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Wesley’s masterpiece

In the first game of round 3 Wesley So took down Vidit Santosh Gujrathi, only 24 years old but already the third highest rated from India (1. Anand 2765, 2. Harikrishna 2746) and widely touted to be the heir apparent of former world champion Vishy Anand.

So, Wesley (2767) — Vidit, Santosh Gujrathi (2718) [D38]
FIDE World Cup 2019 Khanty-Mansiysk (3.1), 16.09.2019

1.d4 Nf6 2.Nf3 d5 3.c4 e6 4.Nc3 Bb4 5.Qa4+ Nc6 6.e3 0–0 7.Qc2

[7.Bd2 is best answered by the immediate 7…dxc4! 8.Bxc4 Bd6 getting ready for e6–e5, which is the main idea in the Ragozin. 9.0–0 e5 10.h3 a6 11.Qc2 exd4 12.exd4 b5! 13.Be2 Nb4 14.Qd1 Bb7 Yermolinsky-D. Zilberstein, San Francisco 2007]

7…Re8

The idea is to support the …e6–e5 break.

8.Bd2 a6

Radjabov beat Vidit earlier this year in the Wijk aan Zee tournament. They arrived at the position after White’s 8th move but then Vidit continued 8…Bd6. In annotating this game for NIC Yearbook Radjabov remarked that Vidit is mixing up the move order. “A better way for Black is to start with 8…a6! as now I could have played 9.c5!.” He continued that after 9.c5 Bf8 10.Bb5 Black is already worse and White’s play is also much easier 9.h3 a6 10.a3 Bd7 11.Be2 dxc4 12.Bxc4 h6 13.g4!? e5 14.g5 b5 15.Ba2 exd4 16.gxh6!! White threatens Qg6! 16…dxc3 17.Bxc3 Be6 18.Bxe6 Rxe6 19.Rg1 Ne8 20.Bxg7 Nxg7 21.Rxg7+ Kf8 22.Qh7 White had a winning attack. Radjabov, T. (2757)-Vidit, S. (2695) Wijk aan Zee 2019 1–0 36. You would expect that Vidit studied this game very intensively.

9.a3 Bd6 10.Rd1 Bd7 11.h3 h6 12.c5 Bf8 13.Ne5 Nxe5 14.dxe5 Ne4 15.Nxe4 dxe4 16.Ba5 Qc8

Otherwise White will play 17.c6! bxc6 18.Qd2 and, surprisingly, wins a piece.

17.g4 Bc6 18.Bg2 Rd8 19.Rxd8 Qxd8 20.Bxe4 Bxe4 21.Qxe4 Bxc5 22.Qxb7 .Rb8 23.Qxc7 Qxc7 24.Bxc7 Rxb2 25.0–0 Rc2 26.Bd6 Bxd6 27.exd6 Rd2 28.Rb1 Rxd6 <D>

POSITION AFTER 28…RXD6

As you might imagine this position is completely equal. After the game the commentators on the website Chess24, GMs Yermolinsky and Miroshnichenko, reproached Visit with “how can you lose a position like this?” Take note that Vidit is rated 2718, a legitimate super GM and you don’t get to this level without knowing your endgames. Yermolinsky summed up for Wesley So: “after playing so many games with Magnus Carlsen you learn a thing or two about endgames.” Yermo is absolutely right, this game is akin to a Magnus Carlsen grind-it-out win.

29.Rb8+ Kh7 30.Rb7 Kg6 31.Ra7 Kf6 32.h4 Rc6 33.Kg2 g5?!

During the on-line commentary on Chess24 GM Evgeny Miroshnichenko threw up his arms “what is black doing here?” Indeed, Vidit should have just left his kingside pawns intact.

34.Kg3!

Perhaps Vidit expected White to just exchange pawns and everything is okay for him.

34…gxh4+ 35.Kxh4

Black’s position is still OK, but it was completely unnecessary for him to split his pawns ad leave a weakness on h6.

