The Standard - 2016 June 30 - Thursday by Manila Standard

VOL. XXX  NO. 138  4 Sections 40 Pages P18  THURSDAY : JUNE 30, 2016  www.thestandard.com.ph  editorial@thestandard.com.ph

Special supplement on Duterte’s inaugural

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16TH PRESIDENTIAL INAUGURATION

EDGARDO S. TUGADE

SUPPLEMENT EDITOR

Section D

THE

AXMAN

COMETH

Rody breaks decades-old tradition By John Paolo Bencito and Sandy Araneta PRESIDENT Rodrigo Duterte is set to break decades of inaugural traditions when he takes his oath of office as the country’s 16th president at noon today. For the first time in years, the new president will not be joined by the incoming vice president, after Duterte expressed his inauguration to be separate from that of Vice President-elect Leni Robredo.

Citing limited slots in the inaugural celebration to be held at the presidential Palace, incoming Special Assistant to the President Secretary Christopher Go said the setup would be “unfair” to Robredo who might want to invite more guests. “We believe that Leni Robredo’s family and supporters who worked hard for her deserve also to be present to celebrate her victory. And this can only be possible through a separate inauguration,”

Go said in a statement sent to The Standard. This will mark the first time in decades that the country’s two highest elected officials will be inaugurated separately. In another break from tradition, Duterte also has not offered a Cabinet position to the incoming vice president, saying he did not want to strain his friendship with Senator Ferdinand Marcos Jr., who narrowly lost the vice presidency to Robredo. Next page

All that I can offer the Filipino people is a good heart and common sense.

OUGH on drugs and crime, he has earned the moniker “The Punisher” and “Dirty Harry” of Davao City where he has served as mayor for 22 years. In the run-up to the May 9 elections, he managed to curse Pope Francis, crack a joke about a rape victim, and pepper his speeches with invectives, and still win the presidential race by a landslide with 16.6 million votes.

President Rodrigo Roa Duterte, the 71-year-old tough father of four, is now an even tougher father of a nation of more than 100 million people. His initial pronouncements before his inauguration at Malacañang today gave Filipinos a glimpse of his seven-term ironfist rule in Davao City. Duterte started with rel-

atively easier to accept policy statements: implementing a nationwide curfew for unaccompanied minors and prohibiting the sale of alcohol by 2 a.m. Smoking would be banned in enclosed public areas nationwide. And videoke? Duterte said noise pollution should be Continued on D2

MARCOS PUSHES ROBREDO OUSTER By Rey E. Requejo

SENATOR Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on Wednesday filed an election protest before the Supreme Court seeking the ouster of incoming vice president Leni Robredo. A throng of supporters gathered outside the Supreme Court compound as Marcos accompanied by his lawyers and several political allies filed his 1,000 page petition asking the magistrates, sitting as the Presidential Electoral Tribunal, to set aside the proclamation of Leni Robredo and instead declare him the duly elected and rightful vice president of the republic. Attached in his petitioner were 20,000 pages of affidavits, certificates of canvass and other supporting documents, which Marcos said would provide clear and convincing evidence of what he called the biggest electoral fraud in the history of the Philippines. Marcos, through his lawyer George Garcia, said that through a series of electoral frauds, anomalies and irregularities, people behind the whole operation made sure that Robredo would win and that Marcos’ votes would be reduced. “The votes presumptively obtained by... Robredo during the

Vitangcol files graft raps vs Abaya Electoral protest. Senator Ferdinand ‘BongBong’ Marcos Jr., who lost his bid for the vice presidency last May 9, briefs newsmen on the election protest he filed before the Presidential Electoral Tribunal on Wednesday. EY ACASIO

last elections are products of electoral frauds, anomalies and irregularities. Meanwhile, the votes obtained by protestant Marcos were significantly reduced, manipulated and altered to make it appear that he only placed second during the last elections,” the petition stated. In particular, Marcos is contesting the election results in 39,221 clustered precincts in 25 provinces and five highly urbanized cities all over the country. Marcos explained that his petition has three parts—the first is the “flawed” automated election system (AES); the second consists of the more “traditional” modes of cheating like vote buying, preshading, intimidation and failure of elections; and the third focuses on the unauthorized introduction by Smartmatic’s Marlon Garcia of a new hash code (or a new script or program) into the Transparency Server as well as the effects brought about by the unauthorNext page ized change.

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Poll chief’s going Awol prompts call for probe Marcos... From A1

Marcos said based on numerous testimonial and documentary evidence, they were able to establish several violations committed by both the Commission on Elections and Smartmatic. He said the Comelec and Smartmatic violated Republic Act No. 9369 or the Automated Election System Law, which requires, among others, that the AES to be used by Comelec should “have demonstrated capability and been successfully used in a prior electoral exercise here or abroad.” However, the vote counting machine supplied by Smartmatic as a component of the AES was an entirely new model and had never before been used or supplied by Smartmatic for any election, whether in the Philippines or abroad. Marcos also noted that 13 days before Election Day, Comelec issued a resolution ordering the boards of canvassers not to transmit the certificate of canvass until all SD cards from the VCMs would have been uploaded or imported into their Consolidation and Canvassing System. He also said that six days before elections, the Comelec set up seven regional hubs for the reconfiguration of SD cards without prior notice to the political parties and candidates.

Rody... From A1 Go said Duterte’s June 30 inaugural would be “simple yet meaningful, consistent with his principles on austerity.” “This is also intended to cause the least disruption to the public,” Go added. The ceremony since 1992 traditionally begins with the presidentelect fetching the incumbent in Malacañang on the morning of June 30. At the Palace’s state entrance, the president-elect will wait for the incumbent to descend the grand staircase. Upon meeting at the foot of the staircase, the president-elect would greet the incumbent. Both travel to the Quirino Grandstand aboard any of the presidential cars. Following protocol, the outgoing president takes the back right-hand seat of the vehicle, while the president-elect is seated behind the chauffeur. At the grandstand’s parade grounds, the outgoing president will be welcomed with arrival honors, and then shake hands with the president-elect. In the program sent to the press, however, President Benigno Aquino III will arrive at the Palace from the nearby Bahay Pangarap at about 10:25 a.m. Duterte will arrive at the Palace at about 10:30 a.m. At 11 a.m., Aquino will conduct a final troop review before depart-

All this time, the national and local candidates thought that the SD cards were being configured solely at the Configuration Room in the Sta. Rosa facility of the Comelec and Smartmatic. Instead of being replaced by standby CCS, Marcos said that 30 affected CCSs were pulled out of the BOCs’ custody, and were supposedly delivered to the Sta. Rosa facility for reconfiguration, upon the order of Comelec, through Executive Director Jose M. Tolentino. He also complained of the unauthorized introduction of a new program into the Transparency Server and the apparent use of a fourth server (called the Queue Server) that was not subject to review by political parties and candidates as required by law. Marcos said during the election period, the voting public was made to believe that all electoral data were received by the three servers directly from the VCMs and that these were secured by digital signatures and coded encryptions. This was a far cry from what truly happened on Election Day, he said. “Data had to pass through the fourth server and it was here where the results were encrypted and decrypyted. This being the case, the integrity of the data subsequently received by the CCSs, the Central Server and the Transparency Sever could no longer be relied upon since the purpose of encryption

of the data transmission is precisely to prevent any alteration or change,” he said. He added that soon after the unauthorized new program was introduced at 8:30 p.m. on election day, there appeared to be an abnormally high turn-out of unaccounted undervotes of around three million for the position of vice president. The accuracy of the election results and the reported irregularities should therefore be thoroughly investigated and determined, Marcos said, through the immediate conduct of a judicial revision or a recount of the ballots and the examination, system audit and verification of the voter’s receipts, election returns and related election documents. Marcos said he will continue the fight until the truth behind the reports of massive electoral fraud is made public. “It is my moral and social duty to the Filipino people to expose the truth, and the fraudulent machinations, anomalies and irregularities which attended the recently concluded May 2016 elections, by filing this election protest. I owe it to the 14 million people who voted for me and to the millions of Filipinos whose voices were not heard,” Marcos said. Robredo welcomed the election protest, saying this would give her the opportunity to answer Marcos’ allegations against her. “This is part of what we have al-

ready been expecting. He has been telling [all] about his plan to file for a long time,” she said. “It’s good that that he [Marcos] brought out the issue before the proper body. It is difficult if he brings it up before the media, especially social media. We do not have the chance to respond,” she said. Robredo of the Liberal Party won as vice president with 14,418,817 votes against Marcos, who had 14,155,344 votes. The victory margin was 263,473 votes. Robredo, through her lawyer Romulo Macalintal, denied Marcos’ accusations of electoral fraud. Macalintal said the undervotes or null votes did not only occur in the vice presidential race, but in the races for other positions as well. Elections Commissioner Luie Guia dismissed suggestions that the protest would damage the Comelec’s credibility. “The filing of a protest is part of electoral process actually. Questioning the results is part of electoral process... that’s how clinical it is,” Guia said. Guia said that it is the right of Marcos to file an electoral protest if he thinks he was the one who won the vice presidential race. “The filing of the case will give an opportunity for all parties to really prove or disprove the allegations,” Guia said. With Rio N. Araja, John Paolo Bencito and Vito Barcelo

ing for his Times Street home in his own private vehicle. Outgoing Communications Secretary Herminio Coloma Jr. said President Aquino will meet with Duterte in the Palace before the official transfer of power. “Aquino will also be accorded departure honors by the Armed Forces of the Philippines in the Palace,” Coloma said. “Then he will go to his car to leave his office of six years.” Aquino’s return to the Times Street residence would mark his return to private life, exactly six years after he became president. Duterte’s aide de camp Christopher Go had earlier confirmed that Duterte, who served as mayor of Davao City, will be flying to Manila on Wednesday afternoon. Duterte’s former wife Elizabeth Zimmerman and their children Paolo and Sara are already in Manila. The inauguration of Duterte as the Philippines’ 16th president will be attended by a total of 627 guests, including the mayor’s longtime neighbor Pomilda Lu Daniels and various Davao City officials. The inaugural program is also expected to last for only two hours. There will be live streaming on social networking site Facebook. “From noon where he takes his oath, he gives his speech and after that he swears in all of those he appointed as officials in his Cabinet and the other sub-Cabinet levels,

and after that the program is finished, around 1:30 p.m.,” Ambassador Marciano Paynor, head of the Palace Inaugural Committee, said. After the inauguration, Duterte will meet with diplomats during the diplomatic reception. For Duterte’s inaugural rites, Davao-based fashion house Chardin has created a barong Tagalog made from piña jusi fabric to be paired with black pure cotton pants. “His wardrobe is the least of the President’s concern, but he went to fit his barong. He is raring to start with work right after the inauguration,” said incoming Communications Secretary Martin Andanar. Palace-accredited concessionaire Via Mare will prepare a reception that reflects the simplicity of the incoming administration yet still boasts of the rich Filipino culinary heritage. The menu, consisting only of five types of food, include: lumpiang ubod (coconut pith spring roll), pandesal with kesong puti (white cheese made from unskimmed carabao’s milk) and Vigan longganisa (sausage from Northern Ilocandia) grilled on the spot, monggo soup mixed with smoked fish and alugbati (malabar spinach) in demitasse cups, fried saba (Carbava banana) slices, and Durian tartlet. Guests will have a choice between pine-mango cooler and dalandan juice.

Robredo’s inauguration will be “as simple and as modest as possible,” down to the food that will be served, said Boyet Dy, head of Robredo’s transition committee. Administering the oath will be Rolando Coner, captain of Barangay Punta Tarawal, the smallest, farthest and poorest town of Camarines Sur’s Third District, and Capt. Regina Celeste San Miguel, captain of Barangay Mariana, Quezon City. “On June 30, while the oathtaking of our Vice President will be simple, it will be a good opportunity to unite in celebrating the triumph of our democracy and the start of a colorful chapter in our country’s history,” Dy added. Because the QC Reception House has limited space, Robredo’s team decided to limit their guests to 300. And as a symbol of equality, Dy said there will be no seat plan for the guests as the seating would be on a first come, first served basis. Asked if Robredo’s running mate, losing presidential candidate Mar Roxas, will attend the ceremony, he said the guest list is still being finalized. The Payatas Children’s Choir will sing the national anthem after the flag ceremony. After her oath-taking from 9 a.m. to 10 a.m., Robredo will join her supporters in a gathering at the Quezon City Memorial Circle at 5:30 p.m. With F. Pearl A. Gajunera, PNA

By Sara Susanne D. Fabunan

ELECTIONS Commissioner Rowena Guanzon said Wednesday she would ask the Commission on Elections en banc to review the rules on trips by members of the poll body, after she criticized Comelec Chairman Andres Bautista for leaving for a vacation in Japan without a travel authority. Guanzon’s call came as Bautista said he was willing to sit down with

the six other commissioners to discuss issues they raised against him in a memo that accused him of a “failure of leadership.” “I will write a request today for a review of our travel policy [for] the en banc meeting next Tuesday,” Guanzon told the reporters, noting that Bautista had approved his own trip. “This is so that we can avoid such instances like now where we have these misunderstandings and humiliations,” she said. Aside from the appeal to investigate the legitimacy of Bautista’s travel, Guanzon said she will also urge her colleagues to return to the previous policy where all remaining members of the seven-man en banc will sign the travel authority of the poll chief. “During the time of Chairman [Jose] Melo and [Sixto] Brillantes, the travel policy was like that... so we should just go back to that rule, where it is the en banc that will sign the travel authority,” Guanzon said. “We can also meet halfway. How about the travel authority only needing to be signed by the majority, which is four members. That is acceptable I think,” she added. On Thursday, the poll chief left the country to accompany his son to Tokyo, Japan and returned last Sunday, claiming that his personal trip was approved by himself. Bautista’s trip came at a time when the six commissioners issued a memorandum accusing him of incompetence. A source told The Standard that even before the elections, the six commissioners had sought an executive session with Bautista to discuss their problems, but the chairman consistently refused to meet them. The source added that Bautista was playing the role of the victim, being ganged up on by his colleagues. Guanzon earlier said they had held back their concerns and grievances against Bautista to give way to the successful conduct of the May 9 elections. She also said that it took them more than a month to raise these concerns because Bautista continuously refused to deal with all the issues even before the elections. In a separate interview, Bautista said he is now willing to sit down with his colleagues in the en banc and discuss on the issues raised in their memo. He said he was willing to do this if his colleagues observe “courtesy and respect.” “Anytime, I am ready to meet them as long as there is courtesy and respect... If there is anyone who wants to meet with me, they are welcome,” Bautista told the reporters. “I already told them that if we meet, I don’t want to see shouting and disrespect just like what happens sometimes. That is not right. I told them we should have courtesy and respect to one another, not only to fellow commissioners but also to senior staff. We should treat each other with respect,” he added.

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Group rejects connectivity issues THE party-list group Confederation of NonStocks Savings and Loan Associations Inc. is not accepting the “connectivity issues” offered by the Parish Pastoral Council for Responsible Voting to justify the 342,082 discrepancy in the number of votes it received in the May 9 elections.

Summit. Demonstrators from various sectors gather at the University of the Philippines-Diliman Film Center for the National People’s Summit to present what they call the People’s Agenda for Change. LINO SANTOS

Vitangcol files graft complaint against Abaya EX-METRO Rail Transit 3 general manager Al Vitangcol III on Wednesday filed a graft complaint against outgoing Transportation Secretary Joseph Emilio Abaya before the Ombudsman over the allegedly anomalous purchase of 48 train coaches from a Chinese company in 2014. Vitangcol, along with Leon Peralta, the chairman of the Liga ng Eksplosibong Pagbabago Inc., claim Abaya and Undersecretary Jose Perpetuo Lotilla received P75.187 million in commissions for the purchase of the coaches as part of MRT 3’S P3.7-billion ca-

pacity expansion project. Vitangcol urged Ombudsman Conchita Carpio Morales to look into Abaya and Lotilla’s liability for their alleged violation of the Code of Conduct for public officials and employees. Included in the charge sheet were the Department of Transportation and Communications’ bids and awards committee members Rene Limcaoco and Julianito Bucayon Jr., secretariat overall head Catherine Jennifer Gonzales and MRT 3 general manager Roman Buenafe. Vitangcol accused the officials of conspiracy in awarding to Dalian Locomotive Rolling Stock

Co. a P3.7-billion contract for the purchase of 48 light rail vehicles in 2014. He anchored his complaint on the exchange of e-mail messages between Dalian’s representatives Antonio de Mesa and Eugene Rapanut. Rapanut allegedly promised to deliver a five- percent commission to De Mesa if the contract was awarded to Dalian. Vitangcol, citing the e-mail messages between the two, said two percent of the kickback or a total of P75.187 million would go to Transport Department officials. The Bids and Awards Committee’s members should receive one

percent or P37.593 million, he said. “Clearly, the named respondents directly received a percentage for themselves in connection with the contract wherein they, as public officers in their official capacity, had intervened and in fact awarded the contract to Dalian,” Vitangcol said in his complaint. Vitangcol and Peralta said their accusation was further supported by a sworn statement of former Czech Ambassador Josef Rychtar, who had exposed the attempt by Filipino officials to extort $30 million from the Czech transport equipment supplier Inekon Group. Rio N. Araja

Duterte’s inaugural not a holiday PRESIDENT Benigno Aquino III did not declare June 30, the day President-elect Rodrigo Duterte is inaugurated, a holiday, Malacañang said Wednesday. “As per the text message I received from ES [Executive Secretary Paquito] Ochoa at 12:10 p.m. today [June 29]: ‘June 30, 2016 is a regular working day’,” Communications Secretary Herminio Coloma Jr. said in a text message to reporters. Six years ago, then President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo declared President-elect Benigno Aquino III’s inauguration on June 30, 2010, a special non-working holiday. Aquino was inaugurated at the Quirino Grandstand at the Rizal Park in Manila. It has been a tradition in the Philippines that the day of the inauguration of the incoming president is declared a holiday by the sitting president. Sandy Araneta

Tight security. Officials secure the main entrance to Boracay Mansion in New Manila in Quezon City, where Vice President-elect Leni Robredo (inset) will be inaugurated on Thursday. LINO SANTOS

In a statement, Consla lawyer Jose Emmanuel Hernandez said PPCRV’s explanations with regard to its complaint failed to address the issue on the alleged vote manipulation last elections, but stirred more questions that would warrant an immediate investigation by the Commission on Elections. Hernandez said PPCRV’s admission of its failure to monitor errors during its quick-count operations made it necessary and urgent for the Comelec to start with its own investigation. “At the very least, PPCRV should be held accountable for its admitted lapses,” Consla said. “It should be banned from participating in future election quick-count operations. Its admissions show how poor its internal controls are; that its actions only further muddled and heightened the voters’ skepticism whether the nation really had clean, credible and honest elections.” Hernandez was referring to newspaper and other media reports quoting PPCRV Communications and Media Director Ana de Villa Singson and chairwoman Henrietta de Villa blaming “connectivity issues” for the supposed error in the results projected on its screen. While PPCRV had yet to formally respond to Consla’s complaint, Hernandez said, it was the first time that PPCRV mentioned encountering problems about connectivity during its conduct of the quick count. Hernandez said that before Consla’s filing of the complaint, PPCRV never issued any advisories to the affected party-list groups or to the public regarding such problems. The group also noted that, based on the screen shots provided by its witnesses, PPCRV maintained the erroneous results for several days from the commencement of the quick count. In its complaint submitted to the PPCRV, Consla noted that during the initial hours of the PPCRV’s quick count on May 9, it had already secured 342,513 votes. The next day, the party-list group claimed that their votes increased to 523,753 at 11 a.m. and to 555,896 by 12 noon to occupy rank 14 in the tally. The results, which were sourced from the transparency server provided by the Comelec, were posted in the Twitter feeds of the PPCRV. However, based on the Comelec’s finally tally for partylist groups, Consla only garnered a total of 213,814 votes. Sara Susanne D. Fabunan

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‘No point in trying impeach moves’ By Macon Araneta

Iftar. Young Muslims break their fast with iftar, or the meal Muslims take at the end of their daily Ramadan fast at sunset, at the Taguig National High School. The holy month of Ramadan is set to end on July 5 when Muslims will celebrate Eid al-Fitr. DANNY PATA

Defense: Pact allows trans-border pursuit By Florante Solmerin INDONESIAN security forces are allowed to enter Philippine territory to pursue abductors of Indonesian nationals in accordance with a 41-year-old border crossing agreement, the Department of National Defense said Wednesday. “Consistent with the 1975 border crossing agreement, Indonesian security forces are allowed to enter Philippine maritime zones under the concept of hot pursuit in the same way that Philippine forces are allowed to enter Indonesian maritime zones,” DND spokesperson Peter Paul Galvez said in a statement. “Further to this, in such incidents Philippine security forces

are as well immediately informed so that a coordinated and joint operation could immediately be undertaken. This is a move to further strengthen collective commitment to address, prevent and resolve transnational crimes,” Galvez added. But outgoing Defense Secretary Voltaire Gazmin said Indonesian security forces cannot just enter Philippine territory in a bid to res-

cue seven of its sailors kidnapped by Abu Sayyaf Group terrorists in Sulu last week. Since the incident took place in Philippine territory, he said it is the responsibility of Philippine security forces to rescue the victims. “They [Indonesians] can only conduct operations to pursue within our area if the incident occurred within their waters, based on the principle of hot pursuit,” Gazmin said. When pursuit operations reaches land, Indonesian forces are only allowed to conduct limited operations, such as sharing information with Philippine authorities, not operations using arms, he said. Gazmin said this was the agreement he reached with Indonesian

Defense Minister Ryamizard Ryacudu during a meeting last Sunday in Indonesia that was also attended by incoming Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana. The meeting was held on the same day the Armed Forces of the Philippines confirmed that Abu Sayyaf Group’s extremists were in custody of seven Indonesian sailors who were abducted in the Sulu Sea on June 22. The Western Mindanao Command said armed men on board two motorized boats intercepted the Indonesian’s tugboat while en route to Indonesia in the Sulu Sea around 11 a.m. of June 22. The WesMinCom’s report said that only seven of the 13 crewmen on board the Indonesia tugboat were taken by the bandits.

THUS far, there is no reason to think that any impeachment case against President-elect Rodrigo Duterte would flourish in the Senate which is mandated to serve as an impeachment court in the unlikely event the House of Representatives would pass articles of impeachment against him. “President Duterte is a lawyer and a former prosecutor. I’m sure his actions will be within the bounds of law,” incoming Senate Majority Leader Vicente Sotto III said on the eve of Duterte’s inauguration as the 16th president of the Philippines. “Changes are sure to come. Even in the Senate, we plan stricter rules,” Sotto said, dismissing claims that Duterte’s opponents would initiate impeachment proceedings against the newly elected president to pave the way for the succession of Vice President-elect Leonor Robredo. Even Robredo’s Liberal Party colleague, freshman Senatorelect Sherwin Gatchalian, echoed Sotto’s view that Filipinos voted for change and Duterte appears to be intent on fulfilling the promise he made to his voters. “By looking at President Digong’s public service track record, he is a man of action. I think things will move fast especially in fighting crime,” said Gatchalian. “I believe his experience as a mayor will play a very big role in giving care and concern to the plight of the Filipino people,” Gatchalian added. In describing the Aquino administration, Gatchalian noted the outgoing President tried his best to fight corruption and change the culture of impunity in our country. In my opinion’ Gatchalian said Aquino was successful in showing to the public that honesty is still possible in government and started with him.

Airport steps up security By Joel E. Zurbano and Vito Barcelo THE Manila International Airport Authority intensified security measures following the terrorist attacks at the Istanbul Ataturk Airport where 41 people, at least 13 of them foreigners, were killed and 230 others were injured, officials said Wednesday. The airport agency announced the measures as the Department of Foreign Affairs said that no Filipino citizen was killed or hurt in the attack. Security personnel strictly inspecting the luggage while passengers underwent rigid body frisking to ensure that no firearms or explosives will

be brought inside the airport undetected. Philippine National Police Aviation Security Group chief Pablo Francisco Balagtas appealed to civilians including passengers to report any unattended baggage or suspicious persons roaming inside and outside the airport. He said the police Special Action Force with bomb sniffing dogs as well as intelligence personnel were deployed with other government agencies regarding security matters. Balagtas said MIAA is keeping strict surveillance of passengers within the airport and implement strict car inspection. The Airport Police Depart-

ment (APD) personnel, on the other hand, manned the entrances of the airport terminals and outer perimeters. “The APD usually takes cursory examinations of luggage in cars before waving them through,” MIAA security chief Jesus Gordon Descanzo said. Meanwhile, the DFA said Philippine Ambassador to Turkey Rowena Sanchez said that there were no Filipinos hurt in the triple suicide bombing and gun attack at the Istanbul Ataturk Airport. The department said there are more 4,000 Filipino workers in Turkey, living in Istanbul, most of them working as nurses, entertainers and domestic helpers.

Medal of Merit. Ambassador Marciano Paynor receives from outgoing President Benigno S. Aquino III a Presidential Medal of Merit for his services as director-general of the Asia-Pacific Economic Forum summit last November. MALACAÑANG PHOTO

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Media told: Talk to Rody’s handlers By John Paolo Bencito

Cleanup drive. Malabon City Hall workers remove waterlilies from a creek in Brgy. Longos on Wednesday as part of an intensiﬁed cleanup and dredging campaign. ANDREW RABULAN

CABINET members would be speaking in behalf of President-elect Rodrigo Duterte who shies away from media interviews, incoming Communications Secretary Martin Andanar said on Wednesday. “The fact that the President has given [the members of the Cabinet] the authority and leeway to talk to the press.… If we connect the dots, I think that the President himself also believes in principle that you need to talk with the media,” Andanar said in a radio interview. “We Cabinet members are the alter egos of the President. Whatever we say is like what the President told us to tell you,” he said. Duterte had a falling out with media during a nightly news conference, after the France-based Reporters Without Borders called on the local press to boycott him for saying that it was all right to kill corrupt journalists. Although no local news organization heeded the call, Duterte angrily challenged journalists covering him to abandon their coverage and leave Davao City, saying he would course his messages through the government station PTV 4. Andanar said he would also ensure that all avenues through which information about Duterte and the government will pass through remain “transparent and efficient.”

Tax break for 6m workers eyed By Macon Araneta AROUND six million public and private sector employees stand to gain from the abolition of income taxes on those earning P30,000 a month or less, Senator Nancy Binay said on Wednesday. Binay has made a commitment to file the enabling bill in the 17th Congress. She said it is high time the situation for many middle income earners was addressed. “This is the time to give comfort and

security to our many countrymen who are earning below P30,000,” she said. The senator said workers and employees can now loosen their belts on their daily needs.” “Workers and employees can now

House receives Speaker’s donation: Rizal bronze cast By Maricel V. Cruz OUTGOING Speaker Feliciano Belmonte Jr. has formally turned over two of his precious collections to the House of Representatives—a 1955 bronze cast of national hero Jose P. Rizal and an original copy of the 1935 Constitution of the Philippines. The turnover Tuesday was capped by a ceremonial signing of the Deed of Donation and Acceptance of the Rizal bronze cast and authentic 1935 Philippine Constitution, which was signed by Belmonte and Secretary-General Atty. Marilyn Barua-Yap who accepted them in behalf of the House of Representatives. Belmonte said he was happy and satisfied by his decision to donate the two historical items to Congress where he have served for 18 years as a lawmaker. “I’m happy to donate them to the House where I have served 18 years, then nine years as Mayor of Quezon City and six years as president and General Manager of the Government Service Insurance System. This is the right place [for these two items]. It’s good that the House Secretariat, Management and congressmen appreciated the donations,” Belmonte said. Belmonte said that national art-

ist for sculptor Guillermo Tolentino made an original bronze bust of Rizal while national artists for visual arts Napoleon Abueva Atelier made four copies, which are mainly at the University of the Philippines in Quezon City. The copy Belmonte donated to the House is the one that Atelier maintained for himself. “And now it is part of the House, it greets you as you enter the plenary hall,” he said. The Rizal bronze cast done by Atelier was based from the original bronze bust by Tolentino that is installed at the UP Palma Hall with permission from the late artist’s family. It came with an accompanying Certificate of Authenticity from the Liongoren Gallery located in Quezon City, which described the item as 28 inches by 22 inches in size and done in the year 1955. Meanwhile, the original copy of the 1935 Constitution of the Philippines is leather hardbound, consisting of 42 pages, and with numbers 290586 printed on the lower left of its first page. The Deed of Donation and Acceptance provides that donor Belmonte, hereby cedes, transfers, and conveys the two items by way of donation for preservation and use of the House of Representatives.

bring more food to their families. They can already buy so many things,” he said. Binay said a family with two to three children needs at least P30,000 a month to live comfortably on a budget. “If the P30,000 will be taxed, some items in the budget will be affected. There’s a need to adjust and reduce expenses in the basic necessities like food, rental fees, or electric and water bill and also fare going to work and school,” he said. The senator added that many middle income earners are the ones who immedi-

ately feel the undue burden of paying taxes because they are the ones bordering higher income tax brackets. In her proposed measure, Binay said that income tax brackets would be amended to keep up with the rising prices. Binay will also file her bill on electronic violence against women and children (E-VAWC) bill, meant to safeguard victims of online violence from further harm against their perpetrators who could be a close/distant relative, former spouse/partner or an exboyfriend/girlfriend.

Republic of the Philippines Department of Transportation and Communications TOLL REGULATORY BOARD

2/F Integrated Bar of the Phils. Bldg., Dona Julia Vargas Ave., Ortigas Center, Pasig City

NOTICE OF TOLL RATE IMPLEMENTATION (TARLAC-PANGASINAN-LA UNION EXPRESSWAY) In accordance with the Toll Concession Agreement by and among the Department of Public Works and Highways, the Toll Regulatory Board and Private Infra Dev Corporation, the following pre-accepted rates for Segment 7, Section 3A-1 (Urdaneta to Binalonan), inclusive of VAT, are hereby approved for implementation starting on July 15, 2016 at 12:01 a.m. La Paz - Binalonan Toll Rates (VAT Inclusive) CLASS 1 (Cars & jeepneys including taxis, vans, pick-ups, etc or vehicles with 2 axles and an overall height of up to 7 feet) ENTRY/EXIT La Paz Victoria Gerona Paniqui Moncada Carmen Urdaneta La Paz Victoria 30.00 Gerona 58.00 28.00 Paniqui 79.00 49.00 21.00 Moncada 99.00 69.00 41.00 20.00 Carmen 164.00 134.00 106.00 85.00 65.00 Urdaneta 216.00 186.00 158.00 137.00 117.00 52.00 Binalonan 235.00 205.00 177.00 156.00 136.00 71.00 19.00 CLASS 2 (Buses & trucks with 2 axles & a height of more than 7 ft.; Light Vehicles with more than 2 axles & a height of up to 7 ft. (vehicles with trailers) ENTRY/EXIT La Paz Victoria Gerona Paniqui Moncada Carmen Urdaneta La Paz Victoria 76.00 Gerona 145.00 70.00 Paniqui 197.00 122.00 52.00 Moncada 247.00 171.00 102.00 50.00 Carmen 410.00 334.00 264.00 213.00 163.00 Urdaneta 540.00 464.00 394.00 343.00 293.00 130.00 Binalonan 587.00 511.00 441.00 390.00 340.00 177.00 47.00 CLASS 3 (Trucks with 3 or more axles and a height greater than 7 feet) ENTRY/EXIT La Paz Victoria Gerona Paniqui La Paz Victoria 91.00 Gerona 175.00 84.00 Paniqui 237.00 146.00 62.00 Moncada 296.00 206.00 122.00 60.00 Carmen 492.00 401.00 317.00 255.00 Urdaneta 648.00 557.00 473.00 411.00 Binalonan 704.00 614.00 530.00 468.00

Moncada

Carmen

Urdaneta

195.00 351.00 408.00

156.00 213.00

57.00

Any interested expressway user shall have the right to file, within a period of ninety (90) days from the date of the first publication of this notice, a petition for review of the applicable toll rates for Segment 7, Section 3A-1 (Urdaneta to Binalonan) with the TRB at the 2nd Floor. Integrated Bar of the Philippines Building, Dona Julia Vargas Avenue, Ortigas Center, Pasig City. By Authority of the Board:

(TS-JUNE 30/JULY 7/14, 2016)

(Sgd.) ATTY. EDMUNDO O. REYES, JR. Executive Director

T H U R S D AY : J U N E 3 0 , 2 0 1 6

NEWS editorial@thestandard.com.ph

Ex-mayor rapped for corruption

Second term. Reelected Mayor of Manila Joseph Estrada takes his oath of office before Court of Appeals Justice Andres Reyes at the session hall of the Manila City Hall on Wednesday, June 29 in the presence of former First Lady Loi Estrada and other members of his family. DANNY PATA

Defense chief backs extra powers for Rody By Florante S. Solmerin

OUTGOING Defense Secretary Voltaire Gazmin on Wednesday expressed support for the granting of emergency powers to President-elect Rodrigo Duterte to address problems buffeting the country such as the traffic crisis in Metro Manila and the terrorism being waged by a handful of Abu Sayyaf Group members in Basilan and Sulu. “One of the solutions to these problems is the grant of emergency powers to him. Probably, we can be allowed to search the houses even without a warrant. You can control the movement of people and the movement of food supplies. It’s like martial law but limited power to the president

and for a limited time only,” Gazmin said, a day before he bows out of service as chief of the National Defense. The Duterte camp has floated the idea of declaring martial law that has gained the support of incoming Armed Forces Chief of Staff Lieutenant General Ricardo Visaya.

