Manila Standard - 2021 August 14 - Saturday

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‘Hospitals near full capacity’ DOH puts 11 areas under highest alert as infections spread

By Willie Casas and Rio N. Araja

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LL areas in Metro Manila are now classified as either highrisk or critical risk for COVID-19, the Department of Health said Friday as the disease continued to spread and hospital beds filled up, and the country hit a four-month high in both the number of new infections and active cases.

The Department of Health (DOH) put under Alert Level 4 the cities of Las Piñas, Malabon, Makati, Marikina, Muntinlupa, Navotas, San Juan, Quezon City, Taguig, and Valenzuela and the municipality of Pateros. Under Alert Level 3 were Caloocan, Pasig, Mandaluyong, Manila, Pasay

and Parañaque. Navotas and Pateros were classified as critical risk in terms of two-week virus growth rate at 352.25 percent and 266.35 percent, respectively. Hospitals in both cities are also 100 percent full according to the DOH. Intensive care units in nine Metro

Manila areas are over 70 percent full. Quezon City still has the most number of active COVID-19 cases at 4,453, followed by the City of Manila with 3,081, and Makati City with 2,012 patients. Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said the National Capital Next page

Funds ‘not lost to corruption’ but DOH has to do paper work—COA By Macon Ramos-Araneta, Maricel V. Cruz and Willie Casas

THE Commission on Audit clarified on Friday it did not find “deficiencies” linked to corruption in its report on the P67.3 billion COVID-19

VOL. XXXV • NO. 180 • 3 SECTIONS 12 PAGES • P18 • SATURDAY, AUGUST 14, 2021 • www.manilastandard.net • mst.daydesk@gmail.com

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HOSPITAL SITUATION.

Business bucks ECQ extension, fears health-livelihood crisis may worsen The Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCCI), the biggest business group in the country, said a lockdown is not the only option to stop BUSINESSES oppose an extension of COVID-19 spread and may e v e n the two-week lockdown in Metro Manila, which is supposed to end Aug. 20.

By Othel V. Campos, Vito Barcelo and Francisco Tuyay

aggravate the health and livelihood crisis as it has in other countries. “COVID-19 pandemic is a pharmaceutical problem while a lockdown is a militaristic solution. Our economy is disfigured after many protracted lockdowns, yet the spread of COVID

continues,” said PCCI acting president Edgardo G. Lacson Friday, in reaction to talk of a five-week enhanced community quarantine (ECQ). He added that the Philippine economy has fallen into its deepest recession Next page

PhilHealth pays P12b, still owes another P12b

1,713,302 13,177

By Willie Casas

96,395

29,838

299

1,587,069

4,322

Several patients of the Sta. Ana Hospital in Manila have to lay by available space as medical personnel attend to them on August 13, 2021. Manila Mayor Isko Moreno says that the hospital is nearing full capacity, a grim situation that also holds true for other medical facilities in the metropolis with infections rising exponentially. Norman Cruz

THE Philippine Health Insurance Corp. (PhilHealth) has paid only half of the P25 billion worth of COVID19-related benefits claims it owes various hospitals. PhilHealth vice president for corporate affairs Shirley Domingo said COVID-19 claims included testing packages, community isolation unit benefits, and in-patient benefits. Domingo said a huge portion of unpaid COVID-19 claims were related to testing and some hospitals were unable to submit required documents, resulting in the delay in releasing payments. Malacañang on Thursday said President Rodrigo Duterte had asked PhilHealth to settle the billions of pesos worth of unpaid

(As of 4 PM, AUGUST 13) 24/7 JAB. Medical volunteers screen and

inoculate residents with COVID-19 vaccine during the continuing 24/7 vaccination drive of the local government at the University of Santo Tomas Gymnasium in Manila on Thursday night. Metro Manila has embarked on night vaccination in an effort to achieve a 70% jab rate, a level good enough to reach ‘herd immunity”. Norman Cruz

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Budget chief Avisado quits; ‘Breakthrough infection’ sickens only a few—FDA Duterte names Canda OIC

By Willie Casas and Macon Ramos-Araneta

A COVID-19 infection is considFDA Director General Eric Doered a “breakthrough” if it occurs mingo, during a Department of Health (DOH) forum, said only 0.0013 US approves COVID boosters for patients percent or 116 breakthrough cases were recorded out of 9,115,963 with weakened immune systems fully vaccinated individuals as (Full story on B2) of Aug. 1.

FEWER than 1 percent of more than 9.1 million people who had been fully vaccinated against COVID-19 by the start of August have experienced a “breakthrough” infection, the Food and Drug more than 14 days after receipt of the second dose of a vaccine. Administration (FDA) said Friday.

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NCR mayors back unified vax card By Joel E. Zurbano METRO Manila mayors gave their full support to the government’s issuance of a unified vaccination card or certificate for fully inocu-

lated individuals. Parañaque Mayor Edwin Olivarez said he and other local chief executives in the National Capital Region Next page

By Vito Barcelo, Maricel V. Cruz and Macon Ramos-Araneta BUDGET Secretary Wendel Avisado has resigned from his post due to medical reasons. The resignation has been accepted by President Rodrigo Duterte, Malacañang said. Duterte designated Budget Undersecretary Tina Rose Marie Canda as the officer-in-charge (OIC) of the Department of Budget and Management, according to presidential spokesman Harry Roque. In the Senate, Minority Leader Franklin Drilon said Avisado’s sudden

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SATURDAY, AUGUST 14, 2021

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‘Hospitals... From A1 Region (NCR) continued to post a rise in its two-week growth rate and a highrisk average daily attack rate (ADAR). Alert Level 4 means an area has been classified as moderate- to critical-risk and has a health care utilization rate higher than 70 percent. NCR is under enhanced community quarantine – the strictest among quarantine classification – for two weeks, from Aug. 6 to 20. Under ECQ, only essential trips and services are allowed. The government placed the NCR under ECQ in light of the threat posed by the more infectious Delta coronavirus variant. Other areas under Alert Level 4 are: the Cordillera Administrative Region: Apayao, Baguio City, Benguet; Region 1: Dagupan City, Ilocos Norte; Region 2: Cagayan, Quirino; Region 3: Angeles City, Nueva Ecija, Pampanga, Tarlac, Olongapo City, Zambales; Region 4A: Batangas, Cavite, Laguna, Quezon, Lucena City, Rizal; Region 5: Naga City, Masbate; Region 6: Aklan, Antique, Guimaras, Iloilo, Iloilo City; Region 7: Bohol, Cebu, Cebu City, Lapu-Lapu City, Siquijor; Region 8: Ormoc City, Tacloban City; Region 10: Bukidnon, Cagayan De Oro City, Camiguin, Lanao Del Norte, Misamis Oriental; Region 12: Cotabato (North Cotabato), General Santos City, South Cotabato; and Caraga: Agusan del Sur. The Philippines averaged 10,459 new cases per day from August 6 to 12, a jump from its average of 7,987 in the week before, with “a new peak [in infections] set weekly,” said Vergeire. The Philippines is still classified as a high-risk area for COVID-19 after logging a two-week case growth rate of 60 percent, ADAR of 8.37 cases per 100,000 population, a health care utilization rate of 58.81 percent, and an ICU occupancy rate of 68.08 percent. The Philippines logged 13,177 new

COVID-19 cases on Friday, bringing the total number of infections to 1,713,302. It was the highest daily infections reported since April 2 when over 15,000 new cases were logged, the DOH said. The DOH also reported 96,395 active cases, also the highest since April 9. There were 299 new fatalities on Friday, bringing the COVID-19 death toll to 29,838. The DOH also reported 4,322 persons who recently recovered, bringing the total recoveries to 1,587,069. Of the active cases, 95.8 percent were mild, 1 percent were asymptomatic, 0.8 percent were critical, 1.4 percent were severe, 0.97 percent were moderate. Nationwide, 66 percent of ICU beds, 58 percent of isolation beds, 60 percent of ward beds, and 51 percent of ventilators, were in use. In Metro Manila, 60 percent of ICU beds, 60 percent of isolation beds, 61 percent of ward beds, and 54 percent of ventilators, were in use. A pandemic analyst said infections were spreading exponentially. Prof. Jomar Rabajante, of the University of the Philippines COVID-19 Pandemic Response Team, in an interview on Teleradyo, said daily cases could reach up to 19,000 if the upward trend continues. He said that the country was seeing a resurgence of coronavirus that could be fueled by the more contagious Delta variant. The Philippines has a positivity rate of more than 20 percent, which means that 1 out of 5 tested was positive for the virus, he said. Nationwide figures for the reproduction number or daily growth estimate in COVID-19 cases in the country are also estimated to be more than 1, Rabajante said. This means on average each infected person will infect more than one other person they come in contact with. “This means that [COVID-19] cases in the Philippines are increasing exponentially,” he said. He said the Philippines will continue to

experience an increase in COVID-19 cases in the next few days as the effect of the hard lockdown will not be felt immediately. “We could reach 13,000, 14,000 cases in the next few days,” he said. “We have a projection that in just a few days, we might reach 18,000, 19,000 cases if this trend continues.” The Delta variant was first identified in India and has become the dominant strain of coronavirus in the world. It is supposedly 60 to 100 percent more transmissible than the original COVID-19 strain from Wuhan, China. With over 1.7 million coronavirus infections and more than 29,000 deaths, the Philippines has the second-worst coronavirus outbreak in Southeast Asia after Indonesia. It currently has 96,395 active cases of COVID-19. Rabajante called on the government to not just focus its interventions in the capital region as most infections were reported in other provinces. Rabajante said the government should also accelerate its vaccination rollout in other areas such as Cebu and Davao aside from Metro Manila. The Quezon City government has expanded its HOPE community care facilities to accommodate more children who tested positive for COVID-19 and their families or guardians. Dr. Esperanza Arias, City Health Department chief, said the city government recently procured additional beds, oxygen tanks and medicines for all 11 of the city’s COVID facilities. She said “family rooms” are being added across all HOPE facilities to accommodate more COVID-positive children as well as their families who may also be COVID positive or their guardians who will look after them. The city government is recruiting more staff as the opening of three more HOPE facilities is underway. Data from the City Epidemiology and Disease Surveillance Unit (CESU) showed that 9 percent or 318 of COVID cases recorded between Aug. 1 and 7

were children aged 17 and below. At least 169 or 5 percent are aged 0 to 11, while 149 or 4 percent come from the 12 to 17 years old age group. The total number of cases during this period is 293 percent higher than the 81 recorded positive cases among children fromJuly 1 to July 7. “One factor that cause these infections among children could be the improper way by which COVID-positive adults quarantine themselves. There are those who stay at home and do not selfreport to CESU,” CESU chief Dr. Rolando Cruz said. “We’re continuously ramping up our contact tracing efforts so every household will be safe, especially young children who are not yet able to follow minimum health protocols on their own,” he said. “But ultimately, we need everyone’s cooperation. We are appealing to anyone who is experiencing symptoms to please inform CESU immediately,” he added. Meanwhile, the Lung Center of the Philippines (LCP) now has dedicated 76 percent of its bed capacity to COVID-19 patients, its spokesperson said Friday. “If COVID-19 cases are low, only around 35 percent of the operational capacity is dedicated to COVID patients. But as cases increase, we also increase the percentage of the beds allotted to them,” LCP spokesperson Dr. Norberto Francisco said at the Laging Handa briefing. “As of now, we are at 76 percent dedicated to COVID-19 patients, and this is about the highest. We could not raise it up to 100 percent because it is the mandate of the Lung Center to treat all kinds of lung diseases,” Francisco said in a mix of Filipino and English. Francisco said the effects of the enhanced community quarantine have yet to be felt in LCP’s admissions and its health care capacity due to a two-week lag in ECQ implementation. “This has something to do with the incubation period of the virus,” he said. Currently, LCP has 135 admitted COVID patients, Francisco said.

Funds... From A1

Business... From A1

response funds of the Department of Health. “The report itself does not mention any findings by the auditors of funds lost to corruption,” COA said in a statement. “As an example, some of the findings of deficiencies involving COVID-19 funds amounting to P67.3 billion resulted from the non-submission of documentation or supporting papers, which the DOH may still submit in compliance with the auditor’s recommendation. Of the P67.3 billion, P42.4 billion consisted of fund transfers to procurement/implementing partner-agencies without the required documentation. There is no finding that this amount cannot be accounted for,” COA explained. COA said it was “premature” to make conclusions on the findings as the audit process “has not been completed.” DOH, it said, still has a chance to comply on the required documentation. But senators are already gearing for a probe into the “deficiencies” cited in the COA report, and Health Secretary Francisco Duque III is expected to be grilled on the same issue during the budget deliberations. “DOH’s management of pandemic response funds will definitely be taken up during the deliberations of the DOH’s 2022 budget once the Senate starts the hearings before approving their budget,” said Senator Panfilo Lacson. Duque said Friday the questioned transfer of funds to partner agencies have memorandum of agreements and other supporting documents. He said DOH should only have to organize and complete these documents. “All memorandum of agreements, donations, supply contract, delivery receipts, schedule of payments, lahat yan, meron lahat yan,“ he said. But Lacson said the latest report of COA on the health department’s funds was among the many other issues

since 1947 largely due to the prolonged and harsh lockdown response. “Mere mention of lockdown stokes greater fear than the infection from COVID-19. Another five-week lockdown could be the proverbial last straw on the camel’s back. It will wipe out the temporary economic gains we earned in between lockdowns and could stop the momentum of business from moving forward,” he said. PCCI hopes the planned five-week lockdown is just an overreaction to the rising cases fueled by the Delta variant of COVID-19. Lacson said that the more prudent response should be ramping up the vaccination program to achieve herd immunity and continuing to enforce health protocols as a necessary measure to stop the spread of COVID-19. Meanwhile, Trade Secretary Ramon Lopez, a member of the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF) said there has been no discussion yet of a five-week ECQ extension at any IATF meeting. He noted this news is not true but has been circulated online. “As mentioned, If numbers improve until next week, we should go to a modified ECQ and granular lockdowns. We’re watching the data closely, as long as (there’s) no threat of an uncontrollable surge of Delta (variant),” he added. A week into the lockdown however, new cases are still rising, hitting fourmonth highs above 14,000 a day. President Rodrigo Duterte approved the recommendation of the IATF to downgrade the classification of Laguna, Iloilo City and Cagayan de Oro City from Enhanced Community Quarantine (ECQ) to Modified Enhanced Community Quarantine (MECQ) beginning Aug. 16 until Aug. 31, 2021, Malacanang said. The National Capital Region (NCR) remains under ECQ until August 20, 2021. Bataan, on the other hand, is under ECQ until Aug. 22, 2021, Palace spokesman Harry Roque said. Health Secretary Francisco Duque III said it was too early to discuss a possible

extension of the two-week lockdown. Duque, in an interview on Unang Balita, also stressed the need for the public to observe minimum health standards after daily new COVID-19 cases reach over 12,000 for two consecutive days. Duque chairs the IATF, the government’s policy-making body in addressing the COVID-19 pandemic. National Task Force Against COVID-19 deputy chief implementer Vince Dizon said the impact of the ECQ could be determined only after two weeks. “It’s still too early,” Dizon said in Filipino when asked about a possible ECQ extension. Dizon also cited the previous pronouncement of the Department of Health that cases could still go up following the lockdown. “COVID-19 is very unpredictable but what is important is that we act swiftly and coordinate with all sectors of our society,” he said. Also on Friday, the Palace announced that travelers from India and nine other countries are still barred from entering the Philippines until the end of August. This, after President Rodrigo Duterte, upon the recommendation of the IATF, extended the travel restrictions imposed on travelers from India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Nepal, United Arab Emirates, Oman, Thailand, Malaysia, and Indonesia. The extended travel ban came amid the threat posed by the more infectious Delta COVID-19 variant that was first detected in India. The Philippines has reported a total of 627 cases of Delta coronavirus variant, after logging an additional 177 cases of the highly transmissible Covid-19 variant. Out of these new cases, 154 are local cases, three are returning overseas Filipinos, and 30 others are still being verified. Meanwhile, the IATF has also approved the airlines’ request to resume international transit hub operations, Roque said. “These international transit hub operations shall be limited to airside transfers between Terminals 1 and 2, and within Terminal 3 of the Ninoy Aquino International Airport, and further limited for countries, jurisdictions or ter-

ritories in the Green List,” Roque said. Roque said there must be a strict observance of protocols for the controlled movement of passengers and health and safety protocols within the terminals. Any traveler who may exhibit symptoms should comply with isolation and quarantine protocols which should be for the account of the sponsoring airlines, Roque said. The Palace said on Friday that at least 14 countries and jurisdictions have been removed from the Philippines’ “green list.” Antigua and Barbuda, Azerbaijan, Bulgaria, Dominica, Kosovo, Laos, Marshall Islands, Moldova, North Macedonia, Saba (Special Municipality of the Kingdom of Netherlands), Saint Barthelemy, Singapore, Sint Eustatius, and Togo have been removed, based on the revised roster of “green” states and jurisdictions. On the other hand, Cameroon and Sudan have been added to the updated list. The countries and jurisdictions included in the new “green” roster are: Albania; American Samoa; Anguilla; Australia; Benin; Bosnia and Herzegovina; Brunei; Burkina Faso; Cameroon; Cayman Islands; Chad; China; Comoros; Cote d’ Ivoire (Ivory Coast); Djibouti; Equatorial Guinea; Falkland Islands; Gabon; Grenada; Hong Kong (Special Administrative Region of China); Hungary; Mali; Federated States of Micronesia; Montserrat (British Overseas Territory); New Caledonia; New Zealand; Niger; Nigeria; Northern Mariana Islands; Palau; Poland; Romania; Saint Pierre and Miquelon; Slovakia; Sudan; and Taiwan The Department of Health has classified the “green” states and jurisdictions as “low-risk countries or jurisdictions based on disease incidence rate.” On Friday, the Philippine National Police said more than 40,000 violators of safety protocols were arrested, fined or warned. PNP Chief Gen. Guillermo Eleazar said that the figures represent an average of 5,759 violators apprehended per day in different parts of Metro Manila and could get higher if the violators in the four adjoining provinces are included.

