Category: Philippines Daily Inquirer

Interior Secretary Jonvic Remulla said on Wednesday that they have started gathering information on members of the criminal group, True Brown Style (TBS), which has become a national problem for authorities.

The group, according to Remulla, is largely composed of members in their late teens and early 20s. They recruit children as young as age 14 or 15 and groom them for criminal activities.

‘Of the 83 provinces, I think they are present in about 78. Some are large, while others are smaller. They are mostly concentrated in urban centers,’ he said in an ambush interview.

‘Now, as part of their recruitment, before you can join the group, you have to rob a convenience store at gunpoint,’ Remulla added.

The head of the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) said the government stepped up its monitoring of the group after authorities observed that while most crimes declined following the implementation of the Safer Cities program, robbery cases increased.

‘TBS started 35 years ago in California. It came to the Philippines 25 years ago, but it was small back then. Now, they have become radicalized,’ Remulla said.

He urged parents to monitor their children’s activities, including checking their phones, who they communicate with and keeping a lookout for who may be influencing or shaping their minds.

‘It is unacceptable for young people to become gang leaders. Parents should be responsible-look after your children and keep an eye on them. But this is unacceptable. We will get you. We will get all of you,’ he said, referring to TBS members.

Early intervention

The Philippine National Police, for its part, said it is stepping up efforts to detect and prevent the recruitment of minors into criminal groups.

‘If a young person is being drawn into criminal activity, the earlier the family, school, community and police can recognize it, the more opportunities we have to intervene and put that young person back on the right path,’ PNP chief Gen. Jose Melencio Nartatez Jr. said in a statement.

‘We want our police units to be present, informed, and coordinated enough to act at the right time-especially when young people may be at risk of being influenced or exploited,’ he added.

Police units were also encouraged to work more closely with schools, local government units, barangay officials, parents and other community stakeholders to identify possible signs of youth recruitment, exploitation or involvement in criminal activities.

Marginal farmers in Central Luzon will soon have a place where they can learn how to turn the task of growing food into businesses, find markets for their products and gain access to facilities and financing.

The Agribusiness Incubation (ABI) Center, which will rise at the DA-Research Outreach Station for Lahar-Laden Areas Development in Barangay Rabanes in nearby San Marcelino town, is expected to provide farmers with shared office and processing facilities, training, mentoring and links to potential buyers and funding sources.

The Department of Agriculture (DA) and the Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) broke ground for the center on Thursday, Oct. 1.

The facility is part of the project ‘Development of a Community-Based Agribusiness to Improve the Livelihood and Income of Marginal Farmers in Central Luzon,’ which will run from 2025 to 2029 with a $6-million (about P377 million) grant from the South Korean government.

Instead of focusing only on production, the project aims to help farmers develop enterprises around their products, improve their competitiveness and build more sustainable sources of income in their communities.

The center will also provide a venue for farmers to learn from South Korea’s experience in agricultural development and agribusiness incubation, with relevant approaches to be adapted to the needs and conditions of farming communities in Central Luzon.

KOICA Country Director Jung Youngsun said the partnership seeks to help Filipino farmers develop sustainable businesses, increase their incomes and strengthen their communities.

‘Through our partnership with the Philippines, the government of the Republic of Korea, through KOICA, hopes to contribute to a more productive and competitive agricultural sector by empowering Filipino farmers to develop sustainable agribusinesses, increase their incomes, and build stronger rural communities,’ Jung said.

The groundbreaking ceremony was attended by KOICA officials, including Jung, Assistant Country Director Pyun Eunhye, Project Coordinator Yim Soungbin and Program Officer Kim Gabin.

Representing the DA were Assistant Secretary for Agribusiness, Marketing, and Consumer Affairs Atty. Genevieve Velicaria-Guevarra; Regional Executive Director Eduardo Lapuz Jr.; Regional Technical Director for Operations, Extension, and Agribusiness and Marketing Assistance Division Arthur Dayrit; and Regional Technical Director for Research, Regulations, and Integrated Laboratory Division Elma Mananes.

Also present were project leader Josephine Muñoz and DA-Research Outreach Station for Lahar-Laden Areas Development Station Chief Matthew Mark Capillo and San Marcelino Mayor Elvis Soria

Health authorities in Agusan del Sur have declared a dengue outbreak after the number of reported cases in the province reached 674 in just over seven months this year.

