DT_20190724

‘EL CHAPO’
APPEALS VERDICT
PAGE A6
WORLD
A STYLIST’S TAKE
ON GROOMING
PAGE C29 LIFESTYLE
ONCE UPON A TIME
IN GASCONLAND
PAGE A11
COMMENTARY
BSP KEEPS
MONETARY
PRUDENCE
PAGE B25
BUSINESS
SIGH OF
RELIEF
PAGE D33
SPORTS
‘Cinderella curfew’
needs more study
By Elmer N. Manuel
Davao City is not the rest of the
Philippines.
This, in effect, was what Senate President
Vicente Sotto III pointed out on Tuesday.
And if he will have his way, Sotto said the
proposal made by President Rodrigo Duterte
Turn to page A4
MANILA, PHILIPPINES WEDNESDAY, 24 JULY 2019
Home is the hero Newly-crowned World Boxing Association superwelterweight champion Manny Pacquiao receives Senate Resolution No. 3 honoring his victory over US boxing champ Keith Thurman from his peers upon his
return to the Senate.
AL PADILLA
Needle the plunderers!
We have one goal here, which is to stop corruption in our country
By Mario J. Mallari
and Kristina Maralit
President Rodrigo Duterte’s fourth
State of the Nation Address (SoNA) sent
Experts decide on ML
By Kristina Maralit
President Rodrigo Duterte
on Tuesday said he will seek
advice from security experts on
whether to extend the martial
law currently imposed in the
whole of Mindanao.
With less than six months
before he makes a decision on
another extension of martial
law, the President said he would
a message loud and clear to government
officials pilfering from the national
coffers.
What started as a joke -- when the
President said he was supposedly
base his decision from people
“with knowledgeable facts on
the ground.”
Presidential spokesman
Salvador Panelo disclosed this in
reaction to an earlier statement
by National Security Adviser
Hermogenes Esperon Jr., who
said he would recommend to Mr.
Duterte at least another year of
extended military rule in the
region. Turn to page A4
Fire victims get tent dividers in their temporary shelter after a fire hit their
community in Barangay Doña Imelda in Quezon City.
ANALY LABOR
Y’all been warned
told by a psychic about a strong
quake that would halve the
Batasang Pambansa Complex, the
split gobbling up all congressmen,
senators and even the Chief
Executive -- became a dire warning
against corrupt officials whom Mr.
Duterte wants meted with death if
Uncanny
strike
It was a perfect day to go
to the beach. A bright and
beautiful morning sky greeted
the crowd at Clearwater Beach
just outside Tampa, Florida,
with families and friends
preparing to bask under the
sun and swim the calm waters.
But that perfect beach
weather quickly turned into a
nightmare as lightning suddenly
struck at midday, leaving
several people injured and one
in critical condition.
Reports from Fox News said
the calm morning weather
Turn to page A2
Energy bills first to move
By Hananeel Bordey
Marinduque Rep. Lord Allan
Velasco, who is expected to take his
turn as House Speaker after Alan
Peter Cayetano has completed his 15
months, on Tuesday assured President
Rodrigo Duterte of support in pushing
projects for renewable energy and
energy efficiency.
Velasco is eyeing the chairmanship
of the Committee on Energy while
awaiting his term. He said he will use
his first few months as a second-term
Congressman in continuing his advocacy
for the legislation of bills related to
energy and its use.
By Kristina Maralit
Legislative agenda
Velasco’s statement came
after Duterte delivered his fourth
Turn to page A2
Lethal injection
Sen. Christopher Lawrence “Bong”
Go yesterday welcomed Mr. President’s
support to his bill seeking the reimposition
of the death penalty on felons convicted
of plunder and drug trafficking — two
heinous crimes specifically mentioned
Turn to page A2
Duterte pleads Land Use Act
President Rodrigo Duterte
renewed his appeal to Congress
for the passage of a measure
aimed at attracting more investors
to the country by promoting and
proved to be stealing government
funds.
As such, the President’s push for the
death penalty against plunderers and
convicted drug traffickers is expected
to have a huge impact on the fate of
pending bills before the Senate on the
capital punishment’s revival.
“I am one with the President
in urging the Department of
Energy (DoE) to fast-track
projects involving renewable
energy sources,” Velasco said.
The lawmaker added he
believes his time to assume the
House leadership will come, but said
they should all buckle down to work
and hit the ground running for now.
“We need to work as expected
from us by our constituents,” he said.
enforcing sustainable practices in
protecting the country’s natural
environment.
Mr. Duterte, during his fourth
State of the Nation Address
(SoNA) last Monday, asked both
the House of Representatives and
VELASCO
the Senate to “urgently pass” the
National Land Use Act (NLUA)
“within this year.”
“Please! So that we can
proceed with the new… Well, we
can meet the demands of the new
Turn to page A4
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A2 NEWS
Wednesday, 24 July 2019
Daily Tribune
PHOTOGRAPHS of the country’s most beautiful places are viewed by a visitor at the House of Representatives building in Quezon City.
Needle the plunderers!
I expect to muster enough support from my
colleagues
From page 1
by the Chief Executive as deserving
of the death warrant.
“I will fight for it. Thanks to
President Duterte for supporting it. We
have one goal here, which is to stop
corruption in our country,” Go said.
Asked about the chances of his
bill hurdling the Senate, Go replied,
“Maybe, hopefully, you will help
us, the President, in our campaign
against corruption, the government’s
campaign against illegal drugs and the
campaign against criminality.”
In his Senate Bill 207, Go seeks to
reinstate the death penalty for plunder
and drug offenses via lethal injection.
Go stressed that people, including
legislators, who are not corrupt should
not worry about the death penalty.
“You don’t have to be afraid if
you do not steal. So, nobody will die,
nobody will be slapped with the death
penalty if there are no plunderers,”
he said.
“If this (bill) is passed, it can sow
fear on thieves in the government,”
the senator said.
Combating corruption
An earlier report by the United
Nations Convention Against
Corruption claimed that about $2.6
trillion is lost annually to global
corruption.
These are monies needed
for essential services, including
healthcare, education, clean water
and infrastructure, the UN said,
adding that “corruption harms
societies in multiple ways. It
undermines democracy and rule
of law, erodes quality of life, slows
economic development and enables
organized crime and terrorism.”
The UN Office on Drugs and
Crime also said the international
community has recognized that
combating corruption is essential to
preventing and addressing root causes
of conflict and violent extremism,
From page 1
State of the Nation Address
(SoNA) on Monday at the
Batasang Pambansa, a speech
described by Velasco and Leyte
Rep. Martin Romualdez as loaded
with the Chief Executive’s clear
vision for the remaining three
years of his administration.
Velasco said Mr. Duterte was
astute and sharp in his report to
the Filipino people.
We need to work as
expected from us by our
constituents.
The two congressmen agreed
to step aside as Duterte adopted
Cayetano’s 1521 Magellan
Formula, which will have the
latter steering the House for
15 months before Velasco takes
over for the last 21 months of
the President’s remaining three
years in office. Romualdez,
meanwhile, will serve as House
Majority Floor Leader for the last
half of the six-year term.
President Duterte laid down his
legislative agenda which centered
on several measures aimed at
fighting corruption, improving
peace and order, boosting the
economy and uplifting the
lives of the Filipino people,”
building peace and protecting human
rights.
You don’t have to be afraid if
you do not steal.
“Governments understand that
anti-corruption is critical to countering
organized crime, including human
trafficking and migrant smuggling, as
well as trafficking of drugs, weapons
and natural resources,” UNODC
executive director Yury Fedotov said.
Sen. Ronald de la Rosa also
branded Duterte’s pronouncement
on the revival of the death penalty as
“very positive.”
De la Rosa also filed a bill calling
for the imposition of death penalty on
drug traffickers.
Senate support
In a broadcast interview yesterday,
Senate President Vicente Sotto III also
said he will support the reimposition
of the death penalty on high-level drug
trafficking.
Sotto stressed that it is awkward
for legislators to reject the death
penalty for plunderers.
“That’s why we, in Congress, it’s
awkward for us to say no to (death
penalty for) plunder. We should really
include it (plunder) in the death
penalty,” Sotto said.
This early, the Senate leader
predicts that 13 to 14 senators
will support the death penalty
for high-level drug trafficking
and plunder.
De la Rosa, at a recent “Straight
Talk with Daily Tribune,” stressed
that his version of the death penalty
is not as anti-poor as many critics of
the capital punishment have been
claiming.
“I expect to muster enough
support from my colleagues,” De la
Rosa said.
“Among the three versions filed,
mine is the lightest. I see a bigger
Velasco said Mr. Duterte was astute and sharp in
his report to the Filipino people.
Velasco said on Tuesday.
The Marinduque
representative also said
the Legislative-Executive
Development Advisory Council
(LEDAC) should convene
immediately.
President Duterte made
another powerful speech
about his renewed
commitment to good
governance and intensified
campaign against
corruption.
The LEDAC, a panel chaired
by Mr. Duterte, should find
common ground to ensure
immediate legislation of his bills
presented in the SoNA.
“There must be an agreement
among the Executive, the
Senate and the House of
Representatives on which
bills in the CLA (Common
Legislative
Agenda)
will be
chance of my bill being passed
because my death penalty version
is only for drug traffickers, drug
manufacturing,” he added.
De la Rosa stressed that without
the death penalty, big-time drug
lords, particularly foreigners, are
lured to engage in the illegal business
in the country.
“In my experience as Bureau of
Corrections chief, I asked no less
than the convicted drug lords and
traffickers why they insist on bringing
in shabu in our country. And their
reason? It’s because we don’t have
the death penalty for drug offenses
here in the Philippines,” De la Rosa
explained.
“They are not afraid unlike with
the other countries where they will
surely face death if they are caught,”
he added.
Urgent measures
In his fourth SoNA on Monday, Mr.
Duterte pushed for the death penalty
against heinous crimes related to
illegal drugs and plunder.
So, nobody will die, nobody
will be slapped with the
death penalty if there are no
plunderers.
The President is likely to certify
these measures as urgent, his
spokesman also said on Tuesday.
“Most likely, (the President) feels
that drugs and plunder are our biggest
problems,” presidential spokesman
Salvador Panelo told reporters during
a Palace briefing.
“Maybe he wants death penalty,
hoping it will mitigate the upsurge
of the drug menace and plunder,”
he added.
During his SoNA, Duterte cited
the Marawi Siege as an example of
how money from the illegal drugs
trade disrupted the peace and order
situation in the country. He claimed
that “tons of shabu worth millions and
millions of pesos” financed the Islamic
State-inspired terrorists during the
five-month battle.
The death penalty bill was passed
by the House of Representatives in the
17th Congress. It was, however, met
with strong opposition in the Senate.
But with majority of the
President’s endorsed candidates
winning senatorial seats in the recent
midterm polls, passing the restoration
of capital punishment, as well as
Mr. Duterte’s other priority bills, are
expected to have more support.
Respective versions
Aside from Go and De la Rosa,
Senators Panfilo Lacson and Manny
Pacquiao have also filed their respective
versions of the death penalty law.
“As a general rule, we don’t
want death penalty as it is in the
Constitution, unless Congress passes
a law about it,” Panelo stated.
The death penalty was abolished
in the Philippines in 2006 during the
administration of former President
Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo.
In the 17th Congress, the Senate
did not move the bill proposed by Sen.
Manny Pacquiao which called for the
reimposition of the death penalty.
Pacquiao’s SB 189 sought to
amend Republic Act 9165 or the
Comprehensive Drugs Act of 2002.
The boxing icon-turned-senator
proposed the penalty of life
imprisonment to death and a fine
ranging from P1 million to P10 million
on those found guilty of importing and
selling illegal drugs.
Those who protect or coddle any
violator of the Comprehensive Drug
Act would also face a penalty of life
imprisonment to death and a fine
ranging from P500,000 to P1 million.
In his explanatory note, Pacquiao
said drug trafficking remains “a
highly lucrative illicit business
with limited risks due to systemic
poverty, ineffective criminal justice
institutions, outdated drug control
laws, poorly controlled maritime
borders and public corruption.”
Meanwhile, Philippine National
Police Chief Oscar Albayalde
said he “firmly believes” that the
President’s endorsement of the
capital punishment will be a “game
changer.”
Energy bills first to move
prioritized so these can be
enacted into laws at the soonest
possible time,” Velasco added.
The lawmaker said he is
committed to shepherding Mr.
Duterte’s priority measures.
Velasco said he filed bills
aimed at postponing the barangay
elections in May to October 2020,
institutionalizing the Reserve
Officers’ Training Corps and
the rightsizing of government
bureaucracy.
Romualdez, meanwhile, said
the President’s speech was
RECYCLABLE materials are
unloaded in this junk shop
that will have to go soon
following President Duterte’s
order to Metro Manila mayors to
reclaim the streets for people’s use.
ROMAN PROSPERO
From page 1
Uncanny strike
quickly turned to worse at around
noon, as rain clouds suddenly
appeared over the beach with the
lifeguards also leaving their posts
with the impending bad weather.
However, some people stayed
on the beach and watched the
storm clouds unfurl. With one
roaring thunder, lightning struck
a man in his 40s which caused
him to have a heart attack. He
is currently in critical condition.
According to the Clearwater
Fire and Rescue officials, the
others who were injured in the
strike are in good condition
— including three who were
taken to Morton Plan Hospital
and a fifth patient who was
transported to Tampa General
Hospital with burns.
Three other people who were
also injured refused transport and
were not immediately identified.
Meantime, Clearwater Fire
and Rescue District Chief,
Greg Newland praised the good
samaritans at the beach for
quickly jumping to action by
pulling those hurt to safety and
performing CPR on the man who
was struck.
“straightforward and direct to
the point.”
“President Duterte made
another powerful speech about
his renewed commitment to
good governance and intensified
campaign against corruption,”
Romualdez said on
Monday
evening.
H e
s a i d
he will
be supporting the
creation of the Department
of Disaster Resilience and
push for the eradication of
poverty, illegal drugs, peace
and order concerns, lack of
infrastructures and corruption.
“I assure the country’s
economic managers that
Congress will align its
legislative agenda with
President Duterte’s priority
economic bills, which aims to
cut poverty almost by half in
2022,” he added.
Deputy speakers
Meanwhile, the 11 newly-appointed
House Deputy Speakers took their
oath before Speaker Cayetano on
Tuesday.
They are Representatives
Paolo Zimmerman Duterte,
Ferdinand Ledesma Hernandez,
Evelina Escudero, Loren Legarda,
Conrad Estrella III, Prospero
Pichay, Roberto Puno, Eddie
Villanueva, Aurelio Gonzales Jr.,
Johnny Pimentel and Luis Rey
ANALY LABOR
“They put themselves at risk,
major thunderstorm going on,
lightning popping every couple
seconds, and they actually ran
out on to the beach and were able
to pull the victims into a safer
location,” Newland said.
According to authorities, it is
not uncommon for beachgoers
to stay on the sand to watch
storms pass, but staying there
with a storm approaching can be
dangerous.
“Beachgoers should take
cover and go to a safe place
when lightning and thunder are
present,” said the officials. “As
a reminder, Clearwater Fire and
Rescue uses the phrase: ‘When
you hear the roar, go indoor.’”
The Florida strike was one of
three lightning strikes reported
in the US over the weekend as
a 16-year-old boy was struck by
lightning at a soccer tournament
in Aurora, Illinois, Chicago
ABC station WLS reported.
He remained conscious and
was taken to a local hospital
and is now reportedly in good
condition.
Another child between the
age of five and six was struck in
Bethlehem, Pennsylvania as well.
UMBRELLAS make for an art installation that this man is trying to capture
with his camera phone in Venezuela.
AFP
Villafuerte.
Cayetano designated each
deputy speaker to lead some
standing committees.
Rep. Duterte will be Deputy
Speaker for Political Affairs,
while Rep. Estrella will represent
the Partylist Coalition.
According to House Rules,
Deputy Speakers of the House
are the second highest-ranking
officials of the chamber.
These House leaders will take
over the duties of the Speaker in
the absence of Cayetano.
Cavite Rep. Jesus Crispin
Remulla was appointed as House
Senior Deputy Majority leader.
He will take over the duties of
the Majority Floor Leader during
his absence.
I am one with the
President in urging the
Department of Energy
to fast-track projects
involving renewable energy
sources.
The members of the House
have not fielded any lawmaker
who will lead the 60 standing
committees and 15 special
committees, along with the
lawmakers who will become
members of each panel.
Cayetano, Romualdez and
newly-appointed Secretary-General
Atty. Jose Luis Montales and
Sergeant-at-arms Gen. Ramon
Apolinario took their oath on
Monday.

Wednesday, 24 July 2019
Daily Tribune
PAGE THREE
DU30 reiterates ROTC revival
Military training instills discipline, love of country, he says
Children nowadays, they are bereft of the patriotism and the love
of country
By Kristina Maralit
Teach them how to hold guns.
This was the message sent out by
President Rodrigo Duterte as he reiterated
his call to for the reinstatement of the
mandatory Reserved Officers Training
Course (ROTC) for senior high school
students.
“We expect support for legislative initiatives
aimed at strengthening defense-related systems
such as the proposed National Defense Act,
the Unified Military and Uniformed Personnel
Separation, Retirement, and Pension Bill, and
the revival of the mandatory ROTC in Grades
11 and 12,” the President said in his fourth State
of the Nation Address last Monday.
According to him, military training
instills discipline and love for country
to the youth and thereby teaches them
how to defend the nation from inside and
outside threats.
“Very important. Should there be a
war, 10 out of 10, they wouldn’t know how
to hold a gun to defend even his father
and mother and brothers and sisters.
Children nowadays, they are bereft of the
patriotism and the love of country,” stated
Mr. Duterte.
“I think a military training would be good
for everybody. If not, they fall to shabu and
may end up dead,” he added.
The President has previously certified
as urgent the bill requiring the restoration
of ROTC training for students in Grades 11
and 12.
It was already passed by the House of
Representatives in the 17th Congress.
A counterpart measure in the Senate,
meanwhile, is awaiting second reading.
ROTC training was made optional
in 2002 following the gruesome and
controversial death of Mark Welson Chua,
a University of Santo Tomas student who
was allegedly murdered by course officers
after exposing reported anomalies within
the institution.
Build Build Build Workers work on the center island of A. Bonifacio in Manila in preparation for the construction of the Skyway leading to NLEX.
Solons back PRRD’s
urgent measures
We will work double-time to act on the President’s priority bills,
especially those aimed at improving the lives of our people
Several lawmakers from the House of
Representatives have lauded President Duterte’s
fourth State of the Nation Address (SoNA), and
expressed full support to his legislative agenda.
Newly-installed House Majority Leader
Martin Romualdez said Duterte’s SoNA was
straightforward and direct to the point.
“I congratulate President Duterte for another
powerful speech about his renewed commitment
to good governance and intensified campaign
against corruption,” he said.
The Leyte lawmaker vowed that the House,
under the leadership of Speaker Alan Peter
Cayetano, will work on long-term solutions aimed
at addressing the nation’s serious ills such as
poverty, illegal drugs, peace and order concerns,
lack of infrastructures and corruption, and
the need to create the Department of Disaster
Resilience,
“As I previously stated, we will work double-time
to act on the President’s priority bills, especially
those aimed at improving the lives of our people,”
Romualdez said.
“I assure the country’s economic managers
that Congress will align its legislative agenda
with President Duterte’s priority economic
bills, which aims to cut poverty almost by half
in 2022,” he added.
In his address before the Joint Session of
Congress, Duterte urged Congress to pass the
second tranche of his administration’s tax
reform measures, known as the TRABAHO Bill,
the valuation reform bill, and the alcohol excise
tax bill.
He also urged Congress to pass a new Salary
Standardization Law that would increase the
salaries of government workers, including teachers
and nurses, and the National Land Use Act.
Aside from creating a Department of Disaster
Resilience, Duterte also called on Congress to
pass a series of measures, which would create a
Department of Water Resources, Water Regulatory
Commission, Department of Overseas Filipino
Workers, and a National Academy for Sports. JCU
ROMAN PROSPERO
‘Prioritize TRABAHO Bill’
By Maria Romero
President Rodrigo Duterte on Monday
called on lawmakers to pass the second
tranche of his planned tax system overhaul
even as ecozone business groups have
appealed to the government to review the
measures of the bill a week prior.
In his fourth State of the Nation Address,
President Duterte reiterated his stance
backing his economic managers’ plan to
rationalize corporate tax incentives under
the Tax Reform for Attracting Better and
High-Quality Opportunities (TRABAHO) bill.
“We have also tax reforms to fund our
poverty reduction programs. I, therefore,
implore Congress to immediately pass
Package 2 of the comprehensive tax
reform program or the TRABAHO Bill,”
Duterte said.
“It will energize our small and medium-sized
enterprises and encourage them to expand their
business and hopefully generate 104 million
jobs in the coming years. The MSMEs hold
the promise of raising a lot of the Filipinos,”
he added.
The TRABAHO bill was filed to
rationalize the incentives given to businesses
to drive a more competitive financial and
fiscal system in the country. It also seeks
to reduce corporate income tax rates to
20 percent from the current 30 percent to
attract more direct investments.
Double violation Police apprehend a motorist not wearing a helmet and beating a red light along
N. Domingo in San Juan. ROMAN PROSPERO
By Elmer N. Manuel
Family-friendly policies
on child care pushed
Citing the earliest years of a child’s life as the
most crucial stage, the United Nations Children’s
Fund (UNICEF) published a list of new family-friendly
policy recommendations, saying that it will likely reap
“huge” benefits.
“There is no other time more critical to children’s
lives than their earliest years”, said Henrietta Fore,
UNICEF Executive Director, “which is why we need a
transformative shift in how businesses and governments
invest in policies and practices that not only support
healthy brain development, but also strengthen the bond
between parents and their children — and reap huge
economic and social benefits in return.”
And yet, policies, such as paid parental leave,
breastfeeding breaks and affordable childcare are
not available for most parents around the world.
“Family-Friendly Policies: Redesigning the Workplace
of the Future,” outlines the latest evidence and new
recommendations that lay the foundation for healthy
development, success and poverty reduction.
According to UNICEF, a one-month increase
in paid maternity leave in low-and-middle income
countries has been found to reduce infant mortality
rates by 13 percent.
In high-income countries, each additional week
of paid parental leave is associated with more than a
four percent lower chance of single mothers living in
poverty. Paid parental leave of six months also helps
promote exclusive breastfeeding, according to
the agency.

