Facebook Instagram Linkedin X Youtube
Home Blog Page 9272

Pandemic hits Aboitiz group’s first-half profit

By Adam J. Ang

ABOITIZ Equity Ventures, Inc.’s (AEV) net income in the first semester plunged by more than half as the global coronavirus pandemic continues to batter its businesses.

In a regulatory filing, Tuesday, the listed holding firm posted P4 billion in profit between January and June, down by 55% over the previous period. The huge drop in the income share of its power business influenced this decrease.

“The current COVID-19 (coronavirus disease 2019) crisis continues to disrupt and impact our organization in different ways,” said Aboitiz Group President and Chief Executive Officer Sabin M. Aboitiz.

The company realized non-recurring losses of P20 million, representing foreign exchange losses from the revaluation of its dollar-denominated assets. Excluding this, AEV’s core income is P4 billion, 54% lower year on year.

In the April-June period, the company earned P2 billion, down 63%.

Mr. Aboitiz said the group has focused on its “ability to adapt to changes and to prepare for uncertainties,” as it went through a turbulent period.

Making almost half of its parent’s income, Aboitiz Power Corp.’s contribution went down 57% to P2.9 billion in the first semester on falling profits of its generation and distribution segments.

The power firm saw its net income drop by 57% to P3.7 billion.

The bulk of this came from its generation and retail electricity supply businesses, which were affected by the decline in power demand during the quarantine months and forced outages of several of its generators.

Its distribution segment also posted reduced income share as its commercial and industrial customers consumed less electricity in the period.

The income share of UnionBank of the Philippines, forming 39% of AEV’s total income, went down 3% to P2.3 billion in the first-half period.

Its net income fell by 6% to P4.5 billion, despite gaining growth in net interest income, which expanded by 41% to P13.8 billion, and higher trading gains.

AEV’s food business units — consisting of Pilmico Foods Corp., Pilmico Animal Nutrition Corp., and Pilmico International Pte. Ltd., which includes Gold Coin Management Holdings Ltd. — increased their income share to its parent at P795 million, forming 14% of its total profit.

Its domestic food subsidiaries generated a combined income of P293 million. The company’s farm businesses shed P501 million because of the slump in selling prices and sales volume following the African swine fever outbreak in Luzon, as well as the drop in margins from higher farms and meat processing costs. Its feeds and flour segments posted higher income at P448 million and P346 million, respectively.

Further, its international food businesses grew its income by two times to P502 milion on the increase of equity ownership and volumes of Gold Coin’s operations in China, Vietnam, Malaysia and Sri Lanka.

AboitizLand, Inc. brought in lower income contribution to the company at P1.1 billion due to its decreased revenue.

The property business lost P39 million in the period as it felt the impact of the pandemic-induced quarantine policies. Its construction activities were halted between April to June.

Republic Cement & Building Materials, Inc. posted P10 million in foregone profit because of reduced demand for cement during the lockdown months.

The company is expecting a “better economy” in the second half as the country further adapts to the so-called new normal.

“For the rest of the year, our goal is unchanged: to remain resilient and for our business units to be in the best possible position when we emerge from this crisis, in order to support the country’s economic recovery,” Mr. Aboitiz said.

On Tuesday, shares in AEV increased by 1.02% to close at P49.50 each, while shares in AboitizPower inched up 0.19% to close at P25.95 apiece, while those of UnionBank rose by 1.06% to close at P52.55 each.

Rembrandt and Picasso entice life back to auctions after lockdown

THE Rembrandt is a self portrait of the artist as a young man, one of only three left in private hands. — WWW.SOTHEBYS.COM

LONDON — Works by Rembrandt, Miro and Picasso are being offered to entice life back to the auction world this week when Sotheby’s holds its first face-to-face sale since the coronavirus in London with a line-up from the Renaissance to the European Avant Garde.

With art collectors locked down from Moscow to Manhattan and some fortunes in peril from the worst economic hit in centuries, the art auction world is trying to bring back some sparkle after the gloom of the pandemic.

