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TransCo to manage revenue claims of Green Energy Auction RE participants

THE National Transmission Corp. (TransCo) will be managing the revenue claims of renewable energy (RE) developers participating in the Green Energy Auction Program (GEAP), the Department of Finance (DoF)said in a statement on Tuesday.

“This is an expansion of its role as the Feed-In Tariff Allowance (FIT-All) Fund Administrator,” the DoF said.

Finance Secretary Carlos G. Dominguez III chairs the TransCo board. GEAP is run by the Department of Energy (DoE).

Under the GEAP, the government aims to broaden the participation of RE in the power generation mix to 35% by 2030.

“The target is to cover about 2,000 megawatts (MW) of RE capacity; the bulk of which will be from solar energy, with a 1,260 MW allocation target,” TransCo President Jainal Abidin Bahjin said. “The remaining capacity is allocated to hydropower (130 MW), biomass (230 MW), and wind (380 MW),” the DoF said.

DoE Department Circular 2021-11-0036, which set the guidelines for the GEAP, was issued on Nov. 3, 2021. A Notice of Auction for the RE capacity was issued on Feb. 9, 2022.

The DoE launched the auction on June 17, with participants offering 1,966.3 MW of indigenous energy between 2023 and 2025. — Diego Gabriel C. Robles

Tribunal rejects lawsuits vs Marcos presidency

PHILIPPINE STAR/KRIZ JOHN ROSALES

By John Victor D. Ordoñez, Reporter

THE SUPREME Court has denied petitions seeking to bar President-elect Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr. from the May election, paving the way for his proclamation as the Philippine’s 17th president on June 30.

In a statement on Tuesday, the High Court’s Public Information Office said the tribunal unanimously dismissed the appeals in a 13-0 vote.

Two associate justices with ties to the Commission on Elections (Comelec) did not take part in the deliberations.

“The court held that in the exercise of its power to decide the present controversy led them to no other conclusion but that respondent Marcos Jr. is qualified to run for and be elected to public office,” it said.

“Likewise, his certificate of candidacy, being valid and in accord with the pertinent law, was rightfully upheld by the Commission on Elections.”

A full copy of the ruling penned by SC Associate Justice Rodil V. Zalameda has yet to be made public by the court.

SC Associate Justice Antonio T. Kho, Jr. inhibited himself from the decision since he was a Comelec commissioner and was part of the division that rejected one of several lawsuits that sought to cancel Mr. Marcos’ candidacy based on tax violations.

Associate Justice Henri Jean-Paul B. Inting also did not join in the deliberations as he is the brother of acting Comelec Chairperson Socorro B. Inting.

Martial law victims and taxpayers brought their separate petitions last month before the Supreme Court, seeking to reverse the Comelec en banc’s decision affirming that Mr. Marcos was eligible to run.

Mr. Marcos went into exile in Hawaii with his family during the February 1986 uprising that ended the almost two-decade autocratic rule of his father and namesake, Ferdinand E. Marcos, Sr.

He had served as a congressman and senator since his return to the Philippines in 1991.

The office of Mr. Marcos had yet to issue a comment on the court ruling as of press time.

INAUGURATION
Meanwhile, his inauguration in the capital Manila on June 30 will be “solemn and simple,” his office said in a press release on Tuesday.

“It would be very traditional,” Franz Imperial, one of the organizers, was quoted as saying. “He himself said in his vlog that we will not veer away from the tradition.”

There will be a 30-minute military-civil parade, to be followed by the signing of a patriotic song that was popular during Marcos Sr.’s rule.

The press release did not mention the focus of the president-elect’s speech and the issues that he will raise during his first day in office.

Mr. Marcos Jr. will deliver his speech without the aid of a teleprompter, his team said.

On the same day, the President-elect will induct his Cabinet members and hold his first meeting with them “immediately after,” the Marcos team said.

An inaugural reception will be held at the presidential palace in the evening for officials and foreign dignitaries who “wish to call on the new president,” it added.

Mr. Marcos won by a landslide in the May 9 election, which academics consider a make-or-break moment for Philippine democracy.

Thousands of activists and ordinary people have been killed and harassed during his father’s martial rule, according to Amnesty International.

The administration of the younger Marcos will be closely watched by domestic and international groups, the Asia Pacific Research Network (APRN) said in an e-mailed statement.

