edge davao 6 issue 226

TWO dismissed bu-reau of customs of-ficials in Davao City

and three others pleaded “not guilty” in yesterday’s arraignment on charges of graft and ``corruption

for allegedly misdeclaring an imported cargo valued at about P10 million four years ago.

The accused are Anju Nereo C. Castigador, for-mer bureau of immigration

(BI) collector in Davao City, Alicodsaman P. Dimasicil, acting assistant wharfin-ger, Lerrie L. Natividad and Moctar S. Amir, acting Cus-toms examiners, Michael Corong, customs broker,

entered pleas of not guilty to the crime of violating Section 3 of Republic Act 3019 before the regional trial court branch 15 under presiding judge Ridgway

P 15.00 • 20 PAGESwww.edgedavao.netVOL. 6 ISSUE 226 • FRIDAY-SATURDAY, JAN. 31- FEB. 1, 2014

FBOC, 10

Rody slams PDI columnist on ‘I will kill you’ comments‘SHALLOW MINDED’

Serving a seamless society

DAVAOEDGEEVERY citizen of this

country can demand performance from

public officials.This was the response of

Davao City Mayor Rodrigo R. Duterte to Philippine Daily Inquirer columnist Conrado De Quiros.

“Nakalimutan niya na I am a citizen of this republic? Alam mo… Napakababaw naman ng utak niya,” Duterte blurted out in an interview, Wednesday afternoon.

Duterte said that De Quiros must remember that aside from being mayor of Davao City, he is also a citizen of the country who pays tax-es to the government.

“Siya nga ang nagsabi na ‘this is a democracy.’ Baka na-kalimutan niya na I am a tax-payer and I have the right to demand performance and I have every right to know that why until now there is no in-vestigation (rice smuggling),” said Duterte.

Duterte reiterated that

the appointment of Depart-ment of Justice Leila De Lima has been always bypassed and set aside by Congress.

“If you are being rejected in so many sessions na you are not being confirmed and you head a department na kasali ang law enforcement na malaki, ang NBI (National Bureau of Investigation), ta-pos hindi mo alam ang smug-gling of rice?” Duterte said.

De Quiros said in last Tuesday’s issue that Duterte is not in a position to demand the resignation of the justice secretary.

“He is not the President, he is the mayor of Davao, however sprawling Davao is, it’s still just a small city com-pared to the nation, and even at that compared to Metro Manila,” said De Quiros in his column.

He said that ‘De Lima has not exactly been twiddling her thumbs, she has earned

INdulge! A1 P7

ICT HUB

P14

SPORTS

BOC men plead not guiltyBy ARMANDO B. FENEQUITO [email protected]

FSHALLOW, 10

ATTRACTING GOOD FORTUNE. Students from the Davao Central High School perform the traditional Chinese lion dance during the opening of this year’s Chinese New Year celebration yesterday. The lion dance is an important feature of the Chinese New Year celebration as it is believed to bring good luck and fortune. Lean Daval Jr.

FOR RECONSTRUCTION. Davao Mayor Rodrigo R. Duterte, together with his executive assistant Christopher Lawrence Go, inspects the old bridge-crossing water pipe of the Davao City Water District (DSWD) in Bankerohan, Davao City which will be reconstructed on February 20. Lean Daval Jr.

VOL. 6 ISSUE 226 • FRIDAY-SATURDAY, JAN. 31- FEB. 1, 20142 EDGEDAVAO

THE BIG NEWS

DAVAO City Mayor Rodrigo R. Duterte has requested in-

formal settlers within the vicinity of Bankerohan Bridge to temporarily va-cate the area to give way for the reconstruction of the bridge crossing pipe of Davao City Water District (DCWD).

In a meeting with the informal settlers in the area last Wednesday, Dute-rte gave the residents until February 20 to vacate so that the construction will be started immediately.

“Importante ni kay tubig ni para sa siuydad,” said Duterte.

Duterte said the DCWD cannot deliver water sup-ply to certain areas be-cause the damaged tempo-rary bypass pipe which lies on the bridge is hampering the distribution.

“Kamong nagpuyo diha, kung di pud mo ma-nugot masakripisyo ang

tibuok tao sa Davao. So im-portante na mapasabot mo na dili ingon na pahawaon mo kundili inyong tugutan ang gobyerno na mo traba-ho,” he said.

Duterte said that the residents can return to their area as long as the construction will be com-pleted.

In a separate interview, Imelda Magsusi, DCWD’s spokesperson, told report-ers that there is a need to temporarily remove the houses for the safety of the people.

“Di man mi ka trabaho kay naa man tay mga heavy equipments na ipang mount, naa mi mga weld-ing works. Unya kung mga sunog na sila, kung maka disgrasya mig tao diha,” said Magsusi.

Magsusi said that the proposed 1000-millime-ter pipe bridge can deliver normal supply of water to

SOME sidewalk ven-dors at the night mar-ket from the experi-

mental project along Roxas Avenue are appealing yes-terday to make the rental collection be on the regular basis instead of monthly.

Vendors said that this is because of the low revenue generated in every night display, adding that they are required to pay P830 for the monthly rental be-fore they can display their

goods. In contrast to an earli-

er report, Demolition Unit and Drainage Maintenance head retired Colonel Yusof Jimlani said that vendors will pay P300 every month for the 1.5 meters by 2 me-ters space. An additional P300 will be charged for lighting and other electric-ity use. A total of P600

Lucia P. Alimra, 47 years old, resident of Trad-ing, Boulevard and selling

RTWs, apparels, and ukay-ukay bags that there were several time that she’ll take P300 home from 4P.M. to 12 midnight. She said that she didn’t have enough to feed her family. In fact, the demolition caused his second year college son to stop and just work.

Alimra said that with-out her ukay-ukay bags she won’t be able to earn for her family, adding that only few people are visiting the

night market. She said that before the demolition last year August, she’ll take P17,000 monthly.

“Unta muraha-mura-han nila mi diri. Unta per day at least makabayad mi,”Alimra said.

Ashleya Amal, 28 years old, resident of Isla Verde, Boulevard and retailing RTWs and sandals for two years in Uyangguren be-fore demolished last Janu-

Night market vendors ask for regular rent collection

[email protected]

By CHENEEN R. CAPON

Bankerohan settlers asked to vacateBy ARMANDO B. FENEQUITO JR.

[email protected]

NEED TO VACATE. Davao City Mayor Rodrigo R. Duterte holds a dialogue with the informal settlers living within the vicinity of Generoso Bridge in Bankerohan, Davao City Wednesday afternoon to request for their temporary relocation to give way for the reconstruction of a bridge-crossing pipe of the Davao City Water District (DCWD). Lean Daval Jr.

CELEBRATION. Davao City administrator Melchor Quitain (2nd from left), Councilor Al-Ryan Alejandre (leftmost) and leaders of the Chinese communities in Davao City participate in yesterday’s parade to kick-off the Chinese New Year celebration in R. Magsaysay Avenue. Lean Daval Jr.

FNIGHT, 10

FBANKEROHAN, 10

VOL. 6 ISSUE 226 • FRIDAY-SATURDAY, JAN. 31- FEB. 1, 2014 3NEWS

DAVAO City will be hosting the 2nd Gen. BIMP-EAGA IMT-GT

Trade Fair and Business Leaders Conference on Oc-tober 23 -26,2014 at SMX Convention Center, SM Lanang Premier as one of the major activities of the

Brunei-Indonesia-Malay-sia-Philippine East Asean Growth Area (BIMP-EAGA) this year.

Dubbed as “Five Coun-tries, One Destination: Re-alizing the Opportunities of ASEAN Integration” the participating countries in-

clude Brunei Darussalam, Indonesia, Malaysia, Phil-ippines of the East ASEAN Growth Area and IMT-GT areas of the Indonesia, Ma-laysia, Thailand Growth Triangle in the four day conference.

Department of Trade

and Industry 11 trade and industry development specialist Romeo Castaña-ga said that the trade fair aims “to showcase best and unique products of each participating country, add-ing the products of Halal,

A TEENAGER was charged last January 29 for grave slander

by the city prosecution of-fice for allegedly maligning a barangay chairwoman of Centro, Agdao last January 24, Friday.

Accused was Jomel Bara Maitim,19, of 132 South San Juan, Barangay Centro, based on the complaint filed by Celeste G. Rin, 34.

Prosecutor Jay Karel Sanchez said that Maitim allegedly uttered the of-fensive words “Inyong ka-

pitan buang, ug dili ko ma-hadlok ug kaso ug unyang gabie akong lungkabun na imong balay (Your ba-rangay captain is insane…I am not afraid if cases are filed against me, tonight I will ransack your house)!” against the victim inside her office in the presence of witnesses.

Sanchez dismissed the case of direct assault against Maitim and instead recommended for the filing of a case of grave slander

DAVAO City Water District will be hosting the 35th

Philippine Association of Water Districts (PAWD) to be held on February 5-6 at the SMX Convention Cen-ter. This year’s theme is “Water Districts: Address-ing Challenges in Water Supply and Sanitation”.

Expected in atten-dance are approximately 1,500 delegates composed of key officials and officers of water districts nation-wide and from the rest of the water industry who will discuss the various innovations in the imple-mentation of water supply and sanitation in the coun-

try. Pre-convention on Feb.

4, a whole day conference on human resources is-sues such as compliance to government programs and policies and train-ing, gender and develop-ment will be held in SMX Convention Center. In the afternoon, to be simul-taneously conducted are the competitions among regional association of wa-ter districts, the 3rd PAWD National Science and Math Quiz Bee elementary and high school categories at the Grand Regal Hotel and the national plumbing contest for water district employees at the DCWD

Bajada office.First day of the con-

vention proper on Feb. 5 will start with the open-ing of exhibits showcas-ing the latest technologies in the water industry as well as Gender and Devel-opment activities of the various water districts in the country. This will then be followed by the opening ceremonies with Hon. Ralph G. Recto as the keynote speaker. In the afternoon, the congrega-tion will sit down for the general assembly wherein Mayor Rodrigo R. Dute-rte is expected to grace. Election of the new set of

FRONTLINE programs and services of the Department of Labor

and Employment (DOLE) 11 and its affiliate offices will be advertised in 500 taxi cabs in the region for the purpose of raising awareness to the general public for 30 days.

DOLE 11 regional direc-tor Joffrey M. Suyao said the programs will be showcase through a 30 seconds to one minute and thirty seconds

animated video clipping. “The good thing about it

is it is animated, the public can understand it even its audioless,” he said, adding that it will be showed to Maligaya taxi, Pacific cabs, Orange Cabs, and Visa Cabs owned by the R.A. Hao Cen-ter for Development Foun-dation Inc.

During the launching of the Labor and Employment Education Program and Services (LEEPS) at the re-

gional office yesterday, the foundation and DOLE en-tered into a memorandum of agreement (MOA). Each of their taxi operating the region will have at least two video clips showcasing the programs and services of DOLE and its affiliates.

It is said to be an “inno-vative educational and pro-motional tool for dissemi-nating DOLE programs and services to a wide range

BUSINESS leaders are bullish that the signing of the final peace deal

between the Government of the Philippines (GPH) and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), the Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsam-oro (CAB), will unleash the full economic potentials of Mindanao.

“Mindanao’s economy would really grow if there is no war because investors will no longer be afraid to put up investments in the island,” said Datu Haron Bandila, chair of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) Business Council.

Bandila also expressed the group’s support to the signing of the last Annex on Normalization to the Frame-work Agreement on the Bang-samoro (FAB), which would pave the way for the signing of the CAB both sides expect to happen within the first quar-ter this year.