Sotheby’s will on Tuesday hold its first face-to-face auction at its Bond Street salerooms since the outbreak, with 71 works spanning half a millennium of European art history, from Gerhard Richter to Rembrandt.

The Rembrandt is a self portrait of the artist as a young man, one of only three left in private hands. The Dutch master looks out with the slightly affected confidence of youth. Price tag: 12-16 million pounds ($15-20 million).

One of Miro’s dream paintings, Peinture (Femme au chapeau rouge), from 1927, shows a woman floating against striking blue, deliberately obscure like a wistful love poem. It is on offer for 20-30 million pounds.

“It’s fantastic to be back in the galleries here in Bond Street,” Helena Newman, chairman of Sotheby’s Europe, told Reuters.

The Picasso is a seductive image of his lover, Marie-Thérèse Walter, Femme Endormie. In charcoal on primed canvas, her curved face, arms and lips are visible but her body is only hinted at. Price: 6-9 million pounds.

“A statuesque and mysterious creature: a kind of goddess even, embodying youth and innocence and pure force of life,” art historian Andrew Graham-Dixon said of the portrait.

Fast forward 40 years to Richter’s Clouds (Window), which evoke the Romantic landscapes of Constable and the light-effects of Turner. On sale for 9-20 million pounds.

Presale estimates for the auction range from 128.8 million pounds to 185.8 million pounds.

There will be limited attendance and bidders will be in a separate room to the auctioneer. Admittance is by ticket. — Reuters

Cemex earnings slump 93% on construction halt

EARNINGS of cement manufacturer Cemex Holdings Philippines, Inc. plunged 93% in the second quarter with the suspension of construction activity during the coronavirus-related lockdown.

In disclosures to the exchange on Tuesday, the listed firm said its consolidated net income at the end of June stood at P46 million, while net sales dropped 35% to P3.99 billion.

The company suspended the operations of its Solid Cement Plant in Antipolo from mid-March to May 19, leaving it reliant on its APO Cement Plant in Naga during the period.

Domestic cement volumes fell 31% while domestic cement prices slipped 6% during the three-month period.

For the year-to-date, Cemex’s earnings dropped 83% to P135.03 million as net sales contracted 22% to P9.62 billion.

Domestic cement volumes were lower by 17% while domestic cement prices were down 6%

The company directly attributes its performance decline to the slowdown in construction activity both from the private and public sectors. The coronavirus lockdown prohibited construction work for about two months, and infrastructure cash disbursements were 11.9% lower in April and May.

Additional factors are the dampened demand in the real estate industry due to economic uncertainties brought by the pandemic.

“The second quarter was very challenging for our company, with our volumes adversely impacted by quarantine measures nationwide. But we have seen construction activity gradually return with the easing of restrictions, starting the second half of May,” Cemex President and CEO Ignacio Alejandro Mijares Elizondo said in the statement.

Despite the challenges, the company still wants to expand its Solid Cement Plant in Antipolo, where the bulk of its P1.95-billion capital expenditures in the first half went. Cemex estimates a total investment of $235 million (about P11.57 billion) for the expansion project.

“We remain committed to supplying the Philippines with high-quality cement to build the country for many years to come. By acting safely always, working together as one team, and focusing on the tasks at hand, I am encouraged that we will be able to surmount the challenges that lie ahead,” Mr. Mijares said.

Shares in Cemex at the stock exchange closed flat on Tuesday at 90 centavos apiece. — Denise A. Valdez

Piano players around the world unite during pandemic for virtual recital

WHEN THE coronavirus forced millions of people around the world into lockdown, many sought ways to connect with others and learn new skills online.

One app invited aspiring pianists to learn the song “You Raise Me Up” for free.

It turned into the world’s largest virtual recital, said the creators of the app, Playground Sessions, after posting a video of everyone playing together online this month.

“We didn’t just want to bring musicians together. That’s been done a lot. It’s great… but this was really about the 30 days leading up the recital where people had to learn,” said Playground Sessions Chief Executive Chris Vance in an interview.

