Category: Philippines Daily Inquirer

Classes at all levels in public and private schools here will be suspended on Thursday, October 8, for National Teachers’ Day and National Teachers’ Month.

Mayor Frederick Siao issued the order to recognize teachers’ vital role in nation-building, pursuant to Republic Act No. 10743, which declares October 5 of every year as National Teachers’ Day.

He noted that teachers play important roles beyond the classrooms, including inspiring students to reach for their dreams.

‘You do not only teach lessons from books, but also teach our children how to dream and stand on their own and for our city. You are the second parents and the foundation of Iligan’s progress,’ the mayor said in Bisaya.

The Department of Education (DepEd) Iligan City Division will mark the occasion with a concert featuring South Nova Band at the Anahaw Amphitheater in Buhangin Hills, Barangay Palao, starting at 3 p.m.

National University big man PJ Palacielo almost got a double-double against Adamson, but not in the usual way.

In the Bulldogs’ 85-66 rout of the Soaring Falcons in the UAAP Season 89 men’s basketball tournament at Mall of Asia Arena on Wednesday, Palacielo showcased his passing game.

The burly forward tallied 19 points and eight assists to help NU improve to a 3-2 record.

Palacielo was quick to credit coach Jeff Napa and his staff for pushing him to hone his passing skills.

‘I trust my coaches with whatever they’re asking me to work on,’ he said. ‘I’m able to do these because they’re telling me what my strengths are.’

Palacielo’s court vision helped NU get four other players into double figures. Paul Francisco scored 17 points, while Mo Diassana and Reinhard Jumamoy posted double-doubles. Diassana had 15 points and 12 rebounds, while Jumamoy finished with 12 points and 10 rebounds.

Tebol Garcia also joined the scoring frenzy with 12.

Palacielo knows his assist numbers would not have been as high without his fellow Bulldogs converting his passes.

‘My numbers are like this because we play as a team, the ball doesn’t stay with just one person,’ he said. ‘We don’t play hero ball. Everyone contributes to this team.’

National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) Director Melvin Matibag on Wednesday clarified that Batangas 1st District Rep. Leandro Leviste is still ‘considered at large,’ following the issuance of an arrest warrant against him.

He previously said that Leviste had already posted the P72,000 bail for alleged violation of the Public Service Act, after the lawmaker supposedly sent a ‘representative’ to court.

According to Matibag, only Leviste’s two co-accused-Solar Para Sa Bayan Corporation (SPSBC) officials Hazel Iris Lafuente Buencamino and Irma Flaminiano-posted the required bail at the Makati City Regional Trial Court.

He said Leviste must personally go to court to post bail.

‘So Leviste is still considered at large. The court does not have jurisdiction over him until such time that he voluntarily surrenders or is arrested by law enforcement,’ the NBI director specified.

Matibag said the court set the arraignment for Leviste’s co-accused on October 26.

‘Fugitive from justice’

According to Matibag, Leviste is already considered a ‘fugitive from justice’ following the arrest warrant against him.

‘Because the court is looking for you, there’s an arrest warrant issued for you,’ he explained.

The NBI is in coordination with the Department of Foreign Affairs for the possibility of canceling Leviste’s passport and the House of Representatives for the possibility of canceling his travel authority.

He also reiterated that the NBI is in coordination with the Philippine Center for Transnational Crime to check if Leviste’s case is included in the crimes listed in the International Criminal Police Organization or Interpol.

It was this Wednesday morning when Matibag announced that they received the arrest warrant against Leviste and his co-accused.

Leviste was last reported to be in France with his mother, Sen. Loren Legarda, after they traveled abroad on Aug. 2.

Legarda’s spokesperson Tony La Viña recently said Leviste is taking care of his mother, who is on medical leave for undergoing treatment for a lung and autoimmune condition in France.

The case stemmed from the Department of Energy’s complaint filed before the Department of Justice (DOJ) in May against Leviste and five SPSBC officials.

These persons supposedly failed to deliver electricity to remote and underserved areas, despite securing a legislative franchise.

Police arrested a man after he surrendered a carbine with nine rounds of ammunition during a follow-up operation into a reported armed incident on Suguicay Island in Bulalacao town, Oriental Mindoro on Wednesday, Oct. 7.

