, posted rounds of 49, 53 and 53 for that 155 total and a 9-point win over Miguel Roque in the best-three-out-of-six-rounds series played at Southlinks, Capitol Hills, Philippine Navy and Ayala Greenfield.

He led the boys’ division winners that also included Korean teener

Wang Jeon Jae (Class A), Christopher Popp (Class B), Josh Jorge (Class C), Vince Tiamsic (Class E) and Rocco Pineda (Class F).

Annika Cedo, meanwhile, was the top points getter among the girls’ winners as Class A winner in the tourney backed chiefly by the International Container Terminal Services, Inc. Foundation and jointly organized by

the Junior Golf Foundation of the Philippines and The Junior Golfers League.

The other girls’ winners of the series, which has Philippine Golf Foundation, Martin Lorenzo, Golf Depot and Inquirer Golf as other sponsors are Tomi Arejola in Class B, Sam Dizon in Class C, Theresa dela Paz in Class D, Bianca Macatangay in Class E and Venice Tiamsic in Class F. Popp (141) barely edged Joaquin Gomez (140); Jorge (154) finished 10 point ahead of Sean Ramos; Tiamsic (138) finished 8 up on Santino Pineda and Rocco Pineda (66) beat Julian Lhuiler by seven.

Cedo (145) finished far ahead of

Reguigui wins

The Ayala group of premium golf courses reaffirmed its support to junior golf by donating P10 for every round played by a member or guest at Ayala Southlinks, Ayala Greenfield and Capitol Hills. Shown at the turnover of a cheque are Ayala Land Inc. president and CEO Bobby Dy and Luigi Tabuena, president of the Junior Golf Foundation of the Philippines. Tabuena said that the JGFP’s year-round activities for jungolfers has benefited tremendously from Ayala’s continuing support that also includes the use of its golf courses.

FRASERS HILL—MTN-Qhubeka’s Youcef Reguigui sprinted to the line to take the biggest win of his career when he won the queen stage of the 20th edition of Le Tour de Langkawi, a grueling 180.8km stage from Shah Alam to Frasers Hill today.

The victory also gave the 25-year-old Reguigui the overall lead, which he is likely to keep in the final stage tomorrow and emerge the third African rider to win LTdL’s covered overall title after South Africans Ryan Cox in 2005 and David George in 2006.

Reguigui formed part of an 11-man breakaway that started with 25 kms to go and went all the way to the finish line, where the Algerian outsprinted Colombia’s Sebastian Henao of Team Sky to the finish. Astana’s Valerio Agnoli took third place.

1.

Louise Tombs (126); Arejola (126) nipped Mariel Tee (123) in a close fight; Dizon (125) prevailed over Annika Tan (108); Macatangay (51) defeated Kira Hedeager (28) and Venice Tiamsic (75) wound up with a commanding lead over Stevie Umali (58) In the tournament’s most exciting finish, Dela Paz and Princess Pascua ended in a tie at 104, but dela Paz prevailed in the countback.

Next up for the jungolfers is the ICTSI-JGFP Baguio Jungolf Open on March 30 and 31 at the Baguio Country Club, which serves as the kickoff leg of the summer circuit.

Department of Education REGION IV-A CALABARZON Gate 2 Karangalan Village Cainta, Rizal

Department of Education REGION IV-A CALABARZON Gate 2 Karangalan Village Cainta, Rizal

INVITATION TO BID To ferry the DepED IV-A athletes, coaches & trainers for the 2015 Palarong Pambansa from Port Area, Manila to Davao del Norte & from Davao del Norte to Port Area, Manila

INVITATION TO BID Transportation Service to transport athletes for 2015 Palarong Pambansa from Sta. Cruz, Laguna to Port Area, Manila 1.

The Department of Education, Region IV-A, through its Bids and Awards Committee (BAC) now invites bids to transport the athletes for the 2015 Palarong Pambansa from Port Area, Manila to Port of Davao del Norte on April 26,2015. Bids received in excess of the ABC shall be automatically rejected at bid opening.

The Approved Budget for the Contract (ABC) Php4,400,000.00

2.

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

3.

Bidding is open to all interested bidders, whether local or foreign, subject to the conditions for eligibility, provided in the IRR of RA 9184.

4.

Interested bidders may obtain further information from the Department of Education Region IV-A (supply office) and inspect the Bidding Documents at the address given below during Monday to Friday from 8:00 to 4:00 p.m.

The Approved Budget for the Contract (ABC) Php780,000.00 2.

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

3.

Bidding is open to all interested bidders, whether local or foreign, subject to the conditions for eligibility, provided in the IRR of RA 9184.

4.

Interested bidders may obtain further information from the Department of Education Region IV-A (supply office) and inspect the Bidding Documents at the address given below during Monday to Friday from 8:00 to 4:00 p.m.

A complete set of Bidding Documents may be purchased by the interested Bidders starting on March 18, 2015 from the address below and upon payment of nonrefundable fee for the Bidding Documents in the amount of Five Hundred Pesos (500.00) Only.

A complete set of Bidding Documents may be purchased by the interested Bidders starting on March 19, 2015 from the address below and upon payment of nonrefundable fee for the Bidding Documents in the amount of Five Thousand Pesos (5,000.00) Only.

5.

The Department of Education, Region lV-A will hold a Pre-Bid Conference on March 20, 2015 at 11:00 in the morning to be held at the Conference Room of DepED Region IV-A, Gate 2 Karangalan Village, Cainta, Rizal, which shall be open to all interested parties who have purchased the Bidding Documents

6.

Bids rnust be delivered to the address stated herein on or before April 7, 2015 at 2:00 p.m. All Bids must be accompanied by a bid security in any of the acceptable forms and in the amount stated in ITB Clause18.

7.

Bid opening shall be on April 7, 2015 at 2:00 p.m. at the Conference Room of DepED Region lV-A, Gate 2 Karangalan Village, Cainta, Rizal. Bids will be opened in the presence of the Bidders’ representatives who choose to attend at the address stated above. Late bids shall not be accepted.

8.

The Department of Education, Region IV-A reserves the right to accept or reject any bid, to annul the bidding process, and to reject all bids at any time prior to contract award, without thereby incurring any liability to the affected bidder or bidders.

The Department of Education, Region IV-A, through its Bids and Awards Committee (BAC) now invites bids to transport the athletes for the 2015 Palarong Pambansa from Sta. Cruz, Laguna to Port Area, Manila on April 26, 2015. Bids received in excess of the ABC shall be automatically rejected at bid opening.

5.

The Department of Education, Region lV-A will hold a Pre-Bid Conference on March 20, 2015 at 10:00 in the morning to be held at the Conference Room of DepED Region IV-A, Gate 2 Karangalan Village, Cainta, Rizal, which shall be open to all interested parties who have purchased the Bidding Documents

6.

Bids rnust be delivered to the address stated herein on or before April 7, 2015 at 10:00 a.m. All Bids must be accompanied by a bid security in any of the acceptable forms and in the amount stated in ITB Clause18.

7.

Bid opening shall be on April 7, 2015 at 10:00 a.m. at the Conference Room of DepED Region lV-A, Gate 2 Karangalan Village, Cainta, Rizal.

Bids will be opened in the presence of the Bidders’ representatives who choose to attend at the address stated above. Late bids shall not be accepted.

8.

The Department of Education, Region IV-A reserves the right to accept or reject any bid, to annul the bidding process, and to reject all bids at any time prior to contract award, without thereby incurring any liability to the affected bidder or bidders.

(SGD.) ANN GERALYN T. PELIAS Chief Administrative Office BAC Chairman (TNS-Mar. 16, 2015)

(SGD.) ANN GERALYN T. PELIAS Chief Administrative Office BAC Chairman (TNS-Mar. 16, 2015)

Hamilton edges Rosberg in Australia MELBOURNE— Lewis Hamilton fought off teammate Nico Rosberg to give Mercedes a dominant victory in the seasonopening Australian grand prix in Melbourne on Sunday.

Reigning world champion Hamilton held the upper hand with his faster Mercedes car to beat last year’s race winner Rosberg by 1.3 seconds.

Four-time world champion Sebastian Vettel, in his first race drive for Ferrari since switching from Red Bull, finished on the podium in third place just ahead of Felipe Massa in a Williams.

It was all-conquering Mercedes’ eighth straight victory, with their last defeat coming in Belgium last August to Australian Daniel Ricciardo driving a Red Bull, and their 20th race in a row with at least one driver on the podium. AFP

Djokovic, Nishikori advance INDIAN WELLS —World number one Novak Djokovic kicked started his bid for a fourth Indian Wells title by beating Marcos Baghdatis 6-1, 6-3 in the second round of the WTA and ATP tournament.

Djokovic needed just 59 minutes to oust the former Australian Open finalist Baghdatis who at one time was considered one of the most dangerous players on the ATP Tour.

But defending champ Djokovic had his game in order Saturday, blasting six aces, winning 83 percent of his first serves and breaking Baghdatis four times.

He came into the tournament as the top seed and reigning Australian Open winner, his eighth career major.

“From the beginning it went well for me,” Djokovic said. “A solid performance from the baseline.

“I thought that I served well and didn’t give Marcos many chances to come back in the match.” AFP

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Football For a Better Life kicks off. Almost

50 teams from the Visayas and Mindanao participated in the Football for a Better Life kick-off held at Barotac, Nuevo, Iloilo last March 7 and 8.

Football for a Better Life, supported by Pru Life UK Philippines, is a series of tournaments, clinics and talent identification activities to develop grassroots football in the Philippines. Former Azkal national team captain Chieffy Caligdong and British coach Chris Thomas are conducting these activities. The program is aimed at discovering young football players, who will become future Azkals. The next Football for a Better Life event will be held on March 23 and 24 at the CDC Parade Grounds in Clark, Mabalacat, Pampanga. For more information, refer to the Little Azkals page on Facebook.

Author: Pacman may be framed by fake drug test

By Ronnie Nathanielsz

WELL-KNOWN boxing writer/columnist and author Scoop Malinowski is concerned that the US Anti Doping Agency random drug tests may be faked to frame eight-division world champion Manny Pacquiao.

“I have ever so slight suspicion that (Al) Haymond or Floyd Mayweather Jr. could scheme to frame Pacquiao with a fake positive drug test via his association with Travis Tygart at USDA,” said Malinowski, indicating he was “not saying it will happen, just a remote possibility. Hopefully, it won’t.”

Malinowski referred to a comment by undefeated welterweight Keith Thurman, who scored an impressive win over Robert Guerrero, after he reportedly said

that if Pacquiao drops out of the May 2 date, he would replace him if called by Haymon.

“I find that very strange and a red flag,” Malinowski said, even as he referred to the “weird, nervous faint tone of Floyd’s press conference speech on Wednesday. I must say suspicions are aroused if Floyd truly wants to do this fight after being forced by Les Moonves.”

The boxing writer/columnist and author concluded: “Let’s hope everything is on the level though

and May 2 does happen without any nonsense or corruption.”

There have been instances in the past, where the USADA head had praised Mayweather for his insistence on random drug tests, even as he appeared to question Pacquiao’s attitude towards drug testing.

Leo Reyes of the Digital Journal has suggested that Arum and Roach make sure that they run “a parallel test by the one being conducted by USADA to counteract any attempt to fake the test results. They could use the Voluntary Anti Doping Agency to do the parallel drug and urine testing or any licensed and trusted agency of their choice.”

The columnist indicated it is possible that Arum and Roach “have already commissioned VADA to do do its own parallel test, without informing the public or any one in the camp as a safety

measure in case a fake result is used to get the fight canceled.”

Malinowski’s first book “Heavyweight Armageddon!

The Tyson-Lewis Championship Battle,” which was published in 2008, was described as a “smashing success” by renowned Hall of Fame trainer and TV commentator Emmanuel Steward.

In the meantime, a youtube video expose, alleged that Haymon’s fighters were victims of “slave contracts” following earlier allegations that his people were paying potential sparring partners to stay away from the Wild Card gym, although it didn’t bother Roach or Pacquiao.

Pacquiao’s longtime adviser Michael Koncz told the New Standard and the Viva Sports internet site boxingmirror.com, dedicated solely to the PacquiaoMayweather fight, that the Filipino ring icon is doing fine.

Cariga, Centillas make net finals

JAFARRY Cariga and Elwin Centillas defeated their respective semifinal foes in the Globe 17th HEAD Graphene XT XT Junior Tennis Satellite Circuit first leg in Davao City yesterday to reach the final round of the boys’ 18-under, singles’ category at the Ecoland 1 and 2 tennis clubs in Davao City.

Cariga leaned on his strong backhand plays to outlast Christian Fell Lopez, 6-4, 7-6, to move to the boys’ 18-under championship round, where he will meet Centillas, who walloped Stephen Tubbs in the other semifinal game, 7-6 (3), 6-3.

In the girls’ 18-under, top seed Shaira Hope Rivera whacked Patricia Velez in semifinals, 6-0, 6-1, to face Nicole Bautista in the championship round of the annual satellite circuit event supported by Globe Telecoms and HEAD Philippines.

Bautista crushed Kiara Gandeza in the semifinals, 6-1, 6-1.

The tournament is also supported by Chris Sports, HEAD, ATP Tennis Balls, Graphene XT, Toalson, Philippine Sports Commission and Philippine Tennis Association, Along with Sports Radio 918AM, Home Radio 97.9FM Natural, Boracay Informer, Todo 88.5FM Aklan, Radyo Inquirer990AM, Power Wheels Magazine, Motorcycle Magazine, Balikbayan, The Asian Journal Magazine, Wazzup Pilipinas, Reach Magazine, Oishi and AMAX Inn Makati.

Alcalas dominant in Prima badminton tilt

Organizer Alex Lim with the men’s singles open champion Mark Shelley Alcala.

MARK Shelley Alcala copped two titles in the 8th Prima Pasta Badminton Open Championship singles’ class, while his sister Malvinne “Poca” Alcala regained her spot as the country’s toughest player in the women’s open division recently at the Powersmash Badminton courts in Makati City.

Alcala, 17, relied on stamina and skills to crush national junior player Ross Leenard Pedrosa in the championship round, 2116, 23-21, to take home the men’s singles open title of the competition supported by Smart Telecommunication and Babolat.

Before conquering the men’s open category, Alcala of Team Allied Victor bashed Cayel Paja-

rillo in boys’ Under-19 singles finals, 21-18, 21-17, to win his first crown in the annual badminton competition participated by more than 2,000 bets nationwide.

Mark’s eldest sister and ex-national player Malvinne Ann Poca Alcala defeated Ateneo’s Bianca Ysabelle Carlos in championship round, 21-14, 9-21, 21-17, to clinch the women’s open singles trophy of the event organized by Alex Lim and sanctioned by the Philippine Badminton Association.

The competition was supported by Babolat and SMART Communications through MVP Sports Foundation, Boysen Paints, Morning Star Milling., Mabz Builders, ILO Construction, Monolith Construction,

Monocrete Construction, Pioneer Insurance, Promax, Regent Foods Corp., Vitwater, Unilever, Del Monte Fit N’ Right and powered by Forthright Events.

Ten-year-old Jewel Angelo Albo of Babolat, meanwhile, rallied past Jason Vanzuela, 1921, 21-17, 21-11, to capture the boys’ Under-15 singles’ title, while Mikaela Joy de Guzman of Golden Shuttle Foundation defeated Anthea Marie Gonzales of Team JB, 21-9, 21-5, to win the girls’ U-15 singles crown.

Other singles champions were Paola Beatriz Bernardo (girls’ U-19); Janelle Anne Andres of Babolat (girls’ U-17); Kyle Legaspi (boys’ U-17);

Nestojan Tapales (boys’ U-13); Vianna Meryll Antonio (girls’ U-13); Jian Cedric Magtibay (boys’ U-11) and Althea Princess Hernandez (girls’ U-11).

Other sponsors are Bakerite, Elite Air, Fortune life, Goldilocks, Jones Lang La Salle Leechiu, Jose Siao Ling & Associates, Mega Subic Terminal Services, Sincere Construction, U2 Electrical, United Colourtech, Wil-An Aluminum, Window One, Gardenia, Amstar, Waterline Engineering, Sidel Industrial, Ultra Cote, NCS Builders, Unipak Plastics and Containers, St. Francis Square, GCI Industries, Belarmino & Associates and Trisphere Trading.

CYAN MAGENTA YELLOW BLACK

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Smart, NCC honor top cheerdancers

Las Piñas East National High School bags the Smart Texter’s Choice Award in high school category at the recent National Cheerleading Championships. Smart Prepaid is the main partner of the event, in line with its Jump In campaign to encourage the youth to pursue their passions.

US coaches to aid Filipino tracksters TWELVE members of the national coaching staff and 33 members of the national pool will learn their strengths and weaknesses in the coming days as they prepare for the coming Southeast Asian Games.

Two top running coaches from the United States -- Dick Beardsley and Bill Schnier are here and will be around to meet and help train the national coaching staff and members of the national athletes’ pool.

During the course of their visit, they will observe how national athletes train and perform in the Philippine National Open Invitational Championships, before sharing their insights on how they can improve their performances.

Retired marathon champion Beardsley, who returned from an earlier visit in the country, will be around University of Cincinnati track mentor Schnier to spend time with the coaches and the athletes they are training.

They arrived from the US on Thursday and will be here for the next three months,

in time for the four-day trackfest, which gets going from March 19 to 22 at the San Luis Sports Complex in Sta. Cruz, Laguna.

Philippine Amateur Track and Field Association president Philip Ella Juico said the the American coaches are here upon the invitation of the Philippine Sports Commission.

“We are making arrangements on how they can help,” said Juico following a meeting with Beardsley, Schnier and the coaches at the Astoria Plaza in Ortigas Center.

