edge davao 9 issue 51
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Edge Davao 9 Issue 51, May 11, 2016TRANSCRIPT
P 15.00 • 20 PAGESwww.edgedavao.netVOL. 9 ISSUE 51 • WEDNESDAY, MAY 11, 2016
EDGE Serving a seamless society
DAVAO
READY FOR TURNOVERMalacanang to coordinate with Duterte transition team
By NEILWIN JOSEPH L. BRAVO
AFTER building an insurmountable lead in the presidential polls,
Mayor Rodrigo Duterte’s camp is now preparing a transition team for a smooth turnover of power and coordination wih Malacanang.
Although Mayor Duterte is yet to be formally declared winner, his spokesman Pete Lavina said they will be
forming a team composed of four groups—transition, selection, policy and inaugural.
The teams will be formed officially once the Commission on Elections (Comelec) declare Duterte as the country’s 16th President.
“Malacanang has already announced thhat they will coordinate with us and so we need to form the transition
team to prepare for the smooth turnover,” Lavina said in a press conference yesterday afternoon at the Duterte Team Media Center inside The Royal Mandaya Hotel.
As of 12:19 pm yesterday, Duterte has amassed 15,311,279 votes or 38.7 percent. Administration bet Mar Roxas is a distant second with 9,229,131 and Sen. Grace
Poe, who has conceded, is third with 8,572,383, Vice President Jejomar Binay is at fourth with 5,0766,972, and Sen. Miriam Defensor-Santiago is fifth with 1,368,116.
Roxas has also conceded around 1:00 p.m. yesterday.
The total votes counted comprise 91.09 percent of the total votes cast.
HELP ME MA. President-in-waiting Mayor Rodrigo Duterte weeps
unabashedly before the tomb of his mother--his final stop to what could be the longest day of his life--in the
wee hours of Tuesday hours after he surged ahead beyond reach of his rivals in the presidential race.
Duterte asked for his mother’s help as he embarks on his next political
assignment of steering the country as its 16th President. (Kiwi Bulaclac)
F READY, 10 INdulge! A1
VOL. 9 ISSUE 51 • WEDNESDAY, MAY 11, 20162 EDGEDAVAO
NEWS
LIKE her running mate presidential candidate Senator Grace Poe,
Senator Francis ‘Chiz’ Escudero has conceded defeat in the presidential race.
Escudero made his announcement in his home province in Sorsogon on Tuesday morning, eight hours after Poe conceded to frontrunner Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte.
”Tinatanggap ko ng buong pagpapakumbaba ang resulta ng halalan. Naging malaking karangalan
sa akin na makatrabaho lahat ng nakatrabaho at nakasama ko nitong nakaraang buwan kaugnay ng halalan na ito,” Escudero told the media interview.
With Escudero 4,562,806 votes, Escudero is currently in fourth place behind fellow candidate from Bicol congresswoman Leni Robredo (13,251,341), Senator Ferdinand Marcos Jr. (13,124.911), and Senator Alan Cayetano (5,421,493 votes).
Escudero congratulated
Rank Names No. of votes
Mayor
1 Duterte, Sara 572,083
2 Mantilla, Teodoro 2,004
3 Tocante, Kilat 587
Vice Mayor
Duterte, Paolo 518,237
Names No. of votes
First District
Karlo Alexei Nograles 198,304
Second District
Mylene Garcia 148,509
Third District
Alberto Ungab 114,389
Names No. of votes
First District
Karlo Alexei Nograles 198,304
Second District
Mylene Garcia 148,509
Third District
Alberto Ungab 114,389
Partial and unofficial result of the Commission on Elections (Comelec) for the positions of Mayor and
Vice Mayor as of 10:40 a.m. yesterday.
Winners of of Congressional race in the three congressional districts of Davao City
Winners of Davao City Councilors’ race who were proclaimed yesterday by the City Board of Canvassers
yesterday at 2:30 p.m.
First District Councilors
Rank Names No. of votes
1 Acosta 154, 648
2 Quitain Jr. 146, 784
3 Ibuyan Jr. 143, 883
4 Librado 139,078
5 Militar 127,351
6 Abellera Jr. 126, 918
7 Bonguyan 117, 782
8 Braga 107,082
Second District Councilors
Rank Names No. of votes
1 Salvador-Abella 122,331
2 Bonguyan 118,248
3 Alejandre 117,112
4 Dayanghirang 115,060
5 Apostol 112,459
6 Dayap 126, 918
7 Dureza 105,578
8 Mahipus 104,413
Third District Councilors
Rank Names No. of votes
1 Al-ag 117,119
2 Ortiz 103,423
3 Advincula Jr. 99,437
4 Zozobrado III 98,896
5 Principe-Castrodes 97,358
6 Dilig-Villafuerte 95, 567
7 Baluran 89,057
8 Lopez 88,463
Winners of Davao City Councilors’ race who were proclaimed yesterday by the City Board of Canvassers
yesterday at 2:30 p.m.
ON THE BIG SCREEN. Dabawenyos watch a huge LCD screen in San Pedro square on Monday showing where Davao City Mayor Rodrigo R. Duterte being interviewed. Lean Daval Jr.
*from Commission on Elections (Comelec) Davao City Board of Canvassers
MILITANT party-list Bayan Muna c o n g ra t u l a t e d
president-elect Mayor Rodrigo Duterte on his overwhelming victory in Monday’s elections.
In a statement, Bayan Muna representative Carlos Isagani Zarate said the Filipino people have “loudly and vigorously spoken – sweeping change must come.”
Zarate said Duterte’s triumph certainly redefined the country’s political landscape.
He said that more importantly Duterte’s victory must be seen as
“an outright repudiation of the Aquino administration and the anti-people and elitist establishment it represents.”
“We are one with the people in hoping that President Duterte upon assuming office will soon address the myriad but basic problems confronting our country, that of mass poverty, landlessness and joblessness, of rampant criminality, corruption and environmental plunder, and of violations of human rights and the country’s sovereignty,” he said.
Zarate said their
group expects Duterte to immediately begin and pursue in earnest the stalled negotiations with the National Democratic Front of the Philippines (NDFP) and the Moro revolutionary forces to address the root causes of war and forge just peace.
“We call on President Duterte to build a government of national unity and social transformation to emancipate the people from mass poverty and social injustices and bring progress to the people,” he said. ARMANDO B. FENEQUITO JR.
THE Commission on Election (Comelec) Davao City Board
of Canvassers officcially proclaimed the city’s three District Representatives and 24 city councilors yesterday after Monday’s polls.
Comelec 11 assistant regional director Marlon Casquejo proclaimed reelectionist Representatives Karlo Norales (District 1) and Mylene Garcia (District 2) and first-termer Alberto Ungab (Dist. 3).
District 1 winner Nograles garnered 198,304 total votes, Garcia won the race in the second district with 148,509 votes, and Ungab, brother of incumbent Congressman Isidro Ungab, won the battle in the third
district obtaining 114,389 total number of votes.
CasquejoThe Comelec also
proclaimed stricct 1 city council members Mabel Acosta got the first place with 154, 648 votes, followed by
J. Melchor Quitain Jr. with 146, 784, Edgar Ibuyan Jr.with 143, 883, Leah Librado ,139,078, Bonifacio Militar 127,351, Nilo Abellera Jr. 126, 918, Joanne Bonguyan 117, 782 and Pilar Braga 107,082
For second district councilors, Marissa Salvador-Abella got the first place garnering 122,331 total of votes, followed by Cherry Bonguyan with118,248, Al Ryan Alejandre 117,112, Danilo
Dayanghirang 115,060, Dante Apostol 112,459, April Marie Dayap 108,539, Jimmy Dureza 105,578 and Diosdado Mahipus 104,413.
For third district, Bernard Al-ag got the top spot with 117,119 total number of votes, followed by Avegayle Ortiz with 103,423, Victorio Advincula Jr. 99,437, Jesus Zozobrado III 98,896, Antoinette Principe-Castrodes 97,358, Mary Joselle Dilig-Villafuerte 95, 567, Conde Baluran 89,057 and Rene Lopez 88,463.
Casquejo told reporters after their central office approved their request for the “lowering of threshold” around 10:30 a.m. yesterday.
Casquejo said the board proclaimed the winning councilor and congress
representatives even if they already reached the 99.55 percent of counted votes because there are still two precinct that not counter.
He said there are still results from Pegalongan Elementary School in Marilog District and Los Amigos Elementary School in Tugbok District were not yet counted.
Casquejo said the Board of Election Inspectors (BEI) in Pegalongan had a hard time to transport the vote counting machines (VCM )and other election paraphernalia because it will take long time before reaching the Marilog Proper. He said as of this interview yesterday afternoon, the machines were already delivered going to the Sangguniang Panlungsod.
For Los Amigos, he said the VCMs are already in the canvassing area but the SD (Secure Digital) Card of the machine was defective that is why they need to send it to their reconfiguration center in General Santos City to repair it.
Although the ranking for the positions of Mayor and Vice Mayor will not be affected anymore but their consolidation and canvassing system (CCS) could not print their certificate of canvass if the the total cast votes were not counted by the canvassers.
Casquejo said the canvassing will continue today at 8 a.m. Where the winners for Mayor and Vice Mayor will be proclaimed as well as the national positions who won in the city.
Karlo, Mylene, Abet proclaimedBy ARMANDO B. FENEQUITO JR.
Bayan Muna elated over Duterte winEscudero concedes defeat in VP race
F ESCUDERO, 10
VOL. 9 ISSUE 51 • WEDNESDAY, MAY 11, 2016 3NEWSEDGEDAVAO
By ARMANDO B. FENEQUITO [email protected]
PRESIDENT-IN-WAITING Rodrigo Duterte bared his short list of Cabinet
men late Monday night after the ongoing poll count showed his numbers are way beyond reach.
The Duterte cabinet will look like this: Jesus Dureza as Presidential Adviser on Peace Process, businessman Carlos Dominguez as Finance Secretary and Trasportation and Communications Secretary.
Both Dureza and Dominguez are Duterte’s classmates and once served in previous administrations.
This was bared by Duterte in an ambush interview at The Royal Mandaya Hotel.
Dureza was presidential peace adviser under Presidents Fidel Ramos and Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo. Dominguez was cabinet secretary during the terms of
Presidents Corazon Aquino and Ramos.
Duterte also reiterated his wish to put his runningmate Sen. Alan Peter Cayetano as Secretary for either Foreign Affairs or Justice.
Duterte also hinted his cabinet will have mostly military men.
He said campaign spokesman Pete Lavina will serve as his spokesman in Davao while lawyer Salvador Panelo will be his spokesman in the capital. Campaign manager Leoncio Evasco will not occupy any position but he will be “beside me all the time.”
As for former Philippine Sports Commission chairman Butch Ramirez, Duterte said he will not make any appointments in sports.
“Masyadong magulo pa yan sa sports, I don’t want to touch it at the moment,” Duterte said.
Duterte bares short list of Cabinet [email protected]
By NEILWIN JOSEPH L. BRAVO
THE conduct of Monday’s national and local election was generally
peaceful according to the Commission on Elections (Comelec) 11.
Comelec11 acting regional director Rey Sumalipao told reporters yesterday his office did not receive any reports of election-related violence from the Police Regional Office (PRO) 11.
“Our election was conducted orderly,” he said.
Sumalipao said the only complains that the office received were the Voting Counting Machine (VCM) malfunction in some polling precincts.
He said the VCMs could not work for a long time because
most them suffered overheat.“The contingency VCMs
were fully utilized that in Davao City alone there 27 but all of these were used,” he said.
Sumalipao said their technicians were able to repair the defective VCMs but the voting process were already delayed for long.
“There were glitches but we still addressed it,” he said.
Despite the delay, he still appreciated the patience of the people who are waiting the long cue just to cast their votes.
He said that in every clustered precincts there are maximum of 800 voters which for him, it is so many that could really delay the voting process.
“Maybe, in the next
Comelec 11: Pollsgenerally peaceful
POLL violence resulted to the death of four supporters of local
candidates and the burning of two elementary schools just hours before voting started in Lanao del Sur on Monday.
Col. Roseller Murillo, chief of the Army 103rd Infantry Brigade, said unidentified gunmen ambushed a convoy delivering election paraphernalia to Cabingan Elementary School in Marawi City killing two supporters of the Liberal Party early Monday dawn.
One of the fatalities was identified as Al Hafiz Usman. The other fatality remained unidentified as of press time.