35…Kg6 36.a4 Rc2

In the post-game interview Wesley remarked that all Vidit had to do was put his pawn on f6, K on g6, and there is no way for White to break through. Instead the Indian GM starts taking a lot of time on his moves and made a few weird king moves.

37.Kg3 Rc6 38.a5 Kf6 39.e4 Kg6 40.f3 Kf6 41.Kf4 e5+

Might not be best. He should just follow Wesley’s suggestion of …Kg6 and …f6.

42.Kg3 Kg7 43.Ra8 Kh7 44.Rd8 Kg7 45.Ra8 Kh7 46.Kf2 Kg7 47.Kg2 Rc2+ 48.Kg3 Rc6 49.Ra7 Kf8 50.Kf2 Kg7 51.Kg2 Rc2+ 52.Kg3 Rc6 53.Rd7

The position is equal but Wesley is still casting around looking for possibilities. He spots that the ideal position of his rook is on the 5th rank where it simultaneously attacks Black’s e5 pawn and defends his own on a5.

53…Kf8?!

Vidit spent 15 minutes studying 53…Rc5 54.Rd5 Rxd5 55.exd5 Kf8 which siimplifies the position and brings it that much closer to an agreed draw. Finally he decides “what’s the rush?” and plays a non-committal move. Wesley pounces on it immediately. The chessbase website says that “Nevertheless, converting after the text move is no easy task, but So continued to stun the commentators with his technique until finally scoring a 93–move victory.” Tremendous praise indeed.

54.Rd5!

The result of Vidit’s vacillation is that the 5th rank is now controlled by White and …Rc5 is no longer a possibility.

54…Re6 55.Rc5 Ke8 56.Kh4 Kf8 57.Kh5 Kg7 58.g5

After this move Wesley said that he felt he was winning already. Well, perhaps not quite 100% winning, but already close to that.

58…hxg5 59.Kxg5 Rh6 60.Kf5 Rf6+ 61.Kxe5 Rxf3 62.Rc6 Rh3?

I haven’t seen anyone point it out but 62…f6+! is correct here. After 63.Kd5 f5 64.Rxa6 (64.e5 Ra3 65.Rxa6 f4 66.e6 f3 67.Ra7+ Kg6 68.Kd6 f2 69.Rf7 Rxa5 70.Rxf2 Ra6+ 71.Ke5 Ra5+ this is a book draw) 64…fxe4 65.Kxe4 The general rule here is that Black must check the white king from the side as the monarch has no escape from the checks.

65…Ra3 loses because, as I explained earlier, the rook cannot “check the white king from the side.” I will show you the king maneuver: 66.Kd5! Rc3 (66…Rg3 is already too late. 67.Re6! Rg5+ 68.Re5 Rg6 69.Rf5 Ra6 70.Kc4 Kg6 71.Rd5 Kf6 72.Kb5 with the Black king cut off this is a relatively easy win) 67.Ra7+ Kf6 68.a6 Ra3 69.Ra8 Ra5+ 70.Kc6 Ra3 71.Kb6 Rb3+ 72.Ka7 Ke7 73.Rb8 Rd3 74.Kb6 Rd6+ 75.Ka5 Rd5+ 76.Rb5 Rd7 77.Rb7 game over.

65…Rg3! this is the way 66.Rb6 (66.Kd5 Rg5+ 67.Kc6 Rg6+ 68.Kb7 Rg5 69.Ra7 Kh6! 70.a6 Rg7+ 71.Kb6 Rg6+ draw) 66…Rg5! (66…Ra3 loses because of 67.Rb5! Kf6 68.Kd5 Ke7 69.Kc6 the king is on time to assist his passed pawn) 67.a6 Ra5 68.Rb7+ Kf6 69.a7 Ke6 draw.

63.Kd5!

Remember what I told you about black’s rook needing to check the white king from the side? The text is a perfect example and now if 63…Rh5+ then 64.e5 blocks and Black will need to go down the board to the 1st or 2nd rank to keep checking the king, which is doomed to failure.

