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A resounding FIBA World Cup hosting success
In 2007, sports patron and prominent business executive Manny V. Pangilinan flew to Geneva to mend the country’s scarred relationship with FIBA when the Philippines was suspended due to a struggle between the Basketball Association of the Philippines and the Philippine Olympic Committee. Over the years, MVP, along with the Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas or SBP, were able to make amends and formed a strong bond with FIBA. And as they say, the rest was history. MVP’s vision to host the FIBA World Cup in a tri-nation bid was approved. The country, together with Japan and Indonesia, was granted to host the 2023 FIBA World Cup, with 32 teams competing for the coveted Naismith trophy for the 2023 Last Sunday, the World Cup curtain finally closed, with several records written, erased, and etched in FIBA history. First, the expanded World Cup adopted by the organizers successfully achieved a more competitive playing field. Nine of the 32 that came to this World Cup did not play in the previous World Cup. After two weeks of grueling competition, six of the eight countries that previously entered the quarterfinals in the 2019 World Cup failed to advance to the next round. Argentina, France, Spain, Poland, Australia, and the Czech Republic were eliminated earlier in the group stages, with only the US and Serbia moving to the semi-final round. Second, for the first time since it participated in the tournament, Germany won the World Cup championship, beating all its opponents in the elimination rounds for an immaculate 7-0 and completing an 8-0 game sweep by beating Serbia in the final, 83-77. FIBA secretary general Andreas Zagklis was quoted by AP saying the expanded qualification field “has changed global basketball on the men’s side.” Third, the three host countries had record-breaking attendance, a rousing success for the tri-nation hosting of the world’s biggest basketball show. Across 92 games in 15 days in five different venues (three in Manila, one each in Okinawa and Jakarta), Zagklis said the World Cup drew a total of 700,000 fans pending the final numbers from the bronze-medal match between USA and Canada and Serbia-Germany finale. In the opener on 25 August, the Philippines tallied a World Cup record featuring 38,115 fans who witnessed the thrilling battle between home team Gilas Pilipinas and the Dominican Republic at the Philippine Arena in Bocaue, Bulacan. The milestone highlighted the Philippines’ hosting and smashed the previous record of 32,616 spectators who watched the gold medal match between the USA and Russia in the 1994 games in Toronto, Canada. Zaglis was all praises for the three countries, especially the Philippines, whom he described as an excellent host. “I don’t think it’s easy to find anywhere in the world that has this kind of service to the visitors. Always with a smile and kindness and with a solution-oriented approach. I can only express how grateful FIBA is to the Philippines,” Zaglis said. SBP president Al S. Panlilio had mixed emotions as the FIBA World Cup ended. “We have proven that our country can host a global basketball event as huge as the FIBA World Cup. Everyone involved — the local organizing committee, various private and public stakeholders, volunteers, peace and order personnel, traffic enforcers, the LGUs, and basketball-loving Pinoys who bravely trooped to the venues to watch the games — must be congratulated for making the event a whopping success.” “But there’s also a feeling of extreme bittersweetness as it comes to an end, yet overshadowed by extreme hopefulness for the 2027 World Cup in Qatar,” he added. Panlilio spearheaded the country’s bid for the multiple-nation hosting of the World Cup along with MVP, SBP chairman emeritus, in 2017. He acknowledged what MVP did to bring the FIBA World Cup to the Philippines with his creative vision of bidding for multi-nation hosting. “It was a privilege to help realize that creative vision by collaboratively working with various groups and stakeholders and successfully hosting the World Cup. We are proud of the effort everyone contributed to make this huge undertaking a monumental and amazing feat,” Panlilio said. The post A resounding FIBA World Cup hosting success appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Sana (kub)ol
So the Bureau of Corrections is dismantling kubols in the New Bilibid Prison compound AGAIN. A kubol, for the uninitiated, is that peculiarly Filipino invention of a customized personal space in a prison that is supposed to have standardized living quarters for all prisoners. This is strange because then Justice Secretary Leila de Lima (2010-2016) made a big to-do about demolishing kubols in her time — which was also the Golden Age of Kubols. It was in 2014 when I, as a lawyer for one NBP inmate (who eventually became part of the so-called “Bilibid 19,” but more on that later) went to the prison for an initial conference with my client, who obviously couldn’t come to my office. I was shocked — shocked! — when I arrived at the compound, and not only because I was ushered in through a side door by a warden who put me in a fancy golf cart to take me to my client. En route, I saw that there were buildings(!) inside the prison premises housing — okay, be ready for this — mini-groceries, beauty salons and barber shops, spas, restaurants and, I was to learn later, a high-tech recording studio and radio-television broadcast facility. My client was waiting for me in a three-story(!) building. The first floor housed a fully-equipped office(!) and staff; the second floor was my client’s office with phones and a computer connected to the Internet, and a separate conference room for 12 people; the third floor housed his quarters (a bedroom with toilet, shower and bathtub). Responding to my