P 15.00 • 20 PAGESwww.edgedavao.netVOL. 8 ISSUE 52 • SUNDAY - MONDAY, JUNE 14 - 15, 2015

Kill plot vs Rody?

ALVIN REDOLUSA: Superhero with an extra chromosome

EDGE Serving a seamless society

DAVAO

“IF people could see that beauty is on the inside then most of the models in the world would have Down syndrome” -- Rosanna Stuart, mother of Maddy Stuart, Australian teen fashion model who has Down Syndrome

LIKE a typical kid growing up, Alvin Redolusa wants to be a superhero.

Alvin’s idea of a superhero was molded out of his admira-tion for comic book hero Su-perman--strong, skillful and swift. All that superheroes do,

Alvin wished he could. Only that a genetic condition has prevented him to be just that.

Alvin was born with a Down Syndrome, a disease that has afflicted one of ev-ery 800 babies born in the Philippines. Every four hours,

one baby with the genetic abnormality is born. Every-one knows that it is hard for people who have Down syn-drome to perform at the same level as others. Much more become a superhero--strong, FALVIN REDOLUSA, 2

Alvin with coach Allan Vergara and Down Syndrome Association of the

Philippines consultant Lani Vergara.

njb@edgedavao.net

By NEILWIN JOSEPH L. BRAVO

INSIDE EDGEThe BIG NEWS P4

GOLFER OF THE WEEK

Zeus Sara: Too young and too goodSPORTS P15

ALVIN REDOLUSA became the first person with Down Syndrome ever to

scale the country’s highest peak.

HOPE FOR PERSONS WITH DOWN SYNDROME

VOL. 8 ISSUE 52 • SUNDAY - MONDAY, JUNE 14 - 15, 20152 EDGEDAVAO

COVER STORY

Alvin took the trek to Mt. Apo like a veteran climber--calculating and cautious.

ALVIN’S WITNESSES. Former Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte (third from right) personally witnessed Alvin’s ascent to Mt. Apo along with the rest of the DSAP team including his coach Allan Vergara (third from left) and Lani Vergara (fourth from left). DSAP photo

Alvin, according to his climbmates, was “very inspired.” For the rest of persons with Down Syndrome, he is an inspiration.

skillful, and swift. Those with Down syn-

drome may work at a slower pace, but that doesn’t make them any less valuable. Just like Alvin, who thinks that his extra chromosome is not his kryptonite but his source of superpowers.

Emerging as an inspira-tion to others with similar condition, the 24-year old Al-vin is determined to make a difference-- chasing his dream of doing what persons with Down Syndrome have not done before as he endeavors to shed light on a disability he does not treat as an obstacle but a gift.

When Alvin was born on November 22, 1990 in R. Cas-tillo Street in Agdao, his moth-er Pacita could hardly accept it. Being mother to a child with such a condition was not easy. She admitted question-ing God for her fate.

“Dili lalim pero ako na

lang gidawat kay mao ma’y akong kapalaran (It was not easy But I have to accept it be-cause it is my fate),” Pacita told EDGE Davao.

Alvin was born to a rela-tively huge family of six, above the average for most Filipi-nos. He has five sisters and a brother. He was only 10 years old when his father died of recurring illness and young Alvin was left with only his mother, plain housewife, to take care of him.

Instead of sulking over her misfortunes, Pacita be-came even more determined to not just survive but give Alvin a “chance at life.” She has always made it a point of telling him every day how amazing, funny, smart, beauti-ful, wonderful he is. It was in 2004 when a friend convinced Pacita and Alvin to join the Down Syndrome Association of the Philippines (DSAP) Davao Chapter who are on a mission to change the way people define beauty and su-perheroes.

Alvin and Pacita’s jour-ney towards recognition and community immersion turned a different direction when they met couple Allan and Lani Vergara who had just came home from Japan and the United States in 2010 for her postgradute studies. Lani, now DSAP consultant, actual-ly met Alvin in 2004 but she was then about to leave for Japan for her postgraduate studies. The second meeting paved the way for Lani to take a closer look at Alvin.

Lani and her husband who is a mountain climbing enthusiast, had dreamed of training a member of DSAP to become the first ever person with Down Syndrome to scale the country’s highest peak Mt. Apo. They had scouted a “candidate” earlier but the plan fizzled out after the latter was found to have a heart con-dition. Enter Alvin, who had shown impressive endurance and enthusiasm during sports activities conducted by DSAP.

The couple decided to make Alvin as their new “can-didate” after convincing Paci-ta that they believe Alvin can overcome the challenges and become the new face of per-sons with Down Syndrome in Davao.

Alvin trained for four months doing regular morn-ing jogs and stair climbs, and his progress imnpressed Allan and Lani. The final test was scaling the Mt. Puting Bato in the Island Garden City of Sa-mal which Alvin succesfully summited.

‘In the beginning Alvin struggled. I gave him a lot of support and in about two months he was getting accus-tomed to climbing,’ Allan said.

On May 28, began his trek to the peak of the 9,692 feet above sea level Mt. Apo. Al-vin joined a group of climbers from DSAP which also includ-ed former Davao City mayor Sara Duterte who walked step by step with Alvin throughout the trek and witnessed for herself the young man’s deter-mination to overcome his con-dition. Alvin would take just a minute of breaks when he got tired and would soon resume his journey. On May 29, Alvin was on top of Mt. Apo--the first ever for a person with Down Syndrome to make it to the top.

Alvin’s conquest of Mt. Apo is more than just a per-sonal victory. “It is a state-ment. “People with Down syndrome can do anything, they just do it at their own pace. Give them a chance and you will be rewarded beyond your greatest expectations,” Lani said.

In the Philippines, one in every 800 babies born has Down syndrome or around 1,875 cases a year in a popula-tion of 1.5-million live births. More than 100,000 families in the country are living with a

person with Down syndrome. The DSAP said it has around 1,000 members in Mindanao, 500 of which are in Davao City.

According to the World Health Organization, Down syndrome is a type of mental retardation caused by extra genetic material in chromo-some 21. This can be due to a process called non-disjunc-tion in which genetic mate-rials fail to separate during a crucial part of the formation resulting in extra chromo-some called trisomy 21. This leads to Down syndrome, which results in developmen-tal delays and physical fea-tures typical of the disorder.

The cause of the non-dis-junction is still unknown al-though it has been linked to a woman’s age as studies have shown that the chances of having a child with Down syn-drome increases as a woman gets older especially after the age of 35. Down syndrome is not related to race, nationali-ty, religion or socioeconomic status.

“It is genereally genetic and rarely, freak of nature,” Lani said. She added that in the Philippines, it is difficult to have early detection of this condition because there are no mandatory pre-natal screening (PNS) which could determine if a fetus has Down

Syndrome unlike in many ad-vanced countries.

Lani said that DSAP Davao, which thrives on pri-vate support, is passionate about giving individuals like Alvin an opportunity to do something they dream of be-cause they want the world to know that having Down syn-drome is a blessing, rather than a disadvantage.

At the moment, Alvin is now training his sights on a new mission. When asked if he still wanted to climb Mt. Apo again, he flatly said: “No.”

Mt. Everest? Alvin, un-daunted with the idea of scaling the world’s tallest at 29,035 feet, readily said” “Yes.”

Indeed, there is no stop-ping Alvin from dreaming. Like any typical person, he wanted to surpass his accom-plishments and out himself to the test. Alvin and Allan are currently training for their next assignment. No, it’s not Everest. It’s crossing the chan-nel between Davao City and Island Garden City of Samal. If he succeds, Alvin will be the first person with Down Syn-drome ever to accomplish the feat--a feat not every normal person can achieve.

That’s what superheroes do. In the case of Alvin, a Su-perman with an extra chro-mosome.

VOL. 8 ISSUE 52 • SUNDAY - MONDAY, JUNE 14 - 15, 2015

All that

superheroes do,

Alvin wished he

could. Only that a

genetic condition

has prevented him

to be just that.

ALVIN REDOLUSA... pg1

VOL. 8 ISSUE 52 • SUNDAY - MONDAY, JUNE 14 - 15, 2015 3EDGEDAVAO

VOL. 8 ISSUE 52 • SUNDAY - MONDAY, JUNE 14 - 15, 20154 EDGEDAVAO

NEWS

FREE AT LAST. Davao City Mayor Rodrigo R. Duterte asks Private First Calss (Pfc) Khen Subere why he went AWOL in his captivity last April. Subere explained that when he was declared AWOL by his officials he was already captured by the New People’s Army. Armando B. Fenequito Jr.

DAVAO City Mayor Rodri-go R. Duterte fetched a captive soldier from

the New People’s Army (NPA) last Saturday in the town of Kiamaba, Sarangani Province.

Duterte arrived at around 3 p.m. on June 13 in Barangay Tamadang in Kiamba where the NPA freed Private First Class (PFC) Khan Subere in front of the community.

Subere was captured by the Mt. Daguma Sub-Regional Command-Far South Mindan-ao Region of NPA last April 13 in Barangay Tabudtud in the Municipality of T’boli, South Cotabato.

“Pasalamat ko sa mga

NPA nga gitagaan ko nilag higayong na makahangyo na makuha naoko si Subere (I thank the NPA for giving me the chance to get Subere),” Duterte said.

A physician, Dr. Eduardo Samdig, said the Subere was in good health based on his check-up at 11 a.m. last Sat-urday.

Mt. Daguma Sub-Regional Command of NPA spokesper-son Ka Dindo told reporters that the group turned over Subere to Duterte because the NPA’s higher command trusted him.

Ka Dindo said the group captured Subere while inside

the area of responsibility of it front committee. He said the group decided to release the soldier after finding he com-mitted no violation of human rights in the community.

Ka Dindo said the group tried to coordinate with the South Cotabato government for Subere’s release but in-stead of collaborating, it re-sponded by mounting a mili-tary offensive.

Ka Dindo lashed out at officials of 27th Infantry Bat-talion of the 10th Infantry Division for immediately de-claring Subere AWOL (absent without leave) without con-ducting an investigation on

the soldier.During his release, Su-

bere explained that on the day he was abducted he had asked his squad leader for permission to visit a relative in Tiboli.

“Sa kabahin nako mao siguro na gi-declare ko Nolan AWOL kay wala direct na-ka-report nila (I was declared AWOL because I did not re-port back them after being abducted),” he said.

His sister Khlaunden said the family only learned that he had been abducted on June 2 after she read a statement by the NPA confirming the ab-duction.

POLICE and military authorities here have launched a manhunt

against suspected members of the New People’s Army (NPA) who allegedly ambushed two unarmed soldiers on Friday morning.

A statement from the 57th Infantry Battalion said joint operations were still ongoing in the hinterlands of Barangay Noa and nearby villages.

The two soldiers, Corporal Nuran Rajabuayan and Private First Class Wilfredo Ligsay of the 57th IB “Charlie” Compa-ny, were on board a motorbike heading back to the compa-ny base at past 10 a.m. when

members of the NPA opened fire at them.

The 57th IB statement said the two soldiers in civilian clothes were both unarmed since they had just conducted a peace and development out-reach program (PDOP) in the village of Noa.

Both were rushed to the Kidapawan City Medical Spe-cialist Center. Rajabuayan was hit in his legs and arms while Ligsay was in critical condition due to injuries on his lower back.

The Army statement con-demning the attack said the soldiers were on a peace mis-

THE country’s big drug syndicates are reported-ly forming an alliance to

prevent Davao City Mayor Ro-drigo R. Duterte from becom-ing President, with one of the strategies being hatched by the group allegedly to assassinate the local chief executive.

