MVP hospital group going international

Prospects seem healthy for the Philippine healthcare sector especially with medical tourism being hailed as the next sunrise industry. Aside from well-trained doctors and medical staff with excellent English communication skills, the competitive cost of healthcare services are very attractive compared to neighboring countries like Japan, South Korea, Australia.  No surprise therefore that one of the largest asset management firms, the Government of Singapore Investment Corp. (GIC), has entered into a strategic partnership with the hospital unit of the MVP-led Metro Pacific Investments Corp.

GIC is investing P3.7 billion for an initial 14.4 percent stake in a wholly owned MPIC subsidiary in charge of hospital investments, while another P6.5 billion has been advanced through an exchangeable bond convertible to a 25.5 percent stake in the hospital subsidiary for a total of P10.2 billion.  No doubt GIC’s entry will boost MPIC’s position as the biggest hospital group in the country with Makati Med, Asian Hospital, Cardinal Santos, Lourdes Hospital and major hospitals in Davao, Bacolod and Tarlac acquired by the group of Manny Pangilinan in recent years.

MVP noted the excellent potential offered by the Philippines as far as the healthcare industry is concerned, with priorities focused on turning the hospitals into health centers of excellence with state-of-the-art facilities and equipment, well-trained medical staff and of course, best management practices to make sure the establishment remains financially healthy.

Apparently, the MVP group finds the pace for public private partnership projects a bit too slow, which is why investments are being explored in other countries like Australia and New Zealand. A couple of days ago, the First Pacific group where MVP sits as CEO successfully acquired Goldman Fielder, Australia’s biggest publicly listed food manufacturer. First Pacific partnered with Singapore-based Wilmar International to acquire Goldman Fielder through an all-cash offer of $1.179 billion (at A$0.65 per share) which the company initially rejected.

The food manufacturer has seen its profits dwindling in the last few years, and no amount of cost cutting has been able to stem the financial hemorrhage. Analysts saw the initial buyout offer as the best the company will get, but executives turned it down. Undaunted, the group of MVP and Wilmar submitted a revised proposal offering A$0.70 per share plus a one cent dividend, but gave the board a deadline of 8 p.m. on the same day the offer was made.

Major shareholders decided to accept the sweetened offer, admitting that they were afraid First Pacific and Wilmar would walk away – leaving them with nothing to look forward to except impending job cuts and more profit downgrades. The new acquisition will place MVP and the First Pacific group in an excellent position to create a leading agriculture and food staples company in the Asia Pacific region.

‘House of Cards’ TV series: Washington realpolitik

Many Filipinos will soon get to watch the popular American TV series “House of Cards” when it premieres on SkyCable next week. The award-winning series that premiered in February last year (initially aired over Netflix streaming) has developed a huge following, with viewers engrossed and captivated by the story of manipulative political operators in Washington. Apparently, tales of political scheming and ruthless manipulations to achieve power are winning ingredients for a hit series.

Even the Chinese are riveted by House of Cards, lapping up every episode and seeing it as an opportunity to get “educated” in the way politics is presumably conducted in America, not to mention that some episodes touched on the ticklish aspects of US-China relations. Chinese Ambassador to the US Cui Tiankai though had commented that the series “embodies some of the characteristics and corruption that is present in American politics” – drawing the ire of some viewers who pointed out that unlike China, the US government is not into the habit of “hiding what’s been happening.” 

Apparently, President Barack Obama and Bill Clinton are also huge fans, although Obama joked that the only thing unrealistic about the series is that government is “not as ruthlessly efficient” because one can’t pass bills as quickly as portrayed on TV due to Congressional gridlocks. We’re told there’s now a growing clamor for the US president to appear in the show’s third season.

“Selfie generation” can influence outcome of elections

The results of the recent elections in India confirm that social media like Twitter and Facebook are the wave of the future.  Narendra Modi – India’s new prime minister-elect – targeted the so-called “selfie generation” and utilized “new media” to reach out to millions of voters by putting up his own Twitter account. India has a population of 1.2 billion, with an estimated 205 million Internet users whose numbers can reach 370 million by 2015 according to Bloomberg. 

Last year, Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) launched a digital campaign known as “Mission 272+” – the number of seats BJP needed to win the majority in parliament. The campaign encouraged new voters estimated at 150 million to register themselves in a database through their mobile phones. India is said to be the third largest market for smartphones with 70 percent of the population owning a cellphone, and Modi’s popularity surged when his campaign started connecting with the “selfie generation.” Pretty soon, he became the most followed Indian politician on Facebook. Sadly, the Gandhi-led Congress party did not engage social media. Though it had a website, the design was found unexciting, with a black and white photo of Mahatma Gandhi greeting visitors.

BJP won 282 parliament seats out of 543, while the Gandhis’ Congress Party only managed 44. This early, BJP is targeting children and teenagers below 15, utilizing YouTube and other video hosting platforms (such as Vimeo and Flickr) to broadcast party slogans and influence the youth’s political perceptions.

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