26 APRIL 2019

KIM, PUTIN MEET 

JASON SOONG 

MASERATI’S 

MAN IN MANILA 

INVESTMENT 

TAG ON 

PROPOSED 

EURO BOND 

PAGE 16 WORLD PAGE 5 COMMENTARY 

PAGE 13 SPORTS 

PAGE 20 LIFESTYLE PAGE 9 BUSINESS 

MANILA, PHILIPPINES FRIDAY, 26 APRIL 2019 

SHOCKED, SHOOK, 

SHAKEN 

LOU 

STRIKES 

ANEW 

14 listers 

to get slots 

At least 14 groups could get a seat up for 

grabs in the House of Representatives in the 

May midterm elections, a survey conducted by 

Pulse Asia showed. 

The 14 groups secured more than two-percent 

voter preference in the survey conducted from 

23 to 27 March, with Bayan Muna garnering the 

top spot with a preference rating of 8.5 percent. 

Turn to page 6 

Prosperity face off Delegations of Chinese President Xi Jinping and President Rodrigo Duterte tackle projects for mutual development in a bilateral meeting. Mr. Duterte and his Cabinet officials are in a three-day visit to Beijing for the 2nd Belt and 

Road Forum for International Cooperation. 

AFP 

EXCLUSIVE 

Dirty road money nixed 

Local road projects comprised 42.22 percent of 

the disallowed money, while 16.66 percent was for 

the construction of national roads 

By Hananeel Bordey, Mario 

J. Mallari and Kristina Maralit 

Halfway through his six-year 

term, President Rodrigo Duterte 

still finds the top a lonely place. 

Trash terms 

‘not negotiable’ 

By Kristina Maralit 

and Elmer N. Manuel 

The indefinite 

vow of the Canadian 

government in relation 

to taking back tons 

of trash dumped into 

the country after 

President Rodrigo 

Duterte’s “war” threat 

is not good enough, as 

the Palace underlined 

that the demand for 

an immediate retrieval 

was “non-negotiable.” 

The President said 


Senior high 

The high 

school years are 

among the most 

memorable period 

for many of us. It’s 

the euphoric time 

when you undergo 


Rody veto stumps corruption 

The ‘P rk’ pie 

The President left for China 

He said he never desired it, but 

he will work to complete the 

remaining three years while 

keeping true to his words of 

keeping government clean. 

LOCAL ROADS 

P40,270,211,000.00 

42.22% 

NATIONAL BRIDGES 

P1,270,000,000.00 

1.33% 

NATIONAL ROADS 

P15,891,390,000.00 

16.66% 

BREAKDOWN of the vetoed P95.3-billion 

insertions in the 2019 budget. 

on Wednesday afternoon for the 

Belt and Road Forum but not 

after leaving behind letters to 

expel several officials whose 

services he found wanting. The 

others, he said, will be axed for 

being corrupt. 

“I never wanted to become 

President. I never desired it,” 

Mr. Duterte said. “But since 

I’m here, I’d rather cleanse 

LOCAL BRIDGES 

P2,341,250,000.00 

2.45% 

government of corruption.” 

The Chief Executive had also 

recently crossed party lines and 

disregarded important alliances 

when he vetoed several line items 

in the 2019 national budget. 

It took months for the 

President to weigh the issues 

over as the two chambers of 

Congress bickered in trying 

to defend their versions of 

WATER MANAGEMENT 

FACILITIES 

P251,250,000.00 

0.26% 

SCHOOL BUILDINGS 

P75,700,000.00 

0.08% 

the budget. 

President Duterte made his 

decision before the squabble 

between the Senate and the 

House of Representatives 

escalated further. 

Pork-heavy measure 

Bulldozed by the President’s 

MULTI-PURPOSE HALLS 

P10,427,590,000.00 

10.93% 

DRAINAGE/ 

PROTECTION WORKS 

P1,990,050,000.00 

2.09% 

FLOOD CONTROL STRUCTURES 

P22,046,800,000.00 

23.12% 


Enduring 

ties as norm 

pressed 

By Kristina Maralit 

President Rodrigo Duterte 

said new areas of cooperation 

and partnership between China 

and the Philippines must be 

explored to further deepen their 

relationship. 

During the bilateral meeting 

with Chinese President Xi 

Jinping at the sideline of the 

Second Belt and Road Forum, 


Young turks 

eye San Juan 

By Hananeel Bordey 

It would be an interesting 

matchup in San Juan come 

13 May between younger generation representatives 

of two powerful political clans as Vice Mayor Janella 

Ejercito Estrada is pitted against former Vice Mayor 

Francis Zamora for the city’s top local post. 


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NEWS 

2 

Friday, 26 April 2019 

Daily Tribune 

Dirty road 

money nixed 

He is the President. It is 

his prerogative. So, we 

respect that prerogative 

From page 1 

veto was P95.3 billion in 

realignments made by the 

congressmen, which the 

Chief Executive described as 

“unconstitutional.” 

He did not want a repeat 

of the Priority Development 

Assistance Fund (PDAF) that 

besmirched the administration of 

former President Benigno Simeon 

“Noynoy” Aquino III. 

“The vetoed items were 

loaded with corruption,” the 

President said. “Thirty percent 

of this budget was meant for 

corruption.” 

Majority of the vetoed funds 

were designed to finance road 

projects, said to be the easiest 

to go around with for corrupt 

government officials. 

Local road projects comprised 

42.22 percent of the disallowed 

money, while 16.66 percent was 

for the construction of national 

roads. Congressmen almost 

always had a say in road projects 

as these serve as their trophies 

to show their constituents their 

clout. 

This is a victory not for 

the Senate but for fiscal 

responsibility and public 

welfare. 

Funds for flood control 

structures were also stricken off 

by the President from the 2019 

allocation. This comprised 23.12 

percent of the total vetoes. 

Prerogative taken 

Expenditures for local 

and national bridges, water 

management facilities, 

school buildings and General 

Management and Support (GAS) 

and Support to Operations (StO) 

items with some congressmen’s 

fingerprints were also denied. 

“Well, he is the President. It 

is his prerogative. So, we respect 

that prerogative,” Speaker Gloria 

Macapagal-Arroyo said. 

According to the Department 

of Budget and Management, 

GAS are expenditures that are 

normally considered as agency 

overhead needed to exist as a 

unit. 

The vetoed GAS item was 

supposed to fund Department 

of Public Works and Highways’ 

(DPWH) funding for the land 

acquisition and related expenses 

for the National Government 

Center. It is worth P350 million 

or 0.37 percent of the vetoed 

amount. 

StO allocation was pegged 

at P460 million (0.48 percent) 

which was supposed to fund 

a feasibility study to provide 

detailed engineering or 

technical specifications for 

road/bridges in Davao City 

worth P100 million and P360 

million for the Right of Way for 

the resettlement of the planned 

road and infrastructure works 

also in Davao City. 

The remaining P94.5 billion 

was allocated for the operations 

of the local programs and projects 

of the agency. 

During a recent forum, former 

Davao City Rep. and now Cabinet 

Secretary Karlo Nograles claimed 

that the vetoed provisions from 

the P3.757-trillion national 

budget for 2019 were public 

works projects that were not in 

the original budget of President 

Duterte. 

Funds for flood-control 

structures were also 

stricken off comprising 

23.12 percent of the total 

vetoes. 

In signing the 2019 national 

budget, Duterte stressed that any 

attempts by any party to skirt 

around existing laws that will 

not benefit the Filipino people 

will not prosper under his watch. 

“Consistent with the foregoing 

aspirations and in the faithful 

exercise of my Office and due 

fidelity to my oath, I will not 

tolerate attempts to circumvent 

the Constitution or any other 

action that will prejudice the 

Filipino people whom I serve,” 

part of the Chief Executive’s veto 

message to Congress read. 

People’s victory 

He furthered that any provision 

introduced in the national 

budget which does not relate 

to a particular appropriation 

or those which seek to amend 

the Constitution and existing 

laws “have no place in the GAA 

(General Appropriations Act).” 

These are considered “rider” 

provisions, and therefore, must 

be subjected to direct veto, he 

said. 

“It bears emphasis 

that there are items of 

appropriation under the 

DPWH which are not 

within the programmed 

priorities. As such, 

they are hereby 

subjected to direct 

veto,” he stated. 

Senate President 

Vicente Sotto III 

declared Mr. 

Duterte’s veto 

of the P95.3 

billion as the 

“people’s 

victory.” 

We envision to pursue 

high-quality and good 

impact projects. 

The sooner they are 

completed, the sooner 

people on the ground 

will feel the benefits 

From page 1 

Mr. Duterte said the decision 

to elevate bilateral ties to a 

comprehensive, strategic 

cooperation “affirms the 

Philippines and China’s strong 

desire to further deepen and 

broaden this engagement.” 

Mr. Duterte said he is 

looking forward to speed up the 

implementation of agreements 

signed during Xi’s visit to the 

country last November. 

“We envision to pursue high-quality 

and good impact projects. The 

sooner they are completed, the 

sooner people on the ground will 

feel the benefits of Philippine-China 

relations,” the President 

said. 

The attendance of 

over 35 leaders and 

heads of international 

organizations in the 

Second Belt and 

Road Forum 

demonstrate 

trust and 

confidence 

in the China 

project, 

Diversity of the human race University of the Philippines archeologist 

Dr. Armand Mijares recounts to media the revolutionary find which was 

named Homo luzonensis which is considered a relative specie of the modern 

Homo sapiens. 

ANALY LABOR 

Let’s do this more Chinese President Xi Jinping welcomes President Rodrigo Duterte (left) in their fourth meeting since 2016 when Mr. Duterte won 

the presidency. 

AP 

Enduring ties as norm pressed 

according to Mr. Duterte. 

Initial deals 

Two agreements were 

sealed, which will further foster 

investment cooperation and drug 

rehabilitation efforts between 

the two countries. 

The documents for the pacts 

were signed after the meeting 

between both leaders. 

You can just imagine how 

much we can get if we are 

able to enjoy our fishing 

grounds. 

One of the signed accords 

was: Exchange of Letters 

on Production Capacity and 

Investment Cooperation between 

the Philippines and China, which 

is a project list that will serve 

as the focus of cooperation 

between the National Economic 

Development Authority (NEDA) 

and the National Development 

and Reform Commission (NDRC). 

The signatories of the 

agreement were Socioeconomic 

Planning Secretary Ernesto 

Pernia and NDRC chairman He 

Lifeng. 

Another signed document 

was the Handover Certificate 

Grant-Aid for the Dangerous 

Drugs Abuse Treatment and 

Rehabilitation Centers Project in 

which China, through a grant, will 

fund drug facilities in Sarangani 

and Agusan del Norte. 

It was signed by Philippine 

Ambassador to China Jose 

Santiago Sta. Romana and 

Chinese Minister of Commerce 

Zhong Shan. 

Members of the official 

delegation to the forum 

included Foreign Affairs 

Secretary Teodoro Locsin 

Jr., Finance Secretary Carlos 

Dominguez III, Public Works 

Secretary Mark Villar, Education 

Secretary Leonor Briones, 

Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello 

III, Defense Secretary Delfin 

Lorenzana, Trade Secretary 

Ramon Lopez, Interior Secretary 

Eduardo Año, Tourism Secretary 

Bernadette Romulo-Puyat, 

Transportation Secretary Arthur 

Tugade, Pernia, Energy Secretary 

Alfonso Cusi, National Security 

Adviser (NSA) Hermogenes 

Esperon Jr. and presidential 

spokesman Salvador Panelo. 

Enjoy friendly links 

The government would rather 

enjoy the “blessings” in the West 

Philippine Sea (WPS) and other 

resource-rich territories within 

its exclusive economic zone 

(EEZ) without compromising 

sovereignty than confronting 

China with an unenforceable 

court victory. 

Esperon cited the huge 

potential of the WPS in developing 

a “blue economy” with its vast 

and rich fishing ground. 

“The new framework for the 

South China Sea (WPS) would 

be the Bureau of Fisheries. We 

look at it as the source of blue 

economy,” Esperon said. 

The government would 

rather enjoy the blessings 

in the West Philippine Sea 

and other resource-rich 

territories. 

“The rich maritime resources 

of the Philippines make us one of 

the richest countries in the world, 

if we are able to enjoy what are 

within the EEZ,” he also said. 

Citing official data, Esperon 

said that the value of fisheries 

in the area is estimated at P7 

trillion a year — P3 trillion of 

which goes to illegal activities. 

“You can just imagine how 

much we can get if we are able to 

enjoy our fishing grounds in this 

area and from the other side, east 

and the south in the Sulu Sea,” 

Esperon said. 

The rich maritime 

resources of the 

Philippines makes us one 

of the richest countries in 

the world. 

“We want to enjoy the 

blessings of this EEZ. We want 

to enjoy our blessings in the West 

Philippine Sea or the area that 

covers Benham Rise (Philippine 

Rise). We have so much there. We 

want to enjoy the other parts of 

our maritime zones, which are 

seven times more than the land 

area we have,” he added. 

The NSA stressed that the 

Philippines should not focus 

on the dispute with China over 

the WPS and instead explore 

positive cooperation with one 

of the biggest, if not the biggest, 

economies in the world. 

“The West Philippine Sea is not 

the sum total of our relations with 

China. We have economic, cultural, 

people-to-people and other relations 

with China,” Esperon said. 

“So, the choices are, would you 

rather go and outrightly confront 

China, antagonize China and lose 

the chance of taking advantage of 

a huge market, or probably again 

lose a prospective more than one 

million tourists, which went down 

to almost zero after the 2010 

incident in Luneta?” he asked. 

Good ties disrupted 

Esperon was referring to the 

hostage-taking of Chinese tourists at 

the Rizal Park during the early part of 

the previous Aquino administration. 

Disgruntled Senior Insp. Rolando 

Mendoza of the Manila Police District 

hijacked a tourist bus on 23 August 

2010, taking more than 20 hostages, 

mostly Chinese tourists. 

The hostage-taking ended in 

the killing of Mendoza and eight 

tourists, while several others 

were wounded. Mario J. Mallari 

From page 1 

Senior high 

that period of transformation from an adolescent 

into a teenager, when you get interested in the 

opposite sex and when you form a strong bond 

with your friends or barkada that normally lasts 

a lifetime. 

But it seems these exciting experiences were 

not enough for two senior high school students 

in Koronadal City, who wanted a different kind 

of high — using and selling marijuana. 

Mark John Pascual and Dexter Cerbas — both 

18 years old — were arrested recently after selling 

P200 worth of marijuana to an undercover police 

operative. 

Also recovered from the suspects were three 

sticks of marijuana wrapped in paper. The two 

admitted they were marijuana users, but denied 

allegations of drug pushing. 

However, the police said that based on the 

surveillance conducted before the buy-bust 

operation, the two were selling marijuana to 

fellow students. 

The suspects would be slapped with charges 

for selling and possession of dangerous drugs. If 

convicted for drug pushing, they could be meted 

a penalty of up to life imprisonment, which means 

they could stay in jail up to their senior years. 

Take it all in Blazing sun hidden by clouds to lessen the heat makes for an ideal morning for a good stroll. 

ROMAN PROSPERO


Daily Tribune 

PAGE THREE 

Palace welcomes 

SWS hunger 

survey 

By Kristina Maralit and Elmer Manuel 

Malacañang yesterday welcomed the latest 

Social Weather Stations (SWS) survey showing 

fewer Filipinos had experienced hunger in the 

first quarter of the year, saying it is an indication 

of the effectivity of the government’s anti-poverty 

measures. 

In a statement, presidential spokesman 

Salvador Panelo said that the recent survey 

showed the Duterte administration is off to a 

good start and making true its campaign promise 

of alleviating the lives of Filipinos. 

“We are off to a good start. The Palace is 

pleased to note that Filipino families who said 

they had experienced hunger dropped to a 

single-digit 9.5 percent in the first quarter of 

2019,” Panelo said. 

The SWS survey, conducted in March, showed 

that 9.5 percent or an estimated 2.3 million 

families said they experienced involuntary 

hunger at least once in the past three months. 

The 9.5 percent hunger rate for the first 

quarter of 2019 is one point lower than the 

10.5 percent hunger rate (estimated 2.4 million 

families) reported last year for the same period. 

In Metro Manila, the hunger rate declined by 6.6 

percent from 18.3 percent in December last year 

to 11.7 percent in March. 

The recent survey showed that the 

Duterte administration is off to a 

good start. 

“These figures indicate that the President’s 

sincere efforts in addressing soaring prices and 

running a bureaucracy that efficiently delivers basic 

services to the poor and marginalized are beginning 

to bear fruits and now being felt by our countrymen,” 

Panelo explained. 

The Palace official added that while many 

Filipino families remain in poverty and continue 

to experience hunger, President Rodrigo Duterte 

“has been working tirelessly in improving the 

socioeconomic status of millions of Filipinos for 

them to lead a more comfortable, secure and 

prosperous life.” 

Panelo added that Duterte’s “incomparable 

political will and decisive leadership” paved the way 

for policies such as salary increases for teachers, 

police and military personnel, free tuition in state 

colleges and universities, free irrigation for farmers, 

universal health care for all Filipinos and free 

medicine for indigent citizens. 

“Indeed, much has been done in the 

first three years and with a workaholic and 

compassionate leader at the helm, much more 

would be accomplished in the remainder of 

President Duterte’s term,” he said. 

An Executive Order creating a national body 

aimed at eradicating hunger incidence in the 

country, meanwhile, is now up for the review 

and approval of President Duterte. 

By Alvin Murcia 

Collapsed supermart 

focus of probe 

Authorities on Wednesday stopped 

rescue efforts, saying “proof of 

life” has faded from underneath 

the rubble of the Chuzon 

Supermarket 

By Krizara Tibus and Elmer Manuel 

The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and 

Seismology (Phivolcs) on Thursday revealed 

that a supermarket in Pampanga province 

should not have been flattened by a powerful 

quake earlier this week had the Building Code 

been followed. 

This comes after rescuers halted a search 

for survivors of the ill-fated establishment 

that claimed lives following the magnitude 6.1 

earthquake that hit Central Luzon on Monday. 

Authorities on Wednesday stopped rescue 

efforts, saying “proof of life” has faded 

from underneath the rubble of the Chuzon 

Supermarket in the agricultural town of 

Pampanga, from where five fatalities were 

pulled out. 

According to Phivolcs executive director 

Renato Solidum Jr., the “very strong” Intensity 

6 ground shaking generated by Monday 

afternoon’s quake should have only caused 

minor damage to infrastructure. 

“With Intensity 6, we do not expect 

Sandigan upheld in ‘Morong 43’ 

The Supreme Court (SC) gave the Sandiganbayan 

the go-signal to proceed with the prosecution of army 

generals and police officers involved in the alleged 

illegal detention of 43 suspected communist rebels, 

known as the “Morong 43.” 

In a 12-page resolution, the High Tribunal’s 

The war on drugs continues without letup as police 

arrested several suspects anew in Quezon City. 

ANALY LABOR 

ParaÑaque, Las Piñas show up for Go 

Pleasant surprise: From 

gloom to jubilation 

Go had likewise provided assistance to fire victims in Las 

Piñas when he was still a government official 

There were no fire victims to condole 

with this time. But former Special Assistant 

to the President (SAP) Christopher Lawrence 

“Bong” Go, just the same, visited Parañaque 

and surrounding areas of Las Piñas anew 

yesterday and got a pleasant surprise. 

Instead of grieving, wailing residents 

the last time he went around for a visit, 

jubilation and chants of “Bong Go, 

Bong Go” greeted the now senatorial 

significant damage on a building. If it followed 

the Building Code, it should not have collapsed. 

Only cracks, minor damage are expected,” 

Solidum said. “While other establishments were 

left intact after the quake, the supermarket’s 

beams and pillars split.” 

“The materials used were not appropriate. 

They were not ready for the earthquake,” he 

added. 

President Rodrigo Duterte earlier said that 

business operations of all branches of Chuzon 

Supermarket should be suspended after its 

Porac branch collapsed during Monday’s quake. 

The Building Code specifies the 

appropriate size and spacing of beams, 

posts and steel rods so that a structure 

can withstand up to Intensity 8 shaking, 

Philippine Institute of Civil Engineers 

(PICE) Director Frederick Sison said. 

PICE and Phivolcs developed a 

questionnaire with which the public can 

determine whether or not their houses are 

quake-resistant, he added. 

National Historical Commission of the 

Philippines chairman Renen Escalante said it 

will ask assistance from Malacañang for the 

rehabilitation of churches damaged by the 

earthquake that jolted the province of Pampanga. 

He said the affected churches in the city 

of Angeles and the towns of Lubao, Guagua, 

Minalin and San Fernando all bear historical 

markers. 

Kristina Maralit 

aspirant as he breezed 

through mammoth crowds in a 

motorcade, thankful for his help and 

support during successive 

fires that rendered several 

families homeless. 

The motorcade, which started at 

around 4 p.m. and ended past 7 in the 

evening, drew an enthusiastic welcome 

from appreciative residents. 

“Thank you for your warm reception. 

It’s as warm as the weather,” Go said. 

It could be recalled that as early 

as May 2018, long before he 

decided to run for the Senate, 

Go had visited and provided 

assistance to fire victims in the 

city in Barangay Tambo. 

In January and February 

this year, Go also visited 

fire victims in Barangay 

Moonwalk and Barangay San 

Isidro, respectively, to cheer them up and 

call for assistance. 

STRAIGHT out of a Traslacion scene is this shot of Bong Go’s motorcade in Parañaque as a mammoth crowd swarms the former 

Presidential aide’s vehicle as it went around the city Thursday. 

Third Division junked the motion for 

reconsideration filed by Lt. Gen. Jorge Segovia 

(retired), Maj. Gen. Aurelio Baladad (retired), 

Maj. Gen. Joselito Reyes and Brig. Gen. Cristobal 

Zaragoza; and police officers Marion Balonglong, 

Allan Nobleza, and Jovily Cabading, seeking 

the reversal of the resolutions issued by the 

Sandiganbayan on 7 June and 25 July 2017 denying 

their motion to quash the criminal case filed 

against them by the Office of the Ombudsman in 

connection with the arrest of the alleged rebels. 

The Ombudsman sought the conviction of the 

military and police officers for eight counts of 

violating Sections 2 and 4 of Republic Act 7438 which 

provides for the rights of person arrested, detained 

or under custodial investigation. 

The charges were filed by Health workers Jane 

Balleta, Samson Castillo, Mercy Castro, Merry 

Clamor, Gary Liberal, Reynaldo Macabenta, Alexis 

Montes and Teresa Quinawayan, who are among the 

Morong 43 apprehended, on 3 May 2012. 

Go had likewise provided assistance 

to fire victims in Las Piñas when he was 

still a government official. 

Inspired by Go’s service, Parañaque 

officials have established in the city the 

headquarters of the Malasakit Volunteers 

of Bong Go. 

Go assured the people of Parañaque 

that he remains committed in his support 

for the programs and policies of President 

Rodrigo Duterte, whom he had served for 

over 21 years. 

“Rest assured that I will support the 

projects under President Duterte’s ‘Build, 

Build, Build’ program including those that 

will benefit the people of Parañaque and 

the surrounding areas,” he said. 

Among others, Go cited the 

Parañaque Integrated Terminal 

Exchange, a P5.6-billion integrated 

terminal that serves as a transfer point 

among provincial buses from Cavite and 

Batangas and city buses. Inaugurated 

on 5 November last year, PITX is the 

country’s first “landport.” 

With better infrastructure, Go said 

this will improve travel and transport 

of goods in and out of the metropolis. 

This, he said, would also hopefully help 

decongest Metro Manila and would lead 

to more development in nearby areas. 

Rest assured that I will support the 

projects under President Duterte’s 

“Build, Build, Build” program 

including those that will benefit 

the people of Parañaque and the 

surrounding areas. 

He added that Parañaque will also 

benefit from the P64.9-billion extension 

of the current LRT Line 1 starting from 

its existing Baclaran station to the future 

one in Bacoor, Cavite. Pre-construction 

activities for the project commenced on 

13 February 2019. 

Go also cited the team up of the 

Department of Environment and Natural 

Resources with private firm SM Prime to 

clean up the Parañaque River, not only to 

make its water suitable for use of residents 

but eventually to allow native fish to 

thrive for the benefit of present and future 

generations. 

CRP

COMMENTARY 

4 Friday, 26 April 2019 

Daily Tribune 

Daily 

Tribune 

WITHOUT FEAR • WITHOUT FAVOR 

“That the 

Americans 

were 

interacting 

with the 

highest 

officials of 

the Armed 

Forces of the 

Philippines, 

the PNP and 

likely those 

in the whole 

government 

proves 

they were 

sanctioned to 

be part of the 

mission and 

that Roxas 

can’t be out 

of the loop 

as his excuse 

goes. 

Chito Lozada 

Aldrin Cardona 

Dinah Ventura 

John Henry Dodson 

Jaimes Sumbilon 

Larry Payawal 

Komfie Manalo 

Geraldine Datoy 

Ninez Cacho-Olivares 

Citizen Noy 

should speak up 

The recent revelations of President Rody Duterte regarding the 

collective indecision of former President Noynoy Aquino and then 

Interior Secretary Mar Roxas, now called “our economist” in his 

futile Senate bid, was largely to blame for the death of 44 elite 

policemen in the 2015 Mamasapano tragedy may require a new 

probe on the incident. 

A commission was formed to probe the questionable death of 

Sen. Ninoy Aquino in 1983, what more for 44 lives lost likely as a 

result of the incompetence of government leaders. 

The two official reports that came out on the incident, from the 

Philippine National Police (PNP) Board of Inquiry (BoI) and from 

the Senate Committee on Public Order, indirectly indicted Noynoy 

under the principle of command responsibility but failed to answer 

most of the lingering questions, such as the supposed stand down 

order from Noynoy that prevented reinforcements for the beleaguered 

Special Action Force (SAF) troopers. 

The BoI report stated that Noynoy, resigned PNP chief Alan 

Purisima and dismissed SAF commander Director Getulio Napeñas 

broke the chain of command in the botched “Oplan Exodus.” 

“The President gave the go-signal and allowed the execution of 

‘Oplan Exodus’ after the concept of operations was presented to him 

by Napeñas,” the BoI report stated. 

It added, “The President allowed the participation of Purisima in 

the planning and execution of ‘Oplan Exodus’ despite the suspension 

order of the Ombudsman.” 

