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San Miguel in talks for coal mines

MANILA, Philippines - Philippine food-to-power conglomerate San Miguel Corp. said on Thursday it is looking at acquiring more coal mines to support its expansion into coal power projects.

San Miguel, through unit SM Energy Corp., plans to build coal-fired plants with a capacity of 150 to 300 megawatts in the southern Philippines.

"SM Energy has received offers for sale of coal mines located in Mindanao and initial talks between SM Energy and the proponents of such coal mines have been held," San Miguel said in a statement to the stock exchange.

Earlier this month, SM Energy bought a coal mine on Mindanao island.

The planned power project would cost up to $300 million and is expected to be on stream by 2010.

Aboitiz to bid for Angat hydro project

MANILA, Philippines - Energy producer Aboitiz Power Corp. said on Thursday it will team up with Norway's SN Power to bid for the 246-megawatt Angat hydro electric plant that is being privatised this year.

"Yes we will bid for Angat," Michael Hosillos, vice president for corporate services at SN Aboitiz Power Group, told reporters.

SN Aboitiz Power operates the Aboitiz Group's hydro power business, which has a total capacity of nearly 500 MW.

The Angat power plant in Bulacan, north of the capital, has attracted the interest of major local companies including Ayala Corp. and Metro Pacific Investment Corp.

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Lacson's lawyer: No rush to cancel Ping's passport

MANILA, Philippines - A lawyer said Thursday that there should be no rush to cancel the passport of Senator Panfilo "Ping" Lacson, who is wanted for the November 2000 murders of publicist Salvador "Bubby" Dacer and his driver, Emmanuel Corbito.

Lacson's lawyer Alex Avisado said cancelling the passport of the senator would render moot their pending motion for the determination of probable cause before the Manila City Regional Trial Court Branch 18.

The Dacer sisters on Wednesday asked the lower court to consider asking the Department of Foreign Affairs to cancel Lacson's passport and officially declare him a fugitive.

The Dacers’ lawyer, Demetrio Custodio, told ANC’s Dateline Philippines that Lacson’s prolonged stay out of the country means he has no intention of facing the murder charges in court.

“With his continuing non-appearance, it would now be right to declare him a fugitive from justice,” Custodio said, adding that the cancellation of the senator’s passport would prevent him from hopping from one country to another.

Avisado said the Dacer sisters’ motion has no basis.

He said Lacson can only be declared a fugitive, and his passport cancelled, if he has completely abandoned his defense in court.

“We still have a pending motion for reconsideration, motion for inhibition and other several pending motions. He cannot be declared a fugitive. His passport could not be legally cancelled,” the senator’s lawyer said.

He said that if the senator’s passport is cancelled and he appears in court voluntarily or involuntarily, their pleading before the lower court would become moot.

Political color

Avisado said they feel that the Dacer sisters’ move to rush the arrest of Lacson has a political angle.

Instead of focusing on Lacson, who has been cleared by former police superintendent Glenn Dumlao in the Dacer-Corbito double murder, Avisado said the sisters should go after former President Joseph Estrada, who is running again for the presidency in the May 10 elections.

“The way we see it, the branding of Lacson as a fugitive is merely for show. There is no legal purpose,” he said, adding that Lacson’s camp has been waiting for the Dacer sisters to make good their threat to file murder cases against Estrada for his alleged involvement in the double murder case.

Avisado said that aside from Dumlao’s testimony clearing Lacson, the testimony of former police officer Cezar Mancao cannot be used as a basis for the filing of murder charges against the senator.

He said Mancao has told the court that he was not sure about Lacson’s alleged role in the murders.

The lawyer was referring to Mancao’s testimony that he overheard Lacson ordering another former police officer, Michael Ray Aquino, to kill Dacer and his driver.

He said that during cross-examination, Mancao admitted that his interpretation of the conversation between Lacson and Aquino could have been wrong because he was only eavesdropping.

