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College in Davao responds to false thesis grade claim in Juris Doctor program, confirms individual is not enrolled

Xianna Bengo

2024-07-30T10:47:55+00:00

Featured POP! is INQUIRER.net’s premier pop culture channel, delivering the latest news in the realm of pop culture, internet culture, social issues, and everything fun, weird, and wired. It is also home to POP! Sessions and POP! Hangout, OG online entertainment programs in the Philippines (streaming since 2015). As the go-to destination for all things ‘in the now’, POP! features and curates the best relevant content for its young audience. It is also a strong advocate of fairness and truth in storytelling. POP! is operated by INQUIRER.net’s award-winning native advertising team, BrandRoom. MRP Building, Mola Corner Pasong Tirad Streets, Brgy La Paz, Makati City Someone suspiciously received a high grade for their thesis in the Juris Doctor Program at St. Mary’s College of Tagum. This is despite the fact that the program is non-thesis. The Juris Doctor Department of the college disproved a social media post made by a person who claimed to be attending the institution, when in fact, she is not enrolled in the program. In a statement released by the department’s student council Facebook page, they wrote, “Recently, the Juris Doctor Department of St. Mary’s College of Tagum Inc. received information regarding a social media post authored by an individual identified as ‘Miecha Angeli M. Bisnar’ purporting to possess an approved thesis with a grade of 1.05 from our institution. It is imperative to clarify to the public that St. Mary’s College of Tagum, Inc. exclusively provides a Juris Doctor Non-Thesis Program, thereby rendering the asserted approval sheet as a fraudulent instrument. Further, the abovementioned individual is not enrolled under the Juris Doctor Program of this institution.” “We wish to officially convey that legal measures are being prepared to address the defamatory actions and misrepresentation propagated by the parties responsible for this deceptive publication. The college remains steadfast in upholding the veracity and authenticity of academic achievements and qualifications conferred upon our students, thereby repudiating any misrepresentation that threatens the integrity of our educational programs,” their statement continued. Their statement ended ensuring everyone that they are taking necessary actions needed and wrote, “Our commitment to preserve the sanctity of educational credentials and uphold the standards of academic excellence resonates in our resolve to address any malicious claims and spurious representations that may undermine the credibility of our institution. We wholeheartedly affirm our dedication to observing due diligence in safeguarding the reputation and qualifications associated with the Juris Doctor Program at St. Mary’s College of Tagum, fortified by the tenets of legal rectitude and ethical conduct.” Facebook users took to the comments to share their thoughts about the said issue. It seems that some have yet to learn from past issues. This case bears a striking resemblance to the situation involving Kathleen Joy Poblete, who falsely claimed to have graduated summa cum laude from the Political Science Program at UP Manila. While it is okay to share our achievements online, propagating false claims is a dangerous act as it can blur out the truth. Let this be a reminder to be vigilant and make counter checks to ensure that the claims that are being stated are indeed true. As of this writing, Bisnar hasn’t aired her side of the story yet. Other POP! stories you might like: [Commentary] Bacalso’s misgendering issue doesn’t grant a ‘free pass’ for transphobic remarks [Commentary] Do academic grades still reflect true competency in today’s education system? ‘Marketing Gone Wrong’: Viral ‘Gil Tulog’ stunt proves that just because you can, doesn’t mean you should Content creators can learn a thing or two from TPC about not subscribing to ‘poverty porn’ in charitable work Iconic 90s show ‘Art Attack’ reportedly set to return after 17 years Subscribe to our daily newsletter By providing an email address. I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy. For marketing/advertising inquiries, email us at [email protected] Copyright © 2021 POP! All rights reserved. Registration on or use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy.

Inquirer

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This 21-year-old UP Manila student is the next Filipino powerlifter to watch out for

No author found

2024-07-01T05:55:17+00:00

Powerlifters and weightlifters never fail to be impressive. The body is pretty capable of many different feats, but you’ll always think a person moving more than their body weight is awesome. There’s really no need to explain amazing acts of strength—either you make the lift or you don’t. Which is why it’s a little baffling that lifting sports aren’t more popular in the Philippines. Sure, Hidilyn Diaz gets hype whenever she wins big, especially when she won gold in the Tokyo Olympics, but these really aren’t in the national consciousness even after we’ve proven that this is a doable, winnable sport. Perhaps one of the ways to fix this problem is to continuously introduce young phenoms, fresh faces we can all root for. Here’s one: national powerlifting team member and college student Maritoni Neri. A 21-year-old occupational therapy student at the University of the Philippines Manila and a student of competitive lifter and coach Regie Ramirez, Neri is so fresh that she’s only been competing on big stages for a little over a year but she’s already racked up medals and set her own records in her division. These achievements and performances are even more impressive when you factor in how Neri didn’t even like lifting weights and powerlifting itself all that much. “I got into powerlifting because my sister and handler, Mikee Neri, is a former member of the national team. She kept on telling me to give the sport a try,” Neri shares. “She even told me it would be nice if we could compete internationally together. When I first tried it, I thought it was boring. Come 2022, I volunteered at Raw Nats (the National Classic Powerlifting Championships) and enjoyed watching the competition. That’s when I decided that I wanted to see myself on the platform as well. I joined my first meet in May last year. “Actually, I was introduced to the sport in 2019, iba pa yung coach ko. Ginagawa ko yung pagbubuhat for physical activity. I just really didn’t like it kaya hindi ko siya sineryoso,” she continues. “Kahit anong aya sa akin ng coach ko na lumaban, ayaw ko talaga. On and off ako sa training tapos nag-pandemic pa, so it really took time for the sport to grow on me. Nung 2022, I made the decision to get serious about it and join Raw Nats 2023 because I was slowly getting to appreciate the sport, and I felt like it was time. Parang kailangan ko nang tumigil sa paglalaro and try to achieve something, especially since my sister always tells me it would be nice kung masusulit ko yung junior years ko.” A post shared by Regie Ramirez | Powerlifting Coach (@rigidregimen) That’s on top of silver medals and national records for equipped squat, bench, deadlift, and total. The impressive outing has qualified her to compete at this year’s World Junior Equipped Powerlifting Championships in Malta this coming August. The mark of a naturally talented competitor is when they’re able to pull off a big game without really overthinking it, which is what happened with Neri in Hong Kong. “I was super nervous because it was my first international meet, and I’m going against world champions who’ve been competing for years,” she says. “Nanginginig talaga ako. But my coach and my teammates kept on telling me to only lift as I do in training, so a lot of my confidence really came from their support. After my squat opener, I felt more relaxed and knew that I’ll be able to perform well.” And for Neri’s upcoming performance at Worlds, her focus is a lot more streamlined as they have a clear game plan. “My coach and my PT are working really hard to optimize my lifting performance and get me closer to hitting the 500kg mark,” she shares. “As for individual lifts, I’m aiming to squat 200kg. Malapit na. All I have to do is deliver. I’m really hoping that I get a spot on the podium for the total medal. Looking at the nominations, it’s possible.” With the goal of becoming a world champion, getting to this point after only a little over a year is huge. Fortunately, Neri is very confident and laser-focused on getting it done, and it’s entirely possible that by next month, she’ll have checked this box off her list. It’s now up to us to pay attention. “You are in control of what you can achieve,” she says. “I believe that whether you stay or drift away from your desired path depends a lot on the decisions and actions that you do.” Subscribe to our daily newsletter By providing an email address. I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy.

Inquirer

https://lifestyle.inquirer.net/506503/maritoni-neri-filipino-powerlifter/?fbclid=IwZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAAR0YbLyXERM_v5XsJbcNsOX5mGYY3BnLJXPDm_wlal6RAVeowqiMHV8FM28_aem_z51y388ACz3eIsIPL6uU8g

Proposed 2025 budget ‘anti-poor, militaristic’ – Castro

Gabriel Pabico Lalu

Wed, 31 Jul 2024 16:52:06 PST

House Deputy Minority Leader France Castro (Photo from House of Representative FB Page) House Deputy Minority Leader France Castro (Photo from House of Representative FB Page) MANILA, Philippines — ACT Teachers party-list Rep. France Castro believes the P6.352 trillion proposed budget for 2025 is “anti-poor” as it supposedly fails to address the concerns and needs of Filipinos. In a statement on Wednesday, Castro said the 2025 National Expenditures Program (NEP) submitted to Congress is also “militaristic” even with the budget for the defense sector and confidential expenses going down. “This proposed budget fails to address the root causes of poverty and inequality in our country. We demand a people-centered budget that prioritizes social services, supports workers’ rights, and promotes genuine agrarian reform and national industrialization,” she said. “This militaristic approach, purportedly to address developments in the West Philippine Sea (WPS), is absurd.  We should demilitarize the WPS and not further militarize it. The Marcos government also earmarked P5.9 billion for intelligence expenses, and confidential expenses are at P4.36 billion, slightly higher than this year’s P4.111 billion,” she added. Castro also said that funds allocated to the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-Elcac) should be reduced, given that appropriations to the education sector still do not conform to the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (Unesco) standards. “The red-tagging [NTF-ELCAC] has P7.8 billion for its proposed budget in 2025. Such allocations divert crucial funds from social services and genuine economic development,” she said. “While the Marcos Jr. administration boasts of allocating 15.4 percent of the budget to education, this is still far below the Unesco-recommended 20 percent of the national budget or 6 percent of the GDP for education,” she added. “The P977.6 billion for education barely scratches the surface of the sector’s needs, especially considering the learning crisis exacerbated by the pandemic.” Budget Secretary Amenah Pangandaman on Monday said the proposed Confidential and Intelligence Funds (CIF) for 2025 went down by 16 percent, or from P12.37 billion in the actual 2024 budget to P10.29 billion in the 2025 NEP. READ: DBM: Confidential, intel funds for 2025 down 16% The intelligence fund of the Department of Transportation — the mother agency of the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) — remained at P400 million. On the other hand, the intelligence fund allocation of the Department of National Defense — another agency crucial to securing the country’s territory — decreased from P2.811 billion in 2024 to P1.761 billion in the proposed budget for 2025. READ: House to fund WPS efforts amid intel budget cut: Measure isn’t cast in stone On Tuesday, House leaders particularly Majority Floor Leader Manuel Jose Dalipe and Senior Deputy Speaker Aurelio Gonzales Jr. said the chamber will support efforts to secure the WPS, even with lower CIF allocation. According to Dalipe, nothing has been set in stone yet, noting that the House can make adjustments if needed. The NEP was submitted to Congress on Monday, seven days after President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s  State of the Nation Address (Sona). Subscribe to our daily newsletter By providing an email address. I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy. Under the 1987 Constitution, the budget should be transmitted to Congress within 30 days after the Sona. For comprehensive coverage, in-depth analysis, visit our special page for West Philippine Sea updates. Stay informed with articles, videos, and expert opinions. Subscribe to our daily newsletter By providing an email address. I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy.

Inquirer

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INQToday: Trillanes sues Rep. Duterte, VP’s husband, ex-BOC head for drug smuggling

INQUIRER.net

Wed, 31 Jul 2024 18:15:42 PST

Here’s a quick roundup of today’s top stories: Trade Secretary Alfredo Pascual resigned from his post, the Palace said on Wednesday. According to the Presidential Communications Office (PCO), Pascual resigned from his post to return to the private sector. Former Senator Antonio Trillanes IV filed a drug smuggling case before the Department of Justice on Wednesday against Davao City First District Rep. Paolo “Pulong” Duterte, Atty. Mans Carpio – the husband of Vice President Sara Duterte, former Customs Commissioner Nicanor Faeldon, and several other personalities allegedly involved in the P6.4 billion shabu shipment seized in 2017. Also named respondents are Taiwanese businessman Charlie Tan, some Davao local officials, a Taiwanese businessman and a retired military official from Davao. Eight areas in Cavite were placed under a state of calamity after the oil spill from the sunken MT Terra Nova reached the province’s coastline, Governor Jonvic Remulla announced on Wednesday. “The oil spill reached the coastal areas of Cavite. Affected are the municipalities of Bacoor, Kawit, Noveleta, Rosario, Tanza, Naic, Maragondon, and Ternate. As of today, the province is declaring a STATE OF CALAMITY in these areas,” Remulla said in Filipino in a Facebook post. The United States’ provision of $500 million military aid to the Philippines shows they are “equal partners in maintaining peace, freedom of navigation, and a rules-based approach to differences,” Senate President Francis Escudero said on Wednesday. In a message to reporters, Escudero also said the military aid is “unprecedented assistance and investment” that the Philippines “has been needing.” Former President Rodrigo Duterte’s executive order allowing online gambling operators to make games available overseas was “ill-advised,” the Marcos administration’s Chief Presidential Legal Counsel Juan Ponce Enrile said on Wednesday. Enrile attended the House of Representatives’ hearing on Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators (Pogos) to accompany his daughter, Cagayan Economic Zone Authority (Ceza) Administrator Katrina Ponce Enrile, who explained that there are no Pogos within their jurisdiction. At least three or four more local chief executives from the National Capital Region, Calabarzon, and Central Luzon may be involved in the operations of illegal Philippine offshore gaming operators (Pogos) in the country, according to “raw” information received by Sen. Joel Villanueva’s office. Speaking at a Kapihan sa Senado forum on Wednesday, Villanueva emphasized that the complaints he received are still unverified. Subscribe to our daily newsletter By providing an email address. I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy. The International Criminal Court (ICC) can do whatever it wants, Senator Ronald “Bato” Dela Rosa said on Wednesday. Finally breaking his silence, the senator responded to Solicitor General Menardo Guevarra’s statement that the Philippine government could not stop the ICC’s prosecutor from interviewing suspects in the alleged crimes against humanity committed during the time of former President Rodrigo Duterte. Subscribe to our daily newsletter By providing an email address. I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy.

Inquirer

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1968011/inqtoday-trillanes-sues-rep-duterte-vps-husband-ex-boc-head-for-drug-smuggling?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=social&fbclid=IwZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAAR2qsD-LbYUb_dVOG1G6lo6jjc3bXwC1n0N1ePybWOqKg00tXCxzNW-sT-s_aem_sorb9tsFTwqsH3kghLa3Fg