NCR... From A1

ing the QR code in the issuance of vaccination code through the mobile application pasay.emi.com, making the compilation of the list of vaccinated residents easier. “You don’t have to write or type details of personal information. That’s the advantage of having the QR code,” said Rubiano. “All you have to do is to scan the QR code to determine the authenticity of the vaccination card.” Under the Digital Documentation of COVID-19 Certificates: Vaccination Status — Technical Specifications and Implementation Guidance issued on 27 July 2021, the World Health Organization proposed the use of digital vaccination certificates, which documents a person’s current vaccination status, as a mechanism through which a person’s COVID-19-related health

PhilHealth... From A1 hospital claims as soon as possible. PhilHealth last week said it was working double time in addressing P25 billion worth of unpaid claims by several hospitals “through constant dialogues and reconciliation of figures with hospital representatives at the regional level.” Domingo said the PhilHealth’s regional vice presidents were already in talks with concerned hospitals to come up with strategies on how to fast-track claims Under PhilHealth’s Debit-Credit Payment Method (DCPM), the state health

insurer pays 60 percent of total amount of applicable health care facilities’ receivables while the remaining 40 percent will be paid following full compliance to processing requirements. The DCPM is aimed to hasten payments to hospitals. Reimbursements through the DCPM, however, only apply to in-process claims received from March 8, 2020 to April 7, 2021 and claims returned, denied, under investigation and those approved for payment as of April 7, 2021 are not qualified under the DCPM. Domingo said the PhilHealth is also augmenting the human resources claims processors by deploying additional personnel in regions that need augmentation.

were closely coordinating with the Department of Information and Communications Technology for the project. He added they were sending the official lists of inoculated individuals to DICT for the issuance of the unified vaccination certificate. In Pasay City, Mayor Imelda Rubiano said earlier she favored the proposed unified vaccination card that could be used by fully inoculated individuals who need to travel outside Metro Manila. The city government, according to Rubiano, had a database already linked to the DICT for the tracing and verification. She said her administration was also us-

‘Breakthrough... From A1 Among the 116 breakthrough cases, only one fatality was recorded. Domingo said the patient was an elderly male who died of COVID-19. Domingo said there were 91 breakthrough cases among individuals fully vaccinated with Sinovac, 24 among AstraZeneca recipients, and one among Pfizer recipients. No breakthrough infections had so far been recorded from other brands. Domingo said while no vaccine can provide 100 percent protection, the figures showed that the efficacy of the jabs are very high. He said some people still contract COVID-19 despite being fully inoculated against the virus because each person’s level of immunogenicity is different. “We react differently to vaccines,” he said in Filipino. “There will always be breakthrough cases. Not only with COVID vaccines, but with all vaccines for all diseases.” The FDA has yet to collate data on which COVID-19 variants were present in breakthrough cases, he said. The Department of Health (DOH) noted that those who got the virus despite receiving two doses of COVID-19 vaccines were asymptomatic patients or only developed mild symptoms of the disease. “This means vaccines work. We are protected from hospitalization and dying,” Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said. Those who were hospitalized due to adverse events after vaccination may claim up to P100,000 from the Philippine Health Insurance Corp (PhilHealth), she said, noting that these events are “rare.” Those who will be proven to have died or were disabled due to serious adverse events following immunization are entitled to a lump sum of P100,000 from PhilHealth, she said. Meanwhile, a health expert said a booster or third shot of any COVID-19 vaccine can help increase a person’s immunity to the disease, but so far this is not allowed in the Philippines. “There’s enough data abroad that supports a third dose because the immunity goes down after six months. But that is not allowed for now but we also know that that is happening,” said Dr. Nina Gloriani, head of the Vaccine Expert Panel. Gloriani, in an interview on TeleRadyo, said all of the vaccines against COVID-19 approved for use in the Philippines have a good safety profile.

Budget... From A1 resignation made the current situation, including the 2022 national budget, more worrisome. Drilon said he would suggest to Senate President Vicente Sotto III that the Senate go on marathon hearings and sessions. In the House, Speaker Lord Allan Velasco assured the public Avisado’s resignation would not affect the upcoming budget deliberations of the 2022 national expenditures in Congress. At the same time, Velasco expressed belief that Avisado’s replacement, Canda, “will carry on the task and continue its work on the 2022 National Expenditure Program.” The House is expected to receive from Malacañang the 2022 proposed budget next week. Avisado earlier went on medical leave from August 2 to 13 after he was afflicted with COVID-19 and had to undergo examinations. According to Malacanang, Avisado was hospitalized for eight days and went through quarantine for more than a month. Malacanang said Avisado’s resignation was very unfortunate because the government was scrambling to find the money to fund the cash aid to be distributed to affected individuals under the enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) in Metro Manila and other key areas amid the surge in coronavirus cases. data can be digitally documented via an electronic certificate for use in continuity of care or as proof of vaccination for purposes other than health care. The Philippines’ “VaxCertPH” developed by the DICT for the Department of Health relies on the data submitted by LGUs through the Vaccine Information Management System (VIMS). Thus, VaxCertPH is highly reliant on the quality of data collected in the VIMS. “For the system to effectively work, we need data from the LGUs that are complete, accurate, and compliant with the prescribed format for uploading to the system. If we have this, then we can expect both the portal and the mobile app to produce the desired results,” said DICT Secretary Gregorio Honasan II.

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Plastics not the real enemy, says advocate

Firemen don’t need firearms to prevent fire, CHR insists

By Othel V. Campos

By Rio N. Araja THE Commission on Human Rights on Friday rejected a proposed law enabling firemen to carry firearms even as the 18th Congress approved a bill to that effect in the hope of modernizing the Bureau of Fire Protection. CHR spokesperson Jacqueline Ann de Guia said “the commission believes firefighters deserve equal protection in the performance of their mandate but, in extremely tense situations, such as fire in communities, bearing arms might cause more harm than good.” “The mandate of the Bureau of Fire Protection is to prevent and suppress all destructive fires toward saving lives and properties. The inclusion of a provision in the BFP Modernization Bill authorizing more than 2,000 firefighters to carry guns is tangential to this role,” she said. She took into account that in most scenarios, panic and commotion ensue because people are fighting to have their homes and properties prioritized by firefighters. “Arming firemen will not contain fires nor can it enhance the efficiency of the firefighters’ performance of their duties and functions. However, such challenges can be addressed by using the budget for the purchase of guns to buy more firetrucks, hire more firemen, and build more fire stations to respond adequately to residential and non-residential fires,” she said. “If there are sufficient firetrucks and firefighters, civilians during fire will not fight over to grab the water hoses to contain fire in their houses and properties,” she added. She cited the Department of the Interior and Local Government Act of 1990, saying the BFP is required to establish one fire station with adequate fighting facilities and equipment in every province, city and municipality. “Modernizing the BFP should ultimately head toward improving their presence, capacity and delivery of their duty. Providing security in the community is the mandate of law enforcement officers, which the BFP may request from the Philippine National Police based on the Fire Code of the Philippines,” she noted. “At the same time, government should also equally address other challenges in addressing fire incidents, such as road congestion that cause delay in the arrival of firefighters; faithful enforcement of the Fire Code to ensure adherence to standard fire prevention and safety measures; and other operational gaps,” she stressed. According to De Guia, it is the policy of the State to ensure public safety and allow citizens to reach their fullest potentials in life by mitigating barriers, such as destructive fires. “To this end, we urge the government to look deeper into the challenges of upholding this duty to find better match solutions to problems,” she appealed.

TESTING THE WATERS. Environment and Natural Resources (Secretary Roy A. Cimatu drinks water from the Panguil river within the Panguil River Eco Park in Laguna, proving that the river water is clean and potable. This river is recognized as one of the cleanest in the entire Philippines and it has a Class B classification, meaning it is also suitable for bathing.

NSA cites reason to d elist Gabriela By Maricel V. Cruz

T

HE left-leaning Gabriela Women’s Party-list group is allegedly receiving financial assistance from any foreign governments and their agencies.

National Security Adviser Hermogenes Esperon Jr., vice-chairperson of the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict, made the disclosure as he testified before the Commission on Elections in a virtual hearing on the petition to cancel the registration of the said group. The NTF-ELCAC filed a petition to cancel the registration of Gabriel Women’s Party (GWP), Gabriela Assembly Binding Women for Reforms, Integrity, Equality, Leadership and Action (GABRIELA), Inc and the Gabriela Assembly

of Women and Reforms (GAWR) in the Comelec’s party—list system. In his testimony, Esperon said the action of these groups to receive money from any foreign government and agencies is a violation of the Section 2 paragraph 5, Article 9 of the Philippine Constitution which provides that “political parties which receive financial assistance from any foreign government and their agencies, can have their registration with the Comelec cancelled.” The Gabriela has yet to respond to Esperon’s testimony as of press time.

Esperon also made reference to the Rule 2, Section 8 (D) of the Comelec Rules of Procedures which states that “receiving support from any foreign government is one of the grounds for the cancellation of the registration of any political party. “With the continued legal action against GWP, the NSA is exposing the party-list’s willful and deliberate circumvention of the provisions of the Constitution and Comelec rules,” Esperon said in a statement.made available to reporters covering the House of Representatiives. Esperon disclosed that Gabriela is allegedly receiving Belgian financial support, through Belgian accredited NGOs that were subjected to external financial audit by the international accounting firm MAZARS which contracted by the Belgian government to audit or to review the Programs 2014-2016 and 2017-2021.

DOSE OF HOPE. National Task Force against COVID-19 chief implementer and vaccine czar Carlito Galvez Jr. and Presidential Adviser for Entrepreneurship Joey Concepcion welcome the arrival of 575,800 doses of AstraZeneca vaccines at the NAIA Terminal 1 in Pasay City on Friday. The vaccines were procured by the private sector under the ‘A Dose of Hope’ program. Avito C. Dalan

Extradition of former US diplomat in sex raps an ‘acid test’ for PH By Rey E. Requej A TOP ranking official of the Department of Justice’s National Prosecution Service on Friday said that criminal charges filed before the Pasay City Regional Trial Court against the former United States diplomat cannot proceed until he is presented to the court. Prosecutor General Benedicto A. Malcontento, head of the NPS, stressed that the cases against Dean Edward Chevez cannot proceed until he is arrested or extradited. Cheves has been charged by the Pasay

City Prosecutor’s Office with violations of the Child Abuse Law and Child Pornography Law for sexually abusing a 16-yearold Filipina and possessing pornographic materials while stationed at the US Embassy in Manila. Last August 3, Cheves was indicted by a federal grand jury in the Eastern District of Virginia in the US for engaging in illicit sexual conduct in a foreign place and possession of pornography. Since Cheves is in the US, Malcontento said the prosecution is studying what

its next steps will be. “We will discuss it,” he stressed. Justice Undersecretary Emmeline Aglipay-Villar, the undersecretary-incharge of the Inter-Agency Task Force Against Trafficking (IACAT), said the government is working on getting Cheves extradited. Early this week, Justice Secretary Menardo I. Guevarra said the DOJ and the Department of Foreign Affairs ( have been discussing “the proper course of action, considering that Mr. Cheves is also

facing criminal charges in the US for the same acts under US laws.” Guevarra added that the case before the Pasay City RTC did not prompt the indictment of Cheves in the US. “The US authorities quietly conducted their own separate investigation here,” he said. Reports showed that Cheves was caught at his embassy residence in the Philippines with cellular phone videos he took himself engaging in sexual acts with a 16-year-old Filipina he met online.

Naked man at MRT faces deportation

CHECKLIST. Two residents of a barangay in Pasay City check the names in alpha-

betical order of beneficiaries of the financial aid from the government on Friday, August 13, 2021. They are among the people affected by the Enhanced Community Quarantine, which restricts movement of people and allows APOR (authorized persons outside of residence ) and those scheduled to be vaccinated to go out of their residences. Danny Pata

THE Bureau of Immigration said it would deport the foreign national who ran naked along the Metro Rail Transit (MRT) tracks if found illegally staying in the country. BI Commissioner Jaime Morente said they will conduct an investigation into the identity, as well as the status of the foreigner, who, while being checked by security personnel yesterday morning, removed his clothes and jumped towards the tracks heading to the Shaw Boulevard station. “We will check his immigration status in the country, if he is legally staying here. If found to be staying illegally, the man may be sub-

jected to deportation proceedings,” he said. The statement from MRT officials stated that the passenger was apprehended immediately and was endorsed to the Mandaluyong Police Station for. “We will be coordinating with MRT officials to confirm the identity of this man. We have received initial information about him already from the arresting agency,” said Morente. He may only be deported, however, once the cases filed against him have been resolved and he has served his sentence from those cases, if any. Vito Barcelo

THE plastics industry on Friday expressed apprehension over the passing by the lower chamber of House Bill 9147 or the Single-Use Plastic Products Regulation Act, and HB 9171 or the Plastic Tax Act that imposes P20per-kilogram excise tax on plastic bag products. Philippine Plastics Industry Association president Danny Ngo said recyclable plastics such as SUP packaging are bolstering the reduction of impacts of climate change. “Phasing them out and substituting them with the current alternatives is not a true solution, but maybe more damaging than benefiting the environment as well as the economy,” he said. Citing the study, “Life Cycle Impacts of Plastic Packaging Compared to Substitutes in the United States and Canada (Franklin Associates, 2018)”, Ngo noted that plastics materials such as SUPs have the lowest carbon footprint as compared to the more than double carbon footprint of alternatives paper, glass, tin and aluminum. According to the study, shifting to compostable starch-based plastics as provided for in HB 9147must first undergo an in-depth analysis to truly determine their environmental impact. Composting organic material under anaerobic condition has the greater potential to release methane (CH4), a heat-trapping gas that is 24 times more potent than carbon dioxide (CO2). The study also noted that among the factors contributing to environmental corruption, power generation has the highest contribution of greenhouse gas (GHG) emission at 25 percent for the use of coal and fuel oil. This is followed by the combined agriculture, forestry and other land uses sectors at 24 percent due to livestock farming and crop cultivation producing methane gas. While 14 percent is from the transport sector, and 21 percent from the industry sector, where the substitute packaging paper, glass, steel and aluminum have more than double global warming potential than plastics based on life cycle analysis.

