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Marcos names special envoy to boost trade with S. Korea

PRESIDENT FERDINAND R. MARCOS, JR.

PHILIPPINE President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr. has appointed his special envoy to boost trade ties with South Korea, months after the two countries entered into a free trade deal.

Bryan C. Lim, vice president for business development at Suyen Corp., was named special presidential envoy to Korea for trade and investments, the Presidential Communications Office said in a Facebook post.

Suyen, the Philippine company behind the clothing brand Bench, has interests in fashion, food, furniture and real estate.

Mr. Lim donated P20 million in cash to the 2022 presidential campaign of Mr. Marcos, the Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism (PCIJ) said in a report last year.  

To expand its real estate business, the company signed a deal with Global Gateway Development Corp., a unit of Dennis Uy’s Udenna Group, for the sublease of the latter’s 177-hectare leasehold in the Clark Freeport Zone in Pampanga, according to Property Asia.

Mr. Marcos, 66, earlier this month appointed another campaign donor to the Department of Agriculture, which he headed for almost a year.

The PCIJ earlier this month reported that at least six of Mr. Marcos’ campaign donors have been given government posts, including Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel, Jr., Special Assistant to the President Antonio Ernesto “Anton” Floirendo Lagdameo, Jr., National Housing Authority General Manager Joeben Ang Tai and Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO) chief Melquiades A. Robles. 

South Korea was the Philippines’ fourth-largest trade partner last year, with total trade hitting $15.45 billion. They signed a free trade deal on the sidelines of the 43rd Association of Southeast Asian Nations Summit in Jakarta in September.

Meanwhile, Mr. Marcos also appointed Julius Neri, Jr., former president of SunStar Publishing, Inc., general manager and chief executive officer of the Mactan-Cebu International Airport Authority.

Aboitiz InfraCapital is set to take full control of Mactan Cebu International Airport next year after a P25-billion share subscription and transfer deal in 2022 with its operator, Megawide Construction Corp.

The palace also announced the appointment of Angelito Vergel de Dios as commissioner of the Presidential Commission on Good Government (PCGG).

The late President Corazon C. Aquino created the PCGG in 1986 to go after the ill-gotten assets of Marcos, Jr.’s father, the late dictator Ferdinand E. Marcos, his family and their cronies.

Meanwhile, Senator Juan Edgardo M. Angara during debates on the Office of the President’s 2024 budget said filmmaker Paul D. Soriano is no longer the President’s creative communications adviser.

Mr. Soriano, a godson of Mr. Marcos, was named presidential adviser on creative communications in October last year. The palace said in July he had been on leave due to personal matters.

Mr. Soriano directed political advertisements promoting Mr. Marcos during the presidential campaign. — Kyle Aristophere T. Atienza

Vice President gives up pursuit of confidential funds next year

VICE-President and Education Secretary Sara Duterte-Carpio attended Senate floor debates on the 2024 proposed budgets for her offices. On Thursday, Senator Juan Edgardo ‘Sonny’ M. Angara, Jr. told the plenary she was no longer pursuing the Office of the Vice President’s proposed P500-million confidential fund. — PHILIPPINE STAR/JESSE BUSTOS

By John Victor D. Ordoñez

THE OFFICE of the Vice President (OVP) will not pursue its request for P500 million in confidential funds next year “because it is seen to be divisive,” the Senate Finance Committee chief told the plenary on Thursday.

“The Vice President… she swore an oath to keep the country peaceful and strong,” Senator Juan Edgardo “Sonny” M. Angara said, citing a statement from Vice President and Education Secretary Sara Z. Duterte-Carpio, who sat a few feet away from him during the plenary session.

“According to her (Ms. Duterte-Carpio), the OVP can only propose a budget to support the safe implementation of its programs to alleviate poverty and promote [the] general welfare of Filipino families,” he added.

The Vice President had originally sought the confidential and intelligence funds (CIF) for the “safe, secure and successful implementation” of her office’s socioeconomic projects, intelligence gathering projects and other programs supporting the OVP.

