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Evacuation, repatriation of Filipinos in Ukraine continuing

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PHILIPPINE AUTHORITIES are still working on the evacuation and repatriation of several Filipinos in Ukraine, including 18 who have left on their own the capital Kyiv, among the areas under heavy attack by Russian forces.

Philippine Ambassador to Poland Leah M. Basinang-Ruiz said in an online briefing Monday that they told Filipinos to explore the option of leaving by train from Kyiv to Lviv due to transportation challenges.

Of the 18, four went to Romania, six to Moldova, and eight to Hungary.

Philippine diplomatic corps in neighboring countries have earlier organized transportation and visa-free entry arrangements for other Filipinos living or working in Ukraine. There are about 380 Filipinos in Ukraine.

During the same forum, Foreign Affairs Undersecretary Sarah Lou Y. Arriola also said that eight seafarers who were on board the MV S Breeze have asked for rescue at the Ukraine-Moldova border.

In a separate online news briefing earlier on Monday, she said six more Filipinos arrived from Ukraine to the Republic of Moldova.

The group includes a medical student; two Filipinos married to Ukrainian nationals, one of them with a two-year old son; and two working for an international organization.

Of the six, only four requested to be brought to Romania where they will take their repatriation flight.

For Filipinos who wish to “wait it out” and stay in Ukraine, Ms. Arriola said the Philippine government will reach out to them and provide necessary assistance and care packages.

Filipinos repatriated from Ukraine will be given at least $200 or about P10,300 in financial assistance as well as psycho-social counseling, she said. — Alyssa Nicole O. Tan

VP bets Sotto, Lopez proposed the best tax measures — analysts

VICE PRESIDENTIAL candidates Vicente C. Sotto III, currently the Senate president, and Emmanuel “Manny” SD. Lopez who represents Workers and Peasants Party proposed the most concrete tax measures in the CNN vice-presidential debates, experts said over the weekend. 

“I think Senator Sotto and Emmanuel “Manny” SD. Lopez gave more economically sound tax measures and plans, not just in response to our need to bounce our economy back,” Marlon M. Villarin, a political analyst from the University of Santo Tomas, told BusinessWorld in an e-mail.

He said Walden F. Bello, who has expressed interest in getting a concurrent appointment as Finance secretary if he wins, was too idealistic in his proposal to tax the top 250 billionaires in the country. 

“Walden Bello’s idea is too idealistic but worth considering,” Mr. Villarin said.

It is good Mr. Sotto helped pass the Corporate Recovery and Tax Incentives for Enterprises (CREATE) Law that exempts small and medium businesses earning below P250,000, but he should also discuss equitable taxation, said Hansley A. Juliano, a former political professor studying at Nagoya University’s Graduate School of International Development in Japan. 

“There’s merit in saying that SMEs (small and medium enterprises) should at least be given an easier time in paying taxes, but at the same time we have to remember why the government tends to squeeze the upper-middle and even lower classes for taxes (not to mention VAT),” Mr. Juliano told BusinessWorld in a Facebook Messenger chat. “Equitable taxation and tax breaks have almost always been ignored because they always believe in the ‘trickle down’ premise of giving big businesses tax breaks instead.” 

Meanwhile, Roehlano M. Briones, an economic analyst from the Philippine Institute for Development Studies, said he is against Mr. Bello’s proposal of imposing a wealth tax.

He also said that he agrees with Senator and vice-presidential aspirant Francis “Kiko” N. Pangilinan and Mr. Lopez’s view that tax collection should be made more efficient. 

“Agree with better tax collection efficiency. No to wealth tax,” he said in a Viber message. “Wealth tax may lead to capital flight.”

The digitalization of tax processes that vice-presidential aspirants Willie T. Ong and Mr. Sotto are pushing for is not a problem but they should also consider how accessible it is for the lower class, Mr. Juliano said.

Mr. Villarin said the CNN vice-presidential debate could have been better if more questions were raised that were relevant to the duties of the country’s second highest post.

“I noticed that there are lots of questions that are totally off the grid of the functions of the vice president, which in effect leaves viewers with an incomplete picture of what a vice president can do in support or if necessary, check and balance the Executive operations,” he said. 

DOMAGOSO ON CAMPAIGN FUND
Meanwhile, presidential aspirant Manila Mayor Francisco “Isko” M. Domagoso has defended keeping a P50-million excess campaign fund from his 2016 senatorial run by citing that he paid P9.7 million in taxes for the money. 

“I mean, voluntarily, I submitted myself… I meant I submit myself to regulation. I’m happy to do that. I’m happy to be able to help the country. That I was able to pay P9.7 million tax,” he told CNN in a mix of Filipino and English in an interview after the CNN presidential debates Sunday night. 

The issue of holding on to donated campaign funds that were unspent was raised during the debate.  The Commission on Elections (Comelec) has said that the practice is allowed, provided corresponding taxes are paid. 

The standard-bearer of Aksyon Demokratiko said that government officials should lead by example and pay their taxes if they want citizens to follow.

“That’s why, even if there’s no law (on campaign funds), I tried to find a law by submitting myself to the BIR (Bureau of Internal Revenue). Thank you to BIR, they helped me in finding ways to pay my taxes. I didn’t violate any law. I don’t know if there are other (candidates) who have declared their excess.”

Mr. Domagoso said he will push for a law that requires campaign donations to be sent directly to a party instead of the candidate.