Drug-dealing Malaysian duo gets life term THE Supreme Court has affirmed the conviction of two Malaysian nationals who were arrested at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) in 2012 in the act of smuggling illegal drugs tucked in the false bottom of their luggage. In a 17-page decision, the SC’s First Division upheld the Court of Appeals guilty verdict in 2018 and sentenced Tamil Selvi Veloo and N. Chandrar Nadarajan to life imprisonment and a fine of P800,000 each. “In the present case, we note that the total amount of drugs recovered from the Dibola (brand of) bag alone, i.e. four kilos, is hardly miniscule and that the drugs were found packed in heat-sealed containers, thus minimizing the risk of tampering, loss or mistake,” the tribunal said. The court, however, acquitted the two in a second charge involving another bag also containing drugs since it was not in their possession when it was seized. The court said the fact that it was retrieved from a hotel representative outside the airport after more or less than one hour “engenders doubt in the Court’s mind as to the integrity of the contents thereof”. The two were arrested at the NAIA Terminal 2 on June 16, 2012, shortly after they arrived via Philippine Airlines (Flight PR 319) from Hong Kong. At the conveyor belt, Veloo took the black Dibola luggage while Nadarajan took a black Phoenix brand bag. They then queued separately at adjacent lanes at the Customs area. Veloo was asked to open her bag by customs examiner Carol Buenconsejo after she was questioned why her companion was in another lane. A search of the false bottom of the luggage yielded plastic bags containing crystallized granules. Veloo then pointed to Nadarajan and said he was her husband. Nadarajan, who was already outside the Customs exit gate when apprehended, denied they were a couple and said he just met her on the plane. Government agents then retrieved Nadarajan’s suitcase which was already passed on to the alleged hotel representative. Two more kilos of crystallized granules inside six clear plastic packs were recovered from the false bottom of the second recovered bag.

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65-up allowed to go out, file as candidates

News

SATURDAY, AUGUST 14, 2021

Threat to expel Pacquiao mere PDP ‘wild bluff’

SACRED DUTY. A worker carefully installs a banner urging the people to register in front of the Immaculate Conception Cathedral of Cubao in Quezon City on Friday. The nationwide registration for next year’s polls will end on Sept. 30. Robert Oswald P. Alfiler

By Macon Ramos-Araneta THE warning to expel Sen. Manny Pacquiao from the ruling PDP-Laban party is all a “wild bluff” meant to distract the boxing legend from his upcoming world championship bout in Las Vegas on August 21, his supporters said Friday. “This is the first time that a group of Filipinos, because of politics, has organized an effort meant to distract our Pambansang Kamao while he fights in the boxing ring to bring additional honor to our country,” the statement coming from the Pacquiao faction of the Partido Demokratiko Pilipino-Lakas ng Bayan said. “How unpatriotic of this group of politicians,” added the statement issued by Ron Munsayac, executive director of the Pacquiao faction. The faction led by Energy Secretary Alfonso Cusi warned that Pacquiao could be expelled from PDP-Laban due to an alleged effort to convert the People’s Champ Movement (PCM) into a national political party. But the Pacquiao faction said this “desperation of claims” is the “malicious nature of the cause of the usurpers and expelled members of PDP Laban who have no rights or authority whatsoever to represent or lead the Party.” The group noted that the expelled members are leading a group “illegally acting as the leaders of the Party without any basis or authority.” “All their acts are therefore null and void for being in utter violation of the Party Constitution,” the Pacquiao faction added. While not mentioning names, the faction was alluding to Cusi, the newlyelected PDP-Laban President, and party Secretary General Melvin Matibag as the members expelled for pushing the tandem of Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte and President Rodrigo Duterte in next year’s elections.

OWWA: P7.5b needed for OFW repatriation THE Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) will be needing an additional P7.5 billion for the repatriation of overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) displaced by the coronavirus pandemic, its chief said Friday. OWWA Administrator Hans Leo Cacdac said Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello III has requested for the amount to be used to bring home OFWs for the month of September until December. “Our good Secretary Bello has requested for an additional P7.5 billion, which will be utilized for the remainder of the year,” he said in a virtual forum on Friday. The P5.2 billion given to OWWA in June for the repatriation program will be good until next month, Cacdac added. At present, he reported there are 7,500 OFWs in 175 hotel quarantine facilities in Metro Manila and neighboring provinces. As of Friday, a total of 646,912 OFWs have been sent to their home provinces since the government started bringing them back to the country in May last year. The P7.5 billion will be used for food, transport, and hotel expenses, which comprised 70 percent of the budget, Cacdac said, and will cover the period from September 16 to December 31, 2021.

Defense: No sighting of China ship in WPS

T

HERE has been no sighting of any Chinese research vessel near the Bajo de Masinloc (Scarborough Shoal) in the West Philippine Sea, Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana said Friday.

“Contrary to some published reports regarding the Chinese Research Vessel (CRV) Hai Da Hao, the AFP (Armed Forces of the Philippines) Northern Luzon Command has reported that the said vessel has not been spotted near Bajo de Masinloc as alleged,” Lorenzana said in a statement. Based on the verification of the oneyear historical track of the Hai Da Hao, the vessel neither passed through nor entered the area of responsibility of the

Naval Forces Northern Luzon, he added. “In addition, CRV Hai Da Hao is currently monitored at 30 nautical miles south of Huidong Xian, Huizhou Shi, China,” Lorenzana said. Reports quoted Ryan Martinson, an assistant professor at the China Maritime Studies Institute -- US Naval War College, as saying that the Chinese research vessel was recently spotted off the coast of Zambales. In a Twitter post on Wednesday, Mar-

tinson said the Chinese ship “Hai Da Hao” is currently operating “65 nm (nautical miles) east of Scarborough Shoal.” He added that the ship is operated by the China Ocean University. Lorenzana on Thursday said the government would verify these reports as the Department of National Defense will act after maritime patrols in the area are done. “Rest assured that the AFP, through the Northern Luzon Command, undertakes regular domain awareness operations and provides all the necessary support to the Philippine Coast Guard and other agencies to secure and implement our laws in our territorial waters and the EEZ,” he said.

MODERNA JAB. Metropolitan

Manila Development Authority (MMDA) Chairman Benhur Abalos, Pateros Mayor Miguel F. Ponce III, Anti Red Tape Authority Secretary Jeremiah Belgica, and Pateros Administrator Edgar Castillo witness a citizen receiving the first dose of the Moderna coronavirus vaccine at the Pateros Vaccination Center on Friday. Manny Palmero

PEOPLE aged 65 and above who intend to join next year’s national elections will be allowed to go out to file their Certificates of Candidacy (COC) in October despite community quarantines amid the COVID-19 pandemic, Malacañang said on Friday. In a statement, Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque said senior citizens who want to run for a national office would be recognized as “Authorized Persons Outside of Residence (APOR)” from Oct. 1 to 8. This developed after the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATFEID) allowed Filipinos 65 years and older to file their COC before the Commission on Elections (Comelec). “The IATF allowed persons over the age of 65 to go out of their residences to personally file their certificates of candidacy in the national office and designated field offices of the Commission on Elections,” Roque, who also serves as IATF-EID spokesperson, said. Their APOR classification beginning October will be acknowledged, regardless of the community quarantine classification imposed within their respective areas and their vaccination status, Roque said. The Comelec has set the filing of COC for all elective positions for the May 9, 2022 national and local elections from Oct. 1 to 8 this year. Persons aged 65 and above are currently prohibited from leaving their respective residences because of their vulnerability to COVID-19. However, fully-vaccinated senior citizens residing in areas under general community quarantine (GCQ) and modified GCQ (MGCQ) are allowed to leave their homes. The movement of fully-vaccinated seniors is limited to “travel within their zone,” as interzonal travel is still prohibited, except for point-to-point travel that was previously allowed.

Support ailing hog industry, solon tells DA By Maricel V. Cruz A LEGISLATOR on Friday urged the Department of Agriculture (DA) to find ways to support the ailing local hog industry that is still reeling from the effects of the African Swine Fever epidemic. Rizal Rep. Fidel Nograles raised the call in the wake of a non-government organization’s warning that a large number of pork producers have decided to stop repopulating their farms due to low pork prices. The farmers’ group Samahang Industriya ng Agrikultura (SINAG) on Thursday said 30 percent of hog producers have stopped due to the effect of pork importation and the low demand for pork caused by strict quarantine restrictions. “We cannot rely on pork imports forever, and we know that the effects of the quarantine are temporary. We need to find a way to support swine raisers,” said Nograles, an assistant majority leader. The first-term legislator added: “Pork demand will again gain momentum as we are nearing the Christmas season. In just a few weeks, we will enter the ’Ber’ months, and pork is a staple in Noche Buena tables.” “A way to support the hog industry is to help raisers prepare for the expected demand for ham and other pork products. This is consistent with our aim to bring the economy back to its feet,” he added.

Zamora, Velasco top House Public Satisfaction survey by RPMD THE RP- Mission and Development Foundation Inc. (RPMD) has fulfilled its nationwide survey for all congressional district representatives for their overall performances. The “House of Representatives Public Satisfaction Survey” conducted by RPMD is an independent, non-commissioned nationwide survey and performed per district in every region, with a total of 10,000 respondents. The survey was conducted from August 1 to 10 with a margin of error of 3 percent. The Top 10 District Representatives in the National Capital Region (NCR) are

led by Rep. Ronnie Zamora (San Juan City, Lone District) with an 80% rating, followed by Rep. Camille A. Villar (Las Piñas, Lone District) at 71% rating. In third is Rep. Alan Peter S. Cayetano (Taguig-Pateros, 1st District) at 70% rating, 4th is Rep. John Reynald M. Tiangco (Navotas, 1st District) at 68% rating, and in 5th is Rep. Jose Christopher Y. Belmonte (Quezon City, 6th District) at 67% rating. Rep. Dale R. Malapitan (Caloocan City, 1st District) is 6th with 65% rating. In 7th is Rep. Ruffy B. Biazon (Muntinlupa City, Lone District) with 64% rating. With 62% rating in 8th spot is Rep. Eric M. Martinez

(Valenzuela City, 2nd District). Rep. Joy Myra S. Tambunting (Parañaque City, 2nd District) moved to 9th place with a 61% rating while in the 10th position is Rep. Stella Luz A. Quimbo (Marikina City, 2nd District) with 60% rating. The Top 10 District Representatives across the Philippines is led by House Speaker Lord Allan Velasco (Marinduque, Lone District) with 85% job performance rating, followed by Zamora of San Juan City with an 80% mark. Rep. Pablo John F. Garcia (Cebu, 3rd District) is third with 78%, while at 4th

place with 74% rating is Rep. Michaela S. Violago (Nueva Ecija, 2nd District). Rep. Kristine Singson-Meehan (Ilocos Sur, 2nd District) was fifth with 70% vote. Majority Floor Leader Rep. Ferdinand Martin Romualdez (Leyte, 1st District) obtained the 6th spot at 68%, followed by Rep. Rufus B. Rodriguez (Cagayan de Oro City, 2nd District) at 7th with 67% rating. In 8th place is Rep. Paolo Z. Duterte (Davao City, 1st District) while Rep. Evelina G. Escudero (Sorsogon, 1st District) got the 9th spot with 64% rating, and Rep. Rogelio D. Pacquiao (Sarangani, Lone District) with 62% was 10th.

Private schools to continue online learning programs PRIVATE schools are committed to continue with online learning to keep both students and teachers safe as the country battles the spread of the Delta variant. Coordinating Council of Private Educational Associations of the Philippines (COCOPEA) Chair Dr. Anthony Tamayo said online learning has been their main teaching method dur-

ing the pandemic as they adapt to a “better normal.” “COCOPEA member schools are resolved to continue with online learning for this school year. The presidents of the associations that comprise COCOPEA agree that the safety of our students and stakeholders at this time of the pandemic is our paramount concern,” Tamayo said.

At present, COCOPEA member-schools are devoting their resources to online learning including teacher-training and upgrading of their IT infrastructures. “Online learning allows us to keep both our students and teachers safe while accomplishing our mission of delivering quality education,” said Tamayo.

BIG CATCH. A 105-kilo lapu-lapu fish caught in Bulalacao, Oriental Mindoro on Friday barely fits in the tub it’s placed in, to the amusement of the woman and child staring at it. Gregor Andrade

Opinion

Doubts raised on multi-billion reclamation projects his “prolific” portfolio as a PR operator, bragging that it was him who “helped” his clients to seal the deal by using his connections with the government. According to this operator, there is no way to stop the multi-billion Manila Bay reclamation project citing two reasons. First and foremost, he claimed that it was PUBLIC relations basically embark on the a “done deal” after hundreds of millions in practice of managing and disseminating in- pesos representing what appears like more formation from an individual or an organi- of an advanced SOP, were transferred to zation to win the support of the public on a Palace go-to conduits. particular issue or initiative. Although in fairness to him, there is truth With environment projects deemed as to his claims that his principals had already controversial, media operators are usually secured a ‘Notice to Proceed’ and ‘Notice to paid handsomely for Mobilize’ for the projtheir ability to talk ects from the Office of with sense, while calWho is this operator the President. ibrating on which inHe also bragged making sweeping formation to dissemithat not even massive nate or hold on to. daily protests by big claims? However, this unenvironment organiwritten rule seemed zations could delay furthest from the mind the project because all of a media handler who instead of creating decision makers were already sold into it. an impeccable image for his corporate cliThis cunning media operator was also ents, has been bragging about his alleged claiming that the biggest names and orgaconnections to some of the most powerful nizations in the media industry are already people in the country. in their pockets, hence, no one would dare In fact, the multi-billion reclamation assail the flaws of the project. project that was recently awarded to his Wow! The nerve of this man to make a principals is now under intense scrutiny by sweeping claim is something for the entire some anti-graft and corrupt offices. media industry to stand up to. This, after he went around town boastI did some research and I learned that ing to anyone who cared to listen about three big-ticket reclamation projects were