The 58-year-old Beardsley is known for his low finish time of 2:09:37 at the 1981 Grandma’s Marathon, a record that stood for 33 years until it was broken in 2014.

Beardsley, who also known as having run 13 consecutive personal bests in a marathon, got into a chat with retired lo-

cal marathon champion Roy Vence, and will join him during a workout with national team members Mary Joy Tabal and Mary Grace de los Santos in Antipolo the following day.

With the help of patron Jim Lafferty, Beardsley is also expected to touch base with two more long-distance champions in Eduardo Buenavista and Eric Panique.

Schnier, who has coached many Olympians in the US, will not just focus on track athletes and get them ready for the Philippine Open. He went into discussions with national coaches led by Dario Darosas, Agustin Jarina, Ojon Artiaga, Ernie Candelaria, Jeoffrey Chua, Lerma Gabito, Joebert Delicano, Arnold Villarube, Nixon Mas and Emerson Obiena.

“This gives me an idea on who is out there. This is going to be helpful,” said Schnier following his talks with the coaches.

Schnier will also will help the PATAFA stage the games in accordance with international standards and help it craft a long-term program. Peter Atencio

A STUNNING show of dancing and gymnastic skills marked the 10th National Cheerleading Championships, with teams from the National University and Parañaque National High School emerging as the big winners in the college and high school categories of the country’s largest cheerdance competition, held recently at the SMX Convention Center in Pasay City.

Meanwhile, the crews from the Quezon City Polytechnic University and the Las Piñas East National High School drew massive support to take home the Texter’s Choice in the college and high school divisions, awarded by Smart Prepaid, NCC’s major partner for the competition.

Over 120 teams from all over the country proved their mettle in the intense two-day finals, drawing thousands of students, parents and faculty to support them. Each team dished out fierce routines with synchronized choreography and heart-stopping acrobatic feats in the spirit of fun and healthy competition.

“Smart Prepaid is proud to partner with NCC in its milestone year, marking a decade of providing the youth a platform to pursue cheerdancing with a passion, elevating it to a serious endeavor in which the values of teamwork and perseverance shine,” said Joel Lumanlan, Smart Prepaid head.

Women’s aquathlon slated on March 22 WOMEN, who want to stay active and like to try their luck in their first multi-sport (swim-run) event are set to test themselves to the limit in the Atleta Ako Women’s Aquathlon on March 22, starting at 7 a.m. at the Philsports Complex in Pasig City.

Organized by BikeKing, headed by Raul Cuevas and presented by the Philippine Sports Commission, the event is part of the Women’s Month celebration with the objective of empowering women as they pursue a healthy lifestyle.

Celebrities taking action in the race are Akiko Thomson-Guevara, Angelika de la Cruz and Sitti.

Competition will be categorized in eight distances and 11 age-group categories for those who excel in these two disciplines, while participants, who want to just try the sport may do so in the fun relay team category of the event supported by Atleta Ako, Klean Kanteen, Certified Calm, Arena, Neutrogena, Robinsons Supermarket, Del Monte, Rexona, Comark, Merrel, Crayola, Gatorade and David’s Salon.

Girls aged 7-8 and 9-10 will see action in the 50m swim-800m run and 100m swim-800m run, while those in the 11-12 group will do the 200m swim-1.6k run. Athletes aged 13 to 14 will compete in 300m swim2k run, while those in the 15-17 will see action in the 400m swim-3.2k run.

Competitors categorized in the 18-years-old to 45-andabove may choose to compete in the Standard 500m swim6k run or the Petite 300m swim-3.2k run distance. Fun Relay competition will offer the 500m swim and 6k run.

Altas bag cage title THE University of Perpetual Help Altas drew big baskets from three veterans to turn back the Arellano University Chiefs, 79-70, and bag the 11th Fr. Martin Collegiate Open Cup basketball tournament honors last Saturday at the Far Eastern University gym in Morayta.

Nigerian cager Akhuetie Bright showed the way with 18 points, while Earl Thompson and Kenneth Oliveria provided 17 and 15 points, respectively, for the Altas, who earned their second crown after taking the Summer Cup title last June.

Oliveria struck hardest in the last four minutes, getting big help from Bright and Thompson as the Chiefs lost steam as soon as they posted a 68-67 edge. He banged in six points in an 8-2 run off Thompson’s assists and the Altas went on to grab a 75-70 spread with 6:53 to go.

The Altas forced six turnovers in the ensuing plays, with Oliveria attacking the hoop again and handing Perpetual a seven-point edge, 77-70, with 1:08 left.

Lucky fans. Players of San Miguel Beer held a meet-and-greet session with fans at the activity center of Robinson’s Galleria in “Napagod na sila, kaya hindi na nakadepensa nu’ng Ortigas Center recently to celebrate the team’s title win in the PBA Philippine Cup. Lucky fans from the audience won Schick gift packs during the affair handed by MJ Tiquia, Product Manager (left) and Rina Sarmiento, Schick marketing staffer. huli,” said Altas coach Lester del Rosario. P. Atencio

CYAN MAGENTA YELLOW BLACK

m o n day : m a rc h 1 6 , 2 0 1 5

A15

SPORTS sports@thestandard.com.ph

Donaire, Nietes wow fans in public workout

By Ronnie Nathanielsz

CHARISMATIC five-division world champion Nonito “The Filipino Flash” Donaire and the longest-reigning Filipino world champion Donnie “Ahas” Nietes flashed brilliant forms in a public workout before a jam-packed crowd at the Ala Boxing & Fitness Gym at the Banilad Town Center.

Donaire showed flashes of the 2012 Fighter of the Year when he engaged Japan’s former national and OPBF super flyweight champion Ryo Akaho in two rounds of sparring, in which he ripped into

the Japanese with rapier-like jabs and his lethal left hook. The fastpaced action drew rounds of applause from fight fans when it ended, while many crowded around him for pictures in a testament to

his popularity.

Akaho will face Ghana’s Prosper Ankrah for the WBO International bantamweight title on the blockbuster Pinoy Pride 30 fight card at the Smart Araneta Coliseum on March 28.

Trainer Edmund Villamor of the ALA Gym told the New Standard/ Viva Sports that Donaire “moved well, showed patience and his ability as a technical fighter.”

Nonito’s father/trainer Dodong Donaire earlier expressed his elation over his son’s new-found patience and the fact that his speed and power had returned.

The young Donaire plans to spar two to four rounds daily until he returns to Manila by the weekend.

Nietes, who will be enshrined in the coveted Flash Elorde Hall of Fame at the Annual Banquet of Champions on March 25, was at his peak.

Villamor was elated because Nietes showed his best movement so far.

“Good head movement and footwork and power in his right hand,” said Villamor of Nietes, who looked impressive in two rounds of sparring with undefeated Virgel Vitor.

Villamor said they had studied tapes of his Mexican opponent Gilberto Parra, who has an impressive record of 17 knockouts in 19 wins and described Nietes’ Mexican challenger as a “ boxer-fighter but we are prepared for whatever style he brings.”

Five-division world champion Nonito “The Filipino Flash” Donaire (right) flashes the form that made him the 2012 Fighter of the Year in a public workout at the Ala Boxing & Fitness Gym at the Banilad Town Center.

PH taekwondo, Viva tie up for TV coverage TAEKWONDO events will now become a regular television fare with the recent contract signing between the Philippine Taekwondo Association and Viva Communications Inc. Vic del Rosario, CEO/President of Viva Communications Inc. and former taekwondo superstar Manuel Monsour del Rosario, PTA secretary general, inked the tieup which ensures the coverage of PTA events via PTA-YouTube and Sports Channel.

The Philippine Taekwondo Association is a member of the Philippine Olympic Committee and the World Taekwondo Federation and duly recognized by the Philippine Sports Commission.

Taekwondo is one of the most popular sports activities in the country. It has been a consistent source of medals for the Philippines in prestigious international competitions like the Southeast Asian Games, Asian Games, Asian and World Championships and World University Games.

Thousands of martial arts lovers join PTA clinics and tournaments held over the country annually.

Celtics cool off Pacers I N D I A N A P O L I S — Ty l e r Zeller had 18 points and seven rebounds Saturday as the Boston Celtics ended Indiana’s seven-game NBA winning streak with a 93-89 victory over the Pacers.

Avery Bradley, Jae Crowder and Brandon Bass added 16 points apiece for the Celtics, who have won four in a row and six of their last seven games.

Boston are now tied for ninth place in the Eastern Conference, a half-game behind Charlotte for the eighth and final playoff spot, while the Pacers are seventh in the East.

“Every game is pretty big for us,” Bradley said. “We knew we needed to come out and execute our game plan at both ends of the floor. I felt like we did a great job. At the beginning of the game we weren’t able to make shots, but we were able to get stops.”

George Hill scored a season-high 30 points for the Pacers and handed out eight assists.

But Boston never trailed in the second half, turning back every Pacers challenge.

The Celtics led 45-37 at halftime, but Hill scored the final six points of an 11-4 run to begin the third, including a driving layup to cap the surge that put the Pacers within one at 49-48.

Boston responded by scoring five straight points to stretch the lead to six.

Rodney Stuckey’s threepointer again trimmed the gap with 4:03 left in the third, but the Celtics rebuilt the cushion with an 8-2 scoring run.

The Pacers pulled within 91-89 with 5.8 seconds to play, but Bass sealed the outcome with two free throws. AFP

From A16

Stockinger...

Viva CEO/President Vic del Rosario (left) and PTA Secretary General Manuel Monsour del Rosario shake hands after finalizing the contract.

more popular in the Philippines and I am really thankful to have so much support.”

One of Stockinger’s staunch supporters in the Philippines is Globe Telecom, his telecommunication partner in the country. In August last year, Globe ambassador Stockinger starred in Slipstream, a full-day affair which celebrated the telco’s brand new network with a race car driving exhibition, interactive booths, and an outdoor music festival. Stockinger showed off his track skills driving his LotusGravity Charouz Formula Renault 3.5 race car around Bonifacio Global City.

“We are very happy and excited for Marlon as he gets close to his racing dreams. We look forward to more of his achievements as he continues to bring honor and pride to the country,” said Globe President and CEO Ernest Cu. The 2015 GP2 officially begins on April 17 to 19 in Bahrain.

CYAN MAGENTA YELLOW BLACK M O N DAY : M A RCH 1 6 , 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

Stockinger to race in GP2 series LOTUS Formula 1 junior driver Marlon Stockinger is set to race in the 2015 GP2 Series season as Status Grand Prix’s first driver in the series, as the Globe Telecom ambassador rises a notch higher to fulfilling his career aspirations.

The 23-year-old Filipino-Swiss raced for the team in GP3 in 2012 and achieved two podium finishes and a race win at the Monaco GP. He moved on to Formula Renault 3.5 for two seasons and joined the Lotus F1 Junior Team in 2013. He finished 18th overall in the first season and moved to 9th overall in 2014.

“We are delighted to welcome Marlon back to the team following a successful GP3 campaign in 2012. Marlon is a hard-working and dedicated driver and we know he will apply a high level of professionalism to his maiden GP2 season,” said Team Principal Teddy Yip Jr. Stockinger shares his excitement about returning to Status: “It is really good to come back to Status and I have a lot of happy memories from our time in GP3, especially winning in Monaco. I feel very excited to be back with the team in my first GP2 season. My fans are already so excited about what I am doing this season and guessing which team I am with. It is pretty cool that motorsport is growing Turn to A 15

Filipino-Swiss Marlon Stockinger raced for the Status Grand Prix in the GP3 in 2012 and achieved two podium finishes and a race win at the Monaco GP.

NLEX Road Warriors on a roll

By Jeric Lopez

NINO Canaleta showed everyone he can still light up the score board.

The veteran gunner came off the bench to fire his seasonhigh 29 points, including six triples, to help red-hot NLEX cruise to its fourth straight win at the expense of GlobalPort, 94-81, in the 2015 Philippine Basketball Association Commissioner’s Cup yesterday at the Cuneta Astrodome in Pasay City.

The Road Warriors, whose fourth straight win was the first for the franchise, enhanced their

Games Tuesday

(Smart Araneta Coliseum): 4:15 p.m. - Purefoods vs Barako 7 p.m. - Alaska vs Meralco chances of making the quarterfinals and even kept their hopes alive for a Top 2 finish as it improved to 5-4 to move up to fifth place. ‘’I salute KG (Canaleta) for this game,’’ said NLEX coach Boyet Fernanez. ‘’Hopefully with this win, we’ll be driven to work even

DONAIRE, NIETES WOW FANS IN PUBLIC WORKOUT TURN TO A15 CYAN MAGENTA YELLOW BLACK

harder for our next games. I told the boys to just work hard in the games like they do in practice and now we’ve won four straight, the first in our franchise.’’

GlobalPort suffered its second straight loss and slipped to 4-5 into a three-way tie for the seventh to ninth spots with idle Barako Bull and Kia Motors.

The streak-shooting Canaleta suddenly waxed hot in the second half, where he scored 22 of his points. ‘’Shoot lang nang shoot para sa akin kasi expected naman na si Al (Thornton) will be doubled and tripled team, kaya ready lang talaga ako,’’ said Canaleta of his performance.

Following a 50-point explosion last week, Al Thornton shrugged off a slow start in the first half to finish with 19 points, 14 in the second half, to go with 11 rebounds.

The Road Warriors were really in control for most part of the game but it wasn’t until the closing minutes of the third period that they were finally

able to break the game wide open.

Ignited by Canaleta and Thornton’s exploits, NLEX was able to turn a slim 53-52 edge in the final minutes of the third into a comfortable 65-53 cushion heading the fourth after a 12-1 run. The duo scored all of those 12 points in that run to finish off the third frame.

From there, the Road Warriors kept their foot on the gas pedal in the payoff period and even increased their lead to 16 points, 84-68, with 4:50 left after Thonrton’s two-handed slam off the break on their way to victory.

Aldrech Ramos added 14 points for NLEX. Things got a bit heated a few seconds into the fourth quarter after Enrico Villanueva gave a driving Terrence Romeo a hard foul.

GlobalPort governor Eric Arejola confronted Villanueva and the NLEX center answered back and had his own verbal war with Romeo as well.

All three were assessed a technical foul each before cooler heads prevailed.

PACMAN MAY LOTTO RESULTS BE FRAMED 6/49 00-00-00-00-00-0 P16M

BY FAKE DRUG TEST TURN TO A13 3 DIGITS 0-0-0 2 EZ2 0-0

CYAN MAGENTA YELLOW BLACK

B1

MONDAY: MARCH 16, 2015

RAY S. EÑANO EDITOR

RODERICK T. DELA CRUZ ASSISTANT EDITOR

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

BUSINESS PSe comPoSite index Closing March 13, 2015

8000 7500

Shanghai F&B show. China and the Philippines are all set to join forces for the upcoming Salon International de l’alimentation China

2015, Asia’s largest food and beverage expo, scheduled on May 6 to 8 at the Shanghai New International Expo Center in Shanghai, China. Shown join linking arms during a press conference at the Makati Shangri-La Manila Hotel Monday are (from left) Bjoern Kempe, general manager of Comeexposium Shanghai; Jin Yuan, Commercial Counselor Embassy of China; David Chua, vice president of the Federation of Filipino-Chinese Chamber of Commerce and Industry Inc.; and Jill Ang, show director of Salon International de l’alimentation. MANNY PALMERO

Rice import limits need review—Neda

By Jenniffer Ambanta

THE National Economic and Development Authority said over the weekend the government should review quantitative restrictions on rice imports because they tend to increase food prices.

Neda director general Arsenio Balisacan told reporters the limit in importing one of the most important commodities was

resulting in an upward pressure on prices and eroding the income of most Filipino families.

“As we have noted earlier, the

gains from increased incomes were unfortunately negated by faster and higher inflation in food prices, especially of rice,” Balisacan said.

He noted that the government should weigh the benefits of the quantitative restrictions against the inflationary pressure it put on rice.

“We have to study that because that should not be the case.

We have to cure the root of the problem, which is the uncertainty

PAL launches flight to New York

By Roderick T. dela Cruz FLAG carrier Philippine Airlines launched an inaugural flight to New York via Vancouver on Sunday evening, after an 18-year absence, as a part of its network expansion to the US East Coast.

PAL, a 74-year-old airline which flew its first aircraft from Manila to Baguio on March 15, 1941, is embarking on US network expansion this year following the lifting of the Category 2 rating by the US Federal Aviation Administration.

PAL chairman and chief execu-

B3 CYAN MAGENTA YELLOW BLACK

tive Lucio Tan said the start of regular flights to New York coincided with PAL’s 74th founding anniversary. Asia’s first airline marked the anniversary Sunday with the start of four-times-weekly service to New York City, one of the world’s largest financial capitals.

The airline first flew to New York in 1996, but pulled out the service a year later at the height of the Asian financial crisis.

PAL president Jaime Bautista said the airline resumed flights to New York as an “answer to the clamor of the huge Filipino community in the US East Coast.”

San Miguel buys Aussie cork firm

“We are confident we will be able to meet the expectations of our passengers in New York with PAL’s brand of quality service that is distinctively Filipino,” Bautista said.

Filipinos on the East Coast accounted for 15 percent of some 3.4-million Filipino population in the US, according to official data. PAL said about half a million Filipinos reside on the East Coast, with more than 253,000 in the New York-New Jersey metropolitan area, 90,000 in Virginia, 75,000 in Washington DC and environs and 31,000 in the Philadelphia metro area.

B4

in the... international trade for agricultural commodities,” Balisacan said.

The administration said with quantitative restrictions, farmers were more protected from dumping, or excessive inflow of rice at cheap prices, in the local market which may affect the livelihood of Filipino farmers.

The World Trade OrganizationCommittee on Trade in Goods recently approved the Philippines’ bid to extend the implementation of the quantity restriction on rice up to 2017.

