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Filipino athletes begin campaign at 2018 Youth Olympics in Buenos Aires

By Michael Angelo S. Murillo
Senior Reporter
SEVEN Filipino athletes, led by double Asian Games gold winner Yuka Saso, begin their campaign in the 2018 Youth Olympic Games in Buenos Aires, Argentina, with hopes of improving on the country’s performance last time around and bring further sporting pride.
Golfer Saso, who struck gold in the individual and team events in the recently held Asian Games in Indonesia, was the designated flag-bearer of the contingent in the opening ceremonies on Sunday held at the Obelisco de Buenos Aires for the sporting event for athletes 18 years old and younger happening from Oct. 7 to 19 (Manila time).
Joining Saso in the team are Jann Mari Nayre (table tennis), Christian Tio (kite boarding), Nicole Marie Tagle (archery), Lawrence Everett Tan (fencing), Carl Jano Corpus (golf) and Nicole Justine Marie Oliva (swimming).
All seven are angling to bring home a gold medal for the Philippines and follow in the footsteps of archer Gab Moreno, who gave the Philippines its first-ever gold medal in the Youth Games in 2014.
Nayre, the first to qualify for the 2018 Youth Olympic Games, will kick-start the Philippines’ campaign today followed on Tuesday by Tio, who will compete for six days straight in his bid for a podium spot.

Christian Tio
Kite boarder Christian Tio is part of the Philippine Team. — (RED BULL PHILIPPINES)

Over 4,000 athletes from 206 countries will vie for 241 gold medals from 32 sports in this year’s edition of the Youth Games.
Considering the expected tough competition, local sports officials acknowledge that it is going to be an uphill battle for Team Philippines but were quick to say that it would not stop the athletes from giving their best and trying to get medals.
“It certainly won’t be easy considering the high level of competition. But one thing is for sure, our athletes will show up with their best performance to get a medal,” said chef de mission Jonne Go of the Philippine Canoe Kayak Dragonboat Federation.
Apart from Ms. Go, also accompanying the Philippine athletes in Argentina is Philippine Sports Commission secretary-general Patrick Gregorio.
Catch the Filipino athletes’ campaign in the 2018 Youth Olympic Games over at ESPN5 and live stream on ESPN5.com.

Khabib stops McGregor in wild fight, retains title

ULTIMATE Fighting Championship world lightweight champion Khabib “The Eagle” Nurmagomedov retained his title after stopping challenger and former champ Conor “The Notorious” McGregor by rear-naked choke in the fourth round of their headlining fight at “UFC 229” on Sunday in Las Vegas which was marred by a brawl after the fight.
Banking on his superior grappling and ground game, Mr. Nurmagomedov (27-0) proved too much to UFC-comebacking McGregor (21-4), sending the latter to tap out late in the fourth round to make it a first successful title defense.
Earlier in the day, former interim lightweight champion Tony “El Cucuy” Ferguson made a successful UFC return albeit in an anti-climactic manner, besting ex-lightweight champion Anthony “Showtime” Pettis in UFC 229’s co-main event by technical knockout after the latter’s corner ruled him unable to continue after breaking his right hand.
Mr. McGregor opened things with some early hits before Mr. Nurmagomedov got things on the ground and the advantage all the way to the end of the first round.
In the second round, the Russian champion’s dominance continued, clipping the Irishman midway and then going for a barrage of ground and pound that had Mr. McGregor defending hard on his back the rest of the way.
Mr. McGregor showed some life in the third round and early fourth with strikes that rocked Mr. Nurmagomedov.
The champion though got his bearing back and went for the takedown which he would not relinquish, locking Mr. McGregor and finishing things with a rear-naked choke before referee Herb Dean called a stop to the fight at the 3:02 mark of the fourth round.
But just when everybody thought it was over, Mr. Khabib went out of the Octagon and engaged with some of Mr. McGregor’s supporters while some from the Russian’s group went inside the cage and attacked the Irishman.

