Imperial Palace opens facility

AFTER three years of construction, the P4.5 billion-peso hotel Imperial Palace Waterpark Resort & Spa opened its facilities yesterday.

Lee Cheol-hee, president of Imperial Palace Waterpark Resort & Spa, said that what makes their hotel unique are their spacious rooms, unique cuisine in their restaurants and a water adventure facility.

The facility, a 10-minute drive away from the Mactan Cebu International Airport, features six 11-story buildings, 557 rooms, and first-class amenities including a water park, Jacuzzi, pool villas, a golf course and business center.

The hotel was developed by Philippine BXT Corp. The water park, which is the hotel's main attraction, is divided into different zones with corresponding adventure themes.

Imperial Palace general manager Richie Kang said the facility tightened it security in the water adventure zone to make sure its users, especially children, are safe.

Kang said he is confident that although the facility is the first business venture in the country by the Korean hotel chain, it will attract both local and foreign tourists. He said Cebu is a world-class destination both for business and vacation.

Kang said Imperial Palace now has 900 employees, 860 of which are Filipinos.

Source: The Sunstar Cebu

Aboitiz sees strong potential for condominiums in Cebu

THE real estate arm of the Aboitiz group sees a strong potential in condominium development in Cebu as more residential units are being built farther from the cities.

“We are seeing a very good uptake of our sales, especially in our condominium units. Some years ago, we made a judgment call that Cebuanos are going to move towards condominium living because house and lot (units) are located farther and farther away (from the cities),” said AboitizLand Inc. chief operating officer Andoni Aboitiz

Buyers

The uptake is shown in the profile of buyers of Persimmon West-the first tower with 157 units that was built at AboitizLand’s The Persimmon. About 80 percent of the buyers are locals, 10 percent are overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) and about seven percent are foreigners.

For updates from around the country, follow Sun.Star on Twitter

“Initially, the target was the international Filipino market but the locals bought units very quickly so we are now building the second tower, Persimmon North, to (also) cater to the OFWs,” Aboitiz said in a press conference yesterday at The Persimmon in Mabolo, Cebu City.

The Persimmon is AboitizLand’s first venture into “vertical development” project.

‘Urban village’

Covering 1.4 hectares of prime property, the “urban village” is comprised of four 15-storey towers complemented with a commercial area and various amenities.

The continuous construction of The Persimmon will take up a huge share of Aboitizland’s P2 billion capital expenditures (capex) for 2010, said Aboitiz. He said that each tower is estimated to cost about P400 million.

AboitizLand is already scouting for new and “good” areas in Cebu City where they can build another skyrise project.

Aboitiz said their next condominium project would be after the completion of The Persimmon in two to three years.

Although it sees strong potential in condominium development, the property developer continues to plan on building horizontal residential development projects.

Recently, AboitizLand closed a sale of 15 hectares of land in Cordova, Mactan where it plans to launch a mid-end inland residential development next year.

Aboitiz disclosed that the P2-billion capex also include the launching of the commercial plot and series of townhouses in its high-end integrated community Pristina North, in Talamban, Cebu City as well as continuation of other projects, including Kishanta in Lagtang, Talisay City.

He said that most of the capex would be sourced through bank loans.

“If you think we are busy in 2009, wait what we will do in 2010. We are going to change (the landscape of) the city,” Aboitiz said.

Source: The Sunstar Cebu

Company starts work on 2nd tower

IN response to the strong demand for condominium units, property developer AboitizLand Inc. started building the second tower of its first residential condominium development this month.

While construction is going on, the real estate arm of the Aboitiz group is already pre-selling units of Persimmon North, the second of the four towers composing The Persimmon in Mabolo, Cebu City.

AboitizLand marketing manager Leorelei Ylaya said there is still a huge potential market for Persimmon North, following the fast sales take-up of the first tower, Persimmon West.

Persimmon North is already 15 percent complete while the West tower is already 38.59 percent complete. Ylaya said they are on target.

Turnover of the West and North Tower units are set for third quarter of 2010 and fourth quarter of 2011, respectively.

Persimmon North, which will be formally launched next week, is comprised of 157 residential units, studio, one- and two-bedroom, and loft units, in Asian contemporary design. It will have its own administration and security offices as well as function and boardrooms.

“The main difference between the North and West tower is that the North has maid’s quarters in its two-bedroom units. This (feature) is what the market demands,” said Ylaya.

Prices range from P1.8 million to P2.4 million for studio units, P3.1 million to P4 million for one-bedroom units, and P5 to P6 million for two-bedroom units.

“We are now (offering) pre-selling prices. After the launch, we might increase them,” said Ylaya.

The Persimmon, the firm’s 15th project, stands on 1.4 hectare of prime property in M. J. Cuenco Ave., Mabolo, Cebu City.

According to its management, its “impressive” uptake is attributed to its combination of strategic location, amenities, and “value-for-money” construction.

The urban village’s commercial-entertainment strip, called The Persimmon Plus, will be launched before the end of 2009.

It will house more than a dozen concessionaires, including a coffee shop, dental clinic, laundry shop, food outlets, salon, spa, and services.

Source: The Sunstar Cebu

RP urged to expand BPO sector to draw foreign investments

MANILA, Philippines - To continuously attract foreign direct investments (FDIs), the Philippines needs to accelerate the expansion of the business process outsourcing (BPO) sector in the immediate future, a foreign economist said yesterday.

“As an immediate response, the Philippines must accelerate the growth of the BPO sector,” MasterCard economic advisor for Asia and Pacific region Yuwa Hedrick-Wong said in an economic briefing.

He said global investors are looking for investment opportunities

in the emerging Asian market, particulary India, Vietnam and Indonesia.

He added that the Philippines must also shift its export focus from the United States to China and the rest of Asia.

In 1997, 35 percent of Philippine exports found its way to the US, just one percent of to China, and 42 percent to the rest of Asia. Last year, the US market settled for 17 percent of Philippine exports, a larger 11 percent to China and 50 percent to the rest of Asia.

The MasterCard economist said the Philippines also has the potential to grow by 2.5 percent this year, and four percent next year.

However, Wong said the Philippines needs to lift some restrictions on FDIs and domestic investments if it hopes to take advantage of a strong emerging Asia and the global economic recovery next year.

In the recent 2010 Doing Business study conducted by the World Bank and the International Finance Corp. (IFC), the Philippines further went down in ranking to 144 out of 183 nations included in the study.

When the study started in 2007, the Philippines was ranked 136, and slipped to 140 the following year.

The study indicated that the Philippine government must have an extensive and long-term plan for the country’s economy to improve its ranking.

“The government must make it clear what kind of regulatory environment it wants, and it must design a long-term plan,” it said.

The MasterCard economist said bringing in FDIs will not only mean investments, but the technology to run the business, the experience, and the marketing and distribution network.

FDIs in the Philippines fell from 24.4 percent of GDP in 1997 to 21.2 percent in 2000. It further dipped to 16.1 percent of GDP in 2004 to 14.7 percent last year.

The regional economist said “some of the private monopolies need to be dismantled, and the government controlled companies and industries must be privatized.”

Strategically, the Philippines must also look at developing the agricultural sector if it is to grow and remain competitive in the region.

“Thailand is selling mangoes, and other fruits and vegetables to China, and they are selling them in US dollars. They are considered premium products there, yet the Philippine has the same or better agricultural products,” Wong pointed out.

Source: The Philippine Star

Microtel Inn and Suites Mactan

CEBU, Philippines - A modernly designed hotel with an airy lobby facing the beachfront, Microtel Inn and Suites Mactan offers “easy breezy” accommodations with fantastic prices to suit your taste.

