Former President Joseph ‘erap’ estrada labeled Davao City mayor Sara Duterte-

Carpio as the feistiest mayor in the Philippines and a fighter for the poor.

estrada, along with his son Jo-seph Victor (JV) ejercito, was at the city hall Friday morning, during which he met with the mayor and 19 city department heads.

“The mayor of Davao City is the feistiest mayor in the Philippines,” estrada said to break the ice to

which Duterte-Carpio answered: “Nasobrahan tanaw ug movies, sir (I must have seen too many mov-ies).”

Later in an interview, the for-mer president said he admires the lady mayor.

“I admire her so much. She’s very much concerned in projects like housing for the poor, livelihood projects. When I was a mayor, that was also my concern. one way or another we have the same thinking - always for the greater good or the

majority,” he said.estrada on July 5 (Thursday

night) attended the wake of Don Antonio Floirendo for whom me-morial services were held last Fri-day in marapangi, this city, wjich the mayor also attended.

Duterte-Carpio, following her meeting with estrada, attended the services.

Don Floirendo, who passed away June 29, was reputed to be one of the most successful entre-preneurs in mindanao.

Election plansThe former president said he

paid a visit to the mayor purely as his courtesy call.

However, during his meeting with her he could not help but ask: “What are your plans (for the 2013 elections)?”

Duterte-Carpio simply said, “Hindi pa kami nag-uusap sir,” im-plying that she and her father, for-mer city mayor and currently the incumbent vice mayor, rodrigo r.

Within two years, the city gov-ernment aims to have all modified motorcycle trans-

port units to have a standard design.But first, they have to start with

the area which is most challenging: Toril district.

mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio in an interview July 6 said the upcoming rules on modified motorcycle units will be implemented first in Toril dis-trict which has the most number of unregistered motorcycles.

“We have started releasing im-ages of the standard design which owners of these unregistered motor-cycles should use as a model in con-

verting their units,” she said.“The routes in Toril have also

been reviewed. Tricycles who al-ready have franchises will be follow-ing these routes,starting next week (this week) in Toril,” she added.

She said the Land Transporta-tion office for Davao region will be conducting a ‘caravan’ in Toril to reach out to owners of motorcycles who have not yet registered the same.

“The registration is with the LTo but for them to operate transport services, they have to get a franchise permit from the city,” Duterte-Car-pio said.

“Those payong-payong and tri-cycles which are not franchised will have to undergo conversion and get franchise permits from the city legal office. Upon approval, the units will be color-coded according to their routes,” she added.

Duterte-Carpio on June 25 or-dered a 30-day moratorium on the confiscation of payong-payongs, which are motorcycle units with sidecars.

The city government will de-clare illegal the operation of pay-ong-payong and habal-habal (units with no sidecars but whose drivers offer transport services to passen-gersstrangers) as well as mandate owners of payong-payong to con-vert their units into closed mini-cabs similar to that of a tricycle.

Confiscation will resume at the end of the moratorium, the mayor said.

n

n

P 15.00 • 24 PAGESwww.edgedavao.net

VOL.5 ISSUE 90 • JULY 8 - 9, 2012

Toril pilots new tricycles

FSARA, 17

Sara is feistiest mayor in Phl – Erap

Payong-payong folds down

EDGEServing a seamless society

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UNSAFE WATER. Residents of a subdivision in Sasa take a bath and do their laundry in an unsafe water from a creek because of the two-day water interruption that affects most part of Davao City on Saturday. [LEAN DAVAL, JR.]

New measure includes conversion, re-routing and color-coding

By Jade C. Zaldivar

VOL.5 ISSUE 90 • JULY 8 - 9, 2012

THe Sangguniang Pan-glungsod (SP) disap-proved applications for

memorial parks over aquifer areas in Davao City, but it ap-proved a coal-fired power plant. Yet, both are threats to people’s health and the envi-ronment.

This, according to envi-ronmentalist organizations in a media briefing on the impacts of a coal-fired power plant last Wednesday at Cof-fee for Peace, matina, Davao City.

The construction of a 300-megawatt coal-fired power plant owned by Aboitiz Power Corporation in Binugao Village, Toril, Davao City, was started recently following its approval by the SP.

“Why was it difficult for them to disapprove the coal-fired plant when they did not even approve cemeteries?” Kalikasan Partylist third nom-inee Jean Suzanne Lindo said last Wednesday.

Also a staunch advocate of anti-coal-fired power plant in Davao City, Lindo said the City Council should have known that both types of projects are hazardous to health.

She cited the Town of Pines, Indiana, USA, where a coal power plant has been operating since 1980’s, saying groundwater in the town has been contaminated with poi-sonous heavy metals.

Based on a report of Agen-

cy for Toxic Substances and Disease registry, since April 2000, some 55 residential wells and 14 landfill monitor-ing wells had been detected with arsenic, boron, manga-nese and lead.

Anna Abad, Greenpeace International climate change campaigner, said air pollution from coal plants can have very drastic impacts on water bod-ies.

She mentioned that con-tamination and acidification due to coal emissions have rendered surface water sourc-es unusable.

Juland Suazo of Panalip-dan environment Group Net-work said the city councilors, who approved the coal-fired power plant in Toril, are ac-countable for all the health and environmental impacts it will yield in three years time.

For her part, Councilor Pi-lar C. Braga, chair of the com-mittee on energy, transpor-tation and communication, yesterday said the city council had made sure that “all prop-er measures will be or are in place” before it approved the coal power plant.

Unlike the proposed cem-eteries in Toril that will affect drinking water sources of the city, she said the coal power plant company committed not to use water from the aquifer.

“The company said they will not dig for water, but

THE BIG NEWS2 EDGEDAVAO

FGREEN, 17

Dumoy water a heritage-- Braga DAVAo City Councilor

Pilar Braga yesterday stressed that Dumoy

water and other sources of water need to be protected being an important natural resource and a heritage.

She said this during a media forum in line with the City Council’s disapproval of two memorial park applica-tions supposedly to be locat-ed near the area of Dumoy.

“Dumoy being a source of water is a matter of public knowledge, along with the areas of Baliok, Bago, Puan and Ulas. In fact the DCWD has about 40 production wells there. Dumoy is a heri-tage and it has to be protect-ed,” she added.

During the council ses-sion July 3, majority of the city councilors objected to the applications of eternal Garden memorial Park and Fairfield memorial Park, both applying to locate within the city’s Dumoy wa-tershed area.

Seventeen councilors voted ‘no’ to the application of Fairfield mamorial Park while two councilors said ‘yes’ with two councilors

abstaining.Fifteen councilors ob-

jected to the application of eternal Garden while fur said ‘yes’, and two abstained.

Following these deci-sions, Councilor Bernard Al-ag proposed that the city council set a moratorium on approval of applications for memorial parks, which was approved.

With the moratorium, Al-ag said no applications for memorial parks will be entertained by the city council unless the Water management and Protection Council is done with its wa-tershed delineation project which will specifically iden-tify where the city’s water-shed areas are located.

The city’s Water re-sources management and Protection Code 2001 disal-lows new memorial parks and cemeteries to rise in water-rich areas.

However, Dumoy is not mentioned in Article 6 which defines the city’s principal water sources (Calinan to Dacudao, Cali-nan to malagos, and Sirawan areas).

WOODCRAFT. Two craftsmen carefully apply varnish to a furniture in a wooden craft shop along Quezon Boulevard in Davao City. [KARLOS MANLUPIG]

GoVerNmeNT authori-ties stopped last week mining activities in

what could become the “gold-en triangle” at the boundary area shared by the city of mati, and the municipalities of manay and Tarragona, Davao oriental.

This, after the mines and Geosciences Bureau is-sued a cease and desist or-der on all small-scale min-ing operations in the area where the tenement of the oro east mining Company, Inc. is located.

The order came about after more than 1,000 small-scale min-ers descended on the area searching for the elusive gold.

At the same time, mati City mayor michelle rabat also formed a task force to look into the matter af-ter the village chief of Don Salvador Lopez reported to her that almost 10,000 small-scale miners are now in the area.

“According to the ba-rangay captain of Don

Salvador there are a lot of gold speculators, 10,000 of them. I have formed a task force to look into it,” mayor rabat said. rabat issued executive order No. 60-02-12 Thurs-day, July 5, calling for the creation of a fact-finding team composed of officials from the city environment office, city engineers, city health, city planning, and the city disaster risk reduc-tion management.

The task force is di-

rected to come up with an official report and submit the same to the mayor not later than July 24. mGB 11 director edilberto Arreza said the gold-rush area is located in barangay Tubaon.

The cease and desist order was issued last June 19 and the agencies tasked is the mining company that has tenement over the area, the police, the mili-tary and the local govern-ment units in the area.

10,000 small-scale miners in area

‘Golden triangle’ activities ordered stopped by MGB

AN international environmentalist group, Greenpeace,

wants President Benigno Aquino’s to fully imple-ment the renewable en-ergy (re) Act.

The group said Aquino voted for the phase out of coal power plants in the country in a survey on green electoral initiative in 2010.

Aquino was quoted saying, “The country must seriously move towards a clear shift to clean energy and technologies.”

Speaking in a recent media briefing in Davao City, Anna Abad, climate and energy campaigner of Greenpeace, said four years since the re Law was passed, and two years since Aquino’s promise,

13 “green lighted” coal powered plants had been built.

“Investment in coal power edges out invest-ment for renewable ener-gy,” she said, adding that there is no such thing as clean coal.

She said impacts of coal include health cost, adverse economic effects, livelihood, and air pollu-tion.

Greenpeace reported that the share of coal in the power generation mix increased from 26.6% to 34.4% from 2009 and 2010.

Abad said the Depart-ment of energy (Doe) claims that “the Philip-pines is way ahead of its target of being 50% re-newable by 2030.”

“But, one key require-ment for going green is the phasing out of fossil fuels emitted by coal-fired power plants,” she said, adding that increas-ing coal investments means less investments in renewable energy.

The group said 304 re contracts have been awarded, but are still pending for materializa-tion as the re law has not been implemented yet.

With this, almost $5 billion worth of invest-ments and job opportuni-ties have gone elsewhere, the group added.

In its own Philippine energy revolution road-map, Greenpeace claims that 50% of re in the power generation mix is achievable by 2020, a de-

cade ahead of Doe’s na-tional re plan.

Abad said the country has an abundant supply of re, which can generate about 261,000 megawatts of clean energy from re-newable sources.

Greenpeace said the Philippines is second largest producer of geo-thermal energy in the world; top wind producer in Southeast Asia; and re-ceives double solar flux of what european countries get in a year.

Abad noted that real-izing the energy revolu-tion only takes a political will and visionary leaders who will serve the inter-ests of the Filipino people and champion a sustain-able energy future for the country.

Greenpeace asks

Where is PNoy’s promise of renewable energy?By Lorie A. Cascaro

By Jade C. Zaldivar

Green groups doubt dads’ consistency on envi issues

VOL.5 ISSUE 90 • JULY 8 - 9, 2012 3EDGEDAVAO THE BIG NEWS

VOL.5 ISSUE 90 • JULY 8 - 9, 20124 SCIENCE/ENVIRONMENT EDGEDAVAO

Name: Blue whaleDescription: Largest mammalsSize: The biggest recorded Blue is 33 meters long

Name: Sei whaleDescription: Fastest swimming whalesStatus: Protected

Name: Fin whaleDescription: Second largest whale speciesStatus: Protected, but there are some signs of recovery

Name: Sperm whaleDescription: The only great whale with teeth, made famous in Moby DickStatus: Protected

Name: Right whaleDescription: They are the right whales to hunt because they are slow swimmingStatus: On the brink of extinction

Name: Bowhead whaleDescription: The only baleen whale to spend all its time in Arctic watersStatus: Over 17,000 in existence

It’s a whale’s worldWHALeS are one of

the most interest-arousing animal

species in the world. But how much do we know of whales? We take you to a swim of the world under-neath us—out in the deep, inside the whale’s world.

There are ten great spe-cies of whales.

Blue whaleBlue whales are the larg-

est mammals, and possibly the largest animal of any kind to have lived on earth. A 33-metre long, 190-tonne whale has been seen, but most are smaller than this. Blues were hunted to the brink of extinction during the 20th Century, before being protected in the mid-1960s. The most recent abundance estimate for the Southern Hemisphere is 2,300 and there is evidence they are increasing annu-ally by about 7%. There are no good estimates for numbers in other areas, but there is some evidence of a population increase in the North Atlantic.

Fin whaleThe fin whale is the sec-

ond-largest whale species after the blue, to which it is genetically close. Fin-blue whale hybrids are known. There are no agreed esti-mates of current total pop-ulation, although there are some signs of recovery in parts of the Southern Hemi-sphere where it has been protected since 1976.

There are about 40-50,000 in the North Atlan-tic. Japan and Iceland have caught the fin again in re-

cent years, with Iceland awarding itself quotas of 154 per year. Greenlandic aboriginal hunters target 10 per year.

Right whaleThere are three recog-

nised species of rights. By studying the genetics of parasitic whale “lice”, sci-entists estimate the split ocurred 5-6 million years ago. They are so called be-cause they were the “right” whales to hunt - slow, s w i m m i n g close to shore and would float when killed.

The right whale has been pro-tected since the 1930s, al-though illegal Soviet whal-ing took large numbers in the North Pa-cific and Southern Hemi-sphere up to the 1970s.Two of the three species are on the brink of extinction. Few-er than 400 are believed to exist in the North Atlantic, while the North Pacific spe-cies may be slightly more numerous. The Southern Hemisphere species num-bers about 8,000 to 10,000.

Sei whaleThe fast-swimming sei

whale was caught in great numbers in the Antarctic in the 1960s, after the blue, fin and humpback stocks had been overexploited. Japan

has issued a permit to take up to 100 sei whales in the North Pacific for research.

