BSP CHIEF: GOV'T DEALS PROBED, 'OVERNIGHT' TAKEOVER 'WILL NOT HAPPEN'MANILA -- Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas Governor Benjamin Diokno said Monday agovernment takeover of businesses with alleged onerous contracts "will nothappen overnight" as these will go through legal processes.President Rodrigo Duterte and his cabinet secretaries have in recent weeksflagged irregularities in state deals with Manila Water Co, Maynilad WaterServices Inc, Ayala Land, Chevron Philippines and Light Rail Manila Corp,sending share prices tumbling."That's going to go through the legal process. It will not happen overnightlike a takeover by government. That will not happen. There will be aprocess," Diokno told ANC's Early Edition."If you're a businessman, you are looking for where you'll make money and ifyou invest in the Philippines you'll make a lot of money," he said.Asked if scrutiny of government contracts would dampen business sentiment,Diokno said: "I don't think so."The Philippines' is on track to achieve a credit rating of "A" for the firsttime, Diokno said. The Philippines is currently in the B tier, meaninginvestment grade."Right now, we are rated by the credit rating agencies as A, except thatit's formality. It has to go through formality," he said.A "Road to A" team composed of the BSP, the Department of Finance, theBureau of the Treasury and the National Economic and Development Authorityis working to secure the score, he said.BANGKO SENTRAL'S DIOKNO SAYS TO 'GO SLOW' ON INTEREST RATE CUTS THIS YEARMANILA -- Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas Governor Benjamin Diokno said Mondayhe would "go slow" on monetary policy easing this year, saying the economywas in a "nice place" of strong growth and within target inflation.The central bank has "a lot of room" to unwind the 175-basis point interestrate hike from 2018, Diokno said, ahead of the monetary board's firstmeeting for the year on Feb. 6. He cut rates by 75 points in 2019 andearlier signaled a further 50-point reduction this year."We're doing great. We're in a very nice place right now. We'll go slow inour monetary easing," Diokno told ANC's Early Edition. The economy couldgrow by 6.5 to 7 percent this year and unemployment is "low," he said."Our projection is that maybe, there's still some area for cutting both thereserve requirement and the interest rate. Maybe not as aggressive as lastyear," he said.The Feb. 6 policy rate decision will be "data-dependent," Diokno said. Grossdomestic product growth accelerated to 6.4 percent in the fourth quarter of2019, however full year growth came in at 5.9 percent, missing the low endof the government's target.An expected uptick in inflation this year is "nothing to be scared of" sinceit will likely stay within the 2 to 4 percent range, he said. Inflation willbe "in the neighborhood of 3 percent" in 2020, he said."We're very confident that the inflation rate that we've seen in 2018 willnot occur this year and next year," he said.Inflation peaked at near 10-year highs in 2018 due to high rice prices,prompting the 175-point rate hike.NO VFA? MANILA CAN SEEK MILITARY AID FROM RUSSIA, CHINA: PALACE OFFICIALMANILA - The Philippines can seek military assistance from Russia or Chinashould it end its Visiting Forces Agreement (VFA) with the US, a Palaceofficial said Monday.Manila on Friday said it has begun the process of ending the VFA upon theorders of President Rodrigo Duterte, who wanted to halt the deal afterWashington canceled the visa of his former police chief, Sen. Ronald "Bato"dela Rosa.The VFA, which covers the conduct of American soldiers in the Philippines,is among military agreements between the Philippines and the US."He (Duterte) did say that we can go to Russia, we can go to China forassistance in battling these terrorists," Communications Secretary MartinAndanar told ANC's Headstart."It's the prerogative of the President, if he wants our country to befriends with other superpowers like the People's Republic of China andRussia then so be it."Andanar said the President's decision was a "matter of the Philippinessending a message to the US that we are not succumbing to theirneo-colonialism.""The past administrations have been, I would say, supportive in a way thatalready giving the US a free hand on whatever they want our government todo," he said."It is a way for our President to say look, we are an independent countryand so we should stop being a lapdog of the United States."Former Philippine Ambassador to the US Jose Cuisia Jr. had said Manila willbe "the biggest loser" should it end its VFA with Washington as it will losemilitary training exercises and