BIZ BUZZ: Trouble at Wack Wack?

Something seems afoot at the uber upscale Wack Wack Golf and Country Club nowadays or, at least, in its environs.

Biz Buzz heard that at least one homeowner in the equally upscale Wack Wack Village is incredibly upset after his view of the sprawling golf course in Mandaluyong City was suddenly marred by the installation of a barbed wire fence on his perimeter wall adjacent to the fairway.

“FYI, this ‘beautiful barbed wire [fence] was built and fully funded by Wack Wack Golf … done while we were away,” the golf course-facing protest sign put up by the homeowner read. The sign added that the management of the course also planted 12 trees along the perimeter wall which, once fully grown, would completely block their view of the well manicured greens.

This house is said to belong to Maurice and Gail Laude. If that surname sounds familiar, that’s because the former is the brother-in-law of YouTube celebrity Small Laude.

Parties aligned wit the club’s current board of directors say this move was part of safety measures implemented by the management to protect homeowners from errant golf balls.

At the same time, it is also a security issue, they say, as there is a need to deter potential burglars from jumping over low walls to get into these residences.

Everybody is watching to see whether these measures would be implemented on all the homes on the course’s perimeter.

But is there a bigger problem at the club that goes beyond this issue? Watch this space, folks.

—Daxim L. Lucas

Tussle in the tourism industry

With international travel on the rebound, MICE events are making a big comeback, much to the relief of the tourism sector.

Of course, MICE refers to meetings, incentive tours, conferences and exhibits and it remains a major industry driver.

So, it was puzzling to industry insiders when they learned the Tourism Promotions Board of the Department of Tourism (DOT) supposedly rejected the request of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) to help organize its Alliance for Financial Inclusion’s Global Policy Forum 2023.

The prestigious event, led by BSP Deputy Governor Bernadette Romulo-Puyat, the former secretary of the DOT, will he hosting some 800 delegates in September this year.

We’re told the BSP instead asked the help of the Tourism Congress of the Philippines.

Thankfully, the important event is pushing through and will help assert the BSP’s important role in pushing for financial inclusion and regulation.

Meanwhile, industry insiders were left wondering whether the DOT’s refusal to help had more to do with Puyat’s policies, specifically pandemic travel restrictions in provinces such as Cebu, while she was department secretary. After all, the current Tourism chief is, of course, from Cebu.

—Miguel R. Camus

Spotlight on Phinma Group, Peta

The Philippine Educational Theater Association (Peta) resumed live performances and began the celebration of its emerald year last month when it staged “Walang Aray”, a genre-defying adaptation of Severino Reyes’ zarzuela “Walang Sugat”.

That the recipient of the Ramon Magsaysay Award was able to go back to the stage after a long, three-year intermission forced by the COVID-19 pandemic was due in no small part to the Phinma Group, one of the copresentors of the musical headlined by Star Magic’s KD Estrada and Alexa Ilacad.

Peta, after all, holds a special place in the heart of Phinma Group chair and CEO Ramon del Rosario Jr., who also chaired the Peta Board for about a decade.

As del Rosario said, Phinma and Peta “share a common vision for a better Philippines and the same drive and perseverance to work towards it.”

“I believe Peta is a lot like our Phinma Group, with both of us seeking to contribute to nation building, our businesses and Peta’s play presentations always looking for ways to make lives better,” said del Rosario, adding that “exciting days are ahead” with Peta opening its theater doors again after years of uncertainty during the pandemic.

The first set of 12 well-reviewed shows are over and the next run of “Walang Aray” is scheduled for April 14 to May 14. So head on to the theater and take up del Rosario’s invitation to watch the play and “ponder how you can make lives better and how you can stand up and love, or as Peta says, ‘tumindig at umibig.’

—Tina Arceo-Dumlao INQ

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