SATURDAY, AUGUST 14, 2021

B1

EDITORIAL

5 things toward self-care Many times, good ideas and possible solutions come to me when I am not stressing myself to get them. I almost always have a small notebook and a pen nearby so when this happens, I write them down lest I forget. There are also times when I fail in things I want achieved. I would spend some time thinking about why, but eventually, I accept AS WE all struggle to keep safe and sane the failure and be content with the thought that during this very difficult time of sickness, another opportunity may be coming my way. I deaths, and grief, self-care is most import- like thinking that when it does, I will be better ant. It’s been almost a year and a half since prepared. COVID-19 struck and many of us, including In spite, and despite, have fun, laugh. There myself, have been stuck indoors for most of the is always something that will make you laugh, time due to the various types of lockdowns and no matter what. The good thing for those who community quarantines imposed on us. We are have internet access is there is a wealth of left to our own devices to cope. content that’s sure to make you smile or laugh Millions of Filipinos have lost jobs and live- heartily, even when alone. lihood. Except for a few, businesses, especially Get into something that you enjoy doing, small and medium enterprises are met with or try something new that you think you will huge losses. Even the middle class is feeling enjoy. You like creating art? Go. You like dancthe economic slowdown and have started dip- ing? Dance your heart out! In my case, I have ping into their savings. again taken up crocheting. It takes my mind Families and friends of those we lost to off my worries, and I can do it while watching COVID-19 and various illnesses that could my favorite Netflix shows. Crocheting is my not be properly attended downtime activity and I to by our overstretched feel accomplished when healthcare providers are I finish a project. These will help still grieving. Yet, we Keep being produccontinue to lose more us survive this tive. This is not just and more Filipinos. This inabout livelihood but in pandemic and start time around, even chilcludes other things that dren are afflicted by the anew. give you the feeling of more deadly Delta varisuccess whether big or ant and parents are more small. Beyond work worried than ever. that brings me some money, I get into personWe are mostly frustrated by how the govern- al projects in areas that I feel passionate about. ment is handling this pandemic. It seems that Philippine history is one. I am still into my the administration is neither doing anything “Roster of Valor” project and presently, there new, nor is improving on initiatives to arrest are already more than 6,000 revolutionists inthe pandemic. It simply continues what it has cluded in my list. Hopefully, there will be at been doing all along including efforts that have least 10,000 by the time this pandemic is over. been proven to be ineffective. It just restricts I have also taken up being a “plantita” and people’s movement and nothing more than the now manage my small “jungle” in and around usual. This distrust and frustration significantly my home. I did not know that a new leaf, or contribute to people’s worries and uncertain- a flower bud can be a source of such joy. So ties. whether it is about finishing a book, rearrangNot surprisingly, many of us are feeling ing furniture or redecorating your home, or depressed and anxious. Mental health is now finally doing that kitchen shelf that you have a major concern alongside people’s physical always wanted to do, get to it. You will feel health. A friend rightly said that wallet health good about yourself. is a big problem as well. Stay connected. Whether it’s family, friends, We should try to weather this problem or your community, never lose the connection. collectively and individually. We exert effort Initiate conversation. Find out how they are dotowards self-care and look after each other’s ing. Exchange notes on things you have “dishealth and wellbeing at the same time. Self- covered”. We all need to remain connected, to care comes first because we will not be able belong. Do not let this pandemic break familes, to care for others if we are not well in the first friendships, and relationships. Remember, we place. Contrary to what some may say, there can draw strength from each other. Nothing is nothing selfish about first making sure that beats the feeling of being together despite the one is okay. physical distance we must keep. I do not know about others but as far as Lastly, look good. This is really for your own self-care goes, I have been navigating this un- self-esteem. With almost everything done online, charted pandemic territory mostly through gut- it is very easy to neglect how we look. In my feel. This, of course, is besides the established case, I try to look good for myself. Wear that nice protocols, learning from my own readings, and dress to an online meeting. I have yet to do it, but what doctors in my family say. I would like to I would like to wear heels to “go to work” which share some of the few things I have been do- is literally stepping out of my bedroom these days. ing and so far found effective in preventing my When I look good, I feel good and confident. I can frustrations from hitting the roof. beat COVID-19. So, go on, put on that nice coat, Do not be too hard on yourself. It is okay those shiny shoes, and hit that “join meeting” tab. if you are unable to push yourself to finish to- Wow them all. Because, why not? do tasks. Sometimes, the mind goes blank and I read somewhere that these days, it is such simply refuses to do what you want. At times a big privilege to be alive and therefore, we like this, I stop working and do something that might as well do things we like. Self-care will does not require me to think or analyze much. help us survive this pandemic and start anew. This ranges from playing games on my phone, watching funny videos, reading, or simply do@bethangsioco on Twitter Elizabeth ing NOTHING. Angsioco on Facebook

mst.daydesk@gmail.com

O

Day of the Youth

NLY the other day, on August 12, governments and citizens around the world marked International Youth Day and once more brought attention to the problems faced by those in the 15-24 or 18-30 age bracket.

2022, when a new national leadership would be chosen by the projected more than 60 million registered voters from the 110 million population. The National Youth Commission has stressed now and then its three objectives: Improved enabling conditions for youth participation in governance, soci-

Beyond doubt, the youth, in the Philippine setting, nearly 40 percent of the already registered voters for the May 2022 elections, can be a positive force for development with the knowledge and opportunities they need to use in the runup to the right of suffrage. Worldwide, there are 1.2 billion young people aged 15 to 24 years, accounting for 16 percent of the global population, with projections suggesting that by 2030 the number of youth would have grown by 7 percent to nearly 1.3 billion. Back home, the youth of the Philippines, as defined by the National Youth Commission, are facing challenges, particularly this time of the coronavirus pandemic and the forthcoming general elections in May

The country’s future is in their hands. ety and development; Increased contribution of and benefit for the youth in the attainment of MidTerm Development goals; Improved access to quality basic services and social protection through enabling policies. Today, the Filipino youth stand at the crossroads of the country’s history, the challenges high on their eye range, as they mobilize their force to help battle against the pandemic – with infections

and deaths rising, with their acquired talent and other skills while confronting the challenges of volunteerism. Note, for instance, that in the Philippines, which has the largest generation of young people in its history, 30 million young people between the ages of 10 and 24 account for 28 percent of the population: 68 percent of the interviewed youth indicated their participation in political matters is that of a follower and 62 percent said they seldom act as the leader-initiator of resolutions. Only one out of four youth indicated that they are protest-initiators or activists in political issues, the majority (89 percent) of the young people feel that they have to be informed, involved, and consulted by adults and youth leaders on matters related to youth development. The youth can properly be a positive force in helping disseminate the importance of participation in the presidential elections next year. They owe it to themselves and the generations after them to encourage people to register and vote. The country’s future is in their hands.

The opposition can only talk of its own blunder THE proper approach to constructive politics is for the opposition to talk of its achievements. They should stop ranting about the failures of the past administration. Otherwise, it would reveal they have done nothing during their time. The people should not be fed negative thoughts; in the end, it means the promotion of anarchy. We have to prepare our people for what is in store for them. The opposition should not act as prophets of Casandra for that would expose just how illogical they are. Right now, everything that comes out from their mouth is their negative indictment of the government. They remain the worst patrons of Philippine politics. Their ideological fealty to the US is emblematic of their subservience. Take for instance the Liberal Party. It was this party then headed by Manuel Roxas that was entrusted to govern after the grant of political independence in 1946. The Liberal Party has a benign reason why it continues to lambast those in power. It has become their sort of political preoccupation. Manuel Roxas was the president when our independence was inaugurated. As head, he practically signed everything like the grant of unlimited hectarage and number of US bases with a retention cap of up to 99 years, accepted the measly amount of war damage compensation, and failed to make strong representation to include the Philippines in the economic rehabilitation of the US. The Nacionalista Party and other political parties organized by maverick political leaders worked doubly hard to put meaning and substance to our independence. Founded by Sergio Osmeña who succeeded Quezon after his death in New York. Osmeña promised to work for the interest of the Filipino people but his term was cut short by his defeat to Roxas whom many suspect to have collaborated with the Japanese puppet government. Elpidio Quirino, another Liberal, succeeded Roxas. His administration was characterized as corrupt and the Americans were upset because of the rising communist insurgency. An American operative made sure that Quirino is replaced by Ramon Magsaysay to continue the colonial relationship of the two countries. Magsaysay was neither pro-Liberal nor pro-Nacionalista Party. He simply earned his merit as an anti-communist crusader. His image was built by a CIA agent named Edward indeed already awarded by the government. These projects were awarded to Teresita Sy-Coson’s SM Prime Holdings, Dennis Uy’s Pasay Harbor City Corp. and William Sebastian Gonzales’ Manila Goldcoast Development Corp. Interestingly, Gonzales is believed to be a dummy for El Shaddai’s Mike Velarde. If you wish to know who this operator is, here are some clues. He isn’t in any way related to former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo.

Lansdale. It is not clear whether Magsaysay joined the Liberal Party. Historians like the late Alejandro Lichauco believed he was more sympathetic to the Nacionalista Party for the fact that he chose Carlos Garcia as his running mate in the 1953 election. Some suspect there was foul play in the plane crash that killed him. After succeeding Magsaysay in 1957, Garcia exhibited an obtuse policy towards the US. He was the first Nacionalista Party member to be elected president. He introduced nationalistic economic reforms like the fixing of the currency at 2:1 to the US dollar, adopted the “Filipino First Policy” and introduced the import substitution to lessen our dependence on imported goods.

The people should not be fed negative thoughts. The clappers of US imperialism denounced Garcia by accusing his administration of being brazenly corrupt. The opposition never raised the issue of martial law during the Quirino administration because that could tarnish their image as consummate US lackeys. Graft and corruption have consistently been an issue in Philippine politics, yet nobody talked about it during the Aquino administration. The corruption allegedly committed during the Marcos and Duterte administrations were often highlighted to arouse unreasonable hatred against the government they want to control. Of the thousand charges they filed against the Marcoses, not a single case has prospered. They did not even bother to present a comparison, for that would expose they achieved nothing. Lacson and Robredo are typical politicians using the anti-China line of the US. As usual, they want to ingratiate themselves at a time when US-China relations is at its lowest level. They focus their attacks on discrediting the Duterte administration, zeroing in on his government’s wasteful expenditures. The opposition ignores the truth that the accomplishment of the Marcos and Duterte administrations would dwarf the two Aquino administrations but somehow avoid talking about them, for obviously that could expose their deceit. Maybe it would be taxing to our people to ask what the Liberal Party has accomplished. Some estimate the Noynoy Aquino administration spent a total of P9 trillion or an average

of P1.4 trillion a year. The total acquisition of those second-hand US military equipment indicates that we in fact subsidized the budget of that bankrupt empire. The rest went to the giving of dole called “conditional cash transfer” for the “poor” but encouraged instead mendicancy among our people, made a huge payment for the Smartmatic to make our electoral system a farce, and the bulk went to paying the salaries and allowances of cronies appointed to juicy positions by the corrupt administration. We even paid to the tune of P370 million to American lawyers only to hand us a worthless decision to satisfy the ego of Del Rosario and Carpio. The privatization of the country’s energy industry was consummate. That included the disposition of the country’s dams and irrigation system. Yet, not one Liberal Party explained that the privatization by a Spaniard is the reason why our farmers chose to import instead of plant rice. Since the National Power Corp. (NPC) was already mired in debt due to the closure of the Bataan Nuclear Power Plant, the past administration opted to cut to pieces the industry, beginning in the disposition of the transmission grid to create the NGCP. The law creating the NGCP promised to reduce the cost of electricity, and make it more efficient to the consumers. Alas, nothing happened, and the Yellows are still blaming the Duterte government for deflecting what they had committed. The Catholic Church likewise ignores it was instrumental in converting the country to a theocratic and feudalistic state. Nobody dared open his mouth that it was their yellow minions that extended to the Church tax exemption on their real estate property, exemption on their operated schools and universities, exemption on donations, inheritance and transfer tax, and exemption on their operated foundations. The Church is silent because they benefited much in the conversion of our educational system to an elitist school for the rich. This explains why the clerics are fighting tooth and nail to defend the theocratic Cory Constitution. Many could sense Duterte has changed the tone of his demand for the US bases to vacate. The threat of being hauled to the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague for alleged extrajudicial killings and human rights violations now looms as America’s blackmail to force him to toe the line. Some believe Duterte is having a hard time scouting a running mate. The US cannot directly intervene, it not being a member of the ICC, but surely can pressure its allies to nail him. The LPs are salivating to see him handed over to the ICC. rpkapunan@gmail.com

He was fired as public relations man of a government project for his failure to properly liquidate millions of pesos worth of media budget. He also used to work for a big multi-national company engaged in beauty and household products. But wait, there’s more. He alone couldn’t do such a trick. He’s got a partner whose name sounds more like that of a teenage star from German Moreno’s That’s Entertainment.

This other operator is the subject of several newspaper column pieces sometime in 2019 for dubious schemes. What he did then was to approach narco-politicians to whom he offered help in the form of striking out their names on the dubious list – at cost. With the kind of media handlers that this corporate giant has, they were clearly putting the multi-billion reclamation project in jeopardy because of their unsavory reputations.

Let the axe fall on Globe

Mistakes in the Marcos protest

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Rolando G. Estabillo Publisher ManilaStandard

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World

CELESTIAL BODIES. The Milky Way galaxy is pictured as a Perseid meteor streaks across the sky

above the Negev desert near the Israeli city of Mitzpe Ramon on August 13, 2021, during a yearly meteor shower which occurs when the earth passes through the cloud of debris left by the comet Swift-Tuttle. AFP

China rejects new WHO virus probe

C

HINA on Friday rejected the World Health Organization’s calls for a renewed probe into the origins of COVID-19, saying it supported “scientific” over “political” efforts to find out how the virus started. Pressure is once more mounting on Beijing to consider a fresh probe into the origins of a pandemic which has killed more than four million people and paralyzed economies worldwide since it first emerged in the central Chinese city of Wuhan. A delayed and heavily politicized visit by a WHO team of international experts went to Wuhan in January 2021 to produce a first phase report, which was written in conjunction with their Chinese counterparts. It failed to conclude how the virus began. On Thursday, the WHO urged China to share raw data from the earliest COVID-19

cases to revive its probe into the origins of the disease. China hit back, repeating its position that the initial investigation was enough and that calls for further data were motivated by politics instead of scientific inquiry. “We oppose political tracing ... and abandoning the joint report” issued after the WHO expert team’s Wuhan visit in January, vice foreign minister Ma Zhaoxu told reporters. “We support scientific tracing.” That report said the virus jumping from bats to humans via an intermediate animal was the most probable scenario, while a leak from Wuhan’s virology labs was “extremely unlikely.” Ma rejected suggestions of new lines of investigation. “The conclusions and recommendations of the WHO and China joint report were recognised by the international community and the scientific community,” he said. “Future global traceability work should and can only be further carried out on the basis of this report, rather than starting a new one.” AFP

IN BRIEF Researchers start ‘Long COVID’ data

SNAPPED INTO TWO. This handout photo taken and released on August 13, 2021 by Japan’s 2nd Regional Coast Guard Headquarters shows the Panamanian-registered Crimson Polaris ship running aground in Hachinohe, Aomori prefecture. The cargo ship broke into two, with all the 21 crew members – Chinese and Filipino – taken to safety. AFP

Sokor sailor found dead after alleged sexual abuse A FEMALE South Korean navy chief petty officer was found dead at her base, Seoul’s defense ministry said Friday, with local media reporting she had been sexually assaulted by a superior – the latest such incident in the South Korean military. Public anger is mounting over a series of similar incidents in South Korea, which maintains a conscript army to defend itself against nuclear-armed North Korea. An air force master sergeant went on trial Friday on charges of sexually assaulting a colleague who

THE quest to unravel the mysteries behind Long COVID took a step forward with the launch of an internationally-coordinated attempt to capture standardised data on the condition. The World Health Organization and the International Severe Acute Respiratory and emerging Infection Consortium announced a project to amass a so-called core outcome set (COS) to help build up a better picture of postCOVID conditions. In a statement via the WHO, ISARIC said Long COVID, which remains one of the lesserunderstood aspects of the pandemic, was an “emerging global healthcare crisis.” Little is known about why some people, after coming through the acute phase of infection, struggle to recover and suffer ongoing symptoms including shortness of breath, extreme fatigue and brain fog as well as cardiac and neurological disorders. Despite a “significant portion” of COVID-19 cases going on to suffer from Long COVID, “the evidence for this condition is limited and based on small patient cohorts with shortterm follow-up,” ISARIC said. AFP

US: Boosters for weakened immune systems OK’d

took her own life after her complaints were ignored. South Korea’s air force chief resigned over the issue in June, and the defense minister offered a public apology, saying he “feels a heavy sense of responsibility.” The navy chief petty officer’s body was found on Thursday. According to media reports, she had complained in May that she had been abused by a senior colleague at a restaurant, but her allegation was not passed up the chain of command or investigated until this month. AFP

