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The Integrated Bar of the Philippines (IBP) said on Wednesday it would review its recognition protocols as it defended a local chapter’s recognition of former President Rodrigo Duterte as ‘a pillar of law.’

Duterte, now facing three counts of murder as crimes against humanity over his war on drugs before the International Criminal Court in The Hague, Netherlands, was recently honored with the Golden Pillar of Law Award by the IBP chapter in Davao City, his hometown.

As the national and official organization of lawyers in the country, the IBP said it was bound by the discipline of due process, suggesting that the former leader was still presumed innocent until proven guilty.

‘We do not confer guilt or grace beyond the reach of law. Yet we know, too, that the law without conscience is hollow, and that practice of law without compassion is incomplete,’ the IBP posted on its Facebook page.

‘To this end, the IBP will review its recognition protocols to ensure that future honors reflect both integrity of service and fidelity to the ideals of justice,’ it added, agreeing that it has to factor in accountability when honoring a person’s service.

‘Disgrace’

Members of the legal community have pointed out the irony in the IBP award to Duterte, with National Union of Peoples’ Lawyers chair Edre Olalia saying it was ‘unbelievable’ and a ‘disgrace.’

‘No one else could be so undeserving. And to mindlessly gloss over that this award was given automatically for mere length of years as a lawyer is to bestow it to even those who make a mockery of the lofty IBP ideals of no master but law, no goal but justice, and no guide but conscience,’ said Olalia, a recipient of the inaugural IBP human rights award last year.

The government acknowledged that 6,000 were killed in Duterte’s crackdown on drug dealers and users, but human rights groups put the figure at 30,000 or more.

Criteria met

The IBP Davao City chapter had defended the conferment, saying that Duterte fully met the qualifications set by its national office.

‘The Golden Pillar of Law Award does not serve as an endorsement of political acts or personal ideologies. It is a recognition of professional longevity and standing under the IBP’s by-laws, applied without distinction, and grounded on verifiable compliance with the rules governing the legal profession,’ the IBP chapter in Davao said on Wednesday.

50 years of practice

It asserted that lawyers must be reminded of their duty to ‘rise above biases and to uphold this fundamental precept of our justice system, that judgment must rest on evidence and final conviction, not mere perception.’

‘Every person is presumed innocent until proven guilty,’ it added.

Citing an Aug. 20 memorandum from IBP national president Allan Panolong, the Davao chapter explained that the award is given to individuals who have practiced law for 50 or more years.

The IBP guidelines provide that a lawyer is automatically qualified for the distinction if he’s in ‘good standing,’ which means he has paid all membership dues and all authorized special assessments, and is not suspended from law practice or from membership privileges.

‘In addition, each awardee must have completed at least 50 years in the practice of law reckoned from the date of admission to the Philippine Bar; and [has] not been convicted of any crime involving moral turpitude, nor subjected to any disciplinary action by the IBP or the Supreme Court,’ IBP Davao said.

Based on the guidelines, it noted, Duterte ‘fully meets each criterion, in the same manner as all other awardees across the nation who were likewise conferred the same honor.’

Puerto Rican superstar Bad Bunny’s music catalog has seen a jump in streams since his 2026 Super Bowl halftime performance was announced.

According to Luminate, an industry data and analytics company, Latin music is primarily consumed via streaming. They found that Bad Bunny saw a 26% increase in on-demand streams in the United States following the Sept. 28 announcement, soaring from 173 million nine days before the announcement to 218.5 million streams in the eight days that followed.

The singer born Benito Antonio Martínez Ocasio recently said concerns about the mass deportation of Latinos played into his decision to bypass the mainland U.S. during his residency. He performs in Spanish and will do so at the Super Bowl, further proving that connecting with a U.S. and international audience does not require singing in English.

Since the NFL, Apple Music and Roc Nation announced Bad Bunny will lead the halftime festivities from Levi’s Stadium on Feb. 8 in Santa Clara, California, the selection has provoked conversation.

For his fans, Bad Bunny’s booking at the Super Bowl is viewed as a landmark moment for Latino culture. That feeling is no doubt related to his just-concluded, 31-date residency in Puerto Rico that brought approximately half a million people to the island during the slow summer tourism season and generated an estimated $733 million for the island.

Roc Nation founder Jay-Z said in a statement that what Bad Bunny has ‘done and continues to do for Puerto Rico is truly inspiring. We are honored to have him on the world’s biggest stage.’

He is a known global hitmaker who ties his music to Puerto Rican identity, colonial politics and immigrant struggles.

