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Rising Filipino endurance stars James Earl Ting, Edgie Arances and Anisha Eunice Caluya take center stage in a frenetic battle for the Filipino Elite crowns as the Damosa Land 5150 unwraps Sunday in Samal Island, Davao del Norte.

Ting and Arances are expected to engage in a fierce men’s duel, while Caluya headlines the women’s side as the country’s emerging elite triathletes vie for top honors on the Olympic-distance course featuring a 1.5-km swim, 40-km bike and 10-km run.

Beyond the medals, however, the Filipino Elite Category provides a vital platform for the country’s next generation of endurance racing stars. The specialized division gives top-tier local athletes and national team members an opportunity to test themselves in championship conditions while sharpening the speed, race strategy and competitive experience needed for bigger domestic and international battles.

The Office of the Ombudsman filed criminal and administrative complaints against members of the Villar family yesterday over allegedly disadvantageous joint venture agreements of PrimeWater Infrastructure Corp. with local water districts.

Two counts of graft and administrative complaints – stemming from alleged poor water services – are now under preliminary investigation against Senators Camille and Mark Villar, their brother Paolo and their parents, former senators Manny and Cynthia Villar.

The Villars were identified by the Office of the Ombudsman as the owners of PrimeWater during the period being investigated.

Also included in the complaints are officers of PrimeWater, as well as local water district officials.

‘This is for violation of section 3(e) and 3(g) of Republic Act No. 3019, otherwise known as the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act. This is the initial list and there are still more water districts under investigation, and expectantly more cases in the pipeline,’ Assistant Ombudsman Mico Clavano said.

The Office of the Ombudsman said the investigation stemmed from a report received by the anti-graft body from the Office of the Government Corporate Counsel (OGCC), which stated that a total of 75 local water districts had entered into joint venture agreements with PrimeWater from 2015 to 2022.

These agreements cover the financing, development, rehabilitation, expansion, improvement, operation and maintenance of water supply and septage services in their respective jurisdictions.

The OGCC said PrimeWater failed to supply uninterrupted water service and even provided water that allegedly failed to meet drinking water standards, among other complaints against the company.

The anti-graft body also pointed out that such shortcomings have likewise been subject to complaints by the public and widely reported by various media outlets.

It also cited records from the Commission on Audit which show that adverse findings resulted in the issuance of notices of charge.?The anti-graft body said the COA had flagged PrimeWater’s non-payment for the use or consumption of materials and supplies inventory of the local water districts, amounting to over P65.6 million.

The initial list includes Quezon Metro Water District, Trece Martires City Water District and San Pedro (Laguna) Water District.

The ombudsman said the acts may constitute malversation of public funds, while acts of government personnel involved may constitute grave misconduct under Rule 10, Section 50(A), No. 3 of the 2017 Rules on Administrative Cases on the Civil Service.

‘This is only the initial list, and the ombudsman expects further investigation and the filing of additional complaints,’ it said in a separate statement.

‘The ombudsman will pursue accountability wherever government resources and public interests are placed at a disadvantage – regardless of who is involved or how high their position may be. The public’s right to reliable and adequate water services must be protected,’ the office added.

Villar: We respect the legal process

Manny Villar, in a statement yesterday, expressed confidence that they can successfully defend themselves against the graft complaints, vowing to answer the allegations in the proper forum.

‘We respect the legal process and will respond to the complaints at the appropriate time and in the proper forum,’ Villar said.

‘We are confident that, once given the opportunity to examine the allegations and the evidence supporting them, we will be able to fully and properly defend our rights and address the matters raised against us,’ he added.

As over 26 million students returned to school for the 2026-2027 year, attention has again been drawn to the persistent ‘learning crisis’ affecting education. Experts argue that this crisis will persist unless the classroom shortage is addressed, teachers are properly supported and the lack of textbooks and learning materials is resolved.

Why do our students perform poorly in international assessments? One possible cause is a basic issue – they struggle with accurate reading, which may be due to vision problems that hinder clear sight.

It is estimated that over 28 million Filipinos struggle with near vision, mostly due to poverty that prevents them from affording eye exams or glasses.

In my discussion with Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia’s leading optometrist Dr. Rokiah Omar, I learned that children are the most vulnerable because they seldom complain about poor vision. They don’t know what ‘normal’ vision should be, so a blurry world feels natural to them.

The brain and eyes actively learn to work together, a process that continues until a child is about seven or eight years old. If a child has a vision problem during these formative years, the brain may permanently ignore blurry signals from the affected eye.

International medical guidelines recommend starting formal vision screenings around age three, with yearly tests until age six. Delaying early detection of vision problems raises the risk of amblyopia, or ‘lazy eye,’ when one or both eyes don’t develop normal vision during childhood. The brain often favors the stronger eye, gradually ignoring signals from the weaker eye.

