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Analysts: Takeover at BoC testing waters on nationwide martial law

By Arjay L. Balinbin
Reporter
WITH his order for the Philippine military to take over the Bureau of Customs (BoC), President Rodrigo R. Duterte is “testing the waters” for the declaration of a nationwide military rule, analysts said.
“Right now, what’s happening in the BoC is just ‘testing the waters.’ I would look at it that way,” Polytechnic University of the Philippines (PUP) sociology professor Louie C. Montemar said in a phone interview last Saturday, Nov. 3.
For his part, University of the Philippines (UP) Law Professor Antonio G.M. La Viña said there is a big chance for the President to declare martial law nationwide given his “militarian” style of leadership.
“I always put that the chance of the President declaring martial law is at 75% because that’s his frame of mind. He solves things by depending on the military,” Mr. La Viña said in a phone interview on Oct. 30.
Mr. Montemar added that if the military’s supervision of the BoC “succeeds in a way or if they package it as if it is succeeding, then that can be the basis for the President to say that they will need to make militarization [in other agencies] happen.”
“The President can really do it [martial law], but he needs good timing for it…. He’s been trying to impress to people that there are threats to safety and security for instance, and he is again raising the issue of the communists’ [ouster plot]…. He is raising various conspiracy theories…. You can see the pattern,” Mr. Montemar also said.
He noted as well that the President is being “careful about presenting the idea” of a military rule in the country. “Probably, he is thinking also that why declare it when we can actually do what can be done without declaring it?” Mr. Montemar said.
For Mr. La Viña, other government agencies should be alarmed that they may get “militarized” too after the BoC. “Of course, because what’s next? If there are agencies that are not working, then you will let the military…take over? Actually it’s wrong because it doesn’t solve the problem. The military is not a band-aid [solution] for everything. The military is good at fighting wars. That’s what they are trained for,” he said.
“What’s very clear to me is that the President is more inclined on militarian solutions to things than anything else….I’d say we really have to watch out for the declaration of martial law and the declaration of military takeover of many [agencies] in the country,” he also said.
On placing the BoC under military rule, Mr. Montemar said: “I really don’t see the logic of the order. One, it is illegal; number two, historically, we have seen how the military itself can be very corrupt, coming from our experience with the past dictator; and number three, there is no really a written order….As I said, the President is not inclined to doing things in the legal way.”
For his part, Mr. La Viña said: “The problem with the President is that he has not appointed the right people….I’ll take a risk in saying that [former Customs commissioners Nicanor E.] Faeldon and [Isidro S.] Lapeña are good people and they are not corrupt, but they are not competent. They had no clue. They were clueless about what they had to do in the institution.”
The administration, according to Mr. Montemar, “needs to learn lessons from the past.”
“The military, with all due respect, is an institution that is very proud of its integrity. But actual experiences in the past showed that this integrity could have a price. Civilians are also like that, so there is no guarantee that either civilians or military men will not be involved in graft and corruption….It’s how you design the system in the agency. It’s how you set up the culture of that agency to better ensure the integrity of the institution. It’s not a matter of who will be there, but it is how the system works and how things are really managed,” he said further.
In his remarks in Davao City last Oct. 28, Mr. Duterte vowed that there will be no martial law declaration in the second half of his term, but stressed that he will use the “strongest tools” in dealing with crimes in the country.
Presidential Spokesperson Salvador S. Panelo was sought for comment as of press time.
For her part, Vice-President Maria Leonor G. Robredo said in her radio show on Sunday, “Hindi militarization iyong solusyon. Dapat tingnan bakit ba nagkakaganito iyong Customs?” (Militarization isn’t the solution. We need to look at why this is happening in Customs).
“Hindi naman bawal na mag-appoint ka ng mga dating militar, pero para sabihin mo na i-a-under na sa military iyong Bureau of Customs, mali iyon” she added. (Appointing former military men is not prohibited, but to say that you will place the Bureau of Customs under the military, that’s wrong). — with Charmaine A. Tadalan

