Presidential seal upside down during Duterte's Davao speech

MANILA– President Rodrigo Duterte was his usual fiery self when he delivered a speech Friday in his home city of Davao, but something went wrong.

Video of the speech aired live on state-run PTV-4 and the Presidential Communications Operations Office’s Facebook page showed the President giving his speech with the presidential seal on his rostrum upside down.

The gaffe occurred during the 11th Ambassador’s Tour Philippine Reception at the SMX Convention Center in Davao City.

For those who followed the broadcast, the error was observed until around the third minute of the live video, when the shot zoomed in on the President, cropping the seal out of the frame.

The circular presidential seal, adopted during the time of President Manuel Roxas, should be placed with the text “Sagisag ng Pangulo ng Pilipinas” positioned at the upper portion and the three stars at the bottom of the rim.


According to historian Manuel L. Quezon III, the presidential seal is composed of the coat of arms of the President of the Philippines, surrounded by the legend “Seal of the President of the Philippines” (“Sagisag ng Pangulo ng Pilipinas”).

"The blue circle is the shield; on the shield is a red triangle (representing liberty, equality, and fraternity, the ideals of the French and Philippine revolutions and our republic), on which is a sea lion and three stars," he said on his blog.

Only the President uses the rostrum with the Presidential seal at any event.

Duterte’s speech lasted for about an hour, in which he again tackled his war on drugs, corruption, and the ongoing siege in Marawi City.

In his speech, Duterte again stressed that it is not a crime to threaten to kill drug suspects.

“Find me a law - wherever you come from - point out to me a law in your country and in my country, which says you cannot threaten a criminal from destroying your country,” said Duterte, a former prosecutor.

“Is there a law which says you cannot do it? Is there a law which says that you cannot blurt such statements as, ‘Do not bring our children to perdition because you’ll not only lose your funds, you’ll lose your life'?" he said.

Duterte had made similar statements before, but he raised the matter again after the country’s top graft-buster, Ombudsman Conchita Carpio Morales, issued her sharpest criticism yet of the President's tough rhetoric.

The President, however, did not make a direct reference to Morales, whose nephew Mans Carpio is married to Duterte's daughter, Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte.

    How Ombudsman is related to Duterte

In an interview with Japanese public network NHK, Morales said Duterte seems to be “goading people to kill people.”

“That's a problem. His communications people say ‘that's hyperbole.’ You know, they try to rationalize whatever he says, so whether or not the police or whoever he addresses these words, believe him. That's a different story. The directive to kill people under any situation irrespective of the context, to me, that's not acceptable.” Morales said.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

'World's hottest math teacher' arrives in PH, to meet fans in Manila, Davao

Italian model and academic Pietro Boselli, hailed by netizens as the "The World's Hottest Math Teacher," arrived in Manila on Saturday, setting hearts aflutter in the capital.

Boselli was booked for a modeling gig by a local clothing brand, which set him up for a meet and greet with fans in Manila on March 12, and in Davao on March 14.


London-based Boselli, who has a PhD in Engineering, earned his monicker after some of his students posted his pictures on Facebook in 2015.

He has since been modeling for several international fashion and accessory brands.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Despite bombing, French Baker opens biggest branch in Davao

DAVAO CITY -- Just days after blasts hit two Davao cinemas injuring several people, local restaurant chain The French Baker pushed through with the official opening of its first full-size restaurant in Mindanao at the SM Lanang Premiere mall on Thursday night as founder and CEO Johnlu Koa remained optimistic about business prospects in the troubled region.


"In spite of what happened, it's still very much the party goes on, business as usual," Koa said in his speech, referring to Tuesday's explosions at SM City Davao and Gaisano malls.

The veteran entrepreneur recalled that The French Baker initially had plans to enter the Davao market 13 years ago at SM City Ecoland in 2000 but had to back out because of the security situation in the city at the time. Koa said it was his mother who dissuaded him then from opening. "She asked me, 'Why do want to go that far to make so little?'"

"I realized that it was not yet time because there was so much competition in Metro Manila and I decided to stay there muna," he said, noting that SM was in full expansion mode during that period, which also meant more opportunities for The French Baker to open in new locations.

Koa has been very vocal about his loyalty to mall tycoon Henry Sy Sr., whom he fondly calls "Tatang."

The French Baker opened its first outlet 24 years ago at the then newly built SM City North EDSA in 1989. It was also Sy who advised Koa to expand The French Baker from a bakery selling European-style breads and pastries into a casual restaurant with dine-in food services.

The French Baker in SM Lanang is the 51st branch of the chain.

