Category: Philippines Daily Inquirer

EEI Corp. plans to shoulder the P11.4-billion debt of its newly acquired property firm while merging two more units to strengthen its real estate push.

In a disclosure on Thursday, the construction giant backed by the Yuchengco family said its board of directors had authorized the acquisition of the liabilities of First Orient International Ventures Corp. (FOIVC) in exchange for unissued shares in the latter.

This plan, however, still needs to be cleared by creditors and the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Last October, the listed firm took over the former Philippine offshore gaming operator hub at Island Cove in Cavite for P2.8 billion.

The acquisition of FOIVC marked the engineering firm’s efforts to cement its position in the real estate market.

Further, EEI said its board likewise greenlighted the consolidation of two wholly owned subsidiaries-EEI Ltd. and EEI Realty Corp.

This will be done through a share swap deal. EEI Ventures Inc. (EVI) will issue 300 million shares in exchange for full control of the two units.

EVI serves as the group’s investment and holding firm that is focused on real estate and emerging businesses.

‘Pure play’

‘The consolidation also supports more efficient capital raising, as investors are increasingly drawn to ‘pure-play’ business units,’ it said.

‘Housing nonconstruction assets under EEI Ventures makes it easier to attract strategic partners or explore future financing options without affecting the parent company’s balance sheet,’ the group added.

The move may also help pave the way for EEI to pursue an initial public offering.

‘The structure provides strategic flexibility for the future-whether through partnerships, joint ventures or an eventual listing-while keeping the group’s construction operations focused and protected,’ it said.

As of end-September, the group’s consolidated assets stood at P40.04 billion

I am momentarily turning my gaze from the exchanges among political know-it-alls to something so every day, so basic, we do not notice it is there to someday haunt us if we do not take a look and act now. I imagine a horrific scenario for a future dystopian sci-fi novel.

This is not new, but this deserves attention. In the world’s environmental rogue gallery, the Philippines is not far behind. Now topping the list in the ocean trash department, the Philippines, a clutch of islands that comprises a country in the Pacific Ocean, has earned the badge of shame for being the world’s biggest contributor of garbage to the world’s oceans, beating even its bigger, more affluent neighbors.

We all must take a long, deep breath and not only hang our heads in shame but also actively address the situation. But first, to see and realize that the Philippines is really on top of the list. And then what?

According to Sustainability Online, a business news platform ‘with a sustainable mindset,’ ‘the Philippines is responsible for some 356,371 metric tons of plastic waste in the planet’s oceans on an annual basis, well ahead of second-placed India, which accounts for 126,513 metric tons.’

It cites data from environmental group GreenMatch that said ‘nine of the world’s highest plastic polluting countries can currently be found in Asia, with the so-called ‘Pearl of the Orient’ the top culprit.’ Ouch! That ‘pearl’ is none other than the Philippines, Jose Rizal’s ‘region del sol querida, perla del mar de oriente, nuestro perdido eden.’

According to the news platform, other major contributors to the ocean plastic waste include Malaysia with 73,098 metric tons, China with 70,707, and Indonesia with 56,333. Here’s more in metric tons: Myanmar (40,000), Brazil (37,799), Vietnam (28,221), Bangladesh (24,640), and Thailand (22,806).

According to Original Travel, this huge plastic influx has contributed to an increase in the pH level of the world’s oceans over time, with the pH level currently at 8.1 or a 30-percent increase from the preindustrial age. Original Travel’s findings titled ’40 facts and statistics about tourism and ocean sustainability’ can be accessed online.

Green Match estimates that 75 to 199 million tons of plastic are currently present in the oceans, with 92 percent of microplastics present in 60 percent of the fish consumed by humans every year. How’s that for pescatarian gastronomes among us?

Green March further points to Asia as responsible for 81 percent of ocean plastic pollution. Blame this on poor waste management, single-use plastics, and limited recycling infrastructure. But I must say and note that here in the Philippines, banning the use of plastic grocery and shopping bags is enforced in many local governments. And shops and shoppers are complying.

