Running for others

2009 has begun and I am almost sure everyone is doing two things as the new year opened. First, everyone from the biggest business to the smallest sari-sari store owner, to every student, teacher, and worker, is gearing up for the challenges of 2009. And secondly, everyone is trying to shed off the extra pounds they accumulated over the long holiday break.

In the world of health and fitness, it looks like long distance running is now the craze. Running coaches are in demand, runs and races are held weekly all over the country, and the number of participants is growing every day. While a world wide recession is ongoing, the sale of running shoes according to industry insiders bucked the trend and shows a growing spike month on month. And they expect the growth to escalate in 2009.

More than a year ago, I wrote about the group “Runners for Others” (R4O). A group of friends who have decided to do long distance runs to help others. I found the group unique since their objectives are not focused on breaking records but helping others. They are also made up of some of the top business executives in the country - people you would think are focused just on growing their business and making money.

R4O member Butch Jimenez of PLDT has just told me that the group is preparing to run the Hongkong marathon Run for Others on Feb. 8. Some will do the full marathon, while others will run the half and 10k. The group is now trying to gather pledges to raise support for indigent children that may need medical attention either individually or through organizations and institutions like the UP PGH children’s ward.

The mechanics are simple. You can pledge any amount and the condition is that every member of the team must cross the finish line. If they don’t all finish, they don’t have to give what they pledged. Giving up is not an option.

I asked Butch if he thought everyone could cross the finish line given how difficult it is to run long distance specially in Hong Kong which is very hilly. He said that he is confident everyone will since they are doing it for needy children.

Many of the runners in team R4O are people I encounter in my job as a business journalist. I have always admired them for their accomplishments in the world of business. Now I admire them even more for their heart, both in giving back to others, and being able to accomplish one of the most gruelling tests of endurance in the world of sports.

Members of Team R4O tentatively set to run in Hong Kong include Butch, Lance Gokongwei, Manny Minana, Chris Po, Jajo Quintos, Nina Herrera-Huang, Ana Constantino, Jayjay and Ana De Ocampo, Jael and Cookie Wenceslao, Fernando and Kit Kat Zobel De Ayala, Jun Jun Calma, Ige Lopez, Maui Sugay, Mike Bangayan, and Matthew Westfall. If you are interested in supporting their cause, you can email [email protected]

Team R4O is starting the year right. Not only will they be able to help others, they will all be losing weight at the same time.

Action man

Last week, an international team of human and animal health experts arrived in Manila to conduct an epidemiological study on the reemergence of the Ebola Reston virus in local swine. The 10-day investigation now being conducted by a team from the World Health Organization (WHO), Office International des Epizooties (OIE) and the Food and Agriculture (FAO) was in response to the call by Agriculture Secretary Arthur Yap for these experts to help the Philippines craft a national surveillance plan as well as a diagnostics and disease prevention program to beat this virus for good.

Yap, along with Health Secretary Francisco Duque III, had welcomed the arrival of the experts, saying he was looking “forward to a fruitful partnership between the DA-BAI and the international institutions represented by these experts in getting a better understanding of this new strain of the Reston virus and then implementing measures to eradicate this infection for good.”

The Ebola Reston virus was detected late last year in a few hogs in Bulacan and Pangasinan. The DA and DOH had won praise from international experts and local industry leaders last December for what Dr. Soe Nyunt-U, the WHO country representative in the Philippines, had described as the Arroyo government’s “appropriate action” in dealing with this animal health risk.

A potential health crisis was nipped in the bud last owing to the swift and decisive measures taken by the DA in response to the reemergence of this virus, which first surfaced in the world in 1989 in the Ferlite monkey farm in Calamba, Laguna.

Yap had ordered the quarantine of the farms in Pangasinan and Bulacan where the virus was detected; directed the Bureau of Animal Industry (BAI) to closely monitor the movement or hogs and pork meat by setting up “hog checkpoints;” and instructed the National Meat Inspection Service to check for the presence of any contaminated pork meat in the market and slaughterhouses and to be strict in the issuance of health certifications on animal shipments. As an extra precautionary measure, Yap also ordered the temporary suspension of the country’s first ever pork export to Singapore until such time that the Reston problem has been fully checked.

On his instructions, the BAI also invited international health organizations such as the World Health Organization (WHO), Office International des Epizooties (OIE) and the Food and Agriculture (FAO) to conduct a risk assessment on the presence of the Reston virus in the country in line with the government policy of transparency on this issue and the concerted efforts to engage global authorities in containing this infection.

The BAI had also written FAO to request for assistance in testing 10,000 head of domestic swine for the possible presence of the virus; conducting an investigation to determine the source of the infection; and setting up diagnostic, prevention and communications plans leading to the eradication of the disease.

Yap’s swift and timely actions has earned the praise of the local media and the international community as well. 

 Leaders of the livestock industry likewise commended Yap for his expert handling of the concerns that had plagued the subsector. In a pre-Christmas executive session between Yap and over 50 industry leaders,  Rene Eleria, who is president of the National Hog Federation Inc.,  said the livestock  sector “recognizes that you (Yap) did well in terms of disease control this year and we hope that you will continue to enhance what you are doing well in 2009.”

The young DA chief’s approach in engaging all stakeholders concerned to help deal with the Reston case has further bolstered a growing perception that Yap the “action  man” and “consensus builder” is truly one of the most hardworking members of the Arroyo Cabinet who gets things done—and done quickly.

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