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NFA adjusts reference price for rice imports after failing to draw bids

THE National Food Authority (NFA) Council has authorized an adjustment in the reference price for the import auction covering 203,000 metric tons (MT) of rice, in the hope that the new price will be more acceptable to key government-to-government suppliers Vietnam and Thailand.
Agriculture Secretary Emmanuel F. Piñol said on Wednesday that the initial reference price of $447.88 was well below the Thai and Vietnamese offers because it incorporated estimates of prices that suppliers from India or Pakistan might find acceptable.
“We included the prices of India and Pakistan which are lower than Vietnam and Thailand,” Mr. Piñol told reporters in a briefing, without disclosing the new reference price.
“Yesterday, following the observation made by members of the council, the reference prices were (adjusted to incorporate) the prices of Vietnam and Thailand,” Mr. Piñol said.
The NFA rejected most offers from Thailand and Vietnam in the first round of bidding, at which only 47,000 MT worth of contracts was awarded. The re-bid for the remaining 203,000 MT attracted no offers, endangering the import timetable for rice and threatening a supply crunch in low-cost rice during the yearend holidays.
The NFA Council authorized the import of 750,000 MT of rice in 2018, divided into three equal batches of 250,000 MT each. The initial 250,000 MT was initially scheduled for arrival in Philippine ports by Dec. 15, which many suppliers were said to have considered difficult to comply with.
“Yesterday, during the NFA Council meeting, the reference price was reviewed which I am not in liberty to disclose because it will compromise our bidding process,” Mr. Piñol said. Another bidding will be conducted next week, according to Mr. Piñol.
Mr. Piñol said that the terms of reference were not changed, with the date of arrival still Dec. 15 in various Philippine ports.
He added that there is enough low-cost NFA rice to meet demand.
“As of the moment, in the warehouses, we have stocks for about 33 days and we have another 43,000 metric tons (MT) coming by the end of November,” according to Mr. Piñol. — Reicelene Joy N. Ignacio

Tourism dep’t studying possible privatization of Duty Free stores

THE Department of Tourism (DoT) said that it is undertaking a review of Duty Free Philippines’ (DFP) operations to improve the retailer’s performance, with a decision on privatization possible.
At the department’s budget hearing at the House of Representatives on Wednesday, Undersecretary Arturo P. Boncato, Jr. said changes to DFP’s business model, an attached agency, are being studied.
“Duty Free is in the process of conducting a study to look for the best model in terms of moving it forward,” he said.
He added that the study will take several months and will evaluate all store sites.
“The study is going to take several months but this is going to be a comprehensive study that will take a look if the Duty Free is best for franchise or for privatization and the like,” he stressed.
Mr. Boncato said visitor arrivals totaled 5.9 million in the nine months to September, up 10% from a year earlier, highlighting the need to make DFP more competitive.
“This is in addressing the concern not only the quality of our stores but the continued increase in arrivals so it should follow that we have a continued increase in revenue from Duty Free,” Mr. Boncato said.
The DoT said it is seeking to increase the local content of stores for departing passengers.
“We noticed there’s a lack of local products sold for people leaving the country. There are fewer local items at the departure sites. We have started with local chocolates and they are strategically placed in our departure sites,” he said.
Last month, DFP opened its newest site, Luxe Duty Free in Pasay City. — Gillian M. Cortez

