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UV, NU nab overall supremacy in SBP-Passerelle Twin Tournament

ROXAS CITY, CAPIZ — University of Visayas (UV) and Nazareth School of National University (NU) were crowned champions in their respective divisions at the SBP-Passerelle Twin Tournament National Finals in Roxas City, Capiz. Around 120 student-athletes saw action at Dinggoy Roxas Civic Center, where they went head-to-head and competed for the biggest title in youth basketball.

UV toppled defending champion La Salle Greenhills (LSGH) in an epic showdown in the SBP division, while NU made a colossal feat for bagging the championships for the second straight time.

Backed by Milo, the National Finals of the SBP-Passerelle Twin Tournament marked the culmination of the regional competition that took place in key cities in Metro Manila, Luzon (Baguio, Pangasinan, Pampanga), Visayas (Iloilo, Roxas, Cebu), and Mindanao (Davao, Cagayan de Oro, Zamboanga).

Young cagers of the University of Visayas passed the La Salle Greenhills test with flying colors, scoring a 62-58 victory. UV Green Lancers went off to a strong start in the first half of the SBP division championship game, and kept its dominance until the finish.

Completing the Top 3 of the SBP division was Corpus Christi School, who edged off Berkley School, 59-36.

Nazareth School of National University (NU) showed master class in the Passerelle division against International School for Better Beginnings (ISBB), taking a 25-point victory, 91-66. The NU Bullpups stood its ground as champion two times in a row, while ISBB took home the silver finish for the first time in its SBP-Passerelle history.

Wrath of Celtics fans

Yesterday’s other highly anticipated return to the homecourt of a former team was scuttled due to an injury to Kyrie Irving. Not that he dreaded the prospect of facing the Celtics on the road in light of all the ill feelings that accompanied his foray into free agency; it was his seventh straight missed match since he suffered from a sore shoulder, an absence announced earlier in the week. To be sure, the development was prompted in part by the Nets’ success without him; considering that they had lost a mere set-to, he didn’t need to rush his convalescence.

In any case, the fact that Irving was nowhere near the TD Garden did not prevent fans from piling on him. They came prepared, elaborately designed props included, and not just because they didn’t want to waste the pretty penny they spent for tickets that substantially increased in demand as soon as he formalized his departure. They carried with them animosity built up through a 2018–19 season that began with promise and slowly deteriorated largely in the face of his constant brooding and passive-aggressive style of leadership. And they were creative in expressing themselves.

For Celtics followers, that Irving subsequently acknowledged his failures — or even that management absolved him — mattered not a whit. The damage had been done, and they wanted all and sundry to know how much they blamed him for it. Inside the arena, they peppered their cheers with “Kyrie sucks!” chants. Forget the way the proceedings unfolded; offense or defense, live ball or free throws, they made their sentiments clear, and in extremely animated fashion. They were, in a nutshell, having fun at his expense.

For good measure, the Celtics ended yesterday with an emphatic victory. They had fans going home with smiles and the not insignificant bonus of having seen the outcome influenced by the outstanding showing of Kemba Walker, Irving’s All-Star replacement; the 39 points (on 24 shots), six rebounds, and four assists on the board underscored that his presence on the court wasn’t missed. At all. And, judging from his elongated Instagram story in the aftermath, he got the message, and wasn’t pleased. “Don’t fall for the Game that’s played in front of you for Entertainment, it’ll never be as serious dealing with LIFE.”

Despite the lamentation, Irving understands that he will not — and, perhaps, never — escape the wrath of Celtics habitues. The schedule for the current campaign has them taking another crack at him in March. They’ll be ready. He should be, too.

 

Anthony L. Cuaycong has been writing 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.

How Filipinos can play the biggest American lotteries from the Philippines

The American Mega Millions lottery is currently offering a jackpot worth $243 million USD, a prize that is attracting attention from lottery fans everywhere. Amazingly, there is no need to travel to the United States to take a chance on winning this jackpot. It is possible to play Mega Millions from the Philippines by purchasing official tickets at theLotter, the world’s leading online ticket purchasing service.

