P 15.00 • 20 PAGESwww.edgedavao.netVOL. 7 ISSUE 232 • TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 10, 2015

A MEMBER of the Davao City Police Of-fice (DCPO) tested

positive for drugs in a sur-prise drug test yesterday initiated by DCPO director Senior Superintendent Vi-cente D. Danao Jr.

In a text message, DCPO spokesperson Senior In-spector Milgrace C. Driz said one policeman tested positive but withheld the identity and his unit since a

confirmatory result is still to follow.

“Wait lang usa ta sa con-firmatory result sa drug test (Let us just wait confirma-tory result of the drug test),” Driz told Edge Davao.

A total of 473 police of-ficers and officials from the 20 units and departments of DCPO underwent the ran-dom drug testing.

Driz had earlier said ran-dom drug tests are done to

confirm reports that some police officers in the city are using drugs.

She said some police stations and units will be prioritized by Danao based on reports received from the police hotline (0925-8233276) and the Facebook page Isumbongkay Cddcpo.

Driz said one police sta-tion will not be subjected to the test.

Last February 3, Danao

conducted a random test on members of the Toril Police Station. All officers tested negative.

Danao said he conduct-ed the test in Toril after receiving reports from the hotline that some police of-ficers there are involved in drugs.

On January 27, members of the Calinan Police Station also underwent the test and all of them tested negative.

EDGE Serving a seamless society

DAVAO

COP TESTS POSITIVEFOR DRUGS

Indulge A1

INSIDE EDGEBy ARMANDO B. FENEQUITO JR.

abf@edgedavao.net

TEST. Davao City Police Office (DCPO) director Senior Superintendent Vicente D. Danao Jr. leads his own men in undergoing a surprise drug test yesterday at Camp Domingo Leonor. One police officer tested positive for illegal drug use. Lean Daval Jr.

WHAT TO DO DURING THE KALILANGAN FESTIVAL

VOL. 7 ISSUE 232 • TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 10, 20152 EDGEDAVAO

THE BIG NEWS

FORMER North Cotoba-to Governor Emmanuel Piñol yesterday claimed

that members of rebel groups involved in the Mamasapano carnage are peddling the high caliber guns and arms of the fallen members of the Special Action Force (SAF) to local politicians, warlords, and drug lords in Mindanao.

Guesting in yesterday’s Kapehan sa Dabaw, Piñol, who is also known to be against the Moro Islamic Liberation

Front (MILF), said his police informant told him Sunday morning about the MILF’s and Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters (BIFF)’s peddling ac-tivity.

“Marami nang nabenta (They have sold a large num-ber) but we still don’t have the specifics,” he said.

Piñol said the firearms include at least two 90RRs, M-60 machineguns, Minimi 5.56 machineguns, sniper ri-fles, M4 rifles fitted with gre-

nade launchers, Bushmaster rifles also fitted with grenade launchers, night vision scopes, and sophisticated Harris radi-os.

The slain SAF members were also believed to be car-rying personal effects, includ-ing mobile phones that were allegedly used to harass slain SAFs wives.

Piñol recalled a meeting over the weekend with a poli-tician from Central Mindanao who was offered a high-pow-

ered gun.He said according to the

politician, he was approached and offered a 90RR “but it was too expensive” at P1.2 million.

Piñol said his informant, a police officer, said as early as Monday last week, a day after the massacre in Mamasapano, a barangay official in Midsayap, North Cotabato who is a sus-pected drug lord was offered some of the SAF armaments.

“I could not confirm whether or not he bought the

guns but the report that the guns are being offered to al-most every known politician, warlord, and drug lord in the area is confirmed,” Piñol quot-ed his informant as saying.

Piñol said night vision goo-gles from slain SAF members are now being used by BIFF and MILF members.

He challenged members of MILF to return the firearms to show their commitment to the on-going peace talks be-tween the rebel group and the

government of the Philippines (GPH).

“The best thing that MILF can do right now is start re-turning those firearms. That would be masakit (painful) somehow, that would be an act of goodwill on the part of MILF and that will be an indication that they are in control of the area,” he said.

Piñol said if the MILF can-not return the firearms, “no-body will believe they can con-trol the area.”

crc@edgedavao.net

By CHENEEN R. CAPON

RELIEVED Philippine National Action-Special Action Force

(PNP-SAF) chief Police Director Getulio Pascual Napeñas yesterday said the combined forces of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) and Bangsamo Islamic Freedom Fighters (BIFF) suffered at least 250 casualties during the encounter in Mamasapano, Maguindanao on January 25.

”And yes, madams and sirs, you heard it right. Not less than 250 casualties on the side of the combined forces of the MILF, BIFF and other private armed groups,” Napeñas told the Senate inquiry into the bloody Mamasapano incident attended by at least 13 senators led by Senate President Franklin Drilon.

Napeñas said he based his

THE Davao Oriental Po-lice Provincial Office (DOPPO) is monitoring

the activities of the Moro Is-lamic Liberation Front (MILF) in the province following the deadly January 25 incident in Mamasapano, Maguindanao that killed 44 members of the Special Action Force (SAF) as well as at least 18 members of the Bangsamoro Islamic Free-dom Fighters (BIFF).

In an interview, DOPPO provincial director Senior Su-perintendent Jose Carumba admitted to reporters the pres-ence of MILF in the province particularly in the town of Tar-ragona.

“There are reports about their presence but the MILF members in the province are not like those in Maguindan-ao,” Carumba said.

He said the DOPPO does

not consider the presence of MILF in the province as a secu-rity threat on the part of local police since the peace process is still on-going.

He also said the DOPPO is coordinating with the MILF commanders and vowed to help them monitor security threats in Davao Oriental.

“Sabi nila pag may mag-sampa na hindi taga-rito ire-report namin sa police at Army

(They said if there are other MILF members who are not from the province they will re-port it to the police and army),” he said.

Carumba said what he is concerned about is the pres-ence of the New People’s Army (NPA) since it very active in the province.

He said the NPA has three front committees in the Davao Oriental.

Manny claims MILF, BIFFselling Fallen 44’s firearms

By ARMANDO B. FENEQUITO JR.abf@edgedavao.net

DavOriental police monitoring MILF

ALL LINED UP. Police officers form a queue outside the Davao City Police Office (DCPO) during yesterday’s random drug test initiated by DCPO director Senior Superintendent Vicente D. Danao Jr. Lean Daval Jr.

SAF killed 250 MILF,BIFF men: Napeñas

FSAF, 14

VOL. 7 ISSUE 232 • TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 10, 2015 3NEWSEDGEDAVAO

THE House leadership on Monday admitted that they are having

difficulty in reviving the pro-posed Bangsamoro Basic Law (BBL) that is now seem-ingly placed in the “intensive care unit” (ICU) after con-gressional hearings were sus-pended indefinitely following the growing outrage over the Mamasapano incident.

Speaker Feliciano Bel-monte Jr. said with the huge erosion of support from ma-jority of lawmakers, he could no longer guarantee the pas-sage of the BBL.

“We are still trying (to pass), but it looks difficult. We hope (we can still approve it). Right now, all we can do is to wait. They suspended the

hearings because they are awaiting certain reports,” Bel-monte said in an interview.

On Sunday, Cagayan de Oro City Rep. Rufus Rodri-guez, the chairman of the 75-man ad hoc committee on the BBL, claimed there is no assurance if his panel will still convene to discuss the measure.

Rodriguez said his com-mittee is eyeing an “amended BBL” by addressing certain issues whose constitutionali-ty could be questioned before the Supreme Court (SC).

“We are still very optimis-tic that an amended bill that will assure and safeguard the rights of all stakeholders will be in place so that (Mamasa-pano) will not happen again

and that it can’t be abused by future Bangsamoro govern-ment. I am confident that we will have a law in the com-ing months,” Rodriguez told House reporters.

He said the indefinite suspension is needed to cor-rect some flaws in the peace process, but he stressed that the BBL passage must be re-alized.

“I think everyone is still for lasting peace through law that will give their autonomy and fiscal autonomy through the Bangsamoro. We can’t go back to war because it is even worse than if you don’t have the BBL. So that is why we are going through this (indefinite suspension of BBL hearings),” said Rodriguez. (PNA)

THE Sangguniang Ka-bataan (SK) election will be held on April 25

if President Benigno Aquino does not sign House Bill 5006 which moves it to October 2016 simultaneous with the barangay polls.

Speaking in yesterday’s Kapehan sa Dabaw at the SM City Annex, Commission on Elections (Comelec) 11 assis-tant regional director Marlon Cosquejo said the poll body still has not received an up-date from Malacañang on whether or not the President will sign the bill.

“However, both the Sen-ate and the House of Repre-sentatives are positive that the President will sign it,” he added.

The SK election was sup-posed to be held on February 21.

Cosquejo said if the Presi-dent does not sign the bill, the SK Election will push through and the gun ban will be en-forced on March 26 or 30 days before the election and end on

May 10 or 10 days after.Based on the new and re-

vised Calendar of Activities of Comelec, the Filing of Certifi-cates of Candidacy will be on April 11, 13, and 14.

The campaign period will be from April 15 to April 23.

On election day on April 25, casting of votes will be from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m., while counting and canvassing of winning candidates will start right after the casting of votes.

The fling of Statements of Contributions and Expendi-tures (SOCE) will be on April 26.

Meanwhile, Cosquejo said the postponement of the elec-tion will be equivalent to add-ed work to the regional office because it has to trim down its lists of SK registered voters.

“Voters who will turn 18 on and after February 21 will be not allowed to vote any-more,” he said.

To date, there are a total of 19,772 SK voters in Davao City and 86,468 in the whole

Comelec waiting for Aquinoto sign SK poll postponement

crc@edgedavao.net

By CHENEEN R. CAPON

NEW HIRES. Traffic Management Center (TMC) chief Rhodelio Poliquit talks to reporters of his plan to hire 100 new traffic enforcers for the proposed two satellite offices in Toril and Panacan. Poliquit graced yesterday’s KapehansaDabaw at the Annex of SM City Davao. Lean Daval Jr.

BBL hard to revive: Speaker

THE Department of Tourism (DOT) in Re-gion 12 has adopted

a new brand name for the region in a bid to enhance its continuing tourism pro-motion and marketing initia-tives.

Nelly Nita Dillera, DOT Region 12 director, formally launched over the weekend the tagline “#HelloParadise” as the official brand name and centerpiece of the re-

gion’s tourism campaigns for this year.

The agency also adopted the “SOX” moniker for Region 12 or Soccsksargen to make it more catchy and easy to remember.

Dillera said the new tour-ism identity was inspired by the agency’s “12th Paradise” campaign strategy and brand name that was launched in 2013.

“We’re not trashing the

12th Paradise brand name but we’re giving it a new face through #Hello Paradise,” she said.

The official said they ad-opted the new brand name to give more “personality” to the region’s world-class and “paradise-like” tourist attrac-tions and destinations.

She said it best describes what Region 12 can offer to tourists with its rich natural

Region 12: #HelloParadise

FCOMELEC, 14

FREGION 12, 14

VOL. 7 ISSUE 232 • TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 10, 20154 NEWS

THE Davao City Health Office (CHO) has recom-mended the closure of

the commissary of one of the dormitories of the Davao Med-ical Education Management Services (DMEMS) for not complying with the structural improvement it had set.

CHO environment and sanitation division head Rob-ert L. Oconer told Edge Davao that his team found no im-provements in the kitchen of the dormitory at the Davao Medical School Foundation (DMSF) Drive during its third inspection conducted last week.

DMEMS is the company that operates three dormito-ries for Indian medical stu-dents of DMSF.

“Walang compliance ni isa (There was not even one com-pliance)” from the recommen-dations made on January 28,” he said.

Oconer said he is just waiting for CHO head Dr. Jo-sephine Villafuerte to sign the report before it is submitted to the office of Mayor Rodrigo R. Duterte.

