P 15.00 • 20 PAGESwww.edgedavao.netVOL. 9 ISSUE 62 • WEDNESDAY, MAY 25, 2016

EDGE Serving a seamless society

DAVAO

THE doors of the Arch-diocese of Davao will remain open to pre-

sumptive President Rodrigo Duterte, even after he brand-ed the Catholic Church the “most hypocritical institution” during a Sunday press confer-ence.

“Even during the pre-elec-tion period, we have always maintained a peaceful rela-tionship with him and our doors are always open to him,” Msgr. Paul A. Cuison, spokes-person of the archdiocese, said in a statement last Mon-day evening.

”The Archdiocese of Davao respects and listens with hu-

mility to the views and state-ments of our incoming Presi-dent Rodigo R. Duterte about the church, including those that may be difficult to accept and things that be contrary to our teachings,” Cuison added.

“We are with the people of Davao in acknowledging all the good things that he has done especially to the poor and the marginalized. We join him in prayer asking for divine wisdom and enlightenment as he begins his journey as the new leader of this land,” he said.

The septuagenarian president-elect, who hailed from Davao City, accused the

Church of hypocrisy.Duterte, who had a land-

slide win with of 6.2 million votes lead over administrative candidate Mar Roxas in the presidential election last May 9, lambasted bishops who condemned him during the campaign period.

The President Mayor said the Catholic Bishops’ Confer-ence of the Philippines (CBCP) issued pastoral letter days be-fore the election to discourage electorates from voting for him.

He said many bishops were engaged in corruption during the Arroyo adminis-tration like allegedly asking

money from the government for the purchase of cars.

“You sons of whores, ar-en’t you ashamed? You ask so many favors, even from me,” he said, referring to Catholic bishops.

Duterte also challenged the bishops to a debate to ex-pose the alleged sins of the Church, before he takes his oath on the Malacañang on June 30.

The long-time mayor of Davao City, who caused out-rage when he cursed the Pope and made rape jokes, said sep-aration of the Church and the State will be observed once he assumed his post.

Archdiocese: Werespect Rody’s views

crc@edgedavao.netBy CHENEEN R. CAPON

“...we have always maintained a peaceful relationship,” Msgr. Paul A. Cuison

Pinay golfers advance to R of 16

EDGEDAVAOSports

P16

PARDON FOR GMA. Incoming President Rodrigo R. Duterte is willing to pardon former Pres.

Arroyo and allow the burial of former Pres. Marcos at the

Libingan ng mga Bayani to unite this divided country. Duterte made the statements during

a press briefing on Monday evening. Lean Daval Jr.

VOL. 9 ISSUE 62 • WEDNESDAY, MAY 25, 2016

INCOMING president Rodri-go R. Duterte said he will not enforce a three-child

policy but will provide artifi-cial birth control products as a population control measure.

In a press conference here late Monday evening, Duterte however said three children per family is ideal “because our resources cannot meet the demand.”

“Family planning, (I am) re-installing the program, three lang anak and making available itong mga artificial birth controls because for cen-turies, yung natural cycle…

hindi nga ninyo masunod, lalo na ibang tao,” he said.

He said it angers him to see couples who don’t observe family planning and make their children suffer by failing to provide their basic needs.

He recalled his visit to a slum area in the city where he met a couple with 10 children but without a sustainable in-come to provide for the fami-ly’s needs.

“Nag-init yung ulo ko. Nung pumasok ako sa squat-ters area, namatay ang isang anak, ngayon sampu naman. Ang (father) trabaho barker,

walang trabaho ang asawa (mother),” he said.

Duterte said artificial birth control pills would be better than natural family planning because “biology yan eh. It is not something which you can ponder on. This is instinct,” he said.

He said he will not force people to have three children only but is “just suggesting that you are in good hands if you just limit the number of your children.”

He added that parents must be conscious about plan-ning ahead for the family and

make sure they can provide well for their children.

He also took a swipe at some leaders of the Catholic church who opposed the Re-sponsible Parenthood and Re-productive Health Act of 2012, also known as the Repro-ductive Health Law. (RH Law guarantees universal access to methods on contraception, fer-tility control, sexual education, and maternal care.)

“Buti sana kung magbigay ang simbahan ng honorarium, sabi ko nga kung hindi makat-ulong ang simbahan, wag na

2 EDGEDAVAO

NEWS

NEW PSG HEAD. Police Regional Office (PRO) 11 director Chief Superintendent Manuel Rabago Gaerlan (left) introduces incoming Presidential Security Group (PSG) chief Colonel Rolando Bautista during yesterday’s security conference at Camp Domingo Leonor in Davao City.Lean Daval Jr.

PRESIDENT-ELECT Ro-drigo Duterte will re-lease all political prison-

ers if leaders of the Communist Party of the Philippines – Na-tional Democratic Front (CPP-NDF) say “yes” to come home and sit down with government to talk peace.

Duterte said coming home for the negotiations will be his only pre-condition.

He said they can agree on when, where and how the process of their coming home, including CPP founding chair Jose Maria Sison, and how to conduct the talks. The time frame would depend how events would develop.

“Kailangan ko lang yes or no (All I need is yes or no),” Duterte told reporters on Mon-day night at the Leticia Suites here.

Duterte emphasized the release of prisoners as part of confidence-building between the two sides.

The release of political detainees would even include couple Benito and Wilma Tia-mzon, the chair and finance chief of the CPP, respectively. The couple was arrested in Cebu in 2014.

Duterte said there could be a workable plan to assimilate the Tiamzons back into society.

Rody to release political prisoners if Reds say ‘yes’ to peace negotiations with GRP

BARELY a month after the 2016 national elec-tions, Senate Majority

Leader Alan Peter Cayetano reiterated his assurance to help President-elect Rodrigo “Rody” Duterte in formulating his legislative agenda.

“Bilang kasama niya araw-araw sa kampanya, ako po ang nakarinig ng mga pangako at mga nais na pagbabago ni President Duterte sa ating bansa,” Cayetano said.

“Build a strong majority”When asked whether he

was interested in the Senate

presidency, Cayetano said he wants to focus more on build-ing a strong majority that will help Duterte realize his plans of creating real changes in the country.

“Everyone is interested in the Senate leadership. Wala pa akong nakitang senador na hindi interested maging Sen-ate President. However, it’s not really a matter of kung sinong magiging Senate President. It’s a matter of forming a strong majority that can deliver the culture the effectiveness and efficiency. Sa bigat ng legisla-tive agenda ni President Dute-

rte, kailangan ng majority na 15-18,” he added.

“Go beyond committees, unite under Duterte’s legisla-tive agenda”

Cayetano, however, said that he is not inclined to help in building a majority if the discussions will be limited to who will head the chamber’s respective committees. “We should go beyond the com-mittees and positions and dis-cuss the important measures that should be passed by the Senate under President-elect Duterte. Sa aking palagay, ka-hit sabihin nilang ako ang Sen-

ate President, pero hindi sila magko-commit sa legislative agenda (ni President Duter-te), hindi ko rin kukunin ang pwesto,” he added.

Among the key measures that Cayetano intends to push in the next Congress are the implementation of a nation-wide curfew for minors and liquor ban, increasing the salaries of police officers, im-proved internet connectivity, and phasing out labor con-tractualization. They also plan to conduct consultations with regard to their federalism pro-

PRESUMPTIVE Presi-dent-elect Rodrigo Dute-rte is ready to pardon

former Pres. Gloria Macapa-gal-Arroyo and allow the buri-al of former dictator Pres. Fer-dinand Marcos Sr. at the Libin-gan ng mga Bayani to “erase” hatred in a divided nation.

Duterte disclosed to re-porters on Monday night that he has talked to Arroyo and offered to grant her pardon, but that the former president refused because she must ad-mit the sin to be eligible for pardon.

“To my mind she should also be released. Lahat ng mga kasama niyang nademanda, nasa labas na. Si Mrs. Arroyo na lang (All those with her in the case are out. It’s only Mrs. Arroyo),” he said.

Duterte said if Arroyo does not want pardon, she may opt to apply for bail like her co-accused, former Philippines Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO) head Manoling Morato, who is out on bail.

As a prosecutor and law-yer, Duterte believes that there is no good case against Arroyo.

“I offered. I talked to her. Sabi ko, if I become President, ipa-pardon kita (I said if I be-come president, I will pardon you) not because you are my friend but I also believe that there is no good case against you,” Duterte recalled tell-ing Arroyo when they had a chance to talk through lawyer Raul Lambino.

“She’s been there (de-tained) – four years? Kawawa

Cayetano eyes strong majority for Rody’s legislative agenda

Duterte eyes pardon of GMA, burial of FM to ‘erase’ hatred

F CAYETANO, 10

F RODY WON’T, 10

F DUTERTE, 10

F RODY, 10

Rody won’t adopt3-child policy

VOL. 9 ISSUE 62 • WEDNESDAY, MAY 25, 2016 3NEWSEDGEDAVAO

THE army’s 10th Infan-try (Agila) Division on Monday morning re-

ported that two of the three members of the communist armed lawless group (ALG) who died in series of clashes last May 18 in the provinces of Davao del Norte and Compos-tela Valley were minors.

In a statement to the me-dia here, 10th ID chief infor-mation officer Captain Rhyan Batchar said police reports from the areas identified the minor ALG members killed as Romel Perez, 17 years of age and Marjune Gunay alias Urong, 14. The other dead ALG member was identified as Rodel Gunay alias Dodong, 18.

Rodel and Marjune are cousins and both residents of Barangay Mabuhay, Laak, Compostela Valley while Ro-mel is a resident of Barangay Sta. Emilia, Veruela, Agusan del Sur.

Recalled that last May 18, series of armed encounters occurred between ALGs and government troopers belong-ing to 60th Infantry Battalion.

The first encounter took place in the morning at Sitio Booy, Barangay Pinamuno, San Isidro, Davao del Norte where a soldier, identified as PFC Romero Celestial was killed.

The second encounter also took place in the morning of May 18 in Sitio Tugpahan, Barangay Imelda, Laak, Com-postela Valley where cous-ins Rodel and Marjune were killed.

Government troopers also recovered in the area three M-16 Armalite rifles from the encounter site.

The third encounter took place in the afternoon of the same date also in Sitio Booy where ALG member Perez was killed and an AK-47 was recov-ered from his possession.

“They were minors re-cruited by the New People’s Army (NPA) in the area and used in their armed strug-gle against the government,” Batchar pointed out in the statement.

The identities of the vic-tims were revealed after rel-atives claimed their cadavers last Friday, May 20, the report added.

The cadaver of Marjune Gunay was claimed by his fa-ther, Eto Gunay while that of Rodel Gunay was claimed by his sister, Marilyn Gunay.

The body of Romel Perez was claimed by his cousin Remelyn Cadenas, and aunts, Emma Perez Gemilga and Crisitna Sabusap Pabatang.

After the cadavers of the ALGs were recovered, a mem-ber of the group voluntarily surrendered to authorities last may 20 to the elements of 60th IB in Laak town, Batchar reported.

Alias Dalia was accom-panied by several barangay officials from Laak when she volunteered to turn herself to authorities, Batchar added.

“Dalia revealed that she was part of the ALG encoun-tered by government troops on Wednesday (May 18). She also revealed that the mem-bers of the ALG were consol-idating in preparation for the conduct of future atrocities in the area,” he said.

Dalia also revealed to police authorities during the interview that she and other

Minors killed in clashesin Davao region: Army

DAVAO City Councilor Mabel Sunga Acosta had the last laugh, after

all.A victim of black propa-

ganda and junking by some party mates, Acosta survived a nasty campaign against her person to grab the No. 1 spot in the City Council first dis-trict race, and couldn’t help but expressed elation over the fresh mandate.

“You reap what you sow. If you plant good deeds, you will certainly harvest good karma, for the people of the first district have spoken. They have given me their vote of confidence and they gave an overwhelming fresh man-date to continue to serve,” Acosta said in a privilege speech during yesterday’s regular session of the City Council.

Acosta also thanked pres-ident-elect Rodrigo R. Duterte and mayor-elect Sara Duterte for throwing their support behind her during the last political exercise where she became a victim of “malicious lies” by some individuals whom she did not name.

The lady councilor said rumors were circulated that

she even received money from another party. Her name, Acosta added, also did not ap-pear in tarpaulins of her party Hugpong sa Tawong Lungsod being displayed during the campaign period.

Worse, Acosta said her campaign collaterals “got sys-tematically destroyed or dis-appear altogether.”

“The recent campaign was an extra challenge for me and my team. There was a concerted attempt to dis-credit me, with the aim to make me fall out of the race. Malicious lies were scattered,” Acosta said.

“The truth is I am an orig-inal member of Hugpong sa Tawong Lungsod right from the very start when the par-ty headed by Mayor Rodrigo Duterte established this ag-grupation when he made a comeback in the local scene after his stint in Congress, and remains such to this day,” she added.

Acosta got 154,648 votes in the May 9 elections to emerge the highest vote-get-ter from among the candi-dates in the race for a seat in the local lawmaking body. (CRAM)

Acosta thankful for fresh mandate

COURTESY CALL. New police officers check their credentials during a scheduled courtesy call to the region’s police top brass at Camp Domingo Leonor in Davao City yesterday. Lean Daval Jr.

THE national campaign manager of presump-tive President-elect Ro-

drigo Duterte and incumbent Mayor of Maribojoc town in Bohol is committed to help the incoming administration realize “change” but whether he will accept the Cabinet Sec-retary post remains to be seen.

While he does not want to abandon Duterte, Mayor Leoncio Evasco said he has yet to discuss the offer with him. Evasco has been serving Duterte’s administration since the first term of the 20 years of Duterte’s mayorship in this city.

