Category: Philippines Daily Inquirer

Bicol Saro party-list Rep. Terry Ridon has disputed claims that the investigation on anomalous infrastructure projects is centered in the Davao Region area only, noting that all of the issues will be tackled at the proper time.

Ridon, in a press briefing on Tuesday, said he wants to address narratives claiming that the Independent Commission for Infrastructure (ICI) has been focused on Davao City and its neighboring towns instead of areas that have experienced floods after the successive cyclones.

According to Ridon, co-chairperson of the House infra committee, the ICI simply started with Bulacan and then moved to Davao Region due to concerns over allegedly anomalous flood control projects in the area.

‘During the height of the successive typhoons, we heard from different sectors a question on why the ICI is investigating different areas in Davao area, Davao City, and refused to check on locales that experienced massive flooding like Cebu City,’ Ridon said in Filipino.

‘It’s very important to clarify why the ICI, the national government, needs to visit these areas [.] because the Bulacan has been finished already, there is a referral made by the [ICI] and we are just waiting on the Ombudsman to file cases against Sandiganbayan for the Bulacan ghost and substandard projects,’ he added.

Ridon said the investigation will proceed simultaneously, but there may be instances where one probe gets wrapped up first. According to the lawmaker, wrapping up one investigation does not mean suspending another probe in a different area.

‘Well, again, all of these would be launched simultaneously, right? All investigations that we are doing today on flood control, on infrastructure corruption will proceed as it should, to the ICI, through the Ombudsman. So this means charges will be filed in the soonest time,’ he said.

‘Does it mean all the other investigations on other matters will stop or will be suspended?’ he asked.

Ridon did not mention who was spreading a narrative that the national government and ICI are fixated on Davao, but Davao 1st District Rep. Paolo Duterte as early as September 30 asked why it seems the administration is only enthusiastic in its flood control investigations when the matter involves his home city.

Duterte, son of former president Rodrigo Duterte, said that there are no ghost projects under their watch.

The Davao lawmaker asked the National Bureau of Investigation, the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group of the Philippine National Police, the Office of the Ombudsman, and the National Economic and Development Authority why they seem to lack funds for accommodation and transportation when probing other areas.

Then last Wednesday, Duterte dared ACT Teachers party-list Rep. Antonio Tinio to visit Davao and ask residents there if they have experienced flooding – to debunk the latter’s claims of irregularities in the city’s flood control projects.

Duterte made the challenge after Tinio said he and his team found red flags in 80 of 120 flood control projects along Davao River and Matina River.

According to Duterte, Davao City has nothing to hide, saying that the projects that Tinio mentioned have been checked and inspected by both the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) and the Commission on Audit (COA).

Tinio classified the red-flagged projects into five categories: total overlap, double funding, changed location and shortchanging, awarded contracts without details, and awarded contracts not in the General Appropriations Act.

According to the ACT Teachers solon, they red-flagged 54 of the 68 implemented projects along Davao River, which was worth P2.65 billion, while 26 out of the 28 implemented projects near Matina River worth P1.70 billion allegedly showed irregularities as well.

Earlier, Ridon also released his own assessment and classification of several flood control projects in Davao Occidental and Davao City.

Ridon’s list was segregated into four categories: no structure or possibly ghost projects, incomplete, poorly-situated, and unconstructed. There were two projects classified as possible ghost; 10 were labeled incomplete; three were poorly situated; and three were considered unconstructed.

Two governors and eight town mayors in Cagayan Valley were out of their areas as Supertyphoon Uwan (international name: Fung-Wong) unleashed heavy rains and winds across the region on Monday, the Department of the Interior and Local Government in Region 2 (DILG-2) said.

DILG-2 spokesperson Liberty Barcena, in an online news briefing before noon on Sunday, said two governors-Jun Aguto of Batanes and Rodolfo Albano III of Isabela-have been out of the country for official travel leave abroad days before the typhoon hammered the region.

Vice Gov. Jonathan Nanud is the acting governor in Batanes, while Vice Gov. Francis Faustino Dy takes over the helm in Isabela province.