In its report, the CHO team found in its third inspection that the drainage of the kitch-en was defective and wastewa-

ter was overflowing from the drainage pipe.

The team found an abun-dance of flies inside the kitch-en and dining area and noticed that there was no vermin abatement plan. The inspec-tors had recommended that DMEMS institute pest control measures especially against flies to ensure the safety of the food served to the students.

Earlier, Oconer said the DMEMS dormitory in Mar-garita Village, named Happy Home Dormitory, also had a structural violation, while the one along Jacinto Street had no violations.

Based on the CHO report dated January 14, the garbage bins at Happy Home Dormi-tory had no covers and plastic liners.

Some of the toilet doors had no door knobs and some are damaged. Also, the build-ing did not have proper fire exits.

The employees also had no health cards, the report said.

The University Park Suites and Residences in Jacinto Street, for its part, had a busi-ness permit but not a sanitary permit to operate. The garbage bins had no covers and plastic liners, the report said.

By ARMANDO B. FENEQUITO JR.abf@edgedavao.net

CHO recommends closureof DMEMS commissary

POSTPONEMENT. Commission of Election (Comelec) 11 assistant regional director Marlon Cosquejo tells reporters that the Sangguniang Kabataan election will be held on April 25 if President Aquino does not sign the bill

moving it to October 2016. Cosquejo was a guest of yesterday’s KapehansaD-abaw at the Annex of SM City Davao. Lean Daval Jr.

TRAFFIC Management Center (TMC) wants to hire 100 new traffic en-

forcers for the proposed two satellite offices in Toril and Panacan.

TMC Chief Rhodelio Poliquit said he has already requested a budget from the city government for the employment of the 100 new TMC personnel.

“Nag propose nako og P70 million nga budget para sa additional nga 100 ka mga personnel sa Toril ug Panacan. Kung ma-approve na maka hire na ta og bag-ong enforcers, pero kung dili wala pud (I proposed a budget of P70 million for the additional 100 personnel in Toril and Panacan. If it is approved then I can hire new enforcers, but if

not then I can’t),” he said.“Dili na nato malimod

nga ang Toril murag siyudad na pud mao kinahanglan na ipursue tong plano nga mag butang og satellite didto (We cannot deny the fact that Toril is like a city by itself, which is why we are pursuing the plan to put up a satellite officer there),” he added.

As of the moment, there are 374 traffic enforcers deployed all over Davao City under the TMC. Poliquit said this number cannot accommodate the entire city because the number of cares and the population are increasing.

Poliquit said the additional 100 enforcers will be under the City Traffic Management Office (CTMO).

TMC: 100 new enforcersneeded for Toril, PanacanBy FUNNY PEARL A. GAJUNERA

THE Jemaah Islami-yah (JI), in coordina-tion with Malaysian

bomb expert Zulkifli bin Hir alias “Marwan,” had planned to bomb the papal convoy during Pope Francis’ January visit in the country, accord-ing to relieved Special Action Force (SAF) chief Police Direc-tor Getulio Napeñas.

During Monday’s Senate inquiry into Mamasapano incident, Napeñas revealed that based on their information, Marwan had planned to construct a bomb to be detonated as the Papal convoy drove down T.M. Kalaw Street in Manila on January 18, 2015.

”We have information

that the Jemaah Islamiyah, in coordination with Marwan, had planned to construct a bomb to be detonated as the Papal convoy drove down TM Kalaw street,” Napeñas told the Senate panel.

Napeñas, however, said the Philippine National Police (PNP) did not confirm or deny the report.

”The fact, however, remains that there exists this information,” Napeñas said.

Marwan was killed in an operation dubbed “Oplan Exodus” also aimed at capturing his cohort, Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighter (BIFF) commander Basit Usman, who managed

A POLICE official from the Regional Police Of-fice (PRO) 11 raised

the question of whether or not Philippine National Police (PNP) Chief General Alan Puri-sima was allowed to tender his resignation since he was under suspension when he did so.

“He should not have resigned because he was still in the service. Only after a suspension is lifted can one resign. I don’t know what happened, but we are reading in the newspaper that he tendered his resignation and the President accepted it,” PRO 11 deputy director for operation Senior Superintendent Aaron Aquino said.

President Benigno Aquino confirmed on Friday night

that Purisima had submitted his resignation and that he had accepted it following the January 25 clash in Mamasapano, Maguindanao that left 44 members of the Special Action Force (SAF) dead.

Still, Senior Superintendent Aquino said Purisima’s resignation was “good” because it leaves the President free to choose the new Philippine National Police (PNP) director general.

“Sa tingin ko magandang disisyon yun para makapag move on na din ang PNP at makapili na rin ng bagong PNP Chief si President,” he said.

He also said Purisima was “a big loss” to the PNP because he had done a lot of good for the agency like the

JI, Marwan ‘plannedto bomb Papal convoy’

PNP official questionsPurisima’s resignation

FIRE OUT. Firefighters extinguish a fire which razed a commercial building along Guzman Street in Davao City yesterday morning. Lean Daval Jr.

FJI, 14

FPNP, 14

EDGEDAVAO

VOL. 7 ISSUE 232 • TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 10, 2015 5EDGEDAVAO

ECONOMY

FORMER North Cotabato governor and agriculture advocate Manny Piñol

said Barangay Malabog in Paquibato District, Davao City is not anymore suitable for oil palm plantation.

Piñol made the declara-tion based on the result of the study and analysis conducted by a group of soil investigation experts from the University of Southeastern Philippines (USeP).

“The result of the soil analysis revealed that the soil in Barangay Malabog is acid-ic and it would be costly if it will be converted to oil palm plantation because it will need more fertilizer intervention to make it suitable for planting,” Piñol said during the during the weekly edition of Kape-hansaDabaw at SM City Annex yesterday.

He said the soil in Malabog is “very poor” and pushing the proposed oil palm plantation will require a lot of infrastruc-tures.

Piñol added that the re-sult of the investigation is a welcome development for en-vironmental groups in Davao City, who are against the cul-tivation of lands for oil palm plantation.

These4USeP experts, he said, have started a study on soil types in Davao City to identify areas that are still suit-able for agriculture.

Piñol said group aims to identify soil types in different barangays in the city that can be planted with different crops like oil palm, cacao and bam-boo for identified areas with poor soil, among others.

The soil analysis has start-ed last month, according to him.

“The group will be using drones to identify the topogra-phy and elevation of different areas in the city,” Piñol said.

The former governor said he will be working with the Philippine Atmospheric, Geo-physical and Astronomical

Piñol: USeP study shows Malabognot suitable for oil palm plantation

crc@edgedavao.net

By CHENEEN R. CAPON

FPIÑOL, 14INSIGHTS. Former North Cotabato Governor Manny Piñol shares his insights on Mayor Rodrigo R. Dutere’s listening tour on federalism, the state of oil palm farming in Davao City, and the Mamasapano incident during yesterday’s Kapehan sa Dabaw at the Annex of SM City Davao. Lean Daval Jr.

VOL. 7 ISSUE 232 • TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 10, 2015EDGEDAVAOTHE ECONOMY6

THE National Econom-ic and Development Authority (NEDA) 11

is projecting a 20 percent in-crease in cacao production in the Davao Region this year.

NEDA 11 regional director Maria Lourdes Lim said that the increase will be due to ex-pansion of cacao plantations in the region.

For this year, different agencies like Mindanao Devel-opment Authority (MinDA), Department of Agriculture (DA) 11, Department of Envi-

ronment and Natural Resourc-es (DENR) and stakeholders from the private sector will collaborate to expand cacao plantations in the region with the implementation of their respective programs.

Lim said there is a massive effort for expansion of cacao plantations here because of the “rising domestic and inter-national demand for cacao”.

In 2014, Lim reported that cacao production in the region has increased by 11 percent.

“These increments could

be attributed to the recov-ery of these crops from pest infestation in some areas, as well as increased number of fruit-bearing hills, and expan-sion of area harvested from all provinces of the Region,” she said in a statement.

Production of cacao in the region, Lim said, has reached almost 50 percent of 2014 target, based on the midyear performance of cacao.

Cacao production needs to achieve 15,052 metric tons more to achieve its 2014 tar-

get, according to Lim.Meanwhile, Cacao Indus-

try Development Association in Mindanao (Cidami) exec-utive director Valente Turtur urged farmers in Davao region to plant more cacao to meet global demand of cacao beans.

He said the region has only about 20,000 hectares planted with cacao. The region contributes the largest chunk or 77 percent of the total cacao production in the country, fol-lowed by Northern Mindanao with 12 percent, Caraga Re-

gion with five percent, Zam-boanga Peninsula and Eastern Visayas with 3 percent each..

Turtur said the cacao pro-duction in West Africa is ex-pected to fall as an effect of the Ebola outbreak.

By 2020, the private sector and government are targeting to produce 100,000 metric tons (MT) of cacao beans to be a able to contribute signifi-cantly in the global chain.

However, the coun-try’s contribution to the global market is only

less than one percent. With the prevailing global shortage for cacao beans, Tur-tur said Mindanao has a huge potential to increase its cacao production and become a ma-jor cacao producer six years from now if both stakeholders will exert effort for the devel-opment of the cacao industry.

According to studies, at least two hundred million cacao trees should have been grown by 2020 to reach the target volume of 100,000 tons of cacao beans.

crc@edgedavao.net

By CHENEEN R. CAPONNeda 11 sees hike in cacao yield

A MULTI-STAKEHOLDER group from Mindanao and Indonesia is poised

to revive the air connectivity between Mindanao and North Sulawesi starting off with a market development strategy for the Davao-Manado route.

In a meeting recently convened by the Mindanao Development Authority (Min-DA), key players from tourism, trade, academe, and govern-ment line agencies agreed to take more proactive and ag-gressive steps in re-establish-ing the connectivity between the two BIMP-EAGA cities.

“We must package Min-danao based on the needs of our target market from North Sulawesi, while capitalizing on our high-value offerings such as our medical, educa-tion, and tourism sectors, said Captain Ben Solis, senior advi-sor of the Asia Foundation.

Solis added that this initial step will also help determine the most ideal trip schedules, which should be based on market demands from the tourism and business sectors.

“It is best to start offering regular and reliable flights to

passengers instead of the usu-al chartered flights, said Solis while adding “we can only achieve this if we have a ready market.”

Reviving air links between Philippines and its EAGA counterparts is currently one of the priorities of MinDA in order to maximize the travel tax exemption approved by the Philippine government for travellers from Mindanao and Palawan heading to any of the BIMP-EAGA destinations.

MinDA serves as the Phil-ippine National Secretariat for BIMP-EAGA and coordinates with DOT and the Manado Transport and Tourism Min-istry in developing the market for the Davao-Manado linkag-es.

“This is a new and more promising approach to estab-lishing the connectivity be-tween Mindanao and North Sulawesi. In the past, we have launched several flights for the same route and have al-ways been challenged in sus-taining the passenger traffic,” explained Jonathan Miral, chief of MinDA’s International

Davao-Manado air linkeyed for reopening

NEW BEAUTY PRODUCTS. Councilors Leo Avila (second from left), Mabel Sunga-Acosta (second from right), and Joanne Bonguyan-Quilos (rightmost) try out the different products of Dermax Laser Center during the establishment’s inauguration at the third level of Abreeza Corporate Center on Saturday. Lean Daval Jr.

PROPERTY giant Mega-world is aggressively expanding its township

portfolio this year. The company, along

with its subsidiaries Sun-trust Properties, Inc., Empire East Land Holdings, Inc. and Global-Estate Resorts, Inc., is set to launch five new town-ships: two in Luzon, two in the Visayas and one in Min-danao, with a total land area of around 400 hectares. This will bring Megaworld’s total township land area to 3,100 hectares by year-end.

