The Standard - 2016 May 16 - Monday

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IT experts hitComelec forSmartmatictampering

Duterte spokesman slams leftist critics

VOL. XXX � NO. 93 � 3 Sections 32 Pages P18 � MONDAY : MAY 16, 2016 � www.thestandard.com.ph � [email protected]

Declareexpenses,winningbets told

POLL BODY RAPPEDFOR ‘HELLO, GARCIA’

Peace be with you. Vice presidential candidate Senator Ferdinand Marcos Jr. greets his fellow churchgoers at a mass at the Shrine of Our Lady of Perpetual Help in Baclaran, Parañaque City on Sunday. Marcos was joined by his wife Liza, son Sandro, mother Imelda and other relatives and friends at the service. EY ACASIO

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Rody notkeen onpursuingVP Binay

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By John Paolo Bencito and Rio N. Araja

THE camp of the president-in-waiting Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte slammed leftist groups Sunday for criticizing his eight-point economic program as “a continuation of the neo-liberal poison imposed on the people by the Aquino regime” and accused

them of being “roadblocks to genuine change.”

“Leftist groups have rejected the hands of friendship and cooperation by the incoming Duterte administra-tion by mouthing their usual criticism of others but not undertaking their own criticism, self-criticism,” said Peter Laviña, Duterte’s spokesman, marking a break from the conciliatory

tone the mayor has taken toward the communists.

“I am truly sorry for these left-ist groups which will be left out in the march of history with their dogma and belligerent styles and methods of work. They need to right their wrongs and stop becoming roadblocks to genuine change,” Laviña said in his Facebook page.

By Christine F. Herrera

IT EXPERTS on Sunday ac-cused the Commission on Elections of electoral sabo-tage for engaging the services of Marlon Garcia, the same Smartmatic project direc-tor who was embroiled in an election-related scandal in 2013, also for tampering with the transparency server.

The Venezuelan technician admit-ted last week that he had introduced a script into the transparency server after voting had ended on May 9, but said it was just “a cosmetic change.”

But IT expert and former Biliran Rep. Glenn Chong, a convener of AESWatch, vowed to revive his case against Garcia, the Comelec and other Smartmatic of-ficials for “undermining the integrity” of elections.

Chong, who ran but lost the 2013 congressional race, likened his case to independent vice presidential can-didate Senator Ferdinand Marcos Jr., whose one-million vote lead over Ro-bredo vanished after a few hours after the script was introduced.

Chong likened Garcia to former Comelec official Virgilio Garcillano, who was accused of electoral fraud dur-ing the Arroyo administration.

Garcillano was made famous for the “Hello Garci” scandal when then Presi-dent Gloria Macapagal Arroyo allegedly called him up and ordered him to take care of the administration candidates.

In a complaint lodged with the Comelec and the Department of Jus-tice, copies of which were obtained by

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NEWS

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4.2-m votes for VP still uncounted

The broad economic priorities under a Duterte presidency that former Ag-riculture secretary Carlos Dominguez laid out Thurs-day would be wide-ranging, and include tax reforms, the acceleration of infrastructure building, support services for farmers and a reduction in crime to attract foreign in-vestments.

In a statement in the ear-lier part of the campaign, the Communist Party of the Philippines also twitted the Davao mayor.

“In the hope of boosting his chances of gaining popu-lar support, he issues radical sound bytes about destroying the government and setting up a new one,” the party said.

“Talk is cheap, however, es-pecially during the electoral campaign. If he ever wins, he will still have to prove himself in practice: Will he be like Venezuela’s [Hugo] Chavez who stood up to the bully-ing of the US government and promoted nationaliza-tion, a social welfare state and the arming of the people in Venezuela? Or will he be like Greece’s [Alexis] Tsipras who defended the welfare state in political debate but who later acceded to IMF and EU aus-

terity policy impositions?”The CPP added that Du-

terte has not exposed “any fundamental shift from the general run of neo-liberal economic policy of the past 30 or so years.”

“On the contrary, he has promised to expand privati-zation and deregulation and declared plans to provide state funds to Lucio Tan and his ilk of big bourgeois com-pradors; and liberalization of trade by allowing the dump-ing of surplus steel from Chi-na,” the rebel group said.

Militant groups main-tained that Duterte’s economic agenda only entails “business as usual” politics, contrary to Duterte’s promise of pro-peo-ple economic development.

“We realize though that these issues and demands will not be resolved simply by submitting proposals to the powers-that-be. Their achievement relies on actual struggle by the people them-selves, especially since the ruling elite stand opposed to these pro-people reforms. In the end, it will be the peo-ple, not the politicians, who will be decisive in achieving real change,” Renato Reyes, secretary-general for militant group Bagong Alyansang Makabayan, said in a state-ment.

Sonny Africa, executive director for economic think

tank Ibon Foundation, said that Duterte’s policies don’t really differ from those of the other candidates.

“Despite his singular per-sonality it turns out that his plans for the economy are strikingly interchangeable with the other losing can-didates and even with the outgoing Aquino administra-tion,” Africa said.

“His transition team hur-riedly presented an eight-point economic agenda to assuage elite panic. Belying Duterte’s powerful campaign theme of change, it embraces and upholds neo-liberal eco-nomic policies that enrich a few but keep the national economy backward and tens of millions of Filipinos in poverty,” he added.

Laviña, however, said that efforts to sustain “gains even little by little here and there to advance the cause of the masses are better than none at all.”

“They should bring down their utopian dreams closer to reality... To perpetuate the sufferings of the masses is treasonous,” Duterte’s spokesperson said.

“Here is an unsolicited ad-vice to them—dialogue with the incoming government instead of mounting black propaganda to be heard,” he added.

He also slammed leftist

groups for vilifying the may-or and supporting the candi-dacy of Senator Grace Poe.

“For groups that claim that they are patriotic, nationalist and anti-imperialist, many were aghast in their deci-sion to go with someone who abandoned our country and once pledged allegiance to the US,” he said.

“In their desire to push one of their national officials to be senator, they rush to a hasty decision, rejecting calls to wait for the maturing of the political situation before deciding,” he added.

“Having done these mis-takes, they want to continue with their old ways of criti-quing, critiquing, critiquing,” he added.

Throughout the campaign, Duterte maintained his “left-ist” sentiments and voiced his dissatisfaction with the ruling elite that he claimed were taking out opportuni-ties from the countryside.

Duterte’s mentor, the ex-iled communist leader Jose Ma. Sison, also expressed his openness to a ceasefire between the left and the government, and expressed his intention to return to the country under a Duterte presidency.

He also added that he wanted to meet his student in Europe before he assumes the presidency.

A lawyer for an opposi-tion group who asked not to be named said the number of provinces with discrepancies has ballooned to 20 provinces, and that the hard copies of election returns did not match with the transmitted tally sent to the transparency server of the Parish Pastoral Council for Responsible Voting.

“There are discrepancies between the votes transmit-ted to PPCRV and the server of Comelec,” the lawyer said.

The source did not say which provinces were affect-ed, however, saying these re-ports were still being verified.

Comelec Commissioner Christian Robert Lim main-tained that there are only six provinces where votes have discrepancies and were now being audited by a subcom-mittee created by the Come-lec.

The six provinces that are still undergoing manual au-dit at the national board of canvassers are Benguet with estimated voters turnout of 281,833; Ilocos Sur with 329,561; Zamboanga del Sur with 780,760; Misamis Orien-tal with 690,528; Nueva Ecija, 1,055,726; and Iloilo with 1,078,011.

Lim also said that the 15 CoCs that have yet to be canvassed due to ongoing special elections are: Lanao del Sur, Maguindanao, Sulu, Apayao, Negros Occidental, Marinduque, Zamboanga del Norte, Cebu, Sarangani, Agu-san del Sur, Leyte, Eastern Sa-mar, Northern Samar, Samar and Antique.

Comelec Secretary Con-suelo Diola supported Lim’s count.

“If they are claiming that there are 20 provinces, they may put them in writing,” she said, adding that political representatives have submit-ted manifestations to audit the votes of the six provinces.

Diola said that there are several discrepancies that has been resolved during the manual auditing of subcom-mittee on Sunday,

She said they expect that several political parties will be withdrawing their manifesta-tions concerning the CoCs of six provinces.

Diola said the votes that were transmitted from the vote counting machines to the transparency server were those election returns while the results transmitted to the Comelec server are those that have already been canvassed and consolidated.

“So these are just a seeming discrepancies,” she said.

Aside from the 15 CoCs and the six provinces, Diola

also admitted that provinces of Laguna and Southern Leyte were ordered “quarantined.”

She said Leyte’s CoCs was quarantined after the prov-ince failed to include votes from two towns while Laguna transmitted the result from the Pre-Election Logical Ac-curacy Test that had been con-ducted before the elections.

“The CoCs from Laguna and Southern Leyte remain under quarantine and we are still awaiting their respective chairmen of the provincial board of canvassers to arrive here,” Diola said.

The manual auditing began at around 10:40 a.m Sunday at the Philippine International Convention Center in Pasay City.

The subcommittee started by reopening a ballot box from Benguet.

But the verification process was halted after they learned that the ballot box contained CoCs for the presidential and vice presidential race.

Ballot boxes from Mis-amis Oriental were also being opened.

The CoCs were presented to legal counsels of represent-atives of respective senato-rial candidates and party-list groups for them to verify and scrutinize the results from the transparency server.

Representatives of some candidates have expressed their plan to file a manifesta-tion for further study by the National Board of Canvasser, after discrepancies were de-tected in CoCs from Laguna and Ilocos Sur.

In the case of Baguio City and Benguet, meanwhile, the transparency server had com-bined the votes from the prov-ince and city, even though they were indicated separately in the CoCs.

The reaudit of the CoCs, however, showed that the number of votes reflected by the transparency server was the same as the total of the fig-ures on the document.

As of Saturday, a total of 149 out of 164 CoCs have been tal-lied by the NBC.

Lim assured that this audit-ing process will only take two days.

On Friday, the Comelec announced that it is look-ing to proclaim the 12 win-ing senators on Tuesday or Thursday.

Also on Sunday, a Comelec official said vice presidential candidate Senator Ferdi-nand Marcos Jr. was leading the overseas absentee voting count over administration bet Camarines Sur Rep. Leni Robredo. With John Paolo Bencito

By Sara Susanne D. Fabunan

THE outcome of the vice presidential race is still uncertain as the Commission on Elec-tions admitted there are still discrepancies in the certificates of canvass from six provinces, accounting for about 4.2-million votes, and special elections to be held in 11 towns with 19,791 votes.

The Standard, Chong said on May 13, 2013, Garcia, then Smartmatic technol-ogy manager, “inexplicably changed the scripts on the un-reviewed source code at or about the time of the can-vassing purportedly to adjust the questionable figures” re-ceived and announced by the transparency server without notifying the Comelec and concerned political parties.

The tampering was made two hours after the voting closed, Chong said.

At 7:30 p.m. of May 9, 2016, two hours after the voting closed and canvassing was al-ready in progress, Garcia, now Smartmatic project director, ordered the introduction of a new script that resulted in the “breach” and change of a hash code that was supposed to protect the integrity of the packet data files in the trans-parency server, he said.

This developed as lawyer Harry Roque, first nominee of Kabayan party-list that won a seat in Congress, said Smart-matic must be investigated and be held liable for the un-authorized and patently illegal change in the server script.

“Their questionable move has brought serious doubts into the credibility of what should have been an oth-erwise orderly elections,” Roque said.

“That the change they introduced was cosmetic is not the crux of the matter. The point is that the script was changed, and with-

out authorization at that. If Smartmatic was able to freely change the script without Comelec’s prior approval, any result can now be changed by them,” he said.

“If one character can be changed, so can others,” Roque said.

Chong said he could not understand why the Come-lec had to hire the services of Garcia again when his penchant for violating the country’s laws were officially recorded as evidenced by the pending cases against him.

He said charges of electoral fraud were filed against Gar-cia and his fellow Smartmatic officials Albert Castro Rico and Cesar Flores.

Apart from Chong, those who co-signed the complaint were Leo Querubin, Maria Corazon Akol and former Comelec commissioner Au-gusto Lagman.

In the complaint, Garcia had tampered with the trans-parency service to “fix” the figures of about 12 million votes for the senatorial elec-tion as the numbers “far ex-ceeded the number of voters in the precincts.”

The complainants said Garcia had to introduce scripts to “adjust the ques-tionable figures.”

“Garcia had done it already three years ago and he did it again yet the Comelec still tapped him to do the dirty job for them,” Chong said.

Garcia admitted having or-dered the change in the hash code but said a new script had to be introduced to change the “?” to “ñ” in the names of some candidates such as

Roy Señeres for president and Sergio Osmeña and Getulio Napeñas for senator.

“Smartmatic made a seri-ous security breach, one that should not have been allowed and one that they should be held liable for. As a petitioner against Smartmatic since way back 2009, I welcome the promise of Commissioner Ro-wena Guanzon to have them investigated,” Roque said.

Guanzon said Sunday the Smartmatic officials should not be allowed to leave the country while the incident is being investigated.

Chong echoed the views of an IT expert who exposed Garcia’s “illegal moves.”

At 4:57 a.m., Chong said Robredo overtook Marcos and posted a margin of 575 votes and since then had steady increased the margin to over 200,000 votes.

Chong said he suffered a similar fate as Marcos when his 2,000-vote lead was over-taken at 5 a.m.

“The hash code is like an electronic seal for the pro-gram but the Comelec al-lowed Garcia and Smartmatic to tinker with it just like that,” Chong said.

He said several senatorial candidates were most likely affected by the change in the script or commands.

“I would not be surprised for other people to believe that former Justice Leila de Lima, who consistently hung on to the 12th slot for the senatorial race, deliberately sat on our case because of the magic that Smartmatic offi-cials can do,” Chong said.

De Lima, he said, failed to

act on their complaint just like the Comelec.

So if I were Francis To-lentino, Osmeña and Mar-tin Romualdez, who ranked 13th, 14th and 15th, respec-tively in the senatorial race, I would watch the figures very closely,” Chong said.

In the case of the Comelec, Chong said the officials also did not lift a finger on the complaint and even favored Smartmatic by awarding to the Venezuelan firm multi-million-peso contracts.

“The lowest bidders in the P507.7-million transmission contract, the P1.1-million thermal paper and P122.7-million national technical sup-port system had been disquali-fied by the Comelec in favor of Smartmatic. Smartmatic is the most favored bidder by the Comelec,” Chong said.

Smartmatic, he said, re-mains “untouchable” to this day.

The IT expert who spoke on condition of anonymity said the Comelec had surren-dered its matching password twice to Smartmatic, allow-ing Garcia to breach the sys-tem with the new code.

The surrender of the matching password by the Comelec gave the Venezuelan firm Smartmatic full access to and complete control over the transparency server, according to the Parish Pastoral Council for Responsible Voting-accredited IT expert, who requested anonymity so as not to violate the source’s non-disclosure agreement. With Macon Ramos-Araneta and Rey E. Requejo

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[email protected]

Duterte says he does notintend to run after Binay

Resumption. Commision on Elections officials reopen a ballot box from Benguet for a reaudit of the election results during Sunday’s resumption of the canvassing at the Comelec’s Command Center at the PICC tent in Pasay City. EY ACASIO

Candlelight Memorial. The Department of Health and Quezon City conducted the world’s first AIDS Hour, when people gathered at the Quezon City Memorial Circle to observe the 33rd International AIDS Candlelight Memorial on Sunday. MANNY PALMERO

302 voters in Antiquewill finally vote today

Electedofficialstold to filestatements

A WEEK after failing to cast their votes, 302 registered voters are set to vote today, Monday, when they participate in the special elections called by the Commission on Elec-tions in certain towns in Antique.

The special elections in Ma-buyong, Anini-y and Insubuan, San Remigio, will be held from 5 a.m. to 6 p.m.

“Only those voters in the Clus-tered Precinct No. 3 in Brgy. Ma-buyong, Anini-y and Clustered Precinct No. 25 in Barangay In-subuan, San Remigio, who were not able to vote during the May 9 elections, shall be allowed to vote,” the Comelec says in a resolution.

The Comelec had previously reported that 268 voters in Ma-buyong village and 34 voters in Insubuan village were not able to

vote on May 9 after their respec-tive clustered precincts lacked the required number of official ballots.

Mabuyong village has 691 reg-istered voters while Insubuan vil-lage has 158.

Comelec Resolution 10129 orig-inally scheduled the special elec-tions in Antique on May 14, but pushed it back to May 16.

The poll body says the votes from the precincts will not be electronically transmitted and will be canvassed manually.

“The election returns generated during the May 16 special elec-tions shall be denominated and labeled as supplemental election returns to distinguish them from the May 9 election returns,” Reso-lution 10137 says. Sara Susanne D. Fabunan

THE Interior Department on Sunday reminded all newly elected officials they must submit their Statement of Con-tributions and Expenditures to the Commission on Elections before they are allowed to as-sume office.

In a memorandum, outgoing Interior Secretary Mel Senen Sarmiento urged the elected officials to file their SOCE by June 9 and submit to his de-partment a certification on their SOCE compliance by June 17.

He cited Republic Act 7166 that says “No person elected to any public office shall enter or assume the duties of his office until he has filed the SOCE.”

The law says “Every candi-date and treasurer of the po-litical party shall, within thirty days after the day of the elec-tion, file in duplicate with the offices of the Comelec the full, true and itemized statement of all contributions and expendi-tures in connection with the election.”

Sarmiento said a winning candidate was required to pre-sent a certification from the Comelec that he or she had sat-isfactorily complied with Re-public Act 7166.

“In the absence of this certi-fication, the winning candidate cannot enter into the execution of his or her office pursuant to Paragraph 2 of the same provi-sion of the law,” he said.

Winning provincial of-ficials are obliged to submit their Comelec certifications to the DILG’s provincial di-rectors while the winning city and municipal officials are re-quired to submit their SOCEs to their respective DILG city or municipal directors. John Paolo Bencito

“The vice president called up, greeted me and said congratula-tions,” Duterte said.

“And I said Thank you. I then mentioned that he had not prob-lems with me. I am not the only one who enforces the law. I will not go around finding faults. I would rather spend my time look-ing for solutions.”

Duterte’s recent statements, however, ran counter with his po-

litical party’s earlier statement that it intended to send Binay to jail.

After Davao City Mayor Du-terte landed in the top spot in the preferential polls against the other contenders including Binay—the former front runner—Binay stepped up his attacks on Duterte in April, saying the criminals who were “either killed or sent to jail in Davao City all came from the ranks of the poor.”

PRESUMPTIVE President Rodrigo Duterte said Sun-day he does not intend to run after Vice President Je-jomar Binay who is being accused of graft charges over the allegedly questionable purchases during his tenure as mayor of Makati.

“Binay would in all likelihood be the first big fish to be sent to jail with the preponderance of ev-idence of corruption against him during his stint as Makati mayor for more than 20 years,” Senator Aquilino Pimentel III, the presi-dent of PDP-Laban, Duterte’s po-litical party, said in statement.

Pimentel said a Duterte ad-ministration would spare no one regardless of social status or po-litical affiliation in a relentless campaign against crime and cor-ruption.

The Office of the Ombudsman is expected to file criminal cases against Binay over the alleged overpricing of Makati City Hall Building II when his immunity from suit expires after he steps

down from office next month.In his campaign sorties, Duterte

promised that, if elected, he would release former president and now Pampanga Rep. Gloria Macapagal Arroyo from detention.

“I will release her. Why? Be-cause the evidence [against her] is weak. I know that. I am a lawyer,” Duterte said in Pampanga in Feb-ruary this year.

His top aide, Christopher Go, said Duterte would not follow in the footsteps of President Benigno Aquino III, who has been de-scribed as vindictive against his political rivals.

Duterte has offered his hand of reconciliation with his opponents, saying the time has come for heal-ing. John Paolo Bencito

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Communist rebels kill3 AFP troops in Negros

SYDNEY, Australia—Five young men face life behind bars after they were charged with ter-rorism offenses over a plan to sail to Indonesia to join jihadist groups in Syria, Australian po-lice said.

The men, aged in their 20s and early 30s and whose passports had been canceled, in-cluded notorious Aus-tralian Islamic preacher Musa Cerantonio, who was captured in the Philippines in 2014 and deported for reportedly urging people to join jihad in Iraq and Syria, the Australian Broad-casting Corp. reported.

The men, who were arrested on Tuesday, bought a seven-me-ter boat and drove it 2,840 kilometers from Melbourne north to Queensland state where they planned to set sail to Indonesia, the Aus-tralian Federal Police said.

“The men... were each charged with one count of making preparations for incursions into for-eign countries for the purpose of engaging in hostile activities,” the Australian Federal Po-lice said in a statement late Saturday.

“The maximum pen-alty for this offense is life imprisonment.”

The Australian Broadcasting Corp. named two of the other men as Shayden Thorne and Kadir Kaya.

The Federal Police said there was no cur-rent or impending ter-rorism threat from the case and that the men were due at a Queensland state court hearing on Monday. AFP

The soldiers were on the central island of Negros on Saturday inves-tigating reports that New People’s Army guerrillas were extorting money from villagers when they clashed with about 10 rebels, leaving three soldiers dead and two wound-ed, a military report said.

The violence comes just days after Duterte said he was open to

resuming peace talks aimed at ending a decades-old insurgency that has claimed tens of thousands of lives.

After his May 9 election victory, Duterte’s spokesman said the fire-brand politician may release jailed communist rebels in an effort to reopen peace talks.

Incumbent President Benigno

Aquino III ended talks with the Communist Party of the Philip-pines in 2013 over the rebels’ de-mand for the unconditional release of their detained comrades, which his government was unwilling to grant.

Duterte, a hardline mayor ac-cused of running vigilante death squads that have allegedly killed more than a thousand crime sus-pects in Davao, is a friend of The Netherlands-based Jose Maria Si-son, who set up the communist party in 1968.

Duterte, who takes office on June 30, has previously described him-self as a socialist.

Running for almost half a centu-ry, the communist insurgency has claimed 30,000 lives, according to military estimates.

The rebels’ strength has dwin-dled to less than 4,000 fighters from a peak of more than 26,000 in the late 1980s, according to the military.

However, it retains support among the deeply poor in the rural Philippines. AFP

‘Piracy in Asean seas rising’JAKARTA—Indonesia’s Defense Minister Ryamizard Ryacudu has urged Association of Southeast Asian Nations countries to inten-sify joint patrolling to prevent the region’s waters from falling prey to Somalia-style piracy.

“The Malacca Strait waters that link countries such as Indonesia, Malaysia, Brunei and the Philip-pines, must not become like So-malia waters where piracy is ram-pant,” he said.

Ryacudu called for strengthen-ing joint patrolling and coopera-tion among these countries.

In the past months, there have been incidents of piracy involving vessels passing through the Ma-lacca Strait and waters bordering the Philippines, Indonesia and Ma-

laysia, followed by hostage-taking. A number of Indonesian citizens were the victims.

Toward the end of March, tugboat Brahma 12 and barge Anand 12 were hijacked in the waters off Tawi-Tawi in Mindanao while sailing from Indonesia’s province of South Kali-mantan to the Philippines.

Ten crew members of the vessel, all Indonesian citizens, were held hostage in the incident and only released earlier this month.

Tugboat TB Henry and barge Cristi were also hijacked on April 15 while on their way from Cebu to Tarakan in North Kalimantan.

Four of their crew members were also held hostage and re-leased in the second week of this month. PNA

Baclaran visit. Outgoing Leyte Rep. Martin Romualdez and his wife, congresswoman-elect Yedda Mendoza-Romualdez, join vice presidential candidate Senator Ferdinand Marcos Jr. at a mass at the Shrine of Our Lady of Perpetual Help in Baclaran, Parañaque City on Sunday. EY ACASIO

5 Aussiesface lifefor joiningterror plot

Visiting vessel. The Korean National Maritime University training ship ‘Saeyudal’ docks at Pier 13 of the Manila South Harbor on Sunday, the start of its four-day goodwill visit to the Philippines. DANNY PATA

COMMUNIST guerrillas killed three soldiers in the first fatal clash since president-in-waiting Rodrigo Duterte offered to restart stalled peace talks, the military said on Sunday.

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Radar project up for grabsBy Florante S. Solmerin

THE Department of National Defense has scheduled the opening of bid documents on May 27, 2016 for two items under the Philippine Air Force’s Radar Basing Support System Project worth P521,648,939.26.

Separate jail eyedfor drug convicts

Palace hits out at China over maritime disputes

By Macon Araneta

REELECTED Senator Vicente Sotto III has filed a bill that seeks to estab-lish a separate jail for the country’s big-time drug offenders to boost the government’s campaign against illegal drugs.

Sotto said his pro-posal , Senate Bill No. 3226, provides for differ-ent categories of drug of-fenders and inmates who would be kept in separate institutions or parts of institutions taking into account their sex, crimi-nal records, legal status of their detention and the requirements for their re-habilitation

In his explanatory note of Senate Bill No. 3226, Sotto said that the pres-ent treatment program and detention security measures in the Bureau of Corrections are in-adequate to prevent con-victed drugs lords from continuing with their il-legal practices even while in detention at the New Bilibid Prisons.

“Recent incidents proved that convicted drug lords have continued to ply their trade inside the premises of the national penitentiary, probably with the aid of regular inmates with whom they are commingled with,” Sotto said.

In December last year, enforcers from the National Bureau of Investigation, Philip-pine Drug Enforcement Agency and Philippine National Police, raided the NBP’s maximum security compound where they found drug-making equipment and entertainment gadgets.

He said that the phi-losophy of penology rec-ognizes the need to clas-sify the prisoners into reasonable categories for rehabilitation, treatment and protection of society.

“This is one of the mandated responsibili-ties of the Bureau of Cor-rections in safekeeping inmates and completely incapacitating them, especially high-level illegal-drugs offenders, while serving their sen-tences,” Sotto said.

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Back to school blues. Young mom buys notebooks and other school supplies at Divisoria in preparation for the school opening next month. MANNY PALMERO

By Sandy Araneta

MALACAÑANG on Sunday denounced Chi-na’s refusal to take part in a proceeding to re-solve the disputes in the South China Sea, filed before the Permanent Court of Arbitration, an international organization based in the Peace Palace, The Hague.

“The participation of the Philippines in inter-national arbitration proceedings of the arbitra-tion court is a strong adherence to the principles enshrined in the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea or Unclos,” said Communica-tions Secretary Herminio Coloma Jr.

“This is due to the promotion of our coun-try of a rules-based approach towards the peaceful resolution of issues concerning mari-time entitlement claims in the West Philippine Sea,” said Coloma.

“In our perspective, being part of the interna-tional community, China could show its compli-ance with Unclos, which is one of the signatories and other similar international laws, through its participation or participating in arbitration,” said Coloma Jr.

“The Philippines is not alone in believing the country is justified in the filing of the petition before the arbitral tribunal. Many countries in-cluding the following: United States, Great Brit-ain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy and Japan; expressed promoting the principles of peace, security and stability in the Asia-Pacific region, and resistance to what they called ‘intimidating, coercive or provocative unilateral actions that could alter the status quo and increase tensions’ in the South China Sea or West Philippine Sea, Coloma said.

Beijing earlier lashed out at the South China

Sea tribunal and refused to participate in the case.An international arbitration tribunal abused

its powers and acted unjustly by taking up Ma-nila’s case against Beijing over their South China Sea dispute, China has said in its latest attempt to justify why it refused to take part in the pro-ceedings or accept the impending ruling.

Senior diplomat Xu Hong said at a media briefing earlier that the tribunal’s five judges had “rushed” to hear the case without examin-ing the link between Manila’s claims and ter-ritorial sovereignty.

The Philippines has submitted claims in three areas: clarifying the legality of China’s nine-dash line that covers a large swathe of the South Chi-na Sea; the status of Chinese-occupied features such as reefs and their maritime entitlements; and China’s activities in what the Philippines considers its exclusive economic zone.

DND’s bids and award committee said the two items (lots) consist of site development, rehabilita-tion/repairs, new construc-tions, and other require-ments at Mt. Salakot to include Antonio Bautista Air Base in Puerto Princ-esa City, Palawan (Lot 1) and at the Paredes Air Sta-tion in Pasuquin, Ilocos Norte (Lot 2).

Both radar stations are facing the West Philip-pine Sea where the Pana-tag (Scarborough) Shoal in Masinloc, Zambales and the Kalayaan Islands Group in Palawan are situated. These territories have either been seized and or being oc-cupied by Beijing through its illegal “nine-dash line” which Manila opposed by filing an arbitration case be-fore an international tribu-nal. The Hague is expected to issue a verdict in June this year.

The same DND-BAC be-ing chaired by assistant secretary Roy Deveraturda earlier opened the bid for all 3 lots including Lot 1 for P712,659,553.18.

The DND-BAC has yet to disclose who won Lot 1 which has a total bud-get of P191,010,613.92 for which the opening of bid was slated on Feb. 17, 2016. The budget is for the Gozar Air Station Radar Site and the Philippine Air Defense Control Center Project in Lubang Island, Occidental Mindoro.

The defense department had signed a deal in De-cember 2015 with Israel-based Elta System Ltd. for the procurement of 3 air surveillance radars (pos-sibly ELM 2288 Radar sys-tem) worth P2.68 billion to boost its maritime surveil-lance in the WPS.

The ELM 2288 is report-edly a derivative from the TPS-77 of the United States Air Force.

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MMDA collects 178 tons of pollgarbage

PH nurses seeking US jobs up by 16%More and more Philippine-ed-ucated nurses are seeking green-er pastures in the United States, according to Cebu rep. Gerald Gullas Jr.

At least 1,377 took the US licensure ex-amination for the first time from January to March this year, in the hopes of practicing their profession in America, Gullas said Sunday.

The number was up by 16.4 percent from the 1,183 Filipino nurses that took the US li-censure test, or the NCLEX, for the first time in the same three months in 2015, said Gul-las, vice chairman of the House committee on higher and technical education.

The number of Filipino nurses taking the NCLEX for the first time (excluding repeaters) is considered a reliable indica-tor as to how many of them are trying to obtain US licenses and seek gainful em-

ployment in America. “Filipino nurses are among the hardest-

working staff in American hospitals today. In fact, on weekends and holidays, Filipino nurs-es are readily available for additional work, when other nurses prefer to take the dayoff,” Gullas said.

America itself has been producing a large number of nursing graduates every year, but Gullas said many of them choose to pursue other occupations.

“Many US-educated nurses practice their profession only for a few years. They easily get tired of tough hospital work and simply shift to other careers,” Gullas pointed out.

In the last 20 years, an annual average of 8,134 nurses educated in the Philippines took the NCLEX for the first time.

Among foreign-educated nurses, Fili-pinos remain the most zealous job-seek-ers in America, where registered nurses receive a median annual pay of $66,640 (P3.1 million), or an hourly rate of $32.04 (P1,492), according to the US Bureau of

Labor Statistics. From January to March this year, a total

of 287 Indians, 171 Puerto Ricans, 103 South Koreans and 93 Jamaicans also took the NCLEX for the first time.

In occupational outlooks, the BLS said the US would need 439,300 additional RNs plus 53,400 advanced practice nurses between now until 2024.

The BLS said employment growth will occur for a number of reasons, including the surge of newly insured patients due to Obamacare, or the US Affordable Care Act; the stronger emphasis on preventive care; and the rapidly increasing number of chronic conditions, such as diabetes and obesity.

The bureau also cited the robust demand for healthcare services from America’s aging baby-boom generation, as they live longer and more active lives.

Statistics from the US National Council of State Boards of Nursing Inc. show that a total of 53,297 US-educated nurses, including repeaters, took the NCLEX for RNs in the first quarter.

Protect kids from second-hand smoke, solon urgesBy Maricel V. Cruz

A REELECTIONIST lawmaker has vowed to champion a measure that will protect children from second-hand smoke in public places and enclosed areas by pushing for the amendment of the Tobacco Regulation Act of 2003 in the 17th Congress.

Quezon City Rep. Alfred Vargas said the Constitu-tion identifies children as one of the groups that must be prioritized in health development.

He cited the World Health Organization and the De-partment of Health 2009 study, which reported that children are more vulnerable to the dangers of second-hand smoke compared to adults because of their small built.

Another factor that makes children vulnerable is their ability to breathe faster than adults, which expos-es them to a greater amount of tobacco smoke, Vargas said.

Vargas added that more studies have also associated children’s exposure to second-hand smoke to increased risk of lung cancer in adulthood.

Vargas intends to refile the measure in the incoming 17th Congress, which he introduced in the 16th Con-gress in accordance with the policy of the State to pro-tect and promote the right of the people to health.

In HB 6485, Vargas proposed to amend Section 6 of Republic Act 9211 on Designated Smoking and Non-Smoking Areas by inserting the phrase: “Pro-vided, that in all school-related activities, whether within or outside the school premises and whether held indoors or outdoors, smoking shall be absolute-ly prohibited.”

On the same section, Vargas also proposed to change the visible-sign “NO SMOKING AREA” or “NO SMOK-ING” to “SMOKING IS ABSOLUTELY PROHIBITED IN ENCLOSED AREAS UNDER R.A. NO. 9211.”

Moreover, Vargas inserted a provision on the same

section, stating that these smoking and non-smoking signages should be made part of the requirements for the issuance and/or renewal of the business permits and/or permits to operate of establishments, health facilities or schools and the failure to comply there-with is a ground for the denial or revocation of such permits, provided that for schools, these signages should be prominently displayed whenever youth ac-tivities are being conducted declaring that the area is a smoke-free zone.

The bill also seeks to amend Section 29 of R.A. No. 9211 on Implementing Agency by changing the des-ignation of the chair of the Inter-Agency Commit-tee—Tobacco from the secretary of the Department of Trade and Industry to the secretary of the Depart-ment of Health and the secretary of the Department of Trade and Industry shall now be the vice-chair-person instead of the secretary of the Department of Health.

THE Metropolitan Manila De-velopment Authority on Sun-day said it collected 107 truck-loads of election materials.

MMDA Metro Parkway Cleaning Group head Francis Martinez said ‘‘Oplan Baklas’’ has collected 630 cubic meters of election materials equivalent to 178 tons from Feb. 9 to May 11, 2016.

Martinez said the massive op-eration was conducted on May 10 that collected 117 cubic meters or 33 tons of materials mostly from schools.

The next day, MMDA col-lected another 22 tons of election materials.

Martinez said that the agen-cy is expecting more than 100 truckloads of election materials at the end of the operation on May 30.

He said that the number of collected election materials from the May 9 election was higher than those collected after the 2013 polls.

Martinez said that cities of Ma-nila and Quezon have the most number of collected materials.

The agency deployed around 350 personnel roaming around Metro Manila to remove the election materials everyday, in-cluding weekends.

MMDA Chairman Emerson Carlos said the agency prioritiz-es removal of election materials near school zones in preparation for the opening of classes in June.

Collected materials will be do-nated to interested agencies for recycling for as long as a request will be addressed to the MMDA.

Carlos said the MMDA was more than willing to donate the campaign materials to benefit the people, especially those who need them most.

He said that the agency originally planned to use the confiscated tarpaulins dur-ing times of emergencies and natural disasters.

Aids Hour. Health department workers and members of the LGBT community conduct the first AIDS Hour at the Quezon City Memorial Circle, lighting a hundred candles that signify hope for victims of the incurable disease. The event coincides with the observance of the 33rd International AIDS Candlelight Memorial, which commemorate those who have died from HIV and AIDS. MANNY PALMERO

A7M O N D AY : M AY 1 6 , 2 0 1 6

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DAR: Some farmers have sold land

DepEd opens 251 schools for Mindanao IPs

Dengue cases up in CAR

By A. Perez RimandoPAGADIAN CITY, Zamboanga del Sur—The Depart-ment of Education has ordered the establishment of 251 new public elementary schools in various Indigenous Peo-ples’ communities in Mindanao for school year 2016-2017 which starts on June 13, a local education official said.

DepEd Region 9 Director Isabelita Borres said a memorandum issued recently by Education Secretary Armin Luistro provided Mindanao’s five regions (ex-cept Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao) with 583 new teacher slots in 251 identified sites—broken down into to 21 TS in 18 IS for Zamboanga Peninsu-la (Region 9); 82 TS in 39 IS for Northern Mindanao

(R10); 147 TS in 69 IS for Southern Mindanao (R11); 135 TS in 50 IS for Central Mindanao (R12), and 198 TS in 75 IS for Caraga (R13).

Luistro required Southern Philippines’ regional of-fices to orient and train newly hired qualified teachers who should belong to the same indigenous cultural community they would serve, Borres said.

The DepEd chief, Borres said, further mandated di-vision offices “to identify actual IP school-age learners in each site in partnership with local IP leaders.’’

Luistro also directed the construction of 605 class-rooms for the new 251 IS in cooperation with the De-partment of Social Welfare and Development’s Kalahi-CIDSS National Community-Development Program.

Let’s play! Children from Isabela province pose to culminate their 20-day summer music camp called Let’s Play. REVOLI CORTEZ

Z A M B O A N G A CITY—The De-partment of Agrar-ian Reform has con-firmed that some farmer-beneficiaries have sold the lands awarded them by the government through the agrarian reform program.

DAR regional director Fe-lix Aguhob said around 1,000 farmer-beneficiaries have sold their lands for the period May 2015 to April 2016.

Aguhob said the figures were based on the number of transfer orders he had signed during the period. The lands are already in the process of being transferred to the buy-ers.

“These sales still happen because the beneficiaries run short of money. Sometimes there is sickness in the fam-ily. The reasons vary. I will not deny that farmers resort to selling their land.”

Aguhob said the farmer-beneficiaries who sold their lands have been disqualified from the government’s agrar-ian reform program.

He said the agency screened the buyers to deter-mine if they were qualified to avail of the program and will-ing to continue the unsettled amortization of the previous farmer-beneficiaries.

Each of the farmer-benefi-ciaries of the agrarian reform program is awarded an aver-age of 1.6 hectares of land to be amortized over 30 years.

The amount of monthly am-ortization depends on the price of the land awarded to them.

Meanwhile, Aguhob said his office provides assistance to discourage farmer-benefi-ciaries from selling the lands awarded to them. These in-clude the provision of farm equipment and livelihood opportunities as well as the construction of farm-to-mar-ket roads.

“DAR is reaching out to our agrarian reform ben-eficiaries. I hope they will no longer sell the lands awarded to them. We are always here to help them make the lands more productive,” Aguhob said. PNA

All smiles. A ginger farmer from Catanauan, Quezon province is happy about this season’s good harvest. REVOLI CORTEZ

By Dexter A. See

BAGUIO CITY—The Cordillera office of the Department of Health reported that dengue fe-ver cases in the region increased by 141 percent in the first four months of this year compared to the same period last year.

Lakshmi Legaspi, DoH-CAR regional di-rector, said that the agen-cy recorded 1,257 dengue fever cases from Jan. 1 to April 30, 2016 compared to the 521 cases recorded same period last year.

She added that there were four deaths from dengue in the region for the first four months of this year compared to one recorded death for the same period last year. The fatalities this year included a 53-year-old male from Pilar, Abra, a three-year-old girl from Tabuk City, Kalinga, a five-year-old female from Tabuk City, Kalinga and a 33-year-old male from Tuba, Benguet.

Legaspi added cluster-ing of dengue cases were reported in Publacion East, flora; Cabatacan, Pudtol and Emiliana, Sta. Marcela, all in Apa-yao; Poblacion, Bokod; Luacan, Itogon; Pobla-cion Central, Kapangan; Bahong and Puguis, La Trinidad; Dominican Hill-Mirador, Baguio City; and Bulanao, Tabuk City, Kalinga.

Baguio City recorded the highest increase in dengue fever cases from 62 during the first four months of last year to 396 cases during the same period last year. This rep-resented a 539-percent increase.

This is followed by Benguet with 109 cases last year to 403 cases this year representing a 270-percent increase.

Mountain Province recorded a 133-percent increase with 21 cases for the first four months of this year compared to the nine cases for the same period last year while Kalinga which tallied 165 cases this year compared to 90 last year had an 83-percent increase.

The increase in den-gue cases has prompted the regional health office to likewise intensify the campaign against dengue, chikungunya, zika and Japanese encephalitis.

opinionA8

[ EDI TORI A L ]

TesT case for The new presidenT

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M O N D AY : M AY 1 6 , 2 0 1 6

opinion

Commissioner rowena Guanzon was not only emphatic. she was furious. The fastidiousness with which the Commission on elections had prepared for the elections was close to being for naught after smartmatic made the public admission that it had introduced a change in the “script,” and that is partly the problem. The average

Filipino among whom i count does not know exactly what a script does, nor a tag, which also means then that the evil, with evil intent can more easily conceal their foul deeds behind a smokescreen of infotech jargon!

senator Bongbong marcos has every right to complain—and this should not detract in any way from the integrity of Leni robredo. But it certainly should make it clear that like the errant pharaohs of egypt, smartmatic must henceforth be expunged from the memory of the nation, its corporate

Stupid Smartmatic

By robert Harland

PresumPtive president rodrigo Duterte may not be everyone’s cup of tea, but, politics aside, he will be a godsend to the thousands of peace-loving citizens who are constantly disturbed by the excessive—and possibly harmful—ear-piercing racket from bora bora—motorbikes with modified or no mufflers at all.

it seems the good mayor is also a man who likes peace and quiet and i hear he also has an intense disliking of this form of noise pollution. That’s great news because judging by his past record, he’s actually likely to do something about it, rather than let it slide as so many city officials around the country have done.

Last year, mayor Duterte impounded more than 200 motorbikes in Davao City with modified mufflers.

Duterte told desolate bike owners “What you put there [modified muffler] is not allowed by law. You cannot change it to make noise. if you replace [the muffler] you start to make noise. During night time you disturb your fellowmen.” He added that the impounding was not a traffic violation, but “confiscation based on nuisance law.”

nuisance is specified in the Civil Code of the Philippines Book 2: Property, ownership and its modifications— all motorcycles with noisy, loud and modified mufflers or piping are being confiscated under this law.

According to law, it in fact states—title viii Article 694 nuisance “is any act, omission, establishment, business, condition of property, or anything else which (1) injures or endangers the health and safety of others; (2) annoys or offends the senses.”

Duterte was adamant: “noise is a pollutant, it destroys the hearing of the people. it disturbs the public peace. it’s unlawful and by law i am allowed to abate that nuisance.”

This is great stuff, but if mayor Duterte can implement the law in Davao City, why are mayors and local government officials elsewhere not following suit. no doubt, many don’t want to lose votes, but long-suffering citizens hope that with a strong man at the helm, there will be a change of heart which means peace-loving people can get some sleep and not be woken up at 3 a.m. by anti-social numskulls on their noisy bikes.

except for Davao City, bora bora seems to be a national problem.

take Cebu for example. Late last year a lawyer and an anti-noise pollution advocate asked if the city had been “faithfully implementing the anti-modified muffler ordinance of 2013 given the proliferation of the use of modified mufflers.”

to arrive as scheduled, the law creates a presumption against the common carrier and assigns it the burden of proving that it did in effect measure up to the legally exacted standard of diligence. not that smartmatic is a common carrier, but that, considering the gravity of national elections, it should be held to a very high standard of diligence.

information systems are extremely complicated. This is the reason i readily dismiss sixto Brillantes’ prattling about everything being

in order as the usually careless ramblings of one close to dementia. He is not an it expert. The system was in smartmatic’s control and the reasoning that applies in the law on bailments applies to them: as between the bailor and the bailee, the burden of explaining where the goods are and what happened to them is not with the bailor but with the bailee because the latter is in the better position to provide an answer. smartmatic is definitely in a position to know exactly what their tweaking

with the system did, or did not do.smartmatic has admitted to

introducing something outside the ordinary course of events. The candidates, including Bongbong marcos, have a right to know exactly what was altered and what the effects of the alteration are. it will not do for smartmatic to deflect interrogatory by insisting that the results were not jeopardized. That is self-serving. if the change was merely cosmetic, why make the change under cover of

Continued on A10

WHILE the president-elect Rodrigo Duterte contemplates visits to the Vatican and Brunei, he should spare some time to remember his campaign promise to eradicate criminality wherever he finds it, even if it is in his own home.

The need to instill discipline within his own ranks is crucial, as it would distinguish the new government from the administration of President Benigno Aquino III, whose predilection for selective justice has been amply documented. If change is indeed coming, this is as good a place to start as any.

While Aquino turned a blind eye to scalawags in his camp, Duterte must prove upon assuming office that he will brook no nonsense from members of his own Cabinet—or even his over-enthusiastic supporters.

Conversely, he must show that his administration is capable of giving justice, even to those who did not support him during the campaign.

One way the new president can show he is serious about breaking Aquino’s pattern of selective justice is to have his Justice secretary pull out all the stops to prosecute 14 cyberbullies who made grave threats against human rights advocate Renee Julienne Karunungan during the election campaign, simply because she depicted Duterte on a Facebook meme as “a lazy choice.”

“I hope you get raped, or get mugged,” one Duterte supporter told her. “That’s what you want, right? You don’t want change because you are against Duterte. I hope one of these days you get raped so you’ll come to your senses.”

Another said: “I have friends who want to kill you. You have the money anyway, save that for your hospital expenses.”

In the wake of his landslide victory, Duterte has called on Filipinos to move on and reconcile after a long and nasty campaign, but threats such as these are a crime and cannot be dismissed with an apology or the slap on the wrist.

The need to prosecute this case becomes doubly important, given the promise by key Duterte officials that his government will be more “gender-sensitive.” In fact, toward this end, Senator Pia Cayetano has joined Duterte’s transition team to make sure that women would have a voice in the new administration.

Cayetano, who has shown during her career as a senator that she can speaks out for what is right, needs to do so now and make sure state prosecutors do not softpedal the case, simply because the accused are Duterte supporters. The abuse of women should never be tolerated, and the incoming administration needs to send that message out, loud and clear—especially to its supporters.

name to be mentioned only in malediction, all references to it, suppressed as we would of anything vulgar and unseemly. This is not the first time smartmatic has been severely castigated. i will not forget the video clip of Congressman teddyboy Locsin giving smartmatic’s executives not only a mouthful but the appropriate percussive background of a banged table and a fearful countenance almost apocalyptic in dreadfulness.

is it in fact correct that marcos should prove wrong-

doing in accordance with the common principle that he who alleges must prove the allegation? no, i do not think the burden is on him. There is something to learn from

the Civil Code’s treatment of common carriers that are charged with extraordinary diligence. When the plaintiff is able to prove that the passenger or the cargo failed

smartmatic must henceforth be expunged from the memory of the nation,

its corporate name to be mentioned only in malediction, all references to it,

suppressed as we would of anything vulgar and unseemly.

pensées

fr. ranhiliocallangan

aquino

Rolando G. Estabillo Publisher Jojo A. Robles Editor-in-Chief Ramonchito L. Tomeldan Managing Editor Chin Wong/Ray S. Eñano Associate Editors Francis Lagniton News Editor Joyce Pangco Pañares City Editor Adelle Chua Senior Deskman Romel J. Mendez Art Director Roberto Cabrera Chief Photographer

MEMBERPhilippine Press InstituteThe National Association of Philippine NewspapersPPI

can be accessed at:www.manilastandardtoday.comONLINE

MSTPublished Monday to Sunday by Philippine Manila Standard Publishing Inc. at 6/F Universal Re Building, 106 Paseo de Roxas, corner Perea St., Legaspi Village, Makati City. Telephone numbers 832-5554, 832-5556, 832-5558 (connecting all departments), (Editorial), 832-5546, (Advertising), 832-

5550. P.O. Box 2933, Manila Central Post Office, Manila. Website: www.manilastandardtoday.com E-mail: [email protected]

MST Management, Inc. Philip G. Romualdez Chairman Arnold C. Liong President & Chief Executive Officer Former Chief Justice Reynato S. Puno Board Member & Chief Legal Adviser Jocelyn F. Domingo Director of Operations Ron Ryan S. Buguis Finance Officer

Anita F. Grefal Treasury Manager Edgar M. Valmorida Circulation Manager Emil P. Jurado Chairman Emeritus, Editiorial Board

Continued on A10

duterte on tHe pipeS

everyman

OPINIONM O N D AY : M AY 1 6 , 2 0 1 6

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out of the box

rita lindav. jimeno

duterte... From A9

Yes, you’ve guessed it. Two years after the ordinance was approved, traffic authorities haven’t enforced it. One Cebu resident suggested law enforcers should also go after distributors of the mufflers as well as the bikers. It’s estimated that 50

percent of motorbikes in Cebu have modified mufflers.

Even tourists, shocked by the extraordinarily high levels of noise pollution from bikes, have taken to the internet to ask why the authorities seem oblivious to the problem.

One can only hope that now

things will change. It’s obviously not a top priority as Duterte forms his administration, but many are confident he’ll get round to it sooner or later—preferably sooner.

Robert Harland is a British

national based in Bacolod City.

TwO weeks ago, the results of the 2015 bar examination was released. It yielded a passing rate of 26.21 percent, the highest in six years, with 1,731 out of 6,600 plus examinees passing. The licensure exam for lawyers is one of the most difficult in the world, having eight subjects taken in four Sundays and requiring that the examinees garner an average of 75 percent in all the subjects taken. Traditionally the passing rate has been between 15 and 30 percent. In contrast, in New York, the recent bar exams have been branded as the worst in decades because the passing rate has hovered between 61 and 68 percent while the rate used to be higher than that.

T h e Ph i l ippi ne exams, being largely in essay form, have to be read and graded by an examiner for each of the eight subjects rather than a machine as in other licensure exams which use the multiple type of questioning. This means that each examiner had to read—for the most recent bar exam—more than 6,600 booklets. This manner of testing has been the subject of much criticism from law schools saying that it is an arbitrary process because it is subject to the personality make-up and the mood of the examiner. Many have said that some examiners have been power-tripping at the expense of the law graduates; thus, openly advocating the abolition of the bar examination itself.

I had the privilege of being an examiner in Civil Law in the 2015 bar examination chaired by Associate Justice Teresita Leonardo de Castro. I was an examiner too in the 2010 bar exams for the same subject. Although I was asked by the Chair to be very reasonable, even generous, in grading, which I later learned she also asked of the other examiners, I realized that much as I personally wanted to pass as many as I could (being in the academe myself) there was something fundamentally and sadly wrong with the answers to the questions. This made it impossible to achieve a remarkably high passing rate. The greater majority of the examinees simply did not have the grasp of basic concepts of civil law. For example, one question I asked was, if two males lived together, could they be covered by the law on full co-ownership under Article 147 of the Family Code, that is, could they share equally in the properties purchased by just one of them during their cohabitation while the other one took care of their home? Many said yes because there was no impediment to their getting married. Really now. Two males could get married in this jurisdiction? what law school could they have graduated from, I asked myself. Many also answered, in a question about the rights of illegitimate children, that they have absolutely no right to inherit because they are illegitimate. Still, there were many whose comprehension of the given question was wrong, resulting in a wrong answer.

worst, many of the examinees were unable to express their thoughts in English. The English grammar of many of the examinees could shock even a high school graduate who took his secondary education seriously. For instance, nearly a majority erred in the proper use of “is” and “are.” In one question involving two persons, “Y” and “Z,” many said “Z” and “Y” is wrong. Quite a number answered in a circuitous and incoherent manner. For most of the exam booklets, sentence construction, spelling and choice of words were so horrifying that if these examinees happened to pass the bar exams, they would have been a

The bar exams:

posT morTem

disgrace to the profession and would have caused injustice to their unsuspecting clients.

As an examiner, I dropped nearly everything else I was doing—including writing this column for many months—to read each and every booklet. I wanted the standard of grading to be uniform and as reasonable as possible. But passing the bar does not lie in the hands of the examiners. It does not even hinge on how well one reviews for the bar exams. It lies, rather, in the foundation of an examinee’s four—year law education and, before that, his study ethics from elementary

to high school, to college. The ability to comprehend, analyze and answer in a logical and coherent manner is not learned overnight.

Advocating the abolition of the bar examination is not the solution to the poor performance of examinees in the bar examination. Improving the system of educating students from kinder to law school is.

Email: [email protected] Visit: www.jimenolaw.com.ph

the ability to comprehend, analyze

and answer in a logical and coherent manner is not learned overnight.

stupid... From A9

darkness? In fact, why change at all? But if it was necessary to introduce the change, then certainly the change was not innocuous, and Smartmatic bears the burden of telling us what exactly the change in script did to the system.

I was aghast when, on television, we were told that the canvassing had been put on hold because “trial ballots” entered into the canvass, rather than the votes cast on the day of the election. How more inept and criminally liable can you get than that: mixing up trial ballots with actual ballots and transmitting the wrong set. And certainly, practical reasoning gets to work and forces the question: How often did this occur, and how widespread was the mix-up?

I am not buying either the call to “wait for the official results.” The unofficial results depend on advanced copies of the official results, generated by the same system that “dirty hands” got themselves into. It is

foolish buying a newspaper in the morning, noticing some mistakes, and buying a copy of the same paper in the hope that the mistakes are not to be found in the second copy. where did PPCRV and Namfrel volunteers get the results if not from what the VCMs read at the precinct level, and then transmitted for municipal, provincial and national canvass?

why is there this fatal attraction towards Smartmatic that makes it so difficult for officialdom to take its eyes off this lousy company? And let ignoramuses like me in matters digital desist from premature announcements that the results remain unassailable. Only programmers understand programming signs, and tags and scripts, and we would move towards a solution more quickly were charlatans to be sequestered somewhere at the foothills of Mount Apo until the dust settles!

[email protected][email protected][email protected]

by ramesh ponnuru

BARACk Obama will be the first US president to visit Hiroshima, a prospect that has set off arguments about whether he should apologize for our use of nuclear bombs to end world war II. The white House says he will not. while the case that he should is strong, the case that he shouldn’t is stronger.

Most Americans, from 1945 to the present, have believed that President Harry Truman was justified in bombing Japan. Most supporters of that decision say the bombs saved lives by breaking Japan’s will to continue fighting. The alternative, they add, was a ground invasion that would have caused much more blood, Allied and Japanese, to be shed.

But there are others who dispute the claim that the bombs were necessary to bring about Japan’s unconditional surrender. An official US government report in 1946 concluded that “it seems clear that, even without the atomic bombing attacks, air supremacy over Japan could have exerted sufficient pressure to bring about unconditional surrender and obviate the need for invasion.”

The core conviction of the opponents, though, is that it is always wrong to take actions intended to kill noncombatants, even on the hope the killing will bring about very desirable effects. That principle forms part of the

western tradition of thinking about the ethics of war. This tradition is not pacifist: It accepts that wars can be just, and that in a just war the military can justly take actions it knows will cause civilian deaths. But this view insists that the killing of noncombatants, including children, cannot be the goal of a just military act, either as an end in itself or as the means toward some other end (like breaking the enemy’s will so as to yield peace).

we have largely adhered to this tradition, before 1945 and after. we have sometimes debated whether our use of drones is causing too many civilian deaths. But we do not deliberately target civilians for killing whenever we think the consequences would be beneficial. when Donald Trump suggested deterring terrorists by killing their family members, he was recommending a highly controversial change in our practices.

Dropping atom bombs on Japan is hard to reconcile with the honorable tradition. This doesn’t call into question the essential justice of the Allied cause. It doesn’t mean Truman deserves all the connotations of a “war criminal” or “murderer,” terms some of his critics have been willing to employ. But it does suggest he chose wrongly.

If he did, should Obama apologize for it? Collective or

institutional apologies are a tricky business: They often involve people apologizing for things they didn’t themselves do to people who weren’t the direct victims. That criticism was made when the House and the Senate apologized for slavery and Jim Crow.

But Congress and the entire US government are enduring institutions, and the people who have contemporary responsibility for them can rightly acknowledge those institutions’ past misconduct. Congress surely bears a share of the blame for slavery and the oppression of African-Americans.

If it was wrong to drop atomic bombs on civilian populations, and present leaders can rightly apologize for past wrongs, why shouldn’t Obama apologize at Hiroshima? I think the answer is simple. Almost all Americans recognize that slavery and Jim Crow were grave moral wrongs. Most Americans don’t view Hiroshima and Nagasaki similarly. They think we were justified.

Obama therefore cannot legitimately apologize on behalf of the American people. He can regret the loss of life while staying silent on the morality of the bombings. Any apology should be left to a future president—and issued only if America reaches a new consensus on this issue.

Bloomberg

Why obama can’T apologize for hiroshima

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mo nday : m ay 1 6 , 2 0 1 6

sports

Day hangs on to TPC golf lead

Suarez outguns Messi, powers Barca

Jason Day of Australia plays a shot on the 14th hole during the third round of THE PLAYERS Championship at the Stadium course at TPC Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida. AFP

Players ripped the greens as all-but unfair as TPC Saw-grass produced only six sub-par scores, matching its all-time low for any round and sparking major complaints from the world’s top golfers.

“I’ve never gone over putts where I’ve had to lag a 10-foot putt and not try to hole it,” Day said. “That’s the first time in my career I’ve had to do that.

“It’s not a lot of fun to have to try and two-putt from 10 feet. I never got really comfortable on the greens at all.”

Third-ranked Rory McIlroy was even harsher, saying, “That was borderline unfair on a few holes. A few pin posi-tions were on crowns. You dribble a putt past the hole and it’s six feet by.”

Day seeking his second wire-to-wire victory of the season and seventh title in 17 starts, finished 54 holes on 14-under 202.

“Some of the pin locations were just a little bit iffy with how the greens were,” Day said. “It’s supposed to be tough I guess. It was a drastic change from Thursday and Friday. I was very shocked.”

Day opened with a 63, matching the 18-hole course record,

and completed a weather-hit second round of 66 on Saturday to set a 36-hole record of 15-under 129.

But after going bogey-free through 36 holes for the first time in his career, Day had a bogey and two double bogeys in the first eight holes of round three before fighting back with three birdies the rest of the way.

“I feel good about my game. I have to focus on the positive. I’ve got a 4-stroke lead,” said Day, who has won his past four events when leading after 54 holes.

Japan’s Hideki Matsuyama, Germany’s Alex Cejka and American Ken Duke shared second on 206 with Italy’s Fran-cesco Molinari on 207. South African Retief Goosen and American Kevin Chappell shot 70 to reach 208.

- ‘Putting on dance floors’ -Matsuyama birdied three holes in a row to open his front

and back nines on the way to a 67 while Duke, a back-nine starter, birdied six of his last seven holes to move into the hunt with a shock 65.

Few others were happy as the average score was about 75 on greens that were rock hard and lightning fast.

“I felt like we were putting on dance floors,” said American

Spieth misses cut

Barcelona’s Uruguayan forward Luis Suarez celebrates after scoring during the Spanish league football match Granada CF vs FC Barcelona at Nuevo Los Carmenes stadium in Granada. AFP

MIAMI—World number two Jordan Spieth missed the cut Saturday at the US PGA Players Cham-pionship, his first event since squandering a back-nine Sunday to lose last month’s Masters.

The 22-year-old Ameri-can, struggling with his putter, opened on 72 and followed with a 71 to stand on one-under 143, one stroke over the cut line to missing the last 36 holes for the second year in a row at TPC Sawgrass.

Spieth, who defends his US Open crown next month at Oakmont, down-played the notion he could be in a funk after his Mas-ters meltdown, which de-nied him a second con-secutive wire-to-wire win at Augusta National and handed England’s Danny Willett a first major crown.

“I don’t think there’s much of a connection to the Masters. I just didn’t putt well,” Spieth said. “Augusta seems like a long time ago to me.”

Adding to Spieth’s pain,

he was playing alongside top-ranked Jason Day as the Australian fired a 36-hole course record of 15-under 129 -- match-ing the 18-hole mark of 63 before completing a 66 on Saturday after storms and darkness delayed the end of round two.

Spieth, 22, looked as miserable watching the Aussie sink his birdies the first two rounds as he did handing over the green jacket to Willett as a glob-al audience watched on television.

“It’s tough when you are getting shellacked by 15 shots in the same group,” Spieth said. “You see all those birdies going in and you wonder why you aren’t making any of them. It’s tough seeing every hole be-ing birdied and not being able to do much about it.”

“I’m striking the ball great. I just need to grind on my short game. If I putt anywhere near the stan-dard I normally putt I’m at 6- or 7-under just on the greens.” AFP

BARCELONA—In little under two years with Barcelona, Luis Suarez has won six trophies, silenced his critics with almost impeccable on-field behaviour and now, most remarkably of all, left Lionel Messi and Cris-tiano Ronaldo in his shadow.

Suarez fittingly scored a hat-trick as Barca retained their La Liga title on Saturday with a 3-0 win at Granada to take his tally for the season to a remark-able 59 allied to 26 assists.

Of those 59, 40 came in La Liga, making him the first man to depose Messi and Ronaldo and win the Pichichi award for Spain’s top scorer in seven years.

Moreover, it is the most

prolific season anyone other than Messi and Ronaldo has produced in the history of the Spanish top flight.

The Pichichi and golden boot for Europe’s top goalscorer are individual awards where all that matters are the numbers and Suarez can’t be discredited.

He was sidelined as Neymar joined Messi and Ronaldo in FIFA’s top three at the Ballon d’Or to crown the world’s best player despite playing a piv-otal role in turning Barca from trophyless in 2013/14 to treble winners a season later.

The controversy and stigma of having bitten an opponent three times in his career con-

tinues to cost the Uruguayan in the popularity stakes.

However, in his first full sea-son without a prolonged suspen-sion in three years, Suarez has shown his devastating potential to leave Ronaldo, Messi and Ney-mar trailing in his wake.

Barca’s title run was built once more around the thrilling talents of the South American ‘MSN’ triumvirate.

Yet, of the three, Suarez was the most consistent. The team’s form replicated his in front of goal, he starred in the most glorious parts of the campaign and, most tellingly, made the difference when they most needed him. AFP

MIAMI—World number one Jason Day battled through horrid putting conditions and a poor start Saturday to fire a one-over par 73 and lead by four shots after three rounds of the US PGA Players Championship.

Billy Horschel after a 75, with Northern Ireland’s Graeme McDowell calling the green speeds “crazy” and US veteran Jim Furyk dubbing the firm and fast greens “almost impos-sible to play.”

Mark Russell, a PGA Tour competition vice president, blamed high winds and a humidity drop for the green condi-tions after two days of record low scoring.

“The moisture just went away and they did speed up. We just had a perfect storm that happened,” he said. “I empa-thize with them but we didn’t try to do anything to speed them up.”

Day finished the last four holes of his storm-hit second round Saturday morning, a birdie on 15 and three pars com-pleting a second-round 66 to give him a 36-hole tournament record of 15-under 129 and a record five-shot midway lead.

- Day rallies from early woes -But the Aussie struggled early in round three after going

36 holes without a bogey for the first time in his career.Day handed back five shots in six holes, missing a six-foot

putt to drop a stroke at the par-3 third. He four-putted from 18 feet for a double bogey at the par-4 sixth and, after a tap-in birdie on seven, made another double bogey at the par-3 eighth as his lead fell to a single shot.

Day responded with a 10-foot birdie putt at the par-3 ninth, blasted out of a greenside bunker to three feet to birdie the par-5 11th, chipped in from 53 feet for a miracle par at 15 and birdied the par-5 16th. AFP

Djokovic takes onMurray in net finals

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mo nday : may 1 6 , 2 0 1 6

sports

ROME—World number one Novak Djokovic overcame a self-inflicted ankle injury to battle into the Rome Masters final after a thrilling 2-6, 6-4, 7-6 (7/5)win over Kei Nishi-kori on Saturday.

It means Djokovic will meet Britain’s Andy Murray, the second seed, in a second successive Masters final on Sunday a week after beating the Scot in Madrid.

Djokovic, the top seed and defending champion, had laid the foundations for a fifth title in Rome with a hard-fought and classy win over seven-time champion Rafael Nadal on Friday.

But the Serbian almost scuppered his hopes when he inadvertantly bruised his left ankle with his raquet as he hit it against his shoe to shake off the red dirt.

Later, he said: “A mes-sage to all the kids out there: don’t hit your own ankle when you’re cleaning your shoes.”

If left Djokovic requir-ing medical treatment, and appeared to rob him of the early momentum against the Japanese sixth seed.

“It was an awkward situ-ation in the first game, I hit myself pretty hard on the ankle and bruised the bone,” he explained.

“It hurt for a while, and though the pain faded it re-turned towards the end of the match.”

Nishikori—who suffered a semi-final defeat to the Serbian in Madrid—was a tough customer for tennis’s man of the moment.

Nishikori’s agility and movement were crucial in a 43-minute first set that he peppered with a healthy dose of drop shots.

Djokovic upped the mo-mentum at a key moment in the second set, forcing a de-cider with a break on his first set point in the 10th game.

Djokovic maintained the momentum in the third set, but again Nishikori came out swinging.

The Serbian got the break in the second game, only for Nishikori to level at 4-4.

He saved match point at 5-4 before going on to force the tiebreak. Although he saved a further two match points, Nishikori was un-able to save a fourth as Djokovic sealed the win in just over three hours.

In the end, the Serbian won 112 points to 111 for Nishikori. afp

FIFA’s 1st womansecretary generalis used to crises

Bolt makes triumphant start to seasonGEORGE TOWN—World 100- and 200-meter record holder Usain Bolt of Jamaica opened his 2016 season Saturday with a 100m victory in 10.05 seconds at the Cayman Invi-tational.

Making his fist strides on the road to the Rio de Janeiro Olympics in August, Bolt crossed the finish line .07 of a second ahead of American runner-up Dentarius Locke.

“It wasn’t the best, but as long as I

come out injury free, that’s the key thing,” Bolt said.

“I didn’t feel as smooth as I want-ed to, but as I always say, it’s hard to just come into your first race and do extra well.”

Jamaican Kemar Bailey-Cole, who trains with Bolt at Racers Track Club, was third in 10.18 with a light tailwind of 0.1m/sec.

Bolt is planning his campaign with the aim of defending his 100m,

200m and 4x100m Olympic crowns in Brazil, seeking an unprecedented third gold medal in a row in all three events in what he has said will be his final Olympics.

Bolt, who races in Ostrava next week, said he is not worried with his form.

“It’s just more races,” Bolt said. “My coach will determine what I need to work on, but right now it’s just more races. The more races I

run, the better I will feel so I am just looking forward to running more races and see what happens.

“I am never worried. I’ve been in worse situations. It’s just race rusty. I can tell. I could feel the difference from when you are flying from when you are not.”

The 29-year-old superstar had not competed since winning three gold medals at last August’s World Championships in Beijing. afp

Europe’s top swimmersdescend on LondonLONDON—As the Olympic Games loom ever closer, Eu-rope’s best swimmers gather in London on one of the final stepping stones to Rio de Janeiro.

When the European Championships start on Monday at the London Aquatics Centre – which staged the swimming at the 2012 Olympics – there will be just 82 days before the Games start in Brazil.

Given the proximity, few who are competing in Rio will have rested before the London meet, but are instead in heavy training, eyes planted firmly on what lies ahead in August.

Two years ago in Berlin, Great Britain topped the medal table with a haul of 24.

Prominent was 19-year-old Adam Peaty, a fortnight after beating Olympic champion Cameron van der Burgh to sec-ond in the 100m breaststroke at the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow.

Peaty was a stand-out in Berlin, winning four gold medals and setting a world record in the 50m breaststroke, albeit not ratified due to an administrative error.

Olympic 50m freestyle champion Florent Manaudou also made four visits to the top of the podium, while Sweden’s Sarah Sjoestroem claimed three golds.

Musician Ziggy Marley throws out a ceremonial first pitch before the game between the St. Louis Cardinals and the Los Angeles Dodgers at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles, California. afp

PARIS—Fatma Samoura, FIFA’s first-ever female secre-tary general, may be an outsider in the football world but she is hoping her two decades of experience as a UN dip-lomat will help her restore the sport’s “tarnished image”.

“My goal is to support the programme of president Gianni (Infantino) and to help football restore its tar-nished image,” the Senegalese UN diplomat, named Fri-day as the second-in-command of football’s ruling body, told AFP.

“And to those who speak of my lack of experience, I say give me the time to prove myself,” she said in a tele-phone interview Saturday from Nigeria’s Abuja, where she was representing the United Nations Development Programme at a summit to discuss efforts to defeat Boko Haram Islamists.

FIFA’s new second-in-command is no stranger to the kind of power struggles that brought FIFA to the brink, having served as the representative of the UN Develop-ment Programme in post-coup Madagascar from 2010 to 2015 before moving to Nigeria.

“FIFA is the United Nations of football and I bring 21 years of experience in the private sector and the UN in terms of good governance and transparency, and the obligation to make the different federations and FIFA accountable,” the 54-year-old said.

Samoura’s years with the UN, including with the World Food Programme, have taken her crisis-manage-ment skills to hotspots such as Afghanistan, Chad and Darfur.

“We must try to restore football to what it was, the most popular sport that breaches social divides,” she told AFP.

“And one of the things I am going to try to do is bring greater support to women’s football.”

- Infantino pledge -Samoura, who was named as the successor to dis-

graced Frenchman Jerome Valcke at a FIFA congress in Mexico on Friday, will take up her post by mid-June after undergoing an eligibility check administered by an independent review committee.

She said she met Infantino, who was appointed to suc-ceed Sepp Blatter in February, for the first time in No-vember last year.

“I was in Madagascar at the time and it was during a match between Madagascar and Senegal,” in a qualifier for the 2018 World Cup, she said. afp

Serbia's Novak Djokovic reacts during the semi-final match against Japan's Kei Nishikori at the ATP Tennis Open tennis tournament at the Foro Italico in Rome. afp

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mo nday : may 1 6 , 2 0 1 6

sports

Pagara fights Juarez

Donaire dropped Juarez twice in the fourth round to eventually earn a lopsided decision, in which Juarez ad-mitted he lost, but that the judges scorecards did not reflect the closeness of the bout.

All three judges were from Puerto Rico.

Jose Roberto Torres and Nelson Vazquez had Donaire the winner, 116-110, while Gerardo Martinez also scored it for Donaire by a wider 117-109 margin.

Featured columnist Brian Mazique of Bleacher Report said that while the Donaire-Juarez title fight was not the main event of the TV broad-

cast and it wasn’t massively hyped, Donaire’s unani-mous decision victory over the Mexican turned out to be a “legitimate Fight of the Year candidate. The two men laid their hearts and bodies on the line in a mem-orable scrap, but Donaire prevailed.”

Since the loss to Donaire, Juarez also dropped a 10-round split decision to Giovanni Delgado, who had a record of 15-4 with 9 knockouts.

Jake Donovan of Boxing Scene wrote: “Three months after taking Donaire to hell and back, Juarez was brought crashing back to earth. The

super bantamweight hopeful suffered a stunning split deci-sion loss to Delgado in their 10-round clash in Mexico City.”

Donovan said: “The concept behind the fight was proving that Juarez belonged among super bantamweight conten-tion following his brave show-ing versus Donaire. A win in this fight was rumored to have lined up a future showdown with unbeaten Albert Pagara, with the winner likely to race to the front of the line for a title shot. It wasn’t to be on this night for the local favor-ite, who was sound offensive-ly, but struggled to keep a de-termined Delgado at bay. The fight was back-and-forth for much of the night, but with Delgado often landing first and at a greater rate.”

ALA Promotions’ President Michael Aldeguer, who is still in the US, told The Standard he had just finalized the Pag-ara-Juarez fight on July 9 in San Francisco, with Zanfer Promotions, which is headed by Fernando Beltran.

“This is the biggest test of

Albert. We knew it would be a dangerous fight and is a risk to his No. 2 world ranking, but again just like (Mark ‘Mag-nifico’) Magsayo, we need to find out if he has what it takes to be a world champion,” said Aldeguer, pointing out that Juarez gave Donaire one of the toughest fights in his career. “So this should be another exciting fight. This will be a make-or-break fight for Al-bert’s career.”

Juarez, who is 24 years old, won the vacant WBO International super bantam-weight title with a unani-mous decision over Juan Carlos Sanchez Jr.

The 22-year-old Pagara has an impressive record of 18 knockouts in 26 wins. with no defeats and is coming off a lopsided near-shutout deci-sion over Yesner Talavera last Feb. 27 at the Waterfront Ho-tel and Casino in Cebu City, with judges Salven Lagumbay and Greg Ortega turning in identical 120-107 scorecards. Edward Ligas had Pagara the winner, 119-108.

MalaysiaDragons join

PBA D-LeagueTHE Westsports Malaysia Dragons will participate as guest team in the PBA D-League Foundation Cup, which gets going on June 2.

The reigning Asean Basketball League champion will carry the colors of Bluestar Detergent in the tournament that will have a total of seven teams vying for the title.

With a core led by Fil-Am Matthew Wright and Fil-Canadian Jason Brick-man, Blustar Detergent is expected to pro-vide tough challenge for newly crowned Aspirant’s Cup champion Phoenix Fuel, defending champion Café France, Tandu-ay Rhum, Mindanao Aguilas, AMA On-line Education and Racal Tiles Masters.

The Accelerators try to complete a championship double, while the Bakers look to retain the title after a dishearten-ing loss to Phoenix Fuel in the finals last conference.

“The participation of Westsport Ma-laysia Dragons is a positive development for the league. Their presence brings some sort of international flavor in the tournament and should raise the level of competition that should excite the fans,” said PBA Commissioner Chito Narvasa.

The eliminations will now be a double-round format. The top four teams will advance to the semi-finals with the no. 1 and 2 seeds earning a twice-to-beat ad-vantage.

The finals will be a best-of-three series.

CycleAsia. Over a thousand bikers, including Alaska Milk president and CEO Wilfred Uytengsu, also the president of the organizing Sunrise Events, Inc., join the Alaska CycleAsia Philippines at SM by the Bay grounds at Mall of Asia in Pasay yesterday. On its third year, the event features the Challenge Ride of 40km and Community Ride of 20km ride, Tricycle Ride and the Kids Ride.

Baran, Bayking share Dumaguete tennis honorsTOP seed Karl Baran survived a semi-final scare then trampled Al Francis Andrade, 6-2, 6-4, in the finals to cap-ture the boys’ 18-and-under crown while Bliss Bayking bagged two girls’ titles in the Palawan Pawnshop-Pala-wan Express Pera Padala regional age-group tennis tournament Dumaguete leg at the Praxevilla and Silliman Ten-nis Club yesterday.

Baran went through some anxious moments against No. 5 Reyniel Mar-cellana in the semis but came through with big shots to eke out a 7-5, 6-4, decision and seal a title clash with the unranked Andrade, who nipped fel-low giant-killer Ibarra Ortega Jr., 6-4, 1-6, 10-8, in the other semis pairing in the lower bracket.

But the top La Carlota, Negros Oc-

cidental bet flashed superb form in the finals and completed a straight-set win while settling for runner-up hon-ors in the 16-U side after defaulting his finals match with Ortega.

Bayking, on the other hand, pulled off two tough wins to lead the winners in the girls’ category of the Group 2 tournament sponsored by Palawan Pawnshop and presented by Slaz-enger.

The 14-year-old rising San Carlos City star hacked out a thrilling 5-7, 6-2, 10-6 victory over Averille Sacapano to clinch the 14-U plum then scored a re-peat over the Boracay ace, 7-6(1), 6-1, in the 16-U finals to emerge the lone double winner in the event backed by Asiatraders Corp., exclusive dis-tributor of Slazenger, and sanctioned

by the Philippine Tennis Association headed by president and Paranaque City Mayor Edwin Olivarez.

“Watch out for these two young, tall and talented players along with a slew of others who have been ben-efitting from our year-long circuit in terms of training and exposure. And we hope to produce more Barans and Baykings in the future through our se-ries of tournaments nationwide,” said Palawan Pawnshop president/CEO Bobby Castro.

Sacapano atoned for her twin losses to Bayking by taking the premier 18-U crown with a 6-0, 4-6, 12-10 victory over Precious Coderos while top seed Alexa Milliam romped off with the 12-U diadem with a 6-1, 6-1 victory over Arean Pecaoco.

By Ronnie Nathanielsz

UNBEATEN Prince Albert Pagara faces the biggest test of his career against Mexico’s rugged Cesar Juarez, who engaged Nonito “The Filipino Flash” Donaire in a brutal battle for the vacant WBO super bantamweight title in San Juan, Puerto Rico on Dec. 11.

Games Today(Phil. Science High gym)

8 a.m. – Tropang TNT vs Rain or Shine9:30 a.m. – Phoenix vs NLEX

11 a.m. – Alaska vs Mahindra

ALAIN Ayrton Cajayon, Jean Capispisan and Ike Jordan Lim each scored 12 points and formed the triumvirate that helped the Star Hotshots with-stand the Phoenix Fuel Master, 66-60, Sunday in the Cloudfone-Batang PBA 16&Under basketball tournament at the Philippine Science High School gym in Quezon City.

The game was airtight all throughout and was tied, 45-all, going to the fourth quarter before the Batang Hotshots gained some separation, spoiling Elmar Mar-sonia’s 26-point output for the Batang Fuel Masters.

In other games, unbeaten leader Tropang TNT overwhelmed Globalport, 100-34, after opening the game with a 37-7 first-quarter surge. Six Batang Tex-ters were in double figures – Emmanuel Valencia Jr. and Kevin Garnett Raymundo each tallied 14 points and the trio of Antonio Lledo III, Greg Alfred delas Alas and Bryan Magtoto contributed 13 apiece. Add-

TNT jrs pick up2nd straight win

Karl Baran (second from left) and Bliss Bayking (third from left) hold their trophies and medals after ruling their respective divisions in the PPS-PEPP Dumaguete leg yesterday. With them are Praxevilla Tennis Club president Jaymar Pantilag and PPS-PEPP area manager Ronabelle Sancez.

(TS-MAY 16, 2016)(TS MAY 16, 2016)

INVITATION TO BID FOR THE PROCUREMENT OF TWO (2) YEAR SERVICE CONTRACT FOR MANPOWER OUTSOURCING FOR COMPUTER MAINTENANCE

SERVICE UNDER ITB NO. PB16-044 The Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (PAGCOR) is inviting all interested bidder in its forthcoming public bidding for the Procurement of Two Year Service Contract for Manpower Outsourcing for Computer Maintenance Service under ITB No. PB16-044.

Brief Description and Required Personnel:

Manpower Outsourcing for Computer Maintenance Services – Nine (9) IT Technicians for deployment to Metro Manila and Provincial Branches and Corporate Offices.

BRANCHNUMBER OF IT

TECHNICIANS TO BE DEPLOYED

ITD – Corporate 3*

Casino Filipino-Malate 1

Casino Filipino-Pavilion 1

Casino Filipino-Angeles/Mimosa/Olongapo 1

Casino Filipino-Cebu/Mactan 1

Casino Filipino-Bacolod 1

Casino Filipino-Davao 1

TOTAL 9 Note: *1 Team Leader, 2 Technicians

Approved Budget for the Contract (ABC):

Description ABC(VAT-Exclusive, Zero Rated Transaction)

[FOR ONE (1) YEAR)

ABC(VAT-Exclusive, Zero Rated Transaction)

[FOR TWO (2) YEARS)

Two (2) Year Service Contract

for Manpower Outsourcing for Computer Maintenance

Service

Three Million One Hundred Ninety-Three

Thousand Pesos (PhP3,193,000.00)

Six Million Three Hundred Eighty-Six

Thousand Pesos (PhP6,386,000.00)

Working Hours:

Shift

(incl

usiv

e of

one

(1

) hou

r bre

ak)

ITD

-Cor

pora

te

Cas

ino

Filip

ino-

Mal

ate

Cas

ino

Filip

ino-

Pavi

lion

Cas

ino

Filip

ino-

Ange

les/

Mim

osa/

Olo

ngap

o

Cas

ino

Filip

ino-

Ceb

u/M

acta

n

Cas

ino

Filip

ino-

Baco

lod

Cas

ino

Filip

ino-

Dav

ao

9am-6pm 3

10am-6pm 1 1 1 1 1 1

TOTAL 3 1 1 1 1 1 1

GRAND TOTAL 9

Information Technology Department (ITD) - Corporate Five (5) days a week; nine (9) hours a day inclusive of one (1) hour break

Casino Filipino BranchesSix (6) days a week; eight (8) hours a day inclusive of one (1) hour break

Contract Duration: Within a period of Two (2) Years commencing from the effectivity date specified in the Notice to Proceed.

Source of Fund: Internally Funded

Bidder should have completed, within the last three (3) years before the date of submission and receipt of bids, a contract similar to the Project. The description of an eligible bidder is contained in the Bidding Documents, particularly, in Section II Instructions to Bidder. Bidding will be conducted through open competitive bidding procedures using a non-discretionary “pass/fail” criterion as specified in the Implementing Rules and Regulations (IRR) of Republic Act (RA) 9184, otherwise known as the “Government Procurement Reform Act”.

Bidding is restricted to Filipino citizens/sole proprietorships, partnerships, or organizations with at least sixty percent (60%) interest or outstanding capital stock belonging to citizens of the Philippines, and to citizens or organizations of a country the laws or regulations of which grant similar rights or privileges to Filipino citizens, pursuant to RA 5183 and subject to Commonwealth Act 138.

All particulars relative to Pre-Bid Conference, Detailed Evaluation of Bids, Post-Qualification and Award of Contract shall be governed by the pertinent provisions of R.A. 9184 and it’s IRR.

The schedule of activities is listed, as follows:

Activities Schedule

1. Issuance of the Bidding Documents May 16, 2016 (Monday) to June 6, 2016 (Monday)

2. Pre-Bid Conference May 24, 2016 (Tuesday), 2:00 p.m.3. Deadline for the Submission and Receipt of Bids June 6, 2016 (Monday), 2:00 p.m.

4. Opening and Preliminary Examination of Bids June 6, 2016 (Monday), 2:00 p.m. onwards

Complete details of the project are indicated in the bidding documents which will be available to prospective bidder at the Bids and Awards Services Department (BASD), acting as the BAC Secretariat, upon payment of the non-refundable cost for the sale of bidding documents in the amount of Ten Thousand Pesos (PhP10,000.00).

Prospective bidder may also download the Bidding Documents free of charge from the following websites: www.pagcor.ph and www.philgeps.gov.ph and may be allowed to submit bids provided that bidder shall pay the non-refundable cost for the sale of bidding documents not later than the date of the submission of bids. The Pre-bid Conference is open to all prospective bidder. Prospective bidder should present to PAGCOR’s Cashier located at the Sixth (6th) Floor, PAGCOR Corporate Office, New World Manila Bay Hotel, 1588 M.H. del Pilar Street corner Pedro Gil Street, Malate, Manila either the Bidding Fee Slip which may be secured from BASD or a copy of this ITB in effecting payment for the Bidding Documents. All bids must be accompanied by a bid security in any of the acceptable forms and in the amount stated in ITB Clause 18.

PAGCOR assumes no responsibility whatsoever to compensate or indemnify bidder for any expenses incurred in the preparation of their bids.

In accordance with Government Procurement Policy Board (GPPB) Circular 06-2005 - Tie-Breaking Method, the Bids and Awards Committee (BAC) 2 shall use a non-discretionary and non-discriminatory measure based on sheer luck or chance, which is “DRAW LOTS,” in the event that two or more bidder have been post-qualified and determined as the bidder having the Lowest Calculated Responsive Bid (LCRB) to determine the final bidder having the LCRB, based on the following procedures:

1. In alphabetical order, the bidder shall pick one rolled paper.2. The lucky bidder who would pick the paper with a “CONGRATULATIONS” remark shall be

declared as the final bidder having the LCRB and recommended for award of the contract.

PAGCOR reserves the right to accept or reject any Bid, and to annul the bidding process and reject all Bids at any time prior to contract award, without thereby incurring any liability to the affected bidder or bidder.

Please address all communications to the Bids and Awards Committee 2 thru BASD, Room 203, Second (2nd) Floor, PAGCOR House, 1330 Roxas Boulevard, Ermita, Manila, Tel No.: 524-3911, 521-1542 local 223 or 671.

(SGD) RODERICK R. CONSOLACIONChairpersonBids and Awards Committee (BAC) 2

INVITATION TO BID FOR THE PROCUREMENT OF SERVICES FOR ISO 9001-2008 CERTIFICATION UNDER ITB NO. PB16-046 (RE-BIDDING)

The Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (PAGCOR) is inviting all interested bidders in its forthcoming re-bidding for the Procurement of Services for ISO 9001-2008 Certification under ITB No. PB16-046.

Brief Description To procure the services of a Certifying Body (CB) competent and qualified to:1. Assess conformity of PAGCOR’s QMS with ISO 9001:2008 standards covering

its Core Processes (Gaming Operations, Casino Licensing and Regulation, and Corporate Social Responsibility) in its three (3) Corporate Offices and Casino Filipino – Tagaytay as pilot branch; and

2. Provide training for transition to and subsequent conformity assessment to ISO 9001:2015.

Contract Duration Three (3) Years from the effectivity date specified in the Notice to Proceed

Approved Budget for the Contract (ABC)

The ABC for the project is in the total amount of Three Million Forty-Six Thousand Pesos (PhP3,046,000.00), VAT-Exclusive, Zero-Rated Transaction.

Source of Funds Internally Funded

Bidders should have completed, within the last three (3) years before the date of submission and receipt of bids, a contract similar to the Project. The description of an eligible bidder is contained in the Bidding Documents, particularly, in Section II. Instructions to Bidders. Bidding will be conducted through open competitive bidding procedures using a non-discretionary “pass/fail” criterion as specified in the Implementing Rules and Regulations (IRR) of Republic Act (RA) 9184, otherwise known as the “Government Procurement Reform Act”.Bidding is restricted to Filipino citizens/sole proprietorships, partnerships, or organizations with at least sixty percent (60%) interest or outstanding capital stock belonging to citizens of the Philippines, and to citizens or organizations of a country the laws or regulations of which grant similar rights or privileges to Filipino citizens, pursuant to RA 5183 and subject to Commonwealth Act 138. All particulars relative to Pre-Bid Conference, Detailed Evaluation of Bids, Post-Qualification and Award of Contract shall be governed by the pertinent provisions of R.A. 9184 and its IRR.The schedule of activities is listed, as follows:

Activities Schedule1. Issuance of the Bidding Documents May 16, 2016 to June 6, 2016

2. Pre-Bid Conference May 24, 2016; 10:00 a.m.

3. Deadline for the Submission and Receipt of Bids June 6, 2016; 10:00 a.m.

4. Opening and Preliminary Examination of Bids June 6, 2016; 10:00 a.m. onwards

Complete details of the project are indicated in the bidding documents which will be available to prospective bidders at the Bids and Awards Services Department (BASD), acting as the BAC Secretariat, upon payment of the non-refundable fee for the sale of bidding documents in the amount of Five Thousand Pesos (PhP5,000.00) from the address below.Prospective bidders may also download the Bidding Documents free of charge from the following websites: www.pagcor.ph and www.philgeps.gov.ph and may be allowed to submit bids provided that bidders shall pay the non-refundable fee for the sale of bidding documents not later than the date of the submission of bids. The Pre-bid Conference is open to all prospective bidders. Prospective bidders should present to PAGCOR’s Cashier located at the Sixth (6th) Floor, PAGCOR Corporate Office, New World Manila Bay Hotel, 1588 M.H. del Pilar Street corner Pedro Gil Street, Malate, Manila either the Bidding Fee Slip, which may be secured from the BASD, or a copy of this ITB in effecting payment for the Bidding Documents. All bids must be accompanied by a bid security in any of the acceptable forms and in the amount stated in ITB Clause 18.PAGCOR assumes no responsibility whatsoever to compensate or indemnify bidders for any expenses incurred in the preparation of their bids.In accordance with Government Procurement Policy Board (GPPB) Circular 06-2005 - Tie-Breaking Method, the Bids and Awards Committee (BAC) shall use a non-discretionary and non-discriminatory measure based on sheer luck or chance, which is “DRAW LOTS,” in the event that two or more bidders have been post-qualified and determined as the bidder having the Lowest Calculated Responsive Bid (LCRB) to determine the final bidder having the LCRB, based on the following procedures:1. In alphabetical order, the bidders shall pick one rolled paper.2. The lucky bidder who would pick the paper with a “CONGRATULATIONS” remark shall be declared as

the final bidder having the LCRB and recommended for award of the contract. PAGCOR reserves the right to accept or reject any Bid, and to annul the bidding process and reject all Bids at any time prior to contract award, without thereby incurring any liability to the affected bidder or bidders.Please address all communications to the Bids and Awards Committee through BASD, Room 203, Second (2nd) Floor, PAGCOR House, 1330 Roxas Boulevard, Ermita, Manila, Tel No.: 524-3911, 521-1542 locals 223 or 617.

(Sgd.) CELESTINA R. ADORChairpersonBids and Awards Committee (BAC) 4

A S u r e B e t f o r P r o g r e s s i n G a mi n g , E n t e r t a i n m e nt a n d N a t i on B u i l d i n g

A S u r e B e t f o r P r o g r e s s i n G a mi n g , E n t e r t a i n m e nt a n d N a t i on B u i l d i n g

[email protected]

MO NDAY : MAY 1 6 , 2 0 1 6

SPORTS

FEU tossers seal quarterfinal castPHILADELPHIA—The Atlanta Hawks, fresh off a victory over LeBron James and Cleveland, saw their six-game win streak snapped Saturday by the NBA’s second-worst team, Philadelphia, while the Cavaliers ripped Phoenix.

Hassanwon’tplay inGame 7MIAMI—Miami Heat center Hassan White-side will not play Sun-day in Toronto in a one-game showdown to see which team ad-vances to face Cleve-land in the NBA East-ern Conference � nals.

Whiteside has not played since su� ering a sprained right knee ligament in the second quarter of game three in the best-of-seven playo� series, which the Heat evened at 3-3 with a 103-91 victory on Friday.

“I can’t really put a measurement on it,” Whiteside said of a timetable for his return. “It just really depends on what the doctors say and how everything is feeling. I don’t really want to make anything worse.”

Whiteside hopes the Heat can elimi-nate the Raptors and advance to a show-down with the Cava-liers, who host game one of the East final on Tuesday. AFP

By Atencio/Volleyball- PSL Beach Volleyball

COLLEGIATE � nalists Bernadeth Pons and Kyla Atienza used their vast experience to lead Far Eastern University-Petron to a 21-14, 21-15, beating of Cignal Team Awesome’s Mary Grace Berte and Vhima Condada last Saturday in the 2016 Philippine Super Liga Beach Volleyball Challenge Cup at the Mall of Asia Sands by the Bay.

� ey became the last pair to reach the quarter� nal round a� er � nishing the eliminations with their second win in three games in Pool D.

Pons and Atienza, who settled for runner-up honors in the re-cent UAAP � nals, had little trou-ble taking a 14-point lead in the � rst set.

� e 19-year-old Pons � rst took charge with her serves, hitting at least four aces to lead the Lady Tams to an 18-4 edge.

Atienza’s spikes to the backline then had the Lady Tams staying ahead, 13-6 in the � nal set.

“We were communicating well. Our long shots were scoring

points for us,” said Atienza.� eir chance of making it to the

quarter� nals improved a� er Jove-lyn Gonzaga and Nene Bautista of RC Cola -Army A eased out April Ross Hingpit and Jonafer San Pe-dro of Meralco, 21-17, 21-16.

Gonzaga and Bautista then ended their Pool D stint with a three-game sweep, making it to the quarter� nals as well.

A pair of errors at the net al-lowed the Army women to keep their distance, 19-15.

Cherry Rondina and Patty Orendain earlier beat Aiza Maizo-Pontillas and Bang Pineda, 21-9, 21-8, for a quarter� nals seat fol-lowing sweep of Pool C.

Foton’s Cherry Rondina (center) hammers a smash on the waiting Aiza Maizo-Pontillas of Petron in the PSL Challenge Cup. ROMAN PROSPERO

[email protected]

MO NDAY : MAY 1 6 , 2 0 1 6

SPORTS

Roach tells Khan:Forget Pacquiao

Standard Insurance bet makes it to Naval Academy. Philippine Military Association Cadet Mary Pauline “Pawi” Fornea, a member of the Philippine Navy Standard Insurance cycling team, was admitted to the US Naval Academy in Annapolis. Pawi holds the PMA record for the fastest 3K run for plebes and has been a consistent dean’s lister at the academy.


FREDDIE Roach, senator-elect and eight-division world champion Manny Pacquiao’s Hall of Fame trainer, has advised Amir Khan to forget about a � ght against the Filipino icon.

Shia LaBeouf to portray McEnroe in new film

Flores replaces Mendoza as Melindo’s opponent

LOTTO RESULTS6/49 00-00-00-00-00-0

3 DIGITS 0-0-02 EZ2 0-0

P16M

3 0-0-02 0-0

LOCKERROOMRANDY

CALUAG


WITH Milan Melindo’s rematch with flyweight champion Javier Mendoza called off because of an injury to the champion, Zanfer Promotions has picked Maximino “Max” Flores as a replacement against the Filipino fighter in their May 28 showdown at the St. La Sal-le Coliseum in Bacolod City.

The Melindo-Flores fight is in the undercard of the WBO light fly-weight title bout between Donnie Ni-etes and Raul “Rayito” Garcia.

Flores has a record 19-2 with 13 knockouts, but both defeats were by knockouts.

He lost by a second-round TKO to Valentin Leon in a four-round bout on June 25, 2011 and then dropped a second-round TKO, also in a four-round bout on April 12, 2013, before winning a rematch on April 12, 2013.

In his last fight, Flores scored a split decision win over Victor San-doval on Feb. 6 this year.

A ringside report said: “The contests between these two prom-ising near neighbors saw Flores emerge with a split decision vic-

tory, although the judges came up with three very different views of the fight. Scores of 80-73 and 78-77 for Ensenada’s Flores and 78-74 for Sandoval from Tijuana. Flores is 11-1, 2nd in his last 14 fights and has reversed the loss in those figures. Sandoval had won 10 of his last 11 fights, but his 11 victims had only amassed 7 wins between them.”

Earlier, on Feb. 14, 2015, Flores was involved in a no-contest against Gilberto Parra due to an early clash of heads.

A report on the fight said: “It was a match with a good level of boxing and many emotions. Ac-tion began in the very first round and the initiative was taken by Maximino Flores, as he threw the frontal attack, with a good f low of blows mainly sent to the soft zone of Gilberto Parra. Parra spent a long time looking for the distance you would work better to attack, so his shots were not so frequent as to endanger Flores. Yes, Gilber-to accommodated a pair of frilly both left-handed and right in the face and backed Maximino but only a little.”

IT is said that the first Olym-pics took place in Greece. The strongest men among nations took part in the games and during that time, all the war-ring nations of early civiliza-tions become united for the love of the games.

That tradition still exists in modern times, as athletes from all races and religions gather under one roof every four years to compete in what is now known as the modern Olympic Games. The best of the best compete against each other in their bid for greatness and to bring home that glitter-ing gold medal.

It’s a badge of honor for the athletes. But you don’t have to have the same Olympics for sports to become an instrument of unity.

Martial arts sport, for one, is good example. Sir Henry Kobayashi, founder of Hybrid Yawyan has been organizing a mixed martial arts tourna-ment called Balikatan whose main feature is the battle of warriors between the Philip-pines and India.

Among the Indian fight-ers in action yesterday at the Marikina Sports Center was

international martial artist Hapreet Kaur. She was the only female among four In-dian warriors representing the highly touted Budo Kai Do Mixed Martial Arts Federa-tion of India.

Kaur was to take on Beverly Sayod of Hybrid-Yawwan, mak-ing her debut in the event orga-nized by Sir Henry Kobayashi.

“We have a growing relation-ship with our Indian brothers in martial arts. Like the Philip-pines, India has a deep sense of martial arts tradition. With this Balikatan event, we are helping each other in catching with the growth of MMA in Asia,” said Kobayashi.

***Boxing is another sport that

provides sanity to the deterio-rating diplomatic relationship between China and the Phili-pines, thanks to Brico Santig’s Highland Promotions and Liu Gang’s Zowi Boxing.

� e give-and-take relation-ship is simple. Santig provides the trainers for Liu’s stable of boxers. Liu, who has earned reputation as one of the biggest promoters in China, get Fili-pino boxers from Santig. � e Filipinos are always prioritized in Liu’s promotion.

No less than OPBF chairman Ramon Guanzon has lauded the cooperation between China and the Philippines in boxing.

“We are happy to be part of

China’s emergence in profes-sional boxing. And Mr. Liu, in particular, is also very helpful to our Filipino boxers,” added Guanzon, who is also the chair-man of the Games and Amuse-ment of Board.

***Don’t look far though.One Meralco Foundation and

the Philippine Marine Corps is using football to unite the fu-ture generations of this country.

Just recently, they hosted more than 200 kids from Tawi-Tawi, Sulu, Basilan, Maguin-danao, Sultan Kudarat, Misa-mis, Lanao del Sur, Pagadian, Bohol, and Palawan for a foot-ball festival at the Fort Bonifa-cio, Taguig City

“It’s an ongoing activity year in and year out, which culmi-nates in the ‘Football for Peace’ in Manila,” said event co-found-er Rookie Nagtalon.

“� e good thing here is that the kids from Mindanao were also mixed with children from Manila to remove some sort of barrier that exists.”

Marine Lt. Col. Stephen L. Ca-banlet, who started the football for peace program, said they will continue doing and making the program sustainable.

“We are building a genera-tion of love and peace. We will begin the remove the culture of hatred. Sport can really be-come a uniting force of a na-tion,” he said.

CANNES—Maverick Hollywood actor Shia LaBeouf is to play the original tennis rebel John McEnroe in a new film about his rivalry with the Swedish star Bjorn Borg, the producers said Sunday.

“Borg/McEnroe” will follow the two men’s epic battles on and off the court through the 1970s and 1980s, the Swedish producers Film Vaest announced at the Cannes film festival.

The fiery American star revolutionized the image of the sport, bringing rockstar petulance to the centre court.

LaBeouf too loves to prick convention, famously showing his contempt for the ce-lebrity circus by wearing a brown paper bag on his head at a red-carpet premiere at the Berlin film festival two years ago.

The actor is at Cannes for the premiere Sunday of British director Andrea Arnold’s

road movie “American Honey”, which is vy-ing for the festival’s top prize, the Palme d’Or.

The producers said the Icelandic actor Sverrir Gudnason will play the “Swedish iceman” Borg with Stellan Skarsgard -- who co-starred in “The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo” -- cast as his influential coach Lennart Bergelin.

The film will be shot in the autumn in Swe-den, London, Monaco and New York. AFP

Roach also told Khan to instead recover from what he described as “a bad knockout.”

The British fighter, who bagged a silver med-al in the 2004 Athens Olympic Games, moved up two-weight divisions to face Saul “Canelo” Alvarez at a catch-weight of 155 pounds and suffered a devastating one-punch knockout at the new 20,000-seat T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas last May 7.

Sky Sports in Britain reported that following the knockout, Khan confirmed he will “spend time with his family in the immediate future, but also earmarked a bout with former gym-mate Pacquiao as “definitely a possibility,” expressing

enthusiasm about going “straight into another big fight.”

Pacquiao (58-6-2-KO38) himself called time on his legendary career after outpointing Timothy Bradley in April and his long-time coach Roach, formerly Khan’s trainer, was quick to pour cold water on the idea of him facing Khan any time soon despite admitting the multi-division champion may fight again.

In an interview reported on boxing-scene.com, Roach said: “That was a real bad knockout. After that kind of knock-out, honest ly I don’t know about that [Khan f ighting Pacquiao].

Sports unites nations, tribes

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mo nday : m ay 1 6 , 2 0 1 6

CYAN MAGENTA YELLOW BLACK

A16RIERa U. maLL aRI

E D I T O R

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Aces stay alive, force Game 6Diaz hopefulof a Rio berth

Calvin Abueva of Alaska maneuvers his way against the defense of Rain or Shine’s Jewel Ponferada and Beau Belga in a PBA Commissioner’s Cup game won by the Aces, 86-78.

Calvin Abueva showed why he is the Best Player of the Conference by coming up with his finest show-ing thus far in the finals, pouring in a double-double of 20 points and 13 re-bounds, on top of two blocks to allow the Aces to stretch the series yet again.

The finale now stands at 3-2, still in favor of the Elasto Painters, but the Aces have put more pressure on

their foes heading into Game 6.“We still have a chance at this and

we’ll continue to take it one game at a time,” added Alaska coach Alex Compton.

“It was another proud game for me and our guys. But still, this doesn’t change my opinion of ROS. It makes me proud of my guys the way we played defense. I don’t know

when was the last time they (Paint-ers) scored below 80. The last two games were more of the team that I know, I just want us to play that way,” he added.

The Painters will be looking to finally end it on their third try on Wednesday, while the Aces are hoping to send the series into a winner-take-all Game 7.

Abueva’s clutch baskets lifted Alaska down the stretch.

From a 69-all standoff with five minutes left, the Aces orchestrated a

key 5-0 run to take a 74-69 lead in crunch time.

That proved to be the needed sepa-ration for Alaska as it was able to hold on, thanks to key baskets from Abue-va that kept Rain or Shine at bay.

“Na-3-0 kami. Ngayon na ‘yung recovery namin, nitong last two games. Lumalabas na ‘yung energy namin talaga,” said Abueva.

The scores:ALASKA 86 - Abueva 20, Dozier

14, Jazul 13, Hontiveros 12, Baguio 11, Banchero 6, Racal 5, Baclao 2, Thoss 2, Dela Rosa 1.

RAIN OR SHINE 78 - Chan 17, Lee 16, Quinahan 9, Cruz 8, Pon-ferada 8, Henderson Niles 6, Nor-wood 5, Belga 4, Almazan 2, Ibanes 2, Ahanmisi 1, Tiu 0.

by peter Atencio

THE Philippine Olympic Com-mittee is still awaiting word on the status of Filipina weightlifter Hidilyn Diaz.

Based on her good showing recently, Diaz is deserving of a third consecutive trip to the Olympics in Rio de Janeiro.

According to the International Weightlifting Federation, the Philippines has earned a quota place in the women’s division because of Diaz’s performance in the recent Uzbekistan Asian Championships, which served as a Continental Qualification Event for the Rio Games.

“But there’s no official con-firmation yet. We hope to know by the end of the month, or by June,” said POC first vice presi-dent and Rio Olympics’ chef de mission Joey Romasanta.

During the meet, the 25-year-old Diaz took a silver and two bronze medals in the women’s 53-kg category.

This earned the Philippine a fifth-place finish in the Team Classification.

by jeric lopez

ALASKA is still breathing.For the second straight time, Alaska staved off elimination as it lived to fight another day after downing Rain or Shine, 86-78, in Game 5 of their best-of-seven championship in the 2016 Philippine Basketball Association Commissioner’s Cup Sunday night.

game Wednesday(Finals, Game 6 - Smart Araneta

Coliseum):7 p.m. - Alaska vs. Rain or Shine

RODERICK T. DELA CRUZASSISTANT EDITOR B1

MONDAY: MAY 16, 2016

[email protected]@gmail.com

RAY S. EÑANOEDITOR

BUSINESS

Bangko Sentral ng PilipinasFriday, May 13, 2016

Foreign exchange rateCurrency Unit US Dollar PesoUnited States Dollar 1.000000 46.5840

Japan Yen 0.009173 0.4273

UK Pound 1.445500 67.3372

Hong Kong Dollar 0.128879 6.0037

Switzerland Franc 1.030822 48.0198

Canada Dollar 0.778513 36.2662

Singapore Dollar 0.728704 33.9459

Australia Dollar 0.732500 34.1228

Bahrain Dinar 2.652661 123.5716

Saudi Arabia Rial 0.266660 12.4221

Brunei Dollar 0.726058 33.8227

Indonesia Rupiah 0.000075 0.0035

Thailand Baht 0.028297 1.3182

UAE Dirham 0.272272 12.6835

Euro Euro 1.137900 53.0079

Korea Won 0.000855 0.0398

China Yuan 0.153516 7.1514

India Rupee 0.014982 0.6979

Malaysia Ringgit 0.248942 11.5967

New Zealand Dollar 0.681200 31.7330

Taiwan Dollar 0.030670 1.4287 Source: PDS Bridge

7,436.79111.75

Closing May 13, 2016PSe comPoSite index

48.00

46.00

45.00

44.00

43.00

HIGH P46.550 LOW P46.770 AVERAGE P46.672

Closing May 13, 2016PeSo-dollar rate

VOLUME 589.370M

Bangko Sentral ng PilipinasBangko Sentral ng PilipinasBangko Sentral ng PilipinasBangko Sentral ng PilipinasBangko Sentral ng PilipinasBangko Sentral ng PilipinasBangko Sentral ng PilipinasBangko Sentral ng PilipinasBangko Sentral ng PilipinasBangko Sentral ng PilipinasBangko Sentral ng Pilipinas

oilPriceS today

P426.00-P637.00LPG/11-kg tank

P35.40-P42.60Unleaded Gasoline

P23.49-P27.07Diesel

P34.55-P39.15Kerosene

todayP35.40-P42.60

P23.49-P27.07

P34.55-P39.15

PP426.00-P637.00

8300

7840

7380

6920

6460

6000

P46.555CLOSE

SMC industrial parkluring big companies

PAL’s income fell 28% to P2.7b in fi rst quarter

Pure Foods’ profi ts. San Miguel Pure Foods Co. Inc. at its annual stockholders’ meeting says fi rst-quarter net income rose over 30 percent to P1.2 billion. Parent San Miguel Corp. said fi rst-quarter earnings increased more than two-fold to P13.5 billion. San Miguel Pure Foods chairman Eduardo Cojuangco Jr. (center) converses with vice chairman Ramon Ang (right). With them is Alexandra Trillana, corporate secretary and general counsel.

By Jenniffer B. Austria

SAN Miguel Corp. is in talks with a big toy manufacturing company and a ship building � rm to locate within the conglomerate’s � rst industrial estate development in Davao del Sur province.

San Miguel president and chief operating o� cer Ramon Ang said over the weekend the company received inquiries a� er it started inviting potential investors to locate within its 2,000-hectare Davao Industrial Estate.

“We will be bring a toy manu-facturing � rm that will employ 80,000 people and I will be bring-

ing soon a ship building compa-ny,” Ang said.

He said investors in the Davao Industrial Estate would bene� t from lower power prices at P3 per kilowatt hour compared with the prevailing rate of P10 per Kwh, as well as a good investment en-vironment and strategic site with easy access to the Davao City and

General Santos City international airports and Davao seaport.

� e industrial estate also o� ers low, long-term lease rate, growing skilled workers, a 20-meter deep international port to accommo-date container vessels, and a pri-vate airport.

A 600-megawatt coal-� red power plant in Malita, Davao Oc-cidental, owned by San Miguel, is expected to partially go on stream by the second quarter of 2016.

Aside from the industrial estate and power plant developments, the San Miguel group has other investments in Mindanao, includ-ing the Daguma coal mine and other mining projects.

“We have planned these invest-

ments years ahead without know-ing the next president will come from Mindanao. � ose projects were built to help the people of Mindanao and to create jobs,” Ang said, referring to presump-tive president Rodrigo Duterte.

San Miguel, meanwhile, ex-pects to sustain its growth mo-mentum a� er posting strong � rst-quarter earnings.

Ang attributed the company’s � rst-quarter performance to the robust growth of Petron Corp., which was bene� ting from the higher economic yield from the expansion of its Bataan re� nery.

� e conglomerate’s core busi-nesses, like food, tollways and power business, remain strong.

By Darwin G. Amojelar

THE operator of Philippine Airlines said over the weekend net income fell 28 percent in the � rst quarter, as expenses grew faster than revenues amid volatile exchange rate.

PAL Holdings Inc. said net pro� t reached P2.71 billion in the January-to-March period, up from P3.78 billion registered in the same period last year.

Revenues rose 4.1 percent in the � rst quarter to P29.12 billion from last year’s P27.98 billion.

PAL Holdings attributed the in-crease in revenue to the deprecia-tion of Philippine peso, which av-eraged 47.27 per US dollar in the � rst quarter from last year’s 44.42 per greenback.

� e company said if the ex-change rate had remained at the 2015 level, total revenues would have decreased by P609.6 million.

Passenger revenues rose to P24.65 billion in the � rst quarter from P23.09 billion in the same period last year. Cargo revenues fell 31 percent to P1.47 billion from P2.14 billion.

Expenses in January to March grew 6.2 percent to P26.2 billion from P24.7 billion last year.

“� e increase was also brought by the e� ect of the peso-dollar exchange rate � uctuations,” PAL Holdings said.

It said if the exchange rate had remained at the 2015 level, total expenses would have decreased by P57.6 million.

Flying operations expenses de-clined P462.3 million to P14.09 billion, attributable mainly to lower fuel costs. Fuel price dropped to an average of $60.87 per barrel in the � rst quarter of 2016 from $89.91 in 2015.

PAL operated more interna-tional � ights in the � rst quarter, increasing aircra� and tra� c servicing cost by 23.2 percent to P3.41 billion over the year ago level of P2.77 billion.

PAL, now wholly-owned by ty-coon Lucio Tan a� er he bought back a 49-percent stake that San Miguel Corp. purchased from him in 2012, signed a memoran-dum of understanding in Febru-ary with Airbus for the acquisi-tion of six A350-900 aircra� with

the option for another six for de-livery in the years 2018 to 2019.

� e acquisition of six Airbus A350 was valued at $1.83 million.

PAL plans to deploy the A350 extra wide-body, which seats more than 300, on new routes to North America and Europe. � e � rst A350 is scheduled to be de-livered in 2018.

A350 is the world’s latest gener-ation airliner, featuring the most modern aero-dynamic design, carbon � ber fuselage and wings. With the Trent XWB engines, A350 operates at 25 percent less fuel burn and emissions, sig-ni� cantly lowering maintenance costs. � e extra-wide cabin pro-vides passengers more personal space in all classes.


BUSINESSMONDAY: MAY 16, 2016

B2

MAY 9-13, 2016 MAY 2-6, 2016 STOCKS Close Volume Value Close Volume Value

The STandard BuSineSS Weekly STockS revieW

FINANCIALAG Finance 3.39 901,000 2,931,230.00 2.85 307,000 736,820.00Asia United Bank 46 60,900 2,784,380.00 45.5 59,500 2,685,970.00Banco de Oro Unibank Inc. 104.00 13,473,760 1,369,550,417 99.50 12,498,060 1,240,060,606Bank of PI 93.00 5,790,170 538,492,913.00 90.95 19,008,390 1,722,869,484.50China Bank 40 387,800 15,488,575.00 39.75 809,600 31,991,145.00BDO Leasing & Fin. Inc. 3.00 157,000 470,790.00 2.90 286,000 848,790.00Bright Kindle Resources 1.54 696,000 1,097,730.00 1.46 1,565,000 2,356,190.00COL Financial 14.2 4,069,300 57,780,220.00 14.2 15,500 217,980.00Eastwest Bank 16.2 1,042,500 16,677,250.00 15.3 871,900 13,242,444.00Filipino Fund Inc. 7.05 700 4,936 7.05 40,100 286,164First Abacus 0.7 5,000 3,500 0.68 18,000 12,240I-Remit Inc. 1.73 53,000 91,080.00 1.67 46,000 76,050.00Manulife Fin. Corp. 600.00 950 573,500.00 MEDCO Holdings 0.570 2,097,000 1,217,940.00 0.570 4,359,000 2,485,440.00Metrobank 87 24,852,060 2,078,627,192.00 78 10,155,700 800,035,132.00Natl Reinsurance Corp. 0.97 76,000 73,000.00 0.97 181,000 174,330.00PB Bank 15.00 267,200 4,010,938.00 15.00 148,100 2,192,042.00Phil Bank of Comm 24.00 7,000 168,000.00 Phil. National Bank 51.80 443,260 22,677,994.50 50.00 701,860 35,343,972.00Phil. Savings Bank 105.9 510 53,518.00 103.5 24,940 2,543,958.00Philippine Trust Co. 356 10 3,560.00 310 20 6,200.00PSE Inc. 273.4 5,710 1,548,652.00 260 21,060 5,540,104.00RCBC À’ 30.05 653,600 19,873,845 30.2 616,100 18,841,575Security Bank 190.5 9,598,290 1,780,165,042.00 171.5 4,892,200 838,438,134.00Sun Life Financial 1351.00 310 417,845.00 1360.00 770 1,061,900.00Union Bank 59.00 449,570 26,485,642.00 59.00 551,290 31,961,203.50Vantage Equities 1.52 56,000 85,410.00 1.5 245,000 368,600.00

INDUSTRIALAboitiz Power Corp. 47 9,158,300 416,395,435.00 44.05 10,272,600 457,105,565.00Agrinurture Inc. 3.71 3,602,000 13,571,970.00 4.2 2,592,000 10,989,310.00Alliance Tuna Intl Inc. 0.91 7,673,000 3,074,643.97 0.76 600,000 453,530.00Alsons Cons. 1.74 127,947,000 217,736,270.00 1.4 4,268,000 5,958,900.00Asiabest Group 14.2 25,700 351,094.00 13.9 16,500 220,464.00Bogo Medellin 56.5 490 27,685.00 57 2,450 135,906.50C. Azuc De Tarlac 193.00 300 61,238.00 190.00 2,820 462,018.00Century Food 20.5 6,133,700 123,680,779 19.12 3,056,500 58,037,842Chemphil 120 110 13,320.00 130 200 26,950.00Conc. Aggr. À’ 195 14,470 2,730,020.00 187 6,800 1,298,564.00Cirtek Holdings (Chips) 18 374,800 6,755,260.00 18.02 432,900 7,712,354.00Concepcion 46.45 1,733,800 80,220,070 45.05 3,400 156,255Crown Asia 2.27 1,645,000 3,752,900.00 2.26 1,869,000 4,230,270.00Da Vinci Capital 4.79 1,554,300 7,706,905.00 4.62 3,247,798 3,932,230.00Del Monte 10.6 436,400 4,662,258.00 10.7 229,100 2,462,128.00DNL Industries Inc. 9.480 52,939,204 167,048,570.00 8.870 43,282,700 383,301,787.00Emperador 7.60 6,799,300 53,221,371.00 7.98 3,475,900 27,181,820.00Energy Devt. Corp. (EDC) 5.85 45,853,200 271,448,242.00 5.65 43,715,500 247,868,315.00EEI 7.32 919,100 6,831,886.00 7.10 392,700 2,812,965.00Euro-Med Lab. 1.7 7,000 12,080.00 1.61 34,000 56,850.00First Gen Corp. 21.35 10,967,600 230,429,623.00 19.64 11,342,200 222,666,568.00First Holdings ‘A’ 68 840,190 55,283,319.50 64 913,370 58,554,045.50Ginebra San Miguel Inc. 14.78 24,700 348,342.00 14.70 49,100 720,158.00Holcim Philippines Inc. 14.58 839,700 12,088,260.00 14.00 299,600 4,234,618.00Integ. Micro-Electronics 5.69 872,200 4,890,536.00 5.4 895,000 4,919,881.00Ionics Inc 2.390 20,975,000 51,576,370.00 2.260 7,992,000 17,824,230.00Jollibee Foods Corp. 234.60 5,398,570 1,250,650,268.00 226.80 2,666,780 604,483,760.00Liberty Flour 35.00 300 10,500.00 35.00 25,000 790,885.00LMG Chemicals 2 47,000 92,520.00 1.88 96,000 183,390.00Mabuhay Vinyl Corp. 3.6 115,000 419,420.00 3.5 46,000 167,570.00Macay Holdings 39.50 8,700 323,430.00 35.50 55,900 1,935,350.00Manila Water Co. Inc. 28 6,104,800 171,446,605.00 28.25 12,115,200 338,935,785.00Maxs Group 22.95 3,426,300 77,924,155.00 21.35 5,583,440 18,297,370.00Megawide 6.6 903,300 5,810,521.00 6.4 246,600 1,554,277.00Mla. Elect. Co À’ 340.40 862,770 296,812,746.00 336.60 838,490 283,341,920.00MG Holdings 0.285 1,660,000 469,300.00 0.285 180,000 49,000.00Panasonic Mfg Phil. Corp. 4.67 98,000 419,470.00 4.40 57,000 252,840.00Pepsi-Cola Products Phil. 3.46 15,116,000 51,706,760.00 3.4 1,823,000 6,495,470.00Petron Corporation 11.46 39,919,300 448,773,380.00 10.50 19,335,900 204,011,966.00Phil H2O 3.01 27,000 83,120.00 3.16 47,000 148,520.00Phinma Corporation 11.62 11,500 133,156.00 11.60 6,600 76,268.00Phoenix Petroleum Phils. 5.50 5,384,200 28,271,750.00 4.82 2,095,000 9,914,910.00Phoenix Semiconductor 1.58 1,506,000 2,089,810.00 1.53 842,000 1,275,510.00Pryce Corp. À’ 2.8 1,105,000 3,042,360.00 2.69 2,309,000 6,347,820.00RFM Corporation 4.21 818,000 3,399,140.00 4.10 1,149,000 4,739,000.00Roxas and Co. 2.54 5,000 12,700.00 2.23 8,000 17,920.00Roxas Holdings 4.4 4,000 17,900.00 4.55 6,000 27,300.00San Miguel ‘Pure Foods À’ 221.6 144,980 31,786,510.00 206 43,380 9,044,704.00SPC Power Corp. 4.1 67,000 269,700.00 4.14 15,400 76,860.00Splash Corporation 2.6 847,000 2,168,720 2.59 813,000 2,039,320Swift Foods, Inc. 0.154 11,560,000 1,770,040.00 0.150 6,660,000 1,005,190.00TKC Steel Corp. 1.20 801,000 947,360.00 1.23 238,000 278,600.00Trans-Asia Oil 2.63 6,202,000 15,972,380.00 2.50 10,237,000 25,524,930.00Universal Robina 206.6 12,148,850 2,512,184,324.00 204.4 11,128,630 2,271,394,462.00Victorias Milling 4.87 109,000 502,820.00 4.65 40,000 186,680.00Vitarich Corp. 0.96 34,328,000 32,389,930.00 0.9 21,842,000 19,561,980.00Vivant Corp. 31.00 5,000 155,485.00 35.00 2,700 93,170.00Vulcan Ind’l. 1.35 7,252,000 10,033,110.00 1.27 3,470,000 4,417,940.00

HOLDING FIRMSAbacus Cons. À’ 0.405 61,030,000 22,743,350.00 0.350 34,440,000 12,087,100.00Aboitiz Equity 70.80 11,244,750 782,852,915.50 64.30 6,568,090 425,798,020.00Alliance Global Inc. 14.60 47,428,400 689,323,534.00 14.36 15,646,800 224,932,550.00Anglo Holdings A 1.23 4,165,000 5,822,650.00 1.09 35,000 38,540.00Anscor À’ 5.95 151,000 905,150.00 6.00 406,800 2,442,101.00ATN Holdings A 0.445 319,080,000 158,429,430.00 0.440 432,507,000 203,377,320.00ATN Holdings B 0.450 43,622,000 21,742,295.00 0.435 56,920,000 26,621,650.00Ayala Corp À’ 828 3,194,360 2,541,627,940.00 735 1,153,830 856,069,205.00Cosco Capital 7.95 8,175,000 64,397,305.00 7.82 7,322,900 57,207,505.00DMCI Holdings 12.62 26,314,800 328,366,566.00 11.70 18,483,800 218,919,262.00F&J Prince ‘A’ 5.07 33,800 171,167.00 5.08 37,400 190,036.00Filinvest Dev. Corp. 5.88 1,529,400 8,918,558.00 5.70 1,412,600 7,943,545.00Forum Pacific 0.285 9,730,300 5,396,460.00 0.204 1,040,000 215,570.00GT Capital 1451 843,670 756,005,340.00 1363 688,025 924,687,105.00House of Inv. 6.39 146,800 916,957.00 6.20 998,400 6,347,241.00JG Summit Holdings 91.10 23,693,580 2,076,476,309.00 78.40 9,851,470 779,138,606.50Jolliville Holdings 4.5 5,000 21,500.00 4.8 8,000 38,900.00Keppel Holdings À’ 5.33 2,400 12,954.00 5.33 40,600 216,184.00LT Group 6 20,600 121,315.00 6.1 400 2,262.00Keppel Holdings `B’ 7.8 20,515,400 152,405,906.00 6.9 10,355,700 73,034,288.00Lopez Holdings Corp. 0.69 4,708,000 3,373,710.00 0.68 177,000 120,870.00Lodestar Invt. Holdg.Corp. 13.52 39,372,800 543,024,108.00 14.4 13,990,800 205,560,722.00Mabuhay Holdings À’ 0.465 50,000 23,650.00 0.460 90,000 41,100.00Metro Pacific Inv. Corp. 6.02 172,128,200 1,018,500,320.00 5.65 134,048,000 760,943,105.00MJCI Investments Inc. 3.39 24,000 75,740.00 2.88 25,000 72,970.00Pacifica À’ 0.0340 53,800,000 1,770,000.00 0.0320 75,700,000 2,450,600.00Prime Media Hldg 1.370 357,000 476,620.00 1.440 429,000 603,160.00Prime Orion 1.840 2,451,000 4,495,130.00 1.770 8,673,000 15,428,190.00Republic Glass ‘A’ 2.75 132,000 353,980.00 2.7 409,000 1,057,280.00San Miguel Corp À’ 70.50 1,184,090 80,724,969.00 66.95 570,860 38,494,631.50Seafront À’ 2.15 64,000 137,970.00 2.14 106,000 226,540.00SM Investments Inc. 980.00 1,672,080 1,606,011,935.00 913.00 1,223,580 1,128,137,025.00Solid Group Inc. 1.18 1,764,000 2,068,530.00 1.14 572,000 648,160.00South China Res. Inc. 0.81 457,000 360,330.00 0.79 973,000 749,790.00Transgrid 190.00 90 17,100.00 190.00 30 5,700.00Top Frontier 154.000 6,200 930,055.00 145.000 17,800 2,536,870.00Unioil Res. & Hldgs 0.3200 23,780,000 7,606,300.00 0.3100 36,240,000 11,303,950.00Wellex Industries 0.2330 84,490,000 19,967,970.00 0.2000 2,300,000 449,300.00Zeus Holdings 0.305 20,380,000 6,574,500.00 0.290 1,540,000 410,750.00

P R O P E R T Y8990 HLDG 7.500 18,144,500 135,806,558.00 7.410 16,724,500 123,923,056.00Anchor Land Holdings Inc. 7.97 2,100 16,737.00 A. Brown Co., Inc. 1.24 31,597,000 38,291,730.00 1.05 22,524,000 24,855,260.00Araneta Prop À’ 2.100 9,244,000 19,714,990.00 2.050 28,578,000 60,018,930.00Arthaland Corp. 0.265 7,210,000 1,963,200.00 0.270 35,450,000 10,436,300.00Ayala Land `B’ 35.500 80,412,800 2,824,285,030.00 33.850 63,402,700 2,143,422,955.00Belle Corp. À’ 3.06 5,651,000 17,019,250.00 2.95 13,053,000 38,419,950.00Cebu Holdings 5.23 171,100 892,698.00 5.1 77,705 408,470.00Centennial City 0.540 20,429,000 10,753,930.00 0.510 188,607,000 102,101,740.00City & Land Dev. 0.99 81,000 79,930.00 0.98 85,000 80,650.00Cityland Dev. À’ 0.990 138,000 135,810.00 0.980 39,000 37,850.00Crown Equities Inc. 0.136 23,880,000 3,190,760.00 0.129 33,960,000 4,405,410.00Cyber Bay Corp. 0.465 7,670,000 3,599,950.00 0.455 4,110,000 1,865,850.00Double Dragon 49 11,838,500 565,526,715.00 38.05 5,045,300 191,967,225.00Empire East Land 0.850 1,975,000 1,664,510.00 0.830 176,000 146,910.00Ever Gotesco 0.158 80,000 12,280.00 0.149 910,000 142,920.00Global-Estate 1.01 17,018,000 17,059,550.00 0.95 19,266,000 18,338,910.00Filinvest Land,Inc. 1.93 83,153,000 157,327,720.00 1.85 58,670,000 106,138,990.00Interport À’ 1.32 130,000 172,080.00 1.33 477,000 617,550.00Keppel Properties 4.90 46,200 226,958.00 4.60 26,000 117,900.00Megaworld Prop. 4.25 367,981,000 1,488,607,650.00 3.7 220,575,000 805,651,530.00

MAY 9-13, 2016 MAY 2-6, 2016 STOCKS Close Volume Value Close Volume Value

MRC Allied Ind. 0.093 27,030,000 2,442,880.00 0.082 2,620,000 215,010.00Phil. Estates Corp. 0.2900 12,830,000 3,731,100.00 0.2600 80,000 19,740.00Phil. Realty À’ 0.520 9,458,000 4,964,100.00 0.530 7,222,000 4,013,110.00Phil. Tob. Flue Cur & Redry 31.00 21,400 689,535.00 29.45 300 8,345.00Primex Corp. 8.6 76,800 653,330.00 8.52 365,400 3,113,508.00Robinson’s Land `B’ 29.50 16,516,800 476,202,775.00 26.70 12,117,800 326,424,330.00Rockwell 1.56 617,000 954,080.00 1.51 1,411,000 2,129,190.00Shang Properties Inc. 3.12 94,000 287,970.00 3.1 120,000 364,880.00SM Prime Holdings 23.80 153,230,800 3,760,019,820.00 22.65 66,991,100 1,512,463,990.00Sta. Lucia Land Inc. 0.92 14,237,000 12,933,960.00 0.86 11,767,000 9,964,490.00Starmalls 6.59 5,500 35,564.00 6.45 5,300 34,157.00Suntrust Home Dev. Inc. 1.060 3,625,000 3,862,160.00 1.010 2,243,000 2,255,930.00Vista Land & Lifescapes 4.950 20,219,000 95,210,510.00 4.580 60,967,000 283,235,410.00

S E R V I C E S2GO Group 7.56 307,800 2,371,068.00 7.75 403,000 2,947,032.00ABS-CBN 53.2 1,298,750 69,500,666.00 54.9 769,950 42,591,742.00Acesite Hotel 1.34 1,163,000 1,590,520.00 1.25 327,000 405,850.00APC Group, Inc. 0.590 1,292,000 764,520.00 0.580 5,515,000 3,119,040.00Asian Terminals Inc. 11.38 31,100 357,974.00 11.58 14,300 166,022.00Berjaya Phils. Inc. 28.5 100 2,850 28.4 400 11,020Bloomberry 4.72 37,113,000 170,547,940.00 4.08 20,064,000 81,875,750.00Boulevard Holdings 0.0580 93,120,000 5,250,200.00 0.0550 67,050,000 3,684,000.00Calata Corp. 3.1 5,077,000 15,670,330.00 3.07 5,127,000 15,976,410.00Cebu Air Inc. (5J) 92 3,131,430 284,480,255.00 86.75 2,414,480 212,197,420.50Centro Esc. Univ. 9.55 20,200 190,280.00 9.5 11,100 104,914.00Discovery World 1.7 95,000 161,540 1.7 64,000 112,160DFNN Inc. 6.90 285,200 1,939,157.00 6.80 1,985,300 13,675,424.00Globe Telecom 2252 349,585 786,804,700 2178 389,150 838,644,770GMA Network Inc. 6.75 422,200 2,859,948.00 6.86 381,000 2,570,842.00Grand Plaza Hotel 23.50 3,100 73,075 24.00 700 16,800Harbor Star 1.20 206,000 242,290.00 1.18 128,000 150,640.00I.C.T.S.I. 64 3,516,930 223,542,216.50 63 7,246,220 456,776,069.00Imperial Res. À’ 16.10 391,400 6,468,076 17.28 1,184,900 21,863,994Imperial Res. `B’ 185 2,460 461,371 178 3,470 633,661IPeople Inc. À’ 12.98 100 1,298.00 11.52 7,300 84,096.00IP E-Game Ventures Inc. 0.0100 46,400,000 458,150.00 0.0099 9,800,000 97,910.00IPM Holdings 9.65 1,421,400 13,723,996.00 9.66 2,345,000 22,580,730.00Island Info 0.365 351,310,000 130,913,100.00 0.355 450,770,000 161,362,750.00ISM Communications 1.8800 48,008,000 92,943,200.00 1.8700 67,850,800 156,569,100.00Jackstones 2.09 618,000 1,308,490.00 2.09 162,000 341,200.00LBC Express 11.3 14,900 163,118.00 11 15,400 160,902.00Leisure & Resorts 7.74 524,000 3,996,374.00 7.47 265,900 2,018,604.00Liberty Telecom 4.50 6,713,000 29,804,540.00 4.24 8,463,000 35,711,720.00Lorenzo Shipping 1.28 11,000 13,600.00 1.12 64,000 71,600.00Macroasia Corp. 2.80 2,000 5,600.00 2.80 24,000 67,000.00Manila Broadcasting 22.20 1,100 24,044 21.00 5,400 112,125Manila Bulletin 0.580 210,000 121,790.00 0.580 2,077,000 1,204,520.00Manila Jockey 2 883,000 1,766,120.00 1.97 220,000 435,260.00Melco Crown 2.38 28,336,000 67,077,710.00 2.25 45,301,000 104,778,970.00Metro Retail 4.06 24,027,000 97,356,710.00 3.74 2,836,000 10,692,050.00NOW Corp. 2.800 96,834,000 232,636,900.00 2.530 186,866,000 498,478,040.00Pacific Online Sys. Corp. 17.56 5,100 87,798.00 16.88 71,000 1,236,712.00PAL Holdings Inc. 5.13 212,100 1,075,199 5.09 86,500 435,814Phil. Racing Club 8.99 200 1,798.00 8.66 37,000 320,420.00Phil. Seven Corp. 108.50 1,980 214,746.00 110.00 5,486,470 594,773,051.00Philweb.Com Inc. 23.50 487,100 11,205,980.00 22.75 427,800 9,812,460.00PLDT Common 1726.00 688,105 1,182,803,595.00 1660.00 936,765 1,580,215,760.00PremiereHorizon 0.420 2,050,000 828,350.00 0.400 2,680,000 1,116,500.00Premium Leisure 0.930 100,210,000 90,133,990.00 0.850 61,605,000 43,736,370.00Puregold 42.10 31,589,500 1,327,470,480.00 39.95 16,418,800 639,275,855.00Robinsons Retail 82.95 8,929,320 723,828,291.00 74.95 4,936,670 374,528,493.00SBS Phil. Corp. 6.20 1,478,100 9,206,254.00 6.08 2,387,700 14,538,233.00SSI Group 3.16 32,097,000 103,486,710.00 3.29 10,828,000 35,415,250.00STI Holdings 0.600 6,016,000 3,568,760.00 0.570 18,167,000 10,602,470.00Transpacific Broadcast 1.98 83,000 155,810.00 1.99 358,000 708,190.00Travellers 3.43 3,465,000 11,869,430.00 3.34 7,100,000 23,372,270.00Waterfront Phils. 0.385 5,530,000 2,055,000.00 0.335 570,000 189,000.00Yehey 5.700 927,900 5,265,650.00 5.230 150,400 801,765.00

MINING & OILAbra Mining 0.0043 2,696,000,000 11,514,000.00 0.0041 7,354,000,000 31,667,400.00Apex À’ 2.01 177,000 363,460.00 2.03 714,000 1,480,960.00Atlas Cons. À’ 4.20 366,000 1,547,690.00 4.20 314,000 1,325,640.00Atok-Big Wedge À’ 14.00 36,400 468,654.00 12.30 11,700 132,214.00Basic Energy Corp. 0.244 220,000 53,010.00 0.236 2,440,000 585,620.00Benguet Corp À’ 7.8000 101,300 789,939.00 8.0000 62,800 514,809.00Benguet Corp `B’ 7.7500 60,500 468,553.00 7.7500 45,600 356,322.00Century Peak Metals Hldgs 0.67 3,574,000 2,445,840.00 0.65 3,690,000 2,377,820.00Coal Asia 0.510 7,739,000 4,085,160.00 0.510 3,077,000 1,531,335.00Dizon 8.70 807,400 6,921,935.00 8.27 22,400 180,311.00Ferronickel 0.860 97,812,000 83,891,730.00 0.840 213,168,000 192,692,360.00Geograce Res. Phil. Inc. 0.305 5,200,000 1,540,250.00 0.290 3,790,000 1,079,950.00Lepanto À’ 0.255 130,130,000 32,894,550.00 0.250 416,660,000 107,457,020.00Lepanto `B’ 0.270 5,330,000 1,437,850.00 0.275 35,290,000 9,722,900.00Manila Mining À’ 0.0130 641,600,000 8,331,700.00 0.0120 185,800,000 2,323,000.00Manila Mining `B’ 0.0140 214,800,000 2,917,200.00 0.0130 17,600,000 237,800.00Marcventures Hldgs., Inc. 2.05 1,735,000 3,469,550.00 2 1,375,000 2,766,820.00Nickelasia 5 15,097,100 76,078,117.00 5.03 15,948,500 83,432,208.00Nihao Mineral Resources 2.65 2,195,000 5,651,880.00 2.42 1,354,000 3,270,540.00Omico 0.6000 889,000 521,930.00 0.6000 64,000 36,230.00Oriental Peninsula Res. 1.3500 1,033,000 1,400,420.00 1.2500 897,000 1,169,060.00Oriental Pet. À’ 0.0093 75,000,000 703,300.00 0.0093 28,000,000 272,400.00Oriental Pet. `B’ 0.0095 4,000,000 37,900.00 0.0095 5,000,000 47,500.00Petroenergy Res. Corp. 3.95 137,000 524,820.00 3.71 113,000 424,200.00Philex À’ 6.22 5,904,800 36,522,547.00 6.14 19,633,200 123,483,081.00PhilexPetroleum 3.15 56,504,000 164,513,990.00 2.20 5,574,000 12,441,250.00Philodrill Corp. À’ 0.0130 294,600,000 3,563,000.00 0.0120 149,900,000 1,772,600.00Semirara Corp. 127.00 3,074,240 394,911,604.00 126.40 1,959,640 247,834,422.00TA Petroleum 3.53 6,547,000 23,528,660.00 3.18 4,688,000 15,066,660.00United Paragon 0.0160 2,090,300,000 31,705,500.00 0.0086 3,623,000,000 30,071,400.00

PREFERREDABS-CBN Holdings Corp. 50.55 2,963,430 153,717,587.50 53.55 581,960 31,839,124.00Ayala Corp. Pref ‘B2’ 535 47,960 25,469,200 530 33,930 17,982,900First Gen G 116 30,300 3,514,800.00 118 57,030 6,679,475.00FPH Pref C 510 99,870 50,933,700.00 500 10,130 5,066,300.00GLOBE PREF P 530 200 106,000.00 530 2,390 1,247,800.00GMA Holdings Inc. 6.6 216,400 1,413,600.00 6.62 174,500 1,135,470.00Leisure & Resort Pref. 1.09 11,000 11,990 1.07 275,000 294,630MWIDE PREF 109 3,460 379,228.00 108.5 2,000 216,738.00PCOR-Preferred A 1026 2,180 2,236,690.00 1026 50 51,300.00PCOR-Preferred B 1085 350 376,900.00 1050 240 251,800.00PF Pref 2 1022 4,750 4,854,680.00 1020 1,275 1,295,250.00PNX PREF 3A 106 550 57,800.00 105 25,250 2,626,950.00PNX PREF 3B 110 1,500 165,000.00 110 52,290 5,749,000.00SMC Preferred B 78 1,500 117,000.00 78 10,000 780,000.00SMC Preferred C 80 64,330 5,151,455.50 80.5 13,130 1,051,632.00SMC Preferred D 76.15 1,800 137,070.00 77 32,400 2,462,640.00SMC Preferred E 76.2 12,500 952,920.00 77 30,100 2,290,300.00SMC Preferred F 77.5 6,840 529,413.00 78 80,770 6,276,409.00SMC Preferred G 78 56,260 4,387,884.00 78 165,290 12,882,687.00SMC Preferred H 75.5 209,060 15,686,652.50 75.05 1,067,390 80,187,194.00SMC Preferred I 75.2 235,920 17,740,771.00 75.15 315,540 23,690,888.00

WARRANTS & BONDSLeisure & Resort Warr. 3.040 889,000 2,694,260.00 2.880 2,247,000 6,497,110.00

S M EAlterra Capital 6.73 4,029,000 22,784,020.00 4.18 132,000 529,060.00Makati Fin. Corp. 4.03 640,000 2,552,130.00 3.82 211,000 837,430.00Italpinas 3.07 1,112,000 3,444,550.00 2.99 558,000 1,649,970.00Xurpas 17.9 16,514,900 284,930,824.00 16.2 7,901,400 128,522,078.00

EXCHANGE TRADED FUNDSFirst Metro ETF 123 59,540 7,175,299.00 115 60,140 6,951,478.00

WEEKLY MOST TRADED STOCKS VOLUME

Abra Mining 2,696,000,000United Paragon 2,090,300,000Manila Mining À’ 641,600,000Megaworld Prop. 367,981,000Island Info 351,310,000ATN Holdings A 319,080,000Philodrill Corp. À’ 294,600,000Manila Mining `B’ 214,800,000Metro Pacific Inv. Corp. 172,128,200SM Prime Holdings 153,230,800

STOCKS VALUE

SM Prime Holdings 3,760,019,820.00Ayala Land `B’ 2,824,285,030.00Ayala Corp À’ 2,541,627,940.00Universal Robina 2,512,184,324.00Metrobank 2,078,627,192.00JG Summit Holdings 2,076,476,309.00Security Bank 1,780,165,042.00SM Investments Inc. 1,606,011,935.00Megaworld Prop. 1,488,607,650.00Banco de Oro Unibank Inc. 1,369,550,417.00



B3

JG Summit’s profit jumps 61%

Market likely to trade lower on profit taking

Liberty Telecoms booked P113-m net loss in first quarter

Shell technology forum. Pilipinas Shell Petroleum Corp. organizes the Shell Technology Forum to bring together experts of the oil and gas company and its local customers to sustain their partnership in meeting business challenges. Shown during the forum are (from left) Shell Shanghai Technology Company team lead Felix Guerzoni, fuels technical advisor (East) Kong-Hua Ong and Shell Global Solutions Malaysia fuels scientist Mae Ascan as they answer questions from participants at Hotel Sofitel Philippine Plaza Manila.


JG Summit Hold-ings Inc., the invest-ment company of tycoon John Gokong-wei, said net income jumped 61 percent in the first quarter to P9.63 billion from P5.98 billion a year ago, boosted by the airline and petro-chemical businesses.

JG Summit said in a state-ment airline unit Cebu Air Inc. posted a net income of P4.04 billion in the first quarter, up 81 percent from a year ago, on lower fuel prices.

JG Summit Petrochemicals Corp. and JG Summit Olefins Corp. achieved a net income of P1.07 billion in the January-March period, a reversal of the P891.99-million net loss re-corded in the same period last year.

Property unit Robinsons Land Corp. also delivered strong results, with first-quarter net income of P1.55 billion, up 10.7 percent from year ago as revenues in-creased 12.1 percent to P5.47 billion.

Food manufacturing unit Universal Robina Corp. saw an 11.9-percent improvement in first-quarter net income to P3.21 billion. However, URC’s revenues slightly declined to P28.5 billion from P28.65 bil-lion, on lower net sales of the branded consumer foods group.

Banking unit Robinsons Bank Corp. generated bank-ing revenue of P808.99 million in the first quarter, an increase of 12.2 percent from last year’s P721.22 million. This increase was brought about by higher interest income, commission income and trading gain for the period.

Revenues from core invest-ments also declined 34.6 per-cent to P1.03 billion, on lower dividends declared by Philip-pine Long Distance Telephone Co.

Equity in net earnings of as-sociates, primarily from in-vestments in UIC and Manila Electric Co., increased to P1.83 billion from P1.68 billion.

The group’s operating ex-penses grew 14.5 percent in the first quarter to P10.67 billion, on higher selling, general and administrative expenses, par-ticularly in the food and airline business units.

The conglomerate’s operating income also went up by 25.3 percent to P14.64 billion.

STOCKS are expected to trade lower this week, on profit taking after a strong run last week that sent the benchmark index to a nine-month high.

Analysts said while there was still room for the market to sustain its upward trajectory, the market’s significant rise last week had made shares prices more expensive, which could prompt investors to cash in on previous week’s gains.

“Valuation concerns remain which could limit the market’s rise. Chartwise, the week’s close at 7,436.79 continues to suggest the market has still some room to try 7,600 to 7,800 levels in the near term,” BDO Unibank chief invest-ment strategist Jonathan Ravelas

said.The market is currently trad-

ing at a price-to-earnings ratio of 22 times. PE indicates how cheap or expensive a market or specific stock is.

The positive first-quarter earn-ings of listed firms could also boost investor sentiments, analysts said, as investors remained posi-tive about the domestic economy.

The economic advisers of pre-sumptive president Rodrigo Duterte unveiled an eight-point economic agenda, which included the continuation of macroeco-nomic policies of the outgoing administration and acceleration of infrastructure spending.

The bellwether Philippine Stock

Exchange index soared 6.4 percent last week to close at 7,436.79 on May 13, the benchmark’s highest close since Aug. 13, 2015 when it settled at 7,439.80.

The broader all-share index also jumped 6 percent to end the week at 4,412.26.

All major sub-indices ended in the green, led by holding firms which jumped 9.1 percent, prop-erty which climbed 6.8 percent and financials which advanced 5.7 percent.

Foreign investors were net buy-ers by P1.8 billion last week, as total overseas buying reached P25.01 billion while foreign selling amounted to P23.2 billion.

Average daily turnover also im-

proved to P10.7 billion from previ-ous week’s average of P6.2 billion.

Top gainers last week were JG Summit Holdings Inc., which went up by 12.2 percent to P91.1; Megaworld Corp., which rose 14.8 percent to P4.2; and Ayala Corp., which advanced 12.6 percent to P828.

Heavy losers were LT Group Inc., which dropped 6.1 percent to P13.52 and Emperador Inc, which dipped 4.8 percent to P7.60.

These stocks were affected by pronouncements by Duterte camp that the next administra-tion planned to implement li-quor ban in public areas nation-wide after 1am.

Jenniffer B. Austria

By Darwin G. Amojelar

THE telecommunications unit of San Miguel Corp. said it booked a net loss of P113.96 million in the first quarter, lower than the P207.15-million net loss it in-curred a year ago.

Liberty Telecoms Holdings Inc. said revenues dropped to P35.93 million in the first quarter from last year’s P77.25 million.

“The group’s revenues for the period reflect the substantial decrease in revenue from broad-band services as compared to the same period last year,” Liberty

Telecoms said. The company’s expenses fell

85 percent to P149.30 million from P276.64 million. Despite the losses, the company said major shareholders under-stood the losses were expected following the launch of the group’s Internet access prod-uct.

Liberty Telecoms said it planned to maximize existing as-sets and network sites through leasing agreements and optimize operating cost to increase rev-enues.

It also plans to synergize its

operations with SMC Telecom-munications Group.

Besides Liberty Telecoms, San Miguel has other telecommuni-cation companies under its port-folio, including Express Tele-communications Inc., Eastern Telecommunications Philippines Inc. and Bell Telecommunica-tions Philippines Inc.

San Miguel president Ramon Ang said last week said the com-pany received four “serious of-fers” from foreign investors to be its joint venture partner for a mobile broadband business, af-ter talks with Telstra Corp. Ltd.

bogged down in March.San Miguel and ’s Telstra

ended talks on a $1-billion joint investment in a new mobile net-work in the Philippines due to “commercial arrangements” is-sue.

San Miguel said Ddspite the collapsed joint venture, it would still switch on its telecommu-nications network along with a high-speed Internet service as scheduled.

Telstra offered to continue technical work design and con-struction consultancy support to San Miguel.

B4

GT Capital to raisestake in Pro-Friends

Economylikely roseover 6% in1st quarter

Monetary Board closes another Cavite rural bank

Italpinas loan. Publicly-listed Italpinas Development Corp. signs on Friday a P350-million loan agreement with state-owned Development Bank of the Philippines to partly fund the first phase of its two-tower project in Cagayan de Oro City. IDC chairman Romolo Valentino Nati (third from right) and DBP executive vice president Mario Palou (third from left) exchange documents of the loan agreement at the Peninsula Manila in Makati City. With them are (from left) IDC director Antonio Samson, DBP senior assistant vice president Jeanne Adamos, IDC president Jose Leviste III and IDC senior vice president Harrold Dacumos.


GT Capital Holdings Inc. of tycoon George Ty will invest an additional P8.76 billion to increase its stake in mass housing devel-oper Property Company of Friends Inc., or Pro-Friends, to 51 percent.

GT Capital said it planned to invest P6.2 billion to raise its stake in Pro-Friends to 42 per-cent by the second half of 2016 from the current 22.68 percent that required an investment of P7.24 billion.

GT Capital will further invest P2.56 billion to increase its stake in the mass housing developer to 51 percent by the first quarter of 2017.

“Total price for the 51 per-cent would be P16 billion. So we initially paid up P7.24 bil-lion for the 22.68 percent stake. Then tranche two will be another

P6.2 billion and the balance that would bring us to 51 percent would be first quarter next year,” GT Capital president Carmelo Bautista said.

GT Capital said funding for the investment would come from internally generated funds and some short term debt.

GT Capital’s investment in Pro-Friends will stay at the hold-ing level as the company has no immediate plans of consolidat-ing Profriends under property unit Federal Land Inc.

“Eventually, once we identi-fied synergies between the two

separate businesses, the inten-tion is to consolidate but not in the near future,” Bautista said.

Bautista said Pro-Friends this year would push through with plans to roll out 500 units month-ly or 6,000 new homes this year.

“There is backlog in the af-fordable housing sector. It’s af-fordable and it’s large segment so we can build as many as pos-

sible,” Bautista said.Federal Land will also launch

seven new projects this year, mostly residential developments covering the high-end and mid market

Established in 1999, Pro-Friends is today one of the coun-try’s leading property develop-ers, focusing on the low-cost and economic housing segments, and retail and office space leasing.

It has built and sold over 36,000 affordable homes in the provinces of Cavite and Iloilo. Its flagship and largest project is Lancaster New City, which spans the areas of Kawit, Imus, and General Trias in Cavite province.

Pro-Friends in 2014 had planned to conduct an initial public offering to raise as much as P7.7 billion in proceeds.

The company, however, did not push through with the IPO and instead opted to tap GT Cap-ital as a strategic investor.

TY

By Julito G. Rada

THE Monetary Board, the pol-icy-making body of Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas, closed a Cavite-based rural bank due to unhealthy financial condition, the 10th lender shut down since January.

State-run Philippine Deposit Insurance Corp. said in a state-ment over the weekend the board placed Rural Bank of Amadeo (Cavite) Inc. under its receiver-ship Friday. PDIC took over the bank on the same day.

Rural Bank of Amadeo is a two-unit rural bank with head of-fice at 111 A. Mabini St., Amad-eo, Cavite. Its lone branch is in

Magallanes, Cavite. Records showed that as of Dec.

31, 2015, the bank is owned by Andamo-Villanueva Estate Inc. (40 percent), Emmanuel Nicholas Andamo III (19.40 percent), Eliza Andamo (11 percent), Emilio An-damo (10.16 percent), Abelardo Andamo (10.15 percent), RBOA (Treasury stock) (6.49 percent) and Constancio Lamano (2 per-cent). The bank’s president and chairman is Henry Berber.

Rural Bank of Amadeo as of March 31, 2016 had 1,583 accounts with total deposit li-abilities of P46.42 million, all of which are insured.

Also on Friday, the Monetary Board closed the Government

Service Insurance System-owned GSIS Family Bank.

GSIS Family Bank is a 22-unit thrift bank with head office at the second floor of AIC Grande Tower, Garnet Road, Ortigas Center, Pasig City. The bank has seven branches in the National Capital Region, one in Bulacan, 11 in Cavite, and two in Laguna.

GSIS Family Bank, based on the bank information sheet filed by the bank with PDIC as of Dec. 31, 2015, is owned by the Gov-ernment Service Insurance Sys-tem (99.6 percent). The bank’s president is Emmanuel Benitez and its chairman is Geraldine Marie Berberabe-Martinez.

Latest available records show

that as of March 31, 2016, the bank had 14,507 accounts with total deposit liabilities of P974.81 million. Total insured deposits amounted to P786.39 million or 80.67 percent of total deposits.

Other financially-ailing rural banks closed since the start of 2016 were Surigao-based Su-rigao City Evergreen Rural Bank Inc., Rural Bank of Malinao (Aklan) Inc., Rural Bank of Pan-ay Inc., Koronadal Rural Bank Inc., Negros Oriental-based Ru-ral Bank of Basay, Rural Bank of Villaviciosa (Abra) Inc., Cebu-based Lapu-Lapu Rural Bank Inc. and Rural Bank of Bayawan, also in Negros Oriental.

THE Philippines will continue to be the bright spot in Asia as the economy likely expanded by 6.2 percent in the first quarter, signifi-cantly faster than 5 percent a year ago on domestic demand and in-vestments, Moody’s Analytics, a division of Moody’s Corp., said over the weekend.

“The Philippine economy is expected to have expanded 6.2 percent year-on-year in the open-ing quarter of 2016, largely un-changed from the 6.3-percent result posted in the fourth quarter of 2015,” Moody’s said in a re-port.

Moody’s said the performance would make the Philippines the best-performing economy in Southeast Asia. It said unlike its regional counterparts, the Philip-pine economy has overcome the negative effects from slowing global demand.

“Although the archipelago’s exports have been falling, pri-vate consumption and investment activity are expected to remain strong,” it said.

The government is scheduled to release the first-quarter GDP data this week.

Economists polled by the Stan-dard, meanwhile, said the gross domestic product rate in the first quarter of 2016 likely grew 6.6 percent on the average due to ro-bust domestic consumption due to election-related spending.

Analysts said economic growth in the January-to-March period would range from 6.1 percent to 7.6 percent, up from 5 percent a year ago.

Metrobank research analyst Pauline Revillas said the GDP likely grew 6.1 percent amid sol-id consumption spending.

“We expect first quarter GDP to come in at 6.1 percent amid still solid consumption spending, sustained pick-up in election and investment spending,” Revillas said in an e-mail.


M O N D AY : M AY 1 6 , 2 0 1 6

BUSINESS B5

First Gen plans3 hydro projects

SM Prime opens new Cavite mall

Health for Juan and Juana I HAD previously mentioned here that universal health care or UHC was a top campaign issue not just in the Philippines but in the United States as well. In the recent presidential and vice-presidential debates, UHC was one of the main points of discussion. It is safe to say that votes for a particular presidential and vice-presidential candidate had something to do with their position on universal health care.

Last May 4, the Pharmaceutical and Healthcare Association of the Philippines (PHAP), together with the Asian Institute of Management (AIM), the Zuellig Family Foundation and Havas Life, hosted a forum entitled “Health for Juan and Juana: Moving Forward with the Philippine Health Agenda.” I had been invited as a panelist for the afternoon session that discussed ways forward for the Philippine Health Agenda in the coming six years.

The consensus among government and private sector health practitioners and workers was about the level of trust between and amongst themselves. This was truly a challenge to hurdle if we want a comprehensive health agenda to be pursued with the needed vigor and competence.

Great strides in UHC had been achieved by the Aquino Administration, particularly on Philhealth membership and on the increase in the national budget for Health. I must say that the sin tax bill which heaped great benefits on UHC, was a major achievement of President Aquino. Pnoy mustered his political will to ensure its passage. We all know that for the longest time the sin tax bill languished and gathered dust in the halls of Congress.

Despite that, however, it seems that majority of those who really need universal health care are not availing of this vital service. It was revealed during the forum that the Philhealth utilization rate of the marginalized members of our society is lower than the utilization rate of those who can afford. In other words, the poor is subsidizing the rich. This anomaly must be rectified.

We hope the incoming administration will address this matter as part of its health agenda.

With (front row from left) Zuellig president Ernesto Garilao; former Health Secretary Esperanza Cabral, DOH Secretary Janet Garin; former Health Secretaries Francisco Duque III and Enrique T. Ona; Philippine College of Physicians president Dr. Anthony Leachon: Ayala Health COO Rene Figueroa Jr. (Back row from left) PHAP executive director Teodoro Padilla; Philippine Coalition Against Tuberculosis founding chairman Dr. Camilio Roa; PHAP president Dr. Beaver Tamesis; DOH head executive staff Dr. Dominga Padilla; ADB Senior Health Specialist Dr. Eduardo P. Banzon; World Bank Senior Economist Dr. Caryn Bredenkamp; Quezon City Health Officer Dr. Verdades Linga; and Pharex president and CEO Tomas Aganal III

Former Health Secretaries Enrique Ona and Francisco Duque

Former Health Secretary and Dean, Ateneo School of Medicine and Public Health Manuel Dayrit

The columnist stressing a point Dr. Eduardo P.

Banzon, Senior Health Specialist in the Sustainable Development and Climate Change Department of the Asian Development Bank

Coalition for Health Advocacy and Transparency founding chairman Roberto Pagdanganan

The World Bank’s Caryn Bredenkamp

with QC Health officer Dr.

Verdades Linga

Condo village living. Avida Land Corp., a unit of Ayala Land Inc., breaks through with its one-of-a-kind development that introduces condo-village living in the city through Avida One Antonio in Makati. Residents can enjoy the security and exclusivity offered in village-living in the heart of the bustling Makati at One Antonio.

SM Prime Holdings Inc., one of the leading inte-grated property companies in Southeast Asia, opened Friday its newest mall, SM City Trece Martires, its 58th in the country.

It is the fifth mall in the province of Cavite after the successes of SM City Ba-coor, SM City Dasmariñas, SM City Rosario and SM City Molino.

Located at the heart of the province, the latest premier destination adds 84,000 square meters in gross floor area, bringing SM Prime’s total retail space to almost 7.5 million sq. m., the larg-est footprint in the country.

“The success of our first four malls in Cavite encouraged us to expand the malling lifestyle in the province. SM City Trece

Martires will be a great addition in the develop-ment of Cavite as we re-main committed to expand towards the provincial ar-eas,” SM Prime President Hans Sy said.

SM City Trece Martires, which is situated on the cor-ner of two main thorough-fares—Governor’s Drive and Capitol Road—opens new doors to the city of Trece Martires that has more than 100,000 residents. It is bounded by Tanza on the North and West, Naic also on the West, Amadeo and Indang on the South, and General Trias on the East.

Cavite, based on a 2010 census, is the most popu-lated province in the Phil-ippines with 3.1 million people.

Opening with almost

80 percent of space lease-awarded, SM City Trece Martires is furnished with well-chosen retail stores, cozy dining outlets, forefront recreation and entertainment facilities and guest-focused service centers. It is boosted by an inviting architectural design that give a new life-style look in the city and in the province.

Joining the opening of SM City Trece Martires are some of the well-loved re-tail stores, food outlets and anchor tenants like The SM Store, SM Supermarket, Ace Hardware, Watsons, BDO, SM Appliance and SM Cine-ma. The new mall will house four state-of-the-art cinemas for a total of 237 cinema seats. A 737-slot parking space is also provided for shoppers’ convenience.

By Alena Mae S. Flores

FIRST Gen Corp. of the Lopez Group is keen on developing three hydro power projects in Min-danao with a combined potential output of 102.5 megawatts and cost of around $470 million to construct.

First Gen’s business development team is strengthening its expertise in hydro electric power plant construction and de-velopment so that the company can start the construction of the projects this year.

The projects are the 32-MW Bubu-nawan, 30-MW Puyo and 40.5-MW Tago-loan run-of-river hydro stations.

“We remain bullish in developing our hydro portfolio... For Bubunawan, we pro-ceeded with rehabilitating the access road at the site and expect it to be completed in

2016,” First Gen president and chief oper-ating officer Francis Giles Puno said.

Chief finance officer Emmanuel Singson said the big capital expenditures for hydro were expected in the next three years.

“Bubunawan is about $180 million to $190 million but that would come in two to three years... around $130 million to 140 million for Puyo. For Tagoloan, nothing firm yet but about the same,” Singson said.

Puno, meanwhile, said the lingering ef-fects of El Niño, along with the water con-servation program of the National Irriga-tion Administration, resulted in the lower dispatch from the 132-MW Pantabangan-Masiway hydro complex in Nueva Ecija province in the first three quarters last year.

First Gen Hydro Power Corp., a unit of First Gen, owns and operates the Pantaban-gan-Masiway hydro electric plant.

Puno said the lower generation was ease by the two unexpected typhoons in the last quarter last year that significantly in-creased dam elevation.

Total plant generation, as a result, in-creased 4.2 percent to 259.2 gigawatthours in 2015.



B6

Napocor seekingto recover P10.3b

Puregoldholdingretailers’convention

ANA MAE D. VIDAL

GREEN LIGHT

EXCEEDING use of my credit limit made me realize how challenging life could be. I ran out of people whom I can turn to since I haven’t paid yet my debt from them. I cannot borrow from the bank because of my nega-tive credit rating. As the due date of my credit card was approaching, I was so anxious and easily agitated. Indeed, it was so terrible! But what is good being buried in debt is I learned from the mistakes I made.

My world turned upside down a� er the graduation of my two younger sisters whom I supported � nancially. Released from my ob-ligations, I found myself spending here and there to the point of using my credit card for not so important things. “Just for this year,” I told my-self. Yes! I was in debt and became so de� cit, I became stressed. I have a hard time allocating my money for the payment for my utilities and daily expenses. And more than that, I had

to sacri� ce my � nancial gains just to pay for everything.

With this experience, I started my journey to � nd ways to lighten up my burden, overcome my struggles and manage myself to get out from this terrible nightmare. My quest started by � nding information to educate me on how to manage my � nances. I read self-help books about � nances, browsed blogs, and watched video lectures on � nancial literacy.

� us, from my self-help educa-tion experience, allow me to share with you important points that I’ve learned out of it.

Adjust on your lifestyleOur lifestyle is the core of our � -

nancial struggle. We are caught in the corner and struggle so much � -nancially if we conform to a lifestyle that is beyond our means. “Live within your income” is a popular cliché but truly highlights the need for self-control. It is inevitable for us to lose control when we are be-ing pressured by the things that sur-round us.

As a result, we have a bad spend-ing habit. We buy stu� that we thought we could not live without, yet at the end of the day, are not re-ally important and only results to the misallocation of our � nances. Moreover, the wants of this life fuel us up to get what we want in spite of

our insu� cient means to get what we want. Remember, wealth is rela-tive – it varies from person to person. Now if your lifestyle demands are so high it would be best to increase your means in that way you can have any-thing what you wanted for.

Understanding customs and tradition

Di� erent cultures have di� erent customs and traditions. Filipinos have certain customs and traditions that really a� ect the way how we handle our � nances. To name some are practices like “Balato,” “Pasalu-bong,” and “Fiesta.” Even being too hospitable can compromise the way we budget our � nances, for instance, when some of our friends visit us, we tend to showcase that we have more than enough, even if we don’t.

� ere is nothing wrong when you want to share, however remember that you can only share if you have enough.

Money is a family matterMoney is a family matter. It is an

imperative for a family to under-stand the nature of money, as to how we allocate it, spend and make use of it to enhance the quality of our life. However, few of us overlook the importance of discussing and em-phasizing it within our family circle. As a consequence, the family su� ers because they do not know how to

cooperate and maximize the oppor-tunity to contribute for the family’s betterment. For parents, it is one of their responsibilities to teach their kids the concept of saving. Also, it is their duty to instill the virtue of thri� .

Save, invest and shareNo one can share, if he/she doesn’t

have and so it is very important to save and maximize the opportunity to earn more by investing in ways that bring a good return. However, let us be wise on how we save our money. Remember, when holding your money in cash for the long term there is the added problem of in� a-tion. � e interest on most saving ac-counts does not cover the increase in in� ation.

� us, make your savings work for you, rather than you work for your savings. Save for the short term and then use that money to buy invest-ments that bring in regular cash � ow. Maximizing your income would liberate you from debts that haunt you and can increase your ca-pacity to help and share with those who are in need.

It is our obligation to build our own wealth. We need to have an ad-equate � nancial education that will help us develop a good attitude to-wards how we handle our � nances. � ere are no shortcuts or any magic

potions that will help us to be rich instantly or be liberated from our � nancial struggles. But, I know the surest ways for us to overcome them is through � nancial education.

According to best-selling author Robert Kiyosaki, there are three types of education: academic, pro-fessional and � nancial education. However, our school system focuses only on scholastic and professional skills, not � nancial skills. If you have the education about how money works, you gain power over it and can begin building your wealth. Liv-ing in abundance is what we desire and through building our wealth we can maximize the opportunity for us to share, help and live a life to the fullest.

Let us be � nancially free!

� e author is an MBA student at the Ramon V. del Rosario College of Business. � is essay is part of a jour-nal she keeps in ful� llment of the re-quirements of the course, Lasallian Business Leadership with Corporate Social Responsibility and Ethics. Visit her blog at https://ana0403.word-press.com/.

� e views expressed here are the author’s and do not necessarily re� ect the o� cial position of DLSU, its fac-ulty, and its administrators.

Financial healing power

Soft broom making. Members of Igorot and Ibaloi tribes in Barangay Sanguit, Dupax Del Sur, Nueva Viscaya undergo skills skills upgrading on soft broom making. The skills training is an ensuing activity of the technology transfer series on soft broom making under the Yaman Pinoy Intergrated Livelihood Program funded through the 2015 BuB project of Dupax Del Sur.

By Alena Mae S. Flores

STATE-OWNED National Power Corp. is seeking to recover P10.324 billion from customers for subsidies it spent in building power facilities in remote areas.

Napocor said in a published petition � led before the Energy Regulatory Commission the amount would translate into an increase of P0.1248 per kilowatt-hour starting 2016 under the universal charge for missionary electri� cation.

Napocor said the proposed basic universal charge for missionary electri� cation was “neces-sary in order to cover the required subsidy re-quirements and at the same time, maintain a re-liable and stable funding source for its operating

costs requirements including a su� cient sub-sidy for payment to new power players/quali� ed third parties and renewable energy developers.”

It said there was a need to meet the cus-tomer’s electricity requirements through the implementation of the proposed improvement of Napocor’s generation function to provide a sustainable development in o� -grid areas and connect electricity to unserved communities.

Napocor said the lack of funds from the universal charge for missionary electri� cation subsidy and from supposedly transitory funds which could be sourced through loans would a� ect its funding and operation.

“Be it recalled that the Department of Jus-tice issued an opinion which limited and sus-pended Napocor’s authority to borrow funds or enter into a loan agreement,” it said.

Napocor calculated the application based on the 2015 results of operations and fuel

costs for 2017, operating expenses, deprecia-tion costs and calculated revenues.

“In the instant petition, petitioner has uti-lized the authorized RORB methodology us-ing the year 2015 base rate being the most re-cent � nancial statement available during the calculation stage,” it said.

� e application also included the renewable energy cash incentive for o� -grid developers.

“Based on the results of the calculations made, the total proposed UCME subsidy re-quirement for the missionary electri� cation will amount to P10.324 billion for CY 2017 inclusive of the cash incentive for renewable energy,” Napocor said.

Napocor last year � led an application for the basic universal charge for missionary electri� -cation for 2015 and 2016 before ERC in sup-port of its missionary electri� cation function. � e application is still pending with ERC.

PUREGOLD is hosting the 11th Tindahan Ni Aling Puring Sari-Sari Store Convention, a � ve-day event that recognizes the role of neighborhood retail warriors in keeping the “pambansang nego-syo” vibrant.

� is year’s Sari-Sari Store Con-vention, set on May 18 to 22, is a “national tribute” for loyal TNAP members who serve as the back-bone of the local economy and of Puregold’s business, being one of its primary clientele.

“Our sari-sari store owners ex-emplify the ideal entrepreneur: hardworking and persevering, pursuing their business for their families and really showing their love for what they do,” said Vin-cent Co, president of Puregold Price Club Inc.

“At the same time, they serve as their local neighborhood’s store of choice where basic commodi-ties are made a� ordable through ‘tingi’ [retail] prices. We really cannot underestimate the role that sari-sari stores play in our so-ciety,” said Co.

� emed “PINASipag, PINAS-werte, PINASenso,” this year’s Sa-ri-Sari Store Convention seeks to strike the patriotic chord in more than 70,000 TNAP members at a time when the nation is on the brink of change.

“We have been doing this for a decade now and we wanted to mark the start of another 10 years with a celebration worthy of the people we are honoring. At the same time, we want to unify our TNAP members behind one common goal: that with hard work, success is always within reach,” said Co.

“We also want to encourage future members and future gen-erations to join our cause of pro-viding business opportunities to Filipino families,” he said.

B7CESAR BARRIOQUINTOE D I T O R

[email protected]

M O N D AY : M AY 1 6 , 2 0 1 6

WORLD

Russia ‘ashamed’ over doping scandal

Initiation. Children from Russia’s Caucasian Republic of Dagestan attend a ceremonial initiation into the Young Pioneer youth communist group, created in the Soviet Union for children from 10 to 14 years old, in Moscow’s Red square on May 15, 2016, during the organization’s celebration day. AFP

Chaotic decade now collectible

CYAN MAGENTA YELLOW BLACKManila

StandardTODAY

CYAN MAGENTA YELLOW BLACK CYAN MAGENTA YELLOW BLACK

Republic of the PhilippinesProvince of Bataan

City of BalangaBIDS AND AWARDS COMMITTEE OFFICE

(TS-MAY 16, 2016)

Invitation to BidNo. Goods-029-2016

The Provincial Government of Bataan, through the General Fund29

intends to apply the below listed procurement w/ corresponding Approved Budget of the Contract (ABC). Bids received in excess of the ABC shall be automatically rejected a bid opening. Name of Project Approved Budget of the Contract (ABC)

1. Supply & Delivery of Shirts, Caps & =P=2,090,700.00 Wristbands w/ Barcodes for Bataan Green Legacy Comprehensive Tree Planting on June 24, 2016

The Provincial Government of Bataan now invites bids for the above listed Procurement. Delivery of goods is requiredon or before the maturity date stipulated on contract. Bidders should have completed, at least one (1) contract that is similar to the contract to be bid. The description of an eligible bidder is contained in the Bidding Documents, particularly, in Section II. Instructions to Bidders.

Bidding will be conducted through open competitive bidding procedures using non-discretionary pass/fail criterion as specified in the Implementing Rules and Regulations (IRR) of Republic Act 9184 (RA 9184), otherwise known as the “Government Procurement Reform Act”. Bidding is open to all interested bidders, whether local or foreign, subject to the conditions for eligibility provided in the Implementing Rules and Regulations (IRR) of Republic Act (RA) 9184, otherwise known as the “Government Procurement Reform Act”.

Interested bidders may obtain further information from Office of Bataan Bids & Awards Committeeand inspect the Bidding Documents from 8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. at the same office.

Bid documents will be available only to eligible bidders upon payment of a non-refundable amount of using standard rates approved by GPPB as stated on their Resolution No. 04-2012 listed below.

Approved Budget for the Contract Maximum Cost of Bidding Documents (in Philippine Peso)

500,000 and below 500.00More than 500,000 up to 1 Million 1,000.00More than 1 Million up to 5 Million 5,000.00More than 5 Million up to 10 Million 10,000.00More than 10 Million up to 50 Million 25,000.00More than 50 Million up to 500 Million 50,000.00More than 500 Million 75,000.00

The Provincial Government of Bataanwill hold a Pre-Bid Conference on May 23, 2016 at 10:00 A.M at Provincial BAC Office, PEO Capitol Compound, Balanga City, Bataan, which shall beopen only to all interested parties who have purchased the Bidding Documents.

Bids must be delivered on or before June 06, 2016 at 2:00 p.m. at Provincial BAC Office, PEO Capitol Compound, Balanga City, Bataan. All bids must be accompanied by a bid security in any of the acceptable forms and in the amount stated on IRR of RA 9184 and Bid Securing Declaration in standard form. The winning bidder has the option to deliver the items requested by the end-user with higher technical specification & better technology provided it will be beneficial to the government & will not incur additional expenses on the part of the procuring entity.

Bids will be opened in the presence of the bidders’ representatives who choose to attend opening of Bids at Bataan BAC Office. Late bids shall not be accepted.

In case of the above dates is declared a special Non-Working Holidays, it will automatically reset on the next working days.

Other necessary information deemed relevant by the Provincial Government of Bataan Activities Schedule

1. Advertisement/Posting of Invitation to Bid May 16 – May 22, 20162. Eligibility Check Refer to date of Opening of Bids3. Issuance and availability of Bidding Documents May 16 – June 06, 20164. Request for Clarification May 26, 20165. Opening of Bids June 06, 2016

The Provincial Government of Bataan reserves the right to accept or reject any bid, to annul the bidding process, and to reject all bids at any time prior to contract award, without thereby incurring any liability to the affected bidder or bidders.

For further information, please refer to:

Engr. Josephine R. ValenzuelaProvincial BAC / PEO BataanProvincial BAC / PEO Office, Capitol Compound, BalangaCity, [email protected]

(SGD) ENRICO T. YUZON BAC CHAIRMAN

Owner Guo Bing himself is a child of the Cultural Revolution, born in 1966, the year the chaotic and violent decade was launched on May 16. His parents named him with the Chinese character for “soldier”, a common practice at the time.

But now, Guo sees pro� ts rather than Communist Party ideals in the relics of the past, as the market booms for collectibles from a time scarred victims would prefer to for-get.

“Prices have risen because of the anniversary of the Cultural Revolution,” said Guo at one of his two shops in China’s commercial

hub, whose gleaming skyscrapers epitomize the country’s economic boom a� er the abandonment of Maoist orthodoxy.

“People su� ered during the Cultural Revolution,” Guo admit-ted, before quickly adding: “We are meeting demand. � ere is a mar-ket.”

Guo was a “Little Red Guard” as a child in Jiangsu province, he said, wearing his older brother’s army uniform, pinning a Mao badge to his chest and signing patriotic songs.

One of them, “� e East is Red”, gave him the name for his busi-ness, which has dealt in Cultural

LONDON—Russian sports min-ister Vitaly Mutko apologized on Sunday for the doping scandal that threatens the athletic super-power’s participation in the Rio Olympics.

Mutko, writing in � e Sunday Times, admitted the Russian Athletics Federation and athletes had made “serious mistakes” breaking anti-doping rules.

He said “they had rejected the principle of fair-play so fundamen-tal to sport for immediate bene� ts.

“Let us be clear. We are ashamed of them.”

Mutko’s mea culpa comes just three days a� er he described as “absurd” the allegations that Russian athletes were involved in systematic doping at the 2014 Sochi Olympics.

A report in the New York Times based on information from the former head of Russia’s anti-doping laboratory claimed that dozens of athletes including 15 medalists were involved.

Russian athletics faces a battle

to compete at the Olympics in Rio in August.

� e sport’s ruling body the IAAF provisionally suspended the Russian athletics federation in November over a bombshell report by a World Anti-Doping Agency independent commis-sion alleging state-sponsored doping and mass corruption in the sport.

� e International Association of Athletics Federations will ex-amine the issue of Russia’s partic-ipation in Rio at an extraordinary Council meeting next month.

Mukto told � e Sunday Times: “We are very sorry that athletes who tried to deceive us, and the world, were not caught sooner.

“We are very sorry because Russia is committed to uphold-ing the highest standards in sport and is opposed to anything that threatens the Olympic values.”

He insisted that since the scan-dal emerged Russia was putting her house in order.

“Since Russia was suspended

last November, with RUSADA, the Moscow laboratory and the ARAF all losing their WADA sta-tus, we have agreed a road-map with WADA aimed at restructuring these organizations, taking a series of steps to demonstrate how com-mitted we are to ensuring that sport in our country is clean and fair.”

Mutko listed some of the new measures designed to ensure his country’s appearance in Rio.

“Before the Rio Games begin, our aspiring Olympians will un-dergo a minimum of three anti-doping controls carried out by the IAAF – in addition to any testing that they receive in all qualifying competitions.

“In addition, two international experts are now based in Moscow to supervise all activities of our anti-doping agency.”

He said UK Anti-Doping had been appointed by WADA to take charge of drug-testing in Russia, although UKAD said on Friday it was reviewing its position a� er the Sochi revelations. AFP

SHANGHAI—At the “East is Red” shop in Shanghai, every nook and cranny is packed with memorabilia of China’s Cultural Revolution, from small badges of Chairman Mao Zedong to gigantic posters of his iconic image.

Revolution memorabilia for two decades.

For some buyers, such objects tap into nostalgia for a simpler time, when the state provided ev-erything and society was more equal, despite the abuse the victims su� ered.

“It was an exciting time for kids,” Guo said. “Most collectors now are old people, younger people lag be-hind.”

� e objects on o� er range from an enameled metal plate with the slogan “Chairman Mao’s revolu-tionary art and literature line vic-tory forever” to a book of cartoons published in early 1977, soon a� er Mao’s death and the fall of his wid-ow Jiang Qing.

Along with the three other mem-bers of the “Gang of Four”, she was o� cially blamed for directing the mayhem. Once a movie actress in Shanghai, she was among a cabal of radicals with links to the city who

were among the driving forces be-hind the Cultural Revolution.

“We can remember history,” Guo said.

On a high bookshelf in the shop, a framed picture shows Mao with a mango, which became an object of veneration a� er the leader gi� ed the fruit to a group of workers in 1968.

� e cult of the mango, as it is known, was even the subject of an exhibition at the Museum Rietberg in Zurich in 2013.

� e reproduction sells for 50 yuan ($8), Guo says, but an origi-nal would cost hundreds of dollars.

� e disparity o� ers a opportu-nity for the unscrupulous to pro� t, and collectors and dealers said that rampant fakes are a problem for Cultural Revolution memorabilia, like other collecting categories in China.

On Chinese website Kongfz.com, an eBay-like platform for an-

tiquarian books and other items, a search for Cultural Revolution turns up nearly 200,000 items with the most expensive an extensive collection priced at 3.0 million yuan.

“All along, people have appreci-ated Cultural Revolution objects,” said long-time dealer and collector Lin Ji.

“Where there is a market, there are fakes,” he added, citing repro-ductions of Red Guard armbands as an example.

Mao badges and the “Little Red Book” of his thoughts and sayings were once ubiquitous in Chinese households, but collectors hope growing scarcity will increase pric-es over time.

“� ere are too many things [from the Cultural Revolution]. But the good stu� is getting harder and harder to � nd,” said Guo, who has a prized Mao statue stored away at home, not for sale. AFP

M O N D AY : M AY 1 6 , 2 0 1 6

B8 CESAR BARRIOQUINTOE D I T O R

[email protected]

116-year-oldwoman maystill be here in the 2020s

More Americans are having their tattoos removed

Photocall. French actress Marion Cotillard poses on May 15, 2016, during a photocall for the film ‘Mal de Pierres (From the Land of the Moon)’ at the 69th Cannes Film Festival in Cannes, southern France. AFP

WORLDEfforts to counter ISpropaganda working

WASHINGTON—US authorities and Internet giants are boosting at-tempts to counter the Islamic State group’s online propaganda, though it is unclear how effective these efforts are in hampering the jihadists’ public-relations machine.

With calls to jihad and highly produced videos of IS fighters in battle or killing captives, the IS group has long used the Internet and social media to re-cruit fighters for its so-called caliphate in Iraq and Syria, and to incite individuals around the world to commit terrorist attacks.

To try to stop this, web giants like Twitter and Facebook are working hard to shut down jihadist accounts, though these often pop back up under a new name.

“Twitter has publicly said they’ve taken down close to 200,000 handles. They’ve taken down way more than that,” Richard Stengel, the under secretary of state for public diplomacy and public affairs said at a recent seminar aimed at countering IS’s “brand.”

“YouTube has taken down literally millions of videos. Facebook has hundreds of people who are working 24/7 to take down this noxious content,” added Stengel, who also was the former managing editor of Time magazine.

At the same time, US efforts are being led by the State Department’s Global Engagement Center, which was overhauled this year and brought under the leadership of Michael Lumpkin, a former US naval officer.

The center “is not going to be focused on US messages with a government stamp on them, but rather amplifying moderate credible voices in the region and throughout civil society,” said Lisa Monaco, President Barack Obama’s top homeland security advisor.

The US military’s Central Command, which oversees operations in the Middle East, is “actively engaged” on social media to counter IS propaganda.

“The command has a robust online engagement program that harnesses the professional talents and expertise of both military members and contrac-tors working together,” Pentagon spokesman Major Adrian Rankine-Galloway said.

“We operate using truthful information directed toward regional audiences to combat ISIL’s lies and deception,” he added, using an IS acronym.

Stenger said efforts are paying off. “There’s now five times as much messaging on

social media that is anti-ISIL than pro-ISIL, again, mostly in Arabic,” he said. AFP

LOS ANGELES—You’re love-struck and can’t wait to have your partner’s name or face etched onto your skin for eternity.

Or you’ve just turned 18, and your first rebellious act upon reaching the age of majority is to have a dragon tattooed on your chest.

Well, you may want to think twice before rushing to the tattoo parlor.

Although studies show that more and more Americans are sporting tattoos (one out of every five adults according to one poll), they also point to an increasing number who end up regretting getting one, leading to a boom in the tattoo removal industry.

“In the last five years, we have seen a marked uptick in the num-ber of people seeking to have tat-

toos removed,” said Dan Mills, president of the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery.

According to ASAPS, more than 46,500 Americans under-went tattoo removal in 2015, a 39.4 percent increase over the previous year.

Most—45.9 percent—were between the ages of 19 and 34, closely followed by 35-50 year-olds, with 37.9 percent.

“I see a lot of people hav-ing them taken off because they don’t want their children to see them and then go get a tattoo,” said Mills, who is based in the Los Angeles area, considered America’s tattoo hub.

“And some people take them off because a lot of employers won’t hire somebody with a vis-ible tattoo.”

A Harris Poll conducted last

fall found that nearly a quarter of people who get tattoos end up remorseful, up from 14 percent in 2012.

The main reasons mentioned for their change of heart, the poll found, are lifestyle or career changes, the breakup of a rela-tionship, a poorly done tattoo or, as one woman put it to AFP, “be-ing young and stupid” when they had it done. AFP

VERBANIA, Italy—As a young woman in the roaring 1920s, the world’s oldest living person loved to go singing and dancing.

Now 116-year-old Italian Emma Morano’s next challenge is to see in the 2020s and be-come the oldest human being on record.

The last known surviving child of the 19th century is enjoy-ing the spotlight after succeed-ing American Susannah Mushatt Jones, who died last week, as the oldest person on the planet.

And on the evidence of AFP’s visit to her this weekend, Morano could very well go on long enough to surpass Jeanne Calment’s re-cord.

The Frenchwoman died in 1997 at 122 years and 164 days, the old-est recorded age achieved by a hu-man being.

Morano was having the first of her two daily naps when AFP came calling at her tiny second-story apartment in Verbania, a small town on the shores of Lake Maggiore in northern Italy.

But her carer had no doubt that she would want to have her picture taken once again.

Barely a few seconds after being woken, she was alert, sitting up on the edge of her bed and smiling for the camera.

Clutching an embroidered pil-low she received when she cel-ebrated her 116th birthday last year, she spoke in a barely audible but unwavering voice.

“I’m doing fine, who are you?” she said, confirming comments from her doctor and her few sur-viving relatives that becoming a world-beater has boosted her al-ready remarkable vitality.

Morano’s extraordinary longev-ity—and more broadly Italy’s high number of centenarians—is a sub-ject of much fascination among scientists.

The eldest of eight children, Morano was born on November 29, 1899. She has outlived all her younger siblings, the last sister having died five years ago at the age of 102.

She is now looked after by two elderly nieces with the help of a Colombian carer.

Morano cannot walk, does not see well enough to watch televi-sion and has reportedly not left her flat in 25 years. AFP

C1monday : may 16, 2016

TaTUm anCHETaE D I T O R

BInG PaRELA S S O C I AT E E D I T O R

BERnadETTE LUnaSW R I T E R

E aT, dRInK , T R aV EL

l i f e @ t h e s t a n d a r d . c o m . p h @ L I F E a t S t a n d a r d @ L I F E a t S t a n d a r d @ L I F E a t S t a n d a r d

LIFE

“There are many dishes here that stay true to what traditional Japanese cuisine is all about, but there are also a nice mix of dishes that introduce a modern twist.”

This is how Astoria Hotels and Resorts business development executive Jacqueline Ng describes Japanese restaurant Minami Saki which is located in Astoria’s Ortigas property.

Minami Saki opened in 2014 when Ng’s father met executive chef Kimito Katagiri, who was then nearing retirement after working at different hotels and restaurants in the Philippines.

“Thankfully, we managed to convince him not to fully retire and we gave him creative freedom over the entire menu, including conceptualizing the interior and the ambiance [of Minami Saki],” shares Ng.

Ng says the Japanese chef wanted Minami Saki to have an intimate feel, hence the dim lighting. But on top of the look and feel, chef Katagiri has the overall control on the food being served. “Focus is very much on the food,” emphasizes Ng.

Armed with decades of food and beverage experience, chef Katagiri brings guests “a delicately constructed indulgence” as he employs his signature take on authentic and modern Japanese cuisine marked by a bold mix of appetizing flavors.

According to Ng, the chef is careful with his instructions on his team of Filipino sous chefs and kitchen staff in perfecting the art of authentic Japanese gastronomy which discerning diners will appreciate.

“This year, we went back to our roots and rediscovered what it meant to deliver authentic fine Japanese dining,” says Ng.

But to stay relevant in the ever evolving culinary scene, as well as to offer something that other Japanese restaurants don’t have, chef Katagiri employs modern and innovative culinary techniques.

Chef Katagiri uses a blowtorch in most of the dishes served in the restaurant to enhance their natural flavors. The torch-searing technique adds depth to the dishes, which are then drizzled with his special aburi sauce whose ingredients only chef Katagiri knows.

“Even I don’t know what’s in it,” discloses Ng. “And I think that’s what makes it very special.”

The said sauce has the same consistency as mayonnaise, but looks more like cheese spread.

For instance, the Aburi 5 Kinds is a serving of five sushi made of fresh tuna, salmon, eel, hamachi and lapu-lapu, which are torch-seared to enhance the natural flavor of both the sashimi and the drizzled aburi sauce. The aburi sushi is then garnished with salty fly-fish roe and a small piece of sweet fruit to create a unique Japanese-Filipino fusion sushi experience.

The aburi sauce in Kaki Papaya Yaki, meanwhile, is responsible for fusing together the contrasting taste and texture of Japanese oysters and papaya in the dish.

Minami Saki also offers Take Sashimi (tuna, salmon, lapu-lapu, squid and mackerel sashimi), Maguro Pepper Steak (seared dice chunks of tuna drizzled with rich pepper sauce), Scallops with Tamago Sauce (pan-seared scallops enveloped in creamy Japanese-style egg yolk sauce), Usuyaki Steak with Mushrooms (a trio of shiitake, enoki and shimeji mushrooms rolled into thinly sliced US sirloin), Cha Soba (cold green tea noodles served with fried tempura) and the “spectacle dessert” Coffee Jelly (premium brewed coffee gelatin paired with homemade salted caramel ice cream that has a whimsically dramatic presentation).

“Here at Minami Saki, the food is at premium quality but at a price point that is reachable for different markets around the area,” says Ng. –Bernadette Lunas

Minami Saki is open daily from 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. and from 6:00 p.m. to 10:30 p.m., and is located on the ground floor of Astoria Plaza, 15 J. Escriva Drive, Ortigas Business District, Pasig City. For table reservations, call (02) 687-1111.

WhERE AuThEnTIC AnD mODERn JApAnESE CuISInE blOOmS

phOTOS by STAR SAbROSO

Aburi 5 Kinds Maguro Pepper Steak

Take Sashimi

Coffee Jelly

Wasabi Creme Brulée

Cha Soba

Kaki Papaya Yaki

C2 LIFE l i f e @ t h e s t a n d a r d . c o m . p h @ L I F E a t S t a n d a r d @ L I F E a t S t a n d a r d @ L I F E a t S t a n d a r d

monday : may 16, 2016

Makati Shangri-La, Manila will celebrate the spirit of Great Britain from May 23 until May 27. Aside from the famous Big

Ben in London, Great Britain is also known for its musicians, great food, fine premium teas as well as luxurious British pubs.

Inspired by The Beatles “Let It Be” and the United Kingdom s “Britain is Great,” Makati Shangri-La showcased a glimpse of the grand event which started with the welcome speech of its general manager Alain Borgers, who highlighted the exciting activities coming up in the hotel.

The celebration will feature a series of British affairs The Grand British Buffet at Circles Event Café, a Grand High Tea at the Lobby Lounge, a wine dinner created by Michelin-starred chef Daniel Galmiche, the Seven Sense Whisky Experience at Sage Bespoke Grill Private Dining, the British Pub Nights at Sage Bar, and Let It Be Great, a concert that pays tribute to The Beatles.

According to executive chef Paul Lenz, Let It Be Great will have an extension buffet at the Circles Event Café where the focus is on the original British cooking which will definitely go beyond the famous Fish and Chips. The buffet will give guests a taste of classic British dishes such as the Shepherd s Pie, Bubble and Squeak, as well as their very own specialty, the Yorkshire Pudding.

And since the Brits drink tea not coffee, guests can enjoy the classic tea session with the British High Tea Experience at the Lobby Lounge along with Twinnings tea ambassador, Charles Smith, who will educate the guests about British tea traditions. The guests will surely enjoy eating a fresh selections of finger sandwiches, scones and sweet pastries carefully handcrafted by the hotel s chef while being serenaded by the hotel s in-house orchestra.

On May 26, the 45-piece Manila Symphony Orchestra, in partnership with Globe Platinum, will perform songs by the famous British band, The Beatles, along with four up-and-coming artists. The MSO will transport guests to Abbey Road while

playing all-time favorites like “Here Comes the Sun,” “Here, There and Everywhere” and “Let It Be.” Pre-concert cocktails will be served at 7:00 p.m.

Before Asian countries took over the title of Best Whisky in the World, “Scotch” used to reign at the top spot. The Old World allure is still ingrained in their whiskies and Makati Shangri-La, Manila will be celebrating it with one of the most revered whiskies in the world, The Dalmore. Guests can enjoy a gustatory experience paired with the whisky that the richest people in the world enjoy. Seven Senses Whisky Experience with The Dalmore will engage guests in a multi-sensory experience at the Sage Bespoke Grill Private Dining Room with The Dalmore whisky ambassador Adam Knox, paired with a six-course menu by Michelin-starred Chef Daniel Galmiche on May 23 to 27, 6:00 to 10:30 p.m.

Of course, a British experience wouldn t be complete without a Brit pub selection of beers and gin cocktails. From 6:00 to 9:00 p.m., guests can try Sage Bar’s Fuller s beer, London s pioneer brew, and gin cocktails featuring such brands as Boodles London dry gin, the artisanal Islay label Botanist Gin and the Bulldog Gin. For whisky lovers, if you miss the Seven Senses Whisky Experience with The Dalmore, you can partake of whisky flights from The Dalmore with brand ambassador Adam Knox at Sage Bar on May 23 and 25 at 9:00 p.m.

If you are a guest with a Mabuhay Miles membership, you may receive a 10 percent discount at all events. Globe Platinum also gives its members access to these events with a 20 percent discount. Marjaleen Ramos

For more information, you may download the e-brochure at bit.ly/LetItBeGreat. For

inquiries and reservations, please call restaurant reservations at (63 2) 813 8888 or email [email protected]. For more updates, follow Makati Shangri-La, Manila on

Facebook, Twitter and Instagram @MakatiShangriLa.

makatI ShangrI-La, manILa cELEbratES thE grand brItISh FEStIvaL

The Dalmore brand ambassador Adam Knox The Dalmore 12, King Alexander III and The Dalmore 15

The second-oldest entry in the Dalmore Constellation series, distilled in 1966

Experience British High Tea at the Lobby Lounge with Twinnings' tea variants The Dalmore Vintage 1997 Delectable British inspired dessert

Ice sculptures of London's Tower Bridge and Big Ben

British award-winning beer from Fuller’s Brewery

Makati Shangri-La, Manila’s general manager Alain Borgers

C3LIFE l i f e @ t h e s t a n d a r d . c o m . p h @ L I F E a t S t a n d a r d @ L I F E a t S t a n d a r d @ L I F E a t S t a n d a r d


The pressure in the kitchen can be overwhelming for the chef and the staff who prepare the food. There have been a lot of reality TV shows and

movies where everyone just goes berserk while preparing a dish. DIVA, the leading women s entertainment destination from NBC Universal International Networks, launched its DIVA Loves Food lineup in an event where they gave media guests a taste of the heat behind the kitchen to usher in two new food battle shows.

A tight kitchen area, limited ingredient resource, scarce kitchen utilities and an added time pressure to create special dishes can be a tough challenge to any group of people with little or no experience behind the kitchen. Surprisingly, the experience turned out to be fun, media guests realized how imaginative and competitive they can get during a cook-off challenge. This makes the two new shows from DIVA Loves Food all the more interesting for people.

For the month of May, TV viewers can feast on two kitchen battle series on Diva with My Kitchen Rules that returns on its seventh season and Chef in Your Ear on its premiere season.

My Kitchen RulesMy Kitchen Rules is a popular Australian

cooking game show that started airing in 2010. The show chooses pairs with little experience in cooking, mostly home cooks, and these partners can often be friends,

relatives, lovers or coworkers whose real life jobs don’t necessary involve the kitchen. The pairs battle off in instant restaurant rounds, where they prepare a three-course menu, just like in a real restaurant, for the show s judges to grade. This season, past MKR contestants are back to join the reality series. To spice things up, renowned English celebrity chef Rachel Khoo also joins as the shows newest judge. Eighteen talented teams from different walks of life will battle it out to impress the judges. Imagine miners, police officers, lawyers, and regular blokes working it out in the kitchen and competing in a series of challenges. Catch the show s seventh season every Monday to Wednesday at 9:25 p.m.

chef in youR eaRDo you remember the animated movie

Ratatouille in 2007, the movie that made everyone fall in love with this talented rat named Remy who just happened to have the palate of a Michelin star chef? As a rat, Remy couldn t use his talent in the kitchen, simply because he s a rat, so he uses a young man named Alfredo Linguini, an ordinary garbage boy, to be his hands in the kitchen while he operates under a chef s hat, literally hiding on top of Alfredo s hair. Well, the new show Chef In Your Ear works a little like the relationship between Remy and Alfredo, except that in the show, each episode features a competition between two professional chefs who compete without

actually setting foot in the kitchen, remotely guiding two clueless cooks through an ear piece for an hour while they watch through a video monitor. It’s hard enough to be a cook competing behind the kitchen, but directing two clueless cooks through an earpiece to create their masterpiece makes it 10 times harder. But, this makes for a good show! Catch Chef In Your Ear every Wednesday at 8:00 p.m., only on Diva.

EvEnt photos by star sabroso

Location, facilities and value for money – these are three of the major factors many staycation warriors consider when choosing a hotel. The minor aspects could change depending on every individual’s priorities but the aforementioned criteria greatly influence their decision on whether to book a room or browse through a list of other choices.

It would seem that City Garden Hotels’ youngest property, the City Garden Grand in Makati, got its priorities straight, as the two-year-old hotel provides premium amenities and excellent service right smack in a central location where major commercial areas are accessible – all for a practical cost.

Towering amid buildings along the stretch of Kalayaan Avenue and in the corner of Makati Avenue, the 300-room City Garden Grand Hotel was built for business and leisure travelers seeking

luxury accommodation in the busy neighborhood. Luxury is evident the minute guests enter the property as they will be greeted by an elegant lobby with furnishings from Padua Furniture. The chandeliers are made with thousands of capiz shells and the hallways are encrusted with semi-precious onyx stones.

Finding a parking almost always spoils an experience even before it begins, but City Garden Grand Hotel ensures that guests and their cars are taken cared of with its complimentary valet parking service. Refreshments are available in the lobby as guests wait for the check-in process, which by the way only takes a few minutes.

The spacious rooms and suites evoke a home-like vibe thanks to interiors that feature warm, earth tones and a seamless interplay of Narra hardwood, floor-to-ceiling glass, marble and, again, onyx stones. The plush beds, covered with a

2 nEw Food battLE ShowS From dIVa LoVES Food

a grand stay in makati CityBy BeRnadette lunas

Chef In your Ear airs on Diva every every Wednesday at 8:00 p.m.

Celebrity chef rachel Khoo joins MKr as the show’s newest judge

team two– (from left) the Manila times’ Christina alpad, apetite Magazine’s nina Daza-puyat, Manila bulletin’s sol vanzi, the standard’s tatum ancheta and star sabrosothe winners of the cook-off challenge during the DIva Loves Food event

rosemary ballroom continued on c4

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merCury risingBy BoB zozoBrado

yoUr MoNday CHUCKLE:a family of mice was surprised by a big cat. Father mouse jumped and said, “Bow-wow!” The cat ran away. “What was that, Father?” asked Baby mouse. “Well, son, that’s why it’s important to learn a second language.

Getting its name from the Cebuano word “panglawod,” which means ‘for the open sea,” Panglao has been the favorite destination of late for

fun seekers who go to get a glorious tan on the beach. This town in the southwestern tip of Bohol has a population of less than 50,000 and is a 40-minute drive from Tagbilaran, the capital of the province.

This town and neighboring Dauis make up Panglao Island, very well known for its diving locations and tourist resorts which put to good use the island’s white sandy beaches. The most famous and the most developed is Alona Beach, stretching 1500 meters long, and lined with palm trees, deluxe resorts and shops. This part of the island is ringed with reefs that are relatively

narrow and shallow, approximately six meters deep, but with submarine cliffs plunging to depths of about 55 meters.

I was curious where the beach got its name so I asked around and was told that it was where the television commercial for a local whisky was filmed, starring that sexy actress of yesteryears, Alona Alegre, galloping on horseback in skimpy beach wear, along the entire length of the beach. Since that time, the natives residing in the area, awed by her mesmerizing charm and physical endowments, have named the beach after her.

The Henann Group of Resorts, known for its top-notch hotels in Boracay, chose to open in the area, its landmark property, the Henann Resort Alona Beach. With 400 spacious and deluxe rooms, it is the largest resort in Bohol. Each villa, room, and suite exemplifies elegance and quiet luxury, providing the perfect backdrop for romantic dates, family gatherings, or other get-togethers that rejuvenate the mind and body.

The lush scenery that surrounds the beachfront resort is complemented by leisure facilities such as Kai Regency Spa, three swimming pools, and several restaurants and pool bars. Aside from

PaNgLao’s JEwEL

500-thread-count duvet made in India, and the non-allergenic pillows ensure a comfortable sleep. Basic amenities, such as cable TV, Wi-Fi Internet connection, hot and cold shower and mini bar are also provided in the room.

But perhaps, the major selling factor of each City Garden Grand Hotel room, especially those located on higher levels, is the sweeping view of Makati skyline, while some even offer a spectacular view that extends to Manila Bay.

Fitness buffs or guests who want to take the opportunity to break a sweat while staying in the “Grand” property may head over to the fully-equipped gym on the 9th floor or swim in the rooftop pool on the 32nd level. Those who want a truly stress-free stay will enjoy an hour of massage at the spa, also on the 9th floor.

Guests will never run out of food choices in the hotel as buffet breakfast and a la carte lunch are served at the Spice Cafe on the 7th level. Partake of a meal that comes with a lovely view at Firefly Roof Deck. (Tip: Dine in the evening to take advantage of the night view and live acoustic band performance.)

But should diners have a specific meal preference, it

helps that the hotel is located in Makati area that abounds with restaurants serving Korean, Japanese, Persian and Filipino cuisines, among others.

Aside from dining establishments, City Garden Grand Hotel is surrounded by shopping, entertainment and leisure options, all easily accessible: Rockwell Center is just a five-minute walk, Bonifacio Global City can be reached in 20 minutes by car, while NAIA is only a 30-minute drive away (not taking into account road traffic and other circumstances).

While almost all hotels strive for the “home away from home” feeling, City Garden Grand is not only successful in providing

making it easy for one to have pleasurable pursuits, the resort also lends its business center, VIP lounge, and meeting rooms to business travelers who go for the happy combination of work and leisure. In fact, the resort also has a convention center that can accommodate 1,000 participants.

In addition to its scenic location, Henann Resort Alona Beach also serves as a base from where one can begin to explore the famous snorkeling and diving spots around Panglao Island.

Although questions have been raised on the unrestrained development of the area which, critics say, has ignored municipal development policies leading to the overcrowding of Alona Beach and causing it to lose its paradise-like image, still, local residents welcome the buzz of activity resulting from such development. They are happy with the marked improvement of the area’s economy, with more jobs, more sales of local products and souvenirs, more business activities that have certainly improved their wellbeing. The municipal, provincial and national governments are pushing through with their plan to build a new international airport on the island, with a final approach path directly over Alona Beach.

The opening of Henann Resort Alona Beach has been a milestone in the 17-year history of the Henann Group of Resorts as it is its first property outside Boracay. This is why Dr. Henry Chusuey, the chairman, has left no stone unturned in seeing to it that the resort will proudly banner the standards of excellence that make Henann Resorts a leading brand for leisure properties in the country.

More information on Henann Resort Alona Beach may be obtained from (532) 2303000 or through [email protected] or by clicking on www.henann.com/bohol.

For feedback, I’m at [email protected]

From C3

a Grand....

a homey vibe but a convenient place where one can get what he wants and what he needs.

Visit www.citygardengrandhotel.com to know more about the

Makati property.

Presidential Suite living room with jacuzzi

The spacious deluxe room with a view

Dining by the beautifully landscaped pool

The powdery white sand beach fronting the Henann Resort Alona Beach

Henann officers (from left) AVP-Sales Isabel Garcia, chairman Dr. Henry Chusuey and Luxus Pacific general manager Mary Ann Ong

Henann vice chairperson Anna Lissa Chusuey, Issa Litton and CV Travel’s Claudette Vitug

Henann Resort Alona Beach assistant sales director Manuel Sandagon, DOT’s Pam Samaniego and Afro Asian Travel’s Fate Nacpil

C5ISAH V. RED

E D I T O RNICKIE WANG

W R I T E RSHOWBITZm oNDAy : m Ay 16, 2016

i s a h r e d @ g m a i l . c o m

There’s one thing that is most talked about today – it’s the challenges that many female bosses face. Although #ladyboss and #girlboss have seeped

into modern-day conversations and pop culture, many still don’t know how to cope with being both female and a boss at the same time.

How can we blame them? It’s not as easy as it looks. For one, more

and more women in management positions find out that they must develop the more traditionally masculine traits like assertive-ness and confidence while they downplay feminine traits such as being collaborative and nurturing like it’s a bad thing.

But what is the real score? How do you become a respectable boss without sacrific-ing your femininity? Well, have we got an answer for you.

We turn to Supergirl’s Cat Grant (Cal-ista Flockhart, Ally McBeal), media mogul and CEO of CatCo Worldwide Media. Al-though she usually comes off as cold and demanding – the typical ice queen – there is more to her character. Let’s find out what these are and what makes her the best fic-tional mentor a girl could ever have.

She’s the ultimate “supermom”.As the head of a media conglomerate and

a single mom, Cat has learned a lot about how to succeed both professionally and personally. She may push her employees to work hard but all she wants is to present the best product for the success of the com-pany. She’s also made it clear that she cares more about her son more than anything.

When Kara/Supergirl (Melissa Benoist, Glee) asked how she keeps it all going, Cat gave the most practical yet helpful advice on the show: Juggle two balls before you juggle three. Basically, what Kara needs to do is to get her personal life under control first before she can add the responsibilities of being a superhero to her list of things to do. When she has both those aspects cov-ered, she can tackle DEO investigations as if it were a cakewalk. Definitely advice any-one could live by if we do say so ourselves.

Because let’s be real here, it’s not about piling on the responsibilities, it’s about mastering the few that you have before adding new ones. Doing this ensures that you only give your best in everything. And isn’t that what we’re really after?

She’s not overprotective of Kara (or any of her employees for that matter).

There’s a fine line between mentoring and coddling, and many female bosses sometimes blur the lines. But being some-one’s mentor doesn’t mean you have to hold their hand all the time. In the show, most of the people who are looking out for Kara are trying too hard to protect her rather than making sure she gets better and that is far from what we want. Cat is not afraid to tell Supergirl the cold hard truth. When she wasn’t doing her best as a superhero, Cat was the first to point it out which made Kara re-evaluate how she was handling things, as expected of the glamorous and wise Cat, telling it like it is!

She encourages Kara to be strong. Cat gets her name wrong, calling her

Kira instead of Kara. And Kara lets her ex-cept for a few times when she asserts her-self. This is when she gains Cat’s respect. For someone in the competitive fields of

media and superhero-hood, Kara needed to develop a backbone and stand up for herself. Cat sees the need, and she pushes Kara to be strong. And you know what? Look at Kara now, strong and confident, as a superhero should be.

She puts her faith in Supergirl.The relationship between mentor and

mentee is largely dependent on faith – faith that things will get better. Cat sees Super-girl’s flaws and she points it out, hoping that it will push Supergirl to succeed. Now that is what we call, tough love.

She is a strong woman.All of the points above would not have

made any sense if Cat herself was not strong as a person. She gets confidence from who she is – her talents and her grit. In fact, her girl speech in the pilot episode packs some major #CareerInspo. So much so, we couldn’t help but cheer and clap from our end.

“What do you think is so bad about ‘girl’? I’m a girl. And your boss. And pow-erful and rich and hot and smart. So if you perceive Supergirl as anything less than ex-cellent, isn’t the problem you?”

And that right there is what makes Cat Grant the best mentor ever.

Catch more of Cat Grant’s inspiring career moves in Supergirl with double episodes on the fastest growing channel in the Philip-pines, Warner TV 9 p.m. starting May 31.

Kantar Media Philippines recently de-clared Warner TV as the fastest growing entertainment channel in the Philippines. The channel with the latest series, hot-test new episodes and blockbuster movies has increased ratings by 327 percent year-on-year, and it ranks no. 3 among inter-national English general entertainment channels. Furthermore, in March, Warner TV achieves its record high in ratings and moves up as the no. 2 channel, ahead of AXN, Sony Channel, Lifetime, Diva Uni-versal, Star World and Universal Channel.

Warner TV is available on SKYcable Chan-nel 77, SKYcable HD Channel 197, Cignal HD Channel 119, Destiny Cable (Digital) Channel 77, Destiny Cable (Analog) Chan-nel 80, and Cable Link Channel 30.

For more updates on the best in action, comedy and drama, follow on facebook.com/WarnerTVAsia.

‘SupERgIRl’S’ CaT gRanT

IS any gIRl’S bEST mEnTOR

Calista Flockhart as Cat Grant, the shallow and superficial founder of the media conglomerate CatCo Worldwide media

Scenes from the American superhero fiction action-adventure drama series featuring Calista Flockhart

Calista Flockhart (center) with melissa Benoist (right), the Kryptonian 24-year-old known as Supergirl

C6 ISAH V. REDE D I T O R


m onDAy : m Ay 16, 2016

SHOWBITZ

shTIcksJOsEphpETER

GOnzalEs

ACROSS1 Rodeo mount6 Luggage fastener

10 Crazed captain14 Bard’s teen15 A single time16 Maroon-robe

wearer17 Girder (2 wds.)18 Coup d’—19 Hieroglyphics bird

20 Literary types 22 Not moving much 24 Instant grass 26 Oxygen producers 27 Trickle 31 Morning hrs. 32 Kind of race 33 Like Crusoe before

Friday 36 Nagano honorific 39 Call for

40 Weather system 41 Casanova type 42 Authorizes 43 Jingles and haiku 44 Ruminates 45 Always, to a bard 46 Hook fastener 48 Cope 51 Egyptian boy-king 52 Purse item 54 Wildflower habitat 59 Freedom org. 60 Vast emptiness 62 Tara’s owner 63 Authentic 64 She, in Seville 65 Brought back a

movie 66 Cartwright son 67 Thrill, slangily 68 Process oreDOWN 1 Admiral’s jail 2 Night attire 3 Shaman’s quest 4 Within reach 5 Drops in (2 wds.) 6 Shed tool 7 Aardvark’s diet 8 Cut too short 9 Sulky 10 Adjusts, as tires 11 Sister’s clothes 12 Not quite right

13 Some party! 21 Earth’s star 23 Plucky 25 “The Wreck of the

Mary —” 27 Early 007 foe

(2 wds.) 28 Give off fumes 29 Seine moorages 30 Wretched 34 Herbert of “The

Pink Panther” franchise

35 Start 36 Fair (hyph.) 37 Novelist Jean — 38 Tree house? 40 Buries the hatchet 41 Cause a blister 43 Sphagnum moss 44 Shooting stars 45 Happens next 47 Ick opposite 48 Smaller than mini 49 High mark (hyph.) 50 Mademoiselle’s

school 52 Lattice piece 53 Brick baker 55 Polite cough 56 Risk it 57 By mouth 58 Have a yen for 61 Family man

answer PreVIOUs PUZZLe

cROsswORD puzzlE MONDAy,MAy 16, 2016

Jennylyn Mercado is now being tagged as the new “Rom-Com Queen” based on the box-office success of all her potboilers

starting with English Only, Please until the currently showing Just The 3 of Us opposite John Lloyd Cruz. What’s her reaction to this?

“Well, of course I’m happy if people see it that way. I’m glad that they enjoy watching my films. For me, that’s the greatest com-pliment,” she says.

Some quarters ask if this de-velopment is fine with her con-sidering that she is more iden-tified as a dramatic actress.

“It’s just okay. Actually, this is a breather (sic) to the heavy dramas I usually do. At least, doing a romantic comedy is lighter. It’s fun. When you go home, you don’t feel emotion-ally drained.”

It was reported that even Piolo Pascual expressed his desire to collaborate with her on the big screen, a proof of how in-demand she is at this point.

“That’s nice. I hope it pushes through in the coming days! That would be excit-ing. I’m flattered that he wants to do a project with me.”

Personally, over at the Kapami-lya ground, with whom does

she want to be paired next?“To be honest, I have

no one in mind in par-ticular. Whoever is available or will be assigned by the pro-ducer, it’s just fine with

me. Actually, I’m not just limit-ing it to a male screen partner, I also want to do a vehicle op-posite a female star where we can be sisters, best friends or

rivals in the story. My p e r s o n a l picks as c o - s t a r s ? S a r a h

G eronimo

or Toni Gonzaga!” says Jennylyn.Meanwhile, talks are rife that she will

be Alden Richard’s partner in GMA’s remake of the hit Koreanovela My Love from the Star.

“To be honest, I still don’t know about that. Nothing’s official yet although I’m keeping my fingers crossed that it will in-deed push through since it’ll be a fresh team-up. I was able to watch the original version and fell in love with the story. It will be exciting to play the central female char-acter Steffi Cheon if ever.”

This early, many are curious how she will handle probable bashers once the camera grinds for the said show espe-cially since Alden is very much identified with Maine Mendoza.

“I don’t think there’s a need for that. They should bear in mind that it’s just work. Al-den and I are professional actors. We’re here to work. One thing more, it would not be a positive reflection as well to their idols if ever, right?”

Her contract with the Kapuso ex-pires this month. Some ask what will happen next.

“They have an offer although we haven’t officially talked about the details yet. Of course, I will renew with them if given the choice. I’ve been with the net-work since Day One of my showbiz ca-reer,” ends Jennylyn.

********

Derek Ramsay is happiness personified at this point

“Yes, I’m very happy right now. For one, my health is in excellent state. Work is very good since a lot of projects are continuous-ly coming my way. They also offer variety which I like the most. My personal state (with steady-date Joanne Villablanca) is in tip-top shape as well.”

“I can say that as of the moment, things are running perfectly in my life. Everything is falling into its proper place, so to speak. I can’t ask for anything else except perhaps to spend more quality bonding time with my son. But everything else is good,” he states.

People are curious if wedding bells are in the offing for him and Joanne since obvi-ously, he’s very happy with her.

“Maybe not in the next year. My contract with TV 5 is still ongoing. In the next two perhaps. As of now, my hands are full and I’m not complaining. I would just like to strike while the iron is hot, so to speak. But definitely, I will go in that direction. Even-tually, when I’m certain that I’ll be able to give more time to my family.”

The handsome actor explains that Joanne is willing to wait.

“Oh yes! She’s very understanding. She knows how busy I am with work. It’s good that we enjoy every single moment that we have. When we have the time to be togeth-er, we don’t waste any of it. We maximize what we have,” says Derek.

LOS ANGELES - Reacting to the article about Apl.de.Ap snubbing the invitation to receive the Hero Award during the 118th Philippine Independence Day celebration in Vancouver, the manager of the Filipino-American rapper explained their camp’s side on the matter.

Audie Vergara, the Philippine-born and US-raised manager of Apl , immedi-ately got in touch with Janice Lozano, the spokesperson of the United Filipino-Cana-dian Associations in BC (UFCABC), host of Independence Day celebration on June 4 and Gala Night on June 11 at the Wes-tin Bayshore in Vancouver BC. The event is supported by the Philippine Consulate General in Vancouver.

Through an email sent on May 9, Vergara

said, “It is an incredible honor. Apl is sched-uled to be in NYC on June 4. We’re confirm-ing that trip now, should anything change, I’ll contact you right away.”

When Lozano asked if Apl could grace the Gala Night on June 11, Vergara replied, “Shanghai on June 11, if it’s a go by the end of the week. We’re in the middle of a ma-jor, major project in the Philippines, we’re f*&%^ng busy as shit.”

The response irked Tom Avendaño, president and CEO of the Multicultural Helping House Society (MHHS), an orga-nization that has helped 200,000 Filipinos in Canada.

“Just for instance, when you hear the Philippine National Anthem, you halt for a while as a sign of respect. The same way

if some would be given a prestigious ac-knowledgement, like the Hero Award from an organization, wouldn’t you respond and give importance to it?” he said.

On Oc. 24, 2014, Avendaño was con-ferred the Paul Yuzyk Award for Multi-culturalism in the Lifetime Achievement category by Jason Kenney, Minister of Multiculturalism. This award recognizes Avendaño’s exceptional contribution to pluralism and the integration of newcom-ers and immigrants into Canadian society.

“May sakit ako noon (I was sick then), when I heard the news. Pinilit kong tumayo at nagbihis para makapunta at matan-gap yung award (I forced myself to get up and get dressed to come and receive the award),” said 82-year-old Tatay Tom.

Apl.de.Ap’s manager explains sideby RObbIE panGIlInan

JEnnylyn okAy to bE Rom-com quEEn

As of press time, there is no direct response from the singer of the Grammy Award-win-ning group The Black Eyed Peas himself.

Apl.de.Ap with manager Audie Vergara and Vincent Herrera at Itb berlin

Jennylyn Mercado

C7ISAH V. REDE D I T O R


m onDAy : m Ay 16, 2016

SHOWBITZ

GMA’s top-rating primetime drama Because of You concluded its run last Friday on the Tele-babad block.

The program not only ranks as one of the well-loved series’ of the network but also is a hit among netizens who have consistently followed the love story of lead stars’ Carla Abellana as Andrea, Rafael Rosell as Oliver and Gab-by Concepcion as Jaime.

Carla said she has learned many things while doing the soap which has brought laugh-ter and good vibes to the TV viewers. “Kaya pa lang maka-buo ng isang show na hindi kailangan ng big scenes, big set-ups. Simple lang basta au-

thentic yung comedy. Good vibes lang the entire time at nakakapag-deliver naman ng maganda. Yung output magan-da pa rin for the viewers.”

For Rafael, he has a lot of un-forgettable moments portray-ing the role of Oliver includ-ing the scenes “when Oliver was hanging out the window and when he left Andrea at the altar.” He added, “I like both scenes because it’s an experi-ence I’ve never had before. The fear, the mixed emotions, the bad consequences, I could never do that in real life but I’m thankful I got to experi-ence it through the character of Oliver.”

He also shared that viewers need to watch out for the last epi-sode because it will have an “awe-some ending including who will end up with who, and the lessons learned through this journey of friendship, heartache and love.”

Gabby said he definitely en-joyed doing the soap because its very light and he had a great time working with everyone especially Carla. He likewise appreciates the hard work and dedication of ev-eryone, which contributed to the success of the show.

“Si Carla ay nakakatawa. I tru-ly enjoy her presence sa set. And, it’s a team effort after all. Kaya so-bra akong nagpapasalamat in ev-erything that comes along.”

This summer, Tom and Carla’s Celebrity Ukay-Ukay offered a treasure trove of items from your favorite Kapuso stars at the Heatwave Clearance Sale, orga-nized by Cut Unlimited Inc. last Friday to Sunday.

Pre-loved clothes, shoes, bags and other items from Kapuso ce-lebrities were on sale at the bazaar at the World Trade Center in Pa-say City. One hundred percent of the proceeds of Tom and Carla’s Ukay-ukay and part of the ticket proceeds from the Heatwave Clearance Sale will be donated to GMA’s socio-civic arm, the GMA Kapuso Foundation.

In addition to Celebrity Ukay-Ukay ambassadors Tom Rodri-guez and Carla Abellana, celeb-rities who donated to the cause this year included Mike Tan, Ju-lie Anne San Jose, Bea Binene, Louise De los Reyes, Andre

It’s a magical Sunday afternoon as GMA News and Public Affairs brings back the first-ever Pinoy animated anthology series Al-amat. The show premiered yester-day afternoon.

First aired in 2015, the ground-breaking show featured myths and legends that mirror Filipino culture, and voiced by big stars. It also received an Anak TV Seal Award for promoting values among viewers specially children.

This year, viewers expect the second season to be beyond en-chanting and colorful, as GMA takes this medium of storytelling to the next level.

While stories will be still be brought to life by some of the world’s sought-after Filipino ani-mators, each episode will now also feature live action drama with more song numbers and magical stories. The characters will fall in love, fight monsters big and small, and make the whole family laugh or cry.

On top of this, every episode will have a mysterious story teller. View-ers can look forward to discovering our narrator’s connection to the story at the end of each episode.

Joining the cast this season are some of the Kapuso Network’s best thespians: Benjamin Alves, LJ Reyes, Bianca Umali, Frencheska Farr, Rafa Siguion-Reyna, Leo Martinez, Tonipet Gaba, Love Añover, John Feir, Zymic Jaranil-la, and Miggs Cuaderno.

For its first episode yesterday, Alamat featured the legend of Sampaloc (tamarind). Leo Mar-tinez lent his voice to the war-rior Sampo. Comedian RJ Pa-dilla, on the other hand, voiced and also played The Narrator.

“Alamat ng Sampaloc (Leg-end of the Tamarind)” was a story about a town plagued by a monstrous bird called Mino-kawa. Three warriors arrive just in time to defeat the monster and be named the town’s new leaders. Yet, unknown to many, the three have a hidden agenda. Being pow-erful warriors, no ordinary citi-zen can oust them by force. This action-packed episode also raised relevant questions about leader-ship and vigilance.

Alamat airs Sunday,s 5:15 p.m. on GMA-7.

Caviteños had a huge treat as the cast of Kapamilya afternoon series We Will Survive were at SM Trece Martires, 5 p.m. yesterday.

They bonded and partied with Melai Cantiveros, Carlo Aquino, Jeric Raval, Josh De Guzman, Bea Saw, Regine Angeles, Maris Racal, and the rest of the cast as they performed and thanked the show’s fans for their love and un-wavering support.

Meanwhile, as the story con-tinues, an emotional encounter between Wilma (Pokwang) and Maricel (Melai Cantiveros) en-

sued as the latter discovered that her best friend broke her prom-ise and allowed Pocholo (Carlo Aquino) to be with her son Jude (Josh De Guzman).

With so much anger in her heart, the single mother decided to leave Wilma and take her son away from her best friend and her son’s father. But despite Maricel’s decision, Pocholo will still fight for his right and will do what it takes just to be with his son.

How will Wilma face life with-out her adoptive son Jude? Will she be able to mend her friend-

ship with Maricel? Will Pocholo get the forgiveness he has been asking from Maricel?

More exciting scenes are set to surprise the viewers in We Will Survive, the teleserye that shows however ugly the world gets, there is beauty in life as long as we are together, weekdays after Tubig at Langis on ABS-CBN or on ABS-CBN HD (SkyCable ch 167). Viewers may also catch up on the program’s past episodes on iWanTV.com and onskyonde-mand.com.ph for Sky subscribers.

‘BEcAuSE of you’ fInAlE lEAVES gooD VIBES

“Because of you” lead cast gabby concepcion, carla Abellana and Rafael Rosell

Best summer finds from Tom and carla’s celebrity ukay-ukay

Paras, Juancho Trivino, Luane Dy, John Pol Dimaculangan and Mel Tiangco.

GMA Network, Inc. was the official TV media partner of the Heatwave Clearance Sale.

maricel and Wilma’s friendship falls apart

BFFs no more. melai cantiveros and Pokwang as maricel and Wilma in the late afternoon soap “We Will Survive’ Ang Alamat ng Sampaloc is the first episode of gmA’s animated series “Alamat”

‘Alamat’ takes story-telling a notch higher

leo martinez voices the warrior Sampo

RJ Padilla as The narrator

carla Abellana and Tom Rodriguez

C8ISAH V. RED

E D I T O RNICKIE WANG

W R I T E R


moNDAy : mAy 16 , 2016

ISAH V. RED SHOWBITZ

GMA NETWORk OffERs A sExy AND NAuGhTy

pRIMETIME sERIEs

Beginning tonight, watch the come-back of two of the country’s FITSPOs (fit inspirations) – Kapuso Network’s Drama King Dennis Tril-

lo and Philippine TV’s Sweetheart Heart Evangelista – in an exceptionally hot and sexy series in Juan Happy Love Story.

This primetime show will excite viewers as they learn to appreciate their own love stories through Juan (Dennis) and Happy’s (Love) journey, how a man and a woman who are worlds apart in their views about life and love find themselves in a whirlwind romance.

In the series, Trillo is Juan, a responsible and go-getter businessman who is also a certified ‘chick boy.’ He meets Happy played by Evange-lista, a feisty and family-oriented woman who relies on signs to find her The One.

Their life will be tested when they found out they cannot bear a child. As their solu-tion, they decide to adopt a child. The lov-ers will then find Katkat, a 6-year-old bub-bly girl. They had a whirlwind romance and eventually marry.

They started having marital problems and they decided to separate. But because it will be easier for two parents to adopt a child in-stead of a single parent, Happy asked Juan to live with her again so that the DSWD will grant their application for adoption. Juan agrees vowing to win Happy back.

Agatha and Bob will try to intervene. Ag-atha, played by Kim Domingo, has started to fall in love with her business partner, Juan. Bob, played by Joross Gamboa, is hoping to win his high school best friend, Happy.

With Bob and Agatha’s plan to break Juan and Happy’s marriage, will they be able to legally adopt Katkat? Will they be able to create a family that they have both longed for?

Joining them in Juan Happy Love Story are: Queen of Philippine Cinema Gloria Romero as Lola Mameng and Nick Lizaso as Lolo Caloy, Juan’s grandparents; Gardo Versoza as Boyong and Lotlot De Leon as Isay, Happy’s parents; Ericka Padilla as Joy, Happy’s older sister; Joross Gamboa as Bob, Happy’s child-hood best friend; Dominic Roco as Henry, Happy’s brother-in-law; Kim Domingo as Agatha, Juan’s business partner; Vincent Magbanua as Lucky, Happy’s youngest brother; Rob Moya is Kyle, Juan’s bestfriend; Leanne Bautista as Katkat, Juan and Happy’s adopted child; Arianne Bautista as Sally, Happy’s friend; Koreen Medina as Lorriane, Kyle’s wife and Happy’s friend; Vince Gamad as Glenn, Juan’s friend.

Will Juan Happy Love Story be a worthy replacement of the rom-com that ended last Friday?

As we always say, “We will see after three weeks and let you know. Haha!”

Rob moya Joross Gamboa

Gardo Versoza

Heart Evangelista and Dennis Trillo reunite in a sexy rom-com “Juan

Happy Love Story”

Kim Domingo

Lotlot de Leon

Dominic Roco

Gloria Romero

The Standard - 2016 May 16 - Monday

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Transcript of The Standard - 2016 May 16 - Monday