THE COUNTRY’S effective coronavirus alert level system has made Filipinos become more optimistic about economic growth, according to the presidential palace.
In a statement, presidential spokesman Jose Martin M. Andanar said the system had facilitated economic reopening ang job recovery.
“Our people have more reasons to feel confident about the future, especially now that President Rodrigo Roa Duterte has signed Executive Order No. 166, which adopted a 10-point policy agenda to accelerate and sustain the economy from the COVID-19 pandemic,” he added.
More than half of adult Filipinos thought the Philippine economy would improve in the next 12 months, the Social Weather Stations (SWS) said, citing a Dec. 12-16 poll.
It said 30% of Filipinos thought the economy would stay the same, while 7% said it would worsen.
“The Dec. 2021 net economic optimism was a continuing recovery from the mediocre -9 in July 2020, mediocre -5 in Sept. 2020 and high +24 in Nov. 2020,” SWS said. “This is the highest since the excellent +44 in Sept. 2016.”
SWS said 45% of adult Filipinos expected their quality of life to improve, 42% said it would stay the same and 3% said it would worsen in the next 12 months. The December poll found that 43% of Filipino families considered themselves poor.
The poll had an error margin of ±2.6 points. — Kyle Aristophere T. Atienza
VICE-PRESIDENT Maria Leonor “Leni” G. Robredo on Wednesday visited Occidental Mindoro in western Philippines, where she was endorsed by a local lawmaker who cited her strong stance in the sea dispute with China.
Ms. Robredo and running mate Senator Francis “Kiko” N. Pangilinan got the support of key local officials and a fisherfolk community, whose members had been left for dead in 2019 by a large Chinese fishing vessel that rammed their small fishing boat near a Philippine-claimed area in the South China Sea.
The fishermen issued a manifesto of support for the opposition tandem, Ms. Robredo’s office said in a statement on Thursday.
The ramming incident on June 9, 2019 happened near the resource-rich Reed Bank, which the Philippines calls Recto. The 22 Filipino fishermen, who were left in the open sea after their boat sank, were rescued by Vietnamese fishermen.
Ms. Robredo visited the fishermen days after the incident. Each of the fisherfolk got cash aid from the vice president.
Occidental Mindoro Rep. Josephine Ramirez-Sato, who is running for governor, endorsed the opposition tandem in a campaign rally.
“One woman bravely faced China and said she would not let them oppress our fellowmen in our own country,” Ms. Sato said at the rally in Filipino, based on a video posted on Facebook.
Filipinos will choose President Rodrigo R. Duterte’s replacement on May 9. Political analysts have said the country’s sea dispute with China is a major election issue.
Fitch Solutions Country Risk and Industry Research said in a report last year Philippine presidential frontrunner Ferdinand “Bongbong” R. Marcos, Jr. “appears one of the few candidates to agree with Duterte’s policy of engagement.”
Local civic groups and foreign policy experts have accused him of parroting China’s mantra in its sea dispute with the Philippines.
Ms. Robredo has said the next government should not deal with China until it recognizes a 2016 ruling by a United Nations-backed tribunal that voided its claim to more than 40% of the waterway.
She has also called for a coalition of nations against China’s militarization of the sea.
Meanwhile, presidential spokesman Jose Martin M. Andanar said Mr. Duterte would support candidates who would continue his policies.
Mr. Duterte, 77, has said he would retire from politics once his six-year term ends in June. Domestic and international groups have criticized his war on drugs that has killed thousands. — Kyle Aristophere T. Atienza
THE COMMISSION on Elections (Comelec) will hold a public demonstration of the procedures and health protocols that will be implemented for voters who exhibit coronavirus symptoms when they cast their ballots on May 9, according to an election commissioner.
A date has yet to be set for the simulation exercise.
Election Commissioner Aimee Torrefranca-Neri, who has just been appointed to head the poll body’s committee for the “new normal,” said it is crucial to ensure that health standards are followed and “COVID-proofing” the elections.
“An election is a super-spreader event and we are not out of the woods yet,” she told a news briefing on Thursday.
Comelec Spokesman James B. Jimenez earlier said that voting sites will have isolation polling places, which are separated booths or classrooms for voters who show symptoms of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).
