DUTERTE TELLS GLOBAL POWERS: REFRAIN FROM PURSUING INTERESTS 'AT EXPENSE OF SMALLER COUNTRIES'

MANILA — President Rodrigo Duterte on Friday urged global powers to refrain from pursuing their interests "at the expense of smaller countries" and urged nations to resolve disputes "peacefully."

Speaking at the Nikkei Future of Asia Conference, Duterte said the world appears "to be hurtling back to the era of heightened big power competition," which he said "adds another layer of complexity to long-standing security issues in the region."

"Great powers must resist the temptation to pursue interests at the expense of smaller countries, in plain defiance of international law," Duterte said in a speech.

The COVID-19 crisis has proved "that zero sum approaches are self-defeating and ultimately futile" and that "what hurts one ends up hurting everyone else."

"If Asia is to serve as an engine of global recovery, we all have to act responsibly within a system of norms, commitments, and obligations," said Duterte.

"We have to resolve our disputes peacefully according to international law. We have to work together – not against each other – to achieve common ends. This is the only way to realize the promise of a prosperous Asian recovery," he added.

While Duterte did not name any country, his statement comes after Manila's repeated protests against the incursion of hundreds of Chinese boats into Philippine waters within the South China Sea.

PHILIPPINES, CHINA RESUME BILATERAL TALKS ON SOUTH CHINA SEA

MANILA — After a long postponement, the Philippines and China on Friday resumed bilateral talks on the South China Sea amid growing tensions over the critical waterway.

The Department of Foreign Affairs in a statement said the sixth meeting of the Bilateral Consultation Mechanism on the South China Sea (BCM) was hosted by the Philippines and held virtually. The BCM was established by President Rodrigo Duterte and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping in 2016 to serve as a platform for dialogue on the growing bilateral relationship between the two countries.

DFA said Friday's meeting was led by Foreign Affairs Acting Undersecretary for Bilateral Relations and ASEAN Affairs Elizabeth Buensuceso and Chinese Assistant Foreign Minister Wu Jianghao.

"The two sides had friendly and candid exchanges on the general situation and specific issues of concern in the South China Sea. There was mutual recognition of the importance of dialogue in easing tensions and understanding each country’s position and intentions in the area," the agency said.

"The Philippines reiterated its long-standing call for full respect and adherence to international law, including the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) and its authoritative interpretation and application – the final and binding 2016 South China Sea Arbitral Award."

"The Philippines highlighted the progress made in the settlement of the Gem-Ver allision issue involving a Philippine fishing boat and a Chinese vessel," DFA also said. "The Philippine Department of Justice will take the lead in seeking just compensation for the victims in negotiations to be held next month."

"Undersecretary Buensuceso stressed the importance of other complementary bilateral and multilateral platforms in maintaining regional peace and stability such as the ASEAN-China Dialogue Relations, the ASEAN Regional Forum, and the East Asia Summit," DFA said.

"Both sides reiterated the importance of the full and effective implementation of the 2002 Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea (DOC), and their commitment to the early conclusion of an effective and substantive Code of Conduct in the South China Sea (COC)."

PHILIPPINES, US EYE COLLABORATION IN VACCINE MANUFACTURING, DISTRIBUTION

MANILA — The Philippine and US governments are exploring areas of collaboration in vaccine manufacturing and distribution as jabs remain in limited supply amid the pandemic.

In a statement yesterday, the Philippine embassy in Washington said it recently organized a virtual forum with the US government to provide a platform for pharmaceutical and logistics companies to learn about the tools and products available through the US International Development Finance Corp. (DFC) and US Trade and Development Agency (USTDA) to support their growth and expansion plans across the entire vaccine development, manufacturing and distribution value chain.

The forum was also attended by officials of the Philippines’ Board of Investments, Department of Health, Department of Science and Technology (DOST), Food and Drug Administration and private sector participants including IG Biotech, Lloyd Laboratories, Unilab, Roche Philippines, Sydenham Laboratories, New Marketlink Pharmaceutical Corp., Royal Cargo, Philippine pharmaceutical industry associations, as well as cold chain and logistics firms.

PALACE COOL, ROBREDO OPEN TO VACCINE INFOMERCIAL WITH DUTERTE

MANILA — Malacañang is lukewarm to the idea of having President Duterte and Vice President Leni Robredo, who has already expressed her willingness, in one infomercial to encourage Filipinos to get vaccinated against COVID-19.