assistance as China continues itsmilitarization of the West Philippine Sea."It will embolden China even more considering even with the MDT (MilitaryDefense Treaty), the VFA, they have militarized those 3 reefs they grabbedfrom the Philippines," he told ANC's Early Edition."What I think the US will say is if that's what you want then fine butplease be aware of what the consequences are. I don't think the US is gonnabeg us. I think we will be the biggest loser, not the US."KUWAIT DISMAYED BY PHILIPPINES' 'BLOOD FOR BLOOD' STANCEMANILA - Kuwait has expressed dismay over the remark of Foreign AffairsSecretary Teodoro Locsin Jr. that he would accept only the lives of thekillers of Filipina household worker Jeanelyn Villavende, rejecting bloodmoney from her Kuwait employers as settlement.A report of the Kuwait News Agency over the weekend cited an official sourceat the Kuwait Ministry of Foreign Affairs voicing Kuwait's dismay andcondemnation of Locsin's remark about the case of Villavende, who wasallegedly killed by her employers.Locsin said on Friday he would reject any offer of "blood money" orsettlement from Villavende's killers."THERE WILL BE BLOOD @DFAPHL for Jeanelyn Villavende. I renounce & rejectany offer of blood money for her torture/murder. I want two lives for thelife they took," he tweeted.The official source, according to the report, said Locsin's remark"contained an unacceptable transgression against jurisdictions of Kuwaitisecurity and judicial authorities" and decried the secretary's statement asan "unusual approach in dealing with countries.""It runs counter to the simplest rules of international relations," thesource said, noting that the Philippines' top diplomat's remark representsan attempt to influence the ongoing investigations.The source also lauded measures taken by relevant Kuwaiti agencies onVillavende's case, noting that authorities quickly arrested those whocommitted the crime and referred them to a fair judiciary.The Kuwaiti government, to show its commitment in the case, is willing toallow investigators from the Philippines to join its investigation of themurder.In his tweet, Locsin said he was interested in an "eye for an eye"resolution and won't settle for anything less."The rest is a sideshow. I will not trade that poor woman's torment for someshit concession on labor rights. I want two lives for the life they took.Don't change the subject," he tweeted.The Kuwaiti Foreign Ministry is expected to release soon the full reports ofthe police investigation and autopsy on the case of Villavende.CHINA CORONAVIRUS INFECTED NOW AT 2,744, DEATH TOLL AT 80WUHAN, China - China's central government said on Monday that the nationwidetotal of confirmed infections from a deadly respiratory virus had risen to2,744, with 769 new cases coming to light.However, it said no new deaths were confirmed outside of Hubei province,which had earlier reported 24 new fatalities to bring the national total to80 dead.China has locked down the hard-hit province of Hubei in the country'scenter, an unprecedented operation affecting tens of millions of people andintended to slow transmission of the respiratory virus.Its ability to spread appears to be "getting stronger" though it is "not aspowerful as SARS", top Chinese health officials said at a press conference.A working group chaired by Chinese Premier Li Keqiang to tackle the epidemicdecided to extend the Spring Festival holiday originally scheduled to end onJanuary 30 "to reduce population flows," alongside unspecified changes tothe starting dates of schools, state news agency Xinhua reported.The US State Department said Sunday it was arranging a flight from Wuhan toSan Francisco for consulate staff and other Americans in the city.France's government and the French carmaker PSA also said they planned toevacuate staff and families, who will be quarantined in a city in aneighboring province.Japan is coordinating with Beijing to swiftly evacuate its citizens, PrimeMinister Shinzo Abe said.Saudi Arabia asked its nationals present around Wuhan to contact its embassyfor evacuation, while Jordan said it had obtained permission from Beijing tomove its citizens from the city out of the country.TAAL EVACUEES HESITATE TO GO HOME AFTER DANGER ALERT GOES DOWNMANILA - Tens of thousands who fled to evacuation centers due to theeruption of Taal Volcano earlier this month are hesitant to return home evenafter authorities downgraded a danger alert, police said Monday.Volcanologists on Sunday lowered the alert status of Taal, which sits in alake south of the capital, to 3 from 4 to indicate a "decreased tendencytowards hazardous explosive eruption".The volcano recently