“With our adequate land bank and landholdings, the Megaworld Group is growing its townships to even more cities all over the Philippines. This means, more exciting destinations, more homes to

be built, more office buildings to be offered and more jobs for Filipinos. Our vision is to build more world-class town-ships in every major city in the Philippines year after year,” said Dr. Andrew L. Tan, chair-man and CEO, Megaworld.

These new developments will bring the company’s township portfolio from 15 to 20 by the end of this year. Last year, the company also introduced five townships in its portfolio covering almost 1,000 hectares of land. These include Woodside City in Pa-sig City (12.3 hectares); South-woods City in the boundaries of Cavite and Laguna (561 hectares); Davao Park Dis-trict in Lanang, Davao City (11 hectares); Alabang West in Las Pinas City (62 hectares)

and SuntrustEcotown in Tan-za, Cavite (350 hectares).

Other townships include Eastwood City in Quezon City, (18.5 hectares), which holds the distinction of being the country’s first cyberpark; Newport City in Pasay City (25 hectares), which is the home of Resorts World Manila; McKinley Hill (50 hectares), McKinley West (34.5 hect-ares), Uptown Bonifacio (15.4 hectares) and Forbes Town Center (5 hectares), all in Fort Bonifacio; The Mactan New-town in Cebu (28.8 hectares); Iloilo Business Park in Man-durriao, Iloilo City (72 hect-ares); BoracayNewcoast in Boracay Island (150 hectares) and Twin Lakes in Tagaytay (1,300 hectares) of Global-Es-tate Resorts, Inc. (GERI), a

subsidiary of Megaworld. “We still have more lands

to develop in our portfolio. Our various groups are work-ing hard to come up with unique concepts and ideas on how we will create more sus-tainable communities across the country,” Tan said.

The Megaworld Group has around 4,000 hectares of land in its portfolio. Around 80 per-cent have been dedicated for LIVE-WORK-PLAY townships or mixed-use communities, the concept of property devel-opment that Megaworld pio-neered in the Philippines way back in the 1990s.

The townships combine the residential, office, com-mercial and retail compo-nents to form mixed-use com-munities.

Megaworld expands township portfolio

Phoenix Petroleum OKs dividend at P2.06 per sharePHOENIX Petroleum Phil-

ippines has approved its preferred shareholder

dividend at a rate of P 2.06 per share.

In a disclosure with the PHILIPPINE STOCK EX-CHANGE (PSE) Monday, Phoenix revealed the amount of cash dividend per share was at Php 2.06 for preferred shares.

According to Phoenix, the

dividends for the preferred shares was on a fixed rate of 8.25 percent per year.

Phoenix’s Board of Direc-tors had approved the decla-ration of dividends on Febru-ary 6.

The disclosure said the record date for the dividend declaration will be on Feb 24 and will be payable on March 20.

Phoenix noted the source

for the dividend payment comes from previous earn-ings of the company.

Phoenix noted in the dis-closure that it has already is-sued a total of 10 million pre-ferred shares.

Last November, Phoenix Petroleum Philippines an-nounced that it will focus on its retail segment expansion its other non-fuel related busi-ness.

Phoenix Petroleum is en-gaged in BUSINESS TRADING of refined petroleum products and lubricants, operation of oil depots and storage facili-ties, shipping – including lo-gistics – and allied services.

It supplies more than 50 percent of Cebu Pacific’s jet fuel requirements, and han-dles the logistics needs of Mindanao and some areas in the Visayas. (PNA)

FDAVAO, 14

VOL. 7 ISSUE 232 • TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 10, 2015

malnourished, every major organ system in the body is likely to be affected. Prob-lems with the heart and with fluids and electrolytes (sodi-um, potassium, chloride) are the most dangerous.

According to the Merck manual, anorexia nervosa is usually diagnosed on the ba-sis of severe weight loss and the characteristic psycholog-ic symptoms.

“Treatment can save the life of someone with an-orexia,” points out ANAD. “Friends, relatives, teachers, and physicians all play an important role in helping an-orexics stay with a treatment program. Encouragement, caring, and persistence, as well as information about anorexia and its dangers, may be needed to convince the ill person to get help, stick with treatment, or try again.”

However, doctors admit that treatment of anorexia is difficult, because people with anorexia believe there is nothing wrong with them.

Patients in the early stages of anorexia (less than six months or with just a small amount of weight loss) may be successfully treated with-out having to be admitted to the hospital. But for success-ful treatment, patients must want to change and must have family and friends to help them.

“Treatment for anorexia nervosa requires a concert-ed commitment toward vir-tual reprogramming of eat-ing and living habits,” says Dr. Reloza. “Initial follow-ups require regular visits over a prolonged period of time. As much as 30 percent of the patients can relapse and an-other 30 may eventually be-come chronic or long-stand-ing problems. Only a third is often completely cured.”

Treatment usually con-sists of two steps. The first is restoring normal body weight. The second is psy-chotherapy, often supple-mented with drugs.

When weight loss has been rapid or severe, restor-

ing body weight is crucial; such weight losses can be life threatening. Experienced staff members in the hospital firmly but gently encourage the patient to eat. Rarely, the patient is fed intravenously or through a tube inserted in the nose and passed into the stomach.

“Treatment involves more than changing the person’s eating habits,” says Dr. Ken Ung Eng Khaen, a psychiatrist at Singapore’s National University Hospi-tal. “Anorexic patients often need counseling for a year or more so they can work on changing the feelings that are causing their eating problems. These feelings may be about their weight, their family problems or their problems with self-es-teem.”

Some anorexic patients are helped by taking med-icines that make them feel less depressed. These med-icines, however, are pre-scribed by a doctor and are used along with counseling.

SHE was one of the most beautiful faces to come out from the Philippine

cinema. At the height of her career, however, she faded from the limelight because of her continuous bouts with anorexia.

Actually, she was only 14 when she started having the problem. Although she was making movies left and right, she was depressed most of the time. She didn’t like the movies she was making and she detested her mother’s in-trusion with her life.

In an interview with a health magazine, she bared this fact: “That time, I think I secretly hated my mom, even as I had always lived with her – for practically dominating my life, for dictating every decision I had to make, and when I was battling anorex-ia and depression, I realized I was my own worst enemy.”

Anorexia is a psychiatric disorder known as the “Gold-en Girl Syndrome” because it primarily hits rich, well-ed-ucated Western women. The phenomenon was first documented in Japan in the 1960s. Today, anorexia has spread to women of all socio-economic and ethnic back-grounds in Seoul, Hong Kong and Singapore.

Cases also have been reported – though at much lower rates – in Taipei, Bei-jing and Shanghai. Anorexia has even surfaced among the affluent elite in countries where hunger remains a problem, including India, the Philippines, and Pakistan.

“Ten years ago, we saw only one or two anorexics each year,” says Dr. Sing Lee, a psychiatrist at The Chinese University of Hong Kong. “Now, we see one new pa-tient a month. Many are hos-

pitalized.”According to the National

Association of Anorexia Ner-vosa and Associate Disorders (ANAD) in the United States, anorexia nervosa literal-ly means “loss of appetite.” However, the literal meaning is a misnomer. “A person with anorexia nervosa is hungry, but he or she denies the hun-ger because of an irrational fear of becoming fat,” it ex-plains.

Anorexia nervosa is char-acterized by self-starvation, food preoccupation and rit-uals, compulsive exercising, and often an absence of a menstrual cycle. “If this goes uncontrolled and untreated, major damage can occur to various organs of the body, such as the kidney, intesti-nal tract, liver and even the heart,” says Dr. Asuncion Re-loza, who practices pediat-ric cardiology at the Makati Medical Center.

The death of American pop singer Karen Carpenter at age 32 was attributed to heart failure following her eight-year battle with an-orexia. Other famous victims who managed to beat the self-starvation problem in-clude the late Princess Diana and Jane Fonda.

Anorexia nervosa usually begins in adolescence, occa-sionally earlier, and becomes less common in adults. The disorder runs from mild and transient or severe and long lasting. “Anorexia nervosa is the third most common med-ical disorder in adolescents, and is more common in the young female teenager,” re-ports Dr. Reloza.

Because mild cases are not easily diagnosed, no one knows exactly how many people have anorexia nervo-sa or what percentage die of

Anorexia Nervosa: Dying to be thinBy HENRYLITO D. TACIO

How a person with anorexia nervosa looks like (from Wikipedia)

Karen Carpenter died at the age of 33 due to anorexia nervosa (From Wikipedia)

7EDGEDAVAO

HEALTH

it. “Anorexia nervosa

may be mild and tran-sient or severe and per-sistent,” notes The Mer-ck Manual of Medical Information. “Because many people who de-velop anorexia nervosa are meticulous, com-pulsive, and intelligent, with very high stan-dards for achievement and success, an eating disorder may easily go undetected.”

But there are signs. First, the person be-comes concerned with diet and body weight. “Such concerns seem out of place, because most people who have anorexia nervosa are already thin,” the Merck manual says. “Preoc-cupation and anxiety about weight intensify as the person becomes thinner. Even when emaciated, the person claims to feel gat, denies that anything is wrong, does not complain about weight loss, and usually resists treat-ment.”

If you notice this with someone special -- a family member, a friend, or office mate -- be sure to urge the person to see a doctor. Unless someone will do so, the person won’t ever dare to go to the hospital.

Although anorexia means “lack of appe-tite,” people with anorexia nervosa are actually hungry and preoccupied with food. “They study diets and count calories; they hoard, conceal, and deliberately waste food; they collect recipes; and they prepare elaborate meals for others,” the Merck manual says.

Some people with an-orexia nervosa binge and then purge by vomiting or taking laxatives. Others sim-ply restrict the amount of food they eat. “They also fre-quently lie about how much they have eaten and conceal their vomiting and their pe-culiar dietary habits,” the Merck manual says. “Many also take diuretics to treat perceived bloating.”

Women who suffer from anorexia nervosa stop having menstrual periods and lose interest in sex. Typically, they have a low heart rate, low blood pressure, low body temperature, and swelling of tissues caused by fluid accumulation (edema). If a person becomes seriously

VOL. 7 ISSUE 232 • TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 10, 20158 EDGEDAVAO

VANTAGE

Unreasonable priceEDITORIAL

Columnists: MA. TERESA L. UNGSON • EDCER C. ESCUDERO • AURELIO A. PEÑA • ZHAUN ORTEGA • BERNADETTE “ADDIE” B. BORBON • MARY ANN “ADI” C. QUISIDO • LEANDRO B. DAVAL SR., • NIKKI GOTIANSE-TAN • NICASIO ANGELO AGUSTIN • EMILY ZEN CHUA • CARLOS MUNDA Economic Analyst: ENRICO “GICO” G. DAYANGIRANG • JONALLIER M. PEREZ

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It’s hard to fathom what sacked Special Action Force (SAF) chief Police Director Getulio Pascual Napeñas had in mind when he asserted yesterday before the Senate inquiry into

the bloody Mamasapano incident that the operation itself was successful because the SAF forces not only killed the terror-ist Julkifli bin Hir alias Marwan but also 250 fighters from the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) and the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters (BIFF). “Yes, madams and sirs, you heard it right. Not less than 250 casualties on the side of the combined forces of the MILF, BIFF and other private armed groups,” Napeñas proudly told the Senate inquiry attended by at least 13 senators led by Senate President Franklin Drilon.

Pardon us, Mr. Napeñas, but all the while we thought the operation was intended to arrest Marwan and not kill every MILF and BIFF member in sight. Had we known it was a video game in which the important thing was to have the most num-

ber of hits, then we would not have mourned the deaths of 44 of your men. After all, the ratio stands at 44:250, and by any standard that is an impressive score.

We had thought all along that the reason the SAF men en-tered MILF territory secretly, in the cover of darkness, was to make sure they were not detected and so that they can exit with no one being the wiser. Casualties were obviously not in the plan, and certainly they did not want to engage anyone in a firefight. But here was Mr. Napeñas, so proudly proclaiming that the operation was successful because the SAF members had killed more men than the other side took from their ranks.

