THE Home Development Mutual Fund, commonly known as Pag-IBIG Fund, is looking to grow its total assets to P1.18 trillion in 2025, after breaching the P1-trillion mark in 2024. At the same time, the agency trumpeted its record P55.65 billion in total dividends, the highest payout in the agency’s 44-year history.
In a statement on Thursday, PagIBIG Fund reported its total assets closed at P1.069 trillion in 2024, higher by over P75 billion than in 2023.
“We continue to manage the Filipino workers funds excellently and prudently so that we continue
to strengthen Pag-IBIG Fund in carrying out its mandates,” PagIBIG Fund Chief Executive Officer Marilene C. Acosta said.
The return rate of the Modified Pag-IBIG II (MP2) savings program also reached a new record-high 7.10 percent in 2024, higher than last year’s 7.05 percent.
Likewise, dividend rates for the Regular Savings increased to 6.6 percent in 2024 from 6.55 percent in 2023.
This comes after the Pag-IBIG Fund recorded P55.65 billion in total dividends, the highest payout in the agency’s 44-year history.
“[W]hen Pag-IBIG Fund performs well, our members benefit the most,” Acosta said.
As such, the Pag-IBIG Fund’s net
income in 2024 rose to P67.52 billion, up by 36 percent from P49.79 billion in 2023.
The Pag-IBIG Fund also released P129.73 billion in home loans to 90,640 members, enabling them to acquire new or better homes. Meanwhile, the agency collected a total of P132.81 billion in membership savings. About P73.74 billion of these were voluntarily saved under Upgraded and MP2 Savings. The Pag-IBIG Fund also disbursed P70.33 billion in cash loans to assist more than 3.2 million members.
“We take great pride in our record-high achievements in 2024, which reflect our commitment to helping members achieve their
By Reine Juvierre S. Alberto @reine_alberto
THEnational government’s slightly narrowed budget deficit of P1.506 trillion as of the end of last year was born out of a jump in spending and revenue collections, latest data from the Bureau of the Treasury (BTr) showed.
The Treasury’s data revealed that the national government’s budget deficit tempered by 0.38 percent to P1.506 trillion in 2024 from P1.512 trillion in 2023. The deficit exceeded the P1.484trillion deficit program due to higher outturn in government spending, which included those charged to unprogrammed appropriations as well as defrayment of accounts payables. As a percentage of gross domestic product (GDP), the deficit picked up to 5.70 percent in 2024 from 6.22 percent in 2023.
Revenue collection
THE government collected a total of P4.419 trillion in revenues in 2024, surpassing the P4.270-trillion target by 3.49 percent. The collection is also higher by 15.56 percent than the P3.824 trillion generated in 2023. Revenue effort improved to 16.72 percent of the gross domestic product (GDP) compared to 15.73 percent in 2023.
Taxes mainly accounted for the country’s overall revenues, about 86 percent or P3.801 trillion. While this increased by 10.83 percent from last year’s P3.429 trillion, collections fell short of the P3.820-trillion goal. The two main tax collecting agencies—the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) and the Bureau of Customs (BOC)—raised P2.851 trillion and P916.7 billion, respectively.
By Manuel T. Cayon
voluminous but largely unused data. This consensus among scientists and government AI experts formed part of a string of suggestions and recommendations to propel the wider access and use of AI tools and internet applications. “Data is the lifeblood of AI, You can have the tools and the products but without access to data, they are
nothing,” said Dr. Arnulfo P. Azcarraga, a professor at Dela Salle University and member of the AI Board of the Department of Science and Technology-Philippine Council for Industry, Energy and Emerging Technology Research and Development (DOST-PCIEERD). It would be understable then and now that government is withhold in important data “due to issues of security and the sensitive nature of the information,” he said. But, he added, there are creative ways to make many important data available to the public, such as to “anonymize,” or remove identifying information from either the source person or entity.
“We know that many do not like personal information to be leaked and we want data to be secured. But with investment, we can take the necessary steps to make sure that certain information cannot be associated with a particular person. Like in the case of health, just by reading information about the blood type, or if he has a disease we would not know who the person is,” he said.
He said this would allow for research to proceed using the data on blood and other markers but without revealing the persons’ identification.
Dr. Franz A. de Leon, director of DOST Advance Science and tech-
nology Institute, said there are volumes of data and information in each agency of government but sad to say, these remain in the storage and unused.
“As we have discovered, there are different processes that these data could be used, such as correlating them, like for example, the data on weather may be correlated with the outbreak of disease, education with malnutrition, because they are siloed in the feeder and nobody is doing anything to study them,” he said.
“That is the inter-department side. Among the agencies themselves, there are processes that go
DOTr creates flagship project mgt office to hasten work
By Lorenz S. Marasigan
THE Department of Transportation (DOTr) said on Thursday it has created a Flagship Project Management Office (FPMO) to fast-track the implementation of priority infrastructure projects. Transportation Secretary Vince Dizon issued Department Order 2025-002, establishing the DOTr-FPMO as the central body responsible for directing policies and optimizing resources to accelerate the completion of big-ticket transport initiatives aimed at improving physical connectivity and reducing commuter travel time.
Dizon will personally lead the FPMO and oversee key projects such as the Metro Manila Subway Project, North-South Commuter Railway Project, Edsa Busway Project, Edsa Greenways Project, Cebu Bus Rapid Transit, and the Davao Public Transport Modernization Project. He will also have the authority to designate additional projects as priority infrastructure flagship projects (IFPs) as necessary.
“This PMO will be personally led by me. I will directly monitor these projects under very strict timelines. We will impose deadlines to ensure timely completion,” Dizon said. The FPMO is tasked with coordinating efforts across various DOTr sectors, attached agencies, and other government offices to streamline planning, budgeting, and implementation of priority IFPs.
It will also be responsible for monitoring progress, imposing completion targets, and consolidating agency resources to ensure efficient project execution.
BLOOM VOYAGE Burnham Lake, one of Baguio City’s iconic landmarks, transforms into a floating floral spectacle for the 4th Panagbenga Fluvial Parade on Thursday, February 27, 2025. As part of the month-long Panagbenga Festival—Baguio’s annual celebration of blooming flowers and cultural heritage—boats adorned with vibrant blossoms glide across the lake, captivating spectators. MAU VICTA
he decides on whether to sign or veto the bill for the naturalization of the latter.
Hontiveros opposed the granting of Filipino citizenship to the Chinese national due to his alleged links to POGO activities.
She also accused Li Duan Wang of misrepresenting himself as a Filipino citizen in the articles of incorporation of his company, Avia, International Club, and illegally used multiple taxpayer identification numbers.
“For now we are waiting for the enrolled bill, and the President will carefully study the said enrolled bill, and we will wait for his decision,” Castro said.
Hilmarc’s faces tax raps for P176.6M in ghost receipts
By Joel R. San Juan @jrsanjuan1573
THEDepartment of Justice (DOJ) has filed tax evasion charges against construction firm Hilmarc’s Construction Corporation (Hilmarc’s) for anomalous transactions using fraudulent receipts from ghost companies amounting to P176.6 million.
dream of homeownership, find relief in trying times, and save for a brighter future,” Acosta said.
This year, Acosta said Pag-IBIG Fund is eyeing at least 1.5 million new members, most of them coming from other working groups.
It also aims to have at least 110,000 more families achieve their dream of home ownership through the PagIBIG Housing Loan; as well as 10,000 members to have their own homes under the Pambansang Pabahay para sa Pilipino Program.
In a statement, the DOJ Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla said eight informations were filed before the Court of Tax Appeals against Hilmarc and its corporate officers identified as Efren M. Canlas, Robert B. Henson, and Cristina Elisse F. Canlas for violation of Sections 254 (Attempt to Evade or Defeat Tax) and 255 (Failure to Supply Correct and Accurate Information) in relation to Sections 253(d) and 256 of the Tax Code.
The filing of said Informations stemmed from a Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) complaint pursuant to its intensified campaign to eradicate fictitious and anomalous transactions
using ghost or fake receipts.
Aside from criminal violations, Hilmarc’s also faces civil liabilities amounting to P176,363,284.77 basic tax liabilities.
The DOJ said Hilmarc’s made it appear that the fraudulent receipts or invoices issued by Unimaker Enterprises Inc. and Everpacific Incorporated), who were found to be ghost companies, came from legitimate transactions.
“Consequently, the said fraudulent receipts/invoices were used to claim input tax in its VAT [value-added tax] returns and as an expense in its Income Tax Returns filed with the BIR,” the DOJ said.
“Such scheme ultimately had a negative impact on the tax collection of the BIR. Taken as a whole, this fraudulent act of using receipts from fake transactions resulted in billions of losses to the government,” it added. Remulla, on the other hand, said
The BIR exceeded the P2.849 trillion adjusted full-year program by 0.09 percent, driven by increased Value-Added Tax (VAT) collections.
However, reduced tariffs on rice and selected electric vehicles, as well as the extension of lower tariffs on meat products, hindered the BOC from reaching the P939.7billion full-year target, recording a 2.45-percent shortfall.
Tax effort accounted for 14.38 percent of the GDP, up from last year’s 14.10 percent but lower than the 14.42-percent target.
Meanwhile, non-tax revenues surged by 56.61 percent year-onyear to P618.3 billion in 2024 from P394.8 billion in 2023. This also surpassed the government’s target of collecting P449.6 billion.
The Treasury also collected a P283.4-billion income in 2024 from dividend remittances, interest advances from state-run corporations, guarantee fees, and shares from the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation’s profits.
Revenue from other offices, such as privatization proceeds, fees and charges, grants and fund balance transfers doubled to P335 billion from P167.2 billion a year ago.
Government spending MEANWHILE, government dis -
the filing should serve as a warning to those who continue to defraud the government of its supposed tax revenues.
“Ghost receipts should have no place in the commerce of man as it hinders our growth and prosperity as a nation…,” Remulla said.
bursements amounted to P5.925 trillion, which is 11.04-percent higher than the P5.338 trillion the state released in 2023.
Expenditures were above the P5.754-trillion program due to increased government spending on infrastructure.
Expenditures-to-GDP went up to 22.41 percent, higher than the 21.94-percent registered in 2023 and the revised target of 21.72 percent. Interest payments expanded by 21.48 percent to P763.3 billion in 2024 from P628.3 billion in 2023, on account of higher interest rates and weak foreign exchange rates.
Interest payments, as a percentage of revenues, increased to 17.27 percent from 16.43 percent. As a percentage of expenditures, it also went up to 12.88 percent from 11.77 percent a year ago, respectively.
Maintenance and other operating expenses for various health and social protection programs and personnel services expenditures due to the implementation of the first tranche of salary adjustments of civilian government employees also drove increased spending.
Additional expenditures from the unprogrammed appropriations— the public health emergency benefits and allowances, the medical assistance for indigent and financiallyincapacitated patients program, the assistance to individuals in crisis situations program and financial assistance to rice farmers—contributed to the disbursements.
on and on, getting repetitive. These can be applied with automation. So there is a big space for the application of AI to expedite the process, the projection,” he added. What is important, he said, “is how to determine the need and demand of each one agency, then find the common and general trend there in order to solve all these.”
Dr. Jose Ildefonso U. Rubrico, a program leader of Philippine Sky Artificial Intelligence (SKAI-Pinas), said the application of AI would greatly benefit under an environment of open data and accessible AI tools.
“The context of the program is essentially access to the AI tools and processes. Essentially it means having the proper infrastructure and the proper products,” said Rubrico, whom government has tapped for scientific projects under the BalikScientist program.
He said the DOST wanted to democratize the use of AI to the sectors that would also need them, such as students and professional organizations, “by providing them with the available portals opened for browsing.”
Azcarraga said at the rate of utilization, and the potential for wider use by other persons and groups, “the Philippines is ready and open to embrace AI, including the risk and threats accompanying it.”
“While the country, and the rest of the world struggles to find a balance between regulation and providing the conducive environment for AI to fully develop, we have to adapt and brace for it,” he said.
Science experts and academicians attended on Thursday here the Third Program-wide Congress of SKAIPinas.
Diving, MICE, shopping, nightlife
DIVING also seems to be a magnet for Indian travelers, said Tay, whose company, while based in Boracay, also sells other dive destinations. “We are also selling Bohol, Palawan, Manila, Angeles City. Diving is just one of the products we are offering,” and also services outbound travelers and incentive travelers, he added.
The TPB said the buyers were also keen on shopping destinations, the nightlife, and business travel/MICE (Meetings Incentives Conventions Exhibitions).
Over 5 million Indian tourists visited Asean in 2024, making it “critical” for the Philippines to secure a larger share of this
market through its participation in OTM, the leading travel trade show, in India. “As one of Asia’s largest and most notable travel trade events, OTM 2025 provided the Philippines with a platform to strengthen its foothold in the booming Indian outbound travel market. The strong turnout and the enthusiasm shown by Indian travel stakeholders during the event reaffirm our confidence that the Philippines will see substantial growth in Indian arrivals in the coming years,” said Nograles.
TPB has been marketing the Philippines as a wedding destination for Indian couples, with said wedding industry estimated at $120 million worldwide.
(See, “TPB pushes ‘Wedding Season’ for Indian visitors in the PHL,” in the BusinessMirror, July 6, 2024.)
Ma. Stella F. Arnaldo
money grey list by further strangling civic space.
In its February meeting, the FATF removed the Philippines from its grey list after the country supposedly acted on its deficiencies in its anti-money laundering and counterterrorism financing (CTF) systems. These deficiencies were the reasons for the country’s grey-listing by the FATF since June 2021.
The FATF itself said that it “encourages the Philippines to continue its work in ensuring that its CTF measures are appropriately applied, particularly the identification and prosecution of TF [terrorism financing] cases, and are neither discouraging nor disrupting legitimate NPO [non-profit organizations] activity.”
“The truth is that the Marcos Jr government used the FATF’s demands to further restrict and harass humanitarian and development NGOs as well as labor and social activists in the country. It has violated the human rights of many humanitarian and development workers, of labor and social activists, and of the members of communities that they serve,” the center claimed.
Human rights group Karapatan presented the following data:
At least 166 individuals have been arbitrarily charged or have faced complaints regarding alleged violations of the Anti-Terrorism Act (ATA) and Terrorism Financing Prevention and Suppression Law (TFPSL) or have been arbitrarily designated using the ATA. At least 73 individuals have been charged or have faced complaints regarding alleged violations of the TFPSL. At least 45 of these have been imprisoned due to alleged violations of the ATA and TFPSL. Bank accounts of at least 17 NGOs have been frozen, resulting in the non-delivery of crucial services and capacity-building activities for poor rural and indigenous communities and threats against staff members of these NGOs.
DOJ Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla PNA PHOTO
Senate pressed to start VP impeachment trial
By Jovee Marie N. dela Cruz @joveemarie
AHOUSE prosecutor in the looming impeachment trial of Vice President Sara Duterte at the Senate said the chamber must now proceed with the trial in accordance with its rules.
Manila Rep. Joel Chua made the statement a day after Senate President Francis Escudero ordered the establishment of an administrative support group to help the chamber as it gets ready to meet as an impeachment court.
Chua said Escudero’s order marks and already sets in motion the impeachment process.
“The Senate’s most recent move affirms our commitment to uphold accountability at the highest levels of government,” said Chua, chairman of the House Committee on Good Government.
“The House of Representatives, in transmitting the Articles of Impeachment, has fulfilled its constitutional mandate. Now, it is up to the Senate to conduct a fair and impartial trial to determine whether Vice President Duterte should be removed from office,” he said.
Prosecutors hope for speedy trial
THE House prosecution panel remains optimistic that the impeachment trial of Vice President Sara Duterte will be resolved before the 19th Congress adjourns, despite Senate President Francis Chiz Escudero
suggesting that the proceedings might extend into the 20th Congress.
House Assistant Majority Leader Jil Bongalon, a member of the prosecution panel, emphasized that there is ample time left in the current Congress to complete the trial.
Bongalon pointed out that Escudero has already designated various Senate offices as support staff for the impeachment court, signaling that preparations are well underway.
“So based on our conservative timeline or estimate, two to three months is enough to finish the trial, if and when the trial will commence by the month of March. So, we are confident that before June 30 or before the expiration of the 19th Congress, the Senate can decide on the impeachment case,” Bongalon said during a news conference.
“Even before the 19th Congress ends, I guess the remaining months are sufficient to finish the trial,” Bongalon stated.
He added that a trial lasting two to three months should be enough to resolve the impeachment case.
“I mentioned that, considering the adoption of the rules...for the proceedings... so, after the presentation of the witnesses, after the presentation of our documentary evidence, of course we will offer it, and then by that time, we will submit it to the Senate for its decision,” Bongalon said.
While expressing confidence that many
See “Impeachment,” A4
Escudero sets Sara trial in motion
By Butch Fernandez @butchfBM
AFTER coming from weeks of pressure both from lawmakers and various groups, Senate President Francis G. Escudero signalled on Thursday he was not backing down from the constitutional mandate to convene the Senate as an impeachment court for the case of Vice President Sara Z. Duterte.
Escudero signed Special Order 2025-015 Series of 2025 for the establishment of an administrative support group to assist the Senate when it convenes as an Impeachment Court for Duterte’s trial
“This Special Order is vital to ensure that the Senate, in its role as an Impeachment Court, operates smoothly and efficiently. We are committed to uphold the highest standards of justice and due process throughout the proceedings,” Escudero said upon issuance of the order.
The special order, signed on February 20, is effective immediately and will remain in force until the conclusion of the impeachment trial of Vice President Duterte. It comes on the heels of an open call made by Minority Leader Aquilino Pimentel III urging Escudero to call an all-senators’ caucus to thresh out issues related to the timing of the chamber’s convening. Under SO 2025-015, the Senate President designated the Secretary of the Senate as the Clerk of the Senate sitting as an Impeachment Court in accordance with the Rules of Procedures on Impeachment Trials.
House leader seeks probe into DepEd’s ‘ghost beneficiaries’ of SHS program
ALEADER of the House of Representatives on Thursday called for a motu proprio investigation into the alleged existence of “ghost beneficiaries” in the Department of Education’s (DepEd) Senior High School (SHS) program.
House Assistant Majority Leader Jil Bongalon called on both the House Committees on Basic Education and Culture and on Good Government and Public Accountability to look into reports that private schools
have been listing non-existent students since 2016, underscoring the need for swift congressional action to uphold the program’s integrity.
“The issue goes beyond the loss of public funds; it also erodes public trust in our education system,” Bongalon, the nominee of the party-list group Ako Bicol, said said.
The lawmaker said preliminary findings suggest that fraudulent claims have siphoned millions from the education
budget, undermining the SHS voucher program’s goal of easing overcrowding in public schools and supporting legitimate students.
Bongalon pointed out that the scheme appears to have started as early as 2016 under former President Rodrigo Duterte’s administration and continued under the leadership of former Education Secretary and current Vice President Sara Duterte.
Under Vice President Duterte’s watch, he said concerns were raised that insufficient safeguards and lax oversight allowed the scam to persist, with critics arguing that her perceived inaction during this period may have enabled unscrupulous individuals to manipulate the system.
While DepEd, under Secretary Juan Edgardo Angara, has launched an internal investigation into 12 private schools in
Leaders urged to act fast on EsCap’s SDG progress
By Bless Aubrey Ogerio
TARGETED actions with strong multiplier effects are what the delegates of the 12th Asia-Pacific Forum on Sustainable Development think is needed to accelerate progress on the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
While economic growth has lifted millions from poverty, leaders warned that the region remains far from achieving the SDGs, with less than a sixth of targets on track.
“With the technology and finance that drive the world now largely coming from the region, the means to attain sustainable development lie within us,” said Armida Salsiah Alisjahbana, UN Under-Secretary-General and Executive Secretary of the Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (Escap). “Our commitments must be translated into concrete actions.”
UN Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed emphasized the region’s potential, urging leaders to “use your voice to ensure that the needs and priorities of this region shape action over the coming years.”
Among the key concerns raised were aging populations, the need to invest in youth employment and ensuring education and healthcare systems keep up with demographic shifts. In the case of the Philippines, however, a Unescap report released in February 2024 warned that the country, along with other Asia-Pacific nations, is either stagnating or backsliding on SDG progress.
32 years behind deadline AT that time, Unescap Deputy Executive Secretary Lin Yang said in a briefing that the region is unlikely to achieve all 17 goals until 2062, which is 32 years behind the 2030
Over 3K jobs await former Pogo workers
By Justine Xyrah Garcia
AT least 3,300 job vacancies will be available for workers displaced by the closure of Internet Gaming Licensees (IGLs), formerly known as Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators (Pogos), in a job fair on Friday.
In a statement, the Department of Labor and Employment-National Capital Region Office announced that 24 employers from various industries will participate in the Project DAPAT: A Special DOLE Action Plan & Transition Job Fair for Displaced IGL Workers.
Escudero. . .
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The Secretary of the Senate has the authority of the Senate President to issue administrative orders, directives, and guidelines as necessary to support the Clerk of Court and the Impeachment Court.
The order outlines the detailed responsibilities and designations of support offices and personnel from the Senate Secretariat to provide comprehensive legal, technical, administrative, and general staff support to the Clerk of Court.
The primary offices involved include the
The event will be held at the Activity Center of Ayala Malls Manila Bay in Parañaque City.
Organized in coordination with the Parañaque Public Employment Service Office, the Department of Migrant Workers, and Ayala Malls Manila Bay, the initiative is part of the government’s continuing efforts to assist displaced workers following the shutdown of IGL or Pogo operations.
Participating employers will offer positions in industries such as business process outsourcing (BPO), manufacturing, hospitality, food service, information technology (IT), and
Office of the Senate Legal Counsel, the Office of the Deputy Secretary for Legislation, and the Office of the Sergeant-at-Arms, all of which will also act as Deputy Clerks.
The roles of these offices during the impeachment trials are as follows:
Office of the Senate Legal Counsel:
n Drafting of subpoenas, writs, summons, orders, resolutions, decisions, and other legal instruments.
n Preparation of legal memoranda and briefs, summaries of proceedings, and pleadings as required by the Presiding Officer or the Impeachment Court.
“It is time to move beyond conversations,” Youth Call to Action Shayal Nand said.
“Trust young people with inclusive, innovative and sciencebased solutions and facilitate intergenerational linking and learning for a cohesive sustainable development agenda.”
Asia-Pacific Regional Civil Society Engagement Mechanism’s Beena Pallical also urged all states and UN agencies “to commit to comprehensive redressal of systemic barriers, centering people and the planet over profits, in line with the principle of equity and inclusivity to realize development justice for a far better world for our tomorrow.”
Report on just transition THE forum also saw the launch of
entertainment. On-site services will also be available to help applicants with preemployment requirements.
Jobseekers are advised to bring copies of their resumes and other necessary documents.
An online pre-registration link (https:// tinyurl.com/ProjectDAPAT2025) has also been made available to streamline the application process.
Labor Secretary Bienvenido Laguesma earlier said that DOLE would sustain its assistance to affected workers beyond the December 31 deadline for the total ban of offshore gaming in the country.
Aside from employment facilitation, Laguesma said the department is also providing a free livelihood program, as well as
n Marking and maintaining custody of exhibits submitted before the Impeachment Court.
n Provision of procedural and substantive support to the Clerk of Court.