With a total of 160 hotel rooms, Microtel Mactan has 3 room types – a standard with two beds and a sitting area, a double with two beds plus a balcony overlooking the sea/pool and a suite with one bed plus a sofa sleeper, balcony and other extra amenities such as coffee/tea making facilities, kitchen counter with sink, refrigerator, microwave oven and bath tub – rooms with all good use of space.

Guestroom features and amenities are inclusive of complimentary breakfast (intercontinental buffet), chiropractor-approved mattresses, flat TV with cable channels, individually controlled air conditioning units, multi-function telephone system with IDD/NDD, toilet and shower with hot and cold water, electronic keycard entry system, clock, in-room safe, fully automated fire safety system, baby cribs available upon request plus children under 12 years old stay free in parents’ room.

Having visited Microtel Mactan a few times now, I have sampled almost everything on their menu without any complaints at the lobby restaurant/café called Rice. Favorites include plain or chili and coriander roti (an Indian flat-bread), Nasi Goreng (an mildly-spiced Indonesian rice dish with a mixture of prawns topped with chicken skewers and an egg), Tom Yum Goong (a Thai soup dish with a Philippine twist using sinigang) and all of the starters listed in the menu – no doubt you should try all these. If you opt for room service instead, food served up to your room is delivered in styrofoam containers and plastic cutlery, which indeed are easy to clear up and easy to dispose of – what a brilliant idea!

The resort facilities and activities in this designer beach include the 3 pools (one for adults, the other for children and one for wading located by the beach bar), kayaking, water biking, banana boating, island hopping and scuba diving. If you choose to have some quiet time, you could just laze around lying on the sunbeds under the beach umbrellas by just reading a book and sipping a cold drink – what more can you ask for?

As quoted on their flyer, “Fantastic beachfront view. Amazing blue sea. Great beds. Warm and friendly staff that treat you like family. Nothing could be better.” I couldn’t agree more!

In this colourful resort, one tip during your planned stay is to request for a top floor room facing the sea.

Microtel Inn and Suites Mactan (www.microtel-mactan.com) has a current promo available until the end of this month, the Leisure Within Reach for P2,900*, a standard room for two adults with breakfast. *promo is only available to locals.

Source: The Freeman cebu

Microsoft urges government to intensify anti-piracy law

CEBU, Philippines - Despite the government’s constant effort in curbing piracy in the Philippines, Microsoft Philippines reiterates its call to intensify the implementation of anti-piracy laws here as the country remains in the piracy “watch list”.

Microsoft Philippines Inc. license and compliance manager Fortune Abelo-Magsadia said the government should put in place stringent implementation of the intellectual property (IP) laws here as well as shorten the resolution of cases pending to improve awareness of IPR in the Philippine market.

For its part, Microsoft had been introducing programs that will help curb the high piracy rate in the Philippines, especially in using software products, through introducing affordable and easy payment scheme for corporations in availing of genuine Microsoft software.

“We are still in the watchlist, [as among those having the highest piracy rate in the world],” said Magsadia, thus there is a need for the Philippine government to intensify its IP Laws implementation.

However, Magsadia said although the piracy rate in the country has plateaud at 69 percent since 2007, companies like Microsoft are also making its move to promote IP in the Philippines.

Microsoft’s Software Asset Management (SAM) program for instance, has helped improve the awareness of Filipinos to use only genuine software. However, this could be boosted if complemented by strong government stance in fighting piracy.

She said enforcement is just one aspect of fighting piracy, “what happens after the enforcement?”

The Philippines should also exercise to seriously put curbing piracy as priority. Longer time in resolving piracy cases is one of the problems that need to be addressed, she added.

According to Magsadia, the introduction of SAM program in the Philippines, has also helped the improvement of awareness especially among companies to use only genuine software.

SAM, enables companies to maximize software investments by letting them identify their needs and match these with the necessary software program available.

SAM is a set of policies and procedures which allow organizations to capitalize on their software resources. This involves conducting software needs analysis and software inventory, comparing installed software with licenses and creating a budget, appointing a software manager and conducting regular audits, and issuing a company policy statement and reminders.

“[Most] Filipinos don’t treat software as an asset. We want customers to practice SAM to maximize their investments,” she said.

Starting this year, Magsadia said SAM will be actively rolled out to other areas outside of Metro Manila, to drum up awareness on using genuine software, and its impact to the businesses.

Magsadia revealed that aside from SAM, Microsoft will also be introducing attractive packages, and programs that will attract different sectors in the society to use only “genuine software”, thereby helping the Philippine improve its piracy rate.

The Bill Gates-led company is on its way to offer special software pricing for Internet Cafes, companies in the economic zones, and intensify its offerings to the academe sector, and good packages for the Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) players.

Source: The Freeman Cebu

Cebu BPO industry

First the good news, according to the Institute for Development and Econometric Analysis, Inc. (IDEA) latest NewsBriefs, “the Cebu business process outsourcing (BPO) segment is targeting to take hold of 20% of the Philippine BPO market by 2010. Currently, the BPO industry in Cebu is organizing an Information and Communications Technology 2009 Conference aimed at realizing these goals through partnerships with emerging BPO markets and infrastructure development.”

Likewise, corporate giant, San Miguel Brewery, Inc. raised US$800 million with its corporate bond offerings. It priced its three-part peso bond at around 250 basis points higher than reference Treasury bonds. The brewery was able to sell its three-part peso bonds with three-, five-, and ten-year durations to finance its purchases of beer brands and land from its parent company, San Miguel Corporation. The corporate bond offering was the largest in the Philippines. In addition, Japanese brewery Kirin Holdings has expressed its interests in buying a stake in the Filipino brewery in light of Kirin’s goal to expand its market to Asia and Oceania.

Furthermore, the government sold its benchmark seven-year Treasury bonds this week at an average interest rate of 6.05%. The bidding brought in Php8 billion which would help in funding the budget deficit. Overall, the Treasury is optimistic over the demand for benchmark government papers.

However, per same published report, “the country’s external financial position has weakened in February 2009. In the said month, the Philippines had a balance of payments (BoP) surplus of US$469 million, almost a three-quarter drop from the January position of US$1.735 billion surplus. The current position was also more than 50% weaker compared to the same month last year which posited the BoP to US$1.05 billion. Income from investments, National Government loans from the Asian Development Bank and the World Bank, and foreign exchange transactions by the Bangko Sentral were the factors for the positive status of the country’s BoP surplus.

Finally, the sad news was that, the unemployment rate soared to 7.7% in January, equivalent to about 2.85 million jobless people. The increase in unemployment was due to the weakness of the electronics and manufacturing sectors, which suffered from low export demand amidst the global economic crisis. The unemployment rate is the highest since April of last year which reached 8%. Export targets are expected to downgrade even further as outlook in the electronics sector is growing bleaker for the coming months. Electronics exports are seen to decline by about 20% to 30% in 2009. The forecast adjustment implies an estimated total export contraction of about 6% to 8%, according to IDEA.

Source: The Freeman Cebu

Cebu bankers strengthen monitoring of borrowers

CEBU, Philippines - The local network of bankers in Metro Cebu is strengthening its monitoring program to easily spot delinquent borrowers or blacklisted clients through the Automatic Credit Information System (ACIS) of the Cebu Bankers Club (CBC).

In an interview with CBC former president Prudencio Gesta, he said that the organization is going to enhance the capability of the ACIS system that will add more listings of blacklisted borrowers from each bank member, in order to protect the banking business from delinquent borrowers.

Although the rate of non-performing loans (NPL) in the local scene has been declining significantly, after hitting its highest during the 1997 regional economic crisis, Gesta said there is still a dire need for the banking system to strengthen its monitoring program to spot clients that have mishandled their accounts in their respective banks.

Aside from the local network of member banks, the exchange of credit blacklisting is not only limited in Metro Cebu, as the ACIS system is also connected with the national information exchange through the Bankers Association of the Philippines (BAP).