“We are already alarmed with the human rights crisis in the country and we are seeing that this will continue in the next administration,” it said.

Former Australian Senator Lee Rhiannon, who met with the group in a recent event, said in the release that “the world [will continue to watch the Philippines] but this time with more vigilance.”

Authorities said all is set for the inauguration ceremony at the National Museum, with some 15,000 security forces to be deployed.

Protests will only be allowed in designated freedom parks. Manila Police District Director Leo M. Francisco warned that those who will hold their protest actions around and near the venue will be “sent home.”

Gabriela Party-list Rep. Arlene D. Brosas called the planned security measures an “overkill” and reflect the “misplaced anxieties” of the police and the military.

The leader of the group representing women said protesters only aim to “peacefully exercise their constitutional right to free speech.”— with Kyle Aristophere T. Atienza and Alyssa Nicole O. Tan

Philippine elections fell short, human rights group says

PHILIPPINE STAR/ MIGUEL DE GUZMAN

A GLOBAL human rights coalition on Tuesday said the May national and local elections in the Philippines did not meet the standards of free, honest, and fair voting due to numerous reports of human rights violations and incidents pointing to fraud.

In a statement, the International Coalition for Human Rights in the Philippines (ICHRP) said its International Observer Mission (IOM) concluded that the elections did not provide voters access to reliable information, freedom from intimidation, and a credible vote-counting system.

“The observers reported that the May elections showed a higher level of failure of the electronic voting system than ever before, along with a higher level of blatant vote-buying, a disturbing level of red-tagging of candidates and parties, as well as a number of incidents of deadly violence,” said former Australian senator and IOM Commissioner Lee Rhiannon.

“A large number of voters did not get to cast their vote and many had to trust that election officials would later put their marked ballot paper through a Vote Counting Machine, thus undermining the secrecy of the vote,” she added.

The IOM was a collaboration between the international coalition and local election watchdog Kontra Daya that had participation from academics around the world.

ICHRP stressed the need for the Commission on Elections (Comelec) and lawmakers to review the automated election system and introduce reforms that would discourage political dynasties from being elected.

Acting Comelec Spokesperson John Rex C. Laudiangco earlier called into question the group’s initial report, citing a lower number of election-related violent incidents. He also asserted that the Comelec did everything “according to the law and in fact above and beyond the call of the law.” — John Victor D. Ordoñez

Kyrie Irving exercises option to stay with Nets in 2022-23

IN AN apparent change of heart, Kyrie Irving exercised his option with the Brooklyn Nets for the 2022-2023 season, The Athletic and ESPN reported on Monday evening.

The star point guard’s decision came hours after reports said that he was expected to decline the $36.5-million option — and that the Nets gave him permission to seek a partner for a sign-and-trade.

Instead, Irving will return for his fourth season in Brooklyn.

“Normal people keep the world going, but those who dare to be different lead us into tomorrow. I’ve made my decision to opt in. See you in the fall. A11even,” Irving said in a statement to The Athletic.

The Athletic also reported that Irving passed on “multiple opt-in and trade scenarios” to see out the rest of his original four-year contract with the Nets.

Irving faced a Wednesday deadline to exercise the option. His decision means that he is eligible to sign a long-term extension with the Nets until Thursday.

The Nets made Irving a “real offer” on a long-term contract in the past week, per ESPN, but are hesitant to offer a new four-year deal.

ESPN reported on Monday that the Los Angeles Lakers were the only team with known interest in a sign-and-trade deal. The Lakers had only the $6-million midlevel exception to offer Irving and likely would have needed a third team to help facilitate any trade with the Nets.

Irving, 30, has missed 123 of 226 possible games with the Nets since joining the team in 2019.

Irving averaged 27.8 points and 5.8 assists per game in 2021-2022, though the sample size was limited due to his stance on the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccine. Irving wasn’t allowed to play home games until the final month of the regular season.

Irving reportedly provided the Nets a list of teams to whom he would approve a sign-and-trade deal, which caught Kevin Durant’s attention, reports said. Durant is not expected to seek alternatives now that Irving is remaining with the Nets. — Reuters

Serena returns to Wimbledon hoping to banish ghosts of 2021

SERENA Williams ahead of the 2022 Wimbledon Championships at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club, Wimbledon. — REUTERS

NEARLY a year to the day since Serena Williams last played a singles match on the Tour, the tennis great returns to Wimbledon’s Centre Court where her awe-inspiring career almost came to a tearful end.