Office of the Deputy Secretary for Legislation:
n Transcripts and journals of the trial, custody and maintenance of the Oath Book, preparation of the Business of the Trial and scenario for each trial day.
n Drafting of Impeachment Court resolutions.
n Custody of and handling all documents pertaining to the proceedings.
the Asia-Pacific SDG Partnership Report 2025, a joint study by ESCAP, the Asian Development Bank and the United Nations Development Programme.
The 2025 SDG Partnership report looks at how people work in Asia-Pacific as the area changes to more environmentally sound economies. It also focuses on workforce shifts, warning that while millions of new jobs could emerge, workers in carbon-heavy industries and the informal sector remain vulnerable.
Additionally, it offered concrete examples of possible solutions and beneficial practices already in place across Asia-Pacific.
“This is a necessary step in addressing climate change while ensuring sustainable development, but it must be fair and inclusive, creating decent work opportunities and leaving no one behind,” Escap added.
upskilling and retraining, to align the workers’ skills to the industry needs.
“Our implementors have coordinated, especially DOLE-NCR, since a large portion of the IGLs are here in the NCR. Although there are four regions where they operate, including Region III, Region IV-A, and Region VII,” he said, partly in Filipino, in an interview last month.
He, however, acknowledged that reaching out to these workers remains a challenge—as only a few participate in the job fairs.
DOLE’s December data showed that it has identified around 40,000 workers who lost their jobs owing to the complete IGL or Pogo shutdown.
Of these, only 1,465 of them have been assisted by the department.
n Processing requests for copies of Impeachment Trial documents, subject to approval and applicable fees.
Office of the Sergeant-at-Arms:
n Ensuring necessary security and safety measures to maintain order during the proceedings.
n Serving summons, subpoenas, and other legal documents as directed by the Presiding Officer or the Clerk of Court.
n Ensuring order in the chamber and its premises during the proceedings.
n Carrying out all orders and directives of the Presiding Officer related to the preservation of order and decorum.
Jetro boosts
Philippines’ decarbonization efforts
By Lenie Lectura @llectura
THE Japan External Trade Organization (Jetro) recently led a highimpact business mission aimed at accelerating decarbonization efforts in the Philippines. Themed “Philippines’ Decarbonization: Initiatives, Challenges & Needs Faced by the Private Sector,” the forum brought together industry leaders, sustainability experts, and key stakeholders to discuss the pressing challenges and opportunities in the country’s transition to a net-zero future.
The Net Zero Carbon Alliance (NZCA), a private sector-led initiative established by Energy Development Corporation (EDC), took center stage during the event.
NZCA served as a collaborative platform to help businesses in the Philippines’ transition to a net zero future by providing guidance, technical expertise, and a shared commitment to reducing carbon footprints.
During the forum, NZCA highlighted corporate decarbonization strategies and the vital role of cross-sector collaboration in accelerating climate action.
Additionally, its NZCA partner companies Drink Communications, Holcim Philippines, and EDC presented their
DepEd. . .
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nine divisions for allegedly submitting fraudulent enrollees—potentially defrauding the government of over P52 million in the 2023–2024 school year—Bongalon insisted that a congressional investigation is necessary to prevent future abuses.
Commending Angara’s commitment to resolve the issue, Bongalon emphasized that a separate House inquiry would ensure accountability not only among school owners but also within DepEd, particularly officials who may have overlooked or even facilitated the fraud.
A congressional investigation, he explained, would complement DepEd’s efforts
Impeachment. . .
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of the current prosecutors will retain their seats, he admitted that adjustments may be necessary if some members are not reelected.
“For one to be a prosecutor, you should be a member of the House of Representatives, and assuming that there will be a crossover from the 19th Congress to the 20th Congress, those assigned prosecutors have to be nominated again on the floor,” he explained.
“Definitely, the panel of prosecutors can be subject to changes,” he said.
sustainability journeys, sharing their key challenges, innovations, and opportunities for collaboration—notably where Japanese decarbonization technologies and solutions could support their path toward net zero to accelerate climate action.
“Achieving net zero is not just about reducing carbon emissions—it requires a fundamental shift in how businesses operate and collaborate,” said Allan Barcena, executive director of the Net Zero Carbon Alliance and concurrent EDC Corporate Support Functions head.
“Through partnerships like this with Jetro and its network of Japanese innovators, we can equip Philippine companies with the knowledge, technology, and support they need to accelerate their decarbonization efforts,” Barcena added. Jetro, for its part, reaffirmed its commitment to strengthen trade and investment ties between Japan and the Philippines, particularly in sustainabilitydriven industries.
“Japan has long been at the forefront of innovation in decarbonization technologies, and we see great potential in collaborating with Philippine businesses to drive impactful climate action,” said Jetro Manila Executive Director Kazuo Nakamura.
by allowing legislators to summon school administrators and both current and former DepEd officials to testify.
The SHS voucher program was established to decongest public schools and provide financial assistance to students opting to enroll in private senior high schools. In principle, it benefits both sectors: public schools ease overcrowding, while private institutions receive government-subsidized students, ideally strengthening their financial viability.
Parents favor the program as it offers better teacher-student ratios and specialized tracks aligned with students’ career aspirations. However, Bongalon warned that without strict oversight, fraudulent claims could divert funds away from deserving students.
Bongalon also responded to Escudero’s statement that impeachment proceedings would start in June and might be resolved by October. He remained hopeful that the Senate would act with urgency in line with constitutional provisions.
H e reiterated that the Constitution mandates an impeachment trial to proceed “forthwith,” making a prolonged delay unnecessary.
“Even before the 19th Congress ends, I guess the remaining months are sufficient to finish the trial,” he stated.
While the Senate has yet to formally convene as an impeachment court, Bongalon urged its members to uphold their constitutional duty.
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By Ellen Knickmeyer, Mark Sherman & Matthew Lee The Associated Press
WASHINGTON—The Trump administration said it is eliminating more than 90% of the US Agency for International Development’s foreign aid contracts and $60 billion in overall US assistance around the world, putting numbers on its plans to eliminate the majority of US development and humanitarian help abroad.
The cuts detailed by the administration would leave few surviving USAID projects for advocates to try to save in what are ongoing court battles with the administration.
The Trump administration outlined its plans in both an internal memo obtained by The Associated Press and filings in one of those federal lawsuits Wednesday.
The Supreme Court intervened in that case late Wednesday and temporarily blocked a court order requiring the administration to release billions of dollars in foreign aid by midnight.
deserved to continue, and cut off all foreign assistance funds almost overnight.
The funding freeze has stopped thousands of US-funded programs abroad, and the administration and Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency teams have pulled the majority of USAID staff off the job through forced leave and firings.
Widely successful USAID programs credited with containing outbreaks of Ebola and other threats and saving more than 20 million lives in Africa through HIV and AIDS treatment are among those still cut off from agency funds, USAID officials and officials with partner organizations say. Meanwhile, formal notifications of program cancellations are rolling out.
programs in vast numbers for contract terminations, the memo said. Trump administration officials—after repeated warnings from the federal judge in the case—also said Wednesday they were finally beginning to send out their first or any payments after more than a month with no known spending. Officials were processing a few million dollars of back payments, officials said, owed to US and international organizations and companies.
But US District Judge Amir H. Ali’s order to unfreeze billions of dollars by midnight Wednesday will remain on hold until the Supreme Court has a chance to weigh in more fully, according to the brief order signed by Chief Justice John Roberts.
The memo said officials were “clearing significant waste stemming from decades of institutional drift.” More changes are planned in how USAID and the State Department deliver foreign assistance, it said, “to use taxpayer dollars wisely to advance American interests.”
President Donald Trump and ally Elon Musk have hit foreign aid harder and faster than almost any other target in their push to cut the size of the federal government. Both men say USAID projects advance a liberal agenda and are a waste of money.
Trump on Jan. 20 ordered what he said would be a 90-day program-by-program review of which foreign assistance programs
Wednesday’s disclosures also give an idea of the scale of the administration’s retreat from US aid and development assistance overseas, and from decades of US policy that foreign aid helps US interests by stabilizing other countries and economies and building alliances.
In the federal court filings Wednesday, nonprofits owed money on contracts with USAID describe both Trump political appointees and members of Musk’s teams terminating USAID’s contracts around the world at breakneck speed, without time for any meaningful review, they say.
“’There are MANY more terminations coming, so please gear up!’’’ a USAID official wrote staff Monday, in an email quoted by lawyers for the nonprofits in the filings.
The nonprofits, among thousands of contractors, owed billions of dollars in payment since the freeze began, called the en masse contract terminations a maneuver to get around complying with the
order to lift the funding freeze temporarily.
So did a Democratic lawmaker.
The administration was attempting to “blow through Congress and the courts by announcing the completion of their sham ‘review’ of foreign aid and the immediate termination of thousands of aid programs all over the world,” said Connecticut Sen. Chris Murphy, a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.
A coalition representing major US and global businesses and nongovernmental organizations and former officials expressed shock at the move. “The American people deserve a transparent accounting of what will be lost—on counterterror, global health, food security, and competition,” the US Global Leadership Coalition said.
The State Department said Secretary of State Marco Rubio had reviewed the terminations.
In all, the Trump administration said it will eliminate 5,800 of 6,200 multiyear USAID contract awards, for a cut of $54 billion.
Another 4,100 of 9,100 State Department grants were being eliminated, for a cut of $4.4 billion.
The State Department memo, which was first reported by the Washington Free Beacon, described the administration as spurred by a federal court order that gave officials until the end of the day Wednesday to lift the Trump administration’s monthlong block on foreign aid funding.
“In response, State and USAID moved rapidly,” targeting USAID and State Department foreign aid
Ali had ordered the federal government to comply with his decision temporarily blocking a freeze on foreign aid, ruling in a lawsuit filed by nonprofit groups and businesses. An appellate panel refused the administration’s request to intervene before the high court weighed in.
The plaintiffs have until noon Friday to respond, Roberts said.
The administration has filed an emergency appeal to the Supreme Court in one other case so far, arguing that a lower court was wrong to reinstate the head of a federal watchdog agency after Trump fired him.
The Associated Press writers Gary Fields in Washington and Rebecca Boone in Boise, Idaho, contributed to this report.
Hamas hands over bodies of 4 hostages to Israel in exchange for release of Palestinian prisoners
By Wafaa Shurafa, Samy Magdy & Josef Federman
The Associated Press
KHAN YOUNIS, Gaza Strip—Hamas handed over the bodies of four hostages to the Red Cross early Thursday in exchange for Israel’s release of hundreds of Palestinian prisoners, days before the first phase of the ceasefire in the Gaza Strip was to end.
An Israeli security official confirmed that Hamas handed the hostages’ bodies to the Red Cross. Israel said the caskets were delivered with the help of Egyptian mediators through an Israeli crossing and an identification process had begun.
At around the same time, a Red Cross convoy carrying several dozen released Palestinian prisoners left Israel’s Ofer prison headed for the West Bank town of Beitunia, where hundreds of well-wishers jostled for a glimpse of the bus as it arrived. Friends and family greeted the released prisoners, hugging them and snapping photos. One released man made a victory
sign as he was carried on the shoulders of supporters, with the crowd chanting “God is Great.” The released prisoners wore Israeli Prison Service T-shirts that some of them took off and set on fire.
Hours later, buses carrying hundreds of other Palestinian prisoners arrived in the Gaza city of Khan Younis, with some men kissing the ground as they emerged from the buses.
Israel had delayed the release of over 600 Palestinian prisoners since Saturday to protest what it called the cruel treatment of hostages during their handover by Hamas. The militant group has called the delay a “serious violation” of the ceasefire and said talks on a second phase aren’t possible until the Palestinians are freed.
Earlier Wednesday, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said the latest release of hostages’ bodies would be carried out without ceremony, as opposed to past Hamas releases with stage-managed events in front of crowds. Israel, along with the Red Cross and U.N. officials, have called the ceremonies humiliating for the hostages. Among those scheduled to leave Israel
early Thursday were hundreds of detainees arrested from Gaza, held on suspicion of militancy after Hamas’ October 7, 2023, attack, without charge for months. They include 445 men, 21 teenagers and one woman, according to lists shared by Palestinian officials that did not specify their ages.
Only around 50 Palestinians were released into the occupied West Bank and east Jerusalem in this round. Dozens sentenced to life over deadly attacks against Israelis will be exiled out of the Palestinian territories and taken to Egypt at least temporarily until other countries accept them.
The latest handovers would complete both sides’ obligations under the ceasefire’s first phase, during which Hamas returned 33 hostages, including eight bodies, in exchange for nearly 2,000 Palestinian prisoners.
The family of a hostage in Gaza said they were notified he is dead and his body was among those to be returned to Israel. The family did not say who informed them. Notifications typically come from Israel’s military.
Tsachi Idan was taken from Kibbutz Nahal Oz. His eldest daughter, Maayan, was killed as militants shot through the door
of the family’s safe room. Hamas militants broadcast themselves on Facebook holding the family hostage in their home as two younger children pleaded to let them go.
French President Emmanuel Macron posted on X about Israeli-French hostage Ohad Yahalomi, whose body was also expected to be released: “In these suspended hours of pain and anguish, the nation stands by their side.”
A fragile ceasefire in peril
THE ceasefire’s six-week first phase expires this weekend. US President Donald Trump’s Middle East envoy, Steve Witkoff, has said he wants the sides to move into negotiations on the second phase, during which all remaining hostages held by Hamas would be released and an end to the war would be negotiated.
Talks on the second phase were supposed to begin the first week of February.
The ceasefire, brokered by the United States, Egypt and Qatar, ended 15 months of war that erupted after Hamas’ 2023 attack on southern Israel that killed about 1,200 people. About 250 people were taken
hostage.
Israel’s military offensive has killed more than 48,000 Palestinians, according to Palestinian health officials, who don’t differentiate between civilian and combatant deaths but say over half the dead have been women and children.
The fighting also displaced an estimated 90 people of Gaza’s population and decimated the territory’s infrastructure and health system.
Israel buries mother, sons killed in captivity
On Wednesday, tens of thousands of Israelis lined highways as the bodies of a mother and her two young sons, killed in captivity in Gaza, were taken for burial on Wednesday.
The bodies of Shiri Bibas and her sons, 9-month-old Kfir and 4-year-old Ariel, were handed over earlier this month.
Israel says forensic evidence shows the children were killed by their captors in November 2023, while Hamas says the family was killed along with their guards in an Israeli airstrike.
The husband and father, Yarden Bibas,
was abducted separately and released alive in a different handover. His wife and their children were buried in a private ceremony near Kibbutz Nir Oz near Gaza, where they were living when they were abducted. They were buried in a joint grave next to Shiri’s parents, who were killed in the attack. Another infant in Gaza dies of hypothermia
WITH people living in tent camps and damaged buildings in Gaza in chilly weather, health officials said another infant had died of hypothermia Wednesday, bringing the toll to seven over the past two weeks. Dr. Munir al-Boursh, director general of Gaza’s Health Ministry, said the baby less than two months old died due to the “severe cold wave” that has hit the Palestinian enclave.
Temperatures have been below 10 degrees Celsius (50 degrees Fahrenheit) at night and the last few days have been particularly cold.
Federman reported from Jerusalem. Magdy reported from Cairo.
Pope beats back speculation of imminent death or conclave as he continues pneumonia recovery
By Nicole Winfield The Associated Press
ROME—Pope Francis continued his slow recovery from double pneumonia on Thursday, beating back speculation of an imminent death, resignation or conclave and signaling that he was still very much in charge albeit in a weakened state.
The Vatican said the 88-yearold pope once again slept well during the night at Rome’s Gemelli hospital and was resting Thursday morning.
Doctors on Wednesday reported further slight improvements in his clinical condition. They said the kidney insufficiency that had been detected in recent days had receded, blood tests showed a slight improvement and a chest CT scan showed that his complex lung infection was taking the “normal evolution” as it is being treated.
that pastoral dynamism that characterizes him,” said Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re.
As is now popularly known thanks to the Oscar-nominated film “Conclave,” the 91-year-old Re would have a key role in any papal death or conclave, called to preside over the funeral and organize the secret balloting in the Sistine Chapel to elect a new pope. Francis recently extended Re’s term, keeping him on in the important job rather than naming someone new.
But on Wednesday night, Re was merely one of the Catholic Church’s most senior cardinals, an important point of reference for the men who lead the church, praying for Francis’ speedy recovery.
Prayers for his heath continued to pour in from near and far, with the dean of the College of Cardinals presiding Wednesday night over what has now become a nightly appointment in St. Peter’s Square, the 9 p.m. Rosary prayer.
“We are gathered in St. Peter’s Square to pray confidently that God will allow Pope Francis to resume his apostolic service as soon as possible, in the fullness of his physical strength and with
The prognosis remained guarded, however. The pope, who had part of one lung removed as a young man, is still receiving high flows of supplemental oxygen and respiratory physiotherapy to help his lungs expel fluid. But he hasn’t had any more respiratory crises since Saturday, the Vatican said.
A complex lung infection has kept Francis hospitalized in critical condition since February 14. Francis has chronic lung disease and was hospitalized after a bout of bronchitis worsened. While doctors didn’t repeat that he was in critical condition in Wednesday’s update, as they have in recent days, they said his prognosis remained guarded, meaning he wasn’t out of danger.
By now a certain rhythm appears to have emerged from the Vatican’s updates: The pope receives treatments in the morning, including
respiratory physiotherapy, and resumes work in the afternoon from his hospital room.
The Vatican said Wednesday that he had appointed four new bishops and approved the creation of a new fundraising initiative to encourage donations to the Holy See, which has been enduring a financial crisis for years.
Francis likely approved the bishop appointments a while back and the new norms for the fundraising entity were approved February 11, before he was hospitalized. But the announcements made them official and suggested Francis was still very much in charge and governing.
The Vatican in recent days has
published a series of papal decisions that show Francis is both getting essential work done and looking ahead. He changed the law to give wide-ranging governing powers to the first-ever nun to lead the Vatican City State, and he called a future meeting of cardinals to set the dates for some upcoming canonizations.
The calling of a consistory is a normal and necessary step in the saint-making process. But it did however raise questions.
It was at a banal consistory to set dates for canonizations on February 11, 2013, that Pope Benedict XVI announced, in Latin, that he would resign because he couldn’t keep up with the rigors of the papacy.
For now, Francis isn’t taking any such decision from the hospital, where he has been cheered on by well-wishers. On Wednesday evening, trumpeter Felice Carella and singer Davide Capuano serenaded the pope with a rendition of Schubert’s Ave Maria under his 10th floor window.
“For me this is not a simple song, this is a big prayer for the pope so that he will better,” Capuano said. “These are terrible days and I hope the whole world can pray together with us.”
Israeli official says the army won’t withdraw from Gaza corridor in potential jolt to truce
By Mohammad Jahjouh, Wafaa Shurafa & Natalie Melzer
The Associated Press
KHAN YOUNIS, Gaza Strip—Israel will not withdraw from a strategic corridor in the Gaza Strip as called for by the ceasefire, an official said Thursday. Israel’s refusal could spark a crisis with Hamas and key mediator Egypt at a sensitive moment for the fragile truce.
The official, speaking on condition of anonymity in line with regulations, said Israeli forces needed to remain in the socalled Philadelphi corridor, on the Gaza side of the border with Egypt, to prevent weapons smuggling.
The official spoke hours after Hamas released the remains of four hostages in exchange for over 600 Palestinian prisoners, the last planned exchange of the ceasefire’s first phase, which ends this weekend. Talks over the second and more difficult stage have yet to begin.
Israel was supposed to begin with -
drawing from the Philadelphi corridor on Saturday, the last day of the first phase, and complete it within eight days.
The remains released Thursday were confirmed to be those of Ohad Yahalomi, Itzhak Elgarat, Shlomo Mantzur and Tsachi Idan, according to the Hostages and Missing Families Forum, which represents families of the captives.
Mantzur, 85, was killed in the October 7, 2023, attack and his body was taken into Gaza. The other three were abducted alive and the circumstances surrounding their deaths were not known.
“Our hearts ache upon receiving the bitter news,” Israeli President Isaac Herzog said. “In this painful moment, there is some solace in knowing that they will be laid to rest in dignity in Israel.”
French President Emmanuel Macron said he shared the “immense pain” of the family and loved ones of Yahalomi, who had French citizenship.
Hamas said in a statement that the “only way” for Israel to secure the release of the remaining hostages was through negotia -
tions and adhering to the agreement. It warned that any attempt to pull back from the truce “will only lead to more suffering” for the captives and their families.
The statement was released before the Israeli official spoke about the Philadelphi corridor.
Hamas confirmed that over 600 prisoners had been released overnight. Most were detainees returned to Gaza, where they had been rounded up after the October 7, 2023 attack that triggered the war and held without charge on security suspicions.
A joyful return for released prisoners
SOME of the released prisoners fell to their knees in gratitude after disembarking from buses in the southern Gaza city of Khan Younis. In the West Bank town of Beitunia, dozens of prisoners were welcomed by crowds of relatives and well-wishers.
The released prisoners, some of whom had been serving life sentences over deadly attacks against Israelis, wore shirts issued
by the Israeli prison service bearing a message in Arabic about pursuing one’s enemies. Some of the prisoners threw the shirts on the ground or set them on fire.
Israel delayed the release of the prisoners on Saturday over Hamas’ practice of parading hostages before crowds and cameras during their release. Israel, along with the Red Cross and U.N. officials, have called the ceremonies humiliating for the hostages.
Hamas released the four bodies to the Red Cross in Gaza overnight without a public ceremony.
The prisoners released Thursday included 445 men, 21 teenagers and one woman, according to lists shared by Palestinian officials that did not specify their ages. Only around 50 Palestinians were released into the occupied West Bank and east Jerusalem in this round, while dozens sentenced to life over deadly attacks against Israelis were exiled.
The truce is in peril
THE latest handover was the final one
planned under the ceasefire’s first sixweek phase, which expires this weekend. Hamas has returned 33 hostages, including eight bodies, in exchange for nearly 2,000 Palestinian prisoners.
US President Donald Trump’s Middle East envoy, Steve Witkoff, has said he wants the sides to move into negotiations on the second phase. Those talks were supposed to begin the first week of February.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has vowed to return all the hostages and destroy the military and governing capabilities of Hamas, which remains in control of Gaza. The Trump administration has endorsed both goals.
But it’s unclear how Israel would destroy Hamas without resuming the war, and Hamas is unlikely to release the remaining hostages—its main bargaining chips— without a lasting ceasefire.
The ceasefire, brokered by the United States, Egypt and Qatar, ended 15 months of war that erupted after Hamas’ 2023 attack on southern Israel that killed about
1,200 people. About 250 people were taken hostage. If the identities of the four bodies are confirmed, then 59 captives will remain in Gaza, 32 of whom are believed to be dead. Nearly 150 have been released in ceasefire agreements or other deals, while dozens of bodies have been recovered by Israeli forces and eight captives have been rescued alive. Israel’s military offensive has killed more than 48,000 Palestinians, according to Palestinian health officials, who don’t differentiate between civilian and combatant deaths but say over half the dead have been women and children.
The fighting displaced an estimated 90% of Gaza’s population and decimated the territory’s infrastructure and health system.
Shurafa reported from Deir al-Balah, Gaza Strip and Melzer from Nahariya, Israel. Associated Press writer Josef Federman in Jerusalem contributed.
