Category: Philippine Star

A major hospital in the capital town of Maguindanao del Norte province launched its Women’s Welfare Center on Tuesday, August 11, the first of its kind in the entire Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao.

Led by their chief, Ibrahim Pangato, physicians and administrative employees of the Cotabato Sanitarium and General Hospital in Barangay Pinaring in Sultan Kudarat, Maguindanao del Norte together launched their newly-established Women’s Wellness Center (WWC) that shall provide special medical interventions for ailing women.

Located inside the three-hectare CotSanGen Hospital compound, the WWC, equipped with modern medical facilities, is the first ever in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao.

Pangato, himself a practicing physician, had told reporters that CotSanGen Hospital officials and employees collaborated in setting up the WWC.

The WWC can provide women with special medical services, including prenatal care, breast condition screening, essential gestational and adolescent health interventions, according to hospital officials who, along with Pangato, led its inauguration on Tuesday morning.

The launching of the WWC was held in the presence of community leaders, reporters, representatives from different local government units, officials of the Maguindanao del Sur Provincial Police Office and a representative of the Islamic community in Cotabato City and Maguindanao del Norte, the preacher Abdulmohaymin Jacobo.

‘This facility was established using funds from the CotSanGen Hospital’s coffer,’ Pangato said.

BARMM’s health minister, the physician-ophthalmologist Kadil Sinolinding Jr., who is also a member of the 80-seat Bangsamoro parliament, said he will urge his fellow lawmakers to help him study possible legislation that can improve the public service initiatives of the CotSanGen Hospital, only more than 10 kilometers north of the government center of the autonomous regional government in Cotabato City.

On August 12, 1898, Spain and the United States signed the Protocol of Peace in Washington, formally ending the Spanish-American War. But in Manila, where the telegraph cable to Hong Kong had been severed months earlier, no one knew the war was over. For the next two days, diplomacy and battle unfolded in two disconnected worlds, setting the stage for the final collapse of Spanish rule in the Philippines. In Madrid, the Duke of Almodóvar del Río, Spain’s Minister of State, spent days trying to save what remained of the empire. Spain’s fleets had already been destroyed at Cavite and Santiago de Cuba, but Almodóvar argued that the Americans occupied only the Cavite naval arsenal and had no claim over Manila or the rest of the colony. President William McKinley refused to compromise. On August 10, Almodóvar instructed Jules Cambon, the French ambassador representing Spain in Washington, to accept the American terms, declaring that Spain yielded only because of the ‘absolute impossibility of further physical resistance.’

Manila, meanwhile, remained isolated. Since Admiral George Dewey severed the submarine cable in May, Governor-General Fermín Jáudenes could communicate with Madrid only through messages carried by steamship. Inside Intramuros, conditions were worsening. Manuel Sastrón, a Spanish former government official and historian, recorded that more than 13,000 refugees, wounded soldiers, women, and children had crowded into the walled city. Food and clean water were scarce and disease was spreading. Outside, Emilio Aguinaldo’s army maintained its siege while Dewey’s fleet waited in Manila Bay.

Jáudenes knew the situation was hopeless. His concern was no longer victory, but the safety of the civilians inside Intramuros. Spanish authorities feared that Aguinaldo’s troops might enter the city first and take reprisals against its Spanish population.

At four o’clock on August 12, McKinley, Secretary of State William R. Day, and Cambon gathered at the White House to sign the Protocol of Peace. Spain relinquished Cuba, ceded Puerto Rico and Guam, and accepted the temporary American occupation of Manila pending a final treaty. McKinley immediately ordered hostilities suspended. But the message for Manila had to travel through Hong Kong and then by ship. By then, it was already August 13 in the Philippines, and preparations for battle were underway.

Unaware that peace had been signed, Jáudenes proceeded with a secret arrangement negotiated with Dewey and General Wesley Merritt through Belgian Consul Édouard André. Spain would offer token resistance before surrendering, preserving Spanish military honor while avoiding a bloody assault. Crucially, it also ensured that American troops, rather than Aguinaldo’s army, would occupy Manila.

That morning, American warships bombarded Fort San Antonio Abad before U.S. troops advanced. But not every Spanish unit knew of the arrangement. At Blockhouse No. 14, defenders opened genuine fire, and the staged battle became real. Seventeen Americans and 49 Spaniards were killed. Around one o’clock, the white flag rose over Intramuros, and Jáudenes signed the preliminary capitulation at the Ayuntamiento.

Only on August 16 did a vessel arrive from Hong Kong carrying the delayed telegram: peace had already been signed four days earlier. The revelation embittered many Spanish officers. Sastrón later reflected that the men killed on August 13 had died after the war was already over-victims of distance, delayed communication, and military honor.

