Category: Business Mirror

A total of 372.5 kilograms of PET bottles have been collected through the Cebu Chamber of Commerce and Industry’s (CCCI) Flood Hero Cebu Movement, highlighting the growing support of educational institutions in transforming plastic waste into practical environmental solutions.

Since the initiative’s rollout, participating schools have contributed significant volumes of plastic bottles through strategically installed receptacle bins.

According to CCCI’s database, the University of the Visayas collected 33 kilograms in November 2025, followed by the College of Technological Sciences-Cebu with 63 kilograms in December 2025. The University of San Jose-Recoletos recovered 100 kilograms in February 2026, while Cebu Institute of Technology-University recorded the highest volume at 151.5 kilograms in March 2026.

Most recently, Southwestern University-PHINMA collected 25 kilograms in April 2026.

The latest installation of a Flood Hero receptacle bin is now located at the University of Southern Philippines Foundation (USPF), where students, faculty, and staff are encouraged to deposit used PET bottles. The bin will remain on campus until August to maximize collection efforts and promote environmental awareness among the university community.

Every plastic bottle dropped into the receptacle is given a second purpose Rather than ending up in waterways and contributing to flooding and pollution, collected PET bottles are sorted and prepared for repurposing into environmental river interceptors or floating booms.

These materials are endorsed to the Cebu City Environment and Natural Resources Office (CCENRO), which utilizes them in constructing floating boom systems installed in rivers and waterways.

These structures help intercept floating waste before it reaches the sea, supporting efforts to reduce plastic pollution, improve water flow, and mitigate flooding in urban areas.

The installation at USPF was made possible through the support and coordination of Dr. Janet Arcana, Vice President for Support Services and External Affairs, and Grace Clabisillas, Student Affairs Services Director. Their collaboration enabled the university to join a growing network of academic institutions supporting the Flood Hero Cebu Movement.

Prior to the USPF deployment, CCCI facilitated the retrieval of PET bottles from the previous installation at Southwestern University-PHINMA, contributing to the steadily increasing volume of plastics recovered through the campaign.

Beyond waste collection, organizers said the initiative serves as an educational platform that demonstrates how discarded plastic can be transformed into practical environmental solutions through collective community action.

By encouraging responsible waste disposal, the movement empowers students and communities to take an active role in environmental protection and flood resilience.

The campaign continues to expand its reach, with Cebu Technological University (CTU) already confirming its participation as the next host institution for a Flood Hero receptacle bin.

CCCI said it is also engaging with other academic institutions and stakeholders interested in supporting the initiative.

Infrastructure is the skeleton upon which a thriving economy is built. For Cebu, that skeleton is showing signs of strain.

The message from this year’s Investment and Entrepreneurship Summit, held as part of Cebu Business Month 2026, was as urgent as it was clear: Cebu cannot grow its way out of congestion, flooding, and water scarcity using public funds alone. The call by Aboitiz InfraCapital Vice President Eduardo Aboitiz for deeper investments in public-private partnerships (PPPs) is not merely a business pitch-it is a necessary prescription for survivalConsider the evidence. Central Visayas remains the country’s fourth-largest regional economy, with a gross regional domestic product of P1.32 trillion in 2025. Yet that same economy grew by only 3.7 percent-below the national average-hamstrung by typhoons, tariff shocks, and the lingering distrust from a flood control scandal. More tellingly, inflation in the region hit a staggering 10.8 percent, far above the national figure, exposing the vulnerability of an island economy dependent on shipping and fuel.

The numbers tell a story of paradox: Cebu is a powerhouse, but its engines are overheating. Traffic worsens. Water concerns mount. Flooding and waste management lag. As DepDev-7 Assistant Director Evelyn Nacario-Castro rightly noted, rapid urbanization is creating congestion and infrastructure gaps that could limit productivity if left unresolved.

Against this backdrop, the PPP model is not a luxury-it is a lifeline.