The Bulalacao Municipal Police Station (MPS) said the operation stemmed from information provided by a concerned citizen about unidentified individuals seen on Suguicay Island in Barangay San Juan, with one reportedly carrying a firearm.

Police conducted verification and follow-up investigation and learned that a land dispute involving the area was pending before the 3rd Municipal Circuit Trial Court in Mansalay, Oriental Mindoro.

During a continuing follow-up and hot-pursuit operation, personnel of the Bulalacao MPS and Regional Intelligence Team Oriental Mindoro, Regional Intelligence Division Mimaropa, located the suspect in Sitio Libtong, Barangay San Roque.

Police said the man voluntarily surrendered one carbine, a semiautomatic firearm with an inserted magazine containing nine live rounds, in the presence of the barangay captain.

The suspect allegedly failed to present documents showing legal ownership or authority to possess or carry the firearm.

He was subsequently arrested and informed of his constitutional rights, police said.

The Bulalacao MPS is conducting a custodial investigation and preparing charges for alleged violation of Republic Act No. 10591, or the Comprehensive Law on Firearms and Ammunition.

Police reminded the public that unauthorized possession, custody and carrying of firearms and ammunition are prohibited under the law.

The Bulalacao police said it would continue intelligence gathering, police operations and coordination with communities and other government agencies to address the proliferation of illegal firearms and other security threats in the area.

Four individuals were arrested during an anti-illegal gambling operation in Barangay Resurreccion, San Juan town in this province on Tuesday, Oct. 6, police said.

The San Juan Municipal Police Station said the four were caught playing ‘Pining-Pining,’ an illegal card game, with bet money.

Police said the operation was carried out after they received information from a concerned citizen about an alleged illegal gambling activity in the village.

Recovered from the suspects were a set of red playing cards, bet money, a steel table, a brown towel and four monoblock chairs, police said.

The seized items were inventoried and marked at the scene in the presence of the arrested individuals, a barangay official and a barangay tanod, according to police.

The suspects were brought to the San Juan police station after being informed of their constitutional rights and that the operation was being recorded using two alternative recording devices.

They were later taken to the Ilocos Sur District Hospital in Magsingal for medico-legal examination.

Police said a complaint for violation of Presidential Decree No. 1602, which penalizes illegal gambling, was being prepared against the four for appropriate legal action.

The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) is mapping the calamansi supply chain in Oriental Mindoro as part of efforts to develop a more organized, competitive and halal-ready industry in the province.

DTI’s Supply Chain and Logistics Group, in partnership with the Philippine Association of Service Industries Inc. (PASIA), conducted a focus group discussion on the halal calamansi supply chain on Oct. 6 at the Provincial Agricultural Center in Victoria town.

The activity brought together calamansi farmers, processors and retailers, as well as representatives from national and local government agencies and the academe.

DTI said the discussions were aimed at gaining a clearer picture of the existing supply chain, identifying bottlenecks and determining opportunities to improve the industry from production to the market.

Participants discussed the roles of various stakeholders involved in moving the fruit from farms to consumers.

The PASIA consultant team facilitated discussions on the supply chain, including the differences between conventional and halal-compliant processes. Halal means any commodity like food which are permitted under Islamic law.

The participants also identified gaps and bottlenecks, examined potential improvements and discussed the responsibilities of stakeholders in addressing challenges in the industry.

The initiative seeks to prepare local calamansi producers and other industry players for opportunities in the halal market.

Oriental Mindoro is among the country’s major agricultural provinces, with calamansi among its important crops.

Napheesa Collier had a particularly late start to her eighth season with the Minnesota Lynx, following surgery on both ankles that delayed her 2026 WNBA debut until just before the All-Star break.

After an abruptly disappointing finish for the Lynx in the WNBA playoffs, the smooth-shooting and defensively tough forward the team has tried to build a title contender around is uncertain to return.

Collier will be one of the most prominent players in the league to enter free agency before the 2027 season, along with Indiana Fever guard Kelsey Mitchell and Las Vegas Aces guard Jackie Young. Collier signed a one-year contract with Minnesota following the new collective bargaining agreement that brought a surge of higher salaries to the sport’s biggest stars.

‘Whatever she decides, we’re both going to be OK,’ head coach and president of basketball operations Cheryl Reeve said after the Lynx were swept in two games by the New York Liberty in the first round of the playoffs.