My dream job disappeared when I graduated

No author found

2024-07-16T06:16:20+00:00

You might remember a more analog childhood, when the internet was spelled with a capital “I” and was a place you actually logged out of to do non-digital things in a largely offline world. Amid consoles you either plugged to TVs (do you still have a TV?) or powered with AA batteries, there were also certain dream jobs that inspired us, thanks in large part to the popular media that accompanied those good ol’ days: Magazines like W.I.T.C.H, Candy, Reader’s Digest, and National Geographic, publishing houses like VisPrint and Adarna making darn good Filipino komiks, TV Channels like MYX and Animax, and seeing our ates and kuyas visit indie music hubs like Route 196 and Today x Future, to name a few career-spos. Some of us were considered lucky to get internships in the above companies even as students: junior jocks in stations like and Monster RX, courtside reporters (hello, noona Gretchen Ho!), and guest contributors to *ahem* pubs like Scout. Many of these companies still run today but only because they’ve largely adjusted to a media and technology landscape that was (sorry for the buzzword) disrupted around the time we were finishing high school and college (looking back, “disrupted” now takes an ominous meaning, huh?). Nonetheless, we can’t be complacent, as misused technologies like AI threaten not just the existence of the above industries, especially creative fields, but the economic ecosystem as a whole. “New jobs will emerge,” optimists say, but isn’t the whole point of automation to “cut costs,” in this case human “capital”? Those of us who took business classes might remember that businesses should balance 3 Ps: people, planet, and profit, but in practice, it seems the last P is growing at the expense of the first two. And anyway, isn’t an economic system based on infinite growth in a finite planet kinda messed up? But that’s for another discussion. Here, we sat down with three young creatives with three different stories, each a glimpse into how we can thrive—and not just survive—in this economy. “It’s rare to see one story change everything, but if you’re working for a bigger picture, it’s not useless,” Melissa Luz Lopez smiles as she takes her last slice of carrot cake. It’s a few months shy of 10 years since her 2014 graduation, and the former BusinessWorld reporter and CNN broadcaster embraces her full-on titahood by holding our interview at a Mary Grace Cafe, sparkles and all. Today, she considers herself more of a professional academic, almost done with her master’s in economics at the University of the Philippines, Diliman, (UPD) where she also finished her undergrad with a Bachelor of Arts in Journalism. She hopes to publish studies that can influence public policy. In a way, it’s a full-circle moment as she was in the math club for all of her high school years. While she looked up to journalists like Jessica Soho, Mel Tiangco, and Ed Lingao (who eventually mentored her), she only considered the profession during her last year of (pre-K12) high school when her essay-writing teacher asked out loud if she was in the school paper. Back then, she was always submitting papers early as writing tests weren’t taken home but finished in the classroom. The school year was in full swing, and she couldn’t leave the math club, but when college apps rolled around, she immediately signed up for journalism courses, eventually getting into UPD. There, she found out she had much catching up to do as her course peers joined the “Palarong Pambansa equivalents of journalism” before college. She joined Tinig ng Plaridel, one of the campus papers, and became editor-in-chief in her senior year. For her internship, she worked for Vera Files and, considering herself lucky for landing a paid internship, decided that journalism really was for her. Upon graduating, she began covering politics for BusinessWorld (“My first salary was P19,000, feeling ko ang yaman-yaman ko na!”), eventually moving to CNN Philippines where she finished as a camera-facing broadcaster. It’s been a roller coaster since. She left the field in 2022, around the time of the national elections, “easily the dirtiest coverage I’ve ever done.” By then, many threats to the field were in full-swing, from armies of anonymous trolls using disinformation to sway the general public to red-tagging any journalist (or citizen, for that matter) reporting on critical information related to the administration and its allies. Long before that time, however, she was already considering jumping ship as the pay wasn’t sustainable for a breadwinner taking care of a retired, single mother, an accountant who dreamed of becoming a journalist. “I’m not after luxury,” Lopez says wistfully, “but mom deserves some ease, right?” Her resolve to leave deepened when the attacks on the profession spiked during Rodrigo Duterte’s administration from 2016 to 2022. Her mental health was taking a toll, all as she recounts that her own cousins didn’t believe what she was reporting. “You report the facts, but suddenly the facts are now weaponized [often] against you. It’s basically shooting the messenger.” She didn’t mind the trolls regularly flooding her inbox, but it stung when the shots hit close to home. Nonetheless, the opposition campaign was a spot of hope and Lopez told herself she might stay if they won. We all know how that turned out. It was all trauma, however. The light is easily what keeps us coming back. Lopez recalls one election story where she interviewed an elderly man paralyzed on the right side of his body. He had to climb the stairs backwards in his voting precinct because he didn’t make the PWD registration deadline when his stroke hit. He told Lopez that “My vote means as much as a rich person’s” as they wept. Suffice to say, Lopez is happy to contribute to journalism even as an economist and academic. She presently writes part-time for an economic quarterly in Europe and local online magazine Bilyonaryo. Since journalism stopped being her main job, she’s since found herself able to take more time and deeper dives with stories. It’ll always be a part of her, and she will always be part of it, albeit in a different capacity. Sometimes, it’s all right to move to new pastures to support old loves in a new way and from a better place. Just like Lopez, Sarah Santos also jumped ship after initially practicing as a journalist. Unlike Lopez, however, Santos, who graduated from UPD journalism in 2018, is no longer practicing as of press time. She continues to support former classmates and colleagues in the field while being an avid reader of longform and watcher of documentaries. She plans to get more subscriptions to quality journalism; understanding that the paywall bemoaned by many can actually support media practitioners and other workers in the field, from drivers to translators to graphic artists. Growing up in a province south of Metro Manila, Santos’s case was love at first sight. Her father, who loved to read, was an avid subscriber of Reader’s Digest and the Philippine Daily Inquirer. “He continued to subscribe even when the physical paper increased its prices through the years.” All of it, from the children’s drawings at the Sunday Comics to the daily homilies of Fr. Jerry Orbos to the critiques of Conrado de Quiros accompanied her formative years. It was Patricia Evangelista who stood out for her most. “I liked her brand of narrative journalism—pwede pala magsulat that way?” all as young Santos cut and saved clippings of her articles. By her junior year of high school, she was features editor of her campus paper and “like most journ’ grads, I chose my course thanks to well-intentioned advice” from her teacher, who, standing confidently “well-spoken with her pink lipstick,” the paragon of a woman Who Made It, told Santos the she had a future as a journalist. “My world deepened after graduation.” After applying for a number of media outlets, Santos was eventually accepted in the Philippine Bureau of an ASEAN-focused business news company. “I enjoyed reading the reports of different companies,” and this likely set her on the path of business communications. Eventually, she became an editor, handling a team of reporters, some of whom were her seniors. The nuances of word choices and their impact on business and policy was even more pronounced. She recalls mistakes made in managing people: Writing and reading was one skill, bringing the best out of people was another thing altogether. But she looks back humbly, without a trace of regret. Similar to Lopez, she left journalism as the take-home pay wasn’t sustainable despite increasing responsibilities, work hours, and emotional labor. Another factor was the realization that media outlets could also serve as propaganda arms of certain nations at the expense of poorer countries. It was back to square one. After drifting for a while, she decided to “get serious” and sent many applications (and faced many rejections), around 100+, to government agencies before landing in the economic cluster. Back then, the pandemic—and layoffs—were in full swing, and only the government could more or less hold on to its employees. The stability appealed to her. Today, she works as a government communicator, making policy digestible to the general public, among other tasks. She still applies many of the skills of her former trade albeit in a different setting. More importantly, there are times when she feels she’s still contributing to nation-building. Her pay now allows her to enjoy food she couldn’t before, rent out a decent condo, and send support home to her parents. She dreams of a better life for them, for a lifestyle, for trips they were not able to experience during her girlhood. Time to give back. Lopez shares that finances are no joke, acknowledging her relative privilege. Santos, who came from a humbler background and whose parents are both retired, had a calculus weighing heavier than Lopez’s. But more than personal survival, Santos notes how she also values the “predictability and quantifiability” of reporting for the government, seeing a more direct impact on the lives of people. Her idealism never left, it just manifests now from different quarters, from a more stable place. Growing up, Jill Arteche had the full support of her family behind her art practice. “I was never told that there’s no money in art,” she recalls, now a full-time artist under DF Art Agency and also a professional illustrator. She was in the campus papers of both high school and college as a graphic artist, and immediately after graduating from Ateneo de Manila University in 2017 with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in Information Design, she dove into ad agencies before becoming a full-time freelance illustrator and artist in 2019. Google Search now autofills her name on the URL tab, attaching the label “illustrator” next to it. She’s worked with brands like Decathlon, Nike, GCash, Ayala Malls, and Fete de la Musique, to name a few. She’s also done some numbers with children’s publisher Adarna. “The movie ‘13 Going On 30,’ by Mark Ruffalo, that’s the life I wanted,” she beams, and it seems she’s lived up to the dream, working sometimes from home, and sometimes from her condominium along Katipunan Avenue, which increasingly serves as a bodega for her paintings. “Admittedly, mine is a rare and privileged story,” Arteche smiles. This did not mean though she didn’t face the challenges almost all visual creatives face. For one, there’s the tightrope walk between artistic inspiration and jealousy and insecurity, brought by the double-edged sword that is social media, which connects one to community and clients while also leading to spirals of creative paralysis. “Comparison is a rabbit hole. And there was a period that I was so paralyzed by the thought that my peers, and even my idols were better than me that I didn’t work for six months. Thankfully I had some savings during that time.” How did she get out? “My dogs! But for real, I took a step back from art and taught myself to stop associating myself with my brand. And don’t take it too seriously, make spaces for play, for curiosity. Use the time spent stepping back from work to step back into your oasis, your hobbies, your advocacies, people you love.” Being a freelance creative is that after all: You are your own brand, and while this is a nauseatingly romanticized slogan, this also means you haul your own weight, pay your own taxes, are your own HR and Admin, and accept the fact that never-ending backlogs are a part of life. Admittedly, it’s not for everyone, as the structure and predictability of a corporate setting works for many a creative while also providing enough income so they can work on projects on the side, the most famous examples being poet Charles Bukowski, who worked blue collar jobs, and in the Philippines, the creators of the komiks series Trese, who worked on the project after hours. And then there’s the recent mass-adoption of AI (which is not without its flaws, even in terms of workflow and quality output). Arteche is anxious, but unfazed, echoing chef Nobu Matsuhisa in that “You can copy my style, but you can’t copy my soul.” *** In any creative field, workers find themselves in a balancing act between practical and idealistic concerns: the financials inform how we approach the emotional element of the job. All this as tools like social media and artificial intelligence can both help or harm one’s career, depending on how it’s used. That very factor, how it’s used, confirms the agency of humans in most every societal issue we face today. We’re not facing a monolith beyond our control, but the sum of human action, something which, while difficult, is more actionable than the former. The human factor: Something honed and shaped by daily action, something which no machine can replace, even if others want to insist otherwise. *Named changed to protect privacy Subscribe to our daily newsletter By providing an email address. I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy.

Inquirer

https://lifestyle.inquirer.net/510992/my-dream-job-disappeared-when-i-graduated/?fbclid=IwZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAAR06UgbazdGRPSXrji5LIrTggKAtLDe87W2_Qhh6U84fx5SyhPqjR3kyPI4_aem_ciNmIu7tIyIWPMvarMESwQ

Marcos should prioritize bill seeking to void Pogo tax law – Villanueva

Charie Abarca

Wed, 31 Jul 2024 17:43:46 PST

Senator Joel Villanueva answered a query from the media during the Kapihan sa Senado forum on July 31, 2024. Noy Morcoso/INQUIRER.net Senator Joel Villanueva answered a query from the media during the Kapihan sa Senado forum on July 31, 2024. Noy Morcoso/INQUIRER.net MANILA, Philippines — If given a chance, Sen. Joel Villanueva would ask President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to consider as a priority measure the bill that seeks to repeal the law taxing Philippine offshore gaming operators (Pogos). READ: Villanueva files bill to void Pogo tax law Villanueva made the pronouncement at the Kapihan sa Senado forum on Wednesday. The lawmaker said he is willing to push for the prioritization of his measure Senate Bill No. 2752, which calls for the permanent cancellation of Pogo licenses issued by the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation. “If I were given a chance to talk to the President, I would appeal that this be made a priority. I am sure the President is so happy about the people’s reaction. I remember shaking hands with him after his Sona (State of the Nation Address), and I told him that I felt it and that I knew that he was very happy that he delivered the right message, not only anticipated but also needed by Filipinos,” Villanueva told reporters. Senate Bill No. 2752 was filed days after Marcos announced the Pogo ban during his third Sona. Villanueva also said he wants to discuss his plan with Senate President Francis Escudero. “I have yet to talk to our Senate President but probably today, I’ll talk to him about it, if we can fast-track this important measure,” he said. “Even if Pogos are eradicated, for example, by the end of the year, this measure will still not exist because it has yet to be passed. I will still continue to push for this measure. And as I earlier mentioned, it’s because of the fact that we don’t want the next administration or the future administration to invite the Pogos back,” he added. Under Villanueva’s measure, Pogos will have 30 days from the effectivity of the proposed law to cease their operations. “Failure or refusal of the firms to close operations shall subject the responsible officers to imprisonment of 12 to 20 years or a fine of P100 million or both, and will subject the foreign offenders to deportation after service of sentence,” his bill reads. Subscribe to our daily newsletter By providing an email address. I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy. The bill also states that the Bureau of Internal Revenue will still have the authority to collect unpaid taxes from Pogos even after the repeal of Republic Act 11590 or the Act Taxing Pogo, which was signed into law in 2021. Subscribe to our daily newsletter By providing an email address. I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy.

Inquirer

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1968009/marcos-should-prioritize-bill-seeking-to-void-pogo-tax-law-villanueva?utm_medium=social&utm_source=facebook&fbclid=IwZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAAR3B58kTT1c9vIhN-KbWUSVrmuk1xdBMr7pvR6Y-5be_khP_s4sK8GCsqa0_aem_rBl01UCB_VP1gq8pZfJANw

Pascual resigns as trade secretary

Zacarian Sarao

Wed, 31 Jul 2024 16:17:54 PST

Trade Secretary Alfredo Pascual | PHOTO: Official website of the Presidential Communications Office Trade Secretary Alfredo Pascual | PHOTO: Official website of the Presidential Communications Office MANILA, Philippines — Trade Secretary Alfredo Pascual resigned from his post, the Palace said on Wednesday. According to the Presidential Communications Office (PCO), Pascual resigned from his post to return to the private sector. His resignation will be effective on Aug. 2. The PCO also said President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. accepted Pascual’s resignation after a meeting in Malacañang. “His focus on MSMEs (micro, small, and medium enterprises) was absolutely correct, and we are beginning to see the fruits of that policy. We are sorry to lose him, but we respect his decision that this is the time for him to return to the private sector,” said Marcos, as quoted by PCO. No successor has been named yet, but the PCO said the search for Pascual’s replacement “will commence immediately to ensure a seamless transition and continuity in the [Department of Trade and Industry’s] initiatives.” Pascual confirmed that he resigned as DTI chief. “After much reflection, I have decided it is time for me to return to the private sector. There, my roles will allow me to continue contributing my expertise and experience while being able to spend quality time with my family,” his statement read. He also thanked Marcos for the opportunity and said his time serving in the Cabinet was an “extraordinary privilege and honor.” According to Pascual, his role as DTi chief has been one the “most challenging yet fulfilling experiences” of his career. Subscribe to our daily newsletter By providing an email address. I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy. Subscribe to our daily newsletter By providing an email address. I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy.

Inquirer

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1967985/pascual-resigns-as-trade-secretary?fbclid=IwZXh0bgNhZW0CMTAAAR2Vsgz7y3rb1SFj4Lun0JhRISZwAfLzvx_L1MsTV4Zp-lNlsFusV7aW7k0_aem_CQnSjZG-wTKJ1gVXRmFkfg

China says Philippines risks ‘greater insecurity’ after US military aid pledge

Agence France-Presse

Wed, 31 Jul 2024 17:06:30 PST

A China Coast Guard (CCG) ship fires its water cannon at Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) vessels escorting supply boats chartered by the Armed Forces of the Philippines in August 2023. On Tuesday, March 5, 2024, the CCG again water cannon-attacked Philippine vessels on a mission to bring supplies to troops in the grounded BRP Sierra Madre in the West Philippine Sea. (File photo/Video grab from PCG FACEBOOK PAGE) A China Coast Guard (CCG) ship fires its water cannon at Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) vessels escorting supply boats chartered by the Armed Forces of the Philippines in August 2023. On Tuesday, March 5, 2024, the CCG again water cannon-attacked Philippine vessels on a mission to bring supplies to troops in the grounded BRP Sierra Madre in the West Philippine Sea. (File photo/Video grab from PCG FACEBOOK PAGE) China on Wednesday warned the Philippines it risks “greater insecurity for itself,” after the United States said it would provide $500 million in additional military funding to Manila in the face of Beijing’s growing assertiveness. In Manila on Tuesday, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken unveiled what he called a “once in a generation investment” to help modernize the Philippine armed forces and coast guard. Asked about the announcement, Beijing’s foreign ministry on Wednesday warned Manila that “wooing countries from outside the region to provoke confrontation in the South China Sea will only undermine regional stability and aggravate tensions.” “Trying to introduce external forces to protect its own security will only lead to greater insecurity for itself, and it might even become someone else’s pawn,” spokesman Lin Jian said. The latest high-level US visit follows a series of escalating confrontations between Philippine and Chinese vessels in the disputed waterway that have raised concern that Washington could be dragged into a conflict due to its mutual defense treaty with Manila. The Philippines’ proximity to the hotly contested South China Sea, as well as self-ruled Taiwan, would make it a key partner for the United States if a conflict were to break out in the region. Beijing claims almost the entire waterway, despite an international ruling that its assertion has no legal basis, and considers democratic Taiwan to be part of its territory. Subscribe to our daily newsletter By providing an email address. I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy. Subscribe to our daily newsletter By providing an email address. I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy.

Inquirer

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Taguig court issues TRO vs Meralco’s power supply bidding

Lisbet K. Esmael, Tetch Torres-Tupas

Wed, 31 Jul 2024 18:01:13 PST

Manila Electric Co. (Meralco), the power distributor giant of the MVP Group, faces a roadblock after a regional trial court issued a temporary restraining order against its planned bidding for an additional power supply of 1,000 megawatts (MW). In a five-page Order promulgated on July 31, 2024, Executive Judge Byron G. San Pedro of Taguig City Regional Trial Court (RTC), Branch 15-FC, granted the petition of the members of the consortium operating the Malampaya gas field — Prime Energy, Prime Oil and Gas Inc, UC38 LLC, and the Philippine National Oil Exploration Corp (PNOC-EC) — for the immediate issuance of the 72-hour temporary restraining order (TRO) against Meralco’s conduct of competitive selection process for its 600 MW and 400 MW power supply requirements after finding merits to the verified complaint by the plaintiffs. “Upon evaluation of the allegations contained in the verified complaint for injunction, it appears from the facts shown that great or irreparable injury would result to the plaintiffs-applicants before the writ of preliminary injunction could be heard. “In other words, there exists EXTREME URGENT NECESSITY for the writ as to warrant the issuance of Temporary Restraining Order to prevent further damages to the plaintiffs’ interests, the government, and the environment,” the Taguig court ruled. The court has set a TRO bond of P5 million. “Upon posting a TRO bond which is hereby fixed in the amount of five million pesos (P5,000,000), let a Temporary Restraining Order effective for 72 hours be issued in favor of the plaintiffs-applicants enjoining the respondent Manila Electric Company from conducting its competitive bidding selection process (CSP), under its current Terms of Reference, including the receipt of bids, the award and the implementation of any award arising from (it),” the RTC said. The Malampaya consortium earlier filed a complaint against Meralco. It stressed that pursuing the bidding can put indigenous natural gas at a disadvantage, “violat[ing] the preference given” by existing laws. “Increased reliance on imported sources of fuel threatens the country’s energy security and energy sovereignty because these are greatly susceptible to a volatile market,” the previous petition said. It also said Meralco’s bidding done through the Competitive Selection Process (CSP) was “flawed, skewed or supplier-driven and grossly violative of existing laws, rules and regulations.” The bidding process was scheduled for August 2 at 9 a.m. It added that the bidding could “put the country in a situation where a significant portion of our power supply is placed in the hands of imported coal and imported LNG, the prices of both are notoriously unstable and extremely subject to external shocks in the market.” Furthermore, it said that awarding PSAs only to suppliers using imported fuel will also harm the exploration and development of indigenous resources, and will affect the Malampaya project, which has been reliably and securely supplying natural gas to power plants that provide 30 to 40 percent of Luzon’s electricity requirements. Sought for comments, Meralco said it has yet to receive an official copy from the Taguig court. Subscribe to our daily newsletter By providing an email address. I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy. But an official insisted that Meralco follows existing rules of the Department of Energy and the Energy Regulatory Commission in conducting biddings. “It is our mandate to ensure that we conduct these in a timely manner, as delay will expose our consumers to unnecessary burden in the amount of billions of pesos in the form of higher power rates,” said Jose Ronald V. Valles, Meralco SVP and Head of Regulatory Management. Subscribe to our business news By providing an email address. I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy.

