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ENTERTAINMENT
Ellen Adarna is the new 2015
Ginebra San Miguel Calendar
Girl - page 13
VOL. 3 ISSUE 1
Serious investment
impact of FATCA
P
eople in the business sector here
and abroad are talking about a
US Federal tax regulation that aims
to discourage tax evasion by US
citizens and US green card holders who have assets in foreign financial institutions (FFIs) - (like
banks, stock brokers, hedge funds,
pension funds, insurance companies
and trusts). The law requires FFIs
to provide annual reports directly
to the US Internal Revenue Service
(IRS) including the name, address,
largest account balance in the year,
total debits and credits of any account owned by a US person (US
citizen or US green card holder).
The US federal tax regulation that
I am referring to is the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) that was signed into law in 2010
but will finally take effect on July 1,
2014 – after the US
Treasury granted
(Cont. on Page 9 )
M
VIEW US ONLINE: WWW.SF-POST.COM
FREE
Foreign bank accounts
and properties must be
OCT 30, 2014 - NOV 5, 2014
reported to IRS
he number of Americans renouncing U.S. citizenship
increased 39 percent in the three
months through September after
rules that make it harder to hide
assets from tax authorities came
into force.
People giving up their nationality at U.S. embassies increased
to 776 in the third quarter, from
560 in the year-earlier period,
according to Federal Register
data published yesterday.
T
ILOILO CONVENTION CENTER. Graft and plunder charges were filed
against Senate Pres. Franklin Drilon, Tourism Secretary Ramon Jimenez,
Public Works Secretary Rogelio Singson and other Department of Public
Works and Highways officials in connection with the allegedly overpriced
construction of the Iloilo Convention Center.
Binay in panic mode,
says Cayetano
ANILA, Philippines–Vice President Jejomar Binay, by accusing
the country’s rich of waging a war
against a “poor man” like himself,
was now in a “panic mode,” Sen. Alan
Peter Cayetano said on Monday.
But contrary to his claims, Binay attended parties with the country’s rich,
and count some of them as among his
financial backers, Cayetano said.
“He’s in a panic mode. Like someone gasping for breath… he’s trying
to read all the political books and all
the strategies used by other politicians, and applying them to himself,
although they do not apply,” he told
reporters.
In a radio interview in Pagadian City
on Friday, Binay accused his opponents of hatching a plot to remove him
from office, describing it as a political war waged by the rich against the
poor.
The Vice President has been fending
off charges of corruption and ill-gotten wealth, from pocketing kickbacks
from infrastructure deals as a Makati
mayor to owning a P1.2-billion highend farm in Batangas province.
He has dismissed the charges, which
is being investigated by the Senate blue ribbon subcommittee, as attempts at derailing his bid to become
the country’s next President in 2016.
Cayetano observed that Binay’s use
of the rich vs poor card wasn’t very
original. He recalled that then President Joseph Estrada also accused
the country’s elite of
spearheading his
(Cont. on Page 7)
Tougher asset-disclosure rules
that started July 1 under the Foreign Account Tax Compliance
Act, or Fatca, prompted more of
the estimated 6 million Americans living overseas to give up
their passports. The appeal of
U.S. citizenship for expatriates faded further as more than
100 Swiss banks began to turn
over data on American clients
to avoid prosecution for helping
tax evaders.
(Cont. on Page 15 )
Drilon sued for plunder
M
ANILA, Philippines–“Malicious
and baseless,” says Senate President Franklin Drilon.
Drilon was charged on Wednesday
in the Office of the Ombudsman with
plunder in connection with the allegedly overpriced P488-million Iloilo
Convention Center (ICC) financed
with pork barrel funds from Congress
and Malacañang.
Manuel Mejorada, former provincial administrator of Iloilo, filed the
complaint, saying Drilon’s pet project, which is being undertaken by the
controversial Hilmarc’s Construction
Corp. (HCC), was a “high-level” conspiracy engineered by
the senator “to build an avenue
for corruption.”
Mejorada said funds for the
project came from Drilon’s
allocation under the Priority
Development Assistance Fund
(PDAF) and Malacañang’s government savings impounding mechanism
called Disbursement Acceleration Program (DAP). The Supreme Court has
declared both facilities unconstitutional.
Drilon dismissed as “ridiculous” the
charge by Mejorada, a former aide. The
Senate President said he did not take
active part in the bidding of the project
in Iloilo City being rushed for completion in time to host Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation meetings in September next year.
(Cont. on Page 7)
Immigration officer union sounds alarm over DHS order
on
for millions of blank work permits, green cards Story
page 10
TRENDING
Liza Soberano not ready for a
romantic relationship -page 13
PAGE 2
Oct 30, 2014 - Nov 5, 2014
FIL-AM POST
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Singapore’s top court upholds anti-gay law
SINGAPORE — Singapore’s highest court on the courts to consider.
Wednesday dismissed a constitutional challenge
In a statement, Tan’s lawyer M. Ravi said the judgagainst an archaic law criminalizing sex between ment was a “huge step backwards for human rights
men, striking a fresh blow to the city-state’s growing in Singapore.”
gay-rights movement.
Ravi added that it was “disturbing” that “the SuThe Court of Appeal uppreme Court has now
held rulings by lower courts
thrown this issue back to
that it was up to Parliament
Parliament, when other
to repeal the provision in
Commonwealth countries
the penal code, known as
have struck down this legSection 377A.
islation as discriminatory
“Whilst we understand the
and (an) absurd relic of the
deeply held personal feelcolonial past.”
ings of the appellants, there
Section 377A, first introis nothing that this court
duced in 1938 by British
can do to assist them,”
colonial
administrators,
judges Andrew Phang, Becarries a maximum penalty
linda Ang and Woo Bih Li
of two years in jail for hosaid in a written verdict.
mosexual acts.
Singapore’s top court upholds anti-gay law
“Their remedy lies, if
The law states: “Any male
at all, in the legislative
person who, in public or
sphere,” the judges said.
private, commits, or abets the commission of, or proThe ruling addressed two separate challenges to the cures or attempts to procure the commission by any
law.
male person of, any act of gross indecency with anOne was by Tan Eng Hong, who was arrested after other male person, shall be punished with imprisonbeing caught with a male partner in a public toilet ment for a term which may extend to 2 years.”
Alhough Section 377A is not actively enforced, the
cubicle in 2010, while the other was filed by a gay
government has said it should stay on the books becouple.
most Singaporeans are conservative and do not
The judges said they only considered “legal argu- cause
accept
homosexuality.
ments” and not “extra-legal considerations and matA scientific survey conducted by researchers at the
ters of social policy which were outside the remit of Nanyang Technological University in 2010 and pubthe court.”
lished last year found Singaporeans’ views towards
According to the judges, examples of extra-legal homosexuality gradually becoming more positive
arguments put forward by the appellants’ lawyers compared to attitudes in 2005.
Over 20,000 people gathered in a peaceful rally
included that Section 377A represented “the tyranny
of the majority” and that the sexual conduct of their supporting gay rights last June despite a fierce online
campaign against the event by conservative Muslims
clients caused no harm to others.
However judges said such arguments were not for and Christians.
Israeli Forces Clash
With Palestinians in
East Jerusalem
JERUSALEM — Israeli forces clashed with Palestinians
in East Jerusalem overnight
amid ongoing tensions almost
a week after a car rammed a
crowd waiting at a railway
stop in the city, killing two.
The epicenter of the unrest
was Silwan, the
hometown of
the driver AbdelRahman
S h a loudi,
w h o
was shot
d e a d
by police after he tried to flee the
alleged attack. “Last night
there were clashes all over the
place, my kids were screaming from the tear gas couldn’t
breathe, couldn’t sleep all
night,” Ahmad Abbasi, a taxi
driver from Silwan, told NBC
News on Tuesday. “We were
surprised that hundreds off
[Israeli] border police and
special units were on every
corner.”
Israeli police spokesman
Mickey Rosenfeld said that
1,000 police reinforcements
had been sent to different ar-
eas of Jerusalem in the last
five days, including Silwan.
“Those forces are units who
deal with riots and violent incidents,” he said. “The forces
only react to events of disorder through using stun grenades and other riot control
means but
they don’t
go
into
houses of
residents
unless
there is a
need
to
make an
arrest.”
P r i m e
Minister
Benjamin
Netanyahu has vowed to “use
whatever force is necessary”
to combat militant violence.
On Monday, an official close
to Netanyahu told NBC News
on condition of anonymity
that the government would
expedite plans for around
1,000 settler homes in East
Jerusalem. Palestinian officials and some members of
the international community
have criticized settlement
building on territory that Palestinians hope will one day
form part of an independent
state.
Australia instigates Ebolaprompted ban on travel
from West Africa
CNN -- In the fight
against Ebola, Australia has said: No
thanks.
Immigration Minister Scott Morrison announced “strong controls” on arrivals from
West African countries affected by cases
of the deadly disease.
Telling Australia’s
parliament during a
question time session
Monday that his ministry was currently
“not processing any
application from these
(Ebola) affected countries,” he said that the
government was also
suspending its humanitarian program.
He added that holders of permanent Australian visas based in
these countries would
be subject to a mandatory, three-week quarantine process prior to
their departure. Visitors approved to travel
to Australia will also
face further screening
and followup checks
upon arrival.
The announcement came as a “surprise,” the Australian
Medical Association
(AMA) president Brian Owler told CNN,
who said that the
chance of the disease
entering the country
through a migrant
from the region was
very low.
“It’s not necessarily
a very well-focused
decision. The bigger
picture needs to be
on our preparedness
at home but more importantly our involvement in West Africa
itself, putting doctors
and nurses and other
logistical
elements
in place and trying
to combat the crisis
there.”
He added that the
government
had
sought the advice of
“very few people,”
and had excluded the
AMA.
Australian Prime
Minister Tony Abbott
said: “I not always
agree with the Australian Medical Association, but I take them
seriously and I think
that the AMA invariably has the national
interest at heart.”
Marysville high school shooting: Jaylen Fryberg
lured victims via text message, police say
The student who opened fire at a
Washington state high school Friday leaving three dead, including
himself, lured his victims to lunch
by text message, investigators said
Monday.
Snohomish County Sheriff Ty
Trenary told a news conference
that five students were all at a
lunch table when they were shot by
15-year-old Jaylen Fryberg.
Trenary also confirmed that the
.40-caliber handgun used in the
shooting had been legally purchased by one of Fryberg’s relatives. It remains unclear how Fryberg obtained the weapon.
The sheriff said investigators continue to comb through a massive
amount of text messages, phone
records and social media posts as
they search for an explanation for
the shooting — but he also said
they may never find one.
The sheriff’s disclosure came one
day after a 14-year-old girl shot by
Fryberg died, the third person to die
in the shooting. Officials at Providence Regional Medical Center in
Everett identified the
victim as Gia Soriano,
a freshman at Marysville-Pilchuk
High
School, about 30 miles
north of Seattle.
The other victim was
identified Monday as
14-year-old Zoe R. Galasso, by the Snohomish County Medical
Examiner’s office. Galasso lived in Marysville and was a student
at the school.
The Snohomish County Sheriff’s
office issued a statement saying
Galasso died of a gunshot wound to
the head.
The statement also said the medical examiner identified Fryberg,
15, saying he died of a “handgun
wound of the head,” and ruled his
death a suicide.
Three other student victims remained hospitalized.
PAGE 3
Oct 30, 2014 - Nov 5, 2014
Kerry says Canadian parliament
attack clearly ‘terrorist act’
OTTAWA (Reuters) - U.S.
Secretary of State John Kerry
said on Tuesday that an attack
on the Canadian parliament
and the country’s National War
Memorial last week in which
a soldier was
killed
was
clearly a terrorist act.
“Clearly,
anybody who
walks up in a
premeditated
way with a
loaded rifle
and attacks
someone in
uniform then
purposely goes to a parliament,
is committing, by common
sense standards, a terrorist
act,” Kerry told a news briefing after talks in Ottawa with
his Canadian counterpart, Foreign Minister John Baird.
Two days before the attack in
Ottawa on Oct. 22, a car driven
by a man described by police
as a homegrown radical ran
down two soldiers, killing one
in Quebec.
Since then Canadians have
debated whether the attackers
were motivated by Islamist
ideology
and a desire to sow
terror
or
whether
they were
merely
mentally
unstable
and marginalized
individuals.
Baird
echoed the Canadian government’s view that whatever the
mental state of the attackers,
their acts were terrorism.
Kerry came to Ottawa on his
first visit to Canada since becoming secretary of state last
year to show solidarity and
discuss security issues following the attacks.
PAGE 4
Oct 30, 2014 - Nov 5, 2014
OPINION
FIL-AM POST
The ‘mystery man’ behind Binay
V
Graft-congested port
Editorial
t has been said that in the Philippines, every single law, regulation, directive or ordiIindirectly,
nance presents an opportunity for someone somewhere to make money, directly or
legally or otherwise. This observation has made itself painfully felt in real
world, specifically in the Port of Manila, the main transshipment point of goods to and
from this country.
