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What to see this week

6 films to see on the week of February 8 — February 14, 2019

Alita: Battle Angel

THE STORY follows Alita who awakens in the year 2536 with no memory of her past. A compassionate doctor helps her navigate her new life in Iron City. It is only when corrupt forces run after her that she begins to discover clues to her past. Directed by Robert Rodriguez, the film stars Rosa Salazar, Christoph Waltz, and Jennifer Connelly. Entertainment Weekly’s Darren Franich writes, “Calling this movie junk does a disservice to the authenticity of trash.” Rotten Tomatoes gives it a 59% rating.
MTRCB Rating: PG

Green Book

A BOUNCER from an Italian-American neighborhood is hired to drive a world-class black concert pianist on a concert tour from Manhattan to the Deep South. As they travel, they rely on The Green Book to ensure the places they go to are safe for African-Americans. Directed by Peter Farrelly, the film stars Viggo Mortensen, Mahershala Ali, Don Stark, and Linda Cardellini. Empire’s John Nugent writes, “There are legitimate concerns that Green Book settles for lazy tropes about white saviors, but the central humanistic message is important, necessary and correct, and the fact that what could be a stiff, awards-hungry ‘message movie’ is in fact a crowdpleasing slice of mainstream entertainment means that message can reach audiences in all corners.”
MTRCB Rating: PG

Headlock (a.k.a. Against the Clock)


A FORMER CIA operative becomes determined to seek the truth about what happened to her husband, a CIA agent who was seriously injured during a mission. Directed by Mark Polish, the film stars Justin Bartha, Andy Garcia, Dianna Agron, and Mark Polish. Noel Murray of the Los Angeles Times says, “[W]hile this movie is pretty incomprehensible, it’s at least memorable.”
MTRCB Rating: R-13

The Knight of Shadows: Between Yin and Yang

WITH a lawman protege and friendly monsters, a demon hunter tracks down beasts that travel to the human world. Directed by Vash Yan Jia, the movie stars Jackie Chan, Elane Zhong, Ethan Juan, and Lin Peng. Jasmine Lim of Singapore’s The New Paper writes, “Chan oozes an easy, effortless, impish charm, reminding us why he remains a firm family favorite.”
MTRCB Rating: PG

A Dog’s Way Home


A DOG who gets separated from her owner travels 400 miles to return to the safety and security of her home. Along the way, she makes new friends to whom she brings comfort and joy. Directed by Charles Martin Smith, the film stars Ashley Judd, Edward James Olmos, Alexandra Ship, Wes Studi, Barry Watson, and Chris Bauer. The film has gathered mixed reviews — its Rotten Tomatoes score is 58%. Tomris Laffly of RogerEbert.com called it “A good dog movie with its heart in the right place,” while TheWrap’s Yolanda Machado said it “is a joyless jaunt that offers an adorable canine star and not much else.”
MTRCB Rating: PG

Snow Flower (Yuki no Hana)


MIYUKI only has a year to live. After receiving her prognosis, she meets a kind stranger named Yusuke in the wintertime in Tokyo. When they meet again after six months, Yusuke is in need of financial assistance and Miyuki offers a deal — to be her boyfriend for a month in exchange for one million yen. Directed by Kojiro Hashimoto, the movie stars Hiroomi Tosaka and Ayami Nakajo.
MTRCB Rating: PG

Elise

BERT and Elise were childhood sweethearts. When they unexpectedly reunite after many years, Bert realizes that he is still in love with Elise. Directed by Joel Ferrer, the film stars Enchong Dee and Janine Gutierrez
MTRCB Rating: PG

Hanggang Kailan?

DONNIE and Kath go on a trip to celebrate their second anniversary. But when Kath overhears a phone call between Donnie and someone else, the trip they are currently enjoying might be their last. Directed by Bona Fajardo, the movie stars Louise delos Reyes and Xian Lim.
MTRCB Rating: R-13