A4 NEWS
Wednesday, 24 July 2019
Daily Tribune
Experts
decide on ML
Both houses of Congress
approved the third extension
which took effect last 1
January and will last until 31
December
From page 1
CONSTRUCTION workers spruce up a building in preparation for the rainy season.
‘Cinderella curfew’ needs more study
From page 1
for a nationwide closure of entertainment
and food establishments and bars at
midnight needs a thorough study.
Sotto stressed that Duterte’s call
— delivered during his fourth State of
the Nation Address (SoNA) on Monday
— could be considered in certain areas
of the country, but implementation on
a national scale is not feasible.
“We have to study the proposal
thoroughly, it would be better to start at
the local level through ordinances,” Sotto
said. “We have to consider the advantages
and disadvantages.”
“Bar owners might deceive us
like what happened before, when
they claimed the establishment
(was) closed but (was) packed
with clients inside,” he added.
The Senate President noted
that they will also study its effects
on the local level, noting that
Duterte had already done it in
Davao City.
In his SoNA, the President said
he wants Congress to pass a law that
would require establishments across
the country to close by midnight.
But during a post-SoNA interview,
Duterte clarified that what he said
was just a suggestion.
“No, no. I was just suggesting. I’d like
to — Congress to ponder on it and maybe
sleep on it and if they want. But it can
improve tremendously the quality of life.
Stop drinking at almost 11 (p.m.) then you
go home,” Duterte said.
Too commercial
In another development related to
the President’s SoNA, Land Bank of the
Philippines on Tuesday said it will be
working closely with the Department
of Agrarian Reform to fast-track the
distribution of individual land titles to
agrarian reform beneficiaries as a means
to improve the bankability of small farmers,
the Department of
Finance
(DoF) said in
a statement.
This was
a reaction
to President
Duterte
calling out
the financial
institution
for being
too “commercialized” on Monday.
The Chief Executive lamented how
LandBank seems more focused on
commercial endeavors rather than projects
in the agricultural sector to help the
farmers.
The Finance department said
LandBank would heed Mr. Duterte’s
directive and assured that “the institution
has sufficient funds to accomplish this
mission.”
It also bared that it is “pushing through
with its acquisition of shares in the
Philippine Dealing System Holdings Corp.”
for more capital.
“Moreover, LandBank also performs
other critical functions such as
distributing cash grants to the Pantawid
Pamilyang Pilipino Program households
and the Pantawid Pasada fuel subsidy
beneficiaries,” according to the DoF.
The President in his SoNA served
notice to LandBank “to revert” to its
original mandate of serving people “who
can barely negotiate with a bank” by
month’s end.
Otherwise, he warned, he would
be forced to ask Congress to
“reconfigure” it.
“There’s no need
ANALY LABOR
to bring the money. They can have
loans then they can get the fertilizers,
the seedlings, the… whatever. But they
have to serve primarily the people,”
Mr. Duterte said in his post-SoNA press
conference.
“That’s why they’re called LandBank.
I suppose that was what really was
intended by the lawmakers at that time,”
he added.
Founded in 1963 and categorized as
a “specialized government bank” with a
universal banking license, LandBank’s
primary task then was to help farmers
with the purchase of agricultural estates
for division and resale to small landholders
and the purchase of land by the agricultural
lessee.
Directly under the DoF,
it is currently being headed
by Cecilia Borromeo who
was appointed as its
president and CEO in
March this year.
Esperon said he will do so “due to
the sustained rebellion in the region” as
shown by recent bombing attacks there.
“He will listen to those who are
knowledgeable on the facts existing
on the ground,” Panelo said in a press
conference.
“If that is the recommendation of the
President’s men on the ground, he will
listen,” he reiterated.
Mr. Duterte first placed Mindanao
under martial law on 23 May 2017 after
the Islamic State-inspired Maute Group
attacked and occupied Marawi City.
The Senate and House of
Representaives have twice extended
military rule in the region after the
initial proclamation — first on 23 July
to 31 December 2017 and 13 December
2017 to 31 December 2018.
Both houses of Congress approved the
third extension which took effect last 1
January and will last until 31 December.
The Palace previously said the
President could exercise “special
powers” if it would mean protecting the
security and welfare of the nation and
the people, especially amid concerns of
terrorism spilling over to Metro Manila
from Mindanao.
The President himself, several weeks
back, said he sees “dangerous times ahead”
and that he can feel his hands “sweating”
at the mere thought of terrorism spreading
in other parts of the country.
“I see very dangerous times ahead.
And I hope that we will be able to
contain whatever there is really to…
My hands sweat just thinking about
[what would happen] if it would go awry
outside of Sulu and Basilan Islands,” he
expressed.
ZIPPER lane is implemented along Commonwealth Avenue in Tandang Sora in Quezon City.
From page 1
new investors coming in. Our lands are
our problem,” he said.
“A science-based national land use plan
would serve as basis for the LGU (local
government units) in crafting respective
development plans and help disperse economic
activities to the countryside,” he added.
This was not the first time the
President called on both houses to pass
the proposed measure.
He asked Congress to pass the NLUA
in two previous SoNA -— in 2017 and 2018.
The NLUA has been sitting in
Duterte pleads Land Use Act
The NLUA, once enacted, would greatly help the country manage
its resources and provide further safeguards to biodiversity and
clearer guidelines for infrastructure development
Congress for over two decades, even
after it was already certified as urgent
by former President Benigno Aqunio III
in 2013 and then by Mr. Duterte.
Passage of the measure is deemed
critical by the Chief Executive as it
will establish a national land use plan
that will classify property according
to use: protection (for conservation),
production (for agriculture and
fisheries), settlements development (for
residential purposes) and infrastructure
development (for transportation,
communication, water resources and
social infrastructure).
According to the President, the
NLUA, once enacted, would greatly
help the country manage its resources
and provide further safeguards to
biodiversity and clearer guidelines for
infrastructure development.
The NLUA would also help the
national government map agricultural
lands which can be cultivated for the
country’s food security, determine
highly hazardous areas as the
Philippines is susceptible to natural
disasters and provide better safeguards
for communities, especially in the
countryside where land use regulation
is required the most.
The lower house approved its version
of the NLUA back in May 2017. The upper
chamber, meanwhile, has five filed
counterpart versions in the environment
and natural resources committee.
ANALY LABOR
THEODORE Te (left), former Philippine Supreme Court spokesman and lawyer for
journalist Maria Ressa who leads online outlet Rappler, shakes hands with prosecution
attorneys Ryan Cruz (right) and Joseph Banguis (center) after the start of Ressa’s trial
in Manila.
AFP

"
Wednesday, 24 July 2019
Daily Tribune
NO BREAKS
Trump calls Iran
a ‘terror state’
WORLD
A5
I’ll tell you it could go either way, very easily
WASHINGTON — US President Donald Trump said
Monday that chances of negotiating with Iran were
dwindling, as he cited increasing tensions in the Gulf
and blasted the Islamic republic as the world’s top “state
of terror.”
The President cited a series of recent conflicts involving
Tehran, including the downing of US and Iranian drones
and, most recently, Tehran’s announcement that it arrested
17 people in connection to a CIA spy ring, a claim Trump
rejected as “lies.”
“Frankly it’s getting harder for me to want to make a
deal with Iran, because they behave very badly,” Trump
told reporters in the Oval Office, as visiting Pakistani
Prime Minister Imran Khan sat at his side.
“I’ll tell you it could go either way, very easily,” Trump
added. “And I’m OK either way it goes.”
Washington and Tehran have been at loggerheads since
May 2018, when Trump unilaterally withdrew the United
States from a landmark 2015 deal that put curbs on Iran’s
nuclear program in exchange for sanctions relief.
IS claims
car blast
DAMASCUS, Syria — The Islamic State
(IS) group said it was behind a deadly car
bombing in Damascus on Monday, in its first
such claim since regime forces expelled the
jihadists from the capital last year.
State media reported earlier that a civilian
was killed when a car bomb exploded in the
capital’s southern suburb of Qadam.
It was the latest in a spate of similar
attacks to hit the Syrian capital in recent
months, but the first to be claimed by IS
since it was expelled from the city’s southern
outskirts in May 2018.
Photos from state news agency SANA
showed a white car charred by the explosion.
“One civilian was killed when an IED
planted in a car went off,” it reported.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights
said the attack targeted a senior official of the
National Defense Forces, a pro-regime militia.
It was the latest in a spate of similar
attacks to hit the Syrian capital in
recent months, but the first to be
claimed by IS since it was expelled
from the city’s southern outskirts in
May 2018.
The official’s driver died in the blast,
according to the Britain-based monitor.
Bomb attacks have increased in Damascus
and other regions under government control.
Pro-regime political analyst Taleb Ibrahim
was the target of a car bomb attack last month
that wounded his wife and son, SANA said.
That followed a civilian being killed and
five others wounded in an April car bomb blast
on a highway south of Damascus, according
to the news agency.
In May last year, regime forces announced
they had ousted IS from Qadam as well as the
neighboring areas of Tadamun, Hajar al-Aswad
and the Palestinian camp of Yarmuk after a
weeks-long offensive.
Last March, a US-backed Kurdish-Arab
alliance expelled IS from their last patch of
territory in eastern Syria, but they retain a
presence in the country’s vast Badia desert and
still claim deadly attacks in the Kurdish-held
northeast.
AFP
CARACAS, Venezuela — Venezuela
claimed on Monday that a US “spy plane”
had entered its airspace, just days
after Washington accused a Venezuelan
fighter jet of “aggressively” shadowing
GIRLS pass by a graffiti reading “Long Live Chavez” in Caracas, Venezuela.
On Monday, Trump ramped up the rhetoric, attacking
Iran’s government as “a religious regime that is badly
failing,” and saying the country has “tremendous problems
economically.”
He also used menacing language, saying the United
States was “ready for the absolute worst.”
“We are very geared up. They are really the number
one state of terror in the world,” Trump said.
The aggressive remarks came as Washington announced
it was placing a leading Chinese oil importer on its
sanctions blacklist for trading in Iranian crude.
“As part of that maximum pressure campaign, I am
announcing that the United States is imposing sanctions on
the Chinese entity Zhuhai Zhenrong and its chief executive
Youmin Li,” Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said in a speech.
“They violated US law by accepting crude oil,” he added.
The sanctions seek to constrict Zhuhai Zhenrong’s
access to global financial markets by banning any US
individual or business — including financial institutions
with US entities, like most global banks — from doing
business with the company.
AFP
BRITISH oil tanker “Stena Impero” is surrounded by speedboats of Iran’s Islamic Revolution Guard
Corps in the Strait of Hormuz.
XINHUA
WASHINGTON — Americans distrust the
news media, but see government and political
leaders as even more untrustworthy, a survey
showed Monday.
The Pew Research Center found 69 percent
of Americans say the federal government
intentionally withholds important information
from the public, while 61 percent say the news
media intentionally ignores important stories.
Nearly two-thirds say it is hard to tell the
difference between what is true and false when
they hear elected officials, and almost half said
the same about information they encounter on
social media.
The survey highlighting growing mistrust
among Americans in institutions and in each
other, which could make it more difficult to deal
with social and political issues.
Researchers found 64 percent of US adults
believe trust in each other has declined, and 58
percent say it is very important to reverse that.
“Americans are worried that distrust in the
government and in others is taking a toll on the
nation,” said Lee Rainie, head of Pew’s Internet
and technology research.
“They believe that distrust gets in the way
SYRIAN civil defense member, known as White Helmet, helps an injured Syrian child after pulling him out
from under the rubble following a reported Russian air strike on Maaret al-Numan in Syria’s northwestern
Idlib province.
AFP
=========================
U.S. mistrust on the rise
of solving some pressing problems, that it flows
from a broken political culture and that it keeps
neighbors apart.
“At the same time, people are full of ideas
about solutions to trust problems. They range
from muffling political partisanship to reorienting
the news to creating community projects where
people can work shoulder-to-shoulder.”
Pew said at least part of reason for the
lack of trust in government lies with President
Donald Trump, who has repeated at least 10,000
falsehoods since taking office, according to
one count, and who has repeatedly attacked
mainstream media reports about him as “fake
news.”
The Pew Research Center found 69
percent of Americans say the federal
government intentionally withholds
important information from the public.
The report was extracted from Pew’s
American Trends Panel conducted 27
November to 10 December 2018 of 10,618
adults, with an estimated margin of error of
1.5 percentage points. AFP
Yemen rebel arsenal more lethal
DUBAI, U.A.E. — From ballistic missiles to unmanned drones,
Yemen’s Huthi rebels appear to have bolstered their fighting
capabilities, posing a serious threat to mighty neighbor
Saudi Arabia.
Spy plane trespasses Venezuela airspace
an American intelligence plane over the
Caribbean Sea.
Venezuela’s Communication Minister
Jorge Rodriguez said a plane that had
come from the United States flew over
the Caracas airport “flight information
region,” without explaining its reasons
for doing so.
On Sunday, US defense officials said
a Russian-made Venezuelan SU-30 had
AFP
We have witnessed a massive increase in
capability on the side of the Huthis in
recent years.
In June alone, the Iran-aligned Shiite Huthis launched
at least 20 missile and drone attacks on the oil-rich
kingdom, Iran’s regional foe, some resulting in casualties
and damage.
Saudi advanced air defenses successfully intercepted
most of the strikes but failed to deal with some,
including a drone attack on the vital airport of
Abha, in the south, that killed one person and
injured 21 others.
“We have witnessed a massive increase in capability
on the side of the Huthis in recent years, particularly
relating to ballistic missiles and drone technology,”
Andreas Kreig, a professor at King’s College London,
told AFP.
“The current capability is far more advanced than
anything the Yemeni armed forces had before the civil
war,” which began in 2014, said Kreig, an expert on the
Middle East.
The rebels showed off some of their advanced weaponry at an
exhibition held earlier this month at an undisclosed location
to mark the fifth anniversary of their offensive against the
Yemeni government.
AFP
followed a US EP-3 aircraft at an “unsafe out at the “very serious military actions”
distance ... jeopardizing the crew and by the US military that he said were
aircraft.”
“threatening” Venezuela.
The US Southern Command “All threats will elicit an immediate
(SOUTHCOM) blasted the maneuver response” from the Venezuelan military,
as “unprofessional” and claimed the he said.
EP-3 was “flying a mission in approved Venezuela and the United States have
international airspace.”
been at loggerheads since Maduro’s
It also claimed the action predecessor, the late Hugo Chavez came
demonstrated Russia’s “irresponsible to power in 1999.
military support” to Venezuelan President Chavez aligned himself with
Nicolas Maduro’s “illegitimate regime.” communist Cuba under the late Fidel
Maduro’s right-hand man, Diosdado Castro and other socialist regimes in
Cabello, alluded to the two incidents in Latin America, and was a prominent
a press conference on Monday, hitting critic of Washington.
AFP
==============================================
Case Law
By VICTOR C. AVECILLA
Magsino v. Magsino
G.R. No. 205333, February 18, 2019 / Second Division / Reyes, J., Jr., J.
Remedial Law; Evidence; Admissibility; Probative Value.
— The admissibility of evidence should not be confused with
its probative value. Admissibility refers to the question of
whether a certain item of evidence is to be considered at all,
while probative value refers to the question of whether the
admitted evidence proves an issue. Thus, a particular item
of evidence may be admissible, but its evidentiary weight
depends on judicial evaluation within the guidelines provided
by the rules governing evidence. (VOLUME 2, NUMBER 143)
========================================
======================

A6 WORLD Wednesday, 24 July 2019
Daily Tribune
LIFE IN PRISON
‘El Chapo’
appeals verdict
EMMA Coronel Aispuro, wife of Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman, walks out of the Brooklyn Federal
Court after the Mexican drug lord’s sentencing in New York.
AFP
China sets vaping control
Studies have shown the aerosol
generated by e-cigarettes
contains toxic elements, and
various additives in the products
pose health risks to the users
BEIJING, China — China’s National
Health Commission (NHC) plans to regulate
electronic cigarettes through legislation in
a bid to address critical concerns over the
product’s harmful effects.
Currently, the NHC has been conducting
joint research with other relevant departments
on the issue, said Mao Qunan, head of the
planning department of the NHC at a press
conference held on Monday.
Studies have shown the aerosol generated
by e-cigarettes contains toxic elements, and
various additives in the products pose health
risks to the users, Mao said.
Besides, the ambiguous labeling of nicotine
content in e-cigarettes could result in an
overdose of the unhealthy chemical, along
with other potential hazards such as battery
explosion, liquid leaking and burning, he said.
According to a survey released by Chinese
Center for Disease Control and Prevention
last year, although the rate of e-cigarette
usage, also known as vaping, among Chinese
people was relatively low, it already doubled
that in 2015.
Particularly, the vaping rate among young
people was higher than other age groups, with
those aged 15 to 24 the highest, the survey said.
“According to international studies, vaping
tends to induce juveniles to try traditional
cigarettes, which will accelerate the trend
toward a younger smoking population,” Mao
said.
“In light of their risks and negative impact on
juveniles’ health habits, e-cigarettes should be
regulated more strictly,” said Mao, adding that
such awareness should be also raised among the
public, especially among parents and schools,
to protect juveniles from vaping. Xinhua
PEKING Opera is performed by a student during the 2019 China-ASEAN Education Cooperation
Week in Guizhou Province, China.
XINHUA
A symbolic 30 years was also added to the
sentence and he was also ordered to pay
$12.6 billion in forfeiture
NEW YORK — Fallen Mexican drug lord Joaquin “El
Chapo” Guzman, once one of the world’s most powerful
and notorious criminals, has appealed his life sentence,
court documents published on Monday showed.
Guzman, the 62-year-old former co-leader of Mexico’s feared
Sinaloa drug cartel, was convicted in February of smuggling
hundreds of tons of cocaine, heroin, methamphetamine and
marijuana into the United States (US).
On Wednesday last week, he was sentenced to life in
prison in a New York federal courtroom, and sent to the
notorious ADX federal maximum security prison in the US
state of Colorado nicknamed the “Alcatraz of the Rockies.”
A symbolic 30 years was also added to the sentence and
he was also ordered to pay $12.6 billion in forfeiture — a
sum based on a conservative estimate of revenues from his
cartel’s sales in the US.
Guzman’s new lawyer, Marc Fernich, filed an appeal
the next day, documents show.
“Guzman has strong issues for appeal. We’ll fight to
overturn his conviction and are confident we’ll prevail,”
Fernich told AFP via email.
A decision by an appeals judge could take up to a year.
Guzman — whose moniker “El Chapo” translates as
“Shorty” — is considered the most influential drug lord
since Colombia’s Pablo Escobar, who was killed in a
police shootout in 1993.
He was extradited from Mexico to the United States
in January 2017.
Current ADX inmates include convicted “Unabomber”
Ted Kaczynski, Oklahoma City bomber Terry Nichols,
the British “shoe bomber” Richard Reid and the Boston
marathon bomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, who is awaiting
execution.
AFP
Brazil drugs seizures soar
BRASILIA, Brazil — Brazil seized 25.3 tons of cocaine
bound for Europe and Africa in the first half of 2019,
up more than 90 percent on the same period last year,
officials said Monday.
Nearly half of the drugs were found at Santos port
in southern Brazil, not far from where police recently
arrested two men suspected of belonging to Italian mafia
‘Ndrangheta.
Last year we seized 31.4 tons of cocaine, a
record that we will surely beat again.
Customs officials attributed the increase in seizures to better
intelligence and increased vigilance along Brazil’s borders.
Macron cites migrant
plans progress
PARIS, France — French President Emmanuel
Macron on Monday said European countries had made
progress on plans to redistribute refugees rescued in
the Mediterranean, efforts criticized by Italy’s hardline
Interior Minister Matteo Salvini.
The issue of what to do with the thousands of refugees
still attempting to reach Europe by crossing the
Mediterranean Sea has sparked a sharp response
in some countries, with Italy saying it is bearing
the brunt of the problem while its EU partners
do little to help.
Monday’s
tentative
agreement,
which aims to
work towards a
more efficient
system of redistributing
rescued people, was reached at a meeting
on migration in the Mediterranean held in
Paris under French chairmanship.
The issue of what to do with the
thousands of refugees still attempting
to reach Europe by crossing the
Mediterranean Sea has sparked a
sharp response in some countries.
Macron said 14 states had approved the plan,
while eight said they would actively take part.
They include France, Germany, Finland,
Luxembourg, Portugal, Lithuania, Croatia and
Ireland, Macron’s office said, without naming
the other six.
Salvini, who has closed ports to NGO
rescue boats, said the agreement underscored
a demand that Italy “continue to be the
refugee camp
of Europe.”
AFP
“Last year we seized 31.4 tons of cocaine, a record
that we will surely beat again,” Arthur Cazella told AFP.
The amount of cannabis confiscated more than doubled
to 10.2 tons in the January-June period, up from 3.9 tons
year-on-year.
Brazil, which has some 17,000 kilometers (10,500 miles)
of land borders, is an important hub for international
drug trafficking.
Drugs produced in Colombia, Bolivia, Venezuela and
Paraguay are smuggled into Brazil and then sent to mainly
European markets.
Some routes to Africa are also opening up, Cazella said.
Cocaine seizures have soared in recent years, from
958 kilograms in 2014 to last year’s record 31.4 tons. AFP
Russian activist murdered
ST. PETERSBURG, Russia — Russian campaigners on
Monday said a woman found murdered with multiple stab
wounds in the city of Saint Petersburg was a well-known
local activist who had received threats over her protests
for LGBT rights and opposition causes.
Authorities confirmed they had found the body of
a woman in Russia’s second largest city but did not
identify her.
“The body of a
41-year-old woman
with multiple knife
wounds was found
Sunday in southern
Saint Petersburg,” the
Investigative Committee
said.
Activists and media reports
in the city named the victim as
Yelena Grigoryeva, a local campaigner
who is a regular participant in rallies supporting
LGBT rights, political prisoners and opposing
the annexation of Crimea.
The body of a 41-year-old woman with
multiple knife wounds was found
Sunday in southern Saint Petersburg.
“An activist of democratic, anti-war and
LGBT movements Yelena Grigoryeva was
brutally murdered near her house” on Friday
night, opposition campaigner Dinar Idrisov
wrote on Facebook.
“Recently she has frequently been a victim
of violence and received murder threats,”
he said. Grigoryeva “filed complaints to the
police regarding the violence and the threats,
but there was no reaction.”
Saint Petersburg online newspaper
Fontanka said
Grigoryeva was
found with knife
injuries to her
back and face
and had apparently
been strangled.
A suspect was
arrested, it
reported. AFP
CONTROVERSIAL “Christ of the Pacific” in Lima, Peru that was financed by the graft-tainted Brazilian construction giant Odebrecht and late ex-President Alan Garcia at the cost of $800,000 is now being viewed as a “symbol of corruption.” AFP

Wednesday, 24 July 2019
Daily Tribune
Rody wants killers
of Negros cops dead
Just bring me the head of that idiot leader there
Stressing his rage against the killers
of four Negros Oriental cops, President
Rodrigo Duterte has raised the reward for
the heads of those behind the murder of
the policemen last week in Ayungon town.
The President added P300,000 to the
initial P1 million bounty he offered.
Mr. Duterte, in a chance interview
after his fourth State of the
Nation Address (SoNA)
on Monday, stressed
that he preferred the
perpetrators to be
Farmers,
DA hold
vegetable
fest
The festival aims to promote
the highland vegetable industry
through exhibits of local
products and exchange of
knowledge
LA TRINIDAD, Benguet — To
further boost the highland
vegetable industry,
farmers, traders,
the provincial
government of
Benguet and the
Department of
Agriculture (DA)
Cordillera have
joined hands
for this year’s
2nd Highland
Vegetable
Festival.
The festival
is scheduled to
open today at
the Benguet
Agri-Pinoy
Trading
C e n t e r
(BAPTC) in La
Trinidad and
will last up to
26 July.
T h e
Highland
Vegetable Festival
Stakeholders
Association and
staff of the BAPTC
will be hosting the
three-day fest.
The festival is
expected to attract
farmers, consumers,
traders and representatives from
various government agencies to
boost the highland industry.
Aldwin Quitasol
Raises bounty to P1.3 million
brought to him dead.
“I prefer to see them dead. If they’re
dead, I’m going to add P300,000,” the
President said.
“So, it’s (P1.3 million), just bring me
the head of that idiot leader there,”
Duterte added.
Killed were Cpl. Relebert Beronio,
Pat. Raffy Callao, Pat. Ruel Cabellon
and Pat. Marquino de Leon, all
intelligence operatives of
the 704th Mobile Force
Company Regional
The Department of Trade and
Industry-Region 7 (DTI-7) has launched
a region-wide simultaneous raids
against large-scale hardware suppliers
in Central Visayas that engaged in
selling of sub-standard construction
materials.
DTI-7 Director Asteria Caberte
yesterday warned suppliers to stop or
face the full might of the law.
Caberte stressed that the campaign
Mobile Force Battalion of the Philippine Ayungon town last 18 July.
National Police (PNP) in Central Visayas. The four policemen were later
Reports showed that the four cops were discovered dead in the area.
on their way to the detachment at Sitio The military said that the PNP members
Nabinca when suspected members of the sustained gunshot wounds in their heads.
New People’s Army intercepted them Combined police and military elements
along Sitio Yamot in Barangay Mabato, subsequently conducted pursuit operations
against the perpetrators.
Tit for tat After providing
assistance to the fallen
cops’ families, Mr. Duterte
raises the bounty for the
killers of four Negros Oriental
policemen to P1.3 million.
was meant to complement the Duterte
administration’s “Build, Build, Build” program
and in compliance to DTI Secretary Ramon
Lopez’s order to conduct simultaneous surprise
inspections on hardware stores as part of a
nationwide drive against the proliferation of
substandard construction materials.
The DTI executive said that the drive
will ensure that only quality materials
will be used in all construction projects
in Central Visayas.
“The DTI wanted to be consistent
with the ‘Build, Build, Build’ program of
President Rodrigo Duterte and substandard
materials should not be used by erring
contractors to the projects,” Caberte said.
According to Caberte, DTI-7 personnel,
in coordination with other government
agencies, have already found at least 14
hardware stores in Central Visayas selling
sub-standard materials and subsequently
issued with Notices of Violation.
NATION
By Rico M. Osmeña
DTI targets sub-standard materials
The drive will ensure that only quality materials will be used in all construction projects in Central Visayas
By Aldwin Quitasol
TINOC, Ifugao — Vice Mayor
Fernando Gapuz of this town
was reported missing since
last week.
Local residents, together
Green festival Workers unload highland vegetables ready for distribution
to markets in Benguet. Farmers, traders and other stakeholders are hosting a
three-day festival starting today to promote local produce.
A QUITASOL
Ifugao vice mayor missing
with the Tinoc Municipal Police,
have been on alert after Gapuz
disappeared at around 7 p.m.
last 19 July.
Tinoc police reported that
Gapuz, 54, was last seen
along Barangay
Impugong,
Tinoc.
According
to police, he
was last seen
By Daniel Yap
wearing green polo with collar,
brown leather jacket, brown
slacks, brown slip-on sandals
and a dark yellow shawl.
Police added that the vice
mayor is a medium body-built
person.
Police issued a hotline for
any information that will lead to
the location of the vice mayor.
Informants can call or text
09351107168.
TAGBILARAN CITY — Bohol
Sangguniang Panlalawigan convened
as a Committee of the Whole on Tuesday
with the hope of addressing the high
costs of power in the province.
The committee was chaired by Vice
Gov. Rene Relampagos. A committee
report is expected to be released
to the public after approval in the
plenary.
Relampagos convened the
committee primarily to find out from
the three distribution utilities in the
province the reason behind the high
prices of power.
The inquiry was done “in aid of
legislation.”
In June, Boholanos were shocked
to find their electricity bills increased
by at least 16 percent.
A7
Contractor
earns
Gwen’s ire
Since it failed to act
accordingly within the given
48-hour ultimatum, WT
Construction Inc. was deemed
blacklisted from the roster of
contractors in Cebu
CEBU — Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia
has blacklisted a private contractor
of the controversial Capitol Resource
Center (CRC) locally known as “Torre ni
Davide” after it snubbed the provincial
government’s ultimatum to backfill the
property where the 20-story structure was
supposed to rise.
Garcia, who has questioned the P1.3
billion CRC project even before she
assumed as governor, warned that the
provincial government would auction off
the equipment left by WT Construction
Inc. (WTC) at the project site if the
contractor fails to backfill the property.
The provincial government said that
the proceeds of the auction will be used
in backfilling the capitol property.
It was gathered that about P7 million
is needed to finance the backfilling.
Since it failed to act accordingly
within the given 48-hour ultimatum, WTC
was deemed blacklisted from the roster
of contractors of the Cebu provincial
government.
In a letter dated 16 July addressed to
Danilo de la Cruz, project coordinator of
WTC, Garcia, through her chief of staff
lawyer Frank Eduard Dinsay, earlier cited
the risks posed by the nuisances left in
the project site to residents living near
the area.
“I wish to remind WTC that despite
Governor Garcia’s strenuous opposition to
the CRC project, WTC persisted in being
a builder in bad faith by continuing its
construction activities on the project site
thereby creating a nuisance that currently
endangers the lives of the public and
exposes surrounding structures to the risk
of a collapse,” Dinsay said.
He added that Garcia already granted
WTC’s request to allow entry of its
personnel into the capitol grounds for
the maintenance of equipment provided
it begins back filling the project site which
was rendered useless.
However, WTC remained silent and
offered no solution to the problem.
The Daily Tribune tried to get the
side of WTC but to avail as press time
yesterday.
Caberte, however, withheld the names
of the establishments pending the ongoing
adjudication process.
But the DTI official mentioned that five of
the violators were based in Metro Cebu, five
others in Bohol and four in Negros Oriental.
Caberte said the 14 erring establishments
were charged with violation of Product
Standards Law or Republic Act 4109 and
the Consumer Act or Republic Act 7394.
Rico M. Osmeña
VICE MAYOR GAPUZ
Bohol addresses costly power
The representatives of the
distribution utilities in the province
explained that the high bills were caused
by the line rental fees imposed by the
Independent Electricity Market Operator
of the Philippines (IEMOP) — the market
operator of the Wholesale Electricity
Spot Market.
Line rental fees are collected when
the power demand passing through
the Leyte-Bohol transmission line
reaches more than 85 megawatts
(MW).
According to Bohol Electric
Cooperative II Manager Eugene
Tan, the power demand in Bohol has
reached 100 MW.
Prior to the committee hearing, the
provincial officials of Bohol were able
to get a re-computation of the charges
from the IEMOP which showed there
was overcharging.

