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Stakeholders in wage increase petition bare P21 hike in NCR

A P21 INCREASE on top of the existing P491 daily minimum wage for workers in Metro Manila was approved on Thursday, Sept. 14, according to a labor alliance and two stakeholders who took part in the vote in the Regional Tripartite Wages and Productivity Board (RTWPB).

But an official of the board who was sought for comment to confirm this development has not replied as of Thursday evening.

Also sought for comment, Employers Confederation of the Philippines (ECoP) President Donald G. Dee in a telephone interview said he voted against the proposed increase.

Mr. Dee said “nobody (is) happy” with the increase. “Labor says they will go to PRRD (President Rodrigo R. Duterte), (and) on employer side, we will be making proposals to improve the purchasing power of the peso.”

“What I am saying is we cannot put (the) burden of all inefficiency in our economy on wages,” Mr. Dee also said, adding:

“If we do not correct this situation, we cannot expect to get more investments.”

Affirming Mr. Dee’s remarks about Mr. Duterte’s possible assistance, spokesperson Alan A. Tanjusay of the Associated Labor Unions-Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (ALU-TUCP) said in a statement: “We have no other choice but to come and ask President Duterte to grant our long-standing request…to provide a P500 monthly CCT (Conditional Cash Transfer)-like cash voucher subsidy to minimum-waged workers who helped build our high economic growth.”

“The P21 increase in daily wage remains insufficient for families to cope with rising prices of goods and increasing costs of goods. P21 is only 4.27% of the current P491. So it obviously did not lift workers out of poverty. Workers who helped built a high economic growth of 6.9% average Gross Domestic Product do not deserve this very small amount,” he added.

TUCP Vice-President Angelita D. Senorin, who also took part in the vote, said in a text message “the increase is inadequate to the needs of the workers.”

“But remember that the board is a collegial body and in this case labor is always minority. The increase amount is based on the latest CPI (consumer price index) and IR (inflation rate) presented by NEDA (National Economic and Development Authority),” she added.

Also sought for comment, TUCP General Emeritus Cedric R. Bagtas said in an online message: “The regional board missed an opportunity to escape from the flawed decades-old wage determination tied only to keeping in step with inflation.”

Last June, ALU-TUCP and another labor alliance, the Association of Minimum Wage Earners and Advocates-Philippine Trade and General Workers Organizations, petitioned, respectively, for an across-the-board wage increase of P184, and an across-the-board increase of P175 in four tranches. TUCP had also filed a separate petition of P259 for all workers including those inthe Barangay Micro Business Enterprise (BMBE). — Mario M. Banzon

PFL-leading Meralco Sparks return to action in Cebu

OUT of action in the Philippines Football League (PFL) for three weeks, league-leading FC Meralco Manila Sparks resume their campaign tomorrow in Cebu City when they collide with host side Global Cebu FC.

Sporting a league-best 12-4-2 record and 40 points, the Sparks are out to create further separation from second-running Global (9-6-4 and 33 points) when they face each other at 4 p.m. at the Cebu City Sports Complex (CCSC).

Meralco enters the contest off a 1-1 draw with JPV Marikina FC on Aug. 23, a result that stopped for the Sparks a string of four straight wins.

The long tournament break resulted from the recent international break to allow some PFL players to fulfill their national team duties.

Heading back to the pitch anew, the Sparks said they are very excited, more so they are facing a team like Global whom they have met twice in the season already but have not had much success against with to date.

In their first encounter in July, the two teams fought to a 2-2 draw while Global claimed the second game in August, 2-1.

“This is an important match for the players and the club,” said Meralco coach Aris Caslib in the lead-up.

“We have to manage their fast and good players up front as well as their quality defenders. This is an important stage in the league for our team. Everyone knows the September campaign is crucial and it starts with the game against Global Cebu. Everyone has to step up and focus,” he added.

Looking to spoil Meralco’s visit is Global, a 3-1 winner over Davao Aguilas FC last Wednesday in Cebu.

