Category: Local Government

95 SOCE non-filers running again, despite ‘perpetual disqualification’

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By Jake Crisologo

THEY WISH to lead the nation but refuse to comply even with the most basic rules: Report to the Commission on Elections how much money they raised and spent in their campaign for public office, one month after election day. In fact, they have mocked the rules not just once but twice, and for some, thrice, in elections past.

At least 873 candidates who ran for national and local posts from the 2007 to the 2013 elections should be banned for life from running again, according to the Commission on Elections’ Campaign Finance Office (CFO). This is because these candidates had not filed their Statement of Contributions and Expenditures (SOCE) in the last three elections.

PCIJ. Non-filers by region. may 2016

Indeed, while they may contest the ruling of the CFO, for all intents and purposes, their names remain enrolled in the Comelec’s list of candidates for “perpetual disqualification.” Win or lose, the Comelec has ruled that all candidates and parties must file SOCEs.

Yet at least 95 of these seem truly incorrigible, and are running again in the May 2016 elections. They include one candidate for senator, eight for district representative, eight for governor, at least 33 for mayor, 11 for vice mayor, and 34 for councilor of various cities and towns.

Resolution No. 9991, the Omnibus Rules on Campaign Finance that Comelec issued on Oct. 2, 2015, states that on its own, the CFO “may file petitions to disqualify” a candidate, including for failure to submit his or her SOCE “in relation to at least two elections.”

In that situation, Rule 13 of Resolution No. 9991, spells out the penalty as being “perpetual disqualification to hold public office.”

Commissioner Christian Robert S. Lim, head of Comelec’s CFO, concedes, though, that the delinquents may still turn to “due process” as their final recourse and contest or appeal his office’s decision.

Mostly local bets

Comelec data show that by position, the list of delinquent candidates is dominated by candidates to local positions. They make up 75 percent of the total.

At least 680 have sought seats as councilor in various Sangguniang Bayan or Municipal Council (530 candidates), Sangguniang Panglungsod or City Council (150 candidates), and Sangguniang Panlalawigan or Provincial Council (120 candidates).

Another 123 had run for vice mayor, 116 for mayor, 11 for vice governor, 19 for governor, and seven for membership in the regional assembly of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao or ARMM.

In addition, 41 of these delinquent candidates had aspired to become members of the House of Representatives, and one, to be senator.

The total number of candidates by position at 1,100 is higher than actual number of individuals because some of the same candidates had run for different positions across election years.

A fourth from ARMM

Interestingly, by regional spread, one in four of the delinquent candidates, or 212, came from ARMM. But defiance of election law seems to be an epidemic across all the regions of the Philippines.

Other regions with delinquent candidates include: CALABARZON, 94 candidates; Davao Region, 90; Cordillera Administrative Region, 81; Central Luzon, 60; SOCCSKSARGEN, 60; National Capital Region, 59; Western Visayas, 36; Ilocos Region, 28; Cagayan Valley, 33; Central Visayas, 25; MIMAROPA, 24; Eastern Visayas, 21; Northern Mindanao, 19; Zamboanga Peninsula, 17; Bicol Region,16; and Caraga, seven.

(The delinquents from the relatively new Negros Island Region were included in the counts from Western and Central Visayas or Negros Occidental and Oriental. These two now make up Negros Island Region, which was formed only on May 19, 2015 by virtue of Executive Order No. 183.)

The count per region and per province of 882 candidates is closer to the calculated number of individuals at 873, which was derived from subtracting the number of repeated names for candidates who had run in two or more localities.

A big majority of these delinquent candidates had run as independents, or without any political party affiliation.

From parties of presidents

An interesting picture emerges for a subgroup of 131 delinquent candidates who had run for district representative, governor, and vice governor from the 2007 to the 2013 elections, including 18 candidates running again in the May 2016 elections.

