BusinessMirror September 20, 2025

UA&P: BSP WILL MIRROR

By Cai U. Ordinario

THE Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) is expected to reduce rates further, mirroring the recent decision of the United States Federal Reserve.

This was according to the University of Asia and the Pacific (UA&P) in its latest Market Call report which stated that the Fed’s 25-basis-point reduction in US interest rates in mid-September signals the possibility that the BSP will follow suit.

“Fed’s 25-bps cut in mid-September with some 50 bps more to come later this year, BSP likely to mirror these,” UA&P economists said in its report.

However, the report said that a pause in monetary easing in October, after the Fed reduced policy rates in September, could help support the Philippine peso.

The local currency, UA&P said, averaged P57.085 against the dol-

lar in August. This is stronger compared to the previous average of P57.203 to the greenback in July.

“Coupled fundamentally with larger trade deficits in Q4 2025, this supports a slow march to the P58level,” the economists said.

“However, a Fed rate cut in September P58 level, timed with a BSP pause in October, could provide some short-term support for the peso,” they added.

Meanwhile, the economists maintained their 5.8- percent GDP outlook for the third quarter on the back of the recent uptick in inflation. They expect this increase in commodity prices to be temporary.

According to the report, the government’s spending will in-

n Billions lost in corruption-hit projects.

n Weakens disaster resilience.

n Reverses hard-won economic gains.

n Dampens investor & public confidence.

GUINIGUNDO: The sheer amounts involved in the corruptionladen projects and extent of the flood control issue reverses economic gains which the Philippines needs to lift millions from poverty.

crease on account of the continuation of infrastructure projects and less impact from political issues.

“With some positive base effects, we still see a 5.8-percent GDP expansion for the quarter, as we see the inflation uptick in August as transitory. NG [national govern-

ment] spending should accelerate for the rest of the year, with major infrastructure projects less affected by the corruption mess in Congress,” the economists said.

Recently, Global Source Partners Country Analyst Diwa Guinigundo, a former Deputy Governor of the Philippine Central Bank, warned that the controversy surrounding billions worth of flood control projects is bad news for the national government, which has struggled to meet its economic growth targets for the past three years.

Guinigundo said the flood control issue is also bad for the economy. He said the sheer amounts involved in the corruption-laden projects and extent of the flood control issue reverses economic gains which the Philippines needs to lift millions from poverty.

Guinigundo said the corruption in life-saving flood control projects weakens the country’s resilience to disasters as well as renders Filipino firms and households vulnerable to economic losses (See: https://businessmirror.com. ph/2025/09/11/flood-control-messdents-economic-gains/).

BSP limits large-value cash transactions to traceable channels to fight laundering

By Cai U. Ordinario

FILIPINOS are now advised to go through traceable channels for large-value cash transactions to reduce money laundering and other risks linked to the use of cash, according to the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP).

Under BSP Circular No. 1218 series of 2025, issued on 18 September 2025, large-value transactions above P500,000 or its equivalent in foreign currency must be conducted through checks, online fund transfers, direct credit to deposit accounts, or digital payments.

“The same limit applies to cash transactions in equivalent foreign currencies. The limit may be reached in a single transaction or series of transactions within one banking day,” the BSP said.

If BSP-Supervised Financial Institutions (BSFIs) encounter

withdrawals beyond P500,000 or its equivalent in a foreign currency, they should conduct enhanced due diligence (EDD) and, if warranted, file a suspicious transaction report.

The BSP said after completing EDD, BSFIs may allow the larger payout if the customer provides additional documents or proof of a legitimate business purpose.

The BSP said it also allows BSFIs to set even lower limits on large-value cash transactions, based on their risk assessment and the customer’s financial profile.

Through the reform, the BSP aims to strengthen measures against the use of cash for illegal activities, promote trust in the financial system, and ensure that it can respond to new risks.

The BSP said the Circular will take effect 15 calendar days following its publication in the Official Gazette or in a newspaper of general circulation in the Philippines.

Can nature-based defenses

hold

vs rising flood threats?

By Bless Aubrey Ogerio

GREENER landscapes still carry the promise of protection, but trees and mangroves alone cannot keep swelling waters at bay.

At a forum organized by Forest Foundation Philippines on September 9, experts underscored that as much as nature-based solutions (NBS) are vital in addressing the country’s flood woes, these must be reinforced by innovations and coordinated policies across agencies.

Dixon Gevana of the University of the Philippines Los Baños Forestry Development Center pointed to degraded ecosystems as a root cause, worsened by farmland conversions into industrial estates and built-up zones.

He said that while the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) is building an NBS support network, it cannot succeed unless agencies such as the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) and the Department of Agriculture (DA) move in step.

“Flood management should no longer rely only on grey infrastructure, but must also involve green,” Gevana said, adding that local governments could become strong champions if NBS is woven into their development plans.

Forest Foundation Philippines executive director Edwina Garchitorena echoed this stance, stressing that natural defenses are only part of a “total package” that must include engineering fixes and social interventions.

She warned that land use change in uplands and floodplains remains a critical driver of flooding and observed that agencies often “speak different languages” when pursuing projects.

“When DPWH builds coastal roads, its language is not the same as that of mangrove conservation. NBS should bridge those gaps, not pit conservation against development,” she said.

A systemic problem

THE stakes are rising as storms intensify. The Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration expected up to 16 cyclones to enter the Philippine Area of Responsibility between August and December 2025.

The total activity for the year is projected at 16 to 19, still near the historical norm of 19 to 20 storms annually.

For Simon Snoxell, head of cooperation at the Embassy of Canada to the Philippines, the urgency is clear.

He explained how flooding disrupted his daughter’s school twice during her first week in Metro Manila, an experience he said underscored how deeply the problem touches daily life and the economy.

“It is a very, very serious issue, and one that affects more residents in Metro Manila, including the economy,”

said, noting

Snoxell

AERIAL view of a coastal village and highway amid mangroves in Siargao. Experts warn that while mangroves and other nature-based solutions (NBS) provide vital protection against flooding, they must be reinforced by engineering innovations, coordinated policies, and strict land-use

ALDAR DARMAEV DREAMSTIME.COM

At Manila Forum, a pitch for PHL-China unity for peace, free trade, development

By Wes Cabangon

THE 14th Manila Forum for Philippines–China Relations convened this week at Shangri-La The Fort on September 17, 2025, bringing together policymakers, academics, and former officials to discuss the theme “Ensuring Continuing Peace and Security in the Asia–Pacific Region.”

One of the event’s most prominent speakers was Victor Gao, Vice President of the Center for China and Globalization, who delivered a sweeping address that ranged from global conflict and nuclear deterrence to shared wartime history and future development pathways for both nations.

Gao opened his remarks by underscoring the importance of free trade in both goods and services, warning against protectionism and unilateral trade wars. He highlighted the Philippines’s strong reliance on trade in services, urging Asean countries to “rise up and defend” open markets as the cornerstone of regional prosperity.

Lessons from global conflict TURNING to international security, Gao placed current crises—

from Ukraine and Gaza to tensions in South Asia—within a broader historical narrative. He reminded the audience that the world order established in 1945 was shaped not only by Western powers but also by China’s sacrifices in resisting Japanese aggression, where more than 35 million Chinese lives were lost over 14 years.

He drew a parallel between the Philippines and China under Japanese occupation, stressing that both peoples share a legacy of suffering and resistance. “The Chinese people and the Filipino people should be analyzed together because we fought against the same fascist regime in Tokyo,” he said.

On China–US relations: ‘Inevitability of peace’ ADDRESSING the theory of a com-

ing US-China war—often framed through Harvard’s “Thucydides Trap”—Gao dismissed it as a “fan-

tasy.” Instead, he advanced his own view: the “inevitability of peace” between two nuclear powers bound by mutual deterrence. “Between nuclear states you never fight a war, because if you fight a war, you will have mutually assured destruction,” Gao argued. Any attempt to instigate conflict, he warned, would push humanity to “stare into Armageddon”.

South China Sea and arbitration ON the South China Sea, Gao struck a cautious tone. While acknowledging recent confrontations, he noted that “they are only using water cannons” and urged both sides to avoid escalation.

He was particularly firm on arbitration, declaring that “arbi-

tration without consent is a violation of the rule of law.” As a Yaletrained lawyer, Gao criticized the idea of binding one party without its agreement, framing the 2016 arbitral ruling as outside legitimate international legal norms.

In a pointed historical reference, Gao cited the 1898 Treaty of Paris between Spain and the United States, which transferred the Philippines to American sovereignty. He emphasized that the treaty set the western boundary of Philippine territory at the 118th meridian, suggesting that “the birthright of the Philippines in the modern time had its western border clearly defined”.

This interpretation aligns with China’s long-standing rejection of

the Philippines’ extended maritime claims.

Despite his firm positions, Gao struck a conciliatory note on Philippines-China relations. He called for both countries to view each other as “friends rather than enemies,” emphasizing tourism, cultural exchange, and especially development cooperation.

“China has the largest financial pool, the largest manufacturing capabilities, and can work with the Philippines completely as equal,” he said. Echoing Deng Xiaoping’s maxim that “development is the hard truth,” Gao urged Manila to treat economic progress as its central priority, pointing to China’s own transformation since 1978.

Broader context THE Manila Forum, co-organized by the Association for Philippines–China Understanding (APCU) and the Chinese Embassy in Manila, serves as a platform for “track-two diplomacy.” Alongside Gao, speakers included Su Hao of China Foreign Affairs University, Ding Duo of the National Institute for South China Sea Studies, former National Security Adviser Hermogenes Esperon Jr., and former Presidential Spokesperson Rigoberto Tiglao.

Their presence underscored the event’s role in shaping narratives: promoting dialogue, resisting escalation, and framing China as both a historic ally and a future partner in development.

Victor Gao’s speech crystallized the duality of the Philippines–China relationship: firm disagreements over sovereignty and arbitration, but also calls for unity, shared history, and economic partnership. His ultimate message was clear: peace, security, and sustainable development are interlinked, and both nations must choose cooperation over conflict.

“Long live the Philippines,” he concluded—a reminder that, at least rhetorically, Beijing continues to frame Manila as a partner in peace, not a rival.

Can nature-based defenses hold vs rising flood threats?

that Canada has also been pursuing a “total package” of flood defenses in its own cities.

For her part, DENR assistant secretary Noralene Uy agreed that natural defenses can deliver results, but only with broad cooperation.

“Definitely, it can be done. It just takes political will,” she said. “It can be done, but it takes all of society, a whole-of-society approach, to undertake this effort.”

The DENR has targeted an additional three million hectares of reforestation by 2028, with 1.2 million hectares already mapped for rehabilitation through people’s organizations.

Forest cover, meanwhile, is currently estimated at seven million hectares, roughly 23 percent of the country’s land area.

Leveraging tech

SCIENTISTS and engineers are also building new tools to help anticipate and reduce flood risks.

In a separate event, Science Secretary Renato Solidum Jr. said the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) has been creating “digital twins” of cities and towns to simulate flooding under various infrastructure scenarios.

The initiative draws on the DREAM-LiDAR project, a collaboration between DOST and the University of the Philippines that has been producing high-resolution terrain maps since 2012. The data has allowed planners to generate flood hazard maps across major river basins and test drainage or flood-control designs before construction.

“From the digital twin, we can simulate, for example, you build a structure—will it help? Will it prevent the flood? Or how about if we widen the drainage?” Solidum said during the National Science and Technology Week kick-off on September 8 in Quezon City. Solutions must combine technology with ecosystem protection and active community involvement, he added.

“It must really be covered not only by geologists but also by geodetic engineers, civil engineers, hydraulic engineers, and of course, the community,” he said. “We also need to look at nature-based solutions, especially for coastal flooding.”

In August, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. reported that about 9,855 flood control projects had been completed between July 2022 and May 2025, costing some over P500 billion. Those efforts, however, have been overshadowed by controversy. Several reports revealed that several flood control budgets and projects may have been lost to corruption, costing the economy a billion pesos.

Filipino, French security execs urge united front in West Philippine Sea

By Malou Talosig-Bartolome

NATIONAL

Security Advi -

sor Eduardo Año and Rear

Adm. Guillaume Pinget, France’s Joint Commander for Asia-Pacific, called for deeper, institutionalized cooperation between Europe and the Indo-Pacific nations to confront a rising tide of asymmetric threats—ranging from cyberattacks and election interference to undersea cable sabotage and coercive maritime actions in the South China Sea.

Speaking at the Stratbase ADR Institute forum in Makati on Thursday, both officials warned that the global security architecture is being destabilized by irregular, multi-domain threats that exploit democratic openness, technological vulnerabilities, and geopolitical fault lines.

They emphasized that the war in Ukraine has intensified these risks, intertwining European and Indo-Pacific theaters in a shared struggle for stability.

“In Ukraine, every day, critical civilian infrastructure is being targeted,” Pinget said. “Online platforms are playing an increasingly worrying role in this concept. Shared common spaces—airspace, deep seabed, cyberspace, and maritime areas—have become the focus of renewed competition.”

Año echoed the concern, citing recent drone incursions into Polish airspace and sabotage of undersea cables in the Baltic Sea and off Taiwan.

“If incidents like these, along with multi-domain swarming of drones and weaponization of unmanned systems, do not alarm the world, we wonder what awaits the security of our boundaries and airspace,” he said.

The Ukraine-Russia war, Pinget noted, has exposed the fragility of global infrastructure and emboldened hybrid tactics that are now surfacing in the Indo-Pacific.

“We are facing an interweaving of crisis zones between Europe and the Indo-Pacific,” he said. “The illegal invasion of Ukraine and the support it receives from actors like North Korea underscore the urgency of deeper dialogue and stronger cross-regional cooperation.”

Año stressed that asymmetric threats are no longer confined to conventional warfare.

“They now transcend borders, exploiting openness, connectivity, and democratic systems,” he said. “They come in the form of cyberattacks, digital espionage, foreign information manipulation, and interference campaigns designed to polarize societies and disrupt elections.”

He called for joint cyber defenses and election protection. “We must link arms in developing and employing joint countermeasures against cyber intrusion and foreign interference and malign influence campaigns,” Año said.

“We can begin from sharing best practices in protecting elections and democratic institutions from manipulation and strengthening collaboration and cognitive warfare resilience.”

France’s pivot to the Indo-Pacific is rooted in both geography and strategic necessity.

With seven overseas territories and 1.6 million French citizens in the region, France holds the world’s second-largest Exclusive Economic Zone—90 percent of which lies in the Indo-Pacific.

“France is a resident nation of the Indo-Pacific,” Pinget said. “It is our responsibility to guarantee the protection of our citizens, the sovereignty of our territories, and the integrity of our exclusive economic zones.”

Pinget highlighted France’s military footprint, including 7,000 troops stationed across the region and regular deployments of highend assets such as the aircraft

See “WPS,” A4

Senator prods CCC to track greenhouse gas emissions

SEN. Sherwin Gatchalian has urged the Climate Change Commission (CCC) to track greenhouse gas emissions to mitigate the impact of climate change and improve the country’s flood control program.

“The CCC should show the science behind climate change to guide flood control projects. It’s easy to blame climate change, but if it’s truly the cause of increased flooding, we need actionable solutions like an effective flood control program,” Gatchalian said at the hearing on the CCC’s proposed 2026 budget.

DA eyes extension of rice import ban

By Ada Pelonia

THEDepartment of Agriculture (DA) is mulling over recommending the extension of the temporary ban slapped on imported rice amid improvements in palay prices.

Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. said he is inclined to recommend to President Marcos an extension of the current rice ban by as long as 30 more days.

“Pending data validation, I am now inclined to recommend that the President extend the ban for at least 15 to 30 days,” Laurel said in a statement.

The DA is expected to submit its recommendation on whether to extend or shorten the import moratorium by end-September.

Citing the agency’s preliminary data, the DA noted that farmgate prices of wet palay have increased in recent weeks.

“Before the import ban, prices of wet palay have fallen to around P8 to P10 per kilo. We are now seeing P17 per kilo in some areas of Mindanao,” Laurel said.

“In provinces like Isabela and Nueva Ecija, prices have risen to P13 to P14 per kilo. Although these prices are still not profitable for most farmers, they are an improvement.”

Marcos earlier issued an executive order, which suspended the inbound shipments of regular and well-milled rice starting September 1 until October 30, 2025.

The ban was imposed as part of the government’s efforts to prop up farmgate prices of palay and protect local farmers during the peak of the harvest season.

Laurel added that the volume of imported rice entering the country is a “significant factor” in determining palay prices, which prompted the initial recommendation to suspend imports during the harvest season.

Industry sources cited the unabated entry of cheaper imported rice as the reason behind the decline in palay prices.