“The WTO approved our request for extension of QR up to 2017. So we still have [time] to find a way to achieve what we want to achieve. Before 2017, we need to push for measures that have been neglected. We also have a law, RA 8178, that placed rice under a QR regime. So until the law is amended, there is still a QR on rice,” Balisacan said.

He said the government would create a technical working group to study the benefits and the risks of the quantitative restrictions as well as the measures needed to be in place by 2017.

“We need to make sure that we are putting in measures that will guarantee or enhance our capability to respond to price

Big Aboitiz solar project ready in ’16

6840 7500 6180

7000

5520

6500

4860

6000 4200 3860 5500

7,809.54 30.28

PeSo-dollar rate

Closing MARCH 13, 2015 45

P44.300

44

CLOSE

43 42 41

HIGH P44.230 LOW P44.320 AVERAGE P44.271 VOLUME 542.400M

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 Friday, March 13, 2015

F oreign e xchange r ate Currency

Unit

US Dollar Peso

United States

Dollar

1.000000

44.2710

Japan

Yen

0.008247

0.3651

UK

Pound

1.489900

65.9594

Hong Kong

Dollar

0.128755

5.7001

Switzerland

Franc

0.998004

44.1826

Canada

Dollar

0.788146

34.8920

Singapore

Dollar

0.724061

32.0549

Australia

Dollar

0.771010

34.1334

Bahrain

Dinar

2.652520

117.4297

Saudi Arabia

Rial

0.266638

11.8043

Brunei

Dollar

0.721449

31.9393

Indonesia

Rupiah

0.000076

0.0034

Thailand

Baht

0.030488

1.3497

UAE

Dirham

0.272257

12.0531

Euro

Euro

1.063800

47.0955

Korea

Won

0.000892

0.0395

China

Yuan

0.159683

7.0693

India

Rupee

0.016022

0.7093

Malaysia

Ringgit

0.271076

12.0008

New Zealand

Dollar

0.740576

32.7860

Taiwan

Dollar

0.031673

1.4022 Source: PDS Bridge

MONDAY: MARCH 16, 2015

B2

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

MST BuSineSS Weekly STockS RevieW STOCKS

MARCH 9-13,2015 Close Volume

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. Manulife Fin. Corp.

MEDCO Holdings Metrobank Natl Reinsurance Corp.

PB Bank Phil Bank of Comm Phil. National Bank Phil. Savings Bank PSE Inc. RCBC `A’ Security Bank Sun Life Financial Union Bank Vantage Equities

6.72 70 114.50 100.00 47.05 2.36 2.40 10 16.6 25.25 8.84 1.70 720.00 0.520 92.5 0.98 18.50 31.50 82.00 95.20 352.4 46 163 1350.00 69.50 3.08

Aboitiz Power Corp.

Agrinurture Inc. Alliance Tuna Intl Inc. Alsons Cons.

Asiabest Group Bogo Medellin C. Azuc De Tarlac Century Food Cirtek Holdings (Chips) Concepcion Da Vinci Capital Del Monte DNL Industries Inc. Emperador Energy Devt. Corp. (EDC) EEI Euro-Med Lab. Federal Res. Inv. Group First Gen Corp.

First Holdings ‘A’ Ginebra San Miguel Inc. Greenergy Holcim Philippines Inc. Integ. Micro-Electronics Ionics Inc Jollibee Foods Corp.

Lafarge Rep Liberty Flour LMG Chemicals Macay Holdings Manila Water Co. Inc. Maxs Group Megawide Mla. Elect. Co `A’ Panasonic Mfg Phil. Corp.

Pepsi-Cola Products Phil.

Petron Corporation Phil H2O Phinma Corporation Phoenix Petroleum Phils.

Phoenix Semiconductor RFM Corporation Roxas Holdings San Miguel’Pure Foods `B’ SPC Power Corp.

Splash Corporation Swift Foods, Inc. TKC Steel Corp.

Trans-Asia Oil Universal Robina Victorias Milling Vitarich Corp.

Vivant Corp.

Vulcan Ind’l.

45.9 1.69 1.1 2.09 8.27 50.2 87.00 19 22 59 1.81 11.92 20.300 11.68 8.45 9.80 1.43 19.62 29.6 103.9 14.08 0.4850 14.76 6.67 0.610 210.80 10.1 38.00 2.68 52.50 27.5 29 8.050 280.00 4.23 4.54 10.58 5.2 11.68 3.95 2.91 5.90 6.5 205 4.49 1.78 0.191 1.52 2.27 217.6 4.68 0.73 21.30 1.54

Abacus Cons. `A’ Aboitiz Equity Alliance Global Inc. Anscor `A’ Asia Amalgamated A ATN Holdings A ATN Holdings B Ayala Corp `A’ Cosco Capital DMCI Holdings F&J Prince ‘A’ F&J Prince ‘B’ Filinvest Dev. Corp.

Forum Pacific GT Capital House of Inv. JG Summit Holdings Jolliville Holdings Keppel Holdings `A’ Keppel Holdings `B’ Lopez Holdings Corp.

Lodestar Invt. Holdg.Corp.

Mabuhay Holdings `A’ Metro Pacific Inv. Corp.

Minerales Industrias Corp.

MJCI Investments Inc. Pacifica `A’ Prime Orion Republic Glass ‘A’ San Miguel Corp `A’ Seafront `A’ SM Investments Inc. Solid Group Inc. South China Res. Inc. Top Frontier Unioil Res. & Hldgs Wellex Industries Zeus Holdings

0.475 57.00 26.10 7.17 1.73 2.73 2.9 758 9.3 15.40 3.15 2.98 4.81 0.405 1330 6.30 65.00 4.71 5.2 9 0.72 16 0.64 4.89 5.28 3.49 0.0410 0.720 2.41 73.00 2.80 920.00 1.28 0.99 103.00 0.5900 0.2650 0.325

Value

Close

FINANCIAL 14,930,690.00 15,969,221.00 1,740,502,977.00 1,049,740,295.00 11,046,155.00 861,750.00 2,100,750.00 13,036.00 49,052,180.00 79,771,370.00 1,526,883 65,990.00 544,900.00 2,123,870.00 3,532,693,844.00 340,950.00 9,133,770.00 1,956,335.00 22,635,208.00 966,544.00 30,475,744.00 50,643,140.00 907,657,561.00 517,430.00 11,757,792.00 2,880,090.00 INDUSTRIAL 12,748,000 581,406,265.00 264,000 452,230.00 2,226,000 2,436,760.00 13,226,000 27,438,950.00 25,700 213,486.00 40 2,008.00 940 76,430.00 655,600 12,399,012.00 2,860,700 62,088,425.00 261,100 15,241,808.00 1,238,000 2,233,250.00 4,380,300 44,013,988.00 27,975,500 571,414,678.00 47,418,300 544,945,626.00 202,312,500 1,720,089,412.00 9,216,000 91,826,003.00 34,000 48,620.00 731,800 13,873,224.00 27,144,900 809,701,185.00 3,606,290 341,260,495.00 70,400 992,708.00 838,000 404,165.00 306,100 4,551,674.00 1,892,400 12,709,584.00 235,000 143,410.00 47,672,588 431,083,228.00 4,006,300 40,448,116.00 8,600 322,845.00 119,000 314,430.00 3,850 199,445.00 18,090,500 473,547,550.00 4,097,900 116,003,825.00 596,100 4,814,434.00 914,400 252,278,842.00 10,000 42,300.00 1,198,000 5,467,860.00 10,902,400 114,358,550.00 657,100 3,659,453.00 1,375,300 16,164,234.00 2,834,000 11,169,390.00 7,858,000 22,822,620.00 3,682,400 21,793,686.00 753,100 4,882,030.00 62,270 12,782,172.00 53,000 238,200.00 2,323,000 4,003,160.00 79,096,720 14,126,830.00 1,833,000 2,797,140.00 9,170,000 20,793,990.00 9,427,110 2,036,566,628.00 284,000 1,281,240.00 2,009,110 1,189,032.00 500 10,530.00 2,302,000 3,526,920.00 HOLDING FIRMS 1,540,000 722,650.00 5,484,390 318,851,862.00 70,841,100 1,781,778,625.00 340,400 2,423,459.00 811,000 1,286,340.00 1,592,000 4,241,450.00 51,000 145,320.00 2,729,620 2,037,960,280.00 19,153,600 177,487,539.00 39,176,500 604,569,850.00 4,000 12,600.00 50,000 150,220.00 713,000 3,372,530.00 88,410,000 37,742,250.00 646,605 1,142,636,435.00 47,700 304,733.00 8,150,260 534,584,912.00 22,100 104,930.00 25,900 134,135.00 24,857,400 225,740,823.00 6,054,530 4,091,590.00 9,885,800 159,057,344.00 13,275,000 8,167,240.00 241,711,000 1,170,498,450.00 432,200 2,269,532.00 8,000 27,320.00 14,500,000 593,400.00 2,191,000 1,555,120.00 59,000 142,020.00 640,730 47,498,486.00 3 30,000.00 1,061,670 967,885,390.00 835,000 1,038,150.00 441,000 413,290.00 78,520 8,227,157.00 73,998,860 22,742,432.00 25,290,000 6,650,100.00 2,840,000 914,500.00 PROPERTY 2,515,000 230,330 592,879,965 10,459,690 234,300 380,000 859,000 1,300 2,976,700 3,269,000 539,917 38,000 750 4,053,000 37,604,260 333,000 495,500 61,800 275,630 10,140 85,420 1,094,800 5,388,130 385 169,030 933,000

MARCH 2-6,2015 Volume Value

4.42 70 114.00 100.00 47.5 2.32 2.50 10.5 16.08 25.7 7.96 1.67 730.00 0.550 94.5 1.01 18.60 32.00 84.00 95.40 356.4 47 167.5 1355.00 69.85 3.09

308,000 198,970 18,109,120 11,594,040 310,900 2,170,000 1,211,000 51,000 132,900 486,700 123,600 60,000 60 10,130,000 11,662,270 1,497,000 547,500 51,500 195,100 6,800 121,850 857,700 5,364,560 740 226,150 9,080,000

1,297,510.00 10,646,320.00 2,042,474,995.00 1,152,500,953.00 14,730,660.00 5,278,880.00 2,942,220.00 535,500.00 2,148,588.00 12,555,780.00 1,002,397 102,920.00 43,800.00 5,483,810.00 1,093,534,703.00 1,473,270.00 10,226,008.00 1,648,365.00 16,343,244.00 648,480.00 43,609,716.00 39,822,685.00 887,743,147.00 1,005,495.00 15,152,931.00 28,546,030.00

45.8 1.7 1.09 2.05 8.3 50.1

10,880,800 938,000 3,509,000 6,784,200 62,700 100

487,021,655.00 1,653,760.00 3,490,780.00 8,813,935.00 518,357.00 5,010.00

18.88 21 58 1.83 12.8 20.500 11.18 8.86 10.56 1.33 18 30.8 106.2 14.12 0.4750 14.86 6.81 0.640 219.80 10.12 35.00 2.7 52.95 26.5 29.05 8.100 274.40 4.23 4.62 10.54 4.5 11.40 3.97 2.91 5.99 6.47 207 4.5 1.79 0.193 1.54 2.30 217 4.5 0.74 21.00 1.55

1,883,700 1,348,300 165,180 7,448,000 266,000 32,127,800 25,528,300 102,528,100 638,100 3,000 447,800 22,722,700 3,492,190 57,300 1,700,000 581,200 3,330,200 139,000 3,647,220 12,076,620 14,900 46,000 75,420 32,842,300 3,065,000 2,385,445 1,847,720 132,000 2,171,000 11,609,000 17,000 599,800 2,616,000 39,625,000 4,544,000 124,800 1,065,630 156,000 3,871,000 224,250,000 130,000 15,461,000 8,943,370 38,000 6,503,000 1,400 1,128,500

35,306,500.00 28,185,040.00 9,471,143.00 14,366,550.00 3,431,212.00 629,081,903.00 268,867,986.00 916,911,652.00 6,095,560.00 3,990.00 8,135,612.00 688,228,070.00 362,698,274.00 587,536.00 797,600.00 8,610,870.00 22,513,384.00 84,820.00 799,159,032.00 43,140,974.00 562,310.00 24,182.00 3,946,214.00 907,441,050.00 90,970,285.00 5,959,435.00 512,468,438.00 528,980.00 9,828,810.00 121,875,658.00 72,330.00 6,617,200.00 10,377,290.00 114,804,060.00 26,781,423.00 807,827.00 215,728,998.00 699,480.00 7,048,520.00 44,698,520.00 201,560.00 36,062,840.00 1,113,756,802.00 171,010.00 4,875,800.00 31,390.00 1,543,967.00

0.475 59.00 24.00 7.12 1.65 2.75 2.71 732 9.27 15.68

270,000 5,649,490 50,931,700 213,600 298,200 2,768,000 169,000 1,882,090 18,782,700 38,739,600

129,100.00 326,680,100.00 1,211,942,880.00 1,517,511.00 522,930.00 7,747,800.00 478,150.00 1,367,790,008.00 180,314,106.00 472,467,078.00

3.03 4.82 0.395 1292 6.42 67.10

3,000 1,755,000 53,190,000 741,205 3,063,814 11,396,430

9,090.00 8,397,130.00 21,147,600.00 937,240,050.00 19,329,112.00 760,913,916.00

5.11 9.13 0.7 16.1 0.63 4.81 5.25

1,300 36,638,200 1,261,000 88,752,808 2,653,000 399,215,700 356,300

7,017.00 330,947,504.00 871,360.00 456,847,806.00 1,607,610.00 2,039,097,884.00 1,851,057.00

0.0420 0.720 2.4 74.20 2.85 911.00 1.21 0.97 106.00 0.5800 0.2600 0.325

8,200,000 1,925,000 48,000 1,543,020 19,000 1,431,720 542,000 144,000 45,510 239,201,000 14,480,000 6,733,300

344,400.00 1,401,770.00 117,300.00 117,046,779.00 53,950.00 1,295,007,460.00 657,150.00 135,530.00 4,850,626.00 143,441,120.00 3,811,650.00 1,750,452.00

STOCKS

MARCH 9-13,2015 Close Volume

8990 HLDG Anchor Land Holdings Inc. A. Brown Co., Inc. Araneta Prop `A’ Arthaland Corp.

Ayala Land `B’ Belle Corp. `A’ Belle Corp. `B’ Cebu Holdings Centennial City City & Land Dev. Cityland Dev. `A’ Crown Equities Inc. Cyber Bay Corp.

Empire East Land Ever Gotesco Global-Estate Filinvest Land,Inc. Interport `A’ Megaworld Corp.

Megaworld Prop.

MRC Allied Ind. Phil. Estates Corp.

Phil. Realty `A’ 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

9.760 10.28 1.03 1.340 0.275 37.45 4.4 5.1 0.97 1.25 1.00 0.151 0.475 0.900 0.214 1.62 1.80 1.50 5.63 5.5 0.125 0.3600 0.4900 7.4 28.50 1.76 3.21 19.80 0.94 7.29 1.060 7.500

2GO Group ABS-CBN Acesite Hotel 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. Imperial Res. `A’ IPeople Inc. `A’ IP E-Game Ventures Inc. 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 Retail SSI Group STI Holdings Transpacific Broadcast Travellers Waterfront Phils.

Yehey

9.9 63.8 1.09 0.690 14 10.58 0.1090 4.08 87.5 10.94 1.66 6.42 1000 1943 6.83 1.59 111.5 4.21 11.9 0.014 0.330 1.3300 2.69 9.08 2.00 1.5 2.28 0.690 1.97 10.18 0.365 0.520 18.02 4.55 3.33 105.00 13.80 2950.00 0.600 1.590 41.75 87.00 10.80 0.72 1.9 7.35 0.365 1.420

Abra Mining Apex `A’ Atlas Cons. `A’ Atok-Big Wedge `A’ Basic Energy Corp.

Benguet Corp `A’ Benguet Corp `B’ Century Peak Metals Hldgs Coal Asia Dizon Ferronickel Geograce Res. Phil. Inc. Lepanto `A’ Lepanto `B’ Manila Mining `A’ Manila Mining `B’ Marcventures Hldgs., Inc. Nickelasia Nihao Mineral Resources Omico Oriental Peninsula Res. Oriental Pet. `A’ Oriental Pet. `B’ Petroenergy Res. Corp.

Philex `A’ PhilexPetroleum Philodrill Corp. `A’ Semirara Corp.

TA Petroleum United Paragon

0.0061 2.98 9.46 10.82 0.260 7.0200 7.0100 1.11 0.95 8.00 2.52 0.350 0.245 0.255 0.0140 0.0150 5.7 28 3.8 0.7600 2.300 0.0140 0.0140 5.85 7.86 3 0.016 156.00 4.39 0.0110

ABS-CBN Holdings Corp.

Ayala Corp. Pref ‘B1’ Ayala Corp. Pref ‘B2’ First Gen F First Gen G GLOBE PREF P GMA Holdings Inc. Leisure & Resort Pref.

MWIDE PREF PCOR-Preferred A PCOR-Preferred B PF Pref 2 SMC Preferred A SMC Preferred B SMC Preferred C Swift Pref

65.7 512 520 110 114.1 508.5 6.79 1.06 108.5 1050 1065 1039 76.7 82 83.5 1.8

Leisure & Resort Warr.

4.020

Double Dragon Makati Fin. Corp.