Chasing a record-equaling 24th Grand Slam singles crown, sixth seed Williams limped out of her first round match last year with an injury and the sport suddenly had a void to fill as she took a year off to “heal physically and mentally.”

Now, three months shy of her 41st birthday, Williams is ranked 1,204 in the world and the American needed a wild card to play at Wimbledon where she has won the title seven times.

She has only two doubles matches at Eastbourne under her belt going into the year’s third major where she takes on France’s Harmony Tan.

However, Williams was glad Wimbledon broke with tradition and allowed players to practice on the iconic Centre Court to avoid a repeat of them slipping on the lush green grass.

While Williams chases an elusive 24th major, world number one Iga Świątek is busy chasing records herself and will put a 35-match winning streak — the best in the 21st century — on the line on the same court when she takes on Jana Fett.

Poland’s Świątek has not lost since February, but the 21-year-old comes into Wimbledon without playing a match on grass after she skipped the tune-up tournament in Berlin due to a shoulder issue. — Reuters

Alcaraz survives five-set whirlwind to reach Wimbledon second round

LONDON — It might not have been the workout Carlos Alcaraz was hoping for as he nursed a sore elbow but the Spaniard showed why he is considered the next big thing as he toppled Jan-Lennard Struff 4-6, 7-5, 4-6, 7-6(3), 6-4 in the Wimbledon first round.

The 19-year-old has enjoyed an incredible season on clay and hardcourts — winning titles in Rio, Miami, Barcelona and Madrid — and on Monday he proved he has the skills and mental belief to succeed on the sport’s slickest surface.

Despite still being a grasscourt novice, fifth seed Alcaraz did not let German Struff’s 218-kph hurtling serves or the disappointment of losing two of the opening three sets faze him.

Facing an opponent he described as “big serve, big shots,” Alcaraz kept his nerve to fire down 30 aces and produced an assortment of breathtaking passing shots to secure only his second ever win on grass.

In their only previous meeting, Struff beat Alcaraz in straight sets in the third round at last year’s Roland-Garros.

But since that showdown, their careers have headed in opposite directions. — Reuters

Reliability

It’s easy to categorize Kyrie Irving’s decision to opt in to the last year of his contract with the Nets as a no-brainer. After all, the option is worth a whopping $36.5 million, a not inconsiderable sum under any circumstance and carrying even more value in light of the small fortune he lost over the last year. Because he managed to suit up in only 29 regular-season games owing to his firm commitment to stay unvaccinated against the COVID-19 virus, he was docked around $17 million in salary. Meanwhile, he stands to give up even more moolah in the face of his imminent divorce with Nike.

To argue that Irving is easy to figure out would, however, necessitate engaging in revisionist history. In fact, there’s nothing easy about him — and not simply because of his partiality to conspiracy theories and scientifically debunked positions. And, make no mistake, he wanted to leave the Nets following the latter’s refusal to provide him with a maximum contract extension. He even went so far as to identify potential sign-and-trade destinations. Given his mercurial nature, he would not have raised eyebrows had he opted out and, say, latched on to the Lakers for the $6-million midlevel exception.

That Irving managed to rein in his Hyde side is, perhaps, the surprise. Needless to say, he stuck around because of the money, and because he still has the chance to explore any and all opportunities next year. And he may well have done so because of good friend Kevin Durant and the prospect of them continuing to make beautiful music together on the court. His constant flirtation with the uncertain notwithstanding, he cannot but see the value in consorting with the devil he’s familiar with than with the devil he does not know.

Irving isn’t stupid. Considering the lack of interest in his services, he understands that he can also use his 2022-23 campaign as a means to rehabilitate his reputation. The problem isn’t his skill set; at his best, he’s a Top 15 player with an uncanny capacity to puncture the hoop. It’s his reliability — or, rather, lack thereof. He’s a high-risk-high-reward proposition, and going all in on him hasn’t seemed to be worth the aggravation. It’s why the Nets have played hardball with him, and why they may yet see him at his finest before he bids goodbye.

 

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.