In this subgroup, 87 are independents but a significant number had run as candidates of the national political parties led by the incumbent and former presidents of the country:

* Eleven of the delinquents in this subgroup ran as candidates of the Liberal Party (LP) of President Benigno S. Aquino III;

• Eight from the Pwersa ng Masang Pilipino (PMP) of ousted President Joseph Estrada that is part of the opposition United Nationalist Alliance;

• Six from the Kabalikat ng Malayang Pilipino (KAMPI) of former President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo;

• Seven from the Kilusang Bagong Lipunan (KBL) party of deposed President Ferdinand Marcos; and

• Five from the Lakas-Christian Muslim Democrats (Lakas-CMD) of former President Fidel Ramos.

PCIJ. Non-filers of SOCE, By Party, may 2016

The more prominent names in the list of delinquents include erstwhile rebel leader Nur Misuari who ran for governor of Sulu province in 2007 and 2010, and again for regional governor of ARMM in 2013. In all three instances, Misuari ran as an independent candidate. And in all three instances, too, he did not file his election spending report.

Yet another is Macario Asistio Jr., who ran for vice mayor in 2010, and mayor in 2013, of Caloocan City, and on both occasions failed to submit his SOCE to the Comelec.

Still a third is Ismael ‘Chuck’ Mathay III, sole son of former long-time Quezon City Mayor Ismael Mathay Jr. Chuck Mathay ran and won as representative of Quezon City’s 2nd District in 2007 and 2010 and, like Asistio, failed to file his SOCE both times.

Running once more

From the roster of delinquent candidates come a few who have again filed their candidacies for various posts in the May 2016 elections. They include

• Kadra Asana Masihul, KBL, Sulu, who ran for provincial governor in 2013, now running for Board Member in the 1st District of Sulu;
• Albert Hans Corvera Palacios, Independent, 4th District Quezon City, who is running for the same position; he ran under the PMP banner in 2013;
• Pablo Camabrejan Villabar, KBL, Davao del Sur, running again for first district representative as an independent as in the 2013 elections;
• Amin Guintawan Sindao, independent, North Cotabato, running again for third district representative;
• Telesforo Magramo Gaan, independent candidate for governor of Romblon;
• Delfina Dorman Bicatulo, independent candidate for governor of Bukidnon;
• Ahmadjan Marogong Abdulcarim, independent candidate for governor of Lanao Del Sur;
• Justo III Hernandez Orros, independent candidate for vice governor of La Union; and
• Morsalim Alap-Polao Binnortominoray, Liberal Party candidate for vice governor of Lanao Del Sur, but independent candidate in 2013.

The lone candidate for senator, Greco Belgica, had challenged the inclusion of his name in the Comelec’s disqualification list when it first came out in December 2015. In a text message, he told the Philippine Daily Inquirer: “I filed and signed my SOCE in 2007 and 2013 so I cannot be charged for not filing my SOCE. Someone must be manipulating the records. The question is who?”

Belgica, Manila city councilor from 2004 to 2007, was a lead petitioner in a case that was filed before the Supreme Court in 2013 questioning the constitutionality of the pork-barrel system.

Weak parties

According to PulseAsia Research President Ronald Holmes, who is also a political science professor at De La Salle University, the presence of a big majority of “independent” candidates in the list of delinquents illustrates the weakness of the political party system in the country.

Notably, too, many of the candidates on the list have shifted from one to another political party across election years. This is consistent, Holmes says, with the culture of “turncoatism” or the relative ease by which politicians affiliate with different, but usually the dominant, political parties, during regime shifts.

“We don’t have substantive political parties in this country,” says Holmes. “They are basically absent. The large number of independents is not surprising and may simply mean that one does not have to be affiliated to run, and maybe even win, during the elections.”

When one considers the dynamics between politicians once they are in office, however, a different picture emerges.

At a recent public forum, Ateneo School of Government Dean Ronald Mendoza tackled political turncoatism by the candidates in regard to their quest for resources during election campaigns.