“We are trying to improve the monitoring technology through the ACIS. We have to protect the credibility of the banking industry, as well as the individual banking business,” Gesta said.

CBC will be managing the system. In fact, it has created a committee that will solely look into the implementation of the enhanced ACIS tool, so that all member banks can easily access the listing of questionable borrowers of clients.

The improvement of ACIS technology is one of the priorities of the CBC this year, including its active stance on strengthening the security issue of each bank members, on the light of rampant bank robberies.

While the banking sector has remained very strong amid the global recession, Gesta said it has to continuously protect its business from being victimized by clients who have bad credit histories in other banking institutions.

This means that unlike the pre-1997 period that banking credit availability was so laxed, this time, although the economy is already on its recovery road, Gesta said the banking sector remains prudent, and very strict in terms of providing credit to customers.

“We learned a lot from the 1997 crisis. The reason why the banking sector in the Philippines remained strong amid the global recession, because we have put everything in place to protect the system from being crippled again,” Gesta said.

ACIS or the facility that allows banks to exchange information on list of delinquent borrowers

was initiated by CBC about nine years ago. This time, Gesta said CBC had decided to enhance the technology that will also include other applications related to client monitoring and background check.

However, Gesta noted that over the years, the number of delinquent borrowers has declined significantly, as traders as well as banking clients are also now cautious in availing loans from the bank, and also becoming very conscious in protecting their credibility to their banking partners.

“Unlike in the pre-1997 times, where there were a lot of risk-takers or gamblers. Now, borrowers are also become more conservative,” he concluded.

Source: The Freeman Cebu

One Fine Morning At UCC Café

CEBU, Philippines - Breakfast is the most important meal of the day.

Starting your day with the right company of friends and the superb breakfast fare at the upscale UCC Café at The Terraces of Ayala Center Cebu is like a giant leap forward to a wonderful day.

We arrived at the UCC Café at 7 am and the place was already buzzing with several people also hoping to get that perfect kick start for the day.

Starting off with a healthy blend of tropical juices that titillated our taste buds, we were ready for a breakfast experience that has already changed the lifestyle of several Cebuanos and visitors to this Queen City of the South.

It did not take long for the house favorite, Shitake mushroom omelet to be served along with Hungarian furthers in waffle. There was also the “Breakfast Surprise” that was an English toast muffin with a slice of ham and tomato, topped with a perfectly poached egg and served with Japanese white sauce.

CEBU, Philippines - Breakfast is the most important meal of the day.

Starting your day with the right company of friends and the superb breakfast fare at the upscale UCC Café at The Terraces of Ayala Center Cebu is like a giant leap forward to a wonderful day.

We arrived at the UCC Café at 7 am and the place was already buzzing with several people also hoping to get that perfect kick start for the day.

Starting off with a healthy blend of tropical juices that titillated our taste buds, we were ready for a breakfast experience that has already changed the lifestyle of several Cebuanos and visitors to this Queen City of the South.

It did not take long for the house favorite, Shitake mushroom omelet to be served along with Hungarian furthers in waffle. There was also the “Breakfast Surprise” that was an English toast muffin with a slice of ham and tomato, topped with a perfectly poached egg and served with Japanese white sauce.

Source: The Freeman Cebu

Wonder Girls at 40

CEBU, Philippines - “I want nobody nobody but you/ I want nobody nobody but you/ How can I be with another I don’t want any other/ I want nobody nobody nobody nobody.” Look! Grandma can dance a hip-hop.

Yes the very refrain of South Korean Wonder Girls’ “Nobody” has its own cognitive itch. The beat, rhythm and lyrics have easily made it a song and dance craze. But for women in their 30s, 40s and 50s or so, to be dancing even more graceful than the 20-year-old and 17-year-old Wonder Girls, is wonderfully a wonder.

At Slimmers World International, chic corporate women executives, moms, grand-moms and great grand-moms can be seen dancing with ease, flexibility and gracefulness all because an aerobics routine was especially choreographed such that clients would not have to catch their breath or strain their muscles. Also because music in these routines are in the popularity charts that — well, if you asked your grandma to dance the hip-hop to the tune of “Irony” — she can do it more gracefully than you. And yes she can execute every step timed to the music.

Veering away from the conventional, “sometimes boring,” high and low impact exercises, the Funk-Aero and Powerdance sessions at Slimmers combine fun, therapy, fitness and enjoyment. You don’t get exhausted or tired after more than an hour of dancing. Aero sessions are supposed to be only for one hour but women clients enjoy the dance and exercise so much that they tend to ask for an extension or attend all morning and evening aero sessions. It is as though they are in the gym most of the time. For those who say they can’t dance, they’ll be surprised to find their feet tapping without their knowing.

It’s Not Your Age.

So how does one teach hip-hop to women who are no longer in their “hip-hop” years? Aerobics instructor Marco Brigoli, who handles the Funk-Aero and Powerdance sessions uses techniques in choreography that has much to do with counting and execution. It’s a pretty big challenge for Marco because his students are women who may have difficulties in flexibility or memorizing moves. But Marco does not seem to see age or gender as a limitation.

Having been an aerobic instructor for well over six years, he still uses the eight-count steps of conventional aerobics routine. But the execution of the arms and legs are done simultaneously. Conventional high and low impact aerobics employ gradual movement starting with muscle groups from the legs going up to the shoulders. But Marco’s Funk-Aero and Powerdance routines combine feet, arms, waists and shoulder movements all in eight counts.

Marco creates his own choreography combining twists, turns, dipping, sliding, jumping and bending that can well be executed with ease even by a 50-year-old.

Marco does not push clients to learn the dance quickly. He teaches pattern by pattern then combines these in continuous movements. As he would tell students “feel the music in the dance and the dance in the music.” So there is mastery in the pattern, Marco repeats the music three or more times until students learn the pattern by themselves. It gives a feeling of confidence and achievement when a dance or routine is completed with minimal coaching.

Choosing the music is another thing. Still it takes patience and creativity for an aero-instructor like Marco to choreograph a dance and exercise routine that is enjoyable, therapeutic and healthy and to use popular music at that. Marco carefully prepares his choreography. He surprises students with something new every week.

Marco’s routines do not over work the heart because the eight-count is maintained which means it follows the normal pace of the heartbeat. If the heart is made to beat a little faster, it is done gradually. And because the heart is made to work and take in more oxygen, the routines are effective calorie-burners. Actually, clients who attend the Funk-Aero and Powerdance sessions are not aware of the hundreds of calories they are burning because they are too busy enjoying the dance and music. They are not even aware they are on an exercise routine.

If you want something cool and upbeat for your weight loss, cardio and fat burning routines, try Marco’s Funk-Aero and Powerdance sessions. Funk-Aero sessions are three times a week and Powerdance once a week. You don’t have to be a 20-year-old or 17-year-old to learn the hip-hop. Hip and hop your way to good health. It’s for nobody –- but you.

Source: The Freeman Cebu

South bus terminal now imposing P5 terminal fee

CEBU, Philippines - All passengers bound for the southern part of Cebu province will now have to pay a terminal fee before entering the Cebu South Bus Terminal effective today.

This was according to Capitol consultant Byron Garcia, who oversees the operation of the terminal, saying that passenger must pay the P5 fee as they now have easier to buses at the newly-refurbished terminal.

Before the passengers can enter the airconditioned passengers’ waiting area, Garcia said he has to drop a P5 coin or five P1 coins at the turnstile and the official receipt that will serve as their boarding pass.

“Mura na unya ni og passenger bus terminal operating like an airport that they will just wait for their bus to arrive,” Garcia said.

Inside the waiting area, stalls with food and drinks can also be found.

Cebu Governor Gwendolyn Garcia earlier imposed strict rules in the terminal by regulating the presence of dispatchers and by demolishing stalls illegally erected in the terminal.