Duterte gave two options to the ASG: talk or fight. Visaya is poised to implement a comprehensive plan to eliminate the ASG and other terrorists. But the only hurdle to the devastating military action against the ASG is civilian support because the armed bandits are either family members or relatives in the communities where they operate. Gazmin is also supportive of punishing civilians and government officials coddling the terror group. “Impose punishment or penalty on local government officials who are cooperating or siding with them [ASG],” he said. He said the kidnap-for-ransom activities of the ASG have emboldened their coddlers to tolerate them because it’s a lucrative business.

The kidnappings perpetrated by the ASG, with some of their victims either beheaded if ransom is not paid, has tarnished the image of the country in the international community. The ASG in Sulu beheaded John Ridsdel and Robert Hall, both Canadians, after a P300-million ransom for each of the victims was not delivered to the bandits. In the same forum, Gazmin took potshots at his detractors and certain members of the media, expressing dismay over negative reports linking him to irregularities in the modernization program of the Armed Forces. Gazmin, who would be replaced by retired general Delfin Lorenzana, said he just opted to be silent rather than spend time countering these allegations.

THE Office of the Ombudsman on Wednesday found probable cause to charge former Caloocan City mayor Enrico Echiverri with violation of the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act. “Without authority from the Sangguniang Panglungsod, Echiverri entered into a contract with E.V. & E Construction [EVEC] which constituted an unwarranted benefit and privilege granted to a private party,” Ombudsman Conchita Carpio Morales’ resolution read. In 2011, the city undertook the improvement of the drainage system of Molave Street in Pleasantview Subdivision with the project awarded to EVEC at a contract cost of P2.97 million. The Commission on Audit uncovered irregularities in the project, such as lack of specific appropriation ordinance and approval by the city councilors. In October 2013, the commission issued a notice of disallowance. Ex-accountant Edna Centeno and ex-budget officer Jesusa Garcia were also slapped with charges of graft and falsification of public documents. For the administrative case, Garcia and Centeno were found guilty of grave misconduct and perpetually disqualified from holding public office. The offense of grave misconduct carries the penalty of dismissal from the service. In case the penalty cannot be imposed due to separation from the service, however, it is convertible to a fine equivalent to respondent’s one-year salary. Rio Araja

Losing bidders buck P18-b Navy deal

Swearing in. Senator-elect Sherwin T. Gatchalian (right) takes his oath of office before Mandaluyong Mayor Benhur Abalos Jr. during a ceremony held at the Mandaluyong City Hall. MANNY PALMERO

PARTICIPANTS in the bidding for the P18-billion acquisition of two Navy frigates for the Armed Forces’ modernization program have asked the Department of National Defense to defer awarding the deal until Presidentelect Rodrigo Duterte has assumed office. The four bidders were Garden Reach Shipbuilders & Engineers Ltd., (GRSE), STX France SA, Thyssenkrupp Marine System and Hyundai Heavy Industries Inc. (HHI). The first three bidders were disqualified during the first phase due to alleged deficiencies in the documents they submitted. Issues were raised on the net financial contracting capacity of GRSE and STX France and the list of com-

pleted contracts submitted by Thyssenkrupp Marine. The DND stipulates that the winning bid would go to the one who could offer the lowest price. The BAC disqualified GRSE allegedly due to insufficient capitalization, although during the bid preparation, the latter submitted a letter asking for time saying their latest Financial Statement was not yet available. The BAC issued a post-disqualification notice to GRSE which submitted a motion for reconsideration. The three firms have asked the DND bids and awards committee to overturn their disqualification. GRSE’s offer was P900 million cheaper than HHI’s bid. When BAC conducted a post evaluation of the 2nd bid-

der, HHI was declared as having passed the post qualification stage. In asking for a review, bidders want to know why the BAC has approve a more expensive offer of a yet to be tested model in the guise of fast-tracking the upgrade of the country’s territorial defense capabilities. Proponents asked whether HHI was chosen because the frigate it offered was similar to the Incheon Class, a proven design or a prototype of the Incheon Class, which has yet to prove its capabilities. Proponents said the offer must be carefully evaluated before awarding the project to HHI, otherwise the DND could be accused of a midnight deal, done on the day that President Rodrigo Duterte was being sworn into office.

T H U R S D AY : J U N E 3 0 , 2 0 1 6

NEWS editorial@thestandard.com.ph

P533m in loans available to GSIS members from Palawan, Misamis THE Government Service Insurance System allotted close to P533 million in emergency loan for members and pensioners who were affected by El Niño in Palawan and municipalities of Sinacaban in Misamis Occidental and Tagoloan in Misamis Oriental. A total of 15,404 and 584 active members in Palawan and two Misamis municipalities, respectively, may apply for a P20,000 loan as first-time borrowers. The 4,251 members with existing emergency loans in the said areas may borrow P40,000, from which their outstanding loan balance will be deducted. The loan is payable in 36 equal monthly installments at 6 percent interest rate per annum computed in advance. It is covered by a loan redemption insurance, which deems the loan fully paid in case of the borrower’s demise, provided that loan repayment is up to date. Active members may apply through the GSIS Wireless Automated Processing System (GWAPS) kiosks located in all GSIS branch and extension offices; provincial capitols; city halls; selected municipal offices; large government agencies such as the Department of Education; Robinsons Malls; and selected SM City branches in North Edsa, Manila, Pampanga, Cebu, and SM Aura in Taguig. The 2,202 old-age pensioners in the said calamity areas must go to GSIS branch offices in Puerto Princesa, Cagayan de Oro, and Dipolog to personally apply for a P20,000 pension emergency loan. If they are also active members (for having been reemployed in government), they may borrow only once. Loan proceeds are electronically credited to the borrowers’ GSIS electronic Card (eCard) or unified multipurpose identification (UMID) card. Special members or government employees who are covered by retirement schemes separate from GSIS but remitting life insurance premiums are not entitled to the loan facility.

Rain may swell rivers, Zambo residents told ZAMBOANGA CITY—The City Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office has alerted the public as this city continues to experience rainshowers and isolated thunderstorms due to an intertropical convergence zone affecting Mindanao. Dr. Elmeir Jade Apolinario, CDRRMO chief, said the rain has increased the water level at the Pasonanca diversion dam to

above normal, swelling rivers and flooding streets downtown. Apolinario cautioned people residing along river banks and low-lying areas and advised them to seek higher grounds as the Pasonanca dam level hit 75.44 meters, over one meter more than the normal level of 74.20 meters as of 2 p.m. Tuesday. The Barangay Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Councils in Pasonanca, Tumaga, Tugbungan, San Roque, San Jose Gusu, Guiwan and other barangays where rivers are located were activated to initiate measures to safeguard lives and properties amidst the weather disturbance.

Apolinario advised the BDRRMCs to sustain monitoring activities in their area of responsibility and to lead response in case of flooding or other rainrelated incidents. Apolinario dispatched personnel to flood-prone areas to monitor situation and for possible response. He also reminded the officials of the 38 barangays to formulate and activate their own disaster risk reduction management plan. He noted that only about 60 of this city’s 98 barangays have so far activated their respective BDRRMCs. PNA

Sworn in.

Elected Congresswoman of the 1st District of Leyte Rep. Yedda Romualdez is assisted by her husband outgoing Leyte Rep. Martin Romualdez as she takes her oath of office administered by City Prosecutor Ruferto Golong Jr. VER NOVENO

T H U R S D AY : J U N E 3 0 , 2 0 1 6

OPINION

ADELLE CHUA EDITOR

lettertotheeditor@thestandard.com.ph

OPINION

DUTY CALLS FLORENCIO FIANZA

THE ABU SAYYAF MENACE

[ EDI TORI A L ]

LOOKING AHEAD AS A new administration takes over today, it is an opportune time to consider what Filipinos want. A recent study of national aspirations by the National Economic and Development Authority suggests that 80 percent of Filipinos want to have a simple and comfortable life—marked by a stable job, and ownership of a house and a car. To achieve this goal, Neda suggests, a household of four would need a gross monthly income of P120,000 per family. The amount, the agency adds, assumes that a comprehensive tax reform program is already in place. Neda Director-General Emmanuel Esguerra suggests that the “simple and comfortable” lifestyle is a middle class goal. The P120,000 monthly figure, he says, factors in amortizations that would have to be made for a car and a house and lot, as well as taxes that would need to be paid, and allowances for emergencies. Begun last year and completed in February, Ambisyon Natin 2040 used faceto-face interviews with 10,000 people across all economic classes to determine the medium-term and short-term aspirations of Filipinos regarding their standard of living, finances, security and ease of transacting with the go vernment within one generation. Neda officials are understandably optimistic that these aspirations can be met, but the reality on the ground is that very few Filipinos can claim this “middle-class” income of P120,000 a month and are far from achieving it. In fact, government statistics show that one in four families scrape by with only P8,000 a month, the ridiculously low income threshold that bureaucrats have set before a family can be officially described as poor. This enables the government to claim to be making headway against poverty by the simple expedient of lowering the threshold, but it does little to help those who eke out an existence, say, at P9,000 or P10,000 a month. The previous administration took an ill-advised dole program from the Arroyo years and threw tens of billions of pesos more into the mix as a way of addressing poverty—without doing anything about generating better-paying jobs for blueand white-collar workers, or higher incomes for agricultural families. Even the Neda admits that these middle-class aspirations will only be possible if incomes grow and if inequalities are addressed such that not only the top 5 percent or 10 percent of the population benefit from economic growth. President Benigno Aquino III, who steps down today, once promised on his campaign trail that he would eradicate poverty by wiping out corruption. This, we now know, was a big lie in more ways than one. First, he fought only corruption practiced by his political opponents and let his friends and allies misuse public funds with no danger of punishment. But the bigger lie was that licking corruption isn’t the silver bullet to eliminating poverty. Stable, well-paying jobs are—and we can only hope that the incoming administration will do a better job at encouraging this kind of employment than its predecessor did.

GOODBYE, NOYNOY (2) LOWDOWN JOJO A. ROBLES (Continued from yesterday) ONE of the funniest accusations hurled by the supporters of Noynoy Aquino against incoming President Rodrigo Duterte is the supposed “divisive” words and attitude of the new chief executive. Funny, because it was Aquino, compared to any other leader in recent Philippine politics, who took divisiveness and partisanship to their most

extreme lengths. The outward manifestation of Aquino’s obsession with partisan politics, of course, was his constant display of the yellow ribbon on his chest. And unlike any other leader, who wore a Philippine flag to instill a sense of unity among a naturally divided people, Aquino flashed his ribbon to remind everyone that those who did not swear allegiance to his family’s political banner could expect nothing from him. Aquino never understood that he was elected president of an entire country, not just of the people who voted for him or

who professed—even if only for convenience—his Yellow politics. And so, he relentlessly pursued former President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, Chief Justice Renato Corona, Senator Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and everyone else whose politics he did not agree with and whom he had decided that he should destroy. Aquino’s pathological aversion to political opposition coexisted with his constant heaping of blame on its representatives. He blamed all his woes on his predecessors, particularly Arroyo and Ferdinand Marcos Sr.; and when he decided that he could not get Co-

Any discussion of Aquino would not be complete if it did not look into his leadership (or the lack of it) in times of crisis.

rona to do what he wanted simply because he was president, he bought Congress with state funds to impeach and remove the nation’s top jurist. The purchase of both Houses of Congress through the Disbursement Acceleration Program in order to remove Corona resulted in Aquino’s greatest legal vulnerability. And many have already predicted that if Aquino is going to land in jail like his two immediate predecessors, it’s going to be because of his creation of DAP—which was misused by Aquino and his budget wizard Florencio Abad in order to remove Corona. Ultimately, Aquino practiced a thoroughly exclusive brand of politics which he thought, in

his lack of sophistication, was actually reformist. He failed to consider that all his “allies” were actually the same turncoats and self-interested politicians who survived every administration and who would leave him, his chosen successor and his party as soon as the next big political thing came along. And because Aquino did not really understand politics, he never saw the defeat of Mar Roxas coming, despite the fact that all pre-election surveys showed this to be inevitable. In fact, when Aquino finally realized his mis-

take, he practically ensured Roxas’ loss by calling for an impromptu “marriage” between Roxas and Grace Poe to stop Duterte. Aquino thought his election as president made him, overnight, into a political genius. He leaves office with his yellow ribbon today, still ignorant of what he did wrong. *** Any discussion of Aquino’s presidency would not be complete if it did not look into his leadership (or the lack of it) in times of crisis. And from the

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killing of a bunch of Chinese tourists in Manila’s Rizal Park less than two months into his term to the beheading just last week of a second Canadian national held captive by the Abu Sayyaf group, it is safe to say that Aquino’s first impulse is to simply disappear when the going gets rough. We should have expected this, really, when Aquino finally arrived at the Luneta before dawn on that August day in 2010, smiling for the cameras like a dog, as the Chinese said, after the first Continued on A11 Rolando G. Estabillo Ramonchito L. Tomeldan Chin Wong/Ray S. Eñano Francis Lagniton Joyce Pangco Pañares Adelle Chua Romel J. Mendez Roberto Cabrera

THE Abu Sayyaf Group has done it again. For the third time in as many months, the kidnap-for-ransom group abducted seven Indonesian sailors in Philippine waters near Tawi-Tawi. They have been doing this with astonishing regularity and our authorities cannot seem to be able to do anything about it. The Abu Sayyaf continues to give the country a big black eye and gives the impression that our government cannot establish law and order over its own territory. Now, there is a report out from Singapore that our country has given permission to Indonesia to operate within our territorial jurisdiction to go after the Abu Sayyaf. I hope that this report is not accurate; it would be a big blow to our national prestige. Kidnapping has become a growth industry in Sulu where the Abu Sayyaf operates. They are like the Somali pirates who abducted so many Filipino sailors along the coast of Africa several years ago. According to the recently released Filipina hostage Marites Flor, everybody in the community is involved—from guarding the hostages and acting as lookouts in case the military or police are nearby. If ransom is paid, like in the case of the Malaysian hostages, everybody in the community also benefits. It would not be surprising if some elements in the government also get part of the loot. Many believe this has been happening. In the case of the P130 million paid by the Malaysian hostages, it was reported that only P100 million went to the Abu Sayyaf. The rest could not be accounted for. Maybe the P30 million could be what is known as handling costs. This is perhaps one of the reasons why it is difficult to hunt and destroy the group. The Abu Sayyaf basically operates in the provinces of Sulu, Basilan and Tawi-Tawi. The land sizes of these three provinces are not really large if one compares it to the area where the Boko Haram of Nigeria operates. If we compare the situation in both countries, there are certain similarities. The Nigerian military has often been accused of incompetence and corruption. Local officials there are also either afraid of or sympathetic to them. Considering the area where the Abu Sayyaf operates, finding and destroying them is doable—if only the government had the resolve. But our intelligence seems to be poor despite the fact that all the senior leaders of the group and their families are well-known in Sulu, Basilan and Tawi-Tawi. The incoming AFP Chief of Staff, Lieutenant General Ricardo Visaya, is Continued on A11 Publisher Managing Editor Associate Editors News Editor City Editor Senior Deskman Art Director Chief Photographer

Emil P. Jurado Chairman Emeritus, Editiorial Board

Anita F. Grefal Treasury Manager Maan Ilustre Advertising and Marketing Head Edgar M. Valmorida Circulation Manager

T H U R S D AY : J U N E 3 0 , 2 0 1 6

OPINION

ADELLE CHUA EDITOR

lettertotheeditor@thestandard.com.ph

OPINION

DUTY CALLS FLORENCIO FIANZA

THE ABU SAYYAF MENACE

[ EDI TORI A L ]

Any discussion of Aquino would not be complete if it did not look into his leadership (or the lack of it) in times of crisis.

ONLINE

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Emil P. Jurado Chairman Emeritus, Editiorial Board

Anita F. Grefal Treasury Manager Maan Ilustre Advertising and Marketing Head Edgar M. Valmorida Circulation Manager

T H U R S D AY : J U N E 3 0 , 2 0 1 6

A10

OPINION lettertotheeditor@thestandard.com.ph

EASIER SAID THAN DONE TO THE POINT EMIL P. JURADO

TWO things will happen today. Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte will be sworn in as the 16th President of the Philippines, and an era of incompetence and insensitivity under the administration of President Benigno Aquino III will end. Expectations of Duterte are high. He vows to end criminality, illegal drugs and corruption within six months. He wants to restore the death penalty—by hanging, mind you. I doubt if these can be eradicated within the time period promised. The most seasoned law enforcers, like former Philippine National Police chief Panfilo Lacson, say this is simply not doable. Unless, of course, Duterte declares martial law or establishes a revolutionary government. There’s also Duterte’s upcoming peace agreement with the communists. This would entail the release of political prisoners identified with the National Democratic Front and the Communist Party of the Philippines, and a ceasefire between government forces and the New People’s Army. This is something devoutly to be wished. The insurgency has claimed thousands of lives. If Duterte achieves this, this could well be his legacy. Duterte also vowed to end the Abu Sayyaf ’s activities in the Southern Philippines. The ASG is an international embarrassment for us because foreigners get kidnapped here. Some end up being beheaded. But ending the Abu Sayyaf ’s movements is easier said than done. Especially now, with the Abus getting material assistance from the IS. And then, there is

the problem of China. It continues to bully the country by occupying islands in the West Philippine Sea. Duterte wants to end the tension through bilateral talks. We also wish him well. Duterte wants a shift to federalism, which he thinks will solve the problem of poverty in Muslim Mindanao. It really depends on what kind of federalism can be achieved. Many regions nationwide have remained poor and neglected. But this could take time since it involves amending the 1987 Constitution. In the economy, there is much optimism, especially in making the Philippines more competitive by cutting red tape and removing restrictions on foreign investments.

Mr. Duterte will soon realize that winning the presidency is a lot simpler than actually being president.

The two-day dialogue with business and industry leaders in Davao City augurs well for the economy. This shows we have a President who listens, and hopefully who acts immediately, on the concerns of business and industry. When Du30 assumes the presidency at noon today, he will soon find out that winning the presidency is easier than actually being president. He will have to contend with bureaucracy and politics, and will soon also realize that the Philippines is not

BREXIT AND DIGONG’S ENTRANCE WHAT does the Duterte administration need to learn about the United Kingdom’s referendum to bolt the European Union, in what is now known as Brexit? The world was definitely shocked with the success of the campaign for the UK to leave the EU, more so when reports surfaced that even those who voted to leave were themselves shocked that they “won.” Unlike the overwhelming popular vote Digong garnered last May, the Brexit vote was hotly contested down the line, which left some doubt for pundits, critics, and those who will be disenfranchised by such a monumental move. Of course, our main concern in the Brexit issue is how much Filipinos will be affected by a UK-less EU. The Duterte administration and the Seventeenth Congress therefore should study such implications from different fronts: international trade, trans-border security, and the future of our overseas Filipino workers. At present, there are more than 200,000 OFWs in the UK, and what the Brexit means for them is how the UK’s immigration and labor policy would change from what the EU currently implements. We should remember that the EU’s immigration policy is what the Brexit advocates have been primarily rallying against, in view of the European immigration crisis resulting from the strife in the Middle East. Critics have been viewing Brexit’s sentiment against the Davao City. In any case, I wish him well. I also wish that he would metamorphose “like a butterfly” upon his inauguration into a leader we can all be proud of. *** All of a sudden, my gulay, the Philippine National Police the National Bureau of Investigation and the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency have become active in zeroing in on drug pushers and users. It seems that the police, the NBI and the PDEA have known all along who the pushers and users are. It’s only now that the authorities are acting. The PNP itself has

MINORITY REPORT DANILO SUAREZ EU’s immigration policy as decidedly xenophobic, and this monster has been rearing its ugly head since the vote was won. Social media users have been reporting a spate of racist expressions both online and on the streets of UK since the past weekend. These slurs were reportedly made against non-UK residents: Syrian immigrants, the Polish, Indians, and Asians in general. It did not matter whether they were in the country through legal means or political circumstance. How soon would we hear about an OFW being harassed in the UK only because he is pursuing a livelihood for his or her family back home? For some—if not most—Brexit supporters, their victory signals also the exit of immigrants from their country, misguided as this view may seem. On top of this, our OFWs in UK would have to deal with changes in how they work in the country, for how much, and the requirements for them to enter and stay. Fortunately, local and foreign business leaders have a united stand in the proposed 10-point agenda for the economy under the Duterte administration. Last week’s “Sulong Pilipinas” business forum was a successful dialog between the business sector and Digong with his economic

announced that 95 percent of Metro Manila barangays have been infiltrated by illegal drugs. And yet, under the Aquino administration, there was nothing done to eradicate this drug menace. It would even seem that BS Aquino tolerated the problem of illegal drugs. I have a sneaking suspicion that the PNP, NBI and the PDEA are now cutting ties with drug pushers for fear that the Duterte government would also go after them for their involvement in the trade. I used to be a police reporter myself. I know only too well that in every district, the police chief knows who are the criminals and where

managers. Notably, it is also the first time a newly elected president will consult business leaders on economic policy even before assuming office. Among the points discussed was how OFWs would benefit from the development of industries in every region, as well as equipping the local workforce with the necessary skills both for employment and building a business of their own. With most OFWs coming from the provinces, the new administration as well as Congress should heed the proposal to identify industry clusters and regions where SMEs should locate. Improving transportation and energy capacities in those areas should be of utmost importance. Unlike the reported misinformation from the Leave campaign that rescinded some crucial campaign promises just days after winning the referendum, the support from the business sector for the Duterte administration economic agenda is a reassuring gesture that inspires optimism and enthusiasm from Filipinos, whether they voted for Digong or not. Digong and company would be working very hard to respond to history’s plot twists, especially in the global stage. The Brexit provides the new administration a glimpse of what it has to brace for in terms of how dynamic international relations are, and how intertwined it is to the country’s economy, security, and the Filipino family’s livelihood.

they are. At times, these criminals become assets or informants of the police. Some of the authorities are also on the take. That’s the reason that during the six years of BS Aquino, nothing was done to eradicate this menace to society. The irony of it all is that during his farewell speech before the PNP, BS Aquino even praised the PNP and especially outgoing PNP chief Ricardo Marquez for a “job well done.” *** Santa Banana, in my over six decades as a journalist, I have never seen the Comelec is such disarray. Six commissioners have characterized Chairman An-

dres Bautista’s stint as a failed leadership. I even consider it funny that even the Japan trip of Bautista is under question. There are reports that he signed his own authority to travel without seeking the en banc’s approval. And worse, without leaving an acting chairman to act on urgent matters in his absence. My gulay, it was bad enough that the Comelec accommodate the Liberal Party and administration candidate Mar Roxas in the matter of the submission of the Statement of Contributions and Expenditures. To top it all, Bautista seems unconcerned. Obviously, he doesn’t realize the gravity of the situation.

T H U R S D AY : J U N E 3 0 , 2 0 1 6

A11

OPINION lettertotheeditor@thestandard.com.ph

POP GOES THE WORLD

THE PROMISE OF PRESIDENT DUTERTE

JENNY ORTUOSTE TODAY is the beginning of a new era in politics—one that seeks to end the domination of Imperial Manila and spread power to the rest of the country. According to President Rodrigo Duterte, who is sworn today, federalism is key to driving economic growth in the provinces and end the decades-long insurgency waged by separatist rebels that has stunted development and claimed the lives of thousands. Federalism entails the creation of states to govern the 81 provinces. They will be largely autonomous, keeping most of their income rather than remitting it to the national treasury. In this regard, it has many pros—states that exercise financial prudence will be able to develop their infrastructure and social services—and cons—states run by ineffective or bad leaders will be run into the ground. This system will show with

clarity the differences in leadership styles, so that the people can vote accordingly. Actually bringing this about, however, will test Duterte’s influence and political will in the months or years to come. The currently entrenched dynasties will be loath to give up their territories, much like the chieftains of pre-colonial Philippines; turf belongs to families who will cling to their power as long as they can and resist any change that will wrest it away from them. The entrenchment of Duterte in the presidency via a landslide of votes is through the will of the regular Filipino finally sick of the clan-based wealthy politicians who have run the country since its independence, mostly for their own benefit. Likewise, the dismantling of Imperial Manila as the seat of the country’s power base is long overdue. In Duterte, many Filipi-

The Abu... From A9 proposing a non-stop operation to hunt the group down to finally destroy them. This is well and good if the Armed Forces can sustain such a campaign. But this type of strategy has been tried before and the Abu Sayaf is still around doing what it does best—making money by kidnapping. There should be a change of strategy, more preparation, and more resources poured in such an endeavor. Simply putting more men will not do the trick. If human intelligence effort is difficult because the whole population in these three provinces constitute the mass base of the Abu Sayyaf, investment should be made to improve and enhance the electronic intelligence capability of the military operating in the area. Several years ago, in the kidnapping of the Burnham missionary couple in which the husband died during the rescue attempts, the one that finally pinpointed the location of their leader, Abu Sabaya, was technology. Right now, we have not really exhausted all our efforts to

Goodbye... From A9 massacre. By the time he was telling a Tacloban businessman to be thankful because he was still alive after Typhoon “Yolanda” struck, Aquino’s constant disappearances (even when he was physically present) should have become clear to all. But no, we had to wait for Aquino to skip the arrival honors for the 44 SAF troopers whom he sent to their deaths in Mamasapano last year, in order to pursue a Malaysian terrorist that the Americans had ordered him to capture. And some of us still

nos see change. Already, even before his swearing in, drug lords have been taken down. Pushers have surrendered. He will accomplish even more, they say, when he finally takes his seat. The transportation problem that results in Manila’s evil traffic gridlocks, the slow pace of putting up vital infrastructure, the shortage of energy in Visayas and Mindanao, corruption in government, poverty and inequality with one-fourth of the population living below the poverty line, implementation of the reproductive health law—all these issues and many more that were not addressed or remain unresolved after six years of the previous administration have been placed on Duterte’s shoulders. The new president, in order to fulfill all his promises for change, must make sure to install the most capable and competent people in government, otherwise it will

be the same-old, same-old, if not worse. It’s too bad that some of the appointments he has already declared are, by his own admission, payback to friends for favors rendered. There must not be a smear of conflict of interest in his appointments, otherwise they are tainted and not credible. Duterte must rein in as well his penchant for summary justice. The increase in execution-style deaths recently might be traced to his savage pronouncements on retribution, and the question is, how many of the dead were actually innocent of the crimes they were accused of having committed? Even the wrongdoers have the right to a fair trial and due process; without, their deaths were murders. Duterte has much promise and potential to be one of the best presidents of this country, if he adheres to a policy of governance under the ban-

improve our intelligence-gathering capability. This is perhaps one of the biggest hindrances why we cannot neutralize the group. Currently, most of the kidnappings are centered around the island of Mindanao. But it is not in the realm of impossibility that they might start conducting raids in the Visayas. What happens if one night, the Abu Sayyaf will conduct a raid in one of the hotels in Boracay full of foreign guests? I dread to think about this scenario. *** The announcement by President Duterte that he is willing to talk peace with the Abu Sayyaf comes as a surprise to many people. This is because the ASG is simply a criminal group specializing in kidnap for ransom. It does not espouse any ideological belief like other Islamic groups operating in other parts of the world. Sure, it has pledged allegiance to ISIS. But there is nothing in what it is doing that resembles anything bordering legitimate grievance. Our mainstream media should also stop calling them jihadists or

militants because they are not. The Abu Sayyaf is simply a criminal group. We do not know the motives of President Duterte in wanting to talk to them. Whether it is simply a tactical ploy or a sincere belief that our armed services are totally incapable of neutralizing them and is therefore better to talk is not yet clear. What, for instance, will they ask? An independent Basilan, Sulu and Tawi-Tawi where they can freely operate and go on abducting people. Hopefully, the President will explore other options. Talking to them only gives them legitimacy. Neutralizing them is not easy, for sure, but it is doable. There has to be a plan that does not only involve the military but the entire government. The military is the most important component in any plan because in order for development to take place, the government must first establish control over Sulu, Basilan and TawiTawi. There must first be law and order. Without these two, nothing can be done.

expressed surprise when Aquino declared that he had not even been told that thousands of starving farmers had been massing on a highway in North Cotabato, and that he learned of the incident only after policemen fired upon the protesters. Aquino is always on top of a crisis situation, his spokespersons say, monitoring it from God knows where. But no one really believes that anymore, especially when they see the prime minister of Canada confirm the beheading of one of his citizens thousands of kilometers away in Sulu, when no one

really knows where the Philippine president is or if he’s heard of the news. This president is never there when the people need him. And in a crisis situation, he disappears from view altogether instead of being the first on the scene. Filipinos, it seems, elected a fulltime partisan politician in 2010. They forgot to choose someone who could be relied on to rally the people—and whom people would rally around—when times got hard, because Aquino certainly wasn’t that. (Concluded tomorrow)

ner of the law with justice and fairness for all. He has to set aside his personal agenda and appoint government officials on the basis of merit rather than friendship, otherwise he’d be no better than his predecessor and his KKK - kabarilan, kaklase, and kamag-anak. As the new president takes his oath of office today, we look forward to better administration of the country’s affairs and to the rise and development of the provinces as the injustice that was Imperial Manila is redressed. The eyes of the world are upon us again, as the country that taught others that peaceful revolution or People Power can lead to change. May the change that President Duterte’s administration brings be for the better for all Filipinos. Facebook: Jenny Ortuoste, Twitter: @jennyortuoste, Instagram: @jensdecember

STANDARD’S JURADO TO RECEIVE JOURNALISM AWARD TODAY VETERAN journalist Emil P. Jurado, op-ed columnist at The Standard, will be recognized today as the “Special Awardee of the Year” in the annual Rotary Club of Manila Journalism Awards. The awarding ceremonies will be held tonight, June 30, at 6:30 p.m. at the New World Hotel Ballroom, Esperanza Street corner Makati Avenue. The awards recognize the outstanding contributions of individuals in print, television and radio. RCM president Eusebio Tan and Jose Manuel D. Romualdez, chairman, Journalism Awards Committee, made the announcement. Jurado is also The Standard’s chairman emeritus of this newspaper’s editorial board. Jurado has been a journalist for the over 66 years. He co-founded The Standard in 1987 together with the late media icon, Rod Reyes. Jurado started his career in journalist in 1950 when he volunteered as editor of the provincial weekly, The Mindanao Cross, published by the Oblate fathers in Cotabato City. After two years,

when Jurado returned to Manila to pursue his law studies and became a member of the Philippine Bar, he joined the defunct Philippines Herald as its business editor and columnist. Before martial law, he joined the Roberto S. Benedicto Channel 9 television and radio network and became manager of the government channel, GTV-4. Jurado is credited for having founded the KBP, Kapisanan ng mg Brodkaster sa Pilipinas, the country’s association of television and radio networks, which still operates today. Jurado was also president of the Manila Overseas Press Club, the oldest organization of local and foreign correspondents organized after World War II. He is now chairman emeritus of the same organization. He is also a lifetime member of the National Press Club. Jurado is also a recipient of numerous awards as a journalist, television and radio commentator. He was granted an honoris causa doctorate degree by the Angeles Foundation University. He is now 88 years old.

