TYPHOON Ambo made landfall over the town of San Policarpio in Eastern Samar at noon Thursday, “bringing violent winds and heavy to intense rains over the northern portion of Samar and the southern portion of Northern Samar,” weather bureau PAGASA reported. Ambo, which has been designated the international name Vongfong, was packing winds of 155 kilometers per hours (km/h) near the center and gustiness of up to 255 km/h. It was moving west at a speed of 15 km/h. As of Thursday afternoon, typhoon signal #3 was up in Eastern Visayas areas as well as in several Luzon areas, including Sorsogon, Albay, Masbate including Ticao and Burias Islands, Catanduanes, Camarines Sur, Camarines Norte, and the southernmost portion of Quezon. Local disaster management teams have started preemptive evacuation of residents in areas prone to flooding and landslides.
The Camarines Sur provincial government also reminded local governments that while forced evacuation in hazardous areas is in effect, “Social distancing and standard health and safety protocols against COVID-19 (coronavirus disease 2019) should be observed.”
WHILE regular commercial flights and dine-in services will remain prohibited under the relaxed rules of the general community quarantine (GCQ) policy, facilities and establishments in the Eastern Visayas cities of Tacloban and Ormoc — both with no coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) case recorded — are ready to resume operations with adjustments in observance of health safety protocols. The Sutuwaki restaurant in Ormoc, for example, has put up acrylic dividers for physical distancing while the Tacloban airport has been marked for passenger lines.
Bulacan barangay officials face graft charges over cash aid
THE National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) charged three barangay officials in Hagonoy, Bulacan with graft and corruption over anomalies in the distribution of the government’s cash aid for low-income families affected by the lockdown due to the coronavirus disease 2019 outbreak. In a statement, NBI Officer-in-charge Eric B. Distor said those charged are Kagawad Danilo Flores, Executive Assistant Richard Bautista, and Chairman Jason G. Mendoza of Barangay San Agustin. Also charged before the Department of Justice last May 11 were former kagawad Levi Cosay and Mr. Bautista’s wife, Regine Bautista. State agents said there were three complaints filed against them, claiming that Mr. Flores, along with a certain Michael Perez, demanded P4,000 out of the P6,500 allowance received by each of the beneficiaries. The complainants claimed the official said P3,500 will be given to Hagonoy Mayor Raulito T. Manlapaz, Sr. and P500 to the town’s frontliners. Witnesses said Mr. Flores collected a total of P117,000 and turned them over to Mr. Bautista and his wife. The witnesses also said that as an executive barangay assistant who has earned the chairman’s trust, “Bautista could not have acted on his own without the imprimatur of his boss, incumbent Chairman Mendoza.” The NBI investigation also showed that Mr. Flores threatened the complainants of being delisted from all government grants if they refuse to give the demanded amount. — Vann Marlo M. Villegas
Health authorities say isolation facilities, testing capacity crucial as restrictions eased
DEPARTMENT of Health-Davao Region (DoH-11) officials said beefing up isolation facilities and testing capacity are key to controlling coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) transmissions as local governments begin to ease quarantine restrictions. “‘Yun ang mga dapat nating isipin at ‘yan ang ina-assess (These are the things that we should assess. But currently, the LCEs (local chief executives) of the region are doing their best to have enough isolation facilities,” DoH-11 Assistant Regional Director Lenny Joy J. Rivera said in a virtual presser following the national government’s announcement that the entire region could shift to the general community quarantine (GCQ) policy by May 16. “If we still continue to do the safety measures to fight this pandemic, probably we will actually stop the COVID-19 from spreading during GCQ,” she added. All five Davao provinces and Davao City have set up isolation facilities for probable cases and those under monitoring, while several testing laboratories are being readied in addition to the DoH-run Southern Philippines Medical Center. The region, with a population of about five million, has 43,644 beds in locally-managed isolation and general treatment facilities, and 1,348 beds under national government facilities for severe cases as of May 13. Among the testing facilities undergoing evaluation are the Davao Regional Medical Center in Tagum City, Davao del Norte, and three others in Davao City. With the shift to GCQ, Ms. Rivera said, it is important that local governments have the capability to “detect, isolate as soon as possible, and manage the patients.” — Maya M. Padillo
Liquor production allowed, but consumption still subject to local gov’t rules
THE liquor industry has been given the greenlight to resume operations under the modified enhanced community quarantine (MECQ) and the general community quarantine (GCQ) classifications, but the national alcohol ban remains in place with discretion given to local government units (LGUs).
Palace Spokesperson Harry L. Roque, in a briefing on Thursday, said the lifting of the alcohol ban was not discussed during the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-EID) during its last meeting, which means it’s status quo
“There is no discussion in the IATF regarding the liquor ban, what was discussed was that liquor companies and also tobacco companies can only operate under the Modified ECQ because we will need the funds,” he said in mixed English and Filipino.
