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Tobacco tax collections rise 8% in 2019 to P147.5 billion — DoF

THE Department of Finance (DoF) said the tax take from tobacco products rose by over 8% to P147.5 billion in 2019, accounting for more than half of the P269.1 billion of so-called “sin tax” collections.

Excise taxes from other “sin” products also rose, with taxes from alcoholic drinks rising to P79.7 billion from P71.1 billion in 2018. Collections from sweetened beverages rose 10.5% to P42 billion.

This year, Department of Finance (DoF) projects sin-tax collections at P332.3 billion following another round of tax hikes for alcohol, electronic cigarettes and vapor products.

This is projected to rise further to P480 billion by 2024.

Currently, higher excise taxes have been imposed on tobacco, alcohol, sweetened beverage, e-cigarette and vapor products.

Separately, the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) said its docket of unpaid tax cases covered P24.02 billion in 2019 over 347 separate complaints, amid stepped-up efforts to prosecute tax evaders.

Citing a report from the bureau, the DoF said in a statement Tuesday that the BIR was continuing to implement its Run After Tax Evaders (RATE) program.

BIR Deputy Commissioner Arnel S.D. Guballa said during a DoF Executive Committee (Execom) meeting that last year’s performance was a “marked improvement” from the number of cases filed in 2018, during which 197 complaints were filed before the Justice department, involving tax obligations worth P15 billion.

The 2019 totals involved 309 tax cases filed with the Department of Justice (DoJ) with liabilities estimated at P19.06 billion; and 38 complaints filed before the Court of Tax Appeals (CTA), involving liabilities of P4.94 billion.

“As of Dec. 31, the BIR has 118 tax-related cases pending before the CTA,” Mr. Guballa said.

Under BIR’s Oplan Kandado program, the bureau collected a total of P1.92 billion in 2019 from the temporary closure of 743 establishments caught violating tax laws, against 233 establishments closed in 2018 which generated P799.47 million in collections. — Beatrice M. Laforga

DoJ finishes draft rules for competition law’s criminal component

THE Department of Justice said it completed the drafting of implementing rules for the criminal provisions of the anti-competition law.

DoJ spokesperson Undersecretary Markk L. Perete said the department’s Office for Competition (OFC) completed the draft implementing the criminal provisions of Republic Act No. 10667 or the Philippine Competition Act and other related laws.

Mr. Perete said the rules clarify the elements of the crime committed in entering anti-competitive agreements, and include special rules on the filing of information and venue for cases falling under the law.

“The rules likewise enumerate and guide prosecutors on the application of special rules in the prosecution of these cases, such as the plea of nolo contendere (no contest), and the inadmissibility of certain pieces of evidence arising from a party’s prior resort to administrative reliefs before the Philippine Competition Commission,” he told reporters in a mobile-phone message.

The undersecretary also said that the draft outlines the procedure for applications of immunity of cartel members that provide information, testimony, and assistance for the “successful prosecution” of competition cases. It also included the obligations of those who will be granted immunity.

“Example, three companies entered into an agreement to peg the price of a product or its substitutes which agreement defeats competition. One of them may be granted immunity from prosecution in exchange for evidence regarding the offense. Which one to choose and how to grant it is specified in the rules,” he said.

The draft was published by the office online to solicit comments from the public before its finalization.

RA No. 10667 which created the PCC was signed on July 21, 2015.

The Supreme Court last year approved the rules upholding the authority of commercial courts to issue inspection orders of companies that are suspected of violating the law.

Under the rules, the PCC must apply for an inspection order before commercial courts, with a ruling deadline of 24 hours.

Special commercial courts in Quezon City, Manila, Makati City, Pasig City, Cebu City, Iloilo City, Davao City and Cagayan De Oro City have been authorized to issue inspection orders. — Vann Marlo M. Villegas

Gov’t budget utilization improves to 74% in Jan.

GOVERNMENT agencies improved their budget utilization to 74% in January, as measured by an indicator known as the Notice of Cash Allocations (NCAs), up from 60% a year earlier, the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) said.

The Budget department said agencies used a total of P145.576 billion during the month out of the P197.28 billion worth of NCAs released during that period.

NCAs represent an approval from the DBM to disburse funds allocated to them. A high utilization rate indicates effective spending on their various programs and projects.

Line departments posted an overall utilization rate of 66%, using P90.414 billion out of P136.38 billion in NCAs during the period.

The utilization rate for all other NCAs was 91%, with P55.16 billion used out of the P60.898 billion programmed.

The agencies that recorded 100% usage rates are the Office of the President and the Department of Energy at P492.61 million and P88.42 million, respectively.