Over 7,000 people from 52 countries took part in the class, he said, and nearly 1,000 submitted videos of their performances — now edited harmoniously together.

“It gave everybody something to focus on during the pandemic that was totally removed from the pandemic,” said Len Dozois, a retired manufacturing management worker from Georgia who took part in the class.

“Learning something new is always good but in this instance it was phenomenal.”

Watch the video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3uKH8FfHcE4. — Reuters

ICTSI unit signs deal for Cameroon port terminal

LISTED International Container Terminal Services, Inc. (ICTSI) said its subsidiary in Cameroon signed on Tuesday the concession contract for the development, operation and maintenance of the multipurpose terminal of the Port of Kribi.

“Further to our disclosure dated June 17, 2019, wherein ICTSI disclosed that it was declared as the preferred bidder for the concession of the Multi-Purpose Terminal of the Port of Kribi, Cameroon, ICTSI would like to inform the Exchange that a few hours ago, a concession contract was officially signed by Kribi Multipurpose Terminal, a Cameroonian subsidiary of ICTSI, and Port Autonome de Kribi,” ICTSI said in a statement.

Under the contract, the subsidiary of ICTSI will develop, operate and maintain the multipurpose facility at Kribi, a new deep-water port located 150 kilometers South of Douala.

“Phase 1 consists of 265 meters of berth and a 10-hectare yard. Phase 2 consists of an additional 350 meters of berth and 23-hectare yard,” ICTSI said.

The new port is surrounded by the Kribi Industrial Area, which is seen to accommodate “new industrial and logistical developments” that would support Cameroon’s economy and the Cameroon-Chad Corridor.

The listed firm currently operates 30 terminals based on data from its website, spread across the Philippines, Asia-Pacific, Latin America, Europe, Middle East and Africa.

In Africa, ICTSI already operates Matadi Gateway Terminal in Congo; and the Madagascar International Container Terminal Services Ltd. in Toamasina, Madagascar.

ICTSI saw its net income attributable to equity holders drop by 18% to $59.6 million in the first quarter due to lower operating income, increase in concession interest, and pandemic-related expenses.

Considering the impact of the global health crisis, ICTSI has reduced its capital expenditure plan for the rest of the year to $100 million, mainly for the completion of ongoing expansion projects. — Arjay L. Balinbin

Norway plan to save giant Picasso murals divides opinion

OSLO — Norway began tearing down a landmark building adorned with giant murals by Pablo Picasso on Monday as part of efforts to rebuild government headquarters after a deadly far-right bombing.

Oslo’s “Y block” office building, with a Picasso drawing sand-blasted onto a 250-ton section of the facade, will be replaced by a modern, safer alternative, the government says.

The demolition has sharply divided opinion. Critics say the 50-year-old Brutalist concrete structure is ugly and deserves to be razed, while fans called for its protection.

Picasso collaborated with Norwegian sculptor Carl Nesjar, who turned designs by the Spanish artist into massive concrete works in New York, Barcelona, Oslo and other cities.

Using an entire outer wall of the Y building, Nesjar gave Picasso’s The Fishermen a prominent place in the Norwegian capital, and also blasted Seagull, a floor-to-ceiling drawing, onto a 60-ton wall in the lobby.

The low-rise structure, built in 1969 and named after its shape as seen from the air, housed the education ministry until July 22, 2011, when anti-Islam militant Anders Behring Breivik detonated a large bomb nearby.

Both art works will be removed and preserved to be installed elsewhere, although campaigners say the building and the art belong together.

As workers detached the mural, one campaigner, Norwegian singer-songwriter Elvira Nikolaisen, told Reuters: “There is a grieving process that this is happening.”

But she added: “At the same time, the spirit that many displayed to campaign to protect the building has been very positive. People have woken up to the value of this art.”

The 2011 bombing, which killed eight people, and a later mass shooting that claimed a further 69, were Norway’s worst peacetime atrocity.

Several nearby buildings were damaged in the blast and have been torn down, while an office tower that also contains some of Picasso’s work will be restored.