Meanwhile, the DA also reiterated its support for amending the Rice Tariffication Law (RTL), which liberalized rice importation in 2019.

Among the proposed revisions to the RTL are restoring some regulatory functions to the National Food Authority (NFA), including the ability to intervene in the market and manage importation volumes in coordination with the DA.

Laurel said he is scheduled to meet with government officials to finalize the proposed amendments before submitting them to President Marcos, who has identified the bill as a legislative priority.

The said officials include Senator Francis “Kiko” Pangilinan, House Committee on Agriculture Chair and Quezon Rep. Mark Enverga, and Agrarian Reform Secretary Conrado Estrella III.

He also noted that recent changes in Senate and House leadership have not affected the chairmanships of the agriculture committees, which will play a critical role in pushing the proposed RTL amendments forward.

DTI extends deadline for securing Trustmark badge for online sellers

THE Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) has extended the deadline of application for the Trustmark digital badge for online merchants until December 31,2025, adding only around 10,000 merchants have applied for the mandatory e-commerce badge so far.

A social media post by DTI ECommerce Bureau, however, drew flak from small business, with most of them saying this could be another “money-making” scheme of the government.

Govt policies on RE make PHL attractive to investors

GOVERNMENT policies that support the installation of more renewable energy (RE) projects make the Philippines attractive to foreign investors, an official of the British Embassy Manila said.

“British businesses are willing to place their funds in the Philippines and are just looking for opportunities,” Lloyd Cameron, the British Embassy’s economic and climate counsellor, said in an interview Thursday night after the forum on clean energy transmission hosted by the British Chamber of Commerce Philippines in Makati City. Cameron said the government has given a strong market signal and “you’ve got really concrete action from the government, whether that’s the green lanes or recent developments, the extension of leases, exploring, making rightof-way, facilitating right-of-way issues, and anti-red tape.”

“I think it starts with, there’s a government in place that sent a really strong signal to the market that it wants to grow renewable energy capacity in the country, and that the Philippines is open for business and open for investment,” he told journalists.

With the Philippines being the second among emerging markets in the world for RE, according to market reports, Cameron said it is not impossible for investors to take a good look into investing the country.

“It’s a whole-of-government approach, and then it’s the passion and the ingenuity of Philippine businesses, as well, who can be partners in that,” he said.

RE accounts for about 22 percent of the country’s total energy mix, which the Department of Energy (DOE) targets to increase to 35 percent by 2030 and 50 percent by 2040.

“We need annual tracking of greenhouse gas emissions to know if we’re improving and winning the war against them and that’s the whole point of the CCC,” he emphasized.

Gatchalian said the CCC should not only focus on its compliance with the country’s international commitments but also zero in on making itself relevant to ordinary Filipinos. “We want the CCC to give us scientific solutions to climate change and be relevant to our constituents,” he added, noting that climatechange-related issues such as flooding currently resonate with a lot of Filipinos amid the discovery of anomalous flood control projects. Butch Fernandez

“Indicatively, it’s going to be up to the end of the year so we can better explain, better campaign and better promote natin why this is mandatory,” Eryl Royce R. Nagtalon, Officer-in-Charge for DTI’s E-Commerce Bureau told reporters on the sidelines of the media briefing for Trustmark compliance on Friday in Makati City.

The DTI E-Commerce Bureau official said the bureau hopes 500,000 merchants would register for the Trustmark.

In an earlier statement, the country’s Trade department announced that it is giving online merchants, e-retailers, e-marketplaces and digital platforms until September 30 to register for the E-Commerce Philippine Trustmark (Trustmark).

The social media post read: “REMINDER: All businesses engaged in e-commerce must comply with the mandatory Trustmark registration on or before 30 September 2025.”

Trade and Industry Secretary Cristina A. Roque said, however, that the DTI-registered Barangay Micro Business Enterprises’ (BMBEs) initial application fee worth P1,000 is waived for one year.

Based on the requirements to obtain a Trustmark, online merchants should: fill out the online application form, submit valid business name registration from the DTI, and business registration certifications from SEC or CDA, BIR Certificate of Registration, list of digital platforms or websites used, valid government-issued ID, stepby-step guide guide of internal redress mechanism and P1,130 application fee.

DTI’s Department Administrative Order (DAO) No. 25-12 explained that the Trustmark shall be the “permit for e-marketplaces, online merchants, e-retailers, digital platforms, and third-party platforms to use the internet for conducting e-commerce.”

“Issuance of the Trustmark shall signify that the products, goods, or services sold online by the holder comply with applicable standards and good e-commerce practices,” the Order also noted.

It is worth noting that DAO No. 25-12 made the registration for the digital badge mandatory. Under the previously issued DAO No. 2507, application for the Trustmark was only voluntary.

Roque explained that the growing number of consumer complaints prompted the Trade department to make the registration for the digital badge mandatory.

“The complaints are actually growing, so we need to establish certain rules to at least control, or at least minimize the selling of substandard products in the E-commerce platform,” the Trade chief noted.   Andrea E. San Juan

DOE Solar Energy Management Division chief Edward Neri, said during the event that this goal is backed by several measures, such as easing the foreign ownership limit on RE investments, giving preferential dispatch for all RE resources in the Wholesale Electricity Spot Market (WESM), instituting policy framework for offshore wind, and establishing the Energy Virtual One-Stop Shop (Evoss) through Republic Act (RA) 11r the Energy Virtual One-Stop Shop Act, to streamline the processes. Neri said the DOE has also put in place the Green Energy Auction program since 2022, and the final winners for the fifth auction will be announced in October. These efforts, he said, “show the government’s bid not only to ensure the increase in RE capacity, but also includes energy efficiency, adoption of emerging technologies and advance market technologies and a resilient grid for the energy sector.” PNA

Former WHO director urges urgent action for tobacco harm reduction

AFORMER director of the World Health Organization has called for urgent action on tobacco harm reduction in the Asia-Pacific region, where smoking prevalence is the highest in the world. Prof. Tikki Pang, senior global health consultant at the Center for Healthcare Policy and Reform Studies in Jakarta and previously the WHO Director of Research Policy and Cooperation, spoke during a webinar hosted by the Asia Forum on Nicotine (AFN).

The event, “The WHO FCTC [Framework Convention on Tobacco Control], 20 years on,” reviewed tobacco control efforts and the future of harm reduction.

Nancy Loucas, executive coordinator of the Coalition of Asia-Pacific Tobacco Harm Reduction Advocates (Caphra), underscored the scale of the challenge. “The fact is that Asia-Pacific, specifically Asia, has the highest number of global tobacco users. The number is staggering. It is 781 million people. That represents 63 percent

of the global total of people who use tobacco,” she said.

Loucas criticized the provisional agenda for the WHO FCTC conference in November, saying it wrongly dismisses harm reduction as a tobacco industry narrative.

Pang stressed the missed opportunity. “Despite the fact that Article 1 of the convention implicitly includes harm reduction as a component of tobacco control, there is a failure to acknowledge and support the use of safer alternative tobacco

products as an important strategy and tool to end smoking,” he said. He argued that the WHO’s stance contradicts science. “Despite the overwhelming evidence of the safety, efficacy and cost-effectiveness of these products, and the fact that 130 million people are actually using these safer alternatives, the WHO, FCTC and the COP have adopted a very strong anti-tobacco harm reduction stance, actually stating that these products are as harmful as combustible cigarettes and calling on its member states to ban them and actually

giving awards to countries which have done so,” Pang said.

While the FCTC has been credited with saving millions of lives since 2005, Pang pointed to its shortcomings. “The Asia-Pacific region bears a very significant burden of these harmful effects of smoking,” he said.

Pang urged advocates not to wait for WHO to shift positions but to build evidence-driven coalitions involving producers, consumers and investors, citing the International Federation of Pharmaceutical Manufacturers and

Associations (IFPMA) as a potential model.

“In the years that I’ve become a supporter for tobacco harm reduction, and aside from the overwhelming scientific evidence of its value and benefits to health and smoking, I have been struck by the support the cause has received from many quarters, senior former colleagues at the WHO, highly respected academics and professional societies, physicians on the front lines, civil society, consumer groups, and of course, industry,” Pang said.

Estrada, Villanueva still on carpet in flood-control probe–Lacson

By Butch Fernandez

THEIR accuser may have shown a “selective” memory, but Sens. Joel Villanueva and Jinggoy Estrada are still not yet cleared from the issue of millions of pesos in insertions in the General Appropriations Acts (GAAs) for 2023 and 2025, the Senate's chief prober said.

Senate President Pro Tempore Panfilo M. Lacson stressed this on Thursday evening as he said that allowing the two to face their accusers does not mean they are cleared.

Estrada and Villanueva have both strongly denied the allegations, and warned the former Bulacan assistant district engineer who made it that the penalties for perjury have been made tougher.

However, Lacson said on X after Thursday’s hearing of the Senate blue-ribbon committee that he chairs, “By any measure, Senators Villanueva and Estrada have not been cleared, at least on the issue of budget insertions involving infrastructure projects in Bulacan worth

Continued from A3

carrier Charles de Gaulle, which visited the Philippines earlier this year.

“The deployment of our most strategic asset illustrates France’s ability to produce multi-domain effects across the region,” he said.

France also participates in joint exercises like Varuna and Shakti with India, Super Garuda Shield with the United States and Indonesia, and multilateral drills such as Balikatan in the Philippines, Rimpac in Hawaii, and

P600 million and P355 million respectively, as alleged by Engineer Brice Hernandez.”

At Thursday’s hearing of the committee, Lacson said P600 million supposedly for flood control projects in Bulacan was found in the Unprogrammed Fund under the 2023 GAA, which Hernandez earlier linked to Villanueva. Villanueva had denied the allegation. Lacson noted the P600 million was culled from documents provided by Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian contained in the slides shown at the start of the hearing. Hernandez had pointed out during Thursday’s hearing that Villanueva’s alleged flood control projects came from unprogrammed funds in the 2023 GAA. “There are seven to eight items

Pitch Black in Australia.

“France is committed in defending an open, secure, and inclusive Indo-Pacific free from all forms of coercion,” Pinget said. Año called for closer coordination in maritime security, especially in contested waters.

“Shared stakes and closer coordination in freedom of navigation and stability—especially across the troubled and turbulent waters of the Taiwan Strait, the South China Sea, the West Philippine Sea, and East China Sea—should be our main armors in conflict prevention and diplomacy,” he said.

He also warned against the

worth P75 million each, exactly P600 million,” Lacson said, but told Hernandez he had a “selective memory” as he could not answer Lacson’s other questions.

“I’m telling you,  hindi pwedeng  selective dito Pag nangako kang magsasabi ng totoo sabihin mo, hindi lang kung  convenient [I’m telling you, you cannot be selective here. If you promise to tell the truth, it must be the whole truth, not what’s convenient for you],” he told Hernandez.

On the other hand, Lacson said his office found in the regular budget of the 2025 GAA the P355 million in infrastructure projects in Bulacan that Hernandez linked to Sen. Jinggoy Estrada. Estrada similarly denied Hernandez’s allegations.

Lacson, in another post on X, said he allowed the two senators to take part in the blue-ribbon committee hearing because it is a person’s basic right to face his accuser.

“It is a person’s basic right to confront his accuser. In case you didn’t notice, I did not clear the two senators on the issue of budget insertions because the budget books validate Brice Hernandez’s allegations based on my own staff’s research, at least in the case of Senator Estrada,” he said.

“Every person, ordinary or senator, has equal rights. I actually consulted my legal staff before making that decision to allow

weaponization of domestic laws to override international norms, citing China’s recent plan to declare a nature reserve in Scarborough Shoal.

“Such attempts tell the world that respect for international law and rule-based order is now being put to the side to give way to selfserving and coercive domestic laws,” Año said.

Beyond defense, Año urged partners to explore diplomatic alternatives that reduce dependency on any single country.

“Developing assistance, education, infrastructure, and health which offer partners choices beyond dependence on a single country such as China is something we can work on together,” he said.

He emphasized the Association of Southeast Asian Nation’s role in maintaining regional stability. “Though imperfect, Asean’s centric mechanisms are crucial for dialogue and de-escalation,” Año said, calling for coordination with the G20, BRICS, the United Nations, and other minilateral frameworks.

Pinget reinforced France’s support for regional cybersecurity efforts, including partnerships with India and Indonesia to establish national cyber centers and training

them. On the other hand, the two senators have not been cleared of the budget insertions under the 2023 and 2025 GAA’s. I made that very clear today,” he added. Estrada expects fairness from ICI IN a separate statement, Estrada signalled he was pinning his hopes on the investigation to be conducted by the Independent Commission for Infrastructure (ICI), which was tasked to investigate all flood-control projects over three administrations.

“Gugulong na ang imbestigasyon ng at umaasa ako na mabibigyan ako ng isang patas at makatarungang imbestigasyon, at tuluyang malilinis ang aking pangalan mula sa mga walang basehang akusasyon na ipinupukol laban sa akin.” [The investigation is under way and I trust that I will get a fair and just investigation, and I can fully clear my name from the baseless accusations against me].

Estrada added, partly in Filipino: “My faith and confidence is full that the truth will come out in the ICI investigation and the truly guilty will be known. It is my earnest expectation that the ICI will recognize and unmask Mr. Brice Hernandez for what he really is—an incredible and unreliable witness whose allegations have repeatedly collapsed under scrutiny, and whose fabrications cannot stand against facts.”

programs for Pacific island nations.

“France is particularly exposed to hybrid strategies and threats, especially in its overseas territories,” he said.

The forum also marked the release of a European Council on Foreign Relations study on asymmetric threats, which Pinget said will guide future policy coordination between Euro-Atlantic and Indo-Pacific actors. “This study will serve as the basis for our exchanges today,” he said.

Año concluded with a call for sustained, institutionalized cooperation. “As we forge a shared future, I must emphasize the importance of sustained engagement and longterm cooperation between Europe and the Indo-Pacific,” he said.

“Regular cross-regional platforms ensure our momentum. But going forward, they need to be proactive, institutionalized, and enduring.”

“The way ahead for us should be about innovation, strategy, and harnessing new technologies as tools for collective security,” Año added.

As tensions rise in the West Philippine Sea and beyond, both leaders underscored the need for solidarity, burden-sharing, and strategic alignment.

By Jovee Marie N. dela Cruz

SPEAKER Faustino Dy III on Thursday revoked the travel clearance of Party-list Rep. Zaldy Co of Ako Bicol and ordered him to return to the Philippines within 10 days, stressing that his immediate presence is required.

In a letter dated September 18, 2025, Dy informed Co that “your existing Travel Clearance for your personal trip is hereby revoked effective immediately.”

“This revocation is issued in the paramount interest of the public and due to the existence of pressing national matters requiring your physical presence,” said Dy.

The Speaker said that “in the exigency of service, you are hereby directed to return to the Philippines within ten [10] calendar days from your receipt of this notice.”

“Your immediate return is necessary to address the aforementioned matters with urgency,” he added.

ABy Rex Anthony Naval

NUMBER of uniformed police personnel have been placed on standby, ready to secure the Independent Commission for Infrastructure (ICI) once requested.

This, after the ICI hit the ground running in looking into flood control and other government infrastructure projects, starting with an inspection in Quezon City and issuing summons to one of the dismissed officials of the Department of Public Works and Highway (DPWH) Bulacan’s First Engineering District.

The acting National Police Chief, Lt. Gen. Jose Melencio Nartatez Jr., said the PNP’s preparation for the ICI’s security needs is in response to the goal of President Marcos to ferret out the truth about the flood control projects across the country.

Dy told Co that his immediate and strict compliance is expected, and that “failure to comply with this directive within the prescribed period shall be construed as a refusal to subject yourself to the lawful processes of the House of Representatives and may result in the initiation of appropriate disciplinary and legal actions.” Co, former House Committee on Appropriations chairman, has been dragged into the controversy surrounding the 2025 national budget, which critics claim included questionable insertions for various infrastructure projects, particularly floodcontrol projects.

Also a joint affidavit filed by spouses Curlee and Sarah Discaya, alleged that certain lawmakers, including Co, were supposedly recipients of “commissions” from flood control projects.

Co, however, has denied the accusations, stressing that he had no involvement in any scheme to collect commissions.

Dy cancels Co’s travel clearance PNP ready to secure ICI

“We in the PNP support the public call for transparency and accountability in this particular issue that was exposed by no less than the President, our CommanderIn-Chief,” Nartatez said.

“And we are also ready to expand the security coverage to all those who will compose the Independent Commission for Infrastructure because of the sensitivity of the task given to them,” Nartatez added. The ICI is composed of retired Supreme Court Associate Justice Andres Reyes Jr. as chairman; former Public Works Secretary Rogelio “Babes” Singson and SGV and Co. country managing partner Rossana Fajardo as members. and, Retired PNP general and now Baguio City Mayor Benjamin Magalong was named consultant of the commission. Nartatez said the force is ready to provide security througout the investigation period.