Inquirer

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Traitors in Philippine history who are only loyal to one thing

No author found

2018-04-18T01:26:57+00:00

The Philippines withstood crude and shrewd regimes from the West and one from the East. As we all know, what our nation had gone through wasn’t always triumphal because of some people who are too greedy to realize they were getting played by the subjugators. These are the traitors and the balimbings or turncoats of our history, the bane of our heroes. It really sucks to think we had chances to prevail from the enemy if it just wasn’t for these selfish pricks. And here they are. Here are some Filipinos from decades ago who earned their reputation in betraying the country and their countrymen. Pedro Paterno is the first and “original” balimbing in the Philippines, says historian Ambeth Ocampo. He was “first on the Spanish side and then wormed his way to power to become President of Malolos Convention in 1899.” He was a Filipino politician, novelist, and poet who mediated the signing of the Biak-na-Bato Pact between Gen. Emilio Aguinaldo and Spanish Governor-General Fernando Primo de Rivera. The signing marked the end of the Philippine Revolution and Aguinaldo’s expatriation to Hong Kong. After the signing, Paterno requested dukedom, a seat in the Spanish Senate, and a million bucks as reward. Primo de Rivera refused to grant his request. Upon Aguinaldo’s return, Paterno wheedled his way to become Malolos Congress’ president and the head of the general’s cabinet. When the Philippine-American War started, Paterno pushed the government to accept America’s sovereignty. During the Philippine Revolution, lawyer Felipe Buencamino, Sr. was one of those who sided with the Spaniards until the conquistadors imprisoned him. He later joined the Filipino camp and even became Aguinaldo’s cabinet member. When the Americans came to our shores, Buencamino drew the ire the Filipino revolutionaries as he switched sides again. His encounter with enraged Gen. Antonio Luna was actually famous—there were accounts that say the general slapped Buencamino in the face, but Ocampo said Luna didn’t. The two just had a heated argument because Buencamino was in favor of the proposed autonomy by the Americans. Discussions are long on whether Januario Galut really was a traitor or not (some say Galut didn’t consider himself part of the Philippine army and was subjected to discrimination by lowlanders). Nevertheless, Galut is a Christian Igorot who guided the Americans around Tirad Pass. This led to the overthrowing of Gen. Gregorio del Pilar’s forces. The group of Filipinos recruited by the Japanese Army during World War II who acted like spies, informants, and torturers is called Makapili or Makabayang Katipunan ng mga Pilipino. They would turn over suspected guerilla fighters who they knew personally in pursuit of some sort of personal revenge over who knows what. This resulted in destroying trust within the communities, which was imperative for survival. Teodoro Patiño is a katipunero who got into a fight with fellow katipuneroApolonio de la Cruz because of the two-peso wage increase in the printing shop of Diario de Manila. Because of this, Patiño went to his sister Honoria and revealed the secrets and plans of the KKK. Honoria then went to tell the head nun about this. The nun urged Patiño to tell the secrets to the parish priest. The priest then divulged what he just learned to the authorities until the Guardia Civil raided the Diario de Manilaoffice. This also resulted in “Juez de Cuchillo” or “total annihilation” of indiosin one of the places where KKK would uprise. Subscribe to our daily newsletter By providing an email address. I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy.

Inquirer

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Eldest daughters of Asian households—okay pa ba tayo?

No author found

2023-08-29T12:35:38+00:00

“I’m tired,” I admitted to a friend one late afternoon, feeling the familiar prick of tears behind my eyes. “Like, really tired. Can’t even sleep,” I continue, knowing that if I exert any more effort, I’ll burst into tears. Here, I am overextended. I am preparing to move out of my childhood home of 29 years to live with my boyfriend in a new place we’ve just signed a contract for. In many ways, I am over the moon. He is a good man, very kind and gentle, and I love him. I am also excited to be independent for the first time and live by my own time and schedule. But in other ways, I am terribly anxious. I keep worrying about my family needing this or that—to the point of making an entire Google document and sheet containing all the information they need. From where I buy everyone’s specialized birthday cakes and how to contact certain relatives to keeping tabs on everyone’s birthday and not forgetting tidbits about each family member. I am surrounded by half-filled boxes and teetering piles of clothes. I’m wrapping little trinkets in scarves to make sure they don’t break during the journey. My books sit solemn in one stack across me as I balance my laptop on top of it during the video call. My friend asks me, “What’s got you so tired?” All at once, I imagine scenarios where my family will need me. I imagine closed doors and silent suffering or the screaming matches and hair-tearing. I think about my father’s impending retirement and my mother having to financially handle all my siblings for a bit. I pray no one gets COVID-19 again and that, if they do, everyone remembers how much the tests are in the Watson’s around the corner. I think of my father’s silent yearning for a meal that everyone will hesitate to volunteer cooking and my mother’s concern as she comes to me to ask about one of my brothers. I think of the way my siblings’ faces stiffen when they’re hurt but refuse to speak to anyone else. I think of all the words that everyone wants to say at the dinner table, the ones only I will eventually hear and sit with for a long time. I shake as I inhale. “Am I abandoning them?” I clasp my hands inside a box of books, almost like I’m trying to remember how to pray. “Is a home that falls apart when it loses you really something you are going to spend the rest of your life holding up as its only foundation? Or is it time you stopped raising your whole household to give yourself that grace and space to breathe for a second you should have had since you were a kid?” my friend answers. When she says this, I hiccup and turn up my music so I can let out a wail, and then another, and then another. Being the oldest sibling has come with expectations, obligations, and even outright responsibilities. It’s an age-old dynamic—you’re supposed to be the beacon for your siblings and how they should walk, talk, and behave. You don’t just hand down old clothes and toys, you become the blank board on which your parents draw their picture of obedience and excellence to be displayed for your younger siblings to emulate. This is magnified in Asian households—whether East Asian, Southeast Asian, South Asian, etc. Being the eldest in an Asian household was pretty much a guarantee that your childhood was going to be taken very, very early. Zoe, 29, echoes this. “Being a role model to my brother was an unspoken rule. I was expected to excel and demonstrate a lot of what my brother struggled to achieve,” she says. Isabela, 27, agrees. “As the first one to break out into the real world, I do feel like I’m testing the waters not just for me but for my siblings as well.” In recent years, however, more people have come to realize that eldest daughters in Asian households have a shared experience of added emotional upkeep. They’ve been subjected to parenting their entire families and were unrecognized and unappreciated for it. It’s likely been this way for centuries, but the memes and jokes like “be her peace bro, she’s the eldest daughter in an Asian household” that have bubbled up on social media have become thinly veiled cries for help that other women have immediately attuned to. Apart from the weight of being the panganay, eldest daughters also face sexist and conservative ideals, misogyny, and even religion. Many older sisters felt this way. Chase, 32, says, “I was told ‘kababae mong tao,’ and I was expected not to fail or that I’m not supposed to do things that are conventionally masculine like riding a motorcycle, heading home late at night, or taking an interest in video games, and I even was told to pick a ‘feminine-leaning’ field like nursing or education.” For Anon B, 32, she noticed that her parents were much harsher on her compared to her younger brother. “My family were softer on my brother. As a child, I did resent seeing this happen that they coddled him more than they did me.” Most of the time, we were expected to prop everyone up, upkeep tenuous bonds, manage everyone’s emotions, and do chores while simultaneously being undermined and doubted by virtue of our gender. This echoes how society deems domestic labor non-existent. People don’t believe that cooking, cleaning, and mediating family ties is even “real work” because it doesn’t earn anything monetary, which is a dangerous rabbit hole to go down. This also feeds the sexist celebration and coddling of masculinity and the belief that women should be naturals at caring and nurturing. Sticking with the stereotype burdens little girls to adhere to it and only hurts them. Not only did eldest daughters become surrogate mothers, but they also became the middle women for arguments or fights. “My parents were emotionally immature. Found myself mediating a lot between their arguments,” says Anon B. It fell to us to become logical, but not too logical, emotional, but just enough to feel compassion for whoever was angry. We were tasked to be understanding and to listen and then deescalate situations—even encourage patience and forgiveness. When Anon A spoke out against this proposed necessity by her parents, she was shamed for it. “When I started saying no, I was labeled selfish, irresponsible, and apathetic.” Anon C, 38, was also dragged into arguments. “My parents had lots of fights when I was growing up. I had to be present in some. I would even end up arguing for my mom against my dad. I would get dragged into talking endlessly with them until the wee hours of the morning. I was a kid. I didn’t know a thing, and thinking about it now, it sucks.” When it came to chores, some households depended solely on their daughters to learn them—especially the eldest. While some stressed that all their children should learn to cook and clean, there was still a disparity of expectations. “It was expected that I do chores by default, whereas my brother’s main household chore was taking out the trash or cleaning his room; anything involving cleaning and cooking was secondary for him but primary for me,” says Chase. Anon A, 27, says her mother would “entrust [a] list [of groceries and chore schedules] to me and make it my responsibility to make sure that our maid and my dad abide by that list” whenever her mother would go on business trips. “I was also entrusted to make a bottle of milk for my sister when she was a baby and watch over her and make sure our maids at the time weren’t hurting my sister. Managing my sister’s afternoon sumpong also became my responsibility. Then, making sure my sister didn’t lose stuff in school when we were in grade school already and that she didn’t get bullied or get in trouble,” Anon A continues. She also describes how she would be punished for any of her younger sister’s mistakes. “That part always bugged me ‘cause I would get spanked and scolded. It was logistically impossible for me to watch her all the time since we were in different grades and I had different schedules. I literally could not control my sister, so I didn’t understand how I was supposed to take responsibility for things she did without me there.” “Since I was the first to go to school and learn, I tutored all my brothers. I didn’t really enjoy doing that, but I thought it was my job to do so. And people get paid tutoring. I was a kid, I did it for free. I would also cover my and my brothers’ books and notebooks in plastic,” Anon C says. Domestic work is often attributed to the feminine. No one batted an eye that my brothers didn’t know how to use a washing machine. But someone seemed offended at the idea that I potentially didn’t (I did) and I asked them why that was. “’Cause you know, all my sisters do. So does my mom.” I told him, “I’m not your sister. Or your mom.” “I mean,‘cause you’re a girl and you were the eldest girl.” “Do you know how to use one?” He scratched the back of his neck. “No, but because my ate does. So I don’t have to.” This mirrored many Filipino households. Anon C says, “In a way, it felt like my brothers had an added air of pride because they were boys who could do chores.” Among Anon A’s implied duties was “making sure my dad stayed in line, didn’t add random things while we were grocery shopping, didn’t make us eat junk food a lot.” She continues, “My dad was shit at doing household chores. He’d break stuff and burn food. Which I also did ’cause I was clumsy and had undiagnosed ADHD, but my mother was sure to let me know that that wasn’t acceptable.” It was heartbreaking to watch “Everything, Everywhere, All At Once.” When Evelyn was born, the doctor expressed regret instead of congratulations. Even more heartbreaking was seeing other Asian daughters online say “lol same” because it happened to them too. Many Asian cultures still dread having daughters as they can’t carry on the family name and will only elevate the family if another man is interested in them. So they become scapegoats and vigilantes all at once—they are detested for their gender but relied on because of the invisible labor they are expected to uphold anyway as some kind of penance for being born a girl. It’s like there’s no winning. Parents are too busy, brothers don’t have to do anything, younger sisters may also receive some semblance of this gendered labor, but the eldest is often the one paying the biggest price. Learn to nurture the family you’re supposed to love without question. It’s okay if boys don’t do it because they’re boys—they have better things to do. But you, by virtue of the genitals you were born with, must care and nurture. This was only exacerbated in Catholic school where I was told, verbatim, that all I was was an incubator. I was made to be filled up with babies, to care for them, and then to play house. I was not meant to have other ambitions—I was a girl. I asked why it was so stressed that we were learning so much about homemaking for our extra subjects, but my brothers in a nearby boys’ school were able to pick and choose extracurriculars like robotics, drafting, etc. I was told it was because it was up to us, as upstart Catholic women, to keep our homes together. “But what if I’m working?” I asked. “You do both. As a mother and a wife to a good man, you will just know how.” To “just know how” felt like such a cop-out. It was ridiculous to go to this school and be told to be one thing but not told how. And then, to be humiliated and scolded for not being that thing. Anon A echoes this, saying, “Whenever we’d be left in my grandma’s house, the adults would tell me to watch over my younger siblings. Since I expressed no interest or diligence in doing so, I was shamed for being unreliable, unfeeling, and selfish.” This expectation has even extended to taking care of people outside the family. Because I behaved well in class, didn’t ask questions, and followed instructions well, I was constantly seated with more “difficult” classmates—some boys in kindergarten too. My teachers, frazzled, would ask me to help get them to behave and say it was because I was “such a good girl.” My ego did not inflate at this, however, and I bemoaned the task of having to watch over boys even in school, just as I did at home. I didn’t appreciate the extra task when I was in school to learn and make friends, not to babysit. I understood that my teachers were likely at full capacity and were probably not being paid fairly, but I didn’t see why it became my job to have to handle others who weren’t being scolded for their disruptiveness when I was being shamed for not wanting to deal with them. My boyfriend, as I was typing away at work, came into our bedroom once and thanked me for always refilling the ice tray. “I appreciate you—I never said it, but I’ve been meaning to. It’s nice to not have to worry about ice.” It was so mundane, but I was so taken aback by his gratitude. I just blushed and said I just like making our home functional and easy. Later, I figured out it was because I had never been seen for the small things I had been expected to do. It was odd and simultaneously heartwarming to be recognized for such a small thing, but I was touched all the same. I found myself in the same vein of thinking when he would come home with small trinkets and gifts for me, “just because.” I had grown to only anticipate anything of the sort because I’d “worked to deserve it.” I asked once, “Why did you get me this? What did I do?” Had I earned it? He looked puzzled. “I just wanted to.” It sat with me in the most profound way. I didn’t need to do anything to be on the other end of thoughtfulness. There’s still plenty I am unlearning when it comes to being away from my household now. I am slowly giving myself more grace now that I no longer live with my family, and yet still sometimes have to do a lot of emotional heavy lifting even from far away. For many, after finding their own voices and independence, the aftershocks of having to keep an entire household afloat still stay with them, too. Anon B says about feeling like she had to take care of everyone even after leaving home. “It did feel like my job in a relationship was to solve everyone’s problems. That’s what my parents expected of me with my brother and with me when they told me about their issues.” She continued to fall into the habit of taking care of people, as that’s how she understood love. Anon C walked away from her household confused and trying to find a better way to find answers. “I think I have had a ton of toxic traits because of this. I had no boundaries. I didn’t know how to control my rage, which is my go-to emotion, even if you show me love. I rebel a lot. I had tons of dysfunctional relationships. Took a lot of therapy,” she says. Many eldest daughters, once at last physically away from their households, feel like they have to continue this act of surrogacy. A lot of us tend to parent our friends and loved ones, going beyond just funny “mom friend” stereotypes of handbags full of goodies to becoming overly emotionally available to the point of burnout. Boundaries become difficult to establish, especially for ourselves, because we were asked for such limitless amounts of understanding and patience and were told that that was love. We were told constantly to turn the other cheek and to be obedient and grateful for it, even if we were being bludgeoned by a burden we should never have carried at all. It’d be disingenuous to dismiss the plight of male panganays as well. They definitely don’t have it easy, as a lot of them are also treated pretty severely in the guise of making them “tougher” or “manlier,” and many have suffered other types of expectations. Male panganays are often saddled with the continuation of the family and are tasked with being breadwinners to secure that. It’s difficult to trade in your childhood for something you never chose—especially knowing in adulthood that you weren’t supposed to even be exchanging something as fleeting as childhood joy in the first place. To any eldest daughter still finding it in her to give herself grace, take your time. Those burdens should have never been yours, and it’s okay to navigate the rest of your life without having to worry constantly about how people will respond to your absence. You are long overdue to making your own life—with or without the people you have propped up for so long. Follow Preen on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, TikTok, YouTube, and Viber Subscribe to our daily newsletter By providing an email address. I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy.

