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Roller-coaster ride for PH basketball

By Michael Angelo S. Murillo
Senior Reporter

PHILIPPINE basketball saw its share of ups and downs in the Year 2019, carrying with them lessons that should serve to steer the sport into the coming years.

This was the take of Karlo Lovenia, editor-in-chief at local basketball site Humblebola, when asked for his thoughts on basketball in the year that just passed.

The Gilas Pilipinas program, the Philippine Basketball Association, collegiate hoops and the Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League all provided moments to ponder over, making 2019 a year all its own, the local basketball observer said.

“Basketball this year (2019) in the country was very polarizing. There were plenty of highs, but the downs the country experienced were quite severe. At the very least, we were all able to come out in one piece. But either way, it was a roller-coaster ride with plenty of lessons which we can bring for the upcoming decade,” said Mr. Lovenia in an interview.

He described the year that was for Gilas as a “reset year,” highlighting the rough campaign it had in the FIBA World Cup in China where it finished the tournament sans a victory.

But Mr. Lovenia was not completely down on the program, saying that it is a “working” thrust that needs recalibration moving forward so as to get the desired result.

“This year for Gilas was a reset year. The World Cup campaign was unacceptable and a huge disappointment. But all isn’t lost for the program as evidenced by how united the team played during the SEA Games,” said Mr. Lovenia, alluding to the 30th Southeast Asia Games in December where the PBA-bannered national team dominated its way to the gold medal.

“The national team needs to take things step by step while also respecting the necessity of due process,” he added.

Gilas embarks on its FIBA Asia Cup 2021 campaign in February in Group A action against Thailand. Others in the grouping are Indonesia and Korea.

PBA COULD BE BETTER
Over at the PBA, Mr. Lovenia said not much really changed although the arrival of quality reinforcements in import-laden tournaments was a welcome development.

“There weren’t much changes in the PBA from [2019] compared to [2018], which should be a cause for alarm in my honest opinion. The league needs to be growing not only with the quality of its competition, but also with what it offers the fans. The basketball world is growing rapidly and the league needs to catch up,” he said.

“At the very least, the quality of imports has been increasing with the likes of Terrence Jones (TNT), Chris McCullough (San Miguel), and KJ McDaniels (TNT) suiting up. Those are some big names which hopefully help in the development of our local players,” Mr. Lovenia added.

The San Miguel Beermen ruled the first two conferences in 2019, winning the All-Filipino Cup over the Magnolia Hotshots Pambansang Manok before taking the Commissioners’ Cup over the TNT KaTropa.

Unfortunately for San Miguel its Grand Slam bid was thwarted anew after it got eliminated by the Barangay Ginebra San Miguel Kings in the quarterfinals of the ongoing Governors’ Cup.

The Kings are set to battle the Meralco Bolts in the best-of-seven Governors’ Cup finals beginning on Jan. 7.

BANNER YEAR FOR COLLEGE HOOPS
Collegiate hoops also had a banner year, as seen from the country’s biggest leagues, something that bodes well for the country’s basketball scene, said Mr. Lovenia.

In the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP), the Ateneo Blue Eagles completed a perfect season, going 16-0 en route to completing a three-peat, while in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) the Letran Knights fashioned out an upset by dethroning undefeated San Beda Red Lions in the finals.

“Banner year seems just about right [to describe college hoops in 2019]. College basketball has grown a lot this decade as it has evolved in terms of its reach and target market. The actual basketball has been getting so much better too as evidenced by how well the Ateneo Blue Eagles, the UST Growling Tigers, and the Letran Knights all played during their respective Finals series. The future of the country in basketball is in good hands,” Mr. Lovenia said.

WOMEN’S, 3X3 BASKETBALL
And it was not only confined to men’s basketball as women’s collegiate hoops also had it eventful.

The National University Lady Bulldogs, coached by Patrick Aquino, continued to make history in the UAAP after winning a sixth straight title and going undefeated anew.

Mr. Aquino then led the Philippine women’s national basketball team to a historic gold medal run in the SEA Games.

