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Global Cebu bags first win in PFL; leader Kaya scores another victory

AFTER OPENING its Philippines Football League (PFL) campaign with three straight losses, Global Cebu FC finally barged into the win column on Wednesday even as league-leading Kaya FC-Iloilo notched another victory.

The lone team without a point to show for entering Wednesday’s PFL fixtures, Global changed the setup with a 3-1 victory over Philippine Air Force FC in their league action at the Biñan Football Stadium.

Fell down early in the match, Global turned things around in the second half, with Chima Uzoka (’72), Marvin Bricencio (’84) and Matthew Custodio (’89) providing the goals late to help their team to its first-ever win.

The victory improved Global to 1-0-3 for the season, and handed it the full three points, good for fifth place.

The loss, meanwhile, dropped Air Force to 0-1-3 with a point to show for.

Meanwhile, Kaya kept its unblemished record intact with a 6-3 win over Mendiola FC 1991 in their match at the Rizal Memorial Football Stadium also Wednesday.

Jordan Mintah (11’, 85’ and 89’) scored a hat trick while Eric Giganto (47’and 60’) had a brace in the win. Shirmar Felongco accounted for the other Kaya goal.

Kaya now boasts of 4-0-0 record in the PFL, on top of the heap with 12 points, while Mendiola fell to 0-1-3 and a point.

Later in the night, Stallion Laguna FC (2-2-1) and Green Archers United FC (2-1-1) fought to a goalless draw. — Michael Angelo S. Murillo

RUNRIO and nowheretogobutUP launch The Great UP Run to raise funds for all UP varsity sports

UNIVERSITY of the Philippines varsity teams got a big boost June 18 from a new fund-raising event called The Great UP Run spearheaded by RUNRIO, Inc. and nowheretogobutUP Foundation, Inc. (NTGBUP).

Organizers of the event together with UP officials and representatives from the Quezon City Athletic Association (QCAA) launched the event via a press conference held at Quezon Hall to kick-start preparations for Season 82 of the University Athletic Association of the Philippines.

The Great UP Run, which aims to attract 3000 runners in 3K, 5K, 10K and 21K categories, will begin at sundown on August 11 at UP Diliman and cover the outer roads of the UP campus. Expected to participate are all UP varsity athletes, UP students and faculty from different campuses, and UP alumni.

The event will end with a concert featuring homegrown UP artists and is the first of many yearly events meant to sustain all UP varsity teams. Beneficiaries of the fund-raising are UP varsity teams in Badminton, Baseball, Softball, Chess, Fencing, Football, Judo, Poomsae, Swimming, Taekwondo, Table Tennis, Lawn Tennis, Table Tennis, Men’s Volleyball, Beach Volleyball and Women’s Basketball.

UP Diliman alumnus Coach Rio de la Cruz, President and Founder of RUNRIO Inc. NTGBUP Chairman, Atty. Agaton Uvero, NTGBUP VP for Ways and Means Cocoy Mercado, UP College of Human Kinetics Dean Francis Diaz and QCAA officials led the proceedings at the media launch.

Picking his spots

Phil Mickelson was nothing if not engaging in his presser on the eve of the Travelers Championship. He’s typically ebullient, to be sure, but his bright spirits yesterday likewise stemmed from fond memories of the tournament, having claimed it in successive years at the turn of the century. And were it not invariably scheduled right after the United States Open, he may well have added to his tally of victories at TPC River Highlands. Instead, he wound up skipping it from 2003 onwards, and only a change in his frequency of appearances on tour paved the way for his return.

In any case, Mickelson will, no doubt, draw from his wellspring of positive experiences at the pride of Cromwell, Connecticut in his aim to carve a favorable result this weekend. That he did not play well at the US Open despite his familiarity and previous successes at Pebble Beach should provide him with added motivation. Parenthetically, it helps that the 6,841-yard, par-70 layout fits his eye, the Bobby Weed redesign is evidently suited for left-handers and provides a back-nine setup that leans toward his high-risk, high-reward predilections.

Yesterday, Mickelson also took note of the large crowds that support the event, and how his relative freshness should serve him in good stead. They play into his personality, of course; he’s exactly the type of competitor who draws strength from, and panders to, galleries — and the bigger the better. Needless to say, he’s angling for a podium finish, just as he was at the US Open last week, and at the Memorial last month. It’s certainly the rationale behind his choice of stops; at 49 and no longer as physically able to come up with his A-game for long stretches, he is compelled to pick his spots.