Let Mr. Napeñas tell this to the families of the Fallen 44 and he will realize just how hollow that boast is. He may claim “mission accomplished,” but the kin of the heroes will always know that it came at an unreasonable price: The lives of 44 brave young men.

VOL. 7 ISSUE 232 • TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 10, 2015 VANTAGE POINTS 9EDGEDAVAO

HAD the spirit of autonomy been promot-ed since the Local Government Code (R.A. 7160) was enacted in 1991, we would

all have developed proficiency in autonomy or self-governance by now, easing the way for the advocates of federalism to have it adopted.

All that was needed was for people, including the masses but especially the truant elites, to know their role in the immediate community (barangay) and its governing process.

Their participation in local public administration would have given them the knowledge and confidence necessary to provide the dynamism of People Power that a federal system must generate from below.

Fostering a sense of community and responsibility in citizens is also important. People need to be engaged, actively and creatively, in the governing process, not just be recipients of government goods and services.

*****A hands-on experience in governing

familiarizes citizens with the dynamics of communitarian collaboration and formal interaction with public officials (who can seem aloof and intimidating even in the context of a barangay).

The experience and self-confidence derived from actual participation predispose citizens towards active involvement—contributing to policy making, taking part in decision-making, exemplifying what is meant by a government of the people, by the people, and for the people.

This participative mode of governing teaches people best about political science and good governance. It gives impetus for them to assert their sovereign authority in matters affecting the community and the common good.

It really is democracy in action, with power rising from below, deriving its force from an assertive brand of citizen sovereignty.

*****The nice thing about having the Republic

anchored upon People Power at its base is that, instead of await directives from the top, or for power to be devolved from the halls of an Imperial Manila, people would generate reforms or other initiatives from the base themselves, spiraling upwards.

It is the PINATUBO, not PINATULO, way to install good governance and the pillars of development—grown from below, not trickled-down from above.

But this is possible only if the people are truly empowered and motivated—to induce order and harmony, to enforce the Rule of Law, and to create their own prosperity.

In other words, the urge to build the nation and the enthusiasm for carrying it forward will originate from the grassroots—lifting society from the doldrums, animating the economy, and liberating the people from the depths of apathy.

*****Thus, for federalism to work, it should be

rooted in the hearts and minds of the people at the grassroots. They must awake to the consciousness of their being the grassroots, that upon their energy and enterprise hinge the progress of the nation.

We are all part of the grassroots and we must be conscious of being so. We mustn’t allow this to be obfuscated by wrong concepts or pretentious attitudes that turn a lot of Filipinos into pedants and hypocrites.

There are far too many Filipinos, by reason of social standing, economic status, or whatever, who carry on as if they’re above the grassroots,

superior to the masses, elite and a breed apart.Typically, the pedant will say, “The masses

are out there in the barrio, while I’m here in the city, in an office, in a campus, or in our church.” They forget that these places are in some barangay or other, meaning, a barrio.

*****It helps to be aware that everyone is in fact a

barrio boy or barrio girl, for it is where everyone lives, works, grows up, and is ultimately buried. The barangay, urban or rural, is everyone’s address!

To deny one’s origin or existence as rooted in the barangay, of being a citizen in it, betrays a hangover of the “colonial mentality.” It is redolent of the days of the Guardia Civil when Filipinos were pejoratively called “indio”—country bumpkins who looked up to the central government with awe and in the spirit of vassals and lowly followers.

Too much have we had to endure patronizing treatment during our colonial days, at the expense of our self-respect or self-image. It’s time to rise to our full stature.

We have also had to suffer well-meaning leaders who sought to boost the national ego by resorting to pompous rhetoric, only to reveal a basic insecurity. One famously proclaimed: “I would rather have a country run like hell by Filipinos than like heaven by Americans!” Such is the risk we take when we fall for demagoguery.

(Manny is former UNESCO regional director for Asia-Pacific; secretary-general, Southeast Asia Publishers Association; director, Development Academy of Philippines; member, Philippine Mission to the UN; vice chair, Local Government Academy; member, Cory Government’s Peace Panel; awardee, PPI-UNICEF outstanding columnist. He is chairman/convenor of the Gising Barangay Movement Inc. valdehuesa@gmail.com)

IN 1961, while working on the movie Cleopat-ra, co-stars Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Bur-ton met and fell in love. On March 15, 1964 in

Montreal, Canada by a Unitarian minister at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel, the two tied the nuptial knot.

On June 26, 1974 in Saarinen, Switzerland, the two decided to call it quits. But more than a year later, on October 10, 1975, the two got mar-ried again in the Chobe National Park in Kasane, Botswana, Africa. But that marriage ended in an-other divorce on July 29, 1976.

The love story of Natalie Wood and Robert Wagner is a unique and moving one. Ten-year-old Natalie fell in love at first sight with the hand-some, enthusiastic young actor when she saw him walking down the hall at 20th Century Fox. She turned to her mother and declared “I’m going to marry him,” and she did just that, twice.

They married the first time in 1957 when Natalie was only 19 years old. They divorced in 1962, and Natalie married British producer Rich-ard Gregson in 1969. After she was divorced from Gregson in 1971, she dated Robert again. They rediscovered how much they loved and meant to each other. The two remarried in 1972 aboard their yacht.

“When R.J. and I met ten years later, after our divorce, we were different people,” the three-time Oscar nominee recalled. “It wasn’t like going back to what we had before because we had both changed. We were still attracted to one another – there’s always something about that first love. It was like getting to know a whole new person although somewhere in the back of your mind – you already knew them.”

Recently, the Asian edition of Reader’s Di-gest came up with an exclusive poll: “Would you marry the same person twice?” Conducted in 15 countries, the poll showed 68 percent of the re-spondents would remarry their spouse all over again.

“In the United States, Brazil, and Great Brit-ain, respondents over 45 are more likely than younger people to feel satisfied with their choic-es,” the survey found out. In the Philippines and such countries as Canada, France, India, Malaysia,

and Spain, “it’s the 45-and-un-ders who feel more happily matched.”

“In the Phil-ippines, where couples marry younger than in most nations, only 20 percent of those over age 45 say they’d stay with the same spouse,” the study has dis-covered.

However, the Philippines ranks second with couples who are happy being married together, with 76 percent. Topping the list is China, with 83 percent. Below the Philippines are Germany and the Netherlands, which tied with 73 percent each. Both Australia and Spain garnered a score of 72 percent each.

Malaysia scored the lowest (59 percent) among the 15 countries surveyed. “Malaysia is tops with men (48 percent) who would untie the knot if given the chance,” the study showed. Upper by just three points are India and France. The United States, Italy, and Canada got 63 per-cent each.

Marriage, they say, is the world’s most expen-sive way of discovering your faults. W.A. Clarke himself said, “Before marriage, a man yearns for a woman. Afterwards, the ‘y’ is silent.”

Overheard: My wife is two hours late. She’s either had an accident, been kidnapped, or she’s shopping. Man, I hope she isn’t shopping! “Mar-riage is neither heaven nor hell,” American pres-ident Abraham Lincoln stated. “It is simply pur-gatory.”

Rodney Dangerfield shared this thought: “My wife is always trying to get rid of me. The other day, she told me to put the garbage out. I said to her I already put out the garbage. She told me to go and keep an eye on it.”

“Mommy, can I swim in the ocean?” five-year-old Tommy asked. “No, the water’s too rough,” the mother replied. “But Daddy’s swimming,” Tom-my insisted. Without looking her son, the mother said, “Your daddy is insured.”

The other side of the coin. A police car stopped a motorist on the highway and informed the driver that his wife fell out of the vehicle a kilometer back. “Good!” exclaimed the man, “I thought I’d gone deaf.”

Marriage is a school of experience where husband and wife are clashmates. It isn’t a battle that somebody is supposed to win. After all, it is a union that defies management.

Ogden Nash advised, “To keep your marriage brimming, with love in the loving cup; whenever you’re wrong, admit it! Whenever you’re right, shut up.”

“Society creates the myth that marriage is the proper haven for all our longings and a cure for all our shortcomings,” Gerald Griffin reminds. “Peo-ple are programmed to believe that marriage will automatically give them individuality, identity, security, and happiness, when as a matter of fact, marriage gives them none of these things unless they possess them in the first place.”

“For months,” a woman told her friend, “I couldn’t discover where my husband spent his evenings.” Listening to her, the friend asked, “And then what happened?” The woman replied, “Well, one evening, I went home and there he was.”

“Where did you meet your wife,” a friend asked. “At a travel bureau,” he replied. “I was looking for a vacation spot and she was the last resort.”

“Marriage is not for a moment; it is for a life-time,” Gina Cerminara points out. “It requires long and serious preparation. It is not be leaped into, but entered with solemn steps of delibera-tion. For one of the most intimate and difficult of human relationship is that of marriage.”

Socrates declared: “By all means, marry. If you get a good wife, you will become very happy; if you get a bad one, you will become a philoso-pher – and that is good for any man.”

Love the second time around

Henrylito D. Taciohenrytacio@gmail.com

THINK ON THESE!

Federalism grassroots up

Engine of growth

BY THE ARCHIVIST

FAST BACKWARD

FOUNDED in 1937, Davao City, in large measure, owes a big part of its progress to Davao Light and Power Company (DLPC) whose existence

has been beneficial in its rise towards urban prog-ress. In fact, this industrial icon has been the primary factor that has steadily pump-primed the city’s econ-omy, and the principal feature that has drawn waves of migrants to Davao. Through the maelstrom of the World War II, the adversities of military rule in the 1970’s, and the threats of insurgency in pre-EDSA years, DLPC has witnessed first-hand without fail the growth of the old township from an obscure agricul-ture hub to a boom region in the South.

Originally founded as Patrick Henry Frank, Relatives & Associates on September 24, 1929, DLPC was registered only on October 1, 1929 with the primary objective of serving the central section of Davao. It had six American incorporators, three each from Manila and Davao. Each share cost P1.00 or a total of 831, which was worth P83,100 in subscription, or the equivalent of P20,000 in paid-up capital. P.H. Frank and wife Anne of Manila got 410 shares, while W.H. Gohn, a plantation owner in Davao, and wife Mary also got the same number of stocks. H.S. Peabody got 10 shares, while J.M. Murphy got a token of one share.

That same year the power firm was registered simultaneously with Mindanao Sales and Services, one of two flagship projects of Frank. A former New Orleans army private, Frank was originally scheduled to fight in Cuba in the Spanish-American War but at the last minute was ordered shipped to the Philippines. He arrived in the country in 1898 and, like the other military men sent to the archipelago before him he had the opportunity to appreciate the countryside through his many assignments.

The idea to establish an electric company was not entirely Frank’s alone. With the help of relatives and confreres, he broached the plan to energize Davao, already home to numerous successful foreign entrepreneurs. The presence of Japanese investments also posed as an attractive prospect for the power business.

The outbreak of war in Europe and China in the 1930’s had a jarring effect on Frank’s decision to continue operating the power plant. As a former American soldier, his access to latest intelligence advisories afforded him a clearer than usual picture on how the country would be affected in case Japan, a major player in the China-Korea war theater, attacked the Philippines. So he wanted his firm sold and moved out before the trouble could spill over in the islands.

Another factor that hastened his decision to sell the electric outfit was his family’s intention to repatriate all personal assets to the U.S. With the Philippines under the Commonwealth, he was “worried about the Philippine government issuing emergency decrees, freezing bank deposits, and the possibility of war [with Japan].”

The breakout of World War II, in effect, rendered all of DLPC’s power plants damaged beyond repair. Heavy bombardment by Japanese and American bombers destroyed the machinery. As a result, the city was plunged into darkness, and the future of the company recovering from the devastation was bleak.