CATHOLIC faithful attend a nightly rosary prayer service for the health of Pope Francis in St. Peter’s Square at the Vatican. AP/MOSA’AB ELSHAMY
Trump sees ‘a thirst’ for his ‘gold card’ visa idea with $5 million potential path to US citizenship
By Elliot Spagat & Will Weissert The Associated Press
WASHINGTON—President
Donald Trump said Wednesday that he plans to start selling a “gold card” visa with a potential pathway to US citizenship for $5 million, seeking to have that new initiative replace a 35-year-old visa program for investors.
“I happen to think it’ll sell like crazy. It’s a market,” Trump said.
“But we’ll know very soon.”
During the first meeting of his second-term Cabinet, Trump suggested that the new revenue generated from the program could be used to pay off the country’s debt.
“If we sell a million, that’s $5 trillion dollars,” he said. Of the demand from the business community to participate, he said “I think we will sell a lot because I think there’s really a thirst.”
Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick told reporters during the same meeting that Trump’s
initiative would replace the EB-5 program, which offers US visas to investors who spent about $1 million on a company that employs at least 10 people.
Lutnick said that program “has been around for many years for investment in projects” but “it was poorly overseen, poorly executed.”
The new program could mark a dramatic shift in US immigration policy but isn’t unprecedented elsewhere. Countries in Europe and elsewhere offer what have become known as “golden visas” that allow participants to pay in order to secure immigration status
in desirable places.
Congress, meanwhile, determines qualifications for US citizenship, but the president said “gold cards” would not require congressional approval.
Trump said of future possible recipients of the gold visa program: “They’ll be wealthy and they’ll be successful and they’ll be spending a lot of money and paying a lot of taxes and employing a lot of people, and we think it’s going to be extremely successful.”
Henley & Partners, an advisory firm, says more than 100 countries around the world offer “golden visas” to wealthy individuals and investors. That list includes the United States, United Kingdom, Spain, Greece, Malta, Australia, Canada and Italy.
“Companies can buy gold cards and, in exchange, get those visas to hire new employees,” Trump said. Despite similar programs already occurring outside the US, he insisted, “No other country can do this because people don’t want to go to other countries. They want to come here.”
“Everybody wants to come here, especially since November 5,” he said of his Election Day victory last fall.
Lutnick suggested that the gold card—which would actually work, at least to start, more like a green card, or permanent legal residency—would raise the price of admission for investors and do away with fraud and “nonsense” that he said characterize the EB-5 program.
A pathway to citizenship as part of the new program also would set it apart from the EB-5 program. Trump said vetting people who might be eligible for the gold card
will “go through a process” that is still being worked out. Pressed on if there would be restrictions on people from China or Iran not being allowed to participate, Trump suggested it will likely not “be restricted to much in terms of countries, but maybe in terms of individuals.”
About 8,000 people obtained investor visas in the 12-month period ending Sept. 30, 2022, according to the Homeland Security Department’s most recent Year -
book of Immigration Statistics. The Congressional Research Service reported in 2021 that EB-5 visas pose risks of fraud, including verification that funds were obtained legally. Then-President Joe Biden signed a 2022 law bringing big changes to the EB-5 program, including steps meant to investigate and sanction individuals or entities engaged in fraud as part of it—meant to curb some of those risks.
Trump offered few details on how the new program might work, including making no mention of existing EB-5 requirements for job creation. While the number of EB-5 visas is capped, meanwhile, the Republican president mused that the federal government could sell 10 million “gold cards” to reduce the deficit. He said it “could be great, maybe it will be fantastic.”
“It’s somewhat like a green card, but at a higher level of sophistication,” the president said. “It’s a road to citizenship for people— and essentially people of wealth or people of great talent, where people of wealth pay for those people of talent to get in, meaning companies will pay for people to get in and to have long, long term status in the country.”
Unvaccinated child dies in measles outbreak, first US death since 2015
By Devi Shastri & Amanda Seitz
The Associated Press
LUBBOCK, Texas—A child who wasn’t vaccinated died in a measles outbreak in rural West Texas, state officials said Wednesday, the first U.S. death from the highly contagious—but preventable—respiratory disease since 2015.
The school-aged child had been hospitalized and died Tuesday night amid the widespread outbreak, Texas’ largest in nearly 30 years. Since it began last month, a rash of 124 cases has erupted across nine counties.
The Texas Department of State Health Services and Lubbock health officials confirmed the death to The Associated Press. The child wasn’t identified but was treated at Covenant Children’s Hospital in Lubbock, though the facility noted the patient didn’t live in Lubbock County.
“This is a big deal,” Dr. Amy Thompson, a pediatrician and chief executive officer of Covenant Health, said Wednesday at a news conference. “We have known that we have measles in our community, and we are now seeing a very serious consequence.”
In federal response, RFK Jr. appears to misstate several facts
Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the nation’s top health official and a vaccine critic, said Wednesday that the U.S. Department of the Health and Human Services is watching cases and dismissed the Texas outbreak as “not unusual.”
He appeared to misstate a number of facts, including a claim that most who had been hospitalized were there only for “quarantine.” Dr. Lara Johnson at Covenant contested that characterization.
“We don’t hospitalize patients for quarantine purposes,” said Johnson, the chief medical officer.
Kennedy also seemed to misspeak in saying two people had died of measles. A spokesman—
Andrew Nixon, for the Department of Health and Human Services—later clarified that the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has identified only one death.
The federal government is providing vaccines as well as technical and laboratory support in West Texas, but the state health department is leading the response, Nixon said.
The CDC has said it will provide only weekly updates on the measles outbreak, and had not yet updated its public webpage to reflect the child’s death. Texas health department data shows that a majority of the reported measles cases are in children.
In rural Texas, some patients have needed oxygen or intubation
The virus has largely spread among rural, oil rig-dotted towns in West Texas, with cases concentrated in a “close-knit, undervaccinated” Mennonite community, state health department spokesperson Lara Anton said.
Gaines County, which has reported 80 cases so far, has a strong homeschooling and private school community. It is also home to one of the highest rates of school-aged children in Texas who have opted out of at least one required vaccine, with nearly 14 percent skipping a required dose last school year.
More than 20 measles patients have been hospitalized
at Covenant, including the outbreak’s first identified case, hospital officials said.
Some patients’ respiratory issues progressed to bacterial pneumonia, and they needed an oxygen tube to breathe, Johnson told The Associated Press. Others had to be intubated, though Johnson declined to say how many due to privacy concerns.
“Unfortunately, like so many viruses, there aren’t any specific treatments for measles,” she said. “What we’re doing is providing supportive care, helping support the patients as they hopefully recover.”
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott said through a spokesman that his office is in regular communication with the state health department and epidemiologists, and that vaccination teams are in the “affected area.”
“The state will deploy all necessary resources to ensure the safety and health of Texans,” said spokesman Andrew Mahaleris, calling the child’s death a tragedy.
Later Wednesday, the state health department confirmed a new measles case in Rockwall County, east of Dallas. The person had traveled internationally and is not related to the West Texas outbreak.
Vaccines are safe and effective, and measles was once considered eliminated
The measles, mumps and rubella vaccine is safe and highly effective at preventing infection and severe cases. The first shot is recommended for children ages 12 to 15 months, and the second for ages 4 to 6 years.
The vaccine series is required for kids before entering kindergarten in public schools nationwide. Most kids will recover from measles, but infection can lead to dangerous complications such as pneumonia, blindness, brain swelling and death.
Vaccination rates have declined nationwide since the COVID-19 pandemic, and most states are below the 95 percent vaccination threshold for kindergartners—the level needed to protect communities against measles outbreaks. Last week, Kennedy vowed to investigate the childhood vaccine schedule that prevents measles, polio and other dangerous diseases, despite promises not to change it during his confirmation hearings.
The US had considered measles—a respiratory virus that can survive in the air for up to two hours—eliminated in 2000, which meant there had been a halt in continuous spread of the disease for at least a year. Measles cases rose in 2024, including a Chicago outbreak that sickened more than 60. In the current outbreak, Lubbock’s first case was in an unvaccinated child who sat in an emergency room with a kid who had measles, said Katherine Wells, director of the local health department, calling it a testament to how quickly the virus spreads.
“When you see it in real life, you really realize how contagious it is,” said Wells, noting she expects more local cases, with a couple under investigation as of Wednesday. “An entire household gets sick so quickly. Whole families are getting sick with measles.” AP
Covenant Children’s Hospital is pictured from outside the emergency entrance on Wednesday, February 26, 2025, in Lubbock, Texas. AP/MARY CONLON
The World
Iran accelerates production of near weapons-grade uranium, IAEA says, as tensions with US ratchet up
By Stephanie Liechtenstein The Associated Press
VIENNA—Iran has accelerated its production of near weaponsgrade uranium as tensions between Tehran and Washington rise after the election of US President Donald Trump, a report by the United Nations’ nuclear watchdog seen by The Associated Press on Wednesday showed.
The report by the Vienna-based International Atomic Energy Agency said that as of February 8, Iran has 274.8 kilograms (605.8 pounds) of uranium enriched up to 60 percent. That’s an increase of 92.5 kilograms (203.9 pounds) since the IAEA’s last report in November. That material is a short, technical step away from weapons-grade levels of 90 percent.
A report in November 2024 put the stockpile at 182.3 kilograms (401.9 pounds). It had 164.7 kilograms (363.1 pounds) last August.
“The significantly increased production and accumulation of high enriched uranium by Iran, the only non-nuclear weapon State to produce such nuclear material, is of serious concern,” the confidential report stated. According to the IAEA, approximately 42 kilograms of 60 percent enriched uranium is theoretically enough to produce one atomic bomb, if enriched further to 90 percent.
The IAEA also estimated in its quarterly report that as of Feb. 8, Iran’s overall stockpile of enriched uranium stands at 8,294.4 kilograms (18,286 pounds), which represents an increase of 1,690.0 kilograms (3725.8 pounds) since the last report in November.
Trump administration warns Tehran
THE Trump administration said Iran must be prevented from acquiring nuclear weapons.
“President Trump has put the Iran Regime on notice by reimposing Maximum Pressure and is committed to ensuring the regime never gets a nuclear weapon. He has also made clear he is open to talks with Iran to come to an agreement that fully addresses the outstanding issues between our two countries,” National Security Council spokesperson Brian Hughes said.
Trump’s first term in office was marked by a particularly troubled period in relations with Tehran. In 2018 he unilaterally withdrew the US from Iran’s nuclear deal with world powers, leading to sanctions hobbling the economy, and ordered the killing of the country’s top general.
Under the original 2015 nuclear deal, Iran was allowed to enrich uranium only up to 3.67 percent purity and maintain a stockpile of uranium of 300 kilograms.
Iran’s accelerated production of near weapons-grade uranium puts more pressure on Trump as he’s repeatedly said he’s open to negotiations with the Islamic Republic while also increasingly targeting Iran’s oil sales with sanctions as part of his reimposed “maximum pressure” policy.
Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who has final say on all state matters, in a speech in August opened the door to talks with the US, saying there
is “no harm” in engaging with the “enemy.”
However, more recently he tempered that, saying that negotiations with America “are not intelligent, wise or honorable” after Trump floated nuclear talks with Tehran.
“Regarding the nuclear negotiations, the position of the Islamic Republic of Iran is very clear. We will not negotiate under pressure, threat or sanctions,” Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said on Tuesday during a press conference with his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov.
Iran’s mission at the United Nations in New York did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
IAEA inspectors banned as Iran begins operating more centrifuges
IRAN has maintained its nuclear program is for peaceful purposes only, but IAEA Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi has previously warned that Tehran has enough uranium enriched to nearweapons-grade levels to make “several” nuclear bombs if it chose to do so.
Iranian officials have increasingly suggested Tehran could pursue an atomic bomb. US intelligence agencies assess that Iran has yet to begin a weapons program, but has “undertaken activities that better position it to produce a nuclear device, if it chooses to do so.”
The IAEA already warned last December that Iran was poised to “quite dramatically” increase its stockpile of near weapons-grade uranium as it has started operating cascades of advanced centrifuges.
That move came as a response to the Board of Governors at the IAEA passing a resolution condemning Iran for failing to cooperate fully with the agency. In the past, Iran has repeatedly responded to the board’s resolutions by further enhancing its nuclear program.
Wednesday’s report also said that Iran has also not reconsidered its September 2023 decision to ban some of the agency’s most experienced inspectors from monitoring its nuclear program.
“The Director General deeply regrets that Iran, despite having indicated a willingness to consider accepting the designation of four additional experienced Agency inspectors, did not accept their designations,” the report said.
Unanswered questions remain, despite 2023 deal ADDITIONALLY, the report says that “no progress was made towards resolving the outstanding safeguards issues in relations to Varamin and Turquzabad,” the two locations in Iran where the nuclear watchdog has questions about the origin and location of man-made
uranium particles found there.
The report also said that Grossi held telephone discussions with Araghchi at the beginning of this year, during which he “reiterated his readiness to work with Iran to resume implementation” of a deal the agency and Tehran agreed two years ago.
The Joint Statement included a pledge by Iran to resolve issues around Varamin and Turquzabad, where inspectors have questions about possible undeclared nuclear activity, and to allow the IAEA to “implement further appropriate verification and monitoring activities.”
“Foreign Minister Araghchi indicated Iran’s preparedness to cooperate with the Agency and
raised the possibility of the Director General visiting Tehran again,” the report said.
The IAEA report also said the agency verified that Tehran had increased the number of operating
cascades of advanced centrifuges, powerful machines that spin rapidly to enrich uranium. Cascades are clusters of centrifuges.
The report said Iran had increased the number of IR-6 centrifuges by 5 to a total of 7 at its underground nuclear plant at Fordo.
The nuclear watchdog also verified that Iran had increased the number of operating cascades of IR-2m centrifuges by 12 to a total of 27 at its underground nuclear plant in Natanz.
Under the original 2015 nuclear deal, Iran was allowed to enrich uranium to only 3.67 percent with a limited number of its first-generation centrifuges at the underground Natanz Fuel Enrichment Plant only.
A WORKER rides a bicycle in front of the reactor building at the Bushehr nuclear power plant, just outside the southern city of Bushehr, Iran, October 26, 2010. MAJID ASGARIPOUR/MEHR NEWS AGENCY VIA AP, FILE
Russia pitches joint Mars venture to Trump, offers rare earth metals
KIRILL DMITRIEV
wrote on Elon Musk’s X platform for the first time since 2012 this week to declare US-Russia cooperation was “key to address world challenges.” Then he posted a video graphic depicting a joint mission to Mars with the US and Saudi Arabia on what appears to be one of Musk’s SpaceX rockets.
The focus on Musk’s grand dream of conquering the Red Planet was no accident for President Vladimir Putin’s new envoy for foreign economic cooperation. Dmitriev has one critical assignment—to get US President Donald Trump and top advisers like Musk hooked on prospects for major business deals with Russia as bait for ending the war in Ukraine on terms favorable to the Kremlin.
Dmitriev persuaded Putin to develop ties with Trump based on business opportunities and he’s been given a chance to shine, according to a person with knowledge of the discussions. The Kremlin saw an opening for such talks after Trump began demanding access to Ukraine’s mineral resources, the person said, asking not to be identified discussing internal matters. Russia is “looking for ways to exploit what it sees as Trump’s ‘pragmatism,’ and whether a commercial approach will work with the businessmen in his team,” said Ekaterina Schulmann, a political scientist at the Carnegie Russia Eurasia Center in Berlin. Dmitriev “fits into this concept as an investor and a facilitator who has known people from Trump’s entourage for a long time.”
Putin amplified this strategy when he offered to work with “our American partners” to mine Russia’s rare earth metals in televised comments this week. Russia has “an order of magnitude more resources of this kind than Ukraine,” he said.
He also offered to sell about 2 million tons of aluminum to the US if Trump lifted import restrictions, and suggested Russian companies could form a joint venture with American counterparts for aluminum production in Siberia.
The US and Russia are also eyeing joint projects in the Arctic and other areas, Dmitriev told journalists in Riyadh, according to Interfax. “Joint projects will allow us to be more successful,” he said.
A spokesman for Dmitriev didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment. Russia is now in competition with the deal Ukraine has struck with the US for joint develop -
ment of its natural resources.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is expected to travel to Washington to sign the agreement with Trump on Friday, offering a critical opportunity for face-to-face talks before a possible summit between the US and Russian leaders.
“I’d like to buy minerals on Russian land too,” which has “very good” rare earth reserves, Trump told reporters at the White House Tuesday. “Look, it’s a great thing if we settle—it’s great for Russia too, because we can do deals there, they have very valuable land that isn’t utilized.”
Dmitriev, 49, who was born in Kyiv, has headed Russia’s sovereign wealth fund since 2011 and is married to a friend of Putin’s daughter. Educated at Stanford and Harvard, the former McKinsey & Co. Inc. consultant and Goldman Sachs Group Inc. investment banker was sanctioned as “a known Putin ally” by the US days after the start of Russia’s February 2022 invasion of Ukraine.
He emerged as a significant figure in Putin’s strategy for engaging with Trump during last week’s meeting of top US and Russian officials in Saudi Arabia. While he wasn’t involved in the diplomatic negotiations, Dmitriev acted as point man in Riyadh to make the investment case with US officials and journalists for improved relations with Russia, emphasizing the cost of lost business due to sanctions over the war.
Days later, Dmitriev was announced as the Kremlin’s envoy for developing “investment and economic cooperation” with Global South countries and the West, including the US.
To be sure, there are plenty of obstacles to US business involvement in Russia even if the conflict comes to an end. Many western multinationals scrambled to exit Russia when the war broke out, rupturing decades of involvement in the market, while the Kremlin imposed tough haircuts on company sale values and seized the
local subsidiaries of those trying to leave, undermining investor confidence.
Putin’s strategy toward Trump reflects his training as an agent in the Soviet KGB, which used similar “mirroring” techniques to gain the trust of surveillance targets, according to Maria Snegovaya, senior fellow with the Europe, Russia, and Eurasia Program at the Washingtonbased Center for Strategic and International Studies.
Even before last month’s US presidential inauguration, Putin “used phrases from Trump’s own rhetoric—for example, that the 2020 elections were stolen from Trump and that if Trump had been in power, the war in Ukraine would not have started,” Snegovaya said. “Now we are clearly seeing a continuation of the same approach.”
Dmitriev had previously been prominent internationally as the face of Russian state efforts to promote its Sputnik Covid-19 vaccine globally, which was funded by RDIF.
His case for involvement in engaging with the Trump administration strengthened with the Kremlin once Saudi Arabia emerged as the potential host for a renewal of contacts. He’d already proved his usefulness in Russian efforts over the past decade to deepen ties with the Saudis and has a strong rapport with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
Dmitriev’s ties to Saudi Arabia’s de facto ruler developed at a time when the crown prince was facing western scrutiny after the killing of
columnist Jamal Khashoggi in 2018. Dmitriev was one of the key guests at Saudi Arabia’s flagship investment summit shortly after Khashoggi’s death that was snubbed by global business leaders.
In 2019, Prince Salman awarded Dmitriev with the King Abdulaziz Second-Class Order of Merit, the highest award of the Kingdom. The Russian financier also accompanied Putin on his visit to Abu Dhabi and Riyadh in 2023.
During Trump’s first term, Dmitriev also used his Middle East connections to make contact with people close to the US president. In 2016, the national security adviser for the United Arab Emirates introduced him to Rick Gerson, the chairman of Falcon Edge Capital. Dmitriev put together a US-Russia “reconciliation plan” that Gerson gave to Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner. The document was circulated to other top Trump officials who never followed up, Kushner told US Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation into alleged Russian interference in the 2016 US election.
Trump’s deal-driven approach may remind Putin of his time in St. Petersburg when he was head of the city’s committee on foreign relations in the 1990s “and trying to sell everything he can,” said Andrei Kolesnikov, a Moscow-based independent political analyst. “This suggests that Putin really wants to end the war,” he said. Bloomberg News
Rubio says US can’t let Russia become China’s ‘junior partner’
SECRETARY of State Marco Rubio mapped out a US strategy for managing Russia’s close relationship with China, saying Washington wants to dilute ties without sowing division between the nuclear-armed neighbors.
“I don ’t know if we’ll ever be successful completely at peeling them off of a relationship with the Chinese,” Rubio told conservative media outlet Breitbart News, referring to Russia. “I also don’t think having China and Russia at each other’s neck is good for global stability because they’re both nuclear powers.”
D onald Trump’s recent embrace of Russia has been seen by some analysts as an attempt to split Moscow from Beijing, in a so-called “reverse Nixon.” President Richard Nixon’s historic trip to China some 53 years ago undermined the Kremlin’s global influence, and pulled Beijing closer to Washington, in a move that shifted the international balance of power for decades.
While President Xi Jinping’s government has praised Russia for holding talks with Washington over ending the war in Ukraine, it’s unclear what such a thaw means for Beijing. The Chinese leader and Vladimir Putin declared a “no limits” friendship days before the 2022 invasion and have united in opposing America on the world stage.
C hinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lin Jian pushed back against Rubio’s comments, saying the relationship between Beijing and Moscow isn’t influenced by any third party.
“The US attempt of sowing discord between China and Russia is doomed to fail,” he told reporters at a regular press conference in Beijing Thursday. “Both China and Russia have long-term development strategies and foreign policies. No matter how the international landscape changes, our relationship shall move forward at its own pace.”
‘Completely dependent’
RUBIO warned that closer ties between
of Ukraine, Monday, February 24, 2025, in New York.
China and Russia would pose a problem for the US, if Moscow became the “permanent junior partner” to Beijing, pitting two nuclear powers against Washington. Access to Chinese markets have thrown Moscow an economic lifeline after US-led sanctions isolated Russia in recent years, while Xi has given Putin diplomatic shelter.
“ We could find ourselves in a situation where, whether Russia wants to improve its relations with the US or not, they can’t because they’ve become completely dependent on the Chinese because we have cut them off,” Rubio said. “What’s a better outcome for us is to have a relationship.”
Trump has performed a stunning reversal of US policy on Russia in recent weeks, blindsiding Europe by bringing Putin out of isolation to begin peace talks without including other stakeholders. The Republican president has been accused of parroting Kremlin talking points about the conflict, including blaming Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelenskiy for the war.
Xi reaffirmed his relationship with Putin last week on the third anniversary of Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine, telling the Russian that he welcomed positive efforts made by Moscow and relevant parties to resolve the crisis.
In a fur ther sign that the Xi-Putin partnership remains intact, both leaders have signaled plans to visit each other’s nations this year, while Trump has floated a trilateral meeting between all three men.
In his interview, Rubio characterized US-China relations as the “big story of the 21st century.” While he said Washington was going to have disagreements and confrontation with both Beijing and Moscow, Rubio stressed that maintaining a relationship with both was important.
“These are big, powerful countries with nuclear stockpiles. They can project power globally,” he said. “I think we have lost the concept of maturity and sanity in diplomatic relations.” Bloomberg News
France joining US in seeking access to Ukraine’s minerals;
PARIS—France is also seeking access to Ukraine ‘s deposits of critical minerals, with negotiations already underway for months, the French defense minister said Thursday, indicating that the United States isn’t the only player.
Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelenskyy is expected Friday at the White House to sign a minerals deal with the United States.
President Donald Trump made the announcement Wednesday.
But France, too, is in discussions with Ukraine—aiming, like the United States, to diversify its supplies of vital minerals, French Defense Minister Sébastien Lecornu told broadcaster France Info. He didn’t specify exactly which minerals France is seeking. Ukraine has been offering to supply the US with rare earth elements that are critical for various technologies, including lithium for batteries and uranium for nuclear power, medical equipment and weapons.