Gov’t keeps Alert Level 1 for NCR and most areas

PHILIPPINE STAR/ MICHAEL VARCAS

MOST areas in the Philippines will remain under the lowest coronavirus alert up to the first half of July, according to the presidential palace, as authorities modified the matrices used to determine quarantine classifications.

Metro Manila is among the areas that will be placed under the first level of a five-scale alert system from July 1 to 15, Palace spokesman Jose Ruperto Martin M. Andanar said in a statement on Tuesday.

The national capital region (NCR), an economic powerhouse that is home to more than 13 million people, is currently under the same virus alert.

On the other hand, 37 areas from across the Philippines “shall be placed” under the alert system’s level 2, Mr. Andanar said.

Starting July 1, alert level classifications will be based “on the revised cross tabulation of total beds utilization rate and average daily attack rate,” the Palace official said.

He said the new matrix will remove the two-week growth rate in determining case-risk classification, which will now be based on average daily attack rates and current thresholds.

“Total beds utilization rate and its current thresholds are retained as the main metric for health system capacity.”

The positivity rate in Metro Manila had reached 5.9% on June 25 from 3.9% on June 18, monitoring group OCTA Research said on Monday.

TESTING
Mr. Andanar, in a separate statement, said unvaccinated on-site workers in both public and private sectors in areas under alert level 2 and higher must either undergo RT-PCR tests once every two weeks or take weekly antigen tests.

“In areas where there are sufficient supplies of COVID-19 vaccines, all establishments and employers in the public and private sector shall require their eligible employees who are tasked to do on-site work to be vaccinated against COVID-19,” he said.

The new testing rules are waived in alert level 1 areas “subject to the implementation of clinical-based management, including symptomatic testing.”

The Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (TUCP) said mandatory testing and vaccination “will create unemployment and underemployment opportunities in the light of our economy striving to recover from the pandemic adversity.”

The policy, which critics view as anti-poor, would derail business recovery, reduce production, and make workers lose their competitiveness, TUCP said in a statement.

It said that testing should be made free and accessible because if not, “workers and their families will sacrifice some more because a bigger part of their salaries will, again, go to payment for the cost of periodic testing alone.” — Kyle Aristophere T. Atienza

Solo parents to get more benefits with new law 

PHILIPPINE STAR/ WALTER BOLLOZOS

A CONGRESS-approved bill that grants additional benefits to solo parents became a law without President Rodrigo R. Duterte’s signature. 

The measure, which lapsed into law on June 4, provides solo parents with additional work leave, scholarship and cash subsidy, and priority status in government low-cost housing projects.  

The new law has shortened the period before someone can be declared a single parent to six months from the previous one year. 

It expands the legally-recognized meaning of a single parent, considering “any legal guardian, adoptive or foster parent who solely provides parental care and support to a child or children.” 

Under the law, solo parents are entitled to a forfeitable and noncumulative parental leave of not more than seven days every year.  

The law also directs education institutions to provide scholarships or grants to qualified children of solo parents.

It entitles solo parents who earn minimum wage and below to an additional financial support of as much as 1,000 every month. 

“I am elated that the Expanded Solo Parents Welfare Act has been passed into law,” Senator Ana Theresia “Risa” N. Hontiveros, one of the measure’s proponents, said in a statement.  

“I share this victory with the millions of solo parents in our country,” she said. “This is a victory for solo parents like me.” 

The new law also grants single-parents who are earning less than P250,000 a year a 10% discount and exemption from the value-added tax on various goods for children up to six years old. — Kyle Aristophere T. Atienza 

Palace supports filing of charges vs those linked to agri smuggling 

BUREAU OF CUSTOMS

THE PRESIDENTIAL Palace on Tuesday said charges should be filed against the 22 officials and personalities allegedly involved in the smuggling of agriculture products into the country. 

A report by the Senate Committee of the Whole indicated that around P667.5 million worth of agri-fishery products were “technically smuggled” into the country from 2019 to 2022.  

“We are one with the Senate in fighting corruption in the bureaucracy,” Palace Spokesman Jose Ruperto Martin M. Andanar said in a statement.    

“File the necessary charges before the Office of the Ombudsman so officials and persons mentioned in the Senate report could be afforded due process, face their accusers, and have their day in court,” he added.  

The 63-page committee report, filed on June 1, revealed a list of “agriculture smugglers and protectors,” naming officials from the Agriculture department, Customs bureau, and local governments as well as private individuals.   