“We are always on the positive side. Both the gov-ernment and the MILF must be sincere and adhere to the agreements [so that] every-thing will be okay. We con-gratulate both parties for a job well done,” he said in reaction to the signing of the normal-

Business sector bullish on Bangsamoro deal’s impact to Mindanao economy

Teenager detainedfor grave slander By EMILORD P. CASTROMAYOR

[email protected]

Davao City to host secondBIMP-EAGA IMT-GT Trade Fair

[email protected]

By CHENEEN R. CAPON

DOLE 11 programs advertised on taxis

National water district confab slated

PLUNGED. Davao City Civil Registrar’s Office (CCRO) head lawyer Leo Anthony R. Braceros reveals during yesterday’s I-Speak media forum at City Hall that the agency has recorded a decrease on the number of birth registration last year as compared to figures recoded 2012. Lean Daval Jr.

FNATIONAL, 10

FDOLE, 10

FDAVAO, 10 FBUSINESS, 10

FTEENAGER, 10

VOL. 6 ISSUE 226 • FRIDAY-SATURDAY, JAN. 31- FEB. 1, 2014

AFTER the signing of the Annex on Nor-malization in Kua-

la Lumpur, the Malaysian facilitator referred to the nearly completed compre-hensive peace agreement as the Philippines’ second major contribution to the world, after People Power in 1986. In his opinion, the Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsamoro is the best autonomy provision in the whole region, and will inspire settlement of iden-tity-based conflicts else-where.

This new Mindanao peace agreement became somewhat of a surprise headline in international media, among news about impasse in peace talks on Syria; bombs in Egypt; standoff in Ukraine; war in South Sudan; and a new massacre of Muslims in Myanmar. Mindanao be-came a sign of hope in a troubled world. The Philip-pines is making a difference.

Peace agreements are indeed rare. It is not exag-gerated to affirm that the agreement on the Bang-samoro is the most signif-icant in the world since the Comprehensive Peace Accord between the Gov-ernment of Nepal and the Unified Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist) in 2006. No wonder, therefore, that the world is watching and tak-ing note. There is no recipe to building peace, which is why it is so important to pay attention to lessons learned.

Learning on the go: pro-tecting the negotiations

Covered by a ceasefire agreement, the Philippine Government (GPH) and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) have been talking for almost 17 years. A quite unique feature in itself, and a reminder for others that a ceasefire does not necessarily indicate weakness.

Early on the MILF was already clear that the solu-tion to the Moro problem was not in the battlefield, and that talking was a far

more powerful tool than killing.

The Armed Forces would find out themselves the futility of a military ap-proach. After effectively defeating the MILF in 2000 and 2003, they learned that a political problem needs a political solution, and can-not be addressed with guns.

Indeed, the fallout af-ter the frustrated signing of the MoA-AD in 2008 led to a massive humanitarian disaster, but mainstream MILF and AFP had built enough mutual trust to avoid a third episode of all out war.

The three major break-downs of the ceasefire led to a gradual sophistication of the negotiation mecha-nism. Each hurdle led to a new building block in the support architecture to pre-vent new crisis. In 2001 the parties asked the Malaysian government to host and facilitate the peace negotia-tions. In 2004 they agreed to an International Monitoring Team to verify the ceasefire. And in 2009 the IMT added two components: human rights and humanitarian;

and civilian protection. The MoA-AD crisis also

produced an International Contact Group (ICG), to wit-ness the negotiations and assist the parties and the facilitator. The Government and the MILF agreed to a hybrid Contact Group com-posed of four states – Japan, the United Kingdom, Turkey and Saudi Arabia - and four international NGOs –The Asia Foundation, Muham-madiyah, the Centre for Hu-manitarian Dialogue, and Conciliation Resources. This hybrid composition was a compromise to the MILF’s eagerness to internation-alise the peace talks and the Government’s aversion to external interference in do-mestic affairs. It also reflects a mix of Western, Asian and Muslim countries and orga-nizations.

Most peace negotiations in the world have some sort of international support mechanism. But the Mind-anao ICG is the only group that incorporates NGOs along diplomats. Thus, another contribution the Philippines offers to the ev-er-developing field of inter-

national peacemaking.Learning from the past:

the challenge of implemen-tation, the value of inclusion

Back in 1996 the Gov-ernment already signed a Final Peace Agreement with the Moro National Libera-tion Front (MNLF). But as in so many other peace pro-cesses, the implementation phase was poorly devised.

Maybe the most relevant improvement of the current negotiations is a clear road-map for implementation, with sophisticated support architecture for issues such as decommissioning, polic-ing, and transitional justice. A Third Party Monitoring Team (TPMT) will assess developments and eventu-ally certify an Exit Agree-ment that will complete the implementation phase, ide-ally by 2016.

The Supreme Court ruling on the MoA-AD in 2008 brought another les-son. The justices reminded the parties of the impor-tance of transparency and inclusivity. All stakehold-ers needed to be informed and consulted prior to de-cisions being taken at the negotiating table. Despite the setback for the process, in the long run this ruling triggered one of the most democratic peace process-es of the world. Both panels have engaged in countless consultations with mayors, governors, legislators, and leaders from the religious, academic, business, and se-curity sectors. The outcome of the negotiations cannot take anyone by surprise any more.

Learning from civil so-ciety

The positive develop-ments in the peace process owe a lot to civil society organizations (CSOs). They have developed concepts –like the tri-people- the have

created innovative mecha-nisms –like civilian moni-toring and protection- they have normalized inter-faith dialogue, they have institu-tionalized peace days, peace weeks and peace months.

NGOs have permanent access to both negotiating panels; some members have eventually even joined the negotiating teams, a rec-ognition to their skills and talent.

CSOs are currently con-ducting hundreds of consul-tations to inform all sectors and communities about the developments and the challenges ahead, and to document hopes, fears and recommendations for the forthcoming Bangsamoro Basic Law.

Indigenous peoples, who have historically felt marginalized by both set-tlers and Muslims, are in-creasingly asserting their rights, articulating their vision of coexistence in the future Bangsamoro.

Both panels have in-corporated women in their negotiating teams, and paid special attention to gender-responsive criteria when drafting the multiple partial agreements. The Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsamoro is prob-ably the first peace agree-ment ever to be signed by a woman as chair of a negoti-ating panel.

Learning from the trag-edy

Despite all innovations and lessons learned, the Zamboanga tragedy last September is a reminder of how wrong things can go. The physical consequences are devastating: hundreds of dead, thousands of hous-es destroyed, hundred thou-sand people displaced. The less visible wounds will be difficult to heal: the trau-ma of those who suffered

the violence; the renewed mistrust between ethnic, religious and political sec-tors; the frustration among peace advocates for not having been able to prevent and manage the situation differently.

Looking back it might be safe to suggest that in Zam-boanga no one won, but everyone lost. Fortunately the vast majority of people in the Bangsamoro and its neighbouring cities and provinces are fully aware that violence only triggers more violence. And this is in itself maybe the most im-portant lesson of the Mind-anao peace process. Once violence looses its appeal, there is a better future for all, a future of coexistence that is based on trust and equal opportunities.

The value of compro-mise. A shared achieve-ment.

Negotiation is an ex-ercise of give and take, of finding common ground, of identifying a solution where everyone wins as much as possible and looses as little as possible. Negotiations is an exercise of compromise.

Over the course of the negotiations MILF aban-doned its claim for indepen-dence and the Government of the Philippines accepted significant devolution. Both parties thus becoming part-ners for peace and therefore equally interested in a suc-cessful implementation of their milestone agreement. They have a shared under-standing that “what is good for the Bangsamoro is good for the Philippines”.

The completion of the GPH-MILF peace negotia-tion is a collective victory. It is important to pay tribute to all those who through-out the years have joined the peace panels. And to all the people in the grassroots who have persevered and nurtured the dialogue that has sustained the process even in its most difficult moments. All these coura-geous women and men are a source of inspiration for the whole country. They are now a reference also for the rest of the world. [Min-daViews is the opinion sec-tion of MindaNews. PEAC-ETALK is open to anyone who wishes to share his/her reflections on the peace processes. Kristian Herbolz-heimer and Emma Leslie are both members of the In-ternational Contact Group in the GPH-MILF peace process. Herbolzheimer is Director of the Philippines Programme at Conciliation Resources while Leslie is Executive Director, Centre for Peace and Conflict Stud-ies in Siem Reap, Cambodia and Philippines Programme Associate also at Concilia-tion Resources.

4 EDGEDAVAO

BIGGER PICTUREPEACE TALK: Learning from the Mindanao peace processBy KRISTIAN HERBOLZHEIMER and EMMA LESLIE

Conciliation Resources

VOL. 6 ISSUE 226 • FRIDAY-SATURDAY, JAN. 31- FEB. 1, 2014 5EDGEDAVAO


THE Philippines grew better than expected in 2013

despite a string of disas-ters including the world’s deadliest typhoon, ac-cording to the socioeco-nomic planning chief.

In a press conference on Thursday, January 30, National Economic and Development Authority Director-General Arsen-io Balisacan announced that the country’s gross domestic product (GDP) grew 6.5% in the fourth quarter of last year, bring-ing full-year growth to 7.2%.

The full-year figure surpassed the govern-ment’s official target of 6% to 7%.

“This is a remarkable turnout. The economy grew higher than target despite the challenges we faced,” Balisacan said. “Indeed, growth could have been better if not for disasters like the Bohol earthquake, the Zambo-anga siege and Typhoon Yolanda.”

According to him, GDP growth was driven by the services sector, particu-larly trade and real estate, renting and business ac-tivities, as well as the ac-celerated growth of the manufacturing sector.

On the demand side, sustained consumer and government spending, and higher investments contributed the most.

The Philippines re-mained one of the fast-est-growing in the region, next only to China, which

expanded by 7.7% in 2013.

Q4 growth slowsF o u r t h - q u a r t e r

growth was slower than the 7.7%, 7.6% and 6.9% recorded in the previous 3 quarters, respectively. (READ: PH grew 6.9% in Q3, not 7%)

Massive destruc-tion caused by Yolanda weighed, but financial aid helped offset this.

“Growth in the fourth quarter could have been 7% to 7.3% if not for Yolanda,” noted Balisacan.

The NEDA chief said Yolanda and the other di-sasters that hit the coun-

try reduced 2013 growth by 0.1 percentage point.

2014 goalsNEDA projects that

the Philippines will sus-tain the GDP growth and reach its GDP target of between 6.5% to 7% in 2014.

Malacañang said on Thursday, January 30, it was “pleased” with the news, adding it would achieve its 2014 targets through the following:

focus on growing ex-ports

reduce the cost and improve the ease of doing business to increase for-eign direct investments

improve linkages be-tween agriculture and industry to boost the growth of these sectors

promote increased and enhanced employ-ment opportunities to fully harness the vast po-tential of highly-talented workforce

implement infrastruc-ture projects, especially in the rehabilitation of ca-lamity areas

focus on major infra-structure projects, espe-cially in the transport sec-tor, as a significant growth factor

But Presidential Communications and

Operations Office Sec-retary Sonny Coloma emphasized the govern-ment’s continued focus on achieving inclusive growth “by reducing pov-erty and increasing social protection.”