BSP requires detailed reports on loan, deposit rates

By Melissa Luz T. Lopez, Senior Reporter
THE CENTRAL BANK will soon require lenders to submit more detailed reports on the interest rates they impose on loans and deposits, which is seen to boost transparency and enhance the regulator’s watch on the market.
The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) will mandate banks to submit more specific data capturing the interest rates they levy on various loan and deposit products, as the central bank looks to capture “greater granularity” in order to enhance market monitoring.
Circular 1029 issued by Deputy Governor Chuchi G. Fonacier on Jan. 25 lists several changes to reporting templates as they now require universal and commercial banks to submit more detailed reports to the BSP’s Supervisory Data Center, such as the weekly data on the volume of transactions and weighted average interest rates on deposits received and loans granted with relevant details as to maturity, size and product category/type.
On top of this, lenders must also submit a monthly report on the weighted average interest rate on outstanding loans and deposits by product category or type. The reports specifically require banks to report the volume and interest rates charged for peso-denominated loans and receivables, peso deposits, and dollar deposits.
Currently, the BSP publishes quoted lending rates of commercial banks on the central bank web site.
The financial firms are given the whole month of February as the transition period, while all changes to the reporting templates must take effect by March 1.
“The information generated from said reports provide analytical support for policy decisions as well as assessment of interest rate risk exposure of the industry,” the central bank said in a statement, noting that the latest reforms will promote greater consumer protection and market transparency.
“These will provide consumers with more valuable information to compare costs and evaluate their needs based on the best loans and deposits products available to them.”
While the BSP’s Monetary Board sets the benchmark interest rates for the Philippine financial system, lenders set their own lending and deposit rates by adding a premium on top of the central bank’s key policy rates.

UnionBank to roll out first virtual currency ATM

UNIONBANK of the Philippines, Inc. is set to launch the first virtual currency automated teller machine (ATM) in the country, allowing customers to buy and sell digital units for cash.
In a recent chance interview with reporters, UnionBank Chairman Justo A. Ortiz said the Aboitiz-led lender will soon launch an ATM for virtual currencies, which will be placed in its concept branch “The ARK” in Makati City.
“We’re going to put up a Bitcoin ATM in our Ayala Ave. ARK [branch]. The machine is here already,” Mr. Ortiz said.
Virtual currency is a type of digital money issued, controlled and used by a certain virtual community.
Cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin, Etherium and Ripple are virtual currencies that are not regulated by any state or central bank. They rely on cryptography to secure and verify transactions as well as control the creation of more units.
Such currencies can also be used to pay for goods through the internet and can be treated as an investment given its fluctuating valuations.
Mr. Ortiz added that the bank will partner with financial technology firm Coins.ph to enable the system.
In a separate statement, UnionBank said the ATM will provide their clients with an alternative channel to convert peso into virtual currency and vice versa.
The lender added that the move to launch an ATM of this kind is part of its aim to serve the evolving needs of its clients, including those who use virtual currencies.
“That should be interesting. It’s not part of what you do on a daily basis, but it’s cheap now. Maybe it’s time put a few in your drawer,” Mr. Ortiz added.
The usage and trading of cryptocurrencies in the country is legal and regulated by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas.
However, the central bank has noted that it is not endorsing the use of privately-issued cryptocurrency as a medium of exchange given its “highly speculative and volatile” nature. — Karl Angelo N. Vidal

CLI to boost rental property portfolio

CEBU Landmasters, Inc. (CLI) sees its leasable projects contributing to a tenth of total revenues by 2023, as gross leasable area (GLA) is expected to breach the 200,000-square meter (sq.m.) mark by then.
In a statement issued Thursday, the Cebu-based property developer said it will complete a mix of office, hotel, and commercial establishments within the next four years that will strengthen its recurring income sources.
Projects that will generate recurring revenues include the Astra Centre Lifestyle Mall on A.S. Fortuna Street in Mandaue City that will cover a gross floor area of 14,000 sq.m. The company expects to complete the project in 2021.
The company’s first mixed-use project called Base Line Center in Cebu City will also feature more than 4,700 sq.m. of office spaces and 5,900 sq.m. of retail area. Last year, the company already turned over 2,655 sq.m. of its retail area to Robinsons Supermarket, increasing its GLA by 33% to 8,952 sq.m.
CLI said its residential condominiums also have retail spaces averaging between 500 to 1,000 sq.m.
“Our leasing business complements our residential developments, allowing us to provide complete and gratifying experience to the communities that we build and customers that we serve,” CLI President and Chief Executive Officer Jose R. Soberano III was quoted as saying in a statement.
The company’s foray into the hospitality industry will further boost its target for recurring revenues, banking on the demand for more accommodations in the Visayas and Mindanao regions. It targets to have more than 1,000 hotel rooms by 2023.
“With the continuous growth of the hospitality industry in VisMin, demand for hotel rooms will definitely rise. Cebu Landmasters is at the forefront in providing what the market needs, especially those that travel a lot, from hotel rooms to serviced residences,” Mr. Soberano said.
CLI’s hotel projects include four projects managed by international serviced residences operator The Ascott Limited. The first will be Citadines Cebu City that will be operational within the year with 180 units.
The other three projects with The Ascott are Citadines Paragon Davao, Citadines Bacolod City, and lyf Cebu City.
Aside from The Ascott, CLI also partnered with the Radisson Hotel Group for the first hotel in the country carrying the Radisson Red brand that caters mostly to millennials. This will be located in Astra Centre.
CLI’s net income attributable to the parent stood at P932.73 million in the first nine months of 2018, three percent lower year on year. Gross revenues, meanwhile, climbed 33% to P3.69 billion in the same period a year ago.
Shares in CLI dropped 2.20% or nine centavos to close at P4 each at the stock exchange on Thursday. — Arra B. Francia