Lecornu said: “We are speaking about this issue for our own French needs. I have defense industries that will need access to a certain number of raw materials in the years to come.”
says it’s in talks
He said French President Emmanuel Macron mandated him to begin the discussions and that he has been dealing directly with his Ukrainian counterpart as part of efforts to increase the number of source countries for rare minerals.
“We have to diversify that. Emmanuel Macron has asked that also start discussions with the Ukrainians.... I have been doing so since October,” the minister said.
He said France could possibly purchase minerals from Ukraine and isn’t seeking access to them as a way to recoup the billions of euros (dollars) worth of military and other aid that Paris has supplied to strengthen Ukrainian defenses against Russia’s invasion. Trump has framed the emerging deal as a chance for Kyiv to repay aid already sent under Democratic President Joe Biden.
“We are not looking for payback,” Lecornu said. “But our defense sector will need a certain number of raw materials that are absolutely crucial in our own weapons systems...for the next 30 or 40 years.”
He indicated that the discussions are in a preliminary stage, saying: “It’s the beginning of the story.” AP
DEMONSTRATORS rally in Times Square to mark the three-year anniversary of Russia’s invasion
AP/JULIA DEMAREE NIKHINSON
MARCO RUBIO BLOOMBERG
Vloggers vs. Congress: Supreme Court demands response in ‘troll’ probe case
TGovt expands affordable rice program nationwide through LGU partnerships
TBy Joel R. San Juan @jrsanjuan1573
HE Supreme Court (SC) has ordered the House of Representatives to answer the p etition filed by several vloggers seeking to stop its probe on alleged rampant posting of false and malicious content in social media platforms due to its chilling effect on t heir constitutionally-guaranteed rights to free speech, freedom of expression and of the press.
In a two-page resolution promulgated on February 11, 2025, t he Court en banc gave respondents House Speaker Ferdinand Martin Romualdez, Surigao del Norte Rep. Ace Barbers and the House’ joint committee conducting the inquiry consisting the committees on public order and safety, information and communications technology and public information represented by their chairmen Reps. Dan Fernandez, Tobias Tiangco and Jose A quino II to submit their comment “within a non-extendible” period of 15 days from receipt of notice. Among the petitioners are former Press Secretary Rose Beatrix “Trixie” Cruz-Angeles, Mark
A nthony Lopez, Ernesto Abines, Jr., Ethel Pineda Garcia, Krizette Laureta Chu, Jonathan Morales, Lorraine Marie Badoy-Partosa, Aeron S. Peña, Nelson Guzmanos, Elizabeth Joie Cruz, Suzanne Batalla, Kester John Tan and George A hmed Paglinawan.
The House inquiry stemmed from Barber’s privilege speech delivered on December 4, 2024 referring to the petitioners as “trolls” a nd “malicious vloggers” who allegedly attacked him and public of ficials online.
In the same speech, the petitioners noted that Barbers vowed t o take action against those disregarding the law, calling for accountability and justice for the victims of on line harassment. Barber’s continued his tirades against the respondents, most of them are known supporters of former President Rodrigo Duterte, w hen he delivered another privilege speech on December 16, 2024 w here he referred again to the petitioners as “paid trolls and vloggers” who are being paid out from sources of illegal drugs and POGO operations. The petitioner said the inquiry
specifically violates Article II, Section 4 of the 1987 Constitution w hich provides: “No law shall be passed abridging the freedom of speech, of expression, or of the press, or the right of the people peaceably to assemble and petition the government for redress of g rievances.”
“In this case, it is evident that the threats, inquiry and other acts of the respondents are calculated to drown the voice if not to totally silence vloggers including petitioners herein who have the courage to stand up, criticize and offer alternative views to the one preferred by the respondents,” the petitioners pointed out.
Guidelines for media accreditation should not suppress free speech
THE Supreme Court (SC) has reminded that guidelines and procedures for the accreditation of media representatives s hould not be used to suppress the constitutional rights to freedom of speech, expression and of t he press.
In a 15-page decision penned by Association Justice Jhosep Lopez, the Court dismissed for being
m oot and academic the petition for prohibition with prayer for the issuance of temporary restraining order (TRO) filed by several journalists assailing the constitutionality of C ustom Memorandum Order No. 37-2011 issued by then Bureau of Customs Commissioner RozzAno Rufino Biazon.
The memorandum was issued to provide the guidelines and procedures in the accreditation of BOC media practitioners to ensure that only bona fide media professionals and by organizations were allowed entry into the BOC to cover its events.
The accreditation. procedure required all applicants to submit the a ccreditation requirements to the Office of the Public Information and Assistance Division (PIAD) of the BOC.
The PIAD chief would then issue a BOC identification card to the accredited media practitioners.
C olumnists were, likewise, granted visitation passes to enter the BOC premises and conduct media rounds whenever necessary, but t hey were required to provide clear documentation that they were on assignment from a specific news organization or publication.
DepEd chief fulfills president’s promise to bring quality education to
By Claudeth S. Mocon-Ciriaco @claudethmc3
FULFILLING the promise of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to bring quality education to remote communities, Education Secretary Juan Edgardo “Sonny” Angara led a series of school visits in the Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR) under the Last Mile School (LMS) Program.
“Last mile doesn’t have to be last priority,” Angara said as he and some Department of Education (DepEd) officials visited Jose Gonzales Elementary School, Yabyabuan Multigrade School, Kiwas Integrated School, and Andolor Elementary School on February 24 and 25, to push for Marcos’ equity agenda.
“Priority ni President Marcos ang
pagtulong sa mga last mile schools na nasa bundok o isla. Our school visits in the Cordillera give us hope, showing that the right interventions can translate to positive outcomes. Even in the furthest points of our archipelago,” Angara said. For the first time, an Education Secretary set foot in Yabyabuan Multigrade School in Bagong, Sablan—an isolated school now powered by solar energy—and in Andolor Elementary School in Tabaan Sur, Tuba, where teachers and students have long persevered despite limited resources.
E ngaging with teachers and students, Angara listened to their struggles and reaffirmed DepEd’s commitment to improving conditions in geographically isolated schools.
In Andolor Elementary School, he led
the turnover of a newly constructed school building, ensuring better learning spaces for students.
H e also inaugurated a new facility at the Benguet Special Education Center –Inclusive Learning Resource Center (BSPEDILRC), a significant step in strengthening inclusive education in the region.
Angara shared that visiting the regions every month provides genuine insights from teachers, parents, and learners.
“A Bagong Pilipinas cannot be built from the top down. It is shaped in places like Andolor, where dreams persist despite distance, where commitment is measured not in pesos but in perseverance. We will keep looking at the numbers, but we will never forget the learners, teachers, and parents behind them,” Angara emphasized during
remote areas
his talk at the Foundation for Economic Freedom fellowship meeting.
Angara also led the DepEd Management Committee (MANCOM) meeting in Baguio to discuss curriculum improvements, budget planning, and logistical preparations for the upcoming elections.
A critical par t of this 7th senior leadership meeting focused on strengthening data management to inform policy decisions that directly impact schools, particularly those in far-flung areas.
We have powerful tools for data analysis, but our systems need to work together. The data we collect at the school, division, and regional levels should all connect seamlessly. The goal is to make our interventions more responsive and effective,” Angara said.
Comprehensive sex ed urged to combat teen births and HIV infections
By Bless Aubrey Ogerio
COMPREHENSIVE sexuality education
(CSE) is more than just teaching the basics of reproduction, but is also about empowering young people to make informed choices and build the future they want, according to a women’s rights advocate.
With the Philippines recording around 400 teen births daily and a 411 percent increase in HIV infections from 2012 to 2023, where a third of cases involve individuals aged 15 to 24, Roots of Health founding executive director Amina Evangelista Swanepoel stressed the urgency of CSE in schools.
“CSE is about empowerment. It helps young people navigate adolescence safely and confidently so they can build the lives they want and contribute to their communities in the best ways possible,” Swanepoel said during the PAD-Ibig Diaries, a reproductive health initiative at Rizal High School earlier this week.
The event gathered 500 female junior high school students, who received limited-edition menstrual pads available year-round through the PAD-Ibig drawer, a dispenser stationed at the school clinic. It also fea tured storytelling sessions with artwork covering key sexual and reproductive health topics, along with interactive activities such as “Chismis o
Bong Go lauds PhilHealth’s expanded coverage for congenital heart disease
SENATOR Christopher “Bong” Go, Chairperson of the Senate Committee on Health, has commended the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth) for its planned benefit expansion, particularly including life-saving procedures for infants born with congenital heart defects. T hese enhancements that was continuously appealed by Go during the hearings of the Senate health committee he presided over, aim to provide coverage for surgeries addressing Ventricular Septal Defect (VSD) and Tetralogy of Fallot (TOF)—two critical conditions affecting newborns, commonly referred to as “blue babies.” PhilHealth is set to implement the expanded coverage on March 1.
“NapakaramingpamilyangPilipinoang hindi makapagpagamot ng kanilang mga anakdahilsamataasnagastusinsaoperasyon. Hindi natin hahayaang may batang mawalanngpagkakataongmabuhaynang dahil lang sa kakulangan sa pera,” Go said. P hilHealth’s expansion aligns with the senator’s long-standing advocacy for improving healthcare accessibility, particularly for diseases among the country’s most vulnerable sectors. During past hearings, Go had pressed the agency to prioritize coverage for the top 10 leading causes of mortality in the Philippines, including congenital heart diseases, cardiovascular conditions, and cancer. “Sa tulong ng PhilHealth, mas marami pang sanggol sana ang maililigtas. Hindi
Check” (myth-busting discussions) and knowledge-based games.
Swanepoel also referenced studies showing that access to quality sex education reduces unintended pregnancies, delays sexual initiation and increases contraceptive use among sexually active youth. Yet, while efforts to expand CSE exist, she emphasized the need for diverse approaches to effectively educate young people.
“While we advocate for the full implementation of comprehensive sexuality education in the Department of Education’s high school curriculum, creative initiatives like these are crucial to bridging the gap,” she said.
itosimplengbenepisyolang—itoaybuhay na nakasalalay. Patuloy kong babantayan ang pagpapatupad nito para siguradong maramdaman ito ng mga nangangailangan,” he added.
Go also r eiterated his push for healthcare reforms, including better hospital facilities, strengthened government medical assistance programs, and full support for Malasakit Centers nationwide.
“Responsibilidad ng gobyerno na tiyaking walang Pilipinong napapabayaan pagdatingsaserbisyongmedikal.Lagikong ipaglalaban ang mas mabilis, mas abotkaya, at mas maayos na pangangalaga sa ating mga kababayan,” Go said.
With his continued oversight of PhilHealth’s benefit package developments, the senator assured the public that his office remains committed to advocating for stronger health protections, particularly for those who rely on government aid for critical treatments.
HE Marcos administration, through the National Food Authority (NFA), has ramped up the procurement of palay from local farmers this summer harvest season, enabling the government to sell rice at a lower price of P33 per kilo, a senior lawmaker said on Thursday.
Camarines Sur Rep. LRay Villafuerte, in a statement, said this initiative benefits local government units (LGUs) such as CamSur, Kadiwa centers, and other governmentrun outlets.
Villafuerte said that his province, along with several LGUs in Metro Manila, is among the initial partners of the Department of Agriculture (DA) in implementing this program. The initiative follows the DA’s recent declaration of a food security emergency—upon the recommendation of the National Price Coordinating Council (NPCC)—to stabilize rice prices nationwide.
“In partnership with the DA, NFA, and FTI [Food Terminal Inc.], the provincial government, along with several LGUs in Metro Manila, is selling cheaper rice as part of the President’s commitment to fight elevated inflation by, among others, enabling Filipino consumers to buy rice acquired by the NFA at more affordable prices,” Villafuerte said.
He emphasized that the program is not limited to CamSur and the National Capital Region (NCR) but will eventually expand
nationwide as more LGUs partner with the DA, NFA, and FTI. Under the scheme, sellers are allowed a markup of P2 per kilo, capping the price at P35 per kilo.
Villafuerte confirmed that the CamSur provincial government will distribute the P33-per-kilo rice at the Provincial Capitol in Pili, Kadiwa outlets, and through participating LGUs in the province. Villafuerte, representing the CamSur provincial government, attended the ceremonial turnover of the initial rice stocks from DA Secretary Francisco Tiu-Laurel to LGU partners at an NFA warehouse in Valenzuela City on February 19. San Juan City Mayor Francis Zamora, president of the Metro Manila Council (MMC), also attended on behalf of NCR LGUs.
“Although CamSur is the country’s No. 6 rice producer, we must not forget that our farmers are also rice consumers, so the cheaper rice at P33 a kilo will benefit both our consumers and our
growers,”
in PHL
She added, “We strive to ensure young people receive the credible, science-based information they need and deserve—so they can protect themselves, build healthy relationships, and confidently pursue their dreams.”
In January, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. expressed opposition to Senate Bill 1979, which aims to promote sex education.
Meanwhile, Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian, chairperson of the Senate Committee on Basic Education, called for the removal of CSE from the national curriculum.
Despite opposition from conservative groups and religious organizations, education and health advocates continue pushing for the full integration of CSE.
THE city government of Malabon has urged the 21 barangay under its jurisdiction to participate in the “Search for the Cleanest and Greenest Barangay 2025” as part of its ongoing efforts to combat the spread of dengue in the locality.
Kaligtasan at kalusugan ang prayoridad natin sa lungsod dahil kailangan ito sa patuloy nating pag-unlad. Kaya naman hinihikayat natin ang bawat barangay sa lungsod na lumahok sa ating Search for the Cleanest and Greenest Barangay upang ating mapanatili ang kalusugan ng bawat isa at mapigilan ang pagkalat ng dengue. Ating ipakita, ipamalas ang pagkakaisa bilang mga Malabueño at panatilihin malinis, maaliwalas, at maayos ang ating kapaligiran,”said Mayor Jeannie Sandoval. The City Environment and Natural
lafuerte said. “Hence, this is a
program to stabilize prices to protect our consumers and raise the incomes of our farmers.” He said that CamSur’s
allocation is 25,000 sacks of rice, and this project will benefit an estimated 250,000 people in his province. A ccording to the DA, at least 67 LGUs, including CamSur and several NCR LGUs, have expressed their intent to join this program. Jovee Marie N.
Sen. Poe wants passage of Animal Welfare Bill rushed amid outrage
over dog named TikTok shot with arrows
By Butch Fernandez @butchfBM
SENATOR Grace Poe, the prime mover
of a bill to amend and strengthen the animal welfare law to address rising cases of cruelty stray animals, as well as incidence of rabies, is pushing to have the enabling bill included among those to be passed before the 19th Congress adjourns. Poe made the call amid the massive outage sparked by images on the internet of a dog in Negros Occidental found bleeding from several wounds caused by arrows.
“We are enraged by the barbaric act done against the dog named Tiktok from Negros Occidental,” the lawmaker laments. The senator stressed that such cruelty to an innocent creature has “no place in our civilized society.”
“What will stop the perpetrators from shooting humans next time?” the senator asked after reviewing images of TikTok,”the dog that had been turned into a veritable dart board.”
Conveying grief of countless animal dog lovers, Sen. Poe said: “We call on the residents in the area to help the local government unit and animal welfare groups in finding the individuals who harmed Tiktok. Moreover the Senator stressed those “found liable deserve to be punished under the law.”
At the same time, Poe said “the disturbing incident should prompt us to pass the revised Animal Welfare Act that we are pushing to put more teeth in the current law and capacitate the barangay to be more be more responsive to cases of animal cruelty and neglected pets.”
“There is still time to pass the measure,” Poe said, suggesting that when Congress returns to session on June 2, “we hope our colleagues will not let pass this chance to do a compassionate act.”
Separate budget IN October last year, Poe had batted batted for a separate funding for animal welfare in the 2025 budget to ensure the protection and humane treatment of animals.
“We will look at the fiscal space and see how much can be appropriated. But that item in the budget for animal welfare has to be very specific,” said Poe, the Senate finance committee chairperson. The senator said the animal welfare item can have programs and activities like neutering, spaying, anti-rabies shots, and support for local government units that are maintaining pounds for dogs and cats.
“It’s time for animal welfare to be reflected in the budget. We must put our money where our advocacy is,” she said. Poe, together with Senators Cynthia Villar and Nancy Binay, is pushing for a massive nationwide campaign to neuter and spay dogs and cats as part of responsible pet ownership. This is also aimed at curbing the number of stray dogs and cats that pose danger of spreading rabies once they bite people. Currently, the animal welfare fund is lodged with the Bureau of Animal Industry, which is under the Department of Agriculture (DA). There is no allocation, however, for spay and neuter programs from the national government.
Poe earlier filed Senate Bill No. 2458 which seeks a revised Animal Welfare Act to strengthen animal welfare standards, policies, rules and regulations, implementation and enforcement as well as provide tougher penalties to violators.
She said there is a need to strengthen the DA in addressing animal welfare issues through a proper bureau that will be given sufficient budget and permanent personnel. The bill proposes a Barangay Animal Welfare Task Force to capacitate local officers to address the animal welfare issues with dispatch.
Malabon local government intensifies efforts vs dengue
Resources Office (Cenro) explained that the competition aims to showcase the best practices in waste management, collection, operation of Materials Recovery Facilities (MRF), and the clearing of sidewalks and roads from obstructions.
The goal is to establish a strong partnership with barangays, generate benchmarking data, recognize and reward those who effectively implement Ecological Solid Waste Management, encourage residents to care for their communities, and foster positive relations between the city government, barangays, and residents.
“So recently nga po may mga nare-receive tayong reports satulongngatingCity Health Department namaymgalugarkung saan tumataas o nagkakaroon ng report patungkol sa dengue. So sa pamamagitan
ng ganitong competition at tulungan ng ating community, maaari nating maalis itoomabawasan,” Cenro Officer-In-Charge Mark Mesina said. Mesina added that the competition will launch in the first week of March. Participants will undergo both scheduled and surprise monitoring, evaluation, and deliberation of their solid waste management practices, accomplishment reports, and the cleanliness and orderliness of their communities, from April to November. The winning barangays will be recognized in December and will receive cash prizes: P1,000,000 for the
Claudeth Mocon-Ciriaco
Unfunded laws: The disconnect between legislation and reality
THE recent revelation that at least 200 laws enacted between 1991 and 2023 remain unfunded or have funding deficiencies is a stark reminder of the disconnect between legislation and reality. The Congressional Policy and Budget Research Department’s findings are alarming, to say the least. The fact that 154 laws lack specified budgets and 65 have received partial funding, while the rest remain unfunded, raises serious questions about the effectiveness of our legislative process. (Read the BusinessMirror story, “House think tank: 200 laws remain unfunded,” February 26, 2025).
The economic sector, creation of regional offices, human development, and good governance are among the areas most affected by these funding deficiencies. The total funding deficiency amounts to a staggering P2.627 billion, which represents 85.7 percent of the total funding requirement of P3,064.5 billion. This is not just a matter of numbers; it translates to unfulfilled promises, unmet expectations, and unrealized benefits for the Filipino people.
The Revised Armed Forces Modernization Program, Maharlika Investment Fund, Murang Kuryente Act, NEA Reform Act, and Shelter Financing Act are among the major laws with significant financial requirements that are struggling to get off the ground due to lack of funding. These laws were enacted with the best of intentions, but without the necessary financial backing, they are doomed to fail.
Makati Mayor Abby Binay, a senatorial candidate, has rightly pointed out the need for practical and well-funded legislation. She emphasizes that laws should not only be well-intentioned but also financially sustainable. Her experience as a local government official has given her a unique perspective on the importance of fiscal capacity in implementing laws. She is right to stress that laws should be crafted with the grassroots in mind, rather than being imposed from above without consideration for the financial realities on the ground.
This is not just a matter of common sense; it is a matter of accountability. Our lawmakers must be held accountable for enacting laws that are feasible and sustainable. It is not enough to pass laws that sound good on paper; they must be backed by the necessary resources to ensure their successful implementation.
The solution lies in a more collaborative and consultative approach to lawmaking. Our lawmakers must engage with stakeholders, including local government units, to ensure that laws are crafted with a clear understanding of the financial implications. They must also prioritize funding for laws that have already been enacted, rather than leaving them to languish without the necessary resources.
The unfunded laws crisis is a wake-up call for our lawmakers to rethink their approach to legislation. It is time to put the interests of the people above political grandstanding and to prioritize practical, well-funded laws that can make a real difference in their lives. Anything less is a recipe for failure.
BusinessMirror
Bishop Pabillo: Do not forget Edsa
‘LKuwentong Peyups
ET us make the effort to remind the people not to forget Edsa.
Let its light remain uncovered. Its work remains unfinished.”
Thus declared politically outspoken Bishop Broderick Pabillo, D.D., in his homily during the mass of the 39th anniversary of the Edsa People Power Revolution held at the Edsa Shrine.
Pabillo acknowledged that “preserving the legacy and memories of Edsa People Power I take serious work, but one must not give up in sharing the truth behind this significant chapter in our nation’s history.”
Pabillo looked back at the Marcos dictatorship from the early 1970s to the mid-1980s when the situation seemed hopeless until one day, in the words of the Bible, “light has shone.”
Pabillo delivered his homily days after the Sandiganbayan issued a resolution dismissing a P5 million ill-gotten wealth case against the late President Ferdinand Marcos, Sr., and his wife, Imelda due to the prosecution’s “unexplained inaction for decades.”
The anti-graft court junked the P5 million ill-gotten wealth case under Civil Case 0032 because of the state prosecutors’ unwillingness to pursue the case since 1994.
Civil Case 0032 alleged that the Marcos couple and a certain Fernando Timbol unlawfully acquired vehicles and household appliances that should be returned to the government.
In December last year, the same
division issued separate resolutions dismissing eight other ill-gotten wealth cases that were filed against Marcos Sr., Imelda, and the late tycoon and Marcos crony Eduardo Cojuangco Jr.
The cases involved the purchase of First United Bank, the predecessor of United Coconut Planters Bank; San Miguel Corp. shares; the creation of companies out of coco levy funds collected during the Marcos years; the formation and operation of the Bugsuk project and the award of P998 million in damages to agricultural investors; the purchases and settlement of the accounts of oil mills; the unlawful disbursement and dissipation of coco levy funds; the acquisition of Pepsi-Cola; and the grant of behest loans and contracts.
The Supreme Court in PCGG v. Peña (GR L-77663, April 12, 1988) earlier said that the Marcos dictatorship is a “well-entrenched plundering regime of twenty years.”
The court noted the “magnitude of the Marcos regime’s ‘organized pillage’ and the ingenuity of the plunderers and pillagers with the assistance of the experts and best
legal minds available in the market.”
Former SC chief justice Artemio Panganiban earlier enumerated some of the Marcos assets found by the Supreme Court to be “illgotten”:
n $658 million (Republic v. Sandiganbayan, (G.R. No. 152154. July 15, 2003).
n PLDT shares (Yuchengco v. Sandiganbayan, GR 149802, January 20, 2006.
n $3.37 million (Marcos Jr. v. Republic, GR 189434 April 25, 2012 ).
n Collection of jewelry (Estate of Marcos v. Republic (GR 213027January 18, 2017).
