📰 News & Current Affairs

All about major events in the Philippines and all over the world.
South Korea broadband firm sues Netflix after traffic surge from Squid Game
SEOUL — South Korean Internet service provider SK Broadband has sued Netflix to pay for costs from increased network traffic and maintenance work because of a surge of viewers to the U.S. firm’s content, an SK spokesperson said on Friday. The move comes after a Seoul court said Netflix should “reasonably” give something in return to the internet service provider for network usage, and multiple South Korean lawmakers have spoken out against content providers who do not pay for network usage despite generating explosive traffic. Netflix said it will review SK Broadband’s claim, and seek dialogue and explore ways in the meantime to work with SK Broadband to ensure customers are not affected. The popularity of the hit series “Squid Game”...
Raffy Tulfo, nagpaalam na sa Idol In Action; namigay ng luxury items sa ilang staff
Nagpaalam na si Raffy Tulfo sa Idol in Action, ang kanyang public service show sa TV5 na nag-umpisa noong June 8, 2020 at natutunghayan mula Lunes hanggang Biyernes. Nangyari ang pagpapaalam ni Raffy sa Idol in Action ngayong Biyernes, October 1, 2021. Bago matapos ang araw, may mahalaga siyang announcement tungkol sa mangyayari sa kanyang popular radio program, ang Wanted sa Radyo, at sa partisipasyon niya sa Frontline Pilipinas, ang kanyang newscast program sa TV5. "Saan man po kami makarating, kayo po palagi ay nasa isipan namin. "Huwag ho kayong mag-alala, lalo pong lalakas ang Raffy Tulfo in Action, that I promise you. Trust me," bahagi ng farewell speech ni Raffy. Pinasalamatan ni Raffy ang lahat ng executives ng TV5, sa...
Drilon turns down offer to be Robredo's running mate in 2022
SENATE Minority Leader Franklin Drilon has politely turned down an offer from the Liberal Party (LP) to be the running mate of Vice President Maria Leonor "Leni" Robredo should she decide to run for the presidency in 2022. Drilon said that he would retire from politics, stressing that he has been in government long enough and that he wants to "give others a chance". "I'm not running for any position, I have served enough, I think I have contributed. Let's give others a chance," Drilon said. Drilon is one of the "Big 3" graduating in mid-2022 after two successive six-year terms in the 24-member Senate. The two others are Senate President Vicente Sotto 3rd and Senate President Pro Tempore Ralph Recto. Sotto is seeking the vice...
After getting vaxxed, PUV drivers in Pasig City get a free meal  from a jeepney soup kitchen
You’ve likely heard of food trucks, but have you heard of a fully functioning kitchen inside a jeepney? Transport drivers and their families from Pasig City were able to receive a free meal from a jeepney soup kitchen thanks to Rise Against Hunger Philippines (RAHP), the first and only national foodbank in the country. © Provided by Coconuts The project is in support of Kain Tayo Pilipinas movement, a private sector initiative to help solve the hunger problem experienced by more than 30 million Filipinos. © Provided by Coconuts The mobile soup kitchen project is able to serve 500 people each day. The pilot was launched at the Pasig Elementary School, where PUV drivers and their families were treated to bowls of arroz caldo and...
600,000 workers re-employed in September Bello
Around 600,000 workers were re-employed in September, Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello III said on Saturday. He disclosed this after the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) recently reported that unemployment rose to 3.88 million in August amid the implementation of a stricter lockdown to curb the more transmissible Delta coronavirus variant. “Ngayon lumuluwag na, mukhang mga 600,000 plus na napare-employ,” Bello said in a Dobol B TV interview. (The number has been decreasing. There are more than 600,000 who were re-employed.) The Labor chief on Friday said "labor force participation bounced back for an increase of 3.375 million." “This indicates jobseekers’ confidence to enter the labor market and become economically active,” he...
