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Philex expects ‘another good year’ on positive metal price outlook

PHILEX Mining Corp. is optimistic about its performance for the rest of the year amid the start of the development of its Silangan copper-gold project, according to its top officials.

“The net income year 2022 will be another good year for Philex as we start the development of the Silangan project,” Chief Finance Officer Romeo B. Bachoco said during a virtual press conference on Tuesday.

“We are optimistic that 2022 will be another good year for Philex and the mining industry in general. The global outlook for metal prices continues to be positive,” he added.

The Silangan copper-gold project in Surigao del Norte is expected to commence commercial operations by 2025. It will require an initial $244 million to develop.

“The company’s main focus right now is Silangan. Philex has started the execution plan of the project to be funded by proceeds from the stock rights offering, debt syndication and additional cash infusion from internal funds,” President and Chief Executive Eulalio B. Austin, Jr. said.

The project comprises the Boyongan and Bayugo ore deposits. Phase 1 or the Boyongan deposit has a 28-year projected mine life.

“We are currently completing front-end engineering work. As of today, we have started the earth-moving works necessary for the commencement of underground tunneling work,” Mr. Bachoco said.

Meanwhile, Phase 2 or the Bayugo deposit has undergone a definitive feasibility study. It will launch in a later year after the commercial operations of the first phase.

“At the right economic conditions, the potential to increase the reserve of Bayugo is there. Our Padcal mine was able to grow from a starter mine to one of the biggest mines,” Mr. Bachoco said.

Mr. Austin said that the Philippines is one of the most endowed countries when it comes to mineral resources.

“We are the fifth most mineral-rich country in the world when it comes to gold, copper, nickel, and chromite. We have an estimated $840 billion in untapped mineral wealth,” he said.

“The new government also regarded the mining industry as one of the major contributors to accelerate economic recovery. With government policies supported by the mining industry, we are confident investor interest for the Silangan project will be given a boost,” Mr. Bachoco added.

In the second quarter, Philex’s net income increased by 18.2% to P708.85 million from P599.53 million in 2021. Revenues climbed by 4.6% to P2.49 billion from P2.38 billion the year before.

Philex is one of three Philippine units of Hong Kong-based First Pacific Co. Ltd., the others being Metro Pacific Investments Corp. and PLDT, Inc.

Hastings Holdings, Inc., a unit of PLDT Beneficial Trust Fund subsidiary MediaQuest Holdings, Inc., has an interest in BusinessWorld through the Philippine Star Group, which it controls.

Philex shares on Tuesday rose by 0.63% or P0.02 to close at P3.20 per share. — Luisa Maria Jacinta C. Jocson

Aliw Theater rises from the ashes

Main Theater 1 photo from Aliw Theater website

Resident company Ballet Manila starts performing again

It has been three years of challenges for the dancers of Ballet Manila. After the company’s home base, the Aliw Theater, burned down along with much of the Star City Complex in October 2019, they had to close the company’s 24th performance season the following year at an unfamiliar venue — the Samsung Hall in SM Aura in Taguig City. Another challenge arrived soon after when all live events were canceled due to lockdowns imposed during the coronavirus pandemic.

But now the theater has been rebuilt and the dancers are again on pointe.

The Aliw Theater reopened on Aug. 10 and Ballet Manila is returning for special performances in 2022. Its 25th performance season will be held in 2023.

NOT JUST A THEATER ANYMORE 

The newly rebuilt Aliw Theater Complex now has three areas: the Elizalde Hall, the Custom Space, and the Aliw Theater.

Ballet Manila CEO and Artistic Director Lisa Macuja-Elizalde said that the newly renovated theater is aimed to be a “harder working complex.”

“If you need to warm up in a studio upstairs and then bring your cast to the stage while the technicals are being set, that is possible. If you need to have a conference and then a presentation afterwards, and then lunch or dinner afterwards. That is all possible. Everything is possible within this harder working complex. It’s not just a theater anymore,” Ms. Macuja-Elizalde said during the launch of the complex.

The 370-square meter Elizalde Hall has a lobby and two meeting rooms which can be used for events, business meetings, and conferences. Meanwhile, the 500-square meter high-ceilinged Custom Space can be divided into four separate event halls.

The seating capacity of the renovated Aliw Theater has been reduced to 1,275 from its previous 2,300 seats. Seat rows A to E are collapsible to accommodate space for an orchestra pit.  It is also equipped with new lights, a top-of-the-line sound system, and a Negative Air System to deal with the new health needs. The theater’s stage floor will soon be renovated and replaced.