The cases applied the legal principle “whenever any public officer or employee has acquired during his incumbency an amount or property which is manifestly out of proportion to his salary as such public officer or employee and to his other lawful income and the income from legitimately acquired property, said property shall be presumed prima facie to have been unlawfully acquired. (Sections 2 and 6 of RA 1379)
In Republic vs. Sandiganbayan, the Swiss deposits that were transferred to and were deposited in escrow at the Philippine National Bank in the estimated aggregate amount of $658,175,373.60 as of January 31, 2002, plus interest, were forfeited in favor of the Republic.
In Yuchengco v. Sandiganbayan, the Court ruled that the 111,415 Philippine Telecommunications Investment Corp. (PTIC) shares being held by Prime Holdings, Inc. (PHI) bore the character of ill-gotten wealth, whether they were in the hands of Marcos or of Cojuangco. It noted that
Marcos owned PHI, and that all the incorporators had acted under his direction.
In Marcos Jr. v. Republic, all the assets of Arelma, S.A., an entity created by Marcos Sr., with an estimated aggregate amount of USD 3,369,975 as of 1983, were forfeited in favor of the government. It was purportedly organized for the purpose of hiding ill-gotten wealth.
In Estate of Marcos v. Republic, the pieces of jewelry of the so called “Malacañang Collection” seized from Malacañang after February 25, 1986 and transferred to the Central Bank on March 1, 1986 with an estimated value of $110,055 (low estimate) to $153,089 (high estimate) was declared ill-gotten wealth.
“The greatest threat to freedom is the shortness of human memory,” said former Supreme Court Chief Justice Claudio Teehankee in the case of Olaguer v. Military Commission (GR L-54558 May 22, 1987) adding that “While the people for the most part suffered in silence and waited, others never gave up the struggle for truth, freedom, justice and democracy, a common commitment which is what makes a people a nation instead of a gathering of self-seeking individuals.”
In Dizon v. Eduardo (GR L-59118 March 3, 1988), the Court noted that “the martial law imposed in Septemaber 1972 by Marcos, destroyed in one fell swoop the Philippines’ 75 years of stable democratic traditions.”
Peyups is the moniker of University of the Philippines. Atty. Dennis R. Gorecho heads the seafarers’ division of the Sapalo Velez Bundang Bulilan law offices. For comments, e-mail info@sapalovelez.com, or call 0908-8665786.
The economic outcomes of nationwide equal minimum wage
SENATOR Imee Marcos has expressed her intention to push for a single, equal minimum wage if re-elected in the 2025 midterm elections. She argues that this will ensure fairness and consistency across the nation, as wage disparities between Metro Manila and the provinces are unjustified.
However, such concept remains to be a crucial topic and has been a subject of much debate. Currently, the wage rates in the Philippines are established through the National Wage and Productivity Commission (NWPC), which formulates the policies and guidelines for the Tripartite Wage and Productivity Boards. These boards, composed of representatives from the government, employers, and employees, set
minimum wages that vary by region, industry, and, sometimes, even occupation. The standards and criteria for minimum wage determination acknowledge the differences in cost of living and economic conditions across the country.
Nevertheless, this regional wage system has led to disparities, with workers in provinces often earning significantly less than their counterparts in major urban centers like
Metro Manila. This inconsistency has sparked calls for a nationwide minimum wage to address these inequalities. So, what if the minimum wage is the same for all?
With a uniform wage structure, all workers, regardless of their geographic location, could earn the same base amount for their labor. For instance, a worker in Manila may earn double or triple the wage of a worker in a rural area for performing the same job. A uniform minimum wage would help close this income gap to ensure that all workers are compensated fairly for their contributions and prevent them from having to leave their families in the province. With the crowded population reduced in the metro, the traffic problem is somehow alleviated, and overall living conditions are improved. Moreover, a uniform minimum wage could improve the standard of living of workers in lower-wage regions. With higher wages, workers in rural areas can afford better housing, education, and healthcare.
This could reduce poverty and boost overall economic well-being, especially in provinces that traditionally suffer from low wages and poor infrastructure.
A uniform minimum wage also simplifies the wage system by removing the complexity of regional wage boards and multiple wage classifications. Employers and employees would no longer have to navigate a patchwork of wage rates that vary across different parts of the country. Such a streamlined approach can make it easier for businesses to manage payroll, reduce administrative burdens, and ensure overall compliance with labor laws. And of course, with higher wages, there will be increased purchasing power for Filipino workers that eventually translates to higher consumer spending. This then stimulates demand for goods and services that will be beneficial to businesses and the economy-at-large. Nevertheless, every rose has its See “Eagle Watch,” A13
Allysa Kim B. Eugenio
Dennis Gorecho
Marking languages Labour’s building boom to fan inflation if UK limits migration
By Irina Anghel
BRITAIN will be hit by rising prices and severe bottlenecks as a result of the Labour government’s plans for an historic increase in building projects, analysis shows.
As much as £900 billion ($1.1 trillion) will be spent on public and private infrastructure by the end of 2029, according to a Boston Consulting Group report published Thursday —almost three times the level of the previous five years.
“Too few have asked whether our supply chains can actually deliver this investment,” Raoul Ruparel and Tim Chapman from BCG wrote in the report. “As it stands, the answer is no.”
Labour is determined to replicate Britain’s postwar era of building, a crucial part of its plan to boost the economy. UK growth has averaged less than 2 percent per year since the global financial crisis, weighed down by the country’s abysmal levels of productivity.
However, the boom risks creating logjams and inflation due to recordlow numbers of construction workers, as well as a shortage of materials. The UK has 40 percent fewer welders, assemblers and routine operatives than two decades ago, while the number of construction employees has fallen 15 percent over the last 15 years.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer is trapped between his promise to revive growth and efforts to show he’s clamping down on migration amid the rising popularity of the right-wing Reform UK party. Training builders can take years, and the UK will have to rely on overseas workers in the initial stages of its infrastructure push.
The report could also sound alarm bells at the Bank of England. A demand shock of this magnitude risks blindsiding policymakers who are in the process of cutting interest rates.
The 1,600 infrastructure plans over the next five years analyzed by BCG include landmark projects like the controversial third runway at London’s Heathrow airport, the UK’s first nuclear power plant in a generation or the HS2 rail network connecting London with Birmingham.
Sectors like renewable energy, nuclear and water are expected to lift infrastructure spending as much as four times by 2030 compared with the previous five years.
Many of the large projects will be concentrated in a few regional hotspots. For example, the East of England is set to see investment worth almost £70 billion in the next five years mainly due to the Sizewell
Eagle
thorn. While a uniform minimum wage might appear beneficial for workers, it could also have adverse effects on employment levels, particularly in low-income regions. If businesses in these areas cannot afford the higher wage rates mandated, they may resort to reducing their workforce, automating jobs, or even closing shop. Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), which are crucial to the economy, could be particularly vulnerable to these changes. Furthermore, a uniform minimum wage ultimately ignores the regional economic disparities that exist across the Philippines. Major urban centers have a higher cost of living, which means that the same wage may not provide the same standard of living in rural areas as it does in the urban areas. For instance, a uniform wage in Metro Manila might not be enough to cover basic living expenses for workers, whereas the same wage could be more than enough for workers in provinces with lower cost of living.
Another potential downside of implementing a uniform minimum wage
‘MC nuclear power station and the construction of offshore wind farms on the Norfolk coast.
“It is quickly apparent that many of these areas are quite remote and sourcing the necessary skills on sites will be a challenge. Similarly, transporting significant raw materials and large components can also be challenging,” Ruparel and Chapman wrote. “If not handled properly it could lead to inflation and put strain on local infrastructure.”
In the long run the UK should invest in skills at a local level by strengthening links between colleges and industry, up-skilling existing staff and helping workers transition between industries, for example from oil and gas to wind operations, the report said. However, attracting workers from abroad to fill shortages will be “necessary” to deliver planned projects on time in the next five to 10 years.
Recommendations include adding key roles like electrical and electronic trades to the shortage occupations list, making it easier to source overseas staff for these jobs, and relaxing English speaking requirements for the main visas.
Starmer will find it difficult to sell that to many voters, however. Immigration remains one of the most pressing concerns for the public amid worries that the high number of people coming to the country is straining public services. The increase in net migration has also fueled the rise of Nigel Farage’s Reform party which has recently surpassed Labour in opinion polls.
Shortages of critical materials are also expected to add inflationary pressures and lead to bottlenecks as many other countries are relying on the same inputs for their green energy transition and other infrastructure projects. Materials that are used in multiple industries— like copper—will be in particularly short supply.
The American experience during the post-Covid reopening offers a cautionary tale for the UK. As the US economy couldn’t cope with the jump in consumer demand, the country experienced a surge in inflation, particularly for things like lumber or skilled worker wages. Around 60% of inflation during that period came from supply chain constraints, according to research from the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco. Bloomberg
is the risk of inflation. If businesses are required to increase wages, they will pass on the additional labor costs to consumers by raising the prices of their products. This could lead to inflation, which may eventually cancel out the benefits of a higher minimum wage. There could also be potential strains on government resources as SMEs may require additional support to properly adjust to wage changes. Ultimately, the decision to implement a uniform minimum wage requires careful consideration of the country’s economic conditions, its potential impact on businesses, and the broader social implications to make it effective. Although tricky, the government needs to balance the interests of workers, employers, and the economy-at-large to ensure that any wage reform creates the greatest good for the greatest number. Stronger compliance mechanisms, programs to support SMEs, and social welfare programs must also be expanded to ensure that vulnerable workers and businesses who will most likely bear the brunt are supported during the transition period.
ANNOTATIONS
AYO na gab-i sa iyo na tanan.” I knew I was a bit tentative about my greetings but the swooning ah from the audience overwhelmed me. Never mind if I made an embarrassed climb to the stage, my weak legs almost giving up. Pocholo rushed towards me to help and I realized another pair of hands were reaching up to haul me up.
I was not exactly at my healthiest when I received that night what the emcee described as “the highest honor the city of Masbate was giving to an individual for his contribution to the culture of the place.”
There were other recipients that night but I was thinking of what I would say.
Days before I was trying to write down an acceptance speech. The language was a toss between English and Minasbate, which in my case is Tigaonon, the language of Ticao. As I gazed at the crowd, however, everything that I planned to say vanished. I was there with my memory.
I arrived by plane that morning in Masbate. And when the captain announced the preparation for landing, I looked down. Was that long strip of land before the narrow sea appeared again Ticao? I think it was. But in my room, knowing how I was personally attached to the island, I was told to open the curtain to the porch in my room. And there, across the sea was indeed Ticao.
“How near it is on this island,” I told myself. Later in the dinner for the recipients of the award and other guests, I was told there was a boat that could take me across the sea to Ticao. But there was no time. I had not planned enough.
Soon, kin began sending me messages
“Pay us a visit.” “Pagtabuk na!” (literally, “Come across that sea!).
I would spend the morning looking at the island, how large the island that I was fond of referring to as
“small.” The whole day, I would gain more confidence speaking Minasbate or Binisaya. While I was feeling how fluent I had become in a matter of one day, I was also being made to realize that I spoke a slightly different language compared to what the others were speaking. And things would become more complicated: in workshops and poetry readings, there was the matter of asking the students from what area in Masbate do they come from. There were areas where there was a preponderance of Hiligaynon speakers; there were towns that were more Cebuano. In
other areas, the two major languages were fused, with the speaker borrowing from both.
On the second day, I was defined as the person from the “isla” or island. I have reclaimed that label, this time, I saw no pejorative sense to it. It was a marker for who I am.
“May haput ako saiyo” (I have a question for you…). But they could not understand “haput.” That is Bicol.
“Are you from Sorsogon?” I am not, but one word has defined me as such. I should have used “hunga.”
Two small words and the world has become a vast universe. This is very much the island: it is not small, but wide, and long.
“What am I doing here in front of you?” It was a humble question from me. What had I done to deserve the award? What have I contributed to Masbate? To this city? To the province?
It was not false humility. It was candor.
Memory and language, I continued my speech, are the two things that connect me to Masbate. “Pagdumdum kad pagsurmaton” (remembering and talking). At least, I was making sense to myself. I re -
member the language and because the language had remained in me, I can remember the island with that language. I could see heads nodding. They made sense to them. If only because there is this man who only spent some six years on the island and yet be able to talk about nuances and linguistic equivalents, then there is value to my shared experience.
Then, as if making a final point to convince them that I value my identity, I spoke about how when I looked at the island, I knew I belonged to that island, or a part of me was there, or lived there. And that island could see me and it could claim me. Is this what Borges said about how, at the end, there are no longer any images about memory—there are only words? At the end, I am writing about the island and, I was telling them, as I write about Ticao, my prose or poetry slows down. The words have become my soul remembering another universe, of an island that I cannot forget because it continues to remember, or recall itself.
E-mail: titovaliente@yahoo.com
The battle for scraps of collapsed developer China Evergrande is intensifying
AYEAR after China Evergrande Group was ordered into liquidation by a Hong Kong court, creditors have yet to pocket a penny from the process.
But behind the scenes, the battle for scraps from one of the world’s biggest corporate implosions is intensifying.
Oaktree Capital Management LP, run by billionaire Howard Marks, is maneuvering for advantage by seeking claim to Evergrande assets outside the Hong Kong liquidation process, according to people familiar, who requested not to be named because the matter is private.
Oaktree nominated its own liquidators to go after offshore subsidiaries that have more direct ownership of assets, the people said. The move, if successful, could give the US distressed-debt investor an edge when negotiating for returns related to the assets, the people added.
It would also put Oaktree on a potential collision course with Alvarez & Marsal Asia managing directors Edward Middleton and Tiffany Wong, the Hong Kong court-appointed liquidators that represent all the creditors of the parent group.
On Thursday, the duo will go on a full-day hearing to seek the court’s guidance on the formation of a committee of inspection (COI) that would streamline the winding up procedure. They will seek the court’s direction on the criteria to determine the eligibility for membership of that entity.
The maneuvering over Evergrande underscores the challenges of clawing back assets involving hundreds of entities at a property developer that once faced $300 billion in
liabilities. Adding to the complexity, most of Evergrande’s assets in mainland China remain difficult to reach even for the court-appointed liquidators, due to Hong Kong’s separate legal system.
The protracted liquidation— which some insolvency experts estimate could drag out for more than a decade—serves as a case study for the slew of Chinese property giants facing a similar fate and their global investors.
Committee of inspection
IF a COI is formed, the liquidators can consult this body, instead of going to a judge or all the creditors every time.
Yet even if the entity is approved, firms would still be able to go it alone and name their own liquidators in other jurisdictions to go after assets at the subsidiary level.
Oaktree did just that in the British Virgin Islands with a unit that had closer control of some assets. Oaktree-nominated liquidators told the Hong Kong-court appointed ones to consult them first if they act on shares in Evergrande’s property service business, according to people familiar. That services business still has about HK$8 billion ($1 billion) in market value, compared with just HK$2 billion for the parent company.
It’s not uncommon to have different liquidators going after a company through its various entities even after the court appoints one for the par-
The maneuvering over Evergrande underscores the challenges of clawing back assets involving hundreds of entities at a property developer that once faced $300 billion in liabilities. Adding to the complexity, most of Evergrande’s assets in mainland China remain difficult to reach even for the court-appointed liquidators, due to Hong Kong’s separate legal system.
ent firm, said Foreky Wong, founding partner at Fortune Ark Restructuring Ltd., a Hong Kong-based firm. It wouldn’t be surprising if a third or fourth one joins the race to reclaim assets, Wong said.
Clawing back money
IN their efforts to claw back money, the court-appointed liquidators have cast a wide net, though the funds will be first used to support the winding up procedure and a handful of legal battles—part of the reason creditors haven’t received a dime.
It has yielded some results: A collection of art work that includes pieces by Monet and cars including Mercedes-Benzes have been sold, according to people familiar.
The liquidators also took control of more than 100 direct or indirect subsidiaries in the group, according to people familiar. They have woundup two key units CEG Holdings BVI Ltd. and Tianji Holding Ltd., and taken control of Evergrande Health Industry Holdings Ltd., which owns more than 50 percent of the company’s new energy vehicle business.
Alvarez & Marsal is also trying to reclaim money from Evergrande founder Hui Ka Yan and his ex-wife, and even from the developer’s auditor PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP.
China challenges ONE of the biggest problems facing offshore creditors is that Evergrande’s mainland assets mostly remain out of their reach. As a Hong Kong court ordered the liquidation, additional arrangements are needed to enforce the ruling across the border, due to the city’s separate legal system.
While Hong Kong and mainland China expanded their reciprocal enforcement agreements in January last year for a broad range of issues, few success cases have been documented.
“Overseas liquidators are still a stranger to mainland Chinese courts and judges and they still have concerns that actions taken by offshore liquidators may disrupt and trigger social instability due to different culture and legal systems,” said Glen Ho, a leader of the restructuring and turnaround practice at Deloitte LLP. Oaktree and the Hong Kong court-appointed liquidators declined to comment. Evergrande didn’t respond to emailed requests for comment.
A previous analysis by Deloitte estimated the recovery rate for offshore unsecured creditors stood at just 3.53 percent.
“It’s a massive liquidation,” said James Wood, a Hong Kong barrister who specializes in restructuring and insolvency cases. “This is going to be a long, complex, time-consuming process.” Bloomberg
Tito Genova Valiente
Friday, February 28, 2025
SEC to roll out more reforms to keep PHL out of grey list
By VG Cabuag
THESecurities and Exchange Commission on Thursday said it is rolling out more reforms to combat money laundering and terrorist financing, as it commits to help keep the Philippines out of the grey list of global financial crimes watchdog Financial Action Task Force (FATF).
SEC Chairman Emilio B. Aquino said the Philippines must sustain the reforms that drove its exit from the FATF grey list; continue to identify emerging risks and gaps in the country’s anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing framework; and promptly implement the necessary measures, especially in the next two years.
“The next two years will be crucial, as the Philippines prepares for another mutual evaluation, where the country’s AML/CFT standards will be assessed for their compli-
ance with global standards,” Aquino, currently the longest serving member of the Anti-Money Laundering Council, said. Aquino’s term as SEC chairman, however, will end by the middle of the year.
“Failure to address identified risks—such as gaps in beneficial ownership transparency, enforcement actions, or emerging financial threats—could increase our risk of going back to the grey list. Therefore, continued vigilance, policy enhancements, and effective enforce -
Palace open to tweaking SIM law, Pogo EO to plug loopholes in both
By Samuel P. Medenilla
@sam_medenilla
MALACAÑANG said President Ferdinand Marcos is open to amending Republic Act (RA) No. 11934 or the Subscribed Identity Module (SIM) Registration Act and the Executive Order (EO) No. 74 banning Philippine Offshore Gaming Operator (POGO) to plug the loopholes of both policies.
The Palace made the remark after Senate Deputy Minority Leader Risa Hontiveros raised alarm over the resurgence of text scams and the emergence of “reinvented POGO,” wherein victims are recruited abroad to work in scam hubs. There were also reports from law enforcement authorities that some former POGO employees have started their own small-scale online gaming operations.
Legislative fix IN a press briefing on Thursday, Palace Press Officer Clarissa “Claire” Castro acknowledged there are still gaps in the provisions of the RA 11934, which allow text scams to proliferate.
The Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) earlier said the registration of SIM cards will help greatly reduce text scams; however, Hontiveros said there is now a rising incidents of text scams.
“We have to strive to fix the law on SIM card registration, which is one of the reasons there are these kinds of text scams,” Castro said in Filipino.
She blamed the rise of text scams to the online registration provision of the RA 11934, which she claimed still allows registered SIM cards to be used by other people. RA 11934 imposed imprisonment and fines on those who sold or transferred a registered SIM without complying with required registration.
“There are those who sell their identity. We will have a hard time suppressing crime if that happens,”
Castro said.
The Presidential Communications Office (PCO) undersecretary said such initiatives can be prevented by requiring people to register their SIM in person as in the case of driver’s license, and the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) clearance.
Extent of participation
CASTRO said the government is also ready to review the provisions of EO 74 after Hontiveros called on Marcos to also ban online gambling, which are under Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation’s (Pagcor) operating casinos.
“Because there are now problems related [to POGOs] in the news, we will intensify and study what else can be done [to improve EO 74],” she said.
She said the review will also cover how to hold accountable the officials, who allowed POGOs to continue to operate.
Despite the issuance of EO 74 last year, law enforcement agencies continue to detect and shut down illegal POGO scam hubs. The most recent case involved 401 foreign nations in Pasay City on Wednesday.
“We will find out the extent of the participation of the officials of LGUs. If they were given a permit without the proper document and were able to work in the Philippines, most likely it is not just the LGU officials, who will be held accountable,” Castro said.
The Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Commission (PAOCC) earlier said most of the illegal POGOs are operating in the Southern part of Metro Manila, which includes the cities of Pasay, Parañaque and Makati.
It urged local officials from these LGUs to cooperate with their antiPOGO campaign.
Red flag
IN a related development, Castro said the President Marcos will also look into the alleged link of Li Duan Wang to POGO operations before
ment remain critical to ensuring that the Philippines stays off the grey list and maintains its position as a reliable and competitive financial hub in the region,” he said.
FATF President Elisa de Anda Madrazo said the Philippines will undergo another assessment in 2027.
“The Philippines is expected to sustain the implementation of the reforms and importantly, to do so in a way that is consistent with the FATF standard,” Madrazo said.
“This will provide an opportunity for the FATF to verify that the reforms remain in place and are being sustained in line with FATF standards,” she said.
The SEC said its improved collection and management of beneficial ownership information of companies were among the key factors that helped push the Philippines out of the grey list.
This year, the SEC will launch the Hierarchical Applicable Relations and Beneficial Ownership Registry (Project HARBOR), a registry of information that is easily accessible to other partner agencies through the execution of data sharing agreements.
Project HARBOR’s features will
include automated data validation, configurable access levels for authorized users, and analytical tools for identifying complex ownership structures.
The system will be integrated with the Commission’s existing online company registration system, the Electronic Simplified Processing of Application for Registration of Companies (eSPARC).
With Project HARBOR in place, the SEC can streamline beneficial ownership disclosures, promote regulatory transparency, and enhance compliance with global AML/ CFT standards.
“Project HARBOR will modernize how we manage beneficial ownership data, reducing manual interventions and facilitating a secure, efficient disclosure process for corporations, thereby addressing the concern on the accuracy of beneficial ownership information submitted to the SEC,” Aquino said.
Exit at the expense of civic space
THE Center for Trade Union and Human Rights (CTUHR), meanwhile, claimed the government achieved the exit from the dirty
MACRON INVITES MARCOS JR TO NICE CLIMATE MEETING
By Malou TalosigBartolome
FRENCH President Emmanuel Macron has extended an invitation for President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to attend the United Nations Ocean Conference in Nice, France, this June.
French Ambassador to Manila Marie Fontanel said the invitation has been handed out to all the heads of the states all over the world. But France is particular about Marcos Jr. participation as the Philippines has been the constant companion of France in climate change advocacy. So far, Malacañang has yet to respond to Macron’s invitation.
“I hope the Philippine continues to fight this with us. If there’s one country which can speak about the consequences of climate change, it’s you [Philippines],” Fontanel said in a tete-atete with reporters Tuesday.
The Nice Conference on June 8-10 aims to further push the envelope in the conservation and sustainable use of the oceans, seas and marine resources.
Stakeholders from the governments, UN system, nongovernment organizations, civil society, scientific community, international financial institu-
tions and other actors are invited to come up with solutions to end illegal and excessive fishing and protect marine ecosystems. Fontanel recalled that it was the Philippines and France which started the ball rolling that led to the landmark UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP21) Agreement in 2016.