A8 NATION
Wednesday, 24 July 2019
Daily Tribune
SK chairwoman gunned down
30 minutes after, another shooting incident was reported in
nearby Barangay Maopi
By Jun de Leoz
DARAGA, Albay — A 25-year
old Sangguniang Kabataan (SK)
Chairwoman was killed after she
was shot by at least four unidentified
suspects in Daraga, Albay on Monday.
A report coming from the Daraga
Municipal Police Station, identified
the victim as Jane Nunez Moneda, a
resident of Daraga, Albay.
Police said the victim was shot
dead at Barangay Ibaugan here at
about 3 p.m. on Monday after having
a conversation with the suspects in
front of her parents’ house.
30 minutes after, another shooting
incident was reported in nearby
Barangay Maopi.
Killed was Edgar Tolentino, father
Cleanest community receives P18M
She added that the city’s Task Force Bantay Dagat and the
fishermen associations work hand in hand to stop illegal
fishing in the city
By Jonas Reyes
ALAMINOS CITY, Pangasinan — A
sum of P18 million was awarded to this
city for being the first runner-up in the
country’s search for the outstanding
coastal community.
The Malinis at Masaganang Karagatan
(MMK) award by the Department of
Agriculture Bureau of Fisheries and
Aquatic Resources were assessed based
on five criteria: (1) No Illegal Fishing,
(2) Observance of off-fishing season, (3)
Declaration of marine protected areas,
(4) Clean, coastal waters without any
garbage or industrial effluence flowing
to the sea, and (5) Effective mangrove
protection and rehabilitation program.
City agriculturist Arceli Talania
said the city’s success is mainly
rooted in the cooperation of
fisherfolks, the political will
of city executives and the
policies of the legislative
body.
The beneficiaries of the program will also be provided
school materials from OB Montessori, meals, vitamins,
school uniform and free transportation from CDC
By Jonas Reyes
CLARK FREEPORT,
Pampanga — An education
program that will benefit the
indigenous people (IP) in nearby
areas here was launched on
Monday.
The program, called the “Aeta
Pagsasarili Program” aims to educate
the IP on the Certificate of Ancestral
Domain title (CADT) 025A area.
The CADT refers to the title
formally recognizing the rights of
posession and ownership of the
IP over their ancestral domains
identified and delineated in
accordance with the Indigeneous
Peoples’ Rights Act.
It also aims to provide
information on practical and
livelihood skills for adults and
cognitive learning and human and
social development for kids.
The program will be implemented
by the Clark Development Corp.
(CDC) and the OB Montessori.
CDC chairman Jose de Jesus said
that the project intends to develop
the CADT 025A area physically and
economically and develop its human
capital to cultivate a sustainable
community for Aetas.
Included in their lessons
are teachings on values and
human development, proper
sanitation, hygiene and basic
health care for IP.
De Jesus said the learning
program will temporarily be held
at the newly constructed building at
D A I L Y G O S P E L
Wednesday of the Sixteenth week in Ordinary Time
On that day, Jesus went
out of the house and sat down
by the sea.
Such large crowds gathered
around him that he got into
a boat and sat down, and the
whole crowd stood along the
shore.
And he spoke to them at
length in parables, saying: “A
sower went out to sow.
And as he sowed, some seed
fell on the path, and birds
came and ate it up.
Some fell on rocky ground,
where it had little soil. It
sprang up at once because the
soil was not deep, and when
Matthew 13: 1-9
the Clark Skills and Training Center,
formerly the Clark Polytechnic
Compound, and will initially
serve as the Pagsasarili Family
Care Center.
The facility features an
exhibit hall, an auditorium
and other amenities
like dining area,
kitchen and comfort
rooms.
Meanwhile, four
teachers from the
IP community who
were trained by
OB Montessori will
be commissioned
to teach the Aeta
children and adults.
Included in their
lessons are teachings
on values and human development,
proper sanitation, hygiene and basic
health care for IP.
The beneficiaries of the program
will also be provided school
materials from OB Montessori,
meals, vitamins, school uniform and
free transportation.
Their parents, meanwhile, will
be trained on food preservation,
soap making and janitorial and
household-keeping. Raw materials
and meals will also be provided.
To ensure the sustainability of
the program, the Department of
Education in Region 3 also partnered
with CDC and OB Montessori to help
the children receive further education
once they finish the program.
The Mabalacat City local
government unit and Municipality
of Bamban, Tarlac also supported
the project.
the sun rose it was scorched,
and it withered for lack of
roots.
Some seed fell among
thorns, and the thorns grew
up and choked it.
But some seed fell on rich
soil, and produced fruit, a
hundred or sixty or thirtyfold.
Whoever has ears ought
to hear.”
of Ciara Joy, an SK kagawad of
Barangay Maopi, Daraga, Albay.
According to the police, a certain
Joseph Lunas, a resident of Purok 7
of Barangay Maopi, went to the house
of the victim and told the victim to
accompany him to the house of former
barangay kagawad Lilia Medez and
two minutes thereafter, the victim’s
wife heard two gun fires and saw her
“There is no illegal fishing here,
those we arrest are not from Alaminos.
There are also no illegal structures in
our city; fish cages are regulated. We
also implement solid waste management
to ensure cleanliness of our coastal
areas. We also strictly implement
policies pertaining to agriculture here
and the fishermen associations are very
cooperative,” she said.
She added that the city’s Task
Force Bantay Dagat and the fishermen
associations work hand in hand to stop
illegal fishing in the city.
According to her, the prize money
will be used for projects that will benefit
the fisherfolks of Alaminos. Some of
these proposed projects include the
procurement of motorboats, payaws or
artificial habitats for aquatic life and
artificial reefs, among others.
She urged the fisherfolks to
further support the local government
in maintaining the cleanliness and
abundance of resources of the seas
and rivers.
THE Bureau of Fisheries and Acquiatic Resoruces has awarded Alaminos City government for having the cleanest coastal areas. The city is referred to as the home of the “100 Islands.”
Republic of the Philippines
Department of Transportation
LAND TRANSPORTATION
FRANCHISING AND
REGULATORY BOARD
East Avenue, Quezon City
ERRATUM
(Rectifying LTFRB Memorandum
Circular No. 2019-031 previously
published on 16 July 2019)
The effectivity of LTFRB MC
No. 2019-031 is supposed
to be “15 days” following its
publication and not “effective
immediately”. Thus the last
paragraph of LTFRB MC No.
2019-031 should read: “This
Memorandum Circular shall take
effect fifteen (15) days following
its publication in a newspaper of
general circulation and the filling
of three (3) copies hereof with
the U.P. Law Center pursuant
to Presidential Memorandum
Circular No. 11 dated 09 October
1992.”
LOCAL
METRO MANILA
33°C
25°C
METRO CEBU
32°C
25°C
METRO DAVAO
32°C
25°C Partly
INTERNATIONAL
Sydney
AUSTRALIA
19°C
10°C
PARTLY CLOUDY
SKIES
Seoul
S. KOREA
CLOUDY SKIES
WEATHER
Partly cloudy skies w/
rainshowers and thunderstorm
Partly cloudy skies w/
rainshowers and thunderstorm
cloudy skies w/
rainshowers and thunderstorm
Taipei
TAIWAN
30°C
25°C 29°C
25°C
CLOUDY SKIES W/
RAINSHOWERS
Aetas get educational, livelihood aid
PALAYAN CITY, Nueva Ecija — The
Department of Agriculture (DA) recently
broke ground for the construction of a
P190-million cold storage facility in this
city.
DA’s Philippine Rural Development
Project (PRDP) National Project Director
Engr. Ariel Cayanan, Regional Director
Crispulo Bautista Jr., Regional Project
Coordination Office Action Officer Gil
David and Palayan City Mayor Adrianne
Mae Cuevas led the groundbreaking
ceremony on Monday.
The P190-million cold storage facility
is set to be constructed on a 2,422 square
meter lot donated to the city government.
According to David, due to the lack
of storage facilities, farmers are often
forced to market their produce at a low
price but with the construction of the
husband dead on the ground.
Police are now conducting hot pursuit
operations and further investigations on
the matter to know the perpetrators
and their motives and whether the two
shooting incidents are related.
Maopi is a neighboring barangay
of Burgos where Ako Bicol Partylist
Representative Rodel Batocabe was
slain exactly seven months ago. FTW
Pacquiao-Thurman
fight sparks
stabbing
By Perseus Echeminada
A 51-year-old man in Cagayan de Oro was
stabbed after he had a heated argument
with his neighbors over the boxing match
between Sen. Manny Pacquiao and Keith
Thurman.
Police report identified the victim as
Domain Dugho and the suspects Ericsson
Jaso and Reynaldo Jaso.
The victim went to the police community
precinct 4 in Carmen to file a complaint
against the suspects who allegedly attacked
him at the height of their argument on who
won the boxing match.
Ericson allegedly stabbed the victim
with an ice pick while Reynaldo punched
him several times.
Police has referred the case to Barangay
Lupun for proper disposition.
Pacquiao won against Thurman in their
World Boxing Association Welterweight
title fight in Las Vegas last 21 July via
split decision.
The victim went to the police
community precinct 4 in Carmen
to file a complaint against the
suspects who allegedly attacked
him at the height of their argument
on who won the boxing match.
Meanwhile, the Cebu Provincial Board
in its regular session has adopted a
resolution commending Pacquiao for his
victory.
Provincial Board Member Glenn Soco,
the sponsor of the resolution said “Manny’s
victory brought honor and pride to our
country.”
He added that the latest
victory of Pacquiao, at
40, has made him the
only eight-division
champion and the oldest
welterweight champion
in boxing history.
“This proves that
the Philippines is
home to a legendary
sports champion,”
Soco said.
With Rico
Osmeña
THE smiling faces
of the Aeta kids of
Pampanga.
New storage facility launched
cold storage, it will enable farmers to
store their produce in safe custody and
obtain a good price.
He added that the beneficiaries and
local authorities should value and provide
proper maintenance of the facility once it
is completed.
Meanwhile, City Mayor Cuevas
expressed her gratitude to the PRDP
and the local authorities for their efforts
and assistance that helped execute
the project to aid in delivering quality
services to the public.
The construction of the facility is
shouldered jointly by the World Bank,
the national government and the city
government.
The facility is expected to be operational
by 2020 with an initial 120,000 bags
capacity.
Jonas Reyes
Feels like home A pillow and a dog could be enough for these kids to call this terminal along E.
Rodriguez Avenue their home. ROMAN PROSPERO

TECHTALKS
A9 Wednesday, 24 July 2019
Daily Tribune
Crypto tourism offers 40
percent in hotel booking
Blockchain-based hotel
booking platform Travala.com
has entered a travel partnership
with Dash Core Group, the main
development team supporting the
Dash network, to allow members
of the Dash community to benefit
from up to 40 percent discount
on accommodation bookings
made on Travala.com.
The Dash network a global
open-source cryptocurrency
payments platform. Under the
deal, Travala.com and Dash will
spearhead the ongoing trend of
crypto tourism.
Matthew Luczynski, CEO and
Founder of Travala.com, said,
“In recent years, the blockchain
industry has witnessed
ongoing growth and maturity,
cultivating a breed of projects
that are designed to facilitate
the mainstream adoption of
decentralized technologies and
cryptocurrency use. As one of
the earliest players in the space,
we have observed the pivotal role
that Dash has played in bringing
cryptocurrencies to the masses,
by delivering a suite of services
that is both easy to use and easy
to understand. We are thrilled to
be announcing this partnership
with Dash as we share a vision
of spearheading a future where
crypto payments are ubiquitous
and essential to everyday life.”
Travala.com’s expansive
portfolio of over 82,000
destinations offers a
myriad of accommodation
offerings.
Appealing to both
cryptocurrency users and
everyday travellers alike, the
partnership is envisaged to
further drive the growth of
the digital economy, as Dash
community members holding
conferences or meetups will be
The Department of Science and
Technology (DoST) expressed appreciation
over the strong support the department is
getting from the Duterte administration
for approving all of their project proposals
to enhance the country’s science and
technology capabilities, said Secretary
One of the things
I learned lately is to
never give your credit
card at a gas station
when you fill your
vehicle with petrol.
It’s because the
cashiers of the gas
stations are behind
tinted stations and
you will be basically
be blind when they
swipe or clone or
skim your card.
This happened to
me twice, and I tried
complaining to the oil company, but it
only has its hotlines at fixed hours. It
would be unfair to name the company,
which has been in the Philippines for
decades now, so I will just say that its
name rhymes with Hell.
The first incident with Hell happened
last year when I was loading up in
Alabang. After a few hours, I received
a notification on my cellphone that my
credit card was being used to pay for
utility bills in the country.
The second instance happened in
Sucat, Parañaque and it was more
alarming. After 12 hours, I received
several text messages about failed
transactions amounting to more than
P200,000. The purchases were at Don
Quijote, a discount chain store in Japan.
It looked like the cashier in Hell was
able to scan my card details and send
it over to his or her friends in Japan.
Good thing my credit card company
had security algorithms, which saw
a pattern of unusual behavior and
disabled my card immediately.
Hell has to look into this as there
is a possible syndicate among its
cashiers and personnel. It happened
in separate locations and I can only
able to leverage Travala.com
and its special discounts for
their events. Dash enthusiasts
who enter the Travala.com site
through the links provided on
Dash.org and Dash social media
posts will also be entitled to 5
percent Dash back in all bookings
paid in Dash.
With its extensive global
presence, Travala.com’s expansive
portfolio of over 82,000 destinations
offers a myriad of accommodation
offerings. By leveraging an equitable
transparent pricing model,
consumers benefit from increased
cost-savings while the burden of
high commission fees is removed
for participating hotel partners.
In addition to Dash, Travala.com
currently accepts 15 different
cryptocurrency payment options,
along with a range of traditional
forms of payments, including
credit cards.
Ryan Taylor, CEO of Dash Core
Group, said, “We continue adding
services that create value for Dash
users to make it an increasingly
relevant part of their everyday
spending. Travala.com is a great
match for the Dash network because
both address the needs of the
next-generation of digitally-savvy
consumers that embrace the
benefits of digital currency. We
think that Travala.com users will
love the speed and simplicity of
paying for their travel needs with
Dash. And Dash users will love
more options for spending Dash
while earning a discount.”
Dash is one of the top
cryptocurrencies for business
and e-commerce use due to its
fast transactions of about one
second, low transaction fees,
and seamless integration with
merchant payments systems.
To date, Dash is currently
accepted across a global
network of over 4,800 merchants
and service providers.
What the Hell
DIGITAL CORNER
Paolo Capino
Fortunato de la Peña.
The agency, he noted, launched or
introduced several technologies and
facilities during the first half of the year.
De la Peña earlier this month
announced the launching of the country’s
largest satellite-tracking antenna in
You basically allow FaceApp access to your entire album,
even the ones on your phone
assume that there is
an organized syndicate
operating in gas stations
that copies credit card
details of its victims. I
guess my best advice for
all people who have cars
is to always pay in cash.
I have been avoiding
Hell, too, as there are
trust issues that need
to be addressed by
the company and the
availability of their call
centers should be easy.
Speaking of trust,
there has been a growing trend in the
past week among netizens who want
to take a peek at what they could look
like when they are older. The service
called FaceApp transforms your present
look using advanced facial recognition
systems and projects your physical self
to the age of 70 or 80.
My best advice for all people
who have cars is to always pay
in cash.
It’s all fun to do and share with your
friends but the risks are high. A friend
posted the terms and conditions, and it
seems that you basically allow FaceApp
access to your entire album, even the
ones on your phone. It also says that
you cannot go after them when they
use your photos for basically anything
they desire.
It’s nothing new and a lot of Internet
companies have been doing this to
us since the beginning. You just have
to make sure to read the terms and
conditions, so you won’t regret seeing
your private photos and videos in public
online social media platforms, forums or
websites in the next few years.
The Fourth Industrial Revolution, otherwise
known as Industry 4.0 should prioritize the
protection of people, infrastructure and
assets, according to the country’s top
automation professionals from the process
industries at the Honeywell’s Philippines
Technology Summit 2019.
The day-long event focused on solutions to
key industry challenges such as unplanned
downtime and the skills gap as the participants
learned learn how connected technologies
such as advanced data analytics can drive the
country’s Industry 4.0 transformation.
“Our cutting-edge technologies and solutions
are helping the Philippines progress on their
journey toward digital transformation,” said
Honeywell president for the Philippines, Jeffrey
Estrella. “With our IIoT offerings, we support
future growth through technological advances
for a wide variety of industries, improving
industrial operations and developing a new
generation of skilled workers.”
Estrella said the summit also addressed
how Honeywell’s industrial cybersecurity
solutions are an essential component of a robust
Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) ecosystem.
As the Philippines move toward Industry
4.0, protecting people, infrastructure and
assets must be the priority. Weak institutional
framework, human capital and technology
have kept the country’s production readiness
in relation to the Fourth Industrial Revolution
low, according to the ’Readiness for the Future
of Production’ report by the World Economic
Forum.
According to Honeywell, the country is now
addressing these challenges with improved
processes and technologies and workforce
development, increasing the readiness level
and accelerating transformation.
The Philippines Technology Summit allowed
attendees to view and experience the newest
automation products, including:
Honeywell Trace — The powerful
documentation and change management
software captures and records data up
to 300 times more frequently than other
solutions, provides extensive search and
analysis functions, reducing costs, increasing
reliability and boosting performance.
Industrial Cybersecurity Solutions — Help
plants and critical infrastructure sectors
defend the availability, reliability and safety
of their industrial control systems and plant
operations. From assessments and audits
to response and recovery, the portfolio of
In celebration of the Small and Medium Enterprise Week this
month, Globe myBusiness joined the Department of Trade
and Industry in giving recognition to all SME for their
contribution to nation building and have rounded up
several seasoned entrepreneurs to share their secrets
to success.
Here are some tips which budding business owners and
would-be entrepreneurs can learn from.
Embrace digital
Anurag Verma of Zomato Philippines pointed out the
need to “learn what’s important to your audience” using
various tools online which can be used to market their
business and understand their audience in order to
custom fit products and services to the customers’ needs.
Stand out from the crowd
“Be an orange among apples,” said Paulo Tibig, entrepreneur
and motivational speaker. “Innovation will always be about
introducing something new, improving the existing and
working on your customer servicing.”
Tibig added that no one should be content “with
what’s hot and what are fads.” Ideas, he said, should
be sustainable such as new product variations,
promos and loyalty programs.
Look out for market opportunities that serve
customer needs
RJ Ledesma, co-founder of Mercato Centrale
said “always wear your glasses as an entrepreneur”
and be constantly on the lookout for opportunities
no matter how small they are. RJ noted that business
owners should also consider what innovations from
another industry they can introduce in the industry
they are in.
Komfie Manalo, Editor
Roy Pelovello, Assistant Editor
Industry 4.0 protects
people, infrastructure
INDUSTRY 4.0 defined, explained and visualized with evolutions and data.
The Philippines Technology Summit allowed attendees to view and
experience the newest automation products
DoST thanks Duterte for tech projects
Davao. This will take
images of certain areas
to be downloaded and
distributed to the
concerned agencies.
It is designed to
communicate with
Earth observation
satellites, including
the Filipino-made
Diwata-1 and Diwata-2
microsatellites, by
receiving, processing, and
distributing space-borne
imagery.
Aside from post-disaster images,
this facility will also be utilized for
agricultural monitoring, maritime
surveillance and urban mapping.
Also launched this month is the
HazardHunter app which can be
accessed either through a computer or
mobile phone.
This would help people know if
their location is at
risk for volcanic
eruption, tsunami, and
other hazards. The
Philippine Institute
of Volcanology and
Seismology’s fault finder
is also included in the
HazardHunter.
The HazardHunter
is deemed also helpful
for those planning to
put up establishments
since they would find if the
area they are eyeing is at risk for disasters.
One may type the location in the app to
know if it is a hazard area.
The DoST has also turned over the
hybrid electric train (HET) it developed
to the Philippine National Railways
(PNR) for adaption.
HET is said to be energy-efficient
since it is powered by batteries. The
train can run at a speed of about 50
Globe, DTI ask SME to digitize
end-to-end solutions leverages Honeywell’s
industry-leading expertise and experience in
process control and cybersecurity.
Honeywell’s Terminal Manager — This
software integrates with the Experion®
Process Knowledge System (PKS) platform
providing a complete terminal automation
solution. The software manages critical
issues facing bulk liquid terminals such as
complexity in handling multiple products and
regulatory requirements, while improving
safety and productivity. ​
ControlEdge PLC — The PLC provides
unprecedented connectivity through all levels
of process and business operations. ControlEdge
PLC users benefit from an easier configuration,
efficient operations, and reduced maintenance
as the PLC helps liberate plant personnel from
manual processes.
Experion Orion Console — Part of Honeywell’s
initiative to shape the control room of the future,
the console increases operator effectiveness
over a greater scope of responsibility by
providing faster response, reducing fatigue and
increasing situational awareness.
Immersive Competency — This cloud-based
simulation offering uses a combination of
augmented reality and virtual reality to
train plant personnel on critical industrial
work activities, empowering them to directly
improve plant performance, uptime, reliability
and safety.
kph and accommodate 220 passengers,
according to DoST.
De la Peña earlier said Transportation
Secretary Tugade expressed his desire to
have more units of the DoST hybrid train.
“Our DoST MIRDC (Metals Industry
Research and Development Center)
engineers are ready for this should a
decision be made,” he added.
Also inaugurated was a flood
forecasting system in Bicol, an early
warning device for a more effective
flood forecasting and warning activities.
Meanwhile, DoST’s “Bicol River Basin
Rehabilitation Project” also showcases
an improved monitoring of hydrological
conditions, and real-time data monitoring
facilities that will provide full level
of observations throughout the whole
basin.
The agency likewise launched
earlier this year its Advanced Device
and Materials Testing Laboratory’s 3-D
X-ray machine.
The 3D X-ray Computed Tomography
is set to produce high-resolution
imaging for coral samples to
possibly reconstruct
sea surface
temperature.
THIS robot attracted tourists ahead of the Qingdao Beer Festival in Qingdao
in east China's Shandong province.
AFP