Eight mayors from the region would also be out of their areas on Monday due to official travel or medical leave. They were from Burgos, Mallig, Quezon, San Manuel, Santa Maria and San Mariano, all in Isabela, who were on leave-three outside and three within the country; Aritao in Nueva Vizcaya, who is on medical leave; and Itbayat in Batanes, who is on travel abroad, Barcena added.

She clarified that these officials applied for either a medical or travel leave weeks prior to the onset of Uwan.

The DILG has required governors and mayors to be in their respective jurisdictions in cases of disasters and other emergency cases, unless officially allowed to travel or on leave

The scheduled appearance of former Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) Undersecretary Roberto Bernardo before the Independent Commission on Infrastructure (ICI) on November 12 has been postponed again.

In an advisory sent to reporters on Tuesday evening, the ICI said the postponement was made upon the request of Bernardo’s counsel.

‘No reason was provided for the request to postpone the former DPWH undersecretary’s initially scheduled hearing,’ the commission said.

The ICI also said Bernardo’s counsel informed the commission that he ‘is ready and willing to appear before the Commission on November 17, 2025.’

Bernardo first appeared before the ICI on October 1 for the hearing on the flood control anomalies investigation, where he declined to speak to the media.

He later requested the postponement of his second appearance, which was originally scheduled for October 7.

Initially, the former DPWH official said he needed an additional week to gather the documents required for the investigation. He later sought another postponement, citing illness.

Bernardo was included among the respondents in the ICI’s third and fourth referrals to the Office of the Ombudsman on November 4 and November 6. The referrals concerned the so-called ‘ghost’ flood control projects in Bulacan.

He recently implicated several senators and lawmakers in an alleged kickback scheme involving infrastructure deals.

The Typhoon Tino (international name: Kalmaegi) death toll rose to 232, while 112 remain missing and 532 others injured, the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) reported on Tuesday morning.

According to the NDRRMC, 150 of the deaths were reported in Cebu, 42 in Negros Occidental, 21 in Negros Oriental, six in Agusan Del Sur, three in Capiz, two each in Dinagat Island, Southern Leyte, and Leyte and one each in Antique, Iloilo, Guimaras, and Bohol.

The causes of death include drowning, electrocution, and falling trees, the NDRRMC said in its 6 a.m. report. Meanwhile, 112 individuals are still missing – 57 in Cebu, 50 in Negros Occidental, and five in Negros Oriental.

The NDRRMC also reported 532 injured persons across five provinces in Visayas.

Tino affected a total of 4,164,358 individuals or 1,186,673 families across eight regions, the NDRRMC said.

A week after Tino’s landfall in the country, 379,484 persons are still displaced, with 240,597 in 868 evacuation centers, while 138,887 are being served outside evacuation centers.

Two areas in Mimaropa are still flooded as of Tuesday morning.

NDRRMC also added that 39 roads and seven bridges remain impassable in the Calabarzon (Cavite, Laguna, Batangas, Rizal, Quezon) Mimaropa (Mindoro, Marinduque, Romblon, Palawan) and Western Visayas regions.

There are also 69 cities and municipalities affected by power supply interruptions, while 11 continue to experience water supply interruptions.

Communication lines in 58 areas in Mimaropa, Central and Eastern Visayas, and Caraga are still non-operational, the NDRRMC reported

The cost of assistance provided to the victims of Uwan (international name: Fung-Wong) has reached almost P50 million (to be exact, P48,882,435), the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) reported on Tuesday.

In its 6 a.m. update, the NDRRMC stated that aid was provided to 28.2 percent, or more than 58,000 (58,664) out of over P207,000 (207,953) selected families, needing assistance.

The families are in the Ilocos Region, Cagayan Valley, Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR), National Capital Region (NCR), Calabarzon, Bicol Region, Western Visayas, and Caraga.

The largest portion of the aid, amounting to more than P39 million (P39,054,125), is set to help over P175,000 (175,256) families in the Bicol Region.

More than 52,000 of them (52,314) or 29.8 percent have already been given help.