“If there is someone that would like to help, then there should be a law that prohibits a candidate from directly receiving donations for their campaign,” he said in Filipino. “That’s why, as I said earlier, the next sets of Congress and Senate should come up with a law and this is one of those. If it’s only the party who will receive it, then it’s the party that will decide what happens to the excess, right? It’s not personal income anymore.” 

SITE ABOUT CANDIDATES
In another election-related development, Comelec and Vote Pilipinas on Monday launched an online platform with relevant information on candidates for the May 9 elections.

Vote Pilipinas is the joint voter education campaign between Comelec and Impact Hub Manila, which aims to deliver non-partisan and accurate information on all candidates.

The Candidate Dashboard is now accessible on the Vote Pilipinas website, with uploaded information initially covering presidential and vice-presidential candidates.

“The dashboard is the culmination of a rather long period of planning on how we were going to present the data on candidates, that we thought was absolutely necessary,” Comelec Spokesman James B. Jimenez said in the virtual launch. 

“As we all know, we are under the pressure of the pandemic which has made it very difficult for candidates to reach out to voters, and likewise voters to reach out to the candidates.” 

The dashboard will also be updated with key information on senatorial and party-list candidates. 

“We had very simple goals for this campaign and it is bent on our goal of being a support to the Comelec,” said Celeste Rondario, who founded Impact Hub Manila.

“We also plan to include the stances of candidates on relevant issues before the end of March since these stances sometimes change as candidates interact with the public,” she added. 

The candidate profiles are part of the second phase of Vote Pilipinas, which aims to ensure a high voter turnout for this year’s elections. 

Mr. Jimenez said candidates should also recognize how critical the online platform is to connecting with voters. — Jaspearl Emerald G. Tan and John Victor D. Ordonez

Courts in Metro Manila return to full operation on March 1

PHILSTAR FILE PHOTO

ALL JUDICIAL courts in Metro Manila will be in full operation starting March 1 following the easing of lockdown restrictions in the region.

The Supreme Court and appellate courts issued circulars on Monday indicating that all courts in the National Capital Region will be physically open for all transactions from Monday to Friday, 8:30 am to 4:30 pm.

“The Justices shall determine the number and schedule of their staff who will be required to report for work on-site in their respective Chambers,” the High Court said in its memorandum.

Standard health protocols such as wearing of face mask will be maintained and Court employees will also be closely monitored for coronavirus symptoms to immediately mitigate potential transmissions. 

Metro Manila and 38 other areas across the country has been placed under Alert Level 1, the most relaxed lockdown level, from March 1-15.

Online processes adopted at the height of the pandemic such as court filings will continue. Raffling of cases through videoconferencing may only be done if with prior approval from a presiding justice.  

Meanwhile, newly appointed SC Associated Justice Antonio T. Kho, Jr. attended his first flag-raising ceremony on Monday, held in-person at the High Court’s grounds in Manila.

“With my long years in private practice, and stints in the DoJ (Department of Justice) and the Commission on Elections, I hope to contribute my brand of judicial philosophy, and, hopefully, enrich our jurisprudence,” Mr. Kho said. — John Victor D. Ordonez

Red tide alert raised in several provinces across the country

THE BUREAU of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) has issued a red tide alert for waters in Bataan, Masbate, Bohol, Zamboanga del Sur, Surigao del Norte, and Surigao del Sur.

The affected areas based on BFAR’s latest test results include Mariveles, Limay, Orion, Pilar, Balanga, Hermosa, Orani, Abucay and Samal in Bataan; Milagros in Masbate; Dauis and Tagbilaran City in Bohol; Dumanquillas Bay in Zamboanga del Sur; Litalit Bay, San Benito in Surigao del Norte; and Lianga Bay in Surigao del Sur.

All types of shellfish and alamang (krill) gathered from these areas are not safe for human consumption.

However, fish, squids, shrimps and crabs are safe to eat, provided they are washed thoroughly and gutted before cooking. 

Consuming shellfish affected by red tide can lead to skin irritation, nausea, and shortness of breath, while more severe cases can cause paralysis and respiratory problems. — Luisa Maria Jacinta C. Jocson

Justice Usec Aglipay-Villar quits to campaign for husband

JUSTICE Undersecretary Emmeline Aglipay-Villar has resigned and will leave her post by Mar. 21 as she will campaign for the senatorial run of her husband, former public works secretary Mark A. Villar.

“It is with deep sadness that I announce the resignation of Atty. Aglipay-Villar as undersecretary of the Department of Justice (DoJ) effective on Mar. 21, 2022,” Justice Secretary Menardo I. Guevarra told reporters in a Viber message.

“Undersecretary Emmeline’s passionate advocacy for the protection of women’s and children’s rights found expression in her work as undersecretary in charge of the Inter-Agency Council Against Human Trafficking and the DoJ’s gender and special protections group,” Mr. Guevarra said. — John Victor D. Ordonez

Might makes not right, unjust wars are doomed to be lost

UKRAINE solidarity protest in Berlin — LEONHARD LENZ-COMMONS.WIKIMEDIA.ORG

AT THIS DARK HOUR, when we see Russia’s unprovoked and unjustified invasion of Ukraine and massive disinformation campaigns and information manipulation, it is essential to separate lies — invented to justify what cannot be justified — from facts. The facts are that Russia, a major nuclear power, has attacked and invaded a peaceful and democratic neighboring country, which posed no threat to it, nor provoked it. Moreover, President Vladimir Putin is threatening reprisals on any other state that may come to the rescue of the people of Ukraine. Such use of force and coercion has no place in the 21st century.

