Category: Philippine Star

Having served guests for almost two decades, Ascott Makati continues to set the benchmark for luxury extended-stay accommodations in the Philippines.

As the country’s pioneering serviced residence brand, it introduced a premium home-away-from-home experience for both long-stay and short-stay travelers seeking the space and comfort of an apartment with the services of a hotel.

As the needs of travelers continue to evolve, so has Ascott Makati’s approach to hospitality. In recent years, the property has strengthened its commitment to creating a positive impact beyond the guest experience-embracing initiatives that support sustainability, community engagement and meaningful guest connections.

1. 100% powered by renewable energy

For over a year, Ascott Makati has been powered by 100% renewable energy, sourcing all its electricity requirements from clean energy sources. This milestone underscores the property’s commitment to responsible hospitality and environmental stewardship. This initiative is also aligned with CapitaLand’s Net Zero Carbon 2050 vision.

Since transitioning to renewable energy, the property has significantly reduced its carbon emissions by 100%, taking a meaningful step toward minimizing its environmental impact and contributing to a more sustainable future.

2. Muslim-friendly accommodation

An integral part of Ascott Makati’s culture is its commitment to diversity and inclusion. This extends beyond its workplace and into the guest experience, ensuring that travelers feel genuinely welcomed and supported during their stay.

Most recently, Ascott Makati earned a 2 Crescent Rating from CrescentRating, a globally recognized authority on Muslim-friendly travel. Since 2008, CrescentRating has helped travel brands better understand and serve Muslim travelers through accreditation, research and training programs.

The rating signifies that Ascott Makati is equipped to support the needs of Muslim guests, with team members ready to provide guidance on the Qibla direction and information on nearby halal-certified dining options, grocery stores and healthcare facilities.

As travel continues to become more diverse, Ascott Makati views this recognition as a steppingstone in its ongoing commitment to creating a more inclusive and welcoming experience for every guest.

3. Pet-friendly stays

Ascott Makati is the first hospitality brand in the Philippines to recognize that pets are family too. By pioneering pet-friendly stays, the property created a welcoming environment where guests can enjoy meaningful travel experiences without leaving their beloved companions behind.

In 2025 alone, the property welcomed over 500 pet guests, reflecting the increasing number of travelers seeking accommodation that cater to the entire family-including their furry companions.

To make pet-friendly stays even more accessible, Ascott Makati is currently offering room packages with a waived pet fee until September. Interested guests may simply use the promo code PET on the website.

As traveler expectations continue to evolve, Ascott Makati remains committed to embracing initiatives that support sustainability, inclusivity and community well-being.

Through these efforts, the property continues to redefine what it means to deliver hospitality that truly matters.

In preparation for the 2026-2027 Cebu Schools Athletic Foundation, Inc. season and in line with its commitment to promoting the health, safety, and welfare of the student-athletes, the CESAFI will be conducting a Basic Life Support (BLS) Training on Saturday, August 8, at the University of the Visayas (UV)-Main Campus.

CESAFI Commissioner Felix ‘Boy’ Tiuklinhoy Jr. said the training aims to equip the coaches, student-athletes, and referees with essential lifesaving knowledge and practical skills in responding to cardiac arrest and other medical emergencies that may occur during training and competitions.

‘By enhancing emergency preparedness, we strengthen our collective responsibility to provide a much safer sporting environment for all participants,’ said Tiukinhoy.

‘This initiative supports the implementation of Republic Act No. 11462, otherwise known as the Student-Athletes Protection Act (Samboy Lim Law), which mandates enhanced health and safety measures and emergency preparedness for student-athletes,’ he added.

The Philippine Heart Association-Cebu Chapter will facilitate the BLS training. In addition, the group will provide free Electrocardiogram (ECG) screening for student-athletes to help identify possible underlying cardiac conditions, facilitate early intervention, and promote safer participation in sports.

Tiukinhoy said all CESAFI member schools are strongly encouraged to send representatives for this worthwhile activity.

