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Laylo: BBM still man to beat Gets 61% over Leni's 19% in latest survey for period March 15-22 By Joyce Pangco Pañares and Rey E. Requejo

ITH a little over a month to go before the May 9 elections, presidential aspirant Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. maintained his wide lead over other contenders for the top position, results of the recent Laylo national survey showed. VOL. XXXVI • NO. 45 • 3 SECTIONS 12 PAGES • P18 WEDNESDAY, MARCH 30, 2022 • www.manilastandard.net • mst.daydesk@gmail.com

Villar-led NP throws lot with UniTeam duo By Maricel V. Cruz and Rey E. Requejo THE Nacionalista Party (NP), led by billionaire tycoon and politician Manuel Villar, on Tuesday expressed its full backing to the candidacies of presidential candidate Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. and his running mate, Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte. In a statement, Villar said Marcos and Duterte's "message of unity is crucial in binding our country together and inspiring our people as we rebuild not only from the pandemic but also from the political chasm that divides us."

1 killed in shootout in Pilar, Abra; Standoff in vice mayor’s residence SOME police teams and a group of armed men were involved in a standoff in the residence of Pilar, Abra Vice Mayor Jaja Josefina Disono on Tuesday night, the Philippine National Police said. This was after a security guard of Disono was killed earlier in theday in a shooting incident, which the vice mayor claimed was an ambush

The Laylo Report, which was conducted from March 15 to 22, had 3,000 respondents and a margin of error of +/-2 percentage points. Marcos posted a 61 percent voters’ preference rating, two percentage points lower than his rating in February, but still a commanding 42 percentage point difference over his closest rival, Vice President Leni Robredo, who got 19 percent. Robredo’s rating was already up by 2 percentage points from the February

Laylo survey. Manila Mayor Francisco “Isko Moreno” Domagoso logged a 9 percent voter’s preference rating, followed by Sen. Manny Pacquiao at 6 percent and Sen. Panfilo “Ping” Lacson at 2 percent. At least two percent of the respondents said they were still undecided as to their choice for the presidential race. In a press statement, the Marcos camp said the former senator was also the top Next page

but the police described as an armed encounter. In a statement, the PNP Public Information Office said the armed men sought refuge at Disono's house after injuring two policemen and shooting a police patrol car that was chasing after them. The men were chased by the Next page

BBM IN ZAMBO. President aspirant Ferdinand 'Bongbong' Marcos Jr. thanks his supporters following a caravan and rally in Zamboanga City on Tuesday. Ver Noveno

Comelec to audit list of voters, DOJ to act fast on vote-buying By Rey E. Requejo THE Commission on Elections, the government's poll watchdog, will conduct an “opening of books” of voters’ lists nationwide starting from April 18 to 29, Commissioner George Garcia said Tuesday. This developed as Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra said the Department of

Justice would give “highest priority” to the complaints against vote buying that would be filed by the DOJ. Guevarra stressed that the DOJ would speedily resolve complaints against vote buying considering the significance of the May 9 elections to the country’s recovery. “Considering the importance of the forth Next page

Manila, Beijing heat up claims on Scarborough By Rey E. Requejo and Vito Barcelo AFTER the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) complained about a dangerous maneuver by a Chinese vessel in Bajo de Masinloc, Zambales earlier this month, Beijing called on Manila to respect its disputed sovereignty over the Scarborough Shoal. In a press conference, China’s Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Wang Wenbin said that Huangyan Dao (Scarborough Shoal) “is China’s inherent erritory” -- a view that the Philippines disputes. The foreign ministry spokesman also asked Manila to “avoid interfering” with the patrol operations of the China Coast Guard (CCG). In response to the Chinese statement, the Palace said the Philippines will continue to exercise full sovereignty in Scarborough Shoal. Palace spokesman Martin Andanar

CAMPAIGNING 'HEROES'. Havy 'Habagat' Bagatsing (left, in red shirt), who is running for councilor in Manila's District 4, walks with supporters dressed as superhero characters Captain America and Ironman as they greeted voters along P.Noval Street in Sampaloc, Manila. Norman Cruz

Russia, Ukraine in talks with faint hope US disease unit ISTANBUL—Ukrainian and Russian negotiators held face-to-face talks in Istanbul on Tuesday as Ukraine resumed evacuations from territory occupied by Russian forces and clung on in the besieged city of Mariupol. The talks were taking place with

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in attendance and under the shadow of shock allegations thatdelegates were poisoned at a previous round of negotiations. Erdogan called on the delegations to Next page

Top 3 deaths: Heart attack, stroke, COVID ISCHAEMIC heart diseases, cerebro- to a senior official of the Philippine Statisvascular diseases, and the COVID-19 vi- tics Authority. rus have been identified as the top three In a statement, Undersecretary Dennis causes of death in the Philippines from Mapa, the national statistician and civil January to December last year, according Next page

lowers PH virus case status to 2

By Willie Casas THE United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (US-CDC) has lowered the Philippines’ COVID-19 status to Level 2, following a drop in the number of infections in the country. In its latest travel advisory, the USCDC said travelers who are vaccinated and up-to-date with their COVID-19 Next page

LAND FOR LANDLESS. Farmers and land reform advocates protest at the Department of Agrarian Reform office in Quezon City on Tuesday, citing the Duterte administration's alleged failure to address the lingering problems that burden farmers and rural communities. Manny Palmero

News

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 30, 2022

mst.daydesk@gmail.com

SC revises rules to expedite cases T By Rey E. Requejo

Besides expeditious resolution of cases, the new rules would put a stop to “endless litigations” since certain rulings in civil cases by the first level courts are final and executory with only some rulings in both civil and criminal cases are appealable before the regional trial courts

(RTCs) whose decisions are final. The SC stressed that the new rules would take effect starting April 11 and would be prospective in application, meaning cases pending before April 11 would observe the old rules. The high court said the new rules

were crafted following the enactment in July 2021 of Republic Act 11576 which expanded the jurisdictional amount cognizable by the first level courts to ₱2,000,000 for civil actions involving monetary claims. The adoption of the new rules was done by the SC under its constitutional power to promulgate rules on pleading, practice and procedure in all courts. The summary of the new rules provided by the SC Public Information Office stated that it covered by the new summary procedures in civil cases are forcible entry and unlawful detainer cases regardless of the amount of damages or unpaid rentals sought to be recovered; civil actions – except probate proceed-

Laylo:...

rating as a “clear majority… founded on an equally high 53 percent trust rating.” “Indeed, unity is what will hold our country together as we look ahead into the future of making us, Filipinos, world-class citizens with nation-building as our ultimate collective goal,” Rodriguez added. The survey period already covered some of the most-attended campaign sorties of Robredo in Pasig City, Negros Occidental and Nueva Ecija. By the estimate of the Vice President’s camp, over 130,000 supporters attended the rally in Pasig City, at least 86,000 in Negros Occidental, and more than 50,000 in Nueva Ecija. Senator Antonio Trillanes IV earlier

predicted the succeeding surveys will reflect the massive turnout in the rallies for Robredo. “It’s a slow burn, and then it will suddenly surge,” he said. The Laylo survey also asked respondents who among the presidential candidates can best continue the good things started by the Duterte administration. Marcos got 65 percent, followed by Robredo with 15 percent; Moreno and Pacquiao with 6 percent each; and Lacson with 4 percent. In last month’s Pulse Asia survey, Marcos kept his lead, with 60 percent of the respondents saying they will vote for him. As for the senatorial race, broadcaster Raffy Tulfo remained the top choice with 57 percent. Former Public Works chief Mark Villar

(44 percent) and former senators Alan Cayetano (42 percent) and Francis Escudero (41 percent) shared the second to fourth place. Former senator Loren Legarda (37 percent), re-electionists Sherwin Gatchalian (37 percent), and Migz Zubiri (35 percent), as well as former Vice President Jejomar Binay (33 percent) were statistically tied, sharing the fifth to eighth slots. Rounding up the top 15 were actor Robin Padilla (31 percent), former senators and brothers JV Ejercito and Jinggoy Estrada at 29 percent each, re-electionists Joel Villanueva (28 percent), Risa Hontiveros (25 percent) and Richard Gordon (23 percent), and former Quezon City Mayor Herbert Bautista (21 percent).

tandem in this crucial period of the campaign.” Villar's son, former Public Works and Highways secretary Mark Villar, is running for senator under the BBM-Sara UniTeam slate. Two other political parties — the PDP-Laban wing under Energy Secretary Alfonso Cusi and the National Unity Party — earlier expressed support for the BBM-Sara tandem. With barely five weeks left before the May 9 elections, Marcos said the NP endorsement would give the UniTeam campaign an added boost. “We are very happy every time we get support, especially from our home party, the Nacionalista Party. That is good and all the friends and allies have come together,” he said. He thanked the Villars for their continued support.

Comelec..

tions Inter-Agency Task Force “Kontra Bigay” which is against vote buying. Guevarra said he planned to form a composite team that would be part of the “Kontra Bigay” Task Force. “I intend to create a DOJ composite team from the National Prosecution Service, National Bureau of Investigation, Public Attorney’s Office, and DOJ Action Centers (both the main and field offices) for the Comelec’s Inter-Agency Task Force Against Vote Buying,” he added. The Comelec is expected to launch the Inter-Agency Task Force “Kontra Bigay” today. The Task Force would be composed of the DOJ, NBI Presidential Anti-Corruption Commission (PACC), Department of the Interior and Local Government, Philippine Information Agency, Philippine National Police, and Armed Forces of the Philippines. This followed unconfirmed reports that Cavite Governor Jonvic Remulla handed out cash prizes to supporters attending a sortie of UniTeam bets. But he said that on that day, March 22, he was not yet a candidate. The local elections campaign started last March 25. There were also allegations that in another UniTeam rally in Nueva Ecija, envelopes reportedly with P500 inside, were handed out to the attendees. But Governor Aurelio Umali said the envelope contained financial aid. Another role of the DICT in the May polls, Caintic said, was to prepare for the digital signatures of the Board of Election Inspectors and Board of Canvassers. This would be the first election that digital signatures will be used. In related developments, the Comelec said there was a process that must be observed in removing names of deceased voters from the official list of voters. (See full story online at manilastandard.net)

HE Supreme Court has adopted revised rules aimed at expediting the resolution of civil, particularly monetary claims, and criminal cases filed before the first level courts – metropolitan trial courts (MeTCs), municipal trial courts in cities (MTCCs), municipal trial courts (MTCs), and municipal circuit trial courts (MCTCs).

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choice among the presidential contenders in all regions, with provinces in the so-called Solid North delivering the highest voter’s preference rating: 86 percent in the Ilocos Region, 86 percent in the Cordillera Autonomous Region, 84 percent in Cagayan Valley, and 62 percent in Central Luzon. Marcos also held a commanding lead across all classes: 58 percent voters’ preference rating in Classes ABC, 62 percent in Class D, and 58 percent in Class E. Marcos’ spokesman Vic Rodriguez described the 61 percent voter’s preference

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"They both have the platforms of government, qualifications and track record to lead our country towards unity and prosperity," Villar said. Majority Leader and Lakas-Christian Muslim Democrats (CMD) President Martin G. Romualdez of Leyte's 1st District on Tuesday hailed the move of the NP to support Marcos and Duterte. “The Lakas-CMD welcomes and greatly values the endorsement of the Nacionalista Party led by former Senate President Manny Villar of the MarcosDuterte tandem,” said Romualdez. “The support of one of the country’s biggest and oldest political parties will certainly make a difference as we work hard to consolidate forces and support the UniTeam

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registrar general, said in the same period of 2020, the leading causes of death were ischaemic or coronary heart diseases, neoplasms or cancers, and cerebrovascular diseases or strokes. From January to December of 2021, ischaemic heart diseases were the leading cause of death with 136,575 cases or 17.8 percent of the total deaths in the country. This indicated an increase of 29.7 percent from the 105,281 deaths or 17.1 percent of the total deaths in the same period of 2020, Mapa said in his statement. On the other hand, cerebrovascular diseases, came in second with 74,262 deaths (9.7 percent share) from being third in the previous year’s ranking. It showed an increase of 15.3 percent from the 64,381 cases (10.5 percent share) in the same period in 2020. He added deaths due to COVID-19 virus identified were the third leading cause which accounted for 74,008 deaths (9.7 percent share), rising from rank 14 with 9,316 deaths (1.5 percent share) in the same period of 2020.

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police after they deliberately ran through a police checkpoint in Barangay Poblacion in the morning, the PNP said. An occupant of the fleeing vehicle also fired at and hit the front windshield of a police car giving chase. Disono told GMA News Online she was on her way home from the municipal hall when the shooting happened. “I was just talking to someone. Then an employee told me that the father of the opponent of my sibling, who is the incumbent mayor, went to the police. Then, later on, there was a checkpoint,” she said. The vice mayor said she stopped at the checkpoint and then moved later on. She added the police asked her personnel on board another vehicle to alight. “Perhaps, they got scared, so they

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"put an end to this tragedy,"saying both Russia and Ukraine both have "legitimate concerns" ahead of the meeting at the Dolmabahce Palace. Meanwhile, 13 Filipino seafarers from Ukraine have arrived in thePhilippines, bringing the number of repatriated sea-

According to Mapa, neoplasms, commonly known as “cancer,” ranked as the fourth leading cause of death with 59,503 recorded cases (7.8 percent share) from January to December 2021. It dropped from being the second leading cause of death with 66,342 deaths (10.8 percent share) from the previous year’s ranking. Meanwhile, deaths due to diabetes mellitus (48,267 or 6.3 percent share), which ranked fifth in 2021, had an increase of 21.0 percent. Registered deaths due to COVID-19 accounted for a total of 105,723 deaths or 13.8 percent of the total registered deaths from January to December 2021. By classification, COVID-19 with virus identified and COVID-19 virus not identified were both included in the 10 leading causes of death. COVID-19 with virus identified was the 3rd leading cause of death in the country with 74,008 cases or 9.7 percent of the total deaths in the same period in 2021. Meanwhile, registered deaths due to COVID-19 with virus not identified accounted for 31,715 or 4.1 percent of the total deaths from January to December 2021, making it the 8th leading cause of death. (See full story online at manilastandard.net)

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coming elections to the survival and recovery of the nation, I will direct the DOJ contingent to give the highest priority to this campaign in the next 40 days,” Guevarra said in a text message to reporters. Meanwhile, the Department of Information and Communications Technology said it was working to ensure that the web services it was providing to the Commission on Elections for the May 9 polls were safe from cyberattacks. DICT Acting Secretary Manny Caintic said preparations were underway to ensure a smooth national and local elections. Interviewed on Dobol B TV, Garcia said the books that would be used inside voting precincts and the lists that would be posted outside precincts on election day could be checked. Garcia made the statement as he discussed the layers of security in light of the concern that some deceased individuals may still be included on the voters' list. He said if the name of a person was included in the book inside a precinct or the election day computerized voters list (EDCVL), the person would be allowed to vote. But if the name was absent in the EDCVL, the person would not be allowed to vote even if his name was in the list posted outside the precinct or the posted computerized voters list (PCVL). If the EDCVL and PCVL do not match, Garcia said there might be some irregularities. According to him, some people are changing the PCVL to confuse the voters. He also called on poll watchers and citizens’ arm to participate in the verification of the lists. The DOJ is one of the agencies that would form the Commission on Elec-

ings, admiralty and maritime actions – and small claims cases… where the amount claimed is not over P2 million; complaints for damages where the claim does not exceed P2 million, exclusive of interest and costs. Also covered are cases for enforcement of barangay amicable settlement agreements where the money claim exceeds P1 million provided no execution has been enforced by the barangay within six months from the date of settlement; cases for revival of judgment rendered by first level courts; and civil aspect of violation of Batas Pambansa Blg. 22, Bouncing Checks Law, if no criminal action has been instituted. (See full story online at manilastandard.net)

followed us. The police fired at them. One person on our side was killed,” Disono said. Col. Maly Cula, Abra provincial police chief, said in a phone interview that they received an intelligence report of some armed persons, thus the authorities set up a checkpoint. Thirty minutes after the checkpoint went up, Cula said a white van passed by. Police hailed it but the van didn’t stop and ran through two of the policemen while shooting at them, the police chief added. "I can say there’s no harassment (on Vice Mayor Disono). We're just pursuing lawless elements who try to evade our checkpoints. No harassment is happening," he added. The PNP-PIO said teams from the Pilar Municipal Police Station and the Cordillera Regional Mobile Force Battalion were at Disono's residence to negotiate the peaceful surrender of the driver of the vehicle. (See full story online at manilastandard.net)

vaccines are allowed to travel in areas placed under Level 2. The Philippines was earlier under Level 3. The Department of Health (DOH), meanwhile, warned the public against taking four or more doses of the COVID-19 vaccine, saying it could be dangerous. Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said that while COVID-19 jabs are proven safe and effective, people still need to be wary about receiving more doses than what has been approved by experts. She said they have received reports that several individuals have taken four, five, and even six doses of the anti-COVID vaccine. "What I can say would be it is dangerous. We have to understand these vaccines are only in their phase three trials. We need to monitor for long-term effects of these vaccines," Vergeire told ANC's Headstart. "People have to be very cautious in us-

ing these vaccines beyond their approved use. We still do not know a lot about these vaccines. We just want to stay within the protocol and approved guidelines,” she said. The DOH has so far recommended a fourth COVID-19 vaccine dose or a second booster for the elderly and the immunocompromised. The government has yet to roll these out. Vergeire reiterated the importance of COVID-19 booster shots as only 11.8 million out of 45 million eligible fully vaccinated people have received their additional doses. "They believe they already have enough protection because they had their primary series already and they had an infection," Vergeire said. "We have to remember that immunity wanes, both the natural immunity and immunity coming from our vaccines. It gives you additional protection from severe hospitalization and deaths,” she said. She also reminded the public not to be complacent as the virus was still out there. (See full story online at manilastandard.net)

farers to 323 amid the ongoing conflict, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said. The DFA said 13 more seafarers of MV Ithaca Prospect arrived at the Clark International Airport on March 26. Also, at least eight crewmen of MV Filia Glory, anchored in Olvia Port at the south of Mykolaiv, disembarked at the Ninoy AquinoInternational Airport (NAIA) on March 25.