“Our standard when we were designing everything was that we wanted people who would book here to not have to bring in additional equipment. We wanted people to be able to slide in and do their rehearsals and performances,” Ballet Manila chief of staff Terry Abad said.

BALLET MANILA DANCES AGAIN

With the reopening of the theater, Ballet Manila is set to mount special shows in 2022 and launch its 25th performance season in 2023. The official reopening of the theater will be marked by RISE!, a double bill featuring the opera La Traviata and the concert Ballets & Ballads on Oct. 7, 8 p.m., and Oct. 9, 5 p.m.

RISE! will feature classical ballet, opera singers, pop singers, and a full orchestra. Gerard Salonga is the show’s musical director and conductor, and internationally
renowned baritone Andrew Fernando will be featured in La Traviata.

It will be followed by the “Holiday Cheer” series with Lisa Macuja-Elizalde’s Cinderella on Dec. 25 to 30. All shows will be at 4 p.m.

Meanwhile, in 2023, the 25th performance season, “Of Hope and Homecoming,” will feature Martin Lawrance’s Romeo & Juliet (Feb. 18 and 19), Don Quixote (May 27 and 28), and Gerardo Francisco’s Ibong Adarna (Aug. 19 and 20).

“It is much more difficult now, because we lost so many dancers [over the past three years],” Ms. Macuja-Elizalde said. “We used to be 50 to 60 strong in the company, able to do full length classical ballets.” Ballet Manila currently has 20 dancers.

“We are combining our efforts with the Lisa Macuja School of Ballet to enter into the stage as well, and work with our more advanced students and our children in the school to put up the classical ballet productions,” she said.

Despite the changes and challenges, Ms. Macuja-Elizalde is optimistic that “the phoenix is rising” and is “leaner, meaner, better and ready to adapt to any kind of change that the wind shall bring.”

“I think, in other words, if we survived the last three years from October 2019 with that fire, [and] all throughout the pandemic, we survived. We’re here. I think it can only get better from here. The best is still to come,” she said.

For more information on the theater and its facilities, visit https://aliwtheater.com.ph/. For Ballet Manila show details, visit https://balletmanila.com.ph/25thseason/. Michelle Anne P. Soliman

Max’s Group profit rises more than four times to P239.5M

MAX’S Group, Inc. (MGI) reported a net income of P239.5 million in the second quarter, more than four times last year’s P55.4 million, proving the company’s “pandemic-proof” business model.

Revenues grew by 58% to P2.82 billion in the second quarter, from P1.78 billion a year ago, its financial report showed.

MGI recorded P1.05 billion in gross profit for the quarter, double last year’s P555 million and at par with its pre-pandemic figure of P1.05 billion. Its gross profit margin was at 37.2%, higher than the pre-pandemic 28.4%

“We committed to our stakeholders throughout the ongoing global health crisis that we would deliver a business model tuned to be as pandemic-proof as possible,” MGI Chief Executive Officer Robert Ramon F. Trota said in a press release on Tuesday.

“Our second quarter results prove yet again that our architecture works, even in sub-optimal operating conditions,” Mr. Trota added.

In the first half, MGI’s net income rose to P281.1 million, or 18 times higher compared with the level in the same period last year.

Its consolidated revenues amounted to P4.98 billion in the first semester, a 38% growth from P3.62 billion in the same period last year, as local market sales rose by 45%.

“Margins for the first half and second quarter reflect historic highs as compared to pre-pandemic 2019,” the company said in a report.

MGI President Ariel P. Fermin said the group is “cautiously pleased” with the results so far this year.

“It is clear to us that even as we continue to make headway in fully recovering our former sales and revenue levels, our optimized profit flow through makes us an attractive, reliable choice for our shareholders, our business partners, and our employees,” he said.

As of end-June, the company’s store network totaled 660 — 597 in the Philippines and 63 across North America, the Middle East, and Asia.

On the stock market on Tuesday, MGI shares climbed by 2.15% or 12 centavos to P5.70 apiece. — Justine Irish D. Tabile

Study finds that gargling solution eases sore throat in COVID-19 patients

UNSPLASH

SORE THROAT, the most common symptom of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), can be alleviated with antiseptic gargle containing both benzydamine hydrochloride (HCl) and chlorhexidine gluconate, according to a new study by the University of the East Ramon Magsaysay Memorial Medical Center.

