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Financial cybercrime consumer protection bill sponsored out to Senate plenary

REUTERS

A BILL seeking to protect consumers against financial cybercrimes was sponsored out to the Senate plenary late Tuesday, giving regulators more power to deal with such offenses.

Senate Bill 2488, or the proposed Financial Products and Services Consumer Protection Act (FCPA), was sponsored by Senator Mary Grace Natividad S. Poe-Llamanzares, who chairs the Banks, Financial Institutions, and Currencies committee.

“The rapid expansion of online financial systems — no doubt accelerated by the pandemic — also became fertile ground for many fraudsters, hackers, and unscrupulous individuals to scam people out of their money,” she said during her sponsorship speech.

Under the measure, regulators will be given the authority to monitor markets and require the submission of reports from the companies involved, to restrict the collection of excessive or unreasonable fees by service providers, to suspend the operation of any supervised financial service provider, and to issue cease-and-desist orders under certain circumstances.

They will also be equipped with adjudicatory powers to order the reimbursement of lost funds within a certain threshold. “This would declog court dockets and give immediate relief to ordinary consumers who simply cannot afford to wait for months to get their money back.”

In 2020 and 2021, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas received more than 42,000 complaints through its Consumer Assistance Mechanism. The total amounts involved in the 2021 complaints amounted to P540 million, while the cumulative total between 2019 and 2021 was P2 billion.

“Financial service providers are given a list of duties to their clients such as the determination of suitable financial products, reasonable pricing, provision of a cooling-off period to give consumers enough time to reflect before purchase,” Ms. Poe said, “and adoption of disclosure principles, including the use of clear and concise language to ensure that the consumer understands the transaction.”

The FCPA covers the full range of financial products and services offered by banks, insurance companies, investment advisers, some cooperatives, and other corporations and financial institutions.

Penalties for violators were set at up to five years’ imprisonment and a maximum fine of P2 million. The financial regulator may also file an independent civil action on behalf of the consumers to protect their rights and in the public interest.

“Through these interventions, we hope to instill trust and confidence in our financial system,” Ms. Poe said. — Alyssa Nicole O. Tan

Deaths spike, births plunge in first 11 months of 2021

PHILSTAR

THE NUMBER of registered deaths rose by more than 37% year on year in the first 11 months of 2021, while births declined nearly 24%, the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) said.

According to preliminary data from the PSA’s Vital Statistics report, deaths in the January-November period last year rose 37.2% to 768,504, with the Calabarzon (Cavite, Laguna, Batangas, Rizal, Quezon) region accounting for 123,451.

Metro Manila registered 93,047 deaths during the period.

Meanwhile, registered births declined by 23.8% to 1,076,770 in the 11 months to November.

Calabarzon led the regions with 163,647, which represents a contraction from the year-earlier tally of 232,606.

Metro Manila logged 128,223 births, much lower than the year-earlier total of 184,656.

Marriages registered with the PSA totaled 279,399, up 38.6% from a year earlier. Calabarzon was once more the leader with 39,309. Metro Manila marriages totaled 30,992, against the year earlier 27,149.

The information in the Vital Statistics report was compiled from tallies generated by city or municipal Civil Registrars, consolidated by the PSA’s Provincial Statistical Offices and then submitted to the Office of the Civil Registrar General. — Abigail Marie P. Yraola

Toward a new sports reality

Sports have continually pushed the boundaries of innovation and humanity’s physical limitations. Just like any business, professional athletes and organizations constantly look for new ways to reinvent themselves and surmount roadblocks to success.

Notwithstanding the impact of COVID-19 on the sports industry — especially live sporting events and player development —technology has provided opportunities for sports organizations and leagues to reimagine their operations.

Over the past two years, professional sports leagues have significantly invested in technology through partnerships with global tech giants.

Although the pandemic nearly halted the operations of these leagues, technologies such as cloud computing and the Internet of Things (IoT) have allowed them to enrich their fan experience and have permitted  teams to harness the power of data by arriving at smarter decisions on and off the court.