Collier was drafted with the sixth overall pick in 2019 out of Connecticut, two years after the Lynx won their last of four WNBA championships.

‘What ‘Phee’ has given this franchise, we’re super proud of. And we’re super proud of the work we’ve poured into her,’ Reeve said. ‘If she lands on being here, great. And if there’s something better for her, that’s life.’

Collier, for her part, was not ready to dive into such a major decision during her exit interview session with reporters so soon after the last game.

‘I can tell you that I love it here. I love the organization. I love my team and everything like that, but I just haven’t had the time to give that any thought,’ said Collier, who was limited to 16 games during the regular season and watched WNBA Rookie of the Year Olivia Miles carry the club in her absence.

The five-time All-Star and 2024 Defensive Player of the Year award winner had plenty of adjustments to make once she rejoined the lineup, with a true point guard in Miles and veteran Courtney Williams moving to the shooting guard spot. After the Lynx lost Game 1 to the Liberty, Reeve said she thought Collier needed to be more assertive on offense, one of many shortcomings for them in the series.

Collier is eager for a full offseason to work on her game without the rehabilitation process dominating her time. The 30-year-old expressed confidence that the Lynx with their current core are good enough to win a title, despite a second straight early exit from the playoffs as the No. 1 seed. But there’s a possibility they’ll take their next swing without her.

‘Of course I don’t want that to be my last game with ‘Phee,’ and she knows that, but I also want her to figure out what this next chapter looks like for her and make the best decision for her,’ teammate Kayla McBride said. ‘I want that to be here of course, but I just want her to choose her.’

Former Davao City information officer Jefry Tupas said that the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) allegedly offered him money and a place in Metro Manila, even in Forbes Park, Makati City.

The offer was reportedly given when operatives went to his house in North Cotabato to give him protection amid the bureau’s investigation on the ‘cash delivery’ claims of dismissed police officer Rodulfo Gracioso Jr.

Tupas made the statement through his counsel Atty. Caesar Europa, who relayed this to the Inquirer in a Viber message on Wednesday.

The former information officer’s story seems to affirm Vice President Sara Duterte’s remark on Tuesday on the NBI’s supposed attempt to ‘forcibly’ bring her former aide to Manila, in exchange for money and other promises.

‘Jefry confirms that when NBI personnel spoke with his family on the morning of Sept. 29 in Kabacan to offer him protective custody, they said that Jefry could choose wherever he wanted to stay in Manila-even in Forbes Park, if he wished,’ Europa told the Inquirer.

The counsel also said that in the afternoon of September 29, when NBI agents were still at Tupas’ house, operatives ‘also offered money to the members of his household.’

But Europa said Tupas declined the supposed offer.

The lawyer also reiterated that NBI Director Melvin Matibag reportedly called Tupas to urge him to trust that the bureau would protect him and his family.

Tupas also earlier said that the NBI ‘initiated efforts’ to bring him to Manila after agents supposedly offered him security, as they had received a ‘verifiable threat’ that he would be abducted by the Dutertes.

‘We can’t afford to house anyone in Forbes Park’

Responding to this, Matibag said that Tupas’ new allegations are ‘a bit outrageous,’ pointing out that the NBI cannot afford to house anyone in Forbes Park.

He explained that persons under the witness protection program-who went through the process-are being taken care of in comfortable residences, but not in ‘expensive houses.’

‘If we will house someone in Forbes Park, maybe our confidential funds or those used for the witness protection program will run out in less than 11 days,’ Matibag estimated in an interview with reporters on Wednesday.

Matibag said Tupas can execute an affidavit on his allegations on the NBI agents’ visit in his house, adding that the bureau’s team was also providing a separate affidavit for investigation.

The NBI director, on Tuesday, also emphasized that it was actually Tupas who brought up the situation that there were threats to his life, and not the bureau’s agents.

Matibag said Tupas welcomed the NBI agents who arrived at the former information officer’s place.

Tupas is said to have told the agents that he was willing to cooperate, noting that he even had coffee with them.

So Matibag said he was shocked when Tupas suddenly changed his statements, and sent an affidavit responding to Gracioso’s claims, a day after the NBI issued him a subpoena.