Three-on-three basketball also gained a lot of headway in 2019 with the country winning two gold medals from the discipline in the SEA Games and earning a slot in the Olympic qualifiers happening later this year.

The fledgling Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League (MPBL) continued to grow in 2019 but was hit by game-fixing controversy that it moved to address quickly.

Charged for engaging in illegal activities were majority of the SOCCSKSARGEN team as well as some team officials.

The respondents are facing 17 counts of betting and multiple counts of game-fixing and points shaving under Presidential Decree No. 483.

The MPBL said the acts, masterminded by a certain “Mr. Sung,” were committed from July to October 2019.

MPBL founder and owner Manny Pacquiao could not help but express his disappointment over the issue even as he said such activities have no place in the MPBL and basketball as a whole.

“The MPBL has been growing quite well, as more and more players are using this as a stepping stone to the PBA. The game-fixing allegations are a shame but these are challenges any paid league in this country will really need to go through it seems. Time will only tell how the MPBL progresses from these allegations,” Mr. Lovenia said of the nationwide league which now counts some 30 teams in its roster.

Looking ahead, Mr. Lovenia said Philippine basketball has to grow, especially since it is considered as the most popular sport in the land.

“Basketball should grow this upcoming year. The country has gone a long way in terms of the sport. To fail to grow would be an insult to our capabilities,” he said.

Former Commissioner David Stern dies at 77, made NBA league ‘truly global brand’

LOS ANGELES — Former National Basketball Association Commissioner David Stern, who oversaw explosive growth in the popularity of the game during his 30-year tenure, died on Wednesday at the age of 77, the league said.

Stern, the NBA’s longest-serving commissioner before being succeeded by Adam Silver on Feb. 1, 2014, had been in serious condition after emergency surgery on Dec. 12 in New York following a sudden brain hemorrhage.

“Every member of the NBA family is the beneficiary of David’s vision, generosity and inspiration,” Silver, who worked with Stern for 22 years, said in a statement.

“Because of David, the NBA is a truly global brand.”

Under Stern, the NBA experienced extraordinary growth, with seven new franchises — including expansion to Canada in 1995 — a more than 30-fold increase in revenue, a dramatic gain in national TV exposure and the launch of the Women’s National Basketball Association and NBA Development League.

He also had a role in many other initiatives that helped shape the league, including a drug policy, salary-cap system and dress code.

“Without David Stern, the NBA would not be what it is today,” former Chicago Bulls superstar and current Charlotte Hornets owner Michael Jordan said in a statement.

“He guided the league through turbulent times and grew the league into an international phenomenon.”

National Football League Commissioner Roger Goodell remembered Stern as “a driving force in sports for decades.”

TRANSFORMED NBA
Stern’s greatest accomplishment as commissioner is widely considered to be the way he transformed the NBA, once largely an unknown commodity outside the United States, into a globally televised powerhouse.

Under Stern’s leadership, the league opened 13 global NBA offices and became in 1990 the first US professional sports league to stage a regular-season game outside North America, when the Phoenix Suns played the Utah Jazz in Japan.

“David Stern was the most important non-player/non-coach who ever passed through the NBA and it’s not really close,” Bill Simmons, broadcaster and author of The Book of Basketball: The NBA, said on Twitter.

“David Stern earned and deserved inclusion in our land of giants,” the National Basketball Players Association added in a statement.

Current Los Angeles Lakers star, LeBron James, a three-time NBA champion, praised Stern for changing the lives of so many young adults, and “more importantly your vision to make our game become worldwide, a vision only you could make happen.”

Bill Russell, who won 11 championships in 13 years with the Boston Celtics long before Stern became commissioner, said in a tweet: “He changed so many lives. David was a great innovator and made the game we love what it is today. This is a horrible loss.”

Another retired NBA star, Shaquille O’Neal, called Stern: “The best commissioner to ever do it.”

“We lost a legend,” said Germany’s Dirk Nowitzki, a 14-time all-star with the Dallas Mavericks.