Likewise, the Department of Education (DepEd) will forgo its request for P150 million in confidential funds next year, Senator Pia S. Cayetano, who sponsored the DepEd’s budget for next year, said during plenary debates, citing a statement from Ms. Duterte-Carpio.

Ms. Cayetano said the Education Secretary requested for the funds to be realigned to the country’s learning recovery program, which includes capacity training programs for teachers among others.

Senators ended plenary debates on the P10.4 billion budget of Office of the President and the P1.874-billion budget of OVP, pending amendments.

“Given this manifestation of the Vice President, I commend her for now categorically stating to this House, that it is not a deferral to our wisdom,” Senator Aquilino “Koko” D. Pimentel III said.

Reacting to developments at the Senate, Terry L. Ridon, a public investment analyst and convenor of think tank InfraWatch PH, said it was good that Ms. Carpio-Duterte did not insist on pursuing the allocation of secret funds for her offices.

The move, he said, “saved her from the same embarrassment she experienced in the House,” which earlier voted to strip CIFs for 2024.

“More importantly, there is a clear consensus that her offices and other civilian agencies do not require confidential funds as their activities do not involve national security concerns,” Mr. Ridon said in a Facebook Messenger chat.

At Thursday’s plenary session, Senator Ana Theresia N. Hontiveros-Baraquel said she would propose amendments to the OVP’s budget at another time.

Earlier, she questioned how Ms. Duterte-Carpio had spent P125 million in confidential funds last year in just 11 days, citing the same state audit report raised in the House by Marikina Rep. Stella Luz A. Quimbo.

A group of lawyers on Tuesday asked the Supreme Court (SC) to void the P125 million transfer of confidential funds to the OVP last year for being illegal.

Meanwhile, Mr. Pimentel raised the need to test the legality of granting intelligence funds to civilian agencies such as the Office of the President.

“Maybe in due time, a case can be filed with the Supreme Court to test the legality of the grant of intel funds to the Office of the President, being a civilian agency,” he said.

“The President himself… and his office are consumers of intelligence already gathered and organized by the intel practitioners under which are the agencies, some agencies in the Executive Branch,” he added.

The President’s office is asking for a P2.3-billion intelligence fund for next year.

Group insists on Smartmatic ban

PHILIPPINE STAR/EDD GUMBAN

A GROUP led by the country’s former information and communications technology chief, Eliseo M. Rio, Jr., has renewed its call to bar automated election systems provider, Smartmatic Philippines, from the 2025 midterm polls while pushing for an inquiry into its part in alleged irregularities during the 2022 presidential elections.

In a press briefing on Thursday, the September Twenty One Reform Movement (STORM) released a statement urging the government to conduct a probe “with the specific purpose of disqualification” of Smartmatic.

The group has raised suspicion of a rigged 2022 polls because of election returns from different vote-counting machines (VCMs) of Smartmatic that were allegedly transmitted from the same IP address.

Smartmatic did not immediately reply to an e-mail seeking comment, but in a Viber message, Commission on Elections (Comelec) Chairman George Erwin M. Garcia said the poll body had offered Rio’s group to do a manual recount. STORM, he said, declined the offer.  

“I offered to them to choose ballot boxes of whatever precincts in the entire country and manually recount the ballots and let’s see if the results will tally with the printed Election returns and the results as transmitted,” said Mr. Garcia. “I even said that the entire process if accepted will be at the expense of the Commission.”

Together with Mr. Rio, former Comelec commissioner Augusto C. Lagman, Franklin Ysaac, and Leonardo O. Odoño filed the petition to ban Smartmatic from bidding on June 16.

Mr. Rio insisted: “It does not concern us who wins because of that. What we campaign for is to prevent that from happening in the next election.” — Jomel R. Paguian

Half-cup rice policy pushed

FARIS MOHAMMED-UNSPLASH

THE PHILIPPINE Rice Research Institute (PhilRice) at the Department of Agriculture (DA) is pushing for policies that would require food establishments to offer half-cup of rice in their menus, noting rice wastages that could feed more than two million Filipinos.

