Facebook Instagram Linkedin X Youtube
Home Blog Page 12689

DLSU-FEU volleyball finals series fires off

By Michael Angelo S. Murillo
Senior Reporter
THE best-of-three University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) Season 80 women’s volleyball finals series fires off this weekend, featuring the back-to-back defending champions De La Salle Lady Spikers against the now-back-in-the-finals Far Eastern University (FEU) Lady Tamaraws.
Topped the elimination round with 12-2 and 10-4 records, respectively, La Salle and FEU, which held twice-to-beat advantages in the Final Four, set up the finals date by defeating their respective opponents at the first instance.
It will mark the first time that two of the more successful volleyball programs in the UAAP will collide in the Big Dance since Season 71 when the Lady Spikers got the better of the Lady Tamaraws, 2-1.
Proceedings for the UAAP Season 80 finals get going on Saturday, April 28, for Game One set at 4 p.m. at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
The La Salle-FEU finals reengagement incidentally broke six straight years of a La Salle-Ateneo championship matchup, something the Lady Spikers view as a welcome challenge.
“The intensity I think will still be the same against FEU. Of course, Ateneo-La Salle has a different aura because there is the long-standing school rivalry. In this series FEU will bring its own crowd as much as we will bring ours and you’ll never know,” said graduating player Kim Kianna Dy after they bagged the school’s 10th straight finals seat in UAAP women’s volleyball on April 22.
“FEU in the finals means they deserve to be there. We are the top two teams and it could go either way,” Majoy Baron, another graduating player, for her part, said.
For La Salle coach Ramil De Jesus, the about-to-begin finals should be an exciting one.
“We all know that in the first and second round we fought FEU through five sets. So I don’t see the finals being anything different and it’s going to be an exciting series,” the coach said.
“So it is going to boil down to who wants it more, who shows the heart to take it all,” added Mr. De Jesus, who will pit his coaching skills against former FEU teammate George Pascua, the coach of the Lady Tamaraws.
La Salle enters the finals series having the number of FEU, 2-0, so far in the season, beating the latter, 25-22, 25-17, 24-26, 23-25 and 15-7 in the first round, and 25-17, 21-25, 16-25, 25-20 and 15-5 in the second round.
MAKING MOST OF THE OPPORTUNITY
Back in the finals anew, FEU said it is very excited and that it is out to make the most of the opportunity given to it.
“I just told the girls that the opportunity is knocking on the door and we have to answer it to achieve what we have set out to do,” said FEU coach Pascua, referring to how they approached things when they saw chances for them were forming during the course of their campaign heading into the finals.
“We had a lot of adjustments but we managed to do them as a team. And I’m very happy we are now back in the finals,” added the coach, who took over the team in the offseason.
Mr. Pascua, who has won titles in the men’s tournament, highlighted that they are not about done and will give their all come the finals.
“We will enjoy this for a while but we will immediately go to work after because the finals are a whole new ball game,” he said.
La Salle is shooting for its 11th women’s title while FEU, the winningest in UAAP history, is gunning for title number 30.
Following tomorrow’s Game One, the second will be played on May 2 and Game Three, if necessary, on May 5. All finals matches will be played at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

