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Senate leader asks PNP to allow De Lima to conduct hearings in detention

THE Senate President has requested the Philippine National Police (PNP) to allow detained Senator Leila M. De Lima to hold committee hearings within the premises of the PNP headquarters where the senator is confined on drug charges.
Senate President Vicente C. Sotto III wrote a letter to PNP Chief Director-General Oscar D. Albayalde “to formally request the Philippine National Police (PNP) to allow detained Sen. Leila De Lima to exercise her functions as an elected senator of the country through the conduct of hearings on pending measures to the Senate Committee on Social Justice, Welfare, and Rural Development (Committee for brevity) — a committee which she chairs — inside the premises of the PNP Custodial Center.”
Mr. Sotto added that, as Senate leader, he is giving Ms. De Lima “full authority to discharge her duties as chair of the committee, particularly to conduct and personally preside over its hearings.”
This is similar, Mr. Sotto said, to what had been applied in the case of Senator Antonio F. Trillanes IV when the latter was in detention during the Arroyo administration.
The reason for the Senate President’s request is so the committee’s pending measures in the Senate “will be given an opportunity to be heard and deliberated on by the Philippine Senate,” Mr. Sotto said.
The pending bills for consideration of the Committee, “if passed into law, will be beneficial to all the Filipinos in general and will give the marginalized sectors their needed boost,” he also said.
The pending bills Mr. Sotto cited are as follows: “1.) Public Solicitation Act; 2.) National Rotary Day, February 23 of Every Year, 3.) Magna Carta of the Poor, 4.) Magna Carta of Day Care Workers, 5.) Emergency Volunteer Protection Act, 6.) Social Welfare and Development Agencies Act, and 7.) Rural Employment Assistance Program Act.”
“Thus, timely holding of a Committee hearing is vital,” he said.
Senator Francis N. Pangilinan, Ms. De Lima’s ally in the opposition Liberal Party, said for his part: “Our gratitude and support are with Senate President Vicente Sotto III for formally seeking the participation of Senator Leila de Lima in hearings lodged before her committee.”
“It is right and just for Sen. De Lima to be allowed to perform her duties as a member of the legislature. Despite her unjust incarceration, Sen. De Lima has expressed her desire to carry out her functions as a lawmaker and help craft laws beneficial to the people,” Mr. Pangilinan also said in his statement. — G.M. Cortez

Sol-Gen petitions PET in response to motion for 25% threshold

By Charmaine A. Tadalan
SOLICITOR-GENERAL Jose C. Calida has filed a manifestation and motion before the Presidential Electoral Tribunal (PET) in response to Vice-President Maria Leonor G. Robredo’s motion for reconsideration (MR) for a 25% threshold in the vote tally.
Mr. Calida requested the PET to grant the Comelec ten days to submit its comment on Ms. Robredo’s MR to reverse the PET’s April 10 resolution that there is no “basis to impose the 25% threshold in determining whether a vote is valid.”
The Office of the Solicitor-General (OSG) had previously been given ten days by the PET to submit its comment, which it failed to meet.
Mr. Calida said the OSG, as legal counsel of the Comelec, had already filed motions for extensions, “not to delay the proceedings in favor of one or the other party, but to study whether the Solicitor-General should file a comment on behalf of Comelec.”
He also said PET had “sole authority” under the Constitution to judge the election contest in question and that Comelec had “no jurisdiction” over it.
Mr. Calida said further that imposing the 50% threshold is reasonable, considering that the recount is conducted manually. The PET had earlier said it imposed the 50% threshold to take into account the human eye’s inability to distinguish the 25% threshold.
Moreover, he said the 50% threshold will not disenfranchise voters, arguing that voters had been repeatedly reminded to fully shade their ballots.

