Jomary Torres Eyes Huge Win Over Thai Martial Arts Superstar in ONE Championship Debut

Wazzup Pilipinas!

Filipino newcomer Jomary Torres sets her sights on a colossal goal in her ONE Championship debut as she aims to make a statement against up-and-coming Thai martial arts superstar Rika “Tinydoll” Ishige.

Both ladies are set to square off against each other on the undercard of ONE: KINGS & CONQUERORS, which takes place at the glamorous Cotai Arena of The Venetian Macao in Macao, China on 5 August.

Torres, who holds a fledgling professional mixed martial arts (MMA) record of 1-0, is not expecting to be other competitor’s footstool to move up in the rankings as she intends to walk out with the victory in her first appearance as a ONE Championship athlete.

“It’s my first time to compete in ONE Championship. I am honored and blessed to be in this top-notch organization, which is widely considered as the frontrunner of MMA in the region. Of course, I am aiming to get a big win. I’ve worked hard just to make it here. I won’t waste this opportunity,” she claimed.

Torres is a talented Filipino prospect who trains out of the Wushu-savvy Catalan Fighting System gym.

Moreover, Torres had her lone match in August 2016 at a local Filipino MMA event, where she took a convincing unanimous decision triumph.

However, Torres is fully aware that having her hand raised against a well-rounded MMA competitor like Ishige will be a tough task.

Ishige is a certified eye candy that can grace on the cover of a top fashion magazine, sashay down the catwalk with the latest apparel, or endorse high-end beauty products in a television advertisement.

But Ishige is more than a pretty face because deep within, she is an authentic martial artist.

The 28-year-old beauty is of Thai and Japanese heritage and comes from a family of martial artists. Her late father was a judo practitioner, and her older sister who is now a medical doctor trained in Taekwondo.

Heavily influenced by her father, Ishige began her martial arts training at the age of nine with Aikido, Karate and Taekwondo.

Ishige successfully won her first two assignments as a pro this year, stopping Audreylaura Boniface via first-round technical knockout this past March before notching a first-round submission win over Nita Dea last May.

“We are keenly studying my opponent for this fight. She is a true martial artist. It’s part of her lifestyle. It’s in her blood,” Torres said of Ishige.

“I know what she is capable of doing inside the cage. She has a good Muay Thai base. Aside from that, she also has a good ground game. But I am coming into this bout very prepared. I am not giving myself any room for error,” she added.

Even though Ishige seems to have the upper hand in some departments of the vast fight game, Torres has no qualms when it comes to trading kicks and punches with her highly-touted Thai foe.

“My foundation is Wushu. I have no problem if she wants to fight standing up. I am already expecting that she will trade strikes with me. I can strike very hard too,” she cautioned.

Torres and Ishige are relatively inexperienced with almost matching records, but the Filipina striker believes that her key to victory lies wholly within herself.

“I will work hard on myself. I like to concentrate my training on myself. It does not matter about the opponent. The important thing for success is self-confidence. The key to self-confidence is preparation, and I am well prepared for this fight. If I have good preparation, I can fight anybody,” she ended.

​For more updates on ONE Championship, please visit www.onefc.com, follow us on Twitter and Instagram @ONEChampionship, and like us on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/ONEChampionship.

Intellicare Attributes Business Growth and Success to Adapting a Digital Mindset

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Intellicare, one of the country’s preeminent HMOs (Healthcare Management Organizations), recently posted a membership base of more than 1.2 million--a significant increase from 100,000 members in 2000. Aside from excellent service, the company attributes this growth to their thrust in embracing digital transformation.

Also known as Asalus Corporation, Intellicare tapped local cloud pioneer IPC (IP Converge Data Services, Inc.) to elevate its IT systems. Through IPC, Intellicare subscribed to Google’s G Suite, an integrated productivity suite made for communication, storage, and collaboration in the workplace.