What President Putin is doing is not only a grave violation of international law, it is a violation of the basic principles of human co-existence. With his choice to bring war back to Europe, we see the return of the “law of the jungle” where might makes right. The target is not only Ukraine, but the security of Europe and the whole international rules-based order, based on the UN system and international law.

His aggression is taking innocent lives, crushing people’s wish to live in peace. Civilian targets are being struck, clearly violating international humanitarian law, forcing people to flee. We see a humanitarian catastrophe developing. For months, we pursued unparalleled efforts to achieve a diplomatic solution. But President Putin lied to the faces of all who met him, pretending to be interested in a peaceful solution. Instead, he opted for a full-scale invasion, a fully-fledged war.

Russia must cease its military operations immediately, and to unconditionally withdraw from the entire territory of Ukraine. The same goes for Belarus, which has to immediately stop its involvement in this aggression and respect its international obligations. The European Union is united in offering its strong support to Ukraine and its people. This is a matter of life and death. I am preparing an emergency package to support the Ukrainian armed forces in their fight.

The international community will now in response opt for a full-scale isolation of Russia, to hold President Putin accountable for this aggression. We are sanctioning those who finance the war, crippling the Russian banking system and it access to international reserves.

The EU and its partners have already imposed massive sanctions on Russia that target its leaders and elites and strategic sectors of the Kremlin-run economy. The aim is not to harm the Russian people, but to weaken the Kremlin’s ability to finance this unjust war. In doing this, we are closely aligned with our partners and allies — the US, Canada, the United Kingdom, Japan, South Korea, and Australia. We also see many countries from around the world rallying to protect the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Ukraine. We stand together on the right side of history in the face of Russia’s horrifying attack on a free and sovereign country.

To justify its crimes, the Kremlin and its supporters have engaged in a massive disinformation campaign, which started already weeks ago. We have seen Russian state media and their ecosystem peddling untruths in social media networks with the aim to deceive and manipulate. The Western Balkans as well have been targeted by the Kremlin’s disinformation operations for far too long and know how to detect when being exposed to information manipulation.

The Kremlin propagandists call the invasion “a special operation,” but this cynical euphemism cannot hidew the fact that we witness a fully-fledged invasion of Ukraine, with the aim to crush its freedom, legitimate government and democratic structures. Calling the Kyiv government “neo-nazi” and “Russophobic” is nonsense: all manifestations of Nazism are banned in Ukraine. In modern Ukraine, extreme right-wing candidates are a fringe phenomenon with minimal support, without passing the barrier to enter the parliament. The Ukrainian Government did not cut the Donbass off and it has not prohibited the use of Russian language and culture. Donetsk and Luhansk are no republics, they are Ukrainian regions controlled by Russia-backed and armed separatist groupings.

We know this — and many Russians know this. There have been courageous protests in cities across Russia since the invasion started, demanding the end of the aggression against a peaceful neighboring nation. We hear their voices and recognize their courage in speaking out, and we see many prominent public figures in Russia protesting this senseless invasion.

I continue to work with our partners around the world to ensure the joint action of the international community against the Kremlin’s behavior. On Feb. 25, only Russia vetoed a UN Security Council Resolution on Russia’s aggression against Ukraine, with China, India, and the United Arab Emirates abstaining. From all over the world, countries condemn Russia’s attacks and at the General Assembly, the entire international community needs to join forces and help to end Russia’s military aggression by adopting the related UN Resolution.

Although far away, what happens in Europe matters to this region. The people in South East Asia, including in the Philippines, unfortunately know too well what war is. They have experienced the suffering associated with the war. They know why it is so important to fight for freedom, sovereignty, and territorial integrity. They understand very well what the people of Ukraine are going through.

The Philippines fought for its independence and then suffered in World War II. It is because of these bitter memories of war that they value peace and their sovereignty.

We have consistently stood by the Philippines when its territorial integrity was threatened and recalled that the UN charter and international law is for all and not for a few. We expect the government of the Philippines to side with the European Union at this time in history.

With this war on Ukraine, the world will never be the same again. It is now, more than ever, the time for societies and alliances to come together to build our future on trust, justice and freedom. It is the moment to stand up and to speak out. Might does not make right. Never did. Never will.

 

Josep Borrell is the high representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy/ vice-president of the European Commission.

Matter of platform or persona?

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At the 47th Philippine Business Conference and Expo in November last year, five presidential candidates presented what their policies and programs would be if they were elected president. Leni Robredo, Ping Lacson, and Isko Moreno would improve the healthcare system and strengthen the economy. Manny Pacquiao’s focus would be to jail corrupt officials, implement a housing program, and reduce the national debt. Bongbong Marcos did not participate in that conference, but I glean from his commercials that his platform is to unify the people to bring about prosperity.

The aspirants also told the attendees the image or persona they want to project for themselves. I use the word “persona” instead of “personality” because “persona” is defined in the Cambridge Dictionary as “the mask or appearance one presents to the world.” In other words, “persona” is the type of character that a person appears to have that is different from his real character. “Personality” is “individuality existing in itself” or the set of personal attributes that makes the real person.

Here are the personas their commercials project:

Robredo: a leader who works with common people and fights for their dreams of a country they deserve; a public servant who does what she can with the limited power and resources available to her to uplift the lives of the people.

