AMAZON.COM Inc. is planning to give more data on counterfeit goods to law enforcement in a further crackdown on fakes listed on its e-commerce sites, a person familiar with the program told Reuters.
The move comes as Amazon faces public scrutiny over how it polices counterfeits and allegedly unsafe products on its platform. Fakes have long frustrated top labels like Apple Inc. and Nike Inc., discouraging some from selling via Amazon at all.
In the past, the world’s largest online retailer has informed authorities of counterfeit peddlers when it thought it had enough information for police to pursue a culprit. Now, the company plans to disclose merchant information to European and US federal authorities every time it confirms a counterfeit was sold to customers, increasing the frequency and volume of reporting to law enforcement, according to the person, who spoke on condition of anonymity.
Why the new program was happening now was not immediately clear. Amazon struck a deal with Apple in 2018 in which it agreed to rid its site of products from merchants not authorized by the Cupertino, California-based technology company. It has sued peddlers of fakes and launched a counterfeit removal tool for brands, actions in tension with its aim to increase profit by offering more products for sale.
In recent weeks, Amazon has held meetings with government authorities and related organizations to discuss its new counterfeit reporting strategy and how the company can further their enforcement efforts, the person said. The hope has been that Amazon’s coveted data will help law enforcement make connections about criminals.
According to the source, Amazon will report a merchant’s name, company name, product and contact information to authorities, after it confirms a business was selling fakes, closes the seller’s account, and the account holder does not make a successful appeal via Amazon’s typical processes.
In an April memo, US President Donald Trump ordered a crackdown on fakes sold via online marketplaces while the country was locked in trade talks with China, one source of counterfeits. The Trump administration also considered last year adding some Amazon websites to its “Notorious Markets” list for counterfeits, the Wall Street Journal reported, though similar proposals in 2018 were discarded.
The value of global trade in pirated and counterfeit goods is half a trillion dollars per year, according to an estimate cited in the President Trump memo. — Reuters
PANCAKE HOUSE starts the year with a treat: the Choose Any Two promo. For P399, choose any two of the featured meals paired with its Classic Pan Chicken, such as: the Classic Pan Chicken and Golden Brown Waffle; the Classic Pan Chicken with Rice and Best Taco in Town; the Classic Pan Chicken with Rice and Mashed Potato; and the Classic Pan Chicken and Spaghetti with Garlic Bread. Each meal also comes with a glass of House Iced Tea. This limited offer is available at all Pancake House branches until Feb. 29. Meanwhile, those craving the Classic Pan Chicken in the morning can now enjoy it as part of the Breakfast Choose Any Two promo with the all-new Pan Chicken with Rice and Egg meal. This can also be paired with other Filipino favorites, such as: pork tocino, beef tapa, and the new Spam, bacon, and egg. This deal is available for dine-in in all Pancake House stores nationwide until March 31. For more information, visit facebook.com/PancakeHousePhilippines.
Max’s Restaurant
ONE DISH that must always be present in any Filipino celebration is pancit, as the noodle dish symbolizes longevity and good health. Max’s Restaurant is now offering a different way of eating this traditional Filipino dish with its newest Crispy Pancit Canton. For P199, get a mountain of crispy, golden fried noodles, mixed with chicken balls, squid rings, as well as fresh vegetables. As soon as it reaches the tables, it is drizzled with of sauce. The Crispy Pancit Canton is also the perfect partner of Max’s Sarap-To-The-Bones Chicken. Groups can enjoy this through the House Classics Birthday Bundle, which includes one Regular whole fried chicken, one Crispy Pancit Canton, one large plain rice, and four glasses of iced tea for P999. Then there is the House Classics Birthday Bundle Plus for P1,399, which features the same items as those above, but with the addition of the diners’ choice of four servings of vanilla ice cream or buko pandan. Available for dine-in, takeout, and delivery in all Max’s stores nationwide.