In contrast 63.Rxa6? is only a draw. 63…Rh5+! 64.Kd4 (64.Kd6?? Rh6+ loses the rook) 64…Rb5! 65.Ra8 and now, unbelievably, Black has only one move to draw. 65…Kh7! this is to ensure that the white rook cannot check the black king from behind. I will show you what I mean later 66.a6 Rb6 67.a7 Ra6 White can make no progress. Now you see why the black king should be on h7. If it was on g6 or h6 the white rook will check on either g8 or h8 and then queen his pawn.

63…Rd3+ 64.Kc5 Re3 65.Kd4

[65.Rxa6? Rxe4 66.Rd6 Ra4 67.a6 f5! 68.Kb5 Ra2 69.Rd7+ Kf6 70.a7 Ke5 71.Kb6 f4 72.Rd8 Ke4 73.a8Q+ Rxa8 74.Rxa8 Ke3 the white king is too far away — this is a book draw]

65…Ra3 66.Rxa6 Ra1 67.e5 Rd1+ 68.Kc5 Rc1+ 69.Kd5 Rd1+ 70.Kc6 Re1 <D>

POSITION AFTER 70…RE1

Now for the four-star move.

71.Rb6!

Putting his king of d6 or d5 will not spoil the win, but RB6 is the correct winning maneuver.

71…Rxe5 72.a6 Re7

[72…Ra5 73.Kb7 f5 74.a7 Ra1 (74…f4? 75.Ra6) 75.Ra6 Rb1+ 76.Kc6 Rc1+ 77.Kd6 Rd1+ 78.Ke5 Re1+ 79.Kxf5 Rf1+ 80.Ke4 the pawn queens]

73.Rb7 Re6+ 74.Kb5 Re5+ 75.Kb6 Re6+ 76.Ka5 Re5+ 77.Rb5 Re7 78.Rc5!

To leave space for his king on b7 and the white rook will interpose on c7 when Black’s rook checks him from the side.

78…Kg6 79.Kb6 f5

Of course, during his 7–minute think on move 71 Wesley had to ensure that his king can come back in time to stop the black pawn.

80.a7 Re8 81.Kb7 Kg5 82.Rc8 Re7+ 83.Kb8 Rxa7 84.Kxa7 Kf4 85.Kb6 Ke3 86.Re8+!

The only move which wins.

86…Kd3 87.Rf8 Ke4 88.Kc5 f4 89.Kc4 Ke3 90.Kc3 f3 91.Re8+ Kf2 92.Kd2 Kf1 93.Ke3 [Right on time!] 1–0

This game filled me with joy, pride and also sadness. Sadness because I know that I can never play like this.

 

Bobby Ang is a founding member of the National Chess Federation of the Philippines (NCFP) and its first Executive Director. A Certified Public Accountant (CPA), he taught accounting in the University of Santo Tomas (UST) for 25 years and is currently Chief Audit Executive of the Equicom Group of Companies.

bobby@cpamd.net

Sparks’ woes

The pressure was evident from the moment the Sparks announced the appointment of Derek Fisher as their head coach for the 2019 season. Christmas was just three weeks away, and yet members of the media didn’t seem to be in a giving mood. They peppered him, general manager Penny Toler, and star Candace Parker with queries on the hiring process and his capacity to meet always-outsized expectations of the proud franchise and its demanding fan base conditioned to consider success as coming with the territory. And they had reason to; after all, the purple and gold boast of three WNBA championships off five Finals appearances in 17 postseason berths.

Put simply, the Sparks are projected to contend for the hardware year in and year out. Which was why a coaching vacancy occurred in the first place. Fourth-year mentor Brian Agler, whose otherwise-stellar record included the singular distinction of having claimed titles with two different franchises, had to step down following a rocky 19-15 season and a second round exit last year. Naturally, a “search” for his successor followed — never mind that it involved exactly one name, leading to even more heat accompanying Fisher’s assumption of the position.