Inquirer

https://lifestyle.inquirer.net/492739/eldest-daughter-asian-household-okay-pa-ba/?fbclid=IwZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAAR0QKm1wNpVTKVH9vLE3XOCeP72eyMDNzsIRmmJ8K1Bcsa6sybMKYW7I798_aem_Rw3rnKyOTPHPFkDSK0cC2w

It’s no one’s fault: When a friendship naturally runs its course

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2024-04-30T12:38:21+00:00

Do memes imitate life or does life imitate memes? I once saw a post featuring an old oil painting, the kind found in the illustrated Bible stories of my parents’ time (see also: White Jesus)—its caption, in 2008 Microsoft Word Art white read: “The real miracle is that Jesus had 12 close friends as a 30-year-old.” It’s safe to say that I wheezed. Come to think of it, since everything was part of a divine plan, I don’t think Jesus harbored any bad blood against Judas, who seems to have been fulfilling a necessary role in a larger plot and stage. I think some progressive theologians would agree. Catholic school kid reminiscences aside, what a way to add closure to a friend breakup, huh? Perhaps coming of age is more multi-season US TV than single-season K-drama; a series of life events that, to quote the mystic, poet, and lover Rumi, “bring us to ever-expanding rings of being.” Our zeitgeist today is all about realizing that growth is lifelong: One doesn’t “just become an adult” but “continuously becomes.” You read that right, becoming, a verb, not just a one-time-big-time coming-of-age but a series of comings-of-age. The yin to such yang would be that in the process of growth, we also shed old attachments. After each summer comes the proverbial autumn, a fall, and, a falling out. Enter the friend breakup. If our first romantic breakups were our first coming-of-age, then perhaps the next might be a friend breakup (or more) sometime around our late 20s and early 30s. Friend breakups hurt more than romantic breakups because more often than not, it was to our friends we turned to when our lovers felt more like strangers. Our barkada was our safe space and also the runway that egged us to take the leap of faith and eventually, the nest that caught us as we fell or celebrated our homecoming as we tied the knot. Our barkadas were arguably more tahanan than our kasintahan. Cool how both Filipino words have “tears” as their root words huh? And so when we find ourselves crying over losing our friends, the salt stings more. It’s fine when friendships end because of abuse or repeated toxic behavior that’s been called out, but the rougher waters are in seas where no one is clearly at fault. And sometimes, it’s the slow burns that really cook, the gradual realization that the values, humor, goals, and more which glued your friendship before no longer stick around now. As the pathways of our individual lives have led us to new places, we simply became different people with different priorities. Sometimes, two high school besties finally open their dream cafe in their hometown having walked separate paths after college all while finding each other again, different people, but with notes that complement and harmonize. But sometimes too, your decision to quiet quit the rat race and choose a slower lifestyle might run against the goals of a college confidant who took care of you (and vice versa) when drunk after midterms, an old friend whose choices have made her a grind-and-hustle girl boss. If being authentically oneself is about having life options to act on, then a woman choosing the Way of the Girlboss is no less empowered than a woman choosing the Way of the Girlmoss. Sometimes, exercising these choices may result in the end of friendships and there’s no way around it, no sugar to coat the bitter reality. But it’s equally human to attempt harmonizing the bitter and the sweet, the espresso and milk, so let me attempt a flat white: The world is round, and while paths diverge, sometimes, after much meandering, after each person, each walker has found treasures from their respective journeys, old paths may find new convergences. And sometimes they don’t. And that’s okay, too. Even when you find a new village eager to raise a new you, past memories and attachments may hinder your attempts to open up. Really? Should I allow people in again knowing it can end? But what hurts more? The pain of separation or the pain of loneliness? But in a zeitgeist also perceiving an interconnected world, it’s comforting to realize that each moment of (seemingly) individual clarity, joy, and whatnot nourishes The Whole. We may no longer be invited to the tables of old friends, but whenever we’re in a good place, I’d like to think that the unselfish joy we radiate reaches love past, present, and future—and vice versa. And that might include people who (seemingly) no longer share a path with us. It’s been said that though many of the stars in the sky light years away are actually dead, their light is a last breath belatedly reaching us on Earth, and yet there’s also no denying that such light has still guided many a sailor across a dark sea. Sometimes, the hardest grief we bear is for those who still walk the Earth, over people who saw us at our worst, thus allowing us to eventually come into our best. Having known such best, I guess, is its own gift, even if we no longer walk together, bes. Follow Preen on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, TikTok, YouTube, and Viber Subscribe to our daily newsletter By providing an email address. 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Joanie Delgaco gets shot at 19th place in Paris Olympics rowing

Lance Agcaoili

Wed, 31 Jul 2024 18:00:04 PST

Joanie Delgaco of Team Philippines crosses the finish line in the women’s single scull rowing repechage at the Paris Olympics 2o24, Sunday, July 28, 2024, in Vaires-sur-Marne, France. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi) Joanie Delgaco of Team Philippines crosses the finish line in the women’s single scull rowing repechage at the Paris Olympics 2o24, Sunday, July 28, 2024, in Vaires-sur-Marne, France. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi) MANILA, Philippines — Team Philippines rower Joanie Delgaco lost steam anew in the women’s single sculls semifinals C/D classification round of the Paris Olympics 2024 and was relegated to Final D, which will give her a shot at finishing 19th to 24th. Delgaco started strong with a hope to get a higher rank in the classification round — the top three advancing to Final C —  but she couldn’t sustain momentum at third place, dropping to sixth midway through the race. She can finish her Olympic campaign with 19th as her best ranking if she triumphs in her final race in Paris on Friday at 4:30 p.m. (Manila time). READ: LIVE UPDATES: Team Philippines at Paris Olympics 2024 July 31 The 26-year-old Filipino bet avoided a last-place finish on Wednesday, clocking a time of 8:00.18 — six seconds ahead of last placer Fatemeh Mojallal of Iran. Jovana Arsic of Serbia topped the race with the fastest time of 7:44.60, barging into the Final C with Slovenia’s Nina Kostanjsek (7:48.86) and Brazil’s Beatriz Tavares (7:49.96). Alejandra Alonso of Paraguay settled for fourth with a time of 7:56.50, also relegated in Final D with Delgaco and Mojallal. READ: Paris Olympics: Team Philippines’ Joanie Delgaco out of medal race The Filipino Olympic rower bombed out of medal contention with a last-place finish of 7:58.30 in the quarterfinal on Tuesday. She earned a shot at a quarterfinal after topping her repechage regatta on Sunday. Subscribe to our daily newsletter By providing an email address. I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy. Follow Inquirer Sports’ special coverage of the Paris Olympics 2024. Subscribe to our sports news By providing an email address. I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy.

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Angara: 99% of schools open for SY 2024-2025; 673 still closed

Luisa Cabato

Wed, 31 Jul 2024 17:04:52 PST

MANILA, Philippines — Almost 99 percent of schools nationwide have already opened their classes for the School Year (SY) 2024-2025, Education Secretary Sonny Angara said on Wednesday. Based on data as of July 31 at 7 a.m., only 673 schools have not yet opened their doors for learners to give way to ongoing cleanup and repair activities in areas affected by the southwest monsoon and typhoon Carina. READ: DepEd has until August to find over 20,000 teachers These schools are in the National Capital Region and Regions 1, 3, and 4A. In an ambush interview on the sidelines of the Brigada Pagbasa Partners Network Launch in Mandaluyong City, Angara said that 673 schools represent less than one percent of those expected to open for SY 2024-2025. “So less than one percent ‘yung 600,” he said. (So that 600 is less than one percent of all schools nationwide.) READ: DepEd: 77% of learners so far enrolled for School Year 2024-2025 Meanwhile, as of 9 a.m., DepEd said that 22,440,747 students have enrolled for SY 2024-2025. This is approximately 80 percent of the 27,722,835 students expected to enlist for the current school year. DepEd said that number is still expected to go up until the end of the enrollment period on September 16. Subscribe to our daily newsletter By providing an email address. I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy. Subscribe to our daily newsletter By providing an email address. I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy.

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Dela Rosa: ICC can do whatever it wants, I’m not bothered

Maila Ager

Wed, 31 Jul 2024 17:32:54 PST

MANILA, Philippines — The International Criminal Court (ICC) can do whatever it wants, Senator Ronald “Bato” Dela Rosa said on Wednesday. Finally breaking his silence, the senator responded to Solicitor General Menardo Guevarra’s statement that the Philippine government could not stop the ICC’s prosecutor from interviewing suspects in the alleged crimes against humanity committed during the time of former President Rodrigo Duterte. READ: PH gov’t can’t stop ICC from probing drug war suspects – SolGen Dela Rosa and four other retired and incumbent police officers were tagged as suspects by the Office of the Prosecutor of the ICC. READ: ICC prosecutor tags Bato dela Rosa, 4 PNP execs as ‘suspects “We have no control over them,” Dela Rosa said in an interview at the Senate. “Kung ano ang gusto nilang gawin, e ‘di gawin nila.” (We have no control over them. If they want to do something, they might as well just do it.) But no one from the ICC has reached out to him yet, the senator said. “Wala, wala (none),” Dela Rosa said. He was also unfazed by the reported request of the ICC prosecutor to put him under the International Police’s (Interpol) “blue notice.” Interpol notices, according to its website, are international requests for cooperation or alerts allowing police in member countries to share critical crime-related information. A blue notice seeks “to collect additional information about a person’s identity, location or activities in relation to a criminal investigation.” “I don’t know kung posible ba ‘yan. Nasa kanila lang ‘yan,” Dela Rosa said of the said blue notice request. (I don’t know if that’s possible. That’s up to them.) When asked if he was still hoping the Philippine government would protect him from the ICC probe, the senator said, “Sabi naman nila palagi noon (Like what they said before), investigating is one thing, or issuance of [a] warrant is one thing, and implementation of [a] warrant is another thing.” One thing is certain: Dela Rosa is not bothered by the latest actions of the ICC. “Bakit ako maba-bother? Hayaan mo na sila. I’m not bothered. Hayaan mo sila, go ahead,” he said. (Why should I be bothered? Let them be. I’m not bothered. Let them be, go ahead) Subscribe to our daily newsletter By providing an email address. I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy. As then police chief during Duterte’s administration, Dela Rosa was the chief implementer of Duterte’s ruthless war on illegal drugs. READ: Dela Rosa admits rights abuses in ‘drug war’: Probe each case separately Subscribe to our daily newsletter By providing an email address. I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy.

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After her own health battle, Doris Bigornia is now learning from her mistake

Armin P. Adina

Wed, 31 Jul 2024 16:42:07 PST

Doris Bigornia via Instagram / Patrol ng Pilipino andDoris Bigornia Doris Bigornia via Instagram / Patrol ng Pilipino andDoris Bigornia Broadcaster Doris Bigornia earned the endearing monicker “Mutya ng Masa” by getting close to the masses, engaging in challenging field work that saw her covering demonstrations, naturals calamities, and even wars, that immerse her with the people. But that is all a thing of the past because of the health scare she encountered in 2021. The veteran journalist underwent heart surgery three years ago, and started undergoing regular dialysis since then because of chronic kidney disease (CKD), which has been preventing her from taking assignments on the ground. And now Bigornia, taking from her experience, has been grabbing all the opportunity she could to encourage the people to be more mindful of their health. Incidentally, July is observed as the nutrition month in the Philippines. “Gusto ko iyong mga pagkakamali na nagawa ko, ma-educate ko ang ibang tao na huwag ninyo akong tularan. Kasi dapat iyong sinasabi natin na corny, cliché, na importante ang health, totoo po iyon (I want to educate people through my mistakes, don’t do the same. Even if we find corny or cliché saying health is important, it’s true). No amount of money that you’ll earn would mean happiness and security for you and your family kundi iyong health mo (only your health),” she told INQUIRER.net when she hosted a pharmaceutical company recently. “So kapag ganito naimbitahan ako, hindi sila nahirapan na kumbinsihin ako na gawin ko ito, kasi (when I get invited like this, they don’t have a hard time convincing me because) it’s close to my heart,” Bigornia shared, adding that it has never occurred to her that she, as somebody who was not health conscious, would be given the opportunity to handle events that touch on health. “Hindi ko inalagaan ang kalusugan ko (I did not take care of my health). At that time I was so busy working. I had no time to check on my health, which was a big mistake kasi binalikan ako (because it got back to me),” added the broadcaster, who also encouraged mall goers to listen to the resource persons who discussed about the CKD’s prevalence in the country, the people who have been enduring it, and how it could be prevented. She also invited the people to take advantage of the free blood and urine laboratory testing offered during the event. Doris Bigornia. Photo by ARMIN P. ADINA “Magpa-test, kahit wala kayong nararamdaman (Get tested even if you are not feeling anything),” reminded Bigornia, who confessed that she earned “notoriety” in ABS-CBN for always skipping the company’s annual physical examinations by making up excuses, such as having pretend coverages or events to attend. “Iyon ang pinakamalaking mali na ginawa ko. Kasi libre iyon eh. Libre na nga sa kumpanya, hindi ko pa inavail. Kung ginawa ko iyon, nakita sana agad na tumataas na iyong creatinine level ko, baka puwede pang maabatan eh (That was the biggest mistake that I have committed. Because it’s already free. It’s free in the company, and I did not avail myself of it. If I had done it, we could have seen my creatinine level shoot up, we could have prevented it),” she shared. Bigornia said what also discourages people from getting tested is the fear of having to spend a huge sum if a health concern gets discovered. “That would mean gastos (expenses). Which was a wrong mindset. Mas malaki ang gastos mo, at mas malaki iyong impact sa’yo at sa pamilya mo kapag hindi mo naabatan kaagad ang sakit (The expenses will just increase even more, and the impact will be greater for you and your family if you do not immediately address the ailment),” she said. “It’s a very big challenge, struggle, kasi andaming napalit sa buhay ko, sa lifestyle ko (because a lot has changed in my life, in my lifestyle). I have to slow down on work, kasi (because) I do dialysis three times a week, four hours per session,” said Bigornia. She said the situation hurts as someone who is always on-the-go, and then getting strapped in for four hours. It also causes depression whenever she sees important events unfold and she no longer covers them. “Naiisip mo na dapat ako kumo-cover ng istorya na iyon, dapat nandoon ako sa rally na iyon. Ginagawa ko iyon dati (You’d think I should have covered that story, I should have been there at that rally. I used to do that),” she said. Bigornia pleaded to the people, “Ayusin mo ang buhay mo. Iyong buhay mo, which means pagkain mo, iyong health mo, lahat iyan iba-balance mo doon sa trabaho mo, kasi kailangan mong magtrabaho. At meron pang isa, ang pamilya mo. Kailangan iyan sabay-sabay na dapat mong asikasuhin. Mahirap, napakahirap (Fix your life, which means the food you eat, your health, all that you have to balance with your work, because you have to work. There’s one more thing, your family. You have to take care of all of that. It’s hard. It’s really hard).” She continued: “Andami nating pinagsasabi tungkol sa politics, tungkol sa mga marites na ganiyan. Pagdating sa health, parang hindi natin pinag-uusapan (We talk a lot about politics, about gossips. But when it comes to health, we don’t talk about it). Mainly because ang iniisip natin iyong gastos (we think about the expenses).” Bigornia said Filipinos should not be scared of spending money in maintaining one’s health, that they just bear whatever pain they are feeling. “Pero mali. Lagi na lang sinasabi ‘early detection,’ tama iyon, totoo iyon, gawin ninyo iyon (But that is wrong. It has always been said, ‘early detection,’ that is right, that is true, you have to do it),” she further said. Subscribe to our daily newsletter By providing an email address. I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy. She is regularly seen weekday mornings hosting “Gising Pilipinas” on Teleradyo Serbisyo, together with her former “SRO” partner Alvin Elchico. Subscribe to our entertainment news By providing an email address. I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy.

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Villanueva to Marcos: Tackle flooding as seriously as Pogos

Charie Abarca

Wed, 31 Jul 2024 15:12:20 PST

Senator Joel Villanueva answers query from the media on Wednesday during the Kapihan sa Senado forum on July 31, 2024. (NOY MORCOSO / INQUIRER.net) Senator Joel Villanueva answers query from the media on Wednesday during the Kapihan sa Senado forum on July 31, 2024. (NOY MORCOSO / INQUIRER.net) MANILA, Philippines — Keep an eye on flooding as much as you keep an eye on Philippine offshore gaming operators (Pogos), Sen. Joel Villanueva urged President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on Wednesday. “You have to be serious about it. I’m also calling on Malacañang. As serious as we are about Pogo, let’s be serious about this too,” Villanueva said, speaking partly in Filipino, at the Kapihan sa Senado forum. “Otherwise, tanggalin na natin ang pondong ito because it’s a waste of money. It’s an awful waste of time, awful waste of money,” Villanueva said . “Otherwise, let’s get rid of this fund because it’s a waste of money. It’s an awful waste of time, [an] awful waste of money.” The senator made the appeal after lamenting about the perennial flooding in the Philippines, especially after the recent onslaught of Typhoon Carina which enhanced the southwest monsoon. “This happens every year. I already mentioned this last year. You were also there in the Senate hearing last year. No one believes in the Senate anymore,” he said. “No one believes the government anymore that it will do anything to address the problem because every single year it’s getting worse.” To support his remarks, the senator pointed out that the Department of Public Works and Highways, the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority, the Department of Environment and Natural Resources, and the Commission on Climate Change, had a combined budget of P1.44 billion a day. This budget alone can fund 700 classrooms a day, according to Villanueva. “Can you imagine, we can have 700 classrooms built in a day instead of putting it into a waste project? Well, tell me that it’s not a waste. Go ahead. Prove it to me that it’s not a waste project,” he said. The “project” that the senator was referring to was the government’s flood control programs. In his third State of the Nation Address, Marcos said 5,500 of these initiatives had so far been completed, but Villanueva admitted to thinking that the chief executive might have been misled. READ: Villanueva’s dare: I’ll quit if proven reclamation doesn’t worsen Bulacan floods Meanwhile, two Senate committees — on public works and on the environment, natural resources, and climate change — will conduct an inquiry on Thursday into the country’s flood control master plan and pending flood control projects. Subscribe to our daily newsletter By providing an email address. I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy. “What’s going to happen? What do you think is going to happen? Let’s again enumerate this one by one. I have learned how to raise my voice and how to lower my voice. What more can we do? Should we do this every day? Let’s look at all these,” Villanueva said. Despite his frustration, he made clear that there would still be a need to investigate this matter so that the country’s flooding problem could be minimized once and for all. Subscribe to our daily newsletter By providing an email address. I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy.

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Eumir Marcial ‘devastated’ after early exit in Paris Olympics

Lance Agcaoili

Wed, 31 Jul 2024 17:04:05 PST

Team Philippines’ Eumir Marcial, right, fights Uzbekistan’s Turabek Khabibullaev in their preliminary men’s 80kg boxing match at the Paris Olympics 2024 Tuesday, July 30, 2024, in Paris, France. (AP Photo/John Locher) Team Philippines’ Eumir Marcial, right, fights Uzbekistan’s Turabek Khabibullaev in their preliminary men’s 80kg boxing match at the Paris Olympics 2024 Tuesday, July 30, 2024, in Paris, France. (AP Photo/John Locher) MANILA, Philippines — Team Philippines’ boxing bet Eumir Marcial expressed his devastation after his medal dream was shattered early in the Paris Olympics 2024. Marcial couldn’t hide his frustration after his second Olympic campaign only lasted for one match, losing to Turabek Khabibullaev of Uzbekistan in the men’s 80-kilogram boxing early Wednesday (Manila time) at North Paris Arena in France. “My fighting spirit has never once wavered for the Philippines,” wrote Marcial on Instagram “I’m devastated and at loss for words. It’s a tough loss, I do not know how to explain this loss to all the Filipinos who believed in me and supported me. It’s a difficult place to be in, no one really prepares to lose.” “But like I said there’s no excuses. The people know that it has always been my absolute dream to win the gold medal at the Olympics not just for myself, for my family, but most especially, for the Philippines,” he added. The 28-year-old boxer, who was one of the Team Philippines’ top bets to win a medal, said he injured his ribs two weeks before the Olympics but did not use that as an excuse with his gold medal hopes slipping away right in the campaign opener. “I went to training every day with a mindset of winning the gold. I’ve put in the hard work and sacrificed so much for this dream, as far as putting my professional career on hold,” Marcial said. Team Philippines’ Eumir Marcial, right, fights Uzbekistan’s Turabek Khabibullaev in their preliminary men’s 80kg boxing match at the Paris Olympics 2024, Tuesday, July 30, 2024, in Paris, France. (AP Photo/John Locher) “Not many people know but behind the scenes, I sustained an injury two weeks leading up to this match that prevented me to move and do my usual training, which also affected my mental strength and overall performance. But no regrets still, I know God has a bigger purpose for this loss. I may not understand it now but I need to trust that it was God’s protection to keep me safe from any further potential injury.” In an interview with Paris Olympics broadcaster One Sports, an emotional Marcial admitted his future is uncertain whether he will still chase his gold medal dream in the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics or now focus full time on the pros after blowing his “best chance” in Paris. READ: Team Philippines in Paris Olympics 2024: Meet the athletes Despite not a heartbreaking campaign, the 2020 Tokyo Olympics bronze medalist remained grateful to the Filipinos and proud to represent the country. “I gave my all in that ring and regardless of the result, I am deeply grateful to all of the Filipinos who believed in me and supported me. I’m so proud to have been able to represent our country once again here at the Olympics. Thank you for all your prayers and words of encouragement,” Marcial said. “This is not the end of my journey.” Subscribe to our daily newsletter By providing an email address. I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy. Aira Villegas and Nesthy Petecio advanced to the next round of their respective women’s competitions. Carlo Paalam and Hergie Bacdayan make their debut in the round of 16 of men’s 57kg and women’s 75kg divisions, respectively, on Wednesday. Follow Inquirer Sports’ special coverage of the Paris Olympics 2024. Subscribe to our sports news By providing an email address. I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy.