Among the few LGUs that have lifted the prohibition on alcohol sales are the provinces of Cebu and Cagayan, although alcohol consumption is still restricted within one’s residence.
In Metro Manila, Pasay City has passed an ordinance that will eases the ban effective May 14, allowing sales during the day while drinking is also limited to “inside the house.”
The Pasay ordinance is intended to “help retailers and other small businesses operating within the city to augment their sales amid the pandemic,” and not to “deprive constituents with the choice to buy and consume alcoholic drinks to help them deal with their anxieties.” — Gillian M. Cortez
College physical classes can start September
PHYSICAL classroom sessions in colleges and universities can start only by September, but schools may open August with online or other distance learning arrangements.
Palace Spokesperson Harry L. Roque announced Thursday that this policy has been approved by the Inter-Agency Task Force on Emerging Infectious Diseases as recommended by the Commission on Higher Education (CHED).
“Mga higher education institutes na gumagamit ng significant na face-to-face/in-person mode ay makapagbubukas lamang po nang hindi mas maaga ng Setyembre 2020 sa mga lugar na nasa ilalim ng GCQ (Higher education institutions that use significant face-to-face/in-person mode will be allowed to open not earlier than September 2020 for places under general community quarantine),” he said.
For primary and secondary education, the Department of Education (DepEd) may get more flexibility in setting the opening of the academic year in times of emergencies after a Senate committee expressed support to the proposal.
Education Undersecretary Tonisito M.C. Umali presented on Thursday the proposal to expand the window period in which the DepEd could decide when to start the school year before the Senate committee on basic education, arts and culture.
Under existing law, the school year should start within the period June to August.
“Ang hinihiling lang namin palawakin ‘yung (All we are asking is to expand the) window period within which we could declare the opening of classes,” he told the panel.
The Senate committee was tackling bills allowing the DepEd to open the school year in September or at any later date, as may be decided by concerned government agencies.
“If there’s a national emergency or emergency due to COVID-19 (coronavirus disease 2019) will be continuous, then we will give the power to the President after consultation with secretary of Education,” Sherwin T. Gatchalian said in a briefing Thursday.
On the other hand, private sector representative Joseph Estrada, managing director of the Coordinating Council for Private Educational Associations of the Philippines, said the June-August opening should be maintained to keep school calendars synchronized.
Mr. Estrada said the current system already allows Secretary Leonor M. Briones to make changes administratively.
“The law should provide flexibility and stability, for synchronization of the school calendar for the mobility of students moving to and from the public school system and sychronization of school calendar for those moving from basic education to higher education kaya ‘yung (that is why the) June to August, sa ngayon (for now) is okay,” he told the panel.
Mr. Estrada also sought subsidy from the government, citing a decline of up to 50% in private school enrollees for the next school year.
He also noted that private schools are not covered by any subsidy program implemented by the government during the crisis.
PROVIDENT FUND
In another development, DepEd is considering expanding its provident fund to cover medical benefits for public school teachers and non-teaching personnel amid the COVID-19 outbreak.
DepEd Undersecretary Annalyn A. Sevilla, speaking during the virtual hearing of the House of Representatives’ education-related committees on Thursday, said they are looking at collecting contributions as well as seeking government input to increase the fund.
“The provident fund is very limited under the Administrative Order 292. Kung pwede sana may (We are hoping to have) contribution from the employees because we are now nearing one million, so kung magkakaroon po ng contributions ‘yan, lalaki (so if we have contributions, it will increase) and the government share as well,” Ms. Sevilla said.
The provident fund is currently sourced only from the service fee collected from loans that are deductible from salaries, she explained.
Nueva Ecija Rep. Rosanna V. Vergara recommended that support for private school teachers should also be considered, noting that most of them are employed on a “no work, no pay” basis.
The hearing discussed House Bill 5092, authored by Camarines Sur Rep. Gabriel H. Bordado, Jr., which seeks to establish an educational mutual fund for teachers.
The panel created a technical working group tasked to come up with a substitute bill to address the recommendations of members and resource persons during the hearing. — Gillian M. Cortez, Charmaine A. TadalanandGenshen L. Espedido
Bill seeks automatic installment payment scheme for utilities during calamities
A BILL seeking to institutionalize an installment payment scheme for basic utility bills during calamities has been filed in the House of Representatives.
Cavite Rep. Abraham N. Tolentino filed House Bill (HB) 6710 on May 11, which if passed will be known as the Three Gives Act, referring to an arrangement of three equal monthly installments.