“The updated Philip-pine Development Plan emphasizes the spatial or area-specific dimensions of development. Hence, government spending is directed at increasing the productivity and reducing the vulnerability of farm-ers, fisherfolk, and other marginalized sectors of Philippine society,” he said. [Rappler.com]

Cebu Pacific Daily 5J961 / 5J962 5:45 Manila-Davao-Manila 6:15Zest Air Daily Z2390 / Z2390 5:45 Manila-Davao-Manila 6:25Cebu Pacific Daily 5J593 / 5J348 6:00 Cebu-Davao-Iloilo 6:30Philippine Airlines Daily PR809 / PR810 6:10 Manila-Davao-Manila 7:00Philippine Airlines Daily PR819 / PR820 7:50 Manila-Davao-Manila 8:50Cebu Pacific Daily 5J394 / 5J393 7:50 Zamboanga-Davao-Zamboanga 8:10Cebu Pacific Daily 5J599 / 5J594 8:00 Cebu-Davao-Cebu 8:30Cebu Pacific Daily 5J347 / 5J596 9:10 Iloilo-Davao-Cebu 9:40Cebu Pacific Mon/Tue/Thu/Fri/Sun 5J963 / 5J964 9:40 Manila-Davao-Manila 10:10Philippine Airlines Daily PR811 / PR812 11:30 Manila-Davao-Manila 12:20Cebu Pacific Daily 5J595 / 5J966 12:00 Cebu-Davao-Manila 12:30Cebu Pacific Thu 5J965 / 5J968 12:55 Manila-Davao-Manila 13:25

Cebu Pacific Tue/Wed//Sat 5J965 / 5J968 13:35 Manila-Davao-Manila 14:05Silk Air Mon/Sat MI588 / MI588 13:35 Davao-Singapore 18:55 Silk Air Wed/Sun MI566 / MI566 15:20 Davao-Singapore 18:55Silk Air Thurs MI551 / MI551 12:05 Davao-Singapore 15:45Cebu Pacific Mon/Tue/Wed/Fri 5J507 / 5J598 15:00 Cebu-Davao-Cebu 15:30Philippine Airlines August 15:55 Mani2Mani 16:50Zest Air Daily Z2524 / Z2525 16:05 Cebu-Davao-Cebu 16:45

as of May 2013

Stat Watch

MONTHLY AVERAGE EXCHANGE RATE (January 2011-September 2013)

Month 2013 2012 2011

Average 42.23 43.31December 41.01 43.64November 41.12 43.27October 41.45 43.45

September 43.83 41.75 43.02August 43.86 42.04 42.42

July 43.35 41.91 42.81June 42.91 42.78 43.37May 41.30 42.85 43.13April 41.14 42.70 43.24

March 40.71 42.86 43.52February 40.67 42.66 43.70January 40.73 43.62 44.17

7.1 1st Qtr 2013

7.8 1st Qtr 2013

USD 3,741 million

Feb 2013USD 4,708

million Feb 2013USD -967

million Feb 2013USD -640

millionDec 2012

P 4,964,560 million

Feb 2013

2.4 % Mar 2013P113,609

million Mar 2013

P 5,281 billion

Mar 2013

P 41.14 Apr 2013

6,847.5 Mar 2013

132.8 Apr 2013

2.6 Apr 2013

3.1 Apr 2013

418,108 Feb 2013

20.9% Jan 2013

7.1% Jan 2013

1. Gross National IncomeGrowth Rate(At Constant 2000 Prices)

2. Gross Domestic ProductGrowth Rate(At Constant 2000 Prices)

3. Exports 1/

4. Imports 1/

5. Trade Balance

6. Balance of Payments 2/

7. Broad Money Liabilities

8. Interest Rates 4/

9. National Government Revenues

10. National government outstanding debt

11. Peso per US $ 5/

12. Stocks Composite Index 6/

13. Consumer Price Index 2006=100

14. Headline Inflation Rate 2006=100

15. Core Inflation Rate 2006=100

16. Visitor Arrivals

17. Underemployment Rate 7/

18. Unemployment Rate 7/

Indicator Latest

1. Gross National Income Growth Rate (At Constant 2000 Prices)

6.8 2nd Qtr 2013

2. Gross Domestic Product Growth Rate (At Constant 2000 Prices)

7.5 2nd Qtr 2013

3. Exports USD 5,045 million

Sep 2013

4. Imports USD 5,711 million

Sep 2013

5. Trade BalanceUSD -665

million Sep 2013

6. Balance of Payments USD 692

million Jun 2013

7. Broad Money LiabilitiesP 5,980,938 million

Aug 2013

8. Interest Rate 2.0 % Sep 2013

9. National Government Revenues

P 127,336 million

Sep 2013

10. National government outstanding debt

P 5,609 billion

Sep 2013

11. Peso per US $

P 43.83 Sep 2013

12. Stocks Composite Index

6,191.8 Sep 2013

13. Consumer Price Index 2006=100

135.2 Oct 2013

14. Headline Inflation Rate 2006=100

2.9 Oct 2013

15. Core Inflation Rate 2006=100

2.5 Oct 2013

16. Visitor Arrivals 382,022 Aug 2013

17. Underemploymen Rate

19.2% Jul 2013

18. Unemployment Rate 7.3% Jul 2013

6 THE ECONOMY

REAL ESTATE. Rem Ramirez, vice president for chapter development and chapter affairs of the Philippine Real Estate Service Practitioners, Inc. (PhilRES) presides over the discussion during PhilRES Davao chapter forum and induction of officers held at Bistro Rosario along F. Torres St., Davao City last Tuesday afternoon. Lean Daval Jr.

PHL grows 7.2% in 2013

THE Department of Agriculture (DA) is considering ex-

porting white corn grain to support the corn in-dustry for the ASEAN in-tegration by 2015.

Agriculture Secre-tary Proceso Alcala said that the National Food Authority (NFA) Council will assess if the country should export the staple based on the production data that will be submit-ted by the Inter-Agency

Committee.“We really need to ex-

port if the supply is more than sufficient for our needs. This would moti-vate farmers to harvest more and improve their economic conditions, “Al-cala said.

The secretary ex-pressed optimism that there will be higher vol-ume of corn exports be-cause of farm mechani-zation.

Alcala also stated

that production must be maintained as demand increases due to the growing livestock and poultry industry.

The Agriculture De-partment plans to invest heavily on infrastructure and postharvest facilities to prepare the corn in-dustry for trade liberal-ization.

It aims to expand more corn areas for har-vest to boost its compet-itiveness for 2015. The

agency has already iden-tified 300,000 hectares of coconut areas that can be intercropped with corn.

The country aims to produce 8.4 million to 8.7 million metric tons (MT) of corn this year.

The Philippine Maize Federation Inc. (Phil-Maize) has been urging the NFA to allow it to export at least 400,000 MT of corn to take ad-vantage of higher prices in the world market and

to comply with the coun-try’s commitments under the World Trade Orga-nization (WTO) and the ASEAN Free Trade Area (AFTA).

The Philippines has sent an initial shipment of 24 metric tons of corn silage for cattle to South Korea in May last year.

However, farmers consider silage as a low value crop that is only used as feed for cattle. [PNA]

DA mulls exporting white corn grain

ABOVE GOV’T TARGET


ICT HUB

GOOGLE announced Wednesday it signed a deal to sell its strug-

gling smartphone unit Mo-torola to Chinese tech giant Lenovo for $2.91 billion.

“Lenovo has the ex-pertise and track record to scale Motorola Mobility into a major player within the Android ecosystem,” Google chief executive Lar-ry Page said in a joint state-ment announcing the deal.

Lenovo chairman and chief executive Yang Yuan-qing said the acquisition “will immediately make Le-novo a strong global com-petitor in smartphones. We will immediately have the opportunity to become a strong global player in the fast-growing mobile space.”

The move comes af-ter Google’s biggest-ever takeover at $12.5 billion, announced in 2011 and fi-nalized in 2012.

Even under Google, Motorola has failed to gain traction in a rapidly evolv-ing smartphone market now dominated by South Korea’s Samsung and US-based Apple.

While Google would be taking a loss on the sale, it did spin off the Motorola Home division for $2.3 bil-lion in 2012 and sold off some of its manufacturing facilities.

Some analysts said Google’s main interest in Motorola would be the portfolio of 17,000 patents, the majority of which will be kept by the California group.

“Google got what they wanted and needed from Moto – they got patents, engineering talent and mo-bile market device insight,” said technology analyst Jack Gold.

“They don’t need to be in the device business... This is a win for Google and a win for Lenovo in my opinion.”

In a blog post, Page said Google bought Motorola “to help supercharge the Android ecosystem” and that goal has been accom-plished.

“But the smartphone market is super competi-tive, and to thrive it helps to be all-in when it comes to making mobile devices. It’s

why we believe that Mo-torola will be better served by Lenovo – which has a rapidly growing smart-phone business and is the largest (and fastest-grow-ing) PC manufacturer in the world,” Page said.

“This move will enable

Google to devote our en-ergy to driving innovation across the Android eco-system, for the benefit of smartphone users every-where.”

Figures released Wednesday by Strategy Analytics showed Google’s

Android system was used on 78.9 percent of smart-phones sold globally in 2013.

A report by IDC showed Lenovo was the fifth-larg-est smartphone maker in the fourth quarter with a 4.5 percent market share,

barely behind fellow Chi-nese maker Huawei and South Korea’s LG.

Motorola is not among the top global smartphone makers but has around seven percent of the US market, according to ana-lysts. [AFP]

TO LENOVO WE GO. The logo of Motorola Mobility is pictured in this file photo at a plant in Toulouse, south western France. [Remy Gabalda/AFP]

Google to sell Motorola unit to Lenovo for $2.91 billion

HERE’S another An-droid game to get ex-cited about.

If you liked City Island and the early Sims City ty-coon games, then you’ll definitely love this new city builder virtual game avail-able in Android.

City Island 2 The Build-ing Story is finally out for you game fanatics with its new features and surprises where you can build houses for your citizens, decora-tions and community build-ings to make them happy and create jobs so you can earn gold and money for your happy citizens.

This is the chance for you to decorate and do whatever you want with your village and people in your own city will provide quests and feedback on how well you are doing. How fun is that!

This free-to-play game is just the new and updated version of the first City Is-land released in the market where it reached ten million of city builders in 2013 and now in the first quarter of 2014, there are over a mil-

lion of players crazily in love with its new version.

City Island 2 follows the Sim City architecture style with its high quality graph-ics of the buildings and peo-ple which you would totally enjoy.

This game will challenge you to unlock 85 unique buildings be it residential, commercial, communi-ty, decoration, plants, sea buildings or such and lots of adventures and quests that will spice up your city build-ing story.

You can also collect profit from the commercial buildings and use them to speed up the construction and upgrade time. You can also expand the city to create more room for constructing more buildings and improve your village to a metropolis with tall buildings.

This would be a whole lot of fun for you to conve-niently enjoy your fascinat-ing virtual city and commu-nicate with other players just like how you did with the versions of Sim City since day 1.

CHILLJILL

ATHENA JILLIAN BRAVO

City Island 2: Your virtual city building story

VOL. 6 ISSUE 226 • FRIDAY-SATURDAY, JAN. 31- FEB. 1, 20148 EDGEDAVAO

VANTAGE

Where there is no crime

OLIVIA D. VELASCOGeneral Manager

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

Printed by Zion Accuprint Publishing Inc. Door 14 ALCREJ Building,

Quirino Avenue, 8000, Davao City, PhilippinesTel: (082) 301-6235

Telefax: (082) 221-3601www.edgedavao.net

[email protected]@edgedavao.net

CAGAYAN DE ORO MARKETING OFFICELEIZEL A. DELOSO | Marketing ManagerUnit 6, Southbank Plaza Velez-Yacapin Sts.Cagayan de Oro CityTel: (088) 852-4894

RICHARD C. EBONAAdvertising Specialist

SOLANI D. MARATASFinance

EDGEDAVAOProviding solutions to a seamless global village.

ANTONIO M. AJEROEditor in Chief

OLIVIA D. VELASCOGeneral Manager

Columnists: CARLOS MUNDA • MA. TERESA L. UNGSON • EDCER C. ESCUDERO • AURELIO A. PEÑA • MARY ANN “ADI” C. QUISIDO • LEANDRO B. DAVAL SR., • NICASIO ANGELO AGUSTIN • VIDA MIA VALVERDE • Economic Analysts: ENRICO “GICO” G. DAYANGIRANG • JONALLIER M. PEREZ • Lifestyle Columnists: BAI FAUZIAH FATIMA SINSUAT AMBOLODTO • MEGHANN STA. INES • NIKKI GOTIANSE-TAN

LEANDRO S. DAVAL JR. JOSEPH LAWRENCE P. GARCIA Photography Contributing Photographer

ARLENE D. PASAJECartoons

KENNETH IRVING K. ONGCreative SolutionsPrinted by Zion Accuprint Publishing Inc.