In a public advisory on Tuesday, the Provincial Health Office (PHO) said the province is ‘experiencing an increasing burden of dengue, with rising cases, hospitalizations, severe cases, and reported deaths.’

It ordered intensified surveillance, community mobilization and health facility-preparedness to combat the surge of the mosquito-borne disease.

Health authorities said they will release updated statistics soon. But government reports gathered by the Inquirer showed that from only 206 cases during the first half of the year, the count climbed to 674 as of Aug. 8, or an increase of 227 percent in five weeks. That means about 12 new infections every day.

Monitoring

Owing to the rising dengue cases, the PHO intensified its monitoring and conducted mosquito-control measures across the province.

Dr. Jacqueline Frances Momville, provincial health officer, advise health facilities in the province to ‘activate their dengue surge capacity plans, strengthen referral mechanisms, and activate or reactivate ‘Dengue Fast Lanes.”

She also asked these facilities to ‘appropriate clinical pathways for timely patient assessment and management.’

Regionwide, the Department of Health in Caraga recorded 2,303 cases as of Aug. 8, which was 66 percent lower than the same period in 2025.

The 674 cases in Agusan del Sur were the highest recorded among Caraga’s five provinces during the period.

The provincial outbreak declaration has been accompanied by intensified field surveillance.

On Sept. 23, the PHO, in coordination with the Rosario Primary Care Facility, conducted entomological case surveillance within a 300-meter radius of identified dengue hot spot areas in the villages of Sta. Cruz and Bayugan 3 in Rosario town.

The activity focused on identifying breeding sites of mosquitoes and strengthening community-based measures to prevent further transmission

The PHO reminded residents to search and destroy mosquito breeding sites, practice self-protection against insect bites, seek early consultation when signs and symptoms of dengue occur, and support fogging operations in identified hot spot areas.

Lead public prosecutor and Batangas Rep. Gerville Luistro has announced that former Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV will no longer be presented as witness by the prosecution panel for Vice President Sara Duterte’s impeachment trial.

During the trial on Thursday, Luistro informed the Senate impeachment court that they have finally decided to refrain from presenting Trillanes.

‘The prosecution has finally decided not to present former Senator Sonny Trillanes. We seek the kind indulgence of the honorable impeachment court for the belated final decision on this particular concern,’ Luistro said.

Trillanes was previously included in the prosecution’s list of witnesses, set to testify for Article II of the Articles of Impeachment, or the allegation that Duterte has unexplained wealth and failed to declare this in her Statement of Assets, Liabilities, and Net Worth (SALN).

The testimony of Trillanes was initially considered by the prosecution to be crucial in establishing a case for Article II, as he had been claiming for several years now that Duterte and members of her family – including her father, former president Rodrigo Duterte – had hidden bank accounts not stated in her SALN.

Last April 22, when the House of Representatives’ committee on justice held confirmatory hearings regarding the two impeachment complaints against Duterte, Trillanes was called as a resource person, to shed light on his claims of hidden bank accounts.

Trillanes presented several bank accounts during the April 22 hearing. Later on, the Anti-Money Laundering Council (AMLC) through Executive Director Ronel Buenaventura confirmed that several financial transactions mentioned by Trillanes were the same fund movements that they have flagged or monitored.

The confirmation came after Mamamayang Liberal party-list Rep. Leila de Lima randomly picked 18 financial transactions listed in Trillanes’ annexes and asked AMLC to check if this was part of their investigation.

Eventually, Buenaventura confirmed that 18 out of 18 randomly picked transactions in Trillanes’ annexes matched the AMLC’s records.

On Thursday, Senator-judge Raffy Tulfo even urged the prosecution to be strategic in presenting their witnesses, suggesting that Trillanes be presented first before going to the AMLC executive director.

Tulfo said this as he scolded the prosecution for instances where they failed to pique the curiosity of senator-judges, as they supposedly fielded witnesses unnecessary to Duterte’s impeachment trial.

When Presiding Officer and Senator-judge Francis Escudero said Flores would give the answer after lunch, Tulfo said he was raising the suggestion because the prosecution seemed to have stumbled several times in presenting witnesses.

Trillanes was also seen at the Senate premises during the impeachment trial. Last Tuesday, when the prosecution presented Davao City Mayor Sebastian Duterte as a witness, Trillanes was present to monitor the proceedings.

