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Greece to bring in Egyptian farm workers amid labor shortage

REUTERS

ATHENS —  Greece will start bringing in workers from Egypt this summer to take on temporary farming jobs under a deal between the countries to tackle a labor shortage, the migration ministry said.

After a decade of pain, the Greek economy is forecast to grow nearly 3% this year, far outpacing the euro zone average of 0.8%. But an exodus of workers during Greece’s economic crisis, a shrinking population and strict migration rules have left the country struggling to find tens of thousands of workers to fill vacancies in farming, tourism, construction and other sectors.

Greece will take in around 5,000 seasonal farm workers under the 2022 deal signed with Egypt. The countries have discussed expanding the “mutually beneficial” scheme to the Greek construction and tourism sectors, the Greek Migration Ministry said in a statement.

Migration has long been a divisive issue in Europe, but the plan had won broad support from employers groups keen to find workers.

Greek Migration Minister Dimitris Kairidis met Egyptian Labor Minister Hassan Shehata in Cairo this week and said the countries should also step up cooperation to fend off illegal migration flows in the region.

Egyptian officials have said their country deserves recognition for largely stopping migrants setting off from its northern coast across the Mediterranean to Europe since 2016.

The European Union this year announced a multi-billion euro funding package and an upgraded relationship with Egypt, part of a push to cut down on the number of migrants crossing over from North Africa.

Rights groups have criticized Western support for Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, who came to power a decade ago after leading the overthrow of Egypt’s first democratically elected leader. — Reuters

Prince Harry and Meghan, greeted with cheers, talk mental health in Nigeria

Britain’s Prince Harry and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, arrive to greet members of the public in Kingfisher Bay on Fraser Island in Queensland, Australia Oct. 22, 2018. — REUTERS

PRINCE Harry and his wife Meghan were greeted with wild cheers, song and dance as they visited a school to talk about mental health in Nigeria’s capital Abuja on Friday and the Duke of Sussex later met wounded soldiers in northern Kaduna.

The couple are on their first trip to Africa’s most populous nation, prompted by links forged through the Invictus Games, an international sporting event he started a decade ago for military personnel wounded in action. Prince Harry said Nigeria had expressed interest to host the 2029 games.

The couple were invited to Nigeria by the chief of defense staff Christopher Musa who told them the armed forces faced armed criminal gangs and jihadists and that improvised explosive devices presented “the greatest challenge.”

The 39-year-old Duke of Sussex then traveled to a military hospital in Kaduna where he met wounded soldiers.

In Abuja, Harry and Meghan visited Lightway Academy, which is run by a non-profit organization supported by their Archewell Foundation. They were received with wild cheers and serenaded by dancers and singers.

They spoke about mental health, which carries deep-rooted stigma in conservative Nigeria.

“Too many people don’t want to talk about it ‘cause it’s invisible. It’s something in our mind that we can’t see. It’s not like a broken leg, it’s not like a broken wrist,” said Prince Harry.

“Every single person in this room, the youngest, the oldest, every single person has mental health. So therefore, you have to look after yourself to be able to look after other people,” Prince Harry said, adding that “there is no shame” to acknowledge it.

Meghan said they were honored to make their first visit to Nigeria and urged the students not to suffer in silence.

“Just make sure that you are taking care of yourselves and that begins with your mental health by really talking about whatever’s coming up for you,” she said.

The couple also visited a kindergarten class, and when introduced to a five-year-old student, the oldest in the class, Meghan said: “Our son Archie’s five. He turned five last week.” — Reuters

Motolite shifts to Punched Grid tech to prolong service life

PHOTO FROM MOTOLITE

LOCAL CAR BATTERY leader Motolite said it has made its tropicalized automotive batteries more reliable by shifting to state-of-the-art Punched Grid technology, which results “in a 45% average increase” in service life.

Employing German tech, Punch Grid enables Motolite batteries to further “withstand the rigors of daily driving even under extreme heat and on bumpy roads,” asserted the company in a release. Punched Grid creates positive plates by punching the grid design into a sheet of lead, promoting a more efficient use of materials, enhanced conductivity, increased durability, and longer life.