THE United States on Thursday authorized an extra dose of COVID vaccine for people with weakened immune systems, as the country struggles to thwart the Delta variant. Emergency use authorization for a third injection of the Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna vaccines was granted by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulator. “The country has entered yet another wave of the COVID-19 pandemic, and the FDA is especially cognizant that immunocompromised people are particularly at risk for severe disease,” said acting FDA Commissioner Janet Woodcock in a statement. “Other individuals who are fully vaccinated are adequately protected and do not need an additional dose of COVID-19 vaccine at this time,” she added. The FDA said the additional dose was for solid organ transplant recipients or those with equivalent weakened immune systems. US health authorities had been debating whether a third dose may be required, following a similar move by Israel. AFP

Orc-ward: Amazon ends NZ’s Middle Earth role

(MS-AUG. 14, 2021)

AMAZON on Friday dumped New Zealand as the location of its big-budget “The Lord of The Rings” series after just one season, in a major blow to the South Pacific’s self-styled Middle Earth. Officials in Wellington had hoped multiple seasons of the show would give the local film industry a long-term boost simi-

lar to Kiwi director Peter Jackson’s epic Tolkien movies. With an eye on post-pandemic travel, they were also banking on footage of New Zealand’s rugged beauty to again spark a tourism boom among fantasy fans. But with shooting on season one recently completed and set to premiere in September 2022,

Amazon announced production of the next season would move to Britain. “We want to thank the people and the government of New Zealand... for providing The Lord of the Rings series with an incredible place to begin this epic journey,” Amazon Studios vice-president Vernon Sanders said. AFP

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Swiss Re says disaster losses reached $77b in first half of 2021

PSEi August 13, 2021

TOP GAINERS LAST PRICE

% CHANGE CHANGE

1 2

ACEN APC

9.4 0.35

0.58 0.015

6.58% 4.48%

3

GMA7

13.88

0.54

4.05%

4 5

SECB KPH

117 5.4

4.5 0.2

4.00% 3.85%

6

PHN

13.5

0.5

3.85%

7

MER

290

10

3.57%

8

BKR

1.25

0.04

3.31%

9 10

BPI CEI

84.8 0.129

2.7 0.004

3.29% 3.20%

TOP LOSERS LAST PRICE

% CHANGE CHANGE

1 2

LRW MACAY

0.39 5.18

-0.21 -2.05

-35.00% -28.35%

3

PRIM

2.11

-0.34

-13.88%

4

OPMB

0.011

-0.001

-8.33%

5 6

BLOOM MFIN

5.29 2.72

-0.48 -0.24

-8.32% -8.11%

7

AGI

9

-0.78

-7.98%

8 9 10

MB SMC PHA

0.405 102.3 1.21

-0.035 -8.7 -0.09

-7.95% -7.84% -6.92%

MOST ACTIVE 1

ACEN

VOLUME 362265300

VALUE (PHP) 3335839129

2 3

CNVRG EMP

102091500 115994500

2836877850 1426000210

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DMC ALI

160940200 17686500

948176219 568073755

6 7

MER AC

1819520 699680

524801732 498598675

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29126400 11078100

455261510 369714175

10

SM

351400

325940975

ON PAROLE. Lee Jae-yong (second from left), jailed de facto leader of the giant Samsung Group, walks out as he is released early on parole at the Seoul Detention Center in Uiwang on August 13, 2021. AFP

Stocks plunge; Jollibee, SM Investments tumble S HARE prices sank Friday on a report that the Department of Health was favoring an extension of the current two-week lockdown to five weeks to effectively curb the spread of COVID-19.

The Philippine Stock Exchange Index plunged 236.38 points, or 3.6 percent, to 6,320.19 on a value turnover of P14.4 billion. Losers overwhelmed gainers, 134 to 63, with 45 issues unchanged. SM Investments Corp. of the Sy Group slumped 6.8 percent to P912, while Jollibee Foods Corp., the biggest fast-food chain, tumbled 6.2 percent to P182. Major property developer Ayala Land Inc. of the Ayala Group fell 5 percent to P31.70, but sister unit AC Energy Corp. climbed 6.6 percent to P9.40.

The rest of Asian markets fell Friday as a broadly positive week drew to a close with investors pricing in the likelihood that Federal Reserve officials will start withdrawing the vast financial support put in place at the start of the pandemic. The fast-spreading Delta virus variant, which is forcing governments to introduce containment measures, and the Chinese government’s campaign to tighten its grip on the world’s number two economy were also playing on sentiment. Wall Street’s three main indexes ended at record highs again Thursday but Asia struggled to follow suit. Tokyo, Hong Kong, Shanghai, Singapore, Seoul, Taipei, Bangkok and Jakarta all fell. Sydney and Wellington rose while Mumbai hit a new record, with the Sensex breaking above 55,000 points for the first time. Data on Thursday showed US producer prices rose more than twice as much

as forecast on-month in July, while the annual rate hit a record, reinforcing traders’ belief that the blockbuster economic recovery was putting huge pressure on inflation. The figures ramped up expectations the Fed, in a bid to prevent overheating, will start reducing its colossal bond-buying program earlier than it had thought. “Global investors are assessing the implications of the spread of the Delta virus, the possible tapering by the Fed, and China’s clampdown,” said Geir Lode, of Federated Hermes. “With equity markets almost doubling since the start of the pandemic and a bull market lasting over a decade, investors are questioning how far the bull market can rally.” “We therefore think that the inflation risk is on the upside and that the Fed will start tapering at the end of the year,” he added. With AFP

Dutch lead way with biggest number of electric car charging stations By Charlotte Van Ouwerkerk ROTTERDAM, Netherlands—They are best known for bike-riding, but the climate-vulnerable Dutch are leading the way for electric cars with the largest number of charging stations in Europe. Teslas and other vehicles can be seen plugged in on practically every street corner thanks to a network of some 75,000 stations—nearly a third of the entire EU total. Investing to put enough charging stations in the reach of drivers is crucial for countries that have set targets for an all-electric car future. For Nienke Bergsma, the lightbulb moment when she decided to buy an electric car came when four charging posts were installed at the bottom of her Rotterdam road. Bergsma, a 37-year-old mature student living in the center of the port city, said she had wanted to “contribute to the protection of the environment.” While it was a headache at first to get used to the rhythm of charging, she said she was now “very happy” to have taken the leap. Around one in every five of the 400,000 new cars sold annually in the Netherlands is now electric, due partly to tax breaks and other incentives during the last decade. But the Dutch government has also ensured that drivers have the infrastructure to support efforts to kick the addiction to fossil fuels.

This file photo taken on January 19, 2021 shows the Prima 500 electric car, manufactured by Fiat, which is part of the Stellantis group (Abarth, Lancia, Fiat, Alfa Romeo and Jeep), at the entrance of the Fiat Mirafiori car plant in Turin, northern Italy. Lancia and Alfa Romeo will become 100 percent electric in 2026 and 2027, Stellantis announced on August 3, 2021. AFP

With one-third of the Netherlands lying below sea-level, the country is particularly at risk from climate change, which UN experts this week warned was at “code red.” ‘Encourage people’ The Dutch government wants all new cars to be electric from 2030 in the Netherlands, where road traffic accounts for a fifth of greenhouse gas

emissions. Despite its environmentalist image, the Netherlands is one of the EU’s top five emitters, and has more cars per capita than France or Greece. Prime Minister Mark Rutte—his VVD party is nicknamed the ‘vroomvroom’ party due to long-time pro-car policies—only reversed course in recent years after court victories by climate

groups that said the Netherlands was breaching EU rules. Whatever the reasons, the trend is catching on, with the Netherlands proving particularly well-suited to electric vehicles. Fully-charged, Nienke Bergsma’s Volvo has a range of 400 kilometers (240 miles), a distance that the environment and natural sciences student practically never travels. Short distances in one of Europe’s smallest and most densely populated countries and a high-quality road network “encourage people to take up electric motoring,” said Maarten van Biezen, co-leader of the Association of Electric Motoring (VER). The Dutch began to encourage electric cars “very early,” in 2012, far sooner than Paris or Berlin, he said. In addition to the 75,000 public charging stations, around 190,000 Dutch people have their own charging post at home. ‘Frustrating’ Around 30 percent of Europe’s electric vehicle charging points are in the Netherlands, according to the European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association. France and Germany, the EU’s biggest countries, round out the top three, each accounting for 20 percent of the bloc. “No other country has the same density of charging points as the Netherlands,” the Dutch government business agency RVO said. AFP

Hacker dubbed ‘Mr White Hat’ to return entire $600-m stolen crypto fortune PARIS, France—Cryptocurrency investors have been transfixed over the past few days by the antics of a mysterious hacker who stole more than $600 million—before gradually giving it back. But was the thief a good samaritan who stole the money to expose a dangerous security flaw, or did they simply realize they were about to be caught? The hacker struck Poly Network, a company that handles cryptocurrency transfers, on Tuesday in one of the biggest thefts of digital monies in history. But by Thursday the perpetrator had given back almost all of the stolen funds in a slow trickle of transactions. In messages embedded in the transfers, the thief insisted the money had been stolen with good intentions. “I am not very interested in money!” the hacker wrote, adding it was “always the plan” to return the funds. Despite their volatility and concerns over the huge

waste of electricity they generate, cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and Ethereum have soared in popularity in recent years. Their combined market value currently stands at nearly $2 trillion, creating alluring prospects for hackers. Most notoriously, thieves stole 850,000 Bitcoins from Japanese exchange Mt. Gox in 2014. Worth around $470 million at the time, the coins would today be worth a staggering $38 billion. Another Japanese exchange, Coincheck, was hacked for nearly $500 million in 2018. But in both cases, the technology that cryptocurrency uses allowed some of the funds to be traced—even though for Mt. Gox, it came too late to save the company. Cryptocurrencies use blockchains, digital ledgers that record every transaction made. Pawel Aleksander, an expert in tracking stolen

cryptocurrency, said thieves typically try to cover their tracks by splitting the money up and moving it around—“sometimes using hundreds of thousands of consecutive transactions.” But his company Coinfirm is among a growing number that specialize in following dizzyingly complicated blockchain transactions, helping law enforcement agencies and investors to trace stolen assets. While many crypto-aficionados are hailing the Poly hacker as a principled hero, others suspect they began handing the money back because sleuths were on their trail. The returns began after SlowMist, another investigative firm, claimed to have identified some of the hacker’s personal details, including their email address. “It’s hard to say what the hacker’s initial intention was,” said Aleksander’s colleague Roman Bieda. AFP

ZURICH. Switzerland—Total losses caused by natural and man-made disasters hit an estimated $77 billion in the first half of 2021, Swiss reinsurance giant Swiss Re said Thursday. The Zurich-based group, which acts as an insurer for insurers, said severe weather events including winter storm Uri in the United States and June storms in Germany and its neighbors pushed up the losses. “Of the total estimated economic losses in the first half of 2021, $74 billion were caused by natural catastrophes, while man-made disasters triggered an additional $3 billion,” Swiss Re said in a statement. The reinsurer said that extreme heat in June shattered temperature records in western North America, which led to wildfires in southern California. “The effects of climate change are manifesting in warmer temperatures, rising sea levels, more erratic rainfall patterns and greater weather extremes,” said Martin Bertogg, Swiss Re’s head of catastrophe perils. “Taken together with rapid urban development and accumulation of wealth in disaster-prone areas, secondary perils such as winter storms, hail, floods or wildfires lead to ever higher catastrophe losses.” At $77 billion, the total economic losses are lower than the $114 billion toll for the first half of last year, and lower than then the 10-year average of $108 billion. However, the cost of those losses to insurers are set to be higher. At $40 billion, estimated insured losses from natural catastrophes at are the second-highest on record for a first half—the highest being 2011, when major earthquakes in Japan and New Zealand pushed the six-month total to $104 billion. The figure is 13 percent higher than 12 months ago. Uri, which hit the United States in February with the cold snap reaching as far as Texas, cost $15 billion in insured losses. The June storms in Europe generated costs estimated at $4.5 billion for insurers. Man-made disasters triggered another estimated $2 billion of insured losses in the first half of 2021, less than usual and likely reflecting remaining COVID-19 restrictions, said Swiss Re. Going into the second half of the year, July saw severe flooding cause property destruction and loss of life in Europe and China. AFP

Online fashion group Boohoo eyes 5,000 jobs LONDON, United Kingdom— British online fashion group Boohoo said Thursday that it plans to create 5,000 jobs over five years, more than doubling the number of employees after the pandemic fueled online shopping. The new jobs, on top of around 3,500 already employed by the group, will be a result of expansion to its warehousing and new IT systems, Boohoo said in a statement. Boohoo added that it plans to invest £500 million ($696 million, 587 million euros) on its UK operations over the next five years. “The investments will help the company continue the incredible growth it has experienced since launching 15 years ago, expanding from a single brand in 2006 to a group of 13 world class brands today,” it added. Boohoo in January bought the intellectual property assets of collapsed UK department store Debenhams, allowing it to use its brand. Since the start of the year, it has also bought key fashion brands Burton, Wallis and Dorothy Perkins from Arcadia. Both Arcadia and Debenhams collapsed at the end of last year, having struggled to compete with online fashion brands like Boohoo long before the COVID pandemic and subsequent lockdowns forced their eventual demise. The past year has not been all good news for Boohoo, however, after it was hit by allegations that one of its suppliers in England paid workers much less than the national minimum wage. Boohoo suppliers were meanwhile accused also of underpaying staff in Pakistan. AFP

Ray S. Eñano, Editor Roderick T. dela Cruz, Assistant Editor business@manilastandard.net extrastory2000@gmail.com

B4

SATURDAY, AUGUST 14, 2021

PSE INDEX CLOSING Friday, August 13, 2021

-236.38 PTS. 6,320.19

TOTAL VOLUME TOTAL TRADES TOTAL VALUE ADVANCES DECLINES UNCHANGED

1,932,200,191 92,868 14,360,066,092.51 63 134 45

F oreign e xchange r ate Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas • FRIDAY, AUGUST 13, 2021

Currency

Unit

US Dollar

Peso

United States

Dollar

1.000000

50.3930

Japan

Yen

0.009057

0.4564

UK

Pound

1.381400

69.6129

Hong Kong

Dollar

0.128513

6.4762

Switzerland

Franc

1.083189

54.5851

Canada

Dollar

0.798531

40.2404

Singapore

Dollar

0.736431

37.1110

Australia

Dollar

0.733600

36.9683

Bahrain

Dinar

2.652450

133.6649

Saudi Arabia

Rial

0.266652

13.4374

Brunei

Dollar

0.733730

36.9749

Indonesia

Rupiah

0.000070

0.0035

Thailand

Baht

0.029994

1.5115

UAE

Dirham

0.272272

13.7206

Euro

Euro

1.173300

59.1261

Korea

Won

0.000861

0.0434

China

Yuan

0.154342

7.7778

India

Rupee

0.013457

0.6781

Malaysia

Ringgit

0.236351

11.9104

New Zealand

Dollar

0.700100

35.2801

Taiwan

Dollar

0.035984

1.8133 Source: BSP

Pilipinas Shell swung to P2.2-b profit in first half

Business IMF: Lockdown, virus surge carry downside risks on PH T By Julito G. Rada

HE International Monetary Fund warned Friday that the uptick in COVID-19 cases and the possibility of a longer lockdown in Metro Manila and adjacent provinces present significant downside risks on the Philippine economy. IMF resident representative to the Philippines Yongzheng Yang said in an online briefing his team was monitoring the developments on the latest containment measures implemented by the government to contain the spread of the virus, including the new Delta variant, from Aug. 6 to 20. “This current uptick [in new infections] is a downside risk... The [IMF] team is closely monitoring what is going on... It is a significant downside risk and we have to see how this affects mobility and PMI [Purchasing Managers Index],” Yang said, referring to a gauge of manufacturing. Yongzheng said while the containment measures or lockdowns became smarter, more targeted and had less im-

pact on economic activity, they could still affect production. “But it is [still] a downside risk that we should bear in mind...,” Yang said. The IMF in its report in June reduced the 2021 growth forecast for the Philippines to 5.4 percent from 6.9 percent previously, taking into account the surge in new COVID-19 cases in April which could slow economic recovery. An IMF team led by Thomas Helbling conducted virtual discussions with officials of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas, the economic cluster of the government and other public and private sector representatives about the Philippine economy for the 2021 Article IV Consultation

from May 21 to June 11, 2021. The IMF, however, raised its 2022 growth forecast to 7 percent from 6.5 percent made in April 2021. Yang did not say if there would be a downward GDP revision for the Philippines if the ECQ in Metro Manila and adjacent provinces would be extended. He said in a presentation that the economy’s rebound would continue in the second half and in 2022, aided by the faster pace of vaccination, substantial economic policy support and a stronger global recovery. “The economy could recover faster than expected if quarantine measures could be eased sooner, especially if reinforced by faster progress in vaccination,” Yang said. The economy rebounded strongly in the second quarter by growing 11.8 percent, the fastest since the 12-percent increase in the fourth quarter of 1988, partly due to base effect. This was a significant recovery from the 3.9-percent contraction in the first quarter and the 17-percent drop a year ago.

