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GAS PRICES UP P1.93/L, DIESEL DOWN BY P1.30/L

US PULLS OUT B-1 BOMBERS FROM UK AIRBASE

STOCKS, PESO FALL ON INFLATION WOES

NEWS / A3

WORLD / A6

BUSINESS / B2

‘Drugs, flood control in VP funds’ AMLC flags Sara, husband’s aggregate transactions at P4.4b

By Maricel V. Cruz and Katrina Manubay

HE Anti-Money Laundering Council confirmed aggregate transactions by Vice President Sara Duterte and her husband, Manases Carpio, have been flagged for allegedly being linked to flood control projects as well as drug trafficking.

AMLC Secretariat Executive Director Ronel Buenaventura disclosed the information yesterday as he testified as prosecution witness for Article II of Duterte’s impeachment case, which accuses her of amassing unexplained wealth, failing to fully and truthfully disclose her and Next page

AMLC. Anti-Money Laundering Council (AMLC) Executive Director Ronel Buenaventura testifies as a prosecution witness on Article 2 alleging Vice President Sara Duterte of unexplained wealth. Lino Santos

VOL. XL • NO. 231 • 3 SECTIONS 16 PAGES • P20 • TUESDAY, OCTOBER 6, 2026

Duterte camp, China nix Trillanes’ funding claims; Palace ‘aware’ By Katrina Manubay, Maricel V. Cruz and Charles Dantes THE camp of Vice President Sara Duterte and the Chinese Embassy on Monday reacted strongly to the disclosures of former Senator Antonio Trillanes IV, who alleged that Chinese funds flowed to businesses and a foundation linked to the vice president and her family. Duterte’s camp said it is considering filing criminal charges against Trillanes, saying it has evidence and legal grounds to pursue a case. In a chance interview at the Senate, Duterte spokesperson lawyer Paolo Panelo said the camp had yet to file a complaint, citing what he described as government protection for individuals who had allegedly spread false information against the vice president. Panelo said Trillanes had already raised allegations beNext page

TEACHERS’ DAY. President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. is joined by Education Sec. Sonny Angara and Quezon City Mayor Joy Belmonte in a groufie after the culminating program of the 2026 National Teachers’ Day Celebration at the Smart Araneta Coliseum in Cubao, Quezon City. Inset shows militant teachers marching to Mendiola to press for their demands for higher pay and livelihood benefits. Revoli Cortez, Norman Cruz

‘Emergency powers for PBBM to solve Visayas power woes’ By Maricel V. Cruz A HOUSE leader has pushed for the grant of emergency powers to President Marcos to address the worsening power situation in the Visayas. Meanwhile, the Department of Energy (DOE) said the recent yellow and red alerts in the Visayas could have been avoided had the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines

(NGCP) completed critical ancillary service contracts on time. House Deputy Speaker and Bacolod City Rep. Albee Benitez said emergency authority could give the government more room to act when supply conditions become critical, including securing additional ancillary or reserve power and speeding up projects delayed by regulatory and permit requirements. “Under the emergency powers, the secretary

can do that,” Benitez said. He made the statement following the joint hearing of the House committees on Energy, Visayas Development, and Legislative Franchises last Oct. 3 in Bacolod City where legislators broached the idea of allowing the Department of Energy to procure additional reserve capacity during extraordinary shortages. Next page

Dec. 16 not deadline for impeach trial, clarifies Tongol By Joel E. Zurbano and Maricel Cruz IMPEACHMENT court spokesperson lawyer Regie Tongol said Monday that the December 16 schedule he mentioned earlier should not be seen as a deadline for the impeachment court to issue a verdict on Vice President Sara Duterte’s case. In an interview ahead of Day 33 of the impeachment trial, Tongol clarified that the date was based only on administrative planning or a logistical projection hinged on the pre-trial order calendar. “But I agree with, and I appreciate, the correction and clarification from the senator-judges regarding that target date because it should not be viewed as a deadline for our impeachment court. Their concern is the integrity of the impeachment proceedings, ensuring everyone is given the opportunity to present their evidence,” the court spokesperson explained. Next page

DA readies fuel ayuda; DOH warns of heat stroke By Othel V. Campos and Ram Superable THE Department of Agriculture (DA) will begin distributing fuel subsidies to registered fisherfolk this week, while assistance for mechanized farmers is ex-

pected to start by late October or the first week of November as the government steps up support amid the threat of a potentially severe El Niño. Meanwhile, the Department of Health advised the public to take precautions against severe heat illnesses as El Niño is

expected to bring extended periods of hot spell and reduced rainfall. Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. said the DA is finalizing its list of qualified farmers, with the department targeting the release of their fuel assisNext page

El Nińo causing premature births—UN climate chief NADI, Fiji – Extreme heat is increasingly linked to problems like premature births or underweight babies, the UN climate chief warned Monday as Fiji hosted talks ahead of a major summit.

This week’s meetings in the city of Nadi and on the atoll nation of Tuvalu are aimed at drawing the world’s attention to life on the frontline of climate change in the Pacific.

They are a precursor to the larger UN-sponsored global climate summit – known as COP31 – to be held next month in Turkey. Next page

HEATING UP. A lone commuter with an umbrella braves the intense heat while

other commuters wait for their rides under the shade of the concrete overpass along Commonwealth Avenue in Quezon City at around 9:30 a.m. yesterday. Edd Castro

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TUESDAY, OCTOBER 6, 2026

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Gas, kerosene prices up, diesel down VP Sara claims 29 of Gracioso’s statements false C By Alena Mae S. Flores

By Katrina Manubay

VICE President Sara Duterte on Monday said she received a copy of Rodulfo Gracioso Jr.’s affidavit from the National Bureau of Investigation, which she said 29 statements against her were false. In a statement, Duterte said she expected the NBI to file a perjury case once its investigation is complete. “I confirm that we received a copy of the Gracioso affidavit from the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI), together with identification documents, but no other attachments,” her statement read. “Based on our count, Gracioso made 29 statements concerning me that we believe are false,” she added. Duterte also disputed Gracioso’s claims, saying that she and Jefry Tupas were not in Marinduque during Holy Week in 2019 and were not in Manila on September 21, 2019. “NBI Director Melvin Matibag noted that a perjury case may be possible if the allegations are proven false. We expect a case to be filed by the NBI against Gracioso once the agency completes its investigation and the evidence is fully evaluated,” Duterte said. Earlier this month, Duterte’s former information officer submitted travel records to the NBI, disputing allegations that he received cash on her behalf.

DA... From A1 tance by the last week of October. “For fisherfolk, distribution will start this week. As for farmers, they (DA personnel) are cleaning up the list,” Tiu Laurel said in a press briefing Monday. “The latest would be the first week of November, but hopefully before the end of October, the assistance for our farmers will be released as well,” he added. The fuel subsidy forms part of an additional P6.2 billion in assistance provided by President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to farmers, fisherfolk and agricultural truckers facing higher fuel costs due to the conflict in the Middle East and the initial effects of El Niño. The DA has previously rolled out fuel assistance to mechanized farmers, including a P5,000 subsidy for qualified recipients, while the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources has distributed fuel subsidy cards to fisherfolk in several areas.

El Nińo... From A1 Highlighting the need for urgent action, United Nations climate chief Simon Stiell cited a new survey showing more than two thirds of health professionals across five continents had seen complications caused by intense heat in the past five years. “Climate-driven extreme heat during pregnancy is increasingly linked to premature birth, stillbirth, low birth weight, and maternal complications,” he added. The South Pacific is among the most

Duterte... From A1 fore the House Justice Committee, giving the Duterte camp sufficient basis to consider legal action. He cited the dismissal of its perjury complaint against Ramil Madriaga as an example of what he called the government’s failure to hold Duterte’s critics accountable. Panelo also rejected Trillanes’ allegations of Chinese funding, saying such claims must be supported by credible evidence and placed in proper context.

Embassy: Politicians ‘fabricating false narrative’

The Chinese Embassy in Manila likewise denied allegations that China funneled funds to a political faction in the Philippines, accusing unnamed Philippine politicians of fabricating and spreading a false narrative. The embassy condemned what it called “malicious rhetoric and actions,”

ONSUMERS can expect a mixed oil price movement effective Tuesday, with kerosene increasing by P3.30 per liter and gasoline by P1.90 to P1.93 per liter to reflect price movements in the world oil market, the Department of Energy (DOE) said yesterday. Diesel will roll back by P1.30 per liter due to changing supply and shipping conditions. Asian diesel prices remained generally high but were volatile as shipping costs stayed elevated and

price differences between regional markets changed. “These developments contributed to the decrease in diesel prices during the monitoring period,” the DOE said.

AMLC... From A1

sole intent of politicking,” Vinluan said. Vinulan said allowing Buenaventura to testify was “reckless and abusive.” Vinluan also emphasized confidentiality provisions under the Anti-Money Laundering Act (AMLA), questioning whether the media could face criminal liability for publishing or airing confidential information. “We also put on record that Vice President Sarah Z. Duterte reserves the right to pursue all appropriate legal remedies against those who will violate the law and her rights thereunder,” he added. Private prosecutor Mae Divinagracia countered that Carpio’s finances are relevant because his marriage to Duterte is governed by the absolute community of property and his assets are covered by the Vice President’s required financial disclosures. She said Carpio’s records were also covered by the subpoena issued by the impeachment court. “The objection, unfortunately, counsel, is overruled,” Impeachment court presiding officer Senator Francis Escudero ruled. The defense registered a continuing objection, maintaining that the transactions occurred outside Duterte’s current term. After the trial, the spokesman of Duterte’s defense team, Atty. Michael Poa, said it was Vinluan’s intention to appear threatening when the latter cited a provision of the AMLA during his cross-examination of the witness “That really wasn’t the intention...The defense really did not intend to threaten anyone, or at least create a perception of threatening anyone,” he said. “And that, of course, includes the senator judges, the witnesses, and even the media. that is not our intention,” Poa added.

her spouse’s assets, liabilities and net worth, and continuing business interests while serving as vice president. Buenaventura presented the following information before the impeachment court: • AMLC flagged 55 suspicious transaction reports (STRs) involving the Vice President and her husband. Together with 666 covered transaction reports (CTRs), the aggregate transactions totaled P4.4 billion. Some of the transactions, however, happened before Duterte became Vice President • AMLC records showed more than P10 million in withdrawals and a check encashment involving the Vice President in December 2024 despite her declaring zero cash on hand and in banks in her Statement of Assets, Liabilities and Net Worth (SALN) for the year. • AMLC records showed two transactions totaling nearly P18.9 million involving an account owned by the Vice President and her father, former President Rodrigo Duterte. • AMLC records also showed P319 million inward remittances from China went to CALE88 Foods Corporation, a business linked to the Vice President.

‘Reckless, abusive’

The camp of the Vice President initially tried to keep her husband’s financial transactions out of the unexplained wealth case. Defense counsel Mark Vinluan sought to stop Buenaventura from testifying on Carpio’s 2014 transactions, arguing that Carpio is not an impeachable officer and that the records predated Duterte’s term as Vice President. He also argued that it was unfair to scrutinize Carpio’s financial transactions because he is not represented by counsel in the impeachment proceedings. “The Vice President has nothing to hide but AMLC data must undergo proper verification in accordance with the law. You cannot disclose details in a manner that is improper and malicious with the

vulnerable regions in the world to global warming – from rising sea waters jeopardizing homes to increasing temperatures causing coral bleaching. Fiji’s climate minister Lynda Tabuya called for commitments from developing nations to a “just transition” – with support for “countries in the world that suffer the most.” A UN report released in August found developing countries needed $310-$365 billion to adapt, yet had only $26 billion in adaptation finance available in 2023. “We rely on and we appeal to countries to commit to climate finance,” Tabuya said.

saying it would take measures to protect its legitimate interests and dignity. It also urged Manila to stop political manipulation and warned against dragging domestic Philippine politics into China-Philippines relations. Trillanes on Oct. 2 alleged that more than P319 million in Chinese funds flowed through Cale88 Foods Corp., a banana chip maker owned by Duterte’s husband, lawyer Manases “Mans” Carpio. He also alleged that the Tapang at Malasakit Alliance for the Philippines Inc., a foundation associated with Duterte, received P150 million from the Chinese Embassy in 2019 to build 13 classrooms. Reports separately said the website linked to Cale88 Foods Corp. allegedly redirected visitors to the Chinese Embassy’s website. Duterte has accused Trillanes of spreading political propaganda against her family, while Panelo described the allegations as previously discredited.

STRs, withdrawals recorded

According to Buenaventura, among the STRs flagged were premium payments made to The Mercantile Insurance Co. in 2019, for “graft and corrupt practices. Asked for the explanation behind the suspicious tag, he said: “Several news outlets recently released a list of individuals and corporations identified as being involved in the DPWH flood control issue, prompting the filing of an STR.”

Dec. 16... From A1 Trial presiding officer Francis Escudero on Monday also clarified the statement issued by the Senate impeachment court’s spokesperson last week, saying it was “not entirely true.” Tongol said Friday that senator-judges could reach a verdict in the impeachment trial of Vice President Sara Duterte by Dec. 16, 2026, which Escudero said was based on “math, not based on the realities on the ground of the trial.”

Palace: Marcos aware of Trillanes allegations

Malacañang, meanwhile, said President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. was aware of Trillanes’ allegations concerning alleged Chinese funding linked to the Duterte family. Presidential Communications Office spokesperson Claire Castro said Mr. Marcos had already addressed the issue through Defense Secretary Gilberto “Gibo” Teodoro, who earlier said the allegations could have national security implications if supported by strong evidence. Castro said Trillanes’ claims should not be ignored if he can present strong evidence, particularly if the alleged funding involved interference by a foreign country in Philippine politics. She said the National Bureau of Investigation, National Security Council and Anti-Money Laundering Council could examine the allegations, including whether the reported P150 million donation from China was actually made and how the money was used. Castro said both Trillanes and those de-

Seaoil Philippines, Shell Pilipinas Corp. and Petron Corp. made their respective announcements of the latest oil price movement, while others are expected to follow. Meanwhile, the DOE said it had prescribed a maximum price adjustment of P17.33 per kilogram, equivalent to P190.60 per 11-kilogram cylinder for October 2026. The Department also said that it continues to implement the fuel subsidy program for qualified beneficiaries. Meanwhile, an industry source said tight global gasoline markets continue to support prices. “Mixed signals drove price volatility

this week, with prices surging following reports of another US aircraft carrier heading toward the Gulf, a lack of clarity around US-Iran developments, China’s decision to curb refined product exports, uncertainty over US diesel export policy and Russia’s decision to extend its ban on diesel exports until the end of October, offsetting the easing supply concerns following a rebound in oil flows from the Middle East,” the source said. On Sept. 29, the oil firms rolled back prices by P7.57 per liter for diesel, P5.85 per liter for kerosene and P0.24 per liter for gasoline.

Another STR was flagged over criminal complaints tied to a P6.4 billion shabu smuggling case in 2017. Of the total STRs, 34 involved the Vice President and 30 involved her husband, with nine reports where both their names appeared, the AMLC official said. Buenaventura also testified that three transactions involving the Vice President totaling P10.04 million were recorded in December 2024, including two over-the-counter withdrawals amounting to P8.34 million. Prosecutors have pointed out that Duterte declared zero cash on hand and in banks in her SALNs from 2019 to 2024, thus using the AMLC records to establish what they alleged was a pattern of nondisclosure. Buenaventura identified a P2.371-million over-the-counter withdrawal reported by Land Bank of the Philippines-San Pedro on Dec. 5, 2024 as well as a P5.969-million over-the-counter withdrawal reported by BDO Unibank Inc.Davao Rizal on Dec. 20. Another transaction on Dec. 20 involved a P1.7-million check encashment reported by Metropolitan Bank and Trust Co.-Davao/Ecoland. Divinagracia highlighted that the Dec. 20 transactions occurred 11 days before Dec. 31, the cutoff date for assets covered by Duterte’s SALN for that year. Buenaventura confirmed the 11-day interval after Presiding Officer Senator Francis Escudero clarified that Dec. 31 is the SALN cutoff date, not the filing deadline.

‘Emergency... From A1 Benitez said a special power from the President is needed as the region can no longer afford to wait for long-term energy projects while shortages continue to threaten consumers and businesses. He also urged Congress to revisit the Electric Power Industry Reform Act (EPIRA), saying rules designed for a deregulated electricity market should not tie the government’s hands when consumers are already bearing the brunt of supply deficiencies. The power situation has been deteriorating for months, with DOE records showing recurring Visayas grid alerts since May, largely due to simultaneous forced outages and derated generating plants. The Oct. 3 hearing was attended by Energy Secretary Sharon Garin acknowledged where the latter acknowledged that emergency powers could help speed up the construction of generation facilities and transmission lines.

Garin backs grant of emergency powers

According to the prosecution, AMLC records indicated that the Vice President did not declare all her assets in her SALNs. Divinagracia noted that the prosecution’s presentations were samples of the CTRs for various years to show the pattern of non-disclosure by the Vice President of her assets. Still, Escudero cautioned the prosecution against drawing premature conclusions. “Pattern is important, but again, this is on unexplained and/or ill-gotten wealth pertaining to the period that she was or is Vice President,” Escudero said.

“To hasten the construction of the generation companies, and to hasten the construction of the transmission lines, yes, Mr. Chair,” Garin told the joint panel. Benitez said Congress should act on the position of the Energy department, subject to the details of the proposed emergency authority. “Taking off from the response of the DOE secretary...favoring emergency powers to do certain actions that would alleviate the present situation, maybe subject to the presentation of the actual draft of emergency powers that Secretary Garin is asking, I would endorse probably from this joint committee to push the passage of this emergency power especially at this time where we needed it most, to Congress and eventually the President,” he said.

He said Tongol’s estimate “is not entirely accurate” and “may be a working mathematical equation” but is not the court’s position. “The court will instruct the spokesperson accordingly,” he added. Escudero issued the clarification after Senator-judge Raffy Tulfo asked the presiding officer about the court spokesman’s opinion on the potential date of reaching a verdict. Tulfo also asked the Court to admonish Tongol fo issuing statements that did not reflect the views of the senator-judges.