On Saturday, Bad Bunny hosted the season 51 premiere of ‘Saturday Night Live’ with a few jokes about his forthcoming Super Bowl halftime show.

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He has long been critical of President Donald Trump and backed Kamala Harris in the 2024 presidential election. Some Trump supporters consider his Super Bowl booking to be a divisive political pick.

‘I’ve never heard of him,’ Trump said in an interview on conservative news network Newsmax when asked about Bad Bunny. ‘I don’t know who he is. I don’t know why they’re doing it. It’s, like, crazy. And then they blame it on some promoter they hired to pick up entertainment. I think it’s absolutely ridiculous.’

Both the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) and the Department of Health (DOH) should explain why payment for COVID-19 health workers was still proposed in the 2026 budget even if these were already paid in 2025, Lanao del Sur 1st District Rep. Zia Alonto Adiong said on Thursday.

In an ambush interview at the Batasang Pambansa complex, Adiong was asked about the Budget Amendments Review Sub-committee (BARSc) decision to realign the P6.8 billion for healthcare workers, which was made after consultation with the DOH.

Adiong said he does not know the exact details, but he also agreed that having line items for completed programs raises suspicions.

‘Well, we cannot answer for DBM [.] I for one do not know how, but I’m sure the DBM has the perfect [.] explanation for that. But I cannot quite for certain give you a direct answer to that,’ Adiong, a vice chairperson of the House of Representatives’ committee on appropriations, told reporters. ‘Well, one would think of it that way,’ Adiong said when asked if having the line item for healthcare workers’ allowances was suspicious. ‘Because if it is already paid, of course, it should not be there. So again, it’s something that our executive department (should explain), but I’m pretty sure that they have the answer for that.’

Adiong explained that the discovery of the line item for health workers’ payments was made after agencies approached the BARSc, a sub-panel of the appropriations committee, about projects that they prefer to be prioritized.

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DOH apparently informed the BARSc that they have already made the payments, and therefore can be removed from the proposed 2026 budget.

`It has already been paid’

‘We also rely on the data from each departments, that’s why that is one of our recommendations – since it has already been paid, so we moved from one budget entry to another budget entry within the department that requested for such amount [.] when we had the budget line items and there are requests per agency, we decided what would be the priority,’ Adiong said.

‘So when we had the initial meeting and they transmitted that to the agencies concerned, they said, ‘no [.] this is our priority.’ Others said that ‘this is already finished, so we might as well move this to another budget item.’ So that’s what happened,’ he added.

This is the reason, Adiong said, as to why they realigned several items under the DOH budget.

‘That’s why the action of the BARSc since it has been paid, so we have to realign that from the items, budget entries that we have organized,’ he noted.

On September 2, the DBM announced that it had released the P6.8 billion final balance for the payment of health emergency allowance to healthcare workers who served during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, from 2021 to 2023. According to Budget Secretary Amenah Pangandaman, she has approved the special allotment release order (SARO) amounting to P6.767 billion for the DOH on September 1 for the mandated Public Health Emergency Benefits and Allowances (PHEBA).

The amount covers a total of 1,411,546 claims from 2021 to 2023 from local government units (LGUs) and private health facilities, state universities, and other institutions across various regions.

‘In compliance with the directive of our President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., and because we recognize the importance of the services of our workers in the health sector, especially during the pandemic, we have approved the release of the SARO to the DOH amounting to P6.7 billion to pay the declared final balance of our government’s obligation for the HEA of healthcare and non-healthcare workers,’ Pangandaman said in a statement.

When asked if it is possible that DOH failed to anticipate that the P6.8 billion balance would not be paid in 2025 – and therefore needed to place it again in the 2026 budget – Adiong said he cannot answer on behalf of the agencies involved.

‘Well, I cannot give you an answer, as I said, because everything would be hypothetical on my part, I do not want to presume or to [.] provide you an answer because we do not know how they actually prepared,’ he said.

‘As far as we are concerned in the BARSc, again, there’s a close coordination with the agencies and we from the BARSc side – even before the BARSc, the House leadership saw what items had duplicates,’ he added.

This is not the first time, however, that projects already completed have been listed in the 2026 National Expenditures Program. Early September, Deputy Speaker and Antipolo Rep. Ronaldo Puno suggested that the NEP be sent back to the DBM due to several problems – like the discovery of multiple or redundant entries. Puno revealed that Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) programs at the district level still received allocations despite being completed, citing the case of Marikina Rep. Marcelino Teodoro, who experienced the issue.

