The Daily News
WE TELL IT LIKE IT IS
IT WE TELL IT LIKE IT IS
IS
Phil. Copyright 2002
Vol. 15 No. 189
WEATHER FORECAST
October 10, 2014
METRO MANILA 24°C to 31°C
CEBU 24°C to 30°C
DAVAO 23°C to 30°C
The Nation

Government gets low marks in urgent
programs
COUNTRY
Currency
in Peso
Currency
in US$1
1 Peso in
Currency

Sen. Revilla’s P87Mn deposits found
0.0224
Abalos to deal with 2 more poll cheating
complaints
Japan (yen)
44.6980
0.4138
1.0000

0.0093
2.4166
UK (pound)
71.9504
1.6097
0.0139
US issues warning on Metro Manila bomb
plot
Hong Kong (dollar)
5.7646
China (yuan)
7.2804
0.1290
0.1629
0.1735
0.1374
Canada (dollar)
40.0161
0.8953
0.0250
Australia (dollar)
39.4093
0.8817
0.0254
New Zealand (dollar)
EMU (euro)
35.0710
56.6100
0.7846
1.2665
0.0285
0.0177

The Economy and Business

Halt on monetary tightening

Record sales posted by car assemblers in
September
US (dollar)
PESO–DOLLAR RATE
30 trading days to October 9, 2014
Corporate Briefs


