Category: Philippines Daily Inquirer

President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has directed the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) to release by Nov. 15 the year-end bonus and cash gift for 1.85 million government employees nationwide, Palace press officer Claire Castro said in a press briefing on Tuesday.

In a statement, Budget Secretary Amenah Pangandaman said that under Budget Circular No. 2024-3, the year-end bonus, which is equivalent to a one-month basic pay, and the P5,000 cash gift will be released ‘with the first agency payroll of November 2025.’

Conditions

Under DBM rules, all government personnel-whether regular, contractual or casual, or working part-time or full-time-are entitled to both incentives if they have rendered at least four months of service from Jan. 1, and remain government service as of Oct. 31.

The early release of the year-end bonus and cash gift ‘reflects the Marcos administration’s recognition of public servants and their heroism in serving the nation,’ Castro said.

‘It is also one of the government’s efforts to honor the hard work and dedication of government employees,’ she added.

For fiscal year 2025, a total of P63.69 billion has been allocated for the year-end bonus of civilian and military or uniformed personnel, and P9.24 billion for the cash gift, which covers over 1.85 million government workers nationwide.

The DBM directed all government agencies to release the bonuses promptly and in accordance with existing budget circulars. It noted that all funds for the year-end bonus and cash gift have been comprehensively released at the start of the fiscal year, allowing them to process and credit the benefits without delay.

Season of giving

‘We value the diligence and excellence of our government workers, which is why we are making sure that their benefits are released on time,’ Pangandaman said.

‘We know how much government personnel look forward to this time of the year, not just because it’s the season of giving, but because it serves as a well-deserved recognition of their service and sacrifice,’ she added.

Prior to the 2024 budget circular, year-end bonuses and cash gifts were disbursed to government employees ‘not earlier than Nov. 15 of the current year,’ resulting in delayed releases, which affected their morale, motivation, and level of job satisfaction.

Rain or Shine shoots for a share of the PBA Philippine Cup lead, while two struggling squads-Titan Ultra and Blackwater-look to climb out of early slumps in a pivotal Wednesday triple-header at Ninoy Aquino Stadium.

The Elasto Painters hope to stretch their win streak to four and improve to an impressive 5-1 card as they face the Phoenix Super LPG Fuel Masters at 7:30 p.m. With TNT and Magnolia also sitting at 4-1, a win gives Rain or Shine a temporary solo hold of the top spot.

Despite their record, coach Yeng Guiao isn’t getting carried away.

‘We cannot win close games every time,’ he said, referring to back-to-back escapes-a 96-95 edging of Meralco and a thrilling 112-111 decision over Titan Ultra. ‘If we rely on breaks or we rely on getting lucky, there will be a day that luck won’t be on our side.’

Sides collide

Meanwhile, Titan and Blackwater collide earlier in the day, both carrying the weight of recent setbacks and desperately seeking momentum. The Giant Risers are mired in a four-game skid, their latest loss being the gut-wrenching one-point heartbreaker to Rain or Shine. Now at 1-4, Titan aims to stop the bleeding.

Blackwater, for its part, has dropped three straight after a 1-0 start and comes into the 4:30 p.m. clash with fresher legs, having had a full week to regroup following a 99-88 loss to NLEX

The Department of Agriculture (DA) has assured that Typhoon Tino (international name: Kalmaegi) will not curb rice supply in the Philippines, although the weather disturbance may affect corn harvests.

‘We’re not too worried about rice since the harvest is almost complete in major producing provinces and most of the affected regions are not major producing areas,’ Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. said in a statement on Wednesday.

But the DA warned that corn production might sustain ‘significant losses.’

Tiu Laurel said the National Food Authority (NFA) had sufficient rice stocks to cover the country’s requirements. Even then, he said the agency would closely monitor the situation.

‘But we may have an issue with corn because about 33,000 hectares of cornfields were affected by Tino,’ he added.

Current buffer

The country’s rice stocks totaled 2.35 million metric tons as of Oct. 1, up 3.2 percent from the same month last year, data from the Philippine Statistics Authority showed.

The commercial sector accounted for 40.5 percent of last month’s rice inventory.

Corn stocks reached 846,810 MT, a 16.3 percent increase from a year ago. The commercial sector contributed 78.1 percent to the total.

