Incoming communications chief floats possible revision of Martial Law facts

May 31, 2022 | 8:23 pm

Martial-law-museum-website — MARTIALLAWMUSEUM.PH

THE INCOMING chief of the presidential office’s communications team on Tuesday said facts about the Martial Law regime of President-elect Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr.’s late father should be open to debate.

“Martial law is a mine field by itself… Why don’t we allow a discourse?” Rose Beatrix “Trixie” Cruz-Angeles, incoming secretary of the Presidential Communications Operations Office (PCOO), told ABS-CBN’s Teleradyo.

“I think everything should be open to debate, even scientific theories and established facts are always open to questions,” she added.

More than 70,000 people were jailed, about 34,000 were tortured, and more than 3,000 people died under the late dictator’s 20-year rule, according to Amnesty International.

The Marcoses have been accused of living lavishly in the Philippine presidential palace while Filipinos suffered from a collapsing economy, which declined by 7.3% in 1984 and 1985.

Ms. Cruz-Angeles earlier backtracked on her stance against the burial of the late dictator Ferdinand E. Marcos at a heroes’ cemetery, saying she has changed her views on the family.

Ms. Cruz-Angeles said the PCOO under her leadership would propose a formal discussion on “what constitutes misinformation and disinformation.”

“What we are proposing is to bring a discussion on what constitutes misinformation, disinformation,” she said in mixed Filipino and English. “In fact, fact checking what constitutes fake news.”

Ms. Cruz-Angeles, who is set to speak on behalf of Mr. Marcos in most cases, said it would be hard to determine “what facts are unassailable and what ideas need further discourse.”

“Some ideas need discourse while some needs further investigation,” she said.

“Sometimes that expression includes a question,” she added. “The point of the matter is to allow discourse and that is what free speech is about.”

Ms. Cruz-Angeles, meanwhile, said Mr. Marcos will not have an official spokesperson.

“According to him, he himself will face the media,” she said. “We don’t know yet how often, but I think there are some issues where he prefers to deal with himself.

“For the rest, what we’re doing is to bring out the information, provide the clarification.”

During the campaign season, Mr. Marcos Jr. did not participate in major presidential debates, which experts said were necessary to determine the stances of candidates on key issues. — Kyle Aristophere T. Atienza

Comelec says P6.7B needed for new vote-counting machines

May 31, 2022 | 8:22 pm

VCM-Warehouse-PHILSTAR-RUSSELL-PALMA- — PHILIPPINE STAR/ RUSSELL A. PALMA

ELECTION officials said P6.7 billion is needed to lease new vote-counting machines (VCMs), warning that more incidents of malfunctioning hardware could be expected during the 2025 midterm elections if the very old ones are not replaced.

At a Senate committee hearing Tuesday, Commission on Elections (Comelec) Chairman Saidamen B. Pangarungan said they were forced to refurbish old VCMs instead of leasing new ones for the May 9 elections as Congress had only provided the agency a budget of P8 billion instead of the requested P12 billion.

“So definitely, we will recommend leasing new vote-counting machines because (some of) these VCMs are 13 years old, as you say, so we really need to use new ones for the 2025 elections,” he said.

Comelec Commissioner George Erwin M. Garcia said a total of 1,310 VCMs had to be replaced on election day, including 1,295 within the country and 15 abroad, while around 1,800 VCMs needed fixing.

“I personally would recommend to the en banc, in case we’ll still be there, to retire the 97,000. It is no longer feasible at this point to use these machines in 2025. It’s already too old,” Mr. Garcia said.

Acting Comelec spokesperson John Rex C. Laudiangco told reporters that 97,000 VCMs used on May 9 were at least seven years old.

Senator Maria Imelda “Imee” R. Marcos, who chaired the hearing, said she will bring up the proposal during the budget deliberations for 2023, adding that the required allocation could probably be released “in tranches, as much as we can afford.”