Jáudenes was later recalled to Madrid and court-martialed, but defended his decision as the only humane course left to him, one that he believed had spared the civilian population from a far bloodier struggle. As a result of this, he was discharged from service and barred from holding any position.

Manila’s fall was therefore more than the last battle of the Spanish-American War. It was the product of an age when diplomacy could move more slowly than armies. By the time peace reached Manila, history had already taken its course. The final shots of Spain’s 333-year rule in the Philippines were fired because the men fighting simply did not yet know the war had ended.

In a newly signed memorandum of agreement, the Philippine Society of Medical Oncology (PSMO) and MIMS Philippines are strengthening access to trusted, locally relevant oncology knowledge that will enrich the content of MIMS Oncology, the country’s dedicated annual oncology publication for healthcare professionals.

Through this partnership, which runs from Aug. 1, 2026 to July 31, 2027, PSMO will contribute exclusive educational content. MIMS Philippines, on the other hand, will oversee editorial development, publication and nationwide distribution. Every PSMO member will receive the annual issue as part of the collaboration. This initiative reflects the Society’s commitment to continuous professional education among its members.

As cancer care continues to evolve rapidly, healthcare professionals need timely, evidence-based and locally contextualized information. The collaboration brings together PSMO’s clinical expertise and MIMS Philippines’ established medical publishing platform to help clinicians stay informed on emerging research, evolving standards of care, and best practices in oncology.

‘Through this collaboration, the Society will be able to share practice-focused content, local research summaries, clinical guidelines, leadership features and society advisories that are valuable to our members’ clinical practice and continued professional growth,’ said Dr. Dennis Santos, PSMO President.

‘With MIMS Oncology, which has been a major part of our drive to empower healthcare communities and improve patient outcomes, MIMS Philippines hopes to shine the brightest spotlight on the Society and its mission to advance cancer care through advocacy, connection, and education,’ said Richard Rivera, MIMS Philippines President and Country Representative. The partnership with PSMO for MIMS Oncology marks the latest collaboration for MIMS Philippines, following a similar agreement signed with the Philippine Academy of Family Physicians (PAFP) for the MIMS Doctor magazine early this year.

Local authorities began sending rice and other food supplies on Tuesday, August 11, to stranded residents of Barangay Sta. Fe, two days after the bridge connecting the remote upland village was swept away by strong currents from the lahar-filled Sto. Tomas River.

This, as the skies began clearing after one week of heavy downpour, gave local officials the needed break to undertake relief and clearing operations, and for most of the 7,044 flood evacuees across Zambales to go home.

According to the San Marcelino Municipal Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (MDRRMO), local rescuers assisted by personnel from the Bureau of Fire Protection, Philippine National Police, and Philippine Coast Guard, finally transported today essential commodities to the isolated northern part of Sta. Fe by using an improvised zipline set up on Monday afternoon.

About 1,000 family food packs were brought into the isolated barangay on Monday by a team headed by Mayor Elvis Soria, after establishing an alternate route to the isolated village through the Sto. Tomas River basin.

The food packs are expected to support about three days for the 55 families stranded in the area, the MDRRMO said.

However, continuous delivery of essential goods to the community remains uncertain, as the alternate route, navigable only with 4×4 off-road vehicles, traverses a lahar field and is vulnerable to a sudden rise in water level, the MDRRMO added.

Mayor Soria said the LGU will construct a temporary footbridge in Sta. Fe to restore access between the north and south portions of the barangay once the weather has cleared.

Meanwhile, the Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (PDRRMO) said that most of the 7,046 evacuees in Zambales began going home today, August 11, after heavy rains abated.

Thousands of residents in coastal and riverine areas began evacuating to higher ground from Wednesday last week, August 5, to Monday, August 10, after floodwaters rose up to more than waist-level in some areas, the result of heavy southwest monsoon rains or habagat whipped up by Typhoons ‘Luis’ and ‘Maymay.’

The PDRRMO initially recorded evacuees at 1,279 families or 3,810 individuals by 6:00 p.m. on August 9, then grew to 1,698 families and 4,809 individuals at 10:00 p.m. on the same day.

By 11:00 a.m. on August 10, the number of evacuees further increased to 2,251 families or 6,466 individuals, then up to 2,441 families or 7,046 persons by 3:00 p.m. that day.

Metro Manila roads were clear of flooding Wednesday morning, August 12 after a week of heavy rains, although PAGASA kept a flood watch in place as the southwest monsoon continued to affect the capital.

