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Arellano, San Sebastian open NCAA volleyball campaigns with wins

THE women’s volleyball tournament of National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Season 93 kicked off yesterday with the Arellano University Lady Chiefs and San Sebastian Lady Stags booking opening-day wins against separate opponents.

Defending champion Arellano got its title defense to a winning start by downing the Mapua University Lady Cardinals, 25-10, 25-17 and 25-13, while the Recto-based Lady Stags shut out the Emilio Aguinaldo College Lady Generals, 25-16, 25-19 and 25-16, in the double-header played at the FilOil Flying V Centre in San Juan City.

Arellano had a fast start to establish control and just held its own and kept its opponent at bay the rest of the way to notch the victory.

The Lady Chiefs steamrolled their way in the opening frame, charging to a 15-6 lead in the early goings, which they would use as a platform to put the set away.

Mapua would find its bearing in the second set, holding their own and staying in the game, down by the just three points, 16-13, at the second technical timeout.

The Lady Cardinals managed to narrow their deficit further, 18-16, before the Legarda-based Lady Chiefs pulled away to go up two sets to none.

Just like in the second set, the third frame got off to a competitive start but Princess Bello and Mary Anne Esguerra would tow Arellano to create some separation, 8-4, in the first technical knockout and then, 16-6, in the second.

Arellano thereafter put on the finishing touches and parked the win.

Regine Arocha paced the Lady Chiefs’ attack with 12 points with rookie setter Sara Verutiao producing 28 excellent sets to go along with six hits to compensate for the absence of starter Rhea Ramirez who was rested because of a shoulder injury.

Andrea Marzan had nine points while Esguerra had eight.

Dianne Latayan led Mapua with six points with Patria Peña ending up with five points.

“We really prepared for this season. We will continue playing hard as the season progresses because we know the Arellano community is expecting us to defend the title,” said Verutiao, named player of the game, after.

POST-SOLTONES
San Sebastian, meanwhile, started its campaign in the post-Grethcel Soltones era with a convincing three-sets win over EAC.

The losing finalists last season, the Lady Stags relied on balance and far better steadiness on the court to complete the shutout of the Lady Generals and book their first win in the new season.

The Lady Stags, playing with just nine players in their roster, got off strong to start the opening set, establishing a 12-7 lead midway into it before racing to claim the frame with a nine-point separation, 25-16.

They continued to dominate in the second set albeit facing a tougher challenge from the Lady Generals, who are angling to improve on their one-win season last year.

But San Sebastian would withstand the charge of EAC to book the second set, 25-19.

The third frame saw the Lady Generals building on the momentum that they got in the second set, keeping in step with Lady Stags up to the halfway point.

Led by Dau Santos, however, San Sebastian would separate itself anew thereafter and never looked back en route to the victory.

Santos was one of four Lady Stags who scored 13 points each, nine coming from kills and four service aces.

The other players with 13 markers were Nikka Dalisay, Dangie Encarnacion and Joyce Sta. Rita.

Leading the way for EAC, meanwhile, were Jaylene Lumbo and Ladeisheen Magbanua with six points each.

“We expect a tough season because we lost a lot of players. We would be happy to just survive and maybe finish in the Final Four,” said San Sebastian coach Roger Gorayeb after their win.

Games today also at the FilOil Flying V Centre will see the College of St. Benilde Lady Blazers against the Letran Lady Knights at 11 a.m. and the Jose Rizal University Lady Bombers versus the San Beda Red Lionesses at 12:30 p.m. — Michael Angelo S. Murillo

