13 senators sign resolution supporting Sotto

June 3, 2019 | 8:59 pm

By Charmaine A. Tadalan, Reporter

THIRTEEN senators have signed a draft resolution expressing support for Senate President Vicente C. Sotto III to continue his leadership in the 18^th Congress.

“Under his leadership, the Senate has been lauded for its productivity which resulted in the passage of significant measures impressed with national interest,” read the resolution, which credited no author but was circulated among senators during Monday’s session.

Senator Emmanuel D. Pacquiao, who was among those who signed the resolution, said other signatories are Senators Panfilo M. Lacson, Grace S. Poe-Llamanzares, Sherwin T. Gatchalian, Aquilino L. Pimentel III, Nancy S. Binay, Juan Edgardo M. Angara, Emmanuel Joel J. Villanueva, and Senate leaders Ralph G. Recto (Pro-Tempore) and Juan Miguel F. Zubiri (Majority Leader).

The three others are outgoing Senators Gregorio B. Honasan II, Loren B. Legarda, and Francis G. Escudero.

Mr. Pacquiao added that Senator Richard J. Gordon, who was not present during the session, relayed in a phone call his support for Mr. Sotto. “Senator Gordon called me expressing his support (for) your leadership,” Mr. Pacquiao told the Senate session.

Senator Cynthia A. Villar did not sign the resolution, which Senate Minority Leader Franklin M. Drilon questioned, saying, “Isn’t it unusual that a member of the majority will not sign the resolution?”

But Ms. Villar explained that she did not want to sign the resolution without coordinating with her allies in the Nacionalista Party, Taguig-2^nd district Rep. Pia S. Cayetano and Ilocos Norte Gov. Imee R. Marcos.

“They were asking me to sign, I told them na ikaw Manny, ayusin mo muna ‘yung partido mo bago ka pumirma d’yan,” she said in an interview, Monday. (They were asking me to sign, but I told them — Manny, discuss it first with your party allies, before signing anything).

“In my behalf, I cannot sign because we have two newcomers from NP. I wanted to talk to them about the issues bago ako pumirma (before I sign),” Ms. Villar also said, referring to Ms. Cayetano, a former senator who has won a fresh term, and Ms. Marcos, who also won in the midterm senatorial race.

Outgoing Senator and majority bloc member Joseph Victor G. Ejercito also has not signed the resolution. Mr. Ejercito and Ms. Villar were both endorsed by Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio’s Hugpong ng Pagbabago partylist.

Grab may deactivate 8,000 drivers

June 3, 2019 | 8:58 pm

By Denise A. Valdez, Reporter

GRAB Philippines (MyTaxi.PH, Inc.) said Monday it may have to deactivate “at least” 8,000 vehicle providers from its platform next week, as they failed to comply with regulations set by the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB).

In a statement, the ride-hailing firm said it is ready to remove at least 8,000 transport network vehicle services (TNVS) provider by June 10, as they have yet to show the LTFRB proof of provisional authority to operate.

“This will reduce the number of vehicles servicing our commuting public, thus inconveniencing many Filipinos,” Grab Philippines President Brian P. Cu said in the statement, noting the removal of drivers will “worsen the current lack of drivers.”

Grab noted the 8,000 drivers it expects to be pulled out of its pool equates to at least 100,000 rides per day.

To recall, the LTFRB opened 20,000 slots for TNVS on Dec. 17 last year, with a June 7 deadline to complete application requirements.

The regulator also said in a May 31 advisory that it will open another 10,000 slots for TNVS units on June 10, as a means to address the 8,000 providers it anticipates to deactivate.

“We hope that this inconvenience will be temporary, as we anticipate new drivers — even those from the 8,000 — to take advantage of the 10,000 new slots for application starting June 10,” Mr. Cu said.

Grab currently has a pool of 45,000 active drivers on its platform, and a “very low 60s” fulfillment rate-or the rate of booking requests that it is able to attend to.

Palace: Marcoses can join auction of jewelry

June 3, 2019 | 8:56 pm

By Arjay L. Balinbin, Reporter

MALACAÑANG on Monday said the family of the late dictator Ferdinand E. Marcos is allowed to participate in the auction of “ill-gotten” jewelry seized from former first lady and now Ilocos Norte-2^nd district Rep. Imelda R. Marcos.

“Ay siyempre, dahil everybody, wala namang prohibition doon ‘di ba, auction eh (Of course, because [it is] for everybody. There is no prohibition because it is an auction),” Presidential Spokesperson Salvador S. Panelo said in a press briefing at the Palace when asked if the Marcos family can bid for the jewelry.

