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Blazers, Spurs square off with fleeting postseason hopes on the line

THE Portland Trail Blazers and San Antonio Spurs look to keep their waning postseason chances alive when they square off on Sunday in a late-season Western Conference game.

Neither team has been officially eliminated from playoff contention.

Portland (34-44) still has the best chance of the two of working its way into the postseason. The Trail Blazers are three spots and three and a half games behind 10th-place Sacramento with just four games to play after a 118-113 loss in Chicago on Friday.

Deni Avdija led the short-handed Trail Blazers with 37 points and 11 rebounds in the loss while Dalano Banton contributed 21 points, Shaedon Sharpe hit for 17 points and Donovan Clingan pulled in 18 rebounds for Portland.

The Trail Blazers hung tough despite having six key players (including leading scorer Anfernee Simons, Jerami Grant, Deandre Ayton and Scoot Henderson) on the sidelines with injuries. Portland committed a season-low five turnovers in the setback and had 20 second-chance points off 19 offensive rebounds, seven of those from Clingan.

“Our offensive rebounds really hurt Chicago throughout the night,” Portland coach Chauncey Billups said. “We didn’t shoot it well anywhere, to be honest with you. But offensive rebounds kept us in it.”

Portland has dropped five of its past seven games. To surpass the Kings, the Trail Blazers must win their final four games and have Sacramento lose its final five because the Kings also hold the head-to-head tiebreaker.

The Spurs (32-45) head to the Pacific Northwest for the first of a four-game road trip and after a 114-113 loss to East-leading Cleveland on Friday.

San Antonio roared from behind in the final three minutes against the Cavaliers, forging a 14-2 run to pull within a point with 4.6 seconds to play. But Harrison Barnes missed a contested layup at the buzzer, dropping the Spurs to the sixth loss in their past seven games.

“These guys have found a way to not go away numerous times and that just speaks to them individually and collectively as a group,” San Antonio acting coach Mitch Johnson said about his team. “You wish that ball would’ve bounced in for their sake because they put so much into this deal. It’s very rewarding as a coach at times to have that type of fight in your team.”

Devin Vassell led the Spurs with 24 points in the loss, while Barnes added 23. Stephon Castle racked up 22 points, 11 assists and nine rebounds and Julian Champagnie scored 15 points. San Antonio trailed by 23 in the second quarter and by 16 in the fourth before fighting back.

“In the second half, we did a better job of fighting, getting back into it,” Barnes said afterward. “But the deficit that we created in the first half, I think that’s where the growth opportunity is for us — avoiding those situations.”

San Antonio sits five games in back of Sacramento with five games remaining in the regular season.

The Spurs have captured the first three games against Portland in the season series, winning twice at home on Nov. 7 and Dec. 21, respectively, and in Rip City on Dec. 13. — Reuters

LA Clippers keep pace in West, wipe out Dallas Mavericks

JAMES HARDEN and Kawhi Leonard each scored 29 points as the Los Angeles (LA) Clippers finished off a convincing 135-104 victory over the Dallas Mavericks on Saturday at Inglewood, Calif.

Ivica Zubac added 25 points with 10 rebounds for the Clippers (46-32), who improved to 11-2 since March 12, while winning 11 of their last 12 home games. The Clippers had a pair of injury scares in the first half, but Norman Powell (thigh) and Derrick Jones Jr. (ankle) remained in the game.

Harden added 14 assists as the Clippers won both games of a back-to-back against the Mavericks. Los Angeles pulled even with both the Minnesota Timberwolves and Memphis Grizzlies while sitting a half game behind the fifth-place Golden State Warriors.

Leonard did not play his first game of the season until early January because of knee discomfort but has shown his productivity of late with an average of 26.2 points over his last 12 contests.

Anthony Davis scored 27 points with nine rebounds in just his seventh game with Dallas after a trade from the Los Angeles Lakers in February. Davis did not play on Friday against the Clippers because of injury maintenance on a nagging abdominal injury.