The dire scenario: if things go the way they do, it is not far-fetched for plastics to crowd out the fish in the ocean by 2050. As I said earlier, a dystopian scenario for a sci-fi novel or movie.

Beachfront cleanup drives by young volunteers are commendable, but, sadly, there is more where the garbage comes from, much of it from upstream, and from rivers and creeks that serve as garbage receptacles in heavily populated urban areas. While we blame much of the unprecedented flooding on substandard and ghost flood control projects that channeled staggering billions to contractors and politicians with sticky fingers (after case buildup, no mercy for them), garbage also worsens the scenario.

One cannot say enough about the way everyday commodities-food, personal hygiene necessities, toys, gadgets, stuff ordered online, etc.-are packed. You order a small item sold online, a book, for example, and it comes heavily protected with bubble wrap, more voluminous than the item itself. Aren’t online sellers cautioned against this? Are there biodegradable bubble wraps?

While all eyes are on flood-prone areas made so by corruption and neglect, we must as well look into other factors that aggravate the life-threatening, man-made disasters-garbage, deforestation, quarrying, and mining among them. Plastic garbage is a continuing, everyday scourge that suffocates streams, rivers, and oceans. A scourge that kills the wonderful creatures of this blue planet, their home and ours.

Josh Ybañez vows to ‘die for the ball’ as he makes his Southeast Asian (SEA) Games debut with Alas Pilipinas in the 33rd edition in Thailand starting next week.

Alas, which seeks to translate a memorable FIVB World Championship into a podium finish in the biennial meet, will continue to rely on Ybañez as its main libero, along with veteran Vince Lorenzo, flag-bearer and captain Bryan Bagunas and 10-year veteran Marck Espejo.

Also part of the roster are 2019 SEA Games silver medalists Owa Retamar and Kim Malabunga, as well as World Championship campaigners Leo Ordiales, Buds Buddin, Louie Ramirez, Jade Disquitado, Eco Adajar, Peng Taguibolos, Lloyd Josafat and new addition Al-Bukharie Sali.

Ybañez, who has been thriving as Alas libero, will leave everything on the floor with his crucial role of keeping the ball alive and setting the pace to execute coach Angiolino Frigoni’s plays.

‘My mindset in games is simple, what coach Angiolino always says: ‘Die for the ball.’ That’s it,’ Ybañez told the Inquirer in Filipino.

Receiving and digging the ball sent by the top international teams isn’t new for Ybañez, as his teammates have brought the same power in training for the past two years.

‘Facing powerful hitters isn’t new to me, because even in training, my teammates are all strong. So they’re not much different from the opponents we’ll face. I think it’s really the system I need to adapt to and adjust to,’ he said.

Even though he’s a two-time UAAP MVP and the focal point of University of Santo Tomas’ offense for the past three seasons, returning to his original position libero wasn’t hard for the 22-year-old national team standout, either.

‘It’s a difficult role, but when you enjoy it, it doesn’t feel that hard. When you’re having fun, you don’t think about it as a burden. When you enjoy what you’re doing and you’re constantly learning, you actually crave more,’ Ybañez said. ‘Since I’m an outside spiker for UST, it’s not that far from my role in Alas. Outside hitters defend too; they’re actually the main passers.’

Alas’ inspiring run in the World Championship took the sport to a higher notch and also the expectations from the whole country.

Ybañez and his team chose to focus on their progress and their goal to bring the Philippines back to the podium after two consecutive fifth-place finishes in the past two SEA Games.

‘If we think too much . we’ll just feel more pressure. So we’d rather focus on what we have and show what our team can really do,’ he said.

‘I may be one of the youngest, but it doesn’t matter how old I am. I believe I have leadership inside the court. And people will see a more mature version of me-someone who can take on a leadership role during matches.’

Alas men’s team is in Pool B, battling Myanmar on Dec. 13 and Cambodia the next day. The Filipinos take on defending champion Indonesia on Dec. 16.

