September 4, 2012 Edition

As the Senate deliberates on the controversial Reproductive Health (RH) Bill and after the House of Representatives already passed their version of the bill, the latter is again working on a new set of amendments to address the concerns of the influential Catholic Church. Basically, House leaders are mulling to change the provisions in the current House Bill 4222 on contraceptives. Instead of a bill that “promotes” the use of contraceptives nationwide, the bill will turn into a “poverty measure” that will make “available” contraceptives only to the poorest of the poor. This change will reportedly address funding issues, too, since the initial P2 billion budget was not focused on addressing needs of the lower socio-economic class. With the 2013 elections in the offing, these changes may further delay the measure that has been pending for years and is seen as crucial in addressing poverty and population issues in the Philippines.

Read more on Rappler.

Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno told court employees to ignore rumors that her recently announced appointment is causing division among the magistrates. Sereno, 52, is poised to be the longest staying chief justice of the Philippines with 18 years before the mandatory retirement of 70, but her appointment has eased out 5 other more senior magistrates from ever being appointed to the position. Justices Antonio Carpio, Teresita Leonardo de Castro, Presbitero Velasco Jr, Arturo Brion and Diosdado Peralta did not show up at the first flag ceremony that Sereno attended as chief justice on September 3, and did not attend her oath-taking on August 25 in Malacañang. She stressed that her appointment to the post on August 24 was not politically motivated but reflected God’s will. 

Read more on Rappler.

The economy of the United States is the driving force behind the very different 2012 national elections map and mood, various analysts stress. Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney pounced on this during the national convention on August 31, noting that “America has been patient” as the economy falters in the past 4 years Democrat Barack Obama was president. A favorite indicator–the unemployment rate–shows otherwise. CNN’s John King says unemployment rate in February 2009–Obama’s first full month in office–was 8.3%. In August 2012, it was 8.3%. Obama’s camp, which the Romney camp immediately countered after the Democrat’s campaign team claimed that Americans were better off than 4 years ago “by any measurement,” seems to have been less cautious than the president’s senior advisers who noted that claims about economic recovery are always pitted against widespread unhappiness over the slow pace of job growth. CNN notes no president since the Great Depression has won a second term with unemployment above 8%.

Read more on Rappler, Guardian, and CNN.

The country’s largest mining firm, Philex Mining Corp., admits its only operating mine has leaked tailings waste to the river systems in Luzon 4-times in the single month of August. The two major leaks happened in August 1 and August 30, when typhoons and other weather-related conditions battered north Luzon. The recent incidents at a time the Philippine government is drafting rules and regulations on Executive Order 79, which sets the Aquino government’s policy on the mining industry. Anti-mining groups have claimed that mining is inherently destructive to the environment, and have questioned claims of industry players that mining can be responsibly pursued.

Read more on Rappler.

The New York Times blames low key Facebook chief finance officer David Ebersman, 41, for the financial catastrophe in the social media giant’s initial public offering (IPO). Facebook lost more than $50 billion in market value three months after the IPO due to Eberman, a Brown graduate. “If there is one single individual more responsible than any other for the staggering mispricing of Facebook’s I.P.O., it is Mr. Ebersman. He signed off on the ever-increasing offer price, which ended up at $38 after the company had originally planned a price range of $29 to $34,” an article on the paper said, adding that the CFO was also responsible for belatedly flooding the market with 25% more shares than originally planned. It added that Eberman badly misjudged the demand for Facebook’s IPO since he listened to the wrong advice of bankers and underwriters who were financially rewarded for the high share price. Eberman has his work cut out for him as Facebook tries to regain the trust of shareholders. 

Read more on New York Times.

It was not a surprise for social media-savvy mobile phone subscribers in the Philippines to vent frustrations over poor network service quality of Globe Telecom over the weekend. On September 3, Globe officials explained the network glitch that caused dropped calls, delayed text messages, slow mobile browsing and difficulty in calling, in turn fueling irate customers to flood social media networks. Globe said a network modernization, which includes an upgrade to faster and more reliable 4G-LTE, is coming soon and a rebate for affected subscribers will be announced later. Exactly how many Globe customers were affected is still being determined, but rival Smart Communications is out in the open enticing unsatisfied subscribers to shit to Smart’s service. Citing monitoring of social media posts, Smart said they have noticed many “shifters” already.

Read more on Rappler.

Where’s the feel good factor for retailers from the London 2012 Olympics? There was little for clothing retailers in London but party food and drinks businesses outside the capital experienced a “mild” boost. The British Retail Consortium (BRC) noted that people were likely absorbed by the magnificent Olympics and had little interest in shopping, a key indicator of the economic returns of hosting the games. Stripping out new store openings, sales by value were down by 0.4% on the same month a year ago, when they fell 0.6%. With new openings included, sales were up 1.6%. Both these figures are the lowest since November 2011. While BRC noted that August is traditionally one of the 3 months before Christmas that retail sales is weak, many retailers and experts expected the London Games to bolster spending even after the West End of London was quiet during the early part of August when the competition began.

Read more on Guardian.

With the August 31 Republican National Convention becoming a hit online and in social networks–but not on TV–the Associated Press said this was “the latest evidence of the political conversation’s gradual migration from traditional media to the Web.” It said TV viewership during the convention “dropped sharply” from 2008, when history was in the making: Democrat Barack Obama become the first black presidential nominee. Aside from the largely surprise-free Republican convention, hurricane Isaac that battered parts of the United States drew some attention away from politics.

Read more on Associated Press.

With India’s economic star dimming, the government vowed to clean up its act and review policies that turn off investors. New finance minister P. Chidambaram, who is considered more pro-investor than his predecessor, announced on September 3 that the government would introduce a more “friendly” tax system and would would soon decide on whether to pursue a controversial plan to fight tax evasion that has spooked foreign investors. Current efforts to curb tax evasion have been criticized as a money-grabbing exercise by a government battling to curb a ballooning deficit, and are considered the main reason for the 67% decline in foreign investments in the second quarter. India’s growth remained stuck at 3-year lows of 5.5%, a high figure by developed nations’ standards but far below the near double-digit growth of much of the past decade. 

Read more on Rappler.

After a murder conviction comes a Ferrari crash. The high-speed crash that killed the son of president Hu Jintao’s close ally is the latest in the scandal that has rocked China’s leadership ahead of a once-a-decade transition of power. The publication of pictures and local news reports, even word search on Ferrari on local Sina Weibo microblog have reportedly been blocked and has led to the resignation of the father of the black Ferrari sports car driver, Ling Jihua, from a leadership position at the Politburo party’s central committee. This recent incident is being framed to highlight the fortunes and lifestyle of those around the Communist leadership. The party has just survived the ousting of the ambitious politician Bo Xilai, and the conviction of his wife, Gu Kailai, for murdering a British businessman.

Read more on The Guardian.