“In most criminal cases, this would automatically result to a dismissal of the case,” Avisado said.

Roxas biggest ad spender earlier in the game

Before he slid down to VP race, the Liberal bet was ready to match Villar’s resources

MANILA, Philippines—To veterans in political circles, the 2010 presidential campaign started 3 years ago. In November 2007, in a huge event at the historic Club Filipino, Senator Manuel Roxas II assumed presidency of the Liberal Party (LP) and vowed to bring the party to victory in 2010.

Roxas’s presidential ambitions, like Manuel Villar Jr.’s, have been an open secret as far back as 2004. Until Benigno Aquino III entered the picture in August 2009, the country was gearing for a battle royal between the top campaign spenders of the 2001 (Villar) and 2004 (Roxas) senatorial elections.

In a shocking announcement in September—before crying supporters, also in Club Filipino—Roxas said he would just seek the vice presidency to give way to Aquino, his party mate who now wanted to be the Liberal standard bearer.

It was a big decision for Roxas, who had spent a lot on his preparations for the presidential campaign. On political advertising alone, he spent a total of P575.39 million on TV, radio, and print from January to August 2009, based on data from the media monitoring firm AGB Nielsen Media Research.

Roxas was prepared to match Villar’s advertising spending. The LP bet was even outspending his NP rival from January to April 2009, when Roxas spent a total of P268 million versus Villar’s P179 million.

It was old money versus new money. Roxas comes from the old-rich Araneta clan that owns vast tracts of land, more prominently the Araneta Center, a prime property in Cubao, Quezon City. Villar, on the other hand, became a billionaire through his real estate business.

By May 2009, however, Villar beat Roxas’s spending. In the 8-month period from January to August, Villar spent P790 million, which is P215 million more than Roxas’s spending.

The amounts are based on rate cards. The actual cost may be lower. Villar earlier claimed that he got a 66% discount on ad placements because he bought the spots early.

The pioneers

Villar and Roxas may be considered the pioneers of political advertising in the Philippines.

In the 2001 senatorial elections, Villar was the first politician to maximize political advertising. To the tune of Tom Jones’ “Sex Bomb,” a hit song at that time, he introduced his ST slogan (Sipag at Tiyaga, or industry and perseverance), relating those traits to his success in business and politics. He was also endorsed by popular sexy actress Rosanna Roces.

Villar’s ads were credited for his rise from No. 14 in the January 2004 surveys to No. 7 in the official election results. The political ad ban was only lifted in January 2001. Villar was among the few who were prepared to use the new campaign tool. (He won a re-election in 2007 elections, when he was the 3rd biggest spender.)

It was Roxas who pushed the limits of political advertising in the 2004 elections.

In January 2003, or 14 months before Election Day, Roxas introduced himself as “Mr. Palengke” in radio ads. In April 2003, he launched his TV ads, where the Wharton graduate sashayed to the popular tune of “Mr. Suave” by the band Parokya ni Edgar band.

Based on rate cards, then AC Nielsen data shows that Roxas spent P80.9 million in the pre-election year.

DTI ads

That amount, however, is questionable. The whole 2003, when he was launching several advertisements, Roxas was the secretary of the Department of Trade and Industry. He resigned only on December 10.

So like President Arroyo, who was a sitting president before the 2004 polls, Roxas could have also gotten a free ride on advertisements placed by his agency.

A Commission on Audit report shows that the DTI spent P26 million for ads in 2003. This amount is almost 10 times more than the agency’s advertising expenses the following year, P3 million in 2004, when Roxas had left the agency.

The amount of ads put out by DTI under Roxas in 2003 was equivalent to close to half (41%) of what 5 other government agencies and corporations combined spent on ads featuring President Arroyo that year (P63.16 million).

From January to May 2004, when Roxas was no longer with DTI, he spent P96.3 million on his campaign ads.

