Category: Philippines Daily Inquirer

Jude Garcia continued to raise the bar in the Spikers’ Turf with his fourth MVP plum.

Garcia extended his MVP reign to four consecutive conferences after leading Criss Cross to its first-ever championship following a thrilling win over Japan’s Kindai University, 25-15, 25-21, 23-25, 23-25, 22-20, in a winner-take-all final on Saturday at FilOil EcoOil Centre in San Juan City.

The 27-year-old Garcia unleashed 35 points on a 34-of-65 attacking clip in a classic championship match.

‘This is the sweetest MVP award I’ve ever received, because in all my past MVPs, we ended up losing,’ Garcia said in Filipino. ‘My teammates didn’t give up on me, the coaching staff didn’t give up on me, and the management kept lifting me up throughout the game.’

Garcia, the league’s first-ever Season MVP, was the best scorer with 113 points from 104 kills, six blocks, and three aces to also win the Best Outside Spiker award.

The Far Eastern University product was the third-best spiker with 49.29% attack efficiency, eighth-best server with 0.14 aces per set, and also the ninth-best digger with 1.24 digs per set.

Criss Cross’ Adrian Villados won his first Best Setter award and emerged as the Finals MVP after dishing out 34 excellent sets in the winner-take-all.

He normed with 6.05 excellent sets per frame.

‘I’m really happy because we finally got the championship. The individual awards are just a bonus. All the sacrifices we made-everything we worked for, really paid off,’ Villados said.

Jau Umandal of Cignal won his third Best Outside Spiker award. He was the third-best scorer with 90 points, second-best attacker with a 49.68% attack rate, fifth-best server with 0.17 aces per set, and fifth-best blocker with 0.56 blocks per set.

Japan’s Ryutaro Aun bagged the Best Opposite Spiker. He was the second-best scorer with 94 points and top spiker with 53.33% efficiency and 10th best blocker with 0.33 blocks per game.

Another awardee from Kindai was Yuito Kose,n winning the Best Libero, ending up the second best digger with 2.39 digs per set and second in receiving with 56.98% efficiency.

The Best Middle Blockers were Poy Colinares of the King Crunchers and Giles Torres of Savouge Aesthetics Spin Doctors, ending up as No.2 and 3 Best Blockers with 0.71 and 0.63 blocks per set, respectively.

At least 131 people were evacuated and helped cross swollen rivers on Saturday, November 29, in the towns of Penablanca, Baguey and Ballesteros in Cagayan province due to recurring landslides and floods caused by heavy rainfall spawned by the shear line and the northeast monsoon, the Coast Guard District Northeastern Luzon said.

Cagayan Coast Guard personnel helped 125 villagers cross swollen rivers in Aggugaddan and Quibal villages in Penablanca as residents in these areas have been isolated after the road linking to their communities was eroded and no longer passable on Saturday.

Another Coast Guard team was sent to Buguey to evacuate six villagers who were isolated due to floods in the nearby village of Nararagan in Ballesteros town, also on Saturday

The Chamber of Automotive Manufacturers of the Philippines Inc. (Campi) remains optimistic it can reach 500,000 vehicle sales this year, despite being more than 20 percent short of the target with just two months remaining.

‘We are on target. I cannot confirm yet if 500,000 (units sold), but it’s possible if we get all the figures by the end of December,’ Campi president Rommel Gutierrez told reporters on Friday, during the launch of the chamber’s 30th anniversary coffee table book.

Campi data show that sales reached 383,424 units from January to October, slightly lower than the 384,310 units sold in the same period last year.

The chamber, which has 28 auto brands under it, also aimed for 500,000 units in 2024 but fell short, despite ending the year with a record 467,252 units sold.

Vehicle sales in the last two months of that year totaled 40,898 units in November and 42,044 units in December.

Gutierrez said the chamber remains confident about its 2025 target, which he said was still an ‘aspirational thing.’

Outlook for 2026

As for the automotive industry, Gutierrez said political controversies have yet to significantly affect demand.