Puno said he also checked the allocations for his own district – the first district of Antipolo – and he found out that projects provided by the district and regional engineering office of the DPWH were no longer in the NEP.

Batangas 1st District Rep. Leandro Legarda Leviste delivered a privilege speech Wednesday evening, urging Public Works and Highways Secretary Vince Dizon to use his authority to lower the cost of Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) projects by 25 percent and end systemic kickbacks in the agency.

‘In the time of DPWH Secretary Babes Singson, he lowered prices by 10 percent before approving projects. Secretary Dizon has committed to do the same, but overpricing is now even worse,’ Leviste said.

‘We call on him to lower prices by 25 percent, which we will support in Congress, so that our country can save P400 billion. Let’s not just lower it by 10 percent and leave 15 percent; let’s lower it by a full 25 percent and end kickbacks in DPWH,’ he said.

Leviste said the system of kickbacks in the DPWH is driven from within the agency.

‘DPWH computes the prices, bids and implements projects, and even if a congressman is not involved, district engineering offices still rig bids, handpick contractors and collect kickbacks instead of the congressman. That’s why the solution should start from within DPWH itself,’ Leviste said.

‘I commend Secretary Dizon for his steps to clean up DPWH. Corruption won’t be solved overnight, but if he wants to cut kickbacks immediately, he can lower prices by 25 percent. I pray that he will do the right thing for our country,’ he added.

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Leviste’s privilege speech followed an open letter he sent to Dizon earlier this week, calling on the DPWH ‘to lower prices by 25 percent to prevent kickbacks and to be fully transparent on the 2026 DPWH budget before Congress votes on the 2026 budget this Friday, to send a clear message that real change has come to DPWH.’

Leviste also welcomed Congress’ approval of funding for 25,000 new classrooms in 2026, saying the savings from lowering the prices of DPWH projects could fund the remainder of the Department of Education’s estimated 165,000-classroom shortage.

‘Let’s fund classrooms instead of kickbacks, and use the savings from overpriced projects to strengthen our education sector,’ Leviste said.

Authorities arrested a murder suspect – tagged as the most wanted person in the National Capital Region – in an operation in Malabon City, police said.

In a press briefing at the Northern Police District (NPD) headquarters in Caloocan City on Thursday, Malabon City police chief Col. Allan Umipig said officers arrested the suspect on Oct. 1 by virtue of a warrant issued by the Regional Trial Court Branch 169.

Umipig identified the suspect only as ‘Emilio,’ 40.

According to the local police chief, the alleged murder occurred in Barangay Maysilo, Malabon City, on April 4, 2025, resulting in the death of a 24-year-old man identified only as ‘Jay.’ ‘He has accomplices. There are four of his cohorts at large. He was one of the rowdy ones in his barangay. They went to the victim’s home to harm him,’ Umipig said speaking in Filipino.

‘They just had a fight. That’s what’s coming out of this investigation. They had a fight so they went to confront him,’ he added.

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Regional second most wanted person

In a statement earlier on Thursday, the Taguig City Police Station said it arrested the second regional most wanted person also for murder.

The suspect, a 21-year-old male Barangay Maharlika resident, was arrested last Tuesday along Manaloli Street in Barangay Upper Bicutan, according to the police.

The arrest was done through a warrant of arrest issued by the Regional Trial Court Branch 266 in Taguig City.

‘He (suspect) is also a known member of the John Rol De Guzman carnapping group, a criminal group under police watch for the fourth quarter of 2025,’ the Taguig police claimed. /jpv

The Philippine National Police Maritime Group (PNP MG) arrested 919 suspects and confiscated P95 million worth of evidence in September 2025, the agency said on Thursday.

In a statement on Thursday, the PNP said the Maritime Group apprehended 259 individuals for illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing across the country from Sept. 1 to 30.

The operations against illegal, unreported, and unregulated fishing resulted in the filing of 91 cases in court and 59 administrative cases in the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources adjudication board, the police noted. Further, the PNP MG apprehended 660 individuals for violating municipal fishery ordinances, resulting in the referral of 428 cases to local government units.

Police also said the maritime law enforcement operations led to the collection of P126,668 in fines and the confiscation of P8.53 million worth of illegal fish catch.

Seven towns in Pangasinan suspended classes and government work on Thursday as a precautionary measure following a mild Intensity 2 that was felt in parts of the province after a magnitude 4.4 earthquake jolted nearby La Union province.