“But at the same time, we need to keep in view that they (new and old machines) need to be interoperable without… shackling the Comelec to the same service provider,” she said. — Alyssa Nicole O. Tan

Tourism masterplans set for 2 Cebu islands to ensure sustainable development

May 31, 2022 | 8:22 pm

Camotes-TulangDiot-SANFRANCISCOCAMOTES.GOV.PH — TULANG DIOT island in the town of San Francisco in Camotes. — SANFRANCISCOCAMOTES.GOV.PH

TOURISM development plans for the islands of Bantayan and Camotes in central Philippines have been completed and will be used by local governments to ensure sustainable growth in the sector, the Office of the Presidential Assistant for the Visayas (OPAV) announced.

OPAV Secretary Michael Lloyd L. Dino said the masterplans are intended to ensure that two of Cebu’s emerging destinations “won’t experience the same fate that Boracay Island went through when it had to be closed for rehabilitation.”

“Tourism is crucial for Cebu. It’s one of the primary economic drivers here,” he said in a statement on Monday.

“So, having these well-researched and well-documented plans will greatly help us further develop the tourism potential of Bantayan and Camotes Islands.”

The blueprints — funded by the Tourism Infrastructure and Enterprise Zone Authority and created by Paulo G. Alcazaren’s PGAA Creative Design — include infrastructure designs that follow easement rules from the shoreline, walkways, public spaces, kiosks for retailers, and sites for various tourism activities.

Lessandro B. Maraon, OPAV’s head executive assistant, said the masterplans were developed in coordination with environment and tourism officials and the local government units of the islands.

“These are detailed plans as they touch on several aspects, including tourism development, transport, culture, power, and wastewater management. These areas are essential in the tourism value-chain,” Mr. Maraon said.

Bantayan, located off the north of Cebu mainland, is known for its beaches and dive sites. It recorded more than 200,000 visitors in 2018, according to OPAV citing data from the Department of Tourism.

The Camotes group of islands east of Cebu, with its white sand beaches and caves, have also seen a steady increase in visitors in the years before the coronavirus pandemic, OPAV said.

The two destinations are part of the Cebu Tourism Development Area under the National Tourism Development Plan 2016-2022.

Government data show the Central Visayas Region, where Cebu is located, recorded 9.4 million tourists in 2019, a 16.36% increase from the previous year. — MSJ

Twin blasts in fastfood store, bus garage prompt tighter security measures in Basilan

May 31, 2022 | 8:22 pm

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SECURITY measures have been tightened in Isabela City, located in Basilan in southern Philippines, after two consecutive blasts on Monday early evening in commercial properties that left two civilians hurt, the police said.

The first explosion took place at around 5:45 p.m. at the parking area of a Jollibee fastfood branch in the city proper.

While authorities were conducting post-blast operations, another explosion was reported at the bus depot of D’ Biel Transportation Co. in another part of the city. Four of the company’s buses were damaged, according to the police.

Police Regional Director Franco P. Simborio of Zamboanga Peninsula, which has jurisdiction over the city, said an investigation and manhunt is on for the perpetrators, with at least one suspect caught on CCTV footage in the first blast.

“We are on top of the situation and we need the cooperation of the public avoid occurrence of similar incidents,” Mr. Simborio said as he appealed for calm and vigilance.

He said they are closely coordinating with the city government and other law enforcement agencies to immediately resolve the crime and avoid a repeat of the incidents.

Isabela City Mayor Sitti Djalia A. Turabin-Hataman, in a statement posted on her Facebook page late Monday, also called for calm and appealed to the public to avoid speculations and spreading fear.

“For a long while now, we have had peace in the city and the entire province of Basilan,” she said in Filipino. “Our economy is accelerating and life has been improving. Let us keep this up and let everyone know that no intimidation will stop our development.”

Isabela City is administratively under the Zamboanga Peninsula Region although it is located within Basilan, which is part of the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao. — MSJ

Incoming social welfare chief to work ‘on the ground’

May 31, 2022 | 8:21 pm

Agaton-relief-Leyte-DSWD-EASTERN-VISAYAS — DSWD EASTERN VISAYAS

THE INCOMING chief of the state’s social welfare agency on Tuesday said he would work closely with communities that need more help from the government.