“On the local level, for example, it would be easier to engage the national government if you are allied with the current dominant party,” Mendoza said. “This can be in terms of resources, like budgets, and approvals for policies and contracts you want in your jurisdiction.”

PCIJ. Non-filers of SOCE, By Position, may 2016

No party discipline

This is not necessarily incongruous to Holmes’s assessment of the weakness of political parties during elections. Holmes even expresses little optimism when asked if political parties should or could be held responsible for policing their members who did not file their SOCEs.

“The parties themselves do not have that discipline,” he says. “Even at the national level, the dominating party is not necessarily strong or unified.”

For instance, after the May 2010 elections, “the Liberal Party was dominant but they couldn’t agree on who among them was supposed to be Senate President,” Holmes points out. “So someone not from the party took the position.”

Juan Ponce Enrile of the Nacionalista Party was elected Senate President in 2010 by a fragile coalition of political parties in the Upper Chamber.

Even the past presidents have had a history of party switching, Holmes says, adding that, “independence” is primarily a legal label than an individuality of thought or principles. Being an independent candidate, he says, simply means one was not formally nominated or affiliated with a party.

In Holmes’s book, it is highly possible that a majority of “independent” candidates on the list of delinquents may have had informal connections with the established political parties.

“They may,” he says. “This is largely determined by the dynamics on the ground and how they engage each other to achieve their goals. Take Grace Poe, for example. She’s currently independent but she may be ‘adopted’ by present political parties in the long run.”

Clans drive politics

But could, or should, delinquent candidates be allowed to run for office again?

Holmes voices concern that other than Comelec, political clans continue to drive the choice of candidates and the results of elections in many parts of the country.

“There are many powerful families and they can take control of representation mechanisms in their territories,” he observes. “The head of a political clan can determine what happens more than any external body, the Commission on Elections included.”

In areas where virulent clans with private armies rule, election officials may be hard put enforcing Comelec’s decision to disqualify delinquent candidates.

Still and all, in October 2015, when Comelec first came out with its initial list of delinquent candidates, CFO head Commissioner Lim had declared the poll body’s commitment to uphold the rule of law.

He told reporters that it was the first time Comelec had spelled out rules on the filing of petitions for disqualification of candidates who had failed to submit election spending reports to the poll body.

But because the rules provide the delinquents the opportunity to file appeals, Comelec can only collect and impose fines on such candidates until the CFO’s decision becomes final and executory.

Schedule of fines

On June 12, 2012, in Resolution No. 9476, Comelec said that for failure to file SOCEs for the first time, candidates, depending on the elective post they had run for, must pay an administrative fine ranging from P1,000 to P30,000, and for the second offense, from P2,000 to P60,000.

That could mean a tidy sum for Comelec – that is, if it does go after the delinquents to collect the fines and the candidates actually pay up.

For the 2013 elections alone, Comelec Chairman Andres Bautista had told reporters that 4,677 or about one in 10 of the candidates who ran for elective positions (net of the party-list groups) had failed to file their SOCEs, as of the deadline of July 2013. Bautista’s estimate is that the poll body could raise up to P52 million in fines from these delinquents.

But until the Comelec’s decision to perpetually bar these candidates from running for public office, becomes final and executory, there is only one, final, true judge and jury on these cases: the Filipino voter. — PCIJ, April 2016
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For details, check out PCIJ’s Money Politics Online

Pork, parties, Binay, breaking bad

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AS THINGS stand, it looks like the ruling coalition led by the Liberal Party (LP) of President Benigno S. Aquino III has more members implicated in the pork-barrel scandal than parties belonging to the opposition.

Of the 114 legislators who were allegedly involved in anomalous pork projects in 2007 to 2009, 38 now belong to the administration coalition.

About 33 of the 114 belong to the opposition parties while the rest are either already dead or have unknown political affiliations.

But then again, there is Vice President Jejomar C. Binay, who had also cornered big slices of pork. For three years in a row, 2011, 2012, and 2013, Binay had received a hefty P200-million slice of pork annually.