Moreover, Frank was apprehensive that under an independent Philippines DLPC would be subject to government regulation and its ownership, being under the Americans, becoming a focus of naturalization under the amendments of Tydings-McDuffie Act. In consultation with his sons, P.H., with the urging of Don Francisco “Paco” Suche, a Spanish engineer who personally knew Don Ramon Aboitiz, the Spanish ilustrado, decided to sell Jolo Light and Power Company, and later Cotabato Light and Power Company (CLPC) was earlier sold. On August 23, 1941, Aboitiz and Suche met with Frank to discuss the sale of the Davao power firm. But the founder was hesitant to seal a deal given the optimism he still harbored about Davao’s future:

“[Frank] believed there was a tremendous business opportunity in Davao—a large growing city, and the possibility of business several times its present volume. He had developed a company that had a foothold in one of the most important economic regions of the Philippines. Still he saw uncertainty in the political situation and the possibility of war to the degree that he was transferring assets to the United States, as were his sons.”

Aboitiz and Frank concluded the sale of DLPC in November 1941 and agreed to sign the deal on January 1, 1942. But this did not happen because World War II intervened when it broke out on December 8, 1941 and sucked the Philippines into the conflict.

BY MANNY VALDEHUESA

THE WORM’S EYEVIEW

VOL. 7 ISSUE 232 • TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 10, 2015

ASUS Philippines re-cently announced the new ASUS Fonepad 7

(FE171CG), a 7-inch phab-let with full 3G and dual SIM phone functionality. It features an all-new design that is thin-ner and lighter than the pre-vious Fonepad 7 (FE170CG), and fits comfortably in one hand for increased ease of use and maximum mobility.

Fonepad 7 has an 5MP rear-facing autofocus camera with a large f/2.4 aperture lens and a blue glass optical filter that delivers incredible camera performance. As the company’s first phablet to feature ASUS PixelMaster Low Light mode, the new Fonepad 7 makes it effortless to cap-ture sharp, vivid photos in low light situations.

With a beautiful IPS dis-play that has a wide 178-de-gree viewing angle, accurate color reproduction, and improved color clarity and brightness, the new Fonepad 7 provides a fantastic picture for immersive entertainment experiences and general daily use.Thin and lightweight design

The new ASUS Fonepad 7 has a completely-revised de-sign that is thinner and lighter than the previous FE170CG model. With a depth of only

7.9mm and a weight of just 280g, the new Fonepad 7 is 2.8mm thinner and 10g light-er than its predecessor. It has a narrow, 9.24 mm bezel that reduces Fonepad 7’s overall width and, together with its thin and lightweight design, makes it easy to hold in one hand. The narrow bezel also enables a maximized screen to body ratio, so Fonepad 7 can deliver a big screen enter-tainment experience in a com-pact, mobile package.

Fonepad 7 is available in a choice of Black, White, Gold, and Red colors, each with a unique texture that enhances Fonepad 7’s style and makes it easier to grip. The display is framed by a beautiful metallic band finished with non-con-ductive vacuum metallization (NCVM) technology for an ad-ditional stylish accent.5MP PixelMaster camera

The new ASUS Fonepad 7 comes equipped with an 5MP rear-facing auto-focus camera for incredibly rich, detailed photos of life’s memorable events. It has a large f/2.4 aperture lens for increased camera performance in a vari-ety of lighting conditions and is the first ASUS phablet to incorporate a blue-glass opti-cal filter to reduce light scat-tering and flare for capturing

brilliant photos with accurate color.

Fonepad 7 is also the first ASUS phablet to feature Low Light mode, an ASUS-ex-clusive PixelMaster camera technology that significantly increases camera perfor-mance in poorly lit scenes. By merging adjacent pixels, the camera increases light sensi-tivity by up to 400%, resulting in clear and bright photos and videos without the need for flash.

In addition to the 5MP rear-facing camera, Fonepad 7 also has a 2MP front-facing camera that’s perfect for mak-ing video calls with family and friends.Beautiful IPS display with ASUS TruVivid technology

The ASUS Fonepad 7 e x p e r i e n c e centers on its 7-inch IPS display that provides ac-curate color reproduction and enhanced saturation for unparalleled picture quali-ty, as well as a wide 178-de-gree viewing angle that

makes it easy for users to share onscreen content with other people nearby. ASUS TruVivid, a full lamination display technology that re-duces thickness and weight, and provides higher optical transparency than traditional touchscreen displays, deliv-ers brighter, more vivid colors to make movies, photos, and apps look their best.Dual SIM convenience

As a full-featured 7-inch phablet, ASUS Fonepad 7 has a built-in dual-SIM, du-al-standby 3G phone. The two SIM card slots make Fonepad 7 the perfect travel or busi-ness companion, allowing us-ers to have two phone lines on Fonepad 7 so they can keep in touch from anywhere.

10 EDGEDAVAO

ICT HUB

GLOBE Telecom will soon be working closely with Philippine learning insti-

tutions as it will help advance the use of cloud-based software in every school in the country, initiating a major shift towards integrating technology into the local education system.

This development unfolded with the telco’s recent partner-ship with Globals, a developer of school management system software Educube. Officials of both companies said that their combined strengths will help teachers, school staff members and the entire educational insti-tution manage their administra-tive work which will help them better focus on the welfare of students.

“As a telecom company, Globe is expanding its reach to more members of our society, particularly our country’s edu-cators, by harnessing the latest technologies to better serve and impact the lives of many. Through online technology created specifically for the edu-cational ecosystem powered by our partner Globals, we can be a catalyst in shaping the future of the nation through progres-sive and world-class education,” Globe Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer for International and Business Markets Gil Genio said.

Genio explained that Educube, as part of the Globe Education Solutions suite, will provide relational databases, including school compliance and inventory systems with the goal of improving efficiencies of school operations and transpar-ency to governing bodies like

the Depart-ment of Educa-tion (DepEd), Commission on Higher Ed-ucation and Technical Ed-ucation and Skills Develop-ment Author-ity.

On a larg-er perspective, the Globe EVP & COO said that Educube will spur the increasing use of ICT by the local educa-tion system through the adoption of technologies in the learn-ing process, school opera-tions and reg-ulatory gov-ernance. This will be driven by increasing availability of infrastructure and affordability of solutions, heightened aware-ness and training on benefits of ICT in education as well as reg-ulatory support for the DepEd’s five-year information and com-munications technology for ed-ucation or ICT4E Strategic Plan.

Globals CEO Suhas Gopi-nath shares, “The goal of our technologies centered on the Educube school management system is to make schools more efficient and proactive. By making the administrative pro-cess of schools more efficient,

Globe sparks revolution in educationwith new cloud-based software

ASUS announces availability of newly designed Fonepad 7

Globe Telecom executives led by (from left) EVP & COO Gil Genio and President and CEO Ernest Cu, together with Globals CEO Suhas Gopinath and Vice President for Strategy and Marketing Amruta Desai, seal their partnership to introduce a school management system for Philippine learning institutions.

administrators can maximize their time instead of focusing on their records, while teachers can concentrate on the academ-ic aspects of their core activities with their students.”

As a school management system, the Globals executive explained that Educube will be beneficial to administrators and educators of the country’s more than 61,000 schools and higher education institutions. It has the capacity to automate and integrate all administrative services such as staff and stu-

dent information, admissions, enrollment, fees management, payroll, attendance and grading system.

Once incorporated in the operations of a school, Educube will power financial and aca-demic management processes leading to improved efficien-cies, elimination of redundant data entries and reducing risks of pilferage. Reliable reports will be readily available and accessible in real time, while school data and systems are protected from obsolescence.

Being cloud-based, Educube is easy to implement for schools and does away with additional infrastructure investments.

Starting operations in 2000, Educube has presence in more than 11 countries worldwide. It has over 150 implementa-tions, the largest by far is City Montessori School in India with approximately 52,000 students. Being an ISO 9001:2005 and ISO 27001: 2008-certified or-ganization, Educube has earned recognitions, particularly from The Economist, as one of India’s

fastest-growing technologies for empowering educators in East Asia. Founded by Gopinath at age 14, the Educube CEO was also cited three years after as the world’s youngest CEO by top media organizations such as the British Broadcasting Company, The Washington Times and The Age, among many others.

For more information on Globe Education Solutions and Educube, visit http://www.globe.com.ph/education or email educationsolutions@globe.com.ph.

Processor Intel® Atom™ Z2520 dual-core (1.2 GHz)

Operating system Android™ 4.4 (KitKat)

Display 7-inch, WSVGA (1024 x 600) IPS panel

Cameras 2MP front camera 5MP rear camera

Memory & storage

2GB LPDDR2 RAM

16GB eMMC 64GB microSD 5GB ASUS WebStorage free for life with an additional 11 GB for the first year

Networks DC-HSPA+: UL:5.76 Mbit/s /DL:42 Mbit/s 3G : WCDMA: 1900/2100/850/900 2G : EDGE/GSM: 850/900/1800/1900

Wireless 802.11b/g/n Wi-Fi Bluetooth 4.0

Connectivity 1 x High-quality speakers 1 x Micro USB 1 x Micro SD card reader, up to 64GB SDHC

Sensors A-GPS with GLONASS, G-Sensor Battery 15Wh, 4000mAh for up to 11.5 hours use Colors Black, White, Gold and Red Size 110.6 x 196 x 7.9mm Weight 280g

SPECIFICATIONS ASUS Fonepad 7 (FE171CG)

AVAILABILITY & PRICINGASUS Fonepad 7

(FE171CG) will be available

for only P6,995 in all ASUS authorized re-sellers nation-wide.

VOL. 7 ISSUE 232 • TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 10, 2015 11EDGEDAVAO

PROPERTY

Northpoint’s Caribbean Pines -more than just trees

Greener, fresher sur-roundings. As a condomini-um community at the heart of north Davao’s urban growth area, Northpoint is unlike oth-er condominiums surrounded with a hard environment of concrete buildings and ce-mented grounds. While North-point’s condominiums are concrete structures, they were

built to blend with its natural surroundings and sloping ter-rain dotted with trees.

This British colonial themed condo community has its own vista of greenery -- verdant shrubs, preserved olden Acacias, and the tow-ering pines that give off a fra-grant whiff of freshness. After the city’s hustle and bustle, it’s

NORTHPOINT, the landmark condominium development of Vista Residences in Davao, has many features that set it apart from the

rest. One such distinction is being a virtual pine es-tate, with hundreds of imported Caribbean pines growing on its grounds and bringing unparalleled value that goes beyond the obvious.

always a joy to come home to the fresh and relaxing environ-ment of Northpoint.

Clean, fresh air every day. Trees absorb carbon di-oxide and other pollutants and cleanse the air, ensuring fresh air for Northpoint homeown-ers whether they are indoors or out enjoying the amenities and green outdoors. Nothing beats inhaling fresh oxygen the moment you wake up and the time you come home to Northpoint.

Environment-friendly. When pine trees shed its nee-dles they contribute organic matter to the soil, naturally

fertilizing it. This can improve overall soil quality of North-point’s grounds, helping to grow healthy trees and other plant life. As the roots of these evergreen trees bind and hold the soil, it can reduce soil ero-sion and slow down water movement during a heavy downpour. This protects Northpoint’s grounds from gullies and soil slips that can be created by surface run-off.

Buffer to city noise. Ur-banites want the convenience, proximity, and modern com-forts of living at the heart of the city, but at the end of the day, they want some peace

and quiet as they wind down at home with family and look forward to a good night’s sleep. They can do exactly that in Northpoint as city noise and the din of traffic are buffered by the towering pines that can grow to a hundred feet tall.

Shade and shelter. These coniferous trees offer a natu-ral shade from the hot rays of the sun. Even when the sun shines at its strongest, these evergreens still give off a fresh ambiance. Its girth and height also provide shelter against strong winds and hard rain, protecting not only the home-owners but also Northpoint’s condo buildings. They are also home to nature’s wildlife such as birds, creating a thriv-ing ecosystem within the pine estate.

