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New job markets for the New Normal

At the close of 2019, in what seems to be a lifetime ago, the Philippines was one of the most dynamic economies in the Asia-Pacific region. With increasing urbanization, a large and young population, and a growing middle class, the vibrant labor market was supported by strong consumer demand. The unemployment rate was at its lowest in contemporary history, at 5.3%, and so was underemployment, at 14.8%. The spread of the contagious coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in 2019, however, led to an economic and labor market shock affecting not only the production of goods and services but also consumption and demand. Businesses of all sizes faced serious challenges and while the Philippine government deployed wage subsidy schemes to minimize job losses, most micro, small and medium enterprises’ (MSMEs) liquidity plummeted. Travel bans, quarantine restrictions, and costly sanitation measures as well as the loss of the purchasing public due to the growing environment of uncertainty and fear led most firms to delay the hiring of workers or, worse, retrench its employees. As of last January, an estimated 17.6% of Filipinos were unemployed and without any source of income.

Even before COVID-19 accelerated the demise of archaic institutions and traditional ways of doing work, the fourth technological revolution has likewise challenged the Philippines’ reliance on industrialization and its capacity to generate high-paying jobs as a path towards economic growth. The Philippine labor market, now more than ever, is in need of investment in training, skills, and support to help displaced workers transition into new and even better jobs.

It is time to build a new job market for the new normal.

Policy reform need not focus just on recovery alone. The Philippines needs a better labor market: an inclusive and sustainable one with a view towards the low-paid workers, young and inexperienced graduates, women, ethnic minorities, self-employed, informal, and fixed-term workers. The following strategies can be deployed as the Philippines needs a “whole of society” approach in combining quick acting measures with lasting solutions involving government workers, private enterprises, and taxpayers.

Firstly, investment in skills development is a must — either in terms of reskilling, upskilling, or training in highly technical and soft skills. Current initiatives in Congress such as the reforms in the Apprenticeship Program and “21st Century Skills Act” or House Bill No. 7671 by Albay Representative Joey Salceda — are good platforms in bridging the skills gap of Filipino workers to match the increasingly modernizing and technical labor demands. These programs need not be targeted to new entrants in the labor market only, but, due to the layoffs caused by the economic effects of COVID-19, expanded to include the unemployed and underemployed. Government should invest in the cost apprenticeship training, either in terms of reducing on-site training cost, providing incentives to companies that embark on upskilling programs, or employment facilitation to support those who cannot be hired by employers or looking to transition to new jobs.

Secondly, there is a need to strengthen unemployment insurance to improve income security while employees transition to new jobs or train to acquire new skill sets. Marikina Representative Stella Quimbo’s House Bill No. 7028 or the “PhilJobs Act of 2020” can aid in providing a cushion of, at most, three months salary payments to an employee to provide for a means for subsistence during his/her job search or a training allowance during the upskilling or reskilling period. Tripartite dialogue measures should also be conducted to include and improve on the portability of pension benefits for retiring employees.

Finally, and similar to the business stimulus granted by Vietnam, the government can set up local economic zones called “Special Employment and Recovery Zones” to be placed in labor-intensive, relatively low-skilled plants in high density and/or high unemployment areas. Major features of these special recovery zones would be fiscal incentives for employers to invest in or borrow loans against the government to set up new enterprises within the zone, provide for flexible wages and tenure arrangements based on competency programs or certifications, with health and labor standards to be overseen by a zone Commissioner. If pilot zones prove successful in generating investment and employment, nationwide deployment and labor reforms can be the next step.

The COVID-19 pandemic has rewritten institutional and social narratives; it is also time we rewrite our economic and policy models. While the current economic downturn has gutted obsolete and non-essential industries, it is time to usher in new labor markets for the new normal and not by ignoring structural inequalities but forming inclusive and sustainable skills markets by “building back better.”

 

Kristine C. Francisco-Alcantara is the Managing Partner of Abad Alcantara and Associates and is a Member of the Board of Trustees of the Foundation for Economic Freedom.

AAALaw@tradelawyers.ph

www.tradelawyers.ph

Rethinking to defeat the new COVID-19 surge

The government’s hospital hotline has been “overwhelmed with calls.” The mobile phones of hospital staff have been “ringing nonstop.” And “pop-up” hospitals are being installed. The healthcare system is being crushed by an unprecedented COVID-19 surge.

It is a no-brainer that a strict lockdown is necessary. The government’s decision to impose enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) from March 29 to April 4 is a forced move, a reactive move. It should have been done earlier, precisely to prevent the unprecedented surge.

At the onset of the new surge, the push was for reopening the economy. But as the virus further spread, the government introduced a “bubble,” which fellow columnist Diwa Guinigundo said “would hardly suffice.” The “bubble” in the form of a localized lockdown was inadequate because, in Diwa’s words, “we don’t have that luxury” of enforcing “a localized lockdown and selective easing of health protocols.”

In Vietnam, for example, says Diwa, “health authorities have the capability to trace the whereabouts of their citizens. In times of viral outbreaks, the health authorities could easily identify the specific areas of highest incidence and trace the relevant people.”

But in the Philippines, our lack of a centralized contact tracing system and the failure in coordination between local government units (LGUs) and between LGUs and the central government, inter alia, make granular lockdowns ineffective. Thus, the government has belatedly accepted having an ECQ.

In March 2020, Tomas Pueyo developed the “hammer and dance” strategy to manage the COVID-19 pandemic. According to Pueyo, most countries successful in containing the virus undergo two phases: the hammer and the dance.