In response, Escudero said he would take Tulfo’s request under advisement. Meanwhile, Senator Francis Pangilinan said earlier that Tongol lacks the authority to make public statements on behalf of the court concerning the trial schedule. “I have been asked by the media and the public about the schedule of the trial and the verdict date. The Impeachment Court has yet to formally or informally discuss this and has yet to decide on the timetable or timeline of the trial, much less a verdict date of December 16,” said Pangilinan in a statement.

nying his allegations should provide documentary evidence to establish the facts. She also said records should determine whether the reported donation was used to build classrooms, including where the money went and how much was actually donated. Castro said the administration was focused on establishing the truth and that there would be no issue if the alleged P150 million donation was not intended to support the political activities of the Duterte family.

trial if they establish that a foreign country used financial channels to influence Philippine politics or elections. “If there is indeed interference in our elections, it would constitute direct interference,” Adiong said, adding he was not aware that Trillanes would raise the specific allegations. He said the prosecution’s immediate focus remained on Anti-Money Laundering Council records and whether financial transactions involving Duterte were fully reflected in her Statement of Assets, Liabilities and Net Worth. The lawmaker said the alleged sources of the funds would still have to be corroborated by other authorized individuals and agencies, with AMLC Executive Director Ronel Buenaventura’s testimony expected to be important in establishing the relevant financial transactions. Adiong said the allegations should not be dismissed because of their potential implications for foreign influence in Philippine affairs. The revelations, he said, were “raising eyebrows.”

Pattern of non-disclosure

Adiong: Allegations should be probed

House trial spokesperson Zia Alonto Adiong of Lanao del Sur said Trillanes’ allegations should be investigated, particularly the claims involving the foundation’s links to Chinese nationals and the alleged flow of more than P319 million through Cale88 Foods Corp. Adiong said the National Bureau of Investigation could look into the matter, given its investigative mandate. He said the allegations could have implications beyond the impeachment

NEWS

A3 TUESDAY, OCTOBER 6, 2026

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Troops wounded in Basilan ambush, task force reports By Rex Espiritu PERSONNEL of the Philippine Army’s 45th Infantry Battalion were ambushed by unidentified assailants while traversing a road in Barangay Badja, Tipo-Tipo, Basilan, on Monday morning. The Joint Task Force Orion said the incident occurred at around 7:45 a.m. on October 5. The military said some personnel sustained injuries during the attack and were immediately evacuated to a medical facility for treatment. Reinforcements were also deployed to strengthen security in the area and prevent further threats to the troops and nearby communities. The JTF Orion condemned the attack and said security measures were being undertaken in coordination with concerned units and authorities to determine the circumstances surrounding the incident and identify those responsible. “The JTF Orion condemns this act of violence. We assure the public that appropriate security measures are being undertaken in coordination with concerned units and authorities to establish the circumstances surrounding the incident and hold those responsible accountable,” the Army said. The military assured the public that its troops remain vigilant and committed to protecting communities in Basilan and maintaining peace and security in the province. The JTF Orion also appealed to the public to remain calm and refrain from sharing unverified information that could cause unnecessary concern or hamper ongoing security operations.

13 TBS members arrested since Aug. 2024—police By Vince Lopez THE National Capital Region Police Office (NCRPO) on Monday reported that at least 13 personalities believed to be members of the controversial American-grown gang True Brown Style (TBS) were arrested from August 2024 to September 28, 2026. Of the 13 TBS personalities arrested, two were apprehended in 2024, four in 2025, and seven in 2026. The arrests were recorded across the NCRPO’s police districts, with six arrests made in areas under the Southern Police District (SPD), four under the Manila Police District (MPD), two under the Quezon City Police District (QCPD), and one under the Northern Police District (NPD). Police records show that the 13 alleged TBS personalities were linked to a total of 21 alleged violations, including four violations of firearms laws, three cases of illegal gambling, three cases involving kidnapping or illegal detention, and two cases involving illegal drugs. Other alleged offenses included theft, homicide, trafficking in persons, cybercrime, violation of the Anti-Hazing Law, child abuse, grave coercion, resistance or disobedience to a person in authority, and other special-law violations.

PEDESTRIAN SAFETY.

Motorists yield as pedestrians cross a marked lane in Quezon City on Monday, October 5, as the LTO formalizes its policy on license revocation for motorists who endanger pedestrians. Norman Cruz

IN BRIEF

PBBM honors teachers as shapers of PH future By Charles Arvin Dantes

RESIDENT Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on Monday honored Filipino teachers for their role in shaping the country’s future, calling on educators to continue developing students who are discerning, principled and mindful of the common good.

In his message for National Teachers’ Day, Mr. Marcos said classrooms are where young Filipinos learn to question, discover and envision what they can achieve, placing teachers at the center of the country’s efforts to build a better future. “Every classroom carries within it the promise of our country’s future,” President Marcos said, emphasizing that teachers’ influence extends beyond the lessons they teach. He said educators help young people understand their potential and, in doing so, contribute to shaping the

kind of society the country can build. The president also recognized the sacrifices that come with the teaching profession and reaffirmed the government’s responsibility to support and uplift educators. “On this occasion, we recognize the sacrifices that accompany this profession and reaffirm our shared responsibility to cherish and uplift those who shape our lives,” he said. The president said National Teachers’ Day should also renew public appreciation for educators’ contributions to Philippine education and en-

SC chief explores tech security, AI solutions

courage collective efforts to create an environment where teachers can perform their duties with purpose and students can pursue learning with confidence and optimism. President Marcos urged teachers to continue helping form Filipinos who are “discerning in thought, principled in action, and mindful of the common good.” He also assured educators that his administration would work with them in responding to changing demands in education and preparing schools for the challenges facing the next generation. “This administration is one with you in meeting the changing demands of education and equipping our schools for the challenges of the next generation,” the president said. He said the government remains committed to supporting teachers as part of his administration’s vision, where educators can serve as sources of hope and strength for Filipino children and the nation.

CHIEF Justice Alexander G. Gesmundo has explored cybersecurity, artificial intelligence (AI), network infrastructure, and digital security solutions that could support the judiciary’s continuing digital transformation efforts. He led a delegation on a visit to Fortinet’s headquarters in Sunnyvale, California, from September 29 to 30, 2026. He was joined by Associate Justices Jose Midas P. Marquez and Raul B. Villanueva, along with other Supreme Court officials and staff. The delegation presented updates on the judiciary’s digitalization initiatives and outlined its objectives in pursuing efficient and future-ready judicial services. Pot Chavez

BOC seizes P496 million worth of shabu at NAIA THE Bureau of Customs (BOC) has seized 73.002 kilograms of suspected shabu worth at least P496.4 million at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA), concealed inside industrial machinery shipped from Guadalajara, Mexico. The shipment arrived on Sept. 26 and was flagged based on intelligence indicating the possible presence of illegal drugs. Examination of the cargo was conducted at a warehouse in Pasay City on Oct. 2. X-ray scanning showed suspicious images inside the tubular frames of a pelletizing machine. A K9 unit of the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency also detected possible traces of illegal drugs, prompting Customs examiners to conduct a physical inspection. Vito Barcelo

DOT names 10 Cordillera tourism village finalists

FLOOD CONTROL. Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) Secretary Vince Dizon inspects a drainage project along Roxas Boulevard in Manila on Monday as the DPWH steps up its flood-control efforts.

LTO memo for endangering pedestrians By Rio N. Araja

NEW MARINE COMMANDANT. Marine BGen. Bob Apostol assumes command of the Philippine Marine Corps during a change-of-command ceremony at Fort Bonifacio, Taguig City, on Monday.

THE Land Transportation Office (LTO) has issued a new memorandum on the revocation of a driver’s license against motorists who could be found endangering the lives of pedestrians. LTO chief Markus Lacanilao issued Memorandum No. MVL2026-229, setting out the procedures for documenting, investigating and deciding cases involving motorists whose actions may have placed pedestrians at risk of death, injury or serious harm. The new LTO policy specifically covers incidents occurring at designated pedestrian crossings or lanes, where pedestrians are allowed to cross, stand or walk. Under the memorandum, the definition of a pedestrian extends

beyond people simply walking across a road, including children, senior citizens, persons with disabilities, and people using wheelchairs, crutches, canes, walkers or other mobility devices. It also covers people pushing or pulling strollers, carts and other non-motorized conveyances, as well as people who have just gotten off a vehicle or are about to board one. Traffic enforcers, road workers and other authorized personnel performing their duties on the road or pedestrian lane are covered, too. Lacanilao said, “With the series of incidents involving pedestrians, we need to be clearer and stricter in responding to these cases. This is not just about resolving an incident, but making sure that we protect the lives and safety of pedestrians.”

BAGUIO CITY — Ten tourism villages from across the Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR) have advanced to the finals of the 2026 Best Cordillera Tourism Village search conducted by the Department of Tourism-Cordillera Administrative Region (DOTCAR). The finalists are Lagayan Tourism Village in Lagayan, Abra; Guinamgamman Eco-Tourism Village in Conner, Apayao; Babalak-Bashoy Tourism Village and Ballay Tourism Village in Kabayan, Benguet; Tinoc-Impugong Eco-Cultural Agri-Tourism Village in Tinoc, Ifugao; and BALSA Eco-Cultural Sports Tourism Village in Tabuk City, Kalinga. Dexter A. See REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES COMMISSION ON APPOINTMENTS Twentieth Congress Second Regular Session

ANNOUNCEMENT President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. has submitted to the Commission on Appointments (CA), for its consent to the nominations of the following Generals and Flag Officers of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP): 1. MGEN. MOISES L. MICOR 2. BGEN. BOB R. APOSTOL 3. COMMO. MARCO N. BUENA 4. COL. RUBEN G. AQUINO 5. COL. LILIAN VICTORIA DC BUSTO 6. COL. EMMANUEL A. CANILLA 7. COL. RANDY N. ESPINO 8. COL. MANUEL LEO Q. GADOR 9. CAPT. ARIEL C. HALASAN 10. COL. GAUDENCIO M. LAURON Ill 11. COL. ALDRIN F. OREJUDOS 12. COL. LEAH L. SANTIAGO

to the rank of Lieutenant General to the rank of Major General to the rank of Rear Admiral to the rank of Brigadier General to the rank of Brigadier General to the rank of Brigadier General to the rank of Brigadier General to the rank of Brigadier General to the rank of Commodore to the rank of Brigadier General to the rank of Brigadier General to the rank of Brigadier General

The public may submit any information, written report, or sworn/notarized complaints or oppositions to the above nominations in seven (7) copies to the CA Secretariat, 11th Floor, Uptown Eastgate Tower I, corner 11th and 36th Avenue, Bonifacio Global City, Taguig City. For the schedule of the public hearings, the CA Secretariat can be reached through telephone number 8832-2827 local 2142 to 2144, and local 2512 to 2514. 05 October 2026.

(MS-OCTOBER 6, 2026)

MYRA MARIE D. VILLARICA Secretary

NEWS

TUESDAY, OCTOBER 6, 2026

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IN BRIEF Nine in cyanide fishing arrested in Omar, Sulu NINE fishermen allegedly engaged in cyanide fishing were apprehended in the coastal waters of Barangay Capual, Omar, Sulu, on Sept. 27, following a report from a concerned resident. The Philippine Army said barangay officials and residents, together with the soldiers and the police, acted on information about suspected illegal fishing activities in Sitio Taluk-Taluk. Lt. Col. Dante Mantes, commanding officer of the 101st Infantry “Sajahitra” Battalion, said a concerned citizen alerted authorities about the illegal fishing. Troops from Bravo Company, led by 1Lt. Gian Roi Bartolata, coordinated with the Omar Municipal Police Station and proceeded to the area with police personnel led by Cpt. Alkheen Puddin and members of the Barangay Peace Action Team. Rex Espiritu

‘Visa-free entry to PH for Moroccans still valid’ THE Philippine Embassy in Morocco on Sunday night reminded Moroccan nationals that visa-free entry to the Philippines remains in effect. In an advisory, the embassy stated that these allow tourists with valid Moroccan passports to stay in the country for up to 30 days without a visa or e-visa. “Nationals with a valid Moroccan passport (at least six months beyond the contemplated period of stay) are eligible to enter the Philippines as tourists without a visa or an e-visa for an initial stay of thirty (30) days,” the embassy said. “This visa-free policy remains in effect and has not been changed,” it added. Katrina Manubay

CORDILLERA’S FASHION. The Fashion Designers Alliance Cordillera stages its landmark showcase, dubbed ‘Six Provinces, One Woven Legacy’ at the

Benguet Sports Complex, bringing together artisans and designers to celebrate the vibrant textile heritage of Abra, Apayao, Benguet, Ifugao, Kalinga, and Mountain Province. The event, in celebration of National Indigenous Month, highlighted the region’s intricate, centuries-old weaving traditions, honoring master weavers while providing a modern platform to preserve Cordillera’s culture and storytelling through contemporary fashion. Conrad Rotor

Ejercito files bill doubling the P1k monthly social pension for seniors By Ram Superable

ENATOR Joseph Victor “JV” Ejercito is seeking to double the monthly social pension for indigent senior citizens from P1,000 to P2,000 to help cover food, medicines, health care and other basic needs. Ejercito filed Senate Bill No. 2522, which seeks to amend Republic Act No. 11916, the law that currently provides a P1,000 monthly social pension for qualified indigent senior citizens. “Growing old should never mean

growing afraid of whether one can still afford food, medicine, electricity, or a trip to the doctor. Unfortunately, for millions of Filipino senior citizens, this is the reality they face every day,” Ejercito said. The measure would expand the

definition of an indigent senior citizen to include those with no pension or permanent source of income, as well as those receiving pensions, compensation or financial assistance totaling no more than P10,000 a month. It would also remove the existing requirement that indigent senior citizens be frail, sickly or have a disability to qualify for the benefit. Under the proposal, the Department of Social Welfare and Development would determine which senior citizens qualify for the social pension.

Buguey to mark 5th Crab, Mangrove, Nipa Festival BUGUEY, Cagayan gingerly gears up for its 5th Crab, Mangrove, and Nipa Festival which unfolds on Oct. 21-23, showcasing a local culture, environment conservation, community dynamics. “This festival is not just about celebrating crabs. This is about celebrating life, the life of our mangroves, the life of our fishermen, and the life of our future generations,” Mayor Licerio Antiporda III said. “ We used to cut down mangroves for firewood when I was younger,” 62-year-old nipa weaver Aling Rosa chimed in. Now, we are being taught to plant them. We now understand that without mangroves and crabs, there would be no means of subsistence. Jessica M. Bacud

Bill eyes nursing homes for needy senior citizens By Maricel V. Cruz

SAVING BATANES. The Department of Science and Technology sets off its 2026 STI Caravan on a nine-day seaborne journey to bring the benefits of modern science and innovations to Batanes Island, the country’s northernmost province where a typhoon could mean weeks of isolation and untold miseries to the islanders called Ivatans. Jessica M. Bacud

Gov’t opens education assistance program for MILF scholars By Rex Espiritu THE government has rolled out its scholarship allowances program for the next-of-kin and dependents of decommissioned combatants of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF). The Government of the PhilippinesMILF Task Force for Decommissioned Combatants and their Communities (TFDCC) said beneficiaries enrolled under the government’s Educational Assistance Program (EAP)

The bill would also require the DSWD, with the approval of the Department of Budget and Management and after consultations with relevant sectors, to review the social pension amount every two years and adjust it when necessary. “Seniors should not be forced to choose between buying medicine and buying food. Their lifetime of work and sacrifices should not end in anxiety over whether there will be enough money for the next meal or the next prescription,” Ejercito said.

began receiving their allowances in the last week of September. Of the 1,028 approved grantees in the first batch, 303 have already received the full P 50,000 grant. The grant covers tuition, books, allowances and other academic expenses for one academic year, or two semesters. The remaining 725 grantees will receive the P50,000 assistance in two equal tranches of P25,000. According to the TFDCC, the initial transfers to the affected beneficiaries

were reverted to Mindanao State University-Marawi for reprocessing after their LANDBANK PISO accounts exceeded the allowable monthly credit limit of P50,000. MSU-Marawi is now reprocessing the initial P25,000 tranche for crediting to the affected accounts. The second tranche will be released once the first payment has cleared. The TFDCC said grantees will be directly notified once the release schedule is finalized. Meanwhile, the Office of the Presi-

dential Adviser on Peace, Reconciliation and Unity and the TFDCC are reviewing the beneficiary account mechanisms to prevent similar banking issues in succeeding distribution cycles. Launched in 2024, the EAP provides financial assistance for the formal education of former rebels and decommissioned combatants, including MILF members, as part of the socioeconomic component of the Normalization Track of the Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsamoro.

2 PSHS students top PMA entrance tests By Gabriel Oliva

DIALYSIS HUB. The Cavite City government opens a Dialysis Center which can accommodate 60 sessions a day. ‘Before, you had to travel to other places, like Manila to get dialysis, which meant extra travel expenses, extra fatigue, and extra travel time. Now, you don’t have to go far, Mayor Denver Chua said. Dennis Abrina

TWO students from the Philippine Science High School (PSHS) system shared the top spot in the Philippine Military Academy (PMA) Entrance Examination 2026. Gabriel James Valdez of the PSHS Ilocos Region Campus and Jilian Alexis Chan Lapada of the PSHS Cordillera Administrative Region Campus tied for Rank 1 among 25,452 examinees and 1,216 passers of the PMA entrance tests. According to the results, nine out of the 15 entrance exam top 10 spots were occupied by students from several PSHS campuses across the country, including the Koronadal, Leyte, and main campus in Quezon City. The PMA said the exam was ad-

ministered from July to September this year, in 48 testing centers nationwide. It added that only 4.78 percent of qualified examinees passed this year’s entrance examination, down by 0.50 percentage points from last year’s 5.28 percent passing rate. After passing the examination, the qualified students will go through a “comprehensive” and “rigorous” selection process that will be the basis for their admission to the academy, expected to convene in 2027 and to graduate by 2031. According to the academy, the process aims to ensure that students who are physically fit, mentally ready, and morally grounded will compose the “most qualified” Cadet Corps Armed Forces of the Philippines.