Perhaps Mickelson will prevail at the Travelers. Perhaps he won’t. All the same, he’s keen on showing his best every time he tees off. Still quite long with the driver and among the best around the greens, he knows he has a chance. And at this point, a chance is all he needs to keep on trying.

 

Anthony L. Cuaycong has been writing the Courtside since BusinessWorld introduced a Sports section in 1994. He is a consultant on strategic planning, operations and Human Resources management, corporate communications, and business development.

Actor, director Eddie Garcia, 90

By Zsarlene B. Chua
Reporter

LEGENDARY actor/director Eddie Garcia died as a result of an accident while doing what he loved most — acting — after suffering a neck fracture on the set of his new television series. He was 90 years old.

He died on Thursday, June 20 at 4:55 p.m. at the Makati Medical Center. His death was confirmed by the hospital.

Mr. Garcia fell during a taping of the show Rosang Agimat on June 8 in Tondo, Manila and was rushed to Mary Johnston Hospital before being transfered to the Makati Medical Center.

Rosang Agimat was Mr. Garcia’s come back series at GMA Network as his last project with the network was 2015’s Little Nanay. He starred in ABS-CBN’s long-running program, Ang Probinsyano, before he moved on to the GMA project.

His last award before his death was just this week, a Gawad Urian for Best Actor for his work in Benedict Mique’s ML (2018).

Mr. Garcia portrayed the role of a retired colonel who — in a state of dementia — tortures young people in his household basement, thinking the country is still under Martial Law. Mr. Mique enjoined the audience to work towards making Mr. Garcia “a National Artist” for film.

Cebuana actress Gloria Sevilla, who won the Natatanging Gawad Urian Award (lifetime achievement award) for her roles ina Madugong Paghihiganti (1963) and Badlis sa Kinabuhi (1969) said during her acceptance speech that Mr. Garcia’s on-set accident is a “a wake up call [for the industry].”

She said that movie workers ought to be given protection at work; and upon retirement, financial aid should be made available to movie workers, production people, and even media covering the film industry.

Mr. Garcia is survived by his partner of 33 years, Lilibeth Romero, his stepsons Michael and Nikki Romero, and daughter Lisa Ortega.

Born Eduardo Verchez Garcia in Sorsogon on May 2, 1929, he started his more than half a century career with Siete Infantes de Lara in 1949. Among his films during his first two years in the industry were Kahit Ang Mundo’y Magunaw in 1949, Huling Patak ng Dugo and Kilabot ng Langit shown both in 1950.

Before acting, Mr. Garcia was a member of the Philippine Scouts and was posted in Okinawa after the Second World War. He was roped into auditioning for Manuel Conde’s Siete Infantes de Lara together with a fellow Scout.

Though he is known mostly for his villainous roles, the Manunuri ng Pelikulang Pilipino’s Lito B. Zulueta noted in a post on the organization’s website that Mr. Garcia is a man of many faces.

“The sheer variety of roles he has done runs the gamut of genres, formulas, and typecasting. He has done drama, comedy, action movies, fantasy, and musical. The list of his acting jobs reads like a history of Philippine cinema in the last 50 years,” Mr. Zulueta wrote.

His International Movie Database (IMDb) page lists 653 acting credits to his name from films to TV series.

At first, due to his Hispanic features and bearing, Mr. Garcia was typecast into playing villain roles. One of his films was named just that — Contravida (1955) by Olive La Torre.

He was so effective as a villain that he won the FAMAS (Filipino Academy of Movie Arts and Sciences) award for Best Supporting Actor for three straight years from 1957 to 1959. The same award-giving body would eventually give Mr. Garcia six best supporting actor trophies, five best actor trophies, and five best director trophies. Mr. Zulueta wrote that “FAMAS had to invent the Hall of Fame just to put him out of the running and give others the chance to win!”

“He is the only one in the history of the FAMAS to win the Best Supporting Actor trophy for three consecutive years (1957, 1958 and 1959); was the first to be inducted into the Best Supporting Actor Hall of Fame; and is the only one to have also been inducted into the Best Actor and Best Director Halls of Fame, in addition to a Lifetime Achievement Award,” Greg Macabenta’s wrote in his June 11 column in BusinessWorld.