“While the President has the prerogative to deal directly with 

any of his subordinates, the act of dealing with Napeñas instead of 

OIC-PNP (Leonardo) Espina bypassed the established PNP chain of 

command,” it said. 

The BoI report sidestepped a lot of issues such as the extent of 

the involvement of the Americans in “Oplan Exodus” that targeted 

Malaysian terrorist Zulkifli bin Hir alias Marwan and his Filipino 

henchman Basit Usman. 

Sen. Grace Poe, chairman of the Senate panel that issued 

the report, blew the chance to make a strong statement on the 

accountability of Noynoy. 

The question which remained unanswered and appeared to 

have been sidestepped in both the BoI and the Senate report was 

the interaction between Noynoy, Roxas and the American entities in 

the duration of “Oplan Exodus.” 

It was indicated in the Senate report that the Americans 

provided ISR, which is an acronym for intelligence, surveillance and 

reconnaissance, prior and during the mission. 

That the Americans were interacting with the highest officials 

of the Armed Forces of the Philippines, the PNP and likely those in 

the whole government proves they were sanctioned to be part of the 

mission and that Roxas can’t be out of the loop as his excuse goes. 

The fact that it was a police mission puts it under Roxas as 

head of the Department of the Interior and Local Government. The 

complication about a police mission is that it cannot involve US forces, 

which the Constitution prohibits. 

What was not tackled or made clear in the report was from whose 

authority the Americans were allowed to participate in or undertake 

the mission. 

If it was sanctioned by Noynoy, then he would have broken all the 

tenets about protecting the country’s sovereignty. 

The report cited exchanges between the commander of the Philippine 

Army’s 6th Infantry Division, Maj. Gen. Edmundo Pangilinan and an 

American personnel, when the SAF troopers were already overrun by 

hostile forces and were pleading for reinforcements. 

“One of the Americans ordered Pangilinan to fire artillery. 

However, Pangilinan refused and told him, ‘Do not dictate to me what 

to do. I am the commander here!’” the report noted. 

Aside from Noynoy, Purisima and Napeñas, 

“Citizen 

Noynoy 

will have to 

face a new 

inquiry unlike 

when he hid 

behind his 

presidential 

prerogative to 

evade probe 

on the police 

slaughter. 

Patricia Ramos 

Board Chair 

Willie Fernandez 

Publisher and President 

Executive Editor 

Managing Editor 

Associate Editor 

Digital Editor 

Central Desk 

Advertising and 

Marketing 

Chair Emeritus 

another layer of hierarchy seems to have existed 

at the command post of the mission involving the 

Americans. 

Based on the report, one of the American 

personnel urged Napeñas to “call your boss,” 

supposedly in reference to Purisima as the mission 

went awry with two companies of SAF commandos, 

the 84th and the 55th, encircled by combined rebels 

from the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) and 

the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters. 

The Senate report mentioned the term 

“pintakasi” which means the supposed Muslim 

tradition of coming to the aid of a neighbor in 

trouble to cover for the culpability of the Muslim 

rebels. Poe’s report also did not recommend any sanctions against 

the MILF. 

Pangilinan who appeared to have been offended by an American 

issuing orders to the military refused to heed the request for artillery 

fire that sadly would have saved some lives from the beleaguered 

SAF units. 

The Senate also went with the BoI report in concluding that 

the dysfunctional chain of command resulted in the Mamasapano 

bloodbath. 

There were no mention either from Poe or the report that Noynoy 

or the Americans would be made to answer for their involvement in 

the botched mission. 

Poe also indicated her partiality after saying Noynoy “is an honest 

man” and can only be made accountable through the futile process 

of impeachment after issuing her report. 

In sum, both the reports were compromised by pressure from interests 

who wanted to insulate the American government from the incident while 

containing the damage created by the botched operations. 

In the end, Noynoy, Purisima and Napeñas got a slap on the wrist 

from former Ombudsman Conchita Carpio-Morales, who is Noynoy’s 

designated protector of his brand of selective justice, who filed 

usurpation of authority instead of multiple homicide. 

Citizen Noynoy will have to face a new inquiry unlike when he 

hid behind his presidential prerogative to evade probe on the police 

slaughter. 

“Despite 

Pabillo 

trying to 

disguise 

which 

candidates 

he is 

campaigning 

for, it is 

pretty obvious 

which bets 

and team he 

is rooting for. 

“In order 

for the 

claim for 

deposit 

insurance 

with the 

PDIC to 

prosper, 

it is 

necessary 

that the 

corresponding 

deposit 

must be 

placed 

in and 

actually 

received by 

the insured 

bank and 

the latter is 

eventually 

ordered 

closed by 

BSP. 

Catholic bishops 

appear to have a really 

hard time in trying to regain 

their past political influence 

over presidents — especially 

over the yellow ones — who 

give in to these high-ranking 

clerics, so much so that 

they continue to engage in 

electoral politics — perhaps 

hoping against hope that 

their preferred senatorial 

bets will win seats through 

their former political 

influence. 

Yet another bishop Manila Auxiliary 

Bishop Broderick Pabillo urged the 

faithful to use the remaining days 

of the campaign period 

to rally behind “good 

candidates” and to 

use social media 

“to make them 

more known,” 

adding that 

“ordinary 

people can 

help in 

getting 

As a private practitioner and law 

professor, I have seen, handled and 

read, through the years, cases involving 

bank closures. In theory, banks should 

not collapse. They presumably are 

backed-up by adequate financial 

resources and ably managed by 

competent professionals. In actuality 

though, banks do often fail. Foreign 

banks are no exception. 

Simple but practical advice then — choose 

your depository bank. You don’t want your 

hard-earned money down the drain due 

to erroneous choice of bank. In one case, 

a litigant obtained a favorable judgment 

after a decade of protracted dispute 

resolution, but made the costly mistake 

of depositing his money judgment in a 

bank which, however, collapsed. I have a 

friend who placed his savings in a bank 

after being dazzled by its freebie promos. 

He enjoyed the freebies alright, but not 

his money after the bank suffered a 

financial meltdown. There is also this law 

firm which entrusted its retirement fund 

with a bank that subsequently folded-up. 

I can go on and on and on, but I think I 

already made my point on the prudent 

choice of depository bank. 

Among the banks with perceived 

solid reputation for sound management, 

adequate resources and fiscal discipline, 

and therefore a prudent choice as keeper 

of your deposits, are BdO, UnionBank, 

ICBC, PBCom, EastWest Bank, PNB, 

Security Bank, UCPB and Equicom 

Savings Bank. I am sure reasons can be 

given to favorably endorse other banks. 

However, I cannot speak for them for lack 

of privity of relationship. 

Banks are ordered closed by their 

regulator, the Bangko Sentral ng 

Pilipinas (BSP), generally due to 

insolvency or continuing state of 

illiquidity. A bank is insolvent if the 

realizable value of its assets is less than 

its liabilities. Illiquidity is a financial 

condition where the bank does not 

have adequate cash or assets easily 

convertible to cash to safeguard the 

interests of its stakeholders. 

When BSP shuts down a bank, 

the Phillippine Deposit Insurance 

Corporation (PDIC) takes over and 

assumes control of such bank. PDIC 

was created, among others, to promote 

and safeguard the interest of the 

depositing public by way of providing 

permanent and continuing insurance 

coverage on all insured deposits. 

What do you do then if BSP forbids 

your bank from doing business and 

eventually ordered liquidated? Simply, 

claim your insured deposit from PDIC 

Get real, bishops 

good and deserving 

candidates elected 

through posting on 

social media the names 

and programs of good 

candidates so that they 

may be better known.” 

Is Pabillo saying 

that the administration 

candidates are bad? 

He also asked 

voters not to be swayed 

by survey results and 

polls, describing them 

as “part of propaganda meant to 

condition our votes.” 

Despite Pabillo trying to disguise 

which candidates he is “campaigning” 

for, it is pretty obvious which bets and 

team he is rooting for, and getting his 

“flock” to vote for, come election day. 

His Senate bets are obviously the 

yellow Otso Diretso candidates plus 

two yellow-stained bets, his senatorial 

picks whom he tries hard to make the 

voters’ choose. 

To quote the bishop: “Let us 

remember that elections are different 

from betting in lotteries or gambling. 

It is not a matter of betting on winning 

horses. Voting is the free expression of 

our convictions. 

“No matter if my candidates do not 

have a high rating, my vote for them 

is not wasted even if they lose. What 

is worse is that I vote for a winnable 

candidate who is a bad public servant 

… and may have contributed to the ills 

in society.” 

We have a democracy and Pabillo, 

a bishop who is nevertheless a 

Filipino citizen, has every right to 

vote for the candidates he believes 

should be elected. There is also 

nothing wrong in asking his “flock” to 

vote for his choice of candidates. But 

why doesn’t he then come up with a 

direct endorsement of his senatorial 

bets, instead of making a disguised 

pitch for his, and evidently, the local 

leaders of the Catholic Church’s 

choice of senatorial bets? 

But really, what changes can be 

made by way of getting such yellow 

candidates elected? 

Political and electoral reality says 

that even if one or two or even three 

of the Otsos make it to the Senate, 

just what change can they bring 

about — that is if they even have 

a chance of winning their seats. 

It has become much too 

apparent that the change in 

political leadership via the 

presidential elections in 2016 

FRONTLINE 

Ninez Cacho-Olivares 

and participate in the 

liquidation proceedings 

to recover your bank 

deposit in excess of the 

statutory maximum 

insurance coverage. Here 

are a few reminders on 

claiming insured deposits 

with PDIC. 

The term “insured 

deposits” means the 

amount due to any 

bona fide depositor for 

legitimate deposits in an 

insured bank net of any obligation of 

the depositor to the insured bank as 

of the date of the closure but not to 

exceed P500,000. 

In order for the claim for deposit 

insurance with the PDIC to prosper, it is 

necessary that the corresponding deposit 

must be placed in and actually received 

by the insured bank and the latter is 

eventually ordered closed by BSP. 

In one case, an 

“What 

do you do 

then if BSP 

forbids 

your bank 

from doing 

business 

and 

eventually 

ordered 

liquidated? 

Simply, 

claim your 

insured 

deposit from 

PDIC and 

participate 

in the 

liquidation 

proceedings. 

A DOSE OF LAW 

Dean Nilo Divina 

investor placed his 

funds in a money 

market placement with 

a finance company. On 

maturity, the invested 

funds cannot be paid 

owing to the insolvency 

of the finance company 

but the latter referred 

the investor to its 

bank-affiliate, which 

thereafter issued a 

certificate of deposit to 

the same investor. The 

deposit was likewise 

not paid because the 

bank eventually closed. 

The investor filed 

an insurance claim 

covering the supposed 

deposit. PDIC denied 

it. The legality of the 

denial was thereafter 

assailed. The High Court sustained the 

PDIC, ruling that the liability of PDIC is 

statutory. It is based on the actual receipt 

by the bank of deposits not on a mere 

certification on the existence of deposit. 

(PDIC vs Court of Appeals 283 SCRA 462) 

In another case, PDIC also denied 

the insurance claim when it discovered 

that the money allegedly placed with 

the insured bank was actually credited 

to the personal account of the bank 

president and the certificates of time 

deposit were not duly issued by the 

bank but were mere replicas of unissued 

CTD in the inventory submitted by the 

bank with PDIC. The Supreme Court 

came about mainly due to the voters’ 

disenchantment of the yellows in 

power and position who didn’t bring 

any improvement in the lives of the 

poor and the many opportunities the 

vindictive yellow President and his 

regime bungled. 

And there was too much of the 

yellow corruption, despite the regime’s 

claim of honesty in government and 

their spiel of Noynoy Aquino being an 

honest president, apart from the claim 

of the yellows walking the “straight 

path,” which is clearly another big lie. 

Yet the bishops, on the whole, 

believe that the yellows are the best 

choice for Catholic voters and that the 

administration bets are bad? 

What is more 

“These 

bishops 

still don’t 

get it. Their 

endorsement 

of their 

candidates 

no longer 

work. 

probable is that 

these religious 

leaders know that 

their yellow bets 

are not going to win 

their seats. But they 

desperately want the 

yellows in the Senate 

to send President 

Duterte a strong 

message that he has 

lost his political ground and for him 

to change his ways — especially 

towards the bishops. 

As Pabillo said: “This is the serious 

kind of discernment that bishops are 

calling for,” since “many have regretted 

their votes in the 2016 elections,” 

adding that this “mistake” should serve 

as a lesson to us now. He tells the voters 

to be wiser in their choice. 

At this time, it really doesn’t look 

anywhere near many voters regretting 

their presidential choice, as Duterte 

appears to be going strong. 

However, this just won’t work, 

simply because this is not a 

presidential election, and as Pabillo 

and other bishops and pastors know, 

there is hardly any politician that 

has party loyalty — with very few 

exceptions. Politicians always pledge 

allegiance to whoever sits in the 

Palace. 

These bishops still don’t get it. 

Their endorsement of their candidates 

no longer work. And the message 

the voters will likely get is not what 

the bishops want. They may get the 

opposite message when the Otsos 

lose. Admit it or not, the yellows have 

a weak senatorial slate and their bets 

are neither charismatic nor known, 

with these bets having no impact on 

the voters. 

It’s time for the bishops to get real. 

How safe are your bank deposits? 

found no grave abuse of 

discretion on the part of 

PDIC, holding that PDIC’s 

acts were consistent with 

law. (Spouses Chobani 

vs Philippine Deposit 

Insurance Corporation, 

GR 230037, 19 March 2018) 

The term “deposit” 

means the unpaid 

balance of money or its 

equivalent received by a 

bank in the usual course 

of business and for which 

it has given or is obliged to give credit 

to a commercial, checking, savings time 

or thrift account. The deposit must 

give rise to creditor-debtor relationship 

between the bank and the depositor. It 

also includes foreign currency deposits, 

as well as deposits with branches and 

subsidiaries of foreign banks licensed 

by BSP to perform banking functions in 

the Philippines. Incidentally, deposits 

in a branch of domestic bank outside 

the Philippines shall not be covered 

unless the insured bank elects to 

include the same for insurance subject 

to approval of the PDIC. 

PDIC shall commence the 

determination of insured deposits due 

to the depositors of the closed bank upon 

its actual takeover of the closed bank. 

Deposit accounts 

not entitled to payment 

PDIC shall not pay deposit 

insurance for the following accounts 

or transactions whether denominated, 

documented, recorded or booked as 

deposit by the bank: 

1. Investment products, such as 

bonds and securities, trust accounts 

and other similar instruments; 

2. Deposit accounts or transactions 

which are unfunded, or that are 

fictitious or fraudulent; 

3. Deposit accounts or transactions 

constituting unsafe and unsound 

banking practices as determined by 

PDIC, in consultation with BSP, after 

due notice and hearing, and publication 

of a cease-and-desist order issued by 

the PDIC against such deposit accounts 

or transactions, and 

4. Deposits that are determined to 

be the proceeds of an unlawful activity 

as defined under the Anti-Money 

Laundering Law. 

In my next article, I will discuss the 

nitty gritty of filing and processing of 

insurance claim with PDIC. 

Email: cabdo@divinalaw.com 

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Daily Tribune 

“Recent 

events have 

demonstrated 

how these 

monolithic 

structures 

have the 

potential 

to be 

deathtraps 

for 

thousands. 

In the last few years, I’m sure 

many of you have participated 

in the annual earthquake drills 

that involve getting under 

tables, rehearsed evacuations, 

and so on. Ever since it was 

announced some time ago that 

Metro Manila was facing the 

so-called “Big One,” authorities 

have been (rightly) fixated 

with preparing us for what to 

do in an emergency situation 

like that. I can admit to feeling 

occasionally annoyed by the inconvenience 

and usually apathetic to the drills, though 

I comply like everyone else. 

Then Monday happened. The magnitude 

6.1 earthquake with Zambales as its 

epicenter jolted Central Luzon, Metro 

Manila and its adjacent cities. Some friends 

even felt it all the way up in Baguio — a 

town which, if you recall, was devastated 

by a 7.8 magnitude earthquake in 1990. On 

Tuesday, a magnitude 6.5 earthquake hit 

Eastern Samar. 

Disaster preparedness in times of calamity 

BRIEFING ROOM 

Harry Roque 

I am not in the country as 

I write this, but I am anxious 

to be home to check on all 

my friends and loved ones. 

The Monday tremor, as of 

this writing, left 16 dead, 14 

missing and 81 injured people. 

Of the 16 deaths, 15 were 

recorded in Pampanga, which 

was badly hit. The Eastern 

Samar jolt, meanwhile, 

terrified thousands and false 

news about an impending 

tsunami spread like a wildfire. 

These terrible experiences are a wakeup 

call for every Filipino to be alert and 

ready at all times. We live in an archipelago 

on the “Pacific Ring of Fire” — earthquakes 

are unpredictable inevitabilities that we 

have to contend with. There are things 

the government and all citizens should 

be doing to place ourselves on the best 

possible footing. 

One thing I noted in previous years 

is that Metro Manila in particular does 

not have many open spaces that could be 

utilized as evacuation centers in times of 

calamity. I recall that the listed evacuation 

centers for the north quadrant of Metro 

Manila are the University of the Philippines 

Diliman and the Veterans 

“Have 

household 

protocols 

in place for 

emergencies. 

It may seem 

excessive, 

but it won’t 

feel that 

way should 

disaster 

strike. 

Memorial Medical Center Golf 

Course. Considering that the 

north quadrant is composed 

of Caloocan, Valenzuela, 

Quezon City, San Juan and 

Mandaluyong, we obviously 

need more designated 

spaces! I am not against highrise 

condominiums or megashopping 

centers, but recent 

events have demonstrated 

how these monolithic 

structures have the potential 

to be deathtraps for thousands. Perhaps 

we should be investing in more parks and 

greenery, which are clearly are not just for 

aesthetic purposes. 

I know that our government is hard at 

work to improve infrastructure around the 

Shocked, shook, shaken 

COMMENTARY 

5 

country. I hope they will make it a priority 

to establish enough well-placed evacuation 

centers throughout the country as part of 

their development plans. This can go hand 

in hand with the current efforts to reform 

and streamline the administrative agencies 

charged with disaster risk and reduction 

management. 

Meanwhile, I hope we all keep abreast 

of the basic disaster preparedness 

mechanisms. We must all know where 

to evacuate when another earthquake or 

any other calamity strikes. Preparation of 

go-bags containing enough food, medicine, 

flashlights and other basic needs is a must. 

Having the means to contact our loved ones 

and receive information (fully-charged 

phones, power banks, portable radios) 

is also crucial. Have household protocols 

in place for emergencies. It may seem 

excessive, but it won’t feel that way should 

disaster strike. 

Beyond that, the only thing left to do 

is pray. I do so constantly, and I hope you 

do, too. 

been tagged as 

plotters in that 

exposé by a national 

daily, Malacañang 

responded by saying 

that it is ready to 

prosecute those who 

would commit “overt 

acts to bring down 

the government.” 

President 

Duterte himself, 

probably shook by 

incessant criticisms 

of his war on drugs, 

has threatened 

earlier to establish 

a revolutionary 

government of his 

own should he be 

pushed to the 

wall. 

Events of the past few days had the nation 

either shocked, shook or shaken. We’re not 

even referring to the effects of the magnitude 

6.1 temblor alone that rocked Filipinos Monday. 

Actually, this shocked, 

“After dazzling 

us with ledgers 

and accounts of 

supposed paper 

trails, Bikoy 

found to his 

dismay that it’s 

not easy eating 

one’s words. 

“The 

knee-jerk 

mentality 

of the 

Philippine 

government 

has to 

change. 

By way of 

comparison, 

the US 

Federal 

Emergency 

Management 

Agency is 

already 

working on 

contingency 

plans 

for the 

potential of 

an asteroid 

armageddon. 

shook, shaken syndrome 

started days before 

when self-proclaimed 

whistleblower, Bikoy, who 

claims to be a former 

member of a drug syndicate 

operating in Southern Luzon 

and the Visayas, came out in 

a series of videos where he 

appeared as a hooded figure 

and showed copies of the documents linking 

the First Family to the illegal drug trade. 

A lot of people were naturally shocked 

as it shook the very core of the Duterte 

administration’s war on drugs. People, for a 

while, have started doubting the authenticity 

of the centerpiece program of the government, 

naturally shaken in their belief. 

It was short-lived, however. 

All it took was for former Special Assistant 

to the President Christopher Lawrence “Bong” 

A string of earthquakes has 

hit provinces and cities in 

Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao 

since Monday, with identified 

epicenters in Zambales, Eastern 

Samar and Davao Occidental. 

Cabinet secretaries and 

undersecretaries find themselves 

in two to three places in a single 

day. At the local government 

units (LGU) hit, the clamor is 

for more physical presence of 

rescue workers, availability of 

relief and immediate access to funding. The 

whole of government is grasping at what 

to do first given the nationwide demand 

for help. 

The Philippine Institute of Volcanology 

and Seismology (Phivolcs) announced 

that the quakes felt in Luzon, Visayas and 

Mindanao are unrelated to each other. I 

personally find this difficult to believe, 

and these types of technical explanations 

of natural disasters do not bode well with 

the general public. How can these be 

unrelated when they all happened within 

a span of four days? In another statement, 

Phivolcs said that parts of Manila are prone 

to liquefaction — another scientific term 

that basically means that loosened soil 

may cause buildings to tilt, similar to 

what happened to the Emilio Aguinaldo 

Go to lift his shirt and, voila! Bikoy and his 

puppet masters have been unmasked. 

There was no dragon figure tattoo on Go’s 

back as the alleged whistleblower on the 

President’s family claimed as a sign of the 

former aide’s involvement in the triad. All 

one could see in Go’s otherwise clean back 

are traces of ventosa marks, an ancient form 

of cupping therapy used by the Egyptians and 

Chinese that acts as a deep-tissue massage. 

After dazzling 

us with ledgers and 

accounts of supposed 

paper trails, Bikoy 

found to his dismay 

that it’s not easy 

eating one’s words. 

He has also made a 

similar claim against 

the President’s son 

QUO VADIS 

Darren M. de Jesus 

“What is shocking 

is the revelation that 

conspirators in the 

so-called oust-Duterte 

plot has a so-called 

playbook to plant 

fake news, manipulate 

public emotion. 

and former Davao City vice mayor Paolo 

“Pulong” Duterte during the first segment of 

his so-called exposé. 

Unlike Go, however, the young Duterte has 

refused to bare his back and would not say 

whether or not he really had a tattoo. 

Earthquake woes 

College building. 

National Disaster Risk 

Reduction and Management 

Council (NDRRMC) announced 

that the death toll in Luzon has 

reached 16, while scores of people 

suffered injuries in Luzon and 

Visayas. Government has been 

doing its part of causing alarm 

to the people, who now have the 

duty of being prepared in case 

another earthquake takes place. 

Authorities have been requiring 

the undertaking of earthquake drills and 

preparation of emergency kits or “go 

bags” — though no amount of preparation 

will suffice if you find yourself in a building 

that is structurally incapable of handling an 

earthquake or is in violation of the Building 

Code and other relevant laws and regulations. 

Earthquakes are foreign to us. In 

Japan, earthquakes are as common as 

our typhoons, and people are actually 

calm when the ground slightly moves. 

Buildings are considered safe and are 

said to be routinely inspected. Here in 

the Philippines, we are accustomed to 

typhoons and flooding that we are no 

longer surprised when they happen, but 

whenever they do, it seems that we are still 

stuck in the same rut as the last typhoon. 

Should it be something extreme like a 

As one 

analyst said, 

Bikoy’s chance 

of exposing the 

Duterte family’s 

supposed big-time 

drug links fizzled out 

with the amateurish 

blunder of bluffing about Go having a triad 

tattoo. He, too, was probably shocked 

that the former presidential aide had 

called his bluff. 

And with just one flick of 

a finger, Go had not only 

demolished the black 

propaganda that is Bikoy. 

He also had pulled out all 

the stops to his senatorial bid. Nobody is 

shocked at this anyway, as he is among the 

frontrunners now in the race to the Senate. 

With Bikoy behind, it was the turn of the 

administration to pull off a shocker of its 

own when it confirmed a matrix of media 

organizations said to be behind the plot to 

oust President Duterte. 

Although shaken that media groups have 

storm surge, then we become alert once 

again. Since “Ondoy” struck 10 years ago, 

LGU have become wiser in evacuating their 

constituents and deploying rescue and aid. 

“Ondoy” also led to the passage of Republic 

Act 10121, or the Philippine Disaster Risk 

Reduction and Management Act, creating 

the NDRRMC. 

Let’s hope it does not take a huge 

disaster for us to start moving again. I 

have written before about the necessity of 

having a Department of Disaster Resilience 

(DDR), and the House of Representatives 

has done its part by its passage of House 

Bill 8165, or the “Department of Disaster 

Resilience Act” on third reading last 

October 2018. It is time for the Senate 

to act, as well, considering that this is 

among the priority legislations identified 

by President Rodrigo Duterte. 

Reelectionist Sen. Sonny Angara has 

been vocal about the passage of the Senate 

version, one of which he is the author of, 

in Senate Bill (SB) 1994. Its timely passage 

was downplayed by Senate President Tito 

Sotto, himself an author of another version, 

in SB 1969, when, in an interview, he said 

that he cannot promise its passage in the 

remaining nine session days of the 17th 

Congress, from 20 to 22 and 27 to 29 May 

and 3 to 5 June. 

According to Sotto, it will be more possible 

W h a t 

is shocking, 

however, is the 

revelation that 

conspirators in the 

so-called oust-Duterte plot has 

a so-called playbook to plant 

fake news, manipulate public 

emotion, touch base with the 

Leftist organizations and enlist the 

support of the police and the military 

before going for the kill. 

With Easter Sunday greeting us with that 

series of blasts in Sri Lanka that killed more 

than 300 innocent civilians, it seemed there 

was nothing more that could shake us out of 

our lethargy. 

We were wrong. For right the following day, 

while the world was celebrating Earth Day, the 

ground shook on a scale of 6.1 on the scales, 

literally jolting us out of our wits as if to say, 

enough of those tattoos and sinister plots. 

Here comes the shocker of all shockers. Time 

to behave. 

in the 18th Congress, which commences on 

15 July 2019. However, considering that this 

is a matter of national significance, nothing 

prevents the Senate from conducting special 

hearings on this matter even while on recess, 

so it can start consolidating the several 

versions pending in the Senate. All that has 

to be done is for the chairman of the Senate 

Committee on National Defense and Security, 

Sen. Gregorio Honasan, to seek approval from 

the Senate President to hold special sessions. 

