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Marcos meets Energy team without a chief 

TWITTER BONGBONG MARCOS

PRESIDENT Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr. on Thursday met with officials of the Energy department, which he has yet to appoint a secretary for.   

The meeting tackled the agency’s direction under the new administration, Mr. Marcos said in a post on his social media pages.  

“Amid the global crisis of rising oil prices, one of our key partners in the response is the Department of Energy,” he wrote in Filipino.   

Press Secretary Trixie Cruz-Angeles earlier said the new Philippine leader is carefully choosing the next DoE secretary, who is expected to work with various agencies to address the country’s energy woes amid increasing pressures for the government to shift to renewables. 

The shocks of high fuel costs have rocked the Philippine economy, pushing inflation last month to its highest level in almost four years.  

The next DoE chief also needs to address the declining output of the country’s natural gas field in the South China Sea.  

Fitch Solutions Country Risk & Industry Research said in a note in August last year that the depletion of the country’s only indigenous gas field is “problematic” since it accounts for 30% of Luzon’s power generation and services 20% of national demand.  

Various groups have been urging the government to heavily invest in renewables, saying the shift to green energy is the only way to solve a potential supply crisis. — Kyle Aristophere T. Atienza 

Fuel excise tax suspension will induce more economic activities — Poe 

PHILIPPINE STAR/EDD GUMBAN

SENATOR Mary Grace S. Poe-Llamanzares, who will again chair the chamber’s Public Services Committee, said a suspension of fuel excise tax to lower pump prices will not just benefit public transport drivers and delivery riders but also prompt more economic activities.    

“Taking off P6 from the price of diesel per liter during critical times can help our drivers ply their routes again. At the same time, it will lower the cost of transporting goods,” Ms. Poe said in a statement on Thursday as she refiled a bill automatically suspending the excise tax on gasoline and diesel when the average Dubai crude oil price exceeds $80 per barrel. 

“The wheels of the economy can go faster if public transport is able to move people to work or buy goods and essentials that they can afford,” she said. 

The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas has said it expects the price of Dubai crude to average about $106.30 a barrel this year from the $104.04 estimate in May.  

Gasoline, diesel and kerosene prices had jumped by P30, P45.90 and P39.75 a liter, respectively, as of June 28, according to data from the Energy department. 

Ms. Poe also questioned the government’s hesitation in losing over P100 billion in excise tax income when it will benefit drivers and workers.  

“If the government can afford to lose P251 billion to benefit big companies under the Corporate Recovery and Tax Incentives for Enterprises Act in the first two years, why can’t it do the same for our public utility drivers, delivery riders and ordinary workers who bear the brunt of higher transport costs?” she said.  

The Finance department earlier said a suspension may result in as much as P131.4 billion in foregone revenue in 2022, which will potentially hinder economic recovery.  

The proposed measure, which seeks to amend section 148 of the National Internal Revenue Code, will “immediately snip off P10 from the price of gasoline per liter and P6 from the price of diesel,” Ms. Poe said. 

At the start of July, the minimum fare in traditional jeepneys rose to P11 nationwide and to P13 for their modern counterparts.  

The senator cited estimates that 20% of the 900,000 jeepney drivers have left the trade due to losses from high pump prices. 

The country’s inflation rate in June rose to its highest level in nearly four years, with the consumer price index accelerating to 6.1% year on year, the Philippine Statistics Authority reported on Tuesday. — Alyssa Nicole O. Tan 

House bill on mandatory bank secrecy waiver for gov’t officials, workers refiled

PHILSTAR FILE PHOTO

PROGRESSIVE groups have refiled a bill mandating public officials and employees to execute a bank secrecy waiver that will allow the Ombudsman to look into all their deposits.   

House Bill 1220, which seeks to amend Republic Act 6713 or an Act Establishing a Code of Conduct and Ethical Standards for Public Officials and Employees, adds an additional exception to the Bank Secrecy Law or RA 1405.  

“To fulfill existing laws, additional measures to ensure that public officials and employees adhere to the highest ethical standards are needed,” states the bill filed by ACT Teachers Rep. France L. Castro, Gabriela Women’s Rep. Arlene D. Brosas, and Kabataan Rep. Raoul Danniel A. Manuel.  