“The current COVID-19 (coronavirus disease 2019) pandemic has brought and will bring untold stories of financial hardships to millions of Filipinos. As such, this representation is respectfully proposing for the adoption of a law that will suspend the payment of certain obligations during times of crises. This law will not only be applicable during this 2020 COVID-19 pandemic but will likewise be applied during times of calamities or disasters,” Mr. Tolentino said in his explanatory note.
The proposal applies to all residential electric, water, and telecommunication bills within the duration of a state of calamity.
Public utility franchises and other service providers who will violate any provision of the bill will be fined a maximum penalty of P1 million for each violation.
Asked if the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) supports the measure, ERC Spokesperson Florensida B. Digal told BusinessWorld via Viber message: “We will support any initiative that will be for the benefit of the consumers.”
HB 6710 has been submitted to the House Defeat COVID-19 committee. — Genshen L. Espedido
Courts in MECQ areas to stay closed
BW FILE PHOTO
THE Supreme Court issued new guidelines on court operations, maintaining physical closure of all courts in Metro Manila, Laguna, and Cebu City, which are all under the modified enhanced community quarantine (MECQ) until May 31.
Under Administrative Circular No. 39-2020, the court said filing of petitions appeals, complaints, motions, pleadings, and other submissions that fall under May 31 is extended for 30 days.
Civil weddings may be conducted as long as witnesses and guests are limited to five and health protocols are observed.
All courts authorized to conduct hearing on urgent matters through videoconferencing are now authorized to do so.
In-court hearings attended by the judge, skeleton staff, will be limited to urgent matters and other concerns to expedite proceedings in civil and criminal cases.
Night and Saturday courts remain suspended in areas under MECQ. — Vann Marlo M. Villegas
In response to the COVID19 pandemic, Vietnam locked down for three weeks. The Vietnamese started much earlier than we did and quickly supported its lockdown with the fortification of its health sector. Reuters recently reported: “Vietnam was successful because it made early, decisive moves to restrict travel into the country, put tens of thousands of people into quarantine and quickly scaled up the use of tests and a system to track down people who might have been exposed to the virus.”
Vietnam’s multilingual contact tracing program is outstanding. It lists all places visited by COVID-19 positive persons even down to “street-side barbeque eel and noodle joints” visited. Virus clusters were identified and effectively contained.
Robyn Klinger-Vidra of King’s College London and Ba-Link Tran of the University of Bath observe that Vietnam’s success also derives from two other factors: temperature screening and tests as well as constant communication to update society and anchor the people’s sense of direction. Texts and various apps are used by the government. Messages are clear and directed towards a “foreign” enemy that is unseen but deadly.
Vietnam’s pandemic management is enviable. As of May 13, confirmed cases stand at only 288, with no deaths and with 252 recoveries. According to its Ministry of Health, it has conducted 275,000 tests or 2,000 daily. The IMF recently reported that Vietnam has around 42,000 persons quarantined in either centralized or self-locations.
Since April 23, it has lifted social isolation measures except for a few districts in Hanoi, Ha Guiang, and Bac Ninh. The country has resumed economic activities. Domestic travel and tourism is back. People can export both rice without quota and medical face masks.
In addition to neutralizing the virus, Vietnam is implementing a big package of support for its economy. The IMF listed VND 266 trillion (around $11 billion or 3.5% of GDP) in public funds to support the economy. These are in the form of tax breaks, delayed tax payments, and delayed land-use fees for businesses. In addition, the State Bank of Vietnam has eased monetary policy by 50-100 bps. A credit package was also announced for the banking sector equivalent to some 3.8% of its GDP.
Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, and Thailand are likewise implementing huge fiscal measures to fight the pandemic. Each is allocating significant shares to their respective health sectors — as well as providing social protection and cushioning the economy. These range from around 5% of GDP for Indonesia to 16% of GDP for Malaysia. Singapore and Thailand are intermediate cases. The ASEAN 5 packages involve wage support and cash transfers to vulnerable sectors; tax waivers; deferred tax payments; credit guarantees to assist big businesses and MSMEs; and to support job creation for restarting of economies. Their monetary authorities have also engaged in consistent monetary easing and liquidity provisions.
In contrast to the Vietnamese strategy, the belated recommendation of our own health authorities to impose travel restrictions; its delayed beefing-up of capacities for random testing and contact tracing; and its late support for both public and private hospitals have proven very costly.
The initial weeks of inaction from the time the three Chinese COVID-19 patients from Wuhan were first treated, to the time the first Filipino (Patient No. 4) was tested positive, indicate passivity and a cavalier approach. More than a month of wasted time separates the incidents.
This delay is the genesis of the present fiscal burden that now begs for funding.
FREEPIK
Despite the 60-day, twice-extended lockdown, our health infrastructure is still wanting. While we tip our hats to our frontline health officers, they are too few and overwhelmed. The daily report of more and more increments of infected individuals reflects serious weaknesses in mass and random testing, as well as flaws in the conduct of contact tracing. Social distancing is not even observed among the police officers and their friends.