NEXT-LEVEL SPORTS ANALYTICS AND TRAINING
To wit, a major basketball association secured a multi-year partnership with a leading technology company to leverage their cloud capabilities in harnessing the power of Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning to provide advanced metrics such as play type breakdowns, player tracking data, detailed shot charts and hustle stats.

With all this information, teams can properly assess their strategy and player utilization, as well as how data and basketball knowledge complement one another.

But the best part is the conversation sparked among sports fanatics as they compare players’ performances — for example, analyzing shooting efficiency by shot types from various distances and eventually identifying the best shotmakers in the game. It is widely believed that evaluating these data sets can help settle the debate on who the greatest players of all time are.

In the Philippines, a professional basketball team has continued to develop team strategy through an app that helps coaches teach basketball better, and also helps players understand tactics more efficiently. Management saw the benefits of harnessing technology due to the limitations of in-person practice and gatherings during the lockdown, especially when onboarding new team members.

The app allows players to study the team’s playbook in the comfort of their own homes using their devices. All they need to do is download the app and for the coaching staff to upload the team’s offensive and defensive schemes, along with scouting videos. The app also engages the players, testing their knowledge and understanding of the team’s game plan and designed plays.

The ballclub has reported huge improvements in practices, which are running more seamlessly as the players already have a good grasp of what to do, with players maximizing their idle time studying the plays and getting better.

Moreover, technology has greatly assisted and improved the fan experience. It has brought newer ways of engagement, whether through social media platforms, classic games playback, digital advertising on arena floors and online communication applications. Fans can also generate ideas and their own analysis by using the same applications used by the teams.

ECO-FRIENDLY TECH IN LIVE SPORTS EVENTS
As we move towards a post-pandemic world, we see live sports events inching closer to full operations worldwide. Fans anticipate going to sports arenas, some of which are setting the bar for innovation and sustainability.

For instance, the Climate Pledge Arena, located in Seattle, is the world’s first net-zero carbon arena. Its operations are fully powered by renewables — from on-site solar panels, off-site renewable energy, to reclaimed rainwater stored in an ice system (“Rain to Rink” technology).

This eco-friendly ice hockey arena has also implemented contactless transactions, where visitors can hover their palms over devices to verify their identity and authorize transactions. This also allows the arena staff to serve food and beverages to their customers more efficiently. And emerging from our experiences with COVID-19, this contactless solution would help address current and future health concerns related to the spread of disease, a far cry from having to show vaccination cards and ID. Tech solutions will change the way sports venues will operate in the future.

INTEGRATING TECHNOLOGY AND BUSINESS
The continuing innovation in technology used by professional sports teams and organizations raises several questions and concerns about their ability to handle massive amounts of data. Despite all the benefits that the Cloud and newer technology bring, finding the right team, services and organization to optimize operations and strategies is crucial to success. This applies to any business, sports or otherwise.

Consider these when adopting technologies such as Cloud and IoT:

• Assess the value these technologies will bring to your organization, such as the cost of migrating or purchasing vendor services, and evaluating which provider will align with your company’s needs.

• Understand the cost implications of using cloud-based technology.

• Strategize on the long-term use of these technologies and manage the risks in buying resources such as sensors, cameras, and trackers.

• Integrate the latest technology and iterate or prototype how these services will complement your existing and future needs.

• Adopt a culture of upskilling and being future-forward on new technology.

• Exercise integrity and purpose in managing sensitive customer information.

• Comply with regulations on the storing and handling of information integrated into newer technologies such as palm recognition.

Just like how sports have transformed lives and cultures and held up a better version of ourselves for the world, sports industry innovation by leveraging modern technology is not going away anytime soon.

The views or opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of PricewaterhouseCoopers Consulting Services Philippines Co. Ltd. The content is for general information purposes only, and should not be used as a substitute for specific advice.

 

Aldrich Stuart Tan is an associate of the Cloud & IT Transformation practice of PricewaterhouseCoopers Consulting Services Philippines Co. Ltd., a Philippine member firm of the PwC network.

aldrich.stuart.tan@pwc.com

Three more Filipinos infected with Omicron die

PHILIPPINE STAR/ MICHAEL VARCAS

By Kyle Aristophere T. Atienza, Reporter

THREE more patients infected with the highly mutated Omicron coronavirus variant have died, bringing the total to five, Philippine health authorities said on Wednesday.