BIMP-EAGA eyed as pilot area for ASEAN energy link

By Carmelito Q. Francisco
Correspondent
DAVAO CITY — The Mindanao-Visayas power grid interconnection project is expected to pave the way for the pilot testing of the Philippines’ link to the energy network within the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).
The proposed ASEAN power grid is a component of the Master Plan for ASEAN Connectivity (MPAC).
“Mindanao seeks to pilot the country’s integration into the ASEAN power grid,” Romeo M. Montenegro, a deputy executive director who is in charge of power development at the Mindanao Development Authority, told BusinessWorld.
This will be undertaken through the Borneo-Mindanao Power Interconnection as proposed under the sub-grouping Brunei-Indonesia-Malaysia-Philippine-East ASEAN Growth Area (BIMP-EAGA).
Power interconnection facilities “such as submarine cable” will be set up between Mindanao and the Malaysian part of Borneo.
“Therefore, regional economic integration is not just confined to goods and services but also includes cross-border trade of electricity to achieve diversification,” Mr. Montenegro said.
Mr. Montenegro said continuing discussions on power sector issues within the BIMP-EAGA and the ASEAN, such as the Philippines’ higher rates due to the absence of energy subsidies, will eventually make the country a capable participant in the industry.
The P52-billion Mindanao-Visayas interconnection project will connect the southern to the central islands, which are already linked to Luzon.
In October, the National Grid Corp. of the Philippines (NGCP) broke ground on both landing sites of the 92-kilometer submarine cable project — in Dapitan City on the Mindanao side, and Santander, Cebu on the Visayan end.
The project is designed to carry about 450 megawatts of power between the two grids.

French gov’t to fund feasibility study for cable car system

THE Department of Transportation (DoTr) said it started working on a feasibility study for a cable car system in Metro Manila, funded by a 450,000-euro grant from France.
In a statement, the DoTr said it will now scout for areas in Metro Manila where the cable car may be built. The feasibility study is expected to last 10 months.
Transportation Secretary Arthur P. Tugade, who led the program launch in Clark, Pampanga, said possible routes being evaluated include a La Union to Baguio link and another from Caticlan on Panay island to Boracay, noting that cable has the potential “to boost tourism in those areas.”
“France was engaged in the process given that it has one of the best urban cable car systems in the world. Please note that this grant is merely for a feasibility study. The implementation phase will proceed based on the results of this study,” it said.
In July, Transportation Undersecretary for Administration and Finance Garry V. de Guzman said the French government offered a grant for the cable car feasibility study. France said it wants to look into urban centers and find locations that would connect the cable car to major thoroughfares for the transportation system’s pilot implementation.
Mr. Tugade has said that if the cable car plan goes ahead, he wants fares to be competitive against those of jeepneys, buses, taxis and trains.
He said when he first presented the cable car project in 2016 that cable cars have the potential to augment the government’s efforts at improving the flow of traffic in congested areas like Metro Manila. — Denise A. Valdez

NGCP readying Taguig-Baras transmission line

NATIONAL GRID Corp. of the Philippines (NGCP) is upgrading its network in Metro Manila by setting up a 500-kilovolt (kV) transmission line between Taguig and Baras, Rizal to help accommodate growing power demand.
“With the growing load and steadily increasing demand in Metro Manila and nearby provinces of Luzon, the reliability of power transmission is something that NGCP needs to secure,” it said in a statement on Wednesday.
The new line will run between Taguig City and Taytay, Binangonan, Baras, and Morong in the province of Rizal. The line will help decongest other substations serving Metro Manila and improve the reliability of the transmission system.
The country’s sole transmission network operator said initial ground work is underway for the project, which has an estimated cost of P9.5 billion.
“The new Taguig-Baras 500kV line is one of the major transmission network developments for Metro Manila to ensure that the power requirements of the country’s load center will be adequately and reliably served in the long term,” NGCP said.
Along with the new 500-kV line, a new Taguig 500-kV substation will be built plus another 230-kV transmission line traversing Taguig towards Taytay.
NGCP said the route survey for the project has been completed, but with the construction of the new Skyway portion along C-6, coordination meetings are set for the re-routing of a segment of the Taguig-Baras line.
The company said it was also working closely with local governments and various agencies on the initial stage of implementation, which includes the acquisition of right-of-way, securing of permits, and submission of required documents.
“We are hoping for the cooperation and support of the public as we aim for the timely completion of the project which will greatly benefit our customers in Metro Manila, Rizal, and nearby provinces,” it said.
The project is awaiting approval from the Energy Regulatory Commission. It is set to start construction by February 2019 and is targeted for completion by August 2020. — Victor V. Saulon