Other agencies with high cash utilization rates were Congress (91%), the joint Legislative-Executive councils (91%), the Departent of Tourism (89%), the Department of Justice (88%) and the Department of Health (88%).

The Department of Education received the highest NCA releases last month but used P23.33 billion of its P34.58-billion budget, for a 67% utilization rate.

The Department of Public Works and Highways received the second-largest releases at P26.508 billion, but only used P11.804 billion.

Budgetary support to government owned- and controlled-corporations and allotments to local government units were used at rates of 94% and 91% respectively. — Beatrice M. Laforga

Senate investigation urged into water situation after decline in Angat supply

A SENATOR is calling for an investigation into the government’s readiness to deal with the decreasing levels of water in Angat Dam in Bulacan, the main source of Metro Manila’s water, following shortages in various parts of the capital.

In a statement Tuesday, Senator Emmanuel Joel J. Villanueva said he filed Senate Resolution No. 329 “to avert the negative effects of the anticipated water shortage in the summer months.”

Water shortages began to manifest earlier this year when Angat Dam’s water level fell below critical, as did La Mesa Dam in Quezon City, a key reservoir for Angat water. The shortages led to the impositioning of rationing throughout the region and nearby provinces.

“Our experience last year shows that Metro Manila has inadequate water supply. Our regulator and concessionaires should be able to respond to this upcoming problem,” Villanueva said.

Mr. Villanueva said that the water level in Angat Dam has dipped below 212 meters, which is considered optimal. As of Tuesday, the water level was 202.23 meters, according to the government weather service, which is known as PAGASA.

Angat Dam supplies most of the water treated by the two Metro Manila concessionaires — Maynilad Water Services, Inc. (Maynilad) and Manila Water Co. (Manila Water). Manila Water is allocated 1,600 million liters per day (MLD) while Maynilad gets 2,400 MLD.

Manila Water said in August that the chronic water shortages could turn critical by 2021 if the government does not tap a new water source. The government’s solution to the ongoing water crisis is the construction of the Kaliwa Dam in Quezon and Rizal.

Earlier this year, Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System (MWSS) Administrator Emmanuel B. Salamat said Kaliwa is still in the design phase with a target completion of 2024 or 2025. — Gillian M. Cortez

Regional manufacturers offered path to expansion via franchises

DAVAO CITY — The Philippine Franchise Association (PFA) is encouraging manufacturers here to venture into franchising to promote regional delicacies, citing the success of such products as yema (sweet custard), cheesecake and lechon (roast pork).

“Some regional delicacies that have become mainstreamed because of franchising like empanada, pancit palabok, and yema cheesecake. Even lechon… we see products in other regions expanding to other areas beyond their origins,” Debbie Uy-Rodolfo, committee chair of Franchise Asia Philippines Expo 2020, said during Monday’s Kapehan sa Dabaw Forum.

Ms. Rodolfo said this year’s Franchise Asia PH, set March 25-29 at the SMX Convention Center in Pasay City, is an opportunity for those looking to invest in a franchised business as well as existing entrepreneurs who want to expand.

“If you are looking for a business venture there are a lot of opportunities when you visit the expo,” Ms. Rodolfo said.

Aside from domestic franchises, the expo will also showcase brands from Korea, Malaysia, Singapore, and the US, among others.

A conference will also feature industry experts discussing best practices and solutions, with a particular focus on the use of new technology. — Maya M. Padillo

Net job creation rate rises to 1.1% in 2nd quarter in ‘tight’ labor market

By Marissa Mae M. Ramos
Researcher

EMPLOYMENT growth among large Metro Manila firms accelerated in the second quarter of 2019, the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) said.

In its Labor Turnover Survey, the PSA said labor turnover in the National Capital Region (NCR) was 1.1% in the second quarter, higher than the 0.5% logged a quarter earlier.

This means that for every 1,000 persons employed, large firms were hiring some 11 additional workers on a net basis during the second quarter.

The labor turnover rate is the difference between the rate of accession or hiring and the rate of separation or job termination or resignation.

The rate of accession — which represents hiring by employers to either replace former employees or expand their workforce — stood at 9.5% in the second quarter, up from 9.3% in the previous quarter.

The rate of separation — which covers termination and resignation — stood at 8.3%, down from the first quarter’s 8.8%.

More people were hired in the second quarter due to the replacement of former workers at 5.2%, compared to those who were hired due to business expansion at 4.3%.

Meanwhile, of the 8.3% separation rate, 5.5% was employee-initiated and 2.8% employer-initiated.