The hammer phase entails strict lockdowns when cases rise, with the goal of getting the spread of the virus under control as quickly as possible, buying time to strengthen testing, contact tracing, and treatment infrastructure. The dance phase that follows is a period of gradually reopening the economy while keeping the virus’ reproduction number low through extensive testing, contact tracing, isolation, and quarantine. During the “dance,” the government should be open to the possibility of re-implementing lockdowns in case of new surges.

Although the hammer and dance are proven to be effective, our leaders seem more inclined to “dance and dance,” offbeat and with no lead dancer, at that. In February, the government loosened general community quarantine (GCQ) restrictions without putting in place measures necessary to safeguard people’s health and wellbeing. As a result, we continue to suffer from ineffective contact tracing, dysfunctional referral systems for patients, and substandard isolation facilities, to name a few.

With a record-high surge of almost 110,000 active cases and health systems in disarray, some leaders and opinion-makers were still reluctant to implement a strict lockdown.

The usual argument is that due to the high incidence of lockdown-induced hunger, unemployment, and non-COVID-19 illnesses, localized or granular lockdowns are our only option to contain the virus while protecting jobs and livelihoods.

Our view is that prematurely reopening the economy at a time that the virus threatens to overwhelm the healthcare system will have the perverse effect of further scarring the economy.

We need to struggle with a false dichotomy between health and the economy. One thing is for sure: The central task is flattening the curve and prioritizing public health. COVID-19 is our number one problem, and the economy is the collateral damage.

Even the rise of non-COVID-19 diseases and deaths is the indirect consequence of the pandemic. The health system and the healthcare workers are overburdened or over-exhausted, preventing them from attending to all COVID and non-COVID patients.

Patients postpone medical visits because they fear getting infected when they leave home. Doctors, too, close their clinics because they, too, fear the virus, or because the outpatients postpone their visits.

We can only facilitate economic recovery and address hunger, unemployment and illness by sharply lowering the virus’ infection rate through the appropriate and adaptive use of a range of instruments, medical and non-medical. In this manner, we are able to serve the total health of the people. In turn, this will renew people’s confidence or stimulate their “animal spirits.” Economic recovery will follow.

Countries (like China, New Zealand, and Vietnam) that have contained the virus have likewise been able to facilitate economic recovery. Lockdown restrictions per se are not the root cause of hunger, unemployment and illnesses. Regardless of quarantine policy, the people’s ability to work, feed their families, and seek treatment for illnesses is constrained by a high incidence of virus infection. Loss-aversion or risk-aversion will not go away as long as the virus remains threatening.

Consumer confidence was far from returning to pre-pandemic levels despite the relaxation of mobility restrictions in late 2020 and early 2021. Mobility data from Google showed that despite the loosening of quarantine restrictions, Filipinos mostly left their homes to work and buy essential goods in groceries and drugstores. They themselves have curtailed non-essential activities like going to restaurants and recreational facilities.

No number of pronouncements from government officials can encourage the public to go out if they do not feel protected from the virus or assured that the government has the capability to contain new outbreaks.

Lockdown remains as a tool to contain the virus, especially during a surge and in the absence of effective test-trace-treat systems. But of course, we all wish to avoid drastic lockdowns. They can only be temporary, and they have their limitations.

Our previous lockdowns failed because they were not done right. The timeout or respite that we gained from lockdowns did result in bringing down transmissions only for a short interval. But because the lockdowns were done improperly — the World Bank described our lockdowns as “super-draconian” and “porous,” the gains could not be sustained.

We interpret “super-draconian” measures as those that are punitive, militarized, and rigid. On the other hand, the lockdowns we had were “porous,” arising from among other things: inconsistent or contradicting policies, coordination failure, poor communications, non-compliance with rules by officials themselves.

What is central is to put in place the robust and sustainable interventions. The following reforms must be implemented soonest: consolidating contact tracing among local government units by having interoperability of different applications; establishing an efficient referral system for patients; providing adequate and safe public transport; and ensuring that workplaces follow minimum health protocols like proper ventilation.

Moreover, aggressive fiscal policy is vital to ensure financing for health and social amelioration, given that the economy creating jobs and incomes will not bounce back soon.

The worry over heavy borrowing is misplaced, as we have the capacity to repay.

Structural reforms, especially tax reforms, have been put in place. Low interest rates globally and nationally and the potential for high growth combine for sustainable debt servicing in the future. Furthermore, if we cut unnecessary items such as the counter-insurgency and intelligence funds, budget reallocation can provide additional spending.

Social protection for the vulnerable is the government’s responsibility. We cannot force people to make a daily choice between being stricken by the virus and dying of hunger.

The government cannot use the steep numbers of hungry and unemployed Filipinos to reopen the economy, while simultaneously refusing to provide them with relief. The opening of the economy, to repeat, cannot be willed. Control the virus first, to pave the way for the economy’s gradual reopening. While that is being done, the government must provide relief to the poor, the hungry and the unemployed.

One year into the pandemic, we clearly know the basics in flattening the curve. The problem is that the basics are being violated. We now have to rethink and overhaul governance, demand accountability, have good strategic communication, and ensure inclusiveness of all stakeholders in decision-making.

Winning the war against COVID-19 requires a reframing of the policy debate. We cannot allow ourselves to believe that health and economic policy objectives are mutually exclusive in fighting COVID-19. They go hand in hand, and containing the virus by smartly deploying the full panoply of instruments is the way to recovery.

 

Pia Rodrigo, Eddie Dorotan, And Filomeno S. Sta. Ana III are members of Action for Economic Reforms (AER). Ms. Rodrigo is AER’s communications officer, Dr. Dorotan is the convener of the COVID-19 Action Network, and Mr. Sta. Ana is AER’s coordinator.