A10 COMMENTARY
Wednesday, 24 July 2019
Daily Tribune
“Rody
previously
said he is
working to
strengthen
the
friendship
with China
to build
enough
trust to
withstand
the
backlash
from the
contentious
issue.
Daily
Tribune
WITHOUT FEAR • WITHOUT FAVOR
WITHOUT FEAR • WITHOUT FAVOR
Chito Lozada
Aldrin Cardona
Dinah Ventura
John Henry Dodson
Roy Pelovello
Larry Payawal
Komfie Manalo
Geraldine Datoy
Tough act
In one hour and 22 minutes, President Rody Duterte talked
to Filipinos in his fourth State of the Nation Address (SoNA),
which in gist stated the difficult balancing steps he had taken
as leader of the nation.
The millions who listened to Rody held to each word he
said, knowing that this leader will never sell the nation’s
interest and put the lives of its citizens at risk.
His thinning line of critics who are as noisy as ever
centers their attacks on two topics which they see
Rody as being vulnerable, which are the deaths
in the war on drugs that they claim have reached
27,000 and the maritime conflict.
The extrajudicial killings (EJK) allegations are
now the political opponents’ ammunition against Rody
in the United Nations and, lately, the US Congress.
Nothing has changed since the time when
Rody assumed the presidency or even way
before when he was Davao City Mayor, as the
allegations remain largely as conjectures culled from the black
operations factory of Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV.
The unceasing efforts to pin Rody on the West Philippine Sea
conflict take the same line, in which he is blamed for a problem
that he did not create but on which he is applying a solution.
When he took the reins of government, China was
already in possession of the disputed maritime
features, mainly the Spratly Islands where structures
had been set up.
“That’s the problem. They’re the ones in
possession and claiming all the
resources there as an owner. We
are claiming the same, but we
are not in the position because of
that fiasco during the term of my
predecessor and that of (former
Foreign Affairs Secretary)
Albert (del Rosario),” he said.
The situation then, thus,
placed Rody in a catch-22
situation where every chess
piece showed a checkmate
of an escalation of conflict.
China had then started putting
up permanent infrastructure on
the reclaimed islands even before
the Permanent Court of Arbitration
ruled against its nine-dash line
territorial claim.
Rody, in his address, said the situation was precipitated
by a wrong move from the previous administration.
“We withdrew. That was a kind of a compromise. When
we backed off, they entered the waters. They’re already too
many,” he narrated.
Rody was talking about the time when the apparently
indecisive government of former President Noynoy Aquino
complied with an American directive for both the Philippines
and China to pull out their vessels from a then maritime
standoff. China stayed and since then has not left the area.
The obvious choices for Rody were to risk war by pursuing the
claim or to deescalate and negotiate. He chose the latter, which
he said would be for the best interest of the nation.
“The avoidance of conflict — armed conflict and protection
of our territorial waters and natural resources — compel us
to perform a delicate balancing act,” he said.
“A shooting war is grief and misery multiplier. War leaves
widows and orphans in its wake. I am not ready or inclined
to accept the occurrence of more destruction, more widows
and more orphans, should war, even on a limited scale, breaks
out,” he added.
On those vociferous rabble-rousers, Duterte said he will
raise the claim of the country with China “in due time.”
Rody previously said he is working to strengthen the
friendship with China to build enough trust to withstand the
backlash from the contentious issue.
The country had, for instance, approached
“Unceasing
efforts to
pin Rody
on the West
Philippine
Sea conflict
take the same
line, in which
he is blamed
for a problem
that he did
not create.
Patricia Ramos
Board Chair
Willie Fernandez
Publisher and President
Executive Editor
Managing Editor
Associate Editor
Digital Editor
Central Desk Editor
Central Desk
Advertising
and Marketing
China as its partner for development and
security in the region on the concept of sharing
responsibilities among Asians for progress.
Rody recounted, in his first few months
as president, the rifle sale between the
Philippines and the United States was
cancelled, a deal which was supposed to be
critical on law enforcement, especially with
the then developing terror threat in Marawi
City at that time.
“When I became President and when the
M16 rifles were cancelled by America upon the
prodding of the US Congress, I found myself in
a quandary because reports were already very
ripe then that there was the passing of arms in Marawi,” he said.
He reviewed the armaments of the security forces and said
those mostly in the hands of the police were hand-me-downs
from the Army. “So, I was forced to go to China,” he said.
“We have been acting along that legal truth and line. But
we have to temper it with the times and the realities that we
face today,” Rody said of his policy towards China.
It’s a complicated problem inflicted on him by past
incompetence, but Rody wanted the maritime conflict solved in
favor of Filipinos’ interest and not those of other foreign nations.
“Saddled
with such
a law,
management
would not
be able to
kick out
workers,
some of
whom are
really very
unproductive
and a
drag to the
company.
“He said
that he is
against the
term-sharing
agreement,
but if after
15 months
the speaker
resigns,
then the
House will
elect a new
speaker.
Missing from
President Duterte’s
State of the Nation
Address (SoNA), which
lasted an hour more
than what was claimed
by Palace aides, were
two of his campaign
promises: the shift to
Federalism and the
security of tenure bill.
Frankly, it should be
said, it was a good
presidential decision.
Federalism, if pressed, certainly
would not have passed Congress, no
matter who the Philippine President
is, mainly because the Filipino
people have shown their resistance
to this shift in government system
too many times in as many years.
Besides, the truth is, the country
cannot afford — tax-wise — to shift
to Federalism, especially since too
many local government executives
and regional leaders are not ready
to independently rule in any planned
state under a federal system, as
regional leaders — from councilors to
mayors to governors — have always
relied on the central government and
can hardly govern without the central
government or federal government’s
interference and aid.
As the President himself
Good moves
FRONTLINE
Ninez Cacho-Olivares
The busiest day of
the year at the Batasang
Pambansa complex is
most definitely the third
Monday of July every
year, the constitutionally
mandated date for the
president’s State of the
Nation Address (SoNA).
Classes are suspended
in the entire of Quezon
City and the roads
leading to Barangay
Constitution Hills are
shut down to give way for rallies
and VIP. For those who watch
“Designated Survivor” on Netflix, this
is precisely the target area.
The day started very early in the
morning with two breakfast meetings
set to finalize what seemed to be a
turbulent race to the speakership.
The first meeting was called by the
President’s son, Rep. Paolo Duterte,
scheduled at 8 a.m. at the South
Lounge, the adjacent room to the
Plenary Hall, where congressmen
have their snacks and coffee during
session days. Congressmen crowded
the area as early as 7:30 a.m. in
eager anticipation of any surprise
announcement despite everyone
knowing that the day before,
Sunday, the three contenders for
the speakership already met and
agreed to “behave” on SoNA day.
Notably, Rep. Martin Romualdez was
the only contender present in the
South Lounge.
However, Rep. Duterte was a noshow,
and it was Rep. Isidro Ungab
who took the microphone at around
8:15 a.m. We all knew that Rep.
Ungab was the bet of the Davao
Coalition formed by Rep. Duterte,
and it was appropriate for him to
speak before the bustling crown of
House members. Rep. Ungab didn’t
noted during his speech,
he said, “Federalism
devolves a lot of authority
to local governments,”
adding that the federal
system has to have a
strong president to put
together the country.
“With regard to
federal, it’s a very loose
structure. One has a lot
of power locally. So, the
President will have to
have to structure it until
such time that we have perfected it.
There has to be a strong President
with the same powers now,” he
stressed, while getting himself out
of the Federalism equation.
As he put it: “As for me, I’m out
of it because I think that it will pass
beyond my time.”
There is, however, one that
got away with Federalism in the
country — state-wise: the Moro
Islamic Liberation Front (MILF)
and its autonomous state within a
federal system in the country, which
is contrary to a presidential system.
The MILF succeeded in getting the
current administration — supposedly
in exchange for peace, which we
still don’t enjoy, despite the MILF
now having its own government
and territory. However, this claimed
autonomous MILF government may
still be declared unconstitutional
by the High Court, given that the
republic continues to operate under
a presidential system, and with the
Constitution and all its provisos and
laws continuing to prevail.
However, this anomaly may yet be
resolved by the Supreme Court after
the term of President Duterte, which
ends in mid-2022.
Another good move made by
Duterte in his fourth SoNA was
his seeming reluctance to
sign into law the security
of tenure bill, which
would have been
welcomed by
dwell into the specifics,
and instead said that
they shall abide by the
endorsement of the
President. This calmed
everyone down and
people started filing
out of the South Lounge
for the next breakfast
meeting set by Rep.
Alan Peter Cayetano
at Nograles Hall in the
South Wing Annex, a
five-minute walk away.
But before everyone got to leave
South Lounge, Rep. Cayetano arrived
at the South Lounge and everyone
ganged up for a picture with the
presumptive speaker, with Rep.
LRay Villafuerte assisting to gather
the crowd.
Soon, former Speaker Pantaleon
Alvarez and Rep. Lord Allan Velasco
arrived to join the herd of House
members walking to Nograles Hall in
what seemed to take forever with all
the media reporters hounding them.
By the time the House members got
inside, it was already past 9 a.m. and
the microphone was later handed to
Rep. Cayetano. He masterfully gave
the outline as to who will address the
House members – namely himself,
Rep. Velasco for a short message,
then Rep. Romualdez on the scenario
of the opening of session. This was an
excellent strategy to avoid surprises
later on. Rep. Cayetano even joked
that he spoke for only 15 minutes,
and Rep. Velasco will speak for 22
minutes, just like the “Magellan
formula.”
After Rep. Romualdez articulately
detailed the scenario of the Morning
Session, Rep. Cayetano thanked
everyone to close the meeting.
Then, as if right on cue, the doors
of Nograles Hall swung open and
workers, but would be bad for any
business existing and being put up
in this country, both foreign or local.
The fact is that, saddled with such
a law, management would not be able
to kick out workers, some of whom are
really very unproductive and a drag to
the company and should have been fired
easily. But for their being protected by the
security of tenure — in the event Duterte
does sign the bill — they can, instead of
working hard, loaf the whole day or even
feign sick days, and management will
have no option but to keep such abusive
and unproductive workers in its payroll,
which would be bloated.
True, management
“Regional
leaders…
have always
relied on
the central
government
and can
hardly
govern
without
the central
government
or federal
government’s
interference
and aid.
SoNA behind the scenes
QUO VADIS
Darren M. de Jesus
still has the option to
fire such employees
for cause, but think
of how much more
they have to shell
out by way of legal
fees, as well as paying
such workers a lot of
money, by firing them
and for justifiable
cause.
The real
problem’s roots can
probably be traced
to congressmen,
who come up with
laws that would
be popular to the
employees, which
then translate to votes for them.
These lawmakers really don’t
bother to study the problems the
law could bring to business, which
can even cause a business to close
shop.
The problem is that some, if not
many of these members of Congress,
don’t bother about future problems
that would, in the end, impact
negatively on the country’s economic
growth and attract future foreign
investments.
It is mainly because many of these
lawmakers don’t have big, medium and
even small businesses to run, as they
have no problems paying their staff,
since the taxpayers pay for their
salaries, and are moreover protected
as civil service employees — except
for the members of Congress’
confidential aides, whose salaries
are also paid for by the taxpayers
anyway, as the congressmen and
senators salaries are also paid by the
taxpayers, including their rental fees
for their offices.
Business groups know this only
too well, which is the reason they
have been urging the President to
use his veto power, saying it would go
against the businesses’ constitutional
right to contract labor as part of
management prerogative.
Duterte seems to agree. As he
put it: “It (the security of tenure
bill) would be chaotic. One provision
draws a lot of complaints. A lot of
pros and cons. You will get dizzy. So,
it’s better if you just talk about it
among yourselves and present it to
the public. Once there is a package,
it has been completed.”
That’s a well-studied decision
and wise.
Rep. Duterte entered together
with his crew of congressmen. The
microphone was handed to Rep.
Duterte for a short message, which
turned out to be, perhaps, the biggest
surprise of the morning. He said
that he is against the term-sharing
agreement, but if after 15 months
the speaker resigns, then the House
will elect a new speaker. After
speaking, Rep. Duterte joked to
Rep. Romualdez that the latter was
orchestrating a supposed coup, which
of course was not true.
The second
“The day
before,
Sunday,
the three
contenders
for the
speakership
already
met and
agreed to
“behave”
on SoNA
day.
breakfast meeting
concluded around
9:40 a.m. and the
congressmen shuffled
into the Session Hall
for the opening of the
18th Congress set at
10 a.m. Right on the
dot, Acting Secretary
General Bobby Maling
opened the session, as
well as the nomination
for the Speaker of the
House — the rest was
history. The election
of the speaker, deputy
speakers, majority leader and the
chairpersons of the House Committee
on Accounts and Appropriation was
done quickly. Session was suspended
at around 1:30 p.m., to resume at 3 p.m.
the following day.
In the afternoon, the joint session for
the SoNA was scheduled at 4 p.m., but
didn’t start until 5 p.m. The President
arrived late, perhaps due to the inclement
weather that troubled his helicopter from
arriving. His whole speech lasted for
around two hours in what was said by
some to be his best SoNA thus far. More
on this in my next column.
Email: darren.dejesus@gmail.com
or tweet: @darrendejesus.
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A11 COMMENTARY
Wednesday, 24 July 2019
Daily Tribune
JV and Rody’s address
He may have lost his senatorial reelection bid last
May, but Joseph Victor Estrada should be all smiles
now after hearing President Rodrigo Duterte speak
about a future that was anchored on Ejercito’s very
recent lawmaking past during his fourth and most
recent State of the Nation Address (SoNA).
Saying he will end his presidency fighting,
President Rodrigo Duterte reiterated that three of
his administration’s main thrusts to alleviate the
plight of the poor — education, health care and
housing — will be among the focus of the last three
of his six-year term.
All these were JV’s advocacies
“If you
invest on
infrastructure,
we will able
to spread the
development
to the
countryside.
We will
be able to
decongest
Metro Manila.
When one wishes upon a star, one should not make
the mistake of wishing to visit Gasconland.
For starters, Gasconland is
an unusual political amusement
“He called park in the northern part of
the attention of Quezon City, known for its comical
this newspaper press conferences, fantastic
to the failure of exhibits and fictional stories. It
Gasconland’s is managed by a bearded, bald
management man who badly longs for the
to produce any recent past, who adores the color
evidence to the yellow, and who, because of his
Senate to prove fear of facing the public himself,
the extent of the
speaks to the park’s clientele only
alleged EJK.
through a spokesman specializing
in political doubletalk and
ambiguity.
The real world does not exist in Gasconland.
Everything in the park and about the park is either
imagined or surreal. It is a place where fiction prevails
over fact.
Gasconland used to operate under its old name,
the Commission on Human Rights. The public prefers
to call it Gasconland because the name is easier to
associate with the park’s exaggerated figures and
sweeping public statements.
Visitors to Gasconland are taken for a ride, and
there are many rides in Gasconland.
Thanks to the publicity generated by the park’s
management, Gasconland’s biggest attraction is a
litany of false accusations that the administration
of President Rodrigo Duterte is responsible for
thousands of extrajudicial killings (EJK) in its war
against the drug trade in the Philippines.
Because Gasconland is a relatively old amusement
park, many of the park’s visitors who are not very fond
of President Duterte believe the park’s accusations.
Nobody asks for proof of the EJK because they
probably found it awkward to publicly doubt the park’s
management. No proof is offered, either.
“He
traveled
to Saudi
Arabia and
warned
service
providers
he would
hail them
to court if
they violate
terms of the
agreement…
on the
accommodation
of pilgrims.
during the six years he served as
a senator.
Ejercito said he felt elated
by the President’s continued
support to his landmark laws — the
Universal Health Care Law and
the creation of the Department
of Human Settlements and Urban
Developments — which he said will
drive the President’s programs on
these three thrusts.
A citizenry that is somehow
assured of its health concerns
and is guaranteed of movement to
work, school and everywhere the
people would like to go was how Ejercito envisioned
the masses to be.
He spent his last weeks and months in the Senate
working on these bills. They became landmark
laws that validated their importance to President’s
Duterte’s legislative agenda, but they also took
precious time from Ejercito in ensuring himself of
a Senate return.
Ejercito, who placed 11th in a field of 12 in the
2013 senatorial elections, was outside of the winners’
circle in the previous polls. Political observers blame
his brother Jinggoy Estrada’s entry into the mix.
The Ejercito family was wiped out of the polls,
with JV as its biggest victim. Jinggoy was no longer
as hot as he was before. Their father, Joseph Estrada,
was booted out of Manila City Hall and denied a third
term as mayor.
But JV is not hurting. He said the pain is not one
to be nursed, especially after he received a validation
from no less than Mr. Duterte.
The President said he would hinge the delivery of
these three priority services to the masses through his
“Build, Build, Build” program, which JV supported.
Mr. Duterte wants his program to spread outside of
Metro Manila.
“To do this, I ordered Sec. (Carlos) Dominguez
(Department of Finance), Sec. (Arthur) Tugade
(Department of Transportation) to link our land, sea
and air. Make Davao the last, but connect our land,
sea and air.”
“I will end my term fighting. But we in government,
My niece Jannisah, at this
very moment, is immersed in
performing haj rituals in holy
Mecca. She took time out to post
in our family Messenger chat group
that their accommodation at the
city of Madinah was excellent and
they are proximate to Al-Masjid
an-Nabawī (Prophet’s Mosque).
However, in Mecca it was a big
letdown. While their hotel could
pass as near their expectation, it
is too far from Al-Masjid al-Harām
and they have to jostle for a seat in
public transport for a 30-minute ride and walk to
reach the mosque. She claimed likewise the flu
and meningococcemia vaccines, which they paid
for, was not administered to them.
The haj pilgrimage has not always been free
from manipulation, corruption and exploitation,
never mind that it is a religious obligation, and
the Holy Koran and the law of “morka” or karma
could have provided a deterrence. The prohibitive
cost of travel has driven many first-time pilgrims
to sell their farm animals and prized possessions,
only to be victimized by scammers who mislead
them and take advantage of their ignorance. The
scam comes in many forms, but principally by
Aldrin Cardona
He
said
talk too much and do little,” the President said. “We
are long in rhetoric, but short in accomplishments. I
am here to rectify my errors, too.”
The Chief Executive said he would not end his
six-year term without seeing the masses enjoying the
results of his programs.
“I want them to enjoy our labor. Give them what
they need in hospitalization, education and relocation
or housing,” the President said.
Ejercito knows where the President is coming
from. JV was a mayor once; he’s been there, too.
“If you invest on infrastructure, we will able to
spread the development to the countryside. We will
be able to decongest Metro Manila. We will also give
a chance to other areas or provinces to develop by
investing on infra,” Ejercito said.
“(During budget deliberations)
I defended a lot of the agencies, the
“He spent his departments, DoH (Health), DoTr
last weeks and (Transportation), DILG (Local
months in the Government), housing, PCSO
Senate working (Philippine Charity Sweepstakes
on these bills. Office). I took up their causes,”
They became he said.
landmark “For housing, we have
laws that a backlog of 1.2 million.
validated their
Government has to work to
importance
meet that. It will balloon if we
wait several years more,” JV
to President’s
added. “We have to do something
Duterte’s
drastic.”
legislative
JV is confident his advocacies
agenda. were not stalled even when he is
no longer in the Senate.
The government, he said, would push the programs
he championed as a lawmaker.
Reminded that three years are short to slacken in
making another shot at a senatorial post, JV seems
still hopeful of making a rebound.
But he was more concerned about following the
President’s SoNA on Monday. He kept looking back
at the past weeks that closed. He didn’t show care
about his political future. Maybe for now.
She
said
Dinah S. Ventura
Somebody once gave me a framed message that
goes, “Dream big. Set goals. Take action.” It sits at
a place of honor on my desk at home, where I can
always see it — a reminder and a push on days when
I feel like giving up.
I am wondering what
“Other past
Presidents had
said something
in a similar
vein, but the
continued spread
of corruption
throughout the
years just goes
to show that they
were all talk.
someone like President Rodrigo
Duterte uses to give himself
that much-needed boost on
days when he probably just
wants to up and leave, most
likely cursing like a sailor, and
be rid of all the burdens he has
to carry for three more years.
I was listening back to his
speech yesterday — the much
awaited State of the Nation
Address (SoNA), his fourth
since 2016 and the first for the
second half of his term — and
could not help but notice a tone of discouragement
when he spoke of corruption.
He said, “Corruption continues and emasculates
the courage we need to sustain our moral recovery
initiatives.”
Well, it takes a combination of guts and humility
to admit the presence of something that so many
others had tried to keep under wraps or pretend is
less serious than it truly is.
And one cannot solve a problem that one does
not admit exists.
Out of all the SoNA speeches I have heard
from different Presidents, I must say Duterte has
been the only one who tackled the distasteful
subject head on. He spoke about it for some
minutes, admitting its shadowy clutches on almost
everything in government, showing his disgust and
disappointment and vowing to keep cleaning up the
system. He did not gloss over it or make it appear
as if things are A-OK when people on the ground
know that they are not.
I know the SoNA 2019 tackled many other serious
issues, including the West Philippine Sea (another
Once upon a time in Gasconland
One will be surprised to learn the names of
political celebrities mesmerized by the false
accusations peddled in Gasconland. That list includes
a non-practicing lawyer named Leni Robredo, who
claims to be the Vice President of the Philippines and
who lives in a sprawling mansion at public expense;
Maria Lourdes Sereno, the erstwhile Chief Justice
of the Supreme Court who was removed from office
by her fellow justices because she tricked her way to
her judicial appointment; and Antonio Trillanes IV,
an ex-soldier cashiered for violating his soldier’s oath
not to destabilize the government.
Others in the list are Leila de Lima, a detained
senator facing criminal raps for acts attributed to
her when she was Secretary of Justice; Luis Tagle,
a highly politicized friar who badly wants to be
Pope someday, but who has no idea of what the
constitutionally mandated separation of Church and
State actually means; and Patricia Fox,
a meddlesome Australian nun deported
from the Philippines for violating the
conditions of her stay in the country.
When the management of Gasconland
realized the park’s ability to make
anybody believe anything, it was decided
that the park’s biggest attraction,
namely, its false accusations against
President Duterte, be made a road show,
first outside of Quezon City, and then
to the world.
First, the Gasconland road show
was brought to a local online news
forum whose operator dislikes President
Duterte. Later, the news forum became
a local and international outlet for the
road show itself. It was later discovered
that the online news forum was receiving
investments from foreigners, in violation
of the Constitution.
After that, the road show was brought
SOUTHERN VOICES
Macabangkit B. Lanto
Not all talk
to the Senate. To the
unpleasant surprise
of Gasconland’s
management, not
everyone in the
Senate fell for the
road show hook, line
and sinker. Senator
Richard Gordon
demanded evidence
of the alleged EJK Gasconland was attributing to the
Duterte administration. The Gasconland management
did not have any evidence.
Despite that deception, Gasconland’s
management brought the road show to
United Nations theaters in New York
City and in Iceland. The foreign
Addressing pilgrims’ woes
shortchanging.
The pilgrims pay for a five-star
hotel accommodation only to find
out when they arrive in Mecca
that they are booked in a substandard
hotel. They pay high for
a place proximate to the Al-Masjid
al-Harām or House of God, where
rituals are performed, only to find
out they are kilometers away.
This deception can only be
perpetrated through the conspiracy
of the government regulator, the
National Commission on Muslim
Filipinos (NCMF), and the service providers in
Mecca and Madinah.
A friend from the travel industry told me
that for every 10 international passengers, one
is granted free airfare as a standard come on.
This is not revealed to the pilgrims. Who gets the
rebate for the thousands of pilgrims?
One of the raison d’etre of the NCMF is the
regulation and supervision of the haj pilgrimage.
And yet past administrations of the NCMF have
not been guiltless in the conning of pilgrims. The
anomaly has revived talks about deregulating the
pilgrimage and allowing pilgrims to deal directly
with the airlines and the service providers sans
“Nobody asks for
proof of the EJK
because they probably
found it awkward to
publicly doubt the park’s
management. No proof is
offered, either.
government intervention.
In the latest 2017 scam, which involved
officials and employees of the NCFM and the
Department of Foreign Affairs, Malaysian and
Indonesians were made to appear as Filipinos
and issued Philippine passports to facilitate
their pilgrimage. Foreigners resorted to this
illegal scheme because, in their country, tens
of thousands apply every year, and the queue
for the haj is too long that they have to wait
years before being allowed to go on pilgrimage.
Money changed hand and criminal cases were
filed against suspects.
NCMF should explore
other reform strategies
to ease the hardships of
pilgrims. In Malaysia, its
government has this so-called
“Tabung Haji” project. It
is a government-initiated
investment scheme where
would-be pilgrims make
regular deposits to a bank, and
when their deposit reaches a
“Yet past
administrations
of the NCMF
have not been
guiltless in
the conning of
pilgrims.
target amount, it subsidizes the fare and expenses
of first-time pilgrims. NCMF should commission a
group to study the mechanism, identify hurdles
and adjust it according to the peculiar conditions
uncomfortable topic that he went on and tackled
anyway), but I thought it was a stroke of genius to
report about the state of corruption in our beloved
nation and urge Congress to pass the laws needed to
curb it, if not cut it at the roots.
Duterte mentioned “unscrupulous persons
manning our ports and scalawags in uniform,” as well
as red tape in many agencies that he said revealed
the presence of corruption.
He once again reiterated his intent to remove the
corrupt, saying, “I have fired or caused the resignation
of more than a hundred officials and appointees of
government without regard to relationship, friendship
and alliance. There is no sacred cow, as the saying
goes, in my administration.”
Other past Presidents had said something in a
similar vein, but the continued spread of corruption
throughout the years just goes to show that they
were all talk.
Either that, or they had no plan — no goals set — to
keep the most basic and probably most gargantuan
promise any President could ever make.
You see, corruption is the disease that affects
everything and affects us all.
It is the virus that had led to millions more of
Filipinos who have yet to be lifted from poverty; to
agricultural lands and other lands that were either
misused, abused or disused; to natural resources
that were desecrated or destroyed, leading to
worsened conditions during calamities or shortages
in water and food; to our own people losing
opportunities or leaving for greener pastures and
risking their own safety and their family structure
in the process.
Almost all of the things we
“I thought it
was a stroke of
genius to report
about the state
of corruption
in our beloved
nation and urge
Congress to pass
the laws needed
to curb it.
complain about today — the
traffic in Metro Manila, the
water shortage, rice shortage,
difficulty in engaging in your
own business, the garbage
problem — stem from a system
ridden with corruption.
The President talked about
how some of the agencies
notorious for this rot managed
to collect billions of pesos
more than before, then said
something like, “Imagine the
benefits such funds would have given the people had
it not been dispersed among a few pockets.”
That is a sentiment that most Filipinos often say
but feel helpless about solving. To hear the Chief
Executive rant about it, too, and moreover challenge
all leaders in the hall to do their part or else — well,
that was just so reassuring.
It made it somehow easier — as a nation still beset
with many challenges — to “dream big” once more
because someone has “set goals” and apparently still
is determined to “take action.”
audiences fell for the road show and demanded an
investigation on the alleged EJK.
When Senator Gordon learned of what happened
abroad, he called the attention of this newspaper to
the failure of Gasconland’s management to produce
any evidence to the Senate to prove the extent of the
alleged EJK being attributed to President Duterte.
That revelation from Gordon should be enough for
the public to demand a change in the management
of Gasconland, and for the park itself to revert to its
original avowed purpose.
of Filipino Muslims. Past administrations of NCMF
have attempted adopting it, but it hit a wall for
reasons not explained to the public.
Can the present leadership of the NCMF
measure up to these problems?
Compared with past pilgrimages, the NCMF
today has made visible reforms, although
observers claim that the administration of former
Secretary Yasmin Busran is the one to beat in
terms of the accommodation of pilgrims.
When lawyer Saidamen Pangarungan was
appointed Secretary of NCMF, one of his first
official acts was to look into pilgrimage problems.
Even before warming up his chair, he traveled to
Saudi Arabia and warned service providers he
would hail them to court if they violate terms of
the agreement between them and the NCMF on
the accommodation of pilgrims.
The present pilgrimage is the first in the
administration of Pangarungan, a test of his
mettle.
Going however by the performance of
Pangarungan during his stint as Lanao del Sur
Governor and later Department of the Interior
and Local Government Undersecretary, there is
reason to hope that reform is underway.
Email: amb_mac_lanto@yahoo.com