‘Your cooperation and active participation are greatly appreciated as we continue to uphold the highest standards of athlete health, safety, and emergency preparedness within the CESAFI community,’ Tiukinhoy said.

From virtually out of nowhere, rookie Philippine duos struck with a gold and bronze medal in the youth mixed pairs event of the 10th Aerobic Gymnastics Asian Championships presented by the Philippine Sports Commission early yesterday morning here.

Both Palarong Pambansa standouts in the last edition held in Prosperidad, Agusan del Sur, Rhimel Daniel Cabides and Antonette Amante pranced and danced with both dynamism and elegance in securing the gold medal with a score 17.80 points at the modified Tagaytay CT Velodrome.

General Santos natives Rhys Enoch Balmayor and John Mikaela Ladaran gave the country’s second medal in securing third place (17.150) in the meet backed by the Philippine Olympic Committee and Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp.

Both pairs made the most of their international debuts in the competition organized by the Gymnastics Association of the Philippines and sanctioned by the Asian Gymnastics Union.

‘Napatunayan namin maari kaming makapagsabayan internationally,’ said Amante, a triple Palaro gold medalist, who, like Cabides, is 14 and a Grade 8 Teodoro Alonzo High School student.

A three-peat in the Jones Cup may be easier said than done.

Strong Group Athletics head coach Charles Tiu expects a difficult road ahead for his squad as they aim to win three championships in a row.

‘I think this year, the tournament’s much tougher. There’s a Korean team also, you got the Jordan national team, UC Irvine, the college team with the 7’9′ dude. So, interesting pool of teams ngayon,’ Tiu, also the head coach of the Phoenix Fuel Masters in the PBA, said.

‘Tapos yung format, it’s a different format, we’re in groups of four. Our group’s a bit of a tougher group because we have Taiwan national team, we have Korea, the DB Promy team, and then yung Japan team. So, tougher pero still exciting. We should be up for the task and hopefully we can compete and represent the country well,’ he added.

This year’s team has a few holdovers from the last champion team – Titing Manalili, DJ Fenner, Dave Ildefonso and Tajuan Agee – to go with new additions Shaun Ildefonso, Matthew Wright, William Navarro, Isaiah Pineiro, Malick Diouf, Remy Martin and Boban Marjanovic. Allen Liwag will be rested from the tournament due to an injury.

‘The guys are competitors. I like what I’m seeing in practice so far. Nobody wants to lose. Obviously, there’s a challenge to let everybody play, but we’ve also got some guys that know their roles in the team, which I think is good,’ Tiu said.

‘We’ll figure it out. I mean, it’s a tournament. We’re playing eight games in 10 days. It’s never an easy thing. So, I think everybody will have enough opportunity to perform,’ he added.

This year’s Jones Cup will run from August 14-23, right in time for the PBA’s break for the FIBA World Cup qualifiers.

‘Thankfully, swak sa schedule ng PBA na may off talaga, wala kaming games, so I guess it all kind of worked out. But obviously, the priority while I’m here is still Phoenix, it’s still my team, so we need to win some games in the PBA,’ he said.

Phoenix will still play two games – against Rain or Shine on Sunday and against Magnolia next Wednesday – before flying off to Taiwan next Thursday.

‘I think pinaalam naman sa PBA, very thankful to the board, through Boss [Raymond Zorrilla] na inaayos naman. So hopefully, wala namang issues.’

There is no shortage of world sports champions from the Philippines.

Add two in Annie Ramirez and Kimberly Custodio, who ruled their respective divisions in the JJIF World Championships in Abu Dhabi, the United Arab Emirates Thursday night.

Ramirez, 35, was untouchable in the adult female -57-kilogram class to claim her third world title while Custodio, 38, was unstoppable in the adult female -45kg section to snare her fourth crown in the event.

For Ramirez, it was her third gold of the year, claiming one each in last April’s Asian Beach Games in Sanya, China, and last month’s Asian Championship in Almaty, Kazakhstan.

