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MyEG Philippines partners with Multisys Technologies

FINANCIAL technology solutions provider MyEG Philippines tapped Multisys Technologies Corp. as its preferred Philippine technology partner to serve companies and government agencies with software system solutions.

“We look forward to this synergistic collaboration with Multisys as we continue to expand our reach in the Philippines. This will enable us to offer a wider and more enhanced platform for essential services accessible anywhere at any time,” MyEG Philippines President Ronald Aquino said in a statement.

The deal will allow a “seamless experience to customers using financial technology platforms that are activated in Multisys eBusiness and eGovernment platforms.”

“Multisys is set elevate the country’s various industries through our software solutions, which will drive the growth of the Philippine economy. Having the privilege to enrich the everyday lives of the Filipinos is certainly fulfilling for us. Our partnership with MyEG further strengthens our shared goal to make IT in the Philippines more functional and expansive,” Multisys President and Chief Executive Officer David Almirol, Jr. said.

The two companies are also discussing ways to bring their partnership abroad.

Multisys, which is backed by telecommunications giant PLDT, Inc., is working with local government units on Smart City and Smart Government projects.

Hastings Holdings, Inc., a unit of PLDT Beneficial Trust Fund subsidiary MediaQuest Holdings, Inc., has a majority stake in BusinessWorld through the Philippine Star Group, which it controls.

Manufacturing takes a backseat despite improved Q3 GDP growth (2019)

Manufacturing takes a backseat despite improved Q3 GDP growth (2019)

How PSEi member stocks performed — November 19, 2019

Here’s a quick glance at how PSEi stocks fared on Tuesday, November 19, 2019.

 

Claimant countries told to ‘act collectively’ vs China

COUNTRIES claiming parts of the South China Sea should assert their rights and act collectively to set China on the right path, United States Defense Secretary Mark Esper said yesterday.

“Acting collectively is the best way to send that message and to get China on the right path,” Mr. Esper told a televised briefing in Manila after meeting with his Philippine counterpart.

The US is also concerned about China’s “excessive claims” in the region and its “lack of compliance with international law,” he said.

China claims more than 80% of the oil-rich waters of the South China Sea, where it has set up military outposts on reclaimed islands. The Philippines, Brunei, Malaysia, Taiwan and Vietnam also claim parts of the sea.

China on Monday called on the US military to stop flexing its muscles in the disputed waterway and to avoid adding new uncertainties over Taiwan, Chinese spokesman Wu Qian said, recounting the remarks by Chinese Defense Minister Wei Fenghe to Mr. Esper during high-level talks on the sidelines of a gathering of defense ministers in Bangkok.

The remarks came two weeks after a top White House official denounced Chinese “intimidation” in the busy waterway. It also came a day after Mr. Esper accused China of “increasingly resorting to coercion and intimidation to advance its strategic objectives” in the region.

“Mr. Esper’s visit is a signal that the US will not go away as a reliable ally especially after President Donald Trump’s absence at this year’s Asean summits in Bangkok, which created space for China,” Ramon C. Casiple, executive director of the Institute for Political and Electoral Reform, said by telephone.

“But the US has to do more because a collective action by claimant countries is still no match to China in terms of military, political, diplomatic and economic clout,” the political analyst said. “In all our foreign relations, China is the elephant in the room.”

SOUTH KOREA
At yesterday’s briefing, Mr. Esper also said South Korea can and should contribute more on cost-sharing for hosting the US military, after Seoul broke off the talks earlier in the day following a public backlash.

“South Korea is a wealthy country,” he said. “They can and should contribute more. And beyond that I will leave it to the State Department to work out the particulars.”

He declined to say what the US would do when asked if he was willing to withdraw American forces if an agreement was not reached. He added that the US State Department was leading the talks.

“I’m sure it’s in capable hands,” Mr. Esper said, referring to US negotiations with South Korea.

At their meeting yesterday, Mr. Esper and Philippine Defense Secretary Delfin N. Lorenzana agreed to boost defense cooperation, the US Embassy in Manila said in an emailed statement.

