Japan pledges seen to create jobs

November 6, 2023 | 8:21 pm

THE COUNTRY’S labor sector is hopeful that Japan Prime Minister Fumio Kishida’s commitment to support infrastructure projects in the Philippines will usher in foreign investments and spur job creation.

In a statement on Sunday, the Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (TUCP) welcomed Japan’s pledge to aid in the country’s defense and economic recovery. “Prime Minister Kishida’s state visit will signal an intensified focus on bringing in Japanese foreign direct investments as well as reinvigorated official development assistance,” TUCP president and House Deputy Speaker Raymond Democrito C. Mendoza said.

“More foreign investments translate to hundreds of thousands of new, permanent, and decent jobs with security of tenure and living wages,” he added.

Mr. Kishida had said Japan will continue supporting the Marcos administration’s Build, Better, More program on infrastructure, including the Dalton Pass (a mountain pass in Central Luzon), and the Metro Manila Subway.

Mr. Mendoza said the TUCP hopes that the development assistance from Japan will also cover the proposed national railway system which will connect regional and provincial agro-industrial hubs to “further create new jobs, ensure food security, [and] decongest urban metropolitan areas by promoting rural development.” — Jomel R. Paguian

Senate probes crime-linked POGOs

November 6, 2023 | 8:18 pm

THE SENATE Committee on Women will investigate Philippine Offshore Gaming Operations (POGO) at a building in Pasay City that was shut down by the local government last Friday due to human trafficking and other crimes.

“The Committee on Women will also conduct an ocular inspection of the building on Friday (Nov. 10) to understand the scale of the problem,” said Senator Ana Theresia N. Hontiveros-Baraquel, who noted that “Pasay police officers were either negligent or complicit” in covering up for the POGOs.

Colonel Jean S. Fajardo, Philippine National Police (PNP) spokesperson, said over the weekend that the Pasay City police chief and 27 other police officers had been relieved from their posts due to the nefarious activities at the POGO hub.

On Monday, Senator Sherwin T. Gatchalian filed a resolution seeking to probe the involvement of criminal syndicates within the POGO firms.

Mr. Gatchalian said that the numerous reports of human trafficking victims from these POGO from points to organized crime groups operating within these outfits.

“These syndicates have already corrupted our enforcers enabling them to operate freely even beside the police station,” he said.

The Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Commission earlier this month discovered torture devices and rescued a total of 731 suspected human trafficking victims from the Pasay POGO hub. — John Victor D. Ordoñez

Bids on for P2.5-B Clark project

November 6, 2023 | 8:18 pm

THE BASES Conversion and Development Authority (BCDA) announced on Monday that it is now inviting bids for the commercialization of the information and communications technology (ICT) infrastructure in New Clark City.

“Given that the services involved in the commercialization of passive ICT infrastructure are not typically provided by the public sector, the BCDA is looking for a joint venture partner that has expertise in this field,” the notice said.

A document from the BCDA showed that the projected total cost of the project over the joint venture term — that is 25 years and extendable for a period of 10 years — is approximately P2.5 billion.

The project will be undertaken through a joint venture and involves the commercialization, expansion, repair and maintenance of BCDA’s passive ICT infrastructure.

The pre-qualification conference for the project will be held on Nov. 14 at the Asian Development Bank.

It will cover the passive conduits, fiber optic cables, chambers, and colocation facilities, among others, located in New Clark City which is envisioned to be “a smart, green, and disaster-resilient city.”

It also includes the last mile connection direct to home or office up to the network termination point within the lettable area of a building.

To participate in the bidding process, interested parties need to submit a letter of intent prior to purchasing the Instructions to Private Sector Participants Volume 1 – Forms and Annexures for a non-refundable fee of P250,000.

The BCDA set the final date of submission of eligibility requirements on Dec. 18. — Justine Irish D. Tabile

Mindanaoans back new DA chief

November 6, 2023 | 8:17 pm

Tiu-Laurel-Panganiban — New Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. (left) tells media that his priority is to increase food production and modernize agriculture. Joining him at Monday’s media conference at the DA Office in Diliman, Quezon City was DA Senior Undersecretary Domingo F. Panganiban. — PHILIPPINE STAR/JESSE BUSTOS

COTABATO CITY — Mindanaoans on Monday gave newly appointed Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel, Jr. their vote of confidence, expecting him to complement their efforts to empower the agriculture and fisheries sectors in the six Bangsamoro provinces in the south.

