Category: Philippines Daily Inquirer

RJ Abarrientos has done enough to be part of the conversation on the PBA’s best clutch shooters today.

And even if he hasn’t shown his touch with Gilas Pilipinas yet, the star Ginebra guard isn’t fazed.

Abarrientos has settled into the role of a pure point guard, a facilitator for the national team that is set to open its bid in the 2027 Fiba World Cup Asian qualifiers against Jordan on Friday at the Mall of Asia Arena.

‘Of course, as a guard, I’m very excited to have these players [as teammates], to have players [as tall as] AJ (Edu) and June Mar (Fajardo),’ he said. ‘As a guard, they are the biggest impact for the team.’

‘As a guard … I need to focus on how we can execute as a team, in offense and defense. That’s my job, to make their job easier inside the court.’

Abarrientos picked passing over hunting down his shots in a heartbreaking 106-102 double overtime loss to New Zealand in the previous qualifying window, finishing with 10 assists that helped four players finish in double figures.

With Kai Sotto back in the fold, Abarrientos sees his playmaking duties get a tad easier.

‘The most crucial [thing] for me as a guard is to be vocal for them also and give the right help for the bigs,’ said the Best Player of the Conference awardee. ‘There were a lot of failures in our practices, but we know that we can fix it. I’m very thankful that I have teammates, legends and veterans here in Gilas who can also support me in my career in PBA.’

‘I’m very happy that I’m here and I can help them.’

Abarrientos and his teammates have their work cut out for them in this window, where they will also face Iran.

The Philippines finished 2-4 in the previous windows and sit outside the top four teams that will advance. Gilas Pilipinas is seeking no less than a sweep to grease their path, beginning with the 8:30 p.m. duel against the Jordanians.

The Light Rail Manila Corporation (LRMC) on Thursday said it will strengthen its maintenance protocols for its LRT-1 fleet following a recent water leak incident in one of its trains.

The LRMC made the pronouncement as it assured the public that its maintenance team is already ‘fully on top’ of the water leak incident that occurred on one of its LRT-1 railway carriages.

‘Our Maintenance Team identified a defective air-conditioning unit (ACU) drain line valve, which broke unexpectedly prior to its expected 3-to-5-year lifespan,’ the LRMC said in a statement.

‘The affected valve has since been replaced, and the unit is undergoing rigorous safety and maintenance checks to ensure optimal performance,’ it added.

With this, the LRMC announced that it will enhance its maintenance protocols by increasing the inspection frequency of the ACU drain valve from every 10,000 kilometers to every 5,000 kilometers.

‘In the longer term, we plan to replace these valves across the fleet to help prevent similar occurrences in the future,’ the LRMC said.

A clip of the water leak incident went viral on social media on Wednesday, Aug 26, prompting netizens to point out how the country’s flood problem seemed to spill over beyond the streets and into trains.

The Visayas Grid will continue to be on red and yellow alerts on Thursday, Aug. 27, said the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP).

In an advisory, the NGCP said the Visayas Grid will be placed under red alert from 5 a.m. to 8 p.m.

It will then be placed under yellow alert 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. and 8 p.m. to 9 p.m.

‘A red alert status is issued when power supply is insufficient to meet consumer demand and the transmission grid’s regulating requirement,’ the NGCP said.

Meanwhile, a yellow alert is issued when the operating margin ‘is insufficient to meet the transmission grid’s contingency requirement.’

According to the NGCP, the red and yellow alerts continued as nine power plants remained on forced outage, while 16 plants were still running on derated capacities.

This number of compromised plants reflected a total of 916.2 megawatts unavailable to the grid.

Furthermore, Visayas’ large coal plants TVI 1, TVI 2 and KSPC 1 also remained unavailable as only limited power imports could also be received from Mindanao.

Wouldn’t it be great if you didn’t have to shell out extra money when using digital payments to settle your electricity, toll fee, water or other merchant fees?

This, according to Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) Deputy Governor Mamerto Tangonan, is next on the banking regulator’s digitalization push. Earlier, the order to rationalize fund transfer fees created a bandwagon of banks (led by Bank of the Philippine Islands) waiving Instapay fees.

Like what it has done with money transfer fees, the BSP does not intend to force banks to waive payment fees for services, utilities and/or goods.

All the BSP has to do is to standardize digital payment practices to enforce an often-overlooked rule.

There is already an existing rule that such fees should be shouldered by the merchants, utility or collecting firms, not the paying consumer, Tangonan pointed out.

‘The rule says that it should be the merchant or the biller who will pay.’ Tangonan told Biz Buzz. ‘Just follow their own rules.’