The consummate artist that he was, he eventually ventured outside the villain role and accepted more controversial roles — he played a closeted gay family man in National Artist for Film Catalino “Lino” Brocka’s Tubog sa Ginto.

The film, according to Mr. Zulueta, “broke new grounds in depicting the secret life of a homosexual husband and family man,” and that before Tubog, “the gay man is presented in comic terms; the figure was a standard laughing stock… but when Eddie Garcia took on the role, the figure was recast in stark terms, portrayed in a keen light.”

Mr. Garcia won a best actor trophy from the FAMAS for his work in Tubog sa Ginto.

During the period of what is commonly called the “Second Golden Age of Philippine Cinema” (the 1970s to the early 1980s) when seminal works of Nationals Artists Mr. Brocka and Ishmael Bernal among others abound, Mr. Garcia was an intergral part of the movement.

He was in Mr. Brocka’s Tinimbang Ka Ngunit Kulang (1974), Eddie Romero’s Ganito Kami Noon, Paano Kayo Ngayon (1976) and Mr. Brocka’s Miguelito: Ang Batang Rebelde (1985), to name a few.

Mr. Garcia also starred in more social dramas like Mr. Brocka’s Gumapang Ka sa Lusak (1990), Joel Lamangan’s Bakit May Kahapon Pa (1996) and Deathrow (2000). In Deathrow, he played an aged convict who shielded a young prisoner from harsh prison life. He won a Gawad Urian for Best Actor for his work in the film.

Gawad Urian, considered the country’s answer to the Academy Awards and awarded by the Manunuri ng Pelikulang Pilipino, gave Mr. Garcia a Lifetime Achievement Award in 2006.

Mr. Garcia, fondly called “Manoy” was also a comedic actor and action star: for much of the 1980s and 1990s he acted opposite Fernando Poe, Jr. in Kapag Puno na ang Salop (1987) and its sequel, Ako ang Huhusga (1989) which Mr. Poe also directed.

Mr. Garcia’s love affair with the screen didn’t stop at acting as he was also a muti-awarded director — among his directorial credits were Karugton ng Kahapon (1961) and Historia un Amor (1963). His most recent directorial credit was Abakada… Ina in 2001.

In 1969, Mr. Garcia directed Pinagbuklod ng Langit, a biopic about former President Ferdinand E. Marcos which won him his first Best Director award from FAMAS. In 1978, he directed Atsay which won Best Picture at the Metro Manila Film Festival. Atsay starred Nora Aunor.

IMDb lists 37 directorial credits to his name.

When the new millenium came, Mr. Garcia once again reinvented himself, this time as a supporter of independent cinema. He starred in Raymond Red’s Anino which won the grand prize in the short film category at the Cannes Film Festival in 1999 and in Rica Arevalo’s ICU Bed #7 where he won best actor in the first Cinemalaya Film Festival in 2005.

Some of his last works were ML (2018) by Benedict Mique Jr., Hintayan ng Langit (2018) by Dan Villegas and Rainbow’s Sunset (2018) by Joel Lamangan.

Meralco receives four-arrow recognition at ASEAN Corporate Governance Scorecard (ACGS) Recognition Ceremony 2019

In recognition of its commitment towards good corporate governance and responsible management practices, the Manila Electric Company (Meralco) was named Top Performing Philippine publicly listed company under the ASEAN Corporate Governance Scorecard (ACGS). Meralco was awarded a four-arrow recognition by the Institute of Corporate Directors’ (ICD) during the ACGS Golden Arrow Recognition Ceremony held on June 11, 2019 at the Conrad Manila, Pasay City.

Meralco was among only 6 companies in the Philippines who were awarded with a four-arrow recognition. The Golden Arrow recognition is given to the top-performing Publicly-Listed Companies as reflected in their ACGS score from ICD’s 2018 domestic assessment. ICD Chief Executive Officer, Dr. Alfredo E. Pascual, congratulated the top-performing PLCs and encouraged them to continue in developing excellent corporate governance programs and practices for the benefit of the investors, other stakeholders, and the country.

The night was a celebration of the achievements of publicly-listed companies and insurance firms in embracing and promoting a culture of good corporate governance. Hon. Emilio B. Aquino, Chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission graced the celebration as the keynote speaker.

PHL growth forecast cut after weak Q1

THE ASEAN+3 Macroeconomic Research Office (AMRO) has slashed its Philippine growth forecast for this year following the “weak” economic expansion in the first quarter, which was dragged by the delay in the passage of the 2019 national budget.

