Category: Philippine Star

A new children’s book is using apples and oranges to introduce young readers to lessons on diversity, identity, acceptance and shared humanity.

Written by Denise Christine Sehwani Gonzales and illustrated by Mimsy Sermonia-Jundis, ‘Apples and Oranges’ explores how people can be different from one another while remaining connected by their shared experiences as human beings.

The book draws on the familiar differences between the two fruits, including their skin, color, texture, flavor, scent, seeds, pulp and fiber.

These characteristics serve as metaphors for the qualities that make each person unique.

Despite their differences, apples and oranges are both fruits. In the same way, the book emphasizes that people may look, sound and live differently while sharing the capacity for love, kindness and connection.

Gonzales also encourages readers to reflect on their own identities through the question: ‘What fruit are you in your own language?’

The question is meant to encourage self-discovery and cultural pride while helping readers appreciate the identities and experiences of others.

‘Apples and Oranges’ is intended for both children and adults, with themes that include acceptance, empathy, respect, belonging and inclusivity.

The book is also positioned as a resource for families, classrooms and communities where conversations about diversity and inclusion can begin.

Sermonia-Jundis’ illustrations accompany Gonzales’ lyrical prose, giving visual form to the book’s central metaphor and its message about finding unity in difference.

Rather than focusing solely on how people differ, the book explores the idea that differences can coexist with a shared sense of belonging.

Very few things are sweeter than good news coming when it is unexpected. Last week, I received news that RFM Corporation was included in the Micro Cap segment of the FTSE Global Equity Index (GEIS). It wasn’t a mere reclassification within FTSE’s existing size buckets; it was a new inclusion.

Benchmarks such as FTSE GEIS are used by institutional investors and other market participants to track and allocate investments across markets. Constituent reviews can affect the investable universe of funds and portfolios that track the indices. Inclusion in the index means increased visibility and a wider opportunity for RFM to be evaluated and considered by a wider range of global investors.

Now, while I am evidently a biased source of this news – I do lead the company – I feel I am entitled to savor, even for a moment, the satisfaction that comes from an independent validation of the hard work that went into the work.

For the longest time, one of the comments of foreign and local stock investors about RFM and its stock is the low level of stock trading volume. The investors I meet and have met have good things to say about the healthy balance sheet, the strength of our brands Selecta, Fiesta and Royal, as well as RFM’s brands’ leadership in the pasta, milk and ice cream categories, but they always noted the thin volume of stock trading of RFM.

But that didn’t tell the whole story. Prior to the inclusion in FTSE GEIS, RFM’S market capitalization steadily grew as income and cash dividends also grew. This was mainly a reflection of the good brands and robust balance sheet (meaning, it was very liquid and had almost no bank loans).

From a broader viewpoint, the inclusion in the index is recognition of RFM’s strong market position, consistent financial performance, disciplined capital management and commitment to maintaining high standards of governance and disclosure. The inclusion underscores RFM’s attractiveness as an investable Philippine consumer goods company and highlights the value created through the strength of its brands, resilient earnings profile and long-term growth strategy. What this means for our existing investors – those who have long put their faith in our company – is that we are now on the radar of more asset managers, funds and international investors that use the FTSE indices as reference benchmarks.

It becomes sweeter because it is a result of the sure and steady work of so many people behind the scenes, and it was built with patience over many years. I think of myself as a steward of the company. It was built by my father and my grandfather, entrusted to my leadership and now I do my best to keep it as healthy as I found it.

I can’t help but draw parallels between my day job at RFM and my advocacy to promote entrepreneurship among Filipinos. I’ve been in the latter for a little over 20 years – much less time than I’ve spent working for RFM. I’ve also received external validation for my work with MSMEs, most recently from the ASEAN-Korea Center, and it keeps me going despite the challenges. But I don’t believe the ‘finish line’ – the medal – will arrive as an announcement that, yes, there is Prosperity for All because of entrepreneurship. I think it will come as a slow realization: that life has indeed become better for Filipinos, especially those at the bottom of the pyramid.