“Sa ngayon po wala na po tayong reported na flooded area. Kahit po ‘yung mga noong nakaraang linggo na lumalim ‘yung tubig ay wala na po,” MMDA Chair Romando Artes told dzBB.

(“As of now, we have no reported flooded areas. Even areas that experienced deep flooding last week have already subsided.”)

Heavy rains from the southwest monsoon and tropical cyclones Maymay and Luis had flooded several Metro Manila roads last week, making some impassable to light vehicles. Parts of Quezon City recorded chest-deep floodwaters.

Artes said the floods receded as weather conditions improved Tuesday.

Flood watch. Despite clearer roads, waterways in the Pasig-Marikina-Laguna de Bay river basin were still likely to be affected as light to occasional moderate rain was forecast through Wednesday afternoon, PAGASA said in its 6 a.m. bulletin.

These include the upper and lower Marikina River, Pasig River, San Juan River and waterways draining into Laguna de Bay.

PAGASA also warned that road flooding remained possible because of accumulated water, poor or clogged drainage systems and higher tide levels.

The odds are in the Alas Pilipinas girls’ favor.

Needing only to reach the fifth and final set to advance to the Round-of-16 of the FIVB Volleyball Girls U17 World Championship, the Filipinas did just after battling the Venezuelans tooth and nail before succumbing, 25-19, 25-16, 22-25, 19-25, 15-11, Wednesday in San Felipe, Chile.

It also assured the Philippines of its best finish in the biennial meet – now on its second edition – since it didn’t play in the inaugural staging in Lima, Peru.

Down by two sets, Caera Celis and Xyz Ellen Rayco went to work and combined for 15 points in the third set that the Nationals seized and used to fuel another uprising in the next set that forged a decider.

Alas eventually lost that one but the job was already done.

Celis and Rayco wound up with 24 and 19 points, respectively.

The Nationals will go to Los Andes, which is 17 kilometers or around 20-minute bus ride from San Felipe, where they will battle the fancied South Koreans, who topped Pool D via a five-match sweep.

The Filipinas actually ended up tied for fourth in Pool B with the Mexicans, who turned back the Tunisians, 25-19, 25-17, 27-25, on 2-3 cards but the former took the ticket to the knockout Last-16 due to a higher tiebreak points, 7-6.

And that five-set defeat was significant since, based on rules, it accounts for a point against two points for a win.

‘China is clearly on a different level. But against the rest of the pool, I believed we had a chance, if only we had more time to train and gel. Still, they’ve matured a lot playing matches at this level,’ said Alas coach Edwin Leyva.

‘Is there such crime as character assassination – or even ‘attempted’ character assassination?’

That’s Atty. Ruy Rondain’s reply when asked about a purported plot by his law firm to do a hatchet job on Executive Secretary Ralph Recto.

Rondain told this writer yesterday he is one of four lawyers linked by the NBI to the plot. He said he and partner Atty. Orlando Mendiola have been subpoenaed to the NBI-National Capital Region on Friday.

Rondain declined to identify his two junior associates implicated by the NBI: ‘Kawawa naman sila, mga bata pa, hindi pa sanay sa ganito.’

‘In deference to the NBI’ he also would not say what statement to give to investigators. ‘I will just talk to news reporters afterwards.’

In the headlines is news about Batangas Rep. Leandro Leviste’s supposed scheme to smear the reputation of political archfoe Executive Secretary Ralph Recto.

It started with the arrest on July 28 by NBI agents of a pimp and five trafficked women in an elite Manila hotel. During investigation, the pimp alias ‘Ken’ and one of the women alias ‘Jen’ asked if their arrest had to do with their planned smear job.

NBI Director Melvin Matibag then told the press about the plan of Ken, Jen and three of the four arrestees to execute affidavits linking Recto to drugs and illicit trysts in a Makati condo from 2022 to 2025.

Matibag said ex-congressman Jacinto ‘Jing’ Paras met with Ken and Jen thrice – July 11, 15, 26 – to polish the tale.

Paras supposedly told Ken and Jen that Leviste will pay them P5 million – P1 million each for Ken, Jen and the three other women. Another P500,000 is supposedly Paras’ commission, Matibag told Sapol-dwIZ Saturday.

Matibag said four lawyers were present in the July 15 and 26 meetings. In a sworn statement on Aug. 6, Ken identified the four lawyers through photographs.

Ken swore that the two junior associates brought laptops to take the false testimonies.

The smear job was supposed to have come in series, starting Aug. 2 or 3, Matibag quoted Ken and Jen.

