Category: Philippine Star

The Mayors for Good Governance (M4GG) has requested copies of the National Expenditure Program and General Appropriations Act for fiscal years 2023 to 2025 from the House of Representatives, as well as line items involving infrastructure projects with details of their proponents.

In a letter addressed to Speaker Faustino Dy III, the group of nearly 200 local chief executives advocating for clean governance said the request was done to make records involving taxpayers’ money more accessible to the public.

‘We make this request in the spirit of transparency in the use of public funds and to ensure that allocations reflect the true needs of communities,’ M4GG stated in its letter sent on Thursday night.

‘Having access to these records will help local governments and civil society track implementation, strengthen accountability and uphold public trust in our institutions,’ it added.

The letter was signed by the M4GG’s convenors: Joy Belmonte of Quezon City, Sitti Hataman of Isabela City, Benjamin Magalong of Baguio City and Vico Sotto of Pasig City.

Granting the request, the M4GG believes, would set a ‘strong example of open, participatory budgeting’ that prevents the misuse of public resources.

M4GG has exponentially grown since it was formed two years ago – struggling in the early days to recruit even one mayor weekly before 300 new members applied when the flood control scandal erupted.

In an interview with dzRH on Thursday, Magalong said the coalition would continue its crusade against corruption despite the presence of the Independent Commission for Infrastructure (ICI).

He said all documents gathered would be turned over to the fact-finding body. M4GG has an existing memorandum of understanding with the ICI.

Meanwhile, the House of Representatives has officially dropped resigned Ako Bicol party-list congressman Rizaldy Co from the roll of members.

Co decided to resign from his post amid allegations of ‘insertions’ in the current 2025 national budget and his supposed involvement in the flood control projects corruption scandal.

He is still out of the country.

Team North stood firm under the rain and powered its way to a wire-to-wire triumph in the ICTSI North vs South Elite Junior PGT Championship yesterday.

After dominating the Four-ball format with an 8-4 win and grinding out a hard-fought 6 1/2- 5 1/2 victory in Foursomes, North proved it could also excel when the pressure was squarely on individual shoulders.

In the decisive Singles matches, they delivered yet again – claiming 11 of the 24 showdowns while halving two others – to power past the 24.5-point title threshold and seal a convincing 26 1/2-21 1/2 triumph at The Country Club.

North needed just 10 wins in the head-to-head battles to wrap up the title in this inaugural Ryder Cup-style finale.

South mounted a spirited comeback late, overcoming early setbacks to notch 11 victories and narrow the overall gap to 21-23 with several matches still to be played.

With the championship hanging in the balance, North’s Vito Sarines delivered.

Locked in a tense, all-square battle with South’s Ralph Batican, Sarines pulled off a stunning 20-yard chip-in on the treacherous 18th hole. The ball rolled into the cup, triggering a thunderous applause from the North camp and sealing a dramatic 2-up victory in the boys’ 11-14 division.

The birth certificate of accused Chinese spy and human trafficker Alice Guo has been voided by a trial court in Tarlac, according to the Philippine Statistics Authority.

At a Senate finance committee hearing yesterday, PSA chief Dennis Mapa told senators that on Sept. 24, the Tarlac City Regional Trial Court Branch 11 granted a petition filed by the Office of the Solicitor General (OSG) to cancel Guo’s certificate of live birth.

‘This is good news for the Philippine government, that it was able to declare as void Alice Guo’s birth certificate,’ Mapa said.

The court ruling came a year after the PSA endorsed to the (OSG) the cancellation of Guo’s birth certificate.

In several incidents in the past, Guo insisted that she was a Filipino, although she was a native-born Chinese. She was accused of spying for the Chinese Communist Party and of faking her Philippine citizenship to be able to run and win in the mayoral race in Bamban, Tarlac.

Prosecutors say Guo used the position to set up an offshore gaming hub in the town, which became a center for human trafficking.

She is accused of taking advantage of the country’s late birth registration system to fraudulently obtain her Filipino citizenship, set up businesses and run for government office.

Guo’s citizenship was questioned due to her inconsistent testimonies about her background.