The Y building, boarded up since 2011 but with little structural damage, could have been repaired, but the government said its location over a road tunnel exposed it to attack. — Reuters

Designer, LGBT activist Brian Tenorio, 42

DESIGNER, entrepreneur, and community leader Brian Tenorio passed away on Monday, July 27, due to complications of cancer. He was 42.

Mr.Tenorio passed away peacefully in the presence of his loved ones said the Mindcare Club (MCC), a company focusing on the treatment of mental health issues where he was “Chief Experience Officer.”

“Brian conceived the idea behind MCC when he noticed that many of his friends had shared stories of mental illness, and that it was difficult, and sometimes painful, to seek necessary care. The way mental healthcare was designed was something he felt he could change and improve. He dreamed of designing spaces where mental health services can be accessed more easily without stigma,” said the MCC in a statement.

Listen to Mr. Tenorio talk about mental health in this related podcast episode.

“Brian was a person of immense passion and vision. Blending art and vision into ‘meaningful design’ is a reflection of his ideals and philosophy. Ultimately, Brian thought of design as a way to bring people together and to make the world a better place,” said the MCC.

As well as being the CEO and Chief Experience Officer of Mindcare Club and Pilipinas TeleHealth, a company offering services in distance medicine, Mr. Tenorio was also behind the KapeTayo Coffee Co., a homegrown coffee chain.

He was also the founder and former chair of the Philippine LGBT Chamber of Commerce.

Mr. Tenorio graduated from the Ateneo de Manila University with a Dean’s Award for the Arts in Graphic Design, majoring in Communications. He earned a Masters of Professional Studies in Design Management from the Pratt Institute in New York, graduating with a Pratt Institute Circle Award.

Mr. Tenorio’s dipped his fingers in many industries and advocacies, counting among his many occupations becoming an International Consultant for Branding and Identity Design at the Asian Development Bank, as well as a similar post as International Design and Branding Consultant for the World Health Organization at its Western Pacific Regional Office. He was also known in the fashion industry for his shoe brand, Tenorio Manila.

The Communication Design Association of the Philippines (CDAP), shared the following statement on its Facebook page on Mr. Tenorio’s passing. “We are saddened by the passing of a creative luminary, design advocate, and one of CDAP’s founding directors, Brian Tenorio. We offer our prayers and sincerest condolences to his family.”

CDAP President Jowee Alviar said in the statement, “Brian never fails to bring energy to meetings and discussions. He was always overflowing with creative ideas. The industry lost one of its champions.”

Quoting Mr. Tenorio, the statement said, “Design is one of the most powerful forces in our lives. Designing for impact creates positive lasting change — for commerce and industry, the environment, culture, and for our society and communities, through time and space.”

“There are not so many other demographics that are directly based on love and desire. The LGBT demographic is based on these entirely, I think. Love and desire; acceptance and attraction. These are extremely powerful forces in the world we live in. Whether you come from the world of development or industry, these forces shape the data we watch closely everyday,” Mr. Tenorio said in a 2016 speech.

In a previous interview with BusinessWorld, Mr. Tenorio was asked if a cup of coffee could change the world. “I don’t know. But what I do know is that we try.” Considering Mr. Tenorio’s many contributions in various fields, the rest of his answer seems apt now: “I’m not sure if a cup of coffee can change the world. But I do understand that a cup of culture, heritage, and feelings will make a difference.” — Joseph L. Garcia

Brian Tenorio wore many hats. High Life, the defunct large-format lifestyle glossy magazine under BusinessWorld, featured his shoes in a fashion editorial titled “Summer Daze” in its March 2014 issue. His loss is felt by the fashion industry and by all those who knew him.

PSALM’s Malaya plant gets lone bid from former operator Soosan

THE former operator of the Rizal diesel-fired power plant owned by the state-led Power Sector Assets and Liabilities Management Corp. (PSALM) is the lone bidder for the generator’s service contract.

During a bid opening held on Monday, the South Korean heavy equipment manufacturer Soosan ENS Co., Ltd. emerged as the only bidder for the agency’s offering of a one-year service operation and maintenance contract for the 650-megawatt power plant.