UFC 229 2
Tony Ferguson throws a right jab on Anthony Pettis’ face during the UFC 229 at T-Mobile Arena. — STEPHEN R. SYLVANIE-USA TODAY SPORTS

Control was restored and Mr. Khabib was declared as winner. No awarding of the belt happened though to ease the tension.
FERGUSON IS BACK
Meanwhile, former interim lightweight champion Ferguson returned from knee surgery with a win after stopping Mr. Pettis in the second round.
It was an explosive fight right from the opening bell as both fighters tried to establish early control.
The second round had the fighters giving their all no end.
Mr. Pettis had Mr. Ferguson in trouble after connecting with a solid right to the chin but eventually the latter recovered and inflicted his own damage on the former, who by the time the second round ended was all bloodied up from a huge cut on his head.
Moments later, Mr. Pettis’ corner confirmed that its fighter broke his right hand in the hard exchanges and decided not to continue, handing the win to Mr. Ferguson.
“No concern at all that I rushed my return [from knee surgery}. Nobody was going to take this away from me, I’m [expletive] back!” said Mr. Ferguson post-fight even as he called out Mr. McGregor for a showdown.
In other fights in the main card of UFC 229, light heavyweight Dominick Reyes topped Ovince Saint Preux by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27 and 30-27), heavyweight Derrick Lewis came from behind to knock out Alexander Volkov in the third round, and women’s strawweight Michelle Waterson beat Felice Herrig by UD (30-26, 29-28 and 30-27).
In the Philippines, Cignal TV, the country’s foremost direct-to-home (DTH) company, is the home of the UFC after the two groups agreed to an extensive deal that will see the UFC beamed on various platforms. — Michael Angelo S. Murillo

New York Yankees even series with Boston Red Sox

BOSTON — Aaron Judge and Gary Sanchez hit early solo home runs off David Price, and the New York Yankees evened the American League Division Series with a 6-2 victory over the host Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park on Saturday night.
The series shifts to New York for Game 3 on Monday, followed by Game 4 on Tuesday.
Judge gave the Yankees a 1-0 lead 10 pitches into the game when he drove Price’s 2-1 cutter into the Green Monster seats above left field. Judge’s 445-foot drive was his third straight homer in the postseason and seventh of his career.
Sanchez made it 2-0 by homering into the same seats as Judge with a 399-foot drive that landed closer to the left field foul pole. It was Sanchez’s sixth career homer off Price, and the catcher added a three-run homer in the seventh.
“You know he’s capable of that. We all know he’s capable of that,” Yankees manager Aaron Boone said of Sanchez. “That’s kind of what we’ve been waiting for to some degree, where he can take over a game on offense. He was huge, obviously, tonight.”
Price fell to 0-9 as a postseason starter and was lifted after allowing Andrew McCutchen’s RBI single off the Green Monster with two outs in the second.
“It’s tough. You know, just after we won Game 1 to go out there and have that opportunity to go up 2-0,” Price said. “And to throw the baseball the way that I did, it was definitely tough.”
Price (0-1) allowed three runs on three hits in 1 2/3 innings. He dropped to 2-9 overall in the playoffs after throwing 42 pitches.
Price also fell to 2-7 in any start against the Yankees with the Red Sox and produced his fourth career start (postseason or regular season) of two innings or less. Despite the struggles, Red Sox manager Alex Cora said postgame he won’t move Price to the bullpen.
“He’s one of our starters,” Cora said. “Just a bad outing today. It just so happened it wasn’t his day. He didn’t make pitches. We trust him. He’s bounced back before. We’ll talk to him to make a few adjustments. And we’ll go from there.”
Despite various opportunities against Boston’s bullpen, the Yankees did not add on until putting two on with one out in the seventh off Eduardo Rodriguez.
Judge opened the inning with a single to first baseman Mitch Moreland when Rodriguez did not cover first base. Luke Voit followed with a walk but was out at second on Giancarlo Stanton’s grounder to third.
Stanton hit a grounder to third baseman Eduardo Nuñez, who made a high throw to second baseman Ian Kinsler. Voit was originally called safe, but the call was overturned as Kinsler stayed on the bag.
Four pitches later, Sanchez hit a 2-1 fastball 479 feet onto Lansdowne Street beyond the Green Monster to make it 6-1.
“If we have the opportunity to score runs like that, you know, even if it’s 300 feet, I’ll take it,” Sanchez said through an interpreter. “Anytime we score and we’re helping the team, I’m going to take those.”
New York’s Masahiro Tanaka (1-0) allowed a solo homer to Xander Bogaerts in the fourth among three hits in five innings. He struck out four and walked one in a 78-pitch outing.
After allowing the homer, Tanaka issued a four-pitch walk to Nuñez but struck out Kinsler to end the fourth. He then finished the outing by getting Mookie Betts on a lineout.
Dellin Betances pitched a scoreless sixth by getting three groundouts but allowed an RBI double off the Green Monster to Kinsler with one out in the seventh. Betances finished the inning and kept the score at 6-2.
Zach Britton pitched a scoreless eighth, and Aroldis Chapman tossed a scoreless ninth. — Reuters