Manny Piñol, one of Duter-te’s staunch supporters, made the claim in an article he wrote and which he posted on Face-book.

Quoting “raw but reliable” intelligence reports relayed to

the Duterte camp, Piñol said the big drug lords based in Luzon, Visayas, and Mindan-ao have banded together to put up a united front against a Duterte presidency.

“Information gathered showed that there are three strategies to be employed in neutralizing Duterte,” Piñol quoted a member of the Duter-te camp as saying.

Based on intelligence in-formation, the first option would be to assassinate Duter-te before he could even decide

to run for the Presidency. The second option reportedly is to launch a negative media cam-paign and black propaganda against the mayor, while the third would be the use of drug money during the campaign period to ensure the defeat of Duterte.

Because of these develop-ments, Duterte was reported-ly advised to beef up security starting Friday night.

“Security analysts said while the intelligence report still has to undergo validation,

a concerted effort by the drug syndicates against a Presiden-tial prospect who could work against the drug operations in the country is highly probable,” Piñol posted on Facebook.

When asked to comment yesterday afternoon about the report, Peter T. Laviña, an ally of Duterte and a volunteer in his nationwide campaign on federalism, said he has yet to verify the information.

But Piñol’s story imme-diately drew hundreds of

THE flight of Philippine Eagle Pamana on Fri-day, Philippine Inde-

pendence Day , meant a lot of things to the Philippine Eagle Foundation (PEF) and its partners.

As it spread its wings to glide, it reignited national pride, accentuating its name-sake: heritage.

The critically endangered Philippine Eagle is found no-where else in the world ex-cept in only four islands of our country. PEF estimates that there are only 400 pairs remaining in the wild. Defor-estation and shooting and trapping – all are human induced activities – are the

looming threats to the eagles’ survival.

“Our national bird, the Philippine Eagle, is every inch a Filipino as each citizen of the archipelago,” Jayson Ibanez, PEF research and conservation, director said in his speech during the release event here Friday.

“A life of freedom is fun-damental to the wellbeing of wildlife too,” he said.

The estimated 30,000 hectare forest, a UNESCO World Heritage site, will be home to Pamana as she claims her freedom and inde-pendence again after being under the care of PEF. The

Kill plot vs Rody?By CHARLES RAYMOND A. MAXEY

NPA releases soldier to DuterteBy ARMANDO B. FENEQUITO JR.

abf@edgedavao.net

Setting Pamana freeon Independence Day

Army, PNP hunt rebelsin North Cot ambush

FKILL, 10FSETTING, 10

FARMY, 10

VOL. 8 ISSUE 52 • SUNDAY - MONDAY, JUNE 14 - 15, 2015 5EDGEDAVAO NEWS

DETAINED. Philippine Councilors League (PCL) national chair Alma Moreno and PCL Davao chapter president Myrna Dalodo-Ortiz talk to Sergio Batistis Jr., a councilor from Albuera, Leyte who was arrested for allegedly selling fake official receipts and certificates of appearance, at the Sta. Ana Police Station on Saturday. Lean Daval Jr.

HUMBLE BEGINNINGS. Miguel Antonio, a Singapore-based Filipino singer and songwriter who was discovered by Apl.de.Ap and world-renowned producer David Foster, talks about his humble beginnings during FAST Fridays media forum at Archipelago 7107 by Barrio Fiesta in SM Lanang Premier. Lean Daval Jr.

THE Department of La-bor and Employment (DOLE) in Region 11 has

beefed up its HELP ME Con-vergence Program and advo-cacy drive against child labor.

HELP ME, which is an ac-ronym for Health services and medical assistance, Education and training, Livelihood op-portunities for families of child laborers, Prevention, protec-tion, and prosecution and for Monitoring and Evaluation, is aimed at implementing sus-tainable, responsive, focused and synchronized strategies to effectively address the child labor problem.

DOLE 11 regional director

Joffrey Suyao said the program is in line with the govern-ment’s vision of a Child La-bor-Free Philippines in part-nership with by communities through “Child Labor Friendly Barangay.”

Suyao said in last year’s survey dubbed Profiling of Vulnerable Works, there were 256 profiled child laborers in the region mostly in the agri-cultural sector. Suyao, howev-er, pointed out the survey did not cover all barangays in the region as there were only 25 barangays surveyed and that excluded Mt. Diwata where most small scale mining oper-

VALENZUELA City Rep. Win Gatchalian has urged the Department

of Health (DOH) to implement stringent screening measures in air and sea ports after more than a thousand people in South Korea have been put in quarantine for being sick with MERS.

This developed as the World Health Organization (WHO) on Saturday strongly advised South Korea to ban all people suspected of be-ing infected with the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) or having contact with the MERS infectees from going abroad.

Keiji Fukuda, assistant director-general for health security at the WHO, recom-mended this in the adminis-trative city of Sejong during the televised press conference

after ending a five-day epide-miological study of the MERS spread in South Korea.

South Korea’s MERS infec-tions increased to 138 Satur-day as 12 more cases were dis-covered. One more death was reported, bringing the total death toll to 14 and the fatality rate to 10.1 percent. South Ko-rea became the world’s most MERS-contagious outside of the Middle East.

The 16-member joint mis-sion comprising experts from the WHO and South Korea, co-headed by Fukuda and Lee Jong-koo, chief of JW LEE Cen-ter for Global Medicine under Seoul National University Col-lege of Medicine, staged the joint study of confirmed cases and infection control for five days from Tuesday.

Fukuda urged South Ko-rea to completely figure out

who had contact with the MERS infectees, to quarantine and monitor all the potential carriers of the corona virus, and to completely carry out in-fection prevention and control in all medical facilities.

The WHO official stressed that whoever had contact with the infectees and all poten-tial carriers should not trav-el, especially should not be allowed international travels during the incubation period, adding that South Korea has established a system to trace, quarantine and monitor the potential carriers.

For his part, Gatchalian said the DOH “should be on top of this emergency situa-tion. We cannot allow MERS to enter our gates so as to protect our citizens from this very in-fectious disease.”

He also noted that the

DOH should learn from its poor screening of passengers last year against the spread of Ebola.

Gatchalian recalled that at the height of the Ebola scare last year, the DOH only made passengers fill out a small, colored yellow one-page ques-tionnaire regarding how they feel and if they have symp-toms.

He said airport screeners did not even wear protective equipment and did not have a temperature-measuring de-vice. There was even a notable absence of medical profes-sionals in the receiving area. Changes in protocol were only implemented later, according to Gatchalian.

“This time, the DOH can-not be lax in doing its job. After all, it is their responsibility to

THE mother of a Filipina worker in Malaysia who died in a fire in Johor

Bahru on June 3 believes the death was intentional.

Virgilia Lloren, mother of Overseas Filipino Work-er Rubelyn, told Radyo Bida Koronadal she was convinced her daughter’s husband had something to do with her death.

“On many instances, my daughter would call, in tears, telling us she was harmed by her husband,” she said. “She also told us that she was locked up in the room when the husband gets jealous,” she added.

Virginia said she was not certain whether the husband was really a Malaysian trader or not.

According to Virginia, her daughter’s husband sent mon-ey to the Philippines using the name Noorafie Bin Arrifin, al-though he was known to the family as Rols.

The mother said her daughter was three months pregnant at the time of her death.

Rachel, Rubelyn’s sister who also works in Kuwait, has returned home to work for the repatriation of her sister’s re-mains.

Virginia also said they received information that Rubelyn’s live-in-partner was a Malaysian police investigator and not a businessman.

“We seek justice,” Rachel said.

The Philippine embassy in Kuala Lumpur has sought a full investigation on Rubelyn’s death.

A native of Polomolok, South Cotabato, Rubelyn per-ished when her house was burned allegedly by a robber who entered her home on Tuesday, killing her in the pro-cess.

“The embassy, through its Police Attaché, has asked Ma-laysian police authorities for a full investigation of the tragic incident, particularly how and why Ms. Lloren was ‘trapped’ inside the burning house,” an embassy statement said.

News of Lloren’s death was relayed to her family by her Malaysian husband in the afternoon of the same day.

Lloren’s husband was said to be not at home when the in-cident happened, the embassy said.

Lloren had been living in Malaysia with her husband for seven years and was working in a fast-food chain. She had a nine-year-old daughter. (PNA)

(Editor’s note: Amir Mawallil is the executive direc-tor of the Bureau of Public In-formation of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao.)

LISTENING to you call the Bangsamoro ‘ mus-mos’ or children during

the Senate hearing on the Bangsamoro Basic Law made me realize how badly we are misunderstood as a people.

The implication that we are immature in the field of governance is an apparent proof of how patronizingly other people can become to-ward the Moro as they mis-trust us. It was a scathing re-mark that exposed how some Mindanao leaders continue to undervalue the capacity of the Moro people to determine

their future and write their own fate.

For your information, Gov. Fuentes, ARMM has re-cently passed the national government’s Good Gover-nance Conditions under the Results-Based Performance Management System.

In case you didn’t know, this system monitors the performance of government agencies following six sets of criteria: Performance-based Bonus Targets, Transparency Seal, Philippine General Elec-tronic Procurement System (PhilGEPS) Posting, Liquida-tion of All Cash Advances, Cit-izen’s Charter, and Statement of Assets, Liabilities and Net Worth (SALN).

Solon pushes DOH to screenSouth Korean tourists for MERS

Mother believes daughter’sdeath in Malaysia intentional

DOLE beefs up campaignagainst child labor in R11

‘Musmos’An open letter to South CotabatoGovernor Daisy P. Avance FuentesBy Amir Mawallil

FSOLON, 10 FDOLE, 10

FMUSMOS, 10

VOL. 8 ISSUE 52 • SUNDAY - MONDAY, JUNE 14 - 15, 20156 EDGEDAVAO

ECONOMY

THE City Government of Tagum pegs on values enhancement in pre-

paring its constituents from the adverse social impact of huge investments entering the city.

In a press conference last June 10, Tagum City Mayor Allan L. Rellon highly placed importance on values en-hancement to encourage Tagumenyos to still choose “the good life” despite the en-try of investments on malls

and hotels.Started in schools, the city

government of Tagum has spread values enhancement to the sector motorcycle driv-ers who eventually earned good reputation during the 2015 Palarong Pambansa having undergone the values enhancement.

“Sa values natudluan ang mga drivers nga dili maayo ang mamintaha (With values enhancement, drivers were taught that it is not good to

take advantage),” Rellon said.The values program is

now being geared towards educating the vendors in the city to adopt the right val-ues in their trade, Rellon re-vealed.

“We are preparing them for that,” he said.

Meanwhile, Rellon also banked on the strength-ened program for children to shield the sector from the social downside of economic boom that usually happens to

fast-growing urban areas.“In fact, we are recog-

nized as a child-friendly city,” he said referring to the rec-ognition given by the Depart-ment of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) to lo-cal government units which showed significant accom-plishment to protect and de-velop children.

He also bared support of the city government to insti-tutions which look after the welfare of children in conflict

with the law (CICL) and the rehabilitation of child-vic-tims of substance abuse such as vulcaseal use.

On the other hand, May-or Rellon bared that the city has attracted investments Robinsons Mall, SM and City Mall among others boosting the city’s positioned to be-come a destination of MICE (meetings, investments, con-ferences and events) next to Davao City.

He counted the invest-

ments on a shooting range of international standards, and on a bowling lane sports project of the provincial gov-ernment of Davao del Norte as among the economic boost factors of Tagum City.