The institute will push for the revival of an old bill that sought to penalize restaurants for refusing to serve half a cup of rice, DA-PhilRice Deputy Executive Director Karen Eloisa Barroga told a Palace briefing Thursday.

The bill was filed by President Ferdinand “Bongbong” R. Marcos, Jr. in 2013 when he was still a senator. “We will try to revive that and maybe have another senate bill for that half-cup rice,” Ms. Barroga said in Filipino.

More than 40 local government units have ordinances requiring food establishments to offer half-cup of rice, Hazel Antonio, DA-PhilRice’s development communications head, said at the same briefing.

Thˆese cities include Quezon City, Manila City, Davao City, Cebu, and Puerto Princesa, among others.

Under the 2013 Senate bill, restaurants, hotel inns, and other similar institutions will be slapped with a fine of P20,000 for their first offense, and P100,000 for the third and following offenses.

Ms. Barroga said each Filipino wastes two tablespoons or 10 grams of rice every day on average. “That would be costing P7 million for a year, which could feed 2.5 million Filipinos.”

Combined, the daily wastage is equivalent to 384,000 metric tons per year, Ms. Antonio said.

PhilRice has launched an awareness campaign that advocates for the consumption of healthy rice and the avoidance of rice wastage.

Ms. Barroga cited the need to create data that would guide businesses on how they can prevent rice wastage. — Kyle Aristophere T. Atienza

Lawmaker seeks EV regulation

PHILSTAR FILE PHOTO

THE NEED to regulate the use of electric vehicles (EVs) to ensure road safety and traffic management was raised anew on Thursday by one of the co-authors of House Bill No. 8974.

The bill, co-authored by Davao City Rep. Paolo Z. Duterte, Benguet Rep. Eric G. Yap, and Party-list Rep. Edvic G. Yap, seeks to create guidelines in the classification, registration, and operation of EVs.

It would also require all manufacturers, assemblers and/or importers of electric vehicles to submit to the Land Transportation Office (LTO) specifications of new e-vehicle models three months before they are sold to the market.

“Ensuring the safety of all motorists and commuters necessitate the passage of a law that would regulate the use of these vehicles,” Mr. Duterte said in a statement, citing proposed penalties for various violations ranging from not carrying a certificate of registration (P1,000) to not being registered at all (P10,000).

The measure also mandates the LTO to set the rate of motor vehicle user’s charge for EVs.

In August, the Energy department said it expects that EV registrations would rise by 30% yearly. — Beatriz Marie D. Cruz

Firm’s P10-M tax deficit voided

THE COURT of Tax Appeals (CTA) has ruled to cancel the P10.87-million delinquent tax of Star Sports Corporation for the fiscal year 2014 because the company did not receive proper notice regarding its tax obligation.

In an 18-page decision dated Nov. 6, 2023 and penned by Associate Justice Maria Rowena Modesto-San Pedro, the CTA Second Division also nullified the warrant of distraint and levy (WDL) — which enforces the seizure of a taxpayer’s property to satisfy a tax debt — issued against the company since the tax assessment has been voided.

Star Sports has denied receipt of the preliminary assessment notice (PAN) and final assessment notice (FAN), which the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) allegedly issued on Dec. 6, 2017 and Jan. 9, 2018, respectively.

In its ruling, the CTA noted that the BIR failed to present any registry receipts to prove that the PAN and FAN had been served to the company.

The appellate court stated that a lack of notice is enough to void an assessment based on a taxpayer’s right to due process, as cited in the National Internal Revenue Code, adding that in this case, “the burden of proof falls on the CIR (Commissioner of Internal Revenue) to prove such receipt.” — Jomel R. Paguian

Islam to be celebrated in 2030

PHILIPPINE STAR/EDD GUMBAN

PRESIDENT Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr. has created a steering committee that will coordinate plans for the commemoration of the 650th anniversary of Islamic presence in the Philippines, which will be as early as next year through 2030.