Richmonde Hotel Iloilo
JANUARY is Dinagyang Festival season in Iloilo. This year spectators of the festival’s most-awaited tribal dance competition can watch the performances at an arena-type stage that offers a good vantage point from any angle. The culmination of the Dinagyang is on Jan. 24 to 26, with street dancing, parades, fireworks, and other activities. Visitors can stay at the Richmonde Hotel Iloilo which has special room rates for the celebration. The hotel’s The Granary restaurant will also be celebrating with the Dinagyang Festival Dinner Buffet served on January 24 to 26 from 6 to 10 p.m. The starters, soups, salads, entrées, carvings, action stations, and desserts consist of an mix of Filipino items and global gastronomy. Hungry revelers on those day can also enjoy the filling breakfast buffet, available from 6 a.m. to 10 a.m., offers a variety of morning meal staples like freshly baked breads, fruits, cereals, bacon and eggs, including an assortment of viands and beverages. Visitors can also try the outlet’s extensive à la carte menu. Dinagyang partygoers staying out late into the night can enjoy a recovery meal with The Granary’s special “Hangover Buffet” served from 11 p.m. to 5 a.m. featuring pairings like arroz caldo with biscocho, pancit molo with paborita, batchoy with puto manapla, and pata with pan de sal. There are rice topping choices too of pork tocino with garlic rice, chicken inasal with adobo rice, and karne frita with kalkag fried rice. For inquiries and reservations, call Richmonde Hotel Iloilo at +63 33 328-7888 /0917-580-9642 or send an e-mail to rhireservations@richmondehotel.com.ph.
WASHINGTON — US Securities and Exchange Commissioner Robert Jackson told Reuters on Tuesday that he supports so-called direct listings as a way to help bring down the excessive fees companies pay to Wall Street banks in order to go public.
His comments come as staff at the SEC, the top US securities regulator, weigh a proposal by the New York Stock Exchange for a rule change that would allow more companies to go public without using banks to underwrite the transaction.
Mr. Jackson, a Democratic commissioner who was a capital markets banker early in his career, said he could not comment on the NYSE’s specific proposal but that he generally welcomed innovations that could reduce the 7% fee companies raising less than $1 billion typically pay to Wall Street banks to go public.
That fee, which has remained unchanged for two decades, according to research conducted by Mr. Jackson’s office, is a major obstacle for middle-market companies looking to list, he said.
“In the modern world we live in, where everything costs less, it is astonishing that we charge a 7% tax to give people access to the public capital markets of the United States,” Mr. Jackson said. He also rejected the claim frequently made by corporate lobbyists that red tape is the main reason the number of public companies has declined over the past 20 years.
“The good news is I think people are starting to compete, and direct listings is the beginning of what I hope will be a lot of innovation in the space,” Mr. Jackson said.
In 2018, music streaming business Spotify Technology SA launched a direct listing, followed in 2019 by communication platform Slack Technologies Inc. Both had successful market debuts, but their share prices have since struggled.
One advantage of direct listings is that the companies paid less in fees to Wall Street banks than in a traditional IPO. Critics, though, worry that direct listings could weaken investor protections, since banks also act as gatekeepers helping to spot fraudulent would-be issuers.
Mr. Jackson, who has established himself as a vocal advocate for investors during his two years at the SEC, acknowledged that “trade off” and said he would want to see details on how any direct listing rule change would protect investors.
“What we’ll need is a solution that’s robust and protects investors,” he said.
SHAREHOLDER RIGHTS
Over the past year, Jackson has increasingly found himself at odds with his Republican colleagues, voting against a raft of rule changes he said could diminish shareholder rights.
Among those were two highly contentious November proposals that critics say could reduce shareholders’ ability to call for corporate changes on thorny issues like political spending — a murky area on which Jackson tried to cast more transparency during his previous role as an academic.
Those proposals have sparked vigorous push-back by investor groups and proxy advisory firms, which help investors vote on corporate ballots. Jackson said the proposals had “a long way” to go before they could be adopted and that he hoped his SEC colleagues would reconsider them.
He also raised concerns over a lack of disclosure by funds that claim to invest in sustainable companies, saying there was “troubling evidence” some are taking extra fees but doing very little to change the way they invest.