The isolation stations and protocols will be similar to what was implemented in last year’s Palawan plebiscite, the first electoral exercise conducted in the country amid a pandemic.
Non-partisan coalition PARTICIPATE earlier asked Comelec to designate personnel with medical training or knowledge for these separate voting stations.
Ms. Neri said Comelec will create its own medical advisory board to help provide and develop more timely policies and guidelines for the public.
The election body also plans to partner with medical groups to set up medical desks in polling venues to attend to voters with health-related issues during the election day.
The help-desk will prioritize individuals who are deemed vulnerable due to pre-existing conditions.
There are about 67.4 million registered voters, representing close to 60% of the Philippine population.
Mr. Jimenez said in January that there will be around 105,000 voting precincts this year compared to 80,000 during the 2019 elections in consideration of physical distancing.
Last month Comelec issued an order allowing persons with disabilities, senior citizens, and pregnant voters to cast their ballots in special voting areas that will have ramps, sign language interpreters, and accessible washrooms.
“While we exercise our right of suffrage, we must also protect the sanctity of life and right to health of our population,” said Ms. Neri. — John Victor D. Ordoñez
PARTS of the Davao and Caraga regions in southern Philippines were flooded since Wednesday following persistent rains brought about by a low pressure area, local authorities reported.
The town of Trento in Agusan del Sur province was among the worst hit with 15 out of its 16 villages affected, prompting the municipal government to declare a state of calamity.
Work in both public and private offices and classes in all schools were suspended on Wednesday, and remained in effect on Thursday as rains were expected to continue in the coming days.
The municipal disaster management office reported that more than 2,600 families have been affected while damage to agriculture was initially assessed at P87 million.
Landslides in some areas also cut off power supply.
The provincial government of Agusan del Sur, meanwhile, said response teams from the different local government units as well as police, military, coast guard, and fire bureau have been deployed for response measures and continued monitoring.
“As of today, floodwaters have generally subsided,” the provincial information office said, “However, moderate rain is expected to continue through the next 2-3 days.”
As of Thursday 10 a.m., the low pressure area was estimated at 215 kilometers east-northeast of Hinatuan, Surigao del Sur in Mindanao, the country’s southern mainland, according to state weather agency’s bulletin.
The Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) said the low pressure area moving in a northwest direction “remains less likely to develop into a tropical depression in the next 24 hours.”
The weather disturbance is embedded along the Intertropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ), bringing moderate to heavy rains over Caraga, Northern Mindanao, Zamboanga Peninsula and the Visayas in central Philippines.
Light to moderate with at times heavy rains are also expected in the rest of Mindanao, and the regions of Mimaropa and Bicol.
“Under these conditions, scattered flooding and rain-induced landslides are likely,” PAGASA warned, especially in high-risk areas as identified in official hazard maps and in areas with significant rainfall in previous days.
In Davao City, residents along Davao River were preemptively evacuated Wednesday night.
The city disaster management office reported on Thursday morning that several sections of the river overflowed and were “gradually increasing.”
“The rest of the river channels are still monitored within safe levels,” it said.
Flooding and landslides were also reported in other areas of the region, including parts of the provinces of Davao Oriental and Davao de Oro. — MSJ
ALMOST 2,700 personnel will be deployed in the capital region’s major roads and Catholic churches starting April 8 to help manage the expected increase in vehicular volume during the Holy Week that begins Sunday.
“Majority of the traffic personnel will be assigned to roads leading to provincial bus terminals, seaports, airports, and major churches, to ensure the safety of thousands of commuters expected to travel to nearby provinces to take advantage of the long Holy Week break,” Romando S. Artes, chairman of the
Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA), said in a statement on Thursday.
He said MMDA will be working with the police, local government units, traffic bureaus, and other related agencies.
The auxiliary traffic teams will be active until April 18, a day after Easter Sunday.
There will also be teams stationed at various points to provide roadside emergency services.
“Simultaneous sidewalk clearing operations against illegal vendors within the vicinity of major churches will also be conducted,” MMDA said.
“These contingency measures are aimed to ensure a peaceful, orderly, and meaningful observance of Lent,” said Mr. Artes.
In Catholic-majority Philippines, Thursday and Friday of Holy Week are declared as national holidays.
THE IMMIGRATION bureau is anticipating an influx of arriving and departing passengers starting this weekend as the Philippines observes the Lenten holiday, the first in two years with eased travel restrictions due to the global coronavirus pandemic.
