A Repost From Norman Bordadora of Philippine Daily Inquirer

Spratlys: Sea of friendship

Both sides ‘very positive’ in resolving maritime row

By Norman Bordadora
Philippine Daily Inquirer

‘OPEN FOR BUSINESS’. President Aquino and President Hu Jintao witness the signing of an economic agreement between the Philippines and China at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on Wednesday. Earlier, Mr. Aquino said the Philippines is “open for business.” EDWIN BACASMAS

Beijing—President Benigno Aquino III on Wednesday told Chinese President Hu Jintao of his wish that the territorial dispute in the West Philippine Sea be settled with a “regional” solution, presidential spokesperson Edwin Lacierda said after the bilateral meeting between the two leaders.

In response, Hu reiterated the Chinese position that the dispute be resolved peacefully, Lacierda told reporters at a quick briefing outside the Great Hall of the People where the two leaders met.

The presidential spokesperson said Hu also encouraged the development of the strategic waterway into “a sea of friendship, peace and cooperation.”

“So both sides were very positive in addressing the issue in the South China Sea,” Lacierda said, referring to what China calls the body of water.

Spratlys, a group of islands in the West Philippine Sea that is believed to contain oil and gas deposits, is claimed in whole or in part by the Philippines, China and four other countries.

The Philippines has started oil and gas explorations in what Beijing considers its territory. Early this year, Manila accused Beijing of harassing its oil survey ship.

Beijing said recent construction work on an island by Philippine troops violated the spirit of a preliminary agreement with other Southeast Asian nations.

Lacierda said it was Mr. Aquino who initiated the discussion on the West Philippine Sea.

“He mentioned that we have differences but these differences should not deter us from moving forward,” Lacierda said.

The spokesperson said Mr. Aquino also mentioned the position of the Philippine government because the dispute over the Spratlys was a regional problem that required a regional solution.

Asked what Mr. Aquino meant by a regional solution, Lacierda said: “Because (of) the various claimants in the disputes.”

Trooping the line

Before the two leaders met, the national anthems of the two countries were played and both Mr. Aquino and Hu trooped the line of Chinese soldiers and Navy and Air Force personnel.

The two leaders then went into a bilateral meeting after the formal ceremonies.

Hu told Mr. Aquino that his state visit would enhance the relationship between the Philippines and China.

“I believe your visit to China will further deepen our friendship, promote our practical cooperation and elevate the strategic and cooperative relationship between our two countries to a new high,” Hu said.

Mr. Aquino apologized for taking too long on acting on the invitation of the Chinese leader who was the first to invite him when the former assumed the Philippine presidency.

“But it is a truly worthwhile trip so far and… we will spend this opportunity to broaden and deepen the ties that have been existing between our peoples centuries upon centuries,” Mr. Aquino said.

NorthRail project

Lacierda said that the issue of the NorthRail project was also discussed and that Chinese officials agreed with the proposition that it be “reconfigured.”

“The President mentioned that there were certain issues and in the NorthRail project that needed to be reconfigured. And the Chinese agreed and so in their own words, they attach a high importance to the project. Both sides directed their officials concerned with the project to resolve the NorthRail issue,” Lacierda said.

The NorthRail project, started during the Arroyo administration, is considered overpriced. The Chinese-sponsored project was initially worth $503 million but its cost reportedly ballooned to $2 billion.

Lacierda said the discussions between the two leaders delved mainly on trade and cooperation.

“What dominated the discussions primarily promotion of trade and investments and cultural, and the ties that bind the two countries,” he said.

“Generally the discussion was an expression of warmth on both sides. They welcomed each other. President Hu Jintao welcomed the Philippine President and President Aquino thanked the Chinese for their hospitality and grace in welcoming them,” he added.

Year of Philippine friendship

Lacierda said Mr. Aquino asked Hu to declare 2012-2013 as the year of Philippine friendship and “President Hu gladly agreed.”