He had vowed to spend it on his project lists: scholarship for indigent students, medical assistance for the poor, and the construction of 200 senior citizen centers in as many towns and cities of the country.

Whether he spent it well is a question that state auditors have raised. In its annual agency reports on the Office of the Vice President (OVP) for 2012 and 2013, the Commission on Audit (COA) found reason to conclude that Binay’s pork had turned bad.

Read Part 2 of PCIJ’s report, “Pork a la Gloria, Pork a la PNoy”:

* Solons in pork scam list: 38 LP, 33 UNA, 11 dead
* Binay’s pork: Breaking bad

To be sure, with each election in this country, the political landscape shifts, twists, and turns. As such, classifying the political leanings of the legislators who may or may not have benefited from pork-barrel projects is tricky.

Binay, who won as the opposition candidate for vice president, had wished for pork in a letter to President Benigno S. Aquino III in late 2010.

Because they were friends once before, Binay’s wish was granted, albeit in a manner that broke conventions. Aquino’s allies in Congress, including then Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile had lobbied to give BInay pork, while Senator Franklin Drilon, Liberal Party vice chairman and then Senate Committee on Finance chair, had endorsed it.

In Enrile’s mind, as the nation’s “No. 2 Man,” Binay “deserves to get his pork” because “he represents government… the sovereign people… the Republic of the Philippines next to the President.”

“In other words,” Enrile said, “we are not a monarchy system but he’s in effect in the position of a crown prince.”

But not everyone could be a “crown prince” like Binay. Many others thus decided to just jump ship to the LP camp, the political party in power after 2010.

Of the 114 names revealed in both the records of the whistleblowers and government agencies, only seven lawmakers had been originally allied with LP.

Many of the others had supported the Lakas political party of then President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo. Upon Aquino’s assumption to office in 2010, however, at least six of these pro-Arroyo lawmakers became LP converts.

More members of the Lakas-led administration coalition under Arroyo that later became the opposition under Aquino – 25 in all – shifted alliance in 2013. – PCIJ, August 2015

PH paradox: Undernourished children, overnourished adults

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UNDERNOURISHED children, overnourished adults — that is “the double burden of malnutrition” that afflicts the Philippines.

A paradox, indeed, in a highly agricultural economy, which should be producing food in abundance. To this day, however, many Filipinos do not have access to proper nutrition and adequate food supply, government data show.

In fact, according to Dr. Cecilia S.Acuin of the Food and Nutrition Research Institute (FNRI), the Philippines confronts a “double burden of malnutrition” – under-nutrition among children and overnutrition among adults.

She cited sad figures.

* Among Filipinos aged 0 to 5, one of every five (20 percent) is underweight; one of every three (30 percent) is under-height or does not meet the ideal height for their age; and 8 percent are “wasted” or underweight for their height.

* Among Filipinos aged 20 and above, one of every three (31 PERCENT) is overweight or obese; one of every five (22 percent) “have high waist circumference”; and three of every five (62 percent) have high waist-hip ratio.

The over-nutrition of Filipino adults, she said, has resulted from a bad combination of “increasing physical inactivity” and “poor diet” — the low intake of fruits and vegetables and the increasing intake of “energy-dense food.”

Acuin, at a forum organized last week by Greenpeace-Southeast Asia on the theme “Is there is a Food Emergency in the Philippines?” said that this double burden of malnutrition has led to micronutrient deficiencies.

These include anemia, which remains “a problem in vulnerable population groups” like children and pregnant and lactating women, as well as iodine-deficiency disorders, which are “a problem in pockets of the country.” Across the nation though, anemia and iodine deficiency incidence is declining, she said.

According to Acuin, household food intake patterns in the country have started to change for the worse.

While the typical Filipino meal is still rice, fish, and vegetables, the FNRI’s surveys have shown “an increasing trend for meat and poultry” but also “a declining trend for fruits and vegetables.” Filipinos, she said, are eating less and less fruits and vegetables on account of price, supply, and availability concerns.