Also, since the political landscape is destined 

to change after the 13 May elections, the 

legislative priorities may be altered in the 

latter half of this administration. As such, 

it is best to act as soon as possible. 

The knee-jerk mentality of the 

Philippine government has to 

change. By way of comparison, 

the US Federal Emergency 

Management Agency or FEMA is 

already working on contingency 

plans for the potential of an 

asteroid armageddon, similar to 

what we see in the movies — imagine 

that? This is not mentioned at all 

in the bills proposing the creation 

of the DDR. Our legislators should 

look beyond empirical evidence, or what is 

right under their noses, in crafting our laws. 

Email: darren.dejesus@dejesuslegal.com 

“Let’s 

hope 

it does 

not take 

a huge 

disaster 

for us 

to start 

moving 

again.

6 NEWS 


Daily Tribune 

Young turks eye San Juan 

Estrada said that she has 

found her mission and life’s 

purpose in serving San Juan 

residents 

From page 1 

The Estradas and Zamoras were once 

allies in the economically-progressive 

city. 

Both families were 

partners in running the local 

government of San Juan until 

2015 when Francis, with his 

father, incumbent San Juan Rep. 

Ronaldo Zamora, were allegedly 

ditched from the lineup for the 

2016 national elections. 

Estrada promised a strong platform 

in her first try at San Juan’s top post 

with incumbent local chief executive 

Guia Gomez stepping down after her 

last term. 

During the Team One San Juan’s 

proclamation rally last March, Estrada 

said she has “found her mission and life’s 

purpose” in serving San Juan residents. 

“My mission is to contribute great service 

and concrete programs to continue the 

improvement of our city,” she said. 

Among her advocacies are affordable 

healthcare and housing for the poor and 

creating mobile application for government 

services to put them within the reach of her 

constituents. 

She also vowed to implement an ordinance 

requiring all business establishments to 

recruit half of their labor force from San 

Juan. 

Solid endorsement 

Zamora’s goal, on the other hand, is to 

break the four-generation domination of 

the Ejercito-Estradas in San Juan boosting 

his bid with the President’s endorsement 

as he runs under the ruling party Partido 

Demokratiko Pilipino (PDP). 

He promises a new San Juan that will be 

a center of technology innovation that will 

turn it into a smart city mainly by providing 

Wi-Fi access for every barangay. 

New government offices, complete 

facilities and equipment for hospitals, 

free medicines and additional vehicles 

for the police and several fire 

response teams are some of his 

major proposals. 

In 2016, Zamora failed in his 

challenge against Gomez for the 

mayoralty. His supporters filed 

a recall petition, but the local 

Commission on Elections failed 

to conclude the verification of 

signatures one year ahead of 

the midterm elections. 

Battle for endorsement 

With endorsements of President Duterte 

or Mayor Sara Duterte becoming a staple for 

local politicians to boost their bids, confusion 

surfaced after the President raised the hands 

of both Estrada and Zamora. 

Zamora’s goal is to break the 

four-generation domination of the 

Ejercito-Estradas in San Juan. 

Zamora claimed that he was the official 

candidate of the President in San Juan City 

mayoral race as he was the one running 

under the PDP banner. 

Janella got the endorsement of Mayor 

Sara’s Hugpong ng Pagbabago, her 

grandfather former President Joseph 

Estrada, her step-grandmother Mayor 

Gomez, her father former Sen. Jinggoy 

Estrada and her uncle Sen. Joseph Victor 

“JV” Ejercito. 

Warm moment Family spends whole afternoon in the shade of trees in Valenzuela 

as the heat continued to simmer yesterday. 

ROMAN PROSPERO 

From page 1 

last Tuesday in San Fernando, Pampanga that 

he will sail personally to Canada to send back 

the garbage sitting at the country’s ports for 

the past five years. 

“I want a boat prepared. I’ll give a warning 

to Canada maybe next week that they better 

pull that thing out or I will set sail to Canada 

and dump the trash there,” Duterte said at a 

situation briefing in San Fernando, Pampanga. 

He even asked Canada to prepare for “a grand 

reception” to welcome their trash back home. 

The President gave Canada until next week 

to settle the issue. 

Malacañang similarly warned of a 

“diplomatic fallout” if Canada fails to act 

swiftly on Mr. Duterte’s demand. 

Presidential spokesman Salvador Panelo 

said the response of Canada to the President’s 

call is “vague” and slammed Ottawa for failing 

to say when it will heed Duterte’s call for them 

to take back its trash. 

I want a boat prepared. I’ll give 

a warning to Canada maybe next 

week that they better pull that 

thing out or I will set sail to 

Canada and dump the trash there. 

The Canadian Embassy in Manila said 

Wednesday that a joint technical working group, 

consisting of officials from both countries, is 

“examining the full spectrum of issues related 

to the removal of the waste with a view to a 

timely resolution.” 

Canada’s Environment Minister Catherine 

McKenna indicated a solution can be found “in 

the coming weeks.” 

Chicken season Prices remained constant as production improves, defying viral worries in neighboring countries that greatly 

affects consumer preference for fowl meat. 

ANALY LABOR 

14 listers to get slots 

From page 1 

Bayan Muna has criticized several policies 

of President Rodrigo Duterte, including his 

anti-narcotics crackdown, suspension of peace 

talks with communist rebels and loans from 

China. In turn, the government branded the 

leftist group as a front of the Communist Party 

of the Philippines-New People’s Army-National 

Democratic Front of the Philippines. 

Commission en banc accredited the 

group as a civil society participant 

in the Random Manual Audit. 

Ranking second was Magsasaka, with a 

6.45-percent voter support, followed by the 

6.04-percent preference rating logged by 

Gabriela, which is also suspected of having 

links with the communist movement. 

Ako Bicol — the group of Rep. Rodel 

Batocabe who was assassinated at a 

gift-giving event in Daraga, Albay in 

December 2018 — came fourth, while A 

Teacher partylist ranked fifth. 

Strong chances 

Completing the 14 groups that could 

get one seat each are Senior Citizens, 

Buhay, Akbayan, Amin, An Waray, Kalinga, 

Anakpawis, Cibac and Angkla. 

The pollster noted that Bayan Muna, 

Magsasaka, Gabriela, Ako Bicol and A 

Teacher “each garner the ceiling of three 

seats,” while four partylists in the top 14 — An 

Waray, Buhay, Kalinga and Cibac — fielded 

nominees who are from political families. 

Productive sailing Fishing boats head home after what seems to be a good catch amid calm seas overnight in Manila Bay. 

Meantime, about three-quarters 

or 74 percent of voters “have heard, 

read or watched something about the 

partylist system,” which is “much 

higher” than the 61 percent 

partylist awareness level tallied 

in February 2019, according to 

Pulse Asia. 

Across areas, awareness is 

higher in Metro Manila, Luzon and 

Mindanao — at 74, 79 and 77 percent, 

respectively — compared to Visayas with 57 

percent, said the pollster. 

Awareness was also higher in Class ABC 

than the poorest Class E, it said. 

The survey had 1,800 respondents and 

an error margin of ± 2.3 percent, said 

Pulse Asia. 

A total 134 partylists are vying for a 

Congress seat in the 13 May elections. 

NAMFREL back as citizens arm 

The Commission on Elections, meanwhile, 

designated the National Citizens’ Movement 

for Free Elections (NAMFREL) as its citizens’ 

arm for the coming 13 May 2019 elections. 

About three-quarters or 74 

percent of voters “have heard, 

read or watched something about 

the partylist system. 

In Minute Resolution 19-0351, the 

commission en banc accredited the group 

as a civil society participant in the Random 

Manual Audit (RMA). Thus, it will obtain the 

27th copy of the election returns generated 

Trash terms ‘not negotiable’ 

A Global Affairs Canada official, speaking 

on condition of anonymity because the 

negotiations are still underway, told the 

Canadian media it’s expected that the garbage 

will be returned to Canada. 

“It’s likely that is the resolution,” said the 

official, who was not authorized to speak 

publicly about the matter. 

Ambassador John Holmes said Prime 

Minister Justin Trudeau is committed to 

allowing the containers back in Canada. 

Act pronto 

Panelo, however, described Canada’s 

response as “quick but vague,” noting that it 

was not an appropriate response to the strong 

statement of Mr. Duterte. 

“We take note that its response is not 

appropriate to the strong statement we made 

against its throwing its garbage to our land,” 

Panelo said. 

“Our stand against making our country a 

garbage bin of their waste is non-negotiable. It 

cannot dilly-dally on getting them back. It must 

retrieve them pronto or we throw them back to 

its shores,” he added. 

Panelo said failure of Canada to act could 

harm its current bilateral relations with the 

Philippines. 

“The 70 years of diplomatic relations 

between the two countries will be put to naught 

if Canada will not act with dispatch and finality 

the resolution of this undiplomatic episode to 

which we take outrage,” Panelo said. 

“That it even considered performing such 

outlandish disposal of its garbage to an ally 

is dangerously disruptive of our bilateral 

relations,” he added. 

Panelo said no amount of discussion 

could resolve what he described as Canada’s 

“offensive act” to turn the Philippines into a 

dumpsite. 

“Its offensive act cannot be countenanced 

and any further discussion on the matter is 

unwelcome and unnecessary,” Panelo said. 

The response of Canada to the 

President’s call is vague. 

“Not only has it not taken any decisive 

action on this arrant hostile demeanor, it has 

not likewise expressed regrets thereto,” he 

added. 

Hunt local culprit 

Top government officials are also calling for 

the “head” of the Filipino who was responsible 

in shipping garbage from Canada into the 

country. 

Foreign Affairs Secretary Teodoro Locsin 

Jr. stressed that while Canada should really 

take back the garbage, authorities should run 

after the importer. 

“It had to be done. I hope we shoot the 

Filipino importer. The UN (United Nations) 

must accept that is the best thing to be 

done to certain characters,” Locsin posted 

on social media. 

Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana echoed 

Locsin’s call for the government to run after the 

importer. Lorenzana, however, downplayed Mr. 

Duterte’s “war threat” as mere dramatization 

of his disappointment. 

“That was just a figure of speech to 

dramatize his extreme displeasure. But if 

it were me, I would run after the importer 

of those garbage,” said Lorenzana in a 

message to reporters. 

Manila has conveyed its objection to the 

shipment to the Canadian government through 

diplomatic notes. 

Choppers on strings 

The Department of National Defense (DND) 

for its part lamented that Canada continues 

to harp on rights in a helicopter deal with the 

Philippines when, in fact, it shipped garbage 

to Manila. 

DND spokesman Arsenio Andolong branded 

as “ironic” Canada’s frequent citation of human 

rights in questioning the $233-million chopper 

deal when it disregarded environmental issues. 

“Remember what they said long time ago 

which led to the cancelation of the contract 

regarding the combat utility helicopter. 

It is indeed ironic that they harp about 

human rights yet they have no regard for the 

environment, especially if it’s in someone else’s 

backyard,” Andolong said. 

In February 2018, President Duterte 

ordered the scrapping of the $233-million 

helicopter deal between the DND-Armed 

Forces of the Philippines (AFP) and 

Canadian Commercial Corp. (CCC). 

The DND-AFP contracted 16 Bell 412 

choppers from CCC for the Philippine Air Force 

(PAF), but Ottawa subsequently expressed 

concerns that the aircraft could be used in 

counter-insurgency operations. 

Andolong, at the same time, said that Mr. 

Duterte’s “war declaration” was meant to 

highlight his displeasure over Canada’s inaction 

to the garbage. 

“He is just a human being… I think it’s 

not what the President meant literally,” 

ROMAN PROSPERO 

by the vote counting machines 

(VCM) and address other matters 

requested in the petition for 

accreditation such as the Open 

Election Data project. 

The granting of full 

accreditation based on the petition filed 

with the commission en banc was expected 

to enhance NAMFREL’s performance to 

effectively accomplish its self-mandated 

tasks in the service of free, fair, clean and 

honest elections. 

In a bid to assure transparency of the 

automated elections, NAMFREL committed 

to beat the lack of transparency and gaps in 

the coverage of the elections, which in the past 

has resulted in an unconvincing assessment. 

To address these gaps, NAMFREL has 

identified three very important activities to 

secure the integrity of the process that would 

contribute to the credibility of the forthcoming 

elections. This includes monitoring the 

processes and schedules of the Automated 

Election System from procurement to delivery 

of machines to performance of the VCM and 

the transmission and canvassing of election 

results during Election Day. 

Second is designing and maintaining an 

Open Election Data website, which aimed 

to increase the transparency of the results. 

The election-related data obtained will be 

analyzed and used to detect fraud. 

Lastly, supporting the RMA by observing 

the team which will do manual examination 

of the ballots to validate the machine count. 

Elmer N. Manuel and Raymart T. Lolo 

Andolong said. 

Basel deal raised 

A resolution to the row over rotting refuse 

appears imminent as it had reached Canada’s 

House of Commons. 

New Democratic Party Member of Parliament 

Gord Johns said Canada’s reputation is taking 

a hit over this dispute. 

“It actually takes away our credibility in 

having conversations on these issues when we 

don’t take action when a company, say, hasn’t 

fulfilled their obligation,” he said. 

“I think Canadians expect our government 

to not just use rhetoric but actually take real 

action when it comes to disposing of our 

garbage and trash and plastics in a responsible 

way.” 

Canada falls under the UN Basel Convention, 

which aims to stop countries from shipping 

garbage to developing countries without their 

consent. 

It cannot dilly-dally on getting 

them back. It must retrieve them 

pronto or we throw them back to 

its shores. 

Also, if the containers were mislabeled 

and toxic waste was inside of them, then 

Canada likely violated the Basel Convention, 

an international hazardous waste treaty, the 

Pacific Centre for Environmental Law and 

Litigation told The Canadian Press last week. 

Sabrina Kim, a spokeswoman for 

Environment Minister Catherine McKenna, 

said Canada is collaborating with the 

Philippines government and is aware of the 

court order. “Currently, a joint technical 

working group, consisting of officials 

from both countries, is examining the full 

spectrum of issues related to the removal 

of the waste with a view to a timely 

resolution,” she said. “In 2016, we amended 

our own regulations around hazardous 

waste shipments to prevent such events 

from happening again. We are committed 

to working collaboratively to ensure the 

material is processed in an environmentally 

responsible way.” 

Under the Basel Convention, if parties can’t 

reach a peaceful agreement, they can take 

matters to the International Court of Justice. 

As of Wednesday, the government official said 

things were looking good for a resolution within 

weeks, not months, which “will most probably 

require Canada to take back the waste.” We’re 

probably going to miss Duterte’s deadline, 

though.


Daily Tribune NATION 

7 

Chopper crash kills 3 

Under investigation Aircraft crash probers are still determining the reason why this chopper 

crash-landed in a fishpond in Malolos, Bulacan claiming three lives. 

Public warned against 

‘pious’ solicitors 

We advise the faithful to refrain 

from giving any money in case 

you receive such a request for 

funds for the said purpose 

By Raymart T. Lolo 

The Diocese of Cubao 

warned the public 

on Thursday against 

unidentified con artists 

who were soliciting 

financial donations via 

text message purportedly 

for the treatment of Bishop 

Honesto Ongtioco. 

In a statement, 

the Diocese said 

the con artists were claiming that Ontioco will 

undergo triple bypass surgery and they were 

soliciting money to help him defray expenses 

for the procedure. 

The Diocese clarified that Bishop Ongtioco 

was in good health and asked the faithful to 

report to the authorities should they receive 

such message. 

“There is no truth about the said news. We 

advise the faithful to refrain from giving 

any money in case you receive such a 

request for funds for the said purpose,” 

it said. 

Aside from text messages, a certain 

Nes Ongtioco is also reportedly using 

a fake Facebook account to solicit 

money for the supposed ailing 

bishop. 

“Bishop Honesto only 

has one official Facebook 

account. It is named 

‘Honesto F. Ongtioco.’ 

Please make sure to accept 

a friend request only from the 

official Facebook account,” 

the statement read. 

Initial reports indicated that among the 

fatalities was the owner of the ill-fated 

helicopter identified as Liberato “Levy” Laus 

Three persons were killed when a helicopter crash 

landed in a fishpond in Malolos, Bulacan at noontime 

yesterday. 

Initial reports indicated that among the fatalities was 

the owner of the ill-fated helicopter identified as Liberato 

“Levy” Laus. 

Bulacan Gov. Willy Alvarado, however, said the two 

other victims have yet to be identified. 

By Rico M. Osmeña 

The Cebu provincial government yesterday reported that 

its revenue collection for the first quarter of this year was P57 

million lower when compared to the same period last year. 

Provincial treasurer Roy Salubre said from January to 

March this year, their office managed to collect P1.1 billion 

which was remarkably lower than last year’s P1.68 billion for 

the same duration. 

He said last year’s sale of the Cebu International Convention 

Center for P300 million could have made the difference in the 

revenue collections. 

For this year, the province aims to collect P4.07 billion in 

revenues which is 27.25 

percent higher than last 

year’s target. 

The district hospitals’ 

collection for this first 

quarter amounted to 

P122 million which was 

higher than last year’s 

P70.15 million. 

The Cebu South Bus 

Terminal, on the other 

hand, already earned 

P15.5 million which was 

23.67 percent of this 

year’s target of P65.7 

million. 

The tax revenue 

collected for the first 

quarter of this year 

totaled P77.4 million 

which was slightly 

higher than last year’s 

The Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP) 

earlier confirmed that the helicopter with registry number 

RPC8098 crash landed in Malolos. 

The chopper, owned and operated by LGC Air Transport 

left NAIA general aviation hangar bound for San Fernando, 

Pampanga around 12:28 p.m. 

At 12:47 p.m., the helicopter crash-landed at a fishpond 

in Barangay Anilao, Malolos, Bulacan. 

CAAP Director General Capt. Jim Sydiongco said he 

immediately dispatched aircraft accident investigation and 

inquiry board investigators headed by Rainier Baculinao 

to the crash site. 

They are yet to determine the reason behind the incident. BR 

Cebu incurs revenue shortfall 

P71.4 million. 

For this year, the province aims to collect 

P4.07 billion in revenues which is 27.25 percent 

higher than last year’s target. 

Tax revenues include collections from amusement, franchise, 

professional fees, property transfer and real property taxes. 

While the non-tax revenues such as regulatory permits, 

registration, affiliation, clearance, certification and inspection 

fees already reached P22.9 million which was 12.1 percent 

higher than last year. 

Non-tax revenues collected this year amounted to P25.7 

million or 50.27 percent of the target of P51.1 million for this year. 

Income target Despite initial shortfall, the provincial government of Cebu is confident it can 

reach its target of P4.07 billion in revenues for this year. 

Strong as bull The Diocese of Cubao says Bishop Honesto Ongtioco 

is in great health and warned the public against con men who were 

soliciting money for his supposed heart surgery. 

Library for Cagayan inmates 

By Aldwin Quitasol 

The Cagayan 

provincial jail has 

opened a mini-library 

for its inmates as 

part of its initiatives 

in hastening the 

transformation of 

prisoners in preparation 

for their eventual 

reintegration to society. 

The library was put 

up in coordination 

with the learning 

and resource center 

and the provincial 

warden’s office. 

Provincial 

librarian Michael 

Pinto said the books 

and other materials 

in the mini-library 

were provided by the 

provincial government, 

which in turn had 

solicited help from 

different institutions 

like Emerald Headways 

and Ateneo de Manila 

High School Library. 

He added that most 

of the books are related 

to spirituality, attitude 

transformation and 

topics on the upliftment 

of people’s lives. 

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8 

METRO 

Sri Lanka naval ship 

makes port call 

John Henry Dodson, Editor 


Daily Tribune 

Makati subway 

projects 10,000 jobs 

Goodwill visit Officials of the Philippine Navy are optimistic that the visit 

of the Sri Lanka navy will usher in a new era of better cooperation between 

the two countries and their respective naval forces. 

BOB DUNGO JR. 

By Pat C. Santos 

The Sri Lankan naval ship 

MV SLN P626, an offshore patrol 

vessel, arrived Thursday morning 

in Manila for a four-day goodwill 

visit. 

Delegation head Capt. 

Abeysinghe Arachchige said the 

port call was aimed at fostering 

cooperation and strengthening 

diplomatic relations between the 

two countries. 

Also lined-up are 

confidence building 

engagements such as 

shipboard tour, reciprocal 

receptions and friendly 

games. 

This is the first goodwill 

visit of a Sri Lankan ship in the 

country since the establishment 

of diplomatic relations between 

the two countries in 1961. 

Before coming to Manila, 

the said ship went to Honolulu, 

Hawaii and will head straight to 

Singapore after concluding its 

visit in the country. 

“We are very pleased to 

make this first visit to your 

country and this is a sign of 

our country’s cooperation and 

highest admiration to your 

President Rodrigo Duterte,” 

Capt. Arachchige said. 

The foreign delegation was 

warmly welcomed by their 

Philippine Navy counterparts, 

headed by the Chief of Staff, 

Philippine fleet, Capt. Florante 

Gagua. 

“The arrival of our Sri Lankan 

Navy counterparts underscores 

the continuing efforts to 

strengthen the relationship 

between our governments and 

navies, as this will enhance 

and sustain the promotion of 

peace, stability and maritime 

cooperation through naval 

diplomacy,” Gagua said. 

The two navies have scheduled 

a number of activities during the 

visit including courtesy call to 

Flag Officer in Command, Vice 

Admiral Robert Empedrad. 

Also lined-up are confidence 

building engagements such 

as shipboard tour, reciprocal 

receptions and friendly games. 

It is also seen to fuel sustainable economic 

growth and inclusive progress 

By Alvin Murcia 

19 drug suspects collared 

Anti-narcotics operatives 

of Manila Police District have 

arrested 19 suspected drug 

dealers and users during 

two-day relentless operations 

in various areas of the city. 

Among those arrested 

were Josell Suylena, 34, Gino 

Herrera, 26, Efren Mendoza, 

51, Andrew Balignasa, 25, and 

Ariel Tagarao, 44. 

They were all arrested 

last Tuesday and yesterday 

in several areas in Sampaloc 

district. 

In Tondo, nine suspects 

Mayor Abby Binay yesterday 

said senior citizens who are still 

fit to work will be given priority in 

the hiring of workers for the Makati 

subway project. 

Around 10,000 jobs will be made 

available to Makati residents in the 

construction and operation of the 

subway. 

The mayor described the project 

as a very valuable legacy to the 

people of Makati. 

She also expressed confidence 

that the subway will substantially 

improve the quality of life in the city 

for present and future generations. 

It is also seen to fuel sustainable 

economic growth and inclusive 

progress. 

The subway, the first of its 

kind in the country, will 

be a joint venture 

between 

Makati 

City 

Lasting legacy 

Mayor Abby Binay is 

confident the Makati 

subway project will 

substantially improve 

the quality of life in 

the city. 

were also arrested, namely, 

Jenny Natividad, 36; Tachel 

Reyes, 18; Landren Natividad, 

45; Milo Garza, 52; Mary Jane 

Balatbat, 28; Bernardita 

Edejer, 39; Jomarie de la 

Cruz, 27, and Joven Nakpil, 

37. PCSantos 

By Neil Alcober 

government and a 

consortium of local and 

foreign investors, with no cash 

out on the part of the city. 

The 30-year concession with 

the consortium also includes 

maintenance and repair of the 

coaches and the control hub. 

The mayor said the 

partner-companies of the city 

have agreed to allocate jobs for 

Makati senior citizens who are still 

fit to work once the subway becomes 

operational in about five years. 

“Our private sector partners in the 

Makati subway project are amenable 

to hiring able-bodied senior citizens 

to fill up various posts that will be 

available once the subway starts its 

operations about five years from 

now,” Mayor Abby said. 

“Just as what Japan has done, 

we want to keep our elderly 

residents productive while 

providing them with a 

steady source of income 

for their essential needs,” 

she added. 

Binay reiterated that 

Makati residents will 

be given priority 

in the hiring of 

workers from the 

Marikina City Mayor Marcelino 

Teodoro on Thursday denied reports that 

he withdrew his support to the city police. 

Teodoro said he did not withdraw support 

to the local police and shall continue to be its 

primary advocate as peace and order remains 

a priority of his administration. 

“This is not a withdrawal of support 

but to correct on what is wrong, and to 

do which I think is good,” he said. 

“Just like the transfer of citation 

tickets to our local enforcers. This was 

my decision after I received reports of 

alleged abuses by our policemen saying 

they get 20 percent incentive from this 

system,” Teodoro added. 

“On the allegation about gas, I simply 

requested for a counterpart sharing. As city 

mayor, it’s my duty to exercise responsible 

When the 6.1-magnitude earthquake hit 

Metro Manila last 22 April, Marikina residents 

did not panic since they know what to do during 

such situations. 

It was because residents in the area 

were trained to react accordingly during an 

earthquake, which explained why no one 

among them was hurt during the tremor. 

It also has field hospitals (rescue and 

medical emergency) to be deployed in 

open spaces in times of earthquake. 

construction phase up to 

full-blast operations of the 

intra-city subway system. 

She pointed out that the 

private sector had more leeway 

in hiring senior citizens than 

government units and agencies, which 

are constrained by the age limits set 

by civil service laws. 

Elderlies could be hired as customer 

service representatives, ushers/porters, 

and judicious management of funds — right 

charging, right accounting,” he continued. 

He was reacting to a statement of 

Philippine National Police (PNP) Director 

General Oscar Albayalde who said that he 

would seek the help of Interior Secretary 

Eduardo Año, after receiving reports 

that Teodoro withdrew its support to the 

local police. 

It is a matter of judicious 

spending in order that activities 

and programs relating to law 

enforcement in the city will be 

met with efficiency. 

Teodoro said he merely instructed 

Marikina police chief Col. Redrico 

Maranan to ensure that operating 

expenses be equally shared by the PNP 

platform attendants, administrative 

assistants, utility workers, liaison officers 

and security aides. 

Last December, Mayor Abby led 

in the unveiling of a scale model of 

the subway at the city hall lobby. 

Other participants included 

former Vice President Jejomar 

Binay, representatives of the private 

consortium and other city officials. 