As Cabinet Secretary, the main mandate is to provide technical support to the Cab-inet and primary advisory counsel to the President.

Evasco, who is expected to visit the city this week, said he could not decide on the offer yet until he talks to Duterte.

“I am happy that he still trusted me but I need to talk to him first. I would want to help him because all of us conceived the real change especially for the poor to happen under his administration,” Evasco said.

“Basi muingon siya na hu-man ko nimo gipadaog di ko nimo tabangan. Protektahan nato ang iyahang administra-syon (He might say that after you made me win you will not help me. Let us protect his ad-ministration),” he added.

It was reported earlier that Evasco was chosen as the next

Secretary of the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) but refused to accept it. He clarified, however, that there was nothing to refuse because the DILG post was not

offered to him.On Monday night, Duterte

said Evasco has limitations for the DILG post, citing the lat-ter’s past as a communist and former priest.

Duterte said he wanted Evasco to remember why he offered the Secretary to the Cabinet post and that is “for the good of the country and for his own good.” (PNA)

Evasco to meet Duterte on Cabinet Secretary offer

members of the ALG in Laak were fresh recruits of a certain alias Blady and his wife alias Avon.

She said they were prom-ised a monthly allowance upon joining the armed group. ALEXANDER LOPEZ

VOL. 9 ISSUE 62 • WEDNESDAY, MAY 25, 20164 EDGEDAVAONEWS

A DAVAO-BASED diplo-matic official of Ma-laysia on Wednesday

welcomed the upcoming ad-ministration of presumptive president Rodrigo Duterte, saying his country would fur-ther strengthen its relation-ship with the incoming admin-istration.

Speaking before report-ers during the regular Habi at Kape Press Conference at the Abreeza Mall in Davao City on Wednesday, Malaysian Consul General Abdullah Zawawi Ta-hir emphasized that Malaysia will continue to support the peace process between the Philippine Government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF).

He also described Duterte as the best leader to do the job of strengthening the relation-ship of the Philippines with Malaysia and other nations in Southeast Asia.

“We will strengthen our commitment for a long and lasting peace in Mindanao,” he pointed out, adding that the Malaysian government’s in-volvement in achieving peace in the island-region also in-cludes the assignment of their military officials to become part of the International Mon-itoring Team (IMT).

He recognized the rich po-

tentials in Mindanao in terms of agriculture, mining and hu-man resources that the Phil-ippine government, especially the incoming administration of Duterte to fully develop.

Tahir said many of the human talents from Mindan-ao are now working abroad instead of staying in the is-land-region and help in its de-velopment.

“There are around 25,000 Filipinos who are IT experts now working in Malaysia. The incoming administration must provide good opportunities in order for them to go back to the Philippines.”

He added that there are about 2.2 million foreign work-ers in Malaysia. Every year, around 24 million to 28 mil-lion tourists visit their country, Tahir added.

Mr. Tahir said the Philip-pines can also learn from the experience of Malaysia in the implementation of the federal system of government.

He also lauded Duterte’s advocacy on federalism say-ing that Philippines can learn from Malaysia’s experience in successfully implementing the said system of government.

Consultation, Tahir said, is the key to ensure that the im-plementation of this system of government will be successful.

POLITICAL WILL. Photo shows members of the communist New People’s Army (NPA) on formation during the commemoration of the group’s anniversary last December somewhere in the hinterlands of Surigao del

Sur. The strong political will of incoming president Rodrigo Duterte and his resolve to address the root causes of armed conflicts are keys to successful talks with the left movement. Alexander Lopez

STRONG political will and addressing the roots of conflicts are the keys for

the success of peace negotia-tions between the government of the Philippines (GPH) and the National Democratic Front (NDF) of the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP).

For Silvestre Bello III, the two main considerations he presented are vital to win the continuing quest for peace and development in the coun-try and end the more than 40 years of insurgency that has caused the lives of thousands of Filipinos.

Problems on extreme poverty and landlessness are among the priorities that the government must attend to and focus on while having formal talks with the NDF, he asserted.

Bello talked with the mem-bers of the media on Thursday evening, May 19 in Davao City and admitted that though his name was already floated to lead the peace panel talking with the NDFP but still, the said government position was not yet formally offered to him by incoming president Rodrigo Duterte.

“The value of the talks is that while you are talking you are actually addressing the root causes of the armed con-flicts. The moment you do that then we have peace,” he said.

But he also emphasized that there is no formal offer yet

for him to be in charge of the peace talks with the reds.

“There is no formal offer. But if offered who am I to re-fuse the president-elect of the Republic of the Philippines. Mahirap tanggihan si Presi-dent Duterte.”

When asked what would be his first move if the position is offered to him Bello said he will ask Duterte of his road-map on the peace talks with the CPP.

Bello added: “I will have to ask the president ano ang kanyang expectations. It is very important, in any peace negotiation, that you know what your principal is plan-ning about the endeavour.”

He also emphasized that the principal must have a com-plete trust and confidence to his chief negotiator.

Bello also pointed out that the GPH-NDF peace ne-gotiations should be pushed through without any precon-ditions as stipulated under The Hague Joint Declaration that was signed by the two parties.

“The talks should resume without any preconditions. The issues on ceasefire and the release of NDF consultants will be the products of the negotia-tions.”

Bello also expressed his views on personalities that he wished to be part of the panel that will negotiate with the left.

“Panel members should have deep understanding on

the real situation of the country and the people.”

He named Peter Tiu Laviña, Mayor Leoncio Evasco, former Secretary Rene Sarmiento and former Secretary Braganza as his choices to sit with him in the negotiating table.

Bello also emphasized the presence on an Indigenous People (IP) in the panel; a member of the academe; and one adviser coming from the media.

He also expressed opti-mism the peace process with the left will resume soon and succeed given that incoming president Duterte wanted to achieve peace during his ad-ministration.

“I hope this time, with our president who has a very big mandate of our people and has shown the political will to pursue the talks will be able to bring these talks to its logical conclusion – and that is lasting peace for our country.”

Red-scare tactics derailing peace talks

Meanwhile, Bayan Muna Representatives Neri Colmena-res and Carlos Isagani Zarate on Thursday called on the people to actively push for the immediate resumption of the stalled peace talks between the government and the NDF in response to the resistance of ultra-rightist elements rep-resented by Senators Antonio Trillanes and Panfilo Lacson

and individuals identified with social democratic groups.

In a joint statement, the party-list congressmen said: “As in the past, and this ear-ly, the antiquated cold-war, red-scare tactic is once again being resurrected as bogey to frustrate the resumption of the peace talks with the NDF, the release of political prisoners and the possible appointments of left personalities in the cabi-net of President-elect Duterte.”

They added that the ul-tra-rightist and hawkish ele-ments are now desperate and despicable considering the openness and optimism of both the Duterte camp and the NDF to immediately return to the negotiating table, discuss and seek solutions to the root causes of the nearly five de-cade old armed rebellion in our country.

“The senators who are airing these supposed fears should instead throw their support for the peace talks and stop sowing paranoia.”

The progressive solons called on all “patriotic and peace-loving Filipinos to rally behind this fresh wind of find-ing a political settlement and lasting peace in our country.

They also specifically called on the members of the Church, the academe, people’s organizations and non-govern-ment organizations to be in the forefront of this peace endeav-our. ALEXANDER LOPEZ

Political will, addressing conflict rootskeys to successful talks with Reds: Bello

Malaysian diplomat Tahirwelcomes Duterte presidencyBy ALEXANDER LOPEZ

THE City Agriculture Office (CAGRO) of Sa-mal led the ceremonial

launching for the distribution of 2014 project of fishing gear materials and distribution of plastic drums for farmers during the officials and em-ployees ‘ Monday Convocation at Samal Multipurpose Gym-nasium on May 16.

The said projects were funded under Bottoms Up

Budgetting (BUB) in partner-ship with the Department of Agriculture- Bureau of Fish-eries and Aquatic Resources (DA-BFAR)and IGaCoS- Local Poverty Reduction Action Team (LPRAT) amounting to Php3,600,000 pesos.

There are 700 out 4000 registered fisher folks that have passed based on the qualification stan-dard. These qualified fisher

folks will receive the fishing gear material such as 50 units bottom set gill net, 24 rolls fish pot “bobo”, 1400 sets mul-tiple handle to 31 coastal ba-rangays of IGACOS. There are 133 plastic drums to also be given to farmers in support to vegetable production support taken from the City disaster fund.

“By 2016, in Region XI only IGACOS has a Fisheries

prohect under BUB. In fact there are 5 projects nga para sa IGACOS which has a total worth of 7,900,000 pesos like fishing gear for 7 baran-gays, fish landing, seaweeds nursery, cold storage building and fish sanctuary. That is what we are looking forward for this year and for coming years”, Davao del Norte Prov-ince Fishery Officer Lourdes S. Abapo said. (Samal Info)

IGaCoS distributes fishing, farming tools

THE Land Transporta-tion Office is going after vehicles using Duterte

plates.“They can place the plates

anywhere in their cars but they must not replace their car’s license plate.” Says Eleonor Calderon, operations divisions chief LTO-XI said during her guesting at today’s (May 23) Kapehan sa SM media forum.

Calderon said the LTO has been cracking down on the il-

legal use of Duterte plates even before the elections. There have been about 10 or more apprehensions with five viola-tors paying the P5,000 fine.

Anyone caught driving a car using a Duterte plate will be cited with improper/unau-thorized use of license plates.

The LTO has not issued any directive legalizing the use of these plates in lieu of LTO-is-sued license plates. (PIA/RG Alama)

SOUTH Cotabato prov-ince’s municipal mayors have expressed support

to incoming President Rodri-go R. Duterte’s reform agenda and proposed socio-economic programs.

Re-elected Tupi Mayor Reynaldo S. Tamayo Jr., chair of the League of Municipalities of Philippines (LMP)–South Co-tabato chapter, said Tuesday they are fully backing Duterte’s programs and plans to bring some changes to the country’s system of governance.

He said such sentiment was earlier endorsed in a meeting by the province’s nine other municipal mayors.

Tamayo said they are cur-rently finalizing a formal reso-lution regarding such stand.

“We firmly believe in his capability to initiate a clean and honest governance of our

country,” he said.The mayor, who ran un-

opposed under the National-ist-People’s Coalition-Liberal Party slate, said they are very positive with the incoming president’s initiatives, espe-cially trade and economy, edu-cation, poverty alleviation, and peace and order.

He said they believe that Duterte, being a lawyer, will uphold justice and the rule of law in his administration.

For Duterte’s campaign promises, he said they will support the proposed increas-es in the salaries of teachers, soldiers and police officers; the full development of the agriculture sector; generation of more jobs; development of more vital infrastructure; and, the expansion of the railway system.

SoCot mayors vow support to incoming administration

LTO to apprehend carsusing ‘Duterte plates’

F SOCOT, 10

VOL. 9 ISSUE 62 • WEDNESDAY, MAY 25, 2016 5EDGEDAVAO

ECONOMY

THE full implementation of the Genuine Agrari-an Reform Bill (GARB)

would lead to a successful agrarian reform in the coun-try, leaders of the regional farmers’ organizations said Monday.

Ireneo Udarbe, Secretary General of the Kilusang Mag-bubukid sa Pilipinas (KMP) in Northern Mindanao, issued

the statement as the KMP welcomes the plan of Presi-dent-elect Rodrigo Duterte an “honest-to-goodness” agrarian reform program in the country.

“Duterte’s pro-peasant pronouncement has breathed a new life and guiding light in our never ending and often times dark quest for social jus-tice,” he said.

Udarbe, however, ex-

pressed fear that without the full implementation of the GARB, the agrarian reform program envisioned by Duter-te is still bound to fail.

House Bill No. 252, or GARB, was sponsored by the late Crispin Beltran, which is being pushed by the “progres-sive bloc” for passage and ap-proval, Udarbe said.

Farmers seek implementation of Genuine Agrarian Reform bill

ABOITIZ-OWNED Ther-ma South Inc. (TSI) will implement a four-week

planned shutdown on one of its two 150-megawatt (MW) units starting June 18 for the maintenance shutdown.

This would mean that the company’s clients will receive only 50 percent of their con-tracted supply.

TSI’s customers, com-posed of 20 electric cooper-atives (ECs) and distribution utilities (DUs) in the Mindan-ao region, are affected by the maintenance shutdown of the plant

The power plant currently supplies a significant portion

of the power supply to the cit-ies of Davao, Cagayan de Oro, General Santos, Zamboanga, Butuan, Kidapawan, Tagum, Koronadal, Digos, Pagadian, and Cotabato, among others.

Among the DUs and ECs that have contracts with TSI in Davao Region are Davao Light and Power Company, Daval del Sur Electric Cooperative (DASURECO), Davao del Norte Electric Cooperative (DANE-CO), and Davao Oriental Elec-tric Cooperative (DORECO).

TSI also supplies power to the Cotabato provinces, Sultan Kudarat, Agusan provinces, Surigao provinces, Zamboan-ga provinces, parts of Bukid-

non, and parts of Misamis.TSI President and COO

Sebastian R. Lacson said in a statement yesterday that pow-er plants have planned shut-downs for it to run optimally and reliably.

“We are confident that after this outage, TSI should be better equipped to reliably meet the needs of our custom-ers as the rainy season begins in Mindanao. We will try our best to keep the duration of this interruption to a mini-mum,” Lacson said.