‘We don’t feel that much impact from political (issues),’ he said when asked whether the sector had seen car demand dwindle following recent corruption scandals.

While Campi has yet to announce a formal target for 2026, Gutierrez expressed optimism that sales would improve in 2026.

‘I’m sure it will be better than this year,’ he said. INQ

The Department of Agriculture (DA) on Friday announced the transfer of some regulatory functions to the Bureau of Animal Industry (BAI) and the National Dairy Authority (NDA) from the Food and Drugs Administration (FDA).

This came after the DA and FDA issued a joint advisory on the jurisdiction shifts following the enactment of Republic Act 12308 or the Animal Industry Development and Competitiveness Act.

Under the transfer, jurisdiction over veterinary drugs, products and biologics and other animal health products and devices will move from the FDA to the BAI.

The NDA will assume ‘full regulatory authority’ over the dairy industry, including testing and accreditation of local dairy products and overseeing production through post-market distribution.

The FDA will continue evaluating applications filed before Oct. 28, with pending cases up to April 25, 2026, to be handed over to the BAI or NDA for final decisions. All FDA-issued permits remain valid until their expiration dates. Applications submitted after Oct. 28 will now be processed by BAI and NDA.

Current fee schedules will remain in effect unless revised by DA agencies following public consultation.

With Kim Chiu’s entertainment career being ‘divided into three parts,’ being in her thirties is an opportunity to prove naysayers wrong and do things the public doesn’t expect her to do.

Chiu is one of the lead stars of ‘The Alibi,’ a crime-thriller that centers on a media heir named Vincent Cabrera (Paulo Avelino) who hires Stella (Chiu) to be his alibi in a murder case. In the series, the actress takes on a more daring role as an escort, a drastic change from her previous characters.

‘As a 35-year-old woman, tapos na tayo sa 16-year-old roles na teeny. Pero favorite ko ang magpaka-teeny at magpatawa. Pero kapag tinatrack ko ang journey ko sa industriyang ‘to, parang nahati ko na siya into my teens, twenties, and thirties,’ she explained during the drama’s media launch.

(As a 35-year-old woman, I’m done with teen-centered and 16-year-old roles. But it’s my favorite to do teen-centered and comedy characters. If I can track my journey in this industry, it is divided into my teens, twenties, and thirties.)

Of course, the actress admitted that the shift into mature roles is not easy. Yet it is a challenge that Chiu accepted wholeheartedly to prove that she has more to show.

‘Hindi naman siya madali. Gusto ko lang magpakita ng bago. And sa mga nagsasabi na hindi ako marunong sa ganitong klaseng role, ito na ‘yun. I want to prove all of them wrong and I can do more than what they know,’ she said.

‘Nakakailang kahit pang-apat na naming project ito ni Paulo. Iba-iba rin kasi ang ginagawa naming project and iba-ibang intensity. Nakakailang, nakakahiya, pero since professional ang bawat isa sa’min,’ she continued.

(It’s not easy, but I want to show something new. To those who are saying that I can’t pull off these roles, this is my answer to them. I want to prove all of them wrong and I can do more than what they know. It’s still embarrassing doing this even if it’s our fourth project with Paulo. We did different projects with different intensities. It’s embarrassing and it makes us shy at times, but we’re professional.)

When asked if she’s open to taking roles like Stella in her next projects, Chiu said it is something that actors have to acknowledge at some point in their careers.

‘Mahalin niyo muna si Stella bago tumalon sa iba. Dito sa mundo ng showbiz, ang daming characters na pwede mong i-play, depende kung paano mo siya gagampanan at pagkakasulat at pagkakagawa,’ she said.

The drama also stars Sam Milby, John Arcilla, Zsa Zsa Padilla, Rafael Rosell, Sofia Andres, Angelina Cruz, Robbie Jaworski, and Alma Moreno.

Many have been wondering why Jude Garcia, a many-time MVP in the Spikers’ Turf, isn’t part of the Philippine men’s volleyball program.

Truth is, Garcia got a call-up to be part of Alas Pilipinas for the upcoming Southeast Asian Games. But while representing the country is a huge honor, the Criss Cross star has his priorities in check.

