Maniolas

MANILA, Philippines –  In the Philippines, no other abstract painter is as renowned as Alfredo Liongoren in perfecting figurative and other art forms. He also makes fearless excursions beyond art at the risk of silencing his canvases and compromising the visual genius he is known for. This way, he does not lose art and life, he says, adding he does not mind being life-sensitive and art-challenged at the same time.  In a one-month exhibit titled “Balesin in My Mind” currently on view until June 15 at the showroom of Alphaland Makati Place on Ayala Avenue Extension, Liongoren showed two different styles: figuration and semi-abstraction. His three watercolors depict children at work, in figurative forms, a part of his “Koronang Tinik” (Crown of Thorn) series done in 2010. “Batang Pacquiao” shows a young boxer’s outstretched paw and a child’s frail image on a jar. “The series is an ode to children. Their values are affected by our moral standpoint in life. They become what we are in life,” lectures Liongoren. Liongoren’s  “Koronang Tinik“ series has an old nest. After an alliance with social realist painters who emerged in the ’70s, he focused on the oppression of the poor and learned to depict class struggle in figuration. Also in the Alphaland exhibit are Liongoren’s seven semi-abstract art works in acrylic, meant to depict scratches on earth, extractions from nature, and lessons learned about defiled environment. Only two in the collection have pastel colors but they ache for summer and springtime, making them symbolic of Read More …

A Palace spokesperson on Sunday said that the administration is closely monitoring activities in disputed territories in the West Philippine Sea, whether or not China decides to build on one of the contested islands. “Patuloy na isinasagawa po ng pamahalaan ang mga karapat-dapat na aksyon para igiit ‘yung ating karapatan at itaguyod ‘yung pambansang interes natin. Hindi po tayo nagdedepende sa aksyon ng ibang bansa sa pagsulong ng ating pambansang interes,” Communications Secretary Herminio Coloma Jr. said in an interview aired over state-run dzRB. Coloma was reacting to a Saturday report by the South China Morning Post that China plans to put up a military base in the disputed Kalayaan Island Group. According to the SCMP report, a military base will be built after the planned expansion of an artificial island located on Fiery Cross Reef, which the Philippines calls Kagitingan Reef. The report also said that the military base will feature an airstrip and a port. The base will also have storage for military supplies. An observation post on the reef already exists, the report added. If the construction of a military base pushes through, China will have a strategic outpost in the heart of disputed territories in the South China Sea including the Spratlys and the KIG But Coloma reiterated that the Aquino believes in the peaceful resolution of the maritime row. “Sinusunod po natin kung ano ang naaayon sa pambansang interes ng Pilipinas at matibay po ‘yung ating pananalig na kinakailangang lutasin sa pamamagitan ng mapayapang paraan Read More …

CONTRIBUTED IMAGE/ http://www.pnoc-ec.com.ph A consortium led by the state-run Philippine National Oil Company-Exploration Corp. (PNOC-EC) has embarked on a $22-million energy exploration project off the western coast of Palawan, which is “estimated to contain oil-in-place volumes of [up] to 676 million barrels, and an upside potential of 977 million barrels.” Should the consortium succeed in drawing oil from Baragatan, it could supply roughly 10 percent of the country’s crude oil consumption, he noted. PNOC-EC chair Gemiliano Lopez Jr. has reported the “positive development” to President Benigno Aquino III. PNOC-EC is “confident that [it] will strike oil” in the 20 square-kilometer Baragatan prospect—part of the firm’s Service Contract No. 63, Lopez reported in a June 2 letter to Mr. Aquino, a copy of which was furnished the Inquirer. The company, as project head, utilized “the brand-new jack-up oil rig UMW Naga 5 to conduct exploratory drilling works last May 15,” the former Manila mayor said. He cited a project briefing paper, which showed that the Albion Head 1 well, a 1975 oil drilling operation in the same area, “missed the Baragatan prospect, leaving it untested.” The prospect is said to “contain thick, mature oil-prone source rocks. These are the same source rocks which have produced the majority of oil and gas discovered offshore in the northwest Palawan basin,” he said. Lopez said that although the operation would be “costly and risky,” the rewards of attaining success would have “far reaching positive implications economically,” and boost the country’s energy security.   Expense Read More …

South Korea will donate a corvette warship to the poorly-equipped Philippine navy amid growing tensions — particularly with China — over maritime territorial disputes in the region, the government said Thursday. The “Pohang-class corvette” will be decommissioned by the end of the year and donated to the Philippines, the Department of Foreign Affairs in Manila said in a statement issued this week. It was unclear if the donation would include the ship’s weapons systems. South Korean Defence Minister Kim Kwang-jin informed his Filipino counterpart Voltaire Gazmin of the donation during his visit to Seoul on May 30, the statement added. The gift follows South Korea’s recent donation of a landing craft and 16 rubber boats to the Philippines, it added. “South Korea’s gesture is a small token compared with the great contribution of Filipino troops during the Korean War,” the South Korean minister was quoted as saying. Officials at the Manila’s foreign ministry and the South Korean embassy could not be contacted for comment. The donation comes as the Philippines is facing increasing pressure from China over their conflicting claims to the South China Sea. China claims most of South China Sea even up to the coasts of its neighbours and the Philippines has increasingly accused its larger neighbour of using bullying tactics to enforce its claim. The Philippines, which has one of the most poorly-armed militaries in the region, has been upgrading its defence capabilities in recent years. It has also been improving its defence relations with South Korea Read More …

MANILA, Philippines – Share prices traded sideways yesterday, dragging the main composite index 0.14 percent or 9.82 points lower at  6,762.62. “The market is still moving sideways,” Miguel A. Agarao, an analyst at Wealth Securities Inc., said in a phone interview. Agarao said investors are assessing different leads like the stimulus measures in the Eurozone and the tapering of the US Federal Reserve. In contrast, Wall Street climbed anew overnight as investors expect liquidity to remain high with the European Central Bank’s stimulus measures. The Dow Jones industrial average rose 0.59 percent or 98.58 points to 16,836.11, while the broader Standard & Poor’s 500 index added 0.65 percent or 12.58 points to close at 1,940.46. Asian markets were mixed yesterday ahead of the release of the US payrolls data. Locally, most counters were in the negative territory, led by holding firms that eased 0.34 percent or 20.82 points to 6,165.41. Industrial companies gained 0.11 percent or 11.05 points to finish at 10,366.56. Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1 Investor participation went down as P7.84 billion worth of shares changed hands from P8.81 billion on Thursday. Losers outpaced advancers, 95 to 74, while 48 stocks did not change. Most traded shares were in the red, paced by blue chips Megaworld Corp. (-0.86 percent), PLDT (-0.07 percent), Ayala Land Inc. (-0.16 percent) and Security Bank Corp. (-0.94 percent). Top-traded Sinophil Corp. (+15.70 percent) continued its ascent following a reorganization plan that will make it SM Group’s gaming arm.