Last Tuesday, when Davao City Mayor Sebastian Duterte was presented as a witness by the prosecution, Trillanes was present to monitor the proceedings

American Emma Navarro, a three-time WTA tournament champion, revealed a three-year battle with health issues on Wednesday, battling against her body as she found success on the court.

Navarro, ranked 24th in the world, said she will skip the remainder of the 2026 campaign to prepare herself for a 2027 Australia return.

‘I’m taking the rest of this year to work on dialing in my medication and fueling protocols so that I can hopefully feel back to 100% again,’ Navarro wrote in an emotional Instagram post.

Navarro won the WTA Strasbourg title in May, was runner-up in June at Nottingham and reached her fourth Grand Slam quarter-final at this month’s US Open.

But the 25-year-old said her dizziness and headaches from under-fueling her body only faded for her to feel comfortable a couple of months ago.

‘I felt able to play tennis as myself again… to compete without it taking the life out of me,’ she wrote.

Navarro said she was diagnosed last year with RED-S (relative energy deficiency in sport), where the body does not receive the energy needed to support daily life and physical activity, and ‘Hashimoto’s hypothyroidism.’

After meeting with doctors and specialists last November, she was told she had been under-fueling for years and her body was fighting back.

‘Over the past year I have gone all in,’ she said. ‘Although it took me a while to start feeling better, I gradually made progress. I began eating what my body needed to recover from the deficit I had been in.

‘So yeah, I gained some weight this year, but I also gained my life back,

‘I have enough energy to seize every day, to train and compete as hard as I want to and to live a life outside of tennis.’

Navarro said in 2023 she began feeling frustrated and angry and became sick often.

‘I couldn’t think straight a lot of the time,’ she wrote. ‘I had trouble remembering things and articulating thoughts. My brain felt slow and tired, as did my body.’

She reached as high as eighth in world rankings after a 2024 US Open semi-final run but became ill in China weeks later.

‘I couldn’t see the ball. I couldn’t move. I couldn’t play. I couldn’t even feel,’ she wrote.

Bells tolled at 9:59 p.m. in Bogo City, San Remigio and Medellin in northern Cebu on Wednesday, Sept. 30, as communities paid respects to the 79 people killed in the magnitude 6.9 earthquake that struck the province exactly a year ago.

Holy Masses and other commemorative activities were also held in some of the areas hardest hit by the quake, as residents continue to grapple with the trauma left by the disaster.

A year after the earthquake, however, Cebu’s recovery remains far from complete.

The estimated cost of rehabilitation in the province’s hard-hit 3rd and 4th districts has already reached P19 billion, according to Cebu Gov. Pamela Baricuatro.

The provincial government has committed about P750 million for recovery efforts, while about P180 million has already been spent on the rehabilitation of schools, learning spaces and bridges.

Baricuatro said the province is still awaiting the release of additional assistance, including a promised P1 billion from the national government’s Quick Response Fund, as government agencies work to address the extensive damage.

The governor estimated that the recovery effort is only at 20 percent because of the lack of resources.

The Regional Development Council has adopted a three-year recovery plan covering infrastructure, housing, agriculture and northern ports, among other areas. The plan is intended to coordinate interventions from national government agencies, the provincial government and local government units.

Baricuatro said the Department of the Interior and Local Government and Department of Public Works and Highways have begun work on vital infrastructures such as bridges, while the provincial government continues to undertake other projects in northern Cebu.

Preparedness lessons

The Cebu provincial government also held a Holy Mass on Tuesday at the Capitol to commemorate the tragedy that affected over 750,000 individuals across Central Visayas.

For Baricuatro, one of the clearest lessons from the earthquake was the importance of preparedness and rapid response.

In the immediate aftermath of the quake, patients from Bogo were evacuated and transported to hospitals in Danao City, the University of Cebu and the Vicente Sotto Memorial Medical Center using standby ambulances.

The province has since expanded its disaster response capacity.

When the current administration took office, the Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office had only three personnel, Baricuatro said. It now has nearly 100 staff members and operates from a dedicated disaster center in Busay.

The provincial government has also acquired additional rescue equipment and other resources intended to strengthen emergency response.

Fault line complicates rebuilding

Recovery efforts have also been complicated by geological concerns that arose after the quake.