The military report said the two were supporters of Liberal Party Marawi mayoralty
candidate Majul Gandamra who were accompanying the delivery of ballots to the school at 3:45 am Monday. Hours later, supporters of opposing candidates in Marantao town, Lanao del Sur figured in a free-for-all fistfight just as soon the voting centers open at the municipal gym at around 6:45 am. Police investigator SPO2 Ismael Londo said the victims identified as Saidamen Ampay, 40 years old and Malik Ampay, 37 years old (not related) reportedly ganged up on the lone suspect who pulled a gun and shot them. Londo said the Ampays
Four killed in poll violence in Lanao; 2 schools torched
MYLENE PROCLAIMED. Davao City Second District Rep. Mylene Garcia-Albano (center) poses with board of canvassers vice chair City Prosecutor Nestor Ledesma (left) and chair Commission on Elections (Comelec) 11 assistant director Marlon Casquejo during the proclamation rites at Sangguniang Panlungsod yesterday. Lean Daval Jr.
F FOUR, 10
F COMELEC, 10
VOL. 9 ISSUE 51 • WEDNESDAY, MAY 11, 20164
FOR getting an overwhelming lead in the May 9 presidential polls,
PDP-LABAN standard bearer Rodrigo Duterte expressed his gratitude to supporters and campaign volunteers.
“I thank all my supporters, the volunteers - I was so elated with the warm reception I got all over the country, even in Luzon,” he said.
The tough-talking Duterte is poised to win the presidency after Sen. Grace Poe conceded.
Based on the partial, unofficial results from the Parish Pastoral Council for Responsible Voting Tuesday morning, Duterte has netted 14,951,034 votes, or a wide margin of six million votes over his closest rival, Manuel “Mar” Roxas II with 8,964,087 votes.
Placing third is Poe, with 8,386,496 votes, followed by Jejomar Binay with 4,973,770 votes, and Miriam Defensor Santiago with 1,354,891 votes.
The results represent 88.57 percent of the nationwide election returns from the Commission on Elections.
Duterte also called on his rivals to set their disagreements aside and
start working together for the country.
“I would like now reach my hand to my opponents and let us begin the process of healing,” he said.
Although acknowledging that the exchange of innuendos is part of the election process in the Philippines, he admitted that the mudslinging during the campaign period was very intense and virulent.
“Let us begin to forget, and let us be friends,” he said.
When asked if he is also reaching out to vice presidential candidate and Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV, his most ardent critic during the campaign, Duterte said his peace offering is intended for everybody.
Should his rivals refuse his call, Duterte said he cannot do anything about it.
During the past three months, Duterte engaged Roxas and Binay in a fiery verbal clash over issues as they toured the countryside to court votes.
But, it was Duterte himself who absorbed the stinging blows in the final two weeks of the campaign when Trillanes hurled accusations against
NEWS
WITH Rodrigo Duterte still enjoying wide margin in the
presidential race, Senator Antonio Trillanes IV on Tuesday assured the Davao City mayor that she will not be a hindrance to the reforms that Duterte will implement in the next six years.
“I respect the will of the Filipino people. They have spoken clearly and resoundingly hat the want Mayor Duterte to be our next president,” Trillanes said in a press statement.
”I assure the Mayor and our countrymen that will not be a hindrance to the reform initiatives he intends to push in or government,” he added.
Trillanes, however, said: “I will continue with my advocacies as a legislator in our system of checks and balances.”
”May God bless our country,” he added.
Trillanes, one of the leaders of the coup attempts against the administration of former President Gloria
Macapagal Arroyo, made life difficult for Duterte towards the end of the 90-day election campaign.
However, the senator’s expose on the alleged hidden wealth hardly affected the popularity of Duterte who is now enjoying over six-million vote lead over Liberal Party bet Mar Roxas.
Based on the latest partial and unofficial results from the Comelec transparency server, Duterte has already 15,219,591 votes while Roxas is far in the second spot with 9,164,292 votes followed by Senator Grace Poe (8,528,577 votes), Jejomar Binay (5,054,862 votes) and Miriam Defensor Santiago (1,365,625).
Trillanes is in the fifth place of the vice presidential race with 796,436 votes behind Leni Robredo (13,317,564), Bongbong Marcos (13,161,716), Alan Peter Cayetano (5,448,213), Chiz Escudero (4,584,232). Gringo Honasan has 715,722 votes. (PNA)
PDP-LABAN president Sen. Aquilino “Koko” Pimentel III is very
“happy and optimistic” over the results of Monday elections which had their presidential bet Rodrigo Duterte lead by an overwhelming margin.
In the same vein, he also reiterated Duterte’s earlier call for healing.
“We are reaching out to the other parties. We can start collaboration under the new
administration,” Pimentel said.However, the PDP-LABAN
president expressed “extreme disappointment” at the high number of reported vote counting machines (VCMs) that malfunctioned on election day.
“These are supposed to be brand new VCMs. We rented them in two batches, at PHP39,000 per machine for the first batch and PHP48,000 for the next batch. These
are brand new and yet they malfunctioned,” he said.
Pimentel, who is chair of the Senate Committee on Electoral Reforms and People’s Participation as well as the Joint Congressional Oversight Committee on the Automated Election System, said he was assured by Smartmatic, the firm that supplied the VCMs to the Commission on Elections (Comelec), that the machines will work.
Quoting the Comelec, Pimentel said only 70 VCMs malfunctioned, a small percentage of the 97,000 that were used on election day.
But he said in Mindanao alone, they have recorded 78 malfunctioning VCMs.
“I don’t care about percentage, that this is a small percentage of the number of machines not functioning. I am looking at people, the number
EDGEDAVAO
FIRST DISTRICT WINNERS. The winning city councilors from the First District of Davao City pose with the Commission on Elections (11) board of canvassers during yesterday’s proclamation ceremony at Sangguniang Panlungsod. Lean Daval Jr.
Pimentel ‘happy and optimistic’ about results
By NEILWIN JOSEPH L. BRAVO
RE-ELECTED Vice Mayor Paolo Duterte yesterday said he will update local
ordinances in order to meet the growing needs of Davao City attuned with the demands of contemporary times.
The younger Duterte, son of President-in-waiting Rodrigo Duterte, was elected
to a second term as Vice Mayor. He ran unopposed.
“I have come to my second term as Vice Mayor of Davao City and I thank all of you for putting your trust in me to lead the Legislative Body of our City,” Paolo said in a statement sent to EDGE Davao.
Paolo said his major
concern is to review legislations and make them responsive and relevant.
“I am resolved to update legislations which are outdated and make sure that new ordinances will meet the growing needs of the City,” he said.
Paolo’s younger sister
Inday Sara Duterte, her father’s replacement after the latter decided to run for President, was also elected Mayor by a landslide.
Paolo paid tribute to the electorate for the fresh mandate.
“I am deeply indebted to
Pulong to update ‘old’ legislations
UNGAB PROCLAIMED. Davao City Third District Rep. Albert T. Ungab (center) holds a certificate of canvass of votes and proclamation while posing with board of canvassers vice chair City Prosecutor Nestor Ledesma (left) and chair
Commission on Elections (Comelec) 11 assistant director Marlon Casquejo during the proclamation rites at Sangguniang Panlungsod yesterday. Lean Daval Jr.
KARLO PROCLAIMED. Davao City First District Rep. Karlo Alexei Nograles holds a certificate of canvas of votes and proclamation during a ceremony at Sangguniang Panlungsod yesterday. Lean Daval Jr.
Rody thanks supporters for overwhelming lead
Trillanes on Duterte: ‘I’ll not be a hindrance’
F PULONG, 10
F PIMENTEL, 10
F RODY, 10
VOL. 9 ISSUE 51 • WEDNESDAY, MAY 11, 2016 5EDGEDAVAO
ECONOMY
REPOWER Energy De-velopment Corpora-tion (REDC), the mini
hydropower business of local investment holding company Pure Energy Holdings Corpo-ration (PEHC), broke ground for a run-of-river hydropower plant project in Upper Labayat, Quezon Province in partner-ship with the Frabelle and TSP Marine Group, a giant food and fishing conglomerate which recently ventured into the re-newables business through a consortium with Markham Resources to build mini hydro-electric plants that will cover Luzon and other areas in Min-danao.
“This is one of the projects that we’re building to benefit the local community as we will provide clean, reliable, and sustainable energy. This proj-ect will directly address the province’s overdependence on coal power plants as its prima-ry energy source,” Dexter Y. Tiu chief executive of REDC said.
The high-pressure hydro-power plant station will use water from the Upper Labayat river stream and produce pow-er for the local community. The plant is scheduled to begin its operations in the fourth quar-ter of 2018, after a construc-tion period of about two years.
Frabelle Group’s president, Francisco “Kiko” Tiu Laurel, whose company just recently entered into the power indus-try business said that the proj-ect will not only provide power needs in the local community but can one day supply their own factories and shipyards.
“The hydropower project, once constructed, will gener-ate more energy than our own factory requirements and at the same time stabilize the en-ergy needs of the communities here,” he said referring to the municipality of Real, Quezon where the project is located.
The hydro facility will be built in the upper cascade of the Labayat River, while the
power station itself will be built at Barangay Maragondon, Municipality of Real, Quezon. With an installed capacity of 3 megawatts (MW), the pow-er plant will generate over 16 gigawatt (GWh) of clean and renewable energy annually, which is equivalent to the con-sumption of around 20,000 households. This makes the Upper Labayat mini hydro-power plant one of the most efficient power plants con-structed by REDC.
The Upper Labayat hy-dropower plant’s renewable power output through a 2.5 kilometer transmission line is expected to qualify for Feed-in-Tariff (FiT) incentives and get dispatched in the electricity spot market at P5.90 per kilo-watt hour (Kwh) under the FiT rate for hydro power.
The project enjoys a high degree of local acceptance and is based on an environ-ment-friendly technology em-ployed by REDC. The company
utilizes state of the art Europe-an technology that makes run-of-river hydroelectric power plants as alternative to tradi-tional dam facilities, ensuring lesser impact on freshwater dependency, carbon dioxide emission, and aquatic ecosys-tem.
“Environmental mitigation measures such as revitaliza-tion of river banks, preser-vation of grassland along the river and other steps to ensure environmental sustainabili-ty around the domain will be taken into account in the con-struction of the power plant,” Dexter Y. Tiu said.
Upon completion, the power plant is expected to last for 100 years and will be the first mini hydropower project in Quezon province. REDC cur-rently has five more mini-hy-dropower projects in Quezon alone that is in the pipeline, and will break ground on its second Quezon project next month.
REDC, Frabelle Group break ground on3 MW Labayat mini-hydropower plant
THE homegrown real es-tate developer, Damosa Land, ties up with its
affiliate company, United Fi-nancing Corporation (Unifi-nance), to offer affordable and hassle-free financing schemes for its clients.
The financing scheme of-fers buyers a hassle-free op-tion that does not demand too many documentary require-ments.
Sharing the same com-mitment to provide quality products and services with Damosa Land, Unifinance extends their services from
financing pre-owned vehicles and consumer loans to financ-ing residential units. They see it as an opportunity to cater to the growing real estate market in the region, especially those who want to avail the products of DLI.
“With Unifinance as part-ner of Damosa Land to pro-vide financing assistance to buyers of Damosa Fairlane and now, Seawind, the buyers are assured of getting one of the most competitive house financing schemes available,” said Ruthillo Saligumba, Unifi-nance Senior Manager.
“Our clients are assured that they get the best invest-ment in this complementary offering of Damosa Land and Unifinance. If I’m not mistak-en, Unifinance offers one of the lowest financing rates in the market today,” said Ricardo F. Lagdameo, Damosa Land VP.
To know how to avail of this easy financing scheme, you may visit the Damosa Land showroom and lounge at the Damosa Market Basket, Damosa Complex, Lanang, Davao City. You may reach DLI’s Property Specialists at 234-2888 or you can visit
their website at www.damo-saland.com.
Damosa Land is the real estate and property develop-ment company of the Anflo Group of Companies – the company that is responsible for developing business and lifestyle-oriented commercial center, Damosa District.
Unifinance, another mem-ber of the Anflocor Group of Companies, is engaged in the financing of pre-owned vehi-cles and now home loans. The company has over 30 years of experience in the financing in-dustry.
Damosa Land, Unifinance bare easyfinancing service for home buyers
A GLOBAL non-profit as-sociation for medical tourism and interna-
tional patient industry has listed the Philippines as eighth place among the top medical tourism destinations in the world in 2015, the Department of Tourism (DOT) said Monday.
The Philippines placed ahead of countries such as Ja-pan and France, according to a list compiled by the Inter-national Healthcare Research Center and the Medical Tour-ism Association (MTA).
Canada emerged as the top medical tourism destination worldwide followed by UK and Israel which came second and third, respectively.
MTA is non-profit associ-ation represents healthcare providers, governments, in-surance companies, employers and other buyers of healthcare.
According to MTA, clients of the Philippines for medical tourism come from East Asia (China, Japan, Korea, Taiwan), Sri Lanka, the Pacific Islands (Guam, Palau, Marshall Is-lands, and Micronesia), Austra-lia, North and South America, Europe and the United King-dom, and the Gulf States.
