Manila Standard - 2026 September 2 - Wednesday

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PBBM: Enforce no-build zones Orders LGUs to implement restrictions, climate change policies

By Charles Dantes and Jimbo Gulle

P

RESIDENT Ferdinand Marcos Jr. directed all local government units to strictly enforce no-build zones in disaster-prone areas to protect communities from flooding after the enhanced southwest monsoon (habagat) brought heavy rains across the country, Malacañang said Tuesday.

Mr. Marcos wants local officials to enforce restrictions on settlements in

danger-prone areas, clear waterways of obstructions, and ensure garbage is

properly collected and disposed of, Presidential Communications Office Undersecretary Claire Castro said “According to the President, existing laws, including the ‘no-build zone,’ must be enforced. Let’s stop politicizing disasters,” Castro said.

Castro said the President noted that Metro Manila and Cebu had master plans dating back to 1941 and 1936, respectively, that were not fully implemented.

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NOT THAT WIDESPREAD. PAGASA rainfall forecast as of 5 pm for today and tomorrow’s weather. (Full story on page 3)

VOL. XL • NO. 200 • 3 SECTIONS 16 PAGES • P20 • WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 2, 2026

Haze from Indonesia envelops NCR, could linger all week—EMB

By Pot Chavez, Rio N. Araja, Rex Espiritu, and Ram Superable SEVERAL Metro Manila mayors on Tuesday urged residents to wear masks and limit outdoor activities as haze from forest and land fires in Kalimantan, Indonesia, pushed air quality in much of the National Capital Region to unhealthy levels.

The Department of Environment and Natural Resources-Environmental Management Bureau (DENREMB) said the transboundary haze, carried by prevailing winds associated with the southwest monsoon or “habagat,” was affecting Metro Manila, Central Luzon, Calabarzon and Mimaropa.

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NOW ITS HAZE. Buildings and residential homes are nearly invisible as a thick haze blankets Quezon City and obscures parts of the Metro Manila skyline on Tuesday morning, September 1, 2026. Inset shows firefighters attempt to extinguish a wildfire by spraying water and creating boundary trenches to prevent the flames from spreading in the Tumbang Nusa area of Pulang Pisau, Central Kalimantan, Indonesia on August 30, 2026. Edd Castro, AFP

Officer denies certifying confi funds use by DepEd

By Maricel V. Cruz AN ARMY officer on Tuesday said he was surprised to learn that a certification he issued merely to confirm the conduct of Youth Leadership Summits (YLS) was used by the Department of Education (DepEd) under Vice President and concurrent Education Secre-

tary Sara Duterte as a supporting document in liquidating P15.54 million in confidential funds purportedly disbursed on rewards.

Meanwhile, the House prosecution spokesman Rep. Zia

Alonto Adiong of Lanao del Sur said the AFP was deceived by the DepEd in 2023 during Duterte’s watch based on the testimony of Army officers before the Senate Impeachment Court.

Col. Magtangol Panopio told the Senate impeachment court that he learned about the irregularity only during an Next page

Pineda mother, son called out by netizens

By Ratziel San Juan GONG FOR PEACE. President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. bangs the peace bell to mark Peace Month 2026 during the peace process celebration in Malacañang. Together with the President is OPAPRU Secretary Mel Sarmiento. (Sept. 01, 2026). Revoli Cortez

DepEd nationwide school safety drill set for September 3

By Gabriel Oliva THE Department of Education (DepEd) will hold the National Simultaneous School Safety Drill, which aims to prepare schools across the country for active threat scenarios while ensuring the well-being of participants, on Sept. 3.

According to DepEd, the re-

scheduled drill is the product of dialogues with medical and mental health partners, including the Philippine Psychiatric Association, the Philippine Society for Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, and the Philippine Pediatric Society, to ensure “child-centered” and “trauma-informed” standards.

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NETIZENS have called out Pampanga Governor Lilia Pineda and Vice Governor Dennis “Delta” Pineda after the motherand-son politicians were spotted in separate field visits wearing designer brands.

In a video posted by the Provincial Information Office (PIO) of Pampanga concerning the destruction of a portion

OVERDRESSED? Pampanga Gov. Lilia Pineda and Vice Gov. Dennis ‘Delta’ Pineda, mother-and-son politicians, have been criticized over their expensive outfits during their inspection of areas affected by heavy rains and flooding.

Photo by Pampanga PIO

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Recantations don’t strengthen case vs ex-Speaker

By Maricel V. Cruz THE recantations of Orly Guteza and several members of the so-called “Maleta Boys” cannot be treated as

additional evidence that strengthens the complaints against former Speaker Ferdinand Martin Romualdez, his lawyer and spokesperson lawyer Ade Fajardo said Tuesday.

Fajardo, a former national president of the Integrated Bar of the Philippines (IBP)stressed that calling the recantations “dagdag ebidensiya” (additional Next page

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noting that its effects were no longer an abstract issue but a growing reality for Filipinos.

“It is no longer just a subject in science that we discuss because it is already here, it is already a reality,” Castro said.

Climate Change Commission Commissioner Albert Dela Cruz earlier lamented that some government agencies fail to heed the agency’s policies and recommendations even if the President serves as its chairman.

Castro said such a situation would no longer be allowed under the Marcos administration.

“The issue of climate change will be given attention,” she said.

She said the President wanted Filipinos to understand that climate change could bring consequences beyond the intense rains and flooding recently experienced in several parts of the country.

“This is not the only thing that can happen because climate change is already happening. We must prepare for it, and all policies and laws must be implemented,” Castro said.

“For now, we will not say who should be blamed -- we need to solve the problem,” she added.

For his part, Mahar Lagmay, executive director of the UP Resilience Institute and head of Project NOAH (Nationwide Operational Assessment of Hazards), said the widespread flooding in Metro Manila and other parts of the country was partly the result of decades of failure to implement the 1941 master plan.

He said flooding could worsen unless the country adopts and implements science-based, long-term solutions.

“Our problem today is the accumulation of decades because the master plan was drafted in 1941. This is not different from the master plan of Cebu, which was the development plan of 1939 but it was not followed. The master plan would have been good, if we had followed that,” Lagmay said in a radio interview.

He said flood management should go beyond building dikes and instead use multiple measures based on scientific assessments.

“It’s all too late, the plan is to propose solutions other than just dikes, so not just one but many. Let’s not call it flood control, but flood management instead,” Lagmay said.

Lagmay said the Department of Public Works and Highways and the Metropolitan Manila Development

Authority are now consulting Project NOAH before undertaking flood-related projects.

He said Project NOAH provides high-resolution simulations that allow agencies to assess the effectiveness of proposed projects before spending public funds.

Lagmay said the government is using high-resolution simulations to assess proposed flood-control projects, with the DPWH and MMDA providing designs for computer modeling.

This allows authorities to determine in advance how much a project could reduce flood levels, which areas would remain vulnerable, and whether the proposed investment would be effective before funds are spent, he added.

He, however, acknowledged that there is no immediate solution to the country’s flooding problem, particularly as Metro Manila’s population continues to grow.

“This has been going on for a long time. I said 1941, that’s a few decades.

We’ve been neglecting it for more than half a century, let’s not expect a magic bullet that will solve it immediately, it won’t happen tomorrow,” Lagmay said.

“But it’s important to start this so that it doesn’t get worse,” he added.

drill will not include hyper-realistic or fear-inducing elements, including threat simulations, active aggressor role-players, bladed or blunt weapons, and graphic elements such as firearms, pyrotechnics, simulated gunfire, or artificial casualties.

“Instead, a distinct signal separate from earthquake or fire alarms will initiate the activity. Schools will focus exclusively on building procedural muscle memory without generating distress,” it added.

In a statement, DepEd said it has mandated participating schools to prepare by conducting training and seminars for teachers, assessing school readiness, and orienting students in an “age-appropriate” manner.

Parents and learners are also required to provide written consent and assent before participating in the drill.

During the drill, DepEd will designate guidance personnel and school health officers to provide Psychological First Aid

(PFA) and post-drill debriefing sessions for students. It will also arrange referral mechanisms with DepEd Schools Division Offices (SDOs), local government units (LGUs), and health facilities for learners needing specialized mental health care.

DepEd added that it is coordinating with the Philippine National Police (PNP), whose main tasks during the drill will include providing perimeter security, emergency notification, testing response times, and tracking learners after incidents.

“Police officers are strictly prohibited from exposing learners to tactical disarming drills or aggressive uniform displays,” it added.

Initially set for Aug. 25 amid a series of violent incidents in basic education institutions nationwide, the safety drill was postponed after several child psychiatric groups urged DepEd to reconsider the initiative, warning that it could “expose learners to hyper-realistic scenarios of violence.”

Pineda...

From A1 of the retaining wall and slope protection of Sto. Cristo Dam in Lubao, Lilia is seen wearing a Prada top underneath a hoodie.

Meanwhile, Dennis is seen wearing a Balmain tracksuit in a separate PIO post of his personal visit to Aetas who had evacuated after a landslide in Porac.

The mother-and-son politicians later on met up during an inspection by DPWH Vince Dizon.

The Pampanga Governor has since responded to the controversy, saying their outfits were not that expensive and acknowledging that everyone has their opinions.

“We are still fulfilling our obligations. We are still doing what we need to do,” Lilia said in Filipino during an interview with ONE News.

Fajardo rejected the position that the witnesses’ withdrawal of their earlier allegations could somehow bolster the evidence against Romualdez, saying the recantations instead raise questions about the very statements previously used to implicate the former Speaker.

He said describing the recantations as “additional evidence” appears to be an attempt to keep the case against Romualdez alive despite witnesses backing away from their previous allegations.

Fajardo added in the statement: “Mukhang nagsasabi lang ang tanggapan ng Ombudsman ng mga ganoong salita para sabihin na buhay pa ang kaso nito (It seems the Office of the Ombudsman is merely saying those things to show that the case is still alive).”

For the defense, Fajardo said, a witness who withdraws or disowns an earlier account does not automatically provide stronger evidence against the person previously accused.

Rather, the recantations should be examined for what they say about the

credibility and reliability of the original allegations, particularly when the witnesses themselves are now disputing or withdrawing their previous statements.

Fajardo maintained that the strength of a case must rest on competent evidence that independently links Romualdez to the alleged wrongdoing, and not on the mere characterization of recantations as new or additional evidence.

The former Speaker has repeatedly denied the accusations against him and maintained that the complaints should be resolved on the basis of evidence and due process.

have also recanted earlier accounts involving alleged cash deliveries.

Romualdez’s August 20 supplemental counter-affidavit placed those reversals beside 25 sworn statements from other former Co drivers and security aides.

The 25 denied any knowledge of or participation in the delivery of money to Romualdez or any politician or government official. Some were people identified in earlier statements as companions in alleged delivery trips, but they denied taking part.

“Sa aming estimation, sa aming appreciation ng mga recantation na ‘yan, ang aming position ay talagang wala pong kaso na, sobrang hina na (In our estimation—based on our assessment of those recantations—our position is that there is effectively no case left; it has become extremely weak),” Fajardo said.

The defense is not asking the Ombudsman to automatically believe every recantation. It is asking investigators to compare the conflicting versions, examine how each statement was obtained and determine which account is supported by independent evidence.

Fajardo said calling the reversals additional evidence does not answer the central question: What credible testimony remains to establish that Romualdez knowingly received money?

The Ombudsman says it has evidence beyond the recanted witnesses.

Romualdez’s camp maintains that any additional testimony must still be tested against the recantations, the 25 sworn denials, and the absence of a financial or project-level record directly tracing an unlawful transaction to him.

On the conflicting statements, Fajardo said, “Dapat mag-resulta sa dismissal o pagbasura nitong mga reklamong ito laban kay Cong. Romualdez (These complaints against Rep. Romualdez should result in their dismissal).”

Romualdez has repeatedly denied receiving money or participating in an unlawful flood-control scheme.

Fajardo urged the Ombudsman to assess the credibility of the witness accounts in the complete record, rather than treating the mere existence of two conflicting versions as evidence against the former Speaker.

pend on whether the Kalimantan fires continued to generate smoke, whether new hotspots emerged and whether winds continued to carry smoke toward the Philippines, he added.

Del Socorro said a wet habagat would generally benefit air quality by removing suspended particulate matter, while drier monsoon conditions could allow smoke to travel farther and linger longer.

Motorists were advised to use headlights or fog lights when traveling at night or in areas with poor visibility.

Alejandro warned that exposure to haze could cause breathing difficulties, coughing, chest pain, watery eyes and nasal irritation, and could worsen respiratory conditions such as asthma.

unhealthy” air quality across much of Metro Manila, driven by high concentrations of PM2.5 fine particulate matter.

Parañaque’s Don Bosco area and Las Piñas recorded “acutely unhealthy” AQI readings of 270 and 205, respectively, while Manila, Malabon, Valenzuela, Quezon City and several other cities also posted elevated readings.

Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Department and the Department of Environment and Public Services to continue monitoring wind trajectories and air quality and provide updates to the public.

OCD: Minimize time outdoors

The Department of Health separately warned that smoke and fine particulate matter from the haze could trigger respiratory distress, coughing, chest pain, eye irritation and worsening lung conditions.

Children, older persons and people with pre-existing heart or lung conditions were identified as particularly vulnerable.

The DOH advised residents to check local air quality reports, remain indoors as much as possible while the haze persists, and wear N95 masks when going outside. Those without N95 masks may use a damp cloth over the nose and mouth or double-mask with standard face masks.

The agency also advised people exposed to the haze to stay hydrated and rinse irritated eyes with clean water or saline solution rather than rubbing them.

Latest monitoring data showed “very

PBBM:...

From A1 Officer...

From A1 Oct. 17, 2024 House investigation that his Dec. 5, 2023 certification had been used as one of DepEd’s supporting documents in responding to a Commission on Audit (COA) audit observation.

“We were somewhat surprised, because our certification only attests to the fact that we conducted the Youth Leadership Summit. We are not certifying anything regarding money or funds,” Panopio explained.

Under direct examination by prosecution counsel Reynaldo Robles, Panopio said the certification was intended only to establish that the YLS activities cited in the document were actually conducted in the 7th Infantry Division’s area of operations in 2023.

“This certification attests that the Youth Leadership Summits were indeed conducted in our area of operations during the year 2023,” Panopio told the impeachment court.

“As far as I am concerned, Your Honor, all I know is that the Youth Leadership Summit activities within the area of the 7th Infantry Division were indeed carried out that year, Your Honor,” he said.

The certification was among military documents attached to DepEd’s April 17, 2024 response to a COA audit observation seeking proof of accomplishments related to P15.54 million in confidential funds allegedly paid as rewards.

Panopio said he did not know why DepEd used his certification in connection with the confidential fund expenditures.

“I think, Your Honor, I can’t answer for the DepEd. I can only answer for our office, Your Honor,” he said.

On whether he had information linking his certification to the alleged payment of rewards, Panopio replied: “I have no information on that, Your Honor.”

Panopio explained that issuing certifications for activities conducted with government partners was a normal part of his work as then-assistant chief of staff for civil-military operations.

Recantations...

From A1 evidence) does not, by itself, make the evidence against the Leyte first district representative stronger.

“Well, we respectfully disagree po,” Fajardo said in rejecting Assistant Ombudsman Mico Clavano’s position that the original statements and the recantations should both be treated as evidence in the Office of the Ombudsman’s preliminary investigation into Romualdez’s alleged involvement in anomalous flood-control projects.

Clavano said a recantation is “not an eraser” but additional evidence because the original statement and the later version must be placed side by side to determine which is true.

Fajardo said that comparison should expose, not cure, the conflicts in the witness accounts. A witness who first claimed personal knowledge and later denied the central allegation creates a credibility issue that investigators must resolve before filing a case.

Haze...

From A1 The bureau said 10 Metro Manila cities—Quezon City, Manila, Malabon, Mandaluyong, Marikina, Muntinlupa, Pasay, San Juan, Taguig and Valenzuela—registered “very unhealthy” AQI (air quality index) levels, while Las Piñas and Parañaque were classified as “acutely unhealthy.”

The haze could linger through Sept.

3, according to Jundy del Socorro, chief of the DENR-EMB’s Environmental Quality Management Division.

He said smoke from Kalimantan was still being transported by the prevailing southwest monsoon while fires remained active.

Del Socorro said widespread rains and shifting wind patterns could gradually improve air quality from Sept. 4 to 6, although there was no official forecast confirming the extent or timing of such improvement.

He said rain could help wash smoke particles and PM2.5 from the atmosphere, improving visibility and reducing haze concentrations.

Beyond Sept. 6, conditions would de-

Had these plans been followed, she said, some areas now occupied by infrastructure could have remained open spaces that could absorb excess rainwater.

Castro said Mr. Marcos wants local governments to take responsibility for enforcing the rules rather than allowing violations to persist.

She identified barangay officials, local government engineering departments and mayors as among those who should ensure compliance.

Castro said the government recognizes that enforcing no-build zones could displace families who have lived in restricted areas for years.

However, authorities should not allow residents to remain in locations where their lives could be at risk, she said.

“We need to unite behind this. We need to enforce the law and provide them (affected residents) with places where they can live safely,” Castro said.

“Lives could be lost. This is not a restriction without reason,” she added.

As this developed, the President also directed government agencies to fully implement policies on climate change,

DepEd...

From A1 Prior to the drill, Education Secretary Sonny Angara said on Tuesday that safety policies in schools must treat physical security and students’ mental health as two “inseparable” priorities.

“Safety is not just about physical security; it is equally about protecting our children’s peace of mind. We are working closely with our medical experts and psychiatric societies to ensure our shared priority for the total well-being of our children remains at the center of our implementation,” Angara said.

According to Angara, the Sept. 3 drills aim to build “calm” operational confidence and instill muscle memory in students through orientation, rather than fear.

“Preparedness saves lives, and trauma-informed execution protects our learners,” Angara added.

According to DepEd, the upcoming

The Office of Civil Defense (OCD) likewise advised the public to minimize prolonged outdoor exposure, particularly in areas where haze is visibly present.

OCD Deputy Administrator for Administration Bernardo Rafaelito Alejandro IV said smoke from the ongoing fires in Indonesia may have been transported toward the Philippines by prevailing winds.

He urged the public to minimize prolonged outdoor activities, especially in areas visibly affected by the haze, and advised those who need to go outside to wear a well-fitting N95 or equivalent mask.

The OCD also recommended staying indoors as much as possible, keeping doors and windows closed, and using damp cloths to cover gaps where haze could enter.

Fundamental question: Is there evidence?

Fajardo said the fundamental question remains whether there is credible and sufficient evidence directly linking Romualdez to the alleged offenses.

Orly Guteza withdrew his allegation that he had participated in the delivery of cash-filled suitcases to an alleged residence associated with Romualdez.

Several former security aides of exAko Bicol party-list Rep. Zaldy Co

DOH: Haze could trigger respiratory distress

Isko: Health facilities on alert

Manila Mayor Francisco “Isko Moreno” Domagoso warned residents of rapidly deteriorating air quality and assured them that the Manila Health Department and city hospitals remained on alert.

He said the city was closely monitoring the situation in case the poor air quality resulted in a sudden increase in patients.

Three monitoring stations at Puregold Tayuman, Anda Circle and San Sebastian Residences recorded “very unhealthy” AQI levels, while stations at Sta. Ana Hospital and Rajah Sulayman Park registered “unhealthy for sensitive groups” readings.

The DENR-EMB’s real-time monitoring station at Mehan Garden in Manila recorded an AQI of 231, classified as “acutely unhealthy.”

Domagoso directed the Manila City

Classes in QC suspended

The Quezon City government suspended onsite classes for Child Development Centers, kindergarten, Grades 1 to 12 and the Alternative Learning System in public schools Tuesday because of poor air quality.

Private schools and higher education institutions were left to decide whether to suspend classes, although they were encouraged to adopt national or localized measures to protect students and teachers.

Quezon City also reported “very unhealthy” and “acutely unhealthy” AQI readings in parts of the city and has at least 68 air quality sensors deployed throughout the city.

Malabon Mayor Jeannie Sandoval urged residents to remain indoors when necessary or wear face masks when going outside.