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Judo, fencing, 8 athletics’ events back By Peter Atencio

THE Olympic Council of Malaysia, the organizer of the 2017 Southeast Asian Games, has reinstated judo, fencing and eight athletics events in the biennial meet’s calendar of events. The decision was made following a meeting last June 19 in Kuala Lumpur. Reports said that judo and fencing are

among the four additional sports reinserted by the OCM for the 2017 SEA Games. Also reinstated are the eight athletics

events which were initially dropped from the athletics calendar after a warning from the Asia Athletics Association. Last March, Malaysia dropped marathon (men and women), 10,000m, 3,000m (men and women), 3,000m steeplechase, decathlon and heptathlon. The events were not included since Malaysia did not win any medals in those events in the 2013 Myanmar SEA Games and the 2015 Singapore SEA Games. Sanctions and boycotts were later called

over the decision that excluded the eight events. Judo and fencing, along with the eight athletics event, will now be among 38 sports events in a list to be submitted by OCM to the SEA Games Federation meeting on July 13 and 14. The new list is expected to feature 38 sports and 396 events compared to the initial list of 34 sports and 342 events. The OCM earlier trimmed the 41 sports listed for the SEA Games, which Malaysia will host for the sixth time.

NOTICE TO THE PUBLIC ABS-CBNmobile is pleased to announce the launch of iWant TV Super 10 which will be offered until December 31, 2016 Promo duration: June 30, 2016 to December 31, 2016. iWant TV Super 10 will provide all day access to iWant TV with up to 200MB on 3G plus FREE Facebook, Facebook Messenger, Twitter, and Viber chat for only P10 with 1 day validity. Promo Name

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Mechanics: 1. Promo is open to all ABS-CBNmobile Prepaid subscribers 2. Subscribers may register by texting IWANTVSUPER10 to 2135 3. Clicking on external links and third party advertisements will be charged regular data rates (P1/MB) unless registered to a data promo 4. Promo is valid for 1 day and will expire 24 hours after successful registration 5. Subscribers may check promo validity by texting IWANTVSUPER10 STATUS to 2135. Promo valid from June 30, 2016 – December 31, 2016. Per DTI-FTEB SPD Permit No, 6583 (TS-JUNE 30, 2016)

Regatta champ. The members of the Philippine Navy team, shown here displaying their medals and trophy, are shown with PDBF president Marcia Cristobal (center) after ruling the men’s 300-meter standard division in the second leg of the Cobra Dragon Boat Regatta second leg last Sunday.

Republic of the Philippines Department of Health FOOD AND DRUG ADMINISTRATION 22 JUN 2016

FDA CIRCULAR No. 2014-008-A TO

SUBJECT :

ALL DRUG ESTABLISHMENTS STAKEHOLDERS

AND

OTHER

CONCERNED

Amendment to Annex B, Notification for Minor Variation of FDA Circular No. 2014-008 entitled “Application Process and Requirements for Post-Approval Changes of Pharmaceutical Products”, specifically on Section IV, C, D and E for Minor VariationNotification

To facilitate the processing of applications for minor variations-notifications (MiV-N) of registered drug products, Section IV, C, D and E of FDA Circular No. 2014-008 is hereby amended. In using the new form, please be reminded that all fields must be completely filledout; for items that are not applicable, kindly write “NA” and after the last entry in the Table of Changes, indicate “NOTHING FOLLOWS”. Also, please take note of the additional undertakings in the Declaration section, specifically items 6d and 6e regarding the (1) exhaustion period of the existing labeling materials bearing the old product information, and (2) commitment to submit commercial sample consistent with the submitted notified change. The scanned copy of the signed and notarized form must be included in the application dossier. Two (2) original copies of the new form must be submitted through the Public Assistance, Information and Receiving (PAIR) on Tuesdays and Wednesdays, from 8:00 am to 12:00 noon, without the need for prior appointment. Upon receipt of PAIR, a Document Tracking Slip (DTS) shall be issued and the Notification for Minor Variation form shall be stamped and signed by the receiving officer with the Notification Number (NN) on each page, which shall serve as proof of acknowledgement that the Notification has been received and that FDA has been duly notified of the change. Lastly, any MiV-N with accompanying major variation (MaV) or minor variation-prior approval (MiV-PA) applications shall not be processed in the abovementioned scheme and shall be filed separately. All other stipulations stated in the FDA Circular 2014-008 dated 28 February 2014 shall remain in full force and effect. This FDA Circular is effective 1 July 2016. MARIA LOURDES C. SANTIAGO, MSc. MM OIC, Director General Standard – June 30, 2016

WBC expects terrific challenge from Taconing At the weekly WBC press conference in Mexico City’s Zona Rosa, THE World Boxing Council said that Lopez smiled and waved as he greetin a battle of southpaws, Filipino KO ed Taconing, who was sitting across artist, 29-year-old Jonathan “Light- the other side of the room, accompaning” Taconing is coming to Arena nied by promoter Johnny Elorde of Coliseo, near Mexico City to launch a the famous Elorde family. terrific challenge as a no. 1 contender Also in Mexico were Johnny’s wife against the 34-year-old WBC light Liza and two sons Miguel and Marflyweight champion Ganigan “El tin, who are both regional boxing Maravilla” Lopez this Saturday. champions. It is expected to be the very tough“There was palpable tension in the est Lopez could have chosen for his office, which was jam-packed with first title defense. dozens of reporters, photographers The Mexican won the title from Ja- and TV cameras,” the WBC reported. pan’s Yu Kimura in Kyoto last March Taconing, who has a record of 224 by a majority decision in a fight that 2-1 with 18 knockouts, thanked the appeared to be strange in terms of the WBC and its President Mauricio Suscorecards. laiman for this opportunity. While Cathy Leonard scored it “I have been carefully studying 119-109 for Lopez andNOTICE Tex Ritter TO also THE the way Ganigan moves and fights,” PUBLIC had the Mexican the winner, 118-110, said Taconing, warning that if Lopez Mexican judge Juan CarlostoPelayo evades and tries to box, he’ll “defiABS-CBNmobile is pleased announce the launch of iWant TV Super 10 which will at be114-114. offered until December 31,nitely 2016 go after him.” had it even

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Serena, Murray win

US player Serena Williams reacts after a point against Switzerland’s Amra Sadikovic during their women’s singles first round match on the second day of the 2016 Wimbledon Championships at The All England Lawn Tennis Club in Wimbledon, southwest London. AFP

DEFENDING champion Serena Williams racked up her 80th Wimbledon victory Tuesday while Andy Murray also raced into the second round before torrential rain wiped out almost half the programme at the All England Club. World number one and six-time champion Williams, bidding for a record-equalling 22nd Grand Slam title, battled to a 6-2, 6-4 win over Swiss qualifier Amra Sadikovic, ranked at 148 in the world. She will face fellow American Christina McHale for a place in the last 32. “I would be lying if I said I feel fresh, but I don’t feel fatigue. I feel real hungry, super motivated, extremely ready to do the best,” said the American star, whose mother Oracene Price was watching from the front row of the Centre Court Royal Box.

Gilas PH grateful to have escaped Istanbul bombing By Jeric Lopez

IT WAS one close call for Gilas Pilipinas as the nationals squeaked past one big unexpected hurdle, not on the hardwood, but at the airport. Gilas Pilipinas fortunately escaped the deadly bombing at the Istanbul Ataturk International Airport in Turkey last Tuesday. Just hours after the boarded their plane bound for Manila, suicide bombers launched a merciless terrorist gun and bomb attack at the Istanbul Airport, leaving 36 people dead and hundreds more hurt. The team arrived safely home in Manila Wednesday,

Gilas Pilipinas’ last stop in its three-week European trip was supposed to be in Bologna, but its itinerary was penciled to fly out of Italy and go through Istanbul as a connecting flight to Manila. Immediately upon learning the tragic news, Gilas Pilipinas members expressed their gratitude that they were not affected by the attacks, offering prayers as well through their social me-

dia accounts. “Thank God our Gilas and Turk teams are safe. #Prayers,” said National team coach Tab Baldwin through his @Hob1111 Twitter account. “We were just there a day before this happened. It’s so surreal. Praying for the victims,” said Jeff Chan (@jeffreichan). “Me and my teammates was (sic) just there. Wow. Thank you God for watching over us,” said

Andray Blatche (@draylive). “Prayers sent to all those lost and injured in the tragedy at the Istanbul airport,” said Gabe Norwood (@GNorwood5). “Thank you Lord for the safe flight,” said Troy Rosario (@troyrosario18). “Grabe dito lang kami kanina pauwi ng Manila. Wala pang five hours bago nangyari ito,” said Marc Pingris (@jeanmarc15) Gilas assistant coach Josh Reyes was also set to fly out of Istanbul after scouting one of the team’s opponent, France, there his flight was re-routed due to the attacks.

Red Cubs take on Jr Pirates, eye 2nd straight triumph SAN Beda College, seeking an unprecedented eighth straight crown, takes on dangerous Lyceum of the Philippines University at 10:45 a.m. Thursday in the 92nd National Collegiate Athletic Association juniors’ basketball tournament at The Arena in San Juan City. The Cubs, who crushed the Letran Squires, 107-74, on Monday to launch their

campaign for an “eight-peat,” will keep their hold on the lead with a victory against the Junior Pirates. Joshua Tagala starred for the Red Cubs in that fiery win as he shot 19 points, hauled six rebounds and grabbed a season-high seven steals. He got ample help from Evan Nelle, who had 17 points, eight assists and six steals.

But it won’t be a walk in the park for SBC against Lyceum. Coach JB Sison expects a tough outing against the Intramuros squad, which finished tied for fourth last season before losing to St. Benilde-La Salle Greenhills in a playoff for the fourth and last slot in the stepladder semis. “We’re expecting a tough grind against them,” said Sison. Mavelle P. Durian

“I never underestimate any opponent. I always expect the best of myself,” added Williams, who won 12 straight points at the start of the match to open a 3-0 lead. However, not everyone gave her the royal seal of approval. “It was one of the worst serving efforts I’ve seen from Serena. This is what is giving other players hope,” said US legend John McEnroe, commentating for the BBC. Top seed Williams won her 21st major at the All England Club 12 months ago by beating Garbine Muguruza. But her hopes of going level with Steffi Graf’s Open era record of 22 has stalled since that day. She went down to a US Open semifinal loss to Italy’s Roberta Vinci followed by defeat in the Australian Open final to Angelique Kerber and then to Muguruza in the French Open final.

Velez eyes redemption PATRICIA Velez tries to regain her winnings ways as she shoots for two titles in the Palawan Pawnshop-Palawan Express Pera Padala Bukidon regional age-group tennis tournament which fires off Friday at the DPWH and Malaybalay Tennis Club. Velez blew her bid in last week’s PPS-PEPP Sultan Kudarat leg when she bowed to Danna Abad in the semis of the girls’ 16-and-under section and dropped a 2-6, 6-2, 4-10 decision to local ace Carlyn Bless Guarde in the centerpiece 18-U division of the event sponsored by Palawan Pawnshop with Slazenger as presentor. But the Davaoeña ace is all geared up for a sweep of the two titles, ready to take on the likes of Vanessa and Jean Tabuco and April Litanon in the 18-U side and against Andrea Buyante, Mae Zapanta and April Litanon in the 16-U category of the event sanctioned by the Philippine Tennis Association headed by president and Parañaque Mayor Edwin Olivarez and backed by Asiatraders Corp., exclusively distributor of Slazenger, the official ball and hosted by Gov. Pax Mangudadatu. Held in honor of Rep. Florencio Flores Jr., the Group 2 tournament serves as the second stop of the circuit’s annual Rainy Season Festival following the kickoff in Sultan Kudarat where four players came away with two victories each.

Ikeda ends dry spell, romps to 3-shot victory DASMARINAS, Cavite – Chihiro Ikeda finally nailed the elusive win on the Ladies Philippine Golf Tour, completing a wire-to-wire triumph in the ICTSI Orchard Golf Championship with a closing 73 for a three-stroke victory over Lovelyn Guioguio at Orchard’s Player’s course here yesterday. With a five-shot lead at the start of the final round, Ikeda played pressure-free all day, even posting a seven-hot margin with a 34 start before slowing down in the tougher backside which she tackled in three-over par, enabling Guioguio to close the gap at the finish. But not even Guioguio’s three-birdie binge to kick of her backside charge and Ikeda’s three-bogey mishap in a fivehole stretch from No. 11 could alter the outcome of the P750,000 tournament

sponsored by ICTSI as Guioguio, who pulled to within two after 13 holes, bogeyed the par-3 14 then watched the FilJapanese birdie the 17th to wrap up the championship. Ikeda, a multi-titled amateur but who could not seem to put it all together as a pro and toiled in the first three years of the circuit organized by Pilipinas Golf Tournaments, Inc., finished with a 221 and pocketed the top P150,000 purse. “It’s nice to finally get this victory. It’s been a long ride,” said Ikeda, a former SEA Games gold medalist who has had a number of fold-ups as a pro, the last at Beverly Place Classic last April which she led only to succumb and lose to amateurs Bernice Olivarez-Ilas and Sam Martirez. Guioguio wound up with a 71 and secured second place at 224 worth P95,000

while Jayvie Agojo, a former leg winner in the circuit, backed by Custom Clubmakers, adidas, KZG, Sharp, Summit Mineral Water, Srixon, Champion, TaylorMade and Pacsports, turned in a 74 and ended up third at 227. She took home P60,000. Amateur Marvi Monsalve carded a second straight 77 and finished solo fourth at 230 while Korean amateur Hwang Minjeong, a pre-tournament favorite but never recovered from a 77 start, shot a 75 to snare fifth place at 231. Sarah Ababa, who scored a breakthrough at Sherwood last year, came in sixth at 232 after a 76 but took the fourth place purse worth P52,000 while Korean Euna Koh and former Philippine Ladies Open champion Heidi Chua finished tied for seventh at 235 after a 74 and 75, respectively. Each received P43,750,

Chihiro Ikeda: Champ at last

ECs. In addition, prospective bidders (Generation Companies, IPP Administrators and Wholesale Aggregators whose names are listed on the Department of Energy (DOE) website) were invited; 12.3. The capacity offered by the winning bidder/s was allocated among the eleven (11) Region 8 ECs in proportion to their declared demand. A bidder was allowed to offer to supply capacity that is less than or equal to the aggregated baseload requirement in any or all of the contract years in increments of 1MW. In the event that some winning bidders offered less than 11 MW, the loads were optimally allocated in such a way that the blended price of generation resulting from the R8 JCPSP transaction is almost the same for all ECs. In the event multiple bidders who collectively satisfy the total baseload demand of R8 ECs are declared winners for any contract year, all winning bidders entered into individual PSAs with each of the 11 ECs; 12.4. Bidders who signified their intention to join by buying the bid documents, attended pre-bid conferences where they gave their comments and sought clarification on the bidding requirements and process. The BAC issued bid bulletins and the Final Instruction to Bidders; 12.5. The process followed the 2-envelope system – the legal requirements and proof of financial and technical capability in the first, and the commercial offer in the second. Bids were evaluated based on an Evaluation Framework and Evaluation Methodology released to the Bidders; 12.6 After evaluating the bids of each supplier, on 14 November 2014, the BAC declared Applicant GNPOWER as a winning bidder of a total of 43 MW for Contract Year 2016, with a Lowest Calculated Responsive Bid with a Base Price offer of PhP5.0481/kWh and an evaluated Effective Price of PhP6.6658/kWh;

Republic of the Philippines ENERGY REGULATORY COMMISSION San Miguel Avenue, Pasig City IN THE MATTER OF THE APPLICATION FOR APPROVAL OF THE POWER SUPPLY AGREEMENT (PSA), BETWEEN LEYTE V ELECTRIC COOPERATIVE INC. AND GNPOWER LTD. CO. WITH PRAYER FOR CONFIDENTIAL TREATMENT ERC CASE NO. 2016-022RC OF INFORMATION AND THE ISSUANCE OF PROVISIONAL AUTHORITY LEYTE V ELECTRIC COOPERATIVE, INC (LEYECO V) AND GNPOWER LTD. CO. (GNPOWER), Applicants. x--------------------------------------x

NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING TO ALL INTERESTED PARTIES: On 15 March 2016, Leyte V Electric Cooperative, Inc. (LEYECO V) and GNPower Ltd. Co. (GNPower) filed their joint Application for approval of theirPower Supply Agreement (PSA), with prayer for confidential treatment of information and the issuance of provisional authority. In support of said Application, LEYECO V and GNPower alleged, among others, the following: 1. Applicant LEYECO V is a non-stock, non-profitelectric cooperative existing under the laws of thePhilippines, with principal office address at Brgy.San Pablo, Ormoc City, Leyte. It is authorized todistribute and provide electricity services to itsmember-consumers in the Municipalities ofAlbuera, Merida, Isabel, Palompon, Villaba,Tabango, San Isidro, Calubian, Leyte-Leyte,Kananga, Matag-ob, and the City of Ormoc, all in theProvince of Leyte (collectively, the “FranchiseArea”); 2. Copies of LEYECO V’s Articles of Incorporation, ByLaws, Certificate of Registration and Certificate of Franchise are attached as follows: Annex “A” “B” “C” “D”

Document LEYECO V’s Articles of Incorporation LEYECO V’s By-laws Certificate of Registration with the National Electrification Administration (NEA) Certificate of Franchise

12.7

Attached to the Application are copies of the relevant documents issued relative to the Joint Competitive Selection Process undertaken by the Region 8 ECs for the supply of their aggregated base load demand: Annex “H” “H-1” “H-1-a”

3. ApplicantGNPOWER is a duly registered limited partnership organized and existing under Philippine laws, engaged in the business of developing, constructing, operating and owning power generation facilities and in the sale and trade of electric power. Its principal office is at 28th Floor, Orient Square Building, Don FranciscoOrtigas Jr. Road, Ortigas Center, Pasig City; 4. GNPOWER’s pertinent documents evidencing its due registration as a limited partnership are appended hereto, as follows: Annex “E” “F”

Document Certificate of Registration issued by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) GNPOWER’s Amended Articles of Partnership

5. Applicants may be served with orders, notices and other legal processes of the Commission through its counsel of record; 6. The instant Application is filed pursuant to Sections 23, 25, 43 (u), and 45 (b) of Republic Act No. 9136, otherwise known as the Electric Power Industry Reform Act of 2001 (EPIRA Law), itsImplementing Rules and Regulations, and other pertinent rules and regulations. A copy of the PSA signed by Applicants on 18 September 2015, as amended by a letter of agreement dated 16 December 2015 (Amendment Letter),areattached as Annex “G” and “G1”, respectively, and forms an integral part of the Application;

Contract Duration Dec. 26, 2014 – Dec. 25, 2015 Dec. 26, 2015 – Dec. 25, 2016 Dec. 26, 2016 – Dec. 25, 2017 Dec. 26, 2017 – Dec. 25, 2018

12.1. The Region 8 ECs initially prepared their respective least-cost power supply plans and subsequently their aggregated baseload demand for competitive bidding; 12.2. The competitive tender was published and announced in the coverage areas of the Region 8

Copy of the page of the newspaper where the Invitation was published Affidavit of Publication of the Invitation to Bid Memorandum of Agreement among Region 8 ECs

“H-3”

Emails confirmingparticipation of interested suppliers in the bidding

“H-4”

Final Instruction to Bidders

“H-5”

Bid Forms

“H-6”

Bid Evaluation Slips

“H-7”

Comparison of Bids

“H-8”

Notice of Award

13. On 18 September 2015, LEYECO V and GNPOWER executed the subject PSA, providing the terms and conditions for the supply of eight (8)MW baseload power to LEYECO V, to assure the adequate and reliable supply of power to LEYECO V’s franchise area; 14. Subsequently, through the Amendment Letter, LEYECO V requested for a six (6) MW increase in Contracted Capacity, which GNPOWER accepted and conformed to on January 14, 2016;

CFCUF

= the CapacityFee in PhP/kWh for a given CUF in a Billing month.

LCRCUF

= the local component of the Capital Recovery Fee in PhP/kWh at the given CUF.

LFOMCUF = the local component of the Fixed O&M fee in PhP/kWh at the given CUF. PHCPIn-1

= Philippine Consumer Price Index of the calendar month prior to the month corresponding to the Billing Period, for All Income Households – All Items (2006=100), as published by the Philippine National Statistics Coordination Board (or its substitute or replacement agency, as the case may be).

PHCPI0

= the base Philippine Consumer Price Index for the month of December 2014. PHCPI0 = 140.5.

CUF

The corresponding Capacity Fee price component for a given Capacity Utilization Factor is set forth in Table 1 below: Table 1 - Capacity Fees for Specific Capacity Utilization Factors CAPACITY FEE LOCAL PRICE COMPONENTS (PHP/kWh) C.U.F.

Capital Recovery (LCRCUF)

Fixed O&M (LFOMCUF)

100% 99% 98% 97% 96% 95% 94% 93% 92% 91% 90% 89% 88% 87% 86% 85% 84% 83% 82% 81% 80% 79% 78% 77% 76% 75% 74% 73% 72% 71% 70%

2.2944 2.3176 2.3412 2.3654 2.3900 2.4152 2.4409 2.4671 2.4939 2.5213 2.5493 2.5780 2.6073 2.6372 2.6679 2.6993 2.7314 2.7643 2.7980 2.8326 2.8680 2.9043 2.9415 2.9797 3.0189 3.0592 3.1005 3.1430 3.1867 3.2315 3.2777

0.6204 0.6267 0.6331 0.6396 0.6463 0.6531 0.6600 0.6671 0.6743 0.6818 0.6893 0.6971 0.7050 0.7131 0.7214 0.7299 0.7386 0.7475 0.7566 0.7659 0.7755 0.7853 0.7954 0.8057 0.8163 0.8272 0.8384 0.8499 0.8617 0.8738 0.8863

For the resulting CUF which is not a whole number, the corresponding Capacity Fee Price Component shall be computed using the formula as set forth below:

ABSTRACT OF THE PSA, AND OTHER RELATED INFORMATION

LCRCUF =

The following are the salient features of the PSA,: A.

Term The Agreement shall be effective from 18 September 2015, the date of the execution of the PSA. For the delivery of the contracted capacity, it shall have a term of one (1) year, starting on 26 December 2015 (12:00 A.M.) to 25 December 2016 (12:00 M.N.)

Aggregated Baseload 65 MW 78 MW 83 MW 93 MW

8. The contracts of most of the Electric Cooperatives (ECs) in Region 8 with the National Power Corporation – Power Sector Assets and Liabilities Management Corporation (NPCPSALM) expired on 25 December 2014; 9. On 07 November 2013, the eleven (11) electric cooperatives of Region 8 participated in the bidding for PSALM’s 200 strips of energy from the Unified LeyteGeothermal Power Plant, but lost; 10. Typhoon Yolanda hit the region on 08 November 2013 stalling any efforts to contract additional power supply and shifting the focus instead on the massive restoration efforts in the area; 11. Thus, the Region 8 ECs decided to bid out their power supply requirements for the period 2015-2018. In the middle of 2014, the Region 8 ECs conducted a Joint Power Supply Planning. Later, the Region 8 ECs decided, through a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA), to conduct a joint procurement of their short-term aggregated baseload requirement, specifically, their power supply needs beginning 26 December 2015 until 25 December 2016.From September to December 2014, the competitive bidding for the region’s power requirements was held; 12. For such purpose, a Bids and Awards Committee was created to conduct the Region 8 Joint Competitive Power Supply Procurement (“R8 JCPSP”) as follows:

Document Invitation to Bid

“H-2”

STATEMENT OF FACTS 7. The aggregated uncontracted baseload demand of Region 8 for the years 2015 to 2018is continually increasing as shown in the table below: Contract Year 2015 2016 2017 2018

On 14 September 2015, GNPOWER and the Region 8 ECs commenced the final negotiations for the other commercial and technical terms and conditions of the PSA and negotiated the further reduction of the Contract Price from PhP5.0481/kWh to PhP4.9653/ kWh and for the increase in capacity to 52MW;

such Billing Period

Contracted Capacity GNPOWER shall sell and deliver, or cause to deliver to LEYECO V a contracted capacity of fourteen (14) MW at the delivery point of the facility. Unutilized Capacity. The unutilized capacity of the Buyer may be made available for utilization of other Region 8 ECs or sold to the WESM. Exchange of Contracted Capacities. In order to maximize capacity utilization, Region 8 ECs may exchange quantities of their Contracted Capacities. (Exchange in MW Capacity Protocol annexed to the PSA)

Contract Price

LFOM CUF =

Where: LCRCUF

LCR@100%

LFOM CUF LFOM @100% CUF

– is the local component of the Capital Recovery fee in PHP/kWh at the given CUF.

LCR@100% – is the local component of the Capital Recovery fee in PHP/kWh at 100% CUF. LFOMCUF – is the local component of the Fixed O&M fee in PHP/kWh at the given CUF. LFOM@100% – is the local component of the Fixed O&M fee in PHP/kWh at 100% CUF. CUF

– is the Capacity Utilization Factor between 70% and 100%, provided that if the actual CUF is below 70% (the “Minimum Capacity Utilization Factor”), the Capacity Price shall be calculated based on the Capacity Fee and quantity associated with the Minimum Capacity Utilization Factor.

The Capacity Utilization Factor (CUF) shall be computed as follows:

Under Schedule 1 of the PSA, the Total Monthly Charge, before taxes, for a Billing Period shall be computed according to the following:

Where:

Total Monthly Charge = Capacity Charge + EnergyCharge

Q ACTUAL

= the actual quantity of energy, in kWh, delivered to LEYECO V at the Delivery Point in the Billing Period

= the Contracted Capacity, in kWh, as set forth in Schedule 1

= the total number of hours in such Billing Period

EHTO

= the sum of the duration, in Equivalent Hours, of Scheduled Outages and Unscheduled Outages in such Billing Period

C. 1.

CUF = max

Capacity Fee and Capacity Charge

The Capacity Fee is the component of the Contract Price allocated to pay for the cost, as well as, the operations and maintenance of the Facility and is designated as the Capacity Fee in Schedule 1 of the PSA, as amended, as such may be adjusted from time to time based on LEYECO V’s Capacity Utilization Factor.

C. 2. Energy Fee and Energy Charge Where: Q ACTUAL

= the actual energy delivered, in kWh, to the Buyer at the Delivery Point for the Billing Period.

= is the Contracted Capacity in kW.

= is the total number of hours in the Billing Period.

EHTO

= the sum of the duration, in Equivalent Hours, of Scheduled Outages and Unscheduled Outages in

The Energy Fee is the component of the Contract Price allocated to pay for the coal, including Government Charges, designated as the Energy Fee in Schedule 1 of the PSAas adjusted from time to time due to changes in the delivered price of coal and Governmental Charges. The Energy Fee shall be computed in accordance with the following formula: Energy Charge = Q ACTUAL x EF EF = 0.2874 x

+ 1.5256 x

+ 0.2375

Where: Q ACTUAL

= Actual energy delivered by GNPOWER to LEYECO V, in kWh, for the Billing Period

= Energy Fee in PhP/kWh

PHCPIn-1

= Philippine Consumer Price Index of the calendar month prior to the month corresponding to the Billing Period, for All Income Households – All Items (2006 = 100), as published by the Philippine National Statistics Coordination Board (or as substitute or replacement agency, as the case may be)

PHCPI0

= base Philippine Consumer Price Index for the month of December 2014 for All Income Households – All Items (2006 = 100), as published by the Philippine National Statistics Coordination Board (or its substitute or replacement agency, as the case may be)

ICIn-1

= Indonesian Coal Price Index of the calendar month prior to the month corresponding to the Billing Period, in US$/Mton

ICI0

= Base Indonesian Coal Price Index for the month of December 2014 = US$67.28/Mton D.

Currency of Payment The Contract Price shall be paid by LEYECO Vin Philippine Peso only. E. Scheduled and Unscheduled Outages Under the PSA,GNPOWER shall be allowed Scheduled and Unscheduled Outages not to exceed forty-five (45) days per Contract Year, during which time reduced or no delivery will be available to LEYECO V. Unutilized Equivalent Hours for Scheduled Outages and Unscheduled Outages in the Contract Year cannot be carried forward to subsequent Contract Year. F. Replacement Power During any Scheduled or Unscheduled Outages, GNPOWER and LEYECO V shall cooperate to arrange for Replacement Power from, including but not limited to, other facilities of GNPOWER, third parties and the WESM. GNPOWER, at its own cost and in consultation with LEYECO V, shall negotiate on behalf of LEYECO Vfor the supply and delivery of capacity and energy from third parties for a price as close as possible to the Contract Price. G. Prompt Payment Discount Provided LEYECO V has no arrears from previous billings, including the Security Deposit or any unpaid charges or penalties, if LEYECO V pays the invoice amount in full within 10 days from its receipt of the invoice, LEYECO V shall be credited on the next subsequent bill a PPD equivalent to eight centavos per kilowatt-hour (PhP0.08/kWh). H. Security Deposit In the event of LEYECO V’s failure to pay on Due Date, GNPOWER shall draw, at its option, from the Security Deposit on the working day immediately following the Due Date. Within thirty (30) Business Days from the Start of Delivery Date, LEYECO V shall establish the Security Deposit and submit to GNPOWER documentary proof sufficient to allow GNPOWER to draw therefrom. The Security Deposit shall be in the form of cash and or irrevocable letter of credit and shall be equivalent to LEYECO V’s projected maximum electricity bill, to be determined not later than sixty (60) calendar days prior to Start of Delivery. COMMERCIAL ADVANTAGE OF THE GENERATION RATE AND IMPACT ON LEYECO V’S RETAIL RATES 16. LEYECO V, together with the other Region 8 ECs, needs to address the insufficiency of its power supply due to the increasing demand within its franchise area and the expiration of its contract with NPC-PSALM; 17. Currently, LEYECO V receives a total of 23MW from its existing suppliers, out of its peak requirement of 30.5MW. With an annual average growth rate of 3%, LEYECO V forecasts that its peak demand from 26 December 2015 to 25 December 2016 will be 31.2MW; 18. The additional supply from GNPOWER will significantly augment the supply deficiency of LEYECO V and will decrease the adverse effects thereof by providing a stable and adequate source of electricity; 19. Among alternative suppliers capable of providing additional energy to LEYECO V and the rest of the Region 8 ECs, GNPOWER’s rates proved to be more reasonable and competitive. While GNPOWER’s offer is primarily intended for its base load requirements, the Capacity Factor Pricing under the PSA, provides flexibility in the DUs’ utilization of the Contracted Capacity; 20. LEYECO V simulated a rate impact analysis which resulted in a Php0.7754decrease with the execution of the PSAwith GNPOWER, to wit:1 A. RATE IMPACT WITHOUT GNPOWER PSA

168,968,431.49 245,766,180.00 104,273,784.00 0.00 598,315,110.91 1,117,323,506.40

Percent Share (%) 19.27% 24.29% 9.71% 0.00% 46.73% 100%

Resulting Capacity Factor (%) 79% 100% 100% 0%

2015 Average Rate (P/kWh) 4.86 5.61 5.95

Forecasted 2015 Average Quantity (kWh)

Amount (Php.)

Percent Share (%)

34,757,869.60 43,800,000.00 17,520,000.00 108,172,591.36 (23,907,165.97) 180,343,294.99

168,968,431.49 245,766,180.00 104,273,784.00 580,940,901.90 (122,465,114.95) 977,484,182.44

19.27% 24.29% 9.71% 59.98% -13.26% 100%

Resulting Capacity Factor (%) 79% 100% 100% 88%

2015 Average Rate (P/kWh) 4.86 5.61 5.95 5.37 5.09

Forecasted 2015 Average Quantity (kWh) GMCP 34,757,869.60 TRANS-ASIA 43,800,000.00 FDCUI 17,520,000.00 GNPOWER 0.00 WESM 84,265,425.39 TOTAL 180,343,294.99 B. RATE IMPACT WITH GNPOWER PSA

GMCP TRANS-ASIA FDCUI GNPOWER WESM TOTAL

Amount (Php.)