SMEs cite competition, product quality as top challenges

SMALL and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) cited intense competition as their biggest challenge, topping other factors the need to offer quality products and corruption, according to a study conducted by a Philippine think tank.
The Asian Institute of Management’s (AIM) Rizalino S. Navarro Policy Center said its 2018 SME survey found that 34.4% of 480 respondents identified competition as a “severe obstacle.”
In a briefing Wednesday discussing the survey results in Makati City, the policy center issued a report called “Drivers of SME Competitiveness in the Philippines.”
In it the policy center said: “On average, SMEs reported that they have experienced above-medium intensity of competition during the current year.”
Some 68.5% of SMEs reported that they have five competitors.
Competition was more frequently cited as a challenge than the need to deliver quality products, cited by 32.1% or respondents, and corruption, cited by 30.4%.
“Our findings show that low quality of products is more likely to be seen as a severe obstacle by medium firms, as well corruption,” said Maribell Daño-Luna, a senior researcher with the policy center.
Other challenges turned up by the study were lack of management skills and information on the industry; access to inputs and supplies and to market information; the cost of raw materials and other inputs; and access to markets, technology and credit.
Challenges associated with the government aside from corruption were regulation; lack of projects for SMEs; low quality of infrastructure; and political instability.
The 480 randomly selected respondents were from 12 cities in the National Capital Region and five in nearby Calabarzon region — the two areas accounting for 48% of the country’s SMEs.
The study also identified factors that were viewed by SMEs as enablers, including management skills (80.2% of respondents), employee skills (69%) and product quality (64.4%).
“Small firms are more likely to rate as very important enabler those that are related to good management skills. For medium firms, what matters most is the good quality of product,” Ms. Daño-Luna added.
Other enablers at the enterprise level were software and other information and communications technology tools; use of the Internet in selling and marketing products; credit access; and export markets.
Based on these findings, the policy center recommends strengthening government institutions, promoting a mind-set geared toward growth and increasing SMEs’ awareness of tools that can spur their growth.
“Strengthening institutions is crucial to curb inefficiency caused by corruption, poor infrastructure and complicated export processes — which hamper capacity of SMEs to compete,” it said.
“Increasing awareness of SMEs of the benefits of access to technology, finance, government programs, and linkages with large and foreign firms can allow them to take advantage of available opportunities,” the report added.
In 2016, about 99.6% of operating firms in the Philippines were micro, small and medium enterprises.
Under Republic Act 6977 or the Magna Carta for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises, a company is considered micro if it has assets not exceeding P3 million; small, if above P3 million and not exceeding P15 million; and medium if above P15 million and not exceeding P100 million. — Janina C. Lim

Top withholding agents — In for the greater good

“Any change, even a change for the better, is always accompanied by drawbacks and discomforts.”

— Arnold Bennett

As a tax practitioner, I rely on the rule of thumb that “when in doubt – withhold.” These days, this may no longer be the case as almost all local purchases of goods and services are now subject to withholding tax.
In a recent development aimed to simplify tax collection and the withholding tax system, the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) issued a letter notice to the public published on Oct. 8, pursuant to the provisions of Revenue Regulation (RR) No. 11-2018. For the guidance of the taxpaying public, the BIR identified the Top Withholding Agents (TWAs) under the jurisdictions of the Large Taxpayers Service (LTS) and Revenue Regions, by listing down all existing, additional, and delisted withholding agents from the current lists, effective Nov. 1.
Under Revenue Memorandum Order (RMO) 26-2018, TWAs shall include the following:

1. A Large Taxpayer under RR No. 1-1998, as amended by Sections 4.5, 5.1 and 5.2 under RR 17-2010;

2. Top twenty thousand (20,000) private corporations under RR No. 6-2009;

3. Top five thousand (5,000) individuals under RR No. 6-2009; or

4. Medium Taxpayers, and those under the Taxpayer Account Management Program (TAMP) pursuant to RMO No. 17-2017 and RR No. 10-2014, respectively.