The spokesperson also said Mr. Aquino encouraged more investments from the Chinese.

“Basically, we talked about issues, the ideas of investments, promoting more investments in the country. The President encouraged the Chinese side to invest more and the Chinese side also said they are willing to invest more in the Philippines and hopefully they can push with the $60-billion investment by 2016,” Lacierda said.

Hu and Mr. Aquino were expected to witness the signing of several agreements before a state banquet was held for the state visitor.

Reposted From Norman Bordadora of Philippine Daily Inquirer

A Repost From Cristina Arzadon of Philippine Daily Inquirer

7 houses destroyed, 12 damaged as whirlwinds sweep Sarrat, Laoag

By Cristina Arzadon
Inquirer Northern Luzon

3:04 pm | Saturday, August 27th, 2011

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LAOAG CITY, Philippines—As Typhoon Mina pounded northern Luzon on Saturday, whirlwinds swept through parts of Sarrat, Ilocos Norte, and this capital city, uprooting trees and destroying houses.

The provincial disaster risk reduction and management council said an early morning whirlwind destroyed seven houses and damaged 12 others in Barangay 18 in Sarrat town. No resident, however, was reported hurt.

Personnel from the Laoag City engineering office conducted clearing operations at 10 a.m. in Barangay Cataban after another whirlwind uprooted trees and blocked a road in the village.

Governor Imee Marcos and provincial government personnel brought relief goods to displaced families in Sarrat on Saturday.

Marcos also checked the situation in Piddig where floods inundated some parts of the town.

The Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration had placed Ilocos Norte under storm signal No. 2 in its 11 a.m. weather bulletin.

Saturday flights of Cebu Pacific from Manila to Laoag and vice versa were canceled due to bad weather.

Personnel of the Ilocos Norte Electric Cooperative (INEC) were also sent to various neighborhoods in this city after strong winds snapped several power lines.

William Marders, the utility’s information officer, warned residents to stay away from broken power lines and wait for INEC personnel to fix them.

Reposted From Cristina Arzadon of Philippine Daily Inquirer

A Repost From Angelo L. Gutierrez of The Philippine Star

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A Repost From Nelson Beltran of The Philippine Star

Petron blazes into history, slams grand slam
By Nelson Beltran (The Philippine Star) Updated August 22, 2011 12:00 AM Comments (49)

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MANILA, Philippines - Petron Blaze slammed Talk n Text’s grand Triple Crown aspiration, completing a dream ride of its own with a resounding 85-73 victory that netted the proud SMC franchise PBA championship banner No. 19 to the roaring approval of its throngs at the Smart Araneta Coliseum last night.

The Boosters effectively prevented the Tropang Texters’ entry to the elite ranks of grand slam winners in the league, stealing the thunder in grabbing the season-ending Governors Cup championship.

Six months after losing the Philippine Cup crown to the Texters, the Boosters exacted their revenge – so sweet scored for a team down to 10 in the end.

The Boosters, nonetheless, didn’t run out of heroes and, at the final buzzer, held aloft a first crown in two years.

Arwind Santos churned out a 14th double-double (16 points and 16 rebounds) and Alex Cabagnot came through with a near triple double (12 points, nine rebounds and eight assists), and both experienced a first ever championship in the pro league.

Old vanguard Danny Ildefonso was a star in his prime, contributing 13 points, seven rebounds, two steals and one assist as he won an eighth PBA crown.

Anthony Grundy was right there at the forefront, redeeming himself from a five-point showing in Game Six with 26 points and seven rebounds in this no-tomorrow game.

Santos, who averaged huge double-double numbers in the series, won the Phoenix Finals MVP award.

The former FEU stalwart saved his best for last, highlighting his sterling act with a breakaway two-handed jam to eventually break the back of Talk n Text, 81-73, inside the final minute.

