May December director: Women pay higher price than men for breaking rules

May 23, 2023 | 12:01 am

FILMFESTIVAL-CANNES — NATALIE Portman, Charles Melton, Todd Haynes, Julianne Moore and Cory Michael Smith attends the May December photocall at the 76th annual Cannes film festival at Palais des Festivals on May 21, 2023 in Cannes, France. — REUTERS

CANNES — Todd Haynes’ new romantic drama May December shines a critical spotlight on the way women who break society’s rules are held to much stricter standards than badly behaving men.

In the movie, which premiered at the Cannes Film Festival on Saturday night, Julianne Moore plays a woman whose relationship with a 13-year-old boy drew national tabloid headlines.

“We expect this of men, these transgressions. We don’t of women. And we think ‘what about her family? What about her kids?’” Mr. Haynes told Reuters on Sunday. “So the women are also burdened with an extra and unequal amount of criticism when this is the very same thing that can happen with people.”

The couple are still together two decades later when an actor — played by Natalie Portman — inserts herself into their life to prepare for a starring role in the film version of Ms. Moore’s story.

Her often boundary-crossing presence dredges up uncomfortable questions that Ms. Moore’s husband, played by Charles Melton of Riverdale, had never fully considered before.

“There are incredibly problematic aspects to how this relationship began, which this film works toward a confrontation of toward the end,” Mr. Haynes told journalists. “Yet this is so complicated by the fact that this relationship endured.”

“Rarely do you get scripts that feature such compelling female characters at their center and two characters at such different ages,” Mr. Haynes told The Hollywood Reporter last week.

Both Ms. Moore and Ms. Portman have won Oscars for best actress, in 2015’s Still Alice and 2011’s Black Swan, respectively.

May December, which was shot in just 23 days, is Ms. Moore’s fifth time working with Mr. Haynes.

And the meaning of the title? “It just refers to an older-younger relationship. May and December. And some people in France call it ‘Le Macron,’” Mr. Haynes said. — Reuters

Firebrand puts spotlight on Henry VIII’s sixth and final wife

May 23, 2023 | 12:01 am

ENTERTAINMENT-CULTURE-ARTS-FRANCE — REUTERS

CANNES — For Brazilian director Karim Ainouz the prospect of making a film about King Henry VIII’s court was particularly exciting, partly because it focuses on Catherine Parr, the wife who survived Henry.

Mr. Ainouz, who doesn’t have a special connection to England, said his aim was to bring Parr into the spotlight.

“The main reason is Catherine Parr and the fact that nothing had been made about her of relevance,” he told Reuters ahead of the premiere of Firebrand at the Cannes Film Festival.

“I was very excited with the possibility of bringing her to the light and bringing it to a place of protagonism in history, which was always either given to Henry or to the women that were dead,” he said.

Firebrand, which is competition for the Palme d’Or, stars Alicia Vikander as Catherine, Henry’s sixth and last wife as she navigates Tudor court politics towards the end of his life.

“The pain he was suffering was excruciating,” said Jude Law, who plays the king.

Mr. Law re-creates the physically imposing Henry, who at that time in his life was struggling with stiff, swollen legs, and a rotting wound. Mr. Law used weights to get Henry’s gait just right.

“How was he dealing with that? Probably through alcohol. So this drunkenness, there’s also this weight that he’s carrying because we know he was by that point grossly obese. All of that has an effect on physicality,” added Mr. Law.

Henry VIII, who ruled England from 1509 to 1547, famously divorced his first wife against her will, breaking with Rome and making himself the head of the Church of England.

“Firebrand, at its heart, is about an abusive husband,” said Mr. Law. “And that, sadly, is an international and universal story that people, I think recognize and the power and the skills this woman had to tiptoe around this powerful figure was remarkable.”

The film, which is based on the 2013 novel Queen’s Gambit by Elizabeth Fremantle, marks Mr. Ainouz’s first time competing for Cannes’ top prize and is his first English-language film. — Reuters

How each segment contributed to Q1 2023 GDP

May 23, 2023 | 12:01 am

SSS taps BPI Wealth to manage P2.5B in funds

May 23, 2023 | 12:01 am

BANK of the Philippine Islands’ (BPI) asset and wealth management arm has been tapped by the Social Security System (SSS) to manage a P2.5-billion investment fund.

BPI Wealth was awarded the mandate after four months of bidding, BPI Wealth said in a statement.

“We are honored to be chosen by SSS as one of the partners in managing their investment portfolio. Amid the most challenging markets in recent years, this new mandate proves that despite market volatility, we have delivered on our commitment to achieve target returns, provide superior service, and offer expert advice,” BPI Wealth President and Chief Executive Officer Maria Theresa D. Marcial said.