I imagine that we can finally say, ‘Success!’ when Filipino farmers have become skilled entrepreneurs (and millionaires); when our biggest conglomerates build systems that not only include MSMEs, but mentor them across their value chains; when our most dynamic new enterprises come from women, the youth and the creatives and when overseas Filipinos find it more feasible to come home and build their businesses here. Maybe even when Filipinos have their pick of job offers because they’ve built the skills that attract high-level work – partly because there were enough MSMEs to give them that first step and access to training that made them more in-demand as they learned to adapt to digital technology (and maybe AI).

It’s a nice thought to finally achieve these goals, but I think we will cross the finish line quietly, and maybe we will not even be aware of it until the numbers (and the situation on the ground) confirm it. The victory will be no less sweet, but I don’t think it will be that movie moment when the hero finally comes to the end of his successful quest. No, I think it will be just a happy and grateful sigh after a long, exhausting day.

Is it maybe because there are no real finish lines when it comes to advocacy work? Maybe because you’re never sure you’ve covered all the bases, and because goalposts keep moving on account of the fact that this is the nature of the work? When I listen in on forums and attend meetings with different business sectors and industry groups, I sense the frustration at how slowly progress comes. How come, for example, we’ve been talking about the same problems over and over and have yet to see results on the ground? I share these frustrations. But such is the nature of the work.

We should thrive on small milestones because they show that the work is compounding. The same patience that built RFM’s strength – brand by brand, year by year – will also keep opening doors for more entrepreneurs, more jobs and more upward mobility. I’m optimistic because I can see the momentum starting to show, and because the best outcomes rarely arrive as a sudden miracle, but as steady, shared wins.

The Cebu City government has restored the original name of its official Facebook page, The Cebu City Government Public Information Office, after using the Cebu City News branding for a year.

The Cebu City News identity was introduced in 2025 as part of rebranding efforts under the new administration of Mayor Nestor Archival.

The shift was intended to project vitality and accessibility while presenting government advisories.

By reverting to its institutional name, the page with 157,000 followers and following 337 accounts is once again identified as the official Facebook page of the city’s Public Information Office.

The move stresses its role as the city’s official communications arm and strengthens its alignment with City Hall.

According to officer in charge Jesson Morata, the decision was reached by consensus within the office to emphasize institutional continuity.

He noted that returning to the original name makes the page more local government unit oriented and aligned with the department’s official title, ensuring it represents City Hall directly.

The Phililpines will host the Tourism International 2026 pageant in December.

This was announced by ALV Pageant Circle president Arnold Vegafria during a presser at the Newport Performing Arts Theater.

‘This is the Philippines’ first time to host the pageant on its 30th anniversary. This was supposed to be held in China but the problem of visa procurement for the delegates necessitated the transfer. So we closed the deal with the international organization. This pageant will hand out two other titles, aside from the Miss Tourism International crown,’ Vegafria said.

He added that it is aligned with their organizations platform on local and global tourism, especially with the rise of the country’s food and cuisine and P-pop scene. Vegafria said that they are already in talks with provinces to host the swimsuit preliminary and talent presentation.

To date, the Philippines has won the Tourism International crown for six times. These were in the years 2000 (Ma. Esperanza Corazon ‘Peachie’ Manzano), 2012 (Razzini Alexis Gomez), 2013 (Angeli Dion Gomez), 2017 (Jannie Laudette Alipo-on), 2019 (Cyrille Payumo), and 2024 (Liana Rose Barrido). All six wins were won by delegates from the Mutya ng Pilipinas (MNP) organization.

ALV Pageant Circle acquired the national franchise after MNP crowned its 2025 winner.

The 30th Miss Tourism International pageant will unfold on December 15 at the Newport Performing Arts Theater. A total of 70 international delegates are expected to compete during the final show. The delegates will be arriving from December 4 to 6. Stay tuned!

Lopez-led First Gen Corp. is holding on to Energy Development Corp. (EDC), the country’s largest geothermal company, despite a $5-billion (about P315 billion) offer from Indonesia’s Barito Group.