The NBI director also denied conversing with Tupas over the phone.

Gracioso is saying that he handed over suitcases of money to Tupas for Duterte, an event which the vice president also earlier denied.

Aside from this, Gracioso alleged to have delivered suitcases of cash to former President Rodrigo Duterte and Davao City first district Rep. Paolo Duterte in tranches.

The deliveries reportedly started in 2018 upon the instructions of his former boss, former House Speaker Lord Allan Velasco.

Coco Gauff said online racist abuse had left her feeling exhausted after she went out of the China Open with her loss to Elise Mertens on Wednesday.

The American world number four, who is Black, turned in an uncharacteristically listless performance in Beijing, double-faulting eight times as she went down 6-3, 6-3 to her Belgian opponent.

Gauff, 22, was playing a day after she called out the ‘insane’ amount of abuse she had received on the internet following her win over Chinese teenager Sun Xinran in the previous round.

‘It has been kind of draining. I’m not going to lie,’ Gauff said of the impact of the online comments.

‘But I just turn off my phone and move on. There’s nothing you can do.’

Asked about the match, she said: ‘I think I just didn’t play well. I think I wasn’t moving well.

‘There were a lot of things I didn’t do well. I thought Elise played well on the bigger points.’ During her previous match in Beijing, against Sun, Gauff requested a video review over flickering LED lights on the stadium’s advertising hoardings.

The move prompted some boos from the crowd. The umpire agreed to have the point replayed, and Gauff went on to win 7-5, 6-1.

Early on Tuesday, Gauff wrote on X: ‘Hey everyone, you can dislike me or disagree about what happened without being racist.’

She was responding to a post that contained a racial slur.

‘The amount of racist comments and messages I’ve received in the last few hours is insane,’ she wrote.

Gauff also clarified that she challenged the point before Sun had returned the ball, when she noticed the lights flicker for a second time.

Asked about the incident, a spokesperson for the Women’s Tennis Association, the global governing body, said it was ‘appalled by the racial abuse directed at Coco Gauff and are in contact with her to offer our full support’.

State witness and former Public Works Undersecretary Roberto Bernardo on Wednesday testified before the Sandiganbayan that he never questioned the specifics of the millions of pesos he received from former Ako Bicol Rep. Zaldy Co.

Bernardo took the witness stand before the Sandiganbayan Fifth Division on Wednesday where Co and former Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) officials face graft case stemming from an allegedly substandard road dike project in Oriental Mindoro’s Naujan town worth P289.4 million.

When asked whether the Naujan project was explicitly mentioned as the source of the commissions received, prosecutor Peter Jedd Boco said both parties had already stipulated or agreed that it was a fact.

The state witness then reiterated that he received a ‘balato’ or share from Co through Gerald Pacanan and Henry Alcantara, former DPWH district engineers of Mimaropa (Occidental Mindoro, Oriental Mindoro, Marinduque, Romblon, Palawan) and Bulacan, respectively.

Pacanan is among the co-accused in this graft case while also Alcantara became a state witness.

Last March, Bernardo already told the Sixth Division which handles the malversation case stemming from the same Naujan project that he received a P130-million ‘balato’ from Co.

At that time, Bernardo said the P100 million was obtained through Alcantara, while the P30 million was allegedly delivered by Pacanan’s aide and driver.

During the clarificatory questions of Associate Justice Maryann Corpus-Mañalac, Bernardo said he ‘assumed’ that Pacanan and Co have ‘dealings’ with each other, while Alcantara ‘informed’ him that he and the former lawmaker have ‘dealings’ with each other.

Bernardo did not directly respond when asked by Corpus-Mañalac about the source and reason behind the commission or ‘balato ing her questioning, Corpus-Mañalac asked: ‘You just keep on receiving? Without asking further questions?’

‘No questions, Your Honor,’ Bernardo responded.

During the trial, Bernardo also said he received P120 million ‘token of gratitude’ from Co from 2023 to 2025.

Of this amount, Bernardo said he recalls receiving from Co P45 million in 2023, P50 million in 2024, and P25 million in 2025.

This is aside from the aforementioned P30 million ‘balato,’ or P10 million each, given to him in 2023, 2024, and 2025.

Bernardo previously said he would return P1 billion to the government as a condition to be admitted as a state witness.