SC finally nixes Vietnam-ChinaPH explo pact

THE Supreme Court has denied with finality a tripartite partnership to explore a portion of the West Philippine Sea for oil and gas first approved during the Arroyo administration.

The High Court struck down due to lack of merit the appeal of its January 10, 2023 decision declaring as unconstitutional the Tripartite Agreement for Joint Marine Seismic Undertaking (JMSU) by China National Offshore Oil Corp. (CNOOC), Vietnam Oil and Gas Corp. (PetroVietnam), and the Philippine National Oil Company (PNOC).

which fluctuates between around 12C and just under 17C on any given day over the year, averaged 16.2C at the beginning of July between 1979 and 2000.

The record has yet to be corroborated by other measurements, but could soon be broken as the northern hemisphere’s summer begins.

The average global temperature typically continues to rise until the end of July or beginning of August.

Even last month, average global temperatures were the warmest the European Union’s Copernicus climate monitoring unit had ever recorded for the start of June.

Temperatures are likely to rise even further above historical averages over the next year with the onset of an El Nino weather phenomenon in the Pacific Ocean, which the World Meteorological Organization confirmed on Monday is now underway.

In addition, human activity— mainly the burning of fossil fuels—is continuing to emit roughly 40 billion tonnes of planet-warming CO2 into the atmosphere every year. AFP also contributed to the lower inflation rate in June. includes the drilling of two new wells (See related story on B4 -- Editors).

Price increases in housing, water, electricity, gas and other fuels also slowed to 5.6 percent in June, down from 6.5 percent in May.

Slower annual increases were also noted in the indices of alcoholic beverages and tobacco, 11.6 percent from 12.3 percent; furnishings, household equipment and routine household maintenance, 6.0 percent from 6.2 percent; health, 3.9 percent from 4.1 percent; recreation, sport and culture, 4.8 percent from 4.9 percent; and restaurants and accommodation services, 8.2 percent from 8.3 percent.

On the other hand, prices for personal care and miscellaneous goods and services grew faster in June, at 5.8 percent, up from 5.7 percent in May.

President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on Wednesday vowed to protect the purchasing power of Filipinos as the country reported its lowest inflation rate in 13 months.

The President was briefed by Prime Energy Resources Development B.V. (Prime Energy) on its plans to explore and develop indigenous gas prospects and supplement the current indigenous gas production with liquefied natural gas imports through a gas aggregation framework.

Razon led the presentation along with Prime Infra President and Chief Execu-

In a tweet, the President said that the government’s actions have been effective in strengthening the country’s economy.

Marcos also said increasing agricultural production is a must to keep inflation low.

National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) Secretary Arsenio Balisacan said the government was making progress in managing inflation, saying they expect it to hit the target 2 percent to 4 percent by the end of the year.

“The government remains committed to protecting the purchasing power of the Filipino people by ensuring food security, reducing transport and logistics costs, and lowering energy costs for Filipino households,” Balisacan said.

The President recently approved the Department of Social Welfare and Development’s food stamp program, which is expected to begin pilot implementation this month. The program will provide access to food for poor and vulnerable households through monetarybased assistance using electronic cards with P3,000 worth of food credits.

“Meanwhile, the Inter-Agency Committee on Inflation and Market Outlook drought in some parts of the world and heavy rains elsewhere. tive Officer Guillame Lucci, Senior Advisor Sebastian Quiniones and General Manager Donnabel Cruz. will continue to take proactive steps to address the main causes of inflation. This is particularly important considering the impending El Niño, which poses risks to food supply and prices,” Balisacan said. going to the Luzon grid,” he added.

“It seems that this gas aggregator idea is the key,” Mr. Marcos said during the meeting at the Palace.

The drilling of Prime Energy’s two deep wells will commence in the last quarter of 2024, with additional production from the Malampaya field expected to start by the first half of 2026.