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Comelec, Namria ink deal to use GIS for fair, seamless elections

Dianne Sampang

Wed, 31 Jul 2024 16:16:38 PST

Commissioner Aimee Ferolino, Comelec Chairman George Garcia, Namria Undersecretary Peter Tiangco and Namria Mapping and Geodesy Branch Director Ruel Belen at the ceremonial signing of the memorandum of agreement for the Geographic Information Systems Project on Wednesday, July 31. (Photo from the Office of the Chairman/Comelec) Commissioner Aimee Ferolino, Comelec Chairman George Garcia, Namria Undersecretary Peter Tiangco and Namria Mapping and Geodesy Branch Director Ruel Belen at the ceremonial signing of the memorandum of agreement for the Geographic Information Systems Project on Wednesday, July 31. (Photo from the Office of the Chairman/Comelec) MANILA, Philippines — The Commission on Elections (Comelec) and National Mapping and Resource Information Authority (Namria) underscored the importance of using technology to ensure seamless and fair elections in a ceremonial signing of a memorandum of agreement on Wednesday. Comelec and Namria teamed up to implement the Geographic Information System (GIS), a computer-based application that analyzes and displays map information. “By leveraging Namria’s expertise in mapping and geospatial intelligence, we aim to support Comelec in addressing challenges to geospatial data and updating election precinct maps,” said Namria Undersecretary Peter Tiangco. Furthermore, Namria Mapping and Geodesy Branch Director Ruel Belen mentioned that the agency would provide base maps and training for Comelec technical personnel. “Of course, we always say that, in order to enhance democracy, we must use technology, and in order to enhance democracy and technology, we must always use the power of partnership,” Comelec Chairman George Garcia said, speaking partly in Filipino, in an ambush interview on Wednesday. Garcia noted that Namria would be helpful during elections in tasks such as locating barangays and poll precincts. READ: ‘Problematic’: Comelec sees 1,000 voters per precinct in 2025 elections “We want to see the actual barangays up to the precinct [level]. What happens there? The maps from Namria will be a big help in distributing electoral materials and sending electoral board members, the military, and the PNP. It would be very useful for us to have maps from Namria,” Garcia said. “We have what we call precinct mapping that identifies the location of a precinct.  Is this particular precinct near voters? We may be putting precincts too far from voters. Namria will help ensure that we will not have disenfranchised voters just because Comelec polling precincts are too far,” READ: Comelec expects 20,000 voting machines by August According to Garcia, the GIS will operate as early as January when 82 repair hubs will be established in all the provinces nationwide. Repair hubs will assist in repairing broken voting machines. Subscribe to our daily newsletter By providing an email address. I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy. Last April, Comelec reported that the initial batch of around 20,000 voting counting machines for the 2025 local and national elections were expected to arrive by August. Subscribe to our daily newsletter By providing an email address. I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy.

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Elderly NPA combatant slain in southern Negros clash

Philippine News Agency

Wed, 31 Jul 2024 15:36:38 PST

INQUIRER FILES INQUIRER FILES BACOLOD CITY — A 64-year-old combatant of the New People’s Army (NPA) was killed Monday during an encounter with troops of the Philippine Army’s 15th Infantry Battalion (IB) in Barangay Basak, Cauayan, Negros Occidental. The 3rd Infantry Division (ID) said in a report on Wednesday that Ramon Moico Enseniales, with aliases Art and Bugtong, was considered a remnant of the dismantled South West Front (SWF). He was killed during a two-minute encounter between the soldiers and about five NPA rebels Monday noon, according to Major General Marion Sison, commander of the 3ID. He said the collaboration between the 15IB troops and the community led to the neutralization of Enseniales. “To those who remain in hiding, I urge you to choose the path of peace to avoid the fate of your comrades in previous encounters,” he added. The body of the slain combatant was found after other rebels fled the encounter site. Enseniales’ identity was confirmed by his wife, Epeania, the report said, adding that their family resides in Purok 1, Barangay Tambad in Cauayan. During the clearing operation, the troops also recovered an improvised 12-gauge shotgun, two hand grenades, three keypad mobile phones, personal belongings, and antigovernment documents with high intelligence value. (PNA) Subscribe to our daily newsletter By providing an email address. I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy. Subscribe to our daily newsletter By providing an email address. I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy.

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Morissette Amon reunites with family after falling-out

Anne Pasajol

Wed, 31 Jul 2024 16:23:57 PST

Morissette Amon, her husband Dave Lamar and her family. Image: Instagram/@itsmorissette Morissette Amon, her husband Dave Lamar and her family. Image: Instagram/@itsmorissette Morissette Amon celebrated “miracles” as she and her husband Dave Lamar finally reconciled with her family, years after their public dispute in 2019. Morissette showed moments from their family bonding at home and in what appears to be a restaurant, through her Instagram page on Monday, July 29. Morissette also shared a photo of a paper that had the question: “What are you celebrating today?” The singer ticked off the box that says “Reconciliation #peace.” “Celebrating life and all its miracles. Thank You Jesus,” she captioned her post. A post shared by Morissette (@itsmorissette) Morissette’s dad, Amay Amon, also shared photos of their family through his Instagram page. “Christmas came early this year and we’re not even in the ‘-ber’ months yet! And it’s never too late for a N-switch or AirConsole party with the fam,” he said. A post shared by ウルリッヒ アマイ (@otbnxir) It can be recalled that the Morissette and Amay had a falling-out in 2019 after the latter expressed his disapproval of his daughter’s relationship with Lamar. Despite being mum on the matter at the time, Morissette hoped for their family’s healing. A year later, Morissette made public her engagement to Lamar. The couple then tied the knot in Batangas in 2021, although they only revealed their marriage to the public in 2022. Subscribe to our daily newsletter By providing an email address. I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy. Subscribe to our entertainment news By providing an email address. I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy.

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BSP sees July inflation to settle between 4-4.8%

Philippine News Agency

Wed, 31 Jul 2024 15:21:09 PST

Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas. (File photo / Philippine Daily Inquirer) Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas. (File photo / Philippine Daily Inquirer) MANILA – The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) forecast that inflation rate in July 2024 will settle between 4 and 4.8 percent. The inflation rate projection is higher than last month’s 3.7 percent. “Higher electricity rates along with the increased prices for agricultural commodities like vegetables, meat, and fruits along with higher domestic oil prices are the primary sources of upward price pressures for the month,” the BSP said in a statement Wednesday. READ: Inflation cooled to 3.7% in June, slowest in 4 months The central bank said the lower prices of rice and fruits as well as the appreciation of the Philippine peso are expected to offset the faster increase in prices of other commodities. “Going forward, the BSP will continue to monitor developments affecting the outlook for inflation and growth in line with its data-dependent approach to monetary policy formulation,” it said. The government targets inflation to settle between 2 and 4 percent for 2024. Meanwhile, Fitch Solutions unit BMI expected that consumer spending in the Philippines will grow to 6.2 percent this year from 5.1 percent in 2023 as inflation remains manageable although slightly elevated. “For 2024, we expect an acceleration, driven mostly by easing inflationary pressures, a stable labor market, and lower interest rates,” the BMI said in its commentary on Wednesday. On the other hand, risks to its forecast include prolonged inflation, lower remittances, and a weakening of the domestic economy. The BMI projected that consumer spending will ease to 5.9 percent in 2025. Subscribe to our daily newsletter By providing an email address. I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy. It also forecast inflation rate this year to settle at 3.2 percent before slowing down to 2.9 percent next year, which are still within the government’s target. Subscribe to our business news By providing an email address. I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy.

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Eumir Marcial loses opening bout, bows out of Paris Olympics

Francis T.J. Ochoa

Wed, 31 Jul 2024 03:58:47 PST

Team Philippines’ Eumir Marcial, right, fights Uzbekistan’s Turabek Khabibullaev in their preliminary men’s 80kg boxing match at the Paris Olympics 2024, Tuesday, July 30, 2024, in Paris, France. (AP Photo/John Locher) Team Philippines’ Eumir Marcial, right, fights Uzbekistan’s Turabek Khabibullaev in their preliminary men’s 80kg boxing match at the Paris Olympics 2024, Tuesday, July 30, 2024, in Paris, France. (AP Photo/John Locher) SCHEDULE: Team Philippines at Paris Olympics 2024 Eumir Marcial, one of Team Philippines’ brightest hopes for a medal, crashed out of the 2024 Paris Olympics boxing hunt early Wednesday morning (Manila time). Turabek Khabibullaev of Uzbekistan outpointed Marcial in their men’s 80-kilogram boxing duel at North Paris Arena, deftly using his long reach to keep the power-punching Filipino at bay. The 6-foot-1 southpaw kept coming in behind his jab to land key shots against Marcial in the opening round, shutting his opponent out there to set the pace of the match. LIVE UPDATES: Team Philippines at Paris Olympics 2024 July 31 Khabibullaev gave up little ground in the second round, even as Marcial began pressing on the attack. Marcial had said this would be his last Olympics and was hoping to finish higher than his bronze medal in the Tokyo Summer Games. But he could not get much going against his foe, who won on all judges’ scorecards. Marcial was hoping to join Aira Villegas and Nesthy Petecio in the next round of the country’s medal hunt. Both Villegas and Petecio earlier subdued their foes to move on to the next phase of the women’s competitions. Carlo Paalam and Hergie Bacdayan make their Paris Olympics debut in the round of 16 of men’s 57kg and women’s 75kg divisions, respectively, on Wednesday. Subscribe to our daily newsletter By providing an email address. I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy. Follow Inquirer Sports’ special coverage of the Paris Olympics 2024. Subscribe to our sports news By providing an email address. I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy.

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Paris Olympics: Nesthy Petecio banks on masterful game plan vs taller foe

Lance Agcaoili

Wed, 31 Jul 2024 16:12:59 PST

India’s Jaismine, left, fights Team Philippines’ Nesthy Petecio in their preliminary women’s 57kg boxing match at the Paris Olympics 2024, Tuesday, July 30, 2024, in Paris, France. (AP Photo/John Locher) India’s Jaismine, left, fights Team Philippines’ Nesthy Petecio in their preliminary women’s 57kg boxing match at the Paris Olympics 2024, Tuesday, July 30, 2024, in Paris, France. (AP Photo/John Locher) MANILA, Philippines — Familiarity helped Team Philippines’ boxing bet Nesthy Petecio open her 2024 Paris Olympics campaign on a rousing note. Petecio kicked off her gold medal campaign with a unanimous victory over Jaismine Lamboria to advance to the women’s 57-kilogram boxing tournament round-of-16 early Wednesday (Manila time) in France. The Tokyo Olympics 2020 silver medalist, who stands 5-foot-2, was able to stand taller against the 5-foot-9 Indian thanks to the perfectly executed gameplan crafted by Reynaldo Galido to neutralize her foe’s advantage. “It’s a good thing I sparred with her. That’s really what I said after our weigh-in. I’m so thankful to Coach Galido because that was our game plan,” said Petecio in an interview with Paris Olympics broadcaster One Sports. “Coach Galido and I worked on making sure I couldn’t be reached at her distance, making it harder for her while I could still reach her. The distance was the most important thing. We trained for it and studied it.” Galido said their fight strategy was to be more aggressive since they were facing a taller competitor. “She’s very tall, so we made a game plan where we couldn’t play from a distance. You have to get to her first and hurt her so she’ll be scared of you. And that’s what Nesthy likes—her overhand punches—so no matter how tall she is, Nesthy can reach her,” said Petecio’s coach. “Her range is good, and we studied that right after she sparred. All our training paid off.” Galido will bank again with their familiarity of the French foe, believing Petecio will continue to show no fear amid facing a home bet. “We sparred with her several times in Bulgaria and Thailand. It’s her home crowd, but Nesthy doesn’t mind that. She’s a warrior. She’s not a rookie. Nesthy is ready to face anyone,” said the Team Philippines coach. Petecio is determined to sustain her momentum from a strong start, enjoying the support of Filipino fans in Paris after celebrating her first victory with an “Eyy”—the latest trending expression and loose hand gesture in the Philippines, popularized by the girl group BINI. Subscribe to our daily newsletter By providing an email address. I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy. “It’s a really good start for me and the team. I hope it continues because our next opponent is France,” she said. “It’s a huge help to hear the crowd cheering for the Philippines. It really hypes me up.” Follow Inquirer Sports’ special coverage of the Paris Olympics 2024. Subscribe to our sports news By providing an email address. I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy.

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Enrile on his plunder case: Ok with SC allowing trial to continue

Gabriel Pabico Lalu

Wed, 31 Jul 2024 14:57:29 PST

Chief Presidential Legal Counsel Juan Ponce Enrile during President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s sectoral meeting along with cabinet secretaries at the Malacanang Palace on Tuesday, August 15, 2023. INQUIRER/ MARIANNE BERMUDEZ Chief Presidential Legal Counsel Juan Ponce Enrile during President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s sectoral meeting along with cabinet secretaries at the Malacanang Palace on Tuesday, August 15, 2023. INQUIRER/ MARIANNE BERMUDEZ MANILA, Philippines — Chief Presidential Legal Counsel Juan Ponce Enrile sees no problem with the Supreme Court’s (SC) move to allow the continuation of the trial for his plunder case, urging the courts to decide on the case already. In an ambush interview at the Batasang Pambansa complex on Wednesday, Enrile was asked about the SC’s decision allowing the Sandiganbayan to proceed with the plunder trial, with 13 justices voting to dismiss his petition for prohibition of his case. “Well, let them decide. Until now, they have not decided. Mahigit na 10 taon na ‘yan walang evidence na prine-presenta sa akin,” the former Senate president said. (It has been 10 years since the case was filed, but no strong evidence has been presented against me.) “That’s not the only case. I have many cases regarding the coconut levy, and they benefitted from it, but until now, I do not know what happened to my cases,” he added. Last Monday, it was reported that the SC allowed the continuation of the trial, with two justices not participating in the decision. “Enrile’s doubts as to the Sandiganbayan’s fealty to the law is no cause of action and his inability to trust in the judicial system does not merit relief,” read the 32-page decision penned by Associate Justice Maria Filomena Singh. “The Court does not act on the basis of fear, baseless assumptions of bad faith, or conjectures…. [Since] litigants demand fairness from the courts, the judiciary similarly expects fairness from litigants,” it added. READ: SC allows Enrile’s trial for plunder to proceed Enrile is one of the three senators charged with plunder for alleged involvement in the pork barrel scam. Senators Ramon “Bong” Revilla and Jinggoy Estrada have been acquitted. They were accused of pocketing their Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF) after allocating parts of the funds to pork barrel scam mastermind Janet Lim Napoles’ bogus non-government organizations. Enrile was accused of pocketing P172 million of his PDAF. The three senators denied knowing the allocations, claiming that their staffers acted on their behalf. READ: Sandiganbayan lets Enrile challenge prosecution evidence in plunder case Enrile was at the House of Representatives’ hearing on illegal activities linked to Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators (Pogos) on Wednesday to accompany his daughter, Cagayan Economic Zone Authority (Ceza) Administrator Katrina Ponce Enrile. Subscribe to our daily newsletter By providing an email address. I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy. The younger Enrile clarified that there are internet gaming (iGaming) operations in Cagayan economic zone, but it differs from Pogos, which she said was merely a creation of the past administration of the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation. Subscribe to our daily newsletter By providing an email address. I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy.

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Vin Abrenica, Sophie Albert expecting second child

Hannah Mallorca

Wed, 31 Jul 2024 15:44:50 PST

(From left) Sophie Albert, Avianna Celeste Abrenica, and Vin Abrenica. Image: Instagram/@itssophiealbert (From left) Sophie Albert, Avianna Celeste Abrenica, and Vin Abrenica. Image: Instagram/@itssophiealbert Vin Abrenica and Sophie Albert are going to be a family of four, as Albert announced that they’re about to welcome a new addition to their family. Albert confirmed that she is pregnant with her second child in a joint Instagram post on Monday, July 30, by sharing a photo of herself, Abrenica, and their daughter Avianna Celeste. The photos showed the actress flaunting her baby bump in a white cover-up and bandeau top, while Abrenica and Avianna Celeste showed different forms of affection towards her. “From three to four, our family is growing more! The secret’s out and we’re over the moon,” the caption read. A post shared by Sophie Albert 🌸 (@itssophiealbert) The couple received congratulatory messages from fellow celebrities in the comments, including Joyce Ching, Jo Berry, Jason Abalos, Shaira Diaz, Carla Abellana, Rocco Nacino, Pancho Magno, Yasmien Kurdi, Rodjun Cruz, Luis Hontiveros, and Iya Villania. Screenshots from Instagram/@itssophiealbert Abrenica and Albert were in a long-term relationship before deciding to wed twice: first at a church ceremony in January 2023, and second at a garden ceremony in the same month. The couple welcomed Avianna Celeste in March 2021. The couple first met as competitors on the talent show “Artista Academy” in 2012, which they eventually won, and started dating a year later. Abrenica and Albert initially broke up in 2016, but got back together months later. Subscribe to our daily newsletter By providing an email address. I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy. Subscribe to our entertainment news By providing an email address. I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy.