Parenthetically, a good way for us to tweak Vietnam’s approach in contact tracing and monitoring is to partner with our two telecommunication companies or with some fintech companies. This might accelerate the evolution of a stable, cost-effective solution based on pre-existing digital platforms.
Back to the weakness of our health sector, undoubtedly, private sector donations of PPEs, masks, food, ventilators and other hospital equipment improved the ability of public and private hospitals to manage the crisis.
But worry, panic, and helplessness still prevail, aggravated by a lack of information, with Presidential press conferences often going out of topic, punctuated too by expletives and motherhood statements.
It is no wonder that imposed community quarantines continue to mutate. The longer it takes to contain and manage the viral pandemic, the longer many of us will have to endure weeks of inactivity at home, grounded transport, distance-learning and online office work.
It is a tragedy that lives are pitted against livelihood. While we have correctly prioritized the protection of lives, restricting the flow of economic lifeblood cannot be the protocol forever.
The Philippines’ Bayanihan to Heal as One Act provides for a four-pillar modality to cope with the pandemic, and to shock-proof the economy. This is worth more than P1.4 trillion or around 8% of GDP. More than half of this amount is set aside for social amelioration owing to extended lockdowns.
For the epidemiological curve to be flattened, and for a second or third wave to be denied entry to the Philippines, it would have been more advisable for a bigger budget slice to be allocated to the health care system. A strengthened health system would have rendered quarantine extensions unnecessary.
Someone in France’s Strategic Investment Fund once said that “The state has the right to have a vision.” Scripture is even more forceful. It asserts that without vision, the people perish.
Our immediate vision is to heal as one from this plague. Our more long-term vision is to vanquish poverty, and sustain a high quality of life for all Filipinos as articulated in the Ambisyon 2040 Plan. With each day of isolation, it becomes increasingly apparent that both our immediate and long-term visions need to be firmed up by more coherent and strategic working plans.
Diwa C. Guinigundo is the former Deputy Governor for the Monetary and Economics Sector, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP). He served the BSP for 41 years. In 2001-2003, he was Alternate Executive Director at the International Monetary Fund in Washington, DC. He is the senior pastor of the Fullness of Christ International Ministries in Mandaluyong.
Mixed reactions have met the National Telecommunications Commission’s “cease and desist” order stopping the operations of television and radio network ABS-CBN.
A number of media advocacy, human rights and journalists’ organizations, as well as individual journalists and media practitioners and artists, have denounced it as an attack on free expression and press freedom, and have urged the renewal of the ABS-CBN franchise.
Even the network’s vast entertainment audience is appalled by the Duterte regime’s shut-down of a network whose programs have become part of the daily lives of millions of Filipinos. ABS-CBN is among the few media institutions in the Philippines responsible for shaping television and film preferences during the many decades of its existence.
Although the network’s influence on mass culture has not always been positive or providential, and its performance as a news provider and interpreter far from perfect, life without Ang Probinsiyano and Radio and TV Patrol is almost unthinkable for many Filipinos. But some took news of the shut-down with indifference, while still others, primarily those who predictably and blindly approve of whatever the present regime does without regard for the consequences, even cheered it. They saw it as neither an assault on press freedom and free expression, nor as having any particular relevance to their daily lives.
It might interest the latter to know that despite large numbers of Filipinos’ either refusing to acknowledge it or being totally ignorant of it, the value of press freedom has been acknowledged for centuries even if it is still being debated in these benighted isles.
For example, he was critical of newspapers and on a number of occasions had really harsh words for them, but Thomas Jefferson (1743-1826), the third President of the United States and the principal author of the US Declaration of Independence, nevertheless wrote that if he had to decide between a government without newspapers and newspapers without government, he would not hesitate to choose the latter.
Although he wasn’t always consistent — he was himself a slave owner, but the US Declaration of Independence he authored affirmed that “All men are created equal” — Jefferson valued the role of the free press in preventing government abuse.
He understood its immense contribution to the making of a politically engaged citizenry, without which governments including that of the US can turn into the people’s oppressors. He thus argued that even when the people make mistakes, it is necessary to protect their right and duty to monitor and criticize government, and that newspapers are needed to keep them better informed.
Newspapers have since been joined by radio, television, film, and online media. They now constitute the major sources of information on, and interpretation and analysis of events and issues for billions of people. Together they provide the means through which free men and women can hold governments to account and prevent the abuses that Jefferson feared would certainly follow the absence of a free press. Indeed, only some 30 years ago, by reporting what was happening during the Marcos dictatorship, the alternative press proved how crucial press freedom is in the making of the informed public needed to combat tyranny.