She said the city was continuously monitoring air quality and issuing advisories, particularly for children, senior citizens, pregnant women and people with asthma and heart conditions.

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Flooding worsens in Central Luzon—OCD

By Rex Espiritu and Rio N. Araja

F

LPG prices to drop by P4.40 per 11-kg cylinder

LOODING has worsened in Central Luzon, with 608 barangays now reported flooded across six provinces, according to the latest situation report from the Office of Civil Defense (OCD).

The affected barangays are in Pampanga (327), Bulacan (88), Tarlac (87), Bataan (43), Zambales (56), and Nueva Ecija (7). The OCD also monitored 33 other incidents, including soil erosion, landslides, mud and rock flows, fallen trees, and collapsed infrastructure.

Four barangays remain geographically isolated after strong currents and high water levels damaged bridges and cut off primary access.

These are Sta. Fe in San Marcelino and Babuyan in Sta. Cruz, Zambales, and Sta. Juliana and O’Donel in Capas, Tarlac.

Meanwhile, the number of affected people has risen to 3,866,661 individuals or 1,202,249 families across 1,892 barangays in Central Luzon.

Tropical Storm Pilandok maintains its strength while moving north northwestward and is forecast to exit the Philippine Area of Responsibility early Thursday, with no expected landfall over the country.

Light to moderate with occasional heavy rains are expected over Bataan, Nueva Ecija and Bulacan (Angat, Balagtas, Baliuag, Bustos, Calumpit, Malolos, Dona Remedios Trinidad, Guiguinto, Hagonoy, Pandi, Paombong, Plaridel, Pulilan, San Ildefonso, San Miguel, San Rafael). Light to moderate with occasional heavy rains will affect Tarlac (Capas, Bamban, San Jose), Zambales(Botolan, San Felipe, San Marcelino, Cabangan) and Pampanga (Porac, Floridablanca, Mabalacat, Angeles) and may affect nearby areas.

By Alena Flores THE Department of Energy (DOE) announced Tuesday that liquefied petroleum gas prices will drop by P0.40 per kilogram in September, equivalent to a P4.40 reduction for a standard 11-kilogram cylinder.

The announcement follows pump price cuts that took effect at 6 a.m. Tuesday, with kerosene down P3.84 per liter, diesel down P3.83 per liter, and gasoline down P0.32 per liter.

The DOE said the LPG rollback comes despite an increase in international LPG contract prices, which climbed to $649.50 per metric ton in September from $634 in August.

Lower freight costs and a stronger peso offset the higher contract price, reducing overall landed costs. Energy Secretary Sharon Garin said even a modest price reduction helps families manage household expenses.

Domestic retail prices for an 11-kilogram LPG cylinder are estimated at P1,031 to P1,536 this month, depending on brand, location, and local market conditions. The DOE urged consumers to check prevailing prices and buy only from authorized dealers.

VINTAGE INSPIRATION. Models

wearing vintageinspired creations by designer Lito Perez walk the runway during a Heritage Fashion Show at the Rizal Park Open-Air Auditorium in Manila, featuring designs inspired by Philippine cultural heritage and celebrating notable women in the country’s history.

Richmond T. Chi

IN BRIEF Bishop says don’t reelect failed bets

No electronic devices for witnesses, says Chiz

By Ram Superable

SSS ANNIVERSARY. Department of Finance Secretary Frederick D. Go (right) joins Social Security Commission officials during the SSS 69th anniversary celebration on Monday, September 1, 2026. SSS unveils its anniversary theme, ‘Bawat Isa Protektado, Bawat Bukas Sigurado,’ emphasizing its commitment to inclusive and reliable social security protection. Manny Palmero

SENATE impeachment court presiding officer Francis Escudero on Tuesday formally barred witnesses from possessing or using earpieces, cellphones, smartwatches, smart glasses, or similar transmission devices while testifying before the court.

Under the newly issued directive, witnesses are strictly prohibited from receiving or attempting to receive signals, messages, or prompts from anyone inside or outside the courtroom, with the ban remaining in effect during official recesses until their formal discharge.

Exceptions for necessary medical accessibility or interpretation equipment require prior approval from the court.

To enforce the ruling, the court clerk must inform every witness of the rules before testimony, confiscate prohibited electronic devices before administering the oath, and secure an on-record confirmation that the witness understands the directive.

Escudero also clarified that an image circulating online showing Office of the Vice President Assistant Chief of Staff Lemuel Ortonio wearing an earpiece during Vice President Sara Duterte’s impeachment trial was false and artificially generated. He said Ortonio was wearing a piece of jewelry on the front fold of his ear, not an electronic communication device, and reminded witnesses that testimony must come solely from their own knowledge, free from coaching or outside influence.

NBI cracks down on rogue cellular network in Cavite

By Gwyneth Nicole Nolasco THE Special Action Unit (SAU) of the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) conducted an intelligence-driven operation against a rogue cellular network, seizing suspected International Mobile Subscriber Identity (IMSI) catcher devices and text blaster equipment in General Trias, Cavite.

In a press release, the NBI-SAU said it apprehended a foreign national and uncovered a rogue cellular site allegedly used to transmit fraudulent text messages directing mobile users to a counterfeit banking website.

NBI Director Atty. Melvin Matibag said the seized IMSI catcher mimics legitimate cellular tower signals, allowing scammers to intercept mobile connections, obtain sensitive information, and

send text blasts using spoofed numbers.

Operatives conducted surveillance and monitoring before detecting the rogue cellular site, which sent unsolicited messages appearing to come from legitimate sources and redirected recipients to a phishing website resembling a Philippine bank. Forensic examination showed the site was designed to steal financial information, including credit card details.

The equipment was traced to a vehicle in General Trias with a makeshift antenna, independent power supply, router, and other electronic devices.

Matibag warned the public against trusting suspicious messages from unknown or spoofed numbers, while the arrested Chinese national faces inquest proceedings over alleged cybercrime and financial fraud violations.

A MEMBER of the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) has urged Filipinos not to reelect candidates who failed to fulfill their promises, saying voters should carefully examine the track records of aspiring public officials amid recurring floods and allegations of corruption in flood-control projects.

Antipolo Bishop Ruperto Santos said the coming elections should be an opportunity for voters to choose leaders based on performance rather than campaign rhetoric.

“If those we voted for in the past failed to bring about change, failed to keep their promises, or caused further harm to the country, we should not make the same mistake again,” Santos said in a social media post.

He urged voters to judge candidates by their accomplishments and reject those who failed to deliver results. He also warned against vote-buying and other forms of bribery, saying short-term financial gain could lead to years of hardship. Vito Barcelo

SC justices urged to vie for top post THE Judicial and Bar Council (JBC) has invited the five most senior justices of the Supreme Court (SC) to apply for the Chief Justice position that will become vacant upon the retirement of Chief Justice Alexander Gesmundo.

SC spokesperson Atty. Camille Ting confirmed the development on Tuesday, saying it has become a standing policy of the council.

“Since the early 2000s, the JBC has followed the practice of inviting the five most senior Associate Justices to apply for the Chief Justice post as a matter of courtesy and in recognition of their seniority,” she said.

Among those invited are Senior Associate Justice Marvic M.V.F. Leonen and Associate Justices Alfredo Benjamin S. Caguioa, Ramon Paul L. Hernando, Henri Jean Paul B. Inting and Rodil V. Zalameda.

The JBC opened applications for the next SC chief last week, with October 13 as the deadline for online submissions. Gesmundo, the country’s 27th Chief Justice, will retire on November 6 upon reaching the mandatory retirement age of 70. Associate Justice Amy Lazaro-Javier will follow on November 16. Pot Chavez

MPD nabs suspect in P14.28m buy-bust

‘FOR BETTER OR FOR WORSE.’ A couple, identified as Mr. and Mrs. Chico, exchanges vows at the Parish of San Juan Bautista in Hagonoy, Bulacan, despite waist-deep floodwaters inside the church. The bride shortens her gown to wade through the flooded aisle, while a portable speaker provides sound after the power goes out. Ang Tinig – St. John the Baptist

THE Manila Police District (MPD) arrested a suspect and seized approximately P14.28 million worth of suspected illegal drugs in a buy-bust operation in the capital.

Manila Mayor Francisco Moreno Domagoso lauded the MPD-Drug Enforcement Units (DEU), citing the leadership of district director PBGen. Arnold Santiago.

Domagoso warned law violators that the city government would continue enforcing the law and fulfilling its mandate to maintain peace and order.

Santiago reported that the Navotas-native suspect initially conducted a transaction in southern Metro Manila before arriving in Manila, where authorities recovered two kilos of suspected shabu worth P14.28 million, along with two earlier 50-gram portions. Pot Chavez

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‘BARMM elections enable electorate to choose leaders’

By Rex Espiritu

READING PROFICIENCY. The Department of Education says its Academic Recovery and Accessible Learning (ARAL) program is gaining ground among learners across the country, logging a 4.8 percent increase in grade-level proficiency, equivalent to over 730,000 pupils attaining the expected standards. DepEd photo

DepEd says ARAL boosts literacy IN BRIEF NMC leads MaNa Mo national observance THE National Maritime Council (NMC) on Tuesday enjoined the people to take part in the observance of the Maritime and Archipelagic Nation Awareness Month (MaNa Mo) 2026, highlighting the country’s identity as a maritime and archipelagic nation.

As part of the nationwide observance, participating Philippineflagged vessels across the country sounded their ship horns simultaneously at 10 a.m. Sept. 1.

The ceremonial signal will consist of nine short blasts followed by one long blast, creating a shared maritime moment from ports and harbors to vessels at sea.

The NMC said the activity serves as a reminder that the Philippines is a maritime and archipelagic nation.

Rex Espiritu

C

By Gabriel OIiva

T

HE Department of Education (DepEd) aims to boost its Academic Recovery and Accessible Learning (ARAL) Program following significant gains during its first year of implementation, based on evaluation by global education non-profit Youth Impact in collaboration with the World Bank.

DepEd said the program produced 4.5 million fewer struggling readers and 2.5 million more learners reaching gradelevel readiness in school year 2025-2026.

After assessing the learning progress expected over a school year without ARAL, evaluators estimated a nine-percentage-point decline in the proportion of struggling readers, effectively lifting about 1.37 million additional children out of the lowest reading bracket, DepEd said.

The positive results were recorded across regions, including a 4.8-percent

increase in grade-level reading proficiency, equivalent to more than 730,000 learners reaching the expected standards.

“The findings show the early success of ARAL’s nationwide implementation, signaling strong potential for further gains as implementation systems are refined,” DepEd said.

Youth Impact, a global education organization established in Botswana in 2014, recommended several measures to build on the program’s gains.

These included preserving Project

ARAL, protecting its instructional core, improving the grouping of participating learners, shifting support from monitoring to mentoring, and adopting a more localized and adaptive approach to experimentation.

“This evidence is critical as it validates ARAL’s effectiveness, showing that targeted remediation worked to improve learning for learners falling below expected competencies who are most at risk of persistent learning poverty,” the group said.

The organization also recommended that DepEd provide and protect dedicated classroom time for literacy.

Education Secretary Sonny Angara said learning recovery should not be treated as a one-time intervention but as a continuing commitment to building a resilient education system.

He said the department is working with teachers, tutors and local communities to turn education policies into real and measurable opportunities for Filipino learners.

DOJ creates satellite office in Soccsksargen THE Department of Justice (DOJ), through the Office of the Provincial Prosecutor of Sultan Kudarat (OPPSK), has established a satellite office in the province to bring prosecution services closer to communities in Region 12 also called Soccsksargen.

Soccsksargen consists of South Cotabato, Cotabato, Sultan Kudarat, Sarangani, and General Santos City.

Justice Secretary Fredderick Vida lauded the inauguration last month of the new prosecution satellite office in Lebak, Sultan Kudarat.

“We are not merely opening another office. Instead, we are bringing our prosecutors closer to the communities they serve to champion a more accessible and efficient real justice for all,” he said. Pot Chavez

Carmona City launches emergency online app REPORTING emergency situations and accessing quick response become faster and easier in Carmona City with the roll out last Aug. 28 of an online platform generated by the city government under Mayor Dahlia Loyola.

Safety and Order Service: Bayan Muna Lagi (SOS:BML) Community App is a people-based community safety and emergency reporting platform that gives residents direct and faster access to authorities and report incidents on respective mobile phones.

Loyola said the application is part of their bid to incorporate technology into local governance, ensuring that “nobody is left behind”.

“We want our constituents to feel and see that their city government is accessible, that we are listening, and that we are ready to take action when it matters most,” she added.

Dennis Abrina

SOS:BML LAUNCH. Carmona City rolls out its Safety and Order Service; Bayan Muna Lagi (SOS:BML) online platform designed to provide local residents faster and direct access to emergency service through their personal cellular phones. ‘We want our constituents to feel and see that their city government is accessible, that we are listening, and that we are ready to take action when it matters most,’ says Mayor Dahlia Loyola. Dennis Abrina

CAMP Darapanan, Maguindanao del Norte — The success of the first Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) Parliamentary Elections should be measured not by winners or losers, but by whether the voters were able to freely exercise their right to choose their leaders, according to Presidential Peace Adviser Secretary Mel Senen Sarmiento.

Sarmiento issued the statement during the signing of the Guidelines for Mutual Understanding between the Coordinating Committees on the Cessation of Hostilities (CCCH) and Ad Hoc Joint Action Group (AHJAG) of the government of the Philippines (GPH)- Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) for ceasefire-related functions during the Sept, 14 elections.

“On September 14, our success will not be measured by who wins or loses.

Our success will be measured by whether the Bangsamoro people were able to vote freely, whether peace was preserved, and whether the result reflects the genuine choice of the electorate,” Sarmiento said,.

The GPH and MILF Peace Implementing Panels, led by Sarmiento and his MILF counterpart Mohagher Iqbal, also signed a covenant for the peaceful, orderly and credible conduct of the elections.

Sarmiento said the CCCH and AHJAG mandate was to protect the peace, prevent armed confrontations and address tensions before they escalate.

He stressed that the joint peace mechanisms must remain politically neutral and must not be used to favor any candidate, party or political group.

Their role, Sarmiento said, is to help create an environment where voters can make their choices without fear, coercion, intimidation or violence.

DSWD maintains FFP procurement honest, transparent

By Maricel V. Cruz DEPARTMENT of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) Secretary Rex Gatchalian has dismissed a social media post alleged that the cost of every single family food pack (FFPs) was more than P1,500.

Stressing that the procurement of FFPs undergoes a transparent and competitive bidding process, the DSWD chief said the viral post was a clear case of misinterpretation and ‘fake news’ since the actual cost of the contents of each FFP is less than P800.

“Ang actual award price is only P797.80. So, there is no truth to the allegations that the award price is P1,500,” Gatchalian told a television interview.

Gatchalian stressed that the competitive bidding process sets an Approved Budget for the Contract (ABC) ceiling price which is different from the award price.

“The P1,503 figure the netizen is referring to is what is known as the ABC, or the maximum limit. All the products we provide undergo competitive bidding.

This means we set an ABC—or a ceiling—but that is not the final awarded price,” he explained.

Under the procurement process, the DSWD bids and awards committee (BAC) evaluates the bids to determine the supplier that meets the required technical, financial, and legal conditions and offers the lowest calculated and responsive bid based on government procurement rules.

Gatchalian also responded to the allegation on the low quality of contents in the FFPs. “Nothing goes into that box that I haven’t personally tasted or eaten—and I can tell you that with a straight face.

Secondly, everything undergoes evaluation by the Food and Nutrition Research Institute (FNRI) of the Department of Science and Technology (DOST). This means the contents of our food boxes meet DOST and FNRI standards for quality, suitability, and proper composition,” Gatchalian said.

Pinoys in Texas, Louisiana told to be vigilant vs. tropical storm

By Katrina Manubay THE Philippine Consulate in Houston issued a warning on Tuesday (Philippine time) for Filipinos in Texas and Louisiana to prepare for heavy rain, storm surge, and strong winds as Potential Tropical Cyclone Five is expected to strengthen into tropical storm Edouard.

In an advisory, the consulate stated that it is closely monitoring the weather situation.

“The Philippine Consulate in Houston is closely monitoring Potential Tropical Cyclone Five, forecast to strengthen into Tropical Storm Edouard on the evening of Monday, 31 August, before making landfall near the Texas-Louisiana border on Tuesday, 1 September,” the advisory read.

“Kababayans in these areas, including Houston and surrounding communities, should prepare for heavy rain, storm surge, gusty winds, and possible power outages,” it added.

The consulate also advised the Filipino community to stay updated with the latest information and follow local authorities regarding travel and emergency alerts.

Earlier, a tropical storm warning was issued for Chambers County, including the Bolivar Peninsula and the cities of High Island and Crystal Beach.

Local reports indicated that a Flood Watch is also in effect for the eastern half of Southeast Texas starting late Monday and continuing through Wednesday morning.

JUDICIAL SATELLITE OFFICE. The Department of Justice, through the Office of the Provincial Prosecutor of Sultan Kudarat sets up an innovative satellite office in the province to bring prosecution services closer to the people of Region 12. ‘We are not merely opening another office, instead, we are bringing our prosecutors closer to the communities they serve to champion a more accessible and efficient real justice for all,’ says Justice Secretary Fredderick Vida. DOJ photo

OPINION

A5

WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 2, 2026

mst.daydesk@gmail.com

EDITORIAL

Rule 18 will restrain Sara from attacking the impeachment trial THE Senate impeachment court through Presiding Judge Sen. Chiz Escudero recently issued a ruling that expands the reach of the sub-judice rule to the accused, Vice President Sara Duterte herself, and not merely to the lawyers, witnesses and senator-judges.

In fact, the impeachment court is telling Vice President Sara Duterte that she cannot use public statements to argue the merits of her own case while the trial is under way.

This ruling has several important implications. It changes the rules of public advocacy during the trial. Duterte is not banned from defending herself altogether. She can still assert her constitutional rights and respond to matters that do not concern the merits. But Escudero’s definition of “merits” is broad.

Statements evaluating evidence, attacking or defending a witness’s credibility, arguing that an impeachment article is legally defective, or predicting how the case should be decided could fall under Rule 18.

The ruling seeks to prevent the impeachment trial from becoming a parallel media trial. This is the ruling’s most important purpose. Sen. Escudero wants to ensure that the Senate’s judgment is based on evidence and proceedings inside the impeachment court rather than on competing public-relations campaigns outside it. His warning against “trial by publicity” is essentially an attempt to preserve the court’s authority and the credibility of its eventual decision.

While Rule 18 effectively gave everyone a clean slate for statements or conduct that had occurred before its issuance, it wants to make it clear that from this point forward, the impeachment court intends to enforce it strictly. Thus, Duterte’s statement criticizing prosecutors may escape punishment because it came as the ruling was being issued, but similar statements after the warning could have dire consequences.

The riling raises an important constitutional issue concerning Duterte’s freedom of expression. The Vice President is not simply an ordinary litigant.

She is a sitting constitutional officer and a lawyer who is defending herself in an impeachment proceeding. The impeachment court has to balance her right to speak with the Senate’s responsibility to conduct an orderly and impartial trial.

Escudero’s ruling essentially says that, once the impeachment process reaches this stage, the latter imposes meaningful restrictions on public commentary about the case.

Rule 18 also restrains the senatorjudges. This is significant from a political standpoint. Escudero did not impose the restriction exclusively on Duterte and her lawyers. He reminded senators that they, too, must avoid prejudging the

case or using their questions to advance partisan positions. Their constitutional role is that of judges, not political advocates. This has been emphasized after a number of senator-judges appeared to be taking the side of the Vice President in the way they asked questions during the proceedings.

The penalties make the ruling more than a mere admonition. The two-strike mechanism calling for severe reprimand for the first violation and ₱30,000 fines for subsequent violations is a step in the right direction. The possibility of referral to the Integrated Bar of the Philippines and the Supreme Court also makes it potentially consequential for lawyers personally.

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Success will depend on whether the presiding officer enforces it in a fair and impartial manner.

