IN BRIEF

Comelec overturns

DQ bid vs. Mamba

THE Commission on Elections (Comelec) has overturned the decision on the petition for disqualification against Cagayan Governor Manuel Mamba.

The Comelec en banc noted that the petition has to be dismissed as it was filed after Mamba was already proclaimed as the duly elected governor of Cagayan.

“It follows from the foregoing discussion that the subject petition must be dismissed outright for being filed out of time and for being the wrong remedy for having been filed after respondent’s proclamation,” the 18-page decision released on Monday said.

“We resolve to dismiss the subject petition for lack of jurisdiction,” the poll body added.

House leaders vow to protect seafarers

THE leadership of the House of Representatives led by Speaker Martin G. Romualdez has vowed to protect the rights and interests of Filipino seafarers.

“Our seafarers are our unsung heroes. Almost 400,000 of them are on board merchant shipping vessels around the world at any given time. They are not only a source of income for the country through their remittances but also a source of pride,” Romualdez said.

Romualdez made the statement after the lower house approved on third and final reading House Bill (HB) 7325, titled “Magna Carta of Filipino Seafarers” by a 304-4 vote.

Maricel V. Cruz

PH records 43 rabies cases from Jan.-Feb.

THE Philippines has reported 43 cases of rabies, all fatalities, from January 1 to February 18, the Department of Health (DOH) said.

The latest figure is lower by 4 percent compared with the same period in 2022, the DOH said.

“The 43 cases are not actually rabies cases. These are animal bite cases,” DOH officer-in-charge Maria Rosario Vergeire said in a press briefing Tuesday.

“Usually, animal bites would come from the owners. ‘Yung mismong pets nila sa bahay malaki ang naitatala natin na mga numero na nakakagat din ‘yung mga may-ari.”

Data from the DOH’s epidemiology bureau showed that rabies had a case fatality rate of 100 percent.

Willie Casas