The Defense chiefs agreed to deepen defense cooperation “by reinforcing respective national defense capabilities and interoperability, enhancing joint military exercises, disaster response initiatives, and cybersecurity awareness, and improving defense infrastructure through the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement,” it said.

Both secretaries had also reiterated the Mutual Defense Treaty’s applicability to the entire Pacific region, including the South China Sea, the US Embassy said. The two discussed proposals “to support the United States’ efforts to help modernize the Armed Forces of the Philippines, improve maritime security capabilities and domain awareness, and provide rapid humanitarian assistance.”

The Philippines and US reiterated their commitment to uphold freedom of navigation, and overflight in the South China Sea. The two nations also stressed the importance of “peacefully resolving disputes in accordance with international law,” according to the embassy statement. — Norman P. Aquino

VP unlikely to be given Cabinet rank

PRESIDENT Rodrigo R. Duterte is unlikely to give Vice President Maria Leonor G. Robredo a Cabinet rank because she’s intent on revealing confidential information about the Philippines’ deadly war on drugs, the presidential palace said yesterday.

The vice president’s plan to seek advice from foreign institutions and allowing media to document her duties are “registered red signs that could not be ignored,” presidential spokesman Salvador S. Panelo said in a statement.

“Ms. Robredo’s insistence on getting access to classified information, a revelation of which could imperil the welfare of the Filipino people and the security of the state, added to Mr. Duterte’s reconsideration of his earlier desire to appoint her in the Cabinet,” he said.

Philippine police have said they have killed about 6,000 people in illegal drug raids, many of them resisting arrest. Some local nongovernmental organizations and the national Commission on Human Rights have placed the death toll at more than 27,000.

Giving Ms. Robredo, the opposition leader whom Mr. Duterte had put in charge of his deadly war on drugs, unlimited access to sensitive state information that she could share with outsiders could result in “adverse consequences,” Mr. Panelo said. He cited her “tendency to be generous with acquired information and knowledge to others whose predilection may not be in the best interest of the country.”

Mr. Panelo earlier said Ms. Robredo risked losing her position as Mr. Duterte’s drug czar if she reveals confidential information to foreign entities.

Since accepting the post, Ms. Robredo has met with the US Embassy and United Nations officials to discuss the anti-illegal drug campaign, which majority of Filipinos support even if it has drawn international criticism.

The opposition leader this month said she had agreed to head the Duterte administration’s anti-illegal drug campaign, if only to stop the killings. She accepted the post against the advice of many of her party mates, who said the appointment might be a trap.

Ms. Robredo has vowed to enforce the state’s anti-illegal drug campaign within the bounds of the law. She said she would treat the drug problem not only as a crime, but also as a health issue.

The vice president has repeatedly cited the need to re-assess the government strategy against illegal drugs given the rising number of drug dependents. — Gillian M. Cortez

Prosecutors asked to junk drug complaint

A POLICE officer asked government prosecutors to dismiss a complaint for graft and drug trafficking against him, former police chief Oscar D. Albayalde and 12 other cops accused of recycling illegal drugs seized from a 2013 operation.

In a pleading, Major Superintendent Rodney Raymund Louie J. Baloyo IV said the Philippine National Police-Criminal Investigation Detection Group had failed to point out the elements of the crime he allegedly committed.

He also said police had relied exclusively on the report and proceedings of the Senate blue ribbon committee and a decision by a Pampanga court in connection with the operation.

“Complainant PNP-CIDG does not even point to any finding by any of the RTC Branch 43 and/or the Senate blue ribbon committee to establish probable cause against me for any of the above mentioned supposed crimes,” he said.

He accused police of stirring up “a criminal complaint based on suppositions, assumptions and baseless conclusions, without the supporting and necessary facts.”

Mr. Baloyo also said the complaint had been “thoroughly and exhaustively resolved” in 2014 and affirmed with finality in 2017.

Government prosecutors have submitted the case for resolution and will issue a ruling soon.