Team Philippines also captured the silver courtesy of Kaila Napolis (adult female -52kg), and four bronzes from Eliecha Zoe Malilay (adult female -45kg), Melondrina Viray (adult female -48kg), Alexandra Luz Enriquez (adult female -63kg) and Zeus Babanto (adult male -85kg).

The superb effort showed the Nationals’ readiness to blow away the competition in next month’s Asian Games in Aichi, Japan.

The pair of feats also came just moments after recent triumphs by Alex Eala, Chezka Centeno in 8-ball and pole-vaulter EJ Obiena across the planet.

Senators allied with Vice President Sara Duterte questioned the testimony of Roderick Wamil of the Commission on Audit, with minority member Robinhood Padilla even claiming that the confidential funds were spent to quash communist rebellion.

During his interjection on Day 13 of the trial on Wednesday, Padilla did not ask a question and instead confronted Wamil about three checks for the disbursement of confidential funds, said to have been misused by the Vice President.

Padilla claimed that these checks – P125 million dated Dec. 20, 2022, P125 million for Jan. 31, 2023, and P125 million for April 18, 2023 – were near key anniversary dates of the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP), National Democratic Front (NDF) and New People’s Army (NPA).

Padilla said the following are communist anniversary dates – the CPP founding anniversary is Dec. 26, the NPA founding anniversary is March 29, and the NDF ‘golden anniversary’ is April 24. He implied that the Vice President’s confidential funds were used to prevent any communist attacks during those dates.

‘I mentioned this because all these dates – Dec. 26, March 29, April 24 – all this, there was no attack. All were foiled. None. For the first time, there was no attack. Because every founding anniversary, there’s an attack,’ Padilla said, without citing his basis.

After Wamil said he has no personal knowledge about the use of confidential funds to thwart communist attacks, Padilla said even the Department of Education (DepEd) – which Duterte previously helmed – has a role in thwarting communism because of the Reds’ recruitment in schools.

‘We know that DepEd, from DepEd, it is the origin of what we call, in the Communist Party, we have what we call pangkat-gerilya and pangkat-political,’ Padilla said in explaining communist recruitment in schools.

‘The pangkat-political, it is those students that come from universities,’ he said.

Sen. Alan Peter Cayetano asked the witness about why the COA auditor is presuming that the Vice President ‘pocketed’ the confidential funds just because these were not properly liquidated.

Wamil explained that their Joint Circular on secret funds explicitly states that there is presumption of personal use or gain if the secret funds were not properly liquidated.?When Cayetano called it a ‘disputable presumption,’ Wamil said for COA, it is a ‘prima facie presumption.’

Cayetano said this only means that the burden to prove there is wrongdoing is on the prosecution. He also questioned the prosecution’s legal theory that the Vice President pocketed her confidential funds just because these were not properly liquidated.

Sen. Imee Marcos said the special disbursing officers – not the Vice President – should have been the ‘accountable officers’ in charge of the confidential funds based on the COA’s Joint Circular 2015-01.

Wamil said Sen. Marcos was incorrect, because under the circular it is the Vice President as ‘head of the agency’ who is responsible for the cash advances, the utilization oversight, and documentary compliance.

This only bolsters the prosecution’s theory that the Vice President herself misused the confidential funds for personal benefit, Wamil said.

ICC prejudice?

Meanwhile, Duterte said yesterday that the case of her father former president Rodrigo Duterte could be used by US President Donald Trump as an example to show that the International Criminal Court (ICC) is a ‘biased political organization.’

The Vice President said she does not know if Trump’s campaign against the ICC could help in the release of her father.

The US is not a member of the ICC

The incompetence of our government in regulating the power industry is a significant cause of our woes. While the current leadership of the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) has been trying hard to clean up the inherited mess, sins of the past will hurt us for some time.