spawned less quakes and gas emissions, and only itswestern side remained swollen -- all indications that magma or molten rocksstopped moving toward its crater, said seismology institute Phivolcsdirector Renato Solidum."Kung sakaling magbabago ang kondisyon ng volcano, puwede nating itaas angalert level 4," he told radio DZMM."Pero kung patuloy ang pagbaba ng ating mga parametrong tinitingnan, puwedenating ibaba sa alert level 2 ang kondisyon ng volcano," he added.Authorities have to monitor Taal for 2 weeks before downgrading the alert tolevel 2, which means there is a "low level of volcanic unrest," according tothe Phivolcs website.Told that the danger from Taal had not ceased, "less than 30 percent" ofevacuees in Batangas had returned home, said the province's police chiefCol. Edwin Quilates."Maraming nag-aagam-agam. Kasama rin kasi sa pagbibigay information naminiyong sinabi ng Phivolcs at PDRRMO (provincial disaster office) na althoughbinalik na ng level 3, ini-inform namin na puwede pa ring mag-upgrade ulitat anytime," Quilates told radio DZMM.Batangas' Agoncillo and Laurel towns, where Taal's quakes opened giantcracks on the ground, remained on lockdown. Engineers have to check thesafety of buildings before residents are allowed to return, he added.Some 137,000 people were still in evacuation centers as of 6 p.m. Sunday,the disaster agency reported.MANILA JUMPS TO 8TH PLACE AMONG WORLD'S MOST DYNAMIC CITIESMANILA - Manila further moved up in the global ranking of the most dynamiccities, gaining four notches to land at eighth place in the latest survey byleading real estate and investment management services firm JLL.The 2020 edition of JLL's City Momentum Index showed Manila rose to theeighth spot this year from 12th in 2019 and 18th in 2018.The index combines socio-economic and commercial property metrics of 130markets to identify the world's most dynamic urban centers. It identifies anumber of key growth drivers, including talent attraction, the expansion ofinnovation hubs and better urban planning, that cities can employ to meetthe challenges faced by rapid momentum.In terms of real estate, Manila ranked 48th, with prime rental growth of+3.8 percent annual average for 2020-2022 (19th globally), office netabsorption of 7.3 percent (14th globally), and hotel construction of 15.6percent (also 14th globally).Based on the JLL index, Asia Pacific is home to the most dynamic urbancenters in the world, with three-quarters of the world's top 20 cities inthe region.The results, JLL said, show a continued shift in global influence from Westto East, with Indian, Chinese and Vietnamese cities dominating the toppositions.Meanwhile, China's role in driving global momentum continues to besignificant; one-fifth of the global top 20 cities are in China. Shanghaistands alone as the only city to feature in the top 20 throughout the pastseven years.COMELEC OFFICIAL PUSHES FOR ADVANCED, MOBILE APP VOTINGMANILA - Will advanced voting for the marginalized sectors and mobile appvoting for overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) come into play in the 2022presidential elections?Commissioner Rowena Guanzon, who is pushing for these new modes of castingvotes in the national elections, is optimistic the Commission on Elections(Comelec) will approve them.Guanzon, speaking in Cadiz City, Negros Occidental last Saturday, said sheis set to propose that members of certain sectors be allowed to vote aheadof time.Among these voters are persons with disability (PWDs) and those deprived ofliberty or prisoners, senior citizens, indigenous people and pregnant women.The official said she is confident that the proposal will be passed by theComelec full bench within two weeks' time.However, such as measure would still require passage of a law, for itsimplementation in the 2022 polls.RUMORED CORONAVIRUS CASE JUST PNEUMONIA, MANILA HEALTH DEPARTMENT SAYSMANILA - Manila City Hall on Monday said there is no confirmed case of thenovel coronavirus (2019 nCoV) in Manila despite rumors spreading online.In a statement Monday, the Manila Public Information Office said that Dr.Arnold Pangan, the city's health officer, reported that the supposed caseinvolved a 27-year-old Philippine Offshore Gaming Operator worker whoarrived in the country on January 25.The Chinese national was hospitalized at the Metropolitan Medical Center onMasangay Street in Binondo due to fever and cough."