Category: Philippine Star

The Independent Commission for Infrastructure (ICI) plans to summon former speaker Martin Romualdez, resigned congressman Zaldy Co, as well as Senator and former public works chief Mark Villar as part of its ongoing investigation on corruption in infrastructure projects.

Brian Keith Hosaka, ICI executive director, said Romualdez ‘has been invited already,’ but did not specify when the subpoena was issued.

It remains unclear whether Co, who stepped down from his post on Monday and is currently abroad, has also received an invitation.

Romualdez and Co are key figures in the investigation on anomalies in flood control projects, being the speaker and the chairman of the House appropriations committee, respectively.

Romualdez, a cousin of the President, relinquished his speakership on Sept. 17. During a hearing by the Senate Blue Ribbon committee, retired Marine sergeant Orly Guteza testified delivering 46 suitcases of ‘basura (trash)’ – code for kickback money – to Romualdez’s residence. Co had also received several suitcases containing cash, according to Guteza.

On Sept.24, former public works undersecretary Roberto Bernardo appeared before the ICI. He did not speak to the media.

Senior Undersecretary Emil Sadain of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) also visited the ICI’s office in Taguig to face the three-member fact-finding body.

Hosaka announced that starting next week, ICI hearings would be held every Tuesday and Wednesday.

Waste of time

For former finance chief Benjamin Diokno, lawmakers should drop their ongoing investigations on the alleged corruption in flood control projects and instead prove their integrity by passing a national budget without congressional insertions for next year.

Calling the ongoing investigation a waste of time, Diokno said passing an insertion-free budget for 2026 would be a litmus test of politicians’ sincerity as well as their act of contrition that could prove that they aredifferent from lawmakers from previous congresses.

‘This is just publicity, they are just taking advantage of the airtime. There is no point here,’ he said. ‘Cut the drama, cut the telenovela, focus on the 2026 budget.’

Over P142 billion, primarily allocated for infrastructure projects, was reportedly inserted into the 2025 national budget during the bicameral conference committee deliberations held in the latter part of 2024.

Senate Blue Ribbon committee chairman Sen. Ping Lacson said the committee is set to release a report detailing insertions by ‘almost all’ senators of the 19th Congress of at least P100 billion worth of projects into the 2025 national budget.

Diokno, who sits as a member on the country’s Monetary Board, said that congressional hearings would lead nowhere and further erode the confidence of foreign investors in the country ‘since their only output is to recommend to the Department of Justice or the Office of the Ombudsman to go after some people.’

P220 million earnings

Meanwhile, the Bureau of Customs (BOC) said it expects to earn P220 million if the 13 luxury vehicles owned by the contractor couple Curlee and Sarah Discaya, would be auctioned off.

Customs Commissioner Ariel Nepomuceno yesterday said there were sufficient grounds for the government to seize and offer for auction 13 of the 30 luxury vehicles of the Discaya couple, as there are irregularities in their importation and documentation. Of the 13 vehicles, seven were said to have no Import Entry or Certificate of Payment.

Nepomuceno said they have issued warrants of seizure of detention on the 13 cars, and would give the Discayas 15 days to present the proper documents or face forfeiture of their ownership of the vehicles in favor of the government.

The first hearing on the status of the vehicles has been set for Oct. 9.

The vehicles consist of Toyota Tundra, Toyota Sequoia, Mercedes-Benz AMG SUV, Mercedes-Benz G 500, Lincoln Navigator 2021, Bentley Bentayga, Lincoln Navigator 2024, GMC Yukon Denali, Cadillac Escalade 2021, Maserati Levante Modena, GMC Yukon Denali, Cadillac Escalade ESV and Rolls Royce Cullinan.

The 17 other cars were found with correct payment and certification and would be returned to the Discaya family.

The BOC chief also said 10 Custom employees, including examiners, appraisers and deputy collectors, have been issued show cause orders requiring them to explain why they should not be sanctioned for allowing the release of the 13 vehicles.

Nepomuceno said they have requested a meeting with the ICI so they can share information related to the flood control anomaly.