Playing the lottery online is the easiest and most convenient way to play. It is possible to create an account and begin playing any of the 50+ lotteries available on theLotter within minutes. TheLotter’s representatives buy official lottery tickets on behalf of customers fromacross the globe, including customers from the Philippines. The website charges a transaction fee for purchasing and safeguarding physical tickets. Tickets are scanned uploaded to players account. No commissions are taken from winning tickets.

Now, it is possible for residents of the Philippinesto play the biggest lotteries in the world from the comfort of home. TheLotter could make your dreams of lottery riches come true.

Anyone Can Play, Anyone Can Win

Over the years, theLotter has paid out over $95 million USD in prizes to more than 5 million winners from across the globe. In September 2017, Nataliia from Ukraine won a $1 million US Mega Millions second prize.Earlier that year, theLotter had its biggest win to date: Aura from Panama won a $30 million Florida Lotto jackpot. Aura had only been playing the lottery online for two months when she won her life-changing prize.

TheLotter’s most famous winner by far is M.M., an Iraqi who won a $6.4 million jackpot in August 2015 playing Oregon Megabucks from Baghdad. The Iraqi’s lottery winwas such a unique story that it was reported in the New York Times, the Daily Mail, NBC, and in the Associated Press. All of them noted that it is perfectly legal for foreigners to win American lottery prizes buying official tickets online at theLotter.

Playing the Lottery Online Is Easy and Secure

Purchasing official lottery tickets online at theLotter.com is simple, safe, and secure. TheLotter.comis user-friendly and features 24/7 customer support by telephone, email,Live Chat, or via social media. Playing with theLotter is the most secure way to play the lottery. All transactions on theLotter.com, as well as personal and payment information, are secured with Geotrust 128 SSL bit security.

So, what are you waiting for? A lottery jackpot could be just a click away!

For more information how to play Mega Millions online, please visit theLotter.com.

 

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What makes Google, Google? The tech giant shares their four core principles.

Corporate culture is arguably one of the most important aspects of any organization. A strong, healthy culture provides several benefits, including an appealing brand identity and high retention numbers. And in any conversation about modern corporate culture, one company consistently crops up: Google.

Now synonymous with endless buffets, rec rooms, and zen pods, Google has refashioned expectations on employee experience. Rightly or wrongly, when attracting top talent, companies have stopped asking themselves, “How much can I pay my people?” and started asking “How can we be more like Google?”

Last week, as part of Philippine Startup Week, Google Philippines shared the four core principles that have made their company the benchmark for employee experience.

Workplace

Gone are the days of the sad, dreary cubicle. More and more companies are switching to fun and colorful offices, a trend that’s steadily growing as millennials and Gen Z-ers populate the workplace. The folks at Google have taken this concept and multiplied it to the nth degree. Their Zurich office alone is a smorgasbord of gondola-shaped booths, saloon-themed lounges, and slides in lieu of boring old stairs. 

On the other hand, a well-designed office makes work hours more efficient. By having their own micro-kitchens (or MKs) on every floor, Google is able to cut off the time spent by employees going to and fro coffee shops for their breaks. 

It can also inspire creativity and synergy among employees. Google Singapore stationed their canteens and cafes in the middle of the office so that all of their employees, whether from HR or engineering, could get to know each other and maybe even come up with crazy ideas together.

Moonshots

Speaking of crazy ideas, it’s vital to Google culture to have these “moonshots” on the daily. As change happens at an increasingly exponential rate, companies must aim for 10x improvements instead of 10% if they want to keep up with consumer demand.

For instance, Google’s experimental program Area 120 incubates crazy ideas that could possibly be developed into a new product for the company. By giving these teams funding and freedom for a whole year, they’re able to push the boundaries without worrying about a restricting supervisor.

Of course, giving full creative freedom doesn’t always equate to success. Google Glass, the “smart glasses” that caused quite a stir a few years ago, didn’t quite catch on with the public as expected. But as it says on Area 120’s website, “Our teams succeed when we test the limits and learn something new.”