The results of the research conducted from November 2021 to February 2022 showed that 70% of 219 adult Filipino patients with COVID-19 were relieved of sore throat symptoms after using Difflam-C, a locally available gargle, at least once a day.

“Sore throat normally lasts seven to ten days untreated, but the intervention shortened the duration of sore throat to five days. Some even felt better within 30 minutes of gargling,” said Dr. Jennifer M. Nailes, lead investigator of the study, at an Aug. 10 media briefing.

Because of the anti-inflammatory, analgesic, anesthetic, and antiseptic properties in benzydamine HCl and chlorhexidine gluconate, Difflam-C can relieve the throat discomfort of those who are suspected or confirmed to have COVID-19.

However, this doesn’t mean that the gargle can reduce one’s viral load, since the study focused only on the resolution of sore throat, clarified Dr. Roberto Salvino, medical director of iNova Pharma Philippines, Inc., manufacturer of Difflam-C.

“There’s no specific regimen or guideline in terms of the treatment of sore throat in COVID-19,” he said. “It depends on the doctor prescribing it and at the same time on the patient, because majority might have self-medicated.”

He added that gargling solution alone can’t treat a patient, as they are usually also prescribed paracetamol for fever and multivitamins to strengthen the immune system.

Participants of the study were instructed to gargle 15 milliliters of Difflam-C for 30 seconds at three-hour intervals for the first day, and at least once a day for the next six days.

“We asked everybody to still gargle until the end of the seven days, because there are occasions where throat pain can recur,” said Dr. Nailes.

Getting vaccinated, observing health protocols, and maintaining a healthy lifestyle should be standard procedure, to avoid getting COVID-19 in the first place, she added.

“You should take good care of yourself, and not just your throat,” she said. — Brontë H. Lacsamana

House officials see budget bill approval before Sept. 30 recess

HOUSE officials said on Tuesday that the 2023 budget bill is on track to be approved before the Sept. 30 Congressional recess.

Majority Leader Manuel Jose M. Dalipe told the Ugnayan sa Batasan Majority News Forum that legislators will approve the budget bill on time as it did last year.

“We were able to beat the September deadline last Congress, giving all members of the House of Representatives time to deliberate… with all the departments,” according to Mr. Dalipe, who represents Zamboanga City’s second district.

Marikina Rep. Stella Luz A. Quimbo said the House expects the National Expenditure Program (NEP) to be submitted on Aug. 22. The NEP is the National Government’s spending plan, which will form the basis for budget legisla-tion. Once passed into law, the bill will be known as the General Appropriations Act.

“After that, we will now have the budget briefings,” Ms. Quimbo, also senior vice-chairman of the House Committee on Appropriations, said.

“So the sequential budget briefings with every agency will start on Aug. 26, with a briefing by the Development and Budget Coordination Committee.”

She said that the committee plans to complete hearings for each agency by Sept. 16. — Matthew Carl L. Montecillo

How Salman Rushdie became a scapegoat for complex historical differences

THE CHAUTAUQUA Institution, southwest of Buffalo in New York State, is known for its summer lectures — and as a place where people come seeking peace and serenity. Salman Rushdie, the great writer and influential public intellectual, had spoken at the center before.

On Friday, Aug. 12, he was invited to speak on a subject very close to his heart: the plight of writers in Ukraine and the ethical responsibility of liberal nation-states towards them. Rushdie has been an outspoken defender of writers’ freedom of expression throughout his career.

In the audience of around 2,500 at Chautauqua was Hadi Matar, 24, of New Jersey, who jumped on stage and stabbed Rushdie in the neck and the abdomen.

It was more than 30 years ago — February 14, 1989 (Valentine’s Day) — when Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, 88, the then spiritual ruler of Iran, condemned Rushdie to death via a fatwa, a legal ruling under Sharia Law. His crime was blasphemy against Prophet Muhammad in his novel The Satanic Verses, on a number of levels.

Since the fatwa, the specter of death has followed Rushdie — and he knew it, even when the Iranian government ostensibly withdrew its support for the fatwa. (But without the important step of conceding that a fatwa by a qualified scholar of Islam — which Khomeini was — could be revoked.) Rushdie himself had not taken the occasional threats to his life seriously. He had lived more freely in recent years, often dispensing with security guards for protection.