Broadcaster Erwin T. Tulfo, who is set to head the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), said he would become “a secretary on the ground.”

“I will be a secretary people can touch, people can talk to,” he told ABS-CBN’s Teleradyo. “I think I have to be on the ground just to assure that I am here. The government is here. The government is watching…helping.”

Mr. Tulfo said fellow journalists and media practitioners may call him out on issues concerning the department’s efficiency once he assumes leadership.

The media personality had earlier berated outgoing DSWD chief Rolando D. Bautista for not granting his request for a live interview.

“Definitely, we’ll be working hand in hand with the media people because they’re the ones on the ground,” Mr. Tulfo said. “So, I would need their help.”

Mr. Tulfo, meanwhile, said he would ask the presidential palace’s communications team for a weekly one-hour radio and TV program to discuss DSWD projects and programs and to give people an avenue to convey their problems.

“We need to have programs like this on radio, TV, social media so that we would also hear their side.”

Mr. Tulfo had worked as a broadcaster at state-run People’s Television Network and as news anchor at a privately-owned mainstream media network.

He had hosted shows produced by his brother, who owns a television production outfit known for its public service programs that had been criticized by rights defenders and lawyers for supposedly circumventing legal processes.

Mr. Tulfo is one of the brothers of Raffy T. Tulfo, who secured a Senate seat in the May 9 polls, and former tourism secretary Wanda Corazon T. Teo.

He is chairman of party-list ACT-CIS, or the Anti-Crime and Terrorism Community Involvement Support, which won three seats in the incoming House of Representatives. His wife, Jocelyn P. Tulfo, is one of the group’s nominees. — Kyle Aristophere T. Atienza

BoI says Chinese pharmaceutical firm eyeing to invest in PHL

May 31, 2022 | 8:21 pm

A CHINESE biopharmaceutical firm is eyeing to invest in vaccine clinical trial projects and vaccines manufacturing in the Philippines, according to the Board of Investments (BoI).

In a statement on Tuesday, BoI said it met with Yisheng Biopharma Co., Ltd. officials on May 11 to discuss the company’s plans to pursue investment interests in clinical trials and for the co-development/manufacturing and marketing of vaccines with a local company.

“Yisheng Biopharma is planning for its second visit to the country to conduct face-to-face meetings and site visits on potential manufacturing sites/facilities with possible local partners, and work on the preparations for the clinical trials of its vaccines,” the BoI said.

The company already has an ongoing engagement with a known local pharmaceutical company and will be meeting with other local firms for possible partnerships on the commercialization of its vaccines, it added.

Yisheng is a company that has operations in China, United States, and Singapore. It is engaged in discovering, developing and commercializing bio therapeutics for cancers and infectious diseases using its novel PIKA immunomodulation technology. — Revin Mikhael D. Ochave

Metro Baguio agency gets Congress approval

May 31, 2022 | 8:21 pm

THE ESTABLISHMENT of an agency for the development of Metro Baguio — composed of Baguio City and five neighboring towns in the province of Benguet — was ratified in the Senate on Tuesday.

The Metropolitan Baguio City, La Trinidad, Itogon, Sablan, Tuba, and Tublay Development Authority (MBLISTTDA) will be in charge of coordinating and regulating both medium- and long-terms plans for the mountain area north of the capital Manila.

It will be similar to the development bodies in clustered urban areas such as Metro Manila and Metro Cebu, and the newly-formed Metro Davao.

Its tasks include public service delivery, traffic management, and land use planning.

Under the reconciled version of the bill, MBLISTTDA must formulate a master plan to serve as a framework for the development of the area and submit this to the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA).

It must also coordinate with NEDA and the finance department to interface with foreign assistance agencies to obtain financial support, grants, and donations in support of its programs and projects. — Alyssa Nicole O. Tan

NBI arrests 2 for illegal recruitment, estafa

May 31, 2022 | 8:20 pm

NBI-office-NBI-FB-PAGE — NBI FACEBOOK PAGE

TWO suspects for large-scale illegal recruitment and estafa were arrested on Tuesday, the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) said.