Ripple E-Business Intl Xurpas

7.8 3.63 71.05 11.1

First Metro ETF

126.9

Value

6,200,500 63,152,650.00 3,000 30,280.00 1,820,000 1,888,820.00 1,368,000 1,819,740.00 5,900,000 1,670,700.00 51,806,600 1,955,600,465.00 10,370,000 45,504,350.00 1,956,000 8,627,280.00 127,400 643,954.00 35,867,000 34,031,310.00 75,000 91,680.00 604,000 604,560.00 111,300,000 17,315,320.00 3,680,000 1,742,450.00 4,867,000 4,380,310.00 3,020,000 652,560.00 7,637,000 12,274,700.00 154,390,000 275,444,250.00 3,614,000 5,388,040.00 120,861,800 674,492,028.00 78,354,400 433,832,729.00 20,490,000 2,578,920.00 1,266,000 603,550.00 3,000 1,470.00 10,691,482 17,201,546.00 14,770,100 415,903,910.00 1,530,000 2,341,025.00 406,000 1,299,170.00 52,981,000 1,048,682,600.00 61,718,000 60,394,480.00 28,707,900 206,589,287.00 1,781,000 1,847,060.00 39,697,900 297,517,529.00 SERVICES 14,054,600 133,660,320.00 108,010 6,918,359.00 1,000 1,090.00 1,962,000 1,349,570.00 1,795,700 23,380,302.00 47,925,800 508,465,176.00 203,300,000 22,418,400.00 5,129,360 10,719,110.00 39,667,247 204,532,247.00 15,100 164,188.00 55,333 97,280 45,700 293,976.00 1,955 1,960,100.00 244,340 473,821,005.00 3,500,300 23,727,799.00 1,530,000 2,477,090.00 7,884,260 889,842,290.00 2,000 8,420 183,000 2,175,648.00 84,400,000 1,181,800.00 394,350,000 124,275,650.00 3,323,000 4,448,130.00 380,000 1,053,160.00 2,889,000 26,367,807.00 205,100 295,794.00 2,151,000 3,425,290.00 309,000 685,780.00 708,040 499,440.00 378,000 746,740.00 96,147,394 443,417,103.00 4,310,000 1,561,300.00 946,000 486,160.00 53,800 968,282.00 227,000 1,024,840 709,000 2,586,410.00 826,960 86,776,401.00 14,057,600 192,028,846.00 715,160 2,182,769,420.00 4,622,230 2,547,882.00 65,576,000 106,937,850.00 19,641,200 810,918,670.00 8,733,760 553,064,895.00 110,646,606 239,280,538.00 16,822,000 7,695,660.00 57,000 109,920.00 7,827,300 58,273,544.00 3,873,950 1,441,703.00 58,000 80,150.00 MINING & OIL 5,906,000,000 36,008,000.00 584,000 1,683,100.00 953,700 9,185,935.00 800 8,656.00 16,650,000 4,360,450.00 29,100 207,004.00 11,100 78,162.00 10,148,000 11,143,700.00 8,452,000 7,964,800.00 328,900 2,405,113.00 594,860,000 1,557,465,050.00 4,610,000 1,597,250.00 86,060,000 21,411,470.00 22,100,000 5,541,550.00 353,200,000 4,974,100.00 249,400,000 3,741,200.00 5,105,200 29,105,876.00 17,603,400 496,752,240.00 32,882,000 116,254,990.00 2,646,000 1,958,430.00 2,057,970 3,993,562.00 83,500,000 1,080,800.00 15,622,000 234,100.00 38,500 215,199.00 7,610,600 60,588,383.00 5,407,000 17,702,420.00 765,600,000 11,609,400.00 317,574,913 448,274,993.00 702,000 3,048,580.00 83,800,000 959,200.00 PREFERRED 1,383,090 90,462,544.00 36,690 18,713,000.00 16,190 8,421,660 32,000 3,578,200.00 68,550 7,840,100.00 8,480,130 7,257,915.00 1,107,200 7,503,048.00 11,827,000 12,800,880 172,100 18,550,842.00 1,980 2,059,550.00 11,585 12,400,490.00 31,400 32,185,190.00 295,080 22,572,920.00 268,822 5,009,256.00 913,070 75,754,036.00 13,200 29,600.00 WARRANTS & BONDS 1,225,000 4,929,480.00 SME 1,777,700 13,804,616.00 3,000 10,890.00 13,190 899,143.00 7,084,700 79,670,800.00 EXCHANGE TRADED FUNDS 50,870 6,431,418.00

Close

MARCH 2-6,2015 Volume Value

10.360 10.28 1.05 1.300 0.260 38.25 4.41

7,516,012 11,200 1,469,000 1,151,000 430,000 40,171,800 6,411,000

49,848,663.00 112,308.00 1,544,130.00 1,506,050.00 114,900.00 1,510,502,480.00 28,228,600.00

5.07 0.94 1.28 1.00 0.160 0.475 0.900 0.216 1.65 1.75 1.43 5.56 5.45 0.132 0.3650 0.5000 7.65 28.65 1.77 3.20 19.90 0.96 7.28 1.060 7.490

328,500 37,112,000 204,410 106,000 383,243,080 15,480,000 1,200,870 680,000 21,899,000 285,684,000 2,336,000 160,587,600 132,642,100 42,580,000 155,000 491,000 13,290,000 16,068,300 955,000 1,621,120 50,589,600 142,717,000 20,902,900 2,511,000 31,343,700

1,657,249.00 35,031,590.00 56,780.00 103,000.00 59,616,650.00 7,469,800.00 620,030.00 154,600.00 32,511,732.00 500,500,860.00 3,223,230.00 897,043,618.00 730,491,192.00 5,551,820.00 105,100.00 246,845.00 97,501,079.00 470,520,010.00 1,681,120.00 2,009,948.00 996,390,926.00 127,822,120.00 149,912,501.00 2,595,040.00 227,664,618.00

8.35 64.45 1.08 0.700 12.84 11.04 0.1130 4.34 89.3 10.84 1.67 6.39 1010 1940 6.46 1.63 112.4 4.01 11.86 0.014 0.300 1.3500 2.8 9.35 1.96 1.69 2.27 0.700 2 10.4 0.375 0.520 18.26 4.60 3.45 98.50 13.88 3100.00 0.600 1.670 40.80 84.20 10.86 0.71 2.05 7.49 0.370 1.390

6,288,600 640,010 4,000 2,182,000 194,800 184,231,700 131,730,000 3,800,000 4,366,650 44,400 489,190 1,356,900 1,310,670 177,995 1,284,800 9,367,000 4,245,700 1,000 111,500 265,000,000 300,690,500 3,588,000 843,170 5,373,537 43,000 2,818,000 24,000 1,345,010 560,000 17,433,600 1,870,000 1,626,700 163,700 128,000 120,000 23,110 2,475,800 1,143,420 10,711,000 85,789,200 21,851,900 6,217,960 22,564,900 9,147,000 140,000 16,600,500 3,120,000 634,000

34,886,489.00 41,076,328.00 4,380.00 1,508,890.00 2,468,340.00 689,194,614.00 14,880,300.00 16,275,860.00 387,457,735.00 468,168.00 518,090.00 8,646,638.00 10,956,178.00 344,158,140.00 8,273,601.00 15,254,840.00 478,115,336.00 4,010 1,324,600.00 2,874,709.00 76,574,850.00 4,896,380.00 1,535,998.00 8,535,969.00 85,830.00 4,636,160.00 53,570.00 888,501.00 1,120,490.00 145,043,072.00 675,700.00 657,830.00 2,981,880.00 594,910 393,790.00 2,280,803.00 33,717,514.00 2,923,260,680.00 6,343,050.00 145,144,340.00 870,953,515.00 528,428,643.00 190,083,559.00 6,433,140.00 286,900.00 117,833,187.00 1,171,350.00 832,020.00

0.0061 2.90 9.94 10.80 0.265 7.1400 7.4000 1.12 0.9 7.62 2.71 0.345 0.255 0.260 0.0150 0.0160 5.7 28.75 3.3 0.7100 2.300 0.0140 0.0140 5.86 8.16 3.9 0.016 166.40 4.35 0.0110

10,969,000,000 289,000 1,254,700 3,500 5,870,000 43,100 215,000 25,210,000 1,358,980 260,700 81,376,000 1,650,000 28,450,000 7,019,200 582,800,000 85,800,000 5,863,900 26,900,000 17,198,810 2,665,000 3,010,000 45,000,000 17,200,000 51,600 3,512,100 3,219,000 504,400,000 6,743,900 4,014,000 27,600,000

65,221,300.00 847,190.00 12,402,381.00 37,822.00 1,565,850.00 310,106.00 1,524,108.00 28,310,900.00 785,741.00 1,984,012.00 232,417,480.00 577,300.00 7,352,150.00 1,704,100.00 8,604,900.00 1,329,800.00 34,619,395.00 774,795,245.00 36,566,730.00 1,936,430.00 7,067,100.00 587,100.00 241,800.00 293,949.00 28,743,794.00 12,850,020.00 8,028,500.00 1,106,200,942.00 17,594,010.00 298,800.00

66 517 517 112 115 510 6.4 1.05 108 1035 1065

47,053,928 50,150 79,540 900 235,760 101,610 318,300 15,434,000 193,490 1,630 8,440

18,648,140.50 25,545,130.00 40,758,360 100,800.00 26,740,747.00 51,361,515.00 2,009,645.00 16,120,830 20,686,640.00 1,674,720.00 8,918,340.00

76.1 81 83 2.2

2,499,130 67,690 586,150 46,000

189,340,186.00 5,628,620.00 48,392,860.00 101,800.00

4.100

4,768,000

19,296,000.00

MST WEEKLY MOST TRADED STOCKS

Abra Mining Philodrill Corp. `A’ Ferronickel Banco de Oro Unibank Inc. Island Info Manila Mining `A’ Semirara Corp.

Manila Mining `B’ Metro Pacific Inv. Corp.

Boulevard Holdings

VOLUME 5,906,000,000 765,600,000 594,860,000 592,879,965 394,350,000 353,200,000 317,574,913 249,400,000 241,711,000 203,300,000

STOCKS Metrobank PLDT Common Ayala Corp `A’ Universal Robina Ayala Land `B’ Alliance Global Inc. Banco de Oro Unibank Inc. Energy Devt. Corp. (EDC) Ferronickel Metro Pacific Inv. Corp.

VALUE 3,532,693,844.00 2,182,769,420.00 2,037,960,280.00 2,036,566,628.00 1,955,600,465.00 1,781,778,625.00 1,740,502,977.00 1,720,089,412.00 1,557,465,050.00 1,170,498,450.00

7.8

5,182,300

40,847,825.00

71.95 11.4

5,290 8,708,300

360,842.00 97,492,820.00

126.5

113,870

14,376,019.00

MONDAY: MARCH 16, 2015

B3

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

Daang Hari express road delayed again THE completion of the much-delayed Muntinlupa-Cavite Expressway, or MCX, formerly called Daang Hari South Luzon Expressway project, has been moved for the nth time, this time to June 2015.

The four-kilometer MCX was the first Public-Private Partnership project bid out by Aquino administration. Conglomerate Ayala Corp. won the auction in December 2011 with a finaqncial bid price of P902 billion.

The target completion of the tollroad project, according to the conglomerate’s presentation materials during a recent analysts’ briefing, will now be on June 2015 pending the resolution of a right-of-way problem.

The conglomerate, however, said a whole organization was formed and ready to manage and operate the tollroad project once it was completed.

But up until last month, Ayala Corp. officials said the group was still planning to complete the project by the first quarter of 2015.

The project has been expected to be completed in the third quarter of 2014, before the schedule was moved to December 2014 due the early onset of the rainy season.

Ayala in November announced it would complete the project in the first quarter of 2015.

If Ayala Corp. is not ready to open its first PPP project, Metro Pacific-led Manila North Tollways Corp is set to launch segment 9 of the North Luzon Expressway project sometime this month.

Segment 9 will connect NLEx with MacArthur Highway in Karuhatan, Valenzuela City. It will offer motorists another entry point to NLEx, like Balintawak and Mindanao Avenue.

Once opened, segment 9 will require the same toll payment from motorists as those currently collected in the existing open system. Jenniffer B. Austria

San Miguel buys Aussie cork firm

By Jenniffer B. Austria

CONGLOMERATE San Miguel Corp. said unit San Miguel Yamamura Packaging International Ltd. has completed the acquisition of Australia’s leading wine cork and cap maker.

This is the second acquisition of an Australian packaging company by San Miguel’s international packaging unit.

San Miguel said in a statement the purchase of Vinocor Worldwide Direct Pty. Ltd. was made through San Miguel Yamamura’s new Australian subsidiary, SMYV Pty Ltd. “The acquisition will enable our packaging business to tap the expanding premium wine markets in Australia and New Zealand. Vinocor will complement our current packaging operations, the Cospak Group, in both countries,” said San Miguel president and chief operating officer Ramon Ang.

San Miguel did not provide the acquisition cost and other details.

Vinocor is a leading supplier of wine bottle closures and customized bottles in Australia. With facilities and operations based in Adelaide, South Australia, its product portfolio includes cork, screw caps, customized glass bottles and champagne hoods and capsules.

In 2009, San Miguel Yamamura Packaging Corp. through SMPIL signed a sale share and subscription agreement to purchase a majority stake in the Cospak Group.

Based in Sydney, Australia, the Cospak Group is the largest packaging trading firm in Australasia.

The group operates largely in Australia and New Zealand, but

company has trading outposts in South Africa and Italy.

SMYP, the biggest packaging company in the Philippines, operates facilities in China, Malaysia and Vietnam through SMYPIL It provides total packaging solutions across the globe, a wide range of quality products that include glass, plastics, metal, flexibles, PET, molds and paper, and reliable services and technical expertise.

The company provides a strategically accessible and world-class supply base, creating a sustainable competitive advantage.

SMYPC and SMYPIL are joint ventures of San Miguel and Nihon Yamamura Glass Co. Ltd. of Japan.

SMYP has been expanding its business in several parts the world. In 2012, SMYP entered into a partnership with Polandbased Can-Pack S.A. to form an aluminum can manufacturing business gear toward the Philippine and Asia Pacific market.

Petron’s BIR award.

Petron Corp., the country’s leading oil refining and marketing company, received the 2014 Billionaires’ Award from the Bureau of Internal Revenues’ Large Taxpayers Service. Petron general manager Lubin Nepomuceno (second from left) receives the award on behalf of the company. He is joined by Finance Secretary Cesar Purisima (leftmost), BIR Commissioner Kim Henares (second from right) and LTS OICAssistant Commissioner Nestor Valeroso. The award is given to companies that have paid more than P1 billion in tax payments and achieved a growth rate of more than 20 percent versus the previous tax year.

DNL’s next target: PSEi AFTER achieving two milestones in its very early stage of being a listed company, can D&L Industries’ be part of the 30-company bellwether Philippine Stock Exchange Index?

“Wish ko lang,” D&L chief finance officer Alvin Lao said in a text message, when asked if the company’s inclusion in the PSEi would be its next achievement.

D&L reached $1 billion in market capitalization two years ahead of a 2016 target and was included under small cap category of the London-based FTSE Index review as of March 2015.

The idea of being part of the stock index is not far fetched though, considering that the company ended 2014 ranked 50 among listed firms in terms of market capitilzation when its stock price hit P16.66 per share. D&L’s share price closed Friday at P20.95 apiece, up 25 percent since the start of the year.

To be included in the PSEi, a listed company should be among the top firm in terms of liquidity and full market capitalization.

A listed company should also have a free float level of at least 12 percent of its outstanding shares. Jenniffer B. Austria

Stocks to trade sideways; overseas developments, oil eyed

By Jenniffer B. Austria SHARE prices are expected to continue their sideways movement with a bias on the downside, as investors look for catalysts that could push the market higher.

“We are still firm to our sideway to down outlook. More caution has to be exercised this week, especially that technical readings are putting even more pressure on prices,” Regina Capital Development Corp. managing

director Luis Limlingan said.

F. Yap Securities investment analyst Jason Escartin said overseas developments plus the unsteady international crude futures market could make the trading volatile this week.

“Stick to sectors with solid potentials for 2Q. Immediate support is 7,750-7,800, resistance 7,850-7,900,” Escartin said.

The Philippine Stock Exchange Index last week dropped 0.66 percent to close at 7,809.54, while the All Shares Index dipped 0.46

percent to 4,545.05.

“The local equities market consolidated on a tight range as a concoction of positive and negative developments affect market sentiment,” BPI Asset Management in a weekly stock market review said.

The PSEi fell early on in the trading week as concerns the US may hike interest rates. Stock recovered in the latter part of the week on bargain hunting and renewed optimism on the 2015 earnings growth.

Except for the holdings firms index which climbed 0.80 percent, all major sub-indices were in red, led by mining and oil index, which declined 4.05 percent, followed by the services index, which dropped 2.42 percent.

Overseas investors were net buyers for the week by P555.2 million as total foreign buying amounted to P22.20 billion against total foreign selling of P21.65 billion.

Average daily value traded was flat at P8.8 billion.

Weekly top price gainers were AG Finance Inc., which climbed 52 percent to P6.72, 2Go Group Inc., which rose 18.5 percent to P9.90, and Jolliville Holdings Corp., which advanced 16.8 percent to P4.71.

The weekly top price losers were Philex Petroleum Corp., which declined 23 percent to P3 apiece, Lorenzo Shipping Corp., which dropped 11.2 percent to P1.50, and Central Azucarera de Tarlac Inc., which fell 9.2 percent to P87.

B4

BUSINESS

Wind project award. Energy Development Corp., a unit of First Gen Corp., won the Asia-Pacific Renewables Deal of the Year from Project Finance International for EDC’s 150-megawatt Burgos Wind Project. First Gen and EDC are members of Lopez Group of companies. Filipino and foreign bankers, as well as lawyers, join EDC officials, led by EDC president and chief operqating Richard B. Tantoco (10th from left) for a group photo during PFI awarding ceremonies held in London. EDC officials shown are are chief finance officer Nestor Vasay (12th from left) and vice president Erwin Avante (eigth from left).