They completed the repatriation of the whole crew, with the other half arriving on March 22, the DFA said. “The evacuation of the seafarers was a big challenge because of the need for them to disembark the ship through small boats that would bring them safely to shore,” Philippine Ambassador to Budapest Frank Cimafranca said in a statement released on Tuesday. “We did this twice since the second

batch of the crew was evacuated on a separate day,” he added. The DFA said 30 crewmen were also evacuated and waiting for repatriation. The department said the Philippine Honorary Consul and the Philippine Embassy in Budapest are conducting ongoing joint evacuation efforts amid the heightened tension between Russia and Ukraine. AFP (See full story online at manilastandard.net)

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Stricter control measures versus bird flu up—DA By Othel V. Campos THE Department of Agriculture (DA) has ordered stricter control and containment measures against bird flu after initial confirmation of the avian influenza (AI) H5N1 outbreaks affecting duck and quail farms in Bulacan, Pampanga, Laguna and Camarines Sur. Agriculture Secretary William Dar emphasized the need to act immediately to control avian influenza, which was initially detected in a duck farm in Bulacan and quail farms in Pampanga, to contain the spread and damage to the poultry industry. “The avian influenza virus detected is of subtype H5N1, which is also a threat to human health. This is the very reason we have to double our efforts in controlling and containing bird flu, and we can accomplish this through cooperation – especially those who are engaged in poultry production,” Dar said. The DA has recently issued Memorandum Circulars No. 5 and 6 prescribing the guidelines on the local movement of domestic and wild birds and poultry products and by-products during the Avian Influenza surveillance period. The policy regulates the movement of ducks, quails, chicken and other poultry commodities in affected areas, particularly those coming from within the onekilometer (km) quarantine area. (See full story online at manilastandard.net)

Phivolcs: Raising Taal alert status to 4 ‘not too high’ By Rio N. Araja THE Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) on Tuesday said the likelihood of raising Taal Volcano's alert status to level 4 is "not too high". Phivolcs chief science research specialist Ma. Antonia Bornas said activity at the main crater of Taal was dominated by an upwelling of hot volcanic fluids in its lake which generated plumes 2,400 meters tall. Sulfur dioxide (SO2) emission averaged 4,273 tonnes on Monday. More than 5,800 people have been evacuated from their homes as Alert Level 3 is still raised over the Taal Volcano, the Batangas Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (PDRRMO) said Tuesday. On GMA News’ Unang Balita, PDRRMO chief Lito Castro said evacuees are prohibited from going back to their residences until Alert Level 3 is lifted by Phivolcs. The National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) also said its contingency measures are well prepared for a possible prolonged unrest of the Taal Volcano. (See full story online at manilastandard.net)

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said the Philippine position is to continue to exercise full sovereignty over Bajo de Masinloc and its territorial sea and sovereign rights and jurisdiction over the surrounding exclusive economic zone and continental shelf. National Security Adviser Hermogenes Esperon said the Philippines has already filed a diplomatic protest over the incident. The statements came after PCG reported that a CCG vessel with bow number 3305 suddenly approached and stayed about 21 yards from the BRP Malabrigo (MRRV4402), which was conducting a maritime patrol in Bajo de Masinloc on March 2. The PCG described the incident as “close distance maneuvering,” which constrained the maneuvering space of BRP Malabrigo. The PGC said it is a clear violation of the 1972 International Regulations for Preventing Collisions at Sea. Esperon said while close distance maneuvering can always happen, it is important that the Philippines stands by its sovereignty and assert it through international laws such as the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea. "There may be counter claims but we, as a nation, will stand by our established sovereign rights and sovereignty over the area," said Esperon, who chairs the National Task Force West Philippine Sea. On March 14, the Department of Foreign Affairs summoned ChineseAmbassador to the Philippines Huang Xilian over the People’s Liberation Army-Navy’s (PLAN’s) reported “illegal incursion” in the Sulu Sea, which happened from Jan. 29 to Feb. 1, 2022. China said it was an “exercise of the right of innocent passage.” Also on Tuesday, Senators Grace Poe and Leila de Lima urged the government to act over the presence of Chinese vessels in the West Philippine Sea. (See full story online at manilastandard.net)

News

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 30, 2022

Twelve Makati public schools begin F2F classes By Joel. E. Zurbano

JOJO BINAY GOES TO MARKET. Former Vice President-turned senatorial candidate Jejomar ‘Jojo’ Binay gets a warm welcome at theLa Trinidad Public Market in Benguet province, a renowned vegetable trading center of the country.

Palace: AI report false, rehashed By Vito Barcelo

ALACAÑANG on Tuesday debunked an Amnesty International (AI) report on the government’s anti-drug campaign as “false and rehashed” allegations against President Duterte.

Acting Presidential Spokesperson and Communications Secretary Martin Andanar said the AI continues to rely on the President’s critics, using baseless information not vetted by Philippine government authorities. In its report, the AI charged that “lack of accountability continued to facilitate

unlawful killings and other human rights violations” under Duterte’s drug war. “The reports of AI are never vetted with the Philippine government to authenticate their information, which is why it includes false narratives on the government’s war against illegal drugs,” Andanar said in a statement.

“We consider the Amnesty International Report 2021-2022 as simply a cut-and-paste collection of recycled issues and arguments used by perennial detractors and critics of the Duterte administration,” Andanar said. “The absence of such vetting relegates AI’s report to a mere false rehash. And that especially includes its false narratives on the current government’s anti-illegal drugs campaign and issues surrounding Maria Ressa and Senator Leila de Lima, all of which have been previously answered,” Andanar added. The Palace official deplored that the AI described the government’s pan-

demic response as a “mishandling,” saying it is far from the truth because all regions in the country were presented in minimal risk case classification. Andanar pointed out that the Philippines has been elected to a fifth term in the United Nations Human Rights Council, saying it was a recognition of the government’s “faithful adherence to promoting, protecting, and fulfilling the human rights of the Filipino people.” He urged the AI to meet with the Presidential Human Rights Committee Secretariat to ensure that pressing issues in the country were “properly discussed and resolved.”

THE Makati City government on Tuesday announced that 12 public schools in the city have resumed faceto-face classes after a two-year hiatus due to the COVID-19 pandemic. “After nearly two years, our students are excited to go back to school and use their new uniforms, school bags, rubber shoes, and other school supplies. Providing new school apparel to students is one way to motivate them to do well in class,” Mayor Abigail Binay said in a statement. The mayor earlier led the distribution of school gear and supplies to some 87,050 public school students from kindergarten to senior high school, including special education (SPED) students. “I am delighted to see our students looking neat and smart in their new school uniform, especially our kinder pupils,” Binay said. Binay said the new uniform design was inspired by uniforms worn by schoolchildren in Japan, known for its simple lines and comfort. The city chief executive also said the city has provided Japanese-style backpacks to some 13,100 students in Grades 1 and 4. “We also invested in providing our Grades 1 and 4 with a Randoseru, a firm-sided backpack commonly used by elementary schoolchildren in Japan. The bags are designed to last for at least three school years,” she said. Mayor Binay revealed that the city government has installed temperature scanners, alcohol dispensers, foot baths, UV lights, and air purifiers in the public schools as part of their public health and safety protocols.

MRT-3 to deploy 4-car trains next year to increase capacity STARTING next year, the MRT-3 will possibly be fielding four coaches-long all its trains to accommodate more passengers. MRT director for operations Michael Capati said they have already deployed two of such trains, and by next year, all the trains will have four cars. The rollout of two four-car trains started this week. Each can accommodate more than 1,500 passengers, compared to the three-car trains which could carry only 1,182 passengers. Each car could accommodate 394 people. The facility underwent rehabilitation which was completed in December last year. The MRT-3’s platforms were designed to accommodate four-car trains, the Department of Transportation (DOTr) had said. Capati assured the public that their

facilities are ready with the expected influx of passengers, with the continuing rehabilitation of the MRT-3’s station control rooms and ticket offices. Our system is now fully rehabilitated and the passengers are urged to follow health protocols, Capati said Meanwhile, a total of 281,507 passengers availed of th MRT-3 free rides on Monday, the first day of the promo, Capati said. This is expected to peak to 300,000 to 400,000 daily until April 30, he said. President Duterte last week announced the free rides following the completion of the railway’s rehabilitation. An average of 18 to 22 trains ply the MRT railway system. Despite the pandemic, transport authorities said MRT-3 booked an average of 280,000 commuters daily.

PNPA HOMECOMING. Members of the Kaisang Bisig Philippine National Police Academy (PNPA) Class 2009 and their adopted

classmates led by Cpt. Mel Hallar, PA (Res) CSP,(second from right, first row) pose for posterity during the PNPA Alumni Homecoming and parade on Saturday.

Tugade orders extension of waiver on terminal fees at seaports CEBU City—TO reduce shipping companies’ operation costs amid rising fuel prices, Transportation Secretary Arthur Tugade said here on Tuesday he had ordered the Philippine Ports Authority (PPA) to extend the suspension of of terminal fees at government-run seaports. I have issued an instruction yesterday to finish as soon as possible the waiver of the P500 terminal fee,” Tugade told reporters. He quoted PPA general manager Jay Santiago as saying the waiver of the P500-terminal fee at seaports had already expired. “I told him to appeal to his board to extend it for two or three months so we

can help shipowners,” Tugade said. Tugade said that waiving the collection of the P500-terminal fee can reduce the cost of shipping firms’ operations by 20 percent. Apart from waiving terminal fees, the Transportation chief hinted at the possibility of providing fuel subsidies for the maritime sector. “If there is a subsidy for the road transport sector, let us see if we can give a subsidy for the maritime sector,” he said. The Department of Transportation, through the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board, is giving out fuel cash cards to public utility vehicle driv-

ers and operators amounting to P6,500 for March and another P6,500 for April. Tugade also said prefers to subsidize portions of airlines’ fuel costs than to approve a higher fuel surcharge, which would be passed on to the air traveling public, amid the skyrocketing petroleum prices. “As much as possible let us avoid increasing the fuel surcharge because it will be passed on to passengers, which then will increase cost of travel,” Tugade told reporters at the sideline of Cebu Pacific’s 26th anniversary celebration at Mactan Cebu International Airport.

Mom seeks probe on son’s death after receiving COVID-19 vaccine A MOTHER of a 19-year-old boy has sought the assistance of the Public Attorney’s Office (PA0) for an autopsy of his remains for possible adverse effect of the COVID-19 vaccine. PAO chief Persida Acosta said Helen Gaa of Galicia Street, Sampaloc, Manila sent her a letter on March 23, requesting autopsy of her son, Miguel Antonio de Castro, who died at the Mary Chiles General Hospital due to septic shock and and meningo-encephalitis. “To my knowledge, my son was in

perfect health before it happened,” Gaa’s letter read. Acosta referred Gaa’s request to the Department of Justice and asked the National Bureau of Investigation for a probe of the matter. She also referred the matter to Interior and Local Government Secretary Eduardo Año, Health Secretary Francisco Duque III, and the Philippine National Police chief for investigations, as well as the Department of Health autopsy team. Rio N. Araja

QC gov’t grants financial aid to 25,000 residents

THE Quezon City government has provided financial grant to help some 25,000 constituents recover from economic setbacks due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The aid was released through the Pangkabuhayang QC, a livelihood training and capital assistance program that extends options for marginalized people. It involves starting a business for displaced/resigned/reduced-salary

employees, micro-entrepreneurs/vendors, persons with disabilities, laid-off overseas Filipino workers, unemployed solo parents, and indigent families. For phase 1 with 18 batches that underwent proper screening 25,407 beneficiaries received capital assistance of P10,000 up to P20,000 depending on their business model. “We are proud to share that this will

continue to be the city government’s permanent program as the city council has approved and signed a city ordinance institutionalizing this initiative. This will no longer just support those affected by the pandemic, but more so all eligible aspiring entrepreneurs,” Small Business and Cooperatives Development and Promotions Office chief Mona Celine Yap said. Rio N. Araja

Charitable facility rises in QC blighted area

Bringing charity where it is needed. True to its name, the Servants of Charity brings its humanitarian endeavors right where it it needed—Barangay Pingkian—a blighted area in Pasong Tamo, Quezon City Called the Guanella Medical and Dental Center, the facility will respond to the needs of the less fortunate among the city’s constituents.

A MEDICAL and dental facility has been opened where it is needed--right at the heart of a depressed area in Quezon City. The facility, called the Guanella Center, was built under the auspices of the Servants of Charity on six-hectare lot in Barangay Pingkian, Pasong Tamo, Quezon City.

The Center was specifically designed to serve persons with disabilities and the needy. After a mass officiated by Fr. David Anburaj, SPC, program director of Guanella Center, at the community covered court, the facility was inaugurated with leaders of the Quezon City Dental

Center Institute, notably Judith Yap and Dr. Vechsa G. Salazar, Ms. Selena F. Sta Maria, Lady Excelsior, as well as members of theTheta Lambda Phi Medical Sorority, and with father and son donors, Jan and Jv Mata, successors of the late Dr. Agnes Vila-Mata.

News

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 30, 2022

Muslim youth back BBM, Sara in May elections By Maricel V. Cruz A GROUP of Muslim youth in Carmen, North Cotabato is convinced that presidential candidate Bongbong Marcos and Lakas-CMD vice presidential bet Sara Duterte have already won the race ahead of May elections. One of those Muslim youth is Florabel Sinempalan, 21, who was with her friends attending the jam-packed rally in front of the municipal hall in the province on Monday morning. Sinempalan said she will vote for the BBM-Sara tandem because theyboth deserve to win. “Alam ko po na si Marcos ay deserving siyang maging pangulo ng Pilipinas. (I know that Marcos is deserving to be the President of the Philippines) I know Sara Duterte will help President Marcos in engaging more Filipinos with necessary programs,” Sinempalan said as she held a placard with a message “BBM - Sara Duterte: Uwian na, May Nanalo na!” Sinempalan, a nursing student, said she agrees with the UniTeam’s advocacy in strengthening the quality of education and achieving a peaceful living for every Filipino, as stressed by Duterte in her speech. She also believes that Marcos’ promise to provide better livelihood opportunities would help her parents. Sinempalan also said she hopes the tandem would move to end discrimination against Muslims. “As a Muslim, I know that the UniTeam will help the Muslim Filipinos and other religions in building respect. Most of the Muslims are being discriminated against. Thru the help of Bongbong and Sara Duterte, I know that it will stop, and Muslims will be seen equally with others,” she said.

UNITEAM IN SULTAN KUDARAT. A drone shot shows a huge crowd during the UniTeam BBM-SARA tandem proclamation rally at the provincial capitol grounds, Isulan Sultan Kudarat. Ver Noveno

100K in BBM Sultan Kudarat rally By Maricel V. Cruz

NITEAM standard-bearer former Sen. Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. and his running mate Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte of the Lakas-Christian Muslim Democrats (CMD) drew mammoth crowds in their rallies in Mindanao on Monday. Organizers said that the massive assembly in front of the provincial capitol here was attended by an estimated 100,000 in its early stage even before the UniTeam candidates addressed their supporters. It was organized by Gov. Suharto Mangudadatu, while the jampacked Maguindanao rally in Buluan town was led by his wife, Gov. Bai Mariam Mangudadatu.