To be fair, the Sparks had a right to hire whomever they wanted, and Fisher wasn’t exactly without experience in mentoring under the klieg lights. He certainly did well to steer them to a three-game regular-season improvement year on year despite the injuries that plagued them. That said, the final outcome is all that matters; so-called moral victories count for squat in La-La Land. And even if they were predisposed to look for silver linings, doing so given the way the campaign ended would have smacked of desperation. There’s just no going around the shellacking they absorbed at the hands of the Sun.

Perhaps the scrutiny in the aftermath wouldn’t have been intense were the Sparks at least able to make a series out of their semifinal-round stint. Instead, they stank up the joint. They weren’t merely swept; they lost by nine, 26, and 22, exposed from the get-go as ridiculously overmatched on the court and in the sidelines. In fact, so disjointed were they that Fisher saw fit to bench his starters in the fourth quarter of the final contest — a bad look all around. Parker herself saw action for only 11 minutes and 14 seconds, and it’s telling that she will be remembered more for muttering “Why would you do that now?” to her coach as she rode the pine than for her Game One gem of 24, 10, three, two, and six.

Parker was still distraught in the locker room after the Game Three debacle, insisting that she was primed to play physically and mentally, and that Fisher would be in better position to explain why she burned rubber for less time than all but two players on the team. He did, or at least he tried to, disclosing that he was looking to inject energy for the Sparks. Well, it didn’t work, as the lead grew even more. And, if nothing else, his unconventional — okay, decidedly bizarre — moves will be second-guessed as a result. As ineffective as she may have been to him, she remains the face of the franchise, and arguably the league’s biggest name considering her sideline as analyst for Turner Sports.

How the turn of events affects the relationship between Fisher and Parker, which went beyond work, remains to be seen. If the Sparks are to make the sort of headway they believe they’re destined to, however, bench tactician and marquee name must see eye to eye. A lot of mediating looks to be in the offing. A long offseason lies ahead.

 

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.

Bourse manages last-minute turnaroud to end flat

THE MAIN INDEX made a last-minute turnaround on Wednesday — on the eve of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) meeting where a 25-basis-point cut on benchmark interest rates is widely expected — after spending much of the day in the red as investment sentiment worldwide took a hit from the US House of Representatives move to start an impeachment inquiry against US President Donald Trump.

The 30-member Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) added 0.02% or 2.30 points to close at 7,896.24 yesterday, while the broader all-shares index slipped 0.01% or 0.88 point to 4,770.09.

“Philippine stocks fell before closing flat in volatile trade… as a push for the impeachment of US President Donald Trump gained momentum among Democrats in the US Congress,” Regina Capital Development Corp. Head of Sales Luis A. Limlingan said in a mobile phone message.

The news hit the three major Wall Street indices, making the Dow Jones Industrial Average, the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq Composite index slide by 0.53%, 0.84% and 1.46%, respectively.

Major Asian markets followed suit, with Japan’s Nikkei 225 and Topix indices giving up 0.36% and 0.18%, respectively, the Shanghai Composite falling by one percent, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index retreating by 1.29%, South Korea’s Kospi index dropping 1.32% and India’s S&P BSE Sensex Index falling by 1.28%.

Back home, four sectoral indices moved to negative territory, led by industrials which lost 1.43% or 155.53 points to 10,655.43, followed by mining and oil which dropped 0.79% or 73.32 points to 9,144.58, services which shed 0.27% or 4.32 points to 1,554.89 and financials which went down 0.14% or 2.68 points to 1,792.20.

On the other hand, property climbed 0.26% or 10.89 points to 4,108.82 and holding firms rose 0.25% or 20.24 points to 7,845.68.