Suez shows civilization is more vulnerable than we think

A GUST OF WIND was all it took to bring global container flows and oil shipments to a halt. The errant container ship that blocked the Suez Canal this week has cut off a route that handles more than 10% of international trade.

Part of this situation was simply unfortunate: Egypt has expanded parts of the canal to enable two-way traffic and accommodate larger carriers. The Ever Given ship went off course and got stuck in part of the waterway that’s still narrow.

But it’s also a reminder that even an advanced civilization like ours has points of acute vulnerability. In the strategy and military realm, such bottlenecks are also known as “choke points.” And we often don’t pay enough attention to them until something goes wrong.

Systems designers strive to avoid these single points of failure, so that transport, energy, and communication networks are able to withstand attacks or unexpected calamities. (The twin crashes involving a Boeing 737 Max are one example of a flawed design — a single sensor gave faulty readings to the plane’s automated flight system.) Technological advances and globalization were also supposed to make us less susceptible to this type of problem. The internet, for example, was conceived as a decentralized system that’s pretty difficult to break, as was Bitcoin.

But global infrastructure, defined broadly, still has a surprising number of pinch points. These can be difficult to remedy, as creating back-up options is expensive and counteracts economies of scale. In some cases, the problem is even getting worse: Industries are becoming more concentrated due to corporate takeovers. Furthermore, big chunks of our lives are now mediated by just a handful of technology companies. Nokia Oyj, Ericsson AB, and China’s Huawei Technologies Co. Ltd. control about 60% of the telecoms equipment market, for example.

The upshot is that governments are now more cognizant of the political and economic power held by those who control choke points. It’s one reason why the US has big concerns about Huawei’s involvement in building critical 5G networks.

But first, back to canals. Our creator did a fine job with Planet Earth but if you were to nit-pick, she perhaps didn’t think enough about the needs of the shipping and oil industries. The Panama Canal (which connects the Atlantic and Pacific oceans), the Suez Canal (linking the Mediterranean and the Red Sea), and the Strait of Hormuz (at the mouth of the Persian Gulf) are places where container ships and oil tankers are forced to navigate narrow passages. The alternative is a long detour or more expensive air freight.

For decades these waterways have been recognized as areas of huge strategic importance and as being susceptible to military or terror attacks. Iran has frequently used the Strait of Hormuz to pressure foreign powers. Various back-up routes have been mooted but most haven’t materialized. Nicaragua pitched a canal linking the Pacific and Caribbean Sea, for example, but the rumored cost of $50 billion has been prohibitive.

One can perhaps excuse vulnerabilities arising from the natural world, but we should be less accepting of those in the economic sphere over which we have more control.

Consider energy. In seeking to rid itself of one pinch point — the fact that Europe gets much of its gas via pipelines that traverse Ukraine — Germany has created another: the twin Nord Stream gas pipelines that connect Russia and Germany under the Baltic Sea. The US worries these will weaken eastern Europe and increase Germany’s dependence on Russia.

In the realm of finance, trillions of dollars of financial instruments are tied to the London interbank offered rate, which a small circle of banks found to be shockingly easy to manipulate until they were exposed in the years following the 2008 financial crisis. Libor is now being replaced. Similarly, Europe has long relied on the Swift payments system and the US dollar, but that dependence came into question in 2018 as it disagreed with the US over Iran sanctions.

In technology, people have warned for years that the US needs a back-up for the Global Positioning System, the satellite-based navigation infrastructure that underpins much of the modern digital economy. The system can be spoofed or otherwise disrupted. It has yet to develop one.

Semiconductors are where the clearest pinch points are emerging. A global computer chip shortage during the COVID-19 pandemic has forced auto manufacturers to tear up production plans. The hiatus is temporary, but this belies the real problem: Very few companies are able to produce the most advanced chips, due to the technical challenges and vast cost of constructing foundries. The most important of these, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., is based on an island that’s under constant threat of invasion by Beijing.

It’s not the only example of this industry’s dangerous concentration: ASML Holding NV of the Netherlands has a monopoly on the machines needed to fabricate the best chips. Now China’s inability to buy the most cutting edge gear from ASML is holding back its own semiconductor ambitions.

None of these choke-point problems are easy to resolve. Not only are there geopolitical ambitions at work here, but there are also usually trade-offs between building greater resilience and efficiency. Reinforcing supply chains is expensive.

But because redundancy offers protection and is therefore a public good, there’s an argument that governments should play a role in providing it. Antitrust policy, for example, can be used to challenge monopolies and foster more competition.

Because having a backup is pretty handy. You learn that when the roof falls in, or when a ship called the Ever Given snarls up the Suez Canal.

BLOOMBERG OPINION

Increasing chances for cancer survival

 

We have all lost loved ones to cancer. Personally, I lost my father-in-law and my best friend to pancreatic cancer. Last July, I also lost my brother to lung cancer. If there is anything I learned about this insidious disease, it is that it cannot be stopped if not immediately treated. It must be detected early and managed accordingly.

Last year, 19.3 million people worldwide were afflicted with cancer, ten million of whom succumbed to the disease. One out of every five people develop cancer during their lifetime. One in eight men and one in 11 women die from the disease, eventually.

The survival rate of cancer within the first five years of diagnosis varies according to cancer type. A pre-COVID-19 oncological study conducted in the United Kingdom revealed that survival rates can go as high as 83.2% and 81.1% for prostate and breast cancer, respectively. It is at 60.2% for cervical cancer, 56.6% for rectal cancer, 53.8 for colon cancer, 47% for leukemia and 36.9% for ovarian cancer. The survival rate plunges for stomach cancer at 18.5%, lung cancer at 9.6%, and liver cancer at 9.3%. Survival rates are even lower these days in light of COVID-19. Studies show that patients with cancer who contract COVID-19 are 16 times more likely to progress to a severe or critical stage.