Two members of the 80-seat Bangsamoro regional parliament, Hadji Nabil A. Tan and Kadil M. Sinolinding, Jr., separately told reporters Monday that they look forward to Mr. Laurel’s capability to help strengthen agro-fisheries in the region.

The Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao’s (BARMM) regional planners said at least 75 percent of the residents in the six BARMM provinces, Maguindanao del Norte, Maguindanao del Sur, Lanao del Sur, Basilan, Sulu and Tawi-Tawi, rely mainly on farming and fishing to generate income needed to sustain their families.

A bill for agricultural modernization was recently filed before the Bangsamoro parliament.

Governors Jim H. Salliman of Basilan, Mamintal A. Adiong, Jr. of Lanao del Sur, and Emmylou T. Mendoza of Cotabato also expressed confidence in the President’s choice as Agriculture chief and vowed for Mr. Laurel’s leadership.

“I know Secretary Laurel will reach out to the farming and fishery sectors in my province, where we have thousands of constituents engaged in daily fishing activities in Lake Lanao and in propagation of short-term crops as means of livelihood,” Mr. Adiong said.

“We are convinced that Secretary Laurel will open widely to Bangsamoro residents the door to his office. While we now have regional autonomy and an agriculture ministry, we still need to remain connected with the central office of the Department of Agriculture,” Mr. Sinolinding said.

“We shall willingly support his leadership in that department,” said Ms. Mendoza, who has jurisdiction over Kidapawan and 17 largely agricultural towns in Region 12. — John Felix M. Unson

UN urged to check rights violations

November 6, 2023 | 8:16 pm

FISHERFOLK and environmental groups urged the United Nations (UN) on Monday to conduct an impartial investigation into reports of environmental and human rights violations under the Marcos administration.

The call was made by such groups as the Pambansang Lakas ng Kilusang Mamamalakaya ng Pilipinas (PAMALAKAYA) and the Kalikasan People’s Network for the Environment as UN special rapporteur Ian Fry was due in Manila for a state visit from Nov. 6 to 15.

Fry is set to examine the impacts of climate change on human rights and the protection of environmental human rights defenders.

“The UN expert’s visit is timely especially in the face of worsening impacts of climate change and how it fuels human rights abuses in the grassroots communities,” PAMALAKAYA national chairperson Fernando Hicap said, citing how environmental activists who defend Manila Bay from the ongoing reclamation projects now face cases of abduction and judicial harassment.

Aside from human rights violations linked to the Manila Bay reclamation, indigenous groups are threatened by state-sanctioned projects encroaching on their land, Kalikasan national coordinator Jon Bonifacio said in an interview.

“We hope that the UN initiative will shed light on the situation the people on the ground face, as we understand it to be truly grave,” he said. — Jomel R. Paguian

House asserts ‘integrity and honor’ against Duterte remarks

November 6, 2023 | 8:16 pm

THE HOUSE of Representatives adopted on Monday a resolution to defend its “integrity and honor” amid former president Rodrigo R. Duterte’s scathing remarks about congressmen after they voted to strip his daughter, Vice President Sara Duterte-Carpio, of her office’s confidential funds for next year.

In adopting House Resolution (HR) No. 1414, the Chamber expressed solidarity and support for the leadership of Speaker Ferdinand Martin G. Romualdez.

Mr. Duterte described the House as the “most rotten institution” in the country after congressmen on Oct. 10 stripped several agencies including the Office of the Vice President and the Education department of their confidential funds, transferring P1.23 billion worth of these budgets to security agencies amid worsening tensions with China.

“The one who uttered that word is our chairman from PDP-Laban… the former President Rodrigo Roa Duterte,” said House Senior Deputy Speaker and Pampanga Rep. Aurelio D. Gonzales, Jr., immediately after stepping down as a member of Mr. Duterte’s party, Partido Demokratiko Pilipino-Lakas ng Bayan (PDP-Laban).

In a rare occurrence, the House plenary was constituted into one whole committee to act on the resolution.

“The House has always taken criticisms as part and parcel of a healthy, vibrant, and working democracy, but it takes exception to statements made that undermine the independence, integrity and reputation of the institution,” the congressmen said in HR 1414.