Marcos and Duterte thanked the Mangudadatu couple for the warm welcome they received and for organizing the rallies following a similar assembly in North Cotabato. UniTeam officers said the Central Mindanao crowds were among the biggest they have seen in the course of the BBM-Sara campaign down South. Another recent UniTeam rally with a

mammoth crowd was in General Trias City in Cavite were more than 100,000 supporters showed up for the event. Gov. Suharto Mangudadatu introduced BBM as the next president of the Republic of the Philippines. Marcos greeted the huge crowd while Duterte thanked the immense assembly as well. The rallies were held at the provincial capital grounds in Buluan, Maguindanao, and in Isulan, Sultan Kudarat. Earlier Monday, the UniTeam candidates attended a rally in Carmen, North Cotabato organized by Vice Gov. Lala Taliño-Mendoza who is eyeing a comeback as the province’s governor in the coming poll, and her husband, Trade Union Congress of

Leni continues meet-and-greet, sorties in Samar

Lacson says he can bankroll poll campaign By Macon Ramos-Araneta INDEPENDENT presidential candidate Sen. Panfilo Lacson stressed he can bankroll his own campaign sorties and he has enough funding. Despite being the former standard-bearer of Partido Reporma, with whom he severed ties, Lacson said he has never been dependent on the party for his campaign. According to Lacson, he has his funds coming from those who are rallying behind his presidential run, believing in his advocacies. “I have enough funding for the remainder of the campaign period - until May - as many friends continue to contribute to his cause,” Lacson said. Lacson resigned as chairperson of Partido Reporma and left the party after former House Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez informed him through text that the Davao del Norte group which he lead shifted support to VP Leni Robredo. Meanwhile, Lacson said “We Have a Leader!” Is his updated theme after parting ways with Partido Reporma. He said the slogan is a tweak from the “We Need a Leader” coined by Alvarez, also Partido Reporma president, who is now backing another bet.

the Philippines (TUCP) party-list Rep. Democrito Mendoza. Duterte’s husband, lawyer Manases “Mans” Carpio, joined her for the first time in her campaign in Carmen town. They brought with them their two children, Mateo Lucas or Stingray and Marko Digong or Stone Fish. Based on Commission on Elections (Comelec) data, Maguindanao has 818,790 registered voters, while Sultan Kudarat has 497,690. There are 975,541 voters listed in South Cotabato and 771,206 in North Cotabato. Marcos told the UniTeam supporters that they still have a lot of work to do and vowed to uplift the lives of poor Filipinos after he is elected in the scheduled May 9 elections.

LENI IN LEYTE. Vice President and opposition presidential candidate Leni Robredo speaks to supporters during a campaign rally ahead of the May presidential election, in the town of Palo, Leyte province on March 29. TED ALJIBE / AFP

Moreno bats for satellite broadband access for Manila By Rey E. Requejo AKSYON Demokratiko standard-bearer Francisco Isko Moreno Domagoso on Tuesday took time off from his hectic campaign schedule to meet with representatives of Elon Musk’s SpaceX Enterprise for the acquisition of Starlink’s satellite broadband internet system for Manila City. Moreno was grateful for the early morning meeting with Rebecca Hunter,

SpaceX senior manager for government affairs, and Raymond Garcia, SpaceX partner-representative for the Philippines and other Asian countries. The SpaceX representatives were also scheduled with national government officials in the hope of making the Philippines the first country in the Asean region to avail of Starlink loworbit satellite and Manila as the first city in Southeast Asia to acquire its fast broadband internet service.

Moreno had earlier talked of Starlink’s low-orbit satellites during previous press conferences which members of the media had not picked up. His latest talk about Starlink is when Elon Musk sent his satellites to Ukraine for the use of its citizens. According to Moreno, the acquisition of the low-orbit satellite internet system will soon greatly boost the Philippine capital’s capacity to deliver basic social services through fast, reliable and free internet.

VICE President Leni Robredo continued her three-day visit to Samar and Leyte, meeting key leaders, holding dialogues with sectoral groups, and speaking at rallies on Tuesday. It’s been raining off and on in the area, but tens of thousands of supporters are ready, rain or shine. On her schedule are visits to Maslog, Eastern Samar; Palo, Leyte; Naval, Biliran; Ormoc City; and Borongan, Easter Samar. Jun Ocampo, head of the Robredo People’s Council (RPC) in Ormoc, spent most of the day before putting the final touches on a makeshift stage and topping off a muddy abandoned sugarcane field with gravel. He said they had to scramble for a venue after the date was first announced, since the Ormoc City Plaza they had originally planned to use suddenly became unavailable. “Our event is called Piñakalig-on ang Ormoc,” he said, a reference to the small Ormoc pineapples which Ormocanons declare are the sweetest in the country. Benedict Tugonon, one of the rally organizers, says at least 20,000 people from Ormoc and two other districts will join the rally to listen to Robredo, her running mate Kiko Pangilinan, and members of her senatorial slate. Eric Aseo, regional political officer of Robredo’s national campaign team, says 10,000 people are expected to attend, a significant number for the area since it is very near Tacloban, Leyte, the hometown of Former First Lady Imelda Marcos, mother of presidential aspirant Ferdinand Marcos, Jr. In Quezon City, toymaker company Cubao Customs recently gave Robredo a customized doll. With Rio N. Araja

Manny says he is unfazed by rivals’‘drone wars’

SENATOR Emmanuel “Manny” Pacquiao said his campaign will focus on communicating his message to the poorest Filipinos amid the raging “drone wars,” a common term for remotely controlled unmanned aerial photography tools used by presidential candidates. “I know Manny Pacquiao support-

ers, I am allied with the D-E class and those who are impoverished and only hope for a better life. They are the people we are fighting for. At the end of the day, Manny Pacquiao is for those who do not have their own homes or livelihood. That is why we go to areas that are remote and where there are lots of poor people,” Pac-

quiao said in a press briefing after a visit to the districts of San Andres and Tondo, Manila on Monday. If elected president, Pacquiao said his top priority is to provide a modest but decent house for all Filipino families who are homeless or do not live in their own houses. With Macon Ramos-Araneta

Mangondato hopes to get Duterte’s endorsement

MEETING WITH SPACEX. Manila Mayor Francisco Isko Moreno Domagoso answers media questions at the Manila City Hall after a meeting with a representative of Elon Musk’s SpaceX company. Norman Cruz

PRESIDENTIAL candidate Faisal Mangondato said he expects to get the blessing of President Rodrigo Duterte in the May elections because they both have “Bangsamoro blood.” Mangondato attended a thanksgiving event for Duterte in Marawi on Sunday Mangondato, quoted in an ABS-

CBN news report said “President Duterte’s grandmother is from Lanao. I am also from Lanao. Our parents are relatives, in the Samporna side. I would be happy to be endorsed, hopefully, by President Duterte.” Mangondato, 59, is running under the Katipunan ng Kamalayang Kayuman-

ggi party. He is among the 10 candidates for president in the May elections. He said if he gets Duterte’s backing, he would still campaign for his running-mate Carlos Serapio and not Duterte’s daughter Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte, who is also running for vice president.

Opinion Who’s casting doubt on automated polls? IS IT true that there’s been a breach of sensitive data from the servers of the Commission on Elections? What has been presented so far as evidence is a screenshot from supposedly well-intentioned hackers who want to highlight the supposed vulnerabilities of the poll body’s servers. The Comelec database of voter information that’s claimed to have been part of the breached data is not available online; PINs and passwords of vote counting machines (VCMs) that are also supposedly part of the breach had not yet been uploaded to the system at the time of the alleged hacking.

There is a dark conspiracy to cast doubt, this early, on the results of the elections. The National Bureau of Investigation (NBI), after rigorous testing of the Comelec system, revealed that there is no evidence of hacking as the system cannot even generate data that were supposedly breached, reinforcing the Comelec’s claim that the information is not available online. The poll body insists that their technology vendor’s role is limited to providing the automated election system (AES), and that the vendor has zero access to information that could affect the elections in any way. Expert analysis revealed that the data at the center of the controversy are not sensitive at all. An IT expert representing the Partido Federal in the Local Source Code Review (LSCR), Alex Ramos, believes that the alleged compromised data is “completely irrelevant” to the elections. Yet even after consideration of all these, a Senate investigation has been conducted, thus making the public believe that there’s indeed been a breach of the system. It may have been overzealousness on the part of a well-meaning media outﬁt that prompted all the commotion. After all, allegations of hacking and breach of data in a hotly contested presidential election should be investigated and rectiﬁed as soon as possible. But when all concerned parties have already rejected the claims of dubious parties, however well-intentioned they may be, then the case should be considered closed. It is election season, however, and amid the din of various political ads, pundits’ analysis and battle for people’s perceptions, there seem to be certain quarters taking advantage of the issue to

HAIR loss among women is painful, depressing and embarrassing, according to Jada Pinkett Smith and other celebrities who have gone public with their feelings. The subject has rushed into the public consciousness after Will Smith slapped comedian Chris Rock for making a joke about Pinkett Smith’s lack of hair at the Oscars. Pinkett Smith spoke out for the ﬁrst time in 2018 about her diagnosis of alopecia, a medical term referring to the loss of hair. “It was one of those times in my life where I was literally shaking with fear,” the actress and director said on her online show “Red Table Talk.” “And that was when I was like, ‘Oh, my God. Am I going bald?’” Democratic Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley, who went public with her diagnosis in 2020, took to Twitter on Monday. “Let’s talk about what it’s like to live with #alopecia,” she posted. “The deeply vulnerable & difﬁcult moments that our families see. Appreciation post

serve their own narrow interests. What is coming to light in all the attempts to fan the ﬂames of fear and misinformation about automated polls is a dark conspiracy to cast doubt, this early, on the results of the upcoming elections. Are these groups perhaps sensing imminent defeat and are looking for a convenient scapegoat? Recall that former US President Donald Trump, sensing imminent defeat in his re-election bid against Joe Biden, began claiming electoral fraud without presenting any evidence. Trump campaigned heavily on the premise that he would be cheated out of his second term in the White House, and this sent his supporters all riled up enough for them to storm Congress after Biden won the election. Is it possible therefore that certain groups in this country are taking a leaf from the Trump playbook and preparing to demonize the VCMs in case they lose? How else could we explain the alleged breach not going away despite the Comelec repeatedly saying that it does not share electoral data with their providers and all experts attesting the veracity of the poll body’s claims? Even before the pandemic hit, there were serious proposals to return to manual elections. There was even talk of adopting a hybrid system, which would have been impractical and perhaps even a step backward in our election process. Can we afford to go back to the evil triad of guns, goons and gold that held away in previous manual elections? Apparently not. Yet the viliﬁcation of automated polls persists. Shooting down the automated election system has been the convenient tactic of those who have lost elections since the country adopted automated polls in 2010. Losing candidates crying foul and protesting election results is nothing new, but blaming automated polls has proved convenient for those unable to win in electoral contests. Proving fraud in automated polls can be too technical and complicated, not to mention costly and time-consuming. It’s much easier to convince people that cheating could happen within the system rather than present them with precise reasons why fraud is impossible in an automated election. Perhaps we are already seeing the start of certain sectors already sharpening their knives in case they lose. These parties may be starting to claim potential voter fraud this early by casting doubt on the reliability of automated polls. For if the Comelec, the National Bureau of Investigation and a respected IT expert all insist and conclude that no electoral data have been compromised, why are some quarters still pushing this non-story? Who are these groups who, while projecting themselves as uninvolved, are quietly laying the predicate for an electoral protest? Let’s wait and see. (Email: ernhil@ yahoo.com)

for those who hold us down & support us when we’re at our lowest points. They see us, fully.” As Hollywood inches towards a healthier balance between female beauty ideals and the lived reality, more actresses have begun speaking out about the impact of losing their hair—due to stress, hormonal changes after giving birth and even COVID-19. “This is so not glamorous, but it’s true: I need to take longer showers so that I can collect the hair that falls out and throw it away so I don’t clog the drain. Why do actresses never talk about that?” Selma Blair told People magazine in 2011 after giving birth. Alyssa Milano, who says she lost her hair after being infected with coronavirus, said it had affected her whole sense of self. “It’s hard, especially when you’re an actor and so much of your identity is wrapped up in those things like having long silky hair and clean skin.” Actress Ricki Lake wrote on Instagram

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EDITORIAL

Women speak of the pain of going bald By Paula Ramon

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 30, 2022

Belated planning

DUCATION has been one of the casualties of this lingering pandemic. Since schools shut down in March 2020—at that time, many thought the situation would revert to normal in a matter of weeks— difﬁculties have been observed in the way teachers taught and students learned.

No less than the World Bank said that the Philippines’ learning poverty— the share of 10-year-olds who cannot read nor understand a simple story—shot up to 90 percent in 2021. It was also revealed that remote learning in the Philippines covered just 20 percent of Filipino households with school children. Gaps that had been existing long before COVID-19 became even more pronounced and complex. Learning poverty prior to the pandemic was already at 69.5 percent. And then, egregious mistakes in the learning modules were discovered, ranging from grammatical and factual errors to oppressive and downright ridiculous gender stereotypes. That there appeared to be no certainty on when the virus would go away exacerbated the troubles of the blended learning system—going online, or for those without the means to do so, a modular method where printed lessons and exercises were brought to the students and then collected from them after a given period. Now however there is reason to be-

Our state of education has much catching up to do. lieve, barring another COVID surge or variant, that our students can picture themselves returning to their classrooms and physically interacting with their teachers and classmates. This week we heard from the Department of Education saying it was now mapping out a recovery plan to address the gaps caused by the pandemic. It is a part of the agency’s post-pandemic efforts, said Secretary Leonor Briones. “We have to ensure that our interventions are effective so that everyone can catch up and accelerate their learning,” Briones said. Another education official said the recovery plan is anchored on “learning remediation and intervention, professional development, health, safety, and wellness.” All these are never objectionable,

except that the plan appears to be still in the future tense. It is too late in the day for the education department to be mapping out its strategies on how to resume face-toface instruction effectively. We would also like to remind Madam Secretary that this is not a post-pandemic scenario. COVID-19 is still very much around. The health risks, as well as lessons learned during the past two years, must have already been factored into the agency’s decisions and plans. With hardly any other option left, the education sector must act fast and disseminate the implementation of its socalled recovery plan to all schools in all corners of this archipelago. Teachers and school administrators should have enough time to ensure their tasks are performed as envisioned. They, too, have been personally affected by the pandemic and its economic and other consequences and may need some time to adjust to the resumption of face-toface classes, even as trial runs were conducted late last year. The education crisis will persist for a long-time after this. Our children had at least two years during which they were not able to learn and interact with others as necessary. We must catch up fast enough if we are to reach our prepandemic quality, which in itself is not ideal, much less achieve real development in how we mold the mind, the skills, and the values of our young.

Irreversible TODAY, March 30, is one month and eight days before the May 9, 2022 presidential elections. Campaigning is allowed until May 7 only. That means just one day more of campaigning in March, all the 30 days of April, and seven days in May—a total of 38 days. In the latest survey, by Laylo Research of March 15-22, 2022, for president, former Senator Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. (BBM for short) was the choice of 61 percent of 3,000 respondents polled nationwide. A poor second is Vice President Leni Robredo, the choice of just 19 percent. Deduct 19 from 61, you get 42 percentage points. Multiply 42 by the number of expected voter turnout of 60 million, you get 25.20 million votes—the difference between the votes of BBM (61 percent of 60 million voters or 36.6 million) and the votes of Leni, 19 percent of 60 million or 11.4 million. Headed by political scientist Junie Laylo, 12-year-old Laylo Research is a very reputable research ﬁrm. It uses a respondent base of 3,000—the largest among the top three polling ﬁrms. Pulse Asia uses 2,400, while the Social Weather Stations usually has 1,200 respondents. All three use a margin of error of plus or minus 2 percent. In surveys, the more respondents you poll, the more accurate the results. The smaller the error margin, 2 or less, the better and more accurate the results. Junie has a master of arts in political science, with concentration in survey research, from the University of Connecticut. He has over 30 years of experience in surveys and strategic research and was a fellow and political scientist of SWS until he joined in 2001 Gloria Macapagal Arroyo as her pollster. With BBM ahead by 25.2 million votes in the Laylo March 15-22 survey, Leni must gain consistently by 663,158 voters every day, just to tie BBM in the race for the presidency by election day, by May 9. No presidential candidate had executed

in 2020 that she had struggled for her whole life with hair loss. “It has been debilitating, embarrassing, painful, scary, depressing, lonely, all the things. There have been a few times where I have even felt suicidal over it.” Oscar winner Viola Davis said she had tried to hide the effects of her alopecia with wigs. “I had a wig I wore around the house. I had a wig that I wore to events. I had a wig that I wore when I worked out,” she told an interviewer. “I never showed my natural hair... I was so desperate for people to think that

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such a miracle before. The best catch-up was done by then Davao Mayor Rodrigo Duterte in 2016. About this time six years ago, or on March 22, 2016, presidential candidate Digong was still behind frontrunner Senator Grace Poe by 9 percentage points—26 vs. 35, in the Social Weather Stations survey during the period. The 9 percent was equivalent to 3.829 million votes or less than 4 million votes.