D&L Industries Inc. completes buy out of
Chemrez
DoubleDragon Properties Corp. brings
CityMall brand to Boracay
Open: P 44.630
43.00
Close: P 44.625
43.50
High: P 44.570
44.00
Low: P
44.50
W.A.: P 44.624
45.00
Vol.: 937.80 M
PSE COMPOSITE INDEX
30 trading days to October 9, 2014
7500
7300
7100
6900
6700
6500
6300
6100
5900
44.680
Open: 7,191.46
High:
7,235.77
Low: 7,191.46
Close:
7,201.89
Index: 7,201.89
Vol.:
9.718 Bn
Val.:
7.716 Bn
Disclaimer: The articles in this Daily News have been culled from various media sources. We cannot, therefore, vouch for the accuracy of what is reported.
For more information on the WBF, you can call 810-96-06 to 09, or visit our website at www.wallacebusinessforum.com.
1
The Nation
Government gets low marks in urgent programs
Fewer Filipinos are satisfied with the way the Aquino administration is handling major concerns affecting the
people, including increasing pay of workers and reducing poverty, a recent Pulse Asia survey revealed. Pulse
Asia’s Ulat ng Bayan survey, conducted from Sept. 8 to 15, found only 28% of Filipinos approve of the
government’s efforts to increase the pay of workers, down from 36% in June. The number of dissatisfied
Filipinos, meanwhile, rose from 30% to 36%. The number of Filipinos who approve of the administration’s
efforts to control the inflation rate dropped by 4 points to 22%. About 1 in 2 Filipinos considered inflation and
workers’ pay as the most urgent national concerns at 50% and 49%, respectively. On the administration’s
efforts to reduce poverty, only 26% said they were satisfied, down from 32% 3 months earlier. The
administration obtained only one majority approval rating, for fighting criminality at 53%, which was lower than
the 54% recorded in June.
Sen. Revilla’s P87Mn deposits found
A forensic investigation into Sen. Bong Revilla and his family’s bank transactions from 2006 to 2010 indicated
that he received kickbacks from the pork barrel funds he channeled to bogus foundations controlled by Janet
Lim-Napoles. The Anti-Money Laundering Council (AMLC) report on Sen. Revilla’s bank transactions involving
his Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF) also showed discrepancies in his official cash declarations that
could indicate “concealment of unexplained wealth”; P87.626-million deposits made in the personal accounts of
Sen. Revilla, his wife, Cavite Rep. Lani Mercado, and his children, and some of his siblings that tended to
confirm his receipt of the kickbacks; and more than P40 million in suspicious funds poured into a dummy
corporation, Nature Concepts Development and Realty Corp., controlled by his wife. The AMLC said the deposits
and withdrawals from the bank accounts of the 5 foundations corresponded with the names, amounts and dates
in the entries made by Benhur Luy, Mrs. Napoles’ finance officer, in his ledger of Mrs. Napoles’ cash and check
disbursements, one of the evidence in the P10-billion pork barrel scam case.
Abalos to deal with 2 more poll cheating complaints
After being cleared of 11 counts of electoral sabotage in the 2007 election in South Cotabato, former
Commission on Elections (Comelec) chairman Benjamin Abalos Sr. will have to deal with 2 more complaints,
this time involving alleged cheating in North Cotabato. Felda Domingo, spokesperson for Pasay Regional Trial
Court (RTC) Branch 112, said it would be the turn of the defense panel to present their evidence. The
complaints stated that votes were manipulated to favor the senatorial candidates of Team Unity, the
administration ticket of former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo. The prosecution panel finished the
presentation of its witnesses, among them Sen. Aquilino Pimentel III, who testified on Aug. 8. The senator
claimed he lost some 45,000 votes in favor of TU senatorial candidate Miguel Zubiri. Former North Cotabato
election officer Yogie Martirizar, who had turned state witness, implicated Mr. Abalos in the case.
U.S. issues warning on Metro Manila bomb plot
The U.S. embassy in Manila yesterday warned its nationals in the country against a bombing plot planned for
targets in Metro Manila by arrested suspects with links to terrorist organizations. In a security message for U.S.
citizens in the country, the embassy alerted its nationals, citing reports about the arrest by the police of 3
people involved in a bombing plot. The plot was exposed on Tuesday following the arrest in Quezon City of 3
men said to have links to terrorist organizations. “The Embassy wishes to remind all US citizens to remain
vigilant and maintain an appropriate level of personal security in all circumstances by reviewing your personal
security plans; remaining aware of your surroundings, including local events; and monitoring local news sources
for updates,” the embassy said in its security message. The embassy also advised not to disturb a suspicious
object or package but immediately notify the authorities and leave the area.
The Economy & Business
Halt on monetary tightening
The Finance department's chief economist yesterday called for a halt to monetary policy tightening in order to
support growth, even in the face of expectations that fiscal policy should take a bigger role in this task amid
currently hawkish monetary stance. Major infrastructure, are needed to sustain a fast pace of growth and
ensure inclusiveness. “The economy successfully reversed inflationary expectations through a decisive reduction
in food inflation in September,” Finance Undersecretary Gil Beltran said in e-mailed comments to reporters on
latest inflation data. “This favorable development will enable the BSP (Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas) to avoid
further tightening of monetary policy and will enable the attainment of a higher GDP (gross domestic product)
growth rate in the second semester.”
2
Record sales posted by car assemblers in September
Vehicle sales of local assemblers hit record high in September on the back of a strong demand for passenger
cars (PC) and commercial vehicles (CV). The Chamber of Automotive Manufacturers of the Philippines Inc.
(CAMPI) reported yesterday that its combined sales with the Truck Manufacturers Association, Inc. (TMA)
reached 20,924 units in September, up 41.7% from the 14,764 units sold in the same month last year. The
CAMPI said the growth was achieved mainly due to the introduction of new models and aggressive promotions.