SPECIAL MOMENTS
Asked to name his most cherished courtside moment, Stern, in a 2014 interview with the New York Times, pointed to a photograph of him presenting Magic Johnson with the most valuable player trophy at the 1992 All-Star Game, months after Johnson retired from the Los Angeles Lakers on disclosing he had contracted the virus that causes AIDS.

The 1992 “Dream Team” — the first US Olympic men’s basketball squad to include active players from the NBA — was another special moment.

“This much-maligned group of players and sport, on the march to the gold medal stand, being feted like a combination of the Bolshoi, the Philharmonic and the Beatles,” Stern said.

Johnson remembered that journey on Wednesday: “When David allowed me to play in the 1992 All Star Game in Orlando and then play for the Olympic Dream Team, we were able to change the world,” he said on Twitter.

Stern also presided over four NBA lockouts, including two that resulted in shortened seasons in 1998-99 and 2011.

Stern, who had remained affiliated with the NBA and held the title of commissioner emeritus, was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2014 and the FIBA Hall of Fame in 2016. — Reuters

Bucks hold off Wolves for best start ever

MILWAUKEE — Giannis Antetokounmpo recorded 32 points and 17 rebounds to lead the host Milwaukee Bucks to a 106-104 victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves on Wednesday night.

The triumph gives the Bucks (31-5) the best 36-game start in franchise history. The 1971-72 squad led by legendary Kareem Abdul-Jabbar dropped game No. 36 for a 30-6 mark.

Khris Middleton added 13 points for Milwaukee, which scored 100 or more points for the 60th straight game. The only team with a longer streak over the past 30 years is the Houston Rockets, who reached the century mark 61 times in a row during the 2016-17 campaign.

Shabazz Napier scored 22 points to lead Minnesota, which lost for the 13th time in the past 15 contests. Gorgui Dieng recorded 15 points, but his 20-foot, potential tying attempt bounced off the rim with less than three seconds left.

Jaylen Nowell and Josh Okogie tallied 12 points apiece for the Timberwolves, who were without Karl-Anthony Towns (knee) for the eighth straight game and Andrew Wiggins (illness) for the third consecutive contest.

The Timberwolves were in range for the upset when Robert Covington knocked down a 3-pointer with 1:04 left to make it a three-point margin. Dieng split two free throws with 46.2 seconds left to trim the deficit to 106-104 before a defensive stop gave the ball back to Minnesota, but Dieng came up empty on the outside shot.

Brook Lopez added 11 points and six blocked shots, and Eric Bledsoe scored 10 points as Milwaukee shot 42.6 percent from the field, including 9 of 36 from 3-point range.

Naz Reid scored 11 points, and Jarrett Culver and Keita Bates-Diop had 10 points apiece as Minnesota connected on 37.4 percent from the field and was 15 of 46 from behind the arc.

Milwaukee owned a 60-48 rebounding advantage.

The Bucks led by one point at the break but used an 11-2 spurt to open up a 67-57 lead with 6:54 left in the third quarter. Antetokounmpo scored seven points during the span, including a 3-pointer to end the burst.

Milwaukee led 77-71 entering the final stanza, but Napier converted a four-point play to bring the Timberwolves within 94-92 with 5:23 remaining.

Pat Connaughton drained a 3-pointer with 3:49 left to push the Bucks over 100 with a 101-94 lead with 3:49 left.

Antetokounmpo had 13 first-half points, and his dunk with 14.9 seconds left gave the Bucks a 52-51 advantage. — Reuters

Vikings, Saints renew playoff acquaintances

LOS ANGELES — The New Orleans Saints and the Minnesota Vikings are very familiar with one another.

When the Saints host the Vikings in an NFL wild-card game Sunday afternoon, it will be the fifth time they have met in the postseason. Minnesota will break a tie with Philadelphia as New Orleans’ most frequent playoff opponent.

“It feels like we’ve played a handful of games,” Saints coach Sean Payton said Wednesday.

The Saints and Vikings met three times in a stretch of 25 games during the 2017 and 2018 seasons, which included the Vikings’ “Minneapolis Miracle” victory in the divisional round after the 2017 season.