There are no agreed estimates of current num-bers in the Antarctic. In 1989, the North Atlantic population was estimated at 10,500, and claims have been made for numbers ranging from 9,000-28,000 in the western North Pa-

cific. It has been protected since the late 1970s in the Antarctic and North Pacific, and since 1982 in the North Atlantic.

Sperm whalemade famous in moby

Dick, sperm whales have been hunted since the 17th Century. It is the only “great whale” with teeth. Sperm whale oil once lit the lamps of the major cities of the US and europe; and after WWII, 30,000 a year were being caught. They have been protected since 1982.

There are no agreed

current estimates of num-ber. Some authors believe the historical population worldwide may have been 1-2 million, and that there may now be 360,000-1 million. Japan has issued a scientific permit to take up to 10 sperm whales in the North Pacific.

Bowhead whaleThe bowhead is a single

species - closely related to the right whale - and is re-markable for being the only baleen whale to spend all its time in Arctic waters. The bowhead’s huge, bony skull allows it to break through the sea-ice.

There are thought to be more than 17,000 in ex-istence. The bowhead is a target for indigenous hunt-ers in Alaska, Chukotka and Greenland who are allowed to catch no more than 69 in-dividuals a year under IWC rules.

Bryde’s whales

Bryde’s whales are found mainly in tropical or subtropical seas. They were long confused with sei whales. There are no agreed estimates, although there are thought to be about around 25,000 in the western North Pacific.

They were only exploit-ed in any numbers towards the end of the commercial

whaling peri-od in the early 1980s just be-fore the mor-atorium came into place. Japan’s scien-tific whaling programme will take up to 50 Bryde’s whales a year in the west-ern North Pa-cific.

H u m p -back whale

one of the best known whales be-

cause of their distinctive flippers and tail flukes, their acrobatic “breaching”, and for the singing males on the breed-ing grounds. once heav-ily exploited, the humpback has been protected since the mid-1960s and is in-creasing in many parts of the world.

There are probably now more than 30,000 in the Southern Hemisphere, 15,000 in the North Atlantic and 18,000 in the North Pa-cific. Four whales per year can be taken by aboriginal subsistence hunters in St

Vincent and the Grena-dines, and an annual quota of nine was recently agreed for Greenland.

Gray whaleThere is a single species

of gray whale split between two populations in the Pa-cific. The western North Pa-cific gray is one of the most endangered in the world, numbering about 130.

The eastern Pacific gray, by contrast, has recovered to its pre-exploitation levels of about 20,000.The east-ern gray is famous for its epic migration which takes it from the cold Bering and Chukchi seas to the warm waters of mexico to breed and calve a round trip of 20,000km. No more than 140 eastern grays a year can be taken by US and rus-sian subsistence hunters.

Minkle whaleThe two species of

minke are the world’s most hunted whales. Japan has been targeting about 950 a year for its research pro-grammes, though its im-mediate plans are unclear. Commercially, Norway is-sues quotas to hunt about 1,000 per year, while Ice-landic boats catch up to 216 per year. Greenland’s Inuit hunters can take up to 190 for subsistence purposes.

estimates of minke numbers for the Southern Hemisphere are currently under scientific review, but there are probably more than 450,000.There are more than 145,000 in the North Atlantic and about 25,000 in the western North Pacific.

Humpback whale

VOL.5 ISSUE 90 • JULY 8 - 9, 2012 5EDGEDAVAO THE ECONOMY

THe Bureau of Fish-eries and Aquatic resources (BFAr)

has lamented the apparent lack of interest in fisheries courses even after enroll-ment in the nursing course had taken a nosedive in the last six years.

Asis G. Perez, BFAr di-rector, said they are pro-moting higher enrollment in fisheries courses now that the nursing course is “no longer the fad” among college students.

He asserted the nursing course has deprived other courses, stressing that the past high demand for Fili-pino nurses lured millions of Filipino students to enter even spurious colleges of-fering nursing courses.

But with the fall of the nursing course as a pre-ferred course, many other courses, like mining and especially agriculture and forestry courses, have to

exert efforts to attract the students again with schol-arship and assured employ-ment.

The fisheries course was not exempted.

During the last board examination, only 87 passed, and so far, the Pro-fessional regulations Com-mission have only around 500 licensed fisheries pro-fessionals in the active ros-ter, Perez said.

“No one is enrolling in the fisheries anymore, and some schools have to close their offering [of this course],” he told reporters here.

For the BFAr, though a small line agency, the dearth in the number of fisheries graduates was a concern.

“Actually, we have a scope of responsibility that is six times bigger than the land area of the coun-try. And that excludes the

200-kilometer exclusive economic zone,” Perez said, referring to the municipal waters that are within 15 kilometers from the shore-line.

To encourage fresh in-terest in the course, he said that he would ask the 800 local governments in the coastal areas “to open up at least one post on fisheries officer”.

“There’s always the im-plied assumption that any-thing that concerns the ma-rine and aquatic resources is the sole responsibility of the BFAr. The fact is that this has been devolved to the LGUs, especially the concern on municipal wa-ters,” he said.

That means, he added, that these LGUs have as much concern to have at least one fisheries officer.

To further persuade the LGUs, he said that the BFAr is willing to shoulder 50

BFAR: Interest in fisheries courses lukewarm

WOODCRAFT. Two craftsmen carefully apply varnish to a furniture in a wooden craft shop along Quezon Boulevard in Davao City. [KARLOS MANLUPIG]

percent of the salary of its fisheries officer for the next two years.

“This would already

assure the employment of 800 graduates,” he added.

He said that govern-ment might also persuade

schools to offer scholar-ships or subsidized tuition fees to students enrolled in fisheries courses. (MINDANEwS)

VOL.5 ISSUE 90 • JULY 8 - 9, 20126 THE ECONOMY EDGEDAVAOStat Watch

MONTHLY AVERAGE EXCHANGE RATE (January 2009 - December 2011)

Month 2011 2010 2009

Average 43.31 45.11 47.637December 43.64 43.95 46.421November 43.27 43.49 47.032October 43.45 43.44 46.851

September 43.02 44.31 48.139August 42.42 45.18 48.161

July 42.81 46.32 48.146June 43.37 46.30 47.905May 43.13 45.60 47.524April 43.24 44.63 48.217

March 43.52 45.74 48.458February 43.70 46.31 47.585January 44.17 46.03 47.207

3.5%4th Qtr 2011

3.7%4th Qtr 2011

USD 3,342Million

Nov 2011USD 4,985

MillionNov 2011

USD -1,643Million

Nov 2011USD -114

MillionDec 2011

P4,442,355Million

Nov 2011

4.71%Oct 2011P128,745

MillionNov 2011

P 4,898Billion

Oct 2011

P 43.65Dec 2011

3,999.7Sept 2011

128.1Jan 2012

3.9Jan 2012

3.4Dec 2011

284,040Sept 2011

19.1%Oct 2011

6.4%Oct 2011

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

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

3. Exports 1/

4. Imports 1/

5. Trade Balance

6. Balance of Payments 2/

7. Broad Money Liabilities

8. Interest Rates 4/

9. National Government Revenues

10. National government outstanding debt

11. Peso per US $ 5/

12. Stocks Composite Index 6/

13. Consumer Price Index 2006=100

14. Headline Inflation Rate 2006=100

15. Core Inflation Rate 2006=100

16. Visitor Arrivals

17. Underemployment Rate 7/

18. Unemployment Rate 7/

Cebu Pacific Daily 5J961 / 5J962 5:45 Manila-Davao-Manila 6:15Zest Air Daily Z2390 / Z2390 5:45 Manila-Davao-Manila 6:25Cebu Pacific Daily 5J593 / 5J348 6:00 Cebu-Davao-Iloilo 6:30Philippine Airlines Daily PR809 / PR810 6:10 Manila-Davao-Manila 7:00Philippine Airlines Daily PR819 / PR820 7:50 Manila-Davao-Manila 8:50Cebu Pacific Daily 5J394 / 5J393 7:50 Zamboanga-Davao-Zamboanga 8:10Cebu Pacific Daily 5J599 / 5J594 8:00 Cebu-Davao-Cebu 8:30Cebu Pacific Daily 5J347 / 5J596 9:10 Iloilo-Davao-Cebu 9:40Cebu Pacific Mon/Tue/Thu/Fri/Sun 5J963 / 5J964 9:40 Manila-Davao-Manila 10:10Philippine Airlines Daily PR811 / PR812 11:30 Manila-Davao-Manila 12:20Cebu Pacific Daily 5J595 / 5J966 12:00 Cebu-Davao-Manila 12:30Silk Air Mon/Wed/Sat MI588 / MI588 18:55 Davao-Cebu-Singapore 13:35Cebu Pacific Thu 5J965 / 5J968 12:55 Manila-Davao-Manila 13:25Cebu Pacific Tue/Wed//Sat 5J965 / 5J968 13:35 Manila-Davao-Manila 14:05

Silk Air Thu/Sun MI566 / MI566 18:55 Davao-Singapore 15:20Cebu Pacific Mon/Tue/Wed/Fri 5J507 / 5J598 15:00 Cebu-Davao-Cebu 15:30Philippine Airlines August 15:55 Mani2Mani 16:50Zest Air Daily Z2524 / Z2525 16:05 Cebu-Davao-Cebu 16:45Cebu Pacific Daily 5J967 / 5J600 16:35 Manila-Davao-Cebu 17:05Philippines Airlines Daily PR813 / PR814 16:55 Manila-Davao-Manila 17:45Cebu Pacific Mon/Tue/Thu/Sat 5J215 / 5J216 18:00 Cagayan de Oro-Davao-Cagayan de Oro 18:20Cebu Pacific Daily 5971 / 5J970 18:40 Manila-Davao-Manila 19:10Cebu Pacific Tue/Sat/Sun 5J973 / 5J974 20:00 Manila-Davao-Manila 20:30Cebu Pacific Daily 5J969 / 5J972 20:30 Manila-Davao-Manila 21:00Airphil Express Daily 2P987 / 2P988 20:30 Manila-Davao-Manila 21:00Philippine Airlines Daily except Sunday PR821 / PR822 21:20 Manila-Davao-Manila 21:50Philippine Airlines Sunday PR821 / PR822 22:20 Manila-Davao-Manila 22:50

as of august 2010

THe 300-megawatt clean coal fired power plant by Aboitiz Power is now in

its preparatory phase, with the company intent of fast-tracking the project to provide a solution to the looming mindanao power crisis.

Bobby orig, First Vice Presi-dent for mindanao Affairs of Aboitiz Power said they hope to deliver much-needed power to distribution utilities, electric cooperatives and other con-sumers in mindanao by 2015 when the power plant is expect-ed to be completed.

estimated at P35 billion it is considered as the largest in-vestment in mindanao. This week Aboitiz Power through its subsidiary Therma South Incor-porated has signed $546-mil-lion worth of contracts related to the construction of the plant. The site of the power facility is an 80-hectare land situated in the city of Davao and the mu-nicipality of Sta. Cruz.

Site preparation has already been started which could last for one year before construc-tion of vertical infrastructures are started. Hundreds of work-ers from the host communities of Barangay Inawayan (Sta. Cruz) and Binugao (Davao City) has been utilized in the site preparation.

Aboitiz Power is setting up jobs fair within the communi-ties to supply the manpower

needs of the construction. It is estimated that the project will generate up to 2,000 direct and indirect jobs during the 3-year construction period of the plant.

A 200 hectare carbon sink has already been identified to be put up in Coronon Sta. Cruz, which will be planted with dif-ferent species of trees.

These are one of the mitigat-ing measure put up by Aboitiz Power to ensure that the proj-ect complies with environ-mental standards. The modern Circulating-Fluidized-bed tech-nology used by the power plant

utilizes lime to capture sulphur and nitrogen emission and turn them into solids in contrast to old coal power plants which allows sulphur and nitrogen to seep into the atmosphere as emissions. These lime wastes are then sold to cement facto-ries which would be used for the production of cement.

erramon Aboitiz President and Chief executive officer of Aboitiz Power said the com-pany is committed in building the power project the soonest time possible.”We have been an integral part of the mindanao

power sector since the 1930s, We will continue to invest in power generation projects to support the growth of mind-anao today.” Aboitiz said.

As of Wednesday (July 4) total power curtailment in mindanao reached 210 mega-watt. It is estimated that min-danao will have energy deficit of 484 megawatts of power by 2014 if no new plants is going to be built.

Currently the Davao power plant is the only power invest-ment in mindanao which has started construction. [PIA/RG ALA-MA]

Aboitiz coal plant to be fast-tracked

Fake P1,000 bills found in Digos ATMPoLICe authorities here are still investigat-

ing how a fake P1,000 bill found its way to a bank’s Automated Teller machine

(ATm) despite strict measures implemented by the bank in handling money bills.

Bank officials, however, denied that the P1,000 bill which fell in the hands of one Niel Alegarbes was a fake one but they decided to replace it apparently for the satisfaction of Ale-garbes who is one of their regular clients.

The bank’s closed-circuit television (CCTV) camera also showed that Alegarbes had in-deed withdrew from their ATm in Digos City.

Alegarbes, 27, claimed that he withdraw P4.500 from the BDo ATm in Digos City before proceeding to a nearby department store. But to his surprise, the store’s cashier told him that the P1,000 bill which he handed to her was fake.

Alegarbes then reported the incident to Digos City Police which in turn, informed the bank of the mess. He was only relieved when the bank replaced the bill without admitting that it was fake or not.

In manila, a store owner was collared recedntly by agents of the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) for selling fake P1,000 bills and P500 bills at P150 and P100 each, re-spectively.

The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas said the fake money appeared to be like a replica of the authentic peso bills including security features, the only difference the counterfeit money bills were printed on a smoother pa-per.