Some Filipinos understand and appreciate the role of independent journalism in society, and do not need Jefferson or anyone else to remind them of it. But other than the bought-and-paid-for trolls and regime hacks who have made it their business to disparage it, there are still many who honestly think that press freedom has no relevance to their lives, that only journalists benefit from it, and that the shutdown of ABS-CBN has nothing to do with it and is a purely administrative issue.
FREEPIK
They are grossly mistaken.
As decision-makers in an agency of the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT), which is under the Executive Branch of government, National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) officials were obviously bowing to both their superiors’ and the Solicitor General’s wishes.
The latter had earlier warned the NTC leadership of the supposedly legal consequences of allowing ABS-CBN to continue to operate pending the renewal of its franchise by the House of Representatives, which, however, has been sitting on it for the last three years.
There is also the additional context of the Duterte regime’s sustained attacks since 2016 on other media groups, individual journalists, and their organizations. In addition, Solicitor General Jose Calida also filed a quo warranto complaint against ABS-CBN alleging that it is in violation of the terms of its franchise.
Under these circumstances, in which the existence of a government-orchestrated plot to silence ABS-CBN is as starkly evident as the sun at noon, the NTC’s cease and desist order is far from being the impartial decision to implement the law its officials claim it to be. It is nothing less than censorship, of which there are at least two forms: prior restraint, and subsequent punishment.
President Rodrigo Duterte has been ranting against ABS-CBN for over two years, accusing it of fraud and bias against him and his regime, and threatening to block the renewal of its franchise. He repeated the threat to see to it that it will be “out” only last November. By December, he was telling the Lopez family to sell the network so its franchise could be renewed.
The inevitable conclusion is that ABS-CBN is being punished for reporting, commenting on, and interpreting events and issues relating to government that Mr. Duterte and his accomplices do not approve of. The NTC order is therefore a form of censorship in the subsequent punishment category.
But it is also a form of prior restraint against the rest of the independent press. It is a warning to other media organizations that if the Duterte regime can shut down ABS-CBN with impunity, the same thing, and perhaps worse, can be done to them. The order is in effect saying that to avoid that fate, every media organization should think twice before it criticizes and dares hold government to account — or even reports truthfully and honestly on what it is doing.
The end result is a constriction in both the quantity and quality of information that reaches the public through the media. Tyranny and bad government thrive on the absence of reliable information, which, it has been said again and again, is vital to the lives of the people in “normal” times. It is even more crucial during and in the aftermath of natural disasters like earthquakes, floods, volcanic eruptions, and super typhoons, political and social upheavals, and such emergencies as the current public health crisis brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic. The availability and quality of information or the lack of it can be a matter of life or death, hence the need for the press to be truly independent so it can provide the daily intelligence, interpretation and analysis the public needs without being censured, insulted, threatened, harassed, and silenced for it.
The shutdown of ABS-CBN is not just an attack on one media organization, but on the entire independent press community, and indirectly, on the people’s fundamental right to the information that will enable them to prevail not only over the present crisis but also future ones. What the citizenry of this country and the rest of the planet is witnessing is the equivalent of the lockdown that has been imposed on many areas in the Philippines. But rather than to prevent the spread of a virus-borne contagion, it is being used against the people’s right to, and urgent need for the accurate, relevant, and timely information that in periods of crisis can save lives.
Luis V. Teodoro is on Facebook and Twitter (@luisteodoro).
There’s this memorable scene in Escape to Victory where Pele’s character needed to leave the pitch due to a brutal tackle. Rather than substitute him, with the team down four-nil, the coach (played by Michael Caine) decided to play with only 10 men. Hearing this, one of Pele’s teammates muttered wryly: “This isn’t going to be easy.”
Right now, it’s looking that way for the Philippines.
BusinessWorld reports “merchandise exports in March contracting by 24.9% to $4.53 billion compared to a 2.8% growth in February and a 0.1% uptick recorded in March 2019. Likewise, merchandise imports fell 26.2% to $6.91 billion in March, deteriorating from an 11.6% decline in February and a 12% growth observed in the same month last year. The March export fall broke three consecutive months of growth and was the lowest in nearly a decade, or since the 27% contraction logged in September 2011.” Philippines goods and services exports account for 31.68% of GDP (imports are 44.37%) and exports are expected to fall by $300 million. All this within a global trade forecasted by the World Trade Organization to contract by 13%-32%.
Common wisdom dictates that our economy is propped by OFW remittances. Indeed, going by 2018 numbers, there are around 2.2 million contracted OFWs whose remittances constitute 9.3% of Philippine GDP. With this Chinese coronavirus pandemic, OFW remittances growth is expected to contract to 2% (from 3%), with 21,000 sea-based OFWs and 15,000 land-based OFWs already repatriated.