"Our coming here is due to the fact that I continue to cherish my relationship with Mr. Tatang Sy, Sr. Many years ago, he tried to convince me to go to SM City Cebu and when I said no, he said, 'Please come, ride in my jet and I will show the future of Cebu,'" Koa recalled.

So when SM opened its new SM Lanang mall in Davao, which includes the first Park Inn by Radisson hotel in the Philippines and an SMX Convention Center, Koa decided that it was time to finally enter the Mindanao market.




Last December, The French Baker opened a small bakery cafe at the mall's atrium, along with the bubble tea shop Chatime, which Koa also owns.

The atrium store, Koa admitted, is a concession he asked from SM for him to open a 380-sq.m. restaurant -- the biggest French Baker branch so far -- fronting the mall's Fountain Area, which includes other successful chains such as Bulgogi Brothers, Sumo Sam and soon Viking buffet restaurant.

"It's time to come in now; otherwise, someone will take the market share away from me," Koa explained.

He also recalled the advise Sy gave him at the time when several coup attempts were mounted against the government of then President Corazon Aquino. "He told me, 'Just do your job well, have faith in the market and all of these will pass. Look at me,'" Koa narrated.

"So I thought about that. Ngayon pa when I already have 50 stores, ngayon pa when I'm more mature, nagyon pa will I say no when I have so much knowledge about the market, about the product, about people's habits because we're already in this business for 24 years."

Koa added that it was Sy who also told him back in 1992 that tourism is the hope for the Philippines. Many years later, Koa came to realize the implications of the current boom of domestic tourism on business.

"We don't really have to go to China, to Vietnam, to whatever, to expand. Dito pa lang, we have 100 million Filipino customers," Koa said.

"And people here (in Davao) are starting to demand for more and they're getting to be sophisticated. They know what is good and what is better. So I guess by staying in Davao, we will be in the position to explore the other opportunities of Mindanao. That's the basis for my optimism" he added.

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

SM group capitalizes on BPO boom in Davao

DAVAO CITY, Philippines - Capitalizing on continued demand for business process outsourcing space, the SM group of retail taipan Henry Sy is opening 2,800 more BPO seats this year within its Davao malls.

SM City Davao, also known as SM Ecoland, will house 2,200 BPO seats operated by Teleperformance, while US-based outsourcing services provider IBEX Global will have 592 seats occupying 1,500 square meters in SM's Lanang Premier. These are expected to generate roughly 3,500 jobs.

"We have a growing call center industry, aside from tourists many investors coming in and many other industries are growing," said Therese Lapeña-Manalo, mall manager of SM Lanang Premier.

Located north of Davao City, SM Lanang Premier is the group's second mall there. Sitting on a 10-hectare property, it houses several mid to high priced retail brands, an iMAX cinema and the SMX convention center signifying the growing affluence of Davao as a key urban city in the south.

Out of SM's four malls in Mindanao, Lanang Premier is so far the largest in gross floor area (GFA) terms.

"The brand equity of SM is very high so as much as possible we try to also give them what we have in Manila so people don't have to travel all the way there," Debby Go, head of SM Prime's Mindanao operations said.

Another 6,000 square meters of BPO space is still available in SM City Davao in which, a lease deal is likely to be finalized within the year. All in all, a total of 21,500 square meters of BPO space will be occupied.

The Philippines is a favored hub among BPO locators, due to its strong human capital -- a relatively young population with good English language skills. Many have already ventured outside Metro Manila and choosing next wave cities.

Over the years, SM has been allotting more BPO space within its malls, as round-the-clock call center operations need support facilities such as dining and entertainment, at the same time providing a steady market for the mall's tenants.

Inspired by Mindanao's growing economy and high consumer spending power, SM is set to build new malls in Butuan and Cagayan de Oro, bringing its mall count in the island to six.

To date, its Mindanao malls have a total GFA of 455,649 square meters, contributing four percent to the group's total revenues.

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

Patti Austin to perform in Manila, Davao

MANILA - American Grammy award-winning singer Patti Austin is coming to the Philippines for a series of shows.

On its website, concert promoter Ovation Productions announced that Austin will be part of George Benson's concert on September 5 at the Araneta Coliseum in Cubao, Quezon City.

On September 7, she will have a show with Joe Pizzulo at Crowne Plaza Hotel in Ortigas, and at the SMX Convention Center Davao on September 9.

The 63-year-old jazz artist is behind the hits "Say You Love Me," "How Do You Keep the Music Playing," "Baby, Come to Me" and "In My Life."

Austin has been promoting her shows in the Philippines on Twitter.

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com