The ruling represents an effort by Sen. Escudero to draw a boundary between political communication and judicial proceedings. Impeachment is inherently political in the constitutional sense, but once the Senate convenes as an impeachment court, it is also expected to follow procedures resembling a judicial proceeding.

This, in our view, creates a difficult tension. Duterte’s political opponents may see the rule as necessary to prevent her from influencing public opinion while the evidence is being heard.

Her supporters, however, could argue that restricting her public statements gives the prosecution an advantage, particularly because she remains a public official with a political constituency particularly in Visayas and Mindanao.

The question, therefore, will be how consistently Escudero applies the rule.

If the court disciplines Duterte’s side while allowing prosecutors or senatorjudges to make equally substantive public comments, accusations of selective enforcement will inevitably arise.

On the other hand, if the impeachment court applies Rule 18 evenhandedly to Duterte, her lawyers, prosecutors, witnesses and senator-judges alike, it will certainly strengthen the legitimacy of the impeachment process.

Rule 18 aims to move the impeachment trial from the arena of public opinion back into the courtroom. Whether that succeeds will depend not only on the rule itself, but on whether the presiding officer enforces it in a fair and impartial manner. ernhil@yahoo.com

Nigeria rethinks criminalization of suicide

By Tonye Bakare LAGOS, NIGERIA — In Nigeria, surviving a suicide attempt can mean facing not only the trauma of the ordeal but also the threat of prosecution.

Laws dating back decades, including some inherited from the colonial era, criminalize attempted suicide -- and, advocates say, deter people in crisis from seeking the care they need.

The government now says those laws have run their course and must change.

Africa’s most populous country records about 300,000 suicide attempts annually, with at least 7,000 deaths, according to health minister Mohammed Ali Pate, citing World Health Organization figures.

“Suicide is a major public health concern in Nigeria,” Pate told journalists in August. “The idea is attempted suicide is not a crime.”

Criminalizing suicide attempts discourages people from seeking urgent help, said Kingsley Okonoda, a professor of psychiatry at the University of Jos. “So many people will not present for treatment or will not come out even after the attempted suicide has failed because of fear of being prosecuted,” Okonoda told AFP. Limited access to treatment Pate said the government would send a bill to the National Assembly to push forward with the decriminalization plan, with the aim of reducing suicide deaths

and attempts by 15 percent by 2030.

Across Nigeria’s 36 states, suicide attempts typically carry a one-year prison term, though in Muslim-majority Jigawa, governed under sharia in parallel to the state and federal justice systems, the penalty can be as high as five years, according to Decriminalise Suicide Worldwide, an advocacy campaign.

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Stigma remains a major barrier to treatment, with many Nigerians still viewing mental health problems as spiritual afflictions.

Supporters of the reform are calling for the federal government to harmonize the law across the country -- and also warn decriminalization alone may not be enough.

Less than 35 percent of Nigerians believe people in their communities can access help for mental or emotional problems, according to a 2024 report from Afrobarometer, a pollster.

Stigma remains a major barrier to treatment, with many Nigerians still viewing mental health problems as spir-

E

VEN after the rain has eased, many parts of Luzon remain flooded.

Flooding has caused horrible traffic on roads, as vehicles slow down to negotiate a flooded area. Worse, many homes in the provinces of Bulacan and Pampanga, among others, remain flooded. It is not uncommon to hear of knee-deep water right inside a family’s living room.

The past few days of sunshine have been a relief. At the very least, the water would not rise, even as it could very well be stagnant.

The past month’s near-continuous inclement weather has brought much damage and disruption to Filipinos.

Bridges have collapsed. Students’ learning schedules have been disrupted – after all, who has the time to worry about internet connection for online classes when rain does not let up and the water keeps rising?

Amid the inundation, there remain small acts of defiance. For example, a couple in Hagonoy, Bulacan chose to keep their wedding appointment even if it meant wading in thigh-deep water inside the church.

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We should wallow in our indignation, so that we don’t forget those whose job it is to control the flooding but chose instead to steal taxpayers’ money.

Amid all these, it is always good to remember that the people who have to suffer rain and flooding multiple times every year are not each other’s enemies. We have different ways of doing the work and getting through every gruelling day.

It is not each other we should be tearing down.

Every time we see water accumu-

lating, we should remember the faces of the politicians who had a direct hand in making the infrastructure weak and inadequate, if they are even there at all. These so-called public servants profess to have the people’s interests at heart and make a grand show of commiserating with those affected by disaster. Who’s being performative now?

Sometimes they give themselves away by wearing expensive clothes to such events. Sometimes they mask their true nature by looking and sounding concerned about the people’s plight, while calculating the ROI in terms of votes in the next elections.

If we are lucky, the sun will continue to shine in the coming days, giving us good respite before the next typhoon or monsoon rain damages our homes, roads, and fields again.

May it also occasion in us clarity of mind.

We should wallow in our indignation, so that we don’t forget those whose job it is to control the flooding but chose instead to steal taxpayers’ money. Let’s do ourselves a favor and refuse to believe they’re being kind when they are handing out goods.

Let’s vote them out of power next time around.

EVERY generation of parents has had something to worry about.

For one generation, it was television.

Then came video games, the internet, smartphones. Each new technology opened a wider world to children, and each one forced adults to ask the same old question in a new way: How do we give our children the freedom to discover the world while giving them the protection they still need?

Today, much of that world sits inside a device small enough to fit in one hand.

That is why the growing call to restrict social media use among minors deserves serious attention. Childhood needs room. Room to grow, to make mistakes, to discover friendships, to gain confidence. A child needs to feel awkward, to change one’s mind, and to slowly figure out who one is.

Social media has entered that process in a very powerful way. And as we think about rules for children, I believe we should also look closely at those who build and profit from the digital spaces children enter.

Three principles should define this conversation: protection, platform, and partnership.

First, protection.

Childhood is a season of formation.

A teenager looking at a screen is also learning what approval feels like, what rejection means, who seems beautiful, who appears successful, what becomes popular, and where he or she belongs.

All of this now happens inside systems built around attention.

Every click teaches the algorithm something. Every pause tells it what holds our interest. Strong emotions often hold us longer. Anger invites reaction. Conflict attracts comments. Fear encourages sharing. Soon, the feed becomes increasingly skilled at giving us more of whatever keeps us there.

Adults already need discipline to navigate this environment. Children de-

serve an even stronger layer of care.

Age restrictions can be part of that protection. So can age-appropriate design, stronger privacy settings, parental tools, digital literacy, and sensible limits. The principle is simple: children deserve enough space to form their own sense of self before powerful digital systems begin doing too much of that work for them.

Second, platform.

Social media companies exercise tremendous power over the spaces they created. They design the sign-up process. They decide what information users provide. They build the recommendation systems. They collect data, sell advertising, establish community rules, and determine which content receives greater reach.

They also profit from the attention generated inside those spaces.

That gives platforms a very real responsibility.

When government sets a minimum age, platforms should carry a clear duty to make that rule work. Credible and privacy-respecting age assurance should become part of platform design.

Young users should receive stronger protections by default. Systems should identify attempts to evade age requirements and respond effectively.

And when a child gains access despite a legal restriction because the required safeguards failed, accountability should

reach the company with the technology, resources, and capacity to prevent that failure.

This is crucial because regulation works best when responsibility sits where the power to act already exists.

A child can follow a rule. A parent can guide a child. A platform can enforce that rule across millions of accounts.

The same principle applies to harassment, doxxing, harmful content, reporting mechanisms, moderation, and appeals. Digital power brings digital responsibility.

Lastly, partnership.

Of course, laws and technology form only part of the answer. Raising a child has always been a shared human task.

Parents teach habits. Schools form judgment. Communities offer belonging. Government sets safeguards. Platforms shape the digital environment.

Young people, over time, learn perhaps the most important lesson of all: how to use freedom well.

That is why digital literacy deserves a place early in education. A young person should understand why certain posts appear on a feed, how algorithms respond to attention, how false information spreads, how personal data acquires value, and how words typed casually on a screen can land deeply in another human being.

The internet has already become part of childhood. We now have the chance to shape the kind of childhood that grows within it.

Protect the child. Make the platform responsible. Build the partnership around both.

Behind every account is a human being. And behind many of those accounts is someone still learning who they will become.

Our laws, our technology, and our choices should give them every chance to become that person well.

itual afflictions.

Nigeria also faces a severe shortage of qualified medical professionals, with fewer than 1,000 psychiatrists serving more than 200 million people, according to 2024 figures from the Association of Psychiatrists in Nigeria (APN).

“Decriminalizing suicide must be accompanied by a deliberate expansion of access to quality mental health services.

Accessibility must be matched by affordability,” APN said in a statement to AFP. Economic crisis, insecurity Along with the proposed amendments, experts said the government must also address factors that predispose people to suicide.

Economic hardship, rising poverty, insecurity and social isolation are among the drivers of mental illness and

suicidal behavior, according to the APN. The country has endured years of economic strain, with President Bola Tinubu’s major reforms blamed for pushing up the cost of living, even as the government says they are attracting international investment and creating macroeconomic stability.

Inflation reached a record high of 34 percent in mid-2024 before slowing to 15.4 percent in July. Poverty has continued to rise, affecting 63 percent of the population, according to the International Monetary Fund.

The country is also grappling with a 17-year jihadist insurgency in the northeast. Rampant kidnap-for-ransom attacks and farmer-herder violence wrack the north-central region, while secessionist agitation rumbles on in the southeast.

The government “has a crucial role

to play beyond the health sector. Every meaningful intervention that makes life safer, more dignified and more economically viable is, in itself, a mental health intervention and suicide prevention,” APN said.

A suicide prevention bill submitted by several NGOs to the National Assembly in 2024, seeking to protect the “rights of persons with suicidal behaviour,” is yet to be passed.

Promoters said the bill would complement proposed amendments to the country’s existing mental health laws.

“The amendment and the National Suicide Prevention Bill are two halves of one reform,” said Taiwo Lateef Sheikh, of the Nigeria Suicide Prevention Advocacy Working Group.

“One removes the punishment, the other builds what should be there instead.” AFP

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Three principles should define this conversation: protection, platform, and partnership.

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Emil P. Jurado+ Chairman Emeritus, Editorial Board

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Some television reporters have been on the receiving end of criticism for doing their live reports while submerged in the flood. They have been called performative and reckless. The threat of contracting leptospirosis is all too real.

Online safety in an age of algorithms

Former Chief Justice Reynato S. Puno

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Nepal, China floods death toll tops 1,000 N

UWAKOT, Nepal – The death toll from devastating Himalayan glacial floods crossed the grim 1,000 mark on Tuesday, as Chinese and Nepali teams searched for survivors including dozens feared trapped in hydropower tunnels.

RESCUE MISSION. Firefighters from the Tibet Corps of the National Comprehensive Fire and Rescue Team unload emergency supplies from a helicopter at the mudslide-hit Gyirong Port in Gyirong County in China’s western Tibet region. AFP

IN BRIEF ‘Massive’ Russian missile attack on Kyiv kills 8 Two dead after stabbing in New York’s Times Square NEW YORK – A knife-wielding woman stabbed and killed a person and injured another in New York’s tourist-filled Times Square on Monday, before she was shot and killed by police.

Mayor Zohran Mamdani announced the deaths in a press conference, saying that the second victim was in stable condition in a hospital.

The attacker, identified as 49-year-old Queens resident Pamela Cisneros, who was known to have mental health issues, pulled two large knives from a bag bearing the logo of a well-known supermarket chain before threatening passersby in broad daylight, New York Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch said.

She then approached a 68-year-old man and stabbed him in the abdomen. Twenty seconds later, she attacked a 32-year-old woman, also stabbing her in the abdomen – wounds from which she later died.

The victims’ identities are not being released pending notification of their families. AFP

KYIV – A “massive” Russian attack killed at least eight people in Kyiv overnight, including seven at a railway depot, officials said Tuesday, as Moscow pressed its air campaign on the Ukrainian capital and surrounding areas.

The strikes came as children were set to return to school after summer holidays and as authorities tightened security measures following weeks of intensified Russian attacks on the capital.

Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko said eight people were killed and five wounded, including two children, in the overnight bombardment, which included ballistic missiles and drones.

Oleksandr Pertsovskyi, chief executive of Ukrainian Railways, said a missile hit a railway depot and other railway

facilities in Kyiv.

“The ballistic strike took the lives of 7 people, 6 of whom were our employees,” he said, adding that another railway worker had been hospitalized.

Pertsovskyi said the attack caused “extensive destruction,” including the complete destruction of a workshop, while fires continued to burn at some sites.

One person was killed in strikes in Boryspil, east of Kyiv, regional officials said.

Russia’s defense ministry said its forces had carried out a “massive strike” using long-range weapons and attack drones.

It said the attack targeted military-industrial and fuel and energy facilities in Kyiv and the surrounding region.

The ministry also said it had struck infrastructure in the southern Odesa region and the ports of Odesa and Chornomorsk.

“Kyiv region came under a massive attack by Russian missiles and strike drones tonight,” Kyiv regional military administration chief Tymur Tkachenko said on Telegram.

AFP journalists in the capital heard around a dozen loud explosions and saw flashes in sky early Tuesday moments after the air force warned of incoming ballistic missiles.

The Ukrainian air force had warned that the threat of “ballistic weapons and other means of attack against Kyiv and the region remains in effect”, and urged residents to remain in shelters. AFP

China-Taiwan friction clouds Pacific summit

Nokor-US summit appears ‘possible at any time’ SEOUL – A summit between the United States and North Korea appears “possible at any time” as signs have emerged of dialogue between them, a lawmaker citing South Korea’s spy agency said Tuesday.

US President Donald Trump has floated the idea of new meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, but has mostly been met with silence in public from Pyongyang.

“Regarding the North Korea-US summit, there was an analysis that it should be viewed as possible at any time,” South Korean lawmaker Youn Kun-young told reporters, citing a briefing by the National Intelligence Service.

The lawmaker added that “while no facts regarding concrete contact between the two sides have been presented, there are signs of dialogue.” AFP

Thai resort readies for US carrier’s 5,000 sailors PATTAYA – A US aircraft carrier at the center of a political row over conditions on board was set to arrive in Thailand on Tuesday, the first port call for its 5,000 crew since November.

The resort city of Pattaya, a rest-andrecreation destination for US troops since the Vietnam War, has stepped up security as it prepares to welcome the sailors and Marines from the USS Abraham Lincoln.

“About 600 officials will provide security and other necessary assistance,” provincial Governor Narit Niramaiwong told AFP. The nuclear-powered ship left California in November 2025 for duty in the South China Sea and was rerouted to the Middle East before US-Israeli attacks on Iran that began six months ago. AFP

Nearly 4,500 people are missing after the gigantic wave of freezing water, rocks and debris from a high-altitude glacial collapse roared downstream on Wednesday, wiping out entire settlements and gouging a path of destruction through Nepal.

Nepali rescue teams are digging, drilling and blasting through debris in a race against time in treacherous conditions to free around 100 hydropower workers believed trapped in multiple tunnels.

So far, only corpses have been pulled out of tunnels blocked with sludge.

“We are focused on search and rescue efforts at the tunnels, our work is continuing,” Raja Ram Basnet, Nepal Army spokesman, told AFP on Tuesday.

“Our soldiers are also deployed to collect bodies and prevent the spread of disease.”

With mortuaries overflowing in Nepal, the authorities have begun burying hundreds of unidentified bodies after DNA sampling. At least 17 bodies have also been pulled from rivers far downstream in India.

Nepal’s Prime Minister Balendra Shah has called the catastrophe “unimaginable and heartbreaking.”

In the capital Kathmandu, crowds lined up to search for their missing relatives, posting photographs on a long wall outside a hospital, in the fading hope of finding them alive.

Debu Sapkota, a 58-year-old driver, came to post photos of his 83-year-old mother-in-law and granddaughter who went missing in the town of Trishuli Bazaar, after being swept away by last week’s surge.

A warning alert sounded, but the elderly woman was “too old to run”, he recounts.

“Her granddaughter was helping her escape but both were swept away.”

Sapkota says he no longer has “any hope that they survived,” after witnesses saw them being carried away by the torrent.

“I am here hoping to find their bodies,” he said, holding up photos of the two missing women dressed in traditional clothes.

In Chitwan district, mourning relatives cremated some of the dead.

Soldiers were seen unloading bodies of victims from helicopters in Nepal’s Nuwakot and Rasuwa districts.

Aid needs are enormous. Entire communities have been swept away, leaving families homeless and using makeshift shelters as heavy rain lashes down. AFP

FIERY REVELRY. A reveler plays with a fireball during the traditional ‘Fireball Festival’ in Nejapa, El Salvador. The annual festival, dating back to 1922, is held in honor of Saint Jerome and commemorates the 1658 eruption of the San Salvador volcano that destroyed the town of Nejapa. AFP

KOROR, Palau – Australia said Tuesday the Pacific bloc will decide for itself who attends its annual summit, after China raised objections to Taiwan’s presence on the sidelines.

The 18-member Pacific Islands Forum is being hosted by Palau, which invited its diplomatic ally Taiwan to attend as an aid partner, along with China and other non-Pacific countries.

China’s Pacific envoy Qian Bo told reporters on Monday there would be “consequences” for Taiwan foreign minister Lin Chia-lung’s presence in Palau.

Beijing claims self-ruled Taiwan as part of its territory.

Chinese officials have also warned Pacific leaders and ministers not to attend side events in Palau at which Taiwan is participating, a Pacific source at the meeting told AFP on condition of anonymity.

“This is primarily a gathering of Pacific family,” Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese told journalists when asked about the Chinese comments.

“The Pacific Islands Forum determines what happens here, not any other country.”

Albanese also rejected China’s warning to travelers that tourismdependent Palau was unsafe.

“This is a paradise here in Palau,” he said.

Palau is one of only three Pacific islands that have diplomatic ties with Taiwan and not Beijing.

Five leaders among the 18 forum members will not attend this year’s gathering, officials say, sending lower ranked ministers to represent them instead. AFP

Japan to relax overtime rules under workaholic PM Takaichi TOKYO – Japan will ease overtime regulation starting Tuesday in a move meant to help spur economic growth but criticized as a relapse into the country’s ingrained workaholic culture.

The move comes after the government led by Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi – a self-proclaimed workaholic -- adopted a growth strategy in July calling for revisions to the current oversight of work hours.

The change in part reflects calls from certain business sectors for more flexible work styles as they grapple with a deepening labor shortage.

Roughly 40 percent of businesses in

Japan are operating under specific labormanagement agreements that legally allow monthly overtime of up to 100 hours, according to the labor ministry.

But those companies were still advised by authorities to cap overtime at 45 hours each month, with that guidance considered on par with regulation.

That was because exceeding that threshold can increase risks for so-called “karoshi”, or deaths from overwork, a labor ministry official told AFP. Under the new rule that took effect Tuesday, labor standards inspection offices will no longer pressure businesses into the 45-hour cap. AFP

SPRINGTIME. People run past the Sydney Opera House on the first day of spring in Sydney on September 1, 2026. AFP

SPORTS

A7

WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 2, 2026

Chameleons bounce back, stun High Speed Hitters

The NXLED Chameleons celebrate their victory over the PLDT High Speed Hitters in the PVL Invitational at the Araneta Coliseum.

Games Thursday 1:30 p.m. – Farm Fresh vs Creamline 4 p.m. – Ho Chi Minh vs PLDT 6:30 p.m. – EST Cola vs Nxled

ADJUSTMENT. Recovery. Resilience.

Nxled put all three on full display Tuesday, making a swift turnaround from a tough loss to Creamline as it stunned defending champion PLDT, 25-19, 25-22, 25-20, to wheel back into strong contention in the PVL Invitational at the Araneta Coliseum.

The Chameleons didn’t merely recover from Monday’s four-set setback to the Cool Smashers – they responded with the kind of composure, discipline and collective execution that could prove crucial in a tournament where there is hardly any time to dwell on a defeat.

With premium placed on adjustment and recovery in this short, nine-day championship race, Nxled showed it can make the necessary corrections overnight and immediately translate them into results.

And that could make the Invitational an even wilder race to the title.