If a corrective lens or eye patch isn’t used before age seven, the brain’s neural pathways solidify, leading to permanent visual impairment in that eye – something that glasses or surgery can’t correct later.

Early childhood is therefore a critical window for visual development, and providing a child with eyeglasses is one of the most powerful educational and economic interventions. Experts say that a child with uncorrected vision learns about half as much in a year as a classmate with good vision.

A child’s ability to see the blackboard clearly directly affects their learning, graduation and ability to find skilled jobs. When a child can’t see the board or focus on a book, going to school becomes a frustrating experience. Because young children often don’t recognize their vision issues, teachers and parents may mistakenly think they are slow learners, have ADHD or lack intelligence.

But we cannot help these students because of the ongoing crisis in the country’s optometry profession. While there are more than 12,000 registered optometrists, only about half are actively practicing. This leaves us well below the WHO-recommended 1:10,000 optometrist-to-population ratio.

This small number is compounded by our archipelagic character and in many places, Filipinos never have their vision checked.

All higher education institutions that offer a Doctor of Optometry are private, lengthy and costly programs. They typically require five-six years and cost between P600,000 to P750,000 for the entire duration. These expenses do not include the cost of ophthalmic instruments such as retinoscopes and ophthalmoscopes, clinical fees, internships or board review classes.

This means there are fewer graduates, and many of those who graduate practice their profession abroad, open clinics or remain in urban areas.

The government has been fond of enacting policies that appear to address the problem. The National Vision Screening Act (RA 11358), enacted in 2019, mandates a National Vision Screening Program (NVSP) under DepEd to screen kindergarten pupils’ vision.

The NVSP requires teachers and health personnel to conduct basic vision screenings for kindergarten students. This helps identify potential visual issues early, provide immediate support to visually impaired children, establish a referral system for specialist examinations and treatments and compile a database of vision screening outcomes for all kindergarteners.

While these goals are admirable, how can they be realized amid the country’s optometry crisis? Who will train the thousands of teachers in vision screening? Who will offer immediate assistance to visually impaired kindergarten students? Who will perform follow-up diagnoses at regional or local levels? How can you persuade or mandate that optometry students complete their internships by screening children, or that graduates join this effort?

This is most likely a dead law.

Dr. Charlie Ho, a four-term national president of the Integrated Philippine Association of Optometrists (IPAO) and the founding president of the Vision Science Institute, provides a practical solution.

We need to open optometry programs at state universities and colleges (SUCs) to expand access by lowering costs (through ongoing free tuition and waived miscellaneous fees) and to require a return-service agreement so that students can serve in far-flung areas. These students (or graduates) can be the backbone of DepEd’s implementation of RA 11358. Similar to the successful Doktor Para sa Bayan law, CHED can provide grants to participating SUCs for equipment purchases and additional stipends to cover students’ other educational costs.

So far, only UP Manila Chancellor Mike Tee has risen to the challenge of developing a Doctor of Optometry program in response to the optometry crisis to help young Filipinos.

When will other SUCs follow suit, and when will CHED step in to address the issue?

A Grade 9 student who opened fire at Banga National High School in South Cotabato used his father’s firearm, Interior Secretary Jonvic Remulla said.

In a press briefing on Saturday, September 19, Remulla said the student’s father is a disaster risk mitigation officer of the Department of Education (DepEd).

The student accessed the firearm after opening a vault where his father kept three licensed guns.

‘Mayroon siyang tatlong licensed firearms na hindi secured enough na nabuksan ng bata at kinuha ‘yung baril,’ Remulla said.

The DILG chief said the shooting happened at around 1 p.m. Friday, September 18.

Three people were killed in the incident, including the shooter, while eight others were injured. Two of those killed were students, according to Remulla.

One of the injured students remained in critical condition in an intensive care unit as of Saturday morning, according to a municipal disaster risk reduction official.

Authorities have previously said the student allegedly warned his classmates before the attack. He reportedly told them to go home after lunch because he would do something that could put them in danger, but his classmates thought he was joking.

The student later left his classroom and opened fire in an adjacent classroom before turning the gun on himself.

Remulla said the incident was the third case in which an improperly secured firearm was used.

Marcos orders probe, tighter school security

President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on Friday, September 18, expressed condolences to the families of those killed in the shooting.

‘Muli tayong nahaharap sa isang trahedyang hindi dapat danasin ng sinumang magulang, paaralan, o komunidad,’ Marcos said in a Facebook post.

(We are once again faced with a tragedy that no parent, school, or community should ever have to experience.)

He said the government would ensure that those injured receive the necessary treatment and assistance.