No thanks to a “perfect storm” of ill-conceived local government policies, the absence
of the national government’s strong hand, and a creaking transportation infrastructure,
Filipinos are now expected to feel the impact of clogged economic arteries through more
expensive goods and services during the holiday season.
This is aggravated by the issue of corruption in and around the port system, which has
made it more difficult and more expensive for companies to move imports out of the
docks and container yards and into the factories and markets where they are needed.
The gravity of the situation cannot be stressed enough. A cursory examination of the
Port of Manila will show steel containers stacked five high (where they used to be only
double stacked) due to the slow process of moving them out to their consignees. Due to
the longer time it takes to unload their cargo (some have been refusing to take on Philippine-bound cargo altogether), shipping lines have raised their charges, thus effectively
doubling the cost of transporting goods to the Philippines through the Port of Manila.
Trucking fees have also spiked, caused by illicit “facilitators” at the Philippine Ports
Authority (PPA) and the Bureau of Customs, who are able to exact higher “tong” from
increasingly desperate truckers and importers.
The port congestion that began with the Manila city government’s ill-conceived truck
ban has now been institutionalized by entrepreneurial gatekeepers (no doubt, with powerful backers) who speak to the business community with one intimidating voice: “If you
want your cargo released early, pay up.”
Malacañang must shake off its lethargy,
communicate clearly to the heads of the
two agencies where shippers say corruption
is endemic—PPA and Customs—and jolt
them, all the way down to their foot soldiers
(An Employees owned Publication)
on the ground and their agents, out of their
Distributed weekly in Northern California
business-as-usual mindsets, that corruption
will not be tolerated.
1290 B Street, Suite 203, Hayward,
Ultimately, however, one must recognize
CA 94541
that policing the ranks of government agenTel # 510-885-8827,
cies to stop “pay-as-you-go tong systems”
is not the most efficient and effective way
Fax # 510-538-7115
of fighting corruption. Combating this [email protected] /
ease at the “retail level” is akin to the legend
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of that little Dutch boy who tried to stem the
www.sf-post.com
flood by plugging holes in the dyke with his
fingers. One’s fingers are limited, and the
Teresita Estanislao
holes that breed corruption are legion.
Editor-in-Chief & CEO
No, the kind of corruption that causes and
profits handsomely from port congestion
Atty. Crispin C. Lozano
must be addressed at the wholesale level.
Exec. Vice President
In the end, one must recognize that corrupt
elements share a common trait with many
Adda Humady
legitimate businessmen: They look for marGeneral Advertising Manager
ket imbalances and asymmetries that present money-making opportunities.
Don Orozco
ice President Jejomar Binay
has been accused by his
former associates, in their
testimonies
in the Senate,
of using dummies to hide
As I See It
his immense
by Neal H. Cruz
wealth derived
from
kickbacks
from
Makati infrastructure projects. One of
them, businessman Antonio Tiu, appeared
last Wednesday at the Senate to claim
ownership of the alleged Binay hacienda
in Rosario, Batangas, but admitted that he
had no title to the property—yet. Other alleged dummies, subpoenaed by the Senate
blue ribbon subcommittee investigating
the corruption charges against Binay, have
chosen to remain silent.
Somewhere out there is a man who knew
how to parlay a personal friendship into a
multimillion-peso nest egg. This man continues to make himself scarce to elude the
subpoena-servers of the Senate subcommittee, whose inquiry into the corruption
scandal has gripped the nation for the past
two months.
So elusive has the man been that Sen.
Koko Pimentel, who chairs the subcommittee, could only scratch his head when
the crew he sent out to deliver the panel’s
invitation came back empty-handed.
The man is not your average snake-oil
salesman. He comes with some pedigree
and respectable academic credentials.
He is Gerardo “Gerry” Limlingan Jr., son
of a former governor of Pampanga. He
received a bachelor’s degree in economics from Ateneo de Manila in 1961 after
graduating from Ateneo High School in
1957. That’s at least eight years of Jesuit
education.
Not much is known about Limlingan’s
early job experience before he joined the
Binay campaign in the 2010 presidential
election. During that campaign, he had his
proverbial 15 minutes of fame when he
was wounded in an ambush. He was then
Binay’s campaign manager and finance officer.
To illustrate Limlingan’s closeness to Binay, the latter issued a statement after the
failed ambush: “Gerry Limlingan is a very
dear family friend. The attempt on his life
is a despicable act that deserves condemnation.”
Since that time until 2013, Limlingan
had, according to testimonies at the Senate, managed to bag more than P1.3 billion
in contracts with the Makati City government for security and janitorial services.
This amount does not cover the previous
years when Omni Investigation and Gen-
eral Services Inc., a company organized
in 1999, virtually gobbled up security and
janitorial services bid out by the city government when Binay, and subsequently,
his wife Elenita, were the mayors, according to a report by Rappler.
The company has since been split into
two—Omni Security Investigation (for security), and Corporate Solutions Manpower and General Services Inc. (for janitorial
services). Both firms, however, have the
same address and contact numbers, based
on their submissions to the Securities and
Exchange Commission.
Limlingan’s ties to the embattled Binay
surfaced during the Senate hearing when
former Makati vice mayor Ernesto Mercado claimed that he had delivered to Limlingan money representing Binay’s kickbacks from city government projects.
That prompted the invitation to Limlingan from the subcommittee.
The Rappler report said Omni Security’s
current chair is Marguerite E. Lichnock,
identified as Limlingan’s wife. Other officials in the company are also said to be
identified with the Binays.
Omni Security’s sister company, Corporate Solutions, incorporated in June 2012,
has the same set of incorporators, with the
exception of Lichnock. Corporate Solutions lists Limlingan as chair and president.
From a fledgling company a scant four
years ago, Omni Security Investigation
and General Services has transformed itself into a major supplier of the Makati
government. From 2010 to 2014, the firm
was awarded contracts worth a total of
P1.321 billion. This included the contracts
after the company was split into two.
Limlingan was tagged by Mercado in his
testimony as a “bagman” of then Mayor
Binay. Mercado claimed at the Senate
hearing that Limlingan acted as a dummy
of Binay in businesses and properties not
declared in Binay’s statement of assets, liabilities and net worth. These allegedly include Agri-Fortuna Inc., the company that
supposedly bought Binay’s piggery business in Rosario, Batangas.
In his testimony before the Senate subcommittee, Mercado claimed that two
companies—Omni Security Investigation
and
Meriras Realty and Development Corp.—
were used as “dummies” by Binay. Limlingan is the managing director of Meriras,
and is also president of Binay’s foundation, JCB Foundation.
Omni Security was the No. 2 contractor/
awardee of the Makati government from
2009 to 2014.
The top spot belongs to Hilmarc’s Construction (with P3.7 billion in contracts).
Hilmarc’s is the firm currently on the carpet for its role in the construction of the allegedly overpriced Makati parking building.
Bureau Chief, Silicon Valley
Fishy
Alvin Maglan, CPA
Controller
Inquirer.Net
Content Syndication Partner
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he informaT
tion we’ve
been
getting
from the Senate hearings on
the corruption in
Makati and the
apparent unexplained wealth
of Vice President
By
and ex-Makati
Solita Collas - Munsod
Mayor Jejomar
Binay is mesmerizing. So I will continue to analyze and
comment on it for the duration of the hearings.
The latest characters to arrive at the scene
are the Tiu brothers, James and Anthony.
James and his wife, we now know, contributed P15 million to the Binay campaign
in 2010. James was 27 at the time, we are
given to understand. Pretty young to be so
generous a campaign funder. He also was,
together with Martin Subido’s father (Martin Subido is partner in Abigail Binay’s
law firm and best friend of Anthony Tiu),
a principal candidate in the Ani-Pilipinas
party-list group for Congress. The Tius,
Subidos and Binays seem to be cozily interconnected.
But the undoubted star of the hearings
was Anthony Tiu, James’ older brother.
Anthony was pretty well known before he
even appeared in the Senate, because after
news of “Hacienda Binay” came out, he
had already proclaimed to all and sundry,
on TV, on radio and in print, that he was
the owner of the property, not Binay. Thus,
what was being brought out in the Senate
hearings was all wrong. Not content with
that, he had also cast aspersions on the
senators conducting the inquiry, apparently
accusing them of having the “talangka”
(crab) mentality in trying to bring Binay
down.
Well, what new things did we learn from
Wednesday’s hearing?
The most important, to me, was that Anthony did not yet own—not by a long shot,
anyway—“Hacienda Binay.” The owner of
the property he is not. Anyone who pays
some P11 million for a P450-million property, and naturally has no TCT to show
proof of ownership, cannot be called an
owner. And Anthony admitted it in the
Senate. So why make ownership claims?
But here’s what else was fishy to me (from
listening to the hearing, as the documents
are not available to me):
1. Anthony says he paid P11 million in
two yearly installments starting in 2011
or 2012, but nothing in his financial statements shows that he paid that amount (at
least as shown during the hearing).
2. No other installments were paid since
then, because he said the seller, Laureano
Gregorio, had to first show that the property was indeed his (Gregorio’s), and only
then would he pay the rest, also presumably in installments.
3. But he has had full use of the property
since he paid the installments (usufruct)
even if he doesn’t own it. Which means
Gregorio gets nothing from it.
Only consider, Reader, from the point of
view of the seller Gregorio. He lets go of
a P450-million property (with a standing
orchard of 3,000 mango trees, plus at least
a house with a pool area and another house
with an English-style garden, and arguably
a piggery and a fighting-cock farm) for the
full use of someone who has paid only P11
million. Now, if that were a normal transaction, he would have P450 million in his
pocket, from which, assuming he puts it in
a bank and gets a minimum of 2 percent
for it, he should have been earning P9 million a year. But I am told that nowadays,
with a judicious choice of financial assets
to invest in, he could be getting more like
6 percent, or P27 million a year. So the opportunity cost of this deal with Anthony
Tiu ranges from P9 million to P27 million
a year. In the three years since he made
this deal, therefore, he has already lost
anywhere from P16 million to P70 million
(subtract P11 million from P9 million x 3
and P27 million x 3).
HOMELAND
FIL-AM POST
PAGE 5
Oct 30, 2014 - Nov 5, 2014
Congress okays P2.606-trillion 2015 budget
The House of Representatives voted 198 for and 18
against to approve on third and final
reading the proposed 2015 General
Appropriations Act which included
controversial new definitions of the
words “errata” and “savings” that
will likely be sent for final interpretation by the Supreme Court.
Claiming that the huge House majority had railroaded the legislative
process for the P2.606 trillion budget, majority of the 18 nay voters
gave notice that objectionable portions of the measure will be questioned before the High Court for
being both illegal and unconstitutional.
“We denounce in the strongest sense the House majority’s blatant railroading of the 2015 national budget,
which contains midnight insertions also known as ‘errata
sheets’ that only favor the Aquino
administration and his cohorts,”
declared Kabataan Partylist Rep.
Terry Ridon.
Senior Minority Leader Nery Colmenares demanded plenary deliberations for the 269 pages of errata
that resulted to amendments to a
whopping P4.7 billion allocation.
The Department of Budget Management sought the corrections
to the budget measure that was
approved on second reading last
month.
Colmenares’ motion was soundly
rejected by Malacañang allied majority bloc whose members left hurriedly after registering their votes during the roll call.
Absence of Pemberton’s fingerprint, DNA
samples hurting Laudes’ case—lawyer
MANILA, Philippines – The
Roque said this was the reason
continued absence of US Marine why they were set to file a petition
Private First Class Joseph Scott before the Supreme Court (SC) to
Pemberton has started to baffle the allow the Philippines to get cusfamily of Jeffrey
“Jennifer” Laude,
the
transgender
whom he allegedly
murdered in Olongapo City last October 11.
Pemberton should
be made to appear
even to just accommodate the Laudes’
request for fingerprint and DNA
samples to be used
as bases for comparison, said the
family’s
counsel From left: Julita Laude, Atty. Virgie Suarez. Marc Sueselbeck, Atty. Harry Roque,
Marilou Laude arrive at the preliminary investigation. JOAN BONDOC
Harry Roque.
“I don’t understand
why, in my 25 years of practicing tody of Pemberton.
criminal law, this is the only case
“We are going file a petition to
where there are no fingerprints [of get hold of Pemberton because
the suspect],” said Roque at a fo- our understanding of the Visiting
rum at the University of the Philip- Forces Agreement (VFA) is that
pines Law Center Tuesday.
the Philippines should have cus“There is no basis for comparison tody ‘from the commission of ofof the semen specimen and fin- fence’,” Roque said.
gerprints found at the scene of the
Despite his detention inside a
crime, and the VFA is the reason Philippine military base, Pemberwhy we don’t have that evidence,” ton remains under US custody.
he said. VFA is the Visiting Forces
The suspect was a no-show in two
Agreement, which contains a pro- preliminary investigation hearings
vision that allows US custody of of conducted by the city prosecutor.
its erring personnel personnel until He has also not submitted a counthe end of all judicial proceedings. ter affidavit.