The arrests stemmed from complaints filed by victims who claimed that the supposed recruiters offered employment abroad, collected fees, but failed to deploy them.

One complainant said the recruiters demanded a P32,000 processing fee and a P12,500 training fee for a job as a cleaner in Dubai.

An entrapment operation in Makati City by agents of the NBI Anti-Human Trafficking Division led to the arrests.

The NBI noted that the suspects posed as representatives of a manpower agency duly registered with the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA).

The two suspects were presented before the Office of the Senior State Prosecutor and the Department of Justice for inquest proceedings.

Also on Tuesday, the NBI said it seized counterfeit products worth over P60 million in three separate operations in Manila, Pasay, Caloocan, and the provinces of Tarlac and Pangasinan.

Among the items seized were fake Gillette razors, Victoria’s Secret and Pantene products, and fake Butiki insecticide spray.

NBI Officer-in-Charge Director Eric B. Distor reminded the public that counterfeit products may be dangerous due to lack of quality control and testing that legitimate products undergo. — John Victor D. Ordoñez

Golden State Warriors favored to win versus Celtics in finals

May 31, 2022 | 7:44 pm

ONE week before the regular season opened, the Golden State Warriors were 12-to-1 to win the NBA Finals.

Now, at the start of Finals week, the Warriors are favored to beat the Eastern Conference champion Boston Celtics and claim a fourth National Basketball Association (NBA) title under Steve Kerr.

Some could be holding even larger potential payoffs on underdog Boston if they took advantage of major sportsbooks installing the new-look team as a 50-1 longshot.

The series underdog at +130 in the 2022 Finals, the Celtics are 3.5-point underdogs in Game 1, scheduled for Thursday at Chase Center in San Francisco.

Just 10 days ago, Boston was still 10-to-1 to win the Finals at DraftKings, BetMGM and Caesars, and 12-to-1 at PointsBet.

A $250 bet before the Eastern Conference finals on the Celtics to win the title would pay $2,500 if Boston can pull the upset.

Warriors star Stephen Curry is the favorite to win Finals MVP at +110, ahead of Jayson Tatum (+175) and Jaylen Brown (+1000) of the Celtics. — Reuters

Menstrual cramps derail Chinese teen Zheng’s French Open dream in loss to Poland’s Świątek

May 31, 2022 | 7:44 pm

CHINESE teenager Qinwen Zheng suffered with menstrual cramps as she lost to Poland’s Iga Świątek in the French Open fourth round on Monday after taking a set off the world number one.

Zheng, 19, looked on track for a major upset when she claimed the opener in a tie-break before Świątek took control to win 6-7(5), 6-0, 6-2 for her 32^nd straight victory.

Zheng said she had no pain during the opening set but took a medical time out at 3-0 down in the second, having her back massaged on court before going to the locker room and returning with her right thigh strapped.

“Yeah, the leg was also tough. That, compared to the stomach, was easy… I cannot play my tennis, (my) stomach was too painful,” Zheng, ranked 74 in the world, told reporters.

“It’s just girls things, you know. The first day is always so tough and then I have to do sport and I always have so much pain in the first day. And I couldn’t go against my nature.

“I wish I can be a man on court, but I cannot in that moment… I really wish I can be (a) man (so) that I don’t have to suffer from this.”

“If I don’t talk about today, I’m happy with my performance (on) this run. And to play against the number one in the world, I felt I really enjoyed (it) on the court,” she added.

“If I don’t have my stomach (pain), I think I could enjoy more, like to run better and to hit harder, to give more effort on court. It’s a pity that I couldn’t give what I want to give today.

“I just want (it so that) next time I play against her, I (am in) perfect shape.” — Reuters

Cilic downs Russian second seed Medvedev to set up Rublev clash

May 31, 2022 | 7:43 pm

PARIS — Croatian Marin Cilic did not put a foot wrong as he crushed Russia’s world number two Daniil Medvedev 6-2, 6-3, 6-2 in a lopsided contest on Monday to return to the French Open quarterfinals after a gap of four years.