Hard lesson for Ceres as it loses group top spot

By Michael Angelo S. Murillo
Senior Reporter
THE push of Ceres-Negros FC to finish group play in the AFC Cup unblemished was not completed after it bowed to visiting Home United FC of Singapore, 2-0, on its final game in Group F on Wednesday night at the Panaad Park and Stadium in Bacolod City.
Needing to win to lock in the top spot in its grouping and advance outright to the next round of the competition, Ceres was instead left to rue the missed opportunity to maintain hold of group leadership against a highly determined Home United crew, who were running second entering the contest.
The Ceres defeat allowed Home United to pull even with the “Busmen” in the standings with four wins, a draw and a loss and 13 points apiece. But having the advantage in their head-to-head record, Home United claimed number one.
Despite losing though, Ceres still advanced to the ASEAN Zone semifinals of the AFC Cup, being the best second-placed team among the groups.
Recognizing that they somehow let their guards down, Ceres coach Risto Vidacovic said he hopes the loss serves as a hard lesson for his wards heading into the next round.
“Let this be a lesson for us. We have to continue playing and fighting. Nothing comes easy in the tournament,” said Mr. Vidacovic whose wards, the reigning ASEAN Zone winner, actually played well for much of the game but just could not complete things for the win.
“Maybe the players thought we were already in,” he added.
Ceres dominated first-half action on Wednesday night in front of its fans but could not sustain it the rest of the way.
Home United midfielder Izzdin Shafiq gave his team the lead in the 80th minute, scoring off a free kick.
The hosts tried to get back the goal but just could not go over the hump.
For good measure, the visiting team had another goal in added time care of midfielder Song Ui-young from a spot kick.
Ceres now focuses its attention on its two-legged semifinal clash with Myanmar’s Yangon United FC to be played in May.
WINNING END
Meanwhile, Global Cebu FC, the other Philippine side that qualified for the AFC Cup, finished its campaign on a winning note with a 3-1 away victory over Bali United FC.
A brace from Spanish player Rufo (2’ and 45+1’) and a goal by Paul Mulders (33’) accounted for the score of Global.
Global exited what was a rough tournament campaign in Group G with a record of two wins, two draws and two losses for eight points, good for second place.

Prospects of PHL football focus of May conference

STAKEHOLDERS of local football are set to gather next month in a conference designed to discuss the current state of the sport in the country and with the end goal of being able to chart a fitting path to make it the biggest spectator sport in the Philippines.
Organized by MMC Sportz Asia and sanctioned by the Philippine Football Federation (PFF), the conference, titled “The Business of Football — Philippines,” is described by organizers as a first of its kind and is set to happen on May 18, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., at the New World Hotel Makati.
The one-day summit will bring together all the key stakeholders of the football community in the Philippines from the rights holders, football clubs, agencies, brands, media, retail, real estate, and the fans.
The overall objective of the conference is to better educate all concerned as to how to handle affairs of the sport moving forward and achieve the desired results.
“There is so much untapped potential in the football-business in the Philippines, that we felt like it is time to bring all the key stakeholders together in one room, and to discuss the state of the game, and how we can develop the sport in the Philippines,” said Eric M. Gottschalk, CEO of MMC Sportz Asia, Inc., in a statement as he referred to the mission of the confab.
“The inauguration of the professional football league in 2017 and the recent international successes of both the men’s and the women’s national football teams should be a springboard for the sport to finally take off in a basketball-dominated country. But we noticed that the key stakeholders are still adapting a “wait-and-see” approach,” Mr. Gottschalk added.
Philippine Azkals team manager Dan Palami said the timing of The Business of Football — Philippines conference is very timely and should serve the sport well not only now but also for the future.
“It is high time we get our act together, and elevate the level of the sport, in time for the upcoming Asian Cup 2019, wherein the country, and the Philippine Azkals will have the opportunity to make a mark, and create history in the international football scene,” Mr. Palami said in a separate statement.
The conference will cover topics such as Football in Southeast Asia, State of Football in the Philippines, Why Brands Should Get Involved, Developing Football in Asia, Asian Cup 2019, Youth Academies, among others.
The event will also feature a Job Fair, wherein participants can explore careers in football, learn from industry leaders, and get to network with key executives in the industry.
Confirmed speakers include AFC Director Member Association Development, Stuart Larman, La Liga Managing Director for SEA, Ivan Codina, Mr. Palami, Azkals coach Thomas Dooley, Philippines Football League CEO Lazarus Jansen Xavier, Mr. Gottschalk, SMG Insight Managing Director Frank Saez, and PFF General Secretary Atty. Edwin Gastanes, among many others.
Delegate passes are available online at Platinumlist (The Business of Football — Philippines) and priced at P2,750 for regular delegates and P1,500 for the student pass. — Michael Angelo S. Murillo