“As we continued to grow and expand our client base, we started to receive hundreds of emails every day, coming from within and from our clients in different sites nationwide. Sustaining this growth wouldn’t be possible without adapting a digital mindset and the assistance of IPC,” said Arnie Dantis, Intellicare’s Vice President – Operations & Information Technology.

G Suite is not only about email. The package is inclusive of various workplace productivity tools namely: video and voice conferencing, chat messaging, 30GB of file and email storage, unlimited online storage for standard quality photos and documents, sheets and slides created using the native apps, basic website development and hosting, calendars and notes, all with the capability to share and collaborate online, anytime, anywhere, on any device.

According to Dave de Leon, IPC Chief Operating Officer, Intellicare’s choice of employing G Suite was a sound and necessary decision that is required in most enterprises today. “With Intellicare’s fast-growing client base, they needed a software that can keep up with their business by encouraging collaboration and productivity. With G Suite, they now have a stable, reliable, and highly mobile work email, collaborative desktop tools, and easy to use chat and video communications. By embracing digital, Intellicare is in a better position to support their clientele.”

By having access to emails, important work files, and chat and video software on the go, IPC explained that companies that shift from traditional email to G Suite can expect significant improvements in overall team collaboration and productivity.

“One main issue that we had before was the capital expenditure needed to upgrade our old system. Because G Suite is all in the cloud, we no longer have to worry about physical infrastructure. Since email is a vital part of our technical ecosystem, we at Intellicare cite the mobility factor as the top solution that alleviated us from all the headaches,” added Dantis.

To further empower Filipino enterprises and organizations, IPC launched its #DiscoverDigital campaign in May, consisting of various activities including seminars in business centers across Metro Manila to encourage them to think out of the box and make the digital pivot towards operational efficiency, profitability, and business success.

To find out how your company can ride the digital wave and to register for IPC’s #DiscoverDigital events, visit www.ipc.ph/discoverdigital and follow IPC on Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter.

Guardians of the Visayan Sea Convened

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Governors and mayors from the Visayas committed to protect and restore the Visayan Sea, one of the richest fishing grounds in the Philippines, from illegal commercial and destructive fishing.

Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) Director Eduardo Gongona signed the covenant of commitment and cooperation for the protection and conservation of the Visayan Sea, with Negros Occidental Governor Alfredo Marañon Jr., Iloilo Governor Arthur Defensor Sr. and Cebu Governor Hilario Davide III represented by the Provincial Environment and Management Office (PEMO) head, Baltazar Tribunalo Jr.

“Our goal is to be food sufficient, and later on, to be a food exporting country. We have to protect and develop our marine resources, especially for food security, to feed millions of people. This is a challenge, but we can do it. If we do our job together, with strong partnership with local government units, we can achieve more,” Gongona said during the governor’s meeting in Sicogon Island in Carles, Iloilo last 22 July.

Bounded by the provinces of Iloilo, Negros Occidental, Cebu and Masbate, the Visayan Sea is one of the country’s richest fishing grounds, hosting a variety of high-value species such as tuna, herring, mackerel, blue swimming crab and sardines. However, scientists reported a steady decline in seafood supply from the 1980s onwards – due mostly to the prevalence of blast fishing, plus the encroachment of trawls, purse seines and ring nets in municipal waters.

Fortinet Launches Global Threat Intelligence Service

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FortiGuard Threat Intelligence Service Arms CISOs with Actionable and Prioritized Threat Intelligence Enabling a Quick and Proactive Response to Targeted Attacks

Fortinet, the global leader in high-performance cybersecurity solutions, today announced a new threat intelligence service that arms Cybersecurity leaders with cyber situational awareness highlighting the latest threat trends and cyber risks facing their organizations. Fortinet’s FortiGuard Threat Intelligence Service (TIS) enables CISOs to stay ahead of the global threat landscape and proactively defend their enterprises against rapidly evolving threats.