On February 26, 2015, then French President Francois Hollande made a historic visit to the Philippines where he and then Philippine President Benigno Aquino Jr. jointly called for the international community for “climate action,” “climate cooperation” and for “financial and technical solidarity.”
The following day, Hollande visited Guian, Eastern Samar, the first landfall of “Yolanda,” the strongest typhoon ever to hit the Earth.
According to climate scientists, rising ocean temperatures due to climate change directly contribute to the intensification of supertyphoons such as Yolanda (international name: Haiyan).
Archipelagic Philippines, flanked by Pacific Ocean from east and South China Sea from east, is more particularly vulnerable to the destruction of super typhoons.
Safety,
INDIAN nationals want to have fun in the Philippines.
This was what many Philippine travel sellers found out during a recent travel fair in Mumbai, as well as a subsequent roadshow to New Delhi, Chennai, and Bangalore. The drawback? The higher costs of traveling to the country due to the lack of direct flights, expensive accommodations, along with safety and security concerns.
Arjun Shroff, CEO of Shroff Travel, said in an email interview with the BusinessMirror, “They inquired about the safety of traveling in the Philippines, particularly female group travel, and family travel options. There were also concerns on the cost of travel to the Philippines due to the lack of direct flights, and the relatively higher hotel prices compared to other Southeast Asian
countries. They asked about the ease of getting around the country, including transportation options and costs.”
Peter Tay, chief executive officer of Boracay Adventures Travel ‘N Tours, echoed similar safety concerns by travel buyers. Also, “They tried to compare the Philippines with Bangkok, Phuket, and Bali. They are looking for another destination since their guests have visited most Asean countries, but they have not been promoting us because of the difficult visa process.”
Both were optimistic that with the rollout of the electronic visa (evisa) system, more Indian tourists will be encouraged to visit. Air India executives recently met with Philippine aviation authorities to clarify regulations that will allow the carrier to offer nonstop services to the
Philippines.
Sales event nets P86-M leads
THE Tourism Promotions Board (TPB) showcased the country’s top travel destinations at the Outbound Travel Mart (OTM) 2025 at the Jio World Convention Centre in Mumbai from January 30 to February 1. In a news statement, TPB Chief Operating Officer Margarita Montemayor Nograles said, “The Philippine delegation had business-to-business meetings with Indian travel buyers; this generated some P86.3 million in partial sales leads.” The TPB is the marketing arm of the Department of Tourism (DOT).
Data from the DOT showed there were close to 79,000 Indian tourists in the Philippines last year, placing 13th among the country’s major visi-
tor markets. Prior to the pandemic, there were 134,963 tourists from India in 2019, despite the lack of direct flights and no e-visa policy. Shroff said Indian travel buyers “expressed a strong interest beach destinations; they sought information on popular beach destinations including Boracay, Palawan, and Cebu. They were keen on exploring adventure activities like diving, snorkeling, hiking, and island hopping. They showed interest in visiting historical sites, museums, and cultural villages. They also inquired about attractions and activities suitable for families with children.” He also promoted El Nido, specifically, for its island-hopping activities, kayaking, “and breathtaking views,” along with Siargao, for its surfing and “laid-back atmosphere.”
THUMBS UP FOR
(sixth
Editor: Jennifer A. Ng
PLDT trimming 2025 capex to improve financial stability
By Lorenz S. Marasigan @lorenzmarasigan
TELECOMMUNICATIONS
giant PLDT Inc. is cutting its capital expenditures (capex) this year as it aims to achieve positive free cash flow, company executives said on Tuesday.
Danny Yu, the company’s CFO, said the company is taking “a more disciplined approach” to its spending in a bid to improve financial stability. This year, the company has allotted between P68 billion and P73 billion in capital outlays.
In 2024, the company’s capex stood at P78.2 billion, about P10 billion lower than the P85.1 billion spent in 2023. This brought the telco’s capex intensity—the ratio of capital spending to revenues— to 38 percent from 42 percent in 2023.
ity improvements. The company will focus on increasing the number of cell sites for both 4G and 5G, upgrading its network, and integrating artificial intelligence (AI) and network analytics to enhance service delivery.
Jimenez noted that much of the surge in capex spending in previous years was driven by the push for 5G adoption. He said the company is now taking a more measured approach to new technologies.
Consolidated service revenues grew by 2 percent to P194.7 billion with data and broadband contributing 83 percent.
The company’s earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (Ebitda) also inched up by 4 percent to P108.5 billion, maintaining an Ebitda margin of 52 percent.
Vena Energy wind, solar projects get green lane status
PLDT Chief Operating Officer (COO) Butch Jimenez said the capex reduction will not hamper the company’s growth, as it is part of a more efficient allocation of resources.
“The reduction in capex is actually premised on a more efficient strategic rollout and use of capex. So we are able to reduce capex without actually reducing our thrust towards revenue-generating infrastructure,” Jimenez explained. He said PLDT’s infrastructure spending will continue to prioritize network expansion and service qual-
“We’re trying to bring it down. We just want to achieve positive free cash flow by next year,” Yu said during a press conference.
“If we don’t get fascinated by this next technology that may not bring us any revenues, I think capex will continue to be maintained,” he said, noting that PLDT is now reaping the benefits of its heavy investments in 5G.
“We foresee that for 2024, 2025, and 2026, 5G is going to play a much bigger role in terms of generating revenues for us,” Jimenez added, quipping that he told vendors “not to talk to us about 6G yet.”
PLDT reported a 21-percent increase in net income, reaching P32.3 billion in 2024. Core net income, which excludes one-off items, stood at P35.1 billion, up 2 percent from the previous year.
“Our 2024 results highlight PLDT’s resilience and the continued demand for reliable connectivity. But our intention is to use this as benchmark for even better performance in the coming years. The telco landscape is evolving quickly, and we will work non-stop to innovate, improve our services, and exceed customer expectations,” PLDT Chairman and CEO Manuel V. Pangilinan said.
However, he was cautious about the company’s income outlook for 2025, citing economic uncertainties.
“We’re being careful about giving any guidance at this point. We noticed that January was a pretty slow month, even for Meralco. We don’t know why that is the case. Hopefully, it’s not a forerunner for things to come.”
Repsol acquires stake in Unioil unit
CBy Lenie Lectura @llectura
O-LED Unioil Group of Companies announced
Thursday another deal with a foreign entity that is expected to boost its lubricant business.
Repsol Downstream Internacional S.A.U., a subsidiary of Spainbased Repsol S.A., has acquired a 40-percent stake in Unioil Lubricants Inc. (ULI), the lubricants manufacturing and distribution arm of the Unioil Group.
“The Unioil Group of Companies is pleased to announce the start of operations of its strategic partner -
Apex Mining allots ₧110M for SDMP
LISTED Apex Mining Co.
Inc. said it has earmarked P110.5 million for various programs under its Social Development Management Program (SDMP) for 2025.
The SDMP will go to the company’s host communities, namely Barangays Masara, Teresa, Mainit, Tagbaros, New Barili, New Leyte, and Elizalde in the Municipality of Maco; and Golden Valley in the Municipality of Mabini.
Apart from these areas, eight others in Maco are counted as neighboring barangays and would also benefit from Apex Mining’s SDMP. These are barangays Panoraon, Gubatan, Panangan, Limbo, Calabcab, Malamodao, Panibasan, and Kinuban.
The Mines and Geosciences Bureau has approved Apex Mining’s proposed SDMP.
In a statement, Luis Sarmiento, President and CEO of Apex Mining, said the development programs under the company’s SDMP are planned and agreed upon with the Municipality of Maco and the Mansakas, representing the IPs of Davao de Oro in the company’s mining tenement. Jonathan L. Mayuga
ship with a multinational energy and petrochemical company headquartered in Madrid, Spain,” Unioil said in a statement. ULI will be responsible for the manufacturing and distribution of a diverse range of products, including Unioil, Idemitsu, and Repsol lubricants. This partnership aims to leverage the strengths of both companies to enhance product offerings and expand market reach.
“We are thrilled to announce this strategic partnership with Repsol. This collaboration not only strengthens our position in the lubricants market but also allows
us to offer a wider range of highquality products to our customers.
We are confident that this partnership will drive significant growth and innovation for Unioil Lubricants Inc.,” said ULI President Manuel Soriano.
Unioil, a Filipino company founded in 1966 by the Co family, has been a significant player in the Philippine lubricants market for decades. It began its journey as a re-refiner of base oil and later started manufacturing its own branded lubricants.
In 1994, Unioil partnered with Idemitsu, one of the largest Japanese oil companies, to become the
By Andrea E. San Juan @andreasanjuan
THE wind and solar power projects of Singapore-based renewable energy firm Vena Energy’s wind and solar power projects, which cost P75 billion, have been awarded green lane certificates of endorsement, according to the Board of Investments (BOI).
The agency said these projects will be developed across Luzon and Visayas, creating up to 8,000 direct job opportunities during their construction, commissioning, operation, and maintenance.
exclusive and licensed distributor of their products in the Philippines.
Last week, Unioil Petroleum Philippines, Inc. announced that Saudi Arabia’s Aramco is acquiring a 25-percent stake. Through the partnership with Aramco, Unioil said it will also introduce the Aramco and Valvoline brands to Filipino consumers.
Its deal with Aramco is subject to customary closing conditions, including regulatory approvals. Upon completion, Aramco intends to extend its brand, competitive retail offerings and Valvoline-branded lubricants to select retail stations in the Philippines.
Honda aims to corner chunk of PHL motorcycle market
ONDA Philippines Inc.
Hwants to corner more than 60 percent of the motorcycle market in the country as it is targeting to 1 million units by 2026.
The company projected that sales of the local motorcycle sector could reach as much as 1.7 million units this year.
“We want to get a market share of around 60 percent, more than 60 percent I want to say,” Honda Philippines Inc. CEO Sayaka Arai told reporters in an interview.
“For our next fiscal year, we’re going to achieve 1 million sales in the Philippines,” Jomel Jerezo, Vice President of Sales and Marketing at Honda Philippines Inc. told reporters at a briefing in Manila on Wednesday.
The company’s next fiscal year will start on April 1, 2025.
For the 2024 fiscal year which is set to close in March 2025, Jerezo said Honda is on track to sell 940,000 units of motorcycles.
In the January to December 2024 period, the Honda official said the Japanese brand sold 928,000 units.
Of these motorcycles sold in 2024, Jerezo said around 40 units had been exported to New Zealand while the
rest of the motorcycles were sold in the Philippines.
Arai said the Japanese brand is banking on the Philippines’s growing population to drive the sales of motorcycles.
“For the motorcycle point of view, of course we have more potential. And of course in the Philippines, the population is getting more and more and the younger is increasing. So that’s why the motorcycle’s potential is growing.”
Data from the Asean Automotive Federation (AAF) showed that the Philippines sold 1,550,676 units of motorcycles in the January to November 2024 period, up 7.6 percent from the 1,441,499 units in the 11-month period in 2023.
In January to November 2024, the Philippines ranked third among the five Asean countries in terms of the number of units sold but it posted the fastest growth rate compared to its peers. Andrea E. San Juan
The certificates were awarded to Opus Solar Energy Corp., Gemini Wind Energy Corp., and Ixus Solar Energy Corp., which BOI said are “special purpose vehicles” of Vena Energy.
The green lane certificates are for the following projects: 416.025 MWp/318.750 MWac Opus Solar Power project of Opus Solar Energy Corp., 200MW Gemini Wind Power Project of Gemini Wind Energy Corp., 301.392 MWp Aguilar Solar Power Project, and 473.616p MW Ixus Bugallon Solar Power Project both of Ixus Solar Energy Corp.
With these recently-awarded projects, the BOI said there are now 184 strategic investments endorsed by the One-Stop Action Center for Strategic Investments (OSAC-SI) under the Green Lane Services, reaching P4.614 trillion as of February 19,2025.
Of these, 149 projects worth P4.211 trillion fall under the renewable energy sector.
As to the other green lane projects, 8 are under the digital infrastructure sector worth P352.13 billion, 23 are under the food security sector worth P14.37 billion and 4 projects are under the manufacturing sector worth P36.91 billion.
The Green Lane initiative, established through Executive Order (EO) 18 in February 2023, streamlines the permitting and licensing process for strategic investments, particularly in renewable energy. OSAC-SI is the office under the BOI that issues endorsement letters to the Department of Energy (DOE), national government agencies (NGAs), and local government units (LGUs) to facilitate the swift processing within prescribed timelines under EO 18. The BOI said Vena Energy is a leading renewable energy provider in the Asia-Pacific. The firm’s diverse renewable energy portfolio includes 43 GW of onshore wind, solar, and offshore wind projects, alongside a green infrastructure pipeline comprising 24 GWh of battery energy storage systems (BESS), 620 MW of data centers, and 840 MTPA of green hydrogen and ammonia production. With over 1,000 employees across 87 corporate and site offices globally, the company is dedicated to driving widespread adoption of low-carbon energy solutions, the BOI said.
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Banking&Finance
Strict rules to choke flow of revenue–Pagcor CEO
AFTER posting a record-high gross gaming revenue (GGR) in 2024, pressures from proposed regulations restricting financial services linked to gambling hound gaming regulator Philippine Amusement Gaming Corp. (Pagcor).
In a briefing with reporters, Pagcor Chairman and CEO Alejandro H. Tengco said plans to prohibit online gaming payment transactions through electronic money issuers (EMIs) and banks will hit the agency’s revenues and its contribution to the national government.
Tengco said online gaming payments, such as placing bets, coursed through EMIs, such as GCash and Maya, will be lost should the proposal materialize.
“The Philippine government will suffer from this,” Tengco said. “I was surprised that they have a proposed draft. Pagcor was not even consulted. The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas [BSP] did not ask for Pagcor’s opinion.”
The Pagcor chief’s statements came after the BSP drafted a circular to set the guidelines for banks and electronic money issuers (EMIs) in adopting a digital marketplace model compliant with government and risk management standards on information technology (IT), anti-money laundering, terrorist financing, data privacy and consumer protection. (See: https://businessmirror.com.ph/2025/02/24/bsp-framesdigital-market-as-safe-secure-forbanking/)
The planned regulation prohibits
products and services associated with gambling or any activities, such as online casinos, online betting, electronic gaming and other forms of gaming/ gambling, that could “undermine the reputation” of sellers from being offered in the marketplace.
“I am going to ask the legal department to look into the matter so that without us getting any letter from the BSP, can react and maybe give our side,” Tengco said.
What should be done, he added, is to tighten the rules on unregistered illegal online gaming operators.
The Pagcor chief said illegal e-game operators should be denied access to EMIs and banks when receiving online gaming payments.
Electronic gaming operators licensed by Pagcor should instead be able to transact with EMIs and banks, according to Tengco. “We are entitled as a contributor to the coffers of the national government. We’re entitled to give our opinion.”
Pagcor contributed P68.20 billion to nation-building in 2024, up by 37.61 percent from P49.56 billion in 2023. The agency recorded a net income of P16.76 billion in 2024, after it posted a new record-high revenue of P112 billion in 2024.
The country’s gross gaming revenues (GGR) also reached around P410.478 billion ($7.09 billion) in 2024, the secondhighest GGR recorded in Asia after Macau with $31.2 billion. Reine Juvierre S. Alberto
BSP cut of banks’ reserves to reach zero–economist
By Reine Juvierre Alberto @reine_alberto
AN economist of MUFG-backed Security Bank Corp. (SECB) believes the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) is on track to gradually reduce the reserve requirement ratio (RRR) to zero by 2028, balancing inflation and credit growth.
SECB Chief Economist Angelo B. Taningco told reporters last Wednesday there will still be cuts in the banks’ RRRs in the coming years, eventually bringing the ratio to zero by the end of the term of incumbent BSP Governor Eli M. Remolona Jr.
As such, a 200-basis point (bp) reduction in the RRR is expected in 2026, bringing the ratios to 3 percent. Two 150-bps cuts could also be delivered consecutively in 2027 and
2028, eliminating the RRRs entirely. While it is possible for the RRRs to go from the current 5 percent to 0 percent immediately, Taningco said freeing up more funds would be inflationary. “That’s why the RRR cuts are gradual and not a one-time big reduction.”
Taningco said suddenly bringing the ratios down to zero would also “excessively weaken the peso” as trillions, all at once, would be injected into the financial system.
New ADB chief promises to help PHL econ growth
T“That’s part of the [BSP’s] mandate—balancing inflation targets, economic growth, and exchange rate stability,” Taningco said, adding that the BSP is avoiding excessive volatility in the exchange rate.
Nevertheless, the reduction in the RRRs would reduce friction costs and improve financial intermediation, which will lead to more efficiency in capital usage, according to Taningco.
“Since banks act as financial intermediaries, channeling savings into lending, this creates more growth prospects as additional funds become available,” Taningco said.
When the BSP slashed the RRRs by 250 bps in October 2024, this released around P400 billion from all banks. This time, the announcement of a 200-bps cut on March 2025, will infuse P325 billion into the system, Taningco said.
However, due to the BSP reabsorbing the liquidity through government securities and repo facilities, Taningco said the impact of the RRR cut will not significantly
contribute to growth.
“Some of it goes into investment securities, and some into lending. It’s not entirely for lending, but since a portion does go there, it still contributes to growth—though not significantly,” Taningco said.
Other economists echoed the same view, saying that while the reduction of RRR may stimulate the economy, it may not translate into a short-term boost in growth.
Citi Economist for the Philippines Nalin Chutchotitham has said midFebruary that the October cut “has likely provided additional loosening effect on financial conditions, supporting credit growth and overall domestic demand at the margin, even if the BSP notes that the RRR is more of a technical adjustment to reduce structural distortion in the financial system, and not a substitute for policy rate which is a cyclical policy tool.”
By Samuel P. Medenilla @sam_medenilla
HE Asian Development Bank (ADB) under the leadership of its new president, Masato Kanda, has committed to provide more support to the Marcos administration so it can sustain the momentum of the country’s economic growth.
Kanda made the remark during his courtesy call with President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. in Malacañang last Wednesday. “Our responsive financial support,
robust policy advice, and local cooperation aims to help ensure the gains of economic growth are felt by all Filipinos. We look forward to building on our longstanding partnership to deepen inclusive growth throughout the country,” Kanda said in a statement posted by the ADB in its website. Kanda added that the ADB’s interventions will balance infrastructure development and measures that safeguard livelihoods. The new ADB chief commended the country’s average 6.1 percent economic growth in the last four years and successful efforts to reduce
Manulife sure to stay on fast growth rate this year
By VG Cabuag @villygc
THE Manufacturers Life Insurance
Co. Philippines Inc. (Manulife PHL)
said it is expecting double-digit growth this year, with the expected expansion on favorable market conditions, a growing economy and a young population with increasing disposable income.
According to Manulife PHL President and CEO Rahul Hora, there’s optimism on the company’s performance in 2025 and the years to come.
“We had a good [year] in 2024, and we do expect that 2025 and even our forecast for the future years continues to be positive, and we are aiming to continue growing at a faster rate moving forward,” Hora said in a briefing with reporters.
Last year, the income of the local unit of the Manufacturers Life Insurance Co. of Canada, grew 46 percent to P2.78 billion from the previous year’s P1.89 billion. Premium income, meanwhile, was flat at P15.83 billion from the previous year’s P15.55 billion.
“[The Philippine] market has a lot of young people for whom our products are extremely relevant. That market on a year-on-year basis keeps growing. The economy of the country continues to do well which means people are going to become more and more richer [sic] and, hence, disposable income for them will increase. So all those factors are contributing to the growth in the industry,” Hora said last Thursday.
Kicking off its 118th year in the country, Manulife PHL has reaffirmed its commitment to adapting to rapidly changing needs of its growing customer base.
Manulife, which is celebrating its 118th year in the country, recently captured the top spot among Philippine life insurance companies in customer recommendation. The claim was based on the “Net Promoter Score” survey conducted in the Philippines by the global market research firm Ipsos Group SA in 2024.
Over the last five years, the company has also paid claims amounting to P12.9 billion, standing by its promise to be with customers as their trusted financial partner for its customers.
“Customers in the Philippines are becoming more proactive in planning their financial protection against any uncertainties. They seek products and services that enable them and their families to live better lives, and we take pride in partnering with them to get closer to this goal. As we aim to the #1 choice for our customers, we are deeply committed to providing them with better innovative solutions on all fronts,” Hora said.
“We do a lot of research to first understand what the customers want, and then we try to bring products which are relevant to our customers, and I think that to me is the most important reason why we are very bullish about our growth prospects in the country in the years to come,” he added.
poverty to 15.5 percent in 2023 from 18.1 percent in 2021.
Marcos welcomed the commitment of Kanda and said ADB remains to be country’s “most important partner,” when it comes to its development initiatives. “We find that in the last years, recent years, that has even increased. And so, I think, it is very encouraging, very promising,” the Chief Executive added.
According to the ADB, the multilateral lender currently has $10.27 billion worth of projects in the country. These include infrastructure projects like the Laguna Lakeshore
Road Network, Bataan-Cavite Interlink Bridge, Malolos-Clark Railway Project and the South Commuter Railway Project.
The ADB is also helping fund the government’s Climate Change Action program, the Build Universal Health Care program, the Health System Enhancement to Address and Limit Covid-19 (HEAL) project, the Competitive and Inclusive Agriculture Development program, and a food stamp program.
Kanda replaced Masatsugu Asakawa, who resigned as ADB President this year.
Maya issues over 125K credit cards in six months
FINTECH firm Maya Philippines Inc. reported last Thursday of having issued more than 125,000 credit cards in six months and achieving group-wide profitability by December 2024.
According to Maya, its first credit card in partnership with SoutheastAsia Retail Inc. (dba Landers), has seen strong consumer demand since its launch in August last year.
The product’s fully digital application and instant activation via the Maya app have been key drivers of adoption, particularly among firsttime credit users, who account for almost 40 percent of cardholders.
Customers outside Metro Manila make up around 60 percent of the total base, the company said. By streamlining the credit approval process and eliminating traditional banking barriers, Maya has expanded access to financial services across a broader market, it added.
“Achieving profitability at the group level while scaling rapidly underscores our ability to drive sustainable growth,” said Shailesh Baidwan, Maya group president and Maya Bank co-founder.
“We are building a digital-first financial ecosystem that is accessible, innovative, and designed to empower millions of Filipino consumers and
MSMEs to save, borrow, invest and make and receive payments,” Baidwan added.
Maya’s expansion into consumer credit is part of its broader strategy to scale digital banking, payments and lending, culminating in group-wide profitability by December last year.
This marks a significant milestone for Maya, which includes both Maya Philippines for payments and Maya Bank for digital banking, underscoring its strong financial performance across multiple business segments.
As of end-2024, Maya’s banking customer base grew to 5.4 million, a 71 percent year-on-year, while its borrower base nearly doubled to 1.6 million.
Deposits also rose substantially, reaching P39 billion, up 59 percent from 2023, while cumulative loan disbursements totaled P92 billion.
Maya also claimed that it had maintained its leadership in digital payments, holding the largest market share in card acquiring and QRPH transactions.
Maya said it would focus on expanding its credit and lending portfolio, enhancing its enterprise solutions, and scaling sustainably while deepening financial inclusion.
Online lender taps PalawanPay to offer Digido loans
By Rizal Raoul S. Reyes @brownindio
The association executive as a blacksmith
I’M a fan of the History Channel’s “Forged in Fire” program where world-class bladesmiths recreate historical and iconic knives and swords in a competition. A bladesmith is a specialized type of blacksmith.