In Caraga, P2.5 million (P2,557,993) worth of assistance will also be provided to families in Caraga, while in Calabarzon, P1.7 million (P1,765,021.34) will be dispersed.

The NDRRMC also recorded the cost of assistance in other regions as listed below:

Western Visayas: P1,461,292 for 19,185 families

Cagayan Valley: P1,300,672.39 for 1,795 families

Ilocos Region: P338,321 for 1,146 families

CAR: P328,294.87 for 1,429 families

Food was the primary form of assistance provided to the families, but others also received sleeping kits, bottled water, financial assistance, and hygiene kits, the NDRRMC recorded.

Assistance was also provided to local government units.

According to the NDRRMC, P2.9 million (P2,956,850) worth of ready-to-eat food was distributed to the following local governments:

Casiguran, Aurora

Dinalungan, Aurora

Dilasag, Aurora

Dingalan, Aurora

Dipaculao, Aurora

San Luis Aurora

Obando, Bulacan

Pampanga local government

Angeles, Pampanga

It must be noted that 652,632 families have been affected by Uwan. The NDRRMC broke down the affected families per region as listed:

Bicol Region: 329,029 families

Eastern Visayas: 53,053 families

Negros Island Region: 51,468 families

Central Luzon: 44,998 families

Western Visayas: 36,006 families

Cagayan Valley: 32,447 families

Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao: 22,018 families

Caraga: 22,018 families

NCR: 17,704 families

Ilocos Region: 16,493 families

Mimaropa: 8,499 families

Calabarzon: 4,685 families

CAR: 3,493 families

Zamboanga Peninsula: 1,235 families

Northern Mindanao: 1,112 families

Secondhand car financing platform OneLot has raised $3.3 million from what is believed to be the largest seed funding round in the Philippines this year so far, allowing it to expand its budget offerings and digital tools for independent dealers.

The seed round was led by Accion Ventures and 468 Capital, with participation from Everywhere Ventures, Seedstars, Crestone Venture Capital, Kaya Founders, Georg Steiger of BillEase and Jojo Malolos of Paymongo.

‘With this new funding round, we’re doubling down on our mission to become the leading financing platform for used car dealers,’ OneLot CEO and co-founder Harm-Julian Schumacher said on Tuesday.

OneLot is a financing platform for used car dealers that uses AI-driven underwriting models and onsite vehicle appraisal for faster release of inventory loans.

Fresh funds

In its first one and a half years of operations, the platform has issued more than $7 million in loans across the 150 dealers on its platform.

With the fresh funds it had secured, OneLot is eyeing to penetrate further into the $15-billion secondhand car market in the Philippines.

‘The fresh capital will accelerate OneLot’s mission to empower used car entrepreneurs with faster access to credit, AI-driven underwriting, and technology solutions that help them grow their businesses,’ it said.

The city government of Dagupan was placed under a state of calamity on Monday afternoon after Super Typhoon ‘Uwan’ (international name: Fung-Wong) brought heavy rains and widespread flooding across the city.

This is the third time Dagupan has been placed under a state of calamity this year – first in July due to flooding caused by the southwest monsoon (habagat), and again in September following heavy rains brought by Tropical Storm Nando.

‘Rescue, evacuation, and relief teams continue to work around the clock, bringing food, medical aid, and support to displaced families. Every city department, together with partner agencies, remains on full alert to assist our communities,’ the City Information Office said in a statement.

Dagupan was among the coastal areas in Pangasinan hardest hit by Uwan, as high tide and storm surges intensified flooding in several barangays. Other affected towns included San Fabian, Lingayen, and Bolinao.

Despite the severe flooding, the Pangasinan Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (PDRRMO) reported no casualties in the province.

Agriculture and infrastructure, however, suffered significant losses, with initial estimates placing the damage at P416.8 million in agriculture and P68 million in infrastructure

The economy’s animal spirits are down. Gross domestic product (GDP) grew by 4 percent in the third quarter of 2025, the lowest quarterly growth since 2011, excluding pandemic years. The slowdown came not from lack of funds or demand, but from hesitation.