Motolite said it is the first to locally produce punched grids, “consistent with its commitment to continuously look for ways to improve its products through the latest and greatest innovations in battery manufacturing technology.” Compared to conventional Expanded Grid technology, which is currently the norm for most automotive battery manufacturers, the plates using punched grids designed by Motolite’s engineers promise 24% higher conductivity versus previous designs, leading to better electrical flow through the plates.

Batteries using punched grid plates “can better meet the increasing power demands of modern automobiles. They also deliver more reliable engine start-ups and a more dependable user experience.” In addition to the tech, Motolite shared that it has incorporated the texturing of grids into its manufacturing process to facilitate improved adhesion of active materials.

This extra step boosts battery endurance and quality, reported the company, resulting in a sustained increase in high-rate discharge performance and longer battery life, allowing punched grid batteries to achieve 600 cycles more versus those employing expanded grids.

Enhancing hypertension control in the Philippines

FREEPIK

May is Hypertension Awareness Month, an annual celebration that aims to raise awareness on the prevention and management of high blood pressure. Hypertension is one of the leading causes of sickness and death in the Philippines. It is a major risk factor for heart attack, stroke, and kidney disease, which are among the top killer diseases in the country.

Unfortunately, the prevalence of hypertension among Filipinos has been progressively increasing since the 1990s. This was revealed by the PRESYON series of nationwide surveys conducted by the Philippine Heart Association (PHA) since 1998 to determine the awareness, treatment profile, and control rates of Filipinos with hypertension.

PRESYON-1, conducted in 1998, found a hypertension prevalence of 22%. PRESYON-2 in 2007 showed a prevalence of 21%. By 2013 when PRESYON-3 was conducted, this figure had risen to 28%. The latest study, PRESYON-4, conducted in 2021, revealed a hypertension prevalence of 37%, meaning almost four out of 10 Filipinos have hypertension. Moreover, the increase in the prevalence of hypertension from PRESYON-3 to PRESYON-4 was relatively larger (a 32% increase) compared with previous PRESYON studies, in which the rate of increase ranged only from 3% to 4%.

The prevalence of hypertension among males and females was equal (50%) in all four PRESYON studies. In terms of the risk profile among Filipinos with hypertension, the PRESYON study series showed a decrease in smoking rates (from 31% to 25%), an increase in obesity (from 9% to 15%), a decrease in diabetes (from 7% to 5%), a decrease in heart attack (from 1.3% to 0.4%) and a decrease in stroke (from 12% to 1%). While the significant decrease in stroke is certainly a welcome development, the increase in the number of obese Filipinos hypertensives and the persistent smoking prevalence are concerning.

PRESYON-4 revealed a high prevalence of hypertension (72%) among Filipinos 60 years and older, with 71% aware of their condition. The study authors, Sison et al, believe that the high prevalence of hypertension among the elderly and the high level of awareness may be because these patients have had their diagnosis confirmed, have undergone work-ups, are on maintenance anti-hypertension medicines, and are seeing their doctors regularly.

Hypertension prevalence starts to increase at 40 years of age (51%), rising incrementally with advancing age, and plateauing at age 70 and older. However, the authors pointed out that the prevalence of hypertension in the 30-39 age group increased significantly — almost fivefold compared with that in individuals aged 18 years.

Another interesting finding is the apparent shift in the prevalence of hypertension from urban to rural areas. Compared with PRESYON 3, PRESYON 4 showed a slight decrease in the prevalence of hypertension in urban areas (from 53% in 2013 to 51% in 2021), but a slight increase in rural areas (from 47% in 2013 to 49% in 2021). “This may reflect a gradual ‘urbanization’ of the rural areas,” explained the authors, alluding to risk factors common in urban areas including an unhealthy diet and lack of physical activity, among others.

Nearly seven out of 10 Filipino hypertensives (68%) were on some type of anti-hypertension medication and had a blood pressure control rate of 38%.

The compliance rate with anti-hypertension treatment was high at 86%; however, among medication-compliant individuals, the blood pressure control rate was only 39%. This, the authors explained, could be partly due to the fact that 79% of the compliant patients were on monotherapy. Clinical trials have proven that more than two anti-hypertension medicines are needed to achieve target blood pressure control, the authors stressed.