Although Rushdie is now off a ventilator, his wounds remain serious. As his agent Andrew Wylie has said, he may lose an eye and perhaps even the use of an arm. He will recover, but it seems unlikely he’ll return as the raconteur of old (as I knew him during my visits to Emory University, Georgia, where for five years during 2006-2011 he was a short-term writer-in-residence, and where his archive had been installed).

We do not know what motivated Hadi Matar to act in the manner in which he did, but his action cannot be de-linked from the 1989 fatwa, reported by Time magazine in a lead essay titled “Hunted by An Angry Faith: Salman Rushdie’s novel cracks open a fault line between East and West.”

Rushdie made it to the cover of Time on Sept. 15, 2017, when the magazine profiled him, and praised his new novel, The Golden House. In the profile, Rushdie reflected on the effect of the fatwa and the controversy around The Satanic Verses on people’s perceptions of his writing. The humor in his books was overlooked, he said, and his later works began to acquire the “shadow of the attack” on The Satanic Verses.

The Satanic Verses was published more than 30 years ago — some years before Rushdie’s attacker, Hadi Matar, was born. But the insult to Islam felt by Rushdie’s detractors seems to have endured regardless of the decades that have passed.

The ongoing debate over Rushdie (as the 1989 Time essay on the fatwa implied) has exposed fault lines between the West and Islam that had once remained hidden. These fault lines insinuated, the argument went, a radical difference between what constitutes artistic responsibility in the West and in the East (the latter narrowly defined as the Islamic Orient and what V.S. Naipaul called the nations of Islamic “converts”).

This discourse of radical difference had already entered European humanist scholarship, as Edward Said recorded in his magisterial 1979 book, Orientalism. Many have argued Salman Rushdie’s Satanic Verses gave the debate a focus — and a tangible object that could be pointed to as a definitive example of the West’s antagonism towards Islam.

To most readers who value the relative autonomy of the novel as a work of art, this is a false, even misleading reading of the mediated nature of the relationship between art and history. But as Rushdie’s recent stabbing shows, the reading is still potent.

Sadly, Rushdie is overwhelmingly identified (by some) with anti-Islamic sentiments. This has distracted from his achievement as a writer of some of the finest novels written in the long 20th century — a great writer whose name is regularly put forward as a likely recipient of the Nobel Prize for Literature.

Salman Rushdie, an Indian Muslim, was born into a secular Muslim household, and grew up with books and cinema. The long-held wish of his father, Ahmed Rushdie, was to reorganize the Qur’an chronologically.

Rushdie was born a few months before India gained its independence. The India he experienced before he left for prestigious English boarding school, Rugby, in 1961 was the unquestionably secular India of Nehru. That Nehruvian liberal vision, which India seems to have now lost, guided his writing and was the inspiration behind the spectacular success of his Booker prize-winning second novel, Midnight’s Children (1981) — and the critical acclaim that followed his more creative novels, namely, Shame (1983), The Moor’s Last Sigh (1995), The Ground Beneath Her Feet (1999), and The Enchantress of Florence (2008).

Like another writer of the global Indian diaspora, V.S. Naipaul, Rushdie had come to the West with the express purpose of becoming a novelist. The fatwa dramatically turned him into something more than a writer: in fact, into a cultural icon representing the importance of a writer’s freedom of expression.

This claim to freedom is different from the general freedom of speech enjoyed by all in liberal democracies. A writer’s freedom is of a different order. It is a freedom earned through labor and artistic excellence. This freedom is conditional: it is not available to any writer. It has to be earned, by entering the canon of world literature — though not necessarily in terms of a European definition of literariness. Rushdie’s body of work indicates that he has earned it.

But we cannot leave it at that. The Rushdie experience also presents the challenge of how to negotiate that freedom across cultures — especially with cultures governed by carefully defined moral and religious absolutes.

The violent hysteria engendered by Rushdie’s magical treatment of Muhammad in The Satanic Verses was ultimately limited to a small minority. But it is often this small minority that fails to read absolutes allegorically, as intended.

The Chautauqua incident should not have happened, but it did. It is a price that art periodically pays, especially when it is taken as an easy scapegoat for more complex historical differences.

The most serious was the suggestion that Muhammad didn’t solely edit the message of Angel Gibreel (Gabriel) — that Satan himself had a hand in occasionally distorting that message. These, of course, are presented as hallucinatory recollections by the novel’s seemingly deranged character, Gibreel Farishta. But because of a common belief in the shared identity of author and narrator, the author is deemed to be responsible for a character’s words and actions. And so, the author stood condemned.