“We have five recorded deaths,” the Department of Health (DoH) said in a Viber group message. “Three were seniors and all have comorbidities.”

One was partially vaccinated, another was unvaccinated, and the remaining three were still up for verification.

The Health department reported the first two Omicron deaths on Jan. 19. One of them was from Metro Manila and the other was from Central Luzon. Both were more than 60 years old, unvaccinated and had serious illnesses.

The Philippines, which is battling a surge in infections spurred by the Omicron variant, has detected 535 Omicron cases among sequenced samples.

The spike earlier forced authorities to tighten the lockdown level in Metro Manila and other regions.

DoH earlier said the variant first detected in South Africa had become predominant in Metro Manila and other regions.

Cabinet Secretary Karlo Alexei B. Nograles said an inter-agency task force would decide at the weekend whether to lower the alert level in the capital region.

“We want to do it as close to Feb. 1 as possible,” he told the ABS-CBN News Channel. “Tomorrow, we will look at the numbers, perhaps we will have to make a decision over the weekend.”

Metro Manila will be under Alert Level 3 until the end of the month.

The Philippines posted 15,789 coronavirus infections on Wednesday, bringing the total to 3.48 million.

The death toll hit 53,664 after 66 more patients died, while recoveries rose by 32,712 to 3.19 million, DoH said in a bulletin.

It said 35.8% of 48,725 samples on Jan. 24 tested positive for COVID-19, way above the 5% threshold set by the World Health Organization (WHO).

There were 230,410 active cases, 6,902 of which did not show symptoms, 218,711 were mild, 2,982 were moderate, 1,507 were severe and 308 were critical.

The agency said 95% of the latest cases occurred on Jan. 13 to 26. The top regions with the most cases in the past two weeks were Calabarzon with 2,248, Metro Manila with 2,135 and Central Visayas with 1,520 infections. It added that 98% of deaths occurred in January and 2% in August.

DoH said 142 duplicates had been removed from the tally, 80 of which were reclassified as recoveries, while 10 recoveries were relisted as deaths. Three laboratories failed to submit data on Jan. 24.

It said 48% of intensive care unit beds in the country had been used, while the rate for Metro Manila was 42%.

The Philippines aims to vaccinate 77 million people before the end of this quarter.

Vaccine czar Carlito G. Galvez, Jr. earlier said the vaccination of children aged 5 to 11 against the coronavirus would start on Feb. 4.

The Philippine Medical Association on Wednesday asked the government to designate separate vaccination sites for children, noting that the vaccines given to minors and adults are different.

“Hopefully the vaccination for kids is separated from the adults because doses for adults have boosters, first dose and second dose, while the kids have different vials,” PMA President Benito Atienza told a televised news briefing.

He also asked the government to open the vaccination of kids on weekends to make it more convenient for working parents.

“Separate the vaccination centers for children and hold it on Saturdays so that they are free from work and are encouraged to bring their children,” Mr. Atienza said.

The Philippines had fully vaccinated almost 57.84 million people as of Jan. 25, while almost 59.98 million have received their first dose, data from the Health department showed. Almost 6.7 million booster shots have been given out, it added.

Four suspects in BDO hacking indicted, says Justice department

PHILSTAR FILE PHOTO

GOVERNMENT prosecutors have filed charges against four people accused of hacking more than 700 bank accounts of BDO Unibank, Inc. in December.

In a statement, the Department of Justice (DoJ) said the suspects — three Filipinos and a Nigerian — were indicted for violating the Access Devices Regulation Act of 1998 and Cybercrime Prevention Act of 2012.

A fifth Nigerian suspect was still being investigated, it said.

“The tasks of these five individuals are compartmentalized, their respective participations are vital, without which, fraudulent transfers or illegal access of online accounts would not be possible,” the DoJ said.

The hackers managed to steal about P1.2 million but could have potentially embezzled more than P50 million if the transactions were not immediately tagged as suspicious, National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) chief Victor V. Lorenzo told Radyo 5 on Monday.