Philippine Airlines gets US courts OK to access $505-M funding
A United States bankruptcy court has allowed Philippine Airlines, Inc. to access the remainder of its debtor-in-possession (DIP) financing of $505 million. US bankruptcy court judge Shelley C. Chapman issued the “final order” authorizing PAL to obtain “post-petition financing” on Sept. 30 after the “second day hearing” held that day, according to court documents from PAL’s claims agent Kurtzman Carson Consultants LLC. PAL’s DIP financing is composed of a multi-draw term loan facility of $250 million — access to $20 million of which was approved by the bankruptcy court recently — and another multi-draw term loan of $255 million. PAL in a press release said the long-term equity and debt financing, as part of the flag carrier’s...
Hospital group seeks gov't assistance in improving nurses' compensation
A group of private hospitals E×ρréššed concern that there may not be enough healthcare workers in the country in the next few months, particularly nurses as they choose to work abroad due to higher compensation, according to the report of June Veneracion on "24 Oras"on Friday. The Philippine Nurses Association (PNA) bared that the salary of the nurses in the country is very low compared to other countries. “Hindi naman po kasi kami humihingi ng sobra, ang hinihingi lang namin yung tama para sa ating mga nurses (We are not asking for too much, we are just asking for the right and just for our nurses),” Melbert Reyes, president of the PNA, said. The PNA also said that there are some hospitals in the provinces where the nurses receive a...
Manila Bay's Mangroves Are Choking with Garbage
Just a week after International Coastal Cleanup Day, a grisly sight welcomes migratory birds to Manila Bay’s mangrove forest in the Tanza mudflats. Tangled in the roots of the mangroves are heaps of garbage, mostly single-use plastics. Diuvs De Jesus, a marine scientist at Oceana, photographed the site on September 25. De Jesus studied B.S. Biology in U.P. Diliman and took up an M.S. degree in Marine Science major in Marine Biology at U.P. Marine Science Institute. Photo by Diuvs De Jesus. "Spending millions for the dolomite beach in the disguise of cleanup when other parts of Manila Bay's mangroves and mudflats are threatened by plastic pollution and reclamation? Development in exchange for destroying our ecosystems?" De Jesus...
Expelled minister urges DOJ to continue probe
MANILA - The Department of Justice (DOJ) should proceed with the preliminary investigation on criminal charges filed against leaders of the Iglesia ni Cristo (INC) by expelled minister Isaias Samson and his family. The camp of Samson made this call yesterday as the protest rally staged by members of the INC at the intersection of EDSA and Shaw Boulevard continued to grow. “We urged the DOJ to already docket the case for the conduct of preliminary investigation to accord our clients their right to due process of law,” Samson’s lawyer Trixie Cruz-Angeles told The STAR. Angeles explained that the complaint for serious îllégâl detention, harassment, grave threats and coercion filed by Samson, his wife Myrna Dionela and son Isaias Jr. was...
Alert level system in NCR extended to Oct. 15 with expanded business operations
THE PILOT run of the new lockdown system in Metro Manila has been extended until mid-October, the presidential palace announced late Thursday, but some business establishments will be allowed expanded operations. The country’s pandemic task force, in its meeting held September 30, has decided to extend the pilot implementation of the Alert Levels System in the National Capital Region (NCR) until October 15, Palace Spokesman Herminio L. Roque, Jr. said in a statement. The government on Sept. 16 started enforcing granular lockdowns with five alert levels in the NCR. Metro Manila was placed under Alert Level 4, the second highest level, until Sept 30. In his statement, Mr. Roque said the task force also approved a recommendation to...
Duterte signs law extending voter registration
President Rodrigo R. Duterte signed into law Republic Act. No. 11591, a measure extending voter registration for the 2022 polls by 30 days. “The last day of registration of voters for the 2022 national and local elections shall be 30 days after the effectivity of this Act,” it said. The law will take effect immediately after its publication in the Official Gazette or a newspaper of general circulation.
ER Ejercito, kakandidato bilang Calamba mayor; hindi natinag sa graft conviction
Hindi pa tapos ang political career ng aktor at former Laguna governor na si ER Ejercito dahil muli siyang sasabak sa mundo ng pulitika. Kinumpirma ni ER ang plano niyang pagkandidato bilang alkalde ng Calamba City, Laguna sa eleksyon na gaganapin sa May 9, 2022. Base ito sa sagot ni ER sa isang netizen na nagtanong kung anong posisyon ang tatakbuhan niya sa Laguna. Gamit ang official Facebook account, sagot ni ER: "Mayor po ng Calamba." Nag-post na si ER sa kanyang official Facebook page ng ad para sa kampanya niya. Ang kanyang tagline: "KAMPEON NG MASA AGILA NG LAGUNA." © Provided by PEP.ph Bago siya nahalal na gobernador ng lalawigan ng Laguna noong June 2010, siyam na taong (2001-2010) umupo si ER bilang alkalde ng Pagsanjan...