First Gen president and COO Francis Giles Puno said EDC would remain with the Lopez Group’s power arm, which is already mapping out its next phase of growth, especially in geothermal space.

Over the next five years, First Gen plans to spend up to P160 billion in capital expenditures, with nearly half or P70 billion earmarked for its geothermal business.

‘If the Philippines wants to grow, I suspect you need companies like First Gen or EDC to continue to find ways to create value for the expansion of geothermal and other renewable energy sources,’ Puno said.

This comes after PT Barito Renewables TBK made an unsolicited, indicative and non-binding offer to acquire EDC, which could translate into proceeds of around $2.29 billion (about P144 billion) for First Gen.

The potential proceeds are more than double the P58.5 billion First Gen invested when it acquired the geothermal company from the government in 2007.

However, selling EDC could also mean giving up a business that has long provided a stable source of earnings for First Gen.

From January to June, EDC’s attributable recurring income doubled to P3.8 billion from P1.9 billion a year earlier.

The strong performance provided a bright spot for First Gen, which saw weaker contributions from its gas and hydropower businesses during the period.

Still, any potential takeover of EDC would have to comply with the country’s foreign ownership limits.

‘There’s a nationality requirement. So even if someone wants to buy 100 percent, that wouldn’t be allowed,’ Puno said.

In 2022, the government lifted the foreign ownership limits in the renewable power sector, which was previously subject to a 40-percent cap.

The move, however, only covers solar, wind, biomass, ocean or tidal energy.

Fifty-four years ago, Ferdinand Marcos placed the country under martial law, ostensibly to bring peace and order, but mostly to perpetuate himself in power, allowing him to circumvent the two-term limit set for presidents under the 1935 Constitution.

Wielding absolute power, Marcos set off to finish rewriting the 1935 Constitution, with the new one allowing him to rule by decree for several years. He abolished Congress and limited the Supreme Court to adjudicating civil and criminal cases, with all his martial law decrees kept beyond judicial review.

Over the years, thousands of political opponents and dissidents were rounded up without arrest warrants and tossed in jail, and critical media organizations were shut down. Many of those arrested were tortured; others became desaparecidos, their whereabouts unknown to this day.

Under the conjugal dictatorship of Ferdinand and Imelda Marcos, the line between public and private funds became blurred. Those pursuing questionable wealth believe the Marcos-Romualdez clans illegally amassed billions of dollars during the dictatorship, with only a fraction recovered.

As the economy went into a tailspin from the systematic looting, the exodus of Filipinos to find work overseas began.

This dark period in the nation’s history was successfully revised in 2022. The martial law period, repackaged as a ‘golden age’ with the help of the Dutertes’ considerable popularity, sent Ferdinand Marcos’ only son and namesake to the presidency by the largest margin ever.

Today the hunt for ill-gotten wealth has crashed into a wall, with Imelda Marcos home free under the presidency of her only son. The nation has been undergoing a painful reality check about the supposed golden era – again with some help from the Dutertes, who have openly regretted helping in the spectacular political comeback of the Marcos clan.

With no accountability in the gross human rights abuses and kleptocracy during the first Marcos regime, it’s little wonder that today the nation is facing a massive corruption scandal that has implicated some of the highest officials, including Imelda Marcos’ nephew.

The nation is also struggling to hold accountable those responsible for the killing of thousands during the Duterte administration on mere suspicion of involvement in the illegal drug trade, or simply to meet a kill quota.

In the human rights department at least, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. is proving to be a vast improvement from his immediate predecessor. In terms of accountability, two senators plus the President’s cousin the former speaker are detained without bail for plunder. But there’s a long way to go in cleansing the nation of the rot that built up exponentially during the dictatorship.

Century Properties Group (CPG) is trading high-rises for front yards, officially opening the show village for its new 25-hectare development in General Trias, Cavite.

The developer formally launched the model homes for Cerulean Residences this week, marking a major pivot from its usual vertical condominiums to a fully master-planned house-and-lot community.

