SUNDAY, JUNE 7, 2015

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04 06FBC awards prizes to 54, 55 and 56th tourney winners

Page 02Al-Qaeda-linked militants behead Philippine militiaman

Philippines wants defense pact for Japanese troops

MANILA: A row of shanty homes sits atop a sea of garbage on World Environment Day in Manila yesterday. Poverty and a lack ofurban planning has been blamed for pollution in the Philippine capital city of 12 million people. —AFP

MANILA: “Ampon din ako.” Ito ang iginiit ni VicePresident Jejomar Binay kasunod ng isyu ng citi-zenship ni Sen. Grace Poe dahil isa itong“foundling” o ampon. Sa ambush interview sabise presidente sa Biliran, iginiit nito na hindiniya kukutyain si Poe sa pagiging ampon nitolalo’t ganoon din siya. “Ako, si Jojo Binay,kukutyain ko ‘yong mga ganyan? Hindi si JojoBinay ‘yan. E kasi ako, inampon din lang ako ngtiyo ko,” ani Binay. Ani Binay, mas maganda paang naging sitwasyon ni Poe kumpara sapagkakaampon sa kanya.—PSN

‘Ampon din ako’: VP Binay

MANILA: An impoverished Philippine farmer’steenage son will fly to Sudan next week forpotentially life-saving open heart surgerythanks to an Oscar-nominated film and anItalian charity, his sister said Friday.

Reynaldo Nilo, 17, will head to Khartoum onMonday for the free treatment at a hospital runby EMERGENCY, an Italian doctors group, toarrest the onset of rheumatic heart disease, sis-ter Sarah Joy Nilo said.

“The cardiologist said surgery was urgentlyneeded, otherwise the valves would deteriorateand cease to function,” she told AFP.

“The treatment is locally available, but hewas among a long list of charity patients and wedid not know when he would get his turn.”

She said it cost 1.6 million pesos ($35,600) atother local hospitals, a sum the family, whichraises ducks for a living, can not afford.

“We’d lost almost all hope until we wereintroduced to this foundation.”

EMERGENCY, which works in 16 disaster andwar-torn nations, said its cardiac hospital nearthe Sudanese capital Khartoum was the onlyone of its kind in Africa where patients weretreated for free. US director Kief Davidson wentto Khartoum five years ago to film “Open Heart”,a documentary about eight Rwandan boys whowere treated at EMERGENCY’s Sudan hospital.

Continued on Page 2

Philippine teenager to have life-saving surgery in Sudan

MANILA: From the typhoon-ravaged Philippines tothe Arizona desert, thousands of people begangathering yesterday in small groups in 79 countriesfor what was touted as the biggest public debateon climate change.

Results of the day-long consultations will besubmitted to climate change negotiators ahead ofa year-end United Nations summit in Paris, whereworld leaders will gather to forge a new treatyaimed at curbing global warming.

“I hope that decision makers will find this initia-tive an important echo chamber of citizens’ con-cerns, hopes and aspirations for the kind of worldthey want for themselves and their children,” saidChristiana Figueres, executive director of the UN’sFramework Convention on Climate Change, one ofthe organisers of the event.

“It is also an important contribution to gal-vanising public understanding of what can oftenseem a highly complex topic, but one that goes tothe heart of everyone’s lives.” There are about 100participants from a cross-section of society in eachof the day-long discussions, according to theorganisers.

They were to be asked how concerned theywere about climate change, if climate negotiatorsshould seek an ambitious accord, and if the Parisagreement should be legally binding for all coun-tries. Every participant would be required to voteon the issues.

Organisers will present the results to climatechange negotiators who are meeting in Bonn,Germany, next week, and in other meetings leadingto the Paris summit.

‘voices of poor and vulnerable’ One of the first debates was in the Philippines, a

Southeast Asian nation particularly vulnerable to cli-mate change and already hit by an average of 20major storms or typhoons a year.

In 2013, Super Typhoon Haiyan hit the Philippineswith the strongest winds ever recorded on land, leav-ing 7,350 people dead or missing.

The Philippine meeting gathered “ordinary peo-ple”, including farmers, minibus drivers, housewives,street vendors and professionals, discussion modera-tor Editha Pimentel told AFP.