Feel-good ambiance. With pine trees and its cones associated with the holiday season, the good feeling is nev-er far away. It’s that sense of happiness and good cheer one gets when the holiday spirit is felt. At Northpoing this feel-good ambiance is present all year round.

These imported Carib-bean pine trees are more than just a pretty sight; they bring unparalleled value to Northpoint that goes beyond aesthetics. To find out how to make this pine estate your home, visit the Camella offic-es at Delgar Bldg. (fronting Northpoint), JP Laurel Avenue, Bajada, Davao City, telephone (082) 226-3100.

Northpoint has a fresh, cool environment owing to its verdant plant life and hundreds of imported Caribbean pine trees.

A peek of one of Northpoint’s condominium buildings from a pine tree-lined pathway.

VOL. 7 ISSUE 232 • TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 10, 201512 CLASSIFIED

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VOL. 7 ISSUE 232 • TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 10, 2015

EDGEDAVAOINdulge! TRAVEL

FEBRUARY is a busy month for the generals – that’s how the people of General Santos City call themselves – not because it is the month for lovers but because of the city celebrates the city’s founding anniversary. To outsiders, it means Kalilangan Festival.

What to do during the

KALILANGAN FESTIVAL Kalilangan is derived from the Maguindanaoan word “kalilang,” which means “festival” or “cele-bration.” And what Kalil-angan Festival celebrates is the tradition of sharing, hospitality, and altruism that is part of the cultural heritage of Mindanao. “Kalilangan projects a positive and dynamic meaning for it engulfs the artistic, humane and altruistic aspects of so-cial interaction that takes place in any occasion,” Prof. Bai Janena J.A. once explained. “(It is) a so-cial gathering marked by exchanging amenities

among traditional leaders, elders, allies and subordi-nates. It is also a pageantry of unique and colorful ethnic rituals, and tradi-tions.” During the celebration, expect a grand merry-making of sorts. Each year is themed differently. This year’s theme is “Kultura Ko, Identity Ko.” Literally, it means “My Culture, My Identity.” The festival organizer is the Ramon Magsaysay Memorial Col-leges. The week-long celebra-tion will start on February 23 and end on February 27. Here are some things

you can do when you are in Gensan: Watch street danc-ing: Don’t miss this pag-eantry of culture, colors,

and texture in the streets as teenagers and students -- and even adults -- do their thing. Bring your own camera to capture the event. Share the photos on Facebook so those who are not able to come can also see the festivity. Of course, don’t forget your own selfie! Eat what you want: Gensan is also known for its mouth-watering food. Not to be missed is of course tuna. As the city’s new campaign puts it: “Succulent slices of fresh, sashimi tuna, an array of other tuna cuisine and Fil-ipino dishes, relished with the freshest fruits and veg-etables straight from the gardens and farmsteads -- all these will whet the appetite of any palate and

surely satiate your gastro-nomic craving.” Catch those tuna-car-rying workers: Gensan is the tuna capital of the country. And you prob-ably have seen those people carrying tuna at their back. If you want to see them doing so, go to the General Santos Fish Port Complex (GSFPC) in barangay Tambler. It is 32 kilometers south of the city proper, along the shores of Sarangani Bay. Be sure to go early in the morning. Or else, you won’t see anything like that anymore. Take a walk at the Gen-eral Plaza: I suggest you do it at night when the beautiful lights are on. It’s

a sight to behold. You can also do jogging in the ear-ly morning. But walking during afternoon is a big no; it’s too hot and you get to feel like walking in the Sahara Desert. Bring something from Gensan: If you’re looking to bring home souvenirs, don’t look far. Like the rest of the country, there are large malls such as Ve-ranza, Robinsons Place, SM Mall of GenSan, and Gaisano that can give you some ideas as to what pas-alubong you can buy. The author would like to thank the following pho-tographers: Michael H. Chan for the street dancing photo and James Michael Montano for the Gensan Plaza.

By Henrylito D. Tacio

THE Davao Children’s Cancer Fund, Inc. to-gether with Fujifilm, and Davao-based photogra-phers Rhonson Ng and Jojie Alcantara opened a photo exhibit last Feb-ruary 4 titled Portraits of Hope: Catching Mo-ments of Inspiration and Courage from Kids of Hope at the ground floor area of Robinsons Supermarket Abreeza. Featuring portraits of the children being treated at the Davao Children’s Cancer Fund, Inc.’s House of Hope, the exhibit was held as part of the celebration of World Can-cer Day 2015 and also as part of International Childhood Day. The exhibit also aims to raise awareness among Da-bawenyos on cancer and child-hood cancer and the impact

to the lives of the patients and survivors. “The idea of putting together this exhibit started while I was celebrating my birthday spend-ing time with the children of House of Hope,” says Jojie .“The photos are a way to bring the children closer to the people who visit the mall and to make them aware of the beauty and strength of the children who

were suffering the disease.” A donation box for the ben-efit of the House of Hope was also set up at the exhibit for people to share their blessings with the patients in need. The Portraits of Hope: Catching Moments of Inspira-tion and Courage from Kids of Hope is ongoing and will last until the 15th of February.

A2 INdulge!UP AND ABOUT

VOL. 7 ISSUE 232 • TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 10, 2015EDGEDAVAOENTERTAINMENT

Marilyn Roque, Jojie Alcantara, Joel Bagas of Fuji Films, Rhonson Ng, Eric Rubinos, President - Davao Children’s Cancer Fund, Inc.

Dr. Cheryl Lyn Diez (Pedia Oncologist), Dr. Mae Dolendo, Dr. Bai Johanna Zainal (Resident), Dr. Sha Muhammad (Resident), Dr. Faye Maruya (Resident), Mr. Noel Galupar. Deccie Flores in front of her portrait. Riquelene Dela Cruz and her portrait.

Dr. Mae Dolendo, Jojie Alcantara, Riquelene Dela Cruz, Mr. Eric Rubinos, Mikee Matulac, Deccie Flores, Rhonson Ng, Mohaimen Kasan, Mr. Noel Galupar, President - Ambassadors of Hope.

Floreces Logronio (Ambassadors of Hope), Riquelene Dela Cruz, Mikee Matulac, Deccie Flores, Mohaimen Kasan, Shiena Procullos (Child Life Coordinator, Kythe Foundation).

YEP, she’s still got it.  With seven Grammys un-der her belt, the 56-year-old singer proved she can put any newcomer to shame when she took the stage at the 57th Annual Grammy Awards tonight, wowing us all with a performance of her hit “Living for Love.”  Bringing her sexy (and semi-shirtless!)  mino-taurs along for the show (any-one else have an  American Horror Story: Coven  flash-back?!), the Queen of Pop killed it as she channeled her inner matador in a tiny red leotard that showed off her ripped and seriously insane bod.  And is it just us, or did you totally want to get up and dance when Madge hit the chorus of the song and start-ed breaking it down with her dancers?!  Of course, the entire audi-ence was on their feet, clap-ping to the catchy tune when a choir joined the singer on stage for what may just been one of the best moments of the show.  From back flips to being lifted by a harness in the air, it was clearly Madonna’s mo-ment to shine—and she was loving every minute.  The iconic hitmaker ap-peared at the Grammys last year, bringing along son Da-vid as her date before later performing her hit “Open Your Heart” alongside Mackl-emore and Ryan Lewis, who sang their hit “Same Love” while  Queen Latifah  offici-

CELEBRATE the season of love with music, movies and treats at SM City Davao from Febru-ary 13 to 15. The Annex Event Center turns into a Love Café with everything you need for the Heart’s Day. “If music be the food of love, play on!” the words of Shakespeare captures the essential connection between love and music. Get into the romantic mood with the Davao String Ensemble and The Rizal Brass Band on Friday. On Saturday, two of Davao’s priced voices Thor Dulay and Juliet Bahala will serenade the mall goers while the Manila String

GUHIT Pinas Davao initial-ly and specifically centers on visual arts, encourag-ing young visual artists from all over the country to play their significant roles in the development of communities through art. Believing that art is life with a purpose, the Guild for Upholding and Harness-ing Indispensable Talents

(GUHIT) Pinas Davao is staging its first major exhi-bition at Got Heart Gallery at The Peak in Gaisano Mall on February 13-15, 2015. Titled Unang Badlis, the exhibit is a fund raising event for the Badjao Com-munity in Davao City and aims to showcase the many talents of local artists that speaks of reality with every stroke, line, and color show-

casing GUHIT Pinas Davao’s aims to promote the dis-covery, enhancement, and use of artistic talents as an act of involvement in com-mon campaigns toward economic, political, social, environmental, moral, and spiritual development. For updates and upcom-ing events, visit us at https://www.facebook.com/groups/guhitpinasdavaoofficial/.

Madonna slays the Grammy Awards with her performance of ‘Living for Love’

A fund raising event for the Badjao community in Davao City

Music, Movies, and Treats at SM City Davao Love Café, Feb 13-15Art for a cause: Unang Badlis

Sharing smiles of hope

ated the marriages of 34 couples on stage.  The “Like a Virgin” sing-er’s performance comes just two days after the record-

INdulge! A3VOL. 7 ISSUE 232 • TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 10, 2015 EDGEDAVAOENTERTAINMENT

FILIPINOS FIRST IN ASIA TO GET ACCESS TO EXTENSIVE HOLLYWOOD AND LOCAL CONTENT WITH GLOBE TELECOM AND HOOQ: Asia’s first video-on-demand service HOOQ has arrived in the Philippines, making Filipinos the first in the region to gain access to a library of over 10,000 international and local movies and TV shows with its partnership with leading telecommunications company Globe Telecom. A start-up joint venture between Singtel, Sony Pictures Television, and Warner Bros. Entertainment, HOOQ is set to change the way people in emerging markets consume and enjoy entertainment by allowing customers to enjoy online streaming access and an offline viewing option of movies and TV shows across smartphones, computers, and tablets. Launching the partnership are [L-R] HOOQ CEO Peter Bithos, Globe Telecom President and CEO Ernest Cu, Globe Telecom Senior Advisor for Consumer Business Group Dan Horan, VIVA Entertainment Executive Vice President Vincent Del Rosario, VIVA Entertainment CEO Vic Del Rosario, GMA New Media, Inc. President and COO Judd Gallares, Regal Entertainment Inc. Vice President Roselle Monteverde-Teo, ABS-CBN

CELEBRATE the season of love with music, movies and treats at SM City Davao from Febru-ary 13 to 15. The Annex Event Center turns into a Love Café with everything you need for the Heart’s Day. “If music be the food of love, play on!” the words of Shakespeare captures the essential connection between love and music. Get into the romantic mood with the Davao String Ensemble and The Rizal Brass Band on Friday. On Saturday, two of Davao’s priced voices Thor Dulay and Juliet Bahala will serenade the mall goers while the Manila String

Machine takes the stage on Sunday. Re-live the best onscreen love

stories of all time. Catch classic to modern romantic films at the

Love Café on Saturday and Sun-day. Movie streaming is made pos-sible by Cignal. Surprise your loved ones with special treats from Red Ribbon, Annipie, Bearhugs, Coco Dolce, I Love You Flowers, Kablon Farms Chocolates and many more. Plus, score amazing deals mall wide and enjoy delectable meals with the whole family at your favorite SM Davao restaurants. Experience the outdoor charm of a Love Café indoors at SM City Davao. For inquiries, call 297.6998. Like SM City Davao on Facebook or follow @smcitydavao on Twitter and @SMDavao on Instagram.

Madonna slays the Grammy Awards with her performance of ‘Living for Love’

Music, Movies, and Treats at SM City Davao Love Café, Feb 13-15

ated the marriages of 34 couples on stage.  The “Like a Virgin” sing-er’s performance comes just two days after the record-

ing artist  released the mu-sic video  for the first single from her upcoming thir-teenth studio album  Rebel Heart, which is due to hit

airwaves on March 6.  Any doubts age ain’t nothing but a number? Just take another peek at Madge’s biceps. 