He also expected invest-ments on the Tagum City Hall completion and the P750-mil-lion worth waste-to-energy project as factors to further spur the economic devel-opment of the city. (PIA 11/Jeanevive D. Abangan)

Tagum focuses on values enhancement

STATE think-tank Philip-pine Institute for Devel-opment Studies (PIDS)

hosted a policy dialogue for the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP) last May 18. The resource speaker was UNESCAP Economic Af-fairs Officer Steve Loris Gui-Di-by, who expounded on the role of measuring growth inclusive-ness to determine the best pol-icies for achieving sustainable development.

UNESCAP had recently de-veloped a new inclusiveness Index. The index ranks a coun-try’s level of inclusive growth over a long period of time, and incorporates the social, environmental, and econom-ic components of a country’s performance into its criteria.

Led by PIDs President Gil-

berto Llanto, a panel of fellows and senior management offi-cers discussed with Gui-Diby potential policy areas to ad-dress challenges and obsta-cles to inclusive growth. The dialogue included a discussion about job creation, financial inclusion and financial litera-cy, and the overall state of the country’s business environ-ment.

According to UNES-CAP’s Economic and Social Survey of Asia and the Pacific 2015, the Philippines ranks 10 out of 16 countries in the inclusiveness of growth index for the period 2002-2012. The report shows various components of growth and development and discusses the country’s performance in comparison to other Asia-Pa-cific countries.

These components in-clude an index for social op-portunities in select countries, where the Philippines ranks 14 out of 23 countries in the same period, down from 10 in the 1990-1999 period; access to electricity, where the index shows stark difference be-tween rural and urban electri-fication. One data index shows the Philippines having one of the highest rates of unemploy-ment in a certain set of coun-tries that includes many of its Southeast neighbors, including Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, Viet Nam, Cambodia, and Lao, all of which rank lower.

The PIDS panel comment-ed that the Philippines has made many attempts to foster job creation but the efforts have yielded few satisfactory results.

Gui-Diby suggested that the Philippines can start by reflecting, investigating, and understanding the dynamics affecting their young people’s career mindset. Llanto said that despite the recent spate of entrepreneurial courses bur-geoning across the country’s top universities, the sense of entrepreneurship remains at a “non-poor level”. The upper income group is more likely to start a business because they can afford to and they are will-ing to take the risk. But there is no support system for those in the poorer bracket to compa-rably afford the same risks.

Gui-Diby recommended that the country focus on en-abling a good business envi-ronment and improving the elements of infrastructure,

AMONG the first movers in the Clark Green City project of the state-

owned Bases Conversion and Development Authority (BCDA) set their groundbreak-ing next year.

BCDA President and Chief Executive Officer ArnelPacia-no D. Casanova said Universi-ty of the Philippines (UP) will have groundbreaking on its 50-hectare land in Clark Green City.

Casanova noted that pres-ence of educational institu-tions in Clark Green City will play significant role in the project as it will ensure inves-tors that there is quality ed-ucation and workforce in the

area.Aside from UP, BCDA and

Home Development Mutual Fund (PagIBIG Fund) also set groundbreaking and construc-tion of 2,000 housing units in Clark Green City.

Recently, the two govern-ment offices forged partner-ship to develop affordable housing units in the Clark Green City which can cater to 85,000 individuals particular-ly to workers in the new cen-tral business district.

This week, BCDA held a pre-bid conference for the first parcel of land in Clark Green City with a total area of 288 hectares.

Survey shows Phl economy lacks inclusiveness UP residential project groundbreaking slated

FSURVEY, 10 FUP, 10

VOL. 8 ISSUE 52 • SUNDAY - MONDAY, JUNE 14 - 15, 2015

EDGEDAVAOEVENT

INdulge!

Raceday for media at Lanang Business ParkLANANG BUSI-NESS PARK, a mixed use property owned by Dominc and Sons Re-alty and Development Corporation (DSRDC), celebrated its first anni-versary last Friday, June 12, with twin events that provided members of the media well-needed stress-killers.

The first event dubbed as “Time Attack: The Ultimate Motorsports Media Chal-lenge” held in partnership with 5th Gear Motorsports, staged the Go Kart and ATV

races for media and fam-ily/associates. The best times submitted by media affiliates were from Russel Mangli-pot of Bombo Radyo (30.74 seconds), Paolo Iñigo, (son of of SCOOP Davao mem-ber Tommy Iñigo) and Kel-vin Geonzon, son of UMBN manager Roy Geonzon while the best times for practicing media are from EDGE Davao managing editor Neil Bravo (33.53), Robinson Ninal of Mindanao Daily Mirror (33.57) and Roy Geonzon of UMBN (33.86).

In the ATV cetegory,

Raminto Devenosa of TV5 submitted the fastest time of 1 minute 26.28 seconds, fol-lowed by EDGE Davao re-porter Armando Fenequito (1:32.00) and Mindanao Dai-ly Mirror’s Robinson Ninal (1:36.28).

The anniversary celebra-tion was capped by the “Mu-sic All Night” party featur-ing two top bands from the local music scene. The event was organized by Lanang BizPark’s property manage-ment and administrative ser-vices manager John Irene del Campo.

EDGE Davao reporter Armando Fenequito negotiates a sharp curve.

EDGE Davao affiliate Paula Pang-Bravo revs up.

Racing Line’s Jong Uy briefs the participating drivers in the go-kart competition.

EDGE Davao managing editor Neil Bravo points to the crowd at the finish. Inset, Bravo receiving his prize from

Lanang Bizpark’s Apple and Cherry.

Text and photos by LEAN DAVAL JR.

TAKING OVER the hosting duties of Asia’s Next Top Model presented an en-tirely different challenge for Georgina Wilson. Still, the Filipino-British supermodel was very vocal in saying she had a good time hosting the 2015 season and third cycle of the show. “It’s such a great experience and opportunity because I’m finally able to put all my teachings and knowledge into... I reflected on it and I actually realized that I’ve learned so much and it was such a great experience to share that with girls who wanna become top models too,” she said in an inter-view on Wednesday, June 10. Georgina, who has been in the industry for ten years already, re-vealed the contestants initially felt intimidated of her but after a while, friendships began to blos-

som. She also shared that the hardest part was to actually tell somebody she has to let her go. “It was a hard balance of am I your friend or am I your mentor, and I think the hardest was for me because I had to, every week, tell somebody that ‘Your journey ends here,’” explained Georgina. “It’s a very emotional thing. They didn’t show it, but every week I cried. I would just have to turn away, but in the next few episodes, the girls really saw me crying na and it’s really difficult because when you look at them, you never think that somebody’s journey is over, that’s why I always tell them when I let them go ‘Your journey in this competition is over, but that doesn’t mean your mod-eling journey is completely over,’” she added. Meanwhile, Georgina said that the third cycle of Asia’s Next Top

Model has been blessed with the best bunch of girls and that peo-ple have been tweeting her non-stop about this season’s top four. “I’m just so pleased, I’m so happy because the girls are so special to me,” she enthused. When asked what the chances are for Filipina contender Monika Sta Maria to make it on top, Geor-gina replied: “Well, Monika is in the top four, so as of now there’s a 25 percent chance. At least may Pinay sa top four, sobrang proud ako.” Further, Georgina explained that upon joining the competi-tion, she made sure that she was there as a non-biased host to find the model who would best rep-resent Asia. “I couldn’t go there being biased towards Filipinos. But of course I’m always gonna be Filipino and I’m so proud to be Fili-pino,” she said.

WELL-ROUNDED ac-tor Benjamin Alves re-mains a Kapuso as he signed yesterday (June 9) an exclusive contract with GMA Network. Present in the contract-signing were GMA Senior Vice President for Entertain-ment Lilybeth G. Rasonable, GMA Vice President for En-tertainment Marivin T. Araya-ta, GMA Senior Assistant Vice President for Alternative Pro-ductions Gigi Santiago-Lara, GMA Artist Center Assistant Vice President and Head for Talent Imaging and Market-ing Unit Simoun Ferrer, and co-manager Jonas Gaffud. In his four years as a Ka-puso, Ben has been blessed with numerous projects and he feels grateful for his rela-tionship with the network. With all smiles, he promises to work harder and to stay focused on learning more about his craft. “You just keep on doing workshops and things like that. You con-tinue to grow, so when work comes in—and it does come in a lot—you’re ready. The hard work gets rewarded, so I’m glad I’m here and I’m glad that I’m going to be here for three more years.” The network warmly ac-knowledges Ben’s hard work

and they have seen his talent as an actor. Rasonable shares her plans to hone him more as a dramatic artist, “We’re very happy that Benjamin has renewed his ties with the network. This is where he started his acting career, and the fact that he’s renewing with us and we are renewing his contract means that both camps are happy with each

A2 INdulge! VOL. 8 ISSUE 52 • SUNDAY - MONDAY, JUNE 14 - 15, 2015EDGEDAVAOSTYLE

Benjamin Alves renews ties with GMA Network

Cinema One airs Gawad Urian awards night live on June 16

Georgina Wilson on hosting Asia’s Next Top Model

ENTERTAINMENT

THIS BOOK about one of the world’s pre-miere fashion titles had me in its grasp as soon as I read that its editors used to create entire backstories around its photo shoots which included taking in local literature and making sense out of why a fifties glam-our girl would traipse the Suez Canal in this particular outfit. Did that mean that there was now proof that the chic individuals be-hind the brand actually cared about con-text? Gasp. There was really no other choice but to grab a copy.

Kirstie Clements is a self-effacing Australian lady who rose to the edi-torship of Vogue Austra-lia and retells her adven-tures during her tenure there in The Vogue Factor. She knew that even if she belonged to one the lower ranking Vogues as com-pared to US Vogue and Vogue Italia, she prided herself for never cutting corners when it came to her work and having the pleasure of working among the most impecca-bly dressed and mannered women. Many things marked her career at the masthead of Vogue and she had the canny ability to correctly identify the most important ones in her memoir. This isn’t the first book about Vogue and its personalities that I’ve devoured. However, it is the first one I’ve read where the author keeps her thoughts above largely conflict-ridden or scan-dalous levels. It is very re-spectable for a tell-all and Clements remains an edi-tor till the very end. Her manner never reduces to being whiny or petulant. Her understanding of her role within her organi-zation informs how she

chooses to recount her col-orful tenure at the world’s most respected fashion magazine title. And al-though the introduction of her book tells her read-ers that she was uncer-emoniously sacked, she is a true believer in what she says about how her exit matters even more than her conduct while she was still onboard. She is un-sparing in her praise of all the opportunities that being part of Vogue Aus-tralia has afforded her, but also describes truthfully its pitfalls and setbacks. Clements’ story spans the 80’s up until the pres-ent and she artfully re-counts the differences of the times. The most glar-ing and most rampant comparisons she makes

lie in how the editorial team at Vogue got the job done. Enter circa-80’s practices when store pull-outs and canned articles were non-existent versus today’s stories that seem signed, sealed and deliv-ered by the company’s PR. The question that is habitually in her mind has to do with how she can maintain her edito-rial integrity in the face of changing mediums, managements and egos. She understood that put-ting out the best shoots and issues had much to do with how she got along with the people around her and some of her best anecdotes are about the photographers and mod-els she had the pleasure or ire to work with.