Although the publication of the approved list in October will suffice as notice to the TWAs, the concerned Revenue District Offices (RDOs) may also prepare and personally serve individual written notices of inclusion to the TWAs under its jurisdiction, indicating the classification of the taxpayer.
However, in case a taxpayer had not received the formal notice or seen the publication of the list in October, the BIR posted on its website (https://www.bir.gov.ph) the list of TWAs, both individual and non-individual, as of Oct. 8.
Under RR No. 11-2018, a newly identified TWA is mandated to withhold the expanded withholding tax equivalent to 1% on purchase of goods and 2% on purchase of services from local/resident suppliers including non-resident aliens engaged in trade or business in the Philippines.
To clarify, the term “goods” pertains to tangible personal property; it excludes intangible personal property, as well as agricultural products which are defined under Section 2 of RR No. 2-1998. Further, the term “local resident suppliers of goods/services” pertains to a supplier from whom the TWA regularly purchases goods/services. Regular supplier means to whom the taxpayer has transacted at least six times, regardless of the amount per transaction. As a general rule, this term does not include a casual purchase of goods/services, i.e., purchase made from a non-regular supplier and oftentimes involving a single purchase. However, a single purchase which involves P10,000 or more shall be subject to withholding tax.
Another important thing that a TWA should consider is that the 1% and 2% withholding tax only applies to transactions other than those covered by other withholding tax rates under Section 2.57.2 of RR No. 2-1998, as amended. For example, lease payments for office space should still be subject to 5% withholding tax on rentals instead of the 2% withholding tax applicable to other services purchased from regular suppliers of TWAs. In contrast, payment for utilities which is not specifically subject to withholding tax under the regulations will be subject to 2% withholding tax as a regular purchase of services by a TWA.
The obligation to withhold the 1% and 2% withholding taxes on goods and services, respectively, shall commence on the first day of the month following the month of publication of the list. In this case, since the advisory and the list were published in October, it shall take effect starting Nov. 1. Withheld taxes shall be reported under BIR Form 0619-E and BIR Form 1601-EQ on a monthly and quarterly basis, respectively.
The TWA is also required to submit a list of regular suppliers of goods and/or services to the RDO having jurisdiction over its principal place of business on or before July 31 (for the first semester) and Jan. 31 (for the second semester) of each year, in CD format or through e-submission. The initial list, however, shall be submitted within 15 days from publication of the notice of inclusion as one of the TWAs. For those newly included in the list published on Oct. 8, the initial list must have been submitted on Oct. 23.
Apart from compliance with reportorial requirements, more importantly, the BIR relies on TWAs to ensure that there is efficient collection of taxes on a monthly basis to support the budgetary needs of the government, including funding for its ‘Build, Build, Build’ infrastructure projects.
Clearly, the new guidelines impose more responsibilities on those newly included TWAs to act as extension offices for pulling taxes together. The challenge is how to collect effectively and efficiently in support of the BIR’s revenue targets.
Although the new directive shifts the burden to TWAs, on the positive side, it provides them an opportunity to serve the greater good of society. After all, the policy change will redound to the public’s benefit, the inconvenience notwithstanding.
The views or opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of Isla Lipana & Co. The content is for general information purposes only, and should not be used as a substitute for specific advice.
 
May Anne Tolentino is a manager at the Client Accounting Services group of Isla Lipana & Co., the Philippine member firm of the PwC network.
+63 (2) 845-2728
may.anne.tolentino@ph.pwc.com