‘So they need to make the billers or the merchants pay for it, not the consumer. Kasi ikaw na nga nagbabayad (You are already the one paying),’ he added.

Recently, Land Bank of the Philippines started waiving fees on online payments to government agents. But what the BSP is envisioning is to relieve consumers and shift the burden to all merchants/billers. That extra P5, P10, P12 or P15 won’t have to disappear from your e-wallet or bank account.

So the payment platforms will still collect that fee, but get it from their billers.

And from the BSP’s perspective, it’s not too much to let the billers take that burden.

‘Delivery of that service has a cost. But you know, it’s the same platform that you use for other things, like bills payment, merchant payment. So they can still make money from those services … and then they cross-sell credit products,’ Tangonan said.

‘For them, what’s the alternative if they don’t have digital channels? They have to set up multiple offices to collect cash payments. Do they want that?’

That will be another big win for consumers.

The Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) has purged ‘duplicate projects’ under its proposed budget for 2027, bringing the number down to just over 11,000 from the typical average of 20,000, Public Works Secretary Vince Dizon said on Wednesday.

The reduction was the result of a ‘strict project evaluation system’ that was implemented in reviewing infrastructure spending for next year, reforms that Dizon said were necessary to prevent a repeat of last year’s multibillion-peso flood control corruption scandal.

‘This is not a perfect budget, but we are trying our best to fix the problems we have seen in the past,’ he told reporters on the sidelines of the hearing on the proposed P643.95-billion DPWH budget for next year. The amount represents a 21.59-percent increase from this year’s P529.59 billion.

The DPWH spending plan includes P107.4 billion for flood control projects, now a magnet of criticism whenever flash floods cause widespread disruptions despite the heavy allocations.

Geo-tagging

‘We will not go back to the old ways,’ Dizon said. ‘Every project that enters here must have a plan.’

In his presentation, he noted the reduction in infrastructure projects over a five-year period from 22,836 in 2023; 25,545 in 2024; 25,301 in 2025; 17,861 in 2026; to 11,395 proposed for 2027.

‘We really worked hard to bring down the number of projects,’ Dizon said.

Aside from eliminating duplicate or overlapping projects, the DPWH focused on prioritizing big-ticket projects and followed President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s directive to remove those worth below P5 million under the Big Infrastructure Program.

Dizon also said projects must meet stringent documentation requirements and be backed with validated geo-tagged photos, signed off by district engineers and their regional directors, and endorsed by regional and local development councils.

‘The project engineers … need to go on-site and photograph the site with the coordinates attached automatically to the photos,’ he said.

‘We want to tell everyone, especially those working in the DPWH, that if they deceive us, they will suffer the same consequences as those who are in jail. We need our fellow citizens to report to us. We cannot solve this on our own,’ Dizon said.

No ‘leadership fund’

Several public works officials from Mimaropa (Mindoro, Marinduque, Romblon, and Palawan) and Bulacan district offices have been detained and put on trial for graft, malversation of public funds and unexplained wealth, among other charges.

Dizon also clarified that there is no ‘leadership fund’ hidden within budget, stressing that allotments are based on needs and whether they complied with project requirements.

Former Public Works Secretary Manuel Bonoan, who is facing graft and plunder charges, described the ‘leadership fund’ as allocations within the national budget intended to fund senators’ pet projects under the agency.

The DPWH has also scrapped the ‘parametric formula’ that dictated how allocations to each engineering office were set.

Fair distribution

‘We simplified the allocations to be based on three core components,’ Dizon said, referring to the president’s marching order to prioritize pending projects, repair damaged structures and address basic infrastructure needs of communities.

Proposed public works should also have no right-of-way issues to ensure construction, he said, noting that ‘many projects were rendered unimplementable’ due to a lack of funding for easement conflicts.

The DPWH also sought to make next year’s infrastructure spending fairly distributed nationwide after past budgets were deemed biased toward Luzon, according to Dizon.

He said the DPWH is moving toward making infrastructure allotments ‘more needs-based’ after observing that more than half of the budget in the past decade had been allocated to Luzon.

‘But this is a process that will require several years of correcting,’ Dizon said.

Luzon received an average of 56 percent of the agency’s budgets over the past decade, a DPWH presentation showed, with Visayas getting 17 percent and Mindanao 27 percent.

In its spending plan for next year, Luzon’s share was cut to 52.65 percent, Visayas went up to 19.8 percent, while Mindanao took 27.55 percent

Dizon said his agency would work to ensure the public works budget is ‘more equitable for the regions that need it most,’ referring to Bicol, Eastern Visayas, Zamboanga and Caraga regions, which he described were some of the areas ‘with the highest poverty incidences.’