The book is marketed as a tell-all and there is plenty of juice to be had. Clements never feels truly at home in the attention-grabbing world of fashion and she repeatedly points out that she would rather in the sidelines and be-hind bylines than front and center. That being said, even if the stories re-counted occurred decades past, you can still feel her sense of wonder and incredulousness at be-ing amidst the things she was privy to. Lush events put together by cosmet-ics giants topped her list of most unforgettable along with meeting and working with icons such as Giorgio Armani and Karl Lagerfeld. It never stopped feeling like won-derland for her and she never stopped appreciat-ing the fresh perspective that fashion’s fantastical worlds gave her. Clements turns intro-spective at the end of her book and her roots as a writer makes her story a valuable manifesto for the written word. She was from an era where things did not come easy and it was on these pio-neering grounds that she, along with the colleagues she revered, built their work ethic. Her love for Vogue would never di-minish and she throws the thought to the fashion cosmos that the content of the magazine – the prod-uct of minds informed by art, literature and culture – should always be cham-pioned. Such is life for a Vogue girl, always aiming for the fabulous.

This isn’t the first book about Vogue and its personalities that I’ve devoured. However, it is the first one I’ve read where the author keeps her thoughts above largely conflict-ridden or scandalous levels.

Life in the Vogue lane

and they have seen his talent as an actor. Rasonable shares her plans to hone him more as a dramatic artist, “We’re very happy that Benjamin has renewed his ties with the network. This is where he started his acting career, and the fact that he’s renewing with us and we are renewing his contract means that both camps are happy with each

other.” Rasonable further reveals his upcoming projects, “Now he’s doing Beautiful Strang-ers with Heart Evangelista, Lovi Poe, Rocco Nacino, Christopher De Leon, and Dina Bonnevie, among oth-ers. It’s going to be a prime-time program that we’re very excited about because of the powerhouse cast.”

CINEMA ONE is bringing to televi-sion screens the live airing of the 38th Gawad Urian where the bright-est and most tal-ented artists from Philippine cinema come together in celebration of the best performances and movies of the previous year this Tuesday (June 16) at 8PM. Filipino veteran and up-and-coming artists Jed Madela, Darren Espanto, Kyla, and Gwyneth Dorado will unite on the Ga-wad Urian stage to perform a special trib-ute dedicated to this year’s Natatanging Gawad Urian recipi-ent, Nora Aunor. The 38th Gawad Urian also gets bigger as “Asia’s Got Talent” grand winner El Gam-ma Penumbra graces the awards night to showcase a phenom-enal song and dance number. Aside from stun-

ning performances, viewers will get to wit-ness which among in-die drama films “Dagi-tab,” “Barber’s Tales,” “Bwaya,” and “Mula Sa Kung Ano Ang Noon” will be the big winner as the following films have led this year’s nominations. The race is tight as well in the major categories including Best Actor, Best Ac-tress, Best Supporting Actor, and Best Sup-porting Actress since the nominees have received rave reviews for their notable per-formances. Hosted by Angeli-ca Panganiban, Robi Domingo, and Butch Francisco, the 38th Gawad Urian will also feature Nova Villa, An-geli Bayani, and Sand-ino Martin as present-ers of the show. The Gawad Urian Awards is the most esteemed film awards in the Philippines The nominees and the winners are chosen by the Manunuri ng Peli-

GMA News welcomes Kapuso artist Iya Villania as the new host of primetime newscast 24Oras’ show-biz segment Chika Minute. Beginning June 15, Iya Villania joins the formi-dable triumvirate of Mel Tiangco, Mike Enriquez and Vicky Morales in the nightly newscast. “Iya injects new energy to Chika Minute with her fresh and sassy news delivery. She also brings her active lifestyle to the show, and her star power as she brings us closer to the biggest showbiz person-alities,” says Assistant Vice President for News and Special Programs Michelle Seva. Currently, Iya co-hosts the weekly lifestyle pro-gram Taste Buddies on GMA News TV and is part of the musical-variety program Sunday All Stars on GMA7. Asked about her new assignment, Iya shares “I feel honored na sa dinami-rami ng may gusto ng position na ito, sa akin ito napunta. I’m glad that I was chosen.” Catch Iya Villania on 24Oras weeknights, 6:30pm, on GMA7.

INdulge! A3VOL. 8 ISSUE 52 • SUNDAY - MONDAY, JUNE 14 - 15, 2015 EDGEDAVAO

Benjamin Alves renews ties with GMA Network

Cinema One airs Gawad Urian awards night live on June 16

Iya Villania is new Chika Minute host

ENTERTAINMENT

kulang Pilipino (MPP) who are composed of reputable pillars in Philippine cinema. “There is no distinc-tion here between the mainstream and indie filmmakers. The MPP is evaluating the perfor-mances and achieve-ments according to the highest standards in their particular fields. During show, the Manunuri also ex-plains its criteria and why certain awardees have been chosen,” Mario Hernando, one of the members of the MPP said.

Aside from Hernan-do, the MPP members are Rolando Tolentino, Grace Javier Alfonso, Butch Francisco, Bi-envenido Lumbera, Miguel Rapatan, Be-nilda Santos, Dr. Nica-nor Tiongson, Tito Genova Valiente, and Lito Zulueta. For more informa-tion, visit Cinema One’s official Face-book page (www.facebook.com/Cinem-a1channel) and the official website of the Manunuri ng Peliku-lang Pilipino (www.manunuri.com).

PG

PG

PG 11:40 | 2:15 | 4:50 | 7:25 | 10:00 LFS

R-16

JURASSIC WORLD

Chris Pratt, Judy Greer

PG 12:30 | 3:20 | 6:10 | 9:00 LFS

INSIDIOUS: CHAPTER 3

12:00 | 2:30 | 5:00 | 7:30 | 10:00 LFS

SAN ANDREAS

Alexandra Daddario, Dwayne Johnson

12:40 | 3:00 | 5:20 | 7:40 | 10:00 LFS

Dermot Mulroney, Stefanie Scott

JURASSIC WORLD 3D

Chris Pratt, Judy Greer

June 10 – 16, 2015

A4 INdulge!EVENT

Park Inn by Radisson Davao celebrates Independence DayTHE leadership team of Park Inn by Radisson Davao celebrated Indepen-dence Day with a simple ceremony in front of the hotel. Headed by Secu-rity Manager, John Pamposa, the pro-gram started with the Entrance of Col-ors, singing of the Philippine National Anthem, employee recognition and the releasing of bal-loons. Recognition was awarded to one of the hotel’s detachment commander, SO Bene-dicto G. Sala Jr. for his heroic act and guest service. “Freedom of your thoughts, freedom of how you want to work, freedom to choose your career, that’s what free-dom is all about, that’s what we’re celebrating on this Independence

MEN’S SHOE SALE AT THE SM STORE. Stride on to The SM Store and check out Men’s Shoes Sale happening from June 12 to 30. Get exclusive discounts of up to 50% off on your favorite brand of formal and casual shoes, running and basketball shoes, sneakers and many more! It’s the Men’s Shoes Sale at The SM Store happening from June 12 to June 30.

LEFT: Park Inn by Radisson Davao’s managers and associates release balloons in the hotel’s signature colors during the Independence Day celebration.

BOTTOM LEFT: Park Inn by Radisson Davao’s general manager Pavan Kakar gives an award to the hotel’s detachment commander, SO Benedicto G. Sala Jr. for his heroic act and guest service.

day.” says Pavan Ka-kar, General Manager of Park Inn by Radis-son Davao. “It’s my first Independence Day in the Philippines and the spirit of celebration is just so overwhelming. I’m really looking for-ward to a great stay here in the country.”

VOL. 8 ISSUE 52 • SUNDAY - MONDAY, JUNE 14 - 15, 2015EDGEDAVAO

VOL. 8 ISSUE 52 • SUNDAY - MONDAY, JUNE 14 - 15, 2015 7

PCCI welcomes Competition Act ratification

THE ECONOMYEDGEDAVAO

FREEDOM DAY. SM Lanang Premier mall manager engineer Mary Therese Lapeña-Manalo (5th from left) and assistant mall manager Jerome Yeo (leftmost) lead the release of doves during the commemoration of the 117th Independence Day on Friday at the mall’s parking area. Lean Daval Jr.

THE country’s larg-est business orga-nization, Philippine

Chambers of Commerce and Industry (PCCI), has welcomed the bicameral ratification of Philippine Competition Act or the Fair Trade Act noting that it will support the growth of the national economy.

PCCI said, as the Com-petition Act will nearly be enacted into a law, it will en-courage more firms to im-prove the quality of goods and services as well as pric-ing in the market.

“This law will push businesses to engage in a healthy rivalry so that they will gain more consumers.

It gives us the incentive to be more efficient, and to offer the public better qual-ity products and services,” PCCI President Alfredo M. Yao said.

The Competition Act prohibits unfair agree-ments, mergers or acquisi-tions of businesses that will substantially restrict com-

petition and abuse of dom-inant position.

“When it becomes law, the Fair Trade Act allows even small firms entry into the market with the expec-tation that rules will be ap-plied equally to all, he said. When businesses engage in unfair practices just because they can, because they do

not have anyone competing with them for consumers, it is really the consumer who suffers through high prices and limited choices,” Yao noted.

Once enacted into law, the Philippines will be a compliant in the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) Blueprint where a

competition law is a com-mitment of the 10 members of ASEAN.

“We have long held that anti-competitive behavior is injurious to a strong econ-omy because an uneven playing field contributes to inefficiency and the misal-location of resources,” the PCCI president said. (PNA)

THE East Asian Develop-ment Network (EADN) held its annual forum

on May 28 and 29, giving the podium to its young research grantees to elaborate on the progress of their individual work. Since 1998, the network has sought to develop the re-search capacity of participat-ing institutions and individu-als by providing the resources to carry out development-fo-cused and policy-relevant re-search. The Philippines, on its fifth year as EADN Secretariat, welcomed research grantees and mentors from all over Asia, including Indonesia, Thailand, China, and Malaysia.

The focus of the research studies at the EADN forum this year spanned diverse development issues, among them agriculture, migration, human capital formation, and finance. This diversity, accord-ing to the welcome remarks of Philippine Institute for De-velopment Studies President (PIDS) and EADN Chairman and Regional Coordinator Gilberto Llanto, “proves that there is still much to be ex-plored in the field of develop-ment”.

At the threshold of re-gional economic integration, what cuts across these devel-

opment issues is the opportu-nity for regional cooperation. Llanto added that EADN plays a “crucial role” in enabling the creation of well-informed pol-icymaking. PIDS board mem-ber Atty. Raphael Perpetuo Lotilla delivered a timely key-note address to demonstrate the value of research in vari-ous development areas.

In particular, Lotilla high-lighted the need to cooperate for the sustainable develop-ment of the seas of East Asia, with opportunities ranging from management, explora-tion, and exploitation of re-sources; preservation of the environment, and coordina-tion regarding science and re-search. Majority of the public discourse focuses on the po-litical aspects and territorial disputes, specifically when it comes to the South China Sea. But it is undeniable that ev-eryone benefits from address-ing its challenges, whether they may be environmental, social, or economic.

He said that the level of trust within the reason must be raised. To answer the sus-tainable needs of the people in the region, policymakers, aided by policy research insti-tutes and networks like PIDS and EADN, must help identify

areas of concern and opportu-nities for cooperation.

Fisheries and trade is one ideal area for cooperation. Depletion due to overfishing, destruction of habitat, and pollution threatens to damage the industry and contribute to the long-term breakdown of the ecosystem. A potential se-curity issue could as well arise in the event that a plunge in fish and revenues for tradi-tional fishermen pushes them to enter piracy or human traf-ficking chains. Coastal govern-ments on an individual level, Lotilla warned, may not be able to address this alone. Ev-eryone has a stake in protect-ing and promoting sustain-able development of marine resources in the region.