She is facing multiple charges in connection with her alleged involvement in Philippine offshore gaming operators, which have been linked to human trafficking and other illegal activities.

Senate finance committee chair Sherwin Gatchalian said the system that allows registration years after birth paved the way for foreigners with ill intent to infiltrate the country and become fake Filipinos.

‘One of the biggest gaps in terms of espionage in our country is the late registration process. This is a weakness in our system that can be exploited by people who want to create problems in terms of our country’s national security,’ Gatchalian said.

At the plenary session on Wednesday, Sen. Risa Hontiveros exposed in a privilege speech another case of fraudulent late birth registration, this time involving a son of a mining magnate.

Hontiveros said the subject person also has two passports – Filipino and Chinese – and two birth certificates.

Ahead of World Teachers’ Day on Oct. 5, thousands of teachers walked out of their classes yesterday in a coordinated protest to denounce corruption and government neglect, specifically in the education sector.

Protest actions were staged across the country to push for increased education funding, better wages for teachers and accountability from public officials.

According to Alliance of Concerned Teachers (ACT) Philippines chairman Vladimer Quetua, the demonstrations were held amid growing revelations of corruption in public infrastructure projects.

These include recent testimonies before the Senate detailing how classrooms, flood control systems and other projects were either left unfinished or constructed below standard due to kickbacks.

To illustrate their grievances, Metro Manila protesters staged a satirical game show skit that underscored the state’s neglect of the education sector – highlighting issues such as overworked teachers, meager salaries, the reduction of subjects in general and senior high school and the militarization of campuses – while public funds continue to be lost to questionable infrastructure projects, confidential funds and kickbacks.

Amplifying ACT’s calls for reform, Quetua called for a substantial salary increase for teachers and education support personnel, the doubling of the education budget to six percent of the gross domestic product and full accountability for corrupt officials.

He warned that if no meaningful reforms or concrete relief are forthcoming, teachers are prepared to escalate their actions.

‘World Teachers’ Day is not about hollow praises; it is our collective defiance against a corrupt system that starves education,’ said Quetua.

Education data

Meanwhile, in a bid toward seamless learner tracking and evidence-based policymaking, the Department of Education (DepEd), Commission on Higher Education (CHED) and Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) have signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to unify their data systems.

The agreement was formalized during the first joint management committee meeting, with Education Secretary Sonny Angara, CHED Chairperson Shirley Agrupis and TESDA director general Jose Francisco Benitez.

‘For too long, our view of a student’s journey has been fragmented. We are finally seeing the complete picture, from their first day in kindergarten to their entry into the workforce,’ Angara said.

The initiative directly addresses the long-standing issue of disjointed learner data among the three agencies.

Previously, each maintained separate systems – DepEd’s Learner Reference Number (LRN), CHED’s own identifiers and TESDA’s Unique Learner Identifier – which made it difficult to track students across educational transitions.

Under the MOU, CHED and TESDA will adopt and utilize DepEd’s LRN as the unique identifier for students in higher and technical-vocational education.

DepEd will continue issuing the LRN and ensure its data is accessible to both agencies, while TESDA will provide its data to support the harmonization effort.

‘This unified system will be our compass for upskilling and reskilling the Filipino workforce, ensuring our training programs are not only world-class but also perfectly aligned with the needs of our growing economy,’ Benitez said.

Agrupis emphasized that higher education institutions will benefit from improved clarity in enrollment projections, scholarship program targeting and curriculum development.

The Second Congressional Commission on Education hailed the agreement as a critical move toward system convergence, especially for supporting Alternative Learning System completers, out-of-school youth and beneficiaries of programs like the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program and the Bagong Pilipinas Merit Scholarship.

EDCOM 2 noted that the new system will improve enrollment forecasting for technical-vocational and higher education, guiding budget planning for state universities and colleges.

It also emphasized that the MOU is a direct result of the consensus reached during the first education data harmonization meeting it convened.

‘The new MOU acknowledges that sustained educational reforms are only possible when data is readily available and accessible for policy formulation,’ EDCOM 2 said.