Net new deposits in sustainable funds grew to $20.6 billion in 2019, nearly four times the previous year’s record, according to Morningstar. — Reuters
CITIGROUP, Inc. beat analysts’ estimates for fourth-quarter profits on Tuesday, boosted by growth in its credit card business and a jump in trading revenue.
North American branded cards, which account for a majority of the bank’s consumer banking revenue, clocked double-digit revenue growth for the second straight quarter, rising 10% from a year earlier.
The third-largest US bank by assets has been leveraging its robust card business to help grow deposits by pitching checking and savings accounts to card holders. The bank gathered $6 billion in digital deposits last year.
Markets and securities revenue rose 28% as markets steadied during the last three months of 2019, with the gains driven by a 49% surge in fixed-income trading. Equities trading fell 23% due to weak performance in derivatives.
Citi also reached a key profitability target. The bank hit a return on tangible common equity (ROTCE) of 12.1% for 2019, above the goal of 12% it promised investors for the year.
ROTCE is a widely watched measure of how well a bank uses shareholder money to generate profits.
The bank, however, reduced its guidance for 2020 ROTCE to a range of 12% to 13%, down from prior guidance of 13.5%.
“The revenue environment has changed since we set our targets for 2020, with lower interest rates, slower global growth and the pressure we’ve seen in industry wallets in markets and banking,” Chief Financial Officer Mark Mason said on the bank’s earnings call.
The US Federal Reserve cut interest rates three times last year, crimping banks’ lending margins and their ability to raise revenue.
Citi added loans and deposits in the most recent quarter from both consumer and corporate clients as business sentiment began to improve.
Total end-of-period loans grew 2%, while deposits jumped 6%, excluding foreign-exchange fluctuations.
Credit costs jumped 15%.
Net interest income, or the difference between what a bank pays for deposits and earns from loans, was up 1% at Citi, compared with declines at JPMorgan and Wells Fargo & Co.
Net income applicable to common shareholders rose to $4.98 billion, or $2.15 per share, in the three months ended Dec. 31, from $4.31 billion, or $1.64 per share, a year earlier. Excluding the impact of a tax benefit, Citi earned $1.90 per share.
Revenue, net of interest expense, rose about 7% to $18.38 billion.
Analysts had expected a profit of $1.84 per share and revenue of $17.86 billion, according to IBES data from Refinitiv. — Reuters
The world’s largest retailer will add shelf-scanning robots to 650 more US stores by the end of the summer, bringing its fleet to 1,000. The six-foot-tall Bossa Nova devices, equipped with 15 cameras each, roam aisles and send alerts to store employees’ handheld devices when items are out of stock, helping to solve a vexing problem that costs retailers nearly a trillion dollars annually, according to researcher IHL Group.
The new robots, designed by San Francisco-based Bossa Nova Robotics Inc., join the ranks of Walmart’s increasingly automated workforce which also includes devices to scrub floors, unload trucks and gather online-grocery orders. They’re part of Chief Executive Officer Doug McMillon’s push to reduce costs, improve store performance and gain credibility as a technology innovator as it battles Amazon.com Inc. Walmart says the shelf-scanners can reduce tasks that once took as long as two weeks into a twice-daily routine.
“It speeds up the entire cycle,” John Crecelius, Walmart’s senior president of store innovations, said in an interview.
Customers gawked when Walmart put the first Bossa Nova robot in a store in rural Pennsylvania in 2016. Some thought they were anti-theft devices, while others tried to talk to the bots. Kids hugged it, smearing fingerprints on the expensive cameras. Now, they’re a more common sight inside some stores, while rival robots perform tasks in the aisles of competing grocery chains such as Giant Eagle, Schnucks and Stop & Shop.