According to the authors, there may be “therapeutic inertia” among physicians, i.e., a lack of timely adjustment to therapy when a patient’s treatment goals are not met. As such, the authors recommend continuing medical education (CME) on optimizing blood pressure control, especially the use of anti-hypertension medicine combinations. Another possible factor hindering optimal hypertension management is barriers to medicine availability or accessibility, particularly in remote areas of the country, the authors added.

The authors also expressed concern over the low rate of home blood pressure monitoring among hypertensive Filipinos. Regular BP monitoring at home can alert individuals promptly of the need to see their doctor for adjustment or modification of their anti-hypertension medicines. It can also give patients a stronger sense of control over their health and motivate them further to control their blood pressure with a healthier diet, increased physical activity, and proper medication use.

The innovative pharmaceutical industry is committed to work with government and other key stakeholders in strengthening the country’s healthcare system to enhance the availability, accessibility, and affordability of essential medicines, including anti-hypertension medicines needed by Filipinos.

 

Teodoro B. Padilla is the executive director of Pharmaceutical and Healthcare Association of the Philippines (PHAP). PHAP represents the biopharmaceutical medicines and vaccines industry in the country. Its members are in the forefront of research and development efforts for COVID-19 and other diseases that  affect Filipinos.

How PSEi member stocks performed — May 10, 2024

Here’s a quick glance at how PSEi stocks fared on Friday, May 10, 2024.

Market to stay cautious before BSP policy review

PHILIPPINE STAR/KRIZ JOHN ROSALES

PHILIPPINE SHARES are expected to move sideways in the coming days as investors continue to digest key data released last week and remain cautious ahead of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas’ (BSP) policy meeting.

On Friday, the Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) dropped by 0.46% or 30.53 points to end at 6,511.93, while the broader all shares index fell by 0.12% or 4.42 points to close at 3,477.13.

Week on week, the PSEi went down by 1.57% or 103.62 points from its 6,615.55 close on May 3.

“Higher April consumer price index (CPI) and weaker first-quarter gross domestic product (GDP) growth weighed on sentiment ahead of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas’ Monetary Board meeting,” online brokerage firm 2TradeAsia.com said in a note.

Headline inflation rose to 3.8% year on year in April from 3.7% in March. Still, this was slower than the 6.6% print in the same month a year ago.

This was within the BSP’s 3.5-4.3% forecast for April CPI and marked the fifth straight month that inflation settled within the central bank’s 2-4% annual target range.

For the first four months, headline inflation averaged 3.4%, still below the BSP’s 3.8% full-year forecast.

Meanwhile, the Philippine economy expanded by 5.7% in the first quarter, faster than the 5.5% growth logged in October-December 2023. However, this was slower than the 6.4% GDP growth seen in the first quarter of 2023.

This also fell short of the government’s 6-7% full-year GDP growth target.

“[This] week, we may see some episodes of bargain hunting given that the market is trading at attractive levels. Investors are still expected to maintain caution, however, while waiting for the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas policy meeting,” Philstocks Financial, Inc. Senior Research Analyst Japhet Louis O. Tantiangco said in a Viber message.

“Investors are expected to wait for cues from the BSP regarding their policy outlook in light of the latest macroeconomic data wherein inflation and GDP growth both came in below expectations. Investors are also expected to continue digesting first-quarter corporate results,” Mr. Tantiangco said.

A BusinessWorld poll of 19 analysts conducted last week showed 17 analysts expect the Monetary Board to maintain its policy rate at 6.5% for a fifth straight review on Thursday.

The BSP raised borrowing costs by 450 basis points from May 2022 to October 2023.

Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. Chief Economist Michael L. Ricafort put the PSEi’s immediate major support at 6,360 and immediate major resistance ay 6,800-6,820 for this week.

“The next local policy rate-setting meeting on May 16 could match the United States Federal Reserve’s latest rate pause on May 1 in order to maintain healthy interest rate differentials to help support the peso exchange rate, import prices, and overall inflation,” Mr. Ricafort said in a Viber message.

For its part, 2TradeAsia.com placed support at 6,400 and resistance at 6,700-6,800. — R.M.D. Ochave

Peso to move sideways ahead of central bank’s policy review

BW FILE PHOTO

THE PESO is expected to trade sideways against the dollar this week ahead of the Monetary Board’s policy meeting on Thursday.

The local unit closed at P57.42 per dollar on Friday, weakening by four centavos from its P57.38 finish on Thursday, Bankers Association of the Philippines data showed.

