Author: user user

Some cause happiness wherever they go; others whenever they go.

The famous line by Oscar Wilde might well have been written about Samuel Martires. On July 27, the country’s chief graftbuster quietly left the Office of the Ombudsman after seven years, a departure that was met not with regret but relief from every Filipino who has ever wished for a transparent government.

Such was the long shadow cast by Martires over his office that any successor could be seen in nothing but a positive light. For this, newly appointed Ombudsman Jesus Crispin Remulla should thank-or blame-Martires’ twin policies that crippled his own mandate to run after the corrupt and permanently stained his legacy.

Yet, if Remulla hopes to restore the Ombudsman’s battered credibility, the former justice chief must do more than just not being a Martires. That means he must treat his office as the public’s last line of defense against corruption, rather than the first to protect criminal officials (or official criminals) from accountability.

Remulla’s early decisions have inspired guarded optimism. On Oct. 14, he made good on his promise to reopen public access to the statements of assets, liabilities, and net worth (SALNs) of officials and to authorize field offices to resume lifestyle checks on any official whose assets are ‘manifestly disproportionate to income.’

Selective conditions

After years of secrecy, the memo signaled a break from Martires’ warped reading of the law, which all but dimmed one of the few lights left in the fight against corruption.

Still, are these enough?

The Center for People Empowerment and Governance (CenPEG) said the Ombudsman could go much further by removing all ‘selective conditions’ for the release of SALNs to the requesting public, including the media.

‘Accountability is meaningless if transparency is partial; we cannot build trust by hiding behind institutional loopholes,’ said CenPEG chair Roland Simbulan, who proposed that the Ombudsman make the SALNs of President Marcos, Vice President Sara Duterte and all members of Congress open to ‘public inspection’ without any ‘special permissions’ required.

To be fair, the President and Congress leaders have expressed willingness to make their SALNs open to the public. Last week, Mr. Marcos said his declared wealth ‘will be available to whoever would like to [request it].’ Senate President Vicente Sotto III said public access to SALNs of senators ‘is not new to us,’ while Speaker Faustino Dy III promised that House members were just as open to disclosing their SALNs.

Ombudsman’s role

Among other conditions, the new Ombudsman’s memorandum requires journalists seeking SALNs to submit their reports for monitoring. But as journalism professor Danilo Arao noted, it is neither the Ombudsman’s duty nor its right to police how the press uses public documents. Transparency, it must be said, is built not on control but trust. The Ombudsman’s role is to guarantee that those in power are not enriching themselves at the people’s expense, and that guarantee relies on open, independent scrutiny, including by the fourth estate. The public’s right to know is not a privilege granted or withdrawn at whim by the government, but a freedom enshrined in the 1987 Constitution.

Remulla, too, must remember that the right to access SALNs stems from Republic Act No. 6713, which mandates disclosure of these vital documents. Until recently, the SALN law had enabled journalists and watchdogs to uncover hidden wealth, from former President Joseph Estrada’s unexplained assets to the late Chief Justice Renato Corona’s undeclared dollar accounts.

Moral compass

Martires, who was appointed by former President Rodrigo Duterte, gutted that mechanism in September 2020 when he issued the memorandum circular that restricted access to SALNs, arguing that these were being ‘weaponized’ against public servants. For the same absurd reason, he limited the conduct of lifestyle checks, turning the Ombudsman’s office into a fortress for the crooked.

That is the credibility deficit Remulla inherited from Martires. Thus, the former’s every move will be judged not merely by what he restores, but by what he refuses to repeat. To rebuild trust, Remulla must make transparency the default mode by streamlining public access to SALN records and treating the media as partners in uncovering malfeasance, instead of busybodies with suspect motives. He must strengthen the Ombudsman’s prosecutorial arm and publicly report on pending graft cases while resisting political influence, including from the President who appointed him.

For now, the public can only hope that Remulla’s policy shift is genuine, because after Martires, the bar could not be any lower.

But even a sliver of sunshine is enough to remind the nation of what daylight looks like. Remulla’s office has the opportunity to once again be the government’s moral compass, provided its leader chooses openness and honesty over secrecy. Only when transparency is restored as the government’s guiding light can the Ombudsman finally step out of the dark shadow Martires left behind.

Rumors have been swirling that Finance Secretary Ralph Recto is on his way out of the Department of Finance-talk that coincided with a wave of online disinformation attacks targeting him.