Being “hired by another company” and “family considerations” were the main reasons for employee-initiated separations, as cited by 37.4% and 19.9% of the respondents who left their employers of their own accord, respectively.

On the other hand, the main reasons for employers ending the services of their workers were “project completion” (38.2%) and “absence without leave or AWOL” (27.9%).

The services sector posted a net job creation rate of 1.4%, following an accession rate of 9.9% and separation rate of 8.5%.

Negative job creation rates were observed in agriculture, forestry and fishing (-0.2%) and industry (-0.1%) sectors. For agriculture, its separation rate of 4.2% outpaced its accession rate of four percent. Likewise, the industry sector’s 7.6% separation rate exceeded its accession rate of 7.5%.

Asked to comment, UnionBank of the Philippines, Inc. Chief Economist Ruben Carlo O. Asuncion said the Philippine labor market continues to be “tight” as characterized by low unemployment, upward pressure on wages, and a high turnover ratio.

“This higher labor turnover rate in the NCR (confirms the view that) the labor market (is) tight,” Mr. Asuncion said.

“Economic development also plays a key role and it can help play certain labor turnover dynamics. In NCR’s case, it would most likely be the upward pressure on wages and the considerable amount of job options for many of the labor force,” he added.

The PSA survey also showed 96,135 job vacancies in the second quarter, more than the 85,410 vacancies in the first quarter.

These vacancies were highest in the services sector, which accounted for 91.3% of the total, or 87,738 openings. The share of the industry sector was 8.4% (8,099) while that of agriculture, forestry and fishing was 0.3% (298).

By occupation group, employers mostly looked to fill in positions for service and sales workers (36.3% of job vacancies); clerical support workers (17.2%); professionals (16.4%); technicians and associate professionals (12.2%); and plant and machine operators and assemblers (5.9%).

The first- and second-quarter labor turnover surveys conducted by the PSA involved 2,466 establishments in Metro Manila. Sampled firms, each of which had at least 20 workers, were drawn from the 2018 NCR List of Establishments.

Moving forward, Mr. Asuncion said: “With current challenges posed by the Covid-19 health scare on the global economy and the interconnection of the Philippine economy to multinational companies that may be affected…the present labor market may be humming a different tune especially for 2020. At this point, it is hard to anticipate a certain outcome or change.”

Déjà vu: Legacy of EDSA

Where are we now, 34 years or just a bare generation after we triumphantly ousted the dictatorial and corrupt Marcos regime? The Marcoses are back and in power. Ferdinand Marcos has been interred at the Libingan ng mga Bayani. Congress is behaving like a presidential rubber stamp, with the exception of a few courageous non-conformists. Media entities are under threat and beleaguered. Graft and corruption among politicians and bureaucrats are running wild.

Worse, we have given up our legitimate sovereignty, confirmed by the UN Arbitral Court, to key parts of the South China Sea now ironically renamed the West Philippine Sea. Our fishers are disallowed from fishing in our own waters, and some of them almost drowned after their ramshackle boat was rammed by a bigger Chinese-owned boat. China has not apologized for what they term the “incident” and our government has not insisted that China do so. A former Foreign Affairs Secretary and retired Justice of the Supreme Court were disallowed from entering Hong Kong and technically deported, yet our government has not done or said anything in their defense. A duly elected senator is detained on obviously trumped-up charges attested to by long-term convicts who now seem to enjoy certain comforts in a military camp outside of Bilibid prisons where they belong. The Solicitor-General, the government’s official lawyer, has been allowed to retain his multimillion-peso service contracts with government agencies despite laws against such conflicts of interest arrangements. Thousands of alleged drug addicts and some pushers, mostly young and poor, have been assassinated in the streets in a so-called war against drugs — and yet the drug supply in the country has increased, not decreased. And now, President Rodrigo Duterte has single-handedly abrogated the Visiting Forces Agreement (VFA) with the United States of America notwithstanding constitutional provisions stipulating the role of the Senate in ratifying treaties. Without the VFA, our leverage with China, which is violating our sovereignty, has become even weaker.

What is happening to our constitutional democracy? Is this what we marched in the streets for year after year during the Marcos era? The rule of Man, rather than of Law is becoming the norm these days; and I fear that we are becoming insensitive to the increasing destruction of institutions that is going on. The Presidential spokesman goes on the air from day to day to contradict or revise what the President himself had said the day before, effectively telling lies; because that is really what he is doing. For example, the spokesman says the abrogation of the VFA is not because the President’s protégé was denied a visa when the President himself publicly said that was his reason. A new senator says the President is not for closing ABS-CBN when he has publicly said so. A legislator friendly to the Administration has attempted to explain that the President is emotional, and, what, that we have to make allowances for his emotions? Whatever harm he may be causing is OK because of how he personally feels?