Mayor belies dumping local police 

Quake preparedness 

gives residents edge 

and the city government, including 

gasoline expenses for their patrol cars. 

“It is a matter of judicious spending 

in order that activities and programs 

relating to law enforcement in the 

city will be met with efficiency,” he 

explained. 

“It should be reminded that we, the 

city, have given more to the PNP Marikina 

in terms of logistics and have even made 

plans for PNP building. So, to say that we 

have withdrawn support is far-fetched,” 

Teodoro said. 

The mayor added that Albayalde 

should have verified the facts before 

making any statement to the media. 

“They should have called me. For 

people like us, who have this kind of 

stature, government officials, it is hoped 

that we should be very careful with our 

statement,” he said. 

Marikina City has five villages that are 

near the West Valley Fault line among them 

Barangays Industrial Valley Complex, Barangka, 

Tañong, Malanday and Tumana. 

No one has panicked because they (the 

residents) know what to do when an earthquake 

strikes. On that particular day, they just ran to 

open spaces and safe areas. 

The city also has a family disaster plan 

for earthquake wherein each household has 

“go bags.” 

“We also have an advisory, what to do and 

bring and then how to assess their structures 

and their capacity to respond,” one of the city’s 

first responders said. 

It has field hospitals (rescue and medical 

emergency) to be deployed in open spaces in 

times of earthquake. 

The city government, likewise, created a 

local disaster risk reduction and management 

council that is tasked to oversee and implement 

the localized earthquake protocol and 

contingency plans. 

They also conduct regular earthquake drills 

for children, so they would know what to do 

during earthquake. 

NAlcober 

Pure grit A young boy takes a break from selling sampaguita flowers under 

the searing heat of the sun. 

ROMAN PROSPERO

MOST 

INNOVATIVE 

BROADSHEET 

2018 

44TH 

PHILIPPINES 

BUSINESS 

EXPO 

THE 

HEART OF 

RITA ORA 

P20 

FAIR 

MEDICINE 

PRICING A 

GLOBAL 

ISSUE 

P12 

WOMAN 

WAKES 

UP AFTER 

27 YEARS 

P16 

Jun Vallecera, Editor 


Daily Tribune 

BUSINESS 

9 

Investment tag on 

proposed euro bond 

THE financial information arm of Standard and Poor’s has determined the investment quality of the planned euro 

bond transaction worth at least $500 million. 

ADB 

boosts Phl 

lending 

Multilateral lender Asian 

Development Bank (ADB) on 

Thursday announced an increase 

in financial support for the 

Philippines. 

ADB president Takehiko 

Nakao, citing the country’s 

improving economic climate, said 

that for 2019, a total $3 billion in 

loans could be extended to the 

Philippines. 

“We are increasing our 

lending to the Philippines. 

Especially this year, we expect 

new lending to the Philippines 

to be $3 billion, including the 

Malolos Clark Railway project,” 

Nakao said. 

The government has since 

started pursuing growth-boosting 

projects such as road, rail, ports 

and the Angat water transmission 

improvement project. 

By Joshua Lao 

Standard and Poor’s (S&P) Global, the analytics 

unit of the sovereign credit watcher that first gave the 

Philippines an investment grade for its IOU nearly five 

years earlier, has rated the country’s proposed euro 

bond sale a triple B or BBB transaction. 

“S&P Global Ratings today (Thursday) assigned its 

BBB long-term foreign currency rating to the proposed 

benchmark-size euro-denominated senior unsecured 

notes to be issued by the Philippines,” S&P said. 

“The notes represent direct, general, 

unconditional, unsecured and unsubordinated 

obligations of the sovereign and rank equally with 

the sovereign’s other unsecured and unsubordinated 

debt obligations,” it added. 

The rating represents an investment grade a 

notch above the minimum investment level that 

affirms earlier expectations. 

The proposed euro bond sale exercise is consistent 

with the plan to generate funds for the pursuit of projects 

such as the flagship “Build, Build, Build” program. 

National Treasurer Rosalia de Leon 

acknowledged the lack of specific details at the 

moment, tentatively saying the whole transaction 

could be as large as $500 million. 

The proposed euro bond sale exercise is 

consistent with the plan to generate funds 

for the pursuit of projects such as the 

flagship “Build, Build, Build” program. 

“(We) will finalize details after assessing market 

feedback,” De Leon said in a text message. 

The Philippines has hired banks to arrange 

investor meetings in Europe for purposes of 

generating investor interest on the bond sale. 

The series of meetings begin today, 26 April, 

across important European financial centers as 

the cities of Zurich, London, Paris, Frankfurt 

and Milan with Deutsche Bank and UBS as 

joint global coordinators while BNP Paribas, 

Credit Suisse and Standard Chartered serve as 

bookrunners. 

We are looking at rural 

development and food 

security so there is no 

starvation and there is good 

nutrition. 

“The Philippine economy is 

growing at a solid pace. Inflation is 

coming down, there is more space 

for monetary policy. Revenue to 

GDP (gross domestic product) 

ratio is now picking up to 16 

percent,” he said. 

According to him, the 

ADB fully supports the rural 

development and improving 

food security programs of 

government that reduce the 

incidence of poverty among 

member countries. 

“We are looking at rural 

development and food security so 

there is no starvation and there 

is good nutrition,” Nakao said. 

ADB country director 

Kelly Bird then said while the 

multilateral does not have 

direct agriculture support for 

the Philippines, an irrigation 

project is even now being crafted 

for eventual deployment by 2021. 

“When we were in the process 

of crafting the country business 

plan, we discussed with the 

government how we can support 

agricultural development. So what 

we are looking at is an irrigation 

project for 2021,” Bird said. 

“We will be focusing 

on Mindanao where there is 

agribusiness and poverty rate is 

quite high. We are looking at those 

two projects, irrigation and flood 

protection projects,” he added. 

WATER issues hounding vegetable farmers in and around Luzon translate to more expensive green and leafy items in stalls at the Commonwealth public market in Quezon City. 

There is no conflict between the two objectives 

and Damon calls it the unity of purpose — a 

combination of the desires to excel, to accomplish 

something important, and to act in a decent and 

responsible way 

During this time of 

globalization, uncertainty, 

volatility and rapid changes 

brought about by disruptive 

technologies, evolving work 

arrangements, relentless 

competition and demanding 

customers and shareholders, 

what kind of leaders do we need 

to shepherd our firms and our 

workers in meeting the various 

challenges that lie ahead? 

Many of the articles and books 

I have read about leadership 

qualities point to one prime 

quality: he gets the job done! 

This in turn makes shareholders 

happy and contended. To this 

end, consider the following 

attributes mentioned time and 

again of a leader: able to make 

tough and quality decisions, 

takes risks and demonstrates 

confidence, passionate, 

results-oriented, communicates 

effectively, a change agent, 

motivator, holds people under 

him accountable, sets clear 

deliverables and timelines and 

able to develop talents. 

His concept of morality, 

includes those “aspirations 

to make a better place, 

to act decently, to care 

for one’s family and one’s 

neighbors, to live honorably, 

and to be kind, fair, honest 

and responsible. 

All of these qualities pertain 

to getting the job done. In the 

movie Wall Street, we witness 

such a leader that is driven 

and focused in the character 

of the extremely wealthy but 

unscrupulous Gordon Gekko. 

He is portrayed as a passionate, 

performance-oriented, ruthless, 

“greed is good” corporate raider 

who will stop at nothing and 

will do everything to succeed. 

Anything else is just a distraction 

to the ultimate goal of making 

money — lots of it. 

In a dog-eat-dog world, such 

Leadership qualities 

qualities are often 

portrayed as one 

who will ultimately 

survive and 

succeed. However, 

there is a cost to 

all these and, in 

getting the job 

done, particularly 

in an environment 

of cut-throat 

competition, how 

many times are 

one’s principles, Ed Lacson 

long-cherished 

convictions and 

standards compromised? Related 

to this, is it possible to succeed 

in business or have a successful 

career and still maintain an 

ethical behavior? 

Career-wise, how many times 

did we follow what we truly 

believe is a wrongful action and 

against our deepest convictions 

simply because we were afraid 

of losing our job? When we 

maintain the high ground in 

business, do people regard us 

as fools because everybody is on 

the low ground, cutting corners, 

getting away with it and making 

money in the process? Do we lose 

our competitive edge by sticking 

to the high ground? 

Recently, I read a book written 

EMPLOYER’S 

CORNER 

by William Damon 

entitled The Moral 

Advantage: How 

to Succeed in 

Business by Doing 

the Right Thing. 

It discusses these 

very issues and the 

concept of morality, 

not in a theological 

or idealistic sense, 

but in its practical 

application and 

value to business, 

focusing more 

on the “positive 

dedication to doing good, a 

sense of service to humanity, a 

commitment to a larger purpose.” 

His concept of morality, includes 

those “aspirations to make a better 

place, to act decently, to care for 

one’s family and one’s neighbors, 

to live honorably, and to be kind, 

fair, honest and responsible.” 

Many of the articles and 

books I have read about 

leadership qualities point to 

one prime quality: he gets 

the job done! 

The book cites numerous 

examples and research on 

individuals and businesses that 

have achieved long-term success, 

ANALY LABOR 

fusing high performance and 

enhancing shareholder value 

while adhering to the above “moral 

purpose,” to integrity, honesty 

and being ethical. There is no 

conflict between the two objectives 

and Damon calls it the “unity of 

purpose — a combination of the 

desires to excel, to accomplish 

something important and to act 

in a decent and responsible way.” 

There is nothing wrong in 

creating wealth and growing the 

business. This is part of being in 

business in the first place. “But 

enduring and personally satisfying 

business success means providing 

something of worth to customers, 

supporting employees, serving 

the public interest and making 

a contribution to the world. It 

means not only accumulating money 

for oneself, but also building a 

beneficial enterprise that creates 

value for society, that endures and 

thrives and that continues to grow… 

Money is a means to a larger end 

rather than an end in itself.” 

As business and work 

arrangements evolve in a highly 

integrated, competitive, connected 

but extremely materialistic and 

demanding world, it is important 

from time to time to reflect and 

revisit what really is our true 

calling and purpose. 

2018 

DOT PROPERTY 

PHILIPPINES AWARDS 

2018 

LAROSSA CAPITOL HILLS 

BY PRIMEHOMES 

BEST RESIDENTIAL 

BOTANICAL DEVELOPMENT 

www.dotpropertyawards.com

10 BUSINESS 

‘No more 

disruptions after 

system upgrade’ 

By AJ Bajo 

The Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI) on 

Thursday gave assurance there will be no more 

major system disruptions moving forward after 

the lender concluded updating its transactions 

engine on 6 to 7 April. 

The system updates involved 41,000 changes, 

BPI president and chief executive officer Cezar 

Consing said at a news briefing following the 

bank’s annual stockholder’s meeting. 

“This is a process. We think we’ve gotten 

the hard part behind us. We made these 41,000 

changes. We’ve gotten all the connections up so 

that changes we’ll make later on will be much 

more seamless,” he said. 

He added the changes were made to enable the 

system to catch up with the exponential growth 

of the bank’s transaction volume. 

“Two years ago, vis-a-vis this time, the number 

of online transactions tripled from 700 million 

transactions to two billion transactions a year. 

These are just online transactions,” Consing 

revealed. 

BPI chief operating officer Ramon 

Jocson noted that operations have 

returned to normal this week. 

During the Lenten break alone, the bank 

processed P4 billion cash disbursements from 

Good Friday on 19 April heading on to Easter 

Sunday, 21 April, the executive said. 

On 5 to 7 April, BPI undertook a major systems 

upgrade that left several of its online services 

unavailable. Problems reportedly persisted for a 

week after the upgrade that the bank attributed 

to adjustments attributalbe to the new system. 

A surge in simultaneous usage likewise 

rendered the channels slow after the online and 

mobile channels were up and working, BPI said 

in an advisory during the time. 

BPI chief operating officer Ramon Jocson 

noted that operations have returned to normal 

this week. 

“What happened was we built the foundation 

so we can put up enhanced functions. A 

bank’s ability to deliver service is based on the 

transaction engine,” he said. 

“There are intermittent outages (but) the 

end service that you get is the end product of a 

number of services — meaning to say bandwidth, 

availability of telco lines. Pretty much where 

you get blind spots in some parts of the country, 

our online app sometimes does not work in 

those areas.” 

THE service, a partnership with some of the biggest 

names online, seeks to eliminate the middleman and 

make possible more cost effective prices for gadgets. 

Coocaa reshaping 

TV industry 

Just a week after its debut on Lazada 

Philippines, six months on Lazada Indonesia and 

four months on Lazada Vietnam and Thailand, 

Coocaa has emerged as one of the eCommerce 

giant’s first joint business partnership (JBP) 

brands for 2019. 

The partnership aims to bring high-quality 

television and after-sale services to the Philippines 

by cutting out the middle-man and providing 

consumers with the best deals. 

By tapping into the marketing, branding and 

sales solutions provided by Lazada’s industry-leading 

platform, Coocaa will focus on the market’s rising 

demand for smart-home devices in Southeast Asia, 

which has led to significant changes in the smart 

TV industry landscape. 

As we curate and create the best 

experiences for consumers, we want to 

build a sustainable marketing, sales and 

branding ecosystem. 

Coocaa is committed to continuing its innovation 

lead by focusing on artificial intelligence — Internet 

of Things — TV (AIoTV) and making them available 

at an affordable price. 

“Coocaa is gearing up to be the trend-setter and 

leader in Southeast Asia’s TV industry, especially in 

the Philippines. Within a very short time, we have 

been recognized as one of Lazada’s JBP brands for 

2019. Through this partnership, we will continue to 

fulfill the appetite for technological advancement 

at an affordable price,” said Rock Zhang, general 

manager of Southeast Asia Brand Business and 

director of Global eCommerce Overseas Department. 

“The eCommerce space in Southeast Asia is growing 

rapidly and we are proud to empower vibrant brands 

like Coocaa, who are embracing this opportunity to 

win new consumers in the region. Lazada is extremely 

committed to developing solutions that our brands 

and sellers can leverage on, to accelerate their growth 

into super eBusinesses. As we curate and create the 

best experiences for consumers, we want to build a 

sustainable marketing, sales and branding ecosystem 

that offers efficiencies and long-term value for our 

partners,” said Jing Yin, president, Lazada Group. 

THURSDAY 

25 APRIL 2019 

PHILIPPINE STOCK EXCHANGE 

NAME OPEN HIGH LOW CLOSE VALUE (P) 

FINANCIALS 

BANKS 

BDO UNIBANK 134 134.2 133.8 134 275,719,018 

BANK PH ISLANDS 82 82.8 81.25 81.5 155,243,140 

CHINABANK 26.2 26.95 26.15 26.8 2,965,195 

EAST WEST BANK 11.64 11.64 11.46 11.58 1,656,744 

METROBANK 75.9 76.85 75.55 76.85 185,139,245.50 

PB BANK 13.46 13.7 13.46 13.46 607,070 

PBCOM 21.95 21.95 21.95 21.95 2,195 

PHIL NATL BANK 53.5 53.5 52.5 52.75 6,639,169 

PSBANK 58.95 59 58.95 58.95 151,567.50 

PHILTRUST 110.2 121.8 110.2 121.8 7,830 

RCBC 26 26 26 26 13,000 

SECURITY BANK 178 181.2 176.1 181.2 62,924,510 

UNION BANK 61 61.3 60.7 60.7 104,655.50 

OTHER FINANCIAL INSTITUTIONS 

BRIGHT KINDLE 1.3 1.3 1.3 1.3 234,000 

BDO LEASING 2.17 2.17 2.17 2.17 19,530 

COL FINANCIAL 18.94 18.96 18.92 18.94 948,768 

FIRST ABACUS 0.59 0.59 0.59 0.59 1,180 

FERRONOUX HLDG 4.69 4.77 4.51 4.74 894,110 

IREMIT 1.41 1.41 1.41 1.41 2,820 

MEDCO HLDG 0.5 0.52 0.495 0.5 1,085,440 

MANULIFE 795 795 780 780 133,150 

NTL REINSURANCE 0.97 1 0.95 0.99 176,350 

PHIL STOCK EXCH 182.1 182.1 178 178 308,455 

VANTAGE 1.13 1.13 1.13 1.13 46,330 

INDUSTRIAL 

ELECTRICITY, ENERGY, POWER & WATER 

ALSONS CONS 1.4 1.4 1.4 1.4 154,000 

ABOITIZ POWER 36.9 38 36.45 38 79,359,150 

BASIC ENERGY 0.239 0.242 0.238 0.242 40,550 

FIRST GEN 22.2 22.2 21.65 21.8 17,150,725 

FIRST PHIL HLDG 80.05 80.2 78.6 79 21,247,491.50 

MERALCO 382 385 377.2 385 71,181,314 

MANILA WATER 22.7 22.95 22.35 22.75 24,590,105 

PETRON 6.41 6.41 6.31 6.32 11,387,277 

PETROENERGY 4.6 4.6 4.4 4.4 433,020 

PHINMA ENERGY 1.44 1.45 1.38 1.44 31,673,580 

PHX PETROLEUM 12 12.08 11.8 12.08 1,521,462 

PILIPINAS SHELL 45.9 45.9 44.55 45.2 4,246,615 

SPC POWER 6.85 7.1 6.84 6.96 1,016,785 

FOOD, BEVERAGE & TOBACCO 

AGRINURTURE 16.2 16.4 15.88 16.16 4,012,544 

CNTRL AZUCARERA 16 16.42 16 16.3 19,404 

CENTURY FOOD 15.68 15.68 15.18 15.18 2,674,782 

DEL MONTE 5.98 5.99 5.72 5.99 97,996 

DNL INDUS 11 11 10.48 10.6 60,595,404 

EMPERADOR 7.4 7.4 7.39 7.39 28,931,016 

SMC FOODANDBEV 114.5 115 113 115 28,945,354 

ALLIANCE SELECT 0.85 0.87 0.83 0.85 1,702,670 

GINEBRA 29.15 30 29.1 29.9 8,101,040 

JOLLIBEE 301 307.6 301 303 274,904,516 

LIBERTY FLOUR 50 50 50 50 2,731,000 

MACAY HLDG 10.2 10.58 10.2 10.58 154,286 

MAXS GROUP 14.5 15.1 14.5 14.9 78,185,438 

MG HLDG 0.196 0.202 0.192 0.202 98,530 

PEPSI COLA 1.24 1.25 1.22 1.25 907,570 

SHAKEYS PIZZA 12.98 12.98 12.2 12.34 6,974,672 

ROXAS AND CO 1.78 1.78 1.65 1.74 5,170 

RFM CORP 4.79 4.8 4.79 4.8 1,315,190 

ROXAS HLDG 2.22 2.22 2.15 2.15 56,430 

SWIFT FOODS 0.129 0.129 0.129 0.129 28,380 

UNIV ROBINA 145.2 145.4 142.5 143.6 116,045,212 

VITARICH 1.4 1.42 1.35 1.37 7,282,360 

VICTORIAS 2.5 2.51 2.5 2.5 1,532,880 

CONSTRUCTION, INFRASTRUCTURE & ALLIED SERVICES 

CONCRETE A 70 73.9 68.4 70 24,231 

CEMEX HLDG 1.97 1.98 1.9 1.9 15,492,360 

DAVINCI CAPITAL 5.35 5.87 5.35 5.85 44,720 

EAGLE CEMENT 15.9 15.98 15.76 15.96 5,346,806 

EEI CORP 9.2 9.4 8.89 9.4 12,054,627 

HOLCIM 11.34 11.4 11.28 11.3 11,552,494 

MEGAWIDE 22.15 22.15 22 22.05 14,251,240 

TKC METALS 0.98 1.02 0.96 0.99 764,060 

VULCAN INDL 1.15 1.17 1.15 1.17 659,340 

CHEMICALS 

CROWN ASIA 1.95 1.98 1.95 1.95 325,800 

EUROMED 1.69 1.69 1.56 1.56 41,240 

MABUHAY VINYL 3.62 3.68 3.62 3.62 83,650 

PRYCE CORP 5.05 5.06 5 5 491,200 

ELECTRICAL COMPONENTS & EQUIPMENT 

CONCEPCION 45 45 45 45 54,000 

GREENERGY 2.74 2.74 2.5 2.5 48,658,310 

INTEGRATED MICR 12.58 12.72 12.5 12.64 3,390,090 

IONICS 1.8 1.8 1.73 1.77 391,570 

PANASONIC 6.12 6.16 6.1 6.1 206,050 

SFA SEMICON 1.24 1.3 1.24 1.29 123,420 

CIRTEK HLDG 27.75 29 27.75 28 1,686,545 

HOLDING FIRMS 

ABACORE CAPITAL 0.62 0.62 0.59 0.6 5,602,450 

ASIABEST GROUP 18.76 19 18.46 18.48 414,462 

AYALA CORP 885 894 883 885 225,800,370 

ABOITIZ EQUITY 55.15 56.1 54 54 70,734,549.50 

ALLIANCE GLOBAL 14.5 14.86 14.5 14.82 99,356,454 

ANGLO PHIL HLDG 0.76 0.78 0.75 0.77 683,040 

ATN HLDG A 1.39 1.4 1.37 1.39 4,862,580 

ATN HLDG B 1.4 1.4 1.39 1.4 579,590 

BHI HLDG 1,251 1,251 1,251 1,251 12,510 

COSCO CAPITAL 7.6 7.6 7.54 7.56 2,716,836 

DMCI HLDG 11.78 11.78 11.4 11.52 44,309,948 

FILINVEST DEV 14.92 15.2 14.88 14.92 18,227,490 

FORUM PACIFIC 0.241 0.25 0.241 0.25 9,810 

GT CAPITAL 852 868.5 828.5 852 441,944,095 

HOUSE OF INV 6.42 6.42 6.41 6.41 95,559 

JG SUMMIT 65.65 65.65 63.7 65 112,753,678 

JOLLIVILLE HLDG 5.5 5.5 5.5 5.5 30,250 

LODESTAR 0.52 0.52 0.5 0.52 5,680 

LOPEZ HLDG 5.17 5.17 5.02 5.02 1,460,804 

LT GROUP 15.8 16 15.5 16 29,783,940 

MABUHAY HLDG 0.55 0.58 0.55 0.58 2,840 

MJC INVESTMENTS 3.38 3.39 3.38 3.39 20,310 

METRO PAC INV 4.4 4.47 4.4 4.44 103,662,610 

PACIFICA 0.039 0.04 0.038 0.04 221,000 

PRIME ORION 2.93 2.93 2.84 2.86 2,993,240 

PRIME MEDIA 1.13 1.13 1.13 1.13 2,260 

SOLID GROUP 1.34 1.34 1.34 1.34 28,140 

SYNERGY GRID 430 473 430 434 84,310 

SM INVESTMENTS 951.5 953 935.5 950 173,739,845 

SAN MIGUEL CORP 177.2 178 173.8 175 44,953,206 

SOC RESOURCES 0.98 0.98 0.93 0.94 1,182,180 

WELLEX INDUS 0.236 0.241 0.236 0.241 49,610 

ZEUS HLDG 0.33 0.34 0.325 0.335 932,550 

PROPERTY 

ARTHALAND CORP 0.79 0.8 0.77 0.77 451,110 

ANCHOR LAND 11.2 11.2 10.02 11.18 61,436 

AYALA LAND 48 49.5 47.95 49.5 901,647,970 

ARANETA PROP 1.99 2 1.99 1.99 437,810 

BELLE CORP 2.45 2.47 2.43 2.44 700,790 

A BROWN 0.77 0.78 0.75 0.77 747,810 

CITYLAND DEVT 0.91 0.92 0.91 0.92 7,310 

CROWN EQUITIES 0.24 0.242 0.237 0.237 1,746,570 

CEBU HLDG 6.33 6.5 6.33 6.5 14,263 

CEB LANDMASTERS 4.3 4.38 4.3 4.35 8,172,570 

CENTURY PROP 0.51 0.52 0.5 0.51 4,016,540 

DOUBLEDRAGON 25.85 26 25.4 25.7 16,589,325 

DM WENCESLAO 10.82 11 10.6 10.76 6,139,780 

EMPIRE EAST 0.495 0.495 0.49 0.49 137,550 

FILINVEST LAND 1.52 1.54 1.52 1.53 12,237,040 


Daily Tribune 

Bond yield inversion triggers dollar outflows 

Foreign fund managers remain prudent in 

the week ending 5 April when the outflow 

of foreign funds continued 

Portfolio funds flowed out on net basis in March 

when as much as $739 million headed for the exit as 

part of a, often global phenomenon fund managers call 

flights to quality. 

Such flights happen every so often when foreign 

wealth invested in peso equity and debt notes are abruptly 

uprooted and taken elsewhere where presumably they 

produce even more wealth for their owners. 

What prompted some foreign fund managers to pull 

out of the country in March for the promise of more 

stable and better returns out there was a curious 

phenomenon known in the industry as the inverted 

yield curve, local traders said. 

The inversion actually happened overseas but prudence 

compelled fund managers in March to take precaution and 

took back their money as the yield on US 10-year Treasury 

note dipped below the yield on the three-month IOU. 

NO less than the top dog at the Bank of the Philippine Islands, its president and CEO Cezar Consing, says the online 

and mobile experience of its clients should prove seamless and worry-free henceforth. 

The yield curve plots bond yields from the shortest 

maturity to its longest and economic history shows that 

when such inversions happen, a recession would follow. 

On 25 March, Jonas Ravelas, chief strategist at Banco de 

Oro, noted that the spread between three-month bills and 

10-year notes inverted for the first time since 2007 following 

weak European and US manufacturing data. This event 

helped push 10-year German bund yields below zero as well. 

Ravelas said the inversion sent shudders through markets, 

with the S&P 500 falling while the yen-led Group-of-10 currency 

gains. He would note that the US dollar rallied at the time but 

still ended with a loss at the close of the week. 

The yield curve plots bond yields from the 

shortest maturity to its longest and economic 

history shows that when such inversions 

happen, a recession would follow. 

Against this background, a total $2.471 billion were 

yanked out of the equities and debt markets in the 

Philippines in March even as only $1.732 billion poured 

inward during the period. The resulting net portfolio 

fund or “hot” money outflow of $739 million, represented 

a turnaround from the year-ago inflows of $1.132 billion. 

Foreign fund managers remain prudent in the week 

ending 5 April when the outflow of foreign funds continued. 