Filipinos are eating “more energy-dense food”, Acuin added, but still the consumption of recommended energy is low for 30 percent of households, and even among the wealthy who can afford energy-dense food, “only 40 percent are meeting energy requirements.”

So is there a food emergency situation in the country? Acuin’s summary observations are gloomy. She said: “Food intakes, in general, are inadequate” and an “inequitable distribution of food resources” persists.

“Ang mga kundisyon na ito ay hindi bago, matagal na ito… Kung pagbabasehan yung Millennium Development Goals, wala pagbabago mula noong mga year 2000 ang underweight prevalence natin in children. Samantala, yung overweight at obesity sa adults ay tumataas,” Acuin said. [These conditions are not new. If we base it on the Millennium Development Goals, underweight prevalence among children has been steady since 2000. Meanwhile, overweight and obesity in adults are on the rise.]

Bernadette Balamban, Poverty and Human Development Statistics chief of the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) offered insights on how malnutrition takes root and derives from poverty.

As of the first half of 2014, PSA showed that a family of five needed at least P6,125 a month on average to meet basic food needs, and at least P8,778 a month on average to meet both basic food and non-food needs. However, still eight of every 100 families earn less than the minimum income to afford even basic food needs.

Meanwhile, Neden Amiel Sarne, Agricultural Commodities Division chief of the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA), said achieving food security “requires investments in strategic programs and policies and putting in place appropriate policies.”

The Philippines’ food policy, he said, “should aim to achieve inclusive access to food while generating long-term sources of productivity and income growth.”

According to Sarne, access and price are the strategic issues. “What matters more to food security is access to food at the household level and at reasonably competitive process.”

Sarne listed “suggested strategies beyond 2016″ to address food security and malnutrition concerns, including:

* “Investments in agriculture and fisheries programs that promote area-based development (in contrast to commodity-based development);

* “Prioritize investments that can increase and sustain productivity;

* “Investments in well-functioning irrigation systems and well-functioning Infrastructure;

* “Investments to increase resilience to climate-risk disasters, as well as to pests and diseases;

* “Promote further productivity enhancement along the entire supply chain, from production to marketing; and

* “Promote greater private sector investments support for agriculture through agri-business schemes such as contract-growing, joint-venture agreements, etc.”

About 150 students, civil society organization leaders, and government representatives attended the forum organized by Greenpeace-Southeast Asia at the UP Bahay ng Alumni in Diliman last week. PCIJ Executive Director Malou Mangahas served as moderator. – With reporting by Vino Lucero, PCIJ, August 2015

PH paradox: Undernourished children, overnourished adults

mcmangahas Leave a comment

UNDERNOURISHED children, overnourished adults — that is “the double burden of malnutrition” that afflicts the Philippines.

A paradox, indeed, in a highly agricultural economy, which should be producing food in abundance. To this day, however, many Filipinos do not have access to proper nutrition and adequate food supply, government data show.

In fact, according to Dr. Cecilia S.Acuin of the Food and Nutrition Research Institute (FNRI), the Philippines confronts a “double burden of malnutrition” – under-nutrition among children and overnutrition among adults.

She cited sad figures.

* Among Filipinos aged 0 to 5, one of every five (20 percent) is underweight; one of every three (30 percent) is under-height or does not meet the ideal height for their age; and 8 percent are “wasted” or underweight for their height.

* Among Filipinos aged 20 and above, one of every three (31 PERCENT) is overweight or obese; one of every five (22 percent) “have high waist circumference”; and three of every five (62 percent) have high waist-hip ratio.

The over-nutrition of Filipino adults, she said, has resulted from a bad combination of “increasing physical inactivity” and “poor diet” — the low intake of fruits and vegetables and the increasing intake of “energy-dense food.”

Acuin, at a forum organized last week by Greenpeace-Southeast Asia on the theme “Is there is a Food Emergency in the Philippines?” said that this double burden of malnutrition has led to micronutrient deficiencies.