Matibag said one of the charges against Leviste, Paras and the four lawyers could be subornation of perjury.

Subornation of perjury is the criminal act of persuading, inducing or forcing another person to lie under oath. It can be through bribery or coercion.

But to carry weight, subornation of perjury must have been consummated via an actual false testimony.

Leviste and Paras have denied NBI’s allegations. Through their respective lawyers, Karen Danielle Fajardo and Mark Tolentino, they have also asked for specific charges before showing up at NBI-NCR yesterday, Tuesday.

The NBI announced, however, that Leviste flew to Hong Kong Aug. 2 with no given return date.

Rondain said his associate Fajarda and his lawyer-daughter Gabrielle appeared at the NBI in Leviste’s behalf. He said Leviste engaged their services only this week.

Rondain and Mendiola have prominent – controversial – political clients. Foremost is ex-congressman Zaldy Co, reportedly hiding in Europe from criminal charges related to the P1.7-trillion flood control scam. Also from supposed death threats, since he linked President Bongbong Marcos, son Rep. Sandro Marcos and ex-speaker Martin Romualdez to the flood works scandal.

Rondain was also counsel in 2021 of then-energy secretary Alfonso Cusi in the latter’s controversial transfer of $565-million Chevron shares in Malampaya gas field to then-president Rody Duterte’s campaign contributor Dennis Uy.

Rondain was also counsel in 2006 of then-first gentleman Mike Arroyo, whom 36 journalists sued for P12.5-million damages.

Reports are that Leviste and Paras are targeting five other prominent officials for character assassination: Ombudsman Jesus Crispin Remulla, DILG Sec. Jonvic Remulla, DPWH Sec. Vince Dizon, DICT Sec. Henry Aguda and Secretary to the Cabinet Benhur Abalos.

Paras and the Remulla brothers are members of the UP-Diliman fraternity Upsilon Sigma Phi. They joined in 1971, 1979 and 1987, respectively.

Paras’ lawyer is Mark Tolentino. A lex talionis frat brother of Duterte in San Beda Law, Tolentino was assistant secretary of Transportation in 2017. Paras and Tolentino could not be reached for comment.

Tolentino was removed in 2018 when linked to a 1.9-billion-euro or $2.1-billion scandal of German payments processing firm Wirecard. The NBI investigated the case.

Matibag said it was ‘dismissed without prejudice, meaning it can be reopened whenever new evidence so warrants.’

The Philippine government’s outstanding debt is expected to surpass P21 trillion next year amid the depreciation of the peso, according to the Department of Budget and Management (DBM).

At the same time, the Marcos administration raised its borrowing to P3.3 trillion instead of P2.73 trillion.

Data from the latest Budget of Expenditures and Sources of Financing (BESF) released yesterday showed that the debt stock is projected to rise by 8.7 percent to P21.48 trillion by end-2027, up from the revised P19.77 trillion this year.

Of the projected debt next year, P14.28 trillion will be sourced from domestic creditors, while P7.2 trillion will come from external sources.

Budget Assistant Secretary Romeo Matthew Balanquit said that foreign exchange (forex) movements and the slowdown in the fiscal consolidation program would pad the government’s outstanding debt next year.

‘So many of our loans were contracted during the pandemic. During that time, forex was just around P49.60 to a dollar. Now, it’s around P60. With that, we can say the peso has depreciated by almost 20 percent. That led us to incur higher costs,’ Balanquit told reporters.

Data from the Bureau of the Treasury showed that the government’s debt amounted to P19.07 trillion as of end-June, equivalent to 66 percent of gross domestic product, the highest debt-to-GDP ratio in 22 years.

The June debt stock was already equivalent to 96.5 percent of the government’s full-year 2026 projection.

‘Our old loans were contracted at a lower interest rate. Now they are maturing. So we have to refinance using new loans. But worse because this will be at a higher interest rate,’ he said.

The government expects its debt-to-GDP ratio to settle at 64.9 percent this year before easing to 64.4 percent in 2027, 64.2 percent in 2028, 64 percent in 2029 and 63 percent in 2030.

Balanquit said the debt level remains below the 70 percent debt-to-GDP benchmark used by the International Monetary Fund.

Meanwhile, general government debt is projected to decline to 58.4 percent of GDP in 2027 from 58.7 percent in 2026, before falling to 58.3 percent in 2028, 57.8 percent in 2029 and 56.4 percent in 2030.

‘It’s not bad debts because you are able to make use of this money for something productive and for long-term investment like infrastructure. We are not borrowing for aid. We are borrowing for program loans, project loans, official development assistance. These are mainly for infrastructure projects,’ he said.