Southeast Asian journalists flag culture of impunity

By Vince Angelo C. Ferreras
FIFTY-FIVE percent of journalists in Southeast Asia said the culture of impunity is a major concern in their countries, according to a report by international media groups.
Commemorating the International Day to End Impunity for Crimes Against Journalists last Nov. 2, the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) and the South East Asia Journalist Unions (SEAJU) launched the preliminary findings of their joint study on the safety of journalists which surveyed 1,000 journalists from Southeast Asia.
The survey showed that one in two journalists believes their government’s response to impunity was deemed worsening or extremely bad. Meanwhile, 44% of journalists in Southeast Asia felt that media freedom declined in their respective countries in the past 12 months.
“The systematic failure of governments in South East Asia to act to ensure the safety and security of the media is evident from the survey findings. This research is an opportunity for action to tackle impunity and guarantee the safety of the media,” said IFJ in a statement.
The joint study also showed that the justice system (23%) is considered the top key influencer on impunity among journalists. It was followed by political leadership (19%), government (16%), and the police authority (11%).
Moreover, IFJ and SEAJU pointed out that working conditions, cyber attack, physical attack, and arrest and detention were the biggest threats to journalists in 2018.
“The findings of the survey unequivocally show that impunity for assaults on journalists and the repression of press freedom and free expression has been steadily worsening throughout the region. This means not only do we journalists need to further strengthen our ranks and cooperate across borders to protect ourselves and improve our welfare, we will also need to undertake more direct engagements with our audiences, the people we serve, and get them firmly on our side,” said SEAJU in a statement.
IFJ and SEAJU, however, also noted positive advancements in behalf of safety of journalists in some Southeast Asian countries. In Timor Leste, not a single journalist has been jailed in connection with their work. Meanwhile, the change of government in Malaysia early this year has opened an opportunity for media freedom to flourish.
However, the Philippines, the third deadliest country for journalists, is facing new threats and challenges such as online trolls and campaigns that make them feel unsafe online and offline.
United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres for his part said: “In just over a decade, more than a thousand journalists have been killed while carrying out their indispensable work. Nine out of ten cases are unresolved, with no one held accountable.”
He added, “I call on Governments and the international community to protect journalists and create the conditions they need to do their work…. Reporting is not a crime.”

Just joking, Malacañang again claims on Duterte tirade vs church

MALACAÑANG again came to the defense of President Rodrigo R. Duterte, asserting that his most recent statement about the Catholic Church was just a joke. In his remarks in Cauayan City, Isabela last Nov. 1, All Saints’ Day, Mr. Duterte questioned the celebration saying, “Bakit naman may (Why is there) All Souls’ Day (then), All Saints’ Day. Hindi nga natin alam kung sino ‘yang mga santong sino na mga g*** na ‘yun. Mga lasenggo (We don’t even know who those silly saints are. They are drunkards).” Mr. Duterte went on to say that people should just put their faith in him. “I’ll give you one patron…. Get hold of a picture of mine. ‘Yan ang ilagay niyo sa (Put that on your) altar — Santo Rodrigo.” Presidential Spokesperson Salvador S. Panelo, in a statement released on Saturday night, said, “Actions should be given more weight than the spoken words when one ascertains the true attributes of a person for certainly actions speak louder than words.” He added, “A joke is a joke and the same does not require an explanation. Nor should it be given as a religious slight.” He noted as well that the “strength and credibility of a religious faith that has been there for more than two thousand years and survived wars and internecine cannot be affected by what some deem as an assault by non-believers nor will its faithfuls be offended by any playful jab on its saints.” — Arjay L. Balinbin

World Tsunami Day: Giant waves rare in PHL, but could be devastating, says Phivolcs

TSUNAMIS ARE rare in the Philippines, but the country remains vulnerable to giant sea swells due to offshore faults and trenches, the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) cautions in observance of World Tsunami Day on Nov. 5. “We should be aware of all the earthquake hazards that could affect us, and prepare for it, not only the ground shaking caused by large earthquakes, but also other hazards like tsunami,” Undersecretary Renato U. Solidum, Jr., officer-in-charge of Phivolcs, said in a statement. The country is surrounded by offshore trenches such as those in Manila, Negros, Sulu, Cotabato, the Philippine Trench in the east, and the East Luzon Trough. Mr, Solidum said it is crucial to sustain community-level awareness about earthquakes and tsunamis, focusing on the recognition of natural signs, as well as setting up warning and evacuation procedures. One of the past tsunamis was in Mindoro on Nov.15, 1994, triggered by a magnitude 7.1 earthquake, where 38 people drowned. Mr. Solidum said, “It is important we learn from the past experiences so we know how we can prepare in case it happen again in the future.”