Asked if the Marcos family may be prohibited from participating in the auction, Mr. Panelo said: “I don’t think so, kung (if it is) auction. I do not know of any law prohibiting any person from bidding, if you are qualified. Unless there are requirements for a qualification na gagawin nung auctioneer (to be determined by the auctioneer). Kung meron eh (If there are,) you will have to pass through the qualification.”

Mr. Panelo said “only the courts can stop the sale” of the said jewelry.

He also said Malacañang will oppose any efforts from the Marcos family to stop the public auction, saying: “If they do, then we will oppose it.”

“Because that’s the right thing to do. We feel that as the President says, the proceeds have to go to the Filipino people who are in urgent need of government aid,” he added.

Mr. Panelo continued, “[A]s far as we are concerned, these properties have been declared to be ill-gotten, that’s why precisely it is to be solved. If that was the court decision, then we have to abide by it.”

Sought for comment, Law and Business professor Antonio A. Ligon of De La Salle University said in a phone interview: “The general rule is that in auction, anyone can participate. So, we will have to just review if the proceeding of the auction will exclude them. But it will really be ironic if you will see those who supposedly had taken [the jewelry] illegally, taking it back because they have the money to buy it…. That will be questionable.”

He added:“If you read the law on auctioning, it is available for the public. Normally, in ordinary cases, the owner themselves can buy. But in this case, it is declared to be an illegally gotten wealth….I’m sure, when they auction it, they will come up with guidelines. I think they will take that into consideration.”

OFWs’ dragon boat team makes splash in HK

June 3, 2019 | 8:55 pm

HONG KONG — Filipino women are paddling for gold in this year’s dragon boat races in Hong Kong, with one thing separating them from the competition — they are all maids, often taken for granted in the rich Chinese-ruled city, who no longer want to feel left out.

To the beat of a drum, the 29 members of the Filipino Dynamos train or compete every Sunday — their only day off each week — in the paddling ritual that has roots dating back more than 2,000 years.

The tradition brings together people from all walks of life to compete each year in colorful, long, narrow boats across the Asian financial hub’s busy waterways.

“I want to integrate the Filipino helper community and represent the domestic helper as part of Hong Kong, part of the community, and we don’t want to feel excluded,” said Liza Avelino, who founded the team last year.

“When we’re racing, there’s no employer, there’s no helper. Everyone is equal.”

Hong Kong’s more than 300,000 domestic workers come mostly from the Philippines and Indonesia and many are the main breadwinners for their families back home.

Dynamos teammate Geraldine Inabiohan, who moved to Hong Kong in 2012 to pay for her siblings’ education in the Philippines, said the group wanted to encourage women to push the boundaries.

“The objective of our team is to empower women. We want to push women like us, helpers, that we do something more,” she said.

“I think, as the season goes, we see ourselves as champions.” — Reuters

Courts order consolidation of Dengvaxia cases

June 3, 2019 | 8:54 pm

SIX Regional Trial Court (RTC) branches have ordered the consolidation of 11 cases against Sanofi Pasteur Inc. filed by families of children whose deaths were linked to the company’s Dengvaxia vaccine.

The March 31 court orders stated that they will act on a Motion to Consolidate the cases filed by Chief Persida V. Rueda-Acosta of the Public Attorneys Office (PAO). The cases will be consolidated before Branch 226 of the Quezon City RTC.

“(T)he consolidation for trial of the instant case will avoid the possibility of having conflicting decisions on cases of similar nature arising from the same series of events and to be proven by substantially the same evidence; a situation that is inimical to the orderly administration of justice,” reads the order by Branch 84 of San Mateo, Rizal, which handled two of the eleven cases being consolidated.

Last month, Branch 226 dismissed a petition by Sanofi and distributor Zuellig Pharma Corp. to dismiss a case filed by parents of Abbie Hedia, who died due to complications linked to the anti-dengue vaccine.

The Dengvaxia vaccine was first rolled out as part of a national immunization program on the watch of then president Benigno S.C. Aquino III and health secretary Janette L. Garin. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) permanently revoked the registration of Dengvaxia in December 2018 last year, citing Sanofi’s noncompliance in submitting needed documents. — Gillian M. Cortez

Duterte certifies ROTC bill as urgent

June 3, 2019 | 8:53 pm

By Arjay L. Balinbin, Reporter

Malacañang on Monday said President Rodrigo R. Duterte has certified as urgent the bill that seeks to revive the Reserve Officers Training Corps (ROTC) for senior high school students.