It also noted that Filipino expats and overseas Filipino workers likewise prefer to have their medical procedures done in the country.
Currently, the Department of Tourism (DOT), Department of Health (DOH) and Depart-ment of Trade and Industry – Board of Investments (DTI–BOI) have a joint program to promote Philippine medical tourism.
This informal partnership resulted in a roadmap that
identified five major segments in the international medical travel sector: tourists, who come for spa and other well-ness services; medical tourists, who avail of low-acuity medi-cal procedures; medical trav-elers, who purposely come to specifically avail of more com-plex procedures; international patients, including overseas Filipino workers, expats, and retireers; and accompanying guests, either friends or imme-diate kin of travelers.
Medical tourism in the Philippines caters to approxi-mately 80,000 to 250,000 pa-tients or clients annually.
As of the DOT, DOH, DTI-BOI’s latest count, 62 hospitals around the country are now internationally accredited.
In a 2014 study by re-nowned medical tourism author Ian Youngman, global health and wellness tourism market is worth USD438.6 billion and Philippine medical tourism was able to generate USD66 million and USD145 million for 2013 and 2014, re-spectively.
DOT Director for Medical Travel and Wellness Tourism, Cynthia Lazo, said it is crucial to have a ‘One Country Pack-age.’
“It has to be a country ef-fort, a collective effort of every medical and wellness facility in the country, for the Philippines to be accepted in the medical and wellness market,” she said.
“Our value proposition is, time and again, our 7,107 is-lands which a medical traveler can choose from, while avail-ing of a clinical or wellness procedure in the country,” she added. (PNA)
Phl named world’s eighth top medical tourism hub
TERMINAL TO IGACOS. A hawker peddles knock-off sunglasses around Sta. Ana wharf where a large number of Island Garden City of Samal (IGaCoS)-bound beach goers gather. Lean Daval Jr.
THE Makati Business Club issued the following statement on Tuesday in
connection with the just-con-cluded 2016 elections:
“The 2016 national and lo-cal elections were passionately contested. The campaign was fierce and people were deeply divided among personalities, parties, and platforms. In the face of these tensions, the will of the Filipino electorate pre-vailed. The Makati Business Club congratulates the nation for another successful mani-festation of a fully-functioning and vigorous democracy.
“The Commission on Elec-tions deserves much appreci-ation for its management of a process, seen by many as highly credible, clean, and honest. We note that last minute changes in procedures, delays in logis-tical preparations, glitches in the Vote Counting Machines during election day itself, and the usual controversies pre-sented significant challenges, which we believe Comelec adequately addressed. Indeed, automation is the way forward given the improvements since
2010, and the refreshing prac-tice of losing candidates con-ceding early to the apparent winners, demonstrating dig-nity in the face of defeat, and the apparent winners showing humility in victory, should be commended.
“We note that a record 81% of the electorate exer-cised their right to vote, once again highlighting the Filipi-nos’ resilience amidst discom-forting conditions, as well as our rock-solid commitment to upholding democracy. We also commend our teachers, election volunteers, and poll watchers for their humble and selfless service.
“The partial and unofficial results from the Comelec con-vincingly reflect the will of the electorate. Now the process of genuine healing must begin: Friendships must be restored, mutual trust must be reestab-lished, and wounds must begin to heal. We call on all Filipinos to come together, to support our new leaders. Let us focus on those aspirations that unite us, rather than on the issues
Makati Business Club bares statement on polls
F MAKATI, 10
VOL. 9 ISSUE 51 • WEDNESDAY, MAY 11, 20166 EDGEDAVAOTHE ECONOMY
The Philippine budget deficit rose to P34.6 billion in February this
year, up 258 percent from P9.7 billion a year ago, data released Tuesday by the Department of Finance (DoF) show.
This after government spending registered a higher growth of 22 percent to P173.6 billion compared with the five percent rise in revenues to P139 billion.
Contribution of the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) to government coffers in the sec-ond month this year reached P94.8 billion, seven percent higher year-on-year, while the Bureau of Customs (BOC) post-ed a one percent contraction in revenues to Php 27 billion.
The Bureau of the Trea-sury (BTr) contributed Php 5.8 billion, 33 percent up; and the Other Offices shared in Php 11.2 billion, down nine per-cent.
For the two-month period,
the budget deficit amounted to Php 38.1 billion, 136 percent higher than year-ago’s Php 16.1 billion.
Revenues rose by seven percent to Php 321.2 billion while expenditures went up 14 percent Php 359.3 billion.
BIR’s collection for the two-month period reached Php 224.5 billion, up seven percent; and BOC posted a three percent hike to Php 58.1 billion. BTr’s collection rose by three percent to Php 13.8 bil-lion and the Other Offices by 27 percent to Php 24.8 billion.
Finance Secretary Cesar V. Purisima said economic man-agers continued to see strong rise in revenues that would support the government’s in-vestment goals.
“Our financial position re-mains healthy. Amid an uncer-tain global environment, main-taining a firm fiscal position is more important than ever,” he added. (PNA)
PHL budget deficit risesto P34.6 B in February
EMPERADOR Inc., the world’s largest brandy company and the Philip-
pines’ largest liquor conglomer-ate, recorded nearly PHP9 bil-lion in consolidated revenues in the first quarter of 2016 with net income amounting to PHP1.4 billion.
The first quarter of this year
also marked a significant mile-stone with Emperador taking over 286-year old Bodegas Fun-dador from Beam Suntory. Em-perador and Fundador brandy production facilities, combined, make Emperador Inc. the largest brandy entity in the world. Win-ston Co, president of Emperador Inc., said, “We have an unprece-
dented and compelling owner-ship of vineyards, bottling facil-ities and distilleries. We already have 1,500 hectares of vineyard land, roughly 1,000,000 square meters of cellar and bottling fa-cilities, and three distilleries in Spain.”
Mr. Co added, “In 2014, the acquisition of Scotch whisky
company Whyte and Mackay jump-started Emperador Inc’s transformation into becoming a world-class company. The acquisition of Fundador bran-dy sealed the deal making our company truly global with ac-cess to 100 countries. And today, our brandy and whisky product
Emperador posts P1.4-B net income in First Quarter
IHS Global Insight, a Unit-ed States-based think tank, said medium-term
outlook for the Philippines will depend on the economic policies of its new adminis-tration.
Partial and unofficial tally for the 2016 national elections showed that Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte is leading the presidential race.
IHS Asia Pacific Chief Economist Rajiv Biswas said Duterte’s election platform lacked content on economic policies which creates uncer-tainty about his future eco-nomic reform agenda.
“International investors and fund managers are likely to initially respond by reduc-ing their exposure to Philip-pines equities and local gov-ernment debt, which could push the Philippines peso further down against the US dollar in coming days,” added Biswas.
The Philippine peso and stock market index have al-
ready fallen since mid-April as the 2016 election polls in-dicate strong lead for Duterte.
“The medium-term out-look for the Philippines econ-omy will depend on the new economic policies of the in-coming Duterte administra-tion. If he appoints a strong economic frontbench with well-respected economists with a strong track record, this could reassure investors and restore confidence in the medium-term outlook for the Philippines economy,” the IHS economist stressed.
“However, if the Duter-te administration does not maintain fiscal discipline and has weak commitment to further economic liberal-ization and fails to improve the business climate for for-eign investment, this will undermine the medium-term growth prospects for the Phil-ippines economy,” Biswas noted.
However, the economist mentioned that business
process outsourcing (BPO) sector and overseas Filipinos’ remittances will still fuel the Philippine economy.
BPO revenues for this year is expected to reach USD25 billion with additional 225,000 jobs while remittanc-es reached USD25.8 billion in 2015 or accounting for 9.8 percent of the country’s gross domestic product (GDP).
“Two key growth engines for the Philippines economy during President Aquino’s term of office have been the fast-growing IT-BPO industry as well as the large inflows of remittances from workers abroad,” said Biswas.
He also mentioned that the Philippines saw GDP growth averaging around 6 percent from 2011 to 2015.
However, Biswas noted that despite the economic progress during the current administration, high level of poverty still persists in the Philippines.
“If the incoming Presi-
dent and the new Philippines government administration can continue to pursue eco-nomic reforms and strength-en institutional governance, then GDP growth of around 6 percent per year can be sus-tained over 2016-2020,” the economist said.
“Ensuring that the bene-fits of rapid economic growth do reach a wider share of the population will be a cru-cial policy priority for the next administration, and key strategies to reduce poverty will be to accelerate foreign investment inflows into man-ufacturing and infrastructure development,” he stressed.
“The next administration will also need to ensure that trade and investment liberal-ization are high priorities on its policy agenda, through bi-lateral and regional trade and investment initiatives with key partners such as the ASE-AN+3 nations as well as the EU, the US and India,” Biswas added. (PNA)
PHL growth to depend on economic policies of Duterte
FOREIGN Direct Invest-ments (FDIs) to the Phil-ippines reached USD
936 million in February 2016 , up 50.6 percent year-on-year, data released by the central bank show.
The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) said all FDI components posted increases “as investors’ confidence was buoyed by the country’s eco-nomic growth prospects and sound macroeconomic funda-mentals.”
In particular, equity capi-tal investments rose by 119.1 percent to USD 449 million from the USD 205 million in end-February last year.
The central bank traced this to higher equity capital placements by 92.2 percent to USD 471 million, bulk of which came from Hong Kong, Spain, Bahamas, Taiwan, and Japan.
These inflows were chan-neled to agriculture, forestry,
and fishing; financial and in-surance activities; construc-tion; manufacturing; and real estate activities, it said.
However, withdrawals during the period reached USD 22 million.
Also, net investments in debt instruments posted a 23 percent increase to USD 355 million while reinvested earn-ings amounted to USD 132 mil-lion, up from year-ago’s USD 128 million.
Last February alone, FDIs reached USD 349 million, 2.9 percent lower than year-ago’s USD 359 million.
Investments in debt in-struments posted net inflows of USD 98 million, equity in-vestments rose by 6.9 percent to USD 192 million, with-drawals went higher at USD 19 million from month-ago’s USD 3 million and re-invested earnings jumped 2.6 percent to USD 59 million. (PNA)
PHL FDIs jump 50.6%to $936M in February
BURNED SCHOOL. A student passes by the Ragayan Elementary school in Barangay Ragayan in Poonabayabao town, Lanao del Sur on Monday, May 9, 2016. The 16-classroom school was torched by unidentified persons
. Voting continued with Comelec officials transferring the voters to another venue. There was no vote-counting machine installed in the school when it was burned. MindaNews photo by Froilan Gallardo
AVIATION agencies are set to sign a memorandum of agreement (MOA) that
details the procedures on how airlines may apply for and utilize their slots at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA).
This MOA on flight slotting will be signed between the Ma-
nila International Airport Au-thority (MIAA), Civil Aeronau-tics Board (CAB) and the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philip-pines (CAAP).
It also provides for penalties in cases of slot misuse by the air-lines.
The three agencies consider
this agreement as their legacy to the next airport and aviation authorities.
Signing will take place on Wednesday (May 11) at the MIAA Administration Building.
According to the Interna-tional Air Transport Associa-tion (IATA), the prime objective
of the slot process is to allow airlines to acquire, retain and exchange slots necessary to op-erate at a given airport.
Through the allocation of slots, limited airport resources are efficiently used to benefit the greatest number of airport users and travelers. (PNA)
FIVE of the biggest trav-el influencers from an award-winning creative
technology agency that built the largest travel and lifestyle portfolio on Instagram and Snapchat will soon reach Phil-ippine shores, the Department of Tourism (DOT) said Tues-day.
The agency, Beautiful Destinations will be in the Philippines from May 11-24 to capture destination images and videos that drive interest amongst its followers and in-spire them to visit the country.
DOT said that this marks the first time in Southeast Asia that a national tourism organi-zation is partnering with the Beautiful Destinations team.
The team will be com-posed of its Founder and CEO,
travel social media expert, Jer-emy Jauncey; Head of Brand Partnerships and celebrated travel drone pioneer, Tom Jauncey; Community Man-ager and London’s top Insta-gram travel photographer and videographer, Jacob Riglin; world-renowned iPhone-on-ly photographer James Relf Dyer; and the videographer for American DJ duo - The Chainsmokers, Sam Kolder.
Some of the top Philippine destinations that the team will travel to include Cebu, Bohol, Palawan, Manila and Pan-gasinan.
DOT Secretary Ramon Jimenez Jr. noted how social media has allowed the agency to be a game-changer in the tourism industry through our
MIAA, CAB, and CAAP to sign MOA on flight slotting
DOT, travel influencers entice more tourists to visit PHL
F DOT, 10
F EMPERADOR, 10
VOL. 9 ISSUE 51 • WEDNESDAY, MAY 11, 2016 7
By HENRYLITO D. TACIO
Goiter is nowa common disease among filipinosTHYROID gland is a but-
terfly-shaped organ that measures about
two inches across and lies just under the skin below the Adam’s apple in the neck. It plays a major role in regulat-ing the body’s metabolism.