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Rep. Duterte welcomes drug smuggling case, maintains innocence

Luisa Cabato

Wed, 31 Jul 2024 14:39:54 PST

MANILA, Philippines —  Davao City First District Rep. Paolo “Pulong” Duterte has welcomed the move of former Senator Antonio Trillanes IV to file a drug smuggling case against him and nine others in relation to the P6.4 billion shabu shipment seized in 2017. In a statement on Wednesday, the same day Trillanes filed the case, Duterte said that he accepts the development as it will ensure that the case will be heard in court instead of on social media. READ: Trillanes sues Rep. Duterte, VP’s husband, ex-BOC head for drug smuggling “This move will allow us to address these accusations through the proper legal channels, ensuring that the truth will prevail,” Duterte said. He then maintained his innocence and expressed confidence in the country’s judicial process. “I have always maintained my innocence, and I am confident that the judicial process will clear my name. It is important to rely on our legal institutions rather than resorting to trial by publicity or baseless allegations,” he said. At around noon on July 31, Trillanes filed a drug smuggling case before the Department of Justice against Rep. Duterte; Atty. Mans Carpio, who is the husband of Vice President Sara Duterte; and former Customs Commissioner Nicanor Faeldon for their alleged involvement in the shabu shipment case. READ: BOC: Evidence ‘sufficient’ on P6.4-B shabu conspiracy Trillanes claimed that the lawmaker and the other respondents violated Section 4 in relation to Section 26(a) of Republic Act No. 9165, also known as the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002 as amended by Republic Act No. 10640; and Republic Act No. 3019, otherwise known as the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act. Subscribe to our daily newsletter By providing an email address. I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy. Subscribe to our daily newsletter By providing an email address. I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy.

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Drug suspect busted in Cavite, marijuana distribution hub dismantled

Delfin T. Mallari Jr.

Wed, 31 Jul 2024 14:59:49 PST

INQUIRER FILES INQUIRER FILES LUCENA CITY — A suspected big-time pusher was arrested and more than P500,000 worth of marijuana or “weeds” and its derivatives were seized Tuesday in Imus City, Cavite by Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) agents and other law enforcers. The buy-bust operation resulted in the dismantling of a marijuana distribution hub based in Imus, PDEA-Region 4A reported on Wednesday, July 31. The report said PDEA operatives, Philippine Air Force personnel, and local policemen conducted a sting operation in Barangay Pinagbuklod at 4:50 p.m. The arrested suspect, identified as Wenxer Teoxon, 27, yielded dried “weed” leaves, marijuana oil, resin, and other marijuana by-products worth P506,000. The suspect, a freelance tattoo artist and video editor, is classified as a “high-value” target in the government campaign against illegal drugs. Teoxon was detained and will face a complaint for violating the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002. Subscribe to our daily newsletter By providing an email address. I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy. Subscribe to our daily newsletter By providing an email address. I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy.

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Duterte’s order on offshore gaming ‘ill-advised’ – Enrile

Gabriel Pabico Lalu

Wed, 31 Jul 2024 13:55:03 PST

Chief Presidential Legal Counsel Juan Ponce Enrile. FILE PHOTO Chief Presidential Legal Counsel Juan Ponce Enrile. FILE PHOTO MANILA, Philippines — Former President Rodrigo Duterte’s executive order allowing online gambling operators to make games available overseas was “ill-advised,” the Marcos administration’s Chief Presidential Legal Counsel Juan Ponce Enrile said on Wednesday. Enrile attended the House of Representatives’ hearing on Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators (Pogos) to accompany his daughter, Cagayan Economic Zone Authority (Ceza) Administrator Katrina Ponce Enrile, who explained that there are no Pogos within their jurisdiction. In an ambush interview, Enrile was asked if it was wise to allow Pogos to operate when other countries have banned these operations. “It was ill-advised. They did not study it well. My God, Pogo was banned by Cambodia, banned by many countries in Central Asia, and we adopted it here. And why is that here until now, you have Pogos in Bamban and Porac and without Pagcor (Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation) being able to control them?” the former Senate president said. “Is that a wise decision, wise activity?” he added. Enrile did not specify which part of Duterte’s Executive Order No. 13 was ill-advised, but the presidential decree released in February 2017 clarified online gambling. Under Section 3 of the executive order, a licensed online gambling operator or provider of activities and services is prohibited from allowing “persons who are physically located outside the territorial jurisdiction of the licensing authority to place bets, or in any way participate, in the games conducted […] through an online portal or similar means.” However, the same section also stated that gambling operators who want to operate outside of the government’s jurisdiction can apply “for a separate license with the appropriate authority.” READ: Duterte orders intensified fight vs illegal gambling According to Enrile, Pogo was never on his mind when he crafted Republic Act No. 7922 or the Cagayan Special Economic Zone Act of 1995, which established the Cagayan Special Economic Zone and Freeport (CSEZFP) in Santa Ana town. READ: Marcos: ‘All Pogos are banned!’ “If I were the president, I agree with President [Ferdinand Marcos Jr.]. I will kick out Pogo in this country,” he said. “I do not know anything about Pogo. That was never in my mind when I crafted Republic Act No. 7922. In fact, when I revised the Pagcor charter, Pogo was never in my mind or in the mind of any legislator,” he added. During the hearing, the younger Enrile explained that there are internet gaming (iGaming) operations in CSEZFP, but it differs from Pogos. “To this end, I want to categorically state that there are no Pogos in the Cagayan Special Economic Zone and Freeport. There never was, and there never will be. Pogos are the exclusive creation of the past administration of Pagcor. Ceza has the authority to conduct offshore iGaming operations since it can register enterprises organized or domiciled in the Philippines or any foreign country,” she said. The Senate and the House have been probing Pogos since earlier this year after authorities raided Pogo hubs in Bamban, Tarlac and in Porac, Pampanga, revealing human trafficking, sexual abuses, torture, murder, and even possible money laundering. The Ceza was dragged into the discussions on Pogos after the Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Commission on June 13 said that some gaming hubs are operating near the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement (Edca) sites. The Edca is an agreement between the Philippines and the United States. There are currently nine Edca sites, with two located in Cagayan. The Edca site in the Naval Base in Santa Ana, Cagayan, is within the CSEZFP. Subscribe to our daily newsletter By providing an email address. I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy. READ: PAOCC confirms Pogos operating near Edca sites Pagcor clarified that there are no Pogos near Edca sites. The younger Enrile also said the military had no concerns placing the base near iGaming operations because the economic zone has been safe. Subscribe to our global news By providing an email address. I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy.

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Villanueva bares reports linking more local execs to illegal Pogos

Charie Abarca

Wed, 31 Jul 2024 13:54:01 PST

MANILA, Philippines —  At least three or four more local chief executives from the National Capital Region, Calabarzon, and Central Luzon may be involved in the operations of illegal Philippine offshore gaming operators (Pogos) in the country, according to “raw” information received by Sen. Joel Villanueva’s office. Speaking at a Kapihan sa Senado forum on Wednesday, Villanueva emphasized that the complaints he received are still unverified. “May mga raw information. May mga nagsusumbong po through Facebook; for instance, I encountered at least three or four na local executive na hindi po naririnig natin na gusto nilang paimbestigahan so we just forwarded their complaints,” Villanueva told reporters. (There is raw information. There are those who reached out through Facebook; for instance, I encountered at least three or four local executives whom we haven’t heard from that they want us to investigate, so we just forwarded their complaints.) “Raw pa ho eh. Hindi siya verified,” he emphasized. (It’s raw. Unverified.) READ: Pogo worker cites pros, cons and scams as part of the job But while the complaints have yet to be verified, the senator said he is certain that there are local chief executives who are dipping their toes into illegal Pogo operations. “I mean, with the amount of money that’s flowing from these operations, lobbyists coming from chief executive[s] from local government units, I’m almost sure na meron po (that some are involved),” he said. As for the location of the local chief executives, Villanueva named three regions: Calabarzon, Metro Manila, and Central Luzon. “[Sa] 4A, NCR and Central Luzon ‘yung mga nakuha ko po. Again, I don’t want to dwell on these information kasi nga po hindi verified but I will not be surprised and I am actually saying this — yung gut feel ko, meron na talaga, marami nang infuence ang Pogo. Malawak na malawak na,” he said. (I received reports from 4A, NCR, and Central Luzon. Again, I don’t want to dwell on this information since it’s not verified but I won’t be surprised and I am actually saying this — my gut feeling is that some are already involved. Pogo has many influences. It’s so vast now.) According to the senator, some of these complaints have already been forwarded to the National Bureau of  Investigation and the Philippine National Police. Subscribe to our daily newsletter By providing an email address. I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy. READ: Marcos: ‘All Pogos are banned!’ President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. ordered the immediate ban of Pogos in the country in his third State of the Nation address this July. He subsequently ordered the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation to wind down the operations of these firms until the end of 2024. Subscribe to our global news By providing an email address. I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy.

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2 dead, war materiel seized in Sultan Kudarat clash

Philippine News Agency

Wed, 31 Jul 2024 14:43:07 PST

WAR MATERIEL. Authorities seize assorted high-powered and unlicensed firearms after a brief firefight between government troops and a lawless armed group in Barangay Lagandang in Isulan town, Sultan Kudarat province on Monday afternoon, July 29. Two members of the armed band, who remain unidentified, were killed in the clash. | PHOTO: Official Facebook page of the 6th Infantry “Kampilan” Division, Philippine Army WAR MATERIEL. Authorities seize assorted high-powered and unlicensed firearms after a brief firefight between government troops and a lawless armed group in Barangay Lagandang in Isulan town, Sultan Kudarat province on Monday afternoon, July 29. Two members of the armed band, who remain unidentified, were killed in the clash. | PHOTO: Official Facebook page of the 6th Infantry “Kampilan” Division, Philippine Army CAMP SIONGCO, Maguindanao del Norte – Two armed men were killed when they tried to prevent police and military authorities from entering a village in Isulan town, Sultan Kudarat province, where a “rido” (clan war) was brewing, the Army in this camp reported on Wednesday. Lieutenant Colonel Tristan Rey Vallescas, commander of the Army’s 7th Infantry Battalion, said soldiers and police officers were responding to reports from civilians about a dispute involving armed Moro families locked in a feud on Monday afternoon. Involved in the hostilities that sent civilians fleeing were gunmen belonging to the armed factions of Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) and Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) in Barangay Lagandang, according to Vallescas. “These escalating tensions and violence resulted in the displacement of civilians within the community,” Vallescas said, lamenting that the armed groups involved in the ‘rido’ had targeted the responding Army and police personnel. Police are still determining the identities of the two slain armed men and whose side they belonged. Government forces recovered two Barrett rifles, two M16 rifles, an M60 machine gun, a 60 mm mortar tube and launchpad, a .22-caliber rifle, an M79 grenade launcher, and hundreds of ammunition. Major Gen. Antonio Navarrete, commander of the Army’s 6th Infantry Division, said the law enforcement operation aimed to disarm and arrest armed groups that have constantly harassed civilians in Barangay Lagandang due to clan war. “We have emphasized that no one is above the law, and we will enforce that to all armed groups,” Navarrete said in a statement, referring to groups such as the MNLF and MILF forces, reminding them of the existing comprehensive ceasefire agreements with the government. (PNA) Subscribe to our daily newsletter By providing an email address. I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy. Subscribe to our daily newsletter By providing an email address. I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy.

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Eva Darren recalls FAMAS snub: ‘Napahiya ako, ang sakit’

Jessica Ann Evangelista

Tue, 30 Jul 2024 14:30:12 PST

Eva Darren | Image: Screengrab from YouTube/TicTALK with Aster Amoyo Eva Darren | Image: Screengrab from YouTube/TicTALK with Aster Amoyo Veteran actress Eva Darren turned emotional as she recalled the events attending the FAMAS fiasco last May that left her heartbroken and embarrassed.In a recent interview with host and entertainment writer Aster Amoyo, Darren gave an update on how she has been doing since the controversial FAMAS incident, where she was supposed to present an award but got replaced by somebody else at the last minute. “Maganda naman na ngayon ang paghinga ko na pagkatapos ng nerbyos dahil sa pagkapahiya na hindi ko maintindihan bakit nangyari ‘yon. Ngayon medyo okay-okay na. Dati nga gusto ko magtago, parang ang liit-liit ko na gusto ko magtago sa ilalim na lamesa,” she expressed. Darren recalled that she was sitting in front of the stage together with fellow actresses Marissa Delgado, and Divina Valencia, and her three grandchildren, and the floor directors walked past her multiple times before they went on to call Tirso Cruz III on stage, with whom he was supposed to present an award with. Cruz then proceeded onstage, but with singer Sheena Palad, instead of Darren. “‘Yung sinasabi nung partner niya (Palad) dialogue ko ‘yon, binasa ko ‘yon nasa script na pinadala sakin, memoryado ko. Hindi pako kumikibo, sabi ko, ‘Baka nagkamali lang,’ Mamayang unti, ‘Aba ‘yung pangalawang dialogue ko ‘yon ah,’ Sabi ko, ‘Pambira naman ‘to, nenerbyos na ako,’ Pangatlo, sabi ko, ‘Wala na pinalitan na ako ng tuluyan,’” she detailed. The seasoned actress said that she asked her companions to go home and decided not to finish the ceremony because she felt utterly embarrassed. “Kasi parang gusto ko na maglupasay doon, kasi nahihiya ako. Maraming nakakaalam, mga kamag-anak nag-aabang, pinapanood ‘yung FAMAS. Sabi ko, ‘Mare, pasensya na, nanginginig na ako, aalis na ako kasi nahihiya ako,’” she said. “Napahiya ako. Ang sakit,” she tearfully expressed. “Sa bahay (umiyak). Ewan ko nanginig talaga ako,” adding that she couldn’t blame her children, especially her son, Fernando, who lamented on social media about what happened to her. Darren underscored that she got overwhelmed with the people’s reactions after her son’s Facebook post went viral, as she saw the comments of the public sympathizing with what happened: “Hindi ko akalain. Hindi ko alam. Grabe. Ganon pala ang social media.” Despite the controversy, the award-winning actress reiterated that they have accepted FAMAS’ apology and was grateful for the positive things that took place after the incident. Last June, Darren starred in GMA Network’s wish-granting program, “Wish Ko Lang.” She also guessed in “Family Feud Philippines” and has a TV series that is soon to air. Subscribe to our daily newsletter By providing an email address. I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy. Subscribe to our entertainment news By providing an email address. I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy.

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DA-Cordillera: P11.9-M damage from Carina, stable veggie prices

Philippine News Agency

Wed, 31 Jul 2024 14:09:49 PST

Crops affected by Typhoon Carina. | PHOTO: Official Facebook page of the Department of Agriculture-Cordillera Crops affected by Typhoon Carina. | PHOTO: Official Facebook page of the Department of Agriculture-Cordillera BAGUIO CITY — Prices of vegetables from the Cordillera region remain stable as of Tuesday amid the P11.93-million crop damage by Super Typhoon Carina, the Department of Agriculture in the Cordillera Administrative Region (DA-CAR) said. The DA-CAR’s Disaster Risk Reduction Management Information Service reported at 4:30 p.m. on Monday an initial P11.93 million worth of 24.39 metric tons of high-value crops from 129.78 hectares of plantations damaged by Carina. Minimal damage was logged on rice, corn, and cassava. At least 402 farmers were affected by the typhoon, which enhanced the southwest monsoon and brought continuous rains even after the bad weather. Despite the damage, data on Tuesday show that wholesale prices of vegetables decreased compared to Monday. The price of cabbage declined by P2 to P3 per kilogram, with an average price of P15 to P18; carrots by P15 to P20, with an average of P50 to P65 per kilo; and potato-granola by P2, with an average of P58. A kilo of sayote remained stable at P15, while the first-class Chinese cabbage was higher by P3 from its previous price of P9 per kilo. Aida Pagtan, Regional Agriculture and Fisheries Information Service (RAFIS) chief of DA-CAR, said current monitoring in the local market shows enough supply of vegetables. “Based on market monitoring in Baguio City and La Trinidad, there is sufficient supply as residents have not yet gone out to buy volumes for the family,” she said. Local governments in the Cordillera have posted on their official social media pages calling on farmers to report the situation on the farm, specifically, the area planted, the kind of crop, and the stage of the plant, and to submit photo documentation to make reporting faster. “As of now, we cannot give the actual supply data, but looking at the trend in pricing, it is fluctuating. We need to wait for a while, but rest assured that reporting is being fast-tracked,” Pagtan said. Lawyer Jennilyn Dawayan, DA regional director and head of the Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council, said the Department is ensuring the provision of rice, corn, and vegetable seeds to farmers affected by the recent calamity and has a Quick Response Fund (QRF) that would cover the rehabilitation of affected farms. “We are gathering and assessing reports on crop damage and losses in the region, including affected livestock from the local government units. The regional field office will then have to jointly validate the reports for DA-CAR to identify what specific intervention may be provided to the affected farmers,” she said. DA-CAR has repositioned its seed reserve to include 204,564 kilos of hybrid, inbred registered, and inbred certified rice seeds; 45,000 kilos of white and yellow corn seeds, and 564.70 kilos of upland and lowland seeds that may be distributed to the affected farmers in the region. The supply is part of the La Niña preparedness plan of the DA, which was laid out during the height of El Niño. Subscribe to our daily newsletter By providing an email address. I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy. DA also has the Survival and Recovery loan program from the Agriculture Credit Policy Council and the crop insurance that the Philippines Crop Insurance Corporation will provide. (PNA) Support Typhoon Carina Victims The Inquirer is extending its relief and fund drive to help families affected by Typhoon Carina. Donate to Inquirer Foundation Corp. at BDO Current Account No: 007960018860. For inquiries, email [email protected]. Subscribe to our daily newsletter By providing an email address. I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy.