VP Leni Robredo must gain consistently— by 663,158 votes—every day. In the SWS survey of March 30, 2016, Duterte, with 31 percent, was still behind Grace Poe’s 34 percent, by three percentage points, equivalent to 1.32 million votes. In the March 30-April 2, 2016 SWS survey, Duterte had gained the upper hand over Poe, 27 percent vs. 24 percent. Both Duterte and Poe lost ground to VP Jejomar Binay, whose ratings rose from 17 to 20 percentage points in just two days, and Mar Roxas, who went up from 17 to 18. The ﬁnal results of the May 9, 2016 elections: Duterte, 16.6 million votes or 39.01 percent; Mar Roxas 9.978 million votes or 23.45 percent; and Poe, 9.1 million votes or 21.39 percent. To win as president, in 46 days, from March 22, 2016 and May 7, 2016 (the last day of campaigning), Duterte had to gain 120,217 votes every day. In Leni’s case, with 38 days to go, she must gain—every day—663,158 votes to wipe out the 25.2-million-vote margin of BBM. Without Duterte’s killer-instinct and tough guy and can-do gravitas as mayor, VP Leni must convince 5.5 times more voters than Duterte did in 2016 to win the presidency. Can she do that? The answer is obvious: No. Only massive cheating and tampering with election results can overturn an irreversible Bongbong Marcos victory.

I was beautiful.” Davis, who has been more open about the subject in the last decade, even included it in the series “How to Get Away with Murder,” when her character, a strong-willed lawyer and teacher, removes her wig exposing her very short hair. The National Alopecia Areata Foundation (NAAF) called Monday for more people to learn about the condition. It said alopecia areata, a speciﬁc type of balding caused by an autoimmune disorder that makes hair often fall out in clumps, affects about seven million people in the United States

Will Leni’s camp, in desperation, try that? Leni is not cut from an antidemocratic Trump cloth. She will gracefully accept a hugely disappointing result. Will her followers try? This is where the manifesto of 180 retired senior generals and ranking officers comes in. Invoking the Protector of the People provision of the 1987 Constitution, the retired officers declared: “We call on all sectors of our society, irrespective of partisan preference—to preserve and respect the sovereign will of the Filipino people in the upcoming 2022 national elections. In other words; Don’t mess up the election and please, count the votes properly. The manifesto of 180 senior officers was signed by 125 generals, seven fourstar generals (the rank of a chief of staff), and nine of 15 Medal of Valor awardees (Medal of Valor is the highest award given for courage and gallantry in combat). The Protector of the People clause in the Constitution was repeatedly invoked by the military in past coup attempts and destabilizing moves. Now, where is the United States in this year’s Philippine elections? Some Leni followers hint that America wants her to be the elected president this year. Yesterday, March 29, the Philippine and the US government launched their largest Balikatan military exercise ever. It involves nearly 10,000 troops (including 5,100 US soldiers), the best of the best fighting men of both countries, and is intended to bolster the two countries’ longstanding military treaty alliance. In the past, from 2016 to 2021, Duterte, the anti-American commander-in-chief, disdained such exercises and even attempted to junk the Visiting Forces Agreement. Balikatan this year is thus a change of heart for the wily Duterte. It sends a clear signal to America that the Philippines, under a President Marcos Jr., remains its steadfast ally in Asia. In overseas elections among its allies, America usually votes (if that is possible) where its boots are on. biznewsasia@gmail.com

and about 147 million worldwide. “It can be unpredictable and cause signiﬁcant physical, emotional/mental health, psycho-social, and ﬁnancial burdens—and there is no cure, effective treatment or standard of care,” the NAAF said. “Alopecia areata does not discriminate and can affect anyone at any age and may be a temporary or life-long condition. Many people living with the condition are suffering, and we must do better to support this community and erase the stigma, discrimination, and societal barriers that persist.” AFP

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Anxiety, empty shelves as COVID cases surge sharply in Shanghai SHANGHAI recorded a steep climb in COVID-19 cases Tuesday as panic-buying in the Chinese city of about 25 million stripped supermarket shelves bare. Millions endured a second day of lockdown after authorities effectively split the country’s biggest urban area in two, with residents of the city’s eastern half confined to their homes for four days and subjected to mandatory testing. China reported 6,886 domestic COVID cases nationwide on Tuesday, with more than 4,400 of them detected in Shanghai, now the center of the country’s worst COVID-19 outbreak since the early days of the pandemic. Images showed some supermarket shelves in the city emptied of all goods as residents rushed to stock up before being locked down. “After being unable to grab any groceries this morning, I went back to sleep, and all I dreamt about was buying food at the supermarket,” one user wrote on China’s Twitter-like Weibo platform.

“I’d never have thought that society today would be worried over buying groceries.” In a bid to keep Shanghai’s economy running, authorities have avoided the hard lockdowns regularly deployed in other Chinese cities, instead opting for rolling, localized restrictions. The area locked down on Monday is the sprawling eastern district of Pudong, which includes the main international airport and glittering financial center. The lockdown will last until Friday, then switch to the city’s more populated western Puxi section, home to the historic Bund riverfront, where residents were preparing for the impending shutdown. Shanghai resident Adrian Sim told AFP there were no spots available for online grocery delivery, some local restaurants had already stopped offering dine-in, and supermarkets in his neighborhood were packed when he went to buy supplies. AFP

PANIC BUYING. Shanghai residents buy groceries from near-empty shelves after a run on supermarkets that followed the announcement of a planned lockdown. AFP

Russian strike hits southern Ukraine government building

RUSSIAN strike battered the regional government building in the southern Ukrainian city of Mykolaiv, a key port under heavy assault for weeks, the regional governor said on Tuesday. For For fast fast ad ad results, results, please please call call Advertising Advertising Department Department 8564-6229 8564-6229

“The regional administration building was hit,” governor Vitaly Kim wrote on Facebook. He said that most people inside the building had not been injured but several civilians and soldiers were unaccounted for. AFP journalists on the scene in the aftermath of the attack said the bodies of two people were pulled from debris. “We’re clearing the rubble. Half the building was destroyed. NOTICE NOTICE OF OF LOSS LOSS My office was hit,” Kim said in This This is is to to declare declare that that the the stock stock certificate certificate a video stateme no. no. 740675, 740675, no. no. of of shares shares 90 90 issued issued 27 27 July July AFP footage showed a tall 2015 2015 by by MERALCO MERALCO under under the the name name Caezar Caezar and grey administrative buildP. P. Evangelista Evangelista is is missing missing and and no no longer longer retrievable. retrievable. ing, with a large section torn away and debris littering nearby The The abovementioned abovementioned certificate certificate was was never never streets. endorsed, endorsed, negotiated, negotiated, sold, sold, mortgage, mortgage, pledged, pledged, or or in in any any manner manner transferred transferred or or encumbered, encumbered, “Eight civilians are still under nor nor cancelled, cancelled, attached, attached, or or levied levied the the same. same. the rubble. We hope to be able The The said said certificate certificate was was not not the the subject subject of of any any claim, claim, or or legal legal action action or or proceeding, proceeding, directly directly or or to get them out,” Kim said. collaterally. collaterally. “We are also looking for three soldiers.” (MS-MAR. (MS-MAR.16,23 16,23&&30, 30,2022) 2022)

Russian attacks on Mykolaiv, which had been under heavy assault for weeks, appeared to be easing recently. The frontlines seemed to have receded from Mykolaiv, with a Ukrainian counteroffensive being mounted in Kherson, about 80 kilometers (50 miles) to the southeast. “I was having breakfast in my apartment,” Donald, 69, from Canada, told AFP journalists in Mykolaiv. “I heard a whoosh, then a boom and my windows rattled.” “It’s scary. We have been lucky here in Mykolaiv. We haven’t had that many explosions in the center of the city,” the retired Canadian postal worker with Ukrainian residency added. Mykolaiv is a key city on the road to Odessa, Ukraine’s biggest port, and its capture would represent a serious gain in Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, launched in late February. AFP

Notice Notice to to Creditors Creditors of of Lasag Lasag Realty Realty & & Development Development Cor Corporation poration The TheCreditors Creditorsof ofLasag LasagRealty Realty& &Development DevelopmentCorporation Corporation(LASAG) (LASAG) are are hereby hereby notified notified that that Lasag Lasag is is selling selling its its assets assets of of 199,990 199,990 shares shares of of stock stock at at Grayline Grayline Realty Realty Development Development Corporation Corporation after after aa month month of of this this publication. publication. These These 199,990 199,990 shares shares of of stock stock will will be be sold sold back back to to Grayline Grayline Realty Realty Development Development Corporation Corporation at at aa reasonable reasonable price price per per share share to to enable enable LASAG LASAG to to pay pay its its creditors. creditors. (MS-March (MS-March23 23&&30, 30,2022) 2022)

INVITATION TO BID The The CITY CITY GOVERNMENT GOVERNMENT OF OF MAKATI, MAKATI, through through its its Committee Committee on on Awards Awards on on Disposal Disposal (CAD), (CAD), wishes wishes to to announce announce to to the the public public and and all all interested interested buyer/s buyer/s to to join join the the sale sale through through Public Public Bidding Bidding of of the the following following items items on on aa “AS “AS IS, IS, WHERE WHERE IS” IS” basis basis on on April April 11, 11, 2022, 2022, detailed detailed as as follows: follows: Item Item Lot Lot 1. 1. Various Various Unserviceable Unserviceable Property, Property, Plant Plant and and Equipment Equipment Lot Lot 2. 2. Old Old Christmas Christmas Decorations Decorations

Floor Floor Price Price ₱₱ 2,792,785.00 2,792,785.00

Withdrawal Withdrawal Period Period Bid Bid Document Document Fee Fee 45 45 Calendar Calendar Days Days

₱₱ 1,000.00 1,000.00

No No bid bid shall shall be be allowed allowed lower lower than than the the above above Floor Floor Price. Price. Schedule Schedule of of activities activities are are as as follows: follows: Activity Activity Issuance Issuance of of Bid Bid Documents Documents Inspection Inspection of of Unserviceable Unserviceable Property Property

Date Date March March 28 28 -- April April 4, 4, 2022 2022 March March 28 28 -- April April 4, 4, 2022 2022

Time Time 8:00 8:00 AM AM -- 5:00 5:00 PM PM 10:00 10:00 AM AM -- 5:00 5:00 PM PM

Pre-Bidding Pre-Bidding Conference Conference Deadline Deadline for for Submission Submission of of Bid Bid Offer Offer Opening Opening of of Bid Bid Offer Offer

April April 5, 5, 2022 2022 April April 11, 11, 2022 2022 April April 11, 11, 2022 2022

2:00 2:00 PM PM 2:00 2:00 PM PM 2:01 2:01 PM PM

Bid Bid documents documents shall shall be be issued issued only only to to interested interested bidders bidders upon upon presentation presentation of of aa Letter Letter of of Intent Intent and and aa nonnonrefundable refundable fee fee stated stated above above to to the the Committee Committee on on Awards Awards on on Disposal Disposal Secretariat Secretariat not not later later than than five five o’clock o’clock in in the the afternoon afternoon of of April April 4, 4, 2022. 2022. Interested Interested bidders bidders are are advised advised to to conduct conduct actual actual inspection inspection of of the the unserviceable unserviceable property property subject subject for for disposition. disposition. The The CAD CAD will will hold hold aa Pre-Bid Pre-Bid Conference Conference on on April April 5, 5, 2022, 2022, Tuesday, Tuesday, 2:00PM 2:00PM at at the the Sampiro Sampiro Conference Conference Room, Floor, Makati Makati City City Hall Hall Building Building I,I, J.P. J.P. Rizal Rizal St., St., Brgy Brgy Poblacion, Poblacion, Makati Makati City City and and through through video video Room, 21 21stst Floor, conferencing conferencing which which shall shall be be open open to to prospective prospective bidders bidders to to discuss discuss the the Eligibility Eligibility Requirements Requirements and and the the Technical Technical and and Financial Financial Components Components required. required. However, However, only only those those interested interested bidders bidders who who have have purchased purchased bidding bidding documents documents are are allowed allowed to to raise raise and and submit submit queries queries or or clarifications clarifications regarding regarding the the auction. auction. Deadline Deadline for for the the submission submission of of bids bids is is on on April April 11, 11, 2022, 2022, Tuesday, Tuesday, 2:00PM, 2:00PM, at at the the Sampiro Sampiro Conference Conference Room, Floor, Makati Makati City City Hall Hall Building Building I,I, J.P. J.P. Rizal Rizal St., St., Brgy Brgy Poblacion, Poblacion, Makati Makati City. City. The The time time for for the the Room, 21 21stst Floor, deadline deadline of of the the submission submission of of bids bids shall shall be be based based on on the the Philippine Philippine Standard Standard Time Time (PST) (PST) pursuant pursuant to to R.A. R.A. 10535 10535 otherwise otherwise known known as as “The “The Philippine Philippine Standard Standard Time Time Act Act of of 2013”. 2013”. Bids Bids will will be be opened opened in in the the presence presence of of the the bidder’s bidder’s representatives representatives who who choose choose to to attend attend at at the the said said address. address. All All bids bids must must be be accompanied accompanied by by aa bid bid security security in in the the form form of of Cash, Cash, Manager’s Manager’s Check Check or or Cashier’s Cashier’s Check Check in in favor favor of of Makati Makati City City Treasurer Treasurer in in the the amount amount equivalent equivalent to to at at least least Ten Ten Percent Percent (10%) (10%) of of the the bid. bid. Late Late bids bids shall shall not not be be accepted. accepted. The The winning winning bidder bidder shall shall remove remove the the items items within within Forty-Five Forty-Five (45) (45) calendar calendar days days upon upon issuance issuance of of an an approved approved Sales Sales Invoice. Invoice. Handling Handling of of Documents Documents still still follow follow current current Makati Makati City City Government Government Protocols. Protocols. All All Public Public Conferences Conferences shall shall follow follow social social distancing distancing protocol protocol of of the the City. City. We We will will follow follow the the Inter-Agency Inter-AgencyTask Task Force Force (IATF) (IATF) guidelines guidelines on on mass mass gathering. gathering. To To manage manage attendees, attendees, we we will will only only allow allow at at most most one one (1) (1) representative representative per per bidder bidder who who should should confirm confirm with with the the Committee Committee on on Awards Awards on on Disposal Disposal Secretariat Secretariat at at least least aa day day before before the the scheduled scheduled conference conference of of its its attendance. attendance. We We will will allow allow at at most most one one (1) (1) pre-registered pre-registered representative representative from from prospective prospective bidders bidders to to attend attend the the Pre-Bid Pre-Bid Conference Conference // Bid Bid Opening Opening through through virtual virtual (zoom) (zoom) meeting. meeting. Please Please register register with with the the CAD CAD Secretariat Secretariat Office Office at at least least one one day day before before the the scheduled scheduled Pre-Bid Pre-Bid Conference Conference or or Bid Bid Opening. Opening. The The meeting meeting ID ID and and password password will will be be provided provided to to the the register register representative. representative. For For ease ease of of recording recording attendance attendance and and identification identification of of attendees, attendees, please please log log in in using using the the registered registered name. name. Format Format of of zoom zoom profile profile name name should should follow: follow: <<Company>>-<<Last <<Company>>-<<Last Name, Name, First First Name Name of of Representative Representative >> >> For For further further inquiries, inquiries, interested interested bidder/s bidder/s may may call call or or contact contact the the Committee Committee on on Awards Awards on on Disposal Disposal Secretariat Secretariat at at Tel. Tel. No. No. (02) (02) 870-1779 870-1779 // 1793. 1793. THE THE CITY CITY GOVERNMENT GOVERNMENT OF OF MAKATI MAKATI RESERVES RESERVES THE THE RIGHT RIGHT TO TO REJECT REJECT ANY ANY OR OR ALL ALL BIDS, BIDS, TO TO WAIVE WAIVE ANY ANY FORMALITY FORMALITY THEREOF THEREOF AND AND TO TO ACCEPT ACCEPT ONLY ONLY SUCH SUCH BIDS BIDS THAT THAT ARE ARE ADVANTAGEOUS ADVANTAGEOUS TO TO THE THE GOVERNMENT. GOVERNMENT.