“Kami ngayon ang pinakamasayang tao sa mundo (We’re now the happiest people on earth),” said Santos during the awards rites.

Santos and company, undermanned minus Jay Washington, Rabeh Al-Hussaini, Joseph Yeo and Lordy Tugade, hacked out an improbable title run handing coach Ato Agustin a championship right in his first season as tactician in the pros.

“Nagkamali sila at kami ang pinili nila (They committed a mistake in choosing us to play in the finals),” said Agustin, believing Talk n Text deliberately dropped its last game in the semifinals to have Petron, instead of Barangay Ginebra, as finals opponent.

Agustin became the eighth personality to have won as player and coach in the PBA after Fort Acuna, Robert Jaworski, Rino Salazar, Ely Capacio, Joel Banal, Siot Tanquincen and Norman Black.

And after Jaworski, he’s the second MVP winner to become a champion coach.

“We worked hard to avenge our first conference loss and we worked hard to defend the ranks of grand slam champion teams,” said Agustin, a member of the 1989 San Miguel Triple Crown winner.

Striking hard on their own kick-and-drive plays, the Boosters opened an early huge lead at 27-13 nine minutes into the game.

Denok Miranda scored their first seven points then Grundy, Santos, Ildefonso and Cabagnot put their act together as the Petron starters combined for all the team’s 28 points in the first period and all 12 in the second.

Ranidel de Ocampo and Maurice Baker took the cudgels for the Texters in the second period, making nine and eight, respectively, as TnT came to within six, 34-40, at the half.

The Boosters were still enjoying a double-digit spread at 34-24 before losing momentum on a flagrant infraction by Jojo Duncil on Baker.

Baker drew a hard foul from Sunday Salvacion in the next play and the Talk n Text import nailed four straight charities to make it a close game through the half.

Talk n Text had a chance to make it a four-point game at the turn but Santos blocked a dunk attempt by De Ocampo in the closing seconds.

The Boosters set the pace in the first half with a 41.7-percent shooting as against the Texters’ 31-percent clip.

The scores:

Petron 85 – Grundy 26, Santos 16, Miranda 16, Ildefonso 13, Cabagnot 12, Pennisi 2, Duncil 0, Hubalde 0, Salvacion 0.

Talk n Text 73 – Baker 22, De Ocampo 15, Williams 13, Alapag 13, Carey 6, Castro 2, Peek 2, Dillinger 0, Reyes 0, Aban 0. Fonacier 0, Alvarez 0.

Quarterscores: 28-17, 40-34, 64-53, 85-73

Reposted From Nelson Beltran of The Philippine Star

A Repost From Pia Lee-Brago of The Philippine Star

IMF cites improvement in Phl economy
By Pia Lee-Brago (The Philippine Star) Updated August 21, 2011 12:00 AM Comments (3)

MANILA, Philippines - The Philippine embassy in Washington reported that the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has acknowledged the improvement in the Philippine economy, fiscal consolidation and quality of growth.

Philippine Ambassador Jose Cuisia, Jr. met yesterday with IMF Deputy Managing Director Naoyuki Shinohara and discussed the government’s ongoing efforts toward fiscal consolidation.

The embassy reported that Shinohara told Cuisia that the Philippine economy is doing well, the fiscal consolidation has clearly improved, and that the quality of growth is changing.

The IMF projects the Philippines to grow by six percent this year, up from the revised forecast of 3.6 percent last April 2011.

Cuisia expressed appreciation for the successful IMF staff visit to the Philippines in July 2011 which concluded that “the near-term outlook for the Philippines is favorable” and that “the Philippine government’s steadfast moves to achieve fiscal consolidation are very appropriate in light of the maturing recovery and the need to create space for priority spending.”

He also conveyed the government’s congratulations to the IMF’s new Managing Director Christine Lagarde.

Prior to his appointment to the IMF in March 2010, Shinohara had occupied various senior positions, including as vice minister of finance in Japan and the country’s executive director at the Asian Development Bank.

