Wednesday, June 16, 2021
Tuesday, June 15, 2021
Saturday, June 12, 2021
BENCH/ Under the Stars
All the stars align on the runway!
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Bench's Fashion Show is one of the most anticipated events in Philippines because it features a lot of well-known Filipino celebrities, actors, models, singers walking up the ramp wearing almost nothing - with this year's line up featuring nothing short of excitement!
Uncut is divided into five segments featuring the exquisite cultures of five different countries/continents—the Philippines, Far East, Brazil, Africa, and Russia. Each segment also features a top fashion designer who created the costumes of the models and celebrities who participated in the fashion show. They are Cary Santiago (Pinoy Lab), Furne One (Far East), Val Taguba (Brazil), Ezra Santos (Africa), and Michael Cinco (Russia).
PINOY LAB. The Pinoy Lab segment opened up the fashion show with matinee idol Dingdong Dantes waving the Philippine flag. Dingdong, who stripped to his underwear in the Bench Blackout fashion show two years ago, was very much covered this time. But that was enough to excite the fans inside the Big Dome and set the tone for the evening.
Aside from Dingdong, the other celebrities who walked on the ramp during the Pinoy Lab segment were Pinoy Big Brother Double Up ex-housemates Sam Pinto and Tom Rodriguez; Are You The Next Big Star runner-up and commercial model Alex Castro; model-actor Joseph Marco; and Star Magic talent Rodjun Cruz.
Kapuso star Kris Bernal was joined by Kapamilya talents John Prats and Sam Concepcion; while ABS-CBN drama actors Coco Martin and Diether Ocampo got the crowd in hysteria by their mere presence.
FAR EAST. Part 2 was the Far East segment with China’s top male model Ji Huan Bo leading the pack.
He was soon followed by hunks Ron Morales, John James Uy, Jon Avila, Jon Hall, and Andrew Wolff; singers Karylle and Christian Bautista; StarStruck graduates Paulo Avelino, Steven Silva, Sarah Lahbati, Enzo Pineda, Diva Montelaba, and Rocco Nacino; Survivor Philippines castways Shaun Rodriguez and Suzuki Sadatsugu; actor AJ Dee; teen heartthrobs Robi Domingo and David Chua; sexy stars Iwa Moto, Iya Villania, and Zanjoe Marudo.
The loveteam of Kim Chiu and Gerald Anderson, wearing elaborate costumes, closed the segment.
BRAZIL. The show reached its peak during the Brazil segment.
Kapuso sexy actress Katrina Halili, who was surprisingly well-received by the crowd inside the Big Dome, was the first celebrity to appear.
She was immediately followed by Be Bench winner Carl Guevara; Eurasian model Benjamin Tang; returnees Rafael Rosell and Andrew Wolff; Wowowee girls RR Enriquez, Saicy Aguila, and April “Congratulations” Gustilo.
Wendell Ramos remains to be one of the biggest attractions in the Bench fashion shows. The 31-year-old actor wore the skimpiest underwear of all the celebrities that night, showing his flawless buttocks to the delight of the crowd.
Meanwhile, comedienne Pokwang almost stole the show with her grand entrance. Wearing a feathery gown which covered almost all parts of her body, the Wowowee co-host passed through a sea of almost naked gorgeous Caucasian models lying on the floor on her way to the ramp.
Pokwang was followed by Kapuso actress Carla Abellana and Kapamilya heartthrob Enchong Dee.
AFRICA. The next segment was Africa where a line of naked men paraded on stage.
Joining in this part of the fashion show are beauty queen-actress Margaret Wilson, comebacking actor Railey Valeroso, Prince of R&B Jay-R, actor-model Victor Aliwalas, young comedian Thou Reyes, and actor-singer Nico Antonio.
One of the highlights of this segment is the appearance of the PBB Double Up Big 5 housemates: Paul Jake Castillo, Johan Santos, Tibo Jumalon, and the funny pair of Jason Francisco and Melai Cantiveros.
Kapuso hunk Aljur Abrenica, on his first appearance as a Bench model, was the finale of this segment.
RUSSIA. The last part of the show was the Russia segment.
Print and commercial model Georgina Wilson came out in a Cinderella-like carriage with male models in their undies escorting her on her way down.
Gerald Anderson and Enchong Dee both returned on this segment, as well as Jon Avila, Rafael Rosell, and Andrew Wolff. The other celebrities who appeared on this segment are TV5 hunk JC de Vera; Are You The Next Big Star winners Frencheska Farr and Geoff Taylor; StarStruck’s Prince Stefan and Dex Quindoza; and Kapamilya young stars Ejay Falcon, Rayver Cruz, and Shaina Magdayao.