For decades, CPG built its brand on amenity-heavy urban towers. Now, it’s translating that same beach-inspired lifestyle seen in projects like Azure in Parañaque and Pampanga, and Acqua in Mandaluyong into a traditional suburban neighborhood.

Bringing the beach to the suburbs

Designed by Singapore-based Pomeroy Studio, the same architectural firm behind CPG’s Azure and Acqua projects, Cerulean Residences leans heavily into its name and water-inspired theme.

The estate is divided into three main zones: active spaces for sports and fitness, meditative green areas, and the immersive water attractions that have become a CPG trademark.

“Filipino families have always gravitated toward the water,” CPG Managing Director Carlo Antonio said. “What we learned from Azure and Acqua is that people do not just want to visit that feeling on a holiday, they want to come home to it.”

Adaptable spaces

The newly opened show village gives buyers a first look at the two-story model homes, which feature contemporary, asymmetrical roofs and minimalist interiors. Staying true to the estate’s overall theme, the home models take their names from beaches.

Taking it up a notch, Century Properties ensures that upon delivery, the homes already come with a perimeter fence, a gate, and a 2-car garage with an EV charger provision.

The 1,100 homes planned for the community were designed with flexibility in mind. The layouts feature optimized depths for natural light and are built to adapt as families grow, careers change, or residents shift to work-from-home setups.

“A house should be able to keep up with the family living in it,” Antonio noted.

A self-contained hub

Located in Barangay San Francisco along Arnaldo Highway, the project positions itself as highly accessible but comfortably removed from Metro Manila’s congestion. The site sits near major thoroughfares like Governor’s Drive, Aguinaldo Highway, and the Cavite-Laguna Expressway.

To support the residential enclave, CPG is also developing Century Lifepark, a commercial strip set to rise just outside the village gates to provide retail and daily essentials for both residents and the surrounding Gen Trias market.

Despite the premium amenities, CPG is pitching the project as a realistic upgrade for growing families.

“Move Up, Live Better is what four decades of building has taught us families are actually asking for,” Antonio said. “They want something better than what they have, in a community they can be proud of, without stretching beyond what makes sense for them. It is aspirational but attainable.”

The Cerulean Residences Show Village is now open to visitors in General Trias, Cavite.

The P500-million national allocation for the rehabilitation of Naga City’s Jesse M. Robredo Coliseum has drawn political questions months after President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. released the funds, prompting Mayor Leni Robredo to lay out the project’s origins and timetable.

Robredo said the request grew out of the city’s need to turn the coliseum, originally built as an events venue, into a safer and more functional evacuation center as severe storms and flooding increasingly force families to shelter there.

“Because it was not originally built as an evacuation center, it does not provide the basic amenities that an evacuation center should have,” Robredo said in a Facebook post on Monday, September 21.

The 12,000-seat coliseum has become Naga’s largest evacuation center during typhoons and floods, but Robredo said it has limited space for tents, no communal kitchens and inadequate sleeping and storage areas for displaced families.

“After Typhoon Kristine, which brought us the worst floods, the need to repair and retrofit the Coliseum became even more stark,” she said, referring to the destructive cyclone in 2024.

The funding request predates Marcos’ release of the money.

“As soon as I assumed office in 2025, I tried to look for funding already for its rehabilitation,” Robredo said. “It was difficult because of the big amount that is required.”

She said Sen. Kiko Pangilinan advised the city to seek funding through the Local Government Support Fund. Robredo wrote Pangilinan on Nov. 13, 2025 seeking support for the retrofit. The Naga City Council later formally endorsed the request.

Robredo said the city was informed in early February 2026 that the request had been approved in principle.

She said Marcos later turned over the Special Allotment Release Order covering P450 million for the repair and rehabilitation of the coliseum and P50 million for heavy equipment intended to strengthen the city’s disaster response.

Political questions

The allocation returned to the spotlight this month after Rep. Edgar Erice (Caloocan) questioned whether the funding carried a political motive and suggested it could be intended to draw Robredo closer to the Marcos administration.