Representatives from parties PDP-Laban, National Unity Party, Nacionalista, Lakas-CMD, Nationalist People’s Coalition, Party-list Coalition Foundation, Inc., also gave their statements to support to Mr. Romualdez.

The resolution also cited that the Chamber prioritizes the safety and security of House members.

Party-list Rep. France L. Castro filed a grave threat complaint against Mr. Duterte on Oct. 24 after he allegedly threatened to kill her in a TV interview.

Mr. Duterte said he had told his daughter to say that she would use her intelligence funds to kill Maoists in Congress, including Ms. Castro. “Your first target in your intelligence fund is France, the communists, whom you want to kill,” he said in Filipino.

Mr. Duterte also accused Mr. Romualdez of orchestrating political attacks against her daughter, whom he described as a “good candidate” for the presidency. — Beatriz Marie D. Cruz

MWSS, K-Water sign MoU to strengthen cooperation

November 6, 2023 | 8:16 pm

The Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System (MWSS) and Korea Water Resources Corp., or K-Water, signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to formalize a non-exclusive framework of cooperation and to facilitate collaboration in promoting water and clean energy.

“This morning, we signed a memorandum of understanding with K-Water because we want to make sure that the best practices and capacity building — we contributed to our water security management specific on distribution,” Leonor C. Cleofas, administrator of MWSS, said in a media briefing on Monday.

According to Ms. Cleofas the MoU has a period of three years, and the parties have yet to discuss with K-Water the projects to be implemented on each year.

“We want to make sure that this MOU would give us the needed result and output at the end of the year just like what we have from our previous memorandum of understanding with other utilities,” Ms. Cleofas said.

MWSS, in partnership with Maynilad Water Services, Inc., Manila Water Co, Inc. and the Luzon Clean Water Development Corp., co-hosted the 19^th Asia Water Council (AWC) Board of Council Meeting which took place in the Philippines.

The event seeks to see the convergence of water industry experts, leaders, and stakeholders from a staggering 123 AWC member countries and institutions to encourage multilateral dialogues, disseminate findings, and solidify partnerships.

“I believe that it was very meaningful in hosting the board of council meeting in the Philippines which is also a very close cooperative partner to Korea for a very long time,” Yun Seog-dae, chief executive officer of K-Water and president of AWC, said in Korean.

“We discussed issues encompassing the third AIWW (Asia International Water Week), as well as signing an MoU to strengthen relations between Korea and the Philippines in water resources management, as well as new projects for the AWC, we discussed them and decided upon them,” he added. — Sheldeen Joy Talavera

Choco Mucho, Nxled face off in PVL All-Filipino Conference

November 6, 2023 | 7:21 pm

Choco Mucho Flying Titans — CHOCO MUCHO FLYING TITANS — FACEBOOK.COM/CMFLYINGTITANS

Games Tuesday
(PhilSports Arena)
2 p.m. — Nxled vs Choco Mucho
4 p.m. — Farm Fresh vs F2
6 p.m. — Galeries Tower vs Cignal

EVERYTHING Choco Mucho does from hereon will be solely dedicated to its fallen teammate Des Cheng.

Ms. Cheng, who tore her right ACL (anterior cruciate ligament) that ruled her out the rest of the year, as they face off Nxled today in the Premier Volleyball League (PVL) All-Filipino Conference at the PhilSports Arena in Pasig City.

Minus their hurting spiker, the Choco Mucho Flying Titans went to other sources in besting the Galeries Tower Highrisers, 25-21, 25-16, 25-20, Thursday that sent the former to their third straight win in four starts.Another win by Choco Mucho versus Nxled (1-3) in their 2 p.m. showdown would catapult it into a heavy four-team logjam at No. 2 with Petro Gazz, PLDT and Chery Tiggo on 4-1 slates.

One of the players expected to fill in the massive void left by Ms. Cheng is Regine Arcoha, who chipped in eight hits in their last win.

The former NCAA Finals Most Valuable Player though vowed to improve on her succeeding games and make the most out of the opportunity she was given.

Sisi Rondina, of course, will carry some of the load left by Ms. Cheng and should come in on attack mode as usual.