Byron said the passengers will be safe from snatchers and pickpockets as cameras will be installed in the waiting area and the terminal as well. Pushcarts will also be provided to passengers who have bulky cargo.

But the terminal fee got mixed reactions from the passengers.

“Ka-mahal sab anang P5 uy, nganong dili naman lang himuon nga free ang terminal pareha sa North Bus Terminal,” on of them said.

But some said they appreciate the new system saying they no longer have to climb up bus windows and wrestle with each other just to secure a seat.

“Mas mahapsay na sab siguro ang dagan sa mga bus,” said a passenger who always goes home to the southern part of Cebu every afternoon after work.

Byron admitted that they already expected some negative feedback from the passengers but said they will not be forced to get inside the terminal but just wait outside if they like.

With the new system to be implemented, Byron said they can now monitor if buses are overloading and thus ensure passengers are safe.

An entrance fee of P100 for every bus and mini-bus will be charged.

Source: The Freeman Cebu

Of 24.7 hectares Balili property: DENR: Dry land is only 4.5 hectares

CEBU, Philippines - The ground survey conducted by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources confirmed that almost the entire 24.7 hectares Balili property, which the Cebu Provincial Government bought for P98 million last year is actually underwater and mangrove area.

The survey using the Global Positioning System (GPS) showed that 82 percent of the controversial property or 20.2 hectares is submerged and planted with mangroves, which could not be titled for being public land.

Geodetic engineer Aurelio Caña, who conducted the ground survey starting last September 2, told the members of the ad hoc committee of the provincial board yesterday that only 4.5 hectares is dry land.

The result of the survey will be submitted to the Office of the Ombudsman Visayas, which is also conducting a parallel fact-finding investigation into the Balili fiasco.

The anti-graft office earlier asked the DENR to conduct the actual survey of the property to confirm reports that a large portion of the property is submerged.

The DENR findings is contrary to the Capitol survey conducted by engineer Roy Cabunillas, which said only 9.4 hectares of the 24.7 hectares is submerged and planted with mangroves.

The DENR said that based on their records the 4.5 hectares dry land was already reclassified from timberland to alienable and disposable since 1986.

Prior to the reclassification however the owner, the late engineer Luis Balili and his widow Amparo, already secured a title in 1978.

But despite having secured a title, the Balilis applied for other land use permit with the DENR for a bathing establishment, which was renewed in July 6, 2006 and expired only in 2008.

Prior to the issuance of the title in 1978 the Balilis were already granted other lawful purposes permits for salt works and beach resort.

DENR regional counsel Tranne Ferrer said that the application of the Balilis for other land use permit in spite that the property was already titled to them is an indication that they were aware that the title was questionable.

Provincial Board Member Victor Maambong said this would establish bad faith on the part of the Balilis in selling the property to the province.

Maambong echoed the statement of Vice Governor Gregorio Sanchez on the possibility of rescinding the contract.

Ferrer and the other DENR officials were again summoned to the provincial board yesterday.

PB member Peter John Calderon asked Ferrer if they have issued a notice to the Register of Deeds regarding their recommendation for the reversion of the titles of the Balili lots so as to warn would be buyers.

Ferrer admitted that the agency did not, but said the DENR has already admitted that there was a mistake in the issuance of the titles. She said this is the reason why they have recommended for the nullification of the titles.

Ferrer added that prudent buyers should have inquired the status of the property with the DENR and should not have relied on the “mirror principle” by looking at the four corners of the titles only.

According to Ferrer, if she was the buyer and considering the amount involved is P98 million she would inquire the status of the land with the DENR.

PB member Juan Bolo, who is tagged of facilitating the transaction, questioned why it took 20 years for DENR to initiate the reversion after it was issued.

But Ferrer said she could not answer it because she was not with the DENR that time yet. She however surmised that it must have been because it was only in 1989 that the Bureau of Lands was merged with the DENR.

The members of the ad hoc committee also tried to establish yesterday the flow of the transaction documents following the mystery behind the voucher which was made as basis for the issuance of the checks payment to Atty. Romeo Balili, executor of the Balili estate.

None of the Capitol officials would admit preparing the vouchers. Although provincial treasurer Roy Salubre earlier said that as a practice, it is usually the requisitioning office that would prepare the voucher.

However, Salubre could not determine whether it was the office of Governor Gwendolyn Garcia which prepared it.

Budget Officer Emmy Gingoyon, planning officer Adolfo Quiroga and pre-audit chief Manuel Gial were called yesterday to the board but none of them could also tell who prepared the voucher.

Source: The Freeman Cebu

CICT executive confident RP to hit BPO growth target

CEBU, Philippines - Despite the global financial crunch that hit most industries, a Commission of Information and Communication Technology (CICT) executive is confident that the Philippines’ Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) industry will meet the 20 percent growth target this year.

One of the growth drivers of the Philippines is strongly anchored on its attractiveness as preferred site for offshore operations, said CICT secretary Ray Anthony Roxas-Chua.

“As of now, we are on target for the 20 percent growth this year,” said Roxas-Chua, although he said that the industry is now very cautious in hitting ambitious growth target as companies around the world are still having second thoughts whether or not to pursue expansion plans.

He said Cebu for instance has already gained the international spotlight as preferred BPO destination, and this could give boost to the industry’s growth this year.

Roxas-Chua noted that although most BPO investors are very cautious in their expansion plans, some on the other hand, have bravely pursued investment plans this year.

He mentioned that Cebu will be able to continuously attract new BPO investments saying “Cebu has respectable international business community because of its friendly environment.”

The CICT secretary also lauded Cebu’s active stance on industry-academe linkage that impress the BPO investors.

Once the world recovers from the recession jitters, Roxas-Chua is confident the Philippines will be able to capture a bigger chunk of the BPO investments, which will then domino to more jobs for the Filipino people.

“Despite the current global economic crisis, the IT-BPO industry is expected to grow approximately 20 percent for 2009. While the bulk of revenue still comes from voice services, the industry is now focusing on diversifying into the higher value-added non-voice services, such as software development, which will provide higher paying jobs to Filipinos,” he stressed.

The industry employed about 372 thousand workers as of year-end 2008 and generated 6 billion US dollars of export revenue for the year.

Meanwhile, the Business Process Association of the Philippines (BPAP) earlier announced that while the Philippines already created a leverage in the BPO voice service as well as growing software development segment, it is also fighting to seize the multi-million-dollar BPO creative industry.

BPAP executive director for talent development Jamea S. Garcia earlier said there is a huge potential that the Philippines could rake in a bigger share in job contracts from other countries, as Filipinos are known for their excellent creativity skills.

“We already have a lot of content development companies here that do jobs for Cartoon Network, Nickelodeon, and most of Japanese animation companies,” said Garcia.

In 2008, the creative BPO sector generated total revenue of US$150 million. The Philippines currently is getting 15 percent of the total creative outsourcing market, while India is getting 37 percent.

Source: The Freeman Cebu

CHI launches "Greenology" campaign

CEBU, Philippines - With climate change now becoming one of the most important issues that needs utmost attention, Cebu’s real estate giant Cebu Holdings Inc. (CHI) recently launched a sustainable development campaign promoting environmental awareness.

“It is time that we involve not only our mall tenants but also the mall-goers to be proactive in helping protect the environment,” said CHI President Francis Monera during the launching of the mall’s “Greenology” campaign.

CHI, the developer and operator of Ayala Center Cebu (ACC) shopping center, will pioneer a very active move in educating shoppers to embrace full responsibility on environment awareness, through introducing year-long activities that promotes environmental protection.

One activity is the drive to eliminate or reduce the use of plastic shopping bags.

Monera explained that shoppers are given incentives when they turn over plastic shopping bags that contain items purchased inside ACC.