Roxas topped the 2004 elections with nearly 19 million votes, beating popular movie action star Ramon Bong Revilla Jr., who ranked 2nd. It was a big showing for a relatively unknown Cabinet secretary who ranked 22nd among senatorial hopefuls 8 months before elections. His ads were largely credited for his success.

The VP race

The presidential race was not encouraging for Roxas, however. Even as he battled Villar in the airwaves last year, he was trailing behind in the surveys.

The highest rating Roxas got in 2009 was 13% in May 2009. He ranked 5th among rumored candidates, although at 3% margin of error they were all statistically tied at the top spot.

The other candidates were Vice President Noli De Castro (18%), Senator Francis Escudero (17%), former President Joseph Estrada (15%), and Villar (14%).

But Roxas failed to boost his numbers. In the following survey, conducted from July to August 2008, he lost 2 points. Villar topped this survey with 25%.

When the idea of Benigno Aquino III’s candidacy was broached after President Aquino’s death, LP stalwarts were split. Eventually, Roxas himself offered to slide down.

"Ito na ang pinakamabigat na desisyon sa buhay ko. Maniwala man kayo o hindi, ginagawa ko ito para sa bayan, para sa inyo (This is the hardest decision I had to make in my life. Believe it or not, I did this for the country, for you). I do this for unity in support of change. And if that means that somebody must make the sacrifice, it must be me. Ako na," Roxas told supporters in Club Filipino.

It’s a different story now in the vice presidential race, where it’s become a battle between the top senators of the 2004 (Roxas) and 2007 (Legarda) elections. Both had also aspired for the presidency.

In the Pulse Asia surveys of January and February 2010, Roxas maintained double-digit leads over Legarda. He enjoyed a rating of 47% and 43%, respectively, versus Legarda’s 28% and 27%.

Makati Mayor Jejomar Binay is a far 3rd—13% and 15%, respectively—in the vice presidential race.

Roxas has cut down on spending since he slid down to the vice presidential race. From September to December 2009, he was outspent 4 times by Legarda. The latter spent P178 million versus Roxas’s P42.62 million.

From January to August 2009, Roxas’s monthly average spending on ads was P72 million. In Septembers, when he declared that he would only be seeking the vice presidency, he only spent P5.24 million on ads. In October, Roxas stopped placing ads altogether.

He resumed his spending in November, starting at a meager P1.37 million. In December, he spent P36 million.

In RP, online support may not translate into votes

MANILA, Philippines - “At the Ateneo de Davao University for the Presidential Candidates Forum today,” read the status update on the Facebook fan page linked to the website of presidential candidate Gilbert Teodoro on Tuesday afternoon. The message received 107 comments. Some asked questions about the forum, while others wrote messages of support for the administration’s presidential bet. One user asked the candidate to take action with regards to the “Morong 43.”

It is no surprise in a country that last year Universal McCann dubbed the “social networking capital of the world”, political campaigns are using web platforms like Facebook and Twitter. Presidential hopefuls Gilbert Teodoro, Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III, Manny Villar, Josesph Estrada, Eddie Villanueva, and Richard Gordon all have social networking accounts linked to their websites

Atty. Mike Toledo, spokesman for Gilbert Teodoro and head of the Gilbert Teodoro Media Bureau told ABS-CBN that the campaign’s online efforts are aimed at youth voters, and that the campaign’s strategy is modeled after President Barrack Obama’s new media outreach efforts during the 2008 American elections.

Earlier in the campaign season ABS-CBN reported that the Aquino campaign was also using new media tactics that were inspired by Obama’s presidential campaign.

Obama’s online campaign has been credited with significantly contributing to his success in the 2008 American elections. His campaign had accounts on Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube, and even tapped one of the founders of Facebook, Chris Hughes, to grow the Democratic candidate’s online presence.

But in the Philippines, which has a more limited Internet penetration than America, it is unclear how online support will translate in to votes. The Nacionalista Party candidate Villar dropped six percentage points in the latest Pulse Asia survey. Villar’s campaign website links to a Facebook fan page that has 817,455 fans, a Twitter account that has 1,296 followers, and a Friendster account with 16,379 fans.