House approves P5-trillion national budget for 2022
The House of Representatives approved on Thursday evening the proposed P5.024-trillion national budget for 2022, which is aimed at driving the economy’s recovery from the coronavirus pandemic. In a vote of 238-6 with no abstentions, congressmen on Thursday evening approved House Bill 10153 or the 2022 General Appropriations Act on third and final reading before adjourning for a month-long break to allow for the filing of certificates of candidacy for next year’s elections. The proposed spending plan, which is 11.5% more than this year’s budget and the highest on record, is the last under President Rodrigo R. Duterte, whose term ends in June 2022. Mr. Duterte on Wednesday certified it as urgent, allowing the legislators to approve the...
SMC unit to shutter processed meats business in Indonesia
San Miguel Food and Beverage, Inc. (SMFB) on Friday said its processed meats business in Indonesia will stop operations by the end of this month, as it focuses on expanding in its home country. In a disclosure to the stock exchange, the company said it is “rationalizing” its processed meats business in Indonesia, which is operating under its joint venture PT San Miguel Foods Indonesia (PT SMFI), as it “streamlines its businesses to focus on expansion in the Philippines.” “PT SMFI will cease operations effective October 31, 2021,” the company said. PT SMFI is a Halal-certified processed meats manufacturer of Farmhouse and Vida sausages, burgers, meatballs, cold cuts, and food service products in Indonesia, according to the website of...
MMDA spokesman resigns to run as Party-List representative
CELINE Pialago, the spokesman of the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA), will resign on Friday to run as a party-list representative in the 2022 Elections. Pialago confirmed to The Manila Times that she will file her certificate of nomination and acceptance of the Malasakit Movement Partylist on October 6. A former beauty pageant contestant, Pialago worked as a former media officer at the Department of the Interior and Local Government and the House of Representatives. She also worked as a media officer during the failed bid of 2016 presidential aspirant Manuel "Mar" Roxas 2nd. Aside from being the current MMDA spokesman, Pialago is also the youth sector spokesman of the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed...
Yeahhhh! ICC investigates duterte!!
I am so happy that, even I really don't have time, I make this thread just for the very good news! The ICC, the International Criminal Court, will start an investigation regarding the abuses of the so-called war on drugs of duterte... Even if I know this will take years cguro, I am very happy !!! The ICC announced Wednesday that the body's Pre-Trial Chamber I judges granted the request. An ICC statement said the chamber assessed that Duterte's "so-called 'war on drugs' campaign cannot be seen as a legitimate law enforcement operation and the killings neither as legitimate nor as mere excesses in an otherwise legitimate operation." "Rather," the judges found, "the available material indicates, to the required standard, that a...
Underfunded firm also won P7.6B deals
SEN. Francis "Kiko" Pangilinan on Friday revealed that another newly incorporated firm bagged deals to supply the government medical supplies worth P7.6 billion. Pangilinan made the revelation during the 10th hybrid public hearing by the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee on the "intrinsic overpricing" of medical supplies in multi-billion-peso contracts awarded by the Procurement Service-Department of Budget and Management (PS-DBM). Pangilinan identified the firm as "Element Trade Limited," which had a ρáíd up capital of $10,000. "Element'' was incorporated in April 2020, he said. Senators are at loggerheads with Malacanang over the award by PS-DBM of about P11 billion contract to Pharmally Pharmaceutical Corp., a retailer, in March 2020...