According to data from the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas, just 

a shade shy of $70 million exited the country for elsewhere 

where economic conditions were not as volatile. During the 

week, gross portfolio inflows totaled only $252.84 million 

while gross outflows totaled higher at $322.78 million. 

But perhaps because apprehension or fear over the 

inversion of bond yields has thus far been limited to 

technical watchers, the year-to-date portfolio investments 

continue to show net inflows totaling $293.46 million or 

57 percent lower than last year. Jun Vallecera 

NAME OPEN HIGH LOW CLOSE VALUE (P) 

GLOBAL ESTATE 1.29 1.32 1.29 1.3 1,809,410 

8990 HLDG 13.94 14.7 13.94 14.5 31,064,506 

PHIL INFRADEV 1.75 1.75 1.64 1.66 10,425,400 

CITY AND LAND 0.82 0.83 0.82 0.83 4,130 

MEGAWORLD 5.6 5.6 5.56 5.59 201,848,961 

MRC ALLIED 0.335 0.34 0.33 0.335 4,705,950 

PHIL ESTATES 0.49 0.49 0.49 0.49 9,800 

PRIMEX CORP 2.41 2.5 2.4 2.41 804,260 

ROBINSONS LAND 23.8 24.5 23.8 24.5 84,718,635 

PHIL REALTY 0.42 0.43 0.42 0.43 226,900 

ROCKWELL 1.99 2.01 1.96 2 1,690,490 

SHANG PROP 3.01 3.04 2.95 3.04 3,127,300 

STA LUCIA LAND 1.69 1.7 1.68 1.7 1,468,420 

SM PRIME HLDG 40 40.8 39.65 40.8 416,676,840 

STARMALLS 6.99 7.12 6.87 7.12 1,810,033 

SUNTRUST HOME 0.74 0.74 0.74 0.74 301,920 

VISTA LAND 7.3 7.4 7.29 7.32 34,263,821 

SERVICES 

MEDIA 

ABS CBN 19.2 19.2 19 19.04 1,823,484 

GMA NETWORK 5.19 5.19 5.1 5.13 1,730,949 

MANILA BULLETIN 0.62 0.62 0.58 0.6 407,020 

MLA BRDCASTING 15.1 15.1 15.08 15.08 15,092 

TELECOMMUNICATIONS 

GLOBE TELECOM 1,790 1,837 1,755 1,780 94,930,560 

PLDT 1,237 1,237 1,202 1,234 122,224,560 

INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY 

APOLLO GLOBAL 0.04 0.04 0.04 0.04 188,000 

DFNN INC 6.52 6.95 6.52 6.95 191,670 

ISLAND INFO 0.126 0.129 0.125 0.126 222,180 

ISM COMM 4.9 5.11 4.8 5.11 12,967,530 

JACKSTONES 2.97 3.04 2.96 3.04 89,170 

NOW CORP 2.39 2.39 2.3 2.33 3,981,780 

TRANSPACIFIC BR 0.37 0.375 0.365 0.37 759,700 

PHILWEB 3.05 3.14 3 3.04 5,065,430 

TRANSPORTATION SERVICES 

2GO GROUP 13 13.02 12.6 13 629,262 

ASIAN TERMINALS 15.38 15.48 15.38 15.48 46,290 

CHELSEA 5.1 5.29 5.09 5.29 12,212,391 

CEBU AIR 82.2 82.3 81 81.2 7,262,670 

INTL CONTAINER 121.4 125 121.4 124 398,531,417 

LBC EXPRESS 15.16 15.16 15.16 15.16 4,548 

LORENZO SHIPPNG 0.83 0.87 0.8 0.83 1,218,890 

MACROASIA 21.6 21.8 21.6 21.7 16,054,630 

METROALLIANCE A 1.69 1.89 1.68 1.84 297,900 

PAL HLDG 10.4 10.4 10 10 59,820 

HARBOR STAR 2.83 2.88 2.83 2.84 1,379,720 

HOTEL & LEISURE 

BOULEVARD HLDG 0.07 0.071 0.07 0.07 560,860 

DISCOVERY WORLD 2.05 2.05 2.05 2.05 2,050 

WATERFRONT 0.67 0.68 0.66 0.67 878,830 

EDUCATION 

CENTRO ESCOLAR 7.04 7.04 7.03 7.03 14,071 

IPEOPLE 11.02 11.02 11.02 11.02 71,630 

STI HLDG 0.68 0.68 0.67 0.68 781,830 

CASINOS & GAMING 

BERJAYA 2.27 2.7 2.27 2.55 6,401,780 

BLOOMBERRY 12.52 13 12.52 13 120,634,382 

PACIFIC ONLINE 4.31 4.31 4.25 4.27 47,210 

LEISURE AND RES 3.82 3.82 3.72 3.75 3,024,560 

MANILA JOCKEY 4.75 4.75 4.75 4.75 14,250 

PH RESORTS GRP 3.9 4.18 3.9 4.18 361,340 

PREMIUM LEISURE 0.76 0.76 0.73 0.74 1,882,240 

PHIL RACING 8.15 8.15 8.15 8.15 1,630 

TRAVELLERS 5.62 5.63 5.62 5.63 487,552 

RETAIL 

METRO RETAIL 3.47 3.48 3.44 3.45 14,155,060 

PUREGOLD 43.35 44 43.25 44 166,508,285 

ROBINSONS RTL 78.3 78.3 76.75 78.3 7,618,293.50 

PHIL SEVEN CORP 115.5 116 115.5 116 150,650 

SSI GROUP 2.7 2.74 2.68 2.7 18,419,950 

WILCON DEPOT 17 17.04 16.5 16.8 14,333,438 

OTHER SERVICES 

APC GROUP 0.415 0.42 0.41 0.42 62,350 

EASYCALL 11.9 14.26 11.2 13.5 28,010,848 

GOLDEN BRIA 409 430 408 408 1,150,408 

IPM HLDG 7.05 7.05 7.05 7.05 42,300 

PAXYS 3.11 3.11 3.11 3.11 46,650 

PRMIERE HORIZON 0.96 0.98 0.93 0.96 44,608,970 

SBS PHIL CORP 9.04 9.04 8.81 9.04 94,258 

MINING & OIL 

MINING 

ATOK 12.4 12.78 11.34 12.08 435,482 

APEX MINING 1.39 1.4 1.35 1.38 2,354,860 

ABRA MINING 0.002 0.002 0.002 0.002 304,000 

ATLAS MINING 2.9 2.9 2.8 2.89 513,860 

BENGUET A 1.29 1.57 1.29 1.57 12,280 

BENGUET B 1.55 1.55 1.21 1.21 21,730 

COAL ASIA HLDG 0.29 0.29 0.29 0.29 145,000 

CENTURY PEAK 2.71 2.72 2.7 2.72 1,031,400 

DIZON MINES 8.08 8.1 7.99 8.01 51,280 

FERRONICKEL 1.5 1.52 1.48 1.52 16,491,260 

GEOGRACE 0.255 0.255 0.247 0.255 154,800 

LEPANTO A 0.115 0.115 0.113 0.113 63,570 

LEPANTO B 0.113 0.113 0.113 0.113 1,130 

MANILA MINING A 0.0089 0.009 0.0087 0.0087 26,600 

MANILA MINING B 0.0086 0.009 0.0085 0.0086 52,400 

MARCVENTURES 1.06 1.09 1.05 1.09 85,110 

NIHAO 1.01 1.01 0.98 1.01 54,220 

NICKEL ASIA 2.46 2.49 2.44 2.47 2,307,900 

ORNTL PENINSULA 0.92 0.92 0.9 0.92 218,940 

PX MINING 3.19 3.19 3.15 3.15 1,158,200 

SEMIRARA MINING 23.7 23.95 23.5 23.7 14,883,505 

OIL 

ORNTL PETROL A 0.012 0.013 0.012 0.012 99,700 

PHILODRILL 0.011 0.012 0.011 0.012 1,201,100 

PHINMA PETRO 3.11 3.11 3.1 3.1 27,950 

PXP ENERGY 9.41 9.8 8.53 8.57 182,927,943 

PREFERRED 

HOUSE PREF A 95.9 95.9 95.9 95.9 19,180 

AC PREF B2 497 497 497 497 34,790 

DD PREF 96.1 97.9 96.1 97 264,386 

SMC FB PREF 2 975 975 975 975 1,043,250 

FGEN PREF G 103 104 103 104 5,684,530 

LR PREF 1.01 1.01 1.01 1.01 223,210 

MWIDE PREF 100.1 102.9 100.1 102.9 103,901 

PNX PREF 3A 100 100 100 100 3,000,000 

PNX PREF 3B 105 105 105 105 52,500 

SFI PREF 1.45 1.45 1.45 1.45 14,500 

SMC PREF 2B 75 75 75 75 336,000 

SMC PREF 2C 76.9 76.9 76.05 76.05 690,327 

SMC PREF 2D 72.5 72.5 72.5 72.5 725 

SMC PREF 2E 72.55 72.55 72.55 72.55 3,250,240 

SMC PREF 2G 73 73 73 73 292,730 

SMC PREF 2H 73.65 73.7 73.65 73.65 1,984,450.50 

PHIL.DEPOSITARY RECEIPTS 

ABS HLDG PDR 18.5 18.5 18.06 18.08 258,710 

GMA HLDG PDR 5.12 5.12 5.01 5.01 10,108 

WARRANTS 

LR WARRANT 1.98 1.98 1.91 1.91 114,540 

SMALL, MEDIUM & EMERGING 

ITALPINAS 5.05 5.4 5.02 5.3 12,660,255 

XURPAS 1.13 1.18 1.12 1.17 5,614,040 

EXCHANGE TRADED FUNDS 

FIRST METRO ETF 117.5 117.5 117.2 117.5 1,623,833


Daily Tribune 

BUSINESS 

11 

NG still in deficit 

THE Department of Transportation was presented on Thursday with a 

Recognition of Excellence at the 3rd Annual Philippine OpenGov Leadership 

Forum for its “Sumbong Bulok, Sumbong Usok” digital chatbot hotline 

program that delivers prompt assistance to the riding public while promoting 

safety, security and convenience. 

DoTr PHOTO 

By Elmer N. Manuel 

Vigilance 

vs substandard 

materials 

We have already 

intensified our efforts 

to monitor the market 

for those substandard 

materials 

The Department of Trade and 

Industry (DTI) on Thursday vowed 

to further intensify its efforts to 

curb the proliferation of substandard 

construction materials following the 

collapse of some establishments 

during the magnitude 6.1 earthquake 

that hit Central Luzon on Monday. 

In a broadcast interview, Trade 

Undersecretary for the Consumer 

Protection Group, Ruth Castelo, 

said the DTI is closely monitoring 

the market for the presence 

of substandard construction 

materials. 

“We have already intensified our 

efforts to monitor the market for 

those substandard materials,” said 

Castelo. “We also remain vigilant 

after receiving a report on the 

alleged proliferation of substandard 

cement imported from Vietnam.” 

This has reference to a report 

that substandard cement from 

Vietnam is circulating in the 

Philippines, especially in rural 

regions. 

Castelo said the agency has 

also strengthened its enforcement 

and has thus far found all cement 

products in the market as compliant 

with standards set by the Bureau of 

Philippine Standards (BPS). 

“DTI’s intensified monitoring 

and enforcement efforts definitely 

include going after unscrupulous 

importers, traders and retailers 

that intentionally disregard the 

mandatory product certification 

scheme of the BPS,” Castelo said. 

Earlier, the DTI announced 

stepping up its visibility in the 

markets through intensified 

monitoring and enforcement 

to ensure product quality and 

consumer safety, especially on 

construction materials such as 

cement, steel bars, angle bars, uPVC 

pipes and sanitary wares. 

As to the warning issued by 

a consumer group on the alleged 

proliferation of substandard 

imported cement from Vietnam, 

Castelo clarified the DTI is on the 

lookout and more vigilant than ever. 

“Even in the absence of 

such warning, the Department 

remains vigilant and on top 

of matters pertaining to the 

quality of products,” said Castelo. 

“DTI’s intensified monitoring and 

enforcement efforts definitely 

include going after unscrupulous 

importers, traders, and retailers 

that intentionally disregard the 

mandatory product certification 

scheme of the BPS.” 

Castelo also said that the DTI 

increased the frequency and scope 

of its monitoring and enforcement 

activities this year especially in 

the regions and provinces, noting 

that its regional agencies have 

already covered Regions 3, 4A 

(CALABARZON), 7 and the 

Cordillera Administrative Region. 

Even in the absence of such 

warning, the Department 

remains vigilant and on top 

of matters pertaining to the 

quality of products. 

The DTI undersecretary also 

reminded the public to look for the 

ICC mark on the products that they 

are buying to ensure that it is well 

within the standards implemented 

by the BPS. 

“The ICC is a hologram sticker 

and it indicates that the material 

has passed quality standards,” 

said Castelo. “We also have posted 

on our social media account the 

establishments that are proven to 

sell quality construction materials.” 

Castelo also appealed to 

contractors to ensure that they are 

purchasing quality materials and 

refrain from using substandard 

materials that may cause damage 

or worse, loss of life should 

disasters hit. 

“We call on the contractors 

and appeal to them not to use 

substandard materials,” said 

Castelo. “We know that contractors 

have a very good idea of a standard 

quality and a substandard material, 

so we urge them to do the right 

thing.” 

By Joshua Lao 

The country’s fiscal position remains 

in deficit in March when the national 

government (NG) reported sustaining an 

imbalance, the Bureau of Treasury (BTr) 

said on Thursday. 

The bulk of NG revenues came 

from tax collections comprising 90 

percent of the overall figure while the 

remaining 10 percent were from nontax 

collection. 

“The NG recorded a budget deficit of 

P58.4 billion for the month of March, 47 

percent lower than last year’s outturn given 

revenue growth and lower government 

spending,” the BTr said. 

NG expenditures in March slowed eight 

percent to P287.3 billion versus P313.1 billion 

in the same month a year ago. 

According to the Treasury, this was 

owed to lower subsidy and equity releases 

to government-owned and -controlled 

corporations (GOCC) and to the delay in 

the passage of the year’s budget. 

On a cumulative basis, expenditures in 

the first three months grew a mere one 

percent to P778 billion from P772 billion in 

the first quarter last on the account of higher 

interest payments (IP). 

“IP for the month rose by 33 percent or 

P9 billion year-on-year to P36.6 billion due 

to coupon payments on 2018 bond issuances. 

Year-to-date IP of P107.8 billion was also 

higher than the P97.2 billion recorded in 

the same period last year by 11 percent,” 

the BTr said. 

“IP comprised 13.9 percent of the total 

expenditures compared to 12.6 percent in first 

quarter of 2018. Meanwhile, January-March IP 

as a percentage 

of total revenues 

was 15.7 percent 

or the same from a year ago,” the agency 

added. 

Revenue collection during the month 

stood at P228.9 billion, a 13 percent incline 

from P202.4 billion in March 2018. 

Likewise, year-to-date revenues improved 

by 11 percent to P687.7 billion from P619.8 

billion in the first quarter of 2018. The bulk 

of NG revenues came from tax collections 

comprising 90 percent of the overall figure 

while the remaining 10 percent were from 

non-tax collection. 

“The Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) 

posted 13 percent year-on-year growth, 

sustaining its positive performance for the 

third straight month as it raised P147.4 billion. 

BIR’s total revenue for January to March 2019 

amounting to P468.2 billion also reflects an 

11 percent or P45.1 billion increment over 

last year’s first-quarter achievement,” the 

agency said. 

“Revenue collected by the Bureau of 

Customs increased by 9 percent year-on-year 

to P49.3 billion in March, driving its first-quarter 

collections to P141.9 billion and 9 percent 

or P12.1 billion better than the comparable 

amount in 2018,” it added. 

The BTr likewise reported a 37 percent 

revenue increase of P12 billion in March 

resulting from higher dividends on 

shares of stocks, investment income 

from bond sinking fund and NG deposits 

and remittance from the Philippine 

Amusement and Gaming Corporation. 

“Cumulatively, BTr’s first-quarter 

income jumped 35 percent to P30.8 

billion from P22.8 billion during the 

previous year on account 

of higher dividend 

collections from the 

Bangko Sentral ng 

Pilipinas (P4 billion) 

and Philippine 

Deposit Insurance 

Corporation (P4.6 

billion),” the BTr 

said. 

THE Bureau of Internal Revenue posted 13 percent year-on-year growth, sustaining its positive performance for the third straight month as it raised P147.4 billion. 

CEBU Air Inc.’s rewards program data breach is quickly reported to the 

authorities who gave instructions to secure the machine against future 

unauthorized incursions. 

Airline rewards 

program compromised 

The security of Cebu Air Inc.’s lifestyle rewards program GetGo has been 

compromised by an unauthorized breach. 

The incursion was reported on Thursday to the National Privacy 

Commission who was given assurance that credit card information, 

Cebu Air data protection officer Randall Evangelista said, was not 

stored in its servers. 

Still, the NPC gave strict instructions for Randall to report on the incident 

before the regulator in person today, Friday, and for the business to take 

immediate measures so that no such breaches happen in the future. 

Cebu Air has also sent notifications to GetGo members that while their 

servers had been penetrated by unauthorized entities, much more serious 

consequences have been averted given that credit card data was never on 

the compromised machine. 

“As we continue to investigate this incident, we have secured and 

locked your account with your points. In the meantime, all GetGo online 

channels will be unavailable. As an additional precaution, log-in using GetGo 

credentials to the Cebu Pacific website and mobile app are also temporarily 

disabled. We will make these channels available at the soonest possible time. 

It added the security of customer data is of utmost importance to 

Cebu Air. 

“To help us manage it well, please do not open or click links on suspicious 

emails. Legitimate Cebu Pacific and GetGo promotions are communicated 

through the official social media accounts of Cebu Pacific and GetGo. These 

pages are verified by Facebook,” it said.

12 

GLOBAL GOALS 

Elmer N. Manuel, Editor 


Daily Tribune 

The Philippines recently was rocked 

with four separate strong earthquakes 

that caused chaos and disarray to the 

public and revived once again talks 

about the infamous “Big One” — a much 

stronger quake which is projected to hit 

the metropolis. 

On Monday, a magnitude 6.1 temblor 

shook parts of Central Luzon which 

left in its wake at least 16 people dead 

and millions of pesos worth in damages 

to age-old structures and commercial 

establishments. 

The next day, the country saw parts 

of Eastern Samar shaking from a 6.4 

magnitude quake. Although most of 

the infrastructure were spared from 

devastating damage, it left the public 

gripped in fear. 

Barely 24 hours after that, two 

earthquakes struck waters off Davao 

Oriental and Davao Occidental provinces 

minutes apart early on Wednesday — with 

the first quake registering 4.5 on the Richter 

scale that hit 374 kilometers southwest of 

Sarangani, Davao Occidental around 11:28 

a.m. and had a depth of 270 kilometers, 

while the second one — a magnitude 4.7 

quake — struck 63 kilometers northeast of 

Baganga, Davao Oriental. 

That said, 

we have seen 

a resurgence 

of talks 

about the 

“Big One” 

as those 

temblors 

reminded 

the public 

that a 

potentially 

much stronger 

quake may 

strike the 

Traditional knowledge is at the core of 

indigenous identity, culture and heritage 

around the world, the chair of the United 

Nations (UN) Permanent Forum on Indigenous 

Issues said at the annual event’s opening day, 

stressing that it “must be protected.” 

Anne Nuorgam, who is a member of 

Finland’s Saami Parliament and head of 

the Saami Council’s Human Rights Unit, 

described the Forum as an opportunity to 

share innovations and practices, developed 

in indigenous communities “over centuries 

and millennia.” 

Nuorgam encouraged everyone 

to “make sure our children” are 

connected to their indigenous 

communities and cultures. 

Indigenous peoples make up less than 

six percent of the world’s population, but 

account for 15 percent of the poorest on earth, 

according to the Forum. They live in some 90 

countries, represent 5,000 different cultures 

and speak the overwhelming majority of the 

world’s estimated 6,700 languages. 

Noting that 2019 is the International Year 

of Indigenous Languages, she said that “we 

have to celebrate our languages, but also take 

concrete action to preserve them and save 

Shore it up 

metropolis and nearby provinces. 

Although concerned government agencies 

have said that those tremors were not related 

in any way, it should open the government 

and the public’s eyes to the most pressing issue 

when it comes to earthquakes — infrastructure 

safety and stability. 

With the metropolis having a lot of 

active faults — including the West Valley 

Fault System which runs north to south 

along the west and east edges of the 

Marikina Valley — this is one that we see 

that “poses the greatest threat.” 

And while the West Valley Fault has 

moved four times and generated strong 

earthquakes over the last 1,400 years, or 

once every 350 years, we cannot deny the 

fact that we need to shore up our structures 

and inspect every nook and cranny of 

buildings to ensure the safety of the public. 

A previous study showed that a 

7.2-magnitude earthquake caused by the 

movement of the West Valley Fault will 

cause devastating damage to 40 percent 

of all residential buildings, and 35 percent 

of public facilities such as schools and 

hospitals. 

It’s never too late to call on 

concerned government agencies 

to shore up our infrastructure 

to ensure that it will not be the 

cause of loss of life. 

It also revealed that a number 

of bridges will be destroyed, 

with power, water and 

telecommunications lines cut and 

as many as 34,000 may be left 

dead, with another 114,000 

injured — not to mention 

the additional 18,000 deaths 

which was projected because 

of fires that will likely spread 

after the devastating quake. 

The government should 

Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues. 

those on the verge of extinction.” 

Nuorgam pointed out that in many 

countries, indigenous children are not taught 

in their language. Citing Article 14 of the 

UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous 

Peoples, she recalled that indigenous peoples 

intensify its efforts and take the 

necessary steps in the reinforcement 

and strengthening of buildings — meaning, 

the constant updating of the national 

building code and strict adherence to the 

provisions, to ensure that structures are 

able to withstand strong earthquakes. 

Regular inspections of roads, bridges, 

railways, airports and harbors should also 

be a priority measure. These must be 

undertaken, as these are vital in ensuring 

rapid and adequate emergency response 

to reduce the loss of life. 

While we pray that the “Big One” will 

not happen, it’s never too late to call on 

concerned government agencies to shore 

up our infrastructure to ensure that it 

will not be the cause of loss of life should 

the dreaded quake happens. 

We also need to have a higher level of 

preparedness and effectiveness of risk 

management and emergency response 

systems to minimize the inevitable loss 

of life in these types of disasters. 

Let’s also not wait for the tremblors of 

an actual earthquake to remind us of the 

need to be well-informed and prepared 

for possible disasters. Earthquake 

preparedness does not happen overnight, 

so we still need to do a lot of convincing. 

have the right to provide education in their 

own languages. 

“However, this needs financial and 

technical support from member states and 

the UN system,” she stated. 

As studies show that children learn 

THE International Labour Organization shows the global trends in safety and health and 

its effects on workers worldwide. 

UN PHOTO 

Stress, overtime factors 

of workers’ deaths 

Stress, excessively-long working hours and 

disease contribute to the deaths of nearly 

2.8 million workers every year, while an 

additional 374 million people get injured or fall 

ill because of their jobs, the United Nations 

(UN) labor agency, International Labour 

Organization (ILO), said in a statement. 

The greatest causes of mortality 

are circulatory diseases (31 

percent), work-related cancers 

(26 percent) and respiratory 

diseases (17 percent). 

In a new report underlining ILO’s 

message that no paid work should threaten 

your wellbeing, your safety or your life, the 

agency identifies several new or existing 

occupational risks of growing concern, that 

affect women more than men. 

These include modern working practices 

overall, world population growth, increased 

digital connectivity and climate change, 

which are believed to account for losses of 

almost four percent of the global economy. 

“The world of work has changed, we’re 

working differently, we’re working longer 

hours, we’re using more technology,” ILO’s 

Manal Azzi told UN News. “The report 

says 36 percent of workers are working 

excessive long hours, meaning more than 

48 hours per week.” 

Noting that “people are increasingly 

Marking International Mother Earth 

Day, the United Nations (UN) debated 

how best to build “an equitable and 

A RESIDENT walks past rubble of the 18th century St. Catherine of Alexandria Church after its bell tower was destroyed following sustainable future” for all, through 

a 6.1 magnitude earthquake that struck the town of Porac, Pampanga province last Monday. 

AFP enhanced education and climate action, 

on the road to a key international 

Indigenous heritage must be protected 

While developing countries have long 

struggled with the price of medicines, 

“KEEPING the fire strong,” indigenous girls of the Onondaga Nation, Haudenoaunee Confederacy, perform at the 18th session of the 

Fair medicine pricing a global issue 

RAGHAD, who lives in a refugee camp in Jordan, suffers from type 1 diabetes and 

requires daily administration of insulin, but finds it hard to keep the insulin cool in the 

summer with limited electricity in the camp. 

WHO PHOTO 

today’s costs have rendered it a worldwide 

challenge, and the key topic of concern 

INGA Rhonda King (center), president of the Economic and Social Council, shares her 

insights in the Financing for Development Forum of ECOSOC Session 2019. UN PHOTO 

at a global medicines forum in South 

Africa, co-sponsored by the World Health 

Organization (WHO). 

“This is a global human rights issue,” 

said WHO Assistant Director General 

for Medicines and Health Products 

Mariângela Simão at the WHO Forum 

on Medicines in Johannesburg. “Everyone 

has a right to access quality healthcare.” 

The forum on fair pricing and access 

to medicines provided a discussion 

platform for governments, civil society 

organizations and the pharmaceutical 

industry to identify strategies to reduce 

prices and expand access for all. 

It also called for greater transparency 

around the cost of research, development 

and production of medicines, to allow 

buyers to negotiate more affordable 

prices. 

Uneven growth, rising debt levels, possible 

upticks in financial volatility and heightened 

global trade tensions are hampering progress 

on reaching the Sustainable Development 

Goals , said United Nations (UN) chief António 

Guterres during a Forum on Financing for 

Development (FfD), in what he called “a 

critical moment” to “accelerate action for 

sustainable development.” 

Ministers, senior UN officials, high-level 

finance officials, civil society, business 

representatives and local authorities are 

UN PHOTO 

best in their own mother tongue, Nuorgam 

encouraged everyone to “make sure our 

children” are connected to their indigenous 

communities and cultures, as they are 

“inextricably linked to their lands, territories 

and natural resources.” 

asked to produce more and more, they 

have no time to rest,” Azzi highlighted 

that women are particularly at risk. This is 

because they tend to be the primary carer 

for children or parents and lack the time 

to exercise, she said. 