Brazilian Wesley Dos Santos (24’), Darryl Roberts (62’) and Paolo Salenga (71’) provided the goals for Global in the win in front of its home fans, which towed the team to solo second spot in the newly formed national football league.

“This morale-boosting win is a testament that Global can achieve anything as long as we play as a team,” Global Cebu skipper Misagh Bahadoran said after the game.

Tickets for the Meralco-Global match are priced at P20 for the grandstand, P100 for premium seats and P200 for the VIP area and are available at the Cebu Football Association office right beside CCSC. — Michael Angelo S. Murillo

Senate committee approves Defense budget, but could propose realignment of police intel funds to military

By Mario M. Banzon

THE SENATE finance subcommittee approved the 2018 proposed budget of the Department of National Defense (DND) on Thursday, but senators raised doubts the agency would have enough funds for intelligence operations.

The subcommittee, chaired by Senator Panfilo M. Lacson, green-lighted the proposed budget of P195.476 billion, of which P144.679 billion would be the regular fund and only about P1.5 billion for intelligence.

Senator Antonio F. Trillanes IV pointed out that the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) only has an increase in intel funds of P220 million for next year, less than half of the Philippine National Police’s (PNP) P500 million hike.

“Mas mabigat ang problema ngayon sa Mindanao and other security threats gaya nung sa West Philippine Sea kaya I believe na mas kailangan madagdagan ‘yung intel funds ng AFP (The problem in Mindanao and other security threats like the one in the West Philippine Sea are bigger, that’s why I believe that AFP should have additional intel funds),” Mr. Trillanes said in an interview with Senate reporters.

Defense Secretary Delfin N. Lorenzana, in an interview after the hearing, said the DND already has “something like P1.5 billion” for intelligence fund in 2018, including the P220 million increase.

“Yun na-approve na budget namin (That is what has been approved), so we have to live with it, so okay na ‘yun,” he said.

Mr. Lacson also found the AFP’s intelligence fund lacking.

“Hindi enough ‘yan. (That’s not enough) We really need to buy more intelligence information. Kulang talaga (It’s not sufficient),” he said in a separate interview after the deliberation.

REALIGNMENT
Mr. Lacson advised Mr. Trillanes to bring the matter up to Senator Loren B. Legarda, chair of the committee on finance.

“After all, I’m not the one defending the budget of the DILG (Department of Interior and Local Government) family. Sa akin ang DND. So ako (me), I have no objection,” Mr. Lacson said.

The police is under the DILG.

He also pointed out that realignment of funds from the PNP to the AFP is subject to the approval of the plenary.

“It will be put into a motion kung pwede i-realign (if it is possible to realign) the P900 million, and if approved in the plenary, we will still have to deal with the bicameral (joint House of Representatives and Senate),” he explained.

In another matter, Mr. Trillanes also asked Mr. Lorenzana about a certain “rumor” concerning Mr. Trillanes himself. According to the rumor, which came from a forum of military academy graduates, Mr. Trillanes is recruiting men in preparation for a coup.

Mr. Lorenzana said that he has not heard of such rumors and denied that the DND is conducting any investigation on the matter.

Mr. Lorenzana added that there is nothing to worry about as there are no reports of destabilization plots.

AboitizPower prepares bid for Masinloc plant

By Victor V. Saulon, Sub-Editor

ABOITIZ POWER Corp. is in the advanced stage of preparing its bid for AES Corp.’s controlling stake in the 630-megawatt (MW) coal-fired power plant in Masinloc, Zambales, its top official said.

“We’re studying (the AES asset). It’s very advanced,” Antonio R. Moraza, AboitizPower president and chief operating officer, told reporters on Wednesday night on the sidelines of a media gathering.

In July, AES Corp. was reported to be looking to sell its stake in the plant in a deal that potentially values the asset at $1 billion, at least. The company is said to be unloading assets to pay debts.

Although the company has not yet reached a stage when it has placed a value for the Masinloc power plant, Mr. Moraza remains interested.