Blasphemy against Muhammad is an unpardonable crime in Islam: a kind of divine sanctity surrounds the Prophet of Islam. The latter is captured in the well-known Farsi saying, Ba khuda diwana basho; ba Muhammad hoshiyar (Take liberties with Allah as you wish; but be careful with Muhammad). — The Conversation via Reuters Connect

 

Vijay Mishra is Emeritus Professor of English and Comparative Literature at Murdoch University. Mr. Mishra received funding from the Australia Research Council for his books written on Salman Rushdie: Annotating Salman Rushdie (London: Routledge, 2018) and Salman Rushdie and the Genesis of Secrecy (London: Bloombsbury, 2019). For a month each year from 2010 to 2012, he worked on the Salman Rushdie Archive at Emory University.

SC affirms CoA rulings disallowing additional perks for DBP officers

PHOTO BY MIKE GONZALEZ

THE SUPREME COURT (SC) has affirmed with modification two rulings of the Commission on Audit (CoA) that disallowed additional allowances and fringe benefits of Development Bank of the Philippines officers worth P1.63 million and P106.60 million, respectively.

In a 24-page decision on March 22 and made public on Aug. 15, the court’s en banc upheld the disallowances for being unconstitutional but cleared the DBP officers who approved the additional compensation.

“Nonetheless, while the Court affirms the CoA decision, which sustained the disallowance of additional allowances and benefits to DBP officers, we disagree that the officials who approved or certified the grant of disallowed benefits should also be held liable,” according to the ruling penned by Associate Justice Rodil V. Zalameda.

The High Court ordered the officials who received the additional allowances to return the money.

In separate resolutions, the CoA affirmed Supervising Auditor Hilconeda P. Abril’s findings that disallowed P1.63 million and P106.60 million in additional allowances, fringe benefits, and economic assistance for DBP officers.

“CoA found unacceptable DBP’s claim that the amounts disallowed were not in the concept of a fixed salary but were in the form of reimbursement of expenses for attendance of meetings and performance of duties,” the court noted.

The agency also cited the General Appropriations Act of 2005, which prohibits expenditures for allowances and other forms of compensation unless authorized by law.

DBP argued that former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo had previously approved its compensation plan, which rendered the CoA’s disallowances moot and academic.

The CoA pointed out that Ms. Arroyo’s approval of the grant of additional compensation was illegal, as it was made 17 days before the May 2010 polls.

The Omnibus Election Code prohibits any government official or employee from giving salary increases 45 days before a regular election.

The tribunal agreed with the CoA as it noted the Constitution also prohibits public officers or employees from receiving additional or double compensation under existing laws. — John Victor D. Ordoñez

Health News

LASIK - Shinagawa

KonsultaMD, Watsons offer free healthcare

TELEMEDICINE service platform KonsultaMD and health-and-beauty chain Watsons Philippines have partnered to give free healthcare to Filipinos.

Watsons provides free 24/7 unlimited doctor consultations to its customers via KonsultaMD for a minimum purchase of P500.

KonsultaMD members, meanwhile, can avail themselves of free delivery from Watsons for purchases worth at least P1,000 from watsons.com.ph or via the Watsons mobile app, which can be downloaded on Google Play, AppStore, and AppGallery.

The free KonsultaMD health plan accepts up to five family members for one month. They can talk to a licensed general physician anytime via voice, or video call, without an appointment.

Aside from getting primary medical advice, KonsultaMD members can receive general health information and interpretation of laboratory results and diagnostic examinations.

Moreover, they can get access to medical documents such as e-prescriptions, e-laboratory requests, and e-medical certificates at the doctor’s discretion.

The KonsultaMD app is available on Google Play, AppStore, and AppGallery. Visit use.konsulta.md/watsons for more information.

mWell launches the online medical mission

MWELL by Metro Pacific Investments Corp. (MPIC) will conduct a nationwide online medical mission on Aug. 27–28.

Filipinos can consult a range of doctors on the mWell app, where they can receive free medical advice from general practitioners, specialists, and mental health experts.

Booking fees and doctor fees will be waived on Aug. 27-28. On top of the free consultation, the first 100 patients will receive vitamin vouchers from MedExpress and Watsons, with free shipping. They will also be given free laboratory exams including X-ray and complete blood count, and emergency outpatient coverage valid for one year.