“Not only do you work when you’re at 

your office but then you’re working at home 

as well,” Azzi said, “so it’s a lot of sedentary 

work and that affects cardiovascular 

diseases as well.” 

The greatest proportion of work-related 

deaths — 86 percent — come from disease, 

according to ILO, with some 6,500 people 

a day dying from occupational diseases, 

compared to 1,000 from fatal occupational 

accidents. 

The greatest causes of mortality 

are circulatory diseases (31 percent), 

work-related cancers (26 percent) and 

respiratory diseases (17 percent). 

“As well as the economic cost we must 

recognize the immeasurable human suffering 

such illnesses and accidents cause,” Azzi 

said. “These are all-the-more tragic because 

they are largely preventable.” 

Launched during the ILO’s centenary 

year — and ahead of the World Day for 

Safety and Health at Work on 28 April, the 

report underlines the life-saving value of 

promoting prevention, to save lives and 

encourage healthy working environments. 

UN urges: Tackle climate change 

summit on the issue due to take place 

in September. 

Billed officially as an Interactive 

Dialogue on Harmony with Nature, the 

UN General Assembly session involved 

member states and top officials discussing 

the need to take urgent action against 

the pace of global warming, in line 

with the 2015 Paris Agreement, to keep 

carbon dioxide emissions to well-below 

two degrees Celsius. 

In a tweet to mark Earth Day, UN chief 

António Guterres said it was vital “every 

day” to “commit to taking better care of our 

planet. Please do everything in your power 

to tackle climate change — the defining 

issue of our time,” he said. 

“Climate change is one of the largest 

threats to sustainable development 

globally,” said the concept note prepared 

for the General Assembly meeting, 

“and is just one of many imbalances 

caused by the unsustainable actions of 

humankind, with direct implications for 

future generations.” 

President of the General Assembly, 

Maria Fernanda Espinosa, said that taking 

care of nature was, in essence, “taking care 

of people.” She also noted the importance 

of respecting life-cycles of the natural 

world, and contributing to biological 

diversity so that the world can “continue 

and prosper.” 

“We are the last generation that can 

prevent irreparable damage to the planet 

and to its inhabitants,” she tweeted. “We 

are at a crossroads; this is the moment 

in which we decide the path we wish to 

take, to avoid reaching a point of no return 

in global warming. We already know the 

results of inaction.” 

A STREET vendor shivers in the rain during a typhoon. As weather patterns affect the world, 

the United Nations is reiterating its call to take urgent action against the pace of global warming. 

‘Critical moment’ for sustainable development 

meeting at UN Headquarters for the four-day 

FfD Forum, as it is known for short. 

Guterres said climate change, 

greenhouse gas emissions and technologies 

disrupting labor markets, were a major 

challenge, saying “We are here today as 

part of an effort to coordinate an urgent 

global response to reverse these trends.” 

“Simply put,” he spelled out, “we need 

more money to implement the Sustainable 

Development Goals.” 

Noting that development aid remains 

essential, “especially for the poorest 

countries,” the UN chief shone a light on 

the importance of countries themselves 

generating more funding, including by 

increasing tax revenue and the impact of 

investment. 

“National policy frameworks are key 

to reducing risks, creating an enabling 

business environment, incentivizing 

investment in public goals and aligning 

financial systems with long-term sustainable 

development,” he stated.

TIGER 

BACK 

ON 

PROWL 

P14 

BRNN 

SENDS 

STRONGER 

BRI VOICE 

P16 

EVEN 

NON-FANS 

WILL 

LOVE IT 

P17 

TONY 

LABRUSCA 

PROVES HE 

CAN ACT 

P18 

Julius Manicad, Editor 


Daily Tribune 

CLIPPERS STILL ALIVE 

SPORTS 13 

Lou strikes anew 

He came out with more energy 

than we had and that set a tone 

OAKLAND, California — Lou Williams 

again came off the bench and knocked 

down big shot after big shot. Patrick 

Beverley crashed the boards at every 

chance. Danilo Gallinari drove the lane 

with authority. 

The Los Angeles Clippers took the 

MAJOR 

LEAGUE 

BASEBALL 

National League 

East Division 

W L Pct GB 

New York 13 11 .542 — 

Philadelphia 13 11 .542 — 

Atlanta 12 11 .522 ½ 

Washington 11 12 .478 1½ 

Miami 7 17 .292 6 

Central Division 

St. Louis 15 9 .625 — 

Chicago 12 10 .545 2 

Pittsburgh 12 10 .545 2 

Milwaukee 13 13 .500 3 

Cincinnati 9 14 .391 5½ 

West Division 

Los Angeles 15 11 .577 — 

Arizona 14 11 .560 ½ 

San Diego 14 11 .560 ½ 

Colorado 11 14 .440 3½ 

San Francisco 11 14 .440 3½ 

Wednesday’s Games 

(Thursday in Manila) 

Cleveland 6, Miami 2 

St. Louis 5, Milwaukee 2 

Colorado 9, Washington 5 

San Diego 1, Seattle 0 

San Francisco 4, Toronto 0 

Atlanta 3, Cincinnati 1 

Arizona 11, Pittsburgh 2 

Philadelphia 6, N.Y. Mets 0 

Chicago Cubs 7, L.A. Dodgers 6 

American League 

East Division 

W L Pct GB 

Tampa Bay 16 9 .640 — 

New York 14 10 .583 1½ 

Toronto 11 14 .440 5 

Boston 10 15 .400 6 

Baltimore 10 16 .385 6½ 

Central Division 

Minnesota 13 9 .591 — 

Cleveland 13 10 .565 ½ 

Detroit 12 11 .522 1½ 

Chicago 9 14 .391 4½ 

Kansas City 8 17 .320 6½ 

West Division 

Houston 15 9 .625 — 

Seattle 16 11 .593 ½ 

Texas 12 11 .522 2½ 

Oakland 14 13 .519 2½ 

Los Angeles 9 16 .360 6½ 

Wednesday’s Games 

(Thursday in Manila) 

Cleveland 6, Miami 2 

Kansas City 10, Tampa Bay 2 

Oakland 6, Texas 5 

San Diego 1, Seattle 0 

San Francisco 4, Toronto 0 

Baltimore 4, Chicago White Sox 3 

Boston 11, Detroit 4 

Houston 7, Minnesota 1 

N.Y. Yankees 6, L.A. Angels 5 

Warriors right out of their comfort zone by 

beating the two-time defending champions 

at their own game with energy on both 

ends, extending their season after many 

had counted them out. 

Williams hit a fadeaway jumper with 

1:29 left and finished with 33 points and 10 

assists, Golden State uncharacteristically 

clanked shots much of the second half and 

couldn’t make key stops, and the upstart 

Clippers sent their first-round series back 

home with a 129-121 win in Game 5 on 

Wednesday night. 

No clinch celebration just yet for the 

two-time defending champions, who lead, 

3-2, but needed far more than Kevin 

Durant’s playoff career-high 45 points. 

It’s their mistake for looking 

ahead. That’s on them. 

“I don’t want to get ahead of myself. 

They’re up 3-2 still, but I just loved how 

we played, I really did,” Clippers coach 

Doc Rivers said. 

“All we talked about is being us. I told 

our guys, they’ve been them in the series. 

We have yet to put a game where we are 

us through the game.” 

The Clippers stymied Golden State’s 

comeback effort on the very court at 

Oracle Arena where Los Angeles rallied 

from 31 points down in Game 2 for the 

largest comeback in NBA postseason 

history. 

Game 6 is Friday back in Los Angeles. 

Beverley took a big charge against Klay 

Thompson with 1:40 left and wound up 

with 17 points and 14 rebounds for his best 

outing of the series. 

“I thought Patrick Beverley came in, 

just kicked our butts right away,” Warriors 

coach Steve Kerr said. “He came out with 

more energy than we had and that set a 

tone.” 

Houston and James Harden are on to 

the second round and waiting for another 

Russell likes 

to return 

Hell yeah, I definitely want 

to be here 

NEW YORK — D’Angelo Russell was an 

All-Star and the Brooklyn Nets became a 

playoff team. Neither looked likely four 

months ago. 

So it was a surprisingly successful 

season, though there’s plenty of work 

left for the Nets to do, including deciding 

whether Russell will have a role. 

Nets players were proud of their 

accomplishments but realistic about the 

future Wednesday, a day after they were 

routed by the 76ers in Game 5 of their return 

to the postseason. 

Changes are necessary if the Nets want 

to contend with a team like Philadelphia. So 

players heading into free agency 

can’t be certain of their futures in 

Brooklyn. 

Not even Russell, the former No. 

2 pick, who had a breakout season. 

“Hell yeah, I definitely want to 

be here,” he said. “But I also know 

it’s a business too, so I’m not going to play that role like I don’t know what 

could possibly happen.” 

Early in the season, Caris LeVert was the Nets’ best player and Russell 

sometimes sat on the bench in the fourth quarter. But with the Nets at 8-18 

in December and LeVert sidelined with a dislocated right foot, Russell began 

to find his form. 

AP 

chance at the champs. 

The Clippers said not just yet, they’re 

not done. 

The Rockets, who squandered a 

3-2 series lead to the Warriors in last 

year’s Western Conference finals, 

eliminated the Utah Jazz with 

a 100-93 Game 5 victory at 

home a few hours earlier. 

Sure, the Warriors have 

thought about a potential 

second-round matchup. 

“Our focus was to come 

in and extend the series 

and get another game on 

our home floor,” Williams 

said. “It’s their mistake for 

looking ahead. That’s on them.” 

Gallinari added 26 points and 

seven rebounds, and Montrezl Harrell 

had 24 points as the eighth-seeded 

Clippers are keeping things interesting 

until the end. 

“We’ve got to bring it if we’re going to 

beat them,” Kerr said. 

Durant raised his arm late and called on 

the crowd for a major assist — the Warriors 

needed every little bit of help. Thompson’s 

trey with 4:02 left made it 116-114 and 

Durant tied it on a driving dunk the next 

time down. 

Stephen Curry scored 24 points and 

Thompson 22 but Golden 

State didn’t have it 

on defense. AP 

LOU Williams of the Los Angeles Clippers looks to pass around Andrew Bogut of the Golden State Warriors during Game 5 of 

their 2019 NBA Western Conference Playoffs first round series at the Oracle Arena in Oakland, California. 

AFP 

RUSSELL 

Boston nips Detroit 

Getting a win is the most important 

thing 

BOSTON — The defending World 

Series champion Boston Red Sox 

hadn’t had a lopsided victory 

yet this season. Their win over 

Detroit on Wednesday night 

gave them a chance to relax. 

JD Martinez had three hits, 

Eduardo Rodriguez pitched six strong 

innings and the Red Sox rebounded from 

a doubleheader sweep by Detroit with a 

seven-run outburst in the eighth inning 

in an 11-4 win over the Tigers. 

“We were kind of joking about it that this is the 

first night we’ve had like this,” Martinez said. “Last 

year, it felt like we had a lot of them.” 

The Red Sox avoided their fourth losing streak 

of three games or more. They had only four losing 

streaks of three games each last season while piling 

up a club record of 108 victories. 

It’s the first time the Red Sox scored double-digit 

runs. Their previous largest margin of victory was 

four runs. 

Martinez hit two singles, a double and drove in 

a run and Christian Vázquez had two RBI singles. 

“It felt great,” reigning AL MVP Mookie Betts said 

of the lopsided victory. 

AP 

BOSTON Red Sox’s Michael Chavis (right) slides across the plate as the ball gets away from Detroit 

Tigers catcher Grayson Greiner while scoring on a single by Christian Vazquez in the eighth inning of 

a baseball game at Fenway Park in Boston. 

AP

14 SPORTS 


Daily Tribune 

NEXT STOP: TOKYO 

Tiger back on prowl 

TIGER Woods of the 

United States celebrates 

after sinking his putt on the 

18th green to win during the 

final round of the Masters at 

Augusta National Golf Club in 

Augusta, Georgia. AFP 

Mondilla, Kim surge 

That’s a good bogey 

STA. ROSA, Laguna — Clyde Mondilla holed out with a birdie then 

watched Kim Joo Hyung fumble with a missed green bogey for a big two-shot 

swing that put the Filipino ace back in joint lead with the young Korean in 

the third round of The Country Club Invitational here Thursday. 

Kim bucked an opening hole mishap with a cluster of birdies to stun 

Mondilla and three-time champion Angelo Que with a 33 start but Mondilla 

rallied from three down with a strong finish at TCC’s tricky finishing 

holes, sparking his fightback with a birdie on No. 14 before drilling in a 

10-footer on the difficult No. 18 to salvage a 70. 

Kim rebounded from a bogey on No. 11 with a birdie on the 16th to 

keep his spot on top but the Korean upstart failed to ride the pressure 

on the last hole, hitting it short on his approach shot. 

“That’s a good bogey,” said Kim, whose 70 kept him tied with Mondilla at 

even 216, virtually setting up a two-man duel for the top P1.5 million purse in 

this kickoff leg of the PGT’s milestone 10th season put up by ICTSI chairman 

Ricky Razon in 2003 to honor the memory of his father and ICTSI founder. 

“I played good, my irons, short game and putting were okay,” said 

Mondilla, seeking to make it two-in-row after besting a crack international 

field in the Solaire Philippine Open three weeks ago. 

The Del Monte ace hit three birdies inside 15 feet against a lone bogey, 

missing eagle chances on the two par-5s. He hit a solid 3-iron second shot 

from 195 yards on No. 8 but misread a 10-footer then hacked a 3-wood 

second shot from 280 yards to within 15 feet on No. 14. 

Keanu Jahns turned in a rare backside 32 to save a 71 as he 

moved to solo third though four strokes behind the joint leaders at 

220 for a spot in the championship flight tipped to go down to the 

last shot or putt. 

Que turned in an impressive 35 but after three straight pars at the 

back, the power-hitting shotmaker wavered, bogeying three of the last 

six, including the last for a 74 and a 222, now six shots behind. 

Aussie Tim Stewart also charged back with a closing 34 to salvage a 

73 for solo fifth at 224 while Juvic Pagunsan, the only other three-time 

winner of this event long regarded as a major championship for its prized 

money and select cast, continued to struggle, hobbling with a birdie-less 

76 for joint sixth with first round leader Jerson Balasabas, who limped 

with a 78, at 226. 

Dutch Guido Van der Valk bogeyed two of the last four for a 75 and a 

227 while Korean-American Micah Shin matched par 72 

but lay 12 shots behind at 228 with Justin Quiban, 

who also battled back with a 35 for a 75. 

Kim said he struggled off the mound 

and vowed to stay in control of his 

game in the last 18 holes but 

refused to predict the 

winning score. 

CLYDE Mondilla hits a wedge 

shot on No. 15 in The Country 

Club Invitational golf tournament 

in Sta. Rosa, Laguna. 

Corpus, Ramos advance 

Carl Corpus dispatched Kristoffer Arevalo with an early burst of 

birdies while Sean Ramos bucked a shaky start to subdue Paolo Barro as 

they moved to the semifinals of the Philippine Amateur Open Match Play 

Championships yesterday at the Luisita Golf and Country Club in Tarlac. 

The top seeded Corpus, who needed three extra holes to turn back 

Korean Ha Tae Won in the first round of the knockout phase Wednesday, 

birdied the first three holes to seize control, went 4-up with a par on No. 

4 then held sway the rest of the way to fashion out a 4 and 2 romp over 

the ninth ranked Arevalo. 

Ramos, on the other hand, bogeyed the first hole and yielded the 

third on a Barro birdie. 

But the second seeded bet fought back with a birdie on the fourth, 

forced an all-square game with a par on No. 5 then surged ahead by taking 

the next two holes. He clinched a 3 and 2 victory with a birdie on the 16th. 

No. 13 Kim Tae Soo built a three-hole cushion against the 12th-ranked 

Paolo Wong after 11 holes then fended off his rival’s late charge with 

pars in the last two for 1-up victory in their side of the quarters duel. 

It’s going to be a fun fall 

TOKYO, Japan — Newly crowned Masters champion Tiger Woods 

announced Thursday he will return to Japan for the first time in 

more than a decade to play in a new US PGA Tour event in October. 

“I’m excited to play in the inaugural ZOZO Championship in 

October and return to Japan, one of my favorite countries. It’s 

going to be a fun fall,” tweeted the 43-year-old American. 

Woods stunned the sporting world earlier this month by 

completing an epic comeback from spinal fusion surgery 

to win his 15th major title at Augusta National and his 

first since the 2008 US Open. 

A 2009 sex scandal followed by knee and back 

injuries that required seven operations had led to 

an 11-year major drought. 

But his fairytale fifth green jacket has put 

Woods firmly back in pursuit of the all-time 

record of 18 major wins by Jack Nicklaus. 

The ZOZO Championship will be held 

from 24 to 27 October at the Accordia Golf 

Narashino Country Club near Tokyo as the 

second of three big prize money Asian 

events on the early part of the 2019-2020 

US PGA Tour calendar. 

It will offer a purse of $9.75 million — a 

LEE Chong Wei of Malaysia hits a return against Viktor Axelsen of Denmark 

during their men’s singles match at the Thomas and Uber Cup in Bangkok 

in this file photo. 

AFP 

La Salle, UST boost bid 

Playing with a sense of urgency, De La Salle University turned back 

National University, 3-1, to bolster its Final Four hopes in the University 

Athletic Association of the Philippines Season 81 men’s football tournament 

Thursday at the Far Eastern University (FEU)-Diliman pitch. 

Jed Diamante nailed the 50th minute penalty and substitute Rafael 

Montelibano produced a fine second-half stoppage time goal for the Green 

Archers to move up to third place with 22 points. 

It was a morale-boosting result for La Salle heading into next week’s final 

elimination match day showdown with early semifinalist FEU. 

In the morning match which also has big Final Four implications, 

University of Santo Tomas stunned Ateneo de Manila University, 2-1, to level 

with defending champion University of the Philippines in fourth spot with 

20 points. 

The defeat derailed the Blue Eagles’ Final Four march as they remained 

at second place with 23 points, one off the table-topping Tamaraws. 

But their athletes’ mentality 

tells them to get the job done no 

matter what it takes. Failure is 

not an option 

As athletes end their sport careers, 

some of them entertain the idea of running 

for public office. The media exposure they 

received while playing somehow translate 

into name recall, which could lead to actual 

votes. 

Notable figures are professional boxer 

Sen. Manny Pacquiao, former basketball 

star and former Sen. Robert Jaworski, 

former Pampanga Vice Gov. Yeng Guiao, 

former Manila Councilor and Asian Games 

gold medalist in taekwondo Ali Atienza, 

incumbent Makati City Rep. Monsour del 

Rosario and Southeast Asian Games gold 

medalist in fencing and now Ormoc City 

Mayor Richard Gomez. 

Champions like them have developed a 

solid fan base in their respective sports and 

enjoyed a certain degree of accommodation 

in the sports section of various media outlets, 

giving them easy access to promote certain 

events and, of course, their own programs 

and platforms as well. 

Most of them are largely successful 

because of certain traits they have built 

after years of developing and improving 

themselves to an elite level. 

They know how to make sacrifices. 

As athletes they could only reach the 

height of success if they sacrificed so much 

to do whatever it takes to succeed. 

In politics, they will now be public 

figures. Their private time will be reduced 

dramatically while their time for their 

constituents will greatly multiply. But their 

athletes’ mentality tells them to get the job 

done no matter what it takes. Failure is not 

an option. 

They are used to the attention. 

Sports and politics 

One Stroke At A Time 

Eric Buhain 

Once an athlete reaches stardom, they 

would draw large crowd asking for selfies and 

autographs. So once they seek public office, 

they already know how to handle it. 

On the same note, top-level athletes are 

also used to media scrutiny that sometimes 

gets personal. They know how to handle it. 

Athletes are used to being interviewed and 

face the camera so they know how to express 

themselves. 

As a politician, they will never do 

anything that would damage the 

name they have worked so hard to 

achieve. 

It’s similar to politicians, who should be 

good at expressing themselves and explaining 

their platforms and, sometimes, may be even 

asked to defend it in public. 

They look at every challenge head on. 

As an athlete, they know how to overcome 

various obstacles to get on top. A runner cannot 

ask for a re-start every time he lags behind. 

Instead, he has to be competitive and outsprint 

his foes while chasing his personal record. 

Similarly, politicians should also be ready 

to back up what they are espousing. There 

can’t be half-promises as their constituents 

can tell a genuine public servant from posers. 

record for Japan — and replaces Malaysia’s CIMB Classic. 

The other two events on the Tour’s Asian swing are the CJ Cup 

in South Korea, which was launched in 2017 and the WGC-HSBC 

Champions in Shanghai, China. 

Woods had tasted success in Japan before, winning back-to-back 

trophies at the Dunlop Phoenix in 2004 and 2005. He missed out on 

a hat-trick of Japan titles in a 2006 playoff loss to Ireland’s Padraig 

Harrington. 

Golf is one of Japan’s most popular sports and the PGA are hoping 

to boost their presence ahead of the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, which will 

feature the sport at the Kasumigaseki course, where United States 

President Donald Trump played on a trip to the country. 

The sponsor, billionaire Yusaku Maezawa, who runs Japan’s largest 

online fashion store ZOZOTOWN, is no stranger to publicity. 

He holds the record for the most retweets of all time — 4.3 million 

— after he promised $9,250 in cash each to 100 randomly selected 

followers. 

Maezawa has also paid an undisclosed sum for a ticket on fellow 

tycoon Elon Musk’s SpaceX rocket around the moon as early as 2023 

and the passionate art collector also plans to take around half a 

dozen artists with him on the trip. 

AFP 

Lee still in sickbay 

He is on treatment 

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia — Malaysia’s badminton king Lee 

Chong Wei, under treatment for nose cancer, has withdrawn from next 

month’s Sudirman Cup in China after doctors advised him against 

“exerting himself.” 

The decision to skip the 19 to 26 May tournament in Nanning 

marks the third time the 36-year-old Lee fails to make a comeback and 

will probably dash his hopes to play in the Tokyo Olympics in 2020. 

He earlier skipped the All England Open in March and the Malaysia 

Open in April. 

Struggling to make a full recovery, the three-time Olympic silver 

medalist has been on the sidelines since July last year, when he was 

diagnosed with early-stage nose cancer. 

The legendary shuttler underwent a grueling program of specialist 

treatment in Taiwan but opted not to retire and resumed training 

in January. 

“I would like to confirm that Lee Chong Wei will not compete in 

the Sudirman Cup mixed team event,” Ng Chin Chai, secretary general 

of the Badminton Association of Malaysia. 

We will support whatever he decides. 

“He is on treatment. Lee is advised against exerting himself 

and not to participate in competition yet.” 

Lee initially planned to play the All England Open in March 

but then delayed his return to the Malaysia Open, where he is 

the defending champion, in early April. 

Asked if Lee’s delay in making a comeback could throw his 

Tokyo 2020 Olympics dream in a jeopardy, Ng said: “It may have 

an effect.” 

Lee must make a comeback by 14 August, or lose the protected 

ranking as world No. 3, he said. 

“After that his ranking will drop and it would be difficult for 

Lee to get into major competitions,” Ng said. 

In another blow to his hopes of making his fifth Olympic 

appearance, Ng said Lee is not registered for any Badminton 

World Federation tournaments after May. 

“We are not pushing him. It is up to Lee to make the call when 

he wants to return to competition,” he said. 

Asked if Lee may not return to competition at all, Ng said: “We 

will support whatever he decides.” 

Lee’s ranking has dropped to 73rd in the world since his illness, 

with three other Malaysians ranked above him. 

And when asked to defend their programs, 

they come prepared with all the data and 

support needed. 

They are open-minded. 

As an athlete, they must be coachable 

in order to improve themselves. The only 

way for them to move up the rankings or 

develop their skills is if they listen to the 

instructions of their coaches whose job 

is to make them become a better version 

of themselves. 

This would also mean they are open 

to criticism. 

As a politician, they have to develop 

and implement ordinances, laws and 

rules that will affect their constituents. 

They won’t be able to listen to the needs 

and concerns of their constituents. 

They won’t be able to serve their 

constituents well if they are not 

listening to them. 

They are selfless. 

As an athlete they have reached a point 

wherein every race they get into feels like 

the whole country is on their shoulders and 

the very core of their fight is to bring honor 

to their country, which is a selfless act. 

As a politician, their top priority is to 

serve their constituents to the best of their 

abilities while always taking care of the 

trust given to them. 

Lastly, they already have a name to 

protect. 

As an athlete they have worked very 

hard to get the respect and admiration of 

their fans while they were still competing. 

They know that it wasn’t easy to reach 

that status. 

As a politician, they will never do 

anything that would damage the name 

they have worked so hard to achieve. 

At the end of their political careers, 

all they wish is that their names be 

remembered for the honor it has given 

our country both in the athletic and 

political arena.


Daily Tribune 

SPORTS 

15 

PBA GIVES NOD 

Yeng’s wish granted 

With that, the national team will begin training as 

early as June 

By John Bryan Ulanday 

Team Pilipinas will get to enjoy the luxury of a long training when 

it competes in the prestigious FIBA World Cup. 

Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) commissioner Willie 

Marcial announced that they have formally granted head coach Yeng 

Guiao’s wish of giving the men’s national team longer time to prepare 

for the 32-nation basketball conclave set in China this August. 

Marcial said the decision was unanimous as all 12 teams agreed to 

make sacrifice to boost the Nationals’ campaign in the biggest, most 

prestigious basketball tournament in the world next to the Olympics. 

Based on the roadmap presented by Samahang Basketbol ng 

Pilipinas (SBP) president Al Panlilio, the Nationals will have a 

twice-a-week training starting June until July despite the ongoing 

Commissioner’s Cup, which is set on 19 May. 

Trainings are set every Mondays and Thursdays because the league 

has its playdates on Wednesdays, Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays. 

They will also have a four-day training camp in Russia, where 

they will get a chance to further sharpen their knives before the 

tough grind ahead. 

The national team delegation will depart for Russia right after the 

Commissioner’s Cup. It, however, remains unclear if they will face 

Russians or other European clubs. 

“All teams sacrificed for this to make it happen for our national 

team,” said Marcial in the press briefing following a lengthy meeting 

with members of the PBA board of governors and ranking SBP 

executives. 