Senator seeks inquiry on PNP’s P1.89-billion jeep purchase

By Camille A. Aguinaldo
SENATOR Grace S. Poe-Llamanzares has filed a bill seeking an inquiry into the P1.89-billion purchase by the Philippine National Police (PNP) of Indian car maker Mahindra Vehicles’ police patrol jeeps back in 2015.
Senate Resolution No. 777, filed on July 3, directs the Senate Committees on Accountability of Public Officers and Investigations and Public Order and Dangerous Drugs to conduct the inquiry. The committees are led by Senators Richard J. Gordon and Panfilo M. Lacson, respectively.
Ms. Llamanzares cited the findings of the Commission on Audit (CoA) in its 2017 annual report, which concluded that the patrol jeeps provided by Mahindra Vehicles were not reliable for police operations, citing as well complaints raised by several regional police offices.
State auditors noted that 206 vehicles were not effectively utilized “due to frequent breakdowns, poor after-sales services, and limited availability of spare parts.”
A total of P59.379 million worth of additional costs were incurred by the PNP in the form of service fees which “could have been otherwise used to acquire approximately 67 units of patrol jeeps.”
“All forms of government misfeasance, malfeasance, and nonfeasance, especially with regard to government funds, must be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law,” the senator stated in the resolution.
“The damage done by the lemon Mahindras compromised security, crippled the police, and left citizens vulnerable,” she added.
Ms. Llamanzares has said she would invite former interior secretary Manuel A. Roxas II and PNP chief Alan L.M. Purisima in the investigation to shed light on the issue.

Tugade appeals to public: Inconvenience goes with development

By Patrizia Paola C. Marcelo, Reporter
DEPARTMENT of Transportation (DoTr) Secretary Arthur P. Tugade appealed to the public for patience while the government is completing its infrastructure projects.
The transportation chief spoke on Friday at a “pre-SONA forum” by the Duterte Cabinet’s economic development and infrastructure clusters.
“Kami ho humihingi ng tulong sa inyo. Kung kami nagbubuklod-buklod, may kailangan po kaming tulong sa inyo pagka’t alam ninyo at batid ninyo na mahirap ang aming responsibilidad. Ano ho yung tulong na hinihingi namin? Una ho, kung kami magdedevelop at gagawa ng imprastraktura kailangan namin ang inyong pasensya. Pagka’t ang isang nangyayaring kung may development merong hong inconvenience (We are asking for your help. If we are helping one another, we need your help because you know that our responsibility is difficult. What is the help we are asking? First, if we are developing and constructing infrastructure, we need your patience. Because what happens when there is development is, there is inconvenience),” Mr. Tugade said.
“Sana ho huwag ninyo kami alipustahin kung merong inconvenience na nangyayari, kung may ginagawa kaming development. Yun ho ang ambag ninyo, yung pasensya. (We hope you don’t insult us if there is inconvenience that will occur, when we are implementing development. That’s your contribution, your patience),” he added.
The forum is aimed at updating the public on developments in the economic policies and infrastructure projects of President Rodrigo R. Duterte’s administration.
The administration’s Build Build Build program has 75 flagship projects and is projected to cost P8-9 trillion between 2017 to 2022.
Among the projects under the program are the Metro Rail Transit (MRT)-7 project, the Taguig Integrated Terminal Exchange (ITX), the Metro Manila Subway Project (MMSP), Central Luzon Link Expressway 1, Bonifacio Global City-Ortigas Center Link, Metro Cebu Expressway.
The government said 1.1 million jobs will be created annually in the medium term, in the course of the infrastructure program.

DILG lauds SC ruling on LGUs’ share in taxes

THE Department of Interior and Local Government(DILG) lauded a ruling this week by the Supreme Court (SC) that will increase the share of local government units (LGUs)from all national taxes.
DILG OIC-Secretary Eduardo M. Ano in a statement welcomed the SC’s decision last Tuesday, saying it “will spell a huge increase in Internal Revenue Allotment (IRA) of LGUs because they will also get their slice of the pie from the national tax collection of other agencies other than the Bureau of Internal Revenue.”
But Finance Secretary Carlos G. Dominguez III said on Thursday the ruling was still an “unverified rumor” pending the “signature of the justices.”
“We are glad of the Supreme Court’s ruling because this will lead to better financial standing of our LGUs,” Mr. Año said.
The decision ruled that LGU’s just share is based on all national taxes, and not only on national internal revenue taxes.
“This means that LGUs will now get a share of customs tariffs and taxes collected by other state agencies such as the Bureau of Customs,” the DILG statement said.
Mr. Año encouraged LGUs to utilize the additional IRA on projects that are in line with national goals such as the “Build Build Build, anti-illegal drugs, anti-criminality and anti-corruption.”
“The increase in IRA, which has already been evident since President Duterte’s term plus the SC ruling, means better chances for the local governments to create positive change within their jurisdiction, especially in addressing illegal drugs and other social needs,” he added.
He also said LGUs’ programs, projects and activities should be aligned with AMBISYON NATIN 2040, the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, and the President’s 10-Point Socio Economic Agenda as stated in Executive Order No. 27.
“This is a step in the right direction. Through this decision, our LGUs will have a taste of how more resources are distributed across all regions of the country,” Mr. Año said. — G.M. Cortez