Phivolcs has downgraded the earthquake from a magnitude of 4.8 to 4.4. The affected Pangasinan towns include Bayambang, Mapandan, Asingan, Pozorrubio, Mangaldan, Sto. Tomas and Rosales.

In a Facebook post, Bayambang Mayor Nina Jose-Quiambao stated that the suspension was implemented to ensure the safety of students, teachers, and government employees, as they assess the structural integrity of public buildings and facilities.

Essential services, however, continue to operate.

Quiambao clarified that emergency response teams, health workers, peace and order personnel, and other critical service providers would continue their duties to ensure uninterrupted public service.

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She added that the local government, through its concerned departments, is in close coordination with DOST-PHIVOLCS and other relevant agencies for monitoring and response efforts.

In Mangaldan, Mayor Bona Fe De Vera-Parayno echoed the same precaution, suspending government operations while maintaining the presence of disaster preparedness and emergency response personnel.

In Asingan, Mayor Engr. Carlos Lopez Jr. instructed all public and private schools at all levels to shift to modular, asynchronous, or distance learning for the remainder of the day.

Phivolcs said the earthquake’s epicenter was located 2 kilometers northeast of La Union’s Pugo town at a depth of 10 km.

Meanwhile, Dagupan City, which was heavily damaged during the 1990 Magnitude 7.7 Luzon earthquake, did not suspend classes or government work.

In a Facebook post written in Filipino, Mayor Belen Fernandez explained that the recent tremor was ‘very weak and barely felt’, adding:

‘This level of earthquake does not cause damage and does not require class suspension or building inspections.’

‘Our normal classes and work will continue. Our Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (DRRMO) remains on alert and is ready to act in case of a stronger tremor that could pose danger,’ she added.

MANILA, Philippines – Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Chair Francis Lim on Thursday apologized for an earlier statement saying recent corruption issues had caused a P1.7-trillion wipeout in market value of publicly listed companies.

‘I deeply regret any confusion or concern that my statement may have caused,’ Lim said in a statement. ‘My sole intent was to underscore the vital importance of integrity in our markets and the devastating impact corruption can have on investor confidence.’ Lim was referring to statements he made before the Financial Executives Institute of the Philippines on Oct. 7.

He admitted that the figure was ‘based on what I believed at the time to be a credible industry report,’ admitting he had learned the report was ‘fictitious.’

Despite this, he said the SEC remained ‘firmly committed to promoting transparency, good governance and investor protection.’

In his speech, Lim was referring to the apparent market valuation decline from Aug. 11 to Aug. 29. But the Philippine Stock Exchange said in a separate statement on Thursday night only P185 billion in market capitalization was lost during the three-week period.’

That being said, SEC Chair Francis Ed. Lim is correct in assailing the level of corruption in the country, and its adverse effects on the economy and financial markets,’ PSE president and CEO Ramon Monzon said.

Labor groups Sentro ng mga Nagkakaisa at Progresibong Manggagawa (SENTRO) and the Labor Education and Research Network (LEARN) on Thursday cautioned against reading too much into the recent drop in unemployment, saying the quality of jobs in the Philippines continues to deteriorate despite more Filipinos joining the workforce.

Their statements came in response to the latest Labor Force Survey by the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA), which showed that the number of employed Filipinos rose to 50.1 million in August, up by more than 4 million from July’s 46.05 million.

The unemployment rate fell to 3.9 percent, or 2.03 million jobless individuals, down from 5.3 percent in July when massive floods disrupted economic activity. Still, both labor groups argued that these numbers fail to capture the persistent precarity faced by millions of workers.

‘Workers deserve more than survival jobs-they deserve secure, living-wage employment with dignity and purpose,’ said SENTRO in a statement.

‘The increase in employment amidst trade turbulence, corruption-induced flooding, and a deepening political crisis is surprisingly positive-but this reflects the resilience of Filipino workers, not any coherent government policy,’ the group added.

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SENTRO also warned that job generation remains mediocre, with underemployment still high and the loss of manufacturing jobs pointing to worsening deindustrialization. It urged the government to launch a robust public employment program and adopt a clear industrial policy focused on rebuilding the country’s productive base.

The PSA’s own findings support the sense of fragility in the labor market. National Statistician Claire Dennis Mapa said in a press briefing that while August’s figures showed ‘broad improvement’ due to more favorable weather, the labor market remains vulnerable to external shocks-such as disasters, displacement, and extreme weather events.

‘There are risks in September because there were several storms that month,’ Mapa said. ‘While there is a substantial portion of our labor market that’s somewhat protected from such disasters, there are still components that are dependent on weather conditions.’