“With that, the national team will begin training as early as June.” 

Marcial, however, clarified that they have yet to decide what would 

happen next as league governors all agreed to defer its decision to 

a latter date. 

Still, having a twice-a-week training before going full blast in August 

is already a great development. 

“That whole August proposal will still be discussed, but 

rest assured, we’re set to pull all out all the stops to finish the 

Commissioner’s Cup as early as possible to give a daily training for 

the Nationals as soon as possible.” 

All teams sacrificed for this to make it happen for our 

national team. 

Marcial explained that they had already eliminated the breaks in 

between each playoff series of the Commissioner’s Cup to make sure 

that a new champion will be declared by mid-August. 

With that, Guiao will have the luxury of calling for a daily practice 

before they troop into the World Cup, where they will face European 

superpowers Serbia and Italy and African bet Angola in Group D. 

GUIAO 

Magnolia 

goes for 

jugular 

The goal is to win four games so 

we will try to complete that 

Magnolia eyes a return trip to the finals 

with a win over Rain or Shine in Game 6 

of their Philippine Basketball Association 

(PBA) Philippine Cup best-of-seven semifinal 

series on Friday at the Ynares Sports Center 

in Antipolo. 

The Hotshots came back from a 0-2 series 

deficit with three straight wins and try to 

close out the series with another victory in 

their 7 p.m. encounter. 

Magnolia wrested the advantage for the 

first time in the series after burying the 

Elasto Painters in Game 5, 82-74, to move to 

a win away for a second straight Philippine 

Cup finals appearance. 

But Hotshots head coach Chito Victolero 

warns his players to brace for a strong 

fightback from Rain or Shine. 

“The goal is to win four games so we will 

try to complete that. We will try,” he said. 

“It will not be easy, though. We will try our 

best because we know that Rain or Shine 

can come back.” 

Magnolia managed to get the victory in 

Game 5 despite a scoreless performance 

from Paul Lee. But Victolero expects the 

cat-quick guard to bounce back in Game 6. 

“We knew that it’s not always the points that 

count. Lee’s presence alone is important for us. 

He draws the defense whether he scores 30, 20 

or zero points. We know he can score anytime,” 

said Victolero, who drew four rebounds and 

four assists from Lee in the previous game. 

Lee, for his part, did not mind going 

scoreless in Game 5 as long as helped his 

team to the victory, 

“I ended up with a positive efficiency 

rating. That’s good even I didn’t score a 

single point. More importantly, we won. I 

don’t mind being scoreless again as long as 

we win again in Game 6,” said Lee. 

Facing elimination, Elasto Painters head 

coach Caloy Garcia remains upbeat on their 

chances and he’s confident they can drag the 

series into a winner-take-all Game 7. JBU 

Ramirez clinches gold 

JUSTIN Brownlee of Ginebra soars for a layup in this file photo. He will return 

for another tour of duty for the Kings in the Philippine Basketball Association 

Commissioner’s Cup in June. 

Beermen, Kings 

tap old imports 

Rhodes will beef up the Philippine Cup champion San 

Miguel Beer while Brownlee will once again lead the 

charge of crowd-favorite Barangay Ginebra 

Former Best Import winners Charles Rhodes and Justine Brownlee 

led the initial list of reinforcements that will see action in the 

Commissioner’s Cup of the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA). 

Rhodes will beef up the Philippine Cup champion San Miguel Beer 

while Brownlee will once again lead the charge of crowd-favorite 

Barangay Ginebra. 

Rhodes averaged 28.4 points, 10.5 rebounds and 1.6 blocks when he led 

the Beermen to the crown in the mid-season conference two seasons ago. 

The 33-year old Texas native was not available last season due to his 

commitment in the Korean Basketball League. 

Renaldo Balkman took his spot, but San Miguel lost to the 

Brownlee-led Kings in the finals. 

The three-time champion Brownlee averaged 28.8 points, 12.5 

rebounds and 6.6 for the Kings, whom he will reinforce for the fifth time. 

Other familiar faces suiting up in the Commissioner’s Cup are Alex 

Stepheson and Tony Mitchell. 

Stephen was tapped by Blackwater, which is now under new mentor 

Aris Dimaunahan, after playing for Meralco a couple of seasons ago. 

The 6-foot-10 Stephenson averaged 15.6 points, 19.4 rebounds and 1.8 

blocks with the Bolts. 

Mitchell last suited up for Star Hotshots in 2017 but will now be 

wearing the NLEX uniform this coming tournament. 

He helped the Hotshots to a 6-2 start but was replaced by Ricardo 

Ratliffe. 

The 6-foot-10 Idaho star Kyle Barone of the Columbian Dyip is so far the 

new face for the mid-season conference, which fires off on 19 May. 

I got emotional because I never 

won a gold on a world stage 

By Joel Orellana 

After four tries, Annie Ramirez finally 

got her gold medal in the World Professional 

Jiu-Jitsu Championship. 

The 28-year old Filipina broke down in 

tears after she was declared the winner by 

the referee over Sophia Dalpra of United 

States in their gold-medal encounter of 

the female purple belt 55-kilogram on 

Wednesday at the Mubadala Arena in Abu 

Dhabi. 

The game ended with a tied score at 4-all 

and the former judoka had to wait for the 

deliberation of the judges before the referee 

mised her arm. 

“This is my first gold in four years in the 

World Pro and it means a lot for me and my 

country,” said Ramirez in an interview by 

the local paper The National. 

“I got emotional because I never won a 

gold on a world stage. It was a close fight 

and with the points tied, that was a long 

and anxious wait before I was declared the 

winner,” she added. 

Ramirez had to demolish Galina Duvanova 

of Kazakhstan by points 5-0 in her first 

match and downed United Arab Emirate’s 

Maha Al Hanaei by submission to reach the 

finals and gain the right to meet the 19-year 

old Dalpra, ranked No. 23 in the world. 

RACHEL Anne Daquis of Cignal struggles with her reception during their game against Petron in the 

Philippine Superliga Grand Prix yesterday at the Filoil Flying V Centre in San Juan. ROMAN PROSPERO 

Petron makes finals 

Reigning champion Petron booked a 

return flight to the finals as it dominated 

Cignal, 23-25, 25-17, 25-16, 25-21, in Game 

2 of their Philippine Superliga Grand Prix 

best-of-three semifinal series yesterday at 

the Filoil Flying V Centre in San Juan. 

Stephanie Niemer caught fire to tow the 

Blaze Spikers to their sixth straight finals 

appearance in this prestigious women’s club 

league bankrolled by Asics, Mueller, Mikasa, 

Senoh, Team Rebel Sports, Bizooku, UCPB 

Gen, Cocolife, Hotel Sogo and Data Project. 

Niemer erupted for 26 kills, five aces and 

four blocks for 35 points while Katherine Bell 

delivered 18 markers for the Blaze Spikers, 

who drew impressive numbers from local 

players like Mika Reyes, Rhea Dimaculangan 

and Denden Lazaro. 

Reyes, the national team mainstay, had 

seven markers while Dimaculangan finished 

with 26 excellent sets and Lazaro tallied 14 

digs and eight receptions. 

Despite posting an impressive win, Petron 

coach Shaq de los Santos still expressed 

respect for the HD Spikers, who kissed the 

title hopes goodbye in this tourney that has 

ESPN5 and 5Plus as broadcast partners. 

“All I can say is that Cignal was very 

eager to beat us. Their movement showed 

that they were eager to win,” said De los 

Santos, who is two wins away from sweeping 

the tournament they first achieved in the 

All-Filipino Conference in 2015. 

The Blaze Spikers will face the survivor in 

the other semifinal pairing between F2 Logistics 

and PLDT Home Fibr in the best-of-three finals. 

Imports Erica Wilson and Ana Artemeva, 

meanwhile, notched 24 and 18 points, 

respectively, for Cignal, which was relegated 

to the battle for third place. 

Skipper Rachel Anne Daquis also had 

an impressive performance with 12 points. 

And she made sure that on her fourth try 

she will take home the gold after impressing 

the judges. 

The No. 17 ranked Ramirez, who switched 

to jiu-jitsu from judo six years ago, lost in her 

first two tries in World Pro while competing in 

the blue belt division and in purple last year. 

Now, the country’s top jiu-jitsu player 

shifts her attention to her campaign in the 

coming 30th Southeast Asian Games that 

the country will host from 30 November to 

10 December. 

“Now my focus is on the next competition 

in Mongolia and then prepare for the SEA 

Games. The gold in the World Pro is a good 

platform to work on my next objectives,” 

Ramirez added in her interview with The 

National. 

Phl sees 

Arafura action 

The delegation is upbeat 

DARWIN, Australia — The 2019 Arafura 

Games formally opens Friday night with 91 

athletes set to represent the Philippines. 

Muay athlete Philip Delarmino, silver 

medalist in the 2017 Asian Indoor and 

Martial Arts Games, will be the flag bearer 

for the Philippines in the opening ceremony 

that would be held tonight at the Darwin 

Waterfront. 

The delegation arrived last Wednesday 

after a four-hour trip via a Philippine 

Airlines chartered flight from Manila as the 

athletes will compete in nine out of the 17 

sports that will be played in the biennial 

competition. 

The delegation was welcomed by Consul 

General John Rivas and several Filipino 

working as volunteers for the Games that is 

making its return after an eight-year hiatus 

Philippine Sports Commission national 

training director Marc Velasco, the deputy 

chef de mission of the Philippine contingent 

here, said the athletes are looking forward to 

the competition here in the Australian city 

located in the Northern Territory. 

“The delegation is upbeat,” Velasco said. 

“They are very excited. I think it’s an 

advantage that we went on a chartered 

flight kasi they got to see other athletes 

from the Philippines. They were already 

talking, which is a good sign of their support 

to each other.” 

Velasco added the chartered flight even 

allowed teams to train hours after their 

arrival here. 

“We saw a few teams doing their training and 

practice. It’s good to see them that they have time 

to practice before the games. I think we have a 

good chance to give a good performance in the 

Arafura Games,” Velasco said.

" 

16 

WORLD 


Daily Tribune 

BRNN sends stronger BRI voice 

The biggest “fake news” 

about the initiative or China 

is that the country does not 

want to collaborate 

As the China-proposed Belt and Road Initiative 

(BRI) gains in popularity and also faces challenges, 

a news network alliance has been formed and 

is expected to offer clearer, more accurate and 

stronger voice on the initiative. 

On Tuesday, the first council meeting of 

the Belt and Road News Network (BRNN) was 

held in Beijing. It comes two days ahead of the 

second Belt and Road Forum for International 

Cooperation (BRF), scheduled from Thursday 

to Saturday in Beijing. 

The BRNN is among efforts to implement 

the proposal of Chinese President Xi Jinping at 

the first BRF in 2017 to boost people-to-people 

exchanges. 

So far, 182 media 

organizations 

from 86 

countries have joined the network, and the 

number is likely to rise, Li Baoshan, president of 

the People’s Daily, said at the Tuesday meeting. 

The network will display the unique advantages 

of media and build an open and cooperative 

platform to promote the communication and 

understanding of people from countries along the 

routes of the BRI, said Li. 

The BRNN council includes 40 influential 

media organizations from 25 countries. 

Media connectivity is an important part 

under the BRI because people-to-people 

connectivity is not possible without 

media-to-media connectivity, Sarmad Ali, 

president of the Pakistan-based Jang Media 

Group and GEO Television Network, 

told the Global Times. 

“I believe that it’s a really 

important event, because media 

around the world, not only in Asia, 

but also from Africa, 

North America and other continents, all come 

together,” Thonglor Duangsavanh, director 

general of Lao Press in Foreign Languages, said. 

He always took Western media’s 

reports on China cautiously. 

Participants at the first BRNN council 

meeting also highlighted the network’s mission 

to present the truth about of the BRI. 

“I think it’s very important for media to 

come together to set up a platform with one 

voice, because the biggest problem is that the 

Western media has a negative perception of 

the BRI and creates doubts on the efficiency 

of projects under the BRI,” Ali said. 

The news network could counter such a 

perception and provide an objective and positive 

narrative so that the people of Pakistan will 

know the real picture. It can create a dialogue 

with global audiences to let people know how 

the BRI will change their lives, Ali said. 

Mansour Abo Alazzm, managing editor of 

Egypt’s Al-Ahram newspaper, said that “there’s 

very few accurate information about the initiative 

outside China because most of the information 

foreign countries get is from Western news media. 

“We need to know more about China’s 

development, social life, culture, civilization and 

so many other things and we need to know them 

from Chinese authors and experts,” 

he said. 

Alazzm said he always took Western 

media’s reports on China cautiously. “I 

wonder why the Western media always 

focuses on the negative side and 

never reports about positive news, such as the 

Islamic culture center and other culture centers. 

“Why? Because it’s accurate and we want 

unbiased information.” 

“Being the only English newspaper in 

Indonesia, we rely so much on information 

related to the BRI from the Western countries, 

but sometimes our view and values differ from 

the views promoted by the major Western wire 

services,” said Taufiqurrohman Mohamad, deputy 

chief editor of the Jakarta Post in Indonesia. 

Fabian Frydman, deputy general director 

of France newspaper La Provence, said that 

not many French people really know what 

the initiative is, while such media exchange 

platforms could offer accurate information to 

stop “fake news.” 

The biggest “fake news” about the initiative 

or China is that the country does not want to 

collaborate. But this is not true. China wants 

to work together with others and France could 

also work with other countries under the 

initiative, he said. 

Global Times 

Roundtable discussion Members from council media outlets of the Belt and Road News Network (BRNN) attend a meeting in Beijing on Tuesday. The BRNN includes 40 influential media organizations from 25 countries. GLOBAL TIMES 

PUTIN, KIM SUMMIT 

Meet face to face 

We have a lot to do to develop economic 

relations 

VLADIVOSTOK — Russian President Vladimir Putin and North 

Korean leader Kim Jong Un vowed to seek closer ties as they met 

face-to-face Thursday for the first time. 

The meeting in Russia’s Far Eastern city of Vladivostok 

came with Kim looking for support in his nuclear stand-off with 

Washington and Putin keen to put Moscow forward as a player in 

another global flashpoint. 

In brief statements before heading in to the talks, both leaders 

expressed their hopes for strengthening historic ties. 

“I think it will be a very useful meeting in developing the 

relationship between the two countries, who have a long 

friendship 

and sound 

and history, into a more stable 

one,” Kim said. 

“As the world is focused on 

the Korean peninsula, I think 

we will hold a very meaningful 

dialog.” 

Putin told Kim he 

Friendly neighbors 

Russian President 

Vladimir Putin (right) 

and North Korea’s 

leader Kim Jong Un 

shake hands during their 

meeting in Vladivostok, 

Russia. 

AP 

supports ongoing efforts to ease tensions on the Korean peninsula 

and wants to boost economic ties. 

“I am confident that your visit... will help us to better understand 

how we can resolve the situation on the Korean peninsula and what 

Russia can do to support the positive processes that are currently 

taking place,” Putin said. 

“In terms of bilateral relations, we have a lot to do to 

develop economic relations.” 

I think we will hold a very meaningful dialog. 

The meeting was Kim’s first face-to-face talks with another head 

of state since returning from his Hanoi summit with US President 

Donald Trump, which broke down without a deal. Among the issues 

likely to be on the table is the fate of some 10,000 North Korean 

laborers working in Russia and due to leave by the end of this year 

under sanctions. 

Labor is one of North Korea’s key exports and sources of cash. 

Pyongyang has reportedly asked Russia to continue to employ its 

workers after the deadline. 

AFP 

Biden running, too 

WASHINGTON — Former Vice President Joe Biden 

formally joined the crowded Democratic presidential 

contest on Thursday, betting that his working-class appeal 

and ties to Barack Obama’s presidency will help him 

overcome questions about his place in today’s increasingly 

liberal Democratic Party. 

He made his announcement in a video posted on Twitter, 

declaring, “We are in the battle for the soul of this nation.” 

“If we give Donald Trump eight years in the White 

House, he will forever and fundamentally alter the character 

of this nation,” Biden said. “Who we are. And I cannot stand 

by and watch that happen.” 

Biden becomes an instant front-runner. 

BRIEFS 

Ghosn’s release on bail 

Detained former Nissan chairman 

Carlos Ghosn paid 500 million yen ($4.5 

million) in bail, the Tokyo District court 

said, clearing the way for his release 

but under strict conditions. Prosecutors 

appealed the decision by the court 

earlier in the day to grant release on 

bail. Ghosn’s lawyers can protest the 

appeal and push for his release. AP 

Highest measles cases 

The US recorded 695 cases of measles 

in 2019, the most of any year since the 

disease was declared eliminated at the 

turn of the century, officials said ahead 

of a campaign to reinforce the message 

that vaccines are safe. The surge comes 

amid a growing global movement against 

inoculation. 

AFP 

FB expects $5-B fine 

Facebook said it expects a fine of 

up to $5 billion from the Federal Trade 

Commission, which is investigating 

whether the social network violated its 

users’ privacy. The company set aside 

$3 billion in its quarterly earnings report 

Wednesday as a contingency against 

the possible penalty but noted that the 

“matter remains unresolved.” AP 

Thursday’s announcement marks the unofficial end of 

the chaotic early phase of the 2020 presidential season. 

The field now features at least 20 Democrats jockeying for 

the chance to take on President Donald Trump next year. 

Several lesser-known candidates may still join the race. 

Biden, a 76-year-old lifelong politician, becomes an instant 

front-runner alongside Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, who is leading 

many polls and has proved to be a successful fundraiser. AP 

So much has changed Munira Abdulla, who has woken from 

a 27-year-long vegetative state, visited the Sheikh Zayed Grand 

Mosque, which was built 16 years after a road crash left her in a coma. 

For sale: A giant, 

ornery bird that killed 

its last owner. 

The creature called 

a cassowary — boasting 

long, dagger-like claws, 

standing as tall as a tallish person and 

sporting a truly foul disposition — will 

be auctioned Saturday, two weeks after 

slashing to death 75-year-old exotic animal 

lover and breeder Marvin Hajos. 

Hajos was raising the flightless bird, 

which has a blue face and a ridge atop 

Who would dare? 

DUBAI — A woman from the United Arab Emirates whose 

apparent awakening from a 27-year-long stupor has grabbed 

international headlines is a rare but not unique case, one of the 

German doctors who treated her says. 

The story of Munira Abdulla was first published by Abu 

Dhabi’s The National newspaper on Monday. The newspaper 

reported that in 1991, Abdulla was with her son when a school 

bus collided with their car. Her son, cradled by his mother before 

the crash, escaped with a bruise to the head. 

Abdulla was 32 at 

the time. That same 

son, himself now 32, was 

quoted saying his mother 

its head and other exotic animals on his 

property in Alachua county. 

He died 12 April when he fell near the 

cassowary pen and was attacked by the bird. 

A total of around 90 animals that Hajos 

owned will be auctioned 

off, said Scotty Wilson, 

the auctioneer at Gulf 

Coast Livestock Auction 

in Madison, Florida. 

Proceeds will go to 

Hajos’ widow and other 

family, Wilson added. AFP 

Founding fathers A woman looks at her mobile phone sitting by the Kiev Founders monument in 

independence Square in Kiev, Ukraine. According to legend, the ancient Kyiv or Kiev was established 

by brothers Kyi, Schek, Horyv and their sister Lybid. 

AP 

Woman wakes up after 27 years 

=============================================== 

=========================== 

regained consciousness in a German hospital last year. A 

photo shows her in a wheelchair visiting the Grand Mosque 

in Abu Dhabi, where she now resides. 

Friedemann Mueller, the principal consultant at the 

Schoen Clinic in Bad Aibling, told German news site 

Spiegel Online that his patient had until recently been 

in a state of “minimal consciousness,” during which she 

was able to open her eyes and briefly focus on something, 

such as her son’s face. 

AP 

Case Law 

By VICTOR C. AVECILLA 

Gatchalian v. Ombudsman 

G.R. No. 229288, August 1, 2018 / Second Division / Caguioa, J. 

Remedial Law; Review of Orders and Decisions of the Ombudsman. 

– Appeals from decisions of the Office of the Ombudsman in 

administrative disciplinary cases should be taken to the Court 

of Appeals under Rule 43 of the Rules of Court. The remedy 

of an aggrieved party in a criminal or non-administrative case 

resolved by the Ombudsman is to file a special civil action for 

certiorari under Rule 65 before the Supreme Court. 

(VOLUME 2, NUMBER 79) 

=============================================== 

======================

Dinah S. Ventura, Editor 


Daily Tribune 

SPOTLIGHT 17 

Spoiler-free review | ‘Avengers: Endgame’ 

Even non-fans will love it 

FILM CHECK 

Stephanie Mayo 

And when there is anger 

and fear, you anticipate 

redemption. And when there 

is strong tension, humor 

becomes a relief. When there 

is darkness, a glimmer is 

everything. And Endgame 

gives all that 

I 

confess that I have never been a 

comic book movie fan, especially 

the Marvel kind with its world 

of CGI, blurry fight scenes and 

explosions — and humor that bounces 

off me. No offense. It’s just not my 

thing. I’m the type who prefers that the 

Avengers debate Thanos and debunk 

his worldview rather than fight him. 

When a bunch of superheroes 

disintegrated in last year’s Infinity 

War, I didn’t care. If you ask me to 

recount the events of an Avengers 

film, I would refer to Tony Stark as 

Robert Downey Jr. I always marveled 

at the perfection of Chris Evans but 

never cared about Captain America. 

That’s how detached I was to this 

whole superhero thing. 

I also confess that the past MCU 

films were an obligation for me — and 

quite a challenge, too, as I would often 

find myself fighting sleep. Except with 

Black Panther (2018), which is a break 

from Marvel conventions, and to my own 

disbelief, even found its way into my Top 

10 movies of 2018. 

AVENGERS take their final stand against Thanos in “Endgame,” a fitting conclusion to the epic Marvel saga. 

JEREMY Renner as Hawkeye, one of the original six Avengers. 

THANOS, Marvel’s biggest villain. 

Then here comes Avengers: 

Endgame. As usual, I headed to the 

cinema out of responsibility and with 

only the tiniest bit of interest as this 

is the end. Then a miracle happened. 

I cried. Twice, maybe thrice. And I 

laughed, so many times. Even the pop 

culture references transcended the 

realm of the corniness. And I cared. 

The three-hour running time, which 

had terrified me, surprisingly breezed 

by. This is definitely not your usual Marvel 

film — coming from a non-fan. 

Something shifted in this final 

installment. The tone and pacing, for 

one. It’s a real movie. Not just fan 

service. Just as soon as the film opened, 

with its contemplative and melancholic 

atmosphere, I was already hooked. The 

Russo brothers and the screenwriting 

tandem of Christopher Markus and 

Stephen McFeely created a perfect 

balance of drama, action, suspense, 

adventure and humor. You could just 

imagine the writing process to be tearful, 

free-flowing and deeply inspired. 

Without trying to spoil anything, 

Endgame dives into the concept of 

time and death. In the aftermath of the 

Infinity War, where 50 percent of the 

universe is wiped out, the mood now is 

that of rumination and loss. And so it 

is a vulnerable film. It opens defeated, 

stripped of power. The remaining 

superheroes are in their own island of 

pain, their eyes — and the film captures 

a lot of those — speak volumes of the 

depth of their loss. Words fail during 

this post-apocalyptic time. 

But then after the pain of defeat 

comes a sliver of hope, and then bravely 

holding on to that tiny seed of faith to 

undo the damage caused by the single 

snap of Thanos’ fingers. Is there a risk? 

Yes. Will they succeed? They don’t know. 

But will they do it? Yes. Because that’s 

what superheroes do. And Endgame 

nails the very meaning of heroism. 

Beneath the thick veneer of CGI fantasy 

and science-fiction, and way more than 

what a hammer, a shield and an iron suit 

can do, lies the nobleness of this whole 

superhero business. 

The universal themes of love and 

family are Endgame’s strong emotional 

points. And they are rendered with 

refreshing depth and candor. Family is 

a weakness, and love is an overpowering 

force. And when you are a hero, you 

sacrifice these things for the greater 

good. And if you don’t, if you surrender 

to your weakness, you are human, and 

for that, you are easily forgiven. Here, 

both superhero and mortal qualities 

are sensitively woven together to create 

relatable, dramatic storytelling. 

If Thanos feels like the mandatory — and 

weak — villain in Infinity War, then he 

becomes a real threat this time. You 

SUDOKU 

Write a numeral from 1 to 9 in each box so that each 

appears only once in each row, by column Ramon and Lorenzo 3 x 3 box. 

Answer for yesterday’s puzzle 

NOTICE: 

The answer to yesterday’s puzzle will be out when the crossword resumes. 

understand the anger of the Avengers. 

And when there is anger and fear, you 

anticipate redemption. And when there 

is strong tension, humor becomes 

a relief. When there is darkness, a 

glimmer is everything. And Endgame 

gives all that. 

The Russo brothers and the 

screenwriting tandem of 

Christopher Markus and Stephen 

McFeely created a perfect balance 

of drama, action, suspense, 

adventure and humor. 

With a luxurious three-hour running 

time — and it’s a fitting length for the 

endgame — the film has time to focus 

on each Avenger, but not merely as a 

tribute to these familiar faces that began 

showing up in our summer movie houses 

since 2008’s Iron Man, but to build 

more character and compassion. Prior 

to Endgame, I was always disconnected 

to these live-action cartoon figures, but 

Endgame made me feel like they were 

friends. Was I closet Marvel fan the whole 

time? No! Don’t get me confused there. If 

there’s one good thing that Thanos did, 

he brought a new perspective to these 

D A I L Y G O S P E L 

Jesus revealed Himself 

again to his disciples at the 

Sea of Tiberias. He revealed 

Himself in this way. 

Together were Simon Peter, 

Thomas called Didymus, 

Nathanael from Cana in 

Galilee, Zebedee’s sons and two 

others of His disciples. 

Simon Peter said to them, 

“I am going fishing.” They said 

to him, “We also will come with 

you.” So they went out and got 

into the boat, but that night they 

caught nothing. 

When it was already dawn, 

Jesus was standing on the shore; 

but the disciples did not realize 

that it was Jesus. 

Jesus said to them, “Children, 

have you caught anything to 

eat?” They answered Him, “No.” 

So He said to them, “Cast the net 

over the right side of the boat 

and you will find something.” 