In the Philippines, 153,751 new cancer cases were reported last year, 44% of them were males and 56% were females. Incidences of cancer accelerate progressively as we age. For men, the probability of acquiring the disease doubles after his 55th birthday. For women it progressively increases beginning the age of 40. Among males, the most common types of cancer are lung, colorectal, prostate, liver, and leukemia. For women, it is breast, cervix-uteri, colorectal, lung, and ovarian. A total of 92,606 cancer-related deaths were reported in the country last year.

According to the World Health Organization, the number of cancer cases in the Philippines will rise to 275,000 a year by 2040 if the disease is not mitigated.

To address the cancer menace, the Philippine legislature signed the Universal Health Care Act and the National Integrated Cancer Control Act (NICCA) into law in February 2019.

NICCA is an internationally acclaimed law that comprehensively maps the path forward to strengthen cancer control, increase cancer survivorship, and reduce the burden on patients and their families. The NICCA law is meant to supplement Republic Act 11223 or the Universal Health Care Act. Together, these laws should reduce the mortality rate of non-communicable diseases, including cancer, by 30% by the year 2030.

Although the enabling laws were signed, they have not been implemented yet. See, to activate the National Integrated Cancer Control Act requires the formation of a council to execute the law. The Office of the President is responsible for forming the council. When formed, the council will be tasked to provide technical guidance, support, and oversee the full implementation of the law. It will act as a policy-making, planning, and coordinating body that oversees all facets of cancer control and mitigation. The council will be attached to the Department of Health.

The National Integrated Cancer Control Act is fully funded. In the General Appropriations Act of 2021 ratified last December, a budget of P756 million was appropriated for the Cancer Supportive Care and Palliative Care Medicines Access Program (CSPMAP). This will cover breast cancer, childhood cancer, and other priority cancer types.

Historically, the budget for cancer control programs fluctuated and was always insufficient. With the enactment of the law, cancer care will be better funded, opening the way for more research, mitigation programs, supportive care and palliative care.

All it takes to activate the law is for the President to appoint the members of the council and to convene it. However, the President is said to have been preoccupied with the pandemic that he has not had the time to convene the council.

Cancer victims, their families and all those in the high-risk sector are asking President Duterte to please convene the council as soon as possible. Having the NICCA law in place will increase cancer survival exponentially. After all, cancer is the more insidious killer of our people, more so than COVID-19.

 

Andrew J. Masigan is an economist

andrew_rs6@yahoo.com

Twitter @aj_masigan

Gov’t urged to provide another cash aid round amid lockdown

By Kyle Aristophere T. Atienza, Reporter

THE PHILIPPINE government should boost household spending by giving another round of cash aid to encourage companies to keep their investments amid a stringent coronavirus lockdown in the capital and nearby provinces, according to analysts.

“Even if you provide assistance to enterprises, if no customers are coming in because they don’t have money, the government will just continue to give supply-side aid for no significant gains because of low demand,” Asian Institute of Management economist John Paolo R. Rivera said in a Viber message. “Try stimulating demand first; supply will follow.”

President Rodrigo R. Duterte placed Metro Manila and the provinces of Bulacan, Cavite, Rizal and Laguna under an enhanced community quarantine from March 29 to April 4 amid a fresh surge in coronavirus infections.

Operations of a number of businesses would be reduced during the week, his spokesman Herminio L. Roque, Jr. said at the weekend.

The weeklong strict lockdown would only have a minimal impact on the economy during the Holy Week, when government and private offices and financial markets are shut on April 1 and 2, he added.

The government might extend the lockdown as both public and private hospitals inside and outside the capital region continue to be overwhelmed by the spike in coronavirus cases, analysts said.

“More families losing savings and maybe even more marginal businesses closing will just worsen economic scarring and make recovery even more difficult,”  IBON Foundation Executive Director Sonny A. Africa said in a Facebook Messenger chat.

“Demand-side solutions like substantial cash transfers to poor and low-income households are exactly what’s needed now,” he added.

Mr. Africa said extending cash aid worth about 10,000 monthly to as many as 19 million families for at least three months “would significantly relieve economic distress and help spur more rapid recovery.”

“This is not just to alleviate household suffering but also to spur demand and give micro, small and medium enterprises a good reason to stay in business,” he said. “They are also the missing link to make the huge monetary interventions have any traction because businesses will see that it can be worthwhile to start borrowing.”

The Philippine economy slumped to a record 9.5% last year as Mr. Duterte ordered one of the longest and strictest lockdowns in the world.

Mr. Roque said beneficiaries might get a smaller amount this time compared with last year.

The government should include previously ineligible families that are also affected by the strict lockdown, Terry L. Ridon, convenor of InfraWatch PH, said in a Messenger chat.

“The conditions of the two enhanced community quarantines are no different for families deprived of working contributors due to the limitations,” he said. “There should be no distinction in the daily social amelioration package rate.”

STIMULUS
“A new funding round might be necessary to cover all aspects of our coronavirus response,” Mr. Ridon said.

Mr. Africa said lawmakers should fast-track measures that seek to provide for another round of stimulus measures.

“The post-enhanced community quarantine economic rebound last year quickly lost steam and the modified enhanced lockdown in August likely contributed to this,” he said. “Employment for instance had plateaued by Oct. and is now actually even lower than in July 2020,” he added.

Mr. Africa said the enhanced lockdown this week would affect about half of the economy. “If it disrupts economic activity as much as needed to have an appreciable effect on the spread of COVID-19, then it will also significantly dampen job generation and gross domestic product straddling the first and second quarters,” he said.