In a press conference yesterday, AMRO Chief Economist Hoe Ee Khor said the group sees the country’s gross domestic product (GDP) growing by 6.3% this year, a tad lower than the 6.4% forecast published in AMRO’s ASEAN+3 Regional Economic Outlook (AREO) 2019 published in May.

“It was our best estimate at that time, but we didn’t expect the first quarter to be so weak,” Mr. Khor said yesterday.

He said the economy’s expansion slowed down “unexpectedly” in the first three months of the year “much more on budget impact.”

“We expect growth to bounce back up because (the budget impasse) is expected to be a one-off event,” Mr. Khor added.

The government operated on a reenacted 2018 budget from the start of the year until April 15, when President Rodrigo R. Duterte signed the latest general appropriations bill into law, but vetoed P95.3 billion in appropriations that he said were not in accordance with the administration’s priorities, slashing this year’s national budget to about P3.662 trillion.

The delay prompted the inter-agency Development Budget Coordination Committee in mid-March to cut its 2019 GDP growth assumption to 6.7% from 7-8% originally.

This was also largely blamed by economic managers for the slowdown in the country’s GDP growth in the first quarter to 5.6% — its worst performance in four years.

The first-quarter outcome was lower than the 6.3% print in the preceding quarter and 6.5% in the first quarter of 2018.

In its latest economic outlook, AMRO said Philippine economic growth will likely “recover on the back of buoyant domestic demand,” although “with the balance of risks to growth tilted to the downside.”

“Monetary conditions have tightened, but credit continues to expand,” the group noted in its latest report, adding that “[c]redit growth is anticipated to remain elevated, but as real borrowing cost starts to rise, it is likely to moderate.”

ASEAN+3 OUTLOOK SLASHED
At the same time, Mr. Khor said AMRO also slashed its GDP growth forecast for the ASEAN+3 region to 4.9% from the 5.1% projected in its 2019 AREO.

“Now, we expect growth to be a shade lower. Our latest estimate now is 4.9% this year and for next year. In the worst case scenario, when there’s no (trade) agreement (between the US and China), we expect it to be shaded out by another 0.2 percentage point.”

US President Donald J. Trump said on Twitter Tuesday night that he will meet with his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping next week during the G20 Summit in Japan, with their respective teams beginning talks prior to the meeting.

Beijing and Washington’s trade relations soured once again in May after both countries imposed tariffs on each other’s imports.

Despite this, AMRO said the region remains resilient, anchored by sustained domestic demand and recent declines in interest rates.

Mr. Khor said the impact of the US-China trade war on the Philippines is expected to be low and is estimated to shave just 0.06% off the country’s economic growth this year.

“As I have mentioned, Philippines is not part of the global value chain. It’s much more of a service economy,” he added.

AMRO — initially formed as a company in April 2011 and transformed into an international organization in February 2016 — conducts macroeconomic surveillance and supports implementation of the Chiang Mai Initiative Multilateralization currency swap arrangement which the 10 members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, as well as China, Japan and South Korea adopted to help avert any financial crunch. — Karl Angelo N. Vidal

May marks 7th straight month of BoP surplus

THE country’s balance of payments (BoP) registered a surplus for the seventh consecutive month due to inflows from the central bank’s foreign exchange operations and income from its investments abroad that were partially offset by state foreign debt payments, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) reported on Wednesday.

Latest central bank data show that BoP — a summary of the Philippines’ economic transactions with the rest of the world for a given period — swung to a $928-million surplus in May from a $583-million deficit a year ago.

This brought the five-month tally to a $5.193-billion surfeit, also a reversal of the $2.08-billion gap logged in the same period last year.

“The surplus may be attributed partly to remittance inflows from overseas Filipinos during the first four months of the year, and net inflows of foreign portfolio, foreign direct and other investments in the first quarter of 2019,” the BSP said in a statement.

“The BoP position reflects the final gross international reserves (GIR) level of $85.36 billion as of end-May 2019,” the central bank said. “At this level, the GIR represents a more than ample liquidity buffer and is equivalent to 7.4 months’ worth of imports of goods and payments of services and primary income.”

The GIR level is also equivalent to 5.1 times the country’s short-term external debt based on original maturity and 3.6 times based on residual maturity.