Experienced in governance, an honest leader.

Pacquiao: one who truly loves the Filipino people and is dedicated to improving their lives.

Moreno: a harbinger of true and meaningful change.

Again, based on his commercials, Marcos projects the image of the unifying leader who will work non-stop to bring about prosperity.

It seems the respective platforms and personas of Robredo, Moreno, Pacquiao, and Lacson did not arouse the people’s sentiments to their favor. The results of the latest surveys of Pulse Asia and the Social Weather Stations (SWS) show Marcos enjoying a big lead over them in terms of voter preference.

The Pulse Asia survey conducted from Jan. 19 to 24 has Marcos the preferred candidate of 60% of respondents and Robredo of only 16%. Moreno and Pacquiao are preferred by 8%, and Lacson by 4%. The SWS survey done from Jan. 28 to 31 shows Marcos the choice of 50%, Robredo of 19%, Moreno and Pacquiao of 11%, and Lacson of 6%.

All five candidates promise prosperity through better governance, although Marcos’ promise of prosperity through unity is too general to be workable. Yet Marcos is the choice of the majority of voters.

Maybe platforms do not count much to voters. It will be recalled that in the 2016 presidential race then Davao Mayor Rodrigo Duterte declared his candidacy for the presidency much later than Jejomar Binay, Mar Roxas, Grace Poe, and Miriam Defensor who all had been presenting their respective platforms all over the country. In spite of not having a platform, the results of a survey conducted by the Social Weather Stations (SWS) a month after Duterte joined the fray showed him as the most preferred.

Well, rankings in political polls are temporary. They reflect the preference of the voters at the time the survey was conducted. The question pollsters ask the voter is: “If elections were held today, who would you vote for?” not “Who would you vote for on Election Day?”

A lot of things can happen between the time surveys are conducted and actual Election Day. In fact, candidates make things happen to boost their political stock or to erode their rivals’ standing in the eyes of the electorate. That is what campaign managers and strategists should do about results of voter preference surveys — formulate new strategies out of them.

That is what Robredo, Lacson, Pacquiao, and Moreno can do if they want to overcome Marcos’ lead in the polls and ultimately emerge as the winner on Election Day. They need to change their strategy.

If platforms do not mean much to the electorate, then the candidates should convince the electorate that he or she is the most capable of improving the healthcare system and revitalizing the economy. He or she should cite his or her accomplishments in the field of healthcare and his or her grasp of macroeconomics.

As Marcos is the frontrunner in the polls, his credentials for his capability to unify the people and bring about prosperity should be questioned. Robredo et al should be more confrontational by citing his unproductive stints as governor of Ilocos Norte, representative of the 2nd District of Ilocos Norte, and senator. That should strip him of his persona or projected image and bring out the truth about his true personality.

They should point out that the reason Marcos has been avoiding not only public debates but interviews by respected broadcast journalists as well could be his fear of being confronted with facts with regard to his terms in public office. He held office in Makati and lived in Malacañang with his parents when he was governor of Ilocos Norte. He was accused of diverting P110 million of his pork barrel fund to Janet Lim Napoles’ fake NGOs when he was a senator.

Marcos’ fear of debates and interviews on television should be stressed to the point of practically calling Bongbong a coward, a label that would destroy his persona of leader.

 

Oscar P. Lagman, Jr. is a retired corporate executive, business consultant, and management professor. He has been a politicized citizen since his college days in the late 1950s.

Cultural Agility: The future of leadership

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One of the key thrusts of the Management Association of the Philippines (MAP) for 2022 is Human Development and Well Being. The levers of Human Development and Well Being broadly encompass an ecosystem consisting of the workforce, the citizenry, the education sector, and tri-sectoral leadership that includes private, public, and civil society. Tri-sectoral leadership is a key enabler of the rest of the players in the ecosystem and MAP wants to play a key role in expanding the discourse on the leadership of the future: what is required of leaders to maximize their effectiveness and development.

Let me posit then that successful leaders are not insular nor parochial; they are global and cross cultural. They have the mindset for openness, risk taking, and experimentation, and an ability to identify, distill, source and apply possible solutions from wherever and whoever they are in the world. The foundation of this global and cross-cultural management is a somewhat esoteric term called Cultural Agility.

WHY CULTURAL AGILITY?
No doubt COVID-19 has been a wake-up call for societies, organizations, and individuals around the world. Consider the other equally serious global challenges we face, such as climate change mitigation, social inequality, the digital divide, mobility and migration, and further virus mutations and other pandemics. Leaders would now have to contend with higher levels of expectations as they seek to hurdle these multi-dimensional challenges. Even before the onset of the pandemic in the Philippines, we were struggling with the challenges of eroding national competitiveness, poor governance, endemic corruption, and debilitating poverty.

That is why the theme of “Push for Change: Towards a Better Future for All” adopted by the MAP is fitting for this historic moment. We have to raise the goalposts for leadership in the next Philippines. An important component of this New Leadership is a global and cross-cultural mindset that drives a higher level of performance and enhanced competitiveness. This is built upon a foundation of a sense of nationalism and love of country.

As MAP President Alfredo Pascual points out: “As the Philippines opens up its economy and as we exert efforts to attract more foreign direct investment (FDI), Filipino leaders need to build a strong sense of cultural awareness, develop cultural competencies and acquire cross cultural experiences.” An understanding and appreciation of the cultures in which we operate; the differences between national cultures versus corporate cultures; and the key success factors for thriving in the global environment is a critical “must do” in this brave new world.