Marcos also said he had ordered government agencies to strengthen security in schools following previous shooting incidents in Tacloban and Zamboanga.

‘Ito na ang ikatlong nakamamatay na pamamaril sa paaralan sa loob lamang ng tatlong buwan,’ he said.

(This is now the third deadly school shooting in just three months.)

The president said he had ordered the Department of Education, DILG and Philippine National Police to report on the measures they had implemented following the previous incidents.

He also ordered an investigation into the shooting, including how the minor was able to obtain a firearm and bring it inside the school.

‘Hindi natin maaaring tanggapin na maging bahagi na lamang ng buhay ng ating mga anak ang mga pamamaril sa paaralan,’ the president said.

(We cannot accept school shootings becoming just another part of our children’s lives.)

The Department of Education condemned the shooting and said its officials were on site to assist the victims and coordinate with local authorities and law enforcement in the investigation.

MoneyHero Group’s Philippine revenue fell by nearly 43 percent in the second quarter despite an expanding member base, as the operator of financial comparison platform Moneymax reported lower business volumes.

Unaudited results showed Philippine revenue declined to $969,000 from April to June compared to $1.7 million a year earlier. Moneymax helps consumers compare financial products such as credit cards, loans and insurance.

The Philippines remained the group’s largest market by membership, with 7.1 million members as of end-June, up by 18 percent from six million a year earlier.

For the Philippines, this measure covers users subscribed to the company’s email distributions, rather than the number actively visiting the platform or applying for financial products.

Philippine members accounted for 70 percent of the group’s 10.1 million total. However, the country contributed only 6.2 percent of quarterly revenue, down from 9.4 percent a year earlier.

For the first half, Philippine revenue fell by 29.8 percent to $2.44 million from $3.48 million. Its share of group revenue consequently declined to 7.6 percent from 10.7 percent.

MoneyHero cited lower volumes in the Philippines and Singapore, alongside a shift toward cash rewards, as factors behind the decline in-group revenue.

Philippine platform traffic also declined as visits ­- measured as sessions on the website or app – totaled 2.6 million during the quarter against 4.1 million a year earlier. First-half sessions fell to 5.2 million from 9.4 million.

Monthly unique users, a measure of the platform’s audience based primarily on device identifiers, averaged 800,000 in the second quarter against 1.3 million a year earlier.

MoneyHero said it had deliberately reduced paid efforts to attract users less likely to complete an application.

It also introduced improved filters to exclude automated traffic starting April 1. Earlier traffic figures were not recalculated, which limits direct comparisons.

Across its four markets, MoneyHero’s quarterly revenue fell by 13 percent to $15.75 million. First-half revenue was broadly unchanged at $32.27 million.

The group said its strategy of attracting users more likely to transact helped lift its approval rate, or the share of submitted applications approved by financial partners, to 48 percent from 39 percent. About 148,000 applications were approved out of 310,000 submitted during the quarter.

‘Our second quarter delivered continued improvement in unit economics, approval quality and cost discipline, as well as our total transaction value in core markets, Hong Kong and Singapore,’ MoneyHero interim CEO and chief financial officer Danny Leung said.

The local stock market recorded a steep drop amid strong selling pressure among investors following a rebalancing of the Financial Times Stock Exchange (FTSE).

The bellwether Philippine Stock Exchange index plummeted by 1.72 percent or 102.73 points to end the week at 5,855.91.

The broader All Shares index also fell by 1.21 percent or 40.31 points, finishing at 3,277.80.

Franco Fernandez, equity research analyst at DragonFi Securities Inc., said the index saw heavy flows driven by the FTSE rebalancing.

‘This is likely also why selling pressure persisted as institutions adjusted their portfolios amid subdued risk appetite stemming from unresolved macroeconomic and geopolitical concerns,’ Fernandez said.

AB Capital Securities said the PSEi broke 5,900 and closed near the low, lagging firmer Asian markets.

‘Turnover surged from P5.1 billion pre-close to P15.1 billion, with MOC (market-on-close) accounting for about 66 percent amid FTSE rebalancing (Bloomberry out, Emperador into Small Cap),’ it said.

RCBC chief economist Michael Ricafort said the PSEi declined on concerns that the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas could match the latest 25-basis-point hike delivered by the US Federal Reserve.

All sectors were in the red, except for mining and oil, which rose by 1.65 percent.

Services and holding firms were the biggest losers, declining by 2.53 percent and 2.45 percent, respectively.

Market breadth remained negative as decliners outnumbered advancers, 117 to 79, while 43 issues did not change hands.

ICTSI was the session’s top traded stock, sliding by 3.21 percent to P905 per share, followed by Emperador and SM Investments which slipped by 0.51 percent and 5.98 percent, respectively, to P15.72 and P503.