The Greenology campaign will also feature environment-friendly bags produced by Filipino designers, “green” garments and recyclables fair, among others.

This campaign according to Monera came as an offshoot of CHI’s sustainable development policy by implementing a sound management system that involves a collaborative effort by the company’s employees, partners, and tenants.

According to CHI, the system involves creating of a sustainability committee; raising awareness among employees, tenants and partners on the importance of environmental protection and sustainable development; implementing energy and water conservation programs; tree planting; and setting in place a solid waste management program.

CHI supports the principle of sustainable development, in which the property developer undertakes measures to ensure that its business activities have little or no impact on the environment, Monera said.

“We put sustainability at the core of the business,” Monera said, citing for instance the mall’s The Terraces, which carries a resort-theme- combining several plant varieties and water fountains surrounded by shops and restaurants.

“Others commented that we could have utilized the garden portion to accommodate more tenants and rake more revenues. But the ‘green portion’ is our way of sending out a message that our projects carry with it our efforts in raising environmental awareness,” he said.

As part of its sustainability program, CHI will start calculating this year the carbon footprint of each employee. The activity is meant to raise the awareness of CHI employees on how their activities contribute to climate change.

Monera said CHI will eventually require employees to reduce their carbon footprint. But the company has to educate employees before establishing benchmarks and setting targets, he added.

Elson Homez, CHI head for property management division, reported that since it implemented energy and water saving measures last year, CHI has cut power consumption by 8.7 percent and achieved a three-percent reduction in water consumption.

Source: The Freeman Cebu

Israel reiterates offer to lend infra expertise

CEBU, Philippines - The State of Israel has reiterated its offer to share its expertise in infrastructure development in the Philippines, in partnership with various local government units (LGUs) in the country.

Israel Ambassador to the Philippines Zvi Aviner Vapni emphasized the need for the Philippines to augment its water infrastructure technology, and he believes that Israel could largely help in this area.

Already, Israel has already done partnership with the Local Water Utilities Administration (LWUA), in some water projects in Cebu and Baguio City.

“We would like to [further] share our expertise and intensive information on the field [water technology],” said Vapni adding that aside from partnering with the LGUs, some private companies in Israel which are into providing water technology are also interested to partner with Philippine-based water solution companies.

In Israel, where water is scarce, it has developed a good technology that would preserve water efficiency, how to use every drop of water—not waste it, the Ambassador said.

In Cebu particularly, wherein water shortage is foreseen, LGUs as well as private water technology firms will have to act now, in developing good technology that will augment the water supply available for the province.

Now, that Israel has recently opened its Cebu Consular office headed by Emily Benedicto-Chioson, Vapni hopes that stronger partnership in terms of trade and technology transfer will be started.

The looming water shortage in Cebu in the next few years is now one of the concerns expressed by existing and potential investors in Cebu, especially in the tourism industry.

Source: The Freeman Cebu

Franchising: Safest way to start up, expand a biz

CEBU, Philippines - With the current state of the economy, starting up a business seems too risky, that is unless if you are investing in something that is already well-established or on something that has already gained considerable consumer patronage, which can only be done through franchising.

Those planning to try their hands on operating their own business flocked to the SM City Cebu Trade Hall last September 11 for the opening of the 10th Cebu Franchise Expo with over 70 booths offering around 200 franchise and business opportunities.

Established companies and even start-up businesses from different industries ranging from food, garment, to health and wellness among others, exhibited what they could offer to interested partners.

Business owners admit that offering their businesses for franchise entails risk, however, it is also the most prudent way to expand one’s business.

Christian Cuenco, General Manager of six-month-old family KTV “Song Hits,” located in Mango Avenue, Juana Osmeña St., said that even though they just started with the business, they decided to accept franchisees since they have noted high sales owing to the love of Filipinos, Cebuanos in particular, for singing.

Cuenco said that they initially offer a franchise deal for P450 thousand but is also encouraging interested partners to take their P5 million franchise package, which already includes the franchise payment, a 24 room KTV, and guidance on how to run the business.

He said that through the franchise, they are optimistic that they would be able to achieve their goals of expanding and reaching farther places in Cebu and other provinces.

Meanwhile, the chief executive officer of OH! My Sisig, Angela Suarez said that though their main goal was to expand through their own efforts as a company, the inquiries from interested partners that flooded their office prompted them to decide to finally offer the business for franchising.

Suarez said that this is also part of their means in order to bring their product and company to other places, which presently is only found in Manila.

However, Suarez said they are very meticulous in terms of choosing the franchisee of OH! My Sisig, which is also done accordingly by other companies to make sure of the safety and quality of their company.

OH! My Sisig franchise costs P185 thousand, which already includes the OH! My Sisig cart, microwave oven, rice cooker, gulaman container, freezer, crew uniform, initial food supply, pre-opening assistance, use of the trade name and the operational manual, training of service crew, and training of the authorized dealer.

The 3-day expo, which ended yesterday was organized by the Filipino International Franchise Association, CEO Events and Expos Organizers Inc., and endorsed by RK Franchise Consultancy.

A franchise seminar was also conducted at SM City Cebu Conference Hall D, which tackled pertinent facts about franchising.

Source: The Freeman Cebu

Franchise Expo meets target of 5K visitors on second day

CEBU, Philippines - More people are becoming open and interested in franchising as a means to invest their heard-earned money with an assurance of return of investments.

This was noted during the 10th Cebu Franchise Expo 2009 held recently at SM City Cebu Trade Hall, with exhibition organizers attesting that they have already achieved the 5,000 target of number of visitors on the second day of the three-day event.

RK Franchise Consultancy CEO Rudolf Kotik said that they are very happy with the turnout of participants, which they noted have been continually increasing every year.

Kotik said that more people see the successful effect of franchising, and in times of crisis like this, it is the safest way of doing business.

Pek Jen Lim, a Cebu-based businessman said that he believes in the success of franchising as the turnover is fast, especially in the food industry which he is interested in.

Lim said that he saw potential businesses that he could venture into through the Franchise expo but he is much more interested in franchising on food products. Lim said that he already deals with food in his current businesses but he wishes to continue such as it is the most supported sector saying “all people eat.’

Lim also said that he sees franchising as the best way to do business even in times of the crisis, since he does not need to experiment therefore not risking his money.

He said that there are things he makes sure though before he goes into franchising like ask for the assurance of his ROI, the kind of food he will be selling and if it could be maintained in the market.

Lim also said that he also sees to it that the Suggested Retail Price would fit the target market and the place where he would want to put up the business.

Ernie Alix, who is new to the business and decided to franchise in a food establishment after he retired this year, said that since he is just starting, it would be a wise move to “use the expertise of other people.”

Alix, who was a former executive of a known-oil company, said that franchising is a safer option for those starting in the business since it would mean making use of the management system of the franchiser.

Alix said he sees the location and the affordability of the products as important factors for the success of a franchise outlet.

Also, he said that he asks for a sample of the cash flow from the company in order to ensure the ROI.

He said that market research is also important and he personally does actual research on the growth of the same franchise outlets to see how it is accepted by the market.

Source: The Freeman Cebu

PDIC approves P2.26 billion claims to Legacy depositors

CEBU, Philippines - The Philippine Deposit Insurance Corporation (PDIC) recently announced that it approved payment claims to Legacy Bank depositors amounting to almost P2.26 billion.

Of this amount, PDIC has paid almost P1.43 billion to Legacy Bank depositors while the balance worth P834.3 million is currently being scheduled for release.

In an official statement, PDIC president Jose C. Nograles said that the seasoned PDIC examiners and external auditors painstakingly combed through about 2,000 boxes of documents to examine and process claims.

Still, a total amount of P2.83 billion representing 21,819 claims was found to document deficient. Depositors, however, have been notified of documents they need to submit to substantiate their claims.