C. RATE REDUCTION WITH GNPOWER PSA A. RATE IMPACT WITHOUT GNPOWER PSA B. RATE IMPACT WITH GNPOWER PSA C. RATE REDUCTION WITH GNPOWER PSA

Weighted Average Rate (kWh) 6.1955

7.00

6.1955 5.4201 -0.7754

Weighted Average Rate (kWh) 5.4201

21. In addition to the lower generation cost of the power supply from GNPOWER, LEYECO V is also entitled to a Prompt Payment Discount (PPD), if conditions are met, equivalent to PhP0.08/kWh; 22. In compliance with Rule 20 of ERC Rules of Practice and Procedure relative to the submission of supporting documents and information for the approval of the PSA, as amended, and the rate structure embodied therein, Applicants attached to the Application following documents to form integral parts thereof: ANNEX “I”

DOCUMENT Executive Summary of the PSA, as amended

“J” “K” “K-1” “L” “M” “N” “O” “P” “Q” “R”

“S”

”T”

Rate Impact Simulation Sources of Funds/Financial Plans with Cost Assumptions Compact Disc containing a soft copy of Annex “K” Breakdown of the Contract Price Sample Computation of Power Rates GNPOWER’s Audited Financial Statement for 2014 GNPOWER’s Certificate of Registration No. WA-13-01001 valid until January 2018 LEYECO V’s Distribution Development Plan (DDP) LEYECO V’s Actual and Forecasted Energy and Demand LEYECO V’s Average Daily Load Curve LEYECO V’s Board Resolution with Secretary’s Certificate attesting to the resolution of its Board of Directors authorizing the filing of an application with the ERC for the approval of the PSA, as amended, designating its General Manager, Engr. Juanito E. Jorda, Jr., to file said application. GNPOWER’s General Partner’s Certificate attesting to the resolution of the Board to execute the subject PSA with LEYECO V, as amended, designating signatories thereto

23. Applicants reserved their right to submit other documents, either in the course of the hearing or as may be required by the Commission. COMPLIANCE WITH PRE-FILING REQUIREMENTS

supporting documents and other evidences that applicant or petitioner has submitted and the comments or opposition filed by any interested person, if there be any.” 34. Considering that a substantial amount of time is needed to evaluate the documents submitted to support the approval of herein Application, Applicants seek consideration of the Commission to approve the instant Application, immediately, albeit, provisionally; 35. Owing to the short term of the contract, which is only for a period of one (1) year, a PA is all the more imperative to allow the timely delivery of energy by GNPOWER to LEYECO V, which is set to start on 26 December 2015 at 12:00 A.M.; 36. The Region 8 ECs, including LEYECO V, after careful evaluation if they will defer the commencement of the delivery due to delayed filing, decided and required GNPower to commence its delivery immediately after its previous power supply agreement expired last 25 December 2015, this being the reasonable plan to mitigate the risks of WESM exposure,specially with the assumption that the 2015 occurrence of El Nino has an adverse impact on the supply of the electricity and the WESM price, particularly during the summer season. LEYECO V, Moreover, it was projected, as shown in the table below5, that the exposure to volatile market prices will cause significant increases in prudential guarantee payments which will constrain Region 8 ECs to avail of high interest-bearing loans in order to comply with PEMC requirement;

24. Applicants manifest compliance with the pre-filing requirements mandated under the Implementing Rules and Regulations of the EPIRA and Rule 6 of the ERC Rules of Practice and Procedure, to be established by the following: 24.1

Certifications acknowledging receipt of the Application with annexes to be issued by the Legislative Bodies of Pasig City, Municipality of Hilongos [sic], and the Province of Leyte, to be appended as Annexes “V”, “W” and “X”, respectively;

24.2

Notarized Affidavit of Publication stating that the Application was published in a newspaper of general circulation within LEYECO V’s Franchise Area, to be appended to the Application as Annex “Y”; and

24.3

Complete newspaper issue where the Application was published, to be appended to the Application as Annex “Y-1”, and the relevant page thereof where the Application appears, as Annex “Y-2”;

MOTION FOR CONFIDENTIAL TREATMENT OF ANNEXES“H-2” to “H-8”,“K”, and “K-1” 25. Under Rule 4 of the ERC Rules of Practiceand Procedure, a party to any proceeding before the Commission may request that certain information not be disclosed and be treated as confidential, by describing with particularity the information to be treated as confidential, specifying the ground for the claim of confidential treatment of the information and, if applicable, specifying the period during which the information must not be disclosed; 26. LEYECO V requests for the confidential treatment of Annexes “H-2” to “H-8”of the Application, consisting of the MOA among Region 8 ECs, e-mails confirming participation of interested suppliers in the bidding, Final Instructions to Bidders, Bid Forms, Bid Evaluation Slips, Comparison of Bids, and Notice of Award, respectively. These annexes show the individual offers of the bidders which participated in the R8 JCPSP. The Region 8 ECs, LEYECO Vincluded, are bound by their undertaking to secure and keep in confidence the offers and the proposed terms of supply, so as not to prejudiceor pre-empt any future CSPsin which these bidders will participate.Otherwise, LEYECO V and the rest of the Region 8 ECs may be held liable for damages for breach of confidentiality, and eventually, risk their good relations with the suppliers concerned; 27. Similarly, GNPOWER respectfully moves for the confidential treatment of Annexes “K” and “K-1” hereof, consisting of GNPOWER’s Sources of Funds and Financial Plans with Cost Assumptions.These annexes, exclusively owned by GNPOWER, contain information which are considered part of its business and trade secrets. As such, GNPOWER has the sole proprietary interest and will be unduly prejudiced should they be disclosed to the public; 28. These annexes contain numbers, data, formula, methodology, and calculations involving valuable and sensitive commercial, financial information reflecting GNPOWER’s business operations and financial trade secrets. Therefore, GNPOWER’s confidential, proprietary, and private information included in the aforesaid annexes should be protected from public dissemination. Otherwise, such information can be illegally and unfairly utilized by business competitors who may use the same for their own private gain and to the irreparable prejudice of GNPOWER.Negotiations with prospective customers may also be affected. 29. The information contained in Annexes “K” and “K1”, constitute “trade secrets”, for which GNPOWER has actual and valuable proprietary interest. As explained by the Supreme Court, a trade secret may consist of any formula, pattern, device, or compilation of information that is used in one’s business and gives the employer an opportunity to obtain an advantage over competitors who do not possess the information2. It is indubitable that trade secrets3 constitute proprietary rights and jurisprudence has consistently acknowledged the private character of trade secrets. Further, as ruled in Garcia vs. Board of Investments4, trade secrets and confidential, commercial and financial information are exempt from public scrutiny; 30. Accordingly, Annexes “H-2” to “H-8”, “K” and “K1” be accorded confidential treatment. As such, they are to be used exclusively by the Commission and for the sole purpose of evaluating this Application, thereby protecting these data from unnecessary public disclosure; 31. In accordance with Section 1(b), Rule 4 of the ERC Rules of Practice and Procedure, Applicants submit one (1) copy each of Annexes “H-2” to “H-8”, “K” and “K-1”in a sealed envelope, with the envelope and each page of the documents stamped with the word “Confidential”. PRAYER FOR PROVISIONAL AUTHORITY 32. All the foregoing allegations are re-pleaded by reference in support of theirprayer for the issuance of Provisional Authority (PA) to implement the subject PSA;

37. The additional power from GNPOWER is needed to curtail any power interruptions that may be experienced by LEYECO V’s member-consumers due to inadequate power supply in the region; 38. To further support the Prayer for PA, anaffidavit emphasizing the necessity thereof is attached to the Application as ANNEX “Z”, an form an integral part thereof; PRAYER 39. Applicants LEYECO V and GNPowerpray before the Commission that: i. ii.

iii. iv.

The Commission has set the Application for initial hearing, expository presentation, pre-trial conference, and presentation of evidence on 21 July 2016 (Thursday) at two o’clock in the afternoon (2:00 P.M.) at LEYECO V’s Main Office, Brgy. San Pablo, Ormoc City, Leyte. All persons who have an interest in the subject matter of the proceeding may become a party by filing, at least five (5) days prior to the initial hearing and subject to the requirements in the ERC’s Rules of Practice and Procedure, a verified petition with the Commission giving the docket number and title of the proceeding and stating: (1) the petitioner’s name and address; (2) the nature of petitioner’s interest in the subject matter of the proceeding, and the way and manner in which such interest is affected by the issues involved in the proceeding; and (3) a statement of the relief desired. All other persons who may want their views known to the Commission with respect to the subject matter of the proceeding may file their opposition to the Application or comment thereon at any stage of the proceeding before the Applicants conclude the presentation of its evidence. No particular form of opposition or comment is required, but the document, letter or writing should contain the name and address of such person and a concise statement of the opposition or comment and the grounds relied upon. All such persons who wish to have a copy of the Application may request from the Applicants that they be furnished with the same, prior to the date of the initial hearing. Applicants are hereby directed to furnish all those making such request with copies of theApplication and its attachments, subject to the reimbursement of reasonable photocopying costs. Any such person may likewise examine the Application and other pertinent records filed with the Commission during the standard office hours. WITNESS, the Honorable Chairman, JOSE VICENTE B. SALAZAR, and the Honorable Commissioners, ALFREDO J. NON, GLORIA VICTORIA C. YAP-TARUC, JOSEFINA PATRICIA A. MAGPALE-ASIRIT, and GERONIMO D. STA. ANA, Energy Regulatory Commission, this 18th day of May 2016 in Pasig City.

ATTY. TTY. NATHAN J. MARASIGAN Chief of Staff Office ffice of the Chairman and CEO

33. LEYECO V and GNPOWER pray for the issuance of a PA or interim relief prior to final decision pursuant to Rule 14 of the ERC Rules of Practice and Procedure, to wit: “Section 3. Action on the Motion. – Motions for provisional authority or interim relief may be acted upon with or without hearing. The Commission shall act on the motion on the basis of the allegations of the application or petition and

All information attached as Annexes “H-2” to “H8”, “K” and “K-1” to the Application be treated as confidential; Pending hearing on the merits, a PA be issued authorizing the immediate implementation of the subject PSA including the rate structure therein, as applied; After due notice and hearing, the instant Application, the PSAand the rate structure contained therein be duly approved; and In the event that a Final Authority shall be issued after GNPOWER starts actual delivery of power to LEYECO V under the terms of the subject PSA, said Final Authority be retroactively applied to the date of such actual delivery.

2 3 4 5

ASSUMPTIONS: Analysis and simulations is based on LEYECO V’s forecasted 2016 hourly load profile TRANS-ASIA’s contract to LEYECO V, 100% Load Factor FDCUI’s contract to LEYECO V, 100% Load Factor GNPOWER’s proposal to LEYECO V, with 100%-70% CUF GMCP rate is based on (i) Capacity Fee at Resulting Capacity Factor; (ii) November 14 coal and shipping prices; (iii) AVERAGE FOREX from Jan 2014 - Dec. 2014; (iv) PPD not included WESM Prices is based on 2012 Average prices of Nodal Points of LEYECO V plus 3% Inflation Factor for 2016 Simulation Air Philippines Corporation vs. Pennswell Inc., G.R. No. 172835, December 13, 2007. Ibid., 177 SCRA 374 (1989). Additional equivalent rate due to additional Prudential Guarantee required by PEMC (for the undelivered contracted capacity from GNP0wer) with a conservative loan investment of 6% per annum and based load factor of 81%. (TS-JUNE 23/30, 2016)

THURSDAY: JUNE 30, 2016

RAY S. EÑANO EDITOR

RODERICK T. DELA CRUZ ASSISTANT EDITOR

business@thestandardtoday.com.ph extrastory2000@gmail.com

BUSINESS

‘Brexit’ to restrain GDP goal By Gabrielle H. Binaday

EXTERNAL challenges, including Britain’s decision to exit the European Union, will prevent the Philippines from attaining the higher-end of its 2016 growth target, an official of the Finance Department said Wednesday. Finance Undersecretary and chief economist Gil Beltran said the higher-end growth target of 7.8 percent would be difficult to attain following the so-called ‘Brexit,’ which was expected to affect trade with the European Union and the UK. “The higher end of the targeted growth rate [6.8 percent to 7.8 percent this year] may, however, be difficult to attain because ex-

ternal volatilities will delay the recovery of merchandise exports,” Beltran said. The economy grew 6.9 percent in the first quarter, representing the low-end of the government’s target. Beltran said ‘Brexit’ introduced financial and currency volatilities into the global economy, making the sailing a little rough for the Philippines.

“But the country, owing to its good macro-economic fundamentals, is going to sail all right, Brexit headwinds notwithstanding,” Beltran said. Data showed the UK was an important economic powerhouse. It accounts for about 3.83 percent of the world’s economic output and contributes 16.14 percent to EU’s total output. Beltran said the UK exiting the EU was expected to have economic and financial consequences that would be felt by the rest of the world, as EU accounted for 23.75 percent of world’s gross domestic product. He said the immediate effect of the referendum caused more volatility in the financial and currency markets.

“As investors started to be cautious and flee for safety, such as to the American markets, pushing down interest rates, thereby posing a dilemma for the Fed as regards its interest rate hikes,” Beltran said. He said despite the ‘Brexit,’ the Philippine economy could manage to become one of the most robust in the region on good macro-economic fundamentals supported by robust domestic consumption. Beltran said the country’s current fiscal position was best described as healthy as the national government debt was largely peso-denominated, minimizing the adverse impact on government and consequently the rest of the economy from exchange rate risks

that might ensue due to ‘Brexit.’ “Fiscal discipline has also kept the deficit at low levels. The country is in a fiscal position for a more expansionary fiscal policy, not for stimulating consumption, however, as in the case of advanced economies in the aftermath of the 2008 global financial crisis, but for investment in both physical and human capital,” Beltran said. The country’s external position is also strong, with robust remittances and outsourcing revenues from the UK representing a minimal portion of the total. The National Economic and Development Authority said earlier the share of remittances from the UK averaged 5.3 percent from 2010 to 2015 and grew by 9.5 percent annually.

PSe comPoSite index Closing June 29, 2016

8300 7840 7380 6920 6460 6000

7,798.53 131.84

PeSo-dollar rate

Closing June 29, 2016 48.00 46.00 45.00

P47.020

44.00

43.00

HIGH P46.820 LOW P47.060 AVERAGE P46.960 VOLUME 705.000M

P427.00-P620.00 LPG/11-kg tank P36.35-P43.45 Unleaded Gasoline

oPriceS il P today

P24.75-P29.60 Diesel Villar Group chairman Manuel Villar rings the bell during Golden Haven Memorial Park Inc.’s initial public offering and listing ceremony at Philippine Stock Exchange in Makati City. With Villar are (from left) Golden Haven chief finance officer Roy Joseph Fernandez, chief operating officer Maribeth Tolentino, chairman and president Jerry Navarrete, Camille Villar, Senator Cynthia Villar, Manuel Paolo Villar, PSE chairman Jose Pardo, director Vivian Yuchengco, president Hans Sicat, chief operating officer Alejandro Yu, treasurer Omelita Tiangco and director Alejandro Yu.

Golden Haven’s stock surges by 50% after IPO By Jenniffer B. Austria SHARE price of Golden Haven Memorial Parks Inc., the first company to go public this year, surged 49.9 percent after its initial public offering and listing Wednesday. Golden Haven, the first death care company to be listed with the Philippine Stock Exchange and controlled by billionaire Manuel Villar, saw its stock soar from an IPO price of P10.50 to P15.74 at the close of trading. Golden Haven chief operating officer Maribeth Tolentino said

the company would use the proceeds from the IPO to continue its strategic expansion throughout the country by acquiring land in key locations where sister company Vista Land Inc. has projects. Tolentino said Golden Haven would capitalize on marketing synergies with Vista Land. “With this strategy, it would be inevitable for Golden Haven to expand its death care services to an array of memorial services offered in the market. The company is also looking to expand into preneed planning services, allowing

it to play in all five segments of the death care industry,” Tolentino said. Tolentino said the company recently acquired four new properties in Bulacan, Nueva Vizcaya, Batangas and Cebu that would add over 39,000 memorial lots to its inventory with total sales of P1.8 billion. The company sells an average of 18,000 memorial lots a year. Golden Haven chairman Jerry Navarrete said the fresh capital would help the company achieve its vision of becoming a national-

ly-recognized brand in the death care products and services industry, providing premier private memorial parks and services to all Filipinos. After Golden Haven, the next company preparing for IPO is Cemex Holdings Philippines Inc., the local unit cement unit of Mexico’s Cemex S.A.B De C.V., which plans to raise P40 billion in proceeds. Offer period for Cemex Holdings will be on July 4 to July 11 while listing date was tentatively set on July 18.

P34.55-P39.15 Kerosene Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas Wednesday, June 29, 2016

F oreign e xchange r ate Currency

Unit

US Dollar

Peso

United States

Dollar

1.000000

47.0520

Japan

Yen

0.009733

0.4580

Pound

1.334400

62.7862

Hong Kong

Dollar

0.128899

6.0650

Switzerland

Franc

1.018330

47.9145

Canada

Dollar

0.767990

36.1355

Singapore

Dollar

0.739153

34.7786

Australia

Dollar

0.738700

34.7573

Bahrain

Dinar

2.651043

124.7369

Saudi Arabia

Rial

0.266845

12.5556

Brunei

Dollar

0.736431

34.6506

Indonesia

Rupiah

0.000076

0.0036

Thailand

Baht

0.028361

1.3344

UAE

Dirham

0.272316

12.8130

Euro

1.106800

52.0772

Korea

Won

0.000858

0.0404

China

Yuan

0.150344

7.0740

India

Rupee

0.014770

0.6950

Malaysia

Ringgit

0.245700

11.5607

New Zealand

Dollar

0.704400

33.1434

Taiwan

Dollar

0.030889

1.4534 Source: PDS Bridge

THURSDAY: JUNE 30, 2016

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

The STandard BuSineSS daily STockS review Wednesday, June 29, 2016

52 Weeks

High Low 7.88 75.3 124.4 107 56.5 2.49 4.2 17 30.45 10.4 2.6 890 1.01 100 30.5 75 91.5 137 80 361.2 57 180 1700 124 3.26

2.5 66 88.05 88.1 45.45 1.97 1.68 12.02 19.6 6.12 1.02 625 0.225 78 17.8 58 62 88.35 52 276 41 118.2 1200 59 2.65

47 5 1.46 2.36 15.3 148 20.6 125 85 36 65.8 2.97 4.14 21.5 21.6 11.96 9.13 11.8 2.89 31.8 109 20.75 15.3 9.4 0.98 241 79 3.95 4 74 33.9 90 13.26 293 5 5.25 12.98 7.03 3.4 4.5 6.3 7.34 1450 3.28 0.315 2.18 2.65 234 5.28 1.3 2.17

35.9 1.11 1.01 1.86 7.92 32 15.32 62.5 20.2 10.08 29.15 1.5 1.5 10.72 9.55 9.04 6.02 8.86 1.06 20.2 71.5 13.86 13.24 5.34 0.395 173 34.1 2.3 1.63 33 23.35 17.3 5.88 250.2 3.37 3.87 8.45 3.03 1.95 1 4.02 5.9 801 1.55 0.138 1.02 2.09 152 4.28 0.640 1.2

0.59 59.2 30.05 2.16 7.39 3.4 3.35 823.5 10.2 84 3.35 3.68 4.92 0.66 1455 7.5 76 5.29 6.66 9.25 0.85 17.3 5.53 0.0670 2.31 1.61 84.9 974 1.66 1.39 156 0.710 0.435 0.510

0.44 48.1 20.85 1.6 6.62 0.23 0.23 634.5 7.390 12.8 2.6 1.15 2.26 0.152 837 5.3 49.55 3 3.52 4.84 0.59 12 4.2 0.030 1.23 0.550 59.3 751 1.13 0.93 80 0.211 0.179 0.310

10.5 26.95 1.99 1.75 0.375 41.4 5.6 5.59 1.44 1.97 1.48 0.201

6.74 12 0.65 1.2 0.192 30.05 3.36 4.96 0.79 1.1 0.97 0.083

STOCKS

High

Low

FINANCIAL 3.58 3.38 47.25 46.3 110.80 109.00 97.75 97.00 38.1 37.9 4.17 4.00 1.36 1.36 14.3 14 18 17.78 6.86 6.53 1.95 1.84 600.00 600.00 0.550 0.530 90 87.5 15.04 14.98 22.80 22.00 58.05 57.60 104.9 104.7 550 445 263 259 32 31.6 182.9 198 1400.00 1370.00 65.00 64.80 1.57 1.5 INDUSTRIAL Aboitiz Power Corp. 46.25 46.75 76.15 Agrinurture Inc. 3.62 3.77 3.62 Alliance Tuna Intl Inc. 0.83 0.83 0.81 Alsons Cons. 2.09 2.1 2.04 Asiabest Group 12.38 12.28 11.18 C. Azuc De Tarlac 220.00 216.00 215.00 Century Food 21.75 22 21.7 Chemphil 140 190 145 Conc. Aggr. ‘A’ 172 192.9 167 Cirtek Holdings (Chips) 16.3 16.4 15.98 Concepcion 47.25 47.35 45.1 Crown Asia 2 2.06 1.81 Da Vinci Capital 5.61 6.27 5.65 Del Monte 11.38 12.24 11.5 DNL Industries Inc. 9.300 9.630 9.300 Emperador 6.83 7.10 6.85 Energy Devt. Corp. (EDC) 5.55 5.73 5.60 EEI 7.55 7.70 7.55 Euro-Med Lab 1.82 1.83 1.68 First Gen Corp. 24.65 25.1 24.9 First Holdings ‘A’ 67.8 68 67.4 11.90 11.90 Ginebra San Miguel Inc. 11.90 Holcim Philippines Inc. 15.00 15.10 14.96 Integ. Micro-Electronics 5.55 5.6 5.53 Ionics Inc 2.330 2.390 2.310 Jollibee Foods Corp. 235.00 236.60 234.60 Liberty Flour 32.10 32.20 32.20 LMG Chemicals 1.8 1.97 1.79 Mabuhay Vinyl 3.4 3.23 3.12 Macay Holdings 38.65 38.00 37.95 Manila Water Co. Inc. 26.5 27.15 26.5 Maxs Group 28.55 29.3 28.6 Megawide 6.45 6.49 6.4 Mla. Elect. Co À’ 317.00 320.00 316.60 Panasonic Mfg Phil. Corp. 4.41 4.40 4.35 Pepsi-Cola Products Phil. 3.29 3.4 3.29 Petron Corporation 10.80 11.10 10.92 Phoenix Petroleum Phils. 6.02 6.17 5.92 Phoenix Semiconductor 1.65 1.69 1.63 Pryce Corp. À’ 2.87 2.93 2.83 RFM Corporation 4.20 4.20 4.19 Roxas Holdings 4.11 4.11 4.05 San Miguel ‘Pure Foods À’ 209 209 206.2 Splash Corporation 2.53 2.55 2.5 Swift Foods, Inc. 0.148 0.149 0.147 TKC Steel Corp. 1.93 2.05 1.84 Trans-Asia Oil 2.38 2.49 2.40 Universal Robina 204 208.8 204.8 Victorias Milling 4.71 4.71 4.71 Vitarich Corp. 0.87 0.88 0.86 Vulcan Ind’l. 1.30 1.29 1.22 HOLDING FIRMS Abacus Cons. À’ 0.365 0.365 0.360 Aboitiz Equity 74.05 77.95 75.40 Alliance Global Inc. 15.18 15.36 15.16 Anglo Holdings A 1.17 1.16 1.06 Anscor À’ 6.00 6.25 6.10 ATN Holdings A 0.375 0.385 0.370 ATN Holdings B 0.375 0.385 0.370 Ayala Corp À’ 845 850 843 Cosco Capital 7.73 7.79 7.65 DMCI Holdings 12.60 12.86 12.60 F&J Prince ‘A’ 5 5.28 4.95 F&J Prince ‘B’ 6.5 6.4 5.5 Filinvest Dev. Corp. 6.25 6.37 6.25 Forum Pacific 0.220 0.222 0.202 GT Capital 1446 1480 1465 House of Inv. 6.47 6.45 6.45 JG Summit Holdings 84.00 84.90 83.90 Keppel Holdings À’ 5.69 5.69 5.41 Keppel Holdings `B’ 7 7.18 5.01 Lopez Holdings Corp. 7.7 7.7 7.55 Lodestar Invt. Holdg.Corp. 0.69 0.7 0.69 LT Group 15.6 15.9 15.68 Metro Pacific Inv. Corp. 6.68 6.9 6.71 Pacifica À’ 0.0320 0.0320 0.0320 Prime Media Hldg 1.270 1.260 1.250 Prime Orion 1.790 1.800 1.790 San Miguel Corp À’ 78.00 78.45 77.40 SM Investments Inc. 970.00 995.00 970.00 Solid Group Inc. 1.16 1.17 1.17 South China Res. Inc. 1.00 0.99 0.88 Top Frontier 192.000 194.000 188.000 Unioil Res. & Hldgs 0.3100 0.3050 0.3000 Wellex Industries 0.2010 0.2160 0.1980 Zeus Holdings 0.300 0.300 0.295 PROPERTY 8990 HLDG 7.700 7.740 7.520 Anchor Land Holdings Inc. 7.90 7.80 7.00 A. Brown Co., Inc. 1.24 1.27 1.21 Araneta Prop À’ 2.170 2.270 2.110 Arthaland Corp. 0.285 0.290 0.285 Ayala Land `B’ 38.800 39.350 38.700 Belle Corp. À’ 3.28 3.32 3.28 Cebu Holdings 5.13 5.17 5.14 Century Property 0.495 0.51 0.495 City & Land Dev. 0.91 0.92 0.92 Cityland Dev. À’ 1.110 1.110 1.110 Crown Equities Inc. 0.130 0.133 0.131 AG Finance Asia United Bank Banco de Oro Unibank Inc. Bank of PI China Bank BDO Leasing & Fin. INc. Bright Kindle Resources COL Financial Eastwest Bank Filipino Fund Inc. I-Remit Inc. Manulife Fin. Corp. MEDCO Holdings Metrobank PB Bank Phil Bank of Comm Phil. National Bank Phil. Savings Bank Philippine trust Co. PSE Inc. RCBC À’ Security Bank Sun Life Financial Union Bank Vantage Equities

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

SHARES 12,596,893 94,956,682 77,438,233 172,534,979 246,783,007 557,138,723 1,164,055,219

3.33 47 108.70 97.00 37.9 4.18 1.36 14 17.74 6.80 1.87 594.00 0.550 87.5 14.98 22.80 57.50 105 445 258.4 31.95 198.9 1355.00 64.80 1.52

Net Foreign

Change Volume

Trade/Buying

3.57 47.2 110.60 97.75 37.9 4.17 1.36 14.18 17.8 6.86 1.94 600.00 0.530 90 15.04 22.20 57.65 104.9 550 259 31.7 190 1370.00 64.80 1.57

7.21 0.43 1.75 0.77 0.00 -0.24 0.00 1.29 0.34 0.88 3.74 1.01 -3.64 2.86 0.40 -2.63 0.26 -0.10 23.60 0.23 -0.78 -4.47 1.11 0.00 3.29

214,000 15,200 2,313,540 935,400 74,800 23,000 71,000 24,800 263,200 2,100 98,000 70 743,000 2,149,660 2,700 164,000 92,430 1,000 170 950 295,700 4,856,430 350 2,460 94,000

46.4 3.75 0.83 2.06 12.26 216.00 21.7 188 183 16.3 47.2 2.02 6.2 12.16 9.600 7.10 5.69 7.69 1.83 25 67.75 11.90 15.00 5.54 2.360 235.80 32.20 1.97 3.23 38.00 27.05 29.1 6.45 318.80 4.35 3.4 10.94 6.15 1.65 2.89 4.20 4.11 209 2.55 0.149 1.87 2.49 208.6 4.71 0.87 1.29

0.32 3.59 0.00 -1.44 -0.97 -1.82 -0.23 34.29 6.40 0.00 -0.11 1.00 10.52 6.85 3.23 3.95 2.52 1.85 0.55 1.42 -0.07 0.00 0.00 -0.18 1.29 0.34 0.31 9.44 -5.00 -1.68 2.08 1.93 0.00 0.57 -1.36 3.34 1.30 2.16 0.00 0.70 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.79 0.68 -3.11 4.62 2.25 0.00 0.00 -0.77

1,125,300 426,000 45,700 2,080,000 400 130 482,800 450 1,340 1,820,100 800 19,897,000 6,055,700 497,900 3,197,800 6,304,000 20,371,000 320,300 4,000 6,710,500 92,420 400 67,700 115,200 1,093,000 1,153,270 600 6,000 26,000 2,000 168,600 528,200 332,700 237,470 269,000 565,000 4,152,500 871,600 108,000 303,000 277,000 22,000 1,880 59,000 183,000 7,022,000 2,739,000 1,700,810 2,000 1,125,000 326,000

0.360 77.95 15.20 1.16 6.10 0.375 0.370 850 7.7 12.80 5.28 6.4 6.37 0.202 1470 6.45 84.35 5.41 6.45 7.7 0.69 15.9 6.86 0.0320 1.250 1.800 78.15 995.00 1.17 0.93 194.000 0.3000 0.2000 0.300

-1.37 5.27 0.13 -0.85 1.67 0.00 -1.33 0.59 -0.39 1.59 5.60 -1.54 1.92 -8.18 1.66 -0.31 0.42 -4.92 -7.86 0.00 0.00 1.92 2.69 0.00 -1.57 0.56 0.19 2.58 0.86 -7.00 1.04 -3.23 -0.50 0.00

1,100,000 916,890 7,730,600 146,000 21,200 8,860,000 190,000 234,590 1,033,600 4,512,300 2,100 11,400 43,000 40,000 128,990 5,400 1,438,240 4,800 13,700 870,900 102,000 5,870,700 29,068,000 3,100,000 2,500 333,000 39,960 253,420 13,000 1,218,000 35,050 1,960,000 5,820,000 1,810,000

7.700 7.20 1.26 2.180 0.290 38.700 3.31 5.17 0.510 0.92 1.110 0.133

0.00 -8.86 1.61 0.46 1.75 -0.26 0.91 0.78 3.03 1.10 0.00 2.31

106,100 11,700 1,546,000 474,000 770,000 6,775,000 838,000 6,500 4,280,000 75,000 5,000 1,080,000

353,185.00 -16,415,629 -16,965,593.00 -246,350.00 4,170.00 -686,686.00

-262,360.00 118,130,303.50 110,000.00 -3,315,431.50

-862,065 -5,709,084.00

-17,036,870.00 -182,720.00 206,000.00 -7,522,330.00 -6,400.00 529,100.00 14,200 28,990,300.00 1,381,133.00 1,014,412.00 -12,413,241.00 -10,741,712.00 85,109,367.00 1,805,547.00 31,569,635.00 -1,797,648.50 70,970.00 -697,500.00 -12,715,886.00

-400,030.00 851,990.00 -1,883,659.00 -38,996,918.00 1,522,980.00 1,682,694.00

-961,170.00 363,680.00 642,470.00 1,062,910.00 -10,682,324.00

7,283,483.00 -78,367,718.00 -24,400.00 -33,688,700.00 -2,725,638.00 19,701,714.00

34,523,995.00 6,899,415.50 -3,315,951.00 1,336,522.00 35,857,849.00

305,583.50 127,523,400.00 4,650.00

160,376.00 19,800.00 22,000.00 5,700.00 -116,980,835.00 -327,710.00 34,850.00

52 Weeks

High Low

STOCKS

High

Net Foreign

Change Volume

Trade/Buying

0.415 2.4 0.83 1.15 1.42 1.27 3.1 4.13 0.090 0.290 0.39 23 2.69 22.15 1.6 3.1 15.08 0.69 3.38 0.83 5.73

Cyber Bay Corp. 0.630 Double Dragon 59.95 Empire East Land 0.790 Global-Estate 0.97 Filinvest Land,Inc. 1.96 Interport `A’ 1.26 Keppel Properties 5.00 Megaworld 4.47 MRC Allied Ind. 0.095 Phil. Estates Corp. 0.2700 Phil. Realty `A’ 0.450 Phil. Tob. Flue Cur & Redry 40.00 Primex Corp. 9.67 Robinson’s Land `B’ 30.35 Rockwell 1.78 Shang Properties Inc. 3.2 SM Prime Holdings 26.30 Sta. Lucia Land Inc. 0.9 Starmalls 6.32 Suntrust Home Dev. Inc. 0.970 Vista Land & Lifescapes 5.100

6.35 0.00 0.00 1.03 0.00 -0.79 0.00 2.01 5.26 1.85 -2.22 -1.25 7.76 0.49 2.81 3.12 2.66 -1.11 10.76 6.19 1.96

26,781,000 859,730 353,000 2,148,000 24,092,000 4,000

-347,450.00 3,649,954.00

33,781,000 36,550,000 580,000 260,000 1,700 1,380,400 3,610,200 681,000 623,000 11,932,000 2,931,000 20,400 3,940,000 5,956,500

-11,317,580.00 -28,800.00

10.5 66 1.44 1.09 14.88 28.5 15.82 0.1430 5.06 99.1 12.3 2.6 7.67 4 1700 2720 8.41