With this, the BSP warned the public to thoroughly examined peso bills especially those big denominations before accepting it.

INVeSTmeNT house Barclays foresees an investment grade level for the Philippines in

the next 12-18 months given the continued improvement in the economy’s fundamentals.

In a research note dated July 5, 2012, Barclays research also projects an outlook upgrade from Fitch ratings to ‘positive’ from ‘stable’ in the next three to six months following this week’s upgrade by Standard and Poor’s (S&P) of the country’s rating to ‘BB+’ from ‘BB-‘, which the re-search note said is “already ex-pected.”

Amid the positive develop-ments on the domestic economy, the research note cautioned that “it may take a little longer for it (the Philippines) to receive such a rating from two out of the three main agencies.”

Fitch mirror’s S&P’s ratings level for the country at ‘BB+’, a notch below investment grade, while moody’s Investor’s Service rates the country two notches below investment grade at ‘Ba2’ with the outlook changed to ‘positive’ from ‘stable’ on may 29, 2012 on account of the con-

tinued improvement in the gov-ernment’s revenue collection even without the introduction of new tax measures.

“We remain constructive on the medium-term outlook for the Philippines given its improv-ing political stability, progress in public private partnerships, in-creasing FDI interest and struc-tural improvements, such as passage of ‘sin’ taxes by congress and an anti-money laundering bill,” the research note said.

relatively, the research note also cited the country’s man-ageable inflation rate and well-anchored inflation expectations.

The drop in commodity pric-es contains pressure from the faster-than-expected rise of the domestic economy in the first quarter at 6.4 percent, thus, Bar-clays now projects inflation to average at 3.2 percent from 3.5 percent earlier.

The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipi-nas (BSP) forecasts inflation to average at 3.1 percent this year and 3.4 percent for 2013.

And because of the man-ageable inflation rate to date, Barclays sees the central bank

keeping its policy rates steady, with the overnight borrowing rate at record-low of four per-cent and the overnight lending rate at six percent, until year-end.

“In a worst-case scenario, we believe the policy response would lean towards fiscal sup-port, through an acceleration of capex and PPP (Public-Private Partnership) programs,” it add-ed.

Barclays projects a 5.5 per-cent growth, as measured by gross domestic product (GDP), for the Philippines this year and 5.2 percent next year. The gov-ernment’s 2012 growth target is five to six percent.

Similarly, the research note projects the continued solid backdrop for the peso but noted that the central bank “may con-sider more measures to curb currency speculation,” citing recent statement by the central bank.

“We believe macro pruden-tial measures to contain specu-lation on peso are likely – per-haps in the form of higher capi-tal charges,” it added. (PNA)

Barclays eyes investment grade for PHL in 2013

PeTroN Corporation, the country’s largest oil refin-ing and marketing com-

pany, is slated to construct a “Bulilit” (mini) refueling station this month to supply the fuel requirement of the provincial government, Gov. Arthur Pin-goy, Jr. said recently.

Petron and the provincial government early this year signed the sales agreement for the putting up of a Bulilit station.

The mini refueling station, which will serve only the offices of the provincial government, will ease pressing issues on fuel prices and supply as local gaso-line stations had disallowed pur-chase orders or credits from the provincial government.

The provincial government paid Petron a cash bond of P100,000 for the Bulilit station, which will rise in Barangay mo-rales here.

Pingoy said they expect the fuel pumping station to start operation within the year. (MIND-ANEwS)

Petron ‘Bulilit’ Station to be constructed in SoCot

VOL.5 ISSUE 90 • JULY 8 - 9, 2012

“FINALLY.”That’s the pre-

vailing comment of those who have been wait-ing for long for a truck this gorgeous and yet packs the power one could not imag-ine.

Yes, by its looks, the Chevrolet Colorado is de-ceiving. Well, I say looks can be deceiving.

At first glance, you’d think it’s an SUV morphed in a truck’s body. If this were

a man, every woman would marry this hunk.

Pr consultant Gatchi Gatchalian admits, “it had me on the first frame of the AVP.”

I say, it had me at first look.

The Colorado will stare you in the eye. It’s so gor-geous it’s a crime not to give it a closer look. Inside, it’s roomy. Best pick-up in terms of leg room. even the back-side of the front seats were

designed in a curvature to afford extra room for your knees.

The panel boasts of the little comforts that many do not pay attention to but are exactly those that please you and gives you a feeling the manufacturers think like you do. Bottle holders for everyone and a rear power plug socket, just in case you need it. That’s exactly what I call the little pleasures a car

MOTORING 7EDGEDAVAO

FFINALLY, 13

Finally, the ColoradoBy Neil Bravo

Chevrolet Davao VP for Operations Tobi Ang (top) with the new Chevrolet Colorado at the Chevrolet Showroom. (Right) The writer on the driver’s seat with Tobi Ang during the test drive. (Lean Daval)

VOL.5 ISSUE 90 • JULY 8 - 9, 2012

Don’t have cash on a rainy night when you need to get home safe

and dry? No problem. Hail a black taxicab and pay with your credit card.

Perhaps you have heard of it by now. Davao’s taxis are always fast in innova-tions. even in the face of negative comments. As fast as they got hit by not so friendly remarks for simply being black, the black taxis are back with a flurry.

The wave of comments came flooding in the social media as the black taxis of Davao quickly became a trending topic.

reason? other than rid-ing a taxi that doesn’t look like it, black taxis are for the contemporary men. It’s got techie features. For that, I call these new black crea-tures roaming our streets as the “Ipod of Taxis.”

The black taxis are the first to introduce the card swiping technology for those who exist in a cash-less mode. Cash-less meaning those who pay plastic. Using their credit or debit cards to pay for ev-ery transaction possible.

Let me share this story I read in the internet.

A sticker in the window of a taxi warning riders in

Dallas that if they try to pay by credit card, their identities may be stolen. “WArNING,” the sticker read. “The method used to authenticate credit card transactions for approv-al is not secure and personal information is subject to be-ing intercepted by unauthor-

ized personnel.” Is that a serious warn-

ing? Ironic it may seem. How in heaven will a taxi promote payment by credit cards when they warn their pas-sengers against it. reason? many taxi drivers simply prefer their fares to pay with cash instead of credit.

In the United States where the system has been used, there’s a long history of taxi drivers fighting credit card interchange fees de-ducted from their profits, to which any frequent traveler is likely to attest. However, it’s hard to know whether the sticker is just a ploy with-out knowing more about the credit card terminal inside the taxi. The security rules regarding such terminals are written by the Payment Card Industry Security Standards Council, an organization gov-erned by Visa, American ex-press, masterCard and other major credit card networks. The council develops the data security standards that gov-ern all types of credit card readers and networks.

For whatever it’s worth. We will know in time.

For now, Davao City is the experimental project for the PoS service using credit and ATm cards.

8 MOTORING EDGEDAVAO

The ipod of taxis

Is it safe to swipe your credit card on taxis?

The Colorado’s interior boasts of a roomy cabin and a panel with some of the little pleasures you look for in a car now found in a truck. (LEAN DAVAL)

The Mabuhay Taxi’s black cabs feature state-of-the-art POS technology.

does.Let’s go under the hood.

This could become a little technical.

Let’s start with this thing called Duramax.

Chevrolet takes die-sel engine building to new heights as it introduces the new Duramax engine.

The Duramax engine is a product of more than a cen-tury of heritage, evolution and innovation of automo-tive engineering. The engine is built tough as it is made of premium grade materials that are geared to promote durability and optimum performance. Its pistons are made of cast-aluminum and coated with graphite that reduces friction and power losses.

The four-cylinder engine is built to endure the harsh-est of driving conditions, and is tested in the extreme environments of Africa, Asia, europe, North and South America. The engines are equipped with a high-pres-sure common rail fuel injec-tion system and pneumatic & position feedback con-

trolled turbocharger; with the 2.8L variant sporting a variable geometry feature. The end result: engines that are among the industry’s most powerful and fuel-effi-cient diesel offerings in their respective displacement classes.

With an advanced Body Control module (BCm) and engine Control Unit (eCU), the Duramax engine pro-vides quick engine response and accurate fuel injection leading to better fuel effi-ciency. The Duramax engine also has a balancer shaft that reduces engine vibration and harshness providing better driving comfort for its driver and passengers.

The new Duramax diesel engine is avail-able in 2.5 and 2.8 liter displacements. The 2.8L automatic variant is ca-pable of producing 180hp @ 3800rpm of power, 470Nm @ 2000rpm of torque making it the best in its class.

The first Duramax en-gines are found in the All-New Chevrolet Colorado.

FFROM 7Finally...

The Colorado will be Chevro-let’s first offering in the pick-up segment since The Cov-enant Car Company (TCCCI) took over management of the brand in the Philippines.

The Colorado will sport both 2.5L and 2.8L variants of the Duramax engine, and

will be available in both 4x2 and 4x4 drivetrains with Automatic and manual transmission options. The Colorado can accelerate from 0-100 km/hr. in 11.64 seconds making it the fast-est truck in the market. It is a pick up that provides an

excellent balance of power and drivability. Built tough to withstand harsh climate and challenging road condi-tions.

I took the Colorado to a short drive with Chevrolet Davao VP for operations Tobi Ang and eDGe Davao

columnist Kenneth ong and boy, how great it was to be behind the wheel. Feels like a car, works as a truck and looks like an SUV.

I thought this is not pos-sible for a truck. Thanks to Chevy.

Finally.

ever been in a situa-tion where you need to get somewhere

fast but you run out of cash?

Worry no further if you are in Davao.

Another first in trans-port innovations, Davao’s newest fleet of taxis allow you to pay through your credit card or debit card.

Davaoeños can now pay for their taxi fares using ei-ther their ATm or credit cards as 20 units of mabu-hay Taxi, which operates out of Davao City, now has wire-less point-of-sale (PoS) terminals to facilitate the transaction.

And why Davao? That’s due to the good reputation of Davao’s taxi drivers of giv-ing back the exact change to passengers, unlike in other urban centers wherein taxi drivers expect tips from pas-sengers instead.

Under the memoran-dum of agreement signed by China Bank, BancNet, and mabuhay Taxi in April, the more than 200 units of the transport company will be equipped with wireless PoS terminals, with 20 units

as part of the initial roll-out. Thru BancNet, ATm cards is-sued by megalink banks will also be honored.

Crisostomo said the project will be piloted with the mabuhay taxi company, particularly its recently-launched black taxis.

Crisostomo said the first-ever system is advantageous and convenient to taxi pas-sengers who do not want to bring along cash with them.

“Today, almost everyone has an ATm card, and people are already familiar with PoS transactions in stores and boutiques,” said Joselito Crisostomo, branch head of China Bank Davao-Lanang. “Why not taxis? It’s safe and convenient to use ATm and debit cards to pay for goods and services. What’s more, there is no minimum pay-ment for cab fares, even if it is below P100, the transac-tion will still be processed.”

The program is the first of its kind in the Philip-pines, and as a pioneering project, aims to promote card-based transactions that are already used widely globally. China Bank’s Davao-Lanang branch facilitated the

deployment of the wireless PoS terminals to mabuhay Taxi, one of its longest clients and one of the oldest taxi fleet operators in the city.

The project involves the installation of gadgets simi-lar to credit card swipe ma-chines in participating taxi units. Instead of credit cards, China Ban ATm card will be used. However, ATm cards of depositors of banks affiliated with Bancnet and megalink may also be used.

Crisostomo said in the fu-ture, it is possible that credit cards can also be used.

“mabuhay Taxi is very excited to partner with China Bank for this pioneering proj-ect,” said mabuhay Taxi assis-tant manager Pierre ryan Tan. “Now, our passengers don’t have to pay cash in se-lect mabuhay Taxis; all they have to do is swipe their ATm or debit card.”

Both China Bank and BancNet are hoping that all of mabuhay Taxi’s units will be equipped with the wire-less PoS terminals within two years and that cashless payment could soon be the norm for paying fares in any public-utility vehicle.

VOL.5 ISSUE 90 • JULY 8 - 9, 2012

SeCUreD through the intercession of the office of rep. maria

Carmen Zamora-Apsay, the medical ambulance for the municipality of monkayo was released by the Philip-pine Charity Sweepstakes office (PCSo) last July 2, 2012.

In a simple turn-over and memorandum of Agreement (moA) signing ceremony at the PCSo office in manila, the vehicle was officially released to monkayo mayor manuel Brillantes and Dr. olivia Lanaban-Kapoor, mu-nicipal Health officer. Hand-ing over the ambulance were

PCSo officials headed by Chairperson margarita Juico, General manager Jose Ferdi-nand rojas II and Acquired Assets Department manager reynaldo Carbonel. rep. Zamora-Apsay and members of her congressional staff were also present as wit-nesses to the event. Chair-person Juico also announced during the ceremony that, in cognizance of the need and the inquiries of the repre-sentative on the equipment, the PCSo was also donating a wheelchair for the ambu-lance unit, for the support of patients.

“The medical vehicle

will be very helpful in ferry-ing constituent-patients to health facilities particularly those needing immediate at-tention. It will also facilitate the delivery of health services to far-flung areas of the mu-nicipality and even to adjoin-ing areas to Monkayo. We are very grateful to the PCSO for the provision of emergency equipment as these indeed address safety and rescue ca-pabilities for our area,” rep. Zamora-Apsay said.

The monkayo ambulance acquisition cost was financed through a counterparting scheme between the PCSo, the local government unit

and the office of rep. maria Carmen Zamora-Apsay. The representative allocated funds from her Priority De-velopment Allocation Fund (PDAF) to support the 40% financing counterpart of the local government unit in rec-ognition of the urgent need for responsive emergency services for monkayo, while the PCSo shouldered 60% of the acquisition cost for the vehicle.