Week on week, the peso also depreciated by 8.5 centavos from its P57.345 finish on May 3.

The peso moved sideways on Friday “on the back of weekend-related positioning,” Security Bank Corp. Chief Economist Robert Dan J. Roces said in a Viber message.

The dollar was also generally stronger on Friday following comments from US Federal Reserve officials, Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. Chief Economist Michael L. Ricafort said in a Viber message.

On Friday, the dollar pared initial declines and turned modestly higher as investors assessed a reading on US consumer sentiment and sifted through a flurry of comments from Fed officials, Reuters reported.

The University of Michigan’s preliminary reading of consumer sentiment came in at 67.4 for May, a six-month low and below the 76.0 estimate of economists polled by Reuters. In addition, the one-year inflation expectation climbed to 3.5% from 3.2%.

The dollar index, which measures the US currency against a basket of six peers, gained 0.07% to 105.29.

Debate over whether US interest rates are high enough deepened among Federal Reserve officials last week, and may be stoked further after a key survey showed a jump in consumers’ inflation expectations.

“There are… important upside risks to inflation that are on my mind, and I think there’s also uncertainties about how restrictive policy is and whether it’s sufficiently restrictive” to return inflation to the US central bank’s 2% target, Dallas Fed President Lorie Logan said at a Louisiana Bankers Association conference in New Orleans.

“I think it’s just too early to think about cutting rates… I think I need to see some of these uncertainties resolved about the path that we’re on, and we need to remain very flexible,” Ms. Logan said, though she did not directly address whether she feels the Fed may need to again raise its benchmark policy rate from the 5.25%-5.5% range that has been maintained since July.

Many US central bank officials, including Fed Chair Jerome H. Powell, have said they still think further rate hikes will prove unnecessary.

In an interview with Reuters, Atlanta Fed President Raphael Bostic said he still thought inflation was likely to slow under the current monetary policy and allow the central bank to begin reducing its policy rate in 2024 — though perhaps by only a quarter of a percentage point and not until the final months of the year.

Anchored expectations are considered by Fed officials as an important sign of the central bank’s credibility, and an aid in bringing inflation back to 2%.

San Francisco Fed President Mary Daly, in a taped interview on Thursday, said it is possible the “neutral” interest rate for the US had risen a bit, implying that any given level of the benchmark policy rate would lean less on economic activity than it would otherwise.

But she said the solution for the Fed in that case would be to keep its policy rate at the current level for longer.

Even if the neutral rate is higher “we still have restrictive policy, which is what we want,” Ms. Daly said. “But it might take more time to… bring inflation down.”

For this week, the peso’s movements against the dollar will largely depend on the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas’ (BSP) policy meeting on Thursday and the release of key US economic data, Mr. Roces said.

A BusinessWorld poll of 19 analysts conducted last week showed 17 analysts expect the Monetary Board to maintain its policy rate at 6.5% for a fifth straight review on Thursday.

On the other hand, one analyst said the BSP may cut the policy rate by 25 basis points (bps), while the other said that the central bank may raise rates amid persistent inflation.

The BSP raised borrowing costs by 450 bps from May 2022 to October 2023.

Mr. Powell’s scheduled speech on May 14 and the release of US producer and consumer inflation data and the latest jobless claims report this week will affect foreign exchange trading, Mr. Ricafort added.

Mr. Roces expects the peso to move between P57 and P57.40 per dollar this week, while Mr. Ricafort sees it ranging from P57.10 to P57.60. — A.M.C. Sy with Reuters

Analysts say allowing NFA to sell rice at subsidized prices is unsustainable

A customer buys rice at a stall in Paco Market, Manila, April 6, 2024. — PHILIPPINE STAR/RYAN BALDEMOR

By Kenneth Christiane L. Basilio and Kyle Aristophere T. Atienza, Reporter

A PROPOSAL to allow the Philippines’ National Food Authority (NFA) to sell rice at subsidized prices is unsustainable and could worsen the government deficit, economists said at the weekend.

Letting the agency buy rice from producers at high farmgate prices and selling these at lower retail prices is a superficial solution to spiraling rice prices, they added.