Duterte to bar Cabinet from attending Senate probe on Covid-19 fund misuse
President Rodrigo Duterte said he would soon bar his Cabinet officials from attending the Senate inquiry into the alleged misuse of coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) response funds. In his pre-recorded public address aired on Thursday night, Duterte has ordered Executive Secretary Salvador Medialdea to issue a memorandum directing those from the Executive department to no longer obey the Senate panel's summons. This, as he criticized Sen. Richard Gordon's "undemocratic" remark that he will continue the Senate inquiry "until kingdom come." "I will issue a memorandum na lahat ng nasa (that everyone in the) Executive Department will no longer obey your summons," Duterte said. "You are overstepping your jurisdiction on this. There is...
PAREX will be more of a problem than a solution, warns urban planning expert
The Pasig River E×ρréššway (PAREX), San Miguel Corporation’s (SMC) P95-billion, six-lane elevated E×ρréššway project that will run along the banks of the Pasig River, continues to get flak for the environmental and systemic issues it will bring once built. Based on the concept of induced demand, which states that more roads lead to more traffic, the PAREX will not actually ease congestion in Metro Manila unless efforts are refocused towards better public transport, said urban planner Paulo G. Alcazaren in a televised interview. This is one of many issues he and environmental groups have pointed out about the project, from compromising the waterway’s functional integrity as a floodway and creating air pollution in that corridor, to...
US to donate an additional 500 million COVID-19 vaccines
© Provided by BusinessWorld WASHINGTON – The United States plans to donate an additional 500 million COVID-19 vaccines made by Pfizer Inc and BioNTech SE to nations around the world, lifting the total the country is sharing to more than 1 billion doses, according to a source familiar with the plans. President Joe Biden is hosting a virtual summit on COVID-19 on Wednesday and is likely to announce the new pledge then. Earlier on Tuesday, Biden told the United Nations General Assembly that the United States had put more than $15 billion toward the global response to COVID-19 in order to fund more than 160 million COVID-19 vaccines in other countries. The U.S. has already purchased 500 million doses of the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine and...
Harry Roque refuses to use the word dog when using idiom in referring to Pres. Rodrigo Duterte
Presidential spokesman Harry Roque caught the attention of netizens when he refused to say the word “dog” in sharing an idiom. © Provided by Dailypedia In a press briefing, Roque said all inquiries into the Department of Health will continue despite President Rodrigo Duterte’s attack on the Commission on Audit for flagging the health agency. “All probes can continue,” he said. “The President has no power to prevent the House nor the Senate from investigating. The President cannot control the Ombudsman if it can investigate,” he explained when asked if Duterte was stopping investigations into the report. The COA is also protected “from appointment to tenure, to fiscal autonomy,” He said Duterte just doesn’t like it when preliminary...
Relatives of Philippine drug war victims alarmed by Duterte's talk of staying on
MANILA (Reuters) - Philippine activists and the families of victims in a drug war that has killed thousands view with dread the possibility of President Rodrigo Duterte staying on as vice-president for six more years after his time in the top job ends next year. The constitution bars a re-election bid by Duterte, 76, but he said on Tuesday he would run for vice president in 2022 https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/update-2-philippines-duterte-raises-rivals-suspicions-by-seeking-vice-presidency-in-2022/ar-AANF4dE in order to keep up his crusade on insurgency, criminal activities and drug dealers. "For four years, we have been waiting for justice," said Randy Delos Santos, who believes that if Duterte succeeds it would make justice...
NAKAKATAKOT TO MGA KAPATID! WE ARE GLORIFYING NPAs and SUBERSIVES in the PHILIPPINES?! ~ H.NO 10171
NAKAKATAKOT TO MGA KAPATID! WE ARE GLORIFYING NPAs ANG SUBERSIVES in the PHILIPPINES?! H.NO 10171 SANA MA VETO TO A.S.A.P i dont care about your politics pero this is alarming. BTW I SUPPORT RASTAMAN FOR PRESIDENT/SENATOR HALF HUMAN HALF ZOMBIE MAY ~ MAY AGIMAT + INFINITY AT GHOST RIDER! BACK TO THE TOPIC BINABACKDOOR TAYO NG MGA NPA SUPPORTERS. NITONG LUNES LANG NAAPRUBAHAN PALA SA CONGRESS YUNG DATING UP-DND ACCORD now sa 3RD AND FINAL READING READY TO JUMP SA SENADO. HABANG BUSY TAYO SA MUDSLINGING SA MGA KAPWA NATEN PRO AND ANTI NABABACKDOOR NA TAYO NG MGA SUPPORTERS NG MGA NPA (PHOTO NOT MINE ) WHAT DOES THIS MEAN? SO ANONG TINGIN NG UP SA SARILI NILA?! MAY SARILI SILANG ESTADO? GUSTO NILANG MAGING EMBASY OR SARILING...