“We’re interested,” he said. “If it’s a power project in the Philippines, or if anything is for sale, we’re interested.”

Mr. Moraza expects stiff competition in bidding for the plant, saying there are more than 15 groups interested.

“It’s big, quite large… plus there’s expansion potential. So I guess everybody is [interested],” he said. “Given the size, even the international players would be [interested]… They want something sizable.”

Asked about when he expects the bidding to be completed, he said: “I’m under the impression before the end of the year.”

Mr. Moraza also said that the company would make the bid on its own, without a partner.

Separately, Erramon I. Aboitiz, chief executive officer of AboitizPower, said: “I think AES is going through a process, so I guess we have to wait for that and to hear from them.”

This year, AboitizPower expects to finish the 68.8-MW Manolo Fortich hydro power plant in Bukidnon and the 8.5-MW Maris Canal hydro project in Isabela through its subsidiary SN AboitizPower.

Together with partners, it is also completing the 340-MW Therma Visayas, Inc. baseload power plant in Toledo, Cebu and the 400-MW Pagbilao Energy Corp. plant expansion. It is commissioning an 8.8-MW biomass power plant in Lian, Batangas.

AboitizPower has one of the widest portfolios of energy sources in the country. It has a significant array of renewable power plants — geothermal, large hydro, run-of-river hydro, and solar power plants.

The company operates a number of coal power plants for baseload capacity and oil-fired power plants for reliable peaking supply.

The company is pursuing projects in coal, geothermal and biomass to meet its target of achieving 4,000-MW net sellable capacity by 2020.

Shares in AboitizPower slipped 1.47% or 60 centavos to P40.10 apiece on Thursday.

Fil-Aussie Jason Day replaces bag carrier Col Swatton but will remains as his mentor

CHICAGO — Australia’s Jason Day became the latest high-profile golfer to split with his caddie, but said his long association with Col Swatton is far from over.

On the eve of the BMW Championship at Conway Farms near Chicago, Day said Swatton had been a “bit shocked” at the news, after carrying the 29-year-old Australian’s bag for all of his career.

“Unfortunately it just didn’t work out,” Day said. “I’m trying to find my footing here. I had to do it at some point.”

Day’s dominance from late 2015 through the first half of 2016 saw him capture a first career major and rise to number one in the world.

But a lackluster 2017 campaign has seen him slide to ninth in the world.

Day said Swatton would remain as his coach, but his friend, Luke Reardon, will be on the bag this week.

“He’s not out of my world one bit,” Day said of Swatton. “I’m hoping things move forward with us like they always have… because we both love each other like family.”

In June, five-time major winner Phil Mickelson split with caddie Jim “Bones” Mackay after 25 years.

And last month former world number one Rory McIlroy parted with his longtime caddie J.P. Fitzgerald. — AFP

DPWH, JICA to ​expand PHL highway network master plan

THE JAPAN International Cooperation Agency (JICA) and the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) will develop an expanded highway network master plan that is intended to ease traffic congestion along national roads and boost investments in the regions.

DPWH Secretary Mark A. Villar and JICA Philippines Office Chief Representative Susumo Ito yesterday signed the Records of Discussion (RD) for the second phase of the JICA-assisted High Standard Highway (HSH) Network Development Master Plan, a follow-up on the master plan drafted in 2010.

The first study covered areas within the 200-kilometer radius from Metro Manila, Metro Cebu, and the Tagum-Davao-General Santos Corridor in Mindanao.

The new HSH plan will cover the entire Philippines and identify infrastructure projects that could be implemented until 2040.

“The project complements the Build, Build, Build program of the Duterte administration as it will define a comprehensive and quality highway network and infrastructure priorities in the entire Philippines, and revitalize economic activities at the regional level,” said Mr. Ito in a statement released by JICA.

The study will also factor in resilience against disasters and hazards as presented in the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Plan 2011-2028.