Management

The idea of management is often divisive for employees. Who hasn’t experienced feeling pressured or ticked off by an overbearing supervisor? However, good management can actually bring out the best in a team. Google is governed by three principles when it comes to this aspect.

First, managers must share everything. With workplace transparency, employees become more aligned with the company’s vision and are able to communicate better with their teams.

Second, decisions must be based on data and not opinions. Every year, the company conducts Googlegeist, an anonymous, internal survey that asks hard questions on compensation and confidence in top management, among others. This way, supervisors are able to get an honest glimpse at the company’s overall sentiment and base their decisions on them.

Third and last, managers are expected not to manage, but to lead. Micromanaging isn’t allowed in the workplace. One effort to help ensure this is to keep teams at a minimum of eight members, which Google found to be a difficult number to micromanage by a single supervisor.

Googliness

Googliness is a little difficult to define, even for Google’s own employees. But the word that’s probably closest to it is passion—and it’s something that, at Google, goes beyond just work.

The insight here is that if a person actively pursues a passion, they must be dedicated when it comes to work as well. Extracurricular activities can also reduce stress and increase creativity, which are obviously likewise beneficial to work.

Google’s internal GTG portal displays fun courses offered by other Googlers, which not only helps employees bond but also allows for skills and interests to be spread across the company. And for those who’d like to give back to the community, internal initiative Google Give allows employees to participate in philanthropic activities for a week in a year, with the equivalent salary donated to the employee’s organization of choice.

Police seize P600,000 worth of drugs from suspects

POLICE arrested 25 people and seized P642,400 worth of illegal drugs in separate operations in the metro in the past two days.

About 20 grams of crystal meth or shabu worth about P136,000 were confiscated from eight suspects in the village of Pasong Putik yesterday, Brigadier General Ronnie Montejo, Quezon City Police District director, said in a statement.

The suspects were caught during a sting where they sold shabu to a policeman posing as a buyer.

In the village of Novaliches Proper, seven suspects including three minors were caught in a drug session inside an apartelle along Quirino Highway at around 2 a.m. yesterday.

Police seized about 26 grams of shabu worth P176,800 and assorted drug paraphernalia.

Meanwhile, 28 grams of cocaine worth P148,400 were seized during a sting in the village of South Triangle at around 1:15 a.m. yesterday.

Police apprehended two suspects while they were transacting with a cop who posed as a buyer in front of a convenience store along Timog Avenue.

In Bagumbuhay village, two drug suspects were arrested in a drug bust on Monday at around 10:40 p.m. Police seized a kilo of marijuana worth P120,000.

Meanwhile, three suspected pushers were arrested and P30,600 worth of shabu were confiscated from them in separate raids in Pasig City yesterday.

The Eastern Police District said two people were caught with three grams of shabu worth P20,400 in the village of Manggahan at around 3 a.m.

In Rosario village, police arrested a suspect and seized 1.5 grams of shabu worth P10,200 from him at around 2:45 in the morning. — Emmanuel Tupas, Philippine Star

Chinese busted with P2.5B worth of shabu

AT LEAST P2.5 billion worth of the illegal drug locally known as shabu (methamphetamine) were seized from a Chinese national in Makati City on Tuesday night, the biggest haul of prohibited narcotics so far this year, the police reported. Lt. Gen. Archie Francisco Gamboa, Philippine National Police (PNP) officer-in-charge, said around 371 kilos of shabu were recovered from suspect Liu Chao in the buy-bust operation in an apartment in Banuyo Street. A kilo of shabu has an estimated street value of P6.8 million, according to the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA). Mr. Liu is facing charges for violating Republic Act 9165, or the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act. The drugs were concealed in food packaging and suspected to have been brought in using several luggages. Mr. Gamboa said the suspect has been staying at the apartment for about two weeks and been distributing about six to seven kilos of shabu to every buyer. The police are investigating how the drugs were smuggled into the country. They are also tracking other people who might be involved in the smuggling. What is certain, according to Mr. Gamboa, is that the drugs came from another country. Makati Mayor Abigail Binay-Campos lauded the PNP’s operation as she warned drug traders on the city’s “zero tolerance policy against all forms of illegal drugs and substances.” She also called on the local police and residents to remain watchful of illegal drug trading activities. — Philstar/Emmanuel Tupas

Nation at a Glance — (11/28/19)

News stories from across the nation. Visit www.bworldonline.com (section: The Nation) to read more national and regional news from the Philippines.