The Philippine Navy’ Naval Command Western Mindanao (NCWM) seized suspected smuggled cigarettes and diesel fuel worth at least P147 million in the Zamboanga Peninsula in two separate operations the past few days.

Rear Admiral Constancio Arturo Reyes Jr., NCWM commander, confirmed Thursday they intercepted an unmarked motorboat off Barangay Labuan, Zamboanga City last Saturday, Aug. 22.

The vessel was found carrying undocumented diesel fuel, with the contraband and boat valued at P52.27 million, he said.

Two days later, on August 24, NCWM operatives intercepted M/B Jiboy off Pangasinan Island, Sulu.

Authorities discovered 611 master cases and 37 reams of foreign-brand cigarettes, with the vessel and cargo estimated at P95.01 million.

The combined seizures amounted to P147.29 million worth of alleged illicit fuel, cigarettes, and vessels.

All confiscated items were turned over to the Bureau of Customs-Port of Zamboanga for legal disposition.

Reyes said NCWM will sustain maritime security operations to disrupt smuggling networks and prevent Western Mindanao waters from being used for illicit trade.

The successive interceptions highlight NCWM’s intensified campaign against contraband, underscoring its resolve to protect legitimate commerce and enforce maritime laws across Western Mindanao, he added. INQ

A doctor has recommended surgery to repair a meniscus tear in Sen. Jinggoy Estrada’s left knee.

‘We saw that it was a complete tear. It’s pretty bad,’ Dr. Fernando Syquia, an orthopedic surgeon, said in an interview at Cardinal Santos Medical Center in San Juan City on Wednesday.

‘I explained to the senator that these types of tears usually end up with surgery, because if you have a complete tear at the root of the meniscus, it’s as if the meniscus is not functioning at all,’ he added.

Snapping sound

Estrada, who is detained on a plunder charge at the New Quezon City Jail in Payatas, underwent a knee X-ray at the hospital earlier in the day, after getting permission from the Sandiganbayan on Monday.

The senator was preparing to leave for the hospital when, according to his camp, something snapped in his knee.

Estrada, who has grown a beard in detention, was escorted by several jail personnel when he arrived at the hospital. He appeared to be in pain when he alighted from the ambulance.

‘From what I understand, he was just supposed to come here just for the check-up for arthritis [in the right] knee,’ Syquia said.

‘It just so happened that as he was going to stand up, he twisted the knee that’s why the meniscus from the opposite knee tore,’ the doctor told reporters.

In his motion for leave filed before the Sandiganbayan’s Fifth Division, Estrada said he has been suffering from joint effusion even before he was detained starting on June 1. He told the court he was previously diagnosed with osteoarthritis.

Part of his motion read that ‘accused Estrada has of late been experiencing a flare-up of persistent pain in both knees, making it acutely difficult for him to walk.’

The senator has been accused of receiving up to P573 million in kickbacks from allocations and budget insertions for government infrastructure projects in the 2025 national budget.

Estrada, however, has denied the allegation

Light to moderate with occasional heavy rains are expected over Bataan and other parts of Central Luzon on Thursday morning due to the southwest monsoon or habagat, according to the state weather bureau.

In its rainfall warning issued at 8 a.m., the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical, and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa) said that the following areas will experience the said weather conditions:

Bataan

Pampanga

Porac

Lubao

Floridablanca

Macabebe

Sasmuan

Masantol

Bulacan

Hagonoy

Paombong

Malolos

Bulakan

Obando

Meycauayan

Marilao

Bocaue

Balagtas

Guiguinto

Calumpit

Tarlac

Bamban

Mayantoc

San Clemente

Santa Ignacia

Camiling

Concepcion

Tarlac City

Gerona

Paniqui

Moncada

Pagasa also said that the same weather conditions are now affecting Zambales and San Jose and Capas in Tarlac.

‘The public and the Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Offices concerned are advised to MONITOR the weather condition and watch for the next warning to be issued at 11:00 AM today,’ it advised.

In a separate 5 a.m. weather forecast, the weather bureau said that a low pressure area entered the Philippine area of responsibility around 2 a.m. on Thursday. It has a medium chance of developing into a tropical depression.

It is expected to enhance the habagat starting Friday until Tuesday next week

Bacolod City College (BCC) shifted to online classes on Thursday as a security precaution after a threatening note was discovered inside the school comfort room, Mayor Greg Gasataya announced Wednesday night.

School officials reported the incident to authorities immediately after finding the note around 2:05 p.m.

The message written on a brown piece of paper warned teachers and students to be careful on Thursday and threatened that bullies would be ‘finished off,’ though it provided no specific details.