A BILL is filed at the House of Representatives mandates local government units (LGUs) to establishing state-funded nursing homes for homeless and abandoned senior citizens in every city and municipality across the country. Under House Bill 2273, or the “Homes for Abandoned Seniors Act,” authored by House assistant majority floor leader Rep. Patrick Michael Vargas of Quezon City, LGUs shall be responsible for land allocation and facility construction, while the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) will manage and operate the residential care homes. “As we celebrate the family, let us not forget our grandparents who are homeless or have been left behind due to extreme poverty. When the family can no longer provide care, the government is who they should be able to rely on,” Vargas said. According to Vargas, while government programs offer social pensions and community assistance, acute economic hardship is straining traditional family safety nets, leaving vulnerable seniors abandoned or without adequate care. Existing shelters remain severely limited, operated mostly by private or religious groups in select urban areas. “Monthly financial aid is not enough if our senior citizens lack safe housing when they are neglected. There should be a permanent facility in every LGU where they are cared for and treated with dignity,” he said. Under the bill, the proposed nursing homes will offer comprehensive residential care, including comfortable quarters, health and medical consultations, counseling, literacy and productivity programs, and active family outreach for potential reconciliation. Vargas underscored that guaranteeing eldercare facilities is a long-overdue act of national gratitude for senior citizens whose labor helped build the nation. “Our country’s progress was built upon the sacrifices of our senior citizens. After dedicating their strength to their families and the nation, it is only fitting that we repay them with care during their twilight years,” he pointed out.

OPINION

TUESDAY, OCTOBER 6, 2026

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EDITORIAL

Making party politics more meaningful DEMOCRACY asks more from us than showing up on election day. A vote carries greater meaning when people can choose between clear ideas and programs, when candidates stand for recognizable principles, and when citizens can later ask those elected to account for the promises they made. Political parties should make that possible. That conviction led me to author House Bill No. 9139, the Comprehensive Political Party Empowerment Act. At its heart is a simple idea: stronger parties can give citizens clearer political choices and give public officials a firmer sense of responsibility for the commitments they carry into office. Our experience shows how much room there is to grow. Philippine elections remain deeply personal. We know candidates by name, family, hometown, story, even nickname. Party identities often receive far less attention. Campaign season brings political coalitions together quickly, while shifting alliances can just as quickly reshape the landscape afterward. A stronger party system can give ideas a longer life. Political parties can keep working after the posters come down. They can develop policy, train future leaders, build local organizations, and prepare people for public service. House Bill No. 9139 addresses this through three areas that go straight to the heart of party reform: commitment, contributions, and constituency. The first is commitment. When candidates run under a party banner, that affiliation becomes part of the choice presented to voters. They carry the party’s name, platform, record, and promises into the campaign. People have every right to expect that commitment to carry weight after the votes are counted. This is where political turncoatism becomes a serious concern. Frequent party switching makes accountability harder to follow. A candidate may campaign under one platform and later move to another political organization when circumstances change. Over time, party labels lose their meaning. Clearer rules against turncoatism can encourage candidates to choose their political home carefully. They also give parties greater reason to invest in leadership formation and develop people over many years. Commitment can still leave room for conscience, debate, and principled disagreement. Strong parties can argue within themselves and grow stronger from it. The second area is contributions, because parties need resources to become real institutions. Politics costs money. Parties need offices, policy research, political education, local chapters, staff, communications, and year-round engagement with communities. A party that exists only through the personal resources of

a few candidates will naturally revolve around those individuals. A broader and more transparent system of political financing can change that. Carefully regulated public support, lawful private contributions, and membership dues can give parties a wider financial base. Clear disclosure rules and independent audits can allow citizens to see where political money comes from and how it is spent. The point is simple. The way a party is funded shapes who has influence inside it.

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Commitment, contributions, constituency

Broader contributions can give parties more room to follow their platform, develop leaders, and plan beyond the next election. Then comes constituency. Every serious political party should have a real body of citizens who belong to it, participate in it, and help shape where it goes. Mass membership gives a party that living base. Members should have opportunities to influence policy, choose leaders and candidates, organize local chapters, and hold their own party accountable. Political participation then reaches far beyond campaign season. A teacher, farmer, worker, student, professional, or small entrepreneur can help shape a party’s direction. Young people can enter public life through organization and service. Members who contribute even modest dues gain a stronger stake in the institution they support. This also changes where power comes from. A party with thousands of active members must listen to voices beyond its national leadership and elected officials. Barangays, towns, campuses, workplaces, and communities begin to have a place inside the organization itself. Commitment makes party affiliation meaningful. Contributions give parties the resources to remain active between elections. Constituency gives them a genuine base among the people. Together, these three can make party politics more meaningful. Elections determine who governs. Strong political parties help citizens understand what those leaders stand for and whom they remain accountable to once they enter office. House Bill No. 9139 seeks to build parties that endure beyond election day, stand by their principles, and draw their strength from citizens themselves. That kind of party system can give our democracy deeper roots and clearer responsibility.

‘Out with a bang’: Trump won’t be a quiet lame duck By Danny Kemp WASHINGTON — What’s more volatile than President Donald Trump? The answer may be a lame duck Donald Trump after the US midterm elections. The 80-year-old billionaire faces a bruising final two years in the White House if Republicans lose control of Congress in the November 3 polls amid voter anger over the Iran war and soaring prices. Investigations and a possible third impeachment would loom as his Democratic foes seek revenge. The president who loves to boast of his power would find much of it stymied. But Trump with his back to the wall could cause major upheaval, from revenge at home to wars abroad -- and influencing the race to be his successor in 2028. “I don’t think he is going to go out with a whimper, he’s going to try to go out with a bang,” said Allan Lichtman, a professor at American University and author of “Great American Presidents: The Twelve Who Transformed the Nation.” “He can’t stand not being the center of attention. So this may spark him to be even more aggressive,” Lichtman told AFP.

‘Kingmaker’ US presidents are often punished in midterm elections, weakening their party in Congress and leaving them with the dreaded lame duck epithet as their power wanes towards the end.

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The president who loves to boast of his power would find much of it stymied. But if Republicans lose the House of Representatives as expected -- and possibly the Senate too -- Trump will find himself in a peculiarly precarious position as Democrats probe alleged corruption or abuse of power. Trump has already signaled he will take his usual combative approach. “They’ll probably go after me, and I’ll go after them,” Trump said in a Time Magazine interview published this week. “I think he’s going to be in attack mode,” Ryan Hass of the Brookings Institution told AFP. First of all, Trump baselessly disput-

The digital republic’s forgotten architect

OVERNOR General Francis Burton Harrison assumed office on this date 113 years ago, initiating a profound shift toward Philippines’ self-governance.

He was sent explicitly by President Woodrow Wilson in 1913 to prepare the Philippines for eventual independence. He was seen as far more cooperative, liberal and focused on rapid self-governance than his Republican predecessors. Today’s digital generation of Filipinos in an interconnected, demanding society built on the very foundations he helped lay. By aggressively championing the Filipinization of local government, Harrison placed trust in Filipino leadership long before it was globally popular. His administration rapidly replaced American bureaucrats with local officials, proving Filipinos

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Harrison actively collaborated with leaders like Manuel L. Quezon to pass the Jones Act of 1916, which officially promised eventual independence. He actively collaborated with leaders like Manuel L. Quezon to

STOCKHOLM — Since 1901, the Nobel Prizes have been awarded to individuals and organizations for work leading to great advances for humanity, in line with the wishes of the prizes’ founder, inventor Alfred Nobel. The 2026 winners will be announced between October 5 and 12, starting with the Nobel Prize in Medicine on Monday from 11:30 am (0930 GMT). Here are five things to know about the prizes and their founder. In detention Since 1901, five Nobel Peace Prize laureates have been prevented from attending the awards ceremony in Oslo. In 1936, German journalist and pacifist Carl von Ossietzky was detained in a Nazi concentration camp. Myanmar opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi was under house arrest when she won the prize in 1991. Given permission by the junta to travel, she declined for fear of potentially not being able to return to her country. In 2010, Chinese dissident Liu Xiaobo was in prison. His chair remained empty, where the prize was placed. In 2022, Belarusian human rights campaigner Ales Bialiatski was in jail. He was represented by his wife Natalia Pinchuk. In 2023, Iranian activist Narges Mohammadi was held in Iran’s Evin prison when the prize was awarded. Young and old In 2014, 17-year-old Pakistani human rights activist Malala Yousafzai became the youngest winner of a Nobel Prize. Another unusually young laureate was Australia’s Lawrence Bragg, who won the Nobel Prize in Physics jointly with his father in 1915 when he was 25, for work carried out at the age of 21. Iraqi activist Nadia Murad was also

awarded the Nobel Peace Prize at the age of 25 in 2018 for her efforts on behalf of the Yazidi minority. In contrast, American John Goodenough was the oldest to become a Nobel laureate. He won the Prize in Chemistry in 2019 at the age of 97 for his work on the lithium-ion batteries that power smartphones and electric cars. The year before, his compatriot Arthur Ashkin was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics at the age of 96. Posthumous awards Since 1974, the statutes of the Nobel Foundation stipulate that the prize may not be given posthumously.

But the prize may still be awarded if the recipient dies between the time of the announcement in October and the formal prize ceremony in December. Before the change, only two people had won a Nobel Prize posthumously. One was Dag Hammarskjold, the Swedish secretary-general of the United Nations, who died in a plane crash in 1961 but was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize later the same year. And in 1931, the Nobel Prize in Literature was awarded posthumously to another Swede, poet Erik Axel Karlfeldt. In 2011, the committee for the Nobel Prize in Medicine selected Ralph Steinman of Canada, unaware that he had passed away just three days before the announcement. The foundation nevertheless gave him the award.

Women laureates Only 68 of the 633 Nobel prizes awarded since 1901 have been given to women, representing about 10 percent, though the share has been steadily increasing since the early 2020s. The science fields have the lowest representation of women laureates. The various committees that award the prizes have repeatedly refused to introduce quotas, instead encouraging nominations of women scientists. Only five women have won a Nobel physics prize out of a total of 230 laureates in the discipline, three out of 99 economics laureates, eight out of 200 chemistry laureates, and 14 out of 232 medicine laureates. Marie Curie was the first woman laureate in 1903 and she is to this day the only woman to have received two Nobel prizes, first for physics in 1903 and then in 1911 in chemistry. Nobel the poet Nobel went down in history as the inventor of dynamite but he also loved English poetry and was an admirer of Percy Bysshe Shelley and Byron. He wrote poetry himself his entire life, sometimes in his native Swedish but mostly in English. In a letter to a friend, he wrote: “I have not the slightest pretension to call my verses poetry; I write now and then for no other purpose than to relieve depression, or to improve my English.” In 1862, at the age of 29 and questioning his literary talent, he sent a letter in French to a young woman that said: “Physics is my field, not writing.” In 1896, the year of his death, he wrote a scandalous tragedy in four acts titled “Nemesis”, inspired by Shelley’s play “The Cenci” about a woman in 16th-century Rome who murders her incestuous father. AFP

ed his 2020 presidential election loss to Joe Biden and it is “entirely possible” he could claim irregularities in the midterms as well, said Hass. Then, Trump could direct the US Department of Justice to investigate leading Democrats probing him, in the same way that a number of his opponents have found themselves facing legal action. In the longer term, Trump sometimes hints at running for a constitutionallybarred third term in the White House, even wearing a “Trump 2028” hat at a gala media dinner in July. Lichtman said talk of a third term was to “stay relevant” but added that Trump would certainly “keep the focus on himself by being the kingmaker” for the Republican nomination. Trump -- who hosted the television show “The Apprentice” in which he famously uttered the catchphrase “you’re fired” -- has been notably coy

about backing either Vice President JD Vance or Secretary of State Marco Rubio for the top job. “I assume he’ll want to keep the suspense,” said Hass. “Who’s going to watch the show if it’s already been predetermined who’s the winner?” ‘Unrelentingly active’ Outgoing US presidents have often doubled down on foreign policy in the waning days of their terms, as it’s the area in which they have the most power. Trump recently said he may resume bombing Iran after the midterms, but prolonging a quagmire that his MAGA base hates could be politically and militarily risky. “You could make the argument that he’ll let it rip, but I don’t think he wants his legacy to be a warmonger. He wants his legacy to have left America stronger,” said Hass, who served in the National Security Council under president

Barack Obama. Hass expected Trump to continue the US pullback from some of its western allies while maintaining detente with authoritarian Russia and China and keeping a focus on Latin America. On trade however, Trump would likely remain “unrelentingly active,” as shown by his recent hostility towards Canada, Hass said. Trump, like many other soon-to-be retirees, ultimately may be more interested in a little home improvement. The real estate tycoon appears increasingly obsessed by his construction projects at the White House, such as his new ballroom and helipad. For Trump, stamping his mark on Washington in granite and concrete may be the greatest legacy of all. “I love doing it,” Trump said during a recent event at the White House, “because that’s what I did my whole life.” AFP

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Work leading to great advances for humanity

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Five things to know about the Nobel Prize

Former Chief Justice Reynato S. Puno

Published Monday to Sunday by Philippine Manila Standard Publishing Inc. at 6/F Universal Re Building, 106 Paseo de Roxas, corner Perea St., Legaspi Village, Makati City. Telephone numbers 8-5646225 and 8-5646229 (connecting all departments), (Editorial) 832-5554, (Advertising) 832-5550. P.O. Box 2933, Manila Central Post Office, Manila. Website: www.manilastandard.net

were capable of running their own nation.

pass the Jones Act of 1916, which officially promised eventual independence. This legislative milestone created the first fully elected Philippine legislature, the structural ancestor of today’s democratic institutions. For a generation that uses social media to defend free speech and civil liberties, Harrison’s respect for Filipino sovereignty deserves recognition. His legacy is not one of colonial paternalism, but of deliberate, active partnership in the birth of a republic. Understanding Harrison’s policy allows modern youth to see that their digital freedom is rooted in deep historical struggles for autonomy. By honoring Harrison, young Filipinos celebrate a crucial turning point where the blueprints of their modern independent identity were first drawn.

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US withdraws B-1 bombers from UK airbase

ASHINGTON – The United States confirmed it has withdrawn all B-1 bombers from the British airbase of RAF Fairford, with officials telling US media that the move was linked to “new threats.” Police were called to the base in southwest England on September 27 after a local farmer reported a group of men with several vans engaged in “suspicious” activity. The scare prompted a counter-terrorism probe and forced evacuations at 85 homes near the airbase, which was used by the United States to launch strikes on Iran. Investigators did not find any explosives in the vans, but “a quantity of petrol was recovered,” according to counter-terrorism police. A statement from a Pentagon official on Sunday said “we can acknowledge now that all U.S. bombers that were deployed to RAF Fairford have re-deployed to their home stations in the United States.” The statement noted that “operational security precluded us from confirming the movement of our assets and forces in realtime.” An unidentified US official told CNN that the bombers were moved after “an unspecified new threat,” with the source calling the latest threat a “real world incident.” It was unusual to move the bombers back to their home stations instead of deploying them to another base in the region, the official

Manila HUMAN PYRAMID. Members of the Castellers de Vilafranca team form a ‘castell’ (human Standard

tower) during the 30th Castells Competition TODAY in Tarragona in Spain. The human towers bring together teams attempting to construct and dismantle the tallest human tower. AFP

reportedly said. Two US officials told the New York Times that the bombers were moved after commanders received new threats about an Iranbacked plot against the base. One American official said the new information was part of the same threat warnings that surfaced three weeks ago, but the situation became urgent in the past 24 hours, the Times reported. Speculation about the motives behind the incident ranged from terror threat to fuel thievery, as energy prices in the UK hit record highs this week. UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham has said there were “strong indications that Iran played a part” in the incident, a charge rejected by Tehran. Six London-based Britons arrested in the September incident, including a UK-Iranian dual national, all men in their mid-20s, were released on bail, drawing rebuke from Washington. “I wouldn’t have done that,” US President CYAN Donald Trump told reporters, as his Secretary of State Marco Rubio alleged a “foreign actor” was involved. AFP

Vietnam police busts cat-stealing ring HANOI – Vietnamese police have arrested 12 men accused of stealing nearly 2,700 cats during night raids into residential neighborhoods, taking the pets to be slaughtered for food, police and state media said on Monday. Fur removal machines, cat traps and measuring scales were among items confiscated during investigations into the alleged cat-stealing ring in Ho Chi Minh City. Consumption of dogs and cats is legal in Vietnam, where many restaurants openly advertise the meat, but vendors are required to obtain certificates showing the origin of the ani-

mals. Media reports have said that stolen cats can be sold at restaurants for at least 70,000 dong ($2.70) per kilogram. The 12 men were arrested on allegations of property theft and admitted “to stealing and trafficking approximately 2,700 cats of various types,” police said in a statement. Criminal proceedings began on Sunday, but it was not clear when the men were detained. The suspects pounced between 11:00 pm and 04:00 am, roaming residential areas on motorbikes in small groups to steal local cats, state media said. The network was first discovered in July, Career Opportunity in CONCENTRIX CVG PHILIPPINES, INC. with police seizing 50 live cats alongside 55 cat Position Title: Vice President, Service Delivery Qualification (Education, Experience, Professional License, Skills Certification, Specialized Training): traps, two scales and two fur removal machines. Job Description: Each team was estimated to have stolen be• Lead large-scale, multi-site customer operations • Bachelor’s degree, with executive development tween four and 10 cats per night. diploma’s in digital business and general with accountability for service delivery, client management. outcomes, growth, profitability and organizational Police in Ho Chi Minh City arrested 18 peo• 24+ years of leadership experience in customer capability. ple earlier this year accused of being part of two experience, service delivery, BPO and technology• Provide executive leadership through senior separate cat-stealing rings. AFP enabled operations. operations leaders, strengthening performance •

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standards, governance, accountability and operational discipline. Drive customer experience and operating-model transformation using GenAI, automation, analytics and technology-enabled productivity. Lead critical account stabilization and turnaround programs to restore performance and client confidence. Partner with client executives and cross-functional teams on business challenges, transformation, commercial opportunities and growth. Advance managed services and outcome-based delivery models that improve scalability, efficiency and customer value.