One of the participants in Manila, high schoolteacher Jocelyn Pedernal, said she believed the forumcould be a way for world powers to hear the voices ofthe poor and vulnerable.

Continued on Page 2

Climate debate takes global pulse ahead of Paris summit

SUNDAY, JUNE 7, 2015 2

Philippine teenager ...Continued from Page 1

The film, which received an Oscar nomination, was seen by theFilipino teen’s sister on television last year, reviving the family’s flag-ging hopes. “She recognised that the condition described was thesame as her brother’s, waited for the credits and then tracked the pro-ducer Cori Stern down with a one-line email. ‘My brother has this,please help’,” the statement said. Stern, an American, endorsed theNilo sister to the aid group, which agreed to provide either partial ortotal replacement of the teen’s heart valves.

The group said it would also pay for other required medications forthe rest of his life, adding he would likely die within a few years with-out the operation. “Reynaldo had strep throat as a child, which if nottreated with antibiotics can lead to a rheumatic heart disease thatusually leaves young adults dead by 20,” it said in a statement.

The sister, 25, said her brother was diagnosed with the disease twoyears ago. He became bedridden and was unable to finish his highschool studies, while also requiring his sister to take care of him fulltime. EMERGENCY said the siblings would be flown to Khartoum forfree by Turkish Airlines. —AFP

Climate debate ...Continued from Page 1

“Even a small speck of dust can get caught in the eyeand have an effect,” she told AFP.

“The big countries are the ones who should show theway and apply the measures to stem climate change.They are the ones who emit the most carbon.”

Another participant, tricycle driver Bartolome Pidar,35, said he wanted to tell leaders of rich nations about hissuffering.

“The poor are the ones who feel the effects of the heatand rain. The rich have houses and air conditioning,” saidPidar, a father of three.

“They are rich because of us so they should listen tous.”

The consultations are co-organised by the FrenchNational Commission for Public Debate, French consult-ing firm Missions Publiques and the Danish Board ofTechnology Foundation.

The goal of the planned Paris pact, which must enterinto force by 2020, is to limit global warming to twodegrees Celsius (3.6 degrees Fahrenheit) over pre-Industrial Revolution levels.

Scientists warn that on current trends, Earth is on trackfor double that or more — a recipe for catastrophicdroughts, fiercer storms like Haiyan and other extremeweather events.—AFP

MANILA: This general view shows participants attending a climate debate forum titled “World Wide Views on Climate andEnergy” in Manila yesterday. — AFP

ZAMBOANGA: Members of an Al-Qaeda-linked militant group beheaded a pro-govern-ment militiaman in the latest clash in the trou-bled southern Philippines yesterday, a militarystatement said.

Two members of the extremist Abu Sayyafgroup were also killed in the fighting againstsoldiers and pro-government volunteers in thestrife-torn southern island of Basilan, the state-

ment said.The troops were guarding a town’s water

system following a series of extortiondemands by Abu Sayyaf when they wereattacked by about 20 gunmen.

“A fire fight ensued for five minutes (and)resulted in the death of (one civilian auxiliary)who was eventually beheaded,” the reportsaid. Two Abu Sayyaf members were also killed

in the fighting, the military said, adding thattroops were pursuing the extremists.

Abu Sayyaf, set up with seed funding fromAl-Qaeda in the early 1990s, has been blamedfor many of the deadliest militant attacks inthe Philippines, including the 2004 firebomb-ing of a ferry on Manila Bay that claimed morethan 100 lives. The group has been known tobehead some of its hostages and mutilate

slain opponents.It has engaged in mass kidnappings and

extortion to raise funds and has provedresilient despite the Philippine military receiv-ing US training to hunt them down.

A key leader of the group posted videofootage of himself and other gunmen last yearpledging allegiance to Islamic State fighters inSyria and Iraq.—AFP

Al-Qaeda-linked militants behead Philippine militiaman

MANILA: Filipino activists hold slogans during an anti-China rally outside the Chinese Consulate at the financial dis-trict of Makati, south of Manila, Philippines Thursday. More than 100 Filipino activists demanded that China stop itsincreasingly assertive actions in the disputed South China Sea, and warned during a rally Thursday they could tar-get Chinese economic interests. —AP

‘Espina should fast-trackadministrative cases’

MANILA: Following the news that Director Gen. Alan Purisimawould report back to work on June 10, Sen. Grace Poe onSaturday said Philippine National Police (PNP) officer in chargeDeputy Director Gen. Leonardo Espina should fast-track theinvestigations on administrative cases against the suspendedpolice chief. Poe said Espina, who was set to retire in July, hadthe capacity to pursue charges versus Purisima while he wasstill in charge of the 150,000-strong police force.

