Category: Philippine Star

The Department of Agriculture (DA) yesterday rolled out the P20-per-kilo rice program in Davao City to assist low-income households and support local farmers.

Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. led the launch of the program at the Bureau of Plant Industry in Barangay Bago Oshiro.

Implemented in coordination with the Kadiwa, Food Terminal Inc. and the National Food Authority (NFA), the low-cost rice program is now available in more than 376 areas across the country.

In Davao region, the affordable rice is accessible in Hagonoy, Bansalan and Digos in Davao del Sur; Panabo and Tagum in Davao del Norte, and Mati in Davao Oriental as well as in select local offices of the DA and NFA.

Tiu Laurel said the P20-per-kilo rice would strengthen national food security and ensure that every Filipino can have access to safe and affordable rice.

The National Police Commission (Napolcom) is ready to rule on the administrative cases filed against 12 police officers tagged in the case of missing cockfight enthusiasts.

But the Napolcom is holding its decision pending the Department of Justice (DOJ)’s resolution on the case, Napolcom Vice Chairman and Executive Officer Rafael Calinisan said yesterday.

Calinisan said Napolcom has completed the draft decision on the case.

‘Truth is, we’re done. The draft is already on our table. But we have not deliberated yet because we are waiting for the DOJ resolution,’ Calinisan said.

He said Napolcom wanted to ensure coordination with the DOJ to avoid conflicting outcomes between the administrative and criminal proceedings.

‘If they are acquitted, that’s fine. But what if the DOJ finds them guilty? We have to make sure justice is properly served,’ Calinisan said.

The public or any group can request the Commission on Elections (Comelec) to conduct voter registration in their preferred sites.

While each office of election officer is mandated to conduct satellite voter registration, the poll body can hold the activity in areas suggested by voters, according to Comelec Resolution 11177.

‘Any interested party may request for the establishment of additional satellite registration sites subject to the approval of (poll) officials,’ the Comelec said.

Satellite voter registration activities require that the number of prospective applicants in a proposed venue must not be lower than 200, the Comelec said.

In remote areas where only a few registrants are eligible, the number of prospective applicants must not be lower than 50.

The Comelec said the activity must be held in a public or private property not owned, leased or occupied by any incumbent national or local official, or by any person related to them within the fourth civil degree of consanguinity or affinity.

The holding of voter registration must be at no additional cost to the poll body.

‘Election officers will evaluate and recommend actions to the office of the Provincial Election Supervisor regarding such requests,’ the Comelec said.

The voter registration for the barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan elections scheduled in November next year resumed on Oct. 20 and will run until May 18, 2026.

Former senator now chief presidential legal counsel Juan Ponce Enrile was cleared of his remaining case at the Sandiganbayan in connection with the multibillion-peso pork barrel fund scam.

In a decision promulgated yesterday, the anti-graft court’s Third Division acquitted Enrile, his former chief of staff Jessica Lucila ‘Gigi’ Reyes and detained businesswoman Janet Lim-Napoles of 15 counts of violation of Section 3 (e) of Republic Act 3019 or the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act, citing the prosecution’s ‘failure to prove their guilt beyond reasonable doubt.’

Enrile attended the promulgation via online video conference as his lawyer, Erwin Matib, informed the court that the 101-year-old former lawmaker was confined in the hospital.

Napoles also attended the promulgation via online video conference from the Correctional Institution for Women in Mandaluyong City where she is currently detained.

Reyes, who personally attended the proceeding, turned emotional after the promulgation, briefly telling reporters she was ‘thankful’ of the court’s decision.

‘The court relied purely on the evidence presented and there was really no evidence against us. This is a vindication,’ said Reyes’ defense lawyer Anacleto Diaz.

Also acquitted of the cases were 30 other accused, including former Department of Budget and Management undersecretary Mario Relampagos, former DBM chief budget and management specialist Rosario Nunez and former administrative assistants Marilou Bare and Lalaine Paule as well as former officials of the defunct state firm Technology Resource Center (TRC): deputy director general Dennis Cunanan, group manager Maria Rosalinda Lacsamana and chief accountant Marivic Jover.