Lawmakers eye rice imports amid 5.2% inflation

rice sacks
AFP

By Charmaine A. Tadalan
“Kung mayroong intervention ang gagawin, isa sa pinakamahalaga ay ang pagpasok ng murang bigas. (If there should be an intervention, it should be importing cheap rice),” Senate Economic Affairs Committee Chair Sen. Sherwin T. Gatchalian said in a radio interview Friday.
“Importante ang bigas, isa sa dahilan kung bakit tumaas ang presyo ay ang kawalan ng (Rice is important. One of the reasons behind increased prices is the shortage of) NFA (National Food Authority) rice,” the senator said.
For his part, Representative Arthur C. Yap, who chairs the House Economic Affairs Committee, called for the quick passage of the Rice Tarrification Act.
“With the inflation rate breaching higher end targets, Congress must now pass the Rice Tarrification Act,” Mr. Yap said in his statement Thursday. “Our people need the breathing spell to contend with the high prices of rice brought about by the lack of NFA buffer stocks and the weak peso.”
Further, Mr. Yap called on the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) to increase interest rates to stabilize the situation as well as for the government to increase cash transfers to vulnerable sectors.
“If releases will be conditional, then they must be conditioned on skills training for beneficiaries in the manufacturing and construction sectors which are fundamentally expanding,” Mr. Yap said.
He added: “The Build, Build, Build program must continue focused and unabated to balance possible impacts to growth should the private sector delay their investments due to the BSP rate hikes.”
As for the excise tax, Senator Gatchalian said suspending it will be the government’s last resort. “Ito ay minominitor naming mabuti at kung (We are strictly monitoring this and if) worse comes to worst at magkakaroon ng (and there will be) runaway inflation, we will have to strongly recommend (suspending) excise tax on fuel,” Mr. Gatchalian said.
Meanwhile, the NFA in a statement Friday said it has reactivated its retail outlets at the Barangay Food Terminals (BFTs) with the arrival of rice from Vietnam and Thailand.
“As of today, there are 76 NFA rice outlets in BFTs nationwide actively operating serving at least 500 families. These outlets get…from five to 35 bags per week and sell three to ten kilograms of rice per customer,” the NFA said.
“At present, BFTs are operational in Benguet, Kalinga, Masbate, Camarines Sur and Camarines Norte, Albay, Cavite, Davao del Sur, Davao Occidental, General Santos, North Cotabato, Sultan Kudarat, Caraga, and some parts of Metro Manila,” the agency said further.