City government extends work hours during renewal period

THE BUSINESS Permits and Licensing Office (BPLO) and other frontline offices will be open after office hours and on weekends to accommodate applications for renewal of business permits and tax payments in time for the Jan. 20 deadline. Makati Mayor Abigail Binay-Campos has also ordered the Finance Department to provide free lunch to the first 200 business taxpayers daily from Monday to Friday only, starting Jan. 8 until Jan. 19. Stubs for the free lunch will be given to clients upon payment of the amount due with the cashier. They may then proceed to the designated area at the ground floor lobby of Makati City Hall Building II to claim their free lunch. Clients will also be treated to free-flowing coffee and biscuits daily on weekdays during the renewal period. From Jan. 3 to 5, BPLO will be open until 7 pm. The rest of the schedule will be as follows: Jan. 6 and 7 (Saturday and Sunday), 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Jan. 8 to 12 (Monday to Friday), 8 a.m. to 10 p.m.; Jan. 13 and 14 (Saturday and Sunday), 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.; Jan. 15 to 19 (Monday to Friday), 8 a.m. to 10 p.m.; and Jan. 20, 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. BPLO chief Maribert Pagente urged business owners to beat the Jan. 20 deadline to avoid the penalties on late payments, which include a 25% surcharge and a 2% penalty per month of delay until the amount due is fully settled. For more information, follow MyMakati on Twitter or visit http://www.makati.gov.ph

PDIC urges depositors of rural bank to file claims for deposit insurance by Jan. 8

THE PHILIPPINE Deposit Insurance Corp. (PDIC) in a statement said it urges depositors of the closed Rural Bank of Villaviciosa, Inc. to file their deposit insurance claims on or before the last day of filing claims for insured deposits on Jan. 8, either through mail addressed to the PDIC Public Assistance Department, 6th Floor, SSS Bldg., 6782 Ayala Ave. corner V.A. Rufino St., Makati City, or personally during business hours at the PDIC Public Assistance Center, 3rd Floor of the same address. The PDIC Charter provides that depositors have until two years from bank closure to file their deposit insurance claims. Rural Bank of Villaviciosa was ordered closed by the Monetary Board of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas on Jan. 7, 2016 According to PDIC, deposit insurance claims for 15 deposit accounts with aggregate insured deposits amounting to P173,544.16 have yet to be filed by depositors. The procedures and requirements for the filing of deposit insurance claims are posted in the PDIC Web site, www.pdic.gov.ph, where a duly accomplished Claim Form can also be downloaded. For more information,depositors and depositor-borrowers may contact the Public Assistance Department at telephone numbers (02) 841-4630 to 31, or e-mail at pad@pdic.gov.ph. Those outside Metro Manila may call the PDIC toll free at 1-800-1-888-PDIC or 1-800-1-888-7342. Inquiries may also be sent as private message at Facebook through www.facebook.com/OfficialPDIC.

Celtics rout Cavs as idle Thomas gets ovation

WASHINGTON — Terry Rozier scored 20 points off the Boston bench to lead six double-figure scorers Wednesday and the Celtics routed visiting Cleveland, 102-88, in an NBA Eastern Conference showdown.

Jayson Tatum and reserve Marcus Smart each scored 15 points, Jaylen Brown added 14 points and Kyrie Irving and Al Horford each contributed 11 and nine rebounds as the East-leading Celtics improved to 31-10.

“That shows what type of team we are,” Rozier said of the Celtics’ scoring depth. “From day one we’ve always had that next man up mentality and we’ve kept it going.

“We just want to build from this and keep going.”

LeBron James led the Cavaliers with 19 points and added seven rebounds and six assists but Cleveland fell to 25-13, third in the East, behind Boston and Toronto.

Cavaliers big man Kevin Love injured his right ankle late in the second quarter and managed only two points on one-of-11 shooting.

Cleveland’s Isaiah Thomas sat out a night after making his season debut for the Cavs, missing more than two months with a hip injury after being traded from the Celtics in a deal that sent Irving to Boston.

Thomas exchanged hugs and smiles with his former teammates before and after the game and when he was shown on the scoreboard videoscreen, Boston fans responded with a standing ovation. Ex-Celtics forward Jae Crowder received one as well.

“It’s always great going against your former teammates,” Rozier said. “Those guys are great. I played two good years with them. Always great catching up.”

DeMar DeRozan scored 35 points to power the Toronto Raptors (26-10) to a 124-115 victory at Chicago while Greek standout Giannis Antetokounmpo had 31 points and 10 rebounds in Milwaukee’s 122-101 home romp over Indiana.

CURRY’S 3 WINS FOR WARRIORS
Stephen Curry scored 32 points, including the game-winning 3-pointer with 3.4 seconds remaining, and reigning champion Golden State improved to an NBA-best 30-8 with a 125-122 triumph at Dallas.