James lifts Cavs over Pacers into series lead

LOS ANGELES — LeBron James drained a buzzer-beating three-pointer to lift the Cleveland Cavaliers to a 98-95 victory over the Indiana Pacers on Wednesday and within one game of advancing in the NBA playoffs.
James scored 44 points to lead the Cavs, who took a 3-2 lead in the best-of-seven first-round series and will try to close out the Pacers on Friday in Indianapolis.
Seconds before his game-winner, James blocked a driving Victor Oladipo’s shot at the rim to keep the score knotted at 95-95.
Cleveland then got the ball to their superstar, who pulled up at the top of the arc and unleashed his shot over Thaddeus Young, his only three-pointer of the game.
James beat his chest in triumph, jumping on the scorers’ table to acknowledge the rapturous crowd.
“As a kid, you always have those 3-2-1 moments,” James said. “That’s what it kind of felt like. It felt like I was a kid all over again, just playing basketball at my house. With makeshift hoops and my socks as a basketball and making the noise. So, that’s what it felt like.”
The Cavaliers, trying to return to the NBA Finals for a fourth straight season and add to the title they won in 2016, took their first lead of the series.
But James said they have plenty of work remaining against the Pacers.
“That team never stops and it’s going to be even tougher on Friday,” he said. “We’ve got to be mentally strong, like we did tonight.”
With his 21st playoff game of 40 points or more, James moved past Jerry West for number two all-time on that list, which is led by Michael Jordan with 38.
“He really did impose his will throughout the game,” Pacers coach Nate McMillan said.
‘SERIES AIN’T OVER’
But Oladipo insisted the Pacers weren’t discouraged.
“The series ain’t over,” said the Indiana guard, who thought his attempted layup with three seconds left hit the backboard before James rejected it — which would make the block illegal.
“It was a goaltend,” Oladipo said, and teammate Myles Turner concurred.
“It was clearly a goaltend,” Turner said. “They didn’t review it. There’s not anything you can say about it.
“It doesn’t change the fact that LeBron still hit that game-winning shot, but it’s still a pivotal moment in the game that I feel does need a review.”
Instead, Cleveland’s J.R. Smith seized the ball and Cleveland called a timeout, setting the stage for James’s last-gasp heroics.
“As soon as it left his hand it looked perfect,” said Cavs coach Tyronn Lue.
But Lue was pleased with what he saw from all of his team, especially in a third quarter in which they outscored Indiana 32-17, harrying the Pacers into seven turnovers as they seized an 81-73 lead.
The Cavs came into the game as the worst third-quarter scoring team in the playoffs.
HAWKS AND HEAD COACH BUDENHOLZER ‘PART WAYS’
The Atlanta Hawks and head coach Mike Budenholzer have mutually agreed to part ways, the NBA team said Wednesday.
The move was widely expected after Budenholzer asked and received permission to speak with other teams about job openings.
He reportedly interviewed on Sunday with the New York Knicks, who sacked coach Jeff Hornacek after the team failed to reach the playoffs for a fifth straight year.
The Hawks, in the midst of rebuilding and with four first-round picks in June’s draft, are expected to talk to former Memphis Grizzlies head coach David Fizdale and Portland Trail Blazers assistant Nate Tibbetts among others, USA Today reported. — AFP