ATTY ATTY CLARO CLARO F. F. CERTEZA CERTEZA Chairperson Chairperson Committee Committee on on Awards Awards on on Disposal Disposal (MS-MAR. (MS-MAR.30, 30,2022) 2022)

M. M. Standard Standard –– Mar. Mar. 28 28 & & 30, 30, 2022 2022

IN BRIEF Watchdog to discuss Ukraine nuclear safety THE chief of the UN atomic watchdog, Rafael Grossi, is in Ukraine to discuss “the safety and security” of nuclear sites there, the agency said Tuesday. This is Grossi’s first visit to Ukraine after Russia seized several nuclear facilities, including Chernobyl, during its more than month-long invasion. “The aim of the director general’s visit is to initiate prompt safety and security support to Ukraine’s nuclear facilities,” the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said in a statement. Grossi is holding talks with senior government officials and will travel to one of Ukraine’s nuclear power plants during the week’s visit, the agency said, without specifying which one. The visit includes the shipment of “vital safety and security supplies” including monitoring and emergency equipment. “The military conflict is putting Ukraine’s nuclear power plants and other facilities with radioactive material in unprecedented danger,” Grossi said. AFP

Biden, Lee to focus on Asia challenges US PRESIDENT Joe Biden, back from a highstakes trip to Europe focused on Russia’s war against Ukraine, hosts the prime minister of Singapore Tuesday in a chance to address crucial US challenges across Asia. Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong will meet Biden in the Oval Office at 10:35 a.m. (1435 GMT), and the two leaders will later make a joint media appearance. The get-together will hand Biden a welcome opportunity to delve into Washington’s longtouted “pivot to Asia.” “We are very happy” to host Lee, a senior US official said, “because we believe that the US-Singapore strategic partnership is extremely strong and valuable to both countries, and it has supported peace and prosperity throughout the Indo-Pacific.” AFP

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UN: Lebanon faces education ‘emergency’ LEBANON is grappling with an education “emergency,” a United Nations official said, as years of economic collapse weigh heavily on students and teachers. “We are now in an emergency situation. Education in Lebanon is in crisis because the country is living in crisis,” Maysoun Chehab of the UN education and culture body (UNESCO) told AFP. She spoke on the sidelines of an event Monday celebrating the completion of a $35-million UNESCO project to rehabilitate 280 education centers damaged by a 2020 blast. The explosion caused by haphazardly stored fertilizer at Beirut port killed more than 200 people, destroyed swathes of the capital and disrupted the education of at least 85,000 youths. UNESCO chief Audrey Azoulay visited Beirut weeks later, driving efforts to restore heritage sites and damaged schools. Students and teachers now have brand new classrooms but they are still suffering from the twin effects of an unprecedented economic crisis in Lebanon and the coronavirus pandemic. AFP

Iran: Huthi ceasefire to help end Yemen war IRAN offered its support on Tuesday for a ceasefire plan put forward by rebels it backs in Yemen’s war, saying it could be an “appropriate platform” for ending the conflict. The Huthi rebels on Saturday announced the proposal and offered peace talks on condition Saudi Arabia stops its air strikes and blockade of Yemen and removes “foreign forces.” The offer came a day after the insurgents fired on 16 targets inside the kingdom, which heads a military coalition fighting on the side of Yemen’s internationally recognized government. On Tuesday, Iran’s foreign ministry spokesman Saeed Khatibzadeh said the Huthi “plan contained a strong message of determination to end the war.” “If there is serious and positive interaction with (the plan), it could provide an appropriate platform for ending” the conflict, he said in a statement. AFP

CYAN CYAN MAGENTA MAGENTA YELLOW YELLOW BLACK BLACK

Business

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 30, 2022 || extrastory2000@gmail.com

Market declines; Converge tops gainers S TOP GAINERS TOCKS fell Monday as the conflict in eastern Europe continues to rage and petroleum prices rose at the pump again which could affect consumer confidence.

The Philippine Stock Exchange index, the 30-company barometer, shed 19 points, or 0.3 percent, to close at 7,115.09 Tuesday. The broader all-share index also went down by 11 points, or 0.3 percent, to settle at 3,770.53 on a value turnover of P4.87 billion. Losers outnumbered gainers, 92 to 82, while 57 issues were unchanged. Five of the 10 most active stocks ended in the green, led by Converge ICT Solutions Inc. which climbed 2.5 percent to P29.20 and SM Prime Hold-

ings Inc. which gained 1.2 percent to P37.95. Meanwhile, other markets rose in Asia and Europe on optimism over talks between Ukraine and Russia aimed at ending their month-long war, while there was further support from another drop in oil prices. While the conflict in eastern Europe continues to rage, traders grew increasingly confident about shifting back into stocks as diplomats work to find a peaceful solution. Analysts also said markets have

been helped by the lack of any alternative investment for quality returns. Focus is now on Istanbul, where officials from the warring parties began their first face-to-face talks since March 10, with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan urging them to “put an end to this tragedy”. “The whole world is waiting for good news from you,” he added. Vladimir Putin has called Moscow’s military goals “demilitarization and denazification of Ukraine”, as well as the imposition of neutral status on its exSoviet neighbor. Neutrality and the future status of Donbas—which has been occupied by Russia—could be on the agenda, with

Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky admitting “it is impossible to liberate all territory by force, that would mean World War III, I fully understand and realize that”. But he stressed: “Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity are beyond doubt. Effective security guarantees for our state are mandatory.” Hopes that a way out could be found were boosted last week when senior Russian general Sergei Rudskoi appeared to scale back Moscow’s campaign by saying the first phase of the war was over and the “main goal” was now on controlling Donbas. All three main indexes on Wall Street posted healthy gains, and Asia followed suit. With AFP

After 50 years, FedEx founder to step down as chief executive NEW YORK, United States—FedEx founder Frederick Smith will step down as chief executive after some five decades atop the transport behemoth, the company announced Monday. FedEx, which grew under Smith from a modest operation in the US state of Tennessee into a global titan with some 570,000 employees, announced Chief Operating Officer Raj Subramaniam will take the company’s helm. The transition will take place on June 1, with Smith, 77, becoming executive chairman and Subramaniam ascending to president and CEO. Smith first devised the idea for Federal Express -- which adopted FedEx as its brand name in 1994 -- while an undergraduate at Yale University, identifying urgent shipments as an economic imperative. “Smith named the company Federal Express because he believed the patriotic meaning associated with the word ‘federal’ suggested an interest in nationwide economic activity,” according to the company’s official history. “He also hoped the name would resonate with the Federal Reserve Bank, a potential customer. Although the bank denied his proposal, Smith kept the name because he thought it was memorable and would help attract public attention.” From an initial fleet of 14 small aircraft in 1973, the company now boasts hundreds of aircraft, plus a worldwide logistics network. It reported nearly $84 billion in revenues last year. Subramaniam joined FedEx in 1991 and has held senior roles in Canada and throughout Asia and the United States. AFP

1 KPPI 2 JOH 3 DFNN

LAST PRICE CHANGE 3.49 1.15 5.32 0.32 2.55 0.13

% CHANGE 49.15% 6.40% 5.37%

4 5 6 7

APL 2GO WEB MB

0.045 7.49 2.24 0.4

0.002 0.32 0.09 0.015

4.65% 4.46% 4.19% 3.90%

8 9 10

MAC PSB GERI

5.5 57 0.9

0.2 2 0.03

3.77% 3.64% 3.45%

TOP LOSERS

RISING PRICES. Contractual and daily wage workers affiliated with various labor groups take part in a demonstration against hike in prices of essential commodities in Srinagar on March 29, 2022. AFP

Vietnam registered 5% economic growth in first quarter

HANOI, Vietnam—Vietnam’s economy expanded more than five percent in the first three months of the year, the government said Tuesday thanks to a pick-up in exports as the country emerges from the worst of the global pandemic, though officials warned of headwinds. The communist state has long been a success story among Asian economies, posting growth of seven percent in 2019. But growth came in at just 2.9 percent in 2020 as the pandemic shut most of the world down, while last year saw just 2.6 percent expansion. The figures were the worst the country has experienced since the mid1980s.

However, the General Statistics Office said gross domestic product came in at 5.03 percent onyear. Turnover from exports of goods in the first quarter was at $88.58 billion, up by 12.9 percent onyear, the GSO added. “While the economy continues to show resilience and is recovering, downside risks have heightened as the Omicron infections are sweeping the country and the Russia-Ukraine conflict has increased uncertainty about global economic recovery,” the World Bank said in a report on Vietnam in March. “Authorities should encourage exporters to seek new markets and innovate into new products

through global value chains and existing free trade agreements to strengthen export resilience,” it added. After almost two years of closure and strict measures to prevent the spread of coronavirus, Vietnam began reopening to the world in mid-March, easing medical requirements and quarantine rules. The country still reports more than 260,000 cases of virus infection a day, but hospitalization and death rates are relatively low, the health ministry said. More than 90 percent of adults have been fully vaccinated, with the government urging vaccinations for teenagers and accelerating booster shots rollout. AFP

Boarding on an active volcano: Nicaragua’s tourism boon IT TOOK Ana Muller half an hour to trek to the peak of the Cerro Negro volcano, a small effort given the reward on offer at Nicaragua’s top tourist attraction: volcano boarding. The active Cerro Negro is just 728 meters (2,400 feet) high, but sliding down its ash-covered slopes on a board is a 40-second thrill that allows participants to say they have surfed a volcano. “It is a unique experience,” said Muller, a German tourist who enjoyed the “adrenaline.” “You can only do it in a few places in the world. “There are many volcanoes here in Central America, but only volcano boarding here in Nicaragua, in Leon.” Although active, Cerro Negro does not spit out smoke -- its last major eruption was in 1999. “Little scary, but fun. High, very high, but it’s once in a lifetime,” said American tourist Eduardo Shandro. “It was really good, you go really fast. You lose control a little bit, but you get a hang of it after a little bit, and it’s a really cool experience,” added his compatriot Adolfo Adofen. “I never thought I would do this in my life, to go down a volcano, but it was amazing.” The best part for Portuguese tourist Carina Mora was “being in contact with the earth. I think it’s the best human experience you can have to feel the warmth of the earth.”

PSEi March 29, 2022

Tourists prepare to slide down the slopes of the Cerro Negro volcano, one of the youngest in Central America (167 years old) and one of the most active in the country, in Leon, Nicaragua on March 22, 2022. Volcano boarding at the Cerro Negro attracts hundreds of visitors who want to undergo extreme experiences, a relief for tourism, which was hit doubly by the pandemic and the political crisis that submerges Nicaragua since 2018. AFP

The hike up the volcano “is a little bit tiring... but then when you come back down it’s perfect. You want to go again and again.” ‘Only place in the world’ Hundreds of adrenaline junkie tourists converge on Cerro Negro, a boon for tourism in a country that has been hammered by a political crisis sparked in 2018 with the brutal repression of street protesters and exacerbated by the coronavirus pandemic. The pioneers of volcano boarding in Nicaragua first tackled the Cerro Negro slopes in 2006.

One of them, Lesther Centeno, is now head of the Bigfoot tour company. Like all tourism in Nicaragua, volcano boarding was hit by the political crisis and pandemic. “It took a long time to get the activity going again. For about eight months, we had almost nothing, but now people are starting to come back to the country and obviously they always come looking for this,” said Centeno. “It’s the only place in the world where you can go boarding on an active volcano!” In Leon, the closest big town to

the volcano, there are at least 12 tour operators offering boarding experiences on Cerro Negro for around $30. Twelve communities living close to the volcano, making up half a million people, live directly or indirectly off tourism, said Matilde Hernandez, the volcano park ranger. Local resident Jose Gonzalez carries tourists’ boards up the volcano. “That is our salary. If we don’t carry the board up, we don’t earn any money,” he said. Depending on how busy it is, he can earn up to $20 a day. AFP

1 MAB 2 GEO 3 ALCO

LAST PRICE CHANGE 0.01 -0.001 0.173 -0.014 0.55 -0.04

% CHANGE -9.09% -7.49% -6.78%

0.138

-0.009

-6.12%

5 6 7 8

NIKL ACEX ANI BKR

7.65 16.5 5 2.05

-0.49 -1 -0.3 -0.12

-6.02% -5.71% -5.66% -5.53%

9 10

MARC ALHI

1.71 5.4

-0.1 -0.3

-5.52% -5.26%

MOST ACTIVE

1 ALI

VOLUME 10,492,000

VALUE (PHP) 370,513,480

2 3 4

ICT AC ACEN

1,540,920 361,030 28,847,800

331,694,178 284,634,555 242,861,422

CNVRG

8,199,500

237,861,755

240,460

215,563,625

7 8 9 10

BDO SMPH TEL SPNEC

1,606,840 5,487,900 111,825 91,147,000

211,799,274 207,261,135 206,335,455 183,562,610

Ukraine-Russia war affects Germany’s consumer confidence FRANKFURT, Germany—The mood of consumers in Germany has darkened significantly as the Russian invasion of Ukraine dimmed the outlook for Europe’s largest economy, according to a key survey published Tuesday. Pollster GfK’s forward-looking barometer fell to minus 15.5 percent for April from a revised minus 8.5 percent in March. Hopes that the lifting of coronavirus-related health restrictions would propel an economic recovery had “evaporated” with the Russian invasion of Ukraine at the end of February, GfK consumer expert Rolf Buerkl said. The shock was felt particularly hard by income expectations, which fell by 25 points to minus 22.1 in March, its lowest level since January 2009 in the midst of the financial crisis. The conflict has given a new push to already high inflation, sending the cost for oil and gas rocketing amid fears that supplies from Russia could be severely curtailed. Rising fuel bills means “consumers see their purchasing power melting away”, the GfK said in a statement. Consumer prices rose at a rate of 5.1 percent in February, with new figures for March set to be published Wednesday. Germany’s reliance on imports of Russian gas to heat its homes and power its industry meant the country was particularly vulnerable to the economic impact of the war. The GfK survey of some 2,000 people found that Germans were significantly more pessimistic about the state of the economy, with the indicator falling 33 points to minus 8.9 in March, having risen in the last two months. The impact of sanctions, high energy costs and supply chains broken by the outbreak of the war mean “the risk of a recession has risen sharply”, the pollster said. AFP

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

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 30, 2022

Business

PSE INDEX CLOSING Tuesday, March 29, 2022

-19.27 PTS. 7,115.09

TOTAL VOLUME

788,017,766

TOTAL TRADES TOTAL VALUE (IN PHP) ADVANCES DECLINES

61,451 4,867,351,306.06 82 92

UNCHANGED

F oreign E xchange R ate Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas • TUESDAY, MARCH 29, 2022

Currency

Unit

US Dollar

Peso

United States

Dollar

1.000000

52.2100

Japan

Yen

0.008073

0.4215

Pound

1.309700

68.3794

Hong Kong

Dollar

0.127733

6.6689

Switzerland

Franc

1.070320

55.8814

Canada

Dollar

0.798594

41.6946

Singapore

Dollar

0.734970

38.3728

Australia

Dollar

0.748800

39.0948

Bahrain

Dinar

2.652379

138.4807

Saudi Arabia

Rial

0.266596

13.9190

Brunei

Dollar

0.732279

38.2323

Indonesia

Rupiah

0.000070

0.0037

Thailand

Baht

0.029630

1.5470

UAE

Dirham

0.272287

14.2161

Euro

1.098900

57.3736

Korea

Won

0.000817

0.0427

China

Yuan

0.156937

8.1937

India

Rupee

0.013144

0.6862

Malaysia

Ringgit

0.237276

12.3882

New Zealand

Dollar

0.689500

35.9988

Taiwan

Dollar

0.034717

1.8126 Source: BSP

SPNEC’s board approves P3.3-b stock rights offer By Jenniffer B. Austria SOLAR Power Nueva Ecija Corp. plans to raise up to P3.3 billion from a stock rights offering. SPNEC said in a disclosure to the stock exchange its board approved on Monday the offering of up to 1.875 billion common shares to shareholders at P1.60 to P1.76 apiece. The energy firm said the middle of the price range—at P1.68—represents a 16-percent discount to the company’s stock’s volume-weighted average price over the past two months. It also represents a 28-percent discount to SPNEC’s all-time high of P2.34. “SPNEC is now preparing to file its SRO application, after which the timing would be subject to regulatory approval, but no longer subject to an increase in authorized capital stock,” the company said. It said the offering is subject to the Philippine Stock Exchange rule that a company can only conduct a new offering after 180 days from its initial public offering. SPENC was listed in the local bourse on Dec. 17, 2021. Net proceeds from the transaction will be used to acquire land for the development of 4 gigawatts of solar projects. The projects form part of the 10GW of developments the company is aiming to reach by 2025 through various joint ventures and acquisitions. It said to achieve the goal, it has spending application with the Securities and Exchange Commission to increase its authorized capital stock to 50 billion from 10 billion shares. SPNEC plans to conduct the P3.3billion rights offering in June, subject to regulatory approval. SPNEC’s parent Solar Philippines signed last week 20-year power purchase agreements with Indonesia’s state utility PLN for one 25-MW solar farm in East Bali and one 25-MW solar farm in West Bali, which would be the largest ground-mounted solar projects in Indonesia. SP granted SPNEC the option to subscribe to its share in the JV where it holds 49 percent, subject to regulations including securing approval from PLN.