Kai Jones scored 18 points for the Mavericks (38-41) against his former team, while Klay Thompson scored 14 points after he departed Friday’s game with an illness. Dereck Lively II played after he sat out Friday’s game with an ankle injury but scored just two points in 15 minutes.

The Clippers ran away with the game by outscoring the Mavericks 44-30 in the third quarter when Zubac scored 13 points and Harden had 10, while Los Angeles shot 69.2%.

The Clippers scored 74 points in the second half to 52 for the Mavericks, who have lost two of their past three games. Dallas is ninth in the West and just percentage points ahead of the 10th-place Sacramento Kings, who hold the final play-in spot in the conference.

The Clippers were in control throughout, leading 33-21 after the opening period. Los Angeles had a 61-52 lead at halftime behind 19 points from Harden. — Reuters

Play-in tourney

If there’s something the National Basketball Association got right, it’s the play-in tournament. For the West, in particular, the scrambling figures to go on until the very last day of the regular season. With only a handful of games left for each team, the goal is to close out the remainder of the schedule with a series of victories to ensure a spot in the playoffs — or, at the very least, an opportunity to claim one by snagging the ninth and 10th seeds. And the jockeying for position has become must-see fare as a result.

Although there are only 15 teams in every conference, being part of the two-thirds that get to extend their 2024-25 campaign is much easier said than done. This is especially true in the crowded West, where the Lakers, provisionally, can fall to as low as 10th, while the 13th-running Spurs can climb to the same spot. The records are so close that every game day features movement in the standings. It’s why every outing is crucial, and why, by extension, diehard followers of the pro scene cannot wait for the postseason to begin.

Before then, though, fans get to find out whether the Nuggets will stay high enough to retain homecourt advantage in the first round. Given the seeming over-reliance on reigning Most Valuable Player awardee Nikola Jokic, the development is critical for the blue and yellow. Meanwhile, the Warriors have steadily gone up the ranks, with their momentum stringing along the possibility of securing the third seed in the playoffs. The Timberwolves and Clippers are likewise surging, enough to get pundits guessing as to how high they can go.

All told, the runup to the postseason serves as a proper preamble for upcoming matchups. Considering how much the brackets matter to those casting a moist eye on the hardware, strategic choices will, no doubt, come into play as the regular season draws to a close. Until then, the goal is to win every time out. Little wonder, then, that bench tacticians are already in playoff mode. The margins are so small that there is immense value to be had in gaining the confidence to believe that their respective fates are entirely up to them.

 

Anthony L. Cuaycong has been writing Courtside since BusinessWorld introduced a Sports section in 1994. He is a consultant on strategic planning, operations and human resources management, corporate communications, and business development.

BIR VAT collections up over 35% in 2024

TAXPAYERS line up at the Bureau of Internal Revenue office in Intramuros, Manila, April 18, 2022. — PHILIPPINE STAR/RUSSELL PALMA

THE Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) said it collected P643.85 billion in value-added tax (VAT) revenue last year, up 35.48%.

VAT is a 12% levy on the sale, barter, exchange or lease of goods or properties and services and on goods imported into the Philippines.

VAT accounted for 22.58% of the P2.852 trillion in overall collections in 2024.

“The substantial rise in VAT collections resulted from collecting 12 months’ worth of VAT in 2024 compared to just 10 months’ worth in 2023 due to the change in filing schedule from monthly to quarterly that started in January 2023,” the Bureau of the Treasury said in a 2024 Cash Operations Report.

Overall, BIR collections increased 13.29% year on year to P2.852 trillion, driven by the VAT performance. It surpassed the P2.849-trillion target by 0.09%.

This year, the BIR is seeking to collect P710.04 billion in VAT revenue, targeting 10.28% growth over actual 2024 collections.

In addition, the BIR has said it is now expecting to collect additional revenue from new tax measures such as the VAT on digital service providers (DSPs).