NCR Corp., which has supplied Walmart with cash registers and self-checkout kiosks for years, will handle the installation and upkeep of the Bossa Nova machines. David Wilkinson, NCR’s senior vice president and general manager for retail, said he expects robots will be in “the majority” of Walmart’s 4,750 US stores one day. But they might not all be from Bossa Nova: Walmart has also tested a shelf-scanning device made by Badger Technologies in a Kentucky store. Bossa Nova, meanwhile, has done some tests with Walmart rival Albertsons Cos.
Walmart’s Crecelius declined to give details about how much the robots have reduced out-of-stock products, saying only that the metric has improved, with the devices traveling a total of 50,000 miles, scanning a million aisles and 500 million products. Simbe Robotics, which makes a competing device, claims that its robots can cut out-of-stock items by as much as half and trim labor costs as well.
The potential savings, however, has many retail employees spooked. On message boards frequented by shelf-stockers and other rank-and-file associates, the robots are often referred to as “the job stealers,” usually with an expletive thrown in. They have reason to worry: A May report from consultants at McKinsey & Co. found that about half of all retail activities can be automated with existing technology.
Walmart, for its part, has consistently claimed that its robots lead to the redeployment of employees to less mundane roles, not job eliminations. It’s clear, however, that the robot fleet is growing and it’s getting smarter: Bossa Nova’s newest model has an additional camera and can also look down to scan fresh produce racks, something the current crop can’t do.
It’s also a bit thinner, to help it stay out of the way of shoppers. “We’re going out of our way to get out of their way,” Bossa Nova co-founder and Chief Technology Officer Sarjoun Skaff said. — Bloomberg
The Department of Health has ordered a price freeze on 218 medicines as well as other medical goods in Batangas province, following widespread panic-buying of N95 masks. — WORLD VISION
THE Department of Health (DoH) has ordered a price freeze on 218 medicines as well as other medical goods in Batangas province, following widespread panic-buying of N95 masks, which are rated for filtering out volcanic dust.
Issued Tuesday, the order, DOH 20202-005 ordered prices to be frozen in the province. The DoH is authorized by law to regulate prices of medical products. Batangas province, where Taal Volcano is located, has been placed under a state of calamity, which also triggers more general price-control measures.
health Undersecretary Rolando Enrique D. Domingo said in a briefing Wednesday that the list contains “lahat ng essential medicines. So, pati iyong mga high-blood, pang-diabetes, pang-asthma, ito iyong mga essential na hindi puwedeng tumaas (The price controls cover essential medicines for hypertension, diabetes, and asthma). Mayroon siyang range and it includes some devices like iyong mask (There is a prescribed range. The list also includes devices like masks).”
Also in the list are respiratory tract medicines, antibiotics, and cardiovascular medicines.
The order covers N95 masks, which are capable of filtering out particulates like volcanic dust. It said the permitted N95 price range was P45 to P105 pesos, while the price range for disposable surgical masks was P1 to P8. According to reports, consumers have been hoarding N95 masks, with prices rising to as much as P500 each.
The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) also warned against profiteering and counterfeit masks.
During its inspection of a district in Manila where dealers of medical supplies are clustered, Trade Undersecretary Ruth B. Catelo found 12 out of 17 stores selling fake N95 masks. The DTI will be filing administrative charges against these store owners.
“Under Article 52 of the Consumer Act (these activities fall under) unfair and unconscionable sales acts or practices. They are taking advantage of the situation, the difficulties being experienced by consumers,” she said at the same briefing on Wednesday.
The DTI has noted that N95 masks are not on the suggested retail price list and added that it has contacted foreign suppliers to send more inventory.
DTI said in a statement Wednesday that its monitoring teams in Cavite, Laguna, Batangas, Quezon, and Metro Manila are tracking the prices of masks and other goods.
The DTI’s own findings are that N95 masks are selling for P120 to P150 per piece — outside the DoH’s own prescribed range — while surgical masks that normally sell for P1 each have been selling at P4 after the Taal emitted heavy ash starting Sunday.
“While we recognize that the N95, surgical, and other similar masks as medical supplies are under the jurisdiction of the Department of Health (DoH), the DTI readily dispersed its teams to monitor the prices and supply of these masks to assist the DoH and the consumers,” Trade Secretary Ramon M. Lopez said.