Nation at a Glance — (11/28/19)

MRT-7 clears key hurdle

THE METRO RAIL TRANSIT (MRT) Line 7 — a flagship project of the government — has overcome a major right-of-way obstacle that had forced its proponent, San Miguel Corp.’s railway unit, to defer completion date by two years to 2022, when President Rodrigo R. Duterte ends his six-year term.

In a statement on Wednesday, the Department of Transportation (DoTr) said two Quezon City courts issued orders for the government to take possession of a site eyed for the project’s planned depot in along Quirino Highway in Barangay Lagro, Quezon City, “which was found optimal for right-of-way implementability, asset constructibility, capital expenditure and operational expense efficiency, and operational reliability and maintainability.”

DoTr said it had offered to buy the targeted Quezon City depot site from owners led by “a major real estate development company at current market value, as appraised by a Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas-accredited independent property appraiser”.

The property owners refused DoTr’s offer, forcing the department and San Miguel unit SMC Mass Rail Transit 7, Inc. (SMRT7) — which is undertaking the project — through the Office of the Solicitor General to file expropriation cases just last Nov. 15.

DoTR said Transport Secretary Arthur P. Tugade approved the new depot site last June 29.

It replaces the original depot site in San Jose del Monte city, Bulacan which remains subject to a legal case after the property owner questioned the expropriation at the Malolos Regional Trial Court Branch 11. The government had challenged at the Court of Appeals a higher valuation for acquisition of the site from its owner that was mandated by Malolos Regional Trial Court Branch 11 in February last year, compared to what it argued is allowed by law. SMRT7, which is undertaking the project, said that valuation discrepancy would increase its required deposit for the project nearly ninefold to P598.905 million from P67.105 million.

The case in Bulacan has prompted San Miguel to move the project’s completion date to 2022 from 2020 originally, with the “first portion” — the stretch between the North EDSA common station for MRT-7, Light Rail Transit (LRT) 1, MRT-3 and the planned Metro Manila Subway and a station in Fairview — scheduled to open in 2021.

Transport Assistant Secretary Goddes Hope Oliveros-Libiran said the Quezon City site for the planned 20-hectare depot replaces the one in Bulacan.

“Wala na ‘yung sa Bulacan. Na-stall ‘yun. May pending case ‘yun nasa Court of Appeals. Hindi kami puwedeng magsalita on the case (Forget the site in Bulacan. That plan is stalled. There is a pending case at the Court of Appeals. We cannot talk about that case),” Ms. Libiran said in a telephone interview on Thursday.

Asked if the department still wants the site in Bulacan, Ms. Libiran replied: “Hindi na. Wala, kapag aantayin mo ‘yun it will take you forever. (No we will no longer pursue it. If you want for that case to be resolved, it will take you forever.)”

She acknowledged other pending right-of-way issues, but described them as “only minor” ones. “Ang alam ko meron pa, pero mga minor na lang mga ‘yun. Ang pinakamalaki kasi ang depot. (As far as I know, there are other right-of-way issues, but they are only minor ones. The biggest problem was the depot).”

DoTR said in its statement on Wednesday that “[w]ork on the depot formally started yesterday, 26 November 2019… after writs of possession issued by the Quezon City Regional Trial Court Branch 92 and 98 in favor of the Department of Transportation and its concessionaire, SMC Mass Rail Transit 7, Inc., were successfully enforced by sheriffs of the two courts”, adding that the Quezon City courts issued the writs on Nov. 22 and 25 after “nearly two years” of court hearings on the matter.