Door 14 ALCREJ Building,Quirino Avenue, 8000, Davao City, Philippines

Tel: (082) 301-6235Telefax: (082) 221-3601www.edgedavao.net

[email protected]@edgedavao.net

CAGAYAN DE ORO MARKETING OFFICELEIZEL A. DELOSO | Marketing ManagerUnit 6, Southbank Plaza Velez-Yacapin Sts.Cagayan de Oro CityTel: (088) 852-4894

GENERAL SANTOS CITY MARKETING OFFICEFLORENCE S. VILLARIN Marketing Specialistc/o PZ Villarin MarketingSalvani St., Oringo Brgy. City HeightsTel: (083) 303-2215

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NEILWIN JOSEPH L. BRAVOManaging Editor

GREGORIO G. DELIGEROAssociate Editor

RAMON M. MAXEYConsultant

RICHARD C. EBONAMarketing Supervisor

SOLANI D. MARATASFinance

AQUILES Z. ZONIOCorrespondent

ARMANDO B. FENEQUITO JR.EMILORD P. CASTROMAYOR / CHENEEN R. CAPON

Reporters

JOCELYN S. PANESDirector of Sales

AGUSTIN V. MIAGAN JRCirculation

PHILIPPINE PRESS INSTITUTEthe national association of newspapers

EDITORIAL

A THREAT is not a crime unless you direct it to someone else.

That’s the theory of lawyer Salvador Pan-elo, counsel to Mayor Rodrgo Duterte, on the issue of whether or not a threat is a crime. This obvious-ly refers to the “I will kill you” threat Mayor Duter-te said in direct reference to smugglers in general.

Now, the problem with some people is that they jump the gun on statements, most especially if it comes from the mayor of Davao City who perhaps will go down as one of the most quotable politician in the country. Intriguingly quotable even.

Duterte’s threat caught the attention of the Com-mission on Human Rights. And yes, even the na-tional media who picked up the story and made comments on the statement. To some

The problem with some people in Manila is that they do not know the culture in Davao, much less

understand its brand of politics. To be exact about it, they do not know Mayor Duterte and his tongue.

Say, if those in Manila candy-quote their state-ments for effect or PR purposes, it is not the same with Mayor Duterte. His language is raw and unbri-dled. When unleashed, it is like a law and a gospel. In Davao, when you hear Mayor Duterte speak BS or PIs, that’s ordinary. It’s the punctuation mark to his words. To some sector, the ‘threat’ has a chilling effect.

Now, is the threat of Mayor Duterte tantamount to grave threats? Is it essentially a crime?

Mayor Duterte’s lawyer said legally speaking, it’s not. There was no one the threat was specifically directed at. So why the fuss about a threat directed at no one in particular, most especially if you are not into smuggling in the first place?

Man’s greatest fear, afterall, is fear itself.


(Conclusion)

BY SHARMAINE ANNE G. SAMSON

SPECIAL FEATURE

AQUILES Z. ZONIOCorrespondent

VANTAGE POINTS 9EDGEDAVAO

Luck doesn’t fall from the sky

A directive worth emulating

2014 Chinese horoscopes in the Year of the Horse

MONEY: Monkey’s fate on money can be either very good, or very bad. Health:

Monkey people need to have enough sleep and good rest for their coming challenges. Monkey people might spend more time outdoor or away from the home.

Chicken people should have a great year in the Year of the Snake. Luckily, Chicken will continue to do well in the Year of the Horse. This year will be a wonderful one for Chicken people. Career: Chick-en people have more job assign-ments and pressures, which is the job opportunity. Money: Wood of 2014 represents Money to Chicken people. So Money is there. Chicken people have to find a way to get it. Love: The Romance Star appears in 2014. Chicken people will become popular in their social network. Health: Will cause slight illness. If you watch your health often, have enough sleep and good rest, then you can recover pretty quick from those minor troubles.

Dog people will become much better in 2014. They will see all their hard works pay off this 2014. This will encourage them and allow them to strive for perfection in all they do. They will see their career blossom and they should be able to make a name for themselves. Money: The Dog sign bearers will be able to en-joy a fruitful year, especially when they are in the field of engineering or fields with special skills required. Love: Despite the faulty nature of Dog sign bearers when in a relation-ship, they should be able to work around it and experience a positive change. Health: Dog people might have some pressures from their ca-reer that will cause slight illness but as long as they have enough sleep and good rest, they should be able to recover very quickly from those minor troubles.

Pig people should take real care in all the decisions they make. They will have an ordinary year at best and it can be a bit challenging. Ca-reer: When they take a leadership role in their work, they will shine above everyone else. This is where they work their best and showcase their talents in their field of work. Money: They should avoid taking big risks in everything they do be-cause they might end up regretting the decision they made in the first place. Love: They will constantly be active and show optimism in their relationship or marriage. This is vi-tal in keeping a relationship fresh and happy. Health: When you are tired, then you must stop every-thing and take a big rest.

According to Geomancer and Feng Shui expert Jeffrey Ventura, there is nothing wrong in believ-ing in Chinese superstition but “we should not forget that prayer is still the most powerful weapon.” [PNA]

I DON’T believe in all this nonsense called “luck” even if it comes from the Chinese New Year.Luck doesn’t fall right from the sky.

Luck comes to you after a lot of hard work, diligence, persistence, determi-nation, sweat, perseverance, and divine inspiration.

The last one (divine inspiration) can be something like a sudden “inspired thought” that comes to you at the most unexpected moment---like when you’re taking a bath, answering the call of na-ture on a toilet bowl, brushing your teeth, shaving your face, or just taking a nap.

This thing called “inspired thought” is a bright idea, like a lamp that lights--- which tells you what to do next to solve a problem, get a big client to say yes, or launch a new project that gives you im-mediate success.

You don’t need to read the latest 2014 Chinese Horoscope to see what’s going to happen to you this year. You don’t even need to know that. What controls your destiny is not the Chinese Horo-scope. Your destiny will be controlled by YOU, yourself--- what you’ll be doing in the coming days, the people you’ll meet and the decisions you’ll make.

One good example is the stock mar-ket. You don’t need luck to succeed in stock investments. You need to know

how the stock market be-haves, how each stock be-haves in the market, how to avoid loss-es, when to buy and when to sell to get your earnings. If you depend only on “su-erte”, you will surely lose all your investment capital. You won’t succeed.

Another example is going into busi-ness on your own. You don’t need luck to succeed in your business. You don’t need to buy a lot of things from Chi-natown and put in your store to boost your luck in 2014. You only need to know if there’s a big market demanad for your products or service you’re try-ing to sell. You need to know if you’re in the right location that easily attracts customers to your store. Luck has noth-ing to do with it.

An extreme example of course, is buying a lotto ticket. If you buy a ticket with those six numbers, you have one chance in 14,000,000 to win the jack-pot. There’s more chance for a lighting to strike you inside your home while

taking dinner--- than winning the lotto.One reason why I ALMOST won the

lotto jackpot (P50-M) many years ago was my perseverance in gathering all the winning jackpot numbers and pro-cessing all of them into a chart “system” I learned from a US expert in the inter-net. It was hard work getting all the numbers and setting up the system to get “high frequency numbers” with the highest probability of winning.

To make this long story short, I DIDN’T win the big jackpot, but was able to hit the five numbers of the win-ning lotto number (you need six num-bers to win) and got a big fat check from Land Bank after the PCSO approved my winning ticket.

There wasn’t luck here, but skill, perseverance, determination and even curiosity to find out if the “lotto sys-tem” really works. Well, it worked the first time, but didn’t work the second and third (and so on) time. And I have stopped buying lotto a long, long time ago.

The chances of earning big income are much better in the buying and selling of common shares of compa-ny stocks in the Philippine Stock Ex-change---than hoping for a lotto win and depending only on “ lady luck”.

(Comments? Email > [email protected])

SMOKERS DON’T CARE A HOOT ABOUT HEALTH CONCERNS – Davao City officials and health

authorities are so ardently concerned about the healthiness of the public. So concerned that time and again they have to warn the populace about the hazard caused by smoking. Cigarette smokers say what you will but anybody worth his grain of salt surely knows that smoking habit is bad to the health. However, the cautionary gesture offers little or no comfort at all to the city’s nicotine fanatics and to the country’s smoking population in general.

Aside from government effort to strictly regulate the distribution and sell of tobacco products cigarette man-ufacturers are not going to tell the con-suming public the hazards caused by excessive cigarette smoking. Foremost in their business strategy is to amass substantial profit. The logic of their common interest suggests that no mat-ter how exorbitant are the prices of cig-arettes, smokers still will find ways to buy their favorite stuff.

Just like the Filipinos, Americans and Europeans are, indeed, chain smok-ers. But the acquired habit prompted their governments to impose stringent measures requiring tobacco companies to make cigarette packages with new more glaring warning labels. The im-ages as provided in their regulations include a shrunken cancer patient and close-up of oral cancer. Unlike in the Philippines foreign cigarette manufac-turers adhered to strict government smoking rules and guidelines to avoid getting the ire of government regula-tors.

But Filipino smokers particularly Dabawenyos seemed unperturbed of the consequences of such a campaign.

Not quite in-cidentally, the strict warn-ing and scary labels if im-p l e m e n t e d in the coun-try probably won’t dis-suade them from buying their favorite smokes. All things considered, Filipino smokers don’t care a hoot about health concerns and popping packs of cigarettes a day doesn’t seem nearly as perilous to their health.

Health authorities did what they should always do such as the case of the Davao City government. The city’s new comprehensive anti-smoking ordi-nance would be a test case for the local government, health officials and law enforcement units. Performance and strong political will on this aspect actu-ally is obligatory if they are to succeed in the campaign against smoking. The main objective to impose anti-smoking rules and regulations is to minimize if not totally ban smoking in both pub-lic and private places – enclosed areas such as offices, restaurants, hotels, ter-minals, transportation including public parks and recreation areas.

City health officials and health ad-vocates previously declared a war against smoking but not too effectively and collectively hence the passage and approval of a new comprehensive an-ti-smoking law. The only way to wage the campaign successfully is through the unwavering support of all sectors in society. We do not know whether the comprehensive anti-smoking law

although considered more stringent with corresponding stiffer penalties is in fact the right or ultimate solution to the city’s growing smoking population.

The best part of the new directive according to health officials has the ef-fect to force monitoring teams and law enforcers to do their job diligently and see to it that the implementation of the anti-smoking guidelines are strict-ly carried out to the letter. Smokers on the other hand need to start looking for a “safer” place where they have to do their favorite pastime to avoid getting apprehended and meted stiffer fines and penalties, or maybe even jail term.

For our part, we don’t discourage smokers from doing their acquired hab-it but we encourage them to start doing away with the habit because there is some health risks associated with ex-cessive smoking. We don’t care about whether the excise tax on cigarette and other tobacco products will increase by 6% to 1000% leading to higher prices. Our only concern actually is the rising cases of respiratory diseases and other chronic ailment among nicotine fanat-ics caused by too much smoking.

Clearly, hundreds of thousands are reportedly suffering from smoking-re-lated allergies and lung ailments. But what is disturbing is that the younger generation now comprises a bigger per-centage of the country’s growing smok-ing population. And to those who hav-en’t change their minds yet and decided to continue smoking, we’re not going to stop them anyway. Our simple advice - life is short, don’t make it shorter. The good news is that Davao City spearhead-ed the campaign against smoking and enacted a comprehensive anti-smoking law which was already followed and im-itated by many LGUs across the country.