Executive Secretary Ralph Recto on Friday said he respects the Supreme Court’s (SC) decision ordering the return of the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation’s (PhilHealth) unused funds worth P60 billion.

This amount forms part of the P89.9 billion in unused PhilHealth funds.

SC spokesperson Atty. Camille Ting, citing the ruling, said the vote to return the unused funds to PhilHealth was unanimous.

‘TAs we always said before the decision, the Executive will follow the Supreme Court’s order, just as we followed and complied with the directive of Congress then to use the dormant funds of GOCCs for the benefit of the people,’ Recto said in a statement written in Filipino.

‘We reiterate that the Executive simply complied with the congressional mandate under the 2024 GAA, and that the Department of Finance’s (DOF) role is solely in revenue generation and debt and deficit management. We believed then, and still believe, that the directive was a common-sense approach to optimize government coffers without resorting to additional borrowing or new taxes,’ he also said.

In September, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. announced that PhilHealth funds would be restored, following savings generated from other government agencies, particularly the Department of Public Works and Highways

Ruby Rodriguez is mulling legal action over a fake social media post claiming she had a child with her former ‘Eat Bulaga’ co-host Tito Sotto.

Rodriguez, who is currently based in the United States, addressed the matter through her Facebook page on Thursday, Dec. 4.

Her statement included a screenshot of a post from a Facebook page under the name ‘Pinas Star,’ which wrote about Rodriguez’s supposed revelation of her past relationship with the senator.

‘I’m going to consult my lawyer regarding this matter,’ she said in the caption.

‘This malicious content is harming my family and innocent child. This is too much!’ she exclaimed.

Netizens nodded in agreement via the comments section, noting how those spreading fake news on social media should be held accountable.

Prior to this, Rodriguez had also called out two more social media pages that had been publishing false claims about her supposed ‘revelation’ against Tito as well as current ‘Eat Bulaga’ hosts Vic Sotto and Joey de Leon.

‘Please, I’m quietly living my simple life do not even include me in this [bu******]!!!’ she wrote.

She added in a separate post, ‘Please to all, do not use my name in this sarsuela just to gain views and followers.’

Just last year, Rodriguez reunited and bonded with Tito and his wife Helen Gamboa during the couple’s trip abroad.

The title sounds absurd, paradoxical, and painfully true.

My good friend, Yoyong and I, once laughed about this line during his medical board review-technically, I was his review center. He pointed it out from ‘Robbins’ Pathology,’ in the chapter on Neoplasia. A brutal sentence disguised as an academic fact.

Here’s another brutal fact: There are no true cancer survivors. Only people whose cancers were caught early, the lucky few with thyroid cancers, early breast cancers, or tumors removed before they could misbehave. They are cancer-free, not survivors. ‘Survivor’ implies the war is over. It never is. That’s what makes us human: the unending battle.

We are all survivors anyway. We started as a lone sperm cell racing against millions, tunneling through the zona pellucida like microscopic gladiators. Several cell divisions later: you.

And carcinogens? They’re everywhere. We eat them. We breathe them. We willingly bathe in them every time we unlock our phones.

The real carcinogens are the things we enjoy: alcohol, cigarettes, processed food, infections, and stress disguised as lifestyle.

And because life has a dark sense of humor, even people who never smoke still get lung cancer. Children get leukemia, osteosarcoma, retinoblastoma, and Wilms’ tumor.

Biology doesn’t negotiate. If cancer doesn’t claim you, something else will: heart disease, infection, accidents, calamities, or sheer probability.

People love saying cancer didn’t exist during the Renaissance or before the world wars. Not true. We simply didn’t know what we were looking at. The mid-20th century revolutionized medicine: pathology, histology, imaging, and genetics. Suddenly, the invisible became diagnosable.

Treatment remains a challenge. But humanity is stubborn. We keep trying.

Appendicitis once killed people routinely. Today, a simple appendectomy saves millions. Add Caesarean sections. Add anesthesia, pharmacology, obstetrics, and surgical technique.

Life expectancy soared: 25 years in 1800, 50 in 1950, 80 by 2015. Filipinos now hover around 72.19, slightly above the global average of 72. We expanded our lifespan, but we did not escape death.