President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr. on October signed Republic Act No. 12023, which imposes a 12% VAT on DSPs, both resident and nonresident.

The implementing rules and regulations were signed in January, with DSPs immediately subject to VAT on digital services on June 1.

In other tax segments, BIR collections on income and profits tax grew 9.15% to P1.53 trillion.

Excise taxes grew 3.86% to P304.28 billion, other taxes rose 8.80% to P234.39 billion and percentage taxes were up 5.61% at P136.32 billion. — Aubrey Rose A. Inosante

Livestock industry eyes cheaper feed as China throws up tariffs vs US soy, grain

REUTERS

FEED PRICES could fall, with follow-on effects on meat prices, as US producers scramble for new markets for their grain and soy after China retaliated against US tariffs, industry representatives said.

“The US may have excess soya production, which may cause their prices to drop further,” National Federation of Hog Farmers, Inc. Vice-President Alfred Ng said via Viber.

“This will definitely benefit our livestock sector as feed prices will be further reduced,” he added.

China last week retaliated against the sweeping US tariffs, imposing additional duties of 34% on all American goods, on top of the 10-15% duties imposed on $21 billion worth of agricultural trade in early March, according to Reuters.

Currently, soybean meal imports from the US are charged a 1-3% Philippine tariff, according to Mr. Ng.

“We do not think the Philippine government will retaliate (after the US imposed a 17% tariff on Philippine exports) so we will keep them low for US soya,” he said.

In effect, this will lower the cost of local production, “encouraging more agriculture and livestock output,” he added.

The US Soybean Export Council earlier said Philippine soybean meal imports from the US may decline this year as African Swine Fever dampens swine production.

Meat Importers and Traders Association President Jess C. Cham said the US tariff regime may reduce demand in other countries, “resulting in more supply for other countries including the Philippines.”

“On the demand side, if our exports fall, there may be less consumption,” he said.

Mr. Cham said China is a major market for soybean meal and that “if tariffs make its imports less affordable, then exporters will have to look for other markets.”

The Department of Agriculture recently urged farmers to increase the hog population by a “minimum” of 2 million heads each year through 2028.

Livestock and poultry account for about a quarter of agricultural output and provide livelihoods for over 2.8 million farmers. — Kyle Aristophere T. Atienza

Trade deals pushed in face of Trump tariffs

REUTERS

By John Victor D. Ordoñez, Reporter

THE GOVERNMENT should seek new trade agreements with its regional and global partners to sustain its electronics, textiles and food industries after the US imposed a 17% tariff on the Philippines, economists said.

“Mitigating the impact of the tariffs requires proactive government action such as negotiating exemptions for critical industries and enhancing trade and investment agreements with other partners in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, the European Union,” Philippine Institute for Development Studies Senior Research Fellow John Paolo R. Rivera said via Viber.

The White House said the Philippines will be charged a 17% “discounted reciprocal tariff,” in response to Philippine tariffs of 34% on US goods, as estimated by US trade officials.

Finance Secretary Ralph G. Recto has called the Philippines “relatively resilient” during trade wars due to its economy being driven by domestic demand.

Last week, US President Donald J. Trump announced a 10% baseline tariff on all its trading partners, with the rates set higher for countries that impose high tariffs on US goods.

Within Southeast Asia, the Philippines had the second lowest tariff next to Singapore, which was granted the 10% baseline tariff. Cambodia faces the steepest tariff at 49%, followed by Laos (48%), Vietnam (46%), Myanmar (45%), Thailand (37%), Indonesia (32%), Malaysia (24%) and Brunei (24%). 

Presidential Communications Office Undersecretary Clarissa A. Castro said at a briefing on Thursday that countries facing higher tariffs could choose to set up shop in the Philippines and use it as an export base, leveraging the advantageous tariffs.

“The country should now look at new partners instead of simply allowing business as usual,” Leonardo A. Lanzona, who teaches economics at the Ateneo de Manila, said via Facebook Messenger.