Big Aboitiz solar project up

By Alena Mae S. Flores

ABOITIZ Power Corp. and partner SunEdison of the US plan to complete their first solar project in time for the dry months next year, an Aboitiz Power official said over the weekend.

Aboitiz Power chief finance officer Manuel Lozano told reporters SunEdison planned to put up install 300 megawatts of electricity capacity from solar power.

“SunEdison wants 300 [MW] but that will be a challenge. I

think we’re looking at projects that could bring us to up to 100 MW initially, and our goal is to do is quickly as possible,” Lozano said.

He said each solar project would be capable of generating

around 20 MW to 40 MW of electricity.

“We’re negotiating some right now. Our goal is to finalize the deal for the construction and began construction by the middle of the year. Because we really would like to finish our fist project before March next year. Solar is fast,” Lozano said.

He said solar projects could be installed within four to six months. SunEdison is scouting at possible projects in Luzon and the Visayas.

“For us the value of the proj-

BSP may increase rates on special deposits

By Julito G. Rada THE Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas may increase the interest rates on special deposit accounts if there is any upward movement in domestic liquidity in the coming months, DBS Bank of Singapore said in a report over the weekend.

“The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas remains concerned about liquidity in the financial system, even if some moderation is now visible... ,” the bank said.

“The central bank may adjust the rates on the special deposit account to absorb any spike in liquidity,” the report said.

Latest Bangko Sentral data showed money supply in the financial system expanded at a slower pace in January this year, growing by 7.7 percent to P7.480 trillion from P6.943 trillion a year ago, as previous measures implemented by the bank regulator to address excess liquidity in the previous months continue to work their way into the economy.

The January expansion was

The Bangko Sentral remains concerned about domestic liquidity.

slower than the 11.3-percent revised growth in December last year, when money supply reached P7.709 trillion from P6.925 trillion a year ago.

In June last year, the Bangko Sentral increased by 25 basis points the interest rates on SDA to 2.25 percent from 2 percent across all tenors to address the issue of excess liquidity in the financial system.

Then on Sept. 11, SDA rates were again increased by another 25 basis points to 2.5 percent across all tenors for the same purpose.

Domestic liquidity grew 30 percent in January last year.

But despite the possible upward adjustment in SDA rates

if liquidity growth accelerated, DBS ruled out any movements in key policy rates.

“The rather sharp fall in inflation is likely to convince the BSP to continue taking a pause in its policy tightening course though.

This is especially given the string of policy loosening steps witnessed in the region so far this year,” the bank said. “... Any move on the key policy rate is unlikely. Expect the overnight borrowing rate to remain steady at 4 percent for the rest of the year,” DBS said.

It said lower-than-expected CPI inflation meant there was room for the Bangko Sentral to take a pause on its monetary policy normalization course.

Inflation in the first two months of the year averaged at 2.5 percent, well within the target range of 2 percent to 4 percent this year. February inflation accelerated to 2.5 percent from 2.4 percent in January due to some movements in the prices among commodity groups.

ect is high if we could finish the contract by March next year,” he said.

Lozano said the two companies are were at existing solar contracts that they could join.

“For us to jumpstart, we are looking at existing contracts.

Other developers already have contracts but were not able to progress,” he said.

Lozano said cited a lot of opportunities for solar projects, including solar rooftops.

Aboitiz Power last year teamed up with SunEdison to construct

solar power projects in the Philippines.

The two companies said they aimed to develop the first in a series of utility scale solar power projects this year.

SunEdison, a leading solar technology manufacturer and provider of solar energy services, and Aboitiz Renewables Inc., a wholly-owned unit of Aboitiz Power, signed a joint framework agreement to construct up to 300 MW of utility scale solar photovoltaic power generation projects in the country.

PLDT’s broadband users grow by 19% to over 4m PHILIPPINE Long Distance Telephone Co., the biggest telecommunications firm, registered reaching over four million broadband subscribers in 2014, up 19 percent from a year ago, after sustained expansion in its fixed and wireless broadband base.

“We are pleased to see that the PLDT Group remains the preferred broadband provider in the country, whether among corporates, at home, or on the go, as we continuously strive to bring the most innovative products and services to our subscribers that allow them to live connected,” PLDT president Napoleon Nazareno said in a statement.

The PLDT Group, which includes PLDT ALPHA Enterprise, PLDT SME Nation, PLDT HOME, and mobile subsidiaries Smart Communications and Sun Cellular, cornered nearly 60 percent of the total broadband subscribers in

the Philippines.

Nazareno said with PLDT’s integrated network, the group offered a variety of broadband plans available in different price points, depending on the speed and volume needed by the customer.

PLDT spent over P34.8 billion in capital expenditures in 2014 as it expanded its fiber network to nearly 100,000 kilometers, making it the most extensive, robust and resilient network in the country.

The bigger network is needed for reliable broadband services that can simultaneously deliver voice, video, and data offerings at faster speeds and larger capacities through various devices from computers, tablets and cellphones to television sets.

PLDT plans to spend another P39 billion in capital expenditures in 2015 in anticipation of greater data usage.

Alena Mae S. Flores

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

B5

SLEx operator raising P7.3b

Weaker yen, euro dampening exports

By Jenniffer B. Austria

By Othel V. Campos

SOUTH Luzon Tollway Corp., the operator of South Luzon Expressway, is raising as much as P7.3 billion through a retail bond issue.

SLTC said in a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission it planned to issue the bonds with tenors of five, seven and 10 years in May. The company plans to use proceeds from the bond sale to partially prepay outstanding obligations. The bonds will be listed with Philippine Dealing & Exchange Corp.

SLTC in 2012 borrowed P11 billion from several financial institution through the issuance of floating rate corporate notes. The corporate notes to date have an outstanding balance of P7.95 billion.

The tollroad operator hired BDO Capital and Investments Corp., PNB Capital and Standard Chartered Bank as joint issue managers, joint lead underwriters and book runners for the bond offering.

The company is 80 percent owned

by San Miguel Corp-led MTD Manila Expressways Inc. and 20 percent by government-run Philippine National Construction Corp.

SLTC is primarily engaged in the construction, expansion and rehabilitation of the SLEX from Alabang viaduct to Lucena. It is has a 30-year concession to operate, manage and maintain SLEX, or until February 2036.

SLTC plans to extend the reach of SLEX by completing the construction of Toll Road 4 (RT4), a new 57.6 kilometer four-leaf tollroad from Sto. Tomas, Batangas to Lucena, Quezon. This will extend SLEX to around 96.5 kilometres.

TR4, which is estimated to cost P12 billion, is slated for completion in 2019.

In 2014, SLTC reported a net income of P2.43 billion, a 16-percent increase from P2.09 billion in 2013, while revenues from toll operations amounted to P4.4 billion, up five percent from P4.19 billion in 2013.

EXPORTERS have expressed concern over the strengthening of the Philippine peso against major currencies, saying the trend may may result in fewer businesses and lower income for those engaged in the sector.

“As a matter of fact, January exports have already felt the exchange rate problem. And coupled with port congestion, exporters have lost repeat orders,” Philippine Exporters Confederation Inc. president Sergio OrtizLuiz said over the weekend.

The business group said the two percent-to-three percent in-

flation target of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas was also too low.

“I don’t think this lower inflation target should be pursued at the expense of exports. Don’t sacrifice exports and dollar earners for slower inflation, otherwise competitiveness will suffer. We should be prudent on controls. The inflation rate should be calibrated so we

can leverage with neighboring currencies,” Ortiz-Luis said.

The rollback of crude and oil prices would have little impact on the operations of manufacturers and exporters, he added.

Earlier, the Trade Department said Philippine exports might slow down and would not top the 10 percent growth projection due to a stronger foreign exchange rate in favor of the the Philippine peso.

Trade secretary Gregory Domingo said exports might grow slower than initially anticipated because of the sharp depreciation of the Japanese yen and the European currencies.

Exports to the US, however, are less likely to be affected due to the minimal movement of the dollar

against the local currency.

The Philippine peso in the last 12 months appreciated about 30 percent against the euro and 15 percent against the Japanese yen.

In anticipation of the effects of stronger peso, the Trade Department urged exporters to increase value-added to export products to command better prices.

It said February exports were expected to make up for the half a percentage decline in shipments in the month of January 2015.

Exports fell 0.5 percent in January to $4.36 billion from $4.38 billion year-on-year, dragged down by weak demand from manufacturers, data from the Philippine Statistics Authority showed earlier.

Most awarded. Megaworld Corp. bagged 12 awards at the prestigious 13th Philippine Quill Awards held last week at the Crowne Plaza Galleria Manila, making it the most awarded real estate company during the awards night. Receiving the awards are (from left) Megaworld’s Tefel Pesigan-Valentino, head of marketing and business development; Kim Sta. Maria, head of corporate communications and advertising; Harold Geronimo, head of public relations and communications; Lourdes Gutierrez-Alfonso, chief operating officer,; Kevin Tan, first vice president and head of commercial division; Jericho Go, senior vice-president; Francis Canuto, president of Megaworld Foundation; and Danilo Madlansakay, executive director of Megaworld Foundation.

Festival to showcase best furnitures in PH

Bustos Dam rehab. National Power Corp. chairman Gladys Cruz-Sta. Rita (from left), National

Irrigation Administration administrator Florencio Padernal and Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System administrator Gerardo A.I. Esquivel lead the signing of an agreement to rehabilitate the Angat Afterbay Regulator Dam, also known as Bustos Dam, at the MWSS headquarters in Quezon City. The project aims to rehabilitate the dam and its related structures to prevent further damage, improve irrigation service delivery and cropping intensity in the service area, and serve as flood control during the rainy season.

THE best Filipino furniture craftsmanship and seasoned industry players will be the showcase of the 22nd National Furniture, Furnishing and Fashion Festival from March 13 to April 6 at the Greenhills Shopping Center on Ortigas Avenue, San Juan City.

Highlighting 100 years of the evolution of Philippine furniture, the festival is the biggest assemblage of local furniture makers and traders in what has been billed as the longest running trade event of its kind in the country. Aside from these stakeholders in the furniture industry, the festival will also be participated in by tianggeros, importers, mall suppliers, wholesalers, retailers, manufacturers and factory owners.

Selected masterpieces of known furniture makers from Betis, Pampanga, the Mountain Province, the Southern Tagalog and Bicol regions, Visayas and Mindanao will share the limelight with the other top-of-the-line furnishing and fashion items from apparel to accessories.

Event organizer Prime Asia Trade Planners and Convention Organizers headed by Henry Babiera estimated around 1,500 exhibitors during the 25-day festival, which will also sell jewelry, leather goods, footwear, arts and crafts, food and other novelty items.

Since its inception in 1993, the festival has transformed the upscale image of the center into a shoppers’ mecca in the tradition of Divisoria, sans the congestion and hassle of the latter.

MONDAY: MARCH 16, 2015

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

Govt plans debt swap, repo The challenge of the Millenials THE impact of globalization and technological advancement on businesses and industries has steadily grown over the IMELDA past decades. Among the more ESTILLORE daunting challenges for businesses to remain competitive has been in the area of Strategic Human Resource Management.

More specifically, managers at different levels of the organization have been bewildered by an emerging segment of the workforce that can be considered a “new breed” of workers: the Millennials.

Generation Y Generally, the term Millennials, also commonly called Generation Y, refers to people born between the early 1980s until the early 2000s. They are usually described as lazy, narcissistic and prone to hop from one job to another. They are typically characterized as wanting flexible work schedules; more ‘me time’ on the job; requiring a lot of feedback and career advice from managers; less civically and politically involved; more focused on materialistic values; and less concerned about helping the larger community. They tend to give more “emphasis on extrinsic values such as money, fame, and image, and less emphasis on intrinsic values such as self-acceptance, group affiliation and community.”

On the positive side, they have been described as being more open-minded, tolerant of diversity, and sensitive to rights of marginalized groups in society.

Furthermore, they are generally known to be confident, self-expressive, liberal, upbeat and receptive to new ideas and ways of living. (Source: http://www.livescience.com/38061-millennials-generation-y.html) In a journal article written by Baker in 1999 entitled “Strategic Human Resource Management: Performance, Alignment, Management,” he espoused the importance of SHRM in achieving institutional goals. Citing Hendry and Pettigrew, Baker considered ‘seeing the people of the organization as a strategic resource for achieving competitive advantage’ as one of the components of SHRM. CST and the Millennials With the foregoing discussion, a critical question emerges: “How should managers across an organization capitalize on the Millennials as a strategic resource for achieving institutional goals and securing competitive advantage?”

I believe the recent visit of Pope Francis to our country has shed light on this critical question. It was amazing how the Filipinos, regardless of religious beliefs, received the ideas from Pope Francis as words of wisdom. Initially, one might conclude that it was due to the magnetic and charismatic personality of the Pope. After deeper reflection, I realized that what really appealed to the people was the universal character or applicability of what he said. His words were irresistible and penetrating because they struck a chord in each man’s heart.

Thus, I am inclined to think that the key to addressing the challenge of the Millennials lies in the social teachings of the Catholic Church. Managers can definitely keep on experimenting on different approaches to human resource management. Ultimately, however, such tinkering will bear only superficial results unless they sincerely try to understand the nature of man and his dignity, and use this to draw the best from each person.

Integral Human Development Benedict XVI, in his encyclical Caritas in Veritate, wrote: “… authentic human development concerns the whole of the person in every single dimension.

Without the perspective of eternal life, human progress in this world is denied breathing space… integral human development is primarily a vocation…

Moreover, such development requires a transcendent vision of the person, it needs God: without him, development is either denied, or entrusted exclusively to man...”

This insight from Benedict XVI points to the need for managers and business leaders to have a deeper understanding of Integral Human Development in order to achieve authentic development. And while Catholic Social Though is definitely helpful for Catholics, it actually has universal significance and benefit. Stabile (2005) in his article entitled A Catholic Vision of the Corporation made the following argument regarding its universality: “In general terms, CST is a valuable lens through which to view all questions of law, not just those relating to the nature of the corporation. First, although the principles of CST are based on the Gospels and the teachings of Jesus Christ, they have been developed and grounded, not in Catholic orthodoxy, but in natural law... Second, the CST lens does not introduce individual religious values into a field that is non-neutral... Thus, we cannot have law or talk about law divorced from some vision of the human person.”

Thus, I would like to suggest that our business leaders take the lead in pursuing authentic development through Integral Human Development. They can transform the challenge of the Millennials into an opportunity for sustainable business by strategically applying the principles of CST in managing their businesses.

It is by seeing and understanding the Millennials through the lens of CST that managers will be able to distinguish what is superficial from what is essential; what is subject to flexibility from what is non-negotiable; what is open to innovation from what is supposed to be preserved and safeguarded. The principles of CST are a most valuable guide for drawing what is best from each workforce generation.

Green LiGht

Ms. Imelda Estillore is a Doctor of Business Administration student in the Ramon V. del Rosario College of Business of De La Salle University. She is presently the Vice President for Students and Alumni of the University of Asia and the Pacific. She may be reached at imelda.estillore@uap.asia.

The views expressed above are the author’s and do not necessarily reflect the official position of De La Salle University, its faculty, and its administrators.

By Clarissa Batino

The Philippines plans a peso-denominated debt exchange to trim the number of its outstanding securities while seeking to let banks engage in bond repurchases to help reinvigorate the market, Treasurer Roberto Tan said.

“The country’s strong economic and fiscal fundamentals must be reflected in the secondary debt market, but the volumes have become volatile,” Tan said in an interview Saturday Mactan Island, Cebu. “We need to address this, push for initiatives to boost trading volumes and improve the yield curve.”

The Treasury may offer two tenors of new securities with a size of at least P50 billion ($1.1 billion) each in exchange for securities that are illiquid,

infrequently traded, expensive and worth retiring, Tan said. The target is to reduce the count of debt securities to below 100 by the end of the year, the treasurer said in his speech before the Fund Managers Association of the Philippines on March 13.

The average daily trading volume in the Philippine peso bond market fell to a threeyear low in 2014, and returns in the past three months on sovereign peso debt are the least in Southeast Asia. A healthy

domestic debt market is crucial to a government that’s been relying less on overseas borrowing and to fund the nation’s companies investing in records amounts, Tan said.

The ratio of domestic borrowing to total debt may increase to 88 percent next year and to 89 percent in 2017 from a planned 86 percent this year, according to presentation materials e-mailed

by Tan. Gross borrowing is projected to rise to P760.3 billion in 2016 before easing to P688.08 billion, based on a medium-term plan in Tan’s presentation.

The average daily bond trading value fell to 18.2 billion pesos last year after rising above P20 billion in 2012 and 2013, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

While volumes recovered in January, they were back to low levels again since February, Tan said.

Taxi card. GrabTaxi drivers can now experience the convenience of GCash, the flagship mobile money

service of Globe Telecom Inc., with the introduction of GcashGrabTaxi card. G-Xchange, operator of GCash, formed a partnership with GrabTaxi Philippines offering its over 5,000 drivers an easy, safe and hassle-free reimbursement system using GCash Payroll, a funds disbursement service linked to a Globe/TM SIM where one can receive and withdraw cash transfers. G-Xchange sales issuance director Albert Antig (right) poses with one of the first taxi drivers to enjoy the new GcashGrabTaxicard.

Energy data critical—CitizenWatch CONSUMER group CitizenWatch urged government agencies to immediately comply with the call of the Joint Congressional Oversight Committee on Energy to submit all necessary data and information available to implement the Interruptible Load Program smoothly and efficiently.

“Government agencies need to show a sense of urgency in providing data critical to the implementation of the ILP. The members of the JCOC need pertinent data and information for them to come up with a reasonable decision on whether to pass on the additional charge to consumers or not,” said Citizenwatch coconvenor Tim Abejo.