Meanwhile, the ex-wife of controversial Bulacan district engineer Brice Hernandez resigned as OIC of the DPWH Bureau of Research and Standards Technical Services Division last Sept. 22 or just more than a month after her appointment on Aug. 11.

Hernandez earlier drew flak for mentioning in his Senate testimony that he is married to an employee of the Government Service Insurance System (GSIS) and not to Mel Clarisse Sto. Domingo of DPWH.

It was Hernandez’s lawyer Ernest Levanza who clarified that Sto. Domingo is no longer the wife of his client, who is now married to a certain Rica of GSIS.

‘Brice and Rica got married in 2023 and remain together to this day. We hope this clears the air and puts an end to the confusion,’ Levanza said.

A business group is urging the government to allocate more funds for the EDSA busway system ‘to complete the badly needed infrastructure component of this long-delayed project.’

‘Congress has the opportunity to provide the budget for vital busway-dedicated stations, which can be completed in 2026 when bid out in batches to large reputable contractors,’ the Management Association of the Philippines (MAP) said in a letter dated Sept. 24.

New stations should be established along Kamuning, Cubao/Araneta, Santolan, Camp Aguinaldo, Corinthian Gardens, Highway Hills, Estrella street (Rockwell), Ayala/EDSA, Magallanes, Malibay, F.B. Harrison, MOA/J. Diokno, Aseana/Macapagal and PITX, the group proposed.

Busway stations are needed due to overcrowded Metro Rail Transit Line 3 (MRT-3) stations, they said.

About 100,000 commuters are accessing the busway through MRT-3 stations, they said.

‘In addition to other ancillary facilities, the system must be equipped with overhead bridgeways to the station platforms along the road median beside the MRT-3 trackway, and provided with convenient access for physically challenged commuters,’ the MAP said.

Aside from dedicated bus stations, the group also recommended finalizing a schematic busway system plan that will link Commonwealth Avenue in Quezon City and other major routes, such as Quezon Avenue, C5, Sucat and Alabang Zapote.

‘To date, there has been no meaningful budget allocation for this infrastructure, except for a few hundred million pesos, while the busway project has been waiting for the long-delayed privatization to happen,’ the group lamented.

‘The EDSA busway is the only mass transport system that can be completed within one year and it should be done as soon as possible,’ the MAP added.

The group acknowledged the government and private sector’s efforts in building EDSA busway stations in Guadalupe, Buendia, Taft Avenue, Roxas Boulevard, North EDSA and Ortigas – the last two provided by the private sector and under construction.

MAP president Alfredo Panlilio and transportation and infrastructure committee chairman Eduardo Yap signed the letter addressed to acting Transportation Secretary Giovanni Lopez.

Pasig mayor Vico Sotto and Filipino-Canadian actor Manny Jacinto are among the personalities who made it to the 2025 TIME 100 Next list.

Manny, whose steady rise to fame, is described as a ‘fundamentally, elementally, constitutionally good’ in the write-up by Emmy-winning writer and producer Alan Yang.

‘One of the greatest joys of my time working in film and TV has been the revelation that talent and kindness aren’t mutually exclusive. Manny Jacinto is the perfect example,’ Yang wrote about Manny.

The Filipino-Canadian is known for his range as an actor: he played the impulsive drug dealer in the dark comedy ‘The Good Place,’ the thirst-trap mysterious warrior in ‘The Acolyte,’ and Lindsay Lohan’s fiance in the sequel ‘Freakier Friday.’

Describing Jacinto as ‘fiercely loyal,’ Yang said that it is his wish that Manny will finally star in big films as one of the greatest leading man who is also “one of the world’s best humans.’

Manny, along with ‘Bridgerton’ star Jonathan Bailey, is among the names included in the artists category of the list.

On the leaders list

Vico is listed in the leaders list along with Thai youth leader Natthaphong Ruengpanyawut and Maori Hana-Rawhiti Maipi-Clarke, the youngest member voted into the New Zealand parliament at 21 in 2023.