As such, immigration officers assigned at international airports across the country have been prohibited from going on leave during and after the Holy Week to ensure sufficient manpower to serve the traveling public during the break, according to the Bureau of Immigration (BI).
“Normally there is always a rise in the volume of arriving passengers before the Holy Week and increase in the number of departing passengers after the Lenten break,” BI Port Operations Divisions Carlos B. Capulong said in a statement on Thursday.
Mr. Capulong noted that apart from Filipinos who will be traveling abroad or coming home, the country has also opened its borders to vaccinated foreign tourists from all countries.
Data from the bureau show that passenger arrivals at the airport has been averaging at 13,000 to 15,000 daily in April, up from 6,000 to 9,000 in March.
The Department of Tourism (DoT) reported on Tuesday that more than 186,000 foreign tourists have arrived since border reopening on Feb. 10 for non-visa countries, and for all countries effective April 1.
The tourism sector’s contribution to the country’s economy in 2019 was 12.8%. This dropped to 5.4% the following year due to the global pandemic.
DoT said that over a million workers in the tourism industry were affected by the pandemic. — John Victor D. Ordoñez
THE SUGAR Regulatory Administration (SRA) should stop its plan for a new round of importation after two regional courts ruled against a similar program, said a senator whose help has been sought by growers.
“Our local sugar farmers are again approaching our office, deeply concerned over talks of a new SRA proposal that would green-light the importation of 350,000 metric tons of sugar into the country,” Majority Leader Juan Miguel F. Zubiri said in a statement on Thursday.
This comes after two regional courts issued separate rulings against Sugar Order No. 3 in February, which sought to import 200,000 metric tons of sugar, noting that it will cause “grave and irreparable injury” to local producers.
“Our courts have already landed on the side of our sugar farmers last February, so it’s disheartening that we are having the same conversation about importation again,” the senator said.
“Lest the SRA will be accused of this being a midnight deal bereft of propriety and due process. They should not allow this while our farmers are harvesting their crops,” he added.
Mr. Zubiri noted that the proposed importation deal will put local farmers at a gross disadvantage, particularly at a time when they are still dealing with setbacks caused by the coronavirus pandemic and spiraling fertilizer prices.
“Instead of this importation program, let us focus on delivering much-needed assistance to our farmers, and let us find ways to boost local production not just of crops, but of fertilizers as well,” he said. — Alyssa Nicole O. Tan
A SOLON said on Thursday that it could be time to reassess the country’s tobacco tax law alongside a review of the government’s efforts against smuggling.
“Is there such a thing as over taxation, to the point that we are actually rewarding smugglers, because of the huge taxation?” PBA Party-list Rep. Jericho Jonas B. Nograles said in a mix of English and Filipino at an online conference.
“There’s always a debate when it comes to taxing sin products,” he said.
Republic Act 11346, signed in July 2019, increased taxes on so-called “sin” products such as tobacco, e-cigarettes, and sweetened and alcoholic beverages.
Mr. Nograles, a member of the House Ways and Means committee, said there is a possible link between increasing tax rates for tobacco and smuggling, citing a study that shows that for every 10% tax increase, there is a 7% increase in illicit trade.
“As far as policies are concerned, I think the policies are there. We are in the middle of adjusting our enforcement, improving our enforcement,” he said.
“And the first thing that the smugglers and illicit traders would really exploit are the loopholes… between the different agencies. Hence, the technical working group’s first recommendation, as I presented earlier, is for the agencies to talk to each other so that we can streamline (rules against smuggling).” — Jaspearl Emerald G. Tan
BRUSSELS — Ukraine will keep up demands for an oil and gas embargo on Russia after its invasion of the country, the Ukrainian foreign minister said on Thursday, as the European Union (EU) promised a fifth round of sanctions by Friday.
Dmytro Kuleba will address NATO’s 30 allies, as well as the European Union, Finland, Sweden, Japan, New Zealand and Australia, in a special session of foreign ministers to maintain international support for sanctions and weapons supplies.
“We will continue to insist on full oil and gas embargo,” he told reporters at NATO, speaking alongside Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg.
“I think the deal that Ukraine is offering is fair. You give us weapons, we sacrifice our lives, and the war is contained in Ukraine,” he said.