Nxled’s consistent ball passing, ball control and net defense dictated the tempo for most of the match, allowing the Chameleons to seize control from the opening serve and sustain it through each set against the High Speed Hitters to post the first straightset win in the tournament organized by Sports Vision.

There were moments when Nxled wavered midway through the frames, allowing PLDT to close the gap or pull level. But every time the defending champions threatened to turn the momentum around, the Chameleons responded with poise and purpose, refusing to let the match slip away.

The result was an emphatic sweep of the very team that swept the field on its way to the championship last year.

“I think after yesterday’s game, we put in a lot of work. We just wanted to showcase to everyone how much we’ve put in over the last couple of weeks, and thankfully, it showed out here today,” said MJ Phillips, who led Nxled with 13 points to earn the game’s top honors in the 90-minute romp.

UAAP adjusts sked for PH’s Asiad, FIBA campaigns THE University Athletic Association of the Philippines is adjusting its September schedule for both the collegiate men’s and women’s basketball tournaments to accommodate Gilas Pilipinas’ campaigns in the 20th Asian Games in Nagoya, Japan, and the FIBA 3x3 Under-23 World Cup 2026 in Wuhan, China.

“The support of the UAAP is important to our national team programs, especially with so many of our student-athletes being called up to represent the country,” said Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas Executive Director Erika Dy. “We appreciate the UAAP for working closely with us and for making the necessary adjustments to accommodate our national team commitments. This kind of partnership allows our athletes to compete for both their schools and the Philippines with the support they need.”

As such, there will only be five gamedays from September 13 to 30.

“We have always believed that the UAAP’s mission goes beyond the competition. We are here to develop student-athletes who can represent our schools, but we are equally proud when they get the opportunity to represent the country,” said UAAP Season 89 President Mark Molina of Far Eastern University.

“The UAAP will always support all our national teams, and we are willing to adjust our schedules whenever necessary to give our student-athletes the opportunity to serve the Philippines.”

The UAAP Season 89 opening ceremony will be held on September 12 at the SMART Araneta Coliseum, with Vice Ganda and Gloc-9 headlining the festivities.

The first gameday will be on September 13, 2026, at the SMART Araneta Coliseum, with FEU facing Adamson University at 12 p.m., followed by defending champion De La Salle University taking on National University at 2:30 p.m. in a rematch of last season’s Final Four.

By Jeremiah Sevilla

G

ILAS Pilipinas head coach Tim Cone revealed that the national team bound for the Asian Games will use a system that is different from the triangle offense employed by the FIBA World Cup Asian Qualifiers squad.

With a smaller lineup that does not include towering big men June Mar Fajardo, Kai Sotto, and AJ Edu, the Asian Games team will lean on its speed for a more up-tempo approach under national team lead deputy Richard Del Rosario.

“They’re not playing my system.

They’re playing a different system, more of an up-tempo, push the ball because they’re a little bit smaller,” explained Cone, who is known for his triangle tactic.

Gilas PH to ditch triangle offense in Asian Games “Obviously, they’re smaller ’cause they don’t have Kai, AJ, and June Mar playing. So they’re gonna use their speed and quickness to get up and down the floor,” he added.

An all-PBA team will take charge of Gilas’ title defense in this year’s Asian Games, with Barangay Ginebra’s RJ Abarrientos and Converge frontliners Justine Baltazar and Justin Arana carrying over from the national team that suited up in the triumphant fourth window of the World Cup qualifiers.

NLEX star playmaker Robert Bolick, Rain or Shine guard Adrian Nocum, and Magnolia forward Zavier Lucero banner the Asian Games pool, which also features TNT’s Brandon Ganuelas-Rosser and Sean Quitevis, San Miguel’s Don Trollano and Jerrick

Tim Cone

Ahanmisi, Meralco’s Brandon Bates, and Terrafirma’s Geo Chiu.

Cone also bared the possibility of Justin Brownlee joining the Asiad team after missing out the World Cup qualifiers fourth window due to injuries.

“We heard that Justin might come in.

It’s not confirmed, but he’s intending to come that we know of,” Cone said of the 6-foot-7 naturalized forward, who was part of the Gilas squad that ended the country’s 61-year wait for a gold medal in the men’s basketball tournament of the continental event.

Fajardo, meanwhile, already stepped away from national team duties after announcing his retirement following Gilas’ 68-56 win over Iran to cap off a two-game sweep of the fourth window.

PH 2 shots behind Nomura Cup leaders TEAM Philippines put itself in championship mix of the 31st Nomura Cup, as Rolando Bregente and Jet Hernandez combined for a two-under-par 142 aggregate to be tied with powerhouse Japan, just two shots behind surprise first round leader Hong Kong China at Bayhood No. 9 Golf Club in Beijing, China.

Having the reputation to start out fast and shoot low, Bregente gunned down four birdies in shooting a three-under-par 69 and was left to rue Hernandez’ struggles on the greens on the way to a respectable 73, even as Shin Suzuki failed to count after firing a 75 as the Filipinos moved ahead of the leaderboard against traditional powers China, Australia, Thailand and defending champion Vietnam.

“This only confirms the thoughts of the team that we really have a solid shot at winning this,” the 24-year-old Bregente said in Filipino. His only bogey came on the 16th, when he three-putter from about 25 feet. “The greens are the main defense of the course, and I saw Jet (Hernandez) struggle with his putting.”

Jeffrey Shen and Markus Zachary Lam returned 70s to comprise scoring for HK-China, while Taisei Nagasaki and Mao Matsuyama fired 71s to make up the Japanese score as they threw away the 73 of Kaito Sato. Ethan Tian’s 73 for HK-China also did not count.

“Yeah, I had a rough putting day,” Hernandez, the National Strokeplay chapmpion back home, said. “I thought I committed and visualized really well and was starting (my putts) on line and rolling really good.

Bit they just didn’t drop today.”

He remained confident that things will be better from the second round onwards, especially after playing the course with all the pressure.

“Am not too worried about it, though,” the incoming psychology senior at University of Denver added.

“They’ll eventually drop.”

The Philippines, which helped start this event together with Japan and Chinese Taipei in 1963, has not won the Nomura Cup. It has two second place finishes.

But this team looks to be the best prepared trio that the country has sent in years.

“He was in the flight behind me and I basically saw his entire round,” Bregente went on. “He was hitting it dead straight on the fairways but just wasn’t able to hole putts. But I know that he will bounce back.”

China is three shots behind the joint second placers at 145 after getting a 72 from Jing Guo Chi and a 73 from Hao Yi wang, to tie the Vietnamese, who won this event in upset style at home in 2024.

Tuan Anh Nguyen fired a 72 and Huy Anh Ho accounted for a 73, Thailand is another shot back with New Zealand seven strokes off the pace.

Rolando Bregente

PH women’s baseball team promises better showing in World Cup THE Philippine women’s baseball team vows to be better, given another shot of competing in the next edition of the WBSC Women’s Baseball World Cup. Head coach Isaac ‘Saki’ Bacarisas is certain about the Philippines exceeding its maiden performance in the meet held recently in Tainan, Taiwan where it ended up with a 2-3 record including a 6-0 stunner over Cuba.

Back-to-back losses to end the group stage against host ChineseTaipei (8-2) and Venezuela (100) hurt the country’s chances of advancing to the 2027 Finals set in Rockford, Illinois.

“Nasukat na namin ‘yung kagalingan nila ngayon. Siguro naman by the next time around at alam na rin naman natin ‘yung mga weaknesses nila, makakarating na tayo sa world stage,” said Bacarisas in the weekly Philippine Sportswriters Association Forum at the Philippine Sports Commission media room on Tuesday.

“I hope sa susunod makabalik tayo.”

Head coach Saki Bacarisas (center) withP members of the PH women’s baseball team

Members of the team joined Bacarisas in the session presented

by San Miguel Corporation, PSC, Philippine Olympic Committee, MILO, and the country’s 24/7 sports app ArenaPlus, including captain Veronica Velasco, Martine Francisco, Richelle Toledo, Cassandra Inot, Nichole Padasas, Mharnie Dela Cruz, Mery Ann Ramos, and Chastene Jover.

Philippine Amateur Baseball Association secretary-general

and team manager Michael Asuncion also graced the Forum but left earlier owing to a prior commitment.

The Filipina batters began their campaign on the wrong foot after initially losing to powerhouse and defending champion Japan, 3-0.

But the close loss to the Japanese gave the national team the confidence and momentum heading to its game against world no. 7 Cuba and world no. 15 Great Britain.

After blanking Cuba, the Philippines dealt Great Britain a 6-2 beating, with Francisco emerging as the best player of the game to give the team a 2-1 record in Group B and a perfect shot of clinching a berth in next year’s finals.

“Sobrang nakaka-proud dahil ‘yung unang panalo ng Pilipinas sa World Cup ay ginawa ng kababaihan,” said Velasco. “Sobrang sarap sa feeling namin na part kami ng history.”

SPORTS

A8

WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 2, 2026

RIERA U. MALLARI, Editor RANDY M. CALUAG, Asst. Editor

Alcaraz makes winning return at ‘26 US Open

Spain’s Carlos Alcaraz hits a return to Russia’s Roman Safiullin during their men’s singles first-round tennis match on Day 2 of the US Open tennis tournament at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in New York City. AFP

Eala begins US Open quest against familiar foe Stoiana

By Jeremiah Sevilla

F

ILIPINA tennis ace Alexandra “Alex” Eala jumpstarts her highly anticipated US Open 2026 campaign against American qualifier Mary Stoiana in the first round at the Louis Armstrong Stadium in Flushing Meadows, New York, on Wednesday morning (Philippine time).

Alexandra Eala of the Philippines speaks during Media Day ahead of the US Open at USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in New York City. AFP

Eala, ranked No. 18 in the world, faces No. 122 Stoiana in the Round of 128 at 8:40 a.m., although the match could be pushed back depending on the outcome of the preceding clash between Gael Monfils and Adolfo Vallejo.

The No. 17 seed Eala enters the matchup as the clear favorite, having already beaten Stoiana, 7-5,

6-2, in the Round of 16 of the ITF 1000 Koser Jewelers Tennis Challenge 2024 when the Pinay netter was still ranked No. 147.

The Filipina sensation has surged up the WTA rankings in the past year to become the highestranked Southeast Asian woman player.

Eala is poised to ignite a searing run in the North

American Grand Slam after her historic fourthround finish at Wimbledon followed by a stellar hard-court swing highlighted by her breakthrough title at the Mubadala DC Open.

The 21-year-old tennis sensation is also no stranger to winning in Flushing Meadows. Last year, she became the first Filipino to win a Grand Slam main-draw singles match after stunning seeded Clara Tauson of Denmark before her campaign was cut short in the second round with a loss to Cristina Bucsa of Spain.

But despite her rapid rise and favorable numbers against Stoiana, Eala knows she cannot afford to take every match in the US Open lightly.

“There are so many learnings that I’ve had in the past year and in the past months. I think that now, obviously, the higher I am in the mountain, the steeper it gets,” Eala said on Andy Roddick’s Served podcast during the US Open Media Day. “So even though now I’m top 20 and even when I was 70 or something like that, the huge difference comes in the consistency of how often you’re able to execute that level,” she continued.

Cebu Greats shake MPBL with upset of Abra Weavers THE Cebu Greats shook the SportsPlus MPBL (Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League) 2026 Season with a 74-70 stunner over the Abra Solid North Weavers on Monday at the Ynares Center Montalban in Rizal Province.

Kint Akiar delivered in the homestretch to complete what Mark Meneses set up, lifting Cebu to its fourth straight win and a 19-5 record in the round-robin elimination phase of the two-division, 26-team tournament.

Ariar, a 6-foot-3 find from the Cebu Institute of Technology University and Letran, drilled in a jumper and two free throws in the last 42 seconds as Cebu snapped Abra’s hot run at 19 and pulled the Weavers down to 21-2.

Ron Dennison also delivered at clutch time, making two charities with 20.3 seconds left, compensating for the two free throws of Abra’s Alfred Ryan Batino, only 12.3 seconds to go.

Overall, Meneses carried the Greats past the defending champion Weavers with 26 points, 14 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 steals and 2 blocks in 35 minutes and 29 seconds of play.

Meneses was named the SportsPlus best player over Dhon Reverente, with 16 points, 12 in the third quarter, and 4 rebounds; and Ariar, who notched 8 points and 2 rebounds.

Abra drew 20 points, 11 rebounds and 2 assists from Dave Ildefonso; 18 points, 6 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 steals from DJ Fenner; and 8 points and 9

rebounds from John Uduba.

With Ildefonso pouring in 12 points and Uduba adding 6, Abra took the half, 38-34, negating Meneses’ 16-point effort for Cebu, which is ranked fourth in the South division behind first game winner Quezon Province (16-3), Binan (19-4) and Batangas City (16-4).

Defending champion Abra still paces the North division, towing San Juan and Caloocan, both 18-3, and Ilagan Isabela (13-9).

Quezon trounces Manila The Quezon Huskers battered Manila Batang Quiapo, 107-65, to signify their bid for a third straight South division title.

Manila led briefly, 17-16, as Joe Gomez De Liano knocked in his first three triple attempts. Quezon, however, clustered 28 straight points bridging the first and second quarters to regain control, 44-17, and never let go.

All 15 Huskers, with Cedric Manzano piling 16 and John Abate adding 14, scored as they led by as far as 107-61 with 50.4 seconds left.

Binan thwarts Rizal Binan quelled Rizal XentroMall’s repeated rallies and prevailed, 65-61, in the nightcap.

Nic Cabanero shone again for Binan with 14 points, 14 rebounds and 2 assists; followed by Kenny Rocacurva, with 12 points, 8 rebounds and 4 steals; Carlo Lastimosa, with 11 points and 2 rebounds; Mochael Mabulac, with 10 points, 9 rebounds and 3 assists; and Pamboy Raymundo, with 10 points and 4 assists.

Mark Meneses of Cebu

Caballero to sepak takraw athletes: Win medal in Asian Games, or leave WIN a medal in the 20th Asian Games or else, leave the Philippine sepak takraw team.

It’s the challenge hurled by the Pilipinas Sepaktakraw Association Inc. to the team delegation set to compete in the quadrennial meet later this month in Nagoya, Japan.

PSTAI president Karen Tanchanco-Caballero disclosed the agreement she had with members of the national team pending their departure for the Sept. 19 to Oct. 3 showcase.

“I’d like to share that there is already a courtesy resignation on all athletes if they do not come home with a medal,” Caballero revealed in Tuesday’s Philippine Sportswriters Association Forum at the Philippine Sports Commission media room.

“Ready sila. Handa rin sila because they have to give way din. I mean we have given them all the support they needed for so many years. So it’s only fair for the Filipino taxpayers who pay for their allowances and support. So kumbaga, we only expect the best performance from our athletes and coaches.”

Tough as the task is, but Caballero is confi-

Karen Tanchanco-Caballero

dent the sepak takraw team will deliver as it did in the recent ISTAF World Sepaktakraw Championship-39thThai King’s Cup in Bangkok where the men’s regu team (3-on-3) bagged a historic silver medal and the women’s quadrant (4-on-4) clinched the bronze medal.

Likewise, the Philippines scored its first podium finish in 33 years during the 2022 Hangzhou Asiad when it won a pair of bronze in the men’s regu and the men’s quadrant.

Combined with the extensive training the team has undergone leading to the Nagoya joust, Caballero is certain the Filipino takraw players will deliver against the ‘best of the best in Asia.’

“They are ready. They have extensively prepared for this, and I’m confident naman sa preparations ng ating coaching team,” said the PSTAI chief in the Forum presented by San Miguel Corporation, PSC, Philippine Olympic Committee, MILO, and the country’s 24/7 sports app ArenaPlus.

“It’s the same challenge presented to them by the NSA during the Kings’ Cup. They come home with no medal, no one’s going to the Asian Games. Simply because if you can’t beat anybody in the World Cup, wala rin kayong tatalunin sa Asiad. We are not going to be tourists when we go to Japan. So we mean business.”

NEW YORK—Defending champion Carlos Alcaraz didn’t miss a beat as he returned from a four-month injury absence with a straight-sets first-round victory in the US Open on Monday.

Out of action with a wrist injury since April, Alcaraz passed his first test with flying colors, beating Russian Roman Safiullin 6-4, 6-4, 6-4 at Arthur Ashe Stadium, where women’s defending champion Aryna Sabalenka also made it safely into the second round.

“It’s been a really tough five months for me,” Alcaraz said.

“Being able to step on the Arthur Ashe, being able to compete again, I couldn’t decide to come back in a better tournament. It’s a really special place for me.

“I tried to enjoy as much as I can. I missed the crowd, I missed the energy, I missed competition.

I missed everything.”

Alcaraz is trying to bookend his season with major titles after his Australian Open triumph in January made him the youngest man to complete a career Grand Slam.

Monday’s performance might not have been peak Alcaraz, but the seven-time Grand Slam champion unleashed his powerful forehand with increasing confidence and displayed his familiar touch at the net.

“I think the level of tennis is going to be better for sure,” said Alcaraz, who said he was most proud that he was able to quell his own doubts about his fitness.

“I tried to forget everything, I tried to enjoy,” he said.

Alcaraz’s smooth progress into the second round came less than 24 hours after an ailing Novak Djokovic suffered his earliest Grand Slam exit in 20 years, falling in five brutal sets to Mariano Navone.

The tournament was already missing topranked Jannik Sinner, who has a knee injury, and Djokovic’s exit removed another possible obstacle for Alcaraz, who could have met the Serb in the semi-finals.

Aggressive Sabalenka Sabalenka’s bid for a rare US Open three-peat comes during a worrying drop in form, but the Belarusian star rose to the occasion in a 6-2, 6-4 victory over Camila Osorio.

She was slowed by 23 unforced errors but belted 32 winners to more than compensate, her thunderous groundstrokes proving enough to see off a counter-punching opponent who stepped up her game in the second set. AFP

Otoc, Sanchez banner field as Digos juniors’ netfest unwraps JULIUS Otoc and Cyrelmae Sanchez headline a strong field seeking top honors and ranking points as the MJFC Araw ng Digos Juniors Age Group Tennis Championships fires off Wednesday (Sept. 2) at the Digos City courts in Davao del Sur. Otoc and Sanchez are seeded No. 1 in the boys’ and girls’ 18-and-under division, respectively, with both also seeing action in the 16-and-U category, albeit with lower seeding.

The weeklong Group 2 tournament ushers in the Palawan Pawnshop Mindanao swing, which also features legs in Sultan Kudarat and Cotabato.

Seeking to spoil the top seeds’ bids for championship honors and valuable ranking points are Jhazz Fernando, Kurt Alcantara and Shaun Globasa in the boys’ 18-and-U division, and Aika Salahuddin, Marxian Sira and Dyan Placa in the girls’ side.

Cristiano Calingasan heads the boys’ 16-and-U cast, with Otoc seeded No. 2, followed

by Kresthan Belacas, Kyle Ramos, Rein Hayana, Krisnel Batilo, Carlo Eduarte and Richlord Sira.

Multi-titled Francine Wong leads the girls’ 16-and-U field, which also includes Justine Gumbao, Sanchez, Teresinha Calingasan, Kyth Solis, Marxian Sira, Placa and Dominique Calingasan.

Belacas, another multi-winner in the nationwide junior circuit, tops the boys’ 14-andunder cast alongside Archie Roceta, Xian Sugsi and Andrei Domasing. Wong is likewise tipped to make a strong run in the girls’ 14-and-U division, which includes Gumbao and sisters Teresinha and Dominique Calingasan.

Domasing and Arissa Macapendeg headline the youngest 12-and-U division of the tournament, supported by ICON Golf & Sports and the Palawan Group of Companies.

The Mindanao swing is part of the nationwide junior tennis series put up by Palawan Pawnshop president and CEO Bobby Castro, whose program seeks to bring competitive junior tennis closer to the countryside, where a growing number of promising players are emerging but often lack opportunities to test themselves in high-level competition.

The tournament is hosted by Mayor Josef Fortich Cagas and sanctioned by Philta and Universal Tennis Rating.

Aside from the singles events, titles are also at stake in the boys’ and girls’ 14-and-U and 18-and-U doubles competitions.