Tiu Laurel has instructed all regional field offices to conduct rapid damage assessments and prepare for a potentially stronger typhoon that could hit Northern Luzon over the weekend.

Losses expected

The DA has yet to estimate losses arising from Typhoon Tino.

However, the agency said, ‘damage and losses are expected in affected regions as assessment and validations are ongoing.’

Nonetheless, the DA has readied P255 million worth of farm inputs for distribution to affected farmers and fishers. These include rice, corn and vegetable seeds, fingerlings and biologics.

It is prepared to assist fishers in repairing fishing gears and boats, and provide fuel assistance.

Crop protection

The Philippine Crop Insurance Corp. will expedite the processing of farmers’ claims affected by the typhoon.

To help local producers rebuild their plantations, the Agricultural Credit Policy Council is prepared to offer up to P25,000 in loans through its Survival and Recovery (SURE) Loan Program.

The NFA, for its part, has set aside 2.6 million bags of rice for distribution to local government units and relief agencies.

Meanwhile, the DA will sell rice at P20 per kilogram through Kadiwa ng Pangulo outlets.

A family of nine who sought shelter in their home in Canlaon City, Negros Oriental, was swept away by raging floodwaters at the height of Typhoon Tino on Tuesday night.

Seven members of the Espora family were later found buried under thick mud and large rocks, while two others remain missing as of press time.

According to Seth Bariga of the Canlaon Public Information Office (PIO), the family likely did not expect flash flooding in their area, which had never experienced such an event before.

‘During our rescue and retrieval operations, their neighbors told us that during the onslaught of the flash flood, the family tried to climb up to the roof of their house to avoid being swept away. But when they got on the roof, it suddenly collapsed,’ Bariga said.

The family’s home was located along the national road, with a river stream directly behind it. The stream, which had never overflowed in the past, burst its banks during the storm.

Rescue teams said the water overflowed from the stream and surged into the Esporas’ home. As the family struggled to escape the rising waters at the back of their house, another flash flood hit from the front, trapping them between two strong currents.

‘They were literally sandwiched by two powerful water currents,’ one rescuer said.

On November 5, retrieval teams recovered the bodies of the seven victims buried under mud and boulders. The fatalities were identified as Ruditha Espora, 60; Reyno Espora, 60; Thea Sandra Espora, 20; Lady Grace Espora; Amarath Espora, 3; Indigho Espora, 10 sand John Nathan Espora, 10

Search and rescue operations for the two remaining missing family members are still ongoing

President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has assured the bereaved families of those who died in a Philippine Air Force (PAF) chopper crash in Agusan del Sur that all assistance they need will be provided, according to Palace Press Officer Claire Castro.

At a briefing on Wednesday, Castro said Marcos is already aware of the tragedy and extends his sympathies to the grieving families.

‘He [Marcos] extends his condolences to the families of the fallen heroes of our country,’ Castro said.

‘And all the help that is needed should be delivered to the affected families,’ she also said.

The Department of National Defense had also condoled with the relatives of the victims.

Castro, reading an official statement from the agency, said, ‘The Department of National Defense extends its heartfelt condolences to the bereaved families of the six Philippine Air Force pilots and crew of the Super Huey that crashed in Agusan del Sur on November 4, 2025.’

‘Dedication to duty and sacrifice will always be remembered, especially as these were made in the service of our fellow Filipinos facing the effects of Typhoon Tino,’ she also said.

Search and rescue teams recovered six bodies believed to be those of the pilot and crew members of the PAF Super Huey chopper that crashed in Loreto town.

The PAF pilot and crew were conducting a relief mission in areas affected by Typhoon Tino (international name: Kalmaegi) when the helicopter crashed, according to Armed Forces of the Philippines officials.

Although he reportedly wants to face the allegations against him, former Ako Bicol party-list Rep. Elizaldy Co is hesitant to return to the Philippines because of alleged ‘credible and serious’ threats to his life, according to his lawyer Ruy Rondain.

Rondain said Co wanted to personally respond to the issues but could not do so at this time because of security concerns.

‘Representative Co would have wanted to be here himself to answer your questions. Unfortunately, there are credible and serious threats to his life,’ Rondain revealed in a press conference Wednesday.

‘He has a general fear of being shot-whether by a vigilante or a political enemy he doesn’t even know,’ he said.