The profile of research studies presented at the forum evoked the theme of Lotilla’s speech, with each one look-ing into development policy areas critical to the respective countries of the researchers. Each researcher was assigned a discussant to mentor them and provide guidance to mold their approach, improve their methodologies, and whittle the scope.

The EADN country co-ordinators included Dr. Sun

EADN forum focuses on reg’l cooperation

DEPARTMENT of Trade and Industry Davao del Norte Provincial

Director Romeo L. Castana-ga turned-over the check amounting to P740,000 pesos of the Yaman Pinoy -Product & Human Development Project to City Mayor Aniano P. Anta-lan as financial assistance from Bottom-Up Budgeting Pro-gram during the officials and employeesMonday Convoca-tion at Samal Gym on June 8.

The funding support aims to improve the City’s living condition through a viable and sustainable economy mobi-lizing local resources through training, product development and marketing of project ben-eficiaries which will be imple-mented by the City Investment and Tourism Office.

The project is consistent with the local government’s effort to reduce poverty and the Philippine Development Plan’s goal of inclusive growth and poverty reduction and promoting good governance at the local level.

Target beneficiaries of the project are the organized groups of Hugpong Manggag-ama sa Isla (Humal), Build-ing Art Weavers Network of IGaCoS (BaNIg), group of handicraft makers and service providers like masseurs, hair-dresser, manicurist and pedi-curist.

On the other hand, the lo-cal government of Samal also provides funding counter-part amounting to P296,000 as share for the project imple-mentation. (MTA Samal Info)

DTI turns over cash assistance to IGaCoS

FEADN, 10

VOL. 8 ISSUE 52 • SUNDAY - MONDAY, JUNE 14 - 15, 20158 EDGEDAVAO

VANTAGE

Sad state of Philippine sportsEDITORIAL

WHEN a pair of Filipino divers created a splash in more ways than one after footage of their botched dives at the SEA Games caused such

a stir, sports fans and authorities alike immediately jumped on the issue and demanded answers.

Uploaded footage of John Elmerson Fabriga and John David Pahoyo has gone viral after both athletes, on their fourth dive in the men’s 3m springboard, landed nearly horizontal, scoring zero points. The duo has earned the moniker “Splash Brothers” (an offshoot from the same tag given to NBA stars Steph Curry and Klay Thompson of NBA finalist Golden State), with some Internet users poking fun and others calling for restraint.

The performance of the divers has led to Philippine Sport Commission chairman Richie Garcia seeking an explanation from aquatics chief Mark Joseph who in turn

lamented the lack of support the government agency has given.

This blame game is nothing new. Each time we participate and get home beaten badly in international competitions, we come home pointing accusing fingers.

It appears that the sad state of Philippine sports is very much evident as ever. Take the case of diving which is under the umbreall association of swimming. The leadership of this NSA has not changed in several years despite not having produced performances worthy of note. A lot of our sports leaders are either overstaying, or recycled. Reason why we dive flat on our backs in international competitions.

The horrible dives deserve not our ridiculous comments because they are just a reflection of a failed, nosediving, zero-achieving sports leadership.

Columnists: MA. TERESA L. UNGSON • EDCER C. ESCUDERO • AURELIO A. PEÑA • ZHAUN ORTEGA • BERNADETTE “ADDIE” B. BORBON • MARY ANN “ADI” C. QUISIDO • LEANDRO B. DAVAL SR., • NIKKI GOTIANSE-TAN • NICASIO ANGELO AGUSTIN • EMILY ZEN CHUA • CARLOS MUNDA Economic Analyst: ENRICO “GICO” G. DAYANGIRANG • JONALLIER M. PEREZ

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VOL. 8 ISSUE 52 • SUNDAY - MONDAY, JUNE 14 - 15, 2015 VANTAGE POINTS 9EDGEDAVAO

POLITICS is on full throttle now, with lots of grandstanding all over the place and lots of maneuvering be-

tween and among the traditional politi-cos—trapos—and assorted wannabes.

Vying for attention, name recall, and popularity ratings, the race is clearly on, along with the continued and unchecked bastardization of the political “system.”

Up and down the vertical and horizon-tal levels of government, self-appointed “leaders”—misleaders really—are indulg-ing in gimmicks and unseemly displays of vanity, bravado, and greed.

Election fever is afflicting even those who pretend they’re not running even as they’re already galloping. Think of Davao’s Rodrigo Duterte and Panfilo Lacson.

Even the Moro Islamic Liberation Front is getting into the act, positioning it-self for the 2016 elections by launching its United Bangsamoro Justice Party (UBJP).

*****It’s unclear, however, if the UBJP will

operate like a regular political party—meaning, civilian, non-violent, democrat-ic. Its fatigue uniforms and displays of

high-powered weaponry during its gath-erings are sending an ominous message.

Does the party renounce violence or armed struggle in pursuing its political goals? Does it pledge allegiance to the Philippine Constitution and the Philippine Republic in contesting regional elections?

Better clarify that now.For that matter, the Liberal Party, sup-

posedly the “ruling party,” is no help in making people understand and appreci-ate what a political party is all about. It’s not even clear what its hierarchy is or who constitutes its rank and file.

They say President B.S. Aquino is its “titular head”—whatever that means. It’s laughable the way he peddles Mar Roxas as his choice for 2016 but keeps on chas-ing after Grace Poe who’s not even a mem-ber.

*****The other so-called parties are just as

unruly. Nacionalista. United Nationalist Alliance. Nationalist Citizens Coalition. Pu-wersa ng Masa. PDP-LABAN. All they have are “talking heads” and alleged spokes-persons but without a body of members propping up the head. Do they even have committees or chapters?

We don’t see them holding caucuses, or organizing chapters. As far as one can tell, they have no “party stand” or position that they forge collectively “as a party.” Whatever the talking head says, that’s it!

Such dysfunctional, make-shift parties are a disservice to our society’s need for political education. Pedantic and preten-tious, they mock our democracy, betraying its immaturity through its indeterminate processes.

They sport party labels that are basi-cally meaningless. It’s not really a party system. It’s an alphabet soup with acro-nyms floating around, with nothing to meaningfully distinguish one from anoth-er. And ponder the mish-mash of “party list” groups: they’re neither parties nor lists prepared by parties.

*****

All the fakery covers up the reality that they’re merely a bunch of self-proclaimed (mis)leaders and power-greedy conspir-ators with no real followers that one can refer to as the party faithful.

What they consist of are sycophants, backers, and financiers with vested inter-ests that have nothing to do with society’s interests or the common good.

Let’s hope the United Bangsamoro Jus-tice Party knows better and performs well. This newcomer—and yes—the newly formed Centrist Democrat Party financed by Germany’s Konrad Adenauer Founda-tion—may be the only pair that will come to resemble a real political party in due time.

(Manny is former UNESCO regional director for Asia-Pacific; secretary-gener-al, Southeast Asia Publishers Association; director, Development Academy of Philip-pines; member, Philippine Mission to the UN; vice chair, Local Government Academy; member, Cory Government’s Peace Panel; awardee, PPI-UNICEF outstanding colum-nist. Author of books on governance, he is chairman/convenor of the Gising Barangay Movement Inc. valdehuesa@gmail.com)

Henrylito D. Taciohenrytacio@gmail.com

THINK ON THESE!

Chaos pretending to be a ‘party system’

No smoking please“WELCOME to Davao City!” the flight at-

tendant said upon landing at the Davao International Airport. “We want to re-

mind our passengers that smoking is strictly prohibited in public places in the city, includ-ing the airport and its premises.”

Yes, no one is allowed to smoke cigarettes in Davao City. You won’t see people puffing cigarettes while striding along the sidewalks. You won’t see children selling cigarettes in heavily traffic streets. Even inside the pub-lic utilities, cinemas, malls, restaurants, and bars.

A friend of mine who came to Davao to at-tend a workshop readily complained, “Davao City is not smoker-friendly.”

Davao City is one of the cities in the country where smoking is strictly banned. It implements City Ordinance 0367-12, other-wise known as the New Comprehensive An-ti-Smoking Ordinance of Davao City.

Aside from those mentioned earlier, peo-ple are also strictly prohibited from smoking in public gatherings like concerts, rallies, and parades. Even in the cemetery, markets, ter-minals and public places, smoking is strictly prohibited.

Now, if he becomes the next president, Mayor Rodrigo R. Duterte will enforce the To-bacco Regulation Act of 2003 (Republic Act No. 9211) throughout the country, according to former councilor Peter Laviña.

Right now, the Tobacco Regulation Act is not strictly observed in most parts of the country. After all, it’s too hard to implement. The Act “bans smoking in public places such as schools and recreational facilities, eleva-

tors and stair-wells, hospitals, nursing homes, laboratories, public con-veyances and public facilities such as airports and ship termi-nals, train and bus stations, r e s t a u r a n t s and conference halls, with the exception of separate smoking rooms.”

Damn, smokers may say. But wait, in Davao City, there are some places where you can smoke to your heart’s content. These are in your own residence or in someone’s, in private vehicles, and designated outdoor smoking areas.

No one is above the law in Davao City, es-pecially when it comes to the anti-smoking ordinance. Even President Benigno Aquino III knows this well. At one time, local journal-ist Edith Regalado saw the president puffing a stick of cigarette under a tree marked as a designated smoking area.

“Look, I’m a law-abiding citizen,” the President was quoted as saying.

Why so much ado about cigarette smok-ing? For the uninformed, it is responsible for 85 to 90 percent of lung cancers, medical experts claim. The more cigarettes a person smokes, the greater the chances of this fellow having a lung cancer. As early as 1964, the US Surgeon General’s office issued the link be-

tween smoking and lung cancer.“Lung cancer is almost exclusively found

in smokers,” the Mayo Foundation for Med-ical Education and Research based in Roch-ester, Minnesota explains. “Men who smoke are 22 times more likely to develop lung can-cer than men who don’t smoke. Women who smoke are 12 times more likely to develop lung cancer than women who don’t smoke.”

Cigarette and cigar smoke contains more than 40 cancer-causing chemicals or carcin-ogens. Among these most noted carcinogens are tar, cyanide, formaldehyde, methanol, ammonia, acetone, carbon monoxide, and nitrogen oxide.

When it comes to smoking, it is usually those who quit that emerge winners. Dr. Wil-lie T. Ong, author of several health books and active consultant in cardiology at the Manila Doctors Hospital and Makati Medical Center, said a person who quits smoking will imme-diately get his rewards instantly.

Citing a study done by the American Lung Association, Dr. Ong said the health benefits of quitting will “begin just 20 minutes after your last cigarette. Your blood pressure and heart rate will decrease, and the oxygen con-tent of your body will increase.”

After the first day of quitting, a previous smoker’s risk of suffering a heart attack will be reduced. On the second day, his nerve end-ings will start to heal and his ability to smell and taste will improve. Between 2 weeks and 3 months after quitting, his blood circulation will improve. His cough will be lessened and walking will become easier. Soon, his lung function will improve dramatically.

“By the time you reach 15 years of nev-er touching a cigarette, your risk of dying will be the same as a non-smoker,” Dr. Ong pointed out. “This just goes to show that the ill effects of smoking are serious and deadly. Quit early and quit now. Quit while you are still young to obtain the full health benefits from quitting.”

In 2002, the Philippines was listed as the 15th largest consumer of cigarettes in the world. Among Asian countries, the country has one of the highest smoking rates in the region. Small wonder, the UN health agency estimates that 10 Filipinos die every hour due to cancer, stroke, lung and heart diseases brought on by cigarette smoking.