“Yes,” Executive Secretary Salvador C. Medialdea said in phone message to BusinessWorld on Monday evening when asked if Mr. Duterte has certified the bill as urgent.

The 17^th Congress will officially adjourn on Friday, June 7.

The House of Representatives approved the House Bill 8961 on third and final reading last month.

Senator Sherwin T. Gatchalian sponsored the Senate version of the bill, Senate Bill No. 2232, on May 22.

The bill proposes to require students in grades 11 and 12 to undergo the said training. The ROTC program includes patriotism lessons, basic military training, and civic training.

“This bill requires that the ROTC program be run hand-in-hand with legal safeguards against hazing, abuse, exploitation, discrimination, bribery, and corruption — in recognition (of) these problems hav(ing) plagued the program in the past,” Mr. Gatchalian said in his sponsorship speech.

Trash send-off

June 3, 2019 | 8:51 pm

Members of the non-government EcoWaste Coalition raise their message against the illegal entry of foreign waste into the Philippines as 2.561 tons of mixed plastic and electronic waste from Hong Kong is sent back on Monday, June 3, after it was discovered at the Mindanao Container Terminal (MCT) in Tagaloan, Misamis Oriental. The trash, which arrived at the port last February 2, was declared as assorted electronic accessories but authorities immediately flagged the shipment. “By quickly returning the illegal waste shipment and skipping bureaucratic delay, our nation is sending a clear and unambiguous warning to waste traffickers to stop sending other countries’ wastes into our ports,” EcoWaste Coalition National Coordinator Aileen Lucero said in a statement. “We heaved a sigh of relief as the entry of some 70 containers of similar trash was aborted with the seizure of this test cargo,” she added.

School opening 2019

June 3, 2019 | 8:51 pm

27.2M students start new school year

AS SCHOOL year 2019-2020 opened on Monday, 27.2 million students nationwide went to their kinder, elementary, junior high school, and senior high school classes, according to the Department of Education (DepEd). “Given our continuously increasing population and the challenges that we have to hurdle, we are likewise increasing our efforts to deliver quality, accessible, relevant, and liberating basic education… We are also continuously upgrading our facilities by improving resistance to typhoons and earthquakes,” DepEd Secretary Leonor M. Briones said in her message on the opening of classes.

Modern school

Education Secretary Leonor M. Briones interacts with Grade 8 and 12 students at Signal Village National High School in Taguig City on the opening day of the new school year.

Makeshift classroom after earthquake

Children of the Aeta indigenous community hold their first day of class in a makeshift classroom at the Diaz Elementary School in Porac, Pampanga on Monday. The school’s classrooms were destroyed during the magnitude-6.1 earthquake that struck parts of the Central Luzon region last April 22.

Early bird

A student waits at a makeshift classroom in Toong Integrated School, located in a mountain village in Cebu City, as she arrives early on the first day of school year 2019-2020. There are over two million public elementary and high school students in the Central Visayas Region.

Safety tips

A police officer talks to students of Agsam Integrated School in Lanuza, Surigao del Sur to reinforce the distribution of leaflets containing safety and security tips for students as the new school year starts. The Philippine National Police deployed some 120,000 officers nationwide to assist in the opening of classes.

Defense chief calls for measures to avoid war over sea dispute

June 3, 2019 | 8:49 pm

WITH THE “seismic geopolitical shift” in international relations, Defense Secretary Delfin N. Lorenzana said tensions between countries must be addressed to avoid “sleepwalking into another international conflict.” “The consequence of such seismic geopolitical shift is a troubling form of ‘superpower rivalry,’ which has now extended, to the anxiety of many in the region, even to the realm of trade, investment and cyberspace,” said Mr. Lorenzana during the 18^th Asia Security Summit at Singapore over the weekend. “With the untethering of our networks of economic interdependence, comes growing risk of confrontation that could lead to war. Our greatest fear, therefore, is the possibility of sleepwalking into another international conflict like WW1,” he said. The Defense chief called on actors in the Indo-Pacific region, including the Philippines, to do their best to manage tensions and avoid reckless miscalculations. “And this is where it’s crucial for us, all of us, to continue institutionalizing, upgrading, and expanding a whole range of Confidence-Building Measures, which could help major powers find an optimal set of mechanisms for conflict-avoidance. War benefits no one. Avoiding it is everyone’s shared responsibility,” he said. — Vince Angelo C. Ferreras