For Garcia, it’s family first.

‘I guess the only thing I really want to say is thank you to everyone who supports me and believes in me. But I also have personal reasons. First of all, my wife is about to give birth, and her pregnancy is very sensitive, so I can’t leave her,’ Garcia told reporters moments after winning his fourth Spikers’ Turf MVP and delivering Criss Cross’ first championship with 35 points in the Invitational Conference on Saturday night at FilOil EcoOil Centre.

‘I explained everything to the Alas management-that I really can’t leave my wife because this is our first baby, and the baby is coming this year, so I need to be there for her,’ he went on.

Garcia, the league’s first Season MVP, was grateful and honored to be considered for the national team.

And if the opportunity comes knocking again at the right time, the 27-year-old outside spiker is willing to answer the call.

‘I’m really grateful to everyone who still supports me being part of Alas,’ he said. ‘For me, I have no problem committing to Alas. Even the management told me, ‘If you want to play for Alas, no problem, we’re giving you 100% support.’ It just so happened that my situation with my wife came up-we’re having our first baby-so I need to focus on my family first.’

Garcia has actually suited up for the national team before in the SEA Games, but in beach volleyball, where he’s taken home a total of three bronze medals in 2019, 2021 and 2023.

When Criss Cross outlasted Japan’s Kindai University in a five-set classic, 25-15, 25-21, 23-25, 23-25, 22-20, Garcia jumped to the stands to hug and share a special moment with his wife.

‘It’s really special because from the moment I joined Criss Cross, she was already my number one supporter. She was the one who pushed me to join the team, saying the management was great and they really take care of their players,’ he said. ‘So winning this championship feels amazing, because it’s like we were able to give back and honor the support the management gave us.’

President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on Friday assured households and businesses in Metro Manila and its nearby provinces of a more reliable and stable water supply after he led the opening of a new tunnel under the Angat Water Transmission Improvement Project in Bulacan province.

The project’s Tunnel No. 5 reinforces the decades-old Umiray-Angat-Ipo-La Mesa system, through which 90 percent of water used by nearly 20 million people in Metro Manila, Bulacan and parts of Cavite and Rizal provinces flows.

‘Its raw water conveyance to carry over 1.6 billion liters of water every day will increase our system’s transport capacity from 6 billion to almost 8 billion liters of water every day,’ the president said in his speech at the ceremonial unveiling of the project marker at Bigte Basin, in Norzagaray, Bulacan.

‘This means more families will have a continuous and reliable water supply in their homes. The older tunnels can also be repaired because there is now a backup route for the water to pass through,’ he added.

Mr. Marcos said he wanted the project to serve as a reminder to value natural resources and use them responsibly.

Situated between Ipo Dam and Bigte Basin, Tunnel No. 5 consists of a 4.3-meter-diameter, 6.4-kilometer raw water conveyance tunnel designed to carry up to 1,642 million liters a day.

Its main purpose is to provide a backup water route, allow maintenance on existing tunnels and aqueducts, and improve system reliability during earthquakes and other natural disasters.

The Commission on Human Rights (CHR) has expressed ‘grave concern’ over alleged harassment of lesbians and gays in the town of Pagalungan in Maguindanao del Sur, supposedly upon instruction of the top municipal official.

The CHR, citing a report by a local radio station, said the harassment happened on Nov. 11 in Pagalungan’s Barangay Layog where village officials ‘allegedly acting on instructions from the (municipal) mayor visited homes of persons perceived to be lesbian or gay.’

‘They (lesbians and gays) were compelled to report to the barangay hall, and same-sex adult couples living together were forcibly separated. In the recorded interview, a barangay official explained that the actions of the couples are prohibited in the laws of men and much more prohibited by Islam,’ the CHR noted in its Nov. 27 statement.

The roundup of same-sex couples was supposedly in line with the locality’s ‘Operation Supak’ that allegedly targeted members of the LGBTQIA community, allegedly upon the instruction of the town mayor.