Mindanao’s typhoon gateway trains 500 disaster responders

By Manuel T. Cayon

DAVAO CITY—Davao Oriental, one of three typhoon gateway provinces in Mindanao, will add 500 more responders at the village level to expand the reach of government response to natural calamities, the Office of Civil Defense-XI said.

“We will train 500 purok-level responders in Davao Oriental in an effort to prepare the communities in cases of emergency situations like flooding and landslides,” said OCD-XI Regional Director Ednar Dayanghirang.

The training will start later this month.

He said 500 purok level disaster responders will be just for the province of Davao Oriental, and the pilot area is barangay Tubaon in the town of Tarragona upon the request of Gov. Nelson Dayanghirang.

Dayanghirang said a purok level response unit will be important “especially that some puroks are far from the barangay center and so response from the barangay will take time.”

He said he will also persuade the other governors in the Davao Region to adapt the same innovation.

Since the typhoons began hitting Mindanao in 2011, Davao Oriental and the two Surigao provinces have become the common entry pathways.

Typhoon Sendong was the world’s second most deadly disaster that year, killing more than 1,000 with more than 1,000 others reported missing. The following year, Typhoon Pablo, a rare Category 5 tropical storm, also killed more than 1,000 persons and another 1,000 missing as it stirred a crashing mudslide in the interior town of New Bataan, in Compostela Valley, now Davao de Oro province.

Both typhoons smashed in deadly fashion the long-time image of Mindanao as a typhoon-free island.

He said the purok-level disaster responders is an innovation in the government concept of disaster response. With a response unit in each purok, the smaller divisions in a barangay, “this will make them more responsive to calamities and emergencies in an area particularly if a barangay encompasses a large and remote area.”

Editor: Angel R. Calso • Saturday, September 20, 2025 A5

Seniors benefit from ‘Handog ng Pangulo’

By Jeanevive D. Abangan

TAGUM CITY, Davao  del Norte

—“The government must be felt by all.” National Security Adviser Eduardo M. Año conveyed this thrust of President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. during the nationwide launching of “Handog ng Pangulo: Serbisyong Sapat para sa Lahat” on September 13.

In his address during the HNP program in Davao del Norte, Año shared his views about the expressed dedication of the President to government service.

“President Bongbong often said that the government must be felt in every barangay, every community, every family, and he was the one reminding us that civil service is a www.businessmirror.com.ph

After

privilege, Año said during the HNP Program held at Davao del Norte Sports and Tourism Complex where the HNP caravan of services was launched as a way of marking the 68th birthday of the President.

“This is the inspiration and guidance of every civil servant like me, to continue striving for the welfare of every Filipino,” he added.

Año said that he was in Tagum City, Davao del Norte representing

53 years, we’re still plagued by the original sins of Martial Law

AMASSIVE indignation rally against corruption in high places is planned on Sunday, September 21, 2025. It also marks the 53rd anniversary of Ferdinand E. Marcos declaring Martial Law, which lasted for over 20 years.

The significance of Martial Law may be lost on many young people who plan to go to the said rally. Perhaps from the perspective of members of the millennial and Gen Z generations, the Martial Law era is irrelevant to the present. Oblivious, mis-informed, or not informed enough, they will not see the connection.

Loyal Marcos supporters who will join the rally may perhaps even harbor the fantasy that the era of Martial Law was the golden age in our country’s history. As I will explain, they may need to think again. For as it is said, the sins of the fathers are visited upon the children. Although God does not punish people directly for the sins that their fathers commit, their fathers’ sins often reverberate, and the consequences can be felt for generations to come.

provincial overlord of Leyte. Even the head of the armed forces was a cousin. When his son came of age, he assumed the provincial governorship. The family’s grip on power at the national and local level was firm and endures even now. The same family, now encompassing members of his extended family, remains the undisputed kingpins in their stronghold in the so-called Solid North. Guess who’s Speaker of the House and deputy speaker? His cousins hold Leyte in their sway. So, the dynasty paradigm that started with the strongman’s family has now become part of our political system. All the long-reigning rigodon dynasties can now simply point to President BBM: don’t look at us, we just copied your family.

2. Kleptocracy

In the same way that Billy Joel’s old song keeps saying “we didn’t start the fire” again and again, I like to point out that the rot in our system that our young people find so revolting nowadays has its beginnings 53 years ago.

Let me call them the original sins of Martial Law.

1. Political Dynasty As early as the 1970s, the pattern of having one family hold the reins of power was set.

Do a little research and you will know who the original political dynasty was. The facts are when the author of martial law was in power, his wife was the powerful Governor of Metro Manila and at the same time Minister of Human Settlements, his younger sister was the governor of their home province. His daughter, the eldest child, was put in charge of the then newly established Sangguniang Kabataan. His brother was head of Medicare, forerunner of today’s Philhealth. The brother of his wife, was made Ambassador to the US. Another in-law was the

The word is now being revived by some political analysts. But I learned it first during the Martial Law years. It is from the Greek word for “thief”, or “I steal”, and krátos for “power, rule.” I prefer to call it “thievocracy.” During martial law, our country was ruled by kleptocrats who used unbridled political power for personal gain at the expense of the governed. While he was claiming to save the country from chaos and communism, the late dictator was secretly stashing millions, no billions, of the country’s money in an intricate network of Swiss Banks.

Let the facts speak for themselves. On July 15, 2003, the Supreme Court of the Philippines ruled that over P25 billion worth of Marcos assets were considered illgotten wealth. In September 1997 the Swiss Federal Court affirmed Marcos’s bank deposits were of criminal provenance. Records also show that on January 23, 2004, the Presidential Commission on Good Government (PCGG) remitted the amount of P35 billion from Marcos’s Swiss deposits to the national coffers. In 2014, PCGG recovered the remaining US$29 million, which formed part of the multimillion dollar Swiss bank deposits in two West LB accounts in Singapore. As we natives say, nakakalula, nakakawindang! Compared to these amounts, the billions of kickbacks now being

exposed in current congressional investigations are peanuts.

The accompanying fruit of plunder is ostentatious display and flaunting of wealth and power. One needs only to look at this period to find that the practice of billion-peso confidential funds being wasted on personal caprices started way, way back then. It was said that the late dictator’s wife used the PNB (then government owned) and the country’s Central Bank as her personal banks, which obligingly shouldered all her shopping purchases from paintings, jewelry, shoes and clothes. To cite just one display of her wanton extravagance, in 1981, the Los Angeles Times reported that the auction organized by Sotheby Parke Bernet had to be cancelled because “Imelda Marcos purchased the entire contents of the apartment before the auction.” The report was referring to the $5-million collection of rare 17th- and 18thCentury English paintings, furniture and pottery from the apartment of philanthropist Leslie R. Samuel.

addicts as animals and inhuman, so it would be easier for people to accept “tokhang.”

The police and military would always say they were killed in encounters, similar to the “nanlaban” justification of the PNP. But subsequent forensic examinations revealed unspeakable horrors of such as torture, rape, disembowelment, brains being taken out and stuffed inside stomachs, always ending in summary executions.

The lives of bright, idealistic youth leaders were cut short under the Marcos regime. Many of them never made it past their 40s. Sadly, the vacuum left by decimated young leaders has been filled in by the mediocre sons and daughters of traditional politicians who supported the Marcos regime.

The Italians have a term for this extravagant lifestyle: la dolce vita.

In the words of one sitting senator: “Sarap ng buhay” (Life is so good).

That dark chapter of history saw the country’s coffers looted with no accountability even as the economy suffered a steep downturn. No wonder the Philippines soon became known as “The Sick Man of Asia.”

Yes, we might have been able to get back some of the stashed wealth, but the sad fact is that no one in the late dictator’s family, no crony, no Martial Law era general and government official has been put to jail even now. What Martial Law left us with is a numbed society that has forgotten to be outraged by excess and abuse. We have become blasé to having leaders who enrich and entrench themselves in power by stealing from the people with impunity. We just cynically say “pare-pareho lang silang corrupt.”

3. EJK

During Martial Law, citizens were subjected to horrific human rights abuses. Salvaging and involuntary disappearances perpetuated by agents of the state were par for the course. Tens of thousands of people faced various forms of torture, political dissidents were imprisoned, and at least 3,240 were summarily executed from 1972 to 1981.

Duterte who admired the authoritarian style of the late dictator picked up where he left off and employed the same tactics in his war on drugs. In the same way Marcos labeled all youth activists as “communists,” Duterte demonized drug

the President who he said wanted to convey thanks to the Dabaonons. With the nationwide simultaneous holding of HNP, he said the Filipinos were participating in the President’s birthday celebration, “because it is he who wants these services to be delivered to you.”

150 elderly in Ilocos Norte receive cash gifts IN Laoag City, cash gifts amounting to a total P1.5 million were divided among 150 octogenarians and nonagenarians from the cities of Laoag and Batac and the municipality of San Nicolas in Ilocos Norte on Saturday as part of the “Handog ng Pangulo: Serbisyong Sapat para sa Lahat” program. The National Commission of Senior Citizens (NCSC) facilitated the payout and caravan of services held in three venues. Under Republic Act No. 11982 (Expanded Centenarians Act), all

Filipinos who turn 80, 85, 90 and 95 will receive a cash gift of P10,000.

Eighty one year-old Caridad Salvador from Barangay 27, Laoag City said in a media interview that she is grateful to the government.

“Being single all my life, I am very happy that I received a cash gift from the government. This will be used for my maintenance medicines. Thank you, Mr. President. We love you very much,” she said. For 80-year-old Jose Ballesteros from Barangay 12, also in this city, the money will be used for the repair of his house damaged by a previous typhoon.

“I am glad to receive the amount for my family,” Ballesteros said as he thanked President Marcos for thinking of the welfare of senior citizens. Through the efforts of NCSC, it is expected that over P2.9 billion in financial aid will be distributed to 275,000 senior citizens across the country this year Leilanie

70 seniors receive cash gifts in ‘Handog ng Pangulo’ event

There are other mortal and venial sins such as NEPO BABIES, AYUDA MENTALITY and EPAL that can be traced back to the martial law years, but let me stop here. Hopefully I have given you enough to enable you to make the connection between then and now.

The fact that we are still having these issues is a frightening sign of how far our politics and governance have eroded for the past 53 years.

Today we have as president another Ferdinand Marcos, albeit with a Jr. Surprisingly, this Marcos seems to be pushing the right buttons in the second part of his term, as if to make up for the original sins of his father’s martial law.

I am willing to suspend my disbelief and keep an open mind regarding him in spite of his family’s tarnished legacy and his family’s unrepentant attitude regarding the past. His “mahiya naman kayo” pronouncement sounds hollow and hypocritical to us who lived through the martial law years.

This is why we must also stay vigilant. The ranks of those who remember martial law and its horrors are thinning year after year. We must struggle against forgetting, for we are still a long way from seeing a corrupt-free nation.

What gives me hope is that the Gen Z and Gen Alpha now have the power of technology to prevent the sins of the past from being committed again.

To the young members of the new generation who will be joining the rally, may you not be corrupted by the system. I pray that you summon the courage to speak truth to power. Put to work the panopticon power of digital technology combined with mass action to ensure that any act of kleptocracy, impunity, tyranny and state-sanctioned EJK violence will no longer have any place in your future.

LAKE SEBU, South Cotabato— “Bong salamat, bong salamat (Big thanks, big thanks),” whispered T’boli elder Ganay Mendal Bongon, 86, as her wrinkled hands clutched the P10,000 cash gift she received from the national government like a prized treasure.

Still sprightly and chatty, she laughed and smiled between stories of life in her community and her work as a beadmake—a skill she proudly keeps alive in her twilight years.

Bongon was one of four octogenarians from Lake Sebu who received their cash gifts on Saturday under Republic Act 11982 or the Expanded Centenarians Act as part of a nationwide simultaneous special cash gift distribution.

Dubbed “Handog ng Pangulo,” the event coincided with the 68th birthday of President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. In General Santos City, another 66 senior citizens were honored in a separate distribution and caravan of services held at Robinsons Place, bringing the total beneficiaries in Region XII (Soccsksargen) to 70 and P700,000 in cash gifts.

Reaching IP communities

DR. Rochelle Gajete-Oco, National Commission of Senior Citizens-Soccsksargen (NCSC-12) Director, said they chose Lake Sebu as among the priority sites to highlight the importance of reaching out to and bringing the government’s services closer to the people, especially Indigenous Peoples communities.

“We’re very happy that we chose Lake Sebu and just seeing the smiles of our elders is a great inspiration for us to work harder and do better,” she said. The beneficiaries also underwent free health checks from the Lake Sebu Municipal Health Office, while NCSC handed out dental kits and shared health advice.

The activity was joined by Lake Sebu Mayor Antonio Fungan Jr., councilors Vicente Somido and Cynthia Fitan, Office of Senior Citizens Affairs (OSCA) staff, and officers of the Federation of Senior Citizens Associations of the Philippines (FSCAP) municipal chapter. Fungan, in his message, reaffirmed the local government’s commitment to prioritize the welfare of senior citizens.

He shared that Lake Sebu has a standing ordinance allocating one percent of its national tax allotment to programs for the elderly and persons

with disabilities.

“But we will be working on increasing the share for our senior citizens. We will allocate the full one percent so we can adopt and implement more programs and services for them,” he said.

Beyond cash gifts

OCO also showcased NCSC’s flagship programs such as the Senior Citizens Community Care Center and Senior Citizens Action for Development and Nation-Building.

She cited potential partnerships with Lake Sebu on health, wellness, livelihood and the improved rollout of the Expanded Centenarians Act.

Known as the tourism capital of Region 12, Oco said Lake Sebu is an ideal pilot site for an NCSC-Department of Tourism collaboration that offers training programs for seniors to become local tour guides. With its rich industries like T’nalak weaving and bead-making, she said senior citizens can continue to contribute meaningfully to both culture and the economy.

Caravan of services

MEANWHILE , in General Santos City, the caravan of services brought together a wide network of partners: Philippine Dental Association, Unilab Inc., General Santos Medical School Foundation Inc., Mindanao State University Colleges of Law and Medicine, Lingap Diwa Foundation, Philippine Red Cross GensanSarangani Chapter, Robinsons Mall Gensan, the city government, OSCA Gensan, OJO Eyewear, Life Extension Philippines, FSCAP Gensan, and the Family Planning Organization of the Philippines. The event offered free eye, dental, and medical checkups, legal consultations, and the distribution of dental kits—expanding support to seniors beyond the cash gifts.

NCSC Commissioner Edwin Espejo, who also graced the event, honored the beneficiaries for reaching milestone ages as well as their legacy and contributions to their communities and the country as a whole.

“We are committed to ensuring that our senior citizens receive the services they deserve, and that policies and pro

FOUR Tboli elders of Lake Sebu, South Cotabato receive cash gifts of P10,000 each under the Expanded Centenarians Act, dental kits and other services as part of the nationwide caravan of services of the National Commission of Senior Citizens on September 13, 2025. The event was led by (from left) town councilor Vicente Somido, Lake Sebu Mayor Antonio Fungan Jr., NCSC-Soccsksargen Director Dr. Rochelle Gajete-Oco and town councilor Cynthia Fitan.

PHOTO BY ALLEN V. ESTABILLO

OCTOGENARIANS and nonagenarians from the cities of Laoag and Batac, and the municipality of San Nicolas in Ilocos Norte receive cash gifts of P10,000 each on September 13, 2025. The National Commission of Senior Citizens facilitated the payout. PHOTO COURTESY OF MARY THERESE DANCEL ANCHETA

Adriano /PNA

AFP Photo

PHOTO: Getty Images

BusinessMirror

Studies find that digital marketers are targeting young people in food and drink ads

ON social media, the hashtag #obesity has been used millions of times on static posts and videos. On TikTok alone, the current count is over 200,000 posts, excluding those on #obesityawareness, #obesitysurvivor, and many others. In the comments sections of those posts are snarky and rude statements made by trolls and “real” people alike so I say, “Brave is the fat person who posts their journey on social media with the #obesity hashtag.”

It is tough being obese or overweight today because the standards of society are stringent when it comes to the way they think people should look. If you are a teenager, you also probably grew up being bombarded by digital marketing targeting you that are related to food and drink. At the European Congress on Obesity (ECO) 2025, Gastón Ares, PhD, adjunct professor of sensometrics and consumer science at the University of the Republic in Montevideo, Uruguay, talked about how the dietary habits of adolescents and teenagers have been reshaped by digital marketing.

