December 2013 – Page 5

Del Rosario bids Chinese Ambassador Ma ‘fond’ farewell

News

Dec 272013

Del Rosario bids Chinese Ambassador Ma ‘fond’ farewell

Chinese Ambassador to Manila, Ma Keqing. FILE PHOTO MANILA, Philippines—Despite the frayed ties between the Philippines and China over unresolved territorial disputes, Foreign Secretary Albert del Rosario gave outgoing Chinese Ambassador to Manila Ma Keqing a cordial farewell on Monday. As Ma prepared to end her two-year Manila posting, Del Rosario hosted a farewell lunch before the Christmas break, describing her as “our dear friend.” Del Rosario said he hoped Ma would share with the Chinese people her experience of the “kindness, warmth and courage of the Filipino people.” “Our farewell exchange was friendly and positive,” Del Rosario told the Inquirer of his last meeting with Ma at a Manila hotel. In his toast, Del Rosario acknowledged how “challenges” have marked the relations between the Philippines and China, an indirect reference to disputes over the resource-rich West Philippine Sea (South China Sea). “Your posting here has been marked by challenges. Notwithstanding, Ambassador, you have experienced the kindness, warmth and courage of the Filipino people. You were able to know more of how the Filipinos feel, think and act to uphold what we believe is right,” said Del Rosario in his remarks, a copy of which was furnished the Inquirer. “Our friendship is historic and deep, and we hope this bond will enable us to surmount the challenges so that our two countries can flourish in the spirit of deep mutual respect,” said the Philippines’ top diplomat. Recounting Ma’s response, Del Rosario said the outgoing envoy also acknowledged the challenges and Read More …

Airline diverts party funds to Medellin relief activity

General

Dec 272013

Airline diverts party funds to Medellin relief activity

GLOBAL carrier Korean Air held an outreach program in Medellin, Cebu over the weekend. Instead of holding their annual Christmas party, Ann Momongan, passenger sales supervisor of Korean Air Cebu, said the company extended help to 250 families in Barangay Dalingding, Medellin who survived typhoon Yolanda more than a month ago. Momongan said the relief goods distributed in the barangay were valued at more than P100,000. The outreach program also involved Korean Air’s partner travel agencies and was sponsored by the Cebu Tours and Travel Association, Leisure and Cebu Bakers Association. The company, in a press statement, said the relief efforts provided to the calamity-stricken areas were meant to help the Visayas region speed up its recovery and rehabilitation. Korean Air earlier provided relief goods worth over 106 million South Korean won to typhoon survivors. Goods delivered to the country included 60,000 liters of mineral water, 60,000 noodle cups, 24,000 cups of dried rice and 2,000 blankets. The first tranche of relief goods was delivered to Cebu Province via the KE631 flight from Seoul/Incheon last Nov. 22. It continued to deliver goods to social welfare organizations in the country for one week. Koreans have composed the largest group of tourists in Cebu for several years. As of September this year, a total of 395,368 Koreans have visited Cebu, up by 24.71 percent from last year’s 317,018 arrivals. The airline was also instrumental in providing relief aid after past calamities such as in the aftermath of the Sichuan earthquake in 2008 Read More …

SMC power generation arm to pursue IPO next yr

Economy

Dec 272013

SMC power generation arm to pursue IPO next yr

MANILA, Philippines – Diversified conglomerate San Miguel Corp. (SMC) will pursue the initial public offering (IPO) next year of its power generation arm that is on the lookout for acquisitions. Even the single largest shareholder in the conglomerate is expected to join the local bourse early in January, its top official said yesterday. SMC president and chief operating officer Ramon S. Ang said the company hopes to list power generation unit SMC Global Power Holdings Corp. “Actually, it’s not a problem to raise funds kasi nakapila na yung mga kausap natin. It’s more of acquisition,” Ang told reporters on the sidelines of the Philippine Stock Exchange’s 10th listing anniversary celebration. SMC Global, which has a power generation capacity of 2,500 megawatts and an equity value of at least $1.5 billion, filed its listing plan to corporate regulators in 2011 but the IPO was deferred. SMC earlier announced it is in talks with several potential buyers for a private equity deal or an IPO that will raise a minimum of $800 million. Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1 For its part, SMC’s majority shareholder Top Frontier Investment Holdings Inc. will also become a public company next year. Ang, who is also the president of Top Frontier, said the holding firm will debut in the local bourse in the first or second week of January. Top Frontier will list by way of introduction or without immediately having to sell shares to the public. The PSE and the Securities and Read More …