Applications for intellectual property rise 14% in Q1

LOCAL applications for intellectual property saw a 14% annual increase during the first quarter of the year amid expanding awareness over the importance of protecting trademarks for businesses.
The Intellectual Property Office of the Philippines (IPOPHL) said applications for patents — which cover inventions, utility models, and industrial designs — and trademarks totaled 10,024 in the January to March period this year, above the 8,761 logged in the comparable period last year.
Of this, trademarks represented 84% at 8,400 applications, increasing 12.56% from last year’s 7,463.
Resident filings took up the bulk at 60% and the remaining 40% were from non-residents.
Trademarks serve as “source identifiers,” meant to distinguish goods or services of one business from those of another, and can be a significant marketing tool for enterprises to establish brand recognition.
Meanwhile, the application for a patent for inventions grew 38% to 986 from 717 a year ago; the patent for utility models surged 59% to 331 from 208. But the patent for industrial design declined 18% to 307 from 373.
A patent is a bundle of exclusive rights granted to an invention, a product, or a process or improvement of either that meets the requirements of industrial applicability, inventiveness, and novelty.
As a bundle of exclusive rights, a patent allows the inventor to allow or prohibit others from making, using, selling, or importing the product of his invention during the patent’s period.
Meanwhile, utility models are designed to protect innovations that need not meet the inventive threshold required for a standard patent application.
It must, however, still have practical utility, industrial applicability, and novelty. The utility model grants similar exclusive rights as with patents, but have fundamental differences in terms of length of examination, cost, and scope of protection.
An industrial design protects the ornamental or aesthetic aspect of an article, and is also an owner’s exclusive right against unauthorized copying or imitation of the design.
The term of protection of a patent is 20 years, a longer period of protection than that of a utility model, which is protected for seven years.
The term of protection of an industrial design is five years, renewable twice for the same period of time.
“The rise of intellectual property applications reflects the spreading awareness among the public of the importance of trademarks, due to our key partnerships with media, the Department of Trade and Industry, and other strategic partners. Apart from this collaboration, IPOPHL’s strategic presence has steadily been gaining traction on our social media platforms,” IPOPHL Director General Josephine R. Santiago said.
“Of course, these efforts are underpinned by the growing understanding, appreciation, and relevance of trademarks among micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs), ultimately driving the increased demand for protection,” she added. — J.C. Lim

DA chief bares $2.43-million grant from South Korea for greenhouse projects

By Janina C. Lim, Reporter
THE Department of Agriculture (DA) has received from the South Korean government a grant to be used in beefing up smart greenhouse projects that will improve domestic tomato production.
Agriculture Secretary Emmanuel F. Piñol said the agency signed a memorandum of agreement with the Korea Agency for Education, Promotion and Information Service in Food, Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (EPIS) for a $2.43 million grant.
This will go to the K-Smart project which aims to boost production among small to medium-scale farmers.
It also targets to give farmers a broader market access through co-branding initiatives and help them take advantage of shipping their produce across the country.
The first 18 K-Smart Greenhouses will be put up in Benguet Province to produce high value vegetables, especially tomatoes.
The project will be implemented with the assistance of the Korean International Cooperation Agency (KOICA).
“As the DA Secretary, I have committed that as soon as high value vegetable farmers confirm the effectiveness of the Smart Greenhouses in increasing their productivity, I will propose the inclusion of the program for more greenhouses in the 2020 Budget of the DA,” Mr. Piñol said in a Facebook post on Friday.
The deal comes after President Rodrigo R. Duterte’s visit last month to South Korea where he held bilateral talks with President Moon Jae-in.
In that meeting, the DA signed a P28-billion supply contract with South Korean supermarket chain, Emart. The supermarket will be supplied various fruits over the next three years.
The grant is apart from a planned investment by the Korean Agricultural Machinery Industry Cooperative (KAMICO), a group of 200 firms. The group said it needed a 50-hectare area for the assembly plant which would manufacture tractors and other farm machinery.
The Bases Conversion Development Authority has already committed such a site at the Clark Development Zone for the KAMICO Project, according to the DA chief.
Mr. Piñol also noted that Trade Secretary Ramon M. Lopez has also pledged to support the project by asking the Board of Investments to provide incentives to KAMICO.