“Digital marketing is one of the key drivers of unhealthy diets during adolescence today. Adolescents are constantly exposed to messages—on Instagram, YouTube, TikTok—of people consuming fast food, soda, sweetened beverages. It’s become a part of adolescent identity,” said Ares, as quoted in the article Obesity by Stealth: Marketing Unhealthy Food to Teens written by Becky McCall published in Medscape. com.

I remember that McDonald’s came to the Philippines when I was in college or high school and we had it probably four times a year, maximum. These days, it is normal for children and teenagers to have fast food every day, sometimes twice in a day. It is convenient, easy and inexpensive. But it is also because of digital marketing that people now think it

is okay.

According to the Food and Nutrition Research Institute, 39 percent of Filipino adults—or nearly 4 out of 10 aged 20 to 59—are obese. Obesity is a condition that is closely linked to serious illnesses such as heart disease and diabetes. It is not just the result of overeating.

A landmark study by Unicef co-authored by Dr. Emma Boyland and Dr. Mimi Tatlow-Golden showed that children in the Philippines are being knowingly targeted by marketing for unhealthy food products high in sugar, salt and fat. The study, released in March 2021, showed that 99 percent of social media marketing posts analyzed were not suitable for marketing to children, based on World Health Organization criteria.

Unicef looked at over 1,000 ads from top Filipino food brands on Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube and less than 10 met health standards. Around 72 percent of posts appealed to children and 84 percent to teenagers. According to the analysis of the WHO criteria for the Western Pacific Region, fewer than 1 percent of the over 1,000 marketing posts analyzed were permitted for marketing to children.

The study found that the food and drinks in the ads targeted toward young people were either too salty or too sugary.

In connection with this, Watsons Philippines has

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announced its partnership with global healthcare company Novo Nordisk to offer free obesity screenings in select Watsons stores. The initiative aims to promote early detection, raise awareness, and provide guidance on managing obesity and its related health risks. The in-store activation will run for three months across 18 Watsons branches, offering free clinics every Saturday from 11 am to 6 pm. The screenings will be conducted by trained healthcare providers who will be on-site to conduct assessments and provide expert advice to customers.

“Partnering with Novo Nordisk strengthens our commitment to making preventive care more accessible and affordable. By offering free obesity screenings in our stores, we empower families with the knowledge and tools to take control of their health and live healthier lives,” said Joweeh Liao, Watsons Philippines director for Health Business Unit, Finance and Property Development.

“We at Novo Nordisk, in partnership with Watsons Philippines, are committed to raising the awareness and understanding of the public about obesity. Through the screening initiative, we aim to make screening for obesity more accessible, provide a more comprehensive assessment of a person’s obesity risk and guide them in taking control of their well-being,” said Wei Sun, Novo Nordisk Philippines general manager.

BY RIZAL RAOUL REYES

HONG KONG, the former British colony, is an ideal destination for Filipino investors looking to expand into the innovation and technology sector, according to the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR).

In a recent press briefing, Alpha Lau, director-general, The Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, said low taxes, business-friendly policies, and strategic location are key factors to entice Filipino investors. “The government has made significant investments and implemented policies to foster this growth, creating an environment ripe for opportunity.”

Lau said the city’s investment promotion agency, Invest Hong Kong, is actively encouraging Philippine businesses to take advantage of its strong and supportive ecosystem.

She said Hong Kong is actively developing as a hub for innovation and technology, with a strong focus on strategic industries and a supportive ecosystem. Further, the government has made significant investments and implemented policies to transform the city into an international technology center.

According to Lau, Hong Kong’s innovation and technology sector is characterized by several key strengths such as high global rankings, strong government support, and a thriving startup ecosystem.

Lau said Hong Kong has prioritized innovation and technology, pouring resources into strategic research and development hubs like InnoHK, which focuses on life sciences and AI, and providing infrastructure through organizations like the Hong Kong Science and Technology Parks Corporation (HKSTP) and Cyberport.

As a “super connector” between mainland China and the rest of the world, Lau said Hong Kong has a unique position within the Greater Bay Area (GBA) that allows businesses to leverage mainland manufacturing and market opportunities while benefiting from Hong Kong’s world-class R&D infrastructure and strong intellectual property (IP) protection.

Lau said the city boasts a simple and low tax system, with a profits tax of only 8.25 percent on the first HK$2 million and 16.5 percent after that.

It also offers a free flow of capital and information, and a world-class infrastructure that makes it easy for Philippine companies to set up and scale operations.

For Filipino firms, she said Hong Kong isn’t just a place to invest—it’s a launchpad for regional expansion. Many companies already use Hong Kong as an intermediary for trade and

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in the works for franchise’s 40th anniversary

creativity, imagination and adventure that Mario has brought to life for fans across generations and around the world,” said Illumination’s CEO Chris Meledandri.

can still expect the same fun as they did the first time as the revealed cast include Chris Pratt returning as Mario, Anya Taylor-Joy as Peach, Charlie Day as Luigi, Jack Black as Bowser, Keegan-Michael Key as Toad, and Kevin Michael Richardson as Kamek. Illumination Studios—Nintendo’s partner for the first movie—will be back for this sequel.

“As we celebrate Mario’s 40th anniversary, it’s an opportunity on the four decades of

Announced also in this Direct was Super Mario Galaxy and Super Mario Galaxy 2 games for Switch. Originally released on Wii, fans can now play the game on the Switch console with both a digital and physical release on October 2. Fans are excited for the movie, saying they love that Nintendo acknowledged how popular these games were.

The Super Mario Galaxy Movie is set to be in theaters by April 2026. BY PATRICK VILLANUEVA

A6 Saturday, September 20, 2025 •

EXECUTIVE from Watsons Philippines and Novo Nordisk pose for a photo after signing the two companies’ partnership for free obesity screenings.

From left: Geraldine Perez, market access and business development director, and Wei Sun, general manager, both from Novo

BusinessMirror

Realme 15 Pro 5G: No plus, no problem?

THE realme 15 Pro 5G arrives not with a bang, but with a question: “What happened to the Pro+?” Having reviewed the flagship of the number series since the realme 9 Pro+, I’ve gotten used to seeing that model carry the top-tier mantle while the Pro played a more balanced role.

This year, realme flips the script. There’s no Pro+ in sight, and the realme 15 Pro 5G steps up as the flagship of the series. It’s a risky move, especially with a price tag that mirrors last year’s Pro+.

If another model is waiting in the wings, realme is keeping it close to the chest. For now, all bets are on the 15 Pro—but does it deliver?

DESIGN AND BUILD: SLIM, DURABLE, SAFE

REALME’S number series has always been a playground for experimentation. The realme 14 Pro+ debuted the world’s first color-changing back panel, a finish that polarized fans but turned heads. With the realme 15 Pro, the brand goes back to a more conventional formula. It comes in two finishes: Flowing Silver which has a glossy, reflective, glasslike back. It feels premium, smooth in the hand, and shines under direct light; and Velvet Green for those who prefer a leather-textured, slightly more understated finish.

Both versions use a “one-piece back cover” design reminiscent of iPhones, with curved edges that feel refined. At 7.79mm thin (7.84mm for Velvet Green) and 187 grams, it’s impressively slim for a phone carrying a 7,000mAh battery.

The camera island also gets a makeover. realme ditches the bold circular module of the 14 Pro+ and opts for a square island. It looks less daring but also less divisive—a design that blends in rather than shouts.

They did keep the durability ratings and it is IP66, IP68, and IP69 certified. That means it can withstand dust, immersion up to 1.5m for 30 minutes, and even high-pressure water jets at high temperature. On top of that, it complies with MIL-STD-810 standards, so it’s designed to take everyday knocks without worry.

DISPLAY AND AUDIO: BRIGHT, SMOOTH AND IMMERSIVE

THE front is dominated by a 6.8-inch 1.5K AMOLED panel with 44.8° curved edges that melt into the frame. It hits up to 6,500 nits of peak brightness, making it usable even under Manila’s noon sun. The panel supports 144Hz refresh rate and a 240Hz touch sampling rate, paired with Corning Gorilla Glass 7i protection. Colors are vivid thanks to 10-bit depth and 100 percent DCI-P3 coverage, while the 94 percent screento-body ratio and thin bezels (as slim as 1.48mm on the sides) make it feel nearly all-screen. For content junkies, HDR10+ certification ensures streaming looks sharp and dynamic.

Audio complements the visuals. The dual stereo speakers pump out loud, clear sound, suitable for YouTube binges or Netflix on the go. And if you like a little flair, the Pulse Light feature on the back adds a playful glow for notifications, charging, and even camera countdowns.

PERFORMANCE: SMOOTH FOR MULTITASKING

AND GAMING

POWERING the realme 15 Pro is the Qualcomm Snapdragon 7 Gen 4, built on the 4nm process. It runs at up to 2.8GHz and pairs with an Adreno GPU at 1150MHz. Benchmarks peg it above 1.1 million on AnTuTu, but beyond numbers, it’s about efficiency and balance.

Daily tasks like browsing, messaging and video streaming are handled effortlessly. 12GB of LPDDR4X RAM ensures smooth multitasking, with Dynamic RAM Expansion offering up to 26GB total. Storage comes in two flavors: 256GB or 512GB UFS 3.1, fast enough for apps, games and large video files.

The Pro variant has usually been built for gaming and the realme 15 Pro 5G delivers a satisfactory experience as well. With GT Boost 3.0, AI Gaming Coach 2.0, and AI Ultra Touch Control, realme enhances responsiveness and stability. The phone supports up to 120fps gameplay for Honor of Kings and Mobile Legends, and 90fps for PUBG Mobile. Heat is kept in check by a 7000mm² vapor chamber cooling system, covering 57 percent of the phone’s surface area. realme claims it can lower core temps by 20°C, keeping long sessions smooth. In practice, this means less throttling and more consistent performance, whether you’re gaming or editing video.

CAMERAS: POWERFUL, BUT WITH CAVEATS

REALME has always leaned on camera innovation to set its number series apart. The realme 15 Pro 5G is marketed with a “triple 50MP” system, and while that’s technically true—a 50MP Sony IMX896 main shooter, 50MP ultra-wide, and 50MP selfie camera— the reality is a little different.

On the back, you’ll see three modules, but only two are functional. The third is purely decorative, and while it gives balance to the design, it may leave some users feeling misled. The absence of a true third camera—especially a telephoto—feels like a step back from the realme 14 Pro+, which boasted 120x digital zoom. This one maxes out at 20x, and the results are barely usable. For a brand that has proven it can compete in zoom, this decision is puzzling.

That said, the two rear cameras deliver.

The main camera carries the load and captures detailed, vibrant shots with reliable sharpness. In daylight, colors are rich, if sometimes oversaturated, and HDR can occasionally brighten shadows too much. Indoors, it stays consistent, producing clean images with little noise.

Then there’s the 50MP Ultra-wide (OV50D) which covers a 115.6° field of view with good sharpness and natural colors. It doesn’t distort edges as much as some rivals, and it’s handy for landscapes and group shots.

The front-facing 50MP OV50D is one of the strongest selfie cameras in its class. Skin tones look natural, exposure is balanced, and it even supports 4K 60fps video, making it great for vlogging and social content.

Its AI Editor suite is where the realme 15 Pro 5G feels most forward-looking proving to be very useful in creating content. AI Recompose recommends the best composition for your subject. There’s AI Eraser

for deleting photobombers and background clutter. AI Perfect Shot studies your library and suggests several facial options. There’s also AI Ultra Clarity, Unblur, Remove Reflections, AI Glare Remover and AI Landscape. AI Party Mode boosts clarity and skin tones in low light, ideal for group shots at events. The MagicGlow Triple Flash provides a customizable light ring around the camera module that helps boost lighting for selfies and low-light portraits. For evening shots, AI Nightscape brightens dark scenes while preserving detail.

AI Edit Genie is the newest addition and it’s a standout. It analyzes photos and automatically adjusts brightness, exposure and saturation in one tap (AI Inspiration mode). Or, you can simply tell it what you want—“make this brighter,” “blur the background”— and it follows voice commands in 20 languages, including Filipino.

It works surprisingly well, especially for casual users who don’t want to fiddle with sliders. The only downside is the daily cap: after the first month, you’re limited to 20 edits per day. Still, for most people, that’s plenty.

BATTERY LIFE: BIG GAINS IN A SLIM BODY

THE 7,000mAh battery is perhaps the most impressive part of the 15 Pro. It’s not only massive, but somehow realme managed to keep the phone slim and light. On paper, it promises 22.1 hours of YouTube playback; 29.8 hours of video calls; 113 hours of Spotify streaming. In daily use, that should translate to almost two days of regular activity without reaching for the charger.

When you do need to top up, 80W SUPERVOOC fast charging takes you from 0 to 50 percent in just 25 minutes, and to 100 percent in just over an hour.

A Bypass Charging mode lets the phone run directly off power during gaming or long video calls, reducing battery heat and preserving long-term health.

As part of the review kit, realme included a special package highlighting its partnerships. Inside were the Hollyland Lark A1 wireless microphone and the Fujifilm Instax mini Link 3 printer, which turns your digital shots into instant prints. These extras reinforce the campaign message: Live Real in Every Shot.

FINAL WORD: The realme 15 Pro 5G is a polished, stylish and capable device. Its slim profile and premium build give it a solid flagship feel. The AMOLED display is bright and sharp, the stereo speakers are loud and clear, and performance is

smooth and reliable across daily tasks and gaming.

The cameras produce excellent results, but the missing telephoto lens and the cosmetic third module remain puzzling choices that may leave some fans disappointed.

It’s a phone that looks good, lasts long, and makes creativity easy. But it’s not a giant leap, more of a careful evolution. The real clincher is its pricing, particularly the early bird offers.

For a limited time, the realme 15 5G drops from ₱23,999 to ₱18,999, while the realme 15 Pro 5G sees even steeper cuts—from ₱27,999 down to ₱20,999 for the 256GB model, and from ₱30,999 to ₱23,999 for the top-tier 512GB variant. That’s thousands shaved off the SRP, plus freebies worth up to ₱3,897, including a TechLife Smart Band Fit, Clip-On Earbuds 2, and a one-year Screen Damage Protection plan for extra peace of mind. Pre-orders run until September 26, 2025, at partner retailers nationwide.

As the GOAT John Cena says, “The time is now.”

With these launch deals, there’s no better moment to make your decision—because once prices go back up, you might need to think twice.

Brands partner to create future living experiences

GLOBE AT  HOME and BPI are teaming up to make your move-in experience seamless, so your home feels connected, cozy and totally ready from the moment you step in. It’s not just a partnership, it’s the Ayala Group’s way of making life’s transitions easier, bringing essential services together to create a home experience that feels seamless, lighter and more meaningful.

With every approved BPI Home Loan, you can enjoy a free 500 Mbps GFiber plan for 12 months, amounting to as much as ₱30,000. The package also comes with complimentary access to BlastTV’s library of shows and movies, installation within 24 hours, and dedicated VIP Care support so households can get online without delay.

“Our collaboration isn’t just about financing, it’s about easing the transition for families beginning a fresh journey to achieve their dream home,” stated Abigail Cardino, vice president for Brand Management at Globe AT HOME. “We view connectivity as essential to modern life, and in partnership with BPI, we’re empowering customers with the certainty that from day one they’re already connected and ready to call their new home their own.

“Through this bundled offer with BPI Housing Loan and Globe AT HOME, we’re not just helping Filipinos build homes, we’re helping them build futures filled with today’s modern convenience and a life of connection and purpose,” said Dexter Cuajotor, head of BPI Retail Loans and Bancassurance Group. At the core of this initiative is the belief that life’s biggest milestones, such as moving into a new home, should feel joyful rather than stressful. By

S.

FROM left: BPI’s

and

A8 Saturday, September 20, 2025

PBBM’s literacy program benefits 348K Filipinos

PRESIDENT Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. reported that more than 348,000 Filipinos have benefited from the “Tara, Basa!” Tutoring Program (TBTP), which he hailed as a flagship literacy and youth employment initiative of his administration.

Speaking at the program’s National Culminating Activity at the University of Makati, Marcos Jr. said the initiative directly addresses reading backlogs in public schools, while providing financially challenged college students cash-for-work opportunities.

The President said in Filipino that every parent dreams of a good life for their children, and he believes the key to achieving this dream is education.

Implemented by the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) in partnership with the Department of Education, Commission on Higher Education, National Youth Com -

mission, state universities and colleges, local government units, and other agencies, the TBTP deploys college students as tutors for struggling elementary readers and as youth development workers guiding parents in “Nanay-Tatay” sessions.

In return, they receive wages equivalent to the regional daily minimum after 20 completed sessions.