The monkayo ambulance is the second medical vehicle released by the PCSo through the endorsement of the lady solon. Last November 2010, the municipality of Compos-tela benefited from a similar grant with municipal mayor Jessie Bolo and several Sang-guniang Bayan members witnessing the turn-over cer-emony likewise attended by rep. Zamora-Apsay.

“The release of these am-bulances validates the govern-ment’s commitment to priori-tize the health and well-being of our people particularly those in the countryside where medical services and facilities are scarce,” the lawmaker added.

SUBURBIA 9EDGEDAVAO

A synchronized veg-etable planting at Sitio maag, Brg. Pe-

naplata kicked off the Nu-trition month celebration in the province last July 2.

The activity was par-ticipated by city officials and employees and the Is-land Garden City of Samal Council of Women.

This year’s theme “Pagkain ng Gulay Ugaliin, Araw-araw itong ihain!” aims to encourage Filipi-nos to eat more vegeta-bles. It also focuses on the adequate consumption and production of vegeta-

bles for good health and nutrition.

The 2008 National Nu-trition Survey of the Food and Nutrition research Institute showed that the mean one day per capita household consumption of vegetables constitutes only 12.8 percent of the food intake among Filipi-no households.

“Consumption of vege-tables and fruits are badly declining today, a person is supposed to eat three or more servings per day but sadly many consumed only 1 serving or none at

all,” Nelia rodillas, nutri-tionist-dietician of the City Health office said.

rodillas also encour-aged all families to eat pesticide-free fruits and vegetables to prevent non-communicable diseases like cancer, hypertension and diabetes.

She said the high cost of vegetables and fruits is one of the reasons for poor consumption, so families are encouraged to practice organic farming and plant their own vegetables.

“Utilizing organic farming and refraining

from using synthetic fer-tilizers and insecticides are important to help rehabilitate our soil, or-ganic method of farming also help produce healthy fruits and vegetables,” engr. Ana Lea Zapanta, city agriculturist said.

Zapanta urged families to build backyard vegeta-ble gardens and to avoid burning biodegradable wastes during their gar-dening activites.

The city agriculturist also assured technical and vegetable seeds support from their office.

IGACOS celebrates nutrition monthTHe presence of a

strong network of rescuers and re-

sponders prevented fa-talities during the recent flashflood in the munici-pality of Banaybanay in Davao oriental. Forced evacuation was also im-mediately implemented.

Davao oriental Pro-vincial Disaster risk re-duction management Council (PDrrmC) action officer Jesusa Timbang made the conclusion as she looked back at the rescue operation she led to save lives of families affected by flashfloods that hit Banaybanay early morning of July 4.

The flashflood inci-dent happened due to heavy rains that started pouring on 2 a.m. of July 4 till early morning of the same day. Timbang said she immediately asked the municipal Disaster risk reduction manage-ment action officer of Lu-pon town because it’s the town closest to Banay-banay.

When flashfloods were noted at 6 a.m., Tim-bang ordered forced evac-uation of residents in af-fected areas though rains had stopped at that time.

Some rescue units that helped evacuate residents of flashflood-affected ar-eas were the 28th IB of the Armed Forces of the

Philippines (AFP), rescue 166 of the municipality of Lupon, the local Phil-ippine National Police, PDrrmC rescue team of Davao oriental, among others.

reports from office of Civil Defense counted 144 families affected in barangays Kalubian, Ka-bangkalan, Panikian and Piso in the municipality of Banaybanay.

rescued families were housed at the municipal gymnasium of the respec-tive barangays and were given relief goods by the municipal government of Banaybanay.

most of the affected families went back home late afternoon on the same day as waters al-ready subsided, Timbang said.

Timbang bared an agreement of all local disaster risk reduction management councils in Davao oriental to im-mediately respond to a neighboring town affect-ed with any calamity.

While the towns of Banaybanay, Lupon, San Isidro and Governor Gen-eroso are facing the Davao Gulf area, the rest of the 11 towns of Davao orien-tal lie at the coastline fac-ing the Pacific ocean ex-cept for mati City, which lies along the coastline of Pujada Bay.

Strong response prevents fatalities in flashfloods

PCSo releases ambulance for Monkayo THe provincial govern-ment together with the United Nations Popula-

tions Fund (UNFPA) and the Women’s education Develop-ment Productivity and re-search organization (WeD-Pro) had its initial discussion last June 3, 2012 at the Social Hall of the capitol. This is to address gender and develop-ment issues and concerns.

The said discussion is a prelude to a conduct of a five-day training and capacity building of local government units (LGUs), national gov-ernment agencies (NGAs), community-based organiza-tions (CBos) and people’s or-ganizations (Pos) sometime on September this year.

UNFPA is an international organization that aims to in-form the world that every pregnancy is wanted, every childbirth is safe, and every young person’s potential is fulfilled. It aims overall im-provement in the quality of life of Filipino adolescents and youth in terms of repro-ductive health and rights, gender equality and equity.

WeDPro is committed to build a sovereign, democratic and gender-fair society where women are fully empowered, enjoying and participating in protecting and promoting their human rights towards

gender-responsive and rights based development and so-cial transformation. It works towards creating and provid-ing an empowering environ-ment for women and men who work towards influenc-ing gender-responsive and rights based development in Philippine society, cognizant of the national, regional and international contexts, and aimed at building solidarity to advance gender equality, human rights and social eq-uity.

Both agencies are extend-ing and providing technical assistance to all LGUs, NGAs, CBos and Pos in increas-ing its capacity to undertake gender responsive program-ming, especially in planning and budgeting.

During the discussion, training director Lourdes marina Padilla-espenido in-formed everyone that their task is to provide all forms of assistance to the province in addressing present condition and concern related to gen-der and development.

The scheduled training and workshop will focus on the enhancement of gender and development planning, gender diagnosis, budgeting and policy advocacy on the mindanao Commission on Women.

CoMVAL finds partners for Gender Responsive Program

VOL.5 ISSUE 90 • JULY 8 - 9, 201210 VANTAGE POINTS EDGEDAVAO

Good decisionGUEST EDITORIAL

EDGEDAVAOProviding solutions to a seamless global village.

ANTONIO M. AJEROEditor in Chief

OLIVIA D. VELASCOGeneral Manager

LORIE ANN A. CASCARO • JADE C. ZALDIVAR • MOSES C. BILLACURAStaff Writers

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

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And the next Chief Justice is…

Some 9,000 members of the Davao del Norte electric Cooperative, Inc. (Daneco) voted last Sunday to autho-

rize Daneco to enter into an agreement with the Davao Light and Power Company, Inc. (DLPC) for the Davao City-based pow-er firm to provide electricity to the Island Garden City of Samal (IGaCoS). The ap-proval was reached during a special gen-eral membership assembly of the Daneco at the municipal gymnasium of maco, Com-postela Valley.

This was the good news that IGaCoS city administrator Cleto B. Gales Jr. announced at the beginning of this week.

The decision is indeed welcome news, not only to the leaders and citizens of IGaC-Cos, but also to the existing and potential investors willing to pour billions into proj-ects that would surely generate a lot of socio-economic benefits for the island city.

This decision is a giant step towards solving the island’s unstable power supply, a perennial problem that had bedeviled IGaCos long before it became a city.

Actually, supplying power to the island

had been offered by Davao Light, through the Aboitiz equity Ventures, about a de-cade ago, at a time when IGaCoS was fac-ing long and frequent power outages due to Daneco’s inability to fix its underwater cable from Davao City to the island. No less than the late former Daneco general man-ager, Jose Amacio, had advocated the en-try of the Aboitiz-owned power company knowing of Daneco’s limited capability to meet the growing energy demand not only of the island but its entire franchise area in Davao del Norte and Compostela Valley. Amacio then argued that the law creating electric cooperatives in the country limits its capacity to get loans for the purpose of expansion and enhancing its capacity to meet increasing demand of existing and future clients. But Daneco, a highly-politi-cized entity, consistently rejected the idea and perpetuated its state of denial.

Apparently, there is a change of heart, and this augurs well for the aspirations of IGaCoS, its leaders, the citizenry and the investment locators to fully develop the potentials of the island.

NoT going to be chosen like Ameri-

can Idol. This is probably the wis-est thing I have ever heard ralph recto say, and I agree with him completely.

I am aghast at how self-styled groups within and outside government have heehawed their integrity, intelligence and morality and transformed themselves into dubious endorsers of their own candidates for Chief Justice, who they promote as being the panacea for all the ills of our judicial sys-tem.

Whenever I read another press release extolling the real or imagined virtues of yet another CJ forerunner, I cringe at the creativi-ty of some individual and juridical persons in not-so-subtly pushing their own selfish polit-ical agenda. If one takes some time to analyze the different articles that have come out on the search for the next chief justice, one can draw an elaborate web of power plays star-ring the usual suspects – the Philippine elite that has held our country by the balls by get-ting into power and never letting go.

The Corona impeachment trial has made the travails of our judiciary a dramatic tele-novela that had viewers glued to their seats. Its conclusion left an entertainment voidthat could only be perversely filled by yet anoth-er judiciary drama – the search for the next CJ, the superman or superwoman who will change the world.

I do not write that last phrase with a de-risive sense of mockery. The next CJ is expect-ed to change the world; or, well, I expect no less. At the very least, I expect the next chief justice to change my world.

our country has long been the poster child of the phrase “justice delayed is justice denied”.

If you are still in denial of the gangrene that permeates the entirety of our judicial system, please look at the hundreds of thou-sands of case backlogs in our courts, the people imprisoned for five years (and count-ing!) because of petty crime, the painfully slow progress of the maguindanao massacre trials, understaffed municipal and regional courts and the exorbitant cost of pursuing justice.

each of these ills is chronic and remains untreated on this modern age of the twenty-first century. each of these ills is a violation of every Filipino’s basic human rights. each of these ills should be the focus of the next CJ, because if he or she turns away from these ills to stare at the myriad concerns of the bourgeoisie, then the chief justice would be the greatest practitioner of injustice in refus-ing the prioritize what issues actually have the most impact to the life of an ordinary Filipino. If we continue to practice patron-age politics and endorsements, we will get exactly that: injustice.

The new chief justice must possess quali-ties beyond mere competence of the law and degrees from impressive institutions.

The new CJ must have enough compe-tence to be respected by all associate justices and the rest of the judiciary;he or she must be a change manager with a laser-like focus on removing the gangrene of the courts at all levels and with enough interpersonal skills and the charisma to rally the entire judiciary to the cause of improving the system.

The Chief Justice, most of all, is expected to implement and sustain judicial reforms – so that every Filipino who unfortunately finds himself in civil or criminal court is con-soled by the fact that justice will be dispensed with swiftly, wisely and compassionately.

To be perfectly honest, it does not matter to me what the face of the new CJ looks like, as long as the justice system becomes bet-ter for all Filipinos. So please stop endorsing your friends and, instead, choose someone who can make good things happen within my lifetime. Please.

VOL.5 ISSUE 90 • JULY 8 - 9, 2012 11VANTAGE POINTSEDGEDAVAO

Monkey Business

Clueless Pinoys

AOF – A legacy of values

There is good money in the ukay-ukay businessmA K e -S H I F T display

areas are all over the city main and sec-ondary thor-o u g h f a r e s . Some are set up right in front and alongside the big malls.

Ukay-ukay is a booming business in the country. It’s a strong part of the so-called underground economy which the government mercifully tolerates.

As ukay-ukay sellers make hay with brisk sales, buyers/customers unknow-ingly or unmindfully expose themselves to health hazards such as skin allergies and diseases of the lung.

The DoH has not been remiss in warning the buying public to thoroughly wash those used items/clothes. These are carriers of KUrIKoNG, PUToK and

TB, says the DoH.People may not fully realize the

health dangers posed by ukay-ukay, es-pecially when these look like new and obviously hardly used. But the fact is that ukay-ukay can lead to patay-patay (slow death).

In restrospect, it is best to bear in mind that “an ounce of prevention is better than a pound of cure…”

So, if you are hopelessly hooked to ukay-ukay and find them irresistible, then you might buy the special chemi-cal. And then walk with head held p high while wearing signature shirt or dress, pants or shorts and branded sneakers.

As a simple buy and sell economic activity, ukay-ukay is an economic phe-nomenon that has become some kind of cottage industry minus the manu-facturing component. And it competes rather unfairly with legitimate garment industry.

To a certain degree ukay-ukay busi-ness mirrors the much-maligned Fili-pino colonial mentality which we never seem to get rid of. Worse, we not only stand in awe that is foreign-made, we even degrade ourselves by becoming the dumping ground of rejects from the so-called First World countries.

It may be high time that we ban the entry of used items articles and garments. The government must give full support and financially to Filipino entrepreneurs, manufacturers and in-vestors so that they can provide the consuming public quality products at a very affordable prices.

Let us give substance to the slogan Proudly Philippine made. For as long as we allow ukay-ukay to gain ground and flourish, we can never give justice to the slogan.

Ukay-ukay patronizers are cavort-ing with the Black messenger of Death.

IN this issue, I will not talk about

women. In-stead, I’ll talk about a man, not just any man, but some-one whose vi-sion has had a great impact on the lives of thou-sands of people. Someone who has given more than his fair share to the growth of this region and whose vision has helped shape the landscape of this part of the country.

It was with sadness that I received the news of the passing of Don Antonio o. Floirendo, fondly called AoF, whom I only knew as our Chairman when I was em-ployed with Anflocor many years back. It made me think back of the time I spent in his organization, remembering him dur-ing my short but meaningful stay in his company.

In those three years, I had barely seen him, much less talk to him. But his pres-ence and what he had stood for resonated within the halls of the Anflocor offices as its employees worked towards attaining the goals of the business empire he had built over the decades.