Abejo agreed with Oriental Mindoro Rep. Umali, who said there was a need to convene all the pertinent government agencies to do the math so that reliable

data would be available to aid the legislators and break the ongoing deadlock in the bicameral sessions.

Brownouts are not far from happening. Some areas received notice of brownout schedules-warning signals of the looming power crisis, said Abejo.

The ILP is a proposal in the joint resolution in which arge energy users would disconnect from the grid and, instead, run on their own generators. In return, they would get paid for the costs of running their generators.

“We support the house version wherein the additional costs of the ILP will be charged to the Malampaya fund. The power shortage is not the fault of the consumers and any additional costs should not be passed on to the already high price of electricity,” CitizenWatch secretary gen-

eral Wilford Wong.

“Aside from ILP Watch, we are set to launch Powerplant Watch, an information advocacy project that will help consumers understand our energy situation in the country,” said Wong.

“This project aims to monitor the power situation and unscheduled shutdowns of power plants that might trigger spikes in the price of electricity. This will hopefully discourage price manipulation in the WESM [wholesale electricity spot market] by power generating companies who might take advantage of the power shortage. This is set to run

by March up to June 2015,” Wong added.

CitizenWatch is an independent network which advocates for the interests of citizen rights, especially against powerful interests.

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WORLD

cesar barrioquinto EDITOR

editorial@thestandard.com.ph

B7

At least 49 dead in bus crash in Brazil RIO DE JANEIRO—At least 49 people were killed Saturday when a tour bus plunged hundreds of meters into a densely wooded ravine in southern Brazil, authorities said.

Among the dead were eight children and 24 women, regional government spokeswoman Ana Paula Keller told AFP. The toll had initially been put at about 30 but the number rose throughout the night as rescuers continued to find bodies at the difficultto-access crash site in Santa Catarina state, and other victims succumbed to their injuries at a nearby hospital.

The bus plunged 400 meters (1,300 feet) into a ravine and ended up on its side, snarled in thick vegetation. Rescuers struggled to account for everyone in

the failing light and difficult terrain.

Fifty people were supposed to be on the bus, but authorities believed the number of passengers was higher than that.

Ten people were in the hospital.

Their conditions were not immediately known.

The crash site was near a lookout point in the Dona Francisca mountains, a popular stop for tourists. The bus was operated by a tour firm and was traveling a route of about 300 kilometers (185 miles) between Uniao da Vitoria and Guaratuba, on the Santa Catarina coast.

Witnesses told local press that the driver lost control on the curvy stretch of highway, but the cause was still under investigation.

“There are people out there, on the hill, in the bus, trapped in the wreckage. But the chances of finding someone alive are pretty slim,” state police Colonel Nelson Coelho said in a statement.

Several drivers stopped on the roadside to try to help victims as they waited for emergency services to arrive.

Accidents on this winding road are common. The O Estado newspaper said 66 people had been killed on the highway in the last five years.

In 2007, 27 people were killed in a single accident and another crash in 1999 left 35 dead.

Some 43,000 Brazilians are killed in road accidents annually.

And from 2002-2012, the traffic accident rate surged by over 24 percent.

AFP

Toasting St. Patrick. People wearing green march during a St.

Patrick’s Day parade in Tokyo on March 15. More than 1,000 people took part in the parade to commemorate the Irish patron Saint Patrick, which is usually marked on March 17. AFP

US, Iran in new nuclear talks LAUSANNE—Iran and the US aim in talks starting Sunday in Switzerland to begin closing in on a deal reducing Teheran’s nuclear activities to within strict limits after 18 months of tortuous negotiations.

Salute to Heroes. Singer Billy Ray Cyrus attends the Salute To Heroes service gala to benefit The National

Foundation For Military Family Support at The Majestic Downtown on March 14 in Los Angeles, California. AFP

Time is however running short and tempers are fraying in Washington where critics fear that the mooted accord will not do enough to prevent the Islamic Republic getting nuclear weapons.

US Secretary of State John Kerry, due to meet his Iranian counterpart in Lausanne later, sought to allay such concerns, saying the aim was “not just to get any deal, it is to get the right deal”.

The target is for Iran and six world powers—the US, Russia, China, Britain, France and Germany—to agree the outlines of a deal by March 31 and to fine-tune the details by July 1.

Kerry said Saturday that his “hope” is that the deal can be clinched “in the next days”. But he cautioned that there remained “some important gaps” between the two sides.

“We believe very much that there’s not anything that’s going to change in April or May or June that suggests that at that time a decision you can’t make now will be made then,” Kerry told CBS television.

If Iran’s nuclear program is indeed “peaceful,” as Tehran says, “let’s get it done,” Kerry said.

The United States and Iran have not had diplomatic relations for 35 years and the standoff over Teheran’s nuclear program has dogged its international relations for more than a decade.

But the 2013 election of President Hassan Rouhani resulted in a minor thaw and the past 18 months have seen an intense diplomatic effort to resolve the issue.

Under a landmark November 2013 interim deal, Tehran stopped expanding its activities in return for minor sanctions relief. Since then the parties have been pushing for a lasting accord.

But to the alarm of Israel and US Republicans, Washington looks to have abandoned insisting that Iran dismantles all nuclear activities, tolerating instead a small program under tight controls.

In theory, this still leaves Iran with the possibility to get the bomb, critics say, and last week 47 Republicans took the unprecedented step of writing an open letter to Iran’s leaders.

They warned that any nuclear deal could be modified by Congress or revoked “with the stroke of a pen” by whomever succeeds President Barack Obama, a Democrat.

This followed a barnstorming address to US lawmakers—on a Republican invitation—by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warning against a deal.

Republicans have also threatened to bring draft legislation imposing more sanctions towards the end of March, something which would likely prompt Iran to walk away.

The letter provoked a storm in Washington with Vice President Joe Biden calling it “dangerous” and the State Department saying it was “harmful to American security.”

Obama said in a Vice media interview to be released Monday that he was “embarrassed” for the signatories, while Washington’s allies in its talks with Iran were also unimpressed.

“The negotiations are difficult enough, so we didn’t actually need further irritations,” German Foreign Minister Frank Walter Steinmeier said.

And Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, due in Lausanne on Sunday—and in Brussels on Monday to meet his British, German and French counterparts—said it “told us that we cannot trust the United States.” AFP

Prayers offered in India for elderly nun gang-raped at a convent CALCUTTA—Prayers were said at churches across India Sunday for an elderly nun who was gang-raped at a convent in an attack that has intensified anger over sexual violence and fueled fears among beleaguered Christians.

The attack on the 71-year-old comes just days after India banned a documentary about the 2012 gangrape of a student in Delhi, and with Hindu nationalist Prime Minister Narendra Modi promising to crack down on religious violence and ensure freedom of worship for all faiths.

The nun was attacked late Friday after a gang of about half a dozen robbers broke into a convent school in eastern West Bengal state and ransacked the premises, police said.

The robbers gagged a security guard before assaulting the nun. They then entered the principal’s room and stole cash, a laptop and a mobile phone, according to police.

Four of the six attackers have been identified through CCTV footage and a reward of 100,000 rupees (around $1,500) is on offer for any leads on the suspects.

Arnab Ghosh, a police superintendent who visited the convent near the town of Ranaghat town, said the robbery appeared to have been carefully planned.

“CCTV footage showed that six men, aged between 20 and 30, scaled the boundary wall around 11.40 pm and entered the school and disconnected the telephone lines,” he told AFP. “At least two of them were armed and the rest were carrying burglary tools. In the chapel, a holy scripture was found torn and... a bust of Jesus was broken,” Ghosh said.

Prayers were held Sunday at churches in West Bengal for the wellbeing of the nun, who is recuperating at a hospital in Ranaghat, some 70 kilometers from the state capital Kolkata.

“In our Sunday Mass, we prayed for the sister to recover quickly from trauma, fear and her physical injuries. We will pray for her again this evening,” Thomas D’Souza, the archbishop of Calcutta, told AFP. “They not only committed a heinous crime, but they also vandalized the chapel... This is the first time such

an attack has happened in India.”

In the western state of Goa, which has a sizable Christian population, the attack was condemned during the morning mass while there were also prayers for the nun in the national capital New Delhi.

The gang-rape has added to the sense of fear and dismay among the country’s Christian minority which has been deeply upset by a spate of attacks on churches, with Modi recently promising to crack down on religious violence. AFP

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CesAR bARRiOquiNtO EDITOR

editorial@thestandard.com.ph

world

Vanuatu aid effort stepped up SUVA, Fiji—Cyclonedevastated Vanuatu declared a state of emergency Sunday as relief agencies scrambled to get help to the remote Pacific nation amid reports entire villages were “blown away” when a monster storm swept through.

What Pam wrought. This handout photo taken on March 14 and received on March 15 by CARE Australia shows storm damage to boats caused

by Cyclone Pam in the Vanuatu capital of Port Vila. Cyclone-devastated Vanuatu declared a state of emergency on March 15 as relief agencies scrambled to get help to the remote Pacific nation amid reports entire villages were “blown away” when the monster storm swept through. AFP

China considering changes in one-child policy BEIJING—China is considering further changes to its family planning laws, Premier Li Keqiang said Sunday, after a relaxation in the “one child policy” failed to see significantly more babies being born.

The ruling Communist Party imposed strict rules in the late 1970s to limit population growth, with most urban couples restricted to a single offspring.

The often brutally enforced policy has been hugely controversial, but officials say it has been a key factor in China’s rising prosperity. Now, though, it is leading to demographic problems including

a rapidly aging population and a shrinking labor force.

A relaxation in the regulations in late 2013, allowing couples to have two offspring if at least one parent was an only child, failed to see a marked increase in births.

Li told reporters that Beijing would assess the reform along with “China’s economic and social development situation” before any possible change in regulations.

“Both the pros and cons will be weighed,” he said, adding that “improvements, adjustments” would only be made in accordance with legal procedures.

Li’s comments were measured but were in marked contrast to past official declarations that family planning is a “fundamental national strategy” that cannot be “shaken”.

The topic was raised at his oncea-year meeting with journalists at Beijing’s Great Hall of the People— where questions are generally submitted in advance—by state broadcaster CCTV and seized on by the official news agency Xinhua.

Among its consequences, the one child policy has also created a severe gender imbalance due to a traditional preference for sons.

Nearly 116 boys were born for every 100 girls in China in 2014, while the sex ratio in the total population was 105 men to 100 women.

Senior official Liu Binjie said on Tuesday that China was reviewing the 2013 change after revelations only 470,000 babies were born as a result -- representing one tenth of families newly eligible to have a second child.

Experts have proposed a further loosening of the laws—and one local family planning official even called last month for a mandatory two-child policy. AFP

The official death toll in the capital Port Vila stood at six on Sunday, although aid workers said this was likely just a fraction of the fatalities nationwide, with communications still down across most of the archipelago’s 80 islands.

The government said it was still trying to assess the scale of the disaster unleashed when Super Cyclone Pam, a maximum category five system, vented its fury on Friday night, with winds reaching 320 kilometers an hour.

The UN had unconfirmed reports that Super Cyclone Pam had killed 44 people in one province alone and Oxfam said the destruction in Port Vila was massive, with 90 percent of homes damaged.

“This is likely to be one of the worst disasters ever seen in the Pacific, the scale of humanitarian need will be enormous... entire communities have been blown away,” said Oxfam’s Vanuatu director Colin Collet van Rooyen.

“People have completely amazed me,” he added. “I’ve seen people walk away from totally destroyed houses and help others.”

Vanuatu’s President Baldwin Lonsdale described the storm as “a monster that has devastated our country”, his voice breaking as he described Port Vila’s devastation.

“Most of the buildings have been destroyed, many houses have been destroyed, school, health facilities have been destroyed,” he told the BBC from Japan, where he was attending a disaster management conference when the cyclone hit.

Aid workers described destroyed homes, uprooted trees and blocked roads following what UNICEF spokeswoman Alice Clements said was “15-30 minutes of absolute terror” as the cyclone barreled into the island. AFP

Ferguson protests move to St. Louis ST. LOUIS—Police arrested at least two people Saturday as nightly protests in the racially troubled US suburb of Ferguson over the police killing of unarmed black teenager Michael Brown shifted into the heart of St Louis.

Up to 50 youthful demonstrators gathered after sunset at the Midwestern city’s historic 19th century Old Courthouse to march through streets lined with bars filled with St Patrick’s revelers.

“Justice is dead! We have to wake it up,” one protester, David Ragland, shouted from the steps of the white colonnaded courthouse where in 1846 black slave Dred Scott filed his unsuccessful but historic lawsuit to win his freedom.

When some of the protesters briefly held up traffic, police stepped in and took away two men -- a young protester with a kerchief over his face and a freelance photojournalist, Philip Montgomery, on assignment for the Mashable website.

Mashable’s executive editor Jim Roberts said via Twitter that Montgomery was “fine” after he was released a short time later.

Ferguson has been the scene of almost nightly protests since 18-yearold Brown was fatally shot by a white police officer on August 9, sparking national outrage, occasional violence and a fierce debate about policing and race relations in America today.

Tension flared anew Wednesday—

after Ferguson’s embattled police chief Thomas Jackson resigned—when shots rang out amid an otherwise peaceful night-time rally, wounding two police officers.

Police immediately launched a manhunt, but no arrests have yet been made.

Mayor James Knowles, under growing pressure to resign, spent much of Saturday with about 20 local entrepreneurs who say their small businesses have been struggling since Brown was killed.

“I know it’s been really difficult for all of them, and I appreciate that they stand here with the city—and I stand behind all of them,” Knowles told reporters. AFP

Interviewing the winner. Hollywood actor Arnold Schwarzenegger interviews Mercedes AMG Petronas F1 Team’s British driver Lewis Hamilton after Hamilton won the Formula One Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne on March 15. AFP

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C1

BAMBINA OLIVARES WISE EDITOR

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

LIFE TRANSPORT



all set to fly



New York March 15, 2015 is a milestone date for flag carrier Philippine Airlines as it marks the company’s 74th founding anniversary and signals the start of PAL’s four times weekly service to New York City.

Continued on C2

M O N D AY : M A R C H 1 6 : 2 0 1 5

C2

LIFE

BAMBINA OLIVARES WISE EDITOR

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

TECH

PHILIPPINES TO HOST ZOMATO RESTAURANT SUMMIT 2015

Z

omato, the world’s fastest growing restaurant search and discovery service, will organize the first-ever gathering of restaurateurs for the Philippines, the Zomato Restaurant Summit 2015, on May 19 at the Makati Shangri-la Hotel.

Entitled “Conquering the Digital Age,” the Summit aims to tackle interesting opportunities and pressing issues that challenge restaurateurs in today’s digital world.

“This will be Zomato’s first restaurant summit in the Philippines. Our goal is to bring the industry together by creating a platform for all restaurateurs to discuss contemporary topics and discuss the challenges of the business in these digital times,” said Zomato Philippines’ country manager Anton Ojeda.

The Summit includes participation from industry visionaries, venture capitalists,

senior marketing professionals and seasoned restaurant owners from all over the country.

It will also feature plenary sessions, touching on topics such as the evolution of Filipino restaurants, investing in restaurant businesses— what investors look for, promoting one’s brand in the digital age, crisis management, and the role of technology in restaurant operations.

Breakout sessions, on the other hand, will discuss how restaurant owners can keep their businesses sustainable, and how they can woo the millennials.

It will also feature a topic on promoting Filipino food outside the metro and to the world.

For more information about the summit, please visit https://www.facebook.com/ZomatoSummit or get in touch with Anna Sasaki at anna.sasaki@ zomato.com.

WOMEN ARE GENERALLY LESS CONCERNED ABOUT CYBERTHREATS, KASPERSKY LAB SURVEY SHOWS

A "We are prioritizing our U.S. network expansion in answer to the clamor of the huge Filipino community in the U.S. East Coast. We are confident we will be able to meet the expectations of our passengers in New York with PAL's brand of quality service that is distinctively Filipino,” said PAL President Jaime J. Bautista.

The new service will operate between Manila’s Ninoy Aquino International Airport and New York’s John F. Kennedy International (JFK) Airport. PAL’s flagship airplane– the Boeing 777300ER – will be utilized for the inaugural journey to the Big Apple. The twin-aisle aircraft, with its award-winning passenger experience, delivers the highest reliability and lowest operating cost-per-seat of any aircraft flying today.

New York marks the fifth US city in PAL’s network, following Los Angeles, San Francisco, Honolulu and Guam.

PAL’s arrival has been keenly anticipated by the huge FilipinoAmerican communities along

the US eastern seaboard. About half a million ethnic Filipinos reside on the East Coast, with more than 253,000 in the New York-New Jersey metropolitan area, 90,000 in Virginia, 75,000 in Washington, DC and environs, and 31,000 in the Philadelphia metro area.

Overall, Filipinos on the East Coast account for 15% of the estimated 3.4-million-strong Filipino population in the U.S., comprising a natural base market for PAL. The robust business sector in New York City, the world’s financial capital, as well as the sizeable government and diplomatic community attached to the United Nations, which is also based in the city, provide other key traffic streams.

The choice of JFK International, one of the busiest airports in the U.S., as PAL’s gateway to New York, is a major advantage for the new service. Located in the borough of Queens, the airport is a mere 15 miles from midtown Manhattan, nerve center of New York.

ccording to the results of a survey carried out by Kaspersky Lab and B2B International, female Internet users are less concerned about protecting themselves against online threats than men.

Of course, this attitude can have dangerous consequences since there is no code of chivalry that would discourage a cybercriminal from preying on women.

Only 19% of women believe they may fall victim to cybercriminals while every fourth man (25%) considers it possible.

Kaspersky Lab’s survey also showed women generally know less about cyberthreats than men. For example, 27% of men and 38% of women are unaware of ransomware, 23% of men and 34% of women know little about mobile malware, 21% of men and 34% of women have a limited idea what an exploit is.