“Hindi naman natin pwedeng sabihin sa tao na, ‘basta mag-resign ka na lang.’ Kahit na overwhelming ‘yung evidence,kailangan nilang gawin ‘yung proseso pra mapatunayan kungano ang mga pagkakamali,” she said in an interview with radiostation dzMM. —Inquirer.net

SUNDAY, JUNE 7, 2015 3Musika at Tawanan: Admission is free

Lovi Poe darating sa Kuwait sa HuwebesKUWAIT: The stage is set for the ‘Musikaat Tawanan 5’ featuring versatile Filipinoactress and singer Lovi Poe togetherwith fast-rising comic duo Pepay andTammy Brown and showbiz reporter ReyPumaloy.

The event is organized by theAlliance of Filipino Organizations inKuwait (ALLFIL-OK) in partnership withthe GMA Pinoy TV/My-HD and in coordi-nation with the Philippine Embassy inKuwait. A group of Filipino local talentscomposed of world-class singers anddancers will be per forming in theupcoming event. Admission is free to thepublic. ALLFIL-OK is composed of theFilipino Badminton Committee, FilipinoCultural Club, Filipino Association ofSecretaries of Employment Agencies inKuwait, Philippine Society of MarketingSpecialists in Kuwait, SANDIGAN, Friendsin Kuwait, Kuwait Filipino MothersOrganization, MAKULAY, Lens ArtistsPhotography Group, UFCORG andFilipino Zumba Association in Kuwait.

SUNDAY, JUNE 7, 2015 4

KUWAIT: The Filipino Badminton Committee (FBC) distributedawards to the winners of 54, 55 and 56th tournament held recently atthe Disabled Club in Hawally. The prizes was handed over by PAG-IBIG FUND Country Representative Mac Khalil with FBC PresidentRegine Panesal. Khalil on his short message congratulated winners

and encourages members to avail their programs and to join thePAGIBIG raffle promo and to have a chance to win $10,000 grandprize, an annual program by Pag-Ibig Fund for their members.

The HPI Championship Cup will continue on Friday June 12 butbe noted on the timing changes to give way for the ‘Musika at

Tawanan concert’ to be held on same day with GMA artist fromManila Lovi Poe. Also, FBC is inviting all badminton enthusiasts to joinits one day tournament on June 12 at Kuwait Disabled Sports Club.FBC Chairman Dr. Chie Umandap expresses its sincere gratitude toPAGIBIG and HPI.

FBC awards prizes to 54, 55 and 56th tourney winners

KUWAIT: OSN and the Coalition of FilipinoCommunity Organization in Kuwait will cele-brate the 117th Philippine IndependenceDay (Fiesta ng Kalayaan) on June 12, 2015Friday under the auspices of PhilippineEmbassy in Kuwait and Philippine OverseasLabor Office (POLO). The PhilippineIndependence Day celebration will be heldat Qadsia Sports Club, Hawally, Kuwait. Thisis a whole day event and free to all who wantto join and celebrate with us. The event willcommence with parade of colors, Embassyofficials, POLO officials, professionals, sportsand regional organizations and sponsors.The Philippine Independence day will show-case food festival and cooking competition,

live music bands, parlor games and raffledraws. The gates will open at 9a.m. Theevent is sponsored by LBC, Xtra, & WesternUnion.

Two of Philippine Basketball Association(PBA) superstars Anthony Semerad of GlobalPort team and Chris Banchero of Alaskateam will join and participate in the event.They will have a meet and greet with thefans and autograph signing. The search forLakambini (Miss Independence) 2015 is alsoone of the much awaited portion that gath-ers the young and talented Filipina all overKuwait (from different organizations) tocompete for the title. This will surely bringfun, laughter and excitement.