The Mactan-Cebu International Airport stands as the shining example. By marrying government oversight with private-sector capital and operational expertise, MCIA expanded to serve 12 million passengers annually, generating ripple effects that reach market vendors and small transport operators far beyond tourism. The Davao City Bulk Water Supply Project, delivering 300 million liters daily to over a million residents, proves that long-term water security is achievable through sustained collaboration.

Cebu can-and must-replicate these successes.

But partnerships require more than handshake agreements. As Aboitiz emphasized, water security and infrastructure resilience demand long-term planning, policy consistency, regulatory predictability, and political will. These are not technical hurdles; they are governance challenges. Investors will not pour capital into projects where rules shift with every election or where permitting remains a labyrinth of delays.

The warning from Castro is equally sobering: Central Visayas’ openness to global markets is a double-edged sword. Downturns in tourism, remittances, and trade hit the region hard. Meanwhile, manufacturing-a critical pillar-contracted by 0.9 percent last year. Without modern logistics, reliable power, and resilient water systems, Cebu risks pricing itself out of competitiveness.

There’s an urgent need for business leaders and government to work together beyond rhetoric. Deepening PPPs means streamlining approval processes, ensuring transparent bidding, and protecting contracts from political interference. It means prioritizing shovel-ready projects in water security, flood control, and sustainable transport over ribbon-cutting for less critical endeavors. And it means acknowledging that the private sector is not a substitute for public accountability but a partner in shared risk and reward.

The summit’s theme-‘PPPs as a catalyst for Cebu’s economy’-must become reality, not just a talking point. Cebu’s quality of life, its ability to attract investments, and its standing as the South’s premier economic hub depend on infrastructure that keeps pace with ambition.

Responders recovered the remains of another fatality from the site of the collapsed building in Barangay Balibago shortly after midnight Tuesday, June 9, raising the confirmed death toll to 30.

In a Facebook post, the Bureau of Fire Protection-Central Luzon said the victim’s remains were extricated from the rubble at 12:18 a.m.

The recovery came hours after authorities retrieved the remains of the 29th victim at 9:37 p.m. Monday.

Before that, the last victim was recovered Saturday night during ongoing search and retrieval operations.

Authorities earlier said about 40 percent of the debris at the collapse site had been cleared. Search and retrieval teams, along with heavy equipment, remain deployed despite intermittent rains.

The nine-story building under construction collapsed before dawn on May 24 and trapped dozens of workers under tons of concrete and steel. Preliminary findings from a government fact-finding body have yet to be released as authorities continue to investigate the cause of the collapse.

Meanwhile, the Angeles City government has begun coordinating with business groups to assist establishments affected by the incident.

Representatives of the Hotels and Restaurants Association of Pampanga met with officials from the Angeles City Tourism Office and the City Legal Office to discuss support measures for hotels, restaurants and other hospitality businesses operating within the affected area.

Mayor Carmelo Lazatin II earlier directed the city tourism office, through the Angeles City Tourist Information and Visitors Engagement team, to assess the condition of businesses near the collapse site and determine what assistance may be needed.

City officials said the effort is part of a broader response to help affected establishments, employees and stakeholders cope with the impact of the incident.

Retrieval and clearing operations continue.

THE Philippines-European Union Free Trade Agreement (EU FTA), long under negotiation and repeatedly pushed for conclusion within 2026, is being framed by industry leaders as a potential driver of faster access to medicines and more stable drug supply and pricing in the country.

Diana Edralin, European Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines president, said the agreement remains a key priority for stakeholders seeking more predictable market conditions, particularly for healthcare products.

For the healthcare sector, Edralin, also the general manager of Swiss healthcare company Roche Philippines, pointed to what she described as the most immediate impact: improved access timelines for medicines, vaccines, and medical devices.

‘So right now, because of multiple factors, the lag time is about one to three years before a drug or a medical device is approved in the Philippines,’ Edralin said in a televised interview on Monday.

‘And that’s a significant delay considering how many innovative and life-changing medicines there are already available globally, especially in Europe,’ she added.

Under a potential ‘reliance pathway’ framework discussed in trade negotiations, approvals already granted by regulators such as the European Medicines Agency could be used as a reference, potentially shortening local evaluation timelines.