SSS chose BPI Wealth to manage the fund due to its track record, the Ayala-led company said.

BPI Wealth’s assets under management stood at P950 billion as of end-March, rising by 8.6% from P875 billion at end-December 2022.

Meanwhile, its listed parent BPI booked an attributable net income of P12.134 billion in the first quarter, 51.98% higher year on year on improved net interest earnings and lower loan loss provisions.

BPI’s shares fell by P2.6 or 2.46% to end at P102.90 apiece on Monday. — AMCS

How PSEi member stocks performed — May 22, 2023

May 23, 2023 | 12:00 am

Here’s a quick glance at how PSEi stocks fared on Monday, May 22, 2023.

Fire guts Manila Post Office; lawmakers seek quick rehab

May 22, 2023 | 9:32 pm

FIRE gutted the Manila Central Post Office, one of the oldest structures in the Philippine capital, according to the local fire bureau.

The fire started before midnight on Sunday and firefighters only managed to contain it more than seven hours after, the Bureau of Fire Protection said in a Facebook post on Monday.

It caused about P300 million in damage, Manila Mayor Maria Sheilah Lacuna–Pangan told an online news briefing. Building another structure on the lot is out of the question because the area is a national heritage zone, she added.

“You cannot just build another building in the post office’s place,” she said in Filipino. “The local government of Manila will work with the National Government to restore the Manila Central Post Office.”

The Philippine Postal Corp. (PhilPost) said in a statement it was working with the fire bureau to determine the cause of the blaze. No deaths were reported.

Clients may still send their mail and packages to nearby post offices in Manila and other parts of Metro Manila, it said.

“We express grief and are saddened by this unfortunate incident,” Postmaster General Luis D. Carlos said. “We didn’t expect this to happen, but we assure the public that all PhilPost branches will be business as usual.”

The Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) said some of the national IDs that were due for delivery in Manila had been damaged by the fire.

It is coordinating with the post office to determine the exact number of IDs affected by the fire, PSA Undersecretary and National Statistician Claire Dennis S. Mapa said in a statement.

The National Museum in 2018 declared the country’s oldest post office as an important cultural property. The label is given to properties with “exceptional cultural, artistic, and/or historical significance” to the country.

It is the second-highest level of protection next to the national cultural treasure, which is given by the National Museum and National Historical Commission of the Philippines.

The post office was rebuilt in 1946 after it was severely damaged during World War II.

Meanwhile, lawmakers sought the immediate rehabilitation of the post office using emergency funds.

“The fire that hit this national historical landmark is undoubtedly a certifiable disaster,” Batangas Rep. Ralph G. Recto said in a statement.

The government could use the president’s P13-billion contingency fund, he said, adding that the P19.03-billion calamity fund from the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) could also be used.

Mr. Recto said under the National Cultural Heritage Act of 2009, national historical landmarks, sites or monuments are entitled to “priority government funding for protection, conservation and restoration.”

Senator Juan Edgardo “Sonny” M. Angara, who heads the finance committee, tweeted that he would work with the Budget department in looking for funds to help restore the Manila Central Post Office.

“I call on our authorities to investigate the cause of the fire so that this occurrence will never happen again,” Senator Lorna Regina “Loren” B. Legarda said in a separate statement. “We must protect our historical sites such as this significant architectural inheritance.”

Senator Robin C. Padilla also filed a resolution seeking to probe the fire “with the aim of revisiting and strengthening policies for the preservation and protection of cultural properties against fire and other hazards.”

“The Manila Central Post Office is a tangible representation of the nation’s culture and history, and its damage is a blow to the country’s cultural heritage,” he said.

Manila Rep. Bienvenido M. Abante, Jr. called the incident “a national tragedy that the government should address by funding its repair, rehabilitation and restoration so that it can continue to serve as a beautiful monument to our nation’s history.” — John Victor D. Ordoñez and Beatriz Marie D. Cruz

Napoles guilty in P15-M pork barrel case, cleared in another set of lawsuits

May 22, 2023 | 9:32 pm

THE PHILIPPINES’ anti-graft court has convicted Janet Lim Napoles, the so-called pork barrel queen, in a corruption case that accused her of funneling P15.36 million in congressional funds from a late Davao congressman to a nongovernment group she owned.

In a 44-page decision dated May 19 and released on Monday, the Sandiganbayan Second Division found her guilty on two counts of malversation and on two counts of graft. Ms. Napoles allegedly diverted the funds of the late Davao del Sur Rep. Douglas R.A. Cagas’ discretionary funds.