OSN joins 117th Philippine Independence Day

Celebration on June 12

Chris

SUNDAY, JUNE 7, 2015 5

Happy Birthday

Dalal Al-Ameri celebrated her 18th birthday lastFriday at Fusion Restaurant. Dalal, is one of the thebeautiful daughters of Maria Palacious Al-Ameri,

distinguished Filipino community leader and founder ofseveral Pinoy organizations in Kuwait including the highlyrecognized Presidential Award ‘Banaag Awards’ FilipinoCultural Club in Kuwait. A wonderful, challenging, intrigu-ing time of your life begins at 18 Dalal, wish you best andsmooth journey, be ready because you are now a lady!

Happy Birthday to both of you po! Madam Sarah Yousuf & Madam Farida Al-Halimi!You both shine in the dark and leave an indelible imprint, maaasahang lider, salamatsa walang sawang pagtulong sa mga nangangailangang kababayan!

SUNDAY, JUNE 7, 2015 6BengarciaFILES

Ni Ben Garciabengarcia@kuwaittimes.net

Ayun na nga po. May nakuha na akong sagot o impormasyon satanong natin last week. Bakit hindi magkakasama o bakit hindinagkaroon ng isang event ngayong June 12 para sa araw ng

Kalayaan? Eto po ang sagot!

Ginawa raw po nila ang buong makakaya para maging posibleang isang event na lamang ng community sa June 12. Yan ang bun-gad sa akin ni Charge de Affair’s Consul General Raul Dado nangmakausap ko kasama ng mga core leaders ng dalawang nagbabang-gaang ‘umbrella’ organizations na sina Dr Chie Umandap ng Allianceof Filipino Organizations at Coalition of Filipino Organizations na siOliver Diong ng Coalition of Filipino Organizations in Kuwait. Bakit koginamit ang nagbabanggaan? Kasi aware akong ganun nga ang iniha-hatid na mensahe ng magkahiwalay na event. Pero sabi ng dalawanggrupo noong makausap ko, hindi naman daw dapat sabihing nagba-banggaan. Anu nga kaya ang magandang term anu po? Nag-aaway,nagsasalpukan, may-iringan o ano ba talaga kuya?

Sa mga nagtatanong kung bakit hindi naging posible ngayongtaong ito ang isnag event...well ito ang malinaw na sagot nila sa akin.

Nagkaroon at nag-agree na di-umano ang dalawang grupo saiisang event lamang this Friday. Ang Alliance at ang Coalition aynaglatag ng kani-kanilang programa. Para nga daw mabawasan naang gastos ng embassy, inoffer na rin ng Alliance ang venue paragawing libre at sila na ang magbabayad sa venue. Pero dumating naang disisyon ni CDA Dado; ayon sa kanya; “apparently mayroongmga preferences ang bawat grupo at para ma-exercise natin angtunay na kalayaan (sa pagpili) kung saan sila sasama okay na rin namagkaroon ng dalawang venues sa hapon ang community. Ang ibadahil sa mga work-skeds nila, ang iba mga personal taste andresponsibilities kaya okay lang naman, hoping of course na lahat ngtao ay mapupuntahan naman ang lahat. Sa both venues pupuntakami free-flowing ang attendance on both sides. We do not want tocoerce anyone on going somewhere,” yan po ang sinabi ni CDADado sa akin. Dagdag niya: “ I was told, na dati daw (mgaIndependence Day events) kung mayroong isang grupo na nariyanna, hindi na raw ina-allow yung ibang grupo, so hindi yata magandayun,” dagdag niya: “Gusto kong sabihin na ang embassy natin ayopen sa lahat ng organisasyon sa June 12 ng morning. Magkakaroontayo ng flag-hoisting ceremony with the new ambassador (RenatoPedro Villa) at magkakasama tayo sa almusal ng bayan. Walanamang animosity sa bawat grupo, gusto naman nilang magkasamaat makatulong talaga. Pero ayaw kong maging instrumento ng ‘coer-cion’ okay lang naman na ang ibang tao mayroong ibang sarilingidea o opinion. Yung pagsasama at pag-uusap ng dalawang grupoay napakalaking bagay na ito, hindi natin gustong ipilit muna (angisang event), unti-unti, darating tayo dyan. Kasama nga pala sa

Council (na itinayo) sina Vice Consul Atty Sheina Tesorero at AttyCesar Chavez ng Overseas Labor Office. Importante ito sa amin,importante sa amin sina Dr Chie at Oliver sa usapan ng Council,” wikania CDA Dado.