This gap, she said, has practical consequences for patients, such as access to newer treatments that are already available abroad but reach the Philippine market later.

Beyond market access, Edralin said supply chain stability remains a persistent concern for pharmaceutical companies operating in the country.

‘We continue to absorb all of the increase in the jet fuel prices, even the local distribution costs. And actually, the third impact for us is the peso devaluation,’ she said.

While companies have so far absorbed some of the cost pressures, Edralin said sustained increases could eventually affect pricing dynamics if global conditions remain unstable.

To address these risks, the ECCP head said stakeholders have been discussing pooled procurement systems, which would allow forecasting of medicine and vaccine requirements over longer periods.

Better demand planning could help manufacturers and suppliers manage production and logistics more efficiently, potentially reducing cost fluctuations in the long term, she said.

However, she cautioned that the system remains sensitive to external disruptions, particularly in global shipping routes and geopolitical hotspots.

Any major interruption in supply chains, she said, could still translate into upward pressure on prices, especially in an import-dependent market like the Philippines.

June gets more fun as comedian-musician Tom Franek makes his way back to the Philippines for an exhilarating evening of laughter, performances, and more. Quezon City’s first and only five-star luxury intergrated resort lights up as the three-time Grammy-nominated entertainer brings his signature piano-comedy performance blending his unique musicianship with stand-up comedy all the way to Quezon Club at Solaire Resort North for two weeks of fun starting June 11.

Previously featured as headliner for Disney, Princess Cruises, and known for live appearances on primetime television internationally, Tom Franek shares a new act to look forward to at Solaire Resort North for a memorable experience. Welcome a night of melodical and comical antics as Quezon Club opens its doors for patrons and guests to catch the exclusive shows this June 11, 13, 18, and 19.

Fuel the energy of the night with Quezon Club’s Western-inspired dishes for a savory touch to the evening. Indulge in a delicious meal perfectly paired with expertly crafted cocktails to complete the experience at the luxury integrated resort’s premier entertainment hub, and don’t miss an exciting sneak peek into the entertainer’s unforgettable set at the Solaire Resort North Lobby starting June 10.

Join the fun and be part of this exclusive comedic-musical event at Solaire Resort North this June. Reserve your table at quezonclub.com, call +632 8888 8888, or email snrestaurantevents@solaireresort.com. Admission is complimentary.

– This town, just across the Sarangani Bay, where the country’s strongest earthquake so far occurred on early Monday, has reported one of the worst battered places in southern Mindanao, sustaining five dead and damage to a score of buildings and infrastructure.

The municipality of Malapatan, 49 kilometers southwest of General Santos City and just across the bay east of the epicenter in Maasim town, also in Sarangani province, also recorded 70 injuries from landslides, building debris, and traffic accidents.

The highway leading to and going outside the town has to be negotiated due to damage in sections of it in four barangays. Almost all the town’s major buildings and infrastructure were partially to heavily damaged, from school buildings, barangay and población offices, and gymnasium to public market and mosques, from water tanks, sewerage treatment plant, and the river control dikes.

Malapatan is one of the heavily damaged towns in Sarangani province, which belonged to Region XII. The region sustained 33 deaths, 456 injured persons, and four missing persons.

Its adjacent region, the Davao Region, sustained four dead and 23 injured, the Regional Disaster Risk Reduction Management Council has reported as of Tuesday.

Some 18,384 persons were affected, with only 5,447 in the evacuation centers. The region has established 14 centers. Ninety-eight houses were either partially or totally damaged, it added, with losses to infrastructure estimated at P500,000. There were no major reports of losses to agriculture and other assets, although it said 49 local governments have already called for suspension of work and classes on Monday. Some buildings in the cities of Davao, Panabo, and Tagum remained unused as inspection was yet to be concluded.

The RDRRMC XI said it has already spent P2.04 million in humanitarian assistance and disaster response.

