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‘Ayaw ko ng hocus-pocus.’

Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League (MPBL) founding chairman Manny Pacquiao did not mince words as he slammed the alleged game manipulation of the Bacolod Masskara in the league.

The MPBL has banned still-unnamed players and coaches and cancelled the team’s season ‘in light of recent allegations concerning potential game manipulation.’

The allegations were rooted from an eyebrow-rising game with the Bulacan Kuyas, where Bacolod did not score in the final seven minutes and 48 seconds. The Masskara lost, 100-64.

Talking to reporters Friday during the launch of the Maharlika Pilipinas Pickleball Tour in Makati, Pacquiao said that he wants the MPBL’s players to play with integrity and honesty.

‘Sinasabi ko naman sa kanila na ang MPBL, nagbibigay ng kasiyahan sa larangan ng sports sa buong Pilipinas, sa mga Pilipino. Ayaw ko yung mga may hokus-pokus na nangyayari na dinadaya yung mga tao,’ he said.

‘Gusto ko, mga players na maglaro with integrity and honesty.’

He bared that there is a team of individuals formed to oversee the games.

‘Lagi akong nakasubaybay. In fact, may team akong binuo to oversee and review all the games every time na may laro, may mga taong nakasubaybay riyan, pinagaaralan yung gma laro kung may nagbebenta o wala,’ he said.

The former senator also appealed to the players and coaches ‘not to fool the masses.’

‘Sa mga players, coaches, wag nating lokohin ang taongbayan. Maglaro tayo kasi pangit yung nagchi-cheer ang mga tao tapos it’s a fixed game. Mahirap yun,’ he said.

‘Kaya nakabantay tayo parati, pangalagaan natin ang integrity ng MPBL dahil for how many years ko rin tong binuild and ngayon andiyan na siya, kilala na ang MPBL tapos masisira lang sa mga ganiyang gawain. Nakabantay tayo and I hope na lahat ng mga players na maglaro lang sila ng buong puso and with honesty and integrity.’

Before getting suspended the rest of the season, Bacolod was holding a 3-19 win-loss record.

The team lost multiple games via huge margins – 108-77 against General Santos; 99-52 against Caloocan; 113-61 against Quezon; 128-85 against San Juan; 111-78 against Batangas; 107-72 against Rizal; 113-62 against Bataan; 100-74 against Pasay; 117-80 against Zamboanga; 97-67 against Cebu; and the last was an 84 point, 129-45 drubbing against Abra.

Years after taking control of Manila Electric Co. (Meralco), tycoon Manuel V. Pangilinan sees the potential value of adding another Lopez family crown jewel to his growing energy empire.

Although no acquisition plans are on the table yet, Pangilinan said Lopez-led Energy Development Corp. (EDC) could be a strategic fit for Meralco PowerGen Corp. (MGEN), given its established presence in the renewable energy sector.

‘Well, it’s renewable. So it might be a good addition to the renewables of MGEN,’ he said when asked if EDC would be a good asset to acquire amid a $5-billion takeover bid from Indonesian conglomerate Barito Group.

EDC is the country’s leading geothermal power producer, with a portfolio that accounts for more than half of the Philippines’ total installed geothermal capacity.

Its geothermal facilities provide reliable baseload power, supplying the steady electricity needed to support the grid around the clock.

This makes EDC a strong potential complement to MGEN, which is developing what is touted to be the world’s largest integrated solar and battery storage facility in Central Luzon.

If such a deal were to happen, an EDC acquisition would mark another major milestone in the Pangilinan Group’s energy expansion, following its acquisition of the Lopez family’s stake in Meralco in 2009.

Pangilinan, however, clarified that no active discussions are currently underway between the two parties regarding a potential deal.

‘We’ll cross the bridge when we build it, so to speak. (It’s) so difficult to say,’ he said.

From a strategic standpoint, Globalinks Securities and Stocks Inc. head of sales trading Toby Allan Arce said Pangilinan’s remarks on EDC were ‘unsurprising,’ noting that the company is widely viewed as a ‘highly attractive’ asset.