Oliver:Kami sa Coalition wala kaming sama ng loob sa ibang grupo,

kami nina Dr Chie, nag-uusap naman kami ng maayos; may-galangat mayroon kaming mga respeto sa isa’t isa. Mayroon kaming mgaprograms na inilaan sa aming mga members at yan ang gusto nila.Hindi ibig sabihin na magkakahiwalay kami, mayroon na kaminggalit sa isa’t isa o wala na kaming unity, tulad ng gustong palabasinng iba. Mas-okay na rin na mayroong pagpipilian ang bawat Pinoy saKuwait, kung saan nila gustong magpunta mayroon silang pupunta-han. At least di ba, hindi namin sila dinidigtahan. Free ang members

namin, kung gustong manuod ng concert ni Lovi, hindi namin silapipigilan. Hindi ito competition.

Dr Chie: “Unity ang gusto natin; isa ang puso namin dyan kaya nga nabuo

ang ‘council’ para sa pag-uusap ng dalawang panig. Now, sa amin saalliance talaga nag-give way kami sa hangarin na magkaroon ngiisang event sana nitong June 12. Pero let’s admit na bawat organiza-tions mayroon nang mga naunang plano. Siguro, nung lumabas angplano ng ‘one event’ mayroon na rin silang initial plan (ang Coalition),hindi na puede siguro dahil they have the plan ahead of time pa. Weunderstand that, kasi nga, hindi lang naman isang brain ang guma-

gana kung pag-uusapan ang mga programa nila. Naniniwal ako naitong ginagawa namin sa council ay proseso ito. Hindi puwede iim-pose o ipilit. Magaganap siguro yan unti-unti. So tanggap na naminna matagal talaga itong pagkakaisang hangad natin. Pero natutuwaako na yung proseso nagsimula na, in fact, sinimulan na nila sachange of name. Ginawa na nilang ‘COALITION’ hindi na ‘FILCOM’ angpangalan nila, kasi very generic ang Filcom, kasali rin kami sa Filipinocommunity. Kaya itong unang step na ito okay na sa amin ito. Onestep na ito towards unification or unity ng Filipino organizations saKuwait.

Sa panig ni CDA Dado, isa pa sa rason kung bakit pumayag na rinsiya ng separate venues ay dahil hindi raw po pumayag ang Manilana bigyan sila ng budget para sa community event na ito. Yung offerdaw kasi ng Alliance ay sadyang very generous kasi free na nga dawang venue sana:

Heto ang sabi ni CDA Dado: “It was very generous offer pero hindikami (ang embassy) puwede tumanggap ng offer na ganun o kahitsaan mang grupo, kasi mawawala ang objectivity namin (asembassy). Okay lang yan kasi magkakaibigan tayong lahat now, peropaano kung hindi na ganun, halimbawa I used my power to becomeobjective sa isnag isyu, di magiging unfair ako sa isa. Kaya nag-decideako na hindi ko tanggapin ang offer. I have to apologized to Miss Ana(Del Mundo) sa offer na yun. Yan po ang rason kung bakit hindi kotinanggap ang offer, hindi yun dahil sa may-mga animosity sila.

Pero ito ang million dollar palaisipan. Alam kong hindi lang ito angusapin; kundi pondo (ng organization), pagalingan at kumpetisyon.Titigil muna ako dito ukol sa binanggit ko na yan. Pero nakita ko angproblema sa panig ng central government sa Manila. Bakit hindi silanag-shell-out ng pondo sa konting kasiyahan sana ng mga Pinoy saKuwait? Kung ang narinig nating reason ang paniniwalaan natin kungbakit hindi nagkaroon ng iisang event ay dahil sa walang pondo, mayproblema ang Manila, again, bakit ayaw nilang maglabas ng kahitkonti para sa community event? Lumalabas kasi now na nasa kanila(central government sa Manila) ang problema. Bakit hindi maglaan ngpondo ang gobyerno para sa mga events na tulad nito? Ito ay pakikin-abangan ng mga Pinoy sa ibang bansa? Lalo pa’t alam nating lahat naminimal o kokunti lamang ang outlets ng mga Pinoy dito paramagkasama-sama. Hindi ba tuwing Independence Day naman aymayroong talagang programa para sa community? E bakit hindilaanan ng pondo ng gobyerno ito? E kung ayaw naman nilang humin-gi ng ayuda sa private individuals or entities, di maglaan sila ng kontipara sa community affairs. Diyata’t ang mga sinisingil nila sa atin samga bayarin sa serbisyo ay kulang pa para sa simple at minsan langnamang kasiyahan o isang beses sa isang taong selebrasyon? Angmga events na tulad nito ay puedeng makatulong sa mga kababayannatin upang maibsan kahit papaano ang kanilang homesickness.