US President Franklin D. Roosevelt has been quoted as saying democracy is not granted, it must be earned. What does this mean? We cannot rest on our EDSA laurels. It is clear to see if we think seriously about this that constant vigilance by the citizenry is vital if we are to strengthen our fledgling democracy. Part of this is defending the Freedom of the Press because the Fourth Estate provides access to alternative points of view, to public debates on policy directions being taken by public servants who have been elected by the people. If the President is “emotional” (immature?) then it becomes even more crucial that public discussion and dissent is allowed; when government officials, elected or appointed, are behaving like stooges whether or not the President is making sense. The citizenry, with the help of media must mobilize enough voices to prevent total abuse and irresponsibility. The military will eventually go with the will of the people. This is what we learned from our EDSA and Erap experience. This is what democracy is all about: the will of the people.

WIKIPEDIA/ORIGINAL PHOTO BY JOEY DE VERA

Our citizenry, especially the majority of voters, obviously need to be better educated and informed. Our educational system is a mess, as certified by international accreditation and testing institutions. We have to take our educational system more seriously. Even more than the drug menace. Moreover, we still have too many people living below the poverty line, thus they are motivated by basic and survival needs. Too much money has been wasted by corruption in government. We need activists and media to expose these abuses.

Media also, especially broadcast media, must also learn its lessons. Our citizenry must be helped to mature and be more socially sensitive and responsible. We seem to be over-entertained. Perhaps they can integrate more lessons in socially responsible values and behaviors into their media content.

The Roman Catholic Church as an institution must also review its own evangelization and education policies. So many of the corrupt public officials were educated in Catholic schools. What has happened to them?

Our schools need to assess what they can do to help strengthen values education and socially responsible citizenship. There are simple but valuable disciplines such as “cleanliness is next to godliness” that can instill self-discipline and responsible behaviors in our children. The values should be strong enough to last until they become parents and development actors and contributors.

We have a long way to go toward becoming a mature democracy. But the EDSA legacy cannot only be about what we are against. It has even more to be what we are for. EDSA enabled us to regain our democratic space. We need to defend it from shrinking even further. We have to protect our hard-won EDSA legacy. Keeping quiet or sitting on fences are destroying whatever we gained from EDSA.

 

Teresa S. Abesamis is a former professor at the Asian Institute of Management and Fellow of the Development Academy of the Philippines.

tsabesamis0114@yahoo.com

The lesser known facet of quo warranto

The extraordinary writ of quo warranto has been raised to public consciousness again recently that it begs to be understood further. It will be recalled that an action for quo warranto was filed by the Office of the Solicitor General (OSG) a couple of years ago to challenge Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno’s right to her to public position. This Petition was eventually granted by the Supreme Court and caused her removal as a public officer. This is the same type of Petition filed by the OSG again, but this time not against a public officer, but against a private entity, ABS-CBN Broadcasting Corp. and ABS-CBN Convergence, Inc.

There is therefore some confusion as to the nature of the remedy, which is often associated with challenges to individuals holding public office.

The special civil action of quo warranto is actually a writ of inquiry that determines whether or not there is legal right to a public office, position, or franchise and may be instituted against an individual or entity, as the case may be.

Under the Rules of Court, quo warranto must be commenced by the Solicitor General when directed by the President of the Philippines, or when upon complaint or otherwise, he has good reason to believe that any of the following can be established by proof: (1.) A person usurps, intrudes into, or unlawfully holds or exercises a public office, position or franchise; (2.) A public officer does or suffers an act which, by the provision of law, constitutes a ground for the forfeiture of his office; or, (3.) An association which acts as a corporation within the Philippines without being legally incorporated or without lawful authority so to act.

It can be gathered from the foregoing that as applied to entities, an action for quo warranto is proper in assailing either the existence of a de facto corporation or the unlawful exercise of a franchise by a de jure or legally incorporated entity.

While the Rules of Court do not distinguish between the kinds of franchise that may be subject of quo warranto against a de jure corporation (i.e., whether it is the “primary franchise” which is the certificate of registration of corporations or the “secondary franchise” which is the legislative franchise), Republic Act No. 8799 is clear that the revocation of a corporation’s certificate of registration is within the jurisdiction of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). This means that the “franchise” referred to in the rules on quo warranto proceedings that may be instituted in courts of competent jurisdiction must refer to legislative franchises.