China Embassy seeks PNP help vs. kidnappings
The Chinese embassy in the Philippines has sought assistance from the Philippine National Police (PNP) regarding the increasing number of kidnappings involving Chinese nationals. In a statement, the embassy said Wang Xiaohong, executive vice minister of China's Ministry of Public Security (MPS), brought the issue to the attention of PNP chief Police General Guillermo Eleazar during a recent video conference. "The two sides also E×ρréššed their concerns that there have been a increasing number of kidnapping cases against Chinese nationals recently in the Philippines," the embassy said. "At present, MPS and PNP are strengthening mutual cooperation in clues investigation, information sharing and case transfer, so as to strengthen joint...
SWS: 75% of Filipinos say single 6-year term limit for president must stay
Majority of Filipinos believe that the single six-year term limit for president of the Philippines must continue as stated under the 1987 Constitution, a Social Weather Stations (SWS) poll showed Wednesday. The survey conducted from June 23 to 26, 2021 found 75% ãdül† Filipinos agreed with continuing the single six-year term limit, while 14% were undecided, and 11% disagreed on the matter. This showed a net agreement score of +64 which the pollster classified as "very strong." Of the 11% who disagreed with the single term limit for President, they proposed that the number of years should be an average of seven while the number of terms should be an average of 2.1. According to the 1987 Constitution, the president and the vice...
Duterte certifies 2022 budget bill urgent
PRESIDENT Rodrigo Duterte certified as urgent the bill on the proposed P5.024-trillion national budget for 2022. The certification will allow the House of Representatives to approve the measure on second and third reading on the same day. "Pursuant to the provisions of Article 6, Section 26(2) of the 1987 Constitution, I hereby certify to the necessity of the immediate enactment of House Bill 10153...in order to address the need to maintain continuous government operations following the end of the current fiscal year (FY), to expedite the funding of various programs, projects, and activities for FY 2022, and to ensure budgetary preparedness that will enable the government to effectively perform its Constitutional mandate," Duterte's...
Sotto: Duterte to veto 'moot' bill on extension of voter registration period
President Rodrigo Duterte will veto the bill passed by Congress seeking to extend the voter registration until end of October 2021 because the matter has been rendered moot, Senate President Vicente Sotto III. This developed after the Commission on Elections (Comelec) decided to extend the voter registration period until October 30,2021. Sotto indicated that Executive Secretary Salvador Medialdea told him that the House of Representatives had transmitted the measure passed by both houses to Malacanang through the Presidential Legislative Liaison Office. "The executive secretary... said that as long as he has not received it yet, we can do whatever we want, but it’s already with the PLLO. He said they will veto because it is moot and...
Another VP run for Robredo? Option on the table if needed for unity spox
Running for another term as vice president remains an option for Vice President Leni Robredo in 2022 if it becomes necessary, her spokespeson Ibarra Gutierrez said Wednesday. Gutierrez issued the statement after Liberal Party (LP) President Francis "Kiko" Pangilinan said that the possibility of Robredo running for Vice President again in 2022 was discussed during a recent meeting with LP members. "She has said before that the idea remains on the table if it is necessary for a true collaboration among the various parties," Gutierrez said in a statement. "Again, it is testament to her commitment to the talks that she is willing to include this possibility in the discussion," Gutierrez added. Robredo is pushing for a united opposition...
'Hong Kong business environment very robust'
BEIJING: A recent report by the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) government has shown the robust business environment and prospective future of the region since its transition from chaos to order, a central government spokesman said. The spokesman from the Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office of the State Council voiced confidence in Hong Kong's future development and business environment, noting that the "Report on Hong Kong's Business Environment: A Place with Unique Advantages and Unlimited Opportunities" has refuted slander from the United States and will help the international community learn about Hong Kong and boost its confidence in the region. Facts in the report have demonstrated that anti-China forces from the...

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