Rain or Shine, Alaska trek back to action

TWO teams that middled in the previous Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) tournament — the Rain or Shine Elasto Painters and Alaska Aces — make their debuts in the just-started Commissioner’s Cup today and are looking to set their campaign to a winning note.
Battling each other in the 7 p.m. main game at the Smart Araneta Coliseum, the E-Painters and Aces look to book a victory at the onset to join early leaders in the midseason PBA tournament.
Rain or Shine, which finished the previous Philippine Cup with a quarterfinal appearance to show for, will be bannered in the import-laden tournament by burly Reggie Johnson, who suited and won a title in the ASEAN Basketball League with the Westports Malaysia Dragons.
A versatile player despite his size, Mr. Johnson, 6’10” is expected to contribute in every category for the E-Painters while making for a stocky front court tandem along with Beau Belga.
Also part of the team is newly acquired big man Norbert Torres from the TNT KaTropa, who came on board in exchange for Don Trollano in an in-between conference break trade.
With the two new additions, Rain or Shine coach Caloy Garcia hopes they “get to defend the shaded lane” better.
Apart from Messrs. Johnson, Belga and Torres, also part of the team are veterans Gabe Norwood, James Yap, Jay Washington, Raymond Almazan, Chris Tiu and Maverick Ahanmisi along with up-and-comers Ed Daquioag and Rey Nambatac.
BETTER SHOWING
Alaska, for its part, looks to build on its good showing in the Philippine Cup where it was a top-half staple before exiting in the quarterfinals.
Antonio Campbell has been brought in to backstop the Aces as they angle to get back to league respectability after some tough conferences of late.
Mr. Campbell, 23, has been described as suited for a team like Alaska, something coach Alex Compton hopes to capitalized on.
“Tony is an easy guy to get along with. He’s smart and he’s a learner… He listens and tries to apply, and the great thing for guys like that is they can really get better and we’ve seen it in a couple of games,” said Mr. Compton of their import.
“He is someone that we want as one of our top guys. He’s a clean player, he plays hard, is smart, is a team guy and that’s just what we need…” he added.
Mr. Campbell, who played for Ohio University, is set to play alongside Alaska stalwarts Calvin Abueva, Vic Manuel, JVee Casio, Chris Banchero, Jeron Teng, Carl Bryan Cruz and Sonny Thoss.
Meanwhile, the Meralco Bolts go for a second straight victory when they take on the GlobalPort Batang Pier in the 4:30 p.m. curtain-raiser.
The Bolts were a 116-103 winner in their tournament debut over Columbian Dyip on Wednesday where returning import Arinze Onuaku bucked being under the weather to tally 30 points, 19 rebounds and six assists.
GlobalPort, for its part, tries to bounce back after bowing in its first outing on April 22 to TNT, 128-114. — Michael Angelo S. Murillo

Leonardo-Morada tandem wins Prima Pasta mixed open doubles crown

ALYSSA Ysabel Leonardo and Alvin Morada won over the pair of Peter Gabriel Magnaye and Thea Marie Pomar to capture the mixed doubles open crown of the 11th Prima Pasta Badminton Championship recently at the Powersmash badminton court in Makati City.
The no. 1 seed Leonardo and Morada outlasted Magnaye and Pomar, 21-16, 21-13, in the final round of the annual tournament sanctioned by the Philippine Badminton Association and affiliated with the Philippine National Ranking System.
Mike Minuluan and Aires Amor Montilla defeated John Matthew Bernardo and Gelita Castilo, 21-16, 21-18, to win the mixed doubles level A title while Jennifer Cayetano and Jan Mark Sotea blanked Andrea Abalos and Gregg Paz, 21-7, 21-17, to gain the mixed doubles level B crown.
Zyrish Camba and Nepthali Pineda rallied past David Isaac Libanan and Jeya Von Pinlac, 17-21, 21-13, 21-19, to take home the mixed doubles level C diadem while Lea Hermosilla and Arjay Philip Lazareto beat Marlon Cruz and Betina Felipe, 21-19, 12-21, 21-7, to grab the mixed doubles level D title.
Also the other mixed doubles champions in different levels were Mark Oliver Mortera and Stephanie Grace Mortera (E); Marineth Ngo and Mark John Resurrecion (F); and Emmanuel Rodriguez and Gabrielle Anne Santos (G). Oscar Cordero and Rommel Parone, meanwhile, won the combined age 100 event title.
The girls’ doubles champions were Anielka Maeve Paz and Angel Valle (U-15); Anthea Marie Gonzalez and Dana Alisha Navarro (U-17); and Jellene Geviane De Vera and Dainelle Masongsong (U-19).
The boys’ doubles champions were Munir Bartolome and Rey Angelo Pedron (U-15); Ron Jacob Galve and Arjay Philip Lazareto (U-17); and Jeno Cariño and Nestojan Tapales (U-17).