Under an administrative order, the Situmiayat Wakhamsun Aldhikraa National Committee would facilitate the planning and implementation of projects and activities for the Muslim celebration, which Mr. Marcos said will promote local and national tourism and “reignite nationalism in every Filipino.”

It has been ordered to craft a comprehensive plan for the 650th Anniversary of the Philippine Muslim History and Heritage.

The committee will be chaired by the National Historical Commission of the Philippines and will be co-chaired by both the National Commission on Muslim Filipinos and the Bangsamoro Commission for the Preservation of Cultural Heritage.

There will be members from the Department of Budget and Management, Department of Education, Department of Foreign Affairs, Department of the Interior and Local government, Department of National Defense, Department of Tourism, and the Office of the Presidential Adviser on Peace, Reconciliation, and Unity. — Kyle Aristophere T. Atienza

BIR shuts 103 stores using dubious POS machines

PHILSTAR FILE PHOTO

A TOTAL of 103 stores were closed down by the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) for either tampering with or not registering point of sales (PoS) machines used in their respective trades.

The BIR said the stores were from a chain of shopping centers and “found to be using unregistered PoS machines, some of which with sales suppression devices while others were using a software different from that approved by the BIR.”

In its investigation, the BIR found that the machines were reporting only 25% of store sales.

Meanwhile, in a separate statement, the Bureau of Customs (BoC) said it seized smuggled cigarettes valued at P13.75 million in Maasin, Zamboanga City.

The contraband was found in a motorized wooden watercraft which came from Jolo, Sulu while being unloading in Zamboanga. — Luisa Maria Jacinta C. Jocson

DoLE gives out livelihood kits in Zamboanga del Sur

COTABATO CITY — The Department of Labor and Employment (DoLE) in Region 9 has provided 94 marginalized families in Lakewood, Zamboanga del Sur with utility kits for income-generating projects.

The starter kits, with a total cost of P2.7 million, are comprised of basic tools for carpentry, electrical, mechanical and farming works.

Miraflor J. Casanes, DoLE provincial director for Zamboanga del Sur, said on Thursday that the distribution of the kits last Wednesday was part of the government’s socio-economic interventions meant to boost the productivity of impoverished families in the provinces.

Ms. Casanes said the 94 families that received utility kits are from Barangays Baking, Dagum, Biswangan, Gasa, Poblacion and Sapang Pinoles in the upland Lakewood town in Zamboanga del Sur.

She added that they also have continuing skills and livelihood education programs, being implemented along with other government agencies, for marginalized families and workers in Zamboanga del Sur. — John Felix M. Unson

Trump’s rivals clash at debate but do little to dent his lead in US race

REUTERS

MIAMI – For the third time, Donald Trump’s rivals for the Republican presidential nomination took to the debate stage on Wednesday night in his absence, seeking a way to dislodge the former president from his commanding lead in opinion polls.

While contenders such as Florida Governor Ron DeSantis and former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley briefly criticized Trump, the latest episode did not appear any likelier to alter the dynamics of a race that Trump has dominated for months.

The candidates spent much of the two-hour event assailing one another as they strove to emerge as Trump’s chief opponent with less than 10 weeks before the first statewide nominating contest in Iowa. They will have one more opportunity on Dec. 6, when a fourth debate will take place in Alabama.

For his part, Trump held a rival event nearby, where he mocked the participants and demanded that the Republican Party stop “wasting time” with “unwatchable” debates.

With only five candidates qualifying for the stage – DeSantis and Haley were joined by US Senator Tim Scott, former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie and entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy – it was less chaotic than previous encounters.

But it still had its share of cutting exchanges.

At one point during a discussion about whether to ban TikTok, Mr. Ramaswamy noted that Ms. Haley’s daughter had used the app, prompting Haley to warn him angrily not to mention her daughter again.

“You’re just scum,” she muttered.