Manila konektado sa ‘disunity’ ng Pinoy organizations sa Kuwait

TOKYO: Philippine President Benigno Aquino III said Friday hewants to start talks to allow Japanese troops into his SoutheastAsian country, as both nations try to build up their defenses at atime of tense territorial disputes with China.

A visiting forces agreement would allow for refueling and otherlogistical and legal needs for periodic visits by Japanese troops,Aquino told a news conference at the end of his four-day visit toTokyo. The Philippines has similar deals with the U.S. and Australia.

The Philippines and Japan on Thursday signed a strategic part-nership agreement and said they would start talks on sellingJapanese military hardware and technology, while bolsteringexercises and operations between their militaries. Japan will bedelivering 10 patrol ships for the Philippine coast guard and alsopromised to upgrade its surveillance and defense capability.

However, the spokesman for the prime minister’s office, KenkoSone, said he did not know immediately whether Japan was alsostarting talks on a visiting forces agreement with the Philippines.

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe wants to expand Japan’s militaryrole abroad, and already has partnered with a number of coun-

tries, including Australia, to complement Tokyo’s cornerstonealliance with the U.S.

Abe’s Cabinet last year adopted a new interpretation of Japan’swar-renouncing constitution that would allow Japan to aid for-eign allies under attack. So far, Japanese troops have been restrict-ed to Japan and its vicinity, and the changes are currently beingdiscussed in parliament.

Defense Minister Gen Nakatani has said that the new law, ifpassed, could allow Japanese military to provide escorts and sur-veillance in the South China Sea, where the Philippines and theU.S. have challenged China’s territorial claims.

Aquino said the two leaders touched on a possibility of startingtalks toward forging a visiting forces agreement, and that thePhilippines is ready to discuss further details. He said strategicpartners need such an arrangement in case “there comes a timethat you would need to be in coordination.”

Japan hosts American troops under its bilateral security treatybut has no visiting forces agreement with other nations, except inthe case of U.N.-led peacekeeping operations. —AP

Philippines wants defense pact for Japanese troops

TOKYO: Philippine President Benigno Aquino III arrivesfor a press conference at the Japan National Press Clubin Tokyo, Friday. —AP

KUWAIT: Mula kaliwa, Dr Chie Umandap, OliverDiong, Atty Sheina Tesorero at CDA Atty Raul Dado,noong Huwebes sa sa Kuwait City sa pagbubukasng Adobo Connection. —Kuha ni Ben Garcia

SUNDAY, JUNE 7, 2015 7

By Garry Nakpil

KUWAIT: For the fourth week, there was a tumultuous shudderin the standing of the different teams competing in thePhilippine Bowling Association in Kuwait (PBAK) 2nd SeasonTeam Tournament 2015 held at Cozmo Center in Kheifan. Thirdrank Bowlersmate snatched the lead from the titan of theleague the All Stars Strikers, second placer Cozmo slide to thirdposition, Thunder Dragons although won the game skid fromfifth to sixth, Asian Air Safari winning the weekly series jumpedfrom sixth to fifth place and UAE Exchange joined the ‘magic 8’striking out the Original Pin Killers who holds the ninth position.Travel Club and LEAF uphold their fourth and seventh ranking.