When I started in the company as its Corporate Communications officer, my boss flew to Davao from the manila headquarters to welcome me to the An-flo Group. As he took me around the flag-ship company and the many subsidiary companies in the north and south of the region, it was in no small measure that he attributed all these to the vision of one man.

my boss spoke of how AoF came from Ilocos after WWII to the frontier that was mindanao. He was one of the many that came who attempted to tame this land of elusive promise. He was one of the few that prospered with sheer hard work and

a keen business acumen.As I gazed at the expanse at which the

Tadeco banana plantation stretched over the landscape, as far as my eyes could see, I pondered on the man who had started it all. In my mind I conjured a picture of him as an intimidating, self-made man who wielded a lot of influence, a strong force that shaped the vast business empire that influenced the growth of the region.

If it told me anything, it was that AoF was a brilliant businessman, bold and courageous enough to chase after his dreams. He braved the wild lands of min-danao and tamed it into productive tracts of land that would bring prosperity to his family and those who worked with him. His unprecedented success later earned him titles such as the country’s abaca king and banana magnate.

Before my first glimpse of AoF, I had pictures of him in my mind as a tall, dark, commanding presence that would make those faint of heart shake in their shoes. The first time I laid eyes on him was a pleasant surprise.

Soft, white hair that had become his trademark. Fair, almost alabaster skin. A slow but determined gait for an eighty year old. An aura of self-possession and calmness. And the eyes — slightly prob-ing, but kind and gentle.

I had only ever said three words to this venerable man: “Good morning po.” And the most he ever said to me was “Good morning” or “o, kumusta?” To which I’d say “mabuti po” before I scurried away. The encounters were rare and brief, but it always struck me how kind and sincere his eyes looked.

I would later learn how much his vi-sion influenced the company’s business goals, and how his wisdom and determi-nation pushed the company to achieve what it has over the years. While we rarely saw him, his presence was always felt within the organization, much of it

through the values he stood for. I did not know AoF as a person, but I

learned of the values he held dear: hard work, perseverance, integrity, discipline, compassion, love of God and family, and I’m sure a lot more I didn’t have the privi-lege to know during my short stay. All these, coupled with his tenacity and his big dreams were the potent cocktail for his success.

It would take a dozen years before I reconnected with the company, when I did a Pr-related project for Anflocor. I had to interview employees from all their companies, and found that many of the respondents had been with the company over 15, 20, 30 years.

I was further dumbfounded by the answers of the younger employees when asked why they joined the Anflo Group. They said they had either a father, moth-er, uncle, aunt, or a grandparent who had worked for AoF. They had grown up with his company, instilling in them a loyalty to the family that ran the business, espe-cially to the man behind it all.

AoF was from Ilocos, but I think by heart he was also a mindanaoan, a trail-blazer who built a successful conglomer-ate proud to be called a wholly Filipino-owned company that is mindanao-based. As a pioneer, he has left an indelible mark in the history of mindanao, if not the country.

more than the infrastructure that shaped the region, more than the thou-sands of jobs generated by his expansive business, more than the countless who benefitted from his philanthropy, I be-lieve the greater legacy AoF leaves to us are his values. These will continue to live on.

As his family lays him to rest, we join them in bidding goodbye to a great busi-ness leader and philanthropist who has blessed us with his life. Goodbye Sir AoF, you will truly be missed.

mANY of us prob-ably read

for the first time about Cern (eu-ropean organiza-tion for Nuclear research) in Dan Brown’s “Angels and Demons.” In the novel which serves as the pre-quel to the controversial “Da Vinci Code “, the assassin hired by the Papal camerlengo stole from Cern the anti-matter, which, as the name suggests, should not come in con-tact with any matter.

The research center is again on the spotlight, this time because of a develop-ment which promises to be a milestone in particle physics. Hundreds of Cern scien-tists announced the discovery of a new par-ticle consistent with the Higgs boson, a unit of matter named after Prof. Peter Higgs, who led the 45-year hunt.

Believed to be the link to explaining how matter attains its mass, Higgs boson, or what looks like one, may lead to a fuller understanding of the Universe and its ori-gins. It is said that all the matter we can see at present comprises only four percent of the cosmos, the rest being dark matter and dark energy.

As reported by BBC this morning (lo-cal time), scientists are excited in that the discovery may lead to “something more exotic” other than a better understanding of the Universe. They clarified though that work is needed to make sure that it is re-ally Higgs. They said they have to compare its behavior with that of the Higgs particle predicted by the Standard model, so far the best theory to explain how the Universe works.

The Standard model contains the el-ementary particles – quarks, leptons and “force carriers” – needed to make up the Uni-verse as we see it. But scientists observed that nothing requires these particles to have mass, hence the need to plug the hole with the Higgs.

Prof. Stephen Hawking called the dis-covery an important result and one that should earn Prof. Higgs the Nobel Prize. Prof. Hawking, by the way, was the one who posited that God could not have possibly made the Universe, a declaration he made after presenting a methodical explanation on the nature of time and how it interacts with space.

of course, there will be skeptics who would question the practical value of such discovery. They would say that the money spent on it was better spent on the world’s immediate needs.

However, the skeptics, presumably in-cluding the religious bigots who consider the discovery a threat to their own idea of how life began, are expecting too much if they demand immediate application of the discovery. Looking back, many scientists who made landmark discoveries had no idea about the usefulness of their achieve-ments.

Did michael Faraday know how human-kind could benefit from electromagnetism? Did einstein fully know the implications when he turned the world of physics up-side down with [his] Theory of relativity?

For now, no one knows the future use-fulness of Higgs’ feat. Nonetheless, this should not be a reason to diminish the po-tential it holds for the future of the human species.

But amid the celebrations going on in the world’s scientific circles, where are the Filipinos? Sadly, the significant event happening at Cern hardly created a ripple even in the Philippine media. Newspapers buried the item in the inside pages. Televi-sion channels have remained preoccupied with talk shows dealing with recycled top-ics.

Who can teach us that our energy was better spent on things other than whetting our appetite for gossip and other trashy fare?

or is the local media afraid of getting the ire of people who still believe that the sun revolves around the earth? These peo-ple would also argue against evolution. But wasn’t it a monk named Gregor mendel who gave the world its first lessons on ge-netics? [MindaNews/ H. Marcos C. Mordeno can be reached at hmcmordeno@gmail.com.]

VOL.5 ISSUE 90 • JULY 8 - 9, 201212 EDGEDAVAOCOMMUNITY SENSE

REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINESREGIONAL TRIAL COURT11TH JUDICIAL REGION

OFFICE OF THE CLERK OF COURT-SHERIFFDAVAO CITY

NATIONAL HOME MORTGAGEFINANCE CORPORATION, Mortgagee, -versus- EJF-REM CASE NO. 13,448-12 CLARITA R. MILLADO Mortgagor/s.

x- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -xNOTICE OF EXTRA-JUDICIAL SALE

Upon extra-judicial petition for foreclosure and sale under Act 3135, as amended, filed by National Home Mortgage Finance Corporation against CLAR-ITA R. MILLADO with postal address at LOT 506-G-1-A-9-F-2,PSD-11-025556, CALINAN,DAVAO CITY Davao City, to satisfy the mortgage indebtedness which as of May 15,2012 amounted to FIVE HUNDRED TWENTY FOUR HUNDRED FORTY THREE PESOS & 46/100 ( P524,443.46), Philippine Currency, plus other legal expenses incident to foreclosure and sale; the undersigned Sheriff IV of Regional Trial Court, Davao City; the undersigned will sell at public auction on AUGUST 2, 2012 at 10:00 A.M. or soon thereafter, at the main entrance of Hall of Justice, Ecoland ,Davao City to the highest bidder for Cash or MANAGER’S CHECK and in Philippine Currency, the following real property together with all the improvements thereon, to wit:

Transfer Certificate of Title No. T-148961

“A parcel of land (Lot 506-G-1-A-9-F-2,Psd-11-025556, being a portion of Lot 506-G1-A-9-F Psd-11-005451), situated in the Barrio of Calinan, City of Davao, Island of Mindanao xxx. Containing an area of TWO HUNDRED FOUR (204) SQUARE METERS, more or less,registered in the name of CLARITA R. MIL-LADO”

All sealed bids must be submitted to the undersigned on the above-stated time and date.

That in the event the public auction should not take place on the said date, it shall be held on SEPTEMBER 06, 2012, without further notice.

Prospective buyers are hereby enjoined to investigate for themselves the titles herein described real property/ies and the encumbrances thereon , if any there be.

Davao City, Philippines, June 27,2012.

FOR THE EX-OFFICIO SHERIFF: (SGD.) TERESITA M. CEBALLOS Sheriff IV

Noted by:

(SGD) ATTY. EDIPOLO P. SARABIA, JR.Clerk of Court VI & Ex-Officio Provincial Sheriff

(Edge 7/9,16,23)

AT AirAsia, we have won many interna-tional accolades. In

fact, we’ve made a habit of it -- as highlighted most emphatically by winning the “World’s Best Low Cost Carrier” award for Sky-trax three years in a row.

But even we were some-what taken aback at our lat-est success. Aviation Week, the highly influential avia-tion industry magazine in the United States, announced AirAsia as the winner in the magazine›s Top-Performing Airlines 2012 report, the leading annual rankings and competitive analysis for the global airline industry. Yes, the global airline industry!

We emerged top, beating out other longer-established and once-renowned airlines such as Singapore Airlines and ryanair, europe›s larg-est low cost carrier. AirAsia was also ranked highest in the US $250 million-$2 bil-lion annual revenue catego-ry.

Why is this ward so spe-cial? Because it is not the usual awards handed out for service or customer satisfac-

tion. This award is based on a statistical analysis of an airline›s financial and opera-tional performance. The Top Performing Airlines study measured the data and rated airlines in five different per-formance categories, from which the total score was derived. Wherever, possible, data from the latest dull fis-cal year were used. AirAsia emerged top overall with 81 points, ryanair received 78

and Singapore Airlines came in at 70 points.

AirAsia Group CEO Tan Sri Dr Tony Fernandes was thrilled at the award. “This is just amazing. To beat out air-lines such as Singapore Air-lines and ryanair and all the other global industry play-ers is almost beyond words. Who would have thought 10 years ago that in just over a decade, AirAsia would reach such celestial heights,” he

said.Tan Sri Tony added:

“This award is recognition of the efforts of all our AirAsia AllStars over the years to get us to this special place. To be rated the Number one air-line in categories that includ-ed financial and operational sectors is a clear endorse-ment of our stewardship of the company and a vindi-cation of the faith that our stakeholders have in AirAsia.

“The award is also a triumph for malaysia and Asean. AirAsia is firmly plac-ing malaysia on the global aviation map. Yes, we have world beaters in our country -- and not just in squash and badminton! AirAsia is dem-onstrating to the world what malaysia can achieve as long as we put our minds to it and strive together. And we are doing it despite the odds and the obstacles placed in our way. Imagine what the coun-try can achieve if all the play-ers in the aviation industry commit themselves to a gen-uine partnership in helping malaysia’s aviation sector -- and working for the benefit of malaysian consumers.”

AirAsia tops Aviation Week’s top performing airlines report

FINANCe Asia, the region’s leading fi-nancial publishing

company and premier source for finance, in-vestment banking, eco-nomic and capital mar-kets news, awards Globe Telecom as best managed company in the Philip-pines. The company reaped awards for the ninth year in a row from the prestigious publica-

tion as it conducted its annual survey of the best managed companies in Asia. The awarding was held last June 21 at the makati Shangri-La Hotel.

Globe reaped high marks in terms of corpo-rate governance, investor relations, commitment to a strong dividend policy and corporate social re-sponsibility. Globe is con-sistently one of the most

profitable companies in the country, posting im-provements in revenues, market share, profit-ability, and sharehold-er returns despite the weakening global mar-kets, slower domestic economic growth, and a very competitive telecom industry.

Globe Chief Financial officer Albert de Larraza-bal (4th from left) and

Investor relations Head Jose mari Fajardo (3rd from left) received the awards. They are joined in the photo by (from left) Lorenzo roxas, Chairman and President of maybank ATr Kim eng Securities; manuel Tordesillas, and ramon Arnaiz, President and Chairman, respectively of maybank ATr Kim eng Capital Partners.

Finance Asia names Globe as best managed company in PH

THe Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI) recently

signed a PhP150m loan agreement with the Green Alternative Tech-nology Specialist, Inc. (GATSI) to facilitate the construction of the first refuse Derived Fuel (rDF) plant in the Phil-ippines.

The loan will be used to finance the rDF proj-ect that will operate a waste management, reduction and utiliza-tion plant in rodriguez Sanitary Landfill in mon-talban, rizal. rDF is a substitute to coal and fossil fuel created by converting solid waste to energy. Combustible components of munici-pal wastes such as plas-tic and biodegradable materials will be shred-ded and dehydrated via a waste converter technol-ogy to produce rDF.

GATSI is a joint ven-ture company that pro-duce and supply rDF to Solid Cement Corp. for 10 years. Solid Cement will be able to save 50% of its coal requirements from using rDF. GATSI

and Solid Cement’s col-laboration earned the Father Neri Satur Award for environmental Hero-ism by the Department of environment and Nat-ural resources together with the Climate Change Commission, National Disaster risk reduction management Council, Philippine International Theatre Institute, and the UNeSCo.

The project funding is part of the BPI’s Sus-tainable energy Finance (SeF) program. Now running on its fourth year, it is a partnership between the bank and the International Fi-nance Corporation (IFC), the private investment arm of the World Bank Group. Through this program, BPI makes it easy for companies and institutions to invest in energy efficiency and re-newable energy projects.

Present in the signing were BPI officers head-ed by SeVP and Coo Gil Buenaventura (seated, fourth from left) and GATSI representatives headed by Nixon Lim (seated, third from left).