TIME editor-in-chief Sam Jacobs wrote that the goal of the project is to ‘provide a snapshot of the moment and to recognize those who we feel are truly changing the world this year.’

The selection was led by Dan Macsai and Cate Matthews with contributions from TIME’s editors and reporters around the world.

One Filipina continues to inspire a nation in distress. Alex Eala is winning more than losing in the WTA tour. Although she seems to have shifted focus to lower-tier events, the competition is not weak either. Not necessarily top 50, but good enough to test her game and consistency.

So far she has asserted her place with strong presence. Thrilling, she flirts with defeat and comes from behind to win in razor sharp margin. Avoid calling this resilience though, the word so used and abused by the corrupt and the plunderers to justify their theft and robbery of what should have minimized poverty among the suffering and the dying.

But nature has its mysterious way to uncover the truth buried in impunity among the sinners and apathy among the aggrieved. Aside from the big mouth of a couple with bigger loot, nature haunted and exposed the ghost of flood control. Then the other night a powerful tremor awakened a people in slumber to the reality of sub-standard infrastructure. Nature is doing its part, but how many more lives should be sacrificed to jail the real culprit and the complicit. Nature nurtures, vultures devour.

Then there is Jessica Sanchez, the Filipino-American who recognizes her half lineage and embraces the culture she was not raised in. Her superb vocal prowess dazzled America in a diverse talent competition to vindicate her loss in a singing competition when America picked the American instead of the Idol.

Years later she picked the perfect song to prick American soul. With life inside, she sang live and brought the world to life with a song about its end. Such moving performance characteristic of Filipino singers, the most feared vocalists in the world but some of them are muted in dissent against greed and corruption.

Alexandra and Jessica, two women who inspire a nation about to expire. Both sweet but fierce when it matters. Alex grunts, Jessica growls. And the nepo rabies flaunt and seduce young girls to vanity and luxury paid for by a country of impunity and stupidity, exactly why it never gets angry, or sustain anger if any, its short people have the shortest memory.

A pregnant woman gave birth on the sidewalk outside the Cebu City Fire Station after the Cebu City Medical Center evacuated its patients in the wake of the magnitude 6.9 earthquake that hit the province on Tuesday night

Obstetrician-gynecologist Dr. Queen Grasya and her team assisted the mother, who was due for delivery, in the middle of the evacuation.

Despite the chaotic circumstances, the childbirth was successful.

‘This is my second time assisting a delivery on the road. Truly, one of my unforgettable experiences of 2025,’ Grasya said in a social media post.

The first-ever parliamentary elections in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao will not push through as scheduled on Oct. 13 after the Supreme Court (SC) declared as unconstitutional laws redistricting the BARMM.

The SC said the Bangsamoro Autonomy Act (BAA) 77 and other pertinent laws concerning the redistricting of the BARMM are unconstitutional.

‘There can be no BARMM elections on Oct. 13 because of the lack of a valid district law,’ the SC said.

The BAA 77 or the Bangsamoro Parliamentary Redistricting Act mandates the redistribution of seven parliamentary seats originally allocated to Sulu, while its predecessor law, the BAA 58, created parliamentary districts in the BARMM.

The high court granted a consolidated petition filed by Lanang Ali Jr. and Abdullah Macapaar against BARMM Interim Chief Minister Abdulraof Macacua, the Bangsamoro Transition Authority (BTA) and the Commission on Elections (Comelec).

The SC said the BAA 77 is unconstitutional as it violated Section 5 of the Voter Registration Act, which prohibits any alteration of poll precincts once the election period has started.

The law was enacted by the BTA on Aug. 28. The election period started on Aug. 14.

The high tribunal said the BAA 77 also violated the Bangsamoro Organic Law, which mandates that each district should comprise adjacent and adjoining areas as far as practicable.

The SC said some local government units in Lanao del Sur, Maguindanao del Norte, and Cotabato City were assigned to districts that were not contiguous or adjacent to LGUs.