Exceptional encounter was between the dangling teamsOriginal Pin Killers and UAE Exchange who holds the eight andninth positions. In the first two games, the Exchangers mur-dered the Pin Killers with the scores of 960-882/911-898 (1871-1769). Although playing with a depleted lineup the OPK foughtlike true warriors and won the last game 968-917 with its com-mander Greg “Kingpin” Melancon who scored game series of723 (216/242/265). The victorious team top scorer were RaniSkeik (548) and Rudy de Lima (521) supported by Renato Pante(492), Freddie Santos (483), Mike Gonzales and Mariotte Vitowhile OPK who assisted Greg were his three angels, Alma Turley,Jelyn Colegio and Jenny Ganot. The final score was 2863-2773with 90 pins difference and after the summation of grand total,their standing was reversed.

Bowlersmate was agitated when Nusantara won the firstgame 909-837 of their 3-game series. But in the remaining

games after energizing their selves they were back into theirsenses with killing instinct and won the last two games 1013-824/953-806 and the final score was 2903-2564. Bowlersmatehigh scorers were Ali Adel Ata Khalil 172/245/221 (638) andYousef Khalil (537) assisted by Jess Tolentino, Mohammad Ismat,Aji Verghese, Hammad Yassen and Josie Lorino. LoserNusantara’s big scorer was Saleh Al Faraj (516) with BenyaminHasan. Ahmad Fahmi, Endang Wendy, Abel, Laras and ImanNitikusumo. With the win, Bowlersmate snatched the top rankwhile Nusantara maintained the tenth position.

The collision between Asian Air Safari and LEAF was anunusual game when LEAF team won two games 904-832/1011-966 while the Air Safari won just one game 1023-896 and the end result affected their standing although insidethe inner circle of the elite group. Air Safari top honcho wasNorlan Balasan (609), followed by Lito Michael (548), Gani delaCruz (475), Vernie Villaruel, Hermie Saliba, Zairus Javellana andAlex Cervantes while LEAF have Blanca Sambajon (579), CrisCarungay (553), Rene Marzan (528), Marjorie Mercado (464),Maricel Montero and Reygan Percy.

Other results: Although Thunder Dragons posted victoryover Travel Club (2827-2661) still they slide to sixth positionwhile the Travelers uphold there old standing; The originalstrikers the All Stars wrecked the dreams of Tsamba Strikers foranother win (2854-2713); The Swooping Eagles continued itswinning streak and dumped the Cozmo (2844-2619) flyinghigh and now resting in the eleventh position and finally thebattle of the tail enders, Mangaf Strikers outsmarted theMagnum team (2494-2413).

Team Standing after fourth round: 1. Bowlersmate (11763);2. All Stars Strikers (11738); 3. Travel Club (11460); 4. Cozmo(11448); 5. Asian Air Safari (11248); 6. Thunder Dragons(11240); 7. LEAF (11151); 8. UAE Exchange (11134); 9. OriginalPin Killers (11075); 10. Nusantara (10762); 11. Swooping Eagles(10601); 12. Tsamba Strikers (10504); 13. Mangaf Strikers(7519); 14. Magnum (7497).

Individual High Game Individual High AverageMens-A Abdul Aziz Al Aslawi 279 Greg Melancon 229.50Mens-B Yousef Khalil 257 Ypusef Khalil 195.25Mens-C Ishaaq Al Waahid 218 Ishaaq Al Waahid 181.83Ladies A Neveen Wasel 223 Hanadi Mezail 196.88Ladies B Laras Nitikusumo 191 Laras Nitikusumo 148.70Team High Game (Scratch) - All Star Strikers (1101)Team High Series (Scratch + Handicap) - All Star Strikers (3144)

Team Weekly SeriesWeek 1 - All Star Strikers - 3144Week 2 - Travel Club - 3009Week 3 - Bowlersmate - 2944Week 4 - Asian Air Safari - 2796

Weekly - Individual High GameMens A - Greg Melancon - 265Mens B - Ferdie Saliba - 208Mens C - Mohammad Ismat - 202Lades A- Nasha King - 216Ladies B - Jenny Ganot - 178

Bowlersmate snatch lead, UAE Exchange joins ‘magic 8’

SUNDAY, JUNE 7, 2015

Page 7

Bowlersmatesnatch lead,

UAE Exchangejoins ‘magic 8’

SINGAPORE: Brunei has pulled out of hostingthe 2019 Southeast Asian (SEA) Games, blam-ing a lack of venues and preparation time, theOlympic Council of Asia said. The tiny, resource-rich state apologised to the SEA GamesFederation council after announcing its deci-sion at a meeting in Singapore, according to theOCA website. The Philippines has expressedinterest in taking over the 2019 edition of thebiennial, 11-nation event, whose latest incar-nation formally opens in Singapore on Friday.