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Wednesday, 24 July 2019
Daily Tribune
Don’t hit
the snooze
button
By Alvin Murcia
METRO
A23
Don’t be alarmed if your phones
start issuing non-stop notifications
as early as 4 a.m. of 27 July.
Those alarms would be in line
with the 5th Metro Manila Shake
Drill scheduled for this Saturday
by the Metropolitan Manila
Development Authority (MMDA)
to test private and public sector
readiness in the event of a very
strong earthquake.
The notifications on the drill
are sure to come as the MMDA
has already coordinated with
the Department of Information
and Communications
Technology (DICT), the National
Telecommunications Commission
(NTC) and the various
telecommunication companies.
A letter request was sent
to DICT and NTC by MMDA
Chairman Danilo Lim for them
to partner with the agency by
disseminating information via
text blasts to alert the public
ahead of the drill.
NTC is an attached agency
of the DICT responsible for the
supervision, adjudication and
control over all telecommunications
services throughout the country.
“Chairman Lim asked the
concerned agencies to provide
their broadcast/push messaging
service for mobile device users
as well as via emergency cell
broadcast before the start of the
actual drill,” said Lim’s chief of
staff Michael Salalima.
Those alarms are for the
Shake Drill.
Salalima said preparation for
this year’s drill is “all-inclusive”
with the collaboration of
government, private sector and
non-government organizations.
“No one can predict when
an earthquake would happen
but the chances of survival are
better when people are prepared
and (they) know what to do when
a strong tremor happens,” he
added.
In spite of the early morning
start of the exercise, Salalima
expressed confidence that many
would participate after getting
the commitment of various
sectors of society: government
agencies, local government
units, the diplomatic community,
transport sector, businesses and
private institutions.
The drill slated on 27 July
will start with the pushing of
ceremonial button by Lim and
General Manager Jojo Garcia at
the MMDA headquarters.
When the clock strikes 4
a.m., sirens and alarms would
also sound simultaneously
for the quake drill. Everyone
is encouraged to participate
wherever they are — in the office
or at home by performing the
“drop, cover and hold” routine.
Different scenarios will be
depicted in each of the four
quadrants: north, south, west
and east, with the simulation
of the “Oplan Metro Yakal,” the
agency’s contingency plan in the
event of an
earthquake.
Smooth drive Travel time from Taguig to Pasay and vice versa is cut by half by the 2.2-kilometer C5 Link flyover.
C5 Link flyover opens
Pasay-Taguig travel cut in half
Travel time between Pasay and
Taguig will be significantly reduced
with the opening yesterday of the
2.2-kilometer C5 Southlink Flyover
crossing the South Luzon Expressway.
Public Works and Highways
Secretary Mark Villar announced
the opening to traffic of the flyover
in a simple ceremony also attended
by Transportation Secretary Arthur
Tugade.
The C5 Link flyover is expected
to reduce vehicular traffic at the
Sales Interchange.
A BULLDOZER turns a Ferrari into a heap of scrap metal.
With three lanes in each direction
of the flyover, the passage of the
anticipated 8,000 vehicles will be
smooth through the flyover, Villar
said.
The flyover is accessible to vehicles
from and going to Fort Bonifacio, C.P.
Garcia (C5) and the cities of Taguig,
Parañaque, Las Piñas and Pasay.
The C5 Link flyover is expected to
reduce vehicular traffic at the Sales
Interchange near Villamor Airbase
while decongesting SLEX East, West
Service Road and EDSA.
The flyover is part of the
7.7-kilometer expressway project that
would complete the Circumferential
Road No. 5 loop around Metro Manila.
“We are supportive of road
engineering solutions for everyday
problems. This is a vital project that
will cut travel time in half from the
usual 1.5 hours spent to cross from
Villamor Airbase, Pasay area to Taguig
City,” Villar said.
TRANSPORTATION Secretary Arthur Tugade and Public Works Secretary Mark Villar lead the opening of the flyover section of the
P11-billion 7.7-kilometer Cavitex C5 Link Expressway project.
Customs in post-SoNA muscle flex
The Bureau of Customs (BoC) yesterday
reduced to mere scrap metal a smuggled
Ferrari sports car which, even though
already used, was valued at P7 million.
The car was among the smuggled and
fake goods which the BoC destroyed in
line with its anti-smuggling campaign
after 64 of its personnel were ordered
axed for corruption by President Rodrigo
Duterte.
The Ferrari arrived in the country on
13 May this year. A customs examiner
discovered the Ferrari shipment with
“both doors and the hub dismantled from
the main body,” a BoC statement said.
Misdeclared as auto parts, the Ferrari was
declared by BoC as abandoned and forfeited
pursuant to Section 1129 of the Customs
Modernization and Tariff Act (CMTA).
Rody says bureau could have
collected millions of pesos more if
not for corruption.
The bureau also destroyed 12 units of
cigarette-making machines and more than
1,000 master cases of various brands of
counterfeit cigarettes seized in February
this year from a warehouse in Barangay
Bagacay, Tacloban City.
YUMMIE DINGDING
By Anthony Ching
The Bureau of
Immigration (BI)
yesterday announced
that six women seeking
jobs abroad were
barred from leaving
the country through
the Ninoy Aquino
International Airport
(NAIA) for having fake
documents.
The Filipinas were
turned over to the antihuman
trafficking task
force after alert BI
personnel saw through
their attempt to pass
themselves off as
tourists.
NAIA port
operations division
chief Grifton Medina
said the women were
intercepted in separate
incidents by the BI
Travel Control and
Reinforcement Unit.
Two intending to
work as household
workers were barred
from leaving for Italy
and Poland via Kuala
Lumpur last Saturday at
NAIA Terminal 1. They
said they paid nearly
half a million pesos to
their recruiters.
BOB DUNGO JR.
The warehouse owners failed to
present proof of payment of duties and
taxes.
A bulldozer was used to crush the
sports car and other seized contraband at
the BoC parking lot in Port Area, Manila.
President Duterte said that when he
went to the BoC early this month, he was
told that more than 60 of its personnel
are facing charges aside from 61 who are
under investigation.
While saying it is graft-ridden, the
BoC nonetheless was credited by Mr.
Duterte in his SoNA for collecting P585
billion in 2018. Raymart Lolo
Six barred from leaving

A24
METRO
John Henry Dodson, Editor
Wednesday, 24 July 2019
Daily Tribune
‘Pay P20-M in restoration’
Manila wants Botong’s gem back
Mural ‘Filipino Struggles Through History’ on loan with National
Museum
By Pat C. Santos
The National
Museum is
willing to
return
to
the City of Manila the famous “Filipino
Struggles Through History” paintings of
national artist Carlos “Botong” Francisco, but
only after payment of P20 million in restoration
works.
Manila city officials revealed the willingness
of museum officials to return the four paintings
originally mounted as a mural at the ceiling of
the Villegas Hall inside the Mayor’s Office.
The murals are now on display at the
National Museum after five years
of painstaking restoration of
the artwork completed
by Francisco just
months
before his death in 1969.
The mural is considered as “arguably
Botong’s greatest extant work of art — and
among his last.”
Last year, then Manila Mayor Joseph
Estrada and the City Council signed an
agreement to keep the paintings, comprising
four panels, at the National Museum to make
them more accessible to the public.
The paintings were removed from City
Hall to undo the ravages of time and water
damage through restoration works by at least
10 professional restorers.
In return for allowing its display at the
National Museum, museum officials pledged
to provide Manila City Hall with more
durable reproductions of the paintings.
Officials of Manila, the National Museum,
the National Historical Commission of
the Philippines, Cultural Center of the
Philippines, Komisyon ng Wikang Filipino,
National Library, National Archives of the
Philippines, National Commission for the
Culture and Arts met to discuss the mural’s
possible return home.
Museum officials said the paintings are
on loan with them “but we are willing to
discuss with you new arrangements.”
City officials asked the experts gathered in
the meeting how to best protect the paintings
if and when they are returned to the ceiling of
the Villegas Hall.
The mural was commissioned by Manila
Mayor Antonio Villegas in 1968 and it
depicted the struggles of Filipinos from
pre-colonial Tondo to the end
of the American colonial
period in 1946.
Also known as
the “History
of Manila,” the mural was declared a National
Cultural Treasure in 1996.
The mural was thought to have been lost
for a time until the National Museum,
through its head at the time Gemma
Cruz-Araneta, clarified that
it had been sent to
them by Mayor
Alfredo Lim for
restoration.
Accessible Botong Francisco’s mural as displayed at the National Museum after five years of restoration works.
By Alvin Murcia
Quezon City Mayor Joy Belmonte yesterday backed the
push of President Rodrigo Duterte for local government units
(LGU) to cut bureaucratic red tape and ensure the ease of
doing business in their localities.
In his fourth State of the Nation Address (SoNA) on Monday,
the President challenged the various LGU to issue business
clearance and related permits within three working days.
QC permits issued 2-5 days
Belmonte says cutting red tape limits opportunities for corruption
Belmonte said that fast-tracking the processing of permits,
clearances and licenses in Quezon City is included in her
14-point agenda, adding that for so-called low-risk businesses
they can issue a business permit within two days.
“For businesses that need close scrutiny, we will issue
permit within one week,” she said. “With this, we can
encourage businessmen to invest in Quezon City while limiting
opportunities for irregularities in the city.”
Meanwhile, a lawyers organization yesterday posed
By Neil Alcober
a question over the call of President Rodrigo Duterte
for Congress to bring back the death penalty, asking for
whom is it?
The National Union of People’s Lawyers, in a statement
signed by its secretary general Ephraim Cortez, pointed
out that several politicians had already been found guilty
of plunder “but we have yet to see them behind bars,
with some (of them) in their extravagant barongs and
Filipinianas, attending the SoNA.”
In his SoNA, the president said he is willing to go
to jail in his continuous war against illegal drugs and
corruption.
Carjacking or joyride?
A man had his own nephew arrested by the police in
Marikina over a reported carjacking incident on Monday.
Collared was John Kenneth Abraham, 21, after his uncle
William Abraham identified him as the one who forcibly took
a Mitsubshi Adventure from his son John Well last Saturday.
The suspect yielded the vehicle, with license plate UWL 697,
when arrested after taking the vehicle parked along Calcite
St. in Barangay Parang.
The alleged carjacker drove off towards R. Palma St. after
Just eight years old, she was beaten up, raped
and left for dead inside a sack by suspect Sotero
Manuguid Jr. Sunday evening in Taguig City.
The girl lived to tell though her ordeal to
her parents and the police and then to identify
Manuguid, a 33-year-old construction worker, as
her assailant.
The suspect allegedly promised cash in luring
the victim to a vacant lot where the dastardly crime
happened, according to the police.
“He punched then strangled the child,” Taguig
PNP chief investigator Maj. Ramon Christian Laygo
said in Filipino. “Then he ravished her.”
“He threatened the child that he would kill her
if she tells anyone about her ordeal. He punched
her again and then placed her inside the sack,”
the police officer continued.
Laygo said the child positively identified the suspect
as her assailant after his picture was shown to her. A
medico-legal examination showed she was raped.
“I did nothing to that child,” Manuguid said, adding
that when he saw the child she was already on her
way out of the vacant lot. “Then that happened to her
and I became the suspect just because I was the only
one who came out of the lot.”
Manuguid is facing charges of rape and
attempted homicide.
grabbing the keys of the car from his cousin and namesake
in what may turn out to be a case of joyriding blown out of
proportion.
The Adventure’s owner Annie Egawa, 44, lodged
the complaint against the suspect before the Marikina
Anti-Carnapping Unit.
The suspect was arrested while hiding along Dragon St.,
Barangay San Roque in Marikina City.
He is temporarily detained at Marikina Police detention
facility facing charges for violation of Republic Act 10883 or
the Anti-Carnapping Act.
Raped, left for dead
LTFRB warns cutting-trippers
The Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory
Board (LTFRB) threatened yesterday to suspend the
franchises of public utility jeepneys in Manila whose
drivers resort to “cutting trips” or unloading passengers
before they reach their destinations.
The LTFRB issued the statement after Manila City
Hall officials brought to the board’s attention the
pernicious practice of jeepney drivers.
RAPE suspect Sotero Manuguid Jr. at the police station.
DAVID JOHN CUBANGBANG
BELMONTE
Notorious in cutting trips are drivers of jeepneys with
the route Baclaran-Divisoria, according to the complaint
that reached LTFRB. Manila’s traffic enforcers are also
on guard to apprehend erring drivers.
However, only the LTFRB is empowered to suspend or
revoke franchises. Passengers are being shortchanged
and hassled by the practice of jeepney drivers to turn
around without completing their trips. Pat C. Santos

MOST
INNOVATIVE
BROADSHEET
2018
44TH
PHILIPPINES
BUSINESS
EXPO
ADB BOOSTS
BOND
ENHANCEMETN
UNIT BY $50-M
B28
WHAT’S IN THE
SWAG BAG?
C32
Jun Vallecera, Editor
Wednesday, 24 July 2019
Daily Tribune
BUSINESS
LPG LIFTS PRYCE
CORP. NET PROFIT
25% IN H1
B27
B25
BSP exercises prudence
Looking ahead, I have to emphasize that the BSP prefers to be
patient and prudent in calibrating monetary policy
By Joshua Lao
For the nth time since assuming the
office, Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP)
Governor Benjamin Diokno said monetary
policy crafting is never guesswork and that
their decision is always driven by data.
He also said timing has a lot to do with
the effectiveness of their collective decision
making and that prudence helps allow the
economy to grow whenever the Monetary
Board calibrates the extent or depth of the
monetary response.
This was learned from BSP Governor
Benjamin Diokno on Tuesday as he dwelled
on the importance of both data and timing
in the execution of monetary policy.
“Looking ahead, I have to emphasize
that the BSP prefers to be patient and
prudent in calibrating monetary policy.
Our decisions will always be data
dependent,” Diokno told reporters on
the sidelines of an economic forum in
Makati City.
“Hence, on the question of whether
further monetary easing is needed at this
juncture, we will first have to see how
economic conditions will evolve in the
coming weeks,” he added.
According to him, at the upcoming ratesetting
meeting on 8 August, the Monetary
Board should have the necessary economic
data such as inflation and local output
growth measured in gross domestic product
to make a well-informed and carefully
balanced decision.
Diokno said the need for further
monetary accommodation or easing
depends heavily on how strong the country’s
growth drivers are working
“(Also,) the BSP needs to evaluate how
our recent monetary policy action has
moved credit, interest rates and market
WORK continues on the rest of the Skyway Stage 3 and C5 South Link project even as the Buendia-to-Plaza Dilao segment is now open.
Reunion
expectations,” he said.
On price pressures, Diokno said earlier
that inflation in the third quarter would
likely slip below 2 percent “because of
base effects.”
In all, the central bank head said the
BSP will continue to deliver its primary
mandate of price stability despite economic
headwinds and challenges.
“We do see continued economic
challenges for the Philippines in the months
ahead. Nevertheless, we remain optimistic
and we believe the economy starts in a
position of strength,” Diokno said.
“You can continue to count on the BSP
to remain steadfast in fulfilling its mission,”
he said.
ROMAN PROSPERO
SEC assumes
external auditor
accreditor role
External auditors are valuable
partners in promoting the
integrity of financial reports and
transparency in the financial
sector
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)
will take over the accreditation process of external
auditors across the financial sector by August this
year in line with the Ease of Doing Business law
gunning to streamline government transactions.
In a statement on 23 July, the corporate regulator
said it has released the draft guidelines on the
adoption of a centralized (one-stop-shop) framework
for accreditation or selection of external auditors for
public comment.
Accreditation currently involves meeting different
requirements imposed by the offices of the SEC, the
Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) and the Insurance
Commission (IC).
“External auditors are valuable partners in
promoting the integrity of financial reports and
transparency in the financial sector,” SEC chairman
Emilio Aquino said.
He added the proposed one-stop-shop framework
for external auditor accreditation “will not only
streamline the application process on the part
of independent auditors and audit firms but also
improve the ease of doing business in the country,
in general.”
The SEC is aiming to roll out the initiative in
August after its cooperative arrangements with the
BSP, IC and the Philippine Deposit Insurance Corp.
(PDIC) under the Financial Sector Forum, which the
four member-agencies comprise.
“Under the proposed guidelines, the SEC will
handle the acceptance, processing and approval
of applications for accreditation of external
auditors of institutions supervised and regulated
by the country’s financial sector regulators,” the
SEC said.
Still, the BSP and IC will have to agree with
the approval of the external auditor applications
of their supervised institutions, as applicable.
The SEC said the external auditors will be
classified into three categories in accordance
with the institutions they will be allowed to
audit, and qualification requirements will
depend on the category applied for on top of the
concerned financial regulator’s other specific
requirements.
The accreditation is valid for five years, or less, as
prescribed by the financial sector regulators, unless
it is suspended or delisted for gross negligence,
material misrepresentation, failure to comply with
regulatory and reportorial requirements and other
grounds, the SEC added.
I find comfort in knowing that
he is now forever stored in the
cloud and is merely a click
away to restore in our batch’s
memory bank
Reunion — actually a French noun, the etymology
of which is the Latin word “reunire,” meaning
to come, bring, gather together again — is a
word that usually connotes, for us, renewing
friendships, perhaps even rekindling loves past, youth
relived, joyful memories, fun, laughter and the good
times of yesterday! But sometimes, these occasions
could also bring about sadness, regrets, tears, sorrows,
pain for loves lost, opportunities missed and for best friends departed.
The past week or so has been a roller coaster ride for me that brought
about a lot of the emotions we associate with reunions. Several weeks ago,
I wrote about the sudden passing of Ramoncito Zara Abad, my Upsilon
Sigma Phi fraternity ka-batch and a very good friend to so many people
whose paths Mon crossed. Last week was the 40th day of his passing and
Mon’s classmates at the Asian Institute of Management (AIM), Batch 1973,
reunited at AIM to say goodbye to Mon for the last time and to see him off
on his final journey to immortality.
The crowning project of BA69 for the golden jubilee
will be the production of what promises to be a
beautiful hardbound souvenir yearbook.
The class remembered the ties we had with Mon, as a few of us took
turns recalling what made him so special. I, for one, related an incident
that typified the zany character that Mon was. Out on a double date with
Mon and his wife, Cely, together with my girlfriend then and now my beloved
wife, Liza, after a couple of drinks too many, somehow Mon convinced Liza
and I to elope that very evening. Somewhat flush with alcohol, we naively
agreed to Mon’s madcap idea of his motoring us to Baguio that very night,
but before that, to pass by a post office and send a telegram to Liza’s
parents to say that she was fine and not to worry. Little did we know that
as we dozed off in the back of Mon’s car, he was driving us not to Baguio
but back to Liza’s home! Upon realizing what he had done, he burst out
laughing as he gleefully suggested that I just sit outside Liza’s house to wait
for the telegram to arrive.
Other classmates, on the other hand, particularly the damsels in our
class, recounted with a smile Mon’s endless wisecracks and flirtations that
would provide momentary relief to the grueling tension of chasing an MBA
degree. But above all, the class would always remember Mon’s penchant and
unquestionable talent as an impresario extraordinaire cum “roasting” host
during our reunions. Our Great Gatsby dinner party, which he organized
with a zeal, complete with 1920s outfits, coupled with endless ribbings of
“exalted” classmates, would always be embedded in our minds together
with the memory of Mon the extraordinaire!
Of course, Mon’s brothers at Upsilon Batch 1966 did not miss the
opportunity to have a reunion as well, as we received an invitation from
Mon’s family to attend his inurnment service and to commemorate the
40th day of his passing. It was a much more solemn and somber occasion
and I had a lump in my throat as we listened to mournful songs, as images
of Mon’s life flashed and flickered before our eyes on the big LED screen.
The Eagle’s Nest
Bing Matoto
As the family and our batch shared our
memories of Mon, the recurring thread was his
infectious mirth, his tremendous generosity, the
forgiveness he liberally showered on those who had
hurt him, and, most important of all to Mon, his love
for his family. I personally felt a sense of closure
as I shared the finality of an act that our batch
took when we decided to finally delete his name
and number from our Viber group, prompted by a
strange post we received from his number, which
unbeknown to us was inadvertently made by his
trusted driver. But although Mon may now have
been deleted from our Viber group, I find comfort
in knowing that he is now forever stored in the cloud
and is merely a click away to restore in our batch’s
memory bank.
The other reunion I attended was in preparation
for the golden jubilee of the Class of 1969 of the College of Business
Administration (CBA) of the University of the Philippines (UP) that will be
held on 24 August, which is during the UP-wide alumni homecoming, and
on 7 December, which is just for the CBA.
In contrast to the reunion in honor of Mon, this one was punctuated
with smiles, lots of laughter, songs of the ’60s, renewal of acquaintances,
rekindling of friendships, reminiscing of the fun times and tons of group
selfies. Spurred on by the boundless energy, magnanimous generosity and
tireless leadership of classmates like Francis Laurel, Gilbert Joven, Justice
Garcia Mondragon, Adeline Noche Carbonell, Myrna Yap Urtula, Linda
Santiago Rosal and Carmen Borra, just to name a few, and my apologies
to the others I may have inadvertently missed out, our class has lined up
several activities that will guarantee our 50th year celebration will be a blast.
To whet the appetites of our fellow golden jubilee celebrants, going back
a bit in time, courtesy of Myrna, 1969 was when the cost of the ubiquitous
“Ikot” jeepney in UP campus was 5 centavos, lunch at Vinzons Hall, one
peso, an egg sandwich, 50 centavos, embotido, 40 centavos, turon with
jackfruit, 10 centavos, and a bus ride on JD or Yujuico from Quiapo to UP,
20 centavos. A notable achievement of BA69 was the launch of AIESEC,
a youth-run business-oriented organization that promotes international
exchange programs. A group of BA69 ladies singing Cliff Richards’ “Ti Volio
Culare” snagged the top prize in a singing contest, but the BA basketball
team lost to the Eco (Economics) team! And about a dozen BA69 couples
dating then ended up getting married!
The crowning project of BA69 for the golden jubilee will be the
production of what promises to be a beautiful hardbound souvenir yearbook
that is being painstakingly put together. To date, about 50 percent of the
class or about 107 persons have agreed to contribute photos of their then
and now. And for those who have not yet done so, it is not yet too late for
you to submit your photos. Just email 69memories69@gmail.com. Join
the fun of meeting once again your classmates of BA69!
Until next week… one big fight!
For comments, please email bing_matoto@yahoo.com