BPI grants loan to GATSI

VOL.5 ISSUE 90 • JULY 8 - 9, 2012 13EDGEDAVAO COMMUNITY SENSE

Republic of the PhilippinesREGIONAL TRIAL COURT

11TH Judicial RegionBranch 33Davao City

PETITION FOR THE JUDICIAL RECOGNITION OF CERTIFICATE OFDIVORCE OF THE MARRIAGE OF NORLYN ANICETO WITH JIRI IWATA SPL. PROC. NO. 11,936-2012

NORLYN ANICITO, Petitioner

x----------------------------------------x

ORDER

This is a verified petition for Judicial Recognition of Certificate of Divorce of the marriage of Norlyn Aniceto with Jiri Iwata, praying that after due process and hearing, the Certificate of Divorce of petitioner’s marriage to Jiro Iwata on May 1, 2006 in Toyohashi City, Aichi, Japan, be recognized, given full force and effect in this jurisdiction.

Finding the verified petition to be sufficient in form and substance, set hearing of this petition on October 1, 2012 @ 8:30 o’clock in the morning.

Petitioner is hereby directed to cause the publication of this Order at her expense, once a week for three (3) consecutive weeks in a newspaper of gen-eral circulation, which has been selected after a raffle, in the City and the four (4) provinces of Davao.

Likewise, petitioner is further directed to furnish the city Prosecution Of-fice and the Office of the Solicitor General a copy of this petition and to submit proof of compliance thereto.

Any person interested or who seeks to oppose the instant petition may appear to state why the petition should not be granted.

SO ORDERED.

Davao City, Philippines, May 29, 2012.

(Sgd.) LOPEL L. CALIO JUDGE(Edge 7/2,9,16)

Republic of the PhilippinesREGIONAL TRIAL COURT

11th Judicial RegionBranch 17, Davao City

IN THE MATTER OF THE PETITION:

A.)TO CORRECT THE ENTRIES IN THE CERTIFICATE OF LIVE BIRTH OF TERRY VIC LAROGA ASOBE WITH REGISTRY NO. 90,25,123 PARTICULARLY HER GENDER/SEX UNDER ITEM NO. 2 FROM “MALE” TO “FEMALE” AND ITEM NO. 44 FROM “1” TO “2” AND SP. PROC. CASE NO. 12,021-12

B.)TO MAKE LEGIBLE THE NAME IN THE CERTIFICATE OF LIVE BIRTH OF TERRY VIC LAROGA ASOBE(NSO COPY)

TERRY VIC LAROGA ASOBE,Petitioner Versus

THE OFFICE OF THE CITY CIVIL REGISTRAR OF DAVAO,Respondent

X--------------------------------------------------------------------X ORDER

Petitioner Terry Vic Laroga Asobe filed the instant Petition, praying that after hearing, an Order be issued directing the Office of the City Civil Registrar of Davao City, as follows:

To correct the erroneous entries in the Certificate of Live Birth of TERRY VIC LAROGA ASOBE with Registry No. 90,25,123 as follows:

Her GENDER/SEX under Item No. 2 from “MALE” to “FEMALE”;Her SEX under item No. 44 from “1” to “2” and

To make legible the name of petitioner in her Certificate of Live Birth-NSO copy to read as “TERRY VIC LAROGA ASOBE”

Petitioner further prays for such other reliefs and remedies as may be just and equitable under the circumstances.

Finding the Petition to be sufficient in form and substance, set hearing of the Petition on August 23, 2012 at 8:30 o’clock in the morning, ordering all interested persons to appear on the said date and to show cause, why this Peti-tion should not be granted.

Petitioner is directed to publish this Order, at least once a week for three (3) consecutive weeks, prior to the date of hearing, in a designated qualified newspaper of general circulation, pursuant to Presidential Decree No. 1079.

Furnish a copy of this Order to the Clerk of Court, Regional Trial Court, Davao City ,for raffling of the publication.

SO ORDERED Given this 11th day of June, 2012 at Davao City, Philippines.

( SGD) EVALYN M. ARELLANO MORALES Presiding Judge(Edge 7/2,9,16)

US Navy band. Members of US Navy band prepare for a rock concert Fri-day, July 6, at Glan School of Arts and Trades as part of the humanitarian activities of CARAT Exercise 2012. The mission of the Exercise Coopera-tion Afloat and Readiness Training (CARAT) 2012 is, “To conduct the EX-CARAT 2012 in order to strengthen the relationship and enhance the mutual cooperation between Philippine Navy and United States Navy

to address shared security concerns such as maritime defense, port se-curity, resource protection, and disaster response. One of CARAT’s ob-jectives is to conduct Medical and Dental Civic Action Program (MED-CAP) and community engagement service (COMSERV) activities in the form of joint band concerts and medical outreach program.

MEDICAL MISSION. Capt. Natalie Sacay stationed in Camp Panacan, Eastern Mindanao Command, gives the prescription to a patient during the CARAT Exercise 2012 medical mission in Glan School of Arts and Trades Friday, July 6. Hundreds of residents of Glan queued outside the classroom-turned-clinic to avail of the free medical and dental check up. The Philippine Navy and United States Navy (PN-USN) are conducting a combined exercise dubbed Coopera-tion Afloat Readiness and Training 2012, codenamed “CARAT 2012” from July 2 to 10. The exercise is conducted at Naval Forces Eastern Mindanao (NFEM) area of responsibility (AOR) with evolutions such as: Cross Training Exercises (CTX), Dive Exercise (DIVEX), Salvage Exercise (SALVEX), and At-sea Fleet Training Exercises (FTX). The exercise also includes in-port training, Subject Matter Expertise Exchanges (SMEEs), riverine operations training, diving and salvage exercise, ceremonies and interactions; and Civil Military Operations (CMO) (MEDCAP/DENCAP) activities and Community Service (COMSERV) ac-tivities in the Glan and different areas in General Santos City.

DAVAo Light and Power Company customers in

the southern part of its franchise will be experi-encing a two 15-minute power interruptions, on July 12, Thursday, as re-quested by the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP).

Corporate Commu-nications officer ross Luga said that the ser-vice interruptions are necessary to facilitate repairs to be conducted by NGCP at their New Loon substation affect-ing the electric utility’s Davao and Tagum lines.

To keep the power interruptions within the least possible time, loads connected to the said lines will be trans-ferred to nearby sub-stations which will take place from 5:00 a.m. to 5:15 a.m. Normalization or return of loads back to its normal set-up will be from 6:45 a.m. to 7:00 a.m. after repair works will be completed.

Customers who will be affected by this

power interruption are those situated from Um matina up to Ulas which include the entire areas of matina, maa, ecoland, Bangkal and Catalunan Grande. This will also affect customers from Tugbok up to Calinan.

Although these scheduled power out-ages are beyond Davao Light’s control, it ex-presses its apology to its customers for the inconvenience that they will experience. How-ever, there may be in-stances where restora-tion may extend beyond the schedule due to un-avoidable circumstanc-es.

The electric utility’s Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCA-DA) allows Davao Light to remotely control switches in the substa-tions and along the dis-tribution lines making it efficient in implement-ing maintenance works or restoration of power supply at its barest min-imum during service in-terruptions.

Davao Light announces 15-minute power interruptions on July 12

VOL.5 ISSUE 90 • JULY 8 - 9, 201214 AGRITRENDS EDGEDAVAO

WORLD TODAY

Tulip Drive, Ecoland, Davao City

You can now buy your favorite Business Paper from any of these

establishments still at Php 15.

S e r v i n g a S e a m l e s s s o c i e t y

F. Torres St., Davao CityTel No. 227-3773 - (72)

Fax: 295-3485

Davao

HELPING YOU MAKE INFORMED BUSINESS DEcISIONS.

THe Sugar regulato-ry Administration (SrA) said Friday

it will deliver the second shipment of 36,899.35 metric tons raw value (mTrV) sugar under the United States Tariff Quota Scheme by mid-August of this year.

The Philippines was given an additional vol-ume of 72,373.65 mTrV for quota year 2011-2012 above the traditional quo-ta of 138,827 mTrV, rais-ing the total volume to 219,901 mTrV.

on July 5, SrA Ad-ministrator maria re-gina martin said the Philippines has delivered the first shipment of 25,031.80 mTrV addi-tional sugar quota.

She, however, said the final tranche of 10,442.5 mTrV additional sugar will be delivered in the next quota year because of shipping problems.

The US considers the

Philippines as one of its preferred countries that gets shipment allocations for the American market.

The tariff rate quota allocation gives preferred countries such as the Philippines the authority to export specific quan-tities to the US at rela-tively low tariff rates. All other imports of the same product outside the tariff quota scheme are given a higher tariff.

As of July 5, Philip-pines has a domestic stock balance of 448,000 mT sugar -- 252,000 mT raw sugar and 196,000 mT refined sugar.

The SrA said the stock is enough to meet do-mestic demand until next month.

It expects sugar pro-duction for crop-year ending July 2013 to reach 2.244 million mT, a little increase from an estimat-ed 2.243 million mT at the end of July 2012.  [PNA] 

PHL to ship 2nd tranche of US sugar under tariff quota mode

World food prices are ex-pected to rally

from three months of falls this month as con-cern over the impact of relentless dry weather on U.S. corn and soy-bean crops drive values up on international mar-kets, the United Nations’ Food and Agriculture organisation (FAo) said on Thursday.

“We do not rule out further price increases and more price volatility un-til U.S. harvests. The next couple of months are going to be quite bumpy,” FAo’s senior economist and grain analyst Abdolreza Ab-bassian told reuters.

The FAo Food Price Index, which measures monthly price changes for a food basket of cereals, oilseeds, dairy, meat and sugar, averaged 201 points in June against revised 205 points in May, the FAo said in its monthly index update.

The FAo cut its 2012 world cereals output fore-cast to 2.396 billion tonnes, 23 million tonnes down from a previous estimate.

The FAo cut its forecast for maize production in the United States to 350 million tonnes, down 25 million tonnes from the previous but still 36 million tonnes, or 11.5 percent higher than in 2011.

U.S. crop worry to fuel world food prices

INdulge! VOL.5 ISSUE 90 • JULY 8 - 9, 2012

EDGEDAVAOSTYLE

By Carlo P. MalloPhotos by Ariel BalofinosGowns by Erwin Tan of KasuotanMake-up by Alex Monton of Physique Beauty SalonModels: Jessica Patricio, Fern Marino, Johann Go,all from Glam Model House

ENTERTAINMENTARTS AND CULTURE

A2 INdulge! EDGEDAVAO

Here in Davao City, planning a wedding is one of the most stressful things that a woman can go through – setting the date with the church, re-serving the ballroom of a hotel, choosing the right menu, the right flowers, the perfect invitation, the city’s top make-up artist, and the list goes on. But the most gruel-ing part is choosing the right gown made for you. In a perfect situation, the bride should start planning for her wed-ding a year or at least 6 months before her planned date. But as the case is in a number of situations, there are a

number of brides who do not have the luxury of time. Thus, Erwin Tan of Kasuotan saw an op-portunity to give brides a solution for their spur of the moment wedding plans –wedding gowns that you can readily wear. Don’t freak out yet and turn into a bridezil-la at the mere thought of ready-to-wear wedding gowns. The new collec-tion of Erwin’s ready-to-wear wedding gowns are actually impeccably made, complete with intricate details, and de-signed with the Filipina bride in mind. Having these ready-

to-wear wedding gowns is more convenient both for the designer and the bride, especially if they are pressed for time. Even international de-signers abroad have their own ready-to-wear line also. Since I opened my shop in Hong Kong, which focuses on ready-to-wear evening and wedding gowns, I decid-ed to bring in some of my lines here in Davao,” Erwin said, adding that the gowns are still his own design executed by his staff in Hong Kong. Seeing the gowns, the quality of the design and its execution are at par with the custom-made wedding gowns that Er-win is known for. With these ready-to-wear wedding gowns, brides who are planning their weddings within a limited time need not

turn into whip-bearing dominatrixes who turn their grooms into slaves. (Yes, there are brides who are like that. Just ask your make-up art-ist friend and they have stories that can blow your mind away.) If there is one thing that frets a bride more on her wedding day, and the days leading to it, aside from whether the groom will show up or not, is whether she’ll look good in her wed-ding gown, or if it will be finished on time. Brides need not worry about that anymore as you can now choose your wed-ding gown a week before your planned date and have it adjusted perfect-ly for your size. On that note, here’s a flute of champagne and let’s drink to more won-derful wedding gowns!

THErE is no day more special to a woman than her wedding day as it is that one day in their lives wherein they get to live every girl’s dream, to be a princess sharing true love’s kiss with their prince charming, or as it is in most cases.

VOL.5 ISSUE 90 • JULY 8 - 9, 2012EDGEDAVAO INdulge! A3

HELPING YOU MAKE INFORMED BUSINESS DEcISIONS.

Jose Abad Santos St., CornerArellano St., Tagum City

8100 PhilippinesTel. No.: (084) 216-3003Cell No,: 0939-243-8539

You can now buy your weekly paper fill of in-depth business news and features from any of these

establishments still at Php 15.