By Alena Mae S. Flores PILIPINAS Shell Petroleum Corp. posted a P2.2-billion net income in the first half, rebounding from a P6.74-billion net loss in the same period last year, on the recovery of businesses as the government rolled out initiatives to reopen the economy. “The company reported a net income of P2.2 billion as a result of strong marketing delivery supported by inventory holding gains net of the offsetting adjustments from the implementation of the Corporate Recovery and Tax Incentives for Enterprises Act,” Pilipinas Shell said in a disclosure to the stock exchange Friday. Shell also posted a net income of P1.199 billion in the second quarter, a reversal of the P1.195-billion net loss it incurred in the same period last year. “We’re seeing a significant rebound from our P6.7-billion loss in the same period last year. It validates our bold decision to transform the way we do business amidst uncertain conditions resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic,” Pilipinas Shell president and chief executive Cesar Romero said in a statement. Sales climbed to P82.232 billion in the first six months from P74 billion a year earlier on higher pump prices and strong marketing delivery. Sales in the second quarter also went up to P42.312 billion from P25.657 billion. Cost of sales declined to P70.756 billion in the first six months from P75.920 billion in the same period last year. The company said in the second quarter, cost of sales improved to P36.819 billion from P24.521 billion a year ago. The Mean of Platts Singapore product prices went up to $80 per barrel as of end-June from $53 a barrel as of end-December 2020. Pilipinas Shell attributed the strong showing in the first six months not only to supply chain strategy but also to its strong marketing performance, while ensuring the financial strength and resilience of its business via a strong balance sheet and prudent cost and capex management. Pilipinas Shell inaugurated the Shell Import Facility Tabangao on June 30, marking the transformation of its refinery into a world-class import terminal to meet fuel demand in Metro Manila, Southern Luzon and Northern Visayas.

DEFENSIL’S DONATION.

In line with its commitment to help Filipinos live safey, Defensil Isopropyl Alcohol donates reusable personal protective equipment and Defensil 70% Isopropyl Alcohol to several vaccination sites in Muntinlupa, San Juan and Pasig. As more and more Filipinos get their vaccines, Defensil Isopropyl Alcohol helps ensure frontliners and priority groups remain protected through proper sanitation.

Foreign reserves bounced back to $106.55b in July THE gross international reserves recovered in July to $106.55 billion following a drop in June, data from the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas show. Forex reserves increased by $790 million from $105.76 billion in June, reflecting the inflows from the national government’s net foreign currency deposits with the BSP, which included proceeds from the issuance of ROP global bonds and upward adjustment in the value of the gold holdings due to the increase in the price of gold in the international market. “These were partly offset, however, by the outflows from the national government’s payments of its foreign currency debt obligations and the BSP’s foreign exchange operations,” the BSP said. Data showed that on a year-onyear basis, the GIR also went up from $98.6 billion registered in July 2020. The reserves hit a record high of $110.1 billion in December last year, before tapering off in the subsequent months as the government settled some of its maturing foreign debt. The BSP said the latest GIR level represented a more than adequate external liquidity buffer equivalent to 12.1 months’ worth of imports of goods and payments of services and primary income. It is also about 7.7 times the country’s short-term external debt based on original maturity and 5.1 times based on residual maturity. Meanwhile, the net international reserves, which refer to the difference between the GIR and total short-term liabilities, increased $790 million to $106.55 billion as of end-July from $105.76 billion in the previous month. The strong GIR level is one of the factors considered by international credit rating agencies for keeping their investment-grade rating on the Philippines this year. Julito G. Rada

IN BRIEF

ATI posted P1.13-b profit in first semester

FILREIT LISTING. The Philippine Stock Exchange Inc. board of directors and government officials witness via a virtual ceremony the initial public offering and listing of Filinvest REIT Corp. (stock symbol: FILRT). FILREIT raised P12.58 billion from the sale of secondary and over-allotment shares on Aug. 12. PSE president and chief executive Ramon Monzon (top row, left) lauded the Filinvest Group for pursuing the IPO of FILREIT amid uncertain times, saying the confidence stems from Filinvest Land Inc.’s decades of experience of going through and overcoming economic headwinds and in the process creating an enviable track record in property development and management.

Vista Land’s income rose 9% in first semester while Century Properties’ earnings hit P457m By Jenniffer B. Austria VISTA Land & Lifescapes Inc., the country’s leading homebuilder, said Friday net income grew 9 percent in the first six months to P3.84 billion from P3.5 billion in the same period last year on the back of higher sales to overseas Filipinos. Vista Land said in a disclosure to the stock exchange first-half revenues reached P16.87 billion, up 7.8 percent year-on-year. It said net income in the second quarter jumped 57 percent to P1.65 billion from P1.05 due to low base effect. “We remain optimistic with the industry especially with the performance of OF remittances, which registered two consecutive months of double-digit growth and are currently at 6.6 percent growth for the first 5 months of the year,” Vista Land chairman Manuel Villar said. “Demand from OFs remained strong, which contributed to the 14-percent growth in our reservation sales of P29.4 billion for the period. The pandemic also provided a venue for the company to review its strategies and implement various operational efficiency measures

which resulted in improvement in our margins,” Villar said. Meanwhile, Century Properties Group Inc. said net income amounted to P457 million in the first half, down from P541 million it posted in the same period last year on lower revenue contribution from condominium projects. CPG said in a disclosure to the stock exchange first-half revenues softened by 2 percent year-on-year to P4.43 billion. It said contribution of in-city vertical projects to the group’s total revenues went down to 47 percent on lower recognized revenue after the management’s decision to adjust capital expenditure deployment to cushion the pandemic’s impact. Revenues from leasing business contributed 9 percent to total sales and went up 8 percent from last year’s level. The company’s horizontal affordable housing business unit PHirst Park Homes, a joint venture with Mitsubishi Corp., delivered positive results despite the pandemic. Horizontal developments contributed P1.75 billion in the six-month period, up 89 percent from a year ago.

First Gen’s gains rose 11% to P7.1b in first six months FIRST Gen Corp., the country’s clean energy leader, said Friday it ended the first half with P7.1 billion ($148 million) in recurring net income attributable to equity holders, up 11 percent from P6.7 billion ($132.9 million) in the same period last year. The company said the profits came from the operations of 3,495 megawatts of clean, low-carbon and renewable portfolio. It said it benefited from higher electricity sales and prices, and lower interest expenses and taxes following the enactment of the Corporate Recovery and Tax Incentives for Enterprises Act. “Power demand bounced back to pre-pandemic levels despite the limitations brought about by the persistently slow recovery of the economy,” First Gen President and chief operating officer Francis Giles Puno said in a statement to the stock exchange. Puno said the power outages experienced in the second quarter highlighted the importance of keeping First Gen’s power portfolio properly maintained and running. “We are steadily progressing with constructing the country’s first LNG [liquefied natural gas] terminal for delivery in fourth quarter 2022. We are also working to deliver more power projects across our portfolio despite the uncertainty surrounding the market and its accompanying business risks,” said Puno. The natural gas platform delivered a 21-percent increase in recurring earnings in the first half to P5.2 billion ($107 million) from P4.5billion ($88 million) year-on-year. The 97-MW Avion power plant enjoyed higher electricity sales as it supplied the grid with supplemental power during constraint periods while the other natural gas-fired plants reaped the benefits of lower income tax rates under the CREATE law. Alena Mae S. Flores

ASIAN Terminals Inc. said Friday said net income fell 2 percent in the first half to P1.13 billion from a year ago, while revenues rose by more than 8 percent. ATI said in a disclosure to the stock exchange revenues in the first six months reached P5.47 billion, up 8.2 percent from P5.05 billion it posted in the same period last year. The company said that from January to June, Manila South Harbor and Batangas Container Terminal handled over 660,000 TEUs (twenty-foot equivalent units) of international containers, representing a consolidated volume growth of 17 percent compared to the first half of 2020. “We are pleased to achieve robust results for the period even amid the unprecedented challenges of the COVID-19 global pandemic, reflecting the strength and resilience of our company as a trade enabler built across 35 years of pioneering experience in the industry,” said William Khoury, ATI executive vice president. Darwin G. Amojelar

Security Bank posts net income of P3.1b

SECURITY Bank Corp., one of the country’s largest lenders, said Friday it posted net profit of P3.1 billion in the first six months. Profit before tax was P5.5 billion, up 20 percent from the same period last year. Net interest declined 14 percent to P13.6 billion from year-ago level while non-interest income went down 52 percent to P4.8 billion, as 2020 was buoyed from extraordinary securities trading gains. Service charges, fees and commissions increased 28 percent to P2.1 billion, with fee income sources increasing from their yearago levels. Operating expense in the first half was slightly up 0.9 percent from the same period last year, driven by investments in technology and manpower to improve customer experience. The cost-to-income ratio was 56.4 percent. Pre-provision operating profit reached P8.0 billion. The bank set aside P2.4 billion as provisions for credit losses in the first half. Gross non-performing loan ratio was 3.93 percent. NPL reserve cover was 103 percent.

EastWest sustains above-industry gains

EASTWEST Bank said Friday it posted a net income of P3.8 billion in the first semester, normalizing from last year’s P4.5 billion. It said the lower income was mainly due to lower loan revenues and trading gains. Return on equity was at 13.3 percent. Revenues in the first half declined by 19 percent to P15.0 billion, pulled down by lower net interest income and lower trading gains. NII or the difference between interest income and interest expense, was down 14 percent to P11.5 billion, on lower loan levels and yields on both loans and fixed income securities. This was partly cushioned by the decline in funding costs as the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas maintained its accommodative monetary policy. Net interest margin was at 7.3 percent, as its consumer-heavy loan portfolio allowed the bank to maintain industry leading margins. Trading gains were at a more normal P1.6 billion, from the P3.1 billion it booked last year. The BSP’s decisive monetary actions to loosen financial conditions last year created opportunities for higher than normal trading gains. Fee income grew by 22 percent to P2.2 billion as the economy and banking transactions started to improve.

Sports

Riera U. Mallari, Editor; Randy M. Caluag, Assistant Editor

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Kawhi Leonard

Clippers re-sign Leonard LOS ANGELES—Kawhi Leonard is sticking with the Los Angeles Clippers, the NBA club announcing Thursday they had re-signed their star forward. The Clippers didn’t release terms of the deal, but ESPN reported that Leonard inked a fouryear, $176.3 million max deal that includes a player option in the fourth year. Leonard had declined his player option for $36 million in the upcoming season to become a free agent. “Kawhi is a transcendent player and a relentless worker who improves himself every day,” Clippers president of basketball operations Lawrence Frank said in a statement. “We share many of the same goals, which include a long-term relationship. This agreement marks another important moment for our franchise and our fans, as we strive to create a championship-caliber organization, where players find the success and fulfillment they seek. We’re eager to continue building with Kawhi.” Last season, was Leonard’s second with the Clippers. He played in 52 games, averaging 24.8 points, 6.5 rebounds, and a career-high 5.2 assists while shooting 51.2 percent from the field and 88.5 percent from the free-throw line. But Leonard missed the final eight games of the Clippers’ playoff campaign after injuring his right knee against the Utah Jazz. He had surgery to repair torn ligaments in July and will likely be sidelined when the 2021-22 season begins. “For now, we will do whatever we can to support him in his recovery from injury,” Frank said. “We look forward to seeing him back where he wants to be, on the court with his teammates.” AFP

Gilas Pilipinas, which is led by Dwight Ramos (center), had a chance to better its world ranking, but lost two straight setbacks at the FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournament in Belgrade. fiba.basketball

Gilas PH remains at 31st spot in FIBA world rankings

By Peter Atencio

T

HE status of the Gilas Pilipinas national men’s basketball team remained unchanged in the FIBA World Ranking For Men.

Team Pilipinas remained at 31st spot after the rankings were updated following the FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournaments and the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games. The United States, Spain and Australia remained first, second and third, respectively. The rating of Gilas was based on its performance in two recent FIBA tournaments.

nament in Kaunas, Lithuania, and bagged its first slot to the Olympiad. Gilas, which is preparing to see action in the FIBA Asia Cup next year, currently has a young crop of players in its roster. This includes RJ Abarrientos, Justine Baltazar, SJ Belangel, Geo Chiu, Isaac Go, Jordan Heading, Ange Kouame, William Navarro, Mike Nieto, Carl Tamayo, and Dwight Ramos. The FIBA Asia Cup 2021 will be played as planned in Jakarta, Indonesia, but has been rescheduled to July 2022, right after the window of the FIBA Basketball World Cup Asia Qualifiers.

Monteverde named new Maroons’ coach

Critically lauded ‘Hades’ makes way to consoles By John Christopher G. Aquino SUPERGIANT Games’ Game of the Year-winning action roguelike ‘Hades’ was released on consoles on Friday. Hades garnered multiple awards throughout its lifespan, taking multiple game of the year awards, action game of the year awards and best game design awards, among others. Taking place in Greek mythology, the game is set in the underworld where you play as Zagreus, the son of Hades, who tries to battle out of the pits of Tartarus to seek freedom with the aid of Olympian staples such as Zeus, Poseidon, Artemis, Hera, and many more. Throughout Zagreus’ adventure, you will get to meet fallen heroes and other Greek Mythology characters that will interact and help Zagreus escape. The game’s focus is battling the “wretches” of Hades and advancing upward toward Greece as Zagreus can pick various mythological weapons that he can imbue with the Olympian’s powers. As you fail each escape attempt, you get to upgrade your character with currency you get throughout a run, making Zagreus stronger after each failed attempt. The game came out on September 20 last year but was ported to the Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, PlayStation 4, and PlayStation 5, with the physical release coming with a soundtrack plus 2 hours of in-game music and a 32page character compendium.

Last August, Gilas lost two straight setbacks at the FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournament in Belgrade. Prior to this, however, in June, Gilas had a six-game sweep of its matches in Group A of the FIBA Asia Qualifiers at Clark, Pampanga. On the other hand, Team USA stayed at no. 1 after the country’s all-time leading

Olympic scorer and tournament MVP Kevin Durant, led the Americans beat France in the Tokyo Olympics’ basketball final and claim the gold medal for the fourth consecutive time. Spain, the reigning World Cup champions, rose to no. 2 after reaching the quarterfinals. Australia, which made it to the podium of the Olympics for the first time by winning the bronze medal game over Slovenia, leapt by 12 points to the no. 4 world ranking. Slovenia, behind Dallas Mavericks’ star Luka Doncic, took fifth after winning the Olympic Qualifying Tour-

Goldwyn Monteverde

THE University of the Philippines Fighting Maroons now have a new coach in Season 84 of the University Athletic Association of the Philippines men’s basketball tournament. The Fighting Maroons will be handled by Goldwyn Monteverde, who officially assumed the post on Friday, said UP Chancellor Fidel Nemenzo in a statement. Monteverde was chosen over another top candid ate, national women’s coach and U P alu m nus Pat r ick Aqui no. The two became the top candidates for the post after Bo Perasol formally stepped down as head coach last July 14. Perasol, who gave the squad five memorable sea-

sons, is not out of the picture yet, as he will stay on as program director. “Despite the recent pandemic measures, we have continued with our consultations with the UP community, stakeholders and supporters of the UP men’s basketball team,” said Nemenzo in his statement. Nemenzo added that the choice of Monteverde came after interviewing numerous candidates for the post. Monteverde, who used to handle the National University-Nazareth School in the junior division, got a more favorable response from school authorities because of his background. Three recruits, Gilas Pilipinas cager Carl Tamayo and former Gilas Youth members Gerry Abadiano and Terrence Fortea, used to play for Monteverde when they were still in high school.