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Demonstrated leadership of large, multi-site and cross-regional operations with substantial revenue and P&L accountability. Extensive experience in client management, business turnarounds, growth, governance and operational transformation. Expertise in AI/GenAI-enabled transformation, automation, analytics, managed services and outcome-based delivery. Strong executive communication, stakeholder management and cross-cultural leadership skills. Six Sigma Green Belt and ITIL certified.

KEEPING LEARNING ALIVE. Afghan boys walk to a madrassa or an Islamic school in the Dand district of Afghanistan’s Kandahar province on October 5, 2026. AFP

Samoa PM sorry for ‘Heil Hitler’ SYDNEY – Samoa’s prime minister apologized on Monday after a video surfaced showing him saying “Heil Hitler” and making a Nazi gesture.

Applications may be sent to: PH_QC_EASTW_MULTILINGUAL@concentrix.com Name of foreign national intending to apply for the Company/ Employer position Company Name: Concentrix CVG Philippines, Inc. Name: Alok Dixit Complete Address: 14/F to 25/F Ayala North Exchange, Address: Makati City Tower 2, 6798 Ayala Avenue cor. Amorsolo and Nationality: Indian Salcedo Streets, Brgy. San Lorenzo, Makati City Intended Period of Employment: Two (2) Years Nature of Business: Business to Business IT Company 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 (BLE) located at 6th Floor, Banco Filipino Condominium, Solana Street, Intramuros, Manila.

Prime Minister La’auli Leuatea Schmidt said the footage was from a family gathering almost 20 years old and was never meant to see the light of day. “The footage shows me using the Career Opportunity in CONCENTRIX CVG PHILIPPINES, INC. words ‘Heil Hitler’ Position Title: ADVISOR I, CUSTOMER SERVICE Qualification (Education, Experience, Professional Job Description: License, Skills Certiﬁcation, Specialized Training): and participating in • Assist external users of the client's technical products • Graduate of any business-related course a gesture associated or services; identify, investigate, research and provide • Excellent written and verbal communication skills resolution to user questions and problems in Vietnamese and English language with Nazi Germany • Ensure service delivered to our customers meets • Experience working in an international and crossin a private family contractual Key Performance Indicator (‘KPIs’) cultural environment • Listen attentively to customer needs and concerns; gathering – not in• Courteous with strong customer service demonstrate empathy while maximizing opportunity tended for the puborientation. to build rapport with the customer. • Participate in activities designed to improve customer • Must be fluent in Vietnamese and English lic,” he said in a statesatisfaction, team camaraderie, and business speaking, reading, writing, and listening ment. performance. • Skilled in multi-tasking; including the ability to be “Whatever the • Troubleshoot basic and routine customer issues that flexible and adapt to changes quickly. are technical in nature; including hardware, software, context or intention • Demonstrate patience in all customer contact networking, or other designated client products situations, including maintaining a pleasant and at that gathering • Follow appropriate escalation paths to resolve professional tone and manner technical issues; including making follow up twenty years ago, I outbound calls to customers or other parties as • Strong analytical, organizational and problemrecognize that those needed solving skills • Solve problems that are generally unstructured and • Experience in software programs such as words and gestures require extensive use of conceptual thinking skills Microsoft Word, Excel, Microsoft Outlook and were inappropriate • Greet customers in a courteous, friendly, and Internet professional manner using agreed upon procedures and capable of caus• Clarity of verbal communication (pace and tone) ing offence and hurt • Excellent written communication (grammar) Applications may be sent to: PH_QC_EASTW_MULTILINGUAL@concentrix.com and I apologize for using them.” Name of foreign national intending to apply for the Company/ Employer position Schmidt has preCompany Name: Concentrix CVG Philippines, Inc. Name: Nguyen Thi Tuyet Bong viously voiced his Complete Address: 10 11 12 14 15 Floors GBF Address: Mandaluyong City Center 2 Bridgetowne C5 Road Ugong Norte District 3, Nationality: Vietnamese staunch support for Quezon City 1110 Intended Period of Employment: Two (2) Years Israel and has comNature of Business: Business to Business IT Company hereby declares that the above-named foreign national is able, willing, and qualiﬁed to perform the mitted to opening an services and job description for this position. The company has the intention to employ the said foreign national embassy in Jerusaand apply for an Alien Employment Permit with the Bureau of Local Employment (BLE) located at 6 Floor, Banco Filipino Condominium, Solana Street, Intramuros, Manila. lem before the end of the year. “I reject Nazism, Career Opportunity in CONCENTRIX CVG PHILIPPINES, INC. antisemitism, racPosition Title: Director, Service Delivery Qualification (Education, Experience, Professional ism and all forms of Job Description: License, Skills Certification, Specialized Training): political extremism,” a) Plan, deliver and execute project(s) and program(s)  Must have at least 10 years of experience in he said. b) Ensure execution of delivery work across one or leadership role preferably from managing, He wore a Jewish more clients or portfolios, leading service delivery customer care and operations prayer shawl when strategy across all locations where the services are  Proven experience in Voice, Email, and Chat BPO provided (e.g., client-site, delivery center) he was sworn in as operations c) Address performance issues across the prime minister in client(s)/portfolio(s); create the operational  Strong client management expertise along with 2025, entering the approach and implements continuous sales and solution support room to the sound of improvement.  Strong oral and written communication skills, with d) Implement standard SLA commitments and other a ceremonial “shothe ability to articulate clear ideas and strategies operational metrics for client(s)/portfolio(s) far” horn. effectively. e) Support the achievement of contract controllable “I stand for Israel, income (CCI) targets, as well as the achievement of Applications may be sent to: the land of God,” he cost-to-serve targets; deliver efficiencies through PH_QC_EASTW_MULTILINGUAL@concentrix.com standard processes and synergies. said at the time, acf) Manage recruiting, staffing, people engagement, cording to local media. pyramid, mix, utilization, cost-to-serve and capacity “Samoa will stand of service delivery staff to optimize balance up and support the between cost and delivery targets. holy land of God.” Name of foreign national intending to apply for the Company/ Employer position Deeply religious Company Name: Concentrix CVG Philippines, Inc. Name: Shazli Ahmed Sharukh Pacific nations like Complete Address: 14/F to 25/F Ayala North Exchange, Address: Pasig City Samoa hold strong Tower 2, 6798 Ayala Avenue cor. Amorsolo and Nationality: Indian beliefs in Old TesSalcedo Streets, Brgy. San Lorenzo, Makati City Intended Period of Employment: Two (2) Years Nature of Business: Business to Business IT tament prophecy, Company hereby declares that the above-named foreign national is able, willing, and qualified to perform the which holds that services and job description for this position. The company has the intention to employ the said foreign national Jews are destined to and apply for an Alien Employment Permit with the Bureau of Local Employment (BLE) located at 6th Floor, Banco one day return to the Filipino Condominium, Solana Street, Intramuros, Manila. Land of Israel. AFP th

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SPORTS

TUESDAY, OCTOBER 6, 2026

Braves rock Dodgers to level series

LOS ANGELES—The Atlanta Braves shut down the Los Angeles Dodgers’ star-studded batting line-up to score a series-leveling 3-2 victory in Major League Baseball’s playoffs on Sunday as the Milwaukee Brewers snatched a dramatic walk-off win to defeat the San Diego Padres. A superb collective Braves pitching performance set up a vital win at Dodger Stadium that leaves the best-of-five National League division series finely balanced at 1-1 ahead of game three in Atlanta on Tuesday. The Dodgers -- the reigning back-to-back World Series champions who are chasing a rare treble of championships -- were left ruing an out-of-sorts performance from ace starter Blake Snell and a toothless display from their bats, who were for 0-for8 with runners in scoring position. Braves relievers Robert Suarez and Didier Fuentes were the heroes for Atlanta, locking down the late innings to frustrate the Dodgers hopes of taking a commanding 2-0 lead after their game one win. Braves catcher Drake Baldwin saluted the contribution of the 21-year-old Fuentes, who came within one out of pitching four perfect innings. “He was so poised,” Baldwin said. “It says a lot about him -- he’s been doing it for us this entire year and you saw it tonight. “We’ve got a ton of confidence in him and he went out and showed it.” The Dodgers runs came from solo homers from Freddie Freeman and Max Muncy, but it was not enough to pip the Braves, who took an early lead from a Mauricio Dubon single, added another run from a wild pitch by Dodgers reliever Kris Bubic, and grabbed a third with a Michael Harris double. Earlier Sunday, Jackson Chourio smacked a walk-off two-run single to give the Brewers a 4-3 victory over the Padres and a commanding 2-0 lead in their series. AFP

Robert Suarez of the Atlanta Braves AFP

Argentina’s forward #10 Lionel Messi holds the Golden Ball award for best player as he kisses the FIFA World Cup Trophy during the trophy ceremony at the end of the Qatar 2022 World Cup final football match between Argentina and France at Lusail Stadium in Lusail. It will be both a farewell and the start of a new era: Lionel Messi will bid farewell to the Argentina national football team in a friendly match against Benin on October 6, 2026, at the Monumental Stadium in Buenos Aires, where a large celebration is expected to pay tribute to the Argentine star.

Messi readies for farewell game in Argentina send-off B

UENOS AIRES—Lionel Messi will bring the curtain down on his glittering Argentina career on Tuesday with a farewell friendly against Benin that marks the dawn of a new era for the South American champions. After more than two decades of service to his country, the 39-year-old superstar will hand over the captain’s armband for good as he makes his final appearance in the Albiceleste jersey at the Estadio Monumental in Buenos Aires. Messi will be joined for his international swansong by 85,000 spectators and several of the teammates with whom he reached the pinnacle of football at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, alongside members of Argentina’s emerging generation. The friendly marks a symbolic passing of the torch for a player whose international legacy includes a World Cup title, two Copa

America crowns and the Finalissima. Messi also bows out as Argentina’s record appearance-maker and leading scorer, with 125 goals in 207 games, as well as a record 68 assists. His farewell comes two and a half months after Argentina’s ill-tempered World Cup final defeat to Spain in New Jersey, where Messi exited in tears after making little impression. “I gave it my all; I have nothing left to give, and besides, there are great young players coming up who deserve their chance,” Messi wrote when announcing his international retirement in August. Messi remains under contract with Inter Miami until 2028, although following the death of his father, Jorge, two months ago, he revealed he may hang up his boots for good sooner than anticipated. Friends reunited Members of Argentina’s 2022 World Cupwinning squad -- the players who delivered the country’s third star -- and their families will join Messi for Tuesday’s farewell against Benin, ranked 93rd in the world. Veterans of that Doha triumph such as Angel Di María, who retired from international football in 2024, will be there to witness the passing of the

torch to a new generation charged with extending the Albiceleste’s golden era. Several of the newcomers, including Franco Mastantuono and Leonel Flores, were not even born when “La Pulga” (“The Flea”) made his Argentina debut in 2005 for a team whose history had for so long been dominated by Diego Maradona. “It’s going to be an unforgettable day for everyone. Everyone wants to be at this match, and now it’s just about enjoying it,” Argentina coach Lionel Scaloni said. Argentina’s new generation has already shown what it can do without its captain, although nobody is pretending replacing a man regarded by many as the greatest footballer in history will be straightforward. “Collectively, we will try to fill the void left by Leo,” said Scaloni, who is negotiating a contract extension after leaving his future unresolved following the World Cup defeat in July. Scaloni, who mastered the art of building the right supporting cast around Messi, will also say goodbye on Tuesday to 38-year-old vice-captain Nicolas Otamendi. AFP

Green Booters blank Blue Eagles, 3-0, in UAAP opener DE La Salle University made an emphatic start to its UAAP Season 89 Collegiate Men’s Football Tournament campaign, dismantling archrival Ateneo de Manila University, 3-0, on Sunday at the UP Diliman Football Stadium. The Green Booters opened the scoring just nine minutes into the match after their pressing forced the Blue Eagles into a mistake while playing out from the back, allowing Joaquin Collo to break the deadlock. La Salle then scored twice in the second half to seal the victory. Lukie Aguilar converted John Gaverza’s left-flank cross to double the Green Booters’ lead in the 52nd minute, while rookie striker Argos Alingalan completed the rout with a powerful strike in the 86th minute. “Sa amin kasi, we don’t rely sa isang scorer kasi madali tayong mapredict kung sino yung scorer,” said head coach Richard Leyble. “Lagi naming sinasabi na our problem

Matches on Thursday (UP Diliman Football Stadium) 2 p.m. – UP vs UST 4:30 p.m. – UE vs DLSU 7 p.m. – AdU vs Ateneo

before is the finishing. Now, we train, and we need more attackers to be finishers or goalscorers.” Hoping to build on last year’s Final Four finish, La Salle aims to maintain its consistency throughout the season. One notable aspect of Sunday’s match was Leyble’s use of platoon substitutions, ensuring that the Green Booters maintained their intensity while pressing high up the pitch. With the University of the East next on La Salle’s schedule on Thursday at 4:30 p.m. at the same venue, Leyble hopes his team can sharpen its pressing game. “‘Yung balance doon sa pressing namin,” he said. “Yung iba, hindi sumasama, hindi na-su-sustain ang pressing namin kung kailan

La Salle football team

kami mag-low, kailan kami magpress. Kailangan naman i-improve for the next game.”

Meanwhile, Ateneo will look to bounce back when it faces Adamson University on Thursday at 7 p.m.

Avenir, Roxanne lead Montalban Mountain Run Leg 2 champions

MMR2 podium finishers are shown here Kenneth Charles Feria

RODRIGUEZ, Rizal—Paul Avenir and Roxanne Frijas emerged as the 32-kilometer winners of the Montalban Mountain Run Leg 2, with Avenir surviving a tight men’s race while Frijas turned a difficult setback into an emotional victory. Avenir clocked 5:46:58 to top the 32km men’s category, edging Jose Cayabyab, who finished in 5:47:05. Ariel Aguilar completed the podium in 5:47:21, putting all three runners within 23 seconds of each other. Frijas won the 32km women’s category in 6:53:30, just weeks after experiencing her first-ever DNF at the Last Stand of Yamashita in Ifugao. Frijas covered at least 42 kilometers of the roughly 54km race, with around 3,000 meters of elevation, before reaching an intermediate cutoff at a river crossing. But after enduring long ascents and descents, she began struggling physically and mentally. “I knew I wouldn’t be able to finish strong, so I had to make a very difficult decision to DNF. That was my first DNF ever,” Frijas said. Rather than stay away from competition after the

experience, Frijas returned to the trails and found herself back on top of the podium at Montalban. “Though it wasn’t my first time winning on the podium, it still blew my mind to win a race a few weeks after my DNF,” she said. “Reaching the finish line wasn’t the hardest part. It was finding the courage to stand at the start line again, knowing that anything could happen.” The 15km Men’s - Student Athlete category was another close race, with Joel Solina edging Jethro Arinal by just three seconds. Solina finished in 1:46:42, followed by Arinal in 1:46:45 and Roniel Yupo in 1:56:26. Kurt Iserio won the 15km men’s adult in 1:57:31. Krista Olence Balagtas won the 15km women’s adult category in 2:32:46, while Jhiellyn Sison topped the 15km women’s student-athlete category in 2:37:38. Jonathan Caraang won the 15km non-binary category in 2:01:19. The actual staging of Leg 2 was itself a triumph for organizers after bad weather forced the event to be rescheduled and shifted to a virtual format.

PSA Forum to discuss NAASCU, QC sports program AFTER a three-week break, the Philippine Sportswriters Association Forum resumes its weekly session on Tuesday (Oct. 7) with the new season of the National Athletic Association of Schools, Colleges and Universities and the Quezon City fencing team on its agenda in the media room of the Philippine Sports Commission. NAASCU president Dr. Ernesto Jay Adalem and commissioner Cris Bautista will share together the opening and celebration of the league’s upcoming 24th season in the public sports program. Quezon City District 1 Councilor Joseph Juico, meanwhile, takes care of the fencing side as he talks about the projects of the city’s fencing team for the final quarter of the year, which coincides with its 20th founding anniversary. The session starts at 10:30 a.m. Presented by San Miguel Corporation, PSC, Philippine Olympic Committee, MILO, and the country’s only 24/7 sports app ArenaPlus, the Forum resumes after a threeweek break to give way to the Philippines’ participation in the 20th Asian Games in Nagoya, Japan. The session is being livestreamed via the PSA Facebook page fb.com/PhilippineSportswritersAssociation and aired on a delayed basis over Sports Radio 918 AM and shared on the Facebook page Sports Radio 918 AM.

SPORTS

TUESDAY, OCTOBER 6, 2026

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

Jeeno bucks late wobble to win Lotte tilt

BLAZERS STAY HOT. St. Benilde

guard Ian Torres shoots against a San Sebastian College defender in the NCAA Season 102 men’s basketball tournament on Monday at the San Juan Arena. The Blazers won, 73-66, to improve to a leaguebest 5-1 record, while the Golden Stags remained without a win after six outings.

Eala gets 1st-round bye in Wuhan Open

medal in the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games after losing to eventual champion Wang Xiyu of China, 6-3, 3-6, 2-6, in the semifinals. The defeat denied Eala a shot at the Asiad gold that grants a direct qualification spot for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics. Despite the setback, Eala said she had no regrets after claiming her second straight Asian Games singles bronze, taking important lessons with her as she shifts her focus back to the WTA Tour. “I have no regrets. I left everything on the court,” Eala said. “There’s always positive things to take away, and there are always lessons to be learned one way or another, no matter the result.” Eala has also been eliminated from contention for a spot in the WTA Finals after skipping the WTA 1000 China Open to represent the Philippines in the Asian Games. Eala’s decision to prioritize the Asiad meant missing out on valuable ranking points that could have boosted her bid for a spot in the elite eight-player field. The WTA Finals are scheduled for November 8 to 15 at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden in the United States, featuring a total prize pool of $15.5 million.