Mr. Kuleba called on Germany in particular to speed up weapons’ deliveries to Ukraine, asking for planes, land-based anti-ship missiles, armored vehicles and air defense systems. He said procedures were taking too long in Berlin.
German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock, who offered to hold another meeting of NATO foreign ministers in May in Berlin, said she would discuss more arms sales to Ukraine with allies on Thursday in Brussels.
After more than 40 days of war, Ukraine says Russia continues to shell its cities, particularly in the eastern regions of Kharkiv, Donetsk and Luhansk after Russian forces withdrew from around Kyiv.
Moscow calls its actions in Ukraine a “special military operation.”
Mr. Stoltenberg on Wednesday warned of a war that could last months or even years and US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken pledged support to Ukraine for the longer term.
Outrage over civilians killings in the Ukrainian town of Bucha near Kyiv appears to have galvanized Western support.
But while a possible EU ban on Russian oil and gas would cut off a significant source of revenue for Moscow’s war, it would also hit Europe’s economy and push up soaring gas prices.
EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said that a fifth package of EU sanctions, which include a ban on coal, would be agreed on Thursday or Friday. “We have been following a progressive approach. Now we are accelerating,” he told reporters.
Canadian Foreign Minister Melanie Joly said further Western sanctions could not be ruled out, including an energy embargo, after the United States and Britain announced new measures on Russian banks on Wednesday and on members of Mr. Putin’s family.
Australia’s Foreign Minister Marise Payne said at NATO that Australia was imposing sanctions on 67 Russians over Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine. — Reuters
AN EMPLOYEE holds 1000 Russian rouble notes at Goznak printing factory in Moscow, Russia, July 11, 2019. — REUTERS
WASHINGTON — As the world’s wealthy democratic powers roll out new sanctions against Russia in response to horrifying images of executed Ukrainians in the city of Bucha, it has become clear that the easiest options are now exhausted and stark differences have emerged among allies over next steps.
The European Union proposed a first stab at curbing Russia’s energy sector in response to its invasion of Ukraine launched in February, banning imports of Russian coal. But EU countries remain divided even over this move, much less restricting imports of Russian oil and gas that are more important to their economies.
The United States and Group of Seven (G7) allies announced new sanctions on Russia’s largest lender, Sberbank, more state-owned enterprises and more Russian government officials and their family members, cutting them out of the US dollar-based financial system.
The United States also has banned Americans from new investment in Russia and barred Moscow from paying sovereign debt holders with money in US banks.
Although Russia’s heavily restricted rouble rallied to a six-week high on Wednesday, US Treasury officials say the sanctions are starting to turn Russia back into an austere, 1980s Soviet-style closed economy.
But the US sanctions contain carve-outs allowing Russia to continue collecting revenue from energy exports, which can help fuel its Ukraine invasion. US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen told US lawmakers on Wednesday that stronger curbs on Russian energy are not yet possible for European allies dependent on Russian oil and gas.
Russia supplies around 40% of the European Union’s natural gas consumption, which the International Energy Agency values at more than $400 million per day. The EU gets a third of its oil imports from Russia, about $700 million per day.
“We are at the point where we have to take some pain,” said Benn Steil, international economics director for the Council on Foreign Relations think tank in New York. “The initial batches of sanctions were crafted as much to not hurt us in the West as much as they were to hurt Russia.”
The divisions in Europe have become more apparent this week. After Lithuania announced on Saturday it would stop importing Russian gas for domestic consumption, Austrian Finance Minister Magnus Brunner voiced opposition to sanctions on Russian oil and gas, telling reporters in Luxembourg that these would hurt Austria more than Russia.
NEXT STEPS Lack of unity on curbing energy imports means that options are limited to increase pressure further, but the investment ban announced on Wednesday could push more multinational firms to leave Russia, said Daniel Tannebaum, a former compliance officer at the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control.
“You could outright start banning trade in more industries,” a move that would cut Russians off from more types of Western products such as pharmaceuticals, similar to a luxury goods ban imposed in the early days of the war, said Mr. Tannebaum, who leads consulting firm Oliver Wyman’s anti-financial crime practice.
The United States has been pushing European allies to inflict more pain on Russia while trying to make sure that the alliance against President Vladimir Putin does not fray, a balance that only gets tougher.