1.97 35.2 1 0.63 10.5 18.2 8.6 0.0770 2.95 56.1 10.14 1.6 4.8 2.58 830 1600 5.95

1.97 119.5 7 5.8 0.017

1.23 102.6 3.01 4 0.011

0.8200 2.2800 5.93

0.041 1.200 2.34

12.28 3.32 2.53 95.5 1 2.46 15.2

6.5 1.91 1.01 3.1 0.650 1.8 6

1.040 22.8 185 22.9 3486 0.760 2.28 46.05 90.1

0.37 14.54 79 4.39 2748 0.435 1.2 31.45 60.55

11.6 0.85 10 0.490 1.9

7.59 0.63 5 0.315 1.14

2GO Group’ ABS-CBN Acesite Hotel APC Group, Inc. Asian Terminals Inc. Berjaya Phils. Inc. Bloomberry Boulevard Holdings Calata Corp. Cebu Air Inc. (5J) Centro Esc. Univ. Discovery World DFNN Inc. Easy Call “Common” FEUI Globe Telecom GMA Network Inc. Golden Haven Harbor Star I.C.T.S.I. Imperial Res. `A’ Imperial Res. `B’ IP E-Game Ventures Inc. IPM Holdings Island Info ISM Communications Jackstones LBC Express Leisure & Resorts Liberty Telecom Lorenzo Shipping Manila Broadcasting Manila Bulletin Manila Jockey Melco Crown Metro Retail NOW Corp. Pacific Online Sys. Corp. Phil. Seven Corp. Philweb.Com Inc. PLDT Common PremiereHorizon Premium Leisure Puregold Robinsons RTL SBS Phil. Corp. SSI Group STI Holdings Travellers Waterfront Phils. Yehey

0.14 -2.13 -0.77 1.72 0.00 -1.66 7.93 0.00 0.00 3.90 0.41 7.37 -0.48 -10.00 -2.50 0.67 1.11 49.90 0.88 0.49 -1.53 4.58 -1.00 -0.32 3.08 0.00 -3.93 4.52 0.00 -0.31 0.00 -0.50 0.00 1.52 8.66 0.51 3.52 0.81 0.00 0.00 2.93 -1.16 1.69 0.24 0.98 -0.31 6.80 0.00 0.90 1.52 3.28

92,600 443,900 1,000 504,000 1,300 32,200 22,050,000 24,660,000 519,000 1,194,330 1,300 31,000 72,900 1,000 56,010 142,375 140,800 36,029,800 73,000 1,831,200 352,500 170 17,000,000 55,000 19,240,000 1,575,000 50,000 29,300 733,000 616,000 4,000 3,300 162,000 178,000 33,775,000 724,000 9,695,000 61,400 590 42,300 129,060 4,080,000 34,660,000 2,244,700 493,250 1,009,700 22,828,000 4,748,000 1,236,000 20,000 251,900

0.0098 5.45 17.24 25 0.330 12.7 12.8 1.19 1.62 9.5 4.2 0.48 0.420 0.440 0.022 0.023 8.2 49.2 4.27 3.06 0.020 0.021 7.67 12.88 10.42 0.040 420 9 0.016

0.0043 1.72 6.47 9.43 0.236 6.5 5.11 0.85 0.77 5.99 1.17 0.305 0.2130 0.2160 0.013 0.014 3.240 18.96 2.11 1.54 0.012 0.013 5.4 7.26 2.27 0.015 115.9 3.67 0.0100

Abra Mining Apex À’ Atlas Cons. À’ Atok-Big Wedge À’ Basic Energy Corp. Benguet Corp À’ Benguet Corp `B’ Century Peak Metals Hldgs Coal Asia Dizon Ferronickel Geograce Res. Phil. Inc. Lepanto À’ Lepanto `B’ Manila Mining À’ Manila Mining `B’ Marcventures Hldgs., Inc. Nickelasia Nihao Mineral Resources Oriental Peninsula Res. Oriental Pet. À’ Oriental Pet. `B’ Petroenergy Res. Corp. Philex À’ PhilexPetroleum Philodrill Corp. À’ Semirara Corp. TA Petroleum United Paragon

0.00 1.43 3.95 0.00 -1.72 0.00 0.66 1.69 1.02 -0.22 1.18 3.57 -0.81 -1.96 0.00 0.00 0.58 3.87 0.00 -3.23 2.04 0.00 -2.20 -1.18 0.00 8.33 0.41 2.11 0.00

66,000,000 5,919,000 -680,600.00 133,000 -57,580.00 2,100 120,000 16,800 20,200 304,000 1,060,000 2,300 30,892,000 7,839,540.00 170,000 16,550,000 2,000,000 7,500.00 38,700,000 106,000,000 1,179,000 170,000.00 7,391,000 2,245,800.00 180,000 170,000 51,000,000 900,000 47,000 2,475,000 932,744.00 282,800 378,870.00 900,000 491,000 20,406,316.00 165,000 221,500,000 1,200.00

70 553 525 120 8.21 12.28 111 1047 78.95 84.8

33 490 500 101.5 5.88 6.5 101 1011 74.5 75

ABS-CBN Holdings Corp. Ayala Corp. Pref `B1’ Ayala Corp. Pref ‘B2’ First Gen G GMA Holdings Inc. Leisure and Resort MWIDE PREF PF Pref 2 SMC Preferred B SMC Preferred C SMC Preferred E SMC Preferred G SMC Preferred H

-1.41 -0.83 0.00 0.00 4.43 0.93 -0.44 0.00 -3.13 0.00 0.66 0.06 0.07

711,500 30,100 20 800 600 1,000 20 940 12,840 3,200 200 274,830 159,000

6.98

0.8900 LR Warrant

-1.00

1,800,000

3.5

12.88

5.95

-1.86 -8.29 -0.43 1.92

785,000 10,000 1,159,000 633,200

130.7

105.6 First Metro ETF

1.51

11,250

Alterra Capital Makati Fin. Corp. Italpinas Xurpas

0.670 0.630 0.670 61.4 59.9 59.95 0.790 0.780 0.790 0.98 0.95 0.98 1.98 1.95 1.96 1.25 1.25 1.25 5.00 5.00 5.00 4.59 4.51 4.56 0.101 0.095 0.100 0.2750 0.2700 0.2750 0.445 0.440 0.440 39.50 39.25 39.50 10.7 9.52 10.42 30.70 30.10 30.50 1.84 1.76 1.83 3.41 3.24 3.3 27.00 26.20 27.00 0.9 0.88 0.89 7 6.34 7 1.040 0.990 1.030 5.240 5.130 5.200 SERVICES 7.29 7.4 7.25 7.3 46.85 47.2 45.5 45.85 1.3 1.29 1.29 1.29 0.580 0.600 0.570 0.590 11.4 11.4 11.4 11.4 7.22 7.2 7 7.1 5.93 6.45 5.96 6.40 0.0590 0.0590 0.0570 0.0590 2.91 2.93 2.86 2.91 96.15 99.9 96.55 99.9 9.8 9.84 9.8 9.84 1.9 2.05 1.9 2.04 6.30 6.37 6.27 6.27 3.50 3.15 3.15 3.15 1000 975 960 975 2404 2444 2406 2420 6.30 6.37 6.27 6.37 10.5 15.74 10.82 15.74 1.13 1.15 1.13 1.14 61.2 61.7 61.2 61.5 14.38 15.48 14.16 14.16 153 160 153 160 0.0100 0.0100 0.0099 0.0099 9.41 9.41 9.25 9.38 0.325 0.340 0.325 0.335 1.6700 1.7200 1.6500 1.6700 2.29 2.2 2.17 2.2 11.5 12.3 11.96 12.02 7.70 7.70 7.58 7.70 3.21 3.25 3.20 3.20 1.14 1.14 1.05 1.14 20.00 20.00 19.90 19.90 0.570 0.570 0.560 0.570 1.97 2 1.97 2 3.35 3.65 3.41 3.64 3.95 3.97 3.91 3.97 2.840 2.960 2.880 2.940 12.4 12.5 12.38 12.5 123.50 123.50 120.00 123.50 24.30 24.30 24.00 24.30 2050.00 2110.00 2050.00 2110.00 0.430 0.435 0.425 0.425 1.180 1.230 1.180 1.200 41.90 42.20 41.45 42.00 82.00 83.10 82.10 82.80 6.37 6.42 6.30 6.35 3.09 3.31 3.12 3.30 0.570 0.580 0.560 0.570 3.32 3.42 3.33 3.35 0.330 0.350 0.335 0.335 6.100 6.500 5.690 6.300 MINING & OIL 0.0041 0.0041 0.0041 0.0041 3.50 3.61 3.35 3.55 4.30 4.50 4.30 4.47 11.80 11.80 11.78 11.80 0.233 0.229 0.228 0.229 7.4000 7.4 7.4 7.4000 7.5500 7.9700 7.5600 7.6000 0.59 0.6 0.59 0.6 0.490 0.510 0.490 0.495 8.90 8.95 8.70 8.88 0.850 0.870 0.850 0.860 0.280 0.290 0.285 0.290 0.247 0.247 0.242 0.245 0.255 0.255 0.243 0.250 0.0130 0.0130 0.0120 0.0130 0.0140 0.0140 0.0130 0.0140 1.72 1.79 1.67 1.73 4.91 5.18 5.01 5.1 2.69 2.71 2.62 2.69 1.2400 1.2500 1.1800 1.2000 0.0098 0.0110 0.0100 0.0100 0.0110 0.0120 0.0110 0.0110 4.09 4.10 4.00 4.00 8.50 8.50 8.17 8.40 3.92 4.01 3.90 3.92 0.0120 0.0130 0.0130 0.0130 123.00 124.00 122.00 123.50 3.8 3.89 3.8 3.88 0.0120 0.0120 0.0110 0.0120 PREFERRED 46 46.5 45 45.35 545 541.5 540.5 540.5 541.5 541.5 541.5 541.5 125 125 125 125 6.1 6.37 6.1 6.37 1.08 1.09 1.09 1.09 112.4 111.9 111.9 111.9 1028 1028 1028 1028 80 77.55 77.5 77.5 80 80.45 79.05 80 76 76.5 76.5 76.5 77.95 78 77.95 78 76.9 76.95 76.95 76.95 WARRANTS & BONDS 3.000 3.190 2.970 2.970 SME 3.77 3.89 3.7 3.7 3.5 3.5 3.2 3.21 4.7 4.72 4.49 4.68 15.6 15.9 15.7 15.9 EXCHANGE TRADED FUNDS 126.1 128 126.5 128

10,450.00 -2,338,530.00

17,800.00 11,775.00 -324,080.00 -34,932,890.00 -47,320.00 -64,800.00 86,799,175.00

-13,235,690.00 -1,460.00 1,290.00 21,500.00 21,407,627.00 60,650.00 73,687,213.00

53,702,400.00 52,519,090.00 12,044.00 -64,503,057.00 4,800.00 243,900.00

615,485 Err:522

-6,140,630.00 -15,760.00 -616,700.00 65,280.00 -9,625.00 67,034,070.00 -13,319,710.00 32,517,775.00 12,659,280.00 9,450.00 -260,130.00 -2,280,830.00 -568,700.00 309,500.00

186,985.00

-7,194,825.00

97,350.00 -2,137,758.00

T op L oSerS

STOCKS

FINANCIAL 1,744.97 (up) 8.66 INDUSTRIAL 11,928.37 (up) 172.52 HOLDING FIRMS 7,657.35 (up) 145.26 PROPERTY 3,404.45 (up) 34.27 SERVICES 1,647.83 (up) 31.64 MINING & OIL 11,179.45 (up) 58.34 PSEI 7,798.53 (up)131.84 All Shares Index 4,666.81 (up) 99.53 Gainers: 128; Losers: 66; Unchanged: 48; Total: 242

0.69 10.96 0.97 2.22 2.1 1.8 8.4 5.94 0.180 0.470 0.72 27 8.54 31.8 2.29 4.9 21.35 1.06 7.56 1.62 8.59

T op g ainerS VALUE 1,511,045,747.257 13,507,691,533.99 1,382,432,914.03 1,033,547,225.225 2,073,768,962.243 192,521,428.57 7,563,828,411.32

Low

Close (P)

Change (%)

STOCKS

Close (P)

Change (%)

Golden Haven

15.74

49.90

Easy Call "Common"

3.15

Chemphil

188

34.29

Anchor Land Holdings Inc.

7.20

-10.00 -8.86

Philippine trust Co.

550

23.60

Makati Fin. Corp.

3.21

-8.29

Starmalls

10.76

Forum Pacific

0.202

-8.18

Da Vinci Capital

6.2

10.52

Keppel Holdings `B'

6.45

-7.86

LMG Chemicals

1.97

9.44

South China Res. Inc.

0.93

-7.00

Melco Crown

3.64

8.66

Mabuhay Vinyl

3.23

-5.00

Philodrill Corp. `A'

0.0130

8.33

Keppel Holdings `A'

5.41

-4.92

Bloomberry

6.40

7.93

Security Bank

190

-4.47

Primex Corp.

10.42

7.76

Jackstones

2.2

-3.93

THURSDAY: JUNE 30, 2016

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

Govt posts P55-b budget surplus By Gabrielle Binaday

THE government posted a budget surplus of P55 billion in April this year, after the growth of revenue collections outpaced that of expenditures, data from the Finance Department show Wednesday. Latest cash operations report released by the Budget Department on Wednesday showed the April surplus was 5 percent higher than P52.6 billion posted in the same month a year ago. The government registered the surplus for the first time this year after five months of consecutive budget deficits since a P6-billion surplus in November last year. The April surplus brought the government’s fiscal position to a deficit of P57.5 billion in the first four months, a reversal of the P19.1-billion surplus year-on-year. The government said it posted a primary balance surplus of P69.8 billion in April after netting out

interest payments. Revenues in April climbed 18 percent year-on-year to P246.6 billion bringing year-to-date collections to P725.6 billion. Collections of the Bureau of Internal Revenue rose 10 percent in April, bringing the total take in the first four months to P507.8 billion, up 9 percent or P40 billion from a year ago. Collections of the Bureau of Customs in April rose 16 percent or P4.6 billion year-on-year after contracting in February and March, with the four-month take up 2 percent on year. The income of the Bureau of the Treasury bounced back from a

contraction in March and was up 142 percent or P16.4 billion from a year ago. “This is mainly due to the P23 billion remittance of dividends on shares of stocks held by the government,” the BTr said. Year-to-date collection of the BTr amounted to P52.9 billion, up 7 percent from a year ago. “I am pleased to report a strong finish on both the revenue and expenditure sides of the Republic’s balance sheet. Consistently solid fiscal performance has put the nation on its firmest fiscal footing in history,” Finance secretary Cesar Purisima said. “The aggressive expansion of fiscal space in a span of six years has also funded the most intensive amount of investment the country has seen—fuel for Asia’s bright star to keep burning bright in these challenging times. I am highly confident that the next administration’s economic team has what it takes to improve and build on our gains moving forward,” Purisima added.

SM awards. SM Investments Corp. and units SM Prime Holdings Inc., BDO Unibank Inc. and China Banking Corp. win awards from Hong Kong-based publication Corporate Governance Asia during the 6th Asian Excellence Recognition Awards 2016 organized by the magazine. Shown during the awarding ceremony are (from left) SM Prime executive vice president Jeffrey Lim; BDO senior VP Ismael Estela Jr.; SM Investments SVP for investor relations Cora Guidote; BDO executive vice president and treasurer Pedro Florescio III; China Bank SVP for investor and corporate relations Alexander Escucha; BDO senior manager Catherine Uy; and BDO VP Terence Chua.

Del Monte swings to profit of $51.5m By Jenniffer B. Austria FRUIT grower and canner Del Monte Pacific Ltd. posted a net profit of $51.53 million in fiscal year ending ending April this year, a turnaround from a loss of $43.17 million in 2015. Del Monte said in a disclosure to the stock exchange the net income was boosted by one-off net favorable adjustments of $31.7 million after tax mainly due to Del Monte Foods Inc’s retirement plan amendment in the second quarter and the working capital adjustment in the fourth quarter. The adjustments offset expenses from the closure of a plant in North Carolina. Minus the company’s nonrecurring items, core net income in 2016 stood at $19.8 million, a significant improvement from

the loss of $43.2 million last year. “During the past year, we continued to lay the foundation for future growth and this is reflected in the sales and financial performance of Del Monte Pacific in FY2016,” said Joselito Campos Jr., managing director and group chief executive officer of DMPL. “We drove improvements in our cost structure and better aligned operations with our strategic direction to gain market share, increase margins and expand into adjacent categories as part of a long-range plan to grow sales and profits for the company in the years ahead,” Campos said. The group registered fullyear sales of $2.3 billion, up four percent from a year ago. Unit Del Monte Foods, which accounted for 78 percent of group

sales, generated revenue of $1.8 billion. The Philippine market delivered a record performance for the full year with sales up six percent, as all product categories—packaged fruit, beverage and culinary-posted higher sales, driven by an expanded user base and household penetration. Barring unforeseen circumstances, Del Monte said it expected the company to remain profitable in 2017. The company plans to improve its financial performance in the short-to- mid term period by strengthening its core business, leveraging procurement synergies and optimizing costs. The group plans to shift to a leaner organization model in the US to drive channel growth and reduce costs.

Macapagal in 1961, Duterte in 2016 BY THE time the individual whom they elected took their oaths as president of the Philippines, the Filipino people have usually been comfortable with the choices they made, believing that they knew enough about the incoming presidents’ personalities, beliefs and backgrounds to be able to expect proper and lawful things from them. There are, in my view, two exceptions to this rule. One, certainly, is the man who will be sworn in today as the 16th President of the Republic. True, like all his predecessors, except Corazon Aquino, Rodrigo Duterte has been in public office all his life – chiefly as mayor of a large and formerly problematic city – but since the start of the electoral campaign, he has been saying things and performing acts that had placed him beyond the bounds of civility and propriety. He says that after June 30, he will undergo a metamorphosis. Not one of his predecessors had to make such a promise; the Cory Aquino, Fidel Ramos and Gloria Arroyo that the Filipino voters knew before inauguration day were the same persons that ascended to Malacañang after their oathtaking. Whether Rodrigo Duterte will undergo a metamorphosis after June 30 is not a certainty. What is certain is that, as he prepares to ascend the stairs of Malacañang, the majority of the Filipino people are apprehensive about the former mayor of Davao City. They distrust him and are not comfortable with him, they fear that the irreverent and imperious person who assumes the presidency today is the same person they will be living with over the next six years. The other president-elect, who, in my recollection, assumed the presidency of the Republic amid such apprehension and distrust was Diosdado Macapagal, who took his oath of office on Dec. 30 (then the prescribed date under the 1935 Constitution), 1961. The man whom the media referred to as DM became Chief Executive after four years as vice president. Many apprehension-filled questions were asked about President Macapagal during his first days in office. What will he be like? Will he be accessible to the people, or will he be a distant kind of Chief Executive? What are his likes? Who and what does he dislike? Is he a vindictive type of person, and does he have a list of people and groups that he intends to go after? The apprehension and distrust regarding Diosdado Macapagal stemmed partly from the personality of the new president. The Poor Boy from Lubao was a self-made man who never forgot his provincial roots. The UST-trained lawyer eventually became chairman of the foreign affairs committee of the House of Representatives, but he did not develop the personality of the typical Filipino politician. He was basically an introvert. Another source of the apprehension and distrust regarding Diosdado Macapagal was that President Carlos Garcia and the ruling Nacionalistas, knowing that Macapagal was bound to be the Liberal Party’s standard bearer in the 1961 election, deliberately kept him out of the limelight. Without an official position – President Garcia did not offer him the traditional foreign affairs portfolio – Diosdado Macapagal did not, during the four years of his vice presidency, mingle extensively with the leaders of the various sectors of Philippine society, such as the business sector. Thus, he was not able to develop close ties with them. That situation of apprehension and distrust gradually changed, and the change was largely due to one man. That man was Armand Fabella, the highly regarded, Havard-trained president of Jose Rizal College, who Macapagal appointed as his chief economic adviser. The business and professional groups – especially the former – were now saying to themselves: if Macapagal has Fabella as his close adviser, the country will be in good hands. True enough, the country was in good hands and the four years of the Macapagal presidency have been said by economic historians to have been the most stable years of the post-war Philippine economy. In due time, Macapagal began to endear himself to the Filipino people and Malacañang ceased to be the object of apprehension and distrust. Macapagal did not promise, and did not have to undergo, a metamorphosis. What the Filipino people saw was what they got. Is there anyone in the Duterte camp capable of generating an Armand Fabella-type impact on the presidency of the man they call Digong? The nearest thing to such a person is Carlos Dominguez, the newly appointed secretary of Finance. Sonny Dominguez, a Davao-based businessman who enjoys Duterte’s trust – they were classmates – is highly regarded in business circles from both the academic and professional standpoints. His inclusion in the Duterte Cabinet has been a reassuring development for many Filipinos within and outside the business sector. The gradual dissipation of the initial apprehension and distrust of Diosdado Macapagal became possible because the Poor Boy from Lubao was essentially a decent person and a nation-loving public official. I hope that with the passage of time, the same thing can be said about the current apprehension and distrust of Rodrigo Duterte. E-mail: rudyromero777@yahoo.com

B4 PLDT promotes Facebook.

PLDT Inc. and Smart Communications are changing the way their people work together by launching Facebook at Work, the business version of Facebook that allows companies to build more productive, efficient and collaborative workplaces. Shown are executives of the PLDT Group as they launch Facebook at Work at Smart Tower in Makati City.

BSP okays Taiwan bank’s entry By Julito G. Rada

THE Monetary Board of Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas approved the application of First Commercial Bank of Taiwan to set up an office in the Philippines, making it the third Taiwan-based lender to enter the country since 2014. The latest approval brought to two the number of applications approved by the board this year. Bangko Sentral approved in May the acquisition of Wealth Development Bank by Woori Bank, South Korea’s second-largest bank from the Gaisano family’s Viscal Development Corp. “The application for branch

of First Commercial Bank [of Taiwan] was approved by MB [Monetary Board] last Thursday,” Bangko Sentral Deputy Governor Nestor Espenilla Jr. said in a text message Wednesday. Espenilla said the board was currently evaluating the application of another Asian bank

planning to expand in the Philippines. Available information on its Web site showed that First Commercial Bank was established on Nov. 26, 1899 as Savings Bank of Taiwan. In 1912, it merged with Commercial and Industrial Bank of Taiwan, retaining the name of the latter, and in 1923 it again merged with Chia-I Bank and Hsin-Kao Bank. It changed its name to Taiwan Industrial and Commercial Bank in 1947 and First Commercial Bank of Taiwan in 1949. In 1976, it was given its current name, First Commercial Bank, in order to strengthen the operating strategy of business internationalization.

Mitsubishi to bring in hybrid vehicles By Othel V. Campos TOKYO, Japan—Mitsubishi Motors Philippines Corp. plans to ask the Trade Department to provide incentives to rationalize the cost of bringing in hybrid vehicles into the country. “We plan to ask the Department for assistance as a group. We will be coursing our concern through Campi [Chamber of Automotive Manufacturers of the Philippines Inc.],” said MMPC president Yoshiaki Kato. Mitsubishi specifically plans to bring in MiEV series of electric vehicles and Hybrid Outlander that can run both on petrol or electricity. Hybrid Outlander is manufactured in Japan. Meanwhile, Mitsubishi said it

would maintain the production of L-300 chassis cab in the Philippines amid strong demand for multi-functional vehicles that can serve both commercial and personal use. Mitsubishi will phase out nonEuro-4 compliant vehicles, among them Adventure and L-300 chassis cab, which are still being manufactured in the Philippines. Mitsubishi chairman and chief executive Osamu Masuko said while the company would temporarily stop the production of L-300 by end-2017, it would resume production of the vehicle as soon as a Euro-4 engine designed for L-300 vehicles became available. “We have to meet the gas emission regulation in making a new model and combine this with Euro-4 compliant engine.

This will be the new generation L-300,” he said. The research and development hub of Mitsubishi in Nagoya, Japan is leading the design of the engine as well as other body and technical parts that should be improved. Osamu said President Benigno Aquino III cited the potential of L-300 for export. “However, to continue with the production of the Adventure will be difficult, I believe,” Osamu said. Mitsubishi currently focuses on the promotion of mid-sized hybrid Outlander. Mitsubishi recently recalibrated its production strategy by consolidating manufacturing in Asean as it closed operations in the Netherlands, Australia and the US.

The bank was transformed from a government entity into a private bank in 1998. After the establishment of First Financial Holding Co. on Jan. 2, 2003, the bank became a subsidiary of First Financial Group. The bank has now been in business for more than a century. The bank’s capital stood at NT$86.244 billion as of end-September 2015. In terms of total assets and Tier 1 capital, it ranked among the world’s top 200 banks. It currently has 7,298 employees and 190 domestic branches. It has 32 global networks in major international metropolitan areas and financial centers. Earlier reports from Taiwan Business magazine said the Tai-

wanese banking sector had “to look elsewhere in the region after booking a net loss in 2015 for the first time in nine years as a feeble domestic economy and China’s slowing growth battered balance sheets. Reports said earnings fell 0.2 percent year-on-year to NT$319.6 billion ($9.75 billion), according to the Financial Supervisory Commission.” It said while the Chinese operations of Taiwanese banks remained profitable, overall earnings in China fell by nearly 46 percent to NT$1.97 billion ($60.1 million). It was the first annual decline since Taiwanese banks expanded into China in December 2010.

Neda says tax reforms to propel PH economy By Gabrielle H. Binaday A COMPREHENSIVE tax reform program will help the Philippines become an upper middle-income economy by 2040, according to a top official of the National Economic and Development Authority. Neda deputy director-general Rosemarie Edillon said during a joint forum with the Economic Journalists Association of the Philippines that tax reforms would boost Filipinos’ aspirations over the next 25 years. Neda presented “AmBisyon Natin 2040,” which represents the collective long-term vision and aspirations of the Filipino people for themselves and for the country for the next 25 years. A survey by Neda showed that 79.2 percent of 10,000 respondents aspired for a simple and comfortable life. A small segment or 16.9 percent of the respondents aspired for an affluent life, while 3.9 percent said they wanted to be rich. Simple and comfortable life, according to the respondents, means that they own a car; have enough money for day-to-day needs; own a medium-sized home; earning enough; all their children are collegeeducated; relax with family and friends; are business owners; and are able to take occasional trips around the country.

T H U R S D AY : J U N E 3 0 , 2 0 1 6

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

Investors swarm 4 BSP auction th

By Julito G. Rada

De Lima quits Peza PHILIPPINE Economic Zone Authority director general Lilia De Lima announced Wednesday her resignation as head of the agency. De Lima headed the agency for 21 years starting from the administration of former president Fidel Ramos. She said she would go back to private life and enjoy her time leisurely as a painter and lover of the arts and nature. She said Peza after 21 years had reached maturity as a government agency and would pursue its tasks to attract investments and create jobs for the Filipino people. The agency is one of the top revenue generating offices in the country. Peza guided companies where to put their investments and how to manage operations. Under her management, de Lima made popular the slogan “no red tape, only red carpet.” Othel V. Campos

Rice stock ample THE National Food Authority assured the public of ample rice buffer stocks for the lean season. NFA officer-in-charge Tomas Escarez said the country’s rice inventory stood at 3.54 million metric tons, or good enough for 110 days based on the national daily requirement of 32,560 MT. About 1.02 million metric tons are with the NFA and 1.04 million metric tons are held as commercial rice, while 1.47 million metric tons are household stocks. Escarez said the NFA had more than 30day buffer stock needed at the start of the lean months. “We have more than enough stocks of the good quality, low-priced NFA rice for the lean months,” Escarez said. “These stocks are now strategically prepositioned across the country, especially in calamity-vulnerable areas,” Escarez added. Anna Leah E. Gonzales

THE fourth term deposit facility auction of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas remained highly oversubscribed on Wednesday, an indication of excess liquidity in the country’s financial system. Data posted on the Bangko Sentral website showed total bids for the P10-billion seven-day tenor term deposits attracted P61.303 billion, while the P20 billion offered with a monthlong tenor generated total tenders of P91.955 billion, or more than four times oversubscribed. Both tenors fetched a weighted average accepted yield of 2.5 percent that matched the floor rate in the overnight deposit facility. The term deposit facility is the

Bangko Sentral’s latest tool to siphon off excess money in the financial system. The first TDF auction on June 8 drew much interest from banks and trust entities. The P10 billion offered under the 7-day tenor generated total bids of P82.438 billion, while the P20 billion auctioned under the 28-day tenor attracted total tenders of P117.271 billion. Both tenors fetched a 2.5-percent weighted average yield.

The second auction on June 15 was also highly oversubscribed. Total bids for the P10-billion offered for the week-long tenor reached P63.937 billion, or more than six times oversubscribed. Total tenders for the P20 billion offered for the month-long tenor stood at P92.847 billion, or more than four times oversubscribed. Both tenors fetched a weighted average accepted yield of 2.5 percent that matched the floor rate in the overnight deposit facility. The third auction on June 22 was also oversubscribed. Bangko Sentral Deputy Governor Diwa Guinigundo said last week it was possible to increase the volume and even frequency of the term deposit auctions if the need arose in the future. “We will move whenever it is necessary in terms of volume and frequency. But right now we don’t

see the need to increase or adjust the volume of offering or increase the frequency from once a week to twice a week,” Guinigundo said in an interview. “I think we are in a stable situation that does not require any dramatic adjustment in the volume as well as the frequency of the TDF,” he said. However, Guinigundo said the Bangko Sentral was not yet getting the desired outcome of the present auctions in their initial stages. He said Bangko Sentral was doing it gradually and slowly so as not to shock the market. He said even the market itself was doing the adjustment so it was more prudent to go slow. He said that view was expressed in terms of the gradual increase in terms of the volume that the Bangko Sentral offered in the term deposit facility.

New 8990 tower up MASS housing developer 8990 Holdings Inc. said it expects to raise as much as P7.2 billion in sales from the construction of new condominium development in Cubao, Quezon City. 8990 Holdings said in a disclosure to the stock exchange it tapped listed Megawide Construction Corp to build its 45-storey condominium project, dubbed as Urban DECA Towers-Cubao. Located along Edsa corner Banahaw Street, fronting the Farmers Market in Araneta Center, the condominium tower offers 5,207 residential units at a starting price of P1.2 million to P1.5 million per unit. The project will be completed by 2020 with the initial delivery of lower ground units by 2019. “We are building our second condominium on a 4,310-square meter lot that will expand our ‘halfway house’ concept after the success of our initial building in Edsa Pasig,” 8990 Holdings chief executive Januario Jesus Atencio said. Jenniffer B. Austria

More Globe cell sites GLOBE Telecom Inc. said on Wednesday it rolled out more cell sites using 700 megahertz frequency to expand mobile network capacity. The company, a unit of Ayala Corp., said it fired up cell sites in Davao using the 700 MHz band, as part of its plan to activate an initial batch of 200 cell sites within the next several months. The sites in Davao serve several locations, including the Insular Village, Waterfront Hotel, Nova Tierra Subdivision, Fortune Homes Village, Barangay Pampanga, Lanang, Dona Pilar Subdivision, resorts in Samal Island that include Paradise Resort, Blue Jazz Resort, Blue Water and Costa Marina, DPWH Region XI Office, Barangay Panacan, Dona Mercedes Village, Eastern Mindanao Command Camp, Valle Verde Estate Subdivision, Forest Lake Memorial Park,PMPC Village, Celllidona Village, Don Ramon Village and Veterans Village–Phase2. Darwin G. Amojelar

Eastern expansion EASTERN Petroleum Corp. is expanding its EC Gas liquefied petroleum gas network by putting up 100 company-owned and company -operated or CoCo outlets this year. EC Gas markets the only explosionproof LPG brand in the country. “Soon, we will be opening company-owned, company-operated EC Gas outlets in Bacoor, Cavite City, and Gen. Trias in Cavite, Tondo, Manila, Pasig City, Parañaque City, and Quezon City to provide households with the safest LPG and let them enjoy savings they could generate from the use of EC Gas,” Eastern Petroleum chairman and chief executive Fernando Martinez said in a statement. The company recently inaugurated its first EC Gas CoCo outlet in Dapitan, Manila as part of its plan to open close to 100 EC Gas CoCo within the year. Alena Mae S. Flores

3rd Magnolia tower. Robinsons Land Corp. led by president Frederick Go holds the topping-off ceremony of Tower C of The Magnolia Residences, the third residential building in the four-tower master-planned condominium development in upscale New Manila, Quezon City. Shown are (from left) Constech Management Group area manager Rolly Macapinlac, Robinsons Residences and Robinsons Luxuria vice president for sales and marketing May Lopez, RLC head of design and planning Anabel Carangan-Valencia, Monocrete Philippines Inc. president Manny Mendoza, RLC vice president for project management Emmanuel Arce, RLC senior vice president Mybelle Aragon-Gobio, RLC vice president for business development Trina Cipriano, ASYA Design Associates’ principal architect Geoffrey Yu and architect Joel Madera.