“The index’s movement for the last two days of the week should be dictated by whether or not heavyweight SMPH (SM Prime Holdings, Inc.) continues its rally, and by US market movement. The BSP is also set to meet tomorrow where consensus expects a 25 basis point rate cut,” Papa Securities Corp. Sales Associate Gabriel Jose F. Perez said in an e-mail.

SM Prime shares rose 1.36% to P37.20 apiece, making it one of Wednesday’s biggest winners.

The day’s list of 20 most active stocks also saw eight that fell, led by Megaworld Corp. and Alliance Global Group, Inc. (AGI) which fell 5.03% and 4.72%, respectively. “Megaworld and AGI had the largest losses of the day following news early in the morning regarding the POGO (Philippine offshore gaming operator) office in Eastwood that was shut down for tax violations,” Mr. Perez said.

Stocks that lost were more than double those that declined 145 to 59, while 48 others closed flat. Some 617.20 million shares worth P5.79 billion changed hands, from Tuesday’s 899.97 issues worth P8.50 billion. Foreign investors were back as net sellers at P309.58 million, against a P111.09 million net inflow the previous session. — Arra B. Francia

Peso weakens against dollar on Donald Trump impeachment bid

THE PESO weakened on Wednesday, weighed by political risks arising from the US House of Representatives’ move to open a formal impeachment inquiry against US President Donald J. Trump, causing the market to seek refuge in the safe haven dollar.

The local unit ended at P52.211 against the greenback on Wednesday, depreciating by 6 centavos from its P52.15-to-a-dollar close on Tuesday.

The peso opened at P52.25 versus the dollar. It traded in a tight range, with its weakest point recorded at P52.295, while its intraday best was at P52.21 against the greenback.

Dollars traded on Wednesday slipped to $1.041 billion against the $1.225 billion seen on Tuesday.

One trader attributed the peso’s weakness to some developments overnight.

“The dollar strengthened on the back of political risks arising from a possible impeachment case against [US President Donald J.] Trump,” he said, noting that such development caused the market to opt for safe haven currencies.

Aside from the impeachment inquiry, the second trader mentioned “fluid” developments to have weakened the peso against the dollar.

“Headlines which were about the US-China trade negotiations and the Brexit also gave a risk-off tone,” he commented.

On Tuesday, US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi announced the House is opening a formal impeachment inquiry of Mr. Trump. She said Mr. Trump had sought Ukraine’s help to smear Democratic presidential frontrunner Joe Biden ahead of the 2020 election.

For today, the first trader sees the peso to trade between P52.10-P52.40, while the second trader sees it playing around the P52.10-P52.30 range. — L.W.T.Noble

WHO to send vaccines after polio resurgence

PHILSTAR/MICHAEL VARCAS

THE WORLD Health Organization (WHO) will send vaccines against Type 2 polio to the Philippines next month after the government reported at least two polio cases last week.

The Department of Health (DoH) confirmed the polio cases this month after 19 years since the country was declared free of the disease.

The Health department had asked the WHO to release their stock of oral polio vaccines that will prevent Type 2 polio, WHO Country Representative Rabindra R. Abeyasinghe said at a forum hosted by Foreign Correspondents Association of the Philippines.

“The government of the Philippines has now requested the WHO to release vaccines from that stockpile to protect the children,” he said.

The first polio case this month was from Lanao del Sur province in southern Philippines, while the second case was from Laguna province near the capital.

Health Secretary Francisco T. Duque III earlier urged parents and caregivers of children below five years old to take part in the polio vaccination to be scheduled in various communities nationwide.

Type 2 Polio was eradicated in 2015, and vaccines produced since 2016 are only effective in preventing Type 1 and Type 3 polio.

Polio is caused by the poliovirus that infects the brain and spinal cord, causing paralysis or even death. There are no cures for polio but there are vaccines for its prevention.

The vaccines will be shipped to the Philippines within seven to 10 days, Mr. Abeyasinghe said. The Type 2 oral polio vaccine will first be given to Lanao del Sur and Davao, then to the rest of the Mindanao region and Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao for the second and third rounds.