Senator Aquilino “Koko” L. Pimentel III, one of the 17 senators who signed the report, said in a statement on Tuesday: “By signing, I am not confirming that I have personal knowledge. It’s just us acknowledging that intelligence has reached the senate president,”  

The list of names provided is not yet “comprehensive,” he added, so it would be a good idea to continue the probe in the next Congress.  

Senator-elect Robinhood Ferdinand “Robin” C. Padilla said it would not be enough to just remove the accused officials from their position.  

“If those in government positions lack accountability, they can’t stop at apologies,” he told reporters in Filipino in a press conference.  

Some of the officials cited in the report have denied the accusations and expressed readiness to face allegations in court.  

Senate President Vicente C. Sotto III, who led the investigation, has said that a copy of the list has been personally given to President-elect Ferdinand “Bongbong” R. Marcos, Jr., who will concurrently serve as Agriculture secretary.  

“Smuggling is really one of our biggest problems today,” Mr. Pimentel said.  

The report cited weaknesses in the prosecution of smuggling cases, failure to digitalize inspection processes, and lack of first border inspection. — Alyssa Nicole O. Tan 

Over 600,000 tricycle drivers to receive fuel subsidy  

ZAMBOANGA CIO

THE DEPARTMENT of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) on Tuesday announced that 617,806 tricycle drivers nationwide will be receiving fuel cash subsidy under the agency’s program to address rising fuel prices. 

In a statement, DILG Secretary Eduardo M. Año said the cash assistance will be distributed by the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) through e-wallet platforms, state-owned Land Bank of the Philippines (LANDBANK), and other off-site payout sites of local government units.  

“We hope this fuel subsidy will help those tricycle drivers who are suffering because of the constant rise in oil prices,” he said in Filipino. “We hope this would give relief to these drivers.”  

In March, the LTFRB started releasing fuel subsidy for other public transport operators and drivers, and said it was waiting for the beneficiary list of tricycle and delivery drivers from the DILG.  

Mr. Año noted the subsidy will be distributed in three batches.  

The first batch will be for the 539,395 tricycle drivers who will receive the cash aid through their e-wallet accounts; the second batch will be for the 73,233 who will avail of LANDBANK’S over-the-counter services; and the third will cover 5,178 drivers who will use on-site payout sites of local governments.   

“All those included in the master list of qualified tricycle drivers will receive a fuel subsidy,” he said. “Let us just wait for additional details from the LTFRB.”  

The DILG said about 766,590 tricycle drivers submitted their names for the master list, but 148,784 were disqualified due to lack of requirements and failing to meet the deadline.  

Mr. Año also urged city and municipal mayors to establish help desks for the beneficiaries.  

Oil companies imposed another round of price hike on Tuesday. From the start of the year to June 14, pump prices of diesel, gasoline, and kerosene have gone up by P41.15, P28.70, and P37.95, respectively. — John Victor D. Ordoñez 

Samar coastal road partially opened 

DPWH

THE ₱1.126-billion Samar Pacific Coastal Road project in central Philippines is now partially open, the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) announced on Tuesday.  

An initial eight-kilometer stretch of the 11.6-km coastal road in Northern Samar province and its Simora Bridge component, part of the government’s Build Build Build infrastructure program, were inaugurated Monday.    

DPWH Undersecretary Emil K. Sadain said the past four years of construction proved to be “challenging” with about 29 typhoons and pandemic restrictions affecting the project. 

“The partial opening of the Samar Pacific Coastal Road is a huge step to…provide comfortable and improved interconnectivity that will support sustainable agricultural development, and contribute to food self-sufficiency program and in sustaining peace and development efforts in Northern Samar,” he said.

Northern Samar Governor Edwin C. Ongchuan noted that without the coastal road, travel to and from several remote towns required “multiple boat rides.”

The project, with funding assistance from the Republic of Korea through the Export-Import Bank of Korea (KEXIM), forms part of the Samar Island circumferential road, according to Mr. Sadain. 

Construction of the remaining three-kilometer, two-lane road with two more bridges are ongoing with the bridges at an average completion rate of about 50%, DPWH said.  

The road traverses the coastal municipalities of Palapag, Laoang and Catubig where residents are mainly engaged in coconut and rice farming. — MSJ

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