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Tanjili. Castigador and Dimas-

icil were terminated from the service while suspend-ed for six months each were Natividad and Amir based on the resolution of the Office of the Ombudsman- Mindanao.

They were charged after the Office of the Om-budsman-Mindanao found probable cause based on the complaint filed by a businessman identified as Rodolfo C. Reta, operator of Acquarius Container Yard located at Km 10 Sasa, this city.

The accused allegedly conspired with one anoth-er to grant Rapzel General Merchandise, an import-ing company that misde-clared 40 containers of rice from Thailand as 320 bags per container or a total of 12,800 bags of construction materials on February 26, 2010.

Graft Investigation and Prosecution Officer 1 Mari-lou B. Unabia resolved on November 29, 2012, that there was evidence from the issuance of gate passes made by Dimasicil prior to the examination of the ship-ment and the non-exam-ination of the shipment by Natividad and Amir. Mean-while, Unabia also found evidence on the failure of Castigador to file a case against Rapzel and Corong on the smuggling activity.

The case was triggered by Reta whose memoran-dum of agreement with Bureau of Custom for the operation of Cusotms’ des-ignated examination area (DEA) inside the ACY was cancelled by Castigador af-ter Reta reported the irreg-ularities of the accused.

Unabia stated in her resolution, recommending P30,000 bail each for their temporary liberty.

her reputation as being one of the Furies, along with Commission on Audit chief Grace Tan and Ombudsman Conchita Carpio Morales, hounding the wicked to the ends of the earth.’

“The infinitely bigger crime is not rice smuggling, it is proposing—and carry-ing out—the murder of rice smugglers,” De Quiros wrote.

Davao lawyer Salvador Panelo said earlier that to establish that Duterte com-

mitted a crime in threatening criminals then there should be a specific person to whom the threats are directed at.

“Ang problema kasi sa mga kumokontra hindi kasi sila mga abogado, kung abo-gado man sila malamang sig-uro absent sila,” Panelo said earlier.

Panelo added that the threat was just a warning to smugglers to stop their ille-gal activities or else he would make their lives miserable.

more than 70,000 consum-ers which suffer the low water supply.

“Daghan kayo ang nagareklamo sa amoa na walay tubig , hinay kayo ang tubig kay tungod ang atong temporary na tubo na gibutang diha sa bridge (Gov. Generoso bridge) kulang man na siya kay gagmay, ” Magsusi said.

Magsusi added that they need to immediately start reconstruction of the pipes as the Department

of Public Works and High-ways only allow them to lay the pipes on the bridge for two years.

“Kato pang Dec. 28, 2013, one year nato siya. More than one year na ta-pos mag-reconstruct pa tag another one year,” said Magsusi.

The Housing and Homesite Development Division said that about 98 houses in the area will be affected of the proposed reconstruction.

ary 5 said that last Monday she just earned P250 for eight hours.

“Manghinayang mi na tumalikod ang customer kaya ginahatag namo ma-halinanan lang mi,” Amal said.

Given with this situa-tion, vendors agreed that they cannot pay the P830 rent monthly. Alimra said

that this is higher to the P600 prescribe by the or-dinance. The vendors said that the CTO collects P830 per vendor monthly.

On the other hand, the vendors said that the city government should make programs that will invite more buyers in the area. They said that they can-not compete with vendors

selling ukay-ukay, adding that the one-third, two-third policy of the city in vending should be abol-ished.

The night market was officially open to pub-lic since last January 22, Wednesday and occupied by more than 350 vendors from various points in the city and will be opera-

tional for three months. If successful, it will be repli-cated in Ilustre St. Exten-sion from the underpass of Bangkerohan Bridge to the corner of Ilustre and Pichon Sts., Duterte to General Luna Sts.,Sts., Bangoy to Alvarez Sts. in Magsaysay Avenue, and Bangoy St. towards the fly-over bridge in Agdao.

PAWD officers will follow.Second day Feb 6 is

packed with various discus-sions on water supply and sanitation project financ-ing; septage and sewerage; watershed management and protection; partner-ship; non-revenue water;

technology and innovation; and climate change adapta-tion and disaster prepared-ness. A plenary session on leadership talk will be held later in the afternoon.

Capping the convention is the induction of new set of PAWD officers and the

recognition of loyalty in service awardees of water district directors all over the country. The winners in the annual best publication contest of the newsletters and magazines of water districts will also be an-nounced.

For many years, the PAWD convention has been a very strategic avenue for the meaningful exchange of ideas and technologies among water utilities and the water industry in the country. [Jovana T. Duhay-lungsod]

of audience, anytime, any-where.”

Suyao said that the de-partment designed a total of seventeen video clips which can benefit more or less 1.2 million Dabawen-yos. This may include em-ployers, employees, job seekers, and OFWs.

This includes video clips about job search, workers organization de-velopment program, la-

bor standards, labor law compliance system, DOLE integrated livelihood pro-gram, entrepreurship, child labor free Philippines, Em-ployees’ Compensation Program, single entry ap-proach, labor management copperation, productivity improvements, productiv-ity Olympics, occupational safety and health, overseas employment, practice of profession and skills train-

ing.It will showcase the pro-

grams of DOLE, Technical Education and Skills Devel-opment Authority(TESDA), Philippine Overseas Em-ployment Agency (POEA), Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA), Professional Regulatory Commission (PRC), among others.

The promotional ma-terial to the public began

yesterday and will run until February.

Suyao said that he is thankful that a private com-pany partnered with the agency in informing the public about the programs and services.

He said that the agency is inviting more companies to join their awareness campaign as part of their corporate social responsi-bility. [CRC]

agriculture, fisheries, pro-cessed foods; environmen-tal products; and services on tourism, Information and Communication Tech-nology (ICT) and logistics will be exhibited.

Services and technol-ogy innovations, country pavilions and company in-stitutional booths will be also exbited in the fair, add-ing that each country “may find its niche in the supply chain”. Focused areas will be agriculture, fisheries, services, tourism, manufac-

turing and logistics. Castañaga said that

there will be more or less 300 booths in the confer-ence for local and inter-national exhibitors. Each country will occupy more or less than 50 booths during the trade fair on Oc-tober 24 to 26.

Participants, according to him, will be able to ex-pand their market as there will be business matching during the event.

The Business Leaders Conference will be on Oc-

tober 23, wherein there will be an business and in-vestment conference. Chief Executive Officers (CEO) and produces from Asean countries will be sharing their best practices and strategies

He said that the pro-posed topics are BIMP-EA-GA strategic pillars on agri-business development and food security, connectivity, tourism and environmental management.

Aside from the trade fair, he said that business

leaders from Manila, Jakar-ta,Indonesia Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia will be invited to be speakers.

Castañaga said that the first joint fair was held in Melaka, Malaysia in 2012, where the Philippines has the most number of exhib-itors (54), and forged P3 Billion worth of business engagements.

He said that the Philip-pine organizers (MINDA, DTI, DA) for the 2nd Joint fair expect the same or even higher level of participation.

ization annex. The normalization annex

seeks the gradual decommis-sioning of MILF forces, put their firearms beyond use and transform them to become productive members of so-ciety. The three other signed annexes of the FAB are Tran-sitional Arrangements and Modalities, Revenue Genera-tion and Wealth Sharing, and Power Sharing.

Days before the signing of normalization last January 25, British bank Standard Chartered released a study saying that a final peace deal between the government and the MILF will augur well to the economy of Mindanao.

“We believe that a com-plete peace deal will accel-erate economic growth in the ARMM over five years,

and that this will spill over to the larger Mindanao island group,” wrote Standard Char-tered analysts Jeff Ng and Ed-ward Lee.

“A peace deal could nar-row regional disparities and place the Mindanao island group on a faster growth tra-jectory,” the study said.

Under the GPH-MILF peace agreement, the ARMM will be replaced by the Bang-samoro government upon the enactment and ratification of the Bangsamoro Basic Law, which is currently being draft-ed.

Teresita Socorro Ramos, director of the National Eco-nomic and Development Au-thority for Region 9 or the Zamboanga Peninsula, noted that a peace agreement can bring in an influx of domestic

and foreign investors to Min-danao.

“We can expect a surge in economic growth at the on-set. The question is really on how it could be sustained,” she said, calling for everyone’s contribution to achieve such sustainable growth.

Pete Marquez, president of the Metro Cotabato Cham-ber of Commerce and Indus-try, said the signing of the last Annex on Normalization will pave the road to the peace that all of us have dreamed of.

“There is renewed hope and unlimited possibilities in trade and commerce once this agreement will realize its full implementation. Let’s cele-brate and all work together. This is not only a Bangsamoro triumph but for all Filipinos,” he said. [MindaNews]

before the municipal trial of court in cities and rec-ommending P6,000 bail.

Rin said that at about 11: 00 a.m on January 24,

she was informed by Em-manuel Anajao, her sec-retary, that Maitim was shouting offensive words outside the barangay hall.

Maitim was mad at her when the accused was de-tained at the Sta Ana police station for after he alleged-ly ransacked the house of

a constituent last January 22.

Maitim was detained after Rin reported the inci-dent to the police.


COMMUNITY SENSEVOL. 6 ISSUE 226 • FRIDAY-SATURDAY,JAN. 31- FEB. 1, 2014

SINGAPORE Air-lines (SIA) recently turned over a check

to the Philippine Red Cross (PRC) worth P2 million which was gener-ated from contributions by its staff following an earlier donation of the same amount made by the SIA Group in Novem-ber.

Immediately after typhoon Yolanda struck last year, the Airline turned over used blan-kets and cash worth P2 million to PRC. In sup-port of the rebuilding ef-forts, the SIA and SilkAir Staff in the Philippines and Singapore have also taken it upon themselves to make a contribution, matching that of Airline. SIA Manila and SilkAir

Cebu and Davao have foregone their respective staff Christmas parties and, along with person-al contributions, raised a total of P450,000.00. In Singapore, fundrais-ing activities spearhead-ed by members of the SIA Community Service Club (CSC), the Cabin Crew Club for Commu-nity Care (5Cs) raised more than P 1.5 million, thereby bringing the to-tal staff contribution to more than P 2 million.

Photo above shows Philippine Red Cross Chairman and Chief Ex-ecutive Officer Richard J. Gordon and Singapore Airlines General Man-ager Ranjan Jha (third from left) during the turnover ceremonies

for the second batch of donations. They are joined by representa-tives of Singapore Air-lines and SilkAir (from

left): Maria Rafaela Dela Cruz, SIA Passenger Ser-vices Agent, Rita Dy, SIA Manager, Marketing and Communications Ser-

vices, Ramachandran Menon, SilkAir Manager Philippines; Ganesh Pe-rumal, SilkAir Manager Mindanao; Kristine Agu-

ilar, SilkAir Cebu Senior Sales Officer, ; and Day Uyking, Sales and Reser-vations Officer, SilkAir Davao.

Singapore Airlines, SilkAir donate around P4 M to Philippine Red Cross

THIS year’s batch of stories about interesting plac-

es, exciting activities, must-try delicacies, colorful festivals, his-torical landmarks, and other less known sto-ries from various plac-es in the country can now be viewed in an interactive online map, through the 6th Doon Po Sa Amin (DPSA) project of Smart Com-munications, Inc. (Smart) as students im-prove their skills in us-ing online technologies.

Supported by the Department of Edu-cation and Here—a Nokia business sub-sidiary, DPSA is the longest running and biggest annual school-based crowd-sourced mapping activity in the Philippines. Through the annual competi-tion, primary and sec-ondary students from public and private schools nationwide are encouraged to discover unique stories about their hometowns, pres-ent these stories using digital and online tools, and publish them on the web.

When DPSA was launched in 2008, schools were asked to create a website or

blogsite for their sto-ries. In the succeeding years, the competition became more challeng-ing as students were required to present their stories using var-ious online tools such as timeline, online pre-sentation, digital flip-book, and video and pin these on an online map.

