NOVEMBER 5-8, 2022 Volume 32 - No. 88 • 2 Sections – 22 Pages
More voting centers open in LA USA LA County reports rise County ahead of midterm elections in COVID case, warns DATELINE
FROM THE AJPRESS NEWS TEAM ACROSS AMERICA
by AJPRESS
of winter surge
LOS Angeles County voters can head to the polls AS the 2022 holiday season nears, Los over the weekend ahead of the midterm election on Angeles County health officials are warning Tuesday, November 8. Over 500 additional voting centers will open across residents of a possible winter surge as case rates are rising. The LA County Department of Public Health on Friday, Nov. 4 reported nearly a 10% increase in the seven-day average case rates compared to the week before. The 7-day average case count in the county is 1,083, a nearly 10% increase from one week ago when the 7-day average of 988 cases was reported. Over the past seven days, the average number of daily COVID-positive patients in LA County hospitals increased slightly to 403. The week before, the average daily COVID-positive patients per day was 389. Deaths, which typically lag hospitalizations by several weeks, have decreased slightly and they are at an average of 8 deaths reported each day this past week. Careful monitoring of case rates and early
the county starting Saturday, Nov. 5, enabling voters to cast their ballots in person or drop their vote by mail ballots. Last week, 118 vote centers were opened up during the early voting period. Starting Saturday, 640 locations throughout the county will be made
Easing of inbound travel restrictions OK’d to boost PH tourism by HELEN
FLORES Philstar.com
PAGE A2
What you don’t know can hurt: The facts about updated COVID vaccines THE updated vaccines have arrived, but surveys are showing that some people don’t know much about them — even though they could make a big difference as cooler weather and growing case numbers abroad signal another possible COVID-19 surge. “COVID is still with us,” said Dr. Neil Wingkun, an emergency physician at Houston Methodist. “It’s important to stay vigilant and up to date with facts about the updated vaccines and protection against COVID during the upcoming holiday season. As we bring together family, friends and loved ones, dive into celebration with peace of mind.” To make our communities aware of the updated vaccines, the national We Can Do This Campaign has been releasing new ads specific to Chinese, Filipino, Japanese, Korean, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, South Asian, Vietnamese, and the broader Pan Asian audiences. Our audience will see and
GIANT CHRISTMAS TREE. A worker uses a boom lift machine to place the Nativity star on this giant Christmas tree being set up at the Rizal Park on Friday, Nov. 4. As early as the start of the ‘ber’ months, Christmas carols fill the air inside malls and establishments, making the Philippines known to have the longest celebration of the Yuletide season. PNA photo by Alfred Frias
MANILA — To allow the Philippines’ tourism sector to catch up with that of neighboring countries, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has approved the recommendation of the government’s pandemic task force to further relax travel restrictions for inbound travelers. Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin, in a memorandum dated Oct. 28, said the President approved the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases’ Resolution No. 2, recommending the lifting of pre-departure testing requirement for fully vaccinated arriving passengers, whether Filipinos or foreign nationals. “Please be informed of the approval of IATF Resolution No. 2 subject to strict observance of other minimum health protocols and compliance with applicable laws, rules and regulations,” Bersamin PAGE A4
Inflation races to 14-year high by KRISTINA AND
MARALIT EIREENE JAIREE GOMEZ ManilaTimes.net
INFLATION in the country surged to 7.7 percent in October, the highest increase in 14 years, the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) reported on Friday, November 4. The rate is likely to rise further in the last two months of the year, the PSA said. It rose from 6.9 percent in September and almost doubled the 4.0 percent a year earlier. The increase was higher than the 7.3 percent median in The Manila Times' poll of analysts and was near the upper end of the PAGE A4 Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas' (BSP) 7.1 to 7.9
percent range for the month. The last time consumer price growth was higher was in December 2008 when it hit 8.2 percent. BSP Governor Felipe Medalla told Bloomberg on Friday that "our best guess is that it will peak either next month or the last month of the year." The stock market initially fell on the news but was lifted by last-minute bargain hunting. The benchmark Philippine Stock Exchange The storm affected 1,176,074 families or 4,124,267 people, 123,024 of whom are still in evacuation index ended the day up 29.42 points or 0.48 centers and 911,226 are seeking shelter elsewhere. Handout photo from the Philippine Coast Guard percent to 6,185.53. The peso, meanwhile, added 25 centavos to close at P58.55 to the PAGE A7
Marcos to push food security, disaster response at ASEAN by HELEN
President Ferdinand Marcos, Jr.
available. Those who are registered in LA County can vote at any location, outside of their city of residence. The ballot in this election is extensive and includes contests and candidates from the neighborhood and PAGE A2
FLORES, ELIZABETH MARCELO Philstar.com
MANILA — President Ferdinand Marcos, Jr. will raise several issues, including post-pandemic recovery, food security and disaster response, when he confers with fellow world leaders at the 40th and 41st Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Summits and Related Meetings in Phnom Penh, Cambodia next week. At a pre-departure briefing at Malacañang on Friday, November 4, Assistant Secretary Nathaniel Imperial of the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA)’s Office of Asian and Pacific Affairs said Marcos is also set to hold bilateral meetings with Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen and South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol in Phnom Penh. Imperial said meetings with other leaders are still being finalized ahead of his schedule to leave for Cambodia on Nov. 9. The ASEAN’s annual summit and other related meetings will happen from Nov. 10 to 13. This will be the first ASEAN summit to be held in person since the COVID-19 pandemic hit in 2020. Marcos is expected to present the Philippines’ post pandemic “economic recovery and transformation” and the country’s disaster management efforts to avert the negative impact of climate change, Malacañang photo PAGE A5
‘Paeng’ death toll climbs to 154 MANILA — The number of people who have died due to the onslaught of Severe Tropical Storm Paeng (international name: Nalgae) has risen to 154, according to the country’s disaster management agency. Of these deaths, 101 have been confirmed while 53 more are “for validation,” according to the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council. Bulk of the fatalities were reported in the BARMM where 63 people died, followed by Western Visayas and Calabarzon with 33 each. Five people died in Eastern Visayas, four each from Zamboanga Peninsula and Soccsksargen, three from Mimaropa, two each from Cagayan Valley, Central Luzon, Bicol and Central Visayas, and one from the CAR. The NDRRMC also reported
that 128 have been injured and 35 are still missing in the wake of Paeng. It also said that the storm affected 1,176,074 families or 4,124,267 people, 123,024 of whom are still in evacuation centers and 911,226 are seeking shelter elsewhere. The damage wrought by Paeng to agriculture and infrastructure is estimated by the NDRRMC to be at a total of around P5.62 billion. President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. placed Calabarzon, Bicol, Western Visayas and BARMM under a state of calamity for a period of six months unless he lifts it earlier. An average of 20 tropical cyclones pass through the Philippines annually. Scientists have warned that storms are becoming more powerful as the world continues to heat up because of climate change. (Xave Gregorio/Philstar.com)