He added that ”tariffs create uncertainty in world trade. How long will this regime hold?”

Agriculture Secretary Francisco P. Tiu Laurel, Jr.  has said the Philippines could take advantage of the relatively lower tariff rate compared with its neighbors to “push for more sales to the US of our products.”

“Nonetheless, the Philippines should look at this as an opportunity for better competition versus comparable nations which had been slapped with higher tariffs by the US,” Terry L. Ridon, a public investment analyst and convenor of the InfraWatch PH think tank, said via Facebook Messenger.

He said the tariffs could make Philippine semiconductor and agriculture products more price competitive in the US.

Philippine exports to the US amounted to $12.4 billion last year, 53% or $6.43 billion of which were electronic products.

The US goods trade deficit with the Philippines was $4.9 billion in 2024, up 21.8% from a year earlier.

Calixto V. Chikiamco, Foundation for Economic Freedom president, said higher tariffs on countries like Vietnam and Thailand could prompt companies shipping to the US to relocate to the Philippines due to the relatively lower tariff of goods originating from the Philippines.

“Whatever disadvantages we have in infrastructure can be offset by the lower tariffs slapped on our export manufactures compared to neighboring countries,” he said via Viber.

Business name registrations decline 1.72% Q1

REGISTRATIONS of business names declined 1.72% in the three months to March to 432,259, the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) reported.

According to the DTI, 11,660 registrations were recorded in the first five days of April, bringing total registrations as of April 5 to 443,919.

Of the total, 371,449 were new registrations, while 72,470 represented renewals.

In the year to date ending April 5, some 79,356 names were registered in Region IV-A or Calabarzon, followed by 55,062 registrations in Region III, or Central Luzon.

Business name registrations in the National Capital Region totaled 49,820 during the period.

A majority of registrations, or 249,115, were generated by businesses involved in the wholesale and retail trade, motor vehicle repair, motorcycles, and personal and household goods.

Some 57,778 registrations were in the accommodation and food service industries, while 25,617 were engaged in real estate.

Online channels accounted for 82.9%, or 368,318, of the registrations.

Meanwhile, hybrid registrations accounted for 69,958, or 15.8%, and walk-in registrations totaled 5,643, or 1.3%.

During the year to date period ending April 5, the DTI said registration payments were dominated by GCash, which accounted for 88.3%.

Other payment channels were Maya (5%), DTI Teller (4.5%), credit card (1.47%), and LANDBANK (0.68%).

Last year, business name registrations hit 1.06 million. Of the total, 938,681 were new registrations and 123,057 were for renewal. — Justine Irish D. Tabile

Power generators to be subject to quotas for minimum use of indigenous natural gas

BW FILE PHOTO

THE Department of Energy (DoE) said it will set quotas for the use of indigenous natural gas by power generators, to comply with the requirements of the natural gas law.

In implementing rules and regulations (IRR) released last week, the DoE said it will prescribe “a mandated minimum percentage of the electricity demand of generation companies and/or distribution utilities to be sourced from indigenous natural gas.”

“Such minimum percentage shall be reviewed and adjusted by the DoE as may be necessary,” according to the IRR.

In January, President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr. signed into law Republic Act No. 12120 or the Philippine Natural Gas Industry Development Act, which seeks to promote natural gas as “a cost-effective source of energy and an indispensable contributor to energy security.”

The IRR calls for the priority utilization of indigenous natural gas over imported natural gas and other conventional energy sources.

“(The) procurement and utilization of indigenous natural gas, including without limitation, by gas-fired power plants, shall be prioritized over imported natural gas provided that it is consistent with the State’s policy of ensuring energy security and consumer welfare,” the DoE said.

“An indigenous natural gas supplier and aggregator shall provide fair and open access to its natural gas supply in a non-discriminatory and transparent manner through physical supply, administrative or financial contracts, or any other arrangements allowed by the DoE,” it added.