WBC’s Deontay Wilder offers Anthony Joshua $50 million for heavyweight mega-fight

LOS ANGELES — Deontay Wilder told Anthony Joshua “the money’s in the bag” as prospects rose Wednesday of a blockbuster world title unification bout between the unbeaten heavyweights.
In a Twitter video posted Wednesday, America’s World Boxing Council world champion Wilder backed up reports that his camp had e-mailed Britain’s Joshua and his promoter Eddie Hearn an offer of a minimum of $50 million.
“I’ve got something special for you,” Wilder tells Joshua in the video. “By the way, all the money is in the bag. I expect you’ll be a man of your word.”
Joshua, who unified the World Boxing Association, International Boxing Federation and World Boxing Organization heavyweight titles by out-pointing New Zealand’s Joseph Parker on March 31, had already been recorded saying he’d “take $50 million up front” to fight Wilder.
The Los Angeles Times reported that Wilder promoter Lou DiBella had confirmed the offer for a fight in the United States sometime between September and December.
“We’ll see how badly he wants the fight,” DiBella told the newspaper. “Anthony Joshua has said he’d accept this offer. If Eddie Hearn is not looking to stop it from happening, they now have an extraordinary offer to consider.”
ESPN reported that both camps had confirmed the offer, adding that it was for one fight, with no rematch clause, and would have to be the next bout for each fighter.
The winner of a Joshua-Wilder bout would be the first man to hold all four major heavyweight titles simultaneously, and Joshua told the BBC this month that he’d rather face Wilder than Russian Alexander Povetkin, the WBA mandatory challenger.
Joshua, 28, won his first world title in 2016 and has made five defenses, taking his record to 21-0 with 20 knockouts.
Wilder, 32, improved to 40-0 with 39 knockouts when he knocked out previously unbeaten Cuban Luis Ortiz in the 10th round in Brooklyn, New York, on March 3. — AFP

None call

Victor Oladipo was incensed in his post-mortem yesterday, and with reason. He had the ball in his hands to cap the Pacers’ final possession of the match, and he knew he did the most of it; from top of the key, he faked right, caught LeBron James, who had been defending him following a pick, flat-footed, and attempted a layin at full speed. And even as the four-time Most Valuable Player remarkably recovered and made up for lost ground to block his shot, he believed it had already hit the backboard, an automatic goaltend for two points. There was no call, though, and the outcome so unnerved him that he couldn’t even talk about it in full with the press. “It’s hard to even speak on it,” he said. “It sucks. It just sucks.”
In hindsight, Oladipo had cause to complain. Although replays in real time prove inconclusive, slowing them down does show that the ball first touched glass before James’ right hand smothered it. To be sure, they likewise indicate that the shot didn’t have any prayer of finding the bottom of the net even if it hadn’t been blocked, with the angle to the rim no doubt altered by the threat the four-time Most Valuable Player posed — but that’s another matter altogether. In any case, the absence of a whistle negated any possibility of the sequence being reviewed by officials in tandem with the National Basketball Association Replay Center.
It goes without saying that Oladipo wound up feeling even worse because the next play led to a buzzer-beating three-pointer by — who else? — James, giving the Cavaliers the win and a three-two lead in their first-round series against the Pacers. From his vantage point, the defeat, dealt by a decisive blow resulting from a mistake, added injury to insult. On a personal note, he certainly needed the role of hero; he sported a measly one-of-14 clip from the field prior to his fateful drive, and because it now counts as yet another miss, he will head to Game Six with a 12-of-50 output over the last three outings.
The good news is that the Pacers have ample reason to stay optimistic. For one thing, the last four set-tos have been largely defense-oriented, proceeding at a pace more conducive to the makeup of their roster. It’s why they’ve had chances to prevail in the crunch even after invariably falling behind by double digits. And it’s why they remain without fear in the face of James’ otherworldly performances; under constantly applied pressure, the other Cavaliers with the exception of three-point specialist Kyle Korver have all but wilted.
Still and all, the Pacers may yet find themselves eliminated from the playoffs for the fifth time in seven matchups with the Cavaliers, who, if nothing else, have James. Meanwhile, they have Oladipo, seemingly overwhelmed after Game One and yet still critical to the campaign of the blue and gold. They require him to provide the stuff that made him an All-Star. Else, they’ll scrap and claw, and perhaps come close, only to ultimately fail.
 