Robredo and Pangilinan ran against and lost to the Marcos-Duterte in 2022. Marcos since had a fallout with his vice president, Sara Duterte.

Malacañang rejected the suggestion that the move to approve Naga City’s request is political, saying assistance to local governments was based on need rather than affiliation.

Pangilinan also traced the project to Robredo’s 2025 request and said his office helped coordinate with the national government to secure support.

Robredo, however, said the project is simply a disaster-resilience measure whose planning began months before the national government released the funds.

Work yet to begin

Robredo also addressed why construction has yet to start.

“Even if we have the SARO already, we cannot start with the construction yet because a number of government and non-government agencies/organizations hold office at the Coliseum,” she said. A SARO is a special allotment release order that the budget department issues signaling implementation.

Those local offices first have to be relocated to the Balatas Building, which Robredo said is expected to be ready in October.

The project is now in the post-qualification stage of procurement.

“Hopefully, construction can start within the month of October,” Robredo said

A second Philippine exporter has begun shipping Carabao mangoes to Canada, flying one metric ton to Vancouver as the government looks for new overseas buyers for the iconic sweet fruit.

The 250 cartons from Mensch FilAm Corp. were flown to Vancouver on September 18 and are bound for Vancouver distributor Fresh Makers Ltd., the Department of Agriculture said Monday, September 21.

The cargo adds a second supply line into Canada after the first-ever shipment of Carabao mangoes in June.

The export of Carabao mangoes first entered the Canadian market in June, when the DA sent off 1 metric ton to Toronto supplied by Hi-Las Marketing Corp. and Castillo Import Export Ventures Inc. and imported by Ontario-based TSI Tropicals Inc.

That supply chain delivered 100 cases to TandT Supermarket in the Vancouver area on September 9, according to the Philippine Consulate General in Vancouver.

The consulate said Mensch FilAm is the second major exporter supplying the Canadian market and shipments would arrive weekly at retailers and Asian supermarkets in Greater Vancouver and the Pacific region, with distribution to central and eastern Canada to follow.

Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. said the shipment is part of a wider government effort to open new markets for Philippine farm products and raise agricultural export earnings.

State of Carabao mango exports

Most Carabao mangoes are sold at home.

The country produced about 710,000 metric tons of mangoes in 2025, and about 92% of the fruit is consumed locally, with the rest exported mainly to Hong Kong, South Korea and Japan, according to the Department of Science and Technology’s Philippine Council for Agriculture, Aquatic and Natural Resources Research and Development (DOST-PCAARRD), citing Philippine Statistics Authority data.

Canada is one of several new markets the government has pursued for the Carabao mango. In June 2025, the DA announced the first commercial shipment of Philippine mangoes to Italy.

For many Filipinos, we quietly observe today one of the darkest periods in our country’s history when it was placed under martial law rule 54 years ago. It began after the late president Ferdinand Marcos Sr. issued Proclamation 1081 that imposed the martial law rule all over the Philippines. It was immediately followed by the massive round up, arrest and detention in military jails of leading opposition leaders against the Marcos Sr. administration.

Fast forward. The only son and namesake of the late president hurdled the fears foisted by their political enemies on the possible return of martial law rule should they return to power. President Ferdinand ‘Bongbong’ Marcos Jr. (PBBM) got elected into office in May 2022. We all could thank the framers of our 1987 Constitution that made it difficult to impose martial law rule anew in our country.

While indeed martial law is practically a dead letter law now in the Constitution, the opposition ranks are complaining that PBBM has been into ‘lawfare’ to silence them. They point to a number of known anti-administration leaders who are either facing court cases or currently jailed for graft, plunder and/or criminal charges.

But presidential first cousin, former speaker Leyte Rep. Martin Romualdez, finally landed in jail last week for the flood control project scandal. At least eight alleged ‘cong-ractors’ are currently being investigated by the ombudsman while three of them were charged before the Sandiganbayan.