TSI coordinated its sched-ule with the Mindanao system operator of NGCP last year so

Maintenance shutdownTSI: Implementation starts June 18crc@edgedavao.net

By CHENEEN R. CAPON

F MAINTENANCE, 10

F FARMERS, 10

VOL. 9 ISSUE 62 • WEDNESDAY, MAY 25, 20166 EDGEDAVAOTHE ECONOMY

DAVAO-BASED real es-tate developer Toshi Tim Land Inc., (TTLI)

will bring to the Davao mar-ket its first residential proj-ect, a mid-cost development in an 11-hectare area in Ba-rangay Indangan, Davao City.

TTLI general manager Marla Dela Peña said the project, called “Oakridge Residential Estate” and which was launched early this month, will be construct-ed in partnership with a Jap-anese counterpart.

Dela Peña said the proj-ect, designed with a touch of Japanese architecture, will be implemented in three

phases, with the first phase having three hectares; and the second and the third with four hectares each.

The first phase will ap-proximately have 190 to 200 housing units, while the sec-ond and the third will have 345 units each when the de-velopment of the project is completed four years now. Turnover of units to home-owners is targeted on Febru-ary 2020.

“The price of our units will range between P2 mil-lion to P4 million each de-pending on the model,” Dela Peña said.

Toshi Tim had designed

five models: the two-storey Yuri model that has a floor area of 92 square meter in a 150 sqm lot area, the 55-sqm Madison and Bluebell in a 120 sqm total lot area which only differs on the number of comfort rooms, the 75-sqm Zinnia, and the 32-sqm Daf-fodil.

The project is approx-imately 20 minutes away from the central business district and relatively closer to some business establish-ments and the Francisco Bangoy International Airport (Davao international Air-port).

Dela Peña assured home-

owners of a flood-free living with the project as it is situat-ed on the highlands of the city. Amenities include clubhouse, basketball court, tennis court, parks and swimming pool.

“Our project is livable and affordable to everybody,” he said, adding that 45 percent of the first phase of the proj-ect is already sold out to its clients who are usually from nearby cities and provinces.

Some of their clients also include young professionals and OFWs, according to Dela Peña.

The second phase of the project will be launched in October this year.

Toshi to build firstresidential project

crc@edgedavao.netBy CHENEEN R. CAPON

NEW PROJECT. Toshi Tim Land Inc. (TTLI) spearheaded by general manager Marla R. Dela Peña, president Romualdo S. Dela Peña and investor Takasuke Ono lead the groundbreaking ceremony for the

11-hectare Oakland Residential Estate at Barangay Indangan, Davao City last May 10. The Japanese-inspired mid-cost project is expected to be completed by 2020.

AGRICULTURAL crops worth P1.5 billion have been devastated due to

the onslaught of the long dry spell spawned by the El Niño phenomenon in some parts of Region 12.

Amalia Jayag-Datukan, Department of Agriculture (DA) Region 12 director, said Tuesday such figure covers the actual production and oppor-tunity losses sustained by the region’s farming or agriculture sector as a result of the pro-longed intense dry weather.

Citing their monitoring, she said the area’s farming sector already posted around PHP208.98 million in pro-duction losses, with corn absorbing the most damage with PHP115.102 million, pa-lay with PHP69.704 million and high-value crops with PHP19.669 million.

The area’s livestock sec-tor reported losses of around PHP4.517 million, she said.

In terms of opportunity losses, Datukan said they re-corded a total of PHP1.309 billion for corn and palay crops alone.

Such loss is mainly due to the area’s failure to produce around 36,483 metric tons

(MT) of corn and 25,595 MT of palay due to the dry spell.

“These are projected har-vests for corn and palay that were not realized because of the El Niño,” she said.

As of the third week of May, Datukan said the dry spell already affected a total of 88,126 hectares of farm lands in the region.

It covers 14,400 hectares of palay, 28,207 hectares of corn and 45,519 hectares of high-value crop production areas.

North Cotabato reported a damage area of 43,426 hect-ares, Sarangani with 22,085 hectares, Sultan Kudarat with 15,979 hectares and South Co-tabato with 6,636 hectares.

All four provinces were earlier placed under the state of calamity due to the impact of the El Niño.

DA-12 recorded a total of 9,027 palay farmers and 23,781 corn farmers in the re-gion that were directly affected by the calamity.

Sarangani posted the most number of affected farmers with 12,463, followed by North Cotabato with 11,250, Sultan Kudarat with 4,945 and South Cotabato with 4,421. (PNA)

Region 12 crop damage due to El Niño hit P1.5-B

LISTED mass housing de-veloper 8990 Holdings Inc. booked a 10-percent

increase in profit in the first quarter to P1.03 billion driven by higher sales.

“Evidence of a strong mass housing market is our unre-alized sales of 1.289 units, equivalent to PHP1.5 billion. This momentum is expected to propel our performance for the second quarter,” said 8990 president and chief executive officer Januario Jesus Atencio.

Revenues from housing operations rose 14 percent to PHP2.51 billion from PHP2.21 billion; while sales reserva-tions jumped 21 percent to 1,870 from 1,543 on the back

of a bullish market for afford-able housing and growth in production as well as deliver-ies.

The developer’s other in-come jumped 34 percent to PHP432 million in January to March quarter from PHP321 million after the reclassifica-tion of non-core revenue from the top line including Azalea Hotel and timeshares.

8990 Holdings continued to beef up its landbank pur-chasing 76.24 hectares in Ma-nila and Iloilo to augment its existing inventory of 553 hect-ares worth PHP112 billion.

The developer is set to launch Deca Homes in Mari-

8990 nets P1.03B in Q1

A BILL to further protect the 50-million strong depositing public is ex-

pected to be passed into law soon.

Senate Bill No. 2976, amending Republic Act 3591, as amended, or the charter of the Philippine Deposit Insur-ance Corporation (PDIC), is now awaiting President Aqui-no’s approval. It was passed by the Senate in December 2015 and adopted by the House of Representatives as an amendment to House Bill No. 6020 in January 2016.

SB 2976 aims to equip PDIC with enhanced author-ities to implement measures to further improve deposi-tor protection and promote financial stability. The bill is authored by Senator Sergio R. Osmeña III, Chairman of the

Senate Committee on Banks, Financial Institutions and Currencies. Its counterpart bill in the House of Represen-tatives was authored by Rep. Nelson P. Collantes, Chairman of the Committee on Banks and Financial Intermediaries.

The proposed legislation provides for the settlement of deposit insurance claims based not only on the closed bank’s records but also on the depositor’s evidence of deposit. Depositors with un-insured deposits will also benefit from the bill as it ele-vates the status of uninsured deposits from an ordinary credit to ordinary preferred credit which will improve their chances of recovering their hard-earned uninsured deposits in closed banks.

Deposit protection bill awaiting PNoy’s OK

THE reported fish kill that allegedly caused by the operations of a

mining firm in Davao Oriental was denied on Tuesday, say-ing that the firm has not yet began its mining operations in the area.

In a statement to the me-dia, Mill-Oro formerly Asiati-cus Management Corporation or Amcor said their company has not yet started their min-ing operations in the hinter-lands of barangays Macam-bol and Cabuaya in Mati City,

Davao Oriental.“We have not yet con-

structed plants and other structures. We are still in the clearing stage. It is therefore impossible that the company will cause a fish kill, if there is any.”

For the past days, Mill-Oro has been the subject of attacks and criticisms from some quarters and the media for causing the alleged fish kill in the area.

There were no official re-ports on the alleged fish kill

that occurred in Sitio Salingku-mot in the areas of Macambol and Cabuaya, the statement pointed out adding that even authorities who made inves-tigations suspect that the fish kill was caused by hot weather.

“The same phenomenon was also experienced in Ba-ganga town after the heavy downpour last week,” the statement clarified, stressing that the company is also not discounting the possibility that somebody or other groups are deliberately poisoning the

fishes in the area and blame the same to Mill-Oro.

“The heavy downpour last Monday, May 23 in Salingku-mot did not brought lots of silts in the coastal area. The silts were not from our oper-ations but coming from natu-ral silts. In Makambol which is not affected by any mining operation some cases of fish kill were also reported includ-ing in Baganga town which is more than a hundred of kilo-metres away from our opera-tion sites.”

Mining company deniesfish kill in Davao Oriental

F DEPOSIT, 10

F 8990, 10

VOL. 9 ISSUE 62 • WEDNESDAY, MAY 25, 2016 7Resumption of field testingof Bt talong urged

EDGEDAVAO

SCIENCE

WITH the newly en-actment of a joint department circular,

the Philippine American Acade-my of Science and Engineering (PAASE) urged for the “prompt and continuation” of research and development and field test-ing of Bt eggplant.

The Joint Department Cir-cular No. 1, Series of 2016, ti-tled “Rules and Regulations for the Research and Development, Handling and Use, Transbound-ary Movement, Release into the Environment, and Manage-ment of Genetically-Modified Plant and Plant Products Derive from the Use of Modern Bio-technology,” is a collaborative effort of the five government agencies.

These are the Department of Science and Technology, De-partment of Agriculture, De-partment of Environment and Natural Resources, Department of Health and Department of Interior and Local Government.

“We urge all parties in-volved to take prompt and re-sponsible actions,” said PAASE in a statement. “We commit to working with the Philippine government, universities and the public, if called for, in pro-viding expert advice and rec-ommendations on the various facets of the development and use of Bt talong in the Philip-pines.”

PAASE is an international organization of scientists and engineers who have distin-guished themselves in scholarly and research-related activi-ties and who are of Philippine descent -- based in the Philip-pines, the United States and elsewhere.

The organization calls on Philippine government leaders, farmers, academics, scientists, engineers, the private sector, journalists, students and the general public to do these three tasks:

· Acknowledge that the de-

velopment and field testing of Bt talong is an urgent imperative to provide an ef-fective, safe and sustainable solution to the economi-cally and environmentally ruinous problem currently facing Filipino eggplant farmers;

· Mobilize the Filipino sci-

ence and technology com-munity to launch a na-tionwide educational and extension program to dis-seminate accurate scientific facts and information on Bt talong and to combat any misinformation on the sub-

ject; and · Work with Filipino egg-

plant farmers to build sci-entific and technological capacity best suited to their circumstances in regard to sustainable and cost-effec-tive integrated cultivation management practices. The PAASE statement is

signed by following person-alities: Dr. Joel L. Cuello of the University of Arizona, Dr. Diana S. Aga, of the University of Buf-falo New York, Dr. Lourdes J. Cruz and Dr. Ernesto M. Pernia of the University of the Philip-pines Diliman, Dr. Larry Ilag of the United States International Agency for Development, Dr. Rita P. Laude and Asuncion K. Raymundo of the University of the Philippines at Los Baños, Dr. Gonzalo Serafica of Xylos Cor-poration, Dr. Alice Tarun of the States University of New York, and Dr. Salvador Z. Tarun, Jr. of St. Bonaventure University.

Eggplant, locally called talong, is one of the country’s leading vegetable crops in terms of both volume and area of production. “Eggplant pro-duction in the Philippines cov-ers approximately 22,000 hect-ares, yielding a volume of about 220,000 metric tons annually,” said the statement.

As such, eggplant is a valu-able source of income of Filipi-nos farmers. Currently, the total volume of harvested eggplant is valued at P2.6 billion.

Edwin Paraluman, who is from General Santos City, said that he has been waiting for a long time for the Bt talong to be planted commercially. “If will get rich in planting corn, the more I will get rich in planting eggplant,” he said, adding that he planted eggplant in his farm “but 70-90 percent had been damaged because of the egg-plant borer.”

The eggplant fruit and shoot borer (EFSB) is one of the most destructive insect pests that attack eggplants. Scientif-ically, it is called Leucinodes or-bonalis, a moth specie prevalent in Asia and Africa. The moths’ larvae feed on eggplant shoots and fruits until maturity.

Before the invasion of EFSB, truckloads of eggplant were transported from Pan-gasinan to Manila on a daily basis. “The emergence of EFSB as a major pest was precipitat-ed by a disregard of the basics of ecological diversity and bal-ance,” PAASE pointed out. “At the outset, when this pest was of negligible importance it was ignored as the continuing cul-

By HENRYLITO D. TACIO

tivation of the crop, demanded by a growing market, afforded steady income. In many egg-plant growing areas, ratooning of the crop, which provided almost uninterrupted host presence, exacerbated localized outbreaks.”

Today, EFSB cannot be overlooked anymore. “The EFSB can cause as much as 50-75 percent loss of fruits,” said Dr. Emil Q. Javier, former head of the science and technology department. “The worm of the insect bore tunnels in the fruit, rendering them unfit for con-sumption.”

Unfortunately, there is no known genetic resistance to EFSB in cultivated and wild eggplants. “The insects are con-cealed in the shoots and fruits and are difficult to reach,” Dr. Javier explained. “Thus, in order to protect their crops, farmers spray their plants almost every other day with insecticides.”

Edgar C. Talasan is a veg-etable farmer from barangay Imalutao in Impasug-ong, Bukidnon. He said in his 15 years of vegetable farming, in every eggplant cropping cy-cle, he sprayed at least twice a week. For every 1,000 eggplant hills, he used 0.5 kilogram of Lannate, two bottles (250 mL) of Prevathon, two bottles (250 mL) of Alika, one liter of Karate, one kilogram of Daconil, and 0.5 liter of Selecron.

The current methods used by some eggplant growers in controlling the EFSB are un-acceptable, said Dr. Emiliana Bernardo, an entomologist or a scientist who studies insects. It is unhealthy to consumers, farmers, and the environment, she added.

According to Dr. Bernan-do, studies conducted in major eggplant producing provinces found that almost all farmers use chemical insecticides and that some even dip the unhar-vested eggplant fruits in a mix of chemicals just to ensure that harvests are marketable.

“Eggplant products be-come not only laced with pes-ticides, but their price also jumps from ordinarily about P45 per kilo to P70 per kilo -- an unaffordable price to most urban low-income consumers,” PAASE said.