Filinvest Land’s profit hits P3.8b FILINVEST Land Inc., the property arm of the Gotianun family, posted up a net income of P3.8 billion in 2021, up two percent from a year ago. FLI said in a disclosure to the stock exchange residential revenues rose 15 percent in 2021 to P11.27 billion, on continued construction progress and higher reservation sales. Reservation sales went up 5 percent to P16.04 billion on aggressive launches. The property firm launched P6.7 billion worth of residential projects located in various parts of the country including Metro Manila, Pampanga, Cagayan de Oro and Davao last year. The developer also entered Dagupan, Pangasinan. “We are happy with the results of our digital transformation that made our business more accessible to sales network and clients here and abroad. As we accelerate our construction pace and execute faster on our expansion plans, we expect to sustain our growth momentum throughout 2022 and beyond,” said FLI chief strategy officer and residential business head Tristan Las Marias. Jenniffer B. Austria

EDC issue wins best currency green bond

TESTING FACILITY. Vertiv, a global provider of critical digital infrastructure and continuity solutions, and AWS Distribution Philippines Corp., Vertiv’s exclusive distributor for mid-market and three-phase power and thermal products in the Philippines, unveil the companies’ first joint modern testing facility in Binangonan, Rizal. Leading the ribbon-cutting ceremony are (from left) AWS Distribution Philippines director Robby Raymundo, president Erwin Buling, Vertiv Philippines country manager Jason Lim and associate director for channels and enterprise sales Pamela Albar.

PEZA chief asks BPO companies to follow return-to-office order By Othel V. Campos

HE Philippine Economic Zone Authority asked registered information technology-business process outsourcing companies to follow the return-to-office order issued by the Fiscal Incentives Review Board beginning April 1.

“The allowance of the 90:10 WFH [work-from-home] set-up was just a temporary measure during the pandemic. Now that we’re reopening the economy, we’re going back to the regular ratio required of registered business enterprises inside the ecozones,” said PEZA director-general Charito Plaza. She said while the agency recognizes the concerns of investors and workers affected by the RTO, PEZA supports the proposal of the IT and Business Process Association of the Philippines to implement hybrid work scheme for the sector. However it was noted that the FIRB di-

rective should take precedence over any proposal. “Hence, PEZA abides to the decision of the FIRB for 100 percent on-site work for IT-BPOs, while there is a need to review and establish legal framework in order to implement a hybrid work model,” Plaza said. She said the FIRB was consistent with the PEZA law, otherwise known as Republic Act No. 7916 or the Special Economic Zones Act of 1995 that requires all registered companies within the ecozones to work on-site in order to enjoy tax incentives. Chapter III Section 23 of the PEZA Law provides that, “business establishments operating within the ecozones shall be entitled to the fiscal incentives as provided for under P.D. No. 66 or those provided under Book VI of Executive Order No. 226, otherwise known as the Omnibus Investment Code of 1987”. “At present, PEZA cannot change the ratio unless the laws will be amended to incorporate the adaptation of the hybrid schemes. In the future, we hope to follow the practice of India and the other countries and provide specific ratio on WFH and on-site work arrangements,”

Plaza said. She said PEZA supports the hybrid work scheme which proved effective and even contributed to the growth of the sector at the height of the pandemic. “What we can do is to recommend this for the next administration to address. As of now, we have to abide by the existing laws and the decision of the FIRB and help to put back the economy to normal,” Plaza said. Plaza reiterated her appeal to locators to adhere to FIRB’s decision to avoid any penalties as provided under the law. “We must continue to assist our registered companies as much as possible given that protecting livelihoods of millions of Filipinos is an important national interest, especially during these trying times,” she said. The FIRB earlier denied PEZA’s appeal to reconsider the extension the WFH arrangement after March 31, 2022. According to the FIRB, the WFH arrangement is only a time-bound temporary measure adopted during the surge of the COVID-19 pandemic, and the return-to-office order is necessary to help bounce back from the crisis.

GT Capital’s net income climbed by 68% to P11b in 2021 GT CAPITAL Holdings Inc., a conglomerate led by the Ty family, said Tuesday net income climbed by 68 percent in 2021 to P11 billion from P6.5 billion in 2020 on better results from banking, automotive and real estate businesses. GT Capital said in a disclosure to the stock exchange banking unit Metropolitan Bank & Trust Company improved its net income by 60 percent to P22.2 billion, while automotive unit Toyota Motor Philippines realized a net income of P6.2 billion, up 82 percent from a year ago. The stronger real estate sales from Federal Land Inc. and higher net income contribution from associate Metro Pacific Investments Corp. also contributed to GT Capital’s positive performance in 2021. “2021 was a strong bounce-back

year for our group. Given the increased mobility and the gradual reopening of the Philippine economy in the fourth quarter, GT Capital delivered strong overall results in 2021 as we approach pre-COVID levels,” GT Capital president Carmelo Maria Luza Bautista said. “Notwithstanding the recent geopolitical conflict between Russia and Ukraine and the rise in oil and commodity prices, we look forward to 2022 with reasonable optimism as we take on new growth opportunities,” Bautista said. GT Capital said TMP booked consolidated revenues of P131.3 billion in 2021, up 32 percent from P99.8 billion in 2020, as sales climbed 30 percent to 129,667 units in 2021 from 100,019 units in 2020. “As the economy and auto market

resurges, TMP remains reasonably optimistic. In fact, in March this year, TMP achieved a remarkable milestone of selling over two million units in the country since it started operations over three decades ago,” GT Capital Auto Dealership Holdings Inc. chairman Vince Socco said. Federal Land recorded a 57-percent increase in consolidated net income P1 billion as revenues climbed 12 percent to P10.4 billion To sustain the momentum, Federal Land forged a strategic partnership with Japanese real estate developer Nomura Real Estate Development Co. Ltd. to develop residential, office industrial and commercial projects in Metro Manila, Cavite and Cebu. The share price of GT Capital declined by 0.19 percent Tuesday to close at P527. Jenniffer B. Austria

Doctor asks gov’t to recognize cigarette alternatives A RENOWNED Filipino doctor said that with the current strategies largely ineffective to address the smoking problem, the government and health authorities should now consider the success of smoke-free products as less harmful alternatives to combustible cigarettes. “It is about time that we all recognize the effectiveness of vapor products or ecigarettes and heated tobacco products as a risk reduction strategy for adult smokers, if we are talking about smoke-free alternatives as a replacement therapy,” Dr. Lorenzo Mata Jr., president of advocacy group Quit for Good, said in an international forum organized by The Economic Times of India. Mata made the statement as one of the panelists on the topic “Clearing the smoke: Assessing the science base for harm reduction and creating a framework for incorporating science into policymaking”. The discussion is part of 3rd Edition of The Economic Times Consumer Freedom Conclave that discussed “Reframing societal views on harm reduction: A medi-

IN BRIEF

cal and scientific perspective.” He said e-cigarettes and HTPs are different from traditional cigarettes because they do not involve burning and do not produce smoke. “These smoke-free products only heat the liquid in vapor products and the tobacco in heated tobacco products, unlike combustible cigarettes which produce smoke by burning the tobacco. Harmful constituents are released in the smoke when the tobacco in a cigarette is burned. The World Health Organization stated that there are more than 4,000 chemicals in tobacco smoke—where a minimum of 250 are harmful and more than 50 are said to cause cancer,” he said. He said that in the Philippines, there are still 17 million smokers in the Philippines with a measly quit rate of 4 percent, measured as of 2015 which largely remained unchanged from 2009 when smokers only relied on quitting cold turkey or pharmacological nicotine replacement therapies like nicotine gums, nicotine patches and nicotine sprays.

OUTSTANDING PARTNER. For its relentless efforts to keep San Juan City residents connected amid the pandemic, Converge ICT Solutions takes home the Outstanding Partner in Pandemic Response (private sector) award given by the San Juan City government. Attending the awarding ceremony are (from left) Congressional District Office head Bel Zamora, Converge chief strategy officer Benjamin Azada, San Juan Mayor Francis Zamora and Vice Mayor Jose Warren Villa. Converge, last year, teamed up with the LGU to extend connectivity to 12,000 teachers and students of the San Juan public school system to help them adapt to distance learning.

ENERGY Development Corp.’s P5-billion dual tranche ASEAN Green Bond was chosen as the best local currency green bond by The Asset in its prestigious Triple A Country Awards 2021 for the Southeast Asia best deals category for sustainable finance. “We are grateful for The Asset’s recognition of our efforts to encourage investors to take a strong stand for the environment through our ASEAN Green Bond program. The public ’s strong support for the expansion of our 100 percent renewable energy portfolio and the financial institutions’ commitment to focus only on funding low carbon power are crucial in speeding up that necessary transition to a decarbonized world. We all need to work together to achieve this while we still can,” said EDC chief finance officer Erwin Avante. The Asset, through the Triple A Country Awards, recognizes the most laudable initiatives in banking, finance, treasury and capital markets for over two decades with focus on activities in domestic markets. The Asset is a financial multi-media group that has the widest reach among Asian issuers and global institutional investors. Alena Mae S. Flores

Converge ICT gets SEC nod for P10-b bonds CONVERGE ICT Solutions Inc. said Tuesday it secured an approval from the Securities and Exchange Commission to offer and sell its first P10-billion fixed-rate bonds under its P20billion shelf-registration program. Converge said it received the certificate of permit to offer securities for sale for its maiden bond offering amounting to P5 billion on the base tranche, with an oversubscription option for another P5 billion. The offer period is slated on March 28 to April 1, 2022. The bonds were priced at 50 basis points over Philippine 5 Year BVAL rates, at the tight end of the marketed 50100bps range. “We are pleased to be able to tap the bond market to help fund the expansion of our digital infrastructure as we further widen our reach nationwide” Converge president and co-founder Grace Uy said. The proceeds will be used for capital expenditures related to the expansion of its nationwide fiber network, including in the Visayas and Mindanao. Darwin G. Amojelar

Cebu Pacific expects to top pre-pandemic local capacity in April By Darwin G. Amojelar CEBU Pacific said Tuesday it expects to restore over 100 percent of its prepandemic domestic capacity next month after it ramped up its network with the easing of pandemic travel restrictions It said that as the summer peak approaches, it noted a 200-percent increase in average daily flights for both domestic and international combined—from about 100 flights a day in 2020 to about 300 this year. Flights from Manila to key domestic destinations such as Boracay and Cebu exceeded their 2019 flight frequencies. The airline operates 96 percent of its pre-pandemic domestic capacity. The improvement enabled Cebu Pacific to carry more passengers and boost cargo service, which means faster and more efficient movement of goods across its widest domestic network. “We are excited to safely fly everyJuan to their destinations so they could reunite with their families and loved ones, or pursue their business interests, or revisit tourist destinations. It is encouraging to see and feel travel confidence returning,” said Cebu Pacific president and chief executive Lance Gokongwei. “We thank our passengers for their continued trust, and we will endeavor to live true to our promise of providing safe, affordable, and accessible air travel for every Juan,” he said. Cebu Pacific operates the widest domestic network in the Philippines covering 33 destinations, on top of its 14 international destinations. Its 74-strong fleet, one of the youngest in the world, includes two dedicated ATR freighters. The airline achieved a 7-star safety rating from airlineratings.com for its COVID-19 compliance. It continues to implement a multi-layered approach to safety, while it operates with a 100-percent fully vaccinated crew—all to ensure its every Juan flies safely and conveniently on Cebu Pacific.

Sports

Riera U. Mallari, Editor; Randy M. Caluag, Assistant Editor WEDNESDAY, MARCH 30, 2022

Perpetual mauls JRU; Altas coach impressed Games today (La Salle Greenhills Gym) 12 noon – Arellano vs Letran 3 p.m. – EAC vs San Beda

BEST PLAYER. Barangay Ginebra’s Christian Standhardinger stepped up big time, averaging 14.3 points on a 48-percent shooting clip, 13.0 rebounds, and 2.0 assists to earn the Cignal Play-PBA Press Corps Player of the Week for the period March 23 to 27.

Ramirez: PATAFA-Obiena dispute nearing resolution By Peter Atencio

RESOLUTION is close at hand in the ongoing mediation talks involving top Filipino pole vaulter Ernest John “EJ” Obiena and the Philippine Athletics Track and Field Association. Philippine Sports Commission chairman William Ramirez said this following the latest round of virtual talks that the government sports agency mediated between both parties on Monday evening. “We are almost there,” said Ramirez after he signed a memorandum of agreement with officials of the newly-formed BangsaMoro Sports Commission on the technical assistance and advise that the government sports agency will provide them. Ramirez said Obiena and the PATAFA, which is headed by its president Philip Ella Juico, have managed to resolve of three of five issues that they have discussed. The PSC chair is hopeful that all their disagreements will have a final resolution by Friday and that Obiena will be able to see action in the Southeast Asian Games and other international meets that have been lined up for him this year. “We are positive that by April 1, we will

Moto pools 135 points to lead Corporate Cup in Baguio BAGUIO—Moto assembled 135 points to grab the first-round lead in Seniors 1 division of the 2022 Corporate Cup at the Camp John Hay Golf Club on Tuesday. Modesto Tolentino and Emilio Alviar made 51 and 49 points, respectively, while Nelson Roa counted as the third scorer with 35 for Moto, two ahead of second-running AGM Landholdings. AGM Landholdings was paced by the 48 of Alex Mercado. Other scorers were Calos Guzman’s 43 and Florante Bambao’s 42 in the four-toplay, three-to-count format. A far third was Cargoaire Freight with 114, built around the 44 of Freddie Mendoza, 40 of Bobby Inigo and 30 of Frumencio Deguito. In the regular men’s Group 4, J3S Hydro showed the way as the clubhouse leader with 123 points as Franky Miranda and Noel Lamsis each scored 44 and Nico Valencerina added 35. Cheq Software pooled in 98 followed by Ambrose 96, Toyota/ D’EZ Blox 93, The Perfect Drive PH 88, ABGC-2 82 and Spunn and Bunker Golftime 61.

be successful. I am praying and hoping that the PATAFA leadership will let some competitions be allowed to EJ,” added Ramirez. Mediation talks have dragged on between Obiena and the PATAFA, which initially questioned the athlete over the alleged unliquidated financial assistance given to him as a payment for the salary of his coach Vitaliy Petrov. The Philippine Olympic Committee executive board recently voted to suspend the PATAFA for 90 days for allegedly failing to serve its purpose as an NSA and the treatment of its top athlete in Obiena. This will take effect once ratified by the POC General Assembly during its regular meeting on March 30 (Wednesday). With its mediation with Obiena still unsettled, PATAFA does not have Asia’s best pole vaulter in its national roster for the SEA Games in Vietnam this May, but the POC has included him in the list that

Shown here are (from left) PSC Acting Deputy Executive Director of Bureau on Coordinating Secretariat and Support Services Anna Christine Abellana, Deputy Executive Director of Bureau on Administrative, Finance, and Management Services Merlita Ibay, BSC Commissioner (Basilan) Yushoup Sario, PSC Executive Director Atty. Guillermo Iroy Jr., Commissioner (Tawi-Tawi) Abdulkhabir Musa, Commissioner (Lanao del Sur) Arsalan Diamaoden, Commissioner (Sulu) Adzhar Tingkahan, BSC Executive Director Salihwardi Alba and BSC Sports Consultant Emmanuel Rene Ayo during their courtesy visit today at Rizal Memorial Sports Complex, Manila

they gave to games’ organizers. Meanwhile, BangsaMoro Sports Commission chairman Nu-Man Caludtiag said they are still in discussion with the PSC on which sports they will focus on in their

coming activities. Also named commissioners of the BSC are Arsalan Diamaoden (Lanao del Sur), Abdulkhari Musa (Tawi-Tawi), Yushoup Sario (Basilan) and Adzhar Tingkahan (Sulu).