T h e B u s i n e s s P A P E R

ENTERTAINMENTENTERTAINMENT

A4 INdulge! VOL.5 ISSUE 90 • JULY 8 - 9, 2012EDGEDAVAO

ThE final Batman-vs.-evil sto-ry is almost upon us. Well, the conclusion of Christopher Nolan’s telling of the saga starring Christian Bale as the Caped Crusader is almost upon us, anyway. But that’s a sadness for an-other time! We are secure in our knowledge that The Dark Knight Rises is going to pack a massive punch of surprises when it finally hits theaters on July 20 (starting at mid-night, naturally), but juicy nuggets of information!—continue to flow ahead of the film’s release. So, here are five brand-new things to know about The Dark Knight Rises... 1. What Year Is This? Ac-cording to 49 pages of production notes helpfully released by Warner Bros. (a routine process ideally in-tended to better inform crit-ics and entertainment report-ers, despite the risk of major spoilage), The Dark Knight Rises picks up eight years af-ter Batman battled the Joker, clashed with harvey Dent and lost Rachel Dawes in an explosion that still makes us shudder a bit. And yes, peo-ple think Batman is a mur-derer. But at least Alfred had plenty of time to rebuild the Batcave, right?! 2. Joseph Gordon-Levitt Does have a Purpose: The other new characters we get: Bane, Catwoman, Miranda Tate (gotta have at least one

gal without an alter ego, right?). But just what is JGL doing? At last, we know for sure: Gordon-Levitt’s John Blake is a guy who hasn’t been sullied by the seedy un-derbelly of human nature so prevalent in Gotham. “Com-missioner Gordon and Bruce Wayne have become some-what jaded, so we wanted to contrast that with a younger, more idealistic individual who, in a way, represents where they’ve come from,” Nolan says. “Joe really cap-tured the strength and cour-age of a man who refuses to back down, regardless of the odds.” 3. New Toys: That new air-borne vehicle Batman is rid-ing around is aptly named the Bat. Conceived by gadget and superhero-transportation master Lucius Fox, it’s part helicopter, part jump jet—and all kinds of awesome. The new mode of transport freed up the earthbound Bat Pod for Catwoman, but Anne hathaway admits she wasn’t the one raising hell on two wheels. “When they asked me if I thought I could ride it, I said, ‘You give me the oppor-tunity, and I guarantee I can do it,’” said stunt driver Jolene Van Vugt. Speaking of stunt doubles, the evil Bane knows Batman’s every move—liter-ally. Bale’s double in the first two films, fight coordinator Buster Reeves, stepped in for Tom hardy’s scariest-bad-guy-yet as well.

4. IMAX Is Essential: While he passed on 3-D and used actual, tangible film stock, Nolan didn’t forget that movie audiences these days are seeking exceptional, larger-than-life theatrical ex-periences. With that in mind, he shot almost half the film with large-format IMAX cameras—meaning, those extra few bucks per ticket are so worth it. Therefore, if you live near one of the 102 IMAX 15/70 mm screens that will be showing the film, con-sider yourself obligated to go there. Otherwise, just catch The Dark Knight Rises on the 14,898 other screens it will be playing on around the world. (For those keeping score, that’s 4,000 more screens than the record-shattering The Dark Knight, which ul-timately made $1 billion, opened on four years ago.) 5. Get Even More Com-fortable Than Usual: It’s been a long time since an Event Movie clocked in at under two hours—and The Dark Knight Rises will be no excep-tion! In fact, its running time is a whopping two hours and 45 minutes—15 minutes longer than The Dark Knight and 25 minutes longer than Batman Begins. (And 23 min-utes longer than The Aveng-ers andThe hunger Games, 29 minutes longer than The Amazing Spider-Man, 35 minutes longer than harry Potter and the Deathly hal-lows Part 2, etc.) (E! Online)

TOM Cruise has remained con-spicuously silent throughout the ma-nia surrounding his divorce from Katie holmes, but that doesn’t mean he isn’t mapping out a legal game plan. The star’s lawyer, Bert Fields, has confirmed to the BBC that the 50-year-old is planning to file for divorce but, for the moment, has opted to let his estranged ex “play the media” before making any moves. “Tactically we can’t say where Tom will file a di-vorce case and if he’ll be seeking joint custody of Suri,” Fields said. he added that they’ve decided to let holmes take the spotlight first before filing their own counter di-vorce case. “We are letting ‘the other side’ play the media until they wear everyone out,” Fields explained, “and

then we’ll have something to say.” Although it appears the couple could be gear-ing up for a contentious battle, with custody for

6-year-old Suri front and center, Fields reiterated that Cruise is disheartened by the turn of events. “It’s not Tom’s style to do this publicly,” Fields said.

“he is really sad about what’s happening.” holmes, 33, filed for di-vorce on June 28 in New York City and is seeking sole custody of Suri. Spec-ulation has been mount-ing that Cruise could file a counter divorce case in California and seek joint custody, but, per the BBC, Fields wouldn’t confirm those reports. The opening salvo for their legal showdown comes on July 17, when holmes is set to appear in front of a family court judge in New York City for an order-to-show-cause hearing, allowing her to request a speedy tempo-rary order before Cruise’s legal team has a chance to respond. In the meantime, hol-mes has decamped to a posh downtown Manhat-tan apartment with Suri, and the two have been spotted out and about the city with pals. (E!Online)

Princess Di, is that you? No, but it sure looks like it! Naomi Watts was spotted once again in London looking eerily similar to the late Prin-cess Diana while working on her upcoming movie, Caught in Flight. Sitting pretty and wearing sapphires and diamonds—similar to the jewelry Diana once wore—the 43-year-old actress was snapped on

set channeling the for-mer princess with poise and perfection. The movie delves into the relationship between Prince William and Prince harry’s mother and heart surgeon Dr. hasnet Kahn. So next time you see a blond-bobbed, royal-looking woman walking the streets of London, don’t be alarmed. It is not Princess Diana’s ghost—it’s just Naomi!

What?! Tom Cruise to file own divorce charges

Naomi Watts is Princess Diana

5 facts about the Dark Knight Rises

VOL.5 ISSUE 90 • JULY 8 - 9, 2012 15EDGEDAVAO NATION/WORLD

DISCrImINATIoN against homosexu-als and people

infected with HIV is con-tributing to the rapid rise of the incurable disease in the Philippines, officials and health activists said Friday.

Despite the country’s tolerant image, people with HIV are being ostra-cised by their communi-ties and even by doctors, the officials said at a fo-rum on the rights of in-fected people.

Among the forms of discrimination are peo-ple being tested without their knowledge, test re-sults being leaked and infected people being de-tained, quarantined and even forced to leave their homes.

“AIDS is the modern day leprosy,” said edu ra-

zon, head of Pinoy Plus, an association of people infected with HIV, the vi-rus that causes AIDS.

As a result, many peo-ple hide the fact that they are infected or even avoid testing outright, making it harder to prevent the spread of the disease.

“People don’t want to be tested because of the stigma. There is this fa-talistic notion -- they’d rather not know,” razon told the forum.

The number of HIV/AIDS cases detected in the Philippines, which has a population of 94 million people, is still relatively small with only 9,669 cas-es recorded since 1984, health department fig-ures show.

But the Philippines is one of only seven coun-tries listed by UNAIDS

(the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS) to have suffered rising infection rates in 2010.

Susan Gregorio, ex-ecutive director of the government’s AIDS coun-cil, said there were an estimated 27,840 cases of HIV/AIDS in the Philip-pines this year, with that figure expected to climb to 35,940 by 2015.

Infection rates are ris-ing particularly among homosexual men and are spreading outside of the highly-urbanised ar-eas where the virus used to be concentrated, she warned.

D i s c r i m i n a t i o n against homosexuals and transsexuals is further deterring them from be-ing tested, the health ac-tivists said.

A vendor sits next to a world AIDS day poster displayed in front of the World Health Organization (WHO) regional of-fice in Manila in 2011. Discrimination against homosexuals and people infected with HIV is contributing to the rapid rise of the incurable disease in the Philippines, officials and health activists said Friday.

Discrimination fuels rise of HIV in PHL

eAST Timor’s voters went to the polls on Saturday in parlia-

mentary elections seen as a key test for the young and fragile democracy and likely to determine if UN peacekeepers can leave by the end of the year.

Polls opened at 7 am (2200 GmT Friday) and voting was due to contin-ue until 3 pm, with some 645,000 registered voters

eligible to cast their bal-lots.

even before polls opened a small crowd of voters waited to cast their ballots at a school in the leafy Farol suburb of Dili.

There have been con-cerns that violence could reignite in the energy-rich but underdeveloped state if, as predicted, none of the 21 parties wins a par-liamentary majority and a fragile coalition takes

power.Presidential polls

that were held over two rounds in march and April, however, passed off peacefully.

The United Nations sees Saturday’s elections as the last big test that will decide whether its remaining 1,300 peace-keepers and other secu-rity staff can withdraw as planned within six months.

East Timorese election officials start to distribute ballot boxes in Dili. Voting began on Saturday in East Timor’s par-liamentary elections, a test for this half-island nation that will determine whether United Nations peacekeepers can leave as planned by the end of this year.

East Timor votes in key test for young democracy

VOL.5 ISSUE 90 • JULY 8 - 9, 201216 EDGEDAVAO

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ICT HUB

WIKILeAKS on Thursday began publishing more

than two million emails from Syrian political fig-ures which could shed light on a crackdown that has killed thousands.

The whistleblow-ing website said the first emails from Syrian politi-cal figures, ministries and companies were from Au-gust 2006 and the final ones dated march 2012, a year after the current bloody uprising in Syria

began.“The material is em-

barrassing to Syria, but it is also embarrassing to Syria’s external oppo-nents,” said WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, who is currently holed up in ecuador’s embassy in London seeking political asylum.

“It helps us not merely to criticise one group or another, but to understand their interests, actions and thoughts,” he added in a written statement read

out at a press conference in London.

“It is only through un-derstanding this conflict that we can hope to re-solve it.”

The latest disclosures could illuminate the work-ings of the Syrian regime and its interactions with allies in the run-up to and during the 16-month conflict, which the Syrian observatory for Human rights says has claimed more than 16,500 lives.

The first wave of

WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, pictured in 2011, is currently seeking political asylum at Ecuador’s embassy in London. WikiLeaks has started publishing over two million emails from Syrian political figures dating back to 2006 but also covering the period of the crackdown on dissent by Syria’s regime.

WikiLeaks begins publishing two million emails from Syria

emails released Thursday claimed that Italian de-fence giant Finmeccanica continued to supply sup-port for communications equipment to the Syrian regime after the unrest began in march last year.

The contract to supply the Syrian Wireless organ-isation with high-tech ra-dios made by Selex elsag, a branch of Finmeccanica, dates to 2008, according to the emails published in Italy’s espresso magazine and by Spanish website Publico.

But Selex continued supplying engineers and assistance on the ra-dios until recently, said the publications, two of WikiLeaks’ media part-ners for the project it has dubbed “the Syria Files”.

WikiLeaks’ announce-ment comes a day after russia denied having dis-cussed with Washington offering exile to Syria’s President Bashar al-Assad.

It also comes ahead of a meeting Friday in Paris of the “Friends of Syria” group of countries which support tougher action against Assad’s govern-ment.

WikiLeaks said the 2,434,899 emails came from Syrian ministries including foreign affairs, finance and presidential affairs. There are around 400,000 emails in Arabic but also 68,000 in russian.

WikiLeaks spokes-woman Sarah Harrison said it could not comment on the full contents of the release.

The organisation said it is working with me-dia partners Al-Akhbar in Lebanon, Al masry Al Youm in egypt, the As-sociated Press newswire, espresso in Italy, NDr/ArD in Germany, owni in France and Publico in Spain.

VOL.5 ISSUE 90 • JULY 8 - 9, 2012 17EDGEDAVAO

FFROM 1

FFROM 2

Sara...

Green...

Duterte are yet to meet on the subject.

“We haven’t seen each other for the longest time,” Sara said,

“Why?” estrada asked chuckling.

The mayor replied: “I only see him is in the papers. The only reason I see him is on family events, birthdays, binyag.”

“Why, why? He’s the vice mayor,” estrada asked again, chuckling. The mayor did not answer.

“You’ll know about it (election plans) on the day of filing the) certificate of candidacy,” was all that she said.

estrada, along with Vice

President Jejomar Binay, heads the newly-formed coalition United National Alliance (UNA), which com-bined their partys Pwersa ng masa and Partidong De-mokratiko Pilipino-Laban (PDP-Laban), respectively.

Duterte-Carpio in June formally resigned from PDP-Laban as she said its rules will run conflict against her being member of Hugpong sa Tawong Lungsod (Hug-pong) which she has ap-plied to formally become a partylist.

There was not a mention of this however during their meeting held in the pres-ence of the city’s depart-ment heads and the media.

rather use free flowing or sea water,” she added.

Lindo also mentioned car-bon sink management plan that is necessary for a compa-ny to present before starting a coal power plant project.

Asked whether or not there was a carbon sink man-agement plan presented to the SP, Braga said, “That will

come, dili man na madali dali pud (It can’t be done immedi-ately).”

Braga noted that the De-partment of environment and Natural resources 11 had created a monitoring group to monitor carbon footprints and other environ-mental impacts of the coal power plant.

AmNeSTY Interna-tional Philippines is demanding that

the mining industry ob-serve Free, Prior and In-formed Consent (FPIC) and adhere to local com-munities consultations in complying with their requirements for mining permits.

Chairperson ritz Lee Santos III bared last Fri-day in a press conference at the Philippine Infor-mation Agency, Davao City, that there have been mining companies that violated the rights of the indigenous people with regards to the FPIC.

He said that in the Caraga region, there were various consulta-tions held in the com-munities, and the atten-dance sheets signed were used to prove that people there agreed to the min-ing project.

Photos were taken showing participants raising their hands, thus implying that community members would allow the mining company to operate there.

regional State Pros-ecutor Antonio Arellano, Department of Justice (DoJ) 11, said such act was falsification of docu-ments, adding that with substantial evidences that a mining company

is guilty of it, concerned groups may file cases with the DoJ.

Citing the cancella-tion of the mining per-mit of the marcventures mining and Develop-ment Corporation in Cantilan, Surigao del Sur, Santos said Amnesty In-ternational continues to lobby governments around the world to hold corporations account-able and demand that they address human and environmental impacts of mining.

Commission on Hu-man rights 11 officer Panfilo Junior r. Lovitos expressed his doubts why some consultations for FPIC were not genu-ine despite the presence of officers from the Na-tional Commission on In-digenous Peoples.