Blacksmithing, an ancient and enduring craft, has stood the test of time as a testament to human ingenuity and skill. For centuries, blacksmiths have forged essential tools, weapons, and intricate works of art, shaping the course of history.
While association executives and blacksmiths operate in vastly different worlds, there are intriguing parallels between their roles and responsibilities. Drawing parallels between the role of an association executive and a blacksmith, there are several valuable lessons that can be gleaned:
1. Craftsmanship and skill development. Like a blacksmith hones their skills in metalworking, an association executive can learn the importance of continuous skill development and should invest time and effort in developing leadership, communication, and strategic planning skills.
2. Adaptability to change. A blacksmith adapts to different materials and techniques as needed. Similarly, an association executive can navigate change by being adaptable and open to new approaches in response to evolving industry trends, member needs, and external factors.
3. Attention to detail. A blacksmith pays close attention to the details of their work from which the association executive can better grasp the value of meticulous planning and execution in managing various aspects of the organization, ensuring that details contribute to the overall success.
4. Patience and persistence. A blacksmith requires patience and persistence to shape and refine metal. The association executive can gain from this in approaching challenges with resilience, understanding that some initiatives may take time to yield results, and persistence is essential for long-term success.
5. Quality matters. A blacksmith focuses on creating high-quality products and from here an association executive can prioritize quality in their programs, services, and interactions, recognizing that delivering value to members is essential for sustained success.
6. Building strong foundations.
The blacksmith understands the importance of a strong foundation for their creations. The association executive can learn to build a solid organizational foundation by establishing clear goals, effective governance structures, and a positive workplace culture.
7. Innovation and creativity. A blacksmith employs innovative techniques. In like manner, an association executive can foster a culture of creativity and innovation, encouraging team members to explore new ideas and approaches to address challenges and improve processes.
8. Resource management. A blacksmith is skilled at managing resources efficiently. An association executive can optimize resource allocation, ensuring that time, finances, and personnel are utilized effectively to meet the organization’s objectives.
9. Adherence to values. A blacksmith often adheres to a code of craftsmanship. The association executive can lead with integrity, adhering to the values and principles that guide the association.
10. Customization. A blacksmith often creates custom pieces tailored to individual needs. Similarly, the association executive can customize programs and services to meet the specific needs and preferences of a diverse membership.
11. Apprenticeship and mentorship. A blacksmith traditionally passes down skills through apprenticeships. An association executive can develop mentorship and professional development programs, nurturing the next generation of leaders within the organization.
The blacksmith’s craft offers association executives valuable lessons and, by applying these principles, association executives can enhance their leadership skills and contribute to the overall success and sustainability of their associations.
Octavio
Octavio Peralta
A ssociation World
FILIPINOS seem to find any reason to celebrate. Of course it’s de rigeur to honor birthdays and wedding anniversaries, but we now also celebrate restaurant openings and threemonthseraries with our significant others, as well as resignations from that abusive office with the dastardly boss. Lately, we’ve even rode on Westernled commemorations of Taco Tuesdays, Pizza Day, while in Balayan, Batangas, there is a Lechon Festival, weirdly enough, to honor St. John the Baptist.
Just think of how many cities and provinces commemorate feast days of Catholic saints with fiestas, dances, singing contests, eating contests, and the good old reliable beauty contests! No wonder It’s More Fun in the Philippines.
And amid all these celebrations with good hometown cuisine and drink, for sure, Chinese dishes will also be among the food served. Like us, the Chinese pay particular importance to dishes with some heft (thus carbo-loaded and goooood!) and are always meant to be shared with families, friends, or co-workers.
So you have the usual siopao, pancit, and siomai to crab foo yong and sweet and sour pork, as well as steamed fish with ginger and soy sauce, from the exotic chicken feet and jellyfish salad as appetizers, to the irresistible roasted duck or goose as main entrees. Meanwhile for dessert, how about that dependable butchi or mango sago.
Not too long ago, I was on a 10-day trip of southernwesten China with fellow media colleagues, and discovered that its different regions offered a variety of cuisines and dishes heretofore unknown to probably most from the outside world. (Our Chinese restaurants are often Cantonese-based because that’s from where most of our early Chinese immigrants come.)
And often, we are advised to bring along a Chinoy
friend who will know what to order at our local Chinese restaurants so we can savor dishes beyond what we normally have.
At China Blue by Jereme Leung at Conrad Manila, we rely on Jane Domingo, the restaurant’s Chinese Operations manager, to summon the dishes for us. She has long worked the high-end Chinese restaurant circuit that her regulars from her previous work places are often overjoyed to find her at China Blue. While she knows, more or less, the dishes my family (or the 501 Gang) tend to favor, Jane also gently nudges us towards new dishes or those we are still unfamiliar with that she knows will suit our palates.
At a recent dinner with family, one of the treats we had was the Deep-fried Soft-shell Crab and Shrimps with Calamansi-Mango dressing. It seems to be China Blue’s take on the more common hot prawn salad, available in most Chinese restaurants. In this version, the dish tasted familiar but felt more elevated with the slight crunch provided by the delicious breaded soft-shell crab, and the delightful citrusy-sweet touch from the dressing. (I could no longer count how many “Ang saraaaap!” declarations my family members made after relishing this dish.)
A long-time family favorite are the Deep-fried Honey Matsusaka Pork enclosed in a carrot-shape dumpling, and Deep-fried Smoked Duck with Mushroom filling in green pear-shaped dumpling.
The dumplings, served as appetizer, offer a touch of whimsy, with the colorful shapes totally fooling your mind into expecting specific tastes, but your mouth appreciating different and hearty mashups of pork or fowl. This is certainly not your lola’s giant siopao.
Another favorite starter is the Barbecue Honeyglazed Matsusaka Pork Neck, which was tender with that sweet-smoked flavor.
Our soup was the hearty Braised Fish Lip and Seafood Soup with Egg White and Coriander, a light broth packed with a lot of flavor.
It was served on a shallow porcelain soup dish lit by a votive candle in a pot underneath, which was quite effective in keeping the soup warm (even boiling) with every spoonful.
Of course, the star of the show, so to speak, was the Golden Roast Peking Duck with momo wrappers. Jane had earlier thought of wrapping two slices of the duck skin, instead of the usual one slice, into each wrapper, which makes for a luscious crunch. A garlic sauce, instead of hoisin sauce, is used for a spicy, earthy lift. Damn. That duck never fails to hit the spot.
Although I’m not a fan of eggplant, the fruit (yes, kids, it’s not a vegetable) takes on a more welcoming taste for me when incorporated as a spicy eggplant and minced chicken sauce bathing the springy Homemade Spinach Tofu.
As the reader may have noticed, China Blue’s dishes are often a more modern and elevated take on classic Chinese dishes.
So amid all that, we were glad to have ordered Steamed Grouper (Lapu-Lapu) in the traditional Cantonese style with light soy sauce and oyster sauce and topped with fresh coriander. The fish was fleshy and evoked the feels of comfort food.
With all those mains, we had Braised Hong Kong E-fu noodle with seafood, and Seafood Fried Rice with XO sauce—did I not say carbo-loading? Yes, we did away with the usual Lauriat-style of serving dishes, in a slow orderly succession, and were served the rice and noodles straight away with all the other mains. Because that is the Filipino-style celebration.
To cap the wonderful feast, we had the sublime Almond Pudding with Lychee Sorbet, another family favorite, with a thin crispy barquillo made of ube (purple yam). It’s long been a hit among China Blue diners as it is fresh and light, and like the dumplings before, shows off Chef Jereme’s fun playful bent.
In my interview with Chef Jereme when China Blue first opened, he said despite his modern take on Chinese cuisine, he and his chefs are still grounded in traditional cooking methods. “We wanted to retain the fundamental basics important in Chinese cuisine, like your soup needs to be very hot, it needs to be well-done. A lukewarm Chinese soup is disgusting. So it’s the way I look at this restaurant—we need to be modernized, yes. We have special ingredients from the local region and also what we bring in, and collectively I hope it will make this restaurant unique.”
Since its opening in 2016, China Blue has become part of many a foodie’s rotation of beloved Chinese restaurants, beyond the neighborhood panciteria or favorite Binondo hole-in-the-wall. Using fresh highquality local seafood and produce, along with select foreign ingredients, the restaurant not only serves modern, elevated Chinese cuisine, but many of its dishes have become comfort-food favorites for its diners.
China Blue by Jereme Leung is on the third floor of Conrad Manila, Pasay City. For inquiries and reservations, call 0917-6504043. ■
Eugenia Last
LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): Pay attention to
you look at and respond to others. Be the one to make positive suggestions, lend a helping hand and use your skills and knowledge to make situations easier. Focus on fixing problems, not masking them, and you’ll become the go-to person in your circle. ★★★
VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): Put your plans in motion. Build momentum, put a smile on your face and engage in talks that change how people perceive you and what you are trying to achieve. Be imaginative with your money, and you’ll find a way to make it stretch. An open mind will lead to new beginnings. ★★★
LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): Get out and about. Participate, engage in exciting events and broaden your sense of what’s possible. Use your home base as a springboard, and you’ll evolve in a direction that surprises everyone. It’s time to start an adventure that sparks your imagination and invites new friendships. ★★★
SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): Relax, enjoy and let the chips fall where they may. Put your heart and soul into exploring what brings you joy, and you will discover something you love doing that can also offer prosperity. Turn your likes into new possibilities, and forge ahead with stamina, ingenuity and a smile. ★★★
SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): Be aware; leave nothing to chance. Be ready and able to pick up the slack if someone lets you down. Say less, listen more, read between the lines and be prepared to do whatever it takes to surpass even your own expectations. ★★
CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): You are in a better position than you realize, so don’t slow down or give anyone a chance to step in and take over. Rise above conflict and let your precision and actions be your voice, and diligence when handling money and leading the way will be your calling card. ★★★★
AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): The best improvements you can make are
CHEATING WIFE?
HOW true is the rumor that the actor is suspecting his non-showbiz wife of cheating on him? The actor is no saint himself. Through the years, he’s had flings with actresses and non-showbiz girls but this is the first time—if the talk is true—that the wife is breaking her marriage vows. In fact, the wife is known in showbiz circles as a martyr because she has endured her husband’s cheating. The actor and his wife have been married for a long time now and their children are all grown. The wife is known as the woman behind the actor’s success because she has been supporting him in a low-key fashion. She barely has her picture taken and basically is considered a good wife.
SHE NEEDS MONEY
SO the beautiful actress has lost one of her big endorsements wherein she was replaced by another lovely star. According to insiders, the actress has no actual influence on consumers, based on data from brands. Her fans are more casual instead of dedicated, and it seems that they support her for being beautiful and nothing else. Because she is her family’s breadwinner and she also does not have new endorsements, this development is seen as a big blow to the actress. She reportedly has been having some money troubles lately. These problems are said to have been caused by her current boyfriend.
NOT A PRANK
THE recent antics of the social media influencer has made people question her sincerity. The influencer recently made an announcement in her socials which shocked netizens. However, sources alleged that what the influencer announced is not even true. They said she is just doing all these for publicity just because her recent engagement has been low. Whatever you may say about the influencer, it is doubtful that she would make such an announcement for clout-chasing. Seriously, there are many ways in which she can get attention and this is not a good way to do so.
SHE CAN’T TALK
THE estranged wife of the actor has been very discreet about their separation. Even when probed by people close to her, the actress will not say anything. Thus, it is curious she replied to someone that if she disclosed the reason for their separation, the husband’s entire family would be ruined. According to the grapevine, the actress was a victim of physical abuse at the hands of her husband. However, she decided to just keep quiet for the sake of their kids.
ON ITS 30TH ANNIVERSARY, BALLET MANILA UNVEILS ITS BEST AND MOST EXQUISITE PERFORMANCE PIECES
LIKE a pearl whose luster and sheen get better with age, Ballet Manila’s 30th year celebration reflects the graceful passage of the years, marked by a series of stellar productions featuring world-renowned ballet superstars from the US and Russia, all set to take place at the Aliw Theater, Pasay City.
Dubbed the The Pearl Year, Ballet Manila is opening the performance season with The Pearl Gala on March 7 at 8 pm, and on March 8 and 9 at 5 pm. A collection of the best and most exquisite performance pieces from Ballet Manila, the gala features the world premiere of Pearls, choreographed by none other than Lisa Macuja Elizalde, Ballet Manila’s CEO and artistic director, along with fellow award-winning choreographers Martin Lawrance and Gerardo Francisco Jr.
Details of the anniversary celebration and the new performance season were announced during Ballet Manila’s 30th anniversary launch, held recently at the Shangri-La Mall, which extended its support to Ballet Manila by hosting the event as part of its initiatives for National Arts Month. “This is a wonderful opportunity to emphasize our mission of bringing ballet to the people and the people to ballet, as well as highlight ballet as a beautiful art form,” shared MacujaElizalde. Ballet Manila’s The Pearl Gala will open with Paquita, which was first performed by Ballet Manila during its first ballet concert 30 years ago.
From The Pearl Gala, Ballet Manila continues the performance season with the classical ballet production Swan Lake on May 30 at 8 pm, and on May 31 and June 1 at 5 pm. A special matinee on May 31 at 1 pm will feature Ballet Manila principal dancer Abigail Oliveiro and San Francisco Ballet company artist Nathaniel Remez as the leads. All performances will be staged at Aliw Theater, Pasay City. For tickets, visit www.ticketworld.com.ph For more information about Ballet Manila, visit www. balletmanila.com.ph.
SineMargaha: The stories they tell
SAGAY is a city referenced by its nearness to Bacolod. And yet for jurors (this writer included) who had the opportunity to judge their yearly SineMargaha, the name that is taken from the beach fronting Nunelucio Alvarado’s home by the sea, their festival is something to reckon with. Their production has been winning year after year whenever they are entered in competitions outside their city. Or, at least, their films are noticed for the music they use and for the stories they tell.
The films for 2025 have been varied and interesting but the nine jurors breezed through the deliberation mainly because, as one judge admitted, the entries were good. Or, there were many of them that were said to be outstanding. The number of judges was one of the many firsts in the festival.
For the first time, SineMargaha initiated an open category, bringing in films outside Negros. Then there were the kind of nominees to be selected: gender was eschewed with only the lead and supporting to be considered. Regarding the said two distinctions, the jury also opted to look at having more than one choice, more than one winner for each category.
In the Jury Prize for the Open Category, which is also called Philippine Shorts, two films were judged Ex-Aequo or of the same merit. These were: Sino Nagaeog-Gaeog sa Eugan-Eugan from DDC Films and Sa Ilalum sa Balabal sa Alitaptap from Thinking Bird Films, Origane Films, Nabifilmex. The two films were
described by the jurors as possessing visions that are singular, and remain the representative of the kind of filmmaking present in the periphery or among the regional cinemas. One film is almost freed from the filter of social judgement while the other allows us to experience restraint amid its own enchantment.
For the Open Category, Jermaine Tulbo from Mindanao was the first winner with his A Crab from a Conch Shell. This film is described as a masterful depiction of grief without being overpowering, with the transition so seamless and pure that it has ceased to be the images of sadness but already sadness itself. Refined and yet lacking a self-consciousness common in well-constructed film, the visualizing has assumed the quality of poetry: each shot is languid, fluid portrayal of loss and the accompanying personal assessment that goes with such loss.
A special feature of SineMargaha is the award named after Nune Alvarado, the artist who has lived in Sagay for a long time and whose works have been part of the heritage and identity of the place. This award is called The Nunelucio Panublion Alvarado Award. This prize has been given to Walo-Walo: Walo ka Adlaw nga Kanay, Walo ka Adlaw na Latugay.
The award cites how our cultures have been formed by the forces of nature. The result is a worldview wherein we can locate native terms for any thing that affects our daily lives. How we cope and face nature are so ingrained in our knowledge that we are particular about the terms we give to those that give rise to calamities and disturbance. “Walo-Walo” refers to a nearly freak weather accident, where eight stormy days find an intervention, only for a set of eight days again to cause more storms.
The short films declared the top three films under the banner of SineMargaha were: Ang Babaye sa Bubon from Sagay National High School, Walo-Walo ka Adlaw nga Kanay, Walo ka Adlaw nga Labugay from Last Day Production, and Si Sir kag ang Gamay na Bata. Ang Babaye sa Bubon is a heartwarming win coming as it does from Sagay National High School,
an institution that has been attending film education and film literacy. The film, according to jurors, is part horror, part social environmental crisis. Declared as runner-up, this film is an advocacy piece hiding behind a horror film.
The Jury Prize has been awarded to Walo-Walo ka Adlaw nga Kanay, Walo ka Adlaw nga Labugay from Last Day Production. For the jurors, the natural storytelling of the film explores the character of a family who must face the sea each day as a natural challenge to life and death. After viewing all the other films, this film surfaces again and again, tugging at us so that we can look at it again. Directed by Grace Mission, the film would also win Best Director for her. The citation reads: “While the other films exhibited vision, one film stood out for the dexterity and control of the scenes, giving us in the process concepts about our own identity together with the concept of death as pollution, or of the notion of evil going beyond the merely physical.”
Daring and confident, Si Sir kag ang Gamay na Bata represents represents how the filmmakers from Sagay are constantly pushing themselves to new boundaries, breaking them even, and crossing barriers to present an extraordinarily unusual way of looking at creatures that are supposed to frighten us and yet turn out to be more breathtakingly human than any one of us. In a retelling of the myth of kapre “Sir” appears like a teacher who is mentoring a young elemental about how to conduct himself in the world of humans.
In one scene, the kapre arrives at a scene where a human is raping a woman, eventually smashing her head with a stone. To this, the kapre tells the human how he is more hideous and scary than the elemental who, at this time, displays his terrifying face. Seb Valdez directed this film that won Best Film.
Helen Javier Arguelles is the festival director, assisted by Mark Raymund Garcia. Leo Rafael Cueva, Vice-Mayor of Sagay, provided the seed fund for the filmmakers. ■
‘24 Oras Weekend’celebrates 15 years of delivering news and information
AS it marks its 15th anniversary this February, GMA Integrated News’ top-rating weekend newscast 24 Oras Weekend upholds its mission of delivering truthful, accurate, and reliable information to Filipinos here and abroad. Airing every Saturday and Sunday at 5:30 pm, 24 Oras Weekend is anchored by award-winning broadcast journalists Pia Arcangel and Ivan Mayrina, with “Chika Minute” segment host Nelson Canlas. For the past 15 years, 24 Oras Weekend has always been at the forefront of public service, strengthening GMA Integrated News’ commitment to “mas malaking misyon, mas malawak na paglilingkod sa bayan.”
“Major events occur not only during the weekdays but also over the weekends. As I often remind the producers of 24 Oras Weekend, ‘Sunday is the new Monday.’ This underscores our commitment to continuous news coverage. 24 Oras Weekend will remain a vital source of timely updates, ensuring that our viewers stay informed every day of the week,” says senior vice president and head of GMA Integrated News, Regional TV, and Synergy Oliver Victor B. Amoroso. In 2024, it emerged as the top weekend news program and followed 24 Oras as the overall top news program in the Philippines. Based on Nielsen TV Audience Measurement data from January to December 2024, 24 Oras Weekend logged a combined GMA/GTV/Pinoy Hits people rating of 6.7
Through its
percent in Total Philippines (Urban and Rural combined)— significantly higher than Frontline Pilipinas Weekend (combined TV5/One PH/RPTV people rating of 1.8 percent) and TV Patrol Weekend (combined A2Z/AllTV/Kapamilya Channel/Teleradyo Serbisyo people rating of 1.1 percent). Through its diverse segments, Oras Weekend seamlessly blends hard-hitting news and engaging infotainment, delivering inspiring features, heartwarming stories, and humorous highlights for the perfect weekend viewing experience. In its 15th year, 24 Oras Weekend will continue to develop features on food, health and fitness, sports, and tech, with more in-depth analysis and understanding of the latest trends.
“Viewers can look forward to more of the same balanced and truthful news and information that we have been providing for
to
and
adventures to
the past 15 years plus even more segments that showcase good food,
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to do on their days off from
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shares Pia. “At GMA Integrated News, we have always held ourselves to a very high standard in the stories we report, and how we report them. Viewers can expect more of this high standard of news reporting, but at the same time they can also expect to see us in other evolving platforms, and in a style that suits specific audiences in each of them,” says Ivan.
Mayrina
FROM left: Ballet Manila choreographer Martin Lawrance; principal dancers Joshua Enciso, Romeo Peralta and Junmark Sumaylo; CEO and artistic director Lisa Macuja-Elizalde; principal dancers Abigail Lynn Oliveiro and Shaira May Comeros; artistic associate Gerardo Francisco Jr; and event host Mitch Valdes.
ABMAP urges gov’t to expedite rollout of PUV modernization program
THE Automotive Body Manufacturers Association of the Philippines (ABMAP), led by Executive Director Edgar Manuel, urgently calls for the full and immediate implementation of the Public Utility Vehicle Modernization Program (PUVMP). This appeal comes in the wake of several tragic accidents involving traditional jeepneys, underscoring the critical need to transition to safer, more reliable public transportation.
In February 2024, a significant accident occurred in Quezon City, where three traditional jeepneys collided along Commonwealth Avenue near Tandang Sora. The incident resulted in injuries to 14 passengers, who were promptly taken to nearby hospitals for treatment.
Preliminary reports indicated that the collision was due to brake failure in one of the jeepneys, leading to a chain reaction involving the other two vehicles.
Similarly, in March 2024, a tragic incident in Lobo, Batangas, involved a traditional jeepney crashing into a roadside tree. This accident led to the loss of two lives and left 22 other passengers injured. The driver reportedly lost control of the vehicle while navigating a descending curve, raising concerns about the roadworthiness of aging jeepneys.
In August 2024, another fatal accident occurred in Rizal province when a jeepney lost its brakes while traveling downhill in Tanay town. The vehicle veered off the road, resulting in the death of one
passenger and injuries to nine others.
Most of the passengers were government employees returning from a trip to a neighboring province.
These alarming incidents highlight the pressing need for the PUVMP, which aims to phase out jeepneys over 15 years old and replace them with modern, safer, and environmentally friendly models.
ABMAP emphasizes that modern PUVs are designed with advanced safety features, including improved braking systems and enhanced structural integrity, and comply with current emission standards, contributing to environmental sustainability.
However, the transition to modern PUVs faces significant challenges.
ABMAP has raised concerns about the depletion of funds allocated for the program by financial institutions such as the Development Bank of the Philippines (DBP) and Land Bank. Without immediate government intervention to secure additional funding, the progress of the PUVMP is at risk, potentially
stalling the shift to safer and more efficient public transportation.
Manuel emphasizes that the PUVMP is not merely a policy initiative but a moral imperative. Delays in its implementation continue to endanger commuters’ lives daily. ABMAP urges the government to expedite the program’s rollout, provide financial assistance to operators and drivers for a smoother transition, and enforce stringent safety regulations to ensure all public utility vehicles adhere to the highest safety standards.
In conclusion, the recent spate of jeepney-related accidents serves as a stark reminder of the urgent need for comprehensive modernization of the Philippines’ public transportation system. ABMAP remains steadfast in its commitment to collaborating with government agencies, transport operators, and other stakeholders to realize a safer, more reliable, and modern public transport network for all Filipinos.