The DoJ electronically filed the charges before a trial court in Guagua, Pampanga on Tuesday, it said.

Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas Governor Benjamin E. Diokno on Monday said the central bank would complete its investigation of the BDO incident by the end of the month.

Meanwhile, Justice Secretary Menardo I. Guevarra said the NBI was looking into phishing of bank accounts on a broader scale. “I am minded to issue a separate directive to the NBI in the case of the teacher victims,” he said in a Viber group message.

“The same urgency should be shown to our teachers’ cases with Landbank,” Benjo Basas, who heads the Teacher’s Dignity Coalition, said by telephone.

He earlier told Radyo 5 there had been reports of teachers losing as much as P121,000 from their accounts with state-owned LANDBANK of the Philippines.

“The teachers should not be blamed,” Mr. Basas said, adding that the security of online services should be tightened.

The local lender on Monday said its systems had not been hacked and remained secure. It added that hackers targeted the devices used by the teachers through phishing, which compromised their personal information. — John Victor D. Ordoñez

Transport agency may use train stations and ports as vaccine sites

THE DEPARTMENT of Transportation might set up mobile vaccination sites at various train stations and ports nationwide, according to an official.

“Secretary Arthur P. Tugade had already issued an instruction to all of us to look into the possibility of also opening up mobile vaccination sites in the rail system, in our ports, in our airports,” Undersecretary Artemio U. Tuazon, Jr. told an online news briefing on Wednesday.

The agency was coordinating with the National Vaccination Operations Center to qualify certain sites for vaccination, he added.

The Transportation department and Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) are using the Parañaque Integrated Terminal Exchange (PITX) as a vaccination site on Jan. 24 to 28.

Meanwhile, unvaccinated and partially vaccinated workers in Metro Manila would be given 30 days to continue using public transportation, Mr. Tuazon said.

“We want our workers to get fully vaccinated especially now that there is no longer a shortage of COVID-19 vaccines, and there is a threat of highly transmissible variants of the virus,” he said.

Mr. Tugade on Jan. 11 issued an order limiting public transportation access to vaccinated people in the National Capital Region (NCR) under Alert Level 3 or higher. The ban took effect on Jan. 17.

Senators have called the ban confusing after the Labor department said workers were not covered by the ban. — Norman P. Aquino

Comelec plans to bring presidential debates to central, southern venues

THE COMMISSION on Elections (Comelec) plans to hold the presidential debates for the May elections in different venues across the country’s three main island groups, an official of the poll body said on Wednesday.

“We hope to hold the debates not just in Metro Manila, but in Visayas and Mindanao as well if the demands of COVID allow,” Comelec Spokesperson James B. Jimenez said in a virtual forum.

Mr. Jimenez said that if a candidate is not able to attend a debate, the designated podium will be kept in place to highlight the absence. 

“We will really make a big deal of it if a candidate does not attend. It will be a motivation for them to attend,” he said.

He noted that debates were never mandatory but candidates in past elections customarily participate barring health concerns.

This year’s debates will also be open to all legitimate media organizations, which will be allowed to air or stream the events on their respective platforms.

“The debates will be three hours a night, with 10 minutes allotted for each presidential and vice-presidential aspirant to speak on general topics provided by the poll body,” he said. 

Mr. Jimenez earlier said that the debates will be done face-to-face, but with limited audience. It will be live-streamed on the Comelec Facebook page. — John Victor D. Ordoñez 

Northern Mindanao key infra projects seen to keep region’s recovery momentum

PIAMO.GOV.PH

NORTHERN Mindanao’s 2021 economic performance is projected to have recovered from its 5.2% contraction in 2020, with growth seen between 1.4% to 3.8%, according to the National Economic and Development Authority’s (NEDA) regional office. 

“We see a 1.4% to 3.8% growth (projection) in 2021. It’s a sign of economic recovery for the region despite the restrictive quarantine measures in the third quarter,” NEDA Regional Director Mylah Faye Aurora B. Cariño said at an online forum Tuesday organized by the European Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines. 