Cusi to keep energy policies, protect consumers By Alena Mae S. Flores INCOMING Energy Secretary Alfonso Cusi vowed to look after the interest of consumers when dealing with issues in the sector. “We’re looking at it from the perspective of the consumer... I’m here to lead based on the perspective of the consumer,” Cusi, who was at the department for a briefing of the attached agencies, told reporters Wednesday. Cusi, the former general manager of the Manila International Airport Authority and a former chief of the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines, also assured the public of “continuity of programs,” especially the government’s mandate to provide reliable power to consumers. The Philippine power industry is largely driven by the private sector under the policy mandated by the department. Among the lingering issues faced by

Cusi is the third round of renewable energy installation targets, specially the additional 500 megawatts for wind and 500 MW for solar power projects. Outgoing Energy Secretary Zenaida Monsada earlier said the department was studying the recommendation of the National Renewable Energy Board to increase the installation target for wind projects by 500 MW and solar power projects by 500 MW. The department earlier approved 400 MW for wind and 500 MW for solar installation targets under the feed-in tariff scheme. “NREB has submitted its recommendation but it’s still under study. I think the decision on the third FIT [feed-in tariff] might be for next administration. But we will be providing them with inputs so they will have initial basis or perspective,” Monsada said. She cited several things that must be completed in the power sector. “Most of that are for power. There’s a lot

of things to complete. Priority would be RPS [renewable portfolio standards]. Next would be the RE market circular. And then FIT, whether we still need it so we can meet our 2030 targets,” she said. Monsada said other issues that Cusi must focus on are the rules on the competitive selection process for the procurement of supply of distribution utilities. She said the new administration would also have to look at implementing the Wholesale Electricity Spot Market in Mindanao as the supply would likely be adequate by the second half. Monsada cited Cusi’s management experience that could work to his advantage at the department. “It’s more on how you manage. It’s making things done than working on having the things done. Of course, it’s good if you have background, but management is more important,” the energy chief said.

Republic of the Philippines ENERGY REGULATORY COMMISSION San Miguel Avenue, Pasig City IN THE MATTER OF THE APPLICATION FOR APPROVAL OF THE POWER SUPPLY AGREEMENT (PSA), AS AMENDED, BETWEEN DON ORESTES ROMUALDEZ ELECTRIC COOPERATIVE INC. AND GNPOWER LTD. CO. WITH PRAYER FOR CONFIDENTIAL ERC CASE NO. 2016-033 RC TREATMENT OF INFORMATION AND THE ISSUANCE OF PROVISIONAL AUTHORITY DON ORESTES ROMUALDEZ ELECTRIC COOPERATIVE, INC. (DORELCO) AND GNPOWER LTD. CO. (GNPOWER) Applicants. x---------------------------------------------x NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING TO ALL INTERESTED PARTIES: On 23 March 2016, DON ORESTES ROMUALDEZ ELECTRIC COOPERATIVE, INC. (DORELCO) and GNPOWER LTD. CO. (GNPOWER) filed their joint Application for approval of their Power Supply Agreement (PSA), with prayer for confidential treatment of information and the issuance of provisional authority. In support of said Application, DORELCO and GNPower alleged, among others, the following: 1. Applicant DORELCO is a non-stock, non-profit electric cooperative, existing under and by virtue of the laws of the Philippines, with principal office address at National Highway, Brgy. San Roque, Tolosa, Leyte. It is authorized to distribute and provide electricity services to its memberconsumers in the Municipalities of Abuyog, Burauen, Dagami, Dulag, Javier, Julita, La Paz, Macarthur, Mahaplag, Mayorga, Tabon-Tabon, Tanuan, Tolosa, all in the Province of Leyte(collectively, the “Franchise Area”); 2. Copies of DORELCO’s Articles of Incorporation, By-Laws, Certificate of Registration and Certificate of Franchise are attached to the Application as follows: Annex “A” “B” “C” “D”

Document DORELCO’s Articles of Incorporation DORELCO’s By-laws Certificate of Registration with the National Electrification Administration (NEA) Certificate of Franchise

3. Applicant GNPOWER is a duly registered limited partnership existing under Philippine laws, engaged in the business of developing, constructing, operating and owning power generation facilities and in the sale and trade of electric power. Its principal office is at 28th Floor, Orient Square Building, Don FranciscoOrtigas Jr. Road, Ortigas Center, Pasig City; 4. GNPOWER’s pertinent documents evidencing its due registration as a limited partnership are appended to the Application, as follows: Annex “E” “F”

Document Certificate of Registration issued by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) GNPOWER’s Amended Articles of Partnership

5. Applicants may be served with orders, notices and other legal processes of the Commission through its counsels ofrecord; 6. The instant Application is filed pursuant to Sections 23, 25, 43 (u), and 45 (b) of Republic Act No. 9136, otherwise known as the Electric Power Industry Reform Act of 2001 (EPIRA Law), its Implementing Rules and Regulations, and other pertinent rules and regulations. A copy of the PSA signed by Applicants on 18 September 2015, as amended by a letter of agreement dated 16 December 2015 (Amendment Letter), are attached as Annex “G” and “G-1“, respectively, and forms an integral part of the Application;

are listed on the Department of Energy (DOE) website) were invited; 12.3. The capacity offered by the winning bidder/s was allocated among the eleven (11) Region 8 ECs in proportion to their declared demand. A bidder was allowed to offer to supply capacity that is less than or equal to the aggregated baseload requirement in any or all of the contract years in increments of 1MW. In the event that some winning bidders offered less than 11 MW, the loads were optimally allocated in such a way that the blended price of generation resulting from the R8 JCPSP transaction is almost the same for all ECs. In the event multiple bidders who collectively satisfy the total baseload demand of R8 ECs are declared winners for any contract year, all winning bidders entered into individual PSAs with each of the 11 ECs; 12.4. Bidders who signified their intention to join by buying the bid documents, attended pre-bid conferences where they gave their comments and sought clarification on the bidding requirements and process. The BAC issued bid bulletins and the Final Instruction to Bidders; 12.5. The process followed the 2-envelope system – the legal requirements and proof of financial and technical capability in the first, and the commercial offer in the second. Bids were evaluated based on an Evaluation Framework and Evaluation Methodology released to the Bidders; 12.6. After evaluating the bids of each supplier, on 14 November 2014, the BAC declared Applicant GNPOWER as a winning bidder of a total of 43 MW for Contract Year 2016, with a Lowest Calculated Responsive Bid with a Base Price offer of PhP5.0481/kWh and an evaluated Effective Price of PhP6.6658/kWh; 12.7. On 14 September 2015, GNPOWER and the Region 8 ECs commenced the final negotiations for the other commercial and technical terms and conditions of the PSA and negotiated the further reduction of the Contract Price from PhP5.0481/ kWh to PhP4.9653/kWh and for the increase in capacity to 52MW; Attached to the Application are copies of the relevant documents issued relative to the Joint Competitive Selection Process undertaken by the Region 8 ECs for the supply of their aggregated base load demand: Annex “H” “H-1” “H-1-a” “H-2” “H-3” “H-4” “H-5” “H-6” “H-7” “H-8”

13. On 18 September 2015, DORELCO and GNPOWER executed the subject PSA, providing the terms and conditions for the supply of eight (8) MW [sic] baseload power to DORELCO, to assure the adequate and reliable supply of power to DORELCO’s franchise area; 14. Subsequently, through the Amendment Letter, DORELCO requested for a three (3) MW increase in Contracted Capacity, which GNPOWER accepted and conformed to on 14 January 2016; ABSTRACT OF THE PSA AND OTHER RELATED INFORMATION 15.

The following are the salient features of the PSA:

STATEMENT OF FACTS 7. The aggregated uncontracted baseload demand of Region 8 for the years 2015 to 2018is continually increasing as shown in the table below: Contract Year 2015 2016 2017 2018

Contract Duration Dec. 26, 2014 – Dec. 25, 2015 Dec. 26, 2015 – Dec. 25, 2016 Dec. 26, 2016 – Dec. 25, 2017 Dec. 26, 2017 – Dec. 25, 2018

Aggregated Baseload 65 MW 78 MW 83 MW 93 MW

8. The contracts of most of the Electric Cooperatives (ECs) in Region 8 with the National Power Corporation – Power Sector Assets and Liabilities Management Corporation (NPCPSALM) expired on 25 December 2014; 9. On 07 November 2013, the eleven (11) ECs of Region 8 participated in the bidding for PSALM’s 200 strips of energy from the Unified Leyte Geothermal Power Plant, but lost; 10. Typhoon Yolanda hit the region on 08 November 2013 stalling any efforts to contract additional power supply and shifting the focus instead on the massive restoration efforts in the area; 11. Thus, the Region 8 ECs decided to bid out their power supply requirements for the period 2015-2018. In the middle of 2014, the Region 8 ECs conducted a Joint Power Supply Planning. Later, the Region 8 ECs decided, through a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA), to conduct a joint procurement of their short-term aggregated baseload requirement, specifically, their power supply needs beginning 26 December 2015 until 25 December 2016.From September to December 2014, the competitive bidding for the region’s power requirements was held; 12. For such purpose, a Bids and Awards Committee was created to conduct the Region 8 Joint Competitive Power Supply Procurement (“R8 JCPSP”) as follows: 12.1. The Region 8 ECs initially prepared their respective least-cost power supply plans and subsequently their aggregated baseload demand for competitive bidding; 12.2.

The competitive tender was published and announced in the coverage areas of the Region 8 ECs. In addition, prospective bidders (Generation Companies, IPP Administrators and Wholesale Aggregators whose names

Document Invitation to Bid Copy of the page of the newspaper where the Invitation was published Affidavit of Publication of the Invitation to Bid Memorandum of Agreement among Region 8 ECs Emails confirming participation of interested suppliers in the bidding Final Instruction to Bidders Bid Forms Bid Evaluation Slips Comparison of Bids Notice of Award

Contracted Capacity GNPOWER shall sell and deliver, or cause to deliver to DORELCO a contracted capacity of five (5) MW at the delivery point of the facility. Unutilized Capacity. The unutilized capacity of the Buyer may be made available for utilization of other Region 8 ECs or sold to the WESM. Exchange of Contracted Capacities. To maximize capacity utilization, Region 8 ECs may exchange quantities of their Contracted Capacities. (Exchange in MW Capacity Protocol annexed to the PSA) Contract Price Under Schedule 1 of the PSA, the Total Monthly Charge, before taxes, for a Billing Period shall be computed according to the following:

Total Monthly Charge = Capacity+Charge+Energy Charge C. 1. Capacity Fee and Capacity Charge The Capacity Fee is the component of the Contract Price allocated to pay for the cost, as well as, the operations and maintenance of the Facility and is designated as the Capacity Fee in Schedule 1 of the PSA as such may be adjusted from time to time based on DORELCO’s CapacityUtilization Factor.

Where: Q ACTUAL CC HT EHTO

CFCUF

= the CapacityFee in PhP/kWh for a given CUF in a Billing month.

LCRCUF

= the local component of the Capital Recovery Fee in PhP/kWh at the given CUF.

LFOMCUF = the local component of the Fixed O&M fee in PhP/kWh at the given CUF. PHCPIn-1 = Philippine Consumer Price Index of the calendar month prior to the month corresponding to the Billing Period, for All Income Households – All Items (2006=100), as published by the Philippine National Statistics Coordination Board (or its substitute or replacement agency, as the case may be). PHCPI0 CUF

= the Capacity Utilization Factor between 70% and 100%, provided that if the actual CUF is below 70% (the “Minimum Capacity Utilization Factor”), the Capacity Price shall be calculated based on the Capacity Fee and quantity associated with the Minimum Capacity Utilization Factor. The corresponding Capacity Fee price component for a given Capacity Utilization Factor is set forth in the Table below: Capacity Fees for Specific Capacity Utilization Factors CAPACITY FEE LOCAL PRICE COMPONENTS (PHP/kWh) C.U.F.

Capital Recovery (LCRCUF)

Fixed O&M (LFOMCUF)

100% 99% 98% 97% 96% 95% 94% 93% 92% 91% 90% 89% 88% 87% 86% 85% 84%

2.2944 2.3176 2.3412 2.3654 2.3900 2.4152 2.4409 2.4671 2.4939 2.5213 2.5493 2.5780 2.6073 2.6372 2.6679 2.6993 2.7314

0.6204 0.6267 0.6331 0.6396 0.6463 0.6531 0.6600 0.6671 0.6743 0.6818 0.6893 0.6971 0.7050 0.7131 0.7214 0.7299 0.7386

83%

2.7643

0.7475

82% 81% 80% 79% 78% 77% 76% 75% 74% 73% 72% 71% 70%

2.7980 2.8326 2.8680 2.9043 2.9415 2.9797 3.0189 3.0592 3.1005 3.1430 3.1867 3.2315 3.2777

0.7566 0.7659 0.7755 0.7853 0.7954 0.8057 0.8163 0.8272 0.8384 0.8499 0.8617 0.8738 0.8863

For the resulting CUF which is not a whole number, the corresponding Capacity Fee Price Component shall be computed using the formula below:

LCRCUF = LFOM CUF = Where,

= the sum of the duration, in Equivalent Hours, of Scheduled Outages and Unscheduled Outages in such Billing Period

LCR@100% CUF

LFOM

LFOM @100% CUF

LCRCUF

- is the local component of the Capital Recovery fee in PHP/kWh at the given CUF.

LCR@100%

– is the local component of the Capital Recovery fee in PHP/kWh at 100% CUF.

LFOMCUF

– is the local component of the Fixed O&M fee in PHP/kWh at the given CUF.

LFOM @100%

– is the local component of the Fixed O&M fee in PHP/kWh at 100% CUF.

CUF

= the actual quantity of energy, in kWh, delivered to DORELCO at the Delivery Point in the Billing Period

= the Contracted Capacity, in kWh, as set forth in Schedule 1 = the total number of hours in such Billing Period

HT = the actual energy delivered, in kWh, to the Buyer at the Delivery Point for the Billing Period. = is the Contracted Capacity in kW. = is the total number of hours in the Billing Period.

= the base Philippine Consumer Price Index for the month of December 2014. PHCPI0 = 140.5.

EHTO

= the sum of the duration, in Equivalent Hours, of Scheduled Outages and Unscheduled Outages in such Billing Period C. 2. Energy Fee and Energy Charge The Energy Fee is the component of the Contract Price allocated to pay for the coal, including Government Charges, designated as the Energy Fee in Schedule 1 of the PSA, as amended as adjusted from time to time due to changes in the

delivered price of coal and Governmental Charges. The Energy Fee shall be computed in accordance with the following formula: Energy Charge = Q ACTUAL x EF EF = 0.2874 x

+ 1.5256 x

+ 0.2375

Where: Q ACTUAL

= Actual energy delivered by GNPOWER to DORELCO, in kWh, for the Billing Period

= Energy Fee in PhP/kWh

PHCPIn-1

= Philippine Consumer Price Index of the calendar month prior to the month corresponding to the Billing Period, for All Income Households – All Items (2006 = 100), as published by the Philippine National Statistics Coordination Board (or as substitute or replacement agency, as the case may be)

PHCPI0

TOTAL

69,781,991.00

ANNEX “I” “J” “K” “K-1” “L” “M” “N” “O” “P” “Q” “R”

= Indonesian Coal Price Index of the calendar month prior to the month corresponding to the Billing Period, in US$/Mton

ICI0

= Base Indonesian Coal Price Index for the month of December 2014 = US$67.28/Mton

“S”

D. Currency of Payment The Contract Price shall be paid by DORELCO in Philippine Peso only.

“T”

Unutilized Equivalent Hours for Scheduled Outages and Unscheduled Outages in the Contract Year cannot be carried forward to subsequent Contract Year. F. Replacement Power During any Scheduled or Unscheduled Outages, GNPOWER and DORELCO shall cooperate to arrange for Replacement Power from, including but not limited to, other facilities of GNPOWER, third parties and the WESM. GNPOWER, at its own cost and in consultation with DORELCO, shall negotiate on behalf of DORELCOfor the supply and delivery of capacity and energy from third parties for a price as close as possible to the Contract Price. G. Prompt Payment Discount Provided DORELCO has no arrears from previous billings, including the Security Deposit or any unpaid charges or penalties, if DORELCO pays the invoice amount in full within 10 days from its receipt of the invoice, DORELCO shall be credited on the next subsequent bill a PPD equivalent to eight centavos per kilowatt-hour (PhP0.08/kWh). H. Security Deposit In the event of DORELCO’s failure to pay on Due Date, GNPOWER shall draw, at its option, from the Security Deposit on the working day immediately following the Due Date. Within thirty (30) Business Days from the Start of Delivery Date, DORELCO shall establish the Security Deposit and submit to GNPOWER documentary proof sufficient to allow GNPOWER to draw therefrom. The Security Deposit shall be in the form of cash and or irrevocable letter of credit and shall be equivalent to DORELCO’s projected maximum electricity bill, to be determined not later than sixty (60) calendar days prior to Start of Delivery. COMMERCIAL ADVANTAGE OF THE GENERATION RATE AND IMPACT ON DORELCO’S RETAIL RATES 16. DORELCO, together with the other Region 8 ECs, needs to address the insufficiency of its power supply due to the increasing demand within its franchise area and the expiration of its contract with NPC-PSALM; 17. Currently, DORELCO receives a total of 5 MW from its existing suppliers, out of its peak requirement of 11.3 MW. With an annual average growth rate of 3.52 %, DORELCO forecasts that its peak demand from 26 December 2015 to 25 December 2016 will be 14 MW; 18. The additional supply from GNPOWER will significantly augment the supply deficiency of DORELCO and will decrease the adverse effects thereof by providing a stable and adequate source of electricity; 19. Among alternative suppliers capable of providing additional energy to DORELCO and the rest of the Region 8 ECs, GNPOWER’s rates proved to be more reasonable and competitive. While GNPOWER’s offer is primarily intended for its base load requirements, the Capacity Factor Pricing under the PSA, as amended, provides flexibility in the DUs’ utilization of the Contracted Capacity; 20. DORELCO simulated a rate impact analysis which resulted in a Php0.6140decrease with the execution of the PSA, as amended, with GNPOWER, to wit:1 Amount (PhP)

Percent Share (%)

GMCP

Forecasted 2016 Average Quantity (kWh) 13,902,850.00

19.92%

Resulting Capacity Factor (%) 79%

2016 Average Rate (P/kWh) 4.95

68,780,179.52

FDCUI

26,280,000.00

156,410,676.00

37.66%

100%

5.95

GNPOWER

34,757,869.60

203,225,787..76

49.81%

79%

5.85

WESM

(5,158,728.60)

(44,783,039.16)

-7.39%

TOTAL

69,781,991.00

383,633,604.12

100% Percent Share (%)

Resulting Capacity Factor (%)

68,780,179.52

19.92%

79%

26,280,000.00

156,410,676.00

37.66%

100%

5.95

0.00

0.00%

0.00

29,599,141.00

201,286,651.43

42.42%

Amount (Php.)

GMCP

13,902,850.00

FDCUI GNPOWER WESM

5.4976

10.98

2016 Average Rate (P/ kWh) 4.95

Forecasted 2016 Quantity (kWh)

Weighted Average Rate (kWh)

6.66

Weighted Average Rate (P/kWh)

6.1116

100%

Generation Rate Impact: -0.6140 (Reduction) 21. In addition to the lower generation cost of the power supply from GNPOWER, DORELCO is also entitled to a Prompt Payment Discount (PPD), if conditions are met, equivalent to PhP0.08/kWh; 22. In compliance with Rule 20 of ERC Rules of Practice and Procedure relative to the submission of supporting documents and information for the approval of the PSA, as amended, and the rate structure embodied therein, Applicants attached to the following documents to form integral parts hereof:

ICI n-1

E. Scheduled and Unscheduled Outages Under the PSA,GNPOWER shall be allowed Scheduled and Unscheduled Outages not to exceed forty-five (45) days per Contract Year, during which time reduced or no delivery will be available to DORELCO.

426,477,506.95

DOCUMENT Executive Summary of the PSA Rate Impact Simulation Sources of Funds/Financial Plans with Cost Assumptions Compact Disc containing a soft copy of Annex “K” Breakdown of the Contract Price Sample Computation of Power Rates GNPOWER’s Audited Financial Statement for 2014 GNPOWER’s Certificate of Registration No. WA-13-01-001 valid until January 2018 DORELCO’s Distribution Development Plan (DDP) DORELCO’s Actual and Forecasted Energy and Demand DORELCO’s Average Daily Load Curve DORELCO’s Secretary’s Certificate attesting to the resolution of its Board of Directors to enter into the subject PSA with GNPOWER, designate signatories thereto, file an application with the ERC for PSA approval, and engage the services of Delos Angeles, Aguirre, Olaguer,Salomon, Fabro& Ojeda Law Offices GNPOWER’s General Partner’s Certificate attesting to the resolution of the Board to execute the subject PSA with DORELCO, as amended, and designating signatories thereto

PA or interim relief prior to final decision pursuant to Rule 14 of the ERC Rules of Practice and Procedure, to wit: “Section 3. Action on the Motion. – Motions for provisional authority or interim relief may be acted upon with or without hearing. The Commission shall act on the motion on the basis of the allegations of the application or petition and supporting documents and other evidences that applicant or petitioner has submitted and the comments or opposition filed by any interested person, if there be any.” 34. Considering substantial amount of time is needed to evaluate the documents submitted to support the approval of herein Application, Applicants seek the kind consideration of the Commission to approve the instant Application, immediately, albeit, provisionally; 35. Owing to the short term of the contract, which is only for a period of one (1) year, a PA is all the more imperative to allow the timely delivery of energy by GNPOWER to DORELCO, which is set to start on 26 December 2015 at 12:00 A.M.; 36. The Region 8 ECs, including DORELCO, after careful evaluation if they will defer the commencement of the delivery due to delayed filing, decided and required GNPower to commence its delivery immediately after its previous power supply agreement expired last 25 December 2015, this being the reasonable plan to mitigate the risks of WESM exposure,specially with the assumption that the 2015 occurrence of El Nino has an adverse impact on the supply of the electricity and the WESM price, particularly during the summer season. DORELCO, Moreover, it was projected, as shown in the table below5, that the exposure to volatile market prices will cause significant increases in prudential guarantee payments which will constrain Region 8 ECs to avail of high interest-bearing loans in order to comply with PEMC requirement;

23. Applicants reserve their right to submit other documents, either in the course of the hearing or as may be required by the Commission. COMPLIANCE WITH PRE-FILING REQUIREMENTS 24. Applicants manifest compliance with the prefiling requirements mandated under the Implementing Rules and Regulations of the EPIRA and Rule 6 of the ERC Rules of Practice and Procedure, to be established by the following: 24.1 Certifications acknowledging receipt of the Application with annexes to be issued by the Legislative Bodies of Pasig City, Municipality of Hilongos [sic], and the Province of Leyte, to be appended as Annexes “V”, “W” and“X”, respectively; 24.2 Notarized Affidavit of Publication stating that the Application was published in a newspaper of general circulation within DORELCO’s Franchise Area, to be appended to the Application as Annex “Y”; and 24.3 Complete newspaper issue where the Application was published, to be appended to the Application as Annex “Y-1”, and the relevant page thereof where the Application appears, as Annex “Y-2”; MOTION FOR CONFIDENTIAL TREATMENT OF ANNEXES“H-2” to “H-8”,“K”, and “K-1” 25. Under Rule 4 of theERC Rules of Practiceand Procedure, a party to any proceeding before the Commission may request that certain information not be disclosed and be treated as confidential, by describing with particularity the information to be treated as confidential, specifying the ground for the claim of confidential treatment of the information and, if applicable, specifying the period during which the information must not be disclosed; 26. DORELCOrequests for the confidential treatment of Annexes “H-2” to “H-8” of the Application, consisting of the MOA among Region 8 ECs, e-mails confirming participation of interested suppliers in the bidding, Final Instructions to Bidders, Bid Forms, Bid Evaluation Slips, Comparison of Bids, and Notice of Award, respectively. These annexes show the individual offers of the bidders which participated in the R8 JCPSP. The Region 8 ECs, DORELCOincluded, are bound by their undertaking to secure and keep in confidence the offers and the proposed terms of supply, so as not to prejudiceor pre-empt any future CSPsin which these bidders will participate.Otherwise, DORELCO and the rest of the Region 8 ECs may be held liable for damages for breach of confidentiality, and eventually, risk their good relations with the suppliers concerned; 27. Similarly, GNPOWER respectfully moves for the confidential treatment of Annexes “K” and “K-1” hereof, consisting of GNPOWER’s Sources of Funds and Financial Plans with Cost Assumptions.These annexes, exclusively owned by GNPOWER, contain information which are considered part of its business and trade secrets. As such, GNPOWER has the sole proprietary interest and will be unduly prejudiced should they be disclosed to the public; 28. These annexes contain numbers, data, formula, methodology, and calculations involving valuable and sensitive commercial, financial information reflecting GNPOWER’s business operations and financial trade secrets. Therefore, GNPOWER’s confidential, proprietary, and private information included in the aforesaid annexes should be protected from public dissemination. Otherwise, such information can be illegally and unfairly utilized by business competitors who may use the same for their own private gain and to the irreparable prejudice of GNPOWER.Negotiations with prospective customers may also be affected. 29. The information contained in Annexes “K” and “K1”, constitute “trade secrets”, for which GNPOWER has actual and valuable proprietary interest. As explained by the Supreme Court, a trade secret may consist of any formula, pattern, device, or compilation of information that is used in one’s business and gives the employer an opportunity to obtain an advantage over competitors who do not possess the information2. It is indubitable that trade secrets constitute proprietary rights and jurisprudence has consistently acknowledged the private character of trade secrets3. Further, as ruled in Garcia vs. Board of Investments4, trade secrets and confidential, commercial and financial information are exempt from public scrutiny; 30. Accordingly, Annexes “H-2” to “H-8”, “K” and “K1” be accorded confi dential treatment. As suc h, they are to be used exclusively by the Commission and for the sole purpose of evaluating this Application, thereby protecting these data from unnecessary public disclosure; 31. In accordance with Section 1(b), Rule 4 of the ERC Rules of Practice and Procedure, Applicants submit one (1) copy each of Annexes “H-2” to “H-8”, “K” and “K-1” in a sealed envelope, with the envelope and each page of the documents stamped with the word “Confidential”. PRAYER FOR PROVISIONAL AUTHORITY 32. All the foregoing allegations are re-pleaded by reference in support of their Prayer for the issuance of Provisional Authority (PA) to implement the subject PSA; 33. DORELCO and GNPOWER pray for the issuance of a

37. The additional power from GNPOWER is needed to curtail any power interruptions that may be experienced by DORELCO’s member-consumers due to inadequate power supply in the region; 38. To further support the Prayer for PA, anaffidavit emphasizing the necessity thereof is attached to the Application as Annex “Z”, and form an integral part hereof; PRAYER 39. Applicant DORELCO and GNPOwer pray before the Commission that: i. All information attached as Annexes “H-2” to “H8”, “K” and “K-1” to the Application be treated as confidential; ii Pending hearing on the merits, a PA be issued authorizing the immediate implementation of the subject PSA, including the rate structure therein, as applied; iii. After due notice and hearing, the instant Application, the PSAand the rate structure contained therein be duly approved; and iv.

In the event that a Final Authority shall be issued after GNPOWER starts actual delivery of power to DORELCO under the terms of the subject PSA, said Final Authority be retroactively applied to the date of such actual delivery. The Commission has set the Application for the hearing, expository presentation, pre-trial conference, and presentation of evidence on 03 August 2016 (Wednesday) at ten o’clock in the morning (10:00A.M.) at DORELCO’s Main Office, National Highway, Brgy. San Roque, Tolosa, Leyte. All persons who have an interest in the subject matter of the proceeding may become a party by filing, at least five (5) days prior to the initial hearing and subject to the requirements in the ERC’s Rules of Practice and Procedure, a verified petition with the Commission giving the docket number and title of the proceeding and stating: (1) the petitioner’s name and address; (2) the nature of petitioner’s interest in the subject matter of the proceeding, and the way and manner in which such interest is affected by the issues involved in the proceeding; and (3) a statement of the relief desired. All other persons who may want their views known to the Commission with respect to the subject matter of the proceeding may file their opposition to the Application or comment thereon at any stage of the proceeding before the Applicants conclude the presentation of its evidence. No particular form of opposition or comment is required, but the document, letter or writing should contain the name and address of such person and a concise statement of the opposition or comment and the grounds relied upon. All such persons who wish to have a copy of the Application may request from the Applicants that they be furnished with the same, prior to the date of the initial hearing. Applicants are hereby directed to furnish all those making such request with copies of the Application and its attachments, subject to the reimbursement of reasonable photocopying costs. Any such person may likewise examine the Application and other pertinent records filed with the Commission during the standard office hours. WITNESS, the Honorable Chairman, JOSE VICENTE B. SALAZAR, and the Honorable Commissioners, ALFREDO J. NON, GLORIA VICTORIA C. YAP-TARUC, JOSEFINA PATRICIA A. MAGPALE-ASIRIT, and GERONIMO D. STA. ANA, Energy Regulatory Commission, this 18th day of May 2016 in Pasig City.

ATTY. TTY. NATHAN J. MARASIGAN Chief of Staff Office ffice of the Chairman and CEO 1

2 3 4 5

Notes: 1. Analysis and simulations is based on DORELCO’s forecasted 2016 hourly load profile 2. GCGI’s contract to DORELCO, 100% Load Factor 3. TRANS-ASIA’s contract to DORELCO, 100% Load Factor 4. FDCUI’s contract to DORELCO, 100% Load Factor 5. GNPOWER’s proposal to DORELCO, with 100%-70% CUF 6. GMCP rate is based on (i) Capacity Fee at Resulting Capacity Factor; (ii) November 14 coal and shipping prices; (iii) AVERAGE FOREX from Jan 2015 - Oct. 2015; (iv) PPD not included 7. WESM Prices is based on 2012 Nodal Points of DORELCO prices of WESM can be change based on standard deviation to much higher or lower Air Philippines Corporation vs. Pennswell Inc., G.R. No. 172835, December 13, 2007. Ibid., 177 SCRA 374 (1989). Additional equivalent rate due to additional Prudential Guarantee required by PEMC (for the undelivered contracted capacity from GNPower) with a conservative loan interest of 6% per annum and baseload load factor of 81%.