The use of quo warranto to challenge a corporation’s legislative franchise is not novel in Philippine jurisprudence, but neither is it prevalent. Thus, there is more to be explored and tested in this legal remedy.

With particular regard to the revocation of a franchise of a broadcasting corporation, the case of Divinagracia vs. Consolidated Broadcasting System, Inc. and People’s Broadcasting Service discussed the propriety of quo warranto proceedings. Here, the issue involved is the regulatory jurisdiction of the NTC (i.e., whether or not it has the power to cancel a license issued to a broadcasting company that is also a grantee of legislative franchise on the ground of violation of its franchise). The Supreme Court in this case said that the regulatory agency cannot extend its power to revoke the mother franchise, and if there is a need to do so, it should be by an action for quo warranto.

Be that as it may, the action for quo warranto against ABS-CBN may present an actual controversy for the Supreme Court to finally make a pronouncement on the issue. It must be noted that under the Constitution, Congress has the power to grant (and hence also revoke) franchises, and an argument can be made that resort to courts may interfere with this process. Indeed, this may give rise to the situation where one branch of government decides, for instance that the franchise is warranted, while the other rules in an opposite manner. If only to reconcile the apparent clash of powers, the Supreme Court may need to eventually decide on the matter of the limitations of branches of government in this regard.

 

Atty. Maritoni B. Molina is an Associate at the Litigation and Dispute Resolution Department of the Angara Abello Concepcion Regala & Cruz Law Offices (ACCRALAW).

mbmolina@accralaw.com

Power Trip

They called him The Punisher when he was mayor of Davao City. I guess he can now be called The Terminator (step aside Schwarzenegger).

President Rodrigo Duterte appears to be in a terminating mood of late. He just ordered the termination of the Visiting Forces Agreement (VFA) with the United States and is set to allow the termination of the existence of the ABS-CBN network, the media bulwark of the Lopez business empire, operating television and radio stations across the Philippines and overseas.

Duterte does not have to actually cut off the network’s operations, as in unplugging a dying person’s life support system or discontinuing an international agreement like the VFA. He will simply order his rubber-stamp Congress not renew or extend the network’s franchise.

Power. That’s what Duterte wants to show to anyone who dares to displease him. Of course, his lieutenants (like Solicitor General Jose Caleda) will apply legal goobledygook to justify Duterte’s display of power. That’s like sheathing a brass knuckled fist with kid gloves.

The Lopez family and their business empire, aside from the media network, are among the most powerful in the Philippines. Duterte wants to prove that he is more powerful than they are. In fact, Duterte wants to prove that he is more powerful than all the business empires in the country. Only recently, he practically castrated the Ayalas and Manny Pangilinan, names that make the Philippine economy ring. The Ayalas and Pangilinan knew better than to talk back.

There’s a wise saying: “He who fights and runs away lives to fight another day.”

One doesn’t have to be a monster for Duterte to decide to make you kneel in obeisance. The VFA was terminated because of the cancellation of the 10-year visitor’s visa to the US of Senator Ronald “Bato” de la Rosa, Duterte’s former chief of the Philippine National Police and principal enforcer of Duterte’s war against drugs.

Duterte actually gave the US one month to reinstate the visa… or else. Expectedly the US was not impressed with the threat. The Americans ignored it. In fact, President Donald Trump’s reaction was that this would save money for the US. And so, the VFA was terminated.

And speaking of Trump, Duterte is not the only head of state who has demonstrated a willingness to give more importance to the interests of cohorts than the greater good of the country. If Duterte has Bato, Trump has Roger Stone — which has caused pundits to comment that both Duterte and Trump have left their respective countries caught between a rock and a hard place.

Note that the VFA is linked to many other military and economic ties between the United States and the Philippines. It’s like a string that is tied to a rope that is tied to a bigger rope that is tied to a package of benefits that could be lost. This loss will have a profound impact on the Filipino people and is infinitely more important than a vacation by Bato in the US (he has been seen in Las Vegas lifting Manny Pacquiao on his shoulders after a fight). But that hasn’t dissuaded Duterte from his power trip.

And why should that dissuade him? ABS-CBN, the business moguls, and the United States are chicken feed compared to what Duterte has also decided to take on. God Himself.

Some time last year, following profundities hurled at His Holiness Pope Francis, Duterte got pissed over the imperfections God has allowed in man (including Duterte’s imperfections, one may assume). As a result he called God stupid (that should give the Ayalas, Pangilinan and the Lopezes some comfort, knowing that they are in Divine company).

Not satisfied with insulting God, Duterte has predicted that the Catholic church will be kaput in 25 years.