quizzical look, he answered my unasked question: “Attorney, dito lahat puede basta ‘magpaangat’ ka kay secretary (Anything goes here, just ‘take it up’ with the secretary).” Anyways (to use the favorite expression of my friend Arni Teves), back to my client. Later that year, he and 18 other prisoners had a falling out with Secretary De Lima over what he claimed to be drug dealing inside Bilibid, and they were transferred incommunicado to the National Bureau of Investigation compound. To the frantic cries of their families who feared that they would be liquidated, I filed for a writ of amparo before the Court of Appeals. Their detention was ruled unconstitutional, and their families and I were allowed see them, albeit with very strict restrictions. The story that they told me of drug trafficking inside the NBP compound would later form the backbone of the indictments against De Lima once Aquino was out of power. I had cautioned them to keep things under wraps, as such disclosures then would definitely put them in grave danger. Back to the kubols. De Lima invited the press to witness their destruction, and the mediamen’s jaws dropped — as mine did years before — at the sight of luxury houses complete with airconditioning, king-size beds and Jacuzzis; a state-of-the-art recording studio; a radio and television station with equipment to rival many commercial stations; among other things. As De Lima smiled smugly for the cameras, claiming credit for “cleaning up Bilibid,” friends in media asked her the question, obliquely and sometimes directly, “How could such a thing happen under your watch and your very nose all these years?” The answer was somehow provided in the probe by the House of Representatives in 2017, when an inmate testified that in a meeting with the late J.B. Sebastian (one of the privileged inmates who was said to have done De Lima’s bidding in the Bilibid drug trade) inside his , De Lima held on to a pole (one provided for pole dancing) and, after preening, looked at Sebastian and said, “Okay ba, J.B.?” She knew, and tolerated — nay, encouraged — it. The authorities can knock down the kubols every year, and they will keep springing back up again, unless drastic reforms in the correctional system are made. In this, we sincerely wish Secretary Boying all the luck and success in the world. So when these kubols are removed, we can plausibly wish, SANA (KUB) ALL… The post Sana (kub)ol appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Wrong wood puts PNR officials in jail
Seven former officials of the Philippine National Railways, or PNR, failed to convince the Sandiganbayan to overturn their conviction for graft over the procurement of P47.13 million worth of substandard rails in 2013. In a resolution dated 26 July, the anti-graft court’s Seventh Division turned down the separate motions for reconsideration of PNR former division manager Abdul Pangandaman, department managers Estelito Nierva and Ruben Besmonte, legal counsel Neofito Perilla, assistant department manager Divina Dantes and principal engineers Cesar Bocanog and Marlo Arias for lack of merit. The seven accused were found guilty of two counts of graft and were sentenced to up to 20 years in jail. Imports from China Filed by the Ombudsman in 2017, the case stemmed from the procurement of the PNR officials of P47.13 million worth of larch wood from China through Nikka Trading despite knowing that the board resolutions and bidding documents specified that the ties be made of yakal, a Philippine hardwood species. The PNR intended to use the ties for the rehabilitation of the Bicol Express tracks. Nikka Trading, based at Cityland Herrera Tower in Bel-Air, Makati, received the payment in two tranches, the first amounting to P37.7 million and P9.39 million for the second payment. The sum was for the purchase of 10,490 pieces of bridge ties, 942 pieces of joint ties, and 41 sets of switch ties, all made of larch, a kind of softwood imported from China. The previous decision stated that the respondents provided unwarranted benefits, preferences, and undue advantages to Nikka Trading by continuing to accept the items, even if they did not meet the product criteria, to the damage and injury of the PNR or the government. The post Wrong wood puts PNR officials in jail appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Sandiganbayan affirms ex-Biliran execs’ guilt
The Sandiganbayan Third Division has dismissed a motion filed by an ex-Biliran mayor and 12 others to overturn the court’s January guilty verdict in connection with the anomalous procurement of P8 million in medicines and medical supplies in 2010. In a 20-page resolution, the Sandiganbayan cited lack of merit in thumbing down all 13 motions of the defendants to reconsider the courts ruling, which found them guilty of violating Republic Act 3019 or the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act. Charged with graft were erstwhile Maripipi mayor Noel Albelda; ex-bids and awards committee chairperson Wilma Elairon; vice chairperson Marietta Campollo; committee members Amelia Bacolod and Sonia Alavera; technical working group chairperson Julio Cairo Jr.; TWG members Sergio Mejarito and Tito Cairo; ex-municipal accountant Michelle Quinte; ex-municipal health officer Mary Grace Llever; state auditor Genelito Balila; and private defendants Jerome Capuyan and Cherel Serato who represented Suremeds Marketing. The anti-corruption court handed them jail terms of from six to 10 years. They were also meted the accessory penalty of perpetual disqualification from holding public office. Filed by the Ombudsman in 2017, the case stemmed from the municipal government’s award of a contract to private firm Suremeds for the supply of medicine and other medical equipment amounting to P7.99 million despite several substantial lapses in the procurement process, including irregularities in the dates