According to Marcos Jr., both learners and tutors gain from the arrangement. He shared that as tutors, they help students improve their reading. In return, the tutors also develop their teaching skills and sense of service in the community.

The Chief Executive, drawing on his own experience as a teacher, said the dynamic creates a “symbiotic relationship.”

“Teachers learn more than the students,” he added, noting that his wife, First Lady Liza AranetaMarcos, has taught law for more than two decades.

The President capped his speech by honoring teachers in time for National Teachers’ Month, calling them “heroes of Philippine society.” For him, the excellence of Filipino youth rests in the hands of the nation’s teachers.

Launched in 2022 and institutionalized under Executive Order 76 in November 2024, the TBTP is part of the administration’s broader effort to recover pandemic learning losses and build strong foundations in literacy nationwide.

Darryl John Esguerra/PNA

Ambassador sends off 2025 Japanese government scholars

Editor: Mike Policarpio

THE Philippine Postal Corporation (PHLPost) has released a special set of commemorative stamps to celebrate the 100th founding anniversary of the University of Pangasinan (now PHINMA UPang).

With an official first-day cover, the philatelic issue highlights the institution’s century-long legacy of academic excellence, service, and transformation since 1925.

The four-stamp collection features key symbols of PHINMA UPang: a stylized illustration of its iconic building, the official university seal, and the 100th-anniversary logo. Each design visually reflects the university’s enduring mission to advance “Truth, Science, and Virtue,” along with its continuing role in shaping lead -

ers and innovators for the nation. The official first-day cover showcases an artistic tapestry symbolizing PHINMA UPang’s journey from its humble beginnings in Dagupan City to its current standing as a leading higher education institution in Northern Luzon. The stamps were printed using offset lithography with intricate gold foil stamping, making them a must-have for collectors and alumni alike. They are now available at designated post offices nationwide.

Founded in 1925, the University of Pangasinan remains committed to its mission of “Making the Lives of Others Better” by providing accessible, high-quality education that empowers students to succeed and serve their communities.

academic journey in Japan.

ON September 6, Ambassador Kazuya Endo, together with the Philippine Association of the Japanese Government Scholars, hosted a send off reception for the 2025 batch of Japanese government (MEXT) scholars at his residence.

Apart from the attendance of 42 scholars, the event was also graced by University of the Philippines Vice President for Administration Dr. Augustus Resurreccion—a MEXT alumnus who also delivered an inspirational message to the departing scholars.

Prior to the event, on August 30, the Japan Information and Culture Center also held an online pre-departure orientation seminar for the MEXT scholars. The session provided valuable information and practical guidance to support the incoming students as they prepare for their

In his remarks, Endo congratulated and wished the scholars their best while they pursue their studies in Japan. As they start to write the MEXT chapter of their educational career, the envoy also conveyed his hope that they will serve as the bridges in nurturing the thriving cultural and people-to-people ties between Japan and the Philippines.

At the reception, a certificate of appreciation was awarded to Maria Lourdes S. Agad, who served as a Scholarship Consultant from 2007 to 2025, for her invaluable contributions in promoting the scholarship program and guiding the applicants through the selection process.

For further information about the MEXT Scholarship program, visit the official website: https://www.ph.embjapan.go.jp/itpr_en/00_000193.html

Social enterprises highlighted in Singtel’s Future Makers report

TWO Philippine startups backed by Globe: Virtualahan and The Spark Project, were featured in the Singtel Group Future Makers (SGFM) 2025 Impact Report —a regional review celebrating 10 years of tech-driven social innovation. Virtualahan, the pioneering social enterprise in the country’s disability space and The Spark Project, which assists entrepreneurs in building sustainable ventures, are among SGFM alumni exemplifying technology that addresses community needs while enabling business growth.

Launched in 2015, SGFM has become a regional platform supporting 85 startups through grants, mentorship, and ecosystem access which benefited more than 24 million people across 11 countries through initiatives in education, healthcare, mental health, environment, agriculture, waste management and inclusion.

In 2017, Globe adopted this initiative in the Philippines when it launched its Globe Future Makers (GFM) program to empower startups that use technology to address societal challenges. GFM provides these startups with essential resources such as mentorship, marketing assistance, and networking opportunities. The program aims to cultivate an ecosystem of social innovators who leverage technology to create positive change, aligning with the Singtel Group of Companies’ broader social

innovation initiatives across the AsiaPacific region.

As a major telecommunications conglomerate based in Singapore that provides a wide range of services across Asia, Australia, and Africa, Singtel is concluding the current format of the Future Makers program in the region after a successful decade-long run, citing a more mature social innovation ecosystem, backed by stronger government and corporate support.

“Moving forward, we will focus on working with alumni ventures to help drive their expansion and build stronger collaboration,” said Singtel Group Sustainability vice president Andrew Buay.

Virtualahan first gained recognition as one of the startups that won the Globe Future Makers in 2017, while The Spark Project partnered with Globe for GFM 2019. Both later represented the Philippines for the regional SGFM network.

“Through our partnership with

ASPIRING and emerging entrepreneurs gather for Spark Fest.

SGFM, we had the opportunity to support Filipino social enterprises in their journey to expand their impact and contribute to positive change in the communities they serve,” said Chief Sustainability and Corporate Communications Officer Yoly Crisanto of Globe.

Virtualahan illustrates this pathway by equipping persons with disabilities, vulnerable youth, solo parents, recovering drug dependents, persons deprived of liberty, and displaced workers with digital-skills training and support programs that open up access to livelihood and longterm reintegration.

Since completing the 2017 GFM and SGFM cohorts, Virtualahan has trained 1,267 persons with disabilities, with a 66-percent employment rate and a 25-percent income increase among graduates. It has increased annual revenues by approximately 300 percent, and incubated two spin-off businesses.

“The exposure, learning and endorsement we received from SGFM

and Globe helped boost our credibility as a pioneering social enterprise in the local disability space,” said Virtualahan founder Ryan Gersava.

Originally a crowdfunding platform for creative ventures, The Spark Project evolved into an entrepreneursupport organization after its GFM and SGFM experience. It has assisted over 135 enterprises, channeled P25.5 million into impact projects and deployed a P16.6-million loan fund.

“By connecting us with a wider network of mentors, collaborators, and supporters, GFM and SGFM enabled us to build stronger programs that support Filipino creatives and social entrepreneurs,” said the project’s founder Patch Dulay.

Tying up with Globe, both groups launched impactful thematic programs. Virtualahan, for one, linked persons with disabilities, displaced workers, and unschooled youth to the Internet, enabling their participation in the Department of Information and Communications Technology’s 2021 Digital Jobs PH upskilling programs.

Meanwhile, the Spark Project teamed up with Globe for Spark Fest 2018 and 2019, creating a dedicated space where individuals passionate about social causes can find inspiration, learn, and connect with creative founders, thought leaders and other aspiring entrepreneurs, demonstrating that telco infrastructure can amplify civic impact.

DepEd, Special Olympics Pilipinas, MILO promote sports inclusivity via unified learning

INCLUSIVE play creates opportunities, while promoting an accepting and compassionate society.

IÑAN CITY, LAGUNA—MILO

BPhilippines has given its full support to the Special Olympics Pilipinas and the Department of Education (DepEd), in championing a more inclusive future through unified learning in sports at the inaugural Unified Brigada Eskwela Palaro—a one-day event that celebrated inclusive education by gathering students of all abilities to learn and play sideby-side.

As part of its commitment to making sports accessible for all Filipino children, MILO supported this initiative to underscore that the values instilled through sports such as grit, discipline, and teamwork should be accessible to every child—including those with intellectual and developmental disabilities.

“MILO believes that sports can be a powerful tool in effecting positive change in individuals and the whole society,” said MILO Philippines Head of Sports Carlo Sampan. “By making sports accessible to all, we can unlock opportunities and help empower every child, including those in the disabled community, to pursue their dreams and become champions in life.”

Unified learning, a term pioneered by Special Olympics, refers to an inclusive educational environment where students with and without disabilities learn, play, and participate equally together in shared environments. The Unified Brigada Eskwela Palaro gave children and parents a preview of what unified learning is all about, which served as a powerful platform for kids to learn understanding, empathy, and growth. Held at the Alonte Sports Arena in

Biñan City, the event gathered more than 200 students from 23 DepEd schools recognized as Unified Champion Schools, or schools that adopt inclusive practices such as unified sports, inclusive youth leadership and whole-school engagement. The event featured various activities on sports and leadership—including the MILO BEST Center Basketball Clinic, where children participated in engaging basketball drills designed to teach the fundamentals of the sport. According to a study by the University of Massachusetts and Special Olympics, children who participate in unified sports activities show significant enhancements in social and emotional development, along with a stronger sense of belonging in school. Parents observed noticeable improvements in their children’s confidence, behavior, and ability to connect with others.

“With unified learning in sports, it’s very heartening to see our regular learners alongside [those] with special needs,” said DepEd Central Office Chief of Youth Formation Dr. Gina Lopez Cruz. “This allows our regular learners to better understand the needs of those with disabilities, while children with disabilities feel accepted and included in everything they do.” The partnership between MILO and Special Olympics Pilipinas plays a crucial role in scaling awareness and implementation of inclusivity in both education and sports. By supporting and promoting inclusivity through events like the “Palaro…,” they are building pathways where every child can thrive, be recognized, and reach their full potential through active play.

THE Chief Executive leads the national culminating activity of the “Tara, Basa!” tutoring program at University of Makati in Taguig City. PNA/JOAN BONDOC

Tourism Editor: Edwin P. Sallan

CHINESE TYPA SUMMER

Don’t visit Hainan if...

by Bless Aubrey Ogerio

GStory &

UANGZHOU, China—...you think China is all skyscrapers, smog and subways.

From what I learned in textbooks and stories, my mental image of China was a canvas of gray concrete and ancient walls. However, the country's southernmost island province is a living, breathing contradiction. It is provincial yet ambitious, and lushly tropical.

The moment my passport received its first-ever stamp, I looked out the airport window in Sanya and was greeted by a heavy, humid air and a breeze thick with the scent of salt. Rows of coconut trees swayed in a way that felt oddly familiar, yet was thousands of miles away.

Hainan is called the “Hawaii of China,” or for a Filipino, it might feel like Boracay's or Elyu's long-lost twin, but the comparison doesn't do it justice. It commands attention on its own terms and will only welcome you if you are open to its complexities.

If you aren't, then here are five reasons you shouldn't even book that ticket.

#1: If you’re over the tropics LIFE in Hainan moves at a pace far from the city, and it makes no apologies for it.

At Shimei Bay in Wanning, the heat is relentless but softened by fine sand, clear waters, and amenities like cafés and the Phoenix Palace bookstore. Riyue Bay, the island’s surfing hub, comes alive after dark with fire dancers, open-air bars, and locals who pull up in sports cars yet stroll the beach in house clothes.

Farther out in Lingshui, Boundary Island draws visitors with a semi-hike

Story

by Erwin M. Mascariñas

SAN Jose, Dinagat Islands—Bonok, a word coined in the native language of the people of Surigao to refer to a heavy downpour of rain, was once a muchawaited natural sign for farmers, signaling the start of a new cropping season. For the city, however, it has come to symbolize far more than that—a downpour of blessings for a community that has weathered many catastrophic natural disasters yet continues to rise in celebration of the Bonok-Bonok. The Bonok-Bonok Marajaw Karajaw Festival, which blends culture and tradition while commemorating the annual feast of Surigao City’s patron saint, San Nicolas de Tolentino, is a thanksgiving celebration for the countless blessings received by its people and their community.

Celebrated through vibrant dance and pulsating music, the Bonok-Bonok Maradjaw Karajaw Festival transformed the streets of Surigao City on September 9, 2025, into a living stage of color, movement, and tradition.

Performers in elaborate costumes adorned with beads, feathers, and native fabrics filled the city center, moving rhythmically to the beat of the festival and the echo of chants that carried the energy of both festivity and reverence.

Considered as the largest and the oldest street dancing tilt in Caraga Region, the heart of the celebration was the festival’s centerpiece—the street dancing competition and grand showdown—which drew crowds of locals and tourists eager to witness the spectacle.

Eleven contingents, representing not

that ends at the temple, where it is said that wishes made there might come true.

And it doesn’t stop at natural beaches. It leans hard into marine pride, showcased at Hainan Ocean Paradise Resort. It is home to polar bears, penguins, capybaras and more. Per Ocean Park’s management, these animals are second or third-generation bred, not plucked from the wild.

#2: You can’t handle ‘clean’ food HAINANESE cuisine takes China’s reputation for healthy food. Plates arrive straightforward and colorful, though without the heavy umami punch Southeast Asians might expect. The island’s diet favors broth, seafood, and vegetables over oil and grease—squid, fish and shrimp served fresh and simple. Even bread and pastries lean toward beans, mushrooms, or fruit jams, while desserts skew light with yogurt, teas, and fruit. This explains why China imports much fruit from the Philippines, such as durian, mangoes and bananas, to complement an already fruit-forward diet. And while outsiders think of China as purely a tea nation, Hainan has its own caffeine scene. Xinglong, the island’s coffee capital, boasts brews like M1 Dream Coffee and Jinak Coffee.

#3: You’re easily lost in translation THE country’s firm embrace of its own values and rejection of Western norms creates what feels like a self-contained ecosystem.

I knew Mandarin would dominate, but I underestimated how rare

even basic English would be. At convenience stores, beaches, and even airports, trying to ask “How much?” or “What is this?” was often met with blank stares. Transactions became a game of patience, saved only by my phone’s translation app, mostly accurate enough to get the point across. There are glimpses of internationalism, though. There are pilot zones within the island that host partnerships with international medical firms and educational institutions, emerging as a hub for cultural exchanges. Yet, outside those bubbles, you’re down to charades and pointing.

The saving grace is that locals, while rarely fluent, are usually patient and respectful in trying to understand you.

#4: You struggle with digital life HAINAN, like the rest of China, runs on cashless systems powered by WeChat and Alipay. These apps demand more personal data than most would be comfortable giving. For the privacyconscious, it feels like a gamble. What caught me off guard, however, wasn’t just the Great Firewall, but discovering how deep the ban list went. I expected to lose access to Facebook and Instagram, but even work mes -

only different schools and groups in Surigao City but also from Buenavista in Agusan del Norte, and as far as Cagayan de Oro City, and Ozamiz City in Misamis Occidental, brought their unique interpretations of the BonokBonok spirit. Showcasing synchronized choreography inspired by local folklore, rituals of thanksgiving, and stories of resilience, blending traditional steps with modern artistic flair. The competition was more than just a display of talent; it was a cultural statement, reaffirming the people’s identity and resilience after years of challenges brought about by natural disasters. Groups competed in two categories: the Bonok-Bonok–based performances, which stayed true to the festival’s roots, and the Festivals of Festivals Free Interpretation category, which gave dancers creative freedom

to tell their own stories through choreography and costume.

The free interpretation performances showcased diverse narratives—from theatrical portrayals of surviving trials to calls for the preservation of the city’s natural resources, invoking the intercession of Sr. San Nicolas de Tolentino.

Pouring of Blessing

SURIGAO City Mayor Paul Yves Dumlao, in his message to the people during that event, said that the Bonok-Bonok Festival has always been more than just a showcase of dance.

“For Surigaonons, it is a thanksgiving celebration—an expression of gratitude for the countless blessings the city has received. The word Bonok-Bonok means heavy downpour of rain, and today, we celebrate

that heavy downpour of blessings from our God, which has showered upon Surigao City,” Dumlao said.

He emphasized that this year’s performances reflect Surigao’s resilience, showing how its people rise again after every trial and storm.

“Our annual festival is a living reminder of our gratitude, our faith, our strength to overcome hardship, always guided by our patron saint,” he added.

Dumlao also stressed that the festival is not merely about performance, but about preserving stories that have endured through time.

“When our dancers perform, they are not only showcasing their talent, they are also telling our story. We support our artists, we support tourism, we support livelihood, and we support education,” he said.

He added that passing down traditions to the younger generation ensures pride and identity of the city for years to come.

Surigao City tourism officer Roselyn Merlin explained that from the word coined to a heavy downpour, by repeating the word Bonok twice, as in Bonok-Bonok, signifies pouring more blessings.

“According to our local historians, the festivity traces its tradition back to the early indigenous settlers of Surigao City as they dance their prayers and offerings to ask for rain, as the month of September back then is part of the dry months,” Merlin said. Merlin added, “The climate and the dry and wet seasons might have changed, but the tradition remains. As we celebrate our 41st year, throughout the Caraga region, none is as old as Bonok-Bonok, and for us, it is a great pride for the people of Surigao City.”

sages in Gmail and Viber had to wait unless I paid for overpriced roaming or chased elusive Wi-Fi.