“You’ve kind of hit the ceiling — on both sides of the Atlantic — for what can be done easily and what can be done in short order,” said Clayton Allen, US director at the Eurasia Group political risk consultancy, referring to the sanctions.
To move to a tougher round of sanctions, US officials will need to provide some assurances to European countries that energy markets and supplies can be stabilized to avoid severe economic hardship, Mr. Allen said. An economically weakened EU helps no one, Mr. Allen added.
“If Western Europe is plunged into a recession, that’s going to drastically limit the amount of support – both moral and material – that they can provide to Ukraine,” Allen said.
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken is expected to press the case for more actions in Brussels this week at NATO and G7 meetings of foreign ministers. U.S. Deputy Treasury Secretary Wally Adeyemo held similar meetings last week in London, Brussels, Paris and Berlin.
There also are still loopholes to close, including continued sales by German and French companies into Russia, and the ongoing hunt for luxury yachts and other assets parked by Russian oligarchs, according to one European diplomat involved in sanctions talks. — Reuters
HONG KONG has ceased to function as an international aviation hub as it curbs inbound flights and quarantines arriving passengers, according to a trade group representing hundreds of airlines worldwide.
“It’s effectively off the map now, and I think it’s going to be difficult for Hong Kong to recover,” Willie Walsh, director general of the International Air Transport Association, said at a briefing Wednesday. “It’s going to lag significantly behind the recovery that we’re seeing elsewhere and has led to a tough time for all airlines operating there.”
Even the city’s shortened isolation requirements for arriving passengers — quarantine was halved to one week this month — will deter travelers, Mr. Walsh said.
The IATA chief said that with much of the rest of Asia reopening he remained optimistic Hong Kong could start to relax its border restrictions.
However, Hong Kong is still banning flights even after rolling back some of the world’s strictest inbound travel curbs. There’s been increasing frustration over the city’s closure for much of the past two years due to pandemic restrictions.
“The restrictions there have been very severe and have led directly to the cancellation of a lot of services with airlines — effectively finding it incredibly difficult, if not impossible to operate there,” added Mr. Walsh.
IATA has warned places that continue to attempt to lock out the disease, rather than managing it, risk missing out on enormous economic and societal benefits through the restoration of international travel. The group represents almost 300 airlines accounting for 83% of global air traffic.
Singapore Airlines Ltd., Emirates, Cathay Pacific Airways Ltd., Qatar Airways QCSC, Korean Air Lines Co. and Malaysia Airlines were slapped with week-long bans this month after breaching Hong Kong’s so-called circuit-breaker mechanism. A stoppage can be meted out if three or more coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) cases are found on the same flight, or if there’s one confirmed infection and another non-compliant passenger.
Hong Kong eased a raft of travel measures on April 1, including lifting an outright ban on inbound flights from nine countries, including the US, the UK and Australia, and reduced quarantine for inbound travelers to one week.
Mr. Walsh said the feedback IATA was getting from airlines was that quarantine remained discouraging, and people would not fly in the current environment unless they really had to. — Bloomberg
EU HEALTH AGENCIES said on Wednesday there was no evidence to support the use of a fourth dose of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccines developed by Pfizer and Moderna in the general population, but they recommend a second booster for people aged 80 and above.
There is no clear evidence in the European Union (EU) that vaccine protection against severe disease is waning substantially in adults with normal immune systems aged 60-79, the European Medicines Agency (EMA) and the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) said in a joint statement.
They cautioned, however, that it may become necessary to consider a fourth dose in this age group if the epidemiological situation changes.
Both agencies agreed a fourth dose can be given to adults 80 years of age and above.
That recommendation came a week after European health ministers urged the bloc’s executive to back a fourth COVID-19 shot for people over 60 to boost immunity in the absence of vaccines that specifically protect against the Omicron variant.
A study from Israel has shown that senior citizens who received a second booster of the Pfizer–BioNTech COVID-19 vaccination had a 78% lower mortality rate from the disease than those who had only one.
The agencies said there was no conclusive evidence of “an added value of a fourth dose” in those aged below 60.
The agencies will consider the best timing for additional doses, possibly taking advantage of updated vaccines when re-vaccination campaigns start in the autumn. — Reuters