In the Philippines one of the most common diseases that affect the thyroid gland is goiter. “Its primary symp-toms are thyroid enlarge-ment, breathing difficulties, swallowing difficulties from compression of the esopha-gus, and neck vein distention and dizziness when the arms are raised above the head,” Dr. Gabriel Jasul Jr. says.
The word goiter comes from the Latin word guttur, which means throat. Having a goiter doesn’t mean that the amount of thyroid hormone in your body is too high, too low, or normal. It just means that the gland is bigger than it should be, and that there may be a disease process going on that’s causing the problem.
“Goiter is considered prevalent in the Philippines,” Jasul says. “It is common and is still a formidable disease that affects women under reproductive age and school children aged seven years old onwards.”
“Pregnant women and children are prone to goiter because they are in the stage of hormonal changes,” a re-port says. “Iodine deficiency during pregnancy results in decreased maternal and neo-natal thyroid hormone secre-tion.”
Based on the studies on urinary iodine levels con-ducted by the Department of Health, most goiter cases are found in the mountainous provinces and other remote areas of the country.
Those living in the low-land areas may have goiter because of insufficient iodine intake in their diet aside from eating a lot of foods contain-ing goitrogens, substances that suppress the function of the thyroid gland by in-terfering with iodine uptake. Most goitrogens are found in cabbage, soybeans, peanuts, peaches, strawberries, spin-ach and radishes.
Studies show that iodine deficiency is the cause of 92 percent of all goiter cases around the world. A nutri-tional survey was done by the Food and Nutrition Research Institute in 1998 to assess
the extent of iodine deficiency among 10,616 schoolchildren aged six to 12 years old. It was discovered that the country as a whole had a mild iodine deficiency.
Iodine is a micronutri-ent required by the body for normal physical and mental development. The total life-time requirement for iodine amounts to no more than a teaspoon. Small as it may be, and to be effective, this amount must be available from conception to adult-hood.
“When iodine is deficient,” points out The Merck Manual of Medical Information, “the thyroid gland enlarges, form-ing a goiter, as it attempts to capture more iodine for the production of thyroid hor-mones.”
The American Thyroid Organization explains it fur-ther this way: “The primary activity of the thyroid gland is to concentrate iodine from the blood to make thyroid hor-mone. The gland cannot make enough thyroid hormone if it does not have enough io-dine. Therefore, with iodine deficiency the individual will become hypothyroid.
“Consequently, the pitu-itary gland in the brain sens-es the thyroid hormone level is too low and sends a signal to the thyroid. This signal is called thyroid-stimulating hormone. As the name im-plies, this hormone stimu-lates the thyroid to produce thyroid hormone and to grow in size. This abnormal growth
in size produces what is termed a goiter.”
Another common cause of goiter is Graves’ disease. In this case, a person’s immune system produces a protein called thyroid-stimulating im-munoglobulin (TSI). The TSI stimulates the thyroid gland to enlarge-producing a goiter. However, TSI also stimulates the thyroid to make too much thyroid hormone causing hy-perthyroidism. Since the pitu-itary senses too much thyroid hormone, it stops secreting thyroid stimulating hormone. In spite of this, the thyroid gland continues to grow and make thyroid hormone. Therefore, Graves’ disease produces a goiter and hyper-thyroidism.
Another cause is Hashimoto’s thyroiditis, an autoimmune condition in which there is destruction of the thyroid gland by a per-son’s own immune system. “As the gland becomes more damaged, it is less able to make adequate supplies of thyroid-hormone,” the Amer-ican Thyroid Organization explains. “The pituitary gland senses a low thyroid hormone level and secretes more thy-roid stimulating hormones to stimulate the thyroid. This stimulation causes the thy-roid to grow, which may pro-duce a goiter.”
In addition to the com-mon causes of goiter, there are many other less common causes. Some of these are due to genetic defects, others are related to injury or infections
quate iodine for about a year, and if given by intramuscular injection, is satisfactory for about three years. “Iodized oil is most useful when the iodine deficiency is severe, when immediate correction is important and when iodized salt is not available [or its io-dine concentration is below recommended levels],” the fact sheet points out.
Drinking water is anoth-er occasional vehicle for io-dine nutrition. One approach is to add an iodine solution to water in a well or flow-ing through a pipe. A sim-pler version merely adds a few drops of a concentrated solution manually to vessels containing drinking water in a school or home. If iodine is added, it can also sterilize the water, this property is useful because many regions with iodine deficiency also have contaminated food and water.
“The use of iodized table salt prevents hypothyroid-ism, while limiting goitrogen-ic foods and drugs prevents hyperthyroidism,” Jasul says. “We don’t say that you should not eat goitrogenic foods es-pecially vegetables. Goitro-genic foods help thyroid hor-mones to function normally, but to achieve this purpose, the thyroid hormones must be present in the body in cor-rect amount—not too little and not too much.”
Forewarned is forearmed, so goes a saying. The same is true with goiter. Watch what you eat. “To cut the risk of goiters, avoid white flour products, white sugar, foods from flesh, fried foods, greasy foods, preserves, condiments, tea, coffee and alcohol. You will also want to avoid sodas or anything with caffeine,” writes Eric Benac, author of Diet for Goiter.
Foods you need to eat: “Begin introducing foods rich in iron and iodine into your diet,” Benac writes. “Foods like guavas, strawberries, citrus fruits, eggs, seafood, whole grain rice, tomatoes, oats, onion, garlic, carrots and lettuce are high in iron. Foods that are high in iodine include iodized salt, seafood, sea-weed, sushi, shrimp, shellfish, cow’s milk, yogurt, and locally grown fruits and vegetables. These foods, along with goi-ter treatment medicine from your doctor, will help treat your goiter in a short period of time.”
in the thyroid and some are due to tumors (both cancer-ous and benign tumors).
Thanks to the introduc-tion of iodized salt in the 1920s, goiters have become much less common in North America than they once were. “Salt is the best vehicle for adding iodine,” a fact sheet disseminated by the health department states. Everyone needs salt, everyone eats it, usually in daily amounts, and the technology for iodization
is straightforward.”The Philippines has reg-
ulations calling for 20 to 40 microgram (mcg) iodine per gram of salt—or 20 to 40 parts per million (ppm). As such, if a person eats five grams of salt iodized at 30 ppm, he gets 150 mcg iodine from this source alone.
Another method for pro-viding iodine is through the administration of iodized vegetable oil. A single admin-istration orally provides ade-
EDGEDAVAO
HEALTH
VOL. 9 ISSUE 51 • WEDNESDAY, MAY 11, 20168 EDGEDAVAO
VANTAGE
EDITORIALStop
IT’S told in one word.He wrote it on the tarpaulin backdrop on the wall as
he faced the media shortly after casting his vote.He had said it several times during the campaign.He had repeatedly said it and even spelled it emphatical-
ly in the debates.That word is “stop.” That is his favorite word if he is not
cussing. That word described president-in-waiting Mayor Rodrigo’s iron-willed thrust to end crimes, drugs and cor-ruption.
That is how Mayor Duterte is expected to deal with the three fiercest enemies of his administration.
For those who know Mayor Duterte, the moment he
speaks with emphasis on something, most especially if he breaks it down to the shortest expression as possible, he is dead serious about it. So serious that you can feel his angst the moment he opens his mouth.
Those who are not used to it may find his words weight-less or plain threat. It would seem that it is spoken out of despair.
Not with Mayor Duterte. He would mince no words when he does not like it. That is why that word on the wall should serve as everyone’s stern warning that he means business.
The country is about to be cleansed. It’s going to be easy if people read and follow that word on the wall. Bloody, as he promised, if they ignore him.
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
OLIVIA D. VELASCOGeneral Manager
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Columnists: CARLOS MUNDA • HENRYLITO D. TACIO • EDCER C. ESCUDERO • ATTY. EMILY ZEN CHUA • GREGORIO G. DELIGERO • JOHN CARLO TRIA • VIDA MIA S. VALVERDE • FRED C. LUMBA • HENRY J. SCHUMACHER • VANESSA KATE MADRAZO Economic Analysts: ENRICO “GICO” G. DAYANGIRANG
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ONE of my favorite pastimes is read-ing -- aside from watching movies, of course.
Recently, I was reading one of the last week’s issues of EDGE Davao and I came across a news report which said that the Hamiguitan Heritage Park was inaugurat-ed by President Benigno Aquino III him-self.
The complete name is Mount Hami-guitan Eco Park and Interpretation Site, which also houses the Natural Science Museum. The launching was “attended by some 1,000 government officials, business leaders, guests and media practitioners,” reported EDGE Davao editor-in-chief An-tonio M. Ajero.
“Mr. Aquino who, together with Gov-ernor Corazon Malanyaon, unveiled the park’s marker, lauded the opening as it would serve as a critical habitat to protect biodiversity,” said the state-run Philippine News Agency (PNA).
According to Aquino, who is bowing out of office in June, the site will spike tourist arrivals in Davao Oriental. In ad-dition, it will open more opportunities for jobs and livelihood among the people liv-ing in the area.
Last year, Mount Hamiguitan was in-scribed to the World Heritage List of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).
In its website, UNESCO describes Mount Hamiguitan in these words: “Form-ing a mountain ridge running north-south along the Pujada Peninsula in the south-eastern part of the Eastern Mind-
anao Biodiver-sity Corridor, the Mount H a m i g u i t a n Range Wildlife Sanctuary has an elevation range of 75–1,637 meters above sea level and provides critical habitat for a range of plant and animal species.
“The property showcases terrestrial and aquatic habitats at different eleva-tions, and includes threatened and endem-ic flora and fauna species, eight of which are found only at Mount Hamiguitan. These include critically endangered trees, plants and the iconic Philippine eagle and Philippine cockatoo,” UNESCO adds.
On why it is included in the World Heritage List, the UNESCO explains: “The Mount Hamiguitan Range Wildlife Sanc-tuary exhibits segmentation of terrestri-al habitats according to elevation. In the lower elevations the agro-ecosystem and remnants of dipterocarp forests house some 246 plant species including signif-icant numbers of endemics such as the globally threatened dipterocarps of the genus Shorea.
“The dipterocarp forest ecosystem at 420-920 m above sea level is character-ized by the presence of large trees and is home to 418 plant and 146 animal species, which include threatened species such as
the Mindanao bleeding-heart dove (Galli-columba crinigera) and Philippine warty pig (Sus philippensis).
“At higher elevations the montane for-est ecosystem exhibits numerous species of mosses, lichens and epiphytes. This ecosystem type houses 105 animal species representing all the animal groups found in the Mount Hamiguitan Range Wildlife Sanctuary as well as the relatively recently discovered rat species, Hamiguitan hairy-tailed rat (Batomys hamiguitan).
“The fourth ecosystem type is the typ-ical mossy forest ecosystem characterized by thick mosses covering roots and tree trunks; it provides habitat for the Philip-pine pygmy fruit bat (Haplonycteris fisch-eri) and the threatened pointed-snouted tree frog (Philautus acutirostris). At the topmost (1160-1200m above sea level.) is the mossy-pygmy forest ecosystem, add-ing a unique natural tropical bonsai forest layer to the property. It is the only known habitat in the world of the pitcher plant (Nepenthes hamiguitanensis) and the De-lias butterfly (Delias magsadana).”
The Mount Hamiguitan Range Wildlife Sanctuary straddles two municipalities (San Isidro and Governor Generoso) and one city (Mati). The total area is 16,923 hectares, with a buffer zone of 9,729 hect-ares.
The Mount Hamiguitan Range Wildlife Sanctuary is protected through several protected area regulations and is a compo-nent of the country’s National Integrated Protected Areas System (NIPAS).
By the way, I had visited several UNES-
CO World Heritage sites. Just to name few: Quebec City in Canada; the Great Barrier Reef in Cairns, Australia; the Great Wall and Forbidden City in Beijing, China; An-gkor Wat in Siem Reap, Cambodia; Halong Bay in Vietnam; and the Rice Terraces of Banaue.
Yes, I had been to Mati City but nev-er had an opportunity of going to Mount Hamiguitan (although I heard of it sever-al times before). Every time I go to Mati, I usually go to Dahican Beach, which is tout-ed as the Boracay of the South.
But I know, one of these days, I will be given the time to scale Mount Hamiguitan and see the bonsai forest.
The PNA report said that the Mount Hamiguitan Range Wildlife Sanctuary has been named as among Southeast Asia’s ASEAN Heritage Parks. It is cited for its “biodiversity importance and exceptional uniqueness throughout the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) mem-ber states.”