New World Golf Cup 3 successfully held at Manila Southwoods G&CC

THE THIRD ANNUAL “Golf for a Cause” of New World Makati Hotel and AG New World Manila Bay was successfully held on Sept. 28 at the Manila Southwoods Golf & Country Club in Cavite, raising P400,000 to support 96 scholars of their partner-beneficiary, the Springboard Foundation.
In line with the group’s Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) thrust of giving back to the community it serves, the day-long event gathered players who were willing to share their time and resources to help Springboard Foundation scholars in continuing their secondary education this academic year.
Declared champion of this year’s tournament, which had a four-man scramble format, was the team of Steve Borril, Michael Denison, Tony Kennerly, and Phil Connolly.
Coming in close at second place was the team of Antonio Payumo, Javier Berenguer-Testa, and Raymond Lacdao. Third place was the team of Kim Yong Min, Yoon Hui Cheol, Park Sang Yun, and Ahn Jun Seong.
Winners were given trophies, gift certificates, and other prizes from New World Hotels and Resorts and its sponsors.
The event was held in partnership with Fortunegate Holdings Philippines Inc., Jeeves of Belgravia Manila, media partner Solar Sports, and airline partner Philippine Airlines. — MASM

Gonzalez, Houston Astros rally past Cleveland Indians for 2-0 lead

HOUSTON — Marwin Gonzalez produced a four-hit effort, Alex Bregman homered for a second consecutive game and Gerrit Cole pitched a masterful start as the Houston Astros beat the visiting Cleveland Indians 3-1 on Saturday in Game 2 of this American League Division Series.
Roberto Osuna posted a four-out save for the Astros, who will take a 2-0 series lead to Cleveland for Game 3 on Monday.
Gonzalez finished 4-for-4, with his two-run, opposite-field double off Indians left-hander Andrew Miller lifting the Astros to a 2-1 lead with one out in the sixth inning. The switch-hitting Gonzalez had recorded a pair of singles off Indians right-hander Carlos Carrasco (0-1) and delivered again when Miller entered and forced Gonzalez to bat from the right side of the plate.
Jose Altuve, who reached on an infield single, and Bregman scored on the play to erase a one-run deficit. Bregman (1-for-3 with a walk) homered an inning later off Indians right-hander Trevor Bauer, drilling a 1-1 slider 396 feet to left-center field for a critical insurance run.
Cole (1-0) was exceptional. He allowed three hits and recorded 12 strikeouts over seven dominant innings. His lone blemish came with two outs and a two-strike count against Indians shortstop Francisco Lindor in the third, with Lindor blasting a slider into the right field seats.
Cole recovered by striking out the side in the fourth and fanning two batters apiece in the fifth and sixth.
After the lengthy Houston rally in the bottom of the sixth, Cole returned to retire the side in order in the seventh inning, becoming just the second pitcher in postseason history to record at least 12 strikeouts without issuing a walk. New York Mets right-hander Tom Seaver did so against Cincinnati on Oct. 6, 1973, in Game 1 of the National League Championship Series.
Carrasco proved effective at inducing ground balls and keeping his teammates busy in support. He finished the season fourth in the American League in strikeouts with a career-high 231 yet produced only three while pitching 5 1/3 innings. — Reuters