So they cast it and were not 

able to pull it in because of the 

number of fish. 

So the disciple whom Jesus 

loved said to Peter, “It is the Lord.” 

When Simon Peter heard that it 

was the Lord, he tucked in his 

garment, for he was lightly clad 

costumed characters. Stellar writing and 

direction and resonant performances 

complete the picture. 

Ant-Man Paul Rudd is terrific as the 

comic relief and Chris Hemsworth’s Thor 

comes second. Brie Larson’s Captain 

Marvel is no longer as boring (but 

she’s away most of the time, anyway) 

and Karen Gillan’s Nebula is one fine 

example of method acting beneath all 

that blue. Scarlet Johansson’s Black 

Widow takes on a more pensive and 

emotional character arc and Captain 

America and Iron Man’s conflicts rise. 

But it’s not all drama and brooding 

over. Endgame still retains what MCU 

fans have always loved — Easter eggs, 

theories and all that canon that are 

alien to me. 

And the climax. If the climax is the 

most sleep-inducing for me in the past, 

the climax here gripped me in every way. 

Diversity and female empowerment are 

injected, but they don’t feel forced and 

obligatory — instead they are genuine and 

touching. 

For the first time in history, both fans and 

non-fans have assembled and are united in 

one view: Endgame is powerful stuff. 

Friday of Easter week 

John 21:1-14 

5 out of 5 stars 

THE one who kickstarted it all, Robert Downey Jr. as Tony Stark aka Iron Man. 

and jumped into the sea. 

The other disciples came 

in the boat, for they were not 

far from shore, only about a 

hundred yards, dragging the 

net with the fish. 

When they climbed out on 

shore, they saw a charcoal fire 

with fish on it and bread. Jesus 

said to them, “Bring some of the 

fish you just caught.” 

So Simon Peter went over 

and dragged the net ashore full 

of 153 large fish. Even though 

there were so many, the net was 

not torn. 

Jesus said to them, “Come, 

have breakfast.” And none of 

the disciples dared to ask Him, 

“Who are you?” because they 

realized it was the Lord. Jesus 

came over and took the bread 

and gave it to them and in like 

manner the fish. 

This was now the third 

time Jesus was revealed to His 

disciples after being raised 

from the dead.

18 

SPOTLIGHT 


Daily Tribune 

In the new series, Tony plays a recent barrister whose time 

with friends in Baguio becomes a nightmare for them till 

they are deep into their professions as lawyers 

Simply Red 

Isah Red 

At the preview of ABS-CBN’s 

newest drama series Sino 

Ang May Sala? Mea Culpa 

which was nearly canceled 

due to the 6.1-magnitude 

temblor that rocked Luzon last Monday, we 

saw Tony Labrusca with his mom, a former 

member of Kulay, Angel Jones. 

I met the mother and son some time 

ago (when I was still editing the showbiz 

section of another paper) in New Manila. 

At that time, Tony was just out of the 

reality show Pinoy Boyband Superstar. 

Though he failed to make it, he was 

determined to make a name in the local 

music scene. 

I play the good side of one PNP 

Chief. It is really encouraging to 

be given another chance to be 

seen on TV and in the number one 

primetime teleserye at that. And 

with Coco Martin. 

While waiting for that “big break,” 

he busied himself with acting stints in 

television commercials (TVC), the more 

memorable of which was with Elise 

Joson (another Kapamilya) in a fast-food 

commercial titled Tuloy Pa Rin in 2016. 

But his name wouldn’t ring a bell till 

he bared himself before the cameras 

in the movie released on the web titled 

Glorious in which he was paired with 

Angel Aquino. Their lovemaking scene 

exploded on social media as the most 

buzzed topic when it was streamed. 

I told him, “Tony, it seems that you 

have hurdled the most difficult part of 

gaining a foothold in show business. You 

are now an actor and proving that you 

don’t have to bare 

your torso to be 

taken seriously.” 

PNP Chief (Mike 

Magat) and 

President Hilario 

(Rowell Santiago) 

of “FPJ’s Ang 

Probinsyano.” 

Angel, the mom, could only smile 

adoringly at this new achievement of 

her son. 

Tony said, “I am happy that ABS-CBN 

is giving me projects to showcase what 

I can really do, apart from baring and 

singing. Thanks, Kapamilya.” Then he 

sat down to have dinner with his mom. 

In the new series, Tony plays a recent 

barrister whose time with friends in 

Baguio becomes a nightmare for them 

till they are deep into their professions 

as lawyers. 

Tony’s character, Andrei, only wants 

to help and protect Juris (Bela Padilla), 

the girl he is in love with. 

The series, based on the first week 

we were shown, is about two mothers 

with opposing versions of the truth. And 

they will take a stand in the name of love 

and justice. 

Sino Ang May Sala? Mea Culpa 

premieres on Monday (29 April). It takes 

the timeslot that will be vacated by Halik 

which ends tonight. 

Tony is thrilled at the thought that he 

is actually working with the likes of Jodi 

Sta. Maria who plays Fina, a hardworking 

farmer. She only hopes to give her family 

a better future, but when Fina loses her 

daughter, she vows to look for her and 

fight to regain custody of her child. 

Apart from Sta.Maria, Labrusca is 

also happy to be in the same ensemble 

as Bela Padilla who, like his role in 

the series, is also a lawyer involved in 

a crime they have kept among their 

friends that include recent barristers, 

too — Greco (Kit Thompson), Gaylord 

(Sandino Martin), Lolita (Ivana Alawi) 

and one who failed the Bar exams, Bogs 

(Ketchup Eusebio). 

Also in the cast are Agot Isidro, Janice 

de Belen, Ayen Munji-Laurel, Jay Manalo, 

Allan Paule and Boboy Garovillo. It is 

under the production of Dreamscape 

Entertainment and directed by Andoy 

Ranay and Dan Villegas. 

Talking to Ranay after the preview, 

I gathered that Tony, son of Boom 

Labrusca (a character actor), proves that 

the acting DNA is indeed in his genes. 

Mike Magat 

in ‘Probinsyano’ 

He is very lucky, 

or maybe blessed, 

because he is 

never out of 

projects. 

Tony 

Labrusca 

proves he can act 

TONY Labrusca plays his biggest role to date in the soap opera “Sino Ang May Sala? Mea Culpa.” 

Also last Monday, I sat with him during 

the victory celebration of Hapi ang 

Buhay the Musical, a film directed by 

Carlo Cuevas for EBC Films. 

Mike said, “Can you believe I sang in 

that film?” 

The movie was screened in some 

70 cinemas across the country, reason 

enough for EBC Films bigwigs to throw a 

party for the cast and members of mass 

media. 

But one thing Mike Magat is excited 

about is his inclusion in the cast of FPJ’s 

Ang Probinsyano as the PNP Chief. 

“It’s really a blessing for me, FPJ’s Ang 

Probinsyano. I play the good side of one 

PNP Chief. It is really encouraging 

to be given another chance to be 

seen on TV and in the number 

one primetime series at that. And 

with Coco (Martin),” he said over 

lunch at the Movie Stars Cafe. 

Magat started as a character 

actor in the ‘90s. He went 

overseas but came back in 

2016 and started as a director 

of independent films. 

But his name wouldn’t 

ring a bell till he bared 

himself before the 

cameras in the movie 

released on the web titled 

Glorious in which he was 

paired with Angel Aquino. 

“I really love show business 

and my profession. That was why 

even if I was abroad then I kept 

thinking about going back to show 

business. Thank God I have been given 

the chance to be in it again,” he said. 

In Hapi Ang Buhay The Musical, 

Mike plays one of the lead characters. 

The film used to be a sitcom on EBC 

(Net 25). 

Hapi Ang Buhay The Musical is 

a musical satire on Philippine life 

that won Best Feature Comedy. “The 

ultimate reason we at the EBC Films 

are making movies is to promote 

values. And I believe that promoting 

values doesn’t have to be boring. So 

we are trying our best to educate and 

inspire the audience without sacrificing 

entertainment value,” Cuevas said. 

Bonding with 

Chris and Roadfill 

Kapuso stars Thea Tolentino and Mikoy 

Morales bond with Chris Tiu and Roadfill 

in Sunday’s episode of I-Bilib. 

The two stars learn how to make a 

pingpong ball bounce, and not just roll 

out, when it’s inside a dropped paper 

cup. 

They also uncover the secret behind 

the seemingly magical disappearance 

of a coin after being covered by an 

upside-down transparent drinking 

glass. 

Meanwhile in “Bilibabols,” James 

and guest co-host Denise Barbacena 

challenge beach-goers to the Pasa Agua 

Karera game wherein they move water 

from pitchers affixed to their helmets 

— without using hands. 

In addition, the Street Genius team 

display the fourth state of matter (plasma) 

using a lighted matchstick inside a 

microwave oven. 

It also discovers how a chain partly 

hanging out from a beer glass will fall. 

Finally, in “Huling Hirit,” Chris tests 

his co-hosts’ intelligence in the pencil 

puzzle wherein they have to move just 

two out of several pre-arranged pencils 

to make 11 squares. 

All these on your favorite science show 

every Sunday morning on GMA! 

THE cast of “Sino Ang May Sala” (from left) Ketchup Eusebio, Kit Thompson, Ivana Ilawa, Jodi Sta. Maria, Bela Padilla, Labrusca and Sandino Martin.


Daily Tribune 

LIFESTYLE 

19 

DT: What were you good at when you 

were playing? What did you contribute to 

the team? 

JOS: I wasn’t the fastest, but I think I 

saw the game differently. Like I still play 

and I tend to see things that other people 

don’t. So, I always make the not-so-obvious 

pass. I think that’s my strength. I am 

able to get the ball somewhere which the 

opponents won’t see. 

DT: Let’s relate football to your work. 

What is your position in Maserati? How 

does football relate to your job? 

JOS: I am the director of Maserati. 

You know what? I believe that just like 

soccer, you should treat your occupation 

as a team sport. A business has to be a 

team. If you’re not good at something, 

you have to recognize that you’re not. 

If you’re good at something, you have 

to recognize that you are. I don’t think 

anyone is good at everything. So, it’s 

really a matter of putting people in their 

respective spots. 

them. You really have to be with the car 

that you are selling. 

DT: What do you do to help others? 

JOS: I treat my boxing as a form of 

helping others. It’s more micro and closer. 

But with Maserati, we have our corporate 

social responsibility. We work with Hope in a 

Bottle, and the goal is to put up a classroom 

where it is needed. If you see that bottle in 

Starbucks, that’s what we work with. So, we 

JASON with his dad Willie and brother Marc. 

purchase and sell their products. And that 

translates into a classroom. 

DT: What do you thank God for? 

JOS: People always ask me what my 

biggest treasure is. And I say it is my 

friends. Aside from my family, which is a 

given. But my friends are really a different 

breed. I thank God for good health. Once 

you ask God for good health, everything 

else follows. 

“ONCE you ask for good health, everything else follows.” 

Maserati’s Man in Manila 

From page 20 

DT: Did you ever help the family before 

you worked in the United States? You used 

to own Rack’s, right? 

JOS: Yes, we did. I used to serve the 

kids helping out. In college, at some point, 

there were two Rack’s that became like a 

place for gimmicks, a “gimikan.” One was 

in Makati, in Valero. And the other one was 

in El Pueblo, in Ortigas. Every Friday night, 

it became like a hot spot for college people. 

There were bands and DJs. 

DT: Do you play an instrument? 

JOS: You know what, in high school, I 

could kind of play the guitar because all my 

friends had bands. I would go out with them 

all the time. I learned, I picked it up, but 

there was nothing to be proud of (laughs). 

DT: But did you dream of becoming a 

musician? 

JOS: No, because when I saw how good 

my friends are, I knew I could not be that 

good. I just wanted to learn how to play 

the guitar. But because of that time when 

we had DJs in Rack’s, and I sat down with 

them, and I watched them play, I picked up 

“Dee-Jaying” that time. 

DT: Wow, you did? You mean like when 

there were parties… 

JOS: It was then more of I knew how to 

do it. My brother and I owned equipment but 

we left it there so I never became a bedroom 

DJ. I never really practiced. I knew the basics, 

that’s about it. Although at Rack’s, I’d close, 

I’d open. Then, I moved to New York. And I 

had this friend who took me to these nice, 

non-commercial clubs. And that’s where I 

really fell in love with that genre of music 

called house music. It’s soulful dance music. 

DT: What year did you come back to 

Manila? 

JOS: In 2006. When I got back, the club 

scene was booming. I remember I had a lot of 

friends who were really good DJs here. Like 

this guy, his name is Benjo Marquez. One 

time, a friend of mine asked me if I could 

teach him how to DJ because I knew how to 

DJ. What I did was to bring my friend, Benjo, 

as a surprise. So, when we were just playing 

and I played a bit, Benjo said, “I think you 

can play, and since you both like that kind of 

music, and no one is really playing it here, 

we could play it.” So I just decided to start 

playing. I never practiced, I never learned in 

a studio, so I just decided to start playing. 

My practice was in actual gigs. 

DT: But what did you do after you came 

back? Did you immediately work? 

JOS: I went straight to work. At that time, 

with Jaguar and Land Rover. And then, we 

just acquired Maserati and Ferrari. 

DT: What was your job? 

JOS: You know what? It was a bit of 

everything. I was assisting both my Dad and 

my brother. Actually, that time, I liked the 

service aspect of cars. That’s what I enjoyed. 

Painting and all that. I was always into cars 

and I enjoyed that part. 

DT: Oh, you mean you were ahead of 

your Dad? You were into cars before he 

became a dealer? 

JOS: He was already. But I was into 

design. Not at the level where I created. 

But I had an eye for design. I just liked to 

draw. Back in high school, my friends and 

I were into cars, but I was just a spectator. 

DT: Your car probably looked different. 

JOS: Yeah (laughs), I tried to make it 

look different. I was the one maintaining 

the car. And then, one day, something started 

blinking. The engine blew up. And it slowly 

broke. Now, that was my car. I ended up 

going around, seeing shops. I was a kid and I 

remember entering one shop and the owner 

was very nice. He said he would help me. He 

said they would just put a new engine and all 

that. Now, I remember I had to use my own 

allowance. My father helped me a bit, but I 

practically spent for it. Anything I did with 

my car, I had to save for it. My allowance 

was only P1,000 a week, but I had to save 

everything. So, when the engine was done, I 

told myself this car would look good if I had 

this thing on the side, so I designed it. There 

was a shop somewhere in Araneta Avenue 

and they could customize as I wanted, and 

eventually, I ended up taking over that shop. 

DT: Who helped you acquire it? 

JOS: It was just me. My friends and I 

were into cars and we were talking about 

putting up a shop, but when there was an 

opportunity to do it, I was left on my own, 

so I just did it on my own. It was on Araneta 

Avenue, and the shop was called Wurks. So 

I took over the shop. 

So, I had a shop and it was more of 

customizing. So, one by one, my friends 

came to have their cars done. So, there 

was this thing before, it was a drill, 

metal aluminum. It was available only to 

certain cars. But it was such a nice style, 

I customized it and made it available for 

other cars. And I had employees. That’s 

where I learned how difficult it is to 

manage. I was maybe in second year 

college. I was probably 18 or 19. 

DT: Did you have time for other things? 

Weren’t you into sports? 

JOS: I was playing varsity soccer, UAAP. 

That had always been my dream since I 

was young. I was playing soccer in Xavier 

yet. I was right half or center mid. When 

we were younger, we got to play in Europe. 

Like the Gothia Cup. You know how it is in 

high school. If you’re consistent, you get to 

play. But I remember, when I got to college, 

my teammates were really good. 

“I NEVER became a bedroom DJ. I never really practiced. I knew the basics, that’s about it.” 

DT: What is a typical day for you? 

JOS: I try to maximize my time. I come 

to work early. I am in the office at 9:30 in 

the morning. I try to work out three times a 

week. And it’s a mix of everything. So I get 

to play football once a week. I enjoy boxing 

as a workout. Now, that’s another story, but 

my brother and I put up a boxing gym years 

ago. So, I’ve always enjoyed boxing. When I 

stopped playing football after college, I didn’t 

have a sport anymore and that was when I 

fell in love with boxing. We don’t have the 

gym anymore, but Manny Paquiao used to 

work out in my gym. 

DT: Did Manny give you tips? 

JOS: He gave me a lot of tickets so I got 

to watch his fights in Las Vegas. We’re not 

best friends but I got to know him, so we’re 

friends. And because of that I managed a 

young boxer then. And I still manage him. 

He has signed up wth a promotions agency 

in the United States. I don’t want to call this 

a hobby because I am managing someone 

else’s life, so that can’t just be a hobby if it 

has to do with someone’s future. 

DT: In what way are you different from 

your Dad? 

JOS: When we’re having meetings, 

and something has to be done, he really 

expects people to do things. Like he would 

tell someone, “Can you do this?” Of course, 

no one would say no to my Dad. Which 

is good because he really gets people to 

step up. 

My approach is different. If I know 

someone who has that specialty, I would 

assign him. If this is your job and you 

came in for this, I’d rather that you 

mastered it. 

DT: What is your level of responsibility? 

JOS: Everything that has to do with 

Maserati passes through me. I am the person 

in charge. 

DT: Why should one buy a Maserati? 

What do you tell your customers? 

JOS: Why do you want to own a car that 

everyone has? We’re not more expensive than 

the other brands. We’re the same price as a 

Mercedes or a BMW. Maserati is a luxury 

sports sedan. Not everyone is familiar with 

the brand. But we’re just like any other 

European car. 

Celebrating 

the car model 

hobbyist 

Filipinos are very passionate about Tamiya which considers 

them as its longest partners for about 50 years now 

Tamiya is ready to celebrate with 

Filipino hobbyists as it gears up to be 

another significant force among the 

younger generation. 

“We’re excited to reintroduce this 

to the Philippines and we want the 

younger generation to embrace the 

hobby,” said Ferdie Kahn, owner of 

The Brickyard, home of Tamiya in the 

Philippines. 

Kahn was referring to the Tamiya 

Asian Challenge event which will be 

held on 20 to 23 June. 

Some 250 to 300 competitors from 

different Asian countries, including 

Japan, Hong Kong, India, Thailand and 

Korea are expected to take part in the 

Tamiya competition. 

“We will essentially bring it back to 

the mainstream and I really want to 

showcase the Filipino racers who had the 

opportunity to participate in this kind of 

event,” he said. 

Amid the challenges of social media, 

Kahn pointed out that Tamiya products 

like mini-4WD are captivating. 

“It challenges you. You have an 

opportunity to modify your cars. It lets 

you perform, get instant feedback on 

how it performs and you’ll have different 

notifications and considerations to 

choose from,” he said. 

“It is social because you work with 

other people and get feedback from them. 

Newcomers ask pointers from longtime 

hobbyists and they interact by sharing 

informations, tips, secrets,” he added. 

Filipinos are very passionate about 

Tamiya which considers them as its 

longest partners for about 50 years now, 

he added. 

“We have a very active community 

of radio-controlled car model collectors 

and a very active modules group as 

well. Our Brickyard racers average 500 

racers and that’s only in Metro Manila,” 

Kahn said. 

Located at the third floor of Glorietta 

2 in Makati City, The Brickyard, which 

opened in June 2018, serves as venue for 

Tamiya fans where they can meet and 

have fun with the Mini4WD. 

Asked what Tamiya can promise to 

Filipino hobbyists, Kahn said: “You’ll 

always have the best Tamiya products in 

the world. They are innovating, growing 

with brand-new cars, models and we 

continue to do so in the near future. 

We should be proud because Tamiya is 

proudly-made in Cebu, Philippines, by 

the Filipinos.” 

Founded by Yoshio Tamiya in Japan 

in 1946, Tamiya products continue to be 

a favorite among hobbyists everywhere. 

“I’VE always enjoyed boxing.” 

DT: So, you have to do a lot of socializing 

with the A-1 list. 

JOS: Obviously, my clients are my friends. 

I don’t know how to put this, but the ones 

who purchase our cars, they are in a league 

of their own. They’re nice, I love them. But 

people who really know me or our family 

know how simple we are. We represent this 

brand and we sell it. But we’re not the type 

who’d go to a showroom and buy something. 

We sell it but it’s not our style to purchase 

it for ourselves. 

DT: What do you drive? 

JOS: I use a Maserati. It helps if 

people see me use it. And I also need 

to get familiar with it so if they ask me 

questions, I would know how to answer 

KHAN wants the younger generation to further embrace the hobby of playing Tamiya 

products.

20 

LIFESTYLE 

Dinah S. Ventura, Editor 


Daily Tribune 

Jason 

Soong 

Maserati’s Man 

in Manila 

CAPITAL S 

Jojo G. Silvestre 

I believe that 

just like soccer, 

you should treat 

your occupation 

as a sports team. 

A business has 

to be a team. If 

you’re not good 

at something, you 

have to recognize 

that you are not. 

If you are good 

at something, you 

have to recognize 

that you are 

Now and then, we bump into a 

remarkable young man whose story needs 

to be told because it is inspiring. Jason 

O’Connor Soong is one such guy. While 

his family had been into restaurants and 

today is in the dealership of top luxury 

cars, he is no exception in that he had to 

start somewhere. His American sojourn 

right after college gives us an idea of 

how some so-called “rich kids” actually 

have to work hard to live contentedly 

well and enjoy the simple luxury of 

hanging out with friends. All these in 

the city where everything is possible if 

you know how to do it right. 

Jason is the director of Maserati 

Philippines. His father, Willie, is popular 

for having brought to the Philippines 

Jaguar, Land Rover, Ferrari, Aston 

Martin and Maserati. 

I visited him one day for an interview 

for my book of conversations, which 

is coming out soon. He was in his 

de rigueur shirt and nice pair of 

sneakers which, I understand, is another 

“passion” of his, along with music, 

soccer and boxing. Our multi-faceted 

guy may seem to lack enough time and 

yet he is able to achieve much. 

I met Jason a few years earlier in 

the family’s car showroom on Gil Puyat 

Avenue. They have since transferred to 

Bonifacio Global City, and that was 

where I interviewed him. Good-looking, 

articulate and occupied with pursuits 

worth any young gentleman’s while, 

he, at the time in his mid-30s, was 

one of Manila’s most eligible bachelors 

(he still is). I have all good reasons 

to give him my vote, but I won’t even 

consider all those Maseratis and his 

boy-next-door charm. What, to me, 

matters, is his amiability and relaxed 

bearing, which tells us this rich kid 

is humble enough to do the dirty jobs 

that one needs to do to succeed in 

one’s profession. 

because they considered the previous 

subjects I had taken. 

DT: What was your first job? 

JOS: My first job was actually in the 

States. After college, my elder sister decided 

to move to New York. My dad said, “Why don’t 

you go with your sister to New York? You can 

stay for two weeks and help her settle in.” 

The two weeks became one year. 

DT: Really? What did you do all those 

months? 

JOS: I got my first job at the Puma store. 

I was in retail. I was selling shoes. Actually, 

at that time, I was a big fan of the Puma 

brand. And then when we were having this 

conversation with my friends, we were on 

Broadway right outside the store. So, I said, 

you know what, I will apply here. If I get in, 

I will stay. 

DT: And they got you immediately. 

JOS: Yah. I got the job, but then working 

in retail wasn’t enough. Since I was in New 

York, I liked to go out and enjoy, and meet 

friends. So I looked for another job. Aside 

from Puma, down the street also in that 

area in New York, I worked in a boutique 

hotel called 60 Thompson. I went there to 

work in that restaurant but then I ended up 

working for the room service of the hotel. I 

was working in the kitchen, but under the 

hotel. It was supposed to be a very highly 

specialized assignment because they had 

to choose people who will deal with the 

guests. And since it was a boutique hotel, 

there were a lot of celebrities among their 

clients. They were in town to do movies 

or concerts. Turn to page 19 

“WHY do you want to own a car that everyone has?” 


Daily Tribune (DT): Tell me first 

about your education, Jason. 

Jason O’Connor Soong (JOS): I 

attended Xavier from elementary all the 

way to high school. And then to La Salle 

DT: What did you take up? 

JOS: I took up Organizational 

Communications. It’s like mass 

communication but more for the 

corporate environment. I started out 

with a double major, Organizational 

Communication and Business 

Management, but I was taking too long, 

so I shifted to Behavioral Science and 

when I shifted, I graduated right away 

“MY friends 

are a different 

breed.” 

THE HEART 

OF RITA ORA 

THE red bag reflects Rita Ora’s irreverent and powerful personality. 

As global design director Niall Sloan 

consolidates a contemporary vision of the Escada 

woman with his Spring/Summer 2019 New York 

runway show, the brand introduces a new facet 

of its evolution: the appointment of Rita Ora as 

its house ambassador. 

A musician whose talent, independence and 

creativity have established her as a household name, 

and whose fearless and individual approach to style 

have found her celebrated as a modern fashion 

icon, Rita Ora exemplifies the Escada spirit: at once 

powerful and irreverent, and indisputably in charge 

of her own destiny. 

To celebrate this new partnership, Rita has 

collaborated with Niall Sloan to create a special 

edition of the iconic Heart Bag. 

“The heart is what I think about when I think 

of Escada,” Rita says. “I absolutely love the bright 

colors and bold shapes of the brand, so the Heart 

Bag is definitely a signature piece.” 

In harmony with Escada’s bold palette, 

Rita’s love for red appears everywhere from the 

bag’s soft calfskin leather to its hardware. Its 

concentric hearts pay tribute both to Escada’s 

proud femininity and Rita’s celebration of female 

independence. 

“The best thing about the Heart Bag is of the 

message behind it,” she explains. “That you can be 

who you want to be, challenge the rules and feel 

strong and confident doing so.” 

Extending this passion into tangible change, 

Escada and Rita have decided to donate 15 euros 

from the sale of each bag to Women for Women 

International, a charity whose mission is to help 

female survivors of war rebuild their lives. 

Born in Kosovo, one of the countries “Women 

for Women International”operates in, Rita has a 

personal understanding of the impact of conflict. “I 

am so delighted that we are partnering with Women 

for Women International. Their work in helping 

women in conflict zones become economically 

empowered is so important,” she says. “I am 

originally from Kosovo, so it was important to me to 

give something back to the women there.” 

To celebrate the introduction of the “Heart Bag by 

Rita Ora”, Escada and Rita Ora hosted an intimate 

dinner and evening of creativity at Public Hotel in 

New York last 27 March.

26 APRIL 2019

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