The Pulse Asia survey showed a six percentage point increase for Estrada, who has a comparatively smaller presence on social networking platforms. The Facebook and Twitter accounts linked to Estrada’s official website have 14,560 fans and 670 followers respectively. His Friendster account has 41 fans.

New media consultant Carlo Ople is skeptical that politicians in the Philippines will be able to replicate Obama’s success. “Social media is not a one-night stand. It’s a long term thing,” said Ople, noting that the candidates in the Philippines started their online campaigns only a few months before election day.

Ople, whose client list at one point included Sen. Mar Roxas, says that someone who connects to a candidate on a social networking site will not necessarily vote for that candidate. Ople says he is not working for any of the presidential or vice presidential campaigns this election season.

“It depends on how you use your existing fan base,” said Ople, when asked how social networks may influence the election. Ople believes that growing the number of connections on social networking websites, such as fans on Facebook or followers on Twitter, should only be part of a politician’s social media strategy. According to the consultant, the presidential candidates should try to engage and mobilize their social networking connections.

“If each of your 700,000 [Facebook Fans] gets 10 people to vote that’s 7 million, that’s the swing vote right there” he said. “700,000 people can turn into 700,000 soldiers.” Ople says that the Aquino campaign is the presidential campaign that is best engaging its social media networks, as its online campaign encourages people to participate in offline activities like wearing yellow on Fridays to show support for the candidate.

“We see ourselves as a source of information, as a source of energy,” says Felicity Tan, a volunteer for the Aquino campaign who is part of the team that is building the candidate’s social media networks. According to Tan, some fans of the campaign’s Facebook page use the page to coordinate events among themselves, including events that commemorated anniversary of the People Power Revolution.

Tan says that part of the campaign’s strategy is growing the overall number of Facebook fans, though she admits that not every fan will vote for Aquino. “The more people are engaged in Facebook the more it comes up on status updates, the more you can reach more people,” said Tan, referring to the Facebook features that allow users to see what activities their friends have participated in, like posting on a fan page. Earlier this week the campaign posted a three-step guide on its Facebook fan page showing fans how to invite their friends to join the page.

Tan says that the campaign is always “tweaking” its online strategy, but that it will remain largely unchanged between now and the end of the campaign season. She says that participants in Aquino’s social media campaign may use the latest Pulse Asia survey, which indicated that voters want a presidential candidate who is not corrupt and who cares about the poor, to determine “where we need to reach out more.”

The Aquino campaign maintains presences on multiple social networking sites including Twitter, where it has two accounts. The account @noynoyaquino is updated by the senator, according to Tan. The account @noynoy2010 is updated by campaign volunteers.

The website of Villar also links to several social networking websites, including, Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, Flickr, and Friendster. The Villar campaign did not answer several requests by ABS-CBN News to comment on its social networking strategy and how the campaign is engaging those in their social networks in offline activities.

The Facebook fan page linked to Villar’s website is frequently updated with links to news articles about the candidate, as well as blog entries on the candidate’s website.

The Facebook feature that allows fans to write on the wall of the fan page has been disabled. But fans can comment on the content posted by the page administrators.

One post, which included a picture of a newspaper article about a Social Weather Stations survey, received 1,596 comments. Some users expressed support; others used the comment space to ask the candidate questions.

Ople is skeptical that the online strategies of the presidential campaigns will change much before election day. “Since we’re in the campaign period, you won’t see more innovation,” he said.

Arroyo vows smooth power transition

MANILA, Philippines - President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo vowed on Wednesday to oversee a smooth transfer of power, allaying fears soldiers may intervene in the May 10 elections after she installed a loyal general as army chief.

Arroyo is not eligible for another term as president and is expected to step down on June 30. More than 50 million Filipinos will elect on May 10 the country's next leader and nearly 18,000 other national and local officials.