Kevin Durant and Klay Thompson each added 25 points for the Warriors. Durant had 11 rebounds while Draymond Green contributed 18 points and 10 rebounds.

The Houston Rockets, playing without guard James Harden due to a hamstring injury, had 27 points off the bench from Gerald Green and 21 more from Clint Capela in a 116-98 romp at Orlando.

Eric Gordon and Ryan Anderson each scored 17 points for the Rockets (27-9), who had 13 assists from Chris Paul and never trailed. Aaron Gordon led the Magic with 16 points.

Bradley Beal scored 27 points while John Wall added 25 and nine assists in Washington’s 121-103 home rout of New York. Poland’s Marcin Gortat added 21 for the Wizards while reserve Michael Beasley led New York with 20 points.

AUSSIES RULE IN SIXERS’ WIN
Australian guard Ben Simmons scored 26 points while Joel Embiid shook off a right hand injury to produce 21 points and 11 rebounds in Philadelphia’s 112-106 home victory over San Antonio.

Aussie reserve guard Patty Mills scored 26 points to lead the Spurs, who rested star guards Manu Ginobili and Tony Parker plus Kawhi Leonard. LaMarcus Aldridge added 24 points and 14 rebounds in a losing cause.

Canadian Kelly Olynyk had 25 points and 13 rebounds while Slovenian Goran Dragic added 24 points and 13 assists to lead Miami over visiting Detroit, 111-104. Tobias Harris had 19 to lead six double-figure scorers for the Pistons.

Spencer Dinwiddie, who scored 26 points and passed off nine assists, sank the winning jumper with nine seconds remaining to give Brooklyn a 98-97 victory over Minnesota. Jimmy Butler led the visiting Timberwolves with 30 points but missed a decisive jumper at the final buzzer.

Anthony Davis scored 29 points and grabbed 15 rebounds to spark New Orleans to a 108-98 victory at Utah while Gary Harris scored 36 points off 14-of-17 shooting to power Denver over visiting Phoenix, 134-111. — AFP

Court convicts sheriff of direct bribery

hammer & gavel

THE Regional Trial Court (Branch 52) of Manila convicted Ronaldo Espinosa, a Sheriff of the Department of Labor and Employment — National Capital Region (DoLE-NCR), of direct bribery and was sentenced to imprisonment of three to seven years. The accused was also ordered to pay a fine of P45,000.00 and was meted the penalty of special temporary disqualification.

See full story on https://goo.gl/UHqDfA

PCYAA Season 5 unfurls on Jan. 14 at Flying V Arena

Games on Jan. 14
(Flying V Arena)

11 a.m. – Grace Christian College vs. Jubilee Christian Academy (Boys Juniors)

12:30 p.m. – Uno High School vs. Jubilee Christian Academy (Girls High School)

2 p.m. – Uno High School vs. Makati Gospel Church-New Life Christian Academy (Boys Juniors)

3:30 p.m. – Saint Stephen’s High School vs. Saint Jude Catholic School (Boys Juniors)

5 p.m. – Philippine Cultural College vs. Pace Academy

THE Philippine Ching Yuen Athletic Association (PCYAA) returns on Jan. 14, Sunday, at the Filoil Flying V Arena and opens hostilities with a five-game schedule in basketball.

Four matches in the 19-under division and one in the girls high school category will kick off the fifth season of the PCYAA.

Title contenders Grace Christian College and Jubilee Christian Academy meet in the boys juniors division competitions at 11 a.m. followed by the match between reigning three-time champion Uno High School and Jubilee Christian Academy, two teams which slugged it out in the 2016 and 2017 finale of the girls high school division.

Uno High School and Jubilee Christian will square off at 12:30 p.m.

The Lady Uneans have not lost since the tournament’s inception in 2015 and carry a 31-game winning streak heading to this new year, but Jubilee Christian is out to spoil that big run.

Three more matches are also in store in the boys juniors division as Uno High School tests the mettle of rebuilding defending champion Makati Gospel Church-New Life Christian Academy at 2 p.m.

St. Stephen High School, the league’s newcomer, takes the floor at 3:30 p.m. against St. Jude Catholic School, winner of the 2015 and 2016 staging.