The court also acquitted Gondelina Amata, Emmanuel Sevidal, Ofelia Ordoñez, Filipina Rodriguez, Chita Jalandoni and Sofia Cruz – all former officers of the abolished state firm National Livelihood Dev. Corp. (NLDC) – as well as several private respondents that include Napoles’ children Jo Christine and James Christopher.

Last year, the Third Division acquitted Enrile, Reyes and Napoles of plunder still in connection with the pork barrel scam, citing the prosecution’s failure to establish a series of ‘overt criminal acts’ on the part of Enrile and his co-accused to amass ill-gotten wealth of at least P50 million, the threshold amount for the crime to be considered as plunder.

Filed by the Office of the Ombudsman in 2014, the plunder and graft cases stemmed from Enrile’s alleged receipt, through Reyes, of P172.83 million in commissions or kickbacks from Napoles allegedly in exchange for the allocation of his Priority Development Assistance Fund or PDAF to Napoles’ bogus non-government organizations (NGOs) when he was senator from 2004 to 2010.

Enrile was granted bail by the Supreme Court in 2015 on ‘humanitarian consideration,’ citing his frail health condition and old age.

Reyes, meanwhile, was released from the Taguig City Jail Female Dormitory in January 2023 after nearly nine years in detention.

Napoles, on the other hand, remains detained following her conviction for plunder in December 2018 in connection with the misuse of P517 million in the PDAF of former senator Bong Revilla Jr.

In giving the acquittal, the Third Division said that, just like in the plunder case, the ombudsman’s prosecution panel failed to prove all the elements of the charged crime.

The Third Division said it was not established that Enrile gave unwarranted benefits, advantages or preference to the Napoles-linked NGOs or that he received any kickbacks from Napoles for the endorsement of the latter’s NGOs as implementers of his PDAF-funded projects.

‘Since the endorsement of the NGO was merely recommendatory and the mandate to accredit and award the project still rests with the implementing agencies, such supposed endorsement by Enrile does not constitute manifest partiality or evident bad faith,’ a portion of the 193-page decision read.

The decision was per curiam or has no named ponente. It was signed by Associate Justices Ronald Moreno, division chair, and Arthur Malabaguio and Juliet Manalo-San Gaspar, members.

P338 million civil liability

Despite the acquittal, Napoles and 15 other accused linked with her NGOs and the abolished state firms TRC, NLDC and National Agribusiness Corp. were ordered to jointly pay the government P338 million in civil liability, with an interest rate of six percent per year to be reckoned from the finality of the decision until full payment.

The court pointed out that while all the accused were acquitted for failure of the prosecution to prove their guilt beyond reasonable doubt, it was still established that Enrile’s PDAF was released by the officials of the abolished state firms to Napoles’ NGOs.

‘A person acquitted of a criminal charge is not necessarily civilly free because the quantum of proof required in criminal prosecution (proof beyond reasonable doubt) is greater than that required for civil liability (mere preponderance of evidence),’ the Third Division’s decision read.

‘Here, the acquittal of the accused is due to the failure of the prosecution to prove their guilt beyond reasonable doubt. However, the prosecution was able to sufficiently establish by preponderance of evidence that the proceeds of the SAROs (special allotment release orders) were transferred to the six NGOs as recipients of public funds and that the PDAF-funded projects these NGOs supposedly implemented were fictitious or non-existent,’ it said.

The court said the prosecution was able to establish that Napoles exercised control over the NGOs, though she was not named as the owner.

Will this happen to flood control cases?

While Malacañang said the decision should be respected, House deputy minority leader Leila de Lima expressed frustration over the acquittal.

De Lima blamed the ‘slow wheels of justice,’ saying the accused relied on the public’s short memory to eventually be absolved because of less scrutiny over the years of trial.

