Ombudsman orders MIAA’s Chiong axed

By Rio N. Araja

THE Office of the Ombudsman has dismissed from public service suspended Manila International Airport Authority acting general manager Cesar Chiong for grave misconduct, abuse of authority or oppression, and conduct prejudicial to the best interest of the service.

The agency’s acting assistant, Irene Montalbo, was not spared from the dismissal order.

mains committed to the reclamation project but has put its development on hold to listen to government suggestions and requirements.

Daniels said SMPH has been working on this project for over a decade now and it has secured all the documentation needed for the project.

“From our point of view, we are committed to this reclamation but we are also committed to good governance and to things being done right. So we will announce what is next for this reclamation after the government has studied it and we will listen to what they have to say,” Daniels said.

SMPH earlier said it is spending P100 billion for the Manila Bay reclamation project to create a mixed-use community with residential, institutional, and commercial components.

The property firm was looking to fund this development from the planned real estate investment trust (REIT) offering

SYDNEY—Lauren Hemp and Alessia Russo did the damage late on in Sydney as England shattered Australian dreams Wednesday with a clinical 3-1 win to set up a Women’s World Cup final against Spain.

The Lionesses had stumbled at the same stage twice before but the European champions made no mistake this time to reach the final for the first time.

They took the lead nine minutes be - fore the break with Manchester United’s Ella Toone unleashing a rocket just inside the box with the outside of her boot.

A fit-again Sam Kerr, starting for the first time this tournament, hit back for the home side in the second half with a world-class goal that set the game on fire, picking up the ball and letting fly from 30 yards after a weaving run. It sparked ecstatic scenes from the oaf forcing your attention on a handsome guy who wants to be a friend.” dent is enough,” he said.

75,784-strong partisan crowd. But they were silenced eight minutes later when Hemp muscled her way into the box and stabbed into the corner before Russo put the icing on the cake with four minutes left.

England now face a blockbuster final on Sunday at the same Stadium Australia against a dangerous Spanish side that beat Sweden 2-1 in the last four, with a new name to be engraved on the trophy.

Ombudsman Samuel Martires, on Aug. 4, approved the resolution of graft investigation and prosecution officers Clarisa Tejada and Gretchen Duran, acting director-PIAB-A Bonifacio Mandrilla and officer in charge, PAMO II Medwin Dizon.

In April, the Ombudsman imposed a six-month preventive suspension on Chiong and Montalbo for alleged grave abuse of authority and misconduct based on an anonymous complaint from MIAA officials. The case stemmed from the reassignment of 285 employees a month after Chiong’s assumption into office on July 19, 2022.

“can’t move away from one another,” thus disputes between both countries should be managed through dialogue and consultations.

“China has repeatedly expressed its willingness to resolve differences with the Philippines through bilateral dialogues. Meet the Chinese side halfway and find an effective way of managing the situation on the sea through diplomatic consultations,” Zhou said.

However, the Department of Foreign Affairs said China has yet to officially call for bilateral talks, contrary to Brijing’s claim that it has already sent fillers for a proposed meeting that the country has yet to respond to.

Locsin, while serving as foreign secretary under former president Rodrigo Duterte, was outspoken in his criticism of China.

He often used strong language and once swore at China online over the presence of its vessels in the disputed South China Sea, Agence France Presse said in its report.

“China, my friend, how politely can I put it? Let me see... O... GET THE FUCK OUT,” Locsin posted on Twitter in May 2021.

Locsin also likened China to “an ugly ers,” Pascual said.

“For now we are monitoring the price movements of important inputs. If we detect that there is a basis, we will sit down again and decide which requests for price adjustments we will consider,” he added.

The government continues to monitor the prices of basic necessities and prime commodities included in the Suggested Retail Price Bulletin to determine if retailers are complying with the suggested pricing of goods, he said.

Meanwhile, Pascual said the DTI wants to put up food terminals initially targeted in the second of 2023.

But Daniels said the REIT offering may also be moved to 2024 because of market conditions.

“We are still planning to do it. But we are not going to commit to doing it before the end of the year,” he said.

SMPH earlier said it plans to raise as much as $1 billion from the REIT offering which will have initial assets of between 12 and 5 shopping malls.

Shares of SMPH on Wednesday rose P0.30 to close at P30.40 per share. A party-list lawmaker, meanwhile, urged the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) to file charges against individuals responsible for the release of environmental certificates of compliance (ECCs) to companies that are reclaiming parts of Manila Bay.

Kabataan party-list Rep. Raoul Manuel made the suggestion during the deliberations on DENR’s proposed budget for 2024.

DENR Secretary Maria Antonia Yulo-Loyzaga, however, said the ECC is not a permit, but a planning tool “that may be changed at any point when a correction needs to be made.”

His expletive-laden demand prompted a rebuke from Beijing and Locsin later apologized to his Chinese counterpart.

His appointment comes at a delicate time for relations between the Philippines and China.

Tensions flared this month when Chinese Coast Guard vessels blocked and fired water cannon at Philippines boats on a resupply mission at Ayungin Shoal.

Manila summoned Beijing’s envoy over the incident, which resulted in one of the boats carrying supplies failing to reach the grounded BRP Sierra Madre in the Spratly Islands.

For his part, Senator Francis Escudero said there is no need to debate further on China’s claim that the Philippines made an earlier commitment to remove BRP Sierra Madre from Ayungin Shoal.

“The President’s statement should have put an end to the issue. The President has spoken that there is no such agreement, and if there is, he will rescind it. He is the chief architect of foreign policy,” he said in a television interview.

“It is not necessary even for the DFA to issue a formal statement,” Escudero said, although he admitted a formal correspondence to China might be helpful.