Haley, who also served as South Carolina governor, and DeSantis, who has been in a distant second place behind Trump for most of the campaign, had their own clash over which governor had been too welcoming to Chinese investment.

Recent polls have shown the two jockeying for second place in early voting states.

Most of the candidates voiced support for banning TikTok, owned by a Chinese company, over national security concerns – even Mr. Ramaswamy, who has defended using the app as a way to connect with young Republican voters.

 

BACKING ISRAEL

The debate opened with moderators asking the candidates to explain why they should be the party’s standard-bearer rather than Trump, giving them a chance to make their case directly to voters watching at home.

DeSantis criticized Trump for skipping the event, which took place in their shared home state of Florida, and suggested that the party’s poor showing in Tuesday’s off-year elections should be laid at Trump’s feet.

“He said Republicans were gonna get tired of winning,” DeSantis said. “Well, we saw last night – I’m sick of Republicans losing!”

Haley offered a more muted critique.

“Everybody wants to talk about President Trump. I can tell you that I think he was the right president at the right time,” she said. “I don’t think he’s the right president now.”

Mr. Trump, 77, has done his best to deny his rivals a direct target, instead focusing on what he expects to be a rematch with Biden, 80, on Nov. 5, 2024.

As Wednesday’s debate proceeded, the candidates largely avoided attacking Trump, whose hold on Republican voters has proven unshakable even in the face of his multiple indictments.

Instead, they trained their fire on Democratic President Joe Biden, particularly during a lengthy segment on foreign policy and the Israel-Hamas conflict. The Republicans all pledged unconditional support for Israel and assailed Biden’s handling of the crisis.

Asked what message they would send to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, DeSantis said, “I will be telling Bibi, ‘Finish the job once and for all with these butchers Hamas, they’re terrorists,'” using Netanyahu’s nickname.

Ms. Haley, who has staked much of her candidacy on her foreign policy credentials, faulted Mr. Biden for pressing Israel to consider humanitarian pauses.

“The last thing we need to do is to tell Israel what to do,” she said. “The only thing we should be doing is supporting them and eliminating Hamas.”

In addition to pushing for a more muscular response abroad, the candidates vowed to punish Hamas sympathizers at home.

Mr. DeSantis, for instance, promised to deport any students who expressed support for Hamas.

“If you are here on a student visa as a foreign national and you’re making common cause with Hamas, I’m canceling your visa and I’m sending you home,” he said. “No questions asked.”

A day after Democrats and abortion rights groups swept to victory in several state elections, the Republicans sought to formulate a winning message on an issue that has bedeviled the party since the conservative-led U.S. Supreme Court last year eliminated a nationwide right to abortion.

Mr. Scott said he would support a federal 15-week ban, while Haley noted that any such legislation has essentially no chance of passing the closely divided U.S. Senate. DeSantis – who signed a six-week ban into law this year – did not address a federal law but said he stood for a “culture of life.”

The candidates attacked Biden over his stewardship of the economy, arguing that his focus on climate change had slowed growth. Haley and Christie said they would raise the retirement age for Social Security benefits for younger workers to help keep the program solvent, while Scott and DeSantis said they would not do so.

Polls show voters are unhappy with Biden’s economic record, despite the fact that inflation has slowed considerably and fears of a recession have faded amid continued economic growth. Biden’s approval rating slipped under 40% in the latest Reuters/Ipsos poll, his lowest mark since April. – Reuters

NU clashes with UST in all-UAAP Shakey’s Super League S2 finals

Games Friday
(Rizal Memorial Coliseum)
9 a.m. — AU vs ADMU
11 a.m. — UE vs CSB
2 p.m. — AdU vs FEU
5 p.m. — NU vs UST

REIGNING champion National University (NU) and challenger University of Santo Tomas (UST) lock horns in an all-UAAP duel as the Shakey’s Super League (SSL) Collegiate Pre-Season Championship reaches a thrilling finale on Friday at the Rizal Memorial Coliseum in Manila.

