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Betrayal

Hoops circles are still “shook” over Magic Johnson’s abrupt resignation as the Lakers’ president of basketball operations the other day. Nobody, not even franchise owner Jeanie Buss (whom he referred to repeatedly in his impromptu press conference as his “sister”), knew that he was going to abandon the position he had occupied since February 2017. From his vantage point, he needed to hang up his suit and tie in order to “be Magic Johnson again;” he felt the National Basketball Association provisions governing executives prevented him from expressing his thoughts the way he wanted to, and exactly when he wanted to.

Not that Johnson was pressured to leave. In fact, he continued to have Buss’ implicit trust and confidence, and to the point of allowing him to decide on the fate of head coach Luke Walton despite her close ties to the latter. Never mind that his front-office record could be termed spotty at best; the Lakers’ win-loss slate during his tenure was fifth-worst in the West. More tellingly, he followed up his acquisition of LeBron James in the 2018 offseason with incongruous free-agent pickups. Forget the public pronouncements of satisfaction in sticking to plan; given his pledge to bring in the stars, he himself could not have been pleased.

Not coincidentally, Johnson said he would step down if he proved unable to lead the Lakers to glory in two years. As things turned out, he gave up after one. The development is stunning in light of the power he wielded, but likewise indicative of his predilections. By all accounts, he had too many ventures that required his attention, leading him to neglect the one for which he was most in the spotlight. And, true to form, he was sensitive to the constant barrage of criticism that reached his ears. Admittedly, the partisan, and often unfair, perspectives stood in stark contract to the beloved figure he cut as ambassador of the sport.

Still, Johnson had a responsibility to the Lakers, and suddenly abandoning it without so much as a proper by your leave cannot but be seen as a betrayal to his proclaimed family. He may well be right in saying he’s now in better position to be himself. In doing what he did, though, he likewise made the purple and gold worse off. No doubt, they’ll pick up the pieces and move on. But when? And how? Those questions aren’t his to address anymore. He doesn’t care to now, and, evidently, he didn’t care to then as well.

 

Anthony L. Cuaycong has been writing Courtside since BusinessWorld introduced a Sports section in 1994.

Peso continues to rise vs dollar

THE PESO strengthened against the dollar to hit a one-month high on Thursday following the announcement of a narrower trade deficit for February.

The local unit closed Thursday’s session at P51.835 versus the greenback, 6.5 centavos stronger than its P51.90-per-dollar finish on Wednesday. This was the peso’s best showing in more than a month or since it closed at P51.72 per dollar on March 4.

The peso opened the session at P51.90 versus the dollar. It strengthened to as high as P51.82, while its worst showing for the day stood at P51.95 per greenback.

Trading volume thinned to $690.5 million from the $990 million that changed hands the previous session.

A foreign exchange trader said the peso strengthened versus the dollar on better-than-expected domestic trade balance data.

The country’s trade deficit stood at $2.79 billion in February, narrower than $3.92 billion tallied the previous month but still wider compared with February 2018’s $2.54 billion.

However, another trader downplayed the trade data.

“It came out narrower than what was expected, but I think hindi ko masyadong binibigyan ng weight dahil sa (I don’t give it much weight due to) seasonal effects and impasse of the government budget for this year.

“Once the budget was finalized, the country’s import bill might pick up in the second half of the year,” the second trader said.

The trader added that there were dollar inflows throughout the day.

For today, both traders expect the peso to move between P51.70 and P52.10. — Karl Angelo N. Vidal

PSEi slips below 8,000 as trading volume thins

By Arra B. Francia, Senior Reporter

LOCAL SHARES dropped on Thursday as investors paused following the previous session’s flight past the 8,000 level.

The bellwether Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) failed to hold the 8,000 level yesterday as it fell 0.65% or 52.73 points to close at 7,955.80. The broader all-shares index likewise lost 0.42% or 20.96 points to finish at 4,888.92.

“The index took a breather today…after yesterday’s breakout and close above the 8,000 mark. Volume was noticeably lower at only P7.3 billion versus yesterday’s P9.8 billion,” Papa Securities Corp. Sales Associate Gabriel Jose F. Perez said in an e-mail on Thursday.

Regina Capital Development Corp. Head of Sales Luis A. Limlingan noted that investors sold down after tracking geopolitical updates.

“It was a sell on news trading session with the major news items being the Brexit dateline extended and the FOMC (Federal Open Market Committee) minutes showing more patience needed,” Mr. Limlingan said in a mobile phone message.

The European Union had agreed to extend the United Kingdom’s membership in the bloc until Oct. 31, giving the British Parliament more time to sort out certain laws. Meanwhile, the US Federal Reserve hinted at a possible rate hike before the year ends should economic conditions improve.