Home sweet home for Cebu Sharks

CEBU — Considered as the hotbed of basketball, Cebu City hosted the Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League (MPBL) games for the first time this season and there’s no better way to be rewarded than seeing its local team, the Cebu Sharks-Casino Ethyl Alcohol winning Saturday night’s game against the favored Makati Skyscrapers.
Looking back, Cebu has been a city with rich basketball tradition.
University of San Jose Recolletos-Basak Coliseum, to which the double header of Saturday night’s matches were slated, had become a rich product of talents from the time of Abet Guidaben down to the period when Jojo Lastimosa, Dondon Ampalayo, and Zaldy Realubit formed a deadly triumvirate in making USJR the most powerhouse squad in the nation.
Cebu made its mark as well in regional basketball stage when teams like Mama’s Love and Lhuillier Jewelers, the Cebu Gems and the Cebu Niños were able to bring glory to the city.
Even the top two big men in the country today — reigning four-time PBA MVP June Mar Fajardo and Greg Slaughter, traced their roots in Cebu basketball and they were long-time college rivals, a rivalry that spilled over all the way to the pro league.
So when the MPBL Datu Cup brought the games to the Queen City of the South, the most radical basketball fans came out to support the Sharks, knowing that their team needed their backing the most.
Prior to the game, the Sharks had won just once in nine games and were staring at a four-game losing skid.
It’s not surprising that Patrick Cabahug and the rest of the mainstays played with much urgency so as not to disappoint the fans that came out in full force.
Cabahug led the way, finishing with 22 points, seven rebounds and hitting four three-point shots.
William McAlloney came away with a double-double effort, tallying 13 points and 10 boards while the rest of the gang helped any which way they can.
For Cabahug, pride is the only thing they’ve been thinking. There was a time when the team was held scoreless in one of the games the entire quarter and the squad bounced back strong the next game, beating inaugural staging champion Batangas City.
In front of the Cebuanos, Cabahug & company did not let them down.
The 2-8 standing of the Sharks is not an indication of how much resolve the team has. But make no mistake about it, this Cebu team is not about to roll over and die in the tournament. They’re determined to keep their playoffs hopes alive.
The victory at home could be the start of something new for the Sharks.
 
Rey Joble has been reporting PBA games for more than a decade. He is a member of the PBA Press Corps and Philippine Sportswriters Association.
reyjoble09@gmail.com

ALDS

If the mood in the visitors’ locker room of Fenway Park was somber following Game One of the American League Division Series (ALDS), it wasn’t just because the Yankees lost. It was because they did so after wasting a couple of grand opportunities. It was bad enough that they fell into an early 0-5 hole against Red Sox Ace Chris Sale, who, having pitched a mere 17 innings since August, hitherto appeared ripe for the picking. Worse still was their inability to keep pressure on an otherwise-shaky bullpen.
Indeed, the Yankees managed to get the bases loaded on the sixth inning after finally knocking Sale and limiting replacement Ryan Brasier’s stint on the mound to a run-producing forced out and a walk. Unfortunately, Brandon Workman steadied himself after another walk to induce Gleyber Torres to a swing and a miss for strike three, ending the threat. And when they tried to rally anew in the seventh, all they could produce with their bases-loaded, no-out chance was a single run.
Reflecting on the outcome, Yankees cleanup batter Giancarlo Stanton lamented his failure to get the job done in crucial situations. Perhaps the four-time All-Star could be forgiven; after all, it was his first-ever postseason appearance in his eight-year major league career. Meanwhile, sophomore Aaron Judge saw fit to look at the bright side; the effort, he said, would manifest itself in coming games, what with Red Sox manager Alex Cora burning through pitchers — including potential Game Three starter Rick Porcello — just to claim the win.
As things turned out, Stanton and Judge were both right. Living up to expectations, the Yankees made quick work of noted playoff underachiever David Price, scoring three runs by the second inning and forcing the Red Sox to use six pitchers all told en route to a convincing triumph. Given how Game One unfolded, they could very well have been up 2-0 in a best-of-five affair heading into homer-friendly confines.
In any case, the prognosis is bright. The Yankees have the momentum and, slated to host Games Three and Four, could conceivably end the series in their own park, where they are seven of seven in the playoffs the last two years. In other words, they’re where they want to be after winning 100 regular-season games: in control of their destiny against their arch rivals.
 