appearing in the bidding documents. The procurement was funded by the Priority Development Assistance Fund, or pork barrel, of then-Biliran Representative Glenn Chong. State prosecutors also found other procurement irregularities, such as the conduct of a pre-bid conference prior to the issuance of bidding documents, and the sudden change in the date of opening of bids. It was raised while the project was awarded to Suremeds despite its non-submission of performance security. In denying the motion, the anti-graft court said the concerted efforts of all the accused public officials from the start of the procurement process down to its payment to the preferred supplier in connivance with Suremeds through its proprietor, Capuyan, and representative, Serato, were very evident. “The Court is aware that a violation of the procurement laws does not ipso facto lead to a violation of RA 3019. In the present case, however, the prosecution has established not only the defects in the procurement procedure but also the alleged gross inexcusable negligence and manifest partiality on the part of the herein accused,” it said. The post Sandiganbayan affirms ex-Biliran execs’ guilt appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
7 PNR officials convicted of graft
The Sandiganbayan convicted seven ex-officials of the Philippine National Railways of graft in connection with the anomalous procurement of P47.13 million worth of substandard railroad ties made of the wrong wood in 2013. All seven defendants, namely, former division manager Abdul Pangandaman, department managers Estelito Nierva and Ruben Besmonte, legal counsel Neofito Perilla, assistant department manager Divina Dantes and principal engineers Cesar Bocanog and Mario Arias, were found guilty of two counts of graft by the Sandiganbayan Seventh Division and sentenced to up to 20 years of jail time. They were also barred from future government employment through perpetual disqualification. The PNR’s erstwhile chief Junio Ragragario and division manager Rosendo Calleja, meanwhile, were acquitted by the anti-graft court due to the prosecution’s failure to prove their guilt beyond a reasonable doubt. The case was filed by the Ombudsman in 2017 after it was discovered that PNR officials had spent P47,134,980 on substandard larch wood imported from China from Nikka Trading, despite knowing that the board resolutions and bidding documents specified that the ties be made of yakal, a Philippine hardwood species. Nikka Trading, based at Cityland Herrera Tower in Bel-Air, Makati, received the payment in two tranches: the first amounts to P37,747,832 and P9,387,148 for the second. The sum was the purchase of 10,490 pieces of bridge ties, 942 pieces of joint ties and 41 sets of switch ties, all made of larch, a kind of soft wood, imported from China. According to state prosecutors, the respondents provided unwarranted benefits, preferences and undue advantages to Nikka Trading by continuing to accept the items even if they did not meet the product criteria, to the damage and injury of the PNP or the government. The PNR intended to use the purchased wood ties for the rehabilitation of the Bicol Express tracks. The anti-graft court’s decision to convict the officials included an inquiry about why the PNR planned to acquire such a large quantity of yakal notwithstanding the issuance of E.O. 23, which imposed a log ban. “This is not to insist that Yakal should have been procured, considering the existence of E.O. 23 imposing a log ban,” the Sandiganbayan stated in its 69-page decision. “On the contrary, this court is perplexed why the PNR, after having been made aware of such ban, still intended to procure vast amounts of Yakal, and later on, in Invitations to Bid which were sent out specifying Yakal as the wood specie, all at the cost of violating a total log ban on Yakal.” According to the Sandiganbayan, the mad dash to procure wood for the rehabilitation of the PNR railways by the accused officials has not only stripped the government of precious resources but also put public safety on the line. The post 7 PNR officials convicted of graft appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Fried in own lard
While the National Transmission Corp. or TransCo concessionaire National Grid Corp. of the Philippines has been awash with cash as reflected in its billions of pesos of early dividends, it has not paid the government P3 billion plus interest on transmission fees before 2009 when the private firm took over operations of the power grid. The amount represents collections from power plants to which TransCo is entitled but remains unremitted. Under a privatization program, former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo approved a plan to privatize TransCo through a 25-year Operation and Management Concession Agreement. The bidding for the license to run the Philippine power grid was won by the NGCP in 2007, while Congress approved the bicameral resolution granting its franchise in 2008, and PGMA signed RA8511 into law, granting NGCP its franchise. On 15 January 2009, TransCo turned over the management of the country’s power grid to NGCP. TransCo, owner of the electricity network, and energy assets holding firm Power Sector and Liabilities Management Corp. have been demanding the payment of the amount. An energy official said the government can use the money to reduce power rates by deducting this from the monthly bills under the item universal charges. Universal charges include the so-called stranded costs or payables to Independent Power Producers that PSALM assumed from state firm National Power Corp. Instead, the energy official suspects NGCP used the withheld payments for its benefit to consistently pay fat dividends to its shareholders. In the recent Senate inquiry on the power industry, NGCP said of its P20.3 billion net income in 2019, P15 billion, or