By Jeremiah Sevilla

ILIPINA ace Alexandra “Alex” Eala is in line for a seeded spot and a first-round bye in the Wuhan Open 2026, giving her a chance to rebound from a disappointing Asian swing so far.

Alexandra Eala

Ranked No. 18 in the world, Eala is expected to be among the top 32 seeds in the WTA 1000 tournament slated October 12 to 18 at the Optics Valley International Tennis Center in Wuhan, China. Eala will face another strong field in Wuhan, led by top 10 players in No. 2 Aryna Sabalenka, No. 3 Jessica Pegula, No. 4 Coco Gauff, No. 5 Mirra Andreeva, No. 6 Linda Noskova, No. 7 Elina Svitolina, No. 8 Karolina Muchova, No. 9 Iga Swiatek, and No. 10 Marta Kostyuk. World No. 1 Elena Rybakina,

meanwhile, withdrew from the tournament due to a lingering foot and lower-leg injury, pulling out a day after suffering a second-round upset loss to Alina Charaeva in the China Open. Eala heads to Wuhan looking to turn things around after an early exit in the WTA 500 Singapore Open and a heartbreaking campaign in the 20th Asian Games. The Pinay netter suffered a second-round defeat to the No. 118 Tatiana Prozorova of Russia, 6-4, 5-7, 3-6, in the Singapore Open. She then settled for a bronze

Eala-Obiena love team? EJ says ‘She’s my younger sister’ FOR a while, tennis superstar Alex Eala and pole-vault ace Ernest John Obiena had Filipino fans wondering if there was something more than friendship between two of the Philippines’ biggest sports stars. The two have appeared in several playful videos, teaching each other their respective sports, while Obiena has also popped up at Eala’s awards ceremonies in the 20th Asian Games. Their playful chemistry even spilled into a TikTok reel to Parokya ni Edgar song “Akala,” prompting some fans to play matchmaker. One netizen Hay Dee says: “Bakit parang bagay sila? Hahaha”

Charity Orais says: “Talagang binalikan ni EJ si Alex sa Japan...haha.. magandang pahiwatig EJ..haha” Thelma Dulay says: “SABI NIA CRUSH DAW NI EJ SI ALEX TOTOO BA YON HULA KO LANG CORRECT IF IM WRONG” Josefina Gregorio says: “The new love team in Phil Sport our pinoy pride mabuhay Alex and EJ bagay kayo ❤” Even Chito Miranda, vocalist of the band Parokya ni Edgar chimed in: “Naging kilig song yung “Akala” haha! Joke lang, mga idol!” But Obiena quickly put the romance rumors to rest. “I have a girlfriend. She (Eala)

is my younger sister,” Obiena said during dinner with Philippine sports officials in Nagoya, making it clear that whatever chemistry fans see on camera, it is strictly sibling-like. For now, fans may have to settle for the two sporting icons’ undeniable onscreen chemistry and playful friendship, as Obiena makes it clear that this potential Philippine sports love team exists only in the imagination of their ‘kilig-loving’ supporters.

Alexandra Eala and EJ Obiena: No romance, just sibling vibes Eala TikTok

Reign and repeat: 11-year-old Racelis wins 2nd straight Karter of Year honors AFTER etching his name in the record books as the 2025 MiniROK Karter of the Year, Antonio “Anton” G. Racelis faced the ultimate test of versatility this season: stepping up to the fiercely competitive Tillotson T4 Junior category. Rather than enduring a typical rookie learning curve, the 11-year-old phenom from Lipa City immediately asserted himself as the benchmark of the Philippine series. As the 2026 season draws to a close, Antonio has officially clinched the Tillotson T4 Junior Overall Championship by Round 8 (out of 9). The milestone secures his status as the 2026 T4 Junior Karter of the Year, crowning him with prestigious back-to-back top honors in consecutive age categories. A Masterclass in Domestic and International Dominance Antonio’s charge through the T4 Junior Philippine series was nothing short of breathtaking, powered by seven round victories and a stellar first runner-up finish. This relentless consistency earned him the distinguished honor of being the Top Filipino Qualifier for the T4 Nations Cup at the Kartodromo Internacional Lucas Guerrero in Valencia, Spain. His rapid ascent extended far beyond domestic shores. On the regional stage, Antonio clinched 2nd Runner-Up in

Antonio ‘Anton’ G. Racelis scoots home to the win

the inaugural Tillotson T4 Asia Cup, proudly establishing himself as one of the elite Filipino finishers in international competition. Forged in the Fire: Overcoming Adversity Championships are rarely handed out easily, and Antonio’s path was paved with high-pressure obstacles -- a first-lap incident in Turn 5 causing another kart to climb onto the rear and instantly costing him more than 3 seconds; an early contact that compromised the race thus dropping his kart near the back of the field in Qualifying Heat 1; another racing incident dropping his position down to 8th in Qualifying Heat 2; and an engine issue during the critical Time Trial that

hampered the performance early on. Yet, true racecraft is measured by how a driver responds when the odds shift. Such setbacks can happen at any point throughout a championship, but in one particularly challenging race, Antonio refused to give up and regained composure to orchestrate a stunning charge through the field, culminating in a breathtaking photo-finish victory by just 0.080 seconds. Reflecting on his turbulent path to the top, Antonio shared a maturity well beyond his years. “Setbacks do not decide the result; you can always fight back. I kept pushing, learned it session by session, and trusted my team. My journey is not only about winning races.

LOS ANGELES—Thailand’s Jeeno Thitikul bagged her fourth title of the year with a three-shot victory at the LPGA Tour’s Lotte Championship in Hawaii on Sunday. The world number two carded six birdies in a four-under-par 68 to finish on 21 under par at Hoakalei Country Club on Oahu. South Korea’s Yoon In-a was second on 18 under after also finishing with a four-under-par 68. Thai star Jeeno suffered a scare coming down the stretch with a doublebogey six on the 16th that dropped her to 19 under. But back-to-back birdies on 17 and 18 restored her cushion and averted the possibility of a play-off. “I totally have no idea how I did that,” Jeeno said of her birdie-birdie finish. “It was a really good battle with In-a. She played incredible on the front nine. “I knew I had to focus on my game. The 16th was terrible, a terrible hole for me. But I just tell myself that it’s two holes left and everything can happen.” Japan’s Miyu Yamashita finished in third place on 17 under after her final-round 67, one shot ahead of fourth-placed Auston Kim of the United States. China’s Michelle Zhang and Sweden’s Maja Stark shared fifth place on 15 under, six off the lead. AFP

Jeeno Thitikul

FEU chessers seize control with solid wins FAR Eastern University seized control of both the men’s and women’s divisions after scoring resounding victories in Round 2 of the UAAP Season 89 Collegiate Chess Championships on Sunday at the BGPOP Building of the University of Santo Tomas’ Manila campus. The Tamaraws cruised to a commanding 4-0 sweep of Adamson University, led by International Master Mark Jay Bacojo [1.5/2.0], who capitalized on John Rocel Simon’s [0.5/2.0] 23rd-move inaccuracy to gain a piece advantage before prevailing in a rook-versus-bishop endgame on the top board. The victory propelled FEU into a three-way tie atop the standings with Ateneo de Manila University and five-time defending champion UST, with all three teams carrying three match points after two rounds. The Tamaraws, however, provisionally occupy first place by virtue of their superior board-point tiebreak. On Board 2, National Master Oscar Cantela [1.5/2.0] complemented Bacojo’s performance by forcing checkmate on the 47th move against National Master Michael Jan Inigo [1.0/2.0].

Team Racelis

It is about learning, improving, and representing my family and my country with pride” he said. The Fuel Behind the Drive With another championship chapter closed, Antonio is already setting his sights on the horizon—pursuing advanced international competition and driver development. Behind every apex hit and checkered flag stands a steadfast family foundation. His father, Anthony Racelis—a dedicated car and racing enthusiast—shared his thoughts alongside his wife, Jimyleen. “My wife, Jimyleen, and I are committed to supporting Antonio every step of the way. We always remind him to keep his eyes on the

IM Mark Jay Bacojo

horizon, keep his hands steady on the wheel, and drive his own race. We are endlessly proud of him and always help him make it happen.” For his monumental 2026 campaign, Racelis will be formally inducted and celebrated as T4 Junior Overall Champion and T4 Junior Karter of the Year at the prestigious Golden Wheel Awards in the first quarter of 2027.

BUSINESS

TUESDAY, OCTOBER 6, 2026

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

AMRO trims PH growth Converge ICT Growth forecast for 2026 forecasts on energy shock reports minimal

3.3%

4.6%

By Thony Rose Lesaca

Growth forecast for 2027

5.6%

Inflation forecast for 2026

HE ASEAN+3 Macroeconomic Research Office (AMRO) on Monday cut its Philippine economic growth forecasts to 3.3 percent for 2026 and 4.6 percent for 2027, from 4.1 percent and 5.5 percent made in July.

The regional surveillance body also lowered its 2026 inflation forecast to 5.6 percent from 5.7 percent, while it raised its 2027 outlook to 4.6 percent from 4.1 percent. AMRO chief economist Dong He said the Philippines was among the economies hit harder by the energy shock stemming from the Middle East conflict. He said the government’s declaration of a national emergency helped the country mobilize its response. “But of course, growth did slow down significantly and inflation went

up very quickly,” He said. He also pointed to the flood control-related issue that weighed on public investment. He said the growth outlook depends largely on how fast public investment and construction activity can pick up. He said the country has clear policy frameworks and still benefits from robust remittance inflows and the ITBPM industry. “There’s both strength but the important challenges going forward in this kind of situation, I think it’s impor-

tant for the authorities to make use of the very robust policy framework they have, but ensure that public investment, well-governed public investment, can pick up speed and reach the government’s plan to complete this project. That’s very important for the Philippine economy to come back to its potential growth,” He said in a media briefing. He said monetary policy remains a challenging balancing act in the current environment, and cited the importance of the central bank maintaining its forward-looking framework. “High inflation eats into the real purchasing power of households, so without putting inflation under control, growth will be affected in any case. So, it’s important for the central bank to stick to its framework, of course, to take a forward-looking perspective and have a good reading of inflationary developments for them to take the appropriate policy action,” he said.

CELEBRATORY TOAST.

Citicore Renewables president and chief executive Oliver Tan, director Louie Ferrer and chairman Edgar Saavedra lead the company’s celebratory toast to mark the company’s 11 anniversary on Sept. 25, 2026. Rartners, regulators, financial supporters and team members gathered at The Blue Leaf Cosmopolitan for the event which highlights Citicore’s vision to reach 5 gigawatts within five years.

WHAT’S INSIDE?

disruption from cable outage

By Darwin G. Amojelar CONVERGE ICT Solutions Inc. said it experienced minimal service disruption after a submarine cable outage between the Philippines and Singapore Friday. The company said traffic was immediately rerouted through alternative international cable routes. The rerouting, primarily through the newly deployed Bifrost cable system, allowed it to maintain services with little to no disruption for most residential and enterprise customers, it said. “This allowed none to minimal disruption in our services to both our residential and enterprise customers due to the cable issue between Singapore and the Philippines,” Converge chief executive Dennis Anthony Uy said. Converge acknowledged that some customers had difficulty accessing applications and websites hosted in Singapore after the disruption. Uy said the company anticipated such incidents when it began investing in international submarine cable systems years ago. “We have planned our investments in these international cable systems as early as five years ago precisely in anticipation of these incidents,” he said. “Our investments in Bifrost along with SEA-H2X [Southeast AsiaHainan-Hong Kong Express Cable] have allowed us to achieve international network redundancy that’s most important at a time like this,” Uy added. The more than 20,000-kilometer Trans-Pacific Bifrost Cable System connects the Philippines with Singapore, Indonesia, Guam and the United States. It has a design capacity of more than 240 terabits per second (Tbps). Converge is the Philippine landing party for Bifrost through its landing station in Davao and owns 1 fiber pair in the cable’s trunk.

BIR orders IEMOP to withhold 2% tax on wholesale power remittances SM venues report 52% foot traffic growth

THE Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) will require the Independent Electricity Market Operator of the Philippines (IEMOP) to withhold 2 percent tax from gross remittances for electricity sales in the Wholesale Electricity Spot Market under Revenue Regulations No. 005-2026. The rule covers gross remittances IEMOP makes to power generation companies and other market partici-

pants for wholesale electricity sales. The BIR said it designated IEMOP solely as a withholding agent and does not consider the market operator to have income from the remittances. IEMOP should deduct and withhold the applicable tax on all gross remittances and remit the withheld amounts by filing the required withholding tax returns through the bu-

ADB providing technical assistance to help PH combat money laundering Power regulator extends no-disconnection policy

B4 HOUSING EXHIBIT. Department of Human Settlements and Urban Development (DHSUD) Secretary Jose Ramon Aliling, along with the heads of the department’s attached agencies, leads Monday’s ribbon-cutting ceremony and the the opening of booths and exhibits for this year’s National Shelter Month (NSM) at the DHSUD Central Office. The exhibits, held from Oct. 5 to 8, will feature housing programs, services and initiatives of the department and its attached agencies including Pag-IBIG Fund, the National Housing Authority, Social Housing Finance Corp., the National Home Mortgage Finance Corp. and the Human Settlements Adjudication Commission.

THE Asian Development Bank (ADB) will provide technical assistance to the Philippines to combat illicit finance and strengthen the implementation of anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing measures, the Department of Finance (DOF) said Monday. The regional assistance will be financed by ADB with the Philippine government. Finance Secretary Frederick Go expressed the government’s full support for its implementation. “Through this assistance, we are strengthening the capacity of our institutions to prevent illicit finance

and comply with international standards. These efforts help protect Filipinos and businesses from financial risks while fostering greater confidence in our financial system,” Go said. The Philippines, through the Securities and Exchange Commission, is one of the recipients, along with other ADB developing member countries. The total assistance for those countries is $500,000, the DOF said. The assistance will help government agencies and other relevant institutions enforce appropriate safeguards against financial crimes, the DOF said. Thony Rose Lesaca

reau’s electronic filing and payment system, the BIR said. It said IEMOP should also issue a certificate of tax withheld at source (BIR Form No. 2307) to each electricity seller and furnish a copy to the LT Document Processing & Quality Assurance Division of the Large

Taxpayers Service. “These Regulations shall take effect 15 days following its publication in the Official Gazette or the BIR official website, whichever comes first,” the agency said. Finance Secretary Frederick Go signed the regulation on Sept. 17, and the BIR issued it on Oct. 1, 2026. Thony Rose Lesaca

BARTENDING COMPETITION.

After winning the TGIFriday’s Philippines Bartending Championship in 2025, Roniel Lopez is taking his skills, energy and unique personality to the World Bartending Championship to be held in Orlando, Florida, where he will represent TGIFriday’s Philippines.

AboitizPower sells two Navotas power barges to MORE Power By Alena Mae S. Flores ABOITIZ Power Corp. said it sold two bunker C-fired power barges at the Navotas Fishport Complex in Navotas City to More Electric and Power Corp. (MORE Power). AboitizPower said in a disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange its subsidiary Therma Mobile Inc. (TMO) transferred ownership and operational control of Mobile 4 and Mobile 6 to MORE Power effective Oct. 2, 2026. The barges had been mothballed since Feb 14, 2025, following confirmation from the Department of En-

ergy (DOE). TMO and MORE Power are coordinating the transfer in compliance with grid and regulatory standards, AboitizPower said. Notices of the sale went to the DOE, the Independent Electricity Market Operator of the Philippines Inc. (IEMOP), the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP) and the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC). MORE Power is the sole power distributor in Iloilo City, which faces tight electricity supply. The utility has been seeking additional capacity to meet demand.

TUESDAY, OCTOBER 6, 2026 extrastory2000@gmail.com

business BSP rightly opted to address inflation

THE members of the Monetary Board (MB) were confronted by two key numbers when they sat down for their bimonthly policy-setting meeting on Aug. 27, 2026. The numbers were 2.6 and 6.2. The first number, in percentage terms, represented the Philippine economy’s year-on-year growth in the first of 2026; the second number, also in percentage terms, was the July 2026 inflation rate as measured by the consumer price index (CPI). Being well-informed about the nation’s economic situation and about conditions in the Philippine financial system, the MB members understood the numbers and appreciated the significance of the key policy decision that they were being called upon to make during the meeting. That decision would concern the rates charged by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) for its lending and borrowing operations, particularly its overnight borrowing rate, which then stood at 4.75 percent.

—“—

The Monetary Board remained true to the principal mandate given to it by the New Central Bank Act of 1993: the maintenance of domestic and external monetary stability. The two numbers in front of the MB members, 2.6 percent and 6.2 percent, were bad numbers. The 2.6 percent gross domestic product (GDP) growth in 2026’s first half was considerably lower than the revised average full-year forecast of around 3.5 percent and way below the government’s initial forecast of 5.5 percent to 6.5 percent GDP growth for full-year 2026. The 6.2 percent July inflation rate was considerably above the BSP’s basic 2-to-4-percent annual inflation target. Clearly, the economy had slowed down and was continuing to slow. Simultaneously, the inflation rate had been rising sharply and, with the adverse economic factors cited by the BSP — the continuing Middle East conflict’s impact on fuel prices, consequential wage and price adjustments and El Niño - looming on the horizon, was unlikely to decline significantly anytime soon. As the meeting came to order, the MB members realized that they were being asked to make a tough call. By virtue of the BSP’s decisive control of interest rates, they were being asked to make the age-old choice between inflation and growth — more specifically, between price stability and greater economic activity. The MB had three choices: maintain its key interest rate, raise it or lower it. Maintaining the rate at 4.75 percent would keep things as they were, i.e. prices rising and growth stagnant or slowing. Reducing the rate would, by lowering the cost of money across the financial system, promote greater economic activity by reducing the cost of loans of production, employment, and consumption. Raising the key rate would theoretically dampen upward price movements by reducing the demand for nowmore-expensive goods and services. Disregarding the strident calls from the Philippine business sector for a reduction in interest rates, the Monetary opted to raise its key rate by 25 basis points, to 5.0 percent. Its other rates were adjusted upward accordingly. The Monetary Board did the right thing. In deciding as it did on Aug. 27, the Monetary Board remained true to the principal mandate given to it by the New Central Bank Act of 1993: the maintenance of domestic and external monetary stability. The Monetary Board was by no means acting with indifference to the economic and social hardships created by a slowing economy. But it remembered that an economy cannot grow in sustainable fashion in a climate of continuing and pervasive inflation. Price instability is the greatest of tax collectors and it hurts most those who have the least capacity to bear taxes, namely, the poor. (llagasjessa@yahoo.com)

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BUSINESS

Manila

Standard

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TUESDAY, OCTOBER 6, 2026

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SM Prime venue foot traffic up 52% to over 1m visitors By Jenniffer B. Austria

M PRIME Holdings Inc. said its major entertainment venues attracted more than 1 million visitors in the first eight months of the year, up 52 percent from about 710,000 visitors a year earlier.