The 2014 US Open champion, seeded 20^th, dominated proceedings from the start and finished off the contest in an hour and 45 minutes to reach the last eight stage on the Parisian clay for the third time in his career.

Medvedev came into the match having won all three previous meetings against the 33-year-old Croatian but cut a sorry figure under the lights on Court Philippe Chatrier in their first contest on clay.

“It was absolutely a fantastic match from the first point to the last,” Cilic said in his interview on court.

“I enjoyed the atmosphere, enjoyed the night session here, played incredible tennis, one of the best matches of my career from start to finish.”

Such was the Croatian’s domination that he did not face a break point and will next meet another Russian in seventh seed Andrey Rublev for a place in the semifinals.

Cilic played aggressively, pinning Medvedev behind the baseline and advancing to the net at every opportunity as the Russian failed to find any zing behind his flat groundstrokes in the cooler night conditions.

Unable to find a solution to Cilic’s pinpoint winners, Medvedev kept shaking his head and also poured out his frustration at the chair umpire over what he felt was very little time to rest during changeovers.

Medvedev’s form on the night was more reminiscent of his four consecutive first-round exits at Roland Garros before he made the quarterfinals last year.

Cilic won four consecutive games from 2-2 to bag the opening set in 31 minutes and another break in the sixth game was enough for him to take the second set.

Australian Open finalist Medvedev, who won the 2021 US Open, then took a lengthy toilet break but served a double fault on his first point after returning to court.

Another double fault in that opening game led to Medvedev getting broken.

The 26-year-old’s problems with double faults and unforced errors continued as Cilic broke him again to jump into a 4-0 third-set lead.

There was no way back for Medvedev, who briefly rose to world number one earlier this year, and Cilic converted his second match point when the Russian found the net with a backhand return.

“When I’m playing my best tennis, everything is working out, from the serve, return, movement. These last 10-15 days were great for me — great training, great matches, very consistent tennis,” Cilic added.

“Against guys like Daniil, you have to be able to sustain that high level throughout the match and if you give him a chance, he’s going to be back. So I was really focused to keep going and definitely extremely pleased with that.” — Reuters

Świątek extinguishes Zheng’s fire to reach French Open last eight

May 31, 2022 | 7:42 pm

PARIS — Iga Świątek survived a big scare as she advanced to the French Open quarterfinals by beating Chinese teenager Qinwen Zheng 6-7(5), 6-0, 6-2 for her 32^nd consecutive victory on Monday.

The world number one, gunning for a second title in three years at Roland Garros, showed rare signs of nerves as she let a comfortable lead slip through her hands before steamrolling her opponent after Zheng suffered a thigh problem.

Poland’s Świątek, who will next face American 11^th seed Jessica Pegula, is unbeaten since last February, claiming titles on clay in Stuttgart and Rome.

The 2020 champion is bidding to become the fourth player since 2000 to lift the Suzanne Lenglen Cup multiple times after Justine Henin, Serena Williams and Maria Sharapova.

The 20-year-old is on the longest unbeaten run in the women’s tour since Serena bagged 34 victories in succession in 2013.

“She’s playing amazing tennis,” Świątek said of Zheng. “I was surprised with some of her shots so congratulations to her. It’s a tough tournament. I’m happy I could come back after a frustrating first set.

“I’m proud of myself that I’m still in the tournament.”

Świątek broke for 2-0 and kept her advantage throughout the first set although she rushed things at time.

The Pole wasted three set points at 5-3 and two more at 6-5 with Zheng forcing a tiebreak after throwing the kitchen sink at her.

Świątek moved 5-2 up in the breaker and it seemed Zheng’s resistance would finally end, only for the Chinese, nicknamed “Fire” at her tennis academy in Spain, to go for her shots and win the remaining five points to take the set.

Zheng took a medical time out at 3-0 down in the second set, having her back massaged on court before going to the locker room and coming back with her right thigh strapped.

The treatment did not seem to help much as she dropped eight games in a row.

She picked herself up to fight back in the third, but the Świątek express train was already going full speed and the Pole wrapped it up when Zheng’s backhand sailed long. — Reuters