Maniolas

MANILA, Philippines – GQWEST Inc. plans to expand its Aquaquest water refilling franchise outside Metro Manila as part of its plan to drive growth. A sister brand of Aquabest the country’s premier water franchise and with over a hundred stores, Aquaquest is set to grow in rural areas where potable water access remains an issue. The company’s CEO, Carson Tan, sees tremendous potential in areas outside Manila which have begun to see rapid development and urbanization. “With the Metro Manila water refilling market getting ever more competitive, it would be more practical to look at other areas where opportunities are great and competition isn’t as fierce,” Tan said. A single Aquaquest store can offer three different types of water: purified, mineral, and alkaline. While the purified water is the staple product of the store, the mineral and alkaline types of water would appeal most to people who have specific medical needs or those who need water as a health supplement.

The Philippine government and the country’s largest Muslim rebel group said Friday they had wrapped up talks aimed at ensuring the terms of a landmark peace deal would be enacted into law. The Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) signed the peace agreement in March, but it fell into serious question amid a row over a draft law to create a Muslim self-rule area in the south of the mainly Catholic nation. “After a series of productive meetings… we have concluded discussions on the various issues involving the draft Basic Bangsamoro Law,” President Benigno Aquino’s chief aide Paquito Ochoa and chief MILF negotiator Mohagher Iqbal said in a joint statement. The MILF has been fighting since the 1970s for an independent or autonomous homeland for the nation’s Muslim minority in a conflict which has claimed tens of thousands of lives. The Aquino government and the MILF signed an accord in March that laid out a roadmap for final peace by the middle of 2016. The deal called for MILF control of a new southern autonomous region, and the rebels would lay down their arms. However the process ran into difficulties after a draft bill creating the autonomous region was submitted to Aquino for review in April by a joint commission of MILF and government representatives that drew up the document. The president’s legal team later ordered a series of changes that frustrated the MILF, which last month accused the government of trying to renege on the terms of the peace agreement. Read More …

By Matikas Santos |INQUIRER.net 4:07 pm | Wednesday, August 13th, 2014 MANILA, Philippines – Philippine Airlines (PAL) has expanded its flights from Philippines to Guam, a United States (US) territory in the Pacific Ocean, following the US Federal Aviation Administration’s (FAA) upgrading to Category 1 of the Philippines’ aviation safety rating. FILE PHOTO “Philippine Consul General in Guam Marciano De Borja said that the increased frequency granted to PAL is a manifestation of enhanced international confidence in the Philippines,” the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said in a statement Wednesday. “PAL and other Philippine-flagged carriers were recently allowed to increase their frequency and routes to destinations in the US after the FAA upgraded the country’s aviation safety rating to Category 1 status,” it said. The daily flights to Guam will begin on October 26, 2014. There are more than 13,500 permanent Filipinos in Guam, they are largest ethnic group there after the indigenous Chamorro group. The island is a vital military base for the US Armed Forces and was once a stopover port for the Spanish Galleon Trade route to the Philippines. “Consul General De Borja congratulated PAL for this milestone in its Manila-Guam route and invited the airline to become a close partner and help actively promote the Philippines through the economic and cultural diplomacy projects of the Philippine Consulate General,” the statement said. RELATED STORIES Biz Buzz: PAL-for-cash deal in the offing SMC-Lucio Tan showdown over PAL looms Follow Us Other Stories: Arrest made in death of Fil-Am girl, 6 Fil-Am Read More …

MANILA, Philippines – At the local unveiling of the Ferrari 458 Spider, premiere sport and lifestyle brand Oakley announced its partnership with Ferrari to launch the special edition Scuderia Ferrari Polarized Carbon Blade Sunglasses. The special edition eyewear salutes the passion and perfection of Scuderia Ferrari, the Prancing Horse’s official racing team. Each frame in this premium sunglass collection carries highlights in the iconic color Scuderia Ferrari red, and select renditions are accented with the Scuderia Ferrari emblem. The eyewear features laser-etched logo at the corner of the lens, as well as logo embossed Microclear bag for lens cleaning and frame storage. Custom packaging and custom case make each edition a collectible. “The partnership of Oakley and Ferrari is a very exciting one. Being the best in what they do is in their DNA. Both brands push the envelope and use cutting-edge technology to deliver amazing products to consumers.” said Scott Betty, Global Director of Optics at Oakley, Inc., in a statement. The new sunglasses feature renowned Oakley durability and all-day comfort thanks to lightweight, stress-resistant carbon fiber frame material, Oakley’s Three-Point Fit that holds lenses in precise optical alignment, Unobtainium earsocks and new air-filled silicon nosepads for a snug, secure fit, and ultra-lightweight titanium forged hinges. The lenses boast Oakley’s HDPolarized fetaure, which minimizes glare via technology that produces the best polarized lenses on the planet, UV protection from Plutonite lens that filters out 100 percent of UVA / UVB / UVC and harmful blue light up to 400nm, Read More …

MANILA, Philippines – Asian Carmakers Corporation (ACC), the official importer and distributor of BMW in the Philippines, has taken the wraps off its first-ever four-door 4 Series Gran Coupé. Wait, you ask, did I just describe a coupe as having four doors? Yes, and for those who are still getting used to BMW’s new nomenclature of odd-numbered series (1, 3, 5, and 7 Series) as four-door sedans or hatches and the new even-numbered series (2, 4, 6 Series) as coupes, a four-door “coupe” with the 4-Series designation might come as a shock. Well, it’s no shock if you follow BMW’s rationale of defining coupes not by the number of doors but by the body style or design. And BMW has certainly designed the 4 Series Gran Coupe to look like, well, a coupe (which, to the uninitiated, is French for two doors). The first four-door coupé in the premium midsize segment, the BMW 4 Series Gran Coupé combines the sleek look of a sport coupe with the functionality provided by four doors. It is the latest model to join the BMW 4 Series range, along with the BMW 4 Series Sport Coupé—which was launched last February and which is the actual 4 Series model with just two doors. Get it now? “We are very excited to kick off the second half of 2014 with the launch of the newest model to join the BMW family: the first-ever BMW 4 Series Gran Coupe.” said Maricar Parco, ACC president “This is a Read More …