EXCEPTIONAL SERVICE. The Social Security System (SSS) recognizes three employees for their innovative contributions, outstanding performance, and exemplary ethical conduct during its 2026 Best Employees Awards on Sept. 24. From left are Dr. Jose Noriel Fabroa, medical specialist II of the Medical Operations Department; Levana Langgaman, corporate executive officer II of the Branch Accounting Department; and Jetro Taniegra, human resource specialist of the Performance Management and Employee Relations Department.

PH stocks climb 2% on bargain hunting; peso slips PHILIPPINE shares rebounded strongly Monday as investors picked up beaten-down stocks ahead of the official release of September inflation data. The peso, however, weakened to 62.621 against the U.S. dollar from 62.535 on Friday. The benchmark Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) rose 114.18 points, or 2.03 percent, to close at 5,743.21, snapping a five-session losing streak. The broader All Shares index gained 1.46 percent to end at 3,198.26. Regina Capital Development Corp. Head of Sales Luis Limlingan said buying pressure emerged, particularly among index heavyweights, as investors took advantage of cheaper valuations following the recent sell-off. “Sentiment was also supported as investors likely positioned ahead of tomorrow’s inflation print release,”

Limlingan said. Most sectoral sub-indices advanced, led by services, which climbed 4 percent. Property rose 1.75 percen, followed by industrials, up 1.28 percent; mining and oil, up 1.21 percent; and holding firms, up 1.11 percent. Financials was the sole declining sector, slipping 0.07 percent. Market breadth remained negative, as decliners outnumbered gainers 95 to 85, while 77 issues were unchanged. Trading value turnover was thin at P3.28 billion. Investors are awaiting the September consumer price index report scheduled for release Tuesday. The inflation reading is expected to offer signals on the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas’ future policy direction after the central bank raised its benchmark

interest rate by 25 basis points to 5 percent in September. Asian equities rallied on Monday after a big miss on US jobs creation gave the Federal Reserve breathing room to hold off an interest rate hike this month, while traders were also cheered by another drop in oil prices that eased inflation concerns. Investors in Asia followed the positive lead from their colleagues on Wall Street, where all three main indexes spiked in reaction to the highly anticipated non-farm payrolls data. The report showed the world’s top economy created just 29,000 jobs in September -- well short of forecasts for around 90,000 -- while the readings for the previous two months were also revised down, with July’s showing posts were actually lost. Jenniffer B. Austria with AFP

PROJECT RISE.

The University of the Philippines Diliman College of Science (UPDCS), in partnership with UP, the province of Basilan, and the Schools Division Offices of Basilan and Lamitan, implements Project RISE: Reinforcing Instruction in Mathematics and Science Education in Basilan (RISE-BASILAN) from July 20 to 24 in Lamitan City, Basilan. The workshop brought together 64 teachers, including 32 mathematics teachers and 32 science teachers.

Filinvest REIT names chair Joseph Yap as president, CEO FILINVEST REIT Corp. (FILRT), the real estate investment trust of Filinvest Land Inc. (FLI), has named chairman Joseph Yap as its new president and chief executive as the company focuses on improving performance, expanding its portfolio, and broadening its tenant base. Yap will assume the additional roles effective Oct. 15. He succeeds Maricel Brion-Lirio, who will retire as president and chief executive and resign as director on the same date, FILRT said Monday in a disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange. The board also appointed Ana Venus Mejia, the company’s treasurer and chief financial officer, as a director to fill the board vacancy. Yap has chaired FILRT since April 2024 and brings more than 40 years of experience in real estate, banking, and finance. He previously served as president and chief executive of FLI from 2007 to 2012 and was a board member from 1997 to 2015. The leadership transition comes as FILRT seeks to boost occupancy rates and diversify its property holdings. As part of efforts to broaden its tenant mix beyond traditional business process outsourcing (BPO) firms, FILRT recently welcomed MIT International School (MITIS) to Northgate Cyberzone in Muntinlupa City. MITIS leased nearly 900 square meters of ground-floor space at the iHub 2 building. The American-curriculum K-12 school is relocating from its former site along Alabang-Zapote Road. It becomes the first international school to establish a campus inside Northgate Cyberzone, adding an institutional education anchor to the district’s office and tech park. “As MIT International School grows, we required a strategic address that supports our long-term educational strategy while remaining seamless for the families we serve across Southern Metro Manila,” MITIS president Dae Kwan Chung said. FILRT said the lease aligns with its strategy to secure longterm institutional tenants and reduce reliance on traditional office occupants. The school’s new location lies within the PEZA-accredited IT park, offering Grade A facilities, 24-hour security, pedestrian walkways, and access to FILRT’s electric shuttle network. FILRT also holds retail and hospitality assets in its commercial portfolio. Jenniffer B. Austria

The growth was driven by a steady lineup of concerts, sporting events, and family shows, alongside the opening of the SM Seaside Cebu Arena in July. The figure covers foot traffic from the SM Mall of Asia (MOA) Arena in Pasay City, the SM Seaside Cebu Arena, and the SMDC Festival Grounds. SM Prime president Jeffrey Lim said the company’s entertainment venues benefit directly from their placement within integrated developments featuring dining, retail, and lifestyle amenities. “We are able to extend the experience beyond the event itself while creating more value across our properties,” Lim said. The SM MOA Arena hosted more than 110 shows from January to Au-

gust, a 20 percent increase from the same period last year. The newly opened SM Seaside Cebu Arena also posted a strong start, anchored by sold-out concerts from pop group BINI and rock band IV of Spades. SM Prime expects strong demand for live entertainment to persist through the rest of the year, backed by a full lineup of scheduled events across its three venues. The property developer is also building its 2027 events calendar, with major acts already announced, including Westlife’s anniversary tour, a three-show run by The Script, and Maroon 5’s Asia tour. Pop group BIGBANG is also set to perform at the SMDC Festival Grounds in Paranaque City.

Casino Plus, Peter & Sons expand gaming By Darwin G. Amojelar CASINO Plus, a Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (PAGCOR)-licensed digital entertainment platform, has entered into a strategic content partnership with international game studio Peter & Sons as it seeks to expand its gaming offerings with global titles tailored to Filipino players. Under the partnership, Casino Plus will bring selected games from the Yerevan and Barcelona-based studio to players in the Philippines, strengthening its mobile-focused gaming platform with Peter & Sons’ portfolio of titles. Evan Spytma, Casino Plus chief executive said the partnership reflects the company’s focus on selecting content based on the preferences and sensibilities of Filipino players. “Everything we do starts with one

purpose: Bring Fun to People — and at the center of that purpose is always the player,” Spytma said. “We are deliberate about what we bring to our platform. Culture fit matters to us; a game has to feel right for our audience, not just perform well on paper,” he added. Spytma said Peter & Sons’ distinctive creative style was a key factor in the partnership, describing its titles as having a creative identity that stands out in the industry. Peter & Sons founder and commercial director Yann Bautista said the studio is looking forward to introducing its games to Filipino players through Casino Plus. “Casino Plus has built a powerful local presence, and we are proud to work with their team as we introduce our portfolio to a new audience in one of Southeast Asia’s most dynamic regulated gaming markets,” Bautista said.

ATRAM UNICAPITAL DIVERSIFIED GROWTH FUND, INC.

ATRAM CORPORATE BOND FUND, INC.

8th Floor, 8 Rockwell Building, Hidalgo Drive, Rockwell Center, Makati City, Metro Manila Tel. No. 8814-7800; Fax No. 8841-0315

NOTICE OF ANNUAL STOCKHOLDERS’ MEETING

NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that the Annual Stockholders' Meeting (ASM) of the aforementioned Corporation will be held virtually or via remote communication on 30 October 2026 at 3:00PM via Zoom webinar. Stockholders can register at https://bit.ly/ATRAM2026ASM. Webinar password will be sent via email after registration.

NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that the Annual Stockholders' Meeting (ASM) of the aforementioned Corporation will be held virtually or via remote communication on 30 October 2026 at 2:00PM via Zoom webinar. Stockholders can register at https://bit.ly/ATRAM2026ASM. Webinar password will be sent via email after registration.

The Agenda of the Meeting is as follows:

I. Call to Order II. Certification of Notice and Quorum III. Approval of the Minutes of the Annual Shareholders Meeting held on 03 October 2025 IV. Management Report V. Presentation of the Audited Financial Statements as of 31 March 2026 VI. Ratification of the Corporate Acts of the Board of Directors since the last annual stockholders’ meeting VII. Election of Directors for 2026 to 2027 VIII. Appointment of External Auditor for 2027 IX. Other Matters X. Adjournment

Only holders of issued stocks of record as at the close of business hours on 01 September 2026 and whose status as stockholders on that date has been satisfactorily established in accordance with the corporate records of the Stock and Transfer Agent and the Corporate Secretary of the Company, will be entitled to notice of, and to vote at, the scheduled stockholders’ meeting.

Stockholders who intend to participate in the meeting via remote communication and to exercise their vote in absentia must notify the Corporate Secretary by registering through the Company’s website for the 2026 annual meeting of the stockholders on 19 October 2026. All information submitted will be subject to verification and validation by the Corporate Secretary by 23 October 2026. Successful registrants will receive an e-mail with instructions on how to access an online web address which will allow them to join the meeting and cast votes in absentia.

The procedures for participating in the meeting through remote communication and for casting their votes in absentia are set forth in the Information Statement. The Definitive Information Statement including its exhibits are to be released to the shareholders via email on October 07, 2026 and will be available in the Company’s website.

Makati City, Philippines, 30 September 2026.

(Sgd.) ATTY. MA. ALICIA G. PICAZO-SAN JUAN Corporate Secretary

CYAN MAGENTA YELLOW BLACK

BUSINESS

TUESDAY, OCTOBER 6, 2026

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

ERC to extend no-disconnection policy to end-2026 By Alena Mae S. Flores

T CREDIT FACILITY. Philippine National Bank (PNB) provides a P750-million credit facility to kiosk operator Fruitas Holdings Inc. to fund the food and beverage company’s expansion, including new product offerings and acquisitions. Joining the signing ceremony are (from left) PNB deputy head of institutional banking sector for commercial banking Humildad Santelices, PNB president and chief executive Edwin Bautista, Fruitas Holdings president and chief executive Lester Yu and Fruitas Holdings director and chief financial officer Calvin Chua.

AIIB, DOTr seek consultants to boost logistics sector By Darwin G. Amojelar THE Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) and the Department of Transportation (DOTr) are seeking international and local consulting firms or consortia to support technical assistance and capacity-building in the Philippines’ logistics and freight transportation sector, with proposals due by 11:45 p.m. on Oct. 22, 2026.

The assignment falls under the Facility for Accelerating Studies for Infrastructure (FASt-INFRA) project funded by a technical assistance grant from the Multilateral Cooperation Center for Development Finance (MCDF), the DOTr said. The consultancy will strengthen logistics and freight systems and enhance Public-Private Partnership (PPP) frameworks in the Philippines and across the ASEAN region.

IN BRIEF ERC approves Isabela solar project’s line

THE Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) has granted Yuchengco-led BKS Green Energy Corp. (BKSGEC) authority to develop and own a P260.66-million dedicated point-to-point transmission facility for its 33.83-megawatt-peak Limbauan Solar Power Project-Phase 2 in Isabela province. The ERC approved the application subject to operational conditions. Power from the solar plant in Barangay Limbauan, San Pablo will face generation curtailment and dispatch prioritization until three grid projects are completed. They are the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines’ (NGCP) NagsaagSantiago 500-kilovolt transmission line, NGCP’s Gamu-Santiago 230-kilovolt reconductoring project and the transfer of Solar Valley Energy Solutions Inc.’s San Pablo Solar Project to its final connection point. The authorized facility consists of a 13.2/69-kilovolt take-off substation with a 30/32-megavolt-ampere transformer and related telecommunication equipment, a 4.4-kilometer single-circuit 69-kilovolt transmission line and a 69-kilovolt switching station tapping into NGCP’s Tuguegarao-Cabagan line. The solar project operates under a long-term fixed tariff secured through the Department of Energy’s second Green Energy Auction Program. The facility is designed to help meet rising electricity demand and support government policies under the Renewable Energy Act of 2008. Alena Mae S. Flores

DA, NBI seize P5.19m worth of meat in Pasay

THE Department of Agriculture (DA) and the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) seized 11.5 metric tons of undocumented imported meat worth P5.19 million in Pasay City, the agency said Monday. The operation on Sept. 22 and 23 at a property along C.A. Lucban Street recovered pecking duck, whole pigeon, lamb, yellow chicken, black chicken and other frozen meat products. The DA’s National Meat Inspection Service (NMIS) and Inspection and Enforcement Unit assisted the NBI after surveillance and verification showed that LCCI Food Condiments Trading and Sitphin Sari-Sari Store were not NMIS-accredited. Neither business

was registered with the concerned local government units as a meat cold-storage warehouse or depot. The NBI obtained search warrants from the Pasay Regional Trial Court before the operation. NMIS personnel inspected, identified, documented and inventoried the seized products. Agents arrested two Chinese nationals, Wu Dun Han and Cai Huarong, and brought them before the Pasay City Prosecutor’s Office for inquest proceedings. The suspects face allegations of violating Republic Act No. 9296, the Meat Inspection Code of the Philippines, as amended by RA 10536. The law prohibits the sale, transport or distribution of meat products that have not undergone required inspection. Othel V. Campos

IPOPHL, WIPO aim to help entrepreneurs

THE Intellectual Property Office of the Philippines (IPOPHL) and the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) aim to reach at least 500,000 Filipino entrepreneurs with expanded intellectual property (IP) awareness and support under a new cooperation framework. The initiative will tap business associations, chambers of commerce, professional networks and other local institutions to bring practical IP assistance closer to micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs). “Together with IPOPHL, our goal is half a million Filipino entrepreneurs. Through this new partnership, we help turn good ideas into stronger brands and viable, market-ready businesses and put IP to work for growth, jobs and opportunity,” said WIPO director-general Daren Tang during a cooperation mission to the Philippines last week. The program will help entrepreneurs protect their brands, manage intellectual assets and pursue opportunities in international markets, Tang added, IPOPHL said. IPOPHL and WIPO will also explore stronger IP protection in e-commerce, including potential partnerships with online platforms to help merchants protect their brands and intellectual property online. IPOPHL director-general Teodoro Pascua said the partnership would make IP support more accessible to entrepreneurs, artists and inventors while allowing the agency to develop solutions based on stakeholders’ needs. Othel V. Campos

Public warned against hoarding bottled water By Gene Paul Agapito THE government urged Filipinos not to hoard bottled water ahead of an intensifying El Niño, saying supply remains adequate. The Department of Trade and Industry assured consumers that supply is sufficient and said it will intensify price monitoring and coordinate closely with manufacturers and distributors to keep the market stocked. It also said it will address complaints of overpricing of plastic drums, water containers and other related goods, including bottled water. “Businesses and sellers are reminded to act responsibly and refrain from taking advantage of the situation through unjustified price increases,” the DTI said in a statement. The agency said it will impose fines, penalties and other sanctions

on violators of applicable laws and regulations. Residents have been buying up bottled water in groceries and supermarkets in anticipation of the El Niño, which the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) warned is intensifying at 3.05 degrees Celsius above average, months before its projected peak. PAGASA weather specialist Dan Villamil said hoarding is the wrong response and stressed the need to conserve water. “Definitely, water conservation is one of the things we need to do. Let’s not hoard. That is wrong practice because that will affect our general supply,” Villamil said in an interview with Super Radyo dzBB. Villamil also advised the agriculture sector to plant drought-resistant crops that do not rely heavily on water.

Under the project terms, the consultants will support the government’s efforts to improve the logistics sector and advance the development and operationalization of the Philippine Transportation System Master Plan (PTSMP). The work covers institutional strengthening, project preparation support and cross-border knowledge sharing to build capacity for infrastructure planning and development. Eligible firms may review the procurement documents and submit technical and financial proposals in line with the AIIB’s procurement guidelines, the bank said.

HE Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) said it will issue a limited extension of its nodisconnection policy through the end of the year, covering residential customers who use 200 kilowatthours (kWh) or less.

“We will issue it within the month because the current directive ends in October, and the commission has agreed to extend it, though its scope will now be limited,” ERC chairperson Francis Saturnino Juan said at the sidelines of the ASEAN Energy Business Forum 2026. Juan said the commission narrowed the policy after distribution utilities and electric cooperatives appealed over operational liquidity problems. The regulator said it will evaluate the extension’s impact after the year ends. “Because the previous no-disconnection policy applied to all customers, including large commercial and industrial accounts, payments were delayed while utilities still had to pay their power suppliers and grid operators on time,” Juan said. “Their cash flow is suffering, and their operations are tight,” he said. “By limiting the extension to small residential customers, we preserve protection for our most vulnerable consumers during a difficult period of rising power rates,” Juan said. The ERC earlier extended the discon-

nection moratorium through October because of high electricity prices. The relief measures align with Executive Order No. 110, which President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. issued on March 24 to declare a state of national energy emergency after military conflicts in the Middle East threatened local fuel supplies. The ERC also directed utilities to maintain staggered payment options for low-volume consumers. Residential customers who use 200 kWh or less a month may defer bill payments during the covered period and settle balances in installments over at least 3 months. The regulator urged consumers who can afford their bills to pay on time to help maintain utility liquidity. The ERC also instructed generation companies, the Power Sector Assets and Liabilities Management Corp. (PSALM), National Power Corp. (Napocor), National Transmission Corp. (TransCo), National Grid Corp. of the Philippines (NGCP), independent power producers and the market operator to offer matching deferred payment terms to distribution utilities.