COMELEC Partners with Megaworld Lifestyle Malls for May 12 National Midterm Elections
dedication to nation-building and civic participation. By transforming select malls into polling venues, the company aims to provide an optimal environment for voters, eliminating the challenges of overcrowded precincts and enhancing voter convenience.
“Beyond being polling venues, our malls reflect our greater mission of fostering civic participation. We are honored to work alongside COMELEC in this meaningful endeavor and look forward to welcoming voters on election day,” shared Megaworld Lifestyle Malls assistant vice president and cluster general manager Tyrone Tan.
Meanwhile, COMELEC Chairman George Erwin Garcia emphasized the importance of accessibility and efficiency in the voting experience, stating, “Elections are the cornerstone of our democracy, and every eligible citizen deserves a seamless and dignified voting experience. By utilizing mall spaces as voting centers, we are ensuring that Filipinos can cast their votes in a safe and familiar setting.”
This collaboration underscores the private sector’s, and Megaworld Lifestyle Malls’, vital role in ensuring that every voter has the opportunity to make their voice heard in a conducive and stress-free setting. For updates, visit megaworld-lifestylemalls.com or call (02) 8462-8888.
2GO SCVASI launches custom brokerage service at the forefront
food products, solvents, oils, resins, and alcoholic beverages. These services are critical for maintaining the integrity of perishable goods, from food items to pharmaceuticals. “The launch of SCVASI’s full-service custom brokerage solutions comes at a crucial time for the Philippine economy. As the country continues to recover and grow, efficient logistics and supply chain management are essential for supporting various industries. By offering a wide range of options and leveraging our extensive network, 2GO’s SCVASI is well-positioned to meet the
FUSO
Philippines
turns over
27 new Canter FE73 units to Burgos, Ilocos Sur LGU
IN a significant event held at the Burgos Municipal Hall last February 15, 2025, Sojitz Fuso Philippines Corporation (SFP), through its dealer partner, HMEN Motors – FUSO Pangasinan proudly turned over a fleet of 27 FUSO Canter FE73 Drop-side units to the local government unit (LGU) of Burgos, Ilocos Sur. This turnover was part of the Farmer’s Day celebration, an annual festival event dedicated in honoring the farmers of Burgos for their invaluable contributions to the agriculture and economy of Ilocos Sur and the Philippines.
The 27 FUSO Canter FE73 Drop-side units will be distributed to each of Burgos’ 26 barangays, with the remaining unit allocated for municipal use. These vehicles are essential for supporting each barangay’s agricultural activities, providing farmers with the means of transporting their goods efficiently and enhancing the region’s overall productivity.
The FUSO Canter is known for its durability, reliability, and versatility, making it ideal for the agricultural sector. With its gross vehicle weight (GVW) of 4,490 kg., the vehicle ensures that the farmers of Burgos can transport their produce, materials and equipment with ease. It is also powered by a 4P10- WAT2 Common Rail Turbocharged Intercooled Diesel engine that generates a maximum power of 131 PS and a torque of 350 N-m, ideal for transporting agricultural products
MANG INASAL AT PANAGBENGA FESTIVAL. In partnership with the Department of Tourism - Philippines, Mang Inasal proudly carried the banner of its “Love the Flavors, Love the Philippines” campaign, celebrating the country’s rich food culture that brought families together and gave travelers a true taste of home. The breathtaking float paid tribute to the Cordilleras, featuring the world-renowned Rice Terraces—a living testament to Filipino ingenuity—and the enchanting Butterfly Sanctuary of Baguio, symbolizing renewal and vibrant tourism. And just like these landmarks, Mang Inasal became a must-experience for tourists, serving up the authentic flavors of the Philippines with every plate of its signature Chicken Inasal, Pork BBQ, Palabok, Lumpiang Togue, and Extra Creamy Halo-Halo!
GO Negosyo to recognize inspiring Filipina entrepreneurs this Women’s Month
GO Negosyo kicks off National Women’s Month celebrations this March as women-led MSMEs take center stage in this year’s Inspiring Filipina Entrepreneur Awards. The awarding will be held during the Go Negosyo Women Summit at the Ayala Malls Manila Bay in Parañaque City this March 15.
The annual award honors outstanding Filipina entrepreneurs for their leadership across various industries and their contribution to economic growth and job creation. Over the years, Go Negosyo has honored over 300 women entrepreneurs and business leaders, including Tessie Sy-Coson, Corazon Dayro-Ong, Robina Gokongwei, and Vivian Que-Azcona. Its most recent awardees of the Inspiring Filipina Entrepreneur Awards include Anna Lagon of BAYO Manila, Czarina Sevilla of Avocadoria PH, Maricar Peñalosa of Ate Rica’s Bacsilog, Anna Magalona of But First Coffee, and Glenda Dela Cruz of Brilliant Skin Essentials.
“These visionary awardees of the Inspiring Filipina
increasing demands of the market and contribute to the country’s economic development,” added Lim. With its new custom brokerage services, SCVASI aims to bring a greater variety of goods to the Philippine market. The company’s extensive network, spanning multiple countries, allows it to offer diverse products to cater to the unique needs of different industries.
The launch of 2GO SCVASI’s comprehensive custom brokerage services marks a significant milestone in the company’s commitment to enhancing logistics solutions in the Philippines. 2GO SCVASI’s licensed brokers have strong relationships with local customs, regulating agencies, and related authorities to ensure the smooth movement of goods. To learn more about 2GO SCVASI’s dynamic products and services, visit 2GO.com.ph or call (0962) 696 - 6065.
Entrepreneur Awards are truly exceptional women who have made a lasting impact through their enterprises,” said Go Negosyo founder Joey Concepcion, noting how women-led MSMEs account for more than half of these enterprises in the country. “They help create jobs and contribute to an inclusive and sustainable base for the Philippine economy.”
Recipients of the Inspiring Filipina Entrepreneur Award demonstrate passion, positivity, and inspiration; resilience and determination in building innovative and sustainable businesses that have been operational for at least two years.
A panel of judges will select from the shortlisted nominees after deliberations based on a thorough review, analysis, and assessment of each nominee’s profile based on the details provided and compiled by the Awards Secretariat. The winners will be announced during the Go Negosyo Women Summit on March 15, 2025.
OMODA AND JAECOO AUTO BRANDS ARE FINALLY HERE
IT is official. Chinese automakers Omoda and Jaecoo have officially entered the Philippine market, bringing their own version of cutting-edge design, innovation, and performance to Filipino motorists. Subsequently, the newest auto brands also launched their first models, such as the Omoda C5, Omoda E5, and Jaecoo EJ6.
The newest Chinese brand in the country claims it is not another car brand entering the market but is rather here to redefine the driving experience for young trailblazers and urban explorers by offering a mix of futuristic aesthetics, highperformance engineering, and ecofriendly mobility solutions. In Omoda, the “O” stands for surprise and vitality, and it is also a symbol of the essential element of life, Oxygen. “Moda” is derived from “Modern,” implying fashion trends and representing a new global generation of sustainable lifestyles, embodying ecological greenery and avant-garde style. Adhering to a worldwide brand mindset, Omoda has innovatively created the “O-universe” ecosystem concept, a unique communication method between the brand and users, and
an exclusive social symbol for the brand.
On the other hand, Jaecoo is a brand-new off-road brand inspired by a fusion of the German words “Jäger” and the English word “Cool.” This melding exudes a refined style and quality that imparts a mission of brave exploration and unwavering perseverance. With more than a decade of joint venture experience, the group adheres to the brand philosophy of “From Classic, Beyond Classic.” In the future, JAECOO will actively promote sustainable development, combining all-road capabilities with new energy solutions, creating a more efficient and environmentally friendly off-road performance to provide a more comfortable and greener travel experience for the urban elite.
and Jaecoo made their local motor show debuts at the Manila International Auto Show, the 12th Philippine Electric Vehicle Summit, and the Auto Focus PreChristmas Multi-Brand Test Drive Festival. According to Omoda and Jaecoo, the recent brand launch culminated this momentum, signaling the official start of the two brands’ journey on Philippine roads.
Introducing the OMODA C5 and E5 INSPIRED by the “Art in Motion” design philosophy, Omoda vehicles target forward-thinking drivers who value style, performance, and innovation. The C5 crossover represents the brand’s futuristic ‘Cross F Future’ design. It highlights
sharp aesthetics with cuttingedge tech. Motivation comes from a 1.5-liter turbocharged gasoline engine generating 154 hp and 230 N-m of torque. As for the all-electric E5, the model is a significant leap toward sustainable mobility, being the brand’s initial EV offering in the country. It is propelled by a single electric motor dishing out more than 200 hp and a staggering 400 N-m of torque.
During the launch event, promo discounts were introduced to make the latest models even more accessible to Filipino motorists. The top-spec C5 1.5T Luxury retails at P1.179 million, the C5 1.5T Comfort at P1.059 million, and the base C5 1.5L Lifestyle at P898,000. As for the all-electric E5, the lone Luxury-
extended Range variant (Blue/ White and Black Interiors) is priced at P1.699 million. The promo discounts are valid until June 30, 2025. Customers may either pay a P10,000 deposit to receive P110,000 off the C5 or a P20,000 deposit to receive P220,000 off the E5.
Unveiling the Jaecoo EJ6
MEANWHILE , Jaecoo introduced its own version of an off-road EV, the EJ6. Positioned to target off-roading enthusiasts, the brand claims to merge premium engineering with rugged capability, making all-road, all-weather driving possible with the power of new energy solutions. Available in green, black, white, and grey, the AWD variant has dual electric motors (front and rear) that produce 271 hp and 385 N-m of torque. On paper, its 69.77-kWh battery can provide up to 421 kilometers of range. It also has a 3.3-kW vehicle-to-load (V2L) capability. Available in two variants, the EJ6 AWD Premium (brown or black interior) retails for P1.799 million, while the RWD Premium (black interior) is priced at P1.649 million.
Jaecoo also previewed its upcoming hybrid SUV, the J7 SHS, hinting that it will hit local dealerships soon. Engineered with a Super Hybrid System, the J7 SHS boasts an extended range, reduced emissions, and top-tier battery safety.
Big shoes to fill for Dizon; CAMPI target
ALL eyes are on Vince Dizon as the much-ballyhooed Edsa rehabilitation begins in March.
As the brand-new secretary of the Department of Transportation (DOTr), replacing the resigned Jimmy Bautista, Dizon takes on the gargantuan task of overseeing the massive challenge of fixing daily traffic woes on the country’s main artery as Edsa goes “under the knife.” The major surgery on Edsa has
been a long pestering issue that commuters had been dreaming about for the longest time. The major network has not really tasted a thorough make-up since its days as the metropolis’ vaunted Highway 54, causing untold woes on thousands who suffer long hours of agony almost daily traversing the long-neglected thoroughfare. How many of our so-called traffic experts had tried straightening the perennial road mess that is Edsa— without much success?
Dizon has an enviable good reputation entering DOTr, waving excellent credentials as BCDA chieftain and as the main man in the super successful SEA Games held in the Philippines only a while back. But the thing is, Dizon does not only tackle the Edsa makeover. He has actually a bigger mandate as his
job encompasses the scope of the entire archipelago, covering land, sea and air mobility platforms to include the well-being of seaports, airports and bus terminals.
I can only wish him well.
AS for Jimmy B, was it really for health reasons that he had to call it quits? Could be. The transportation portfolio is really that overly demanding job that it is not cut out for anyone with a faint heart.
I personally know Jimmy from his days as the hard-working, tough-as-nails president of Philippine Airlines. He is not one to just easily back down from a challenge thrown his way.
I am almost sure Jimmy is hurting, if not in terrible pain.
Let’s play golf again, Jimmy? It’s been a while since we last embraced
the cool morning breeze, smelled the flowers.
Just one text and I’ll come running.
CAMPI targets 500k units WITH yet another good performance in January 2025 sales, the Chamber of Automotive Manufacturers of the Philippines, Inc. (CAMPI) is projecting to hit 500,000 unit sales for the year. That shouldn’t be hard to achieve, considering that 2024 sales amounted to more than 473,000 units.
A joint report by the Chamber of Automotive Manufacturers of the Philippines, Inc. (CAMPI) and the Truck Manufacturers Association (TMA) showed a 10.4 percent increase in total sales in January over the same period last year, with
37,604 units sold during the same month. It was in the commercial vehicle segment that the industry showed resurgence, growing by 16.6 percent year-on-year, with 29,875 units sold—even as the passenger car segment declined by 8.5 percent year-on-year, selling 7,729 units.
“CAMPI is confident in setting the aspirational figure of 500,000 units sale as its target for this year,” said CAMPI president, lawyer Rommel Gutierrez. “Newly-rolled out models and an anticipated introduction of new models are some of the factors that will contribute to achieving this target.” Toyota remains the dominant market player with 48.07 percent share, followed by
Story & photos by Randy S. Peregrino
Omoda
THE Jaecoo EJ6 all-electric off-roader
THE 1.5-liter turbocharged Omoda C5 crossover
THE all-electric Omoda E5 crossover
TBy Josef T. Ramos
HE pressure is on for double Olympic gold medalist Carlos Yulo as he prepares for the 2025 Asian Men’s and Junior Artistic Gymnastics Championships in South Korea.
Training resumed recently for Yulo with the Asian Championships set June 5 to 8 in Jecheon, and chief trainer Aldrin Castañeda told BusinessMirror on Thursday they are focused on incrementally improving to reach peak state at the right time.
Que goes wire to wire Sports
We just returned to training last month, but only for a few days. For this month, we fully came back because we must focus on improving new skills for his upcoming first tournament since winning the gold in Paris,” Castañeda said.
We just did some rehab earlier to keep his body strong and conditionally fit,” he explained.
With still four months to go, Castañeda believes Yulo, 25, has the time to prepare new routines and continue his recovery after a tiring extended celebration after delivering the Philippines its second and third Olympic gold medals by topping vault and floor exercise in the Paris Games.
RCamingao had plenty to spare—some 90 seconds—in ruling the category for riders aged 18 to 22 and covered the 171-km out-and-back event of the race presented by the MVP Sports Foundation and Standard Insurance in four hours, one minute and 34.58 seconds.
Rking Roque claimed the silver medal in the championships organized by the PhilCycling headed by Philippine Olympic Committee president Abraham “Bambol” Tolentino with a 4:03.54 clocking. Commissaires, meanwhile, ruled on relegating Jude Gabriel Francisco one rung for foul riding in the final sprint to gift Steven Tablizo the bronze medal—they race for continental teams Victoria Sports and Standard Insurance Philippines, respectively.
A report from the Chief Judge [Armanda Filosopo] and Chief and Assistant Timers [Willie Carandang and Philip Arao] prompted the handing out of the penalty on the rider,” said Dominic Carpio, the president of the commissaire’s panel for the race.
A star ting field of 123 riders raced in hot, humid and windy conditions over rolling and false flat national roads around the start-finish in Batangay Putol in Tuy, Balayan, Lian and Nasugbu on the fourth and penultimate day of the championships also supported by the POC, Tagaytay City and Excellent Noodles as well as the Philippine Sports Commission, which supports the national teams of cycling.
In the end, 30 riders failed to finish the race that recorded an average speed of 42.50 kms with highs of 70 kph. The Women Elite and Under-23 combined race was staged on Thursday afternoon while the Men Elite contest will be conducted Friday.
Castañeda declined to divulge if there are plans to train overseas. Yulo still trains at the Gymnastics Association of the Philippines training center in Intramuros, Manila.
A side from the South Korea stint, Castañeda said Yulo is expected to compete in the 53rd World Artistic Gymnastics Championships in Jakarta from October 19 to 25 and the 33rd Southeast Asian Games in Thailand in December.
“The Asian Championships will also serve as qualification for the World Championships in October in Indonesia.
He really needs to compete in lower meets since the qualification is point system,” Castañeda, also the recently appointed men’s artistic team coach, said. New scoring guidelines are also being implemented in the men’s events in competitions sanctioned by the International Gymnastics Federation but Castañeda said Yulo will have no problem adjusting.
Carlos will do his best for sure to perfect his routines,” Castañeda added.
“Knowing Carlos, he will not stop until he perfects those, not only in floor but also in other apparatuses as well.” H e did not elaborate though what Counted Skills Yulo would be focusing on this year.
ANGELO QUE sealed his impressive week with back-to-back birdies, firing a closing 68 to rule the International Container Terminal Services Inc. Pradera Verde Championship on Thursday in Lubao, Pampanga.
A s young Philippine Golf Tour
newcomers worked to make their mark in the season opener, the 46-year-old Que put up a superb performance in the 72-hole P2.5-million championship, going 68-71-71 in the earlier rounds on the way to a six-stroke victory.
Que bagged P450,000 after coming up with a 10-under 278 at the demanding 7,400-yard Pinatubo course, which was hosting its first two pro tournaments this week. Sam Bruce topped the Ladies PGT season opener with a closing 66 for a 210 total.
Carl Corpus, runner-up in the PGT
Qualifying tournament just a week ago, started the day in second spot three strokes off Que and submitted another 71 to take second place at 284.
PGT qualifying tournament
topnotcher Jaehyun Jung of Korea shot a 70 for third spot at 286.
Que attributed his victory to his exceptional putting and, at 46, remains confident that he still has what it takes to compete with the rising stars of the game.
“The highlight of my week was my putting—I sank so many putts today. Even on the last hole, I wasn’t really trying to make the putt from about 24 feet, but it still dropped,” Que said of his decisive stroke. “I believe my putting was the key to my win this week.”
It’s also all about strategy with Que focusing on identifying the right spots to miss on tough holes, saying: “If you miss it in the right place, you can still manage to save par.”
That calculated approach proved decisive. While others either attacked aggressively or played too cautiously, Que found the perfect balance. He picked his spots, made clutch putts and remained unshaken despite the swirling winds that made the already challenging course play even longer.
TNT Tropang Giga goes for a 2-0 advantage over Rain or Shine, while Barangay Ginebra also seeks to extend its series lead over NorthPort when the Philippine Basketball Association Commissioner’s Cup semifinals resume on Friday at the Philsports Arena in Pasig City.
TN T coach Chot Reyes says it won’t be a walk in the park against Rain or Shine, noting their tight 8884 victory in the opener. We have no illusions that this would be easy by any means. It’s going to be a grind for the whole series,” Reyes said, who thanked veteran Jayson Castro and Calvin Oftana for delivering the firepower they needed when Rondae HollisJefferson struggled. C astro had 11 of his 24 points in the third period while Oftana made 22
points, as both players fired six three pointers each from TNT’s total 14 treys in Game One. Despite struggling on 8-of-27 shooting from the field, RHJ still finished with 23 points, 13 rebounds and five assists.
“They are a very well-balanced, wellconstructed, and well-coached team. They are very versatile, they have a great import with them so we really have to be at our best,” Reyes added.
R ain or Shine needs more players to deliver after falling in the opener despite import Deon Thompson delivering 29 points and 16 rebounds and Adrian Nocum scoring 18.
Gin ebra, meanwhile, tries score a follow-up to its 115-93 Game 1 rout of top seed NorthPort.
Justin Brownlee had 19 points, rookie RJ Abarrientos fired 15 points and dished out seven assists, and Troy Rosario added
THE Quezon City District 1 Warriors claimed the 2025 Tokai Fil Basketball Invitational Games championship, defeating Nagoya Gakuin University, 70-56, at the Nagoya Gakuin University gym recently in Japan. Patrick Buena, Borris Mvogo, and Joeben Loria propelled the Warriors to their second international title, avenging their earlier loss to Nagoya Gakuin University with a dominant defensive stand in the final quarter, outscoring their opponents 17-10 to secure the victory.
16 points for the Gin Kings. Former Ginebra player Arvin Tolentino, who is averaging 23 points, 7.4 rebounds and 3.9 assists per game for NorthPort, said it is not the time to feel down after Ginebra’s defense limited him to 2-of-11 shooting from the field for just eight points.
We will forget about this. Tomorrow is another day, another game,” he said after Game 1. “It’s still a long series so we just have to stay positive.”
NorthPort reinforcement Kadeem Jack, a candidate for the Best Import award, scattered 33 points and 12 rebounds in Game 1. Josef T. Ramos
Even as the lead shifted hands in the early stages of the tournament, Que’s mastery of his game ensured he remained the first and last man standing. Entering the final round with a three-shot lead, he understood that a steady, composed performance was all it would take to clinch victory.
“The plan was to match Carl’s game, and I was able to do that throughout the round—that’s why I won,” said Que.
Birdies on Nos. 4 and 7 gave him a comfortable cushion, while Corpus—his closest pursuer—struggled to mount a serious challenge. Even a bogey on No. 8 failed to shake his composure and he immediately responded with a birdie on the next hole and sealed his statement victory with back-to-back birdies down the stretch for a 35-33 card.
W hile Corpus showed promise and played steady for a P295,000 cheque, he never truly threatened Que’s grip on the championship.
Q ue couldn’t recall the exact number of victories he had accumulated at this stage of his career but remained confident in his ability to win more tournaments.
“Maybe around 23 to 25 titles—I haven’t kept track, but I believe at my age, I can still win, and I proved that this week,” he said. “I’m strong and healthy, and mentally, I have the experience to compete with the younger players.” Jung bagged P170,000. Aidric Chan made a late surge with a four-under card but bogeyed the last two holes to finish with a 70, ending up at joint fourth at 289 with Guido
B uena and Mvogo tallied 13 points each while Loria scored 11 points as the District Warriors added the Tokai title to their Mutant 2024 Cahaya Lestari Surabaya Cup International Invitational League Under-23 Senior Basketball Boys’ Division crown in Indonesia won in June. The Warriors,
DEFENDING champion University of Santo Tomas secured its second consecutive victory in the University Athletic Association of the Philippines men’s tennis tournament, edging out University of the Philippines, 3-2, Wednesday at the Felicisimo Ampon Tennis Center of the Rizal Memorial Sports Complex in Manila. UST’s Steven Sonsona and Symon Jaculan dug deep to overcome UP’s Andrei Jarata and Ava Mandac, 7(7)-6(3), 5-7, 10-8, and seal the team triumph. R eigning MVP Nilo Ledama put UST ahead early, surviving a tense first-set tiebreak before dominating in the second set to defeat UP’s Heinz Carbonilla, 7(7)-6(3), 6-0. Ericjay Tangub dispatched Loucas Fernandez, 7-5, 6-1. UP, however, refused to back down. Miguel Iglupas kept the Fighting Maroons in the contest, beating Sebastian Santos, 6-1, 6-4, in the third singles match. The Fighting Maroons then forced a decider as Raymund Goco and Lance Fernandez rallied to defeat UST’s Richard Bautista and Nash Agustines in a gripping first doubles match, 4-6, 6-4, 10-5. U ST improved to 2-0, while the Fighting Maroons dropped to 2-1, tying National University (NU) for second place.
NU (2-1) scored a 5-0 win over last season’s silver medalist Ateneo (1-1). Angil Balaoing and LJ De Jesus delivered the finishing blow, overpowering Ateneo’s Jean Ignacio and John Gabriel Camingue, 6-3, 6-3, in the first doubles match to secure the win.
A ljon Talatayod of the Bulldogs set the tone early, dismantling Blue Eagle Rafa Mendoza, 6-0, 6-0, in the second singles match.
T he Bulldogs’ momentum carried over to the first singles match, where Andrei Padao delivered another flawless performance, sweeping Blue Eagle JB Cuarto, 6-0, 6-0.