Presidential spokesman Harry Roque Jr. yesterday thumbed down the proposal floated by Sen. Joel Villanueva, saying the two top officials have differences on their preferred vaccines, among other issues.He pointed out that Robredo has questioned the efficacy of Chinese-made vaccines, which the President has been openly promoting over the ones developed by Western countries.

“In the past, VP Leni questioned the use of Chinese vaccine. So, I think I cannot see that she would endorse all the vaccines. If she can do that, maybe, (a joint infomercial) can be possible,” Roque said.

But Barry Gutierrez, Robredo’s spokesman, said the VP “has always been open to any efforts to further encourage our countrymen to get vaccinated.”

“So, if someone really reaches out to her to have a joint infomercial with President Duterte to further entice our countrymen to get vaccinated as soon as possible, she is open to that idea,” he added.

COVID-19 VACCINATION SLOTS FOR SALE? DILG ORDERS PROBE

MANILA - A concerned citizen has sounded the alarm over the alleged sale of COVID-19 vaccination slots in Mandaluyong City, where a customer could choose the brand of vaccines available at a vaccination site.

"Norman," whose name is withheld for sensitivity of the matter, said he received messages from a college friend supposedly offering COVID-19 vaccines at prices from P12,000 to P15,000.

“Minessage lang po ako ng friend ko asking kung gusto ko ng Pfizer o Astra (AstraZeneca) sabi ko why not. And then when I realized na sa LGU pala 'yun, I asked if kung anong pinuhunan nila ‘bat nila ibinebenta.' Apparently nagbebenta sila ng slots for Mandaluyong, sabi ko eh from Las Piñas ako ’bat mo binebenta yan?” Norman told ABS-CBN News.

“For Pfizer ‘pag kilala ‘nya daw P12,000 and then normally daw P15,000 nila ibinebenta," the source added.

The slots for AstraZeneca's COVID-19 vaccine, meanwhile, could supposedly cost at least P10,000.

To confirm this, Norman asked a friend related to a Mandaluyong official, who turned out to be unaware of the scheme, he said.

“'Yung niece ng vice mayor, friend ko so I asked if alam niya ba 'yan and then I talked to the niece, hindi daw and apparently, kahit sila nakapila so nagalit sila so nagalit sila, so I think they [will] look into it na din," said Norman.

DILG VOWS 'FULL FORCE OF LAW' VS THOSE BEHIND ALLEGED SALE OF COVID-19 VACCINATION SLOTS

MANILA - The Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) on Saturday vowed to enforce the full force of the law against individuals found to be behind the reported sale of COVID-19 vaccination slots in the cities of Mandaluyong and San Juan.

“We assure the public anyone found to be responsible—kung totoo ngang mga reports na ito—will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law,” said DILG Undersecretary Jonathan Malaya.

The DILG has asked the Philippine National Police (PNP) to investigate the incident reported to their office on Friday afternoon.

PASS BILL INCREASING AGE OF SEXUAL CONSENT, SENATE URGED

MANILA — Child rights advocates have asked the Senate to speed up the passage of a bill that seeks to increase the age for determining the commission of statutory rape from below 12 to below 16.

“There are only a few session days left before Congress adjourns. But we think there is enough time for senators to study the proposed bill,” Child Rights Network convenor Romeo Dongeto said.

“We call on our senators, particularly Sen. Richard Gordon of the justice committee, to prioritize this measure,” he added.

Last year, the House of Representatives approved on third and final reading House Bill 7836 or the End Child Rape Bill, which sets the age of sexual consent to 16 from 12.

It also equalizes the protection for victims of rape, whether a boy or a girl, and removes the “marriage as forgiveness” exemption applicable in existing laws.

The group said it is high time for the Philippines to leave the archaic age limit in determining the commission of statutory rape, noting that 12 years old is the second lowest in the world next to Nigeria at age 11.

“Every single day that the passage of this bill is delayed is another day of exposing Filipino children to the dangers of the provisions of the Revised Penal Code on statutory rape,” Dongeto said.

IATF OKS INCLUSION OF BPO WORKERS IN A4 PRIORITY LIST FOR COVID-19 VACCINATION: TRADE CHIEF

MANILA— The country's coronavirus task force on Friday approved the recommendation to include the business process outsourcing (BPO) sector in the A4 priority group for the government's COVID-19 vaccine deployment plan, the trade department said.