Scrap terminal fees
for OFWs, court
asked
At least 12 Overseas Filipino Workers
(OFW) groups and non-government organizations (NGOs) filed yesterday a court
petition to stop the government from collecting a P550 airport terminal fee from
OFWs leaving for abroad, saying it is illegal.
In their petition for certiorari, the petitioners said the MIAA directive is a “clear
violation “ of Section 35 of RA 1022. The
section grants migrant workers exemption
from “payment of travel tax and airport
fee” as soon as they can show proof of
entitlement as granted by the Philippine
Overseas Employment Administration.
The OFW groups have resorted to a court
action after failing to convince President
Aquino to heed their complaint against the
allegedly unlawful airport collection. The
protesting organizations also slammed the
MIAA proposal to create a trust fund for
unclaimed terminal fees as unworthy of
belief.
Poe: No plans to run for
president in ’16
MANILA,
Philippines– Poe said.
People should not read too
She said that she used the
much into her use of her fa- line in 2013 when she ran
ther’s altanghap campaign for senator and that she was
line in her privilege speech just fulfilling her promon hunger, Sen. Grace Poe ise, which was why she
said on Tuesday, as she was pushing to address the
continued to be skittish problem. The lunch prowhen the topic of 2016 was gram for children is close
brought up.
to her heart, she said.
Poe insisted that she had
no intention to run in the
country’s next presidential election. “No plans at
all,” she told reporters on
Tuesday.
She said her use of altanghap, shorthand for
almusal, tanghalian, hapunan (breakfast, lunch,
dinner) should not be an
issue.
In her privilege speech
on Monday on the grow- Grace Poe
ing number of hungry Filipinos, Poe said that as her
“As I said, fighting corlate father Fernando Poe ruption is crucial, infraJr. had noted, altanghap re- structure is vital, Bangsammained the problem of or- oro is necessary, but let’s
dinary citizens.
not forget the most imporA political analyst made tant, capital, our people, esmuch of the term, saying pecially the children,” she
it was possible that Poe said.
was positioning herself for
Casiple said Poe could be
2016.
a strong contender considThe late Poe used the term ering the results of the 2013
altanghap when he ran for senatorial election that she
president in 2004. He said topped, her performance in
the main problem of Fili- the Senate and the latest ratpinos was almusal, tangha- ings of potential presidenlian, hapunan.
tial candidates, particularly
“Don’t make an issue of the decline in the ratings
altanghap. I just used it be- of Binay who nevertheless
cause it sounded good and still leads potential rivals in
it is hard to forget,” Senator the 2016 elections.
Hilmarc’s pulls out of bidding
ILOILO CITY, Philippines—The bidding for the
second phase of construction of the Iloilo Convention Center (ICC) failed after the controversial
contractor, Hilmarc’s Construction Corp. (HCC),
withdrew from the equally controversial pet project of Senate President Franklin Drilon and the
winner was subsequently disqualified.
Director Edilberto Tayao of the Department of
Public Works and Highways (DPWH) said another
bidding would be held following the disqualification, in a later evaluation, of WERR Corp. International, which made the lowest offer.
Ranking cop sued for raping bar
woman in his SPD office
Agree to have sex or go to jail.
on Oct. 25, to make a formal complaint in
These were the tough choices that a rank- the Women’s Desk. However, she said, the
ing official of the Southern Police District desk officers on duty did not get her stateallegedly gave a nightclub model, one of the ment right away when they learned that
bar workers he ordered arrested in a recent Emelo was the subject of the complaint,
SPD raid in Pasay City.
despite the fact that she had already underThe woman, an unwed mother of five, now gone a medical examination to support her
accuses Supt. Erwin Emelo of rape—an allegations.
assault she allegedly suffered right inside
“They asked me to come back the followEmelo’s office and in the presence of a fel- ing day for my statement and make sure that
low female employee of the Universe Club. I have correctly identified the police official
“Leila,” the 29-year-old complainant, who assaulted me. They said there are two
went to the Napolice officials
tional
Bureau
with the last
of Investigation
name Emelo,
(NBI) assisted
the other one
by a lawyer on
being a capMonday to sue
tain,” she said.
Emelo, who was
NBI superappointed chief
vising
agent
of the SPD’s
Alan
Tubi,
Special Operawho met Leila
tions Unit just
and her lawlast week. He
yer when they
is also a highly
filed the comtrusted aide of
plaint Monday,
SHOCKER’ The alleged rape victim (right) takes her said the bureau
the district direc- SPD
complaint to the National Bureau of Investigation against
tor, Chief Supt. a Southern Police District official on Monday. CONTRIB- would like to
Henry Rañola, UTED PHOTO
talk to the other
according
to
bar worker who
sources.
supposedly witThe woman alleged that Emelo sexually nessed the rape.
abused her around 2 p.m. on Oct. 23 inside
“We are trying to get the statement of the
his quarters at the SPD compound in Fort witness but she has apparently gone into
Bonifacio. “The (police) colonel ordered hiding, fearing for her life.” Tubi told the
my friend, who was with us inside the room, Inquirer.
to turn around while he was raping me. He
He said the NBI would also like to hear
had his gun placed on a table nearby,” she from three more women who could also
said in a complaint affidavit.
shed light on the incident, but they too had
She returned to the CIDG two days later, reportedly left for the provinces.
In the bidding held on Oct. 20, WERR submitted the
lowest bid of P166.1 million for the project, lower than
the approved budget for the contract of P187.6 million.
JD Legaspi Construction made a tender of P178.4 million and HSO Construction Corp., P180 million.
HCC, contractor of the allegedly overpriced Makati
City Hall Building II, is undertaking the first phase of
the convention’s construction, originally under a P480million contract, which was later increased by P12 million to cover components of the second phase. It withdrew from the second phase, saying it could not keep
cost within the amount set by the DPWH.
TAX CORNER
PAGE 6
Oct 30, 2014 - Nov 5, 2014
IMPLICATIONS ON FBAR
(FOREIGN BANK ACCOUNT REPORT)
ON TAX AND CRIMINAL
PENALTY AND RECENT
CHANGES IN THE FATCA
(FOREIGN ACCOUNT TAX
COMPLICANCE ACT)
R
e c e n tl y,
the IRS
had stepped
up the enforcement
of FBAR disclosure requirements
on U.S. citizen and green card holder
who holds foreign bank accounts or
have interests in financial accounts
located in foreign countries. The law
requires FFI (Foreign Financial Institutions ) like banks, stock brokers,
hedge funds, pension funds, insurance
companies and trusts to provide annual reports directly to the US Internal Revenue Service (IRS) including
the name, address, largest account
balance in the year, total debits and
credits of any account owned by US
citizen or green card holder.
A US person must file an FBAR if
he or she has a financial interest or
signature authority over any financial
account(s) outside the United States
and the aggregate maximum value
of these accounts are in the excess of
$10,000 at any time during the calendar year. Civil penalties up to $10,000
for each negligence considered as
non-willful violations.
However,
willful violations involving a financial
transaction will cause the IRS to impose a penalty of $100,000 or 50 per
cent of the balance in the account at
by: Alvin C. Maglan, CPA
the time of the violation.
FATCA took effect on July 1, 2014.
The good news is that IRS is offering
a program called OVDP (Offshore
Voluntary Disclosure Program). To be
eligible for the streamlined offshore
procedures for U.S. residents, the taxpayer must meet certain requirements,
such as failure to meet non residency
requirements and have failed to report
the income from a foreign financial
asset and pay tax and have failed to
file an FBAR resulting from non willful conduct.
There are certain requirements for
taxpayers to reduce the penalties being imposed by the IRS and each case
have to be decided on their own merit.
Also, both U.S. and nonresident taxpayers are required to remit the full
amount of the tax, interest, and where
applicable, miscellaneous offshore
penalty due when they file the returns.
Alvin Maglan is a CPA licensed in California
and Nevada. After working for SyCip, Gorres, Velayo and Company, he emigrated to
California and had varied experiences as an
audit manager of a regional accounting firm,
an internal auditor and controller of Dole,
Inc., a fortune 500 company and three decades
experiences as a tax consultant for various individuals, professionals, small business firms,
corporations, partnerships, and other nonprofit entities. You may contact him @510 432
7438 for your tax problems. You may e-mail tax
questions @[email protected].
Lawsuits Against I.R.S. Are Dismissed
A federal judge Thursday dismissed two
lawsuits against the Internal Revenue
Service related to the treatment of conservative groups seeking tax-exempt
status, ruling that no remedy was necessary because the applications were approved. “The allegedly unconstitutional
governmental conduct, which delayed the
processing of the plaintiff’s tax-exempt
application and brought about this litigation, is no longer impacting the plaintiff,”
Judge Reggie B. Walton, of the United
States District Court in the District of Columbia, wrote of the lead plaintiff in the
case, True the Vote, a Tea Party-affiliated
group. The I.R.S. has said it acted improperly when it held up tax-exempt applications from dozens of conservativeleaning groups before the 2012 election,
using search terms like “Tea Party,” “Patriot” and “9/12.”
Italian Court Clears Designers of
Tax Evasion
The Court of Cassation in Rome, Italy’s
highest court, acquitted the fashion designers Domenico Dolce and Stefano
Gabbana of tax evasion on Friday. The
court overturned two lower court convictions, and also acquitted the designers’
tax accountant, two managers and Mr.
Dolce’s brother, bringing to an end a seven-year court battle. Prosecutors had said
that a Luxembourg company that owned
the designers’ trademark had been set up
with the intent of evading Italian taxes.
The case led to a dispute with the city of
Milan, which said tax dodgers should not
be permitted use of city spaces. Dolce &
Gabbana designers protested by closing
their Milan stores for three days.
FIL-AM POST
IRS Announces 2015 Pension Plan
Limitations; Taxpayers May
Contribute up to $18,000 to their
401(k) plans in 2015
WASHINGTON — The Internal Revenue
Service today announced cost of living
adjustments affecting dollar limitations
for pension plans and other retirement-related items for tax year 2015. Many of the
pension plan limitations will change for
2015 because the increase in the cost-ofliving index met the statutory thresholds
that trigger their adjustment. However,
other limitations will remain unchanged
because the increase in the index did not
meet the statutory thresholds that trigger
their adjustment. Highlights include the
following:
The elective deferral (contribution) limit
for employees who participate in 401(k),
403(b), most 457 plans, and the federal
government’s Thrift Savings Plan is increased from $17,500 to $18,000.
The catch-up contribution limit for employees aged 50 and over who participate
in 401(k), 403(b), most 457 plans, and the
federal government’s Thrift Savings Plan
is increased from $5,500 to $6,000.
The limit on annual contributions to an Individual Retirement Arrangement (IRA)
remains unchanged at $5,500. The additional catch-up contribution limit for individuals aged 50 and over is not subject to
an annual cost-of-living adjustment and
remains $1,000.
The deduction for taxpayers making contributions to a traditional IRA
is phased out for singles and heads of
household who are covered by a workplace retirement plan and have modified
adjusted gross incomes (AGI) between
$61,000 and $71,000, up from $60,000
and $70,000 in 2014. For married couples filing jointly, in which the spouse
who makes the IRA contribution is covered by a workplace retirement plan, the
income phase-out range is $98,000 to
$118,000, up from $96,000 to $116,000.
For an IRA contributor who is not covered by a workplace retirement plan and
is married to someone who is covered, the
deduction is phased out if the couple’s income is between $183,000 and $193,000,
up from $181,000 and $191,000. For a
married individual filing a separate return
who is covered by a workplace retirement
plan, the phase-out range is not subject to
an annual cost-of-living adjustment and
remains $0 to $10,000.
The AGI phase-out range for taxpayers making contributions to a Roth IRA
is $183,000 to $193,000 for married
couples filing jointly, up from $181,000
to $191,000 in 2014. For singles and
heads of household, the income phaseout range is $116,000 to $131,000, up
from $114,000 to $129,000. For a married individual filing a separate return, the
phase-out range is not subject to an annual cost-of-living adjustment and remains
$0 to $10,000.
The AGI limit for the saver’s credit (also
known as the retirement savings contribution credit) for low- and moderate-income
workers is $61,000 for married couples
filing jointly, up from $60,000 in 2014;
$45,750 for heads of household, up from
$45,000; and $30,500 for married individuals filing separately and for singles,
up from $30,000.
Below are details on both the adjusted and
unchanged limitations.
Section 415 of the Internal Revenue
Code provides for dollar limitations on
benefits and contributions under qualified
retirement plans. Section 415(d) requires
that the Secretary of the Treasury annually adjust these limits for cost of living
increases. Other limitations applicable to
deferred compensation plans are also affected by these adjustments under Section
415. Under Section 415(d), the adjustments are to be made under adjustment
procedures similar to those used to adjust
benefit amounts under Section 215(i)(2)
(A) of the Social Security Act.
