Howie Mandel Hosts Exciting New Game Show Take It All this February on Sony Channel

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Host and executive producer Howie Mandel provides a modern twist to the popular holiday tradition of exchanging gifts in the exciting new game show Take It All on Sony Channel this February.

In the show, each contestant selects and opens a package from an assortment of wrapped gifts containing hundreds of thousands of dollars in prizes, such as luxury cars, exotic trips, jewelry, and more. The next player then has to decide if he should steal the prize that’s already been opened or go for a mystery prize, hoping it could be worth more. At the end of each round, the contestant with the least valuable prize is eliminated.

In the final round, things get even more interesting when the two remaining contestants find out if chance favors any of them as they are faced with the toughest decisions they will ever make. Feel the pressure as contestants think about whether to keep what they have or steal what they don’t.

Find out who goes home with what and who goes home asking why as contestants ponder on life-changing choices that could cost them nothing, something, or everything!

Take It All airs weeknights at 7pm.

Sony Channel is available on Sky Cable Channel 35, Destiny Cable Channel 62, Cignal Channel 120, and Cablelink Channel 39.

DOE, PEZA To Facilitate Development of Regional Ecozones

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In a bid to attract more investments into the country, the Department of Energy (DOE) and the Philippine Economic Zone Authority (PEZA) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) for the accelerated development of regional economic zones or ecozones with the assurance of a reliable and reasonably-priced supply of electricity.

According to Energy Secretary Alfonso G. Cusi, “the MOU is an initiative consistent with the long-term economic vision of President Rodrigo Duterte known as ‘Ambisyon 2040’ and complements his 10-point socio-economic agenda.”

“Energy policies will be developed to facilitate the reduction of the cost of doing business in the country, including the ecozones," he added.

“Energy efficiency programs, like the adoption of the Energy Management Systems (ISO 50001), will be given importance to help the locator companies to be more efficient in their use of energy resources. This will result in lower power costs to sustain the companies’ competitiveness, while also encouraging the establishment of more energy efficient ecozones in the country,” Cusi said.

Cusi also underscored the importance of policies that would streamline the permitting processes for energy projects, to ensure stable and reliable supply of energy to drive the economic activities in the ecozones.

The MOU was signed by DOE Undersecretary Benito L. Ranque representing Secretary Cusi and PEZA Director General Charito B. Plaza on 2 February 2017 in Davao City.

“With the MOU in place, the country can expect the flow of critical investment which in the long-run creates more job opportunities and spur rural development,” Cusi said.

Malampaya Shutdown Safely Completed

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Following collaborative efforts of stakeholders, Energy Secretary Alfonso G. Cusi announced today (17 Feb.) that the Malampaya scheduled maintenance shutdown has been completed safely and ahead of schedule.

“The measures undertaken helped avert any power outage as a result of the Malampaya shutdown," said Cusi.

"Throughout the Malampaya downtime, the power supply reserve was maintained at normal levels. We are grateful for having hurdled the critical period that could have resulted in the issuance of grid alerts," he added.

The Malampaya consortium reported Thursday that natural gas supply is readily available for use by its natgas plant customers. Comprising the consortium are Shell Philippines Exploration B.V., Chevron Malampaya LLC and PNOC Exploration Corporation.

"The consortium also reported that all maintenance activities were done taking into account the safety of all personnel,” Cusi said.

The DOE said the Malampaya Gas to Power Project supplies natural gas to five natural gas power plants located in Batangas, namely Sta. Rita (1,000 MW), San Lorenzo (500 MW), Ilijan (1,200 MW), Avion (97 MW), and San Gabriel (414 MW).

Meanwhile, Cusi emphasized that the public should continue to adopt energy efficiency and conservation practices, as these have greatly contributed in cushioning the impact of the shutdown on power supply.

"The DOE will aggressively pursue demand-side management in consonance with the thrust of legislators in yesterday's Joint Congressional Power Committee hearing to move towards the same direction," Cusi said.

NEC to Provide Cyber-Attack Defense Training for Six ASEAN Countries

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NEC Corporation announced that it received an order from the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) to provided cyber-attack defense for officials from governmental institutions responsible for cyber security in six members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) (Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Myanmar, the Philippines and Vietnam). The first round of the training is scheduled from February 20 to March 3, 2017.