Shinagawa provides high-performance eye care

SHINAGAWA LASIK and Aesthetics Center, a leading eye care provider in Japan, first opened in the Philippines 12 years ago.

Known for its advanced technological procedures, Shinagawa acquired a high-performance eye laser system for refractive and therapeutic corneal surgery called the Schwind Amaris 1050RS.

In addition to ophthalmology, Shinagawa also offers aesthetics and orthodontic services.

Global Ferronickel earnings down 16% on lower shipments

GLOBAL Ferronickel Holdings, Inc. reported that its second-quarter net income declined by 16.2% to P615.58 million from P734.56 million in the previous year.

“The group encountered more rainy days this period totaling 128 rainy days compared to 105 rainy days during the same period in 2021. The group only managed to complete 19 shipments of nickel ore totaling 1.035 million wet metric tons (WMT) during the first half of the year, compared to 32 shipments totaling 1.740 WMT during the same period last year,” the firm said in a disclosure on Tuesday.

Revenues from contracts with customers likewise slipped by 12.5% to P2.17 billion from P2.48 billion in 2021.

“The results are driven by the April to June mining operations of Platinum Group Metals Corp. (PGMC) in Surigao del Norte, with incremental contributions from PGMC International Limited (PIL), a wholly-owned subsidiary es-tablished to facilitate relations with Chinese customers for the trading of mineral products,” it added.

Global Ferronickel President Dante R. Bravo said that the company is looking forward to better weather in the third quarter, which is typically the peak of PGMC’s mining season. It is expected to bring in more than 60% of the firm’s total revenues for the year.

“Despite the fewer volume sold for the period ended on June, the group benefited from the higher average realized foreign exchange rate this year at P52.60 compared to the prior period’s P48.24,” he added.

The firm also noted that nickel ore prices were also higher this year with an overall average realized nickel ore price at $39.21 per WMT, compared to last year’s period at $31.10 per WMT.

“The resulting sales mix was 79% low-grade ore and 21% medium-grade ore in 2022 in contrast to the previous period’s mix of 84% low-grade ore and 16% medium-grade ore,” it added.

“We have adjusted our 2022 shipment target to 4.0 million WMT but we still look forward to a productive and remarkable season due to the strong demand from China and favorable market conditions,” Mr. Bravo said.

Global Ferronickel is a holding company with principal business interests in mineral resource exploration, mining, and exporting of nickel ore.

Its mineral property comprises 4,376 hectares in Brgy. Cagdianao Claver, Surigao del Norte.

The firm’s subsidiaries are PGMC, FNI Steel Corp., and FNI Steel Landholdings Corp.

On Tuesday, Global Ferronickel shares ended lower by 4.98% or 12 centavos to close at P2.29 apiece. — Luisa Maria Jacinta C. Jocson

Manifestation of societal ills

Ritche Yee's Democratic Erosion, photo by Michelle Anne P. Soliman

DISEASES manifest and cause disruption in our bodies, as do problems and ills in our environment and within society. Visual representations of the ills of the body and of society are currently displayed in the exhibition titled “Morbus” (the Latin word for disease) at the NCCA Gallery.

The featured artists in the group exhibit are members of MakiSining, whose birthplace or artistic practice is in cities and towns around Mount Makiling. The participating artists are Paul Hilario, Ritche Yee, Jett Ilagan, Marvin Oloris, Sayid Cedicol, Niko Cedicol, and Bong Salazar. The artists also work in the fields of medicine, biology, public management and public service, multimedia design, and civil engineering.

The idea for the exhibit started in 2021, sparked by many conversations between artist Paul Hilario and artist-curator Riel Hilario (they are not related). Riel was supposed to visit Paul in Laguna to discuss the concept of “Morbus”. Then came the devastating news of his untimely demise on Aug. 8, 2021 of COVID-19.

As an advocate for creatives, Riel Hilario’s last few months were spent actively engaging with fellow artists on systemic illnesses of the art world and the creative ecosystem.

The members of MakiSining collaborated with Laya Boquiren, a friend of Riel Hilario, and applied under the Exhibition Grants Program of the National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA). A year later, the NCCA announced that they were among the successful grantees for 2022. Ms. Boquiren and the artists expanded the exhibition concept to include the various meanings of ailments, from physical to societal.

“Morbus explores various conceptual tenors around the idea of diseases such as the discomfort and ills in our bodies, cities, and nation so that we may explore ways to mitigate and arrest the Morbus that debilitates us, ruminate on the ways we can strengthen our collective immunity, and generate conversations on healing,” Ms. Boquiren, the exhibit’s curator, said during the launch on Aug. 4.