Aquino pushes passage of Go Negosyo bill

Economy

Dec 272013

Aquino pushes passage of Go Negosyo bill

MANILA, Philippines – In a country where the population continuously grows at a fast pace, the need to come up with more jobs is always a concern for the government. For neophyte Senator Paolo Benigno Aquino IV, the key to providing new jobs for the people is to develop one particular sector of the economy that could have a huge impact on improving the lives of many Filipinos. Following through on his advocacy to promote small businesses as a viable solution to poverty in the country, Aquino has steered what was dubbed as the Go Negosyo bill on its way to its approval on second reading in the Senate. Aquino, the chairman of the Senate Committee on Trade, Commerce and Entrepreneurship, has sponsored Senate Bill 2046, which consolidates the bill that he filed with the related bills filed by Senators Sergio Osmeña III, Miriam Defensor Santiago, Jinggoy Estrada, and Senate President Pro Tempore Ralph Recto. In his sponsorship speech, Aquino said that the Go Negosyo bill was crafted to “help our countrymen out of poverty and towards a path to prosperity.” According to Aquino, the bill was also a response to the challenge made to the administration to make the much-touted growth of the economy more meaningful to the masses by making it more inclusive. Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1 Aquino noted that micro, small and medium enterprises (MSME) play a key role in addressing poverty for a significant number of Filipinos, considering that the sector Read More …

NGCP inks deal with Chinese research facility

Economy

Dec 272013

NGCP inks deal with Chinese research facility

MANILA, Philippines – The National Grid Corp. of the Philippines (NGCP), the country’s transmission highway operator, has signed an agreement with the Stat Nuclear Electric Power Planning Design and Research Institute (SNPDRI), a leading research facility on transmission and substation design in China, to improve power transmission in the Philippines. “The memorandum of understanding aims to establish a strategic cooperation between the research institute and the Philippine grid operator in terms of engineering design and construction of future transmission lines and substation projects,” NGCP said yesterday. The MOU is good for three years and is expected to help both parties deal with current issues and advancements in electric power technologies, said NGCP president and chief executive officer Henry Sy Jr. He said this was a very timely undertaking as NGCP is in the process of rehabilitating transmission facilities in the Visayas, which were severely damaged by Super Typhoon Yolanda. “We are hopeful that with our combined technical know-how, NGCP can improve and strengthen the transmission backbone in the said area to withstand future calamities of greater magnitude and intensity,” he said. NGCP’s chief administrative officer Anthony Almeda and engineering head Rico Vega, and SNPDRI’s Zhang Suoqing signed the MOU on Dec. 16 while Sy and head of the Chinese delegation Gai Qiqing witnessed the signing. Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1 Yolanda damaged most of NGCP’s facilities in areas hit by the typhoon but as of Dec. 24, NGCP said restoration works are almost complete. Read More …

China Bank opens 4 new branches

Economy

Dec 272013

MANILA, Philippines – China Banking Corp. (China Bank) has opened four new branches before the end of the year, bringing its network count to 295. In a statement, the bank said it opened new branches in Guagua, Pampanga; Jaro, Iloilo; Roxas, Isabela; and Sta. Rosa, Nueva Ecija. The new offices are the bank’s 13th branch in Pampanga, fifth in Iloilo, fourth in Isabela, and sixth in Nueva Ecija. The bank noted the full-service branches will be open from Monday to Friday, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. All of which are equipped with an automated teller machine (ATM) and a night depository box for a 24/7 service. At the same time, its thrift bank arm, China Bank Savings has opened two mini branches before the end of 2013. The savings bank’s new mini branches are located at Savemore Amang Rodriguez Branch in Pasig City and at Savemore Acacia Estates Branch in Taguig City. Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1 This now brought CBS’ mini branches count to 11, 10 of which are at Savemore locations and one at Fil-Oil in Tanuan, Batangas. China Bank noted CBS mini branches offer face to face interaction with tellers and e-banking services. These offices are open daily from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m., and are also equipped with an ATM, night depository and an online banking kiosk. China Bank’s new branches and the thrift bank’s newly opened mini-branches bring the whole network’s count to 368. The bank has opened 12 China Read More …

DOTC to tap private firms for motor vehicle inspection

Economy

Dec 272013

DOTC to tap private firms for motor vehicle inspection

MANILA, Philippines – The Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC) is looking at the possibility of privatizing the motor vehicle inspection function of the Land Transportation Office (LTO) after a series of accidents claiming the lives of passengers. Transportation Secretary Joseph Emilio Abaya said the government is studying the possibility of adopting the public private partnership (PPP) scheme for the Motor Vehicle Inspection System (MVIS) of LTO. Abaya said the agency would seek the opinion of the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) whether the government could procure the services of the private sector for the LTO function. “We are going to NEDA because apparently the government is not in a position to procure and operate all of these (MVIS). Do we allow private sector to come in?” he asked. The MVIS was put in place several years ago with an end view of providing a systematic, reliable and effective testing of motor vehicles through computerization and automation for compliance to safety and emission requirements. The program is aimed at helping comply with existing motor vehicle standards, provision of national laws and international agreements; ensuring compliance to safety and emission standards; and integrating all motor vehicle inspection reports into a central motor vehicle database. Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1 The program is supposed to prevent or minimize air pollution; eliminate not roadworthy motor vehicles; reduce traffic accidents due to improper maintenance; eliminate illegally modified vehicles; and improve fuel consumption by appropriate check or maintenance. Under the Read More …