“The high price of rice is driven by global shortage, which is a clear case of supply and demand,” Filomeno S. Sta. Ana, III, coordinator of the Action for Economic Reforms, said in a Viber message. “Amending the Rice Tariffication Law will not solve the objective problem of supply.”

The House of Representatives committee last week approved a bill that seeks to amend the 2019 Rice Tariffication Act, which gave rice traders full control over rice imports and relieved the NFA of its power to sell rice at cheap prices.

President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr. earlier said he would likely certify the bill as urgent, citing the need for state involvement in the market to check spiraling rice prices.

Regular milled rice is P51.41 a kilo on average, while well-milled rice is about P56.42 a kilo, according to the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA). Special rice is about P64.68 a kilo.

The NFA got mired in debt after selling rice at subsidized retail prices for years. It cut its net loss by 38% in 2021 from a year earlier to P9.6 billion under the Rice Tariffication Act, according to the Finance department.

The law also limited the NFA’s mandate to providing emergency buffer rice stock to be taken exclusively from local farmers.

“That can reduce artificially and unsustainably the price of rice but at a very heavy price,” Mr. Sta. Ana said, referring to the agency’s subsidized rice prices. “It will worsen our fiscal deficit which could lead to a fiscal crisis.”

Quezon Rep. Wilfrido Mark M. Enverga, who heads the House of Representatives agriculture committee, said the agency should consult the National Price Coordinating Council in setting rice prices.

“We want the NFA also to be prudent in their spending,” he told BusinessWorld on the sidelines of a hearing last week. “It should be calculated properly. The NFA cannot do it haphazardly.”

Nueva Ecija Rep. Mikaela Angela B. Suansing said it would be the responsibility of the council, whose members consist of state economic managers, to ensure that NFA rice is not sold too low.

“The National Price Coordinating Council seems to be just a last stand by economic managers to assert their erroneous free market orientation over the rice industry,” Sonny Jose Enrique A. Africa, executive director of think tank IBON Foundation, said in a Viber message.

“They’ll be motivated… to keep the public subsidy as low and as short as possible, but blind to the necessity of substantial… government intervention to lower the cost of food production as the basis for lower prices for consumers,” he added.

Mr. Africa said only 2-3 million of 27 million Filipino families would benefit from the rice sold by the NFA.

TRANSPARENCY
Policymakers should also look at high fertilizer and fuel prices while lawmakers try to lower rice prices, Geny F. Lapina, who teaches agriculture at the University of the Philippines Los Banos, said in an e-mail.

“At farmgate, the price of rice is elevated because fertilizer prices remain quite high,” he said. “At retail, the prices are also affected by the high fuel costs that affect transportation costs.”

The April inflation rate for diesel quickened to 4.2% from -0.1% a month earlier, while gasoline accelerated to 3.3% from 0.8%. Pump price adjustments stood at a net increase of P2.25 a liter for gasoline and P0.50 a liter for diesel.

Philippine rice yields could decline this year and in 2025 due to rising fertilizer prices mainly driven by the conflict between Ukraine and Russia, the world’s largest exporter of key farm products including nitrogen and fertilizers such as the potash and phosphorus variants, according to an Asian Development Bank report last month.

The House aims to approved changes to the Rice Tariffication Act before their sine die break on May 25. Speaker Ferdinand Martin G. Romualdez has said it’s “possible to offer rice below P30 per kilo as early as July.”

“Whether there is some abuse of market power by traders is more difficult to prove,” Mr. Lapina said. He urged the statistics agency to regularly monitor rice farm, wholesale and retail prices.

The Philippine Competition Commission could also help investigate alleged irregularities in the market, he said, adding that regular monitoring of food prices is needed to deter “any abuse of market power.”

“If this administration claims to have provided a working version of the farm-to-market model that is the Kadiwa, then why can’t they scale it up for the rice industry?” Ayn G. Torres, an agro-economy expert serving as knowledge production manager at the Oscar M. Lopez Center, said in an e-mail.

Under the Kadiwa program, the government sets up farm-to-market outlets to remove middlemen from the chain.

Rice prices range from P49 to P60 a kilo. Due to government subsidies including for transport, Kadiwa outlets sell rice at P39 a kilo, and some as low as P20 a kilo.

Mr. Lapina reminded lawmakers why the NFA was stripped of its buying and selling power: “Buying high from farmers and selling low to consumers is a losing proposition. It had already inflated the debt of NFA in the past.”