For “Morbus,” painter Paul Hilario shifted to installation work, utilizing discarded old hospital equipment (donated by the Medical Society of Capiz and the University Health Service of UP Los Baños), evoking the image of a patient wasting away from an incurable ailment. The work, TermiNation, presents a man lying on an old hospital bed with empty medicine bottles and boxes beneath him.

Talking about his work, Mr. Hilario noted the detail of an amputated hand, which can either be someone else’s hand or the patient’s own, cutting off the oxygen. As one’s survival or quality of life can be decided upon by someone else, it can also depend on the decision made by oneself, Mr. Hilario said.

His other installation, ReSUScitator, is an old resuscitator with a painting of a snake from the symbol of medicine, the Caduceus, biting its own wings, representing corruption in the medical industry.

Meanwhile, the Stressure Chest — an old military chest filled with plastic cockroaches — was inspired from the story of Pandora’s Box.

“There are some things that we think are important to us but actually it is stress like our vices.” Mr. Hilario said.

Brothers Sayid and Niko Cedicol are both doctors, the former working in military conflict areas and the latter is a community doctor. Their works depict scenarios on public policy, health systems, access to healthcare, and conflict in communities.

Marvin Oloris (also known as MARO) is a practicing engineer and contractor of houses and other such structures. For the exhibit, he used the images of blueprints as a subtle social commentary on corruption in infrastructure projects.

Sound artist Jett Ilagan made Infestation, translating the sounds of commuting in Metro Manila onto paper using graphite and charcoal. He cites poor transportation infrastructure, the lack of public vehicles, and the increase in gas prices as the illness in society and the theme he focused on for the exhibit.

“In the process, I wandered around Manila. I love cycling and recorded jeepneys, [the] sound of the train, different people commuting. Once I gathered the sounds, I put them on the computer and studied their frequencies,” Mr. Ilagan told BusinessWorld, about his work.

Ritche Yee’s unique choice of industrial materials shows corrosion and decay. In a work titled Democratic Erosion, he creates a decaying wall which he considers as the “mute witness to history.”

“I took the principle of Arte Povera and used everyday materials for my art,” Mr. Yee explained. Arte Povera was an art movement prominent in 1967 to 1972 whose works veered away from traditional materials like oil paint, bronze, and marble.

Since 2009, the NCCA has been offering an exhibition space allowing artists from the regions outside NCR (national capital region) to push their artistic boundaries without curtailing creative exploration and expression. The government provides all the curatorial support services for free.

“Morbus” is on view at the NCCA Gallery in Intramuros, Manila until Aug. 31. For more information, visit https://www.facebook.com/Morbusproject. — Michelle Anne P. Soliman

BPI BanKo launches digital savings account

BANK of the Philippine Islands’ (BPI) microfinance arm BPI Direct BanKo, Inc. has launched a digital savings account to make digital banking easier for its clients.

The basic deposit account called Todo Savings allows clients to earn more as they increase their savings, offering a high interest rate, BPI said in a statement on Tuesday. Deposits worth P5,000 to P50,000 can earn 4% per annum.

“BanKo is continuously innovating products to provide Filipinos with a worry-free, easy-to-open digital savings account,” BanKo Senior Vice-President and Head of Financial Inclusion and Microfinance Solutions Rodolfo K. Ma-biasen, Jr. was quoted as saying. “Now with Todo Savings, clients also get more with higher interest, no frills.”

“With this product, we hope to change the mindset of the unbanked Filipinos regarding opening a savings account, as most of them think that there is no need, while some find the process intimidating. Now we hope to address this by providing them easier access to an equally easy-to-maintain savings account,” Mr. Mabiasen said.

Todo Savings accounts can be opened via BanKo mobile app. Applicants will be required to submit one identification card and make an initial deposit of any amount within seven days of their account’s opening. The account does not require a maintaining balance.

Clients can fund their accounts via other banks or e-wallets via InstaPay. Deposits and withdrawals can also be made through accredited BanKo cash agents nationwide.

Todo Savings account holders will be automatically enrolled in the BanKo app, where they can manage their funds.

The app offers an interbank and intrabank fund transfer feature, which can be used for online transactions.

The central bank wants 70% of Filipino adults become part of the formal financial system and digital payments to make up 50% of transactions in the country by 2023.