“There is no more reason for economic managers to keep rejecting additional stimulus.”

Mr. Ridon said the construction sector, which makes up a significant chunk of economic output, would generate jobs for the country’s working class.

“We need to ensure that there are no further delays in implementing the major infrastructure projects around the country, whether funded by the budget of public-private partnerships,” he said.

Mr. Ridon said the government should address regulatory roadblocks that delay projects and affect job sustainability.

The Palace earlier said priority construction projects would continue during the strict lockdown, subject to the guidelines of the Public Works department.

Mr. Ridon said the government should determine whether the equipment needed to manage moderate to severe coronavirus cases are adequate. “Expanding facilities in the public tertiary hospitals may also be explored, but this will take time given budget and space constraints for expansion,” he said.

The government should focus on expanding testing capacity since it had reached a plateau of 50,000 a day, Mr. Ridon said.

“Doubling this capacity should be a main priority,” he said. “But an inquiry should nonetheless be made on why expansion reached a plateau given massive testing is a main pillar of our coronavirus response.”

The surge in coronavirus infections has weakened the country’s healthcare system, as the use rate of intensive care unit beds reached 73% in Metro Manila. A number of hospitals have said they were no longer accepting coronavirus patients.

“The only way to prevent lockdowns is to contain the pandemic with smarter public health measures to begin with,” Mr. Africa said.

More than 9,000 get coronavirus

THE DEPARTMENT of Health (DoH) reported 9,475 coronavirus infections on Sunday, bringing the total to 721,892.

The death toll rose to 13,170 after 11 more patients died, while recoveries increased by 22,000 to 603,154, it said in a bulletin.

There were 105,568 active cases, 95.5% of which were mild, 2.5% did not show symptoms, 0.7% were critical, 0.8% were severe and 0.43% were moderate.

The agency said 25 duplicates had been removed from the tally, while four recovered cases were reclassified as deaths. Seven laboratories failed to submit data on Mar. 27.

About 9.4 million Filipinos have been tested for the coronavirus as of Mar. 26, according to DoH’s tracker website.

The coronavirus has sickened about 127.3 million and killed 2.8 million people worldwide, according to the Worldometers website, citing various sources including data from the World Health Organization. About 102.6 million people have recovered, it said.

President Rodrigo R. Duterte placed Metro Manila and the provinces of Bulacan, Cavite, Laguna and Rizal under the strictest lockdown level from March 29 to April 4 amid a fresh surge in cases, his spokesman Herminio L. Roque, Jr. said at the weekend.

An 11-hour curfew from 6 p.m. to 5 a.m, will also be imposed.

Meanwhile, vaccine czar Carlito G. Galvez, Jr. said the rules that would enforce the government’s vaccination program, which have been finalized, would strengthen its partnership with the private sector in the purchase and rollout of coronavirus vaccines.

The rules would also address issues about liability and support companies and local government units (LGU) that have bought vaccines for their workers and constituents, he said in a statement at the weekend.

“With the implementing rules in place, we have now set a clear pathway for LGUs and the private sector to actively take part in the nation’s vaccine procurement,” Mr. Galvez said.

“We are looking forward to strengthening our collaboration with other sectors as we continue our fight against this pandemic,” he added.

Under the rules, companies and local government may buy vaccines in coordination with the Department of Health (DOH) and National Task Force Against COVID-19, Mr. Galvez said. He did not elaborate.

Critics earlier accused health authorities of preventing certain companies from buying vaccine shots for their workers.

They also accused the agencies of requiring companies to donate half of their vaccines to the National Government.

Mr. Galvez said companies “generously offered to give a percentage of the vaccines they procured to the government, while also ensuring an adequate supply for their employees.” The companies had not been forced to donate the vaccines, he added.

He said companies led by businessmen Jose Mari A. Concepcion III, Jaime Augusto Z. Ayala, Mr. Enrique K. Razon, Lance Y. Gokongwei, Ramon S. Ang and Teresita Sy-Coson had volunteered to donate half of their vaccine supply bought from AstraZeneca, Plc.

At least 39 local governments have also entered into a supply deal with AstraZeneca.

Mr. Galvez earlier said it was AstraZeneca that required private companies to donate a portion of their vaccines to the government. — Vann Marlo M. Villegas and Kyle Aristophere T. Atienza

Some companies allowed to operate during lockdown

Outsourcing, export and mining companies will be allowed to operate at full capacity during the weeklong strict lockdown in the capital region and nearby provinces that starts on March 29, according to the rules issued by an inter-agency task force.

Persons below 18 years old, senior citizens, people with comorbidities and pregnant women must remain at home except to work or buy basic goods.

Cargo and public utility vehicles and shuttle services of allowed businesses are allowed as long as people comply with health protocols.

Private companies must process payrolls online. “Payroll managers, and such other employees required for the processing of payroll shall be allowed to travel to their respective offices during the enhanced community quarantine,” it said.

President Rodrigo R. Duterte placed Metro Manila and the provinces of Rizal, Bulacan, Cavite and Laguna under an enhanced community quarantine amid a fresh surge in coronavirus infections.

“We hope that with these guidelines we would be able to slow down the surge of COVID-19 cases brought by the new variants, provide enough time for our healthcare system to adjust and cope, and protect and save more lives,” presidential spokesman Herminio L. Roque, Jr. said in a statement on Sunday.

Meanwhile, the Transportation department said public vehicles that are allowed to operate at 50% capacity would be exempted from curfews during the weeklong lockdown.

These include buses, UV Express,  jeepneys, shuttle services, tricycles, taxis and ride-hailing vehicles, Transport Assistant Secretary Mark Steven C. Pastor said at an online news briefing.