Meanwhile, the embassy said that a Partnership for Growth (PFG) Joint Country Action Plan would be drafted that aims to be “collaborative, inclusive and sustainable for the Philippines to achieve broad-based economic growth.”

Cuisia met with US Agency for International Development (USAID) Mission Director for the Philippines Gloria Steele last Aug. 15 and discussed the progress of the Partnership for Growth (PFG) initiative.

He congratulated Steele for her leadership in convening a joint technical team that identified constraints to economic growth in the Philippines.

Steele informed Cuisia that planning teams are currently working on specific requirements under the PFG priorities framework.

Reposted From Pia Lee-Brago of The Philippine Star

A Repost From Pam Pastor of Philippine Daily Inquirer

Paris thrills to Manila: That’s hot

By Pam Pastor
Philippine Daily Inquirer

4:39 am | Thursday, August 18th, 2011

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PARIS MEETS PACMAN. American hotel heiress Paris Hilton looks pleased as she opens the presents brought by world boxing champion and Congressman Manny “Pacman” Pacquiao and his wife Jinkee in Makati on Tuesday. “How cute is this little Manny Pacquiao doll they gave me,” Hilton says in a tweet. PHOTO FROM HILTON’S TWITTER PAGE

After the photo-shoots, the product pitch, and the partying, The Heiress is almost done.

Reality TV show star and businesswoman Paris Hilton met the media on Wednesday to do one more bit for her host company, after charming her way into the hearts of Filipino fans and friends that included “The Pacman” the previous night.

“If I lived in the Philippines, I would definitely live in Azure. The beach club is gonna be very Paris—sexy, fun, exciting, beautiful. Of course, there’s going to be pink there, it’s my favorite color,” she told reporters.

She was referring to Azure Beach Club, a residential community being developed by Century Properties in Paranaque City. The firm has asked Hilton to help design the project.

Hilton said “real estate is something I want to be involved in. I’ve done it all—books, movies, acting—but this project is the one I’m most proud about.”

Proud grandpa

“My grandfather built the Hilton Hotel chain and created his legacy. I am doing the same now. He called me two days ago when he heard I was going to the Philippines and told me how proud he was of me. I really look up to him as a businessman,” she added.

Hilton also had the chance to meet her fans at the press conference, including Isha Dinio who considered herself Hilton’s No. 1 fan in Manila.

Dinio shed tears as she and her idol hugged and exchanged presents. Hilton gave her a bag.

“You’re amazing,” Dinio told Hilton. “No, you’re amazing,” the international celebrity replied.

On Tuesday night, Hilton graced a dinner party held in her honor by world boxing champ and Sarangani Rep. Manny Pacquiao and his wife Jinkee.

Among those invited were the surgeon-to-the-stars, Dr. Vicky Belo, and her daughter Cristalle. Belo said she found Hilton “really charming and friendly and nice. First thing she said to me was, ‘I love your perfume.’”

“I told her I heard she had a very successful fragrance line and she was so happy to tell me that she was already launching her 12th fragrance,” Belo said.

Session with fans 4pm Thursday (today)

“She’s a Barbie doll and so bait (kind),” said publicist Macy Pineda who also attended the dinner.

Hilton later tweeted about the dinner party held at Makati Shangri-La’s Pasay function room: “Just got home from dinner with Manny and Jinkee Pacquiao. Had the best time! Loved hanging out with them and all their amazing friends.”

She also posted about the Manny Pacquiao doll that the couple gave her.

“I’ve been having a wonderful time. Everyone’s so welcoming and wonderful,” Hilton said.

Hilton is expected to be at SM Megamall at 4 p.m. today for the opening of her handbag store and for a meet-and-greet session with fans.

She is scheduled to leave Manila on a flight to Los Angeles tonight.

“I love the Philippines, I couldn’t wait to come back,” Hilton said.