PDIC reported that a total of 39,020 claims amounting to P4.76 billion are in process. Once these are validated, claimants will be sent their check payments or letters notifying them of the status of their claims.

Meanwhile, the state deposit insurer has denied payment for 4,164 claims amounting to P204.07 million. Of the denied claims, 709 claims for P78.68 million represented questionable or fictitious accounts.

The remainder of 3,429 claims worth P125.4 million was claims for non-existent accounts in the Legacy banks.

A total of 19,070 claims amounting to P2.55 billion were put on hold pending further verification.

Nograles expressed confidence that all valid claims will be paid soon. PDIC has completed the examination of accounts end of August 2009 which has resulted in the validation of 109,791 out of the total 134,653 accounts. The rest were accounts with incomplete documents or referred to Legal.

He said that claims processing was in full swing. Claims processing is the second phase of the validation where individual claims filed together with required documents are verified prior to payout to ascertain that the right depositor is paid.

In cases when the documents submitted are insufficient to validate a claim, PDIC is authorized under the law to require additional documents from the depositors to support the claim.

Nograles added that PDIC had been meticulous in the first and second phases of the validation in accordance with the standard procedures in claims processing. This is in response to the post-audit review that the Commission on Audit (COA) undertakes after payments are disbursed and sent to depositors through registered mail.

PDIC has also been cautioned by legislators to be extra diligent in paying deposit insurance claims amidst earlier reports that these Legacy-affiliated banks have engaged in fraudulent transactions.

PDIC has engaged the services of forensic experts from private accounting firm Punongbayan & Araullo to investigate the fraudulent schemes initially unearthed by PDIC in the course of its investigation. These schemes were utilized by Legacy banks to defraud the public and the Deposit Insurance Fund (DIF). The DIF is the funding source for payouts of valid deposit insurance claims. Initial reports indicate that fraud may have been heavily committed on the asset side of the banks’ transactions involving siphoning of funds.

Punongbayan & Araullo is affiliated with Grant Thornton, International PA. Forensic fraud audit is an investigation geared towards uncovering transactions intentionally hidden in a maze of paper trail and deleted computer files.

It aims to identify and document possible fraud schemes, irregularities and anomalies that may have been perpetrated against the banks and which may be used as basis for the filing of criminal, civil and/or administrative cases.

Source: The Freeman Cebu

Qualfon to hire more workers

CEBU, Philippines - Mexico-based call center Qualfon aims to strengthen its workforce in its Cebu operations targeting 1,000 more employees by the end of this year, to boost its current 1,500 workers.

Qualfon chief executive officer Alfonso Gonzales said that they attribute their successful operations through their Cebu branch and expanding is their way of helping Cebu’s economy by providing employment.

Gonzales was in Cebu recently to grace the grand opening of their office at the Skyrise 3-Qualfon building Asiatown IT Park, where they are now occupying floors 9, 10, 11, and 12 and also soon to occupy the 14th floor.

Gonzales shared that since they brought their company in Cebu in June of 2006, they only started with 150 employees and was only using one floor of their recent office which was also in the area, but in the first Skyrise building.

He said that due to the growth of their company in Cebu throughout the years and a positive anticipation of how it would continually develop, they saw the importance of expanding their office as well.

Starting as the only call center outsourcing in Asia, Gonzales said that they particularly chose to bring their company to the country because of the good working attitude of the Filipinos, which includes commitment to the company and the profession, and how Filipinos handle customers properly.

This, Gonzales said are traits that have been known by many to be possessed by the Filipinos, which made them not to think twice of bringing Qualfon to the country. “Cebuanos are already a package. They possess a lot of these good traits.”

With a “Bigger, Bolder, and Better” workplace for all their employees, this is the company’s way of saying that, “we’ve made it to the next level.”

Source: The Freeman Cebu

Despite Assurance By Power Firm: Korean group warns Cebuanos on Kepco

CEBU, Philippines - Capitol must think twice and study further the environmental impact of a coal-fired power plant before allowing the Korean Electric Company (Kepco) operate in Cebu, Korean environmentalists warned yesterday.

Kepco, meanwhile, cried foul over being singled out over the issue of coal ash dumping in the controversial Balili lot in Tinaan, Naga and stressed that health problems experienced by Naga residents could never be related to them since their power plant is yet to operate.

“We could never be the source of these ashes,” Kepco said.

The Korean Federation for Environmental Movement (KFEM) reported that since 1990 after Kepco built its coal powered plant in Dangjin, South Korea, the town has never been the same as before – wetlands have become dry lands, water increased its temperature by one degree Celsius and gone are the days when they could breathe fresh air.

While Kepco has brought advantages in the rural community of Korea being able to bring electricity even to its remotest area, the company has allegedly caused more harm than good.

KFEM Executive Director Kim Byeong Bin said that Kepco is a Korean company and with this they feel it is their responsibility to warn Cebuanos about the possible effects that Kepco’s project might bring in the next two years when it starts operating.

The power plant that Kepco built in Dangjin has a capacity of 4,000 megawatts with eight engines generating power.

About 10 million tons of coal is imported every year for its operation.

As usual for any operating power plants, water is needed to lower the temperature of its generating machines.

For this, 200 tons of hot water per second is discharged to the open sea affecting and area of about 62.3 square kilometers.

In terms of gas emissions, KFEM reported that the plant is releasing 25,000 tons of sulfuric acid, 20,000 of nitric acid and 3,000 tons of dust per year to include the small amount of other substances like mercury.

Kepco Corporate Secretary and General Counsel Guillermo P. Dabbay, Jr. said these reports from a group in Korean environmentalists have no basis and no concrete research data.

In fact, Dabbay said, that if anyone can visit Dangjin, the plant is using a clean modern technology specially designed to reduce the environmental impacts of coal power operation.

Contrary to what the Korean group alleged about marine ecological system alteration, the sea water there abounds with marine creatures.

Kepco also denied strong community resistance because they made sure that they are implementing a system that strictly addresses environmental impacts.

Kepco said that their mission in building a power plant in Cebu is to fulfill their commitment to the country “to bring essential power in Cebu, Panay and Negros which have already been suffering intermittent blackouts.”

It is not influenced by any personal interest because their investment, if to be examined, is a total risk on their part since theirs is a merchant plant, therefore, like any other investor, they will be selling their power in Cebu without any assurance of a good profit.

Before starting the construction of the plant in Naga in 2007, they committed and firmly declared that they intend to follow all the provisions of the Environmental Compliance Certificate issued by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources Central Office.

Dabbay said that Kepco will definitely address all environment concerns of the community especially the health hazards they allegedly caused the residents. He assured the public that they will be diligent in following all the DENR mandates outlined in the ECC as based on the environmental hazard study they submitted.

“Violating of the environmental laws will be the last thing in our agenda,” he said.

He said they are just waiting for the result of the DENR analysis in the coal ashes found dumped in Naga. “We have first to confirm the reports, validate it, and in the event it is proven that there are relations to our operation, then we have to do something.”

He clarified that they can only start the actual dumping on 2011 when they start operating as provided in the Memorandum of Agreement they signed with the provincial government of Cebu.

“Actually, these issues have already resolved even during the times when we were still conducting public hearings and consultations with the members of the community in Naga. It is just unfortunate that we are being dragged in the issue of the controversial Balili lot,” Dabbay said.

Nevertheless, Dabbay said that they still believe that their deal with the province of Cebu will proceed. “Our only hope is that the Balili issue will end immediately.”

Source: The Freeman Cebu

ECONOMY HIT BY GROUNDING OF SHIPS Cebu bizmen: Let ships sail

CEBU, Philippines - The suspension of the vessels Aboitiz Transport System after the sinking of SuperFerry 9 last weekend off the Zamboanga peninsula has far greater effects beyond stranded passengers.