• FortiGuard TIS is a cloud-based threat intelligence platform that provides threat metrics and activity trends, enabling CISOs to instantly understand what is happening across the global threat landscape.
• FortiGuard TIS leverages Fortinet’s FortiGuard Labs leading threat intelligence research. FortiGuard Labs consists of more than 200 expert researchers analyzing data collected from more than three million sensors around the globe.

Global and Industry Threat Intelligence at a CISO’s Fingertips

A recent Forrester survey of 342 security leaders found that the CISOs’ largest cybersecurity challenge is adapting to “the rapidly evolving nature of cyber threats.” The report recommends that CISOs gather good threat intelligence that provides insight into attacker methods and indicators of compromise, noting that 78% of CISOs that have adopted a threat intelligence platform haven’t experienced a breach. It’s clear that CISOs who properly leverage threat intelligence combined with a technology-driven security strategy are better prepared to successfully defend their organizations.

FortiGuard TIS is specifically designed to provide the threat intelligence needed for CISOs to stay on top of the latest threat trends so they can effectively communicate cybersecurity risks to the C-Suite and board while also enabling more efficient management of Security Operations to maximize resources and proactively defend against trending threats.

• Global threat landscape activity is prioritized so that CISOs can instantly understand which type of cyber threat is on the rise. This easy to understand data can be communicated to the wider organization and also enables security leaders to more effectively task their security operations teams.   
• Kill Chain reporting provides additional details on the unique and specific threat trends currently impacting their industry and the globe. Security leaders can see the most active applications, intrusion prevention signatures, malware and botnets on an industry-by-industry basis and easily compare these trends within their industry, by company size, by geographic location and with the overall landscape.
• CISOs can drill down further into specific threat details to identify its activity trends, prevalence and ranking. Integration with the FortiGuard Encyclopedia provides enhanced threat descriptions that includes details of the origin, behaviors and remediation steps.
• Individual application vulnerabilities and malware can also feature additional notes created by FortiGuard Labs threat researchers that provide timely insights into campaign-specific or emerging threats. Expanded commentary is often featured in periodic Fortinet blogs, quarterly FortiGuard Threat Landscape Reports, and weekly FortiGuard Threat Intelligence Briefs.

Availability

Fortinet’s FortiGuard Threat Intelligence Service is available as an open beta today. Please visit https://tis.fortiguard.com/signup to learn more.

“Given the maturity and breadth of our sensor network, Fortinet is uniquely positioned to provide accurate threat intelligence telemetry across a diverse and broad range of sources across the globe. FortiGuard Labs ingests over 50 billion events daily, and now with the FortiGuard Threat Intelligence Service we are able to deliver those same extensive threat insights to our customers and the security community at large.” - John Maddison, Senior Vice President of Products and Solutions at Fortinet

Hontiveros to Push for Package of Health and Women Bills in Senate’s 2nd Regular Session

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To build on the success of the passage of her three maiden bills, upon the opening of Congress, Akbayan Senator Risa Hontiveros vowed to push for a new set of legislative measures aimed at addressing key health and women’s concerns.


“Strengthened Anti-Hospital Detention Law"

As a follow up to the successful passage of her strengthened Anti-Hospital Deposit Bill, Hontiveros is set to file a bill to enhance Republic Act 9439 otherwise known as the Anti-Hospital Detention Law. The current law prohibits health facilities from detaining patients who have fully or partially recovered due to non-payment in full or in part of hospital bills. However, Hontiveros said that there is a need to strengthen its implementation as there are numerous documented violations of the said measure.

"Ang hospital ay lugar ng gamutan, hindi kulungan," Hontiveros asserted.

“Bibong BHW Bill”

The Senator, who is the Vice-Chairperson of the Senate Committee on Health, will also push for the passage of Senate Bill 214 or the Bibong BHW Act of 2016. The measure aims to create a training program for all Barangay Health Workers (BHW) to ensure that their skills in primary health care remain up to date. The Bill also proposes that all BHW’s be entitled to a monthly allowance with additional incentives covered under the Magna Carta for Health Workers, including such benefits as PAG-IBIG, GSIS and PhilHealth coverage.