UP Fighting Maroons end Final Four drought

By Michael Angelo S. Murillo
Senior Reporter
AFTER two decades the University of the Philippines Fighting Maroons are back in the Final Four of the University Athletic Association of the Philippines after defeating the De La Salle Green Archers, 97-81, in their all-important match on Wednesday at the Mall of Asia Arena.
Bent on ending years of futility right at the onset of the match, the Maroons took advantage of every opportunity they got, going on a fast start and never letting go of the gas pedal to stay ahead of the Archers the rest of the way to book the historic win.
The win improved UP to 8-6, good for joint third with La Salle. But since the Maroons have a better quotient than the Archers they edged out the latter for number three.
It marked the first time that the Diliman-based team booked a place in the semifinals of the UAAP since 1997.
The contest was tight early on before Aljun Melecio jolted the Archers to a mini-run to hold a 12-8 advantage in the opening five minutes of the first quarter.
Javi and Juan Gomez De Liano though would spark a 14-4 UP run after to overtake the Archers, 22-16, inside one minute.
The Maroons stayed ahead, 25-17, after the first 10 minutes.
UP kept pouring it at the start of the second quarter, outscoring La Salle, 7-2, to extend its lead to 13 points, 32-19, by the 6:55 mark.
The Archers tried to shoot their way back but Juan Gomez De Liano and Bright Akhuetie kept the Maroons at a safe distance.
The count stood at 44-27 for UP with three minutes left and the Maroons would maintain control thereafter with a 52-29 advantage by the halftime break.
Recognizing they allowed their opponents much leeway in the opening half, the Archers came out more aggressive in the third period.
Back-to-back baskets by Justine Baltazar pushed La Salle closer, 52-33.
But UP’s Janjan Jaboneta and Jun Manzon scored seven straight points after to pull the Maroons away anew, 59-38, with a little over seven minutes remaining.
From there La Salle made attempts to overhaul UP’s lead, behind Andrei Caracut, but had little success as the Maroons continued to hold sway, 75-54, entering the final canto.
On the ropes to start the fourth period, the Archers scrambled to make things happen.
They cut their deficit to 16 points, 75-59, with eight minutes to go.
But that was the closest they would get as the Maroons continuously found ways to frustrate them.
UP held a 92-74 lead with two minutes left and it would move to park the victory after.
Juan Gomez De Liano led UP with 27 points with brother Javi adding 19.
Akhuetie finished with 16 points and 20 rebounds.
La Salle was led by Baltazar with 22 points and Melecio 19.
“I did not expect the kind of response from my players but I’m very happy with the win. Happy for the community,” said UP coach Bo Perasol postmatch.
The Archers now await the game between Far Eastern University and Adamson University on Nov. 18. An FEU win forces a playoff between it and La Salle for number four.
SEVENTH STRAIGHT WIN
Meanwhile, earlier in the day, the defending champions Ateneo Blue Eagles won their seven straight game to finish the elimination round with a 12-2 record, on top of the standings.
The Eagles feasted on the University of Santo Tomas Growling Tigers, 102-62, in a game that the former dominated from the start.
Ateneo, which played sans head coach Tab Baldwin who was undergoing medical tests, jump-started things with a 16-2 run in the first five minutes of the opening quarter and never looked back after.
Ange Kouame led Ateneo with 22 points and 10 rebounds.
Will Navarro had 15 points and nine boards while Jolo Mendoza and Bryan Andrade each had nine points for the Eagles, who are the top seeds in the Final Four and will face the number four team.
For UST it was Renzo Subido who top-scored with 18 point with Tobi Agustin adding 15 and Joshua Marcos 13.
“We just wanted to finish the elimination round strong. We played as a team and just stayed aggressive,” said Navarro after the game.
The loss was the fourth in a row for UST, which finished their campaign in Season 81 with a 5-9 card, good for sixth place.

Eriksson welcomes Azkals’ good fighting spirit in Singapore win

By Michael Angelo S. Murillo
Senior Reporter
THE Philippine men’s national football team’s era under coach Sven-Goran Eriksson sailed off well with the Azkals winners at the onset of their 2018 AFF Suzuki Cup bid with a 1-0 victory over Singapore in Group B play at the Panaad Park and Football Stadium in Bacolod City on Tuesday.
In his first official game as Azkals coach, Mr. Eriksson guided the team to the win that saw Patrick Reichelt providing the marginal goal in the 78th minute, and the former England coach was left impressed with how the whole team showed “good fighting spirit” throughout.
“We got the three points but it was not an easy game. Singapore has very good players and they played very direct. It’s very difficult to play against them but I think we had a very good game technically and we had good fighting spirit and I’m very happy for the whole country and our team,” said Mr. Eriksson after their win that notched for them the full three points that had them sharing early group leadership.
The match against Singapore was tightly fought in the opening half with both teams having their chances but could not consummate them, resulting in a nil-nil score at the break.
In the second half, the Azkals came out more aggressive and made telling adjustments in their attack, taking the fight to Singapore and in the process found themselves in solid scoring opportunities.
Their effort eventually paid dividends in the 78th minute when Mr. Reichelt converted a pass from captain Phil Younghusband, going through traffic and puncturing the goal, sending the hometown crowd into celebration.
The visitors tried to get back the goal for the remainder of regulation and in the added five minutes and had its chances, but the Philippine defense would hold its own to preserve the win.
Successful in their first plunge in this year’s edition of the Suzuki Cup, Mr. Eriksson said they hope to build on what he considered to be an important win and expressed bullishness that the team would only improve as the tournament moves forward.
“It was a very good win, a very important win against one of the top teams in the tournament. So these three points are very important for us. I think we deserved it. The boys deserved it. I think we were the better team and I’m very happy. It’s a good start,” said Mr. Eriksson, who was signed by Azkals in October in what was hailed as a coup for the Philippines.
“The goal is first to get through the group stage and the win today helps that. I definitely have more knowledge now than a week ago after working with the players,” he added.
Next stop for the Azkals is a match with Timor-Liste on Nov. 17 in Malaysia.
In the Suzuki Cup, the top two teams in the two groupings at the end of the home-and-away group play advance to the knockout crossover semifinals.
The Philippines is bracketed in what many consider as the “Group of Death” as apart from Singapore and Timor-Liste it is lumped with defending champion Thailand and runner-up Indonesia.
In Group A are Malaysia, Myanmar, Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos.