The business community in Cebu has written Transport Secretary Leandro Mendoza to express concern over the delay in the transport of goods and services brought about by the suspension order issued by the Maritime Industry Authority (MARINA).

The Cebu Chamber of Commerce and Industry, in a letter signed by its president Samuel Chioson, said that while passenger safety is very important, so is the “timely and safe delivery of goods.”

“Business, at this point, is still trying to cope with the inconvenience, disruption and higher shipping costs brought about by the suspension of the Sulpicio passenger operations.Now, the situation is further compounded by the suspension of the Superferry passenger fleet.The Cebu business sector is anxious,” said Chioson in the letter to Sec. Mendoza.

Chioson added that the decrease of cargo shipping capacity in Cebu affects the trade and industry in the whole province and region.

The economy is dependent on the shipping industry for the transport of goods and the reduction in the number of vessels that are operating would mean an increase in the cost of transportation.

Chioson said that this would greatly affect the businesses not only in Cebu, but the whole country in general.

CCCI has given a few suggestions to resolve the matter including the speedy and impartial investigation of the Superferry 9 incident and penalizing those responsible for the tragedy.

CCCI also requests that the “sweeping reactions such as the immediate suspension of all SuperFerry passenger vessels must be reconsidered since this will greatly hamper passenger mobility as well as significantly reduce cargo shipping capacity between the islands.

“The wholesale suspension should, therefore, be lifted for vessels which have been previously certified as seaworthy by MARINA.”

They added that the suspension ofSulpicio Lines after the sinking of M/V Princess of the Stars last year, should also be lifted for vessels that have been duly inspected and certified as seaworthy.

The CCCI, which has over 900 members, also said that there must be strict enforcement of laws and close monitoring of compliance to regulations.These must also be sustained in a consistent manner by the concerned agencies and resolute steps towards the modernization and reform of the shipping industry must be taken as a joint responsibility of government and the private sector.

CCCI also mentioned that the “concerned government agencies under the direction of the Department of Transportation & Communication must provide business with timelines so that companies can adequately plan and identify options for the transport of their goods, materials and personnel.”

“With all due respect, Sir, our arguments, particularly on the effect of this situation on Cebu’s economy, are a reiteration of the stand of Cebu business when the Sulpicio Lines incident occurred more than fifteen months ago.With every sea tragedy involving our domestic shipping lines, it has become a cycle of suspension and investigation,” added Chioson.

The CCCI president said that if the ships would not be allowed to sail, Cebu may not fully see recovery in the financial crisis that hit the world early last year.

He said that Cebu already noted of early signs of bouncing back from the economic crunch and should be boosted.

“We pray that our position and recommendations be seriously considered.”

SuperFerry 9 was on its way to Iloilo from General Santos City when it sank.Ten people have been confirmed dead in the incident while about 900 others were rescued.

The MARINA has issued a suspension order for all vessels of SuperFerry so that all of them would undergo inspection to ensure that there would be no repeat of the tragedy.

Sorce: The Freeman Cebu

FLI pays city P11.5M in advance taxes

CEBU, Philippines - Filinvest Land Inc. yesterday handed over to Cebu City Mayor Tomas Osmeña a check for P11.5 million as the firm’s advance tax payment to the city.

FLI has decided to pay taxes in advance on condition that the money will be spent only to improve the drainage systems and road concreting within its ongoing commercial condominium project in barangay Kasambagan.

The property developer’s vice president Tristan Las Marias personally handed over the check worth P11,557,109 to Osmeña who assured him that the city will comply with FLI’s request to encourage other businessmen to follow their example.

Part of the amount will also be used to install street lights along the vicinity of the One Oasis Mabolo project.

Las Marias said One Oasis Mabolo project is a P1.4-billion investment of FLI, which will feature 10 medium-rise commercial buildings on a 3.7-hectare property in barangay Kasambagan behind the Cebu Country Club.

One Oasis is one of the P10 billion worth of projects that Filinvest will be putting up in Cebu.

The barangay officials earlier opposed the construction of the project for fear that it might cause drainage problem within the nearby areas that prompted FLI to find solutions.

In last week’s city council session, the city legislators allowed the mayor to enter into and sign the memorandum of agreement with FLI for the advance tax payment.

It was provided for in the memorandum of agreement that the city shall issue the notice of award of contracts to the qualified bidder who will undertake the project to be completed not later than eight months.

In the past few years the city also accepted the advance tax payments of SM City Cebu amounting to P53 million on condition that the money will be spent to improve the roads and drainage systems near the mall in the North Reclamation Area.

Source: The Freeman Cebu

Money in distressed property

MANILA, Philippines - Properties-in-distress offers of lot of opportunities to real estate investors not only in terms of good profit but also the opportunity of saving the owner’s credit standing and remaining equity in the property. In addition, the good image of the neighborhood is restored after rehabilitating dilapidated properties. It also saves the distressed owner from more sleepless nights and gives him a new start with the money saved from the avoided foreclosure.

To learn more techniques on how to profitably invest in distressed properties, Urban Institute of Real Estate invites investors to attend a seminar on “Making Big Money in Distressed Properties” on October 14, 1:30 p.m. to 6 p.m. at the Maximo Function Room, 2nd Floor, Max’s Restaurant, near exit of Glorietta 2, Ayala Center, Makati City.

The four-hour lecture includes how to solve the owner’s problem; the overall strategies; keys to success; how to find distressed properties/sellers; how to make your offer, important provisions for your protection; negotiating strategies with owner and lender; common mistakes that should be avoided; valuing properties by mini appraisal; many tips on inspecting properties, financing, rehabilitating the property, selling the property, documentation and registration, taxation; and other important topics.

The lecturer is Engr. Enrico Cruz, who has more than 40 years in real estate, engineering, construction, management and education. Cruz is also a licensed real estate consultant and 1st and 8th placer in the real estate appraiser’s and broker’s board examinations respectively, and was invested as a “Real Estate Fellow” by the Philippine Council of Real Estate Educators.

Urban will also be conducting lectures on other topics every Wednesdays until October 14, at the same time and venue as follows: Sept. 16 – Property Valuation: How To Do It Yourself; Sept. 23 – How to Start and Manage A Successful Real Estate Brokerage Company; Sept. 30 – Taxation of Real Estate Transactions; Oct. 7 – Real Estate Finance and Investment Analysis.

For other details or advance registration, Urban Institute may be reached at 948-8191 or 796-8019, or CP#0916-426-9174/0921-683-9431 or by email at urbanet@pacific.net.ph or urbanet.ph@gmail.com. Details may also be viewed at www.urban-institute.blogspot.com.

Source: The Philippine Star

Academe calls for training assistance from industries

CEBU, Philippines - In its effort to provide highly-employable graduates especially to the Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) companies, the academe is calling on industry players to help them train graduating students.

On top of the traditional OJT (On-the-Job-Training), the academe is now asking industry players to provide one or two technical personnel to be deployed in the school, to provide extensive overview of the different technical skills requirement mostly needed by BPO companies today.

Cebu Educational Development for Information Technology (CEDFIT) academe-sector board member Gregg Gabison said if industry players can only sacrifice part of their resources in coaching the near-graduate students, scarcity of highly qualified technical people for BPOs can be avoided in Cebu.

Because of this effort though, there are already a number of BPO companies operating in Cebu that have responded to this call, “but only a few of them.”

According to Gabison, with the help of Cedfit and full cooperation of the BPO players, the academe-industry gap will be resolved in Cebu.

He said only about 30 percent of the BPO companies, specifically those that are in software development, animation, digital imaging, and other sophisticated technical applications are reaching out to the academe sector to help students learn new skills in the industry.