Your Weekend Guide (February 8, 2019)

PPO plays Mozart and Brahms

FOR the 6th concert in its 36th concert season on Feb. 8, 8 p.m., at the Cultural Center of the Philippines’ Main Theater, the Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra (PPO), under the baton of Yoshikazu Fukumura, will perform Carl Maria von Weber’s Der Freischutz Oveture, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s Symphony No. 39, K.543 in flat major, and Johannes Brahms’s Symphony No. 2, op 73 in D major. For inquiries and tickets, contact the CCP Box Office (832-3704), visit www.culturalcenter.gov.ph, or contact TicketWorld (www.ticketworld.com.ph, 891-9999).

Ely Buendia and The Itchyworms in concert

ELY Buendia and the Itchyworms — Jugs Jugueta, Jazz Nicolas, Kelvin Uy and Chino Singson — will be sharing the stage as they perform their greatest hits at the Newport Performing Arts Theater, Resorts World Manila, on Feb. 9, 8 p.m. One Click Straight and Pinkmen join them as special guests. For tickets, contact TicketWorld (www.ticketworld.com.ph, 891-9999).

PETA’s Charot!

PETA presents Charot! (colloquial Filipino for “just kidding”), a musical which presents current events and imagines a future under a new charter and its consequences. The show runs until March 17 at the PETA Theater Center in Quezon City. For tickets and schedules, contact TicketWorld (www.ticketworld.com.ph, 891-9999).

Films focus on artists


IN line with the national celebration of February as the Arts Month, the Museum of Contemporary Art and Design (MCAD) of the De La Salle-College Saint Benilde (DLS-CSB) presents a selection of films on several artists’ lives and their works. Norwegian painter and symbolist Edvard Munch’s creations are the focus of Let the Scream be Heard on Feb. 8 and 9. Five short films entitled Glimpses of Edvard Munch’s Life, 1863-1944, Faces, A Self Portrait, and Post Mortem, are slated for Feb. 15 and 16. These are brief clips about the revered expressionist’s prolific career. Margaret Keane is the focus in the feature film Big Eyes, on Feb. 22 and 23. The screenings are free and open to the public. The screening will be at noon at The Loop, 12th floor, DLS-CSB School of Design and Arts Campus. For inquiries and reservations, call 230-5100 local 3897 or e-mail at mcad@benilde.edu.ph.

Every Brilliant Thing

WRITTEN by Duncan MacMillan and Johnny Donahoe, Every Brilliant Thing tells the story of a little girl who chronicles all the little things that make life brilliant. Starring Teresa Herrera and directed by Jenny Jamora, this one-woman show runs until Feb. 24 at the Maybank Performing Arts Theater, in BGC, Taguig. For tickets and schedules, contact TicketWorld (www.ticketworld.com.ph, 891-9999).

Eto Na! Musical nAPO! returns

THE musical comedy Eto Na! Musical nAPO! about seven friends who join a songwriting and singing contest, returns to the stage with performances until March 17 at the Maybank Performing Arts Theater at the BGC Arts Center in Taguig. For tickets and schedules, contact TicketWorld (www.ticketworld.com.ph, 891-9999).