These include anemia, which remains “a problem in vulnerable population groups” like children and pregnant and lactating women, as well as iodine-deficiency disorders, which are “a problem in pockets of the country.” Across the nation though, anemia and iodine deficiency incidence is declining, she said.

According to Acuin, household food intake patterns in the country have started to change for the worse.

While the typical Filipino meal is still rice, fish, and vegetables, the FNRI’s surveys have shown “an increasing trend for meat and poultry” but also “a declining trend for fruits and vegetables.” Filipinos, she said, are eating less and less fruits and vegetables on account of price, supply, and availability concerns.

Filipinos are eating “more energy-dense food”, Acuin added, but still the consumption of recommended energy is low for 30 percent of households, and even among the wealthy who can afford energy-dense food, “only 40 percent are meeting energy requirements.”

So is there a food emergency situation in the country? Acuin’s summary observations are gloomy. She said: “Food intakes, in general, are inadequate” and an “inequitable distribution of food resources” persists.

“Ang mga kundisyon na ito ay hindi bago, matagal na ito… Kung pagbabasehan yung Millennium Development Goals, wala pagbabago mula noong mga year 2000 ang underweight prevalence natin in children. Samantala, yung overweight at obesity sa adults ay tumataas,” Acuin said. [These conditions are not new. If we base it on the Millennium Development Goals, underweight prevalence among children has been steady since 2000. Meanwhile, overweight and obesity in adults are on the rise.]

Bernadette Balamban, Poverty and Human Development Statistics chief of the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) offered insights on how malnutrition takes root and derives from poverty.

As of the first half of 2014, PSA showed that a family of five needed at least P6,125 a month on average to meet basic food needs, and at least P8,778 a month on average to meet both basic food and non-food needs. However, still eight of every 100 families earn less than the minimum income to afford even basic food needs.

Meanwhile, Neden Amiel Sarne, Agricultural Commodities Division chief of the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA), said achieving food security “requires investments in strategic programs and policies and putting in place appropriate policies.”

The Philippines’ food policy, he said, “should aim to achieve inclusive access to food while generating long-term sources of productivity and income growth.”

According to Sarne, access and price are the strategic issues. “What matters more to food security is access to food at the household level and at reasonably competitive process.”

Sarne listed “suggested strategies beyond 2016″ to address food security and malnutrition concerns, including:

* “Investments in agriculture and fisheries programs that promote area-based development (in contrast to commodity-based development);

* “Prioritize investments that can increase and sustain productivity;

* “Investments in well-functioning irrigation systems and well-functioning Infrastructure;

* “Investments to increase resilience to climate-risk disasters, as well as to pests and diseases;

* “Promote further productivity enhancement along the entire supply chain, from production to marketing; and

* “Promote greater private sector investments support for agriculture through agri-business schemes such as contract-growing, joint-venture agreements, etc.”

About 150 students, civil society organization leaders, and government representatives attended the forum organized by Greenpeace-Southeast Asia at the UP Bahay ng Alumni in Diliman last week. PCIJ Executive Director Malou Mangahas served as moderator. – With reporting by Vino Lucero, PCIJ, August 2015

All set for Data Journalism PH15!

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IT’S ALL SYSTEMS go for the launch on Monday, July 13, of Data Journalism PH 2015, a project of the Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism (PCIJ) and the Open Knowledge Foundation (OKF), with support from the World Bank-Philippines.

The event will be held at the HIVE Hotel and Convention Place in Quezon City with a panel of distinguished speakers — Commissioner Heidi Mendoza of the Commission on Audit, Budget Undersecretary Richard ‘Bon’ Moya, Kai Kasiser and Rogier van den Brink of the World Bank.

Mendoza will discuss the ground-breaking work of the COA, in partnership with civil society organizations, on their Citizen Participatory Audit (CPA) project.

Moya, who coordinates the government’s Open Data Task Force, will focus on the story of Open Data and Open Government initiatives in the Philippines.