SOLAR ROLLOUT.

Ayala Malls is accelerating its shift to renewable energy, expanding rooftop solar installations across more of its malls as part of its commitment to building more sustainable spaces. Solar installations at 13 malls including Ayala Malls Manila Bay, Ayala Malls Harbor Point, Ayala Center Cebu, Ayala Malls Central Bloc, Ayala Malls Nuvali, and Ayala Malls MarQuee now generate around 20.8 million kWh of clean electricity annually, cutting 16,200 tons of carbon emissions each year.

PH eyed as Asian lab for research and life sciences By Othel V. Campos THE Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) and AstraZeneca are expanding their partnership to make the Philippines a regional hub for clinical research and life sciences investment, with the drugmaker investing more than P3 billion in Philippine clinical trials over the past six years. AstraZeneca, which has operated in the Philippines for nearly 50 years, supports more than 28 ongoing and planned clinical trials at more than 150 sites nationwide. More than 1,000 Filipino patients have enrolled since 2022, the DTI said. Trade Secretary Ma. Cristina Roque discussed the expansion during an official visit to AstraZeneca’s Discovery Centre (DISC) in Cambridge, England, where she met AstraZeneca Philippines country president Lotis Ramin and AstraZeneca policy and advocacy lead Peter Olivar. “Expanding clinical trials and research is not just about medicines. It is about creating high-value jobs for our doctors, nurses, researchers, and health professionals, so more Filipinos can build globally competitive careers here at home,” she said. Roque toured the company’s Discovery Science Labs, STEM Inspiration Lab and DISC facilities before joining a roundtable on expanding Philippine participation in global clinical trials and streamlining regulatory approvals.

ASEAN geothermal potential faces hurdles SOUTHEAST Asian nations along the Pacific Ring of Fire have exceptional potential to lead global geothermal power deployment, but major obstacles continue to hold back development, an industry official said. “Deployment lags primarily due to high upfront costs of drilling an exploratory well, or the first set of wells that will prove the resource exists. Drilling does not always find what geologists hope it would due to subsurface uncertainties,” said National Geothermal Association of the Philippines (NGAP) president Jaime Jemuel Austria at the ASEAN Energy Business Forum (AEBF) on Monday. Austria cited other challenges, including fragmented government policies, severe transmission grid bottlenecks and market conditions that discourage private capital.

Member states of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) have 34 gigawatts (GW) to 35 GW of geothermal potential, nearly 48 percent of the world’s total, he said. Commercial generation is concentrated in Indonesia, which accounts for 84.9 percent of regional capacity, and the Philippines, with 12.7 percent. Exploration and resource assessment also extend to Thailand, Vietnam, Myanmar, Malaysia and Laos. To bridge the gap between potential and actual generation, ASEAN stakeholders should set up risk-mitigation facilities, Austria said. In the Philippines, the government is implementing the $170 million Philippine Geothermal De-risking Facility to reduce early exploration drilling risks, he added. Alena Mae S. Flores

SHARED VALUES. PLDT Inc. and Smart Communications are bringing more

of their business partners behind a shared commitment to responsible and resilient business, from protecting human rights and workplace safety to strengthening cybersecurity, business continuity and environmental stewardship. Since stepping up these engagements in 2024, the companies have reached partners accounting for 79 percent of the group’s 2025 procurement spend. In a recent forum, PLDT vice president and head of supply chain governance and enablement Bea Masangkay discussed the importance of integrating sustainability in business and in succeeding engagements across the supply chain.

ENVIRONMENT

TUESDAY, OCTOBER 6, 2026

extrastory2000@gmail.com RAY S. EÑANO, Editor

& S U S TA I N A B I L I T Y

FAO: Cutting food loss protects forests, saves natural resources

OME—Reducing food loss and waste has transformative potential for agrifood systems, as saving food from being lost or wasted also saves nutrients, natural resources and money, while helping ease pressure on forests. Director-General of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) QU Dongyu made the remark last week during a joint FAO-UN Environment Program event held in observance of the seventh International Day of Awareness of Food Loss and Waste . About 13.4 percent of food produced globally is lost after harvest and before reaching retail , while 19 percent of food available to consumers is wasted at retail, in food service and in households. Beyond the food itself, these losses represent a considerable waste of the

resources used to produce it. When lost or wasted food decomposes, particularly under anaerobic conditions in landfills, it also generates methane (CH₄), a potent short-lived greenhouse gas, further increasing the climate footprint of food loss and waste. FAO has estimated that approximately 1.4 billion hectares of land are used to produce food that is ultimately never consumed. With agricultural expansion remaining the leading driver of deforestation globally, reducing food loss and waste could help make better use of existing agricultural land and ease pressure on forests.

“To protect forests, we must transform agrifood systems; to transform agrifood systems, we must reduce food loss and waste; and by reducing food loss and waste, we help safeguard forests,” Qu said. Food loss and waste also generate around 10 percent of global greenhouse gas emissions. Addressing the problem could improve the availability of nutritious food, particularly fruits and vegetables, which experience the highest rates of food loss. Despite international commitments, the world has made no apparent progress in reducing food losses since 2015 and remains far off track from achieving Sustainable Development Goal target 12.3, which calls for halving per capita global food waste at retail and consumer levels and reducing food losses along production and supply chains by 2030. FAO is working with members and partners to turn this trajectory around by

improving measurement, strengthening policies and scaling up practical solutions that keep more food in the system, support access to healthy diets and reduce pressure on natural resources. Making food loss data more accessible To mark the International Day, FAO also released an interactive Food Loss Index data map, presenting food loss estimates for 2024 at the subregional and regional levels. The map will be permanently featured on FAO’s Technical Platform on the Measurement and Reduction of Food Loss and Waste, making regional food loss data more accessible and supporting efforts to improve the measurement of food losses. Its publication is part of FAO’s ongoing work with members and partners to strengthen food loss measurement and support evidence-based policies aimed at reducing losses across agrifood systems. FAO News

Food loss and waste also generate around 10 percent of global greenhouse gas emissions. Addressing the problem could improve the availability of nutritious food, particularly fruits and vegetables, which experience the highest rates of food loss. ©FAO

Report cites forests’ crucial role in food security Conclusion FORESTS also contribute to health. More than 1 billion people worldwide rely on medicinal plants sourced from forests, including remedies for illnesses that can affect nutrient absorption and overall well-being. Beyond food and health, forests provide fuel (around 1.8 billion people rely on wood fuel for cooking), income and employment, while supporting biodiversity, soil fertility, water resources and climate change mitigation. Such benefits are complemented by forests’ wider contributions to economic resilience and the ecosystem services that sustain communities, cities and productive landscapes: Forested watersheds provide freshwater to more than 85 percent of major cities and support agriculture, livestock production and fisheries through critical ecosystem services, including water regulation, soil protection, nutrient cycling, pollination, pest control and biodiversity conservation. In many regions, forests also generate up to 20 percent of rural household income and act as indispensable safety nets during periods of food insecurity and economic hardship. The report highlights regional differences in the contribution of forest foods to FSN. In parts of Africa, some communities obtain up to 80 percent of their daily protein from wild meat. In the Amazon, fish account for 44 percent of total food consumed by weight, alongside wild meat, Brazil nuts and açaí berries. Asia has the highest number of wild forest species used for food. In Europe, a survey covering 28 countries found that 90 percent of respondents consume at least one forest food each year, while more than one-third eat game meat annually. In North America, wild meat is used more for recreation than subsistence. The report also reviews progress in implementing the Committee on World Food Security’s 2017 Policy Recommendations on Sustainable Forestry for Food Security and Nutrition through case studies from China, the Dominican Republic, Morocco, Türkiye and Uruguay. Policy recommendations Despite their importance, the contributions of forests and trees to food security and nutrition remain insufficiently reflected in both forest and agrifood system policies and planning. This is partly due to a lack of globally agreed definitions and methodologies for measuring forest foods and forest ecosystem services, as well as fragmented policy approaches. The report presents 12 recommendations to fully harness the contribution of forests to FSN across policy, management, information and governance. These include: • Adopt integrated, context-specific policies and strengthen legal and policy frameworks; • Diversify production systems and promote the sustainable management and use of forest foods; • Increase public investment and mobilize diverse financing sources for sustainable agriculture and forest management; • Strengthen forest-food data systems and invest in research, innovation and technology; • Build institutional and human capacity and foster multisectoral partnerships among governments, civil society and the private sector. FAO News

Department of Environment and Natural Resources Secretary Juan Miguel Cuna delivers his keynote message during the Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners High-Level Reception in New York on September 20, 2026, where he highlighted the Philippines’ push to accelerate the clean energy transition and attract investments in renewable energy.

Clean energy key to security, sovereignty DEPARTMENT of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) Secretary Juan Miguel Cuna said transitioning to renewable power is essential to protecting the Philippines against international supply shocks and geopolitical instability. Speaking at a high-level reception hosted by Danish green fund manager Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners (CIP) at the New York Climate Week, Cuna stressed that decades of heavy reliance on imported fossil fuels have left the Philippine economy exposed to global market disruptions. “The world is navigating an era of complex geopolitical change, where the traditional paradigms of national security are rapidly evolving,” Cuna said in his keynote address on Sept. 20 at Varick Street in Manhattan. “For the Philippines, a highly vulnerable archipelagic nation, the intersection of energy reliability, environmental preservation, and geopolitical stability is an everyday reality, not just a theoretical concept.” He added climate change and the energy transition are “foundational security concerns” that require breaking the country’s dependence on foreign fuel sources. Under the Philippine Energy Plan, the government is driving toward a target of exceeding a 50-percent renewable energy share in its power generation mix by 2050, alongside a near-term goal of reaching 35 percent by 2030.DENR News

White-winged rarity: Leucistic Philippine duck spotted in Leyte By Reyan L. Arinto AMONG the birds moving quietly across the waters of Lake Malagsum in Burauen, Leyte, one Philippine duck caught the eye of wildlife monitors―not for its behavior, but for its striking difference from the others. The bird had unusually pale feathers, a rare appearance for the normally dark-plumaged Philippine duck (Anas luzonica). The unusual duck was spotted early this September by the Biodiversity Monitoring Team of the Protected Area Management Office of Mahagnao Volcano Natural Park (MVNP) during a routine patrol. The observation became the first documented record of a leucistic Philippine duck within the protected area. Leucism is a genetic condition that causes reduced pigmentation in an animal’s feathers, fur, or skin. In birds, it may produce white patches or an overall pale appearance. It is different

A leucistic Philippine duck (Anas luzonica) stands out against the waters of Lake Malagsum in Mahagnao Volcano Natural Park in Burauen, Leyte. Photo courtesy of DENR-8/Mahagnao Volcano Natural Park

from albinism, in which pigmentation is largely or completely absent. For the biodiversity monitors, the encounter was more than a curious wildlife observation. It became another piece of evidence of the bio-

logical richness found within the protected area. The Philippine duck is distinctive even without the unusual coloration observed at Lake Malagsum. RLA/PIA Eastern Visayas

Land use planning: Why it matters to Siargao’s future First of 2 parts FROM protecting mangroves and productive land to building safer communities and sustainable tourism, decisions about land can shape Siargao for generations Environmental protection begins not only with saving forests, mangroves and coastlines, but also with deciding how land should be used before development takes place. A home built where floodwaters regularly pass. A farm

replaced by buildings. A seaside community welcoming new resorts while trying to protect its water supply, fishing grounds, mangroves and shoreline. These everyday situations show why land-use planning is also an environmental issue. Decisions about where communities build, grow food, establish businesses and protect natural areas affect people’s safety, livelihoods and quality of life. They also give practical meaning to Surigao del Norte First District Rep. Francisco “Lalo” Matugas’ push for passage of House Bill 8466, the proposed National Land Use Act. Matugas, chairman of the House Special Committee on Land Use and principal author of the measure, has called for Senate action after the House approved the bill. The proposal seeks a national framework linking agriculture, housing, infrastructure and economic development with environmental protection and disaster resilience. For ordinary families, land-use planning starts with a basic question: Is the place where we live suitable and safe? Planning can help prevent communities from expanding into areas particularly exposed to flooding, landslides or storm surges. It can also identify forests, watersheds, wetlands, mangroves and other environmentally important areas that should be protected. (To be continued)

SHOWBIZ

TUESDAY, OCTOBER 6, 2026

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

Ice Seguerra turns musical hits

Very Wang

Nickie Wang

into intimate concert experience

PM icon Ice Seguerra is going for something smaller, more personal, and deliberately intimate with an upcoming concert at the Music Museum.

Ice Sings! An Intimate Concert Series: Musical Hits will take place on Nov. 6 and 7, featuring musicaltheater and film favorites, live-band arrangements, and a performer eager to explore different sides of musical artistry. “It’s like a big living room, so everything will feel very intimate,” Seguerra said during a press conference on Monday. “The challenge is that we only have 20 songs to work with.” That limited setlist, however, may be the least restrictive thing about the concert. The show takes its name from Ice’s digital performance series, Ice Sings!, which has allowed him to explore songs across genres. The live series is designed to do the same, with future possibilities ranging from love songs and cinema soundtracks to standards. “We simply called the concert Ice Sings,” the singer and songwriter explained. “There are actually so many possibilities. We can do ‘Ice Sings the Divas,’ ‘Ice Sings Madonna’—there are so many things we can do. We can do hip-hop. There are so many possibilities and so many things that can happen.” Liza Diño, creator, producer, and creative director of Ice Sings! that freedom is part of the appeal. “When you have a concert, there are usually expectations. People already have an idea of what you’re supposed to sing and what they expect from you,” Diño said. “But with this one, we really get to explore and play. So we’re excited to have the audience come along with us and explore these things together.” Diño also sees the concert as a showcase of Ice’s range as an artist. “I want to support Ice Sings because it shows just how much

Ice can do,” she said. “Seeing Ice evolve as an artist through the years, you don’t see a lot of artists who can actually sing across so many genres.” Joining Ice for the Nov. 6 and 7 shows is Filipino-American musical director, keyboardist, and producer Troy Laureta, whose credits include work with Ariana Grande and Justin Bieber, as well as a recording collaboration with Nicole Scherzinger. “People know me with a guitar, singing songs that feel very personal,” Seguerra related. “But I’ve loved musicals since I was a kid. This show lets me bring that side of

Ice Seguerra aims to deliver an emotional journey for the audience, and to showcase his versatility as an artist

Ice Seguerra (left) with wife, Liza Diño, at the concert’s press conference

The concert will feature musical-theater and film favorites, live-band arrangements, and a focus on exploring different musical genres and artistry

Margaret Diaz sees part of herself in ‘Isla’

myself back and find out what these songs mean to me now.” Among the songs being developed are “On My Own” from Les Misérables, “I Don’t Know How to Love Him” from Jesus Christ Superstar, “For Good” from Wicked and “Friend Like Me” from Aladdin. The last title has an extra bit of theatrical history for Seguerra, who previously played the Genie onstage. Revisiting that material gives the OPM icon space to tap into a comic and theatrical side alongside the more tender performances audiences have come to expect. Rather than dividing the concert into musical categories, the creative team is building the show as an emotional journey. “Ice knows how to make a lyric feel like a conversation with the person sitting in front of him,” Diño said. “Troy can help us open up the musical possibilities around that. Even when the band grows, we want you to hear the thought behind every word.” The arrangements and running order are being shaped by Seguerra, Laureta, and the band, with the aim of giving each song its own character while making the most of the Music Museum’s intimate setting. According to Diño, future editions of Ice Sings! An Intimate Concert Series could explore love songs, cinema, and original soundtracks, as well as standards, giving Ice a succession of musical worlds to explore. “The genre can change from one show to the next, but the heart of it is always Ice,” Diño said. “What leads him to a song is the soul he can bring to it. That’s true of the songs he interprets, and it’s true of the original music he’s creating now. Musical Hits is only the beginning of what we want people to hear from him.” Ice Sings! An Intimate Concert Series: Musical Hits is scheduled for Nov. 6 and 7, at 8 p.m. at the Music Museum. The concert is produced by Fire & Ice Live.

Margaret Diaz draws from her own experience of growing up in the province to connect with her character Isla

By Jasper Valdez

Anne Hathaway (left) and Josh Hartnett in a scene from the film ‘Verity,’ a psychological thriller adaptation of Colleen Hoover’s novel

‘Verity’ makes a killing at the tills VERITY, an MGM film starring Dakota Johnson, Anne Hathaway, and Josh Hartnett, took in $32.6 million in its first weekend, industry monitor Exhibitor Relations said. Adapted from a novel by Colleen Hoover, the story of a struggling writer hired to help a famous author finish her book scored an excellent opening for an original psychological thriller. Holding on to second place was Sony’s Resident Evil, with $12.5 million this weekend, bringing its North American total to $125 million after three weekends in theaters. Heart of the Beast, starring Brad Pitt as a former soldier and his loyal but traumatized combat dog as they survive in the Alaskan wilderness, brought in an estimated $11 million for Paramount on its second weekend.