Apple retail chief Angela Ahrendts to depart in April

APPLE INC said on Tuesday that retail chief Angela Ahrendts will leave the company in April after five years on the job, the third departure of a retail head brought in from outside the company.
The tech giant, which is known for its long-serving top executives, did not give a reason for the departure. It comes as Apple tries to reverse a slide in sales of its iPhones.
Ahrendts, who is among Apple’s highest-paid executives, came to the company in 2014 after being chief executive of fashion retailer Burberry Group Plc .
During her tenure, the company redesigned its retail stores with an emphasis on Apple’s appeal as a luxury brand and opened locations in pricy districts such as a glass-walled store on Chicago’s Michigan Avenue last autumn.
Ahrendts undertook some controversial moves, such as removing the formal Apple “Genius Bar” for technical service from stores and setting up more casual service centers instead. The introduction of a “Genius Grove” of potted plants at Apple’s flagship San Francisco location generated some complaints about customer service.
She also cut the number of outside companies selling accessories such as phone cases in Apple’s stores, dedicating the space to Apple’s own, generally more expensive, accessories.
Apple has long leaned on outsiders for help running its stores since former CEO Steve Jobs tapped Ron Johnson in 2000 to build Apple’s retail operations. By the time of his departure a decade later, Apple had a string of stores that were the envy of the shopping industry, generating sales per square foot that rivaled luxury jewelers.
Apple briefly tapped British retail executive John Browett to run its stores before hiring Ahrendts. In her five years in the post, she presided over only modest growth in the number of locations, expanding from 437 stores in Apple’s fiscal 2014 to slightly more than 500 today, but she renovated many older locations.
Ahrendts made $26.6 million in Apple’s fiscal 2018, more than Apple CEO Tim Cook but on par with the compensation of other senior executives. Her tenure was relatively short compared to executives such as services chief Eddy Cue, Chief Operating Officer Jeff Williams or marketing chief Phil Schiller, each of whom has worked at Apple more than 20 years.
Apple named human resources chief Deirdre O’Brien as senior vice president of “Retail + People” to replace Ahrendts. O’Brien has worked at Apple for more than 30 years.
Last month, Apple disclosed the first-ever decline in holiday season sales of the iPhone since the device’s introduction more than a decade ago. It also warned investors that sales for the current quarter were likely to be lower than Wall Street expected. — Reuters

ShowBiz (02/08/19)

Mattel turns eye toward TV

TOYMAKER Mattel Inc. continued its pivot toward entertainment, hiring a Walt Disney Co. veteran to run its burgeoning television unit. Adam Bonnett, who left Disney last year after two decades, will lead development of series and other content as executive producer of Mattel Television, the company said. He’s filling a newly created position, part of the company’s push to build more entertainment around its toy brands. For years, Mattel had been criticized by investors for not shifting more toward entertainment, like rival toy companies Hasbro Inc. and Lego A/S. But Mattel Chief Executive Officer Ynon Kreiz has been working to change that during his first year on the job. A former entertainment executive who became CEO last spring, Mr. Kreiz has already started a film unit and inked deals for movies based off Barbie and Hot Wheels — its largest properties. The hire of Mr. Bonnett, 50, also comes at a time of exploding demand for kids content, thanks to streaming platforms like Netflix. Mr. Kreiz is no doubt betting that Mr. Bonnett — who oversaw programming development for Disney Channel, including hits like Hannah Montana — will help speed up the company’s makeover after four years of slumping sales. — Bloomberg

Cirque du Soleil bags Illusionists

CIRQUE DU SOLEIL Entertainment Group is acquiring a troupe of magicians called the Illusionists, building on a global live-performance empire that already includes the Blue Man Group and theatrical shows. The company is paying about $40 million for Works Entertainment, which owns the Illusionists franchise, according to a person familiar with the terms, which aren’t public. Cirque du Soleil is drawing on a $120 million credit line to finance the transaction. The purchase is the third recent deal by the circus-show giant, which aims to leverage its global operations to help popularize newer acts. The Illusionists is a revue show that has featured a range of magicians, including America’s Got Talent champion Shin Lim. — Bloomberg