The DoLE (Department of Labor and Employment) itself announced that it received 223,000 applications for government assistance, with only 150,000 expected to receive any benefit from the P1.5-billion budget of the Abot Kamay ang Pagtulong (AKAP) program.
All this coming at a time that Philippine government will be spending P275 billion pesos, as provided for under the Bayanihan Law, plus an additional P600 billion economic stimulus. Add the individual and corporate losses, related deaths, bankruptcies, and such that will affect government finances one way or another. Plus loan payments directly related to this pandemic, like the $1.5 billion from ADB. But the foregoing amounts were mostly projected for a period of two months, starting March. With the lockdown well into May, the need for additional funding is palpable.
But those are expenses because of the pandemic, which are expected to increase with every day of a lockdown. Yet there are new government expenditures that were planned even before the pandemic happened. One is free universal education, expected to cost an additional P7-8 billion. Then there are the ongoing Conditional Cash Transfers, now budgeted at P145.3 billion, with the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program at P108.8 billion and unconditional cash transfers (UCTs) at P36.5 billion.
There was quite some self-indulgent spending promised by the government last year, such as Republic Act No. 11210, providing 105 days of full paid maternity leave. Single mothers are allowed additional 15 days fully paid leave. All to be answered for by the SSS and employers (for private sector employees) or tax money for government employees. RA 8972 (the “Solo Parent Act”) additionally provides taxpayer-funded housing, education, and health benefits for single mothers.
Meanwhile, Philippine GDP was seen contracting by 0.2% in the first quarter, the lowest quarterly growth in 22 years. In money terms, this is likely signifying an expected loss of P2.5 trillion. Overall, what should have been 6.5% GDP growth for 2020 is now expected to be at a measly 2%, with the IMF predicting 0.6%. Unemployment (latest data showing 2.39 million, with 6.32 million underemployed workers,) is expected to rise to 6.2% to 8%. And there’s still the 800,000 new graduates expected to enter the workforce. Lastly, there is the Philippine debt pre-China coronavirus of P7.76 trillion, of which P2.64 trillion is owed to foreign lenders.
Moving forward (and we have to move forward), government needs to do considerable belt-tightening: Cut welfare packages, including the CCT, reduce free tuition, privatize government-owned or -controlled corporations, and downsize, merge, or abolish some government agencies. If there’s ever a time to re-engineer and streamline government, it is now.
Many public building programs need to be likely stopped, including related planned foreign borrowings. In contract termination terms, the pandemic is as fortuitous an event as you can get.
The Balik Probinsya Program is a step in the right direction and long overdue. It should preclude any further attempts at charter change and federalism. In any event, the foregoing has to be accompanied by slashing income tax and government red tape. The Philippine Competition Commission’s jurisdiction and power needs reducing — this is not the time to hold back Philippine-owned corporations.
Finally, the government should start identifying the industries needing tariff increases, to bound rate levels if need be. Expect most of our trading partners to do that anyway. A Buy Filipino program both for the private and public sector certainly needs to be legislated immediately. Let’s worry about the WTO and ASEAN later.
There are certainly tough days ahead. We just have to do what we have to do.
Jemy Gatdula is a Senior Fellow of the Philippine Council for Foreign Relations and a Philippine Judicial Academy law lecturer for constitutional philosophy and jurisprudence.
May is the month we celebrate National Heritage. But this year is unusual and haunting in our lifetime. People will have to strive hard, survive and find the means to fight the unseen enemy. The traditional festivals that happen around the country have been canceled. Due to the pandemic lockdown, National Heritage Month’s promotions, announcements, events, conferences, competitions and all programs, events and activities are online.
It is at this time that Filipino Heritage Festival, Inc. (FHFI), in partnership with the National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA), has an ongoing Heritage Essay Writing Contest which runs until May 29. The theme is “Stories of Heritage,” with the youth challenged to write a story about heritage, traditions and culture — stories that may have been passed on and narrated by their elders. The traditions can range from music such as the , dance, Filipino literary forms such as the balagtasan, a chant from the North, South, East and West, Filipino cinema and more. Folklore, myths and legends, these and more can be written about and be the opportunity to show the skills, creativity and talents of the youth. The essay-writing contest in English and Filipino is open to Filipinos between 16 and 20 years of age, both students and out-of-school youth.
FHFI, in partnership with the NCCA, “brings to fore… a new awareness of traditions, practices, folklore, songs, dances and centuries old architectural wonders, this time in a new form of platform, online, social media and various forms applications and platforms, from webinars, to Zoom… For years now, FHFI and all of its partners promoted appreciation, awareness, interest, enthusiasm and strengthened everyone’s knowledge and information on the legacies of Filipino cultural history. This year is a 360-degree turn with the events of the world,” FHFI president Armita B. Rufino remarked.