“Overall, the minutes shouldn’t change policy expectations a whole lot although they do suggest more support for an average 2% inflation target,” Mr. Limlingan said.

Internationally, markets were mostly in positive territory as they digested the minutes of the FOMC meeting. The Dow Jones Industrial Average eked out gains of 0.03% or 6.58 points to close at 26,157.16. The S&P 500 index advanced 0.35% or 10.01 points to 2,888.21, while the Nasdaq Composite index increased 0.69% or 54.97 points to 7,964.24.

Asian markets, however, ended mixed as investors watched geopolitical movements such as the Brexit deadline extension.

Back home, sectoral indices were equally split between gainers and losers. The mining and oil counter led those in positive territory, jumping 1.81% or 139.31 points to close at 7,818.70. Property rose 0.7% or 29.09 points to 4,168.18, while financials added 0.19% or 3.35 points to 1,745.83.

On the other hand, holding firms slumped 1.75% or 138.22 points to 7,735.68. Industrials slipped 0.97% or 116.44 points to 11,837.20, while services shed 0.42% or 6.89 points to 1,624.09.

Turnover dropped to P7.29 billion after some 825.43 million issues switched hands, lower than the previous session’s P9.83 billion.

Net foreign inflows swelled to P1.12 billion from Wednesday’s P970.64 million.

Decliners swamped advancers, 116 to 80, while 45 names were unchanged.

2 more Duterte bets climb in March Pulse Asia poll

TWO MORE allies of President Rodrigo R. Duterte made it to the top 12 of Pulse Asia’s latest senatorial survey, with its sole opposition bet from the recent surveys dropping from the latest poll.

In its March 2019 Ulat ng Bayan Pre-Electoral Nationwide Survey, Pulse Asia Research, Inc. showed former National Police chief Ronald “Bato” M. Dela Rosa and former Metropolitan Manila Development Authority chairman Francis N. Tolentino placing 8th and 11th, respectively, jumping from their respective 15th and 18th places in Pulse Asia’s January poll.

This makes the top 12 a predominantly pro-administration list, after former senator and interior secretary Manuel A. Roxas II who has usually turned up as the sole opposition bet in the top 12 dropped from 10th place last January to 16th place in Pulse Asia’s March survey.

Both Mssrs. Dela Rosa and Tolentino are running under the Hugpong ng Pagbabago coalition, chaired by presidential daughter and Davao City Mayor Sara Z. Duterte-Carpio.

Meanwhile, reelectionists Grace S. Poe-Llamanzares and Cynthia A. Villar maintained their positions in the first place and second place, respectively, with 72.6% and 63.7% support of registered voters.

The rest of the top 12 are Senator Juan Edgardo M. Angara (3rd), Christopher Lawrence T. Go (4th), Pia S. Cayetano (5th), Manuel M. Lapid (6th), Senator Nancy S. Binay (7th), Ramon Revilla, Jr. (9th), Imee R. Marcos (10th), and Jinggoy Estrada (12th).

The noncommissioned survey was conducted on March 23-27 among 1,800 adult respondents with a + 2.3% error margin at the 95% confidence level. Subnational estimates for the geographic areas have the following error margins at the 95% confidence level: + 6.5% for Metro Manila, + 3.5% for the rest of Luzon, + 5.3% for Visayas and + 4.7% for Mindanao. — C.A.Tadalan

Senate protests resolution by US House on PHL

SENATE President Vicente C. Sotto III and two other senators filed a resolution rebuking members of the United States House of Representatives, following what they deemed to be moves by US lawmakers to interfere with the Philippine judicial process.

Philippine Senate Resolution No. 1037, dated April 10, was a response to US House Resolutions 233 and 142, which proposed the release of detained Senator Leila M. de Lima and drop the charges against Rappler Chief Executive Officer and executive editor Maria A. Ressa.

“Sen. de Lima and Ms. Ressa are but incidental to the intent of this resolution. They are entitled to fair justice and judgment by the courts handling their cases,” Senator Panfilo M. Lacson was quoted as saying in a statement, Thursday.

“But what we need to point out is that supremacism has no place in a civilized world regardless of race, color and status in wealth and power.”

Mr. Lacson and Senator Gregorio B. Honasan II are also among the authors of the resolution.

The Senators asserted that both the cases of Senator de Lima and Ms. Ressa have been filed in court and that the judicial process is underway.

It was also noted that, despite Ms. de Lima’s detention, she had been allowed, though with limitations, to function as a senator, particularly in filing bills and resolutions. She, however, has not been able to participate in the deliberation of legislative measures.