B26 Wednesday, 24 July 2019
Daily Tribune

Wednesday, 24 July 2019
Daily Tribune
BUSINESS B27
Rice value chain control
best for farmers
Farmers should have full control of the entire rice value chain to help shield
them from the impact of the rice tarrification law which has depressed the price
of palay at the farm gate.
Outgoing Department of Agriculture (DA) Secretary Emmanuel Piñol said
farmers should own the rice processing complexes so they are “no longer at the
mercy of traders” who control the farm gate price.
In the rice industry, the price of rice is double the price of palay at the farm
gate. Thus, if the buying price of palay is only P14 per kilo, the price of rice in
the market should only be P28 up to P40 per kilo.
However, middlemen and traders make an extra P10 per kilo from the paddy
rice bought from farmers at P14 per kilo. These earnings, according to Piñol,
do not include the by-products like rice bran, “tiki-tiki” and even the rice hull
which now has a commercial value.
“We have been trying to do in the DA since I assumed office three years ago
to lift the farmers and even the fishermen from the status of a raw materials
producer to a processor and marketer of his produce,” Piñol said in a statement.
Further, he said the revival of the Kadiwa stores in Manila City could be
the outlets of freshly-milled rice from the farmers of Central Luzon that could
be sold at lower prices.
“I will link them up with Mayor Isko Moreno Domagoso of Manila who has
publicly announced that he would revive the Kadiwa Stores in his city. I will
work on this project this week and will pursue this even if I will no longer be
in the Agriculture Department,” he said.
Kadiwa chain stores were built to sell low-priced basic food and household
items under the Presidential Decree 1770 issued by the late strongman Ferdinand
Marcos to allow farmers and fishermen to directly sell their products to
consumers. However, the chain closed at the end of 1986.
To further help the farmers and fisherfolk raise their income, the DA has
initiated a total of 11 agricultural trading centers and has set up 192 TienDA
units all over the country where farmers and fishers could directly sell their
products to consumers at its farm gate price.
Maria Romero
RCBC, thrift arm
merger gets SEC ok
By AJ Bajo
A DROP in the price of LPG allowed for a 7.8 percent increase in the LPG sales volume of Pryce Corp.
RCBC also needs to secure the Bureau of Internal Revenue’s
approval to proceed with the absorption
The merger of Yuchengco-led Rizal
Commercial Banking Corp. (RCBC) and
its wholly-owned thrift unit, RCBC Savings
Bank (RSB), has secured the nod from
the Securities and Exchange Commission
(SEC).
In a disclosure to the stock exchange
on Tuesday, 23 July, the listed lender said
it received the certificate from the SEC
on 22 July.
The merger will pave the way for
RCBC’s absorption of RSB’s assets and
liabilities, a move that will allow the
parent company to consolidate and grow
its retail base while reducing operating
costs.
In particular, RCBC said the proposed
transaction will enable “more efficient
capital deployment, more efficient
compliance with the Basel 3 liquidity
rations, optimal coordination between
branch banking networks of RCBC and
RCBC Savings, medium term improvement
of funding economics and operational cost
efficiencies.”
On 17 June, the Bangko Sentral ng
Pilipinas likewise gave its approval of
the transaction as part of the regulatory
approval process.
The bank received consent from the
Philippine Deposit Insurance Corp. on 30
April this year. The merger was okay-ed by
at least two-thirds of RCBC’s stockholders
in a special stockholder’s meeting on 26
February 2019, following the consent of
RCBC’s board of directors of the deal on
26 November 2018.
RCBC also needs to secure the Bureau
of Internal Revenue’s approval to proceed
with the absorption.
Under the merger, RSB will transfer
its net assets to RCBC in exchange for 315
million common shares of RCBC. “The
RCBC common shares shall be issued in
exchange for RCBC’s investment in RSB
and shall be recorded as treasury shares
by RCBC,” the bank said.
Meanwhile, the merger will also
expand RCBC’s bank network to over 500
branches and lending centers as well as
near 1,600 automated teller machines
nationwide, as RSB branches will be
converted into RCBC branches.
RCBC ended 2018 as the country’s 10th
largest bank with assets worth P346.2
billion. On the other hand, RSB finished
as third largest thrift bank with assets
reaching P139.91 billion.
RCBC’s net profits rose 15 percent to
P1.3 billion in the first three months of
2019 from P1.1 billion in the same period,
2018, owing to growth in its core business.
LPG boosts Pryce Corp. net profit 25% in H1
Growth from its liquefied petroleum gas (LPG)
business pushed listed Pryce Corp.’s net earnings
by 26 percent in the first six months of the year.
In a regulatory filing to the stock exchange
on Tuesday, Pryce Corp. said its consolidated
net income in the first half surged 26 percent to
P895.57 million from P711.89 million in the same
period in 2018.
Consolidated revenues rose 10 percent to P5.32
billion from P4.83 billion in 2018, with the sale of
LPG and related products accounting for 93.97
percent of the group’s total revenue.
Pryce Gases Inc., which imports and distributes
LPG under the brand name “PryceGas,” serves as the
firm’s major subsidiary. Pryce Corp. also produces
and sells industrial gases through the unit.
Pryce Corp. said that a contraction in the price
of LPG allowed for a 7.8 percent increase in its
LPG sales volume, including bulk sales, to 106,049
metric tons (MT) from 98,19 metric tons in the
same six-month period in 2018.
“On a regional basis, LPG sales volume rose by
5.4 percent in the Visayas-Mindanao region and
9.63 percent in Luzon. The average LPG contract
price, which affects LPG consumer behavior,
decreased to $479 per MT from last year’s $515 per
MT, or about 7 percent,” Pryce Corp. said.
Meanwhile, sales from Pryce Corp.’s other
businesses including industrial gases (4.14 percent),
real estate (1.42 percent) and pharmaceutical
products (0.47 percent) took up the 6.03 percent
revenue balance in the period, or an aggregate
amount of P320.55 million.
This was lower from the P412.98 million revenue
it contributed in the first half of 2018 on the back
of a sale of condominium units in Davao, without
which 2019 revenues from other businesses would
have grown 9.41 percent from 2018’s.
Pryce Corp. said that it expects the expiration
of the income tax holiday it enjoys with respect
to its import terminal in San Fabian, Pangasinan
will have an “adverse impact on net income in the
succeeding years.”
Still, the company said it is “cautiously
optimistic” that it will achieve its more or less
10 percent net income target growth this year, or
to P1.6 billion from the P1.4 billion net profit it
booked in 2018.
AJ Bajo

51.00
52.00
53.00
54.00
55.00
PESO-DOLLAR RATES
23 JULY 2019
51.135
25700
25200
24700
24200
DOW JONES
23 JULY 2019
17.70
7900
7700
STOCK MARKET
7500
7300 4.63
22 JULY 2019
23 JULY 2019
INDEX SUMMARY
INDEX VALUE CHANGE % CHANGE
PSEi 8,251.46 4.63 0.06 ▲
All Shares 4,990.95 -3.72 -0.07 ▼
Financials 1,868.88 -6.94 -0.37 ▼
Industrial 11,720.14 15.83 0.14 ▲
Holding Firms 7,996.20 44.80 0.56 ▲
Services 1,655.25 -16.37 -0.98 ▼
Mining and Oil 8,130.69 52.87 0.66 ▲
Property 4,389.13 3.53 0.08 ▲
B28 BUSINESS
ADB boosts bond
enhancement unit by $50M
ADB has been playing a
crucial role in CGIF’s past
development, not only as CGIF’s
key contributor but also as its
important partner in various
joint works
The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has
strengthened the capital base of the Credit
Guarantee Investment Facility (CGIF) by
another $50 million to further boost the
local-currency corporate bonds of countries
under the ASEAN+3.
“Having a developed and integrated bond
market is integral for a country to unlock
more investments geared towards economic
growth and development. But some bond
markets in the Asia and Pacific region remain
underdeveloped,” Director General of ADB’s
Private Sector Operations Department Michael
Barrow said.
“The CGIF, which utilizes guarantees and
credit enhancements, can help as it provides
greater confidence for local and foreign
investors,” he said of the ADB-supported
mechanism that helps embolden investors to
buy local-currency bonds of corporations across
the ASEAN plus the countries of China, Japan
and Korea.
According to Barrow, the CGIF encourages
more companies to tap bond markets and
propel their development by expanding and
diversifying their sources of debt capital, raise
funds in corresponding currencies and tenors
ADB’s additional capital contribution will aid regional collaboration within ASEAN+3.
and transcend country sovereign ceilings for
cross-border transactions.
“ADB has been playing a crucial role in
CGIF’s past development, not only as CGIF’s
key contributor but also as its important
partner in various joint works to support bond
market development in the region,” CGIF chief
executive officer Kiyoshi Nishimura said on the
increase of ADB’s contribution.
Nishimura also said ADB’s additional capital
contribution will aid regional collaboration
within ASEAN+3 and uphold financial resilience
by allowing firms and groundwork projects to
gain access to local currency and regional
bond markets.
The CGIF is an integral part of policy actions
agreed under the Asian Bond Market Initiative
to promote the development of bond markets,
mostly by administering credit guarantees to
ASEAN+3 bond issuers.
The ASEAN+3 region is composed of Brunei
Darussalam, Cambodia, the People’s Republic
of China, Indonesia, Japan, the Republic of
Korea, the Lao People’s Democratic Republic,
Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore,
Thailand and Vietnam.
The CGIF was established in April 2010 with
an initial capital of $700 million. OF the overall
initial investments, $130 million capital came
from ADB.
Maria Romero
By Elmer N. Manuel
Wednesday, 24 July 2019
Daily Tribune
Simplified gov’t
transaction thrills business
The Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCCI)
welcomed on Tuesday President Duterte’s call for government
agencies to simplify the processing of documents in all its
dealings with the transacting public.
In a broadcast interview, PCCI chairman emeritus Francis
Chua said that as a group, they are satisfied with the President’s
performance are reported under the 4th State of the Nation
Address (SoNA) despite criticisms that it failed to cover some
issues that are crucial to businessmen’s agenda.
“The President’s instruction for local government units
to simplify requirements for permits will greatly benefit
businesses,” Chua said.
Various investors, meantime, closely watched the
President’s statement on the second wave of tax reforms that
aims to lower the corporate income tax and rationalize fiscal
incentives, analysts said.
“This is an appropriate path to take to be able to fund the
infrastructure program so you need to broaden the tax base. I
think that’s the thing that should be ironed out,” said Nomura
ASEAN economist Euben Paracuelles.
Duterte should take advantage of his political capital to push
for reforms in his last three years in office, said Bob Herrera-Lim,
managing director of risk consultancy firm Teneo.
“That political capital is important but if you take a
look at the numbers, that political capital evaporates
within the short amount of time. We saw that in inflation
last year,” he said.
Gross domestic product growth in the January to June period
was at its slowest in four years due to the delay in the passage
of the 2019 budget. Duterte’s economic managers said they were
drafting a “catch-up” plan for spending.
Inflation eased back in June as government measures to tame
food prices kicked in, giving the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas room
to cut interest rates further.
Last February, the government broke ground on the Metro
Manila Subway, one of the centerpiece projects of Duterte’s P8
trillion “Build, Build, Build.”

REVOLUTIONIZING
FASHION
C30
GOOD
STUFF
COMING
C31
MOTHER
RICKY
GOES
‘STRAIGHT’
C32
SHARKS
ATTACK
D34
Dinah S. Ventura, Editor
Wednesday, 24 July 2019
Daily Tribune
LIFESTYLE
C29
A stylist’s
take on
grooming
When a modern man gets his
daily grooming right – the
right shave, trim and style – he
feels primed to use his power
to make things happen and
use his confidence to seize the
day
By Lourdes Florian Hernandez
Men would always want to
look good and be the best
version of themselves, but
there is a defining line
between what is fantasy and reality.
Celebrity stylist Lourd Ramos says
he draws the line on what the client
wants and if the look they aspire for
is appropriate for them.
“Google your favorite icon and
check if the look is viable for you.
Would you look good with it? Do you
think you can pull off this kind of
haircut? You need to compromise
with me if I am going to cut your hair
and be a little realistic,” Ramos says
during a recent social gathering to
celebrate the modern man of today
as organized by Philips in cooperation
with Philippe Gadgets & Accessories
and Rustan’s.
The hair guru, however, says
this should not stop a man from
experimenting to reach his personal
style.
“You can try it on. The beard
will grow, the hair will grow and
the mustache will grow, but at least
you’ve tried it,” he advises.
Ramos admits that modern men
model themselves before icons they
admire. “A modern man expresses
himself with the way he feels or puts
to life the icon he admires. He could
be David Beckman or some guy there.
It is how they would style themselves.
They would wake up and say I would
like to feel like Brad Pitt today.”
Ms. Maite Uy,
Philippines business
development head
for Personal Health,
says Philips helps
achieve the look
a modern man
wants, but with
all the basics
covered. Philips,
the global leader
for male electric
shaving tools,
showcased its
wide range of
smart tools that
can shape, shave
and maintain any
style of hair.
FROM left: Merlyn Martinez, CFO & general manager of PGA; Maite Uy, business
development manager, Philips Personal Health; Paolo Tantoco, AVP for the
Administration Division, Rustan’s; Lourd Ramos, brand ambassador and celebrity
hairstylist.
CELEBRITY stylist Lourd Ramos joins host Vince Velasco in sharing tips on how to
achieve different looks with Philips groomer.
These include the Philips Wet
and Dry Electric Shaver Series
7000 with the SkinGlide rings
coated with anti-friction that
enables the shaver to glide
effortlessly across one’s face
and prevents skin irritation.
The Philips AquaTouch Wet
& Dry Electric Series 5000
shaver protects the skin better
than a regular blade with the
MultiPrecision Blade System.
Philips Multigroom 9-in-1 Series
5000 offers nine tools to trim and
style facial hair, clip the mane
and groom the body to help men
craft their personal look with just
one tool. Its DualCut technology
includes more blades and has selfsharpening
blades with a battery
life of up to 80 minutes.
A modern man expresses
himself with the way he
feels or puts to life the
icon he admires.
The Philips Hair Clipper gives
an easy haircut with its DualCut
technology with self-sharpening
blades that cut hair twice as fast, and
the comb with Trim-n-Flow technology
that prevents hair clogging. The
Philips beard trimmer gives
power and precision to trim,
shape and shave facial hair
with the innovative Lift
PHILIPS & Trim system.
hair clipper, “When a modern
multigroom man gets his daily
and bear grooming right — the
trimmer series. right shave, trim and
style — he feels primed
to use his power to make things
happen and use his confidence to
seize the day. As an industry leader in
male grooming, our forte is to deliver
smart solutions to today’s modern
man which offers a close comfortable
shaving experience every day without
compromising skin comfort,” she says.
“Our tools are made with a lot of love
and care, undergoing stringent quality
assurance and performance testing.
Consumers are assured of excellent
performance and quality, always. With
Philips, the decision is yours. Be the
man you want to be,” she adds.
Visit the Philips Male Grooming
booth in Rustan’s Makati or find more
about Philips Personal Care through
www.philips.com.ph
Zap away during
rainy days
Remove those excessive skin growths to prevent them
from spreading
Warts removal treatment
needs time to heal.
Skincare center Diana
Stalder believes that
this rainy season is the best time to
undergo this kind of treatment and
uplift self esteem with clear skin.
That is why they are offering the
Unlimited Warts Removal Treatment
promo.
Remove those excessive skin
growths to prevent them from
spreading. Warts are communicable
when we share our soaps and towels
or in any activity with skin to skin
contact. Their painless electro
cautery warts removal procedure
will help remove these itchy, tiny
bumps that appear on our skin.
Diana Stalder is also offering their
Post Wart Kit, which help fasten wound
healing. The kit includes such products DIANA Stalder quality skin care products.
THE cream applied during the procedure
prevents redness and itchiness of the face.
as Dermablend Cleansing Milk
that would soothe, moisturize
and hydrate the skin; Dermablend
Zinc Oxide 10% Cream with Aloe;
and Dermablend Hydrocortisone
1% Cream that promotes wound
healing, relieves inflammation
and prevents redness and itch.
After the recommended
healing period, this will be
the perfect time to bring back
radiant clear skin through their
Skin Vigoration Treatment. The
procedure is best in reducing
scars and promoting collagen
production, thus preventing age
spots, pimple marks, fine lines
and wrinkles. Diamond Peel is
also a perfect procedure to treat
dark spots making the skin glow
after the treatment.
Aside from treatments, Diana
Stalder offers an opportunity to
earn by reselling. Be your own
boss and start your own business! Just follow these simple steps: (1) Avail
P2500 worth of Diana Stalder
products on your first visit and
bring two valid IDs; (2) join the
Product Orientation Seminar; (3)
you will automatically get a 25
percent discount; (4) the discount
will serve as your immediate
profit once all products are sold
out (which will enable you to
resell again); and (5) the more
your purchase and sell, the more
discounts, rebates and profit
you get.First one to reach worth
P100,000 of sales will automatically
get an additional P5,000 worth of
products and P5,000 cash before
31 July.
To learn more about Diana
Stalder’s products and services,
visit the official website at www.
dianastalder.com and follow
them on their social media
accounts in Facebook (https://
WARTS removal treatment.
www.facebook.com/dianastalderbydermaline), Twitter (@Diana_stalder)
and Instagram (@dianastalder). You may also visit the branches at
Gateway Mall, Basement 2, Araneta Center Cubao, Quezon City (02 351-0299;
+639176218468); SM Megamall, fifrth floor, Building A, Mandaluyong City
(02 531-5644; +63 9176265362); and SM City Calamba, third floor, Calamba
Laguna (049 306-0602; +63 9176276523).
‘I woke up like this’
Take your beauty sleep to the next
level with Snailwhite Icy Mask, the
latest from Thailand’s well-loved
beauty brand
Late nights, stress, dehydration
and pollution can take a toll
on one’s skin. Sometimes,
you don’t know how much
damage your negligence may have
caused until you see your selfie and
get a little horrified by what you see.
The good news, dear skin warriors,
is that a new innovation now allows
you to literally sleep away your
skin woes. Wake up with brighter,
bouncier and softer skin after
every use of the collagen-rich
Snailwhite Icy Mask, designed
to make your skin glow.
Welcome into your skincare
arsenal the newest intensive
nourishing formula that combines
the powers of nature’s best gifts
to skin as well as today’s breakthrough ingredients in
skin care — Snailwhite’s exclusive Snail Potion and Silene
colorata flower from France.
Snail Potion is a skin repair and rejuvenating
agent that is said to visibly diminish skin concerns
like dullness, sun spots and acne marks. It wipes
away dead skin cells to reveal clearer and
more radiant skin. A natural moisturizer,
snail secretion filtrate provides the
skin with much-needed hydration,
NATURAL skin glow is now
achievable with this newest beauty
innovation.
leaving it softer, more supple
and healthier-looking.
French Silene colorata flower
is a potent skin purifier that
gently but powerfully surfaces
oil, dirt and grease trapped in the
skin. It prevents pollutants and
harmful elements from building
up inside the skin and clogging
the pores.
Simple to use
Snailwhite Icy Mask is meant
to be left overnight to give the
skin time to deeply absorb all its goodness. Using it
is very simple. After cleansing the face at night, pat
it dry with a soft towel. Afterwards, apply Snailwhite
Icy Mask evenly all over the face. Leave it overnight.
Wash away any last traces of the mask before going
about your morning routine. Use two to three times
a week, or whenever you need an instant glow boost.
Snow-like texture
Snailwhite Icy Mask not only reveals the
skin’s natural glow; it also provides a pampering
experience. It has a unique snow-like texture that
invigorates the skin.
The snow-like texture of
the mask feels relaxing
on the skin. Pro tip:
Put your Icy Mask in
the fridge to give it
an extra cooling boost
to help diminish the
appearance of pores.
Beauty buddy
Snailwhite Icy Mask
comes in a small,
handy packet that
can be conveniently
slipped into handbags
and pockets and taken
anywhere. It’s travelfriendly,
making it a great beauty companion for
adventurers who want to look their best in all the
photos they’re going to upload on Instagram.
Using Snailwhite Icy Mask also makes for
a relaxing slumber party activity with the
girlfriends. Easily bring a packet to the next
night-in to and have your gal pals try it, too. It’s a
fun spa and facial experience in one handy pack.
Snailwhite Icy Mask (six packets, P395) is
available at Watsons and The SM Store outlets,
and online on Beauty MNL, Zalora, and official
Snailwhite stores on Lazada and Shopee.
SNAIL potion wipes away dead skin cells to
reveal a clearer and more radiant skin.

C30
LIFESTYLE
Wednesday, 24 July 2019
Daily Tribune
Zalora holds groundbreaking
of its new mega e-fulfillment
center
Z
alora, a fashion destination,
has partnered with
Ayala AC Infrastructure
Holdings Corp. for the
groundbreaking of the
biggest e-fulfilment
center in the Philippines
dedicated to fashion
e-commerce.
Online shopping
mega-facility breaks ground
The e-fulfillment center will have
40,000 square meters of racking space
and a 7.2-million item storage capacity
at its final phase, designed to support
the company’s growth plan for the next
10 years.
Zalora Philippines, led by its cofounder
and chief executive officer
Paulo Campos III, joined by Zalora
Group’s CEO Gunjan Soni and Ayala
AC Infrastructure’s chief operations
officer Noel Kintanar, facilitated the
groundbreaking ceremony for the
3.7-hectare Fashion E-Fulfillment
Project at the Daang Hari and Daang
Reyna Junction in Muntinlupa City.
The new facility demonstrates
Zalora’s efforts in maintaining its
position as the best in class ecommerce
logistics player in the region. The
center will help double Zalora’s
productivity through significant
investments on automation, testbedding
new technologies and software
ZALORA Philippines co-founder & CEO
Paulo Campos III, group CEO Gunjan Soni
and AC Infrastructure’s COO Noel Kintan.
and improving business processes to
drive productivity following the best
practices of Global Fashion Group
Fulfillment Centers around the world.
RUBEN Stappers (from left) and Louise
Pender with the Zalora executives at the
opening of the new e-fulfilment center.
“We are thrilled to be able to break
ground on our new state-of-the-art
E-Fulfillment Center which will be the
home of Zalora in the Philippines for the
next decade,” said Campos. “This new
facility will further strengthen Zalora’s
capabilities and grow its business across
the archipelago, housing thousands of
fashion brands and reaching more cities
and towns in the Philippines, solidifying
our commitment to provide Filipino
consumers the best online shopping
experience possible.”
The e-fulfillment center will
have 40,000 square meters of
racking space and a 7.2-million
item storage capacity at its final
phase.
The new facility will also be the new
home of Zalora as it houses 5,000 square
meters of office space for its Customer
Service and e-Production teams and
is expected to provide at least 1,000
job opportunities for the surrounding
Muntinlupa-Cavite communities.
The Zalora E-Fulfillment Center
project is scheduled to be completed by
the first quarter of 2020. VF
GUNJAN
Soni.
Revolutionizing fashion
Swedish brands H&M, Houdini and Baby Bjorn joined in,
showing how they were changing fashion with garments made
of organic materials
MEGAMALL team led by SM Supermalls AVP for Operations, Christian Mathay (sixth
from left), Karen Fagara, AVP for Marketing (seventh from left) and mall manager,
Jonathan Brian Chua (5th from left).
Mall-goers had the rare opportunity
to get a glimpse of sustainable fashion
during the recent “Fashion Revolution”
exhibit at the Mega Fashion Hall of SM
Megamall.
A joint project of the Embassy of
Sweden in Manila and SM, the exhibit
featured Swedish brands’ efforts to
reduce waste and make fashion a more
sustainable industry.
Swedish brands H&M, Houdini and
Baby Bjorn joined in, showing how they
were changing fashion with garments
made of organic materials, as well as
backpacks and baby carriers made of
recycled PET bottles.
The items displayed show how
much companies can do to be
more earth-friendly without losing
functionality and style.
Filipino artist and designer Patis
Tesoro, known for her upcycling
advocacy, showcased three textile art
pieces made of various fabrics sewn
together to create beautiful and intricate
tapestries.
Her take on the malong landap
highlighted the Meranaw culture and
Islamic architecture, while the delicate
DANISH Embassy’s Nicolas Maso with
George Natier, corporate sales executive of
SoftNET.
HIS Excellency Ambassador Harald Fries
and Susan Fries of Sweden.
abaca pieces were salvaged from
flooding in Aklan.
The “Fashion Revolution”
exhibit was also displayed at SM
Southmall from 15 to 20 July
and will be at S Maison
from 26 July to 2 August.
GUESTS Jessica Evans and
Anton Blokhin.
DRESSES from H&M’s
Conscious Collection are
made of organic silk sourced
from silkworms that live in
mulberry trees grown
in an environmentally
and friendly way.
A FASHION revolution from H&M. Outfit
made of Piñatex (left), an innovative
natural textile made from pineapple
leaf fiber sourced from the Philippines;
Orange Fiber top (right) made
from fruit juice byproducts;
and sandals made of
Bloom Foam.
BEAUTEDERM’S Rhea Tan (fourth from left) and Alicia Malasa (third from right)
with their ambassadors.
Beauty mania in Bataan
As one of today’s top leaders
in the beauty and wellness
industry, Beautederm
prioritizes safety and
effectiveness above all with
its FDA Notified products
In line with the upcoming tenth year
anniversary celebration of Beautéderm
Corp., the brand’s young ambassadors
came in full force for the grand opening
of BeautéChick located at the ground
floor of Vista Mall in Bataan.
BeautéChick is owned and operated
by Alicia Malasa. Present at the opening
were Beautéderm Corporation president
and CEO Rhea Anicoche-Tan and
BeautéEscape By Beautéderm
owner Myla Tiatco, brand
ambassadors Carlo Aquino,
Ejay Falcon, Hashtag Ryle,
Pauline Mendoza, and Jane
Oineza along with
Boobay and Kris
Lawrence.
Beautederm
was founded
and established
in 2009 by
Anicoche-Tan
and the company
embodies her
guiding principle
that beauty
begins by taking
care of one’s
self, and by doing
so a person will
become healthier,
and shall exude
beauty not only in
the outside but in
the inside as well.
As one of
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Beautederm prioritizes safety and
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consistent Superbrands
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Beautederm Skin Care Sets for both the
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Currently, Beautederm
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BOOBAY
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For updates, follow @
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EJAY
Falcon.