The lawyer also addressed questions about Co’s whereabouts, initially saying he does not know where the former lawmaker is.

‘Let me get ahead of the inevitable question: I don’t know where he is. I never asked, because it’s not relevant to his defense,’ Rondain said.

‘And frankly, I didn’t want to be in a position where I’d have to lie to anyone if I were asked that question. So no, I don’t know where he is,’ he told reporters.

Later, during the same press conference, however, Rondain disclosed that the last information he received about Co’s whereabouts was that he was in Boston, sometime between September and October, for medical reasons.

Co has been under scrutiny after his name was linked to alleged irregularities in the P289.5-million flood control project in Naujan, Oriental Mindoro.

In its first interim report, the Independent Commission for Infrastructure (ICI) asked the Office of the Ombudsman to determine the appropriate charges to be filed against 18 public officials, including the former lawmaker.

A month later, the commission recommended the filing of criminal and administrative cases against Senators Jinggoy Estrada and Joel Villanueva, Co and three others in connection with suspected ‘ghost’ flood control projects.

The recommendations stemmed from an alleged kickback scheme, based on sworn affidavits and corroborating evidence from former Department of Public Works and Highways officials Henry Alcantara, Brice Ericson Hernandez, and Jaypee Mendoza.

Nearly 1,000 houses in Guiuan, Eastern Samar, were either destroyed or damaged after Typhoon Tino (international name: Kalmaegi) battered the town early this week.

Based on a report from the Municipal Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (MDRRMC), chaired by Mayor Annaliza Gonzales-Kwan, 126 houses were destroyed while 818 others sustained damage.

The hardest-hit areas were the island barangays of Cagusuan, Casuguran, and Culasi, located in the historic Homonhon Island, where Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan first landed in 1521.

In Cagusuan, 21 houses were reported totally destroyed while 203 others suffered partial damage. Casuguran recorded 98 homes completely flattened, while Culasi saw 237 houses partially damaged as strong winds and heavy rains pummeled the town from midnight on Monday until early Tuesday.

Mayor Gonzales-Kwan said most of the affected houses were made of light materials such as nipa shingles and bamboo, which easily gave way to the typhoon’s intensity.

Following the damage assessment, the Guiuan municipal council placed the entire town under a state of calamity on Tuesday to allow the release of emergency funds for immediate relief and recovery efforts.

The local government, with support from the provincial government of Eastern Samar under Governor Ralph Vincent Evardone, has started distributing housing materials to families who lost their homes.

Despite the widespread destruction, the mayor said no casualties or missing persons were reported. However, seven individuals sustained minor injuries, according to the Rural Health Unit.

She added that no major roads or bridges were damaged, allowing relief operations to reach affected communities quickly.

During the height of Typhoon Tino, authorities carried out preemptive evacuations, moving 2,579 families or 9,083 individuals to safer areas to avoid casualties.

‘While the extent of damage to homes is significant, we are thankful that no lives were lost,’ Mayor Gonzales-Kwan said, adding that the local government remains focused on helping residents rebuild

Witnesses on Wednesday recalled that the ill-fated Philippine Air Force (PAF) Super Huey helicopter was already burning before it crashed in Barangay Sabud, Loreto town, Agusan del Sur.

Delmar Jay-ar Bantuasan II, barangay secretary of Sabud, told the Inquirer that many villagers saw the chopper’s tail section on fire prior to the crash.

‘Yes, we saw the chopper’s tail billowing smoke as it tried to maneuver before it fell,’ Bantuasan added.

The helicopter had flown from Davao City and was en route to Butuan City as part of a four-aircraft mission conducting rapid disaster assessments over the Caraga region. It lost communication with the rest of the flight and was later found crashed.

Bantuasan said the villagers first noticed the helicopter around 11 a.m. on Tuesday, flying low and circling repeatedly ‘as if trying to maneuver to land.’

The crash site is roughly a kilometer from the village center. He added that the three other aircraft circled the area but did not land due to the lack of a safe, open space.

Bantuasan and his sister reached the wreckage about two hours after the crash, delaying their approach out of fear of a possible explosion.