Corporate Briefs
D&L Industries Inc. has completed the buy out of the minority shares of affiliate Chemrez
Technologies…following the completion of the tender offer, D&L Industries will now own 99.7% stake in
Chemrez Technologies…D&L said in a statement that a total of 846.41 million shares have been tendered,
representing
approximately
65%
of
the
issued
and
outstanding
shares
of
Chemrez
Technologies…DoubleDragon Properties Corp., the property joint venture of the founders of grilled chicken
chain Mang Inasal and fastfood giant Jollibee Foods Corp., said it has recently secured a one-hectare prime
commercial lot in Boracay under a 26-year lease agreement…for its 12th site, DoubleDragon is bringing its
CityMall brand to Boracay, a premier tourist destination of the country and one of the world’s best beach
resorts…DoubleDragon said CityMall-Boracay is expected to become the top commercial destination in Boracay
as it is set to be the first community mall with a full-size supermarket in the whole island.
Word-for-Word
Malaya columnist Ellen Tordesillas wrote:
Vice President Jejomar Binay’s 350-hectare luxury estate is so stunning and stupefying he can kiss his 2016
presidential plans goodbye.
The images shown of Binay’s sprawling property in Batangas during the hearing of the Senate Blue Ribbon
subcommittee assault many aspects of the ordinary citizens’ senses: sense of values, sense of propriety, sense
of proportion.
To give the public an idea of how big 350 hectares is, former Makati Vice Mayor Ernesto Mercado said the Binay
farm is equivalent to “six Luneta Parks, 10 Araneta Centers or even half the 700 hectare San Juan city.
Mercado, who was the Binay’s trusted bagman until their falling out before the 2010 elections, gave detailed
description of the estate which boggles the mind of ordinary Filipinos: two mansions, one with a resort pool;
two man-made lagoons, stockbreeding farm with more than a thousand cocks, a horse ranch, an aviary, and a
40-car garage.
It has a piggery which is air-conditioned, he said, because the Vice President’s wife, Dr. Elenita Binay, who had
served also a mayor of Makati for one term (1998-2001), “did not want to smell the pigs and she did not want
flies.”
Dr. Binay, who is an orchid lover, has a vast orchid farm which boasts of rare species from other countries.
But the pièce de résistance in the property, Mercado said, is a maze garden similar to the Kew Gardens in
London.
Mercado said he was sent to London in 2007 upon the instruction of Mrs. Binay to see the Kew Gardens because
she wanted one in their Batangas property.
Internet articles on the Royal Botanical Gardens at Kew in West London said it is one of the world’s most
important botanical gardens. The whole domain encompasses an impressive 132 hectares with about 50,000
different species of plants .Some areas are formally laid out with flower beds or themed gardens; a large part of
the domain is laid out in English style.
Mansions and other luxurious properties by public officials are offensive to the people because they are concrete
and graphic images of greed and abuse or betrayal of public trust.
They may dismiss the overpricing of the P2.2 billion Makati Building2 and the alleged 13 percent cut of the
Binays in all construction projects in Makati as “SOP” (Standard Operating Practice) in the government but if
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they see sprawling properties, mansions, man-made lakes and scenes that they see only in the movies, they
are able to compare them with their own houses and lifestyle. The Binays’ Batangas property makes even the
middle-class Filipinos’ houses look like a dog house.
Just imagine how one family cramped in a rented house in Pasay City feels looking at the Binays’ paradise.
In the 2000 exposé against then President Joseph Estrada, photos of the Boracay mansion and other houses of
Estrada enraged the people more than the jueteng money and misuse of tobacco tax .
Mercado said the money used for the construction and maintenance of the Batangas farm came from Makati
City construction projects. It’s the money of the people of Makati.
Mercado’s odious personality is not enough to diminish the shock value of the information he gave during the
Senate hearing.
The public believes his revelation knowing very well that he is a shady character himself because “it takes one
to know ione.”
Binay denies that he owns the Batangas property. It is reportedly owned by Sunchamp Agri-Tourism Park
headed by Filipino-Chinese businessman Antonio Tiu.
Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV, who is one of the three senators leading the investigation of Binay’s alleged ill-gotten
wealth, accused Tiu of being Binay’s dummy.
At the Senate hearing, he presented the layered links of Sunchamp to the Binays: Tiu folded Sunchamp Real
Estate Development Corp. in 2013 into a publicly listed corporation, the Greenergy Holdings Inc. The main
shareholders of Greenergy are the Sunchamp Real Estate Development Corp., Earthright Holdings Inc., and the
Three Star Capital.
Martin C. Subido is director, corporate secretary and compliance officer of Greenergy. He is also law partner of
Makati Representative Abigail Binay, one of the Vice President’s daughters, at the Subido, Pagente, Certeza,
Mendoza and Binay (SPCMB) law office.
Trillanes also said Earthright shares the same address as the SPCMB law office at the Value Point Executive
Building 227 Salcedo Street in Legazpi Village, Makati City.
One interesting information that shows the ties that bind Tiu and the Binays: Tiu is also the CEO, president and
chairman of AgriNurture Inc. (ANI), formerly known as Mabuhay 2000 Enterprises Inc., which was identified by
Commission on Audit (COA) Commissioner Heidi Mendoza as the supplier of the overpriced hospital beds for the
Ospital ng Makati (OsMak) back in 2001 and 2002 when Mrs. Binay was mayor.
Plunder charges have been filed against the Vice President and his son, Makati Mayor Jun-jun Binay in
connection with the overpriced Makati Building2.
Violation of the anti-dummy law is also being prepared against him in connection with the Batangas estate.
An opposition personality said recently that by the time the investigation of Binay’s ill-gotten wealth is
completed, “pupulutin siya sa kangkungan.”
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