More than having the vaccines, the Philippines must adopt a better strategy to improve the vaccination coverage, Mr. Abeyasinghe told reporters.

For a country to be free from polio, the national vaccination coverage should be 95%. The Philippines had a vaccination coverage of 66% last year.

“If we do the vaccination the way we normally do, you’re seeing another outbreak in another couple of years,” the WHO official said.

Improving hygiene and sanitation also helps because the polio virus thrives in dirty areas and is extremely infectious.

DoH and Rotary International earlier signed a memorandum of agreement to increase polio awareness and strengthen a vaccination campaign against the resurgence of the virus.

The agency said the Rotary’s 10 districts will support the polio vaccination campaign through fund raising, advocacy and volunteer recruitment.

The DoH-Metro Manila Center for Health Development will conduct three rounds of supplemental oral polio immunization for children under five years old.

The Health department said it would intensify monitoring of children below five years who have developed sudden muscle weakness or paralysis of the upper and lower extremities.

Health officials on Tuesday told senators they lack manpower to enforce a nationwide immunization program, after reports that a lower vaccine coverage had led to outbreaks of certain diseases including polio.

During a Senate hearing on Tuesday, Health medical specialist Anthony Calibo said the agency has lacked technical assistance in its immunization programs for the past few years.

He said DoH had proposed to create an immunization unit to address the resurgence of diseases but this was disapproved. — Gillian M. Cortez

Basilan turns trash into tulips to fight waste

A SOUTHERN Philippine city has turned discarded plastic bottles into flowers to fill a garden of thousands of colorful tulips, capturing tourists’ attention and building awareness about recycling.

The tulip garden, which opened on Monday, was built from 26,877 bottles collected from 45 villages around Lamitan City in Basilan, an island province on the southwestern tip of the archipelago.

Basilan is among the country’s poorest provinces, notorious for being a stronghold of the Abu Sayyaf Group, an Islamist group known for banditry and kidnapping.

Plastic bottles were cut into the shape of tulips and painted red, yellow, pink and blue, while others were blended into sand and cement and used to make pathways in the garden.

The Philippines is a major source of ocean plastics and only a small amount of its waste is recycled.

Plastic bottles make up a large chunk of waste in Lamitan, and turning them into a tourist attraction can help combat plastic pollution, said the city’s mayor, Rosé Furigay. “Let us be mindful of how to minimise the use of plastic,” she said. — Reuters

Surrenderees not under ‘good conduct’ law to be freed

CONVICTS who surrendered but whose release was not for good conduct will be released immediately, the Department of Justice (DoJ) said yesterday.

The felons were released based on acquittal, commutation of sentence, pardon, and parole, Justice Undersecretary Markk L. Perete said in a mobile-phone message.

“The Oversight Committee on Corrections has constituted a panel to verify each and every release,” he said.

“We have met in the past days and will meet again this afternoon with the relevant BuCor officers whose task is to justify each and every recommendation for release,” he added.

“It’s a tedious process but called for under the circumstances,” Mr. Perete said. The Justice department will enforce the release in tranches.

Mr. Perete also said a joint task force continues to review the prison records at the Senate so they can come out with an accurate list of ineligible prisoners who got released for good conduct.

President Rodrigo R. Duterte earlier fired his prison chief Nicanor E. Faeldon for allowing the release of about 2,000 felons convicted of various heinous crimes. The law disqualifies them from early release for good conduct.

He gave the convicts until Sept. 19 to surrender or they will be hunted down “dead or alive.” Mr. Perete on Monday said 2,221 convicts have surrendered.

The DoJ and the Department of the Interior and Local Government has revised the rules implementing the law on early release for good conduct, disqualifying recidivists, escapees, habitual delinquents and convicts of heinous crimes. — Vann Marlo M. Villegas

Recruiters cited for deploying minors

THE DEPARTMENT of Labor and Employment (DoLE) on Wednesday said it had revoked the licenses of two recruitment agencies for deploying two minors overseas.