Anthony L. Cuaycong has been writing Courtside since BusinessWorld introduced a Sports section in 1994.

SWS poll: Majority agree President’s health a public matter

By Arjay L. Balinbin, Reporter
MAJORITY of Filipinos, at 61%, agree that President Rodrigo R. Duterte’s health is a public matter, according to the latest survey by the Social Weather Stations (SWS).
Nearly half of respondents polled by the SWS also believe that Mr. Duterte has health problems.
“The Third Quarter 2018 Social Weather Survey, conducted from September 15-23, 2018, found that 45% of adult Filipinos believe (17% strongly believe and 28% somewhat believe), and 26% do not believe (10% somewhat not believe and 16% strongly not believe), that Pres. Rodrigo Duterte has health problems. Twenty-nine percent are undecided about the matter,” the SWS said in its report released on Sunday, Oct. 7.
The survey also found that 55% of Filipinos said “they are worried (18% worried a great deal and 38% somewhat worried, correctly rounded) that the President “will have health problems.” Around 44% said they are “not worried (22% are not too worried and 23% are not worried at all, correctly rounded).”
The survey said further, “Pres. Duterte’s state of health is a public matter that is why the public should be informed of everything about this.”
The SWS report also noted that net satisfaction with the performance of Mr. Duterte “was higher at very good +68 among those who worry that he will have health problems, compared to the good +36 among those who do not worry about it.”
“It was a very good +58 among those who believe he has health problems, a very good +50 among those who are undecided about the matter, and a good +49 among those who do not believe he has health problems,” which means that the public satisfaction with the President “hardly varied” by people’s belief about his health. The SWS added that it also “did not vary by whether people consider his state of health a public matter (a very good +54) or a private matter (a very good +52).”
The survey results also showed that the net belief that Mr. Duterte has health problems “was highest in Metro Manila at +31 (53% believe, 23% not believe, correctly rounded), followed by Balance Luzon at +21 (45% believe, 24% not believe), Visayas at +14 (45% believe, 31% not believe), and Mindanao at +12 (39% believe, 27% not believe).” The SWS noted that it was “higher in overall urban areas (+29), compared to overall rural areas (+12). It was higher in classes D (+21) and ABC (+19) than in class E (+8).”
Meanwhile, the proportion of those who worry (% worried a great deal and % somewhat worried) that Mr. Duterte will have health problems was “highest in Mindanao at 61%, followed by Metro Manila at 59%, Balance Luzon at 53%, and the Visayas at 51%. Those who say Mr. Duterte’s state of health is a public matter was “highest in the Visayas at 65%, followed by Mindanao at 63%, Balance Luzon at 59%, and Metro Manila at 58%.”
Malacañang was sought for comment as of this reporting.
Last Saturday, Mr. Duterte made an unannounced trip to Hong Kong that even Mr. Roque was not aware of.
Mr. Roque, in a phone message to reporters at around 5:00 p.m. that day, said the President was in Davao City. “PRRD (President Rodrigo R Duterte) is now in Davao. FYI (for your information) Thanks,” he said.
However, Special Assistant to President (SAP) Christopher Lawrence “Bong” T. Go said in a phone message to reporters that the President arrived in Hong Kong on Saturday morning. “Madaling araw na dating kanina (He arrived at dawn),” he said.
The President, according to Mr. Go, was set to return to Manila on Sunday. He also posted on his Facebook page photos of Mr. Duterte in Hong Kong, together with his partner Cielito “Honeylet” S. Avanceña and youngest daughter Kitty, with a caption saying: “Bago maunahan ng mga fake news, kailangan din magpahinga ng Pangulo (Before fake news gets ahead [of us], the President also needs to rest).”
Last Friday, Mr. Roque said he was considering resigning after he was “taken aback” by the confirmation of a hospital visit by Mr. Duterte on Oct. 3, which he said he did not know about.
He said, “I need [the] weekend to think about my options. But as you can see, I cannot be effective as a spokesperson unless I know everything about the President. Now, people think I lied. I’m telling the nation, I did not — I did not know.”
“You know someone….(Foreign Affairs) Secretary Alan (Peter S.) Cayetano told me that I should not just pray for what I should do. He told me to look for an objective sign, and I think this is [the] objective sign that I’m looking for,” he also said.
Mr. Roque added that he will announce his decision today, Monday.