Cebu quarry ban lifted except in Naga, Carmen

THE BAN on small-scale quarry operations across Cebu has been lifted by the Provincial Environment and Natural Resources Office (PENRO), except for those in the town of Carmen, where cracks in a site have been found, and in Naga City, where there extensive landslides in September that killed more than 70 people. PENRO head Jayson P. Lozano said the technical opinion of a geologist and other mining experts will be sought, including necessary corrective measures, before deciding on these two areas. While the ban has been lifted in most parts of the province, PENRO said it continues to monitor the implementation of corrective measures to neutralize potential hazards. In Talisay City, PENRO suggested to QM Builders to implement a “benching method” on their quarry site to mitigate the risk of having a disastrous landslide. The firm is given 90 days to address the issue. Some families residing near the quarry site in Barangay Lagtang have been evacuated. — The Freeman

Davao MSMEs seen to benefit from Chinese consulate opening

MICRO, SMALL and medium enterprises (MSMEs) are expected to benefit from the increased tourism and trade that will be prompted by the opening of a Chinese consulate general in Davao City. “Chinese tourists have been taking over the world … and with the opening of the Chinese Consulate General in Davao City timed with the launching of the direct flight of (Cathay) Dragon from Davao to Hong Kong, we anticipate a remarkable impact on tourism and trade,” MSMEs Development Council (MSMEDC)-Mindanao Representative Mary Ann M. Montemayor said in an interview. “They are filling hotels, tourist buses, cruise ships and Davao/Mindanao will now be a test bed on how attractive we will be,” she said. Ms. Montemayor also said that the existing sisterhood agreement between Davao and Nanning in China will likewise ensure that trade, investment and tourism will be enhanced. “As they say, the ball is in our hands… it is now incumbent upon us to play our cards right,” she said. The consular office was inaugurated on Oct. 28 by Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi during a two-day visit for bilateral meetings. — Carmencita A. Carillo

Agribusiness, tourism to get boost from revived Manila-Davao shipping route

THE REVIVAL of the Manila-Davao shipping route, launched on Oct. 28, was welcomed by the business sector as a boost to tourism and agricultural trade. “This will have a great impact in the local economy, especially in the tourism side,” Mindanao Business Council Chair Vicente T. Lao said. The route is being covered by the 2GO Group Inc., using its main vessel St. Michael the Archangel, which can carry 1,900 passengers and as much as 100 TEU (twenty-foot equivalent unit) of containers. “This is really a welcome development. This will give an alternative to our travelers to take the shipping route in going to and from Manila,” Davao City Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Inc. President Arturo M. Milan said. Councilor Al Ryan S. Alejandre, chair of the committee on tourism, said the passenger terminal at the Sasa Port has also been renovated to provide better facilities. “We are also coordinating with 2GO since one of the owners is Davao’s Dennis Uy,” Mr. Alejandre said. — Carmencita A. Carillo