Poll shows Manila with one of lowest 4G speeds in region


By Patrizia Paola C. Marcelo, Reporter
MANILA has one of the lowest fourth generation (4G) download speeds in East and Southeast Asia, a mobile analytics company said.
OpenSignal said Manila is part of the lowest grouping of cities in the region in terms of 4G download speed, ranking 9th out of 12 Asian metropolises for the survey period of March to May 2017.
Joining Manila for having 4G speeds below the global average of 16.9 megabits per second (Mbps) are Hong Kong and Kuala Lumpur (with speeds above that of Manila); and Bangkok, Phnom Penh, and Jakarta (with speeds below that of Manila).
The company did not disclose all the numbers in the said test period.
OpenSignal said the reasons for these results is the trend in Southeast Asia focusing on 4G availability rather than 4G speed.
“As 4G connections are far superior to 3G connections, Southeast Asia’s operators seem intent on making LTE [long-term evolution] services accessible to the vast majority of their customers before they turn their attention to raw speed,” OpenSignal said.
Singapore and the South Korean capital of Seoul led the rankings, recording speeds of 45 Mbps, placing them in among the highest ranking globally.
Following them are Taipei, Yangon, Tokyo, and Ho Chi Minh, with download speeds of over 25 Mbps.
The high speeds of Yangon and Ho Chi Minh are due to the recent launching of 4G services in Myanmar and Vietnam.
“Both Vietnam and Myanmar only launched commercial 4G services within the last two years, which perhaps explains why they’re delivering such fast connections. As countries ramp up their first LTE networks, they initially have few customers and large amounts of capacity. As consumers adopt 4G phones and 4G service plans, they begin filling up those networks, causing speeds to gradually decline,” OpenSignal said.

‘Third player’ hearing shows service commitments favored — DICT

By Victor V. Saulon, Sub-Editor
TELECOMMUNICATIONS industry stakeholders expressed a preference for service level commitments as the basis for selecting the industry’s third entrant, according to the results of a public consultation Friday.
The Department of Information and Telecommunications Technology (DICT) said 75% of representatives from telecommunications companies, consumer groups, and the public picked highest committed level of service, or HCLoS, as the main selection standard.
The other proposed basis for selection, a frequency auction, was supported by 16.67% of participants at the consultation, while 8.33% abstained.
The selection process has seen the emergence of two proposed terms of reference (ToR), one based on HCLoS favored by the DICT and another based on an auction backed by the Department of Finance (DoF).
The HCLoS standard is a points system for milestones like population coverage, broadband speed and investment within five years, with the points weighted to favor hitting certain milestones earlier in the five-year period.
The DoF, which is a member of the oversight committee for third-player selection, has declared its opposition to a process involving the assignment of points for meeting certain commitments — the so-called “beauty contest,” and has declared that state assets such as frequency spectrum must be auctioned instead of allocated to the third player at no charge.
Acting DICT Secretary Eliseo M. Rio, Jr. said the vote was a way to take the pulse of stakeholders, including would-be investors.
“With this result we hope to move forward (with finalizing) the terms of reference for the HCLoS,” he told participants at the public consultation.
He said the next step is to come up with a report that he would present to the oversight committee, which is composed of representatives from the DICT, DoF, Office of the Executive Secretary, and the National Security Adviser.
Mr. Rio described the report as a result of a market study that paves the way for the department to go ahead with the process.
“If everything goes well, and are no major setbacks, we can have the third telco by end of September or early October,” he told reporters.
The process he was referring to involves the National Telecommunications Commission publishing the final version of the ToR.
“And then this (ToR) will be subjected to another public hearing, but this one will now be formal. It has the same weight as when you are testifying in court,” he said.
The public hearing will incorporate further improvements to the ToR, which will become final about 30 days after the first publication in a newspaper of national circulation. After 15 days, a series of public hearings will help shape the final version of the ToR.
“That will start the bidding process,” he said. “The contenders now can buy the bidding documents and they will be based on the terms of reference.”
“We’ll give them two months to come up with their bidding documents. That is the time that they will start to form their consortium,” he added.
Mr. Rio said the 15 telcos that participated represented companies with existing telecommunications franchises. He said these entities lack the experience and need for them to partner with foreign companies.
“Right now we have about five foreign companies [that] are interested so they can chose among the 15 [telcos],” he said.
He said he hopes there will be no strong objections to HCLoS going forward.
Asked about a possible conflict with the preference of Finance Secretary Carlos G. Dominguez III for an auction, Mr. Rio said: “This is a DICT affair. In other words, I have full responsibility and therefore I have to decide that I have to go forward because I am being instructed also by the President.”
He said Mr. Dominguez is welcome to come up with his own position “but more or less as far as the DICT is concerned, we have I think enough data, we have enough encouragement to go ahead with the highest committed level of service.”
Sought for comment, Renato B. Garcia, executive vice-president of Philippine Telegraph and Telephone Corp., said he favors HCLoS.
“Any telecom guy will tell you, when you do network planning it’s always the least-cost solution… And all these other proposals [are] contrary to the basic principle,” he said.
Asked if PT&T will submit a bid, he said: “Of course.” He added that the company will need a foreign partner with the technical expertise.
“All of those are under discussion,” he said. “We’re talking to all — American, European, Chinese… Korean.”
Victorio Mario A. Dimagiba, who heads consumer advocacy group Laban Konsyumer Inc., said he prefers HCLoS because the third player will be able to compete if it offers consumers improved services compared with incumbents Smart Communications, Inc., a unit of PLDT, Inc., and Globe Telecom, Inc.
Hastings Holdings, Inc., a unit of PLDT Beneficial Trust Fund subsidiary MediaQuest Holdings, Inc., has a stake in BusinessWorld through the Philippine Star Group, which it controls.