Anthony L. Cuaycong has been writing Courtside since BusinessWorld introduced a Sports section in 1994.

FROM THE ARCHIVES: Boracay resorts face endless problems (1998)

[BusinessWorld, The Provinces, June 19, 1998]
By Eduardo L. Jalbuna
ILOILO CITY – The famed island of Boracay may have survived the coliform contamination controversy last year, but the nearly year-old financial crisis buffeting Asia-Pacific economies is adversely affecting resorts’s drive to transform the island into a prime tourist destination in Asia.
Boracay island off the northern coast of Panay island which started as a haven of backpackers in the early 1980s now boasts several major tourist facilities.
The coliform contamination controversy in June last year exposed the repercussions of unbridled, poorly planned development and almost brought the tourism industry on the island to a standstill.
But Region 6 Tourism director Edwin Trompeta claimed in a recent interview with BusinessWorld Boracay had been able to overcome the negative publicity this controversy spawned.
He said that while his office had projected “a six-month to one-year impact” from the controversy, it attributes the continuing below-standard tourist arrivals more to the financial crisis that has been hitting the region since July last year.
“The decrease in tourists is mainly due to the financial crisis,” he claimed.
He added the raging region-wide crisis is making Boracay resorts less competitive.
Boracay had begun attracting tourists from South Korea, Hong Kong and Taiwan in the early 1990s.
He recalled that, before the crisis, the island’s resorts had been recording as many as 250 Koreans at any given day who usually stayed for three nights and spent an average of P2,500 a day.
Beginning the second semester of last year, however, tourist arrivals from South Korea had dropped by more than 90%, Mr. Trompeta lamented.
On the whole, tourist arrivals in the first five months of this year numbered 84,032.
This represented a decline of about 14.8% from the 98,650 arrivals registered in the corresponding period last year, roughly on the eve of the regional crisis.
Mr. Trompeta noted the decline in arrivals of South Koreans was notable.
RECOMMENDED: 
FROM THE ARCHIVES: Boracay resorts brace for less tourist arrivals (1997)
FROM THE ARCHIVES: Resorts lost P6.5M due to Boracay row (1997)
FROM THE ARCHIVES: Boracay developers not worried over contamination controversy (1997)
From January to May this year, there were only 1,088 South Koreans who visited the island, compared with 14,662 who visited during the corresponding period last year. hardest hit
South Korea, Thailand and Indonesia have been the hardest hit in the crisis and have required bailout arrangements from the International Monetary Fund.
And while Taiwan has been unaffected, Hong Kong officials fear recession may strike within the year.
Arrival of Japanese tourists on the island during the first five months of this year similarly dropped to 1,402 from 2,234 during the corresponding period last year, Mr. Trompeta noted further.
If it were not from the increase in arrivals of German, American, Australian and local tourists, resorts on the island could have been battered severely, he added.
The number of local tourists who visited Boracay during the comparative 1997-1998 periods actually increased to 62,225 from 57,607.
POOR PROSPECTS
Thus, prospects for increased tourist arrivals from neighboring East Asian countries remain uncertain amid continuing yen troubles and the probability of a devaluation of Beijing’s yuan by early next year at the latest.
Analysts are bracing for the latter, which is expected to trigger another round of devaluations of similar magnitude to the one which hit the region at the beginning of the crisis in July last year.
Mr. Trompeta said the crisis bared the propensity of Filipino resort operators to manage their businesses in an almost myopic way.
This, he said, is especially evident from their continuing tendency to jack up prices during the peak season in the first and second quarters that are not commensurate to the quality of amenities and services offered.
He noted further that operators, particularly those who rely on walk-in clients, have the mindset that tourists will be forced to accept any rate since they have few choices.
Mr. Trompeta said this is the root of many tourists’s disappointment with some establishments on the island.
He said his office has received numerous reports and complaints from both local and foreign tourists that they did not receive the quality of service they had paid for.
Moreover, resorts in Thailand and other Southeast Asian countries have been quoting their rates in local currencies.
In comparison, those on Boracay still quote in dollars.
He noted some of these establishments charge many times over better-equipped resorts in Thailand and Indonesia.
This, Mr. Trompeta fears, may doom Boracay resorts to uncompetitiveness in comparison with other resorts in neighboring countries.
COMPLANCENCY
“We have been telling resort operators on that island that Boracay is not the only destination in Asia,” Mr. Trompeta stressed.
“They are pricing themselves out of the market and are dragging down the entire tourism program of the country,” he rued.
He warned complacent resort owners had better wake up, since they will likely experience a serious slump this year.
Tourist arrivals had increased to 164,429 in 1996 from 29,551 in 1987.
In 1987, percentage of foreign tourists to total arrivals was only about 38.17%, but this increased to 44.56% in 1996.
Except for the coup-plagued years of 1986 to 1987, tourist arrivals on the island had always increased by double-digit rates.
In the first semester of last year, total tourist arrivals was at 109,088.
This reflected an 18.43% hike from the 1996 level.
Now, Mr. Trompeta fears actual tourist arrivals for the first semester this year – the traditional peak season — will most likely fail to reach the level recorded in the first semester of last year.
“The peak season is already over and there was a decline,” he noted.
“Nothing is in the off-season which can increase the tourist arrivals,” he said.
 