( T S - J U N E 3 0 /J U LY 7, 2 016)

T H U R S D AY : J U N E 3 0 , 2 0 1 6

CESAR BARRIOQUINTO EDITOR

editorial@thestandard.com.ph

WORLD

Markets in Asia build on their gains HONG KONG—Asian markets rose again Wednesday on hopes that authorities will unveil fresh stimulus to counter the effects of Britain’s shock vote to leave the European Union. After Friday’s battering, regional investors have this week led a return to global equities and higheryielding currencies. However, analysts warned there would likely be a period of volatility as Britain and its EU partners try to hammer out an exit agreement. Wednesday’s gains built on the previous day’s advance after South Korea unveiled a $17-billion plan to support its already fragile economy and news emerged that Japan was considering a similar move. Before the Tokyo bourse opened, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, Finance Minister Taro Aso and Bank of Japan chief Haruhiko Kuroda held talks on containing the Brexit crisis. Japan’s Nikkei ended 1.6 percent higher and Shanghai gained 0.7 percent by the close. Hong Kong finished up 1.3 percent and Sydney was 0.8 percent higher. Seoul, Singapore, Wellington, Manila, and Jakarta each put on more than one percent. The advances followed sharp gains Tuesday in New York and Europe. In early European trade Wednesday London jumped 1.6 percent and Paris and Frankfurt each added 1.2 percent. And the British pound rose to $1.3390 from $1.3340, after plunging to Monday’s 31-year-low of $1.3121. In a sign that traders have calmed, higher-yielding and riskier currencies mostly rose— Malaysia’s ringgit gained 0.7 percent and the South Korean won was one percent higher, while the Indonesian rupiah and Indian rupee also strengthened. Oil also built on the previous day’s strong gains, with West Texas Intermediate gaining 0.9 percent and Brent 0.7 percent. Stephen Innes, senior trader at OANDA Asia Pacific, said in a note: “The fiscal stimulus rumors saw risk appetite back on cue.” AFP

Carnage. Forensic police work the explosion site at Ataturk airport on June 28, 2016, in Istanbul after two explosions followed by gunfire hit

Turkey’s biggest airport, killing at least 28 people and injuring 20. All flights at the airport were suspended on June 28, 2016, after a suicide attack left at least 10 people dead and 20 others wounded, Turkish television stations reported. AFP

Turkey blames IS as 36 die in Istanbul attacks ISTANBUL—Turkey Wednesday pointed the finger of blame at Islamic State jihadists after a triple suicide bombing and gun attack at Istanbul’s main international airport killed at least 36 people, including foreigners. Witnesses described scenes of terror and panic on Tuesday evening as the attackers opened fire and then blew themselves up at the entrance to the international arrivals terminal at Ataturk airport, one of Europe’s busiest hubs. The assault, at the start of Turkey’s crucial summer tourist season, was the deadliest of four attacks to rock the country’s biggest city this year. There was no immediate claim of responsibility for Tuesday’s car-

nage but Prime Minister Binali Yildirim said “the evidence points to Daesh”, using another name for the jihadist group. Yildirim told reporters at the scene that the dead included foreigners. Justice Minister Bekir Bozdag put the number of wounded at 147. The attack prompted the suspension of all flights at the airport, but operations were resuming on Wednesday with some delays. Turkish President Recep Tayyip

Erdogan called for an international “joint fight” against terror, as Western allies including the United States condemned the “heinous” attack. Yildirim said the three suicide bombers had arrived in a taxi and opened fire on passengers with automatic rifles before blowing themselves up. Security camera footage widely circulated on social media appeared to capture two of the blasts. In one clip a huge ball of flame erupts at an entrance to the terminal building, scattering terrified passengers. Another video shows a blackclad attacker running inside the building before collapsing to the ground—apparently felled by a police bullet—and blowing him-

self up. Tuesday’s attack follows coordinated IS suicide bombings at Brussels airport and a city metro station in March that left 32 people dead. An AFP photographer saw bodies covered with sheets at the terminal, which suffered considerable damage but was being repaired on Wednesday. Bullet holes peppered the windows and shattered glass lay on the floor, while abandoned luggage was scattered everywhere. Hundreds of police and firefighters including forensic officers were at the scene. “Somebody came and shot at us and then my sister ran,” Otfah Mohamed Abdullah told AFP. AFP

Cold kills homeless in Sao Paulo SAO PAULO—Even under three blankets, Marcio Carvalho can’t stop shaking as he seeks shelter on the streets of Brazil’s biggest and richest city, Sao Paulo. The teeming central streets of a city that is home to 20 million people are deserted at night—except for the members of the estimated 16,000 homeless population. And while much of Brazil basks in tropical conditions, a chilly wave in the first days of the southern hemisphere winter has already claimed the lives of six people this month.

Among their few lifelines are volunteers from the aid group Anjos da Noite (Angels of the Night), who distribute food, water and blankets to the hundreds sleeping rough. Carvalho, 41, who moved to Sao Paulo from the northeastern state of Bahia to improve his life, said he has been homeless for three years. “I was working as a plumber but I separated [from his wife] and I couldn’t stay in the house,” he said. “That’s how I ended up here.” “Life on the street is very dif-

ficult and dangerous,” he added. “I’ve been attacked several times. They’ve stolen my things and I’ve been very cold. I’ve had a drinking problem since I got here. To live on the street you have to drink.” Cold is his latest enemy. Temperatures hit a 22-year low in early June to 3.5 degrees Celsius (38 degrees Fahrenheit). Homeless people and local media also accused security officers of stripping street people of their blankets and mattresses, prompting an outcry. AFP

Soiree. Actors Azie Tesfai, Olesya Rulin, Lily Collins, Riley Voelkel and Justice Leak joke at Sony Pictures’ television social soiree featuring Amazon Pilots’ ‘The Last Tycoon’ And ‘The Interestings’ at Sony Pictures Studios on June 28, 2016, in Culver City, California. AFP

T H U R S D AY : J U N E 3 0 , 2 0 1 6

ISAH V. RED EDITOR

BING PAREL

A S S O C I AT E E D I T O R

BERNADETTE LUNAS

isahred @ gmail.com

WRITER

W EL L NES S & EN V IRONMEN T

LIFE

Hurom Slow Juicer can also make a yummy and healthy Banana Milkshake

HOW TO GET MORE JUICE OUT OF JUICING

uicing has become popular in the previous years thanks to its many health benefits. But, like most things, not all juices are created equal, and those that come from slow juicer have certain distinct qualities that we can take advantage of. Add more greens One of the major advantages of having a slow juicer over a blender or a regular juicer is that you can juice practically any vegetable and it won’t taste weird, as opposed to, say, preparing it like a smoothie. Go and combine leafy greens with fruits. For example, you can add spinach or kale to the classic combination of cucumber and apple/pineapple. Other leafy greens commonly used include cabbage, bok choy, arugula and lettuce along with herbs like basil, tarragon, dill, etc. Green juices have detox and cleansing qualities that bring a lot of oxygen into the system, and they are natural energy boosters.

Drink it fresh The best way to drink juice is as soon as it is squeezed. But it is still possible to enjoy it a few hours after it is made. As a rule of thumb, you can still drink your juice within 48 hours. If you can’t keep it in the fridge, store it in a cool, dark corner because oxygen and light will break down the nutrients in it. It is also advised that you drink juice on an empty stomach so that the body absorbs more of the nutrients. Boost it up While just incorporating juice into your diet will improve your health, it is not advised to use juice as meal replacement. But if you add protein to your juice in the form chia seeds, flax seeds and hemp seeds, these not only bulk your juice and add texture, but also make the juice more substantial and filling enough as a snack or quick breakfast. One of the popular slow juicers in the world is Hurom, as the brand is well known for its patented Slow Squeeze Technology

(SST) that is able to extract juice with all their vitamins, minerals and enzymes intact. Hurom juicers also have a control lever that allows users to customize how much of the fruit or vegetable goes into the juice. The second generation of 2016 New Hurom Slow Juicers (The HA-A Series) improved on their patented technology for a richer juice and more nutrition at optimum speed, which means they went even slower (43 rpm from the previous 83 rpm) for maximum extraction. The new series also features a more user friendly design: the body is sleeker with a semi-transparent hopper (feeder) that allows users to check if ingredients are inserted properly. The control lever maximizes juice extraction, and there are fewer blockages in the vent that releases the extruded pulp, making for an easier cleanup. They even have a handle that allows them to be easily moved around. The 2016 New Hurom H-AA Series retails for P19,995 and are available in

trendy colors of Ferrari Red, Black Gold, Black Gray, Ivory, White, and Rose Gold. The new Hurom slow juicers are available in Abenson, Anson Link, Duty Free, Gourdo’s, Rustan’s, Landmark, Metro Gaisano, Royal Duty Free, S&R, SM Appliance, SM Home, True Value, and Western Appliances.

Hurom Slow Juicer HA-A Series in Black Gold

Hurom Slow Juicer HA-A Series in Ferrari Red

Make a delicious blend of juice made of grapes, bell pepper, soy beans and cranberry for a nutritious snack or quick breakfast

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INTERNATIONAL AWARDS IN HEALTH AND FITNESS FOR FINIX

or the second consecutive year, The Finix Corporation bagged the Best in Marketing award during the Precor APAC Dealers Training held on June 7 and 8 at Merlin Beach Resort in Phuket, Thailand. The company received the same distinction last year from Precor AsiaPacific in Los Angeles, USA. The award was given in recognition of its consistent efforts in espousing health and fitness in the market and the important role Precor equipment play in creating a personalized health and fitness experience among consumers. Precor is a leading manufacturer of gym equipment and recognized in the industry for driving fitness with a passionate focus on ergonomic motion, proven science, and superior engineering. Through the years, the company has helped people achieve their fitness goals and live the life they desire through groundbreaking innovations that deliver the best exercise experiences. Among its products are the New Generation treadmill, elliptical crosstrainer and the adaptive motion trainer or the AMT.

Finix Corporation General Managaer Juanchit Jose

Finix General Manager Juanchit Jose received the award from Guy Williams, director of Global Networked Fitness Sales, Precor USA; Caroline Risby, director of Marketing Precor Asia Pacific; and Humphrey Leung, director of Business Development, Precor Asia Pacific, during

the event attended by other dealers from Hong Kong, Laos, India, Taiwan, Vietnam, Singapore, Malaysia, Sri Lanka and Myanmar as well as Precor APAC sales directors. Tua and Pu Losiriwat of The Fitness Experts, Precor Dealer of Thailand, did a wonderful job in organizing the whole event. They made sure all attendees were given the best service throughout the event. “This award is an affirmation of the trust and confidence given to us by our clients over the years as well as the support of Precor since the very beginning. The people behind The Finix Corp. and the teamwork we have also played a huge part in our success. With this award, we are motivated to work harder to deliver better performance and exceed the expectation of our clients and partners,” Jose said. In addition to the Best in Marketing award, Finix also received the Top Growth Award, given to dealers with the highest percentage increase in sales from the previous year. The award reinforces its position as an industry leader when it comes to providing the latest and top-of-the-line exercise machines in the local market. The other winners at the 2016 Precor Asia-Pacific Dealers Training were: Best

Over-Achievement- Gymco, Taiwan; Best Service – Attivo, Vietnam and Best Win – United LifeStyle, Singapore for the Fairmont Singapore. The Finix Corp. has been supplying fitness equipment to hotels, condominiums, membership gyms, golf clubs and resorts for almost 20 years. It has since grown into a one-stop shop for a range of fitness solutions that include peripheral services such as installation, preventive maintenance and equipment repair in addition to equipment sales. It also offers consultancy services to commercial establishments ranging from feasibility studies, sales and marketing plans, financial and leasing plans all the way to staffing and operations management. To know more about The Finix Corporation, visit its showrooms at 420 Francisco Legaspi St., Maybunga, Pasig City; 2nd Floor Serendra, Fort Bonifacio Global City; and 12 Adolfo C. Fick Building, Hernan Cortes St. corner S. Cabahug St., Ayala Access Rd., Mandaue City, Cebu. Or call (02)9151698 to 99, (02)552-1588 and (032)236-5473. Also check out www.finixcorp.com and www.facebook.com/finixcorp.

Child Haus Manila continues care with stars and celebrities

Given their stature and despite their fame and busy schedules, some benevolent celebrities like to pay it forward by helping others especially those in need. One charitable institution that has been a favorite for some of them is Child Haus Manila. Child Haus, Ricky Reyes’ ‘baby’, is on its 13th year and continues to house and support cancer patients while undergoing treatment in various government hospitals. Child Haus Manila runs along the principles of hospice care and promotes the concept of holistic healing through its various programs, services and activities. It can accommodate up to 100 residents with free board and lodging. Aside from its rooms for lodging, Child Haus boasts of facilities that make every individual’s stay – patient and parent/guardian alike, a truly significant one. This 380-square meter, seven-story establishment has two dormitories for children and nine for adults. It is the only home of its kind in the country with a playground, play and learn room, an entertainment area, a social hall, library, dispensary, milk feeding, dining area, laundry room, isolation rooms for delicate patients, a viewing deck and a garden.

Kindhearted and generous celebrities offer their share of assistance for various activities and services inside the house. Karylle drops by early in the morning with her dog to play with the kids. She leaves the dog with the kids then proceeds to the studio to do a show. She returns after to pick up her dog. Her mother, Zsa Zsa Padilla, is very supportive of her daughter’s advocacy. Stars who extend support for Child Haus include Dingdong Dantes and Marian Rivera who celebrated her birthday there, Vic Sotto and Pauleen Luna, Ann Curtis, Julia Montes, Daniel Padilla and mom Karla Estrada, golden stars Gloria Romero and Alicia Alonso, boy band 1:43 who dubbed Childhaus the movie theme song, Ejay Falcon and Johan Santos of PBB, Ogie Diaz, Luis Manzano, reigning beauty queens and a host of other good hearted celebrities who are too many to mention. Child Haus was built and developed by Hans Sy as a testament of his love and salute to his father, SM patriarch Henry Sy, Sr. Apart from the generosity of Hans’ family, active partners and personalities in this heart-warming endeavor continue to shower and share whatever they can to uplift the lives of the patients in Child Haus.

Hans Sy (fifth from left) and Child Haus founder Ricky Reyes (sixth from left) with Daniel Padilla, Child Haus Director Dr. Rachael Rosario, Zsa Zsa Padilla, Carol Sy and GMA7's Gigi Lara-Santiago

SM Prime Holdings President Hans Sy with the kids

Institutions such as government hospitals and charitable foundations and organizations maintain its stream of referrals of qualified patients not just here in Manila but in the provinces as well.

Mother Ricky with Yael Yuzon and Karylle

Child Haus (Center for Health Improvement & Life Development) is located on Agoncillo St. in Paco, Manila. For more information call 9064395 and 9064295. Visit www.childhaus.ph

T H U R S D AY : J U N E 3 0 , 2 0 1 6

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H E A LT H B R I E F S BREAKTHROUGH TREATMENT POSSIBLE AGAINST LUNG CANCER

Celebrity advocates and solar champions (from left) Jun Sabayton, Saab Magalona, Illac Diaz and Jasmine Curtis encourage Filipinos to switch to renewable energy sources

GREENPEACE DEBUNKS SOLAR ENERGY MYTHS BY BERNADETTE ANDREA CATALAN

ndependent global organization Greenpeace sets the record straight on the efficiency, affordability and reliability of solar energy in a bid to encourage more people to switch to renewable energy sources. Through the Solar Rooftop Challenge, an information campaign that highlights the potentials of producing solar power, the environment-focused organization held lectures and discussions by book author and Center for Renewable Electricity Strategies (CREST) Executive Director Roberto Verzola and Sustainable Energy and Enterprise Development for Communities Executive Director Dann Diez. Solar energy is a renewable energy that uses the heat of the sun to produce direct current through solar panels and is converted by the PV (Photovoltaic) Inverter for efficient use. The PV Inverter maximizes the power that can be extracted from the panel as it can be sometimes inconsistent because it depends on the light the sun gives off. It also prioritizes solar panel output so that it can be more utilized efficiently. “This is actually the cheapest source of electricity today,” asserted Verzola. Solar energy, once installed, is stand alone producer of energy that does not require electricity. It eliminates generation charge, transmission charge, distribution

Roberto Verzola

Dann Diez

charge, supply charge, metering charge, system loss charge and universal charge. Since all you need to pay is the amortization of solar panel, the CREST official said it is the “Only renewable device that is accessible to the poor.” “The future is very bright. There’s still a lot of room for improvement and price reduction,” added Verzola. Currently, solar panel efficiency for

products in the market has reached 20 percent, while solar panel products in the state of research and production have already reached 40 percent. “We want to be part of the action,” emphasized Verzola. By using renewable energy like solar power, energy consumers become the producer of their own electricity. For this matter, they become proactive members of the greening of the planet. “For all the Filipinos out there, please support solar energy. It’s healthy, not only for you but for our entire country,” Jasmine Curtis, one of the solar champions, encouraged. In his talk, Diez meanwhile shared his experience with Project Enkindle. Project Enkindle demonstrates a collaborative approach, providing access to clean and renewable energy to island-based and mountain communities. “It is a stewardship. We go to the community, we lend it (materials) to them. Graduates of solar training installed their own solar rooftop in three days,” explained Diez. At present, Project Enkindle has benefited over 150 communities including the Manobo Tribe in Mindanao. PHOTOS BY AC BRIZUELA

Trusted and safe for skin care

For decades, YSA has been a trusted beauty brand, with only the safest ingredients going into the creation and manufacture of its best-selling products. “All YSA and GlutaMAX products are free from parabens and are all approved by the Bureau of Food and Drugs (BFAD),” says YSA Skin Care Corporation Operations Director Sheila Nazal. Parabens are said to be endocrine disrupting chemicals associated with breast cancer, tumors of the uterus, abnormal development of the testes, infertility, and other reproductive health problems. But Nazal explains that the U.S. Food

and Drug Administration and the World Health Organization consider the chemicals safe at low levels and there’s no scientific evidence to support any link with any form of cancer. Since the 1950s, parabens have been widely used in products to prevent bacterial growth. A whooping 85 percent of cosmetics have parabens because they are proven effective and are inexpensive. “Our celebrity endorsers trust YSA and promote our product line. And our clientele continues to grow, proving that consumers trust our brand. YSA will continue making beauty products that are safe and healthy,” ends Nazal.

YSA Skin Care Corporation Operations Director Sheila Nazal (right) with the clinic's brand ambassador Dianne Medina

A recent study comparing the immunotherapy drug pembrolizumab to chemotherapy could alter more than 30 years of practice in lung cancer treatment. The clinical trial, known as Keynote-024 (KN-024), showed pembrolizumab’s superiority in preventing cancer progression and prolonging the lives of previously untreated patients with nonsmall cell lung cancer (NSCLC). “We believe that the KEYNOTE-024 results have the potential to change the therapeutic paradigm in firstline treatment of non-small cell lung cancer,” said Dr. Roger M. Perlmutter, president of MSD Research Laboratories. “We look forward to sharing these data with the medical community and with regulatory authorities around the world.” Pembrolizumab boosts the immune system’s antitumor activity by preventing cancer cells from interacting with the immune system’s T-cells. During interaction, tumor cells produce a protein called the Programmed DeathLigand 1 (PD-L1), which deactivates T-cells. Blocking this enables T-cells to remain capable of detecting and destroying cancer in the body. The Philippine Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved pembrolizumab for the treatment of advanced melanoma and PD-L1positive lung cancer that failed previous therapies. Immuno-oncology leader MSD introduced this breakthrough anticancer drug in the Philippines in March. ***** 60% OF PATIENTS WITH HEART DISEASE FAIL TO COMPLY WITH THEIR MEDICATION For patients with cardiovascular disorders, adherence to medication goes a long way in ensuring that their health is in its tiptop condition. However, 60 percent of these patients are not complying with the medication as prescribed by their doctors, according to a study. Published in the American Heart Association, the study revealed that non adherence to medication remains to be a major problem for cardiovascular patients, often leading to poor clinical outcomes, frequent hospitalizations, and increased mortality. To prevent the worst consequences of heart disease, expert says that religious compliance to medication should be a top priority—starting from curbing the risk factors associated with the disorder. “One of the risk factors for developing heart disease is having high blood cholesterol levels, which increases the risk of formation of plaques and atherosclerosis,” said Dr. Amado Nazal, medical director of Pharex HealthCorp. “If our patients will comply with their medication from the moment their doctors instructed them to lower their cholesterol levels, then we will be able to keep their condition from worsening.” Pharex HealthCorp., the most prescribed brand of medicines, offers quality maintenance medicines that are designed to help curb high cholesterol levels at an affordable price. With Pharex’s 15-day Compliance Pouch for Cholesterol, patients will be able to comply with their medication to prevent tendencies of having chronic cardiovascular diseases. The new Pharex Compliance Pouch is available in all leading drugstores. For more information, please contact 4338088 (local 820).

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From 'the queen of spices' to 'the anti-cancer herb'? According to a study by B.L. Kapoor Memorial Hospital, turmeric has a strong potential to be effective in the treatment of various types of cancers due to its range of antibiotic and anticarcinogenic properties

STUDY SAYS TURMERIC KEY TO TREATING VARIOUS TYPES OF CANCER

eppery, warm and bitter flavor Turmeric comes from the root of the Curcuma longa plant and has a tough brown skin and a deep orange flesh. It has long been used as a powerful anti-inflammatory in both the Chinese and Indian medicine. It helps in a wide variety of conditions, including flatulence, jaundice, menstrual difficulties, bloody urine, hemorrhage, toothache, bruises, chest pain, and colic. Journal of the American Chemical Society mentions that turmeric contains a wide range of antioxidant, antiviral, antibacterial, antifungal, anticarcinogenic, antimutagenic and anti-inflammatory properties. Curcuma longa, also known as turmeric, is effective in the treatment of various types of cancer, including breast and ovarian cancer, which has risen 30 percent among women in the last one decade, says a study conducted by B.L. Kapoor Memorial Hospital. Turmeric has nearly 20 molecules with antibiotic property, 14 molecules with cancer preventive potential, 12 with antitumor effect, says the study. “At least 12 molecules in it have anti-cancer effect while 10 of them have antioxidant features. Overall, turmeric is known for its antibiotic, antiseptic, anti-cancer and antioxidant property. It is known to be a good digestive substance,” said the study. According to the study, turmeric contains curcuminoids, which are the main component found to be effective in cancer treatment. “Curcumin, the principal

Turmeric comes from the Curcuma longa plant that has tough brown skin and deep orange flesh

curcuminoid of turmeric, has been intensely studied as a cancer protective agent. Its potential has been tapped in head and neck cancers, breast, lung, gastro-intestinal cancer, ovarian cancer, melanoma, neurological cancers, sarcoma, leukemias and lymphoma,” said the study. Tapaswini Sharma, senior consultant (Surgical Oncology) at B.L. Kapoor Memorial Hospital, said, “Curcumin suppresses all three stages of carcinogenesis: initiation, promotion and progression. It

also has a role in neutralizing substances and conditions which lead to cancer.” “By inhibiting the enzyme Topoisomerases, which is required for multiplication of cancer cells, it is able to arrest the growth of these cells,” said Sharma. With time, cancers cells tend to become resistant to chemotherapy and radiotherapy, Sharma observed. Curcumin, on the other hand, when consumed in therapeutic doses, targets several cancer pathways and sensitizes

the cancer cells to chemotherapy drugs by increasing the pace of death of the cancer cells, she said. “Studies in advanced breast cancer have also shown that curcumin increases the effect of chemotherapy and prevents the spread of cancer cells to the lung,” she said. “In lung carcinoma, when curcumin is added to the chemotherapeutic drug, it increases the effectiveness of the drug by promoting cell death of cancer cells. The efficacy of it has also been seen in the brain tumors where it sensitises the tumor cells to the cancer drugs,” said Sharma. The study shows curcumin enhanced the effect of radiotherapy by inhibiting tumor regrowth per se, and also by suppressing new vessel formation. Being a powerful antioxidant it scavenges all the harmful free radicals induced by radiation exposure of the cells, thereby reducing the side effects of radiotherapy. According to Delhi-based Nutritionist Anshul Jaibharat, “To be brief, turmeric can termed as an Indian wonder spice. It’s anti-inflammatory and hence helps in people suffering from arthritis. It works as an antiseptic and is warm in nature so it’s good for people having cold and cough during changes in weather. The raw form when grinded has the best nutritional value even more than the processed and packaged one. The compound curcumin in turmeric has shown numerous benefits to human body as per both Ayurveda and Modern science.” – from NDTV

PMAP participates in Global Wellness Day People Management Association of the Philippines (PMAP) recently participated in this year’s Global Wellness Day, which aims to promote the importance of having a healthy lifestyle among Filipinos. PMAP is a professional, non-profit organization of over 1,800 member companies and individual management executives engaged in Human Resource Management (HRM) and Industrial Relations (IR) work. Healthway Medical, the most trusted and preferred network of mall-based clinics in the country, is a proud member of the organization. During the event held at the FTX Fitness Exchange in Makati City, Carmie De Leon—wellness sub-committee chairman for PMAP and vice president for sales and marketing of Healthway Medical—talked about the value of the SEED Lifestyle (Sleep, Eat right, Exercise, De-stress) in ensuring a healthy workforce among the members of the Filipino professionals. De Leon emphasized that exerting one’s effort to be successful in his or her career need not come at the expense of their health. This is where the company’s SEED program comes in—with many Filipinos currently working to bring home the bacon, “it is more important to ensure health and wellness at all times,” De Leon said.

People Management Association of the Philippines Fellowship, Engagement, and Wellness Committee Chairman Conrad Perreras (standing, second from left), Trustee-in-charge Vilma Valera (standing, third from left), and Healthway Medical Vice President for Sales and Marketing Carmie de Leon (seated, left) join forces to promote a healthy lifestyle and wellness among Filipinos

“With many Filipinos doing their best to give their families a better life, we are more than inspired to create new

programs and cascade our long-standing campaign to improve the country’s healthcare,” De Leon said. “Which is

why every aspect of our SEED campaign is important—it is the most basic requirement that each and every Filipino needs to bear in mind to ensure that their health stays in its tiptop condition.” More than 80 attendees participated in the celebration of the Global Wellness Day, which include one-hour yoga class and talks by Vikki Aquino, the Global Wellness Day ambassadress; Mae Paner a.k.a. Juana Change; and Joseph Velasco and Reijo del Prado, Mr. Philippines in 1998 and 2008, respectively. PMAP also celebrated the National Wellness Day on June 27 at the Alabang Town Center, with more speakers and wellness activities on-hand. Participating Filipinos were entitled to be part of the raffle promo, which offered prestigious items to lucky winners. De Leon concluded, “At Healthway Medical, we are always dedicated at promoting our long-standing advocacy of promoting a healthy lifestyle among Filipinos. Our partnership with PMAP allowed us to maximize our advocacies by reaching more Filipinos in the working group. By doing so, we can help communities transition to a healthier lifestyle without taking a toll on their health.”

T H U R S D AY : J U N E 3 0 , 2 0 1 6

SHOWBITZ

ISAH V. RED EDITOR

isahred @ gmail.com

Scenes from the Cinemalaya Best Feature films “Tribu” (left) by Jim Libiran and “Halaw” helmed by Sheron Dayoc

A LOOK BACK AT CINEMALAYA’S BEST

rom training the spotlight on independently produced films to supporting budding filmmakers, Cinemalaya has expanded its mission to training practitioners in key aspects of film production and serving as an inspiration to independent filmmaking in Asia through the Cinemalaya Institute. The institution offers short courses in Film Producing, Screenwriting and Directing. Indeed, the annual indie film event is no longer a 10-day festival but has grown into a year-long activity for people with a mission to tell unconventional stories and highlight what Filipino talents can do when given the opportunity to explore the subjects mainstream cinema would not dare to tackle. Now on its 12th year, the theme of this year’s Cinemalaya film festival is “Break

BY ANNE RENEE SUAREZ the Surface.” The festival will commence on Aug. 5 and will run until Aug 14. Since its inception in 2005, Cinemalaya has supported and promoted the production of 118 independent feature films and 96 short films. Many of these films have won awards in local and international competitions and festivals. Five out of the 10 full-length features that won Best films in Cinemalaya’s 11-year-history have garnered awards from all around the globe. Tribu (2007) won Pari de l’Avenir (Bet for Future Award) at the Festival Paris Cinema. The film features real-life gang members involved in street-gang activities as they roam Tondo, Manila. Francis Xavier Pasion’s Jay (2008) won the Audience Choice Award at the 6th Black Movie Film Festival, Special recogni-

Baron Geisler in the multi-awarded 2008 Cinemalaya Best Film, “Jay”

tion award at the 6th Festival Internacional de Cine Contemporaneo de la Ciudad de Mexico, Audience Award in the Black Movie Film Festival in Geneva, Switzerland, and D-Cinema Award in Barcelona Asian Film Festival in 2009. Chronicling the story of Filipinos who crossed the seas to enter Malaysia illegally by boat in hopes to find work, Halaw (2010) by Sheron Dayoc won the top prize at the New York’s Hell’s Kitchen Film Festival, and APSA NETPAC Development Prize. Starring the award-winning actress Eugene Domingo, Ang Babae sa Septic Tank (2011) brought home the NETPAC Development Prize at the Asia Pacific Screen Awards in 2012 for its “spirited parody of Philippine cinema and its image of itself as reflected in international film festivals…and what independent film can

Francis Xavier Pasion’s “Bwaya” won Best Film in the film event’s 10th edition

do with courage and a sense of humor.” Bwaya, helmed by Francis Xavier Pasion, won Tokyo FILMeX’s Grand Prize in 2014 for its “sincere humanity and the vivid expressiveness of the cast.” A few other Cinemalaya films have brought home numerous awards from international film festivals and although not profit-driven, these films have definitely elevated Filipino filmmaking and have put the country on the world cinema map once again. The Cinemalaya Philippine Independent Film Festival has come out with an updated lineup of the full-length feature films included in the main competition this year. With the forthcoming indie film event comes indie film aficionados who are just itching to place their bets on which films will make another mark on local and international scenes.

Eugene Domingo in a scene from Marlon Rivera’s “ Ang Babae Sa Septic Tank”

‘Fixer Upper’ on HGTV The first rule of real estate is location, location, location, but what happens when a buyer’s only option in the right location is a house with dreadful design and a clunky layout? Texas design and remodeling pros Chip and Joanna Gaines help homebuyers look past the superficial, convincing them to buy it, then fix it! The lovable duo takes the wrong house in the right neighborhood, and then design, construct and transform the diamond in the rough into the home of their client’s dreams. Now in its third season, Chip and Joanna will be embarking on extraordinary projects – like the new headquarters at Magnolia Silos and restoration of a 19th century Victorian house to create a bed and breakfast. No episode of Fixer Upper is complete without taking a dark, cramped bathroom and turning it into a bright, beautiful spalike retreat or an epic kitchen renovation. In one episode, watch as Chip and Joanna help Cody and Katie Messerall in their search for a home in their alma mater town of Waco, Texas with a total budget of $185,000.

Texas design and remodeling professionals Chip and Joana Gaines

As a couple raising a young family, they are hoping to find a house with three to four bedrooms and a large backyard for the kids. They first meet Chip and Joanna at The Chicken House. True to its name, the house has chickens in the backyard. The second house they visit is The Outhouse,

A sample work of the couple featured on “Fixer Upper”

named for the toilet that stands ready to greet them on the front porch. Last they visit The Wizard of Waco house, likely one of the oddest houses in all of Waco. Find out which house the couple eventually pick and witness the magical renovation done by Chip and Joanna that turns the derelict

house into a home for Cody and Katie. Grab some ideas from their best designs in this new season of Fixer Upper. Tune into HGTV via SkyCable TV Channel 246 HD/88 SD every Sunday at 9-10pm for back-to-back episodes of Fixer Upper, Season 3.

