Contract sweetener

Today will be the last weekly Monetary Board meeting attended by MB member Fe Barin. Ms. Barin has been clearing her desk at the Bangko Sentral and should be ready to report for work as the new chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission starting Sept. 1.

So far, there is no word on whom the Palace will appoint to replace Ms. Barin as one of five MB representatives from the private sector. Government is represented in the MB by Bangko Sentral Governor Rafael Buenaventura, who sits as chairman, and by a Cabinet member.

During the first three years of President Macapagal-Arroyo’s term, it was Trade Secretary Manuel Roxas II (or his alternate, Trade Undersecretary Nelly Favis-Villafuerte). These days, that second government slot has been assigned to Finance Secretary Juanita Amatong.

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Did you know 1: Newly-elected Philippine Stock Exchange president Francis Lim has the standard three-year management contract, of course.

But to make the compensation package more enticing for this 48-year-old father with kids in school (and befitting a former managing partner of the ACCRA law office), the PSE board chaired by Alicia Morales-Arroyo has decided to include performance bonus and escalating salary provisions in Mr. Lim’s contract.

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Did you know 2: The Medical City president Alfredo Bengzon has finally gotten the go signal from Manila Electric Co. chairman and chief executive officer Manuel Lopez to annex the Joseph Cotton Hospital effective next week.

Joseph Cotton, which caters exclusively to the medical needs of former and current employees of Meralco, will become Medical City’s research and development arm.

As everybody knows, both hospitals are located inside the Meralco compound.

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Even for a man used to eating kimchi, the Philippine experience of Asiana Airlines regional manager Hyunil Kim with siling labuyo has been, er, tearful.

When not trying out Filipino dishes, Mr. Kim has been busy pushing the Philippines not only to Korean honeymooners (who have been the life-savers of many Manila hotels) but to golfers and businessmen as well. The standard tour package for a three-day, four-night stay in Manila is the equivalent of $400 in Korean won per person.

Honeymooners, of course, do not join tours. Besides, their trip to the Philippines is normally a wedding gift from their families.

There are currently only four airlines which fly Manila-Seoul as a final destination. These are Philippine Airlines, Cebu Pacific, Korea Air, and Asiana.

Of the four, Asiana claims to have a 25-percent share of this particular route, in part because it has made it a point to have at least two Filipina flight attendants on board each plane that flies the Manila-Seoul route. At least one Filipina flight attendant is also part of the Seoul-US flight crew.