The year that was

Economy

Dec 272013

In two days’ time, we shall be welcoming 2014. If only to banish a year full of unprecedented calamities, shocking revelations of unmitigated greed in government, a spike in fatal traffic accidents involving mostly buses and trucks and other reasons that vindicate Murphy’s Law, everyone is ready to shut the door on 2013 and welcome 2014 as a new beginning. This is mostly true for the people of Bohol, Cebu and Leyte, the general citizenry shocked beyond belief at how our legislators have raped the nation’s coffers. Our economy has done very well this year, and at seven percent growth rate, we have edged out most if not all of our neighbors in the region. But the question still begs to be asked: has this trickled down to the grass roots? Many of our business leaders do not think so. As we always do at B&L (Business & Leisure), the TV show and likewise here in this column, we always end the year with assessments from some of our top business leaders as well as their forecasts for the coming year and we picked eight sectors for this: export, handicrafts, plastic, meat importation and trading, wood production, semi-conductors and electronics, manufacturing, and the furniture industry. For the export sector, Philexport president Sergio Ortiz-Luis said that, versus 2012, their industry will end up positive this year. Last year and even early this year, Philexport was hopeful and targeted a 10 percent growth for exports, but the market forces have not cooperated—export Read More …

DOTC sets May 15 deadline for bus terminal

Economy

Dec 272013

DOTC sets May 15 deadline for bus terminal

MANILA, Philippines – The Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC) is giving interested companies until May 15 next year to submit their bids for the proposed P2.5 billion Integrated Transport System (ITS) project – Southwest Terminal. In an invitation to bid, the DOTC said the Southwest terminal would be situated in a 2.9-hectare property located at the Coastal Road Terminal along the Manila-Cavite Expressway. The terminal would connect passengers coming from Cavite to other urban transport systems such as the future Light Rail Transit line 1 (LRT) South Extension to Bacoor in Cavite, city bus, taxi, and other public utility vehicles plying Metro Manila. The DOTC said the project would include a passenger terminal building, arrival and departure bays, public information system, ticketing and baggage handling facilities and park-ride facilities. The proposed terminal is the fourth public private partnership (PPP) project of the DOTC and would be under a Build-Transfer-Operate arrangement. The DOTC pointed out that the proponent would finance, design, construct, operate, and maintain the ITS project for a period of 35 years. Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1 To qualify to bid for the project, the DOTC stated in the invitation that a bidder must have local or international experience within the last 10 years and have completed one or more eligible projects with a cumulative cost of at least P2 billion and with capacity of at least 300 parking bays for vehicles. Furthermore, the agency added that a bidder should have local or international Read More …

UK financial firm donates over P8-M to Sagip Kapamilya

Entertainment

Dec 272013

UK financial firm donates over P8-M to Sagip Kapamilya

Consul General Senen Malile with C&C Alpha Executive Director Bhanu Choudhrie and Luis Bariuan from ABS-CBN Europe (ABS-CBN News) LONDON – Investment company C&C Alpha Group has donated $200,000 (approximately P8,888,098) to ABS-CBN Foundation’s Sagip Kapamilya as part of the continuing aid efforts for the Philippines in the aftermath of typhoon Haiyan (local name: Yolanda). It was the largest cash donation by a single entity from the UK based on a list of aid contributions coordinated by the Philippine Embassy in London since relief efforts began a month ago. A simple ceremony at the Philippine Cultural Centre in London last December 19 officially marked the company’s contribution. Consul General Senen Mangalile from the Philippine Embassy welcomed representatives from C&C Alpha, including CEO Cherian Thomas and Executive Director Bhanu Choudhrie. “We’re overwhelmed by the enormity of the response, and the warmth and generosity of the British people, the UK government, and the international community in the UK. They all came up and proved that we do not stand alone in this catastrophe,” said Mangalile. “C&C wants to be involved in the reconstruction and rehabilitation of the most affected areas, and that for us is the most important phase of the response to typhoon Haiyan.” The company, which has investments in the Philippines, specifically wants their contribution to go towards rebuilding affected communities through infrastructure and long-term projects. “We believe very strongly in the Philippines, and the people of the Philippines, especially the community that live here in the UK. And this disaster has Read More …

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