The June 2023 inflation rate was within the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas forecast range of 5.3 percent to 6.1 percent for the month.

At the same time, the central bank said transport fare hikes, increases in wages, food supply problems, and the El Niño weather phenomenon could raise prices again. Moreover, higher toll rates would jack up the prices of key agricultural items, it said.

The BSP said it remained ready to raise interest rates if inflation rises again.

Finance Secretary Benjamin Diokno said the consistent decline in inflation for the fifth consecutive month suggested the government’s continued progress in taming price increases.

“This indicates that we are on track to manage inflation to within target sometime in the fourth quarter of this year and below the lower limit of the target in the first quarter of 2024,” Diokno said.

The decision penned by Associate Justice Samuel H. Gaerlan was concurred in by 11 other magistrates. Associate Justice Amy C. LazaroJavier and Associate Justice Rodil V. Zalameda maintained their dissent, while Chief Justice Alexander G. Gesmundo was on official leave and did not take part.

In 2008, the parties had agreed to search an area in the South China Sea covering 142,886 square kilometers for possible petroleum and gas resources.

But in an en banc resolution, the SC junked the oil firms’ motion for reconsideration seeking to reverse its decision to void the JMSU since the issues raised have already been passed upon in its ruling in January.

Earlier, the High Court declared the joint search unconstitutional for allowing wholly-owned foreign corporations to participate in the exploration of the Philippines’ natural resources without observing the safeguards provided in Section 2, Article XII of the 1987 Constitution. Rey E. Requejo

DA:...

From A1 day said the El Niño phenomenon is now present in the Tropical Pacific, adding that the government must prepare for the expected dry spell “as early as we can.”

Sebastian said.

He attributed the current price fluctuations to the high local and global production costs, affecting the prices of both domestically-grown palay and imported rice, respectively.

“[But] we expect this to stabilize,” he said.

The DA seeks to hasten the implementation of the MRIDP, particularly the clustering of rice farms tilled by irrigators association served by the communal and national irrigation systems and farmers cooperatives and other associations registered with the Cooperatives Development Authority.

He also said the government will do its best to stop the cartels in their tracks and bring them to justice.

Earlier, the President led the opening of the “6th Livestock and Aquaculture Philippines 2023” at the World Trade Center in Pasay City.

Speaker Ferdinand Martin G. Romualdez on Wednesday welcomed the President’s order to investigate the smuggling of onions and other agricultural products after a House probe pointed to cartels as the culprit for commodity shortages and high prices.

The state weather bureau earlier warned some 36 provinces may experience a dry spell while at least two provinces may suffer from drought.

On Tuesday, the United Nations warned the world to prepare for the effects of El Nino, saying the weather phenomenon which triggers higher global temperatures is set to persist throughout 2023.

El Nino is a naturally occurring climate pattern typically associated with increased heat worldwide, as well as

The phenomenon occurs on average every two to seven years, and episodes typically last nine to 12 months.

National Water Resources Board executive director Sevillo David Jr. said water levels in all major dams have been going down, with Angat Dam’s reserve nearing the 180 critical level.

“If the Angat Dam water level continues to go down, it could breach the minimum operating level of 180 meters. We are now at 181.22 or about a meter away from critical level,” David said in a separate press briefing at the Palace.

“If the water level falls below 180 meters, we will prioritize the water supply of Metro Manila compared to other users that depend on Angat, including irrigation and the power sector. Angat Dam is currently contributing to power generation its redeeming value and could no longer be salvaged.

As this developed, President Marcos on Wednesday announced the completion of the initial phase of the safety and efficacy trials for the African Swine Fever (ASF) vaccine which the Bureau of Animal Industry has found to produce sufficient antibodies and safe for use.

He said this development would allow the Philippine Food and Drug Administration to issue a certificate of product registration for the vaccines while the second phase of the trials are underway.