1970s-era musicians sue Sony, UMG

NEW YORK — David Johansen, John Waite and other prominent 1970s musicians filed lawsuits on Tuesday accusing Sony Music Entertainment Inc. and UMG Recordings Inc. of improperly refusing to let them reclaim rights to songs they had long ago signed away. The proposed class actions filed in Manhattan federal court said US copyright law gives songwriters who bargained away their works on unfavorable terms a “second chance” to reclaim their rights by filing termination notices after 35 years. But they said Sony and UMG have “routinely and systematically” ignored hundreds of notices, mainly because they deemed the songs “works made for hire” under their recording contracts and therefore not subject to being reclaimed. The named plaintiffs in the Sony case are Mr. Johansen, formerly of the New York Dolls and who as Buster Poindexter recorded “Hot Hot Hot”; John Lyon, who performs as Southside Johnny; and Paul Collins, known for the Paul Collins Beat. Plaintiffs suing UMG, a unit of France’s Vivendi SA, include Waite, formerly of The Babys and later known for his 1984 hit “Missing You”; and Joe Ely, a guitarist who has performed with The Clash, Bruce Springsteen and others. Sony and UMG did not immediately respond to requests for comment. The plaintiffs are represented by the law firm Blank Rome and by Evan Cohen, a Los Angeles lawyer. “We represent well over 100 artists from the late ’70s and early ’80s who want to own their US copyrights, but are being stonewalled by Sony and Universal after sending notices,” Mr. Cohen said in an interview. “In many cases, we are talking about artists who have never received royalties from the recordings.” Both lawsuits cover recording artists who served termination notices effective Jan. 1, 2013 or later. They seek injunctions requiring that the notices be honored, monetary damages and other remedies. — Reuters

Disney TV eases shift to streaming

WALT DISNEY CO. is embarking on a mission to become a streaming-TV company, challenging Netflix Inc. head-on. But for now, it’s traditional TV that’s holding up better than expected. Soaring sales and profit at the ABC network and local TV stations helped Disney beat analysts’ forecasts for the first quarter — and overcome another tough stretch for the ESPN sports network. The entertainment giant credited higher fees from pay-TV services, rising ad revenue and more sales of programs to other companies. Disney has warned that fiscal 2019 will be a tough year as the company takes over most of 21st Century Fox Inc. and develops programs for three online video services: ESPN+, Disney+ and Hulu. But its diverse business groups, from parks and hotels to movies and home entertainment, are softening the blow for investors. “This is a bet on the future of our business,’’ Chief Executive Officer Bob Iger said on a conference call. The question now is how painful the streaming shift will be. Disney will have to pull shows and movies from platforms like Netflix as it works to build its own offerings. Already, that’s having an impact. Company executives said film and TV profit from selling shows to competitors like Netflix will drop by $150 million this year. Another cloud: A shift in the Easter holiday and changes in how Disney recognizes revenue will cut theme-park profit in the current quarter by $125 million. Disney said it now has more than 2 million subscribers to ESPN+, the $5-a-month sports streaming service launched last April. Nearly 600,000 of those came last month as a result of the company’s first big UFC fight, signed under a five-year-deal with the mixed martial arts league. Mr. Iger said the rollout of the service has proven that the company’s BamTech streaming platform is reliable, even during major events, and the ESPN network itself has helped promote the product. The company plans to launch Disney+, a service featuring films and TV shows from its Marvel, Pixar, and Star Wars brands, later this year. Over the next few months, Disney will complete the $71 billion acquisition of Fox assets, a deal that will give the company majority control of the Hulu streaming service, as well as many other channels and film franchises. — Reuters