This lack of awareness can cause women to pay less attention to protecting themselves against cyberthreats.

When they allow other people (children, friends, colleagues, etc.) to use their main device, 36% of women do nothing to protect their data because they “see no risk”.

Only 28% of men behave in the same way. 75% of men and by 68% of women make back-up copies. 13% of women have no security solutions on their devices, compared with 10% of men.

At the same time, in the survey it appears that over a 12-month period more men than women faced malware incidents (35% vs

27%), and men were more likely take sensible precautions to to suffer financial consequences protect the things that they (22% vs 19%). value as they go about their Typically, men more often day-to-day activities. The spend money on buying spe- same is true online. Followcial programs designed to ing sensible web safety guideclean the system or to protect lines allows us to greatly it in the future whereas women reduce the risk of losing valuprefer to turn to IT profession- able data or falling victim to als for help. financial fraud,” said Elena There are some other threats Kharchenko, Head of Conthat men face sumer Product more often than Ma nagement, women. For exKaspersky Lab. ample, in 2014 Only 19% of women Kaspersky Incyberattacks believe they may ternet Security targeting users’ – Multi-Device fall victim to financial data and Kaspersky were encoun- cybercriminals while Total Security every fourth man – Multi-Device tered by 47% of men but just 39% (25%) considers it allow users to of women. feel safe from possible.

This may be all types of cybecause women berattacks on are particularly all devices, concerned about whether they the security of fiare Windows nancial transacPCs, Macs or tions compared Android devicwith other ones. In particuline activities. lar, the products As a result, integrate Safe 59% of men and Money*, a spe64% of women cial technology are worried to protect onabout the risk of online fraud line financial transactions, and affecting their bank accounts a Webcam Protection* module while 46% of men and 51% that informs the device owner women feel vulnerable when about every attempt to connect making online payments. to his or her webcam.

In addition, female respondIn addition, the company's seents are slightly more worried curity solutions are easy to use about someone spying on them even for inexperienced users. via their webcam (41% vs 38%). *Safe Money is available for “In real life people under- Windows and OS X. Webcam stand that it’s important to Protection runs on Windows.

M O N D AY : M A R C H 1 6 : 2 0 1 5

LIFE

BAMBINA OLIVARES WISE EDITOR

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

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SONY LAUNCHES TWO GAMES EXCLUSIVE TO PLAYSTATION 4

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or Sony Computer Entertainment Philippines, the Philippines is an important market for the foreseeable future. That was one of the reasons that the company recently launched two new games exclusive for the PlayStation 4 for the Filipino market.

Held at Imperium e-Sports Bar and Video Game Lounge in Pasig, representatives of Sony Philippines launched two highly-anticipated games in “The Order: 1886” and “Bloodborne.” Several PlayStation 4 consoles were set up in the venue to allow guests to play demos of both games weeks before they were released to the general public.

Arata Naito, marketing manager, Asia Region, for Sony Computer Entertainment Japan Asia, introduced both games, explained how each game was developed, and provided short walkthroughs to give the audience a taste of how “The Order: 1886” and “Bloodborne” will be played.

Set in an alternate version of Victorian era London, “The Order: 1886” is an action-adventure game from Ready at Dawn Studios with elements of steampunk as well as the Arthurian legend merging together. Here, myths and technology coexist as players take on the role of Sir Galahad, a hardened member of an elite order of Knights engaging in a centuries-old war that will determine the course of history.

Meanwhile, “Bloodborne” brings players to the ruined fictional city of Yharnam as they battle bestial creatures and monsters while attempting to find a cure. Choosing from among four hunters at the start of the game, “Bloodborne” developed by FromSoftware offers different powers and skill sets depending on which hunter and weapons one selects.

The media event set for earlier in the day saw gamers and radio DJs such as Gino Quillamor, Slick Rick, and Aaron Atayde, as well as strength and conditioning coach Chappy Callanta and Chef Edward Bugia among the first Filipinos to put each game through its paces.

For the blogger and PlayStation fans engagement, it was popular cosplayer and host Myrtle Sarrosa’s turn to show off her gaming skills in both “Bloodborne” and “The Order: 1886.”

“This is the first time that Sony Philippines has held an event for its fans in the Philippines,” notes Naito. “With games like ‘The Order: 1886’ and ‘Bloodborne’ that are exclusive for the PlayStation 4, video gamers will see how graphics and gameplay are maximized on this console.”

“The Order: 1886” is formally released to the public on February 20 and “Bloodborne” is released on March 24; the launches marks 2015 to be a huge year for Sony and its loyal videogaming fanbase.

ANTI-CYBERBULLYING ‘SUPERHEROES’

BY ED BIADO

Schoolyard bullying has been around for as long as anyone can remember. The act of bullying results in psychological and behavioral problems in both the abuser and the victim, which can last well into adulthood. With the Internet making it easy to communicate, bullying itself has become so much easier.

Social media, in particular, is an excellent medium to connect with people, but it also comes with risks for abuse. A lot of children spend hours online, which exposes them to threats, mean messages, nasty rumors, and other forms of cyberbullying.

To foster a safer way to use the Internet, Google partnered with the National Youth Commission to launch Web Rangers, a program designed to engage the help of teenagers, ages 14 to 18, to sustain a safer online environment for their peers.

Teenagers who are interested to make the Web a better place can sign up at the Web Rangers site to be considered to be part of the elite team of anticyberbullying “superheroes.” Fifty will be selected to become Web Rangers, the group will take action in the fight against the misuse and abuse of the Internet by creating their own meaningful campaigns to promote responsible Internet use.

Google and the National Youth Commission will hold a Web Rangers workshop in April to train them to make the most out of their creativity and social influence to encourage their peers to have better online behavior and keep each other safe online.

The Web Rangers will be tasked to produce their own campaigns—educational videos, lesson plans, songs and apps are just some examples. But they can choose any medium and platform as long as the message is effectively delivered. The youth with the most creative and impactful campaign will get to visit a Google office in Asia and present their ideas to Google executives.

The winners will be announced in May. “Cyberbullying is a serious issue that we shouldn't gloss over. A lot of teens are affected by it, or know someone who is bullied online. More often than not, they're not sure how to protect themselves,” Google Philippines communications and PR head Gail Tan told this writer. “We're hoping that the Web Rangers will be a way by which we can teach our kids to help themselves and their peers address cyber threats in a positive and inspiring way.”

Five “superhero” identities are available for participants to choose from: The Creator, who creates inspiring online content; the Frontliner, who takes a stand to protect the bullied; the Guardian, who is vigilant against those who bring threats online; the Transmitter, who shares and passes on positive content to others; and the Uplifter, who readily “likes” and “+1s” positive posts.

To register, go to webrangers.ph.

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LIFE

EDITOR

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

FOR PARTY ANIMALS ONLY

BOB ZOZOBRADO

BAMBINA OLIVARES WISE

TRIUMPH, JOY, AND SORROW

SORROW AT THE BRITISH SCHOOL

It was such an emotionally draining week as I ran through the whole gamut of feelings while attending some events that were posted on my social calendar. The week started with a thunder of triumph, as one brand launched a new and exciting contest; this was followed by a session of JOY, which promises big bucks for deserving individuals; and, finally, ending in a tearful meeting with a bereaved couple.

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TRIUMPHANT LAUNCH

The 140-year-old Louis XIII ultrapremium cognac launched its “Quest For A Legend,” a global search for the rarest Louis XIII decanter in existence, the most unique and the best preserved.

At the Tasting Room at City of Dreams, Marie Amelie Jacquet, 4th generation of the owning family of Remy Martin, and Christophe Bourrie, Regional Director of Remy Cointreau International, launched the worldwide search. The Quest will scour parts of Asia, starting with Singapore, then Malaysia, India, and the Philippines.

Collectors in the Philippines who believe they are in possession of the rarest Louis XIII decanter are encouraged to send details and photos of their Louis XIII bottle via SMS, Whatsapp or to the local Remy Martin office. Entries may also be submitted online through www.louisxiiicognac.com/questforalegend. The winner will get an all-expenses-paid vacation to the Remy Martin Estate in Cognac, France, with Business Class air tickets and First Class train tickets.

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1 Louis XIII’s beautiful decanter 2 Aileen Dreyfus, Gerry San Miguel, Rey Belen, Ray Reyes, Love Lynn Reyes, Len Altea, Jay Altea, Ruth de la Cruz and Chuckie Dreyfus 3 Louis XIII’s Christophe Bourrie, Marie-Amelie Jacquet, City of Dreams COO Kevin 4 Christophe Bourrie and Tasting Room Chef William Mahi 5 Mastermind Asia’s Sunny Ku, CNN Philippines’ Rod Nepomuceno and sports columnist Anthony Suntay 6 Christophe Bourrie and Tasting Room Chef William Mahi 7 Tasting Room manager Damien Planchenault, Remy Cointreau’s Joey Pineda, MarieAmelie Jacquet, Christophe Bourrie, Chef William Mahi and Assistant F&B Director John Henry Kitchens III

We had a chance to listen to the grieving parents of 18-year old Liam Madamba, the student from the British School of Manila who jumped to his death from the top of the De La Rosa Car Park in the wee hours of the morning after being berated by his high school teacher for an essay-related misdemeanor.

The mother tearfully shared with our group how normal the everyday life of Liam was, a happy teenager who was very affectionate to his parents and siblings. He never had a history of depression nor displayed any negative emotion towards anybody. In fact, the morning of the day the meeting with the teacher took place, the boy even asked his Mom to buy him his shaving cream and other personal necessities.

In the afternoon of that day, the teacher called in Liam and a female classmate to scold them both for plagiarism, in connection with an essay the teacher assigned them to write. What the teacher told the two children that fateful afternoon must have been so intense, so severe because it caused Liam to jump to his death that same evening, and the classmate to be wildly hysterical when she got home, the mother had to slap her to put her back to her senses.

Requests from many sectors for the British School management to suspend the teacher involved, a South African, and investigate her thoroughly, to find out what exactly she told the children, have fallen on deaf ears. The teacher has not been reprimanded at all and is still scotfree. Liam’s aggrieved mother felt worse when she heard that the Head of School has implied quite a few times, when he met with the other parents and students who are all sympathetic to the Madambas, that Liam was mentally imbalanced. That’s really rubbing salt to the wound!

Princess Anne is scheduled to visit the school today. I wonder what this kind-hearted member of British Royalty will do if she finds out what the teacher from their school said that led to the tragic fate of poor Liam Madamba. Sad!

SEARCH FOR JOY

PMFI’s Cheche Lazaro and MBFI’s Chito Sobrepena

YOUR MONDAY CHUCKLE

:-D

BOSS TO NEW EMPLOYEE: We are very keen on cleanliness.

Did you wipe your feet on the mat as you came in?

NEW EMPLOYEE: Yes, sir!

BOSS: We are also very keen on truthfulness. There is no mat!

You’re fired!!!

The tandem of Metrobank Foundation Inc. (MBFI) and the Probe Media Foundation, Inc. (PMFI) announced their Search for JOY (Journalists Of The Year), to honor Filipino journalists from print, broadcast and online media, especially if their respective works have contributed to the development of the nation. MBFI President Chito Sobrepena and my good friend, PMFI President Cheche Lazaro, told us that, since this is a biennial contest, the first year will see the selection and awarding of winners, while the second year will be spent by the awardees going around the country, delivering lectures in select academic institutions.

To be eligible to join the contest, one must be a Filipino citizen currently residing in the country, working in any local, national or international media organization for at least ten years, and such employment must be his/her primary source of income.

Three winners will be adjudged as 2015 Metrobank Foundation Journalists of the Year, each receiving a cash prize of P300,000, and a “Pamukaw” medallion designed by 2011 Metrobank Foundation Sculpture Awardee Priscillano Vicaldo. The winners will also be conferred with the title, “Metrobank Foundation Fellow in Journalism.”

TV journalists Jiggy Manicad and Malou Mangahas, both of GMA 7, and Jarius Bondoc of The Philippine Star, won the contest two years ago.

For feedback, I’m at bobzozobrad@gmail.com

The late Liam Madamba

Princess Anne

M O N D AY : M A R C H 1 6 : 2 0 1 5

SHOWBITZ

ISAH V. RED EDITOR

isahred @ gmail.com

C5

SINAG MAYNILA FILMFEST TO HELP PINOY FILMMAKERS

BY SEYMOUR BARROS SANCHEZ

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olar Entertainment Corporation, headed by president and chief executive officer Wilson Tieng, and 2009 Cannes Film Festival Best Director Brillante Mendoza recently introduced the participating filmmakers and their entries to the inaugural edition of the Sinag Maynila film festival. The new filmfest, which has “Pelikulang Pinoy, Pusong Pinoy” as thene, will screen the films on rotation basis from March 18 to 24 at the SM cinemas – Aura, Fairview, Mall of Asia, Manila, Megamall, North EDSA, and Southmall.

The filmmakers were personally handpicked

by Tieng, the film festival’s executive producer and co-founder, and Mendoza, the festival director and creative producer. They are Zig Dulay (Bambanti), Lawrence Fajardo (Imbisibol), Jim Libiran (Ninja Party), Paul Sta. Ana (Balut Country), and Remton Zuasola (Swap).

Starring Alessandra de Rossi, Shamaine Buencamino, Julio Diaz, Delphine Buencamino, Lui Manansala, Erlinda Villalobos, Celio Aquino, Kiki Baento, Abegail Edillo, We don’t just want and Micko Laurente, Bambanti focuses on the search for a missing watch which instigates the to produce films.

We want to produce painful quest for the truth in a mother and her son’s life. Dulaysets the story during the Bamgood films banti festival in Isabela.

–Brillante Mendoza Imbisibol, which was originally written as a play for the Cultural Center of the Philippines’ Virgin Labfest, follows the lives of four Filipino migrant workers in Japan who, amid their individual struggles, are suddenly caught together in an even more complex game of hide and seek where staying invisible is the only way to survive. The film stars Allen Dizon, Ces Quesada, Bernardo Bernardo, JM de Guzman, JC Santos, Onyl Torres, Angelina Kanapi, Fred Lo, Naoki Takai, Shinepi Suzuki, May Alleman, Kaz Sawamura, Masaharu Iwamoto, Oyee Barro, Cynthia Luster, and Ricky Davao.

Solar Films’ Wilson Tiend and director Brillante Mendoza organise Sinag Maynila, a new film festival Fajardo got the chance to collaborate again in featuring five films they suported financially and creatively directed by Zig Dulay, Lawrence Fajardo, Jim Libiran, Paul Sta. Ana, and Remton Zuasola whose films will screen at SM cinemas starting Wednesday the film with his “Amok” and “The Strangers”

scriptwriter John Bedia and original Imbisibol playwright Herlyn Gail Alegre.

Starring Odette Khan, Annicka Dolonius, Julz Savard, Bea Galvez, Elora Españo, Teresa Loyzaga, Dennis Marasigan, Japo Parcero, and Mariz Reyes, Ninja Party is about top female students of an elite Catholic high school who discover their identities and sexualities amid clashing values. Conflicts between themselves, their families, and their school force them to succumb to peer pressure from their friends and they face slut-shaming when a rumor spreads about their participation in a secret orgy. Libiran describes his new project as a coming-of-age film.

Balut Country, which stars Rocco Nacino, Ronnie Quizon, Vincent Magbanua, Angela Cortez, and Nanette Inventor, tells the story of a man who is an heir to the duck farm of his late father. He must decide whether to sell the property to secure a future with his partner or sparing the family of the land’s loyal caretakers of inevitable displacement.

Starring Dionne Monsanto, Matt Daclan, and Mon Confiado, Swap is about a young father torn between solving a crime and committing another crime when one day his only son is kidnapped and the criminals demand him to steal another kid in exchange for the life of his son. Zuasola tries to duplicate the success of his one long, continuous shot in his Cinema One Originals award-winning film Ang Damgo ni Eleuteria, while Daclan follows up his recent Best Actor-winning performance in Zuasola’s other Cinema One entry Soap Opera.

Solar gave the filmmakers P2 million each.

Tieng and Mendoza supported the filmmakers not only financially but also in the creative aspect of their films. They also vowed to help the filmmakers get into the international film festival circuit and hopefully sell their films, secure film distribution, or get additional funding in the future.

“We don’t just want to produce films. We want to produce good films,” Mendoza said.

CANON FOR PERSONS WITH DOWN SYNDROME

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ore than a thousand smiling faces flooded the SM City North EDSA as the Down Syndrome Association of the Philippines Inc. (DSAPI) held its annual Happy Walk event to celebrate the National Down Syndrome Consciousness Month. Titled “Happy Walk 2015: All for Down,” the event gathered persons with Down Syndrome their families and friends, and supporters, with the goal of raising awareness and mobilizing support for individuals living with the genetic disorder.

This year, Canon Marketing (Philippines) Inc (CMPI) came out in full force as an entire team made up of CMPI staff participated in the Happy Walk, showing its full support for the cause. After the mass held at The Block, the CMPI team joined the walk—a fun parade inside the mall, through the Sky Garden, all the way to the Sky Dome. A photo contest was also organized by DSAPI to encourage children with Down Syndrome, and demonstrate to everyone how they can be creative and talented just like any other children. Winners received different Canon products and items, much to the children’s delight.

The 12th Tee-Up for Down Golf Tournament, a fund raising campaign organized by DSAPI in partnership with Canon, also took place earlier in February at the Tagaytay Midlands Golf & Country Club. The one-day event was a success, having raised funds to sustain the operating expenses of DSAPI, and further create more seminars and events involving persons with Down Syndrome. “Being accepted by the society and being treated with dignity help people with Down Syndrome develop their self-worth and enjoy a full and decent life,” says DSAPI parent member and volunteer Agnes

Staff of Canon Philippines, a major supporter of “Happy Walk 2015: All for Down,”

Lapena. “It also helps families cope with the demands of living with a child with Down Syndrome,” she adds. This is what DSAPI’s campaign is all about, and its success means a brighter future for every person with Down Syndrome.