The Third Telco Project, Winner’s Curse and Sustainability

The government’s third telco project managed by the DICT seems on the verge of naming the lucky winner of the third player race based on the highest committed level of service (HCLoS) involving price and internet speed. The winner will operate within a narrow corridor of performance: it has to offer faster internet service at the same or at a lower price than currently on offer. The winner shall have posted a performance bond of P14 billion which will be forfeited if its performance falls below committed levels. It will then have to spend P40 billion in the first year and P240 billion in the succeeding five years. Among the committed indicators is the allocation of the capital spending: 40% for operating expenditure, 20% for broadband and 40% for national coverage. By Nov. 7 at 10 a.m., we will know the lucky winner. Or will the prize be a “winner’s curse”?
A “winner’s curse” usually applies to auction outcomes where the bidders overestimate the present value of the asset under auction, overbid and the eventual winner pays much more than what the asset is worth. This is common in spectrum auctions where the asset under auction is a share of the electromagnetic spectrum. The true value of the spectrum depends upon the size and growth of the cellphone market which has inherent uncertainty attached to them. The bidding of the 3G radio spectrum in 2000 using the Vickrey or second price sealed bid auction raised astronomical revenues for European governments (£22.5 billion in the UK, e.g.). The overpaying winner defaults on its bid and the final harvest is a loss for all. Dominant cable operator NTL (National Transcommunication, Ltd.) in the UK failed its bid and sought Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in 2002.
The DICT rejected the open auction preferred by the Department of Finance in favor of HCLoS. But HCLoS remains a tournament with the bid parameter being the highest committed level of service instead of the giveback to the government, as was in the auction for CALAX. One recalls that the PNoy government realized P28 billion giveback from the CALAX rebid and some people wondered whether Metro-Pacific fell into a winner’s curse. The HCLoS bidders could also overestimate the present value of the extra spectrum on offer and the market demand and bid too low a service price for a given internet speed which can translate into future financial losses. This will also be effectively a winner’s curse and can lead to default, forfeiture of the bond and dislocation.
telco
One cannot tell in advance with any accuracy whether a winner’s curse has resulted because it is an uncertainty gamble. When Manila Water won the East Side concession for water service in Metro Manila at P2.31/m3, some people thought Manila Water stumbled into a winner’s curse. But Manila Water made it work, while Maynilad — which started with a P4.96/m3 for the West Side concession — stumbled and the concession was sold to another company.
I am not privy to the details of the contract that the winner and the government will eventually ink but there will be surefire differences with the water concession contract. The water concessionaires were, in their own franchise area, true monopolists and are regulated by MWSS. The third telco will form a triopoly with the incumbents. The capital spending of the incumbents will not be subject to a floor like that of the entrant. And their capital allocation will not be circumscribed like the entrant’s. The entrant cannot presumably raise capital in the stock market where stocks are anonymously traded; since it may that way end up owned by the incumbent telcos. It is expected to expand coverage, presumably where the incumbents are absent. The absence of incumbents means that the unserved markets are unprofitable and thus would mean financial loses for the entrant. These strictures make for costly rigidities for the entrant. It is expected to compete in the same footing in the market with the incumbents but it starts with a handicap.
The impact of the third telco on consumer welfare depends upon the extent of the collusive behavior in the extant duopoly market and on the new efficiencies the third telco introduces. A third telco parleying a newer lower cost technology will exert competitive pressure on the incumbents but how much no one knows. This much we know. First, we know that San Miguel Corp. sat on a franchise owned by a subsidiary Vega Telecoms of the 700 MHz spectrum for six years before it was sold to the incumbents. A potential third telco player, especially one already owning a franchise and one with the financial clout of San Miguel Corp., should have already exerted a competitive pressure on incumbents to improve services. This is a variant of the effect of an extant “competitive fringe.” Although the collapse of the partnership with