Given that Recto authored the unpopular (but fiscally sound) value-added tax law, it wasn’t hard for netizens to take the rage bait and pile on.

Still, that kind of narrative against the state’s chief fiscal planner could spell political trouble for the Marcos Jr. administration, especially amid a widening corruption scandal that’s already prompted ultrapopulist proposals like an income tax holiday-a crowd-pleaser that could hurt the state’s coffers.

But before anyone starts drafting farewell statements, a well-placed source told Biz Buzz there’s ‘zero truth’ to the rumors of Recto’s impending exit.

As for the man himself? Recto said he’s not aware of any such talks-but added that he ‘serves at the pleasure of PBBM.’ -Ian Nicolas P. Cigaral

Leave it to GSIS

It has been quite an eventful year for Jose Arnulfo ‘Wick’ Veloso, the embattled president and general manager of state pension fund Government Service Insurance System (GSIS).

The calls are clear and mounting: his ‘immediate and irrevocable’ resignation from the fund, as well as the pullout of GSIS’ investments in certain stocks that have supposedly resulted in P8.8 billion in losses.

Veloso himself has denied these allegations, but an analyst also weighed in.

For Joey Roxas, president of Eagle Equities Inc., those leading the calls should just let Veloso decide when to buy and when to sell.

‘That’s in the best interest of GSIS,’ Roxas told Biz Buzz.

While there technically has been a ‘paper loss’ already for GSIS, which bought shares in former stock market darling DigiPlus Interactive Corp. in 2024, selling now could result in actual losses for the fund.

‘I don’t think they should [pull out] because GSIS has always been a participant in the local stock market,’ Roxas added.

Apart from DigiPlus, GSIS also has investments in Monde Nissin Corp., Nickel Asia Corp. and Bloomberry Resorts Corp.

But it’s more than just investing in well-known companies.

‘Rather than big deals, if they can trade small deals every day, it will increase liquidity in the market,’ Roxas said.

‘The market needs to be liquid so that bigger funds can enter . Who better than GSIS and SSS (Social Security System) to do that? They have the funds,’ he added.

Let’s see if Veloso will also be firm in keeping GSIS’ stock investments-or if ‘real’ losses are on the way. -Meg J. Adonis inq

Three individuals were arrested in Quezon for allegedly pilfering oil, the Philippine National Police (PNP) said.

The suspects were caught at 2 a.m. on Tuesday at Sitio Cinderella, Barangay Santa Catalina Sur in Candelaria town, following police intelligence reports, according to a PNP statement.

‘They were caught transferring methanol from the 10-wheeler oil tanker truck, which had no license plate, and transferring the fuel to white plastic containers,’ the police explained, speaking in Filipino.

Methanol is an industrial solvent that can serve as fuel for internal combustion engines or as a raw material to produce biodiesel.

Authorities confiscated seven white plastic containers with methanol; a white plastic container with diesel; two motor pumps and seven motor pump hoses, the PNP noted.

The methanol and diesel recovered amounted to P90,000, the police added.

The three suspects were taken into the custody of the Candelaria town police, awaiting a case for violation of Presidential Decree No. 1865, which prohibits the unauthorized trading of petroleum or petroleum products.

‘Authorities have opened an investigation to determine whether the suspects were involved in other illegal activities and who may be their other accomplices,’ the PNP added. /jpv

A Senate finance subpanel deferred the Public Attorney’s Office (PAO) budget after Chief Public Attorney Dr. Persida Acosta failed to attend the chamber’s hearing on the agency’s proposed 2026 funding.

Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian, head of the Senate finance panel, said he received a letter from Acosta explaining that she could not attend the Tuesday hearing due to official travel abroad.

‘As a matter of procedure, we always require the head of the office to present their budget. This has been the practice for many years and across numerous budget briefings. In fact, many agency heads have had to cancel trips to present their budgets personally,’ he said.

The senator emphasized that the requirement is ‘very strictly observed in the Senate.’

‘So with that, we will defer the budget of the PAO today. We will request from them a date that is convenient and a date that will enable Dr. Acosta to come here to the Senate to present her budget personally,’ Gatchalian said.

PAO exists to provide indigent litigants, as well as oppressed, marginalized, and underprivileged members of society, with free access to courts and judicial or quasi-judicial agencies.