As the competition levels up each year, the quality of entries has improved as students learn new skills, em-brace technology fur-ther, and enjoy telling their hometown stories to the rest of the world.

“Each year, we don’t only learn something new and interesting about the Philippines through DPSA, we also get amazed at how well the students use tech-nology and online tools to tell a story,” said Smart Public Affairs Group Head Ramon Is-berto.

“Through DPSA, we aim to help students be up-to-date with the latest available digital and online technolo-gies and urge them to use these technologies to make learning more fun and meaningful for them,” Isberto added.

The online map con-taining the hometown

stories developed by the students can be viewed at www.doon-posaamin.ph<http://www.doonposaamin.ph>.

DPSA 6 FinalistsFor this year’s fi-

nalists, schools in the primary level category that made the cut are Butuan CES-Science and Technology Educa-tion Center in Agusan del Norte, Naga Central School 1 in Camarines Sur, Ilaya Elementary School in Rizal, and San Roque Central Elemen-tary School in Davao City.

For the second-ary level category, Cavite National Sci-ence High School, Ka-layaan National High School in Pasay City, Barobo National High School in Surigao del Sur, Naga City Science High School, Sovereign Shepherd School of Values and Learning in Batangas, and Palawan National School quali-fied for final judging.

Entries include sto-ries about the famous restaurants in Naga, co-conut worms as exotic food in Butuan, unique seafood delicacies in Barobo, cacao produc-tion in Cavite, Mabini Plaza in Batangas, Croc-

odile Farm in Davao, Philippine Air Force Aerospace Museum in Pasay, the beauty of Tinapak River in Rizal, and the magnificent beaches of El Nido.

Winners of the on-line mapping competi-tion will be awarded on February 13 in Makati Shangri-la.

People’s Choice award

Aside from the best entries, Smart will also recognize the most popular entry. The poll is being done online via the DPSA Facebook App (https://apps . face-book.com/dpsa-app/).

By voting, users also earn a point equiva-lent to a raffle entry for a chance to win for themselves Smart pre-paid load and other premium items. Invit-ing Facebook friends to vote or generating a DPSA badge generate more raffle entries for users.

The poll is ongoing and will close on Feb-ruary 12, 2013.

DPSA is part of Smart’s strong corpo-rate social responsi-bility program under education, helping pro-mote learning and mo-bile education through the use of technologies.

Students level up online skills with Smart’s community mapping project THE University of

Mindanao in part-nership with the

University of Newcas-tle in Australia formal-ly opened on Monday, January 20 the intensive engineering course ben-efiting engineers from local government units.

The course, running from January 15-24, aimed to update bene-ficiaries with new tech-nologies and methods respective to their field, and includes English proficiency programs to better equip them with the universal language.

Included as ben-eficiaries are partici-pant-engineers from the local government units of Aklan, Davao del Norte, Lanao del Norte, Agusan del Sur, Bukid-non, Guimaras, Bohol, Misamis Oriental and Surigao del Norte, as well as representatives from the Department of Interior and Local Government and the Department of Educa-tion (Physical Facilities Division).

The program, fund-ed by Australian Aid through the Philippine Australia Human Re-source and Organiza-tional Development Facility (PAHRODF) is also a result of UM and UoN’s collaboration in 2007 that established mutual benefits for both institutions.

“Our partnership with Australia Aid, the Philippine Australia Human Resource and Organizational Devel-opment Facility, and the University of Newcastle has been very fruitful all these years. It did not only establish good re-lationship, but helped us with developing our competency as a higher education institution,” said Maria Julieta R. Torres, vice president for institutional affairs.

Also present at the program titled In-House Project Management Course held at the Uni-veristy of Mindanao Matina campus were AVP Reynaldo Castro, Dr. Charlie Canasares, dean of the College of Engineering Education, Dr. Khristine Marie Con-cepcion, dean of the Col-lege of Arts and Scienc-es Education, Dr. Cesar Sanin of the University of Newcastle, and Mi-lalin Javellan, facility di-rector of PAHRODF, and Mark Flores, assistant facility director.

A review of the tech-nical sessions is slated in March.

The program also enables successful participants to obtain course credits should they decide to pursue their Master’s degree related to engineering at either reputable in-stitution.

UM, Australian school providetech trainings to LGU engineers


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VOL. 6 ISSUE 226 • FRIDAY-SATURDAY, JAN. 31- FEB. 1, 2014 CLASSIFIEDS13

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VOL. 6 ISSUE 226 • FRIDAY-SATURDAY, JAN. 31- FEB. 1, 201414 EDGEDAVAOSPORTS

DENNIS Orcollo has won yet another prestigious title by

sweeping away the chal-lenge of another Pinoy leg-end, according to leading Pool site azbilliards.com.

On Tuesday Orcollo topped Francisco Busta-mante in the final of the Bank Pool division of the Derby City Classic in the Horseshoe Southern Indi-ana Hotel and Casino, USA, winning 3 racks to 1.

The victory earns the 2013 SEA Games gold med-alist a US$10,000 prize and puts him in a good position to claim the Derby City Clas-sic Master of the Table plum as well, worth an additional US$25,000. The Master of

the Table award goes to the player who does best in all of the disciplines on offer.

The DCC is an annual multi-discipline Pool fes-tival with competitions in 9-Ball, Bank Pool, and One-Pocket featuring the finest players in the world. There are also side events like the Diamond Bigfoot 10-Ball Challenge played on an oversize ten-foot table and a Straight Pool (14.1 Continuous) event.

True to Derby City Clas-sic tradition, the tourna-ments are set up like Poker tournaments, with an en-try fee of US$110 and one “buy-back” (re-buy) option of US$50.

Incredibly, out of a field

of 361 runners, Orcollo was the very last to use his buy-back after falling to Bustamante in his penulti-mate match. After Django defeated Earl Strickland in the next match, a finals en-counter between the two Pinoys was set.

ALSO READ: Federer to join Wawrinka in Davis Cup.

Bank Pool, also known as 9 Ball Banks, uses a stan-dard 9-ball rack, but the object of the game is, as the name suggests, to bank balls in instead of shooting them directly. Unlike 9 Ball, the balls can go in any or-der. Due to the sometimes very defensive nature of the game, the races are short.

Orcollo won the first two racks with inspired shooting. But Bustamante pulled back rack three to make it 2-1.

In a tense rack four Orcollo raced through four balls but narrowly missed a pivotal, potential-ly title-winning fifth, which caused him to slump in his chair in disgust.

Bustamante leapt at the opportunity, dazzling the crowd in the Accu-Stats arena with a breathtaking four-ball run of his own. But just like Dennis, Bustaman-te was unable to bank in the fifth ball. Orcollo got back to the table and buried the winning ball, causing him to leap for joy.

THE Ateneo de Ma-nila University men’s basketball team is

arriving in Davao City on February 22 and 23 for a series of exhibition games against the selected teams from Davao and General Santos City.

This was bared by Noli Ayo, new sports director of Ateneo de Davao Universi-ty.

The first exhibition game is set at 9:30 a.m. while the second match is at 3:30 p.m. both on Feb. 22. The Blue Eagles will

also conduct a free basket-ball clinic to some 150 kids from the different baran-gays on Feb. 23 at 8 a.m.

“The tentative venue is the Almendras gym,” said Ayo.

The Blue Eagles will also pay a courtesy call to Mayor Rody Duterte on Feb. 22.

Meanwhile, two Ameri-can coaches Mark Fleming and Richard Berry are also arriving here to conduct a coaching clinic at Ateneo Matina campus on January 31.

THE Philippine Rug-by Football Union (PRFU) will be stag-

ing two tournaments for the youth as part of its grassroots development program in the country.

“We want to discover and develop players for the national youth team,” said Ada Milby, PRFU Director for Community and Devel-opment in an interview during a recent visit to Davao City.

Milby, also team cap-tain of the PH national women’s team for two years now, made a two-day visit here to help promote the sports. Milby, elder sister of actor-singer Sam, was toured to the different schools, foundations and the SOS Children’s Village by PRFU development offi-cers Rose Mae Lanticse and Blessie Kate delos Santos.

Lanticse, also of the Davao Durians rugby foot-ball team said that they will submit their project de-

signs the city sports office next week for this year’s Araw ng Dabaw and Ka-dayawan Festival slated in March and August, respec-tively.

The Davao Durians, however, is still looking for its own permanent playing field in the city. But the Du-rians were still able to send a young team in last year’s Batang Pinoy (15 Under) Games held in Pampanga which even won the silver medal.

The 30-year old Milby, who also paid a courtesy call to City Mayor Rody Duterte last Thursday, said that she will be back here for the two local events.

Milby, whose mother hails from Surigao del Sur, started playing rugby foot-ball when she took Busi-ness Administration at the Wright State University in Ohio, USA. She then joined the US Army for nine years and was even assigned in Iraq.

Orcollo tops Django in Derby City Classic

Rugby events slated in Davao

ADMU Blue Eagles to play in Davao

ORCOLLO. Another title in the US.

HELTER SKELTER. Cris Ross (left photo) goes up against JR Quinahan and Jeron Teng. At right, Cris Tiu is down on the floor aiwht Ross during the PBA semifinals series between Rain or Shine and Petron. Nuki Sabio.

INdulge! VOL. 6 ISSUE 226 • FRIDAY-SATURDAY, JAN. 31- FEB. 1, 2014

EDGEDAVAOTRAVEL

THERE ARE many old ruined structures in the Philippines with some dating back to the time of the Spanish conquests, but none have as colourful a story as The Ruins of Talisay, Negros Occidental.

A short drive from Bacolod City and in the middle of a vast sugar cane plantation, The Ruins is a 1920’s mansion built by Mariano Lacson as a mon-ument for his Macanese wife Maria Braga whom he met during one of his vis-its to Hong Kong whom, sadly, passed away due to an accident while bearing their 11th child. With influences from Maria’s Portuguese father who was a ship captain, various European influ-ences were introduced to the mansion, from the Ital-ianate design and layout to the shells details on the roof. I am honestly amazed at the details as well as the quality of the house’s fin-ish. The walls are made of high-quality concrete with

Romancing The Ruins

a smooth finished achieved by adding egg whites to the surface. The floors of the house used imported Spanish tiles as well as me-ter-wide and 20 meter-long hardwood planks. Unfortunately, as World War II came, the house was set ablaze by the United States Armed Forces in the Far East to ensure that ap-proaching Japanese forces will not be able to utilise

the mansion as their head-quarters. This incident left nothing of the original mansion except its con-crete walls that still bear the initials of Mariano and Maria. Mariano Lacson’s man-sion remind in a state of disrepair until January of 2008, when his great grandson, Raymund Javel-lana decided to open The Ruins for the public to ad-mire and enjoy. The walls made from love now play as witness to many wed-dings and happy occasions that happen at The Ruin’s

open lawns. Touching the walls and pillars of The Ruins today and learning about the love story behind it’s origins, I could say that it deserves to be one of the more fas-cinating ruins of the world. Many thanks to Cebu Pacific and DOT Region VI for hosting me and giving me the opportunity to see the Taj Mahal of the Philip-pines up close and personal. Follow me on Instagram or on Twitter @kenneth-kingong for more travel and foodie finds as well as hap-penings in, around and be-yond Durianburg.

The Ruins

The house’s side entrance and main staircase with the initials of Mariano Lacson and Maria Braga located on the side pillars of the arched doorway.

Imported Spanish tiles adorn the floors of the house’s portico.

Roger, The Ruins’ tour guide is an attraction himself, injecting humour while telling the sturcture’s history.

One of the many details in the garden.

The garden also features a classic fountain as well as an overgrown chimney with trees growing on the top.