Telstra may have prompted the sale, a better explanation may be that the risk-weighted returns did not justify the investment in a market that had plumbed the depths of tingi-tingi. Second, the Philippines already had a triopoly in the past when Sun Cellular entered in 2001 and introduced unlimited call and text services. That prompted the two incumbents to offer a similar suite of services. But Sun Cellular itself could not sustain its early momentum and sold out to PLDT Smart. Third, in the 1990s, there were even more telco companies but which consolidated into two today. One can view this consolidation as a sinister rent-seeking conspiracy but it could just be scale and network economies. What if the current duopoly is a “natural duopoly,” in which case more than two firms is unsustainable?
 
Raul V. Fabella is a retired professor of the UP School of Economics and a member of the National Academy of Science and Technology. He gets his dopamine fix from hitting tennis balls with wife Teena and bicycling.

Driving TRAIN: Angara’s legacy

It is unfortunate that some quarters have criticized Senator Sonny Angara for his role in shepherding the tax reform legislation, known as TRAIN, in the Senate. These critics have even called on voters to reject Senator Angara, who is seeking reelection in 2019.
Though I had sharply criticized Senator Angara in the past for allowing vested interests to be accommodated, he ultimately had the TRAIN passed. It’s good enough that as the Chair of the Ways and Means Committee, he facilitated the approval of this landmark reform.
The critics have misunderstood TRAIN, but I am confident that in the future it will be seen as a turning point in Philippine economic history — for correcting decades-old structural problems in our tax system and for generating sustained revenue to finance long-term development.
It was certainly a thankless task for the reelectionist senator to take up tax legislation, in which the primary but contentious feature is an increase in the fuel tax and other excise taxes. He did not avoid his responsibility of sponsoring the TRAIN bill, and he delivered despite the political backlash.
Senator Angara no doubt is aware of the sad experience of Senator Recto who authored the unpopular E-VAT law during Arroyo’s presidency. Recto’s loss in the Senate was wrongly attributed to his championing the E-VAT. But then Gloria Arroyo was unpopular and her presidency had an asterisk. (Remember the crisis brought about by “Hello Garci”?)
Had Senator Angara derailed the TRAIN (and he was in a position to do so as Chair of the powerful Ways and Means Committee), we would have had trouble funding investments in education, health care, infrastructure, and other economic and social services. We would have risked downgrading our creditworthiness. We would have abandoned AmBisyon 2040.
Senator Angara may be many things, but his sponsorship of TRAIN suggests that he can have nerves of steel when he chooses to fight. Sponsorship of difficult but necessary reforms is not for the faint-hearted. One who can steer a critical measure despite its being controversial shows strength of character. That is admirable in a leader; some might even say such leader is presidential.
While TRAIN could have been better without the compromises, all in all, it is a good reform. One that will benefit not just the present but also future generations as Senator Angara said himself in his TRAIN sponsorship speech in September last year:
“As directly elected servants of the public, the Senate has and is continuously listening to our people. We have heard them cry out for many things… All of this is possible with [the] right mix of policy decisions. Decisions that will open up opportunities for our young population. A population which will stay young, well into the middle of this century. This is an advantage we have over our regional neighbors. If we invest heavily in our young people today, a generation from now, we will see more Filipino families leading comfortable and healthy and prosperous lives with better opportunities for their children, and their children’s children. The TRAIN is one of the crucial policy decisions we can make to move our country and our people forward.”
Now, I hope he can pass two other pending (and equally challenging) proposals in his Committee, namely the tobacco tax hike bills of Senators Manny Pacquiao and JV Ejercito (which will provide the funding for the Universal Health Care law and the TRABAHO bill (which will modernize fiscal incentives and expand investment opportunities).
Such will cement his legacy. He will distinguish himself from those who grandstand, those who are myopic, and those who have no guts. As the saying goes, no guts, no glory.
If there is a Sonny Angara legacy that we must remember, it should be Tax Reform. And this I will remember when I vote in the 2019 elections.
 