Last year, Soosan was granted the same contract.

The firm placed P222.55 million for the service deal. PSALM allotted P224.80 million for the procurement of the said contract.

“The bid submitted is still subject to the detailed bid evaluation and post-qualification activities,” the agency said in a statement.

PSALM’s board has yet to decide on the offer before awarding the contract.

The generator, located in Pililla, Rizal, is a Department of Energy-designated must-run unit, which is compelled to run and to supply the Luzon grid during instances of supply shortages and plant outages. Once privatized, it will no longer run as such.

Meanwhile, the agency, which is tasked to privatize the government’s energy assets, is also selling the plant and its underlying land. It is accepting bids for the asset sale until July 30.

This is the third time that the agency attempted to privatize the Malaya plant since 2019. — Adam J. Ang

Two private sector representatives to Monetary Board appointed

PRESIDENT Rodrigo R. Duterte reappointed V. Bruce J. Tolentino and named Anita Linda R. Aquino as members of the central bank’s Monetary Board (MB).

Mr. Tolentino and Ms. Aquino will serve as full-time private sector representatives to the policy-setting body, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) said in a statement on Tuesday.

The MB is composed of seven members appointed by the president and headed by BSP Governor Benjamin E. Diokno. Among its key responsibilities is to decide on central bank policy, including setting key interest rates. It also issues rules and regulations for the financial market.

Mr. Tolentino had, since June 2018, served the unexpired term of the late Mr. Valentin A. Araneta. Prior to his role as an MB member, Mr. Tolentino was the Deputy Director General of the International Rice Research Institute.

He was also the former chief economist and country representative for nonprofit international development organization The Asia Foundation. His other previous roles also include being a senior technical adviser at the Agriculture and Natural Resources of the Catholic Relief Services and senior economic policy adviser at the Asian Development Bank.

“I will continue to focus on enhancing financial inclusion, especially for farmers and the agricultural value chain. This will strengthen food security and serve as the strong foundation for sustainable development,” Mr. Tolentino said in a mobile message.

Meanwhile, Ms. Aquino served as chief of staff at the Department of Finance and took on key positions at Standard Chartered Bank Manila, Rizal Commercial Banking Corp., Citicorp Investment Bank in Singapore, and Citibank NA Manila.

The incoming MB member was also part of the board of directors of the Philippine Deposit Insurance Corp. as a representative of the private sector. She also represented PDIC as board adviser to the United Coconut Planters Bank. — L.W.T. Noble

Philippine Realty and Holdings Corporation to hold its virtual stockholders’ meeting on August 20

NOTICE AND AGENDA OF ANNUAL STOCKHOLDERS MEETING

Notice is hereby given that the Annual Stockholders Meeting (“ASM” or “Meeting”) of PHILIPPINE REALTY AND HOLDINGS CORPORATION (the “Company”) will be held on Thursday, August 20, 2020, at 3:00 p.m. The Meeting will be conducted virtually and there will no longer be a physical venue for the ASM.

The Agenda of the Meeting is as follows:

1.  Call to Order;

2.  Certification of Notice of Meeting and Determination of Quorum;

3.  Approval of the Minutes of the Previous ASM held on June 7, 2019;

4.  Report of the President and approval of the 2019 Annual Report and the 2019 Audited Financial Statements;

5.  Election of the Members of the Board of Directors for the ensuing year;

6.  Approval and Ratification of all Acts, Contracts, and Deeds of the Board of Directors, Board Committees, Management and Officers during their terms of office;

7.  Amendment of the By Laws:

7.1  Article I, Section 3 (Notices) – Inclusion in the notices of ASM or Special Meetings of Stockholders notices via electronic mail and other methods allowed by the Securities and Exchange Commission at least twenty-one (21) days prior to the date of the ASM from the present at least one (1) week;

7.2  Article I, Section 6 (Voting) – Every stockholder entitled to vote may vote personally or by proxy or via remote modes of communications;