Why 25 years and not sooner? I guess Duterte acknowledges the difficulty of bringing an institution of over 2,000 years to its knees, so he set a less abrupt timeline of a quarter century (Duterte is only giving ABS-CBN only up to the end of March plus a grace period to continue its existence).

This has led some social media trolls to wonder if the Catholic church also depends on a government franchise to continue to operate in the Philippines. If that were the case, you can be sure that the Almighty and All-Powerful Duterte would also threaten to allow the franchise to lapse and refuse to renew it.

Note that Duterte has a sense of history. He never had much love for America, because, according to him, US troops had massacred Mindanao natives way back during its colonization of the Philippines. That, on top of being denied a tourist visa when he wanted to visit a girlfriend in the US (this may simply be gossip, of course).

Thus, when then US President Obama expressed concern over the reported bloodbath that characterized Duterte’s war on drugs, Duterte reminded Obama of the spillage of Filipino blood caused by America.

The Catholic church has also been critical of Duterte’s anti-drug war, condemning the reported extrajudicial killings. Pissed at this “interference,” Duterte has called the princes of the church hypocrites for having looked the other way while priests abused young parishioners. Duterte has even threatened to “kill” the abusive priests.

Not surprisingly, Duterte does not have much love for the Catholic church. That, on top of being allegedly molested by a priest himself (this may also be gossip, of course, although Duterte himself has claimed that it actually happened).

In a predominantly Catholic country like the Philippines, Duterte’s threats have gone in one ear and out the other of millions of “devout” Catholics, thus encouraging Duterte to continue his insults against the church and even against the Lord. Of course God doesn’t need anyone to defend Him, but shouldn’t there be at least an uproar from the Catholic faithful over Duterte’s foul language?

One is constrained to observe that Duterte wouldn’t dare use the same foul language against Islam. If he does, he would immediately be the object of a fatwa or a death sentence. This says something about the alleged tapang or bravery of Duterte.

At any rate, it should also be noted that Catholics have been taught to turn the other cheek and to suffer insults in silence. Thus, blusterers like Duterte have felt free to throw their weight around.

You can be sure that Duterte has also not forgotten the centuries of Spanish domination of the archipelago and the sword and the cross that were used in the introduction of Christianity and the establishment of the Catholic church in the Philippines.

Indeed, Duterte has such contempt for the Catholic church that one should not be surprised if he rakes up the conquest of the Philippines by the Spaniards and how Ferdinand Magellan was slain in Mactan by a Cebuano chieftain named Lapu-Lapu.

If it took someone named Lapu-Lapu to fight the Spaniards, Duterte would have no compunction about giving the bishops and the priests his dirty finger, along with the greeting, “Fish be with you.”

 

Greg B. Macabenta is an advertising and communications man shuttling between San Francisco and Manila and providing unique insights on issues from both perspectives.

gregmacabenta@hotmail.com

Mobilizing Public-Private stewardship of the environment

Government, industries, and civil society organizations are finding different ways to approach plastic waste pollution. Legislative measures, such as a nationwide ban on single-use plastics, adoption of waste-to-energy plants, extended producers’ responsibility, and private sectors’ proactive engagement with communities and local government units are at the core of this discussion.

It is sobering that stakeholders are beginning to recognize the role they have to play as part of the solution. Whilst a tough process, something needs to be done, and it is never without asking, where do we start?

The broad-based multi-stakeholder approach is essential to effectively integrate a circular economy in rethinking production processes and in modernizing our waste management processes. The economic and technological realities show that a nationwide ban does not make the most sense in plastic waste management. A holistic approach wherein all regulatory schemes will mobilize the cooperation of public and private sectors is the more sensible and viable direction rather than extreme policies that will only burden consumers with higher prices.

Republic Act (RA) 9003 or the Ecological Solid Waste Management Act of 2000 itself encourages greater private sector participation in solid waste management. Even as Metro Manila coagulates further, urban and environmental challenges are too daunting and complex to be taken on separately. Shared responsibilities in caring for the environment through proper waste management efforts should be encouraged and mandated.

Simply put, government cannot do everything on its own.

Big industry leaders and environmental advocacy groups were on the same page in the recent Stratbase Pilipinas Conference and aligned their commitments to help solve what the Department of Environment and Natural Resources Secretary Roy A. Cimatu sees as a “garbage crisis” that must be solved to clean up Manila Bay.

In fact, collaborative programs with the private sector and communities, even in waste management, are not unheard of. Big companies are now partnering with government agencies to rehabilitate the most polluted rivers in Metro Manila. There are ongoing partnerships with communities and local government units to incentivize recovery of wastes and augment leakage that glaringly start off from the collection system.