“The very basic question is, which is safer, the present practice or the alternative, the Bt eggplant which is rigorous-ly evaluated by experts?” she asked. “Is bathing the unhar-vested eggplant fruits in chem-icals, which would end up in dinner tables of people, safe?”

That’s where Bt talong comes in. Bt stands for Bacillus thuringiensis. “Bt talong was developed by genetically engi-neering a gene from the bacte-ria so that the genetically mod-ified eggplants now produce a

protein that defends it against insect attacks,” explained Dr. Michael Purugganan, a Filipino plant geneticist who is the Dean of Science at the New York Uni-versity.

“When ingested by the lar-vae of the target insect, the Bt protein is activated in the gut’s alkaline condition and punc-tures the mid-gut leaving the insect unable to eat. The insect dies within a few days,” noted a briefing paper circulated by the International Service for the Acquisition of Agri-biotech Ap-plications (ISAAA).

Bt is present in the Philip-pine soil and had been in use for years without any harmful effects. As it comes from the earth itself, Bt is very natural, according to Dr. Bernardo. In 1901, Bt was discovered to have an insecticidal property. By the 1950s, it became a well-known biological insecticide.

Bt is easily cultured by fer-mentation,” the ISAAA briefing paper said. “Thus, over the last 40 years, Bt has been used as an insecticide by farmers worldwide. Organic farming has benefited from Bt insecti-cide, as it is one of the very few pesticides permitted by organic standards. The insecticide is applied either as a spray or as ground applications. It comes in both granules and liquefied form.”

“Growing Bt talong is ex-

pected to significantly increase agricultural productivity in ar-eas severely affected by EFSB and is projected to raise farm-ers’ income by about P50,000 per hectare,” PAASE said.

But the big question is: Is the Bt protein found in Bt tal-ong safe for non-target organ-isms?

“Results from numerous biosafety and toxicological studies have allowed the US Environmental Protection Agency and the World Health Organization to conclude that the consumption of genetically modified farm products which produce Bt toxins is safe and unlikely to pose health hazards to humans and non-target an-imals owing to the specificity of the insecticidal activity of Bt toxin to specific arthropods,” PAASE explained.

According to Dr. Bernardo, cooking the Bt eggplant can completely denature the Bt protein. “It is non-detectable in any cooked food therefore there is no human exposure to Bt proteins in eating cooked Bt crops,” she said.

As such, the PAASE urged for the resumption of field test-ing of Bt eggplant in the Philip-pines.

“Given that extensive re-search have provided scientific evidence for the relative safety of Bt-derived insecticidal pro-teins in humans and animals -- and considering the projected significant positive impact of Bt talong on the Philippines’ food security and farmers’ incomes -- the resumption and continu-ation of research and develop-ment and field testing of Bt tal-ong with the view to generating the necessary empirical data to evaluate its environmental biosafety specifically in the Philippines is fully justified and should be urgently prioritized.”

VOL. 9 ISSUE 62 • WEDNESDAY, MAY 25, 20168 EDGEDAVAO

VANTAGE

EDITORIALBrigada Eskwela

THE opening of classes is just around the corner, and so it’s the time of the year where teachers, students and parents prepare the schools for the influx of the future leaders of the country.

As public school children gear up for another year of learning, ev-eryone from among education stakeholders get busy for Brigada Eskwela, the National Schools Maintenance Week Program being conducted by the government to ensure the cleanliness of school surroundings and readiness of the classrooms in receiving them.

This year’s Brigada Eskwela will run from May 30 to June 4, and everyone is being requested to support such worthy endeavor. The Sangguniang Panlungsod (SP) committee on education headed by its chair, Councilor Mabel Sunga Acosta, on Tuesday fired off the initial salvo in calling support from the community towards the program, which is just timely as classes are expected to open in the second week of June.

“The program is intended not only to prepare the schools for the school opening, but to foster a sense of community among education stakeholders. Parents, students, teachers and members of the com-

munity are encouraged to share their time and resources to ensure that our local public schools are ready to receive the eager young minds of our youth,” Acosta said in a privilege speech during yester-day’s regular SP session. She reminded everyone that donations for such activity are most welcome during this time of the year, be these in the form of money, materials or even time and effort to help aug-ment the cost of repairs and manpower.

With a theme this time of “Tayo Para sa Paaralang Ligtas, Maayos at Handa – Mula Kindergarten Hanggang Senior High School, Acosta said Bigada Eskwela will help create a conducive learning environ-ment for our public school children. A clean and orderly environ-ment, she adds, allow the students a fresh start for the new school year.

We echo the call of Councilor Acosta. We have always looked up to our school children as the ones who shape our country’s future and, it is just but fitting to extend whatever support they can get from every citizen of the community. Let us all share for the successful conduct of Brigada Eskwela.

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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EDGEDAVAOProviding solutions to a seamless global village.

ANTONIO M. AJEROEditor in Chief

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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VOL. 9 ISSUE 62 • WEDNESDAY, MAY 25, 2016 VANTAGE POINTS 9EDGEDAVAO

WHICH do you prefer: being kiss by a plain looking individual with a nice breath or an attractive person with

bad breath?A recent survey conducted in the Philip-

pines showed that majority (about 81 percent of the respondents) still prefer good oral hy-giene over good looks.

“Even if he looks like a movie actor or a real hunk, I won’t allow myself to be kissed by a person whose breath smelled like how a rot-ten egg smelled,” a 22-year-old college student said.

Bad breath is the common name for the medical condition known as halitosis. Other terms used to describe noticeably unpleasant odors exhaled in breathing are oral malodor, breath odor, mouth odor, and foul breath.

For many centuries bad breath has torn thousands of relationships apart and drove many a people to a life of solitude. With the advent of hundreds of products dedicated to mouth care – from toothpaste to mouthwash-es – it remains to be a wonder why bad breath continues to run rampant in this modern age.

According to estimates, over 60 million people worldwide suffer from bad breath. “In the Philippines, the incidence of halitosis, conservatively speaking, may be 75 percent or higher for the general population,” reports Dr. Philip S. Chua, a medical columnist. “This is a rough guesstimate, and the figure, of course, varies in different subgroups in the communi-ty.”

As a general rule, bad breath is less among those who live in the city, compared to rural areas, those who are more affluent, higher in socio-economic status, those who are more

educated or professional , and those in the younger gen-eration. “But realistically, just about anyone, in any profes-sion or walk of life, may have annoying bad breath, per-sistently or oc-casionally,” Dr. Chua reminds.

“There are so many causes of bad breath, literally dozens of them, that is occasionally difficult to pinpoint,” says Dr. Joseph Tonzetich, a professor of oral biology at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver.

According to Dr. Willie T. Ong, bad breath is “caused by anaerobic bacteria that break down the food we chew and turn them into volatile sulfur compounds (VSCs). These VSCs are re-sponsible for the foul smell.”

In his book, “Stay Younger, Live Healthier,” Dr. Ong shares some suggestions to follow to get rid of bad breath. These are:

Don’t eat too much garlic, onions and chili. These spices contain essential oils that stick to your mouth and stomach for 24 hours after eating. Even if you brush your teeth, the smell will stay there. One quick remedy is to sip some lemon or “calamansi” to counteract the smell.

Avoid spiced meats like pepperoni and sa-lami. Just like garlic, these greasy meats have smelly oils that stick to your breath for a long time. For example, when someone burps, you

know they just ate pizza with pepperoni and garlic.

Avoid smelly cheese and smelly fish. Strong cheeses and wines are expensive appetizers, but try to limit eating these foods. As for fishes like milkfish and local delicacies such as “ba-goong” and “alamang,” they stay in your breath a long time.

Don’t smoke. You can tell a smoker from several feet away. One writer likened the smell to an ashtray. Besides, smoking is bad for your health as it causes lung cancer and other dis-eases.

Stick to water and drink a lot. Beer, wine, whiskey and strong coffee top the list of smelly drinks. These drinks leave a residue in your mouth, which other people can smell. Also, drinking a lot of water can dilute the anaerobic bacteria inside the mouth, hence reducing bad breath.

Gargle several times after eating. If you don’t have a toothbrush handy, try gargling with water. Swish the water left and right and all over your mouth vigorously. Do this several times. This will reduce the residue and odor left by the food you just ate.

Bring an extra toothbrush and toothpaste. After each meal, brush your teeth immediately to remove the smell of food. Brush three times a day.

Use a tongue cleaner. A lesser-known cul-prit for bad breath is the trapped dirt on the tongue. The tongue is actually covered by hair-like fleshy protrusions that can accumulate dirt and bacteria. The best way to remove the dirt is by scrapping it off with a tongue clean-er. Brushing your tongue with a toothbrush is a poor substitute because this just makes the

dirt go around the tongue.Use a dental floss. Food and dirt inevitably

get trapped between the teeth, and not all of the debris can be removed by tooth brushing. If you don’t floss, these in-between dirt will slowly decay and start smelling bad. Floss dai-ly, especially before you sleep at night.

Consider a mouthwash. There’s some con-troversy over this. Some experts do not advise using a mouthwash because it dries the mouth. However, mouthwashes can reduce bacteria and bad breath. As a compromise, maybe you can dilute the mouthwash in water and use it occasionally.

“If your halitosis hangs on more than 24 hours without an obvious cause, see your dentist or doctor,” advises Dr. Roger Levin, an official of the Maryland Academy of General Dentistry

Dr. Ong suggests that you see your dentist every six months. “Some cases of bad breath really come from infections of the mouth, teeth, and gums,” Dr. Ong explains. “Tooth decay is a common cause for bad breath.”

In some cases, you may try to consult a gas-troenterologist or ENT (Ear Nose Tongue) doc-tor because there are cases where bad breath emanates from inside the throat and stomach.

Bad breath may also be a sign of a medical disorder, such as a local infection in the respira-tory tract, gum disease, chronic sinusitis, post-nasal drip, chronic bronchitis, diabetes, gastro-intestinal disturbance, liver or kidney ailment.

“Bad breath may seem like a trivial thing, but it can keep you from getting the deal, find-ing a date, and having wonderful friends,” Dr. Ong reminds. “Find out if you have bad breath and take the necessary steps to cure it.”

Kiss bad breath goodbye

THE spate of negative diatribes aimed at under-valuing the incoming Dute-rte administration is the handiwork

of people who cannot get rid of the crab mentality Filipinos are notorious for.

More than a month away still from oc-cupying the seat of the highest post of the land, President-elect Digong has not been spared of deathly spears coming from those who underestimate his executive leader-ship and capability.

Such an attitude, unfortunately, boo-merangs usually against those who quickly prejudge. They should not be taken seri-ously for these are spears that come from the devil; they could hurt you initially but if you withstand them with your steadfast faith and trust in God, you will feel only nee-dle-like thrusts on your skin.

The Filipino “talangka” mentality is no more evident than what the Pinoys are doing in the US of A. They organize them-selves according to the province and ethnic origins they come from but they could not federalize themselves into a single, united bloc that will represent them in the state or national level.

A Ce-buano will search and join his fel-low Cebua-no, an Ilo-cano will do the same as will the Pam-panguenos, the Ilonggos, the Tagalogs, the Bicola-nos, the Ibanags and so forth and so on in scattered fashion.

If you do not speak the ethnic language, you are not considered one of them and make you feel like you are not a Filipino anymore.

Heated are the organizational meetings as well as club elections. Imagine when a disgusted group breaks away from the main bloc and puts up its own association but both come from the same ethnic tribe.

And then they battle for recognition, using underhanded tactics to build them-selves up as well as destroy the other

group’s reputation.I remember a time when I was still re-

siding in Los Angeles when a heated orga-nizational meeting erupted into a shooting incident. Luckily, no one was hurt. That epi-sode conclusively pointed out that Filipinos have inherited a “talangka” mentality as part of a cultural trait which they, wittingly or unwittingly, bring wherever they go and live.

This is exactly what Duterte’s detrac-tors are doing now. They don’t want him to succeed. As his political star is burning bright even before he steps inside Mala-canang, Duterte’s political enemies are al-ready conceiving of fatal traps for him.

Duterte’s unmistakenly brave demean-or – to hold the bull by its horns, no matter the consequences – strikes fear and awe. He says he is ready to sacrifice friendship when the greater interest of the people is at stake.

Ah, yan ang tama. A true leader looks upon the welfare of his people first and foremost before he does to his friends. Aksyon, tapang at malasakit indeed.

I hear that organized criminal groups,

illegal drug traders, pushers and drug pro-tectors as well as gambling lords are now in disarray. Some are already sending sub-tle and silent messages thru emissaries to the President-elect that they want to talk things out.

However, Duterte is not agreeable to a modus vivendi with criminals. No way, Jose, no way.

It is either they surrender and follow the law or nothing.

They are not going to get any presiden-tial concessions, which is what the public really wants. For violating the law, they should be punished, right?

That is why Duterte’s idea to erect an Alcatraz-like prison structure is timely and commendable. Hardened criminals deserve to be imprisoned in such to prevent them from escaping and commit more crimes.

As Duterte keeps on chirping, “help me fix this country.”

Exercise discipline, obey the law, live in peace and harmony.

Get rid of “talangka” mentality. God bless the Philippines! (Email your feedback to fredlumba@yahoo.com.)

‘Talangka’ mentality at work

Henrylito D. Taciohenrytacio@gmail.com

THINK ON THESE!