The Inter-Agency Task Force on Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-EID) approved the endorsement of the Department of Trade and Industry, Trade Secretary Ramon Lopez said in a statement, noting its steady growth despite the economic pinch brought by the pandemic.

Being on the priority list means BPO sector workers can avail of COVID-19 jabs ahead of the general population. The A4 category, which includes government and economic frontliners, is the fourth on the list after health workers, elderly and people with comorbidities.

Trade Secretary Ramon Lopez said the IATF "supported" the justification that the BPO is crucial to the economy with its contribution in export revenues reaching close to $30 billion a year, bigger than remittances of overseas Filipino workers.

The Philippines is known for its BPO sector due to its young workforce and English-speaking population, among others.

At least 1.3 million direct employment and 4 million indirect employment have been generated by the sector, the DTI said.

"This is the only sector that didn’t lay off workers and even continued to hire during this pandemic. This is helping the economy in its recovery efforts, in saving jobs and contributions to dollar revenue generation. That, in turn, is helping solidify further the economic fundamentals of the country and stable credit rating for the country," Lopez said.

"We cannot afford to disrupt its very good momentum, especially in this time of pandemic," he added.

THE REST

========

QUEZON CITY, 8 CITIES DOWNGRADED TO MODERATE COVID RISK

MANILA — Quezon City has been downgraded to “moderate risk” category amid the continued decline in new COVID-19 cases in the past week, the OCTA Research Group reported yesterday.

Citing data from the Department of Health (DOH), OCTA said Quezon City recorded an average of 312 COVID-19 cases per day from May 14 to 20, down 24 percent from the previous week.

The research group said the city posted an average daily attack rate of 9.91 COVID infections per 100,000 population, below the 10 cases per 100,000 threshold set by the DOH in order for a local government unit (LGU) to be classified as high risk.

As of yesterday, Quezon City logged 92,551 COVID-19 cases, with 4,067 active, 87,410 recoveries and 1,074 deaths.

Mayor Joy Belmonte earlier said the city government had ramped up its testing capacity to trace even asymptomatic cases of COVID-19.

“While we are treating and isolating COVID-19 patients to curb the spread of the virus, we expanded our testing to determine not just symptomatic patients but also asymptomatic ones,” Belmonte said.

MANILA GETS P10 BILLION LOAN FROM DBP

MANILA — Manila Mayor Isko Moreno yesterday signed a P10-billion loan agreement with the state-run Development Bank of the Philippines (DBP) to finance the construction of various infrastructure projects in the city.

Moreno and DBP president and chief executive officer Emmanuel Herbosa signed the agreement at the Tondominium site project.

Herbosa said the loan, with a term of 15 years, would fund the construction of school buildings in the city’s three districts and socialized housing units for informal settler families.

“The DBP is honored to be a part of the ardent efforts of the Manila city government to ramp up social services to its residents,” Herbosa said. “May this partnership be a paragon for more productive endeavors to benefit local communities.”

Under the agreement, the loan proceeds would be utilized for the construction of three 10-story buildings at Rosauro Almario Elementary School in District 1, Dr. Albert Elementary School in District 4 and Manila Science High School in District 5.

The amount will also bankroll three in-city housing buildings along San Sebastian, San Lazaro and Pedro Gil streets.

113TH MALASAKIT CENTER OPENS IN SAN PABLO, LAGUNA

MANILA — In demonstration of the government’s commitment to expanding health care and making access to it more convenient and affordable, especially for poor and indigent patients, Sen. Bong Go personally attended the launch of the 113th Malasakit Center in the country at the San Pablo City General Hospital (SPCGH) in Laguna on Thursday.

The SPCGH is the ninth hospital in Calabarzon and second in the province to establish its own Malasakit Center.

Go was special assistant to the President when the first Malasakit Center opened at the Vicente Sotto Memorial Medical Center in Cebu City in 2018.

The center brings under one roof agencies, such as the Departments of Health and Social Welfare and Development, Philippine Health Insurance Corp. and Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office, from which poor and indigent patients may seek medical assistance.

FUGITIVE WITH P1.3 MILLION BOUNTY ON HEAD ARRESTED IN MAGUINDANAO

COTABATO CITY — The police arrested Friday one of the 10 most wanted law offenders in Maguindanao province who has a P1.3 million bounty on his head.