Nonmotorized transport and personal mobility devices are also allowed but they should abide by physical distancing measures. — Kyle Aristophere T. Atienza and Arjay L. Balinbin

Nationwide round-up (03/28/21)

Speaker endorses impeachment complaint against Leonen

HOUSE Speaker Lord Allan Jay Q. Velasco endorsed an impeachment complaint against a Supreme Court justice filed in December for alleged violations to the 1987 Constitution. In a document dated March 25 addressed to the House committee on rules, Mr. Velasco said, “We endorse… the impeachment complaint filed by Mr. Edwin M. Cordevilla against Supreme Court Associate Justice Mario Victor F. Leonen of the Supreme Court of the Philippines.” Mr. Cordevilla, head of the Filipino League of Advocates for Good Government, filed the complaint based on the justice’s alleged culpable violation of the Constitution over delayed resolution and disposal of cases. The complainant accused Mr. Leonen of failing to submit his Statements of Assets, Liabilities, and Net Worth (SALN). Ilocos Sur Rep. Angelo Marcos Barba was the first lawmaker to endorse the impeachment complaint in December. By submitting to the House rules panel, the impeachment complaint becomes part of the chamber’s plenary agenda. — Gillian M. Cortez

Garbin unfazed by ‘cha-cha’ critics

THE chair of the House of Representatives’ committee on constitutional amendments said lawmakers will focus on the passage of the proposed economic charter change after a fellow congressman said this will not push through when Congress resumes sessions on May. In a message to BusinessWorld on Sunday, AKO BICOL Party-list Rep.Alfredo A. Garbin, Jr., the committee chair, said solons will “will not be distracted by any criticism or innuendos that is only meant to derail remaining reforms in support of economic recovery and enduring progress. We cannot afford to squander this precious little time in the midst of crisis and great need.” Anakalusugan Party-list Rep. Michael T. Defensor said on Saturday Congress will not be able to pass the economic amendments to the Constitution by May as there are other priorities before the annual adjournment in June. Resolution of  Both Houses No. 2 was filed by House Speaker Lord Allan Jay Q. Velasco and approved last January by the House charter change panel. Mr. Velasco said they target to finish debates before the plenary and approve the resolution by the end of May. The proposed amendments will add the phrase “unless otherwise provided by law” in crucial economic provisions of the constitution. — Gillian M. Cortez

Regional Updates (03/28/21)

Hotels to suspend staycation check-in from March 29 to April 4 in NCR Plus area

THE DEPARTMENT of Tourism announced on Sunday that hotels in the NCR (National Capital Region) Plus area — covering Metro Manila and the surrounding provinces of Bulacan, Cavite, Laguna, and Rizal — are temporarily banned from accepting staycation guests, or residents booked for leisure, starting March 29 to April 4. “However, guests who are already billeted in these establishments by midnight on Sunday may continue to stay for the duration of their original booking. However, no new bookings will be allowed for the week,” the department said in a statement. The guidelines issued by Tourism Secretary Bernadette Romulo-Puyat covers “all hotels, resorts, apartment hotels, motels and other such establishments.” The department said Christine Ann U. Ibarreta, president of the Hotel Sales and Marketing Association, “has assured tourism officials that guests with reservations within the ECQ (enhanced community quarantine) period will be allowed to rebook without penalty provided they booked directly with the hotels.” Accommodation establishments certified as quarantine or isolation facilities will continue to operate during the seven-day period. Tourism establishments and facilities in areas across the country not covered by the strict quarantine level are allowed to continue operations subject to national and local government rules.

Supreme Court adjusts filing deadline, consular offices closed in lockdown areas

THE Supreme Court has extended to April 8 the deadline of pleadings and other court submissions that are due on March 29 to 31 in areas placed under the strictest quarantine level, particularly Metro Manila and the provinces of Bulacan, Cavite, Laguna and Rizal. Only pleadings and other court submissions on urgent matters are allowed to be filed during the period of March 29 to 31, the high court said in a circular released on Sundays. Lawyers and litigants must first confirm with the court through its hotline or email address on the urgency of the matter. Acting Chief Justice Estela M. Perlas-Bernabe also approved on Saturday the extension of the physical closure of all courts and court offices in the capital region and the four provinces until April 4.

CONSULAR OFFICES
Meanwhile, consular operations (COs) in Metro Manila,  Antipolo, Dasmariñas, San Pablo, and Malolos will be closed from March 29 to 31, according to the Foreign affairs department. Appointments scheduled for March 29-31 will be moved to April 5-8, April 12-16 and April 19-23, the Department of Foreign Affairs said in a statement over the weekend. “An email will be sent to the concerned applicants to confirm their new appointment schedule,” it said. “Please be advised that the schedules may still be subject to sudden changes due to unforeseen circumstances or changes in the policies of local governments and mall partners which host these COs,” it said. — Bianca Angelica D. Añago and Kyle Aristophere T. Atienza

Health professionals group supports 1-week strict lockdown

A GROUP of health professionals supports the one-week strictest form of lockdown imposed in Metro Manila and four nearby provinces but said “sustainable solutions” should be implemented. President Rodrigo R. Duterte on Saturday placed Metro Manila and the provinces of Bulacan, Cavite, Laguna, and Rizal under enhanced community quarantine from March 29 to April 4 due to the surge in coronavirus infections. Pauline F. Convocar, a member of the Health Professional Alliance Against COVID-19 (HPAAC) and president of the Philippine College of Emergency Medicine, said late Saturday that a lockdown is an important but temporary step to stop people’s mobility and the spread of the virus. “Kailangan ito upang maiwasang mapuno ang mga ospital (We must avoid having hospitals at full capacity),” Ms. Convocar said in an online briefing. She said “sustainable solutions” should be implemented along with the lockdown, including an expansion of the One Hospital Command Center to a COVID Referral Network connecting all involved institutions, she said. This network will identify who among the patients can isolate at home or be admitted to hospitals. HPAAC also said that there should be a central data warehouse repository that would allow immediate response for contact tracing, testing, and treatment. The group also said that minimum health protocols should be followed. Sufficient subsidy should also be given to those who will be affected by the lockdown, Ms. Convocar said. — Vann Marlo M. Villegas