Fred C. Lumba

SPECKS OF LIFE

VOL. 9 ISSUE 62 • WEDNESDAY, MAY 25, 201610 NEWSDuterte... FROM 2

Maintenance... FROM 5

SoCot... FROM 4

Rody won’t... FROM 2

Re-greening... FROM 14

Deposit... FROM 6

Rody... FROM 2

Farmers... FROM 5

Saving... FROM 11

Cayetano... FROM 2

8990... FROM 6

EDGEDAVAO

THE BONSAI. A mall-goer takes some photographs of bonsai trees on display during the Discovering the Art of Bonsai exhibit at the atrium of SM Lanang Premier over the weekend. Lean Daval Jr.

its maintenance works will be conducted ahead of other power plants in Mindanao.

The Unit 2 of the 300MW coal-fired power plant will undergo a maintenance shut-down starting June 18 while Unit 1 will be scheduled later in 2016.

Meanwhile, stakeholders of the power sector in Mind-anao expect that the power situation in the island’s grid will stabilize later this year with the entry of new power projects.

The Mindanao Develop-ment Authority (MinDA) said

that a total of 755MW is expect-ed to come online for Mindan-ao starting on the third quarter of the year, including the 200 MW from Sarangani Energy Corp. of the Alsons Power Group in Maasim Saranggani Province ; 150 MW from San Miguel Corp. in Malita, Davao Occidental; and 405 MW from Filinvest Development Corp. in Misamis Oriental.

This figure does not in-clude additional capacities from renewable energy proj-ects like solar and hydro pow-er projects which will be also operational this year.

Jose Rodito Angeles, Pres-ident of Task Force Mapalad (TFM), said that Duterte had expressed disappointment because “most of the land-holdings distributed to tillers just went back to the control of landlords due to the ineffective implementation of the CARP.”

Angeles said that the TFM had been optimistic that Dute-rte would carry out an agrarian reform aimed at dismantling the power of the landlords who control and maintain over vast agricultural holdings and also redistributed the lands to the landless farmers. (PNA)

posal by the middle of Duter-te’s term.

Meanwhile, in reaction to the plan by Senator Aquilino “Koko” Pimentel III to run for Senate president, Cayetano said he would rather speak for himself and not for his colleague. “I will let Sen. Koko speak for himself. Malinaw ang kanyang announcement. We talked once. Nagkakaintin-dihan naman kami at malinaw ang direksyon namin as a group,” he stressed.

Duterte respects Senate in-dependence

Cayetano explained that while Duterte has not publicly announced whom he would endorse for the Senate lead-ership, the President-elect has made it clear in private discus-sions whom he wants for the post. “The President will not have an official candidate. Pero meron siyang napupusuan. President Duterte is not de-claring public support because he respects the independence of the Senate,” he said.

naman yung tao (The person is pitiful). She deserved to be released,” Duterte said.

He added that a delayed trial is a ground for dismissal without prejudice under the Constitution. “Kawawa naman walang trial trial (It’s pitiful. There’s never been a trial,” he said.

On the other hand, he would allow the burial of Mar-cos Sr. in the Libingan ng mga Bayani not because he is a hero but he was a Filipino soldier.

He said the issue on whether to allow Marcos Sr. to be buried has created a divi-sion among the Filipino people and hurt some, especially the

Ilocanos.Duterte said it depends on

the Marcos family as to when they prefer to bury the former dictator. “They can arrange it immediately,” he added.

His planned moves may be unpopular to some especial-ly to Martial Law victims, but Duterte said by doing these to the country’s former presi-dents, he could ‘erase’ at least one hater.

When asked if his decision to bury Marcos could draw haters, Duterte said: “Eh nan-dyan na ‘yan, anong gagawin mo diyan? (It has already hap-pened, what else is there to be done?)” (PNA)

“I might even decide to free all of them before the talks (could formally start),” Duterte said.

He stressed that if the leaders of the CPP-NDF are confident that his government would work for everybody es-pecially for the poor, not cor-rupt and satisfied, “I can wel-come them back.”

When asked about the criminal cases filed against po-litical detainees, Duterte said it would be part of the pardon.

“For as long as we deal peace in good faith. (Talking) peace must be in good faith, wala akong agenda basta hu-wag lang akong lokohin (I do not have an agenda just do not fool me),” Duterte said.

The formal peace negoti-ations with the CPP-NDF has been stalled since 2004 after

the communist movement withdrew from the negotiat-ing table on account of the re-newed inclusion of Sison and the CPP-NPA (New People’s Army) in the US terrorist list.

The NDF also reportedly backtracked from their com-mitments and insisted on their demand that the government release their 14 priority con-sultants, who are all facing criminal charges in various courts, before formal negotia-tions are resumed.

Although there had been informal talks through the fa-cilitation of the Royal Norwe-gian Government (the third party facilitator) as an attempt to revive the negotiations these were stymied by preju-dicial questions, impediments and preconditions raised at the negotiating table. (PNA)

He also cited the incoming president’s plans to focus on peace and order matters and spur development in Mind-anao and other areas in the country.

“This is the first time in the history of the Philippines that a president will be coming from Mindanao. He promised change so we will help him

achieve that,” Tamayo said.The mayor said he wants

to see other local and nation-al leaders, especially senators and congressmen, to support the Duterte administration as well.

“He (Duterte) can’t do this alone. It’s important for all of us to rally behind him now,” Tamayo added. (PNA)

The proposed amend-ments to the PDIC Charter are also intended to minimize disruption to the financial system and promote financial inclusion by providing depos-itors with continued access to banking services. Among the highlights of the bill are reform measures in bank resolution and liquidation, immediate access to deposit insurance claims, elevation of status of uninsured deposits to ordinary preferred credit and enhanced governance and institutional framework for the state deposit insurer.

With a strengthened resolution authority, PDIC would be able to play a more proactive role in resolving problem banks while these are still open, preserving the bank’s franchise value and minimizing disruption in the banking system. On the other hand, the new bank liquida-tion framework will remove the 90-day receivership pe-riod ensuring a seamless transition from bank closure to liquidation and hasten the

disposal of closed banks’ as-sets for immediate payment to creditors. The framework also adopts other liquidation tools such as the purchase of assets and liabilities to help prevent the dissipation of the value of closed banks’ assets and enhance the chances of recovery of the creditors and depositors of their claims against the assets of closed banks.

Pursuant to the bill, PDIC will have greater indepen-dence and stronger organi-zational structure. It will also have expanded investment and fund management op-tions to protect and build up the Deposit Insurance Fund, the funding source for pay-ment of deposit insurance and assistance to distressed banks. With enhanced gov-ernance and institutional framework, PDIC will be able to respond more quickly to the changing financial land-scape and align its services with international best prac-tices in deposit insurance. (PNA)

lao, Sta. Barbara, Pavia as well as Urban Deca Homes Mahog-any and Hernan Cortez in the second quarter after introduc-ing Deca Homes Baywalk Tal-isay 3 and Urban Deca Homes Hampton.

The company intends to launch 14 projects with 75,608 housing units worth PHP7.29 billion this year.

“We are launching 14 new

projects this year, we have anticipated that 50 percent of this year’s performance will be realized in the fourth quarter. So, as we exceeded out internal first quarter tar-gets of PHP1.8 billion by 22 percent, we are working hard to be sure that these new proj-ects get on stream as quickly as possible,” Atencio added. (PNA)

ronment and Public Relations Chief Officer Rogel C. Cabaua-tan also said.

TMC planted acasia man-gium, bagras, agoho and magkono trees in their min-ing rehabilitation areas at Uyay slope, Urbiztondo and Hayanggabon ridge, all of this town. The company also built 120 concrete housing units at the 20-hectares Punta Naga Mamanwa Village, complete with school, clinic and health center, sports area and tribal hall where 1,000 indigenous peoples are currently residing.

On the other hand, the THPAL estimated cost of re-habilitating (tree planting) the open pit mines would amount to P71,769,600.00, haulage and access roads at

P4,613,760.00, mine yards and pier yards at P19,224,000.00, while reshaping and drainage construction at P3,844,800.00, for water pollution con-trol facilities amounted to P7,044,900.00. Social activities shall anchor on the Social De-velopment and Management Program for the community and a special program for the employees which will amount to P26,082,727.00, or a total of P132,579,787.00.

This would run up to year 2026, twelve years after its decommissioning stage, the company shall continue to re-habilitate and make better the disturbances to the environ-ment and the socio-economic predicament it may give, add-ed Ms. Chua.

kayo makinig dyan puro kaba-lastugan ang mga yan,” he said.

Duterte said the church must address the abuses with-in its ranks before telling oth-ers of their mistakes.

Duterte named Catho-lic Bishop Conference of the Philippines president Socrates Villegas and Archbishop Emer-itus Oscar Cruz, who he said campaigned against him.

“Hindi nga ninyo ma-cor-rect ang mga abuses ng mga pari, until now you have not done anything. There are so many abuses that the church has committed. You go down on bended knees, and pray to God and ask pardon from Fili-pino people.

“The church will criticize immorality, what about you? Why have you not criticized yourselves or even ask pardon from the Filipino,” he said

Asked to comment on the statement issued by Archdio-cese of Davao, Duterte said he

is not in a quarrel with it.In a statement, Msgr. Paul

A. Cuison, spokesperson of Archdiocese of Davao said: “The Archdiocese of Davao re-spects and listens with humili-ty to the views and statements of our incoming President Rodrigo R. Duterte about the church, including those that may be difficult to accept and things that may be contrary to our teachings.”

“Even during the pre-elec-tions period, we have always maintained a peaceful rela-tionship with him and our doors are always open to him,” he said.

He noted that they are one in acknowledging the good things Duterte has done for the poor and the marginalized.

“We join him in prayer ask-ing for divine and enlighten-ment as he begins his journey as the new leader of this land,” he said. (Antonio L. Colina IV/MindaNews)

Pantawid mi ug pagpakita namo sa amoang ID, giatiman gyud mi nila og tarong. Dako kaayo nga tabang gyud ang PhilHealth sa amoa (When SPMC learned that

we are beneficiaries of Pantawid, they took care of everything. They were very helpful. PhilHealth has been a great help to us!),” she ex-claims. (DSWD)

WOMEN

EDGEDAVAOINdulge!

IN GENERAL, ANYONE CAN WRITE A FAIR HAND. We all just need to exercise the writing muscle from time to time. With the advent of technology, when our hands started getting busy with the typewriter, computer, printer and emails, hardly anyone writes anything meaningful by hand any-more.

Stroke of art I guess, what makes handmade products and mementos more valuable nowadays is the sense of novelty it brings and the fact that it is more person-al, both to the spectator and the creator. Calligra-phy, for example, despite it being one of the oldest forms of writing, it has made comeback as new hobby and art form for this generation. For people like me who grew up play-ing with paper, pen, colors and glue, it is refreshing to see children and young-sters of today, in the age of tablets and gadgets, being introduced to this art be-cause it sets their creativity in action and excites their spirit and imagination. This new craze has also turned several moms into avid paper and pen enthu-siasts, bringing together a new pool of watercolor artists and calligraphers. Armed with brushes, pens, and color palettes, their new found skills have opened doors to a fresh ca-reer, making a living out of branding and paper goods. For some, who do it for a hobby, like bento artist and full-time mom, Rus-set Cainglet, they utilize this art form as their way of journaling daily reflec-tions and inspirations. Russet, a former child edu-cator, believes her hobby has progressed from a mere passion for literature into an interest in illus-trating classic letterforms --- giving movement and life to each word through dancing strokes and col-ors. Russet’s account online, @thismommyiscrafty, is one of the few I’ve pinned and followed on Insta-gram. The hand drawn calligraphy videos she creates are so relaxing to the eye and so pleasing to watch that I find myself hitting the playback but-ton from time to time.

It’s no wonder that she has amassed a following of over 1,800 followers in such a short span of time, quite a feat for someone who has, as she would claim, “average skills.” “Arts and crafts have al-ways been my thing since I was a child,” shares Rus-set. “I had foregone my

dream of taking up fine arts in college, but the love for colors and everything handmade has stayed on. It just didn’t occur to me, at that time, motherhood would take me back to my first love through dif-ferent forms of crafting. Everything I make has a purpose in our life, just like my bento boxes. As for calligraphy, it has be-come a way of bonding with my kids, aside from it being a creative output through which I express my thoughts and vibes. It has given me artistic free-

dom to voice out and share my reflections, in different strokes.” As a beginner trying to write calligraphy, it can be a little tough. Just like me, who felt my hands were “too heavy” and my fingers “too chubby” to maintain the difference between fat and thin strokes as the pen goes up and down. As Russet would put it, “Practice makes you better. Keep writing. As long as you stay true to your intu-ition and intention, as well as style and voice, you will be able to feel more com-

fortable and happy with what you do. After all, it is the experience and jour-ney into this learning that makes more sense --- more than impressing others.” “It helps that technology has found a way to reintro-duce this classic means of lettering and communica-tion. It has given birth to a share movement wherein people generously show and share how they cre-ate their artworks on-line. That’s how I learned. I would go online and search for tutorial videos and try to follow through

the lines.” According to Russet, ev-ery work should bring out your own identity. “How? By following through your own stroke and style. After all, we each have our own penmanship, right? When you learn from tutorials, try not to copy the exact fonts and typeface they are using. Be comfortable in your own style and stokes.” For inquiries on private calligraphy workshops and events, you may send a di-rect message to @thismom-myiscrafty on Instagram or email tset11@yahoo.com.

For some, who do it for a hobby, like bento artist

and full-time mom, Russet Cainglet, they utilize this art form as their way of journaling daily reflections and

inspirations.

VOL. 9 ISSUE 62 • WEDNESDAY, MAY 25, 2016

NOW, MORE THAN EVER, PHOTOGRAPHS ARE PART OF EVERYONE’S LIFESTYLE. MANY THANKS TO DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY, EVERYONE NOW HAS ACCESS TO A CAMERA AND SPECIAL MOMENTS ARE NOW MORE EASY TO CAPTURE AND SHARE. But it is also because of digitalisation that the joy of actually holding a physical photograph has become a rarity which is why Fujifilm’s Instax is now making waves, enabling people to capture and hold memories in their hands.