“As the Health Department, we understand that its utmost priority is ensuring the lives and health and safety of those who are affected by the phreatic eruption. Market surveillance and monitoring is the best form of immediate assistance that the DTI can provide. As the President constantly underscores, A whole-of-government approach is highly necessary and called for especially during times of calamities and disasters.”
DTI said that drug and medical stores have committed not to raise prices.
“However, the Price Act (Republic Act 7581) provides that the National Price Coordinating Council (NPCC) which the DTI and DoH are part of, can recommend to the President the inclusion of these masks in the list of basic or prime goods. When approved, the NPCC through the recommendation of the DoH and consultation with relevant stakeholders, can set an SRP, if found necessary,” the DTI said in a statement.
Along with foreign supplies, DTI had also asked domestic suppliers and major drug store chains including Mercury Drug, Watsons, and Southstar Drug to immediately restock in areas affected by the calamity.
“At the interim, current inventory in their branches and warehouses in non-affected areas will be distributed to their stores in CALABARZON (the Cavite-Laguna-Batangas-Rizal and Quezon region) and Metro Manila while waiting for the arrival of new stocks,” DTI said.
The DTI said in an earlier advisory that stores found to have been profiteering will face administrative or criminal charges.
The department reiterated that the prices of manufactured basic and prime goods will continue to conform to the DTI Suggested Retail Price (SRP) Bulletin published on Sept. 30.
The Batangas government has issued its own price freeze on basic goods and commodities, which is authorized by the Price Act, which comes into force upon a calamity declaration.
Price-controlled goods must still be sold for the suggested retail price (SRP).
Meanwhile, the Department of Tourism (DoT) is advising tourist establishments to consider health risks to visitors and workers should the situation at Taal Volcano deteriorate.
It said in a statement Wednesday that it “advises all tourism enterprises operating in all affected areas of the Taal Volcano disaster to immediately cease operations in light of the Phivolcs Alert Level 4 warning. The continued health, safety and welfare of our workers and tourists remain a top priority at this time as authorities have not downgraded the advisory on an imminent eruption.”
The Department of Labor and Employment (DoLE) on Wednesday also announced it will provide initial emergency assistance of P72.3 million to workers in the area. Labor Undersecretary Renato L. Ebarle said in a statement: “The assistance will be in the form of emergency employment under the government internship program where beneficiaries will be mobilized by the LGUs in the rehabilitation of nine affected municipalities of Batangas.” — Gillian M. CortezandJenina P. Ibañez
THE labor department said the agency regulating overseas labor has agreed to ban worker deployments to Kuwait after a dispute between the two countries over the circumstances surrounding a domestic worker’s death.
The Department of Labor and Employment (DoLE) said Wednesday that the action was taken one day after the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) issued its autopsy findings on Jeanelyn Villavende, which concluded she bore signs of sexual assault, apart from sustaining severe trauma.
Kuwait’s own postmortem examination did not contain any findings pertaining to sexual assault. The NBI conducted another postmortem examination on Jan. 10.
Labor Secretary Silvestre H. Bello III, who also chairs the board of the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA), said the POEA approved a resolution ordering a ban Wednesday. The resolution had yet to be made public at deadline time.
“On recommendation of Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello III, the POEA governing board has just approved a resolution imposing a total ban on the deployment of workers to Kuwait,” DoLE said.
Earlier this month, POEA issued a resolution calling for a Kuwait deployment ban covering only newly-hired domestic workers.
Mr. Bello has said he considers Kuwait’s autopsy report to be “dishonest” for leaving out key details.
The NBI said in its postmortem report that it can confirm the Kuwaiti finding of severe trauma, but added that Ms. Villavende’s genitalia and anus had lacerations, suggesting sexual assault.
Ms. Villavende’s employers are currently detained and charged with abuse leading to homicide.
The ban goes against diplomats’ recommendations that Kuwait be given time to make progress on its prosecution of the employers.