Damage due to cyber-attacks has recently been spreading globally. Given the increasingly serious damage attributable to such targeted attacks on governmental organizations and critical infrastructure, there is a growing necessity to take measures to improve cyber security capabilities.

This defense training, which will take place in Japan over a three year period, aims to improve incident response, including the early discovery and detection of damage, as well as the implementation of countermeasures to targeted cyber-attacks on ASEAN countries. Training sessions feature lectures on the latest threats and security measures, as well as drills similar to the Cyber Defense Exercise with Recurrence (CYDER), which are practical cyber-attack defense drills that have been conducted by the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications in Japan since 2013.

These drills will be carried out in environments that simulate targeted attacks on governmental organizations. This provides opportunities for learning how to address cyber-attacks through actual experience with a series of incident-handling processes, such as the discovery and reporting of incidents, the identification, isolation, and analysis of problematic areas, and the confirmation of damage. In addition, opportunities will be provided to tour leading-edge cyber security-related facilities in Japan according to the tour programs of the National Institute of Information and Communications Technology (NICT) and the Japan Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (JAIST).

“JICA is proud to be contributing to this collaboration between Japan and ASEAN countries in the reinforcement of cyber security,” said Mr. Juichiro Sasaki, Director General, JICA Tokyo International Center. “We look forward to sharing the latest technology and security information through state-of-the-art practices implemented in this ‘Knowledge Co-Creation Program’ in Japan.”

“The improvement of cyber security plays an important role in NEC’s provision of ‘Solutions for Society,’” said Mr. Kazuhiko Shiraishi, General Manager, National Security Solutions Division, NEC Corporation. “Going forward, we will continue these efforts by providing drills, products and services for cyber defense to a large number of organizations, including governmental institutions and critical infrastructure providers, both in Japan and internationally.”

Grilla Filipino Cuisine Is Now at SM MOA by the Bay

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I’m very adventurous when it comes to my dining preferences. Therefore, I am open to all kinds of dishes - may it be from the many popular restaurants at the malls or food parks with meals inspired from the different regions of the Philippines or from different countries, down to the neighborhood “carinderias” or “turo-turo” with the only exemption being the street foods that are exposed to pollution like dust and smoke.

But when I’m hungry, you won’t find me experimenting on a new kind of dish. I would always find myself eating Filipino comfort foods because I have proven so many times that they will satisfy my cravings for a satisfying meal.

But don’t get me wrong, I love Japanese, Korean, Chinese, and all kinds of foreign dishes, but there is something in Pinoy foods that makes it all fulfilling at every bite. This makes our very own Filipino food the best choice to fill me up at times when I need to grab a quick bite. Nothing come close to our very own.

The same experience was felt at our dining experience at Grilla Filipino Cuisine. It’s not my first time to dine at the said restaurant since I had the opportunity to dine already at a couple of their other branches. The newest branch, located at SM MOA by the Bay, is the third Grilla branch I have visited for a bloggers food tasting event, and once again, they never failed to impress me.

The event was meant to introduce their new dishes, or combination of dishes, as they were also offering combo meals that are great for sharing among the family, colleagues, “barkada” or with fellow bloggers that are foodies by nature.

Catcallers' Days Are Numbered

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Akbayan Senator Risa Hontiveros spent the Valentine’s day by filing a bill that seeks to protect women and members of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgendered (LGBT) community from harassment in the streets and other public spaces. The proposed measure was filed in response to the growing number of gender-based harassment in public spaces such as the case of a female student from the University of Santo Tomas (UST) who was allegedly groped in a public utility vehicle by a fellow student. The school was accused of victim-shaming after it allegedly sided with the perpetrator.

Hontiveros’ Senate Bill No. 1326 otherwise known as the “Safe Streets and Public Spaces Act of 2017” seeks to penalize gender-based street and public spaces harassment such as catcalling, wolf-whistling, cursing, leering, groping, persistent request for name and contact details and the use of words tending to ridicule on the basis of actual or perceived sex, gender expression, or sexual orientation and identity including sexist, homophobic and transphobic slurs.

According to Hontiveros, the bill seeks to complement the existing Anti-Sexual Harassment Law. “I filed the bill 23 years since the passage of the Anti-Sexual Harassment Law which is limited to the workplace and to superior-subordinate relationships”, she said. Hontiveros explained that there are still no clear-cut laws that address gender-based street harassment, citing the lack of gender lens for homophobic, transphobic and gender-based unjust vexation in the Revised Penal Code.