It stayed in third place. Then in fourth with debut revenue of just $8 million was Digger, a black comedy starring Tom Cruise as a powerful man who sets off a climate disaster and then tries to show he is the one to save the world from it. “For a black comedy, the numbers are not bad, but black comedies are small films and this isn’t a small film, it’s a Tom Cruise movie,” Gross wrote. Dropping one rung to fifth, also with $8 million, was Primetime, starring Robert Pattinson as reality TV host Chris Hansen. The film is based on a real-life US show from the mid-2000s called To Catch a Predator in which Hansen and his production staff lured wouldbe pedophiles into sting operations where police were waiting to make on-screen arrests. Rounding out the top 10 were Forgotten Island with $7.2 million, Avengers Endgame: Encore with $4.4 million, Practical Magic 2 with $2.65 million, Spider-Man: Brand New Day with $2.45 million, and The Odyssey with $1.3 million. AFP

MARGARET Diaz found something familiar in the title character of Isla, particularly in her desire to leave the place where she grew up and see what else life had to offer. At the film’s press conference, Margaret said she also grew up outside Manila and knew at a young age that she wanted to experience more beyond her hometown. “I didn’t grow up in Manila. I also grew up in the province. Even when I was young, I already knew I wasn’t meant to stay in one small place,” Margaret said. “A peaceful life was never really for me because I’ve always craved more experiences, even when I was young.” That drive, she added, sometimes created friction at home. “That was also one of the reasons I had a love-hate relationship with my parents, because I was always hungry for new experiences,” she said. Margaret said the same restlessness helped her understand Isla, a young woman who wants to get away from the island where she lives. “I think that’s one quality Isla and I really have in common—that feeling of, ‘I don’t want to stay here because I deserve to see the world,’ something along those lines,” she said. The new Isla revisits a story previously brought to the screen in earlier versions. The production team said the latest film keeps the basic premise while giving it a new treatment, with Margaret taking

The cast and creative team at the press conference of ‘Isla’

on a role that deals with abuse, betrayal, and a woman’s attempt to change her circumstances. For Margaret, looking at the earlier versions helped rather than pressured her. “It affected me in a positive way because it really gave me an idea and a concept of how to execute the character properly, while also thinking about how I could take it a step further,” she said. “So it was a good reference for me.” She also considers Isla a step further from her previous projects. “With every film, I can honestly say that I always do my best,” Margaret said. “I keep trying to level up because that’s what I promise myself and the VMX audience. And with Isla, I would say this is going to be my wildest role compared with my previous movies.” Beyond the film’s more daring material, Margaret said playing Isla also made her think about women who experience abuse and remain silent. “The biggest lesson I learned from her is that you have to fight for yourself. Don’t stay quiet. Don’t let yourself become voiceless, because that can leave you even more vulnerable,” she said. She later stressed that experiences of abuse differ and that there is no single response that applies to everyone but said she hopes stories such as Isla can at least help women recognize that abuse should not be treated as normal. Isla is now streaming on VMX.

LIFE & SHOWBIZ

C3 TUESDAY, OCTOBER 6, 2026

Remote work offers another path to employment for Filipinos

By Jasper Valdez

OR Filipinos who find traditional office work difficult to enter or sustain, remote work can offer another route into employment, says virtual assistant entrepreneur Mary Emelyn Cavita. Cavita, founder and CEO of Virtual Assistant Portal PH (VAPPH) and Outsmart Services, said work-from-home arrangements can give people with different circumstances another way to earn and remain in the workforce. Among those she cited are students trying to support their education and single parents balancing work with family responsibilities. “There are parents who can’t afford to fully support their children’s studies, but the students themselves want to work so they can continue studying,” she said during a roundtable interview with Manila Standard Lifestyle. For single parents, she added, “It’s very difficult to raise a family by yourself.” She also pointed to persons with disabilities who are capable of meeting a client’s requirements, as well as older professionals who may face practical hurdles in returning to a regular workplace. “For example, you could have a retired accountant who can still work on a computer but may no longer be able to travel regularly,” she said, adding that age can also become a barrier when seeking employment in the Philippines.

Skills can be taught, but attitude and adaptability remain the qualities Mary Emelyn Cavita looks for when helping aspiring virtual assistants enter remote work

Virtual Assistant Portal PH, founded by Mary Emelyn Cavita, helps aspiring virtual assistants build practical skills and prepare for different types of online work

After 12 years in show business, careful planning, research and advice from her parents guide Gabbi Garcia as she manages her earnings and looks for ways to make her money grow

Outsmart Services provides remote business support while creating work-from-home opportunities for Filipino professionals across different fields

Workplace barriers can take other forms as well. Cavita pointed to members of the LGBTQ+ community who may prefer remote work because of how they have been treated in traditional workplaces. “Some experience discrimination at work. Others lose their selfconfidence because of what happens in the workplace, so they prefer working from home,” Cavita said. For her, access to remote work is not limited to any particular group. “As long as you have that go-getter attitude, you want to learn, and you’re willing to adapt, there should be an opportunity for you,” she said. That emphasis on willingness to learn also shapes how Cavita evaluates aspiring virtual assistants. “When we vet people, we don’t base it only on skills,” Cavita said. “Skills can be learned. You can Google something, get certifications, and learn a lot of things. But the most important thing is attitude. Attitude first, then skills after.” Cavita said misconceptions about virtual assistant work can also discourage some people from considering it. One is the belief that VA work is similar to call center work and requires strong spoken English. Not all virtual assistant jobs involve voice work, she said, with many roles covering administrative support, digital marketing, bookkeeping, e-commerce, and other online tasks. Another misconception is that becoming a VA automatically means earning a six-figure monthly income. “Six figures is possible, but it depends on how hard you work, the skills you have, how many clients you have and your experience,” Cavita said. She also cautioned workers against resigning from their current jobs immediately after taking a VA course. Instead, Cavita suggests trying remote work for a few hours first, learning through courses or free resources such as Google, YouTube, or ChatGPT, and seeing whether the setup suits them before making a full career shift. “I don’t simply tell them, ‘Enroll in a course and resign from your job,’” she said. “See first if it’s right for you.” As remote work changes alongside artificial intelligence, Cavita said adaptability will remain important. She has seen AI reduce the time needed for some administrative tasks, but she believes learning to use the technology can also open new opportunities for workers. “The threat is when you don’t study it,” she said.

Zuckerberg skewered again on screen in ‘The Social Reckoning’ SIXTEEN years after being portrayed as a power-hungry start-upper in The Social Network, Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg is set for another damning on-screen depiction in The Social Reckoning, Aaron Sorkin’s follow-up that explores the darker corners of Facebook’s legacy. Hitting screens internationally from Wednesday, the film focuses on Facebook whistleblower Frances Haugen, played by Anora star Mikey Madison, and Wall Street Journal reporter Jeff Horwitz, played by Jeremy Allen White. The pair were behind the 2021 “Facebook Files” PR disaster. Zuckerberg, played by Succession star Jeremy Strong, is the central figure, while Haugen and Horwitz provide the emotional core. “This is a whistleblower story. It’s a newspaper story,” Sorkin told AFP and other entertainment journalists last week. “In ‘The Social Network’ I made an attempt to understand his (Zuckerberg’s) motives and get inside his head. I do that less in The Social Reckoning,” said Sorkin, who wrote the first film. The new film centers on Facebook’s refusal to fact-check political advertisements before the 2020 US elections, followed by Donald Trump contesting the results and his supporters storming the Capitol. The Social Network, released in 2010, won three Oscars. Written by Sorkin and directed by David Fincher, it featured Jesse Eisenberg as a socially awkward young Zuckerberg accused of taking the idea for Facebook from Harvard peers. “What I had suggested back in 2010 was that he was a guy uncomfortable with the social structure of college -feeling, as so many people do, that there’s a cool kids table somewhere and he’s not welcome at it,” Sorkin said. “And so he created his own cool kids table, which he’s now the mayor of.” In The Social Reckoning, Sorkin does not delve deeply into what motivates Zuckerberg, now 42, as he runs Meta, which includes Instagram and WhatsApp. “It can’t possibly be money. There’s nothing you can buy for $120 billion that you couldn’t buy for $119 billion,” Sorkin said.

Shticks

Joseph Peter Gonzales

Gabbi Garcia knows the value of a hard-earned peso GABBI Garcia may have a steady stream of projects and endorsements, but the Kapuso actress is making sure her growing income does not simply sit idle. In a recent interview, Garcia revealed that she has become increasingly careful with her finances, particularly after 12 years in show business. “I’m very careful and smart in handling money because it’s, of course, my hard-earned money. And I’ve been working for 12 years already, so I have to make sure where my money goes,” she said. Being financially responsible, however, does not mean Garcia deprives herself of the things she wants. She also believes financial independence should remain a priority even after marriage, saying she wants to have her own savings and the freedom to spend her money without having to depend on her husband. “Even if I get married or have a family of my own, I have to have my own money, my own savings, so that I can spend whatever I want to spend on. That way, I’m not dependent. Times have changed. Not everything is shouldered by the guy.” Garcia also believes earning money is only half the job. The other half is figuring out how to make it grow. “You just can’t work and work hard, and your money is just dormant. It has to earn,” she said. Her parents remain part of that financial conversation. Garcia said she is open about her finances with them and continues to value their guidance. “A lot of time. I’m very open when it comes to my finances to my parents because they guide me all the time. And I believe they contributed so much in my life for them to have a knowledge about what I’m earning. They also give me advice on how to spend and how to take care of it.” Garcia also has a message for younger people who are beginning to earn their own money: Treat financial decisions with the same care given to planning a friendship or a holiday. “Always remember that your money is something that you worked hard for. If you can carefully plan for your friendships or travels, so also should you invest in your own money,” she said. She admitted that investing can be intimidating, especially at the beginning. “I can’t say that don’t be afraid because at first, I was also very much afraid,” Garcia said. “But research. Doing your research can be a huge help. Be intentional with what you want to do with your money. Knowledge on the matter is important. You can’t rely on hearsay. You have to back it up with your own research and ask advice from the right people.” *** Nyoy Volante looks back on his closeness with Jennylyn Mercado

Mark Zuckerberg faces another critical portrayal as ‘The Social Reckoning’ delves into Facebook’s controversial legacy

Strong told GQ he had emailed Zuckerberg to say he approached the role “very seriously” and “with respect”, but did not reveal the response. The film comes as tech billionaires increasingly become subjects of Hollywood projects. Sam Altman was set to be the subject of Artificial by Luca Guadagnino, while Elon Musk inspired the main character in Mickey 17 and is the subject of a documentary by Alex Gibney. Jesse Armstrong also explored tech billionaires in HBO’s Mountainhead. Given Zuckerberg’s deep pockets and powerful lawyers, Sorkin’s script received close scrutiny from Sony Pictures. The filmmaker also re-shot two scenes but denied legal fears were behind the changes. “There were some, not many, notes from the lawyers and those notes did not affect (the film),” Sorkin said. AFP

THEATER actor and singer Nyoy Volante recently addressed an old question about his relationship with Jennylyn Mercado. During a television guesting, Volante was asked whether he had courted Mercado and whether their closeness had developed into a romantic relationship. “Actually, there was a point in time when Jennylyn and I got very close. She watched my shows back then,” he revealed. Asked whether their relationship had developed into something deeper, Volante stopped short of putting a label on it. “I can’t say. There was no label. What we had was what we had. It wasn’t—I mean, it was there. I was very fond of her,” he said. He stressed that whatever existed between them was never formally defined. “But whatever we had before, it’s not for being safe, there was no label or anything. What I knew was that we became very close.” That chapter is now firmly in the past. Volante is married to theater actress Mikkie Bradshaw, while Mercado is married to actor Dennis Trillo.

LIFE

TUESDAY, OCTOBER 6, 2026

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

By Angelica Villanueva

OR generations, Marikina’s shoemaking industry has been built around workshops, family businesses, and skilled artisans. A new retail space at Opus Mall is giving local footwear makers a chance to bring their work closer to consumers outside the city. Spatio has partnered with Zapateria to launch Shoe Avenue, a dedicated space for Filipino footwear brands on the second floor of Opus Mall in Quezon City. The concept takes its name from Shoe Avenue, a real street in Marikina known for its shoe shops and workshops. For Zapateria founder Unyx Sta. Ana, the name honors the city’s long connection to shoemaking. “It’s a way for us to honor the various shoemaking workshops and storefronts in the city. And, of course, still celebrate Marikina as a Filipino shoe capital,” Sta. Ana shared. She said the project also aims to bring local craftsmanship closer to a wider audience. “While we’re making shoes for Marikina, we’re now here in Spatio and happy that we’re able to share more stories of our heritage,” she added. The inaugural lineup includes Zapateria, Alunsinag, HAYO, Posh Pocket, Bucroe, Bida Loca, Charis, and WUMWUM, bringing together different approaches to Filipino footwear and craftsmanship. Zapateria draws from five generations of the Sta. Ana family’s shoemaking heritage. Bucroe, which began in 1978 as a mass-production shoemaker, has since developed into a bespoke footwear house specializing in custom-fit leather shoes. Other brands offer contemporary designs, handcrafted accessories, Filipino woven materials, and footwear for children. For Spatio deputy general manager Martin De Leon, the partnership reflects the retail platform’s goal of giving Filipino makers greater visibility. “More than the numbers, what matters to us is creating a proper stage for Filipino creativity, craftsmanship, and stories,” De Leon said. The launch also comes as Spatio marks its second anniversary. De Leon shared that the retail space now has more than 400 local makers and designers, up from around 300 at the beginning of the year. For Sta. Ana, having a dedicated space for local

Specialty designs and customization give Filipino footwear makers room to carve out a stronger position in the wider market

Unyx Sta. Ana urges consumers to judge Filipino-made footwear by its design, craftsmanship and values rather than simply comparing it with foreign labels

Marikina’s shoemaking industry finds new home Filipino footwear makers gain a dedicated space where traditional skills, contemporary design and small-scale production can reach shoppers beyond Marikina

footwear inside a premium mall can also influence how consumers see Filipino-made products. “It sets the tone that we are a part of the global shoe industry. And I want to encourage Filipinos to also give value to what we can make here locally,” she told Manila Standard Life. Rather than treating local and international brands as competing categories, she encouraged consumers to look at what individual brands offer. “What I want to challenge them is not to look at it as local versus global. But to be discerning of what the brand they want to support,” she continued. Sta. Ana said consumers can consider whether a brand aligns with their values and whether its identity is authentic to what it offers. “If they want to support local, try to also discover more local brands that may be able to speak of their preferences,” she explained. Sta. Ana also sees opportunities for local footwear makers in specialty

Unyx Sta. Ana (left) and Martin De Leon bring local shoemakers into a wider retail setting as they push for greater visibility and appreciation of Filipino craftsmanship

products, creative designs, and customization. “There’s a market for specialty brands. For those who would offer more creative footwear designs and also customization,” she said. She added that the industry needs to identify its niche and develop products beyond price competition. The Shoe Avenue lineup is expected to grow as more Filipino footwear brands join the space. For Sta. Ana, the current selection is only the beginning. “This is the inaugural brand. So we hope we can see more join. So this is a start, like a first chapter of Shoe Avenue,” she stated.

What my career has taught me about making smart choices

The author looks back on leaving a higher-paying corporate job for journalism, a decision that changed how he weighs money, purpose and risk

By Nickie Wang GIVING up a good salary to pursue a dream sounds reckless now. It felt even more so back in 2015. After more than eight years in the corporate world, I had what many would consider a sensible career: a decent paycheck, a desk, a routine, and a job you were expected to hold on to. But I was restless in that cubicle. I liked the work, but I kept thinking about the newsroom. Writing had been my dream since grade school. I joined our school paper in fourth grade and eventually realized that I did not simply enjoy writing. I wanted to make a living from it. So while working in the corporate world, I started living two professional lives. I handled my office responsibilities while doing fieldwork as a columnist and contributing writer for

Manila Standard Lifestyle and Entertainment. Eventually, one had to win. I left the job that paid more and chose the one that paid less but gave me something I had wanted since childhood. I was nervous. I was excited. And, frankly, I had no idea if I had made the right decision. That was the gamble. The paycheck is not the whole story We are often taught to measure career success by salary, title, promotion, and how impressive our job sounds when someone asks, “What do you do?” I learned that the equation is not that simple. A good paycheck cannot compensate for waking up every morning wishing you were somewhere else. I know because I lived it. But loving your work does not mean every day is wonderful,

either. Journalism can be exhausting. Deadlines do not care if you are tired. News does not wait for a convenient schedule. Stories change. Technology changes. Audiences change. You either change with them or get left behind. That taught me to value the willingness to learn, adaptability, and the ability to accept criticism without taking it personally. I also learned that being surrounded by smart people who challenge you is far more valuable than being the smartest person in the room. Staying connected Writing took me far beyond the cubicle. It brought me to places I never expected to visit and introduced me to celebrities, executives, artists, entrepreneurs, and ordinary people with extraordinary stories. It also gave me countless good meals and great conversations. Not a bad trade. But journalism today comes with another reality: reliable

connectivity is no longer optional. News moves at an absurd speed. Interviews happen online. Stories are filed digitally. Photos and videos are transmitted in seconds. Social media can turn a story into a conversation almost instantly. The same is true outside the newsroom. People work remotely, run businesses from home, create content, attend online meetings, stream shows, keep in touch with family, and manage side hustles through their phones and computers. PLDT Home Fiber Unli All 1499 brings fiber internet, mobile data, unlimited landline calls, Cignal TV, and HBO Max into one plan. For households balancing work, business, communication, and entertainment, having these essentials together can simplify everyday connectivity. After years of moving between a newsroom, a laptop, a phone, and

Years after making the leap, the author works across digital platforms while treating adaptability, reliable connectivity and continuous learning as part of modern newsroom life (AI-enhanced images)

wherever the next story takes me, I have learned that while the tools have changed dramatically, the need to stay connected has only grown. Lessons from the leap I have collected a few rules along the way. l Find the balance between what you love and what pays the bills. Passion is wonderful, but the electricity company still expects payment. l Take care of your health. A high salary means little if you are too exhausted to enjoy what it buys. l If you have the opportunity to choose work that makes you feel alive, choose it. l If a decision scares you, do not immediately assume it is wrong. Fear can simply mean you understand what is at stake. l Never become too comfortable. Complacency is a slow death. l“I don’t have time” is often another way of saying, “This is not my priority.” l You will not always be the smartest person in the room. Find intelligent, like-minded people and learn from them. l When you are wrong, apologize. Be presentable. Think before you speak, and in the age of screenshots, think even harder before you click. l Learn to be a good follower before insisting on becoming a leader. When your turn comes, take the lessons from those who led you and add your own personality to the job. l Be ahead, but do not climb over people to get there. l Save money. Travel. Take on side hustles. l A second source of income can pay the bills. It can also become the beginning of something bigger. Looking back, leaving a comfortable corporate job in 2015 still sounds like a gamble. But sometimes, the bigger risk is staying somewhere simply because it is comfortable.