A2 INdulge! EDGEDAVAOEVENT

A crafty afternoon Recently, the Abreeza Mall hallway was abuzz with activity last May 21 as Fujifilm Instax brought their “Instax and Crafts” DIY crafting event to Du-rianburg where Dabawe-nya photographer Jojie

Alcantara shared some photography tips and tricks using Instax cam-eras, and crafter April San Pedro shared ideas on how to use Instax prints for cre-ative DIY projects. Also present during

the event was Fujifilm’s division head for elec-tronic and photo imaging Takuya Maeda. “There is a certain kind of joy at looking at one’s photos - more so, if it’s something you can hold on to like printed photograph. We realised that millenni-als not only enjoy seeing their favourite memories on Instax prints, they also enjoy displaying them and sharing them with friends and loved ones,” shared Takuya, “Through ‘install and Crafts’, we hope that they can see that there are many ways on how they can display and preserve these memories.” This enthusiasm was evident during the event as participants utilised the instant photographs pro-duced by Instax cameras

in crafting their most cre-ative Pop-up Banner. The most creative of which was rewarded with a Mini 7s Summer Package. Other lucky partici-pants also won Instax Mini 8 Summer Package and an Instax WIDE 300 Summer Package during the raffle. Lady luck was also on my side that af-ternoon as my name was picked to win the much-coveted Hello Kitty Mini 8 Instax camera. “Install and Crafts” in Davao was the last leg of the highly successful In-stax crafting event which was launched at Market! Market! and Cebu last April. Follow me on Instagram or on Twitter at @kenneth-kingong for more travel stories, foodie finds, and happenings in, around and beyond Durianburg.

VOL. 9 ISSUE 62 • WEDNESDAY, MAY 25, 2016

GMA Artist Center teen star Therese ‘Teri’ Malvar is one of this year’s recipients of the Screen International Rising Star Asia award at the 15th New York Asian Film Festival (NYAFF). The award-winning actress was recognised for her remarkable portrayal of “daring roles that have expanded the range of contemporary Philippines’ cinema”. These include her critically acclaimed performances in Sigrid Andrea Bernardo’s lesbian movie ‘Ang Huling Cha-Cha ni Anita’ and Ralston Jover’s drama about juvenile delinquents ‘Hamog,’ which previously gave the talented Kapuso artist best actress awards from local award-giving bodies. Teri feels honoured to be one of the awardees at the NYAFF as well as to represent the Philippines in the prestigious film festival. She will personally receive her award during the festival proper in New York. “I would like to thank the New York Asian Film Festival for believing in me. This recognition will continue to fire-up my passion in acting and be a game-changer in this industry. Mabuhay ang talentong Pilipino,” she said. 2016 marks the third Screen International Rising Star Asia award at NYAFF. The award aims to bring Asia’s outstanding new talents to international attention. Other recipients this year are Japan’s Go Ayano and China’s Jelly Lin.

LIFESTYLE AND WORKING MOM M A G A Z I N E ’ S “MOTHER’S DAY PICNIC” WAS A T R E M E N D O U S SUCCESS IN ONCE AGAIN bringing joy and wonderful memories to families that attended the fun-filled picnic-themed event last May 15 at the UP Sunken Garden in celebration of Mother’s Day. First of the many treats started when the first 150 moms who registered online via the Lifestyle’s Facebook page received a special picnic basket filled with exciting treats and giveaways courtesy of Rebisco snack, Leslie and Farmer’s Potato, Sanicare sanitary set and Cheers set, Mott’s apple juice, Lotus Biscoff, Hunts, Absolute, Vitamilk, Clearascar, Toblerone, Insular, Arla, Goldilocks, and Nido. Additional 50 picnic baskets were given to the early birds who attended the event. Additional baskets were also raffled off during the event to lucky mothers. Much to the delight of the fans who have been

anticipating to meet and greet the mother and daughter tandem Kathryn Bernardo and Mommy Min, the first 50 lucky guests who trooped to the event and bought their copies of Working Mom Magazine’s May issue served as a free pass to the much-awaited segment. Working Mom’s Mother’s Day Special is headlined by Mommy Min Bernardo and daughter, teen queen Kathryn Bernardo. In this issue, Mommy Min shares her joys and sacrifices in raising her successful children—Chrysler, Kaye (who joins Mommy Min and Kathryn in the inside pages,

along with Kaye’s daughter, Lexine), and Kevin. Hosted by actress and TV host Dimples Romana, the event featured six zones perfect for the whole family to enjoy: Family Zone which included booths for family picnic activities and games such as face paint and Giant Jenga, a pet buffet and grooming from Dogs and the City, and a family photo booth courtesy of Nido; Mommy Zone which included booths for Nails by Girlstuff, hairstyling by Goody, eye brow makeovers from K Palette, ABS-CBN Store, O-Shopping, and Sky Cable;

Kids Zone which included booths from Lego, Keywest International, Chicco, Fisher Price, and Craft Party Manila; Food Zone which included booths for Spud Buds, Baga Manila merchants, Truck Bun, Sugartrails, and Mang Larry’s Ihawan; Working Mom Arts and Crafts Zone with activities courtesy of Craft Party Manila, art and crafts materials from Crayola, a bento box making activity from Glad, and toddler’s play area from Megabloks; and lastly the Sponsors Zone which included activity booths for Arla, ATC, Bio Oil, Ever Bilena, Petron, and for the UP Student

INdulge! A3EDGEDAVAOENTERTAINMENT

Lifestyle and Working Mom Magazine’s Mother’s Day Picnic

Therese ‘Teri’ Malvar earns honor at the New York Asian Film Festival

Council. Later that day, Lifestyle’s newest local shows “Modern Girls” and the new season of “A Pinch of Portia” were launched. “Modern Girls” hosts Gretchen Ho, Sam Oh, and Denise Laurel joined in the festivities and played fun games with the crowd. Completing the ultimate Mother’s Day experience was Lifestyle’s very own Portia who conducted a cooking demo featuring Arla Cheesy Spread. Guests were also treated with samples of the Pesto Cream Coldcuts Sandwich. The afternoon of family bonding was capped with a special serenade for moms rendered by ASAP Sessionista Richard Poon. Roses courtesy of Island Rose were also given out to mothers who are present during the event. Lifestyle is a Filipino cable television network owned and operated by Creative Programs, Inc., a subsidiary of the media and entertainment company ABS-CBN Corporation. The channel serves as a guide with a wealth of relevant and insightful content for multi-faceted Filipino millennial women. It is the channel to first recognize the need for lifestyle content that specifically caters to the preferences of Filipinas, and hence is the pioneer in local lifestyle programming Lifestyle is available on SKYcable channel 52. For updates, like their Facebook page at www.facebook.com/LifestyleTVPH , follow their IG account LifestyleTVPH and Twitter account @Lifestyle52.

VOL. 9 ISSUE 62 • WEDNESDAY, MAY 25, 2016

PG

PG/*PG 11:35 | 2:20 LFS / *5:10 | 8:00 LFS

X-MEN: APOCALYPSE

12:00 | 3:00 | 6:00 | 9:00 LFS

James McAvoy, Michael Fassbender,Jennifer Lawrence

CAPTAIN AMERICA: CIVIL WAR/

*X-MEN: APOCALYPSE 3D Chris Evans, Robert Downey Jr. /

*James McAvoy, Michael Fassbender,Jennifer Lawrence

May 23 – 24, 2016

PG 12:00 | 2:00 | 4:00 | 6:00 | 8:00 | 10:00 LFS

THE ANGRY BIRDS

Peter Dinklage, Ike Barinholtz, Jason Sudeikis

PG 1:00 | 4:00 | 7:00 | 10:00 LFS

X-MEN: APOCALYPSE

James McAvoy, Michael Fassbender,Jennifer Lawrence

A4 INdulge!EVENT

IN A SHOW OF POSITIVISM, the Monfort Bat Sanc-tuary led by Norma Monfort, held a cer-emonial unveiling and tree-planting ceremony at the sanctuary grounds on Samal Island last May 20. The event, with is part of the bat sanctuary’s cam-paign for Elevated Batti-tude, aims to raise aware-ness about the importance of the role of bats in the en-vironment as well as to de-clare the sanctuary as the epicentre of Davao Land of Peace or DAVALOP. “This is a campaign to engage people in a reflec-tive process to deepen their feelings of personal responsibilities to the Earth,” said Norma, “It is a campaign that can do so much in creating opti-mism and hope for the fu-ture through the practice

A positive ‘Bat’-titudeTree-planting with positivity at the Monfort Bat Sanctuary

DAVAO PARTNER ESTABLISHMENT

GENSAN PARTNER ESTABLISHMENT

of the culture of peace and non-violence and re-membering who we are and what our responsibil-ities to the environment are.” The unique tree plant-ing activity was spear-headed by the Rotary Club of South Davao and

the Davao Council of Ro-taractors. The Narra trees were donated by Ulrich Kronberg and Ingmar Bertelsen and were plant-ed together with golden seeds of peace and virtues which were gathered by participants from spin-ning the Wheel of Values.

By Kenneth Irving Ong

EDGEDAVAO VOL. 9 ISSUE 62 • WEDNESDAY, MAY 25, 2016

VOL. 9 ISSUE 62 • WEDNESDAY, MAY 25, 2016 11EDGEDAVAO

COMMUNITY SENSE

BARANGAY San Vicente of Sumilao, Bukidnon joins the cast of 20 fi-

nalists in the Balay Mindanaw Awards 2016 set to be held on May 27 at the Centrio Mall in Cagayan de Oro City.

This was announced by Balay Mindanaw president and founder Charlito “Kaloy” Manlupig who said the selec-tion of the finalists was based on the outstanding communi-ty initiatives, land rights advo-cacy, resiliency projects, and peace dialogues of the nomi-nated barangays.

San Vicente is the home of the Sumilao farmers, who recently made the headlines when it launched a nation-wide campaign caravan for vice-presidential candidate Leni Robredo. This commu-nity is among the contenders in the Kaangayan Category for communities with out-standing local capacities in addressing issues of injustice and inequities.

The other two Kaangayan

finalists are Barangay Mim-buahan, of Sugbongcogon, Misamis Oriental and Baran-gay Tubo-Tubo of Cagwait, Surigao del Sur.

Cagayan de Oro’s Ba-rangay Gusa and Barangay Lumbia make up the list of finalists in the Kalambuan Category for communities with outstanding initiatives in addressing poverty towards sustainability and viability.

Barangay Lawaan of Gin-goog City and Barangay New Panay of Aleosan, North Cota-bato complete the Kalambuan lineup of finalists.

Three barangays from Panay spearhead the compa-ny of finalists in the Kalig-on Category for communities that have shown outstanding institutionalization and devel-opment of resilient initiatives and preparedness in facing disasters.

Barangay Manipolon of Estancia, Iloilo and Barangays Pinamihagan and Marita of President Roxas, Capiz com-

pose the Kalig-on finalists along with Barangay Ban-ao of Baganga, Davao Oriental, Barangays Macasandig and Carmen of Cagayan de Oro, and Barangays Mat-e and Tawagan of Cagwait, Surigao del Sur.

Barangays Pagangan and Dunguan of Aleosan, North Cotabato are among the final-ists in the Kalinaw Category for communities with out-standing local initiatives in transforming violent conflicts and building peace.

Rounding up the group of Kalinaw finalists are Barangay Diatagon of Lianga, Surigao del Sur, Barangay Tuburan of Cagayan de Oro, and Barangay Mahayahay of Sultan Naga Di-maporo, Lanao del Norte.

The winners will be select-ed by a council of judges com-posed of 14 seasoned person-alities with solid backgrounds on community development, peacebuilding, disaster man-agement, and human rights and social justice.

Chaired by Edicio de la Torre and co-chaired by Arch-bishop Tony Ledesma, the Council is made up of Man-lupig, Emma Leslie, Gerry Bulatao, Ma. Corazon Lland-eral, Jose Noel Olano, Sylvia Paraguya, Ayi Hernandez, Teody Pena, David and Jane Langworthy, Ramon Chua, and Goldy Chan.

The winners will receive a specially-made trophy, which represents Balay Mindanaw’s vision for Mindanao as the bearer of hope and peace, is handcrafted by Jojo Sescon, a renowned international sculp-tor, environmentalist, photo-journalist, and multi-awarded film maker from Mindanao.

The first-ever Balay Min-danaw Awards is part of the Balay Mindanaw’s 20th anni-versary celebration.

“Through these awards, we will celebrate local victo-ries in building empowered, sustainable, resilient and peaceful communities,” Man-lupig said.

MELBA Mandain, a 68-year old widow, is one of the 398 Pantawid Pami-

lya beneficiaries of Barangay 23-C, Davao City. She takes care of her three grandchildren -12-year old JB who is in Grade 4; Vivian, 11, in Grade 3 and Jayson, 12, Grade 4.

To earn a living, she borrows from a local moneylender and buys dried fish to resell along the sidewalks of Agdao, 7 days a week from 3 p.m. to 9 p.m. Her 200-peso earning is used to buy a few kilos of rice and viand for the day.

In 2011, they became benefi-ciaries of the program. “Nakakita ko og katabang sa pagpa-eskwela sa akoang mga apo kay dili gyud sakto ang akoang ginakita sa pag-pasulod sa ilaha sa eskwelahan (I finally found a helpmate to as-sist me in the school needs of my grandchildren. My daily earning will never be enough to send all

my grandchildren to school),” Melba recounts.