San Miguel shares gained 0.63% to P160 apiece at closing on Wednesday, riding a general rise at the Philippine Stock Exchange. It was trading down 0.13% at P159.10 apiece as of 11:36 a.m. Thursday.

In a mobile phone message on Wednesday, Ms. Libiran said that the courts’ decision removes the “major stumbling block” to the project.

“This development will allow us to finally start works at the depot. The depot is an integral part of any rail station, so now that the location has finally been settled, we are confident that the project construction will now push through without major stumbling blocks,” Ms. Oliveros-Libiran said in her earlier reply.

DoTR’s statement quoted Transport Secretary Arthur P. Tugade as saying: “The start of depot works signifies much more than a dot in the timeline of the project. It shows us that when the judiciary work hand in hand with the executive department, we are able to pick up speed in delivering infrastructure development to the Filipino people.”

The P62.7-billion MRT-7 project — which will run between North Avenue in Quezon City and San Jose del Monte city, Bulacan — has three components, namely: a 23-kilometer rail transit system with 13 stations; a six-lane highway between North Luzon Expressway and a planned Intermodal Transportation Terminal (ITT); and the ITT itself that can accommodate 200 buses at a time. Travel from one end to the other is estimated to take 34 minutes.

The Public-Private Partnership Center said on its Web site that the road component of the project will “divert northern provincial bus operations to San Jose Del Monte, thereby decongesting EDSA.”

Once operational, the MRT-7 is expected to accommodate an estimated 300,000-850,000 passengers a day, the DoTr said on Wednesday. The project was 49.15% complete as of October, DoTr said on Wednesday. — A. L. Balinbin

Senate OK’s proposed P4.1-trillion 2020 national budget on time

By Charmaine A. Tadalan
Reporter

THE SENATE on Wednesday approved on second as well as third and final reading its version of the P4.1-trillion national budget for 2020, putting the spending on track to year-end enactment.

With 22 affirmative votes and no negative vote, the chamber approved Committee Report No. 18, which has differences with House Bill No. 4228, or the “General Appropriations Act for Fiscal Year 2020.”

President Rodrigo R. Duterte certified the bill as an urgent measure, allowing both chambers to do away with the required three-day interval in approving measures on second- and third-reading.

The Senate contingent in the bicameral conference committee will be led by Senator Juan Edgardo M. Angara with the following as members: Senators Panfilo M. Lacson, Cynthia A. Villar, Pia S. Cayetano, Sherwin T. Gatchalian, Christopher Lawrence T. Go, Richard J. Gordon, Imee R. Marcos, Emmanuel Joel J. Villanueva, Ralph G. Recto, Nancy S. Binay, Grace S. Poe-Llamanzares, Franklin M. Drilon, Francis N. Pangilinan, and Risa N. Hontiveros-Baraquel.

The spending plan was approved by the House of Representatives on Sept. 20 and was transmitted to the Senate on Oct. 1. Both chambers are working to prevent a repeat of the nearly four month delay in enactment of the national budget for this year.

Prior to its approval, Mr. Angara, who chairs the Finance committee, moved to increase the P67.31-billion appropriation for state universities and colleges (SUCs) by P1.158 billion and the P1.85-billion budget of the Philippine National Police by P1.529 billion.

“We also provided additional funding for our SUCs to provide for an increase for their research programs, the conduct of sports- and culture-related activities, and new buildings and facilities,” Mr. Angara said during the period of amendments. “The Philippine National Police will also receive more funds: for its efforts to restore peace in the countryside, for the Intelligence and Counter Intelligence activities of the PNP Anti-Kidnapping Group and Internal Security Operations.”

The increase is also intended to fund maintenance of newly procured H125 Helicopter, patrol vehicles, rubber boats and high speed tactical watercraft, newly completed police stations and crime laboratories and provincial mobile force companies, among others.

The chamber also provided additional funding to the Philippine Army, amounting to P920 million for the activation of the first infantry division and a P150 million increase in the Veteran Memorial Medical Center budget for procuring medicines and employing additional workers.