“Despite deterrents already in place like the annual filing of the Statement of Assets and Liabilities (SALN), some public officials and employees still find ways to hide undeclared income,” they said. “This in turn hampers transparent governance and anti-corruption mechanisms.”  

The proposed measure aims to combat one of the “most common legal loopholes” in the secrecy of bank deposits which becomes a cloak against the authority of the Ombudsman and its deputies as protectors of public trust.  

The same bill was previously filed in the 17th and 18th Congress. — Alyssa Nicole O. Tan

Ex-Defense chief Lorenzana to head BCDA 

MALACANANG PHOTO

FORMER Defense chief Delfin N. Lorenzana has been tapped by President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr. to lead the Bases Conversion and Development Authority (BCDA), according to the Department of National Defense (DND). 

Mr. Lorenzana took his oath as the BCDA chairperson on Thursday, the DND said in a statement. 

The BCDA is a government-owned and controlled development corporation created by law to develop former US military reservations and properties, including what used to be the Subic naval and Clark air bases.

“The BCDA has contributed to the funding of the Armed Forces of the Philippines Modernization Program over the years,” the DND said, noting that the military has been the BCDA’s major beneficiary. — Kyle Aristophere T. Atienza 

SC suspends metro court judge over homophobic remarks   

PHILSTAR FILE PHOTO

THE SUPREME COURT (SC) has suspended a first level court judge for making inappropriate comments about the sexual orientation of two litigants during a preliminary conference.  

In an 18-page decision dated Mar. 9 and made public on July 6, the High Court ruled that Manila Metropolitan Trial Court Branch 26 Presiding Judge Emmanuel M. Lorredo showed conduct “unbecoming of a judge for his homophobic remarks after he imposed his religious beliefs in the conduct of his judicial functions.” 

The court suspended Mr. Lorredo without pay for 30 days and ordered him to pay a fine of P50,000 for misconduct. 

Under the New Code of Judicial Conduct, judges must ensure equal treatment of anyone in court regardless of race, sex, religion, age, sexual orientation, and social-economic status.  

The court noted that Mr. Lorredo admitted to settling 101 lawsuits based on the Bible and his religious beliefs, which does not conform to his duty as a judge to act impartially at all times.  

In 2019, a complaint was filed by the litigants against the judge after he repeatedly asked them if they were homosexuals and stressed that homosexuality was a “sin.”  

The tribunal also said that Mr. Lorredo had violated the Civil Service Commission’s (CSC) disciplinary rules on sexual harassment cases as his action led to discrimination and humiliation of the litigants.  

Under the CSC rules, degrading remarks or innuendoes towards an individual’s sexual orientation are classified as a less grave offense. 

“As front-liners who serve as the visible representations of the judicial branch at the grassroots level, judges must avoid not only impropriety but the appearance of impropriety,” the High Court said. — John Victor D. Ordoñez 

Baguio mulls centralized parking for weekend tourists, use of hop on-hop off bus service

BAGUIO PIO

THE BAGUIO City government is looking into the revival of hop on-hop off bus services and requiring weekend tourists to park their private vehicles at the Baguio Convention Center to lessen road congestion in the popular mountain destination.   

“In just one day, we may have an accumulated tourists of 30,000 in a day during peak season and this will really cause traffic all over the city, particularly along Botanical Garden and Mines View Park,” City Tourism Office Supervising Administrative Officer Aloysius C. Mapalo said in a press release from the local government on Wednesday.   

Citing data from the portal visita.baguio.gov.ph, the city information office said there had been an average of 50,000 to 60,000 weekly tourist arrivals since pandemic restrictions were lifted. Of these, about 40,000 arrive from Friday to Sunday.  

“Supposing half of the daily tourist arrivals have their own cars, we can estimate more than 800 vehicles passing Botanical Garden during weekdays and even more during weekends so really there is a lot of traffic in the area,” Mr. Mapalo said.   

The “HoHo” buses will cover a route from the Baguio Convention Center, passing through the city’s tourist spots — including Botanical Garden, Mansion House, Mines View Park, Wright Park via Gibraltar Road — then through South Drive to the drop off point at Governor Pack Road, from where tourists can just walk to the central business district and Burnham Park.   