These include the identification of an active fault in northern Cebu, called the Bogo Bay Fault Line, and the dozens of sinkholes that appeared since then, raising concerns about where damaged homes, schools and government facilities can be safely rebuilt.

The Mines and Geosciences Bureau (MGB) reported more than 70 sinkholes in northern Cebu following the Sept. 30, 2025 earthquake, with the highest numbers recorded in San Remigio and Bogo City.

Baricuatro said local governments still need to update their land-use plans and incorporate the latest geological hazard information into development decisions.

She also cited the expansion of one monitored geological site to about 20 meters in diameter as an indication of the need for continued monitoring and careful land-use planning.

The provincial government is coordinating safety guidelines with local governments, but LGUs retain authority over decisions on the relocation and rebuilding of schools, government centers and other facilities

Meanwhile, displaced families are being transitioned into local resettlement programs, with municipalities and cities such as Talisay and Mandaue pursuing their own housing initiatives to move residents out of temporary tent communities

The National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) said it had sent invitations to Vice President Sara Duterte, former House Speaker Lord Allan Velasco and other individuals whom former police officer Rodulfo Gracioso Jr. linked to his ‘cash delivery’ allegations.

NBI Director Melvin Matibag said invitations were sent to their respective addresses Thursday.

These include siblings Sara Duterte and Davao City 1st District Rep. Paolo Duterte, as well as Velasco and his wife, Rowena.

They are scheduled to appear before the NBI on Monday next week, Oct. 5.

Gracioso, Velasco’s former aide, alleged that he personally delivered suitcases filled with cash to the vice president, Paolo Duterte, and former President Rodrgo Duterte between 2018 and 2020.

The NBI earlier released the former cop’s polygraph examination results, where it showed ‘no deception indicated’ regarding his sworn affidavit.

‘So, there are still people we will invite and subpoena,’ Matibag said.

The vice president maintained that she does not know Gracioso, further denying his allegations in a statement

The delegates of the 2026 Miss Asia Pacific International pageant continued their exploration of Cebu and went to the northern part of the province to experience the diversity of Cebuano culture.

The ladies went to the coastal city of Danao on the northeastern portion of the main island on Wednesday, Sept. 30, and was welcomed by former Cebu 5th District Rep. Red Durano.

They then proceeded to Bantayan Island on the same day and greeted the people of the town of Santa Fe, another coastal municipality, and even paid a courtesy visit at the municipal hall.

The delegates then retreated to Anaya Villas Resort, for a relaxing beachfront stay with a view of the Visayan Sea, to recharge for another full day of exploring the towns of Santa Fe and Bantayan on the first of October.

This is the second straight year that Cebu is hosting the Miss Asia Pacific International pageant. Last year, however, the initial activities were held in Manila. This time, all events are set across the different towns and cities of the province.

The ladies are scheduled to explore the whole province, and will next visit the destinations in southern Cebu, before heading back to Lapu-Lapu City on Mactan Island for the pageant’s homestretch and major activities.

The preliminary competition will be held at JPark Island Resort in Lapu-Lapu City on Oct. 7. There, the delegates will parade in swimwear and evening gown to help secure their spots in the semifinals.

Reigning queen Isabela Fernandes from Brazil will crown her successor at the conclusion of the 2026 Miss Asia Pacific International Grand Coronation Night at Mactan Expo in Lapu-Lapu City on Oct. 10.

Gabrielle Galapia, 2026 Miss World Philippines Second Princess, is representing the Philippines. She is on a mission to score the country’s sixth victory in the international pageant, the first and longest-running global beauty contest founded in the Philippines.

Competition in Aichi-Nagoya has reached its penultimate full day, with several medals at stake for Team Philippines at the 2026 Asian Games on Friday, October 2.

Carlo Paalam goes for gold in men’s boxing, while Filipino athletes vie for medals in beach volleyball, jiu-jitsu, judo, taekwondo and wrestling.