Services expanded 5.5 percent, agriculture 2.8 percent, industry only 0.7 percent. Within construction’s 0.5 percent decline, government construction plummeted 26.2 percent while private construction surged 14.4 percent. Gross capital formation fell 2.8 percent after growing 12.8 percent a year earlier. The government kept paying salaries but stopped building.

On top of this general air of paranoia, around P100 billion in ‘for-later-release’ (FLR) funds sits idle.

Everything slowed after the flood control investigations began. Not just the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), but every agency that approves, certifies or releases funds.

The paranoia about who’s next on the chopping block spreads through the entire system.

The mechanics of paralysis

In a low-trust system, almost no one operates entirely by the book. Even the most virtuous businesses will admit privately that almost everyone has bent the rigidities of the system, not necessarily corruptly, but to get things done fast. In the long run, it would benefit everyone if those adjustments were unnecessary.

But in their absence, simpler systems and safe harbors must be in place.

When investigations started, those adjustments became dangerous. What was tolerated as practical judgment could suddenly be treated as wrongdoing. Officials stopped signing. The entire system entered suspended animation. Manufacturing grew only 1.2 percent despite semiconductor exports surging 23.3 percent. Domestic capacity was constrained not by demand but by operational paralysis.

Implementing agencies must implement

Accountability is good. That’s why we have the Independent Commission for Infrastructure (ICI), Department of Justice, Ombudsman, Commission on Audit (COA), Senate blue ribbon and House committees to investigate while implementing agencies continue their work.

The DPWH should build roads. The Department of Transportation (DOTr) should deliver transport projects. The Department of Education should construct classrooms. When these agencies become paralyzed by fear, they stop doing what they exist to do. Implementing agencies should cooperate fully: turn over evidence, provide documents, answer questions, then return to work.

When they stop all work out of caution, the public pays twice: once for corruption, again for paralysis.

Ironically, the corrupt are often the only ones willing to move. They have protection and connections. The ordinary bureaucrat, aware that a single COA observation can derail a career, chooses caution.

Two paths forward

Path one: Establish anchors

The government must define which projects may proceed, which are under review, and which are suspended. Timelines must be fixed and public. FLR projects should not be held as a single blocked item.

A safe harbor policy will provide a sense of assurance for officials who just want to do their jobs. By making clear what conditions are required so that a project is not considered suspect, things can move. Cases with credible irregularities should be suspended specifically, not systemically.

Codification is critical. What constitutes acceptable specification adjustments, reasonable timeline extensions and sufficient documentation must be explicit, public and available.

Path two: Compensate through aid

If we insist on freezing infrastructure, we must compensate through aid. The series of natural disasters provides clear need.

When people see billions for flood control while communities remain flooded, they demand accountability. But if pursuing accountability freezes infrastructure, we must keep money flowing another way. Disaster aid bypasses the paralyzed bureaucracy through different channels and emergency procedures. The P100 billion sitting idle could be redirected to disaster response.

This isn’t ideal. Aid is temporary; infrastructure is permanent. Aid treats symptoms; infrastructure prevents them. But ensuring both accountability and economic stability may require this temporary adjustment.

The Dizon challenge

Secretary Vince Dizon did wonders at the DOTr. One imagines his frustration at the DPWH, where everyone operates under suspicion, hence the courtesy resignations. At the DOTr, he could identify clean operators and empower them. At the DPWH, the contamination may appear universal.

He must restore the principle that implementing agencies implement while investigative agencies investigate. But unlike at the DOTr, where he could appoint the best people, at the DPWH, he must first break the paralysis of universal suspicion.

The best way to do this is by making rules clearer, so that the clean can proceed with the rules on their side. Instead, for example, of treating FLR projects as entirely suspect, rules can be made clear so that their release is conditional on readiness to implement and accountability of implementation.

Private sector data are not bearish. Exports grew 7 percent. The fundamentals remain sound. The constraint is entirely public sector paralysis. This is tethered bulls.