Cignal (3-2) and F2 Logistics (2-2), meanwhile, try to bolster their respective bids as they face off with Galeries Tower (0-4) at 4 p.m. and Farm Fresh (0-6) at 6 p.m., respectively. — Joey Villar

TNT Triple Giga cruise to quarterfinals of Leg 4 of PBA 3×3 Season Three

November 6, 2023 | 7:21 pm

TNT made quick work of its pool assignments to cruise to the quarterfinals of Leg 4 of the PBA 3×3 Season 3 Second Conference yesterday at the Ayala Malls Manila Bay.

Unstoppable in all conference, the Triple Giga kept roaring and dispatched Blackwater, 19-17, and Terrafirma, 21-14, to top three-team Pool A and advance to today’s KO rounds.

With Ping Exciminiano and Gryann Mendoza leading the charge against the Smooth Razor and the Dyip, respectively, the TNT Triple Giga hurdled the initial challenge of its four-peat bid while also extending their winning streak to 18 games overall in the mid-season conference.

Blackwater (1-1), by virtue of its 21-14 verdict over Terrafirma (0-2), joined the Last-8 march as Pool A No. 2.

Determined to bounce back after a lowly 11th finish in the last leg, San Miguel Beer swept past Cavitex, 22-17, NorthPort, 21-16, and Purefoods, 21-19, en route to Pool B No. 1 at 3-0.

At 2-1, the Braves assured themselves of a quarters entry as second seeds in Pool B, using victories over the Titans, 21-18, and the Batang Pier, 21-14, as springboard.

Purefoods (0-2) and NorthPort (0-2) dispute the remaining seat in the eliminations culminating today.

Meanwhile, Pioneer (2-0) and MCFASolver (2-1) surged forward in Pool C.

The Katibays edged the Tech Centrale, 16-15, then rallied past Meralco, 21-19, to qualify with a game to spare while MCFASolver greased its playoffs drive with victories against the Bolts (1-2), 18-10, and Ginebra (0-2), 19-14. — Olmin Leyba

Blazers, Heavy Bombers clash again in NCAA S99

November 6, 2023 | 7:21 pm

Games Tuesday
(Filoil EcoOil Arena)
2 p.m. — AU vs UPHSD
4 p.m. — JRU vs CSB

COLLEGE of St. Benilde (CSB) and Jose Rizal University (JRU) will try to keep their tempers checked as the two budding rivals face anew today in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Season 99 at the Filoil EcoOil Arena.

The Blazers showed more composure in their 93-85 overtime victory over the Heavy Bombers in their first-round duel last Sept. 29 in a game where they nearly came to blows.

Good thing they hadn’t as it would have repeated the infamous game a season ago that involved John Amores.

The same game also resulted in league commissioner Tonichi Pujante downgrading an unsportsmanlike foul assessed on JRU’s pro-bound guard JL delos Santos that led to his ejection.

The three game officials who called that match were then sacked for two weeks.

And at 4 p.m. when the Blazers, who are tied with the San Beda University Red Lions at No. 3 with 8-4 marks, and the Heavy Bombers, alone at No. 5 with an 8-5 card, face off again, they would need to be composed and disciplined to get the win. For CSB bench tactician Charles Tiu, laser-like focus will be essential. “Big game for us, playoff game for both of us basically,” said Mr. Tiu. “They’re a good team and execute well. Hopefully we can find ways to slow them down.”

University of Perpetual Help (UPHSD), meanwhile, try to keep its drowning Final Four campaign afloat as it tackles an already ousted Arellano University or AU (2-10) at 2 p.m. The Altas fed off the arrival of newly minted assistant Scottie Thompson, an alumnus, former league Most Valuable Player and PBA and Gilas star, in their 72-61 triumph over the Heavy Bombers Sunday that hiked its record to 5-7. — Joey Villar

Eagles hold off Dallas for NFL-best 8-1 record

November 6, 2023 | 7:21 pm

JALEN Hurts passed for two touchdowns and rushed for one more, and the Philadelphia Eagles escaped with a 28-23 win over the visiting Dallas Cowboys on Sunday evening.

A.J. Brown and DeVonta Smith had one touchdown reception apiece for Philadelphia (8-1). Kenneth Gainwell had a rushing touchdown along with Hurts, who threw for 207 yards on 17-for-23 passing.

Dak Prescott completed 29 of 44 passes for 374 yards and three touchdowns for Dallas (5-3). Jake Ferguson, KaVontae Turpin and Jalen Tolbert each had a touchdown reception, and CeeDee Lamb finished with a game-high 11 catches for 191 yards.