Game time is at 5 p.m. with the NU Lady Bulldogs looking to draw first blood in the quick best-of-three titular showdown and move closer to another perfect season.

NU swept the inaugural season capped by a dominant finale show against De La Salle University before drawing another UAAP rival in UST this time for the crown of SSL Season 2.

Included in NU’s amazing run that season was a 25-23, 23-25, 25-21, 25-17 win over UST in the knockout semifinals.

This season, the NU Lady Bulldogs reasserted their mastery of the UST Golden Tigresses with an easy 25-19, 25-20, 25-16 win in the pool play as part of their immaculate campaign so far through eight games without any single set yielded.

But preserving a perfect run so far is not the goal, warned coach Norman Miguel, as the NU Lady Bulldogs want no less than the ultimate championship prize regardless of the sets needed to do it.

Against all odds though, the Kungfu Reyes-mentored UST squad is out to give NU a run for its own money, especially riding on the momentum of a two-game winning streak from a near elimination just to earn a shot at the defending champion.

The twice-to-beat-armed Golden Tigresses, after absorbing a 22-25, 25-23, 25-18, 23-25, 11-15 loss against College of St. Benilde (CSB) in Game 1 of the quarterfinals, retaliated with a 25-15, 25-16, 19-25, 32-30 win in Game 2 before edging out Far Eastern University (FEU) in the knockout semis, 25-21, 25-20, 19-25, 25-20.

Meanwhile, Far Easter University and Adamson University (AdU) slug it out for a podium finish at 2 p.m. in the bronze medal match, also under a best-of-three series.

In other games, Ateneo and Arellano battle for the seventh spot at 9 a.m. followed by the duel between CSB and the University of the East (UE) at 11 a.m. — John Bryan Ulanday

Upgraded Terrafirma Dyip see better days ahead

TERRAFIRMA DYIP — PBA FILE PHOTO

Games Thursday
(Smart Araneta Coliseum)
4 p.m. — Terrafirma vs NorthPort
8 p.m. — NLEX vs Phoenix

WILL upgraded Terrafirma make a jolt with fancied rookie Stephen Holt and new recruits?

The Dyip, who ended the previous conference on a seven-game skid and 2-9 overall, see better days ahead in the PBA Season 48 wars with the arrival of Mr. Holt, a 6-foot-4 guard with experience in the NBA G-League and Euro Leagues, together with promising new recruits Kenmark Carino, Taylor Miller and Tommy Olivario.

Coach John Cardel said the newbies and Belgian import Thomas De Thaey have been blending well with Dyip holdovers like Juami Tiongson, Eric Camson, Aldrich Ramos and Isaac Go.

The Dyip and the Batang Pier open hostilities on the third day of the young season at 4 p.m. at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

NLEX and its highly-touted import Thomas Robinson and Phoenix, bannered by fellow NBA vet Jonathan Williams III, clash in a livewire encounter at 8 p.m.

Much attention is on the 32-year-old Mr. Holt, who debuts on Philippine soil after a stellar stint overseas.

“Rookie veteran ito,” said Mr. Cardel of Holt. “He’s team player and he wants to get all his teammates involved.”

Minus last season’s top scorer Robert Bolick, the Batang Pier pin its hopes on Australian Venky Jois, Arvin Tolentino, Josh Munzon, JM Calma and greenhorns Cade Flores, Brent Paraiso, John Amores and Fran Yu.

Meanwhile, the day finally came for NLEX’ Mr. Robinson, Sacramento’s fifth overall pick in the 2012 NBA Draft, to see action in the PBA. He was supposed to reinforce San Miguel Beer last year but a back injury prevented him from doing so.

“I want to win big. I want to be able to lead my team to a successful season. I want to be able to take some of the other players and be able to push them up to another level in this league,” Mr. Robinson said.

Mr. Robinson will be the highest NBA pick to play in the PBA since 1987 third selection Dennis Hopson of Purefoods in 1996. — Olmin Leyba

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