It offers legal services such as counseling and assistance, in line with the constitutional mandate that ‘free access to courts shall not be denied to any person by reason of poverty,’ ensuring the rule of law, truth, and social justice as integral components of the country’s sustainable development. /mcm

Former Bayan Muna Rep. and Bagong Alyansang Makabayan Chair Teodoro ‘Teddy’ Casiño on Monday said that mass actions must be escalated to ‘hold the government hostage’ amid corruption scandals.

‘We need to unite, through paralyzing protests. Walkouts, barricades, nationwide strikes, and acts of civil disobedience such as tax non-payment. And of course, a giant rally that will not end until the corrupt are removed from office,’ Casiño said in Filipino during the anti-corruption rally in Mendiola.

In an interview with the Inquirer, Casiño explained that the ordinary mass actions are no longer enough, and that the people must have ‘paralyzing actions’ to ‘hold the government hostage.’

He later clarified that these actions are not necessarily violent.

When we say paralyzing actions, we don’t mean violent actions, but the actions that the government can no longer handle. That’s what protest actions should be. Otherwise, we will be back to the same pattern and a few years from now, another anomaly will erupt, and the reaction will be the same, so we have to do things differently,’ he pointed out.

Casiño said these actions may include rallies on key roads, paralyzing the transport system and communication systems, or withholding tax payments until the government does its job.

‘They won’t just come down. We need to pull them down,’ he told the crowd in Mendiola, referring to government officials and political dynasties. /gsg

On a personal note, and not my usual disclaimer, I am happy I was able to write about Limp Bizkit at least a few times before because this band will always mean something to me, and to my generation, you bet, you readers knew I was going to say that next, because it is the whole truth. The sudden passing of Sam Rivers is a huge loss for many reasons, because he helped form, solidify, and complete the overall sound of Limp Bizkit as they were on the rise, at their prime, and peak. In short, he was there in every important stage of their music careers.

Now, let’s be honest with ourselves for a second. Let me think outward next and direct this to all of you. When you hear the name Limp Bizkit, a lot of things probably come to mind. Fred Durst’s backward red Yankees hat, Wes Borland’s unhinged and unforgettable stage presence, maybe even that time they infamously played Woodstock ’99, and the world seemed to be having a collective meltdown. They’re a band that was never exactly taken seriously by music critics, but in terms of undeniable pop culture impact, they’re in a league of their own. For those of us who came of age during the nu-metal era, their songs are permanently etched into our memories, like the sound of a forgotten dial-up modem or the sheer absurdity of JNCO jeans.

At the center of all that sonic mayhem, chaotic behavior, all that glorious, rebellious, and often-derided energy, was bassist Sam Rivers. The news of his passing at the age of 48 was a gut punch, a sudden reminder that even the wildness of our youth eventually gives way to a quiet finale. While the cause of death has yet to be officially confirmed, it comes after a history of liver disease that Sam Rivers spoke openly about, having even received a transplant a few years back. It’s a story with a touch of sad rock and roll tragedy, but one that also shines a light on a music career that was, for the longest time, both a spectacle and a punchline.

It’s easy to poke fun. The red cap. The lyrics are about doing it all for the nookie. Meaning, you know what. Questionable fashion choices. But what’s hard to deny is the foundation Sam Rivers and his bandmates built. You listen to those early tracks, and there’s a certain, undeniable groove – an almost magical rhythm that Rivers brought to the chaos. He wasn’t just a tremendously good bass player; he was the pulse beneath the anarchy. The calm in the center of the storm, if you will. The kind of musical foundation that could support something as ludicrously brilliant as ‘Rollin’ (Air Raid Vehicle),’ a song so absurdly catchy it feels like a fever dream we all shared for at least a year of our young lives in HS.

And while watching its music video, which was rightfully so on constant rotation on all music channels at the time, we were at instances glued to our screen watching Sam Rivers headbanging non-stop while playing the bass while they were all on top of a skyscraper on a helicopter pad, wondering, how, in the world, did the dude not fall off the ledge or lose his balance while playing? Haha. You know, it’s one of those things as a teen you would wonder about, but it all added to the cool factor of Limp Bizkit to have a ‘crazy a**’ bassist like him. Haha.