‘This is always what is so frustrating for the ombudsman and the DOJ (Department of Justice). We started fresh and strong on the evidence when we filed the PDAF cases, strong enough to even deny Enrile and Reyes bail in the separate plunder cases,’ De Lima said in a statement.

She expressed fear that the same thing will happen to those involved in the flood control anomalies.

‘If this is what will happen to the flood control project cases, good luck to us. But then, some people are just really luckier than others. Faith in our justice system is difficult to achieve and/or sustain if the courts apply a different kind of justice to privileged offenders as compared to common accused,’ De Lima said.

For the Bagong Alyansang Makabayan or Bayan, the acquittal highlighted the continuing corruption and impunity in the country.

‘This is a grim reminder of how the justice system shields the rich and powerful and why bigger and sustained protests are needed to pursue accountability and justice,’ Bayan secretary general Raymond Palatino said.

Broadcast giant GMA Network Inc. is putting up a joint venture with Viva Records Corp. (VRC) that would engage in music production, marketing and distribution, slated to operate next year.

In a disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange, GMA said it is establishing a joint venture with VRC for registration with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

The company will be owned equally by GMA and VRC, and will mostly work on music production, recording, marketing, promotion and distribution.

Likewise, the joint venture will engage in artist management and music publishing. If things go as planned, the company will go on business in 2026.

GMA said the initial paid-in capital needed to create the joint venture is P2 million. The network decided to team up with VRC to consolidate their resources and tune up their capabilities in the music industry, both within and outside of the Philippines.

Given the 50:50 split, the company will elect a boardroom composed of three directors each from GMA and VRC.

The chairmanship will be shared by both GMA and VRC, while VRC chooses the president and the assistant corporate secretary and GMA appoints the treasurer and the corporate secretary.

‘The joint venture shall be subject to the board approvals of both GMA and VRC, and approval of the terms of incorporation papers to be filed with the SEC,’ GMA said.

GMA said the joint venture would bring a positive impact on the network because of the extent of the expertise, resources and talents of VRC. Further, GMA said the joint venture would contribute to its medium- to long-term performance.

In May, GMA president and CEO Gilberto Duavit Jr. said the network is on the lookout for fresh ways to raise revenue. He noted that last year’s revenue decline was partly due to weak reception for its former shows.

This time, Duavit promised to explore not just innovative takes on primetime content, but to look into other revenue sources outside of TV and online as well.

As of June, GMA has booked a profit of P2 billion, triple than a year ago’s P604.62 million, as it gained from the advertising influx during the election season.

The Philippines reduced its borrowings from offshore creditors by 71 percent in the third quarter as fewer foreign loans were secured for government projects, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) said.

Latest data from the central bank showed that the Monetary Board approved only $1.1 billion worth of proposed public sector foreign borrowings from July to September, a steep 71.13-percent decline from $3.81 billion in the same period last year.

In a statement, the BSP said the approved borrowings all have medium to long-term maturities, consisting of two loans for social protection projects.

From January to September, total public sector foreign borrowings reached $12.28 billion, 16 percent higher than the $10.58 billion in the nine-month period a year ago.

Under Philippine law, all foreign borrowing proposals by the national government, its agencies and government financial institutions, as well as loans guaranteed by the national government, must first be approved by the Monetary Board.

Likewise, all foreign borrowing proposals of the government, government agencies and government financial institutions have to be submitted for approval-in-principle by the Monetary Board before commencement of actual negotiations, as mandated under Letter of Instruction 158 issued in January 1974.

The central bank said this requirement is in line with its mandate to ensure that the country’s foreign debt remains manageable.

The Philippines borrows heavily from foreign and domestic creditors to finance the country’s budget deficit as it spends more than what it actually earns.

Currently, the country’s outstanding debt has eased to P17.47 trillion as of end-August from P17.56 trillion as of end-July.

Authorities apprehended yesterday 39 people during a raid on a suspected love scam hub being run by foreigners in Malate, Manila.

Armed with a warrant to search, seize and examine computer data, operatives of the police Anti-Cybercrime Group (ACG) swooped down on three units of a condominium building where the suspects have been operating since last year.