In the main game, Philippine Cultural College and Pace Academy slug it out at 5 p.m.

The PCYAA is composed of nine Chinese-Filipino schools in Metro Manila — Grace Christian College, Jubilee Christian Academy, Makati Gospel Church-NLCA, Pace Academy, Philippine Cultural College, Saint Jude Catholic School, Saint Peter the Apostle School, Saint Stephen’s High School, and Uno High School.

“This is the first time that the PCYAA will be playing its basketball games outside a member venue and the PCYAA Board is hopeful that a lot of the league fans will come out and support their schools on opening day at the Fil Oil Arena,” said Melvin Lim of host Jubilee Christian Academy.

Other competitions in the 2017-2018 PCYAA sports calendar are table tennis (boys and girls), volleyball (girls’ high school), chess and badminton, which is making its debut this season. — Rey Joble

Long live the…

Video Review
The Death of Louis XIV
Directed by Albert Serra

By Noel Vera

ALBERT SERRA’S The Death of Louis XIV shares at first glance the same status as most living royalty in this more presidential, more prime-ministerial world: it feels oddly anachronistic; it appears to hold little relevance to our lives; and very little is said or actually happens in its relatively brief and quiet reign, beyond the eponymous event. It’s also to my mind one of the most gorgeous-looking — and funniest — films I’ve seen all year.

Serra’s concept, far as I can make it out, is to give us literally what the title says: the king’s death, depicted in close and painful detail. Doctors worry over marks on the king’s foot (he has gangrene, and they wonder if they should cut), ply him with jellies and fruits. At one point a charlatan coaxes him into taking down an “elixir” made out of bull’s sperm, bull’s blood, and frog fat (ate my share of bizarre foods and even I would hesitate). At another, the doctors massage the foot with leaves, twigs, and what looks like chopped mushrooms and whole garlic cloves — I’m reminded of a porchetta roast, trussed and thoroughly rubbed prior to putting in the oven.

The real drama swirls around the film’s still, silent center: the royal doctor Fagon (Patrick d’Assumcao) argues with chief valet Blouin (Marc Susini) on whether to let either the dogs or the birds near the king (the doctor prefers the dogs; Blouin is for the birds); Blouin wants to bring in a doctor from Marseilles named Le Brun (Vincenc Altaio) and Fagon is skeptical (turns out Le Brun is more poet than physician: “What is love? Love is pain… love manifests itself because the picture of the beloved remains blocked between the eyes.”) The infighting and squabbles are endless if hushed: folks constantly seek influence and favor while trying to tiptoe round the elephant wheezing in the room.

As said elephant Jean-Pierre Leaud — wrote “Antoine Doinel” before I caught myself, but that’s how indelible Leaud’s work has been to the French New Wave: you see his face and the first word to pop in mind might be the name of his first and most famous lead role, as Francois Truffaut’s autobiographical double in The 400 Blows. He’s worked for other filmmakers since: Jean Luc Godard, Jean Eustache, Jacques Rivette, Agnes Varda, Aki Kaurismaki, Tsai Ming Liang among many others; as far as film lovers go he’s cinematic royalty and hence the choice to play French royalty.

Leaud cleverly underplays his Louis XIV as a man constantly exhausted by the least exertion; the one scene where we see him outside (the gardens of Versailles?) he’s being pushed on a wheelchair; when asked to join in a party he has to beg off and — as a gesture to their affection — asks for a hat to put on and doff them with. It’s a sly performance made up of a hundred little gestures, suggesting a ruler crippled by infirmity who still has his mind and — more importantly — his sense of humor. All the better to show how precipitous his fall when attacked by fever and then gangrene — the gestures ceased, the softspoken quips replaced by equally softspoken groans, the elegant expressiveness of the face congealed into a waxen mask.