Foreign Affairs Secretary Teodoro L. Locsin, Jr. on Wednesday advised the POEA to hold off on a ban to give Kuwait a chance to advance its investigation.
“POEA proposes a total deployment ban to Kuwait after the President said ‘No’ to media because he is satisfied that Kuwaiti authorities acted swiftly arresting, detaining and arraigning the murderers,” Mr. Locsin said in a social media post Wednesday.
“Give Kuwait time. At first hint of stalling: total ban. Say two weeks.”
Mr. Locsin added that agreements ensuring the protection of OFWs (Overseas Filipino Worker) in Middle East do not guarantee their safety.
“POEA wants to use torture/murder of OFW Jeanelyn Villavende as leverage to get Kuwait to sign on to labor standards. Signing on doesn’t mean observing in Middle East,” he added.
In 2018 declared a deployment ban for Kuwait which lasted four months over the death of domestic helper Joanna Demafelis.
In May 2019 Malacañang sought to review the memorandum of understanding between the two countries after the emergence of a case of harassment.
“Once a total ban is declared, Kuwait will live with it and Jeanelyn will be unavenged and all we’ll have is a piece of paper that Filipino recruiters in connivance with Filipino officials will treaty exactly as that: a piece of paper. Sick of standards. I want blood,” Mr. Locsin said. — Gillian M. CortezandCharmaine A. Tadalan
THE Philippine Bamboo Industry Council (PBIC) plans to convert at least 19,000 hectares of land into bamboo plantations this year, including 13,000 hectares in the Western Visayas.
The government inter-agency group said in a statement Wednesday that the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) will be providing shared service facilities for agri-businesses that venture into bamboo processing.
Trade Secretary Ramon M. Lopez, who chairs PBIC, said that bamboo plantations will be included in the department’s Roads Leveraging Linkages of Industry and Trade program, which aims to build plant-to-market roads to ease the delivery of products, especially from remote areas.
Agri-business ventures like bamboo production and processing are also entitled to tax incentives under DTI’s Strategic Investments Priorities Plan.
“Bamboo planting can provide a sustainable source of livelihood to people in the countryside. Since the plant grows quickly and is weather-resilient, it is an ideal business for farmers who are looking for alternative sources of income,” Mr. Lopez said.
PBIC Vice Chairman and Ilocos Sur Representative Deogracias Victor B. Savellano, a Deputy Speaker, volunteered his district for the pilot program.
He said the target areas for plantations will increase as various groups, including the Department of National Defense and some State Universities and Colleges, are interested in planting bamboo on their properties.
The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) also committed more than half of its national greening program to the propagation of more bamboo, according to Environment Secretary Roy A. Cimatu.
DENR will also provide training on bamboo production, and will offer loans with 2% annual interest for bamboo farmers through LANDBANK’s Agricultural Competitiveness Enhancement Fund (ACEF) Lending Program.
DTI said that the plant, which takes two to three years to grow compared to the decades-long growth of wood trees, can be used for construction, furniture, and paper-making.
In March, PBIC will launch its official campaign, known as “Kawayan, Kalikasan, Kabuhayan, Kaunlaran, Kinabukasan” promoting the bamboo industry. — Jenina P. Ibañez
DAVAO CITY — The start of construction for the Mindanao Railway Project, which has been pushed back more than once due to right-of-way (RoW) issues within Davao City, is facing another stumbling block amid questions over the single-track diesel-powered system approved by the national government.
Assistant Secretary Romeo M. Montenegro of the Mindanao Development Authority (MinDA), said the community, including local governments and business groups, wants clarity whether the phase 1 segment approved by the National Economic and Development Authority-Investment Coordination Committee (NEDA-ICC) has provisions for future expansion to a two-track system as originally planned.
“Once the viability is seen to be really doing well then puwede na siya (it can be made into) two-track,” Mr. Montenegro said during Wednesday’s Habi at Kape Forum.
The Davao Regional Development Council has sent a letter to the Department of Transportation (DoTr) appealing for a reversion to a two-track and electric configuration.