Malacañang said the government remains optimistic about sustaining the slowdown in the unemployment rate, which fell to 4.7 percent equivalent to 2.41 million people last April, by continuing efforts to cushion the impact of the Middle East crisis and by attracting more investors.

This was lower compared to 5 percent unemployment rate last March, which is equivalent to 2.58 million people, during the onset of the war in the Middle East based on the latest Labor Force Survey of the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) as the government rolled out its interventions for those affected by the conflict.

However, the latest unemployment rate figures were still higher compared to the 4.1 percent in April 2025, which is equivalent to 2.06 million.

Under the Unified Package for Livelihoods, Industry, Food, and Transport (UPLIFT) initiatives, the Marcos administration provided fuel and rice subsidies, service contracting, emergency employment and cash aid to workers, which were affected by the Middle East crisis.

The efforts also include reintegration services for displaced overseas Filipino workers (OFW), which includes livelihood, upskilling, as well as local or overseas placement.

The Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) said the government also continues to generate quality and productive employment and enhance the skills of workers

‘Government interventions continue such as creating quality and productive jobs, encouraging investments, providing livelihoods to repatriated OFWs who have lost their jobs and those who have returned to OFWs. The results [in the labor force survey] have been good, but we will not rest on our laurels,’ Palace Press Officer Claire Castro said in Filipino in a press briefing last Tuesday quoting the position of the Department of Economy, Planning, and Development (DEPDev) on the matter.

The Presidential Communications Office undersecretary said she is optimistic they can sustain the said gains in the coming months.

Quoting DEPDev Secretary Arsenio M. Balisacan, she said the thrust of the government ‘is to grow the economy while creating high quality jobs, investing skills and other productivity enhancing measures addressing gaps in social protection systems and building national and local state capacity toward accessible, resilient public services.’

‘We must always be positive [when it comes to projections] because the government never stops working, especially since the President is always working, and it is absolutely necessary to give our countrymen and people what they [deserve],’ she said.

On a leafy Connecticut road in the summer of 2024, would-be kidnappers pulled a couple from their Lamborghini SUV, beat them in broad daylight and threw them into a van, only to be arrested shortly thereafter as multiple witnesses, including a passing off-duty FBI agent, called police.

The investigation would lead police to some sensational findings.

The attack turned out to be linked to a $245 million Bitcoin heist the month before involving the couple’s son. And this week, a California cryptocurrency mogul who authorities say called himself ‘The Godfather’ and had previously hired off-duty sheriff’s deputies to strongarm his enemies admitted to orchestrating the attempted abduction to get a piece of the son’s stolen loot.

The California man, 25-year-old Adam Iza, pleaded guilty Monday to conspiracy to interfere with commerce by robbery. Federal prosecutors are seeking a prison term of at least 14 years when he’s sentenced.

Iza’s lawyer, William Paetzold, didn’t immediately respond to Tuesday phone and email messages seeking comment.

The case is part of an increasing trend worldwide of cryptocurrency theft spilling over to violence.

Nightclub fight spawns kidnapping plot

A month before the abduction attempt, one of Iza’s alleged co-conspirators got into a beef with the couple’s son, Veer Chetal, at a Miami nightclub, according to an FBI affidavit. The man, James Schwab, then told an acquaintance to rob Chetal and his friends at their Miami rental home, authorities said. It’s not clear if the robbery happened.

Schwab’s lawyers didn’t immediately respond to phone messages seeking comment.

Then came the Bitcoin heist. A few weeks after the nightclub fight, Chetal and two other men hatched an elaborate online scheme that involved impersonating technical support staff for Google and a cryptocurrency exchange. They managed to steal 4,100 Bitcoins – worth about $245 million at the time – from a Washington, D.C., resident, according to court documents.

The trio lived large after the theft, spending millions of dollars on cars, clothing, jewelry, rental mansions and nightclub parties before being arrested, prosecutors said. Chetal pleaded guilty last November and awaits sentencing, while the two other men have pleaded not guilty.

Iza and Schwab, meanwhile, came up with the idea to take Chetal’s parents hostage in a bid to snatch some of his ill-gotten riches, the FBI said, citing information from informants. Schwab and Iza’s brother, Saif Faiq, also were charged in the kidnapping attempt and pleaded not guilty.