The recent recognition adds to the seven other sites in the country: Mount Apo, Mount Iglit-Baco Natural Resourc-es; Mount Kitanglad Range Natural Park; Mount Malinda; Mount Makiling Forest Reserve; Mount Timpoog-Hibok Hibok Natural Park; and Tubbataha Reefs Natu-ral Park.
“Mount Hamiguitan was nominated along with Tubbataha Reef,” the PNA re-port said. “It was during the 15th infor-mal ASEAN Ministerial Meeting on the environment when the nomination was approved.”
THE most contentious presidential campaign in Philippine history has come to pass, and exactly 90 days
after he began his campaign in the wee hours of the morning in Manila’s Tondo slums, Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte is looking at being Malacanang’s occupant, the first ever from the island of Mindanao.
Miriam Defensor Santiago was so right when she predicted that social media will determine the outcome of this campaign. This is the first presidential election where twists and turns were conditioned or influenced by citizen opinions on social media. Tweets, Instagram and Facebook status posts condemning the use of pres-idential helicopters by Kris Aquino for the Liberal party’s campaign were promptly replied to by Presidential spokesman Her-minio Coloma, and eventually, the Pres-ident himself defending the use by his sister and eventually, Kris Aquino herself asking her fans to protect her from online critics. The reactions of the administration to the posts and criticisms actually helped
spread the post and h e i g h t e n e d the criticism, providing the fodder to help things snow-ball daily as more reac-tions from M a l a c a n a n g fed it. It was not how to handle on-line criticism. Likewise, the Duterte campaign will be remembered for its cultivation of a horde of committed and passionate social media supporters ready to defend him from crit-ics and correct any misimpressions.
Rodrigo Duterte is the first successful presidential candidate from a left leaning political party. The Partido Demokratiko ng Pilipinas –Lakas ng Bayan (PDP-LA-BAN) is considered a moderate left party,
espousing social democratic principles and a federal form of government similar to the social democratic parties in posi-tioned left of center in Europe. In the suc-ceeding days, expect its ranks to increase from the current three representatives in Congress and one Senator. Of all the polit-ical parties, both the PDP LABAN and the Liberal party have a clear program and agenda. It must be noted that PDP Laban which had its beginnings among anti dic-tatorship politicians and reform advocates during the Marcos regime, with its coming out in the candidacy of Aquilino Pimen-tel in 1978. It is expected that Duterte will lead a larger coalition of left forces in pushing important reforms, particularly, the shift to a federal form of government, which is the cornerstone of the PDP-La-ban’s governance agenda from its early days.
Digong is the first incumbent city may-or to win the presidency. The last viable contender for the presidency who is occu-pied a mayoralty post was the late Manila
Mayor Arsenio Lacson, who dies suddenly a few years shy of his 50th birthday back in the early 60s. Except for Cory Aquino and Fidel Ramos, all successful presiden-tial candidates were Senators.
Duterte is the first Mindanaoan to as-sume the presidency. Mindanao leaders have often been considered invisible in Philippine politics, with the Senate and the executive departments often dom-inated by Luzon-based counterparts. it does not help that each annual national budget is effectively allocated with a third for Metro Manila, another third for Luzon and the balance to be divided between the Visayas and Mindanao. Thus, resourc-es and opportunities are not balanced. It must be remembered that the closest Mindanao had to a president was the late former Vice President Emmanuel Pelaez, who stood for, yet failed to secure the Na-cionalista Party nomination to run for the presidency in 1965. The nomination went to Senator Ferdinand Marcos, who beat in-cumbent Diosdado Macapagal.
VOL. 9 ISSUE 51 • WEDNESDAY, MAY 11, 2016 VANTAGE POINTS 9EDGEDAVAO
The famous Mount Hamiguitan
The many ‘first’ for new President
Henrylito D. [email protected]
THINK ON THESE!
John [email protected]
MY TWO CENTS’
VOL. 9 ISSUE 51 • WEDNESDAY, MAY 11, 201610 NEWS
Four... FROM 3
Escudero... FROM 2 Pimentel... FROM 4
Rody... FROM 4
Pulong... FROM 4
Comelec... FROM 3
Makati... FROM 5
Emperador... FROM 6
DOT... FROM 6
READY... FROM 1
EDGEDAVAO
were political supporters of Marantao mayoralty candidate Samsung Usop of the Laban ng Demokratikong Pilipino.
Hours before the voting started, unidentified men torched the school buildings in the municipalities of Tamparan and Poona Bayabao in Lanao del Sur.
The first to be torched was the Dilausan Primary School, a two-room facility in Barangay Dilausan in Tamparan town.
Yasmin Mohammad, a volunteer teacher said at about 4:45 am, unidentified men also torched their school, Ragayan Elementary School in Barangay Ragayan, Poona Bayabao town.
Mohammad said the fire destroyed 16 classrooms, their library and stockroom where they placed their school computers.
“We cried because so much was lost. More than
400 students depend on this school,” she said.
Salic Ibrahim, convenor of the Citizens Care Coalition for ARMM Electoral Reforms said he was appalled by the level of partisanship among Lanao del Sur residents to their chosen candidates.
“They (supporters) even want to sacrifice their lives for the candidates. I have not seen so much loyalty in the past elections,” Ibrahim said.
Ibrahim blamed the long campaign period for the heightened level of animosity between the political followers.
He said this led to so much pent up emotions that burst on the day of elections.
“There were many fistfights and free-for-all when we toured the voting centers. The supporters were just bursting with anger,” Ibrahim said. (Froilan Gallardo/MindaNews)
election we can recommend for a lesser number of voters just to accommodate all as early as possible, ” he said.
For his part, Comelec 11 assistant regional director Marlon Casquejo said there were several VCM in Davao City that overheated but they were able to replace it immediately.
Casquejo said while the repair of the VCMs were still ongoing, the voters were recommended to conduct manual voting and just feed the ballot as soon as it will be repaired.
Election watchdog Kontra Daya received a report that a VCM in Calinan Elementary School overheated around
7:30 a.m.on Monday which made the Board of Election Inspector to decide to proceed on manual of voting.
Kontra Daya spokesperson Rommel Real said there are some 20 voters who underwent manual voting.
He said by 10:00 a.m.the VCM in the precinct was fixed but the voters already went home and some voters who were in the area shaded their ballot on their behalf without permission.
However, Casquejo said his office did not receive any report of this incident in Calinan.
“We have no idea regarding that incident, ” he said.
“We are forming a transition team, one for policy preparation, one for selection of whom to appoint in key positions and one for the inaugural program,” Lavina said.
Lavina said they will coordinate with the incumbent administration for a smooth turnover.
“We will start working soon. We are just awaiting formalities,” said Lavina.
Duterte and encouraged his supporters to support whoever wins the elections.
”Binabati ko si Mayor Duterte at sa dikitan laban sa ikalawang pagkapangulo, binabati ko sino man sa kanila manalo pero syempre mas ninanais ko na ang kababayan ko kung may mananalo,” Escudero said.
Escudero did not name names but two other vice presidential aspirants Senators Antonio Trillanes IV and Gringo Honasan are also from Bicol but currently in fifth and sixth spot with 792,778 and 711,450 votes, respectively.
Escudero said he is looking forward “to quieter
times” with his wife actress Heart Evangelista and with two children to former wife Christine Elizabeth Flores. His marriage with Flores was annulled in 2012.
Based on partial and unofficial results, Duterte is enjoying over six million votes over second running Mar Roxas who has 9,112,889 votes followed by Poe with 8,492,261 votes, Jejomar Binay with 5,036,060 votes and Miriam Defensor Santiago with 1,363,144 votes.
Both Poe and Escudero have three years left to serve as senators, promising to help the next administration in their capacity as legislators. (PNA)
all of you in the fresh mandate you have given and I will repay you with more determination
and hardwork in the years to come. We will do this together,” Paolo said.
of voters who have been disenfranchised or greatly inconvenienced,” he said.
Pimentel said after the election, he will call on Comelec to require Smartmatic to explain properly and in detail the high number of VCMs that malfunctioned.
“In the meantime I am requesting Comelec to withhold payment from Smartmatic until it has satisfactorily explained what happened,” he added.
Pimentel said the party is also studying the possibility of asking the courts or the Department of Justice to issue a form of hold departure order against executives of Smartmatic.
“They should not leave the country until they satisfactorily explain before the Joint Congressional Oversight Committee on the Automated Election System what happened,” he said. (PNA)
him.Meanwhile, Duterte said
he is satisfied with the conduct of the national and local polls
yesterday.“So, far I have not received
any reports of cheating and violation,” he said. (PNA)
that divide us. After all, despite our divisions, we all aspire for the common goal of authentic freedom and inclusive devel-opment.
“The Philippines remains in a special spot with numer-ous positive forces converging in our favor. Propelling the country to greater heights re-quires the cooperation of all sectors of society. On the part of the business community, we welcome the clear man-date given our new leaders by our people and the credibility of the elections, and we stand
ready to be an active and par-ticipative partner of govern-ment in ensuring sustainable and inclusive growth that ben-efits not just a select few but all Filipinos.
“It is our hope that the 2016 elections bring forth a country grounded on the principles of protecting and strengthening our democratic institutions, and on decency, integrity, justice, empathy, competence, peace and order especially in Mindanao, and respect for the rule of law.” (PNA)
It’s More Fun in the Philip-pines campaign.
He said that the cam-paign’s central strategy is executed and propagated by milelelions of Filipinos them-selves, who “feel they have the power to persuade people to visit their country as tourists.”
“Collaborating with Beau-tiful Destinations, which has already set the global standard for creating social content, is surely an effective way to make our country’s presence in the digital space more felt by travrs who are highly reli-ant on social media,” Jimenez said.
“With the highest percent-age of its population highly ac-tive on social media compared
to any other country, the Phil-ippines has been dubbed as the social media capital of the world. On many occasions, the DOT would leverage this strength by utilizing social me-dia in most of our campaigns,” he added.
Beautiful Destinations Founder and Chief Executive Officer Jeremy Jauncey for his part expressed excitement about partnering with the Philippines Department of Tourism to harness the power of Instagram & Snapchat.
“Advertising is evolving away from an art of interrup-tion and towards an art of inclusion. We’re showcasing living, breathing, destinations stories in real time,” Jauncey
said.“Shooting what we call
social-first content prioritizes unique perspectives shot by social media experts that cap-tivate travelers in a much more genuine way than content typ-ically shot for print and broad-cast campaigns,” he added.
The Beautiful Destina-tions team will share moments throughout each day of the trip on the Beautiful Destina-tions Snapchat, Instagram, and Facebook, as well as the DOT’s Instagram and Facebook ac-counts, reaching more than 10 million followers around the world.
On the other hand, the videos will also stream out-side the Philippine Center at
556 Fifth Avenue, New York, giving passersby a glimpse of the teams’ daily adventures in Cebu, Bohol, Palawan, Pan-gasinan, and Manila.
In Manila, the DOT will host an InstaMeet between the Beautiful Destinations team and local travel and lifestyle influencers from the Philip-pines whose photos have been featured on the Beautiful Des-tinations Instagram page to provide a platform to exchange insights and ideas about pho-tography, travel, and lifestyle.
Some of the local influenc-ers invited include celebrated Cebuano furniture designer Vito Selma, Filipino backpack-ers, and photographers Jaypee Swing and Rod Ruales. (PNA)
DUTERTE VOTES. Leading presidential candidate Davao City Mayor Rodrigo R. Duterte receives a rousing send-off after casting his vote around three o’clock in the afternoon at Daniel R. Aguinaldo National High School yesterday. Lean Daval Jr.
portfolio is comprised of stan-dard, premium, super premi-um, and luxury offerings. While maintaining our brandy domi-nance in local liquor brands with Emperador brandy, we have en-viable presence in foreign liquor
brands in the Philippines with our Fundador brandy and single malt brands The Dalmore and Jura.”
Emperador Inc. is major-ity-owned by Alliance Global Group, Inc.
THE family of boxing icon and outgoing Sarangani Rep. Emmanuel “Manny”
Pacquiao continued its emergence as a dominant force in local politics here and nearby province.
This, as two younger brothers of the eight-division world boxing champion, who is already entrenched at the top 12 in the senatorial race, also scored big wins in Monday’s general elections.
Former boxer Alberto “Bobby” Pacquiao placed second
in the city council race here after garnering a total of 95,092 votes based on the final and official tally released by the Commission on Elections (Comelec) here.
Bobby, who is an incumbent councilor of Barangay Labangal, ran under the People’s Champ Movement (PCM), a local political party founded by Rep. Pacquiao.
He trailed top councilor Elizabeth Bagonoc of the Liberal Party-Achiever’s with Integrity Movement (LP-AIM), by just 32 votes.
Bobby said he had only
aimed to land a spot in the city council and did not expect the second place finish.