The Sandiganbayan First Division in a separate case acquitted Ms. Napoles of 16 charges of graft in connection with Senator Ramon B. Revilla, Jr.’s congressional funds that were allegedly transferred to nongovernment groups she owned.

The Second Division sentenced her to a jail time of 6-10 years for each of the graft charges and 12-17 years for each of the malversation charges. The court also banned her from holding public office.

It also fined her P7.68 million for each of the graft and malversation charges.

Under the Revised Penal Code, a person found guilty of malversation may be ordered to pay a fine equal to the amount of the embezzled funds.

On the other hand, the First Division said prosecutors had failed to prove her guilt in the 16 graft charges beyond reasonable doubt.

Mr. Revilla had been accused of earning P224.5 million in kickbacks through the pork barrel scam. He was cleared of the graft cases in 2021 for lack of evidence. The court said the accusations were “predicate crimes of plunder,” which she had already been convicted of in 2019.

“This fact became even more apparent after the presentation of the same testimonial and documentary evidence in both cases,” the court said in an order written by Associate Justice Geraldine Faith Econg. First Division Presiding Justice Efren N. de La Cruz and Associate Justice Arthur O. Malabaguio concurred.

Ms. Napoles had been convicted of other charges related to the pork barrel scam.

In June last year, the Sandiganbayan junked several pleas seeking to dismiss corruption and malversation charges against Ms. Napoles and her associates.

The pork barrel allowed legislators to fund small-scale projects in their districts that fell outside the national infrastructure program. The Supreme Court voided the practice in 2013 for being illegal. — JVDO

Philippines posts 12,426 weekly COVID infections

May 22, 2023 | 9:32 pm

THE PHILIPPINES posted 12,426 coronavirus infections in the past week, with a daily average of 1,775, according to health authorities.

The daily average from May 15 to 21 was 0.1% higher than a week earlier, the Department of Health (DoH) said in a bulletin. There were 87 severe and critical cases, accounting for 0.7% of the cases.

The agency reported 13 deaths for May 8 to 21.

DoH said 389 of 2,134 intensive care unit (ICU) beds had been used as of May 21, while 4,211 of 18,321 non-ICU beds were occupied. There were 486 severe and critical admissions.

The Private Hospitals Association of the Philippines, Inc. last week said admissions in private hospitals had been increasing.

Most of the admissions were “coincidental COVID” — patients were admitted for different health issues but tested positive for COVID-19.

The seven-day positivity rate in the capital region slightly rose to 25.7% on May 20 from 25.4% on May 13, OCTA Research Group fellow Fredegusto P. David tweeted on Monday.

The World Health Organizations has set a 5% threshold for the positivity rate.

Mr. David said the rate in Isabela province hit the red mark as it rose to 67.4% from 36.6%. It also rose in Camarines Sur to 47.95% from 46.5%, and in Quezon province to 43.8% from 42.7%.

Cavite was also on the list with a 36.6% positivity rate, followed by Batangas with 36.1%, Rizal with 36.0%, and Laguna with 35.7%. — Kyle Aristophere T. Atienza

DICT seeks intel funds for cyber-security in e-governance bill

May 22, 2023 | 9:32 pm

THE DEPARTMENT of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) needs intelligence funds for cybersecurity operations this year and a provision for an annual allocation under a proposed bill, an official of the agency told senators on Monday.

DICT Assistant Secretary for Legal Affairs Renato A. Paraiso said in a joint Senate hearing that the department has “zero budget” for intelligence funds.

“It is also part of our wish list for (the) E-government (bill) because it’s not part of the House version,” Mr. Paraiso said.

He added that the funds will be for DICT’s data gathering, noting that the agency has “no visibility right now.”

Intelligence funds, based on a 2015 joint government circular, are intended for intelligence and counter-intelligence activities that have a direct impact on national security. It may also be used for special projects on internal security operations, and peace and order activities.

Senator Rafael T. Tulfo acknowledged that the DICT will need intelligence funds to help address national security threats.

The Senate committee is deliberating over 18 measures relating to the E-Governance/E-Government Act, which the House of Representatives passed in March.

Senator Alan Peter S. Cayetano, who presided the hearing, said E-Governance will “make government services more efficient, less prone to corruption, and more inclusive.”

A technical working group was formed to fine-tune a consolidated measure. — Beatriz Marie D. Cruz

Farmers ask House to strengthen provisions vs land conversion

May 22, 2023 | 9:31 pm

FARMER GROUPS on Monday sought stronger provisions against land conversion in House Bill (HB) No. 8162 or the National Land Use Act (NaLUA), saying the current draft is not enough to protect small farmers.

“One of the most glaring problems with HB 8162 is its lack of a provision that explicitly prohibits the conversion of agricultural lands,” said National Network of Agrarian Reform Advocates-Youth Spokesperson Marina Cavan in a statement.