Effective January 1, 2015, the limitation on the annual benefit under a defined
benefit plan under Section 415(b)(1)(A)
remains unchanged at $210,000. For a
participant who separated from service
before January 1, 2015, the limitation
for defined benefit plans under Section
415(b)(1)(B) is computed by multiplying
the participant’s compensation limitation,
as adjusted through 2014, by 1.0178.
The limitation for defined contribution
plans under Section 415(c)(1)(A) is increased in 2015 from $52,000 to $53,000.
The Code provides that various other
dollar amounts are to be adjusted at the
same time and in the same manner as the
dollar limitation of Section 415(b)(1)(A).
After taking into account the applicable
rounding rules, the amounts for 2015 are
as follows:
The limitation under Section 402(g)(1)
on the exclusion for elective deferrals described in Section 402(g)(3) is increased
from $17,500 to $18,000.
The annual compensation limit under
Sections 401(a)(17), 404(l), 408(k)(3)(C),
and 408(k)(6)(D)(ii) is increased from
$260,000 to $265,000.
The dollar limitation under Section
416(i)(1)(A)(i) concerning the definition
of key employee in a top-heavy plan remains unchanged at $170,000.
The dollar amount under Section 409(o)
(1)(C)(ii) for determining the maximum account balance in an employee
stock ownership plan subject to a 5 year
distribution period is increased from
$1,050,000 to $1,070,000, while the dollar amount used to determine the lengthening of the 5 year distribution period remains unchanged at $210,000.
The limitation used in the definition
of highly compensated employee under
Section 414(q)(1)(B) is increased from
$115,000 to $120,000.
The dollar limitation under Section
414(v)(2)(B)(i) for catch-up contributions
to an applicable employer plan other than
a plan described in Section 401(k)(11) or
Section 408(p) for individuals aged 50 or
over is increased from $5,500 to $6,000.
The dollar limitation under Section 414(v)
(2)(B)(ii) for catch-up contributions to an
applicable employer plan described in
Section 401(k)(11) or Section 408(p) for
individuals aged 50 or over is increased
from $2,500 to $3,000.
FIL-AM POST
BANKRUPTCY
What happens during Sec. 341
Meeting of Creditors?
ued until another date
. What is Sec.
341 meeting of By Atty. Crispin C. Lozano when the information
Q
can be provided and
creditors?
. Every debtor, regardless of any questions answered.
the chapter, must make one apA
pearance in the case, though it is not Note: This is not a legal advice.
really in “court” since the judge is not
present. The court schedules a meeting of creditors in each case, usually
about 30 days after the filing. The
meeting is called the “§341 meeting”
after the section of the bankruptcy
code that requires it.
Who presides at the meeting
Q.of. creditors?
The trustee assigned to the
case presides and asks questions
A
about the contents of the bankruptcy
schedules. The debtor must appear
at the meeting and answer questions
under oath about his assets and liabilities. In cases where there are assets
with value in excess of the available
exemptions, the trustee tries to gather
information to aid in his liquidation
of those assets for payment to creditors. He may ask for the business
records (if any) or other documents
concerning the assets or the debtor’s
financial history.
What happens in a Sec. 341
Q.meeting?
. The §341 meeting is not a
test or an inquisition. Neither the
A
trustee nor the creditors can take any
action at the meeting that decides any
question central to the case. It is a fact
finding meeting. Of course, if new or
troubling facts come out at the meeting, the trustee or a creditor can file a
motion or an adversary proceeding in
the bankruptcy court for the judge’s
consideration. The trustee swears
you in and begins his questioning.
The meeting is either tape recorded
or recorded by a court reporter.
The trustee may also ask how you
reached the values on your assets
and for more information about unusual assets or business interests. If
the trustee needs more information or
documents that aren’t available at the
meeting, the meeting may be contin-
(Cont. from page 1... BINAY IN PANIC MODE)
impeachment on charges of corruption, incompetence and inefficiency in 2000.
Part of ‘drama’
The only difference, he said, was that Estrada’s
pronouncement was on the record. “He’s trying
to do an Erap,” the senator said.
“Whether you believe President Erap’s statement or not, that’s on the record. As for Vice
President Binay, he’s known to party officially
or unofficially with the richest of the rich of the
country,” he said.
Fewer than five percent of the rich do not know
Binay or have problems with him, Cayetano
said. “But most have either told him that they
will support him or are very close to him for
the longest time. That’s why we wonder who
are the rich he’s talking about that are against
him,” he added.
This strategy by Binay is all part of a “drama”
(Cont. from page 1... DRILON SUED FOR )
On June 27, President Aquino, accompanied by Drilon and
Public Works Secretary Rogelio Singson, inspected the
center, which has a
sail-like design representing the Iloilo
Paraw Regatta, on
a 1.7-hectare sprawl
at Iloilo Business
Park.
Aquino said he was
impressed with the
facility and likened
it to the renowned
Sydney
Opera
House.
Reacting to Mejorada’s charge, Drilon told reporters on Wednesday that the
project was funded with P200 million from
the Tourism Infrastructure and Enterprise
You should seek the advice of your
attorney about your specific case.
ankruptcy Basics
B
1. Bankruptcy will actually improve
your credit within one year because
your unsecured debts are discharged.
Although the bankruptcy will be in
your records for 10 years, not filing
bankruptcy will make your credit
even worse until most your debts are
paid.
2. If you are being sued by your creditors, most money judgment can be
eliminated in bankruptcy.
3. Collection actions continue and
you can be sued if you are in debt
settlement.
4. Chapter 7 will eliminate all unsecured debts. If you are near retirement age, you must eliminate most of
your debts.
5. Bankruptcy will stop foreclosure
actions. If your trustee sale date is
10 days before, you can still file for
bankruptcy.
6. If your salary is being garnished,
you have a court case about debts or
you are being harassed by creditors,
bankruptcy can stop garnishment,
court cases, harassing creditors and
eliminate the debt.
7. Bankruptcy is cheaper, faster and
safer than debt settlement which has
no guaranteed success.
8. Preserve your health, eliminate
stress and live a happy life by eliminating your debts which is the root of
all problems.
Crispin Caday Lozano is an active
member of the State Bar of California, the American Immigration Lawyers Association and the National
Association of Consumers Bankruptcy Attorneys. He specializes in immigration law and bankruptcy law.
to endear himself to the poor, Cayetano said.
The subcommittee is to meet Wednesday to
decide whether to hold in contempt Hilmarc’s
chair Efren Canlas and president Robert Henson for repeatedly snubbing the hearing on
Makati’s allegedly overpriced carpark.
“There will be a review if the contempt is justified,” said Sen. Aquilino Pimentel III, chair of
the subcommittee who moved to cite the pair in
contempt.
But Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV on Tuesday
withdrew his recommendation that Canlas and
Henson be cited in contempt for failing to appear in an earlier hearing of the subcommittee
despite being summoned.
Hilmarc’s built the P2.28 billion Makati City
Hall II.
Trillanes said the two executives had showed
up in a subsequent hearing of the subcommittee,
and this remedied the situation.
“Hence, the contempt recommendation was
withdrawn,” he said.
Zone Authority and P500 million from the
national budget.
Renowned architect William Coscolluela
designed the center on the recommendation of Megaworld Corp.,
which donated
the land.
“I have never
nominated any
bidder.
The
bidding
was
supervised by
the Office of
the
[Department of Public Works and
Highways]
secretary and
supervised
by Secretary
Singson. It is
obvious that
this complaint has absolutely no basis,”
Drilon said.
PAGE 7
Oct 30, 2014 - Nov 5, 2014
How Bankruptcy Affects College,
Grad School Financing
Bankruptcy is a dirty word. One that
is equated with disaster and financial
ruin or, as Merriam Webster puts it,
“utter failure or impoverishment.”
Bankruptcy is also a way out. It allows
borrowers suffocating under medical bills, credit card debt and home
foreclosures to
catch a
breath
and start
to
rebuild.
Sometimes, it
is their
o n l y
way out.
Nearly
1.2 mill i o n
people
filed for
bankruptcy
in 2012,
according to reports by the Administrative Office of
the U.S. Courts. That figure is down
from a peak of more than 1.5 million
in 2010.
Filing for bankruptcy comes with
consequences, though, including
difficulty securing loans. The fallout
can, in some cases, affect college financing.
“Parents are ineligible to borrow
from the PLUS loan program for
five years after their discharge of
debts in bankruptcy,” says Shane
McClelland, an attorney based in
Columbus, Ohio.
In addition to Parent Direct PLUS
Loans, private loans may also be out
of the question for as long as seven
to 10 years, depending on the lender.
That may sound discouraging, but
in reality the effect on students is
minimal, as those considering bankruptcy already have bad credit, McClelland says.
“All things considered, if you are
in my office or another attorney’s office
discussing
bankruptcy, there’s
a
good
chance you
wouldn’t
qualify for
the creditbased loans
a n y w a y, ”
he says.
In fact,
undergraduates could
benefit
from their
parents’
bankruptcy.
Students whose parents are denied
a PLUS loan can get a boost in their
Stafford loan eligibility, increasing
the amount awarded by as much as
$5,000, McClelland notes.
“To be frank, this may actually be
a better option for the student, as
the interest rate is actually lower for
the Stafford loans than it is for the
PLUS loans,” he says.
While a parent’s bankruptcy has
no impact on a student’s eligibility
for Pell Grants, Perkins loans and
other federal funding, students who
file bankruptcy could run into funding roadblocks if they go to graduate
school.
PAGE 8
Oct 30, 2014 - Nov 5, 2014
FIL-AM POST
FIL-AM POST
IMMIGRATION
PAGE 9
Oct 30, 2014 - Nov 5, 2014
Unlawful presence may avail of a green card
though provisional waiver
his provisional waiver will allow the
following aliens who are married to
U.S. citizens to seek waiver of unlawful
presence and be able to go to their home
country to apply for green card. To qualify,
they must prove extreme hardship to the
U.S. citizen spouse or parents if their application for permanent residence is denied.
T
The beneficiaries of this provisional waiver will include:
1. Seamen who entered the U.S. on a C or
D visa and overstayed their visa and are
not beneficiaries of Sec. 245(i).
2. Those who entered without inspection
and are not beneficiaries of Sec. 245(i)
3. Those who entered as Fiancée and did
not marry the visa petitioner.
4. Those aliens who have lost their passports and have no proof of legal entry to
the U.S.
Eligibility Requirements
To be eligible for a provisional unlawful
presence waiver you must fulfill ALL of
the following conditions:
1. Be 17 years of age or older.
2. Be an immediate relative of a U.S. citizen (not a preference category immigrant
who has a visa available). An immediate
relative is an individual who is the spouse,
child or parent of a U.S. citizen.
3. Have an approved Form I-130, Petition
for Alien Relative, or Form I-360, Petition
for Amerasian, Widow(er), or Special Immigrant.
4. Have a pending immigrant visa case with
DOS for the approved immediate relative
petition and have paid the DOS immigrant
visa processing fee.
5. Be able to demonstrate that refusal of
your admission to the United States will
cause extreme hardship to your U.S. citizen spouse or parent.
6. Be physically present in the United
States to file your application for a provisional unlawful presence waiver and provide biometrics.
7. Not have been scheduled for an immigrant visa interview by DOS before January 3, 2013.
8. Meet all other requirements for the provisional unlawful presence waiver, as detailed in 8 CFR 212.7(e) and the Form I601A and its instructions.
You are not eligible for a provisional unlawful presence waiver if any of the following conditions apply to you:
1. You are subject to one or more grounds
of inadmissibility other than unlawful
presence.
2. DOS initially acted before January 3,
2013, to schedule your Immigrant Visa
(IV) interview for the approved immediate
relative petition upon which your provisional unlawful presence waiver application is based, even if your immigrant visa
interview has been canceled, you failed to
appear for the interview, or your interview
was rescheduled on or after Jan. 3, 2013.
Note: The date and time that you are scheduled to appear for your immigrant visa interview at the designated U.S. Embassy or
Consulate is not the date USCIS will use to
determine if you are eligible to file a Form
I-601A. If DOS initially acted before January 3, 2013, to schedule your immigrant
visa interview, you are not eligible to file a
Form I-601A, even if you failed to appear
for your interview or if you or DOS cancelled or rescheduled your interview for a
date on or after January 3, 2013.
Instead, you may file a By Atty. Crispin C. Lozano married.
Form I-601, Application
17. On January 24, 2014,
for Waiver of Grounds
we received another apof Inadmissibility, from outside the United proval for waiver of misrepresentation
States after you have been interviewed for from the Immigration Court for an alien
your immigrant visa, and the consular offi- who entered as single but actually married.
cer has found that you are inadmissible for 18. On January 14, 2014, we received an
a ground that may be waived.
approval from USCIS of a green card un3. You are in removal proceedings that der law on Registry for a person who has
have not been administratively closed.
been in the U.S. since before 1972.