The Inquirer reached out to Mayor Datu Abdilah G. Mamasabulod of the Muslim-dominated town (population: 46, 277 based on 2020 census) through his social media page but has not received a reply.

The group Asean SOGIE (Sexual Orientation, Gender Identity, and Gender Expression) Caucus or ASC, which include various LGBTQIA organizations and allies, earlier expressed indignation over the local campaign.

Citing accounts from the community, ASC said the campaign mobilized ‘barangay officials, barangay tanods, and members of the religious sector (in) forcibly enter(ing) private homes of individuals suspected of being LGBTQIA+ or living with same-sex partners.’

‘At least two women and several LGBTQIA+ persons were taken from their residences without a warrant, transported to the barangay hall, and subjected to interrogation, moral lectures, and public shaming,’ ASC decried.

No legal basis

ASC said that the officials overseeing the operation claimed that same-sex cohabitation is ‘prohibited’ under religious teachings, and cited an alleged directive from the municipal mayor ‘to enforce separation of same-sex partners’ in a manner akin to ‘a coordinated moral policing operation.’

‘Individuals were told to end their relationships, warned against ‘immoral behavior’ and forcibly separated from their partners-an act that has no legal basis under Philippine law,’ ASC pointed out.

‘CHR underscores that actions of this nature violate the dignity and rights of LGBTQIA persons. The alleged acts unlawfully target individuals based on perceived sexual orientation. They subject members of the LGBTQIA community to harassment and discrimination, violation of their rights to privacy, and security of persons,’ the agency explained.

‘There is no Philippine law that prohibits women from living with women, or men from living with men,’ it added.

Religion not justification

CHR pointed out that the Safe Spaces Act or Republic Act (RA) No. 11313 penalizes gender-based sexual harassment, including homophobic and transphobic behavior, and that the Magna Carta of Women (RA 9710) prohibits discrimination against women, including those on the basis of their sexual orientation.

Saying the Philippines ‘is a secular state,’ CHR set aside religion as a justification for the alleged harassment. ‘While the freedom of religion is paramount, and while the Supreme Court has upheld benevolent neutrality and accommodation in the exercise of individual’s religion, these cannot justify actions of government officials, using government resources and facilities to target individuals because of their perceived sexual orientation,’ it emphasized.

‘Public officials are governed by the rule of law and are expected to uphold constitutional and international human rights obligations in all circumstances,’ CHR added.

The agency has said it had commenced an investigation of the case through its regional office, in close coordination with the Bangsamoro Human Rights Commission (BHRC).

It called on the BHRC and the Ministry of the Interior and Local Government of the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) ‘to exercise its mandate and promptly investigate and inquire on the legal basis of the actions of government officials concerned, reach out to concerned individuals, and to ensure administrative or criminal accountability, where warranted.’

CHR also called on the Presidential Special Committee on LGBTQIA+ Affairs ‘to ensure inter-agency collaboration in providing protection and support services, to prevent further violations and to ensure the safety of LGBTQIA individuals in Maguindanao and across the BARMM.’

‘We urge the public to stand with us against discrimination, stigma, and the normalization of violence in the name of ‘morality.’ Equality, justice, and humanity must guide our responses-not fear, prejudice, or misuse of authority,’ ASC appealed.

For more than three decades, Casa San Miguel, the beloved arts sanctuary here has always been a place where stories breathe-in the rustle of its mango trees, the echo of its halls, the music drifting through its gardens.

Founded by violinist and cultural worker Alfonso Bolipata, the space transforms each year into an ever-evolving ecosystem where artists, musicians, dancers and actors grow alongside the local community.

Its legacy will again come alive in full vibrancy in December through Zambulat, the reimagined Pundaquit Festival first launched in 1993.

Zambulat-a word rooted in Zambales and ‘sambulat’ (to scatter or burst forth)-captures the festival’s story: an artistic movement that began as a single spark and blossomed into a creative force spanning generations and communities.

This evolution, said Bolipata, did not happen overnight.

Shared growth

‘It took persistence, patience and continuity-the slow, steady work of earning trust and weaving art into the everyday life of San Antonio,’ Bolipata told the Inquirer on Thursday.