“This gives us great hope as we have been waiting for this for a very long time. However, it is not a reason for complacency as we are being continuously warned by those who have studied the vaccine. The vaccine is 80 percent effective. There is still a 20 percentchance that we need to look out for very carefully,” Mr. Marcos said.

Farmers part of the clusters will receive farm interventions such as seeds, fertilizers and other technologies from the DA, in partnership with the private sector.

Existing irrigation associations formed under the National Irrigation Administration will also be tapped as rice clusters to receive interventions and assistance from the MRIDP.

From A1 permits and other related certificates. on June 27.

Frasco also repeatedly used the slogan in her speech.

Senator Nancy Binay, however, said the DOT should stop using the slogan because of the embarrassment caused by the video.

She noted that the campaign has lost

On Tuesday, Marcos ordered the Department of Justice (DOJ) and the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) to investigate the smuggling, hoarding, and price fixing of onions and other agricultural commodities.

“This is a welcome development, a decisive action that manifests the President’s resolve to clamp down on unscrupulous businessmen preying on hapless Filipino consumers and hampering his administration’s efforts to sustain the robust growth of our economy,” Romualdez said.

Rep. Elpidio Barzaga Jr of Dasmariñas City in Cavite said the President’s order was a welcome development, saying it shows his seriousness in protecting the welfare of the public.

“I hope the DOT is level-headed enough to accept this. We expect them to be agile and move forward from failure because we don’t want the slogan to become a national embarrassment and to look like losers,” she said.

“We need to accept that it really happens—marketing campaigns fail. In DOT’s case, it’s best to move forward

From A1 secrecy. Before it was Lebanon and the Philippines, but Lebanon passed it last year. So we need to have one,” Budget Secretary Amenah Pangandaman said. from failure and save the brand at all costs. We cannot afford to put to waste everything that we built for Philippine tourism. Let’s do the right thing to protect the integrity of the brand,” Binay said.

Pangandaman said Mr. Marcos is also set to sign into law the Maharlika Investment Fund before his second State of the Nation Address on July 24.

“The economic team, we were pushing for the signing hopefully before the SONA,” she said.

The MIF bill was received by the Office of the Deputy Executive Secretary for Legal Affairs on Tuesday.

After DOT’s advertising agency admitted using stock footage from foreign locations in its marketing video, social media users have come up with memes and lampoons poking fun at the “Love the Philippines” slogan.

Aside from the Bank Deposit Secrecy bill, other priority measures identified during yesterday’s LEDAC meeting are as follows:

Anti-Financial Account Scamming Act; Build-Operate-Transfer Law or the Public-Private Partnership Bill; National Disease Prevention Management Authority; Internet Transactions Act or E-Commerce Law; Medical Reserve Corps; Virology Institute of the Philippines; Mandatory ROTC and NSTP; Revitalizing the Salt Industry; Valuation Reform; E-Government or E-Governance Act; Ease of Paying Tax; National Government Rightsizing Program; Unified System of Separation, Retire -

The EO stressed the need to institutionalize a set of streamlined guidelines for the issuance of permits, licenses, and certificates for the construction of telecommunications and Internet infrastructures to ensure the continuous development of the country’s digital infrastructure.

In issuing the order, President Marcos said the order will cover all national government agencies (NGAs) and instrumentalities, including governmentowned or –controlled corporations, as well as local government units (LGUs) involved in the issuance of permits, licenses, clearances, certifications, and authorizations.

Charles Dantes

ment and Pension of MUPs; LGU Income Classification; Wasteto-Energy Bill; New Philippine Passport Act; Magna Carta of Filipino Seafarers; National Employment Action Plan; and Amendments to the AntiAgricultural Smuggling Act.

The Palace said 18 of the 20 bills were part of the 42 priority legislative measures identified during the first LEDAC meeting in October 2022. Of the 42 priority bills, only three had been signed into law: the SIM Card Registration Act, the postponement of the barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan elections, and amendments to the fixed term of officials of the Armed Forces of the Philippines.