"We remain deeply committed to a smooth transition to a new government," Arroyo said at Manila's main army base after the installation of Lieutenant-General Delfin Bangit as chief of staff of the 120,000-member armed forces.

"Our accomplishments and progress today must be passed on to new leaders to continue the forward march for progress. We will be leaving the nation safer than we found it because of the great performance of the armed forces of the Philippines."

Arroyo's appointment of Bangit, educated at Australia's defence and military institutions, drew criticism from political opponents who fear the military might meddle in the political process.

In a speech after he assumed leadership of the military forces, Bangit sought to allay her critics' concerns. "I will not allow anybody to use me for partisan politics," he said. "Only God can use me."

Arroyo, the second longest serving president in the country's post-war history, is not retiring from politics yet. She is running for a seat in the lower house of Congress and hoping to become speaker of the House of Representatives.

US jobless rate holds at 9.7% despite storms

WASHINGTON – The US economy shed fewer jobs than expected in February and the unemployment rate held at 9.7% despite severe winter storms, a government report said Friday, suggesting the labor market is stabilizing.

The Labor Department said that nonfarm payrolls fell by 36,000, surprising most analysts who projected 67,000 job losses because of massive snow storms that crippled the country's northeastern region.

January job losses were revised higher to 26,000, from an initial estimate of 20,000, though the overall payrolls trend pointed to gradual stabilization in the labor market.

The department said "it is not possible to quantify precisely the net impact of the winter storms" on the payrolls, but some analysts speculated that without the weather effect, jobs would have been created.

"This report is consistent with an economy that would not have lost jobs in the month, had it not been for the weather," said Dean Baker, co-director of the Center for Economic and Policy Research.

"With more normal conditions, it is likely that the economy would have added a small number of jobs in the month."

Ian Shepherdson of High Frequency Economics said the weather impact "was surely not negligible so we assume payrolls ex-weather would have been positive."

Most economists had expected the unemployment rate to rise to 9.8% from 9.7% in January. The rate had peaked at 10.2% in October.

The total number of unemployed was essentially unchanged at 14.9 million.

Following the report, President Barack Obama vowed to press on with measures to reduce unemployment.

"Even though it's better than expected, it's more than we should tolerate," he said.

"Far too many Americans remain out of work, far too many families are still struggling in these difficult economic times," he said.

"That's why I'm not going to rest and my administration is not going to rest in our efforts to help people who are looking to find a job to help business owners who want to expand, feel comfortable, hiring again," he said.

Christina Romer, the chair of the president's Council of Economic Advisers, urged Congress to pass additional measures to promote job creation as well as continue to support those struggling with unemployment.

On Thursday the House of Representatives passed a 15-billion-dollar measure to help reduce unemployment, after a similar move by the Senate.

The monthly labor market report, seen as a key indicator of economic momentum, underscored the persistent woes in the labor market, even after the economy emerged from the worst recession in decades in mid-2009.

Since the recession started in December 2007, the economy has shed 8.4 million jobs.

The Federal Reserve, the White House and most economists have warned that high unemployment would continue as the world's largest economy slowly recovers.

"Today’s employment report further highlights that there is a jobless recovery underway in America," said Jason Schenker of Prestige Economics.

"While leading economic indicators... continue to point towards growth and the Fed has acknowledged the return of a 'nascent recovery,' the US jobs market remains fundamentally weak," he said.

The economy expanded at a strong 5.9% pace in the 2009 fourth quarter, following a 2.2% rise in the third quarter that snapped a year of contraction.

The Labor Department report said the number of long-term unemployed, those jobless for at least 27 weeks, was 6.1 million in February, roughly holding steady since December and accounting for 40 percent of the unemployed.

The number of people working "involuntary" part time for economic reasons rose to 8.8 million from 8.3 million, due to cuts in work hours or the inability to find a full-time job.

The report noted that the government hired 15,000 temporary workers for the 2010 census.