It used to be that you had to live and work abroad to acquire global and cross-cultural experiences. Nowadays, the reality is that you could stay in the Philippines and develop the same competencies. The chances of Filipino executives and leaders acquiring global and cross-cultural skills without being expatriated abroad have increased with the recent developments that are described below.

First, the continued rapid growth of the business process outsourcing (BPO) industry has made the Philippines a top-tier destination for IT-Business Process Management (BPM) services and a leader in the global IT-BPM industry, ranking first in voice-related services and accounting for 13% of global market share (Outsourcing Journal’s online edition, October 2021).

Second, the passage of the reconciled bill amending the Public Service Act (PSA) is expected to drive an FDI surge as full foreign ownership is allowed in more sectors.

Third, the Philippines enjoys natural advantages such as its strategic location and relative proximity to Silicon Valley (compared to other IT hubs, such as Singapore or Bangalore), as well as abundant land and service-oriented human resources.

Fourth, the pandemic has opened up opportunities to work across regions and national boundaries from the comfort of office hubs or homes through the use of technology. Everything can be done from the Philippines, without the need to travel abroad to acquire global or cross-country experiences. Resource persons from other countries may also be tapped to convey, and share their knowledge and expertise virtually.

HOW TO BUILD CULTURAL AGILITY
In a MAP webinar on Jan. 28 on “The Future of Leadership is Cultural Agility,” two resource speakers — Dr. Paula Caligiuri, a global expert on cross cultural management, and Stephen Krempl, a noted corporate communications coach, shared their insights on building cultural agility as part of the executive leadership toolkit.

Dr. Caligiuri highlighted that cultural agility involves effectively and comfortably working in, and with people of, different cultures. She cites three components that are critical to build cultural agility: cross-cultural awareness, cultural agility competencies, and cross–cultural experiences.

Cross-cultural awareness could be acquired and sharpened through training and coaching. Cultural agility competencies could be developed through assessment, identification of gaps, and establishing plans. In Paula’s work, the nine specific cultural agility competencies are: self-management, including tolerance of ambiguity, curiosity, and resilience; relationship management, including humility, relationship building, and perspective taking; and task management, consisting of cultural minimization, cultural adaptation, and cultural integration. Cross-cultural experiences involve opportunities to build and develop competencies by implementing the plans from the assessment in the previous step.

To further deep-dive into the research and science of cultural agility, her book, Build Your Cultural Agility, can be sourced through Amazon.com.

On the other hand, Mr. Krempl focused on the global executive mindset that senior management requires and recognizes. This is building on the experiences of his international career in large global organizations. He advised the audience to: first, be deliberate in which arena you would like to play, whether local, global, or both (“glocal”); second, be yourself while at the same time be at the top of your game in the critical few situations that require your expertise to be demonstrated. Examples of these situations include interactions with your direct boss, top management meetings, or presentations to the board.

He further asserts that when the pressure is on, you have to increase your visibility, raise your energy, differentiate yourself, add significant value and be proactive. This has to be built, of course, on a foundation of attitude, knowledge, and competence.

In the course of my own CEO/leadership coaching, I have advised senior Filipino leaders on how to be effective and comfortable dealing with their non-Filipino bosses and colleagues. I have found Hofstede’s work on the cultural dimensions and the GLOBE (Global Leadership and Organizational Behavior Effectiveness) study as good starting points for the coaching conversations.

PLATINUM RULE AND SENSE OF NATION
Having defined cultural agility and being offered avenues on how to build it, I would like to recommend to Filipino leaders and executives two imperatives that will set them on a path to enhanced cultural agility: first, the platinum rule; and second, pride in being Filipino.

More than just observing the golden rule, let us treat others the way they want to be treated — that’s the platinum rule. This involves fully understanding and appreciating the cultures of the organizations or individuals that you want to engage with to secure the business outcomes you want to achieve. We have to move away from an inward mindset to one that embraces a world of multi-faceted opportunities.

Most importantly, we need to develop a sense of nationalism. Be proud of being Filipino. Yes, the Filipino can be competitive in even unfamiliar environments by dint of sheer hard work and determination, resilience, and faith in God. Voting in the right kind of leaders in the coming elections could be an important first step in bringing about a new Leadership towards a new Philippines.

If you wish to learn more about cultural agility, please do not miss the John Clements – MAP – IHRX webinar on “Artfully Managing Across Cultures” on Friday, March 4, from 9 to 11 a.m. We have two international speakers, Kyle Hegarty and Professor Philip Charles C. Zerrillo. Register via Zoom at bit.ly/artfullymanaging2022.

 

Ramon B. Segismundo is co-chair for Strategic HR Management of the MAP Human and Management Development Committee. He is a strategic HR advisor, a CEO coach, and a member of the Strategic Management/Global Management Faculty of De La Salle University.

map@map.org.ph

rbsegismundo@onehrx.com

Energy and economic impact of Russia-Ukraine war

Even before Russia invaded Ukraine on Feb. 24, coal and gas prices were already high in 2020 and 2021 compared to 2019. Oil prices were lower in 2020 but increased in 2021. The main reason is high demand for these fossil fuel products compared to supply, despite continuing global narratives of “decarbonization” and “net zero.”