Life has been endurable with Pantawid. However on January 2015, her grandson Jayson con-tracted a kidney disease and was hospitalized for three months at Southern Philippines Medical Center (SPMC).

“Wala ko kabalo unsa akoang himuon. Nakahibalo ko nga apil mi sa PhilHealth apan naguol ko sa sobra nga bayrunon (I had no idea what to do. I know that we are automatically recipients of PhilHealth but I still got worried on the extra expenses that we may incur),” Melba shares.

Melba worked from dawn until night to earn extra income to be able to cover any addition-al hospital expense. Their bill reached up to P 90,000.00 but she did not pay a single cent at SPMC.

“Pagkabalo sa SPMC nga

PARTNERS FOR CHANGE. Randy Halasan, Head Teacher of Pegalongan Elementary School, gets recognition from Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) for his support in the implementation of Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program. Presenting the certificate are [L-R] Convergence Coordinator Merlinda A. Paragamac, Assistant Regional Director for Operations Rebecca A. Santamaria, Assistant Regional Director for Administration Ma. Vilia L. Vigil, and Pantawid Pamilya Coordinator

Araceli M. Layog.“Pantawid has made a tremendous impact to the Matigsalog

community in Pegalongan. DSWD is our partner as we strive for change. My passion is to share what I have, to give something without expecting anything in return,” Halasan said.

Halasan is recipient of Ramon Magsaysay Award and Datu Bago Award (Davao City’s highest award conferred to an individual). (DSWD)

Balay Mindanaw Awardsfinalists bared by Centrio

Saving lives thruPantawid, PhilHealth

RECOGNIZING their key role in making economic growth

more inclusive, the Techni-cal Education and Skills De-velopment Authority (TES-DA) has trained its sights on enhancing opportunities for Micro Small and Medi-um Enterprises (MSMEs).

TESDA Director General Irene Isaac announced the

issuance of a resolution that would focus on prioritizing in-company trainers’ meth-odology to equip MSMEs with the capacity to train their own workers.

“Micro Small Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) serve as the backbone of the Phil-ippine economy,” she said.

The training for in-com-pany trainers was pro-

posed by representatives of the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCCI) during a consulta-tion-meeting with TESDA and technical vocational in-stitutions.

“One of the strategic plans for developing MS-MEs is through promoting entrepreneurship and hu-man capital development,

and in consideration of the need to address their skills requirements for produc-tivity and competitiveness,” Isaac said.

“There is a need for TESDA to align with such strategy, by expanding and enhancing the participation of private sector and in-dustry in demand-oriented

In-company training for MSMEs held

FOR a long time, Silvia Chua, 43, mother of two, fed her family from her

earnings as ‘last-two’ (betting game) coordinator. She knew full well then that ‘last-two’ is illegal but she continued with the trade because of poverty.

“Kabalo ko illegal ni nga tra-baho, gisudlan nako aron mad-ungagan ang kita sa akoang bana sa iyang pagka truck helper (I know this is illegal, I took the risk to augment my husband’s earnings as tuck helper),” Silvia admitted.

“Gibuhi nako akoang pam-ilya sa pagiging last two co-ordinator, kubrador og usher. Hadlok man pero nangibabaw ang kagustuhan nako nga naay pagkaon amoang lamesa ad-law-adlaw (I supported my family as ‘last two’ coordinator, collector, and usher. It’s scary but I was resolute to put food on our table every day).” Reformed

In 2011, Silvia decided to give up the job that put food on her family’s table to become a Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipi-no Program beneficiary and eventually, a Parent Leader in her community at Barangay Dumoy.

“Sauna, nagalanganin gyud ko dawaton ang pro-grama tungod kay kabalo ko sa Pantawid bawal ang sugal og dako ang mawala sa akoang panginabuhi-an adlaw-adlaw, pero gi-guide jud ko sa Ginoo aron mabag-o ko (At first, I was reluctant to accept the program because I know that it prohibits gambling and I would lose much, but God helped me to reform).”

“Gihimo ko nila nga Parent Leader. Dili unta ko mag-Par-ent Leader kay dili ko angayan, kay sugarol ko. Nag decide ko nga i-undang ang akoang bisyo para deserving ko sa ila-ha. (They made me Parent Leader. I was hesitant for I was not worthy because of my job. I then decided to quit my vice so I can be credible).”

For Silvia’s family to sur-vive, family members started to plant vegetables in their backyard and sell these in the nearby public market.

Eventually, with the les-sons from the monthly Pan-tawid Family Development Session (FDS) and the guid-ance of Pantawid City Link, Sil-via wholeheartedly embraced her being a Parent Leader.

As beneficiary and Parent Leader, Silvia diligently attends meetings and FDS and heartily imparts the values she learned from the program.

“Usa sa akoang natudlo sa akoang mga myembro ang bawal magsugal og buhi-on sa limpyo nga pamaagi ang pam-ilya (One of the things I taught my members is to refrain from gambling and to raise their family through legal means)” Silvia pointed out.

Silvia also serves as health volunteer in their barangay with a P 1, 000.00 monthly honorarium and actively par-ticipates in their parish GKK (Gagmay’ng Kristohanong Katilingban).

From May to December 2015, Silvia qualified and worked as DSWD Listahan-an Enumerator and Validator for rural and urban areas, en-abling her to send her daugh-ter Patrick Sara, 18, to First Year College at Holy Cross of Davao College under the BS in Social Work program.

“Napa-eskwela nako akoang anak og isa ka semes-ter tungod sa Listahanan. Dako kaayo ko og pasalamat sa DSWD sa tanan nga tabang nga nahatag og na-pabag-o sa akoa (I was able to support my daughter for one semester be-cause of Listahanan. I am very thankful to DSWD for all the assistance and the opportunity to change),” Silvia beamed.

The family of Silvia is one of the 264,371 Pantawid Pam-ilya beneficiaries in Region XI.

Pantawid Pamilya is a pov-erty alleviation program of the national government that aims to break the inter-generational cycle of poverty of poor house-holds by investing in human capital particularly on health, nutrition, and education of children aged 0-18.

Silvia has totally given up on gambling. She is grateful to the program and for the count-less realizations she has gained from it, helping her to become a better person. (DSWD)

Mother gives up gambling, now Pantawid model parent

F IN-COMPANY, 13 F SAVING, 10

VOL. 9 ISSUE 62 • WEDNESDAY, MAY 25, 201612CLASSIFIEDS EDGEDAVAO

EDGE Serving a seamless society

DAVAO GENSAN PARTNERS

EDGE Serving a seamless society

DAVAO PARTNER ESTABLISHMENTS

VOL. 9 ISSUE 62 • WEDNESDAY, MAY 25, 2016 13EDGEDAVAO NEWS

3 REPORTERSEDGE 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 Davaoajero_antonio@yahoo.com

09274733467

EDGE Serving a seamless society

DAVAO

WANTED workforce development,” she added.

The proposed standard is geared towards a target group of supervisors or team leaders in the produc-tion and service industry, who will have the respon-sibility to train apprentices (under Dual Training Sys-tem programs and appren-ticeships); students (K to 12 TechVoc Track immersion); and, other trainees in their

company.TESDA will adapt the

German model of dual vo-cational education system, and will receive financial assistance from the Ger-man Cooperation Agencies, i.e. GIZ, Sequa, GPCCI, etc. in establishing the trainer standard.

The Philippines, through TESDA, is currently involved in the project for “Effective In-Company Vo-

cational Training in the Me-kong Region” to develop a standard and quality assur-ance system for the in-com-pany trainer in the region.

The standard recom-mended to be adopted by ASEAN countries will re-spond to the region’s inten-sifying skilled-labor short-age by creating real pub-lic-private partners, intro-ducing efficient measures, and creating a universal standard for quality-as-sured training, Isaac said.

The MSMEs serve as the backbone of the Philippine economy, a critical driver for the country’s economic growth and plays a vital role not only in wealth creation but also in dispersing new industries to the country-side and stimulating gainful employment.

In 2012, the MSMEs constitute 99.6% of the to-tal number of business es-tablishments in the country and contribute 65% of the total jobs generated from these businesses during the same period.

One of the key concerns of MSMEs is low produc-tivity and competitiveness, attributed mainly to lack of access to new technology, weak technological capabil-ities, and failure to engage in innovation and research and development activi-ties as well as inadequate knowledge, skill, and inno-vation among the workers. (PNA)

In-company... FROM 11

VOL. 9 ISSUE 62 • WEDNESDAY, MAY 25, 201614 EDGEDAVAO

COMPETITIVE EDGE

FROM a small in-store Service area, the new-ly opened Apple Au-

thorized Service Provider (AASP), which covers ap-proximately 130 square me-ters, can now accommodate more device repairs and pro-vide better service offerings for customers’ convenience. It is located at the second level of Abreeza Mall and op-erates from Monday to Sat-urday, at 10 A.M. until cut-off time of 7:30 P.M.

“Power Mac Center is now on its 22nd year and we are more than grateful to our Davao clients for the patron-age. The opening of a bigger and better service center at the Abreeza Mall reinforces the importance to us of our clients in the south,” Power Mac Center Marketing Direc-tor Joey Alvarez said.

Manned by Apple Cer-tified Technicians fully equipped to offer fast, reli-able, and efficient repairs,

the Abreeza Mall branch is among Power Mac Center’s eight service centers − the largest network of Apple Authorized Service Provid-ers throughout Metro Ma-nila, Cebu, and Davao. Apart from diagnosis and repairs, the new service center also features various non-Ap-ple products such as power banks, cables, and screen protectors for purchase.

Over the years, Pow-er Mac Center has proven

its reliability and expertise in servicing clients, having cemented its status as an Apple Premium Service Pro-vider for 2016. Aside from the AASPs, its perpetually expanding network consists of 26 retail stores and two Apple Authorized Training Centers.

More information about its products and services may be obtained from any Pow-er Mac Center branch or at www.powermaccenter.com.

When in Davao: Get better gadget care atPower Mac Center’s all-new Service Center

While holding collaged photos to be given to President Duterte, Tagum Coop officers and Cong. Bravo left the gathering with smiles hoping for better things ahead for the coop sector

Coop-NATCCO Representative Anthony Bravo expressed his gratitude to Tagum Coop for the support during the election. He also addressed the partylist’s plan for the coop movement

TRUE to their mandate of keeping a tight watch on the environment where

mineral resources are derived, the 24 mining companies- holders of Mineral Production Sharing Agreement (MPSAs) spread all over Northeastern Mindanao (Caraga region) had pledged to continue plant-ing trees without letup under their mining rehabilitation (tree planting) program in their areas of operation.

Aside from massive re-forestation and tree planting activities, these mining com-panies also pledged their com-mitment to continue environ-ment preservation and forest protection as well as their so-cial responsibility to host com-munities like health, education and livelihood programs.

This year, with the close supervision of the officials and staff of the regional office of the Mines Geo-Sciences Bu-reau in Region 13 (MGB 13), the mining companies planted tree seeds of various species and are targeting to plant one million tree seedlings this year.

Based on the record of MGB 13, a total of 6, 792, 808 have been planted in 6, 175.29 hectares at various mining ar-eas under the government’s “greening” program, MGB 13 Regional Director Alilo C. En-

somo said. Surprisingly the Tagani-

to Mining Corporation (TMC) and the Taganito HPAL Nickel Corporation (THPAL) had al-ready surpassed their targets of invigorating their surround-ings through the implementa-tion of greening programs and projects.

TMC is the supplier of raw materials to THPAL Corpora-tion, both situated at the eco-nomic zone, within the tene-ment area of TMC at Barangay Taganito, Claver town, Surigao del Norte. The plant process THPAL’s in-situ limonite ore and low-grade limonitic later-ites that are not viable for ex-port and are usually stockpiled as “mine wastes” through the use of the High-Pressure Acid Leach (HPAL) technology.

THPAL is mainly engaged in the manufacture and export of nickel and cobalt in the Phil-ippines, particularly in Min-danao since 2008. The com-pany has an estimated cost of US$1.6 billion and considered as the largest foreign direct in-vestment project in the coun-try with a plant designed to generate an annual output of 30,000 metric tons (MT) of Nickel and 2,640 MT of Cobalt. THPAL is a sister company of Coral Bay Nickel Corporation and majority-owned subsidi-

ary of Sumitomo Metal Mining Co., Ltd. of Japan.

In 2015, Records of TMC and THPAL stated that it has already planted around 741,922 seedlings of various tree species in 354.91 hect-ares of land in the areas where it operates.

Its report also indicat-ed that planted seedlings are properly nurtured and watched – that around 714,183 of these planted seedlings are now considered as surviving plants.

TMC and THPAL’s refor-estation program started in 2011.

TMC and THPAL are also working to protect the ma-rine resources in the area by partnering with the National Greening Program (NGP) of the Department of Environ-ment and Natural Resources (DENR).

The management of THPAL recently inked an agreement with the local gov-ernment unit of Claver town, also of this province for an ‘Adopt a Marine Protected Ar-eas’ in the islets of Lambuhan, Buhisan and Aling Kakajao in an objective to protect the ma-rine life there.

“We are not only conduct-ing massive rehabilitation effort through tree planting

and reforestation and social programs but we also intend to protect the marine life along the coastline of Claver and its islets,” said the firm’s commu-nity relations head Genevieve Chua.

For this year, THPAL is ap-propriating around P400,000 for the installation of perime-ter fence around its mangrove planting areas in the coastal villages of Panato, Wangke, Ca-bugo and Lapinigan in Claver.

It will also work for the re-planting of 10,000 mangroves this year in the same coastal areas in Claver and another 15,000 in the area of Hayang-gabon, also this town.