They recruited six other men to go to Connecticut, paying for their travel and lodging, authorities said. A week after the Bitcoin heist, the group surveilled Chetal’s parents hours before the kidnapping, according to court records.

Abduction quickly goes awry

Sushil and Radhika Chetal were driving in the Lamborghini on Aug. 25, 2024, near Danbury High School when they were rear-ended by a car. A white van then pulled in front of the SUV and several men surrounded them, police said.

The men pulled the Chetals out of the SUV and forced them into their van, beating Sushil Chetal with a baseball bat and dragging Radhika Chetal by her hair. The couple were bound with duct tape and the van drove off, according to court documents.

After witnesses called police, officers soon spotted the van and a chase ensued. The van eventually crashed and four of the men got out and fled on foot but were arrested shortly thereafter. The other two men were later found at a home the group had rented in a nearby town. The Chetals were taken to a hospital and released.

The six men, all from Florida, have pleaded guilty in connection with the kidnapping. Two have been sentenced to 11 years in prison and the others await sentencing.

How the ‘Godfather’ went from a Bel Air mansion to federal charges

Before Iza’s arrest in the Connecticut case, he was under investigation by federal authorities in California for extorting money and property from victims in Los Angeles and elsewhere, court records show. He was charged in that case a month after the kidnapping and later pleaded guilty.

Iza, also known as Ahmed Faiq, was living in a mansion in the Bel Air section of Los Angeles, calling himself The Godfather while running a crypto trading company, Zort. While stealing millions of dollars and funneling it through shell companies, Iza spent freely on luxury cars and other extravagances, including cosmetic surgery to lengthen his legs, prosecutors said.

Beginning in August 2021, Iza paid around $100,000 a month for his personal protection to a private security firm founded by a Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputy that also employed other deputies, prosecutors said.

Iza, authorities said, hired off-duty deputies to act as enforcers against people with whom he had personal and business disputes. He used the deputies to extort, intimidate, set people up for arrest and abuse the legal process, prosecutors said.

The deputies used law enforcement databases to generate information about Iza’s enemies and obtained search warrants under false pretenses, authorities said. On one occasion, two deputies held a victim at gunpoint inside Iza’s home, pressuring the victim to transfer $25,000 to Iza’s bank account, prosecutors said.

When he pleaded guilty in that case in January, Iza also admitted to stealing more than $37 million by fraudulently accessing the business manager accounts of Meta Platforms, owner of Facebook, and their lines of credit from 2020 to 2022. He awaits sentencing after pleading guilty to wire fraud, conspiracy against rights and tax evasion.

His attorney in California, Josef Sadat, declined to comment Tuesday.

Several deputies also were charged in the investigation.

THE Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) extended various tax filing and payment deadlines for taxpayers affected by the recent magnitude 7.8 earthquake in South Central Mindanao.

The easing of the rules is contained in Revenue Memorandum Circular 062-2026 issued by Internal Revenue Commissioner Charlito Martin R. Mendoza issued last Tuesday. The circular effectively moves the filing and payment of taxes to June 30, 2026, from the deadlines that originally fell between June 8 and June 29.

The extension applies to taxpayers under Revenue District Office (RDO) 110 (General Santos City and Sarangani) and RDO 111 (South Cotabato).

Taxes covered by the relief include withholding tax, value-added tax, percentage tax, corporate income tax, capital gains tax and excise tax.

The extension also applies to various registration and documentary requirements, such as book of accounts and transaction reports.

Affected taxpayers will not be subject to penalties, surcharges or interest, provided they file the required returns, pay the corresponding taxes and submit the necessary documents within the extended period ending June 30, the BIR said.

If the extended deadline falls on a holiday or non-working day, taxpayers may file, pay or submit documents on the next working day, it added.

A separate statement quoted Mendoza as saying the BIR hopes ‘to provide affected taxpayers additional time and flexibility as families, businesses, local governments, and national government agencies attend to immediate needs and recovery work.’