Wednesday, 24 July 2019
Daily Tribune
SPOTLIGHT
Good stuff coming
C31
CELLULOID SURFER
Kathleen Llemit
ACROSS
1 Downy
5 “Forget” a letter
10 Ms. Fawcett
12 Loved madly
13 Mechanic’s
concern
14 Business class
15 Tableland
16 Strong alkali
18 Fr. holy woman
19 Matured, as fruit
23 Versatile vehicle
26 Morning moisture
27 Modicum
30 Dad
32 Set on fire
34 “— vincit amor”
35 Auto trim
36 Scruggs of
Marvel Studios’ president
Kevin Feige announced its
biggest and, perhaps, the
most-awaited project in the
next phase
When the beloved Tony Stark
died in Avengers: Endgame,
most Marvel fans were
devastated. Robert Downey
Jr. a.k.a Tony Stark/Iron Man carried
the entire Marvel Cinematic Universe
(MCU) for more than a decade since his
debut in 2008. He was a character that
was hard to let go of.
His demise made a lot of fans cry, no
doubt. As one of MCU’s viewers since
the first Iron Man movie in 2008, I was
not surprised by his departure. I knew
it was bound to happen because it had
been planned all along as part of MCU’s
phases. It was hard to see him go, but off
he and, and another beloved character,
Captain America, went.
Equal to the sadness is the
expectation of the transition to Phase 4
and Marvel spilled several good news
AND she keeps on portraying powerful women. Angelina Jolie will play Thena in “The Eternals,”
while Tom Hiddleston (middle) gets his own series. The beloved fanged hero, Blade, is reincarnated
in the person of Oscar winning actor Mahershala Ali.
NEA Crossword Puzzle
© 2018 UFS, Dist. by Andrews McMeel Syndication for UFS
bluegrass
37 Hive occupant
38 Indeed!
39 River mouth
42 — Wiedersehen
45 Classified section
46 Every
50 Played loud
53 Whiteboard need
55 Follows
56 Fishing boats
57 Spud
58 Room offerers
DOWN
1 All there
2 PTA and NEA
3 Monk
4 Beige
5 Ben & Jerry rival
6 — -eared bunny
7 Pupil’s place
8 Job for a body
shop
9 Razor feature
10 Not masc.
11 Volunteer
12 Nefertiti’s god
17 Evergreen tree
20 Paragons
21 One or the other
22 House part
23 Pilot’s sighting
24 Domesticated
25 Sight from
at the recent San Diego Comic-Con. As
I digested these revelations, I was torn
between happiness and questions.
Of course, I should start with the
goodies. Marvel Studios’ president
Kevin Feige announced its biggest and,
perhaps, the most-awaited project in the
next phase. Eternals is hitting the big
screen on 6 November 2020.
As a fan of ensemble movie more
than a hero’s origin story (save for, of
course, all three Iron Man movies), The
Eternals easily made me giggle just
thinking about a group of superhumans
in a movie. I should stop here lest I spoil
its premise. But the casting brings me
all sorts of giggly feelings with Angelina
Jolie and Salma Hayek in one squad.
They’re among the actresses I liked
since Lara Croft movies (with Angelina
in 2001 and 2003) and Fools Rush
In (Hayek’s movie with Matthew Perry).
Another happy moment is for Don
Lee who forms the Eternals squad as
Gilgamesh. In this part of the world, he
is known as Ma Dong-seok, the muscled
softie in Train to Busan and one of the
gods in the movie series Along With
The Gods.
It’s all been teasing and asking about
Natalie Portman since Thor: Dark
World. She was not in Ragnarok and
just a picture of hers as Jane Foster
was seen in Endgame. But on 5
November 2021, she gets to wield
Mjolnir as Mighty Thor in the Taika
Waititi flick, Thor: Love and
Thunder.
Among the surprises
(or not) is Black Widow’s
movie. Like, finally it’s
happening for ScarJo
(Scarlet Johansson) to
have her origin story on
the big screen by 1 May
2020. So we would hardly
miss the lone kick-ass
female in the “original”
Avenger’s squad. Best
of all, Rachel Weisz is
onboard this movie,
another woman I
have loved since The
Mummy movies were
shown in early 2000s.
Messina
28 Priam was its
king
SUDOKU
Doctor Strange
is coming back o n
7 May 2021 but this time
29 Crowning point
31 Bring on board
33 Drakes and
ganders
35 Came to an end
37 Future flower
40 Tiny amounts
41 Feel nostalgic
42 Be a party to
43 Longest arm
bone
44 Zippy
47 B — — baker
48 Average grades
49 Time divs.
51 Regret
52 At all times, to
Poe
54 Louis XIV, e.g.
Answer to previous puzzle
by Ramon Lorenzo
Write a numeral from 1 to 9 in each box so that each
appears only once in each row, column and 3 x 3 box.
Answer for yesterday’s puzzle
KEVIN Feige looks on as Taika Waititi passes on Mjolnir to Natalie Portman aka Jane Foster
with Chris Hemsworth aka Thor beside her.
his movie, Doctor Strange in
the Multiverse of Madness, is
connected to the Disney+
series WandaVision (yup, the
power couple, but more of this
later).
Among all these big
screen titles that I share
equal can’t-wait-moment
with Eternals is the
resurrection of Blade.
I was sold on Wesley
Snipes as Blade in late
1990s, which spawned three
movies, and I can’t wait to see
Mahershala Ali do his own
intepretation of the fanged hero.
To put icing on the cake, really,
is to have Snipes appear in this
flick, in whichever role, hopefully
a good one.
These are some of the big
screen releases in Phase 4.
Now, we go to the small
screen debuts of our favorite
Marvel heroes through Disney+,
an affiliate video-on demand
service set to premiere in the
United States in November.
As mentioned earlier, the next Doctor
Strange flick is connected to the
series WandaVision¸ starring who else
but the lovers Wanda Maximoff and
Jarvis-turned-Vision. And of course,
Elizabeth Olsen and Paul Bettany will
reprise their roles in the original series
premiering in 2021.
Similarly getting their
small screen debuts are
the tandem of The Falcon
and The Winter Soldier in
2020; Hawkeye in 2021 and,
our dear Loki, also in 2021.
These are all undoubtedly
good news but I just can’t help but
wonder why Hawkeye, among all the
“original” Avengers, does not get a
big-screen solo movie.
These are all
undoubtedly good
news but I just
can’t help but
wonder why
Hawkeye, among
all the “original”
Avengers, does not
get a big-screen solo
movie.
It’s as if he was just
playing tag all along when,
in fact, his skills and his very
human nature, make him
even more remarkable than
his demi-god/semi-robot/
genetically altered friends.
No hate, I love all the other
Avengers, but I just feel that
Hawkeye got the shortest
end of the stick.
It’s a different case
for Loki, though. He’s like a drug that is
addicting that you just can’t get enough of.
He’s so full of complexities and character
that no matter how many times he’s
wreaked havoc in MCU, you’d still want
to see him star in his own show, which
all of us are getting in two years’ time.
All thanks in part to the actor, Tom
Hiddleston, who, like RDJ is to Tony Stark,
is perfectly Loki. No other actor could have
played the part perfectly than Tom.
So much for these goodies that I can’t
help but reconsider Disney+ when the
service will be made available in the
country, hopefully not later than late
this year.
“TRAIN to Busan” actor
Lee Dong-seuk is set to
play Gilgamesh in “The
Eternals.”
“MUSIC on the Rocks” is a show that is all about faith, hope and love.
Priest leads
concert
It will feature a mix of throwback, millennial
and inspirational music for the benefit of the
clergy of the Prelature of Batanes
On Saturday, 27 July, The Company, Randy Santiago, child
actor Alonso Muhlach, Lance Javier and the Oasis Band will
be led by radio-TV priest host Fr. Larry Faraon in a concert
dubbed, “Music on the Rocks.”
Wtih concept and direction by Marie Dawn Alaine Arambulo,
the musical event that will feature a mix of throwback,
millennial and inspirational music shall be for the benefit of
the clergy of the Prelature of Batanes.
Imagine the waves hitting the rock cliffs and shores of Batanes
Islands. Surely, “Music on the Rocks” will hit the hearts of the
audience, as they enjoy performances at the Music Museum in
Greenhills Shopping Center, San Juan City at 7 p.m.
“Music on the Rocks” is sponsored by Pagcor Philippines,
PLDT, Fil-Oil, CDO, Galleria Joaquin and Red Piano.
Tickets are priced at P1,500 and P1,000 and are available
online at Ticketworld (891-9999) or at the Music Museum (721-0635
or 721-6726).

C32 SPOTLIGHT
Wednesday, 24 July 2019
Daily Tribune
Simply Red
Isah Red
DIMPLES Romana as Daniela Mondragon.
BEA Alonzo made a surprise cameo in
“Kadenang Ginto.”
Last week, Mader Ricky, as
he is fondly known among
fellow hairdressers and
showbiz media, launched
Str8 Xpress, a new-generation
treatment product resulting
in glorious straight
hair minus the long wait,
or lesser waiting time to
process
Just as one begins to think
the name Ricky Reyes is
about to fade to oblivion,
the beauty and hair
guru comes up with another
groundbreaking innovation.
Last week, Mader Ricky,
as he is fondly known among
fellow hairdressers and
showbiz media, launched
Str8 Xpress, a new-generation treatment
product resulting in glorious straight
hair minus the long wait, or lesser
waiting time to process.
This new and amazing treatment will
be available at all Gandang Ricky Reyes
(GRR) Salons. Also, Reyes is all set to
put new hair salons exclusively for Str8
Xpress services.
Reyes said, “After long and
extensive research and development
in collaboration with my hair science
partners abroad, we are now ready to
give our clients another dream solution
to their problems. With our new Str8
Xpress services, which will soon be
available to the public, this novel hair
straightening solution will prove to be
time-efficient and cost-effective, cutting
processing time from four hours to just
an hour and without costing you an arm
and a leg, so to speak. Our service price
for Str8 Xpress ranges from P1,500 to
P1,800.”
He added, “I would like to say that,
having long, soft and bouncy straight
What’s in the swag bag?
The Eddys, continuing its
glam tradition of presenting the
celebrity hosts and presenters
with a swag bag, this year gave
Snailwhite kits containing the
brand’s newest offering, the Icy
Mask, along with two Whipp
Soaps, Moisture Facial Cream and
CC Sunscreen encased in white
toiletry kit.
Snailwhite is a modern
skincare phenomenon. Only
five years after the brand was
launched in Thailand, it has
become a runaway success, with
Snailwhite Moisture Facial Cream
rising to be the number one facial
cream in modern trade.
Launched in the Philippines
in September 2018, it quickly
became one of the fastest
growing skincare brands in the
country, garnering the Most
Successful New Brand of 2018
WAKE up with a glowy skin using snail white.
BEAUTEDERM Choice of the Night Lorna
Tolentino with her bag of goodies.
EDDYS presenters got their skin white totes after the ceremony.
Award at the Watsons
Health, Wellness and
Beauty Awards in May
2019. Snailwhite believes
that beautiful skin comes
from healthy skin, so it is
dedicated to developing
innovative products with
breakthrough ingredients
to target different skin
concerns.
RICKY Reyes’ revolutionizing Str8 Xpress hair rebonding technique.
Mother Ricky
goes ‘straight’
hair need not be expensive. With our
new technique, you can say goodbye to
hair rebonding. Str8 Xpress guarantees
that you can move in style and walk with
confidence.”
Reyes acknowledged that life in the
city, with the advances in technology,
specifically information technology (IT),
has become faster than ever. “People
from all over are now, in fact, living in
the IT age where the rule of the day is
‘fast,’” he quipped.
Reyes recalled those days when
rebonding was still new in the
hairdressing business. And even before
that, he said, women already had issues
with curly or kinky hair. “That’s why
salons all over the country offered
services to give women straight hair.”
Those straightening treatment
services, unfortunately and more often
than not, resulted in damaging the hair
and even the scalp.
When rebonding was made available at
GRR Salons, it became an instant hit and
women started queuing up. The process
though was long and some clients would be
uneasy and bored sitting through a four- to
five-hour treatment procedure.
But at Reyes’ salons, the results were
simply amazing. Clients would not mind
coughing up a big sum for the steep
price of each treatment and enduring
the agonizing hours of processing time.
The price of hair rebonding then ranged
from P4,000 to P5,000 for the service.
Yet, it was the only way to straighten
curly and kinky hair.
In the years that followed, Reyes
would closely collaborate with a hair
laboratory overseas to address other
hair problems. He would consequently
introduce HairReborn, HairShining,
Soft Wave and Cryo Treatment. These
unique treatments yielded good results,
earning for the GRR Salons the moniker
“hair clinic” for addressing all sorts of
hair problems.
Truly an innovator and a trendsetter,
I remember when Mader Ricky
introduced Crazy Colors in the country
in the early 80s. It was a huge hit that
celebrities took to wearing colors on
their tresses including Sharon Cuneta,
Pops Fernandez, Helen Gamboa, Nadia
Montenegro and Amy Perez.
And didn’t hair rebonding become
a byword among women in the late 90s
till today?
Bea Alonzo’s cameo appearance on
ABS-CBN’s Kadenang Ginto with
Dimples Romana (Daniela) and
Beauty Gonzales (Romina) helped
the series secure its top spot in the
ratings. The episode on 18 July was
at 23.2 percent.
At the launch, Reyes demonstrated
how quick curly hair is transformed
to straight hair in just an hour. Models
showed off their new look for members
of the press after a sumptuous lunch.
Mader Ricky couldn’t hide his
excitement over the new product that is
made from rice grains. He even shared
an anecdote about how, in the olden
days in China, mothers would prepare
congee to use on the hair of girls with
curly or wavy hair who wanted to have
straight hair. It must have been true, I
thought, as we saw the transformation
of the two models during the launch.
Reyes was excited about being able
to pioneer and offer this unique hair
treatment to his clients.
For reservations and special
appointments, call 0975-3939608 and
0921-4424581.
Bea Alonzo’s cameo
on ‘Kadenang Ginto’
Bea Alonzo’s cameo appearance
on ABS-CBN’s Kadenang Ginto with
Dimples Romana (Daniela) and Beauty
Gonzales (Romina) helped the series
secure its top spot in the ratings. The
episode on 18 July was at 23.2 percent.
PHIL Younghusband and wife Margaret Hall.
Adding more to Bea’s special
appearance was the intense showdown
between Daniela and Beauty.
According to Dimples, the actress’
appearance on the show started as a
tease. She posted on her IG (Instagram)
account an invitation for Bea to visit
them on the set. She didn’t know that
the actress would really come not just to
visit them but to be part of the episode
they were taping that day.
Both Dimples and Beauty were
exhilarated by Bea’s visit. And so was
the production staff, especially with
the ratings,
Meanwhile, also on 18 July, FPJ’s
Ang Probinsyano gripped the entire
TV population as Cardo Dalisay (Coco
Martin) fought for his life. As his family
and friends prayed for his recovery,
the show’s ratings also zoomed up. It
ended with 40 percent, showing that
nearly half of the country’s television
audience were hooked on the series
and wanted to know if Cardo would
be well.
Sino Ang May Sala also gave its rival
show a beating in the ratings game with
18.8 percent while rival Love You Two
managing to post half of its rating, or a
mere 9.5 percent.
Chris Tiu now DoST ambassador
I-Bilib host Christ Tiu is now the brand
ambassador of the Department of Science
and Technology.
Tiu was named as such for his various
advocacies and contribution to science
and technology. He was conferred the
title at the recent 2019 National Science
and Technology week on 17 July at World
Trace Center in Pasay City.
According to DoST Sec. Fortunato
de la Peña, Tiu was chosen from a
number of personalities they considered
to be ambassador of the agency. He added
that he liked what that they chose the
basketball star and I-Bilib host.
Chris said at the press conference
after he was named ambassador, “I
hope that I can help you out in your
advocacies in promoting science and
technology especially among the youth.
My role is to help encourage the youth
to love science or to pursue a career in
science, or at least consider it.”
Chris Tiu remains to be the host of the
long-running Sunday morning infotainment
show I-Bilib on GMA-7.
Phil got snitched
Phil Younghusband, the Fil-Brit
football player who became synonymous
with the football team Azkals along
with his brother James, is now a
married man after he and long-time
girlfriend Margaret Hall tied the knot in
Canterbury, United Kingdom on 21 July.
The news was posted on Instagram
with photos by Nice Print.
Hall was in an elegant white gown, with
a deep neckline and sheer long sleeves,
while Younghusband was in a black coat
over a beige vest, simple white
button-down shirt and a cream-toned tie.
They were wed in what appears to
be a three-story mansion in the UK.
countryside, as seen in Nice Print
Photo’s post on Instagram Stories.
The football player and model had
been engaged since 29 December 2017
and together as a couple since 2015.
So, who’s crying now? I guess a lot
of Filipino girls who once swooned over
this good-looking kicker in the national
football team.

ZAP AWAY
DURING
RAINY DAYS
TANKERS
FETE
IKEE
BOMBERS
BLAST ALTAS
‘BAD BOY’
STRIKES
ANEW
C29
D34
D35
D36
Julius Manicad, Editor
Wednesday, 24 July 2019
Daily Tribune
SPORTS
D33
RONALDO RUNS FREE
Sigh of relief
Therefore, no charges will be forthcoming
LOS ANGELES — Juventus star Cristiano Ronaldo will not face
any charges over an alleged rape in Las Vegas a decade ago after
United States prosecutors said Monday they did not have enough
evidence to proceed.
A district attorney in the state of Nevada said it would not
prosecute the Portuguese soccer player because it “cannot be
proven beyond a reasonable doubt” that a sexual assault occurred.
Kathryn Mayorga, a former model, alleged that Ronaldo raped
her in a Las Vegas hotel in 2009.
The former Manchester United and Real Madrid forward
reached a financial settlement with her a year after the incident.
He has always denied allegations of sexual assault, insisting
their encounter was consensual.
The Clark County District Attorney’s Office said it had received
a report from Mayorga on 13 June 2009, reporting that she had
been the victim of a sexual assault.
Police could not conduct “any meaningful investigation” at the
time because she declined to say who assaulted her or where it
occurred, the office said in a statement.
As a result, detectives were “unable to search for and impound
vital forensic evidence,” and video showing Ronaldo and Mayorga
together was lost, it added.
Mayorga contacted police in August of last year to ask that the
case be reopened, at which point she named
Ronaldo as the alleged assailant.
The case was reopened “in spite of the
passage of over nine year,” prosecutors said.
“Based upon a review of the information
presented at this time, the allegations of sexual
assault against Cristiano Ronaldo cannot be proven
beyond a reasonable doubt,” prosecutors said.
“Therefore, no charges will be forthcoming.”
Mayorga’s attorney stated that she agreed to an
out-of-court settlement to keep her name from going
public, but was later inspired to speak out by the #MeToo
movement against sexual harassment.
Mayorga also said her emotional trauma at the time
did not allow her to participate in the mediation process
for the financial settlement.
Neither Ronaldo’s nor Mayorga’s lawyers responded to AFP’s
request for comment on the decision to end the investigation.
The player has yet to respond on social media.
In October last year, Ronaldo said he was “an exemplary
person.”
“I know who I am and what I did. The truth will come out,”
he told France Football magazine.
“And the people who criticize me and who expose my life today,
who make a song and dance about it, these people will see.”
The allegations have taken a toll on his life, and in particular
on his family, he said.
AFP
RONALDO resumes his football career after his rape
case has been dropped.
AFP
MAJOR
LEAGUE
BASEBALL
National League
East Division
W L Pct GB
Atlanta 60 41 .594 —
Washington 52 46 .531 6½
Philadelphia 52 48 .520 7½
New York 45 54 .455 14
Miami 36 62 .367 22½
Central Division
Chicago 54 46 .540 —
St. Louis 52 47 .525 1½
Milwaukee 53 49 .520 2
Pittsburgh 46 53 .465 7½
Cincinnati 45 53 .459 8
West Division
Los Angeles 67 35 .657 —
Arizona 51 50 .505 15½
San Francisco 51 50 .505 15½
Colorado 47 52 .475 18½
San Diego 47 52 .475 18½
Games Monday
(Tuesday in Manila)
St. Louis 6, Pittsburgh 5
Cincinnati 6, Milwaukee 5
Arizona 6, Baltimore 3
San Francisco 5, Chicago Cubs 4
American League
East Division
W L Pct GB
New York 64 35 .646 —
Tampa Bay 57 46 .553 9
Boston 55 46 .545 10
Toronto 38 64 .373 27½
Baltimore 31 68 .313 33
Central Division
Minnesota 61 38 .616 —
Cleveland 58 41 .586 3
Chicago 45 52 .464 15
Kansas City 37 64 .366 25
Detroit 30 65 .316 29
West Division
Houston 65 37 .637 —
Oakland 57 44 .564 7½
Los Angeles 52 49 .515 12½
Texas 50 49 .505 13½
Seattle 40 62 .392 25
Duncan joins
Popovich’s staff
It is only fitting, that after I
served loyally for 19 years as
Tim Duncan’s assistant, that
he returns the favor
Tim Duncan is back with the San
Antonio Spurs, this time as an assistant
coach under Gregg Popovich.
Duncan, the Spurs’ all-time leader in
points, rebounds and blocked shots — and the
only player to be on all five of San Antonio’s
NBA championship teams — officially
returned to the franchise Monday.
The Spurs, per their usual style, made
the announcement in a very understated
way, not even putting Duncan’s name in
the headline of the news release.
“It is only fitting, that after I served
loyally for 19 years as Tim Duncan’s
assistant, that he returns the favor,”
Popovich said in the release.
Duncan didn’t even get top billing in
the announcement. That went to Will
Hardy, who will be taking on an expanded
role as one of the Spurs’ assistant
coaches. Hardy has been with the Spurs
since 2010, working his way up from the
video room at first.
“Will Hardy is a talented, young
basketball mind who has earned a great
deal of respect from everyone in the
organization thanks to his knowledge,
spirit and personality,” Popovich said.
The entirety of the Spurs’ description
of Duncan in the release was this:
“Duncan, a 1997 Wake Forest graduate,
played 19 seasons with the Spurs before
retiring in the summer of 2016.” No
mention of his rings, his 15 All-Star
nods, his three NBA Finals Most
Valuable Player awards, his two NBA
MVP awards or anything else.
Duncan retired from playing three
years ago, but has worked at times with
San Antonio’s post players. He has long
been one of Popovich’s favorites, even
going back to 1997 in the days leading
up to San Antonio taking Duncan with
the No. 1 overall pick in that year’s draft.
Duncan, a 1997 Wake Forest
graduate, played 19 seasons
with the Spurs before retiring
in the summer of 2016.
Popovich went to the Virgin Islands
before that draft to get to know
Duncan, and was immediately sold.
“We lived on the beach for a few
days and we swam and we talked,”
Popovich said at Duncan’s retirement
ceremony.
“From that moment I knew he was a
special individual because he basically
talked about everything but basketball.
And we’ve been the recipients of that
intelligence and that outlook on life
since he’s walked in here.” AFP
TIM Duncan
(right) and
Gregg Popovic
team up anew
in San Antonio.
AFP
Games Monday
(Tuesday in Manila)
Boston 9, Tampa Bay 4
Cleveland 7, Toronto 3
Chicago White Sox 9, Florida 1
Houston 11, Oakland 1
Minnesota 8, N.Y. Yankees 6