T H U R S D AY : J U N E 3 0 , 2 0 1 6

SHOWBITZ

ISAH V. RED EDITOR

isahred @ gmail.com

THE CHANGING LANDSCAPE OF PHILIPPINE ENTERTAINMENT

he country’s no. 1 mobile brand, Globe Telecom is changing the landscape of Philippine entertainment with the creation of Globe Studios and Globe Live designed to produce original shows, live events, and engaging world-class content that are fit for today’s discerning customers. At the same time, Globe reveals the line-up of its new international content partners and improved broadband plans for a complete and immersive entertainment lifestyle. Nowadays, dramas and movies are no longer confined to television and cinema as they can already be shared through social media via mobile phones. Globe Studios recognizes this and, thus, brings the next generation of entertainment to mobile with original video productions from top film directors such as Erik Matti, Paul Soriano, Quark Henares, Dan Villegas, Sigrid Bernardo, Joyce Bernal, and Lav Diaz. Globe Studios is backed by local and Asian media houses such as Viva Films, Reality Entertainment, Quantum Films, Spring Films and Astro of Malaysia. “Consumption of mobile entertainment has grown exponentially over the past years. Today, customers no longer wait for their favorite shows on their TV screens. Instead, they dictate what they want to watch when and where they want to. With Globe Studios, we will now produce our own clips, series and even movies. Backed up with the biggest director partners and entertainment companies in the industry, we are set to show what customers want today,” said Albert de Larrazabal, Globe chief commercial officer. On the other hand, due to the rising clamor towards personalization, another challenge is how to deliver the most engaging and creative events that will satisfy customers. Globe Live responds to this demand by leveraging on Globe Telecom’s wide experience in the live events industry to elevate production

Globe Executives unveils Globe Live’s “Next Attraction”

Globe Executives with new content partners Sports Illustrated, Netflix and Turner

quality and at the same time, tap the wide distribution coverage of Globe to promote and assemble events that are of international size and quality. “The caliber of events will forever change with Globe Live. We can now produce shows and events that are world-class, unique to customers and more accessible. Our years of experience in the industry added with our edge as a telco company will bring perfect partnerships to bring wonderful events to our customers,” said Joe Caliro, head of Globe Live and Globe Retail and Transformation Management. Globe Live’s first foray in the theatrical scene is the staging of Green Day’s American Idiot, a Philippine production of the hit Broadway musical. Produced together with 9 Works Theatrical, American Idiot it is at the new Globe Iconic Store in Bonifacio High Street Amphitheater in Bonifacio Global City, Taguig. It features two massive Times Square-like LED walls in a unique outdoor setup to accommodate thousands of people. American Idiot is composed of a star-studded talent roster headlined by Basti Artadi of Wolfgang, Miggy Chavez of Chicosci, former Rivermaya vocalists Jason Fernandez and Norby David, and veteran thespian Nel Gomez. The show is set to run until July 10.

where, the Disney Channels Apps will provide hours of fun in a safe and kid-friendly digital environment that will immerse viewers in Disney’s magical world of storytelling and characters. The world of sports is also enhanced with the Sports Illustrated App, featuring the latest in-depth exclusive news coverage, and live American sports programming of basketball, the NFL, NHL, ESports and much more. Additional content from SI sites FanSided and SI Kids targets millennials and younger mobile demographics. As one of the most established and respected sports media brands in the world, Sports Illustrated TV channels reach an estimated 29 million homes across 12 Asian markets. Soon, Malaysian media powerhouse Astro will also give Filipino gaming fans access to eGG Network or Every Good Game, Southeast Asia’s first dedicated 24/7 eSports network. E-Sports fans will be able to watch tournaments like League of Legends, Dota 2, Counter Strike: Global Offensive, and many more via Globe. Globe and Astro are working on more exciting surprises to give gaming fans a wonderful experience. Dialing up the fun for Globe customers is Cartoon Network, this year’s current no. 5 channel across all genres in the Philippines. Apps

CROSSWORD PUZZLE

ANSWER PREVIOUS PUZZLE

ACROSS 1 Short outing 6 Long drink 10 Ocean color 14 Ice hut 15 — colada 16 Undersized 17 Explorers’ finds 18 Like most radios 19 Organ part 20 Like some novels 22 Army ranks

24 Sitter’s handful 26 Not digital 27 Pseudopod possessors 31 Bracket type 32 Gaucho’s rope 33 Divert 36 Hangar occupant 39 Realty unit 40 Big families 41 Fountain treat 42 — -relief

43 Shocked reactions 44 Port in a storm 45 Kind of quiz 46 Blowing away 48 Shies or flinches 51 Kinfolk (abbr.) 52 More muddy 54 Saw 59 Backing 60 Kind of molding 62 Inner motivation 63 Notion 64 Apprehends a suspect 65 Kate’s sitcom friend 66 Clutter 67 Bang down 68 Bellows DOWN 1 Dump a lover 2 Seaweed derivative 3 Arm bone 4 Looks sleepy 5 Sony rival 6 Hot tub 7 Cream puff, slangily 8 Prefix with red 9 Rancid smell 10 Dismay 11 Ecuador’s capital 12 Dismantle a tent 13 Nay opposites

New Content Partners On top of original productions, Globe continues to tie up with international entertainment companies to add to its existing content providers such as Spotify, HOOQ and NBA. Globe is proud to announce that it is the first mobile and broadband Philippine partner of the foremost video streaming service Netflix which boasts of over 81 million members in over 190 countries who are enjoying more than 125 million hours of TV shows and movies per day, including original series, documentaries and feature films. Members can watch as much as they want, anytime, anywhere, on nearly any internet-connected screen. Netflix will be available to Globe customers via their mobile or broadband service. With the recent launch of Disney Mobile, Disney and Globe complete the entertainment experience with the launch of the Disney Channel Apps - Disney Channel, Disney XD, and Disney Junior. The no. 1 TV network for kids and families in the Philippines is now available for as a video streaming service with more than 100 video-on-demand (VOD) full episodes and live streaming of Disney Channels. Designed specifically for kids to watch their favorite Disney entertainment anytime and any-

THURSDAY, JUNE 30, 2016

21 Vocalist — Sumac 23 Goodbye, to Gaius 25 Chimes 27 Haik wearer 28 Flaky mineral 29 Skiff movers 30 Monsieur’s summer 34 Atlas page 35 Bobby of Indy 36 Rock’s Bon — 37 Barbara or Anthony 38 Zingy taste 40 Cartoons have them 41 Dejected 43 Trail mix 44 Time off 45 Argentine prairie 47 Race an engine 48 Garbo, for one 49 Legends 50 George of “Look Who’s Talking” 52 Wedge 53 “Fancy” singer 55 Gardner of mystery 56 Volition 57 Sinister 58 Poor grades 61 Clairvoyance

created by the Turner-owned brand will soon be available including an upgraded and authenticated version of Cartoon Network Watch and Play and Cartoon Network Anything. They both host a stack of engaging content from well-loved cartoons such as Adventure Time, The Amazing World of Gumball, Ben 10, The Powerpuff Girls, and We Bare Bears. For the first time, a live stream of the channel will be exclusively available to a non-TV audience. The apps also offer a selection of awesome video clips and interactive games and activities to keep the whole family entertained. Moreover, the popular singing app Sing! by Smule, brings the love of Pinoys for Karaoke with more than 500,000 songs to choose from. It also allows users to record a video duet with their favorite artists like Jessie J,and Jason Derulo and share it to a global audience. “Our new roster of content partners will bring out the best of Philippine digital lifestyle. We are providing world-class entertainment apps right at their fingertips to enjoy anytime and anywhere. This will change once again how Filipinos will be entertained using their mobile and @ Home broadband devices,” said Dan Horan, Globe Senior Advisor for Consumer Business. Continued on C7

T H U R S D AY : J U N E 3 0 , 2 0 1 6

SHOWBITZ

ISAH V. RED EDITOR

isahred @ gmail.com

NORA AUNOR’S YOUNGER BROTHER, BUBOY VILLAMAYOR, DIES Superstar Nora Aunor’s world crumbled last Sunday. Her youngest brother, Eddie Villamayor, whom she fondly called Buboy, had passed on. Buboy had been confined in a hospital after suffering from stroke in July 2015. Eddie Villamayor was a teen star in the ‘70s and was seen in the films Alkitrang Dugo and Minsa’y Isang Gamu-gamo. He was linked to another teen

star then, Winnie Santos, sister of popular actress Vilma Santos. But many fans did not approve of the budding relationship as the rivalry between the two sisters –Nora and Vilma – was very intense then. In the latter years, nothing was heard about Buboy, although, for the most part when he was alive, he stayed with Nora Aunor until the latter left for the US in the late 90s.

Recalling the time The Standard spoke to the superstar, she said that she was a bit disappointed that none of her children (adoptive) had paid Buboy a visit in the hospital since his confinement. Details of Eddie Villamayor’s death are still sketchy as the superstar has yet to issue an official statement. Eddie Boy Villamayor was a teen star in the 70s

Loisa-Jerome teamup Warner TV hits new enchants viewers nationwide highs in the Philippines Kapamilya stars Loisa Andalio and Jerome Ponce instantly captivated the hearts of viewers as the premiere of Wansapantaym Presents: Candy’s Crush won the ratings game last Sunday. Viewers all over the country witnessed how the love story of Candy and Paolo unfolded, with the values-laden series leading the weekend programming and hitting a national TV rating of 31.2 percent, compared to its rival show Ismol Family that only got 17.3 percent, according to data of Kantar Media. And as the story continues, Candy’s (Loisa Andalio) infatuation turned into hatred as Paolo (Jerome Ponce) threw harsh words at her after he thought she was spreading gossip that they were in a relationship. To get even with his longtime crush, Candy will use the love spell book that an old woman gave her and concoct a potion that would make him do everything she wants. However, Candy’s plans will be ruined as the effects of the potion get mixed up, and Paolo will fall for Amanda

Teen stars Jerome Ponce and Loisa Andalio

(Amy Nobleza) instead of Candy. How will they be able to remove the spell on Paolo? Don’t miss the life lessons shared in Wansapanataym Presents: Can-

From C6

The changing landscape ¼ Globe Broadband

Further to Globe’s commitment to provide ultra-fast Internet in two million households over 20,000 barangays in 2020, it is transforming the way Broadband is enjoyed in the Filipino home. More than just delivering connectivity, it is giving customers more compelling reasons to enjoy Internet at home. Globe Broadband now brings customizable plans where families can create their own packages to bring Wonderful into their homes: a) POWER-UP with internet speeds and data allowance options; b) ENJOY their internet through exclusive devices and access to the world’s greatest movies, TV shows, concerts, games & songs; c) and EXTEND the fun with boosters that further improve the overall experience in the home. “We also came up with pre-bundled packages which we believe will be popular to many customers, and they can mix and match from there. This makes the selection process not only easy, but enjoyable for the Filipino family. With our new plans, our customers will be in full control, much better than any offering in the market today,” said

Martha Sazon, Globe senior vice president for Broadband Business. Globe Broadband has also collaborated with leading technology and device partners to complete the package: Samsung and TCL for smart HD TVs; Bose (speakers) and Harman Kardon (headphones); Google Chromecast (streaming device) and Sony Playstation (gaming console); and Airties (WiFi mesh), Belkin and Giraffe (security cameras). All these, for an affordable additional fee on top of the monthly bill, over 24 months. Sazon adds, “In Globe, we don’t just sell plans, but deliver a complete experience. We want to help families discover more wonders in their homes by being able to WATCH exclusive movies, TV shows and enjoy concert-like experiences; LISTEN to millions of songs and PLAY games for endless hours, as they want. That’s why we only partner with the world’s best in content – Disney, Spotify, NBA and now, Netflix. I am excited that Globe Broadband is now poised to transform the market landscape with this great value proposition. Change is definitely on its way.” With all these, Globe welcomes the Filipino family to come Home to Wonderful.

dy’s Crush on ABS-CBN or on ABSCBN HD (Sky Cable ch 167). Catch up on iWanTV.com or on skyondemand.com.ph for Sky subscribers.

Warner TV has become the new No.1 international English general-entertainment channel in the Philippines, according to the latest Kantar data. The ratings successes come as the channel has doubled-down on its content investment by adding a string of original series from Turner’s own studios in the US, supplementing its existing line-up from Warner Bros. New shows scheduled this year include TNT’s The Last Ship (S3), Rizzoli & Isles (S7) and Murder in the First (S3), TBS’ Angie Tribeca (S2), truTV’s Billy on the Street, Those Who Can’t and Adam Ruins Everything, and Robot Chicken, Eagleheart and NTSF:SD:SUV from Adult Swim. Marianne Lee, vice president of General Entertainment Content at Turner Asia Pacific and Warner TV Content head, said, “Turner is creating more quality content than ever, and Warner TV has really been able to engage its audiences in the Philippines with its unrivalled depth and breadth of program-

ming. We’re in an exceptionally fortunate position where we can pick and choose the very best content from TNT, TBS, truTV, Adult Swim in addition to the channel’s content partner, Warner Bros.” In the Philippines, ranking and category share was at almost 30 percent in May, outpacing its nearest competitor by more than 6 percent. Over the past year, Warner TV has also been able to attract a younger audience, amassing a fan base in the coveted demo of cable 25-44 through the DC Comics-inspired shows such as DC’s Legends of Tomorrow, iZombie, ARROW, Gotham, Supergirl and The Flash. Other high-profile Turner original series that have been greenlit either for pilots or full series this year include TNT’s Tales from the Crypt (M. Night Shyamalan), Good Behavior (Michelle Dockery), Will, Civil and TBS’ Wrecked and The Detour. ELEAGUE, the new professional eSports league organized by Turner and WME | IMG, also airs on the channel with the final broadcast live on July 31.

Kapuso volunteers spread cheer among children beneficiaries Smiles were plentiful as fifty children surviving cancer were treated to an exciting afternoon in the GMA G.I.V.E.S. (Guide, Interact, Volunteer, Educate, Serve) Salu-Salo Together for the second quarter.

GMA G.I.V.E.S. is the Network’s pool of employee-volunteers, who selflessly take part and share their resources in its various corporate social responsibility initiatives. In celebration of its 66th anniversary, the Network and its

Young cancer survivors treated to an exciting afternoon in the GMA G.I.V.E.S. (Guide, Interact, Volunteer, Educate, Serve)

volunteers had many surprises in store for the children, who are under the care of GMA Kapuso Foundation’s Kapuso Cancer Champion program and Kapwa Ko, Mahal Ko’s Batang K program. The fun and educational activities began with a viewing of episodes from the internationally award-winning GMA Public Affairs’ animated anthology series Alamat. The kids were also entertained by GMA Artist Center talents Marika Sasaki and James Teng, who each sang a song for the audience. This was followed by a highly-entertaining storytelling session by ventriloquist Carlo Magno who read a story about protecting the environment, which was provided by USAID B-Leaders. At the end of the day, the kids went home wearing happy smiles as they carried their new backpacks filled with school supplies and tumblers made possible by donations from GMA G.I.V.E.S. members, as well as the memories of a fun-filled afternoon.

T H U R S D AY : J U N E 3 0 , 2 0 1 6

ISAH V. RED EDITOR NICKIE WANG WRITER

isahred @ gmail.com

SHOWBITZ

Erik Matti’s multi-awarded contemporary crime drama revolves around a family who find themselves in a fraudulent investment operation

JOHN LLOYD CRUZ’S

WINNING STREAK CONTINUES WITH URIAN BEST ACTOR AWARD ISAH V. RED

lockbuster actor John Lloyd Cruz has added yet another feather on his cap by bringing home his second Gawad Urian Best Actor trophy for his performance in the film Honor Thy Father. Cruz’s compelling performance as a father out to do whatever it takes to save his family bested other seasoned actors, like John Arcilla, Ricky Davao, Jericho Rosales, Dennis Trillo, Sid Lucero and Lou Velos o in same category in last Friday’s award’s night at KIA Theater. The first collaboration between Cruz and ace director Erik Matti also earned him a Best Actor nomination in the 2015 Metro Manila Film Festival. “This one [Honor Thy Father] gave me the opportunity to be enlightened by my own choices. This film taught me how to better understand and encourage my desires as an actor. This film taught me that it’s okay to be different,” he added. While he was no stranger to be nominated in Urian, Cruz was noticed for his great performance in 2010 for the movie, In My Life. “Naniniwala po ako na there’s more in hard work, patience, perseverance and timing. Maraming salamat ho sa lahat ng Manunuri na bumubuo ng Gawad Urian for this exceptional award,” he said. Cruz’s first brush with an Urian award was in 2006 when he was nominated as Best Supporting Actor for his stunning performance in the film Dubai opposite Aga Muhlach and Claudine Barretto. The prized actor’s success came a few months after his first independent film with Lav Diaz earned the Silver Bear Alfred Bauer Prize at the 66th Berlin Interna-

Memorable scenes from Erik Matti’s “Honor Thy Father,” topbilled by John Lloyd Cruz and Meryl Soriano

tional Film Festival. Speaking of the film, the talented actor is set to fly to New York soon to receive the Star Asia Award from the 15th New York Asian Film Festival. One of Star Magic’s pride, he is the first

All smiles. John Lloyd Cruz shows off his second Urian Best Actor trophy

Filipino and Southeast Asian actor to receive the honor. He joins Hong Kong’s Miriam Yeung and South Korea’s Lee Byung-hun – all box office stars in their own countries – as this year’s recipients of the prestigious award.

As a follow up to the success of their first collaboration together, Cruz is currently finishing another film with Diaz titled, Ang Babaeng Humayo, together with no less than ABS-CBN’s very own former president Charo Santos-Concio as part of the cast.

T H U R S DAY : J U N E 3 0 , 2 0 16

16TH PRESIDENTIAL INAUGURATION

EDGARDO S. TUGADE

SUPPLEMENT EDITOR

THE

AXMAN

COMETH

All that I can offer the Filipino people is a good heart and common sense.

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16TH presidenTiAL inAUGUrATiOn The axman ... From D1

Punisher.

The government is for the helpless, the hopeless and the defenseless

abated as it is a nuisance. In his hometown, in particular, videoke in residential areas is allowed only up to 10 p.m. But Filipinos outside Davao City can still sing “My Way” to their hearts content as the toughtalking President has yet to come up with a clear policy as to when these sessions should end. The pronouncements became heavier, though, as the country’s 16th President laid out his plans against drugs, criminality, and corruption. Or in his own words, it

will be a “bloody” presidency. “Just imagine if I kill 10 people a day for 6 years...If I couldn’t convince you to stop, I’ll have you killed. If you’re into drugs, I’m very sorry. I’ll have to apologize to your family because you’ll surely get killed,” Duterte said. “I believe in retribution. Why? You should pay. When you kill someone, when you rape someone, you should die,” he added. The President, a lawyer, even pledged at one point to kill 100,000 criminals and dump so many in Manila Bay that the “fish will grow fat” from feeding on them. Even elected officials, soldiers and policemen will not be spared, he said. Without naming names, he has warned three police generals suspected of being involved in drugs to resign or risk public humiliation. He also announced that mayors coddling drug pushers will not be al-

lowed to choose their own chief of police. Duterte has also vowed to get tough on corrupt public officials, promising to designate 12 phone numbers that can be used to access him 24 hours for complaints from the public. His Finance chief, Carlos Dominguez, said the national government will also follow the “Davao model” where business permits are issued promptly to reduce the opportunities for money to illegally exchange hands. Despite painting a picture of a strongman who is ready to kill for the good of the country, Duterte insisted that he has no dictatorial tendencies. His guiding principle for governance, he said, was inspired by what his late father, a former provincial governor of Davao, taught him: “The government is for the helpless, the hopeless and the defenseless.” “Sometimes I can be harsh, but I was never a despot to anybody,” he said.

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16TH presidenTiAL inAUGUrATiOn By Cosette Velasquez President rodrigo duterte’s maverick style was what most likely propelled him to the presidency. After all, he promised genuine change —that he should make drastic steps and controversial decisions should come as no surprise those who believe that old ways just would not work anymore. then again, he won’t be working alone. the duterte Cabinet— who would be in it—inspires much conversation and speculation. duterte began with announcing that Vice President Leonor robredo would not be given any Cabinet post. robredo aside, Mr. duterte has filled up 80 percent of Cabinet Finance Secretary posts shortly be- Carlos Dominguez fore his inauguration. there was the initial intention to have a team similar to what Canadian Prime Minister Justin trudeau did: diverse in terms of age, gender, ethnicity. What emerged, however, was a team composed of people whom duterte knew and Executive Secretary Salvador trusted, and those Meldialdea regarded as experts even as they were from previous administrations. some of the younger individuals he invited to be part of his team refused, it is said, because of the low government salaries.

Cue in the Cabinet

Mr. duterte reconsidered some appointments, showing he could listen to the pulse of the people. some, however,

remained in the team despite the controversy their appointments generated. it is day One for Mr. duterte, but it is also

day One for the members of his Cabinet who now have to show us they are instruments of meaningful, not nominal, change.

Warmly congratulates Warmly congratulates

President PresidentRodrigo Rodrigo R. R. Duterte, Duterte, ThePhilippines’ Philippine’s 16th President! S’ 16th the President! Mabuhay po Mabuhay pokayo! kayo!

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16TH presidenTiAL inAUGUrATiOn

Duterte diplomacy Diplomat. President Rodrigo Duterte appointed former Securities and Exchange commissioner Perfecto Yasay as foreign affairs secretary.

By Renee Fopalan In one of the televised presidential debates during the campaign, then-candidate Rodrigo Duterte said he would assert the Philippine claim in the disputed waters of the South China Sea even if he had to board a jet ski waving the Philippine flag. This makes for a good mental image —but it leads us to wonder what kind of foreign policy we can expect from the man sworn into office today. China Despite earlier pronouncements, the mayor appears inclined to pursue direct talks with China about the conflict in the disputed territory. He knows the Philippines cannot go to war against China. “We cannot defeat (China). We will be

Rep. Harry Roque Jr. Kabayan Party List

We look forward to working with the administration of President Rodrigo Duterte in pushing for legislative measures that will benefit the marginalized sectors of the Filipino community, including the disabled, senior citizens, overseas Filipino workers (OFWs), fishermen, farmers, and the poor.

pulverized if we go to war. So I will just tell them, ‘If you want to talk, let’s talk.” This, despite a pending decision from the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague, where the Philippines brought its case against China. In fact, when US President Barack Obama called him right after he won the elections, Duterte said he was maintaining his position on keeping an open line for bilateral talks. “I assured him [Obama] that we will continue with our mutual interests and that we are allied with the Western [World] in this issue on China Sea. But if it goes on still waters, I said, there’s no wind to move the sail, I might opt to go bilateral,” Duterte said, even as he revealed that Obama urged him to wait for the arbitration results. Australia In another statement during the campaign, Duterte joked about the rape and killing of an Australian missionary during a prison riot in Davao City in 1989. Reacting to Duterte’s words, Australian ambassador Amanda Gorely said: “Rape and murder should never be joked about or trivialized. Violence against women and girls is unacceptable anytime, anywhere.” US Ambassador Philip Goldberg also

denounced the statements, saying “Statements by anyone, anywhere that either degrade women or trivialize issues so serious as rape or murder are not ones that we condone.” Candidate Duterte dared Australia and the US to cut ties with the Philippines: “If I become the President, go ahead and sever the ties. It was not a joke when I uttered it. They took it as a joke when I narrated it. These ambassadors are stupid. I was mad when I uttered it. When I narrated it, I was not angry anymore.” Soon afterwards, however, a more sober Duterte spoke again: “Who am I to sever the ties? The villain there is the media. You posed a question supposing it could result in the severance of the ties. The media is like that. I said if [the US and Australia] so desire, it’s okay with me. It was not my idea,” Duterte said. Filipinos may find it difficult to adjust to Duterte’s reactive, impassioned and unpredictable style, especially when it concerns issues that go beyond the nation’s borders. Spelling him out over the next six years may well be a challenge, but if it is any consolation, this is a leader who appears to have the best interests of the nation in mind, his feet firmly planted on the ground.

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16TH presidenTiAL inAUGUrATiOn

Rody’s kids were brought up the traditional Filipino way By F. Pearl A. Gajunera DAVAO CITY—The controversial campaign and election of President Rodrigo Duterte naturally trained the spotlight on his wife and children, who will be the First Family now that he is elected. Not all of them bask in the limelight, though.

Paolo

Sara

The three children of Elizabeth Zimmerman and President-elect Rodrigo Duterte are very close, they would often laugh at things and share their fun with people. Even if all of them already have their own families, they would gather together at times to enjoy a simple lunch or dinner. None of them lives in a high-end subdivision. The woman behind the successful Duterte siblings is Elizabeth, the former wife of Rodrigo. She is one of the simplest persons I, who live in Davao City, have ever met. Back in 2008, I saw her buying groceries in a wet market in Davao. My mom told me that she was the mayor’s

ex-wife; I remember asking my mom if such was really her routine. My mom said that Ma’am Beth buys groceries in the wet market even without maids at her side. She added that Ma’am Beth was very kind to everybody. She is a two-time cancer survivor. When Rodrigo fired at the person who said that he had throat cancer, it was because it was Beth who suffered such and survived it. Last year she was diagnosed with breast cancer and survived it once again. She is currently living with her second child Sara, who looked after her when she was sick. Before Sara and Beth hit the campaign

on their “Byaheng Duterte” bus, Sara was hesitant to get out of Davao City and campaign for her father because she was the one taking good care of her mother. Elizabeth described her relationship with Duterte as a “friendly relationship” despite the annulment of their marriage in 1998. She said that she has always been supportive of Rodrigo’s political career. She said she even encouraged her ex-husband to run for president when he was still in doubt. Elizabeth said Rodrigo was a very thoughtful person who still looks after her up to this moment. Rodrigo still gives her gifts on

SebaStian

her birthday and other special occasions. On the other hand, Elizabeth said that despite the millenials, her three children and even their grandchildren still retain the Filipino tradition of kissing the hands of their elders. She also revealed that among their three children. Rodrigo’s favorite will always be Sara. Elizabeth said that during the younger years of their children, whenever the three quarrelled it will always be Paolo or Baste who are blamed even if it is Sara’s fault. Baste Among the Duterte siblings, Sebastian or Baste had the least media appearances prior to the cam-

paign. He is a known to be private person, unlike his older brother and sister who are into politics. Despite his desire for privacy, many comments circulate in the social media about his good looks. The day his father Rodrigo filed his Certificate of Candidacy for mayor, the media went in search of the older Duterte. He was found in a firing range along Maa in this city, practicing his shooting. One of my colleagues noticed a new face beside the mayor and asked me who he was; I told her that it was Duterte’s new bodyguard, only later did I learn that it was Baste. Continued on d6

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16TH PRESIDENTIAL INAUGURATION

Sharing economic gains with the poor

Rody’s kids... From D5 Months after I first saw Baste, he caught the attention of millions of Filipinos who tagged him as the new heartthrob, though he is far from being the prim and proper son of traditional politician. His arms are covered in tattoos, his lower lip is pierced and he sports a rugged hairstyle. Who would have thought that he is the son of the tough-talking mayor of Davao? Baste has always been the baby of the family, Paolo is 13 years older than him while Sara is a decade older. Despite the age gap the three Duterte siblings remain close, they even have matching koi fish tattoos on their left legs. Inday Sara or Inday Sara on the other hand is the tough looking mayor who is very down to earth. Most of her friends say that she does not like persons who belittle the poor, a common dislike that she and her father shares. During her youth, she was like any ordinary girl who loves to go to the beach and drink with her friends. During her term as mayor of Davao, she would roam around the city hall like an ordinary employee and would sometimes leave her bodyguard and go to work in a taxi. If Rodrigo is mostly late for his activities, Sara is the opposite. She will arrive even ahead of time for her scheduled activity. Unknown to many, Sara named her daughter Sharky based on the movie Shark Tale because it was the first movie she and her husband Manases watched during their first date. Since both are beach lovers, they named their second child Stingray. Pulong Meanwhile, the eldest among the siblings is Paolo or Pulong; he is now on his 2nd term as vice mayor of Davao City, he rose from the ranks of being a barangay captain of Catalunan Gande to his vice mayoral post. Paolo is a funny guy, he calls his youngest son “pare” whenever the young one would stay in his office after school. Pulong loves to crack jokes on all occasions. In fact, when he was apprehended for speeding the other week, Pulong made fun of it. He said that he was afraid of his wife who at that time was waiting for him to come home. He is seen as a cool vice mayor who even challenged his father and Sara to do the ice bucket challenge after he did it. Pulong is a protective brother to his siblings. When Pulong was seen on television scolding a TV personality, it was because the latter made fun of Sara after she told him that what he did was wrong. Now that their father will take on the bigger responsibility of being a father to the entire country, their simple life will also change. But at the end of the day, they will still remain as Pulong, Inday and Baste to their father, Rodrigo the new President of the country.

By John Paolo Bencito DESPITE the Philippines’ positive outlook as “Asia’s rising star” given the country’s robust macroeconomic fundamentals over the past six years, the ordinary Filipino has yet to feel its trickledown effect.

Enter President Rodrigo Duterte, the tough-talking seventerm mayor of Davao City who campaigned on a platform of implementing genuine change that aims, among others, to make economic growth more inclusive. Duterte said he would spend P18 billion yearly to support

start-ups, made up mostly by micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs), with each region getting P1 billion. He said small businesses are forced to get financing from the loan sharks because there is no institutionalized government agency. Continued on D7

Illustration by Ismit Mendez

Milestones in the Life of President Rodrigo Duterte May 28, 1945

Born in Maasin, Leyte to Cebuano lawyer and politician Vicente Duterte and Soledad Roa

1951

Duterte Family settles in Davao Region

1956

Graduated from Santa Ana Elementary School in Davao City

1960

Graduated from Holy Cross College (now Cor Jesu College) of Digos

1968

Earned AB Political Science degree from Lyceum of the Philippines, Manila

1972

Earned law degree from San Beda College, Manila

1973

Married Elizabeth Abellana Zimmerman; fathered Paolo, Sara and Sebastian

1977-1979

Served as Special Counsel at the Special Prosecution Office in Davao City

1979-1981

Served as Fourth Assistant City Prosecutor

1981-1983

Served as Third Assistant City Prosecutor

1983-1986

Served as Second Assistant City Prosecutor

1986

Appointed officer-in-charge Vice Mayor

1988-1998

Elected Mayor of Davao City

1998-2001

Elected Congressman of the First District of Davao City

2000

Marriage annulled

2001-2010

Re-elected Mayor

2010

Elected Vice Mayor

2013

Sent rescue and medical teams to Typhoon Yolanda victims and to Bohol and Cebu earthquake victims

2014

Re-elected Mayor; met with ex-mayors and ex-governors to push federalism

November 27, 2015

Filed his certificate of candidacy for President of the Philippines, withdrew COC for Mayor

May 9, 2016

Elected 16th President of the Philippines, the first from Mindanao, with 16,601,997 votes

June 30, 2016

Took oath as President of the Philippines

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16TH PRESIDENTIAL INAUGURATION

Sharing... From D6 numbers did not transTo address this, the country’s 16th President said the Department of Trade and Industry should be in charge of loan assistance to MSMEs. Duterte also said he would discontinue the agrarian reform program because it has not benefited businessmen or farmers. He added that the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program has caused more agricultural lands to become less productive because farmers are not able to develop their lands for lack of resources. On top of that, he promised to allocate as much as P30 billion as health assistance to poor families living in the poorest provinces. “There should be at least, one doctor per barangay. I will make sure that government doctors will be compensated for their service,” Duterte said. Duterte’s incoming Finance Secretary, Carlos Dominguez, noted that the millions of Filipinos who voted for Duterte did so because the present economic numbers have not eased their lives. “Our people did not vote for change because the economic numbers are good. They voted for change because the good macroeconomic

late to a better life for all,” Domingue said. “It is not enough to say that the economy is growing. We have to create measures which will show how economic growth will bring more meaningful lives for our people,” he added. Bureaucratic reform will also be pushed to ensure ease of doing businesses and for the bureaucracy to better respond to the needs of the citizens. “Our economy can move to a higher growth rate, but to achieve that we need a bolder pump priming plan to initially involving more headroom. The incoming economic team will not be timid nor shy. We will deliver not only peace and order, but an economy which is inclusive,” Dominguez said. And Duterte, who has been judged by many for his tough talk and use of profanity, has promised businessmen, in particular, and Filipinos, in general, of a metamorphosis – from the so-called “Punisher” of Davao City to a leader of the entire nation who will bring about inclusive growth. “Relax,” said the chief executive in a recent meeting with business leaders. “I am not the man I am portrayed to be by some.”

[ EDI TORI A L ]

Initial reluctance

LATE in 2015 until early this year, it appeared inconceivable that a local executive from Mindanao would win the presidential race, lead his closest rival by several million votes, and fascinate local and global audiences alike by his colorful language and maverick ways. During these early stages, the man seemed, at best, only to have been prevailed upon to consider running for the highest post of the land. And yet it happened. Rodrigo Duterte will be sworn in as the 16th President of the Philippines at high noon today. Much has been said about the way the oathtaking will be conducted: Who will be invited, what they are expected to wear, and even what kind of food will be served. But everyone will be tuned to what Duterte is going to say, and just as important, how he is going to say it. If we are to go by his initial pronouncements, Duterte will likely assert his fight against criminality and corruption—for him the more pressing issues in the country today. We agree— to some extent. Indeed the illegal-drug trade has done unspeakable damage to individuals, families and societies. Corruption has prevented communities and the entire country from achieving their/its potential. The roots are deep; the claws far-reaching. There will likely be a description of extraordinary measures that the new administration would undertake in fighting our nation’s ills. There will be pronouncements similarly controversial and equally incendiary to

the ones already made. On implementing drastic measures, there appears to be no hesitation on the part of the once-reluctant Duterte. What we hope for, as well, is a discussion of the less controversial but immensely important fight to achieve, not only rapid economic growth, but a sustainable and inclusive one. The President has named competent people to his economic team; we want to hear concrete, doable plans on how they intend to enable more Filipinos to improve the quality of their own lives. Yes, even if these plans are not couched in bombastic language. Filipinos voted Duterte into office, likely out of fascination, but also out of frustration at the status quo. The new team must consciously avoid the inadequacies and excesses of its immediate predecessor. The rest of the population that did not support him—he won only by a plurality, anyway—may now be reluctant to place all their fondest hopes on a man who sometimes speaks despicably. They may not be willing to cheer him on as he takes his rightful place in history today. But this is democracy at work, and this is the only way we can proceed. Whether or not Duterte inspires in us trepidation and embarrassment and indignation, or pride and patriotism and a sense of order, the fact is that today marks the first day of the six years that he will be our leader. We do what we can. We sink or swim with him.

YOUR WORLD MADE BETTER San Miguel Corporation is one of the Philippines’ largest and most diversified conglomerates, with sales accounting for 6.2% of the country’s gross domestic product in 2014. We are a beverage and food company, but we are also an oil refiner and marketer, a power generation company, and a builder and operator of vital infrastructure projects. As a leading Philippine company, we are giving our nation all the support it needs to expand and grow. With the completion of our 88.85-kilometer Tarlac-Pangasinan-La Union Expressway, we will help push progress and accelerate trade and tourism throughout the Philippines’ Northern region. It’s one of the many things we do to help build a better world for the next generation.