Karla Michelle Yu is a coalition builder and campaigner for Action for Economic Reforms.

An exceptional Filipina

On the shoulders of people with exceptional talent is the burden of exceptional responsibility. Those who step up to the plate and live up to this responsibility become exceptional people.
They are a rare breed whose work ignites meaningful change that transcends generations.
I recently met one such individual in the person of Evelin Weber. A Filipina born to an Ilocano mother and German father, Evelin spent her formative yeas in the Philippines until she moved to the US when she was 14. She studied at Syracuse University and went on to advanced studies at INSEAD.
She built a career as an investment banker working for the Citigroup, Solomon Smith Barney and then for the MAN Group. She was at the top of her game counting New York City, Los Angeles, Miami, London and Madrid as her base at one time or another.
Success in the investment banking world proved too diminutive for the Filipina with an incredible lust for life. She continued to pursue her passions despite the workload of her banking career. She became a certified sommelier, earned her license as an aeronautic pilot and became a published author having written the critically acclaimed novel, The Black & The White.” Eventually, she spent time at the Lawrence Anthony Foundation in South Africa contributing to its humanitarian and environmental preservation agenda. Her body of work is as diverse as it is impressive.
Evelin has since channeled her passion towards community and social work in the Philippines. The devastation wrought by Super Typhoon Yolanda was a turning point for her. The magnitude of loss to life and property and the sheer amount of displaced families were too compelling for her not to help.
She established The Philippines Foundation (TPF), an entity that focuses on community building programs. Its thrust is to educate women and children and empower them towards self sufficiency.
Among TPF’s project is one called “ The Learning Boats of Leyte.” The foundation donated 5,000 boats to fishing communities augmenting the pitiful 80 boats that government provided. The boats serves the dual purpose of providing a means of livelihood for the father while keeping the children in school.
The donation of boats to fishermen came with the precondition that they cannot be sold, leased or given to a third party. More importantly, fishermen are made to sign a contract which stipulates that the boats will only remain in their keeping for as long as their children continue to attend school. If the terms of the contract are broken, TPF reserves the right to re-assign the boat to another fisher family in need.
The foundation has a parallel program called “Portraits of Love” where it supports a hundred or so children from the Philippine Children’s Medical Center afflicted with terminal cancer. The foundation supports the kids not only financially but by facilitating art therapy. Its aim is to alleviate the grim reality of pain and death that these kids face.
The 5,000 boats assigned to the fisher folk are decorated with the artworks done by the terminally ill children, most of whom have passed on. Their names and works of art on the boats serve as a commemoration of their lives. In a way, it makes them part of the honorable livelihood of the fisher folk.
The boats also serve as pseudo classrooms for kids who otherwise spend their days playing by the seashore. Basic instructions on reading and writing are provided by volunteers with the boats serving as the desks and chairs.
Empowerment through education is at the heart of TPF’s work and Evelin is passionate about it.. She once said, “Look, you want to prevent global climate change? Educate people. You want to decrease the maternal mortality rate? Educate somebody. You want to get out of poverty? Well, educate somebody. You want to increase the lifespan of a child with cancer? Well, get yourself educated so you can help the kid. Education is so fundamental in making a difference”.
I COULD NOT AGREE MORE
TPF’s latest project is called “For the Love of Leyte,” a project designed to support the weavers, potters, painters and other artisans of Leyte, most of whom are stay-at-home mothers.
While local artisans are capable of producing well-crafted products that can easily be sold in the global marketplace, their lack of a bank account, access to financing and access to markets prevents them from selling their goods beyond the confines of their barrios. They earn less than P100 for a whole day’s work while producing beautiful handicrafts that can otherwise command top dollar in retail shops abroad.
TPF aims to fill impediments to trade, thereby providing local artisans with access to the global market.
Artisans who have signed up with TPF’s program are given a digital personality and digital wallet in TPF’s own website that also serves as its trading platform. TPF sells the handicrafts to global wholesalers who specialize in natural, handmade goods like the Bottletop Foundation in London and Nipa Hut in New York, among others. A fair price is charged for the products and 100% of the proceeds are remitted to the artisan through their digital wallet. Said proceeds can be monetized.
When orders come in, TPF provides the artisans with funds to buy their raw materials. It also takes care of the logistical aspects of the transaction such as documentation and shipping. It’s all about establishing the systems and infrastructure that enable the unbanked to transact beyond borders, says Evelin.
There are a few hundred weavers signed up for the project at the moment but Evelin hopes to expand this to 8,000 artisans by the year 2020. Not only will this make a tremendous impact in alleviating poverty, it will also ensure that the artful craft of weaving, pottery, etc. will not die with the artist. After all, cultural art is the thread that ties any indigenous society, one that has been honed and perfected through generations. This program is a way of preserving this legacy.
The program is now operational in Leyte and will soon be launched in Zamboanga and Ilocos, regions known for their indigenous crafts.
For now, 100% of the funding comes from Evelin. But now that proof of concept has been established, she hopes to attract people of like minds to join the effort and help in whatever way they can, whether financially or through the contributions of their time and fields of expertise. Evelin can be contacted through her e-mail, evelin@thephilippinesfoundation.org.
On Nov. 30 to Dec. 1, Evelin has organized an event called “For the love of Leyte Music and Arts Festival” which will be held at The Farm at Ginsiyaman, 30 minutes outside Tacloban. The festival will feature workshops on leather crafts, jewelry making, pottery, banig weaving, and tuba painting. There will also be a wholesale and retail trade fair and musical concert headlined by 20 foreign and local artists. Its going to be a two day party that celebrates Tacloban’s resilience, talent and bright future. Those coming from outside Leyte can camp within the farm grounds as well. Tickets can be purchased through www.mynila.com.
Meeting Evelin and getting to know her life’s work was inspiring to me. See, my wife and I have a 19-year-old daughter who we sent abroad to study. It’s never easy to be separated from family and many times, the sting of separation could get painfully acerbic. Still, we continue to support her foray abroad as we know this will give her the advantage to do good in life and career.
Her studies abroad comes with one condition — that at some point in her life, when she is well established, she must return to the Philippines and contribute to nation-building. This is her duty and our solemn pact.
Evelin’s story is still being written but even now, she shows us how to extract the last drop of nectar from the fruit of life and how to make it all matter. She is a contributor to nation-building by instigating positive change through her faculties and resources. She is truly an exceptional Filipina, the kind I would like my daughter to be.
 
Andrew J. Masigan is an economist.