around 74 percent, went to dividends. In 2017, around 90 percent of its P20.6 billion net income went to dividends. For 2015, the NGCP distributed around 93 percent of its P22.5 billion profit as payouts to shareholders. The company particularly made its investors happy in 2014, when it said dividends exceeded its net income or P24 billion handed to stockholders against P22 billion in profit. Counting the potential interest, an energy source said the receivables from NGCP have now ballooned to more than P6 billion. NGCP’s rampant violation of the provisions of the concession agreement had resulted in a serious financial drain on the government. The provisions of the 2009 deal, which included the settling of all arrears such as the TransCo collectibles, also provided separate audited accounts for each related business and the need for NGCP to hold an initial public offering that it skirted through the back door listing of a holding company. TransCo’s financial claim from NGCP was upheld by an opinion on 18 April 2012 by the Office of the Government Corporate Counsel. “TransCo has already acquired immutable vested rights over the contested revenues,” the OGCC decision indicated. “Public policy considerations and the public nature of the receivables impose upon TransCo the obligation to recover the disputed amount for its benefit,” it added. NGCP holds a renewable 25-year concession contract and a 50-year franchise to operate the power transmission network in the country. Since the agreement was signed in 2009, the contract will run until 2034 and from then, the government has the option to renew it for another 25 years. An audit that has long been blocked by NGCP should happen and from there, the government should muster the will to take the necessary steps if abuse is found in the performance of the provisions of the concession agreement. The post Fried in own lard appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Bum deal brings pain
A contract inherited from the previous Land Transportation Office regime is now a major cause of headaches for the leadership of the agency and, in effect, the entire nation as it caused the delay in the release of driver’s licenses. German firm-led joint venture Dermalog introduced the Land Transportation Management System or LTMS which is a P3.4-billion project awarded in 2018. The dispute over the contract is the crux of the stalled distribution of the cards. The company has been disqualified from the contract to produce the plastic licenses, which it assumed from Allcard which failed to perform its obligations. Worse, in 2020, according to documents filed with the Ombudsman, Dermalog “interfered in and controlled the LTO’s printing system of driver’s license cards.” LTO Chief Assistant Secretary Jose Arturo “Jay Art” Tugade inherited the problem after he was appointed in November 2022. With the actions it took, Dermalog was considered by LTO officials a “threat to national security.” Post-qualification of Dermalog for the contract was based on the ground of its failure “to fully comply with its obligations under its 2017 contract with LTO.” A 2021 report of the Commission on Audit flagged LTO’s payment of P3.15 billion to Dermalog despite several defects that delayed and disrupted the system. LTO is conducting an extensive probe which may lead to the possible scrapping of the Dermalog contract. Congress is ready to probe the alleged “illegal payment” despite the “incomplete turnover of deliverables.” The circumstances proved that the contract was in clear violation of procurement and auditing rules, warranting an extensive probe. The German-led venture had reneged on the deal more than four years after the December 2018 delivery date as the system is still not fully functional and fully rolled out. The Dermalog system was incompatible with the LTO processes that needed to be adjusted to accommodate the new system’s functions. The Ombudsman in denying Dermalog’s petition to cite bidding committee officials for graft said: “Respondents (members of LTO bidding body) did not commit any irregularity when they objected to the post-qualification of the complainant (Dermalog) in the 2021 procurement.” “It also took Dermalog until 2 July 2021 to agree to turn over all “source codes,” in escrow, create an upload facility and include it in the Inventory Management System, thereby removing LTO’s dependency on it; and grant to LTO the exclusive right to use the watermark or hologram delivered to it, “recognizing in the process the need of the LTO to be independent of the vendor as a lesson from the past.” “Its avowed intention to turn over in escrow only means that it has not indeed fully complied with its obligations under the 2017 procurement,” according to the Ombudsman’s resolution. The Ombudsman said it was not inclined “to indict respondents (LTO bidding officials) for violation of Section 3 of Republic Act 3019 for delay under RA 9184 when the facts, as they are in this case, showed that Dermalog has not been candid in its business dealings with LTO and has, by itself, caused the delay it complains about.” The dispute over the contract has held hostage the LTO, the Department of Transportation, and Filipino motorists to Dermalog’s demand that the government pay it in full despite its shortcomings. Eventually, the deficiency from the deal reflects on the image of the administration since it has been quite a while since inefficiency has been a distinctive complaint against frontline service providers. The post Bum deal brings pain appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Belmonte, Binay call for climate action funding from development banks
The C40 coalition of cities, a network of nearly 100 mayors, asked MDBs to increase urban climate investment, integrate urban climate action into their strategies, and implement tailored programs to support city projects. .....»»