“Every word the President utters from his mouth is policy, whether domestic or foreign policy. The word of the Presi- around Metro Manila and directly link farmers to supermarket chains in a bid to bring down the prices of agricultural commodities.

He said the DTI has a three-year action plan for agro-food logistics “meant to address bottlenecks in the supply chain.”

“Traders are the ones making money at the expense of farmers… they earn very little, and at the expense of consumers who pay very high prices,” Pascual said.

“We are trying to link them [supermarket chains] directly with our farmers,” he added.

The Consumer Protection Group of the DTI said price adjustments range from P0.10 to P7.27 or about one- to

“It is said that we are debating among ourselves just because China has made such a claim. We are riding on China’s words but if we are to listen to anyone, we should listen to our countrymen and not from our socalled rival,” Escudero added.

Cagayan de Oro City Rep. Rufus Rodriguez on Wednesday accused Zhou of disrespecting the President.

“His insistence amounted to disrespect and an insult because President Marcos had declared days earlier that he had made no such promise and that he was scrapping any such commitment if one was made by any of his predecessors. Mr. Zhou and his government should have just accepted the President’s declaration,” he said.

Rodriguez urged the DFA to summon the Chinese diplomat “to impress upon him the President’s firm statement.”

The Department of Foreign Affairs assured that the Philippines is not on “war footing” in the West Philippine Sea, but is merely asserting Manila’s sovereignty in the South China Sea, particularly the country’s exclusive economic zone in the West Philippine Sea.

Foreign Affairs Secretary Enrique Manalo told lawmakers during a budget hearing that the administration is “not on a war footing.” five-percent increase for food items.

Petitions for non-food items, on the other hand, covered increases ranging from six to 20 percent or about P1.50 to P9.75 per SKU.

Manufacturers have complained of rising costs of imported raw materials such as skimmed milk for milk products, imported soft flour for noodles, mechanically deboned meat (MDM) for canned meat products, and iodine and potassium for iodized salt.

CPG reminded retailers and consumers the February 2023 SRP Bulletin will remain in place unless another bulletin is issued by the DTI.

Under the Price Act, violators face imprisonment of five to 15 years with a fine of not less than P5,000 to P2 million.

Aside from the penalty of dismissal from the service, the Ombudsman also ordered the forfeiture of all their retirement benefits and perpetual disqualification to re-enter government service.

“In the event that the penalty of dismissal can no longer be enforced due to (Chiong’s) separation from the service, the same shall be converted into a fine in the amount equivalent to the respondent’s salary for one year payable to the Office of the Ombudsman, and may be deductible from respondent’s retirement benefits, accrued leave credits, or any receivable from his/her office,” the order read.

Makati-Taguig...

From A1

In an interview on Dobol B TV, Binay lamented the “chaotic transition” caused by contradicting orders from the police and the Department of Justice (DOJ).

She said it was high time that the DILG call a meeting for the proper transition of the barangays that the Supreme Court ruled should be transferred from Makati to Taguig.

DILG Secretary Benjamin Abalos

Jr. said his department would continue discussing the transition with Binay.

But in a separate statement, Abalo said the DILG’s actions in connection with the transition would cover only territorial supervision.

He noted that rights or obligations over affected property would depend on the procedures under the law.

“We’re working with the Chiefs of the Philippine National Police (PNP), Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP), and Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP) to revise the areas of responsibility and reporting lines of their affected local offices in light of the decided boundaries.”

“As for specific rights or obligations over affected property, these will be dealt with in accordance with the procedure provided by law. We will also respect any further court orders in this regard.”

He said they are just waiting for the Department of Budget and Management to download the P3 billion allocation that will benefit some 1.3 million operators and drivers of PUVs.

Under the scheme, traditional jeepneys and taxis as well as TNVS and school, shuttle, and tourist services will get a subsidy of P6,500, while delivery drivers will get P1,200.

LTFRB Executive Director Robert Peig earlier said drivers regulated by the agency would receive their subsidies through fuel cards, while those under local government units, the Department of Information and Communications Technology, and the Department of Trade and Industry will get the funds through e-wallets.

Data from the Department of Energy showed that diesel prices have increased by about P10 per liter for the past five weeks, while gasoline prices have already risen by P5 per liter in the same period.

The consecutive increase in pump prices has prompted at least four public transport groups to seek a P2 fare hike for all PUVs nationwide.

In a letter to Land Transportation

Franchising and Regulatory Board chairperson Teofilo Guadiz III, the Liga ng Transportasyon at Operators sa Pilipinas (LTOP), Pagkakaisa ng mga Tsuper at Operators Nationwide (Piston), Stop & Go Transport Coalition, and the Federation of Jeepney Operators and Drivers Association of the Philippines (FEJODAP) requested the P2 fare increase nationwide for the first four kilometers.

“The immediate action and consideration of the good chairman of the LTFRB on this matter will go a long way [toward] uplifting the economic conditions of the drivers and operators,” the groups said. Rio N. Araja ling of Teves as a “terrorist.” The lawmaker, who is still abroad, was earlier suspended twice for the offenses cited by the House ethics panel. The committee report said: “The prolonged unauthorized absence of Rep.

A. Teves Jr. deprives the 3rd District of Negros Oriental of proper representation and undermines the efficiency of the legislative process. Instead of actively participating in deliberations on important legislative measures pending in the House, the representative refuses to return to the country and perform his duties as House Member.”

The Department of Justice, mean- while, will ask the Supreme Court to order the transfer of the trial venue to Manila for the multiple murder cases filed against Teves in connection with the deaths of three persons in the province in 2019.

This came after the DOJ filed the criminal cases against Teves and five others before the Negros Oriental regional trial court on Tuesday.