The Justice department earlier reopened the case and included Mr. Albayalde in an amended complaint after senators investigating corruption in the country’s jails found that he had allegedly intervened in the firing of the cops before he became police chief.

Former CIDG chief Benjamin B. Magalong, now Baguio City mayor, disclosed at a Senate hearing last month the involvement of the 13 cops in the questionable buy-bust operation on Nov. 29, 2013.

Mr. Albayalde earlier challenged the authority of the Justice department to reopen the complaint, noting that a preliminary probe may only be re-opened when it has been submitted for resolution but before its promulgation.

A Senate committee earlier recommended the filing of criminal charges against the police officers.

The cops claimed to have seized 38 kilos of drugs but an investigation showed that they seized about 200 kilos of illegal drugs worth P648 million and about P10 million in cash. The suspected drug trafficker also paid them P50 million to present a different person, Mr. Magalong had said.

Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency Director General Aaron N. Aquino told senators that during a probe when he was still Central Luzon regional director, Mr. Albayalde, then acting regional director for Metro Manila, had sought to stop the dismissal of the 13 cops in 2016.

Mr. Albayalde, who resigned before his retirement, earlier asked prosecutors to dismiss the complaint for lack of merit. — Vann Marlo M. Villegas

CA junks activist’s habeas corpus suit

THE Court of Appeals has dismissed the plea of an activist’s father to release his daughter whom the military had allegedly arrested without criminal charges.

In a 16-page decision, the court’s Third Division junked the petition for writ of habeas corpus filed by Arnulfo R. Pacalda for the release of her daughter Alexandrea. The subsequent filing of criminal charges against the detainee has made the petition moot, according to the court.

“The petition praying for the release of Alexandrea from detention loses legal mooring, and is rendered moot and academic by the subsequent informations filed against her,” the court said.

Mr. Pacalda said in his petition her daughter had been arrested by the military without a warrant on Sept. 14 and they were forced to sign a certification that Alexandrea had voluntarily surrendered.

But the Office of the Solicitor General said Alexandrea was charged with illegal possession of firearms. She was also transferred to the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology in the province.

The petitioner earlier argued the indictment of his daughter was an afterthought, but the court said she could no longer be discharged after she was charged with two criminal offenses. — Vann Marlo M. Villegas

Philippines, Korea to sign cooperation deals

THE Philippines and South Korea are expected to sign cooperation deals on education, social security, fisheries and tourism during President Rodrigo R. Duterte’s visit there next week.

The president will attend an Association of Southeast Asian Nations-Republic of Korea commemorative summit in Busan.

“After the summit, we are envisioning to have a memorandum of understanding signing,” South Korean Ambassador to the Philippines Han Dong-Man said at a briefing yesterday.

Mr. Duterte will meet with South Korean President Moon Jae-In to discuss how to improve trade between the two countries, Mr. Han said.

“They will discuss many issues affecting our relationship,” he said, including how to increase trade volumes “as we are approaching to conclude a free trade agreement between Korea and the Philippines.” — Gillian M. Cortez

No-fly zones set for 30th SEA Games opening, closing events

AREAS AROUND the Philippine Arena in Bulacan and New Clark City in Tarlac will be no-fly zones on Nov. 30 and Dec. 11 for the opening and closing ceremonies of the 30th South East Asian (SEA) Games, the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP) announced on Tuesday. CAAP said the restriction, covering all aircraft and unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) or drones, is within three nautical miles and 40 nautical miles for general aviation flights. The no-fly order will be in effect from 6:00 a.m. to 11:00 p.m. CAAP said flights at the Clark International Airport — located about 73 kilometers (km) northeast of the Philippine Arena and 30 km south of the New Clark City — will not be affected.