‘Should MGen eventually pursue EDC, it would represent one of the most consequential transactions in the country’s energy sector, fundamentally reshaping the competitive landscape,’ Arce told The STAR.

Such a move, he said, could allow MGEN to accelerate its clean energy ambitions at a much faster pace than relying solely on organic expansion.

For First Gen, Arce noted that divesting a strategic asset like EDC would only be compelling if a buyer’s offer reflected a value greater than the long-term benefits of retaining the business.

‘However, the most significant implications of a potential acquisition would likely arise from competition and regulation rather than financing or industrial logic,’ Arce stressed.

For China Bank Capital Corp. managing director Juan Paolo Colet, Pangilinan’s comments have raised the prospect of EDC entering a ‘major MandA (merger and acquisition) deal.’

‘A potential MGEN bid for the country’s premier geothermal asset could reflect efforts to diversify its generation portfolio and manage regulatory and market risks as pressure mounts to reform EPIRA (Electric Power Industry Reform Act) and bring down power prices,’ Colet told The STAR.

First Gen previously confirmed Indonesia-based PT Barito Renewables TBK’s unsolicited, indicative and non-binding offer to acquire EDC but noted that no talks had yet taken place between the two parties.

In a chance interview, EDC president and COO Jerome Cainglet said the company had yet to receive full details of the Indonesian firm’s offer.

With people bored out of their skulls and tuning out of the impeachment trial, even some non-DDS folks are thinking that there won’t be enough public pressure on some of the known pro-Duterte senators to consider the evidence and make the 16 votes needed to convict possible.

Surveys have shown that Vice President Sara Duterte isn’t Teflon-coated against the stain of corruption. Her ratings plunged during the congressional probes on her confidential funds, and fell again in the first survey conducted by OCTA Research after the start of her impeachment trial.

The tediousness of the trial is expected to be broken once new details emerge, especially on the accusations of unexplained wealth – but this part is scheduled still at the end of August. Regaining public attention should happen much earlier.

President Marcos has given the green light for the opening of the tax records of the VP and her husband Manases Carpio. Legal and tax experts have said a president’s approval is needed by the Bureau of Internal Revenue to submit tax records for public disclosure in a judicial or impeachment trial. The BIR forwarded the documents to the Senate yesterday after securing BBM’s approval.

Considering the strenuous opposition of the VP’s camp to the opening of the tax records, the inevitable speculation is that she and her husband have incriminating records that they want to keep hidden.

Also new, and awaited by the public, are the detailed financial records of the Duterte-Carpio couple totaling P6.77 billion from 2006 to 2025, which were investigated by the Anti-Money Laundering Council. The AMLC had reported 630 covered and 33 suspicious transactions of the couple.

So perhaps the next hearings will no longer be sleep-inducing.

Watching the impeachment trial on Wednesday was in fact no longer as tedious as in the first three weeks.

Perhaps this was because of the topic that never fails to draw attention: ginormous amounts of cash. In this case, P125 million withdrawn in one go from just one bank branch, bundled into 125 packs of P1 million each and stuffed into three or four gym bags (must’ve been triple extra-large) and hauled out using trolleys through the Landbank back area to the vehicles of the Office of the Vice President.

In all, P612.5 million in cash was reportedly withdrawn by the OVP and the Department of Education when it was headed by VP Sara.

The former Landbank branch manager said that while the P125-million cash withdrawal was ‘unusual,’ it was not ‘suspicious’ because the OVP coordinator for the transaction was known to the bank and regularity was presumed.

Presiding officer Francis Escudero cut through the tiresome questioning of House prosecutor Joel Chua. Several times, I thought I detected exasperation in the Landbank department manager Chua was questioning; at certain points, she seemed to want to say, ‘duh.’ Or maybe it was just my exasperated mind imagining it.

Some of the answers were self-evident. Several times, she started her reply with, ‘As I have already said…’ But no one interjected with the previous weeks’ ‘asked and answered.’ Maybe everyone was looking forward to lunch.