Duma Anayatin, facing multiple murder and multiple frustrated murder cases in a regional court, is now in the custody of the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group-Bangsamoro Autonomous Region.

Anayatin yielded peacefully when members of the CIDG-BAR led by Police Major Esmael Madin arrived in his lair in Barangay Damabalas in Datu Piang, Maguindanao and served him a warrant for his arrest.

The warrant was issued by Judge Annabelle Piang of the Regional Trial Court Branch 13 in Cotabato City.

ENTERTAINMENT & LIFESTYLE

NETFLIX'S 'TRESE' TRAILER FEATURES LIZA SOBERANO'S VOICE

MANILA -- Netflix on Friday released the official trailer for "Trese," the anime adaptation of the Filipino graphic novel by Budjette Tan and Kajo Baldisimo.

The two-minute clip features the Filipino language version of the series, with lead character Alexandra Trese voiced by Kapamilya star Liza Soberano.

The local voice talents, directed by Rudolf Baldonado, include Simon dela Cruz (Crispin and Basilio), Apollo Abraham (Captain Guerrero), Christopher Carlo Caling (Hank), Christian Velarde (Nuno), and Eugene Adalia (Anton Trese).

Soberano's counterpart in the English version of "Trese" is Filipino-Canadian actress Shay Mitchell of "Pretty Little Liars" fame.

Other voice actors in this version include Darren Criss, Jon Jon Briones, Nicole Scherzinger, Manny Jacinto, Lou Diamond Phillips, and Dante Basco.

Directed by Jay Oliva ("Justice League Dark," "The Legend of Korra"), "Trese" will premiere on Netflix on June 11 and will have six episodes.

Filipino band UDD, formerly known as Up Dharma Down, composed the series' theme titled "Paagi," with lyrics by Armi Millare and Paul Yap.

‘FRIENDS: THE REUNION’ TO PREMIERE IN PH SAME TIME AS US

The highly anticipated reunion of the stars of the iconic sitcom “Friends” will premiere in the Philippines the same time as the United States, HBO has announced.

“Friends: The Reunion” will simultaneously debut internationally. In the Philippines, it will be available on May 27 at 3:01 p.m. on HBO Go.

A same-day broadcast will then follow at 9 p.m. on HBO.

The unscripted episode will see the reunion of the “Friends” cast Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox, Lisa Kudrow, Matt LeBlanc, Matthew Perry, and David Schwimmer after 17 years.

The celebration was filmed at the original “Friends” soundstage, Stage 24, with the stars reliving fan-favorite moments throughout the show’s 10-year run.

An HBO Max original, “Friends: The Reunion” will also feature a variety of big-name guests, including David Beckham, Justin Bieber, BTS, Lady Gaga, Kit Harrington, Reese Witherspoon, and Malala Yousafzai, among others.

SPORTS

PACQUIAO ANNOUNCES ERROL SPENCE JR. FIGHT IN AUGUST

Manny Pacquiao said Saturday that he'll fight unified welterweight world champion Errol Spence in Las Vegas in August.

The 42-year-old legend will be fighting for the first time since he beat Keith Thurman in July 2019 for the WBA welterweight title.

He revealed his plans with a Twitter post of a promotional poster for the bout captioned "Pacquiao v Spence, August 21, 2021, Las Vegas, Nevada".

The Athletic, citing an unnamed source, reported that Pacquiao had signed a deal for a bout to be available on Fox pay-per-view, and the venue was expected to be the MGM Grand.

Spence, 31, is 27-0 and coming off a dominant December victory over Danny Garcia -- his first fight since surviving a near fatal rollover car accident.

Pacquiao, who owns a record of 62-7-2, had been planning a return to the ring for some time, but earlier this month the targeted opponent had appeared to be American Mikey Garcia.

Philippine media had said a July fight against Garcia was on the cards.

NBA SCORES MAY 20

FINAL

1          2          3          4          T

9 Pacers0-1      29        23        31        32        115

8 Wizards1-0    30        36        48        28        142

GAME 1: WAS LEADS 1-0, CAPITAL ONE ARENA, WASHINGTON, DC

SCORING LEADERS

M. Brogdon IND

24 PTS 2 REB 4 AST

B. Beal WAS

25 PTS 5 REB 4 AST

INDICATORS

FOREX $1 = P 47.94

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

The only thing that walks back from the tomb with the mourners and refuses to be buried is the character of a man. This is true. What a man is survives him. It can never be buried. - J.R. Miller