Labor union pushes for paid 14-day quarantine leave

LABOR unions for healthcare workers on Sunday called on the President to certify as urgent a policy that will provide for a paid 14-day quarantine leave as they face continued risks with the renewed coronovirus surge. Among the groups making the appeal are the Hospital Unions of the Federation of Free Workers (FFW-Trade Federation 8), University of the East Ramon Magsaysay Memorial Medical Center Employees Union-FFW, Makati Medical Center Employees Association, and the De La Salle Health Sciences Institute Employees Union-FFW. The proposed leave benefit is contained in House Bill 7909 or the proposed Act Mandating Paid Pandemic Leaves in the Private Sector in Light of a Declared Global Pandemic. The measure was approved in Dec. 2020 by the House committee on labor and employment. FFW-Trade Federation 8 Chair Manuel Payao said in a statement on Sunday, “We hold that the adoption of a quarantine leave in times like a COVID-19 pandemic is the best thing for workers and businesses, and to keep all of us safe.” United Filipino Service Workers (UFSW) Secretary General Rudy Ladiao, who represents the Chinese General Hospital and Medical Center, said healthcare workers have already signed a Collective Bargaining Agreement with management, which cost employers. “If management will be reimbursed by government through this measure, then it is better for both workers and employers,” he said in the same statement. De La Salle Health Sciences Institute Employees Union-FFW President Vilma Garcia said the unions are also pushing for COVID-19 to be listed as an occupational disease by the Employers Compensation Commission. “If COVID-19 is successfully listed as an occupational disease, workers would not be asking for alms through mere assistance, we will be getting employees compensation for work days missed while battling COVID and trying to get better.” — Gillian M. Cortez

Davao City to set up driving school for bus system

MODERN buses, equipped with a digital payment system, have started serving initial routes in Davao City. — DAVAO CIO

THE DAVAO City government will set up a driving school to ensure a steady source of skilled manpower for its recently launched modern bus system. “These are different types of buses and we need a steady supply of skilled drivers for the multiple shifts,” City Planning and Development Office head Ivan Chin Cortez said during the Davao City business chamber’s members’ meeting last week. The school’s graduates will get a certification indicating their skill level for certain bus types. “When the study (for the High Priority Bus System) was conducted, supply of required skills for bus drivers was lacking… not enough to service the entire bus system,” he said. The HPBS, undertaken with support from the Asian Development Bank, aims to modernize the city’s public transport system which is mainly served by jeepneys. Initial routes have been launched while the city government is still negotiating for property acquisition for the terminals and deports, which will also be used for provincial and regional buses. “At least two options per site (are being considered) so that we have a spare site if option 1 is unwilling (to sell). The idea is once the commuters reach the provincial terminals, they will switch buses of HPBS. We will need a lot of bus stops all throughout the bus network system,” Mr. Cortez said. The city, in partnership with the Department of Transportation, is aiming to complete land purchases this year. The construction of the bus terminals will be funded from a P650-million city government allocation. — Maya M. Padillo

Gilas Pilipinas out to get best version for future tournaments

GILAS PILIPINAS continues to grind it out in a “bubble” training at the INSPIRE Sports Academy in Calamba, Laguna, looking to come up with the best representation possible for future tournaments.

Speaking at the radio-online program Power & Play with Noli Eala on Saturday, Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas (SBP) program director Tab Baldwin shared that the men’s national basketball team’s preparation continues notwithstanding the challenges presented by the ongoing health pandemic.

In line for Gilas are the International Basketball Federation (FIBA) Asia Cup third qualifying window in Clark on June 14-20 and the Olympic Qualifying Tournament (OQT) in Belgrade on June 29-July 4.

But more than just preparing for the upcoming tournaments, Mr. Baldwin said it is important for them, especially now, to find the best pathway for the program moving forward.

“Everybody is trying to do a balancing act. There is no perfect pathway and we’re just trying to find the best one possible,” said Mr. Baldwin who spoke from the INSPIRE facilities.

The former national team coach underscored the importance of all stakeholders, including the management of the SBP, the players and coaches and other partners, to work together to address challenges that will come.

He went on to say that work is not going to be fluid each time, but cooperation must come if the common vision of pushing Philippine basketball forward is to be achieved.

Currently training in the bubble are an all-cadet player crew from which members of the teams seeing action for the FIBA Asia Cup window and Olympic Qualifying Tournament will come from.

In an earlier pronouncement, the SBP said it is going the all-cadet route for the upcoming tournaments to partly ease the burden on the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA), which is grappling to chart its path for its new season with the pandemic still a going concern.

PBA players had been staples in previous iterations of Gilas.

Mr. Baldwin said not having the pro players is a “setback” on its own, but something they are looking to work around and build opportunities from.

“Not having the PBA players, every time that happens, is a setback for the Gilas program. But we don’t always need them for the extensive training we’re doing in the bubble,” said Mr. Baldwin, also the head coach of the men’s basketball team of Ateneo de Manila University.

Adding, “We don’t look at it as a setback, it is as an opportunity for us to focus on these younger players to build them for the future.”