“The surplus is good and may probably be due to inflows. However, this may also be temporary and that the BoP may post a deficit at the end of 2019,” Ruben Carlo O. Asuncion, chief economist of UnionBank of the Philippines, Inc. said on Wednesday.

“I am expecting merchandise trade (more imports than exports) trend to come back as the second half of 2019 rolls in. Remember, there was a delayed national budget, Impact will be felt only by then. There has been a spending lag this first half,” Mr. Asuncion added.

On the other hand, Michael L. Ricafort, head of Rizal Commercial Banking Corp.’s economics research division, said the balance of payments surplus could be sustained in the coming months on the back of growth in remittances from overseas Filipino workers, business process outsourcing revenues, tourism receipts, and direct investment and portfolio inflows, following S&P Global Ratings’ upgrade of the country’s sovereign score to BBB+ from BBB in April.

“That could encourage more foreign investments in the country as some foreign investors search for higher returns in emerging market countries with improved economic and credit fundamentals such as the Philippines,” Mr. Ricafort said.

Proceeds from the government’s planned $1-billion issuance of yen-denominated or samurai bonds next quarter could also boost the country’s payments position, he added.

The central bank expects the country to post a BoP surplus of $3.7 billion this year versus its previous projection of a $3.5-billion gap.

The Philippines ended 2018 with a $2.306-billion BoP deficit. — Reicelene Joy N. Ignacio

REIT rules to be released by July

By Arra B. Francia
Senior Reporter

THE Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) said it can release guidelines on the issuance of real estate investment trusts (REITs) as early as July, without changing the minimum public ownership (MPO) requirement.

The commission is set to conduct another round of public discussions this month to finalize the qualification requirements of a REIT fund manager, which is one of three provisions that has dissuaded property players from issuing such a product.

“Kung wala masyadong tanong on the rules… by July finalize na (If there are not many questions on the rules… by July, we can finalize it),” SEC Commissioner Ephyro Luis Amatong told BusinessWorld on the sidelines of the 3rd Asia Pacific REIT Investment Summit in Parañaque on Tuesday.

Mr. Amatong said there is a pending issue regarding how much interest a fund manager can have in a REIT. The fund manager is tasked to implement the investment strategies of the REIT, oversee and coordinate its property acquisition, leasing, and operational and financial reporting, among others.

Rule 6 of the Implementing Rules and Regulations of Republic Act No. 9856 or the REIT law states that a fund manager must be independent of the REIT, its promoters, or sponsors.

“Nakalagay sa batas ay independent, but I think what it really meant was external, na yung fund manager ay hiwalay from the REIT…so pwede naman palang may ownership stake yung REIT or yung sponsor in the property (Under the law, it says the fund manager should be independent, but I think it meant that it should be separate from the REIT… So it can have an ownership stake, the REIT or the sponsor in the property),” Mr. Amatong explained.

However, the rules that are being readied by July will still include the 40-67% MPO for REIT vehicles, against the 33% requirement that property players have said is the ideal public ownership level.

Mr. Amatong said the SEC decided to iron out the rule on REIT fund managers first since it was a concern for all industry players, whereas some companies are already comfortable with the existing MPO requirement.

“Ang lumalabas, may mga willing to comply with the MPO. Pero the issue of the property manager, issue siya for all. So inuna namin kasi applicable to all, lahat gusto may stake sila in the property manager or the fund manager (It turns out, there are some who are willing to comply with the MPO. But the issue on the property manager, it’s an issue for all. So we prioritized that, everyone wants to have a stake in the property manager or fund manager),” he said.

With the amendment for the rule on REIT fund managers, Mr. Amatong is optimistic that the country will see the first REIT issuance this year.

Ayala Land, Inc. (ALI) said last April that it is preparing a REIT offering where it could raise about P25-26 billion within the year. This comes a decade after the REIT law was enacted in 2009.

Mr. Amatong also said that “about one or two” companies have already expressed interest that in conducting a REIT offering with the current MPO requirement.

Aside from issues on the REIT fund manager and high MPO requirement, property players were previously concerned with the 12% tax on the transfer of real properties once they place their assets in a REIT. This rule however has been removed following the passage of the Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion Act last year.

Trade tensions kick Asian business confidence to 10-year low — survey

MUMBAI — Confidence among Asian companies in the June quarter fell to its lowest since the 2008-09 financial crisis, as a US-China trade war disrupts global supply chains and shows little sign of easing soon, a Thomson Reuters/INSEAD survey found.