Funny? Why, yes, yes I think it is, horrifyingly so: one look at that gargantuan wig on Louis’s head — as if a giant poodle decided to squat on his skull — and I can’t help but chuckle. The solemn process of attending to the death of a long-reigning ruler is stuffed full of absurdities, from a crowd of loyalists applauding Louis’s sucking on a spoonful of softboiled egg (“It’s wonderful Sire to see you have your appetite back”) to the royal physician holding up the royal large intestines like a chain of sausages and noting they are twice their normal size. The most affairs of state Louis manages to accomplish onscreen is to attend one council meeting (left undepicted) and to dismiss the issue of fortifications submitted by the Duke of York, presumably due to lack of funds — otherwise it’s all pain and sips of water and whether or not to cut off the steadily blackening leg. Democracy is hugely problematic till you realize that a form of government where the supreme leader has ruled for so long he can barely move his bowels, much less apply his brains, ain’t such a great system either.

Serra’s visual style avoids the Baroque opulence of the young Louis and opts for the more austere trappings of the late Louis — just a handful of richly red silks and velvets, and a pillow elaborately embroidered to lean on; the only real extravagance, and it’s admittedly a whopper, is the monumentally ridiculous wig (even in the king’s agonizing last moments it’s hard to repress a giggle). Serra indulges us by spending brief minutes outside (though carefully manicured hedges restrict our view of the horizon and dense tree branches cut off much of the sky) but soon moves indoors where the sense of claustrophobia becomes near unbearable — with Jonathan Ricquebourg as cinematographer, Serra takes his cue less from the official artwork of the period (Charles Le Brun, Adam Frans van der Meulen) than from the earlier smoky glass shadowiness of mature Rembrandt. After a while you may find it difficult to breathe.

In a way the film can’t help but be more relevant in 2017 than when first screened in Cannes 2016; watching it one can’t help but draw parallels with the present royalty sitting in the White House — the narcissism, the outsized ego, the way courtiers swirl around the sickly monster jockeying for position. Difference being Louis was well aware of the limits of his power and of the mistakes he made (onscreen at least we have a scene where the king briefs his grandson, Louis XV, on what to do or not do) while present king of the United States doesn’t seem to have a clue. Louis’s history can be instructive — he raised France to cultural and political glory but squandered much of the country’s wealth on building projects and foreign wars. The present king of the White House should really take heed, if he’s capable of heeding anything.

The movie is available on Google Play and Youtube paid online service.

Higher fuel price impact on consumer goods seen muted

THE Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) said the higher excise taxes for various fuels will have only a muted impact on consumer goods prices, raising the possibility manufacturer and retailers will absorb much of the costs rather than passing them on fully to the consumer.

Trade Secretary Ramon M. Lopez said producers and sellers of goods may elect to absorb the costs rather than risk exceeding the suggested retail price (SRP) for certain key commodities, which they are required to observe by law.

“I’m sure that manufacturers won’t increase their prices. Therefore, the groceries shouldn’t increase their prices since it’s in the law that they have to price their products within the SRP,” he added in a news conference.

“[Their pricing] can be lower [than the SRP] but it cannot be higher. That’s what we also have to check — if they are still pricing within the SRPs.”

In a presentation, the DTI estimated the cost impact on key goods such as canned sardines, noodles and breakfast foods such as coffee and pandesal at between P0.04 and P0.14 while additional costs for producers of items like meat loaf, corned beef and cement will be between P0.04 and P1.57.

Food prices are politically sensitive because they form a key component of consumer price index (CPI) baskets in poorer countries, since low-wage families must devote a larger part of their income to food. According to the Philippine Statistics Authority’s CPI primer, published on its Web site, food and nonalcoholic beverages have a 38.98% weighting on the nationwide CPI basket.

Various government agencies have been talking down the impact of price increases in the run-up to the implementation of new taxes tis month. On Wednesday, the DTI said there will be a lag in the rise of soft drink and fuel prices as sellers run down their inventories of goods taxed at the old rates.

Mr. Lopez said the department estimates Jan. 15 to be the point where it can adjust the SRP to reflect the new excise tax on sugar-sweetened beverages. However, if the old inventory still lasts in stores after Jan. 15, DTI may move the adjustment to Jan. 22.

Mr. Lopez said the department has received only one report as of Thursday of unauthorized price increases, which happened in the Visayas, adding that no drastic action to deter profiteers is currently needed. — Anna Gabriela A. Mogato 

The dream of federalism and the reality of centralized government

Repeated calls for federalism by the Duterte administration actually point to more centralization of the national government — the complete opposite of what they’re advocating.