Ms. Torres said lawmakers should clarify whether the private sector would still be allowed to import rice, or whether it can co-exist with the NFA.

“Unless the arrangements are clear in terms of the NFA’s function as regulator and import licensor, I don’t think the amendment will make any difference in terms of keeping optimal stock from local rice farmers.”

The 2019 law mandates the NFA to keep an optimal level of rice inventory — 480,000-960,000 metric tons (MT) of rice — enough to accommodate 15 to 30 days of national rice consumption.

The Philippines imported 3.58MT of rice last year, according to the Bureau of Plant Industry. Filipino farmers produced 20 million MT of rice.

Mr. Lapina said enforcing targeted subsidies for the poorest households may be a better route, noting that the government could study and replicate the framework of its flagship conditional cash transfer program.

It should also focus on improving post-farm infrastructure such as storage and logistics, he added.

Ms. Torres said policymakers should push for flexibility and transparency in the management of the Rice Competitiveness Enhancement Fund, which gets P10 billion yearly from rice tariffs.

“Did the collected tariffs already go beyond P10 billion, and thus should have been allocated to other farmer support mechanisms?” she asked. “Has the P10-billion RCEF been enough to support the industry on top of regular Department of Agriculture appropriation? Can the disbursements be made public?”

Marcos forms panel to fine-tune probe of human rights violations

PHILIPPINE STAR/ MIGUEL DE GUZMAN

THE GOVERNMENT of President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr. has created a special panel to address human rights issues in the Philippines, but civic groups said the public should temper its expectations give the poor track record of agencies that govern it.

Under Administrative Order No. 22 signed on May 8, the Special Committee on Human Rights Coordination will fine-tune the investigation and data-gathering on human rights violations by law enforcement agencies.

It will also engage the private sector and “expand civic space.”

The panel is in keeping with the United Nations (UN) for the Joint Program on Human Rights, a three-year program set up in October 2020 amid extrajudicial killings under then President Rodrigo R. Duterte’s deadly drug war.

The new committee headed by Executive Secretary Lucas P. Bersamin and Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin C. Remulla will enforce a human right-centered approach to campaigns against illegal drugs and insurgency.

It should also facilitate access to redress mechanisms by human rights victims and ensure effective implementation of programs aimed at upholding the rights of prisoners.

The state should not subject anyone to torture and other cruel, inhumane or degrading treatment or punishment, according to the Marcos order.

The panel is under the Presidential Human Rights Committee, which has downplayed abuses under the Duterte government. Its members include the secretaries of the Foreign Affairs and Interior and Local Government departments.

Carlos H. Conde, a senior researcher at the Asia division of Human Rights Watch, noted that while the committee talks about accountability, it is “not an accountability mechanism per se” like the Commission on Human Rights.

“It has no UN or civil society organization participation and is going to be led by the Presidential Committee on Human Rights, which has zero record on accountability for rights abuses,” he said in an X post.

“My fear is that it will serve mainly as a propaganda arm to defend the government against allegations of rights abuses,” he said. “Some of the committee members are government agencies with their own poor human rights record.”

“With its premise of addressing human rights issues through mere ‘coordination,’ one cannot expect much from this special committee,” Karapatan Secretary-General Cristina Palabay said in a statement.

“It will go the way of the inter-agency committee created under Administrative Order No. 35 tasked to resolve extrajudicial killings, enforced disappearances, torture and other grave violations of human rights, which has a pitiful record of having handled only 385 cases and securing 13 convictions out of thousands of cases.”

Karapatan also cited the poor performance of a task force created under Executive Order No. 23 issued over a year ago, to probe labor-related violations.

The International Criminal Court has been investigating drug-war related killings under Mr. Duterte when he was mayor of Davao City from November 2011 to June 2016 as well as cases during his presidency up until March 16, 2019, the day before the Philippines withdrew from the court.

The government estimates that at least 6,117 people were killed in the drug war between July 1, 2016 and May 31, 2022, but human rights groups say the death toll could be as high as 30,000.

There were 11 reported drug-related killings in the country from May 1 to 7, one of which had no known drug ties, bringing the total cases since Mr. Marcos assumed office in 2022 to 652, according to the Dahas project from the University of the Philippines Third World Studies Center.