“Through this initiative, JICA also aims to support the Philippines in building resiliency against natural disasters since the study will promote quality infrastructure, and identify emergency routes and road network redundancy,” he said.

Paris, Los Angeles confirmed as Olympic hosts for 2024 and 2028

LIMA — Paris and Los Angeles celebrated their coronation as host cities for the 2024 and 2028 Olympics here Wednesday, delivering a jolt of good news for the International Olympic Committee (IOC) as it battles escalating corruption allegations.

In a drama-free conclusion to a three-year bidding race, IOC members voted unanimously to rubber-stamp a deal hashed out in July for Paris to be given 2024 and Los Angeles 2028.

The pre-ordained outcome did little to dampen celebrations inside the Lima Convention Centre, where Paris and Los Angeles officials cheered and congratulated each other.

IOC President Thomas Bach — a driving force behind the decision to confirm 2024 and 2028 at the same time — hailed the joint award as a “win-win-win.”

“It’s a magical, unique victory,” said jubilant Paris 2024 bid co-leader Tony Estanguet as French President Emmanuel Macron saluted a “victory for France.”

Los Angeles 2028 leaders were equally ecstatic.

“This was the right answer, it was about fraternity, it was about friendship, it was about finding a win-win,” Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti told AFP.

IOC chief Bach meanwhile said the Olympic movement had secured the result “we were looking for.”

“I couldn’t be more happy than I am right now,” Bach said. “We have the two best possible games for the Olympics in 2024 and 2028, in two great Olympic countries.”

The vote marked the final act of a campaign that had been stripped of the usual intrigue ever since Paris and Los Angeles agreed to carve up 2024 and 2028 following encouragement from the IOC.

THIRD TIME LUCKY
The 2024 Games will mark the third time Paris has staged the Olympics, coming exactly 100 years after they last hosted the Games. Since then, France had made three unsuccessful bids for the Olympics.

“It’s a great feeling of happiness to be bringing the Games back to Paris after 100 years,” Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo said.

In Paris, giant Olympic rings were unveiled in front of the Eiffel Tower just after the announcement was made as a small crowd celebrated in driving rain.

The 2028 Olympics will be the first held in the United States since the chaotic 1996 Games in Atlanta.

It will also mark the third time that Los Angeles has hosted the Olympics following successful editions in 1932 and 1984.

Paris and Los Angeles emerged from the initial bidding race for the 2024 Games after a number of cities withdrew citing waning public support and concerns over budget.

Hamburg, Rome, Budapest and Boston all fell by the wayside during the competition, reflecting the political difficulties in persuading voters that staging the Olympics is worth the multibillion-dollar price tag. — AFP

PSE to get P1.55-B loan for PDS acquisition

THE Philippine Stock Exchange, Inc. (PSE) will be taking a loan totaling P1.55 billion to fund its acquisition of the Philippine Dealing System Holdings, Corp. (PDS group) as well as its capital requirements.

The PSE disclosed on Thursday its board of directors approved the obtainment of the one-year loan, of which P1.15 billion will be used for the purchase of the remaining shares it needs to close its deal with the operator of the fixed-income bourse. The other P400 million will finance the PSE’s fit-out and capital requirements for a year.

The company said it may obtain the loan from any of the three banks: BDO Unibank, Inc., Metropolitan Bank and Trust Co., and the Bank of Commerce.

The PSE is currently in the midst of merger talks with the PDS group, where it looks to consolidate the trading floors of the two capital markets under one entity.

So far, the PSE has already bought 23.8% of the Bankers’ Association of the Philippines’ shares in the PDS group last June for P476.45 million. Its purchase of 500,000 common shares in Whistler Technologies Services, Inc. was priced at P160 million last July, while its buyout of the Investment Houses Association of the Philippines’ 0.5831% this August was valued at P11.66 million. 

The acquisition of 100% of the PDS group, meanwhile, is valued at P2 billion, based on its equity value.

By end-August, the company has managed to hike its stake in the PDS group to 53.36%, from the original 20.98% it had at the start of the year. This brings it closer to the 67% target it earlier stated.