The senator also said that the bill responds to women’s insecurity in public spaces. Citing government data, Hontiveros said that in Quezon City alone, 3 in 5 women have experienced street harassment. Meanwhile, the Social Weather Station (SWS) reported that 88% of women aged 18-24 years or almost 9 out of 10 experienced different forms of sexual harassment in the streets. The same SWS report rated men feeling more secure in their neighborhoods than women.

Lamudi will Touch Hearts in Newest TV Campaign

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Aiming to cement its position as top-of-mind choice for online property hunters, leading portal Lamudi will launch its very first and heartwarming TV advertisement

Already recognized as the number one real estate website in the Philippines based on online visibility and monthly website traffic, Lamudi Philippines is now bringing its game a notch higher by launching a new TV campaign. The new advertisement aims to strengthen Lamudi’s position as the go-to website for all Filipinos who are looking for a home of their own.

Lamudi, a frontrunner in the online real estate space, is bringing a fresh take to its own branding by creatively telling the story of a family who is finally coming home to a place of their own. The TV and out-of-home ads will run on various cable channels and will be featured in prominent billboard locations around Metro Manila.

This advertising milestone is a first for the young startup. Through this campaign, the company expects to reach offline property-hunters who do not normally look for properties in the Internet, and to introduce to them new and modern ways to search for properties.

“Lamudi since 2015 has been the most visited online real estate portal in the Philippines, but we are now elevating the website to make it the top-of-mind real estate portal in the Philippines, shared Bhavna Suresh Chathambeth, CEO of Lamudi Philippines and MyProperty.ph. The latter is a website the former acquired from Summit Media in 2015.

Ms. Suresh also stressed that 2017 will be a big year for the top real estate portal, as this year, Lamudi is focusing on being more consumer-centric. “We have already built a strong online brand, especially among real estate brokers and developers. Now, we are reaching to the traditionally offline market to encourage them to use the Internet to find properties.”

The timing couldn’t be perfect, shared Ms. Suresh, as Lamudi has a lineup of exciting consumer-focused events this year. One will delve exclusively on the affordable housing sector, while another housing fair scheduled in mid-2017 will be held in Cebu City and will focus on the exciting real estate market of the city and the Visayas. These two on top of a host of offline marketing campaigns intended toward Filipino homebuyers can be expected from the top property website this year.

Hontiveros: Stop the Victim-Blaming, Pass the Anti-Discrimination Bill

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Akbayan Senator Risa Hontiveros called for a stop to the culture of victim blaming and gender discrimination during the second round of interpellations of the Anti-Discrimination Bill (ADB) on Monday.

Answering questions from Senators Emmanuel “Manny” Pacquiao and Vicente “Tito” Sotto III, Hontiveros explained that the proposed bill seeks to protect a person’s Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity and Expression (SOGIE) from discrimination and harm.

During the course of the interpellation, several such cases were discussed, among them the murder of Jennifer Laude, a 26-year-old Filipino transwoman Jennifer Laude, at the hands of United States Marine Lance Corporal Joseph Scott Pemberton. When Pacquiao suggested that Pemberton was deceived by Laude into thinking she was straight, Hontiveros responded by saying that the victims should not be blamed for the heinous crime.

“Siya na nga ang pinatay, siya pa ang may sala. This is unacceptable. Let us not resort to victim-blaming in an attempt to excuse crimes on the grounds of someone’s sexual orientation or gender identity,” Hontiveros said.

Hontiveros explained that Pacquaio was actually using the “gay and trans panic defense”, a homophobic and transphobic defense against charges of assault and murder.

“This line of defense and logic has already been widely discredited. In fact in California, this so-called legal defense has been officially banned in murder trials, with the American Bar Association (ABA) strongly suggesting that other states should do the same,” Hontiveros said.

Questions were also raised about which restrooms were appropriate for members of the Lesbian, Gay, Bi-Sexual and Transgender (LGBT) community. Hontiveros said that transwomen can use female restrooms while transmen and gay men can use male restrooms. The lady senator also cited the practice of gender-neutral restrooms, particularly in places such as coffee shops and business process outsourcing firms.

"We need to pass this law in order for people to be more gender sensitive and better understand the different dimensions of gender identity and sexual orientation. Hindi lahat ng bakla ay tinuturing ang kanilang mga sarili na babae o gustong mag-CR sa restroom ng babae,” Hontiveros said.