Minnesota won a home game in the 2017 regular season, and New Orleans won a road game in the 2018 season. The teams even met in their 2019 preseason opener back in August.

Of course the game that stands out most was that 2017 playoff meeting in Minneapolis, in which New Orleans rallied from a 17-0 halftime deficit to take a 24-23 lead with 25 seconds left.

The Saints seemingly were on their way to Philadelphia for the NFC Championship Game when Case Keenum completed a pass to Stefon Diggs, rookie safety Marcus Williams whiffed on an attempted tackle and Diggs sprinted to a 61-yard touchdown as time expired.

Minnesota is 3-1 against New Orleans in the playoffs, starting with a 44-10 wild-card victory in the Superdome after the 1987 season in the Saints’ first postseason appearance.

New Orleans’ only victory was pretty memorable also, as it prevailed 31-28 in overtime in the NFC Championship Game in the Superdome, en route to the Saints’ only Super Bowl after the 2009 season.

The Saints bounced back from the playoff loss at Minnesota two years ago to go 13-3 and claim the No. 1 seed in the NFC last season. They narrowly missed going to the Super Bowl in an overtime loss at home against the Rams in the NFC Championship Game.

They almost certainly would have won that game if the officials had called a penalty on a blatant case by pass interference by the Rams late in the fourth quarter. New Orleans put that loss behind it and went 13-3 again this year.

“I think it says a lot about our group to be able to take some of those unfortunate circumstances and be able to turn that into something positive and use that as fuel, use that as a way to bring us closer together and fight through that adversity to bring out the best in all of us,” quarterback Drew Brees said.

The Saints (13-3) were the first NFL team to qualify for the playoffs this season when they captured a third consecutive NFC South title on Thanksgiving night. They were in position to claim a first-round bye and perhaps the top seed in the NFC.

But 10 days after clinching, they lost a 48-46 shootout to San Francisco, and both the 49ers and Green Bay won tiebreakers to claim the first-round byes. New Orleans wound up No. 3.

Minnesota controlled its fate in the NFC North until losing at home to Green Bay in Week 16, as the Packers wrapped up the division title and the Vikings were locked in at No. 6.

Coach Mike Zimmer rested several key players in the regular-season finale, and Minnesota lost to Chicago to finish 10-6.

“I don’t think anybody believes that we can win this game, so we go in there and we slug it out,” said Zimmer, who is 2-2 against New Orleans, including playoffs. “All I really care about is that 53 guys believe.”

The Vikings expect to be bolstered by the return of Pro Bowl running back Dalvin Cook, who missed the last two games because of a shoulder injury.

“I feel refreshed. I’m going to be ready to go,” Cook said. “I’m going to be at full strength. Looking forward to a good football game.”

Cook has rushed for 1,135 yards and 13 touchdowns and caught 53 passes for 519 yards.

Less certain for Minnesota is linebacker Eric Kendricks (quad), who missed Wednesday’s practice after sitting out Week 17. Kendricks tied for the NFL lead among linebackers with 12 pass breakups during the regular season.

For the Saints, cornerback Eli Apple (ankle) and fullback Zach Line (knee) both missed Wednesday’s practice. — Reuters

Philippines’ Cu siblings shine in Singapore Age Group Chess

SINGAPORE — Chess sibling duo are earning fans all over the country and making history while they’re at it.

Siblings Ivan Travis and Jericho Winston Cu brought the country much honor despite being first time in the international chess arena after spearheading Philippines kids chess team into victory at the conclusion of 36th Singapore National Age Group Chess Championships held at the Expo MAX Atria on Dec. 27–30, 2019.

Unrated Ivan Travis Cu defeated Oscar Gao (elo 1595) of Australia in the eight and final round to finish second place in the Boys 10 and under. Ivan Travis who amassed seven wins and one loss got a total performance of 1622 for his effort.

Top seed Zi Han Goh (elo 2094) of Singapore who inflicted the only loss of Ivan Travis in Round 5 won the coveted title with perfect 8 points. He bested third seed Alexandre Km Lee (elo 1557) of England in the final canto.