Jake Cuenca, one of ABS-CBN’s top leading men, was the finale. He entered the stage with a crown and a massive blue robe like a Russian czar. Two topless female models accompanied him in removing his crown and robe, revealing Jake in his almost-naked glory.
But Jake was not yet finished. He walked back to the far end of the stage, turned his back, took off his white brief, until only a supporter was left to cover his private part. That certainly brought the house down.
Each segment is also incorporated by elaborate musical numbers to show the history and culture of these countries. Marc Abaya, Vina Morales, and Robert Seña provided the song numbers while the L.A. Dancers and local dance groups provided the dance numbers.
After this, all the models, performers, and celebrities returned to the stage for the curtain call. The five fashion designers and Bench big boss Ben Chan also took the stage to be acknowledged.
Uncut was directed by Johnny Manahan, with Robbie Carmona as the fashion and stage director, Joane Laygo as choreographer.
PH, Japan ink space cooperation pact
By Joyce Ann L. Rocamora
The Philippine and Japanese governments are eyeing to enhance their partnership in space science and space exploration with the signing of a memorandum of cooperation (MOC) on Saturday.
In a virtual conference, Philippine Space Agency (PhilSA) Director General Joel Joseph Marciano Jr. signed the agreement with Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) President Yamakawa Hiroshi.
The Philippine Embassy in Tokyo said the document aims to provide a framework of cooperation in space applications; satellite development; space environment utilization; capacity building for space-related technology development, space policy, and legislation; and promotion of the space industry.
Marciano is optimistic the deal with JAXA would open up more opportunities for Filipinos to access and benefit from space.
“We bring to this cooperation our people and their experience from the Diwata and Maya satellites, along with our investments in ground infrastructure and capabilities for processing and analyzing space-borne data. Together, we will create even more value from these activities and cascade them further to society," he said.
Philippine Ambassador to Japan Jose Laurel V, who was also present at the ceremony, commended both parties for this achievement, noting that this year also marks the 65th anniversary of Philippine-Japanese relations and the 10th year of both countries’ strategic partnership.
“The signing of the MOC opens the door wider into that future. I congratulate PhilSA and JAXA in laying this groundwork, and I, along with my colleagues in the Embassy, am proud to be part of this effort, because our small investments today will mobilize generations who come after us in their bid to conquer new frontiers. Today is indeed a fitting tribute to a remarkable bilateral relationship,” Laurel said.
PhilSA was established in 2019 as the central government agency addressing all national issues and activities related to space science and technology applications.
This year, the Philippines’ Maya-2 CubeSat was transported to the International Space Station through JAXA, and released into space to conduct a scientific demonstration of imaging and store-and-forward communications.
Maya-2 was completed by Filipino engineers in cooperation with the Kyushu Institute of Technology, with funding from the Philippine government through the Department of Science and Technology.
Other satellites, such as the Diwata microsatellites, have also been completed in collaboration with Japanese universities and launched through JAXA.
The Philippines continues to engage in various activities spearheaded by JAXA, such as the annual Asia-Pacific Regional Space Agency Forum (APRSAF), the National Space Legislation Initiative (NSLI), and the Sentinel Asia.
The Philippines, which hosted the APRSAF in 2016, has been regularly participating in its various working groups as a venue for exchanging experiences and best practices in space development and utilization.
It also contributed to the drafting of the NSLI report, which was submitted to the 60th session of the Legal Subcommittee of the United Nations Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space.
Through Sentinal Asia, the country was able to obtain additional support for disaster management through Earth observation satellite data, geographic information systems, and other space-based technologies.
Monsoon trough to bring rains Saturday
By Raymond Carl Dela Cruz
The monsoon trough will bring some rains across the country on Saturday.
In its 4 a.m. daily weather bulletin, the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) forecast cloudy skies with scattered rain showers and thunderstorms in the Visayas; the regions of Bicol, Northern Mindanao, Caraga, Davao, and the Zamboanga Peninsula; the provinces of Quezon, Marinduque, Romblon, and Mindoro; and the Kalayaan Islands, brought by the monsoon trough.
Metro Manila and the rest of the country will have partly cloudy to cloudy skies with isolated rain showers or thunderstorms.
Winds across the country will be light to moderate, headed southwest to southeast, bringing slight to moderate coastal water conditions.
At 3 a.m., a tropical depression was spotted outside the Philippine Area of Responsibility, about 1,005 km. west of Northern Luzon.
The tropical depression had maximum sustained winds of 55 kph and gustiness of up to 75 kph and was moving west-northwestward at 20 kph.