TMC and THPAL’s inten-sified reforestation efforts are also in line with the continuing call of MGB to mining compa-nies of “not letting up” their tree and mangrove planting activities to combat global warming and climate change which already caused abnor-mal weather disturbance in the country.

“We will continue to ac-complish environment pro-grams and services to en-sure sustainability and the development of villages and communities where we oper-ate,” TMC Division Manager General Administration, Envi-

Re-greening tops CSR concern of Surigao Norte mining firms WITH the new ad-

ministration of pre-sumptive President

Rodrigo Duterte, re-elect-ed Coop-NATCCO Partylist (CNPL) and the homegrown multibillionaire Tagum Co-operative look forward to en-hanced coop empowerment in the country.

In a courtesy visit on May 16 at Tagum Coop Main Office, CNPL Rep. Anthony Bravo, accompanied by Ben Togonon and Edgar Caballeda, exchanged ideas with Tagum Coop executives on how coops can be better empowered now that a Mindanaon is set to as-sume the highest position in the land.

Representing Tagum Co-operative were Board of Di-rectors Chairperson Monica L. Salido, Vice-chairperson Fe J. Adlawan, Director Evelia R. Sator, Director Nenita R. Mal-bas, Director Miriam R. Baloyo, General Manager Juris D. Perez along with other key officers and immediate past chairper-son Norma R. Pereyras.

During their casual discus-sion, Salido asked Rep. Bravo where the cooperative sector is heading now that Federalism, another form of government, is being seriously considered for possible adoption.

Bravo assured that the partylist will always be the voice of the cooperative sector in the 17th Congress and will cooperate with the administra-

tion in deliberating Federalism through Con-Con (Constitu-tional Convention) or Con-As (Constitutional Assembly).

The lawmaker said that Tagum Cooperative and other coops can pass a resolution to be endorsed to Coop-NATCCO partylist supporting the plat-forms of the government and these coops can educate their members on what federalism is.

It may be noted that during the first Presidential Debate in Cagayan de Oro City, Presumptive President Dute-rte sidelined discussing about organizing cooperatives to farmers, hinting his support to the sector.

In 2015, Duterte was also the keynote speaker of Tagum Cooperative during its 48th Annual General Assembly on March 28, the Mayor’s birth-date. It was a rare privilege honored by Tagum Coop, ac-cording to Pereyras.

When Rep. Bravo and company were about to leave to eventually meet Mayor Duterte in Davao City, Tagum Cooperative asked the group to hand to the mayor his collaged photos with the Coop congrat-ulating him for winning the presidency.

Though the visit is aimed to basically thank Tagum Coop for the support to Coop-NATC-CO, an exchange of ideas fruit-fully took place. (Tagum Coop-erative)

Coop-NATCCO, Tagum Coop deepen talks on cooperatives

F RE-GREENING, 10

VOL. 9 ISSUE 62 • WEDNESDAY, MAY 25, 2016 15SPORTSEDGEDAVAO

1Pacman No. 1 nominee Dr. Mikee Romero is joined by sons Miguel (right) and Santi (front) after taking his oath of office as member of the House of Representatives recently. The Globalport owner intends to join the youth

and sports committee in the House in order to craft laws that will help the country produce its first Olympic gold medal winner.

A SERIES that once looked lop-sided is now even.

Kyle Lowry scored 35 points, including a driving layup in the final minute, and DeMar DeRozan had 32 as the Toronto Raptors evened the Eastern Con-ference Finals by beating the Cleve-land Cavaliers 105-99 in Game Four on Monday night (Tuesday, Manila time).

DeMarre Carroll scored 11 points and Bismack Biyombo had 14 rebounds as Toronto improved to 8-2 at home this postseason and got back on level terms after big losses in Games One and Two.

“We’ve been counted out, and we like that challenge,” DeRozan said.

The next challenge for Toron-to? Game Five on Wednesday in Cleveland, where the Raptors are 0-3 this season, losing by a com-bined 72 points.

“We have to continue to make sure that when they punch, we punch back,” Lowry said. “And if they punch three times, we punch four times.”

The Raptors are 2-6 on the road in the playoffs.

After a 10-0 start to these play-offs, the Cavaliers are counting on home court advantage to help them reach their second straight Finals.

“Going back home we have to play a lot better and I think we will,” LeBron James said.

Cleveland lost consecutive playoff games to an Eastern Con-ference opponent for the first time since dropping the final three games of the conference semifinals to Boston in 2010.

“We had a few defensive break-downs that you can’t have down the stretch of a game, especially in the playoffs,” Cavs coach Tyronn Lue said. “They executed every time we

made a mistake.”James scored 29 points and

Kyrie Irving had 26 for the Cava-liers, who trailed by as many as 18 points. Channing Frye scored nine of his 12 points in the fourth quar-ter.

Lowry scored nine in the fourth and DeRozan had 12, con-necting on five of six shots.

“It’s a cakewalk for me when (Lowry) gets going,” DeRozan said. “It opens up everything.”

The Raptors led 78-69 to begin the fourth but Frye made consecu-tive 3-pointers as Cleveland opened the final quarter with an 8-0 run, cutting it to 78-77. The Cavaliers made their first 11 shots of the fourth quarter.

“It wasn’t enough because we got off to a horrible first half once again in this building and you’re playing catch up the whole game,” James said.

Frye’s errant 3-point attempt at 4:12 was Cleveland’s first miss of the fourth. DeRozan made two free throws at the other end and, after another miss by Frye, Carroll made one of two to put Toronto up 99-96 with 3:23 to go.

A long 3-pointer by Irving made it 101-99 with 2:00 left, but DeRozan answered with a driving bank shot at 1:33. Toronto got the ball back after Biyombo blocked J.R. Smith’s 3, and Biyombo kept the offensive possession alive by rebounding Lowry’s missed shot. After a timeout, Lowry let the shot clock wind down before driving for the decisive layup, making it 105-99 with 22 seconds to go.

Toronto jumped out to a 13-5 lead as Cleveland missed eight of its first 10 shots. Following a timeout, the Cavs made five of their next six to cut the deficit but the Raptors led 27-24 after one quarter.

PAUL Lee is likely to fol-low Greg Slaughter and Matt Ganuelas-Rosser

and watch Gilas Pilipinas from the sidelines.

In what could be another blow to the national team’s ambitious bid to make the Rio de Janeiro Olympics, the dead-ly combo guard faces the pos-sibility of skipping playing for coach Tab Baldwin in the qual-ifier for the Summer Games which the country is hosting from July 5-10 at the Mall of Asia Arena.

The 27-year-old Lee is set to report for training with Gi-las for the first time on Tues-day, where he plans to sit down and personally talk to Baldwin regarding the true condition of his hurting left knee.

“Sasabihin ko kay Coach Tab yung sitwasyon ko,” said the Rain or Shine guard, ad-mitting his situation has gone even worse since last playing in Game Six of the PBA Com-missioner’s Cup finals won by the Elasto Painters over the Alaska Aces.

He admitted visiting the doctors again last week to consult on the knee, which was constantly being drained during the playoffs. And the diagnosis, according to him, is not something pleasant for Baldwin to hear.

“May partial tear pa rin yung ligament. Saka mas maraming tubig ngayon kesa nung huling nagpa-drain ako,” he said of the injury (lateral meniscus and Illotbial Band) which had kept him out for most of the early part of the season.

Lee was already advised to have the knee drained and at the same time undergo PRP (Platelet Rich Plasma) proce-dure, which meant being total-ly out of action for more than a month.

But he decided to defer doing it not until he personally gets to talk to the 57-year-old Baldwin.

“Hindi na muna ako nag-pa-drain kasi if magpa-drain ako tuloy na ng PRP uli … kail-angan i-PRP talaga e,” said the PBA Press Corps Finals MVP.

“Plan ko is next week lahat gawin, e kung ganun out ako for five weeks – recovery and therapy na yun.

“If ganun, mahirap naman na pag-antayin ko yung Gilas.”

Should that be the case, Lee is going to be the third member of the national train-ing pool to skip join Gilas in its most important mission yet due to injury. Separate injuries in their respective ankles had already ruled both Slaughter and Rosser out of the team.

Lee has been complain-ing about the knee during the course of the best-of-seven ti-tle series against the Aces. Fol-lowing the title clinching win, he admitted feeling pain on the injured knee, which also has some swelling.

Baldwin admitted hav-ing an idea about the extent of Lee’s injury shortly after the national team’s practice Sunday. But he won’t take any course of action on the situ-ation of the explosive combo guard not until he hears it di-rectly from the player himself.

If there’s one thing he re-grets, Lee said it’s not being able to play before his coun-trymen during the course of the six-day qualifier.

“Of course, nakaka-hi-nayang kung hindi ako maka-kasama. Ang nakaka-hinayang kung sakali is dito gagawin,” he said. “First time ko sana maglaro sa harap ng mga ka-babayan natin. Sayang kung sakali.”

Still, if given the chance, he’s always ready to render his service for flag and country, provided he’s healthy to play.

“May chance pa naman ako siguro sumali sa nation-al team sa mga susunod na competitions,” said the former University of the East King Warrior.

For now, he’ll be laying his cards down before Baldwin, and from there, take on what-ever decision the national mentor has to make.

“Pero tignan ko din kung anong sabihin ni Coach Tab, mag-usap muna kami. Al-though sa ngayon, eto yung sitwasyon ko.” Lee stressed.

ALL SQUARERaptors, Cavs now all even at 2-2

EYEING THIRD WIN. DeMar DeRozan and the Raptors eye a third straight win against the Cavaliers. AP

Lee begs off from Gilas

DON’T let Maddie Maday-ag’s looks fool you.

Beneath that meek appearance is a fierce competitor raring to overcome a knee injury that derailed a blossoming soph-omore season - and remains un-daunted by the huge shoes she’ll have to help fill for the Ateneo Lady Eagles in Season 79 follow-ing the departure of Alyssa Val-dez.

The lanky middle blocker is in town for a vacation with her family, but was gracious enough to sit down for a brief talk. And right off the bat, she quickly shared her recovery from surgery for a torn ACL she suffered during a routine spiking drill in practice earlier in the year.

“It’s getting better. I go to therapy everyday,” said Madayag, joined over dinner by her moth-er Donna, together with Ateneo teammate and former University

of San Jose Recoletos standout Deanna Wong and her parents.

“Actually, three to four days after the surgery, nagsimula na ko sa therapy but the doctor (George Canlas) said that recov-ery will take between eight to 10 months,” she added.

Eight to 10 months of being away from the game she loves the most is understandably unset-tling for the young Davaoena. But she understands that in order for her to ultimately reach her peak, she must have a solid and sturdy foundation.

It could’ve been worse, Ma-dayag added.

“I had an MRI (magnetic res-onance imagery) done tapos wala naman daw findings for meniscus tear pero nung inoperahan ako, he (Canlas) saw na may tear. They had to take it out pero naawa si doc, so they repaired it and put it back in kasi daw if kapag tinang-

gal daw nila, I will get arthritis at an early age,” recounted Madayag.

After going under the knife on April 2, Madayag was back on her feet after just three weeks of active rehab. But the time away has given her a new perspective on what it will take for Ateneo to return to the crest of UAAP volley-ball after losing the championship they have held for the last two years to rival La Salle.

“It just felt like last year kasi di ako nakalaro ng masyado. [And] kasi nga I didn’t play as much, I got to see more of the team last year and noticed the differences between that team and the one we have now,” she explained.

“Mas cohesive ang team last year kasi nga mas maraming veterans. Kulang lang sa bonding siguro. Kulang sa communication kasi we all had to make adjust-ments from all the losses in per-sonnel,” added Madayag.

The departures of several key players, though, opened up a grand opportunity for Madayag that she seized to become one of the best middle blockers and servers in the UAAP up until the freak injury that ended her sea-son.

“The hardest part was ac-cepting na matagal ang recovery. I was very frustrated as well kasi Coach Tai (Bundit) gave me a chance to play and na-injury pa. But I can’t really dwell on that since injuries happen all the time. God has a purpose for everything,” said Madayag.

With her eyes set on making a return to the court in late Octo-ber or early November, Madayag has given an assurance to the Ate-neo faithful.

“Although sayang na di na ako nakalaro pero I still have three years. Babawi kami next season,” said Madayag. (spin.ph)

Madayag vows to bounce back strongerafter injury-hit breakout season

VOL. 9 ISSUE 62 • WEDNESDAY, MAY 25, 201616 EDGEDAVAOSports

PINAY BET. Princess Superal is doing well in the US

Amateurs.TOP seeds Pauline del Rosario and Princess Super-

al marched on to the Round of 16, playing steady on a tough day that saw the second seeds and six other pairs in the top 10 bow out after one round of the 2016 US Women’s Amateur Four-Ball Championship on Mon-day in Florida (Tues-day, Manila time).

The Filipinas beat Mikayla Fitzpatrick and Alisa Snyder, getting ahead right away with birdie on the par-4

open-ing hole, and took firm control with birdie on the par-3 No. 10 at Streamsong Resort.

Del Rosario and Superal set up a match against Hana Ku and Jordan Lippetz, who won in 19 holes over Kaitlin Milligan and Sydney Youngblood.

No. 18 Sofia Cha-bon and Mikhaela For-tuna also advanced, downing No. 15 Alyssa Lamoureux and Alexa Pano, 5 and 4.

Sisters Nicole and Waverly Whiston over-

came No. 2 seed S i e r r a

Brooks and Kristen Gillman in 18 holes.

Chabon and For-tuna next take on the 31st-ranked Whiston sisters.

No. 30 Alexandra Austin and Lauren Greenlief downed third-seeded Xinying Wang, 3 and 1.

Pinay golfers advance to R of 16VOL. 9 ISSUE 62 • WEDNESDAY, MAY 25, 2016