4. At the time of filing, you are in removal 19. On January 6, 2014, we received an approceedings that have been administrative- proval of waiver of misrepresentation from
ly closed but have been placed back on the Immigration Judge for a client who entered
EOIR calendar to continue your removal as single but actually married.
proceedings.
20. On November 21, 2013, we received
5. You do not meet one or more of the re- an approval from USCIS for adjustment of
quirements, as outlined in the Form I-601A status under SAME SEX MARRIAGE.
and its instructions.
Note: This is not a legal advice. The Law
Office of Crispin C. Lozano has the experience and expertise in helping clients apply
for provisional waiver.
SUCCESS STORIES
1. On October 7, 2014, we received an approval from the U.S. Embassy in Manila
an immigrant visa for a client who entered
the US without inspection under the Provisional Waiver Program.
2. On September 26, 2014, we received an
approval from the Immigration Court for
waiver of misrepresentation for a client
who entered as single but actually married
at the time of entry to the U.S.
3. On September 9, 2014, we received an
approval from Immigration Court of adjustment of status for a client who was previously denied an asylum.
4. On September 8, 2014, we received an
approval from USCIS of Form I-601A provisional waiver for two clients.
5. On September 5, 2014, we received an
approval from USCIS for Fiancée visa
based on same sex petition.
6. On September 4, 2014, we received an
approval of DACA for a client who has
problem in her birth certificate.
7. On August 28, 2014, we received an
approval of green card based on spousal
abuse.
8. On August 25, 2014, we received an
approval of green card based on same sex
marriage with big age difference.
9. On August 1, 2014, we received an approval of waiver of joint filing of I-751
based on spousal abuse. With the approval
she was granted permanent residence.
10. On July 21. 2014, we received an approval of green card based on marriage that
was initially denied due to inconsistencies
in interview response.
11. On July 19, 2014, we received an approval of I-751 removal of condition on
residence waiver based on battered spouse.
12. On June 11, 2014, we received an approval from USCIS of green card under
Violence against Women Act.
13. On May 12. 2014, we received an approval from USCIS of green card under the
same sex marriage law and the corresponding waiver of certain misrepresentation.
14. On April 21, 2014, we received an approval of green card after the denial was
appealed to the Board of Immigration Appeals.
15. On March 31, 2014, we received an
approval of green card for a client under
Violence against Women Act.
16. On March 25, 2014, we received another approval from the Immigration Court
for waiver of misrepresentation for a client
who entered the U.S. as single but actually
(Cont. from page 1... SERIOUS INVESTMENT)
two extensions in the past for the suspension
of the effectivity of FATCA Law.
One may ask: Can the foreign financial institutions (FFIs) ignore or refuse to comply
with FATCA? Yes, they can but the FFIs
will be levied by the US-IRS a thirty (30%)
percent withholding tax on the investment
(like interests and dividends) income in the
US of the FFIs before transferring the FFIs
accounts overseas. This 30% withholding
tax is the reason why the FFI’s voluntarily
register with the US-IRS.
Many of our own banks have reportedly already voluntarily “registered” with the USIRS even before the Philippine Government
has entered into a so-called agreement with
the US government. To date, many countries
have already signed up the so-called Intergovernmental Agreement (IGA) and agreed
to cooperate with the US on FATCA implementation. Based on internet reports, among
the countries that signed the IGA agreement
with the US are France, Germany, Italy,
Spain, United Kingdom, Switzerland, Japan
and South Africa.
One may ask: What about the Philippine
Government? What is its stand? Did the
Philippine banks that reportedly “registered”
with the US-IRS consult or seek legal advice
from the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP)
before said banks voluntarily registered with
the US-IRS?… considering that we have an
existing Philippine Law on the secrecy/confidentiality of bank deposits? In short, there
are other countries like the Philippines that
have domestic laws that need to be reconciled with the FATCA Law.
Crispin Caday Lozano is an active member
of the State Bar of California, the American Immigration Lawyers Association and
the National Association of Consumers
Bankruptcy Attorneys. He specializes in
immigration law and bankruptcy law. He
earned his Juris Doctor at Western State
University College of Law in Fullerton,
California. He is also a Certified Public
Accountant, a Real Estate Broker and a
Bachelor of Business Administration Cum
Laude graduate. He has offices in San
Francisco, Hayward, San Jose, and Cerritos, California. You can contact him
at 1-877-456-9266. Email questions to
[email protected]/. Visit our website at www.crispinlozanolaw.com.
PAGE 10
Oct 30, 2014 - Nov 5, 2014
IMMIGRATION
Ahead of 2016, Immigration Activists
Want Answers From Clinton
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Hillary Rodham
Clinton had just finished telling the crowd
that North Carolina families could count
on Senator Kay Hagan when the chants
of Oliver Merino — a 25-year-old whose
mother, an undocumented Mexican immigrant, faces deportation — grew louder.
He held a sign that read, “Hillary, do you
stand with our immigrant families?” and
shouted that his mother lives in constant
fear of deportation. “I
have to say that I understand immigration is an
important issue, and we
appreciate that,” Mrs.
Clinton said. “We thank
you for your advocacy.”
President Obama has
promised executive action on immigration
change after the midterm elections. But immigration activists have
already turned their focus — and their frustration — to his potential
successor.
The incident at a rally
here on Saturday was only the latest time
members of a group of young, undocumented immigrants who call themselves
Dreamers have aggressively confronted
Mrs. Clinton.
Continue reading the main story
Related Coverage
Thom Tillis, right, a North Carolina Republican who is running for Senate, and
Jeb Bush, the former governor of Florida,
in Greensboro, N.C., in September.
The Bushes, Led by W., Rally to Make
Jeb ‘45’OCT. 26, 2014
Behind the public confrontations is a quieter but concerted effort by a critical bloc
of young Latinos to urge others like them
not to automatically support Mrs. Clinton
in an increasingly likely 2016 presidential
campaign.
“If you’re going to pick politics over our
families, you should know that you can’t
take this constituency for granted,” said
Cristina Jimenez, managing director of
United We Dream, the largest national network of young undocumented immigrants.
The targeting of Mrs. Clinton comes
amid growing disillusionment about Mr.
Obama’s failure to enact immigration
change and his handling of the arrival of
thousands of Central American children on
the United States border. The four mem-
bers of the Dream Organizing Network
who attended the rally here on Saturday
urged Mrs. Clinton to support executive
action to stop deportations.
By mobilizing against Mrs. Clinton two
years before the next presidential election,
the self-named Dreamers hope to pressure
her to commit to immigration change or
risk losing critical Latino votes.
Mrs. Clinton had overwhelming sup-
port among Hispanics in the 2008 Democratic primaries; in the 16 Super Tuesday
contests that year, 63 percent of Latinos
voted for Mrs. Clinton, compared with 35
percent for Mr. Obama. But in the past six
years, the immigration issue has become a
flash point among the 25.2 million Latinos
who are eligible to vote in the 2014 midterm elections.
“Immigration is not the only issue, but it
is the defining issue, and she will need to
learn that the old lines and old dynamics no
longer apply,” said Frank Sharry, executive
director of America’s Voice, a pro-immigration group.
Mrs. Clinton has drawn criticism from
some Latinos by campaigning for Democrats like Ms. Hagan, who was one of
five Senate Democrats to vote against the
Dream Act that would have given undocumented immigrants who came to the United States as children a path to legal status.
This month, Mrs. Clinton headlined a
rally in Kentucky for Alison Lundergan
Grimes, the Senate candidate, shortly after
her campaign released a TV ad criticizing
her Republican opponent, Senator Mitch
McConnell, for voting to grant “amnesty
and taxpayer-funded benefits to three million illegal aliens.”
FIL-AM POST
Immigration officer union sounds
alarm over DHS order for millions of
blank work permits, green cards
A union that represents thousands of federal
immigration officers is raising alarm after
the U.S. government ordered supplies to create millions of blank work permits and green
cards, touching off speculation that the Obama
administration may be preparing executive action on immigration.
The Associated Press reported last week that
the new federal contract proposal from the
Homeland Security Department would allow
the government to buy enough supplies to
make as many as 34 million immigrant work
permits and residency cards over the next five
years. Though the Obama administration now
says the proposal is unrelated to any executive
action, the move raised concerns the administration is preparing for a surge of work permit
applications from illegal immigrants.
Kenneth Palinkas, the president of the National Citizenship and Immigration Services
Council, said in a press release Monday that
he believes the move indicates the administration is planning to enact “massive unilateral
amnesty” after the midterm elections.
“…If you care about your immigration security and your neighborhood security, you
must act now to ensure that Congress stops
this unilateral amnesty,” he said. “Let your
voice be heard and spread the word to your
neighbors. We who serve in our nation’s immigration agencies are pleading for your help
– don’t let this happen. Express your concern
to your Senators and Congressmen before it
is too late.”
However, the Obama administration on
Tuesday claimed the order is unrelated to any
pending executive action. USCIS claims the
order pertains only to the Senate-passed immigration bill which never became law.
“Solicitations of this nature are frequent
practice for USCIS contracts and allow the
Agency to be prepared for fluctuations in the
number of immigration applications received,
which can arise for a number of reasons,”
spokesman Christopher S. Bentley said in a
statement. “For this particular solicitation,
USCIS analyzed, during the spring of 2013,
the pending comprehensive immigration reform bill passed by the U.S. Senate to determine the surge capacity needed. This estimate
had nothing to do with immigration relief actions planned by the president.”
Last week, though, White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest was less clear. Asked if the
order was tied to a forthcoming presidential
policy, Earnest said: “I would not suggest that
that is an indication that that’s what we’re preparing to do.” He said those trying to “read
into” the orders for cards “are a little too cleverly trying to divine what the president’s ultimate conclusion might be.”
But he repeatedly would not say whether the
orders were unrelated to a move by the president, claiming these kinds of decisions “are
not micromanaged by the White House.”
The USCIS union represents 12,000 officers
of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services,
the agency responsible for processing visas
and other immigration papers. Palinkas said
federal immigration officers are already struggling to complete their mission, and the new
contract indicates things could get worse.
“Whether it’s the failure to uphold the public
charge laws, the abuse of our asylum procedures, the admission of Islamist radicals, or
visas for health risks, the taxpayers are being
fleeced and public safety is being endangered
on a daily basis,” he said.
It produces about 3 million work permits
and residency identification, known as green
cards, annually. The new contract for at least 5
million cards a year would provide the administration with the flexibility to issue far more
work permits or green cards even if it chose
not to exercise that option.
Obama announced earlier this year that if
Congress didn’t pass immigration legislation,
he would act on his own. After twice postponing a final decision, he said as recently as last
month that he would hold off on executive
actions until after November’s midterm elections.
FIL-AM POST
AROUND TOWN
PAGE 11
Oct 30, 2014 - Nov 5, 2014
Rob Bonta: The First
Fil Am elected to the
California State Assembly
s promised,
A
this week we
will focus on As-
PROUD PARENTS. Mr Deo and wife Minda are all smiles as they celebrate the wedding of
their only son Dennis to Ms April Ebojo Reyes. Deo and Minda and choir leaders of INC from
the local of San Jose.
DENNIS and APRIL ENTOURAGE. After the wedding, Dennis and April pose together with
their entire entourage inside the of Chapel of Hayward. Reception followed at Double Tree by
Hilton Hotel in Fremont, California.
TGIF @ DAVE and BUSTERS. Thank God it’s Friday is now Fabulous. Zeny Soria wife of
Romeo Soria celebrated her birhday at this flashy D&B restaurant. In photo are officers and
members of the FilAm Chamber Commerce of Santa Clara County and FilCom Center of
San Jose. They gather to eat, to chat and to dance the nigth away. Belated Happy Birthday
Zeny.
KATHRYN
FOR
BRONZE. Our very
own Kathryn Victory
Magno earned the
bronze medal in the
recently held Asian
Open Short Track
Speed Skating held at
SM Mega Mall Skating
Rink in Manila, Philippines. Kathryn was the
only entry fielded by
the Philippines in this
skating competion.
by filling bags of concrete mix to be used in the construction of approximately 150 units of housing for
residents whose homes were destroyed.
What do you think are your biggest accomplishment as assemblymember of your district? One accomplishment I’m proud of is passing AB 123, a bill
to require the state school curriculum to include the
contributions of Filipinos to the Farm Labor Movement in California.
Within a matter of weeks of introducing the bill, I
received thousands of letters of support, calls from
experts and professors from across the country asking to help write the curriculum, thank you’s from
classrooms of children, and strong support from the
API community throughout California. It was almost
overwhelming. But, again, I had tapped into an issue
that moved and inspired our community, creating the
momentum to get this first of its kind bill to the Governor’s desk and signed!