A showcase of decor made from recycled plastic. — BW FILE PHOTO

Among the notable private sector initiatives is Coca-Cola Philippines’ P1-billion RPET (recycled polyethylene terephthalate) facility investment, the first in the Asia Pacific region, and slated to break ground this year. The technology will give PET bottles extended and multiple lives as RPET bottles, fabrics, chairs, and other useful items, thereby catching thousands of tons a day in PET bottles that would have ended up in landfills, illegal dumpsites, and esteros (canals) flowing to Manila Bay.

This is under the company’s World Without Waste global program which already has various ongoing sustainability and waste management programs in Iloilo, Bacolod, Boracay, Davao, Siargao, Palawan, Cavite, Bataan, Marinduque, Albay, Davao, Metro Manila, La Union, Baler, Negros Occidental and Saranggani, among others.

Innovations in packaging will take some time but the multinational manufacturing countries are investing in what can be done now to help stop the dumping of thousands of tons of trash ending up in our waterways. Manufacturers using sachet packaging such as Unilever for one have post-consumer waste collection programs in over 300 communities in Metro-Manila through a product exchange incentive. Its “Zero Waste” programs are engaged in multi-sectoral partnerships to implement micro-level collection projects. More and more enterprises see the value of responsive corporate citizenship and the role they must play as an enabling stakeholder of the environment which should be rigorously encouraged and even incentivized by government.

Building the best waste management systems takes resources, right planning and execution, but addressing public apathy, the lack of motivation and discipline to individually participate in reducing waste may be the more challenging dimension of our garbage problem. A strong communications campaign that aims to transform the “throw away” habit into a “dispose your trash properly” culture is a key component that the private sector’s pool of creative communicators will be most valuable.

Public or private-led programs on environmental stewardship and community empowerment are all invaluable in plastic waste management. It sets a new wave of strategies on how community-based projects can be more inclusive and impactful as they are connected to institutionalized funding schemes.

That said, empowering communities and enforcing environmental regulations work best when shared responsibility is upheld and encouraged. It works best when private partners are engaged and included as much as local governments and communities are held accountable.

It may be ambitious by a long shot, but it is possible and most of all, it works.

 

Vanessa Pepino is a Non-Resident Fellow at the Stratbase ADR Institute.

Stories over speeches

By Raju Mandhyan

EVERYTHING that we are, everything that we believe in and most everything that we are drawn to is influenced by good stories. Stories that we heard on the laps of our grandparents, stories our parents shared, and stories of and by people we loved and looked up to.

The really smart businesses across the world know this to be true. Notice how global corporations, community leaders, and people promoting their own faiths use them. They use them lavishly and, sometimes, lethally.

What happens to us when we listen to a story instead of a bullet point-riddled business speech?

Take into account the Triune Brain theory of physician and neuroscientist Paul D. MacLean and simplify it a bit like I have done in my book, the HeART of the CLOSE. The human brain has taken eons to evolve into what it is today. The brain has evolved in three major stages. Let’s call them the old Reactive Brain which mostly runs many of our unconscious bodily functions and is also the seat of fright, flight or fight. It is always overcautious, easily gets addicted, and, of course, has very little ability in delaying gratification. Then comes the mid or the Romantic Brain, the seat of our emotions, hopes, ethics, and the like. Lastly we have the new Reasoning Brain which is the seat of analysis, rationality, and short-term memory.

When we hear a story, a story that sinks in and settles deeper than most speeches, at least five things happen:

One, the Reasoning Brain takes a back seat and lets the words, the pictures, pass easily through the objective and analytical police work that it usually does. It goes — people go — “it is nothing but a story and what harm can it do? It looks nicely packaged in roses, rainbows, and rhythm. It is just fun, light stuff, open the gates of head!”

Two, the Romantic Brain sits up and says, “Wow, are we talking people, places, pictures, poetry here? I have here within me so many experiences to share, feelings to feel and dreams to dream. I wanna dance, I like what I am hearing, seeing and sensing. This is good. Let’s party!” It then begins to conjure up its own stories and begins pump out dopamine, oxytocin, and feels engaged and happy.

Three, the deeper, Reactive Brain finds no cause to be afraid, to run away, or pull out its fangs to defend itself or the human that houses it. He thinks if those two juvenile idiots think it is okay to let these sensations come in then it must be okay. Anyway, they seem to having fun. So it puts its head down and returns to its daily grind and holds back the cortisol from running amuck.