Singletrack means trains have to be directed into sidings to give way to a train coming from the opposite direction. Singletrack, however, is faster to build, a likely consideration for a government eager to claim at least partially-completed projects by the time it steps down in 2022.
Mr. Montenegro noted that starting the railway project — which will eventually encircle the southern island — with a smaller and less environment-friendly option will affect the design of the other segments.
The first phase is 102-kilometer Tagum-Davao-Digos line.
“Right now there’s no answer to that question (future segments) yet, but we can assume that its going to be difficult… because I mean the logic of it does not explain the ideal scenario of a one-track and the other phases (becoming two-track, electric),” he said.
Mr. Montenegro said Mindanao stakeholders are pursuing continued discussions and are hoping changes can still be made.
“We have yet to see if anything is forthcoming arising out of that, translating into a final design which is two-track,” he said.
Mr. Montenegro said stakeholders hope to see the project get off the ground soon, noting that even just the bidding process could take months. — Maya M. Padillo
SAN JUAN CITY has approved an ordinance calling for the separate regulation of e-cigarettes, prescribing a different set of rules than those governing conventional tobacco products, with city officials claiming that e-cigarettes are “safer.”
City Ordinance No. 41, Series of 2019, signed by Mayor Francisco Javier M. Zamora prohibits the use of e-cigarettes in places of worship, hospitals, health centers, public conveyances, government offices, and educational or recreational facilities.
E-cigarette smoking is allowed in places not listed among the prohibited areas, provided that the owners of the places designate areas for vaping.
According to the text of the ordinance, “studies have consistently concluded that e-cigarettes are significantly safer than conventional tobacco smoking.”
“This is largely attributable to the fact that conventional cigarettes release much more carcinogens and toxins from the combustion process that burns tobacco, whereas e-cigarette products forego the combustion process completely.”
It cited a report by the Royal College of Physicians in the UK which classified e-cigarettes as a tool for helping smokers quit. It also noted that the Public Health England and British Lung Foundation have called for the separate regulation of cigarettes and e-cigarettes.
The ordinance permits advertising at the point-of-sale and on the Internet, with restrictions against targeting minors. Buyers are also required to indicate that they are at least 25 years old.
A task force led by the Mayor will be created to oversee the implementation of the ordinance.
A first-offense violation warrants a P2,000 fine and 12 hours of community service. A second offense will merit a P3,000 fine and 18 hours’ community service and a third offense P5,000 and 24 hours, respectively.
The ordinance allows those not willing to contest the charges to pay a minimum administrative fine of P1,000 and render six hours of community service within 24 hours.
The ordinance takes effect 15 days after publication in at least two newspapers.
President Rodrigo R. Duterte in November announced a ban on the use and importation of vaping products.
San Juan in 2016 passed an ordinance banning smoking in public places. — Vann Marlo M. Villegas
THE Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) said its P279.3-million slope protection project along the Taguig River is expected to be completed within the first half of the year.
“Completed within six (6) months, the slope protection project with bank improvement was implemented into several phases and subprojects situated along Taguig Bridge, M.L. Quezon Bridge, and Taguig River East and West Bank,” the DPWH said in a statement Wednesday.
It said the P279.3-million slope protection project is being built to ensure the safety of residents in the area, which is prone to flooding from the river, especially during the rainy season.
The DPWH said the project was funded out of the 2018 and 2019 General Appropriations Acts (GAA).
“The project was reported to be a part of a proposed linear park and roadway, which will serve as an alternate route that will decongest traffic in Taguig,” it said.
According to Public Works Secretary Mark A. Villar, the new structure will help prevent flooding in both Taguig City and Pateros.
The DPWH considers some places in Taguig and Pateros to be very susceptible to flooding. With the speedy completion of this project, residents can be more relieved knowing that a structure now safeguards their lives and properties.
In 2015, the DPWH issued a department order covering the implementation of flood control and drainage/slope protection projects which are funded, or proposed for funding, by the national government under the DPWH infrastructure program. — Arjay L. Balinbin