Aside from establishing the Philippine Downstream Natural Gas Industry (PDNGI), the IRR contains a plan to develop the Philippines as a liquefied natural gas (LNG) trading and transshipment hub within the Asia-Pacific.

The DoE was tasked to prepare the PDNG Development Plan based on modeling, considering forecasted demand, supply, and uses of natural gas, taking into account the plans submitted by PDNGI permit holders and participants. 

The plan must be reviewed and updated every three years after its adoption.

Under the IRR, an entity may hold an interest in upstream and downstream natural gas facilities, as well as the supply and aggregation of natural gas, but will be subject to competition law. — Sheldeen Joy Talavera

Cybercrime complaints up 72% in Q1

BW FILE PHOTO

CYBERCRIME complaints increased 71.9% year on year in the first quarter to 3,251, driven by better information available on where to report incidents, according to the Cybercrime Investigation and Coordinating Center (CICC).

According to a CICC presentation at the Economic Journalists Association of the Philippines-San Miguel Corp. Business Journalism Seminar, there were only 1,891 complaints in the first quarter of 2024.

“The CICC, in partnership with the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT), has organized roadshows… to spread our 1326 complaint platform,” CICC Agent Marco S. Reyes said.

“If everyone knows there is a central platform to complain, naturally the frequency of complaints will get higher,” he added.

He said that the increasing number of complaints cannot serve as an indicator for whether cybercrimes are increasing or not.

“We’re still studying that because we don’t have the whole data yet. We’re still trying to reach everyone in the Philippines,” he said.

“Once we have that data, then we are confident enough to disclose that the behavior of these perpetrators is proliferating or going down. But as of now, (the evaluation is) still in progress,” he added.

In the first quarter, he said that most of the complaints involve smishing, or cybercrime that involves deceptive text messages, and vishing, or cybercrime that involves phone calls.

Anti-scam application Whoscall reported that it detected 648,239 short message service (SMS) scams and 351,699 scam calls in the first quarter.

According to Whoscall, loan availment schemes were the most prevalent for SMS scams. It was followed by VIP rewards scams and collection-related scams.

Meanwhile, Mr. Reyes said that perpetrators are now shifting to online platforms.

“They are now trying to shift to, say, for example, Viber and WhatsApp. Because these platforms offer privacy and you cannot see the number,” he added.

To address this, he said that the CICC and DICT are currently trying to work with the platforms to better regulate scams.

Scam Watch Pilipinas co-founder Jocel de Guzman said the regulation of social media companies is on the table.

“The problem is we cannot regulate them because they do not have offices here,” he added.

Last year, the CICC received 10,004 cybercrime complaints. — Justine Irish D. Tabile

Driving business growth through strategic transformation

First of two parts

IN BRIEF:

• The Philippine economic outlook for 2025 remains promising despite global uncertainties.

• Philippine CEOs are cautiously optimistic on the local business outlook but have expressed higher confidence in their own sector, recognizing that local challenges tend to have more direct and immediate impact on their businesses compared to global issues.

• With balanced optimism, Philippine CEOs are prioritizing strategic initiatives in two key areas: investing in new opportunities through M&A and partnerships and accelerating technology adoption.

As global uncertainties persist in 2025, corporate leaders are faced with the challenge of navigating the growing complexity of the business environment. It is essential for them to lead their companies through strategic actions toward a well-defined vision for the future, which is why EY-Parthenon conducted the EY CEO Outlook Pulse survey, which gathered insights from 1,200 CEOs globally, including Philippine respondents.

The survey explores the ongoing transformations within organizations, driven by executive leadership. In the Philippine edition of the survey, SGV zooms in on the unique perspective provided by CEOs on their expectations for future growth and long-term value creation in light of the uncertainties and the country’s current economic conditions.