Infrastructure projects get better loan terms from Japan
The Philippines has secured better financing terms for two big-ticket infrastructure projects funded by the Japanese government aimed at improving public transport and road connectivity......»»
Marian Rivera takes on projects that her children can watch
With her upcoming primetime show, “My Guardian Alien,” Marian Rivera has added sci-fi to the growing array of genres — from drama, fantasy, romance, and action to historical and comedy — that the Kapuso actress has successfully ventured into thus far......»»
Cebu bus terminals: 100,000 passengers expected on March 27
CEBU CITY, Philippines — At least 100,000 passengers are expected to flock to two of the biggest bus terminals here in Cebu for the Holy Week this year. As early as 7 a.m. on Holy Wednesday, dozens already queued for buses at the Cebu North Bus Terminal (CNBT) in the North Reclamation Area. READ MORE:.....»»
Mandaue drug bust: P476,000 ‘shabu’ seized from HVI
CEBU CITY, Philippines — Authorities seized suspected shabu worth at least P476,000 from a 45-year-old man described as a high-value individual during an anti-illegal drugs operation in Mandaue City early on Wednesday morning, March 27, 2024. The operation took place along Realty Road in the North Reclamation Area in Barangay Subangdaku, Mandaue City, Cebu. The.....»»
NewJeans prepares for comeback with Japanese debut, teases world tour
K-pop girl group NewJeans is gearing up for a number of comeback projects this year, including a Japanese debut eyed to kick off a world tour......»»
Arayat-Magalang bypass road 80 % complete: DPWH
Arayat-Magalang bypass road 80 % complete: DPWH.....»»
Early Holy Week
If soul searching, repentance and making your relationship right with your Creator are things you do on Holy Week, all came early for me this year. And now, it feels like I have been given a second chance at life......»»
DPWH continues construction of Sta. Margarita Diversion road
Samar First DEO now continues the construction of Sta. Margarita Diversion road under the General Appropriations Act (GAA) for FY 2023......»»
Alternergy reallocates IPO proceeds to Tanay and Alabat projects
Alternergy, the renewable energy generation company founded by Vince Pérez (former DoE Secretary), announced that its board of directors reallocated P65 million of the IPO proceeds that were originally scheduled for the Solana Solar Project, Ibulao Mini Hydro Project, Cavite Offshore Wind Project, Tablas Strait Offshore Wind Project, and the operationalization of Green Energy Supply Solutions Inc......»»
Davao City Council moves hearing on traffic-causing road construction works
DAVAO CITY (MindaNews – 26 March) – The Davao City Council rescheduled to Tuesday, April 2, the second hearing on the suspended road construction works in the locality after key officials from the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) – Davao region failed to show up Friday. The DPWH-Davao key officials are reportedly in […].....»»
Albie Casiño na-inspire sa KimPau loveteam; pinuri sina Maris at Anthony
NA-INSPIRE si Albie Casiño sa kasikatan ngayon ng tambalan nina Kim Chiu at Paulo Avelino pati na sa unexpected loveteam nina Maris Racal at Anthony Jennings. Kaya naman kung sinasabi niya noon na hangga’t maaari ay ayaw na niyang gumawa ng projects na may ka-loveteam o permanent na leading lady, nagbago na uli ang isip niya......»»
EDITORIAL — The cost of negligence
As of early evening yesterday, the death toll from a vehicular collision in Cotabato stood at 17, with four others needing hospitalization for injuries and severe burns......»»