The voiding of the BAA 77 did not revive the BAA 58 or the Bangsamoro Parliamentary Districts Act as it was based on an outdated framework after Sulu was removed from the Bangsamoro region, the SC said.

‘A new valid districting law must be passed consistent with the Bangsamoro Organic Law, national laws and the Constitution,’ the SC said.

The high tribunal directed the BTA to distribute the parliamentary seats by Oct. 30. It said the parliamentary election must be conducted not later than March next year.

The SC said the decision as immediately executory and deemed served upon posting and receipt through electronic means.

P1 billion needed for deferred BARMM elections

Meanwhile, Comelec Chairman George Garcia said the poll body would need another P1 billion for the rescheduled BARMM elections.

In an interview with ‘Storycon’ on One News yesterday, Garcia said the Comelec has yet to receive a copy of the SC ruling declaring BAAs 77 and 58 as unconstitutional.

He said the Comelec would not appeal the decision and would comply with the ruling.

Like in any other postponement, Garcia said rescheduling the BARMM elections would require an additional budget.

For the BARMM elections, about P1 billion of the P2.7 billion allocated to the Comelec had already been spent.

‘We will have to reprint all the ballots. We will have to conduct again a voter education campaign,’ Garcia said, adding it is now up to the BTA to come up with an issuance on the distribution of district parliamentary seats.

‘If the parliament is not able to come up with a law as prescribed in the decision, then all preparations will have to be moved again,’ Garcia said. ‘Our compliance will be dependent on the compliance of other agencies or instrumentalities of the government.’

Next year, the Philippines is going to host the ASEAN Conference and the President is going to chair this meeting of the heads of state of the ASEAN members. This is a critical time in the history of our region. The US-China competition has become more intense, complex and dangerous than even the US-Soviet rivalry during the Cold War.

China is a much more formidable competitor than the old Soviet Union. There are also many potential flash points in Asia, including in the Korean Peninsula and the Taiwan Strait and the South China Sea. As this rivalry becomes more intense, each superpower will try to get as many countries on its side. There are some countries in the region, like the Philippines, that already has strong alliance treaties with the United States. The Philippines believes that it has very little choice except to maintain security ties with the United States because of the aggressive claim of China of territories that belong to the Philippines.

There are countries in the ASEAN who believe that the presence of US military power in the region results in a balance of power that is conducive to peace and stability.

Most countries in the region have not yet chosen between Beijing and Washington and would prefer to stay neutral. The usual view is that Southeast Asian countries look to the United States for security and to China for trade and investments.

These different attitudes over relations with China and the United States have tested ASEAN’s solidarity in the past and will do so again in the future.

Two Singapore-based professors at the National University of Singapore and the Nanyang University of Singapore developed an index which shows where each ASEAN country is aligned – China or the United States. They call it ‘The Anatomy of Choice Alignment Index.’

Again, according to them, the index offers two major findings. Their findings show that four countries have remained relatively neutral. These are Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand. Three countries are clearly aligned with China: Myanmar, Laos and Cambodia. Brunei is trying to be neutral but is leaning towards China. The Philippines is clearly aligned with the United States. Vietnam is expected to become more neutral in the near future.

Trump’s return to the White House has led to anxiety about US military commitment to the region.

The ASEAN countries have even now expressed concern about Trump’s announcement that it would reduce US overseas commitments. Last April, Singaporean Prime Minister Lawrence Wong stated that ASEAN must be prepared for a world in which ‘America is stepping back from its traditional role as the guarantor of order and the world’s policeman.’

If the United States seriously disengages economically and militarily from the region, the 10 ASEAN countries will increasingly have to rely on one another. For the Philippines, one clear option is to form a mutual defense agreement with Australia, Japan and South Korea. These three countries share the same security concerns and Chinese aggression in their territory.

The Philippines has also witnessed changes in its foreign policy towards China in the last two decades. Under president Gloria Macapagal Arroyo from 2002 to 2010, the Philippines leaned towards China. Her successor, Benigno ‘Noynoy’ Aquino Jr. who ruled from 2010 to 2016, pulled the country back towards the United States. Rodrigo Duterte, who followed Aquino, actually formed an alliance with China. However, his successor, Ferdinand Marcos Jr., has brought back the alliance with the United States.