LGH International Services and Side International Manpower, Inc. will face cancellation of their licenses deploying a 17-year-old and 14-year-old, respectively for work abroad. The two minors were sent to the Middle East to work as domestic helpers.

“These two agencies clearly violated the POEA rules and guidelines for engaging in illegal recruitment and human trafficking that put the security and welfare of two minors at risk and under exploitative practices,” Philippine Overseas Employment Administration Administrator Bernard P. Olalia said.

The 17-year-old worked in Saudi Arabia and did not receive fair wages. The 14-year-old child, was sent to Jeddah and was allegedly turned into a sex slave by her employer. — Gillian M. Cortez

Watchdog bucks election deferment

A PLAN to defer next year’s village and youth elections has no legal justification, the National Citizens’ Movement for Free Elections (Namfrel) said in a statement yesterday.

The laws only allows a postponement if there is violence, terrorism, loss or destruction of election paraphernalia or records or force majeure, the watchdog said.

Postponing the May 2020 elections unnecessarily extends the terms of elected officials without a fresh mandate from the people, it added.

Namfrel also said the Commission on Elections (Comelec) should be the one to determine if any of these conditions exist.

The Senate approved on second reading this week the postponement of the elections to December 2022. — GMC

Creation of traffic crisis council OK’d

THE HOUSE transportation committee approved a resolution recommending the creation of a traffic crisis inter-agency management council that will address congestion in Metro Manila.

House Resolution 353 was filed by Samar Rep. Edgar S. Sarmiento, who heads the committee.

“This is necessary and important because in Metro Manila alone, we are losing P3.5 billion pesos every day to heavy traffic,” the lawmaker said.

“We are losing time that should have been spent for family and rest,” he said in a separate mobile-phone message.

The council will also address traffic issues in other metropolitan areas other than Metro Manila. — VACF

Seven die after boat sinks off Boracay

SEVEN members of a rowing team from Boracay island died after the boat they were practicing in sank off the island in Aklan province on Wednesday morning, according to a police report.

The dragon boat was carrying 21 people when it sank around 7:30 a.m.. The other 14 team members survived, according to the report.

One of the survivors said the sea was calm when they left Bulabog beach on Boracay island. But after passing by the reef, strong waves engulfed the boat and filled it with water.

“The boat sank and the paddlers were holding on to the boat,” according to the report. “However, strong waves and current made the boat roll over.”

The victims were not wearing any life vests and one did not know how to swim, it said. Two of 14 survivors, two were Chinese and Russian citizens.

The rowing team was practicing for a Taiwan competition, Allan Victor T. Dela Vega, commander of the Philippine Coast Guard in Western Visayas, said by telephone.

“What had happened was really unforeseen and very, very sad. We are still waiting for the investigation,” he said. — Emme Rose S. Santiagudo

Court orders Panay Electric to comment on suit

THE Supreme Court (SC) has ordered Panay Electric Co. to comment on a plea by Razon-led MORE Electric and Power Corp. to stop a Mandaluyong trial court from barring its takeover of Panay Electric’s assets.

In a two-page notice dated Aug. 14 but released only yesterday, the court’s Second Division did not issue the temporary restraining order sought by the plaintiff.

MORE earlier asked the high court to overturn a July 1 decision of the trial court, which voided the company’s franchise in Iloilo because it infringes on Panay Electric’s right to due process and equal protection of the law.

Panay Electric has no obligation to sell and MORE has no right to expropriate its assets, the Mandaluyong court said.

“Any expropriation efforts by Razon’s MORE has been disallowed by the Supreme Court and if they’re truly serious to serve the people of Iloilo, they will do what it takes to invest and do what President Rodrigo R. Duterte has called on all businesses: Build, build, build, and not take, take, take,” the Panay Electric Administrative Manager Marcelo U. Cacho said at a press briefing. — Vann Marlo M. Villegas

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