Four, when these three brains are in alignment and in harmony, there is peace among the millions of neurons that live in our heads, hearts, and our guts. When these neurons are calm and quiet they take in all the new data eagerly and store them in our long-term memories. Thus any and all important interpretations and messages that stories bring in with them get stored in us as our belief systems and values.

Thus, stories really are roses, rainbows, and rhythms which gently package our personal and societal values. Try asking yourself why you believe in honesty and chances are your response will be, “because a long time ago when I went shopping with Dad…” You will recall a story.

Five, when you as a leader tell a story to a group of people, not only are they leaning deep into your story, their mirror neurons rise to the occasion and recall incidents and experiences and compare the beliefs and the values held within them with yours. It is synergy and inclusion in action. No, in fact it is dynamic interaction.

Ergo, whenever you have to make a speech, deliver a status report, hold a town hall meeting, build a team, or influence your world authentically for a longer time, then tell a story over a speech. We will all then be living a happily ever after life.

 

Raju Mandhyan author, coach and learning facilitator.

www.mandhyan.com

NBA’s Kobe Bryant mourned at emotional Los Angeles tribute

LOS ANGELES — A gallery of basketball legends joined thousands of Kobe Bryant fans in Los Angeles on Monday to pay tribute to the transcendent National Basketball Association (NBA) star, his daughter and seven others who died in a helicopter crash last month that shocked the world of sports and beyond.

The “Celebration of Life” memorial at the Staples Center, Bryant’s home arena during most of his storied 20-season career with the Los Angeles Lakers, featured an emotional address by Bryant’s widow Vanessa, who started dating Kobe when she was 17.

She told a rapt audience that included NBA luminaries and show-business celebrities about the pain of losing her 13-year-old daughter Gianna, “an amazingly sweet and gentle soul,” and the husband she called her “soulmate.”

“He was my everything,” she said of Bryant, who joined the NBA at age 18 straight out of high school, was a five-time champion and fourth-highest scorer in league history with 33,643 points.

“God knew they couldn’t be on this earth without each other,” Vanessa Bryant said, referring to her husband and daughter. “He had to bring them home to heaven together.”

Michael Jordan, Magic Johnson and former Bryant teammate Shaquille O’Neal were among the Basketball Hall of Famers who attended the memorial, which opened with a performance by singer Beyoncé and a montage of Bryant’s on-court highlights.

“When Kobe Bryant died, a piece of me died,” said Jordan with tears streaming down his face. “Please rest in peace, little brother.”

Bryant, 41, and the others were killed on Jan. 26 in a crash in Calabasas, California, while en route to a youth basketball tournament at which Kobe was planning to coach his daughter and her teammates.

Vanessa Bryant filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the operator of the helicopter. The pilot was one of those killed in the accident.

An avid basketball player herself, Gianna hoped one day to play for the powerhouse collegiate program at the University of Connecticut, and she bonded with her father over their shared love of the game.

SOMBER MOOD
Fans gathered outside the arena hours before the ceremony started, many of them clad in Lakers purple and gold.

“I have been a Kobe fan for a long, long time. It is so sad, especially with the children. But it has really brought the city together,” said Bubacar Drammeh, who stood outside the venue and planned to watch the memorial on TV.

Inside the Staples Center, the mood was somber. Concession stands were closed and cell phone use discouraged. Attendees were not allowed in if they arrived late.

The proceedings attracted A-list Hollywood stars, including Jennifer Lopez, Queen Latifah and Spike Lee. Grammy award-winning musician Alicia Keys performed the “Moonlight Sonata.”

Late-night television host Jimmy Kimmel cried as he read out the names of the deceased and expressed the shock felt by loyal fans of the self-proclaimed “Black Mamba,” who dazzled the Los Angeles community well beyond his time on the court, even winning an Oscar for Best Animated Short Film in 2018.

“This is a sad day, but it is also a celebration of life, of their lives,” said Kimmel, who had Bryant on his show many times.

After his 20-year playing career, the Lakers retired both jersey numbers Bryant wore for the team — 8 and 24 — which hang from the arena’s rafters along with the numbers of other Lakers’ greats, including Johnson and O’Neal.

During the annual NBA All-Star weekend three weeks after the crash, the league said it would name its All-Star Game Most Valuable Player honor for Bryant.

Since his death, tributes to Bryant have appeared across the Los Angeles area, with his numbers displayed on the Santa Monica Pier Ferris wheel, city buses bearing “RIP Kobe” signs and purple and gold lights added to the pylons at LAX airport.

“In the game of basketball, in life, as a parent, Kobe left nothing in the tank,” said Jordan, articulating one of the reasons Bryant’s stardom transcended sports. “He left it all on the floor.” — Reuters

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