Kiser will tackle the topic, “Open Roads: Transparency and Accountability in the Roads Sector.”

After the project launch, 34 journalists and bloggers from 11 media agencies will participate in a three-day training seminar to be conducted by OKF and PCIJ.

Through an open search for teams of content providers and techies with data-story proposals, the following participants were selected:

1. From BlogWatch:

* Noemi Lardizabal-Dado, known as @MomBlogger on social media, believes in making a difference in the lives of her children by advocating social change for social good. She is the editor of Blog Watch Citizen Media and the features editor of thePhilippine Online Chronicles, a platform for alternative viewpoints and a synthesizer of ideas.

* Jane Uymatiao is a citizen advocate and resource speaker on digital citizenship and social media crisis communication. She co-founded Blog Watch, a citizen advocacy group, and actively engages different stakeholders via social media on a wide range of economic, social and political issues.

* Carlos Maningat is a Manila-based labor researcher. He works on data stories that cover labor, official development assistance (ODA) and financialization.

2. From Interaksyon:

* Patricia Aquino is a correspondent at InterAksyon.com. She is on general assignment.

* Edilvan Falcon is a senior web developer at InterAksyon.com. He is working on his master’s degree in Computer Science at the University of the Philippines Diliman.

* Orlando Garcia is the Information Technology editor at InterAksyon.com. He has been a journalist for over 20 years, having started at Jingle Magazine.

3. From The Philippine Star:

* Alexis B. Romero has been covering national security for The Philippine star since 2010. He started his journalism career in 2006 as a reporter for BusinessWorld, where he covered finance, the Office of the President, the energy sector, House of Representatives and defense.

* Helen M. Flores is a reporter of The Philippine STAR covering politics and science issues. Aside from her regular beat, she also writes stories from survey data of the Social Weather Stations and Pulse Asia. Flores graduated from Centro Escolar University-Manila with a bachelor’s degree in Mass Communication major in journalism. She completed her master’s degree in Communication at the University of Santo Tomas.

* Jan Victor R. Mateo, 24, is the education beat reporter of the Philippine STAR. He is a graduate student of development communication, and has an undergraduate speech communication from the University of the Philippines. He is a participant of the 2010 Study of the US Institutes on New Media Journalism held at the Southern Illinois University-Carbondale.

4. From the Calbayog Post:

* Rommel L. Rutor is a multi-platform Journalist based in Samar, works for Print, Radio, TV and Online, he is on his 20th year in the profession this year. A prime mover of local issues in his own right, he desires to provide more in-depth stories to the public, and be a catalyst of change in Samar.

* Jennifer Sumagang – Allegado graduated with a degree in Bachelor of Arts major in Communication Arts from the University of the East, Manila. Has been in the media work for more than 12 years now, correspondent of Calbayogpost.com and a radio broadcaster in the City of Calbayog, Samar.

* Jose Gerwin Babon is a media practitioner and communication instructor at the same time.

5. From inquirer.net of the Philippine Daily Inquirer:

* Frances Mangosing is a multimedia reporter for INQUIRER.net for four years. She mostly covers defense, disasters and weather.
Nestor Corrales is a multimedia reporter for INQUIRER.net. He writes breaking news and covers urban transportation, politics, among others.

* Dan Paurom is the one-quarter of INQUIRER.net’s social media team. He consumes reports based on big data almost daily.

6. From The Financial Times-Manila:

* Hannah Dormido, 25, is a senior production editor for the Financial Times. She specialises on visuals and is currently a QGIS sorceress in training.

7. From BusinessWorld:

* Christine Joyce S. Castañeda is a researcher from BusinessWorld Publishing Corp. since July 2014. She finished her Bachelor’s degree in Economics from the University of the Philippines – Los Baños in April 2014.

* Kia B. Obang, earned her Bachelor’s Degree in Journalism from the University of the East in 2013. She has been with BusinessWorld Publishing Corp. since June 2013, starting off as a Research Assistant before being promoted to Researcher in December 2013.