Harsh truth: we begin dying the moment we are born. You can survive a terminal illness and still meet your terminal moment. When your time is up, it’s up. You say your goodbyes.

There is no such thing as a smooth life. But life is still beautiful, which makes it horrible, wonderful, and worthwhile.

Enjoy it. Cherish it. Spend it on people who matter. Do the things your soul keeps nagging you about.

If you want to live forever, there is a way:

Share what you know. Your craft. Your wisdom. Your small pieces of truth. Because even when memories fade, kindness persists.

Lessons persist. The fragments of yourself you leave behind are the closest things we have to immortality.

Share the gift of life and wisdom. That is how you outlive yourself.

Melben Jochico,

Kim Chiu received words of comfort from her fans and fellow celebrities after she reflected on ‘taking a hit’ and being ‘exhausted,’ amid her legal battle with her older sister Lakam Chiu.

The actress-TV host shared a video compilation featuring glimpses of what appears to be a nature trip, via her Instagram page on Thursday, Dec. 4.

The clip uses an audio in which a woman can be heard saying in the background, ‘I dream of never being called strong again. I’m exhausted by strength. I want support. I want love. I want understanding, not pat on the back for how well I take a hit.’

Kim did not add a caption to her post, only sharing a white heart, folded hands, and sparkles emoji.

Among those who extended their support to Kim via the comment section were Melai Cantiveros, Barbie Forteza and Isabelle Daza. Kim filed a qualified theft complaint against Lakam before the Quezon City prosecutor’s office last Dec. 2, citing the ‘serious financial discrepancies discovered within [the actress’] business operations.’

‘This decision did not come easily. It is one of the most painful steps I have ever taken in my life,’ Kim said of the legal action she has taken.

Lakam has yet to publicly comment on the matter as of this writing.

Speculations of a feud between the sisters first arose in August after eagle-eyed fans noticed that they had unfollowed each other on Instagram.

Tropical Depression Wilma is now forecast to make landfall over Eastern Visayas on Saturday, Dec. 6, according to the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration’s (Pagasa) latest update.

In its 8 p.m. tropical cyclone bulletin, Pagasa said Wilma was last seen 170 kilometers (km) east of Borongan City, Eastern Samar.

‘On the forecast track, the center of Wilma may make its initial landfall over Eastern Visayas tomorrow. Afterwards, it will continue to traverse Visayas until Sunday,’ Pagasa explained.

‘Wilma is forecast to move west southwestward until [Saturday] before turning generally westward for the remaining forecast period,’ it noted.

The tropical depression was moving westward slowly while packing maximum sustained winds of up to 45 km per hour (kph) and gusts of up to 55 kph.

As Wilma approaches the country’s landmass, Pagasa hoisted Tropical Cyclone Wind Signal (TCWS) No. 1 over the following areas:

The southern portion of Sorsogon (Matnog, Bulan, Irosin, Santa Magdalena, Bulusan, Barcelona, Magallanes, Juban, Casiguran, Gubat)

mainland Masbate including Ticao Island

the eastern portion of Romblon (San Fernando, Cajidiocan, Magdiwang)

Northern Samar

Eastern Samar

Samar

Biliran

Leyte

Southern Leyte

Cebu including Bantayan and Camotes Islands

Bohol

the northern and central portions of Negros Occidental (Sagay City, City of Escalante, Toboso, Calatrava, Enrique B. Magalona, City of Victorias, Manapla, Cadiz City, Bacolod City, City of Talisay, Silay City, Salvador Benedicto, San Carlos City, Murcia, Bago City, La Carlota City, La Castellana, Moises Padilla, Valladolid, Pulupandan, San Enrique, Pontevedra, Hinigaran, Isabela, Binalbagan, City of Himamaylan, City of Kabankalan)