“This is a major concern, as the conversion of agricultural lands to other uses, such as housing and commercial development has a number of negative consequences, including food crises and environmental degradation,” she said.

The House of Representatives approved the bill last week on second reading.

The measure seeks to provide a framework for determining the best use of land and resources. It will also create the National Land Use Commission under the office of the President, which will draft the National Physical Framework Plan that will set guidelines on managing the country’s land and other physical resources.

“NaLUA was crafted without the participation of small farmers, fishers, urban poor, and indigenous people who are bound to be drastically affected by the bill,” said Ms. Cavan.

“We believe that national land use policy that is truly in the interests of the Filipino people must be based on the principles of agrarian reform, rural development, and national industrialization.”

In a separate statement, Kilusang Magbubukid ng Pilipinas Chairperson Danilo H. Ramos said the bill should prioritize benefits for Filipinos and “should not be for big businesses and profits.”

“On the basis, self-sufficiency and the development of the local agriculture industry are not part of NaLUA’s goal. This threatens to conform to business interests and worsen the problem on land use,” he said in Filipino.

Both groups reiterated their call for the passage of the Genuine Agrarian Reform Bill, which they believe contains a “just and equitable land use policy” that serves the interest of majority of Filipinos. — Sheldeen Joy Talavera

Supreme Court upholds Cargill VAT refund

May 22, 2023 | 9:31 pm

supreme-court-philstar — PHILSTAR FILE PHOTO

THE SUPREME COURT (SC) has affirmed a tax court ruling that granted Cargill Philippines, Inc.’s refund claim worth P1.78 million representing its excess input value-added tax (VAT) for the period March 2003 to August 2004.

In a 12-page decision on Jan. 30 and made public on May 19, the tribunal rejected the tax commissioner’s petition that claimed the firm failed to prove its VAT was traced to its zero-rated sales.

It said the Court of Tax Appeals (CTA) did not commit an error when it granted the firm a partial refund despite not attributing its sales to 0% VAT.

“The law does not require direct attributability of the input VAT from the purchase of goods to the finished product whose sale is zero-rated in order for such input VAT to be refundable,” SC Associate Justice Japar B. Dimaampao said in the ruling.

Under the Tax Code, taxpaying entities are entitled to zero-rated sales that do not translate to any output tax.

Cargill is the Philippine branch of an American firm engaged in trading agricultural products related to animal nutrition.

The firm initially sought a P22.2-million refund for its unused input VAT for the period. The CTA only granted part of the claim due to lack of evidence supporting the remaining amount of its unused VAT. — John Victor D. Ordoñez

Ilocos Norte wooing firms from sister-province Shandong, China; Cebu Pacific resumes Manila-Laoag flights

May 22, 2023 | 9:31 pm

Ilocos-Norte-Shandong-ILOCOSNORTE.GOV.PH — ILOCOSNORTE.GOV.PH

ILOCOS Norte is aiming to attract companies from its sister province Shandong in China to venture in the northern Philippine province.

The Ilocos Norte provincial government said Gov. Matthew Marcos Manotoc continuously works to create a more “investment-friendly” environment by “ensuring quality infrastructures are built to accommodate business operations, offering strong government support through the amendment of the province’s code to maximize the benefits of all economic activities to all stakeholders.”

The sisterhood agreement between the two provinces was signed in 2002 and various cooperation and partnership programs have been established in different sectors.

Ilocos Norte is eyeing new investments from Shandong, one of the biggest provinces in China in terms of population and economic output.

A delegation from Ilocos Norte — including government officials and representatives of food and agriculture, tourism and creative industries, and trade and investment promotions sectors — were in Shandong last week for a trade mission and explore new partnerships and exchange programs.

Meanwhile, budget carrier Cebu Pacific launched on Monday the return of its flights between Manila and Laoag City, capital of Ilocos Norte.

“Laoag plays a crucial role in preserving the country’s rich history and culture, and Cebu Pacific is excited to finally be able to bring more Juans to this beautiful city,” said Michael Ivan S. Shau, Cebu Pacific Air chief corporate affairs officer.

Perry Martinez, general manager of the Metro Ilocos Norte Council, said in a press briefing Sunday that plans are set for the Laoag Airport expansion to accommodate more domestic and international.

“We are thrilled to welcome back Cebu Pacific to our province, as this signals a renewed hope for our tourism industry. We hope that more airlines will follow suit, as we continue to work together to revitalize our economy and bring back the vibrancy of Ilocos Norte’s tourism sector,” said Mr. Manotoc in a statement from the airline. — Artemio A. Dumlao