Here are some examples.

1. National taxes have been rising, instead of declining, which could have helped prepare federal states to have their own income and value-added taxes, etc. Instead of lowering the top marginal income tax rate of 32%, it was even raised to 35%. Instead of reducing the VAT to 10% or 8% with few exemptions, the 12% was retained but many sectors were also exempted.

2. Expanding the number of departments and bureaus instead of reducing them. The Department of Transportation and Communication (DoTC) has become two departments — the Department of Transportation (DoTr) and the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT). Then there are proposals to create a Department of Housing, Department of Fisheries. A good federal set up is to abolish many existing departments (like NEDA, DA, DENR, DoH, DoT, etc.) and allow the state governments to create their own departments as they see fit, create, or expand local or state revenues to finance these state departments.

3. Forcing national legislative franchising like buses and taxi, instead of decentralized regional or provincial franchising. Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez and other House leaders are behind the proposal.

4. Reversing integrated public private partnerships (PPP) where government fiscal exposure is very limited to hybrid PPP where national government budget and foreign borrowings (especially China ODA) is much bigger. A meaningful federal set up will empower the state governments to deal with local infrastructure like airports, seaports, provincial tollways and inter-city MRT/LRT.

5. Centralized declaration of class suspensions. During the anti-martial law rallies in Sept. 21, 2017, Malacañang declared a Luzon-wide or nationwide class suspensions even if many provinces and cities did not even have scheduled rallies. Then during the PISTON jeepney strike in Oct. 16-17, 2017, Malacañang declared nationwide class suspensions, even if many provinces and cities did not even have planned jeep strike. President Duterte should have allowed the mayors and governors to decide, saying something like “the national government will step back from these decisions and it is up to the local governments to decide what’s best for their people.”

Beyond federalism plans contradicted by more centralization of powers and taxation, a long-term alternative would be for the Philippines to split into many new countries and allow these new countries to compete with one another in the field of taxation, governance, infrastructure, trade, and tourism to attract more investors and visitors from around the world. Peace and diplomacy will be retained as fellow ASEAN member-states as well as various multilateral formations and the United Nations.

Many existing Philippine island-provinces are actually comparable in size to existing countries and/or big territories (see table).

The dream of federalism and the reality of centralized government

This is a far out view and may not be considered in the current decade but would appear more viable through time. Singapore will not be as dynamic and developed as it is now if it was just one of many states of Malaysia.

Under the current activities of the Duterte administration, there lies a danger that when federalism is finally enacted, local entrepreneurs and job creators will be walloped with both high national and high local taxes, fees, royalties and various mandatory spending. This will be a good formula to encourage more corruption and black market business operation, or get out of the country and do business elsewhere.

For the federalism plan to be more attractive to the people, the national government should learn to step back, to tax less, regulate less, bureaucratize less, build confidence among the people and investors in the provinces that indeed they will be given more leeway, more opportunities to craft their own political and economic identity.

 

Bienvenido S. Oplas, Jr. is President of Minimal Government Thinkers, a member-institute of Economic Freedom Network (EFN) Asia.

minimalgovernment@gmail.com.

GMA targets millennials with 3 exclusively online shows

GMA NETWORK has ventured into creating original online content with the Jan. 1 launch of GMA ONE Online Exclusives, featuring three shows which are screened exclusively on the network’s YouTube page.

The three shows cover a variety of topics, from millennials’ problems, to lifestyle, to fake news.

Adulting with Atom Araullo is about how millennials and young professionals deal with adult issues as Mr. Araullo gives “netizens a peek at his everyday struggles as he faces the responsibilities of being on his own, and living on a budget,” said a company press release.

Meanwhile, #Goals with Gabbi Garcia is similar to many lifestyle channels, with Ms. Garcia exploring “her goals in beauty, style, makeup, travel and music.”

Finally, GMA News reporter Joseph Morong tackles the serious issue of recognizing fake news in Fact or Fake.

“Fact or Fake goes back to one of the tenets of journalism which is fact-checking,” said Mr. Morong in the press release.