But he said he worked hard during the campaign along with the other members of the city’s PCM slate.
“This is God’s will. I prayed and really worked for this,” he told reporters.
In Sarangani, Rep. Pacquiao’s younger brother and anointed replacement, Rogelio, is leading by a huge margin in the race for the province’s lone congressional seat.
As of Tuesday noon, partial and unofficial results showed Rogelio already getting 140,864 votes, with 98.99 percent of the votes cast already processed.
Independent bet Elson Formoso only got 13,828 votes while Jamby Orig of the Nationalist People’s Coalition (NPC) and Victor Mejia of the Kilusang Bagong Lipunan received 6,269 and 2,703 votes, respectively.
Rogelio is a former chair of Barangay Apopong here and represented the Liga ng mga Barangay in the city council. (PNA)
Pacquiao brothers win in GenSan, Sarangani
VOL. 9 ISSUE 51 • WEDNESDAY, MAY 11, 2016 11
Applications open for 11th AboitizFuture Leaders Business SummitNINETY of the country’s
best college undergrad-uates are set to flock to
Cebu City once more for one of the most-anticipated student gatherings of the year—the Aboitiz Future Leaders Busi-ness Summit (AFLBS), to be held from November 3 to 5, 2016.
Every year, the AFLBS gathers the country’s bright-est college student leaders for a three-day summit of fun and knowledge through activities that allow participants to de-velop their leadership skills and learn how to concretize management concepts in a corporate environment.
“We strongly encourage qualified college students all over the country to apply for the 11th AFLBS. This country needs a fresh batch of passion-ate and driven leaders who will lead, excel, and serve the best way they can. The next one could just be you,” says Txabi Aboitiz, Aboitiz Equity Ventures, Inc. Chief Human Re-sources Officer.
On its 11th year of build-ing young talented leaders, the AFLBS will continue to pre-pare and empower the youth to be change-makers in their chosen field of profession, and in society in general.
To apply for this year’s AFLBS, an applicant must:
• Be a Filipino citizen, 25
years old or younger at the time of the Summit
• Be a bonafide undergradu-ate student of a school / uni-versity
• Be a graduating student; 4th year student of a 4-year course or 5th year student of a 5-year course (by SY 2016-2017)
• Be taking up any course in the following fields of study: Business / Management, Accounting, Information Technology, Engineering, Psychology, or Pre-Law
• Must not have any failing grade or any disciplinary cases inside and outside campus.
• Be an active leader or officer
of any student organiza-tion – student government, academic, cause-oriented, socio-civic or religious in na-ture
11th AFLBS applicants must also submit all of the fol-lowing documents:
• A fully completed applica-tion form. Applicants may download a copy of the application forms in the ad-dress below.
• A certified true copy of the applicant’s college tran-script for all undergraduate course work, ending with the grades from the last se-mester of SY 2015-2016.
• Certification from the School Registrar stating the overall cumulative GPA / GWA of the applicant and the percentage equivalent grade.
• Certifications supporting leadership experience, awards received, and com-munity involvements.
• A signed recommendation letter
• Personal essay, artwork, or photograph
Applications are now open and will run from May 5 to June 15.
For more information on the 11th AFLBS application requirements, please visit ca-reers.aboitiz.com/futuretal-ents/future-leaders-busi-ness-summit or follow AboitizLeaders on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram using the hashtag #11thAFLBS.
About Aboitiz Equity Ventures
Aboitiz Equity Ventures, Inc. (AEV) is the publicly listed holding and investment com-pany of the Aboitiz Group with major investments in power, banking and financial services, food, land, and infrastructure. AEV is recognized as one of the best-managed companies in the Philippines and in the re-gion, and is acknowledged for its good corporate governance.
THE College of Law of Ateneo de Davao Uni-versity announces its
roster of new lawyers. The 2015 Bar passers are:Kathy Florence BaldonadoKris Marian BanzonJulie Merriam BucaKrisna Samantha CaballeroJonah Liz CadiatanRuby Ann CalizoAlthea Mae CasadorKaren Bianca Angeli CezarSonny Paul CirunayEmman Rey DapaingIan Julius De CastroJohn Frederick DerijeJeziel EstrellaJessielle Ann FabianDonna Marie FloresKatrina Kris Gabrielle Give-roForcrissa GogoAuda Bea KahuluganNorhussein LaubanJohn Paul MacababbadStephen don MuñezRosalie NuñezaJoanne PaguidoponKristine Mae QuibodWilliam Angelo RuyerasIbrahim Silongan Jr.Norberto Sinsona Jr.Iris Pauline TaganasJennidy TamborSuzette TanSittie Fahanie UyJessa Ela VelardeJennifer Kristine Yanto
Of the 33 Ateneans, 19 are first-time takers. Four-
teen retakers also got the nod of the Bar examiners.
The percentage of Ate-neo first-time takers is 82.61% while the overall passing rate is 73.30% (33 out of 45). The national passing rate is 25.97%.
This year, the passing grade was set at 75%, two points higher than the pass-ing grade for past two years.
The University Presi-dent, Fr. Joel Tabora, SJ, ex-tended his greetings to the passers and the College of Law.
“[Congratulations] Dean [Manuel] Quibod and Law [School] Faculty on 82.6% passing for first timers and 73.3% overall [passing rate] vs. 25.9% national [passing rate]!” Fr. Tabora posted on his Twitter account.
Ateneo de Davao con-tinues its tradition of excel-lence, having been awarded as the fifth top performing law school in the country by the Legal Education Board last December, with an av-erage passing rate of 53.02 percent. The results were based on the cumulative Bar Examination results of law schools across the country from 2012 to 2014 as certi-fied by the Office of the Bar Confidant of the Supreme Court. SAMANTHA DELFIN AND NOELLE GRACE PETEL
Ateneo de Davaohas 33 new lawyers
ESDEVCO THANKSGIVING LUNCH. EscandorDevelopment Corporation (Esdevco), developer of Matina Enclaves, hosted another thanksgiving lunch on Tuesday (May 10) at The Royal Mandaya Hotel for its top Sellers for the Month of April 2016. The top sellers for April are Charity Furog, Ofelia Genodepanon, Chita Hierro, Romeo Hierro, Reynebelle
Abril, Gilbert Monecillo, Ryan Sayson, Boyd Yron Xhryzler Cabiladas and Jetro Pinili. Esdevco project head Gerald Garces personally led the recognition of the month’s top achievers.
EDGEDAVAO
COMPETITIVE EDGE
FORD Philippines today reported an all-time record month with re-
tail sales in April that soared 93 percent year-over-year to 3,152 units, led by strong demand for the Ranger pick-up and all-new Everest, Eco-Sport, and Explorer SUVs.
The record April perfor-mance helped Ford’s remain one of the fastest growing au-tomotive brands in the Philip-pines this year.
“Our full lineup of global Ford vehicles continues to be very well received by custom-ers, helping our brand con-
tinue to gain momentum and even more appeal,” said Lance Mosley, managing director, Ford Philippines. “Whether it’s one of the 13 variants of the Ranger, or one of our seg-ment-defining SUVs, we’re connecting with the diverse lifestyles and work require-ments of Filipinos across the country.”
Ford’s record month was led by the all-new Everest which delivered retail sales of 1,308 units. The Everest has enjoyed immense populari-ty since being launched, and remains Ford’s best-selling
nameplate in 2016 with year-to-date sales now totaling 4,838 units.
The EcoSport compact SUV continued its momentum in April with retail sales rising 25 percent year-over-year to a best-ever month of 837 units. EcoSport’s year-to-date sales total 2,667 units, continuing to lead its segment in the Phil-ippines.
The segment defining Ranger pickup truck – offered in a range of 13 automatic- and manual-transmission variants – contributed to Ford’s record month sales ris-
ing 13 percent year-over-year to 786 units.
April sales of the premium Explorer SUV rose 16 percent to 80 units, while the sporty Ford Fiesta – featuring the high-performance 1.0L Eco-Boost engine – delivered sales of 81 units.
The new Mustang deliv-ered April sales of 19 units, driving up year-to-date sale to 98 units. Equipped with either a V8 5.0L or EcoBoost 2.3L en-gine, the Mustang comes with world-class handling, more precise steering control and enhanced ride comfort.
Ford recently expanded its SUV lineup with the intro-duction of the EcoSport Black Edition and Everest Titanium 2.2L 4x2 with Premium Pack-age, which are both available at Ford dealerships nation-wide.
“We expect these new variants of the EcoSport and the Everest to give our overall sales another boost, and allow us to offer even more power of choice to Filipino customers,” said Mosley.
Previously offered only on the Titanium 3.2L 4x4 variant, the Everest Premium Pack-
age for the 2.2L 4x2 variant comes with additional safety, smart and convenience fea-tures such as Adaptive Cruise Control, Lane Keeping System, Lane Departure Warning, and Active Park Assist.
The limited EcoSport Black Edition is now equipped with contrasting black details complemented with styl-ized accessories for a bold, distinct look on the road. It also features Keyless Swing Gate, Push-Start Button, Rear Parking Sensors, and SYNC 2 among others for added con-venience to the driver.
Ford Philippines sales jump 93% in April
VOL. 9 ISSUE 51 • WEDNESDAY, MAY 11, 201612 EDGEDAVAO
MOTORING
RACING under the hot summer sun, it was a day full of on-track ac-
tion at Round 2 of the 2016 GT Radial FlatOut Race Series (FORS) held last April 9 at the Clark International Speedway (CIS). It was also the biggest turnout this season with 95 drivers competing in the Time Trial challenge and Grid races.
The country’s premier grassroots motorsport event ran the full 4.2-kilometer course where high tempera-tures pushed both man and machine to heat-induced ex-haustion. The Automobile Association Philippines (AAP) was also present on track to guide both the organizers and racers.
Of quickest driver of them all was JC Baguisa of the JCT-Blanche Racing team. The rac-er from Cabanatuan City set a blistering pace in the time tri-als to take 1st place in Bracket A. He then qualified on pole position in the #696 Honda Civic Hatchback and fought a hard battle against other drivers in the top Grid bracket, defending his position to take the win.
The top-seeded Brack-
et A saw JC Baguisa achieve the a fastest lap of 2:10.421. He was 3 seconds clear of his closest rival, Eduardo Suiza in the Competition Clutch Honda Civic EG hatchback who post-ed a 2:13.101 lap. Meanwhile, famed car tuner Mato Tan of Matonetics came in 3rd with a time of 2:15.067.
In Bracket B, the compe-tition was so fierce that the top three finishers were with-in a tenth of a second apart. Christian Go finished 1st with a 2:16.064 lap in the gray JCT-Blanche Honda Civic Hatch-back. Gerald Loy, who clocked in a close 2:16.201, had to settle for 2nd and Sydney Sarmiento completed the po-dium with a time of 2:16.218.
For Bracket C, Joey How-ard got the podium with a 2:21.101 run. Driftmob’s John Boban managed a 2:21.237 lap in a Toyota Soarer for 2nd place and James Santiago’s 2:21.726 lap earned in 3rd.
The heavily contested Bracket D saw Jonnie Pineda, Arturo Pasao, and Polo Bautis-ta take home 1st, 2nd, and 3rd, respectively. With 12 entries in Bracket E, Raymond de Pano took home 1st place for the
second time in row, coming in with a 2:21.220 lap. Close behind were Erwin Manaog in 2nd and Lloyd Puno in 3rd .
Anthony Richard Lanting’s 2:36.424 lap put him in 1st for Bracket F. Robert Tan won 2nd with his 2:37.493 lap and Lars Alonzo had a 2:37.511 time for 3rd. The fastest in Bracket G was Karol Jose with a best time of 2:42.101. 2nd and 3rd places were awarded to Ryan Despuing and Mark Pascual, respectively.
Bracket R, otherwise known as the open class, was topped by Suiza driving his Lancer Evolution and taking the fastest time of the day of 2:09.070. Baguisa and Willie Torres followed in that order.
Finally, the winners in the support classes The Perfect Lap and Grupo Toyota were John Boban and Greg Suing, respectively.
Grids A, B, and C were all run together forming a big 25-car grid. Top qualifier and Bracket A winner JC Baguisa lost his pole position early in the GT Radial Grid A race. This allowed Rafael La’O and Eduardo Suiza to get ahead. A scrappy drive from Baguisa
allowed him to overtake Suiza, then La’O from the inside of Turn 1 midway through the race and never looked back. Baguisa took home a well de-served win in the 8-lap race, followed by Suiza in 2nd and La’O in 3rd.
Behind them, there was massive 9-car battle in the Smart Fuels Grid B race. Chris-tian Go strongly defended his position and managed to pull away a 5.197 sec lead to take 1st place. Following behind were Gerard Loy and Baguio City’s Gabby Sohu who traded positions at almost every lap.