Even as China rises, polls reveal that Southeast Asians have considerable reservations about how China might use its power. According to the ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute’s 2024 poll, when asked whom they trust, elites from the various sectors of society rank Japan first, United States second, the European Union third and China, a distant fourth.

The annual ASEAN meeting next year will be very crucial for Southeast Asian nations.

The recently organized Independent Commission for Infrastructure (ICI) has just begun its work. At this early stage, it has generated some controversy. I would like to join the debate on whether the commission hearings should be livestreamed or not.

I definitely support the idea of conducting the hearings open to the public. If the hearings are kept secret or away from the public eye, this will generate suspicion as to whether the commission itself is keeping anything secret or confidential. This will lessen trust in the hearings. Right now, the ICI is the only public institution left that has the support and the confidence of the Filipino people. The commissioners must take every step to maintain this trust so that the results of the hearings will be believed by the whole nation.

This Oct. 1 to 7, we join the nation in celebrating Elderly Filipino Week, with the theme: ‘Embracing age, living a life of dignity and purpose.’ This annual observance, established through Proclamation 470 (1994), pays tribute to our senior citizens and honors their wisdom, resilience and invaluable contributions to nation-building.

Led by the National Commission of Senior Citizens (NCSC), the week-long celebration brings together government agencies and local government units to host a vibrant array of activities: caravans, information sessions, photo contests, medical missions, Zumba parties and even a pageant- all spotlighting the strength and spirit of our elderly.

I stand in solidarity with the nation in recognizing the immeasurable contributions of our seniors. But beyond celebration, this week also calls us to reflect deeply on how we care for them, especially in one of the critical issues that come with old age: health care.

I recently sat down with Senior Citizens Party-list Rep. Rodolfo ‘Ompong’ Ordanes to share insights on the services available to the Filipino elderly especially when it comes to health care and he brought up an alarming and sad reality: The Philippines lacks specialized public health care for those aged 60 and up.

Rep. Ordanes underscored this gap as he shared his ongoing efforts to advocate for the establishment of dedicated geriatric wards in public hospitals and the hiring of more geriatric specialists. These initiatives aim to address the unique and complex health needs of older adults that are often overlooked in our current health care system.

Geriatric medicine, which focuses on the special health needs of older adults, remains underdeveloped in the country. Most hospitals lack the infrastructure, personnel and protocols to address the complex interplay of chronic illnesses and mobility issues that many seniors face.

As the lawmaker emphasized, senior citizens are more vulnerable to infections and diseases than the rest of the population and therefore should have access to health care services designed to meet their needs.

As a senior citizen myself, I know firsthand the health challenges that people face in old age. The creation of geriatric wards in public hospitals is not merely a matter of convenience; it is a matter of dignity. Senior citizens deserve health care that recognizes their distinct needs, not a one-size-fits-all approach that treats aging as an inconvenience.

While the Expanded Senior Citizens Act of 2010 institutionalizes the access of the elderly to medical services in government facilities, the reality on the ground is far from ideal. Many senior citizens grapple with long queues and lack of facilities and equipment to treat their health conditions, which forces them to either forego treatment or rely on out-of-pocket expenses.

Data from the latest Longitudinal Study of Ageing and Health in the Philippines (LSAH) – the country’s first nationally representative panel study focused on older individuals, also bring forward issues in this aspect.

Study showed that older Filipinos have an unmet need for health services. About a fifth of older people face difficulties accessing health care services when needed, mostly due to financial reasons. In fact, only 84 percent of those diagnosed with hypertension and 76 percent of those with diabetes are on maintenance medicines. Only 63 percent have health insurance, mostly PhilHealth, indicating a significant gap in coverage despite the universal health care law.

This is not just unfortunate, this is unacceptable. The government must invest in integrating elder care into the broader public health agenda. This involves training and employing more geriatric specialists, equipping public hospitals and barangay health centers with senior-friendly facilities and equipment, and providing priority lanes for senior citizens seeking medical attention.