HIGH PRICES FOR FOSSIL FUELS, CONTRACTION FOR WIND-SOLAR
Peak prices of fossil fuel products in 2021 compared to end-2020 levels were 235% higher for coal (Newscastle, Australia), 700% for UK gas, and 840% for TTF/EU gas. Huge. And this was before the Russia invasion.

When Russian fighter planes and tanks entered Ukraine, oil prices quickly touched the $100/barrel mark, EU gas prices were up to 50% than their previous day level. But prices retreated many hours later because gas flows from Russia pipelines continued unhampered as if there was no war. By Friday, Feb. 25, closing trade, oil and gas prices were only 19% to 27% higher than end-2021 level. Coal was 41% higher (See Table 1).

Notice that both the solar index and wind index experienced contractions in 2021 compared to 2020, and even until this February. Meaning investors were unimpressed by their profitability, being intermittent as Europe experienced calm, less windy weather last year and early this year.

The EU carbon permits, however, kept rising. Meaning a double whammy for customers because they pay higher oil-gas-coal prices to keep the lights on, plus a de facto carbon tax that electricity companies pass on to them.

As of this writing, Monday morning, oil prices are up again, WTI at $96/barrel and Brent at $102/barrel. The initial optimism of short war seems to have dissipated.

GLOBAL ECONOMIC IMPACT OF THE WAR
Russia is the world’s 11th largest economy in terms of GDP size, a major producer and exporter of oil, gas, and coal, and has the world’s 9th biggest population. So, if it is involved in a war, it will have a significant impact on the global economy.

Ukraine, on the other hand, is the world’s 55th largest economy and its GDP size is only 1/10 of Russia. Its population is the 34th largest in the world but nearly ¼ that of Russia. So, a destabilized Ukraine will not have a major global economic impact. For watchers of the China-Taiwan conflict, see also their respective numbers (Table 2).

The main impact of the war, aside from energy supply destabilization, will be on inflation as energy prices go up, and on trade and investments as financial sanctions imposed by the US and other major economies via the removal from the SWIFT messaging system of “selected Russian banks,” meaning they will be disconnected from the international financial system and partly disable them from operating globally. The Russia central bank is also restricted from mobilizing its international reserves. Corollary adverse impact will be on tourism and the mobility of people as some flights in Europe are diverted to avoid the respective airspaces of Russia and neighboring countries.

The worst-case scenario will be a halt in the flow of Russian gas and oil to neighboring European and other countries when the financial sanctions become more severe. And many European countries will go dark, manufacturing and services will slow to a crawl, and there will be no heating for households in the middle of winter as they rely on Russia for a big portion of their heating and electricity. Then recession will be a certainty. And given the huge volume of trade and investment between Europe and the US, this will have spillover effects in the US too. We hope this will not happen.

THE PHILIPPINES’ ENERGY MIX
Avoiding the European situation of rising reliance on wind and solar — which deliver little or zero power when the wind does not blow or the sun is down in the evening or it is very cloudy during daytime — should be a goal for developing economies.

The good news about the Philippines power generation mix is that despite the flat output from 2010 to 2020 from Malampaya’s natural gas and conventional renewables like hydro and geothermal, coal output has more than doubled and spared the country from the regular, daily Earth Hours that we experienced in 1990-1991.

Variable intermittent renewables, solar-wind output has been increasing, from zero in 2010 to 2.4% of total generation in 2020, and 3% in 2021. Still, this is an almost insignificant contribution to keeping our lights and machines on (Table 3).

The bad news for the Philippines though is that our total power generation remains small compared to our significant neighbors in the ASEAN. In 2020, while the Philippines generated 102 terawatt-hours (TWH), Malaysia generated 160 TWH, Thailand 176 TWH, Vietnam 234 TWH, and Indonesia 275 TWH.

The implication here is that foreign investors with huge manufacturing or commercial projects will think twice before coming here due to our low power generation capacity and would prefer to locate instead in our ASEAN neighbors. The challenge is posed for all players in the sector — the competitive generation companies, the national transmission monopoly (the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines or NGCP), the geographical distribution monopolies (electric cooperatives and private distribution utilities) and competitive retail electricity supply.

There are many solar-wind power projects being constructed now and coming into the grid from 2022 onwards. I hope that these will be mainly for contestable customers with specific and customized demand for renewables, for their corporate and environmental, social, and governance (ESG) imaging.

LOWER ELECTRICITY PRICES DESPITE RISING OIL PRICES
At the Independent Electricity Market Operator of the Philippines (IEMOP) media briefing today, they reported that spot prices have declined from P7.07/kWh in the January billing to P6.09/kWh in the February billing. Good.

This is similar to the decline in Meralco billing (all-in from generation to transmission, distribution, supply charges, FIT-All, taxes, etc.) from P9.78/kWh last December to P9.70/kWh last January and P9.58/kWh in this February billing. Meanwhile, unleaded gasoline was rising from P61.20/liter on Dec. 21 last year to P64.20/liter on Jan. 22 and P67.62/liter on Feb. 22. Also good.

Energy is development. Sustained growth and development require more energy — cheap, competitive, stable, reliable, dispatchable on demand, no blackouts even for a minute — to further modernize our production system and enable us to live bright and comfortable lives. We should stay the course of ever-expanding our conventional energy sources for our baseload power needs, and leave the intermittent, weather-dependent solar-wind for certain customers with specific environmental and corporate needs.

 

Bienvenido S. Oplas, Jr. is the president of Minimal Government Thinkers.

minimalgovernment@gmail.com

Are ethical leaders weak?