It was heartwarming to see the rest of the band themselves were quick to pay tribute, sharing a heartfelt Instagram post that described Rivers as ‘pure magic’ and ‘a once-in-a-lifetime kind of human.’ It’s the kind of sobering, universal message that makes you take a step back and remember that behind the personas, the loud noises, and the controversies, these were just people making music. They were lifelong friends, people who chased their dreams when it came to music, and the fact that they lasted this long, I find it amazing, if not impressive, because their critics predicted they would either implode or call it quits.

Let’s get real here, because I have been known to never sugarcoat things, many people wanted Limp Bizkit to disappear from planet earth and be gone for good. Why is that? Honestly, up to this day, I never knew why. I mean, if they hate their music so much, when that is the case, simply don’t listen to them, but don’t tell us not to. If I could take all of you guys, the readers, in a time machine and make you see and witness, even for a day, how people, usually ill-informed people, perceived this band in the early 2000s, all of you would be befuddled by the amount of hate they got.

Truth be told, Limp Bizkit was just a fun band to begin with, and you can bet your *** that they had fun also because they never took themselves too seriously. They want you to have fun, the same way you can see they were experiencing each time they were on any stage, whether that be in a concert, music festival, event, gig, music awards show, and so on.

When I was young, regardless of what the haters thought of the band, I got an early understanding of what the term ‘hater’ is and would mean, because of the ones who hated this band with a passion. Limp Bizkit proved them wrong by lasting this long. Indeed, they may be imperfect, often mocked, but undeniably influential people to at least two generations of music fans, we know that this was a band that had something special within all of them, you could call it a natural ‘fighting spirit,’ an IDGAF attitude, or simply, it could mean that they wanted to make music no matter what the music industry, changing music trends and life throws at them.

When you put everything into context, there is no doubt that Sam Rivers was an undying proof of all of that, as he is one of the three original and founding members of Limp Bizkit; he stayed with the band until his health could no longer permit him to. The dude stayed loyal to the band he co-founded until he died. He honored them by doing so, and in return, fans from all over the world are honoring him, too.

It is only right to honor him. Sam Rivers was the quiet guy usually at the back when the band would be performing live, who never said anything or did anything to the detriment of Limp Bizkit; he exuded a calmness about him even during the interviews, and held down the low end. Meanwhile, Fred Durst was busy asking us if we were ready before commencing to play their set list filled with big-time hits for the ages. For many of us, he was a corner piece that gave the band itself its very distinctive look, attitude, and sound. A bassist who contributed to a specific movement that helped define a generation, for better or for worse. The music he made will likely continue to soundtrack questionable life decisions for years to come. Haha. Why so? I say all of those things in good spirit, because Limp Bizkit never played by the rules; if anything, they broke them and still managed to become as famous as they were at one point. Looking back now, it was nothing but astounding to me. And while we may not have always taken Limp Bizkit seriously, the indelible mark they left on pop culture is no joke. It is as real, as in your face, and as permanent for life as it ever will be. Rest easy, man. Your thick, groovy, and solid bass lines, like the taste of the most expensive drinks, are something we’ll never forget.

By the way, it was revealed that the final Instagram post of Sam Rivers, hours before he passed away, simply said, ‘Nothing But Love.’ Here is a man who accepted his fate, made peace with himself, and everyone around him. How can anyone not respect and show love for him, for that, right? He was ready to go to Heaven, and I believe he is there. /ra

A 14-wheeler truck loaded with bags of cement plowed through several vehicles before crashing into a house in Camarin, Caloocan City Monday night.

The unattended truck, which was parked on a downhill portion of Camarin Road, suddenly moved forward at around 9:00 p.m. according to the house’s owner Bernaldo Angel, citing his neighbors who witnessed the incident.

It initially hit three unattended tricycles and a scooter before ramming the house, Northern Police District spokesperson Police Lt. Reichel Raymundo told Inquirer in a phone interview on Tuesday.

Raymundo said no fatalities and injuries were reported.

The truck, its hazard lights still on, crushed the concrete wall of Angel’s house.

Angel said he heard a loud sound while he was washing dishes.

‘I heard my neighbors screaming before the the loud sound,’ Angel told the Inquirer in an interview in Filipino.

‘It turns out, they saw the truck was running fast before it crashed into my house, that’s why they were screaming,’ he added.

Raymundo said the owner of the house and the cargo truck reached an amicable settlement.