Globe forming new cell tower company

GLOBE Telecom Inc. said it is establishing a new company to operate its tower assets.
The telecommunications company said in a statement that it has begun the process of incorporating a separate tower holding company. After it obtains approval from the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the company will begin divesting all or some of its tower assets.
In February, Globe said it was in talks with certain parties to form an independent tower company to help speed up the building and deployment of cellular towers.
“As a major industry player we understand what this country needs to improve the internet experience of our customers. Putting up more towers based on global standards within strategic areas will make spectrum use more efficient. We should work together and find all means to supplement the build for towers — either through telcos or tower companies. This in turn will bring us closer to first world internet connectivity,” Globe President and CEO Ernest L. Cu said in a statement.
Mr. Cu added that the company remains open to working with new and existing telecom companies in the interest of national development.
Globe has said that it was open to working with rival PLDT, Inc. on the initiative. PLDT has said that the company does not see a need to share any of its network assets.
The government on Thursday released its initial common tower policy and pole guidelines, and hopes to accredit up to two independent tower companies by the first quarter of next year, followed by a six-month building period. Globe and PLDT will also be consulted regarding their target locations for placement of the towers and poles, to be shared by telcos including the upcoming “third player.”
Each accredited company can build a total of 25,000 towers over seven years. The Philippines has only 16,000 cell sites for a population of around 100 million. Presidential Adviser for Economic Affairs and Information Technology Communications Ramon P. Jacinto has said that the country will need about 50,000 towers for better coverage.
The initial policy allows telcos to build their own cell sites if they do not get a response from the tower company or companies after 30 days. This is a change from a previous plan of the government to prohibit telcos from building their own cell sites once the policy is implemented. Mr. Jacinto said consultation revealed opposition from PLDT and Globe, who wanted to retain the right to build their own cell sites.
Hastings Holdings, Inc., a unit of PLDT Beneficial Trust Fund subsidiary MediaQuest Holdings, Inc., has a majority stake in BusinessWorld through the Philippine Star Group, which it controls. — Patrizia Paola C. Marcelo

PSE review finds 62 firms Shariah-compliant

THE Philippine Stock Exchange said it classified 62 securities as compliant with Islamic finance principles, as of June 25.
In its quarterly review released Friday, the PSE said the compliant stocks include 2GO Group, Inc., D&L Industrues, Inc. and MRC Allied, Inc.
The new entrants to the list for this quarter are Concrete Aggregates Corp. (A and B), Golden Bria Holdings, Inc., Ionics, Inc., Nickel Asia Corp., Philippine Estates Corp. and STI Education Systems Holdings, Inc.
Dropped from the list were Araneta Properties, Inc., Cirtek Holdings Philippines, Corp., Golden Haven Park, Inc., Italpinas Development Corp., Keppel Philippines Properties, Inc. and Primex Corp.
The PSE engaged IdealRatings, Inc. to conduct the screening of the listed firms, in accordance with the Accounting and Auditing Organization for Islamic Finance Institutions standards for Shariah compliance.
Islamic finance principles disallow firms from engaging in businesses tht involve conventional interest-based lending. The restrictions also cover other financial services like insurance, mortgages and leasing, and derivatives. Other restrictions apply to companies that deal in pork, alcohol, tobacco, arms and weapons, embryonic stem-cell research, hotels, gambling, casinos, music, cinema, and adult entertainment, among others. — Janina C. Lim

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