D34 SPORTS
Wednesday, 24 July 2019
Daily Tribune
PEATY, DRESSEL SHINE
Sharks
attack
A little bit disappointed, but that will fuel me for
next year
GWANGJU, South Korea — Britain’s Adam Peaty completed a world
treble in the men’s 100-meter breaststroke while American Caeleb Dressel
continued to feed his obsession for gold by romping to the 50-meter
freestyle title Monday.
Peaty completed what was deemed a formality after smashing his own
breaststroke world record, clocking 57.14 seconds to win gold, although
his forlorn expression on seeing his time told its own story.
“A little bit disappointed, but that will fuel me for next year,” said the
Briton, who set a new world mark of 56.88 seconds over the weekend to
become the first swimmer to break 57 seconds.
“I know how bad I want to go near 56, even faster.”
The 24-year-old puffed out his cheeks and shook his head despite
becoming the first male swimmer to capture three 100-meter breaststroke
world titles.
Unbeaten in five years over the distance in major competitions, Peaty
turned inside world record pace but ran out of steam. Behind him, fellow
Briton James Wilby took silver in 58.46 seconds and China’s Yan Zibei
bronze in 58.63 seconds.
“At the Olympics next year I’ve got to be more patient instead of
going crazy in the semifinals,” Peaty said.
“I need to hold back the guns and let go in the final.”
Dressel, one of the few swimmers with more body ink than Peaty, swept
to seven gold medals at the 2017 World Championships in Budapest — 10
years after American great Michael Phelps became the first to do it.
The 22-year-old retained his 50-meter freestyle crown in a championship
record of 22.35 seconds with Russian Oleg Kostin second (22.70 seconds)
and Brazil’s Nicholas Santos third (22.79 seconds).
It gave him a second gold medal of the week after leading off the
American 4x100-meter freestyle victory on Day 1.
“It was kind of a weird day — I didn’t have anything this morning so
I got to sleep in,” said Dressel, who could potentially top his haul from
2017 this week.
“I’m in a better place than two years ago. If I try to be fast then I’m no
good, so it’s better just to shut everything off and let instinct take over.”
Meanwhile, Canadian teen Margaret MacNeil stunned Sweden’s Sarah
Sjostrom in the women’s 100-meter butterfly.
Sjostrom was looking to become the first female swimmer to win
five gold medals in a single individual event, and the Olympic champion
turned first — and five hundredths inside her own world record.
But MacNeil came roaring back over the last 25-meter to claim her
first world title, touching in 55.83 seconds with Sjostrom second in 56.22
and Australia’s Emma McKeon third.
AFP
Tankers fete Ikee
Never give up, Rikako Ikee
GWANJU, South Korea — Swedish swimmer Sarah
Sjostrom led a moving tribute to Rikako Ikee at the
world championships, calling the Japanese star a
“real fighter” in the face of her leukemia diagnosis.
Sjostrom stood with Margaret MacNeil and Emma
McKeon on the medal podium with a message of
support for the Japanese swim queen, a major rival
of all three, scrawled on their palms.
“Never give up, Rikako Ikee,” read the tribute,
alongside two love hearts, as the three 100-meter
butterfly medalists held their hands out to the camera.
“I hope really that she (Ikee) will battle this
cancer. She is a real fighter and the real winner,”
Sjostrom said.
The 25-year-old Swede had been looking to
become the first female swimmer to win five
gold medals in a single individual event but was
forced to settle for silver after a stunning race
by MacNeil.
But Ikee’s illness puts her disappointment into
perspective, she said.
“What is swimming compared to what she is going
through? I told myself before my race that it doesn’t
matter where I come because her battle is 50 times
more than anyone else in this final,” she added.
“I really hope she will recover and come back and
Beal to stay in Washington
The entire Wizards organization have
been nothing but spectacular to us
WASHINGTON — The Washington Wizards will
offer All-Star guard Bradley Beal a three-year deal
worth $111 million, local media reported Monday.
Beal’s agent Mark Bartelstein said he and Beal
have remained in contact with the team’s newly
appointed general manager Tommy Sheppard, but
there is no rush to come to an agreement on the
upcoming offer.
“We’ll talk to the Wizards. We’ve been talking
to the Wizards. Those are things we have to figure
out in terms of what’s the right thing for everyone,”
Bartelstein said.
“We’re not locked in on specific dates in terms of
all that. There’s nothing that needs to be decided at
this moment. There’s a lot for Bradley to consider.
The entire Wizards organization has been nothing
but spectacular to us.”
Beal had a career-best season in 2018-19 and
still has two more years in his current contract.
The extension contract would start from the
2021-2022 season.
Beal averaged a career-best 25.6 points,
5.5 rebounds and 5.0 assists last season. In
four trips to the playoffs in his seven-year
NBA career, Beal has averaged 22.7 points
in 40 appearances.
Beal also decided to withdraw from
the United States squad that will be
playing in the FIBA World Cup in
September as he anticipates the birth
of his second child in August.
“It was a very difficult decision
for him because he loves Team USA,
loves being a part of it. He’s been a
part of Team USA since high school,”
Bartelstein said.
“But I think being a father and
being there for his family is really,
really important.” Xinhua
Italian makes ‘lonely
swim’
It’s just unbelievable this kind of thing
can happen at the world championships
GWANGJU, South Korea — An Italian swimmer
was forced to make three attempts to complete a
world championship backstroke heat after a string of
malfunctions with the starting equipment.
Simone Sabbioni, a national record-holder, slipped at
the start when his wedge, the angled block swimmers use
ADAM Peaty smashes the world record in the men’s 100-meter breaststroke.
to push off, gave way, causing him to come
to an abrupt halt as his rivals splashed down
the pool.
Sabbioni was told he could race again
— this time alone — but the device failed
for a second time, submerging him again.
“It’s just unbelievable this kind
of thing can happen at the world
championships,” he told AFP.
Sabbioni, who eventually got away
cleanly at the third
attempt, squeezed into
one of the last qualifying
spots with a time of 53.85
seconds, spurred on by a
roaring crowd.
“I’m happy because I got
through to the semifinals but
it really wasn’t easy in these
kind of conditions,” he said.
Sabbioni wasn’t the only
athlete to encounter problems at
the starting line.
Minutes earlier Dylan Carter of
Trinidad and Tobago also suffered
issues with his block after his
coach’s protest was granted the same
opportunity for a second lonely swim.
“The first time the wedge slipped
out the notch so it was a mechanical
fault,” he said.
AFP
BRADLEY Beal wants to stay with
the Washington Wizards. AFP
do what she loves. She loved swimming
so much and I really think she will
come back and fight this cancer.”
MacNeil, who at 19 is the same age
as Ikee, said she and McKeon been easily
persuaded by Sjostrom’s idea to reach
out to the Japanese star.
“She (Ikee) couldn’t be here with us
today so we’re hoping that this will show
we’re supporting her and we’re here if she
needs anything,” she said.
Ikee, the poster girl for the 2020 Tokyo
Olympics, was diagnosed with the cancer earlier
this year and is receiving treatment in Tokyo.
The teenager shot to fame last year at the Asian
Games when she secured a record six gold medals.
But she tweeted in February that she
had been diagnosed with leukemia after
experiencing problems during a training camp
in Australia.
She said that battling the disease has
proved “thousands of times harder” than
she expected.
AFP
RIKAKO Ikee has been diagnosed
with leukemia at the height of her
swimming career.
AFP
Lakers tap
Giannis’ bro
Kostas Antetokounmpo signed to a
two-way contract with the Lakers
LOS ANGELES — The Los Angeles Lakers confirmed
Monday they have gained the rights to Kostas
Antetokounmpo, younger brother of NBA Most Valuable
Player (MVP) Giannis of the Milwaukee Bucks.
Kostas Antetokounmpo signed to a two-way contract
with the Lakers. He appeared in two games for the Dallas
Mavericks last season and played 40 games for the Texas
Legends in the NBA’s Developmental G-League.
Selected by the Philadelphia 76ers with the 60th overall
pick in the 2018 Draft, Antetokounmpo was acquired by the
Mavericks in a draft-night trade.
Kostas is one of three Antetokounmpo brothers to play in the NBA.
The eldest, 27-year-old Thanasis played in Greece, the G-League and
signed with the Bucks this off-season.
That puts him on the team where Giannis has emerged as a
superstar, leading Milwaukee to the best record in the NBA last season.
The Bucks fell to the eventual NBA champion Toronto Raptors in
the Eastern Conference finals.
When Giannis collected his MVP award, he thanked his brothers
and his parents — Nigerian immigrants to Greece — in his speech.
Giannis, Thanasis and Kostas have all been named in Greece’s
squad for the basketball World Cup that tips off in China on 31 August.
There’s one more Antetokounmpo brother in the NBA pipeline
as teenager Alex hopes to make it someday.
AFP
I love seeing the sport
grow in China and I’m
proud to be part of
that history
RHODE ISLAND — Chinese
retired tennis great Li Na, twotime
Grand Slam champion and
former world No. 2, cemented her
reputation as a trailblazer in the
sport by becoming the first Asian to be
enshrined in the International Tennis
Hall of Fame.
Li said it is a great mark for her
professional career, inspiring her to
continue making contributions to the
game, helping the youth in particular.
As a prolific history-maker, Li was
the first Asian tennis player to compete
Li enters Hall
AFP
in a Grand Slam singles final (Australian Open
2011), claiming a Grand Slam singles title
(French Open 2011), winning two Grand Slam
singles (French Open 2011 and Australian Open
2014), and reaching No. 2 in the WTA ranking
(February 2014).
At her first peak in the 2011 French Open,
Li eliminated four top-10 opponents along her
way to her crown.
She also collected seven WTA tour singles
titles, finished runner-up in Australian
Open twice and entered quarterfinals at
Wimbledon three times and the semifinals
at the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games and
2013 US Open.
Li retired in 2014 at the age of 32 due to
recurring knee injuries, eight months after
winning that year’s Australian Open and rising
to her career-high No. 2 in the WTA ranking.
Recalling her sporting life starting from the
age of 8, Li, expressed her heartfelt thanks to
all the people who helped her. Xinhua

Wednesday, 24 July 2019
Daily Tribune
PACQUIAO DECLINES SPENCE, PORTER
SPORTS
D35
High risk, low reward
At this point, Manny Pacquiao has the luxury of picking
his next opponent.
And definitely, the names of Errol Spence and Shawn
Porter are not on his list.
Pacquiao’s chief trainer Buboy Fernandez and
international matchmaker Sean Gibbons said Spence
and Porter are both high risk, low reward opponents.
Gibbons, for one, said Spence has yet to do anything to
warrant a megabuck fight with the Filipino ring supremo,
who is just two days removed from his impressive victory
over Keith Thurman in their World Boxing Association
welterweight title fight at the MGM Grand Garden Arena
in Las Vegas.
Previous reports have it that Pacquiao will be a
curious observer when Spence and Porter clash in a
unification title bout in September at the Staples Center
in Los Angeles.
But Pacquiao’s camp quickly dismissed the talks,
saying that the fighting senator is not looking at their
directions.
“What has Errol Spence done?” said Gibbons, who is
now managing Pacquiao’s boxing affairs.
“We are not planning to fight Shawn Porter or Errol
Spence.”
Meanwhile, Pacquiao’s boyhood pal in Fernandez said
there’s no point risking his health with the 29-year-old
Spence, whose stle, movement and work ethic would be
a major problem for the 40-year-old champion.
After all, Pacquiao has nothing to gain winning over
Spence.
“If we beat Spence, what will we gain? And what will
happen if he ends up beating Manny?” Fernandez said.
Fernandez and Gibbons, instead, are looking at either
former champions Danny Garcia and Mikey Garcia, who
previously lost to Thurman and Spence, respectively.
Like Thurman, Danny Garcia and Mikey Garcia — both
31 years old — are come-forward fighters who also love to
trade punches, a style tailor-made for Pacquiao.
“He is close to 41. What we need to do is protect him and
his career,” Fernandez said.
Mayweather’s new role
SHANGHAI, China -- Retired superstar Floyd Mayweather
has been named “special advisor” to China’s
boxing team as they look to improve their medal count
at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, the Chinese Boxing Federation
said.
The federation said American legend Mayweather had
pledged to “go all-out to use his influence and resources
to support the Chinese boxing project in achieving
excellent results at the Tokyo Olympics.”
It made the announcement in a post dated Sunday
on its official account on Chinese social media platform
WeChat.
Mayweather made no mention of the appointment on
his social media accounts, and the Chinese announcement
gave no further details of his role.
Boxing legend Mayweather had a perfect 50-0 record
in the ring with 27 knockouts. He won world titles in
five different weight divisions and was considered the
best pound-for-pound boxer in the sport.
The sport was once banned in China and it took until
Athens Olympics in 2004 for Zou Shiming to win the
country’s first Olympic medal, a light flyweight bronze.
Zou went on to claim gold at the next two games
and there have been further successes since, especially
after the introduction of women’s boxing in the London
Olympics in 2012.
AFP
Agem Miranda and Jose Rizal University breeze past University of Perpetual Help Dalta System in Season 95 of the NCAA
men’s basketball tournament.
DAVID JOHN CUBANGBANG
Uy seeks strong finish
Uy has had a number of cracks
at a LPGT diadem the last few
tournaments but couldn’t seem to
pull it off in the end
Daniella Uy hopes to finally put up a strong finish
and end a series of last-round meltdowns in pursuit
of a maiden Ladies Philippine Golf Tour crown as the
ICTSI Camp John Hay Ladies Championship unwraps
today in Baguio City.
Uy has had a number of cracks at a LPGT diadem
the last few tournaments but couldn’t seem to pull
it off in the end, winding up second to Pauline del
Rosario at Royal Northwoods last April and finishing
third behind Chihiro Ikeda and del Rosario at
Midlands last May.
The former Junior World titlist also emerged as the
best-placed local in last week’s ICTSI Pradera Verde
Classic topped by Taiwanese amateur Yu-Chiang Hou
via playoff over Thai Wanchana Poruangrong, ending
up joint third with Japanese Mayuna Furukawa.
She actually gained a share of the lead with nine
holes left in the storm-hit event, but reeled back
with a bogey-riddled start at the back although she
recovered with two birdies in the last three to salvage
a share of third.
But those failed bids should toughen up the former
Gonzaga University and California State stalwart,
who is as eager as the rest of the compact field to
get going at the up-and-down par-69 John Hay layout,
which puts emphasis on precision and putting.
Uy, however, will have her hands full in the next three
days with Princess Superal also out to recall the form that
netted her a record triumph where she posted a record
17-under 190 as an amateur to beat Ikeda by eight in the
LPGT inaugurals in 2013.
Five Thai campaigners, meanwhile, opted to
extend their stay after their Pradera stint with
Supakchaya Pattaranakrueang spearheading their
charge in the P1 million event put up by ICTSI.
SELF-DRIVING vehicles will roam the streets of Clark New City during the staging of the 30th Southeast Asian Games.
MANNY Pacquiao is not keen on having either Errol Spence or Shawn Porter as his next opponent. AFP
Bombers blast Altas
I’m not really after the result of
the game. What I’m after for are
the gameplays
By John Eric Mendoza
Jose Rizal University (JRU) booked its
second consecutive victory following a 71-66
thrashing of University of Perpetual Help
System Dalta in Season 95 of the National
Collegiate Athletic Association men’s
basketball tournament Tuesday at the Filoil
Flying V Centre in San Juan.
John Amores and Ry Dela Rosa carried
the fight for the Heavy Bombers, who started
slow, but is now roaring to life after posting
back-to-back victories.
Meanwhile, Lyceum of the Philippines
University dealt San Sebastian College its
first loss, 80-69, in the second game.
Former Stags Renzo Navarro and Jayson
David shone as the Pirates uncorked a huge
fourth-quarter explosion to improve to 3-1
win-loss slate.
Navarro and David connived for 21 points
to back the prolific Marcelino twins in
Jayvee and Jaycee, who finished with 12 and
11 markers, respectively.
The city will have better accessibility
with streets that are biker
and pedestrian-friendly
Driverless vehicles are set to cruise
around the New Clark City during the 30th
Southeast Asian Games from 30 November
to 11 December.
The Bases Conversion and Development
Authority (BCDA) partnered with COAST
Automotive for the pilot testing of low
speed autonomous vehicles within the main
hub of the biennial meet at no cost to the
government.
Three units of electric Coast P-1 shuttles
that can carry at least 20 passengers are
expected to arrive around October, making
it easier for athletes, coaches, officials
and even spectators to roam around the
Athletes’ Village, Athletics Stadium and
Aquatic Center.
COAST Automotive will use high-
Amores tallied 15 points and four rebounds
while Dela Rosa chipped in 12 markers
highlighted by four triples on top of six
rebounds and five assists for JRU, which is
handled by rookie mentor Louie Gonzales.
“I’m not really after the result of the game.
What I’m after for are the gameplays,” said
Gonzales, whose wards dictated the tempo
after posting an 17-11 lead in the first period.
“We treated this game as a learning
experience. And because we have massive
respect for (Perpetual) coach Frankie
(Lim), we gave our best because we know
that we can’t play soft against them.”
Amores said they just stuck to the
gameplan and pinned their trust on the
system of Gonzales, who once handled the
coaching chores at De La Salle University
in the University Athletic Association of
the Philippines.
“It was hard adjusting at first, but
he just stuck with the system of coach
Louie,” said Amores, who also delivered
impressive numbers in their 80-77 win
over Arellano University last week.
Kim Aurin tallied 14 markers and
two assists while Edgar Cargos had 13
markers, five rebounds and three assists
for the Altas, who suffered their third
straight setback.
‘Self-driving’ vehicles in SEAG
definition, 3D mapping machines to track
down the shuttles’ route.
BCDA president and chief executive
officer Vince Dizon said the biennial meet
is a perfect venue to display this technology
that is billed as “the natural successor to
streetcars.”
“As the first smart and green city
in the Philippines, New Clark City will
adopt sustainable alternative modes of
transportation that may eventually reduce
people’s dependence on cars,” said Dizon.
“The city will have better accessibility
with streets that are biker and pedestrianfriendly.”
COAST Autonomous chairman David Hickey
extended his gratitude to BCDA for the
opportunity given to them.
“The SEA Games is the perfect event and
the New Clark City is the ideal location to
showcase the future of urban transportation,”
Hickey said.
BCDA and COAST Autonomous will formally
sign the memorandum of agreement in August.

D36 SPORTS
Wednesday, 24 July 2019
Daily Tribune
ABUEVA IN TROUBLE
‘Bad boy’ strikes anew
This news is not only breach to team policies and rules,
but also a stark contrast of how we wish to exude our
players, especially Calvin
By Joel Orellana
Beermen, Aces
shoot for semis
By Miguel La Torre
Calvin Abueva continues up to his billing as the “bad
boy” of Philippine Basketball Association (PBA).
As if the indefinite suspension handed by the league is
not enough for him to reflect on the future of his career, the
enigmatic Phoenix Pulse forward was once again involved in
another controversy when the Fuel Masters learned that Abueva
was caught playing in a “ligang-labas” in Montalban, Rizal without
permission from the team.
In a statement released to the media, Phoenix board representative Atty.
Raymond Zorilla said Abueva would be fined internally and a repeat would
mean handing out a severe sanction to the player.
“The Phoenix Pulse Fuel Masters are deeply disappointed upon learning
of Calvin Abueva’s participation in an unsanctioned ‘ligang-labas’ game in
Montalban, Rizal,” the statement said.
“The team has spoken to Calvin previously and agreed that the cager will
use this idle time to reflect on his character while working out on his own
physically and mentally to ready himself for his eventual return once his
suspension is lifted.”
An internal fine will be imposed on him for these actions. Any
further incidents will be dealt with more severity.
Abueva is currently serving an indefinite suspension by PBA commissioner Willie
Marcial for his involvement in two separate incidents during the Fuel Masters’ games
against Blackwater and TNT KaTropa.
Marcial, in his previous statements, said Abueva would only be reinstated if he
apologizes to the individuals whom he offended and proves to the league that he’s
a reformed man.
The former San Sebastian College standout already made a formal apology letter
to the PBA although Marcial has yet to act on it.
But a video went viral showing Abueva playing in a “ligang-labas” or tournament
that is not sanctioned by the PBA or his mother team that did not sit well with the
Fuel Masters management.
“This news is not only breach to team policies and rules, but also a stark
contrast of how we wish to exude our players, especially Calvin,” said Zorilla.
“An internal fine will be imposed on him for these actions. Any further
incidents will be dealt with more severity.”
Marcial said no additional sanction will be given to Abueva because
he’s already suspended infinitely by the league and will let Phoenix to
handle the issue internally.
The 31-year old forward last played on 2 June against TNT KaTropa in
a game where he was ejected after giving KaTropa import Terrence Jones
a dangerous clothesline. Prior to game, he was caught in the video making
obscene gestures toward the girlfriend of Blackwater Bobby Ray Parks.
He was fined a total of P70,000 in both incidents and has not joined
the team since then. Phoenix is already out of the running of the ongoing
Commissioner’s Cup.
CALVIN Abueva is in hot water after being caught playing in
an unsanctioned league.
San Miguel and Alaska gun for semifinal
berths when they tackle separate
foes in the quarterfinals of the
Philippine Basketball Association
Commissioner’s Cup today at the
Smart Araneta Coliseum.
The Beermen face NorthPort
at 4:30 p.m. while the Aces try to
complete a massive upset of TNT in their
7:00 p.m. encounter.
After surviving a tough Meralco squad in the playoffs for the eighth
spot, Alaska marched to the quarterfinals against topseed TNT beaming
with confidence.
The Aces turned Game 1 into a virtual workout as they erected a
33-point lead en route to a 108-72 conquest that pushed the KaTropa into
the brink of a massive collapse.
But Alaska coach Alex Compton said the job is not yet done.
“You’re not going to hear a lot of celebrating from our side,” said
Compton, wary that TNT import Terrence Jones might put on a show
and put the entire team on his shoulder.
“What we have now is a chance to play a hungry, great, well-coached,
disciplined and tough team on Wednesday. They are coming off a bad
loss so we expect them to come out firing.”
Also tipped to go for the kill are the Beermen.
The Beermen stole the thunder in Game 1 after withstanding a late
16-0 blast to run away with a 98-84 win and force a knockout match.
The victor will face the survivor between Blackwater and Rain or
Shine in a best-of-three semifinal affair.
Gilas to go full blast
Next week, we’ll start practicing
everyday from Monday to Friday
at 6 to 8 p.m.
Gilas Pilipinas is set to ramp up its
preparation starting next week, a month
before flying to China to see action in the
FIBA Basketball World Cup.
Head coach Yeng Guiao said they would start
training from Monday to Friday next week to
intensify their preparation for the world’s most
prestigious basketball tournament.
So far, the Nationals are meeting only
twice a week, making it quite difficult
for them to grasp the system and develop
chemistry needed against countries like
Angola, Serbia and Italy.
SEAG unity meet set
If we want to win as one, we should embrace a united
front
A unity meeting among sports officials and
athletes is scheduled today in Malacanang,
hoping to settle everything with regards to the
country’s hosting of the 30th Southeast Asian
Games.
No less than Philippine Sports Commission
(PSC) chairman William “Butch”
Ramirez, the chief of mission to
the biennial meet, is expected to
spearhead the meeting also to be
attended by other sports leaders
of different national sports
associations (NSAs).
“If we want to win as one,
we should embrace a united
front,” said Ramirez in a
previous statement.
Officials from the
Philippine Olympic Committee
(POC) and the Philippine SEA Games Organizing Committee (Phisgoc) are
also expected to grace the event also made possible by the efforts of executive
secretary Salvador Medialdea and Sen. Christopher Lawrence “Bong” Go.
Each NSA is asked to bring one athletes for the meeting.
The country’s preparation for the SEA Games took a major hit after some
members of the POC board questioned the legality of Phisgoc Foundation to
run the biennial meet as it was not approved by the board.
It led to the resignation of POC president Ricky Vargas, who was one of
the incorporators of the Foundation.
Ramirez, in a separate statement, dismissed the issue of corruption
hounding Phisgoc Foundation and guaranteed that all the decisions and
transactions will be done with utmost transparency.
JO
In their previous training late Monday,
only nine players showed up, no thanks to the
ongoing playoffs of the Philippine Basketball
Association (PBA) Commissioner’s Cup.
New recruit CJ Perez was in attendance
as well as Kiefer Ravena, Matthew Wright,
Mark Barroca, Paul Lee, Gabe Norwood, Beau
Belga, Poy Erram and naturalized player
Andray Blatche.
Five-time PBA Most Valuable Player June
Mar Fajardo also showed up but was in street
clothes.
“Next week, we’ll start practicing
everyday from Monday to Friday at 6
to 8 p.m.,” said Guiao, adding that the
sluggish attendance was due to the
ongoing PBA playoffs were teams like
TNT, Ginebra, Magnolia, Alaska, Rain
or Shine, San Miguel, NorthPort and
PHILIPPINE Sports Commission chairman
William “Butch Ramirez will preside a unity
meeting among top stakeholders of the 30th
Southeast Asian Games.
SPORTS
By Nap Gutierrez
Blackwater are clashing for the crown.
“They cannot focus 100 percent on what
they are doing because they’re already in
the crucial stretch of the playoffs.
“Of course, we don’t wish them to lose.
But if they are already eliminated, they can
now put their full focus here.”
“For example, we can’t practice our
defense if we don’t have at least 10 players.
By next week, only four teams will remain
so we can start practicing our defense.”
Still, Guiao understands where his
players are coming from.
“I can’t blame them. I know they have
responsibilities with their respective
mother clubs. It’s really hard to divide
their attention, especially at this very
crucial stage so we’ll just have to manage
whatever opportunities we have at this
point,” he said.
MLT
BUZZ
Fixer
A professional squad is ready to part ways with one of its
court generals.
“He is good, but we have to let him go,” a top team official said.
Pressed for answers, the big boss uttered only one word:
Fixing.
q q q
A playmaker told the management that he wants to be traded.
Team officials just rolled their eyes. They know that it’s hard
to move him because nobody inquires for his services.
The point guard wants to go to a San Miguel Corp. squad.
q q q
We want to commend Mozzy Ravena for working hard for the
Spikers’ Turf.
The tournament was a huge success.
Men’s volleyball heroes like Marck Espejo, Rex Intal and Ysay
Marasigan attracted huge crowd every game.
q q q
Fans said seeing Robert Jaworski play at 40 years old was
magical.
But when Manny Pacquiao captured another world title at
40, they are now saying that he’s amazingly ageless.
q q q
More than half of the members of this team may not return
next conference.
“We are undergoing a revamp,” a team official said.
Oh well.
GILAS Pilipinas head coach Yeng Guiao will intensify their trainings starting
next week.
DAVID JOHN CUBANGBANG
Senate hails Pacquiao
His victory is the victory of the whole nation
Sen. Christopher Lawrence “Bong” Go filed a resolution congratulating
and commending Sen. Manny Pacquiao for a job well done against Keith
Thurman in their World Boxing Association welterweight title fight over the
weekend at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas.
Go, the chairman of the Senate committee on sports, said Pacquiao’s
victory serves as an inspiration to Filipinos who are looking to shine despite
tremendous odds.
“Over the course of his long and decorated career, Sen. Manny
Pacquiao has managed to accomplish what no other boxer in history has
accomplished,” Go said in Senate Resolution No. 20 filed on Monday.
“His victory is the victory of the whole nation. His life story, hard work
and dedication to serve God and the people are inspirations to all Filipinos.”
Pacquiao, who is arguably the best Filipino athlete of this generation,
rose to fame after crushing some of the legendary names in the sport like
Oscar De La Hoya, Ricky Hatton, Erik Morales, Miguel Cotto and Marco
Antonio Barrera through sheer hard work, and determination.
Against Thurman, he came out with fire in his eyes as he knocked down
the erstwhile-undefeated American in the first round en route to a split
decision victory.
“He captured 12 world titles in eight separate weight divisions, marking
an unprecedented ascent up the scales,” Go said in his resolution.