PHILIPPINE ECONOMIC GROWTH
In 2024, the Philippine economy experienced growth of 5.6%, up from 5.5% the previous year, making it the second fastest-growing economy in Southeast Asia, following Vietnam at 7.1%. The strength of the economy was characterized by robust domestic consumption, which recorded full-year growth of 4.8%, despite some moderation observed in the fourth quarter. Economic expansion was primarily driven by growth in the industry and services sectors, which offset the decline in agricultural output due to adverse weather conditions.

Several factors contributed to economic growth in 2024, including a more favorable domestic environment and supportive government policies. Throughout the year, strong household spending was maintained, benefiting from lower inflation. The deceleration in prices resulted from a combination of government measures, such as the reduction of rice tariffs, and a general easing of price pressures following a spike in the previous period. Government spending also increased, with a larger infrastructure budget allocated to expedite the Build Better More (BBM) program of the current administration. Additionally, a more supportive financial environment emerged as the central bank adopted a less restrictive monetary policy, encouraging greater private investment.

The economy demonstrated resilience in the face of global economic headwinds in 2024, including slower global growth, geopolitical tensions, and uncertainty stemming from elections in various major countries. A key factor in this stability was sustained domestic consumption, which helped insulate the country from the full impact of external shocks compared to other regional economies.

The growth outlook for the country in 2025 remains promising, with international organizations and financial institutions projecting an economic expansion of approximately 6.1%. This trajectory positions the nation to potentially achieve upper-middle-income status by the end of the year. To realize the Philippine economic growth forecasts, a delicate balance must be maintained between sustaining strong consumer spending and implementing policy reforms that enhance investor confidence.

With a favorable demographic profile, stable inflation, and steady remittances from overseas Filipino workers (OFWs), household consumption is poised for further growth. This is bolstered by an expanding workforce and rising disposable incomes. Additionally, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP)’s ongoing policy of low interest rates and reduced reserve requirements for banks is expected to facilitate economic growth by increasing credit availability. Inflation in 2025 is anticipated to stabilize at 3%, following a peak of 6% in 2023 and interest rate cuts that began in August 2024.

Despite potential shocks from the global market, the country is expected to maintain a conducive environment for economic activity. While the overall outlook for the Philippines remains positive, the strong interconnection between the global economy and the domestic economy presents both opportunities and threats, as external events could impact local businesses across various sectors. Rising tensions in oil-exporting countries and policy shifts in major economies like the US could lead to increased import and commodity costs, raising operational expenses for local businesses. These global disruptions also underscore the fragility of supply chains, which may result in higher production costs. Moreover, shifts in the global economy could create new trade barriers, affecting the export competitiveness of Southeast Asian countries.

In addition to global risks, local conditions such as political uncertainty and infrastructure deficiencies pose significant challenges to the Philippine economy, contributing to a less predictable business environment. Consequently, domestic economic growth will depend on the country’s ability to seize opportunities while protecting itself from emerging threats both within and beyond its borders.

BALANCING CAUTIOUS OPTIMISM AND STRATEGY
Philippine CEOs must strike a balance between optimism and strategy when making decisions. The confidence of CEOs significantly influences their annual agendas, highlighting the importance of assessing the outlook of Philippine CEOs for the upcoming year. The survey indicates that 62% of Philippine CEOs maintain a slightly optimistic view of the business environment, while expressing higher confidence from a global (46%) and sector-specific (48%) perspective.

Philippine CEOs are confident, but not excessively so, in their near-term outlook. They are cautiously optimistic about domestic growth, recognizing that local challenges tend to have a more direct and immediate impact on their businesses compared to global issues. This perspective reflects a conservative view that global headwinds may pose greater risks to local enterprises than to their counterparts in more mature economies, particularly given the Philippine economy’s reliance on imported key commodities and revenue streams linked to external markets, such as the BPO sector and remittances from OFWs.