Among the suspects are eight Chinese nationals and a Taiwanese citizen believed to be the leaders of the group, ACG director Brig. Gen. Bernard Yang said at a press briefing.

The other suspects are Filipinos, mostly women who are communicating with possible victims using fake accounts on dating apps.

‘The suspects are 20 to 40 years old,’ Yang said.

Thirty-six computers, 200 cell phones and 31 subscriber identity module or SIM cards were confiscated.

Police said they learned about the scam hub operations through an informant who told them that a group was running a highly organized multi-tiered cyberscam network utilizing romance and investment fraud.

Using artificial intelligence-enhanced social engineering tactics, Yang said the suspects would lure the victims to engage in online relationships.

Once they gain the victims’ trust, the suspects send links of fraudulent cryptocurrency platforms where the victims can invest their money.

The funds are then diverted through digital wallets and access devices.

Yang said among the victims are Americans and Europeans who lost their savings to the crime ring.

According to police, the arrested foreigners were previously affiliated with a Philippine offshore gaming operator, which was shut down after President Marcos banned POGOs.

‘These are disbanded POGO operators who formed smaller groups and engaged in guerrilla-type operations,’ Yang said.

Police said they are pursuing another foreigner tagged as the leader of the group.

Charges of violation of the Securities Regulation Code, SIM Registration Act and Access Devices Regulation Act, all in relation to the Cybercrime Prevention Law will be filed against the suspects.

During our July 27 #Zero Hunger/Malnutrition Cebu event, our multi-sectoral partners expressed their pledge to sustain our feeding campaign, with AgriCoop particularly eager to serve 1,000 pospas for each subsequent barangay feeding outreach.

July 29, two days later, when RCE Cebu’s Atty. Golly Estenzo Ramos and I, with Ms. Niña Estenzo, met with Cebu Governor Pam, we shared this information with her and suggested mobile kitchen units as well along with her mobile health units.

Gov Pam readily, happily, positively considered this suggestion which she shared had always been close to her heart –envisioning Cebu where no Cebuano goes hungry– a dream she has long championed through their Simply Share Foundation.

By October 14, true to her word and her dream, Gov Pam rolled out Cebu’s first mobile kitchen to show, in her words that ‘by now you know how food security is so close to my heart. We meant being ready –to feed, to serve, and to care. This is the realization of a dream and a promise –to bring fresh meals, comfort, and hope to every Cebuano.’

The mobile kitchen will serve warm, nutritious meals to be served swiftly during disasters. It is also expected to support daily feeding of children in day-care centers across the province to ‘promote health, learning, and dignity through every meal.’

Five fully-equipped mobile kitchen units are expected to serve thousands of hot/nutritious meals daily during emergencies and for supporting daily feeding programs, through LGUs and local Social Welfare Development officers.

Assistant provincial administrator Aldwin Empaces shared that ‘the units will be managed by the PSWDO and operated under emergency procurement protocols.’

‘One mobile kitchen will be stationed at the Bogo Provincial Hospital to replace its damaged kitchen facilities caused by the quake. The remaining units will be deployed to tent cities in Bogo, San Remigio, and Medellin, then later, the mobile kitchens will be rotated among other LGUs depending on need and the concentration of displaced families.’

Gov Pam added, ‘Some people say, ‘don’t give them fish, teach them to fish.’ I agree. But what about the times when our people can’t fish? When the sea is rough, when homes are gone, and when they’ve lost everything? That’s when the government must step in –not to create dependency, but to give people the strength to stand again.’

During our July 29 brief meeting with Gov Pam, RCE Cebu also suggested that these mobile health-kitchen rollouts should also be accompanied by trainings for household/community gardens, other waste management options for livelihood and climate action to encourage constituents to raise their own household food for their own needs or for trading, to cook their own grown food with charcoal produced from paper waste, and to practice ecobricking, to avoid polluting their rivers and communities.