AFP chief: War with MILF ‘finally over’

By Vince Angelo C. Ferreras
ARMED FORCES of the Philippines (AFP) Chief of Staff General Carlito G. Galvez, Jr. officially announced the end of armed conflict between the military and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) on Saturday, Oct. 6.
Mr. Galvez visited the MILF’s Camp Darapan in Sultan Kudarat, Maguindanao, where he met with MILF chairperson Al Hajj Murad Ebrahim. “Today I can now declare that the war between the Armed Forces and the MILF is finally over. To my Commanders, let us embrace our brothers and sisters and give them respect and lasting peace that the Moro people deserve,” Mr. Galvez said.
Mr. Ebrahim welcomed the AFP chief and said that Mr. Galvez is always considered a friend of the MILF.
“The President is always very supportive and serious in his guidance to the AFP in sealing the peace process here in Muslim Mindanao,” Mr. Galvez said.
Early this year, AFP was already planning joint anti-terror operations with the MILF in Mindanao in the event of the Bangsamoro Organic Law’s enactment.
The meeting was attended by 6,000 MILF members who lined up on both sides of the 5-kilometer road from Cotabato City to Simuay, Sultan Kudarat.
Mr. Galvez was also the first military officer to be awarded with “Soldier of Peace Award” by the MILF.

Jeepney modernization hearing set Monday

By Camille A. Aguinaldo
THE SENATE on Monday will resume its inquiry into the Department of Transportation’s (DoTr) jeepney modernization program to thresh out issues that continue to hound the project, such as the insufficient government subsidy to jeepney drivers for upgraded vehicles.
Senator Grace S. Poe-Llamanzares, chair of the Senate committee on public services, said she will clarify with the DoTr the possible effects of the program to jeepney drivers’ jobs amid rising fuel prices.
“It is worrying because many depend on that and the problem with DoTr is that they want to hasten the modernization and to give franchises to those who can modernize quickly,” she told reporters in Pangasinan on Saturday.
“On Monday, we will discuss this in the Senate because we really want to know from DoTr what really is their plan because many will lose jobs, especially the jeepney drivers,” she added.
The DoTr plans to replace public utility vehicles aged 15 years or older under its Public Utility Vehicle (PUV) Modernization program. It had placed the cost of a new jeepney between P1.5 million to P1.8 million, with the government subsidizing P80,000 per vehicle.
Ms. Llamanzares said the P80,000 government subsidy was insufficient for the drivers who are required to purchase the upgraded jeepneys. She also noted that not many drivers could afford the loans because their profits were not enough to pay off the debt.
“The unit is more than one million (pesos), so how are they going to pay that? So if the DoTr is serious in giving jobs to our jeepney drivers, we should provide greater assistance to them,” she said.
“We are appealing that they come up with an orderly implementation. We are for modernization, but we don’t want drivers to lose their jobs,” Ms. Poe added.
Aside from the PUV modernization program, the Senate committee on public services will also tackle the Transport Network Vehicles Service (TNVS) sector and bills concerning the maritime sector.

Senate bill filed to create arbitration commission

By Camille A. Aguinaldo, Reporter
SENATOR Maria Lourdes Nancy S. Binay has filed a bill seeking to create a Philippine Arbitration Commission that will have jurisdiction over all disputes in medical malpractice, insurance laws, maritime laws, intellectual property law, and intra-corporate matters.
In her explanatory note, Ms. Binay said Senate Bill No. 2033, which was filed last Sept. 26, creates a governmental body that will address the recurring problem of congested cases pending in courts and the prolonged period of case resolutions.
“The mandatory arbitration before the Philippine Arbitration Commission would definitely alleviate the recurring problem of clogged dockets in our courts. Decongestion of cases will soon be realized as a number of cases could be taken out of the jurisdiction of the judiciary,” she said.
Ms. Binay also noted that the bill supplements the cases covered in Republic Act No. 9285 or the Alternative Dispute Resolution Act.
Under the bill, a sole arbitrator or three arbitrators called the Arbitral Tribunal are mandated settle a dispute or may act as mediator by written agreement. The arbitrators are accredited by the Commission.
The commission will be composed of a chairman, which the bill designates to the University of the Philippines (UP) College of law dean, and seven members to be appointed by the President.
Ex officio members of the commission will include the Secretaries of the Department of Health (DoH), the Department of Transportation (DoTr), the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) chairperson, the Insurance Commission chair, and the director general of the Intellectual Property Office.
Among the functions of the commission is to assist in the conduct of arbitration as well as to formulate an arbitration program and policies relating to the covered areas of dispute.
Ms. Binay said arbitration over areas of disputes, which involve cases of medical malpractice, insurance law, maritime laws, intellectual property law and intra-corporate matters, will allow involved parties the flexibility and autonomy to resolve conflicts, compared to the courts which are bound to strict rules of evidence.
Disputes from employer-employee relationships, territorial disputes with neighboring countries, and construction disputes are not covered by the proposed commission.
“With the greater transparency and high comfort of level doing business in the country, foreign investors are more inclined to invest here in our country. Accordingly, this bill will definitely augment their decision to shift here as it affords them greater democracy in settling disputes,” Ms. Binay said.

House bill filed on stiffer penalties against flying voters

By Charmaine A. Tadalan, Reporter
A BILL imposing stiffer penalties on “flying voters” has been filed at the House of Representatives ahead of the midterm elections in 2019.
House Bill 8371, authored by Rep. Robert Ace S. Barbers of the second district of Surigao del Norte, proposes to sanction violators with a fine ranging from P100,000 to P1 million and imprisonment of 6 to 12 years.
The penalties will be imposed on individuals who provide false information on an application for voter’s registration as well as on registering anew without cancelling a previous registration.
“Flying voters, as they are locally known, are those who are registered in multiple precincts and are used by politicians to get more votes,” Mr. Barbers said in the explanatory note of the bill.
“In order to systematically stop this practice, higher and stiffer penalties must be imposed to institute this election reform,” he added.
The measure will introduce the provisions to section 264 of the Omnibus Election Code, which currently only penalizes violators of election offense with 1 to 6 years of imprisonment, disqualification and a fine of up to P10,000.
Further, Mr. Barbers also filed House Bill 8372, which will mandate applicants to register one year before a regular election instead of 120 days; and 6 months before a special election, instead of 90 days.
“These bills will give the COMELEC (Commission on Election) ample time to check the legitimacy of the voter’s information and to clean up the COMELEC’s voters list,” he said in a statement, Sunday.
“It’s about time we ensure the veracity and efficiency of our voting processes. And through these legislations, I hope honest and clean politics will soon prevail,” Mr. Barbers also said.

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