To recall, Mr. Duterte signed the 2019 national budget on April 15 due to an impasse on funding framework between the House and the Department of Budget and Management, and later with the Senate on irregular fund insertions. He vetoed some P95.3 billion appropriations, reducing the 2019 budget to P3.662 trillion.

The budget delay has weighed on economic growth, which slowed to 5.8% in the first three quarters from 6.2% last year against a 6-7% target for 2019.

Both chambers have moved to extend the validity of the 2019 budget until Dec. 31, 2020 to make up for the budget delay and the ban on new public works ahead of the May 13 midterm elections.

House body sees prompt action on POGO tax

THE HOUSE of Representatives ways and means committee expects the proposal to tax Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators (POGO) to be approved without much difficulty in the plenary, the panel’s head said on Wednesday.

“Itong tax on POGO ibababa na ’yan sa floor (We will soon introduce the measure taxing POGOs to the floor). We expect easy, expeditious action in the plenary simply because it doesn’t affect the pockets of ordinary people,” Albay-2nd District Rep. Jose Ma. Clemente S. Salceda, who heads the committee, said in a media forum in Manila.

Earlier the same day, the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) padlocked 11 branches of another POGO — Makati City-based New Oriental Club88 Corp. (NOCC) — for not being registered for tax purposes.

It is the third POGO to suffer this fate after Great Empire Gaming and Amusement Corp. last Sept. 25 and Altech Innovations Business Outsourcing on Oct. 17. Both businesses have resumed operations after making initial payments on their liabilities.

“They’re earning P600 billion… and, actually, what goes to the national government is only P400 million,” Mr. Salceda said of the entire industry, citing estimates.

SUPPORTED BY THE SENATE
The committee on Nov. 18 approved House Bill No. 5267, which in its last version proposed to impose a five percent franchise tax on all offshore gaming companies. This will be charged on top of the current two percent gross gaming revenue tax collected by the Philippine Amusement Gaming Corp. (PAGCOR).

This is also in line with the BIR’s Revenue Memorandum Circular No. 102-2017, which provides that POGOs are subject to tax.

The same House measure will also introduce a 15% tax on the salary of an individual, who is a permanent resident of a foreign country, employed by a licensed offshore gaming enterprise. The bill sets at P250,000 the minimum gross annual income for computation of tax levied on foreign nationals engaged in offshore gaming. At present, said employees are not covered by the tax code.

Even as no counterpart measure has been filed in the Senate, Senate leaders have expressed support for the move to tax POGOs

President Vicente C. Sotto III and Senate President Pro-Tempore Ralph G. Recto both replied “yes” in separate mobile phone messages when asked if they would support the House measure.

On New Oriental, the BIR said in a press release on Wednesday that “[r]esults of the investigation showed that NOCC has unregistered branches as certified by the Revenue District Office No. 052-Parañaque City, having the jurisdiction over the said branches, in violation of Section 115 (b) of the Tax Code.”

Talking to reporters, BIR Deputy Commissioner for Operations group Arnel SD. Guballa cited “violation of VAT (value-added tax requirements) and violation of non-remittance of the withholding tax” on the part of New Oriental.

According to BIR estimates, the company had a total of 23,156 foreign nationals in its employment for the taxable year ending last Dec. 31. But the business submitted to the BIR an official list of its foreign workers, totaling just 6,736 for the same period. — Charmaine A. Tadalan and Beatrice M. Laforga

Customs taps standards bureau for tighter watch on imported steel bars

steel bars Laguna

By Beatrice M. Laforga

THE BUREAU of Customs (BoC) and the Bureau of Philippine Standards (BPS) are now coordinating to strengthen examination of imported steel bars after lawmakers launched an inquiry on the alleged smuggling of substandard steel into the country.

Vincent Philip C. Maronilla, BoC assistant commissioner heading the Post Clearance Audit Group, said at a hearing in the House of Representatives on Wednesday that his office has asked BPS for technical help for these examinations. “There’s a close coordination now that’s going to be done with BPS because they’re the primary agency that actually ensures the quality of steel coming in. We actually go by their regulations only,” Mr. Maronilla explained.