Sic transit gloria mundi

At the Libingan on All Saints Day, a widow and her daughter prayed before the plain white cross that marked the grave of a young officer, who more than four decades ago was killed in action in Jolo, at the height of the Mindanao war over the dictator Marcos’s inconsistent strategies for peace. There are few officers like him, the widow’s best friend, a general’s wife, once told her. Surely without malice, she added: it might as well be that your husband died early; who knows what he might have become, had he lived some years more?
You can’t put a good man down — that is what this young officer proved to his death. For his various assignments, he earned Military Merit Medals and several campaign/unit medals and ribbons. His decorations speeded his promotions until he was named the youngest Battalion Commander in the Philippine Army then, with the rank of Lieutenant Colonel. But he was killed in action soon after. His Wounded Soldier medal and Distinguished Service Star were posthumous awards pinned on his young widow by Marcos.
Ironically, the Wounded Soldier, Distinguished Service Star and Purple Heart medals claimed by Marcos from the Bataan campaign in the Japanese-American War in the Philippines were declared as “never existed” by the US Pentagon in 1982-83 (archives@nytimes.com). Was not Marcos officially denied recognition as a veteran and war hero by the US government itself? (Ibid.).
Glorified even in death, the only self-installed dictator (so far) in Philippine democracy, Ferdinand Marcos has the only grave at the Libingan marked with an eternal flame. President Rodrigo Duterte, a professed Marcos fan, allowed and effectively ordered Marcos’s burial at the Libingan in December 2016, on the basis of Marcos being a former president and commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces of the Philippines.
And the pain of the widow is that the glory for false claimants to heroism is perpetuated in aeternam at the Libingan, while the valor of soldiers who died for the country has been comparatively trivialized and virtually dismissed — sic transit gloria mundi — by the utter insensitivity of misplaced reverence for, and the glorification of the undeserving others. It is like blasphemously calling the just and fair God stupid.
Adjacent to the Marcos burial site at the 103-hectare Libingan is still another special area, the for-generals-only hill, near the also-special site for other deceased government luminaries and National Artists. But why is it that in the 253-hectare Arlington National Cemetery in the US, there is no segregation of generals from officers and soldiers, among the 400,000 or so military and some government officials buried there? Generals in the Armed Forces of the Philippines are gods, “Ad vitam aeternam,” forever.
Marcos, supreme god as martial law commander-in-chief of the AFP, increased the number of generals from the less than ten before his term to allegedly more than a hundred (according to now-retired ex-generals of Marcos era). The radical change, which was supposed to support the order of battle for the insurgency campaign, has been institutionalized — presidents/commanders-in-chief after Marcos could not reverse this, for obvious political reasons.
Thus has the military been reoriented towards ultimate loyalty to the person of the commander-in-chief, from whom all good things flow for them, it seems. The ambiguous motivations of the military leaders of the 1986 EDSA People Power Revolution that ousted Marcos, as historical hindsight now painfully shows, did not change the ascendancy structure and culture of patronage that ironically, Marcos installed. When Duterte became president, “(he) secured the loyalty of the police and the military after doubling their salaries,” 1986 Constitutional Convention Chair Christian Monsod said (ABS-CBN News, July 5, 2018).
Within his first year in office, Duterte appointed to the Cabinet and other agencies, including government-owned corporations, 59 retired military generals, police directors, admirals and colonels, many of whom are either from Mindanao, or were assigned to Davao City where Duterte served as mayor for 22 years (http://tucp.org.ph/2017/06). Retired Brig. Gen. Dionisio Tan-Gatue, a former police director in the Davao region said, “Like any political party with spoils to allocate, of course, positions are given (as reward)…(but) it is unfair to lump retired military officers with the unqualified” (Ibid.).
Magdalo Rep. Gary Alejano agrees. “But some positions also require a degree of expertise, which unfortunately some appointees do not have,” Alejano said, citing former Army Maj. Jason Aquino, who was named chief of the National Food Authority, and ex-Marine Capt. Nicanor Faeldon, head of the Bureau of Customs — BoC (Ibid.). Alejano, Aquino and Faeldon were among the young officers who called for the ouster of then President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo in July 2003. Some of them were pardoned by Arroyo upon admission of guilt. The rest were granted amnesty by her successor, President Benigno Aquino III. The 2016 presidential election would split the group: Faeldon and Aquino joined Mr. Duterte’s camp, while the rest of the Magdalo led by Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV (and Alejano) became Mr. Duterte’s critics (Ibid.). On Aug. 31, 2018, Duterte issued Proclamation No. 572 stating that the amnesty extended to Trillanes was void from the start because he did not comply with the “minimum requirements to qualify under the amnesty proclamation” (GMA News, Sept. 4, 2018).
In August 2017, Faeldon resigned after he was linked to the entry of P6.4 billion in shabu that was later seized in a warehouse in Valenzuela City. He was replaced by Retired Police Director General Isidro Lapeña, then chief of the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) and star witness in that shabu smuggling. Faeldon was subsequently appointed to the Office of Civil Defense late last year and was later named Bureau of Corrections chief to replace former Philippine National Police head Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa when the latter filed for candidacy in the 2019 elections (philstar.com, Oct. 28, 2018).
Last month, an estimated P11 billion worth of methamphetamine hydrochloride (shabu) in magnetic lifters in 40-foot container vans entered the country past Customs inspectors and Lapeña. Some people in the BoC are in cahoots with the drug syndicate, new PDEA director general (retired Police Chief Superintendent) Aaron Aquino said (msn.com, Aug. 11, 2018).
Two separate multibillion-peso drug smuggling cases involving the BoC, implicating two retired high-ranking police/military, and Pres. Duterte says, “they are not guilty…they were just outplayed [by the drug syndicates]” (philstar.com, Oct 28, 2018).
The widow at the Libingan ponders upon her husband’s grave. His first Military Merit Medal (Triple M) was pinned on him when his shoulder insignias were only those of a second lieutenant, entry level after graduation from the Philippine Military Academy (PMA). Leading a small platoon of soldiers one evening, he intercepted a shipment of illegal firearms being spirited out of the Manila port. He was in the newspaper front pages then, with headlines lauding him, the brave young officer who thwarted and exposed a syndicated smuggling operation that cast doubts on the integrity of the Bureau of Customs. But the young hero was soon after reassigned to a small Army detachment in Nueva Ecija — to dampen his healthy curiosity and righteous action against what was amiss, perhaps.
“Sic transit Gloria mundi” — all must remember.
 