“In the case of Ms. Maria Ressa and Rappler, contrary to the statement that the filing of the cases against her are because of her being critical of the administration, the charges are filed against her for violating certain laws,” the Senate resolution read.

“She was even allowed to post bail on these cases to debunk the allegations that these were politically motivated cases.”

Ms. Ressa is currently facing charges of tax evasion and the violation of the Anti-Dummy Law, in connection with the Philippine Depository Receipts issued to Rappler partner Omidyar Network in 2015. — C.A.T.

Duterte to discuss Chinese vessels with Xi

MALACAÑANG on Thursday said President Rodrigo R. Duterte’s bilateral talks this month with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing may include the continued presence of Chinese vessels in the West Philippine Sea.

Mr. Duterte is scheduled to attend the Belt and Road Forum in Beijing on April 26 to 27. Last month, Presidential Spokesperson Salvador S. Panelo said the President would also raise the Philippines’ concerns on the reported harassment of Filipino fishermen.

At a news conference at the Palace on Thursday, April 11, Mr. Panelo said this time: “I do not know if he will raise that [issue regarding the Chinese vessels]. My educated guess is since we have already raised that, they may respond to that during the bilateral talk.”

He said the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) has filed a “salvo of protests” against China over the issue.

“We have to wait for their response,” he added.

The last time that Mssrs. Xi and Duterte discussed the West Philippine Sea issue was during the state visit of the Chinese leader to the Philippines in November last year.

Sought for comment, University of Santo Tomas political science professor Marlon M. Villarin said via phone message: “I believe this is the best time for President Duterte and President Xi to have the issue discussed. Considering that, politically, the focus on the West Philippine Sea issue nowadays has the vantage points both from local and international politics. But I think this will only result in easing the presence of the [Chinese maritime] militia in the West Philippine Sea.”

He added: “Diplomatically, it can address issues concerning the increasing number of Chinese civilian militia vessels within the West Philippine Sea, especially those vessels [near the] Pag-asa Island. The presence of those Chinese…vessels is a clear indicator that China has a serious intention to grab the island.”

BI job order workers in Korean extortion case terminated

JUSTICE SECRETARY Menardo I. Guevarra directed the Bureau of Immigration (BI) to terminate the contracts of its eight job order workers allegedly involved in the extortion of P9.2 million from 15 Koreans. “Upon review of the terms of engagement of the job order contractors and the evidence adduced against them, the Justice Secretary found that factual and legal bases exist for the immediate termination of their contracts,” Department of Justice Spokesperson and Undersecretary Markk L. Perete said in a statement. In a text message, the undersecretary explained that job order contractors are employed to work for temporary projects. “Under Civil Service Rules, they are not employees of the government and their engagement is governed by contracts entered into with the agency they serve.” The Korean nationals filed a complaint last month against 18 BI officers and employees who arrested them last March 6 in Angeles City, Pampanga. Meanwhile, Mr. Guevarra has placed under a 90-day preventive suspension 10 BI officers and employees who were part of the group that arrested the overstaying Koreans and allegedly extorted money from them. “The ten BI officers and employees are now subject to proceedings to determine their administrative liability for grave misconduct and conduct prejudicial to the best interest of the service,” Mr. Perete said. He also noted that a parallel investigation is being conducted by the National Bureau of Investigation to determine possible criminal liability. — Vann Marlo M. Villegas

PAO files 3 new Dengvaxia-related complaints

THE PUBLIC Attorney’s Office (PAO) filed before the Department of Justice (DoJ) three new complaints in connection with deaths of children allegedly due to the Dengvaxia vaccine. The complaints involve children from Cavite, Muntinlupa City, and Laguna. PAO recommended to charge former health secretary Janette P. Loreto-Garin and 39 others, including health officials and officials from Dengvaxia manufacturer Sanofi Pasteur, Inc., and distributor Zuellig Pharma Corp. for reckless imprudence resulting to homicide and violations of the Anti-Torture Act and Consumer Act of the Philippines. Health Secretary Francisco T. Duque III is also tagged in one of the complaints. These new complaints are on top of the more than 20 similar cases that are still pending before the DoJ. In Feb., the DoJ indicted Ms. Garin and 19 others of reckless imprudence resulting in homicide over eight complaints. — Vann Marlo M. Villegas