The agreement also calls for coordination with other government agencies, including the Department of Information and Communications Technology, Department of Labor and Employment, Department of Social Welfare and Development and the Philippine Statistics Authority, to align the system with broader national development goals.

The three agencies aim to pilot the system by 2026 and fully implement it by 2027, following a phased approach supported by the Education Center for AI Research.

Defending champion Coco Gauff brushed aside unseeded Eva Lys in straight sets Thursday to power into her third consecutive China Open semifinal.

The 21-year-old won 6-3, 6-4 and the world No. 3 next plays Amanda Anisimova in an all-American affair in Beijing.

‘I’m happy with how I played today,’ Gauff, seeded two, said. ‘(Lys is) a tough opponent.’

Anisimova had a longer struggle, coming back to beat sixth-seeded Italian Jasmine Paolini 6-7 (4/7), 6-3, 6-4 in a gruelling two hours and 47 minutes.

There was a moment of tension in the second game of the third set when Paolini coughed and the umpire replaced Anisimova’s ace with a first serve.

Anisimova, who lost the US Open final to Aryna Sabalenka last month, survived six break points to level at 4-4 and closed out.

‘It was super tough,’ the 24-year-old third seed said.

The Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) has given Aboitiz-backed Lihangin Wind Energy Corp. (LWEC) the green light to link its large-scale wind farm in Northern Samar to the Visayas grid.

LWEC, a joint venture of Aboitiz Renewables Inc., Vivant Energy Corp. and Singapore-based Vena Energy, is now authorized to build point-to-point limited transmission facilities for its 206-megawatt (MW) San Isidro Wind Power Project (SIWPP).

The project’s interim grid connection will be through the Calbayog substation of National Grid Corp. of the Philippines (NGCP), pending completion of the proposed 138-kilovolt San Isidro substation for its permanent link.

The ERC, however, denied LWEC’s request to manage the dedicated transmission facilities, assigning full operational and maintenance responsibility to the NGCP.

‘In case the subject assets shall be required for competitive purposes, the ownership of the same shall be transferred to NGCP using the fair market price of the said facilities, subject to optimization,’ the ERC ruled.

In evaluating the merits of LWEC’s application, the regulator said it focused on several aspects, including the wind project and the company’s technical capability to construct the proposed transmission assets.

Located in the municipality of San Isidro in Northern Samar, SIWPP is targeted for commercial operations in February next year, based on the application.

The project’s capacity, the ERC said, is expected to help meet the country’s growing power demand. It is likewise aligned with the government’s push to accelerate the development of renewable energy sources.

SIWPP’s generation output will be dispatched through a power supply agreement with retail electricity suppliers, the commission noted.

The actual system peak demand in the Visayas grid reached 2,654 MW as of end-April, while the region’s dependable capacity stood at 3,252 MW, latest Department of Energy data showed.

Sen. Bong Go visited the families affected by fire in Sampaloc, Manila on Wednesday and provided them with additional assistance to help them recover from their loss.

‘Material things can be bought, money can be earned, but life cannot be bought. A lost life is a life lost forever,’ Go said as he reminded the victims on the importance of prioritizing and valuing life more than material things.

Go, in coordination with the Manila city government, collaborated with the national government in providing help through the Emergency Housing Assistance Program – an initiative he supported to help families rebuild their destroyed houses.

As principal author of the Bureau of Fire Protection Modernization Act of 2021, Go also advocates for enhanced firefighting capabilities by modernizing BFP equipment, hiring more personnel and offering specialized training programs.

Go, also known as Mr. Malasakit, provided snacks, caps, fans, vitamins, shirts, basketballs and volleyballs to 286 affected families in Barangays 459 and 548.

As vice chair of the Senate committee on health and demography, Go encouraged everyone to visit any Malasakit Center whenever they need medical assistance.

In Manila, these centers are in Tondo Medical Center, Philippine General Hospital, Dr. Jose Fabella Memorial Hospital, Jose R. Reyes Memorial Medical Center and San Lazaro Hospital.