Not to be outdone, younger brother Jericho Winston Cu was at eighth place in the Boys 9 and under who totes 5.5 points after beating Shravan Shetty Kashyap of India in the last round.

Hao Loong Yee of Malaysia won the Boys 9 and under titled after edging tie break points against fellow 6.5 pointers and eventual runner-up place Kunal Patil Aditya of India.

Siblings Ivan Travis and Jericho Winston Cu’s Singapore chess campaign are supported by Xavier School Athletic Director Larry De Las Peñas, Chess Coach IA Rolando “Rolly” Yutuc, Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp., Philippine Sports Commission and National Chess Federation of the Philippines (NCFP) thru its Deputy Secretary-General and Executive Director FA Red Dumuk.

Meanwhile, Singapore-based Pinoy Jayson Jacobo Tiburcio tallied 5.5 points in the Boys Under 11 for 8th place while Jillianne Cait Keesha Micarsos landed at 10th place in the Girls Under 7 with 5 points. — Marlon Bernardino

Arsenal overpowers United; Saints beat Spurs

MANCHESTER — Arsenal showed signs they can excel under coach Mikel Arteta with an impressive 2-0 win at home to Manchester United in the Premier League on Wednesday while Southampton sunk Tottenham Hotspur 1-0 and Chelsea were held 1-1 at Brighton & Hove Albion.

Nicolas Pepe was in inspired form as he gave Arsenal an early lead and Sokratis made it 2-0 before halftime, galvanizing the home fans who finally had something to shout about following a miserable run by their standards.

Brighton forward Alireza Jahanbakhsh’s brilliant equalizer denied fourth-placed Chelsea back-to-back league wins. However, United’s defeat meant Chelsea were five points clear of Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side and six clear of Spurs.

Third-placed Manchester City secured a 2-1 victory over Everton, while David Moyes’ West Ham United reign got under way with a 4-0 hammering of Bournemouth.

Spurs have suffered from inconsistency after an early bounce under Jose Mourinho and their loss at St. Mary’s to a Danny Ings strike further derailed their push for a top-four finish, while their problems mounted with Harry Kane limping off injured.

Days after a laboured showing in a 2-2 draw at bottom side Norwich City, Spurs could not find a way back into the game after Ings’ goal in the 17th minute.

Kane thought he had equalized late in the second half, but he was adjudged to be offside. The England captain then hobbled off, seemingly with a hamstring injury.

GOAL OF THE SEASON CONTENDER
Chelsea have also struggled for consistency over the festive period.

Cesar Azpilicueta celebrated his 100th start as Chelsea captain with a 10th-minute strike and the visitors held on to that lead until the 84th minute, with Iranian Jahanbakhsh coming off the bench to spectacularly earn his side a point, firing home an incredible overhead kick.

“When I saw the ball, I just tried to hit it as hard as I could and the bicycle kick was the only option,” he said. “I’m going to watch it a couple more times.”

The result helped Brighton end a run of nine straight league defeats by Chelsea stretching back to 1983.

Leicester City recorded a comfortable 3-0 victory at Newcastle United — their second away win in as many games.

Former Newcastle forward Ayoze Perez got the ball rolling before a stunning strike from James Maddison made it two before halftime while Hamza Choudhury rounded off a fine victory for Leicester, who closed the gap with leaders Liverpool to 10 points.

ANCELOTTI TASTES DEFEAT
Manchester City stayed one point behind Leicester after handing new Everton manager Carlo Ancelotti his first Premier League defeat since he took charge of the Merseyside club.

It took until the 51st minute for City to click into gear as Gabriel Jesus scored two goals in seven minutes to put his side 2-0 up.

A mistake from stand-in City goalkeeper Claudio Bravo allowed Richarlison to score but City held on for the win.