While the country is very much focused on flattening the curve and the socio-economic effects of the pandemic, FHFI and NCCA believe that this is a most vital moment in history to pursue the awareness and promotion of heritage.
“This will instill in the minds of every Filipino that there is a story to share, to recognize the country’s leaders and for the youth to give their share and contribute in the promotion of heritage and this time not on a face-to-face method,” she explained.
To do this, the FHFI is also holding a fun and entertaining challenge, entitled, “Wander, Write and Win.” Simply post a picture and make sure you are in it. For the first week, May 11-17, the topic is Natural Resources; from May 18-24: Built Structures and May 25-31: Festival and Fiestas. The top 10 each week win e-load worth P500. This activity aims to promote the various commendable and enticing places and destinations to be visited in the future.
Then there is the launch of the youth forum entitled, That Thing Called Pamana: Kuwentuhang Pamana Conversation on Cultural Heritage — Part 1 which will have experts from institutional and private sectors discussing heritage on May 28, 10 a.m., via NCCA FB Live. The resource speakers are Fr. Harold Rentoria, Kaye Malilong-Isberto, and John Delan Robillos. Topics will include: “Cultural Mapping and NCCA Programs in times of Pandemic”; “What will happen to the national celebration in time of Pandemic” and “Looking Forward to Heritage in the New Normal Scene.”
Part 2 of the forum is Conversations on Cultural Heritage — (Youth Heritage Advocates) which will be held on May 29, 10 a.m., at via NCCA FB Live. The resource speakers and technical experts are Stephen Pamorada (NCCA), Sheena Botiwey or Johhan Ararao (Intramuros Administration), Kathleen Tantuico, Ysabel De Dios (Save San Sebastian Basilica), and representatives from Hub Escolta and other arts organizations. The topics include: “Youth and Heritage,” “How to make heritage conservation more appealing to the youth,” and “Tips on how to advocate further for Filipino heritage.”
Other online events for Heritage Month include Museo Pambata’s “Sa Kwento ng Lahi at Larong Masaya, Bata ang Bida” on May 30. This coincides with Philpost’s Commemorative Stamp launch online. This year’s theme focuses on traditional Filipino games for children’s appreciation of the simple fun enjoyed by their elders. The memories should be preserved in this century of rapid technology.
Journeys on a Galleon World Premiere presentation (it was shown in 2018 at the Cultural Center of the Philippines) Online Premiere, 5 p.m., YouTube
KUWERDAS: Kasaysayan at Pag-Unlad ng Rondalla sa Filipinas on May 22. An exhibition on Rondalla Music Heritage via the Metropolitan Museum of Manila’s White Cube
Pamana ng Filipino premieres on YouTube on May 30, 5 p.m. This is a Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra performance that was held at the Rizal Park Open Air Auditorium during the National Arts Month in 2017) .
There are also a couple of FHFI events that will be held later this year. These are the Kulay sa Tubig Water Color Exhibition and Competition from July 28 to Aug. 4 at the SM Megamall Fashion Hall; and the exhibit Leandro V. Locsin, National Artist for Architecture from Nov. 4 to Dec. 16 at Silay City, Negros Occidental (in partnership with the SilayLGU and Joey Gaston).
Some of FHFI’s annual events that were postponed may be viewed via YouTube, the FHFI Facebook page, its website and Instagram. Already uploaded are the LARO video edit (YouTube) which is a collection of event documentation pictures; the Traditional Biblical Santa Cruz de Mayo event coverage from 2019; and the FHFI Partner FUNtastic Philippines video edit using photographs from the 100 Women, 100 Ways of Life exhibit.
Mabuhay, Filipino Heritage Festival Inc.!
Maria Victoria Rufino is an artist, writer and businesswoman. She is president and executive producer of Maverick Productions.
MIAMI HEAT head coach Erik Spoelstra has been with the organization for more than two decades now and it is a choice that he is very grateful for as it led to a very fulfilling and successful coaching career.
Began his Heat journey in 1995 when he was hired as a video coordinator by the team, Filipino-American Spoelstra, whose mother has her roots traced to Laguna, steadily climbed the ranks, eventually claiming the coveted coaching job in South Florida in 2008.
Twelve years since taking the job, Mr. Spoelstra, 49, has helped the Heat to two National Basketball Association titles — 2012 and 2013 — and has kept the team relevant with potential for another ascent high.
“[I’m just grateful] how fortunate I have been with my career. My path could have been different if I worked for a different organization. I find great purpose in being the steward in this culture (Heat),” Mr. Spoelstra, who turns 50 in November, shared to Inside The NBA host Ernie Johnson in the latter’s #NBATogether show last week.