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Okada Manila launches “Embrace Your Own Greatness” Campaign to celebrate athletic excellence

No author found

2024-07-31T04:35:28+00:00

Okada Manila, Asia’s premier integrated resort, joins in the celebration and the spirit of the highly anticipated summer games with its latest campaign, “Embrace Your Own Greatness.” The campaign underlines the resort’s commitment to provide exceptional guest experiences and world-class amenities, designed to make every guest feel like a champion every time they stay at the five-time Forbes five-star integrated resort. “For every guest, every moment spent at Okada Manila is a milestone, every stay a victory lap,” said Robert Scott, Vice President of Hotel Operations at Okada Manila. “Our goal is to create an environment where the world’s finest comforts meet heartfelt Filipino warmth and Japanese hospitality, celebrating the most important part of our story—our guests.” The “Embrace Your Own Greatness” campaign will feature a series of events and promotions for guests to mark their achievements and enjoy personal wins. The Okada Manila experience is made even better with championship-caliber promotions such as the Stay and Dine package, which includes complimentary dining credits worth PHP 2,500, and the Stay, Flex, Fly offer, providing flexible check-in and check-out times along with roundtrip airport transfers. From August 17 to September 22, families, car enthusiasts, and staycation lovers are in for an unforgettable time at The Ultimate Hot Wheels Experience at Cove Manila, Asia’s largest indoor beach club. To top off these amazing offers, guests can go on a gastronomic journey beyond flavors and explore a feast for the soul at more than 40 dining options, offering a culinary marathon that caters to every palate. Okada Manila invites everyone to join in the celebration as the world witnesses the greatness of sport and spectacle. Guests are welcome to experience the unparalleled leisure and hospitality that has made Okada Manila a premier destination in the region. Whether guests are looking for a relaxing getaway, a culinary adventure, or a vibrant cultural experience, Okada Manila offers something for everyone. For more information about the “Embrace Your Own Greatness” campaign and to make reservations, please visit  https://www.okadamanila.com/embrace-your-own-greatness ADVT. This article is brought to you by Okada Manila. Subscribe to our daily newsletter By providing an email address. I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy.

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Cynthia Villar on Las Piñas’ local polls: ‘I want to run for mayor but…’

Maila Ager

Wed, 31 Jul 2024 13:50:29 PST

Senator Cynthia Villar (Senate file photo) Senator Cynthia Villar (Senate file photo) MANILA, Philippines — Senator Cynthia Villar on Wednesday declared her intention to run for mayor in Las Piñas City in the May 2025 elections. Villar, who will end her second term as senator in June next year, is poised to run against her niece — incumbent Vice Mayor April Aguilar. “I want to run for mayor kaya lang, may other considerations. We’ll see,” she told Senate reporters. (I want to run for mayor but there are other considerations.) Among these considerations is her husband, former Senate President Manny Villar, who wants her to return to the House of Representatives. Her husband believes she would have more “value” if she is in the House. But whose opinion will prevail? “E di syempre, ultimately, ako,” the lady senator said. She said she would make the final decision in October, in time for the filing of certificates of candidacy. Continuing her advocacy and projects in Las Piñas is one of her reasons why she wants to run for mayor, according to the senator. “May farm school ako sa Las Piñas. Mayro’n akong River Rehabilitation Program. Mayro’n akong Las Piñas-Parañaque Wet Land Farm. May drug rehab center kami dun. Madaming mga infrastructure (projects),” Villar pointed out. Subscribe to our daily newsletter By providing an email address. I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy. (I have a farm school in Las Piñas. I have a River Rehabilitation Program. I have Las Piñas-Parañaque Wet Land Farm. We have a drug rehab center there – lots of infrastructure [projects]) Subscribe to our daily newsletter By providing an email address. I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy.

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Niño Muhlach fans rumors about son Sandro with cryptic post

Anne Pasajol

Wed, 31 Jul 2024 14:20:01 PST

Niño Muhlach and his son Sandro Muhlach. Image: screengrab from YouTube/GMA Network Niño Muhlach and his son Sandro Muhlach. Image: screengrab from YouTube/GMA Network Niño Muhlach sparked intrigue among netizens after he shared a cryptic but fierce remark aimed at certain individuals whom he did not immediately name. The actor took to his Facebook page on Wednesday, July 31, to say: “Inumpisahan nyo, tatapusin ko!” Image: Facebook/Niño Muhlach While Niño did not elaborate on whom he was addressing in his post, netizens apparently concluded that it was about his son Sandro, who had just joined show business, with many of the netizens commenting for justice to be served. Images showing support for Nino Muhlach’s son on Facebook Some Facebook users also alluded to “GMA” and certain “executive,” although no explanation was immediately stated. Image: Facebook Sandro, interestingly, also shared a religious quote about the “helpless” via his Instagram Stories. “God is never late. He sees the cries of the helpless and He will heal, provide, lead, and saved. Trust in Him,” it stated. Image: Instagram/@sandromuhlach Incidentally, GMA earlier released a statement addressing rumors about two consultants hired by the network who allegedly sexually abused a young actor after the network’s recent gala night. The rumors, which made the rounds of social media, further claimed that the victim is the son of an actor who comes from a known showbiz clan. “Online articles and posts have recently circulated regarding an alleged incident involving an artist and independent contractors of GMA Network. We have yet to receive a formal complaint from those allegedly involved in the issue. Should one be filed, the network is committed to conducting a thorough and impartial investigation. We assure the public that GMA Network takes such matters with the utmost seriousness,” GMA’s statement read. Subscribe to our daily newsletter By providing an email address. I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy. Subscribe to our entertainment news By providing an email address. I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy.

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Villanueva files bill to void Pogo tax law

Charie Abarca

Tue, 30 Jul 2024 11:41:10 PST

FILE PHOTO: Sen. Joel Villanueva. Senate Public Relations and Information Bureau) FILE PHOTO: Sen. Joel Villanueva. Senate Public Relations and Information Bureau) MANILA, Philippines — Another measure seeking to repeal the law taxing Philippine offshore gaming operators (Pogos) has been filed in the Senate. Sen. Joel Villanueva called for the permanent cancellation of Pogo licenses issued by the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation in his Senate Bill No. 2752, which was filed days after President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. ordered the ban of all Pogos in the country. “Bilang pagsunod sa direktiba ni Pangulong Marcos, kailangan na rin po nating siguraduhin na wala nang bakas ng Pogo sa Pilipinas,” Villanueva said in a statement on Tuesday. (In compliance with President Marcos’ directive, we must ensure that no Pogo in the Philippines can be traced.) READ: Marcos bans Pogo, cites ‘disorder’ it caused PH Under Villanueva’s Senate Bill No. 2752, Pogos are given 30 days from the effectivity of the proposed law to cease their operations. “Failure or refusal of the firms to close operations shall subject the responsible officers to imprisonment of 12 to 20 years or a fine of P100 million or both, and will subject the foreign offenders to deportation after service of sentence,” the bill states. It also mandates the Bureau of Internal Revenue to continue collecting unpaid taxes from Pogos even after the repeal of  Republic Act 11590 or the Act Taxing Pogo signed in 2021. READ: Pagcor: Pogo ban covers legal gaming hubs or IGLs According to Villanueva, the Pogo tax law amended the National Internal Revenue Code to improve the collection of taxes from Pogos and impose additional taxes aside from the franchise tax on their operations. “The evidence of crimes and social ills from Pogo operations immensely overwhelm the benefits the Filipinos get from the taxes they pay,” Villanueva pointed out. A similar measure was filed by Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian, chairperson of the committee on ways and means, last May. Subscribe to our daily newsletter By providing an email address. I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy. While he acknowledged that the Pogo industry has “undoubtedly boosted the Philippines’ economy,” he also stressed it led the Philippines to grapple with a surge in Pogo-related crimes. Subscribe to our daily newsletter By providing an email address. I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy.

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No Pogos in Cagayan economic zone – Ceza chief

Gabriel Pabico Lalu

Wed, 31 Jul 2024 13:16:05 PST

FILE PHOTO FILE PHOTO MANILA, Philippines — There are no Philippine offshore gaming operators (Pogos) in Cagayan Special Economic Zone and Freeport (CSEZFP), Cagayan Economic Zone Authority (Ceza) Administrator Katrina Ponce Enrile said on Wednesday. During the House of Representatives’ hearing on illegal activities linked to Pogos, Enrile explained that there are internet gaming (iGaming) operations in CSEZFP, but it differs from Pogos. “To this end, I want to categorically state that there are no Pogos in the Cagayan Special Economic Zone and Freeport. There never was, and there never will be. Pogos are the exclusive creation of the past administration of Pagcor (Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation). Ceza has the authority to conduct offshore iGaming operations since it can register enterprises organized or domiciled in the Philippines or any foreign country,” she said. “We believe congressional hearings are in aid of legislation; hence, we need to better understand the distinctions between Ceza’s iGaming licensees and Interactive Gaming Support Service Providers, and Pagcor’s Pogos,” she added. According to Enrile, internet gaming in CSEZFP started long before Pogos were created. However, the Pogo was a concept copied from Ceza’s iGaming operations. “When the interactive gaming industry in [CSEZFP] started in 2003, it was very peaceful and orderly. Everybody knew everybody, and we were actually taken as a gaming jurisdiction very seriously. Ceza established itself as the first interactive gaming jurisdiction in Asia and stood at the forefront of regulatory innovation,” she said. “In 2017, former President [Rodrigo] Duterte issued Executive Order (EO) No. 13 mandating all gaming and gaming-related activities to operate inside the territorial jurisdiction of the authority that issued the license…In the same year, the Pagcor officially institutionalized the term Pogo,” she added. However, Enrile said the Pagcor “dictated” rules on how Pogos were supposed to operate, eventually differing from Ceza’s iGaming system. “Initially, Pagcor Chairman Andrea Domingo was supposed to give Pogo licenses to just 25 operators, but she eventually expanded it. Obviously, they were already dictating the rules on how offshore gaming was going to be operated. With all the iterations and mutations from the original concept, it actually transformed into something else that was not any more reflective of what was being done within [the CSEZFP],” she explained. “The idea was stolen from us. Its form changed and eventually turned into a hotbed for crime, but it appears they cannot control it. Now, we are being dragged into this mess and blamed for things that we did not do. Please do not do that,” she said in Filipino. The Senate and the House have been probing Pogos since earlier this year after authorities raided Pogo hubs in Bamban, Tarlac and in Porac, Pampanga, revealing human trafficking, sexual abuses, torture, murder, and even possible money laundering. Eventually, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. declared that all Pogos are banned, and instructed Pagcor to wind up Pogo operations by the end of 2024. READ: Marcos: ‘All Pogos are banned!’ The Ceza was dragged into the discussions on Pogos after the Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Commission (PAOCC) said last June 13 that some gaming hubs are operating near the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement (Edca) sites. The Edca is an agreement between the Philippines and the United States. There are currently nine Edca sites, with two located in Cagayan. The Edca site in the Naval Base in Santa Ana, Cagayan, is within the CSEZFP. READ: PAOCC confirms Pogos operating near Edca sites Pagcor eventually clarified that there are no Pogo hubs near Edca sites. READ: Pagcor says no licensed Pogo hubs next to Edca sites Enrile confirmed that only one of the Edca sites is within the CSEZFP, noting that the military has no concerns placing the base near iGaming operations because it is “safe and secured.” “Lastly, as to the issue of the presence of 10 offshore operations/gambling areas near Edca sites in Cagayan, may we clarify that there is only one Edca site within the Zone. The other Edca site in the province of Cagayan is located in Lal-lo,” she said. Subscribe to our daily newsletter By providing an email address. I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy. “The service providers inside Ceza have been in the Zone before the Edca was signed and way before the determination of Edca sites. Hence, it would be safe to assume that the military knows of the presence of gaming service providers, and despite this knowledge, they still chose an area inside Ceza to be one of their Edca sites,” she added. Subscribe to our daily newsletter By providing an email address. I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy.

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Luzon grid placed on yellow alert on Wednesday — NGCP

Lisbet K. Esmael

Wed, 31 Jul 2024 13:47:32 PST

FILE PHOTO: A power substation in Cainta, Rizal fenced off from the town public market. INQUIRER PHOTO/LYN RILLON FILE PHOTO: A power substation in Cainta, Rizal fenced off from the town public market. INQUIRER PHOTO/LYN RILLON The National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP) has placed the Luzon grid under yellow alert on Wednesday afternoon to evening due to limited supply after two power plants tripped. In an advisory, the grid operator said the yellow alert would be in place from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m., and 5 p.m. to 10 p.m. READ: Marcos aims for 100% electrification by term’s end In a yellow alert, power supply can still meet demand, but it will serve as a warning that when a plant breaks down one way or another, it will result in brownouts. A red alert, meanwhile, means that supply is no longer sufficient to meet demand. Brownouts could happen if demand is not managed. It said the Luzon grid’s available capacity was 12,969 megawatts (MW), while the peak demand reached 11,768 MW. The Visayas and Mindanao grid, meanwhile, were running under normal conditions. Subscribe to our daily newsletter By providing an email address. I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy. Curated business news By providing an email address. I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy.

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Sara Duterte’s security reduced, not taken out: ‘Don’t politicize it’

Gabriel Pabico Lalu

Tue, 30 Jul 2024 15:43:29 PST

FILE PHOTO: Vice President Sara Duterte | PHOTO: Official Facebook page of Inday Sara Duterte FILE PHOTO: Vice President Sara Duterte | PHOTO: Official Facebook page of Inday Sara Duterte MANILA, Philippines — Vice President Sara Duterte’s security team was “only reduced” – not totally taken out – to augment the current needs of the Philippine National Police (PNP), according to a lawmaker, who also urged her to refrain from politicizing the issue. Manila 3rd District Rep. Joel Chua on Tuesday noted that police officers from Duterte’s security force were transferred or reassigned to other areas – that, for him, the Vice President should respect. “First of all, we should respect the decision of the PNP because they are the ones knowledgeable on where to deploy our police officers. We should always remember that usually, our police are facing a shortage of personnel.  Security was not totally removed from her,” Chua said in a press briefing at the Batasang Pambansa Complex. “It was only reduced so that it could be used for more important agencies or assignments. So not every action should be given malice or colored with politics, especially if this was only done in line with their jobs as police officers,” he added. According to the 2022 Commission on Audit (COA) report on the Office of the Vice President (OVP), Duterte’s Vice Presidential Security and Protection Group had 433 members. The latest audit even explained that the 433 security and protection personnel of Duterte make up the majority of the 683 OVP staff. Senior Deputy Speaker Aurelio Gonzales Jr., who was also present in the briefing, said there were times that lawmakers’ security personnel were also pulled out due to more pressing tasks for the PNP. He said such is a reality that government officials must come to grips with. “In addition to what Congressman Joel (said), we congressmen sometimes only have two security personnel assigned, we go around our districts, sometimes our security will be pulled out but we cannot do anything about this because there would be other things to do,” Gonzales explained. “So we have to be understanding of that situation, though for us it happens sometimes that we have to attend to something important in far-flung barangays, we have to be there, but there are times that the personnel commander’s (would recall them), so we can do nothing about that, we have to respect that,” he added. On Monday, Duterte released an open letter to PNP chief Gen. Rommel Marbil, calling the removal of 75 police security escorts as a “clear case of political harassment.” Duterte also claimed that Marbil was lying when he said that the withdrawal of her police protection detail was due to the PNP being short-staffed – asserting that the removal of the police officers from her security force happened when she resigned from President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s Cabinet. According to Dutert, the 75 police officers were removed from her security team last July 23 – or a day after President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s third State of the Nationa Address (Sona). Marbil responded by saying that the officers assigned to Duterte were given another assignment to address personnel shortage within the police force. Marbil also said they saw no threat against Duterte, hence the reduction.  He, however, clarified that Duterte was not singled-out because other retired generals’ security were also recalled. Aside from asking Duterte not to politicize the PNP’s move, Chua also speculated that Duterte was only deflecting attention from her criticized trip to Germany while many parts of the country were ravaged by Typhoon Carina (internal name: Gaemi) and the strong southwest monsoon. The Office of the Vice President (OVP) confirmed that Duterte flew to Germany. It admitted that the timing of Duterte’s trip was off but explained it was scheduled before the typhoon. READ: Sara’s trip to Germany explained, draws Leni Robredo comparison “I think there is no politics here, but maybe they are just trying to divert the issue, because remember, she addressed this concern when the issue of her making the trip to Germany in the middle of a typhoon popped out,” Chua said. “I think they’re trying to divert the issue because this should not be gleaned from a political lens.  The PNP is just doing their job, I hope we respect how they do their job,” he added. Chua has previously criticized Duterte’s actions. Last July 15, he said the Dutertes should address their alleged links to illegal drugs instead of releasing statements to divert public attention. READ: Imee Marcos on VP Duterte’s Germany trip: She didn’t know there was storm Chua was referring to Vice President Duterte’s decision to skip the Sona last July 22 and appoint herself as “designated survivor.” Her controversial remarks came a day after he House dangerous drugs panel gave Chinese businessman Michael Yang a contempt citation. Yang is the former economic adviser of Duterte’s father, former President Rodrigo Duterte. Subscribe to our daily newsletter By providing an email address. I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy. Chua also pointed out that the Vice President’s announcement that her father and brothers, Davao City Mayor Sebastian Duterte and Davao City 1st District Rep. Paolo Duterte, will be running for senator in 2025 was made on the same day that House committee on human rights invited former President Duterte and Senator Ronald dela Rosa to the “drug war” probe. Subscribe to our daily newsletter By providing an email address. I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy.