The services sector continued to dominate the labor market, accounting for 61.5 percent of employed persons. Agriculture made up 20.4 percent, and industry 18.1 percent. Construction, in particular, added 672,000 jobs, as projects resumed following improved weather.

The labor force participation rate rose to 65.1 percent in August from 60.7 percent in July-meaning more Filipinos were either employed or actively looking for work. The underemployment rate also dropped to 10.7 percent, or about 5.38 million individuals, from 14.8 percent the previous month. Still, LEARN said these improvements should be viewed with caution.

‘Statistics and numbers may provide a rosy picture of the national situation, but workers’ daily experiences suggest otherwise,’ LEARN said in its separate statement.

‘Many young people who have just entered the workforce feel that they do not earn enough to sustain themselves and their families,’ it added.

LEARN pointed to rising youth underemployment and persistent wage gaps, especially for women, as signs that systemic reforms are needed.

Despite a reported increase in women’s labor participation, the gender gap remains at around 20 percent, it said. The group also stressed that the unpaid burden of care work continues to weigh on women’s socioeconomic mobility.

The labor group criticized the lack of progress in addressing contractualization and securing workers’ rights. It echoed calls for a national employment policy that prioritizes the wellbeing of the working class-not just the numbers.

‘[C]hronic underemployment suggests that workers need multiple jobs to survive,’ LEARN said. ‘This is supported by the fact that minimum wages fall far below the poverty threshold.’

Both groups underscored that while the economy may be recovering on paper, true recovery must mean not just more jobs, but better ones. ‘The real measure of progress is not how many Filipinos have jobs-but how many have decent, secure, and meaningful work,’ SENTRO said. – With reports from Ian Nicolas P. Cigaral and Keith Clores/tsb

Count them out of politics, said Jericho Rosales and Mon Confiado, who both rejected the idea of running for president in the future.

The fact that Rosales and Confiado both played the roles of the country’s first Chief Executives in the upcoming biopic, ‘Quezon,’ is not lost on them. However, when asked if they are open to the idea of being the top officials of the land, the answer was a firm ‘no.’

‘The [short] answer is no,’ Rosales said during the film’s grand media con in Manila on Tuesday, Oct. 7. ‘The long answer is, I came from [a trip] where there is a free walking tour. The tour guy said at the end, we just need leaders who care. Generally, sincerely, care. That’s all we need.’

Rosales, who portrays Manuel L. Quezon, said while everyone is privileged to learn from different platforms, it is all about prioritizing the country at all costs, noting that it’s a ‘genuine’ intention that comes from the heart.

‘I never graduated. I never went to college. Natuto ako mag-Ingles dahil sa telebisyon. Ang dami mong pwedeng pag-aralan online or sa libro, lahat kaya mo. Pero wag wala sa puso mo at hindi genuine sa’yo ang pag-care at pag-silbi sa isang tao, hindi mangyayari ‘yan. Paano pa kaya kung isang bansa?’ he said.

(I never graduated. I never went to college. I learned how to speak English because of television. You can learn from various online platforms or through books. You can learn everywhere. However, if it doesn’t come from the heart, or if your care and service to the public are not genuine, it will never happen. What happens if the country is at stake?) ‘Ang pinakamahal ko sa buhay ay sining, paano ko ipagpapalit ang sining sa posisyon? Paano ko pagsasabayin ang sining at ito? At iba pang bokasyon at pamumuno ng bansa?’ he said. ‘Hindi madali maging [mamumuno ng isang] bansa, so ang hinihiling namin ay puso ng isang presidente.’

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(What I love most in the world is the arts. How will I exchange it for a government position? How will I balance my responsibilities in art and politics, as well as other vocations, and serve the nation? It’s not easy to lead the nation. So what I ask for is for someone to have the heart of the president?)

Meanwhile, Confiado, who plays Emilio Aguinaldo in the movie, said that taking on a government position never crossed his mind.

‘Ako, hindi. Wala akong kahilig-hilig sa pulitika. Ni minsan, hindi pumasok sa isip ko na pumasok sa pulitika. Aminado ako na hindi ko kakayanin at wala akong alam (Me, no. I am not fond of politics at all. Entering politics never crossed my mind. I know that I can’t handle it and I don’t know anything about it),’ he said.

Solving corruption

Since ‘Quezon’ is described as a film that traces the roots of the country’s political landscape, Rosales was also asked about how the Philippines and its countrymen can solve corruption.

The question stems from the ongoing probe into the alleged corruption of flood control funds involving officials of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), lawmakers and private contractors.