New episodes of the shows — each are five- to eight-minutes long — will be uploaded every Monday at 5 p.m. The shows will have “at least 10 episodes,” said Nessa Valdellon, GMA Network’s first vice-president for public affairs, in an e-mail interview with BusinessWorld in late December.

“Each series of GMA ONE will have at least 10 episodes, though likely many more than that as we see these as being potentially long-running programs,” she said.

The online exclusives, Ms. Valdellon said, were in response to the “very, very dramatic uptake in our GMA YouTube following,” and in order to provide “the younger audience with good program options.”

“GMA has a very strong TV audience in the Philippines, especially among older, C2DE viewers [GMA classifies the C bracket into C1 or the upper C, and C2, or lower C]. Millennials, however, watch a lot of content online… In addition, we have seen a very, very dramatic uptake in our GMA YouTube following — our number of subscribers as well as amount of time spent watching — the past year and we want to expand this now huge audience further,” she explained.

The shows’ pilot episodes showed Mr. Araullo’s and Ms. Garcia’s utilizing the “vlog” style (where personalities bring a handheld camera around as they go about their day for a more intimate feel) though they also have sitdowns in front of the camera as they dispense advice.

In the first episodes, Mr. Araullo gives the audience a snippet of how he managed to move out of his family home and into his own abode while Ms. Garcia brought her viewers along for a trip to the beach.

“We noticed how popular ‘how-to’ videos are with millennials, hence the concepts of Adulting with Atom Araullo and #Goals with Gabbi Garcia. Both [Mr. Araullo and Ms. Garcia] have a very strong millennial online following so we wanted to reach the age range of their audiences,” Ms. Valdellon said of the rationale behind the shows.

Mr. Morong’s show was a bit different as it mostly showed him inside a café doing an explainer about the definition of fake news while inserting news articles and clips as examples.

“Meanwhile, fake news is one of the biggest issues that face us today and since most of it now spreads is online, it is just appropriate that we have an online show that discusses it,” she added.

In the series press conference held on Dec. 20 at the GMA Coop building in Quezon City, Mr. Morong pointed out that his show was timely because the country is nearing the 2019 midterm elections and he hopes his show will help viewers to form informed opinions.

Ms. Valdellon said the online exclusive content “marks the new era in our content production and programming.”

“We’ve been tracking Philippines and particularly GMA YouTube viewers closely the past years and we’ve seen which particular kinds of content are doing well and which audience these hit. The edgier content in fact has been the more successful. For our producers, honestly, we find it exciting to finally be producing content for an audience of people like ourselves — viewers in their teens, 20’s and 30’s — as for decades now we have been producing television content primarily for housewives 40 and up,” she said. — Zsarlene B. Chua

AirAsia plans Manila-Osaka flights by 2nd half

PHILIPPINES AIRASIA, Inc. is looking to mount flights from Manila to Osaka, Japan by the second half of the year.

Philippines AirAsia chief executive officer (CEO) Dexter M. Comendador said they have already received the entitlements for flights to Japan, which has recently become a popular destination for Filipino travelers.

“We have [entitlements] for Osaka, around second semester. [From] Manila,” Mr. Comendador told reporters last month.

This will be Philippines AirAsia’s first route between the Philippines and Japan.

The budget carrier will fly daily to the Indonesian cities of Bali and Jakarta starting Jan. 19 and Jan. 9, respectively.

Philippines AirAsia is planning to launch its initial public offering (IPO) by the second half of this year. The company expects to raise up to $250 million from the IPO, which will be used mainly for expanding its facilities.

The IPO is part of the plan of AirAsia Group CEO Tony Fernandes to consolidate its Southeast Asian units under one listed holding company, which is seen to create economies of scale and strengthen its position as the primary regional airline. — P.P.C. Marcelo

Police team leader in shooting surfaces at NCRPO

THE TEAM leader of the Mandaluyong City police personnel who figured in the shooting that killed two persons and wounded two others on Dec. 28 surfaced at the National Capital Region Police Office (NCRPO) in Taguig City on Wednesday. Senior Inspector Maria Cristina Vasquez had been declared absent without official leave since Dec. 30. She and nine other police officers involved in the incident will be placed under restrictive custody while the case is being investigated. — PNA/interaksyon.com

See full story on https://goo.gl/CBjnHV

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