Because of these reasons, health advo-cates are urging Filipinos to quit smoking. “Some people can quit smoking just like that and suffer no side effects,” Dr. Ong not-ed. “However, for others, it can be a difficult process.”

Dr. Ong cited three factors responsible for the difficulty in quitting. “Knowing these factors will help you prepare yourself for the quitting process,” he said.

The factors were: (1) the number of cigarettes being smoked each day, (2) the people who smoke around the person who want to quit, and (3) the real reason on why the person smokes. “It could be due to peer pressure or for weight control,” Dr. Ong said of the latter.

“If you really want to quit smoking, you must identify the situations that trigger you to smoke, and do your best to avoid them,” Dr. Ong suggested.

BY MANNY VALDEHUESA

THE WORM’S EYEVIEW

VOL. 8 ISSUE 52 • SUNDAY - MONDAY, JUNE 14 - 15, 201510 NEWS EDGEDAVAO

Kill... FROM 4

Setting... FROM 4

EADN... FROM 7Survey... FROM 6

UP... FROM 6

Army... FROM 4 Musmos... FROM 5

Solon... FROM 5

DOLE... FROM 5

UNDERSTANDING DOWN SYNDROME. Lani Vergara of Down Syndrome Association of the Philippines Davao Branch answers queries from media practi-tioners during FAST Fridays media forum at Archipelago 7107 by Barrio Fiesta in SM Lanang Premier. Lean Daval Jr.

Xuegong, Dr. Carunia Fir-dausy, and Dr. Siew Yean Tham. Dr. Mohamed Ariff , EADN representative to the Global Development Board of Directors, was also in atten-dance.

The cross-national dis-

cussion and exchange of ex-pertise and insight ensured that each study received recommendations that en-couraged the author to meet international standards and incorporate regional per-spectives.

investor protection, financial development, and competi-tiveness. He also pointed the importance of improving the rural sector’s access to basic services.

It has been proven that the level of productivity in the ru-

ral areas is parallel to the level of access. Policies should help and encourage small and me-dium enterprises to foster cre-ation of quality employment to mitigate poverty and truly accomplish more inclusive de-velopment.

The BCDA has attracted 16 firms for the development of the first parcel of land in Clark Green City after it re-laxed the Terms of Reference for the project.

BCDA slashed the PHP500-million minimum bid for the 55-percent stake in the joint venture to a minimum of PHP160 million.

The joint venture will be

55-45 sharing, in favor of the winning bid. The joint venture deal will have a period of 50 years which is renewable for another 50 years.

Meanwhile, the Clark Green City is a 9,450-hectare land in Central Luzon which is envisioned to be the country’s first smart, green, and disas-ter-resilient metropolis. (PNA)

JBP/KMC

comments from netizens who urged Duterte to run for pres-ident next year. The post also had over 1,000 shares as of Saturday afternoon.

“LORD GOD PLEASE PRO-TECT & BLESS DUTERTE IN JESUS NAME... VOTE DUTER-TE FOR PRESIDENT we need him for a real change,” Evange-line Magnetico said.

“God bless Duterte.....and keep him safe....,” another neti-zen, John Roy Dayalo Daulong, said.

Duterte is known for his iron-hand policy against crim-inality in Davao City, especially

against those involved in illegal drugs. Several years ago, Dute-rte ordered a raid on a shabu laboratory in the southern part of the city that resulted in the killing of seven foreign mem-bers of a drug syndicate.

The 70-year-old mayor has been going around the country advocating a shift to a federal form of government in the country. Everywhere he goes, however, people have been urging him to run for President.

Duterte, however, has maintained he is not interested in running for President.

area was chosen because of quality of habitat.

The flight of Pamana also signified the continuing suc-cess of the science behind her rehabilitation in the Phil-ippine Eagle Center (PEC) in Davao since she was rescued from the mountains of Gabu-nan Range in Iligan City. She arrived in the center in April 2012.

According to PEC curator Anna Sumaya, she was found by a local perched on a tree near a creek, appearing weak and docile; it was later found out that she had a gunshot on her left breast and on her left wing.

“As one of a few hundred birds living in Mindanao is-land, her release would not only mean ending a life in captivity and human depen-dence. Her survival and even-tual breeding will also reduce the extinction chances of her kind,” said Ibanez.

Ibanez also said that sur-vival and breeding of every individual bird is important to prevent the extinction of the critically endangered Philippine Eagle; likewise, maintaining connectivity and inter breeding between groups living in different for-ests are also key to the spe-cies’ survival.

Pamana is predicted to connect the existing eagles together and re-establish gene flow among them.

Pamana bears the bloodline of eagles in Lan-ao del Norte region, 245 km northwest of Hamiguitan. “If Pamana survives and breeds with a resident bird, blood-lines would mix. This is gen-erally good for the eagle pop-ulation as wildlife genetics would predict,” said Ibanex.

Pamana’s release also re-flects good use of technology for the environment; people who are looking after her are constantly being given information about her plight through the GPS satellite tag and a radio transmitter.

These devices allow for re-mote monitoring and loca-tion tracking. Technology use for the Philippine Eagle ex-pands to the community too: for example, a telco brand has a mobile service that allows its subscribers to donate to PEF via an electronic wallet through text messaging.

As Pamana took flight, a everyone is reminded of their own responsibility to take care of the environment.

She strongly represents conservation and biodiversi-ty – things about the environ-ment that we are reminded to be concerned about as re-sponsible citizens.

As she soared from the branch where she was perch-ing on for about 10 minutes, everyone was also given a sense of security – that she will be safe in her new home.

Dennis Salvador, execu-tive director of PEF, is expect-ing a high survival chance for Pamana because Mt. Ha-miguitan is a protected area. This gives a better level of enforcement and awareness among the communities and stakeholders alike.

Having Pamana in the wild, according to Depart-ment of Tourism region 11 director Roberto Alaba-do III, means being able to strengthen efforts to turn Davao Region into an eco-tourism destination. Tourists will be drawn to visit – but what’s more important is that the collective effort to protect the environment should be maintained. The area won’t be open to mass tourism. Protection of the en-vironment remains to be at the core of this tourism effort so that people will actually have something to enjoy.

All these – and perhaps more – are why Pamana and the rest of the Philippine Ea-gles matter to the communi-ty. As the eagles soar, pride and a sense of awareness for the environment is reignited among all of us. (MindaNews)

sion when attacked, “an indi-cation the NPA does not want peace and development.”

“They were not bringing their firearms when they went to the community which clear-ly shows both were not in war mode,” said the 57th IB state-ment.

It was the second NPA-per-petrated violence this month in North Cotabato.

Last week, five rebels ex-ecuted in public in President Roxas, North Cotabato a for-mer comrade who returned to the folds of the law and lived normal lives since then. (PNA)

look after the health of their ‘bosses.’ There is no excuse in not doing their duty to the public. Imagine what would happen if an outbreak affects workers and professionals; it would ultimately disrupt the economy,” Gatchalian said.

He said as of 2013, statis-tics of South Korea’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade recorded the number of Ko-reans in the Philippines at 88,102 , with Metro Manila area having the largest Korean population in the country with 33,267. The areas of highest concentration are Quezon City (6,655), Manila proper (6,104), and Makati (5,643).

Gatchalian said the ma-jority of Korean tourists in the Philippines are students who

study in short-term courses in English language schools to cope with South Korea’s growing demand for English proficiency. As of March 2011, 26,823 Korean students held special study permits to enroll in short term courses. Accord-ing to the Philippine-Korean Cultural Center in Seoul, over 1,500 Koreans under 20 years old arrive in the Philippines every month to study English.

“The large numbers of South Koreans coming to the Philippines as tourists and as students should be reason enough for the government to adapt stringent measures to prevent MERS from infecting our people,” Gatchalian said. (With reports from PNA/Xin-hua)

These were all satisfactori-ly accomplished by the region-al government and all local government units under its wings – satisfactorily accom-plished despite the imperfec-tions and limitations hounding the regional government, de-spite all doubts.

Maybe, we are still mus-mos, Gov. Fuentes. But did you know that this “immature” government has just generat-ed P5.5 million port revenue for the first semester of 2015, and surpassed the P1.5 billion worth of registered invest-ments in the second quarter of 2015?

If we were not mature enough to implement change and promote peace in the region, there would be no P77.336 million of various infrastructure projects in the town of Mamasapano in Magu-indanao.

The Gross Regional Devel-opment Product of the region, headed by Gov. Mujiv Hata-man, a Yakan, a Moro, has been tremendously improving since 2011’s 0.3 percent, to 1.2 per-cent in 2012, to 3.6 percent in 2013.

The region has also ad-dressed the problem of ma-ternal and child mortalities. In 2013, the number of maternal mortality decreased to only 51 for every 100,000 live births and 32 infant mortalities for every 1,000 live births, a far cry from the 245 maternal mortal-ities and 55 child mortalities in 2008.

In 2014, the Bangsam-oro-dominated ARMM was recognized as the most im-proved region in terms of re-duced cases of maternal and child mortalities under the United Nations Millennium Development Goals.

Because of the reforms that the regional government initiated, the back wages for the 283 elementary and sec-ondary Maguindanao teachers -- amounting P60.146 million -- were distributed.

And to address the linger-ing problem of lack of schools

and classrooms for our stu-dents, the Department of Edu-cation-ARMM will be building a P560 million school project in Basilan.

To help our farmers, the Department of Agricul-ture-ARMM has proposed the inclusion of P833 million worth of projects in the budget of the Philippine Rural Devel-opment Program (PRDP).

Only a few days ago, the National Economic Develop-ment Authority (NEDA) said the ARMM posted the lowest in unemployment rate at 3.2 percent among the 13 out of the 17 regions outside the Na-tional Capitol Region.

This list could go on and on and on.

That the Bangsamoro is immature states that we are unable to govern ourselves ef-fectively.

That statement reeks of discrimination, Gov. Fuentes. It was an insult to a race that governed Mindanao for many decades, even before the word ‘government’ was introduced to our consciousness. This is also the race that valiantly fought for the island against all colonizers.

The statement betrays the truth that some Mindanao leaders need to relearn histo-ry and to educate themselves about the new Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao and how the Moro leaders have proven that the Moro people can govern themselves

But thank you very much for giving us another opportu-nity to correct all the wrongs said about the Bangsamoro.

But don’t take our word for it, Gov. Fuentes. Let me take this opportunity to invite you to visit us at the regional gov-ernment and see for yourself what we Bangsamoro have done so far for the people of the region.

You need to see for your-self what these “musmos” have done for our people, within the working government of the ARMM.

Thank you.

ations are located.According to Suyao, the

types of work engaged in by the children are farm labor in agricultural areas while others engage in scavenging and do-mestic works in urban areas.

Meanwhile, he said as re-ported by the Municipal Social Welfare Development officer of Monkayo, Compostela Val-ley province, there were 174 child laborers identified in ba-rangay Diwata in small-scale mining industry.

Since the last survey, Suyao said government program has

been initiated to address child labor issues such as the Sagip Batanga Manggagawa in 2013 when three minors were res-cued in a plastic recycling fac-tory; the Project Angel Tree which assisted 1,064 children; and, in collaboration with six organizations the associations of parents of child laborers were provided livelihood as-sistance.