[Manila Health Department] Surveillance Team, in coordination with[Department of Health] surveillance, and as per investigation, patient hasfever and cough but negative on history of travel to Wuhan, China, and nohistory of exposure to a host or positive case," Pangan said.The POGO worker came from "Obei" in China, the Manila PIO said. Wuhan is thecapital of Hubei province in China.Pangan said the Chinese national was diagnosed with community-acquiredpneumonia and is now "well" and "has no fever."Moreno appeals to public: Do not share unconfirmed reportsManila Mayor Francisco "Isko Moreno" Domagoso meanwhile appealed to thepublic to refrain from spreading unconfirmed reports on social media toavoid adding to the anxiety over the deadly virus."Hindi ikinikibit-balikat ang sitwasyong ito. Be vigilant. Huwag kayongmaiilang. Huwag muna masyadong mag-alala," Moreno said.Moreno told the public to follow government reports instead.LAKERS LEGEND KOBE BRYANT, 8 OTHERS DEAD IN HELICOPTER CRASH: OFFICIALNine people were killed in the helicopter crash that claimed the life of NBAstar Kobe Bryant and his daughter, Los Angeles officials confirmed onSunday.Los Angeles County Sheriff Alex Villanueva said eight passengers and thepilot of the aircraft died in the accident."There were no survivors... There were nine people on board the aircraft,the pilot plus eight individuals," Villanueva said.Authorities said firefighters received a call shortly before 9:37 am aboutthe crash, which caused a brush fire on a hillside.Los Angeles County Fire Chief Daryl Osby said firefighters had to hike tothe site of the crash with medical equipment and hose lines to extinguishthe blaze.Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti confirmed that Bryant's 13-year-old daughterGianna was among the victims."L.A. is grieving with the Bryant family over the loss of Gianna, whoperished with her father and friends in today's tragedy," Garcetti wrote onTwitter.Gianna was one of Bryant's four children with wife Vanessa.Bryant and Gianna had been flying to a game his daughter was expected toplay in when their helicopter crashed, according to US reports."The impact and legacy he leaves behind will last forever," Pacquiao said ofBryant.ALL SEEMS WELL BETWEEN EXES JAMES, NADINE AFTER SPLITMANILA - They were spotted partying at a bar in Makati on Saturday.Apparently, James Reid and Nadine Lustre also spent time together on Sunday.As seen in the most recent Instagram post of Reid's sister Lauren, theformer couple had pasta night along with their group of friends.Although the Reid and Lustre weren't seated next to each other in thephotos, it seems like all is well between the two despite their breakup.This was more than enough reason for their fans to hope that areconciliation between the two is possible.Reid and Lustre, who would have celebrated their fourth anniversary onFebruary 11, had said they decided to part ways to "focus on ourselves notonly for our careers but more for our personal growth.""It's true that we have split up, but not for all the reasons that are beingspread on the tabloids and social media, but because after quiet and matureconversations, we decided to focus on ourselves not only for our careers butmore for our personal growth as we are still young and we want to achieve asmuch as we can," they said."We agreed that going separate ways was best for both of us. We are in goodterms and are still really good friends and will continue to work with eachother especially when it comes to music," they added.To end their statement, the two said: "Thank you for all the JaDine fans fortheir undying support and we hope you continue to support us now and in thefuture. We shall forever be grateful to them for their love andunderstanding. Thank you."NBA SCORES JAN 25FINAL    1    2    3    4    Tteam logo Mavericks 28-17    36    22    26    23    107team logo Jazz 32-13    25    30    25    32    112SCORING LEADERSL. Doncic DAL25 PTS, 6 REB, 7 ASTD. Mitchell UTA25 PTS, 8 REB, 5 ASTFINAL/OT    1    2    3    4    OT    Tteam logo Nets 19-25    26    24    30    26    15    121team logo Pistons 17-30    25    35    17    29    5    111SCORING LEADERSK. Irving BKN45 PTS, 6 REB, 7 ASTD. Rose DET27 PTS, 4 REB, 6 ASTFINAL    1    2    3    4    Tteam logo Thunder 28-19    28    24    39    22    113team logo Timberwolves 15-31    22    26    24    32    104SCORING LEADERSD. Schroder OKC26 PTS, 4 REB, 2 ASTK. Towns MIN37 PTS, 8 REB, 6 ASTFINAL    1    2    3    4    Tteam logo Bulls 18-30    25    34    40    19    118team logo Cavaliers 12-34    31    26    19    30    106SCORING LEADERSZ. LaVine CHI44 PTS, 10 REB, 8 ASTK. Love CLE20 PTS, 11 REB, 2 ASTFINAL    1    2    3    4    Tteam logo Lakers 36-10    25    25    23    18    91team logo 76ers 30-17    35    24    26    23    108SCORING LEADERS    A. Davis LAL31 PTS, 7 REB, 2 AST    T. Harris PHI29 PTS, 8 REB, 1 AST