To improve government support for the nutrition of infants in their first 1000 days of life, Hontiveros will also push for the passage of Senate Bill No. 1145 or the Healthy Bulilit Act. She said that various health experts have identified a child’s first 1,000 days as a “golden window” for development, with effects ranging from the potential to prevent stunted growth and the opportunity to improve cognitive development.



Bills on women’s rights and equality

Meanwhile, Hontiveros emphasized two proposed bills in the area of women’s rights and gender equality.

The Safe Streets and Public Spaces Act, or Senate Bill No. 1326, penalizes gender-based harassment in public spaces. This pertains specifically to wolf-whistling, cat-calling leering, homophobic and transphobic slurs, and persistent requests for a woman’s name and contact details. On the other hand, the Anti-Discrimination Bill (ADB) criminalizes discrimination against members of the Lesbian, Gay, Bi-Sexual and Trans-Gender (LGBT) community, specifically the restriction of access to public health services, employment and education on the basis of ones gender and Sexual Orientation and Gender Orientation or SOGIE.

"Despite the challenges presented by the political conjuncture, we will sustain the momentum of pursuing reforms in the health, women and gender struggles," Hontiveros ended.

In the Senate’s First Regular Session, Hontiveros successfully pushed for the passage of the Strengthened Anti-Hospital Deposit Law, 120-day Expanded Maternity Leave Bill and the Mental Health Act.

Beko PH Urges Filipinos to Go Green When Doing Their Laundry

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The call to conserve water and energy has never been more imperative than today. With the effects of global warming and climate change now more pronounced than ever before, there is a need to be mindful of the way we spend our resources. This not only extends to the way we use our water resources but also the way we consume electricity.


Be wise energy users.

As part of Beko’s green initiatives, Beko Philippines encourages Filipinos to become wise energy users by contemplating on their laundry routine. Beko understands that doing the laundry also requires a significant amount of electricity.

According to the Department of Energy (DOE), the household sector is the second major user of electricity. In fact,laundry accounts 29 percent of other household electricity usage based on the latest available Household Energy Consumption Survey (HECS) by the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA).

“Beko believes that we must take into account how much energy is consumed even on our laundry. As we envision a greener laundry routine, the company has been initiating outstanding contributions toward the protection of the environment through energy efficiency and innovating eco-friendly washing machines,” said Dyeun Zapanta, Beko Philippines Sales and Marketing Head.

Beko suggests that households follow regular laundry days and avoid running the washing machine for only a few pieces of items.



Invest on energy-efficient washing machines.

Beko Philippines underlines that by taking steps to reduce energy consumption, one could contribute to a cleaner and greener world. For instance, investing on energy-efficient washers and dryers significantly cuts your electric bills.

Recently, the Manila Electric Company (Meralco) tested the energy efficiency of certain Beko washing machines in line with its Orange Tags campaign. The Meralco Orange Tags are easy-to-understand labels that indicate estimated energy consumption in kilowatt-hours (kWh) and estimated cost per hour to inform consumers on how much electricity a household product consumes.

Meralco tested some Beko’s washing machines in three trials. Items tested ranged from front loaders, top loaders and dryers in different sizes and capacities. The said survey revealed that the washing machines are all energy efficient. The results of the test are as follows:

Beko Top Load Fully Automatic Washing Machine – Meralco estimated that the average cost per wash of Beko’s three top-loads amounts to only a peso per hour of washing cycle.

Specifically, for a 7-kg capacity washing machine, every wash amounts to only PhP0.96 per hour of washing with 0.09 energy consumption and 94 watts for power usage.