Because of the broad spectrum in IT, most schools’ will only provide the basic learning for the students, highly technical, and various specific applications can be introduced to students through industry-mentoring strategy, Gabison said.

“There are active industry players that come to us to offer their resources. They help us in coming up with curriculum to fit their specific needs,” Gabison said.

Cebu, being positioned as the next “Innovation Island” in Asia, needs this kind of stronger collaboration between industry and academe, Gabison said.

He said unlike the OJT program, which companies have the choice to deploy the interns to the real job, or not, the industry-academe mentoring program, will give students the full orientation and learning of the on-site operation.

Information Technology graduates, and those that are specializing the other skills, like programming, computer engineering, and others have already acquired basic learning on the course, but they need to be updated and be fully oriented on the real-site operation, away from theories.

Gabison believes that the academe will gain full support from the industry players Cebu will be able to easily achieve its bid becoming an “Innovation Island”, thereby pushing the province being an emerged BPO destination in the world, from number one “emerging” BPO destination.

Earlier, economist Ramon M. Quesada said that Cebu could capture a large number of BPO and high-value investments in the Information, Communication Technology (ICT), if it were to immediately address the lack of software developer or software engineer supply in the province.

In terms of voice and back-office services, Cebu and other provinces in Central Visayas combined had been able to overtake India, in terms of investors’ interest. But this potential can be doubled if Cebu, having the large number of colleges and universities in Southern Philippines, will develop a good pool of software engineers and developers.

“What we lack is a good advantage in software development,” he said adding that this strength is still being held by India.

Source: The Freeman Cebu

English skills remain a plus for Cebuanos

CEBU, Philippines - The English proficiency of Filipinos, particularly the Cebuanos, is one good advantage emphasized by a company engaged in inviting more investors to the city.

This was shared by Paul Winters, the chief operating officer of Bragg, Winters and Associates Professional Advisory Inc., which offers consultancy services to companies and providing them with information, training and changes that need to be made to meet and exceed their potential.

The company also invites more investors and deals with companies abroad that could bring in their businesses in Cebu.

According to Winters, BWAPA is instrumental to the influx of Business Process Outsourcing companies in Cebu or the call centers which are seen to increase in the coming years.

Winters said that when they sell or advertise Cebu to companies, the proficiency of the people and the hardworking attitude are always stressed because companies see these as a big factor.

He also shared that the Cebuanos’ attitude towards giving importance to the culture and environment is also an advantage that encourages the foreign companies to invest in Cebu.

He said that Cebu has so much to offer with the good place and people, which have been eyed by big and small companies all over the world.

Winters also said that aside from the importance given to the voice outsourcing companies, which is presently giving boost to the employment rate of the country, the non-voice outsourcing companies also deserve a great amount of attention.

He said that Small and Medium enterprises for example play a vital role in the community, and this sector likewise needs a lot of help. Winters said BWAPA is also consulting companies from this sector, who might be interested to bring in their businesses to Cebu.

"They have the biggest concerns," he added.

BWAPA is also currently dealing with hotels in Cebu and are helping them in their respective concerns that would help them do better in terms of sales, marketing, management and standards.

The company was founded two years ago and is a full service business consultancy that aims to utilize their talents, energies and expertise toward the benefit of the clients they serve through servicing of their time tested business methods, innovative strategies and the latest technology.

The company was put up after its founder's saw the potential of Cebu into being a world-class destination for tourism and business development.

Source: The Freeman Cebu

CEBU, Philippines - To cushion the expected power supply shortage in Cebu this month, the Visayas Electric Company (VECO) and CEMEX Philippines recent

Cebu’s power sector industry players like VECO are expecting a shortage of 10 to 20-megawatts (MW) of power supply this month as independent power plants (IPP) undergo a temporary shutdown of their facilities to begin their scheduled maintenance.

VECO and CEMEX’s agreement will immediately be submitted to the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) for approval.

“Although power generation is not the core business of CEMEX, we offer to supply VECO with excess generation capacity in order to help address the power shortage in the province,” said CEMEX Philippines President Sergio Menendez.

Menendez credits CEMEX’s power surplus from the company’s efforts to making its plants more energy efficient.

CEMEX, which is a global building material firm, is the third largest cement manufacturing firm in the Philippines.

The additional 10-MW of power from CEMEX, will help in view of the tight power supply situation in the Cebu-Negros-Panay (CNP) grid.

“The agreement will help address the power shortfall experienced by VECO’s customers in the past weeks. This will ensure the continued growth of Cebu by making reliable and efficient electricity available to commercial, industrial and residential users at all times,” Lacson said.

Based on estimates, the CNP grid has an average of 90-MW power deficit daily during peak hours, VECOs contribution is abut 15-20 MW, Lacson said.

Reportedly, the grid is now at a 30-percent deficit and this level is expected to worsen come December.

Earlier, VECO’s mother company Aboitiz Power Corporation (AP) announced that it is working on importing power supply from Luzon to Cebu.

As soon as AP completes the legality processes with National Grid Corp. of the Philippines (NGCP), and Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC), it will soon implement the planned power importation.

Initially, the company is planning to import least 10 megawatts during off-peak hours through the existing submarine cables connecting Luzon to Leyte and Leyte to Cebu to its sister-company Balamban Enerzone, but it is also looking at augmenting power supply in Cebu in offering this to different power distribution companies in the province, especially VECO, which is also partly-owned by the Aboitizes.

Source: The Freeman Cebu

Study reveals major shift in IT development, growth

CEBU, Philippines - While network and internet infrastructure companies are investing money to provide connection even to the remotest place in the Philippines, IDC-Digital Universe study revealed that a fundamental shift in the areas of information growth, security, compliance and management is seen in the next few years.

The IDC study revealed that over the next four years, the number of information-generation technologies and interaction will increase dramatically. Mobile users will grow to 600 million in four years time, as more people will become Internet heavy users.

Non-traditional IT devices such as wireless meters, automobile navigation system, industrial machines, RFID (radio frequency identification) readers, and intelligent sensor controllers, will grow by a factor of 3.6.

Because of the increasing high-technology generation, interactions between people via email, messaging, social networks, and others, will also grow dramatically.

Moreover, more of the world’s economic stimulus efforts will also increase the amount of digital information created, the result of increased access to broadband communications, electronic patient recorders, smart electric grids, smart buildings and autos.

By 2012, IDC projected that 850 million people will buy and sell products and services on the Internet and twice as much, Internet commerce will take place versus 2005.

Also in the same year, Internet commerce will become a US$13 trillion industry, mostly involving sensitive business-to-business commerce.

Meanwhile, the Philippine Long Distance Telephone Company (PLDT) earlier announced that it is spending a total of P27 billion in expansion investments, including its plan to roll out “fiber-to-home” technology in the middle of this year, and its ultimate goal in providing “broadband-for-all.”

The company incurred P25.2 billion in capital expenditure in 2008. This year, despite the volatile economic conditions, PLDT is increasing its capex allocation by P3 billion more.

“The 2008 capex level reflects PLDTs continued investment in the business, an outlook sustained in our forecasted capex of P27 billion for 2009. We are looking beyond the near-term uncertainty and positioning for the long-term when global situation stabilizes,” said PLDT president and chief executive officer (CEO) Napoleon L. Nazareno

The introduction of “fiber-to-home” technology will provide Filipinos with much reliable and faster internet connection. Although this may cost a little higher compared to ordinary connection, it is considered as the “ultimate” in fixed line infrastructure.

PLDT, the largest telecommunication provider in the Philippines, reported that Internet traffic has grown at least 80 percent year on year since 2006. Broadband subscriber based continued to grow robustly, and approached one million by year-end.

Total broadband and Internet service revenues for the company grew 45 percent to P11 billion in 2008, which now represents eight percent of consolidated service revenues from six percent in 2007.

Source: The Freeman Cebu