“The idea is ‘park and ride’ to decongest private vehicles parking in our streets and parks,” Mr. Mapalo said. 

Under the initial plan, a parking fee will be collected at the convention center and the funds will be used for operating the free HoHo services.   

Mr. Mapalo said they will adopt the current parking rates for different types of vehicles. 

Mayor Benjamin B. Magalong has directed the tourism office and the city’s Traffic and Transportation Management Division to consult the public transport sector before the implementation of the tourist bus project. — MSJ 

Davao City records 30 new COVID-19 cases, positivity rate at 6.3%

DAVAOCITY.GOV.PH

DAVAO City recorded 30 new coronavirus cases on July 6, the highest daily log since March, the local COVID-19 task force reported.  

The positivity rate was 6.3%, which is higher than the 5% acceptable threshold, task force spokesperson Michelle B. Schlosser said over the city-run radio station.   

“We previously averaged 1% to 1.5% positivity rate then it went up to three percent. From June 26 to July 2, we reached 5%. This week we have been averaging a 6% positivity rate. Admittedly, it is increasing daily,” she said.   

The city had 142 active cases as of July 6, based on data from the Department of Health’s COVID tracker. Bed occupancy was at 23.8% out of the 546 allocated beds within the city’s medical facilities.   

Ms. Schlosser said a continued increase in coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) cases could put the city under a stricter alert level by July 16.  

“If we want to remain under alert level 1 (the lowest), we have to contribute. In contributing, we have to follow the minimum public health standards, which are wearing face masks and observing hand hygiene. And then we also need to get vaccinated,” she said in a mix of English and Visayan.   

She stressed that anti-COVID-19 vaccines do not guarantee against being infected by the virus but these provide protection against the severity of the disease.  

As of end-June, the city’s booster uptake has remained low at 21% with only 278,866 getting a booster shot out of the more than 1.33 million fully vaccinated individuals.   

The city’s 18 district health centers now serve as vaccination sites, except for the immunocompromised 12-17 age group, which is catered to by a special team at the Southern Philippines Medical Center. — MSJ

Halep harnesses spirit of 2019 to race into Wimbledon semis

LONDON — Simona Halep recalls her 2019 Wimbledon final triumph as the perfect match but the message the Romanian sent out after racing into the semifinals on Wednesday was that she was back to her best and loving it.

The 16th seed blasted past American Amanda Anisimova, 6-2, 6-4, in a Centre Court clash that lasted just over an hour to set up a meeting in the last four with Russian-born 17th seeded Kazakh Elena Rybakina.

“I’m playing the best tennis since I won here. I’m building that confidence back and it is good right now,” said the former world number one, who swept aside Serena Williams in that 2019 final, before leaving the court.

The Romanian, who missed last year’s tournament through injury and is now the only former champion left in the draw, has yet to drop a set in five matches that have taken up less than six hours of her time.

She said being back in a semifinal, and at one of her favourite tournaments, was just a joy.

Last year, she had contemplated retirement due to her injuries.

“I am different as a person. I really believe that. I am stronger, like, with my emotions. I can control emotions much better. I have experience,” she said.

Halep will need that against a big-hitting opponent who has so far served 44 aces, but she said she was ready for the challenge.

“All the matches were different than in 2019. So I’m just taking the confidence, I’m taking the pleasure of being on the court,” she said.

“I think every match, I got a little bit better. I had tough opponents, and I did what I had to do every day.”

Anisimova said she could have played better, but just felt “very stiff and frozen” on court.

“It just happens, I guess. You can’t be stress-free in every single match. Just today was that way,” she said. — Reuters

Injured Nadal unsure if he can play semis vs Kyrgios

RAFA Nadal not sure on playing in semifinal of Wimbledon. — REUTERS

LONDON — Rafa Nadal provided no assurance that he would be able to turn up for his Wimbledon semifinal on Friday against Australian Nick Kyrgios after the Spaniard played through an abdominal injury to beat Taylor Fritz in an absorbing contest.