The town of my late father, Dumanjug, is the most progressive town in the 7th District. It is the home of three governors and two fantastic contractors. Today and tomorrow, the Dumanjuganons celebrate the solemnity of the Feast of St. Francis of Assisi led by Mayor Gungun Gica and Vice Mayor Wado Gica. Shoutout to my relatives especially the great clan of the Quirantes, especially engineers Alan and Jonathan.

Dumanjug is the home of Cebu’s fourth governor, Dionisio Jakosalem, born on December 24, 1859 and who served as governor from 1907 to 1912 and became a Cabinet member thereafter. The twenty-fourth governor was Pablo Garcia who served from 1995 to 2004. The twenty-fifth and the twenty-seventh was Gwendolyn Garcia who served first from 2004 to 2012. She was elected and served again from 2019 to 2025.

Dumanjug is also the home of Engr. Alan Quirante who has become famous these last few weeks because, by his amazing entrepreneurial prowess and effective connections, he transformed a small single proprietorship into a multi-million conglomerate which has been able to win many public biddings and amass billions worth of public works, including a number of flood-control projects. His nephew also put up Quirante Construction Corp., under his tutelage and mentorship and this company was able to get many multi-million government projects, including Lapu-Lapu where the former mayor and now congressman, Ahong Chan, is also related by blood to the Quirantes.

Dumanjug Mayor Gungun Gica is the son of the brilliant Ateneo-trained lawyer Edgar Gica and a beauteous and regal lady, Marna Zozobrado. Gungun is also the grandson of former Dumanjug mayor Guntrano “Noy Ano” Gica. Gungun, like his dad and granddad, is a strict disciplinarian, and a stickler for public order and safety. He was able to eradicate the previously-rampant drug problem in the town. He defeated the brother of former governor Gwen Garcia in a hotly-contested election. Today, he is virtually invincible. No one would dare run against him, except a token and symbolic run by a lawyer relative whom Gungun handily defeated twice already.

Today, Dumanjug is a very progressive town, which Gungun raised from a fourth-class municipality into a third class, soon to be second class. Its annual revenue as of 2022 was ?273.1 million, its assets were valued at ?1.034 billion, its expenditure was ?238.7 million and its liabilities amounted to ?365.6 million. The only problem is that its poverty incidence was measured at 37.87%. More than one-third of its residents are living below the poverty line. The economy is largely based on agriculture and small-scale and medium-scale industries. The Dumanjug Agora Complex, constructed under the Gica administration, is the center of the town’s trade and commercial activities.

Dumanjug hosts the headquarters of CEBECO 1 that distributes power to its neighboring municipalities. The town has a number of resorts and restaurants and some poultry establishments that contribute to its economy and give employment opportunities to its growing labor force. It has a RO/RO wharf in its Barangay Tangil, which provides sea transport to and from the city of Guihulngan in Negros Oriental. Food items, vegetables and livestock are regularly transported between the Negros Island and Cebu and vice-versa. Dumanjug also offers a number of beautiful tourist sites.

Education is a priority focus area in Dumanjug as it operates no less than 30 public and private basic education centers, as well as six secondary schools and two tertiary educational institutions. One of its oldest institutions is the Little Flower School, which was established in 1946 as the Dumanjug branch of the old Colegio de San Carlos (now the University of San Carlos). It was later renamed Dumanjug Catholic High School. Currently, it is being administered by the sisters belonging to the Oblates of Notre Dame. The town’s biggest educational institution based on student population is the Bitoon National Vocational School. In the same location is a satellite campus of the Cebu Technological University.

The Parish Church of Saint Francis of Assisi is one of the oldest churches in the entire country. More than 95% of Dumanjug residents are Catholic. Today, we shall witness the famous Bisnok Festival as we salute the town’s officials led by Mayor Gungun and Vice Mayor Wado, with Councilors Arthur Famor Rene Asentista, Erick Gica, Elie Luage, Belinda Quirante, Cardo Condes, Kevin Pan, and Isaac Cambalon. Happy fiesta celebration to all Dumanjuganons from all over the world.

The 21st edition of the Cinemalaya Philippine Independent Film Festival is now underway, finding a new home this year at the Shangri-la Plaza mall in Mandaluyong.