U-Bix targets 11-15% growth in revenues this year

By Janina C. Lim, Reporter
U-Bix Corp. expects revenues to grow by between 11-15% this year, driven by its printing business and services management arm.
In a Thursday press conference in Makati City, U-Bix Executive Vice-President and Chief Finance Officer Leah Barcas said the company’s topline grew by 11% year on year to over P2 billion in 2018.
Revenues were mainly driven by sales of printing machines, its primary business. Preliminary results showed sales of printing machines reached P960 million in 2018, doubling from 2017 levels.
Revenues from U-Bix subsidiary Facilities Managers, Inc. (FMI) surged 29% to breach the P1-billion mark.
“Moving forward for 2019, we’re expecting at least of the same amount on terms of percentage (revenue growth), between 11-15%,” Ms. Barcas said.
U-Bix Director Mary Ann Bravo-Civil said the company sees further growth in its printing businesses, particularly production printers and multi-function copiers.
“We’re definitely seeing some growth in color (printing) but there’s also the production printing side which is really about commercial printers,” Ms. Bravo-Civil said, noting that new products will be launched this year.
The midterm elections may also help boost this year’s sales but will not be a major growth driver due to campaign period limitations, she added.
“We are really setting our sights in what we have in the branches. Of course Metro Manila will always remain a core contributor to our revenues. It’s been really pleasing to see the progress that were seeing in our regional operations so we will be focusing on that quite aggressively in the coming year,” Ms. Bravo-Civil added.
FMI Service Master Managing Director Demosthenes C. Doplayna said 2019 is also expected to deliver “the same double-digit” results from 2018 with growth continuing to be driven by the advancement of cleaning technologies in its biggest segments: health and the business process outsourcing industry.
U-Bix is the exclusive distributor of Konica Minolta digital production printing and multi-function machines. The company also distributes Riso digital duplicators and Okamura furniture office systems.
U-Bix also purchased Kodak Philippines Ltd.’s Kodak Imaging Center which now operates as U-Bix Imaging Center.
The firm, through FMI, also has franchise agreements with United States-based companies such as Service Master, which deals with facilities maintenance; Terminix on pest control products and services; and Merry Maids, for home-cleaning services.
The U-Bix Group owns the Bravo Hotel & Golf Course and Munting Paraiso Beach Resort, both found in Dumaguete; the Blue Wave Inn Beach in Siquijor; and the U-Bix Institute of Technology.

Background investigations for new workers

Usually, we hire our workers through manpower agencies that give us employees who are supposed to be screened, trained and qualified prior to deployment. However, there have been instances in which were sent people with falsified clearances. We ended up blacklisting some manpower agencies. Do we need to conduct another round of background investigations to ensure that we get the right people? (itals end) — Vietnam Rose.
Social media is teeming with outrage about politicians who manage to stay in office despite convictions and pending graft cases involving millions of pesos, while ordinary people can’t even get a decent job without clearances from the barangay (village), police, and NBI.
Who is to be blamed here? Misinformed voters, the general public or the electoral system? Obviously, there is something wrong with our electoral system when convicted politicians manage to continue their careers.
There are also hundreds of cases out there that are seemingly “parked” in court, including the Imelda Marcos case that took nearly 30 years to wrap up.
The same thing can happen in the workplace. Organizations that rely on hiring employees through manpower agencies often leave out the step of professional background checking.
Many organizations ignore this basic requirement for various reasons. Since the workers are temporary, contractors and sub-contractors routinely neglect thorough procedures in order to deploy the workers right away.
Client-companies also resort to this practice because they think these contractual workers can be closely monitored and supervised, until one day they discover that these same people are directly or indirectly involved in theft, immorality, absenteeism, and poor productivity, among other issues.
So what’s the best approach? We can’t just ignore background checks for new employees. We have to do it right
One, the first thing to do is to conduct a background check of your existing or prospective manpower agencies, including its officials and stockholders. You may be surprised that many of them have more than dozens of pending labor cases. That alone is enough for you to raise the red flag.
Two, in case of direct hiring, employers must require new employees to sign an employment contract and application for employment forms where they vouch for the accuracy of the information they provide to employers. To do this, these people must sign an agreement that they are authorizing the employer, its representative or third-party service provider to conduct background checks at any time starting from Day One of employment, but not later than the fifth month of the probationary period.
Three, hire an independent and professional third-party service provider that can give you an efficient and accurate formal report. They can do it faster and more conveniently for you, except that you have to pay them for their services. I guess that is better than working blind with certain people until it is too late.
What is important about this professional service is that they visit organizations to verify information provided by new employees.
Last, if you happen to encounter one of these background checkers, insist that they personally visit your office to establish their credentials. Don’t accept inquiries through telephone, email or worse — via text. You can learn many things from them on all the tricks pulled off by job applicants and how they deceive their potential employers.
Over time, you may end up with relationships with certain background checkers who may also help you on the things to avoid when hiring. Don’t lower your guard and regularly seek their input when evaluating job applicants.
Background investigation is costly and time-consuming. Compare that with your current predicament. If you think ignoring background investigation due to cost is useful, then calculate the losses you might incur or may have incurred when you hire people without clean backgrounds.
Don’t think that a janitor or security guard can be exempted from background investigations. Your background investigation must include the officers and stockholders of job contractors, no matter how they present themselves as legitimate third-party service providers.
ELBONOMICS: One test of integrity is avoiding short cuts.
 
Send workplace questions to elbonomics@gmail.com or via https://reyelbo.consulting
Anonymity is guaranteed to those who seek it.

Curing the 3rd telco’s defects

BEFORE adjourning for a three-month recess, the Senate approved a concurrent House of Representatives resolution that effectively paves the way for a third major telecommunications player to operate in the Philippines.
This legislative measure allowed the ownership of Mindanao Islamic Telephone Company, Inc. (Mislatel) to be transferred to the namesake Mislatel Consortium comprised by China Telecom Corp. Ltd., Udenna Corp., and Chelsea Logistics Holdings Corp.
The latter two are owned by Davao’s emerging taipan Dennis Uy, a close friend of President Rodrigo R. Duterte who donated P30 million to his presidential campaign kitty in 2016. That much-ballyhooed amount does not even come close to what other pals of the former Davao City mayor had contributed, not to mention friends whose help cannot be quantified.
When the bidding for the country’s third telco was underway, Mr. Duterte put across his message to Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) Acting Secretary Eliseo Rio, Jr. during a Cabinet meeting in Bicol, to go full speed with the selection process “basta wala lang corruption.”
A recent hearing of the Senate committee on public services chaired by Senator Grace Poe opened a veritable Pandora’s box when Senate Minority Leader Franklin Drilon inquired about when and where Mislatel operated. The panel that included Mr. Rio and National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) chief Gamaliel Cordoba was stunned and frozen by Mr. Drilon’s question.
It turned out that Mislatel never operated at all after it was granted a congressional franchise through Republic Act (RA) No. 8627 in 1998. This triggered a scrutiny of RA 8627, particularly Section 7 on the term of franchise which explicitly stated that it shall be deemed ipso facto revoked in the event the grantee fails to comply with any of the following conditions: commence operations within one year from the approval of its permit by the NTC; operate continuously for two years; and commence operations within three years from the effectivity of RA 8627.
Since Mislatel had not complied with all three conditions, why did the DICT and NTC favor it on top of the two other bidders, Philippine Telephone & Telegraph Corp. (PT&T) and Tier One Communications, Inc.? Ten other firms bought bid documents worth P1 million each but mysteriously withdrew on the eve of the bidding.
Affidavits of non-operation later surfaced, and changes of ownership invited further questioning as the sale of shares by the original owners to a new group in 2015 was never reported to Congress. These are pre-qualification issues that should have been grounds for disqualification.
In an excruciating attempt to offer an alibi, the Mislatel panel claimed they tried to operate in Maguindanao province but that the peace and order situation there derailed their plans. What a lame excuse considering that its franchise to construct, establish, install, maintain, and operate wire and/or wireless telecommunications systems granted by RA 8637 was nationwide.
Malacañang was closely monitoring the public hearings, which were covered by the major television networks as well as in social media. Presidential Spokesperson and Chief Legal Counsel Salvador Panelo was quoted as saying at a Palace briefing: “If they don’t have a franchise, how can they operate? We will look for another company that has a franchise.”
Obviously, Mr. Rio did not read the message because he subsequently said that Mislatel’s franchise could be cured through an act of Congress since it was Congress that gave it a franchise in the first place. Was he speaking for himself and not as a Cabinet member? Did he not remember Mr. Duterte’s statement about hating even just a whiff of corruption?
Meanwhile, Ms. Poe justified her endorsement of the concurrent resolution due to the public’s “desperation” to have a new player that promises better services. “We took out anything that pertains to calling Mislatel a new major player or third telco. We’re treating it as a regular franchise because later on, someone might go to the court as say Congress recognized Mislatel as the third telco,” she said in an interview.
But shouldn’t the other bidders been given the chance to cure their defects? There seems to be no level playing field after all.
 
J. Albert Gamboa is CFO of the Asian Center for Legal Excellence and Chairman of the FINEX Media Affairs Committee’s Golden Jubilee Book Project.

How PSEi member stocks performed — February 7, 2019

Here’s a quick glance at how PSEi stocks fared on Thursday, February 7, 2019.

 
Philippine Stock Exchange’s most active stocks by value turnover — February 7, 2019.

Asia-Pacific hotel industry shows room for growth

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