Head of Integrated Acquisition & International Sales & Distribution Evelyn Raymundo, Sony Pictures Executive Vice President for Networks George

Chung-Chi Chien, and Warner Bros. Digital Distribution Vice President for Business Strategy Anuraj Shavantha Goonetilleke.

R16

PG13

PG 1311:40 | 2:15 | 4:50 | 7:25 | 10:00 LFS

R-16

JUPITER ASCENDING

Mila Kunis, Channing Tatum

PG 13 12:40 | 3:00 | 5:20 | 7:40 | 10:00 LFS

WILD

12:25 | 2:20 |4:15 | 6:10 | 8:05 | 10:00 LFS

THAT THING CALLED TADHANA

Angelica Panganiban, JM De Guzman

12:40 | 3:00 | 5:20 | 7:40 | 10:00 LFS

Reese Witherspoon

PROJECT ALMANAC

Jonny Weston, Sofia Black D'Elia

February 5-10, 2015

THE Davao Travel Agencies Association (DTAA) recently concluded the 6th itera-tion of the Davao Mega Travel Sale which gave Dabawenyo travellers the best travel deals for their wanderlust needs.

A4 INdulge!EVENT

Stoked and ready to travel

Travel agencies as well as airlines, hotels, resorts, and cruise operators from all over Southeast Asia gave great discounts, affordable packages, as well as new services and destinations. The event also featured the search for Mr. and Ms. Travel Ambassadors 2015, which brought par-ticipation from students from schools offering tourism and hospitality courses. A big congratulations to the officers and the working committee of the DTAA for a job well done. For those who missed the show, remem-ber that there is always next year. Follow me on Insta-gram or on Twitter @kennethkingong for more travel stories, foodie finds, and happenings in, around, and beyond Du-rianburg.

VOL. 7 ISSUE 232 • TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 10, 2015EDGEDAVAO

VOL. 7 ISSUE 232 • TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 10, 2015 13EDGEDAVAO

ZION ACCUPRINT PUBLISHING, INC.

MACHINE OPERATOR (Printing Press)

Door 14 Alcrej Building, Quirino Ave., 8000 Davao City, Philippines

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VOL. 7 ISSUE 232 • TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 10, 201514 NEWSSAF...FFROM 2

Piñol...

PNP...

Comelec...

JI...

Region 12...

Davao...

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Services Administration (Pag-asa) to get data on rainfall pat-tern and temperature in each barangay.

“The data we will gath-er will be posted in www.philfarmguide.net , a web-site solely created for the benefit of the farmers in the region and will be used to produce a soil map,” Piñol said.

The website will be launched this year.

“Davao City is just the pilot area but we’re plan-ning to do same in other ar-eas in the region and in the whole country so that our farmers will be informed on appropriate farming skills they need in their respec-tive barangays,” he said.

Piñol said the website will provide farmers infor-mation on suitable period of the year for planting and what kind of crops will be suitable on the soil.

He said that he’s target-ing to partner with other non-government organi-zations who are into agri-cultural advocacy because he projected that this ag-riculture project will need

funding to be implemented soon.

The agriculture sectors needs to be developed es-pecially in the city because of its vast agriculture areas, according to Piñol.

He added that one of the mistakes of the Aquino administration was that it gave less attention to the agriculture sector.

“It is one of the downfall of this administration. The growth in the agriculture is very minimal or no growth at all,” he said.

Davao City Investment and Promotions Center chief Ivan C. Cortez earlier said the city has been ex-periencing very minimal or even zero growth in agricul-ture.

“Simply because our agriculture lands are not increasing and the produc-tion approaches have not considerably undergone modernization,” Cortez said in a statement.

Piñol said farming is still a guessing game in the Philippines although it is one sector where the coun-try is known for.

Relations Division.Among the strategies to

be pursued to promote the Davao-Manado route are the development of tour packag-es, business matching, trade sessions, and student ex-change programs.

“All these are aimed to strengthen our socio-cultural and economic ties with Ma-nado,” Miral said while adding “this is a timely move since BIMP-EAGA is also explor-ing socio-cultural and educa-tion as one of the strategic pil-lars of the ASEAN sub-region.”

The direct flight from Davao to Manado offers a shorter route for travellers and will allow the faster move-ment of goods and products.

Currently, passengers bound for Manado take the circu-itous and costly Davao-Ma-nila-Jakarta-Manado route.

Miral said that a BIMP-EA-GA strategic planning meeting will be conducted from Feb-ruary 15 to 18, 2015 at the Royale Chulan Hotel in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, in which initiatives to reopen the Davao-Manado route will be discussed.

The annual meeting among key BIMP-EAGA of-ficials and stakeholders is aimed to review and assess the progress in the imple-mentation of the priority programs and projects in the sub-region’s blueprint for 2012 to 2016.

estimate from the statement of Police Superintendent Raymond Train and PO2 Christopher Lalan, two of the survivors in the whole day firefight between the combined troopers of the 84th and 55th companies of the SAF and the MILF and BIFF elements.

Napeñas said Train, the overall commander of the 84th company assault force, told him he was able to shoot down 25 to 30 of the attackers.

”According to him, it is also safe to say that the entire Assault Force, the 84th Company, was able to shoot down at least 150 of the enemies,” Napeñas told the Senate inquiry. Napeñas said Lalan, the lone survivor of the 55th Company, also told him that at least 100 members of the combined MILF and BIFF forces were taken down by SAF troopers from his company.

“The 84th and 55th companies which took part in Oplan Exodus also has two and six snipers, respectively, under their helm. For sure, these highly-trained snipers could have shot down on the average at least 20 each from the attackers,” Napeñas said.

He said his estimate did not include those taken down by other SAF troopers from the 45th, 42nd and 41st companies who were likewise engaged in the firefight.

“In other words, had the artillery support we requested arrived on time, the situation would have been entirely different, though I admit, it may not have guaranteed zero-casualty on our part,” Napeñas said.

The 392-member SAF contingent suffered 44 dead and 15 wounded in the firefight that took place when the SAF troopers executed ‘Oplan Exodus’ aimed at capturing two high-value targets, terrorists Zulkifli bin Hir, alias Marwan, and Basit Usman.

Marwan, prime suspect in the Bali bombing that killed 202 people and other bombings in Mindanao, was killed in the operation while Usman, also a bomb-making expert like Marwan and a

BIFF commander, escaped.With the killing of

Marwan, Napeñas called the operation “mission accomplished.”

“Only that it happened with a high price: The lives of 44 brave young men,” he said.

Napeñas said he started working directly against Marwan and Usman as early as 2010.

He said he supervised the operations against Marwan in July 2012 in Butig, Lanao del Sur but the latter managed to escape just a few minutes before SAF troops arrived.

He said former Police Superintendent (retired) Noel delos Reyes, former deputy director for intelligence, knew how Marwan managed to escape.

Senator Francis ‘Chiz’ Escudero moved to invite delos Reyes in the next hearing.

Napeñas said he again supervised the operations called “Oplan Wolverine” on April 25, 2014 to get Marwan but it was unfortunately aborted after the 6th Infantry Division of the Philippine Army withdrew its commitment to provide mechanized brigade units to support the operations.

On May 30, 2014, another operation in coordination with the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) was launched but also aborted due to heavy armed groups’ activity in the target area.

Barely 10 days later, the Philippine Army’s 6th ID mechanized brigade conducted its own operation without coordination from the SAF but they failed to neutralize Marwan and Usman.

“These are just few of the reasons why in the succeeding operations, the coordination with the AFP will be time-on-target of the arresting force, in order to avoid the possibility that our operation would be compromised,” Napeñas said.

Napeñas, however, clarified that he was not blaming the AFP for why the information and preparations of operations seemed to have been leaked whenever they went out against high-value targets. (PNA)

Davao Region.Cosquejo expressed sup-

port for the postponement of the SK election and reschedul-ing it to October 2016 because the government can save up to P1.2 billion.

“The government uses billions just for procurement of election paraphernalia and

salary of teachers who will serve in the election,” he said.

Cosquejo said that bid-ding of the election parapher-nalia will also proceed once the schedule of the SK election is final.

He said that the youth council election will be done manually.

attractions and resources.Instead of towering

buildings and other modern edifices, she said the region boasts of its mountains, free flowing waterfalls and springs, captivating lakes, pristine white sand beach-es as well as well-preserved culture and traditions of local tribal communities.

“A utopia in its modest version where communities are a mixture of old and new, where tribal groups live har-moniously with urban folks and where traditions and cultures all celebrated all-year-round,” she said.

The official said they in-cluded the hashtag or num-ber sign in the tagline to give it a modern touch and assist its promotion efforts in vari-ous social media sites.

She said using the hashtag in the tagline will facilitate its mainstreaming and trending as a topic in the social media.

“When you talk about communication plan, it’s not just about branding and promotion or marketing. It’s also about how and what you need to communicate to your audience. This project is just

a part of what we are trying to communicate,” she said.

DOT-12 launched the “12th Paradise” in late 2013 as the official brand and strat-egy of its revitalized tourism promotions and marketing campaign for the region.

It featured Sarangani province as an adventure haven through its river tub-ing, diving and paragliding attractions; this city for its famed tuna; South Cotabato for Lake Sebu; North Cotaba-to for Mt. Apo; Sultan Kuda-rat for its agri-tourism, natu-ral springs and ziplines; and Cotabato City for its cultural treasures.

The initiative helped propel the region’s tourism industry last year in terms of local and foreign tourist ar-rivals that surged to a record 2.38 million.

The total tourist arrivals in the region last year was around 2.04 million more than the recorded figures in 2013, which only reached 345,328.

It exceeded the agency’s target of 1.9 million tourist arrivals for the period by about 22 percent or around 426,000. (Minda News)

to escape.Both Marwan and Usman

were dubbed as high-value targets in the operation where 44 SAF men were killed after they encountered forces of the BIFF and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF).

Marwan, a Malaysian national, was the technical mastermind behind the 2002 Bali bombing that killed 202 civilians, including 88 Australians.

Napeñas was relieved as

SAF chief due to the death of the 44 SAF commandos for alleged non-coordination with other agencies including the MILF, with which the government has an ongoing ceasefire agreement.

Though SAF lost 44 highly-trained troopers, Napeñas described the operation as successful as they not only killed Marwan but also at least 250 fighters from both the MILF and BIFF. (PNA)

continuation of the PNP’s transformation program.

Just the same, Senior Superintendent Aquino said in his opinion there was a clear bypass of the chain of command in the operation in Mamasapano.

He said officer-in-charge Deputy Director-General

Leonardo Espina and DILG Secretary Mar Roxas should have been informed of the operation.

“I think its an SOP (Standard Operating Procedure) already that the leaders must know everything,” he said. Funny Pearl A. Gajunera

A vulcanizing shop worker takes a morning nap while waiting for customers along E. Quirino Avenue in Davao City yesterday. Lean Daval Jr.

VOL. 7 ISSUE 232 • TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 10, 2015 15SPORTS

AUSTRALIA’S Prime Minister Tony Abbott is facing a leadership crisis that could oust him from his post next week. Auss-

ies here, however, are busier with sports and are leaving politics with their representatives in the Parliament.

That’s the beauty of Australian politics. They can change leaders simply through an act called a spill motion. A spill motion results to division of the house through secret balloting or show of hands.

If the spill motion on Abbott succeeds, the country is bound to see its sixth PM since 2007.

I can only wish our system of government works the same way. A spill motion could have easily been laid down on a lame leadership like ours.

If politics is hot around here, wait until you hit the sporting side of this country Down Un-der.

It’s summer down here and just when you think the sporting action is over with the

A u s t r a l i a n Open having crowned No-vak Djokovic as its king for 2015 and the home soccer squad Soc-ceroos ascend-ing to the top of the Asian Cup, there are a lot of bigger things in store for sports fans.

On Saturday, the country rolls its red car-pet for the 2015 Cricket World Cup where the home team hopes to retain its title.