The driver was already released from custody as of Tuesday, according to the police. /gsg

Two individuals supposedly hired by a foreign national were arrested for their involvement in a phishing scam, the Philippine National Police Anti-Cybercrime Group (PNP-ACG) said on Monday.

Using international mobile subscriber identity (IMSI) catchers, the two reportedly sent text messages using the names of banks or telecommunication firms. Receivers were asked to click on a link to ‘claim a reward,’ allowing the suspects to obtain sensitive data to gain access to their victims’ accounts.

PNP-ACG director Brig. Gen. Bernard Yang said the pair was arrested separately in Mandaluyong and Makati City on Oct. 16.

‘The main suspect we are looking into is a foreign national who is hiring Filipinos to drive these devices all over the different cities here in Manila,’ he added, without giving more details about the foreigner.

Four IMSI catchers with ‘non-English’ markings were seized from the arrested suspects.

The Department of Education (DepEd) has pinned the blame on the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) for the measly number of classrooms the government has constructed for the year.

The agency also reiterated its move to tap local government units, nongovernment organizations and the private sector to accelerate the construction of more classrooms by next year and address the worsening of the already dire backlog in the country reeling in a learning crisis.

‘We want to change the current system in place. Because since 2018, only the DPWH has been given the mandate to construct DepEd classrooms,’ Education Secretary Sonny Angara told reporters in Malacañang on Tuesday.

‘What we want to do now is for capable local government units – provincial governments, cities, and even first class and second class municipalities – to also build their own classrooms [by downloading DepEd’s budget into them]. This may expedite the process,’ he said.

In a statement, the DepEd said it was also pushing for ‘flexibility’ under the 2026 budget so that classroom projects may be implemented not only by the DPWH, but also by the DepEd, local government units, partners such as the engineering brigades of the military, and through public-private partnerships (PPP).

Angara cited how 14,000 classrooms had been built through PPP during the term of former Education Secretary Armin Luistro.

Of the P912-billion proposed budget of the DepEd for 2026 under the General Appropriations Bill approved by the House of Representatives, about 7 percent or P63 billion is allotted for the Basic Education Facilities Fund for the construction of classrooms in different parts of the country.

The Deped’s remarks came after the DPWH Secretary Vince Dizon admitted during the agency’s budget deliberation in the Senate on Monday that it had so far completed building only 22 classrooms out of the 1,700 target for 2025.

With only two months left before the end of the year, Dizon called out the ‘very deplorable performance’ of the DPWH, which still had 882 ongoing classroom projects, and 882 more that have not yet been started.

Currently, the country has a classroom backlog of 150,000, which is projected to grow to 200,000 by 2028 if the government continues at its current slow pace of construction.

‘It is really disappointing because we know that the classrooms are badly needed by our countrymen. We need it for progress, our youth must be in the right environment,’ Angara said. /das

Pryce Corp., a listed gas and real estate firm, is allotting P6 billion to build three new air separation plants meant to cater to the rising demand for industrial gases.

In a disclosure to the local bourse on Monday, the company said its board of directors had provided the go-signal to pursue the construction of the new facilities to be situated in Davao, Bacol and Pangasinan-allowing Pryce to serve all three main islands.

Pryce said it has earmarked P2 billion for each plant.

Construction works will take three years, it added.

Gas company

‘This expansion directly supports PPC’s goal of becoming the largest industrial gas company in the Philippines, a milestone the company aims to achieve within the same three-year timeframe,’ the firm said.

In 2023, Pryce also said it would build an air separation plant in Cagayan de Oro for its oxygen business.

The group also reported that its profit in the first nine months had jumped by 35 percent, mainly driven by sales growth in liquefied petroleum gases (LPG) and industrial gases.

Consolidated net income increased to P2.99 billion from P2.21 billion a year ago. Consolidated revenues also climbed to P15.81 billion from last year’s P15 billion.

Gases

It said that 91.3 percent of the revenues in the January to September period, reaching P15.49 billion, had come from LPG and industrial gases. Real estate and memorial park operations provided P279 million, while pharmaceutical products contributed P45 million.

Unrealized gains on marketable securities amounted to P847 million.

Pryce Gases is engaged in the importation and distribution of LPG. It also produces and sells industrial gases.

Another unit, Pryce Pharmaceutical, is a wholesaler and distributor of private-branded multivitamins and some over-the-counter generic drugs. INQ