BanKo’s parent BPI posted a higher net profit in the second quarter, driven by a net gain on an asset sale and tax adjustments, improved revenues and lower provisions for bad loans.

The Ayala-led bank’s net income rose by 82.9% to P12.5 billion in the quarter ended June 30 from the P6.8 billion recorded in the same period last year.

This brought the lender’s net earnings for the first half of the year to P20.4 billion, up by 73% from the P11.75 billion seen in the same period in 2021.

BPI’s shares closed at P95.60 apiece on Monday, gaining 30 centavos or 0.31%. — K.B. Ta-asan

Leading amid global uncertainty

Leadership in a time of global uncertainty is not about perfect anticipation; it’s about seeing the possibilities and acting on them before others do, said Emmanuel P. “Manny” Maceda, worldwide managing partner at Bain & Company.

Mr. Maceda spoke at the launch of this year’s edition of Makati Business Club’s signature series Leading in Extraordinary Times, in partnership with BusinessWorld.

In its third year, the series highlights the practices of global and Philippine executives, and aims to accelerate job creation and economic growth.

In his speech, Mr. Maceda outlined the impact of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic and other global events on digital transformation; environmental, social and governance (ESG) initiatives; and the future of industries.

The world responded to the pandemic with varying success. At the start of 2022, things were looking up as companies and societies learned to operate in a hybrid world. Economies were rebounding and markets were up.

Another surge driven by the highly infectious Omicron variant caused supply chain shortages but industries were reasonably optimistic. The top challenge for many companies was labor — there were many jobs but not enough people to fill them.

In February, Russia invaded Ukraine, creating another series of shocks to the system, with huge implications on global energy and food supplies, all of which has caused inflation.

“This is the most uncertain time we’ve ever experienced … we must anticipate continued turbulence,” said Mr. Maceda at the launch this June.

Chief executive officers must possess three critical elements to help their company achieve full potential amid turbulence and uncertainty, he said: prediction, or the ability to anticipate change ahead of time; adaptability, or having the flexibility to course correct as the external environment evolves; and resilience, or the capacity to survive and recover from sudden shocks.

The biopharmaceutical industry demonstrated these qualities throughout its pandemic response. Years of investment in research and development (R&D) — even in the face of costly failures — laid the groundwork for shortened development timelines for the mRNA and viral vector vaccines now in use against SARS-CoV-2.

The development of the first vaccine approved for human use took less than a year, while the first batches of vaccines from research-based pharmaceutical companies came in early 2021.

Effective voluntary partnerships also accelerated R&D and manufacturing for COVID-19 diagnostics, vaccines, and treatments. More than 330 partnerships bolstered manufacturing capacity, facilitated technology and knowledge transfer, and drove historically rapid R&D.

In close coordination with the government, regulatory flexibility and convergence helped ensure safety and speed of access. COVID-19 vaccines and therapeutics were developed in record time due to the extraordinary degree of collaboration between industry and national and regional regulatory authorities.

Biopharmaceutical R&D is also about seeing possibilities. Pfizer, for example, has announced a next-generation bivalent COVID-19 vaccine candidate called BNT162b5, which consists of RNAs encoding enhanced prefusion spike proteins for the SARS-CoV-2 ancestral strain (wild-type) and an Omicron variant.

The company said that enhanced spike protein encoded from the mRNAs in BNT162b5 has been modified with the aim of increasing the magnitude and breadth of the immune response that could better protect against COVID-19.

Moderna, meanwhile, is advancing two bivalent candidates for utilization in global vaccination efforts. The mRNA-1273.214 bivalent booster candidate is based on the Omicron subvariant BA.1 and has demonstrated positive clinical data against variants of concern, including Omicron. Moderna said that the second bivalent booster candidate, mRNA 1273.222, is based on the BA.4/5 strain.

AstraZeneca earlier announced a preliminary analysis which said that data from a trial showed increased antibody response against Delta, Alpha, and Gamma variants following a third dose of its vaccine. Another analysis of samples from the trial also showed higher antibody response to the Omicron variant.

Johnson & Johnson (J&J) also announced that preliminary data from a study demonstrated 85% effectiveness for the homologous booster shot of J&J against COVID-19 related hospitalization in South Africa where Omicron was then dominant.

For the biopharmaceutical industry, it’s crucial to see the endless possibilities and to act on them immediately. Doing so could help save more lives and eventually jumpstart the economy.

 

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