Players in the bubble are cadets Dwight Ramos, Justine Baltazar, Dave Ildefonso, Chris Koon, Juan Gomez de Liano, and naturalization candidate Angelo Kouame.

Also part of the list are 2019 PBA Gilas draftees Isaac Go, Matt and Mike Nieto, and Rey Suerte and so do the team’s special picks in the recent PBA draft — Jordan Heading (Terrafirma), Will Navarro (NorthPort), Tzaddy Rangel (NLEX), and Jaydee Tungcab (TNT).

Expanding the training pool are Gilas invitees LeBron Lopez, SJ Belangel, Gian Mamuyac, Troy Mallillin, Geo Chiu, Kyle Ong, Jason Credo, and Josh Lazaro, who are all from Ateneo.

Also invited were Carl Tamayo of University of the Philippines and RJ Abarrientos of Far Eastern University.

The team is training under the staff composed of Mr. Baldwin, head coach Jong Uichico and assistants Caloy Garcia, Alton Lister, Boyet Fernandez, Sandy Arespachochaga, Gabby Severino, and Dex Aseron. — Michael Angelo S. Murillo

Dutch team takes World Tour title; Manila puts up gallant stand in qualifiers

CHICO LANETE and the Manila Chooks TM team put up a gallant stand in the qualifiers of the FIBA 3×3 World Tour Masters, which was eventually won by the Netherland’s Amsterdam Talent&Pro (inset) in Doha, Qatar, at the weekend. — MANILA CHOOKS TM AND FIBA 3X3

THE FIBA 3×3 World Tour Masters was successfully held at the weekend in Doha, Qatar, with the Netherland’s Amsterdam Talent&Pro winning the title.

Amsterdam Talent&Pro took its first-ever World Tour title over Serbia’s Novi Sad, 21-19, after new recruit Maksim Kovacevic drained a last-second shot from beyond the arc in the finals held at the Al Gharafa Sports Complex on Saturday.

The team from Manila, meanwhile, put up a gallant stand in the qualifiers the previous day.

With the game tied at 19 with a few seconds to go in the game, Mr. Kovacevic hit the game-winning two-pointer off a handoff to catapult Amsterdam Talent&Pro to the breakthrough title.

The two points were part of the 13 markers Mr. Kovacevic had in the championship game.

His teammate Arvin Slagter topped all scorers at the two-day event with 35 points and was named most valuable player.

The number one 3×3 player in the world, Dusan Bulut, led a new-look Novi Sad along with new addition Strahinja Milošević.

In the individual contests, Piotr Grabowski of Poland won the Elite Air Dunk Contest while Darius Tarvydas (Šakiai Gulbelė, Lithuania) dominated the McDonald’s Shoot-out Contest.

GALLANT MANILA STAND
Meanwhile, a revamped Manila Chooks TM team did not make it to the main draw of the level-11 (maximum level) FIBA tournament, but still fought hard in the qualifiers.

The team of veteran Chico Lanete, Mac Tallo, Zach Wong, and Dennis Santos finished with a 1-1 card in the qualifiers.

Manila’s victory came at the expense of home team Doha, 21-20, in overtime, thanks to a game-winning two-pointer from Mr. Lanete.

The former 5-on-5 campaigner’s initial attempt from downtown was blocked by 6-foot-3 Doha player Faisal Abuissa but Mr. Lanete, who was the oldest player in the 14-team meet at 41, was able to recover, faking out his defender before knocking down the deuce that towed them to the win.

Manila Chooks TM lost, 22-17, in the previous game to Austria’s Graz, which advanced to the main draw with a 2-0 record in the qualifiers. — Michael Angelo S. Murillo

Aldridge set to join Nets; Rockets rip Timberwolves

VETERAN big man LaMarcus Aldridge will sign a one-year deal with the Brooklyn Nets, according to multiple reports last Saturday.

Aldridge became a free agent Thursday after the San Antonio Spurs bought out the remainder of his $72-million contract.

Aldridge joins a frontcourt that includes Blake Griffin, another addition from the buyout market. Griffin signed a one-year free-agent contract with Brooklyn earlier this month as the Nets — in second place in the Eastern Conference — gear up to try to make a deep postseason run.

Aldridge, 35, was in the final year of a three-year deal he signed in 2017. He was making $24 million this season, his 15th in the NBA, with The Athletic reporting he gave back $7.25 million in salary to facilitate his departure from the Spurs.

A former second-overall draft pick by the Chicago Bulls in 2006 out of Texas, Aldridge has averaged 19.4 points and 8.3 rebounds over 1,024 career games (980 starts). A seven-time All-Star, Aldridge has played for the Portland Trail Blazers (2006-2015) and the Spurs.

He averaged 13.7 points, 4.5 rebounds and 25.9 minutes in 21 games with San Antonio this season.

ROCKETS WIN
Meanwhile, Kelly Olynyk contributed 16 points in the first game for his new team and six teammates also scored in double figures as the Houston Rockets avenged a loss from 24 hours earlier with a 129-107 shellacking of the Minnesota Timberwolves in Minneapolis on Saturday night.

Minnesota had won the first half of the back-to-back sequence (107-101) scoring the game’s last 22 points. Houston had led by as many as 19 points.

The Rockets built an even bigger lead by halftime in the rematch, going up 74-48, and never lifted the foot off the gas pedal the second time around.

Olynyk, acquired at the trade deadline with Avery Bradley in exchange for Victor Oladipo, hit five of his eight shots, including going 4-for-6 from 3-point range, in his introduction to his new team.

Bradley sat out Saturday’s game with a calf injury.

Karl-Anthony Towns put up 27 points and a game-high 15 rebounds for the Timberwolves, who could have caught Houston and Detroit for fewest wins in the league with a victory. — Reuters

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