Suyao said that in October five barangays in the Davao Region will be conferred as Child Labor-Free Barangay. (PNA)

VOL. 8 ISSUE 52 • SUNDAY - MONDAY, JUNE 14 - 15, 2015 11EDGEDAVAO

ENVIRONMENT

Saving the‘World’snoblest flier’

IF the endan-gered Philippine eagle could only speak,

these are the words the bird would be telling us:

“I have watched forests disappear, rivers dry up, floods ravage the soil, droughts spawn uncontrolled fires, hundreds of my forest friends vanish forever and men leave the land because it was no lon-ger productive. I am witness to the earth becoming arid. I know all life will eventually suffer and die if this onslaught continues.”

Are you listening? Like those “forest friends” that van-ished forever, the Philippine eagle may soon join them. In 2010, the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and Bird Life Inter-national listed this species as critically endangered. Today, only about 180 to 500 birds survive.

Massive deforestation has turned the Philippine eagle into an endangered species, deplored Dennis Joseph I. Sal-vador, the executive director of the Davao-based Philippine Eagle Foundation (PEF), a non-profit, non-stock organi-zation acknowledged to be the leader in raptor and wildlife management in the country today.

The Philippine eagle lives in dipterocarp and mid-mon-tane forests, particularly in steep areas. Its elevation rang-

e s f r o m

the low-lands to mountains

of over 5,900 feet. Only an estimated 9,220 square kilo-meters of old-growth forest remain in the bird’s range. However, its total estimated range is about 146,000 square kilometers.

“Tropical forest raptors like the Philippine eagle have been greatly impacted by habitat destruction. Reduced territory size, declining num-bers of prey animals, and dis-appearance of large nesting trees all have contributed to the eagle’s decline,” noted Craig Kasnoff, a journalist who promotes the plight of endan-gered species and the efforts to save them.

“By using the Philippine eagle as the focal point of conservation, we are, in the process, saving wildlife and their habitat,” said Salvador of PEF, which has embarked on a captive breeding program since the 1980s, succeeding in January 1992 with the birth of Pag-asa.

Pag-asa is the first trop-ical eagle born in captivity. “Pag-asa connotes hope for the continued survival of the Philippine eagle, hope that if people get together for the cause of the Philippine eagle, it shall not be doomed to die,” Salvador said.

Although PEF’s conserva-tion breeding program con-

tinues to improve and succeed, it is “only a scanty

step in the long process of restocking eagle population”

for it is necessary to renew the forest habitat before artificial-ly-bred eagles can be released in the wild.

“If time will come that we have enough stocks, where shall we release them?” Salva-dor asked. “And how will the eagles sighted in the wild sur-vive if factors which threaten their lives continue to haunt them?”

During the Independence Day celebration last June 12, an eagle named Pamana which underwent rehabilita-tion in Malagos, was released inside the Mount Hamiguitan World Heritage site in Davao Oriental.

“Pamana was rehabilitat-ed by the PEF for three years after suffering from gunshot wounds in Mt. Gabunan, Ili-gan,” wrote Jon Joaquin, Edge Davao’s managing editor. “Its reintroduction to Mt. Hami-guitan is expected to contrib-ute to the increase and im-provement of the eagle popu-lation once it finds a mate and breeds.”

The Philippine eagle is second only to the Madagas-car sea eagle in rarity. In size, it beats the American bald eagle; it is the world’s second largest -- after the Harpy eagle of Central and South America.

This bird of prey was first discovered in 1896 by English naturalist John Whitehead in Samar. He first called it the monkey-eating eagle because he thought it fed primarily on monkeys and gave it the sci-entific name, “Pithecophaga

jefferyi.” The scientific name came from two Greek words: “pitekos” (monkey) and “phagien” (to eat). Jefferyi was the discoverer’s tribute to his father, Jeffrey, who funded his expedition.

In 1978, the old name was dropped and given its present name through Presidential Decree No. 1732 after it was learned that monkeys com-prise an insignificant portion of the bird’s diet, which con-sists mostly of flying lemurs, civet cats, bats, rodents, and snakes.

A majestic bird, the Philip-pine eagle stands a meter high, weighs anywhere from four to seven kilograms and has a grip three times the strength

of the strongest man on earth, according to PEF.

With a wingspan of near-ly seven feet and a top speed of 80 kilometers per hour, the Philippine eagle can gracefully swoop down on an unsuspect-ing prey and carry it off with-out breaking flight.

Unlike men, Philippine ea-gles are monogamous. Once it has selected a partner, it is for keeps forever. “Once an eagle reaches sexual maturity -- at around five years for males -- it is bound for life with its mate. They can be seen soaring in pairs in the skies,” PEF states.

According to PEF, the breeding season ranges as ear-ly as July to as late as February. During the breeding season,

the eagles do aerial courtship and mate in the nest or near it.

The eagle’s nest is ap-proximately 80 feet above the ground (usually on tall trees) in prominent mountain peaks overlooking a river or stream to give a good view of its ter-ritory.

The female eagle lays only one egg every two years, PEF informs. Both parents alter-nately incubate the egg for about 60 days, although the female spends more time in-cubating while the male hunts.

Upon hatching, the eaglet remains in the nest for about 5.5 months. Once it fledges, the parents will continue to look after the young eagle for as long as 17-18 months teaching it how to fly, hunt, and to sur-vive on its own. The young ea-gle matures in about six years.

“Our data suggests more than 90% of juvenile eagles die before they reach matu-rity,” discloses Salvador. “A large part of this is caused by humans. Eagles were shot, trapped, and hunted.”

Because of its rarity and size, the Philippine eagle was once a collector item among bird hunters. “The Philippine eagle became a desirable ac-quisition for zoos and private collectors, beginning in the 1960s. Collectors stole young eagles from nests for sale to the highest bidder,” Kasnoff wrote.

Efforts to save the Philip-pine eagles started in 1965 by Jesus A. Alvarez, then director of the autonomous Parks and Wildlife Office, and Dioscoro S. Rabor, another founding father of Philippine Conservation ef-forts.

American aviator Charles Lindberg, who described Phil-ippine eagle as “the world’s no-blest flier,” spearheaded a drive to save the bird from 1969 to 1972. Within this time frame, several helpful laws were passed.

The Philippine eagle was officially declared the coun-try’s bird icon on July 4, 1995 by then President Fidel V. Ra-mos under Proclamation No. 615. Under Philippine law, kill-ing a Philippine eagle is pun-ishable by 12 years in jail and heavy fines.

The Philippine eagle is endemic to the Philippines and can be found on four ma-jor islands: eastern Luzon, Samar, Leyte, and Mindanao (where the largest number of eagles reside). It can be found in Northern Sierra Madre National Park on Luzon and Mount Apo, Mount Malindang and Mount Kitanglad National Parks on Mindanao.

Salvador -- a Spanish fami-ly name which means “savior” -- urges Filipinos to help save the endangered bird from extinction. “When the last ea-gle dies, it shall be the sign of the worst yet to come: The death of our environment,” he warned.

Philippine eagle

Philippine eagleup close.

Philippine eagle in a cage.

Text and Photos by HENRYLITO D. TACIO

VOL. 8 ISSUE 52 • SUNDAY - MONDAY, JUNE 14 - 15, 201512 EDGEDAVAO

COMPETITIVE EDGE

NOTICE OF LOSSNotice is hereby given by LOYOLA PLANS CONSOL-

IDATED INC. That CERTIFICATE OF FULL PAYMENT No.(s) 1003265 under LOYOLA PLAN Contract No.(s) 31467-6 issued to MONTANA, LILIA C.

Reinstatement papers: 2401-106509, 2401-106513-514, 2401-91170, 2401-77468, 2401-95493, 2401-95500-503, 2401-95516, 2401-95524, 2401-73056, 2401-95524, 2401-95544 issued to TERESITA F.ERAMIS

were lost. Any transaction entered into shall be null and void.6/8,15,22

Sustainable and inclusive growthin APEC economies within reachAPEC SFOM Wraps Up with Broad-based Support on Cebu Action Plan

THE Asia Pacific Econom-ic Cooperation (APEC) Senior Finance Officials’

Meeting (SFOM) closed on Fri-day with a firmer Cebu Action Plan (CAP) on the back of broad-based support from economies across the region on the CAP’s 4 pillars: financial integration, fiscal transparency and reforms, financial resiliency, and infra-structure development and fi-nancing.

Senior finance officials from across the Asia Pacific refined the CAP throughout the 2-day meeting, drawing on insights provided by international finan-cial institutions on the global economic outlook. With the second and last day of the SFOM covering financial resiliency and infrastructure development and financing, APEC economies found each pillar of the CAP at-tuned to areas that need to be addressed in order to achieve sustainable, inclusive growth.

Finance Secretary Cesar V. Purisima said, “As we celebrate our 117th year of independence here in the Philippines, the con-clusion of the Senior Finance Of-ficials’ Meeting in Bagac, Bataan marks our commitment to forge a freer future for our people, in terms of building more resil-ient, inclusive, and sustainable economies across the region. It is perhaps fitting that one of CAP’s milestones lies in a place where freedom has been fought for ever so bravely.”

Thanking the senior finance officials’ collaborative spirit throughout the meeting, Puri-sima added, “I look forward to the Finance Ministerial Meeting in September. The Cebu Action Plan is both a strategic response to current opportunities and challenges and a lasting vision for the future.”

With complex forces like falling oil prices and changes in monetary policies shaping the

region’s outlook, Odd Per Brekk of the International Monetary Fund reported that there is rising demand to support the growth and recovery efforts among economies in the Asia Pacific by boosting infrastruc-ture investments and undertak-ing structural reform to boost potential economic output.

Arjun Goswami of the ADB underscored how im-proving financial inclusion by lowering the cost of sending re-mittances is important as devel-oping APEC economies received $135 billion remittances annu-ally in the past 5 years. To this end, the Cebu Action Plan was commended for its proactive approach to remittance cost re-duction.

The CAP’s emphasis on developing capital markets to enhance financial resiliency was affirmed by the ADB as a way to address the region’s vul-nerabilities to sudden reversals

of capital flows and disasters. With a disaster-prone region with cost of damages reaching $1.2 trillion over the last decade, the CAP is a robust response to enable member economies to absorb shocks better, through strengthening regional safety nets, cooperating in disaster management and risk financing, and building deeper financial markets.

The CAP’s pillar on infra-structure development and financing has a focus on urban development and regional con-nectivity, apt for the future of a growing region. The ADB says urban populations in APEC are projected to increase rap-idly from 1.8 billion in 2013 to 2.4 billion people by 2050. Meanwhile, the ADB has earlier projected a $1 trillion per year infrastructure financing gap for 2010-2020, in which the private sector is expected to contribute 40%.

APEC Family Photo by the Bridge

2GO Group Inc, the largest, premier logistics pro-vider in the Philippines,

has switched to another cloud-based solution, Microsoft Office 365.

To date, 2GO is Globe Busi-ness’ biggest Microsoft Office 365 client with almost 3,000 licenses. As the world’s leading productivity application, Micro-soft Office 365 provides enter-prise-grade tools that brings to-gether familiar Microsoft Office desktop applications that lets its users get things done easier and faster.

Gabriel David, CIO of 2GO Group had this to say: “Our email prior to O365 was a hosted MS Exchange provided by a local vendor. The main reason why we transferred from our old pro-vider to O365 is reliability, plus the fact that O365 offers bigger storage and better collaboration tools. Because of the frequent issues and non-commitment by the local vendor to improve their

infra and technology, we decided to look for other alternatives. We did an in-depth study of O365 and other email solutions that could offer the same services. For us, O365 came up the stron-gest due to its technology, func-tionality and ease of use.”