The Thomson Reuters/INSEAD Asian Business Sentiment Index tracking companies’ six-month outlook worsened in the three months ended June to 53, versus 63 in the previous two quarters.

A reading above 50 means optimistic respondents outnumbered pessimists, but worries about the threat of a prolonged trade war drove the index to its lowest since the June quarter of 2009, when the first edition of the survey was released.

“There was a big dip (in the index) three quarters ago, and we felt it was the uncertainty about the trade war and people were worried about the future,” said Antonio Fatas, a Singapore-based economics professor at global business school INSEAD.

“We get a sense after four quarters of low numbers that now, it’s not just uncertainty. This is a true slowdown in growth. We see activity declining — it’s not just the expectation that activity will decline,” Mr. Fatas added.

For a fourth straight quarter, survey participants cited the global trade war as the chief risk to business, followed by Brexit and a slowdown in the Chinese economy.

The survey interviewed 95 companies in 11 Asia-Pacific countries that together contribute about a third of global gross domestic product and are home to 45% of the world’s population.

It was conducted from May 31 to June 14.

RISING CAUTION
The index staying above the neutral point of 50 suggests companies in the region are not expecting an imminent global recession, but the decade low indicates caution was rising as trade tensions mount.

The United States and China have been embroiled in a trade standoff since last year, marked by tit-for-tat import tariffs, as Washington looks to force Beijing to make changes to its business policies. Talks between the two to reach a detente ended last month without a deal.

Washington’s move to put Huawei, the world’s No.2 maker of smartphones, on an export blacklist that bars US companies from doing business with the Chinese firm without special approval further ratcheted up tensions.

Still, US President Donald Trump has said that a deal would “eventually” be struck.

BNP Paribas, however, does not expect a resolution to the trade war this year, said Hong Kong-based Manishi Raychaudhuri, Asia-Pacific equity strategist at the banking group.

The trade tensions are hurting supply lines, especially that for higher-end smartphones, with many manufacturers looking to move production out of China and into countries such as Vietnam, Taiwan and Bangladesh, Mr. Raychaudhuri noted.

These changes, however, “can’t be made overnight”, he added.

US-based Broadcom Inc, which makes radio-frequency chips used in Apple’s iPhones and iPads, last week forecast a $2 billion hit to annual sales from the trade tensions and the US ban on Huawei.

Huawei has acknowledged a harder-than-expected hit from the ban and slashed its revenue forecast for the year.

China’s economy is also feeling the heat, with industrial output growth sliding to a 17-year low in May.

Respondents to the survey included Japan’s Nikon Corp , South Korea’s Samsung Electronics, India’s Tata Consultancy Services and Reliance Industries Ltd, as well as Thailand’s PTT PCL.

Companies surveyed can change from quarter to quarter. — Reuters

Clark sports complex to be completed by Aug.

New Clark Sports Complex
2019 SEA GAMES FACEBOOK ACCOUNT

CLARK, Pampanga — AlloyMTD Philippines, the contractor of the 9,450-hectare New Clark City, is expected to complete the 40-hectare sports complex by Aug. 31, ahead of the government’s target of Oct. 15.

“We are on track of meeting the actual deadline set by the government of finishing it by Oct. 15. And we are actually eyeing to meet our self-imposed deadline of Aug. 31, or within the next 73 days,” AlloyMTD President Patrick Nicholas P. David told reporters on Wednesday.

“We just want to be ahead of the curve,” he said, noting that work on the project began on March 15, 2018.

To recall, Malaysian firm MTD Capital Berhad won the bid to develop a 220-hectare National Government Administrative Center (NGAC) in New Clark City. AlloyMTD is the Philippine unit of MTD Capital.

Phase 1 of the project involves the construction of the sports complex — the venue of the Southeast Asian Games, which will run from Nov. 30 until Dec. 11, 2019. It will have an open field stadium with 20,000 seats, an aquatic center with 2,000 seats, and an athletes’ village.

According to Mr. David, they have 8,000 workers assigned to the project. Construction is on-going seven days a week.

Meanwhile, Mr. David noted some countries have approached the company to inquire if their athletes can train at the sports complex, in preparation for the upcoming 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo, Japan.

“We were also approached by some countries to train their athletes here before heading to Tokyo for the Olympics,” he said, without identifying the countries.