We look forward to this training suggestion to accompany the mobile health-kitchen rollouts soon.

The mobile kitchen project can also be further developed to strengthen the link of the local communities with the province. The food to be served by the mobile kitchen can be provided and sold by local producers in the areas where there are scheduled mobile kitchen rollouts.

The mobile kitchen can help support local producers by buying local produce to be used for the warm, nutritious meals for the beneficiaries. Hence, aside from providing food for the hungry in calamity areas and in day-care centers, the mobile kitchen can support the food production and food security campaign of the province, benefitting a wider network of farmers, food producers, suppliers and distributors!

If Gov Pam decides to implement the training component together with her mobile kitchen mobile programs, the training component can help promote more Sustainable Development Goals such as alleviating poverty, providing livelihood, managing agriculture/waste effectively/sustainably, and more!

The golden boy is back in form.

Filipino double Olympic gold medalist Carlos Yulo has finished first in the 53rd FIG Artistic Gymnastics World Championships vault event Saturday in Indonesia.

Participating third, Yulo set the bar high as he had a 15.200 score in his first vault, followed by a 14.533 in his second for a total score of 14.866.

But at the end of the eight athletes, the 25-year-old kept the top position, as the last gymnast of the final round, Artur Davtyan of Armenia, tallied a score of 14.833 to end up second.

Ukraine’s Nazar Chepurnyi snagged the bronze with a score of 14.483.

Yulo won a bronze medal in the floor exercise event on Friday.

He copped two Olympic gold medals in last year’s Paris Olympics, one each in vault and floor exercise.

This is now Yulo’s second vault gold in the World Championships.

The Department of Education will seek the assistance of the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the World Bank (WB) in constructing at least 55,000 classrooms to help address the classroom backlog of 165,000, a DepEd official said yesterday.

In an interview over dzBB, DepEd Assistant Secretary for infrastructure Aurelio Paulo Bartolome said the ADB would help in the construction of 15,000 classrooms, while the WB would oversee the building of 40,000 under a public-private partnership (PPP) program.

He added that another package is being finalized for the construction of 50,000 more classrooms.

‘If these will push through, we expect to build more than 100,000 classrooms in the next six years,’ Bartolome noted.

He explained that under the PPP scheme, private firms will finance the classroom construction and DepEd will pay them over a 10-year period.

‘The system is that we will lease it in the next 10 years. Our problem is fiscal space – if each classroom is worth P2 million, we can pay P200,000 each yearly,’ he said.

A task force will be formed to finalize a unified cost structure for classroom construction.

‘The task force will include the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), the local government units and experts in the construction industry so that we will have unified costing and correct pricing of classrooms,’ Bartolome added.

Meanwhile, a ‘classroom summit’ will be held on Nov. 20 in Clark, Pampanga.

‘We will release all the information here. We can invite contractors and civil society to get involved,’ Bartolome said.

In a related development, the League of Cities of the Philippines (LCP) expressed full support for President Marcos’ directive to channel classroom construction funds directly to local governments to help address the nationwide shortage.

LCP national president and San Juan City Mayor Francis Zamora said the initiative marks a major step toward strengthening basic education and ensuring the efficient use of public funds.

‘Direct funding to cities will significantly help ease the shortage. We will ensure that every peso intended for classroom construction is used judiciously, efficiently and with full transparency and accountability,’ he added.

Zamora said city mayors are ready to coordinate with the DPWH and the DepEd in implementing the program.

Disaster-resilient

Meanwhile, DepEd has allocated P1.35 billion to support disaster-resilient learning in public schools and ensure continuity of education during natural disasters.

Education Secretary Sonny Angara said the funds will cover the printing, delivery and training related to learning packets and dynamic learning program (DLP) materials.

Angara added that the initiative aims to equip teachers and students with tools that allow classes to continue safely even when schools are temporarily closed.

The allocation includes regional funds and covers the printing and distribution of learning packets for Grades 1 to 12 (P950 million) and the DLP materials for junior high school learners (P499 million).