Further, Santos said large scale mining in mindanao has gone to alarming levels, citing re-ports that mining claims all over the Philippines increased to 1.14 million hectares during the first quarter of this year.

“The horror doesn’t begin or end with the situation of indigenous peoples and Filipinos af-fected by extractive in-dustries. The whole na-tion is in danger,” he said. [Lorie Ann A. Cascaro]

SHOW OF FORCE. Security is tight in the Moro Islamic Liberation Front’s Camp Darapanan in Maguindanao as more than 1 million members, sup-porters and local government unit representatives joined the Bangsamoro

Leaders Assembly on Saturday and Sunday. The MILF said that the activity is also a show of force. [KARLOS MANLUPIG]

AIP raps violations of FPIC in mining

By Jade C. Zaldivar

Former President Jo-seph ‘erap’ estrada appeared to be appeal-

ing in behalf of incumbent President Benigno Aquino III, saying the latter is do-ing his best in gearing the country into recovery.

Asked for comment on the performance of Aqui-no, estrada only had good words for the latter.

“With the nine years worth of corruption that the past administration did,

it will take a long time for us (the country) to recov-er our economy. We have many things to improve. I think he’s trying really hard,” estrada said in an in-terview last July 6 following his courtesy call on mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio.

The former president said Aquino ‘still has a lot to do’ for the country.

“Imagine, we were one of the most corrupt coun-tries in Asia. We became one of the highest import-ers of rice. We were import-

ing from Vietnam, Thailand. Indirectly we were helping the farmers of other coun-tries but we were not help-ing our own farmers,” he said.

“That goes to show that the past administration had no conscience for the poor,” he added.

estrada noted that Lu-zon as well as other parts of the country are experi-encing a busier economic activity as ‘investors have returned their faith in the government.’

“It just goes to show that investors are coming in because their confidence is returning to the incum-bent President. We agree on that,” he said.

“We are beginning to rise from the nine years of decay during the rule of the past administration. We were one of the worst coun-tries,” he added.

estrada was in the city to attend the wake of the late Don Antonio Floirendo before payig a courtesy call atthe city hall.

Erap on PNoy: ‘He’s doing his best’

By Lorie A. Cascaro

THe Commission on Human rights (CHr) 11 said Fri-

day that branding an indi-vidual as a member of the New People’s Army (NPA) or linking someone to the revolutionary group is highly discouraged.

In a press conference initiated by Amnesty In-ternational Philippines at the Philippine Infor-mation Agency (PIA) 11, Lawyer Panfilo Junior r. Lovitos of CHr 11 re-ferred to red-tagging as a form of harassment by elements of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) employing psycho-logical warfare.

He said that tagging someone as an NPA mem-ber tends to instill fear in

the victim, including his or her family, such that at anytime they might be subject to abduction or summary killing.

Noting that CHr 11 had been receiving com-plaints of red-tagging committed by the AFP against civilians, whjich the commission investi-gated and issued recom-mendations.

Commodore romeo Nebres, AFP eastern min-danao Command, also at the PIA forum, said red-tagging is not part of the military’s doctrine, add-ing that it is an act of a weakling.

Acknowledging that there were complaints of red-tagging by some elements of the AFP, Col. Yerson Depayso, assistant commander of the 10th Infantry Division, said his

soldiers already under-stand that being a com-munist is not a crime.

For his part, Depart-ment of Justice regional State prosecutor Antonio Arellano said adherence to communist ideology is part of freedom in a democratic country, only the acts of rebellion such as taking up arms against the government is prohib-ited.

ritz Lee Santos III, chairperson of Amnesty International Philippines, said coincidentally, most victims of extrajudicial killings had been tagged as coming from the revo-lutionary group.

He cited the case of rodel estrellado, a mem-ber of Bayan muna partyl-ist, who was reportedly killed in an encounter in Albay on February 25,

2011, but that there had been no encounter fol-lowing an investigation by police.

Benedictine Sister Stella matutina had ear-lier filed a complaint eith the CHr 11 against the AFP for harassment and branding her as an NPA member.

meanwhile, the Am-nesty International Phil-ippines during its rolling launch of the State of the World’s Human rights Annual report 2012 in Davao City, said “The slow progress in breaking im-punity for human rights abuses and making gov-ernment forces and cor-porations accountable, make perpetrators feel that they can continue violating rights without fear of prosecution and punishment.”

CHR 11 nixes red-tagging

VOL.5 ISSUE 90 • JULY 8 - 9, 2012SPORTS18 EDGEDAVAO

Moment of truth

Davao riders shine

All eyes will be on Nonito Donaire who will try to unify the super bantamweight title Sunday.

IT’S the moment of truth for World Boxing orga-nization (WBo) super-

bantamweight champion Nonito Donaire Jr.

The Filipino Flash eas-ily made weight Friday (Saturday morning, ma-nila time) and declared himself ready against lanky but tall South Afri-can Jeffrey mathebula for their world title unifica-tion fight at the Home De-pot Center in Carson, Cali-

fornia.Donaire tipped the

scale at 121.4 lbs during the official weigh-in.

mathebula, the 33-year-old International Boxing Federation (IBF) title holder, also made the 122-lbs limit after weigh-ing in at 121.8 lbs.

Both fighters were in-tense, but very respectful of each other during the traditional stare down that followed at the center

of the stage.The fight is set for

12-rounds on Saturday (Sunday, manila time) at the Home Depot Center.

Donaire, fighting for the second time this year, holds a 28-1 record, with 18 Kos, while mathebula sports a 26-3-2 record with 14 Kos.

The Filipino is a 4-1 favorite against the little-known South African on the eve of match.

Donaire faces dangerous South African

PromISING Abu mata of Team Phoe-nix motoX Davao

took the title in the first leg of the Gov. Dimaporo World motocross Series held recently at the mCC Sports Complex in Tubod, Lanao del Norte.

mata, son of motoX Davao president Bok, ruled the 85cc champion-ship. He was followed by Keoco Dimaano and TJ Al-berto as second and third,

respectively. He also fin-ished second runner-up in the Beginner Produc-tion event behind cham-pion Jules Bandigan and first runner-up Seet John Sambon.

Two other motoX Davao riders - Kimboy and Jessie Pineda - also took honors in the two-day race held as the 4th leg of the enersel-Forte Philippine National Se-ries, dubbed as the “Battle

royal: east meets West”. Kimboy managed to

land sixth place in the International Pro event, beating former PHL No. 1 Jovie Saulog and Bornok mangosong, who settled for 7th and 8th, respec-tively. Daniel Blair was the champion, followed by Sean Kranyak and the country’s No. 1 Glenn Aguilar, who placed sec-ond and third, while Den-nis Stapleton and Ambo Yapparcon were the fourth and fifth.

Jessie, on the other hand, placed 7th in the Pro open won by Aguilar. mangosong finished sec-ond followed by Yappar-con, Saulog, Noynoy rel-losa and Donark Yuzon. Kimboy settled for 11th.

Aguilar also topped the Pro Lites followed by rellosa and Saulog in that order. The other champi-ons were BJ Pepito (65cc), Noynoy rellosa (Interme-diate), Paim onahon (Un-derbone Novice & open), Baby Dimaporo (Ladies), Nonoy Zambra (Special event), John Almerino (open Local endo), Jay Lacnit (exec A), and Jacob orbe (Novice open Prod). (PNA)

VOL.5 ISSUE 90 • JULY 8 - 9, 2012 19EDGEDAVAO SPORTS

Republic of the PhilippinesDepartment of Transportation

and CommunicationsLAND TRANSPORTATION FRANCHISING

AND REGULATORY BOARDRegional Office No. XI

Davao city

Petition for Renewal of a Certificate of Public Convenience to operate

an AIRCONDITIONED TAXI Service

LITO I. LEGASPI, PetitionerCase No.2003-XI-00295

x- - - - - - - - -- - - --x

NOTICE HEARING

Petitioner is a grantee of a Certificate of Public Convenience issued in this case authorizing the op-eration of an AIRCONDITIONED TAXI service on the route: WITHIN DAVAO CITY to any point in Region XI with the use of ONE (1) unit, which Certificate will expire on April 11, 2013. In the petition filed on April 27, 2012, petitioner request authority to extend the validity of said certificate to operate along the same route with the use of the same unit previously authorized.

NOTICE, is hereby given that this petition will

be heard by this Board on JULY 30, 2012 at 09:50 a.m. at this office at the above address.

At least, FIVE (5) days prior to the above date petitioner shall publish this Notice once in a one (1) daily newspaper of general circulation in Mindanao

Parties opposed to the granting of the peti-tion must file their written opposition supported by documentary evidence on or before the above date furnishing a copy of the same to the petitioner, and may if they so, desire appear on said date and time.

This petition will be acted upon by this Board on the basis of its records and the documentary evidence submitted by the parties, unless the Board deems it necessary to receive additional documen-tary and/or oral evidence.

WITNESS the Honorable BENJAMIN A. GO, CESO V, Regional Director, this 27th day of April 2012 at Davao City.

TERESITA DELA PEÑA-YÑIGUEZChief Transport Development Officer

/hocCopy furnished:Petitioner, Lito I. Legaspi, Brgy. 7A, Purok 10, Davao CityCounsel, Atty. Magin C. Natividad, Balusong Ave., Matina, Davao CityNOTE: Affidavit of Publication and newspaper where notice was published must be submitted three (3) days before the scheduled hearing.

Kidd joins NY Knicks

After Nash, is Howard next for Lakers?Steve Nash and Kobe Bryant will try to conspire for an NBA title next season. Will Dwight Hoard complete the new Big Three?

KoBe Bryant and Steve Nash connect-ed on the phone

monday night, discuss-ing the parameters of a partnership that would’ve once seemed so improb-able. Nash had the vision of joining the Los Angeles Lakers, and Bryant told him he wanted him there. This had come together so fast, so out of nowhere, Bryant is still calculating the possibilities of pair-ing two of a generation’s best talents and basketball minds.

This is the kind of cordial

recruiting call that Bryant and Dwight Howard haven’t had, a silence existing for most of a year now. Bryant will not recruit Howard to reaffirm the Lakers as part of Howard’s list of teams that he’s willing to accept a trade and sign a long-term exten-sion. For several reasons – in-cluding Bryant’s respect for teammate Andrew Bynum – the odds of Bryant picking up the phone and calling are remote. Bryant would wel-come Howard as a teammate, sources say, but he’s shown no inclination to be part of a pro-cess of trying to convince him

to come. When they spoke several

months ago about the pos-sibility of Howard coming to the Lakers in a trade, Bryant and Howard pictured the cen-ter’s role through far different prisms. Howard wanted an offense to play through him far more often than not, and Bryant imagined the NBA’s best defender protecting the rim, rebounding and scoring as an offensive option beyond Bryant and Pau Gasol. The call ended uneasily, and sources say they haven’t had a mean-ingful conversation since then.

Howard has always want-

ed to play with a great point guard, and, perhaps, with the ball in Nash’s hands now, he’ll see the Lakers in a different way. Before Nash, Howard had been longing for life with Der-on Williams and the Brooklyn Nets. Now, the Lakers have a generational point guard, and that could change everything.

The orlando magic want Bynum, and need to find a way through a deal with the Lakers – or perhaps the as-sistance of a third team – to land him. The Lakers want to win championships now, and here’s a question they’re ask-ing themselves: With Howard

still rehabilitating back sur-gery, do they risk a season where he’s still physically re-covering?

For the Lakers to make a deal for Howard, orlando will push them to take on a long-term contract it wants to un-load: Hedo Turkoglu or Jason richardson. For all the local TV revenue that’s coming to the Buss family, they still get queasy over paying so much in luxury taxes. Still, Howard, 26, can be the Lakers’ market-able Hollywood star once Bry-ant is gone. Bynum will never be that presence, even if he’s an excellent center.

THe Games and Amuse-ment Board (GAB) has turned over a P50,000

check to the family of the late boxer ermelito “Jog” Alim Jr. who died last week after successfully retaining his crown in Agusan del Sur.

Alim’s father, emerlito Sr., and his other son, rosel, received the check this

week from Jimmy mata, GAB Southern mindanao field officer-in-charge.

The 20-year-old boxer collapsed on the ring after he was declared the winner over challenger Ahl Grumo in their 10-round champi-onship bout.

He was immediately rushed to a hospital in Agu-

san and later transferred to Tagum City, Davao del Norte. He was again trans-ferred to the Southern Philippines medical Cen-ter (SPmC) in Davao City where he expired the fol-lowing morning.

The 5-foot-7 Alim who made his first title defense, had 16 fights including

eight knockouts with four loses and two draws.

Also present during the turnover of the check were Alim’s boxing trainer-man-ager Vicente Adriano and GAB field officer Kenneth Improso.

Alim’s family had earlier received a P5,000 cash as-sistance from the mindanao

Professional Boxing Associ-ation (minproba) headed by its president Yolly Alfante.

His former stablemate Jayson mcGura, who is now in Australia, also sent P10,000 cash for the burial expenses of the former min-proba featherweight cham-pion held last week in mal-ita, Davao del Sur. (PNA)

GAB comes to aid of fallen Davao boxer

THe New York Knicks view Jason Kidd as Jeremy

Lin’s teammate, not a re-placement.

And once they finish the deal that would bring Kidd to New York, they can move on to keeping Lin.

They have a chance for a tantalizing tandem at point guard, the 39-year-old vet-eran who is one of the most accomplished ever at the position and the undrafted Ivy Leaguer who took the NBA by storm last season.

Step one is nearing its completion. The Knicks and Kidd were still working Friday on terms of the deal that will get him from Dal-las to New York, according to a person familiar with the details. Kidd would be able to make a higher sal-ary if the teams are able to work out a sign-and-trade arrangement, rather than him signing in New York as a free agent.

VOL.5 ISSUE 90 • JULY 8 - 9, 201220 EDGEDAVAO