Struggling with physical ailment, Nadal appeared close to retiring mid-match on Wednesday on Centre Court but he found the will to beat Fritz in four hours and 20 minutes.

A third Wimbledon title and first since 2010 on the manicured lawns and a US Open triumph at Flushing Meadows would see the Mallorcan claim the calendar slam — a feat last achieved in 1969 by Australian great Rod Laver.

But there was no guarantee from the 36-year-old that he would be present on Centre Court to keep his historic bid going.

“I don’t know,” Nadal said when asked about his chances of playing the unseeded 27-year-old Kyrgios.

“Honestly, I can’t give you a clear answer because if I gave you a clear answer and tomorrow another thing happens, I will be a liar.”

Nadal took a medical time out against 11th-seeded Fritz during his quarterfinal outing to get treatment on the injury and said he had to adjust his game to continue playing.

The Spaniard, however, considered retiring many times during the contest.

“I just wanted to give myself a chance. Not easy to leave the tournament, not easy to leave Wimbledon, even if the pain was hard,” the 22-times Grand Slam winner said.

“I don’t know. I wanted to finish. I fought. Proud about the fighting spirit and the way that I managed to be competitive under that condition.”

Nadal said he was worried about the injury and he will undergo more scans on Thursday before making a decision about continuing to compete at the grasscourt major.

“I am used to holding pain and play with problems,” said Nadal, who played and won Roland Garros with pain-killing injections prior to each match and only confirmed his Wimbledon participation after radio frequency treatment eased pain in his foot.

“Knowing that, when I feel something like I felt, that is because something is not going the proper way in abdomen. But let’s see. I had these feelings for a couple of days. Without a doubt, today was the worst day, has been an important increase of pain and limitation,” he said. — Reuters

Split is inevitable

If there’s anything pro hoops fans now see that they didn’t seem to grasp at the start of free agency, it’s that the Nets will not be forced to make a decision on their two stars any second less than they deem fit. Kevin Durant’s trade request and Kyrie Irving’s overstayed welcome notwithstanding, the black and gray will take their time to assess the lay of the land in gauging the extent of the interest for their assets. They know how much others want their top dog; half the National Basketball Association has already contacted them, and they’ve signified their intent to insist on a bumper crop of warm bodies in exchange. Ditto their other marquee name, whose mercurial nature may have depressed his trade value, but who nonetheless counts among the 15 best in the league.

At this point, the Nets have put out the message that they will be patient throughout the process. It doesn’t matter that they themselves cannot wait to start the requisite rebuilding; inculcating a strong organizational culture takes time, and they know that the earlier they build the foundation, the better. That said, they have resolved not to be forced by circumstance to accept pennies to the dollar. And, to this end, historic trades of previous Hall of Famers are as instructive as that of Rudy Gobert this week. The three-time Defensive Player of the Year awardee is nowhere near Durant’s exclusive area code, and yet was exchanged for four rotation regulars and four first-round draft picks.

True, the Nets’ negotiating position has been eroded by their stars’ publicly stated desire to leave. Even as they insist they can keep Durant (signed for four more years) and Irving (who opted in for another season) on the roster, there’s cause to argue that they will no longer see their highest-paid players burning rubber for them. Meanwhile, those casting a moist eye on the generational talents can simply wait for the right time to pounce. The split is inevitable; it’s a matter of when, not if.

Make no mistake. The Nets are doing the right thing. They’ve reached the point of no return with Durant and Irving, but their standing is not helped by years of coddling they abetted. They’re compelled to operate in an environment where the real power lies with the very players they want to be rid of. So, yes, they’ll still be paying for their follies long after the smoke has cleared. And, yes, they need look no further than the mirror to see who to blame.

 

Anthony L. Cuaycong has been writing Courtside since BusinessWorld introduced a Sports section in 1994. He is a consultant on strategic planning, operations and Human Resources management, corporate communications, and business development.

Cost-of-living crisis driving surge in extreme poverty, UNDP says

A HOMELESS MAN feeds one of his dogs in Manila, Philippines, April 2, 2020. — REUTERS

LONDON — The global cost-of-living crisis is pushing an additional 71 million people in the world’s poorest countries into extreme poverty, a new report published by the U.N. Development Programme (UNDP) on Thursday has warned.