How is your relationship with the Filipino American
community? I have a wonderful relationship with the
Filipino American community.
semblymember
Rob Bonta who
has the distinction
of being the first
LET’S HAVE COFFEE
Filipino American
By
to be elected in the
Don Augusto Orozco
California State
Assembly.
In the meantime
for next week, we
will feature the late Paul Membrere, regarded as the
pioneering Minister of the Gospel of the Iglesia Ni
Cristo in the West. Ka Paul, as he is fondly called is
after all a Hero of Faith and a proud resident of the
Bay Area.
People of the Bay Area here is Assemblymember
Rob Bonta:
From where are you from in the Philippines? I was
born at St. Luke’s Hospital in Quezon City. At the
time, my family was living in Manila, where my parents were doing youth work as part of their mission- Specifically, when I first introduced AB 123, I saw
ary assignment under the United Methodist Church first-hand how thirsty our community had been for
Global Ministries.
representation. It helped wake the sleeping giant that
Do you think your kids have some Filipino traits?
I live in Alameda with my wife and three kids,
Reina, Iliana, and Andres. My full name is Robert
Andres Bonta, and I was named after Andres Bonifacio, a Philippine national hero. And I am proud
my son now carries this name as well.
Additionally, we are fortunate to have my mother
Cynthia, who they call Lola, living next door and
to live in a diverse community that celebrates different cultures. My kids have attended and participated in Filipino events with me, including the Alameda Philippine Independence Day Celebration,
where they sang a Tagalog song alongside other
children from my son’s ABC Preschool program.
Reina, specifically, is my eldest and a competitive athlete, and she has demonstrated herself as
a strong, determined young woman, not unlike
many Filipina women I know.
Does your kids enjoy their travel to the Philippines? Do they support you in your activities? As
I mentioned, I was able to go the Philippines with
my daughter, Reina, who is a sophomore in high
school and helped support my work there. It happened to be her birthday during our time in the
Philippines, and our celebration will remain in my
memory for many years to come.
Unbeknownst to us, the residents of a Gawad Kalinga village in Ormoc rolled out the red carpet to
make sure my eldest daughter, Reina, enjoyed her Rob Bonta
fifteenth birthday in true, Filipino fashion. Musical entertainment with choreographed dance, a full
spread that fed the entire village, and banners and is the Filipino community.
balloons adorned with her name put a truly special Our work together in the rehabilitation efforts in the
touch on her birthday celebration an ocean away Philippines after Typhoon Yolanda has also been an
from home.
incredible experience and representation of what colAre you willing to work with a Philippine Non- laboration looks like in our community.
Government Organizations in any rehabilitation I serve as a mentor to Michael, a gifted student and
effort?Yes, I look forward to continuing my efforts athlete with a 4.0 GPA, through the West Bay Filiwith Gawad Kalinga and others to help in commu- pino Multi-Services Center. He joined me in Sacnity efforts.
ramento to be an “Assemblymember for the Day”
How was your experience seeing first-hand the earlier this spring.
devastation of typhoon Yolanda? This past April, I I am also proud to support different efforts throughhad the privilege of visiting the Philippines during out the state aimed at uplifting the Filipino commuHoly Week. Nearly six months had passed since the nity, including One Pilipino, spearheaded by Tony
strongest Typhoon ever recorded in history wreaked Olaes.
havoc in the central Philippines, yet the evidence of Through my work in the Assembly, I’ve seen firstits destruction was still very apparent in and around hand what kind of changes we can make when we
Tacloban, the area where we visited. Notwithstand- engage our community.
ing the tragedy that killed thousands and displaced And I am looking forward to continuing these efforts
thousands more in its wake, I experienced many in the next legislative session.
memorable instances of resilience, resolve, and de- As the first and only Filipino American elected to the
termination. The spirit to continue on and rebuild has California State Legislature, it has been a priority and
become synonymous with the people of this archi- an obligation for me to support and promote the vipelago nation.
sion of Filipino
What efforts have you done personally and as a polit- What are your message to the FilAm Community?
ical leader to the victims of the typhoon? In the days During this process of engaging my community in
following the aftermath of Super Typhoon Haiyan, the political process, I’ve learned that we need more:
I was met overwhelming support from community we need more engagement, more community activmembers as well as my colleagues in Sacramento, ism, more instruction, more money, more inspiration,
including Speaker Emeritus John Perez and Presi- and more of us elected to public office.
dent pro Tem Darrell Steinberg. With their support, It’s so important for each of us to realize the role we
I helped lead an effort that garnered $40,000 for each play in inspiring the API community, and the
Gawad Kalinga USA, a non-profit that sent 200,000 role each and every one of you can play in ensuring
food packs for the victims immediately following the we have a voice in our local communities, in our state
tragedy.
legislatures, and all the way to the White House!
In April, I had the opportunity to join Gawad Ka- If we properly tap into our own political power and
linga’s USA delegation to the Philippines to assist in talent, we are capable of achieving things beyond our
one of the rebuild efforts. Shortly after arriving in wildest dreams.
Tacloban, my daughter and I and others got to work
ARE YOU CELEBRATING YOUR BIRTHDAY, ANNIVERSARY,
GRADUATION OR BUSINESS GRAND OPENING?
Fil-Am Post can cover an exclusive feature of your event!
Call us at
1-855-454-7678
or email us at [email protected] to learn more.
FIL-AM POST
REAL ESTATE
5 Steps to Selling Your Home
PAGE 12
Oct 30, 2014 - Nov 5, 2014
A Guide to Investing in
Real Estate
N
obody decides to sell a
home overnight. Getting the best price for your
home, with the least amount
of stress, takes time and planning. Here are the five steps
you should follow as you prepare to put your home on the
market.
he single most important first step for aspiring real estate investors is to determine one’s
exit strategy, according to Andy Heller, author
of “Buy Low, Rent Smart, Sell High.” There are
quite a few options, but the two basic strategies
are to buy and hold rental properties and become
a landlord, or to become a flipper and hopefully
make a substantial profit upon the sale of the
property.
For Heller personally, his business has flourished over the years with 3-year lease options.
“You need to ask yourself what characteristics
will make that exit strategy work. You need to
buy the right property to be successful,” says
Heller, who has specialized in the Atlanta real estate market for decades.
Like any investment, real estate investing requires an action plan. “Once you decide you want
to scale it, it is important to look at the funds, the
time, your credit and your long-term goals so that
what you want to do is achievable and realistic,”
Heller says.
His recommendation for novices is to join a local investor’s club and get to know the people
there. “It’s rare that you can find somebody who
can start up in real estate without some guidance.
My advice to a new investor would be to join an
association, find seasoned investors, buy them
lunch and present your plan. Ask them to poke
holes in it.”
T
1. Learn your home’s market value
Most homeowners have a
relatively good idea of their
home’s value. They get fliers in the mail, look at nearby
homes for sale online, or even
go to open houses. Maybe
they recently refinanced and
saw an appraisal.
But when it comes time to
think about selling, you need
a firm idea of your home’s
“market” value. Market value
is what a buyer is willing to
pay on the open market.
Having a local agent look at
your home is the first step toward getting a practical idea
of your home’s value. Any
good agent would welcome
the opportunity to meet a potential seller and put together
what insiders call a Comparative Market Analysis (CMA).
After touring your home, the
agent will get back to you
with some information about
the market, recent comparable sales and an opinion of
your home’s value. Even if
you’re months or years away
from selling, having an agent
over early on engages you in
the process and allows you to
start gathering information.
2. Assess your home’s physi-
cal condition
Every homeowner thinks
of their home as simply their
home: a place to live and
make memories. But when
you look to sell, you should
start thinking like a seller.
That means seeing your home
as a ‘product’ and its potential for sale on the open market. By looking at it this way,
you’ll understand that the
deep purple living room paint
or the overly cluttered office, which doubles as a guest
room, may not look enticing
to buyers.
In most cases, you’ll have
some work to do to sell your
home. A good agent, along
with a CMA, will give you
ideas for home improvements
to consider. This could be as
minor as moving things into
storage or as major as a full
paint job with kitchen and
bathroom renovations.
Additionally, you need to
know your home’s overall
condition. A property inspection could be an excellent
investment. If you discover
you need a new roof or that
the furnace is about to expire,
you’ll have time to address
it before a buyer catches it.
Ultimately, this can save you
time and money. Knowing
what your home needs, early
in the process, will help orient you towards a successful
sale.
3. Start watching the comps
The train to a successful
home sale truly pulls out
of the station once you’ve
gathered all of the informa-
tion. Armed with knowledge
about your home’s current
market value and what you
would need to make it “market ready,” you should start
watching the comps, going to
open houses and fully engaging with the local real estate
market. The more homes you
see, either in person or via
your agent (who should be
keeping you in the loop), the
better you’ll understand what
it will take to get your home
sold. Pay attention to how
homes that go before yours
fare on the market. Get a
sense for what the highest and
best price would be for your
home in your neighborhood.
4. Do your homework
After speaking to a good local agent, you may have any
number of assignments or
things to do before you can
list your home for sale. Start
speaking to painters, general
‘fix-it’ contractors, landscapers, and stagers. Ask your
agent for referrals. Get bids
for what would need to be
done. Start understanding
how much work you’re willing to do, what needs to be
fixed and how much you want
to spend. Working with your
agent, prioritize the work and
get things lined up.
In this next generation of real
estate, sellers need to stay
one step ahead of buyers.
Google your address, check
your home’s records with the
building department, check
your title report and find out
as much as a buyer would if
they were about to make an
offer on your home. Things
come up, and it’s better to
find and fix them now —
before you get into contract
with the buyer.
5. Set a deadline and get to
work
You and your agent should
pick a date to get the property
officially “listed” and then
work back from there to plan
the work. Your home should
be “open house ready” for the
photo shoot. Listing photos
are people’s first impression
of your home today. While
curb appeal still matters, photos are the single most important part. Plan to get all the
work done before the photo
shoot. The hardest part for
most sellers is these weeks
and months leading up to a
sale. Once the home is on the
market, the home is out there,
in its full glory for all the buyers to see.
No 2 homeowners or sellers are alike, of course. The
process is filled with bumps
along the way, and red flags
can appear out of nowhere.
Engaging with a good local
real estate agent early on in
the process is the best first
step to becoming a successful
home seller. Take your time
and do your due diligence.
The more you plan, the better
off you’ll be and the quicker
your home will sell — and for
top dollar.
For more info, contact Genex
Realty office at 510 432 7438.
You may e-mail tax questions at
[email protected].
SPORTS
Pacquiao focused on Algieri and Colorado Man Vanishes at Stadium During
Broncos Game
not basketball, says brother
MANILA, Philippines—If there’s anyone
who knows Manny Pacquiao well, it’s his
younger brother Bobby Pacquiao.
welterweight champion also a Congressman in Saranggani, a playing-coach for
the Kia Sorento in the PBA and also a
team owner
in the DLeague.
But as far
as Bobby is
concerned,
there’s
no
need
to worry.
“Nakafocus kami
sa
training. Nasa
kundisyon
na
siya
ngayon
(We’re focused on
his training. He’s
already in
good conWBO Welterweight champion Manny Pacquiao, left, and WBO junior welterweight champion. Chris Algieri AP PHOTO/VINCENT YU
And Bobby, a former featherweight and
lightweight contender before hanging up
his gloves, knows the Fighter of the Decade
is in laser-light focus for his upcoming bout
against unbeaten Chris Algieri next month.
“Nasa sarili na niya ’yon. Magaling si
Manny mag-adjust (It’s in him. Manny’s
good in managing his time),” said the
33-year-old Bobby, whom Manny has appointed as the team manager of the MP Hotel Warriors in the D-League, on Monday at
the Ynares Sports Arena where the opening
day of the 2015 Season of the PBA’s developmental league unfolded.
“Kapag talagang nasa training siya sa boxing yun lang talaga nasa isip niya. Wala,
hindi siya iniisip na basketball naka-focus
kami sa training niya,” he added.
Manny’s concentration has been a cause
for concern to many with the current WBO
dition right now).”
The only concern Bobby has to
deal with for now is their team in
the D-League, which suffered a
beating in its debut.
Bobby said he oversees the Warriors’ training in General Santos
City and right now he is tasked
to run the team before the former
pound-for-pound king returns
home from his title fight set on Nov.
23 in Macau.
“Nanibago. Siguro kasi walang
naka-tuneup dito. Next game magadjust kami sa plays namin (They
weren’t used to the game yet.
Maybe because they weren’t able
to play a tuneup game here. Next
game we’ll make adjustments
with our plays).”
Paul Kitterman told his friend Tia Bakke
that the experience of being at his first
ever Denver Broncos game in person
with his son was “awesome” - and that
was the last she heard of him.
The 53-year-old from Kremmling,
Colorado, seemingly vanished into the
Sports Authority Field crowd at the
Broncos-Chargers game Thursday night
in what Denver police now call a missing
persons case.