Amelia H. C. Ylagan is a Doctor of Business Administration from the University of the Philippines.
ahcylagan@yahoo.com

Phoenix secures top-four spot and playoff incentive

By Michael Angelo S. Murillo
Senior Reporter
THE Phoenix Fuel Masters rose to the challenge in their final game of the elimination round of the Philippine Basketball Association Governors’ Cup and were rewarded accordingly with a huge incentive heading into the playoff round.
Beating the Blackwater Elite, 97-91, in their key match at the Smart Araneta Coliseum on Sunday, the Fuel Masters edged their foes to book a top-four spot in the season-ending PBA tournament and earn a twice-to-beat advantage in the quarterfinals.
In fashioning out the win that had it moving all the way to second spot, Phoenix showed much resilience and toughness amid a stiff challenge from Blackwater and going for it when the opening for the team to charge ahead presented itself.
The teams had it competitive right from the get-go, looking to establish momentum to control the contest.
Phoenix would hold a slim one-point lead, 10-9, with five minutes to go in the first period but built on it after to stay ahead, 21-18, with a quarter down.
A back-and-forth started the second quarter with the combatants fighting to a knotted count of 26-all at the 8:31 mark.
Import Henry Walker pushed the Elite to a 33-29 lead a minute and a half later.
Blackwater, however, was dealt a blow moments later after starting point guard Michael DiGregorio was ejected from the game at the 6:07 mark for a disqualifying foul after throwing the ball on Phoenix import Eugene Phelps following a brief commotion with Elite big man JP Erram.
When play resumed, the Fuel Masters responded with a 6-1 run to reclaim the lead, 35-34.
But the Elite would regain their footing, behind Mr. Walker and Mac Belo to go on top, 48-44, at the halfway mark of the contest.
Blackwater went on a quick start to roll off the third quarter, scoring five straight points, care of Paul Zamar and Allein Maliksi, inside the first minute to build a 53-44 advantage.
Calvin Abueva and Phoenix made attempts after to overhaul the Blackwater lead but the Elite would find ways to keep their opponents at bay.
The count stood at 62-59, and Blackwater still on top, with six minutes remaining in the period.
The slugfest was sustained as the quarter progressed, eventually settling with the Fuel Masters’ perseverance paying off as they took a 72-69 lead heading into the final quarter.
Getting much wind entering the fourth canto, Phoenix continued with its ascent at the start of the final quarter.
It would hold an 83-76 lead with six minutes to go on the game clock with Matthew Wright getting into the scoring fray.
The Elite, however, showed no giving up, making every effort to rally back.
They got their deficit down to three points, 87-84, with 3:29 left only to be answered by Messrs. Abueva and Wright to help the Fuel Masters extend their lead to 91-84 at the 2:40 mark.
A last-ditch effort to salvage the win by Blackwater only merited it coming to within four points, 95-91, with 37 seconds to go as the Fuel Masters went for the jugular after and book the win.
Mr. Abueva led Phoenix with 25 points and eight rebounds with Mr. Wright adding 23 points, seven rebounds and five assists.
Mr. Phelps only had 16 points but had 19 boards and five dimes for the Fuel Masters, who now await for their opponent in the quarterfinals which is hinged on the final game of the eliminations between the league-leading Barangay Ginebra San Miguel Kings and playoff-hoping TNT KaTropa.
Blackwater, which had been relegated outside of the top four and have to face a twice-to-win disadvantage in the quarters, meanwhile, was paced by Mr. Walker with 21 points and Nards Pinto with 17.
“I just gave my best in this game to help my new team get into the top four in the playoffs. Hopefully we can build on this and make our way all the way to the semis and beyond,” said Mr. Abueva, named co-player of the game with Mr. Wright, in the vernacular after the contest.

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