Malditas fall short of sweep but advance to next round of qualifiers

THE Philippine women’s national football team did not get the sweep it was angling for in the opening round of the 2020 Olympic Football Asian Qualifiers but the Malditas are nonetheless advancing to the next phase of the competition after finishing second in their group.
Lost to Chinese Taipei, 5-0, on Tuesday at the Hisor Central Stadium in Tajikistan in their final game in Group A, the Malditas had to settle for second place with a 3-1 record.
It was enough though to advance to the second round of the qualifiers set for April next year where they hope to make further waves in the hopes of advancing to the Olympics in Tokyo, Japan.
Against Chinese Taipei, the Philippines tried hard to keep in step with its opponent and was successful for much of the opening half.
But when the Chinese-Taipei broke through in the 41st minute care of Lai Li Chin, it was simply unstoppable for the Philippine Malditas.
After that goal, a second came three minutes later from Lee Hsiu-chin.
Three more goals came in the second half – Yu Hsiu-chin (57’), Ms. Lee (65’) and Lin Hsin-hui (81’) – to complete the rout for Chinese-Taipei.
The loss halted what was an impressive run for the Malditas in round one of the qualifiers that had them beating Singapore, 9-0, host Tajikistan, 3-1, and Mongolia, 5-1.
The second place finish in the first round of the qualifiers was a continuation of the spirited showing of the women’s team of late, including that in the AFC Women’s Asian Cup Jordan 2018 last April and the AFF Women’s Championship 2018 in Palembang in July.
In the second round, the Malditas and Chinese Taipei are joined by Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Iran, Jordan, Myanmar, Nepal, Palestine, Uzbekistan, and Vietnam. — Michael Angelo S. Murillo

Barangay Ginebra lives to fight another day

By Michael Angelo S. Murillo
Senior Reporter
DEFENDING champions Barangay Ginebra San Miguel Kings staved off elimination on Wednesday as they defeated the Magnolia Hotshots Pambansang Manok, 107-103, in Game Three of their best-of-five Philippine Basketball Association Governors’ Cup finals series at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
Down 0-2 in the series entering the contest, the Kings dug very deep in Game Three to survive and extend the series.
They did so by bucking a rough second quarter and stepping up in the second half before hanging tough in the end to narrow their series deficit.
Barangay Ginebra held a slim one-point lead, 23-22, at the end of the first quarter after which Magnolia turned things around, outscoring the Kings, 36-19, in the second quarter, led by Marc Barroca, to hold a 58-42 lead at the halfway point of the contest.
In the third quarter, import Justin Brownlee and Scottie Thompson led a ferocious fight back by the Kings.
They came to within seven points, 66-59, midway into the frame and eventually seized the lead, 79-78, with three seconds to go.
But Mr. Barroca gave the lead back to the Hotshots, 81-79, with a buzzer-beating heave to finish the quarter.
The Kings got it going at the start of the fourth, racing to a 21-8 scoring lead to build an 11-point cushion, 100-89, after the first seven minutes.
Magnolia though would not let Barangay Ginebra pull away, answering with a 12-1 blitz in the next four minutes to tie the count at 101-all.
Import Romeo Travis scored with 53 seconds to go to push the Hotshots to the lead, 103-101.
Mr. Thompson got back with a deuce nine seconds later to tie the knot anew at 103-all.
A passing error by Paul Lee with 33 ticks left gave back the ball to Barangay Ginebra, which made full use of it with LA Tenorio scoring with 14 seconds remaining to make it 105-103 for the Kings.
Mr. Lee tried to win it for Magnolia with a triple with four seconds to go but it failed to connect, forcing them to foul Mr. Tenorio off a rebound.
Mr. Tenorio iced the game by coolly draining his freebies for the final score.
Barangay Ginebra was led by Mr. Brownlee with 46 points, 19 rebounds and five assists.
Mr. Thompson had 15 points, seven rebounds and five assists while Mr. Tenorio had 14 points.
Mr. Barroca was the high-point man for the Hotshots with 19 followed by Mr. Lee with 17 and Ian Sangalang 16.
Magnolia import Travis only had 12 points to go along with 10 boards.
Game Four of the series is set for Nov. 16 at the Ynares Center in Antipolo City.

Poverty data vs banking, mobile phones and Internet access

“Something terribly wrong with a program that grows ever larger even when prosperity for everyone else is increasing. We should measure welfare’s success by how many people leave welfare, not by how many are added.”

— Ronald Reagan,
40th US President

Among the economic phenomena that I am skeptical about is the continued high poverty incidence of the Philippines. I often go to provinces especially in rice farming villages and among the things I notice is that the poor hardly ride animals or bicycles anymore, they ride motorcycles, electric bikes, or buses and vans. Farmers hardly use cows and carabaos to till the farms, they use hand tractors or big tractors. The poor now communicate via e-mails and social media, not slow mails or smoke signal.
I suspect that there is some corruption in the design and measurement of poverty because there is big public money involved in high poverty: multi-billion pesos of continuing loans with WB-ADB; big budget yearly for welfare agencies like DSWD, DepEd, CHEd, DoH; big pork barrel (explicit and implicit) for legislators, national and local governments; big projects for consultants and academics; even big indirect funding for NGOs.
From ADB’s Key Indicators for Asia and the Pacific (KI) 2018, here are some data on poverty (see Table 1).
Table1
See that the Philippines has higher poverty incidence than Cambodia, Indonesia and Vietnam, and nearly similar as India and Laos?
There are several possible proxies for poverty, like low access to formal credit markets like bank accounts, low access to modern telecoms and the web. From four selected factors, they belie the high poverty incidence data of the Philippines: Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam (CLMV) people have lower access to formal credit markets, LTE mobile and Internet access. India and Indonesia have lower access to LTE network, mobile phones, Internet access, etc. (see Table 2).
Table2
Reagan was right. Any serious, honest and successful welfare, anti-poverty programs by government should result in a decline in the number of the poor and state-dependent, subsidy-seeking people.
What we often have are either dishonest, unsuccessful welfare and anti-poverty programs so that the current poverty incidence is similar to those three decades ago and will remain so two decades from now. Or the programs somehow were successful but implementers, lenders and consultants have invented new schemes so that revised definitions and measurements of poverty always lead to high poverty incidence.
So government invents new taxes and fees, or raise existing taxes and fees, to finance new programs and bureaucracies to “fight poverty” endlessly.
If there is more honesty in reducing poverty, the budget for welfarism, the number of bureaucracies and politicians, the rates of taxes and fees, should flatline and even decline through time. This is hardly happening.
Here is an old anecdote about poverty:

Politician: Thank God for poverty, it provides my political platform.

Consultant: Thank God for poverty, my occupation is to study it.

ODA lender: Thank God for poverty, we endlessly lend money for it.

Poor: I feel so appreciated, thank God.

Bienvenido S. Oplas, Jr. is the president of Minimal Government Thinkers.
minimalgovernment@gmail.com

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