Siquijor

the northern and central portions of Negros Oriental (City of Guihulngan, Canlaon City, Vallehermoso, La Libertad, Jimalalud, Tayasan, Ayungon, Bindoy, Manjuyod, Bais City, Pamplona, City of Tanjay, Amlan, San Jose, Dumaguete City, Valencia, Sibulan, Bacong, Mabinay)

Guimaras

the northern and central portion Iloilo (San Dionisio, Estancia, Batad, Carles, Concepcion, Ajuy, Sara, Balasan, Lemery, Barotac Viejo, San Rafael, City of Passi, San Enrique, Anilao, Banate, Dingle, Barotac Nuevo, Mina, Pototan, New Lucena, Santa Barbara, Pavia, Iloilo City, Leganes, Zarraga, Dumangas, Dueñas, Bingawan, Lambunao, Calinog, Janiuay, Badiangan, Cabatuan, Maasin, Alimodian, San Miguel, Oton)

Capiz

the eastern portion of Aklan (Altavas, Batan, New Washington, Kalibo, Banga, Balete, Libacao, Madalag)

Surigao del Norte including Siargao and Bucas Grande Islands

Dinagat Islands

the northern portion of Surigao del Sur (Carrascal, Cantilan, Madrid, Carmen, Lanuza)

the northern portion of Agusan del Norte (Kitcharao, Jabonga, Santiago, Tubay, City of Cabadbaran, Remedios T. Romualdez, Magallanes)

Camiguin

TCWS No. 1 warns of strong winds between 39 and 61 kilometers per hour (kph) in the next 36 hours, posing minimal to minor threat to life and property

Malacañang on Friday said the Independent Commission for Infrastructure (ICI) has already received its P41 million budget for 2025.

At a briefing, Palace Press Officer Claire Castro was asked if the fund is now in the hands of the super body after Rogelio ‘Babes’ Singson tendered his resignation as one of its commissioners due to lack of budget and intense, stressful work.

‘Yes, it’s with them,’ she said in Filipino.

Castro also responded to Baguio City Mayor and former ICI Adviser Benjamin Magalong’s statement that the P30,000 he spent for the group has not yet been refunded.

‘Regarding what he said that he still has something missing, we have already requested-since the funds are already there-that whatever shortages or remaining amounts that need to be paid to those who should receive them, should be paid immediately,’ the Palace official said, speaking Filipino.

‘And the President has not been lacking, because everything that the ICI needs-every form of assistance that can come from the President-is being provided. And regarding who else might resign, perhaps it’s better if you ask him. He is the one who gave the information,’ she added in Filipino.

No choice but to let go

Meanwhile, Castro said that Public Works Secretary Vince Dizon initially tried to convince Singson not to leave the ICI.

‘At dahil nga muli, may concern po si Secretary Babes, iginagalang po iyan ng ating Pangulo at nagpapasalamat po tayo sa napakagaling pong serbisyo po ni Sec. Babes Singson,’ Castro said.(And once again, since Secretary Babes has a concern, the President respects that, and we express our gratitude for the excellent service of Sec. Babes Singson.)

Singson’s resignation is effective Dec. 15 but ‘could be extended’ until Dec. 31. Born on Sept. 16, 1948, Singson is 77 years old

Several villages in Libjo in the province of Dinagat Islands were cut off from the rest of the town after a culvert bridge in Barangay Doña Helen has become impassable after it was severely damaged by flooding due to rains brought by Tropical Depression Wilma.

A report from the Dinagat Islands Public Information Office said the structure gave way after water levels in the nearby creek rapidly rose due to heavy rainfall.

The strong current and sustained downpour weakened the bridge, forcing authorities to temporarily close the road that serves as a key link between several barangays.

The Libjo local government unit, through its Municipal Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (MDRRMO) and partner agencies, has conducted an on-site assessment to determine the extent of the damage and identify the necessary measures for repair.

Officials have also prioritized the safety of residents, warning the public to avoid the area to prevent accidents.

Coordination is ongoing with barangay leaders to ensure alternative routes are available and that assistance can be provided to affected communities while repair work is pending.

The local government said it continues to closely monitor the situation and will release further updates as developments unfold