The PAF explained that the downed Super Huey was a refurbished helicopter acquired from the United States in 2011, operated by two pilots and four crew members from the PAF’s Search and Rescue Group, the unit responsible for first response in calamity relief missions

Several major dams across Western Visayas have recorded rising water levels as heavy rains from Typhoon Tino continued to drench the region, prompting close monitoring by the National Irrigation Administration (NIA) Region VI to ensure the safety of nearby communities and irrigation systems.

As of 8 a.m. Wednesday, NIA’s dam updates showed that most facilities are within warning levels but remain under control, with all sluice gates either closed or partially open in select areas.

In Iloilo province, the Aganan-Sta. Barbara River Irrigation System reported elevated readings at both its main dams. The Aganan Dam in Barangay Igtambo, San Miguel, registered 3.50 meters above riverbed (marb)-well above its normal 2.6 marb level-placing it in the warning category.

Meanwhile, the Sta. Barbara Dam in Brgy. Tungay, Sta. Barbara rose to 3.30 marb from a normal 1.8 marb. Both dams have no open sluice gates as of 7 a.m.

The Barotac Viejo Dam in Barangay Rizal, Barotac Viejo, measured 1.50 marb, exceeding its 1.2 marb normal level and also under warning status. The Sibalom Diversion Dam in Barangay Anonang, Leon, posted 2.81 marb, up from its usual 2.2 marb, while the Suague River Irrigation System (RIS) Dam in Barangay Tolarucan, Mina, rose to 3.20 marb, surpassing the 2.5 marb mark, with one gate already opened to ease water pressure.

For the Jalaur-Suague River Irrigation System in Barangay Moroboro, Dingle, the Jalaur Dam recorded 23.60 meters above sea level (masl), slightly below its 24 masl normal operating elevation-classified as normal, with 12 of its 13 main gates open to regulate water discharge.

In Antique, the Nasuli Dam in Barangay Nasuli, San Remigio, showed a significant increase to 3.4 marb from its 2.0 marb normal level, with all three sluice gates open to release excess water and prevent overflow.

In Capiz, the Mambusao River Irrigation System (RIS) in Brgy. Sinondojan, Mambusao, reached 20.30 masl, exceeding its 19.10 masl normal level, though all sluice gates remain closed.

Meanwhile, in Aklan, both the Panakuyan RIS in Barangay. Agdugayan, Ibajay, and Aklan RIS-East in Barangay Sigcay, Banga, registered minor increases, with 16.00 masl and 18.90 masl, respectively-both above their normal operating elevations and tagged under warning status.

The NIA said all dams in the region are being continuously monitored in coordination with the Office of Civil Defense, the Regional Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council, and local government units. Authorities assured that no dam is in critical condition as of this report, but preemptive measures are being implemented to safeguard residents living near riverbanks and downstream communities.

NIA advised the public to stay alert and follow local advisories, especially those living in flood-prone or low-lying areas. Emergency hotlines have been activated for Western Visayas at 0951-1227-056 and 0956-5562-463 for any urgent coordination or reporting of water level changes.

Heavy rainfall from Tino has affected large parts of Panay Island since Monday, inundating low-lying barangays and prompting class and work suspensions in Iloilo, Capiz, and Aklan.

The Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration earlier warned that saturated soils and continuous rains may cause river swelling and flash floods in Western Visayas, even as the typhoon gradually weakens while crossing the Visayas region

The total number of deaths due to Typhoon Tino (international name: Kalmaegi) climbed to 85, including the fatalities due to a helicopter crash, the Office of Civil Defense (OCD) said on Wednesday.

OCD deputy spokesperson Diego Mariano told reporters that most of the deaths are in Cebu province at 49 ‘due to fallen debris, landslides, and flooding.’

Mariano said the OCD also considered the six fatalities in Agusan del Sur helicopter crash as related to the effects of Typhoon Tino.

Also, he said that one death each was reported in Bohol, Capiz, and Leyte, ‘all caused by fallen deaths.’

In Negros Island Region, one person died due to falling debris and three from drowning, while another in Leyte died due to floods.

The remaining cause of the remaining 28 deaths is still being determined, according to Mariano.

Also, 75 individuals remain missing, while 17 were injured due to Tino.

As of 5:00 p.m., Tino’s center was estimated based on all available data at 330 kilometers east northeast of Pag-asa Island in Kalayaan town of Palawan province, according to the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration.