Manila Standard - 2019 September 8 - Sunday by Manila Standard

WAR'S OVER: MILF HANDS OVER GUNS TO PEACE PANEL SULTAN KUDARAT, Maguindanao—Muslim rebels in the mainly Catholic Philippines began handing over their guns to independent foreign monitors Saturday, as part of a peace treaty aimed at ending a decades-long separatist insurgency that has left about 150,000 people dead. Just over a thousand guerrillas are turning in 940 weapons in a single day, in a graduated decommissioning process that aims to turn the Moro Islamic Liberation Front, the country’s largest rebel force, into a regular political party. The fighters demobilized on Saturday represent a symbolic first step toward retiring what MILF says is a force of 40,000 fighters in the coming years. “The war is over... I have no firearms left,” Paisal Abdullah Bagundang, 56, a self-described veteran of more than 100 firefights with government security forces since the 1970s, told AFP. Turn to A2

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RETIRING RITES. Rebels from the Moro Islamic Liberation Front board a bus before heading to a weapons decommissioning ceremony at Camp Darapanan in Sultan Kudarat Saturday while others (inset) fritter away time and anxiety, some wondering what the future would be hence. AFP

2 CHIONG KILLERS GIVE UP

PLACED UNDER BUCOR CUSTODY—DOJ CHIEF

WEEKEND WALK.

Two unidentified man and woman take their quadrupeds on a leisurely walk Saturday at the bayside Cultural Center of the Philippines Complex under 28 degrees Celsius cloudy sky with 79 percent humidity, the dogs apparently enjoying the breeze from Manila Bay. Lino Santos

WO of three convicts in the Chiong sisters rape-slay case, released on the strength of the controversial Good Conduct Time Allowance Law, have surrendered, Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra said Saturday. Guevarra identified the two as Ariel Balansag and Alberto Caño, now under the custody of the Bureau of Corrections authorities, three days after President Rodrigo Duterte, on nationwide television, ordered those freed under the application of GCTA to surrender in 15 days or be treated as fugitives. Thelma Chiong, mother of the Chiong sisters Marijoy and Jacqueline, said on Saturday in a separate Balitanghali Weekend report, also beamed nationwide, she was happy upon hearing of the surrender of Balansag and Caño but appealed to the third convict Josman Aznar to surrender as well. In related developments: • A convicted rapist released in March this year from Leyte Regional Prison, through the GCTA Law, turned himself in to the police in Villaba, Leyte on Friday, police authorities said. Ireneo Busano, 56, of Balite village, Villaba town, voluntarily surrendered at the police station after Duterte told 1,914 GCTA recipients convicted of heinous crimes to yield to authorities. The LRP in Abuyog, Leyte managed by the Bureau of Corrections, released Busano on March 22, 2019. Busano was convicted of rape on March 23, 2004, before the Regional Trial Court Branch 17 in Palompon, Leyte. The court sentenced him to reclusion perpetua or a prison term of 20 to 40 years. Turn to A2

FAELDON'S LINKS TO 'MAFIA' DOUBTFUL, 3 SENATORS SAY

COPS REDEPLOY FOR EDSA TRAFFIC By Joel E. Zurbano

By Macon Ramos-Araneta NO EVIDENCE to link dismissed Bureau of Corrections Director Nicanor Faeldon to the well-entrenched “mafia” involved in the sale of good conduct credits, which was exposed following the aborted release of convicted rapist-murderer, former Calauan Mayor Antonio Sanchez, said at least three senators. In separate interviews over radio DWIZ on Satuday, Senate President Vicente Sotto III, Senate Minority Franklin Drilon and Senator Panfilo Lacson said there was no proof yet to support insinuations that Faeldon had links to the mafia. Sotto, Drilon and Lacson were among the senators who grilled Thursday Yolanda Camelon, the first witness who testified on the Good Conduct Time Allowance for sale for the early release of Persons Deprived of Liberty, during the Senate Blue Ribbon committee and justice committee hearing on the controversy. But opposition Senator Risa Hontiveros refuted the remarks of President Rodrigo Duterte that sacked Faeldon was an “upright man.” “If he’s upright, you should not have fired him from his position,” posted Hontiveros on her Facebook account. Turn to A2 twitter.com/ MlaStandard

REINFORCEMENT READY. Hopes are

high that the daily sight of traffic logjams in Metro Manila’s nearly 24-kilometer main highway will before long be just a memory— with law enforcers from the Philippine National Police-Highway Patrol Group returning to the scene, as it were, to help the MMDA manage traffic along EDSA. File Photo

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PERSONNEL from the Philippine National Police—Highway Patrol Group have returned to assist the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority in managing traffic on Epifanio de los Santos Avenue as the holiday season draws near—when traffic flow is expected to be heavy. MMDA General Manager Jose Arturo Garcia Jr. said the policemen, led by HPG-NCR Traffic Enforcement Unit chief Col. Emmanuel Tabuena, would manage and supervise traffic from Timog Avenue to Ortigas Avenue beginning 5 a.m. on Monday (Sept. 9) with the assistance of 100 MMDA personnel. Other MMDA traffic enforcers, on the other hand, will man the traffic at EDSA Timog to Balintawak, and Ortigas to Pasay City. Garcia explained the HPG takeover was done to take advantage of their authority. He said under the law the HPG was mandated Turn to A2

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12 PH SAILORS NABBED IN IRAN I

RAN seized a boat and arrested 12 Filipinos as it busted a “fuel-smuggling ring” in the Strait of Hormuz on Saturday, the semi-official news agency ISNA reported. “A foreign tugboat was confiscated as well as 283,900 liters (75,000 gallons) of petrol worth 233.71 billion rials ($20.2 million),” ISNA said, citing the coast guard chief in the southern province of Hormozgan. “Twelve Philippine nationals were arrested and the relevant judiciary officials are currently taking the required legal measures,” Major Hossein

Dehaki was quoted as saying. Dehaki said the group was suspected of operating a fuel-smuggling ring and the confiscated shipment had been intercepted close to Sirik county in the Strait of Hormuz. The seizure comes amid tensions in the Gulf after the United States unilaterally withdrew from a nuclear deal putting curbs on Iran’s nuclear program

in return for relief from sanctions. The escalation has seen ships mysteriously attacked, drones downed, and oil tankers seized in the Strait of Hormuz—a chokepoint for a third of world’s seaborne oil. Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps detained a “foreign tanker” in Gulf waters on July 14 for allegedly smuggling contraband fuel. “With a capacity of two million liters and 12 foreign crew on board, the vessel was en route to deliver contraband fuel received from Iranian boats to foreign ships,” the Guards said at the time. Maritime tracking service Tanker-

Trackers reported the Panamanianflagged MT Riah, used in the strait for fueling other vessels, had crossed into Iranian waters, and at that point its automatic identification system stopped sending signals. In the most high-profile seizure, the Guards impounded the Britishflagged Stena Impero tanker in the Strait of Hormuz on July 19 for breaking “international maritime rules.” Iran also seized another ship on July 31 with seven foreign crew onboard over fuel smuggling, but it has not revealed the vessel’s identity or the nationality of its crew. AFP

CATHOLICS CELEBRATE BIRTH OF VIRGIN MARY By Honor Blanco Cabie IN AT least 1,400 towns in predominantly Christian Philippines, covering 82 provinces including the national capital region or Metro Manila, the Catholic faithful will mark with Masses today the 2,035th birth anniversary of the Virgin Mary, the mother of Jesus. Filipino Catholics, especially the Marian devotees, will be celebrating one of the oldest Marian solemnities and one of the cardinal feasts of the liturgical devotion to the Blessed Mother—the Feast of the Nativity of Mary. In the Catholic churches in most of these towns, Marian shrines, and schools under the patronage of the Holy Mother in the Philippines, celebratory masses, novenas, living rosaries, solemn processions, and the traditional “Harana kay Maria”(Serenade for Mary) will be observed. LITURGICAL WORSHIP Catholic Church sources say the Liturgy of the Hours, one of the highest expressions of liturgical worship, which involves the recitation of morning, midday, and evening prayers, will be held in many churches across the archipelago of 106 million people, more than 88 percent of whom profess the Catholic faith, brought to the country in the 16th century by Fernando Magallanes, who sailed under the flag of Spain. According to the sources, the last of the Triduum Masses that begin on Sept. 6 will also be celebrated on Sept. 8 for Mary, daughter of Saints Anne and Joachim. People ask why Sept. 8 is the birthday of Mary. There is no actual record of Mary’s date of birth in Jerusalem, but Catholic tradition celebrates the event as a liturgical feast on Sept. 8—which resonates the culture where Filipinos and others overseas celebrate the birthdays of their loved ones. Tradition dictates she was born on Sept. 8 circa 18 B.C. in the town of Nazareth in Galilee, Hebrew Ha-galil, the northernmost region of ancient Palestine, corresponding to modern northern Israel. Its biblical boundaries are indistinct; conflicting readings leave clear only that it was part of the territory of the northern tribe of Naphtali.

STARS ARE OUT. As the ‘Ber’ months begin, Christmas merchandise start appearing in stalls, like these lanterns sold by stall owner Baby Tagala at Mega Q-Mart in Cubao, Quezon City. Manny Palmero

GADGETS MAKE WAVES EUROPE’S biggest tech fair, Berlin’s IFA, is showcasing a flood of product launches until Wednesday. Here are five trends and gadgets making waves. FITNESS TRAINER FOR PETS No time to walk or play with your pet puppy or kitten? California startup Varram showcased a Pet Fitness robot, which plays with cats and dogs at home via smartphone instructions, even dropping treats as a reward, while the owner is at work. Sensors in the robot help it detect and stay away from furniture to not get stuck, avoiding bored pets. AI AT HOME As executive director Jens Heithecker told AFP, “three main trends at IFA this year are 5G, voice control and AI (artificial intelligence)” with the latter two combined in innovations for the home. Siemens claimed two world firsts with an oven that opens on voice command and separate washing machine and clothes drier that communicate via WiFi to predict how long garments will need to dry. CHRISTMAS GIFTS Heithecker tips that of the thousands of items showcased at IFA, headsets and wireless stereos will make popular Christmas gifts, as they are “affordable, moveable, high quality and part of the digitally connected world.” ‘ALL-IN-ONE’ 5G CHIP Huawei created a buzz Friday by launching a new super-fast Kirin 990 processor, which has a version specially designed for the 5G era—the fifth generation of cellular network technology. HIGH-TECH RELIEF High-tech relief for the incontinent is offered by D-Free, a sensor which fits on the abdomen and detects changes in bladder size, calculating how full it is and giving a prediction via a smartphone about when the user will need to urinate. AFP

CAPTAIN OF 4 DRINKING COPS SACKED By Joel E. Zurbano METRO Manila police director Maj. Gen. Guillermo Eleazar ordered the relief of a Las Piñas City police station commander whose men got caught drinking liquor while on duty early Friday morning. Upon the directive of Eleazar, Southern Police District chief Nolasco Bathan immediately relieved Police Captain Gladys Biare from the post for command responsibility. Eleazar also tapped newly appointed National Capital Region–Internal Affairs Service (NCR-IAS) head Brig. Gen. Gerry Galvan to file administrative cases against the four involved police officers, identified as Patrolman Samuel Inoc and Corporals Alquin Orgen, Randy Danao and Robemar Abales, all assigned at the Las Piñas City-Police Station 6. The four policemen were already relieved and ordered transferred in a floating status to the National Capital Region Police Office Regional Headquarters Support Unit. They were initially placed under the custody of the Southern

Police District-Personnel Holding and Accounting Section after being caught with their infraction. “I ordered their immediate reassignment. They shall do camp duty till their cases are resolved by an investigating panel,” said Eleazar. Eleazar was dismayed when he learned that the four policemen were caught drinking alcohol while on duty around 2 a.m. at the checkpoint near a gasoline station along Alabang Zapote Road in Barangay Talon Uno during a surprise inspection by NCR-IAS men. “The new NCR- RIAS chief just assumed his post and I asked him to help me in the inspection and monitoring of our personnel and he did it,”said Eleazar. He explained that the actions of the four police officers are tantamount to grave misconduct. “The worse part is they were even drinking in public. This is a clear act of disobedience, which is tantamount to grave misconduct and is punishable by dismissal from the service,” said Eleazar. “On the spot inspections will continue in adherence to our Intensified

Cleanliness Policy. We will not tolerate scalawags and there is no place in the PNP for dumb and abusive cops,” he added. Six months ago, Eleazar ordered the relief of commanders of Eastern Police District and Pasay City Police Station after the arrest of their drug enforcement unit officers accused of kidnapfor-ransom and extortion. EPD director C/Supt. Bernabe Balbaand Pasay Police chief S/Supt. Noel Flores were relieved for command responsibility. The entire force of EPD District Drug Enforcement Unit (DDEU) compose of 15 personnel and all 27 members of the Pasay station drug enforcement team (SDET) were also relieved and were investigated to determine if they were also engaged in nefarious activities. Eleazar made the directives to relieve and place these policemen under investigation following the arrest of PO2 Marlo Siblao Quibete for robbery extortion and P/Cpl. Anwar Encarnacion Nasser for kidnap-for-ransom and extortion complaint.

DU30 VETOES BILL MAKING P.U.P. NATIONAL UNIVERSITY

By Vito Barcelo

GRANDPARENTS’ DAY. Virginia Pagulayan, 70, gets a kiss from grandson Luke Enzo Torralba, 3 years old, while mother Maria Strawberry looks on, ahead of Grandparents’ Day, which is celebrated worldwide on Sunday. Diana Noche

PRESIDENT Rodrigo Duterte has vetoed a bill granting the Polytechnic University of the Philippines status as a national university citing the need to evaluate the performance of its satellite campuses and extension programs. Malacañang said the President returned the consolidated Senate Bill No. 2124 and House Bill No. 9023 (The Charter of the Polytechnic University of the Philippines) without his signature. A copy of the letter was made available to reporters on Saturday. In his veto message, Duterte said: “I have serious reservations on the suitability of the means chosen to attain this end, namely, granting PUP the status of a national polytechnic university, with all the

benefits and privileges such status entails.” “Its proposed designation as national polytechnic university needs to be reassessed in light of its current performance ranking among other SUCs,” he said. “The comparative performance of its satellite campuses and extension programs needs to be similarly evaluated before granting the PUP system as a whole such a privileged status,” the President added. Duterte said that while he recognizes the noble objective of the measure to promote, foster, nurture, and protect the right of all citizens to accessible quality education, there is still the need to assess and consider some criterion and requirements of PUP’s status. The President said PUP is just one of the many state universities and colleges in the Philippines.

MEAT-FREE REVIVAL DRIVES MARKET BEEF-FREE burgers, egg-free omelettes and milk-free ice cream—mea and dairy alternatives have shot to the top of the menu, and producer are facing up to the challenges of going mainstream. “Progress has been stunning,” said Bruce Friedrich, director of th Good Food Institute, which hosted a conference this week in Sa Francisco for an industry abuzz with ambition and technologica advances. A new generation of vegetarian products has re-invigorated the sector with fastfood giant Burger King now offering the meat-fre “Impossible Whopper” and McDonald’s working with Nestle on its ow plant-based burgers. Eyeing the booming market, major meat processors such as Smithfield JBS and Perdue have all launched new brands using plants and ar investing heavily to tap into changing consumer demand. The latest example is Arkansasbased Tyson, which on Thursda announced it had taken a stake in New Wave Foods, a San Francisc start-up developing a shrimp substitute made from seaweed and so protein—with crab and lobster next on the target list. Kroger, the second largest supermarket chain in the United States also announced on Thursday that it was launching a new line o meat-free products to be sold under the brand name “Simple Truth ranging from burgers to Bolognese sauce. AFP

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SEVEN HURT IN S. KUDARAT EXPLOSION

RODY TO TRADERS: PUT YOUR MONEY IN VISAYAS

By Francisco Tuyay AN EXPLOSIVE device ripped through a public market Saturday in Sultan Kudarat in Mindanao, wounding seven people, the fourth blast to have occurred in the province this year, security authorities said. The explosion occurred near a bake shop in Isulan town, wounding seven market-goers at about 7 a.m. Police Lt. Col. Joven Bagaygay, chief of Isulan Municipal Police Station, said the victims were hit by shrapnels from still unknown explosive device and were rushed to two hospitals for immediate treatment. The explosion came barely a day after Samad Masgal, alias Commander of the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighter, was arrested at a hospital in Cotabato City. The wounded victims were Jomar Catalan Aquino, 30; Jay Carnaso, 30; Gerald Cartagena, 28; Nino Minus Virgo, 28; Jarrem Binaluon Amigo, 24; Gulano Nasim Salip, 24; and Cagadas Terrencio, 35. Reports said an unidentified courier of the IED left it beside a row of parked motorcycles catering to patrons at the public market. Bagaygay said they have yet to gather pieces of evidence from the scene of explosion, including forensic investigation to unravel the perpetrators. Last April, an IED went off at the façade of the chicken barbecue stall along the national highway which was blamed on the BIFF.

COPS...

From A1

to contribute in crime prevention in addition to traffic enfaorcement. “The HPG is a big help in instilling discipline to the motorists.” Garcia said. He added unlike HPG, the MMDA had no defense when its traffic enforcers were being mauled or hurt by hard-headed motorists. Tabuena, for his part, said they fully supported the need to discipline erring motorists who, he added, were among contributing factors of traffic problem along EDSA, especially during rush hours. The HPG men will man the traffic from 5 a.m. to 1 a.m. to add to visibility of authorities on the road. They are also deputized to apprehend and issue citation tickets against erring motorists violating illegal parking policy and other traffic rules. “We want to show that the government is [in] full force to ease the burden of the riding public,” Garcia said. MMDA officials said the move in deploying HPG men also aimed to augment the existing MMDA traffic personnel in manning the flow of traffic in the area during the peak buying “ber months”— reference to the months of September, October, November and December. Records showed that traffic volume rises 15 to 20 percent during November and December. In 2015, the HPG took over from the MMDA the traffic control on EDSA in following the directive of then President Benigno Aquino III, who believed that the presence of armed traffic enforcers would make a big difference. Aquino came up with the idea after observing that the MMDA could not solve the road congestion along the 23.8-kilometer highway from Monumento Circle in Caloocan City to President Diosdado Macapagal Boulevard in Pasay City. Former MMDA chairman and now Senator Francis Tolentino had a proposal then to have traffic enforcers equipped with firearms just like the HPG men. He proposed the issuance of short firearms to some of its traffic enforcers after a series of assault against them along Epifanio de los Santos Avenue and other major streets in the metropolis. That time, Tolentino said, traffic enforcers encountered violent incidents while performing their duties, and they might need firearms to defend themselves. But he said traffic enforcers to be armed should be the supervisors (with the ranks traffic enforcer 2 and 3), whom he said were responsible enough to handle and use guns—without defining what responsibility meant. The MMDA admitted the increase in number of public and private vehicles and undisciplined drivers had mainly causes the monstrous traffic on EDSA. It added the volume of vehicles on the road could no longer be accommodated by the limited road network in Metro Manila. According to MMDA spokesperson Assistant Secretary Pircelyn Pialago, vehicles passing through the highway increased by 5.75 percent, or an average of 405,882, for the first eight months this year. This is an additional 22,054 vehicles as compared to 2018 data, which posted an average of 383,828 vehicles, she said.

By Vito Barcelo

players not to put new investment and economic activities in Western Mindanao. “Instead, put up your money in the Visayas, particularly in Cebu and Bohol. You have to consider the law

and order in Mindanao,” he said. However, the President claimed there had been less fighting now in Mindanao after the Bangsamoro Organic Law had been enacted, saying “we have been able to strike a solution in central Mindanao.” The Bangsamoro autonomous region is currently run by the Bangsamoro Transition Authority led by the Moro Islamic Liberation Front. The President congratulated Muslims for the cooperation and support to the government’s peace program which resulted in zero incident of fighting in central Mindanao. “And I’d like to congratulate my brother Muslims, Moros of Mind-

anao, that there had been almost no incident here in the central Mindanao area,” he said. Unfortunately, Duterte admitted that the communist New People’s Army remained a problem of his administration. “I just hope we can do something about it before my term ends,” Duterte said as he vowed to end insurgency in the country. Also during the ceremony, the Torre Lorenzo Development Corp. announced a P10-million assistance to the Armed Forces of the Philippines in the next 10 years to help send to school the sons and daughters of soldiers wounded in action.

“The President, as Chief Executive, has control and supervision over all offices and agencies under the Executive department,” he said. Duterte on Friday admitted during a speech in Naga City, Cebu that he ordered the transfer of the 10 convicts from the New Bilibid Prison in Muntinlupa City to a detention facility of the Philippine Marines in Taguig City out of fear that detained Senator Leila de Lima’s underlings might kill them. Seven of the transferred convicts had testified in the drug cases against De Lima, accusing the senator of involvement in the Bilibid drug trade during her time as justice chief. They were moved on June 12 to the Marines Barracks Rudiardo Brown in Fort Bonifacio. Guevarra earlier said the 10 were moved as they were under threat. He said there would be “nothing irregular” with the transfer if there was a court order authorizing it but added he was not aware if such approval was sought. But he clarified that if the transfer of convicts from the New Bilibid Prison was to an extension facility of the BuCor, no court order was needed. “If the transfer is to a facility not controlled by the BuCor, the court

that committed the PDL (persons deprived of liberty) to the original penitentiary should at least be notified or its approval secured,” he said in a text message. “But if the transfer is made to a BuCor extension facility, such as a military camp by agreement, no court approval is required as long as custody and control remain with the BuCor,” he added. • The Palace denied accusing the Aquino administration over the alleged misapplication of the GCTA law, saying they were just stating facts for persons deprived of liberty. In a statement, Presidential Spokesman Salvador Panelo said the facts were clear. “ It was then Justice secretary Leila de Lima and former Interior Secretary Mar Roxas who jointly issued the implementing rules and regulations of the GCTA under the Republic Act 10592.” He said Rule IV, Section 3 of the IRR “did not include PDLs who were charged (with) or convicted of heinous crimes.” Panelo also assured the public that those involved in corruption or incompetence in implementing the GCTA law would be prosecuted. “We will be fair and impartial as we

will enforce the law not just against the officials who served the current administration but also against those who served during the previous one,” he said. The Palace spokesman made the statement after de Lima, one of the fiercest critics of Duterte, slammed the Duterte administration for the supposed lapses in the implementation of the GCTA Law. Panelo said that because of the GCTA Law which the previous administration passed, the public was blaming the officials of the Duterte administration for the GCTA fiasco. He said De Lima should “look in the mirror and ask herself who (was) to blame for the same.” Panelo said: “We reiterate that the sudden increase in number of those purported to be eligible to avail of the benefits of GCTA under this administration was due to the recent ruling by the Supreme Court, a separate and independent branch of the government, which held that RA 10592 should be applied retroactively. “The practice, however, of granting the benefits of GCTA to persons charged with heinous crimes started way back when the IRR was issued.” PNA, Vito Barcelo

RESIDENT Rodrigo Duterte said that while peace in Western Mindanao had returned and less fighting incidents occurred after the Bangsomoro Organic Law had been passed, the President still advised businessmen not to invest in Western Mindanao region and instead put their money in the Visayas region. The President made the remarks during the grand opening and inauguration of DusitD2 Hotel Davao and the Dusit Thani Grand Ballroom in Davao City on Friday night, telling tourism and business

2FromCHIONG... A1 He was freed based on the GCTA Law or Republic Act 10592, as approved by the Department of Justice in a memorandum dated March 12, 2019, which was issued by the Bureau of Corrections Director General Nicanor Faeldon. LRP officer-in-charge Chief Insp. Pedro Padilla signed Busano’s Certificate of Discharge on March 18, 2019. The police turned over Busano to LRP hours after his surrender. The LRP in Abuyog, Leyte has an inmate capacity of 500. It follows the same agricultural format as the main correctional program, in addition to some rehabilitation activities. The prison houses convicted offenders from Eastern Visayas and from the New Bilibid Prison. • In Manila, Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra on Saturday said the President had the power to order the transfer of convicts to another facility, amid questions surrounding his directive to move 10 high-profile convicts from the national penitentiary to a Philippine Marines facility.

FAELDON'S... From A1 “Was it right to release Chinese drug lords? An unrepentant rapist-murderer was almost freed,” said Hontiveros. She advised the President to consult the dictionary for the meaning of upright, “Get a dictionary and look up what upright means,”stated Hontiveros in her FB account. But Sotto and Drilon noted that the President was entitled to his own opinion. Sotto said it was difficult to say how the President felt towards the incident, but “that’s his opinion that we should not contradict.” He said people might have different opinion. “What stuck to the mind of the President, in fairness to Usec. Faeldon, was he rejected a huge bribe from a cigarette company,” said Sotto. “The President gave emphasis on that so until now...in the absence of proof, I understand that’s his opinion,” added Sotto. While the existence of a mafia was established based on the testimony of Camelon, a common-law wife of an inmate at the New Bilibid Prison, Sotto conceded that Faeldon knew nothing about the illegal operation of peddling good conduct credits from P50,000 up to P1.5 million. “There’s a possibility that he was blind-sided because he did not went (sic) inside.... he was blinded by the people around him,” said Sotto when asked if Faeldon was aware of the payoffs. However, Sotto said it was also possible that he learned about it. When questioned if Faeldon was off the hook, Sotto replied, “I will leave that to the committees which will come out with recommendation.” The committees, chaired by Senator Richard Gordon, will resume Monday its fourth inquiry into the alleged irregularities in the early release of PDL based on the GCTA Law. Sotto said GCTA for sale was proven, it’s 100 percent. “There’s no doubt. To cut the long story short, there’s no more doubt that there were indeed payoffs and money

changed hands inside the New Bilibid Prison,” said Sotto. Drilon echoed Sotto’s statement that the “GCTA for sale” was established based on the testimony of Camelon who paid P50,000 for the early release of her husband who was reportedly qualified to be freed under the good conduct credits. “It’s clear,” responded Drilon in Filipino when questioned if money changed hands. Drilon noted that although Camelon’s husband was set to be released from Bilibid, still, he acceded to the demand for P50,000, being helpless because those exacting bribes were involved in the computation of time allowance. Testifying in the hearing Thursday night, Camelon told the Senate panels that she paid P50,000 on a staggered basis to Major Mabel Bansil and Staff Sgt. Ramoncito Roque sometime February and March this year. But her husband was not released until now despite repeated promises and follow-ups. Like Sotto, Drilon, a former justice secretary, admitted that no evidence would link Faeldon to the mafia on the GCTA for sale. “But it’s clear there was incompetence or negligence for having failed to catch this kind of anomaly happening under his very nose,” pointed out Drilon. He said the former Marine captain was incompetent as head of the BuCor. “Being the head, these things should not have happened if he was strict in running the agency,” said Drilon. Since Faeldon signed the release order of the more than 1,900 PDLs, he should be held liable. He said Faeldon acted on his own and did not follow Department Order 953 which clearly states that any release order for PDLs serving life sentence should have the approval of the Secretary of Justice, in this case, Secretary Menardo Guevarra. He said it was now up to the Ombudsman to ascertain the charges that should be filed against Faeldon. For his part, Lacson said that based on the evidence that came out (Thursday night), no direct evidence pointed that Faeldon was into the corruption.

WAR'S OVER:... From A1 But the disarmament will take time to make an impact in a place where violence is an almost daily threat. But Hadji Murad Ebrahim, chairman of the MILF and now chief minister of the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao, said ‘We have not given up; decommissioning is not tantamount to surrender”—as the process of decommissioning armed dissidents began. Ebrahim said decommissioning, as provided in both the Bangsamoro Organic Law (Republic Act 11054) and in an annex of the Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsamoro (CAB), “does not mean that we have given up what we have been fighting for.” Instead, Murad said, “We are working with the government to achieve our goals of peace, development and progress.” Murad said a total 1,060 would be initially decommissioned out of 11,000 combatants, currently being validated by the Independent Decommissioning Body. A total of189 RPG (rocket-propelled grenade) anti-armored personnel carrier launchers were turned over to the IDB in ceremonies witnessed by President Rodrigo Duterte. Duterte said his “administration is investing on peace, for without peace there can be no real progress to look forward to in these areas.” “We are fulfilling government promises; the promises made by the previous administrations, and the new promises committed under my administration,”the Chief Executive said. Secretary Carlito Galvez of the Office of the Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process Reconciliation and Unity (OPAPPRU) said the Duterte administration had the firm commitment to support and help Moro communities attain progress. Galvez said the government and the MILF as well as the peace stakeholders were “celebrating another milestone in the peace process.'' This, Galvez said, is the return to the mainstream society of combatants from

the MILF’s Bangsamoro Islamic Armed Forces (BIAF) which will pave the way for the transformation of their lives, their families and their communities. Normalization package On Friday, Galvez and Director-General Isidro Lapena of the Technical Skills Development Authority signed a Memorandum of Agreement for OPAPP and TESDA to “jointly undertake skills training and development for the decommissioned combatant, and members of their families and communities to help them transform into being productive members of the mainstream society.” Ariel Hernandez, co-chairman of the Joint Philippine Government-MILF Committees on the Normalization, lauded TESDA for committing substantial funding resources in support of the decommissioning programs. Each combatant will receive P100,000 in cash, and packages of assistance consisting of health programs for their families, education scholarship slots for them or their children, and modest livelihood projects. Galvez was optimistic the decommissioned combatants or members of their families could reap the fruits of human development, as potential bets to pool of human resources that investors from Japan would be needing in the near future. “It is the President’s desire to give these communities a chance to become a showcase of peace and transformation,” Galvez pointed out. Murad said the the Philippine government and the MILF had identified seven decommissioning processing areas for IDB, and these are the five government-recognized MILF camps in Central Mindanao, one in Davao del Sur, and one in Basilan. The peace panels of the Government of the Philippines and the MILF peace have jointly created an IDB to oversee the process of decommissioning of MILF forces and weapons. IDB forms key part of the normalization structure. The IDB is composed of foreign experts from Turkey, Norway, and Brunei, representatives from the two parties and National Staff. Turkey Ambassador to the Philippines Fatih Ulusoy, IDB chairman, said firearms turned over to the body will be stored and “put beyond use.” Nash Maulana, with AFP

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ACTOR’S DEATH STIRS UP CALL FOR JOB SITE SAFETY DRIVE By Joel E. Zurbano

PH SAILORS SEND $3.2B THRU BANKS FILIPINO sailors sent home via bank wire a total of $3.2 billion in cash from January to June this year—$259 million or 8.7 percent higher than the amount they remitted in the same period in 2018, the ACTS-OFW Coalition of Organizations said over the weekend. “Cash transfers from Filipino officers and ratings on international ships remain solid on account of nonstop deployment, amid a tight supply of officers in particular,” said ACTS-OFW chairman Aniceto Bertiz III, a former member of Congress. “We are watching closely the developments in the ongoing China-United States trade war, which could potentially affect global import and export and shipping traffic over the Pacific,” Bertiz said. Citing data from the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas, Bertiz said the lion’s share of cash remittances from Filipino sailors in the first semester came from: • the United States ($1.1 billion); • Singapore ($339.2 million); • Germany ($282.2 million); • Japan ($265.5 million); • United Kingdom ($156.5 million); • Netherlands ($144.6 million); • Hong Kong ($119 million); • Panama ($88.5 million); • Cyprus ($86.2 million); and • Greece ($65 million). The Philippines is the world’s second-largest supplier of licensed ship officers next to China, and the biggest provider of unlicensed ship ratings or non-officer crew ahead of China, according to the London-based International Chamber of Shipping. The other top global suppliers of ship officers and ratings are India, Indonesia, the Russian Federation and Ukraine.

RICE FOR GARBAGE. Navoteños queue up to receive a

kilo of rice in exchange for a sack of garbage after taking part in a cleanup campaign at Barangay Daanghari in Navotas City on Sept. 7, 2019. The city government has embarked on this novel project as part of its doublebarreled efforts to clean the city and at the same time destroy the breeding ground of dengue mosquito. Norman Cruz

‘LABOR BUDGET CUT HAMPERS 3 PROJECTS’

By Maricel V. Cruz

AWMAKERS are urging the House of Representatives’ Committee on Appropriations to restore the substantial cut it did on the Department of Labor’s 2020 budget. One of them, Rep. Enrico Pineda of 1-PACMAN Party-list group, said he would file a resolution seeking to restore the agency’s P1.9-billion budget. Pineda said the huge budget cut will hamper the implementation of the department’s key programs aimed to help many Filipino laborers. The DoLE, under the leadership of Secretary Silvestre Bello III, proposed a P14.4-billion budget for 2020. The legislators said among the programs to be affected by the budget cut are the (1) Tulong Panghanapbuhay sa Ating Disadvantaged/Displaced Workers Program (TUPAD) that lost P1.16 billion or 30 percent, (2) Government Internship Program that decreased by P1.04 billion or 219 percent, and (3) Child Labor Prevention and Elimination Program (CLPEP) which was reduced by P100 million or 667 percent. Pineda said that TUPAD is a significant program that has been supporting many Filipinos, especially after facing severe calamities. “In times of calamities, a lot of our workers’ livelihood has been displaced. And so there is a need to increase rather than decrease the DoLE budget,” Pineda said.

When asked about the CLPEP, Director Karen PeridaTrayvilla conveyed that the department, in fact, requires P175 million to properly implement the program annually. With this, Deputy Speaker Loren Legarda of Antique said the funding for the program should be institutionalized in order to ensure that it is appropriately carried out and able to fulfill its objectives. “To carve out P175 million to protect the children of our country, that would be easy. Mister Vice Chair, I will help you trim down the fat in some agencies to put in P175 million, which is an institutional amendment. It should not be charged to any congressmen,” Legarda said. Several legislators also raised the issue on contractualization that has been a salient matter being encountered by Filipino workers. Meanwhile, Bello III reported that 504,000 contractual workers have already been regularized from 2016 to 2019. He added that 65 percent were through the voluntary compliance of employers, which signals their cooperation with President Rodrigo Roa Duterte’s thrust to solve endo in the country. Bello, however, admitted that the DOLE is hindered by their limited labor law compliance officers, who are in-charge of examining companies to assure that they regularize the remaining contractual workers in the country. There are currently 700 LLCOs tasked to inspect almost one million establishments nationwide that require 5,000 inspectors. Rep. Raymond Democrito Mendoza of TUCP Party-list group recognized the sentiment of the DOLE and pressed for budget provision for the LLCOs.

BAY REHAB GETS P1.3-B BUDGET THE Department of Environment and Natural Resources will spend another P1.35 billion next year for the Manila Bay Rehabilitation Program. But Buhay Party-list Rep. Lito Atienza on Saturday warned the new money will just go down the drain owing to the failure of Manila Water Co. Inc. and Maynilad Water Services Inc. to capture and decontaminate the national capital’s wastewater. “Nothing has changed. Right now, the bulk of Metro Manila’s raw sewage, including those from households, still drain into the Pasig River and other waterways that all empty out into Manila Bay,” Atienza said. Atienza said the DENR’s Operational Plan for the Manila Bay Coastal Management Strategy is getting another P1.35 billion in the proposed P4.1-trillion General Appropriations Act for 2020. The money will be spent to renew and preserve Manila Bay’s coastal and marine ecosystem, according to Atienza. “We will of course continue to support all new spending to revitalize Manila Bay. But Malacañang really

has to crack the whip on the two water concessionaires that have been defying the Clean Water Act,” Atienza said. “Otherwise, all our efforts to fully restore Manila Bay, which still functions like a vast septic tank, will be without real success,” Atienza said. Last month, the Supreme Court upheld a 2009 DENR order penalizing Manila Water and Maynilad, along with the Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System, with a combined P1.84-billion fine for their failure to put up sewage lines, violating Section 8 of the Clean Water Act. Atienza issued the 2009 order when he was DENR head. Until they fully comply with the Clean Water Act, Manila Water, Maynilad and the MWSS will have to continue to pay a P322,102 daily fine that escalates by 10 percent in two years, plus legal interest of six percent per annum, the high court said. The three parties were supposed to pay the initial fine within 15 days from receipt of the Supreme Court decision that was announced Aug. 6. Maricel V. Cruz

BAY REVIVAL. DOH-Calabarzon’s Dr. Marilou R. Espiritu, medical officer III and head of the non-communicable disease cluster, (standing, 2nd from right) leads the collection of garbage along the polluted creek in a barangay in Bacoor City, Cavite on Friday (Sept. 6, 2019) in line with the Manila Bay Rehabilitation Program of the national government. PNA

A LABOR group has asked the government to enforce the Occupational Safety and Health Law and conduct a massive information drive to all stakeholders in various industries nationwide on work safety regulation concerns. The group Defend Job Philippines made the appeal to President Rodrigo Duterte two months after veteran film actor and director Eddie Garcia died in Tondo, Manila while taping a television series. The DJP said Garcia’s case “must serve as a strong reminder not just for companies in the broadcast and entertainment industry, but to the entire country as well, to ensure the holistic safety and welfare of their employees at all times and at all cost.” The group made he statement following a pronouncement of Department of Labor and Employment-National Capital Region director Sarah Mirasol during a recent hearing at the House of Representatives, saying the network producer “failed to assign on-site safety and first aid personnel” and that the network “failed to submit an incident report with 24 hours after the accident.” “While we are one with the entire nation in mourning for the lost of one of the pillars of Philippine cinema, we urge our legislators to conduct thorough investigations, not just on the accident that led to the death of Garcia, but on how really and sincere are our local industries have been implementing occupational safety standards in their respective workplaces,” said Christian Lloyd Magsoy, DJP spokesperson, in a statement posted on Facebook. He added, “Manoy’s death must serve as an eye-opener for both the people in our government and in the private sector to strictly implement existing laws on occupational safety and health.” The group insisted that they are hoping that the death of Garcia will be a wake-up call for the present government to put the best interests of Filipino workers on top of its priority in terms of securing safe workplaces for all.

HOUSE BILL TO REFORM REAL ASSET VALUATION A PANEL in the House of Representatives has consolidated several proposals that will institute reforms in real property valuation by establishing appraisal standards, methods and procedures of property valuations. The House Committee on Government Reorganization, chaired by Rep. Mario Vittorio Marino of Batangas, recommended for plenary approval the consolidated bill that came from 13 measures filed on the subject. One of the bill’s authors, Rep. Estrellita Suansing of Nueva Ecija, said real property is the country’s most important resource and biggest financial asset. She said a World Bank study indicated that 50 percent to 75 percent of the national wealth is contained in land alone. However, Suansing said the present valuation system hinders the potential of real property to contribute to the social and economic development of the country. Suansing filed House Bill 2400 that promotes the development and maintenance of just, equitable, impartial, and nationally consistent real property valuation by establishing appraisal standards, methods and procedures of property valuations and assessment. “The bill’s enactment into law will assist the LGUs in maximizing revenue collections, which in turn, will promote genuine local autonomy,” said Suansing, senior vice chairperson of the House Committee on Ways and Means. Rep. Joey Sarte Salceda of Albay, author of House Bill 305, said pursuant to the Local Government Code of 1991, his bill proposes to grant each LGU the power to create its own sources of revenue and to levy taxes, fees, and charges. Salceda, chairman of the Committee on Ways and Means, said the enactment of his bill will enable the LGUs to become self-reliant and perform their role as development partners of the national government. Salceda cited an Asian Development Bank study that in 2007, collection efficiency on real property tax was only 27 percent in the provinces and 68 percent in the cities. “This poor collection efficiency severely hampers the LGUs’ ability to raise revenue from real property taxes and correspondingly constrains their capacity to provide the necessary wherewithal for constituency welfare,” said Salceda. Maricel V. Cruz

SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 8, 2019

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12 PH SAILORS NABBED IN IRAN I

STARS ARE OUT. As the ‘Ber’ months begin, Christmas merchandise start appearing in stalls, like these lanterns sold by stall owner Baby Tagala at Mega Q-Mart in Cubao, Quezon City. Manny Palmero

CAPTAIN OF 4 DRINKING COPS SACKED By Joel E. Zurbano METRO Manila police director Maj. Gen. Guillermo Eleazar ordered the relief of a Las Piñas City police station commander whose men got caught drinking liquor while on duty early Friday morning. Upon the directive of Eleazar, Southern Police District chief Nolasco Bathan immediately relieved Police Captain Gladys Biare from the post for command responsibility. Eleazar also tapped newly appointed National Capital Region–Internal Affairs Service (NCR-IAS) head Brig. Gen. Gerry Galvan to file administrative cases against the four involved police officers, identified as Patrolman Samuel Inoc and Corporals Alquin Orgen, Randy Danao and Robemar Abales, all assigned at the Las Piñas City-Police Station 6. The four policemen were already relieved and ordered transferred in a floating status to the National Capital Region Police Office Regional Headquarters Support Unit.They were initially placed under the custody of the Southern

DU30 VETOES BILL MAKING P.U.P. NATIONAL UNIVERSITY

By Vito Barcelo

SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 8, 2019

Adelle Chua, Editor mst.daydesk@gmail.com

Opinion FACEBOOK PROBE MAY BE FIRST STEP AGAINST BIG TECH

EDITORIAL

LET THEM IN

OOD day as any other: to remind employers both in the public and private sectors to consider deftly qualified senior citizens and persons with disability that these prospective employees are not yet off the employment zone.

These seniors and PWDs, their number rising, are part of Philippine society. The senior citizens alone would reach the figure of 8.2 percent in 2019— population 106 million people— from around 7.5 percent in 2015 while the country’s workforce, by official figures, is expected to reach as much as 70 million in 2019. Six years ago—the latest available official figures for this category—about 16 per thousand

of the country’s population had disability. Of the 92.1 million household population, 1.57 percent had disability, based on the 2010 Census of Population and Housing. According to the Philippine Statistics Authority, among the 17 regions, Region IV-A had the highest number of PWD at 193,000, followed by the National Capital Region with 167,000; the Cordillera Administrative Region, on the

other hand, had the lowest number of PWD at 26,000. We also add our voice to what Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello III reiterated nearly a year back that employees with disability —those already employed—are entitled to all rights and benefits granted under the Labor Code, underlining that workers with disabilities are mandatorily covered under the Social Security System, PhilHealth and Pag-IBIG, whenever applicable. But we go farther by strongly suggesting that those PWDs, who are under any measure qualified to contribute to enriching the performance and stature of a prospective employer, be taken in. We also raise the reminder to prospective employers of senior

citizens, those who have the capacity and desire to work, or be re-employed, shall, under the Republic Act 9257, be provided information and matching services to enable them to be productive members of society. And we reiterate what the law says, that terms of employments shall conform with the provisions of the Labor Code, as amended, and other laws, rules and regulations. Private companies that will employ senior citizens shall be entitled to an additional deduction from their gross income, equivalent to 15 percent of the total amount paid as salaries and wages to senior citizens, subject to the provision of the National Internal Revenue Code. Let the qualified come marching in.

By Rob Lever A COALITION of US states unveiled on Friday an antitrust investigation of Facebook, the first of what is expected to be a wave of action against dominant technology firms. New York state Attorney General Letitia James announced the action on behalf of seven other states and the District of Columbia to probe “whether Facebook has stifled competition and put users at risk.” The case may be the first in a series of antitrust actions against Big Tech firms and highlights growing “techlash,” based on worries about platforms which control the flow of online information and dominate key economic sectors. “We will use every investigative tool at our disposal to determine whether Facebook’s actions may have endangered consumer data, reduced the quality of consumers’ choices, or increased the price of advertising,” James said. Joining the action were attorneys general of Colorado, Florida, Iowa, Nebraska, North Carolina, Ohio, and Tennessee, said James. Earlier this year, the US Justice Department said it would launch a “review” of major online platforms to determine if they have stifled innovation or reduced competition. It was not immediately clear if the states would be working in coordination with federal officials. RISING FEARS Facebook offered no immediate comment, but in the past it has claimed it is not a monopoly and that consumers have many choices for how to connect with people online. The new probe “shows how unease with large tech companies is spreading beyond Congress and the federal government agencies to the states,” said Michael Carrier, professor of antitrust law at Rutgers University. “With each passing day, there are greater fears about these companies controlling our online lives.” Yet the legal basis for an antitrust action remains unclear, said Eric Goldman, director of the High Tech Law Institute at Santa Clara University. “It remains to be seen if the [attorneys general] have any merit to their complaints or if they will be conducting a fishing expedition hoping to find some damning evidence,” Goldman said. “Companies as large as Google or Facebook probably have minor problematic practices the AGs could target, but I’m still waiting for any evidence that would support more structural challenges to the internet giants’ practices.” MORE ON MONDAY A separate coalition of states was set to launch another antitrust initiative, with Google reportedly a target. The office of the Texas attorney general scheduled an event Monday in Washington with a “broad coalition of states” to unveil a probe into “whether large tech companies have engaged in anticompetitive behavior that stifled competition, restricted access, and harmed consumers.” Google spokesman Jose Castaneda said the company’s services “help people every day, create more choice for consumers, and support thousands of jobs and small businesses across the country” and pledged to “work constructively with regulators.” WHAT’S THE REMEDY? Maurice Stucke, a University of Tennessee law professor, said he expects one of the areas being investigated will be online advertising markets, which are dominated by Google and Facebook. “This is a great area to look at because the market has been criticized as being opaque,” Stucke said. Stucke said the investigations may go further by looking at how tech platforms control data, potentially examining “the intersection between competition law and privacy.” Amazon and Apple may also be in the crosshairs. Critics have complained that Amazon wields too much power in online retail, and that Apple may disadvantage rivals offering services in its app store. In the European Union, Google has faced a series of antitrust actions and Amazon is now being targeted by enforcers. Democratic presidential candidate Elizabeth Warren has made a breakup of the big tech firms a part of her campaign platform. But some analysts say the case against the tech firms faces challenges because the companies have in many cases provided services for free and brought prices down, making it hard to prove they harmed “consumer welfare,” a longstanding judicial precedent. Jessica Melugin of the Competitive Enterprise Institute said the state officials are stretching the limits of antitrust. “This sort of high-profile activism may benefit state AGs’ political ambitions, but impose harmful costs on consumers, businesses, and the economy,” she said in a statement. But Stucke said it would be wrong to view antitrust law as solely focused on consumer prices, and that it may be applied to questions of competition and innovation. The probes could end up with a variety of outcomes including fines, restrictions on conduct or a breakup, Stucke maintained. “You’d have to show how the remedy would address the concerns,” he said. AFP

BUILDING AN INCLUSIVE UNITED NATIONS WITH TAIWAN ON BOARD By Dr. Jaushieh Joseph Wu, Taiwan’s Minister of Foreign Affairs THIS July, President Tsai Ing-wen of the Republic of China (Taiwan) transited through New York, an icon of diversity and freedom and home to the United Nations, as a preload to her state visit to Taiwan’s diplomatic allies in the Caribbean. While meeting with the Permanent Representatives to the UN of Taiwan’s allies, President Tsai reiterated that Taiwan’s 23 million people have the right to participate in the UN system. She also emphasized that Taiwan is committed to joining hands with global partners to help achieve the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to forge the world we want, and the future we need. The SDGs form a blueprint for a better and more sustainable future, aiming to guide the world down a sustainable and resilient path with “no one left behind.” In the High-Level Political Forum on Sustainable Development this July, UN Secretary-General António Guterres stressed again the pressing need to accelerate relevant actions. Likewise, he called on nations to advance the “Inclusion Imperative” because “development is not sustainable if it is not fair and inclusive.” The principles of inclusiveness and leaving no one behind are key to realizing the SDGs. Taiwan, a full-fledged democracy, has made considerable progress in fulfilling the SDGs and has provided assistance to coun-

tries in need. Nevertheless, it continues to be barred from participating in related meetings, mechanisms and activities due to political interference. This has seriously undermined the principle of partnership, the foundation of the SDGs, which requires the participation of all countries, stakeholders, and peoples. Taiwan is willing and ready to share its success story and contribute further to the collective effort to achieve the SDGs. After many years of effort, Taiwan has made great strides in alleviating poverty and achieving zero hunger. Our percentage of low-income households has been reduced to 1.6 percent. Launched in 1993, the National Health Insurance program now covers 99.8 percent of the population. In 2018, our waste recycling rate reached 55.69 percent, our literacy rate 98.8 percent, and our infant mortality rate 4.2 per 1,000. These figures far surpass SDG standards. The government of Taiwan has further identified six major areas of interest with respect to the SDGs: smart water management, sustainable energy transformation, clean air, sustainable materials management and the circular economy, ecological conservation and green networks, and international partnerships. These areas complement the main theme of the UN High-Level Political Forum 2018, the SDGs, and the 5Ps—people, planet, peace, prosperity, and partnership—referred to in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. In recent years, Taiwan has been providing development assistance to and engag-

ing in cooperation programs with partner countries in the Pacific, Asia, Africa, Latin America, and the Caribbean. In 2018 alone, Taiwan conducted development projects in SDG areas of interest in 39 countries. We will continue to track international trends and the needs of partner countries to ensure that all operations are aligned with the SDGs. Considering Taiwan’s robust experience and contributions, it is absurd that Taiwan is barred from sharing experience and critical information that could be used to better coordinate international efforts. The oft-cited legal basis for excluding Taiwan from the UN is Resolution 2758 (XXVI), adopted by the UN General Assembly in 1971. However, the resolution does not address the issue of Taiwan’s representation in the UN, nor does it state that Taiwan is part of the People’s Republic of China (PRC). In fact, Taiwan is not, nor has it ever been, part of the PRC. Only Taiwan’s democratically elected government can represent its 23 million people. Unfortunately, the UN continues to misuse and misinterpret the resolution to justify its wrongful exclusion and isolation of Taiwan. International organizations are created to meet the common objectives of its members, not to serve the interests of just one member. Article 100 of the UN Charter clearly states that “In the performance of their duties the Secretary-General and the staff shall not seek or receive instructions from any government or from any other authority external to the Organization.” Regrettably, the UN sits idly by

whenever China seeks to impose its so-called “one China principle” on the UN system. The most recent example involves dozens of NGOs being denied Consultative Status by the UN Economic and Social Council simply because a reference to Taiwan in their documents contradicts China’s demands. A truly inclusive UN would not leave anyone behind. Today, however, Taiwan passport holders are blocked from entering UN premises for public visits and meetings. Taiwanese journalists and media outlets are also denied accreditation to cover UN meetings. These practices are unjust and discriminatory, and contravene the principle of universality upon which the UN was founded. The UN should make its actions and words congruent, and take immediate action to rectify its exclusionary practices. This dire situation does not, and never will, intimidate Taiwan. Taiwan is ready, willing and able to contribute. If the UN continues to yield to China’s coercion, rejecting Taiwan’s participation, it will only encourage Beijing’s callousness. Efforts to fulfill the purpose of achieving international cooperation in solving international problems of an economic, social, cultural, or humanitarian character, and in promoting and encouraging respect for human rights and for fundamental freedoms for all, as stated in Article 1 of the UN Charter, will also be impaired. If the host of nations is serious about promoting inclusion and making development sustainable for all, it should open its doors to Taiwan.

Rolando G. Estabillo Publisher ManilaStandard

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HONG KONG AIRPORT PROTEST THWARTED

FLATTENED. An aerial view of damage from Hurricane Dorian on Thursday in Marsh Harbour, Great Abaco Island in the Bahamas. Dorian lashed the Carolinas with driving rain and fierce winds as it neared the US east coast Thursday, after devastating the Bahamas and killing at least 20 people. AFP

‘DORIAN’ DEATH TOLL AT 43, SEEN TO RISE ‘SIGNIFICANTLY’

ARSH HARBOUR, Bahamas—The death toll from Hurricane Dorian’s devastating rampage across the Bahamas rose to 43 Friday, a number authorities said is likely to climb “significantly,” even as rescuers plucked desperate survivors from the debris. More than 260 residents of the brutally damaged Abaco Islands arrived in the capital city of Nassau after spending more than seven hours on a government-chartered ferry, a second of which was expected to arrive overnight. Those who made it to safety awaited news of loved ones such as Diane Forbes, who had not heard from her two sons since Tuesday and was searching for them among some 200 evacuees

sheltering at a gymnasium Friday night in Nassau, which was spared the wrath of the hurricane. “They said they were hungry and the scent of the bodies, the dead, was really getting to them... I don’t know if my son is alive or not,” she said of one of her children, who had been in Marsh Harbour on Abaco with his girlfriend and her mother. Confirming the new toll of 43, Prime Minister Hubert Minnis said 35 were killed on worst-hit Abaco and eight on Grand Bahama island. “The loss of life we are experiencing is catastrophic and devastating,” he said in a statement late Friday quoted by The Tribune newspaper. With many missing, “this number is expected to grow significantly,” his spokeswoman Erica Wells Cox told NBC News. On the eventual death toll, Health Minister Duane Sands earlier said “the number will be staggering.” “Literally hundreds, up to thousands, of people are still missing,” Joy Jibrilu, the director general of the Bahamian tourism and aviation ministry, told CNN.

Thousands of people were left homeless on Grand Bahama and Abaco and many were becoming frustrated with the speed of relief and evacuation efforts. “There’s no gas station, no food stores, my job is gone” said Melanie Lowe of Marsh Harbour, whose house was partially destroyed and had packed into a two-bedroom apartment with 16 people before arriving in Nassau. According to UN relief officials, more than 70,000 people -- virtually the entire population of Grand Bahama and Abaco -- are in need of assistance after the storm reduced homes to matchsticks and destroyed people’s livelihoods. The US Coast Guard and private organizations have been evacuating residents of Abaco and other islands to Nassau. The multinational relief effort, which also includes Britain’s Royal Navy and several non-governmental organizations, has been hampered by flood damage to airport runways, destroyed piers and docks and downed communications. AFP

IRAN FIRES UP ADVANCED NUCLEAR CENTRIFUGES

Manila

TODAY NOTICE

TO THE PUBLIC

The DUTERTE YOUTH PARTY-LIST is hereby serving this public notice for its LIST OF NEW NOMINEES in connection with the 2019 National and Local Elections, as approved, recognized, & so ordered for implementation by the COMELEC En Banc under its Minute Resolution 19-0849 promulgated last August 28, 2019. The following are the New Nominees: Nominee 2: Ducielle Marie S. Cardema Nominee 3: Guillermo B. Villareal, Jr. Nominee 4: Krizza D. Reyes Nominee 5: Robert D. Garcia Quezon City, September 6, 2019 By:

RONALD GIAN CARLO L. CARDEMA Chairman, Duterte Youth Party-List (MS-SEPTEMBER 8, 2019)

HONG KONG—Riot police fanned out across Hong Kong on Saturday and thwarted plans by pro-democracy protesters to target the airport, days after the city’s leader made a surprise concession which was rejected by the movement as too little, too late. Millions of pro-democracy supporters have taken to Hong Kong’s streets for the past three months in the biggest challenge to China’s rule since the city’s handover from Britain in 1997. On Wednesday, the city’s pro-Beijing leader Carrie Lam surprised many by announcing she was scrapping a hugely unpopular extradition law that sparked the widespread and sometimes violent rallies. The withdrawal was one of the protesters’ key demands and both she and Beijing had previously refused to budge on the issue. Lam, who was not directly elected but appointed by an overwhelmingly Beijing-friendly committee, portrayed the move as a bid to de-escalate tensions and start a dialogue. But it has been widely dismissed by protesters as an empty gesture after 14 weeks of clashes with more than 1,100 arrests and many facing lengthy jail sentences. Online messaging forums used by the largely leaderless movement had called for protesters to “stress test” the airport on Saturday afternoon, filling up with suggestions for how to disrupt the road and rail links leading to the terminals. But a large deployment of police at key bus, ferry and rail terminals across the city appeared to deter protesters from arriving en masse. Tao Tsz Fung, 26, managed to get through the security checks and made it to the airport, along with a few dozen more protesters hanging around outside the terminal. “There are just too many police around,” he told AFP. “But we’ll be out again tomorrow.” AFP

IMPOVERISHED MADAGASCAR WELCOMES POPE FRANCIS

ANTANANARIVO, Madagascar—True to his reputation as “pope of the poor”, Pope Francis began a visit Saturday to Madagascar, one of the world’s most impoverished nations with a unique and threatened environment. Arriving from Mozambique, where he pleaded for understanding and the renunciation of violence in a country riven by 16 years of civil war and now jihadist attacks, the Argentine pontiff warned of the dangers of deforestation and the impact of environmental degradation. Francis told his hosts that they should “create jobs and money-making activities which respect the environment and help people escape poverty.” Madagascar is home to 25 million people, the vast majority of whom live in poverty with income of less than two dollars a day. The pope said there “were many causes driving excessive deforestation DENGUE BATTLE. A worker operates a fogging machine to kill mosquito which benefits just a few people... and larvae to fight the spread of dengue fever and other mosquito-borne diseases in a compromises the future of the counresident area of Kathmandu, Nepal on Thursday. AFP tr y.” The authorities must ensure social CYAN justice, MAGENTA YELLOW BLACK he added, echoing concerns about the global environment highlighted by massive fires across the Amazon forest. After the welcoming ceremonies, the pope’s first engagement Saturday is a mass and prayer vigil with at least 12,000 young scouts. WASHINGTON—The Iranian oil tanker AdriThe Middle East Eye news site said FriTafika Fanomenza, 39, who is helpan Darya 1, blacklisted by Washington, has day the tanker had delivered oil to Syria, ing to coordinate the scores of volunarrived in the Syrian port of Tartus, US na- with one source quoted saying 55 perteers involved in the preparations, as tional security advisor John Bolton said. cent of its cargo was offloaded Thursday well as in the pontiff ’s security, hoped “Anyone who said the Adrian Darya-1 night. Francis’ visit would help bring about wasn’t headed to Syria is in denial,” Bolton The Adrian Darya 1 had been held for six change in Madagascar. said in a tweet late Friday with a satellite im- weeks by the British overseas territory of GiMore than half of the young people age he said showed the ship anchored two braltar on suspicion it was set to deliver oil on the world’s fifth-largest island are nautical miles off Tartus. from Iran to its main Arab ally Syria -- a violaout of work, even if many boast good “Tehran thinks it’s more important to fund tion of European Union sanctions on Presiqualifications. the murderous Assad regime than provide dent Bashar al-Assad’s iron-fisted regime. Political instability has done nothing for its own people. We can talk, but Iran’s Gibraltar released the ship, formerly to help the development of an econonot getting any sanctions relief until it stops called the Grace 1, on August 18 over US my largely dependent on agriculture, lying and spreading terror!” protests after receiving written assurances and the export of vanilla and cocoa in The TankerTrackers site also shows the that the vessel would not head to countries particular. Adrian Darya 1 near Tartus. under European Union sanctions. Liberal-leaning president Andry RaHowever, there was no confirmation that Tehran later denied it had made any joelina was elected to a second term the ship, carrying 2.1 million barrels of oil promises about the destination of the ship, last year mainly on promises of jobs worth around $140 million, was unloading which had been elusive since leaving Giand housing. AFP its cargo. braltar. AFP

TEHRAN, Iran—Iran said Saturday it has fired up advanced centrifuges to boost its enriched uranium stockpiles, in the latest scaling back of commitments under a crumbling 2015 nuclear deal. The country’s Atomic Energy Organisation said, however, that it would honor commitments to give UN inspectors access to monitor its nuclear sites. Three European countries -- Britain, France and Germany -- have been engaged in talks to try to rescue the 2015 deal that gave Iran relief from sanctions in return for curbs on its nuclear programme. Tensions have been escalating between Iran and the United States since May last year when President Donald Trump pulled out of the accord and began reimposing sanctions that have crippled its economy. The arch-foes were on the cusp of confrontation in June when Iran downed a US drone and Trump ordered retaliatory strikes before cancelling them at the last minute. On Saturday, Iran’s Atomic Energy Organisation said it had activated 20 IR-4 and 20 IR-6 centrifuges as its latest step back in rolling back its commitments. “The centrifuge machines, as they are engaged in research and development, will help with increasing the stockpile,” said the agency’s spokesman, Behrouz Kamalvandi. “The capacity of these machines is many times more than the previous machines. This started as of yesterday (Friday),” he told a news conference in Tehran. But Kamalvandi said Iran would allow the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to continue monitoring its nuclear programme, as it has done under the 2015 accord. AFP

Standard

Cesar Barrioquinto, Editor / Jimbo Gulle, Issue Editor

BOLTON SAYS IRANIAN TANKER IN SYRIAN PORT

Images

DORIAN’S WRATH

Island in rbour, Great Abaco Sept. 5 in Marsh Ha P on AF n le. ria op Do pe ne 20 ca st rri nds, killing at lea damage from Hu wi of e w erc vie fi l ria ae An .

SHOW OF FORCE.

The Philippine Navy band performs during a welcome ceremony for South Korean navy destroyer ROKS Munmu the Great (DDH-976) as it docks at the port of Manila on Sept. 2. The ship, named after the 30th King of the Silla Dynasty who unified the Korean peninsula in 676 AD, is in port as part of a three-day goodwill visit to the Philippines. AFP

S O T PHOF THE O EEK W

NAZI-LIKE CLAMPDOWN. Protesters march with a banner that uses the stars of the Chinese national flag to depict a Nazi swastika symbol in the Central district of Hong Kong. AFP

SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 8, 2019 mst.daydesk@gmail.com

d the Carolinas with

cane Dorian lashe the Bahamas. Hurri

driving rain and

FOOT TRAFFIC.

Pedestrians walk along by a bridge in downtown Manila on Sept. 4. AFP

RITUALS.

Hindu devotees recite prayers led by a priest as they sit on the banks of the Bagmati River to mark “Rishi Panchami” in Kathmandu on Sept. 3. Rishi Panchami marks the end of the three-day long Teej Festival, celebrated in Nepal and some parts of India by married Hindu women by fasting during the day and praying for long lives for their husbands, while unmarried women wish for handsome husbands and happy conjugal lives. AFP

FLASH IN THE SKY. Lightning strikes over the Vittorio Emanuele II monument and its equestrian statue in Rome during a thunderstorm on Sept. 2. AFP

SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 8, 2019

Riera U. Mallari, Editor sports_mstandard@yahoo.com

Sports

CAN EDGES THAI IN PLAYOFF, CLAIMS ABOITIZ GOLF TITLE

MERICAN Tarik Can banged in a parsaving putt from eight feet on the 18th then watched Thai Nirun Sae Ueng flub his own bid from a shorter distance to snare the Aboitiz Invitational 2019 crown in sudden death at Wack Wack East course yesterday.

Can failed to wrap it up with a bogey on the 72nd hole from almost the same distance for a 73, enabling Sae Ueng to force a playoff with a scrambling par from 20 feet for his own version of a one-over card as the duo finished tied at 292 after sharing second place after 54 holes. But Can proved steadier in the end, matching Sae Ueng’s solid drive on their second trip on No. 18 in the day, hitting a superb wedge shot from the back of the green to within eight feet then sinking the putt that shattered the Thai, whose bid to send the match into another hole fizzled out after stroking it long from seven feet after a solid wedge shot from deep rough. “I managed to get it up and down from behind the green in the playoff. It’s my first win in Asia and first in PGTA and I can’t believe I won with a fourover par total,” said Can, who highlighted his final round charge with a spectacular shot from under the trees on No. 4 to salvage par and stay in the hunt with a three-over overall card., He also knocked in a 20-foot birdie putt on No. 13 to surge ahead then came through with clutch pars, including another save on No. 16, to hold sway before toughening up in the playoff to clinch the victory worth

Tarik Can flashes the No. 1 sign after nipping Thai Nirun Sae Ueng in the playoff to claim his first PGT Asia crown in the Aboitiz Invitational

$17,5000 that likewise foiled the Thai’ bid to reassert their domination of the early going of the third season of Philippine Golf Tour Asia put up by ICTSI. Namchok Tantipokhakul topped the kickoff leg at Luisita last April while Wisut Artjanawat ruled the first PGT Asia event abroad in Taiwan last May. As third round leader Ira Alido cracked under pressure and blew a two-stroke lead with a 39 start, Can and Sae Ueng slugged it out shotfor-shot and putt-for-putt for the lead majority of the way with a slew of

players slipping in for a shared view of the top only to reel back with miscues that had become a norm rather than exception at the demanding layout. But the American and the Thai never wavered in pursuit of the coveted crown although Can pulled it off in the end of a long, draining battle of wits and patience to crown himself the new champion of the ninth staging of the annual event sponsored by Aboitiz Equity Ventures, Inc. Tony Lascuña, winner of this event, organized by Pilipinas Golf Tournaments, Inc. at Riviera in 2014, forced

a three-way tie for the lead at threeover overall with a birdie on No. 11, only to fall back just as quickly with bogeys in the next two. He wound up with a 73 for joint third with Thai Pasavee Lertvilai at 293. Lertvilai rallied from five shots down to within one with a two-under card after 15 holes. But the former PGT Asia Qualifying topnotcher fell short again with a final-hole bogey in a desperate bid to close out with a birdie. He settled for a 71. The 18-year-old Alido, who used grit and resolve to lead the elite cast with back-to-back 72s and a 73, actually tried to fight back and threatened within one with a birdie on No. 11, only to shoot himself in the foot with bogeys on Nos. 13 and 14 and went on a birdie-bogey-birdie-bogey finish to fall to solo fifth at 294 after a horrible 77. American Joshua Salah charged back from as far as eight shots down with a four-birdie card after 13 holes but dropped out of the title race just the same with three bogeys against a birdie in the last five. He wound up with a 70 for joint sixth at 295 with Thai Kammalas Namuangruk, who fumbled with a 74. Jhonnel Ababa, also five shots off Alido after 54 holes, birdied two of the first 10 holes to fuel his bid for another PGTA title. But the winningest player (with four victories) on the region’s emerging circuit, backed by PLDT Enterprise, Meralco, BDO and PGT Asia official apparel Pin High, went the way the other bidders, succumbing to the course’s challenges and bombed out with four bogeys in the last eight for a 74. He ended up joint eighth with Fil-German Keanu Jahns, Aussie Tim Stewart, Rupert Zaragosa and Reymon Jaraula.

WWE RETURNS TO MANILA ON SEPT. 20 WWE Universe in the Philippines, the wait is finally over. The Superstars of WWE SmackDown! make their long-awaited return to Manila on September 20 at the Smart Araneta Coliseum. WWE Superstars Charlotte Flair and Kevin Owens are poised to return in a sports entertainment spectacular with two Wrestlemania XXXV rematches. Roman Reigns squares off against Drew McIntyre in a Street Fight and WWE Champion, Kofi Kingston (of The New Day) takes on the challenger, Daniel Bryan. The Return to the Big Dome No other venue in the Philippines is as iconic as the Smart Araneta Coliseum. ‘The Big Dome’ first opened its doors in 1960 and would host a number of historical events, including several WWE live shows. Starting with 1994’s Manila Mania, numerous legends have graced its halls including Bret “Hitman” Hart, “Heartbreak Kid” Shawn Michaels, The Undertaker, Ric Flair, Triple H, Edge, John Cena, Batista, and Jeff Hardy. This September, WWE SmackDown! makes its return to the Big Dome following a decade-long absence.

Kevin Owens

Back-to-Back Wrestlemania XXXV Rematches For the last several months, Drew McIntyre has been obsessed with ending Roman Reigns’ career. The Big Dog of the WWE has been the target of McIntyre’s assaults following his return from a fourmonth battle with leukemia. Despite Reign’s victory at Wrestlemania, the fiery Scot has been relentless to destroy the third-generation Superstar! Does Drew McIntyre have what it takes to stop Roman

Reigns once and for all? Or will the Big Dog use Drew McIntyre to make the Big Dome his yard? Tensions have been high around the WWE Championship since Kofi Kingston’s historic victory against Daniel Bryan in Wrestlemania. Kingston’s rise as WWE Champion came as an unexpected welcome to the WWE Universe, much to the annoyance of Daniel Bryan; a man who turned his back on the very people who propelled him to the top of the WWE. Can Kofi Kingston prevail and keep the most coveted prize in sports entertainment? Or will Daniel Bryan pull the biggest upset this year? See Your Favorite Superstars Live In Manila! The Superstars of WWE SmackDown! return to the Philippines on Friday, September 20th, 2019, at the historic Smart Araneta Coliseum, in Quezon City. Tickets are now available at all Ticketnet outlets nationwide and on https://www.ticketnet.com.ph! For additional information, please visit: http:// www.WWE.com or follow the WWE on its social media pages: Facebook (https://www.facebook. com/WWE) | Twitter (https://www.twitter.com/ WWESEAsia)

SPORTS CENTER OFFERS ELITE TRAINING, FACILITIES IMUS—Nowadays, lifting weights and pumping irons just don’t cut it anymore. As people become more conscious of their fitness, they are also looking for exciting ways to train and to experience working out like an elite athlete. Fitness centers are now taking the game to the next level by integrating exciting concepts features, programs, and facilities that can cater to all types of fitness and athletic experience. One facility that stands out right now can be found at the heart of Vermosa, a mixed-use estate in Cavite—Sante Fitness Lab (SFL), a fitness and performance hub that offers innovative fitness programs for professional to everyday athletes, and with services like sports rehabilitation and performance testings. What sets SFL further is its unique approach ensuring that its facilities and equipment promote functional fitness. “Here, humans work as the ‘machines’ and so, our fitness programs do not rely much on big equipment,” said Clarize Lucindo, SFL’s general manager. Their functional fitness exercises aim to train your muscles to work together and prepare them for daily tasks as it simulates common movements you might do at home, at work, or in sports. “So, whether it’s carrying a stack of papers across the floor, sprinting for the el-

evator, or changing the office water cooler, anyone enrolled in our fitness programs can be fit to perform their daily tasks with ease,” added Lucindo. At par with the country’s premium fitness brands, SFL’s top-notch equipment, such as its Olympic barbells, platforms, manual treadmill, cable machines, rower, free weights, as well as speed and agility tools, are all of high-grade standards to compliment all your needs for your training goals. All of these are highlighted in an expansive functional fitness area with turf, where they also conduct their classes. Athletes of all competitive levels will also love to do their strength and conditioning workouts here since the lab has all the toys you need to become stronger in your sport—from improving your power, speed, agility, and flexibility to many other components of physical fitness. SFL boasts of its FitCamp class, a ladderized fitness program best for fat loss and general conditioning. It comes in a boot camp-style session where the trainers post a “Daily Grind”, which takes away the boredom but, brings a whole new level of excitement with the exercises to do for the day. The fitness lab also features the Santé Lacuna Swim School that offers a comprehensive swimming training program

The Sante Fitness Lab offers innovative fitness programs for professional to everyday athletes and with services like sports rehabilitation and performance testings.

under the mentorship and coaching of Olympian swimmer Jessie Lacuna and professional athlete, Bea Grabador. SFL will soon feature a Running Clinic to cater to the unique needs of runners.

To know more about Santé Fitness Lab, its training programs and facilities, and other upcoming events, visit its official FB Page at https://www.facebook.com/santefitnesslab/ or its website at https://santefitnesslab.com/.

NADAL PLAYS MEDVEDEV, EYES 19TH SLAM NEW YORK—Rafael Nadal will play for his 19th Grand Slam title, one shy of Roger Federer’s all-time men’s record, after battling past Italy’s Matteo Berrettini on Friday and into his fifth US Open final. The 33-year-old Spaniard dispatched Berrettini 7-6 (8/6), 6-4, 6-1 at Arthur Ashe Stadium to reach a Sunday showdown against Russian fifth seed Daniil Medvedev, who ousted Bulgarian Grigor Dimitrov 7-6 (7/5), 6-4, 6-3. “Very happy to be back into the final of the US Open,” Nadal said. “It means a lot to be back where I am today after some tough moments at the beginning of the season.” Nadal, who shook off an early season right hip injury to win a 12th French Open title, seeks his fourth US Open crown—one short of the Open-era record of five shared by Federer, Pete Sampras and Jimmy Connors—to reach the brink of Federer’s mark. “It’s just another chance on Sunday,” Nadal said. “I want to enjoy a day off, have a good practice and Sunday is the day to play my best.” Nadal, into his 27th Grand Slam final, beat Medvedev in last month’s Montreal final in their only prior meeting. But the world number two skipped Cincinnati, where Medvedev was champion the following week. “He’s one of the more solid players on tour,” Nadal said of Medvedev. “He’s making steps forward every single week. “I’m just happy to be in the final,” Medvedev said. “When I was going to USA, I didn’t know it was going to be this good. So I have to say I love USA.” Medvedev is the first Russian in a men’s Grand Slam final since Marat Safin won the 2005 Australian Open title and the first Russian to reach the US Open final since Safin won the 2000 crown. Nadal has dropped only one set at the Open but was severely tested by 24th seed Berrettini, the first Italian man in the US Open semi-finals since Corrado Barazzutti in 1977. AFP

ALVIERA BIKE KING DUATHLON SET TODAY THE thrill of duathlon returns to the north as the much-awaited Alviera Bike King Duathlon fires off today (September 8) at Alviera in Porac, Pampanga organized by Bike King. Now on its 7th year, the annual run-bike-run event will see close to 500 duathletes test their running and biking abilities. Participants will start and end their race in Alviera, while the Subic-Clark-Tarlac Expressway will be utilized for the bike leg. The race has a Standard distance course of 6 Kilometer running—60 Km biking—and 4 Km running, and a Sprint distance course of 3 Km running—30 Km biking–2 Km running. In this event supported by Alviera, Smart, NLEX-SCTEX Metro Pacific Tollways, Standard Insurance, official timing partner Garmin and Hydration partners POCARI Sweat and Sip Purified Water, participants will ride their bikes from the SCTEX Porac exit until the Floridablanca exit where they will make a U-turn to go back to complete the bike leg. Standard distance competitors will need to complete two loops biking along the SCTEX. Roads of Alviera will be used for the 1st and 2nd run legs. At stake are specially designed medals and gift packs for the top 3 finishers of each age-group category. The awarding ceremony is tentatively set at 11 a.m. at the Alviera village where the event expo will be set up for participants and their respective companions. To get to Alviera coming from Metro Manila, participants and their companions are advised to go north via the North Luzon Expressway, take the exit leading to the Subic-ClarkTarlac Expressway heading towards the direction of Subic Bay, and then take the Porac exit. For more information on this event, please visit http://bikekingphilippines.com/

SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 8, 2019

Business

Ray S. Eñano, Editor / Roderick dela Cruz, Issue Editor business@manilastandard.net

‘INVENTREPRENEUR’ GETS 3 AWARDS ON HIS BIRTHDAY

Damosa Land Inc. chief development officer Ricardo “Cary” Floirendo Lagdameo

AGRI CONGLOMERATE REDESIGNS DAVAO’S REAL ESTATE INDUSTRY

SCION of the bananagrowing Floirendo family is redefining the real estate sector in the Davao Region by combining housing and commercial developments with agriculture. “With our agricultural heritage through our sister companies, what we are trying to do is also see how we can find our niche and how we can differentiate ourselves from a lot of developers that are already doing business in Davao,” says Ricardo “Cary” Floirendo Lagdameo, the chief development officer of Damosa Land Inc. which is the real estate development arm of the Anflo Group of Companies. “We are a part of the Anflocor Group or Antonio Floirendo Corp. We are better known for our agricultural businesses. That’s what Anflocor has been known for since the 1940s,” Cary, who has been in charge of Damosa Land and Anflo Industrial Estate over the past six years, says in a briefing in Makati City. “Technically, we started the business in 1949. The name Damosa actually stands for Davao Motor Sales. It was my grandfather’s [Antonio Floirendo Sr.] first business way back after the war. It used to be a car dealership. Over the years, when we stopped selling Ford vehicles in the 1980s, we slowly transitioned it into a real estate business. It really took off around the early 2000s when we started with some roperties in Davao,” he says. “We started in the commercial and leasing businesses. We had commercial strips, we had offices and then over the last five to six years, we really grew the business and included residential projects, industrial parks, hotels and offices. We are proudly homegrown. We won’t say we are the biggest real estate company in the region, but we are known for a lot of firsts. We were the first for example to put up a PEZA-accredited IT park in 2007 in Davao City. It is called Damosa IT Park. We have several locators there,” says Cary, a 42-year-old father of two. “We have the only agro-industrial park which is now operational. We also have a master-planned

township which is predicated on agriculture. So these are some of the projects that we find interesting,” he says. Damosa is developing Agriya, an 88-hectare township in Panabo City, Davao Del Norte with agriculture as the main theme. Its sister company Tagum Agricultural Development Company Inc. operates one of the largest and highest-yielding banana plantations in the world. “Agriya is an 88-hectare township but the main theme is agriculture. We have residential, institutional and commercial components, but as much as we can we put agriculture into the project,” says Cary, a former investment banker who graduated from Ateneo de Manila with a degree in Interdisciplinary Studies in 1999 and took his MBA at Columbia Business School in New York in 2008. “It is a self-contained, master-planned project. It will be the first of its kind in Davao del Norte and we would like to think in the Philippines. We will also be teaching students and children how to do backyard farming, how to do composting and basically how to live a sustainable life,” he says. “Everything that has to do with agriculture, we are trying to put into this project. If I am not mistaken, we are probably the first and only one that is doing something like this. For us, it is kind of in our blood, in our DNA which is agriculture. That’s where we find our niche,” he says. “Speaking of agriculture, even our industrial park is actually an agro-industrial park. So all of our locators there, in one way or the other, are involved in agro-processing,” says Cary. Damosa’s other projects include the 63-hectare Anflo Industrial Estate beside Davao International Container Terminal in Panabo, Damosa District, Damosa IT Park, Damosa Business Center, Damosa Gateway, Damosa Market Basket, Topaz Tower, Microtel Wyndham, Microtel Gensan, Seawind DamosaLand Condominium, Damosa Fairlane, Lanang Aplaya Resort, Valley High, McPod, Anflocor Offices and Naturetainment. Under Car y ’s leadership, Damosa has successfully achieved an annual revenue growth of more than 500 percent from 2013 to 2018. Cary and Damosa received various awards such as best residential development in Davao for Damosa Fairlane in 2017, best condominium development for Seawind in 2018, corporate excellence award

in 2018, executive leadership team of the year in 2018 and best office architectural design for Damosa Diamond Tower in 2019. Damosa is set to inaugurate the 15-story Damosa Diamond Tower, the tallest office building in Davao, by the first quarter of 2020. “The architecture or exterior of the building is actually predicated on agriculture as well,” says Cary. Meanwhile, Damosa is investing between P3 billion and P4 billion in the initial phase of Agriya covering residential, agri-tourism, an agricultural school and a commercial strip. “The next phase keeps on evolving depending on how the first phase would do. We would be spending more in the second phase if the take-up for the first phase is good,” says Cary. “Right now, we are planning to do mostly house-and-lot selling. If the take-up is good and the price is good, there is even an opportunity to build something more. All our projects, across the group, are financed internally,” he says. Agriya will host the UP Professional School for Agriculture and the Environment, an agricultural campus to be run by UP Los Baños. It will also open an agri-tourism park later this year. “With our residential lots, we are encouraging our homeowners to grow all different kinds of produce for backyard farming,” says Cary. He says the take-up for the residential component has been strong so far despite the project’s focus on the high-end market. “We are happy with the turnout because this is the first of its kind in Davao del Norte. We position the residential portion as more of high-end than what is being offered. Lately, we have been able to sell in the price range of about P15 million to P16 million [per house and lot]. It translates into about P15,000 to P16,000 per square meter,” he says. Damosa’s homebuyers include business owners, executives of the big multinationals in the area, executives of Anflocor’s business partners and locators in its industrial parks. “We try to really tap the market that is within our own reach,” says Cary. “This is just some of the examples of how we integrate agriculture with real estate,” he says. “Basically I guess the common denominator with all of our projects is we really are a Mindanao development company. We have our roots there.” Roderick T. dela Cruz

FILIPINO Inventors Society Producer Cooperative founder and president Francisco “Popoy” Pagayon received three recognitions on his birth week. Pagayon celebrated his 74th birthday on Aug. 27. Three days before that, the FISPC, along with its supporters, conducted its fourth community outreach program in Sitio Suha, Norzagaray, Bulacan, with the Dumagat tribe as the main beneficiaries of the project. As Region 2 celebrated the Regional Science and Technology Week of the Department of Science and Technology from Aug. 26 to 29, Pagayon received the Best Inventor Award in a ceremony at the Cagayan State University.

Officials of the Department of Science and Technology Region 2 led by regional director Engr. Sancho Mabborang (second from left) present the Best Inventor Award to Filipino Inventors Society Producer Cooperative founder and president Francisco ‘Popoy’ Pagayon.

DOST regional director Engr. Sancho Mabborang, along with other Region 2 officials, presented the award to Pagayon. Pagayon also received a plaque of appreciation as one of the judges in Region 2’s Regional Invention Contest and Exhibit and another plaque recognizing his effort as one of the guests in the celebration of the biennial regional event of DOST. Th e aw a rd w a s p re s e n t e d by Technology Application and Promotion Institute director Edgar Garcia and Mabborang. CSU president Jay Urduja, who hosted a birthday celebration for Pagayon, also presented the “inventrepreneur ” a plaque of recognition on the same day at the CSU gym. Pagayon is an active supporter of DOST’s science and technology programs. He is also a staunch advocate of fellow inventors, whose products he wants to promote commercially.

Pagayon (center) receives a plaque of appreciation from Technology Application and Promotion Institute director Edgar Garcia (left) and Department of Science and Technology Region 2 led by regional director Engr. Sancho Mabborang.

MOMPRENEURS HOLD SUMMIT TO SHARE INSPIRING STORIES 08MOMPRENEUR.RTF photo: 08mompreneur.jpg caption:

MOMpreneurs Club PH founder Lei Ermitanio (front row, sixth from right) along with the speakers and participants in the MOMpreneurs Summit 2019

“WE WANT to earn more, so we could give more.” This is what most Filipina moms have in mind when the Christmas mood sets in as early as September. It is during the “ber” months that many of the housewives search for opportunities to earn extra. This is the main reason Lei Ermitanio, the founder of MOMpreneurs Club PH, conceptualized an event where moms could learn more income ideas and master solutions to common challenges of entrepreneurs. Lei also thought of making the event an avenue for moms with existing businesses to showcase their products to potential end-buyers or resellers. On Aug. 31 at Vista Mall Taguig, “The

MOMpreneurs Summit 2019, Beauty and Wellness Fair” happened. It was a timely event to welcome the Christmas season. The program was packed with esteemed speakers like for mer Ka-Entrep national president and GoNegosyo mentor Joseph Arnold de Guzman and celebrity MOMpreneur and Pinoy Big Brother’s first big winner Nene Tamayo-Plamio. A panel interview of MOMpreneurs from different industries followed where moms shared real stories of struggles and triumphs of in running their businesses. Lei also took the occasion to announce the partnership between MOMpreneurs Club PH and logistics

provider J&T Express. In this partnership, a digital ID will be provided to all the registered members of the community who will be entitled to a discount in every transaction with the courier service. Tender Care, one of the community’s brand partners, provided loads of gifts to all attendees. Lei described the MOMpreneurs Summit as a successful event where attendees went home with a better mindset, new learnings, more income opportunities and bags filled with goodies. Lei said that as the MOMpreneurs Club PH continues to grow, she will keep on seeking ways to help her fellow moms thrive in their businesses.

Business

SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 8, 2019 business@manilastandard.net

SNACKING HIS WAY TO SUCCESS By Joyce Pangco Pañares Jay Patrick Nieles of the University of Santo Tomas (third from left) bags the Project of the Year award in the 30th BPI-DoST Science Awards.

UST STUDENT WINS BPI-DOST SCIENCE AWARD JAY Patrick Nieles, a BS Electronics Engineering student from the University of Santo Tomas, won the coveted Project of the Year award at the 30th BPI-DOST Science Awards on Aug. 2 at the Alphaland City Club in Makati City. His research on helping locked-in syndrome patients communicate through a braincomputer typing interface that uses visual imagination of shapes and sizes was among the30 promising entries shortlisted for this year’s competition. Nieles also received the Best in Innovation Award for the same study with Christian Badua from the University of the Philippines Manila for his study on how probiotics can be used to treat colon cancer. The project, organized by the Bank of the Philippine Islands Foundation in partnership with the Department of Science and Technology, convened outstanding students from all over the country to contribute researches in line with the theme, “Moving the Nation toward Sustainable Development through Science and Innovation.” “Through these awards, we hope to inspire more Filipino students to pursue scientific researches and innovations that contribute to building a stronger and more sustainable future for all of us,” BPI Foundation executive director Maricris San Diego said. San Diego led the awarding ceremony with DOST-Science Education Institute Deputy Director Albert Mariño.

CITICORE HOLDS MEDICAL MISSION IN LAPU-LAPU AROUND 300 families and members of the community in the City of Lapu-Lapu is set to benefit from a medical mission program in partnership with the local government of Lapu-Lapu. Renewable energy and water company Citicore, Citicore Candlewick Foundation Inc., the City of Lapu Lapu and its regional health offices and spearheaded a medical mission in Barangay Pajo on Aug. 31. “We are grateful for the City of Lapu-Lapu and their barangays for their support on this initiative. With our overall plan to supply bulk water to Lapu-Lapu City to alleviate the need for more clean and safe water, we also carried out the medical mission to answer to the needs of the community and help them by way of preventive measures against illnesses,” said Jose Antonio Soler, president of Citicore’s subsidiary Citicore Summa Water Corp. After Barangay Pajo, Citicore is also set to have a second wave of the medical mission in Barangay Sta. Rosa, Lapu-Lapu City which aims to help more than 200 community members. Citicore Summa Water Corp. supplies bulk water and manages concessionaire agreements. CSWater, CSWC’s subsidiary, supplies bulk water and handles water distribution in Janiuay, Iloilo.

ITO Chua’s success story is a classic “sariling sikap” tale.

He could very well have been the male counterpart of Annie Batungbakal— literally opening the doors of his snack food firm in the morning, loading the chichiria stock for delivery, driving the delivery van, offloading products in various distribution sites and manning the bodega in the evening. The only thing he did not do back then was managing the finances of the company—a task that was relegated to his very able wife, Melissa. “I am not successful yet,” Chua said with sincere shyness of someone who has kept a low-profile for 16 years now, despite having over 150 products under Yan Yan International Inc., the company he established. “I just really like to eat snacks. I think we Filipinos in general love our chichiria,” he said. Since Yan Yan began operations in 2003, it has produced products that cater to a wide range of customer base—from those who buy small chichiria sachets in sari-sari and various convenience stores to those who can afford bulk purchases from SM or Puregold. These include brands such as Lumpia Shanghai, Cheep Chips, Koolers and Quench Juice drinks, King Corn, Karoke, Harry Chocolate, Wackie corn chips and Melles Butter Cheese Loaf breads, among others. “We pioneered salted egg corn chips through our Wackie brand. Other brands were doing salted egg potato chips or mushroom chips, but for most Filipinos, we grew up snacking on corn chips,” Chua said. Aside from salted egg corn chips, Wackie also comes in cheese, BBQ, hot chili, wasabi and turkey variants—flavors that were inspired by Chua’s various trips abroad. “Filipinos’ taste has evolved. We are now more adventurous as we became exposed to other cultures and dishes,” he said. “And for Yan Yan, we never stop learning and instead continue improving our products— from research and development, packaging and

Yan Yan International president Lito Chua

pricing. We always do our best to give our customers what they need and want,” he said. This commitment to producing snacks that are not only delicious but healthy as well propelled Chua’s company to grow over the years. Yan Yan now has several manufacturing plants— two in Caloocan, one in Manila, one in Cagayan de Oro, one in Cebu and two in China. Chua also exports his products to Korea, Japan, Taiwan, Thailand, Vietnam, Indonesia and Canada, among others, and plans to expand his market

RCBC HELPS DISBURSE MILLIONS IN CCT FUNDS TO FAR-FLUNG AREAS TO FURTHER promote the thrusts of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas on National Retail Payments System and National Strategy for Financial Inclusion, Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. has been making it more convenient for millions of household beneficiaries to claim their cash grants under the government’s Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps). As a poverty reduction and social protection program of the national government through the Department of Social Welfare and Development, 4Ps provides cash benefits to more than 4.4 million household beneficiaries who are classified as poor and vulnerable, for a maximum of seven years, to improve their health, nutrition and access to education. RCBC’s Cash Express is the country’s first neighborhood ATM which enables RCBC and Bancnet cardholders to do regular banking transactions through sari-sari stores, drugstores, rural banks, cooperatives, microfinance institutions or any accredited conditional cash transfer payout conduit nationwide. Instead of traveling far to transact with a bank branch or ATM, Cash Express makes it easier and more convenient for Filipinos to do their A 4P’s beneficiary uses her ATM card to withdraw cash at an RCBC Cash Express makeshift counter. transactions at partner centers and merchants, right in their own communities. “Cash Express is a convenient way for 4Ps the conditions set by the government program. By beneficiaries to get the cash they need to fulfill bringing ATM services closer to their communities,

they don’t have to spend so much money or time travelling to where the nearest bank or ATM is located,” said RCBC chief innovations and inclusion officer Lito Villanueva. Using prepaid or debit ATM cards issued by any bank or mobile money operator, a customer can do cash-out, cash-in, balance inquiry, bills payment, fund transfer and airtime load. These functions are similar to any brick-and-mortar ATM found in areas with high population densities. The RCBC Cash Express is a mobile point-ofsale system which uses a smartphone or tablet and a credit or debit card reader to wirelessly offer reliable, convenient and cost-effective ATM services to the unbanked and underserved sectors of society, including 4Ps beneficiaries. To withdraw their cash grants, 4Ps beneficiaries can simply go to any RCBC partner merchant and swipe their ATM card in the MPOS terminal.The merchant will provide the cash from his counter which will be credited to the settlement online and in real time. RCBC has a network of almost 2,000 cash express terminals nationwide.With the help of RCBC Cash Express, majority of rural banks, cooperatives and microfinance institutions who cannot afford to invest in brick-and-mortar ATMs, will soon be able to bring the same ATM services closer to their respective clientele, even in far-flung communities without making a huge investment.

PLDT GROUP BAGS 15 INTERNATIONAL AWARDS

GERMAN CLUB ANNOUNCES 81ST OKTOBERFEST SOLAIRE and German Club Manila will hold the most authentic Oktoberfest celebration in Manila on Oct. 17 to 19 at The Tent in Solaire. Members of the media were given a preview of this year’s Oktoberfest and what the public should look out for. Decked in true Oktoberfest fashion, Solaire’s The Forum was transformed to vividly resemble the look and feel of Oktoberfest celebrations in Munich, Germany. Guests were greeted with sumptuous appetizers. Openers came in a basket of ovenfresh German breads and pretzels, two types of salads: Munich style sausage salad and German potato salad, and a German cold cuts and cheese platter were shared and served as conversation starters. German Club’s Michael Scheile served as the master of ceremonies with Eiffelene Salvador as co-emcee, who introduced the hosts for the 81st Oktoberfest. Solaire’s vice president of food and beverage Knut Becker expressed his delight in the renewed partnership. “This year’s 81st Oktoberfest will continue to be authentic and put the spotlight on the best of German culture. Following a very successful Oktoberfest celebration last year, we are thrilled to be hosting once again German Club Manila’s Oktoberfest celebrations and look forward to continuing this partnership,” Becker said. “The German Club Manila is excited to celebrate this year’s Oktoberfest celebration once again with Solaire. The previous year broke our own records. We look forward to a more dynamic and vibrant celebration of the German culture through the Oktoberfest celebration,” said German Club Manila president Tobias Rast.

reach to the Middle East where more than a million Filipino workers are deployed. He is also looking at the possibility of exporting mango jam, dried mangoes, banana chips and cassava chips. “Our ingredients are of the finest quality, and our processes meet the highest international standards. We have shown, and are continuing to show, what Filipino snack foods and beverages can do for the Filipino market, and it is high time the rest of the world enjoy the same experience,” Chua said.

PLDT-Smart public affairs group head and spokesperson Ramon Isberto is awarded the lifetime achievement award for public relations.

PLDT Inc. and subsidiaries Smart Communications and PLDT Global took home 15 citations at the recently concluded CMO Asia Awards. The award-giving body is a global network of executives specifically dedicated to high-level knowledge exchange, thought leadership and personal relationship building among senior corporate marketing leaders and brand decision-makers. PLDT Home received the Telecom

and Branding Leadership Awards under the Best Broadband Service Provider and Market Leadership categories, respectively. The brand aims to humanize technology to keep families connected in a meaningful way through bundled, unlimited, or volume -based package options—from basic to the most comprehensive coverage for home connectivity, productivity, and entertainment. Wireless subsidiary Smart was

given the Telecom Leadership Aw a r d , u n d e r t h e B e s t LT E Provider category, for Smart LTE. As part of PLDT’s massive digital transformation program, Smart fulfilled its commitment to provide over 90 percent of the population access to its most advanced LTE network by end-2018. Th i s a i m s to s u p p o r t t h e country’s growing digital economy, as well as provide the best customer experience for the increasingly digital Filipino lifestyle of its 66.8 million subscriber base to-date. Smart’s other winning bids include Campaign of the Year for Smart Free YouTube Everyday, Best Innovative Partnership Strategy for its YouTube collaboration, Best Strategic PR Campaign for Smart Music Live, Most Innovative HR Practice for Smart Super ID and Asia’s Best Brand Award for its consolidated CMO recognitions. Executives from the PLDT Group were also recognized under various individual leadership categories. PLDT-Smart public affairs group head and spokesperson Ramon Isberto was awarded with the lifetime achievement award

for public relations, while PLDT senior vice president and head for consumer market development Oscar Enrico Reyes bagged the award for excellence in business leadership. Car lo Ople, vice president and deputy head of public affairs for PLDT-Smart, won the award for Digital Marketer of the Year. PLDT Global president Katrina Luna-Abelarde was awarded as one of Asia’s women leaders as head of the full-fledged international marketing, sales and operating arm of the PLDT Group for offshore Filipinos. PLDT SVP and head for financial reporting and controllership and Smart chief financial officer Chaye Cabal-Revilla was lauded under the Women Leadership category and bagged several other awards such as CFO of the Year and Best CSR Practices for Gabay Guro. The CMO Asia Awards recognizes organizations for their branding, client and employee level communication initiatives. Now on its 10th year, the award-giving body is represented by 25 countries across Asia.

Tech & Gadgets

SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 8, 2019 rumallari@thestandard.com.ph

SMART EQUIPS SENIOR CITIZENS WITH TECH SKILLS

O mark World Senior Citizens Day, PLDT wireless subsidiary Smart Communications Inc (Smart) gathered senior citizens from Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao and taught them the basics of disaster-preparedness in the first Safe PH for Smart Millenniors campaign.

Senior citizens from Brgy. Fortune in Marikina City, Colawin in Argao, Cebu and General Santos City gathered in simultaneous sessions held in their respective barangays to learn about community hazards, local disaster response protocols, emergency kit preparation, and use of mobile phones and their features for disaster preparedness. Representatives from local disaster risk reduction management offices of Marikina, Argao and General Santos, Emergency Management Center (EMC) and Smart shared tips on what seniors should include in their respective Go Bags, how they can involve their families in preparing for disasters, where they can follow their respective DRRMO offices on social media, and how to activate Emergency Cell Broadcast in their phones, among other lessons. “It is important for senior citizens to know how to prepare for disasters and emergencies, so that they would be of help not only to themselves and their families, but also to other people, like their neighbors and their community,” said participant Ruthy J. Amoguis, 66, president of the Federation of Senior Citizens Association in General Santos. Amparo Catina, 65-year-old senior from Marikina, said the lessons of the day really resonated with her, particularly the 4Ps of emergency preparedness: Pray, Plan, Prepare and Practice. “If I have time to talk to anyone who needs information, I am also very much willing to share what I learned. I am thankful that I was here today to learn about these things. To us senior citizens, these are important and useful information,” Catina said. Louie Domingo, director of EMC who shared his knowledge in the Marikina session, said disasterpreparedness is also important for seniors because it brings a higher chance of survival. “If you’re always prepared for disaster, your quickly recover. There’s also less chance for you to get hurt because

Senior citizens from Brgy Fortune in Marikina City learned more about community hazards and disaster preparedness during the Safe PH for Smart Millenniors session held in their barangay.

you know what to do with your skills and gear,” he said, adding that technology is also a valuable tool in preparing for disasters. “Technology enables us to learn from other countries’ best practices on making communities more resilient to calamities, and localize these knowledge for the Filipinos. Because of technology, information gets to people faster at the appropriate time,” Domingo added. Rescue 161, Marikina City’s Quick Response Team, also recognizes the importance of utilizing technology in making the community disaster-resilient. “We spread vital information, such as water level of the Marikina River, and class suspensions through our Facebook page,” said training officer Shiella Marie Cuyugan. Angelica Linda, youth volunteer from ACLC Gensan, shared that her experience helping seniors during the session was “fun and freeing.” “Sessions like these are important for elders, so that they will not get left behind when it comes to modern technology and disaster preparedness,” said Linda. Alyssa Lyka Largo, youth volunteer from Aklat,

also from GenSan, said the session also made an impact to the youth involved. “We should also be part of efforts like this to reach out to our senior citizens and teach them about the use of technology during times of disaster because we are the most knowledgeable about these matters,” she said. “It is our responsibility to pass on our knowledge to our elders, so they would not feel left behind.” Colawin National High School student Hannah Omas-as, who volunteered in Argao, said she was thankful for the opportunity to be an ‘instant hero’. “With this session, elders will no longer be helpless. With or without someone, if they already know what to do during emergencies, they can save themselves,” she said. Spearheaded by Smart, the Smart Millenniors program aims to teach senior citizens about technology, particularly about smartphones, mobile data and social media, with the help of youth volunteers from their respective communities. Smart’s Safe PH disaster preparedness advocacy, on the other hand, aims to help build more resilient communities through technology and on-ground activities.

ONLINE PLATFORM BOOSTS SALES OF BANTAYAN DELICACY FOR Bantayan resident and supertyphoon Yolanda survivor Josephine Caspe, life goes on after tragedy— with a little help from the internet. Caspe, who lost her husband Pedro in the 2013 tragedy, has since taken to Facebook to scale up her food business. “After my husband died, I used the small amount of money I received from the insurance company as my capital to sell labtingaw,” she shared. Labtingaw or dried fish is a delicacy from Bantayan and is popular among her patrons, both online and offline. “I receive inquiries and orders through Facebook all the time,” said Caspe, who hails from Ticad in Bantayan. “Facebook and my mobile phone are a big help for me. If my customers want to order labtingaw, I am just a call, text or Facebook message away,” she added. After PLDT wireless subsidiary Smart Communications, Inc. rolled out Long Term Evolution (LTE) in Bantayan and the rest of Cebu, local entrepre-

Josephine Caspe sells her Bantayan delicacy on Facebook.

neurs like Manang Josephine can now use social media and online platforms like Facebook to boost their businesses and reach more customers. “By continuously expanding and

improving our networks across the country, we are empowering small businesses like Manang Josephine’s ‘labtingaw’, as well as opening up communities to various digital experiences using our LTE-Advanced network,” said Mario G. Tamayo, senior vice president for Network Planning and Engineering for PLDT-Smart. Aside from Bantayan, Smart has also fired up LTE sites in the mountain barangays of Linut-od and Colawin in Argao, and Guba and Bonbon in Cebu City. To date, over 80% of cell sites across Cebu now have LTE. In addition to the upgraded network in Metro Cebu, key tourism areas like Oslob, Moalboal, Daanbantayan, Medellin, Toledo City, Bogo City and Carmen have also been covered with LTE. Expanded LTE capacity is also available in areas in Minglanilla and Talisay, while the service has also been rolled out in Badian, Balamban, Barili, Catmon, Madridejos, Sibonga, and Tabuelan.

LTE can also be quickly upgraded to LTE-Advanced (LTE-A), which can provide even greater capacity and speeds to users with capable smartphones. In Cebu, major cities like Cebu City, Lapu-Lapu City, and Mandaue City already have LTE-A sites. To date, Smart has fulfilled its commitment to the National Telecommunications Commission to cover at least 90 percent of cities and municipalities to address the growing demand for broadband infrastructure and internet access in the country. Supporting Smart’s mobile network is PLDT’s fiber infrastructure, now extending over 283,000 kilometers. PLDT and Smart’s nationwide network transformation efforts are backed by a historic-high capital expenditure of P78.4 billion this year. The capex investments are to further expand coverage and to increase capacity to handle the exponential growth in data traffic, with the ultimate aim of delivering the best data customer experience.

GET UP TO 70% OFF AT MACPOWER’S MERRY SALE THE ‘BER’ months are approaching and 2019 Christmas Day is just around the corner. As an early treat, Macpower gives you an access to splurge or stockup on your holiday gifts by scoring up to 75 percent off on your favorite gadget brands. The over P3,000 Homido GRAB Virtual Reality Headset, which is nearly compatible to every smartphone brand’s latest models, will be on sale for only P500! It can save consumers as much as 86 percent off. Get your iPhone XS, XR, and XS Max’s screen protected with Maxboost screen protector for only P800. Stream your favorite music up to 10 hours with MB Quart’s QUBThree portable speaker. From P7,550 SRP, it will be on sale for only P1,200. In case you’re still using your iPhone 6 or 6 Plus, you can score a Rhinoshield protective case with a choice of the following color variants: black, blue, pink, green, purple, red, silver, white, yellow, and gray. Buy it at P1,680 and score a free screen protector or power bank! For those carrying their iPhone XS Max, Rhinoshield’s Solidsuit Carbon Fiber now retails for P2,490! Consumers may choose between dark blue or white colors. It also comes with FREE screen protector or power bank. Runtastic’s Moments Elite fitness watch which originally sells for P13,940 is now priced at P9,000! And what’s greater is that you can score one more fitness watch for free for every purchase of Moments Elite. These are just some of the Macpower’s partner brands products that will go on sale this September. Come and join us at 2/F, Titanium Function Room, F1 Hotel Manila, 32nd Street, Bonifacio Global City, Taguig on Sept. 11 to 14, from 10 a.m. until 8 p.m. It’s free of admission so you don’t have to worry about spending to start your gadget hoarding! For more information please visit us on our social media pages: Facebook: https://www.facebook. com/MacpowerPH Instagram: @macpowerph Website: https://macgadgets.ph http://www.macpowermarketing. com.ph/about-macpower

GLOBE FUTURE MAKERS ’19 TOP STARTUPS TAP TECH TO SOLVE SOCIAL CHALLENGES ANTIPARA Exploration and Alternative Indigenous Development Foundation (AIDFI), who have emerged as the top social innovators for Globe Future Makers 2019 (GFM), have developed technological tools to help solve some of the country’s most exigent social challenges. Antipara is an underwater 3D geospatial mapping and analytics company for maritime and environment inspection. It created an algorithm that provides information for marine zoning and management which can be used for various projects such as tourism, building of ports and designation of marine protected areas and for damage assessment and maritime examination through 3D inspection of undersea infrastructure such as cables, pipes and foundations. On the other hand, (AIDFI) won with its Hydraulic Ram Pump, a waterpowered pump that brings water from lower to higher-elevated villages or farms with no electricity or fuel and emits zero pollution. AIDFI also developed an app to monitor water delivery, technical repairs, money collection, and meetings. Recently, AIDFI adapted a solar-powered, coin-operated water kiosk that serves households and releases 20 liters of water for only Php1 to ensure fairer water distribution and

better collection for the water association compared to public tap stands. As GFM winners, Antipara and AIDFI were given a chance to visit Singapore to meet possible investors and pitch for grants at the Singtel Group Future Makers, together with the region’s other social impact startups. They were also mentored by other social innovators and were able to attend the AVPN Conference 2019, the largest gathering of social innovators in Asia, which features funders and resource providers from around the globe. Antipara co-founder, Chief Financial Officer and Business Development Head Cherry Murillon-Cubacub, said their major challenge essentially involves operational funding. “We are a young company and we can hardly sustain salaries and operation expenses, so we joined pitching contests and other fund-raising events to promote our product, gain clients and raise funds. The biggest lesson we learned since we joined Globe Future Makers is how to reach out to the right partners to come up with real solutions for sustainability.” Cubacub said they look forward to networking where they can directly apply their product and even companies that can provide resources for growth. She added that in the next six months,

Aaron Hilomen, CEO of Antipara Exploration

they plan to come up with a methodology for their 3D inspection for offshore infrastructure, launch a new product for catch documentation and traceability for fishermen. AIDFI co-founder and Chief Executive Officer Auke Idzenga, a Dutch national who has been in the country since 1985, said AIDFI was borne out of the ideas of four people to use appropriate technologies for sugar workers who acquired land

through land reform and for small farmers situated in the uplands where most basic services are absent. AIDFI ran two main programs: agriculture and technologies for basic needs. AIDFI designed, manufactured and installed several technologies for production and processing, but its flagship has always been the Hydraulic Ram Pump. “We not only perfected the technology but also worked out a whole package to

make water systems sustainable. It’s all about creating a sense of ownership in a water association-organized community,” Idzenga added. Though their initial installations were focused on drinking water and households, the market geared toward irrigation that called for the development of bigger ram pumps. But challenges continue to face AIDFI like copycats, employee attrition, association problems, and project monitoring, which is why Idzenga said they developed the monitoring app. “The road for social enterprises can be bumpy so the best strategy is to stick to the core mission and not to deviate to ensure survival,” he said. When in Singapore, Idzenga said it was a stimulating and energizing experience for them to have met with like-minded social entrepreneurs from Singapore, Thailand, Indonesia and Australia, and to see how the ram pump can be used in other countries. They also rubbed elbows with companies, philanthropists, investors, government and even the academe, where AIDFI pitched its work in three 5-minute sessions. “The pitching was a very good learning on how to present the work of the social enterprise in a concise way to attract interest.”

TECH & Gadgets SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 8, 2019 Riera U. Mallari, Editor rumallari@thestandard.com.ph

ACER INTRODUCES NEW MODELS OF SWIFT, ASPIRE

CER recently introduced refreshed models in its popular Swift ultra-portable notebook and Aspire all-in-one desktop ranges, all powered by the latest 10th Gen Intel® Core processors and Windows 10.

Designed for performance on-the-go, the Acer Swift 5 (SF514-54T/SF514-54GT) and Swift 3 (SF314-57/SF314-57G) notebooks deliver all that’s necessary in an ultra-portable notebook: a sleek chassis, stylish design and slim bezels with superb performance and battery life. Aimed at students and families, the new Acer Aspire C all-in-one desktop series are slim, spacesaving, elegantly styled PCs with impressively thin bezels so users see more of the screen and provides a great computing experience for a range of uses. “We’re continuously challenging ourselves on how we can make the world’s lightest 14-inch notebook even better,” said James Lin, General Manager, Notebooks, IT Product Business, Acer.“With the new Swift 5, we’ve integrated a discrete graphics chip and the latest processors so mobile professionals no longer have to compromise between portability and performance.” “10th Gen Intel Core processors redefine what’s possible in a modern laptop by bringing broadscale AI to the PC for the first time, an all-new graphics architecture for a leap in performance with Iris Plus graphics, and integrated best-in-class connectivity with Wi-Fi 6 (Gig+) and Thunderbolt 3,” said Chris Walker, Corporate Vice President and General Manager of Mobility Client Platforms in the Client Computing Group, Intel. “It has been a great collaboration between Intel and Acer to bring the performance and platform capability to life in the new, beautifully designed Swift laptops.” Acer Swift 5, the World’s Lightest 14-inch Notebook The 14-inch Acer Swift 5 has been known to be the lightest in its class since its inception, with a chassis made from a perfectly balanced combination of magnesium-lithium and magnesium- aluminum alloys. The latest generation weighs just 990 grams with a new discrete NVIDIA® GeForce® MX250 graphics option, or even less with solely newly updated integrated Intel® Iris® Pro graphics while measuring just 14.95 mm thin. The screen features a three-side narrow bezel with a high screento-body ratio of 86.4%. With up to a 10th Gen Intel Core i7-1065G7 processor, and a maximum of 512 GB PCIe Gen 3x4 SSD storage, users get powerful performance and brilliant color quality on the 14-inch Full HD IPS touch-

Acer’s New Swift 5 Maintains the World’s Lightest 14-inch Notebook, Now with Discrete Graphics for Performance On-The-Go, while Acer’s sleek Aspire C series all-in-ones feature a high screen-to-body ratio of up to 92%

screen. The Swift 5 has a full-function USB3.1 Type-C connector that supports Thunderbolt 3, dual-band Intel Wi-Fi 6 (802.11ax), and supports Windows Hello through a fingerprint reader. Designed for professionals on the move, the Swift 5 is a lightweight yet powerful laptop with up to 12.5 hours of battery life for day-to-night productivity. The Swift 5 supports fast-charging, providing up to 4.5 hours of use with just a 30-minute charge. Users can login via a touch of the built-in fingerprint reader through Windows Hello for easy and more secure access. Acer Swift 3, A Stylish and Portable Powerhouse The stylish and lightweight Acer Swift 3 notebook has a 14-inch Full HD IPS screen, is available in steel gray and millennial pink, and weighs just 1.19 kg (2.62 lbs). The Swift 3 packs a lot of power into its 15.95 mm thin chassis with up to a 10th Gen Intel Core i71065G7 processor with Intel Iris Plus graphics and an optional discrete NVIDIA GeForce MX250 GPU, keeping everything running at its optimum speed. It also includes up to 512 GB PCIe Gen 3x4 SSD storage, 16 GB LPDDR4X RAM, Thunderbolt 3 and dualband Intel Wi-Fi 6, for a smoother and more enjoy-

able wireless experience, making it an ultra-portable, supercharged laptop for work and play. It delivers up to 12.5 hours of battery life and offers fast charging capabilities: 30 minutes charging can provide 4 hours of battery life in video playback conditions. Suitable for both work and play, the Swift 3 brings images and videos to life through the use of thin 4.37 mm bezels and an 84% screen-to-body ratio. For further color enhancement the Swift 3 also includes Acer Color Intelligence and Acer ExaColor Technology for enhanced, vivid images. Acer Aspire C Series, the Ideal All-in-One for the Whole Family With its space saving and elegant design, the 6.8 mm ultra-thin Acer Aspire C all-in-one comes with stylish looks and plenty of practical features for both students and the whole family to enjoy. It is available with 27-inch, 24-inch, and 22-inch Full HD IPS screen options, all powered by 10th Gen Intel Core processors and an optional discrete NVIDIA MX130 GPU. With ample storage space of upto1TB via a M.2NVMeSSD and up to 2TB with a 2.5-inch HDD, and 32 GB of DDR4-2666 memory, the Aspire C series is the ideal allin-one for multiple users with a wide range of needs.

CEBUANA LHUILLIER LAUNCHES REMITTANCE SERVICE APP CEBUANA Lhuillier, the country’s largest microfinancial services provider, has launched a mobile remittance application, Quikz, in the United States, through its partnership with Pangea Money Transfer. “Partnering with Pangea allows us to help improve the lives of our customers and better connect them to their family members overseas,” said Jean Henri Lhuillier, president and CEO of Cebuana Lhuillier. “Pangea’s secure, quick, and easy money transfer technology supports better financial security and more opportunities for Filipinos who want a convenient way to send and receive funds.” Through the money remittance application, Cebuana Lhuillier customers will soon own more of the transfer process and directly connect to senders in the US. “We are excited to work with Cebuana Lhuillier on this groundbreaking service for Filipino customers in

Cebuana Lhuillier President and CEO, Jean Henri Lhuillier (center) and Pangea Money Transfer CEO, NishuThukral (2nd from right)are joined by Cebuana Lhuillier Services Corporation General Manager ErlindaSumanga,Cebuana Lhuillier Senior Executive Vice President Philippe Andre Lhuillier, and Pangea Money Transfer General Manager Joshua Gordon Blake during the contract signing.

the United States. This partnership expands our mobile remittance technology to even more senders, contributing to our goal of bringing effortless money transfer to those who need it most.” said NishuThukral, Pan-

gea Money Transfer CEO, as the partnership is expected to bring Pangea’s international money-sending solution to a massive user base. Available on the Apple App and Google Play stores for customers in the

United States, Quikz is powered by Pangea Connect and is the company’s new Remittance-as-a-Service (RaaS) offering. CebuanaLhuillier’s mission of enabling more Filipinos to have access to financial solutions ties perfectly with Pangea’s goal of financially empowering underserved communities. Pangea’s technology, meanwhile, works well with CebuanaLhuillier’s brand salience and its extensive network of 2,500 branches nationwide to create a seamless money remittance service. As Cebuana Lhuillier Quikz continues to gain momentum, Pangea and Cebuana Lhuillier will make adjustments to further tailor fit the mobile app to the needs and preferences of users worldwide. Pangea plans to kick off more brand partnerships, expanding its RaaS offering to companies in other territories around the globe. To learn more about Cebuana Lhuillier Quikz, visit www.facebook. com/cebuanalhuillierquikz.

SAMSUNG ELECTRONICS ENABLES 1ST 8K HDR10+ TECHNOLOGY SEOUL, South Korea—September 4, 2019—Samsung Electronics Co. announced today that it will support the world’s first 8K HDR10+ content, partnering with major European streaming services. With this announcement, Samsung has established itself as the leader of the HDR (High Dynamic Range) specification industry. CHILI, The Explorers and MEGOGO—three key OTT (Over-thetop) service providers in Europe— will adopt 8K HDR10+ along with its support for 4K HDR10+. HDR10+ technology optimizes brightness and maximizes the contrast ratio, making bright areas brighter and dark areas darker. The feature is available on all UHD TV and 2019 8K TV models, including Samsung’s lineup of QLED TVs. “With HDR emerging as one of the most important technologies for ultra-high picture quality, our HDR10+ format enables every image to be accurately displayed on screen just as the creator intended,” said Hyogun Lee, Executive Vice President of the Visual Display Business at Samsung Electronics. “We will continue to strengthen our industry leadership through establishing partnerships with top streaming service providers and equipping our televisions with the technology needed to support the world’s first 8K HDR10+.” “Our main goal in this partnership with Samsung is to offer the highestquality content services available to our customers,” said Victor Chekanov, CEO at MEGOGO. “We will maintain our initiative in the Russian OTT service market and plan to provide dozens of HDR10+ movies to Samsung Smart TV users starting late this summer.” Aside from the aforementioned OTT streaming services, several other industry-leading content partners are collaborating with Samsung. Rakuten TV, Deutsche Telekom’s Magenta TV and Videociety are all expected to adopt HDR10+ support for its respective VOD services between Q4 2019 and Q1 2020. Also, Molotov, the first French OTT streaming service to offer live and on-demand TV channels all in one place, is also considering to adopt HDR10+. The growing list of premiere content partners is a testament to the industry’s commitment to the best viewing experience possible for consumers. HDR10+ content availability continues to expand. Recent announcements from Universal Pictures Home Entertainment and Warner Bros. Home Entertainment debuting HDR10+ on UHD Blu-ray with “The Secret Life of Pets 2” and “Godzilla: King of the Monsters”, respectively, add to the UHD Blu-ray discs already released from Twentieth Century Fox and others. Since Samsung began the HDR10+ logo certification program with Panasonic and 20th Century Fox last year, 81 companies have joined the program, boosting the program’s influence in the industry. Samsung has also strengthened its effort with the new opening of an HDR10+ center in China last December, following Korea, Japan and the US. With TV manufacturers such as Hisense obtaining HDR10+ certification in China, the HDR10+ alliance is expected to expand even further.

BUSINESSES WARNED: CYBERCRIME ATTACKS HAVE EVOLVED By Paul David Gelario FORTINET’S Director of Marketing warned businesses at the annual Fortinet 361° Security press conference at the Grand Hyatt in BGC, Taguig last Wednesday to take urgent precautionary measures to protect their system because cybercrime attacks have already evolved. “They have evolved. They are becoming more complex in terms of how they adapt to technology and the cybercrimes they are conducting as well,” Director of Marketing Fortinet Southeast Asia and Hong Kong, Matthew Kuan said. He emphasized that business organizations should feel a sense of urgency because businesses whether big or small can become a victim of cybercrime attacks. “They always have this false belief that

I don’t think I am a target. It comes to any organizations out there, whether big or small,” Kuan said. The latest data released by Fortinet Inc. showed that 51 percent of enterprises have been breached in the past 12 months. Since 2012, Fortinet’s ML/AI Malware Analysis have kept cyber attacks at bay with its AI-powered system called Fortinet 3rd Gen Immune System. The 3rd Gen Immune System leverages machine learning and artificial intelligence to prevent, detect, and mitigate cyber attacks. It has three processes namely web traffic analysis, malware detections, and user and entity behavior analytics (UEBA) to ensure an all-around security. “We stopped 57,000 Botnet C&C attemps per minute,” Kuan said. “That’s the

kind of AI we deliver to our own clients today.” The high-level security that Fortinet offers to its 400,000 customers worldwide made them NSS Labs’ most validated company with a total of nine recommendations followed only by Palo Alto Networks and Cisco with four and two respectively. When Fortinet launched its AI technology last 2012, it has only 12 partners and in 2019 it grew exponentially to 57. “When we started about 2012, we only have 12 partners. But now it has gone up to 57 and counting,” said Country Manager Fortinet Philippines, Louie Castañeda. In a data released by Frost & Sullivan, Fortinet is the leading cybersecurity vendor in the first quarter of 2019 with 23 percent, followed by Palo Alto Networks with 17 percent.

Director of Marketing Fortinet Southeast Asia and Hong Kong, Matthew Kuan (left) and Country Manager Fortinet Philippines, Louie Castañeda (right) are shown during Fortinet’s 361° Security press conference last Wednesday.

Destinations D1

SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 8, 2019

Bernadette Lunas, Issue Editor

@manilastandardlife

manilastandardlife@gmail.com

@MStandardLIFE

MY SHARE OF Standing right in front of the marvelous altar of Catedral di San Marco made me feel like I was in front of heaven’s gate.

The famous Bridge of Sighs in Venice connects a courthouse and a prison.

LA DOLCE VITA (Ed. Note: This is the final installment of Bob Zozobrado’s Italian holiday)

HILE crisscrossing Italy on the Business Class section of the very efficient, modern, high-speed MERCURY RISING (240 kph) Italo trains, BY BOB ZOZOBRADO dashing merrily from one beautiful and historic city to another, I realized I was having my share of “the sweet life.” Awed by breathtaking sceneries, bewildered by Renaissance and Gothic structures, served with delectable cuisine and the best wines ever, I had nothing else to ask for during my recent weeklong Italian holiday. Here are some more of the enchanting places we visited.

Venice

We started our Italian holiday in this city, the capital of Northern Italy’s Veneto region. I have always wanted to visit Venice and enjoy

The massive twolevel Basilica of St. Francis and the adjoining Piazza de San Francisco, the most popular destination in Assisi.

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its canals and romantic bridges on a gondola ride, with the gondolier singing “O Sole Mio,” like what I see in the movies. But, alas and alack, it rained on the day we were there. So, a gondola ride was out of the question. We took a water taxi instead and sailed along the canals, admiring the mystifying Gothic and Renaissance structures that line the waterways. When we returned to the Piazza San Marco, the rain had stopped but the entire piazza was flooded with ankle-deep water from the

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One of the high-speed, modern Italo trains.

The iconic leaning Tower of Pisa

New World Manila Bay celebrates its 15th anniversary with deals and discounts.

canals, as it was high tide. We then sought refuge inside the beautiful Basilica di San Marco, the floor of which never fails to attract visitors because it is made of mosaics of attractive Byzantine tiles We also made sure we would capture in photo the very famous Bridge of Sighs, which spans one of the minor canals next to the basilica. It earned its name because it connects a courthouse to a prison; as convicts cross the bridge, they let out a sigh of regret as they take a last look at the outside world.

Pisa

acoustics. In fact, anytime you go inside it, you hear people singing, as they want to listen to their sweet, melodious voices reverberating inside the domed structure. All three buildings are right next to each other in the city’s Piazza del Miracoli.

Cortona

This is another beautiful city in the Tuscany region, where the 2003 Hollywood romance-drama Under The Tuscan Sun, which starred Diane Lane, was filmed. Of course, our tour guide lost no time showing us the exact sites featured in the movie, much to our delight. The town hall, which gained a lot of exposure in the movie, naturally became everybody’s favorite backdrop for selfies and souvenir shots. Walking a short distance to the end of a narrow cobblestoned street led us to a small piazza with the Garibaldi monument, to honor the greatest General of the Italian army, and who was credited for the country’s unification. From the piazza, one can see the breathtaking view of the Tuscan valley, also featured in the film.

From up north, we sped down to Pisa, a city in the Tuscany region, known for its Leaning Tower, a 56-meter tall bell tower made of white marble. It stands beside a humongous cathedral, which has a very interesting interior as it is made of striped marble. The tower was already leaning when it was completed around 700 years ago, because the soft ground on which it was built affected its foundation. The builders had already completed the first three floors when they noticed the tilt. They then reinforced the foundation and continued building to complete the construction. Assisi The cathedral has a baptistry, We traveled east to the homewhich is also a tourist attraction town of St. Francis, a hill town in on its own because of its perfect Turn to D2

Market Café offers special lunch and dinner rates.

Dining discounts

- Save up to 60 percent at Market Café whose special lunch rate (Monday-Saturday) is priced at P915; lunch rate (Sunday) at P1,015, and dinner (MondaySunday) is priced at P1,015. - Cantonese dim sum all you can eat lunch at Li Li is only P915 instead of P1,088. Aniversary set menu starts at P15,000 for 10 diners. - A serving of steak at The Fireplace costs P1,500 only. Turn to D2

Destinations

SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 8, 2019 manilastandardlife@gmail.com

FREQUENT FLYER

HOW TO SCORE TICKETS DURING CEBU PACIFIC SUPER SEAT FEST CHRISTMAS comes early as leading budget carrier Cebu Pacific offers over 1 million seats to domestic and international destinations during its Super Seat Fest on Sept. 9 at 12:01 a.m. As much as 30 percent off on prepaid baggage fees and inflight meals and other travel deals will roll out over the next few weeks. Are you ready to book your tickets? Here are some hacks:

Plan, plan, plan!

Seats on sale get booked fast so always have alternative destinations and travel dates ready. Read on the details of any seat sale—including destinations covered and travel period to have a Plan A, B, and even Plan C. Research shows that planning and booking for trips at least six months prior to the departure date have a higher probability of getting discounted seats and travel deals. Check the calendar not just for the rest of 2019, but even for next year to determine those travel dates. Make those travel decisions even before the seat sales open.

COTABATO CITY CELEBRATES Sultan Haji Hassanal Bolkiah Mosque, also known as the Grand Mosque of Cotabato.

By Ayunan G. Gunting

OLLOWING her triumph in the recent elections, Cotabato City Mayor Cynthia Guiani is understandably in a celebratory mood.

Cebu Pacific offers over 1 million discounted tickets during the Super Seat Fest.

Have all information ready

Each visitor on the Cebu Pacific website is allotted limited time to book per session to give way to others. Hence, the faster a transaction is completed, the higher the chance of scoring seats on sale. List down the preferred destination, travel dates, and flight schedule to make sure the booking is correct. Personal details—including complete name, date of birth, contact information, as well as passport number and expiry date— should be on-hand for faster booking. For credit card or debit card payments, required details include card number, full name of the cardholder, the security code (or the CVV number), expiry date, and billing address. And more importantly, make sure to clear the cache data and browsing history of the device to be used to log into the Cebu Pacific website to ensure stability in page loading and completing the transaction. A fast, reliable Internet connection is also a plus.

Gather intel

Like or follow the official accounts of Cebu Pacific on Facebook (@cebupacificairphilippines), Twitter (@cebupacificair), and Instagram (@cebupacificair) to get updated information on seat sales before heading to cebupacificair.com.

NEW...

From D1

Her victory reflects the full approval her constituents have given her. Through all the controversies and mudslinging Mayor Guiani had to endure during the campaign period, she emerged unscathed and has been vindicated. From a city that was notorious for its crime rate and illegal drug problem, Cotabato was named the second safest city in the country during the first quarter of 2018 by the Philippine National Police. This happened under her term. The various measures she had undertaken for the city have successfully curtailed the drug problem and reduced crime. Of course, the people of Cotabato City are happy about it because they can now walk around their own city freely and safely. And now that the elections are behind her, the feuds and the personal attacks have been laid to rest, she wants to promote unity among the people of the city. As she said in her speech following her oath taking, “There is only one use of power and that is to serve the people of Cotabato City.” The people of Cotabato have reclaimed their city, and they celebrated their 60th founding anniver-

Mayor Cynthia Guiani

sary in a splashy way. The mayor hosted a party at the plaza dubbed “Disco sa Kalye” of which thousands attended and danced almost all night. There were also a motocross event and various other festivities. “It was heartwarming to see a large crowd of Cotabateños celebrate. This only proved that the people were confident about going out at night, knowing that they would be safe,” said the mayor. But after the party it was back to

MY SHARE... From D1 the Umbria region, and visited three churches. First was the Basilica di Santa Clara, named after the very good friend of St. Francis. This is where the original San Damian cross of St. Francis is kept. The story goes that, when St. Francis was still a young boy, he chanced upon this cross in an abandoned, crumbling church. As he went near it, he heard a voice telling him to build a church for the cross. He and his friends did it. The second church we went to was the magnificent two-level Basilica of St. Francis itself and the adjoining, massive Piazza di San Francisco.

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serious work for the mayor. Mayor Guiani vowed to further expand on her advocacy to make Cotabato an even much safer place for her constituents. The city’s streets will soon be equipped with state-of-the-art CCTV cameras that come with sensors that can identify license plates. The cameras will also have facial detection capability and help traffic enforcers manage the city’s traffic. As a result of the city’s peace and order situation, Cotabato has been

Shopback launches ‘9.9’ sale Southeast Asia’s top cashback app Shopback kicks off Shopfest, its yearend online shopping festival in the Philippines, beginning with the “9.9” sale on Sept. 9. Shopback rewards users with cash from purchases made on popular shopping sites and platforms accessed through the app. From left: Shopback Philippines head of partnerships Karoline Santiago, Shopback Happy Bag mascot, country manager Prashant Kala, and head of merchants Timothy Tuason.

managing to attract a sizable number of investors. “My second priority is to build a stronger economy for this city,” said the mayor. “The Chinese are investing in Cotabato City International Airport and the Sea Port. These will not only open more opportunities for global marketing and tourism, but they will also employ thousands of Cotabateños.” She also plans to upgrade social services and give the children and elderly more attention and benefits.

The saint’s body is kept inside the crypt under the basilica’s altar (that’s how small it is), to the the main altar. What makes the church interiors right of which is the exact spot where the saint really attractive are the 13th-century frescoes died due to health problems. depicting the life of the My Italian holiday saint. It elicited in me a was not only a “discovwonderful feeling that ery tour.” It was an afYOUR WEEKEND CHUCKLE teetered between subfirmation of my Catholime and heavenly. lic faith, an enjoyable Q: Why do people say to stage actors, Then we had to visit “walk-back” to the Age “break a leg?” the Basilica di Santa of Renaissance, and a A: Because every play has a cast. Maria Maggiori, which savory feast of culinary houses the small church delights! La dolce vita indeed! St. Francis and his friends built to conduct their ministry of helping For feedback, I’m at bobzozobrado@gmail.com. the poor. The original small church still stands at

iPhoto

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The People’s Palace, the seat of Cotabato City government.

Entertainment

SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 8, 2019

ARANETA CENTER GIVES CHANCE FOR GRANDPARENTS TO SHINE IN GRAND HANGOUT

READY,

SETH, GO

By Nickie Wang

ETH Fedelin, 17, made waves this year as one of the teen housemates in the local edition of Big Brother. And after leaving the famous “residence” on Eugenio Lopez Drive, he landed a role in one of the top-rating and trending television soaps, Kadenang Ginto. Relatively new in showbiz, Seth is already gaining prestige in the local acting community. While his character in the daily soap doesn’t require too much of his dramatic skills, he’s able to prove that he can raise the bar and portray a difficult role in a new project. On Aug. 28, a psycho horror premiered on iWant. It has Seth and Kadenang Ginto costar Beauty Gonzales playing the central characters. Entitled Abandoned,, the film is written and directed by Kip Oebanda,, the writer-director of critically acclaimed films Liway, Nay, Nay and Bar Boys.. It is produced by Dreamscape Digital and Quantum Films. The story follows Simone (Beauty), a struggling single mother who is trying to make ends meet for her son RJ (Seth). A bodyguard, she becomes crippled by guilt after abandoning her duty and choosing to live for her son while her colleagues get slaughtered in a robbery. As a consequence, her boss handpicks her to replace the guard at an abandoned facility that used to be a hospital, which is rumored to be haunted by nurses and kids who were burned alive. As she begins her duty, she starts to hear voices and see images in the dark. It won’t be

Nickie Wang, Issue Editor nickie.standard@gmail.com

BOY NEXT DOOR.

Seth Fedelin continues to gain popularity after being cast in ‘Kadenang Ginto’ and now in two iWant movies, ‘Abandoned’ and ‘Wild Little Love.’ long until she finds out about the rumor surrounding the place —that it was burned down on purpose as an offering to the devil in exchange for financial or personal gain. Soon after, the ghosts in the building haunt her during her shifts and even follow her home, negatively affecting her son whom she used to be close with and their relationship starts to show cracks. The building’s supernatural forces prey on her past traumas and fears, forcing her to abandon her role as a mother and sacrifice her own son. “I was so nervous when we were shooting the movie. But I had a strong support system. My costars and director motivated me to do my best,” Seth shared in an interview during the digital movie’s premiere. After Abandoned, the teen star will again appear in another iWant movie set to stream on the popular platform in November. Seth will top bill Wild Little Love opposite screen partner Andrea Brillantes. Wild Little Love will be directed by Benedict Mique and includes Carmina Villaroel, Alfred Vargas, Victor Neri, Jin Macapagal, and Criza Ta-a in the cast.

Seth with The Gold Squad members Andrea, Francine, and Kyle in their mostwatched dance tutorial video on YouTube.

IT’S the annual Grandparents Day celebration today at the Araneta Center in Cubao, Quezon City. Entitled “Grand Hangout” the event gives grandparents the chance to meet each other and hangout. At the same time, it also wants to give our grandparents an opportunity to shine in various activities to do in the Center. After all, age shouldn’t be an excuse for someone to shine. It is only fitting then that the Center has partnered up with our Miss Universe Philippines 2019 Gazini Ganados to celebrate Grandparents Day. Gazini has been vocal about her advocacy of elderly care, something which stemmed from her close relationship with her grandparents. Despite already visiting a home for the aged in Manila, she wants to do more. Araneta Center gave her that opportunity on Sept. 6. She met with the 15 members of the elderly community who did portraits of her. These portraits will be sold afterwards and part of the proceeds will be donated to a charity of choice of Gazini Ganados. Those interested to purchase a portrait may contact Gateway Gallery curator Gari Apolonio atgatewaygallery@ aranetagroup.com, 588 4000 local 8300. Aside from the effort of Miss Universe Philippines, the Grandparents day celebration today will also be highlighted by different activities across the center. The first is the Grand Chess Championship starting at 10:00 a.m. in Gateway Mall. 150 members of the elderly community will be battling it out the entire day, where the winner of the Grand Chess Championship will be given the opportunity to matchup with International Chess Master Chito Garma. Helping out in giving the elderly this opportunity is National Chess Federation of the Philippines, sanctioned by FIDE. At 3:00 p.m. in the Ali Mall, the center will be holding a Grand Ballroom Party in partnership with A. Dance Company, where grandparents can groove in one-hour classes of Salsa and Chacha. For those looking to simply unwind and hangout with their fellow grandparents, they can head on over to Farmers Plaza at 3:00 p.m. for the Grand Symphonic Band. It will be a free show in partnership with the Quezon City Tourism department. Finally, those who wish to reminisce the past even more can head on over to the relaunch of radio station DWWW 774. As the different activities will be ongoing across the Center, free medical check-up and freebies will also be given away. To avail of these services, customers have to show a P500 singlereceipt purchase from any Araneta Center establishment. For more updates, visit www.aranetacenter. net, and follow Araneta Center’s social media pages: @aranetacenter on Facebook and Twitter and @thearanetacenter on Instagram.

WHY NICKI AIN’T RAPPIN’ NO MORE

Nicki Minaj has announced her intention to quit the music industry in a social media post. Fans speculate she’s pregnant since she’s very open to starting a family.

RAP queen Nicki Minaj on Thursday shocked fans by announcing her retirement from music, saying she was going to focus on family. The provocative 36-year-old known for hits like “Super Bass” is engaged to music executive Kenneth Petty, and she recently said a wedding is in the cards in the coming months. “I’ve decided to retire and have my family,” tweeted the wildly successful rapper raised in the New York borough of Queens. “I know you guys are happy now,” she continued. “To my fans, keep reppin me, do it til da death of me, X in the box - cuz ain’t nobody checkin me.” The surprising news fueled pregnancy rumors that had already been swirling since June after she appeared on a late-night television show and opted against drinking. She went Instagram-official with her partner Petty in December 2018, after rebooting the relationship decades after they were involved as teenagers.

The rekindled romance raised eyebrows considering Petty’s criminal past: he is a registered sex offender in New York and was convicted in 1995 of attempted

rape. Minaj dismissed criticism of her new relationship, saying “He was 15, she was 16 ... in a relationship. But go awf Internet. Y’all can’t run my life. Y’all can’t even run y’all own life. Thank you boo.” Minaj’s profanity-laced lyrics, skin-baring music videos, and unique, animated flow first catapulted her to fame in 2010. Known for her bold sartorial style that includes neon costumes and wigs, Minaj—whose hits include “Starships,” “Bang Bang,” and “Anaconda”— is considered one of rap’s most influential female artists. The Grammy-nominated artist born in Trinidad and Tobago cites Foxy Brown and Jay-Z as major inspirations, and has crafted a lightning-speed sound distinctive for her use of alter egos and accents, especially British cockney. AFP

Miss Universe Philippines 2019 Gazini Ganados is vocal about elderly care, an advocacy she wanted to focus on and bring with her when she competes for an international crown.

SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 8, 2019

Desiree Carlos, Editor

Pets

daycarlos28@yahoo.com

YES, DEAR,

DOGS CAN TASTE FOOD article “Can Dogs Taste? And What Do They Like to Eat? in PetMD. “It’s believed that many problems with picky eaters are not an issue with food taste or smell, but rather a smart dog holding out for something more delicious (for example, when an owner offers kibble and then immediately offers ground beef after the dog refuses to eat). That said, dogs can definitely taste and will certainly have their own preferences when it comes to favorite snacks, “ Coates said.

PET TALES

BY DESIREE CARLOS

HILE cats are reported by owners to be finicky eaters, most dogs will eat just about anything. We have heard of owners complaining about their dogs eating socks, tennis balls, and sometimes, even legs of wooden chairs and grocery receipts. But can dogs taste food? Yes, according to Katie Finlay in the article “Can Dogs Taste?” in the American Kennels Club website. “If you’re used to seeing dog food advertisements, you likely think that a dog’s sense of taste is very highly refined. However, this is quite far from the truth, “ Finlay said. A dog only has 1,700 taste buds compared to 9,000 taste buds in humans. Thus, a dog’s sense of taste is much less discriminating as a dog’s taste bud is only about one-sixth as powerful as that of humans. It is interesting to note that stud- Ace eats anything. Rescued while in his mother Bela's womb, he grew up eating ies have shown that dogs can identify dry dog food, canned or wet dog food, boiled vegetables and meat, and treats. four taste classifications: sweet, sour, salty and bitter. While the dog’s sense of taste is But dogs also have special taste roughly a fraction of a human’s, buds specifically for water. his sense of smell is one million “Cats and other carnivores have times stronger. these taste buds, but they aren’t found “Smell and taste are very closely in humans. They are found at the tip of related, and dogs can actually taste the tongue where it curls as the animal foods through their sense of smell laps water, and although it reacts to wawith a special organ along the dog’s ter at all times, it’s more sensitive after palate. To exemplify this point, eating salty and sugary foods. The theyou can note that while dogs can ory behind this is that, when in the wild, differentiate between meat-based animals might need more water after and non-meat-based foods without eating certain foods that may dehydrate smell, they cannot differentiate bethem,” Finlay said. tween chicken, beef, fish, or pork Dogs however respond to sweet, sour, without smell, “ Finlay said. salty and bitter differently than humans. She added: “Humans don’t “Unlike humans and other animals, have the ability to taste smell in dogs do not have an affinity for salt. this sense, but it certainly proves This is likely because their ancestors' the point that if something smells Feronia also eats anything. She and diet consisted of roughly 80 percent her brother Ace are only one year and good, it’s going to taste good to meat in the wild, and meat is a very eight months old but they are very big a dog. This is also why dogs are salty food. Making salt less palatable dogs as they particularly love eating more interested in foods that smell is nature’s way of prohibiting excess stronger, such as canned foods vernutritious natural food or boiled salt intake, the same way many bitter sus dry kibbles. Canned foods are vegetables with a little meat. and sour foods are the result of ranoften much more aromatic, and cidity or poison, “ Finlay said. therefore, more enticing.” Taste vs Smell Dogs developed a liking to sweet flaIf your dog is a picky eater, check So if they can taste food, how come the food you are giving your dog. vors possibly due to the fact their omnivore ancestors ate fruits and vegetables they will eat anything, even garbage? You can choose a more aromatic The answer lies in the smell. in the wild, Finlay said. food, said Dr. Jennier Coates in the

CATS do not have nine lives, WebMD said. But a cat owner can protect his or her cat from diseases and keep the cat healthy for many years by giving the right vaccines, it stressed. “Shots protect your cat from diseases caused by viruses and bacteria. They can also strengthen her immune system, “ said WebMD in “What to Know About Cat Vaccinations.” Your vet can tell you the best vaccines to give a kitten or an adult cat who was recently added to the household. “Whether you have a kitten or an adult cat, your vet can help you figure out which vaccines are best and how often your kitty should get shots. It usually depends on her age, overall health, and lifestyle, “ WebMD said. It added: “The vet will also think about how long vaccines are supposed to last and how likely your cat might be to come into contact with a certain disease. Also, many local and state governments have laws about vaccines like rabies. When to vaccinate Kittens should start vaccination at six (6) to eight (8) weeks old. A series of shots is given. A booster shot is given every year. “The shots come in a series every 3 to 4 weeks. Adult cats need shots less often, usually every year or every 3 years, depending on how long a vaccine is designed to last,” WedMD said. Important vaccines The recommended vaccines for all cats are those that protect a cat against: Rabies Panleukopenia (also known as feline distemper) Feline calicivirus Feline viral rhinotracheitis “The feline viral rhinotracheitis, calicivirus, and

MY FURRY BESTIE THIS corner features pets of animal lovers every week. We hope new owners and those thinking of getting a pet will be encouraged to be responsible “furparents” through these features. We also hope more people will be moved to be kind to animals when they read about the great relationship that can be created between humans and animals. For contributions, please email to daycarlos28@yahoo.com and put My Furry Bestie as subject.

A dog's food choice A puppy exposed to a variety of food (dry, canned, home cooked meals, treats) will likely try different food when he or she becomes an adult. But dogs will always go for food with a stronger smell or aroma. Food also lose their aroma and flavor when the food “ages.” “Another factor is the freshness of the food.... (When the food ages..) The fats in the product also start to oxidize into peroxides. This degradation is known as rancidity and results in undesirable odors and flavors, “ Coates said. Dry food is palatable for only about one month after the bag is opened. Owners are advised to keep the dog food bag closed tightly to keep the kibble fresh. If you transfer dry dog food to a container, make sure the lid is tightly closed. “Even though it may be more economical to buy in bulk, the food’s palatability may suffer," Coates said. “Unopened canned food has a shelf life of approximately two years before the vitamins start to break down. After opening, the can should be covered and stored in the refrigerator for no more than 3-5 days. When the food comes out of the refrigerator, it will not have as strong a smell, so you may need to add warm water or warm it slightly in the microwave to get the aroma. Take care not to serve it too hot or your dog might burn his mouth, “ Coates advised. She added: “Environmental temperatures can affect appetite too. If it is hot outside and your dog is panting, he cannot sniff (smell) at the same time and may not want to eat. If your dog is an outside dog, cold temperatures can reduce the aroma of his food or it may have a different mouth feel and be less appealing. Again, warming might do the trick.”

IMPORTANT CAT VACCINES

February, 1.5 year old, is waiting to be adopted by a loving furparent. He has been spayed and has complete vaccines.

Peach, 1.4 years old, has complete vaccines and has been spayed. She is already up for adoption as she is ready for her loving furever home.

panleukopenia vaccinations often come in a combination shot (FVRCP), which is sometimes called the ‘distemper shot,’” WebMD said. Extra shots may be recommended depending on how much time the cat spends outside the house, how often she is around other cats, and the diseases that are common in the area. These shots include: Chlamydia: A vaccine which is often part of the FVRCP shot. Feline leukemia: This is a serious viral infection that spreads through body fluids like saliva, feces, urine, and milk. A vaccine against this is recom-

mended for cats who spend any time outside. Prevention is a priority as feline leukemia cannot be cured. Sad to say, the vaccine is not yet available in the Philippines, a Filipino vet said. Bordetella: Cats who go to the groomer or stay at a kennel need to be vaccinated against Bordetella as this spreads quickly in spaces where there are lots of animals. The vaccine will not prevent the disease, but it will keep your cat from getting very sick from it. “If your cat stays inside all of the time, you might think she’s automatically protected from these kinds of diseases. But she could still catch airborne germs

PEANUT is such a small Chihuahua that his owner, Gina Pacheco Evangelista, decided to name him after the small nut. “Everything was unplanned, I never thought of having a Chihuahua because I am not a Chihuahua enthusiast. But when my friend showed me her videos and photos, I fell in love with Peanut instantly, “ Gina says. “Unfortunately, she was going to a different family. Days passed, and I can not stop thinking about him. I told myself I’ve gotta have her, “ Gina shares. She adds, “Maybe we are meant to be together. I finally got her. Now that I have her, she is going to spend the rest of her life with US. Peanut is turning one in November.”

ALASKA, one-year-old rescued baby girl of Mike Tan, was found beside a can of Alaska milk. “Which is obviously the reason why I named her such. She loves playing with cans. Chasing empty cans is her past time, “ Mike says. “Alaska loves to cuddle and swipes her body around my legs as a sign that she wants to be carried. She is very sweet and doesn't mind bathing time and just sleeps it off, “ Mike shares. “Her fave is fish though I grab her cat food as alternate. She sleeps beside me and makes sure that I give her tummy rubs all the time, “ Mike says. To Alaska, Mike promises, ”I love you and I will take care of you forever, Alaska!” Editor's note: These stories were compiled by admin Miks Lim of Save Animals of Love and Light (Save ALL), a SEC-registered animal welfare group that helps animals in need, and encourages and promotes responsible pet ownership, adoption of rescued dogs and cats from fosters, shelters and pounds, and spaying and neutering of pets to control animal population in the country, among others.

that might come in through a window or door. And even the most docile kitties sometimes make a run for it. If your cat gets outside, you want to make sure she’s protected. Indoor cats may also pick up bacteria and viruses when they stay at a kennel and if you bring a new cat home, “ WebMD said. Vaccines will not keep your cat immune form diseases 100 per cent. It is important to limit your cat’s contact with infected animals and to environments where diseases may be more common to keep your cat healthy, WebMD stressed. DC