BUSINESS

B1

WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 2, 2026

extrastory2000@gmail.com RODERICK T. DELA CRUZ, Editor ALENA MAE S. FLORES, Asst. Editor

WHAT’S INSIDE?

4.11 million Visitor arrivals in 8 months of 2026

3.97 million

Jollibee unit eyes Hong Kong listing

Visitor arrivals in 8 months of 2025

B2 AI ADOPTION. The Department of Trade and Industry convenes key AI stakeholders to discuss where industry

needs the most support and how government and business can work together to accelerate technology adoption and innovation. The dialogue examined possible partnerships, barriers to AI adoption and concrete actions that can help enterprises scale and compete in a rapidly changing economy.

DA seeks P198.5-b budget for 2027

B3

Manufacturing surged in August

B4 Leviste’s firm sells P3b in SPNEC shares

Growth in Chinese arrivals

8-month visitor arrivals rose 3.7% T

By Othel V. Campos

HE Philippines logged 4.11 million international visitor arrivals from January to August 2026, up 3.7 percent from 3.97 million a year ago, as China emerged as the fastest-growing major source market amid efforts to expand visa-free entry to more destinations, Department of Tourism data showed Monday.

Chinese arrivals surged 69.15 percent to 310,088 from 183,319 in the same period last year, making it the fourth-largest source market.

The DOT works to expand the existing visa-free arrangement for Chinese tourists beyond Manila and Cebu to destinations including Clark,

Bohol and Palawan as well as two other areas.

Tourism Secretary Maria Bernardita Angara-Mathay said the agency expects the arrangement to generate more charter flights from China and significantly boost visitor arrivals.

“If you look at the statistics Chinese

arrivals on the rebound, because of that visa free incentive,” AngaraMathay said, referring to the increase in Chinese arrivals under the existing arrangement.

The United States remained the Philippines’ largest source market in the first eight months, with 818,318 arrivals, up 5.95 percent from 772,365 a year earlier.

South Korea ranked second with 727,379 arrivals, down 17.42 percent from 880,827 in the same period last year. Japan followed with 350,191 arrivals, up 0.76 percent.

Australia posted 234,156 arrivals, up 9.1 percent, while Canada recorded 231,972 arrivals, up 13.23 percent.

Taiwan contributed 154,957 visitors, up 9.63 percent.

By Darwin G. Amojelar

BIR destroys illicit vapes with P1.54b in tax liability THE Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) said Monday its Revenue Region No. 6-City of Manila and Palawan destroyed 240,550 illicit vape products with an estimated tax liability of P1.539 billion on Aug. 24, 2026 at the DIGAMA Waste Management Facility in Porac, Pampanga.

BIR Commissioner Charlito Martin Mendoza said the destruction underscores the agency’s commitment to eliminating illegal vape products from the market.

“Enforcement does not end with seizure. We must permanently remove illicit vape products from the market and hold accountable those behind their illegal manufacture, importation, distribu-

The United Kingdom recorded 132,370 arrivals, Singapore posted 126,812 and India logged 77,883. Indian arrivals rose 32.2 percent year-on-year.

The top 10 markets accounted for 3.16 million arrivals, up 3.24 percent, while other markets contributed 948,362 visitors, up 5.29 percent from a year earlier.

The DOT based the figures on eTravel records provided by the Department of Information and Communications Technology. The agency said the data do not represent final international visitor arrivals because eTravel registration is not mandatory for all international visitors.

Final figures will incorporate Bureau of Immigration records.

NLEx operator vows to speed up flood mitigation

Bureau of Internal Revenue personnel destroy 240,550 illicit vape products worth P1.54 billion in tax liability, expanding enforcement from retail stores to warehouses following the Tap Fog Philippines operation.

By Jenniffer B. Austria SOLAR Philippines Power Project Holdings Inc. (SPPPHI), the investment vehicle of Batangas 1st District Rep. Leandro Leviste, has sold P3 billion worth of shares in SP New Energy Corp. (SPNEC), according to a disclosure to the stock exchange.

The sale took place as Leviste faces plunder and graft investigations from the Office of the Ombudsman over alleged violations of his solar energy franchise.

SPNEC said SPPPHI sold 2.4 billion shares in the company at P1.25 apiece. The transaction cut SPPPHI’s stake in SPNEC to 11.51 percent from 16.30 percent.

The company did not disclose the buyer’s identity. Leviste had reportedly been in talks with a foreign entity to sell his remaining shares in the solar firm before the transaction.

MGen Renewable Energy Inc., the renewable energy arm of Manila Electric Co., holds a majority stake in SPNEC. SPNEC also reported that its board approved the acquisition of land by its wholly owned subsidiary Terra Nueva Inc. from Provincia Investments Corp. and JJPNM Agro Industrial Corp., both subsidiaries of SPPPHI. The board also approved budgets for development of the Sta. Rosa project and capital expenditures for the SP Tarlac plant. The disclosure did not specify the value of the land acquisition or the approved project budgets.

Shares of SPNEC closed 0.83 percent lower at P1.20 on Tuesday.

Leviste also holds a minority stake in ABS-CBN Corp.

Ombudsman Jesus Crispin Remulla said on July 31 that his office is investigating Leviste and his mother, Senator Loren Legarda, in connection with P10-billion plunder and graft complaints.

The complaints stem from the alleged failure of Leviste’s renewable energy firm to provide solar power as required under its congressional franchise.

69%

tion or sale,” Mendoza said.

Revenue Region No. 6 regional director Remir Macatangay said BIR Manila has expanded its enforcement operations from individual retail establishments to warehouses.

“We started with retail stores and expanded to warehouses. This led to our operation against Tap Fog Philippines, the largest single illicit vape enforcement operation conducted by the BIR to date. Some of the products seized in that operation were among those destroyed today,” Macatangay said.

The BIR said the destruction activity demonstrates that neither unlawful traders nor unfavorable weather condi-

tions can hinder its commitment to safeguarding government revenue, protecting compliant businesses and keeping illicit vape products out of the market.

Meanwhile, Finance Secretary Frederick Go witnessed the destruction of confiscated illicit cigarettes in Cebu.

Go underscored the government’s continued efforts to strengthen enforcement and protect public revenues, noting that every peso in unpaid taxes means fewer resources for classrooms, hospitals, roads, and the salaries of teachers and police officers. Beyond lost revenues, illicit tobacco also puts Filipino consumers at risk.

METRO Pacific Tollways Corp.

(MPTC), owner and operator of the North Luzon Expressway (NLEX), said Tuesday it is working with national and local agencies to speed up flood-prevention measures and restore reliable travel through the affected NLEX corridor.

The company said it is closely coordinating with the Department of Transportation, the Toll Regulatory Board and other government agencies to assess immediate measures to support motorists affected by days of rain from the southwest monsoon (habagat) and rising water levels in the Pampanga River, while speeding up necessary flood-prevention measures.

MPTC said that as part of a permanent solution to recurring flooding in the San Simon segment of NLEX, it will raise the northbound and southbound pavements in Tulaoc, San Simon, Pampanga, once elevation of the Tulaoc Bridge is completed.

Pampanga Gov. Lilia Pineda earlier said the flooding reflects a broader drainage problem across the province, with water backing up because downstream areas such as Macabebe and Masantol are already full and floodwater cannot readily discharge toward Manila Bay. MPTC also shared observations from Public Works Secretary Vince Dizon that the volume of water brought by the southwest monsoon overwhelmed the system.

SMC, Aboitiz power units submit ‘best bids’

By Alena Mae S. Flores

EMERGENCY WATER. Manila Water Foundation (MWF), together with Manila Water Company’s east zone and non-east zone operating units, activated its Agapay: WASH in Emergencies program to address the urgent water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) needs of communities affected by flooding brought about by the southwest monsoon or habagat.

MANILA Electric Co. (Meralco) declared offers from Mariveles Power Generation Corp. (MPGC), Sual Power Inc. (SPI) and GNPower Mariveles Energy Center (GMEC) as the “possible best bids” in a competitive bidding process to supply 600 megawatts (MW) of baseload capacity.

Meralco received the lowest levelized cost of electricity offers from MPGC at P5.3573 per kilowatthour for 200 MW of capacity and SPI at P5.4357 per kWh for 200 MW following bid submissions Tuesday.

Both companies are units of San Miguel Corp.

GMEC, majority-owned by Aboitiz Power Corp., submitted the third-best bid at P5.5789 per kWh for 200 MW. San Miguel unit MPCL offered P5.6290 per kWh, while Aboitiz Group’s Therma Luzon Inc. bid P5.6988 per kWh for 195 MW. Meralco bids and awards committee for power supply agreements (BACPSA) head Lawrence Fernandez said the committee would now proceed with the post-qualification of the best bids, as indicated in the invitation to bid.

“Bidders and observers are advised to monitor their emails for further updates, questions and notifications,” Fernandez said.

CYAN MAGENTA YELLOW BLACK

BUSINESS

B2 Manila

Standard

TODAY

WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 2, 2026

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ERRATUM Notice is hereby given that the Estate of the late SPOUSES HILARIO P. COLASITO and NORMA B. COLASITO who died intestate on May 25, 2009 and December 10, 2015 respectively was extrajudicially settled among their heirs dated December 28, 2016 registered in the Notarial Register of Atty. Erwin C. Macalino. Notary Public for Makati City as Doc. No. 233; Page No. 39; Book No. 09 Series of 2015

Career Opportunity in Tenerity Philippines Corp.

Position title: Customer Care Specialist Vacancies (1) Job Description:

Jollibee eyeing Hong Kong stock exchange for overseas unit listing J

By Jenniffer B. Austria

Respond professionally, accurately and in a timely manner to customer contacts (primarily inbound calls and may also encompass outbound calls, email, etc.). Actively demonstrate and behave in accordance with company values.

Qualification (Education, Experience, Professional License, Skills Certification, Specialized Training):  

Excellent interpersonal, listening, written and verbal communication skills.

Passion for customer service.

Applications may be sent to: Name of Company HR: Clarence Mae De Asis Email address: MNL_Expat@tenerity.com

Company/ Employer

Name of foreign national intending to apply for the position

Company Name:

Name: Postel Yannick Achi

Tenerity Philippines Corp.

Address: Paranaque City

Complete address:

Nationality: Ivorian

12th Floor, W Fifth Avenue Building, 32nd Street corner 5th Avenue Bonifacio Global City Taguig City 1634

Intended period of employment: Two (2) Years

Nature of business: a domestic corporation primarily to engage in, operate, conduct and maintain the business of providing information technology outsourcing services and business process outsourcing services and support solutions including, but not limited to, inbound calls, back office quality monitoring (non-voice agent monitoring and evaluation), back office training development (non-voice training documentation development or knowledge management development), back office work force management (real time agent monitoring), back office reporting (reporting and data analytics), back office internal help desk - internal IT help desk support and back office IT development and other similar services, and to provide support to all aspects of the business of affiliates and related companies and operations, without engaging as an internet service provider.

Tenerity Philippines Corp. hereby declares that the above-named foreign national is able, willing, and qualified to perform the services and job description for this position. The company has the intention to employ the said foreign national and apply for an Alien Employment Permit with the Bureau of Local Employment located at 6F First Intramuros BF Condominium, Solana St. cor. A. Soriano Ave., Intramuros, Manila

OLLIBEE Foods Corp.

(JFC) is considering Hong Kong for the planned separate listing of its international business as it moves forward with spinning off its Philippine and overseas operations.

JFC said Tuesday it is evaluating a listing for Jollibee Foods Corp. International (JFCI), which will hold its overseas business, on the Main Board of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. The company previously considered a U.S. listing for the unit.

executive of JFCI. JFC chairman Tony Tan Caktiong said the company has been working on establishing two independent entities since announcing the planned listing on Jan. 6.

Under the plan, existing JFC shareholders are expected to receive shares in JFCI based on their current ownership stake, subject to tax and regulatory approvals.

JFC will remain listed on the Philippine Stock Exchange, holding the group’s Philippine operations.

The proposed listing remains subject to corporate restructuring, due diligence, market conditions, and regulatory approvals. Final terms and timing have yet to be determined.

Shares in JFC rose 1.87 percent to P152.80 on Tuesday following the announcement.

The fast-food giant said Hong Kong is under consideration due to JFCI’s brand recognition in Asia and the exchange’s access to regional and global investors.

“The decision reflects the continued development of the proposed transaction and the Company’s assessment of the listing venue best suited to JFCI’s business, geographic footprint, and investment profile,” JFC said in a statement. “The company believes Hong Kong offers the market environment and investor relevance to support JFCI’s long-term ambitions.”

JFC also named Richard Chong Woo Shin chief executive of JFCI. Shin currently serves as JFC’s chief financial and risk officer and chief executive of JFC International. He will retain his current roles until the spin-off is completed, after which he will transition to full-time chief

Any Filipino jobseeker who is competent, able and willing to perform the services for which the foreign national is intended to be hired for, may file an objection at Bureau of Local Employment located at 6F First Intramuros BF Condominium, Solana St. cor. A. Soriano Ave., Intramuros, Manila after this publication. Please inform Bureau of Local Employment, if you have any information on criminal offenses committed by the foreign national

Career Opportunity in NEW PBY CONSTRUCTION CORPORATION Position Title: 1 CONSULTANT MANAGER Job Description:

A Consultant Manager is leads client projects, directs consulting teams, and builds business strategies to help organizations improve performance and solve complex problems.

Qualifications (EDUCATION, EXPERIENCE, PROFESSIONAL LICENSE, SKILL CERTIFICATE, SPECIAL TRAINING) * MUST BE FLUENT IN MADARIN AND ENGLISH LANGUAGE BOTH WRITTEN ANDVERVAL. * COMPUTER LITERATE SPECIALLY MICROSOFT OFFICE OR WPS. * AT LEAST 2-3 YEARS OF WORKING EXPERIENCE. * REQUIRES CAREFUL ATTAINTION TO DETAILS. * ABILITY TO MANAGE MULTIPLE PRIORITIES IN FAST -PACED ENVIRONMENT.

Application may be sent to: NEW PBY CONSTRUCTION CORPORATION newpby@gmail.com

Company / Employer Name

Name of Foreign National intending to apply the position

Name : NEW PBY CONSTRUCTION CORPORATION Address : 21st Street, Don Juico, Malabanias, Angles City, Pampanga Nature of Business : Construction

Name: Zeng, Mingquan Address: Positano 1810 Azur Urban Residences KM 16 West Service Road Parañaque City Nationality: CHINESE Intended period of employment: 3YRS.

NEW PBY CONSTRUCTION CORPORATION. hereby declares that the above-named foreign

TOSHIBA’S AWARDS. Toshiba Lifestyle Philippines earned two Awards of Excellence at the 2026 Philippine Quill Awards for

its ‘Embodying the Takumi Spirit: Toshiba Lifestyle’s ‘Details Matter’’ campaign. The company was recognized under the Marketing, Advertising, and Brand Communication category and the Special and Experiential Events category.

national is able, willing and qualified to perform the services and job description for this position. The company has intention to employ the said foreign national and apply for an Alien Employment Permit with the Department of Labor and Employment-National Capital Region located at 6F BF Condominium Solana St., Intramuros, Manila

Career Opportunity in EFS DOCUMENTATION SERVICES INC. EXACT POSITION : INDIAN MARKETER

( 3 Vacancy) Job Description: - Responsible for Manage and organize all digital and physical documentation for Indian papers.

- Prepare, review, and edit Indian client paperwork.

- Ensure the integrity and accuracy of all Indian paperwork.

- Devising and coordinating intangible and experiential marketing endeavors for the Indian.

- Develop robust knowledge of all services for the suspicious Indian clients.

- Report weekly/monthly on the status of the Indian clients.

- Generate new Indian customers through trade shows, campaigns, webinars, meetings, emails, conferences, etc.

- Contact and meet potential Indian clients on a regular basis for new opportunities.

- Know to translate a Punjabi/Hindi language to English language.

- If you are looking for an opportunity to join a great team and provide outstanding customer service Qualification (Education, Experience, Professional License, Skills Certification, Specialized Training): - Know how to translate Punjabi/Hindi and English language.

- Excellent written, oral, and interpersonal communication skills in both English and Punjabi/Hindi - Proficient in the use of MS Office applications - Strong multi-tasking, customer-service, and problem-solving skills Name of Foreign national intending to apply for the position 1

Name : AMANDEEP SINGH Address : 27 VERGONVILLE SUBD. PULANG LUPA DOS LAS PIÑAS CITY Nationality : INDIAN 2 Name : SANGHA, KULDEEP SINGH Address : 2822 U5 UNITED HILLS 1 YAKAL ST PARAÑAQUE CITY Nationality : INDIAN 3 Name : KARAMJIT SINGH Address : 0033 LT BLK 12 HANDEL ST. NORTH PLYMPUS SUBD. PH4 NOVALICHES QUEZON CITY Nationality: INDIAN EXACT POSITION : BILINGUAL CUSTOMER SERVICE ASSISTANT ( 4 Vacancy) Job Description: - great bilingual customer service assistant.

- responsible for providing excellent customer service to our clients - managing a high volume of customer inquiries - have excellent communication skills especially English and Punjabi/Hindi - able to work in a fast-paced environment Qualification (Education, Experience, Professional License, Skills Certification, Specialized Training): - bilingual skills in Punjabi/Hindi and English - excellent written, oral, and interpersonal communication skills in both English and Punjabi/Hindi - proficient in the use of MS Office applications - strong multi-tasking, customer-service, and problem-solving skills Name of Foreign national intending to apply for the position 1 2

3 4

Name : JASPREET SINGH Address : BLK14 LOT 9 POSADAS A DON JUAN BAYVIEW SUBD SUCAT MUNTINLUPA CITY Nationality : INDIAN Name : HARMANDEEP SINGH Address : 400 CRISTOBAL ST. BRGY. 444 SAMPALOC MANILA Nationality : INDIAN Name : AMARJIT SINGH Address : UNIT 728 TOWER 6 TREES RESIDENCES QUEZON CITY Nationality : INDIAN Name : DHILLON, BHUPINDER SINGH Address : 0021 LT BLOCK 2 E.T HOMES ST. NAGA 3 PULANG LUPA LAS PIÑAS CITY Nationality : INDIAN

EXACT POSITION : CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE ASSISTANT

( 2 Vacancy) Job Description: - great bilingual customer service assistant.

- responsible for providing excellent customer service to our clients - managing a high volume of customer inquiries - Can translate mandarin language to English language - able to work in a fast-paced environment Qualification (Education, Experience, Professional License, Skills Certification, Specialized Training): - bilingual skills in Mandarin and English - excellent written, oral, and interpersonal communication skills in both English and Mandarin - proficient in the use of MS Office applications - strong multi-tasking, customer-service, and problem-solving skills Name of Foreign national intending to apply for the position 1 Name : GUO, XUELING Address: 29 RECORD ST. PROJECT 8 QUEZON CITY Nationality : CHINESE 2 Name : WEI, MINGJUN Address: 1311-1325 ORCHARD RESIDENCES MASANGKAY ST. TONDO MANILA Nationality : CHINESE EXACT POSITION : MANDARIN ADMIN II ( 1 Vacancy ) Job Description:

-Answer and direct phone calls -Can translate mandarin language to English language -Manage communication and answer emails from the Chinese Client Qualification (Education, Experience, Professional License, Skills Certification, Specialized Training): -Excellent English communication skills, both written and verbal.

-Excellent phone, email, and instant messaging communication skills.

-Solid organizational and time management skills.

1

Name of Foreign national intending to apply for the position Name : OUYANG, YAFENG Address: 002 JP RIZAL ST FORTUNA VILLAGE SAN ISIDRO PARAÑAQUE CITY Nationality : CHINESE Intended period of employment: Three (3) years

Company Name : EFS DOCUMENTATION SERVICES INC. Complete Address: 1102B 11th Flr. AIC Center Esolta St. Brgy. 291 Binondo Manila Nature of Business : Documetation Intended period of employment: Three (3) years Applications may be sent to Name of Company HR: MS. ARMIE BAGGAYAN Email address: efsdocumentationservicesinc@gmail.com EFS DOCUMENTATION SERVICES INC. hereby declares that the above-name foreign national is able, willing, and qualified to perform the services and job description for this position. The company has the intention to employ the said foreign national and apply for an Alien Employment Permit with the Department of Labor and EmploymentCentral Office through the Bureau of Local Employment(BLE) located at 6th Flr. BF Condminium Corporation, corner Solana Avenue and Soriano St. Intramuros, Manila, Philippines.