RACOOL_STUDIO-FREEPIK

In my strategic management classes, I remind my students that a weakness is merely a lack of a resource or capability that one or more competitors might have. For instance, the ability of a restaurant to serve pizza is a strength shared by many players in the industry, but is not a devastating weakness for competitors that perform well despite their not having pizza on their menus. I then emphasize that in this context, having weaknesses is normal. Every organization has weaknesses that limit what it can do, and so does every leader.

However, not everything that limits what can be done is a weakness. For instance, when a leader has decided to strictly abide by a set of ethical principles, the leader will not consider acts that will violate these principles. What then becomes an issue is if the “weaknesses” and limitations that stem from being ethical outweigh the benefits of ethical leadership. Another issue is how ethical leadership might affect the amount of power that a leader can harness. Given that ethical leaders limit their own options by being unwilling to compromise their values, would it be fair to say that ethical leaders are weak?

An ethical leader might be criticized as being too idealistic, too inefficient, or unwilling to do what is needed to succeed. Such criticisms are common in societies that either fail or refuse to reward ethical behavior and instead, occasionally reward unethical behavior. In such environments, the freedom to do business and develop competitive advantages unethically without any negative consequence makes unethical business practices seem essential for superior performance.

However, if regulatory and governing bodies such as the Department of Trade and Industry and the Securities and Exchange Commission can ensure that penalties and punishments for unethical behavior are justly and effectively executed, then the benefits of ethical leadership would be readily apparent. After all, the mere avoidance of harm and other negative consequences would be reason enough for many people to do the right thing regardless of their moral standards.

Furthermore, if these governing bodies could reward good behavior, then perhaps ethical practices could be better encouraged. Unfortunately, the ability to reward ethical behavior usually requires resources, which regulatory bodies may not always have. Consequently, large private companies and professional organizations are often left to fill the void by coming up with their own recognition and reward systems for ethical practices. It would be nice if governing bodies could institute similar systems so that they could promote ethical behavior while also being directly answerable to the public.

It is challenging but possible to transform an environment that is not favorable to ethical leadership into an environment that rewards ethical leaders. However, even such a transformation might not be enough, especially when (even just a few) powerful members and leaders from the economic elite decide that ethical standards should not apply to them. Such behavior can be associated with their ideas on power and how that power is communicated to the public.

Power is broadly defined as the ability to do something or act in a particular way. It can be appreciated in terms of abilities, including, sadly, the ability of a person to get away with violating ethical principles. The more a person can get away with, the more powerful he or she is perceived to be. An ethical leader’s power is therefore “limited” by his or her abiding by ethical principles.

In a sense, persons who are repeatedly being called out for failing to pay penalties or accept their punishments from authorities gain power when they flaunt their ability to escape such obligations. The more publicized such situations are, the greater the unethical persons’ power becomes. These persons subscribe to ethical egoism; their moral decision-making is guided entirely by self-interest. They do not consider the greater good, the rights of others, and their duties to society.

Ethical leaders are strong. It takes mental, emotional, and moral strength to achieve ethical outcomes only through ethical means. Weak leaders will always seek the easiest way out.

What is true of business leaders is also true of a nation’s leaders. This May, we have the opportunity to choose leaders who will consistently shun unethical alternatives despite their seductive fruits. It behooves us to elect leaders who will do the right thing simply because it is the right thing to do.

 

An engineer, Rafael Gerardo S. Tensuan is a lecturer at the Department of Management and Organization of the Ramon V. Del Rosario College of Business of De La Salle University, and at the Export Management Program of the De La Salle-College of St. Benilde.

rstensuan@gmail.com

Russian central bank hikes rates, tries to limit fallout of sanctions

BANK OF RUSSIA headquarters in Moscow — WWW.CBR.RU

RUSSIA’s central bank on Monday sharply raised its key policy rate to 20%, a day after announcing a slew of measures to support domestic markets, as it scrambled to manage the fallout of harsh Western sanctions in retaliation against Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine.

The bank hiked the key rate from 9.5% to counter risks of ruble depreciation and higher inflation, and also ordered companies to sell 80% of their foreign currency revenues.

“External conditions for the Russian economy have drastically changed,” the central bank said in a statement, adding that the rate hike ‘will ensure a rise in deposit rates to levels needed to compensate for the increased depreciation and inflation risk.”

Monday’s steps bolster other measures announced on Sunday, which include the central bank’s assurance that it would resume buying gold on the domestic market, launch a repurchase auction with no limits and ease restrictions on banks’ open foreign currency positions.

It also increased the range of securities that can be used as collateral to get loans and ordered market players to reject foreign clients’ bids to sell Russian securities.

Central Bank Governor Elvira Nabiullina was scheduled to hold a briefing at 1300 GMT, the bank said in its statement on Monday.

The steps came after Western allies ratcheted up sanctions on Saturday, taking action to banish big Russian banks from the main global payments system SWIFT and announced other measures to limit Moscow’s use of a $630 billion war chest to undermine sanctions.

The new set of sanctions were likely to deal a devastating blow to the Russian economy and make it hard for Russian banks and companies to access the international financial system. The ruble plunged nearly 30% to an all-time low versus the dollar on Monday.

RUN ON BANKS?
Russians waited in long queues outside ATMs on Sunday, worried that new Western sanctions over Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine will trigger cash shortages and disrupt payments.