He added that BoC is “beefing up its post clearance audit” on imported steel bars as well as cooperate with the Presidential Anti-Corruption Commission on its probe on the matter.

Some importers, he said, may be buying cheaper, substandard steel products but “declare it as complete standard.”

Roberto M. Cola, president of the Philippine Iron and Steel Institute (PISI), said in a telephone interview that while there are importers who bring in substandard steel bars, some local manufacturers have also been producing substandard products.

“It’s both local and importers, most are locally produced, they are coming from local. It used to be imported, ’yung galing (from) China. Ngayon nandito na ’yung mga factory kaya ino-oppose namin ’yung facilities na ’yan kasi bina-ban sa China ’yan eh, marami na ang nagtatayo ngayon (Factories that make substandard steel bars are now here after being banned in China, that is why we oppose them. Many of the operators are now in hiding),” Mr. Cola said also on Wednesday.

He noted that supply of substandard steel bars is “now slowly decreasing” after the government acted on his PISI’s complaint, amounting to about a fourth of products in the group’s “test-buys” in hardware stores nationwide from about 60% previously.

It a report e-mailed to BusinessWorld yesterday, PISI said that substandard steel bars were being sold in at least 44 hardware stores across the country as of September, as indicated by “failed result from the Metals Industry Research and Development Center.”

“Hindi masyado namo-monitor ng government kaya nakalat ’yan, it’s only lately nung nag-complain ng maraming substandard na gumawa sila ng nationwide monitoring (Substandard steel proliferated due to inadequate government monitoring. It’s only lately in the face of complaints that the government embarked on nationwide monitoring),” he said.

Lufthansa Technik says no plans to relocate outside PHL

LUFTHANSA Technik Philippines (LTP) on Wednesday said it has no plans to relocate outside of the Philippines, despite concerns over the proposed Comprehensive Income Tax and Incentives Rationalization Act (CITIRA).

This comes as the aircraft maintenance and repair company broke ground for a new hangar at the MacroAsia Special Economic Zone in Villamor Airbase, Pasay City.

“We are not yet looking to relocate because we trust the current process,” LTP President and Chief Executive Officer Elmar Lutter told reporters on Wednesday when asked if the company plans to relocate outside of the Philippines with the expected passage of the proposed CITIRA.

LTP earlier said that it was hoping to continue to enjoy tax-free and duty-free spare parts imports under the proposed CITIRA. This was supported by the Trade department.

“We have reached out to the government and we already handed in our position about the matter,” Mr. Lutter said, noting the Senate has not started deliberations on the CITIRA bill.

The new hangar, which will be known as Hangar 1A, is part of the company’s efforts to expand its capacity in the Philippines.

The 9,000-square meter (sq.m.) hangar is expected to contribute 20% to LTP’s revenues, and will start operations in the fourth quarter of 2020. It will allow LTP to service more aircraft including Airbus A380 aircraft.

Mr. Lutter said the company is allotting $40 million for the facility, which will create 275 new jobs.

“Lufthansa Technik Philippines has always been the country’s forerunner in the MRO (maintenance, repair and overhaul) industry. As we approach our 20th year, it’s about time we showcase the Philippines as an aviation stronghold in Asia-Pacific. The company strongly believes in the ability of the Philippines to be a hub for aviation services in the region, and proof of this is our expansion and continued commitment to the country,” Mr. Lutter was quoted as saying in a statement.

“With the expansion of our facilities and services through the construction of Hangar 1A, we will be opening LTP’s doors to 275 more Filipino workers to help the Philippine MRO industry grow, together with the sustained growth of the Philippine economy,” he added.

The company said it provides maintenance services to various commercial aircraft including Airbus A320, A330, A350, A380, and Boeing B777.

LTP is a joint venture of Hamburg-based Lufthansa Technik AG and Philippines’ biggest aviation support service provider MacroAsia Corporation. It currently employs 3,300 workers in key cities such as Clark, Cebu, Davao, Kalibo, and Puerto Princesa. — Arjay L. Balinbin

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