Peso slides to all-time low of 62.40 a dollar

By Jenniffer B. Austria and Thony Rose Lesaca

THE Philippine peso plunged to a new all-time low of 62.40 against the US dollar Tuesday, losing 13.5 centavos from its previous finish of 62.265 on Friday, data from the Bankers Association of the Philippines showed.

The local currency opened at 62.25 against the greenback, before hitting and closing at its new intraday low of 62.40 per dollar.

Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. chief economist Michael Ricafort linked the peso depreciation to the latest hawkish signals of Federal Reserve Chair Kevin Warsh during the Jackson Hole Symposium on Aug. 28. “[This] resulted in a higher gauge of US dollar [versus] major global currencies to among 2-week highs or since August 18, 2026 and up from near 3-month lows,” Ricafort said in a Viber message.

He said a higher 10-year US Treasury yield partly provided support to the greenback.

“The benchmark 10-year US Treasury yield went up slightly recently to 4.78 percent, among the highest in more than 1.5 years or since January 15, 2026 and also among 19-year highs or since 2007, thereby partly supporting the US dollar,” he said.

Philippine stocks, however, rebounded strongly, with the benchmark index rising more than 2 percent as investors returned to select blue-chip stocks.

The bellwether Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) surged 137.56

Megaworld Corp. appoints former Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez as lead independent director, a move expected to strengthen the company’s board as it pursues its longterm growth strategy.

points, or 2.31 percent, to close at 6,093.89.

The broader all shares index gained 44.20 points, or 1.33 percent, to 3,363.19.

AB Capital Securities said the PSEi quickly reclaimed the 6,000 level after dropping below the threshold last week. The rebound was driven largely by International Container Terminal Services Inc. (ICTSI), which jumped 7 percent.

BDO Unibank Inc. and Bank of the Philippine Islands also supported the index, rising 5 percent and 6 percent, respectively, following a sell-off last week during an MSCI rebalancing.

Sectoral indices ended mixed. Services jumped 5.45 percent, while financials climbed 3.27 percent and holding firms added 0.26 percent. Property slipped 0.08 percent, industrials declined 1.10 percent, and mining and oil fell 1.20 percent.

DigiPlus Interactive Corp. was the day’s top index gainer, jumping 7.91 percent to P10.78, while JG Summit Holdings Inc. trailed the index, falling 5.88 percent to P20.

Market breadth was positive, with 106 advancers against 88 decliners, while 64 stocks closed unchanged.

Trading activity picked up as total value turnover reached P8.24 billion. Foreign investors remained net sellers, with net outflows totaling P10 million.

Ex-finance chief joins Megaworld board as director

MEGAWORLD Corp. has appointed former Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez as lead independent director, a move expected to strengthen the company’s board as it pursues a long-term growth strategy.

Megaworld said Tuesday that Dominguez brings more than four decades of experience across the public and private sectors, including leadership roles in banking, power, aviation, agriculture, mining, hospitality, real estate, and investments.

Megaworld chairman Andrew Tan said Dominguez’s background in government, finance, and business will be valuable as the property developer expands across key economic and tourism hubs in the Philippines.

“We are honored to welcome Secretary Sonny Dominguez to Megaworld’s board of directors,” Tan said in a statement to the stock exchange. “His depth of experience and strategic perspective will be invaluable as the company enters its next chapter of growth.”

The company said the addition aligns with its focus on corporate governance, board diversity, and independent oversight.

Dominguez served as finance secretary from 2016 to 2022, leading the Department of Finance during a period of major economic and fiscal reforms. He previously served as secretary of agriculture and secretary of environment and natural resources.

Before returning to public service, Dominguez held senior executive and board positions across several Philippine companies. He served as chairman and president of Philippine Airlines and held leadership roles at Philippine Associated Smelting and Refining Corp., BPI Agricultural Development Bank, and RCBC Capital Corp.

Dominguez holds a bachelor’s degree in economics and a master’s degree in business management from Ateneo de Manila University.

He also completed the Executive Management Program at Stanford University.

Jenniffer B. Austria

CYAN MAGENTA YELLOW BLACK

BUSINESS

B3 WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 2, 2026

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DA seeks leaner P198.5b budget for next year

By Othel V. Campos

CARBON WORKSHOP. Climate Change Commission vice chair and executive director Robert Borje, representing the

Philippines as chair of the ASEAN Task Force on Carbon Neutrality, speaks during a workshop on the ASEAN Strategy for Carbon Neutrality Work Plan in Jakarta, Indonesia.

MVP Group taps US engineering firm for nuclear study

By Alena Mae S. Flores MANILA Electric Co. (Meralco) and power generation arm Meralco PowerGen Corp. (MGen) have selected U.S. engineering firm Sargent & Lundy and local partner AMH Philippines Inc. to conduct a feasibility study on deploying small modular nuclear reactors in the country.

The study is funded through a $2.8 million technical assistance grant from the US Trade and Development Agency announced in February.

The project aims to provide the Meralco Group with a data-driven framework to determine whether, when, and how small modular reactors (SMRs) could join the nation’s energy mix.

An internal nuclear working group will lead the project alongside Sargent & Lundy and AMH, targeting

completion by the fourth quarter of 2027.

“Partnering with Sargent & Lundy marks a pivotal step in turning our nuclear roadmap into actionable, datadriven decisions under our NEST program,” MGen president and chief executive Emmanuel Rubio said. “MGen remains committed to exploring safe, reliable, and low-carbon technologies such as SMRs to secure the Philippines’ long-term energy future.”

Sargent & Lundy will lead a vendor-neutral assessment aligned with International Atomic Energy Agency standards. The study will evaluate technology options, site selection, grid integration, commercial planning, and decision-making frameworks while providing technical workshops for Philippine officials.

The initiative seeks to build technical expertise across key institutions,

including MGen, the Department of Energy (DOE), and the Philippine Atomic Energy Regulatory Authority.

“The study goes beyond identifying suitable technologies and potential sites,” MGen head of strategic energy transition Felino Bernardo said. “It will also build the technical capacity and decision-making frameworks that can support MGen and our national stakeholders well beyond the completion of the study.”

Meralco is also in discussions with US-based Valar Atomics following a zero-power criticality demonstration of its Ward 250 advanced reactor design.

Meralco previously signed a memorandum of understanding with Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power and the Export-Import Bank of Korea to cooperate on reactor engineering, technical exchanges, and legal frameworks for nuclear energy.

T

HE Department of Agriculture is seeking a P198.45 billion budget for 2027, an 8 percent decrease from its P215.69 billion allocation this year, as it prioritizes food production, farm incomes, and food security amid persistent industry challenges.

The proposed funding is P17.25 billion lower than the 2026 budget, driven primarily by a reduction in farm-to-market road funding, which drops to P16 billion from P33 billion in 2026.

The decrease is partly offset by higher allocations for coffee development, projects under the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources, and P20 billion designated for animal industry development and competitiveness.

Funding for the department’s Ricefor-All program remains unchanged at P10 billion, which primarily supports the government’s P20-per-kilogram rice initiative.

The proposal is substantially lower than the P260 billion the agency initially submitted to the Department of Budget and Management for 2027.

Including the National Irrigation Administration and the Department of Agrarian Reform, the combined agriculture and agrarian reform budget declined to P261.74 billion from

P297.1 billion.

The irrigation agency accounted for much of the decrease, with its proposed funding falling to P46.36 billion from P63.25 billion. The agrarian reform department’s allocation dropped to P16.94 billion from P18.16 billion.

Presenting the proposal to the House of Representatives, Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. said the leaner budget must still address high production costs, changing weather patterns, climate risks, and market uncertainty.

Tiu Laurel said the department will prioritize programs aimed at raising farm and fishery productivity, improving infrastructure, reducing postharvest losses, strengthening logistics, and expanding technology use.

The agency also plans to strengthen value chains to help farmers and fisherfolk capture a larger share of the value they create while building resilience against climate and market disruptions.

DA, DOE seek cheaper bioethanol feedstock options to lower fuel prices THE Department of Agriculture and the Department of Energy are exploring cheaper and more diverse feedstock options to make bioethanol competitive with imports while protecting farmers and industries reliant on the same crops.

Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. and Energy Secretary Sharon Garin discussed ways to lower feedstock costs, utilize idle distillery capacity, and expand domestic ethanol production as the government considers raising the ethanol blend in gasoline to 15 percent from the current 10 percent.

Among the options under study are molasses and sugarcane juice from the sugar industry, alongside locally produced corn.

“We are studying these options carefully, and there is potential for them to help bring down gasoline prices,” Tiu Laurel said.

The economics, however, remain challenging. Domestic feedstock has historically been more expensive than imported supplies, while locally produced bioethanol costs about twice as much as imports. Officials estimate that every increase in feedstock costs adds roughly P1 to the price of ethanol.

Corn has emerged as the primary alternative to sugarcane-derived feedstock, but Tiu Laurel said the chal-

lenge is not supply but sourcing corn at a price that makes ethanol production commercially viable.

Local ethanol production ranges from 325 million to 385 million liters a year, against existing plant capacity exceeding 500 million liters.

To protect the sugarcane industry, officials said corn would be used for additional ethanol production without displacing existing sugarcane output.

The agriculture department is evaluating ways to expand corn production through improved seeds, mechanization, and contract farming between growers and ethanol producers.

Corn-based ethanol would generate distillers dried grains with solubles, a high-protein byproduct used by feed manufacturers. However, the agency cautioned that increased demand from ethanol producers could drive up corn prices for livestock raisers who depend on the crop for animal feed.

Tiu Laurel also cited palm oil as a potential long-term feedstock for biodiesel and sustainable aviation fuel, though plantations take about three years to mature.

Meanwhile, the government is finalizing the Philippine National Standard for bioethanol, with the draft undergoing public consultation.

Othel V. Campos

2GO HEADQUARTERS. 2GO Group Inc. relocates its corporate headquarters to the FourE-Com Center at the MOA Complex in Pasay City.

The move to the modern facility aims to enhance employee experience, support operational efficiency, and drive sustainable growth.

NGCP issues red alert for Visayas as deficit hits 288 MW

By Alena Mae S. Flores THE National Grid Corp. of the Philippines placed the Visayas power grid on red alert for seven hours Tuesday due to a supply deficit of 288 megawatts.

NGCP said in an advisory that the red alert will run from 2 p.m. to 9 p.m., warning of potential rotating power outages. Available capacity stood at 2,168 MW against forecasted peak demand of 2,456 MW. The grid operator also issued a yellow alert for the Visayas grid from 1

p.m. to 2 p.m. and from 9 p.m. to 10 p.m.

Ten power plants suffered forced outages this month, while 17 others operated at reduced capacities, leaving a total of 813.9 MW unavailable to the grid.

Grid officials attributed the alerts to forced outages at major Visayas coal facilities TVI 1 and PEDC 3, alongside limited power imports from Mindanao.

NGCP likewise issued a yellow alert for the Mindanao grid from 1 p.m. to 8 p.m. due to thin oper-

ating reserves. Twenty plants were on forced outage in Mindanao this month, while six others ran at reduced capacities, taking 766.3 MW offline.

In Mindanao, major coal unit GNPK 2 remains unavailable, while TSI 2 and GNPK 1 suffered forced outages.

A red alert is declared when power supply is insufficient to meet consumer demand and the grid’s regulating requirements. A yellow alert indicates operating margins cannot satisfy contingency reserves.

PetroGreen secures clearance for Pangasinan solar facility

TENFOLD IMPACT. NQX Philippines partners with the Rotary Club of Taytay Renaissance to launch Tenfold Impact, the company’s 10th anniversary CSR initiative focused on circular economy principles and local livelihood opportunities. Present during the signing were Karen Llana, VP for marketing and communications and Matt Conway, VP for workforce management and professional services at NQX Philippines; Amando Cariño, High Impact president of the Rotary Club of Taytay Renaissance; and Liza Santiago, charter president of the Rotary Club of Taytay Renaissance.

THE Energy Regulatory Commission granted a certificate of compliance to Yuchengco-led PetroGreen Energy Corp.’s 25-megawatt-peak Bugallon Solar Power Plant in Pangasinan on Aug. 19 after the facility completed regulatory requirements for commercial operations.

The issuance follows grid connection approvals from the National Grid Corp. of the Philippines and Central Pangasinan Electric Cooperative on July 22, completing commissioning tests.

“With the issuance of the COC, the facility can now commence commercial operations and proceed with its applications for a Certificate of Endorsement for the Green Energy Tariff with the Department of Energy and for a Renewable Energy Payment Agreement with TransCo [National Transmission Corp.], as the facility

is an eligible project under the Green Energy Auction Program Round 2,” PetroGreen assistant vice president for Power Markets Dave Gadiano said.

“Upon commercial operations, BSPP is expected to generate a stable revenue stream through fixed and guaranteed payments from TransCo,” Gadiano added.

Bugallon Green Energy developed and operates the facility as part of a 111.6-MWp portfolio under Rizal Green Energy Corp., a joint venture between PetroGreen and Japan’s Taisei Corp.

Rizal Green Energy is set to begin commissioning tests for the 6-MWp Limbauan Solar Power Project Phase 1 in San Pablo, Isabela, the final facility in the portfolio to enter commercial service. Alena Mae S. Flores

BUSINESS

B4

WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 2, 2026

extrastory2000@gmail.com RODERICK T. DELA CRUZ, Editor ALENA MAE S. FLORES, Asst. Editor

August manufacturing surged–PMI

By Thony Rose Lesaca

P

HILIPPINE manufacturing grew at its fastest pace in nearly a decade in August 2026, according to S&P Global.

The purchasing managers’ index (PMI) for the Philippines climbed to 54.9 in August 2026 from 51.8 in July, marking the fourth consecutive month of expansion and the fastest pace of growth since December 2016,

S&P Global data showed Tuesday.

Improved output demand and greater production efficiency drove the increase.

S&P Global said stronger inflows of new work, driven by product and

model launches, higher repeat business and a broader customer base, supported output growth. Increased new export orders also modestly lifted overall business in August.

“The Filipino manufacturing sector continued to build momentum in August, moving on from the flat performance seen in the previous quarter, when activity was affected by the conflict in the Middle East. Encouragingly, production rose at its fastest pace since 2016, helped by stronger

demand conditions,” said S&P Global market intelligence economist Maryam Baluch.

Firms responded to the growth by increasing both purchasing activity and manpower, S&P Global said.

“Firms responded by increasing both purchasing and hiring to keep up with greater production needs. At the same time, cost pressures eased, and confidence about the year ahead improved to a 21-month high,” Baluch said.

Input purchases rose to a six-month high as firms adapted to a spike in new orders, while the increase in input costs softened compared with July.

“That said, where expenses increased, firms reported paying more for energy, raw materials and logistics,” S&P Global said.

Output charges also rose during the period, but the rate of inflation was modest and the weakest in six months, the firm said.

IN BRIEF PH telecom firms investing over $2b

THE Philippines’ telecommunications industry is on track to invest more than $2 billion in 2026, the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) said, as the government pushes to expand nationwide digital connectivity.

Combined capital expenditures from the country’s three major telecom operators — PLDT Inc., Globe Telecom and Converge ICT — are expected to reach about $2.21 billion this year, based on public guidance and earnings briefings as of August 2026. This exceeds the $2 billion mark before accounting for spending by other industry players.

Including anticipated investment by DITO Telecommunity, total industry capital expenditures for 2026 could reach $2.4 billion to $2.45 billion, according to estimates based on company guidance.

DICT Secretary Henry Aguda welcomed the commitments, saying they reflect growing confidence in the country’s economic and digital transformation prospects.

“Crossing the $2 billion mark sends a clear message: the telecommunications industry believes in the Philippines. These investments will translate into more infrastructure, better connectivity, new jobs and greater opportunities for Filipinos as we continue building a digital-first economy,” Aguda said. Darwin G. Amojelar

Cebu airport surpasses 500,000 transfer passengers

DIGITAL-READY. Agusan del Norte province launches the Paleng-QR Ph Plus program on July 23, 2026 at the

Cabadbaran Public Market. The program promotes safe, fast and convenient use of digital payments in public markets and local communities. Leading the launch of the program are Agusan del Norte Governor Ma. Angelica Rosedell Amante, vice-governor Enrico Corvera, vice-mayor Leo Dale Corvera, Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) Butuan Branch area director Tatum Blaise Tan and BSP Mindanao regional office officer-in-charge Jason Capocao.

SM Supermalls expects stronger fourth-quarter sales

By Jenniffer B. Austria SM Supermalls, the mall subsidiary of SM Prime Holdings Inc., said it is optimistic about the fourth quarter, as it expects stronger consumer activity during the Christmas season despite the current macroeconomic environment.

“We are very optimistic about it,” SM Supermalls president Stephen Tan said when asked about the prospects of the mall business in the fourth quarter, which is traditionally the strongest period for malls.

The company is counting on “merry-making” and the “Christmas spirit” to boost mall traffic and consumer spending in the coming months.

Tan said mall foot traffic remained

strong in recent weeks despite heavy rain.

The company will open its 91st mall, SM City Nuvali, on Nov. 27, 2026.

SM Supermalls is also expanding and upgrading several properties. SM City Iloilo will add 46,000 square meters of space, while malls in Naga and Santo Tomas, Batangas will also undergo expansions.

Tan said the lineup of movies scheduled for the fourth quarter, along with new cinema formats including ScreenX and LED screens, is expected to attract more customers.

SM Supermalls reported revenue of P41.8 billion in the first half, up 8 percent from a year ago, boosting its occupancy rate to 96 percent.

“Our growth reflects the enduring trust of our tenants and shoppers. Despite macroeconomic headwinds, they continue to find value in the variety of our offerings and the strong sense of community in our malls,” Tan said.

Tan said the company is seeing stronger demand for dining, entertainment, wellness and other activities that give customers reasons to visit malls beyond shopping.

“Our growth plan for the rest of 2026 and beyond is to continue evolving for our customers. SM will keep building business momentum through the introduction of exciting new brands, cinema and entertainment acts, as well as leisure offerings that will sustain market interest,” Tan said.

MACTAN-CEBU International Airport (MCIA), managed by Aboitiz InfraCapital Cebu Airport Corp. (ACAC), said it facilitated over 500,000 passenger transfers through its CEB Connects facility, marking a 48-percent growth in passenger transfers since its launch on April 2025.

CEB Connects has seen an exceptional volume of passengers across domestic and international transfers. Designed to enhance passenger convenience during transfer by reducing self-transfers and re-checking their baggage, the facility has facilitated hundreds of thousands of seamless connections, achieving an impressive average utilization rate of 73 percent across both domestic and international transfers.

“The strong adoption of CEB Connects shows that modern travelers demand efficiency, speed, and absolute peace of mind when choosing a layover hub,” said Ricia Montejo, general manager for Mactan-Cebu International Airport at Aboitiz InfraCapital Cebu Airport Corp.

“Through close collaboration with our key government partners, such as the Bureau of Immigration, Bureau of Customs, Office for Transportation Security, and Bureau of Quarantine, we have established an agile operational model. By drastically shortening transfer times and removing the need to re-check baggage, we are delivering true operational excellence that seamlessly links all types of travelers to the heart of the Philippines while showcasing our signature Cebuano hospitality from the moment they land,” said Montejo.

GSIS returns over P19b to members via Balik Ginhawa

THE Government Service Insurance System (GSIS) said Tuesday it has returned P19 billion directly to over 700,000 members through Balik Ginhawa as of Aug. 31, 2026, putting money back into the hands of government workers when they need it most.

It said that for an ordinary government employee paying P20,000 a month in loan amortizations, six months of relief can mean as much as P120,000 in immediate purchasing power.

“Balik Ginhawa is about putting money back into the hands of our members and letting them decide where their families need it most. That can make a real difference in a family’s life,” GSIS president and general-manager Jose Arnulfo Veloso said.