“It’s such a joy seeing that the support for the campaign is growing year after year,” says CMPI President and

CEO Lim Kok Hin. Canon has been with DSAPI in its efforts to educate the public on what Down Syndrome really is all about, and the success of the advocacy is a delight for both Canon and DSAPI. “It is very important for everyone to recognize the achievements and abilities of persons with Down Syndrome, as well as understand and promote their rights and well-being,” Lim adds.

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SHOWBITZ

ISAH V. RED EDITOR

isahred @ gmail.com James Reid is the new Jollibee Cheesy Bacon Yum Cheeseburger endorser, joining her screen partner Nadine Lustre

Cabangon with the school’s staff

SCHOOL HONORS NOEL CABANGON M ultiple Intelligence International School, an advocate of the Multiple Intelligence (MI) framework implemented in the United States and other countries, recently recognized individuals who have used their particular “intelligence” to succeed in their fields of expertise and affect the lives of others.

The awarding ceremony was held during the recent “Green MOVEment #4GreenPH” run-by-anymeans fun run at the University of the Philippines Diliman Academic Oval. The Multiple Intelligence Awards, in line with the theme of shared responsibility for the environment, are recognizing individuals who make a difference in helping advocate for sustainability.

Now on its sixth year, the MI awardees included singer-composer Noel Cabangon, architect Paulo Alcazaren, Senator Pia Cayetano, blogger-philanthropist Jay Michael Jaboneta, educator Dr. Josette T. Biyo, social entrepreneur Reese Fernandez-Ruiz, journalist Maria A. Ressa, and the lone non-individual recipient “Climate Walk: A People’s Walk for Climate Justice.”

Awardee for Musical Intelligence, Cabangon is easily recognizable as the voice behind the popular folk

pop song “Kanlungan.” With local and international concerts, five solo albums, and multiple awards to his name, Cabangon has also championed the creation and popularization of alternative Filipino music with songs and hymns that go beyond trivial subjects and instead speak of about social, political, and cultural issues which includes the call to protect the environment.

At the Green MOVEment fun run, Multiple Intelligence International School in cooperation with Smart Communications celebrated the individuals and efforts that clearly define the diversity of intelligences that can be used to make a difference in society and in the lives of others.

The Multiple Intelligence Awards, in line with the theme of shared responsibility for the environment, are recognizing individuals who make a difference in helping advocate for sustainability

CROSSWORD PUZZLE 49 51 53 55 56 59 61 65 68 69 70 71 72 73 74

ANSWER FOR PREVIOUS PUZZLE ACROSS 1 Ariz. neighbor 4 Water, to Juan 8 Wild guess 12 Tokyo’s space pgm.

13 Mama — Elliot 14 Bird call 16 Face sketcher’s start 17 Like some hams 19 May-June sign 21 Guanabara Bay port 22 Sporty trucks 23 Ooze out

25 27 31 35 36 38 39 41 43 44 46 48

Decays Mends a tapestry Melee Dixie st.

Slants Dark Wine purchases Flat boats Kyoto thank you Highly skilled Uproar (hyph.)

Prefix for “classic”

Cliff-hanger Made angry Tennis star Yannick — Remnant Low voice Wildlife refuge Cream puff Double-dealing Online auction site Atolls In — (as found) Magritte or Russo Siesta Mouse catcher Ave. crossers

DOWN 1 Pew locale 2 Semester ender 3 Small luggage 4 Carries out 5 Moo goo — pan 6 Soyuz launcher 7 Moving about 8 — -fi flick 9 Grand, slangily 10 “— it the truth!”

11 Party tray cheese 12 Get some exercise 15 Dell products 18 It’s over your head 20 “Hud” Oscar winner 24 Downy fruit

MONDAY, MARCH 16, 2015

26 27 28 29 30 32 33 34 37 40

42 45 47 50 52 54 56 57 58 60 62 63 64 66 67

Capote, on Broadway Hindu princes Lose a tail Gamble Eavesdrop Thud Singer — Mann Waited in line Excalibur “Frasier” and “Maude,” e.g. (hyph.)

Braces (2 wds.)

Way of Lao-tzu “— plaisir, monsieur!”

“Shane” portrayer Gawkers Bank job Loan abbr.

Wolf’s expression Squirrel abode Black in Paris Be a party to Holm and Fleming Deli loaf Devotee Tony-winner — Hagen

Singer Noel Cabangon is honored by Multiple Intelligence School for Musical Intelligence

JAMES REID:

NEW YUM ENDORSER The JaDine tandem finally sails to Jollibee, as budding young actor James Reid officially joins the Jollibee family as the latest brand ambassador for Cheesy Bacon Mushroom Yum, side-by-side onscreen partner Nadine Lustre.

“I feel really honored and happy that I was chosen to be an ambassador of the Jollibee brand. And it just makes it a lot more fun that I get to do it with Nadine, because she’s my partner in everything,” said James.

James is the newest addition to Jollibee’s roster of ambassadors, which also includes Sarah Geronimo, The Voice Kids top four Lyca Gairanod, Darren Espanto, Juan Karlos Labajo, and Darlene Vibares, Julia Barretto, Bamboo, the Legaspi family, and the other half of the JaDine tandem, Nadine Lustre.

Nadine was introduced earlier on as the endorser of Jollibee’s Cheesy Bacon Mushroom Yum. However, the fast-rising JaDine tandem will not be complete without James Reid. The two rose to stardom together, headlining two hit Wattpad movies Diary ng Panget and Talk Back and You’re Dead.

JaDine’s undeniable chemistry landed them projects left and right, and eventually bagged them the Jollibee endorsement deal.They are teaming up anew in their third Wattpad movie, Para sa Hopeless Romantic and an upcoming show on ABS-CBN. “We’re very happy to finally have both James and Nadine as part of the Jollibee family, as they are today’s hottest love team and are an inspiration to today’s youth,” said Jollibee’s Vice President for Marketing Harvey Ong.

M O N D AY : M A R C H 1 6 : 2 0 1 5

SHOWBITZ

ISAH V. RED EDITOR

isahred @ gmail.com

C7

DANIEL MATSUNAGA’S BLUE MOMENT From C8

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rapanese model-turned-actor Daniel Matsunaga has joined the Live To Feel movement. It is the Filipino millennials way to celebrate who they are.

On Feb. 21, Matsunaga joined the youthinspired collaborative exhibit. His face had the statement “I live to inspire” and below it the tagline “role model.”

His tarpaulin was displayed prominently along with other towering installations, along walkways, and even on the face of a building..

Then there’s B’lue, a new drink experience specially designed for this generation. It upholds the philosophy of the Live To Feel movement and believes in the young generation who lives full lives and immerse themselves in every moment through feelings, actions, and opportunities. Whether when we are tired or feeling great, it enables us to feel fully alive and move forward.

Three fruity flavors are available for Filipinos to experience: enlivening Orange, peppy Lychee, and inspiring Calamansi. Each flavor has a distinct taste made for different moments when you want to feel fully alive. It is now available in supermarkets and convenience stores in Metro ★★★★★ Casino Filipino features some of the country’s OPM legends as part of its “The Music of March” entertainment offering.

In the second half of March, Casino Filipino guests will be treated to special musical shows with prominent performers. One of them is OPM icon Rey Valera. The veteran singer, who remains unfazed by the influx of new artists, cited the importance of “feeling the pulse of the audience during performances.”

Valera said he does his best to relate with his audience every time he performs on stage. “I guess that’s something lacking in other singers.

They sing not minding whether people are listening or not. It bothers me when I realize that I did not measure up to expectations,” he added.

Given his commitment to always give his best during his shows, it is not surprising that Valera’s fans are highly anticipating his shows at Casino Filipino Cebu on March 20 and at the Madison Satellite on March 27. He will be singing some of his OPM classics like “Maging Sino Ka Man”, “Naaalala Ka”, “Kahit Maputi na ang Buhok Ko” and “Pangako”, among others.

“Those who will come to my shows can expect to enjoy the sounds of yesteryears. I’ll be performing most of my popular songs as I know that those are the pieces that my audience can relate to very well,” Valera said.

Another featured artist for March is Kuh Ledesma, who will be at Casino Filipino Tagaytay on March 21. She promises another topnotch musical treat for casino guests as she sings the hit songs that catapulted her to fame like “I Think I’m In Love”, “Till I Met You” and “One More Try”. ★★★★★ While it is true that women are at their most beautiful on their wedding day, it takes a master photographer/videographer to bring out that bridal glow.

Small wonder how Nice Print Photo has become the most sought after photo/videographer of celebrities, and have earned for themself the moniker “photographer of the stars.”

Celebrities are used to being photographed and videos taken, yet they still want to be sure their photos, as well as videos, on the most special day in their lives come out the best of the best.

That’s what Nice Print Photo does, and even if you’re not a celebrity, you will have that star quality your bridal glow is captured on camera.

Visit them at the photo and video festival, KasaLitrato, House of Pictures and Wedding Photos during the forthcoming 26th edition of the Wedding Expo Philippines (WEP) on March 21 & 22, at SMX Convention Centre.

WEP has been the wedding fair of choice not only by brides and grooms but also by wedding suppliers, local and overseas, looking for the best deals, discounts, ideas, and inspirations since its first event in 2002.

Organizer Themes & Motifs introduces its allnew interactive wedding website that allows soonto-weds and wedding suppliers to connect and share the latest ideas and promos. Aptly called The Wedding Ideas & Promos Portal TWIPP (www. themesnmotifs.com), the feature-rich website allows soon-to-weds to create their personal wedding website and print their FREE Admission tickets to Wedding Expo Philippines while wedding professionals, on the other hand, can update their company information, post their latest promos and suggested ideas for weddings of all themes, budgets, and sizes by themselves at any time.

JOSEPH PETER GONZALES

Maja Salvador doesn’t mind being a second choice for the role she plays in Bridges of Love

PROUD TO HOST NEW SINGING CONTEST ON TV

Ogie Alcasid is proud to host TV5’s new singing contest, Rising Stars

Daniel Matsunaga joins the Feel To Live movement along with scores of youth for the launch of B’leu

Ogie Alcasid hosts TV 5’s latest prime time offering: the groundbreaking singing competition titled Rising Stars Philippines.

“Yes, and I’m both happy and proud about it,” he states. “This is something that perfectly suits my musical side. I also see it as a way of giving back since the music industry has been very kind to me after all these times. I’m quite sure viewers will like it!”

It’s a fact that the rival networks have their own popular singing tilts. Many ask about the potential of his new offering to also make the grade, so to speak.

“Of course, I’m aware of that.

There are other singing competitions these days but Rising Stars Philippines has a twist when it comes to the methodology in joining. We engage our audience through the staple of Filipino culture when it comes to singing: the Karaoke! Our team toured some of the country’s key cities like, Iloilo, Davao and Cebu to conduct auditions. We set up booths in over 200 stops in major malls, barangays and schools. The turnout was just amazing!”

Out of the total number of wannabe’s who auditioned, how many will be chosen?

Marian Rivera is one of the numerous clients of Nice Print Photo

Casino Filipino features an array of performing artists this month including Rey Valera and Kuh Ledesma

“Sixteen!” claims Ogie. “There will be sixteen official contestants as we start airing then, the top three go to the final. The grand prize winner will get a whopping P500,000.00 and the other two, cash prizes as well. So I guess it will be an exciting competition since each of the contestants has his/her own touching story that the viewers would be able to relate to.”

Is it possible that during the contest proper, contestants can sing his popular ditties?

“From what I heard, one episode will be dedicated to OPM so I guess, yes, they can. And not only my songs but also those of my two fellow singers who are part of our panel of judges, Nina and Jimmy Bondoc.”

Speaking of co-workers in his new show, this happens to be Ogie’s maiden collaboration with Venus Raj. “The general public knows her as a beauty queen. What they don’t know is she’s a very downto-earth individual, very funny in fact! She can also carry a tune.

Venus’ major role in the program is to impart to the contestants the ability to find their confidence through competition.”

The talented artist has a mis-

sion with his latest Kapatid show.

“I would like to find someone really new, a real gem out of this show, whom we can call a homegrown talent of TV 5. It’s our goal to make genuine stars out of the winners of this singing search,” ends Ogie. ★★★★★ It’s not a big issue to Maja Salvador if she’s not the original choice for the new ABS-CBN soap Bridges of Love which also stars Jericho Rosales and Paulo Avelino.

“I don’t mind it at all! I know that it was first offered to Anne Curtis. So what if I’m the second choice? What’s important is I’m the one doing the show now, right?” she says.

The competent young actress considers the project as a blessing.

“That’s right! Not only is it in the prime time block, I can also say that this is my most challenging role to date.”

Really, Maja has so much to thank for with her latest grand soap opera.

“I hope TV buffs would support it. The material is good. I’m confident that we’ll be giving our audience only the best entertainment,” she states.

C8

M O N D AY : M A R C H 1 6 : 2 0 1 5

ISAH V. RED EDITOR

isahred @ gmail.com

SHOWBITZ

NEW LIFESTYLE, NEW ROBIN PADILLA There’s this age, “Old habits never die”, but for Robin Padilla, there’s a need to kick them and embrace something new for one’s wellbeing.

Didn’t you know that Binoe, as people close to him in show business call him, has embraced a new lifestyle?

We went to Nueva Ecija one Saturday morning for a visit to LAC Farms, which grow organic Lagundi that is processed for use in Pascual Consumer Healthcare Corporation’s manufacture of ASOF Lagundi cough remedy.

Robin and his wife Mariel Rodriguez were there. We were told that the actor has been signed to be the endorser of ASCOF Lagundi.

At first, the actor was hesitant about the project because he thought he would be endorsing a synthetic product, something he tries to avoid because he prefers to use herbal medicines in real life.

In Filipino, he explained why when we talked to him over lunch of fish and vegetables organically grown in the farm. “When they (Pascual Laboratories) pitched this for me, I told them that I don’t take (synthetic) medicine anymore because Mariel and and I are now into organic things…farm produce, meat, fish…everything. But when I saw that ASCOF Lagundi is from lagundi leaves grown organically in this farm, I said ‘yes’ immediately.”

Lagundi is grown in a 40-hectare farm in Nueva Ecija by LAC Farms, one of the country’s biggest OCCP (Organic Certification Center of the Philippines), GAP (Good Agricultural Practices) and GMP (Good Manufacturing Practices)-certified organic farm owned by Pascual Laboratories, the maker of ASCOF Lagundi.

Robin and wife Mariel believe that one should choose herbal medicine because it is natural unlike synthetic ones that may cause liver deterioration.

We noticed a certain glow in the actor’s complexion, which he attributes to healthy living, especially in consuming all organic food products. “The journey towards organic living was long but sweet in the end,” he added.

In the case of cough remedy, he said, “There are plenty of cough remedies available overthe-counter. They can cure your problem but in the long run can have damaging effects in your internal organs, specifically the liver.”

Cough, being vey common in the Philippines, has spawned a variety of cough remedies, all claim to be the most effective in addressing it. While this is true, not all brands can claim that they are natural and organic.

Robin said that ASCOF Lagundi is an herbal medicine. “It is natural, organic, and effective against cough. It has a luwag-tunaw combo action against cough,” he said, to which Ayne Rili ASCOF’s senior brand manager added, “Its bronchodilating effect widens inflamed/ constricted air passageways in the lungs, giving relief to the patient, and a mucolytic action that melts phlegm for easier expectoration.”

“Dr. Abraham F. Pascual, chairman of the company, has an advocacy to develop natu-

ral products we have a lot of plants in the Philippines that have medicinal properties.

He wants a to develop prodISAH V. RED ucts that will be good for the consumers. We find that we are aligned with Mr. Robin Padilla’s own that’s the reason whe got him to be the endorser for ASCOF,” said Ayne.

“The beauty with ASCOF, Pascual is the first to use lagundi. ASCOF has been in the market for 19 years and it has now been imitated,” Robin added. “ We have a moral obligation to our fellow Filipinos who believe in us to guide them to the right path. And if endorsing ASCOF Lagundi is the means to give back, then this is the best thing that we can give them,” Robin said before he said goodbye to all of us. ★★★★★ Filipino wrestling fans are in for a treat as pop culture giants WWE and E! bring viewers the first-ever look into the world of the WWE Divas in the all new docuseries, Total Divas.

Cameras follow the lives of five Divas – both in and out of the ring – giving a first-hand look at the electric personalities, compelling personal lives and incomparable in-ring performances that have helped make WWE the most successful organization in sports entertainment history.

The triumphant return of fan favorites The Bella Twins, Nikki and Brie, to the WWE stage is met with a great challenge as two new gorgeous aspiring Divas bring in an explosive mix of energy in the WWE training program.

The series opens with an unprecedented look inside the most-anticipated WWE event of the year, WrestleMania®, ®, marking the first time that any television series was granted exclusive behind-the-scenes access to WWE. Produced by WWE and Bunim-Murray Productions, a Banijay company, Total Divas highlight the glamorous, chaotic and often dramatic lives of the WWE Divas every Wednesday, with back-to-back episodes at 10pm and 11pm, only on E!

SIMPLY RED

Continued on C7

‘We have a moral obligation to our fellow Filipinos who believe in us to guide them to the right path. And if endorsing ASCOF Lagundi is the means to give back, then this is the best thing that we can give them’ – Robin Padilla

The Bella Twins, Nikki and Brie return to the WWE stage face-to-face with aspiring Divas

Action star Robin Padilla kicks old habits and embraces an organic lifestyle that catches the attention of Pascual Laboratories that signed him to endorse the herbal cough remedy ASCOF Lagundi