Parts of the complex will be opened to the public, while majority of the facilities will be available by reservations, Mr. David said.

There are five phases of development for the NGAC project, which was patterned after Putrajaya in Malaysia, and Sejong City in South Korea. The government is planning to transfer some department offices and agencies to Clark, in an effort to decongest Metro Manila.

“The government offices in Manila are scattered all over the city, and for the public, it’s very difficult for them if they have to deal with several ministries, to go from one place to another…You know I think, we own the land, it is available, it will be accessible through rail, train, highways, so I think it really makes sense to consider moving here. In fact Indonesia is going to move their capital outside of Jakarta,” Finance Secretary Carlos G. Dominguez III said.

As an example, Mr. Dominguez said the Department of Agriculture (DA), located in Quezon City, is not very accessible for farmers.

“For instance, why should the DA be in Metro Manila? How many farmers can they actually access there? Not a lot, di ba? That’s just one example,” he said. — Reicelene Joy N. Ignacio

DTI, DICT tap blockchain firm

MONSOON Blockchain Storage, Inc. has partnered with two government agencies to provide support and consultancy services on how to leverage blockchain technology in various areas of operations.

On Wednesday, the US company signed two separate memoranda of agreement with the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) and the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT).

Monsoon will provide both agencies with complimentary consultation, advice, cost-benefit and socioeconomic analysis on the use of blockchain technology in the Philippines and its impact on trade, regulations, and service delivery.

The company will conduct a needs assessment, and recommend an actionable proposal on how DTI can utilize effectively the blockchain technology on its programs and projects.

The end goal is to implement a government system where transactions and processes can be conducted online with the assurance of transparency and security that blockchain is capable of providing.

The blockchain is a decentralized public ledger where details of all transactions made on nodes or computers are verifiable and cannot be easily tampered with.

With this, the blockchain also offers a viable option to store data amid the massive growth in an age of zettabyte-capable storage creation.

The DTI sees the technology helping the government fulfill its commitment to streamline processes, particularly in business registration, from the national agency down to the municipal level.

“We would like to see how we can maximize this system so it is this partnership we are banking on so we can deliver our services to the people,” Trade Secretary Ramon M. Lopez said in a press briefing in Makati City on Wednesday.

The Trade chief is also looking at how blockchain technology can help small and medium enterprises improve operational efficiency.

Monsoon CEO and co-founder Donald Basile said the company decided to enter the Philippines because of the government’s willingness to adopt the technology.

“The government here has chosen to embrace the fourth industrial revolution. So you want people who want to take that technological leap,” Mr. Basile said in an interview yesterday.

He noted integrating blockchain in major government projects such as the national ID system can lead to the technology’s integration in government projects and programs.

“The (national) ID system will be one of the foundations of blockchain. The creation of that on blockchain I think will be an enabling technology,” Mr. Basile added.

Privacy concerns have been raised over the national ID system, but the government assured that security measures are in place. Monsoon is present in Japan, South Korea and in some parts of Europe. — Janina C. Lim

MPIC eyes $2-billion valuation in hospital subsidiary stake sale

MANILA — Philippines’ Metro Pacific Investments Corp. (MPIC) expects its hospital unit to be valued at $2 billion as it sells a minority stake in the health care group, its chairman said on Wednesday.

The investment and infrastructure holding company plans to sell a portion of its 85.6% stake in Metro Pacific Hospital Holdings, Inc. later this year, Metro Pacific Chairman Manuel V. Pangilinan said.

Singapore sovereign wealth fund GIC owns the rest of the hospital group, which operates 14 hospitals, many of which are among the country’s largest.

“It is tempting for Metro Pacific to realize some value and liquefy part of it,” said an executive of the hospital group who was not authorized to speak with media.

The hospital group plans to expand its network to 5,000 beds in the coming years from the current 3,200 beds by acquiring smaller hospitals, Metro Pacific said in its website.

Metro Pacific could justify its target valuation of $2 billion given the size and strong bottom line of its hospital unit, as well as the country’s increasing need for quality health care, an investment banker said, requesting anonymity.

“Health care services, specifically hospital operators, have been trading at lofty valuations throughout the region,” said the banker, who was not authorized to speak with media.

Metro Pacific, which is also into power and water utilities, toll roads and railways, is a unit of Hong Kong’s First Pacific Co Ltd that is owned by Indonesian tycoon Anthoni Salim. — Reuters

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