“He would never bail on his son, or
anyone,” Bakke told ABC News, “so by
Friday night, we knew something was really, really, wrong.”
Bakke, who traveled with Kitterman
and his son, Jarod, to the game, said they
had plans to meet afterwards at a stadium
gate.
“We go down to gate 8. No Paul. We
wait an hour. No Paul,” she said.
Bakke’s group contacted stadium security and searched around the grounds
until 1 a.m. before finally heading back
to Kremmling without Kitterman.
Kitterman has few contacts in Denver
and had no cell phone, credit card or vehicle with him, Bakke said. She added he
had plans to go hunting with his son the
next morning.
Denver police have filed a missing persons report, are assisting the family and
are investigating, but are not actively
searching on foot because they are not
certain a crime was committed.
“With 70,000 people and cameras all
over the stadium, you would see something if a violent crime occurred,” Sonny
Jackson, a police spokesman, told ABC
News.
Now, friends and family are posting
signs around Denver and appealing to
the public to help with the search, Bakke
said. But as time goes on, they are growing more concerned they are running out
of options.
“Now we’re just sick about it, and we
have no idea what to do,” Bakke said.
SHOWBIZ
FIL-AM POST
It’s official: Marvin-Jolina serye on ABS-CBN
MANILA - It’s official: One of the most
Without giving details about her role in
popular love teams of the ‘90s returns as “Flordeliza,” Magdangal said she has never
Marvin Agustin and Jolina Magdangal are done a similar character in her career. She
back with ABS-CBN as the lead stars of a added, in jest, that whatever limitations she
drama series.
had as a wholesome actress, Deramas will
On Monday, Magdangal reported to her
completely disrefirst shooting day
gard in this new
for “Flordeliza,”
project.
confirming weeks
“Lahat nung
of
speculation
mga
‘di
ko
that she will renagagawa dati,
unite with Agustin
parang ipagaganearly two decades
wa sa akin ni diafter they were
rek dito, eh!” she
launched as a tantold ABS-CBN
dem via “Gimik”
News. “First time
in 1996.
ko talaga siya
Agustin earlier
gagawin. Hinanannounced in his
da ko talaga sarreturn to ABSCBN with the lead Jolina Magdangal and Marvin Agustin on the poster of the ili ko. Nakailang
role in “Flordeli- 1999 film ‘Hey Babe.’ Star Cinema
beses ako ng basa
za,” but could not
ng script!”
confirm if MagAsked why she agreed to take up the
dangal had officially signed up as his lead- role, Magdangal said: “Kung pare-pareing lady in the project.
ho ‘yung gagawin, ano pang excitement
The new series is under the direction ang mabibigay sa’yo sa showbiz, ‘di ba?
of Wenn Deramas, who was also behind Dapat iba nang iba ‘yung ginagawa mo at
Magdangal and Agustin’s last film together pinapakita mo sa mga tao.”
as ABS-CBN stars, “Kung Ikaw Ay Isang
“Kaya ako na-e-excite sa project na ‘to
Panaginip,” in 2002.
kasi alam ko na iba ‘yung mapapakita ko
Magdangal transferred to GMA-7 that sa mga tao sa huli nila akong makita dito
year. Agustin followed suit in 2006.
sa Kapamilya network.” (reports abscbn)
The big comeback of ‘Palibhasa Lalake’
ONE of the most memorable sitcoms in the
history of Philippine television is back TV.
Palibhasa Lalake has returned to Jeepney TV
and airs Monday to Fridays, bringing a daily
dose of nostalgia.
Again, it’s time to look at Richard Gomez,
Joey Marquez, John Estrada, Gloria Romero,
Amy Perez, Mark Anthony Fernandez, Eric
Fructoso, Jomari Yllana, Jao Mapa, Claudine
Barretto, Rica Peralejo, G. Toengi, Regine Tolentino, Lindsay Custodio, and many more.
Jeepney TV is going all out in bringing the
Palibhasa Lalake craze back.
Jeepney TV recently threw a special Palibhasa Lalake Basaan Reunion for the sitcom’s
fans at Eastwood Central Plaza. Jeepney TV
celebrated the reunion by giving out free beers
to attendees.
To add sizzle, Banana Split mainstay, Jeff
Gaitan was also present. The night also highlighted the mash up live rendition of the man
behind Palibhasa Lalake’s OST “Katawan,”
rock music icon and Hagibis producer-song-
Stars of Palibhasa Lalake: Anjo Yllana, John Estrada,
Richard Gomez, Eric Fructoso, and Jomari Yllana
writer—Mike Hanopol.
Get ready to get wet with the biggest and
most epic television reunion of the year!
Catch the nostalgic Palibhasa Lalake craze
this month of October on the ultimate throwback channel, Jeepney TV (SkyCable Channel
9).
Assunta still longing to have baby with Jules
MANILA – Assunta de Rossi said she and
her husband, Jules Ledesma, have been
trying to have a baby for years now but the
circumstances just won’t allow them.
Speaking on “The Buzz” on Sunday, De
Rossi said both of them wanted to have
their own child since 2008, but their hectic
schedules are keeping them from pursuing this
plan.
“Gusto
namin
since
2 0 0 8
pa kaso
a n g
daming
nangyari.
Nung
2008,
noong
n a g kakaroon ng
global
Assunta de Rossi
crisis, ng economic meltdown, kaming
dalawa we made a commitment na saluhin
namin lahat sa San Carlos. We are putting
everything in our two haciendas in San
Carlos. Lahat yun tinaya namin because
we are putting everything in a trust. Mabusisi siya so laging nabubulilyaso,” she said.
Ledesma, who is the representative of the
first district of Negros Occidental in Congress, hails from San Carlos City.
De Rossi said she sometimes feels frustrated that they have so many things to take
care of that they no longer have time for
themselves.
“Kunyari we want to relax, time is a luxury we don’t have eh. Minsan dumdating na
sa point na nakaka-frustrate din kasi hindi
lang naman yun, we are both busy sa careers namin and ang daming istorbo. Ang
dami namin kailangan asikasuhin lagi,”
she said.
Nonetheless, the actress said they will still
try to have their own family.
De Rossi married Ledesma in civil rites at
the congressman’s hometown in San Carlos City in December 2002.
PAGE 13
Oct 30, 2014 - Nov 5, 2014
Liza Soberano not ready for a
romantic relationship
MANILA – While admitting that she has
a crush on Enrique Gil, young actress Liza
Soberano said she is not yet ready to enter
into a romantic relationship with anyone.
In an interview with ABS-CBN News
on Sunday, Soberano said she is still young
and her focus at this time is her career.
“Sa ngayon hindi pa po talaga [ako
ready sa kahit anong relationship] kasi bata
pa po ako. My focus is on acting and being
better. Hindi ko pa po talaga iniisip ‘yung
mga love life or whatever,” she said.
The actress said it would be unwise for
her to prioritize her love life over all the
opportunities that are coming her way.
Currently, Soberano is working on the
upcoming ABS-CBN series “Forevermore” with Gil, which is set to premiere on
Monday after “Hawak Kamay.”
“It makes me very happy but nervous at
the same time because everybody is watching me. Of course, I’m honored. I’m thankful to everybody for noticing my talent and
for appreciating me,” she said.
Soberano said she is also excited for her
supporters as they can finally see what they
have been working on. “Aabangan niyo po
yung funny scenes ng ‘Forevermore’ and
‘yung pagi-Ilocano ko. Marunong naman
talaga ako, nakakaintindi ako, but I’m not
fluent in speaking. Tinuruan lang ako ng
tita ko in the scenes,” she said.
Meanwhile, the actress shrugged off
talks comparing her love team with Gil to
that of
Kathryn
Bernardo and
Daniel
Padilla.
“Est a b lished
na ‘yung
l o v e
t e a m
n i l a .
Hindi
namin
i n i i s i p Liza Soberano
na kailangan kapantay namin ‘yung Kathniel
or anything. Whatever the outcome, okay
lang sa amin,” she said.
Asked if she is ready for the intrigues
that come with being in a love team, she
said: “I have to be ready, I have to be strong
to face those issues. I have my family and
a good set of friends who will take care of
me and guide me through the process.”
Ellen Adarna is it!
It was no surprise when Ellen Adarna was in- 2015 calendar girl.”
troduced as 2015’s Ginebra San Miguel calenIn line with the brand’s 180th anniversary,
dar girl on Thursday at the ballroom of Hotel the theme of its 2015 calendar is “Ganado Sa
Rembrandt in Quezon City. After all, she is, to Buhay” as it aims to pay tribute and give homuse the ‘90s slang for “every man’s dream,” the age to hard working Filipino men who are the
reigning “pantasya ng bayan.”
main consumers of the range of drinks.
The 26-year-old Cebuana of Spanish and Chi“They work hard so they could provide a
nese descent seemed overwhelmed by the grand good future for their family and to keep them
gathering the liquor brand organized for the of- ready to face the challenges of tomorrow—
ficial announcement.
and they drink GSM,” said Elises.
“They’ve always gotten huge celebrities to be
In keeping with the theme, Ellen was shot
their cover girl so it’s such an honor to be cho- against the backdrops of a rice field, a consen for 2015,” she gushed.
struction site, and the sea-side to honor and
The Manila Times
represent farmers, consoon learned that
struction workers, and fishbesides revealing
ermen.
the coming year’s
At the calendar launch, the
cover girl—concompany duly honored the
sidered a highly
working class Filipino men
anticipated showas represented by farmer
biz event—GSM
Dick Alipio Evasco from
is actually celAtok, Benguet; construcebrating its 180th
tion worker Alfredo “Ada”
year, thus the big
Abastas from Metro Makickoff.
nila; and fisherman Mosies
On the up
Mesa from Binangonan,
Ellen recently
Rizal. They were each givconcluded
her
en plaques of recognition,
starring role on
and special GSM packages.
ABS-CBN’s topThe brand also mounted
rating afternoon
a Ginebra San Miguel 180
series Moon of
Travelling Exhibit that
Desire, and she is
has been going around the
gearing up for a
country since its launch
brand new series
earlier this year.
She is 2015’s GSM calendar girl
on the same net“This is GSM’s way of
work titled Pasion de Amor. She is also part of showing its appreciation for the patronage
the ensemble cast of Skylight Films and Quan- and support of millions of Filipinos for the
tum Films’ current sexy comedy Beauty In A past 180 years, and for keeping the brand as
Bottle.
the number 1 selling gin in the world,” Elises
Being GSM’s newest calendar girl for 2015 is continued.
another milestone in Ellen’s career as she joins
The travelling exhibit features the brand’s
the ranks of the country’s most iconic and sexi- past calendar girls which include Anjanette
est women who have posed for the legendary Abayari (1994), Alma Concepcion (1995),
and highly anticipated annual calendar.
Michelle Aldana (1998), Janna Victoria
Explaining their choice in the fairly new show- (1999), Patricia Javier (2000), Geneva Cruz
biz celebrity, GSMI vice president and market- (2001), Rica Peralejo (2002), Aubrey Miles
ing manager Nelson Elises said, “Ellen Adarna (2003), Belinda Bright and Maricar De Mesa
is arguably the hottest and sexiest young actress (2004), Angelica Panganiban (2007), Marian
in the industry today. She has a very strong and Rivera (2009 and 2014), Anne Curtis (2011),
loyal fan base and we are very proud and gana- Solenn Heusaff (2012), and Georgina Wilson
dong-ganado to welcome her on board as our (2013).
Angelica: No big fight with John Lloyd in 3 years
MANILA - Angelica Panganiban is concerned that she hasn’t
had a major fight with her boyfriend, actor John Lloyd Cruz,
almost three years since they
became a couple.
In a live interview on “Aquino
& Abunda Tonight” on Monday, the 27-year-old actress
said, in jest, that she is “scared”
by the fact that she and Cruz
hardly argue, despite their relationship frequently making
headlines or becoming the subject of rumors.
“Never [kaming naapektuhan]. Wala naman pong [nakaapekto sa amin]. Siguro kasi
po ‘yung relationship namin,
masaya lang kami, eh,” Panganiban told host Boy Abunda.
She added, laughing: “Medyo nakakatakot na nga po kasi
magtatatlong taon na kami,
‘Parang masaya parin tayo,
hindi pa rin tayo nag-aaway
nang malala.’”
The latest controversy to beset the couple was the filing
of a concubinage complaint of
Mary Christine Jolly, the estranged wife of Panganiban’s
ex-boyfriend, Derek Ramsay,
against her and the actor.
Shortly after Jolly filed the
complaint earlier this month,
Panganiban posted on Instagram a photo of her with Cruz,
captioned: “This is us happy.
God be with you.”
Asked if her positive posts
about Cruz on social media
are her way of defending their
relationship, Panganiban said:
“Hindi po. Minsan kasi, gusto
mo lang kasi siya i-share.”