Hontiveros is the current chairperson of the Senate committee on Women, Children, Family Relations and Gender Equality.

People First Over Profits; Prioritize Peoples’ Rights and Demands in ASEAN!

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Philippine CSOs to the ASEAN Economic Community: “People First Over Profits; Prioritize Peoples’ Rights and Demands in ASEAN!” 

On Valentine’s Day, around 100 red-clad members of the ASEAN Civil Society Conference/ASEAN Peoples’ Forum 2017 (ACSC/APF 2017) Philippines National Organizing Committee (NOC), marched to the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) to deliver the Philippine CSOs’ position and demands on the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC). 

The NOC, led by its co-conveners Freedom from Debt Coalition (FDC) and PhilWomen on ASEAN, asked that its statement be tackled also at the 31 st meeting of the High Level Task Force on ASEAN Economic Integration (HLTF-EI) the following day. 

A number of the groups that have been engaging DTI on trade and investment issues and free trade agreement (FTA) negotiations are also part of the ACSC/APF 2017 NOC. 

A big Valentine’s card containing the CSOs’ statement was handed over to the Philippine representative to the HLTF-EI, DTI Undersecretary and official-in-charge of trade policies Ceferino Rodolfo who later invited the CSOs to a dialogue in a big meeting room at the Board of Investments. 

“The ACSC/APF 2017 Philippines NOC sees the Philippines Chairship of ASEAN for 2017 as a good opportunity to advance the peoples’ critique of the AEC and the current direction espoused by ASEAN’s economic integration agenda. 

Dive into all that Anime action this February with Animax!

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February, albeit a short month, will be incredibly enjoyable especially for fans of anime and Animax! From comedy, romance to science fiction, Asia’s leading anime channel will bring to audiences an array of popular anime series such as WWW.WORKING!!! , The File of Young Kindaichi R and more!

WWW.WORKING!!

High school freshman Daisuke Higashida is forced to take a part-time job at Wagnaria, a family restaurant chain, due to financial difficulties at home. At first, things were going smoothly for him and his colleagues. But then, he realizes that everyone who works at the restaurant is all but normal!

As Daisuke copes with his unusual working life, it becomes clear that he faces a personal dilemma: How can he continue to work in a restaurant without a single normal person working there?

WWW.WORKING!! airs every Monday & Tuesday at 8pm, with 2 episodes back-to-back, first & exclusively on Animax. 

The File of Young Kindaichi R

The adventures of veteran detective Hajime Kindaichi continue as he solves mysterious gruesome murders, together with childhood friend Miyuke Nanase. For the grandson of a famous detective, he is known to be both lazy and clumsy. However, when he gets involved in a murder case, his real talent shows as he cracks the most mindboggling cases.

Having been gifted with an IQ of 180, Hajime uses his innate skills of deduction and intuition to solve each mystery.

The File of Young Kindaichi R + The File of Young Kindaichi R TV Special premieres on 28 February, and airs every Monday & Tuesday at 8pm, with 2 episodes back-to-back, first & exclusively on Animax.

Scared Rider Xechs

The Blue World is under attack against mysterious invaders known as "Nightfly O'Note", which comes from the Red World. To combat the threat, humans have set up a defense facility called LAG and formed elite combat units to fight the enemy. 

Seventeen-year-old Akira Asagi is nominated to lead the war as she trains and leads six chosen youths that comprise the “Scared Rider Xechs”.

Together, they must unite and fight against these otherworldly aliens in order to protect their planet and humanity.

Scared Rider Xechs premieres on 15 February, and airs from Monday to Friday at 6:30 pm, with 2 episodes back-to-back, first & exclusively on Animax.

First Love Monster

From a wealthy family comes Kaho Nikaido, the 15-year-old daughter of an elderly rich couple, who leaves their home to live in a high school dormitory. While struggling to adjust to her new life, she figures in an accident and is saved by a handsome stranger, Kanade Takahashi. Instantly, Kaho falls in love with Kanade.   

However, little does she know that the object of her affection is only a fifth grader! How will she react when she finds out? Will love be lovelier for Kaho the first time around?

First Love Monster airs every Wednesday & Thursday at 8pm, with 2 episodes back-to-back, first & exclusively on Animax.

Animax is available on SKYCable Channel 46, Cignal Digital TV Channel 73, Dream Channel 07, and GSat Channel 24.