Meanwhile, for 9-kg capacity top load, Meralco calculated that the cost per wash cycle amounts to PhP1.14 for almost an hour of washing with 0.11 energy consumption and 97 watts. On the other hand, for 12kg top load, they assessed that the cost per wash amounts to PhP1.37 again for almost an hour with 0.13 energy consumption and 109 watts.

Beko Frontload Fully Automatic Washing Machine – For a 7-kg and 9-kg capacity, the estimated cost per wash both costs 9 pesos per almost four hours of washing with 0.88 and 0.84 energy consumption, respectively.

On the other hand, for 10.5-kg frontload, they measured that every wash costs 15 pesos for a full load, full cycle with duration of nearly four hours with 1.47 energy consumption and 380 watts for power usage.

Beko Dryers – For Beko’s 7-kg dryer, the estimated cost per drying cycle amounts to six pesos per half an hour with 0.63 energy consumption and 1,217 watts.

“Our products are meant to not only improve how people live but also improve how we impact our environment. “Choosing an energy efficient washing machine can do more for the environment and at the same time, reduce the cost of their water and electricity bills. That is why we are bringing the efficiency of our washing machines as the Official Partner of the Everyday to help Filipino consumer save energy,” added Zapanta.


Beko Ph on its second year

Beko Philippines continues to innovate products that can make a difference in the lives of Filipinos. With their strong emphasis and commitment toward raising awareness on energy consumption and innovating energy-efficient washing machines, they encourage Filipinos to take part towards preserving their environment by taking into consideration their energy consumption.

Strengthening its local presence as it approaches its third year in the Philippines, leading European home appliance brand Beko further penetrates the Filipino market. Since 2015, Beko Philippines already doubled its distribution in the country. The company has also tripled its sales through its enhanced and domineering product line that continuously meets the need of the Filipino market.

To know more about Beko and Beko Philippines, like the Beko Philippines fan page (@BekoPH) or visit their website atwww.beko.ph

APAC IT Leaders Should Cultivate Situational Awareness to Thwart Cyber Threats

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Fortinet, a global leader in high-performance cyber security solutions, today advised IT leaders in Asia Pacific to hone their situational awareness skills in order to better defend their organizations against cyber threats.

Human beings are continually looking for knowledge or information to improve the situations they are in. If we live in a crowded city, for example, we want to know which routes are best to avoid getting stuck in traffic. When we enter a restaurant or cinema, we look for the exits. And when a suspicious looking person enters the room, part of our mind automatically keeps track of him. This behavior is known as situational awareness, and it is second nature to most of us.

“When people use IT, however, this behaviour surprisingly doesn’t carry over. They click on dubious links without a second thought, open files they don’t recognize, and connect to wireless networks they are unfamiliar with,” said Jeff Castillo, Fortinet Assistant Regional Director for Southeast Asia & Hong Kong, Country Manager Philippines. “If people could become more situationally aware in their handling of computing devices, they − and the organizations they work for − would be victimized by cyber threats much less often.”

Situation awareness in enterprise IT environments start with understanding the organization’s business priorities, risks and threats. IT leaders must be able to frame the issues they are dealing with within short and long-term business objectives, have clear line-of-sight across the organization and technologies, and be able to establish policy and governance for everyone who touches the firm’s data. 

Sony Channel Joins the Dance Craze with the Latest Dance Competition on Television “Dirty Dancing: Living the Dream”

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New reality show premieres August 9, Weeknights at 7pm

Join a bevy of dance hopefuls as they try to strut their way to stardom in the newest dance sensation Dirty Dancing: Living the Dream, which debuts on Sony Channel this August.

Thirty young women experience the time of their lives as they team up with professional dance instructors and taught various dance routines. Each episode features the couples performing their specific routines with the weakest performers being eliminated.

The women - coming from various backgrounds ranging from housewives to secretaries to bartenders – vie for 18 spots in the competition with the hope of being chosen to dance with their guy in the finale and win the opportunity of a lifetime – being crowned the first ever Dirty Dancing Champions!