Loy would cross the line in 2nd while Sohu in the PAGCOR/Zenium/Gerco-backed Honda Civic EG Hatchback earned a well-deserved 3rd place.
James Santiago dashed to victory in the Competition Clutch Grid C race over 2nd placer Lesley Tuazon and 3rd placer Vanni Garcia.
Even bigger was the com-bined Grid D and E that had 35 cars on the line. Buddy Club Grid D saw the biggest line-up with 20 drivers fight-ing for a win. Sherwin Bargos once again bagged 1st place in the 7-lap race. Unfortunately
for Polo Bautista who should be in 2nd, he broke out of his bracket time relegating him to 9th place after penalties. Alex Perez and AC Gutierrez were both handed the same pen-alties, awarding 2nd and 3rd places to JP Pacres and Frank-lin Ong, respectively.
Meanwhile, Anthony Richard Lanting won 1st in the Works Bell Grid E with RJ Lanting in 2nd and Jack Sagu-ilayan in 3rd.
For Round 3, the FlatOut Race Series (FORS) heads back to the Batangas Racing Circuit (BRC) this weekend.
AFTER being pre-viewed as a concept in the Bangkok Motor
Show, Chevrolet has finally pulled the wraps off the pro-duction version of the 2017 Colorado, a pickup which Chevy says offers greater performance, better safety, increased refinement, and segment-leading technology.
Outside, it gives a strong nod to its American truck DNA with a new, angular front end dominated by a sporty front grille, hood, and lamps. The lamps also offer LED daytime running lights too. Inside, it’s much more refined with a premium inte-rior that focuses on comfort,
spaciousness, refinement, and technology. It also offers Apple CarPlay functionality with Siri Eyes Free and voice recognition.
The biggest news though is what’s found under the hood. For 2017, the 2.5-liter Duramax 4-cylinder tur-bo diesel engine has seen a power hike. Thanks to an optimized in-house ECU tuning, the power is upra-ted to 180 horsepower at 3,600 rpm and 440 Nm of torque at 2,000 rpm. It’s also now Euro-4 compliant. This engine is also fitted with a sound deadener around the injectors for a quieter oper-ation.
Apart from the en-gine, the chassis has been strengthened for increased rigidity allowing for better stability and comfort. New cabin mounts also reduce the movement between the cabin and chassis providing more solid driving dynamics. Finally, the 2017 Colorado gets an Electric Power Steer-ing (EPS) system.
On the new Colorado High Country (Chevy’s ver-sion of the Ranger Wildtrak), it gets a wealth of driver assistance features such as front and rear parking sen-sors, forward collision alert, tire pressure monitor, auto rain sensor, and more.
GT Radial FlatOut Race Series heats up in Round 2
A workhorse called Colorado High Country
WOMEN
EDGEDAVAOINdulge!
METRO MOM A4
JOEY SY-DOMINGO REMAINS THE MOST RECOGNIZABLE FEMALE VOICE IN THE LOCAL AIRWAVES, as well as corpo-rate and social events in metro Davao. It has been a year since I last saw her and two years since I interviewed her for this column. De-spite the absence and distance, I still find myself updated with her latest career triumphs, as the buzz around her never ceases to quiet while she hops on from one project to another.
Born with a wide range of talent, creativity and spunk, Joey is one who keeps on learning and growing. She is not one to settle with what she’s used to. On the contrary, I believe she always craves something new and bet-ter. Through the years, she has gone from queen of local FM radio, master of ceremonies, university professor and kitchen roy-alty. Despite the change in titles and disciplines, Joey remains loyal to that voice inside of her which continues to lead her to brave through greater ter-ritories. Now, that voice, so uniquely her own, is ready to stream online. Her web-site, www.joeysydomingo.com, is now live and ready for broadcast. “In this day and age, you have to marry main-stream media with online platforms,” explains Joey. “You have to adapt to new media and audience. As a person who makes a liv-
ing as a free-lance voice talent and host, I have to make myself available to new clients and projects. I have come to understand that the way we do busi-ness now is different from how we did it before. Sure, by word of mouth and credible referrals, I have achieved and gained my own momentum. Howev-er, as times have changed, it also helps that I have that online and digital plat-form where potential cli-ents can browse through my work and get a feel of how I fit into their project or their event.” “My website is a port-
folio which showcases the collection of work I have done over the years. In a way, I call them my per-sonal accomplishments. My work will speak for how I am as a voice talent and host. I want clients to be able to understand what I can do for them.” The website takes au-dience through an as-sortment of demos, radio commercials, event pho-tos, and other recordings which Joey has compiled over the years. Testimo-nials from former clients, lifestyle writers and fellow industry players also sum-marize Joey’s expertise in her chosen field, making her an ideal choice even for other projects such as radio imaging, podcast, training and educational videos, films and live-ac-tion features, phone and voice message systems, documentaries and audio books, corporate or indus-
Joey Sy-Domingo's
ONLINE BUZZ
VOL. 9 ISSUE 51 • WEDNESDAY, MAY 11, 2016
THESE ARE CLOTHES DESCRIBED AS “APRÈS SPORT” OR “GYM TO OF-FICE”, basic pieces that are smart, light-weight, frill free, and sometimes even ar-chitectural. And designers and retailers are have created a lot of buzz about “ath-leisure” collections, which are appropri-ate for either athletic or leisure pursuits. Leisure wear is everything casual and comfortable in a woman’s wardrobe, usually consisting of loose fitting garments made of breathable fabrics like cotton or ny-lon. For the woman on the go, leisurewear is a practical solution for running errands or exercising. But just because it’s casual doesn’t mean it can’t be stylish. And SM Woman takes a minimalist spin to leisurewear; with simple, easy, and practical separates. Photographed against the modern architectural façade of One Esplanade, these are pieces that show the softer side of minimalism with the use of soft, breezy fabrics, staple knits, and a neutral, monochromatic color pal-ette. A subtle hint of soft pastels here and there, gives the overall silhouette an urban, contemporary edge. SM Woman’s top hits: high-neck sleeveless knits, cropped tops, asymmetrical hem shirts, boxy blouses, and flattering tunics. Cool culottes and cropped pants will make any ensemble look simply chic, while sleek long vests jazz up even the simplest of outfits. Keep ac-cessories and sole choices to a minimum to maintain the fluidity of the whole look. Shot on location at One Esplanade, the latest SM Woman separates are available at The SM Store.
A2 INdulge! EDGEDAVAOSTYLE
Style in Leisure
Pure and Simple. A Long black vest worn over an asymmetrical top and a pair of straight-leg cropped pants.
Minimalist match. White boxy top worn with black trousers with contrasting side piping.
Best of the Vest. White hip-long vest worn with skinny pants and slip-on sneakers.
Walk This Way. Grey knit long vest worn with a black asymmetrical sleeveless top and white trousers.
Easy Layers. Crisp white button-down shirt worn under a soft sleeveless double layer top, paired with black culottes and blush blazer.
Sleek and sophisticated. Black high-neck tunic top worn with a pair of white cropped trousers.
VOL. 9 ISSUE 51 • WEDNESDAY, MAY 11, 2016
INdulge! A3EDGEDAVAOENTERTAINMENT
Celebrity supporters of Mayor Digong, elated over his big lead
Global business leader Sir Richard Branson headlines ANC forum on May 25THE GO-TO-NEWS SOURCE FOR THE COUNTRY’S TOP BUSINESSMEN AND LEADERS is bringing one of the world’s most innovative businessmen to the Philippines. As part of its 20th anniversary celebration, ANC, the ABS-CBN News Channel will be holding the inaugural Asian Innovation and Entrepreneurship Forum on May 25, 2pm at the Grand Plaza Ballroom of the Hotel Sofitel featuring global business leader Sir Richard Branson as guest speaker. Sir Richard, Founder, Virgin Group will be in town to share his insights and experiences to Philippine industry leaders and executives in the first of a series of leadership forums from ANC, deemed the gold standard in Philippine news. Branson is credited for building from scratch an empire that has gone on to grow successful businesses in sectors including mobile telephony, travel, transportation, financial services, health and wellness, leisure and entertainment. In 2004 Richard established Virgin Unite, the non-profit foundation of the Virgin Group, which unites people and entrepreneurial ideas to create opportunities for a better world. Tickets to the Asian Innovation and Entrepreneurship Forum, An ANC Leadership Series are now available on Ticketworld and are priced at P25,000 (Silver), P30,000 (Gold), and P35,000 (Platinum). For ticket inquiries, visit www.ticketworld.com.ph or call (02) 891.9999. For corporate group sales, contact Inspire Leadership Consultancy at [email protected] or call (02) 631.0912. For more information on the Asian Innovation and Entrepreneurship Forum, visit http://ancevents.abs-cbn.com .
S T A R S S U P P O R T I N G MAYOR RODRIGO “ D I G O N G ” DUTERTE ARE IN THE MOOD TO CELEBRATE WITH THE DAVAO CITY MAYOR who currently holds a lion’s share of the votes among the presidential candidates. According to the latest partial, unofficial results, Mayor Digong has over 15.1 million votes, while his closest rival, former DILG Secretary Mar Roxas, got 9.1 million votes. Actress Liza Diño took to Twitter to congratulate Mr. Duterte for his impending
win, while former TV reporter Kat de Castro is extremely happy that Minadanao will get its first president. Meanwhile, Senator Grace Poe and her running mate Senator Francis “Chiz” Escudero have both conceded. Former Bubble Gang star Ogie Alcasid only has good words for Sen. Poe for giving her best
in this election.Kapuso sexy siren Lovi Poe, the half sister of Sen. Grace Poe, posted this heartfelt message on Instagram for her and Sen. Chiz.“Knowing Senator Grace Poe and Senator Chiz Escudero personally pushed me to support and vote for such beautiful souls. Because I’ve seen it. And I know. I
admire their compassion and integrity... It’s just great to know that such people still exist.. By people I mean people whose main goal is to be a public servant and not just a politician. Now I know the difference. I salute you both for handling everything with grace. In addition to that, I would like to congratulate our Next president and Vice President. It’s time to prove to us that they’re not as bad as how others perceive them. God bless the Philippines!”Comedy genius Michael V posts a reminder to all Filipinos on his Instagram as the election season winds down.
Anne Curtis remains a KapamilyaANNE CURTIS REMAINS A KAPAMILYA after signing an exclusive two-year contract with ABS-CBN last Thursday, May 5. Curtis’ projects include a new TV series and two more hosting jobs for the noontime show “It’s Showtime” and for the second season of the reality music show “I Love OPM.” When asked how she feels as a Kapamilya, Anne replied, “It’s just great, ABS-CBN is my home and I’m very, very happy.” Present in the signing were ABS-CBN’s chief financial officer Aldrin Cerrado, ABS-CBN president and chief executive officer Carlo Katigbak, ABS-CBN’s chief operating officer for Broadcast Cory Vidanes, Anne Curtis’ manager Veronique Corpus, and TV Production head Laurenti Dyogi.
Marian Rivera-Dantes and her flower arranging skillsFIRST-TIME MOM MARIAN RIVERA O F F I C I A L L Y C E L E B R A T E D MOTHER’S DAY in which tons of surprises was thrown by her husband Dingdong Dantes. She received a meaningful gift which reminds her of motherhood. She posted it on Instagram and said, “Mahal, salamat for this gift.” Since May 8 was solely dedicated to mothers, the Kapuso Primetime Queen enjoyed her time making her own bouquet of flowers. Her hubby posted,
“Check out my wife in her first attempt as a florist. Is this an alternative career
in the making? Mukha lang serious [siya] dito pero alam kong happy
siya. We (Letizia and I) are your biggest fans – whatever industry it may be. Happy Mother’s Day to you, baby.” It was indeed a dream come true for the Kapuso star, “Kahapon, ang isa sa mga items na nasa bucket list ko ay nagawa ko. Haaay speechless again.” She thanked the Kapuso Primetime King for being a supportive husband, “Salamat mahal, ang dami mong surprise sa akin. Ang mga hawak niya – gawa ko ‘yan... Love you, Dad!” The actress capped her post by saying, “Happy Mother’s Day sa lahat ng ina!”
VOL. 9 ISSUE 51 • WEDNESDAY, MAY 11, 2016
R13
PG 1:00 | 4:00 | 7:00 | 10:00 LFS
JUST THE 3 OF US
12:40 | 3:00 | 5:20 | 7:40 | 10:00 LFS
John Lloyd Cruz, Jennylyn Mercado
CAPTAIN AMERICA: CIVIL WAR
Chris Evans , Robert Downey Jr., Scarlett Johansson
May 11 – 17, 2016
PG 12:00 | 2:00 | 4:00 | 6:00 | 8:00 | 10:00 LFS
THE ANGRY BIRDS
Jennifer Aniston, Julia Roberts, Kate Hudson
G/ *R16 12:05 | 2:10 | 4:15 LFS / *6:20 | 8:10 | 10:00 LFS
THIS TIME / * PRECIOUS CARGO
James Reid, Nadine Lustre/ *Mark-Paul Gosselaar, Bruce Willis
A4 INdulge!WOMEN
METRO MOM A1trial presentations, com-mercials and promo for radio, television, internet and other related media. Joey adds, “Having your own portfolio web-site establishes credibility as talent. This investment is meant to support my growing career, which I love so much. As it helps me increase and strength-en my presence online, the opportunities that come with this project give me financial independence and I have gained a greater drive to improve on my talent while I gear up for a bigger stage and audi-ence.” “The website also im-parts a message to always follow your passion and to believe in your ability to succeed.”