Dallas had a chance to make a game-winning play in the final seconds. Mr. Prescott completed his final pass to Mr. Lamb, but a swarm of Eagles defenders hit Lamb at the Philadelphia 4-yard line as time expired and forced a fumble (which the Eagles recovered).

The Eagles, who trailed by three points at the half, seized a 21-17 advantage on their first drive of the third quarter. Mr. Hurts lobbed a pinpoint pass down the left sideline to Mr. Smith for a 29-yard touchdown.

Another Hurts touchdown pass, this time to Mr. Brown, pushed the Eagles’ lead to 28-17 with 1:13 left in the third quarter. The 4-yard play marked Mr. Brown’s team-high sixth touchdown catch of the season.

Dallas pulled within 28-23 with 6:23 remaining in the fourth quarter. Mr. Prescott connected with Mr. Tolbert for a 7-yard touchdown. The Cowboys tried for a two-point conversion moments later, but Mr. Prescott stepped out of bounds before he could cross the goal line.

Philadelphia opened the scoring just over midway through the first quarter. Mr. Gainwell sprinted toward the right sideline and somersaulted over a defender and into the end zone for a 12-yard score.

Dallas responded on the next possession to even the score at 7-7. Mr. Ferguson caught Mr. Prescott’s pass in stride and muscled past a defender for a 4-yard touchdown.

The Cowboys took a 14-7 lead early in the second quarter. On third-and-goal, Prescott zipped a 5-yard pass to Turpin just beyond the goal line.

Hurts got a friendly shove from behind to score a 1-yard touchdown with 5:09 remaining in the first half. It marked his seventh rushing score in nine games this season.

A 51-yard field goal by Brandon Aubrey gave the Cowboys a 17-14 lead before halftime.

Eagles tight end Dallas Goedert injured his right forearm in the third quarter and left the game. Mr. Goedert was hurt when a defender yanked his arm while tackling him to the ground. — Reuters

Barnes powers Raptors’ comeback win over Spurs in OT

November 6, 2023 | 7:20 pm

SCOTTIE Barnes scored 25 of his 30 points in the second half and the visiting Toronto Raptors dominated the fourth quarter and overtime to rally to a 123-116 win over the San Antonio Spurs on Sunday afternoon.

The Spurs built a 22-point edge late in the second quarter, were up by 19 at the half and led by 15 points after three quarters. But Toronto rallied and drew to within two points after a pair of free throws and a basket by Dennis Schroder, the latter with 1:45 left in regulation.

San Antonio’s Keldon Johnson hit a desperation 3-pointer as the shot clock expired with 1:19 remaining that was answered by a dunk by Mr. Barnes on the ensuing possession.

Mr. Barnes then tied the game at 108 with a stepback 3-pointer with 38 seconds to play. Mr. Johnson made two free throws with 14.5 seconds left, but OG Anunoby’s putback layup with 1.2 seconds remaining knotted it at 110. Barnes missed a wild shot at the buzzer, pushing the game into the extra period.

The Raptors scored eight of the first 10 points in the overtime, with Pascal Siakam and Anunoby hitting 3-pointers around a putback layup by Jakob Poeltl. San Antonio never got closer than four points the rest of the way.

Mr. Barnes added 11 rebounds for Toronto. Anunoby and Schroder scored 24 points apiece, Mr. Poeltl had a season-high 16 points and 10 rebounds and Gary Trent, Jr. finished with 10 points in the win.

Mr. Johnson’s 26 points paced San Antonio. Zach Collins had 21 points and 11 rebounds, while Victor Wembanyama racked up 20 points, nine rebounds and a career-high five blocked shots. Malaki Branham hit for 16 points and Doug McDermott tallied 12 for the Spurs off the bench.

The Spurs rallied from an early deficit and took a 25-16 lead at the 1:46 mark of the opening period but settled for a 26-22 advantage after the first 12 minutes.

San Antonio poured it on in the second quarter, forging a 20-5 run over the period’s first 8 1/2 minutes. Mr. McDermott had two 3-pointers during the run as the Spurs led by 54-35 at the break.

Mr. Johnson and Mr. Wembanyama each scored 12 points before halftime to lead San Antonio. Anunoby led the Raptors with a dozen points in the half. — Reuters