Testimony of slain Korean businessman’s wife moved to Dec. 3

THE TESTIMONY of the wife of slain Korean businessman Jee Ick-Joo has been moved to Dec. 3 as Angeles City court Judge Eda P. Dizon-Era required the translator to first get an accreditation from the Korean Embassy. “The court required the prosecution to present first the accreditation of Mrs. (Kyung Jin) Choi’s Korean language translator from the Korean Embassy,” Senior Assistant State Prosecutor Juan Pedro Navera said in a mobile phone message. Mr. Jee and his housekeeper, Marisa Morquicho, were abducted from his residence in Angeles City on Oct. 18, 2016 during an alleged illegal drug-operation. Ms. Morquicho was released but the Korean businessman was killed at the headquarters of the Philippine National Police and his cremated remains were reportedly flushed in a toilet. Police Lieutenant Colonel Rafael P. Dumlao III, the alleged mastermind of the killing, Police Master Sergeant Ricky M. Sta. Isabel, and Jerry A. Omlang are facing charges for kidnapping for ransom with homicide, kidnapping and serious illegal detention, and carnapping. The court in April allowed Mr. Dumlao to post a P300,000 bail but denied the similar petitions of the others accused. — Vann Marlo M. Villegas

Continued rains over northern Luzon as tropical depression Sarah trails typhoon Ramon

TROPICAL CYCLONE Ramon (international name: Kalmaegi) has maintained its strength as it hovers off the northeastern side of Luzon, weather bureau PAGASA said in its 5 p.m. update yesterday. Landfall was predicted in the evening or Wednesday morning in the northern part of Cagayan or the Babuyan Islands. PAGASA Weather Specialist Benison Estareja said typhoon Ramon is expected to weaken after it hits land. Meanwhile, tropical depression Sarah, which started as a low pressure area, was already 710 kilometers east of Virac, Catanduanes as of 4 p.m. Tuesday. It is moving faster than Ramon at a north-westward direction and is forecasted to affect the same areas. Mr. Estareja said Sarah is likely to strengthen as it nears land. Ramon is expected to be out of the Philippine area by Thursday afternoon.

Regent Foods mulls moving factory out of Pasig

FOOD MANUFACTURER Regent Foods Corp. (RFC) is considering moving its operations out of Pasig after the city’s mayor, Victor “Vico” N. Sotto, publicly supported a strike staged by some of its workers.

In a post on its social media page, RFC criticized Mr. Sotto, who helped the 23 workers post bail after they were arrested on Nov. 9 following a violent dispersal at the picket line.

The mayor also asked the company to drop the charges against the 23 workers and work out the dispute. The company, on the other hand, questioned the legitimacy and peacefulness of the strike.

“Unfortunately, for the information of the general public, a minority group at RFC was able to conduct a strike recently, although the same was done outside the confines of the law,” RFC said.

“It had no legitimacy from the beginning since there is an existing sole and exclusive bargaining agent within the company. On top of this, the strikers also committed criminal activities during the conduct of their unlawful strike,” it said. RFC, which has been located in Pasig for three decades, said it “will not be cowed by the mayor’s threats.” “Moving forward, RFC may simply accept its fate that the Pasig City Administration will unjustly make life hard for it and its 400-strong workforce, and contemplate simply bringing its business elsewhere.”

Meanwhile, labor groups criticized the RFC comments and warned that countercharges will be filed against the company for unfair labor practices, abusive acts, and violent dispersal at the protest.

Defend Job Philippines, Regent Food Workers Union, and Unyon ng Manggagawa sa RFC called the company’s comments as false claims.

The labor groups said RFC workers, who went on strike starting Oct. 16, are protesting low wages, unpaid benefits, and union busting, among other issues. “No amount of defensive statements and baseless attacks against Mayor Vico can justify the long-drawn hardships of Regent workers for almost three decades of existence of this company,” Defend Job Philippines spokesperson Christian Lloyd Magsoy said.

In a separate statement, Associated Labor Unions-Trade Union Congress of the Philippines spokesperson Alan Tanjusay slammed RFC’s plan to relocate their business.

“It is regrettable that RFC management decided to relocate their business just because the city mayor decided and did the right thing by supporting the oppressed workers and condemning injustice,” he said.

“The decision to relocate for these reasons is a sign of immaturity. We dissuade them from doing so because it’s not the right thing to do. I hope they think otherwise and rethink. There are positive ways forward than relocating their business.” — Jenina P. Ibañez