“That’s primarily because we’re coming from a very low base in 2020,” she said, but also cited a jump in investments last year led by cooperatives.

In the first three quarters of 2021, the Cooperative Development Authority monitored P15.5 billion worth of investments, higher than the P13.86 billion the previous year.

The Department of Trade and Industry, where sole proprietorships are registered, also recorded investment growth to P716.1 million from P610.2 million year on year. The values, however, are still less than half the P5.97 billion reported in 2019. 

For partnerships and corporations, the Securities and Exchange Commission reported P2.84 billion in investments in 2021 from P2.14 billion in 2020.

Ms. Cariño, in an earlier forum, said the regions’ 2021 performance signals the possibility of bringing back economic output this year to pre-pandemic levels.

“The prospects are encouraging in 2021 that will allow us to recover in 2022 to pre-pandemic levels. With the continued safe reopening of the economy with all safeguards, we will see more businesses, jobs, and incomes restored,” she said in December. 

Northern Mindanao, a major agro-industrial region in southern Philippines and home to one of the biggest industrial estates in the country, had an average growth rate of 6.6% from 2000-2019. 

“This manifests the resiliency of food manufacturing to COVID-19 pandemic as Northern Mindanao continues to meet food requirements domestically and that of other regions,” the NEDA official said.

“The expansion of other manufacturing by 25% suggests the repurposing of some of our consumer manufacturing industries to the production of essential goods,” she said.

The Phividec Industrial Authority, a government-owned and controlled corporation that manages the Phividec estate in Misamis Oriental, registered five new locators last year involved in construction material manufacturing, food processing, and cargo-related services. 

These are: F.R.P. Philippines Corp., Keim Hing Steel Corp., Oro Star Terminal Services Corp., LD Cons Lechon Manok and Liempo, and Sophil Resources and Development Philippines, Inc. 

The 3,000-hectare Phividec industrial estate had over 100 locators as of 2018, including the Mindanao International Container Terminal Services, Inc., power generation companies, and some of the country’s major food firms such as San Miguel Foods, Inc. and  Purefoods-Hormel Company, Inc.

An integrated steel mill is also underway in the economic zone, which is seen to address demand for private construction projects and the government’s “Build, Build, Build” (BBB) program covering big-ticket infrastructure.

Among the ongoing BBB projects in the region are Panguil Bay Bridge, Bukidnon Airport, and Cagayan de Oro coastal road. In the pipeline are the rehabilitation of the Agus-Pulangi hydropower complex and upgrade of the Laguindingan Airport, the region’s main air gateway. 

Business sector leader Jaime Rafael U. Paguio, speaking in the same forum, said it is crucial for the new administration that will be elected in May to sustain projects that have been factored into the medium- and long-term growth plans.

“You have to put in the delayed infrastructure in the Philippines,” said Mr. Paguio, senior vice president of Cagayan Electric Power and Light Co. and former chairman of the business chamber in Cagayan de Oro City, Northern Mindanao’s regional center.

“We really need to be very consistent,” he said, “The incoming president must push through with the projects in line, otherwise the momentum will be lost. The momentum is there already and we need to continue that… to restart the economy.” — Marifi S. Jara

House rep says Senate version of healthcare workers’ benefits bill needs ‘closer look’

DAVAO CIO

A PARTY-LIST representative called on the Senate to reconsider its version of a bill on healthcare workers’ benefits, particularly provisions covering community-level frontliners. 

“The House Bill covers all public health emergencies, not just COVID while the language of the Senate bill is specific to the COVID pandemic,” BHW Rep. Angelica Natasha Co said in a statement on Wednesday.

House Bill 10701 or the Health Care Workers Act has been submitted for plenary approval while its upper chamber counterpart, Senate Bill 2421, was approved on second reading Tuesday. 

The proposed law seeks to provide healthcare workers with benefits during a national health crisis such as the ongoing coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic.

Ms. Co said she sent a letter to Senator Juan Edgardo “Sonny” M. Angara on Monday to appeal for the inclusion of barangay health workers (BHW) in the Senate version, noting that BHWs are not included in the Magna Carta of Public Health Workers as they are considered volunteers and not legally eligible to benefits given to other medical workers.