The refunds cover nearly 1.3 million loan contracts. Of the P19 billion credited under the two programs, P8.9 billion came from the first Balik Ginhawa, while P10.1 billion was credited through the enhanced Balik Ginhawa 2, the GSIS said.’

DOT signs deals with Newport, Klook to boost visitor spending

PH talent crunch threatens 46% of MSME growth plans—survey ABOUT 46 percent of Philippine micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) are facing a talent crisis even as 72 percent plan to expand their workforce, a gap that could constrain growth for small businesses, according to a 2024 survey by Boston Consulting Group (BCG) and the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI).

The survey covered more than 3,000 MSMEs. Jobstreet by SEEK said the findings underscored the need to give MSMEs greater access to recruitment expertise, digital hiring tools and other resources as they seek to expand operations.

Jobstreet by SEEK managing-director Dannah Majarocon said access to talent is critical to business expansion.

“We believe that growing a business starts with having the right people behind it,” Majarocon said.

The employment platform has rolled out business talks, summits and capacity-building programs with local government units, business organizations and MSME communities to help entrepreneurs address hiring challenges.

Jobstreet by SEEK recently held BizTalk sessions in Pasig City and Quezon City in partnership with the Pasig City Local Economic Development and Investment Office and the Quezon City Small Business and Cooperatives Development and Promotions Office. The sessions covered recruitment, digital tools, entrepreneurship and government support programs. Othel V. Campos

By Othel V. Campos

Department of Tourism Secretary Maria Bernardita Angara-Mathay (third from left) and Klook Philippines general manager Michelle Ho (second from left) renew a memorandum of understanding (MOU) for a multi-year strategic partnership to grow Philippine tourism. The partnership will leverage Klook’s global marketing reach and extensive network of local operators to drive tourism demand through campaigns such as lDiscover More to Love’ while developing curated experiences and helping local tourism businesses embrace digitalization.

SSS net revenues climbed 15.63% to P55.5b in July on strong contributions

COLOCATION DEAL. VITRO REIT Inc., PLDT Global Corp. (PGC) and SG.GS Pte. Ltd. sign a colocation agreement to expand network interconnection capabilities in the Philippines and support regional connectivity across the Asia-Pacific. Attending the signing ceremony are (from left) Marcus Toh, business head for APAC, PGC; Edith Gomez-Cudiamat, chief operating officer, PGC; Shawn Ang, managing-director, SG.GS; Davis Yolangco, assistant vice president and sales group head; Roselle Dela Cruz, vice president and head of global business, PGC; and Meliza Avanthi, global account manager, PGC.

THE Social Security System (SSS) posted net revenues of P55.5 billion as of end-July, up 15.63 percent from P48 billion in June, president and chief executive Robert Joseph de Claro said Tuesday.

“That does not include the mandatory provident fund savings of our members,” de Claro said at a media briefing.

Member contributions rose 17.48 percent to P235.33 billion from P200.32 billion in June, while benefits payouts climbed 18.51 percent to P205.56 billion in July from P173.45 billion in the previous month.

“It’s a significant increase in terms of benefits payout if you compare it year-on-year. In absolute amount, it’s about P30 billion for the same period of benefits payout. What’s interesting is that unemployment benefit hasn’t gone up, which is a good reflection

also of the state of the businesses that are contributing to SSS,” de Claro said.

De Claro also reported that 9.18 million members have contributions to the mandatory provident fund, which totaled P263.12 billion in the first seven months of the year.

This was 2.93 percent higher than the P255.63 billion recorded in June, when 9.06 million members contributed to the fund.

Total assets reached P1.36 trillion as of end-July, while expenditures amounted to P7.09 billion. De Claro said this was equivalent to 24.3 percent of the SSS’s P29.22 billion allowed Charter limit for spending.

A stronger fund translates to a stronger capacity to pay pensions and benefits, Finance Secretary Frederick Go said. Thony Rose Lesaca

THE Department of Tourism (DOT) is deepening partnerships with the private sector to broaden the Philippines’ tourism offerings, tapping entertainment and digital platforms to encourage longer stays, higher visitor spending and repeat travel.

The DOT and Newport World Resorts signed a memorandum of understanding on Sept. 1 to position live entertainment, cultural productions, culinary experiences and leisure attractions as integral components of destination development.

Under the agreement, the DOT will integrate Newport World Resorts’ offerings into its “Love the Philippines” and “Discover More to Love” campaigns, promote original Filipino productions and link the resort with tourism stakeholders in domestic and overseas markets.

Newport World Resorts will develop stay, dine and watch packages, create Metro Manila itineraries centered on experiential travel and explore promotional rates and ticket offers that turn tourism campaigns into bookable experiences.

“Entertainment has become one of the strongest reasons travelers choose to visit and return to a destination,” Department of Tourism Secretary Maria Bernardita Angara-Mathay said, noting that the partnership would help showcase Filipino talent and creativity while supporting the country’s creative economy.

The DOT also renewed its memorandum of understanding with Klook for a two-year partnership aimed at boosting tourism demand and accelerating the digitalization of local tourism businesses through Klook’s global marketing reach.

COMMUNITY

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SPOTLIGHT

WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 2, 2026 digital.manilastandard@gmail.com/ digital.mktg@manilastandard.net Peter Paul Duran, Issue Editor

It’s okay not to be okay!

Metro dance jams create spaces for movement and belonging

Different dance communities come together in weekly open sessions in either open spaces or dance studios. The sessions serve as a break from all the competition through dance-filled nights of expression, enjoyment, and connection. Anya Gombio, @mandaraisojam on IG

By Antonio Gabriel P. Gombio

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ANCING has always run in the Filipino blood with local dance crews continuing to shine on the global stage.

Throughout August, Filipino dance groups emerged victorious in different dance competitions such as Hip Hop International (HHI) and the International Dance League (IDL)—a sentiment of the Filipino talent.

But behind every competitor is a dancer who pursued the art out of interest and fun. Several movements have pushed to create more open dance sessions in the Metro to welcome all dance styles and bring different dance communities together.

Beyond competition There is more to dance than just taking part in competitions and battle events.

Anya Gombio, a dancer coming from a competitive background, longed for a

space where people can dance without a necessary goal.

“Sometimes we forget that dance doesn’t have to be a competitive thing and you don’t have to have such a deep reason in order to dance. You can just go to have fun,” she said.

Bringing it to life, she created FOR THE LOVE. The initiative is a space for dancers from any background to socialize and to dance “for the love” of it through weekly sessions that are free of charge in STUDIO AT THE THIRD, a dance studio in Pasay.

“I want FOR THE LOVE to be a space where even strangers feel like friends after,” she added.

A safe space Dance is an intimate art that

requires a floor for dancers to express themselves without fear of judgement.

For Ladies in Circle, a dance collective, it takes place every Friday in a gathering exclusive to women and queer dancers.

Jho Popanes, who pioneered the movement, wanted to create a space for people in the competitive scene to transition into freestyle dancing without feeling intimidated.

“Male-dominated talaga yung [dance] scene, so I wanted a scene din to where ladies can thrive,” she said.

The weekly sessions have brought female dancers from different styles and back-

By Robert Harland

grounds to bond together and be empowered. The movement has also set its place in Bacolod and has even inspired female dancers in Singapore to create a similar community.

Promoting businesses Organizing dance sessions in public places can also be an opportunity for spaces such as public parks and commercial spaces to attract more visitors.

In the case of Mandaraiso Jam, a community of dancers that come from the battle scene, their weekly jams every Thursday night at Greenfield District in Mandaluyong has become a way to increase foot traffic in the area.

“This is probably the first time na a free spot in Metro Manila [where] we are not worried if masisita tayo ng guard or masasabihan,” Jeriel Realubit, a core member of the group, said.

Hosting as many as 50 dancers, Mandaraiso Jam has turned their spot in Mandaluyong into a dance hub that other dance communities can visit.

Ricky Ho, a fellow core member, hopes their collaboration with the management team of Greenfield District can bring in more guests and encourage a healthy lifestyle.

“It’s mainly to be free and to promote the space, the area, and to bring in traffic in a good way,” he said.

MORE than a thousand students from public and private schools across Negros Occidental gathered at SM City Bacolod Sky Hall recently for the Global Youth Summit 2026, a dynamic event organized in partnership with the Global Peace Foundation Philippines.

Among the featured speakers was Dr. Donalyn G. Lastima, President of the Rotary Club of BacolodMarapara, who delivered a compelling session on “Beyond ‘Okay Lang Ko’: Breaking the Silence on Youth Mental Health.”

President Lastima challenged young people to look beyond the familiar phrase “Okay lang ko” — often used to mask stress, anxiety or loneliness — and instead embrace open conversations about mental health. Citing World Health Organization data that one in seven adolescents worldwide experiences a mental health condition, she underscored the urgency of addressing depression, anxiety and behavioral disorders as part of overall well-being.

Her talk connected youth mental health to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 3: Good Health and Well-being, reminding participants that mental health is inseparable from physical health and requires supportive families, schools and communities.

Through interactive activities such as “How Are You, Really?” and “Signal Check,” President Lastima encouraged participants to recognize signs of distress and introduced the simple but powerful LOOK • LISTEN • LINK framework: LOOK – Notice changes in behavior, mood, and relationships.

LISTEN – Provide a safe, nonjudgmental space for conversation.

LINK – Connect peers to trusted adults, guidance counselors, or professionals.

She emphasized that friends need not become therapists, but they can serve as bridges to help by listening, staying connected and encouraging others to seek support.

Her central message — “Don’t just ask. Ask again” — resonated strongly with the audience. By practicing “The Second Ask,” young people can break the culture of silence and open doors to conversations that may be desperately needed.

The summit provided a welcoming space where youth voices were heard and valued. Alongside President Lastima, other speakers included program manager John Dyrick M. Dormis of the Negrosanon Initiative for Climate and the Environment (NICE) and wildlife educator Joakim Isyru A. Decena of Negros Forest Park.

The event concluded with participants inspired to take action in their schools and communities, carrying forward the message that mental health matters — and it’s okay not to be okay.

Cotti Spotty: Your coffee buddy

By Clarisse Sabigan and Kristoff Pascua

A CUP of coffee can offer more than a moment to pause. At Cotti Coffee’s Metro Manila branches, customers can now spend their coffee break catching up not only with their conversations, work, or social media feeds, but also with the latest news.

On July 29, the Manila Standard team visited two Cotti Coffee branches as part of an initiative to make news more accessible in everyday spaces. Through QR code standees placed inside the café, customers can scan and access Manila Standard’s digital news while enjoying their drinks.

This initiative not only provides a convenient point of access to information but also brings news into the familiar and comfortable space of a café, allowing customers to incorporate staying informed into their daily routines through digital innovation.

Facts have impact Established in 2022 in China, Cotti Coffee has built its brand around coffee, global flavors, and a modern café experience. The company sources ingredients from different parts of

the world, including coffee-growing regions such as Ethiopia, Brazil, Colombia, and Uganda.

“Great Coffee Starts with Great Ingredients.” Through its brand philosophy, Cotti Coffee expresses its commitment to excellence. According to the Selección Argentina in English, the company is also the Global Sponsor of the Argentina National Football Team, Cotti Coffee has received multiple Gold Awards at the IIAC International Coffee Tasting Competition for three consecutive years, reflecting its commitment to coffee quality.

More than just coffee Coffee From international to local flavors, its café experience extends beyond the beverage itself. Since entering the Philippine market in October 2025, Cotti Coffee has expanded to more than 20 stores nationwide and plans to continue growing across the country.

Its cafés are designed to provide customers with a modern and comfortable environment where they can socialize, work, or simply take a break. Its accessible menu and contemporary atmosphere contribute to the experience that the brand offers

The official distribution of Manila Standard QR code stands for Cotti Coffee.

Kristoff Pascua

its customers.

As part of its expansion strategy, Cotti Coffee Philippines is also open to franchising and partnerships, creating opportunities to introduce its café concept to more communities.

From coffee break to news break Coffee Beyond its coffee offerings, Cotti Coffee’s partnership with Manila Standard aims to bring digital innovation and access to news closer to customers. Through the QR code initiative, customers can enjoy their coffee while conveniently accessing digital news within the café.

Cotti Coffee brings more than the familiar aroma of coffee. Its inviting atmosphere, contemporary design, and comfortable setting create an intimate experience for customers.

With news just a scan away, the café becomes not only a place to enjoy a cup of coffee but also a space where customers can stay connected and informed. Coffee Customers are invited to experience Cotti Coffee firsthand at its flagship store in MJ Plaza, 106 Valero Street, Salcedo Village, Barangay Bel-Air, Makati City. More than just a place to grab a cup of coffee, the store offers guests the opportunity to discover the brand’s signature brews, refreshing beverages, and innovative menu offerings in a welcoming and, contemporary setting.

Here, every visit becomes part of the Cotti Coffee experience—where quality, innovation, and hospitality come together.

As one of the fastest-growing coffee brands in the world, Cotti Coffee continues to create meaningful moments for customers, inviting them to enjoy not only their favorite drinks but also the warm and vibrant atmosphere that defines the brand.

Beyond Recreation: Resort aims for spot on PH’s top MICE destinations list

FROM world-class family vacations to large-scale corporate events, Jpark Island Resort & Waterpark Mactan, Cebu continues to strengthen its position as one of the country’s leading integrated resort destinations, offering travelers a seamless blend of leisure, recreation, and business facilities.

Situated along the white-sand coastline of Mactan Island in Cebu, the 16.5-hectare property is recognized as the Philippines’ premier family water park resort. It is also the largest hotel in Mactan in terms of room inventory, featuring 820 accommodations composed of spacious guestrooms, luxury suites, themed family rooms, and private villas designed for couples, families, and groups.

One of the resort’s biggest attractions is its expansive water park, home to seven themed swimming pools, three towering waterslides, a private white-sand beach, and Mactan’s longest shoreline. Guests can also enjoy a variety of outdoor ac-

tivities, including mini golf, go-kart bikes, giant chess, an outdoor fitness center, and the J Activity Zone.

Beyond recreation, the resort has established itself as one of the country’s leading destinations for meetings, incentives, conferences, and exhibitions (MICE).

Its Triton Grand Ballroom, the largest ballroom in Mactan, accommodates up to 1,400 guests, while four fully equipped function rooms provide flexible venues for business meetings, seminars, social events, and private celebrations. All meeting facilities feature high-speed internet access and built-in LED and LCD projection systems.

Since opening in 2009, Jpark Island has hosted numerous high-profile local and international events. Among its notable milestones was welcoming the 2,500-delegate MetLife Insurance incentive group in 2012, one of Cebu’s largest incentive gatherings, and serving as the venue partner for the Miss Universe 2017 Swimwear Competition.

SHOWBIZ

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WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 2, 2026

lifeandshow.manilastandard@gmail.com NICKIE WANG, Editor ANGELICA VILLANUEVA, Writer JASPER VALDEZ, Writer

Pasig City’s social media crusader wins Mr Phillippines 2026 crown

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Charles Angelo Dripin of Pasig City bested 46 candidates for the inaugural national title of Mr Philippines 2026

harles Angelo Dripin of Pasig City has been crowned Mr Philippines 2026 after edging out 46 other candidates in the inaugural male pageant held Monday night in Quezon City.

The 23-year-old, who stands 5 feet 9 inches tall, took home the crown along with a prize package worth P2 million in cash and services.

But it was his answer on misinformation and social media that gave his victory an added dimension.

During the final Q&A, the top 11 finalists were asked: “If you were crowned Mr Philippines tonight, how would you use your advocacy to address one of the biggest challenges facing the Philippines? And why is it the issue that deserves your immediate attention?”

Dripin chose misinformation and the impact of social media.

“Social media is so powerful that it can change or even destroy other people’s lives,” he said.

He described false information as a modern crisis that can affect the country’s reputation and people’s mental health.

“If I win the title of Mr Philippines 2026 tonight, I will use my voice and platform to work toward creating a community of more informed and responsible Filipino social media users,” Dripin said.

He ended with a call for greater responsibility online: “So let us all post with purpose, click with care, and work together to make social media a better and safer environment for our society, our nation, and our future generations.”

Dripin was the most decorated candidate of the night, winning several special awards, including Best in Swimwear and a sponsor award from

The Mr Philippines 2026 competition names six major titleholders who are set to represent the country in international pageants

Regal Entertainment.

As this year’s grand winner, he will serve as the primary face of the Mr Philippines Organization, leading its advocacies, business ventures, tourism campaigns, public engagements, and national initiatives. He will also represent the Philippines at Mister Grand International, which will be held in Manila in April 2027.

Five other major crowns, which came with their own international assignments, were also given out during the pageant night.

Raed El Zein of the UAE, representing Fil-Com, won Man of the Year Philippines 2026. He received P1 million worth of cash and services and will represent the Philippines at the Man of the Year pageant in Indonesia in October 2027.

Carl Santiago of Laguna was named Mister Philippines Global Runway 2026 and received P1 million worth of cash and services. He will compete at Mister Conservation 2026 in Indonesia this November.

Chris Alcantara of Bataan won the Mr. Philippines World Super-

model 2026 title and a P1 million prize package in cash and services.

He will represent the country at the World Fitness Supermodel Competition in Thailand from Oct. 7 to 10.

Nate Reyes of San Juan City was crowned Mr. Grand Teen Philippines and also received P1 million worth of cash and services.

He will compete at Mister Conservation Teen in Indonesia.

The sixth crown went to Patrick Sy of Caloocan City, winner of the IAM Model Search. He received P1 million in cash and services and will represent the Philippines at Mr. Global Asian in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, from Jan. 25 to 29.

Zandro Sales of Mandaluyong City was named first runner-up, while Samuel Bryant of Bacolod City finished as second runner-up.

The other special titles went to Ozzy Gallardo of Ilocos Sur as Tourism Ambassador, Fredo Godinez of Surigao del Sur as Education Ambassador, and Jacob Polintan of Bulacan Province as Culture and Arts Ambassador.

Japanese girl group HANA joins the crossborder concert collaboration

Region’s biggest girl groups unite for Asia-wide 2027 concerts ‘Nation’s Girl Group’ BINI makes history as the first homegrown Filipino act to perform at Coachella in 2026.

THREE of Asia’s biggest girl groups are joining forces for a three-country concert series that will bring together the pop scenes of Japan, Thailand, and the Philippines Japan’s HANA, Thailand’s 4EVE and the Philippines’ BINI will headline Asia Pop Girl Fest 2027, with shows scheduled in Chiba, Bangkok, and Manila.

The three groups will perform separately and also take part in special stages created exclusively for the cross-border collaboration.

The festival will open at LaLa Arena Tokyo-Bay in Chiba on Jan. 22 and 23, 2027, before moving to BITEC Live in Bangkok on Feb. 13 and SM Mall of Asia Arena in Manila on Feb. 19.

Further details on the Bangkok and Manila shows, including ticket information, will be announced later.

HANA is a seven-member Japanese girl group produced by Chanmina. Its members are Chika, Naoko, Jisoo, Yuri, Momoka, Koharu, and Mahina.

Thailand’s 4EVE comprises Mind, Jorin, Taaom, Hannah, Fai, Punch, and Aheye. The group debuted in 2020 with “Ooh La La!” and later scored a major hit with “Test Me,”, which reached No. 1 on Spotify Thailand.

4EVE became the first Thai girl group named Spotify Global Equal Ambassadors and was featured on a billboard in New York’s Times Square. The group has also performed at Head in the Clouds in Los Angeles and Music Expo Live 2025 at Tokyo Dome.

Thailand’s 4EVE achieves success with its hit track ‘Test Me’

BINI, known as “The Nation’s Girl Group,” has eight members: Aiah, Colet, Gwen, Maloi, Stacey, Jhoanna, Mikha, and Sheena.

The Filipino group made history in 2026 as the first homegrown Filipino act to perform at Coachella. Its performance of “Pantropiko” became the most-viewed performance by a female artist at this year’s festival and helped BINI trend No. 1 worldwide.

BINI also received the Global Force Award at this year’s Billboard Women in Music.