Unsurprisingly, Philippine CEOs express the most confidence in growth within their own sectors. This confidence is largely attributed to their expertise, characterized by deep insights into industry trends, competition, and market opportunities. Industry-level confidence is further bolstered by continuous growth in the digital economy, which expanded by 11% in 2023 compared to 2021. This growth has particularly benefited the technology and digital services industries, which are experiencing a sustained upward trend due to increased demand for digital services and improvements in the country’s digital infrastructure. Similarly, the financial services sector has gained from the expansion of digital infrastructure, rising demand for diverse financial products, and higher digital adoption, resulting in a 36.3% growth rate in the total assets of the Philippine banking system in 2024.

Given their balanced optimism, Philippine CEOs recognize the need for proactive measures, driving strategic initiatives in two key areas: investing in new opportunities — such as joint ventures and mergers and acquisitions (M&A) — and accelerating technology adoption. A notable 86% of respondents prioritized investments aimed at enhancing operational efficiency and growth through joint ventures or M&A, while 82% are focused on maximizing their companies’ existing technology stacks through further investment.

The 2025 outlook of Philippine business leaders underscores a technology-forward approach, with 80% of CEOs emphasizing the importance of investing in emerging technologies. This focus is evident in recent strategic moves, such as a major fintech company’s partnership with a leading Japanese financial group to strengthen its digital payments platform, and a global business services provider’s acquisition of a customer experience firm to enhance artificial intelligence (AI) and automation capabilities. Overall, this trend reflects a growing recognition of the value of collaboration and innovation through acquisitions to drive growth and improve service delivery.

Survey results indicate a more cautious outlook on costs, with a net optimism score of 62% regarding input costs and just 40% concerning the ability to pass cost increases onto customers. While CEOs expect inflation to align with forecasts, they acknowledge potential risks that could disrupt this trajectory. Consequently, a key concern is the ability to transfer costs to customers if input prices rise more than anticipated. To mitigate these risks, Philippine CEOs are planning to adopt strategies that enhance their operational capabilities through strategic initiatives like M&A and joint ventures to unlock efficiencies and potential cost synergies.

In the second part of this article, we discuss transforming operations to accelerate business advancement and using mergers and acquisitions as a catalyst for growth and transformation.

This article is for general information only and is not a substitute for professional advice where the facts and circumstances warrant. The views and opinions expressed above are those of the author and do not necessarily represent the views of SGV & Co.

 

Noel P. Rabaja is the strategy and transactions leader of SGV & Co.

Marcos-backed alliance told to fill spot left by Imee with opposition bet

IMELDA “IMEE” R. MARCOS — SENATE PRIB

GOVERNMENT-BACKED senatorial candidates could benefit by filling the spot left by re-electionist Senator Maria Imelda “Imee” R. Marcos with an independent or opposition bet, boosting the coalition’s image as a unity ticket, political analysts said.

This could let administration candidates tap into a wider voter base, improving their chances of securing Senate seats, they added.

“The narrative of offering a spot to the opposition can actually benefit them,” Hansley A. Juliano, who teaches political science at the Ateneo de Manila University, said in a Facebook Messenger chat.  “It helps project the image of magnanimity consistent with their unity narrative.”

Ms. Marcos, President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr.’s sister, withdrew from the Alyansa Para sa Bagong Pilipinas (Alliance for a New Philippines) ticket last week, saying she could no longer stand on the same platform as her former peers.

Her withdrawal came weeks after the arrest of former President Rodrigo R. Duterte on the strength of an International Criminal Court warrant for alleged crimes against humanity in connection with his deadly war on drugs.

There were speculations last month that the administration alliance was in talks with some independent candidates, a rumor swiftly dismissed by both camps.

“This is not new,” Mr. Juliano said. “Traditional politics and liberal politics have co-existed for decades.”

“They can synthesize the unity narrative with civil opposition,” Anthony Lawrence A. Borja, an associate political science professor at De La Salle University in Manila, said in via Messenger chat.

Opposition candidates might face criticism from their supporters for joining the administration slate, but they could justify it by underscoring the need to advance their agenda, he added.