EVERYTHING for the luck seekers are at SM City Davao this Chinese New. There’s a world of good karma at SM as we bid farewell to the year of the Water Snake and welcome the coming of the Green Wooden Horse from January 20 to February 2. Fortune ForecastFor a long time, there has been a special relationship between humans and the 12 zodiacal animals. It is be-lieved that the years repre-sented by the animals affect the characters of people in the same manner as the sign. Know your Zodiac For-tune this year. Check out the Fortune Forecast at the 2nd Floor of the main mall from January 17 to February 2.

Chinese PerformancesMarvel at the colors and motions of Chinese fan and umbrella dances. Experi-ence traditional performing arts live at the Event Cen-ter, the Annex on January

31. On February 1, learn the Chinese martial arts Wushu and discover the discipline of forms and sparring. Plus, catch the Dragon and Lion dancers as they spread pros-perity at the mall on January 31, 10 AM.

Feng ShuiThe Chinese philosophical system, Feng Shui, harmo-nizes human existence with the surrounding environ-ment. Learn and under-stand the environmental

elements and discover how to focus energy to your ad-vantage with Feng Shui ex-pert Richard Yu at the Annex Event Center. Free lectures will be conducted on Janu-ary 31 (4PM to 8PM) and on February 1 (10AM-12NN, 2PM-4PM). Consultation will be on February 1 (5PM-9PM).

Prosperity Garden and Street FestivalExperience a sphere of tran-quillity and good fortune at

the Prosperity Garden locat-ed at the Event Center of the Annex Building. Enjoy the sights, sounds and flavors of the Chinese Street Fest on January 30 to February 2. Celebrate the Chinese New Year with good karma and great fortune! Visit SM City Davao this Chinese New Year. For inquiries, call 297.6998. Like SM City Davao on Face-book or follow @smcitydavao on Twitter for event and pro-mo updates.

ABS-CBN Publishing, Inc. sets the stage for two of today’s youngest breakout stars during this month of hearts, as fashion lifestyle authority Metro magazine’s biggest trends issue features Julia Barretto and Chalk’s Valentines special features Liza Soberano. In Metro this month, teen royalty Julia, who is set to star in her first primetime series, “Mira/Bella,” is put under a different sort of spotlight—revealing how she goes be-yond her name and comes into her own in a shoot and story that details the fierce and stylish young celebrity she is with hints at who she is bound to become. Metro also features the biggest trends for Spring/Summer 2014 in its February issue, recognizing the dawn of a new season--with new collec-tions, new trends, and a new attitude to go along with it all. The February issue of Chalk shows the newest cover girl Liza all dolled up in her date-ready ensembles. She walks the

magazine’s readers through her bright start in show busi-ness. Get smitten by Liza’s undeniably au naturel sweetness and charm in an exclusive story that shows why what awaits her is some-thing that everyone should watch out for. Chalk’s February issue also goes into

ways to get that perfect “love glow,” with tips on how to put everything together in the best way to create an affair to remember. Get the lowdown on date-worthy ensembles—plus dating tips and fool-proof recipes perfect for two. Grab a copy of ABS-CBN Publishing, Inc.’s titles Metro and Chalk this February at newsstands and bookstores nation-wide. Metro is available on the iTunes App Store and Android Play Store. For updates, follow @MetroMagPH on Twitter and Instagram and like Metro on Facebook (www.facebook.com/Metro.Magazine). Chalk is also available on the iTunes App Store. For updates, follow @chalkmagazine on Twitter and Instagram and like Chalk on Facebook (www.facebook.com/chalkmagazine).

A2 INdulge!

Breakout stars featured in Metro and Chalk this

February

UP AND ABOUT

VOL. 6 ISSUE 226 • FRIDAY-SATURDAY, JAN. 31- FEB. 1, 2014EDGEDAVAO

DIP AND DINE AT THE MARCO POLO DAVAO’S POOL DECK. Dip your toes, lounge around or swim to your heart’s content at our stunning pool and relish Polo Bistro’s sumptuous appetizers, entrees, pizza, pasta, sandwiches and refreshing drinks. With a minimum food purchase of Php500 per person at the Polo Bistro or the Pool Lounge, you are entitled to our swimming pool privileges. Experience indulgence at our modern paradise-- The Deck, 4th level, Marco Polo Davao. For reservations and inquiries, call (082) 221 0888 local 7955.

SM City Davao welcomes the Green Wooden Horse

Local Developer tries breaking into the Philippine Gaming Market with Manila Rush

Local video game devel-oper Anino Games tries its hand at the local market with the release of Manila Rush, an app that lets you run through the streets of Manila, while avoiding cars and buses, swerving jeepneys and lane-cutting taxis. The app looks like a cartoonish rendition of EDSA, complete with road repairs and blockages, colorful motels and even an MRT running at the side. It is the first indepen-dently published game by the home grown develop-er since their debut game in 2003 with ANITO: De-fend a Land Enraged. “For the past 10 years, we’ve been doing games for others. Now we would like to go back to our roots as an independent devel-oper.” says Niel Dagondon, CEO of Anino Games. Since 2003, Anino has supplied games to various game publishers around the world such as Electron-ic Arts, Namco, Game-house and Big Fish Games, with hits such as Cake Ma-nia 4, Littlest Pet Shop and

Turbo Subs among others. “What we’ve noted among many interna-tionally popular games is the large community of Filipino gamers. In many English language games, we are usually ranked 4th or 5th in terms of popula-tion of gamers. However, the very low percentage of Philippine gamers will-ing or even able to pay for an app means that it is not a sustainable business model for anyone wish-ing to make games purely for the Philippine gam-ing community,” says Mr. Dagondon. For Manila Rush, Anino Games part-

nered Globe Labs, the de-velopment portal of Globe Telecom, in order to use operator billing for the purchase of in-game items. It is the first mobile game to use this form of pay-ment method. Mr. Dagon-don adds, “We are trying to crack the local market by offering them alternate ways to purchase items, such as through their pre-paid credits or postpaid bill. We are also appeal-ing to the inherently social nature of Filipinos so that they share this fun little game with their friends. Our goal with this game is not really to strike it

rich (just yet), but to prove that there is a vibrant local gaming community will-ing to support locally de-veloped games. Should we get our target number of downloads, then we will be confident enough to con-tinue improving the game and adding more content, and develop other locally themed games.” Sabong anyone? Manila Rush is now available for FREE for An-droid phones on Google play: http://taps.io/ma-nilarush-android-p. An iOS version is scheduled for release by mid-Febru-ary.

GMA Network, through its regional arm GMA Regional TV, kicked off the year in an energetic beat with its participation in three of the grandest and merri-est festivals in the Visayas region—the Ati-Atihan in Aklan, Sinulog in Cebu, and Dinagyang in Iloilo—all cel-ebrated in reverence to the Holy Child Jesus. Present to add vibrance to these festivities were the brightest stars from GMA’s new drama offeringsThe Borrowed Wife, Paraiso Ko’y Ikaw, Rhodora X, and Car-mela: Ang Pinakamagan-dang Babae sa Mundong Ibabaw – with Kapuso Pri-metime King Dingdong Dantes leading the Kapuso contingent in both the Ati-Atihan and Dinagyang, and Kapuso Primetime Queen Marian Rivera, no less, for Sinulog. With GMA Network being the strategic media partner, this year’s Ati-Atihan Festi-val, dubbed as the “Mother of all Philippine Festivals,” featured electrifying per-formances from Dingdong together with Rhodora X’s Jennylyn Mercado, Mark Herras, Yasmien Kurdi, and Mark Anthony Fernandez during a Kapuso Night held at the jam-packed Pastrana Park last January 14. The show left around 15,000 supporters in awe of the Kapuso stars’ heartwarming performances. Of the many times he’s been to Aklan, Dingdong opened up on why he really looked forward to joining this year’s Ati-Atihan: “Iba ngayon kasi I’m here for the Ati-Atihan Festival, which I think is the best reason to be here. It’s something dif-ferent for me kasi alam ko na sa kabila ng mga nang-yari (natural calamities), we also have to celebrate life. And itong Ati-Atihan Festi-val na ito is one of the ways kung paano natin maipa-pakita ‘yung uniqueness ng province. That’s why I am grateful na nakasama ako dito.” The Kapuso Night was followed by the Pagdayaw kay Señor Sto. Niño “Sinaot sa Calle” Float Parade on January 15 featuring Ka-puso stars Isabelle Daza, Thea Tolentino, and Andrea Torres who were escorted by the Lakan It Kalibo 2014 winners. Joining them were Jeric Gonzales, JC Tiuseco, and Pancho Magno, who, in turn, ushered the Mutya It Kalibo winners during said

parade. At 7pm of the same day, a sizzling Kapuso Hala Bira Dance Showdown ensued at Magsaysay Park with Ju-lian Trono as guest judge. And on January 19, the Net-work aired the live cover-age of the pilgrims’ mass at the Kalibo Cathedral titled “Señor Santo Niño de Ka-libo Pilgrims’ Mass” in GMA Regional TV Stations with a live streaming via GMA News Online. Meanwhile in the Queen City of the South, it was an equally exceptional batch of Kapuso stars who joined Sinulog—Cebu’s annual festivity that celebrates the conversion of early Cebua-nos to Catholicism. Successful back-to-back Kapuso Mall Shows took place on January 17 featur-ing the lovely pair of Krist-offer Martin and Kim Rodri-guez from Paraiso Ko’y Ikaw and The Borrowed Wife’s Pauleen Luna, TJ Trinidad, Rafael Rosell, and Camille Prats at the Gaisano Grand Fiesta Mall Tabunok and at The Terraces of Ayala Cen-ter. On January 18, GMA’s primetime queen Marian Rivera fulfilled her prom-ise to the Cebuanos when she came back to celebrate with them once more in an-other back-to-back Kapuso Mall Show together with her Carmela: Ang Pinaka-magandang Babae sa Mun-dong Ibabaw leading man Alden. Joining them were Jennylyn, Mark, Yasmien, and Mark Anthony in both SM City Cebu and Gaisano Island Mall Mactan shows. Not to be outdone was

the Network’s participation in the recently-concluded Dinagyang Festival in Iloilo where thousands of raving fans welcomed Jennylyn, Mark, and Yasmien together with Camille, TJ, and Rafael, and Primetime King Ding-dong Dantes once more. Jen, whose roots trace from Cebu and Leyte, was thrilled to celebrate the Di-nagyang where a packed Robinson’s Iloilo greeted her and co-stars Mark and Yasmien on January 24. It all felt like a reunion a decade after all three won the maid-en season of GMA’s biggest reality star-search competi-tion then, StarStruck. On January 25, Camille, TJ, and Rafael joined the vi-brant Kasadyahan parade of the Ilonggos. As they toured the major streets of the city, the stars enjoyed mingling with their fans, shaking their hands, taking photos and selfies with them, with Ca-mille and Rafael even danc-ing Aling Maliit Ryzza Mae Dizon’s “Cha-Cha” for their fans. The annual Ati Tribe Com-petition, the biggest con-test of the festival, came the next day, with Adarna lead actor Geoff Eigenmann and actress-host Isabelle Daza hosting the affair. Highlights of these fun and exciting scenes in the Networks’ participation in the Sinulog and Dinagyang Festivals will be seen in Let’s Fiesta TV Special, which airs on February 2, and Febru-ary 9 respectively, via the Network’s regional stations in Bicol, Cebu, Davao, Iloilo, Dagupan, Ilocos, GenSan, Bacolod, and CDO.