‘Especially sa mga bullies ubuson ta kamo tanan (Especially for the bullies, I will finish you all off)’, the writer said.

In response, the Bacolod City Police Office (BCPO) deployed personnel to secure the campus, initiate an investigation, and confer with school administrators.

‘Educational institutions must remain inviolable safe havens for our youth. We stand resolute in our duty to protect our educational institutions, ensuring they remain secure environments for learning,’ Gasataya said.

The city government is coordinating directly with Col. Eugene Rebadomia, the city police director, to identify the person responsible for the note.

The temporary transition to virtual learning will allow the police and the Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office time to conduct comprehensive security briefings and an emergency protocol symposium for all BCC faculty and staff.

‘We will ensure that all necessary measures are in place to keep the BCC community safe,’ the mayor assured.

The sub judice rule adopted by the Senate impeachment court applies not only to the senator-judges and the lawyers of both sides but to the accused herself, Vice President Sara Duterte.

Sen. Francis Escudero, as presiding officer of the Senate impeachment court, made this clear in a ruling he read out in full during Wednesday’s hearing, and which he ordered conveyed by the defense lawyers to their client.

According to Escudero, Duterte is also covered by Rule 18 of the Rules of Impeachment, which governs public statements concerning the merits of a pending impeachment case.

Escudero issued the ruling on the same day Duterte, in a media statement, called out the prosecutors for resorting to ‘insults, speculation, or political theatrics’ in questioning her aides at the witness stand, saying such tactics only mask the weakness of the case against her.

‘A strong case does not need the adornment of theatrics. A Senator calling a witness ‘stupid,’ a lawyer calling me the ‘mastermind of a scam’ or another witness referring to me as a ‘brat,’ does not prove a case, nor does it produce evidence,’ the vice president said.

According to the prosecution team, Duterte’s statement came out ‘almost simultaneously’ with Escudero reading out his ruling on impartiality and decorum.

Noting this, Escudero said ‘prospectivity would apply’ or that the ruling would no longer cover what happened that day but future infractions.

‘However, the presiding officer would like to remind, through the lead counsel for the respondent, her client to kindly observe the ruling of the presiding officer as well as the rules of the impeachment court, specifically Rule 18, on the subject matter in regard to making comments on the merits of the case,’ Escudero said.

‘Because henceforth, again given the prospectivity of the ruling, the necessary actions will be taken against her not only by the court, but also given that she is a lawyer,’ he added.

‘With respect to prior statements or conduct covered by Rule 18, the court shall extend grace, exercise liberality and wipe the slate clean. Tabula rasa, so to speak. From this point forward, however, Rule 18 shall be strictly enforced,’ he added.

While Rule 18 applies only to prosecutors, defense counsels, witnesses, and the impeached official, Escudero served notice to the spokespersons of both panels that they are covered by Rule 71, which invokes the code of conduct for public officials and the rule on indirect contempt.

He reiterated his earlier suggestion that the parties appoint spokespersons that are not members of the legal teams.

Two-strike rule

He also reminded all parties, including senator-judges, not to discuss the merits of the case in the press – or engage in ‘trial by publicity’ – so as not ‘threaten the court’s integrity, degrade (it’s) dignity, and weaponize the media to substitute public outrage for actual evidence.’

A two-strike rule would be followed, he said, with the first violation earning a severe reprimand from the court, and the second and subsequent offenses penalized with a fine of P30,000 each.

The Integrated Bar of the Philippines and the Supreme Court will also be notified of the violations for possible disciplinary action on the erring lawyer, which may take his or her license to practice into consideration.

Senator-judges should maintain restraint and political neutrality, Escudero said, citing their oath ‘to do impartial justice’ in the vice president’s trial.

While senator-judges can directly ask witnesses for clarification, he cautioned them against using their questions for partisan ends.

What ‘merits’ mean

As the prosecution team, Escude said its duty is not to convict but to ensure justice is done. The duty of the defense, on the other hand, is not to secure an acquittal at all costs but ‘to provide competent, efficient, conscientious, and diligent representation.’

He said defense lawyers must ‘faithfully protect their client’s constitutional and procedural rights, rigorously test the prosecution’s evidence, and hold the prosecution to the burden of proof,’ while remaining within the bounds of law and ethics.

For purposes of this trial, a statement pertains to the merits when, viewed in its full context, it evaluates a disputed fact; the credibility of a witness; or the relevance, probative value, weight, or sufficiency of particular evidence; assesses the legal viability of an Article of Impeachment or a substantive defense; advocates a particular disposition of the charges; or announces or forecasts the ultimate vote,’ he said.