Malaysia will host the next games in 2017,Vietnam will hold it them 2021 and Cambodiawere confirmed as 2023 organisers at themeeting, the OCA said. The Federation alsoaccepted ice hockey, ice skating, cricket,bridge and Indonesian martial art tarung der-ajat as new sports, meaning they are eligiblefor future SEA Games.

Meanwhile, the Southeast Asian (SEA)Games needs to ditch its roster of obscureregional sports and focus solely on Olympicdisciplines, Thai officials have urged.

With the Games’ 28th edition opened inSingapore on Friday, the officials said theevent had failed in its original goal of liftingathletic standards in the region. “Those incharge of the Games should make it moreinteresting for both the athletes and fans,’’said Sports Authority of Thailand (SAT) gover-nor Sakol Wannapong, according to theBangkok Post. “Sports at the Games shouldonly be the Olympic disciplines.”

While Southeast Asians are world-beatersat the volleyball-style sepaktakraw and pen-cak silat, a martial art, they have failed tomake an impact in sports that are more wide-ly played. The biennial SEA Games pro-gramme is decided by the hosts and the cur-rent edition features 36 sports, includingfloorball (indoor hockey), netball, bowling,petanque and wushu, a Chinese martial art.

“This time, Singapore is not organisingOlympic sports like weightlifting and women’sfootball, but netball has been included in theprogramme,’’ Sakol said. “At the previousOlympics in 2012, no athletes from SEAGames member countries won any goldmedals.” SEA Games Federation councillorCharoen Wattanasin said it was hard to con-vince other countries to change as the tourna-ment, now in its 56th year, was a rare chancefor them to win gold medals. At the 2013 edi-tion in Myanmar, little-known martial artsvovinam and kenpo took pride of place, alongwith chinlone (keepy-uppy), futsal, chess andbody-building. “As a member of the SEAGames Federation, I personally want to cor-rect things to make the Games better,”Charoen told the Bangkok Post. “But it is noteasy because many countries are reluctant todo so. They want to have their traditionalsports in the Games.” He added: “The SEAGames should be a venue for young athletesto hone their skills for bigger events like theAsian Games and the Olympics.” —AFP

SEA Games

Philippines to host SEA Games 2019? Obscure sports should be axed, say Thais

SINGAPORE: Presenters Nikki Muller (L), Chua Enlai (C) and Sharon Au (R) are pic-tured during their routine at the opening ceremony of the biennial Southeast Asian(SEA) Games in Singapore’s National Stadium. TV personality and actress Sharon Au,a presenter at Singapore’s Southeast Asian (SEA) Games opening ceremony, hasapologised after she shocked onlookers by mocking a small, ethnic Indian girl abouther accent. —AFP

MANILA: Claire Adorna dominated the women’s triathlon eventat the 2015 Southeast Asian Games in Singapore to give thePhilippines its first gold medal in the games on yesterday.

Compatriot Kim Mangrobang came up at second place for a1-2 finish by Team Philippines to establish the country’s domi-nance in SEAG triathlon. Adorna clocked in at 2:13:08 followedby Mangrobang with 2:14:26. Their victories hiked thePhilippines’s medal tally to a gold, 4 silvers and 1 bronze. Theircoach earlier predicted that the Filipino triathletes will rule thetournament on Saturday.

“Realistically, if we look at their times, of course we alsoreview their opponent’s times, these two kids are at a differentlevel than their competition, more so than the men,” saidwomen’s triathlete coach Ani de Leon Brown on Friday. “I believethat his two (Adorna and Mangrobang) will dominate tomorrow,”added Brown, who finished fourth in the women’s triathlon in thePhilippine SEA Games 10 years ago. —ABS-CBNnews.com

Pinay triathlete wins first

SEAG gold for PH

SINGAPORE: Dancers perform during the opening ceremony of the biennialSoutheast Asian (SEA) Games in Singapore’s National Stadium on Friday.— AFP Claire Adorna