Also, daily tasks meant learning new tools fast: Taobao for e-commerce, Didi for rides and local social platforms such as Rednote, Weibo and Baidu for staying connected. The upside? Adaptability is rewarded. Locals live seamlessly within this ecosystem, and surprisingly, nearly every corner had power outlets waiting.

#5: You can’t adjust to “developing” realities UNLIKE Beijing or Shanghai, Hainan still feels low-key, with most vacationers being Chinese locals rather than foreigners. In many areas, the sea is always within sight, and so are the construction sites—signs of a province in the middle of transformation. Roads are steadily improving, and Sanya has the highest concentration of tourists.

Bottom line? If you’re after something perfectly polished, Hainan won’t wait up. But if you don’t mind catching it mid-glow-up, you’ll see why its rough edges are part of the charm.

photos

& photos

THE Hiyas Kabataan Performing Arts of Surigao West Central Elementary School claimed the win for the Bonok-Bonok–based category and received P500,000.

THE Carascians Performing Arts Guild of Caraga Regional Science

Tolentino Cathedral.

A STREET stall selling durian and fresh coconuts stands next to a teahouse on Boundary Island, a popular tourist destination off the coast of Hainan.

A FIREWORKS display illuminates the night sky over the Hyatt Regency Hainan Ocean Paradise Resort.

THE counter of a cafe inside the M1 Coffee Dream Factory in Wanning features a unique, industrial-style brewing system.

PARTICIPANTS in a cultural workshop practice Chinese calligraphy, using traditional brushes and ink to write characters. STUDENTS and

space at the Hainan Lingshui Li'an International Education Innovation Pilot Zone

Editor: Angel R. Calso

AP EXCLUSIVE:

Russia, Vietnam conceal arms deal payments through oil ventures amid sanctions

By David Rising The Associated Press

BANGKOK—Russia and Vietnam have developed a back-door method of concealing arms deal payments to avoid American and other Western sanctions, using the profits from joint oil and gas ventures to pay off defense contracts without any open transfers of cash through the global banking system, according to internal Vietnamese documents obtained by The Associated Press.

Under the system, Vietnam has purchased Russian military equipment including fighter jets, tanks and ships on credit from Moscow, then paid that credit back from its share of profits from a joint Vietnam-Russia oil company operating in Siberia. Such transactions are irregular in international financial markets and in this case are designed to keep cash quietly flowing even if sanctions aimed at ending Russia’s war on Ukraine are strengthened, the documents make clear.

The revelation comes at a precarious time when the US is trying to strengthen ties with Vietnam as a bulwark against growing Chinese assertiveness in Southeast Asia, and has ongoing trade negotiations with Hanoi after the White House imposed 20% tariffs, while at the same time President Donald Trump is threatening even more stringent sanctions on Moscow.

The European Union has also added a raft of new sanctions to pressure Russian President Vladimir Putin to end the war, and Trump recently issued an executive order doubling tariffs on India to 50% to pressure New Delhi to stop buying Russian oil and military equipment, which he said was helping enable the war against Ukraine.

The Trump Organization, the president’s family business, also broke ground earlier this year on a $1.5 billion luxury golf complex outside the capital, Hanoi, after Vietnam fast-tracked approval.

The president’s sons run the organization, but financial disclosures in June indicated that Trump himself benefits from many of its activities.

News that the unorthodox

arrangement was in the works leaked in 2023. But rather than shutting it down, an internal document from last year reveals that Russia and Vietnam finalized and implemented it, while also making agreements to ensure it would produce sufficient funds for future military purchases.

The Vietnamese government document that was leaked in 2023 and the newer government document from last year were provided to The Associated Press by an official who said that he was part of a faction opposed to closer ties to Russia at the risk of jeopardizing the growing relationship with Washington. He provided the documents on condition of anonymity to protect himself from possible reprisals from Vietnam’s authoritarian government.

The US State Department refused to comment specifically on the documents or the payment plan designed to skirt American sanctions, referring comments to the Vietnamese government. It reiterated broadly, however, that “our sanctions remain in place.”

“Those engaging in certain transactions or activities with sanctioned entities and individuals may expose themselves to sanctions risk or be subject to an enforcement action,” the State Department said in an e-mail to the AP this week.

Vietnam’s Ministry of Industry, the Vietnam Oil and Gas Group, known as Petrovietnam or PVN, and the Foreign Ministry did not respond to multiple e-mails seeking comment on the payment scheme. Russia’s Finance Ministry, which conducted the negotiations for Moscow, also did not respond.

“It’s not your typical flexible financing. It’s not your typical offset or counter-trade provisions,” said Evan Laksmana, who leads the Southeast Asian Security and Defense research program for the International Institute for Strategic Studies think tank.

“It is,” Laksmana said, “nextlevel stuff.”

How the arrangement works

THE mechanism involves using Vietnam’s profits from a joint Vietnam-Russia oil venture in Siberia, Rusvietpetro, to repay loans for military purchases while avoiding transactions through the global SWIFT network system, which powers most international financial transfers and is overseen by the United States and other Western nations. In effect, it’s a series of transactions that skip carefully laid global financial pathways, keeping transactions secret.

Final details of the agreement were laid out last summer in the 2024 memo obtained by the AP, from PVN to Vietnam’s Ministry of Industry and Trade ahead of a visit to Hanoi by Russian President Vladimir Putin.

The plan outlined involves:

n First, Vietnamese profits from the Rusvietpetro joint venture in Siberia are sent to Moscow to pay back credit extended for military purchases; n then, Vietnam’s profits exceeding the loan repayments are transferred to Russian stateowned oil and gas company Zarubezhneft in Russia; n finally, in Vietnam, Zarubezhneft uses its joint venture company there to transfer an equal amount of money to PVN, effectively avoiding any international financial transfers.

“In the context of the US and Western countries imposing sanctions on Russia in general and removing Russia from SWIFT in particular, this payment method is considered relatively confidential and appropriate because money only circulates within the territory of Vietnam and Russia and Vietnam do not have to worry about the risks of being affected by the US embargo,” PVN’s general director, Le Ngoc Son, writes in the June 11, 2024, document.

Laksmana said he did not have previous knowledge of the plan, but that it fit with Moscow’s approach toward arms deals in the region. In 2017,

for example, Russia agreed to provide 11 Sukhoi Su-35 fighter jets to Indonesia in exchange for palm oil, coffee and other goods.

“Russia was for a long time in Southeast Asia considered to be among the most flexible in terms of its payment mechanisms,” he said.

Two Western diplomats posted to Hanoi said they had long suspected Vietnam and Russia had a backdoor agreement to pay for large military contracts, though the specifics of the agreement in the documents obtained by the AP were new to them. They both spoke on condition of anonymity due to the political sensitivities of the issue.

Why is the mechanism necessary?

ZARUBEZHNEFT does not currently face sanctions imposed following Russia’s attacks on Ukraine, though its CEO, Sergei Kudryashov, was named in a raft of sweeping sanctions on the Russian energy sector announced in January, 10 days before Trump was inaugurated.

Zarubezhneft board chairman Evgeniy Murov, a former KGB officer, was also sanctioned by the US in 2014 when he headed the Federal Protective Service, responsible for the safety of Russian President Vladimir Putin and other highranking officials.

As individuals on the Office of Foreign Assets Control’s SDN list, any assets they have in the US would be blocked and Americans would be prohibited from having direct dealings with them.

The mechanism outlined in the documents obtained by the AP seems intended to avoid the possibility of future sanctions, and the threat of secondary sanctions that could be imposed on those who facilitate the activities of entities under primary sanctions.

“If you want to insulate yourself from any kind of risk, you then basically avoid cross-border transactions and create these kind of offsetting payment schemes,” said Ben Hilgenstock, a senior economist at the Kyiv School of Economics who is an expert on Russian sanctions and analyzed the Vietnamese documents for the AP.

Following a wave of fresh Russian attacks on Ukraine this month, Trump has said he is ready to move to a second phase of sanctions on Moscow or countries that buy its oil. Last week,

RUSSIAN President Vladimir Putin, left, and Vietnam’s President To Lam pose for photos at the Presidential Palace in Hanoi, Vietnam on June 20, 2024. NHAC NGUYEN/POOL PHOTO VIA AP

AN AP reporter displays an excerpt from a June 11, 2024 memo from Vietnam’s Oil and Gas Group (PVN) to the Ministry of Industry and Trade detailing an arrangement to avoid potential American sanctions when purchasing Russian defense goods, in Bangkok, Thailand, on September 16, 2025. AP/SAKCHAI LALIT

A12 Saturday, September 20, 2025

Gunman kills 2 at Israeli-run crossing between West Bank and Jordan; 4 soldiers killed in Gaza

By Isaac Scharf & Areej Hazboun

The Associated Press

ERUSALEM—A Jordanian aid truck

Jdriver opened fire and killed two people at an Israeli-run border crossing in the occupied West Bank on Thursday, officials said. The Israeli military also said that four soldiers were killed in the southern Gaza Strip, and that a drone had struck in the area of the southern Israeli city of Eilat.

The Israeli military referred to the shooting at the crossing with Jordan as a militant attack. Israel’s Magen David Adom rescue service said that two men, around 60 and 20 years old, were killed. The military said the attacker had been “neutralized,” without elaborating.

Jordan’s Foreign Ministry condemned the attack and identified the shooter as Abdel-Mutalib al-Qaisi, a man in his late 50s who it said had been driving aid trucks bound for Gaza for three months.

Three Israelis were killed in a September 2024 attack at the crossing, when a retired Jordanian soldier opened fire. That attack appeared to be linked to the ongoing IsraelHamas war. The Allenby Bridge Crossing over the Jordan River, also known as the King Hussein Bridge, is mainly used by Palestinians and tourists. It was closed after the attack.

The military said the drone had been launched “from the east,” without elaborating. Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi rebels have repeatedly fired drones and missiles at Israel, often drawing retaliatory airstrikes.

A missile fired from Yemen set off air raid sirens late Thursday, and the boom of interceptors could be heard in Jerusalem. There were no immediate reports of casualties or damage from the drone or the missile.

Soldiers’ deaths could further erode Israeli support for war ISRAEL captured the West Bank, along with Gaza and east Jerusalem, in the 1967 Mideast war. The Palestinians want all three for a future state. Violence has surged across the occupied West Bank since the Hamas-led attack from Gaza into southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, which ignited the latest war.

Israel is waging a major ground offensive in Gaza City that has forced nearly 250,000 Palestinians to flee, according to the United Nations. Hundreds of thousands remain in the city, large parts of which have already been destroyed in previous Israeli raids.

The four soldiers were killed by an explosive device during an operation in Gaza’s southernmost city of Rafah, said

Brig. Gen. Effie Defrin, the Israeli military spokesman.

They are the first casualties to be announced since Israel launched its offensive in Gaza City, in the north.

Such deaths could further erode support for the war among Israelis who fear that the fighting puts soldiers and hostages at risk. At least 460 Israeli soldiers have been killed since the ground invasion of Gaza in

October 2023.

The war has killed at least 65,141 Palestinians, according to the Gaza Health Ministry, which is part of the Hamas-run government. UN agencies and many independent experts consider its figures to be the most reliable estimate of wartime casualties. It does not say how many of those killed were civilians or combatants.

Hamas-led militants killed some 1,200 people in the Oct. 7 attack that started the

war and abducted 251 others. Forty-eight hostages remain in Gaza, around 20 of them believed by Israel to be alive, after most of the rest were released in ceasefires or other deals.

Israel cuts funding for award ceremony over film about Palestinian boy

ISRAEL’S culture minister has cut funding for the country’s most prestigious film awards ceremony, saying this year’s best feature winner “spits” on Israeli soldiers.

Miki Zohar said that he was taking the step in response to Tuesday’s Ophir Award for “The Sea”—a story about a 12-year-old Palestinian boy who sneaks into Israel from the West Bank in a quest to see the sea for the first time. The film will now represent Israel in the Oscar awards.

Zohar, a member of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Likud party, said that he was halting funding for the ceremony because of the film’s depiction of Israeli soldiers.

“On my watch, the citizens of Israel will not pay out of their pockets for a disgraceful ceremony that spits on the heroic Israeli soldiers,” he said in an X post. “The citizens of Israel deserve for their tax money to go to more important and valuable places.”

Israeli military to indict former officer over Lebanon ambush

THE Israeli military said Thursday that it plans on indicting a former senior officer in connection with the deaths of two Israelis in a Hezbollah ambush in southern Lebanon last November.

Col. Yoav Yarom, who was the chief of staff of the army’s Golani infantry brigade, stepped down after the incident. Zeev Erlich, 70, and Gur Kehati, a 20-year-old soldier, were killed.

At the time, the army launched an investigation to determine who allowed Erlich into the combat zone with the forces and why he was allowed to enter.

In a statement Thursday, the army said its military prosecutor plans on filing charges against Yarom, pending a preindictment hearing. Such a hearing is a standard procedure.

According to Israeli media reports, Erlich wasn’t on active duty when he was shot, but was wearing a military uniform and had a weapon. Erlich was a wellknown West Bank settler and researcher of Jewish history. Media reports said he was permitted to enter Lebanon to explore a local archaeological site.

The Associated Press reporter Omar Akour in Amman, Jordan, contributed.

ISRAELI police and soldiers stand guard near the site of a shooting attack where Israeli officials say two people were shot and killed in a militant attack at the Allenby Bridge Crossing between the West Bank and Jordan, Thursday, September 18, 2025. AP/MAHMOUD ILLEAN

Trump wraps up UK state visit with gratitude for his hosts while largely sidestepping tough issues

By Michelle L. Price, Jill Lawless & Will Weissert The Associated Press

AYLESBURY, England—

President Donald Trump said Thursday that he was “tremendously thankful” for the pageantry and splendor lavished on him during his second state visit to the United Kingdom as he wrapped up a trip that largely sidestepped major public disagreements over difficult trade and geopolitical issues.

The mutual warmth, along with Trump’s abundance of kind words bestowed on the host country, suggested that an all-out charm offensive by the royal family and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer had its desired effect, even though there was a notable lack of progress on some key matters.

Trump and Starmer signed what both sides hailed as a historic agreement on science and technology, and they held a roundtable with global business leaders where they suggested the deal could mean significant job gains. Among the topics tackled mostly in private talks between Trump and Starmer were the wars in Ukraine and Gaza and US tariff rates on steel imported from Britain.

“The bond between our countries is like no other anywhere in the world,” Trump said at a news conference at Chequers, the 16thcentury manor house northwest of London that serves as a rural retreat for British leaders. The US

and UK, the American president said, have “done more good for the planet than any other nation in history.”

Joining in the bonhomie, Starmer said that “time and time again, it is British and American men and women, side by side, changing the path of history and turning it towards our values, towards freedom, democracy and the rule of law.”

The very end of the trip saw Trump’s helicopter carrying him from Chequers to the airport at Stansted for his flight to Washington make an unscheduled landing at a local airfield due to what the White House called a “minor hydraulic issue.” No one was injured, and a backup chopper completed the journey.

The Trump-Starmer mutual admiration followed King Charles III and Queen Camilla’s feting of Trump and first lady Melania Trump at Windsor Castle on Wednesday with all the pomp the

monarchy can muster, including the biggest military honor guard ever assembled for a state visit.

Trump called the king and queen “two fantastic people” and said he was” “tremendously thankful” and “grateful beyond words” for the hospitality.

Even high-profile points of dissent, such as Britain’s impending move to recognize a Palestinian state, stayed cordial. “I have a disagreement with the prime minister on that score,” Trump said, adding that “it’s one of our few disagreements, actually.”

When Trump was asked about his lack of progress in brokering a deal to end Moscow’s war in Ukraine and he acknowledged that Russian President Vladimir Putin has “let me down,” Starmer escalated the flattery a notch. The prime minister said he and Trump had discussed how to “decisively increase the pressure on Putin” and that Trump had “led the way here.”

There was disagreement, too, over immigration policy.

Trump urged Britain to take a harder line and insisted he had made clear to Starmer that when too many people enter illegally, it “destroys countries from within.”

Still, when Starmer sharply criticized Hamas, Trump reached over from his podium and slapped the prime minister on the back in support.

‘Genuinely like each other’ AT an earlier signing ceremony for the agreement meant to promote tech investment, Starmer referred to the Republican president as “my friend, our friend” and spoke of “leaders who respect each other and leaders who genuinely like each other.”

The Trumps’ final day in Britain began by bidding farewell to the king and queen at Windsor Castle and flying by helicopter to Che -

quers for more spectacle: a ceremonial honor guard with bagpipers, in a nod to Trump’s Scottish heritage, and a parachute demonstration. He also was shown the archive of wartime leader Winston Churchill, who coined the term “special relationship” for the bond between the allies.