On July 24, the group performed at San Diego Comic-Con after becoming the voices behind “A Parallel World,” an original song from the soundtrack of Forgotten Island, DreamWorks Animation’s first major animated film focused on Philippine folklore and mythology.

BINI has amassed more than 2 billion streams across multiple digital platforms. Its 2026 EP, Signals, charted in several territories on iTunes and earned placements on Spotify editorial playlists.

The group has also received international recognition, including Best Asia Act at the MTV Europe Music Awards, Voices of Asia at Billboard Korea’s K Power 100, and a place on Forbes Asia’s 30 Under 30 in 2025.

On July 11, BINI became the first act to perform at the new SM Seaside Cebu Arena, kicking off its Signals World Tour in 2026.

Newly crowned Mr Philippines 2026 Charles Angelo Dripin prepares to represent the country at Mister Grand International in Manila in 2027

Dripin puts responsible social media use at the center of his advocacy

Joy Barcoma exits ‘Dogshow Divas’ amid online comments BEAUTY queen and content creator Joy Barcoma has left the Dogshow Divas podcast following online comments questioning her frequent appearances on the show.

On Monday, Aug. 31, Joy announced her decision, explaining that the frequency of her guest appearances was not under her control.

“Today, I’ve decided to step away from Dogshow Divas.

Nabasa ko ang comments about my guestings,” she wrote.

Joy said she has always been grateful for invitations to appear on podcasts whenever her schedule allows but decided to leave the program to “protect my peace.”

“Grateful ako to everyone who supported us, but for now, I’m choosing to protect my peace. All the best to ‘Dogshow Divas,’” Joy added.

Podcast founders Baus Rufo and Macoy Dubs responded to Joy’s announcement with messages of support.

“Thanks for bringing such light and joy to the pod. Always the class act

Joy Barcoma (center) previously joined content creators Macoy Dubs (left) and Baus Rufo (right) as hosts of podcast ‘Dogshow Divas’

Joy Barcoma leaves the ‘Dogshow Divas’ podcast after online comments question her frequent appearances

and the dazzling jusa that you are,” Rufo wrote.

Macoy also thanked Barcoma “for the time and effort” she gave to the podcast.

LIFE & SHOWBIZ Thai actors and entertainment representatives join industry discussions in Manila as Thailand seeks wider content partnerships with Philippine companies

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WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 2, 2026

The networking event facilitates partnerships between Thai and Philippine companies in film, television, and media production

Thailand’s entertainment giants come knocking in Manila

By Nickie Wang THAILAND’S entertainment industry is looking to deepen its ties with the Philippines as Thai producers, actors, creatives, and industry stakeholders gathered in Makati City for a networking event aimed at forging new partnerships.

The Thai Content in the Philippines 2026 Networking Dinner Talk was held Aug. 28 at New World Makati Hotel, bringing together representatives from 18 Thai companies in film, television, drama, series, and media production with Philippine networks, distributors, and production houses.

Organized by the Department of International

Trade Promotion (DITP) under Thailand’s Ministry of Commerce, the three-day initiative from Aug. 26 to 28 included company visits, businessmatching sessions, and the networking dinner.

DITP director-general Sunanta Kangvalkulkij described the Philippines as “one of a high-potential markets” for Thailand’s content industry, citing the country’s expanding creative economy, digital platforms, streaming services, and large young and working-age population.

“The growing popularity of Thai artists, actors, and content among Filipino audiences also presents significant opportunities for Thai businesses to reach new audiences, license content, pursue co-production opportunities, and develop business

partnerships between the two countries,” Sunanta said.

Thai participants visited Philippine companies and organizations involved in content production and distribution on Aug. 26 and 27. The Aug. 28 business-matching sessions connected them with Philippine importers, distributors, digital platforms, and prospective partners.

The networking dinner capped the initiative, giving industry stakeholders from both countries an opportunity to exchange ideas and discuss potential collaborations.

“Philippines is one of ASEAN’s strategic markets with strong potential, both in terms of its consumer base and its dynamic media and entertain-

Thai actor Jay DangUrai (right) and Korean actor and singer Yang Dong-won join the partnership event

ment industry,” Sunanta said.

She added that the initiative would “create new business opportunities, strengthen networks and cooperation between Thai and Philippine businesses, and support the expansion of content licensing and co-production opportunities.”

DITP said the initiative forms part of its continuing efforts to expand Thailand’s content industry into international markets and strengthen the country’s position as a regional hub for content and entertainment.

The stars are out for Puregold CinePanalo fest S

Zanjoe Marudo leads Thop Nazareno’s ‘Apol of My Ai,’ a film about a boy’s strained relationship with his father, resolved through music

EVEN films, seven different stories, and a cast packed with some of the Philippines’ biggest stars and promising new faces.

N O W & N The Puregold CinePanalo Festival 2026 returns E Film with John Arcilla, Zanjoe Xyriel Manabat, X Marudo, Khalil Ramos, Agot Joross Gamboa, T Isidro, Rochelle Pangilinan, juan

karlos, Sassa Gurl, Ian Pangilinan, Rita Daniela, and others leading its seven full-length films.

The lineup moves from ghosts and accidental hitmen to magical road trips, first love, mortality, and complicated family ties, with established actors taking on roles far removed from their usual screen personas.

“This year’s seven full-length films show that Filipino stories can be both deeply meaningful and compelling to a wide audience,” Festival Chair and Puregold senior marketing manager Ivy Hayagan-Piedad said. “We hope to give these audiences films that not only entertain but also resonate with the experiences, values, and dreams that make us proudly Filipino.”

Zanjoe Marudo and Rochelle Pangilinan lead Thop Nazareno’s Apol of My Ai, which introduces young actor Zion Cruz. The film follows Apol, a boy approaching manhood whose growing feelings for his choir teacher and a painful decision by his father, Poli, strain their relationship.

Music becomes their way back to each other.

John Arcilla plays Lolo Omeng, an aging farmer who travels to Manila with his loyal carabao, Pepe, played

by Ruslan Jacob, in Lawrence Fajardo’s Beast. What begins as a final harvest turns into a magical journey shaped by the memory of Lolo Omeng’s niece.

Candy Pangilinan, Karl Medina, XY Martillo, Raul Morit, Dax Alejandro, Onyl Torres, Marvin

John Arcilla plays Lolo Omeng, an aging farmer, who travels to Manila with his carabao, Pepe

Xyriel Manabat (left) opposites River Joseph in Mikko Baldoza’s CinePanalo film entry ‘Stuck on You’

Yap, John Arceo, Neil Tolentino, Jemuel Satumba, and Sol Samodio complete the cast.

Mikko Baldoza’s Stuck on You gives Xyriel Manabat an unusual role as a heartbroken manicurista who accidentally accepts a hitman’s job and becomes caught in a conspiracy where saving her family could mean killing the man of her dreams.

River Joseph, Roger Naldo, Bob Jbeili, Bombi Plata, Viggo Franco, JM Salvado, Joel Saracho, and Renzie Aguilar also star.

Khalil Ramos and Ian Pangilinan lead Carl Joseph E. Papa and Ian Pangilinan’s Patay Gutom, alongside Agot Isidro and Cris Villanueva.

After accidentally eating an offering meant for a ghost, a grumpy shut-in develops a third eye, setting off an unlikely relationship shaped by family secrets, heartbreak, and a connection

Sassa Gurl leads Rodina Singh’s ‘Multwoh,’ a film about a college queer who returns as a ghost to express love

Khalil Ramos (right) and Ian Pangilinan star in ‘Patay Gutom,’ a film about a shut-in who gains a third eye after eating a ghost offering

between the living and dead.

Singer-songwriter juan karlos makes a dramatic turn opposite veteran actor Perry Dizon in BC Amparado’s Mono No Aware. Set in Japan, the film follows a Filipino kodokushi cleaner who meets an elderly widower living alone. When the old man asks for one final favor before he dies, their meeting becomes a story about grief, family, and accepting life’s impermanence.

Momoko Kobayashi, Paolo O’Hara, Kentarou Furuyama, Aika Higashimori, Kaname Nagamori, and Tadashi Watanabe also star.

Sassa Gurl and Joao Constancia explore love after death in Rodina Singh’s Multwoh (Patay na Patay sa ‘Yo). A college queer dies suddenly in their dorm and returns as a ghost, not for revenge but to settle unfinished romantic business and finally say, “I love you.”

The cast also includes John Lapus,

Juan Karlos (left) and Perry Dizon star in ‘Mono No Aware,’ a Japan-set drama about grief, family, and accepting life’s impermanence

Iyah Mina, Phi Palmos, Mae Paner, Buboy Villar, Pipay, Gaia Poly, Yani Villarosa, Migs Almendras, Kaladkaren, Inah Evans, Christian Antolin, Lui Manansala, Sofia Trazona, Arman Salon, Chino Liu, Tart Carlos, and Eric Fructuoso.

In Joseph Abello’s Wantawsan, Joross Gamboa plays a struggling father who receives P1,000 from the newly elected mayor he supported. He plans to buy food for his son’s birthday, but the errand becomes a comic test of his values, resourcefulness and wit.

Zion Cruz, Rita Daniela, and Alwyn Uytingco join Gamboa in the lead cast.

Together, the seven films put established stars in unexpected roles while giving emerging performers major parts.

“We are happy that Puregold CinePanalo has become a festival that

Naomi Watts to receive lifetime award at top Spain film fest HOLLYWOOD star actor and producer Naomi Watts will receive a lifetime achievement award at Spain’s top film festival next month, organizers announced on Monday.

The San Sebastian Film Festival said the British-born Australian, a two-time Oscar nominee, would take the “Donostia” prize as “one of the most talented and recognized actresses of her generation.”

Watts, 57, first made a name for herself in David Lynch’s 2001 movie Mulholland Drive and has played ver-

satile roles in both auteur cinema and big productions.

She earned Oscar nominations for her performances in 21 Grams (2003)

by Mexican director Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu and The Impossible (2012) under Spain’s Juan Antonio Bayona.

Inarritu’s Birdman (2014), You Will Meet a Tall Dark Stranger (2010) by Woody Allen and Michael Haneke’s Funny Games (1997) feature among her other standout roles.

Watts was nominated for an Emmy

Award for her work in Ryan Murphy’s mini-series Feud: Capote vs.

The Swans, where she was also an executive producer.

Watts has also stood out in recent times for raising awareness about women’s health and menopause.

The prize ceremony will take place on September 19 in the northern coastal city of San Sebastian, where the Spanish-speaking world’s most prestigious film festival will run from Sept. 18 to 26.

A showing of the new film The

Housewife will follow, where Watts stars as the enigmatic wife of a suspected former Nazi official living in 1960s New York.

German director, scriptwriter, producer, and actor Werner Herzog is also due to take home a Donostia award this year.

The illustrious list of previous winners includes Gregory Peck, Bette Davis, Lauren Bacall, Francis Ford Coppola, Woody Allen, Oliver Stone, Agnes Varda, Catherine Deneuve, and Pedro Almodovar. AFP

today’s brightest actors want to take part in,” Hayagan-Piedad said. “It gives them the opportunity to be part of quality stories with heart and purpose.”

The Puregold CinePanalo Film Festival 2026 runs Sept. 23 to Oct. 4 at Gateway Cineplex 18, Trinoma, Fairview Terraces, Feliz, Ayala Malls Circuit, Ayala Malls Manila Bay, and Market! Market!

Tickets cost P250 regular and P200 discounted. A P2,000 festival pass is also available. PWDs, senior citizens, students, national athletes, and Aling Puring and Perks cardholders qualify for discounted tickets.

Festival passes will be available at Gateway Cineplex 18 starting Sept. 22, followed by all participating malls on Sept. 23.

San Sebastian Film Festival names Naomi Watts as the recipient of its Donostia lifetime achievement award

LIFE

C4

WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 2, 2026

lifeandshow.manilastandard@gmail.com NICKIE WANG, Editor ANGELICA VILLANUEVA, Writer JASPER VALDEZ, Writer

W

HENEVER we had a newspaper at home, I would skip the front page and make a beeline for the entertainment section. Before reading anything else, I would look for the comics.

I enjoyed the punchlines, the different kinds of humor, the characters, and the pleasure of following a story through a few panels. As a young reader, I did not think much about the artists behind the drawings until I worked at a newspaper and met some of the country’s best illustrators, including Roni Santiago, Norman Isaac, Stanley Chi, and Edison Ching Padilla.

One artist whose work became familiar to me was National Artist Larry Alcala. His comics turned ordinary Filipino experiences into something amusing, relatable, and memorable.

If you are a fan of Pinoy comics, you would enjoy Return to the Popular: Drawing the Filipino Imagination at Gallery 2 of the Metropolitan Theater in Manila.

Co-organized by the Cultural Center of the Philippines, the Larry Alcala Estate, National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA), Filipino Heritage Festival Inc. (FHFI), and the Metropolitan Museum of Manila, the exhibit celebrates the 100th birthday of National Artist Lauro “Larry” Alcala.

Known as Mang Larry, Alcala became a household name in Philippine cartooning by documenting people, their habits, and everyday experiences.

His notable works include Kalabog en Bosyo, Siopawman, and Mang Ambo, as well as the weekly Slice of Life.

Kalabog en Bosyo later earned the distinction of being the longest-running comic strip made by a Filipino.

His contribution extended to education. As a professor at the University of the Philippines College of Fine Arts, Alcala shared his knowledge with aspiring artists and introduced the country’s first college degree course in commercial design. He encouraged younger artists to explore cartooning as both a profession and a way to communicate ideas, earning him the title “Dean of Filipino Cartoonists.”

Reintroducing Mang Larry to a new generation The exhibit offers a chance to look beyond Alcala’s familiar comic strips and appreciate the artistry behind

Larry Alcala’s Filipino world comes alive again

‘Return to the Popular’ revisits Larry Alcala’s legacy through illustrations, memorabilia, and works that chronicle ordinary Filipino experiences

National Artist Larry Alcala’s familiar humor and observations of everyday Filipino life reach a new generation through a centennial exhibition in Manila

Visitors are invited to add their own drawings to the celebration, extending Larry Alcala’s belief that cartooning belongs to everyone

The centennial exhibit brings Larry Alcala’s characters and visual humor back into public view while encouraging audiences to participate in the tradition he helped build

them. Seeing his original works up close provides a different appreciation for an artist whose drawings became part of the Filipino experience.

Curated by Dr. Jose Santos “Chong” Ardivilla, the exhibit features reproductions of Slice of Life illustrations, original works, memorabilia, and pieces by members of the Samahang Kartunista ng Pilipinas.

Return to the Popular explores Alcala’s ability to find humor and meaning in ordinary Filipino life while

introducing his creativity and sociopolitical observations to a new generation of artists and comic readers.

The centennial celebration also includes five free cartooning workshops from August to November 2026, held with UP’s Department of Visual Communication and Samahang Kartunista ng Pilipinas.

Comic artists Boboy Yonzon, Barry Jose, and Mike Yonzon will discuss expressing thoughts through cartoons on Sept. 5 at Gallery 3 of

Scenes of Home in ‘Pagpauli, Iloilo’ HOME can be a place, a memory, or a feeling.

For Filipino-American visual artist Gisele Muzones, it is all three.

Ahead of Iloilo City’s Charter Day on Aug. 25, the Iloilo Museum of Contemporary Art (ILOMOCA) turns its gaze toward home with Pagpauli, Iloilo, a solo exhibition that traces Muzones’ connection to her Filipino roots through paintings inspired by her visits to Iloilo.

Muzones turns familiar gatherings and food into personal “Pagpauli,” a Hi- studies of home, memory, and connection in her Philippines ligaynon word meaning Painting Series “returning home” or “going home,” gives the exhibition its vivid tribute to Dinagyang. A dancer in emotional thread. Through landscapes, full festival regalia takes center stage, traditions, and ordinary moments, with bold colors and intricate details Muzones revisits places that became capturing the movement, devotion, and familiar while discovering them anew cultural pride of Iloilo’s iconic celebrathrough an artist’s eyes. tion.

Part of Muzones’ Philippines Muzones also offers a more accesPainting Series, the exhibition feasible way to own her art through selectures works drawn from places and tions from her Mini Collector Club. experiences that shaped her time in Each release includes a signed Iloilo.

5x7 fine art print, a 2x2 sticker, and In Views from Bucari, a small village the story or inspiration behind the sits between misty mountains, inspired featured work, giving collectors a by a hike Muzones took with friends in glimpse into the memories behind the Bucari. The painting captures the quiet paintings. beauty of the highlands outside Iloilo Pagpauli, Iloilo opened to the public City. with an artist talk on Aug. 21 and runs I Know a Spot, inspired by Nagpana through Sept. 5 at the ILOMOCA MuFalls, features three boys sitting above seum Shop. the waterfall. The work also captures ILOMOCA continues to provide a the everyday life around it, from chilplatform for contemporary artists in dren swimming in shallow pools to the region, giving audiences a chance families spending afternoons by the to encounter works shaped by place, water. memory, and personal experience.

Then there is The Opening Salvo, a

‘Pagpauli, Iloilo’ features works capturing the landscapes, traditions, and everyday life of Iloilo

Gisele Muzones revisits memories of Nagpana Falls in ‘I Know a Spot,’ drawing from the everyday scenes she encountered during her visits to Iloilo

The exhibit explores Muzones’connection to her Filipino roots through paintings inspired by her visits to Iloilo

the Metropolitan Theater. At Tanghalang Ignacio B. Gimenez, Crown Dolot will discuss life and form on Sept. 22, Sebastian Cacho will tackle cardboard characters on Oct. 17, and Melvin Calingo will focus on moving images on Nov. 21.

Participants may register for the Larry Alcala Workshop Series at CCP through the online registration link.

The workshops are free, with materials provided. Registration for the Met workshops will be available through

the official NCCA Facebook page.

The celebration is presented by CCP, NCCA, FHFI, Metropolitan Museum of Manila, the Larry Alcala Family, UP Fine Arts, Lennon Group, Worldwide Womb, Tony &, and Hala! Media, honoring Alcala’s enduring depiction of the Filipino experience. *** Meanwhile, Alliance Française de Manille unveils “Splendeur en Couleur,” a solo exhibition featuring abstract works by visual artist Ron Lopez Davis. Moving beyond direct illustration, Davis lets the canvas find its own direction through gesture, revision, and spontaneity.

The exhibit features abstract compositions that favor intuitive process over prescribed narratives. His works carry traces of lived experiences, including fragments of architecture, shifting landscapes, and memories shaped by living across cultures.

Through layering, accumulation, and revision, what remains visible is as significant as what has been covered. Rather than puzzles to solve, the paintings invite viewers to form their own associations with the colors, forms, and textures.

“My main message is about my aesthetic and how I see things in color. I never approach painting with the intention of illustrating an idea. What interests me is when paint begins to think for itself. The process is less about control than paying attention.

Each mark suggests another, and the canvas gradually reveals its own direction,” Davis shared.

The exhibit runs until Sept. 26 at Alliance Française de Manille, 209 Nicanor Garcia St., Bel Air II, Makati.

Bayanihan celebrates 70 years with ‘Taginting’ SEVEN decades of Philippine dance and music took the stage as the Bayanihan Folk Arts Foundation Inc. celebrated its 70th anniversary with Taginting: 70 Years of Bayanihan Legacy.

The milestone production showcased the country’s rich cultural heritage through dance and music, reaffirming Bayanihan’s long-standing work in artistic excellence, cultural preservation, and the promotion of Philippine identity through the performing arts.

“Taginting” featured six program suites: “Mindanao Mosaic,” “Birds of Bright Plight,” “Intramuros of Memory,” “Interwoven Dreams,” “People Under the Sun,” and “Rhythmic Resonance.”

Joining Bayanihan’s core performing artists were alumni and members of the Platinum Circle of Bayanihan, adding

Bayanihan draws from the country’s diverse cultural traditions in a milestone production highlighting music, movement, and heritage

generations of artists to the anniversary production.

The show kicks off a yearlong celebration of Bayanihan’s legacy and artistry, with more activities planned to honor its seven decades of bringing Philippine culture to audiences through the performing arts.

Generations of Bayanihan artists carry Philippine dance traditions forward as the company marks seven decades of cultural performance