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LOOK: Marcos meets with Blinken, Austin at Malacañang

Zacarian Sarao

Tue, 30 Jul 2024 09:39:18 PST

MANILA, Philippines — President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. met with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin III, who paid a courtesy call in Malacañang on Tuesday. In welcoming the two high-level US officials, Marcos expressed his gratitude for the open communication lines between the Philippines and the United States, especially involving the situation in the West Philippine Sea. “I am always very happy that these communication lines are very open so that all the all the things that we are doing together in terms of our alliance, in terms of a specific context of our situation here in the West Philippine Sea, in the Indo-Pacific, are continuously examined and re-examined, so we are agile in terms of our responses,” said Marcos. “I’m a bit surprised considering how interesting your political situation has become back in the States, but I’m glad that you found the time to come and visit with us,” he added. READ: Meeting with Blinken ‘absolutely necessary’ for PH-US ties – Marcos US Secretary of State Antony Blinken (R) and Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin (L) pay President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. (C) a courtesy call in Malacañang on Tuesday, July 30, 2024. | Photo screengrabbed from RTVM Blinken and Austin are in the country for the 4th Philippines-US Foreign and Defense Ministerial Dialogue (2+2 Dialogue). Blinken, for his part, described the dialogue as “historic” as it is the first time that the Philippines will be hosting its ministerial meeting with the US. “I think today is genuinely historic. This is the first time that the Philippines has hosted our two plus two,” said Blinken. “It’s, I think, really evidence of a steady drumbeat of very high-level engagements between our countries that are covering the full range of issues and opportunities that bring us together, not only security, but also economic, and we’re truly grateful for this partnership,” he added. READ: US Defense chief says PH more than an ally: We’re family Meanwhile, Austin highlighted the Philippines-US relationship, again saying the two countries are more than allies: “We’re family, and it always feels that way when I’m working with our colleagues.” “We have common interests, common values, and so I think we’ve done a lot over the last three and a half years to continue to strengthen our alliance, and we look forward to continuing to work with you and your team to move even further,” he added. Marcos last met Blinken in March after the US official visited Manila to discuss the strengthening of defense and economic ties between his country and the Philippines. On the other hand, Marcos last met Austin in April during his visit to the Pentagon. Subscribe to our daily newsletter By providing an email address. I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy. After meeting with Marcos, Blinken and Austin are expected to meet with Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr. and Foreign Affairs Secretary Enrique Manolo for the 4th Philippines-US Foreign and Defense Ministerial Dialogue (2+2 Dialogue). The Department of Foreign Affairs earlier said the top US and Philippine government officials are anticipated to talk about further enhancing the two countries’ alliance during the dialogue. Subscribe to our global news By providing an email address. I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy.

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Folk singer Coritha bedridden due to stroke

Anne Pasajol

Wed, 31 Jul 2024 12:54:46 PST

Folk singer Coritha. Image: screengrab from YouTube/Pambansang Almusal, NET25 Folk singer Coritha. Image: screengrab from YouTube/Pambansang Almusal, NET25 Far from her prime years in the 1970s to 1980s, folk singer Coritha is now unable to speak and bedridden in her Tagaytay home after she suffered from a stroke. Coritha, best known for her songs “Oras Na,” “Lolo Jose,” “Gising Na, O Kuya Ko” and “Sierra Madre,” was visited by broadcaster Julius Babao, as seen on the latter’s YouTube vlog on Tuesday, July 30. Coritha has been living with her partner Chito Santos in Tagaytay after her Quezon City home was destroyed by fire in 2018. Recalling how their relationship started, Santos said he and Coritha have known each other way before she officially started her singing career. Santos admitted that he has admired the singer since then but that they lost communication and only reunited after several decades. “Bago mag-pandemic, kinuha ko siya kasi nga nasunog ‘yung bahay niya. Nung hanapin ko [siya], natutulog lang sa tent, sa folding bed. Una ayaw niyang sumama sa akin [pero] bandang huli, napilitan,” Santos said. At the time, Coritha was still healthy physically although she reportedly struggled mentally after she lost her house. “Diabetic kasi siya e, tapos isang beses may naiwan akong dalawang guyabano tapos kinain niya. Nung madaling araw no’n, sabi niya, ‘Wiwiwi lang ako.’ Pagkaraan no’n, parang lantang gulay na lang siya [kaya] dinala ko siya sa hospital,” Santos recalled. “‘Yun nga, nung makita ‘yung CT scan, marami na raw siyang atake na hindi lang napapansin—stroke,” he continued. Santos added that Coritha did not undergo an operation as advised by his sibling who is a doctor. When her medical results went back to normal, Santos then decided to just take her home and provide her with an oxygen tank. “Nag-normal naman [‘yung paghinga niya], ‘yun lang hindi na siya nakapagsalita,” he said. “Akala ko hindi na siya tatagal. Sabi ko, ‘Iiwan mo na ako?’ Parang ayaw niya, pilit siyang lumalaban e,” Santos stated as he turned emotional. Santos further noted that a few relatives and some friends came to visit Coritha to extend help for her everyday needs, which include a P2,000-worth of milk that only lasts for four days. He also added that while Coritha earned a lot when she was still in the industry, she allocated most of her earnings to donate to churches and orphanages. Subscribe to our daily newsletter By providing an email address. I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy. “Hindi kami pinababayaan ng langit. Hindi umaabot sa magutom kami kasi laging may dumadating na tulong,” he said, noting that they have a billiard table and a camping site as their source of income. Babao, who gave the couple P50,000 as financial help, then provided Santos’ account so that those who want to help can send financial assistance. Subscribe to our entertainment news By providing an email address. I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy.

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#JusticeForSandro trending, banta ni Niño: Inumpisahan n’yo, tatapusin ko

No author found

Wed, 31 Jul 2024 10:16:56 PST

Sandro Muhlach at Niño Muhlach Sandro Muhlach at Niño Muhlach TRENDING ang pangalan ng anak ni Niño Muhlach na si Sandro Muhlach sa social media simula kahapon hanggang ngayong araw. Maraming nagki-click sa socmed accounts ng baguhang aktor at Sparkle artist na tila na-curious kung sino nga ba ang Kapuso youngstar. Sa mga hindi pa nakakaalam, si Sandro ay ang panganay na anak ng aktor at dating child wonder na si Niño Muhlach at unang nakilala bilang artista sa teatro. Baka Bet Mo: Sandro Marcos umamin na sa real score nila ni Alexa Miro Usap-usapan ang pangalan ni Sandro sa apat na sulok ng kashowbizan sa gitna ng naglabasang blind item tungkol sa isang baguhang aktor na hinaras at hinalay umano ng dalawang “powerful gay executives” na konektado sa isang TV network. A post shared by Sandro Muhlach (@sandromuhlach) Ang feeling ng mga netizens, si Sandro ang tinutukoy sa naturang blind item kaya naman mabilis na kumalat ang chika sa social media kahit hindi pa nakukumpirma kung sinu-sino nga ang sangkot sa issue. Ito ang dahilan kung bakit biglang nadagdagan ang followers ni Sandro sa socmed kasabay ng pagte-trending ng kanyang name dahil nga sa dami ng nagse-search sa pangalan niya pati na rin sa kanyang amang si Niño. Mas lalo pang pinag-usapan si Sandro nang mag-post siya sa Instagram ng isang sad face emoji bukod pa sa quote na ibinahagi niya na may kinalaman sa pagiging “helpless”. Sabi ni Sandro, “God is never late. He sees the cries of the helpless and He will heal, provide, lead, and saved. Trust in Him.” Baka Bet Mo: Donny Pangilinan ikinumpara kay Sandro Marcos, netizens nag-react: Hindi po siya public servant Naikonek nga ito ng mga netizens sa kumalat na blind item tungkol sa isang newbie actor na umano’y pinagsamantalahan ng dalawang TV executive na nangyari raw sa hotel kung saan ginanap ang bonggang showbiz event kamakailan. Ngayong araw, isang cryptic message naman ang ipinost ni Niño sa kanyang Facebook page na hinihinalang may kinalaman din sa pinagdaraanan ni Sandro. Ang nakasulat sa FB status ni Niño ay,  “INUMPISAHAN NYO, TATAPUSIN KO!” Narito ang ilang comments ng netizens sa post ni Onin. “Nakakagulat..napakagwapong Bata Kasi ni Sandro..pero Mali pa rin talaga. .nakakagalit bilang magulang.tsk tsk…Justice for him.” “Laban boss Onin. We are praying for you and We will always support you.” “Managot ang dapat managot, pati kung sino ang poprotekta sa mga walang-kaluluwang kriminal! #JusticeforSandro.” “ANDITO LANG KAMI TAPUSIN NATIN YANNNNNNN!!!!!!” “Fight for what is right!!! Justice will be served!!! Dito kami for you and your family!!! Labaaannn Dude!!!” Subscribe to our daily newsletter By providing an email address. I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy. “Sending hugs and prayers po. Nandito lang kami para suportahan kayo sa malaking pagsubok na ito.”

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‘Iti Mapukpukaw’ is a story about /real/ love. Aliens be damned

No author found

2023-08-11T09:03:02+00:00

Note: This is not a spoiler-free review and will discuss the film’s major plot points as well as potentially triggering content including childhood trauma, death, sexual assault, and child abuse “Iti Mapukpukaw” is the first full-length animated feature film to make its way into the Cinemalaya roster—where it’s currently this year’s highest grossing film. It tells the story of Eric (Carlo Aquino), an animator living a regular life, with a regular job, a loving mom (Dolly De Leon), and a crush on his coworker, Carlo (Gio Gahol). The thing is, he doesn’t have a mouth. Unable to speak, Eric communicates in day-to-day life via a whiteboard and video chats with his mom who lives in their home province of Ilocos. After working late one night Carlo offers to take Eric home and maybe grab a bite. Before they could leave, Eric’s mother Rosalinda calls him to check on his uncle, who has seemingly gone missing. That night, Eric’s seemingly normal life gets turned on its head after discovering the lifeless, decomposing corpse of his uncle. Out of nowhere, Eric is abducted by an alien and this is right about when things take a turn for the strange. As the film progresses, it’s revealed that the alien abduction isn’t an alien abduction at all. It’s Eric’s way of coping with his childhood sexual abuse at the hands of his uncle—which is also why he was drawn without a mouth (but more on that later). Finding his uncle’s dead body triggered his deep-seated, unprocessed trauma. This trauma manifests itself through hallucinatory episodes where he’s dissociating from reality and being abducted by aliens. With the increasing frequency of “alien abductions,” we see Eric imagining himself lose more parts. At the start of the film, he was only without a mouth. Later on, he also loses his ear, an eye, his genitals, and his hand (which was turned into a transparent layer on photoshop—kind of breaking the fourth wall, as well as possibly being a nod to the amazing animators on the team). The order in which his parts go missing—and when they go missing—is important. The mouth was first, obviously because he couldn’t tell anyone what happened. He lost his eye when he saw his uncle’s casket for the first time (where we meet his cousin who also doesn’t have a mouth), and his private bits when things were heating up with Carlo. Trauma doesn’t stay as it is. It evolves and changes over time, and sadly, gets bigger and more intense the longer they stay buried. In flashbacks, we see Eric as a happy, talkative kid. Eric’s uncle moves in with him and his mom after the failure of his marriage. This is, sadly, when the multiple instances of sexual assault begin. After a car ride with his uncle, Eric comes home without a mouth and rendered unable to speak. For survivors of childhood sexual assault—and sexual assault in general—losing important parts of youself is a common occurence. The movie interpreted it in a literal manner, with Eric literally losing important parts of his body required for living a normal life. These alien abductions (read: dissociative episodes) also take a toll on Eric’s relationships. At the start of the film, we see things warming up between Eric and his crush, Carlo. The further and more intensely his alien hallucinations progress, the more it drives a wedge between the potential lovers. During the dissociative episodes, it becomes apparent that Eric literally forgets where he is and completely exits the real world. In one instance, Eric invites Carlo back to his place where they’re supposed to watch a movie. Carlo offers to buy snacks at the convenience store nearby when another “alien abduction” occurs. When Eric returns to his senses, it’s morning and he’s faced with a frustrated Carlo who was banging on his locked door the entire time. Carlo storms out—which is seemingly the end of their budding relationship—and leaves Eric chasing after him. The movie does a fantastic job of illustrating the difficult and frustrating realities of a sexual assault survivor. Nolisoli managing editor Pauline Miranda (and my wonderful boss who watched the movie with me and handed me a tissue to wipe my tears and snot away) also noted that these alien abductions tend to happen when something romantic or intimate—not necessarily sexual—is about to happen between Carlo and Eric. It’s common for survivors of sexual assault to be triggered by these types of encounters, even if they’re interested in the other person and give their full consent. That’s just another layer of how difficult it is to navigate trauma and its aftermath. All of Eric’s unprocessed trauma bleeds into the real world, affecting his relationship with his mother (who is unaware of the truth) and almost nips the slowly blossoming relationship he has with Carlo in the bud. Carlo’s reaction to Eric’s behavior is expected. Carlo has no idea that this is what Eric’s going through, so frustrations are bound to rise. What makes this film special is that aside from painting the realities of living with this kind of trauma, it shows just how much love and care can also coexist with—and eventually—defeat it. During the film’s climax, Carlo joins Eric on an impromptu road trip to (unbeknownst to either of them at the time) Eric’s childhood home to defeat the phallically-drawn alien (which represents the trauma he experienced as a child). Carlo, God bless him, plays along (with imagined guns and all) and tries to help Eric defeat the extraterrestrial being. After the battle, we see the scene the movie’s poster is taken from. Eric cuddled up under the bed between Carlo and Rosalinda as they both comfort him through the night. It was a deeply moving scene that portrayed the love, patience, and compassion people have for each other. A post shared by Carlo Aquino (@jose_liwanag) At the end of the film, we see Eric (accompanied by Rosalinda and Carlo) digging up his uncle’s grave. Inside the casket are his missing parts—which he takes back and puts back on. A literal reclamation of what’s been stolen. After decades of silence, he finally puts his mouth back on. The film ends with him telling Rosalinda and Carlo that he has something to tell them. The film is a victorious reclamation of one’s self, with the care and support of the people who love you. With an all-star cast, the acting was of course superb. For most of the film, we see Eric losing more and more parts, which makes their reclamation even more victorious. He played the character as real as it can get, showing not only the good and the bad, but also all the ugly that comes with his baggage. The nuance in his physical acting seeps into your heart, which makes the film all the more precious. That being said, Carlo Aquino literally acted his eyes (ear, hand, and other parts) off. Dolly De Leon’s portrayal of Rosalinda was warm and funny, but it also showed how no matter how you care for someone, important details may fall through the cracks. Gio Gahol as Carlo portrayed such a tender, loving, and grounded reflection of a man (potentially) in love. But beyond the romance, the compassion and true humanity of how he cared for Eric was where his character truly shined. As difficult as the subject matter is, “Iti Mapukpukaw” executed it with a gentle, kind, and surprisingly fun deftness. As strange as it may sound, the beautiful rotoscope animation helped ground the film further and illustrate how it feels to go through life carrying that kind of weight. The film also showed just how important community is. While the love Rosalinda and Carlo showed Eric wasn’t the magic cure-all for the resolution of his trauma, it was an important push to help him reclaim himself. Human beings aren’t meant to exist alone, and the film reminds us that we all need each other to live a full and beautiful life. The premise of an animator facing alien abductions is quite literally out of this world, but when it comes to talking about trauma, compassion, understanding, humanity, and real love, it’s as grounded as it gets. Needless to say, you simply must run to the theaters and catch this film. Just make sure to bring a whole lot of tissues. Subscribe to our daily newsletter By providing an email address. I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy.

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8 areas in Cavite under state of calamity due to oil spill

Dianne Sampang

Wed, 31 Jul 2024 13:00:49 PST

The sunken MT Terra Nova caused an oil spill off Limay, Bataan. | Photo from the Philippine Coast Guard The sunken MT Terra Nova caused an oil spill off Limay, Bataan. | Photo from the Philippine Coast Guard MANILA, Philippines — Eight areas in Cavite were placed under a state of calamity after the oil spill from the sunken MT Terra Nova reached the province’s coastline, Governor Jonvic Remulla announced on Wednesday. “The oil spill reached the coastal areas of Cavite. Affected are the municipalities of Bacoor, Kawit, Noveleta, Rosario, Tanza, Naic, Maragondon, and Ternate. As of today, the province is declaring a STATE OF CALAMITY in these areas,” Remulla said in Filipino in a Facebook post. The MT Terra Nova, carrying 1.4 million liters of industrial fuel, sank off Bataan early last Thursday,  July 25. On Saturday, the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) reported that the oil from the sunken tank spread about 12 to 14 kilometers across Manila Bay. In an interview with Teleradyo 630, Remulla described the situation of the coastline affected by the oil spill. “Tanker fuel was released. It’s heavy. When it reached us [Cavite], it settled on the seabed in our area. That’s why all the shellfish, crabs, clams, and mussels were affected by the oil spill,” Remulla said. Remulla declared a “no catch zone” for all shellfish in Cavite this week. He added that the provincial government would distribute food and cash assistance to the 25,145 displaced fisherfolk. In a statement on Monday, Pamalakaya Vice Chair Ronnel Arambulo expressed concern about the oil spill’s impact on the livelihood of fisherfolk. “Our worst fear happened. The oil spill spread to Manila Bay and affected the livelihood of many fishermen,” Arambulo said in Filipino. Remulla added that Cavite officials had started coordinating with national government agencies to help clean up the oil spill. Subscribe to our daily newsletter By providing an email address. I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy. Subscribe to our daily newsletter By providing an email address. I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy.

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