Mental health should also be part of the conversation when it comes to health care for senior citizens who are at risk of conditions such as depression, anxiety and dementia.

Moreover, a proactive approach to senior health should be institutionalized and embraced not just at the policy level but also in the community. This should go beyond medical treatment for existing illnesses or health conditions but also cover preventive care, wellness programs, information campaigns and community-based support.

I call on our legislators to support and pass House Bill 433 or the Comprehensive Welfare and National Health Program for Senior Citizens Act, which will help ensure wellness programs for the elderly.

Unlike the billions lost to corruption in flood control projects, improving the health care system for the elderly is not a luxury- it is a moral and national imperative. These are basic entitlements that our senior citizens deserve after decades of work and contributing to the nation.

But legislation alone is not enough, ensuring proper implementation is equally important as well. We need a cultural shift in how we perceive aging and elder care. In many Filipino households, caring for elderly parents is seen as a moral duty. Yet this familial care, while noble, cannot substitute for systemic support.

We must ask ourselves: Are we content with a system that sidelines our elders, or are we ready to build one that respects them and their contributions to society?

Let us not wait until aging becomes a crisis. Let us act now, with courage and compassion, to build a system that honors the lives that built this nation. Because how we treat our elderly today is not just a reflection of our values, it is a legacy we leave behind.

Let’s make that choice, not only for their benefit but for the future generations of Filipinos as well.

Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla said there is no arrest warrant yet from the International Criminal Court (ICC) for Sen. Ronald ‘Bato’ Dela Rosa, who served as police chief during former president Rodrigo Duterte’s bloody war on drugs.

‘Wala ‘yan, until we see the arrest warrant and then there’s none,’ Remulla told reporters Thursday, October 2. (It’s nothing; until we see the arrest warrant, and then there’s none.)

‘I don’t think they want to leave the country. We will cross the bridge when we get there,’ he added.

Trillanes’ claim. On October 1, former senator Antonio Trillanes IV, who first filed the ICC complaint in 2017, said warrants are expected next year against Dela Rosa and Sen. Bong Go, both Duterte allies.

‘Yung warrant, ang ine-expect na lang natin ay dalawa. Isa kay Bato [Dela Rosa], isa para kay Bong Go.Ang estimate ko diyan, baka mga early next year pa,’ Trillanes said in a GMA News interview. (We’re expecting just two warrants now-one for Bato, one for Bong Go. My estimate is early next year.)

Tokhang architect. Dela Rosa, as PNP chief, was the chief implementer of ‘Oplan Tokhang,’ the operational name of the Duterte administration’s anti-drug campaign. He said he is prepared should the ICC issue a warrant against him.

The government reports around 6,000 deaths under the drug war. Human rights groups say the toll could be as high as 30,000, most of them small-time users and pushers.

Members of the promising P-pop boy group AJAA wear their hearts on their sleeves with the release of their latest single, ‘Ako Na,’ which topped on iTunes Philippines. It is now available on all streaming platforms.

The song marks their first single under ABS-CBN’s record label StarPop. Its catchy and upbeat melodies blend with hopeful lyrics that paint a picture of being down bad for love and unafraid to express vulnerability and desire to be chosen by the one they long for.

VXON member Franz Chua co-wrote and produced ‘Ako Na’ with Jhon Carl Maniacop and Theo Martel.

AJAA consists of members Ash, JC, Axl, and Alex who made their debut in 2023. The group dubbed as ‘the new generation of P-pop’ released their first extended play (EP) ‘4 Ü,’ which has amassed nearly three million streams on Spotify. It features the tracks ‘Hany,’ ‘Best Day Ever,’ ‘Cuppy Cake,’ and ‘Torpe.’

In 2024, they released ‘BES I LUV U,’ which was featured in Spotify’s P-pop On The Rise playlist. Early this year, they launched the dance-pop single ‘Dedma,’ which has earned over 300,000 streams on Spotify.