UNIVERSITY of Perpetual Help System made short work of Jose Rizal University, 77-56, to earn its first win of the NCAA men’s basketball tournament Tuesday at the La Salle Greenhills Gym. Coach Myk Saguiguit, who took over from Frankie Lim during the hiatus, was surprised with the way the Altas performed in their season opener. “Hindi ko rin ine-expect ‘yung naging resulta ng game. Siguro ‘yung excitement lang ng mga bata kasi for two years, hindi nakapaglaro ng basketball so ito ‘yung chance nila kaya ang ganda ng nangyari sa amin,” said Saguiguit. “Players’ effort siya. Ang naging sikreto nito ay ‘yung relasyon nila, relasyon ng players, relasyon ng coaches,” he added. Veteran Kim Aurin came through with 20 points, four rebounds and three assists, while Jeff Egan finally made his debut for Perpetual with 14 points, five boards and five assists. Second-year Jielo Razon was solid in orchestrating plays for the Altas with 13 points, six assists and five rebounds. He had a game-high +27 efficiency inside the court. Saguiguit hopes that Perpetual will get better as the tournament wears on. “On the outlook of the team moving forward - kumbaga itong short season natin, every game counts, every win counts talaga. Kaso ang struggle dito ay ‘yung pahinga kasi sunod-sunod ‘yung mga games namin,” said Saguiguit. JM Delos Santos led the Bombers with 17 points, six rebounds and four steals while rookie Jason Celis added 11 markers. The scores: First Game Perpetual (77) -- Aurin 20, Egan 14, Razon 13, Abis 6, Pagaran 5, Omega 4, Nunez 3, Cuevas 2, Sevilla 2, Barcuma 2, Boral 2, Martel 2, Movida 2, Kawamura 0, Ferreras 0. JRU (56) -- Delos Santos 17, Celis 11, Bongay 8, Agbong 7, Arenal 7, Estrella 3, Dionisio 2, Jungco 1, Macatangay 0, Aguilar 0, Guiab 0, Dela Rama 0, Gonzales 0. Quarterscores: 26-9, 43-25, 64-38, 77-56 On Tuesday, March 29, 2022, 02:32:30 PM GMT+8, waylon galvez <waylon_galvez@yahoo.com> wrote:

W Series dream come true for Bustamante BIANCA Bustamante, a skillful 17-yearAfter a series of grueling tests and qual- female drivers. old racecar driver, has accomplished ifying races, Bustamante earned a spot Bustamante aired her excitement and something that’s never been done in the on the 2022 season of the prestigious W readiness for the coming season during history of Philippine motorsports. Series, regarded as the Formula One for Tuesday’s online Philippine Sportswriters Association Forum. “This is the most amazing moment of my life. For the first time in my life I was driving an F3 car and it was very fast (240 kph),” said Bustamante, who has definitely gone a long way since she started racing go-karts when she was six. “It’s like a dream to me. The W Series is here to help and hone drivers to get to Formula 1. The goal is Formula 1. So, this is an amazing chance,” said Bustamante during the forum presented by San Miguel Corporation, MILO, Philippine Sports Commission, Philippine Olympic Committee, Unilever, Amelie Hotel Manila and the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation. “I hope that one day I get to that level

of Formula 1. I’m not going to give up on that,” said Bustamente, who underwent a rigorous selection process in Arizona and Barcelona earlier this year. For now, however, Bustamante is focused on the task at hand, and it begins in Miami on May 8 for the opening leg of the W Series season. There are seven other legs in Barcelona on May 22, the United Kingdom on July 3, France on July 24, Hungary on July 31, Japan on Oct. 9, the United States on Oct. 23, and Mexico on Oct. 30. Bustamante will race with 16 others representing nine teams. She will race under the banner of the W Series Academy with co-driver Juju Noda of Japan. “It’s a fully loaded season for me. I want to excel. I want to win. There’s so much to learn, and mentally I will always be aiming to be the best. But I’m glad to be the dark horse. I’m only seventeen,” she said.

Eagles stretch streak; Falcons whip Warriors DAVE Ildefonso and Tyler Tio banged in 17 points apiece as the defending champion Ateneo Blue Eagles bucked a late rally and repulsed the Far Eastern University Tamaraws, 79-70, Tuesday in the UAAP Season 84 men’s basketball tournament at the SM Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay City. The Tamaraws were able to cut down the Blue Eagles’ 26-point edge in the fourth with a 9-0 run capped by Emman Ojoula’s basket, which allowed them to stay within range, 66-72, with four minutes to go. But Ildefonso’s trey and SJ Belangel’s driving shot allowed the Blue Eagles to remain in control, 77-68, at the three-minute mark. “When you are dealing with Olsen (Racela) and his team (FEU), they don’t give and they just change tactics. They figure things out,” said Blue Eagles’ coach Tab Baldwin.

It was Tio’s third-quarter attack which keyed the Blue Eagles’ second consecutive win for the season, allowing Ateneo to stretch its winning streak to 28 matches. The Blue Eagles have remained unbeaten for the last three years, after building a 10-game winning streak since their first round loss to the Tams in Season 81. The prolific Tio knocked in all of his 17 points in the third quarter, including back-to-back threes that stretched Ateneo’s edge to 21, 63-42, with less than three minutes left in the period. Earlier, Jerom Lastimosa showed the way for the Adamson Falcons, who pulled off an 82-66 crushing of University of the East and spoiled the coaching Dave Ildefonso scores two of his 17-point total. debut of Jack Santiago. “The good thing about it is that slowly the things we said Adamson head coach Nash Racela, who replaced emphasized on, medyo na-co-correct at gumaganda,” Franz Pumaren. Peter Atencio

Entertainment

Nickie Wang,, Editor Patricia Taculao, Editorial Assistant E-mail: lifeandshow.manilastandard@gmail.com

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 30, 2022

Singer and actress Yumi Lacsamana

Yumi sings about waning love in new single ‘Pundi’ SINGER-SONGWRITER and theater and film actress Yumi Lacsamana – better known as half of the Awit-awarded R&B duo Thyro & Yumi – is getting used to going about things on her own. For the past few singles, she has been releasing as a solo act and it is so with her newly released single titled “Pundi.” This melancholy but tuneful piano-decked ballad is her best-sounding solo effort yet and that’s telling. Does that mean that Yumi is better off as a solo music act? “Pundi” was originally written by Yumi and Thyro for the Viva

movie Squad Goals. And while the Thyro-Yumi duo hasn’t been active of late, it’s good to know that they do manage to still write together. Asked if anything has changed with their approach, Yumi answered, “Not really. I can say that our working relationship didn’t change that much. Except (now) when the pandemic hit. It’s a bit hard for us to write because we need to do it virtually. It takes time unlike before we can finish a song in one sitting. And while the original version did not register past beyond the film it was in, Yumi’s take this time on the song is definitely inspired. And as per their usual, for every Lacsamana-Alfaro song, you have to pay attention to the lyrics. It’s evident from the carefully crafted

lyrics that the song drips with heartbreak and regret. But despite that, it takes a special kind of singer-interpreter to make a listener hang on to every syllable of every lyric. And that’s what Yumi did with “Pundi.” And one can’t help but think if this song is about Yumi herself, who was once in a long relationship but is no more. Heartbreak is always good material for songs—just ask Taylor Swift. But is one song worth the misery and heartbreak? To this, Yumi said, “As a singer, my job is to deliver the message of the song to the listener and make them feel what the song is about.” And about “Pundi” being from her own experience? All she said about that is “I’ve been in a relationship in the past that didn’t

Mike Enriquez returns in time for the 2022 elections E it’s important to never lose faith, and a person always needs two things when undergoing tough times: prayer and humor. LECTIONS are a relevant Without these, Mike admitted that his event in any country’s experience would be more arduous. On Monday (March 28), history. During this time, Enriquez returned as one of the public demands constant the anchors of GMA’s flagship updates on the status of the newscast 24 Oras with fellow co-stars Mel Tiangco and Vicky elections and the candidates. The Morales. task then falls to journalists who His return also came at an sometimes risk life and limb just to opportune moment. In less than 60 days, the people of the get the story told. Philippines will elect Over the years, several news agencies and its next set of leaders, personalities have made themselves known and GMA Network is for their credibility, professionalism, and prepared to deliver the dedication to public service. most comprehensive, Luckily, GMA News pillar and multi- and credible, according awarded broadcast journalist Mike to Enriquez, election Enriquez returns on-screen and on-air coverage across all in time for the network’s comprehensive platforms through coverage of the 2022 elections. Eleksyon 2022. It was in December 2021 when GMA “In God’s perfect Network announced that Enriquez was time, He willed that I taking a leave of absence to undergo a return to work on the medical procedure that required hospital air now that kailangan confinement and a minimum of three na kailangan,” he said. months isolation period. Presently, GMA “‘Yong pinagdaanan ko medyo mahirap Network’s preparations because aside from the procedure itself, for the coverage of the kidney transplant, mayroong three the 2022 elections are months mandatory isolation period for going full blast. transplant patients. The purpose of that is “Everybody now is, to avoid rejection and infection kasi ‘yong daily, working hard in mga kidney transplant patients immuno- preparing for the elections. compromised sila,” Enriquez said during an I’m confident that it will online media conference. be a good coverage simply He added that his comorbidities, diabetes, because we have been and age also added to his struggles at the preparing for it well in time. Yet despite these, he maintains that advance,” Enriquez said.

By Patricia Taculao The cast of ‘Start-Up’ (from left) Yasmien Kurdi, Alden Richards, Bea Alonzo, and Jeric Gonzales

Yasmien, Jeric join Alden and Bea in ‘Start-Up’ remake IT’S confirmed that Yasmien Kurdi and Jeric Gonzales will be part of the main cast of GMA’s adaptation of the popular K-Drama Start-Up, which will be headlined by Alden Richards and Bea Alonzo. For Yasmien, apart from the series being an exciting development in her career, playing a role in a local adaptation of a Korean drama is very close to her

heart. “I’m excited especially since I’ve watched the original series on Netflix. At the height of the lockdown, it’s what I did and I finished it. That’s why when I received word that I’ll be included in the cast, I got super excited,” the actress exclaimed. Yasmien is also thrilled working with Alden and Bea for the first time. “And that’s what makes the excitement double on my part. It’s a new cast and it’s very refreshing. I consider it a dream come true since for the longest time I’ve wanted to work with them. Finally, the chance is here and I’m so glad,” she said. As for Jeric, he admitted that he is under pressure just with the thought that it’s a huge television project. “It’s inevitable, but it’s a good kind of pressure. For one, I will be challenged to do my best. I never imagined that I’ll be part of the local adaptation of Start-Up. Then, I’ll be working with big and really competent stars,” he explained. Jeric was also able to watch the original version of the drama and he finds the story beautiful and the characters are wonderful. “To be working with Ms. Bea and Alden is an honor so I will really be challenged to deliver my best in this series,” he ended. ••• After two years, Elmo Magalona has a new soap opera titled, Panalo o Talo It’s You, which has started airing last week not on the Kapamilya Channel but on NET 25, a free TV station owned by Eagle Broadcasting Corporation. Serving as his leading lady in the show is Star Magic talent Arielle Roces who previously appeared in the NET 25 shows Ang Daigdig Ko’y Ikaw in 2020 and Ikaw ay Akin in 2021. This is an exciting development in Elmo’s acting career considering that his last regular soap was the Kapamilya Channel’s A Soldier’s Heart which featured Gerald Anderson in 2020. Elmo is also part of Love on Da Mover, a Brightlight Productions and Star Cinema’s co-production which is yet to be shown. Here, he stars alongside Elisse Joson and JC Alcantara. Earlier this year, he did the iWant Original series Click, Like, Share. Arielle, on the other hand, is still currently seen in the Kapamilya primetime series Viral Scandal.

(From left) Elmo Magalona and Arielle Roces star in new soap ‘Panalo o Talo It’s You’

work. So I tap the emotions I felt back then so I can deliver this song well now.” And asked if she can dedicate this song to anyone in particular? Yumi answered that “Pundi” can be for anyone “who’s going through this kind of pain in a relationship. Those who tried their best to stay but in the end was exhausted.” Yumi is a firm believer that there is always a silver lining in everything. Even when that silver lining is about fleshing out all the expressive feelings in a song about heartbreak from a failed relationship. As her favorite line in the song goes: “Ang pagdilim ng ilaw natin ay may kaliwanagan palang hatid.” As someone who’s always in the service of the song, Yumi would certainly agree that a song is worth all that.

He is again expected to play a big part in the Eleksyon 2022: The GMA News and Public Affairs’ Election Coverage on May 9 together with fellow GMA News pillars Tiangco, Morales, Arnold Clavio, Howie Severino, and Jessica Soho. Aside from his television presence, Enriquez will also return to his regular programs on GMA’s flagship AM radio station Super Radyo DZBB 594, which is simultaneously broadcast on GTV via Dobol B TV. Joining Enriquez is Joel Reyes Zobel on Super Balita sa Umaga at 7:00 a.m.to deliver the most relevant stories and latest news updates for the day. From 8:00 a.m. to 9:00 a.m., Enriquez further provides the public with more information about the issues at hand by interviewing key personalities on Saksi sa Dobol B. Besides his onscreen and on-air duties, Enriquez also continues to serve as RGMA Network Inc. President and GMA Network’s Consultant for Operations, who leads all the Super Radyo and Barangay FM stations across the country. GMA News pillar and multiawarded journalist Mike Enriquez

Student reporters give UAAP games some Gen-Z twists CIGNAL TV and the University Athletic Association of the Philippines have launched the 18 UAAP student reporters who will be delivering comprehensive coverage of the much-anticipated games for Season 84. These correspondents will bring stories from the games that will be played initially inside a bubble due to the pandemic. “Season 84 will be an abbreviated season but nonetheless promises to be as competitive and as exciting consistent with the UAAP that we have come to know and expect. It is important that we conduct the games even though times and circumstances are difficult and unfamiliar because these games serve a higher purpose,” says Bro. Bernie Oca, FSC of the De La Salle University, the host of this season’s games, during the media conference earlier this week. “They are signed posts of the return of some semblance of normalcy amid the shared experience of uncertainty and even at the loss of lives. To many of us who have been following the UAAP for years, the games make

us feel fully alive,” he stressed. Manuel V. Pangilinan, Chairman of the MVP Group of Companies, has guaranteed quality viewing experience for all. According to him, “Cignal and Smart are privileged to cover the UAAP games for the first time. We are just as excited as the athletes and the fans. We wish to assure the league that we l i v e to our responsibility of raising our

coverage and broadcast quality to a much higher standard to be the best coveror of the UAAP games ever.” The correspondents group underwent rigorous training over the last few weeks from “OG” UAAP anchors like Boom Gonzalez and Mico Halili who are part of this season’s powerhouse pool of anchors and analysts, including professional athletes and coaches. “There has been a lot of preparation for all of us,” narrates Martina Lao, from DLSU. “I’ve seen my fellow correspondents more than anyone. We’ve done workshops over the last few weeks with some of the best people in the industry. We’re not just covering sports but also giving the audience a lot of behind-the-scenes content.” Collegiate sports fans can catch the live coverage of the UAAP Season 84 via One Sports (free-to-air), in high definition on the UAAP Varsity Channel (pay TV), and Cignal Play (OTT streaming). Smart will also be digitally streaming the UAAP events on its Smart GigaPlay app. The student correspondents of UAAP

Oscars ratings bounce back as Will Smith hooks viewers THE Oscars were in desperate need of a ratings boost — and, on a night when Will Smith stunned viewers by slapping Chris Rock on stage, some 15.36 million Americans tuned in. Preliminary audience figures, revealed by broadcaster ABC on Monday, represent a significant recovery from last year’s record-low 9.85 million live viewers, although they are still the secondlowest in televised Academy Awards history. The moment when Smith struck comedian Rock for quipping about his wife’s hair-loss condition immediately went viral online, launching countless memes and opinions both defending and condemning the best actor winner. “Does the Academy want this kind of publicity? No, they don’t. They don’t want the kind of publicity that says violence takes place at the

Oscars,” Variety’s Marc Malkin told AFP. “That said, does it make more people talk about the Oscars in the Academy? For certain. I’m just not sure this is the way they want to be talked about.” The TV ratings recovery mirrors those of several other awards shows including television’s Emmys in September and the recent Screen Actors Guild award ceremonies. Many award shows were forced to stage virtual or low-key ceremonies in 2021 because of the pandemic, and drew unusually low audiences. Oscars figures last year fell by around 50 percent from the previous ceremony’s 23.6 million, which was already a record low, as award shows struggle to remain relevant in an era of social media and binge-watching on streaming networks. Academy producers this year resorted to

innovations such as pre-taping the announcements of winners in several less starry Oscars categories and adding a “fan favorite” prize for a film voted by Twitter users. Sunday night’s show also ended with a historic win for “CODA,” which featured a mainly deaf cast, and was the first best picture triumph for a streaming service. Oscar ratings receive a significant boost as more than 15 million But it was an unscripted and Americans watch Will Smith slap Chris Rock highly controversial moment that created the Oscars’ talking Jada Pinkett Smith to the character “G.I. Jane.” point Sunday, as Smith strode onto the Oscars stage Pinkett Smith suffers from alopecia, a condition and slapped Rock for a joke comparing his wife causing hair loss. AFP