Dropping Smartmatic needs legal basis, says Comelec spokesperson

June 3, 2019 | 8:48 pm

COMMISSION ON Elections (Comelec) Spokesperson James B. Jimenez said there should be a legal basis before dropping its partnership with Smartmatic despite the reported glitches during the May 13 elections and the call of President Rodrigo R. Duterte. “There has to be a legal basis, but remember Smartmatic has nothing to do in counting of the votes. Ang (The) issues ay beyond that,” said Mr. Jimenez in a chance interview with reporters on Monday, June 3. He added that a forensic investigation is being conducted regarding the glitches. Meanwhile, Mr. Jimenez also said the Comelec is ready to investigate the low turnout of votes for party-lists in the May 13 elections, but discounted as a factor the placement of the names at the back of the ballot. “They (party-list representatives) are calling attention to a very large drop in number of votes for the party-lists and that deserves an investigation,” he said. Ako Bicol Party-list Rep. Alfredo A. Garbin Jr. lamented that the layout led to the low turnout of votes with only 27 million cast. Comelec earlier said the midterm polls had a voter turnout of about 75%, which means more than 47 million out of the 63 million registered voters. “Partylists are not mainstream, palaging makakalimutan (It can always be forgotten),” said Mr. Garbin. In response, Mr. Jimenez said the layout could not be cited as cause of disenfranchisement among the party-lists. “First of all, ‘yung sinasabi ng members na (what the members are saying on) disenfranchisement, I think most of these po is due to the fact that they (voters) did not vote for the party-list.” — Vince Angelo C. Ferreras

Labor leader convicted of illegal firearms possession

June 3, 2019 | 8:48 pm

THE SAN Mateo Regional trial Court (RTC) Branch 76 has convicted Labor organizer Marklen Maojo Maga of possession of firearms and affirmed the legality of his detainment last year. In the May 14 decision penned by Judge Josephine Z. Fernandez, the San Mateo RTC found Mr. Maga guilty beyond reasonable doubt for carrying a loaded .45 caliber pistol without a license. He has been ordered detained at the New Bilibid Prison for a period between eight years and one day to 14 years and eight months. In Feb. 2018, Mr. Maga was arrested by the police, which he said was carried out illegally. The court, however, noted that the arrest was legal with the apprehending officers carrying a warrant. Mr. Maga is a staff and organizer of the left-leaning labor group Kilusang Mayo Uno (KMU). Human rights group KARAPATAN Alliance for the Advancement of People’s Rights said in a statement on Monday, “Maoj’s unjust and condemnable conviction is an impetus for human rights advocates, trade unionists and activists to continue pushing back against a climate of political persecution and reprisal.” — Gillian M. Cortez

CARD plans education loan under Shari’ah financing project

June 3, 2019 | 8:47 pm

DAVAO CITY — The Center for Agriculture and Rural Development (CARD) Inc. is looking at including educational loans in its Shari’ah-inspired financing project that has gained traction in Mindanao.

In a press statement over the weekend, Gilnora Bahia, CARD operations director, said there is a proposal to include study loans in the Paglambo Project, which uses the Murabahah concept of the Islamic financial system.

“This (educational loan) will be a supplemental product and once they avail it, we will provide them with the school supplies they or their children need,” said Ms. Bahia, noting that the proposal is still in the planning stage.

Under the Murabahah concept, the borrower obtains money from the lender and uses the money to buy goods for his or her businesses. Both borrower and lender agree on the mark-ups on the goods that will serve as profit of the latter.

With this arrangement, the lender gets a fixed profit based on the agreement as well as the loan payment period, and eliminates the interest system which Islam prohibits.

CARD said the educational loan proposal developed as the Paglambo Project has grown fast from just having 56 Muslim families as members when it started a year ago to 4,182 as of April this year.

“This milestone on Paglambo’s membership showed how the Muslim communities of Mindanao welcomed CARD, Inc. and its program,” said Jocelyn D. Dequito, CARD executive director.

The project has also expanded its units from an initial two — located in Marawi City, Lanao del Sur and Shariff Aguak, Maguindanao — to 18 spread around the cities of Cotabato, Isabela in Basilan, and Zamboanga and Dapitan in Zamboanga del Sur.

Ms. Dequito said the project is part of the commitment of CARD, a microfinance non-government organization (NGO), to expand its goal of building financial inclusivity.

She also acknowledged and thanked the support to the project provided by Indonesian NGO Dompet Dhuafa, the Peace and Equity Foundation, and the Ramon Magsaysay Award Foundation. — Carmelito Q. Francisco