EDGEDAVAO VOL. 9 ISSUE 51 • WEDNESDAY, MAY 11, 2016
DAVAO PARTNER ESTABLISHMENT
GENSAN PARTNER ESTABLISHMENT
VOL. 9 ISSUE 51 • WEDNESDAY, MAY 11, 2016 13EDGEDAVAO
We are now hiring for the ff. job vacancies:
1. CUSTOMER SERVICE OFFICER (C.S.O.)Scope of Work:• Handling of customer services (e.g. inquiries, complaints, scheduling
of services)• Preparation of quotation for clients• STARTING SALARY: P12, 000 (BASED ON PRIOR EXPERIENCE)
2. TECHNICAL ENGINEER (T.E.)Scope of Work:• Installation/Programming/Configuration for the ff. products*CCTV, PABX, PABGM, INTERCOM, BIOMETRICS, ACCESS CONTROL,
FIRE ALARM • STARTING SALARY: P13, 000 (BASED ON PRIOR EXPERIENCE)
3.ACCOUNTS MANAGER (A.M.)Scope of Work:• Sales & Marketing for New Clients• STARTING SALARY: P15, 000 UP (BASED ON PRIOR EXPERIENCE)
4. STORE SUPERVISORScope of Work:• Responsible for daily store operation • Handling of manpower
Please email your resume to: [email protected] or [email protected]
For walk in applicants, you may call the ff. branches:Cebu Office: (032) 2380912
Globe: 09173293471 • Sun: 09255014723
Davao Office: (082) 2212789 Globe: 09177952469 • Sun: 09322448030
WANTED 3 REPORTERS
EDGE DAVAO is in need of 3 reporters for immediate hiring.
* College degree holder (Communication Arts graduate preferred, but not required)
* Capable of writing English news and feature stories on business and governance
* Has potentials of becoming editor* Single* Not more than 35 years old
Entry pay negotiable.
Submit application letter and curriculum vitae to:
Antonio M. AjeroEditor-in-Chief
Edge [email protected]
09274733467
EDGE Serving a seamless society
DAVAO
CLASSIFIEDS
VOL. 9 ISSUE 51 • WEDNESDAY, MAY 11, 201614
EDGE Serving a seamless society
DAVAO GENSAN PARTNERS
EDGE Serving a seamless society
DAVAO PARTNER ESTABLISHMENTS
CLASSIFIEDS EDGEDAVAO
VOL. 9 ISSUE 51 • WEDNESDAY, MAY 11, 2016 15EDGEDAVAOSports
STEPHEN Curry returned from a sprained right knee to score an NBA-re-
cord 17 points in overtime, fin-ishing with 40 as the Golden State Warriors rallied to take a 3-1 lead in the Western Con-ference semifinals with a 132-125 victory over the Portland Trail Blazers on Monday night (Tuesday, Manila time).
Playing for the first time since he was injured in Game Four of the first-round series against Houston, Curry was rusty for three quarters and sensational down the stretch after the Warriors trailed by as much as 16 points.
Originally expected to play about 25 minutes off the bench, Curry picked up a heavier workload in the sec-ond half after Shaun Living-ston, who had been starting in his absence, was ejected in the second quarter after arguing a call and picking up two techni-cal fouls.
His victorious return came hours after a person with knowledge of the award told The Associated Press that Cur-ry would repeat as NBA MVP, with the announcement com-ing as early as Tuesday.
The Warriors can win the series on Wednesday night at home in Game Five.
Damian Lillard finished with 36 points and 10 assists
for Portland.Curry’s fast-break layup
gave the defending NBA cham-pions a 120-118 lead with 2:21 left in the extra period. He followed with a 3-pointer, pounding his chest and pump-ing his fist in celebration, pos-turing for the courtside fans.
Harrison Barnes’ layup extended the lead to 125-118 and Portland couldn’t catch up. Klay Thompson finished with 23.
Curry’s long jumper gave the Warriors a 92-87 lead with 9:01 left in the fourth quarter. Lillard’s 3-pointer gave Port-land back a 99-97 lead, but Curry nailed his first 3 of the game to give the Warriors a 103-100 lead with 4:35 left.
Draymond Green dunked to keep Golden State within 109-108 late in regulation. Mason Plumlee’s finger-roll layup extended Portland’s margin but Barnes tied it at 111-all with a 3-pointer for Golden State with 51 seconds left, and both Lillard and Curry missed to force overtime.
Curry led the Warriors to an NBA-record 73 wins in the regular season, a year after leading the team to its first NBA championship in 40 years. He averaged just over 30 points per game this sea-son.
The Trail Blazers nar-
rowed the series to 2-1 on Saturday night when Lillard scored 40 points in a 120-108 Portland victory while Golden State was still without its star guard. The Blazers became the only team to defeat the War-riors twice this season.
Maurice Harkless, who had been icing his hip during Game 3, hit Portland’s first 3-pointer of the night. Lillard hit two more 3s as the Blazers took an early 12-2 lead.
Curry came in off the bench with 5:56 left in the first quarter and Portland up 16-2. His only points in the quarter came off a pair of jumpers be-fore he went back to the bench.
Livingston felt he was fouled just before halftime and was thrown out after arguing with referee Scott Foster. The 12-year veteran guard was averaging 12.1 points and 5.5 assists in the playoffs. He had started six of the eight playoff games while Curry nursed his knee injury.
Portland led 67-57 at the half, scoring a franchise play-off-record 41 points in the sec-ond quarter alone. Lillard led all scorers with 17 points.
Thompson’s 3-pointer and Curry’s driving layup capped a 14-5 run, pulling the Warriors within three. Thompson’s 3-pointer put the Warriors ahead 79-78.
HOT CURRYCurry pours in 40 in return, Warriors win in OT
HOT. Stephen Curry fired 40 points in his return to playoff action.
THE Miami HEAT defeated the Toronto Raptors 94-87 in overtime Monday
night at AmericanAirlines Arena in Game 4 of the Eastern Confer-ence Semifinals. Dwyane Wade led the way for the HEAT with 30 points. The series is now tied 2-2.
1. Wade Does It AgainRemember Wade’s excel-
lent performance in Game 3? Well, the future Hall-of-Famer answered the call once more. On Monday night, the vet did a little bit of everything against the Raptors and left them look-ing for answers. Whether it was tough mid-range jumpers, float-ers inside or slams in transition, Wade usually found success.
The fourth quarter was par-ticularly great, as the 34-year-old weaved through the defense and finished play after play at
the rim. He ended up with 11 of his 30 points in the fourth quar-ter and overtime period com-bined, including a steal and slam that essentially sealed the deal with 16.8 seconds remaining.
In addition to his 30 points on 13-of-24 shooting, Wade also had four rebounds and two as-sists.
2. Winslow Wise Beyond His Years
On a few plays down the stretch, Justise Winslow guard-ed Kyle Lowry quite well and came through on some frenetic defensive sequences towards the end of the game. Once Low-ry fouled out, Winslow then focused his attention to Cory Jo-seph and forced him into two big misses at the end of regulation.
On the flip side of the ball, the rookie connected on some tough baseline drives earlier in
the contest. But as usual with him, it’s all about his defensive prowess.
In all, the 20-year-old tal-lied nine points, four boards and a plus-seven rating on 4-of-5 shooting.
3. Cool JoeWhile Joe Johnson had a
slow start in the first three quar-ters, he really made his presence felt in the fourth quarter and overtime period. During that time span, Johnson had nine points and two clutch blocks. He also made a great decision to dish it out to Goran Dragic, who drove inside for a fantastic and-one in traffic.
Johnson simply brought that veteran leadership you’d expect at this time of year. He finished with 15 points, three assists, three steals and two re-bounds in addition to those two
blocks in Game 4.
4. Strong DefenseIn the first half, Miami did
a superb job on the defensive end against Toronto. In fact, the HEAT forced the Raptors to shoot just 29.3 percent through the first two quarters. In partic-ular, Luol Deng made things very tough for DeMar DeRozan and held him to just 2-of-12 shooting before halftime.
The solid defense early on led to 12 fast break points in the first half, as Miami pushed the pace off misses and turnovers.
As a whole, the HEAT fought hard over screens and rotated quickly. After a little bit of a lull in the third quarter, Miami amped things up defensively late in the contest to ensure the victory.
Game Note: Hassan White-side (knee) and Chris Bosh were inactive.
DABAWENYOS are get-ting used to anew weekend habit and
that’s working out in the park with the rest of the family.
Very Saturday, Dabawen-yos of all ages troop to the People’s Park to join the ear-ly morning physical fitness workouts organized by the city government and the Phil-ippine Sports Commission (PSC).
Last Saturday, 1,021 par-ticipants were recorded for
the weekend workout in eight different disciplines.
The number of senior cit-izens were reported at 45 by the Laro’t Saya secretariat.
Zumba had 700 partici-pants, arnis had 39, badmin-ton 60, futsal 36, rugby foot-ball 38, sepak takraw 30, tae-kwondo 33 and volleyball 40.
The program is free to the public and is handled by professional coaches trained by their respective national sports associations. (NJB)
Heat ties series as Wade explodesLaro’t Saya sa Parke: A new weekend habit
A POCKET tournament in Bologna, Italy and training sessions in Greece have
been lined up as part of the itin-erary of the Philippine national men’s basketball team prior to competing in the FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournament.
Gilas Pilipinas coach Tab Baldwin is hoping to get as many tune-up games as they can during their European trip and get more familiar with the level of play expected in the major in-ternational tournament.
“We’re hoping to have five. We might have one sort
of a scrimmage. It’s gonna be a coach-control scrimmage. There won’t be a game. We might wipe the score in the game. We might ask each other different defens-es. It will be a trick scrimmage any more like practice. We will have one public one. We hope to get three while in Europe and one more here before the start of the conference,” Baldwin said.
In Bologna, the team will get a chance to face national teams from Italy, China and Canada in late June.
China has already secured a seat in the Olympics after defeat-
ing the Philippines in the finals of the FIBA Asia Championship last year.
The Philippines is bracketed with France and New Zealand, two teams beefed up by NBA players, although the withdraw-al of France’s Rudy Gobert and Nicholas Batum as well as New Zealand’s Steven Adams gives Gilas Pilipinas three key players less to face in the Olympic qual-ifying tournament.
Baldwin, however, believes it won’t have any effect on the participation of France and New Zealand, which will remain for-
midable with the current roster they have.
“I don’t think it does any-thing to our chances. It’s exact-ly the same. You have to realize those guys with NBA credentials are followed up on all of these big European countries by guys who are genuinely just as good. They might not have the NBA athleticism or length, but their effectiveness as players with the national team, their experience with the national team, there’s no real problem and star quality is not what European coaches look for,” Baldwin added.
THE trade between the GlobalPort Batang Pier and Mahindra Enforc-
er finally pushed through on Tuesday, with the Blackwater Elite joining the mix to com-plete a three-team transaction.
In the deal, Mahindra sent Karl Dehesa to GlobalPort in exchange for Roi Sumang and Paolo Taha.
The Enforcer then sent Su-mang to Blackwater which let go of Keith Agovida.
The four-player trade was announced by the PBA on Tuesday.
GlobalPort and Mahin-dra had earlier agreed on a five-player deal last April be-fore the Enforcer pulled their plug from the transaction.
In the initial proposal,
Mahindra would have sent Dehesa and Mike DiGregorio to GlobalPort in exchange for Sumang, Taha and Jonathan Uyloan.
Dehesa, who averaged 11.18 points, 3.18 rebounds and 2.45 assists as one of Ma-hindra’s main players in the Commissioner’s Cup, will give GlobalPort a more formidable backup to its dynamic duo of Terrence Romeo and Stanley Pringle.
Bench players Taha (9 ppg) and Agovida (1.67 ppg) are hoping to find regular play-ing time with Mahindra.
Sumang (3.40 ppg) is set to provide some backup spark in a Blackwater squad spear-headed by explosive scorer Carlo Lastimosa.
Gilas to train in Greece, play in Italy
GP, Mahindra trade approved
VOL. 9 ISSUE 51 • WEDNESDAY, MAY 11, 201616 EDGEDAVAO