The PSE reported its first half attributable profit stood at P220.55 million, lower by 26% than the P299 million it recorded in the first semester of 2016. Revenues meanwhile stood at P662.53 million for the six-month period. 

Shares in PSE climbed 0.68% or P1.6 to close at P237.60 apiece on Thursday. — Arra B. Francia

More than 7,000 families affected by typhoon Maring

TROPICAL DEPRESSION Maring left 7,600 families displaced, according to the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC). As of Sept. 13, there were 6,952 families or 30,255 persons inside evacuation centers. Those affected are from Regions III (Central Luzon), National Capital Region, and Calabarzon (Cavite-Laguna-Batangas-Rizal-Quezon). Damaged houses reached 1,052 in Cavite, Laguna, and Quezon, of which 892 are partially damaged and 160 totally damaged. — Rosemarie A. Zamora

Superman confronts a new villain: white supremacists

WASHINGTON – No longer are planet-destroying extra-terrestrials or billionaire evil geniuses the villains: Superman, the DC Comics superhero, has a new mission protecting hard-working immigrants from white supremacist bullies.

In the latest edition of the Action Comics series, which has published Superman’s adventures since 1938, the “Man of Steel” intervenes to stop an out-of-work factory worker as he is about to kill some immigrants.

Wearing a blue work shirt and red-white-and-blue bandana, the moustachioed cartoon villain embodies all the cliches of the poor blue-collar American.

Gun in hand, he threatens veiled women and rails at Hispanic workers, accusing them of stealing his job.

“You work cheap, don’t speak English so you can’t talk back or even ask for a penny more. You cost me my job! My livelihood! For that… you pay!” he says, as he opens fire.

Just then Superman steps in, bullets bouncing off his chest, to save the day.

“The only person responsible for the blackness smothering your soul is you,” Superman tells the white supremacist.

The passage echoes the recent violent protests by American right-wing extremists.

In August, a 32-year-old woman was run over and killed by a Nazi sympathizer after a violent “Unite the Right” rally in Charlottesville, Virginia.

In 2015, Dylann Roof, a white supremacist, shot and killed nine black worshipers at a Charleston, South Carolina church.

American comic books have often taken on social issues, finding up-to-the-minute material in contemporary public conflicts and debates.

Marvel Comics, for instance, launched a new version of Spider-Man in 2011, making him half-black, half-Hispanic.

In 2016, DC Comics published a seven issue mini-series called Superman: American Alien.

In it, Kal-El (Superman’s real name) struggles to reconcile his extra-terrestrial origins with his new life on Earth.

Superman is in effect an immigrant, who left his doomed home planet Krypton when he was a baby and was taken in and adopted by an American couple in Kansas, in the rural US heartland.

Superman’s creators, Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster, were both Jews of European descent, and Superman’s story parallels the flight of European immigrants in the 1930s seeking peace and prosperity in the United States.

“The Man of Steel,” whose caped costume is inspired by the Stars and Stripes, grows up on a farm and embodies the American dream.

But Superman’s patriotism, like that of Marvel Comics’ Captain America, has been interpreted differently at the hands of the various writers who have scripted his adventures.

In the 1986 series Batman: The Dark Knight Returns, for example, Frank Miller presents Superman as President Ronald Reagan’s elite fighter, deployed to combat the Soviets or to restore order in the United States, neutralizing Batman. – AFP

Portfolio investments flow out as geopolitical concerns weigh

By Melissa Luz T. Lopez,
Senior Reporter

MORE FOREIGN CAPITAL fled the country in August to reverse two straight months of inflows, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) said, as the yearly “ghost month” superstition, the bloody drug war, and other geopolitical concerns spooked investors.

Foreign portfolio investments to the Philippines posted a $57.51- million net outflow last month, which reversed the $206.47 million in net capital retained in July as well as the $427.07 million tallied a year ago.

Such flighty capital are often called as “hot money” given the ease by which these funds enter and leave markets.

Market players plucked out more funds from the country amid worries on the “reinvigorated anti-drug campaign” of the Duterte administration, as well as rising geopolitical tensions between North Korea and the United States, the BSP said in a statement sent yesterday.

Foreign players placed as much as $936 million in the Philippines last month, but was cancelled out by the $994 million which headed out. These compare to the $1.434 billion invested in July, which was partially offset by withdrawals worth $1.228 billion.

Investors also opted to bring more funds out amid mixed corporate earnings reports for the second quarter, alongside alleged anomalies at the Bureau of Customs, the BSP said. These added to the usual “ghost” month woes in the market, which traditionally sees thin trading as superstition dictates that the season is bad for making any big-ticket investments.

In particular, withdrawals peaked between Aug. 14-18 as $329.01 million worth of capital headed out.

Reports of minors killed along the streets of Manila surfaced in August, which escalated concerns over the bloody crackdown on illegal drugs and crime which is the centerpiece of President Rodrigo R. Duterte’s platform of governance.

This came alongside the discovery of P6.4 billion worth of smuggled shabu shipments which entered the country that merited a Congressional probe and eventually led to the resignation of Customs Commissioner Nicanor E. Faeldon.

Outside the country, tensions between Pyongyang and Washington escalated after North Korea launched a missile towards Japan, a known US ally.

About 84.9% of the investments registered that month went into shares of listed firms, mainly to banks; holding companies; food, beverage, and tobacco firms; property companies; and transportation services companies, the BSP said.

Meanwhile, 15.1% of the inbound flows went into government-issued debt papers which yielded net outflows.

Bulk of the flighty investments came from the United Kingdom, the United States, Luxembourg, Malaysia, and Hong Kong. However, nearly 80% of the outbound investments went back to the US, which is still considered as safe haven.

The August print brought the year-to-date tally to a $318.88-million net outflow, a turnaround from the $1.974 billion in retained foreign capital tallied during the same period in 2016.

The central bank expects a $900-million net outflow for the entire year, citing that continued geopolitical threats and policy uncertainty both locally and overseas dampen investor appetite towards the Philippines. However, BSP Deputy Governor Diwa C. Guinigundo said last week that portfolio flows could recover amid expectations that exports will remain growing and as economic activity stays robust.

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory hero ‘was black boy’

LONDON – The hero of Roald Dahl’s Charlie and the Chocolate Factory book was originally written as a black boy, the author’s widow told the BBC on Wednesday.

“The first Charlie that he wrote about was a little black boy, you know, and I’m sure that was influenced by America,” Liccy Dahl told BBC Radio 4.

The tale of Charlie Bucket’s adventures at the chocolate factory owned by Willy Wonka was first published in 1964 and is now available in 55 languages.

Liccy Dahl said the final decision not to write the main character as a black child was “a great pity,” adding that it “would be wonderful” to see a reworking of the book to incorporate her late husband’s wish.

Donald Sturrock, biographer of the world-famous children’s author, said Roald Dahl’s agent “thought it was a bad idea” to include a black hero.

As with many of his books, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory made it to the silver screen in 1971.

But according to Liccy Dahl, her husband “wasn’t very happy” with the film version starring Gene Wilder as Willy Wonka.

A second movie version hit cinemas in 2005, directed by Tim Burton and with actor Johnny Depp taking in the role as the eccentric factory owner.

Other of Roald Dahl’s other children’s classics have made it onto the screen and stage, many since his death aged 74 in 1990.

They include Matilda, about the life of a genius five-year-old, which saw a 1996 film version ahead of a musical production by the Royal Shakespeare Company which opened in 2010.

Despite becoming a celebrated author, Roald Dahl became “extremely grumpy” when he was about to finish a book.

“I used to say to him, ‘Surely you should be thrilled, because you’ve finished a book’. He said, ‘Yes, but the fear of starting another one.’” his widow told the BBC. – AFP

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