Moyes enjoyed a flying start on his return to the West Ham helm, with a Mark Noble double helping the Hammers to thrash Bournemouth at London Stadium. — Reuters

NBA visionary

Yesterday came and went with the death of former National Basketball Association commissioner David Stern dominating discussions in hoops circles. If nothing else, the universal outpouring of sympathy for his family following his untimely demise underscores the depth and breadth of the influence he wielded in 30 years as head of the most progressive professional sports league in the world. So profound was the impact he made that news of his passing overshadowed continued counteraction on The New York Times’ certainly controversial crowning of someone other than LeBron James as Player of the Decade.

Indeed, Stern made the NBA the global force that it is today. He was a visionary; when he took over as head honcho in 1984, he understood the importance of focusing on identifiable personalities instead of teams as a means to broaden the league’s appeal. True, the stars aligned for him; he had such notables as Magic Johnson and Larry Bird — and, of course, Michael Jordan — to flash front and center. On the other hand, he knew well enough to market them, and how; were it not for his astute planning and single-minded determination to see his strategies through, they would arguably have kept playing to stadiums with empty seats, and their reach would have been limited at best.

Granted, Stern wasn’t perfect. For instance, he stretched regulations to prevent an otherwise-legitimate trade deal that would have sent Chris Paul to the Lakers late in his tenure. Then again, he had far fewer missteps than sure-footed advances, and there can be no doubting his effect on the bottom line from the outside looking in. He worked to give franchise owners bang for the buck, and they saw their trust in him rewarded by significant returns on investment. Even as on-court parity stayed a pipe dream in the face of market imbalances, they found the value of their property rising a whopping 300-fold to 10-figure sums.

Five years removed from retirement, Stern remained in touch with the NBA’s movers and shakers. His counsel kept being asked, and he kept giving them. Heck, even seeming enemies could not help but acknowledge his contributions to the league’s unprecedented growth; Mavericks owner Mark Cuban, on whose shoulders he heaped a record number of fines, noted that “you always said you made me, and you were absolutely right. You were a friend, mentor, and administrator of the largest donut fund ever. You are missed.” Enough said.

 

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.

OFWs barred from Kuwait after housemaid’s death

THE Labor department has barred Filipino workers from going to Kuwait after reports that a Filipino housemaid had been murdered by her employer.

The agency will issue a memo imposing the partial deployment ban, Labor Secretary Silvestre H. Bello III said on Thursday.

Labor Attache Nasser Mustafa endorsed the ban. Jeanelyn Padernal Villavende, a domestic helper in Kuwait, died allegedly in the hands of her employer. No other details of her death were provided.

Meanwhile, the government has repatriated one of two Filipinos workers killed in a car crash in Singapore, the Foreign Affairs department said.

Arlyn P. Nucos and Abigail D. Leste, whose return is still being processed, died after being hit by a car at the Lucky Plaza in Singapore on Dec. 29.

The ban “should serve as a clear message to Kuwaiti authorities,” Mr. Bello said in a statement. “The partial ban may ripen into total deployment ban if justice for Jeanelyn Villavende is not met.”

The Philippine government will ask the worker’s recruitment agency to explain their alleged inaction, Mr. Bello said.

He noted that the victim had complained about maltreatment and underpayment as early as September.

She had also repeatedly asked the agency to get her home, “but they did not do anything,” Mr. Bello said.

Ms. Villavende was beaten heavily, according to preliminary reports. An autopsy had not been done.

The presidential palace condemned the victim’s death, accusing the Kuwaiti government of violating an agreement to protect household service workers in the region.

President Rodrigo R. Duterte was outraged by the death, his spokesman Salvador S. Panelo said at a briefing.

“It is a violation of the agreement between these two countries and the incident is under investigation,” he said.

In 2018, the government barred Filipinos from working in Kuwait after news of the murder of domestic helper Joanna Demafelis broke. The ban lasted for four months. — Gillian M. Cortez and Charmaine A. Tadalan

Anti-terror law amendments a priority: Sotto

THE Senate will prioritize a bill that seeks to boost the country’s anti-terror efforts when sessions resume on Jan. 20, Senate President Vicente C. Sotto III said.