7.3  Article II, Section 3 (Board Meetings) – Board meetings to be held monthly; notices of meetings to include notices via electronic mail and other methods allowed by the Securities and Exchange Commission and directors who cannot physically attend meetings can participate and vote through remote communication such as videoconferencing, teleconferencing or other alternative modes of communication;

7.4  Article II, Section 5 (Nomination Committee) – Creation of a Corporate Governance and Nomination Committeeand the functions of the Nomination Committee shall be subsumed under the Corporate Governance and Nomination Committee;

7.5  Article II, Section 9(Risk Oversight Committee) – Creation of a Board Risk Oversight Committee;

7.6  Article II, Section 10 (Related Party Transactions Committee) – Creation of Related Party Transactions Committee.

8.   Appointment of External Auditor;

9.   Other business that may properly be brought before the Meeting; and

10.   Adjournment

Only stockholders of record as of June 5, 2020 are entitled to notice of, and to vote at, the said Meeting.

Considering the COVID-19 global pandemic, stockholders may only attend the Meeting by remote communication, by voting in absentia, or through proxy. The conduct of the annual stockholders meeting will be streamed live, and stockholders may attend the Meeting by registering on or before on August 6, 2020.

Stockholders who intend to participate in the virtual ASM may register by sending an email to asmregistration@philrealty.com.ph of their intention to participate on or before August 6, 2020, together with the requirements set forth in the Information Statement and published at the Company’s website at http://www.philrealty.com.ph.

Upon successful registration and validation of the documents submitted through email above, the stockholder will receive an email confirmation and the link with code www.philrealty2020asm.com which can be used to log in and view the 2020 ASM.

Electronic copy of the Information Statement and Management Report, and SEC Form 17A and other relevant documents in relation to the annual stockholders’ meeting may also be accessed through the aforementioned website, www.philrealty.com.ph/investor-relations/ and through the PSE EDGE portal at https://edge.pse.com.ph/companyInformation/form.do?cmpy_id=40.

Pasig, Metro Manila, July 15, 2020.

Arts & Culture (07/29/20)

West Gallery opens 4 exhibits

WEST GALLERY will be opening four new exhibits on July 30. They will run until Aug. 29. The exhibits are Luis Antonio Santos’ The Past as Unknowable Landscape, Dale Erispe’s Progressive Confines, Pablo Biglang-Awa’s The Tearjerker Returns, and, Neo Maestro’s Pinagbuhatan ng Kamay, Dila, Laway, atbp. The exhibits can be viewed by appointment only. To make an appointment, call 3411-0336. The gallery, which is open Monday to Saturday, is at 48 West Ave., Quezon City.

Silverlens to hold Eustaquio, Manley exhibits

SILVERLENS presents Hoarding Fossils in Blankets, an exhibition by Patricia Perez Eustaquio. In her sixth solo show with the gallery. The artist will be featuring six new tapestries that she has developed over the last two years, as well as sculptures and a selection of paintings from her Boom series. Save for a brief glimpse at an art fair, these tapestries have never been exhibited in the Philippines. Textiles have always been a central fascination for Eustaquio and as a result, the medium has inherently influenced her artistic practice and approach. In each of the tapestries she presents in this exhibition, the artist transposes paintings created by canonized Philippine artists into textiles through modern processes: photography and a digital loom. Through these “translations,” as the artist refers to them, a discourse between time frames is generated, from the historical past to an unrealized future.  Meanwhile, Silverlens will also be showing the first ever solo exhibit in the Philippines — and Asia — of American artist, Dashiell Manley. Represented by the Jessica Silverman Gallery in San Francisco, Manley, who is part Japanese, has displayed his distinct body of work in spaces all over the world, including North America, South America, Australia, and Europe. Originally planned to be held in March and April, the exhibition was postponed due to the COVID-19 (coronavirus disease 2019) pandemic. Now, a vibrant selection of the young artist’s oeuvre will be shown in a hybrid show happening simultaneously between Manila and Los Angeles, where Manley is based. In this show, Manley presents bodies of works from two series: Elegy, which he began in 2015; as well as an extension of a series he started in 2014 called the Newspaper Paintings, where he would transcribe text from the front pages of publications, such as The New York Times onto his canvas. The paintings from Elegy will be exhibited in Manila, while the periodical-inspired works will be displayed in Manley’s Los Angeles studio. Both Eustaquio and Manley’s exhibits will be on view online and onsite from Aug. 1 to Sept. 5.  Access online will be through the gallery’s exhibition catalogues which will be released on Aug. 1 at 8:30 a.m. While Silverlens’ physical space is open, gallery visits are strictly by appointment only. Schedule a visit at https://bit.ly/Visit-Silverlens. For more information, contact info@silverlensgalleries.com, or call 0917-587-4011 or (02) 8816-0044. The gallery is at 2263 Don Chino Roces Ave. Ext., Makati City. Because of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, safety guidelines are being followed at the gallery. In line with the city’s guidelines for social distancing, the gallery will not be accepting any walk-ins. Gallery visits are limited and by appointment only, from Tuesday to Saturday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Upon entering the compound, the visitor’s temperature will be taken by security guards and visitors will have to fill out a health inspection form. Hand sanitizer will be provided, and high-touch surfaces will be cleaned following each visit. All visitors are required to wear masks.