Reposted From Pam Pastor of Philippine Daily Inquirer

A Repost From Cathy Yamsuan of Philippine Daily Inquirer

Philippines may soon own vast gas-rich area

By Cathy Yamsuan
Philippine Daily Inquirer

1:59 am | Tuesday, August 16th, 2011

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BENHAM’S RICHES The Philippines is the only claimant to 13 million hectares of an undersea region that contains huge natural gas deposits.

The Philippines will gain 13 million hectares in additional territory, an area slightly smaller than Luzon, should the United Nations approve next year the government’s claim on a region off the coast of Isabela and Aurora, Environment Secretary Ramon Jesus Paje said on Monday.

Paje said the undersea region, called Benham Rise, could turn the Philippines into a natural gas exporter because of the area’s huge methane deposits.

Studies conducted by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) for the past five years indicate large deposits of methane in solid form, Paje said after a Senate budget hearing.

The government is only awaiting a formal declaration from the UN Convention of the Law of the Sea (Unclos) that Benham Rise is on the country’s continental shelf and therefore part of its territory, Paje said.

Legal basis

Once the Unclos establishes that Benham Rise is part of the Philippines, “we would have legal basis to enter into exploration agreements with private companies to explore… (the area’s) resources,” said Sen. Franklin Drilon, chair of the chamber’s finance committee.

Drilon said a favorable Unclos declaration would mean “increasing our territory from present 30 million hectares to possibly 43 million” with the inclusion of Benham Rise.

Discussion over Benham Rise generated excitement especially after Paje said that Philippine representatives were just awaiting one more meeting “to answer questions” before a special Unclos committee.

Only claimant

Paje said there was no reason for the Unclos committee not to issue a decision favorable to the country “since we are the only claimant, unlike in the western side (where the Spratly Islands are).”

“We have submitted a claim under (Unclos) sometime in late 2008. We got a reply from the UN lately (asking us) to answer some questions. They intend to pass a resolution sometime in mid-2012 to approve our claim (that it is) part of the Philippine continental shelf,” Paje told reporters after the hearing.

Records showed that the Philippines officially submitted a claim with the UN Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf in New York on April 8, 2009.

Davide submission

Hilario Davide, then Philippine ambassador to the United Nations, filed the country’s partial submission with the commission.

The United Nations says the continental shelf is “the seabed and subsoil of the submarine areas that extend beyond its territorial sea” up to 370 km (200 nautical miles) from the archipelagic baseline. An extended continental shelf goes farther than 370 km.

The Philippines claims that Benham Rise is an extension of its continental shelf.

Paje said Benham Rise was within the country’s 370-km exclusive economic zone.

American geologist

The environment secretary said an American geologist surnamed Benham discovered the area that was between 40 and 2,000 meters below the waterline in 1933.

“But we are able to define categorically that it is attached to our continental shelf only recently. We have proven (to) Unclos that it is attached. So now the UN is considering it for decision sometime in 2012,” Paje said.

He said gas deposits in the area would enable the country to achieve energy sufficiency.

“Benham Rise is very relevant because of its gas deposits (which has been) confirmed particularly by (the) National Mapping Resource Information Agency. It has given us the data that (the area) contains solid methane. We have not explored it but we have found nodules of methane in the surface and this is very important to us,” he said.

Kalayaan, Scarborough

The Kalayaan Island Group, which is part of the disputed Spratly Islands and Scarborough Shoal, both located in the West Philippine Sea (South China Sea) and claimed by the Philippines, are also believed to contain oil and natural gas.

Paje said there was the possibility that the country could export gas in the future.

The secretary added that there would be a demand for gas deposits in Benham Rise “because it’s much cleaner than (other) fossil fuels.”

The DENR formally submitted its proposed P16.99-billion budget for 2012 to the Senate finance committee.

Reposted From Cathy Yamsuan of Philippine Daily Inquirer