Call it hubris for a player to say that the home team comes into the tournament ex-pecting to win every game but that’s the way the Aussies approach their stint at the World Cup.

That’s nothing but reality. The team is oozing with self-belief and that is what makes them successful. But they back their talk up. Australia is the world’s top cricket nation with India and South Africa ranking behind the green and gold. The World Cup stretches up to March 29 for the WC Finals.

Cricket is the country’s most popular sport along with rugby and you can see cricket fields in every suburb. Around here, you often see young boys play cricket on the beach.

Basketball is not as popular but they have a thriving league in the National Basketball League (NBL). Last Friday, the city of Perth was filled with people wearing the red jerseys of their home team—Perth Wildcats. The Cats played league-leader Cairns Taipans at home and almost 23,000 fans called the Red Army filled the Pert Arena to root for their home squad.

The Wildcats have enlisted import De-Andre Daniels, a 6-foot-9 small forward from the University of Connecticut. The 22-year old

Daniels was a second round draft pick of the Toronto Raptors in the 2014 NBA Draft. He was a member of the UConn Huskies squad that won the 2014-2014 NCAA title.

Another import for the Wildcats is 6-3 Jermaine Beal, an undrafted NBA aspirant in 2010 from Vanderbilt. 6-1 pointguard Damian Martin, a member of the National Team, leads the locals for the Cats.

With the Red Army barracking the op-position, the Cats purred to a 65-54 win over Cairns and are at no. 3 behind new leader New Zealand Breakers and the Taipans and are one up on Adelaide 36ers.

That’s just as exciting as it can get in sports here in Australia.

Now, back to the spill motion at the Parlia-ment. The World Cup of Cricket is bound to see a new leader when the tournament wears on.

But that’s another ballgame.Postscripts: Listen to “Let’s Get It On with

Neil Bravo” on 105.9 Balita FM every Saturday 8-10 a.m.

Sporting down under

Neil Bravo

LET’S GET IT ON

EDGEDAVAO

INTERNATIONAL Master Oliver Dimakiling captured his fourth straight Kidap-

awan Open crown after rul-ing the seventh edition of the chess championship Sunday in Kidapawan City.

Dimakiling, who hails from Davao City, finished with 8 points on seven wins and two draws after nine rounds to win the title and pocket the P15,000 champion’s purse.

The Davao woodpusher had to pull off a Houdini act against hometown bet Philip John Leyson in the final round to emerge of top of the tourna-ment organized by the Kidap-awan Chess Club Inc. under its president Dr. Ted Calica.

Harrison Maamo made it a 1-2 finish for Davao City after garnering solo second place with 7.5 points. He won P10,000 for his effort.

The top two finishers also won medals from the organiz-ers of the event supported by the Kidapawan City Govern-

ment under the leadership of Mayor Joseph Evangelista and Batch 85-Notre Dame of Kidapwan Boys and Girls HS Alumni Association Inc.

Elias Banguiran of Gener-al Santos City, Allen Mirano of Aklan, Melchor Arcenad Jr. of Cotabato City, Erwin Tubog Jr. Of Davao City and NM Roger Sarip of Midsayap ended up tied for third to seventh places with 7 points.

Banguiran and Mirano took third and fourth places,re-spectively, due to superior tie-break.

Davao del Norte’s Carl Zirex Sato scored 6.5 points to emege Best Junior Player, while Panabo City’s Japheth Aaron Caresosa had 5.5 points to win the Best Kiddie Player award. Davao City’s Janes Hit-field Caingles was the Best Fe-male Player.

Dimakiling first won the tournament in its fourth stag-ing in 2012 and then ruled the event in 2013 and 2014.

Dimakiling wins 4th straight Kidapawan Open chess crown

FRENCHMAN Louis Hut-ter and Malin Amle of Norway put on a pair

of scintillating performances to dominate their respective sides in the Freestyle singles of the ICTSI Philippine Kite-boarding Tour-Season 2 in Bulabog Beach here over the weekend.

Hutter, from St. Malo, Brit-tany, came through with solid powered tricks on a low kite, combining board grabs to daz-zle the crowd and impress the judges and claim top honors in the men’s Freestyle of the event serving as the second leg of a four-stage circuit spon-sored by International Con-tainer Terminal Services. Inc.

Christian Tio, a 13-year-old Boracay-based rising star, also dished out awe-inspiring tricks to finish second while Andrey Sagnyic of Ukraine and another Frenchman Pierre Vogel placed third and fourth, respectively, in the three-day event which drew 120 partic-ipants from Asia and Europe.

Not to be outdone, Amle put her talent and skills in full display, dishing out fast in-and-out tricks with more stability on the kite to rule the women’s Freestyle. The Oslo native, who placed third in the European Championship in Italy last year, defeated Japanese champion Aya Oshima while Julia Tausch from Austria and Poland’s Zu-

zanna Czaplinska placed third and fourth, respectively, in the event backed by Cabrinha, LIP Sunglasses, District of Boracay, Diamond Watersports, The Lazy Dog Bed & Breakfast, Ul-timate Apparel and Boracay Terraces Resort.

German ace Kathrin Bogwart and local bet and Philippine Kiteboarding As-sociation vice president Ken Nacor topped the Cabrinha Hangtime Challenge with the former clinching the win – and a Cabrinha Board – with a 4.7-second hang time. Nacor put on a 5.3-second perfor-mance to bag the top plum in the men’s class, including a Cabrinha Kite worth $2,000.

Finland’s Viola Kaukonen placed second to Bogwart with 4.2 seconds while Romanian Ana Enciu, Amle and Liezl Tio took the next three spots in 3.9, 3.8 and 3.4 seconds, re-spectively.

Swede ace Atte Kappel, who topped the kickoff leg in Sta. Ana, Cagayan last month, settled for second with 5 sec-onds followed by Hutter, War-ner Janoya of Boracay and Swiss Peter Blum with 4.9, 4.8 and 4.3 seconds, respectively.

PKA president Jay Ortiz, who took the TwinTip Race Masters crown in Sta. Ana, is locked in a three-way fight with Kappel and Carlo Leong-son at presstime.

By CHARLES RAYMOND A. MAXEY

Hutter, Amle soar in ICTSI kiteboarding

THE Filipino boxers went five-for-five against their foreign rivals in Pinoy

Pride 29 Saturday at the Uni-versity of Southeastern Phil-ippines (USEP) Gym in Bo. Obrero.

Jason “El Niño” Pagara highlighted the Filipinos’ sen-sational night after scoring a second round knockout win over Cesar “El Dolar” Chavez in the main event.

The 22-year-old Pagara displayed ring savvy in dis-mantling Chavez, dropping the Mexican twice in the open-ing round before finishing him off with a left hook to the head in the second.

With the victory, Pagara retained his WBO internation-al junior welterweight crown.

Mark “Magnifico” Mag-sayo was as awesome as Pa-gara, scoring a fifth round stoppage over Sukkasem Ki-

etyongyuth of Thailand. The end came for the Thai

when Magsayo landed an overhand right to the heads and sent his opponent out of the ropes. The referee halted the bout at the 2:10 minute mark if the round.

Genesis “Azukal” Servania also kept his WBO interconti-nental junior featherweight ti-tle after outpointing Juan Luis “Perla Negra” Hernandez also of Mexico in 12 rounds.

Also winning were “King” Arthur Villanueva and Arjan “Spartan” Canillas.

Villanueva outpointed Julio Cesar Miranda while Canillas stopped Stevi Ongen Ferdinadus of Indonesia in the fourth round.

Pinoy Pride 29 was pro-moted by the ALA Promo-tions in cooperation with ABS-CBN. (Charles Raymond A. Maxey)

Filipino boxers scoresweep in Pinoy Pride 29

Ken Nacor performs his trick on his way to winning the Hangtime crown in the second leg of the ICTSI Kiteboarding Tour in Boracay.

CHRISTOPHER “Bong” Go waxed hot from behind arc to lift City Mayors Of-

fice roll past Everball Columbia Computer Center, 83 – 80, for 11th straight win in their 2015 Basketball Friendly Series on Friday night at the Genesis 88 Gym in Ecoland

Go, who has been an elite three-pointer ever since, drained seven booming triples

to finish the game with 31 points as the City Hall dribblers kept the Everball Columbia winless.

Out of guarded catch-and-shoots and sliding off the screens, the sweet-shooting trusted-aid of Mayor Rodrigo Duterte practically knocked down trey from all angles that routinely bended out Everball Columbia defenders.

Joel Aberilla chipped in 15

points as Eric Flores had 11 for CMO which beaten Everball Columbia for 14thstraight time dating back last year.

Everball Columbia came out strong and looked good to end its losing skid.

Sparked by the remarkable showing of John Macatabog, Ev-erball Columbia took the driver seat early, grabbing a double dig-it lead midway of the first half.

But they tailed off in the final stretch, failing to execute and defend, to loss another close game.

Macatabog paced Everball Columbia with 27 points. Filbon Maligro and Barriga made 14 and 13 respectively.

CMO won all the games in the series highlighted lately with several come from behind victo-ries. (Rico Biliran)

Red-hot Go helps CMO for 11th straight victory

VOL. 7 ISSUE 232 • TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 10, 2015

REAL DEAL?16 EDGEDAVAOSports

AFTER a stunning knockout win, Ja-son Pagara made

it to the headlines of the sports pages anew

and became an in-stant celebrity

in Davao City with his per-

fo r m a n c e in the

m a i n

e v e n t of Pinoy

Pride 29.Captivated by

his charm and savvy boxing skills, Pagara was mobbed by Davao fans as soon as he stepped out of the ring follow-ing his sensational second round stop-page of Mexican challenger Cesar “El Dolar” Chavez deep into Satur-day night, each of them want-ing to hold him

and take souvenir photos with the Filipino champi-on with their gadgets.

But, amid the pande-monium and excitement over his latest victory, the young Pagara left so many questions than answers as to his true worth as a fighter today.

To ALA Promotions president and CEO Michael Aldeguer, the answers to those questions will not be revealed until Pagara fights the big names in his weight division.

“I think Jason’s one guy that is always in

question. People ask him if he’s really the real deal because of his weight division,” Aldeguer told reporters. “Jason’s been knocking guys out, but until he comes to fight the big names, that’s when we pick up some answers.”

Is Jason Pagara for real?

Has he reached world-class status with his latest victory?

Out to prove his box-er’s real worth, Aldeg-uer is now bringing the 22-year-old Pagara to the US for the first ALA Pro-motions card in America come May 23 in California.

Aldeguer said he will fly Pagara out of the coun-

try after the March 28 Pinoy Pride 30 in Manila and have him undergo rig-id training in time for the May 23 card. After this, Pa-gara will fight a big name probably in September or October, according to the top ALA Promotions hon-cho.

Before the US cam-paign take place, Pagara made heads turn already in Davao City with that sterling performance at the USEP Gym.

Pagara, quick with his feet and fast with his hands, dropped Chavez twice in the opening round with vicious body blows and head shots before stopping his opponent in the second with a jarring left hook.

The final punch dropped Chavez to his knees and New Zealander referee Bruce McTavish waived off the bout at the 1:56 mark, giving Pagara a TKO triumph amid the cheers of the highly-ap-preciative Davao crowd.

Just like that, Pagara, called El Niño, retained his World Boxing Orga-nization (WBO) interna-tional junior welterweight crown and improved his record to 35-2 with 22 knockouts.

Jason Pagara out to prove true worth with US campaign starting in May

By CHARLES RAYMOND A. MAXEY

Mexican challenger Cesar “El Dolar” Chavez puts his head on the canvas in pain after he was hit by a left hook to the jaw by WBO International Junior Welterweight Champion Jason “El Niño Pagara. Lean Daval Jr.

WBO International Junior Welterweight champion Jason “El Niño” Pagara gamely poses for photographers after scoring the sensational second round knockout win. Lean Daval Jr.