Just look at recent ERC orders. Last week, the ERC ordered Meralco to refund P9.5 billion to its consumers even while explaining that Meralco is not at fault because previous commissions failed to act on Meralco’s rate reset petitions.

Together with the refund order, the ERC also allowed Meralco to collect over P8.7 billion in under-recoveries covering the period of 2011-2022. Again, ERC said this is because previous commissions failed to resolve these under recoveries incurred by Meralco.

So, with a refund of P0.59/kwh and an under recovery of P0.08/kwh, Meralco consumers will have a reduction of P0.51/kwh for residential consumers.

Apparently, past ERC commissioners simply failed to do the only publicly significant work they have been mandated to do, which is to conduct timely rate resets. They failed to meet several reset periods for over seven years.

This failure led to unverified provisional pricing, massive overcollections and sudden multi-billion-peso retroactive refunds and true-up charges for consumers.

ERC’s failure forced distribution utilities to continue charging provisional rates without periodic performance-based reviews. This has resulted in continuous unverified overcollections from end-users.

Every time ERC allows regulatory periods to lapse, accounts could not be reconciled in real-time, preventing consumers from immediately enjoying lowest-cost adjustments mandated by law.

ERC has lately been issuing delayed true-up and refund orders such as the multi-billion-peso refunds imposed on utilities like Meralco because initial collections exceeded what was later deemed appropriate.

Then, there are also accumulated under-recoveries and fuel cost adjustments from the unreviewed years (e.g., covering 2011 to 2022). That’s why ERC also recently approved additional collection charges alongside refund installments.

The sad thing is, all the past ERC commissioners faced no sanctions for their failures. The Ombudsman should still make them accountable for the mess they were responsible for and for which the public has suffered from.

Perhaps the reason for the ERC’s failure is inadequate staffing. Lawyers with political connections but no energy economics backgrounds have been appointed to ERC. Their mandate is huge but they lack the brainpower to compute and ask the right questions.

Conducting a rate reset under the PBR framework requires intricate economic modeling, calculating the Weighted Average Cost of Capital, and vetting corporate capital expenditures. A deep bench of in-house technical specialists is needed.

The good news is, the current ERC chairman Francis Saturnino Juan has overhauled rate reset rules to timely align power rates with market realities and prevent future multi-year regulatory lapses. Some 34 rule-making resolutions have been issued to modernize the country’s rate-setting framework.

However, the problem with staffing remains and the backlog of cases is deep. Maybe digitalization and AI will lighten the laborious computations needed to rule on every petition filed by all the utilities the ERC covers.

Then again, the problems we face with our energy sector goes beyond ERC. DOE and other agencies including LGUs have been contributing to the mess.

For example, we all know that our biggest problem is power supply. The thin reserve is why we get these yellow and red alerts. That’s also why we get higher power rates under our market-based pricing mechanism in the electricity spot market.

But the regulatory environment for putting up power plants isn’t encouraging for potential investors. Permits from national and local government units are difficult to get. And right-of-way problems to connect power plants to the transmission grid also take so much time to clear.

Take the case of the Australia-based Energy World Corp. that almost went bankrupt after it heeded the call of our government to put up a 650 MW power plant and LNG terminal. They have taken delivery of a Siemens manufactured power plant which remained idle in delivery crates in Pagbilao, Quezon for ten years and was eventually re-exported last June, unused.

The project was killed by local supply chain bottlenecks, extreme global fuel price volatility and local resistance to zoning and land classification.

To bypass bureaucratic red tape, the DOE certified the terminal and its adjacent 650 MW plant as an ‘Energy Project of National Significance’ under Executive Order 30.

But even an Executive Order from then President Duterte was not good enough. EWC also struggled for years to secure the right to tap into the power grid.

The Pagbilao area is a massive hub for other power infrastructure (such as the existing Pagbilao coal-fired plants). Transmission capacity in the Quezon corridor was heavily congested. Existing local generation players have already taken up room on the grid. EWC had to navigate complex grid-sharing disputes and ‘wheeling’ layout coordination involving multiple entities.