FROM THE ARCHIVES: Boracay developers not worried over contamination controversy (1997)

[BusinessWorld, The Provinces, July 2, 1997]
By Annie Ruth C. Sabangan
The three biggest property developers on Boracay Island said they are not threatened by the publicized report of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) that documents high contamination by coliform bacteria of waters of the island.
Noel M. Carino, chairman of Fil-Estate Land, Inc. (FELI), said the firm had been aware of the deteriorating condition of the environment on the island even before it ventured into its 117-hectare Fairways and Bluewater Resort, Golf and Country Club.
He said this is why the project incorporated environment protection features. These features include two sewage treatment plants, which island residential communities and small beach resorts can use as well. Mr. Carino added FELI will buy a P10-million motor raker to rid the beach’s seven-kilometer shoreline of coliform, which indicates contamination of the water by fecal matter.
RECOMMENDED: 
FROM THE ARCHIVES: Boracay resorts brace for less tourist arrivals (1997)
FROM THE ARCHIVES: Resorts lost P6.5M due to Boracay row (1997)
FROM THE ARCHIVES: Boracay resorts face endless problems (1998)
Mr. Carino described the DENR report as a blessing in disguise since it prods people and firms concerned to search for solutions.
Mr. Carino agreed with Environment and Natural Resources Secretary Victor Ramos the island’s environment can be rehabilitated in three to five years, although Mr. Ramos said it could take as much as 10 years.
Allen Mojica, spokesman of Prime Town Property Group, said the firm was not alarmed by the report since it was inconclusive and the environmental damage of the island is far from being irreversible. The firm owns 25 hectares of undeveloped beachfront on the island.
Moreover, the firm’s P2.9-billion condotel project will not be affected by the recently reported cancellation of tourist reservations. This, Mr. Mojica said, is because the condotel caters more to those thinking of permanent ownership. He added a projected drop in
prices should encourage purchase of properties on the island.
A source from Ayala Land, Inc., which owns 80 has. of undeveloped prime land, also said the fact the report is inconclusive means investors should not be alarmed.
Levels of contamination of waters of Boracay by coliform may actually be declining. In a recent press statement, Tourism Secretary Mina Gabor recalled Mr. Ramos as telling her more recent tests of water samples taken from the island show coliform count has decreased fourfold from the average level recorded during the last quarter of last year.
She noted further DENR Western Visayas executive director Raoul Geollegue had said the high coliform level late last year was expected since it was the peak season for tourist activities on the island. He had added it takes a year of tests to definitively declare water in an area as unfit for bathing.
Ms. Gabor said the Department of Tourism (DoT), the DENR, and the local government unit concerned have been implementing the P436.56-million Boracay Environmental Infrastructure Project, which was initiated in 1992 with Overseas Economic Cooperation Fund support; constructing a sewage treatment plant, incinerator and landfill facilities; and operating the Malay Water District.
“The safety of tourists and the Boracay islanders is a major concern of the DoT. The DoT would be the first to announce the need to close down resorts for safety reasons if it is warranted. But through close coordination with DENR, we have been assured there is no
cause for alarm if proper environmental measures are being taken. And these measures are under way,” Ms. Gabor said.
 