* Leo Jaymar G. Uy graduated from the University of the Philippines School of Economics in 2013 and is a researcher from BusinessWorld Publishing Corp. since January 2014. He has a strong interest in history – particularly with the economic, social and political histories of East Asia, United States and the Philippines.

8. From Forbes Philippines:

* Lala Rimando is a business journalist with expertise in political economy and understands the dynamics of new and traditional media. She headed the business and other news units of investigative media publication Newsbreak, the online news site of Philippine media giant, ABS-CBN, and social media news network Rappler.com before joining Forbes Media’s Philippine edition as managing editor.

* Paul John Caña is a writer for Forbes Philippines and a contributor for various online and print publications. A Journalism graduate of the University of the Philippines Diliman, he is a former newsdesk operations staff of GMA Network Inc. and was also the managing editor of a leading lifestyle magazine.

* Lorenzo Kyle Subido is the data journalist of Forbes Philippines, crunching numbers and scouring data bases online and off for the research needs of the magazine’s visual and text stories. He has a Creative Writing degree from the University of the Philippines Diliman and is keen to hone both his right- and left-brain skills.

9. From Bloomberg TV-Philippines:

* Regina Hing co-anchors the daily morning shows First Up and Starting Gate on Bloomberg TV Philippines. The shows aim to connect the dots for a broad audience–between politics and the economy, between macro and micro, between the movement of billions of dollars in the capital markets to the buying power of OFW remittances. Before joining Bloomberg TV Philippines, Regina was a Senior Producer/Evening Editor on the Business Desk at Channel NewsAsia in Singapore, helping oversee the channel’s coverage of business and financial markets globally. She holds a Masters in Business and Economic Reporting at New York University.

* Katria Alampay is a writer and segment producer for Bloomberg TV Philippines. She graduated from the University of the Philippines Diliman with a B.A. in Journalism and previously worked for almost two years at the Korean Embassy in Manila.

* Alay Magno is a segment producer for Bloomberg TV Philippines’ evening news show In The Loop and weekly talk show on Startups, Igniters. Alay obtained his Masters degree in Finance from the University of the Philippines, where he also studied Computer Engineering before working in the tech industry.

10. From ABS-CBN:

* Marie Mamawal is the currently the Associate Dean of the Journalism Academy, ABS-CBN University. Currently a professor/lecturer at the Communication Department of the College of Liberal Arts, De La Salle University-Taft. Has been an Executive Producer for ABS-CBN Current Affairs’ investigative programs since 1988. Among them “Magandang Gabi Bayan” and “Assignment”.

* Gigi Grande, Multi-platform journalist for ABS-CBN’s Investigative and Special Reports Group, concurrently news presenter for ANC (the ABS-CBN News Channel.) Since 1997, covered a variety of beats including the Defense department, Commission on Elections, the Catholic Church and Department of Foreign Affairs. Produced documentaries for “”The Correspondents”” between 2003-2006. Proficient in English and Filipino, knowledge of Spanish.

* Rowena Paraan is a former Research Director of PCIJ and currently handling Bayan Mo IPatrol Mo, a citizen journalism/crowd sourcing arm of ABS-CBN. A journalist of more than 25 years.

11. From Rappler:

* Michael Joseph Bueza, or Mike, is a researcher/reporter for Rappler. He geeks out on books, maps, and pro wrestling.

* Gwen de la Cruz is a researcher from Rappler’s online disaster platform, Project Agos. She loves to write inspiring stories.

* Gerard Raymond Lim is a researcher for Rappler’s #PHVote. He hopes to teach philosophy someday.

A three-person team from PCIJ that will assist in the seminar completes the list of participants.

The seminar will be followed by months of mentoring for the participants by OKF and PCIJ so they could continue research and development work on their data-story projects. A public presentation of the participants’ completed projects will be held toward the close of 2015. – PCIJ, July 2015