Monteverde has a solid reputation as a high school school coach, taking credit for winning titles for Chiang Kai Shek, Adamson and NU, which he steered to back-to-back UAAP juniors crowns. Monteverde was supposed to coach the Bulldogs until last year when with the global COVID-19 pandemic led to the cancellation of UAAP Season 83. During the height of pandemic last year, NU experienced an exodus of players in the secondary division. One of the holdovers in the Maroons’ roster is Ricci Rivero, who will play with newbies like Tamayo, Abadiano, Fortea, Bismarck Lina and RC Calimag, plus transferees CJ Cansino and Maodo Malick Diouf. Peter Atencio

Crossovers surprise Cool Smashers, bag 1st volley pro crown ILOCOS NORTE—Chery Tiggo crowned itself the country’s first pro volley champion yesterday, shocking Creamline with a gem of a fightback, 23-25, 20-25, 25-21, 25-23, 15-8, and snatching the hotly-disputed Premier Volleyball League Open Conference crown in sudden death at the PCV Socio Civic and Cultural Center in Bacarra here yesterday. Dindin Manabat saved her darnest best for last, exploding for career-best 32 points, almost single-handedly carrying the Crossovers in the third set before combining with sister Jaja Santiago and the rest in the last two frames as they turned what had appeared to be an improbable quest to a resounding victory. “I just want to thank the Lord for giving me strength,” said Manabat, tears flowing after emerging from a big Chery Tiggo celebration at center court. Sustaining the momentum of their sizzling comeback from 0-2 set down, the Crossovers took six of the first seven points in the decider aided by four Creamline miscues and unflinchingly held on to the lead to beat the very team that has never lost a five-setter but absorbed the one that hurt the most. With their offense anchored on the Santiago sisters finally humming after sputtering in the first

two sets, the Crossovers likewise toughened up on defense with Santiago foiling a number of Creamline attacks and the rest keeping the team in command with spectacular digs and solid floor defense. The Cool Smashers, who had survived five grueling five-set duels, including in their Game One win, 25-15, 25-21, 18-25, 19-25, 15-7, cracked under pressure this time and fell into a maze of mishits and miscues, enabling the Crossovers to complete their stirring come-from-behind win. The Crossovers, who took Game Two, 25-18, 17-25, 25-16, 25-21, last Thursday to force the winner-take-all match, also showed character, resiliency and fought back on pure guts to achieve a cherished dream. Winner of two Grand Prix titles in Superliga as the Foton Tornadoes, the United Asia Automotive Group, Inc. franchise thus gained the distinction as the first team to win the pro volley diadem in an exacting five-week tournament held in bubble setup due to pandemic and strict health and safety protocols. “I want to congratulate Creamline, which has the experience in this kind of level (of play). But thank God, He guided us and we showed what we are made of,” said Chery Tiggo coach Aaron Velez. “We just trusted ourselves, we A fired-up Dindin Manabat of Chery Tiggo uncorks a kill over against Creamline’s Risa Sato trusted one another.”

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Joel D. Lacsamana, Editor E-mail: jdlacsamana@gmail.com

Home/Design

Township living for Hidilyn

T Ovialand eyes P850 M project in Laguna OVIALAND Inc. recently announced a new venture with Japan-based Kyushu Yaesu Co. Ltd. (“Kyushu Yaesu”), a subsidiary of Saibu Gas Holdings Co. Ltd., for the development of Santevi, its third housing development project in San Pablo, Laguna. The project will comprise 810 house and lot units in San Pablo, Laguna,

initially covering 10 hectares. This is Ovialand’s second venture with Kyushu Yaesu. The first was in 2019 for the development of Caliya, comprising 1,100 house and lot units in Candelaria, Quezon. Ovialand will invest P850 million in Santevi, which is its third housing

development project in San Pablo. The others were Sannera, with 840 units, and Savana, with 490 house and lot units. “We are looking forward to expanding our market share in the South Luzon region given the potential for growth,” said Pammy OlivaresVital, president of Ovialand,.

HE Philippines’ first Olympic gold medalist, Hidilyn Diaz, recently received a P14-million, fully-furnished two-bedroom condominium unit gift at the 47-storey One Eastwood Avenue from tycoon Dr. Andrew L. Tan and property giant Megaworld.

The unit comes complete with furniture and fixtures as well as appliances. “Hidilyn has brought so much pride to our country and she deserves all these rewards for her hardwork in raising our flag so high in the Tokyo Olympics,” said Kevin L. Tan, chief strategy officer, Megaworld (Shown here with Diaz). The amenities of One Eastwood Avenue include a badminton court at the roofdeck, landscaped gardens, a lap pool with pool seat jets, paved sunbathing lounge and seating area, and a bar with indoor and outdoor lounge.

Reigniting passions

Community living

Rents soar as new normal work kicks in THE Covid-19 pandemic has strengthened demand to live close to work and transportation networks. Rental demand in the country saw a stable increase in the second quarter of 2021 from the same period last year, according to Lamudi. Keeping up with the aggressive appetite of the market, the company offers brokers the chance to post unlimited rental listings on the platform until October 31, 2021. According to Lamudi’s data, the share of leads for rental properties priced at P200K to P500K in Luzon (outside Metro Manila) and Visayas saw a significant increase in the second quarter of 2021 from the second quarter of 2020, with Luzon showing a double-digit hike. Most promising is the affordable condo for rent market, which sustained a lead share above 15 percent since the first quarter of 2021. These are properties priced from P5K to P15K. For those interested, sign up at https://bit.ly/ UnliRentalListingNL.

BRENTVILLE International Community recently celebrated the groundbreaking of the second phase of its newest cluster, The Arborage. Developed by Prestige by Filinvest, Brentville International Community is a residential enclave that consists of different clusters and diverse living options. Accessible from the Mamplasan Exit in Southern Luzon Expressway (SLEX), the village offers community living with generous open spaces and well-curated amenities.

Gracing the ceremony were (Left to right) H1 Architecture principals arrchitect Raymond Hernandez and architect Juan Seriña, Filinvest Alabang, Inc. (FAI); first vice president and Prestige brand head Eduardo Gonzalez, Filinvest Development Corp. (FDC) vice president, Michael Edward Gotianun; FAI president and COO Catherine Ilagan; REBCOR president Rafael Estanislao; and construction manager JERCC managing director Jaime Florido. FEDERAL Land recently hosted a webinar series showcasing lifestyle and real estate investment workshops. Entitled “Federal Land conversations—living the finer life”, the three-part webinar series was kicked off by Carl Cunanan, a watch connoisseur, who shared his expertise on watches. This was followed by a virtual whisky appreciation with whisky professional Kris Ong, founder of dramboxph and the Philippine liaison of Scotch Malt Whisky Society. The third webinar will be about the

MPIC looks to ‘future-proof’ its business METRO Pacific Investments Corporation (MPIC) recently held its first-ever group sustainability summit, and decided to work together to put sustainability at the heart of MPIC’s operations in the next decade, “to future proof not just its business but its existence as humanity.” The virtual summit assembled global environmental, social and governance experts, and was attended by over 300 participants composed of MPIC’s and MVP Group Companies’ board of directors and senior management, as well as sustainability champions across all of MPIC’s businesses. Sending an affirmative message “I think the more interesting parts were the discussions on sustainable financing options and the changing expectations of shareholders and

investors from management of their investing companies,” said MPIC president Jose Ma. K. Lim, who opened the Summit. “This summit sends an affirmative but resounding message that it is time to really be serious about these sustainability programs within our group and within the business community in general in the Philippines,” added MPIC Chairman Manuel V. Pangilinan. “We cannot operate our businesses with just profit in mind,” noted MPIC chief finance officer Chaye A. Cabal-Revilla. “Adhering to global sustainability reporting standards and integrating sustainability into our DNA and everything that we do is really key into making it pervasive and successful.”

appreciation of luxury cars airing on August 18. Lexus Philippines brand manager Jade Sison will discuss Lexus’ craftmanship and cutting-edge technology. Federal Land has lined up other webinars to air in the following months. One will be about learning the basics of real estate investing Another will explore interior design for modern living, the latest design trends, and how to create live-work spaces at home. To join Federal Land conversations —living the finer Life webinars, visit www.federalland.ph.

Tech & Gadgets By James Santua, Coleen Magahis, Raxenn Lachica

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TRAWBERRY production is now made possible in lowlands and hot areas through the vertical aeroponic system and root zone cooling technology, innovated by a biosystems engineer from Muñoz, Nueva Ecija.

Strawberry production in hot areas possible through tech

Christopher Pascual came up with the concept of vertical farming when he was studying his masters and finishing his thesis at Central Luzon State University in 2017. “The root zone cooling or the group heat exchanger system is being used for cooling buildings in other countries like Europe. I came up with the idea, ‘Why can’t we use it for plant production?’. So, I conceptualized the idea of using aeroponic,” Pascual said in an interview with the Manila Standard. The production is housed in a 195-squaremeter greenhouse in Barangay Licaong and a 72-square-meter land in CLSU. Pascual said that it is very expensive to cool down a whole greenhouse to grow temperate crops in a hot environment like the Philippines, as strawberries are normally grown in Baguio or colder environments. “We were able to reduce the cost of cooling the system or the whole greenhouse by just cooling down the roots of the plants. Eventually, we were able to produce strawberry fruits. For those who have tasted the fruits, they said it is much sweeter than those being produced in Benguet,” Pascual added. The engineer explained that the technology itself can supply the right nutrients such as potassium to make the strawberries sweeter, and the light intensity in the lowlands also plays a big role. “The light intensity or the sunlight is much available in the lowlands unlike in the highlands. The temperature has something to do with it. The higher the temperature exposure of the plants, the more sugar accumulation is much higher,” he added.

Strawberry production is now made possible in lowlands and hot areas through the vertical aeroponic system and root zone cooling technology, thanks to biosystems engineer Christopher Pascual

tablish a vertical farming system,” he added.

Root Zone Cooling Technology

Vertical Aeroponic System

Producing crops in vertically piled layers or towers is known as the vertical aeroponic system. According to Pascual, he chooses to utilize towers since they are more versatile in terms of aeroponics. “I prefer to use the towers, because when it comes to aeroponics it is more flexible. So, it is usually incorporated in a controlled environment production system,” Pascual said. “We used towers so that it will accommodate more plants in a limited space. So, meaning you can have a more productive area, more production per unit area,” he added. The vertical aeroponic system is also

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being used to enhance agricultural output in countries such as the United States of America, Japan, Canada, and the Netherlands. “So, it is proven that the main advantage of using vertical farming technology is to increase crop yield along with more plant

population in a smaller production area or land area,” Pascual said. “In a vertical farming system, the soilless farming system technique, such as the aeroponic is in very in demand use or this aeroponic system is employed in order to es-

Root zone cooling technology and the vertical aeroponic system go hand in hand. These are being used to avoid climatic conditions or the effects of environmental circumstances in tropical countries like the Philippines. Root zone cooling technology was developed and launched in order to cultivate heat-sensitive crops. As per Pascual, these are crops such as strawberries, lettuce, and other high-value crops that are only produced in a cold climate. “The principle is they introduce root zone cooling alone without cooling the canopy of the plant. So, in this scheme we reduce the cost of cooling, instead of making the whole room cool down or the entire greenhouse,” Pascual said. “So, what we do is we only cool down the root zone of the plants in a way cooling down the whole plants. So, in this scheme we can grow heat sensitive even in a hot and humid environment like the Philippines,” he added. This explains why the usage of aeroponics is essential. Aeroponics gives air and water to the roots of the plants, and root zone cooling technology will function through this medium.

Samsung announces vision for mobile: Galaxy for Planet SEOUL—Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. today unveiled Galaxy for the Planet, the sustainability platform for its Mobile Communications Business powered by its scale, innovation and spirit of open collaboration, to take tangible climate actions across its business. Samsung has established an initial set of targets to be reached by 2025 to reduce its environmental footprint and lessen resource depletion from production to disposal of its Galaxy products. “We believe that everyone has a role to play in providing innovative solutions that protect the planet for generations to come. Samsung understands our efforts need to match our scale, our influence and the magnitude of the entire Galaxy ecosystem around the world,” said TM Roh, President and Head of Mobile Communications Business, Samsung Electronics. “Galaxy for the Planet is an important step in our journey toward creating a more sustainable world, and we will do so Galaxy for the Planet outlines Samsung’s commitment to with the openness, transparency and collaboration that acting more sustainably across its mobile product lifecycles drives everything we do.” and business operations Delivering better environmental impact by 2025 new challenges beyond 2025. Samsung believes the integration of sustainable prac● Incorporate recycled material in all new mobile tices across each stage of production is crucial to minimizing environmental impact and building a better future for products by 2025 To foster a more circular economy, Samsung is investing communities around the world and the next generation of innovators. Samsung will work to achieve its initial goals by in new and innovative eco-conscious materials for its prod2025, and it will aim to evolve its commitments to address ucts. With the goal of using recycled material across all new

mobile products by 2025, Samsung will use various recycled materials within its products, taking their strength, aesthetics and durability into consideration. ● Eliminate all plastics in mobile packaging by 2025 Samsung is working towards the full elimination of single-use plastics from product packaging by 2025—reducing, removing and replacing unnecessary resources and materials traditionally used in device packaging and incorporating eco-conscious solutions. ● Reduce standby power consumption of all smartphone chargers to below 0.005W by 2025 Samsung is prioritizing energy-saving technology that increases energy efficiency and reduces power consumption. Samsung has successfully reduced the standby power consumption across all smartphone chargers to 0.02W, which is among the most energy efficient in the mobile industry. To build on this progress, Samsung will work to achieve zero power standby consumption of smartphone chargers, targeting reduction to below 0.005W by 2025. ● Achieve zero waste to landfill by 2025 Samsung is minimizing waste generated at its mobile worksites, with the commitment to divert all waste from landfill by 2025. Samsung will also work to reduce e-waste on a global scale by optimizing the product lifecycle, improving product design processes, and through initiatives like Galaxy Upcycling, Certified Re-Newed, and Trade-In programs.