Rappler asks SC to lift order banning them from events with Duterte

ONLINE NEWS site Rappler asked the Supreme Court (SC) to stop the government from enforcing President Rodrigo R. Duterte’s order banning its reporters from covering any event the President attends. In a press release, Rappler said its reporters and managers filed the petition, claiming that the ban curtails the constitutional right of the press to cover, report, and access newsworthy public events. “The prohibition is based on a personal determination by the executive branch that Rappler or its journalists are ‘liars’ or peddlers of ‘fake news’ — a determination which has no basis in law, and effectively creates another layer of government regulation of the press,” it said. On Feb. 20, 2018, Rappler’s Palace reporter, Patricia Marie I. Ranada, was barred by the Presidential Security Guard from entering Malacañang. This ban was then expanded to all events attended by the President, and applied to all Rappler reporters, including correspondents in the provinces. Mr. Duterte issued a formal order on March 1, 2018, citing that Rappler twists and presents what he said differently. Presidential Spokesperson Salvador S. Panelo, reacting to Rappler’s SC petition, said, “It’s a free country. We do not interfere with the judiciary.” — Vann Marlo M. Villegas

NLEX, CAVITEX operators gear up for up to 15% surge in vehicles during Holy Week

OPERATORS OF the North Luzon Expressway (NLEX), Subic-Clark-Tarlac Expressway (SCTEX), and Manila-Cavite Expressway (CAVITEX) are ready for the annual surge in vehicle volume during the Holy Week holiday with procedures ready for implementation.

NLEX Corp. President and General Manager Luigi L. Bautista said they are expecting the number of vehicles to surge around 10% to 15% as people start traveling to the provinces.

He cited that last year, volume peaked to as much as 330,000 during Holy Wednesday, from a 250,000 daily average.

“That’s more than 15%. So pwede natin sabihin na sa (we can say that at) NLEX, we are in fact ready to accommodate up to 15%,” said Mr. Bautista in a media conference on Thursday.

Metro Pacific Tollways Corp. (MPTC), the majority shareholder of NLEX Corp., said in a statement that toll plazas in Balintawak, Mindanao Avenue, Bocaue, Tarlac, San Miguel and Tipo will increase toll collection points by as much as 50% during the peak hours of April 17 to 22.

Road works at NLEX, CAVITEX, and the SCTEX will be suspended from April 12 to 22.

CAVITEX Infrastructure Corp. President and General Manager Roberto V. Bontia, for his part, said they are expecting vehicles to increase to around 170,000, especially on Holy Wednesday.

“On a daily basis, CAVITEX is roughly mga 150,000 to 160,000 vehicles a day,” said Mr. Bontia.

Meanwhile, NLEX Corp. Vice-President for technology Glenn G. Campos noted that speeding incidents along NLEX and SCTEX, which were averaging 500 a day, have declined by almost 50% after speed cameras were installed.

Mr. Campos also said that drivers are now informed of speed cameras through the mobile application Waze.

In a separate statement, the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority said it will deploy more than 1,600 traffic personnel from April 17 to 22 along major thoroughfares, major transport hubs, and key areas in the metropolis to help manage the holiday traffic and crowd. — Vince Angelo C. Ferreras

Quirino Bridge northbound lanes reopened

THE NORTHBOUND side of Quirino Bridge, also known as Concordia Bridge, was opened April 11, making the entire reconstructed structure now passable to vehicles. A 6-lane Quirino Bridge II can now be used by motorists going in and out of southern part of Manila with the completion of three (3) southbound lanes last October and now the three (3) northbound lanes,” Public Works and Highways Secretary Mark A. Villar said in a statement. The bridge, located along Quirino Highway in Paco, Manila and underneath the Metro Manila Skyway Stage 3 Project, was closed for its P58 million reconstruction last year.

Can Cebu become the country’s 1st single-use plastic-free city? Public hearing set on April 30

THE CEBU City Council is set to hold a public hearing on April 30 for a proposed law that will ban the use of a wide range of single-use plastic products. Among those invited to attend are representatives from the Cebu Chamber of Commerce, Inc., plastic manufacturers, fast food chains, and public market vendors, among others. Last Tuesday, the council approved the recommendation of its environment committee on the proposed ordinance of Councilors Eduardo Rama R. Jr. and Raymond Alvin N. Garcia. “The proposed ordinance prohibits the sale and use of single-use plastic products such as plastic bags, straw, coffee stirrer, soda and water bottles, food packaging and the like,” reads a portion of the committee report. Councilor Jerry L. Guardo, environment committee chair, said the proposed law will be good for nature and help in the city’s waste management, but they also need to consider the affected industries. Under the proposal, the Cebu City Environment and Natural Resources Office will draw up a three-year phase-out plan once the ordinance is approved. A similar pending proposal, authored by Councilor Eugenio F. Gabuya, Jr., sets an immediate implementation of the single-use plastic ban. — The Freeman

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