Team Philippines schedule for October 2, Friday at Aichi Nagoya Asian Games 2026

Softball

8am – PH Blu Girls vs Hong Kong – preliminary round

Boxing

~12pm onwards

Carlo Paalam vs Rui Yamaguchi – men’s 55kg gold medal match

Jiu jitsu

8am – Antonio Dy vs Davaadorj Munkhtur (Mongolia) – men’s -77kg elimination Round of 32

8:40am – Mark Constance Vergel vs Bulgankhuu Shinezorig (Mongolia) – men’s -77kg elimination Round of 32

8:56am – Romeo John Arellano vs TBD – men’s -94kg elimination Round of 16

11:20am – Annie Ramirez vs Nuchanat Singchalad (Thailand) – women’s -52kg elimination Round of 16

11:52am – Jenna Napolis vs Thi Thanh Ha Tran (Vietnam)- women’s -52kg elimination Round of 16

~1:30pm onwards – medal matches

Golf

5:30am – men’s individual stroke play/team – round 3 – Carl Jano Corpus, Justin Delos Santos, Miguel Tabuena

8:19am – women’s individual stroke play/team – round 3 – Pauline Del Rosario, Rianne Malixi, Bianca Pagdanganan

Judo

~10am onwards

Kiyomi Watanabe vs Ekaterina Tokareva (Kazakhstan) – women’s -78kg elimination Round of 16

Chino Sy vs Ryotaro Masuchi (Japan) – men’s -100kg elimination Round of 16

Eskelen Kedo vs Magomedomar Magomedomarov (UAE) – men’s +100kg elimination Round of 16

~4pm onwards – medal matches

Padel

12pm – Danna Abad / Joshea Malazarte vs Indonesia – women’s pairs semifinals

Rugby Sevens

9:40am – Philippines vs Singapore – men’s pool

Taekwondo

9am – Jeus Yape vs Dunya Saber (Saudi Arabia) – mixed individual virtual taekwondo

12:30am – Tachiana Mangin vs Rita Bakisheva (Kazakhstan) – women’s -49kg Round of 16

1:06pm – Kurt Barbosa vs Abdullah Almushraf (Saudi Arabia) – men’s -58kg Round of 16

1:42pm – Laila Delo vs Ozoda Sbirjonova (Uzbekistan) – women’s -67kg Round of 16

2:44pm – Dave Cea vs Hung Jiun-yi (Chinese Taipei) – men’s -80kg Round of 16

~4pm onwards – medal matches

Volleyball

12pm – Alas Pilipinas vs Uzbekistan – men’s classification round

Beach volleyball

11am – Khy Progella / Sofiah Pagara vs China – women’s battle for bronze

Wrestling

9:38am – Aliah Rose Gavalez vs Feng Ziqi – women’s wrestling 50kg 1/8 finals

A subcommittee of ranking House lawmakers on late Thursday boosted funding for crucial social welfare programs, including the Department of Social Welfare and Development’s (DSWD) crisis intervention scheme to help vulnerable families cushion the economic impact of expected dry spells driven by El Nino.

The Budget Amendments Review Sub-committee (BARSc) augmented funding for the DSWD’s Assistance for Individuals in Crisis (AICS) by 25.8 billion, lifting its proposed budget to P58.8 billion from the P33 billion originally proposed in the executive’s spending plan.

The funding surge for AICS was part of a broader ‘wish list of budgetary items’ that Social Welfare Rex Gatchalian sought from lawmakers, according to Guimaras Rep. Joaquin Carlos Rahman Nava.

‘DSWD, in fact, is among the agencies that suffered a significant reduction in budget,’ Nava said. ‘And we want to emphasize that AICS… also served as a critical source of immediate relief initiatives that the government brought out of the table.’

He said that letting AICS’ funding remain at its current level might deprive at least four million families of aid, especially as the country prepares for a ‘Super El Nino.’

‘This may be a very good source again for this relief that the national government may provide, Nava said.

He said that the agency sought to increase AICS’ funding to P76 billion, ‘but with the limited fiscal space, the much lower amount may be doable.’

Other DSWD initiatives slated with funding increases included ProtecTEEN, a program assisting teenage mothers, which received an additional P25 million.Lawmakers also boosted Project ARUGA, which provides aid to families caring for children with disabilities, by P25 million, and allotted an extra P13.8 million to Project SAFE, an initiative combating online child sexual exploitation.

The BARSc also added an extra P870 million to the Sustainable Livelihood Program and P20 million to the DSWD’s special committee on LGBTQIA+ affairs.

The budget realignments approved by the sub-committee must still be endorsed by the full House Appropriations Committee before advancing to the floor for second reading, where lawmakers are expected to debate how the panel prioritized funding increases amid tight fiscal limits.

The House aims to pass the proposed 7.2-trillion budget bill on final reading by Oct. 9.