The series is hosted by star choreographer Cris Judd.

Dirty Dancing: Living the Dream premieres August 9 and airs weeknights at 7pm, first and exclusive on Sony Channel.

Sony Channel is available on SKYCable Channel 35, Destiny Cable Channel 62, Cignal Channel 120, G Sat Channel 48, and Cablelink Channel 39.

NBA 3X Philippines 2017 Presented by Axa Attracts Provincial Participants, Hails New Champs

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NBA 3X Philippines 2017 presented by AXA reached an all-time high in popularity this year with increased participation from Metro Manila and provincial teams joining the various age group categories of the seven-year old 3-on-3 basketball tournament.

Fifty-six out of 176 participating teams survived the qualifiers held at Don Bosco Makati on July 15-16. The quarterfinals, semifinals and finals matches of the Boys Under-13, Under-16, and Under-18, Girls Under-18, Men’s Open and Women’s Open were staged at the SM Mall of Asia Music Hall on July 22-23.

New champions were hailed in the avidly watched Men’s Open division that was won by Team Rocan from Valenzuela, Bulacan. Christian Chua, Mark Fernandez, Elmer de la Cruz, and Philip Torres outhustled Team 459 Legaspi from Colegio San Juan de Letran in a closely fought game. EGS Elite, four-peat champions of the NBA 3X Philippines Men’s Open division since 2013, was unable to follow through with their plans for a fifth championship after failing to show up in the quarterfinals.

The Women’s Open Division was won by National University (NU)-A with Trixie Antiquiera, Ria Joy Nabalan, Samantha Harada, and Rhena Itesi, besting their teammates on the opposing NU-B squad. Both teams play for the NU women’s basketball team that has dominated UAAP women’s basketball for three consecutive seasons. “It was a challenge to have to face our teammates who are familiar with our style of play, but we are proud to earn this victory,” said Antiquiera.

Bachour in Manila: World Renowned Pastry Chef, Antonio Bachour, to Hold Master Classes in the Philippines

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The Gastronomie Group, Events & Culinary Co. is bringing Chef Bachour to Manila for a comprehensive Master Class Series from September 4 to 10, 2017 at the Greenfield District Showroom, the official event venue for Bachour in Manila 2017.

From Miami, Chef Antonio Bachour is taking his modern French patisserie expertise to Manila! Chef Bachour is a world renowned, multi-awarded pastry chef whose passion and skillfulness in his craft has garnered a large following all across the globe. In a 7-day Master Class Series, Chef Bachour will be instructing hands-on classes and a demo class for professional chefs, culinary students, seasoned bakers, and other members of the food industry. The famous chef has also authored three successful pastry books: Bachour, Bachour Simply Beautiful, and Bachour Chocolate. A Book Signing will be held for keen readers and fans on September 10 from 5:00 pm to 6:00 pm. An online registration for the Book Signing will be launched at The Gastronomie Group website. His latest book, Bachour Chocolate is also available for sale at the Atelier (online shop) of The Gastronomie Group. 

Bachour in Manila 2017 will commence with a three-day Hands-On Master Class on Buffet Style Petits Gâteaux, Tarts, Verrines, and more on September 4-6, 2017 (Monday-Wednesday) from 8:00 am to 4:00 pm. Followed by another three-day Hands-On Master Class on Plated Desserts on September 7-9, 2017 (Thursday-Saturday) from 8:00 am to 4:00 pm. Lastly, Chef Bachour will share an eight-hour Demo Class on Entremets, Tarts, Chocolates, and more on September 10, 2017 (Sunday) from 8:00 am - 4:00 pm. All events are to be held at Bachour in Manila 2017 official event venue — Greenfield District Showroom, Shaw Blvd. cor. Mayflower Street, Greenfield District, Mandaluyong City (across Edsa Shangri-La Hotel).