Kwago launching alternative platform

AS A response to the persistence of mis- and disinformation, Kwago bookshop has developed a new public program entitled Sitwasyon — a series of online conversations about current events with youth leaders, and a diverse group of journalists, community organizers, and workers from the sciences and the humanities. To be launched live at Facebook on Aug. 1, 4-6 p.m., through StreamYard, the first episode reflects on the State of the Nation Address (SONA) and the recently passed Anti-terrorism Law. Each episode is a two-hour conversation moderated by writer and teacher Roma Estrada. Every session will be recorded and documented in a free, printable zine published by Comma. Called “The Nation Under Terror,” the first episode will feature Altermidya – People’s Alternative Media Network and Agham Youth National. “As a publishing lab, Kwago actively looks for and develops new ways to create, distribute, process and access critical information for the public especially now that computational propaganda empowers oppressive leaders to be in positions of power,” said Kwago founder and co-founder of Sitwasyon Czyka Tumaliuan. “Sitwasyon is one of our attempts to address the question: how do we nurture meaningful and strong relationships with the communities we serve during this period of social distancing?” The event will be held online and is free to the public. More details are found in the event page: https://bit.ly/sitwasyonep1. Questions can be sent in advance to the Sitwasyon panel: https://bit.ly/asksitwasyon.

Cebu Pacific resumes flights to Seoul

BUDGET CARRIER Cebu Pacific announced on Tuesday the resumption of its flights from Manila to Incheon (Seoul), South Korea on Aug. 6.

There will be flights from Manila to Incheon every Thursday starting Aug. 6 at 11:55 a.m., the budget carrier said in a statement.

“However, passengers will not be allowed to travel from Incheon to Manila,” it added.

The budget carrier will also be operating flights from Manila to Dubai every Sunday, and from Dubai to Manila every Monday.

All other international flights of the budget carrier remain canceled until July 31.

Passengers of Manila-Dubai flights are required to have a negative result on their PCR (polymerase chain reaction) test report valid for 96 hours. Travel and health insurance coverage valid in the United Arab Emirates is also needed.

Passengers of Dubai-Manila flights will also need PCR test. They will undergo mandatory quarantine procedures upon arrival in Manila while awaiting test results.

As for the passengers of Manila-Incheon flights, they will need a negative result on their PCR test report valid for 48 hours.

Upon arrival in Incheon, they will undergo a mandatory 14-day quarantine at a designated quarantine facility. Passengers will shoulder the cost (KRW 1,400,000). — Arjay L. Balinbin

1...9,2719,2729,273...14,251Page 9,272 of 14,251
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
© 2024 BusinessWorld Publishing.
All rights reserved.
Read our privacy guidelines
Facebook Instagram Linkedin X Youtube