Industry analysts pointed out that the absence of backing from a powerful, politically connected local joint-venture partner is a major reason why EWC struggled so hard to clear bureaucratic hurdles and secure local grid connection approvals.

Ultimately, the plant became a stranded asset. And to think that EWC was responding to the DOE’s call to fast-track its project. Imagine how many yellow and red alerts that 650 MW of baseload capacity from a brand-new power plant could have averted!

That’s how to attract and manage foreign investment. We’re hopeless.

Vice President Sara Duterte challenged Defense Secretary Gilbert Teodoro to identify the government officials defending China on the West Philippine Sea issue, saying even President Marcos might be suspected to be among those being alluded to.

In an interview yesterday in Davao City, the Vice President was asked to comment on Teodoro’s call for pro-China government officials to resign.

She said to make it clear to all Filipinos, such officials should be named.

‘You can’t just release a statement and not name the officials. And of course even the President might be suspect as long as there’s no list,’ Duterte said.

In a forum, Teodoro said elected government officials siding with China should consider resigning from their posts because those in government swore to uphold the Constitution and the country’s laws.

He said if the elected and sworn government officials cannot stand by the country’s stance, they should either resign or question this before the Supreme Court.

Malacañang has expressed support for Teodoro’s call.

Meanwhile, an organization of both retired and active top officials of the military, police, and other uniformed services joined calls yesterday for public officials to uphold their oaths of allegiance and stand by the country’s laws on the issue of the West Philippine Sea.

In a statement, the Association of Generals and Flag Officers (AGFO) said the group ‘shares the unyielding position of the Department of National Defense on the West Philippine Sea, emphasizing that allegiance to the Constitution, adherence to the rule of law, and the defense of national sovereignty remain non-negotiable duties of every public servant.’

AGFO is headed by retired police Maj. Gen. German Doria.

‘Public office is a sacred public trust. Every public official is bound by a solemn oath to bear true faith and allegiance to the flag and the Republic, and to strictly obey and execute the laws of the land – including Administrative Order No. 29, series of 2012, which formally defines the West Philippine Sea,’ it stressed.

As former military leaders who have dedicated their lives to protecting the nation’s territorial integrity, AGFO said it stands by three core imperatives: adherence to legal obligations, solidarity with troops and maritime communities, and responsible and contextual reporting

AGFO reaffirmed its commitment to a peaceful, secure, and sovereign Philippines, calling on all public servants to bear true faith and allegiance to the nation.

Educate Pinoys on WPS

At the House of Representatives, five allies of President Marcos yesterday filed a measure that aims to institutionalize in educational institutions the importance of the Philippines’ legitimate maritime ownership over the West Philippine Sea.

House Bill 10587 (West Philippine Sea Education Act) counts among its authors House Deputy Speakers Francisco Paolo Ortega and Jefferson Khonghun, and Reps. Zia Alonto Adiong, Rodge Gutierrez and Ernesto Dionisio Jr.

‘Filipino students must learn the facts – that we are advocating for a rules-based international order, and that the West Philippine Sea is rightfully ours,’ the House’s so-called Young Guns declared in a joint statement.

‘Our young people are vulnerable to fake news and propaganda flooding social media. We have a duty to teach them the truth so they grow up armed with accurate, evidence-based knowledge of our sovereign rights and entitlements,’ they said.

The measure institutionalizes a comprehensive WPS Education and Awareness Program, mandates the integration of age-appropriate WPS education into basic and higher education curricula, and promotes national understanding of the Philippines’ maritime rights under the 1987 Constitution.

Also included in the educational materials should be the Philippine Maritime Zones Act (Republic Act 12064), the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea as well as the Philippines’ July 2016 victory, or the South China Sea Arbitral Award

Ports and casino tycoon Enrique Razon Jr. has unseated the Sy siblings in the Forbes list of the Philippines’ 50 richest.

Razon took top spot for the first time in the Philippines’ 50 richest list for 2026 by Forbes with a record net worth of $21.8 billion. He ranked No. 2 last year with a net worth of $11.5 billion.

Razon chairs listed companies including International Container Terminal Services Inc., Manila Water Co. and Solaire casino operator Bloomberry Resorts.

Sliding into the second spot this year are the Sy siblings, heirs to the SM group built by the late Henry Sy Sr., whose fortune stood at $9.2 billion, down from last year’s $11.8 billion.

At No. 3 is tycoon Ramon Ang of San Miguel Corp. whose net worth stood at $3.5 billion, slightly lower from last year’s $3.75 billion wherein he placed fourth.

This year’s fourth and fifth spots were occupied by the husband-and-wife tandem of Lucio and Susan Co of Puregold with $3.3 billion and Isidro Consunji and siblings of diversified engineering conglomerate DMCI Holdings with $3 billion.

Cracking the sixth spot in this year’s rankings is taipan Lucio Tan, chairman of the LT Group, with a net worth of $2.9 billion.

Jaime Zobel de Ayala and family retained their position at No. 7 with a net worth of $2.8 billion, followed by the Que Azcona family of Mercury Drug at No. 8 with a net worth of $2.5 billion.

Rounding out the top 10 are real estate magnate Manuel Villar Jr. with $2.4 billion and the Ty siblings with $2.3 billion.

This year, Forbes said the biggest gainer in percentage terms is Robert Coyiuto Jr., who more than doubled his fortune to $925 million, propelling him to No. 17 in the list.

Forbes said Coyiuto’s shares in one of his key holdings, Synergy Grid and Development Philippines, the controlling shareholder of National Grid Corp. of the Philippines, rallied on favorable regulatory changes.

Meanwhile, among the returnees is Jose Ma. Concepcion III, president and CEO of food and beverage company RFM, who ranked at No. 49 with $200 million.

Overall, Forbes said the fortunes of 33 members in the list are lower and only 14 are better off than a year ago.

‘The energy shock from the Iran conflict took its toll, stoking inflation while the peso fell. As a result, the collective wealth of the country’s 50 richest tycoons dropped to $79 billion from $86 billion last year,’ the report said.

The Forbes list used shareholding and financial information obtained from the families and individuals as well as stock exchanges, analysts and other sources.

Net worth is based on stock prices and exchange rates as of the close of markets on July 17.

Forbes said that unlike its billionaire rankings, the list includes family fortunes, such as those shared among extended families.

The Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) finished slightly lower yesterday with investors opting to stay on the sidelines ahead of the release of the country’s second quater economic growth data. The PSEi eased by 0.13 percent, or 8.36 points, to settle at 6,277.95, extending its losing streak to three days in a row.

The broader All Shares index, on the other hand, improved by 0.02 percent, or 0.63 points, to close at 3,413.45.

Philstocks Financial Inc. said the local market declined as investors brace for the country’s upcoming GDP data, which will be released today.

It said lingering uncertainties between the United States and Iran as the latter denied that talks between the two were ongoing also added to the pessimism.

‘On a positive note, losses were trimmed in the final minutes amid bargain hunting,’ Philstocks Financial said.

Sectoral gauges were a mixed bag, with the industrial index posting the highest gain at 0.97 percent and the services index taking the biggest hit with a 0.44-percent drop.

Total turnover value thinned slightly to P6.18 billion from the previous day’s P6.77 billion.

Foreigners were net sellers with net outflows at P323.68 million.

Advancers edged out decliners in a tight contest, 97 to 96, while 57 issues were unchanged.

ICTSI stayed as the top traded stock, declining by 0.50 percent to P1,000 per share. It was followed by Ayala Corp., which dropped by 0.80 percent to P493, and BDO, which grew by 0.16 percent to P123.20.

Among index members, DigiPlus saw the largest increase with 3.26 percent to P9.50, while BPI lost the most, plunging by 2.32 percent to P101.