The BIR noted that the recent earthquake caused substantial damage to business establishments, government offices, and vital infrastructure, disrupting normal business operations and limiting access to accounting records.

THE sporting nation is both in mourning and in a celebratory mood. What a surreal mix.

Sadly, two basketball players from Ateneo de Manila University died in a drowning accident just days ago in a beach in Pinakulao, Aurora. They were rookie Bert Baterbonia from Mindanao and import Divine Adili from Nigeria.

Beaches in Aurora teem with angry and roaring waves that is why Baler, the provincial capital, is known as the nation’s surfing capital. I should know. I was there only a couple weeks back.

You don’t swim there or you risk getting gobbled up by screaming waves as tall as Victor Wembanyama. You surf there, period. Or just enjoy watching waves rushing to the shore. Seated in a director’s chair in the sand. Ice-cold beer in hand.

As of this writing, no detailed reports as to how the tragedy happened. The Ateneo basketball team was there reportedly for a team-building activity.

What I know is, swimming is being done in a team-building program using a swimming pool; it’s never done in a beach that is notoriously wave-infested and fit only for surfing.

Whenever deaths like these happen in sports, a part of us, dies, too. The pain just doesn’t go away like the blowing wind; it lingers, hurting life’s threads to the core.

I deeply condole with the grieving families of Baterbonia, 19, and Adili, 21. I pray for the eternal repose of their souls.

And now the good, happy, news.

We salute Alex Eala for beating Nikola Bartunkova, 5-7, 6-3, 7-5, to win the Lexus Birmingham Open on Sunday at the Edgbaston Priory Club in England.

The win ended Eala’s 13-match losing streak against Czech opponents since she turned pro last year-although it pinched Eala’s heart a little as Bartunkova was her doubles partner in the same event.

Eala’s former Czech tormentors include former Wimbledon champions Barbora Krejcikova and Marketa Voundrosova and Karolina Muchova. Muchova beat Eala in the Miami Open last March in the Round of 16.

‘I would have wanted to win this together [with Nikola],’ said Eala, tightly embracing Bartunkova at center court after the match.

Eala and Bartunkova, both 21, lost to the British pair of Dart Harriet and Maia Lumsden 4-6, 6-2, 11-9 in the Round of 16 on June 1.

A big bonus accompanied Eala’s June 7 victory as it came exactly nine months after she won her first WTA 125 victory last year.

This was on September 7, 2025, when Eala rallied to defeat Hungary’s Panna Udvardy 1-6, 7-5, 6-3 in Guadalajara, Mexico-the first triumph by a Filipino in a WTA event.

But a bigger bonus came Eala’s way when her Lexus win in Birmingham fattened her bank account to $19,700 (roughly P1.21 million)-besides earning 125 more points that would surely improve her 37th WTA ranking.

‘Lifting this trophy only makes me more motivated to keep on working,’ said Eala. ‘I’m so really honored to lift this trophy today.’

Before beating Bartunkova, Eala’s victims were Australia’s Pricilla Hon 6-0, 6-2 in the Round of 32; Russia’s Alina Charaeva 6-2, 7-5 in the Round of 16; Thailand’s Mananchaya Sawangkaew in the quarterfinal 6-3, 6-2; and, Switzerland’s Rebeka Masarova 6-2, 4-6, 6-3 in the semifinal.

Next tournament is the main draw of the 2026 WTA 500 HSBC Championship in London set from June 8-14 at The Queen’s Club in West Kensington.

Go, get ’em, Alex!

THAT’S IT Because it has the momentum, and propped up by Justin Brownlee’s bamboozling 41-point effort in a Game 3 victory on Sunday, Barangay Ginebra may yet win again today for a decisive 3-1 lead over TNT in the Philippine Basketball Association’s Commissioner’s Cup…And in the National Basketball Association, San Antonio bounced back yesterday with a 115-111 win to cut New York’s lead to 2-1 in the best-of-seven Finals. It was a pride-laden win as it came in NY’s turf, the famed Madison Square Garden.