FROM THE ARCHIVES: Resorts lost P6.5M due to Boracay row (1997)

[Published on BusinessWorld, August 7, 1997]
By Eduardo L. Jalbuna
ILOILO — Boracay resort operators had incurred losses amounting to P6.5 million as a result of reports of unsafe water in and around the island.
In a report dated last July 25 to Tourism Secretary Mina Gabor, Department of Tourism Region 6 director Edwin Trompeta said the losses resulted from the cancelled bookings of accommodations of about 200 days in 26 resorts and forgone income by restaurant and service operators in the island.
Mr. Trompeta said the only positive effect of the unsafe water reports is that everybody is already aware of their respective responsibilities in this issue.
He admitted government had been meeting resistance in the enforcement of environmental requirements among some operators of tourism outfits on the island prior to this controversy. “All resort owners are now complying with all the requirements which is a very marked improvement from our dealings with them in the past,” he noted.
Resorts, travel operators and localgovernment units concerned are now organizing a promotional tour for local and national media to the island in the middle of August. Mr. Trompeta admitted this is part of a major promotions blitz before the onset of the peak season which will begin this October.
A controversial DENR water quality test in 10 sites on the island in the last quarter of last year showed coliform contamination way above established acceptable levels. But DoT said this was understandable, since that
was the peak season for tourism activities on the island.
Mr. Trompeta also bared that the Department of Environment and Natural Resources will conduct a seminar on requirements for securing environmental compliance certificates.
RECOMMENDED: 
FROM THE ARCHIVES: Boracay resorts brace for less tourist arrivals (1997)
FROM THE ARCHIVES: Boracay developers not worried over contamination controversy (1997)
FROM THE ARCHIVES: Boracay resorts face endless problems (1998)

FROM THE ARCHIVES: Boracay resorts brace for less tourist arrivals (1997)

[Published on BusinessWorld, June 24, 1997]
The Philippine Tourism Authority (PTA) Region 6 director Edwin G. Trompeta recently warned of a decline in visitor arrivals in Boracay Island due to cancellation of tours.
In a report to Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) Region 6 director Raoul T. Geollogue, Mr. Trompeta attributed this development to a news article in another daily claiming the island’s water is not safe for bathing due to contamination by harmful microorganisms. The report claimed water test samples taken by the DENR showed high levels of coliform bacteria in the island’s beach front and in two of its deep wells. These bacteria normally come from human excreta.
The PTA said approximately 208 resort operators on the island, and the three property developers in the area, Fil-Estate Land, Inc., Primetown Development Corp. and Ayala Land Corp., have warned of the negative effects of the purportedly erroneous article.
DENR had earlier said the report, which was incomplete, was taken out of context.
Mr. Geollogue said the report showed high levels of coliform bacteria were limited to a three-month period spanning October to December last year.
Thus, it did not represent the general water quality of the island. He said DENR requires at least one year of monitoring to make a conclusion on the island’s water quality.
“The high level of coliform during the said period was not unusual because it was the peak season of the island’s bathing activity,” he said.
RECOMMENDED: 
FROM THE ARCHIVES: Resorts lost P6.5M due to Boracay row (1997)
FROM THE ARCHIVES: Boracay developers not worried over contamination controversy (1997)
FROM THE ARCHIVES: Boracay resorts face endless problems (1998)

1...12,68812,68912,690...14,238Page 12,689 of 14,238
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
© 2024 BusinessWorld Publishing.
All rights reserved.
Read our privacy guidelines
Facebook Instagram Linkedin X Youtube