Achim Steiner, UNDP administrator, said an analysis of 159 developing countries showed that the surge in key commodity prices this year was already slamming parts of Sub-Saharan Africa, the Balkans, Asia and elsewhere.

The UNDP called for tailored action. It was seeking direct cash handouts to the most vulnerable and wanted richer nations to extend and widen out the Debt Service Suspension Initiative (DSSI) they set up to help poor countries during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“This cost-of-living crisis is tipping millions of people into poverty and even starvation at breathtaking speed,” Mr. Steiner said. “With that, the threat of increased social unrest grows by the day.”

Institutions like the UN, World Bank and International Monetary Fund have a number of ‘poverty lines’ — one for the poorest countries where people live on $1.90 or less a day. A $3.20-a-day line for lower middle-income economies and a $5.50-a-day line in upper middle-income countries.

“We project that the current cost-of-living crisis may have pushed over 51 million more people into extreme poverty at $1.90 a day, and an additional 20 million at $3.20 a day,” the report said, estimating it would push the total globally to just over 1.7 billion people.

It added that targeted cash transfers by governments would be more “equitable and cost-effective” than blanket subsidies on things like energy and food prices that richer parts of society tend to benefit more from.

“In the longer term they drive inequality, further exacerbate the climate crisis, and do not soften the immediate blow,” the UNDP’s Head of Strategic Policy Engagement, George Gray Molina, said.

The last two years of the pandemic have also shown that these cash-strapped countries would need support from the global community to fund these schemes.

They could do so, Mr. Molina said, by extending the G20-led Debt Service Suspension Initiative (DSSI) by two more years and expanding it to at least 85 countries from a currently-eligible 73. — Reuters

Heads of MI5, FBI give joint warning of growing threat from China

CHESS PIECES are seen in front of displayed China’s and US flags in this illustration taken January 25. — REUTERS

THE HEADS of MI5 and FBI warned of the growing long-term threat posed by China to UK and US interests, in their first joint appearance on Wednesday.

MI5 Director General Ken McCallum said the service has already “more than doubled our previously-constrained effort against Chinese activity of concern,” adding it was running seven times as many investigations as in 2018.

FBI Director Christopher Wray said that the Chinese government “poses the biggest long-term threat” to economic and national security, for the UK, the US and allies in Europe and elsewhere.

“The Chinese government is trying to shape the world by interfering in our politics (and those of our allies, I should add),” Mr. Wray said, saying Beijing had directly interfered in a Congressional election in New York this year, as it did not want a candidate who was a critic and former protester at Tiananmen Square to be elected.

Mr. Wray warned that the Chinese government “poses an even more serious threat to Western businesses than even many sophisticated business people realize,” and is “set on stealing your technology.”

The Chinese government’s hacking program is “bigger than that of every other major country combined,” according to Mr. Wray.

Over the past year, the UK has shared intelligence with 37 countries to help them defend against cyber espionage, Mr. McCallum said, adding that in May they had disrupted a sophisticated threat targeting critical aerospace companies.

Speaking about Taiwan, which China regards as a province, Mr. Wray said that China may try to forcibly take it over and if that were to happen, “it would represent one of the most horrific business disruptions the world has ever seen.”

“The widespread Western assumption that growing prosperity within China and increasing connectivity with the West would automatically lead to greater political freedom has, I’m afraid, been shown to be plain wrong,” Mr. McCallum said.

“The allegations against China by US and UK intelligence officials are completely groundless and the so-called cases they listed are pure shadow chasing,” a spokesperson for the Chinese embassy in the UK said, in response to a question about the comments made by Mr. McCallum and Mr. Wray.

The spokesperson said that China urged both the countries to “have a clear understanding of the trend of the time, abandon the Cold War mentality which has long gone out of date, stop spreading “China threat”, and stop creating confrontation and conflicts.”

Speaking at MI5 headquarters in Thames House, London, both the security services heads gave numerous examples of issues linked to China, asking an audience which included businessmen and academics to be cautious and encouraging them to partner with the FBI and MI5 so they can have the appropriate intelligence about this threat. — Reuters

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