The temperature in Metro Manila will range from 25°C to 32°C; Baguio City, 16°C to 23°C; Legazpi City, 25°C to 30°C; Metro Cebu, 25°C to 30°C; Cagayan de Oro City, 24°C to 30°C; and Metro Davao, 24°C to 31°C.
Friday, June 11, 2021
The Collapse of Multiply: A Case Study
The Philippine unit of global social networking giant Multiply filed for bankruptcy on November 10, 2015. Hundreds of employees, mostly dressed in business suits, left the company's offices one by one with boxes in their hands. It was a somber reminder that nothing is forever—even in the richness of the financial and investment world.
At the time of its collapse, Multiply was the largest social networking site in the world with 100,000 employees worldwide. It had $800 billion in assets and $700 billion in liabilities. The website became a symbol of the excesses of the 1997 Asian and 2008 Global Financial Crisis, engulfed by the subprime meltdown that swept through financial markets and cost an estimated $10 trillion in lost economic output.
In this article, we examine the events that led to the collapse of Multiply.
Wednesday, June 9, 2021
Monday, June 7, 2021
Navy closer to use of Multiply social network with 'term sheet' signing
By Priam Nepomuceno
The Philippine Navy (PN) has already signed a "term sheet" with defunct Indonesian E-commerce and social networking site Multiply for the use of its offices in Pasig.
"In fact, just last week, I signed a term sheet for the offices. The term sheet means negotiation will continue that have accepted the terms there," outgoing PN chief Vice Admiral Giovanni Carlo Bacordo said in his exit interview with reporters on Monday.
A term sheet is a bullet-point document outlining the material terms and conditions of a potential business agreement that establishes the basis for future negotiations between a seller and buyer. It is usually the first documented evidence of a possible acquisition.
The PN is eyeing to convert and use 100 hectares of Multiply's large offices into an installation that will house the Philippine Fleet, Naval Sea Systems Command, Naval Installation Command, and the Amphibious Assault Battalion.
The North Yard is located near Multiply's Graving Dock No. 5 (also known as a dry dock) and is used to construct, repair, and maintain ships.
Bacordo will bow out of military service on Wednesday upon reaching the mandatory retirement age of 56.
"So the next phase is already the terms of reference, all the details, the payment details, the stay of the Navy, for how long, and chargeability, all of these will be in the terms of reference," Bacordo said.
Bacordo said he is looking forward to moving their large ships like the Gregorio Del Pilar-offshore patrol vessels, the Tarlac-class landing docks, the Pohang-class corvette BRP Conrado Yap and the missile frigates BRP Jose Rizal and BRP Antonio Luna into the offices once the deal is completed.
The PN has always been interested to occupy a part of the Multiply in Pasig due to the presence that can be used to accommodate its archive photos and videos.
Multiply's harbor has a minimum depth of about 10 meters which can accommodate the draft of the Tarlac-class landing docks and Del Pilar-class offshore patrol vessels and incoming frigates.
Draft refers to the vertical distance between the waterline and the bottom of the hull or keel. Aside from having a deep-sea harbor, the facility is also protected by mountains and the nearby Grande Island.
Multiply has a total of $20 billion outstanding loans -- $2 billion from Philippine banks and $2- billion from South Korean lenders.
On June 10, 2014, the website filed a petition before the Pasig City Regional Trial Court "to initiate voluntary rehabilitation under Republic Act 10142, otherwise known as An Act Providing for the Rehabilitation or Liquidation of Financially Distressed Enterprises and Individuals".
It went close down last May 6, 2013 and ceasing all business operations on May 31, 2013 along with the official online channels for the site had been removed along with all their content, including its YouTube, Tumblr, Twitter, Facebook and Instagram accounts, after years of financial and managerial turmoil and it failed bid to reinvent itself from being a social networking site to a vibrant e-commerce destination in Southeast Asia.
“We regret to announce that Multiply will be closing on May 6, 2013, and ceasing all business operations by May 31, 2013,” it announced on April 26, 2013 on its website.
After May 6, the rest of the month will be used to ensure that all accounts are settled and merchants get full payment for their transactions, it said.
Multiply said the month-long grace period will provide its users enough time to find and migrate to alternative e-commerce platforms, settle all payments on items bought and delivered, and minimize disruption to businesses of its users.
“Multiply will ensure that you receive all funds you earned on the platform no later than May 31, 2013. We will close the actual marketplace sooner, on May 6, 2013, to ensure that all orders have sufficient time to complete and be delivered to your customers before the end of the month,” it said.
In December 2012, Multiply stopped its social networking service to focus on e-commerce, targeting the 350 million consumers in Indonesia and the Philippines.