‘I fear for my liberty,’ Sen. Pia Cayetano declared last week to her Senate colleagues and to the public in general. These were her words on Sept. 16 during the 26th day of the ongoing impeachment trial of Vice President Sara Duterte. Sen. Pia deplored the ‘pressure’ she has been feeling obviously since she joined the anti-administration bloc at the Senate.

Sen. Pia, elder sister of Sen. Alan Peter Cayetano, echoed her strong suspicions that their personal activities and movements are being closely monitored by the government. Being one of the senator-judges of the impeachment court, the ‘pressure’ literally built up soon after she and her brother took an evening flight together for Singapore last Sept. 9.

Obviously, it was not a secret flight after their stolen shot photo at the airport went viral on social media. Still, it fueled speculations that Senator Alan’s sudden flight abroad might be related to the separate cases being looked into against him by the Office of the Ombudsman and the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI). Subsequently, NBI Director Melvin Matibag assuaged the public that the Cayetanos will return to the Philippines and in fact, were scheduled to fly back by the weekend.

The NBI has been digging up the 2019 Southeast Asian Games on the controversial P55-million cauldron project undertaken by the Philippine Southeast Asian Games Organizing Committee (PHISGOC). The NBI director announced last Friday that Sen. Alan Peter, who served as PHISGOC chairman during preparations for the SEA Games, is not among the 30 personalities that the NBI plans to subpoena at this stage. The ombudsman probe, on the other hand, is related to the questioned reclamation projects allegedly of the Cayetanos at the Laguna Lake within the jurisdiction of Taguig City.

Thus, the Cayetano brother-and-sister tandem feels more pressured than the rest of the remaining nine members of the Senate minority bloc. Meanwhile, another brother-and-sister tandem of Sens. Mark and Camille Villar, along with their other family members, are now being investigated also by the ombudsman for their family-run Prime Water. The Villars are also being investigated by the Department of Justice (DOJ) for their family-owned business empire’s alleged violations of the Securities Regulation Code.

A lawyer by profession, Sen. Pia also expressed fear for her right to speak.Unabashedly, she unburdened her fears in the presence of four retired members of the Supreme Court, two of whom were erstwhile Chief Justices (CJ) – Artemio Panganiban and Reynato Puno. Fellow retired SC associate justice Adolfo Azcuna, who was one of the 50-man framers of the 1987 Constitution, was also invited among the amici curiae at the Senate impeachment court.

Sen. Pia’s laments deserve a serious answer.

It does not establish that anyone has threatened her unlawfully. But when a senator says she fears losing her freedom while performing her duties, the question reaches beyond personal anxiety. Can members of the chamber speak and vote without fearing that the machinery of investigation will be used to influence them?

Senators must answer legitimate allegations. They must also be free to question whether the law is being applied selectively. Those obligations belong together. Which brings us to Sens. Francis ‘Chiz’ Escudero, Joel Villanueva and Panfilo ‘Ping’ Lacson. In February, Lacson confirmed a draft Senate Blue Ribbon report recommending criminal charges against Escudero and Villanueva, alongside Sen. Jinggoy Estrada who is now detained in the Payatas, Quezon City Jail with co-accused in the flood control cases.

Although the report lacked the signatures needed to reach the Senate plenary, Lacson publicly disclosed last May 5 a preliminary investigation involving both senators. After which Villanueva and Escudero, one after the other, joined the new majority that installed Senate President Sherwin Gatchalian. And the rest is history. Sen. Alan Peter is back again as Senate minority leader.

Sen. Pia’s fear should neither confer immunity nor be treated as a confession. It should prompt the Senate to insist on a system in which liberty depends on evidence and law, and every senator remains free to speak and vote.The answer to ‘I fear for my liberty’ must never become ‘then choose the right side.’

The minority’s claim of selective justice must be tested against records. Cases need not move at identical pace. But differences in evidence and procedure should explain their progress, rather than changes in political allegiance.

No one should be prosecuted to prove a political point. If the evidence is insufficient, resolve the allegations fairly. If it warrants further action, pursue it regardless of alliances. While indeed ‘lawfare’ is in the works, it still evokes shades of martial law.