“As much as possible, lagi
niyang sinasabi na, ‘Sana,
kung ano ‘yung sa atin, huwag
nalang natin i-share.’ Medyo
madamot siya sa gano’ng aspeto, kaming dalawa. Pero may
mga panahon talaga na sa kanya na mismo nanggagaling na,
‘Ay, i-post mo nga ‘to kasi ang
saya ng picture natin na ‘yan.’”
When Cruz and Panganiban
were first rumored to be a couple, they had come from highprofile breakups with their respective ex-partners -- his with
actress Shaina Magdayao, and
hers with Ramsay.
Panganiban’s relationship
with Ramsay lasted six years.
The “Beauty in a Bottle”
star said she has not necessarily learned lessons from her
relationships when asked, but
added that she always makes
certain there is mutual respect
between her and her partner.
Angelica and John Lloyd
CLASSIFIED
PAGE 14
Oct 30, 2014 - Nov 5, 2014
To advertise, call (510) 885-8827 or
email us at [email protected]
Northwest Subdivision
BF Homes
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For more info, contact
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CARDS & COUPONS
TRAVEL TOUR PACKAGES
BUS TOURS of Orchid Farms, Gardens, Historical Sites, etc. from $80.00.
CRUISES - round-trips from San Francisco or LA, CA to Mexico ($550.00), Canada ($250.00),
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GAMES & ENTERTAINMENT
CROSSWORD
Across
1. Bad, as a
prognosis
5. Allays
10. Hook’s accomplice
14. Chaplin, nee
O’Neill
15. Fabius’s 557
16. Shopper’s
mecca
17. Not plan A or
B, or even X
or Y
19. Jump in
a rink
20. Preserved, in
a way
21. Brand of
petroleum jelly
23. Hawaiian
thrush
26. Comic
actress Tracey
27. Buckle
32. F.D.R.’s Blue
Eagle grp.
33. Seat at a bar
34. To be, in
Tijuana
38. ___
vobiscum: God
be with
you
40. Have a chair
by, as a table
42. Head, in
Paris
43. Prevent in
court
45. Eyelid
nuisances
47. North or Ross
48. Influential
17th/18thcentury
theologian
51. Polaris, in
Paris
54. “To ___ His
Own” (1946
Olivia de Havilland movie)
55. Card games
58. Take back to
the car pound
62. Captain
obsessed
63. Matt Dillon
film based on
an S. E. Hinton
novel
66. Dinner
freebie
67. Durant who
co-wrote “The
Story of Civilization”
68. Sony rival
69. Prefix with
photo or phone
70. Outmoded
71. ___ instant
(quickly)
Down
1. Game on a green
2. Safari sound
3. ____ many
words
4. Passover bread
5. B-F links
6. Pacino and Gore
7. Ukrainian city
8. Sorvino of
‘Mighty
Aphrodite’
9. Assumes better
chair
posture
10. Guinness
category
11. Adage
12. “Maria ___”
(1933 song)
13. Controversial
‘90s sitcom
18. Romulus’
brother
22. Author/lecturer
Wiesel
24. Statement
figures: Abbr.
25. Double-reed
woodwind
player
27. “The NeverEnding Story”
author Michael
28. God of war
29. Strung tightly
30. Game at the
corner store
31. Boosler of
comedy
35. Hart’s longtime
“Entertainment
Tonight”
cohost
36. Fit to____
37. Tower
39. Gregarious
41. Melodic subject
44. Experts in votegetting
46. Holy, to Henri
49. Group of four
50. TV crime show
starring
Efrem Zimbalist Jr.
51. Cocteau’s “Le
Grand ____”
52. California/Nevada resort
lake
53. ___ fours
(crawling)
56. Outward glow
57. Struck
59. Noun-forming
suffix
60. Mount in Greek
myth
61. One of the
five W’s
64. “Busy” one
65. Lawyer’s deg.
SUDOKU
To solve a Sudoku puzzle, place a number into each box
so that each row across, each column down, and each
small 3x3 square within the larger diagram (there are 9
of these) will contain every number from 1 through 9. In
other words, no number will appear more than once in any
row, column, or smaller 3x3 square. Working with the numbers already given as a guide, complete each diagram with
the missing numbers that will lead to the correct solution.
(Answers for Crossword and Sudoku on page 15)
VIEW ALL OF OUR
PAST WEEKLY ISSUES AT
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HOROSCOPE
Aries March 20 - April 18
If you’ve been planning a long trip by air,
Aries, today you might doubt whether you
should continue with your plans. Money
might be the issue. Be aware that your fears
may run away with you. The situation may
be more secure than it appears.
Taurus April 19 - May 19
Today you might feel too overwrought to
concentrate on whatever goals you’re trying
to reach, particularly if they’re financial. Past
issues might crop up at inopportune times
but will still need to be released.
Gemini May 20 - June 19
You tend to be pretty self-assured, Gemini,
but self-esteem issues dating from long ago
could surface today. You might feel like a
schoolchild called on to recite. This could
cause a few snags in your relationships or
interfere with your effectiveness at social
occasions.
Cancer June 20 - July 21
Today you might feel a bit bloated and slow,
Cancer, which could interfere with your daily
routine. You could also feel unmotivated
about work. You might not feel like exercising, but it’s important that you do it anyway.
Leo July 22 - August 21
Today your job or another activity could
require your artistic skills for a particular
project, Leo. You may not be used to this,
so it could throw you into a bit of a panic.
There should be others around who can
collaborate with you, so you will be all right.
Virgo August 22 - September 21
A subject of interest that you’ve been pursuing could bring up some deeply buried emotions today, Virgo. You might want to retreat
into your mind and try to make sense of it,
although analyzing it intellectually may not
be the answer.
Libra September 22 - October 21
This could be a confusing day for you, Li-
bra. Financial issues might be complicated
by computer glitches or failures in communication. Keep pushing, however, and
whatever you’re trying to straighten out will
be resolved.
Scorpio October 22 - November 20
Financial issues might have you and your
partner a bit more on edge than you need to
be, Scorpio. Perhaps money is tighter than
usual right now, and you have to put off purchases you want to make. Try to work it out.
Sagittarius November 21 - December 20
Today your intellect is flying high, Sagittarius. A number of new ideas, perhaps about
political or social issues, might excite your
curiosity and cause you to want to spend
hours in the library or on the Internet. Mundane tasks still need handling, however.
Capricorn December 21 - January 18
Your imagination is working overtime today,
Capricorn, and you might spend hours at a
computer writing or in front of an easel or
piano creating your own brand of painting
or music. This drive to create comes from
the heart and shouldn’t be ignored no matter
what other issues come up.
Aquarius January 19 - February 17
A conflict between your responsibilities to
family and obligations to friends could rear
its ugly head today, Aquarius. You might
want to attend an event but need to deal with
emotional issues in the home immediately. It
could be difficult to keep a cool head under
these circumstances.
Pisces February 18 - March 19
Dissatisfaction with certain job conditions might
come to a head today, Pisces. A discussion with colleagues might be necessary to defuse a potentially
explosive situation. Clear, honest communication is
necessary in order to avoid misunderstandings. Try
to remain objective. Don’t let your emotions take
control. Things will work out to everyone’s satisfaction.
HOW TO PLACE AN AD IN THE SAN FRANCISCO POST:
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Person, Contact Numbers & Complete
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AUTOMOTIVE
FIL-AM POST
PAGE 15
Oct 30, 2014 - Nov 5, 2014
Surge of used cars stings: Falling prices may trigger incentives on new vehicles
A rising supply of used vehicles, particularly late-model cars and trucks coming off
lease, already is hitting some companies in
their pocket books.
That supply -- and the number of companies affected -- will continue to grow.
Analysts predict the number of off-lease
vehicles entering the used-vehicle market
will rise steadily through at least 2020.
Although most analysts say the market
can absorb the increased volume, softer
used-car prices reduce the value of shoppers’ trade-ins, which may make it more
difficult for consumers to afford new vehicles’ rising sticker prices. Some analysts,
therefore, warn that higher used volumes,
if accompanied by overproduction of new
vehicles, could be a catalyst for increased
sales incentives, which would hurt automakers’ profits.
Lithia Motors Inc. already has felt the
sting. The nation’s eighthlargest dealership group told
investors that its third-quarter
profit margins narrowed on a
dip in used-vehicle values.
Similarly, Avis Budget Group
Inc. said falling used-vehicle
prices pushed per-unit fleet
costs in the third quarter higher
than the company expected.
At Group 1 Automotive Inc.,
the nation’s third-largest dealership group, used-vehicle retail unit sales in the U.S. rose
12 percent in the third quarter,
but gross profits on those sales
rose only half that: 6 percent.
“There was some pressure in the used-car
business in the quarter,” CEO Earl Hes-
terberg said. He cited ordinary seasonal
declines in
prices and
the added
pressure of
more
offlease
vehicles, plus
some “pretty
aggressive”
marketing
drives
on
new vehicles in August, which
pulled usedcar shoppers
into new vehicles.
“When the market shifts like that and
UP professor in road rage files raps vs Bulacan mayor
MANILA, Philippines–“My family is shaken by the
brazenness of these men,” Inquirer publisher Raul Pangalangan said, shaking his head.
Those men gave his family—wife Elizabeth, son
Miguel Enrico, 21, daughter-in-law Trizha O. Pangalangan and two granddaughters age 6 and 5 and their two
nannies—a shock in a road rage incident in Quezon City
on Monday morning, he said.
Elizabeth, a law professor at the University of the Philippines, said she was sitting in the front passenger seat
beside her son in the family vehicle when the incident
happened.
After learning the identities of the owners of the vehicles the men used, Elizabeth Pangalangan filed a
complaint in the National Bureau of Investigation on
Wednesday against Bulacan Mayor Patrick Meneses
and his mother over the incident that she said left her
family traumatized.
The complainant is also the director of the Institute of
Human Rights at the UP Law Center.
Meneses is better known today as the partner of actress Ara Mina. He used to be with another actress, Aiko
Melendez.
NBI Director Virgilio Mendez said he had assigned a
division to investigate the incident following the filing
of the complaint. “I will assign a team to conduct an
investigation based on the complaint,” Mendez told the
Inquirer in an interview at his office on Wednesday.
Mendez said Meneses and his security men and those
named in the complaint would be invited to give their
side of the incident.
The others named in the complaint were the mother
of Meneses, Priscila, who is the listed owner of one of
two vehicles involved in the incident, a silver Innova
with Plate No. ZEL 124; one Joel Piñon; and several
John Does.
Elizabeth said she filed a complaint because Meneses’
mother refused to identify the men in the two vehicles
that she and her family encountered on Congressional
Avenue Extension on Monday morning. She said one of
the men pointed a gun at her and her family.
An initial police investigation showed that the man
with a gun was from the Innova.
In a visit to the Inquirer on Tuesday night to talk to
publisher Pangalangan, Priscila said her family owned
the Innova and the other vehicle involved in the incident, a Land Cruiser. She said, however, that she was
not in one of the vehicles and that no security men were
traveling in them.
She said her son Patrick, mayor of Bulacan town, Bulacan province, should be spared because he was at the
municipal hall at the time of the incident.
there’s pressure on demand, we all try to
keep our inventory turning,” Hesterberg
said. So Group 1 retailed some vehicles at
lower prices rather than send them to auction.
Expect more pressure on prices and profits.
The number of off-lease vehicles returning
to the market will grow by almost 400,000
this year to 2.1 million, predicts Manheim,
the nation’s largest auction company.
It also predicts that consumers will lease
about 3.5 million new cars and trucks this
year, up from 3.2 million in 2013. That rise
will continue, filling a pipeline with vehicles ready to come off lease.
The number of off-lease vehicles will
climb to 3.5 million in 2017 -- topping the
record of 3.4 million set in 2002 -- and to
3.9 million in 2020, Manheim forecasts.
(Cont. from page 1... FOREIGN BANK ACCOUNTS)
The U.S., the only Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development nation
that taxes citizens wherever
they reside, stepped up the
search for tax dodgers after UBS AG (UBSN) paid
a $780 million penalty in
2009 and handed over data
on about 4,700 accounts.
Shunned by Swiss and German banks and with Fatca
starting, more than 9,000
Americans living overseas
gave up their passports over
the past five years.
Fatca requires U.S. financial institutions to impose a
30 percent withholding tax
on payments made to foreign
banks that don’t
agree to identify
and provide information on U.S.
account holders.
It allows the U.S.
to scoop up data
from more than
77,000
institu-
tions and 80 governments
about its citizens’ overseas
financial activities.
In establishing the 2010 Fatca law, Congress and President Barack Obama in effect
threatened to cut off banks
and other companies from
easy access to the U.S. market if they didn’t pass along
such information. It was
projected to generate $8.7
billion over 10 years, according to the congressional Joint
Committee on Taxation.
So far, 2,353 Americans
have renounced their citizenship this year, close to the alltime high of 2,369 in the first
nine months of 2013.
PAGE 16
Oct 30, 2014 - Nov 5, 2014
FIL-AM POST