The government’s decision to accommodate a higher deficit trajectory also contributed to the increase in borrowing requirements, he said.

The Philippines sees its budget deficit-to-GDP ratio improving to 5.1 percent 2027, 4.8 percent in 2028 and 4.2 percent in 2029.

Meanwhile, the government plans to borrow P3.3 trillion next year, nearly 21 percent higher than this year’s revised P2.73 trillion borrowing plan.

Of next year’s borrowing, P2.39 trillion will come from domestic sources and P915 billion from foreign creditors.

Gross borrowing is also projected to rise further to P3.65 trillion in 2028 and P3.55 trillion in 2029.

Higher debt levels will also push up debt servicing costs, as debt service bill is seen rising to P2.7 trillion in 2027, a 32.2-percent increase from P2.05 trillion this year.

The government said it would allocate P1.6 trillion on principal amortization and P1.11 trillion for interest payments next year.

The Philippine economy could regain some momentum in the second half, but the strength of the recovery will depend heavily on a revival in infrastructure spending, easing price pressures and a pickup in household demand.

In a report, Deutsche Bank said it expects gross domestic product (GDP) growth to accelerate to 4.4 percent in the second half from just 2.6 percent in the first six months, supported mainly by faster infrastructure spending and government subsidies that could help cushion consumers from elevated prices.

Still, the bank lowered its full-year growth forecast to 3.5 percent from 3.7 percent, placing it at the bottom of the government’s revised 3.5 to 4.5 percent target.

Bank of America (BofA) Global Research is more cautious, maintaining its 2.5-percent growth forecast for 2026 and expecting economic expansion in the second half to remain broadly similar to the first.

BofA said lower fuel prices and higher minimum wages could eventually support industrial activity and consumption, although these may not emerge as meaningful growth drivers until late in the year.

The contrasting outlooks reflect uncertainty over how quickly domestic demand can recover after GDP growth slowed to 2.3 percent in the second quarter from 2.8 percent in the first quarter. First-half growth settled at 2.6 percent.

At the heart of the uncertainty is continued weakness in the economy’s traditional growth engines, particularly household consumption and investment. Private consumption grew by just 2.8 percent in the second quarter.

Deutsche Bank said households turned more cautious following the spike in inflation and cutback on discretionary spending.

Investment spending also contracted by 9.2 percent in the second quarter.

Domestic demand, which includes consumption, government spending and investment, grew by only 0.9 percent from 2.1 percent in the first quarter.

Manulife Investments Philippines head of equities Elle Jamil said its checks with companies and distribution channels likewise point to soft household demand.

‘Channel checks with different consumer companies and distribution channels show that domestic consumption continues to be tepid,’ Jamil said.

Jamil noted that banks have continued to see strong consumer loan growth, particularly in credit cards and personal loans, suggesting that borrowing is already supporting some consumption.

Meanwhile, corporate and middle-market loans have been concentrated largely in working capital aside from major infrastructure projects, reflecting continued caution among businesses.

The weak operating environment is also weighing on corporate earnings expectations.

‘Against a very volatile backdrop, both oil prices and interest rates could remain elevated and continue to be an overhang to the full recovery of consumption and business confidence this year,’ Jamil said.

Jamil expects big-ticket consumer spending to remain weak, keeping interest rate-sensitive sectors such as property under pressure. However, consumer companies with strong brands and pricing power could remain resilient, while banks with strong deposit franchises could still grow if they contain deterioration in asset quality.

The weak domestic economy is also complicating the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP)’s policy outlook as it balances subdued growth against inflation that remains above target.

Manulife Investments Philippines head of fixed income Jean Olivia de Castro expects the BSP to shift toward a measured 25-basis-point hike followed by a hawkish pause rather than faster tightening.

The People’s Ville Housing Project in Davao City was implemented under the Marcos administration, Malacañang clarified yesterday as it refuted claims by what it described as ‘pretenders’ who are trying to grab credit for the initiative.

Palace press officer Claire Castro said the project, which seeks to build 7,200 condominium units across 72 residential buildings, is part of President Marcos’ Expanded Pambansang Pabahay para sa Pilipino or 4PH program.

‘Some pretenders are trying to grab credit for this project even if they did not contribute to the efforts of President Marcos and the DHSUD. They want to mislead our countrymen by claiming that they are behind the People’s Ville project,’ Castro said, referring to the Department of Human Settlements and Urban Development.

She did not identify the supposed credit grabber, but some netizens posted a video of Vice President Sara Duterte claiming the project was hers, initiated when she was mayor of Davao.

Marcos visited the project site on July 28.