Baguio City taps Oracle Cloud to boost Visitor Program THE City Government of Baguio has chosen Oracle Cloud to help manage interstate visitor traffic application process to support the city’s cautious reopening of tourism activities and boost local economy. Using Oracle Cloud Infrastructure to underpin Baguio Visitors Information & Travel Assistance (VISITA) online registration system and mobile application is enabling the City to register and trace visitors more accurately, thereby, ensuring the safety of almost 360,000 residents and interstate tourists. The deployment of Oracle Cloud has also delivered 55 per cent cost savings as compared to running the system on-premises. Known as the “summer capital of the Philippines” due to its refreshing summer climate, pre-COVID Baguio City attracted more than a million visitors each year. At its peak, the website saw approximately 13 million hits within a week. Wanting to improve efficiency and be better able to record visitors’ details, track their movements and impose local health and safety protocols, the City decided to develop an integrated visitor management system. However, with movement restrictions in force, the City found implementing the system challenging and looked for an alternative cloud provider. To support the rapid implementation of the visitor system, Oracle Cloud Mina Lim, Country Native Services Managing Director, including Or- Oracle Philippines acle Container Engine for Kubernetes, was used. This is an Oracle-managed container orchestration service that can reduce the time and cost to build modern cloud native applications. To add to built-in security of Oracle Cloud Infrastructure, the City added Oracle Cloud Guard, which detects misconfigured resources and insecure activity so they can be triaged and resolved. Additionally, Oracle Web Application Firewall, which combines threat intelligence with consistent rule enforcement, has been implemented to protect the application from malicious and unwanted internet traffic. “The pandemic has accelerated the pace of digitization. In the Public Sector the government departments and organizations have had to pivot quickly to provide services remotely to the citizens while ensuring there services are secure, reliable and compliant with local regulations,” said Mina Lim, country managing director of Oracle Philippines.”With the adoption of a strong cloud foundation the City of Baguio has been able to adapt quickly to serve the tourists while ensuring their physical safety and deliver on its smart city goals.” “We selected Oracle Cloud for the Baguio VISITA program due to its enterprise grade performance, rapid scalability and simplicity of integration which enabled the system to go live in just one week. Since moving to the cloud, we have seen significant cost savings as compared to previously,” said Alec Mapalo, Division Head, City Tourism and Special Events Office, City of Baguio.

BRIA Homes leads real estate digitalization

The Beta Sigma Fraternity Cavite Assembly in their recent tree-planting activity held in Magallanes province of Cavite. The group signifies strength on their advocacy to help promote the greening of Cavite though project “Alay ng Kapatiran sa Inang Kalikasan”. Joining them in are (from left, 1st row) Jose Andres Diaz, Bobot Periodico, Dr. Jerry Genuino, Dr. Efren Nustro, (2nd row) PBIDC Council Exec. Dir. Butch Madarang, (3rd row) Beta Sigma Cavite Assembly with Prof. Julio Castillo Jr. of Project Luntian Cavite, (4th row), Cavite Medical Society Pres. Dr. Glenn Cajida and SouthEast Asian Med Center Med. Dir. Annalou Diaz.

GenTri CENRO, Beta Sigma Cavite conserve environment thru nature-based solutions

DR. RENATO Escurel of General Trias City CENRO is actively enjoining stakeholders in promoting and sustaining the information, education, and communication effort of the city in helping preserve the environment. Recently, through the initiative of Dr. Escurel, the Beta Sigma Fraternity Cavite Assembly Agroforestry held a greening project in Magallanes, Cavite. True to its form of giving back to the community, the Beta Sigma

Fraternity continues to involve their group in private and foreign environmental movements. The brotherhood planted tree for the project “Alay ng Kapatiran sa Inang Kalikasan”, as part of their greening program on a nationwide capacity. Historically, the Cavite Assembly has been planting trees in different areas in Cavite for more than a decade already. The group collaborates with the LGUs of the province. Significant-

ly, the Fraternity launched a massive tree -planting and nurturing program on its 75th Diamond Jubilee celebrations this year. Their effort to help the environment survive and sustain condition was heeded by the government and other stakeholders. The Department of Environment and Natural Resources forged a longterm MOA and planting tree is just an initial effort to sustain the advocacy.

LIKE it or not, the digital domain is now an irrevocable part of our lives. This is especially true in Philippine real estate, a sector that continues to flourish despite the pandemic and its recurring quarantines. The need for transitioning to the digital space is something that BRIA Homes, the Philippines’ leading provider of superior quality, affordable homes, foresaw early on. Long before the pandemic hit, BRIA had its data and business information digitized so it could progress to the digitalization of its sales and marketing efforts. This game changer couldn’t have come at a more auspicious time. With sporadic outbreaks of Covid-19 across the world, and “surges” of new Covid cases in the region, travel restrictions continue to curtail Overseas Fiipino Workers’ chances to come home for vacation breaks. BRIA thus appreciates the immense capability of the web to con-

nect people who are oceans apart, and aspires to reach out to every OFW in need of a future sanctuary. Achieving full digitalization likewise gives OFWs a glimpse of BRIA Homes’ offerings—from anywhere in the world. To do this, they need only immerse in BRIA’s 360 Virtual Tours, which is readily available on its official website. The digital tour gives prospective home buyers an opportunity to ‘scrutinize’ their future abode. As OFWs await the easing of travel restrictions, they can choose the BRIA house models that fit their requirements; get a sense of the serene environment of BRIA’s residential communities; and check out its recreational facilities such as covered courts, playgrounds, and multi-purpose halls. To be sure, the digitalization of the property market has spurred new revenues and value-producing opportunities to come in. Apart from the virtual tour, BRIA offers digital payment options for processing remittances and amortization fees. For this purpose, BRIA has partnerships with leading banks BDO, Maybank, Unionbank, PNB, Security Bank, RCBC, Robinsons Bank, and Metrobank. BRIA also encourages people to use e-wallet services like GCash, Paymaya, All Easy, and even Shopee Pay. In these critical times, when safety and security are a premium for all individuals and families, OFWs are assured that BRIA communities come with guarded entrances and exits, 24/7 CCTV coverage, and solar lighting at night.

Ramon L. Tomeldan Editor

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SATURDAY, AUGUST 14, 2021

Motoring

Auto makers elated by lifting of safeguard duties on imported cars By Othel V. Campos WHILE the pandemic continues to take its toll on vulnerable industries, the Philippine automotive sector felt a surge of relief owing to the lifting of the provisional safeguard duties on imported vehicles. The Chamber of the Automotive Manufacturers of the Philippines, Inc. (CAMPI) graciously welcomes the lifting of the provisional SG duties as this has “resolved uncertainty of the additional burden to importation of vehicles.” “The cash flow issue is partly resolved as there’ll be no more provisional duty to be collected upon importation

of vehicles,” CAMPI president Rommel Gutierrez said on Friday. CAMPI clarified that while the SG is collected for every purchase of a vehicle, the purchase price was not inclusive of the additional taxes. The SG is collected through a cash bond or security deposit which is put on escrow. Automotive dealers have started imposing the provisional safeguard duties of P70 per unit of imported passenger cars and P110 per unit of light commercial vehicles since February 2021. Car companies claimed the safeguard duties deposited in escrow will be reimbursed to buyers as soon as the provisional duties are lifted. Based on the Tariff Commission’s report, the government agency con-

cluded that during the period of investigation POI), completely built-up (CBU) passenger cars and CBU light commercial vehicles “were not imported into the Philippines in increased quantities, both in absolute and relative to domestic production.” The TC said that the increase in the volume of imports of passenger cars and light commercial vehicles during the POI “cannot be considered recent, sudden, sharp and of such magnitude that can be deemed significant.” According to the data submitted to the TC, total imports of CBU motor vehicles were on an increasing trend from 2014 until 2017 but begun to decline from 2018 to 2020. Total imports of CBU motor ve-

Transport leaders vow to expand cashless systems, fuel recovery

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N AN Industry Leaders’ Forum on the subject of “Cashless Society and Mobility on the Road to Recovery,” industry executives pledged to expand cashless transactions in their operations, and help fuel the country’s economic recovery even amidst a raging health crisis as an urgent collective action.

Among these leaders is expressway industry leader Rodrigo E. Franco, president and CEO of Metro Pacific Tollways Corporation (MPTC), who saw and shared the “hope of an emerging economy that could grow out of the crisis, especially one that it is driven by the rapid and extended use of digital technologies.” Other Forum speakers were Presidential Adviser for Flagship Programs and Bases Conversion and Development Authority (BCDA) President Vince Dizon, Pampanga Commerce and Industry (Pamcham) President Nestor Mangio, PayMaya Philippines President Shailesh Baidwan, Provincial Bus Operators Association of the Philippines (PBOAP) Executive Director Alex Yague, Baguio City Mayor Benjie Magalong, and Sustainable and Inclusive Mobility Advocate Robert Siy, who moderated the Leaders’ Forum. Franco led the Forum resource speakers, who alternately took note of the current crisis buffetting the country, and presented possible solutions to fast-track economic recovery. Dizon spoke of headways made in managing the health crisis, while discussing BCDA’s construction and development projects, which are creating thousands of jobs and stimulating local economies. PamCham leader Mangio cited the high mobility benefits from expressways passing Central Luzon, notably-- NLEX, SCTEX, Subic Freeport Expressway (SFEX), and TPLEX.

PayMaya’s Baidwan unveiled new cashless transactions that minimize human exposure to the virus and stimulate trade and commerce; Yague revealed thousands of buses that observe protocol while transporting people; Baguio City’s Magalong showcased the transformation of his “smart city,” with maximized use of digitization; and Siy underscored the exciting prospects of a high-mobility and digitized future.

RODRIGO FRANCO, CEO of MPTC

M P T C ’s Franco told Forum online participants that “MPTC’s improvements were initially part of a medium-term plan to maximize the use of digital technologies,” and yet “we were prompted for quick implementation, cooperating with government to control the spread of the Covid virus. Thus, cashless transactions, through RFID, were installed and activated in all toll plazas of MPTC’s expressways .” Franco said that MPTC expressways are “now fully implementing cashless transactions at toll plazas, are pioneering in barrier-less toll plazas, and laying the groundwork for an open road tolling system.” On the need to help fuel the country’s

economic recovery and sustain business continuity in the wake of the pandemic, Franco disclosed that MPTC is accelerating tollway infrastructure build-up – notably the the construction of the NLEX Connector, the Urban Ring Road in Metro Manila, and the Cebu Cordova Link Expressway in Cebu. “These alone will create thousands of jobs during and after tollway construction, give rise to allied industries in project sites, re-ignite investment enthusiasm, and rekindle hope for an increasing number of our people,” Franco said. Concluding his conversation with transport leaders in the Forum, Franco shared the “wave of the future” – encapsulized in the initials ACES. He added that “ACES” stand for Autonomous Vehicles, Connectivity, ElecElec tric, and Shared Mobility. Autonomous vehicles are “driver-less” as showcased by the Tesla’s Autopilot, among others. Catching the imagination of the highly developed countries, these autonomous vehicles will enhance road safesafe ty, because it eliminates “driver beerror,” Franco said. “Simply be cause there is no driver to speak of,” he added. exConnectivity, now widely ex perienced in the country, will be maximized by more and more digital technologies, connecting people and services more and more, he said. Electric has entered the scene with electric motor bikes and hybrid electric cars. “This will significantly reduce carbon monoxide on the road and will truly result in clean air,” Franco said. On shared use mobility, Franco regaled participants of the concept of “not owning,” but still be highly mobile. He pointed out that this traditional “car ownership” will give way to bike sharing, ride sharing, and other ride sourcing schemes. On the whole, Franco said any firm which embraces these new changes and translate them into business plans “will become one of the most important transport or mobility companies in the region.”

hicles peaked in 2017 with 306,819 units wherein 78 percent of which was imported by domestic industry while 22 percent was imported by traders. The high importation in 2017 was attributed to the anticipation of the market to the implementation of TRAIN law which took effect on January 1, 2018 and the stricter implementation of Euro 4 emission standards. In 2018, total imports of CBU motor vehicles went down to 233,346 units coming from a high import level in 2017. Total imports of CBU motor vehicles further declined to 108,770 units in 2020 due to the adverse economic effect of the COVID-19 pandemic. Domestic industry imported mostly

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CBU motor vehicles with a total share of 75 percent to total imports. Meanwhile, traders accounted for 25 percent of the total imports during the POI. The Department of Trade and Industry acted on the petition for safeguard measures filed by the Philippine Metalworkers Alliance after the group raised concerns on increasing importation of passenger cars and light commercial vehicles. Under Republic Act 8800, the Safeguard Measures Act, anybody may file with the DTI a verified petition requesting that action be taken to remedy the serious injury to the domestic industry caused by increased imports of a like or directly substitutable product.

FASTLANE

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More Cleanfuel stations in Bulacan LEADING independent oil firm Cleanfuel has the latest addition to its growing network with the inauguration of its San Ildefonso branch in Bulacan. Strategically located at Barangay Sapang Putol, in the heart of San Ildefonso, the newest Cleanfuel Station aims to provide better access to quality fuel for less for more Bulakenyos. The opening of the San Ildefonso station despite the declaration of the reimposition of stricter community quarantine due to the Delta Variant of the COVID 19 Virus is proof of the confidence of Cleanfuel in the Filipino resiliency, according to Cleanfuel President Jesus “Bong” Suntay. “Since the inception of Cleanfuel,

we always taken pride in providing high quality and affordable fuel products that will help more Filipino motorists add more kilometers on every fuel purchased. Cleanfuel continues to remain committed to bringing more economic opportunities in every city”, Suntay said. In addition, Cleanfuel San Ildefonso will help the residents of the 36 barangays in the area and aid in boosting the local agribusiness, logistics, cement, manufacturing, and metalcraft industries for the good of the country. Motorists in the area can now load their vehicles with top-notch Cleanfuel products such as Clean 91, Premium 95, and high-grade diesel.

Discounts galore at Ford FORD Philippines is extending its roster of deals and offers for the Ford EcoSport, Everest, Ranger and Transit this August. Customers can get as much as P188,000 cash discount for the Ford EcoSport, bringing down the price of the EcoSport 1.5L Trend M/T to P750,000. Customers can also avail of P7,999 low monthly fee with free 4 months amortization or 0% interest up to 60 months. An additional special offer of outright P45,000 cash savings or free 5-year scheduled service plan, 5-year extended warranty (from 3 years), and 5-year roadside assistance package is also up for grabs. A cash discount of P130,000 is also extended to customers getting the EcoSport 1.5L Trend A/T, or a

low monthly fee of P8,588 with free 3 months amortization or 0% interest up to 36 months. Also available is an additional offer of outright P45,000 cash savings or free 3-year scheduled service plan, 5-year extended warranty (from 3 years), and 5-year roadside assistance package is also up for grabs. The EcoSport 1.0L Titanium A/T is still available with a P150,000 cash discount. Customers getting a Ford Everest can also avail of a cash discount of up to P80,000 or P18,888 low monthly fee for the Everest Sport 4x2 A/T. Those getting the Everest 2.0L Titanium 4x2 A/T or Everest 2.0L Bi-Turbo Titanium+ 4x4 A/T can avail of a P50,000 cash discount upon purchase.

THE POWER OF TOUCH

How Nissan redefined interaction with cars YOU’RE on a drive to a friend’s house. It’s a hot and sunny day, and you need to cool the cabin of your car. Doing this normally requires only muscle memory to reach out to the dash and turn a knob or tap a button. But for engineers this simple action demands extreme attention to detail and redefining ways to keep the sweat off your brow. When developing the all-new Nissan Ariya electric crossover, its designers and engineers didn’t just consider the ergonomics involved in reaching toward the dashboard. They were determined to create a new look and feel for controls that drivers generally take

for granted. This required a rethink of cabin space, touch and positioning. The Ariya’s interior was crafted to be an open, spacious cabin offering a sense of calm and serenity. Part of that design is a dashboard free of traditional buttons. The stylish wood-grained trim bisecting the dashboard comes to life upon starting the Ariya, illuminating a set of environmental controls that reside just beneath the dashboard’s surface. Utilizing a new generation of haptic feedback controls, these subtly integrated buttons open a world of possibilities in the relationship between function and design. In the same way that we interact with

a smartphone display to navigate and engage with apps, haptic feedback buttons in the Ariya react to touch, communicating through fingertip vibrations. When adjusting the Ariya’s climate controls and drive modes, drivers will interact with a familiar set of icons. Yet, because the points of interaction are felt and heard, they can remain focused on the road. The design team’s decision to integrate haptic feedback into the Ariya speaks to the vehicle’s underlying design concept of Timeless Japanese Futurism, which takes a distinctive Japanese approach to design, conveying a simple yet powerfully modern impression.