It’s something Trump’s British hosts have stressed repeatedly, almost 250 years after that relationship endured a rocky start in 1776.

To coincide with the visit, Britain said US companies had pledged 150 billion pounds ($204 billion) in investment in the U.K, including 90 billion pounds ($122 billion) from investment firm Blackstone in the next decade. Investment will also flow the other way, including almost $30 billion by pharmaceutical firm GSK in the US.

UK officials say the deal will bring thousands of jobs and billions in investment in artificial intelligence, quantum computing and nuclear energy. It includes a UK arm of Stargate, a Trumpbacked AI infrastructure project led by OpenAI, and a host of AI

data centers around the UK American companies are announcing 31 billion pounds ($42 billion) in investment in the UK’s AI sector, including $30 billion from Microsoft for products including Britain’s largest supercomputer.

British officials said they have not agreed to scrap a digital services tax or water down internet regulation to get the deal, some details of which have yet to be announced.

There was less movement on tariffs.

In May, Starmer and Trump said they had agreed to reduce US tariffs on Britain’s key auto and aerospace industries. Talks on lowering duties on steel and aluminum to zero from their current level of 25% have stalled even with a promise four months ago of a settlement within weeks.

Trump was asked in a Fox News Channel interview, taped in London and aired while he flew home, whether he would be willing to decrease tariffs on UK steel. He was noncommittal, saying, “We’re making a lot of money.”

Few advancements on Ukraine

while Epstein is largely avoided

The British government has grown increasingly critical of Israel’s conduct in Gaza and the suffering of Palestinian civilians. Starmer said the situation was “a humanitarian catastrophe” as he acknowledged a divide with the president on recognizing a Palestinian state.

While the prime minister has played a major part in European efforts to shore up US support for Ukraine, Trump’s visit offered few major advancements. Trump even insisted at one point, that the conflict “doesn’t affect the US.”

The president has expressed frustration with Putin, but has not made good on threats to impose new sanctions on Russia. The king, in his state banquet speech Wednesday night, offered Trump a gentle nudge, noting “as tyranny once again threatens Europe, we and our allies stand together in support of Ukraine, to deter aggression and secure peace.” It seemed like questions about Jeffrey Epstein would dog Trump throughout the trip, especially given that his visit began days after Starmer fired Britain’s ambassador to the US, Peter Mandelson, over the envoy’s past friendship with the convicted sex offender, who authorities say killed himself in 2019.

But Trump largely avoided the issue. Police did arrest four people over a stunt that saw an image of Trump and Jeffrey Epstein projected on a tower at Windsor Castle.

Asked about Mandelson during the news conference, Trump said only that he did not know the former ambassador, despite photographs showing the pair together in the Oval Office.

Weissert reported from Washington. AP Technology Writer Matt O’Brien contributed to this report.

Damen Shipyards crisis deals blow to NATO, European defense plans

By Charlotte Hughes-Morgan

ON a chilly day this February, Dutch Crown Princess Amalia smashed a champagne bottle against the hull of the combat support

ship Den Helder as dignitaries—including executives from the shipbuilder, Damen Shipyards NV—cheered the christening.

Since then, the outlook for Damen has become less celebratory: Prosecutors have charged the company with corruption and sanctions violations, a major customer froze payments, and an acute cash shortage led the Dutch government to step in with an emergency support package in July.

The setbacks have rattled the firm’s NATO customers just as Europe has begun pouring billions of dollars into defense to confront an increasingly belligerent Russia.

Legal proceedings will start by the end of the year, and convictions—with penalties that include fines and being barred from tenders—could cripple Damen and Dutch industry, and complicate the continent’s ambitions of rearming.

“It would be a huge blow for Dutch shipbuilding” if Damen were convicted, said Sebastiaan Bennink, partner at Amsterdam law firm Bennink Dunin-Wasowicz. Damen is “instrumental” for Europe’s military capacity, he added.

A sprawling group of 55 companies around the world, the Gorinchem-headquartered company employs about 12,000 people globally and reported over €3 billion ($3.6 billion) in revenue in 2023, according to accounts filed with the Dutch chamber of commerce.

The shipbuilder is led by Arnout Damen, whose father, Kommer Damen, restructured the family business in 1969 and now chairs its supervisory board.

Damen is building two anti-submarine warfare frigates for the Netherlands, two

frigates for the Belgian navy, Germany’s F126 frigates—the largest ships in their fleet—and designing the Dutch navy’s new air defense and command frigates and amphibious transport ships.

If it can’t deliver on those projects, it will be tough for friendly nations to pick up the pieces at a critical time, said Nick Childs, senior fellow for naval forces and maritime security at The International Institute for Strategic Studies.

“There are only limited numbers of shipbuilders in Europe that can deliver high-end complex warships,” Childs said. The Dutch prosecution service said in April that it would take Damen to court after separate criminal investigations into suspected bribery, forgery and money laundering between 2006 and 2017, and over violating sanctions imposed on Russia after its 2022 invasion of Ukraine.

The sanctions violation charge concerns “goods and technology that could contribute to Russia’s military and technological strengthening and/or the development of its defense and security sector,” prosecutors said in a statement in April. Intentional violations of sanctions or export controls are criminal in the Netherlands. Judges can impose a fine of up to 10% of the company’s annual sales if they deem the standard penalty of just over €1 million too low. A criminal conviction can also block a company from participating in tenders for European contracts, Bennink said. The sanctions case involves “the supply of a very limited number of civilian cranes

“Damen,” A15

PRESIDENT Donald Trump and Britain’s Prime Minister Keir Starmer smile, holding a memorandum of understanding between the governments of the two countries after a business roundtable at Chequers near Aylesbury, England, Thursday, September 18, 2025. AP/EVAN VUCCI

Saturday, September 20, 2025 A15

Britain spy chief says he sees no evidence Putin wants to negotiate peace in Ukraine

By Andrew Wilks Associated Press

ISTANBUL—There is “absolutely no evidence” that Russia’s President Vladimir Putin wants to negotiate peace in Ukraine, the head of Britain’s foreign intelligence agency said Friday in an outgoing speech. Richard Moore, chief of the Secret Intelligence Service, or MI6 as it is more commonly known, said Putin was “stringing us along.”

“He seeks to impose his imperial will by all means at his disposal. But he cannot succeed,” Moore said. “Bluntly, Putin has bitten off more than he can chew. He thought he was going to win an easy victory. But he—and many others—underestimated the Ukrainians.”

The war has continued unabated in the three years since Russia invaded its neighbor, despite renewed US-led efforts in recent months to steer Moscow and Kyiv to a settlement. Ukraine has accepted proposals for a ceasefire and a summit meeting, but Moscow has demurred.

US President Donald Trump said Thursday during a state visit to the United Kingdom that Putin “ has really let me down “ in peace efforts.

Moore was speaking at the British consulate in Istanbul after five years as head of MI6. He leaves the post at the end of September. The agency will then get its first female chief.

During his tenure, Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, a war that has seen tens of thousands killed and still rages, principally in eastern Ukraine.

Moore said the invasion had strengthened Ukrainian national identity and accelerated its westward trajectory, as well as pushing Sweden and Finland to join NATO.

“Putin has sought to convince the world that Russian victory is inevitable. But he lies. He lies to the world. He lies to his people. Perhaps he even lies to himself,” Moore told a news conference.

Referring to the Russian scientist Ivan Pavlov, who conditioned dogs to respond to a bell, Moore said a phone call from the Russian president was “the equivalent of Pavlov’s tinkling bell inside the Kremlin, eliciting learned behavior to tell Putin whatever it is the system thinks he want to hear.” He said that Putin was “mortgaging his country’s future for his own personal legacy and a distorted version of history” and the war was “accelerating this decline.”

Moore, who previously served as the UK’s ambassador to Ankara, the Turkish capital, added that “greater powers than Russia have failed to subjugate weaker powers than Ukraine.”

Analysts say Putin believes he can outlast the political commitment of Ukraine’s Western partners and win a protracted war of attrition by wearing down Ukraine’s smaller army with sheer weight of numbers.

Ukraine, meanwhile, is racing to expand its defense cooperation with other countries and secure billions of dollars of investment in its domestic weapons industry.

The spy chief was speaking as MI6 unveiled a dark web portal to allow potential intelligence providers to contact the service. Dubbed “ Silent Courier,” the secure messaging platform aims to recruit new spies for the UK, including in Russia.

“To those men and women in Russia who have truths to share and the courage to share them, I invite you to contact MI6,” Moore said. Not just Russians but “anyone, anywhere in the world” would be able to use the portal to offer sensitive information on terrorism or “hostile intelligence activity,” he said.

Damen. . .

Continued from A14

to Russia. This delivery took place within the sanctions legislation in force at the time,” Damen said in a statement in April. The company said it has “always acted in accordance with the applicable sanctions packages and that full transparency has been exercised about its activities.” Officials at Damen declined to comment on the case beyond the statement.

The separate allegations of using bribes to secure foreign contracts have plagued the group for years. In 2016, the World Bank barred Damen from its projects for 18 months, saying the company had committed fraud by failing to disclose an agent and commissions under the West Africa Regional Fisheries Program. In 2017, local media reported that the Dutch tax investigation services had raided Damen’s Gorinchem headquarters in relation to foreign corruption.

The corruption trial against Damen Shipyards is set to start on Nov. 24, and includes prosecution of former and current company directors. The trial over sanctions violations will begin before the end of the year, but dates have not yet been confirmed.

German lawmakers recently froze a €671 million payment to Damen for six F126 ships after the company missed a delivery target. Germany says it is paying a total of about €9 billion for the frigates.

The move left the firm with what it calls a “temporary cash flow problem.” In a sign of the shipmaker’s importance, when Dutch parliament returned from its summer recess in July, it approved €270 million in support for Damen. The company says it has no financial issues as a whole, and the German defense ministry has said the project will continue.

In June, North Atlantic Treaty Organization members agreed to increase defense spending to 5% of their gross domestic product from 2%, after US President Donald Trump repeatedly lambasted his European allies for underspending on security.

European countries have been reviewing their naval capabilities given the heightened military threat from Russia and growing concern about the need to secure vulnerable undersea infrastructure. Norway recently picked the UK for a £10 billion frigate contract—the biggest—ever investment in the Nordic country’s defense.

In wartime, when enemy submarines are prowling, NATO’s ability to detect and destroy them will be crucial, said Sidharth Kaushal, senior research fellow in seapower at the Royal United Services Institute in London. Damen builds the type of warships needed for that mission.

“If a shipbuilder like Damen were to have issues, that would have pretty significant ramifications, and not just for the Netherlands,” he said. With assistance from Michael Nienaber, Joao Lima and Patrick Van Oosterom/ Bloomberg

Nationwide strikes and protests grip France as citizens decry Macron’s economic policies

By Nicolas Garriga, Thomas Adamson & Sylvie Corbet The Associated Press

PARIS—Marching with thousands of other protesters in Paris, hospital nurse Aya Touré put her finger on the pulse of many who took to streets across France on Thursday against the government of President Emmanuel Macron.

“Fed up. Really, really fed up,” she said. “Those people governing us, they have no clue about real-life issues. We are paying the price.”

Strikes that hobbled the Paris Metro and disrupted other services, coupled with nationwide demonstrations that saw sporadic clashes with police who fired volleys of tear gas, gave loud voice to widespread complaints that eight years of leadership by France’s business-friendly president have benefited too few people and hurt too many.

The day of upheaval for the European Union’s second-largest economy aimed to turn up the heat on new Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu and his boss, Macron. They’re engaged in an intensifying battle both in parliament and on the streets about how to plug holes in France’s finances, with opponents fighting proposals to cut spending on public services that underpin the French way of life.

“I don’t know how it’s even possible to consider making cost savings,” said Clara Simon, a history student who marched in the crowd of demonstrators in Paris, brandishing a poster that read: “University in danger.”

“There’s already no money for soaps in the toilets, no money to fix a seat when it’s broken,” she said. “I’m angry because the economic

and social situation in France is deteriorating every year.”

Protesters’ anger at budget cuts

MACRON’S opponents complain that taxpayer-funded public services—free schools and public hospitals, subsidized health care, unemployment benefits and other safety nets that are cherished in France—are being eroded by his governments that have lurched from crisis to crisis since he dissolved parliament in 2024, triggering a legislative election that stacked Parliament’s lower house with critics of the president.

Left-wing parties and their supporters want the wealthy and businesses to pay more to help rein in France’s debts, rather than see public spending cuts that they contend will hit low-paid and middleclass workers. Placards at the Paris demonstration read: “Tax the rich.”

“We need to find money where there’s money,” said Pierre Courois, a 65-year-old retired civil servant. “France’s deficit is an issue, but it’s not by cutting on public services that you fix it.”

Many complained about mounting poverty, sharpening inequality and struggles to make ends meet.

“Our pay is stuck, colleagues are leaving, and wards are closing beds,” said 34-year-old public hospital nurse Stephane Lambert.

EU and American officials met in Washington to discuss details. Last Friday, Britain announced a new set of sanctions targeting Russia’s oil revenues and military supplies, including banning 70 ships from a “shadow fleet” it said is being used to transport

“For us it’s the same story: less money in our pockets, fewer hands to help, more pressure every day.”

At a before-dawn protest at a Paris bus depot, striking transportation worker Nadia Belhoum said people are “being squeezed like a lemon even if there’s no more juice.”

Lecornu’s baptism of fire AS he seeks support for belttightening, Lecornu has trimmed lifetime benefits for former government ministers—a largely symbolic first step that won’t generate huge savings—and scrapped wildly unpopular proposals to eliminate two public holidays, a measure intended to spur revenue. He has been meeting opposition leaders and labor unions to try to build consensus for a budget, but his close relationship with Macron puts him in the firing line, too.

“Bringing in Lecornu doesn’t change anything—he’s just another man in a suit who will follow Macron’s line,” said 22-year-old student Juliette Martin.

Russian oil to circumvent international sanctions.

The main threat of secondary sanctions comes from the Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act, or CAATSA, measures adopted during Trump’s first term, which make it possible to impose sanctions on countries or people with commercial dealings with Russia’s militaryindustrial complex.

The threat is particularly powerful due to its vagueness, Hilgenstock said, which prompts companies and countries

On his first day in office last week, anti-government protests saw streets choked with smoke, barricades in flames and volleys of tear gas as demonstrators denounced budget cuts and political turmoil. That “Block Everything” campaign became a prelude for Thursday’s even larger demonstrations.

“For decades we’ve been the ones paying for the rich, paying for the billionaires, paying for the capitalists and they’ve emptied our pockets,” automobile factory union representative Jean Pierre Mercier said. “And today, supposedly, we must repay the debt, and once again it’s only the workers who are asked to pay, whether we’re employed, disabled, or retired.”

Scattered violence

THE first whiffs of police tear gas came before daybreak, with scuffles between riot officers and protesters in Paris. The collapse of successive governments—brought down by votes in parliament—that sought to push through savings

to exercise an overabundance of caution.

“Everyone else is left figuring out where exactly the red line is and how to toe it, and how not to cross it,” he said. “And the result is compliance, or more often overcompliance.”

Vietnam’s strategic strength is on the rise

VIETNAM has one of the most capable militaries in Southeast Asia and has been strengthening its naval and air power, largely geared toward a possible threat from China. China today is Vietnam’s largest

has given Macron’s critics a sense of momentum. The “Block Everything” campaign that developed online before taking to the streets also added to the climate of crisis.

As it did last week, the government said it was again deploying police in exceptionally large numbers—about 80,000 in all—to keep order on Thursday. Police were ordered to break up blockades and other efforts to prevent people who weren’t protesting from going about their business.

Paris police used tear gas to disperse a before-dawn blockade of a bus depot and deployed in force, backed by armored vehicles and firing more gas, at the afternoon march in the capital. French broadcasters also reported sporadic clashes in the western cities of Nantes and Rennes, and Lyon in the southeast, with volleys of police tear gas and projectiles targeting officers.

Striking rail workers waving flares made a brief foray into the Paris headquarters of the Economics Ministry, leaving trails of smoke in the air before leaving.

trade partner, but confrontations between the two countries over South China Sea territorial claims are growing.

The United States, meantime, is Vietnam’s largest export market. And since Washington lifted its arms embargo on Vietnam in 2016, it has become increasingly important in supplying defense goods. The US government also sees Vietnam as an important strategic partner as it seeks to counter China.

A decades-long defense relationship with Russia means that Vietnam will be dependent upon Russia for spare parts and other material for years to come, however, and recent contracts suggest Hanoi is not backing away from Moscow even as ties with the US grow closer.