Escudero tried to speed up even the lunch break, proposing just 30 minutes, and then relenting to his colleagues’ request for 45 minutes.

If the prosecutors want to maintain public interest in this trial, they should cut the legal gobbledygook. Why keep prolonging every question, for example, with ‘kung alam mo (if you know)’? If a witness doesn’t know the answer, or has no knowledge of the information being asked, the witness will say so.

Keeping the public interested is important to assist the senator-judges in what would ultimately boil down to a conscience vote on the fitness of Sara Duterte to hold public office.

The topic at least is becoming interesting. When the trial resumes next week, the public may finally get to find out whether certain recipients of the confidential funds of the OVP and DepEd, notably ‘Mary Grace Piattos,’ are real people or ghosts.

The sideshows to the trial are becoming equally interesting, as Senators Panfilo Lacson and Alan Peter Cayetano go after each other’s throat while BBM’s non-sister Sen. Imee Marcos and Palace press officer Claire Castro engage in a catfight (or impakta fight).

Prosecutors should be mindful that they are selling their case not only to an impeachment court where the VP at this point is deemed to have the numbers for her acquittal, but more importantly to the public.

Senators may be independent republics, but with a national constituency, they are more vulnerable to public opinion than congressmen who answer mainly to much smaller legislative districts.

A dull, protracted trial that turns off the public works in favor of the VP.

The importance of keeping the public interested in the impeachment trial can’t be emphasized enough. The onus falls chiefly on the prosecution.

In many countries, retirement planning is treated as a personal milestone. One decides where to live, how to spend the years ahead, and what kind of lifestyle to pursue.

In the Philippines, it often takes more than one person to decide.

A parent thinks about coming home. A daughter checks the payment terms. A son asks if the hospital is nearby. A sibling abroad wants to know if the unit can be leased. Someone asks about the mall. And if there are apos in the chat, the pool usually gets mentioned.

It is a familiar Filipino scene, but it points to a larger real estate shift. As the Philippines gains attention as a retirement destination, the conversation is no longer only about retirees. It now includes balikbayans preparing to return, OFWs securing a future home base, children buying for parents, and families looking for a property that can serve more than one purpose over time.

For SM Development Corporation (SMDC), this makes retirement real estate less about selling a unit and more about supporting the way Filipino families actually plan for life.

‘For Filipino families, retirement is not just an individual milestone. It is a family decision shaped by care, access and peace of mind,’ said Jessica Bianca Sy, Vice President and Head of Innovation, Design and Strategy of SMDC. ‘At SMDC, we look at retirement through three things: making it easy through connected and secure communities, exciting through amenities and access to the SM ecosystem, and enduring through homes that can continue to serve families across life stages.’

This is why the idea of a retirement home is also changing. It is no longer defined only by size, scenery or a quiet address. For many buyers, the right home must make daily life easier. It should be close to essential services, healthcare, shopping, transport, leisure and family. It should feel secure and well-managed. It should also be flexible enough for use now, for parents later, for balikbayan visits, or for long-term leasing and investment.

SMDC’s residential portfolio responds to these different needs. SMDC Heights offers highly connected vertical living for those who want to remain close to city conveniences, business districts, malls, hospitals and transport. SMDC Nature offers calmer communities with open spaces and a more relaxed everyday environment. SMDC Symphony Homes provides a house-and-lot setting for families looking for a grounded homecoming address.

Together, these choices allow buyers to match a home not only to a budget, but to a life stage and family plan.

For OFWs and balikbayans, a home in the Philippines can be secured years before retirement. It can be used during visits, kept for family, leased while waiting for the right time, or prepared as the address one eventually returns to. For children buying for parents, the decision is equally personal: comfort, convenience and independence, with family never too far away.

This is the uniquely Filipino retirement story. Major life decisions rarely happen in isolation. They carry the hopes, opinions and practical concerns of the people around us.

As more people look at the Philippines as a place to retire, return or invest, the question becomes more personal: not only where to live, but what kind of home can support the life ahead.

Sometimes it begins with a dream. Then someone sends it to the family group chat.