With Cinemalaya’s main home the Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP) still in renovation, the renowned festival has been shifting locations the past couple years, setting up shop in the Philippine International Convention Center and Parañaque’s Ayala Malls Manila Bay.

Shangri-la Plaza hosted the festival’s opening ceremony last October 3 ahead of 10 days of screenings, an honor it shares with select cinemas across Metro Manila including Gateway Cineplex and U.P. Town Center.

Actress-singer Julia Clarete, Directors Showcase Best Supporting Actress winner of Cinemalaya 2011 for “Bisperas,” hosted the ceremony which culminated in a screening of Indian film “Ha Lyngkha Bneng (The Elysian Field)” by Pradip Kurbah.

This year’s edition bears the theme “Layag sa Alon, Hangin, at Unos” which CCP president Kaye Tinga said reflects how festival entries “capture movements to moments in space and time.”

Deputy festival director Tess Rances noted in her speech that five of last year’s entries, led by Best film winner “Tumandok” and Special Jury Prize winner “Alipato at Muog,” received numerous accolades in different competitions.

“While millions of taxpayers are skimmed by politicians who are supposed to be in service of them, artists scrape the bottom of the pot to bring their ideas to life,” said Rances, taking a dig at lawmakers recenty tagged in corruption.

Rances urged the government to allocate funds for the arts, particularly for programs dedicated to film, “Laban po lahat ang korupsyon at suportahan ang sining.”

Veteran actress and Cinemalaya Foundation president Laurice Guillen, in formally opening this festival’s edition, noted in her own speech that 197 films by 165 filmmakers have been screened since Cinemalaya began back in 2005.

Echoing Rances’ words, Guillen recalled how National Artists Lino Brocka and Ishmael Bernal reflected Philippine society in their films during 1970s and 1980s.

Guillen said Bernal’s films, regardless of genre investigated the human condition and articulated such through his characters while noting that Brocka described the injustices of his time as “madness” and his characters “fought against all odds to bring sanity back in a world gone mad.”

“Every voice can bring hope, every voice that believes in the triumph of the human spirit is a spark that can bring change,” Guillen ended. “That is the challenge for the creative industry, for our filmmakers, and for Cinemalaya.”

The 21st Cinemalaya Philippine Independent Film Festival runs until Oct. 12, 2025.

The Philippines has sharply expanded its startup incubation network under the 2019 Innovative Startup Act, but officials warned that limited funding, overlapping mandates and staffing constraints are holding back the sector’s potential.

At the Geeks On A Beach (GOAB 2025) technology conference in Cebu at Jpark Island Resort and Waterpark in Mactan, representatives from the Department of Science and Technology (DOST), Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) and Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) said the law provided a framework to nurture entrepreneurs but lacked the resources to match its ambition.

From just 12 incubators before the law’s passage, the country now counts 81, mostly embedded in universities and regional hubs, according to DOST Chief Technology Transfer Officer Russell Pili.

These facilities have backed 103 startups with a combined P398 million ($6.8 million) in funding, mainly for prototype development. Regional clusters have also been formed to encourage pitching and investment outside Metro Manila.

‘That’s a good development, but the level of funding remains a challenge,’ Pili said.

‘When the law was passed, no dedicated budget line came with it. We end up carving out resources from research projects and justifying them with the jobs created,’ Pili added.

The DICT in 2024 launched its own grant fund to support early-stage ventures at the prototype stage.

Two cohorts covering 19 startups have been rolled out, said assistant division chief Jeehad Januar Tanggol, but the program has been slowed by delays in regulatory approval and remains modest in scale.

Beyond financing, officials acknowledged coordination gaps.

DOST senior researcher Edward Paul Apigo said overlapping mandates and the absence of dedicated personnel have created confusion for founders. ‘Startups sometimes don’t know which agency to approach, because programs are scattered,’ he said.

While the incubator network has opened opportunities in regional centers, officials warned the momentum will be difficult to sustain without more cohesive support and reliable funding streams.

‘We want to attract people to look at startups in their own regions,’ Pili said.

‘Not all founders have the luxury of travelling to Manila to pitch. But to make that vision work, we need more resources,’ he added.