In 2011, Russia extended Vietnam $2 billion in credit for a deal that included two frigates for its navy and 64 T90S tanks.

Another $8 billion in credit was given for a 2023 defense deal involving SU-30 fighter jets and two more frigates; none of which Russia has delivered yet.

“The bourgeoisie of this country have been gorging themselves, they don’t even know what to do with their money anymore. So, if there is indeed a crisis, the question is who should pay for it,” said Fabien Villedieu, a leader of the SUD-Rail train workers union. “We are asking that the government’s austerity plan that consists of making the poorest in this country always pay—whether they are employees, retirees, students—ends and that we make the richest in this country pay.”

The Interior Ministry reported 181 arrests nationwide as the afternoon ended and more than 450,000 demonstrators outside Paris, with protests in big cities and small towns. Paris police said that another 55,000 people marched in the capital. Participation estimates from the CGT, among unions that called the strikes and demonstrations, were double those of police, reporting more than 1 million strikers and protesters nationwide.

Travel disruptions

THE Paris Metro operator said that rush-hour services suffered fewer disruptions than anticipated, but that traffic largely stopped outside those hours except on three driverless automated lines.

French national rail company SNCF said that “a few disruptions” were expected on high-speed trains to France and Europe, but most will run.

“Every time there’s a protest, it feels like daily life is held hostage,” said office worker Nathalie Laurent, grappling with morning disruptions on the Paris Metro.

“Lecornu—he’s only just started, but if this is his idea of stability, then he has a long way to go,” she said.

John

The earlier document outlining the early stages of planning, from March 2023, was reported on by The New York Times later that same year.

In the earlier document, Vietnam’s Finance Ministry warns that arms deals with Russia could lead to American sanctions “because the US has continuously pressured Vietnam to switch to buying US weapons, threatening to sanction Vietnam under CAATSA if Vietnam continues to buy Russian weapons.”

But at the same time, it suggests the United States may be persuaded to hold off on imposing sanctions on Vietnam because, among other things, “the US values Vietnam’s role in implementing the IndoPacific strategy” meant to counter China’s growing assertiveness.

When the 2023 document leaked, Vietnam’s ruling Communist Party dismissed it as a Russian fake meant to

The official who provided the two internal Vietnamese-language documents detailing the repayment arrangement provided access to other internal government information that was verified by the AP through other sources, demonstrating his role in multiple high-level activities within Vietnam’s political and governmental hierarchy.

See

Leicester, Michael Euler, Oleg Cetinic, Yesica Brumec and Alex Turnbull contributed to this report.

STRIKING rail workers wave flares into the Paris headquarters of the Economics Ministry during a protest called by major trade unions to oppose budget cuts, in Paris, France, Thursday, September 18, 2025. AP/MICHEL EULER

US vetoes UN resolution for Gaza ceasefire amid growing global isolation and humanitarian crisis

By Farnoush Amiri The Associated Press

UNITED NATIONS—The United States once again vetoed a UN Security Council resolution Thursday that had demanded an immediate and permanent ceasefire in Gaza and the release of hostages, saying that the effort did not go far enough in condemning Hamas.

The 14 other members of the United Nations’ most powerful body voted in favor of the resolution, which described the humanitarian situation in Gaza as “catastrophic” and called on Israel to lift all restrictions on the delivery of aid to the 2.1 million Palestinians in the territory.

“US opposition to this resolution will come as no surprise,” Morgan Ortagus, a senior US policy adviser, said before the vote. “It fails to condemn Hamas or recognize Israel’s right to defend itself, and it wrongly legitimizes the false narratives benefiting Hamas, which have sadly found currency in this council.”

She added that other council members “ignored” US warnings about the “unacceptable” language and instead adopted “performative action designed to draw a veto.”

The outcome further highlights US and Israeli isolation on the world stage over the nearly two-year war in Gaza. The vote came just days before the annual gathering of world leaders at the UN General Assembly, where Gaza will be a major topic and major US allies are expected to recognize an independent Palestinian state. It

damage Hanoi’s relations with Washington, as the countries prepared to elevate their relations to a “Comprehensive Strategic Partnership,” Vietnam’s highest level of diplomatic ties, an official privy to the internal communications told the AP on condition of anonymity to avoid possible reprisals.

But there was no sign of any rift when then President Joe Biden arrived in September 2023 to finalize the partnership.

Analysis of the documents backs up their authenticity

BOTH documents appear genuine, from the embedded metadata, format, unique classification codes and other details, said Ben Swanton, co-director of The 88 Project, an NGO focused on human rights abuses in Vietnam that frequently deals with government documents.

Vietnam also has a track record of deliberately misleading Washington, and when it has been called out on it, so far there has been no action taken, he said.

For example, last year The 88 Project provided the US State Department with internal Vietnamese documents detailing how Hanoi was misinforming Washington about its efforts to address human trafficking concerns, but the State Department upgraded Vietnam in its annual trafficking report anyhow, Swanton said.

“Vietnam has learned that Washington will give it a free pass basically,” he said. The State Department defended the decision to upgrade Vietnam, saying that

is a largely symbolic move vehemently opposed by Israel and the US, dividing the Trump administration from allies including the UK and France.

The latest resolution tied a ceasefire to the release of hostages

THE resolution, drafted by the council’s 10 elected members who serve two-year terms, goes further than previous drafts to highlight what it calls the “ deepening of suffering “ of Palestinian civilians.

“I can understand the anger and frustration and disappointment of the Palestinian people who might be watching this session of the Security Council, hoping that there is some help in the pipeline, and this nightmare could be brought to an end,” said Riyad Mansour, the Palestinian ambassador to the UN “I can imagine the anger and frustration that it did not happen.”

Algeria, one of the leaders of the resolution, also expressed dismay at another failed council action for Gaza, apologizing to Palestinians for not doing enough to save civilians’ lives.

Despite the effort failing to pass, Algeria’s UN ambassador,

“the government demonstrated overall increasing efforts” to eliminate trafficking, though conceded it still “did not fully meet the minimum standards.”

Plans spelled out in the documents obtained by AP have also now come to fruition. During Putin’s June 2024 visit to Hanoi, Zarubezhneft received a license to develop the “Block 11-2” gas field on Vietnam’s continental shelf, the same area mentioned in the 2024 PVN memo.

An internal PVN document from this April, obtained by the AP from a different source, said Zarubezhneft had begun 3D mapping of the block.

And during a May visit to Moscow, a delegation led by To Lam, Vietnam’s top official, signed a number of oil and gas exploration-related deals and a “Strategic Partnership Plan” for defense and other cooperation covering 2026 to 2030, according to a joint statement from both sides.

It now remains to be seen how the mechanism will be used as sanctions pressure grows from the EU and the US, said Huong Le-Thu, deputy director of the International Crisis Group think tank’s Asia Program.

“Vietnam needs to navigate in this less conducive diplomatic environment where being too close to Russia will not be well received in European capitals,” Le-Thu said, noting that Hanoi is also now faced with an American administration far more transactional in approach.

“It’s fair to assume they are not going to be as generous as the previous administrations,” she said, “even with a recognition of Vietnam’s strategic value.”

Daria Litvinova in Tallinn, Estonia, contributed to this story.

Amar Bendjama, said: “14 courageous members of this Security Council raised their voice. They have acted with conscience and in the cause of the international public opinion.”

Pakistan’s ambassador called the vote, which took place during the 10,000th meeting of the Security Council, “a dark moment.”

Danny Danon, Israel’s ambassador to the UN, blasted the new effort, saying it would “not release the hostages and will not bring security to the region.”

“Israel will continue to fight Hamas and protect its citizens, even if the Security Council prefers to turn a blind eye to terrorism,” he said in a statement.

What the UN resolution called for THE effort reiterated demands from previous versions, including the release of all hostages held by Hamas and other militant groups following their Oct. 7, 2023, surprise attack in southern Israel that launched the war in Gaza.

In opposing similar resolutions since November, the US had complained that the demands, including a ceasefire, were not directly

linked to the unconditional release of hostages and would only embolden Hamas militants.

The new resolution expressed “deep alarm” after a report released last month by the world’s leading authority on food crises said Gaza City has become gripped by famine, and that it’s likely to spread across the territory without a ceasefire and an end to restrictions on humanitarian aid.

Israeli forces have pressed on with a new ground offensive in Gaza City. The latest Israeli operation, which started Tuesday, further escalates a conflict that has roiled the Middle East and likely pushes any ceasefire further out of reach.

The Israeli military, which says it wants to “destroy Hamas’ military infrastructure,” hasn’t given a timeline for the offensive, but there were indications it could take months.

Other recent UN actions on Gaza THAT same day, a team of independent experts commissioned by the UN Human Rights Council concluded that Israel is committing genocide in Gaza, issuing a report that called on the international

community to end it and take steps to punish those responsible for it.

Last week, the UN General Assembly voted overwhelmingly to

support a two-state solution to the Israel-Palestinian conflict and urged Israel to commit to a Palestinian state.

THE UN flag flies on a stormy day at the United Nations during the United Nations General Assembly, September 22, 2022. AP/TED SHAFFREY

Alas sits among volleyball greats

Sports

A18 SAturdAy, September 20, 2025

mirror_sports@yahoo.com.ph

Editor: Jun Lomibao

EJ and friends in town to flash elite level form

By Josef Ramos

Rin Makati

on the eve of the Atletang Ayala

Vault Challenge.   More than just an undercard, the NPVC gives local athletes an opportunity to test their mettle at a world-class pole vault venue. They will get to test out the runway and crossbar ahead of international athletes competing in the main event on Sunday that is sanctioned by World Athletics.   Competing in the Men’s Division are Hokett Delos Santos and Janry Ubas, both seen to follow in the footsteps of pole vault star Ernest John “EJ” Obiena.   De los Santos counts Obiena’s father, now masters athlete Emerson Obiena, as his mentor.

An all-around track and field athlete, De los Santos has also competed in decathlon, hurdles, long jump, high jump, javelin throw and shot put.

In 2022, he won a silver medal for the Philippines in the 31st Southeast Asian Games in Vietnam.

Also in the roster is athletics champion Janry Ubas, who has hauled honors for the country in the Southeast Asian Games in long jump, heptathlon and decathlon.   Competing alongside them are Sean Harry Narag and Mejen Sumbongan, who have both been training under Emerson Obiena. Narag is the 2023 Palarong Pambansa pole vault champion, while Sumbongan won silver medals in the 2024 Philippine National Games and University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) Season 87.   John Philip Villar, a UAAP junior record holder, is also in the competition—he just started training for pole vault in 2024 and is already showing strong potential.

Filipino-American Enzo Sison, meanwhile, flew in from the United States to compete in his homeland.

The

By Aldrin Quinto

N the months leading up to the FIVB Volleyball

IMen’s World Championship, Philippine National Volleyball Federation (PNVF) president Ramon “Tats” Suzara boldly declared that Alas Pilipinas would stand proudly among the 32 elite volleyball nations.

A week into the tournament, that vision has become reality—Alas Pilipinas now sits shoulder to shoulder with the sport’s giants.

With the top 16 teams advancing to the knockout rounds, the remaining half of the field has been ranked by the FIVB.

Three-time world champion Brazil 17th, Paris

Olympic gold medalist France 18th.

Alas Pilipinas 19th!

“This is much more than we expected. But all things considered, it’s no big surprise. We put our faith in these guys to deliver, and they did. They’re the new sports heroes of the country,” said Suzara.

Cuba is 20th, trailed by Germany, Qatar, crowd favorite Japan, Ukraine, Egypt, Colombia, South Korea, Libya, Romania, China, Chile, and Algeria.

Still in contention for the world title are defending champion Italy, world No. 1 Poland, USA, Slovenia, Belgium, Finland, Argentina, Türkiye, Netherlands, Canada, Bulgaria, Portugal, Tunisia, Iran, and Czechia.

Honor in heartbreak

PNVF president Ramon “Tats” Suzara urged members of Alas Pilipinas to keep their heads high, saying the team—from its core players to the extended pool and support staff—has brought pride to the country by proving they belong on the world stage.

Skipper Bryan Bagunas led by example, as expected, while Marck Espejo played with relentless fire. Leo Ordiales rose to the occasion on volleyball’s grandest Asian stage, and Josh Ybanez threw his body into every rally with fearless abandon. The rest of the squad followed suit, as the Philippines battled to the final point—falling just a breath short of the Round of 16.

Now, Suzara hopes the momentum will carry forward as the team sets its sights on zonal titles and long-term development.

“We hope they stay committed to growth, even outside major competitions,” he said.

The federation has yet to outline the next move for Alas Pilipinas following their historic run, but among the tournaments on the horizon is the Southeast Asian Games in Thailand. Suzara emphasized that with elevated status comes

greater responsibility—and that the team’s mission extends beyond the court.

As president of the Asian Volleyball Confederation and executive vice president of the FIVB, Suzara called on the squad to embrace their evolving roles.

“Continue to grow in both skill and mindset. Elevate the sport locally through mentorship. Set an example for younger athletes through discipline and leadership.”

Valiant stand

THE Philippines capped its breakout run with a fiveset thriller against Iran—a stinging loss, but a valiant stand that earned the admiration of thousands of volleyball fans around the globe, including the president of volleyball’s world governing body FIVB and the chief of the Italian federation.

A team with the second-longest odds of advancing came within a hair’s breadth of the Round of 16 in an elite field of 32.

Alas Pilipinas put on a show when some of the big teams and fan favorites stumbled under pressure and failed to find their rhythm—Paris Olympics gold medalist France went 1–2 and missed the knockout rounds, while crowd darling and world No. 7 Japan got booted out early, also winding up with a 1–2 record.

The Philippines also went 1-2 but was in the thick of the fight until the final moments of the pool play, eliminated only after five sets of intense battle with Iran, the highest-ranked Asian team left in the tournament.

The Philippines showed flashes of brilliance in the opening-day loss to Tunisia before notching the historic win over Egypt that silenced doubters and ignited national pride.

“It’s a difficult job hosting the world championship. And it’s very difficult to build a team for the world championship. But I think we’ve done a good job,” Suzara said.

Bittersweet end

A TOTAL OF 15,000 waited with bated breath as the big screens showed the replay.

Ali Haghparast’s attack was sent back by Kim Malabunga, who then pulled his shoulders back to avoid the net as he descended.

The crowd gasped collectively—Malabunga’s hand grazed the bottom part of the net.

Play resumed, the score back level at 19, and Iran went on to seize the win, 21-25, 25-21, 17-25, 25-23, 22-20.

Malabunga owned up to the fault and vowed to do much better.

“I’m really sorry. That’s on me,” Malabunga said.

“It’s hard to explain. I was really down after the game. That moment was mine. We should’ve won, but I lost my balance.”

It was pride amid pain for the 29-year-old middle blocker, one of the team’s elders and had served as Alas Pilipinas skipper in previous tournaments.

“Happy and sad,” Malabunga said.

“I’m happy because I saw our coaches and teammates proud of what we achieved. Everything we worked for over the past year showed in this game. But I can’t help but feel a bit of regret.”

The middle blocker actually had a solid stat line, one of four Alas Pilipinas players to finish in doble figures.

Malabunga had 10 points on six attacks, two blocks and two aces.

“This World Championship means a lot to us. It’s a huge experience that will help us grow. We’ll keep working harder to make it up to the Filipino people,” Malabunga said. “Men’s volleyball in the Philippines is rising. You saw it—we didn’t go down easily.”

Bagunas: We were so close, it really hurts

most memorable volleyball experience of my career, especially because I just came back from an injury. I’ve only been back with the team for just over a month, so this whole run meant a lot to me. Even if it ends here for me, it’s been worth it.

“Our coaching staff also did a great job preparing us, and I think that played a big part in why we had such a good result in this tournament.”

The Alas captain, who emerged as the third-best scorer with an average of 23.3 points per game and third-best spiker with a total of 61 kills on a 57.01-percent attack rate, thanked the fans for rallying behind the team—especially against Iran, in front of the largest attendance at the 2025 World Championship.

“I think playing here in the Philippines made a huge difference. We truly felt the support of the Filipino volleyball fans, and that really boosted our morale,” Bagunas said.

“The feeling was incredible. It reminded me of the 2019 SEA Games. It just made me so proud to be Filipino, seeing that kind of support from the crowd. We didn’t expect that so many people would cheer for us. Even though our opponents were strong, the crowd kept lifting us up. We’re really, really thankful,” he added.

After earning the world’s respect, Bagunas and Alas Pilipinas aren’t stopping anytime soon, remaining hungry to bring more glory to Philippine men’s volleyball.

“This experience taught us a lot. Our coaches told us: Don’t stop. Keep working hard and improving. We have to stay humble and consistent,” he said. www.philippineswch2025.com

OBIENA