“It might contribute to both the disillusionment of the liberal-progressive opposition towards their traditional heads,” Mr. Borja said. “Nonetheless… they could simply excuse it as ‘playing the game’ and being practical.”

A potential alliance between the administration and opposition could prompt the Duterte camp to claim that it’s being “ganged up” against, Arjan P. Aguirre, who teaches political science at the Ateneo, said in a Messenger chat.

“The end goal here is again to make it appear that the Dutertes are being persecuted by the administration and being ganged up by all its enemies,” he said.

There has been a deepening political feud between the Marcoses and Dutertes, two of the country’s most influential families. Their alliance started crumbling last year after the House of Representatives stripped Vice-President Sara Duterte-Carpio of hundreds of millions of pesos worth of intelligence and confidential funds for 2025.

The rift culminated in Mr. Duterte’s arrest by Philippine police last month. Weeks earlier, congressmen impeached Ms. Duterte, the ex-President’s daughter, for alleged corruption.

The Duterte camp may use such a political pairing to strengthen their narrative that they’re the “true opposition” against the Marcos government, Mr. Aguirre said.

More than 69 million Filipinos will pick a new set of congressmen, 12  of the 24-member Senate and thousands of local officials on May 12.

Nine of the 12 senatorial candidates endorsed by Mr. Marcos made it to the top 13 of the midterm election race, according to a Social Weather Stations (SWS) poll conducted just days after the arrest of Mr. Duterte.

Re-electionist Senator Christopher Lawrence T. Go, who is not part of the administration slate, and Party-list Rep. Erwin T. Tulfo, who is part of the government ticket, were tied at the top.

Only 12 senators will win in the May 12 elections, but three candidates were tied for No. 11, 12 and 13. — Kenneth Christiane L. Basilio

BI warns against trafficking for online scam hubs

PHILSTAR FILE PHOTO

THE Bureau of Immigration (BI) has warned Filipinos about the use of Telegram and Facebook by international trafficking syndicates to recruit workers for online scam hubs in Southeast Asia.

Commissioner Joel Anthony M. Viado, in a statement on Sunday, said the agency intercepted 125 trafficking victims in 2024, underscoring the growing prevalence of so-called “catphishing” schemes — fake job offers through social media.

“The Philippine government has been resolute in its anti-human trafficking efforts for nine years, and we are more determined than ever to bring traffickers to justice,” he said.

The announcement comes as the Philippines marks its ninth straight year as a Tier 1 country in the US State Department’s 2024 Trafficking in Persons report.

The report assesses global efforts to combat human trafficking and assigns countries to one of three tiers based on their compliance with the minimum standards outlined in the Trafficking Victims Protection Act.

A Tier 1 ranking indicates that a country’s government fully meets these minimum standards. However, it does not imply the absence of human trafficking.

In the latest incident, the Immigration bureau said four people — three men and one woman — were prevented from boarding a flight to Malaysia on March 28 after being misled by unscrupulous recruiters.

The victims were deceived by fraudulent social media ads offering high-paying jobs and were later coerced into creating fake online personas, often used in love scam operations.

In March, 206 Filipinos were repatriated after being trafficked to Myawaddy, Myanmar, where they were forced to work in cyber-fraud operations.

Majority of victims were between the ages of 20 and 44, largely college-educated, and hail from Metro Manila and neighboring regions, according to bureau data.

Traffickers often disguise the scam as employment in local business process outsourcing (BPO) firms, and once recruited, victims are sent to hubs in Malaysia, Cambodia, Laos, or Myanmar, all of which have emerged as hotspots for digital fraud networks.

Social media platforms, primarily Facebook and the messaging platform Telegram, are key tools used by syndicates to reach targets.

The bureau said it is working closely with the Department of Justice’s Inter-Agency Council Against Trafficking to monitor online recruitment and intercept potential trafficking victims at exit points nationwide. — Chloe Mari A. Hufana

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