David also said O365 de-ployment was “reasonably easy,” taking them around only one month to deploy almost 3,000 emails. There were a few chal-lenges with the migration but with the help of Globe, issues were immediately addressed. “We wanted a single point of contact for the email, and when we found out Globe was a Cloud Service Provider of Microsoft, we were confident enough to work with them as majority of our infrastructure for our Data Center and Back-up-as-a-Ser-vice (BaaS) is with Globe. Our core services such as Direct Internet, MPLS and Wireless Mobile are also with Globe Busi-ness.”

2GO switchesto MS Office 365

Globe advocacies honored at 2015 PANAta AwardsFOR exhibiting excellence

in advocacy programs and internal communica-

tions initiatives, Globe Telecom earned citations from local marketing luminaries as it cap-tured multiple accolades across various platforms at the recent-ly-held 2015 PANAta Market-ing Effectiveness Awards.

Among 59 awardees and top Philippine companies with multiple wins, Globe captured distinctions in all of the cate-gories it entered into. These include advocacy marketing as well as brand and internal com-munications.

“To be bestowed with these PANAta awards is an af-firmation from local advertis-ing industry stalwarts that our advocacies and communication programs transcend their pur-pose. They can serve as effec-tive marketing tools to deliver a ‘Globe of good’ to a wider public as we continue to be a model corporate citizen of the Philippines,” said Globe Senior Vice President for Corporate Communications Yoly Crisanto.

Globe received an award for its Project 1 Phone, the

far-reaching corporate social responsibility (CSR) program which encouraged customers of the telco as well as its enter-prise ICT segment Globe Busi-ness to take part in a wide-scale electronic waste (e-waste) recycling movement. The idea of donating old mobile phone units into useful materials for building schools in Aklan reso-nated well among stakeholders and concretized the concept of a viable environmental sustain-ability drive.

With over 50 enterprise clients pitching in, Project 1 Phone has helped reduce greenhouse gases by about 207 million kilograms. Online, the promotional video mate-rial has so far garnered more than 471,000 YouTube views, while total digital efforts ac-counted for 37.2 million im-pressions. Most importantly, the proceeds have reached more than US$189,000 or P8 million for the construction of Aklan-based schools.

Globe also won an award for its #ProjectWonderful in-tegrated corporate campaign. It sparked genuine customer

centricity and innate care for its customers, especially for Typhoon Haiyan survivors as the telco’s response to na-tion-building in the aftermath of the calamity. It contributed to donation and fund-genera-tion as well as triggered volun-teerism to build 100 homes in Leyte and Aklan. Media mileage also reached more than US$2

million from the PR executions’ global buzz online brought about by American actor Ga-briel Macht’s involvement, and also through traditional broad-cast channels. #ProjectWon-derful also redounded on the telco’s business by positively affecting its financial perfor-mance during the campaign period.

Receiving the four PANAta Awards trophies on behalf of Globe are (left and right) Cor-porate Social Responsibility Experts Abelyn Evangelista and Carmela David, as well as (center) Corporate Brand Management Director Roland Jonas Ferrer.

VOL. 8 ISSUE 52 • SUNDAY - MONDAY, JUNE 14 - 15, 2015 13EDGEDAVAO CLASSIFIED

VOL. 8 ISSUE 52 • SUNDAY - MONDAY, JUNE 14 - 15, 201514 CLASSIFIED EDGEDAVAO

VOL. 8 ISSUE 52 • SUNDAY - MONDAY, JUNE 14 - 15, 2015 15SPORTSEDGEDAVAO

PH bets still far from targetTHE Philippines re-

mained mired in sixth place in the overall

medal tally with only a few events left in the 28th South-east Asian Games.

Where the golds trickled slowly last week, Christopher Ulboc and the men’s poom-sae team of Dustin Jacob Mella, Rodolfo Reyes Jr., and Raphael Enrico Mella con-tributed to the gold harvest of the Philippines.

Indonesia remains far ahead of the Philippines in the overall tally.

That means the Philip-pines is more or less assured of finishing no lower than sixth spot after Myanmar failed to win a single gold medal on Friday, but it needs five more gold medals in the following days just to match its output in the Myanmar Games two years ago.

As the medal-rich sport of athletics came to a close on Friday at the National Stadi-um, Ulboc ruled the 3,000m steeplechase with a time of eight minutes, 59.07 seconds for the athletic team’s fifth gold - well below the eight to 12 gold medal target herald-ed by its leaders.

Prior to the Games, Phil-

ippine officials have predict-ed anywhere from 40 to 60 gold medals which, by now, looked unreachable for the 700-plus contingent heading to the final stretch.

After the race, Ulboc offered the gold to the Phil-ippines as it celebrated the country’s 117th year of inde-pendence.

Taekwondo began its campaign with the Mella sib-lings and Reyes winning gold in the men’s poomsae team event beating Vietnam and Indonesia.

The country’s two silver medals for the day also came from taekwondo with Rinna Bibanto taking second in the women’s individual poom-sae event and Irene Bermejo bowing to a Vietnam oppo-nent, 19-7, in the women’s Under 46-kg division final.

Edgardo Alejan Jr. fin-ished third in the men’s 400m run while Fil-Americans Don-ovant Arriola and Jessica Barnard settled for the men’s long jump and women’s 3,000m steeplechase bronze medals, respectively. Narcisa Atienza also placed third in the women’s hepthatlon.

Veterans Liza Clutario and Liza Del Rosario com-bined forces with youngsters

OUT OF THE RUNNING. The celebrated Philippine women’s volleyball squad is out of the medal race after a loss to Vietnam.

Golfer of the week

MAKE no mis-take about it. When it

comes to the local ju-nior golf scene, one name stands out like a young demigod.

Meet Zeus Sara, an eight year-old golf-ing wonder, who can rip that drive to 220 yards. If that is not amazing, what is?

Zeus just picked golf three years ago but immediately he made an impact by winning golfer of the year in Frankie Miñoza’s junior golf tournament circuit in Del Monte, Bukid-non and in Alta Vis-ta in Cebu City. Zeus dominated the local

jungolf scene in just about every tourna-ment. As if that was not enough, he con-quered the nation-al jungolf ranks and made it to this year’s Junior World Champi-onships in San Diego, California and in the US Kids World Cham-pionships in Pine-hurst, North Carolina.

Zeus carries a Mizuno golf set inside his bag and his usual get up is a combo of Footjoys or Uniqlos. Like every golfing kid, he mixes and matches colors but that is just secondary to his game. What re-ally turns heads when he’s on the fairways

Started playing golf: February 2012

What’s in his bag?

Woods: Mizuno

Irons: Mizuno

Ball: Titleist Prov 1

Gloves: Fit39

Golf get-up: Footjoy and Uniqlo golf shirts

Shoes: Footjoy

Most memorable wins:* 2012 Golfer of the Year at Frankie Miñoza Cup held at Del Monte (Bukidnon) and Alta Vista Golf and Country Club (Cebu)* Qualifier, 2015 Junior World Championships in San Diego, California on July 12-14, 2015* Qualifier, 2015 US Kids World Championship in Pinehurst, North Carolina on August 1-4, 2015

ZEUS SARA: Too young and too good

Lara Posadas, Marie Alexis Sy, Maria Arles, and Krizzi-ah Tabora to win the bronze in the women’s team of five event in bowling on 5,776 pinfalls.

In shooting, the men’s trap team of 2008 Olympian

Eric Ang, Hagen Alexander Topacio, and Miguel David Laperal took the bronze.

Katharina Lehnert and Jeson Patrombon lost in the women’s and men’s singles semifinals in tennis, respec-tively, while Jenar Torillos

also captured a bronze in the men’s under 54kg in tae-kwondo.

In waterskiing, Mark Howard Griffin and Maiquel Jawn Selga won the bronze in the men’s and women’s wakeboard events.

The Philippine men’s bas-ketball team formally entered the semifinals with a 125-21 win over Timor Leste even as the women’s squad lost to Indonesia, 61-56, dampening its hopes of a gold medal in the biennial event.

njb@edgedavao.net

By NEILWIN JOSEPH L. BRAVO

are his monster drives and his precise short game.

He is set to leave for San Diego, California on June 29 for the world’s biggest junior golf tournament.

VOL. 8 ISSUE 52 • SUNDAY - MONDAY, JUNE 14 - 15, 201516 EDGEDAVAOSports

TIME TO USE RESERVES

LEBRON James says the weary Cleve-land Cavaliers

could use more playing time for reserves who have seldom seen playoff action now that the NBA Finals are at a crucial stage.

The best-of-seven se-ries against Golden State is level at 2-2 with game five on Sunday at Oakland, where the Cavaliers dealt the Warriors only their fourth home defeat of the season and playoffs in game two.

Cavaliers coach Dave Blatt has mainly used only two players off the bench, leaving five others to sit and watch as four-time NBA Most Valuable Player James and other starters wear down, fighting cramping and fa-tigue late in games.

“That’s the coach’s decision if he decides he wants to go deep-er in the bench. We haven’t played many

guys throughout this playoff run,” James said.

“I think it would help some of the guys that are playing some high minutes for sure, just give guys a cou-ple minutes here, a couple minutes there. But I think the coaching staff will try to do what’s best to help us be physically and mentally pre-pared for Sunday.”

Shawn Marion, a 37-year-old forward, helped Dallas to a 2011 title by beat-ing a James-led Miami team in the finals. Brendan Haywood is a 35-year-old center. And 35-year-old swingman Mike Miller has struggled with his shot much of the season.

But in short stints, they could offer a few minutes of vital rest without allowing Golden State to score at will.

For a Cavaliers team that lost All-Star forward Kevin Love to a separated left shoul-der in the first playoff round and All-Star guard Kyrie Ir-ving to a fractured left knee-cap in the finals opener, any help could be crucial.

“We don’t have many op-tions as far as lineups we can go to, but we can make adjust-

ments,” James said. “That’s what you do throughout a series.

“We’ll get to the film and make the necessary adjust-ments coming into game five. But as far as lineup changes, we don’t have many different lineup changes we can actual-ly go to.”

Golden State coach Steve Kerr knows he has superi-or depth, telling his team of smaller players to “weather the storm. They are going to wear down,” after falling behind early in game four, counting on the fatigue a fast-er pace would bring to Cleve-land.

“You want to be out there, but you want to be effective while you’re out there too,” James said.

James was notably stuck on the bench at the 2004 Athens Olympics where he watched the US team settle for bronze, kept on the bench much of the time in favor of more veteran players, never able to know if he could have made a difference in USA Basketball’s most humbling episode.

Blatt stays with winners

What Blatt is doing is sticking with the rotation that turned around the team’s season after a 19-20 start. Yet with Love and Irving gone, the load is being carried by aching shoulders that have endured a playoff run of near-ly two months.

Blatt says that when James gets his few minutes of rest each night, he must get more from those on the floor.

“When he is out, every-one else has got to step up and give a little bit more,” Blatt said. “We’re thinner now than we were, but that’s not an excuse. We’ve just all got to pick it up.”

Russian center Mozgov says it’s not his place to ask for more time for reserves.

“We play like seven guys but it’s all that we have and we can’t ask for something different,” he said. “It’s a lot of work to see how we can be better, both in energy and game plan for everyone.”

And James does not want to see reserves like J.R. Smith, who went 2-for-12 shooting and 0-for-8 in 3-pointers in game four, facing too much pressure.

LEBRON JAMES: Time for everyone to contribute.

Lebron admits he needs help from teammates