Life Minting the arts “wanted to help other Filipinos learn about NFTs and how casual gamers can actually go on a much deeper level and engage others to earn a respectable living.” “From what is still A FEW weeks ago, while surfing the net and loitering considered a gray area for us on Facebook, I was surprised Filipinos, we want to help to find out that Pugad Baboy, create more success stories for one of my all-time favorite others by breaking it down for comics, would be opening for the everyday person,” the duo enthused. minting. If you are looking into Pol Medina, Jr., the NFTs, we need to start guy behind the with the most basics classic comic strip what are NFTs? that humorously For the uninitiated, depicts the Pinoy telling the meaning of life, has partnered the acronym doesn’t with Ark of make things clearer. Dreams and joined Really. the metaverse. As a But in a way to immortalize nutshell, NFTs his legacy, he are a digital transformed his way of iconic comic Karl Ruelan’s NFT registering strip into one of digital assets (art, GIFs, videos, a kind NFT Collection. For the past years, NFTs collectibles, virtual avatars, (non-fungible tokens) seem game skins, music, etc.) using to have exploded and are blockchain, which is like slowly gaining ground in the a digital public ledger that art world. But are they really proves ownership. This is the worth the money – or the same blockchain system that is used in cryptocurrencies. hype? Collecting (buying or Since I’m not really wellversed with this, I had an selling) NFTs is like buying interesting conversation with an artwork but instead of Alfred Someros and Karl owning the physical item, Ruelan – the punks behind you get a digital form with the Bored Punks of Society, a unique identification code metadata containing a newly-established Filipino and crypto enterprise – one information about the digital afternoon while having lunch item and is stored alongside it. Some would say they can at Brasserie on 3 in Conrad view the images online for Manila. From giving online gaming free and even screenshot or tips to their growing fan base, download them. So, why pay a the duo found themselves price for something they could conversing about financial easily get online? One word: ownership. You literacy and how to make strategic investments in the can screenshot and download it, but you can never own the uncharted world of NFTs. They started researching original because NFTs contain NFT, its beginnings, and built-in authentication that developments, before later on serves as proof of ownership. If an artist mint his music, creating their own Filipino community. Then, they digital artwork, or video as an started doing podcasts to NFT, he can prove that he owns answer the growing queries it because each NFT is distinct every Saturday, their free and traceable. It’s like a digital time, since they are still signature of an artist that can studying at UP Diliman. never be forged or removed. If you are a buyer, think of Alfred is a sports science NFTs as digital receipts. Or major with a background perhaps, a deed of sale. in organizational Like when you bought management, something from a while Karl is physical store and you a mechanical receive a tape receipt as engineer major. proof of your purchase. Eventually, the The idea of NFTs Bored Punks, as receives differing they are known opinions. Some are in the crypto not sold on the community, turned idea of putting their passion for artworks on online gaming m e t a v e r se into a sound Alfred Someros’ NFT or owning investment. They initially offered a digital form instead of a 7,640 Avatar-based NFTs for physical form. But there are a approximately P2,500 each. A growing number of artists and month after its official release, collectors who are getting into they sold it out for 25 matic NFTs. Some artists look at it as a each. Soon, Bored Punks found itself finishing top 3 in unique opportunity to monetize Opensea World Rankings in their arts. They no longer rely the Polygon Network, where on galleries or auction houses the young entrepreneurs to sell their art, instead, they successfully resold their NFT can sell them directly as NFTs. In addition, the NFTs collection for over P510,000, one of the highest registered are programmed to take a NFT profits ever made at the percentage of the sales back time among Filipino NFT to the artists every time their arts find a new owner. Unlike investors. But what I like most about when the physical art is sold, these young businessmen, they artists get royalties for every are not solely after earning time their NFT is sold. They money. They wanted to create can’t be cheated out since the a financial literacy movement. blockchain has metadata. Read Alfred shared that they more on manilastandard.net Bored Punks co-founders Alfred Someros and Karl Ruelan

Nickie Wang, Editor Patricia Taculao, Editorial Assistant E-mail: lifeandshow.manilastandard@gmail.com WEDNESDAY, MARCH 30, 2022

Sparking curiosity

Tonet Gedang unveils extensive prized collection in ‘Curious’ exhibit

Artist Anthony V. Gedang (third from left) with Mexican Ambassador Gerardo Lozano Arredondo (center) and other guests

Wooden masks, figurines, and trinkets from Indonesia

Artifacts that demonstrate the culture of Australia

ILM producer and art collector Anthony V. Gedang, better known as Tonet Gedang, was brimming with pride when he welcomed the guests to Curious, a three-day event featuring a series of exhibit tours, demos, and guest appearances by international experts.

Council of Museum - PH (For Museum, Galleon Trade route that united Mexico and Culture, and Arts). the Philippines for more than 250 years. That’s The second day of the event kicked off with why I’d like to congratulate ourselves on this Kids Club Tour. Here, youngsters enjoyed a fun kind of activity. When we speak about culture, selection of activities such as Sports Stations, we refer to what we are, to the traces of our Exhibit Tour, and Film Showing. Filipino memory as a society, or as what Mexican writer artist Juan Llaga demonstrated his landscape Carlos Fuentes would say, ‘Culture refers to penjing and bonsai skills and was followed by our ways of being, and our ways of dreaming,’” an orientation with Philippine Bonsai Society Dr. Arredondo said during the event opening. Inc.’s Yumie Gupit and another bonsai demo Forefronted by Artiste Entertainment Inc. by Romy Dino. along with art-centered movements like The National Stone Society of the Philippines, Bonsai PH and Suiseki PH, Artiste Musaeum simply known as NSSP, is a physical and virtual space that showcases The exhibit was on display took the center stage on the collections of Gedang, spanning a wide from March 25 to 27 at March 27. Gedang, as spectrum of cultural materials from different Celebrity Sports Plaza in president of NSSP, gave parts of the globe. It is part of the International Quezon City. his welcome remarks Council of Museums (ICOM), which is home “The exhibited is about followed by greetings to over 10,000 artworks including relics, tribal my 60 years of existence – from international arts, books, and artifacts. The museum aims to the things I have experienced friends, general inspire a greater sense of cultural appreciation which I wanted to share with members’ meeting by studying, interpreting, conserving, and the public, and the next 60 proper, a series of demos, exhibiting every piece in Mr. Gedang’s gallery. years of how long I would lectures, and workshops, still live. I love sharing bonseki arrangement, For more information, you may also check stories. And this exhibit is and artificial Dazia out www.bonsai.ph, www.artise.com.ph, and all about the stories that I making. Gedang led a www.suiseki.ph. wanted to share,” Gedang, A well-maintained bonsai at the garden tour at the event’s exhibit owner and president Curious exhibit conclusion. of Artiste Entertainment, Inc. Apart from the aforementioned activities, said during the exhibit opening. The event commenced with a ribbon- guests found themselves looking forward to cutting ceremony led by Dr. Gerardo Lozano the collaboration with the Mexican Embassy Arredondo, the Mexican Ambassador to the and Dr. Arredondo, the Mexican Ambassador Philippines. It was followed by discussions to the Philippines. As a key part of this threeand MOA signings with various organizations day event, the collab trained spotlight on the including Artiste Entertainment Inc./ Museum allure of Mexican Culture & Arts, Business (For Culture, Arts, and Travel), Philippine Opportunities, and Travels with Dr. Arredondo. “It’s important to recognize the Asian Guests can also witness bonsai-making demos Chamber of Commerce, Inc. - Quezon City (For Business and Travel), and International influence brought by the historic Manila and more

The ‘Curious’ exhibit features several bonsai installations

More curiosities on display at the exhibit

Rising center for contemporary art GENERATIONS of Caviteño artists recently showcased their works in exhibits at SM City Molino and SM City Dasmariñas. With its many art groups and the establishment of prestigious schools in fine arts and visual communication, Cavite today has one of the fastest-growing communities of artists outside Metro Manila, and is on its way to becoming a viable center of contemporary art. The exhibit featured pages from the My City, My SM, My Art book, which is a compilation of the campaign highlighting the best of Philippine visual arts – painting, sculpture, printmaking, photography, and filmmaking. During its three-year cultural journey from 2016 to 2019, My City, My SM, My Art featured masters, modernists, and millennials in a roadshow around the SM Supermalls as far north as the Cordilleras and as far south as General Santos. During the exhibit, mallgoers had a rare glimpse of the book at the My Art house, which

Voltaire Perez (right) and his wife Francisca beside his artworks ‘Halamanan’ and ‘To Whom I Am Well Please’

is inspired by Luzon’s Bahay na Bato. The larger-than-life book pages showcased the life and works of Master Artist Eduardo Castrillo and Cavite’s renowned visual artists. The late Master Sculptor Castrillo brought life to the country’s significant revolutionary monuments and was one of the country’s most sought-after commissioned artists of his time. In panels like those of his masterpiece, The People Power Monument in EDSA, Castrillo turned fragments of the historic past into vivid records of Filipino courage and freedom. His family’s move to Cavite in 1995, had a sense of destiny. Cavite, after all, is known for its history, and Castrillo is known for his largescale public monuments that celebrate our country’s heroes and heritage. During the exhibit, mallgoers had a glimpse of his sculpture collection from the Castrillo Family collection and assets; as well as the works of his son Nixxio. The exhibit also featured My Art book pages of the other Castrillo children -

Dr. Jose Jates poses with his artwork ‘Triptych,’ a visual representation of Sigmund Freud’s Theory on the Id, Ego, and Superego

Mierro Castrillo, and Ovvian Castrillo – Hill. Mallgoers also had a sight of the works of Caviteño artists Voltaire Perez, Dr. Jates Jose, and Lirio Salvador during the exhibit; as well as those of young artists Alee Garibay, Nina Garibay, and Bam Garibay, children of master artist Manny Garibay. My City, My SM, My Art is the latest edition in the My City, My SM series, which celebrates the beauty, culture, traditions, and great people in cities around the Philippines where SM has malls. This comes after My City, My SM, which highlights tourism; My City, My SM, My Cuisine, which features heirloom recipes from prominent families around the country, and My City, My SM, My Crafts, a celebration of traditional arts and modern Philippine design. Visit https://mystorymysm.com/mycitymysmmyart/ and https://www.youtube.com/MyCityMySMMyArt to learn more about the My City, My SM, My Art campaign.

Art Librarian, Mary Ann Salvador beside her husband Contemporary Sculptor Lirio Salvador’s masterpieces

Ma. Cecile Recio, assistant mall manager of SM City Molino, stands beside the My Art House at SM City Molino

C4 || WEDNESDAY, MARCH 30, 2022

SPECIAL ISSUE

A fashion and tourism summer checklist

By Patricia Taculao

UMMER is officially here and almost every Filipino is gearing up to spend their days under the sun. Among the many aspects that people plan for the perfect summer getaway is their outfit.

Whether it’s for a day at the beach or a quick hang out, the ideal summer outfit will make sure any person will look and feel great. However, there are also several things to consider like the fabric, fit, and shape before choosing the right ensemble. Luckily, there’s a variety of summer clothing that one can choose from. Here are some options to help summer lovers find the perfect outfit for any occasion under the sun: 1. A FLORAL SUNDRESS. Flowy dresses are a staple among the ladies during summer. It can be strapless or with a puffed sleeve, but a floral sundress is a breezy outfit that will keep women looking and feeling fresh despite the heat, since loose-fitting clothes allow circulation. Remember that light-colored clothes also promote a cooler feeling because it helps reflect light. Moreover, the right fabric also promotes breathability. Opt for dresses that are made from cotton and linen as these aren’t necessarily thick and don’t stick to one’s skin once they start sweating.

As for footwear, one can never go wrong with sandals and opentoed sandals. Wearing a sundress and sandals is a common sight during hangouts, upon arriving at a resort, or traveling to other summer destinations.

2. A POLO AND SHORTS. For men, the sundress equivalent is a loose, bright, and patterned polo. It follows the same principle with the fabric and color but they can explore their sense of style by wearing different designs from flowers to leaves to birds to random boho prints that promote a summer vibe. Men usually pair their polos with khaki shorts to create a casual look perfect for lounging on the beachfront or getting a few drinks with friends. 3. TANK TOPS AND SHORTS. Whether for men or women, a great choice for a summer outfit is tank tops, paired with shorts. Its sleeveless feature prevents people from sweating under the sweltering heat, while getting enough summer breeze to keep them cool. As for the shorts, they can take their pick between denim, cotton, or linen—basically whatever feels

more comfortable. However, they should also remember that loose fitting clothes are better than tightfitting ones against the summer heat.

4. FLATTERING SWIMSUITS OR BRIGHT BOARD SHORTS. Summer is the time when people hit the beach to experience the sand, the sea, and the sun. It’s also the perfect time for them to flaunt their figures in their preferred swimming attire. Ladies can opt for structured swimsuits that emphasize either their waist, shoulders, or hips to create a balanced figure and increase their confidence on the beach. As for the color and design, they can trust their gut and go with whatever they think looks good on them. For the men, boardshorts are the usual summer attire. Brightcolored ones are often worn because they add a splash of color to anyone’s physique. However, wearing dark-colored ones are also advisable for those who want to create a more defined figure.

MUST-SEE TOURIST SPOTS The Philippines isn’t short on summer destinations that cater to couples, barkadas, or families. They have several options on how they want to spend their vacation and make the most out of it. Here are several tourist destinations worth checking out in the summer: THE SUMMER CAPITAL OF THE PHILIPPINES, BAGUIO While most people struggle with the heat in the city, others choose to travel to Baguio to cool down. The destination earned its moniker because its high altitude gives it a temperature that ranges from 15 to 23 degrees Celsius. The city rarely experiences temperatures higher than 26 degrees Celsius even during the warmest parts of the year.

Aside from the temperature, tourists also flock to Baguio to experience various activities that can’t be found in the metro. For instance, from March to April, tourists can visit strawberry farms in the city and participate in the harvesting process. Not only will they be able to experience picking strawberries themselves, but they will also bring home these fresh goods to enjoy. On the other hand, athletic individuals can drop by Burnham Park to jog, bike, or ride a swan. They

can also enjoy other activities in Camp John Hay like its Treetop Adventure or Yellow Trail. Meanwhile, art and history buffs can opt to appreciate the nature and art displayed at the BenCab Museum or marvel at the intricate architecture of the Bell Church. However, they should remember to pack slightly warm clothes because Baguio City’s temperature is already enough to keep the summer heat at bay. BORACAY ISLAND After some time of being closed to the public, Boracay is once again opening its doors to tourists, who want to experience the white sandy beaches, bustling nightlife, and water activities. The island houses several hotels that cater to their price range and type of vacation in mind. Regardless, they can simply walk out to the island’s pristine beaches and take a dip in its refreshing waters. Some guests even prefer lounging on the beachfront to get as much sun as they can. Yet for those looking for a little excitement in their lives, they can go parasailing, jet skiing, and even dive under the waters to get a glimpse of its diverse marine life. Guests can also go island-hopping

to get a better view of the destination’s beauty. Come night time, they can watch various performances from live bands or fire dancers to keep them entertained. Restaurants around the island also offer a unique dining experience by serving gourmet meals or a twist on several favorite Filipino dishes. When going out this summer, people should consider their outfits to stay fresh and comfortable under the heat of the sun. With the right ensemble, they’ll feel confident to make the most out of summer. Plus, they shouldn’t limit themselves to popular tourist destinations. Instead, they should explore the Philippines and bask in its beauty under the clear summer skies.

Getting fit and fab this summer at The SM Store GETTING fit and fab doesn’t have to be all about painful visits to the gym, heavy loads, and excruciating routines that can often leave you sore and worn out. In fact, it can be light, a lot of fun and done in the comfort of your home with AXCS Accessories from The SM Store. These accessories and props are all designed to help the body get a more efficient and safe workout towards achieving fitness goals. And while making your routine a lot of fun. There are AXCS Fitness Boxing Gloves made of foam and PU leather available in different colors, as well as rubber coated cast iron 5 lb. Fitness Dumbbells. Durable 4kg. AXCS Fitness Kettlebells also offer you a versatile way of working out from different angles. Perfect for cardiovascular, strength, and visibility training, these come in vibrant neon yellow, pink, violet, and aqua blue. You can also increase the intensity of your body workouts with and strengthen core muscles with Fitness Yoga Disk Sliders and develop more strength with high density, anti-slip, and lightweight Fitness Plain Yoga Blocks. There’s more fitness fun ahead with soft and breathable Workout Wrist and Head Towel Bands in yellow, salmon, black, and orange, and adjustable Fitness Anti-Slip Gloves. Visit The SM Store Fashion Women’s Accessories Department to check out their cool fitness stuff or log on to www.shopsm.com and www. thesmstore.com for more details. These cool fitness accessories are all available at select The SM Store Women’s Fashion Accessories Department nationwide.

Achieve your fitness goals with these AXCS Fitness Boxing Gloves. Made of foam and PU leather and available in different colors, these are available at The SM Store Women’s Accessories Department.

Soft and breathable AXCS Workout Wrist and Head Towel Bands. Available in fun colors like yellow, salmon, black and orange.

Increase the intensity of your body workouts and strengthen core muscles with AXCS’s Fitness Yoga Disk Sliders.

Keep your hands protected and stop them from slipping with these anti-slip grip and adjustable Fitness Anti-Slip Gloves from The SM Store.

High density, anti-slip and lightweight AXCS Fitness Plain Yoga Blocks for support for developing more strength.

Build greater strength and stimulate muscle growth with these rubber -coated cast iron 5 lb. AXCS Fitness Dumbbells from The SM Store Women’s Accessories Department. Durable 4kg AXCS Fitness Kettlebell offers you a versatile way working out from different angles. Perfect for cardiovascular, strength and flexibility training, these come fun colors like neon yellow, pink, violet and aqua blue.