According to him, the community’s eventual acceptance and pride in the festival came largely through their educational and outreach programs, which bridged the gap between artist and audience.

‘From in-house music training and teacher development, to public school workshops and livelihood projects, these efforts cultivated not only audiences, but future artists and cultural workers rooted in their own community,’ Bolipata said.

This year’s edition of Zambulat gathers more than 120 artists from across Luzon-from Baguio and Tarlac to Lucban, Laguna, and throughout this province-creating a convergence of established names and emerging voices to showcase the richness of the country’s creativity.

Artists from the 1990s will also return to their roots, now exhibiting alongside new practitioners shaped by contemporary social and ecological realities.

All programs this year revolve around four interwoven pillars: community, identity, environment and healing.

Community is fostered through workshops in pottery, mural-making, serigraphy, music, and storytelling that unite teachers, students, artisans, and residents.

Identity will also be explored through archival exhibits, retrospectives, and new works that trace the festival’s and community’s evolution.

Environment is emphasized in upcycling workshops and eco-conscious installations that highlight the link between creativity and caring for the land and sea.

Finally, healing emerges through performances and dialogues that use art as a path toward emotional and communal recovery.

The festival will have its preview with a kapihan (roundtable discussion) about the creative industry moderated by Ma. Victoria ‘Boots’ Herrera, the director and chief curator of Ateneo Art Gallery; writing workshop with poet, Dr. Marjorie Evasco; book launch; and zine workshop exhibit.

It will officially start on Dec. 13 with the vernissage opening gala, a celebratory evening of art, performance, and community wherein they will open all the exhibits with cocktails, dinner and a concert. The celebration will continue until Feb. 14, 2026.

Art as sustenance

For Bolipata, and many artists, Zambulat is more than a festival, it is a testament to what art can do when it is allowed to take root. It is a homecoming-of artists, of memories, of shared histories-and at the same time, a renewal.

It celebrates art not as spectacle, but as sustenance: a continuing act of remembrance, resilience, and hope.

And as Bolipata often reminds those who come through Casa’s doors: ‘Arts, when nurtured with consistency and compassion, can reshape a place and its people from within.’

The Police Regional Office in Central Luzon (PRO3) deployed on Saturday, November 29, some 2,100 uniformed personnel to the National Capital Region Police Office (NCRPO) to augment security preparations for the Trillion March 2.0 anti-corruption protest activities on November 30.

The send-off ceremony, held at Camp Captain Julian Olivas in the City of San Fernando, Pampanga, was highlighted by ‘blessing of the troops’ officiated by Catholic priest Lieutenant Colonel Jonathan Chy, the regional pastoral officer, the PRO3 disclosed in a statement.

Chy prayed for the some 2,100 policemen ‘for their protection, strength, and discernment as they perform their duties in Metro Manila.’

The contingents came from the Regional Mobile Force, maneuver units and provincial offices.

Brigadier General Ponce Rogelio Peñones Jr., PRO3 regional director, said in the statement that the augmentation personnel ‘were carefully selected and thoroughly briefed to uphold maximum tolerance, discipline, and professionalism throughout the duration of the mass action.’

He said the deployed officers had been reminded to strictly observe operational protocols, respect human rights, and maintain vigilance at all times.

The police regional director assured that the PRO3 remains fully capable of maintaining peace and security across Central Luzon despite the deployment of some 2,100 police officers to Metro Manila.

‘Regular police visibility, crime prevention operations, and emergency response capacities within the region will remain uninterrupted,’ he said.

Earlier, Peñones said civil disturbance management simulation exercises were conducted in preparation for the deployment.

‘We reminded our troops to observe maximum tolerance, respect the rights of all demonstrators, and stay guided by the standards of our service. Our role is clear-to help maintain peace and order and safeguard the community,’ he added.

The November 30 anti-corruption rally coincides with Bonifacio Day, a regular annual holiday commemorating the birth anniversary of Andres Bonifacio, the ‘father of Philippine revolution’ against the abuses committed by the Spaniards against Filipinos