INdulge! A3

Kapuso stars pay homage to Sto. NiñoCelebrate Ati-Atihan, Sinulog, and Dinagyang festivals

ENTERTAINMENT

VOL. 6 ISSUE 226 • FRIDAY-SATURDAY, JAN. 31- FEB. 1, 2014EDGEDAVAO

PG 13

R 13

R 13/

*PG 13

R 13 12:00 | 2:00 | 4:00 | 6:00 | 8:00 | 10:00 LFS

R-16PARANORMAL ACTIVITY:

THE MARKED ONE 2D /

* I, FRANKENSTEIN 2D

12:00 | 1:35 | 3:10 LFS / * 4:45 | 6:30 | 8:15 | 10:00 LFS

SA NGALAN NG AMA,

INA AT MGA ANAK 2D

12:25 | 2:20 | 4:15 | 6:10 | 8:05 | 10:00 LFS

THAT AWKWARD MOMENT 2D

Andrew Jacobs / *Aaron Eckhart

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

BRIDE FOR RENT 2D

Kim Chiu, Xian Lim

Robin Padilla, Daniel Padilla

Zac Efron, Miles Teller, Michael B. Jordan

THE PHILIPPINES’ leading low-cost carrier, Cebu Pa-cific (PSE:CEB) launched di-rect flights between Davao and Bacolod today, January 25, 2014, linking Bacolod to another key Mindanao destination. CEB launched direct flights from Bacolod to Cagayan de Oro last Oc-tober 2012. Utilizing an Airbus A320 aircraft, the flight departed Davao at 7:25am and arrived in Bacolod at 8:35am. The return flight departed Ba-colod at 9:15am and arrived in Davao at 10:25am. The thrice weekly service boosts CEB’s Davao and Bacolod operations. From Davao, CEB now flies to eight destinations: Manila, Cebu, Iloilo, Bacolod, Cagay-an de Oro, Zamboanga, Di-polog and Puerto Princesa. Meanwhile, from Bacolod, CEB operates flights to Ma-nila, Cebu, Cagayan de Oro and Davao. The lowest year-round fare for the Davao-Bacolod route is PHP1,288. CEB VP for Corporate Af-fairs Jorenz Tanada said during the maiden flight launch, “Inter-island routes can now take everyJuan to their destinations quicker, more often, on the lowest fare available. EveryJuan can now go home for the week-end or bring their families on vacation somewhere new. Business meetings can be done in one day, even if the appointment is miles away.” “We hope that with our expansion, more travelers of varied economic back-grounds will find the Philip-pines accessible, and with a vibrant tourism sector. It has been our long-time com-mitment to be a partner in nation-building by boost-ing tourism and trade in the destinations we fly to,” he added. For bookings and in-quiries, guests can go to HYPERLINK “http://www.cebupacificair.com” www.cebupacificair.com, or call the reservation hotlines (02)7020-888 or (032)230-8888. The latest seat sales can also be found on CEB’s official HYPERLINK “http://www.twitter.com/cebupa-cificair” Twitter (@CebuPa-cificAir) and HYPERLINK “ht tp://w w w.facebook.com/cebupacificair” Face-book pages. Those still booking flights may also sign up to be a CEB Club member through the Cebu Pacific website, for seat sale alerts, easy man-

agement of flights and trav-el funds, and a faster book-ing process. CEB’s 48-strong fleet is comprised of 10 Airbus A319, 28 Airbus A320, 2 Air-bus A330 and 8 ATR-72 500 aircraft. It is one of the most modern aircraft fleets in the world. Between 2013 and 2021, Cebu Pacific will take delivery of 14 more brand-new Airbus A320, 30 Airbus A321neo, and 4 Airbus A330 aircraft.

A4 INdulge! VOL. 6 ISSUE 226 • FRIDAY-SATURDAY, JAN. 31- FEB. 1, 2014EDGEDAVAOEVENT

CEB launches direct flights between Davao and Bacolod

A ribbon-cutting ceremony kicks off Cebu Pacific’s maiden Davao-Bacolod flight. (L-R) CEB cabin crew, CAAP Davao Area Manager Agnes Udang, Department of Tourism ASec Art Boncato, CEB VP for Corporate Affairs Jorenz Tanada and Hon. Al Alejandre, Davao City Chairman of Committee on Tourism.

The Big Davao Fun Sale, of which CEB is the airline partner, promotes Davao as a fun, shopping destination. Visit Davao during the Big Davao Fun Sale this summer for up to 80% in shopping discounts! For more information, visit the Big Davao Fun Sale Facebook page.

VOL. 6 ISSUE 226 • FRIDAY-SATURDAY, JAN. 31- FEB. 1, 2014 15SPORTSEDGEDAVAO

SAN ANTONIO (AP) -- The Chicago Bulls took advan-

tage of the injury-riddled San Antonio Spurs on Wednesday night.

‘’It was huge,’’ Butler said. ‘’It’s big to come in here and get a win on the road.’’

Tony Parker had 20 points and Tim Duncan had 17 points and 12 re-bounds for San Antonio, which hadn’t lost back-to-back games until this current skid.

The Spurs were with-out Manu Ginobili, Kawhi Leonard, Danny Green and Tiago Splitter, who were all out due to inju-ries.

Ginobili joined San Antonio’s growing in-jury list Tuesday night, straining his left ham-string against Houston after throwing down a one-handed dunk.

‘’I don’t care, that’s just an excuse,’’ Popovich said. ‘’Everybody tried as hard as they could. I don’t know how to mea-sure fatigue. Just go play. We try to watch people’s minutes and that kind of thing.

‘’It doesn’t matter who’s hurt, or what your schedule is, or anything like that. You go play. No-body cares. All that mat-ters is the win or the loss. We lost or defensive con-sistency and they went up.’’

The Bulls can certain-ly relate after losing All-Star point guard Derrick Rose to a season-ending knee injury.

The Bulls have at-tempted to step up col-lectively since the injury and that depth led them to their 10th road victory of the season.

Chicago had seven players score in double figures, with D.J. Augustin and Taj Gibson adding 15 points each and Joakim Noah had 10 points and 10 rebounds.

‘’We have a roster full of NBA players just like everybody else,’’ But-ler said. ‘’A lot of peo-ple sleep on us, but we have a really talented group of guys that do so many things well. When we play together and just as hard as we can, I think we can win a lot of games.’’

With four players missing from their main rotation, the Spurs turned to their depth with less effectiveness.

Nando De Colo and newly signed Othyus Jef-fers, who both played in the D League, both start-ed for the first time this season. Jeffers brought hustle and De Colo an-other distributor, but neither brought much offense. Jeffers failed to score, going 0 for 1 from the field, and De Colo had eight points.

MIAMI (AP) — Down by 18 points midway

through the opening quarter, Kevin Durant and the Oklahoma City Thun-der looked well on their way to witnessing a rout.

That’s exactly what happened.

And they enjoyed ev-ery moment.

Durant remained sizzling with 33 points, Serge Ibaka added 22 and the Thunder roared back from an abysmal start — they trailed 22-4 early — to embarrass the Miami Heat 112-95 on Wednes-day night, erasing that big deficit out of the gate by outscoring the two-time defending champions by 43 points over a 33-min-ute span.

“They were ready for us to come in and play,” Durant said. “They hit some tough shots ear-

ly on, a few 3’s, and we didn’t panic. We just tried to stay together and that’s what we did. Our bench was great in getting us back in that game.”

The Thunder led by as many as 25, and shot 16 for 27 from 3-point range. Miami was 3 for 19 from beyond the arc.

Durant has now scored at least 30 points in 12 straight games, matching the league’s longest such streak since Tracy McGrady did it in 14 consecutive outings in the 2002-03 season. The Thunder extended their winning streak to nine, inching them closer to Indiana in the race for the league’s best record. And the Oklahoma City bench outscored Miami’s reserves 39-21, with Jer-emy Lamb scoring 18 and Derek Fisher going 5 for 5 from 3-point range for his

15 points.“There’s no running

away from it,” Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said. “Oth-er than the first eight minutes of the game they outclassed us tonight. They absolutely deserved this win.”

LeBron James scored 34 points for Miami, his 1-on-1 duel with Durant not really amounting to much on a night where the Heat allowed 25 points off turnovers and blew an 18-point lead for just the fourth time since he, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh became teammates nearly four years ago.

Bosh scored 18 points and Wade added 15 for Miami.

“We played well to start the game,” James said. “We played well all the way until like the sec-ond quarter. From that point on they did what

they want to do.”Much of the buzz going

into the night was about the MVP race, and how this might be the season that Durant finally catch-es James for the league’s top individual award.

Head-to-head, they weren’t separated by much. But for just the fourth time in 17 meet-ings between their teams, Durant came out on top.

“It would have been fun to clear the court and watch them go 1-on-1,” Thunder coach Scott Brooks said.

Ibaka opened the scor-ing with a jumper, and the Heat answered with an immediate 18-0 run, not even needing 5 minutes to get what appeared to be complete control. With 6:20 left in the opening quarter, Bosh made a pair of free throws to make it 22-4.

WHO’S BEST?Thunder tells Heat who the better team is

Bulls top Spurs

OUT OF MY WAY. Oklahoma City Thunder small forward Kevin Durant (35) drives as Miami Heat small forward LeBron James (6) defends during the second period of an NBA basketball game in Miami, Wednesday, Jan. 29, 2014

CHICAGO BULLS. forward Carlos Boozer looks for a teammate.

VOL. 6 ISSUE 226 • FRIDAY-SATURDAY, JAN. 31- FEB. 1, 201416 EDGEDAVAOSportsEDGEDavao Davao Partners

THE first ever Davao X Trail Triathlon unfurl on February 2 at the

Paradise Island Park and Beach Resort in Barangay Caliclic in the Island Garden City of Samal.

The event is a one-kilo-meter swim, 25-kilometer mountain bike and 7-kilo-meter run race.

“We are inviting every-one to witness this event. It

promises to be very excit-ing,” said race director Alex Sam of The Lead Pack in yesterday’s DSA Forum at the NCCC B3.

Sam was joined by Para-dise Island Park and Beach Resort assistant manager Jun Diamante.

“It’s an experimental race and if it’s going to be successful we are going to do another one late this

year,” said Sam who re-vealed that the triathlon community of Davao is an-ticipating the staging of the X-Terra Challenge in Davao City or Island Garden City of Samal.

“Di pa tayo nagqualify sa standards nila but we are hopeful that we will be giv-en a chance,” Sam added.

The XTrail Triathlon features age categories for

both male and female in the 16-20, 21-30, 31-40, 41-50 and above. Finishers will receive a personalized ID bracelet, race bib, singlet and race day meal. Regis-tration fee is P2,500. Reg-istration center is at Sports Depot in Victoria Plaza.

Participants will be us-ing mountain bikes instead of road bikes and will be running a challenging trail.

Davao X Trail Triathlon on Sunday

THAT’S MY HEAD. Ryan Arana and Jeron Teng of Rain or Shine dispiute ball against Cris Ross of Petron Blaze in their PBA semifinals series. The Painters now lead the series 2-0. Nuki Sabio

DSA FORUM. Alex Sam (center) of Lead Pack, Joe Diamante (right) of Paradise Island Beach Resort and George Misa (left) of the Davao Horse Club grace yesterday’s Davao Sportswriters Association Forum at the NCCC Mall’s B3. Lean Daval Jr.

BILLS have been filed to naturalize NBA players JaVale McGee

and Andray Blatche to be-come eligible for inclusion into the Philippine national men’s basketball pool.

Gilas Pilipinas coach

Chot Reyes confirmed the development to News5 on Thursday, shortly before making a presentation be-fore the PBA Board of Gov-ernors.

House Bill 3784 will take care of giving citi-

zenship for McGee, while House Bill 3783 will do the same for Blatche. Both bills were filed by Antipolo City representative Robbie Puno.

This isn’t the first time a bill has been filed for Mc-

Gee’s naturalization. In May 2012, Puno filed a similar bill in the previous Con-gress.

“Would love to repre-sent the Philippines if given the chance,” McGee wrote on Twitter in January 2012.

Javale McGee naturalization bill filed

edge davao 6 issue 226

Documents

mayor of davao city

davao mayor rodrigo

sprawling davao

davao city water district

sessions na

baka nakalimutan niya

nakalimutan niya na

small city com