Senate Bill 1083 will amend the Human Security Act of 2007, which only penalizes four acts of terrorism — the commission of the actual crime of terrorism, conspiracy to commit it, being an accomplice and an accessory.

The bill will expand its coverage by counting the following as terrorist acts: attacks that cause death or serious injury to any person, or cause extensive damage to a public facility or private property; manufacture, possession, acquisition, transport and supply of weapons or explosives, among other things.

Senator Panfilo M. Lacson, who sponsored the bill, has said it also carries a provision that penalizes law enforcers. Police who erroneously detain people accused of terrorism will be fined P500,000 a day.

If enacted, terrorists and their conspirators will face life imprisonment without a chance for parole.

The measure, among the priority bills of the Duterte administration, is pending on second reading at the Senate. A counterpart bill at the House of Representatives is pending at the committee level. — Charmaine A. Tadalan

Veteran Army officer is new AFP chief

PRESIDENT Rodrigo R. Duterte has appointed a veteran Army intelligence officer who served in his hometown of Davao City as the new Armed Forces chief, according to a copy of his appointment paper released by the presidential palace on Thursday.

Lieutenant General Felimon T. Santos, Jr., who used to head the Eastern Mindanao Command, will replace General Noel S. Clement, who is retiring, effective Jan. 5.

Mr. Santos headed the 11th Intelligence Service Unit based in Davao City and the Philippine Army’s Intelligence Service Group.

He helped quash communist rebellion in the Mindanao region, with almost 700 Maoist rebels surrendering, 85 being arrested and 6,283 mass supporters dissociating themselves from communist rebels during his watch, according to a military report posted on Facebook last month.

“We will continue the campaign plan,” Mr. Santos told reporters in Davao City on Thursday, a video of which was streamed on Facebook. “Maybe we will enhance it, especially with our focus on local peace talks. We want to fast-track our peace initiatives with local governments,”

Mr. Santos also headed the Army’s 7th Infantry Division in Nueva Ecija, which led the campaign against the New People’s Army in Central Luzon. — Gillian M. Cortez

Palace touts achievements of Duterte in 2019

FILIPINOS have so much to look forward to this year under the government of President Rodrigo R. Duterte, the presidential palace said on Thursday, as it touted achievements in the past year.

In its year-end report, the palace cited improved economic growth and higher foreign investments.

Mr. Duterte “has made the Philippines one of the strongest economies and growth leaders in the region by changing its business climate that prompted the influx of foreign investments,” presidential spokesman Salvador S. Panelo said in the report.

The country breached its P1-trillion investment target for 2019 as of October last year, the palace said, citing Board of Investments data.

There are also fewer Filipinos who are poor, 5.9 million of them having been lifted out of poverty, Malacañang said. The poverty rate fell to 16.6% from 23.3% in 2015, it said, citing the Philippine Statistics Authority.

“Even the president’s harshest critics have admitted that the number of poor Filipinos declined faster than expected in the last three years,” according to the report. — Gillian M. Cortez

Typhoon Ursula infra, agri damage hits P1.2B

THE RUNNING total of damage on infrastructure and agriculture due to typhoon Ursula (international name: Phanfone) has reached 1.194 billion, the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) reported on Thursday. The typhoon swept through the Visayas and parts of Luzon on Christmas eve and Christmas day. Over 428,000 houses were affected, of which 106,772 were totally damaged. On public infrastructure, 446 schools were partially damaged in the regions of CALABARZON (Cavite-Laguna-Batangas-Rizal-Quezon), MIMAROPA (Mindoro-Marinduque-Romblon-Palawan), Bicol, Western Visayas, and Eastern Visayas; 32 health facilities; and 106 other various public buildings and facilities.

AFFECTED FAMILIES
Five people remain missing, according to NDRRMC, and the number of those who died stands at 50. More than half a million families were affected by the typhoon, with 19,553 still in evacuation centers (ECs) and another 13,534 still displaced but not in the ECs, all within either the Western or Eastern Visayas. The total amount of assistance distributed so far was P54.6 million coming from national and local government funds, non-government organizations, and other benefactors.

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