Of the 652 drug suspects, 270 were killed by state and 94 by nonstate agents, it said. — Kyle Aristophere T. Atienza

Philippines’ double standard in ICC, SCS dispute cited

PCOO

MANILA’s decision not to cooperate with the International Criminal Court (ICC) in its investigation of the government’s war on drugs is inconsistent with its foreign policy, according to a former Philippine envoy.

The government chooses not to help the ICC, which operates based on international rules, yet trumpets the importance of the rules-based order in its South China Sea (SCS) dispute with China, Marilyn J. Alarilla, former Philippine Ambassador to Turkey and Laos, told BusinessWorld in a Facebook Messenger chat at the weekend.

“The Philippines is always raising the importance of a rules-based order. This is the narrative we cite with allies and other like-minded countries in seeking their support versus China’s aggressive moves,” she pointed out.

Ms. Alarilla said rejoining the ICC would show consistency because the Philippines advocates a rules-based international order.

She said Mr. Duterte’s decision to withdraw from the international tribunal was a “personal decision” given his involvement in the drug war.

“How can we be credible if we are selective in supporting a rules-based order?” she asked. “Other countries like China, Russia, and the US, which conduct secret and nonlegal operations outside their territories, are concerned about being exposed for activities that violate human rights.”

President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr.’s stance not to cooperate with the ICC might be a political decision to prevent worsening ties with the Dutertes including Vice-President Sara Duterte-Carpio, she said.

Mr. Marcos has said his government would not lift a finger to help the ICC probe, which he sees as a threat to Philippine sovereignty.

The presidential palace last week said Mr. Marcos’ stance “remains clear and consistent,” as the Justice department prepares a brief on scenarios related to the ICC investigation including a potential arrest warrant for Mr. Duterte and a possible Philippine return to the court.

The ICC probe covers Mr. Duterte’s war on drugs from when he was mayor of Davao City and during his presidency until March 16, 2019, when the country left the ICC.

The state estimates that more than 6,000 people died in the drug war, but human rights groups say as many as 30,000 died. 

A Social Weather Stations poll in December showed 53% of Filipinos agreed with the ICC probe of the drug war.

Like the President, the Justice department insists it doesn’t recognize the ICC’s jurisdiction because the country has a working justice system. — Chloe Mari A. Hufana

Former Duterte adviser to be summoned to House probe of P3.6-B drug smuggling

By Kenneth Christiane L. Basilio

A FORMER adviser to ex-president Rodrigo R. Duterte would be called to a congressional investigation on the delivery of P3.6 billion worth of smuggled illegal drugs in Mexico, Pampanga last year.

The House Dangerous Drugs Committee said on Sunday its investigation would summon an economic advisor of Mr. Duterte who was previously implicated in the illegal drug trade as well as the overpriced supply deals between Pharmally Pharmaceutical Corp. and the government during the pandemic.

“This matter has now gone from a simple illegal drug smuggling to a national security concern,” Surigao del Norte Rep. Robert Ace S. Barbers said in a statement.  “We need to establish the link between these companies and… the financier of Pharmally (Pharmaceuticals Corp.)”

Last September, anti-narcotics operatives backed by the National Bureau of Investigation, the Bureau of Customs, and the National Intelligence Coordinating Agency busted the smuggling and delivery of 530 kilos of methamphetamine hydrochloride, valued at P3.6 billion, through Subic Bay Port to a warehouse in Mexico, Pampanga.

In an earlier House panel hearing, a director at Pharmally was tagged as among the incorporators of the company that owned the warehouse. This pharmaceutical executive was the one who had named Mr. Duterte’s former economic adviser as the alleged financier for the medical supply company.

“It is not as simple as it seems,” said Mr. Barbers, who is the panel chairman. “These personalities and their interests are so intertwined and intricately woven in an elaborate multi-layered company structure that resembles a maze deliberately designed to avoid detection.”

The House investigation on the drug bust also revealed that Chinese nationals involved in the case used fake Philippine documentation to skirt the law, allowing them to purchase properties in the country with the use of fictitious identities, Mr. Barbers added.

“Using fictitious documents and corporations, they went on buying sprees and allegedly bought hundreds and possibly thousands of hectares of agricultural and residential lands in Northern Luzon and started building warehouses,” he said.

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