“It fills my cup. We were able to make it to the mountaintop. Now I’m one of the caretakers in taking it to the next chapter,” he added just as the Heat coach said he was looking forward to the challenges ahead of them.
Mr. Spoelstra shared that what he has accomplished to date as a coach has been a result of a lot of things, involving hard work, patience and loyalty.
“I wanted to go into coaching but this was the mid-90s, so the landscape then was different than what it is today. Right now is a fun time to be in this profession. There are a lot of coaches from different backgrounds and you can see a path for yourself,” he said.
“My dad told me to ride this (time with Miami) for as long as it lasts. Never really thought I would be a coach but the organization believed in me,” he added.
As a coach, one of the highlights so far for Mr. Spoelstra was the opportunity to handle a team led by great players like LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh, whom he won their two titles with.
“When we put the team with the ‘Big Three’ there was pressure. We had our struggles prior then we got that team. Boom! I was just excited to coach the team. I got valuable experience from it,” he said.
COACHING IN THE TIME OF COVID-19
Shifting focus on the situation with the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), Mr. Spoelstra said they are trying to squeeze in as much work as they can although admitted that right now there are far more important things to address and give attention to.
“We’re keeping communication with the team consistently. We are the Miami Heat, we know how to work and we know how to grind. But right now it’s not about that. This is not about competition, this is bigger than basketball,” said Mr. Spoelstra, whose team was fourth in the Eastern Conference with a 41–24 record when the season was suspended by the league on March 11 because of COVID-19.
“Our communication is more for connection and having some laughs and getting the guys with some routine. We’re taking such an approach. I don’t know if that’s the right approach but that’s it,” he added.
Mr. Spoelstra also gave credit to NBA Commissioner Adam Silver for handling the situation with the pandemic the best way he can and taking into consideration every option available in deciding whether to resume with the season or not.
The Miami coach takes its positive as well that Florida is in the process of opening up things and looking to rise amid COVID-19 albeit cautioned that people should remain vigilant and continue to look after their health and safety.
“The world is taking small steps. This has been relatively scary and Florida is going to Phase One… There is a flickering of the light we are feeling but it’s important we stay vigilant,” he said.
“There will be brighter days ahead and we just have to stay the course.”
LONDON — Seven-time world champion Michael Schumacher has been named the most influential person in Formula One history after a vote by fans on the sport’s official Website.
The result was revealed on Wednesday, the 70th anniversary of the first world championship grand prix at Silverstone in 1950.
Ferrari great Schumacher, who has not been seen in public since he suffered serious head injuries in a ski accident in 2013, beat former commercial supremo Bernie Ecclestone with 61% of the vote in a head-to-head final.
The German holds the record for titles and race wins (91), although six-time champion Lewis Hamilton is threatening to take both.
In earlier rounds of the tournament, Schumacher beat the late champions Niki Lauda, Ayrton Senna and Juan Manuel Fangio as well as team founder Enzo Ferrari.
An expert panel had produced a 32-name short list, divided into four categories of drivers, team bosses, technical innovators and game changers.
Formula One said thousands of fans had participated but did not give details. — Reuters
AMID the uncertainty brought about by the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, the offseason National Collegiate Athletic Association ceremony of turning over hosting duties was successfully done this week.
Through the Viber app on Wednesday, members of the NCAA Policy Board approved Arellano University’s turnover of hosting duties to Colegio de San Juan Letran for Season 96 of the country’s longest collegiate league.
Arellano hosted Season 95, which was abruptly terminated in March as COVID-19 began to take its root in the country.
Affected events were indoor and beach volleyball and athletics.
As Season 96 host, Letran said it will try its best to hold a successful staging given the challenges that COVID-19 presents.
Letran, which is celebrating its quadrennial anniversary this year, also said that it is in the process of crafting guidelines to deal with the “new normal” to ensure the safety and health of students, officials and supporters.
Among the things the host is reportedly considering are holding simple rites to open the proceedings which could happen in September or October and limiting the season to just select events.
COVID-19 continues to be growing concern for the Philippines with confirmed cases numbering 11,618 as of this writing, with 2,251 recovering and 772 deaths. — Michael Angelo S. Murillo
THE ULTIMATE Fighting Championship staged the second of a scheduled three events in eight days on Thursday (Manila time) with veteran light heavyweight Glover Teixeira and heavyweight Ben Rothwell emerging victorious. (1st photo) Brazilian Teixeira, 40, defeated Anthony Smith by technical knockout (punches) in the 5th round of their headlining fight at “UFC Fight Night 171” held at the VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena in Jacksonville, Florida. Meanwhile, Rothwell (2nd photo) topped Ovince Saint Preux in the co-headlining fight by split decision, 28-29, 29-28 and 29-28. Next for the UFC is the event on Sunday headlined by the heavyweight clash between Alistair Overeem and Walt Harris.