The cost of inaction

The gap between the third quarter of 2024’s 12.8-percent investment growth and the third quarter of 2025’s negative 2.8 percent represents lost development momentum. The human cost is starker: the difference between consensus 5.4-percent growth and actual 4 percent means 200,000 to 250,000 Filipinos remain in poverty who otherwise would have escaped it.

Once the rules of movement are restored, growth will return. The bulls are tethered not by economic constraints but institutional paranoia. We have investigative agencies to investigate. We need implementing agencies to implement. If immediate accountability takes priority, we must ensure aid flows to prevent hardship. Paralysis quickly becomes metastasis when unchecked

President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. praised government agencies for saving lives during the peak of Super Typhoon Uwan (international name: Fung-wong) by implementing preemptive evacuations in communities along its path.

‘I want to thank our local governments, first responders, and volunteers for acting quickly and working together to keep our people safe,’ Marcos said in a statement as he presided over a post-Uwan briefing in Malacañang.

‘The preemptive evacuations you carried out made all the difference. Your swift action made a tremendous impact,’ he added.

As of Tuesday, the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) reported at least 25 deaths from Typhoon Uwan, which affected nearly the entire country and displaced about 2.4 million people.

In the densely populated National Capital Region, home to around 15 million, no casualties were reported. This contrasts sharply with Typhoon Tino (international name: Kalmaegi), which claimed 232 lives and devastated eight regions in the Visayas, southern Luzon, and northern Mindanao just days before Uwan. It was the deadliest tropical cyclone to hit the country this year, with 112 still reported missing.

In a press briefing, Palace press officer Claire Castro said Marcos was satisfied with the preparations and disaster response of the national and local governments with Uwan. ‘The preparedness shown by our agencies, which resulted in saving people from danger is something the President recognizes. As we reported yesterday, 426,000 families were immediately evacuated and spared from harm – that is a significant achievement,’ Castro said.

‘We cannot completely prevent casualties during calamities, but thanks to the preemptive measures carried out by our agencies, under the directive of President Marcos, more lives have been saved this time,’ she added.

A total of 1.4 million people, or 426,000 families, were preemptively evacuated across the NCR, Cordillera Administrative Region, Ilocos Region, Cagayan Valley, Central Luzon, Calabarzon, Mimaropa, Negros Island Region, Bicol, Western Visayas, Central Visayas, and Eastern Visayas.

More than 800,000 people remain in evacuation centers.

Uwan exited the Philippine area of responsibility (PAR) at 1:30 a.m. on Tuesday. Although it is expected to re-enter PAR on Wednesday evening, it is no longer considered a threat to most parts of the country.

The Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical, and Astronomical Services Administration warned, however, that Uwan’s wide reach could bring strong winds to extreme northern Luzon upon its return. President Marcos also ordered the full mobilization of government resources to provide immediate assistance and conduct relief operations in areas severely affected by Typhoons Uwan and Tino.

He directed agency heads to personally oversee relief and recovery efforts, ensuring the needs of affected residents are met.

Social Welfare Secretary Rex Gatchalian flew to Catanduanes to lead aid distribution for families impacted by Uwan, while Health Secretary Ted Herbosa traveled to Leyte to supervise relief and medical operations in the municipalities of Silago, Hinunangan, St. Bernard, Sogod, and Bontoc.

Education Secretary Sonny Angara also visited Negros Occidental to meet with regional officials and assess the condition of school facilities.

Marcos also directed Tourism Secretary Christina Garcia-Frasco to assess the impact of the typhoons on local tourism, especially in Cebu province, one of the top destinations in the country.

Energy Secretary Sharon Garin has been monitoring areas along the path of the two typhoons to ensure the stability of power supply in affected provinces.

Road repairs

The president also ordered Public Works Secretary Vince Dizon to conduct 24/7 clean-up and repair works of damaged roads.

According to Castro, 26 national roads have already been reopened and are now passable to motorists, adding that even transport operations are back to normal.