“A bank run has already started in Russia over the weekend … and inflation will immediately spike massively, and the Russian banking system is likely to be in trouble,” said Jeffrey Halley, Asia-based senior market analyst at OANDA.

Nomura analysts said the fresh reprisal measures by the West against Russia is likely to have wider global implications.

“These sanctions from the West are likely to eventually hurt trade flows out of Russia (around 80% of FX transactions handled by Russian financial institutions are denominated in USD), which will also hurt the growth outlook of Russia’s key trading partners including Europe and lead to greater inflationary pressures and risk of stagflation, we think,” the analysts wrote in a note to clients.

Energy major BP opened a new front in the West’s campaign to isolate Russia’s economy, with its decision to abandon its stake in state oil company Rosneft at a cost of up to $25 billion, the most aggressive move yet by a company in response to Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine.

The Russian business operations of other Western corporations are also in the spotlight as governments tighten the financial screws on Moscow.

Several European subsidiaries of Sberbank Russia, majority owned by the Russian government, are failing or likely to fail due to the reputational cost of the war in Ukraine, the European Central Bank, the lenders’ supervisor, said on Monday.

FINANCIAL STABILITY
The Russian central bank in several announcements on Sunday sought to ensure financial stability. It said it would resume buying gold on the domestic market from Feb. 28.

It added that customers of sanctioned banks would be unable to use their bank cards outside Russia, and that cards issued by the sanctioned banks won’t work on Google Pay or Apple Pay.

It also ordered market players to reject attempts by foreign clients to sell Russian securities, according to a central bank document seen by Reuters.

That could complicate plans by the sovereign wealth funds of Norway and Australia, which said they planned to wind down exposure to Russian-listed companies.

In a bid to inject cash into the financial system, the central bank said there would be no limit at a “fine-tuning” repo auction it plans to hold on Monday and added that the banking system remained stable after the new sanctions targeting Russia’s financial institutions.

The central bank said bank cards were working as normal and that customers’ funds could be accessed at any time. It said it would substantially increase the range of securities that can be used as collateral to get central bank loans.

The central bank also said it is temporarily easing restrictions on banks’ open foreign currency positions after the sanctions. The measure, allowing banks suffering from “external circumstances” to keep positions above the official limits, will be in place until July 1, it said in a statement.

The central bank said that it would continue to monitor changes in currency positions “in order to guarantee the normal functioning of the currency and money markets and the financial stability of lending institutions”. — Reuters

Is WHO’s aim to vaccinate 70% of world by June still realistic?

REUTERS

LONDON — Vaccinating 70% of the population in every country in the world against coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) by mid-2022 has been the World Health Organization’s (WHO) rallying cry to end the pandemic.

But recently, public health experts say that while boosting immunity globally remains essential, the figure is neither achievable nor meaningful. It has always been ambitious: Currently, just 12% of people in low-income nations have had one shot, according to Our World In Data. Earlier targets set by WHO — to reach 10% by Sept. 2021, for example — were also missed.

WHO head of immunization Kate O’Brien said 70% remained more than just a “rallying cry”, even though some well-equipped countries with plenty of vaccines have also struggled to reach it.

“We are calling for countries to be serious about their actions towards achieving that target, while acknowledging that — on a country-by-country basis — there may be a rationale why that target is not specifically suited to that country,” she told Reuters.

Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance — WHO’s partner in the COVAX initiative aimed at getting shots to the world’s poorest — has pulled back from the “one-size-fits-all” 70% focus.

At a virtual briefing last week with WHO Africa, Aurelia Nguyen, managing director of COVAX within Gavi, said it was important to instead “meet the targets that countries have set for themselves, whether it’s in line with the 70% WHO target or a lower or a higher target.”

Reservations about the 70% target are a further sign that ending the pandemic globally may be a trickier, and longer, challenge than many had hoped.

Documents from a high-level internal UN meeting held earlier this month, reviewed by Reuters, showed eight countries that were extremely unlikely to reach the target by June 2022, and had been identified for “immediate focus”: Afghanistan, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Nigeria, Sierra Leone and Sudan. A further 26, including Yemen, Uganda and Haiti, are also in need of “concerted support”, the document said.

NEVER JUST A MAGIC NUMBER
However, there is a bigger issue the WHO is focusing on Ms. O’Brien said.

“The question in the here and now, with Omicron ripping through the population around the world and continuing to do that … does 70% still hold?” she said.

The figure was never a “magic number”, she said, but just an assessment of risk, something to aim for that could — optimistically — keep the virus under control.

But new evidence showing that the vaccines only have a limited impact on transmission, alongside the ability of the Omicron variant to infect previously vaccinated or infected people, suggests that achieving that level of population immunity and therefore stopping the spread of the virus is a fading hope.

“We are in the process of looking at scenarios of how the pandemic might play out”, Ms. O’Brien said. “Obviously across the scenarios, the role of the vaccines, the target of the 70%, the goal of transmission reduction, would have to be evaluated.”

For example, setting higher targets among at-risk groups may be important to prevent hospitalizations and deaths, she added.

But some public health experts said the initial target was now largely symbolic.

Edward Kelley, former director of health services at WHO and now global health officer at ApiJect, said the 70% had been based on what science said was needed to manage transmission, which had been blown out of the water by Omicron.

“Of course we need to continue to raise immunity levels everywhere”, he said. “But the target is being kept at the moment because the international community does not have anything else to cling to.” — Reuters

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