Under the two bills, health care workers will receive a special risk allowance ranging from P3,000 to P9,000, depending on the identified risk level in the area of deployment.

Ms. Co also sought clarification on the retroactive clause in the Senate version, which will make the benefits applicable, if the bill is passed into law, from July 1, 2021. — Jaspearl Emerald G. Tan

Congress concurs with Arms Trade Treaty

PCG

SENATE approved on Wednesday a resolution concurring with the ratification of a multilateral treaty that regulates international trade in conventional weapons and prevents illegal arms trade. 

With 16 affirmative votes, no negative votes, and six abstentions, Senate Resolution 960, which makes the Philippines a state party to the Arms Trade Treaty (ATT) was passed on third and final reading.

During plenary debates, Senator Ronald “Bato” M. Dela Rosa, a former police chief, noted concerns that the treaty may lead to potential intrusion into the country’s national sovereignty or individual rights to armed defense and domestic gun regulation. 

“We should not be at the mercy of this body as far as procurement of arms for the purposes of our national defense,” he said, abstaining from the vote.

Senator Aquilino Martin “Koko” Pimentel III, who chairs the foreign affairs committee and the primary sponsor of the resolution, clarified that a country’s sovereignty will not be ceded, in whole or in part, as the treaty terms only require proper reportorial cooperation and compliance.

“This ATT, as I understand, requires us to report certain facts and figures concerning trade in arms so that the international body, treaty secretariat, can monitor figures, possibly detect some worrisome figures compared to other reports,” Mr. Pimentel said, “so that they will be able to warn or point out to state parties possible illicit trade in conventional weapons.” 

Senator Ana Theresia “Risa” N. Hontiveros-Baraquel, among those who approved the resolution, said the treaty would contribute to “responsibility, accountability, and transparency of weapons trade” as it would enhance regulation. 

It also ensures that weapons “will not fall in the wrong hands,” and that the country’s arms manufacturers remain legitimate, she added. 

Illegal arms trade is linked to terrorist activities and armed rebellion. 

The Arms Trade Treaty came into force on Dec. 24, 2014. More than 100 states have ratified the agreement while more than 30 have signed but yet to ratify. — Alyssa Nicole O. Tan

House approves bill creating department of development planning on second reading

PHILIPPINE STAR/ MICHAEL VARCAS

A BILL that seeks to create a department-level agency for economic and development planning was approved on second reading by the House of Representatives on Wednesday.

House Bill 10625 or the Department of Economics and Development Planning Act aims to enhance the government’s planning system through a separate department. 

Under the current government system, socioeconomic planning is undertaken by the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA). 

Under the proposed law, NEDA will be integrated into the new department, to be headed by a Cabinet-level secretary who will be the country’s chief economist and serve as the President’s economic advisor.

The establishment of the department also aims to streamline national plans, strengthen the distribution of plans, ensure continuity of plans and programs, and expand multi-sector participation. 

The measure will also create an Economic and Development Council that will oversee the policy direction on economic, social, financial and environmental issues. The council will be chaired by the President. — Jaspearl Emerald G. Tan 

Bill filed on college scholarship for one member per family

PHILSTAR

A BILL providing full college scholarship to one member per low-income Filipino family was filed in the Senate on Wednesday.

Senate Bill 2495 or the Bawat Pamilya May College Gradweyt Act amends Republic Act 10931 or the Universal Access to Quality Tertiary Education Act to ensure that at least one member of every eligible family will get assistance to complete college education. 

“We know that it will be easier for families to rise from poverty if there is at least one college graduate in the family,” said Senator Francis “Kiko” N. Pangilinan, the primary author of the bill, in Filipino.

The proposed measure prioritizes first-generation college students, students who are part of families included in the Social Welfare department’s data bank of about 5.2 million poor households, and those from low-income households.

Under the proposed law, program beneficiaries will receive full tuition and other school fees, subsidies, and allowances. 

Implementation will be led by the Unified Student Financial Assistance System for Tertiary education board.

Funds for the measure will be included in the annual General Appropriations Act. — Alyssa Nicole O. Tan

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