Citing data from the Department of Public Works and Highways, Castro said nearly 40 national road sections became impassable due to flooding, landslides, fallen trees, and toppled electricity posts. Clearing operations were ongoing in 13 road sections in the Cordillera Administrative Region; 10 in Cagayan Valley, eight in Bicol, and one each in NCR, Ilocos, Central Luzon, and Soccsksargen.

With his his honey-like voice and boy-next-door look, Korean singer-actor Doh Kyung-soo has earned the reputation of being an effortless charmer, which explains why it was mentally challenging for him to fully embrace his dark side.

Doh is the central villain of the crime thriller ‘The Manipulated’ taking on the role of Ahn Yo-han. He is described as a cold manipulator ‘who designs incidents,’ in which Park Tae-jung (Ji Chang-wook) falls victim.

Park eventually discovers Ahn to be the mastermind of his life’s misfortune, leading to a violent cat-and-mouse chase between the two.

‘Literally, his actual job is a manipulator. And literally, he is a very evil person who designs incidents and manipulates people,’ the actor-singer said of his role at a media con in Seoul before the series’ premiere. ‘When I first received the script, it was, of course, very interesting.’

Since Yo-han is Doh’s first time to portray a villain, he ‘thought a lot’ about how to make a chilling appearance. ‘Since this is my first time playing a villain, I was very curious about what kind of feeling the character would have and what kind of performance would come out.’

‘I thought a lot about how to make Yohan look chilling. So, I dyed and permed my hair, and then dyed it black again,’ he continued. ‘I thought and imagined a lot based on movies, documentaries, and the characteristics of people with those kinds of tendencies that I’ve seen before.’ Yo-han, who often wore ‘clean, very flashy suits’ to give an impression of an upright man, sees Tae-jun as a ‘cockroach’ and ‘ultimate goal.’ This means that he won’t stop at nothing until the latter is finished for good.

‘From Yohan’s perspective, Tae-jun is like a cockroach. He has incredible tenacity and life force. Yohan keeps trying to crush him, but he keeps crawling back up alive. That’s what he’s like,’ Doh explained.

Kyung-soo and Kwang-soo’s friendship

Another villain in ‘The Manipulated’ is Yo-han’s VIP customer Baek Do-kyung, played by actor and variety star Lee Kwang-soo – known as Doh’s close friend behind the scenes.

‘Since Kyung-soo and I are so close, I worried before filming that I might feel awkward acting with him on set. But it was really great when we met on set. There was none of that awkwardness. In a way, thanks to Kyung-soo and Chang-wook, I was able to do everything I wanted to do,’ Lee said of his working relationship with Doh and Ji on set.

‘Because they were so comfortable and accepted everything I did and liked it, I felt like I was going to the set to hang out. I got to do all the things I prepared and wanted to do on set before going home,’ he continued. The series shows Do-kyung being under Yo-han’s mercy, even though the former doesn’t want to admit it to himself. Yet Lee is Doh’s senior on set when it comes to portraying a villain.

‘We usually meet up casually, eat together, and do various things. But when we filmed our first scene together on set, I thought, ‘Ah, this is Doh Kyung-soo.’ He was so different from the Kyung-soo I usually see. Seeing how professional and focused he was on set made me feel and learn a lot,’ Lee said of Doh’s professionalism.

‘That is one of the reasons why so many people like Kyung-soo. It’s truly different when he’s working and when he’s not. Even though we worked together before, seeing him on set this time made me think, ‘This is where Kyung-soo’s great power comes from,” he further shared.

This explains why Doh is grateful that Lee ‘provokes his anger’ while filming. ‘He provoked a tremendous amount of anger. Because the character itself is very ‘thin,’ as he described it. So, what should I say? I was annoyed.’

‘The character Baek Do-kyung is constantly poking at Yo-han. And I really was poked a lot,’ he continued. ‘And personally, since we are close, looking at him while acting could have felt awkward. But he portrayed the character Baek Do-kyung so well that it didn’t feel awkward at all. I was actually able to immerse myself completely.’

Directed by Park Shin-woo and Kim Chang-ju, the 12-episode ‘The Manipulated’ also stars Kim Jong-soo and Jo Yoon-su.