Category: Philippines Daily Inquirer

Bea Gomez is heartbroken over the devastation caused by Typhoon Tino in several regions including her home province of Cebu, lamenting the billions of public funds that could have been used for flood control infrastructures.

Through her Instagram Stories on Tuesday, Nov. 4, the Cebuano beauty queen called for prayers for the typhoon victims, especially those in Cebu which was also previously struck by a strong earthquake.

Gomez showed the aftermath of the calamity, with houses, vehicles and residents submerged in floodwaters.

She then shared a Cebu Daily News report which details the billions-worth of flood control projects in Cebu.

‘Damages can occur during natural calamities but with this much budget, preventive measures could’ve been made,’ Gomez captioned her post.

‘Cebuanos prepared for this calamity, what else could have been done?’ she continued. ‘This is exactly why we demand for these kinds of projects because people can only do so much. The rest is up to the agencies responsible.’

Concluding her post, she exclaimed, ‘Pagkapait palandungon!’ (Napakapait isipin!) Gomez, who just recently got married, represented Cebu in her Miss Universe Philippines campaign in 2021, which she eventually won. She then went on to represent the country at the 70th edition of the Miss Universe that same year, finishing in the Top 5.

Celebs call for prayers

Other celebrities including Angel Locsin and Anne Curtis sent prayers for typhoon victims via their respective X pages.

‘Are we all thinking the same – is it just because of the rain, or because something could’ve been done to prevent it?’ Locsin said.

‘Hope authorities look into this as well so it doesn’t happen again. Wishing our kababayans a quick recovery and safer days ahead,’ she added.

Not another one ??Hoping everyone in Cebu is safe.Are we all thinking the same – is it just because of the rain, or because something could’ve been done to prevent it?Hope authorities look into this as well so it doesn’t happen again.Wishing our kababayans a quick recoveryActress-beauty queen Winwyn Marquez, meanwhile, aired her dismay over the prolonged investigations on the alleged anomalous flood control projects while calamities affect Filipino people.

‘May bagyo nanaman pero (There is a typhoon again but) no one is being held accountable pa din. Pag nagbaha nanaman (When the floods rise again), what will they say this time?’ she wrote via her Instagram Stories. ‘While everyone keeps pointing fingers over these so-called flood control projects, has anything actually been done to truly help?’ Typhoon Tino wreaked havoc in several regions in the country, with the flooding killing more than 50 and displacing hundreds of thousands of Filipinos.

As per Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical, and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa) on Wednesday morning, Typhoon Tino made its seventh landfall in Batas Island, Palawan

I recently overheard students talking about foreign language classes, a requirement at the Ateneo de Manila University. One asked the other which professor she had chosen for basic Mandarin; when she heard the answer, she endorsed another professor.

‘His exams are super easy. He teaches baby Mandarin! Even his quizzes are super fun. You just have to translate memes and videos! He’s so chill! You should have picked him!’

I was rather disturbed because I’ve heard this same exchange before: from students who refused to take subjects they had no prior knowledge on (‘Why should I take swimming? I don’t know how to swim!’), or who avoided teachers who were known to give great lectures but weren’t generous with grades (‘You’ll learn a lot, but he’s strict and the average is just a C+!’), or who chose an elective because they wanted an easy A (‘It’s just a fun class with no work!’).

Even more recently, a former student shared what she had heard some students say about their engagement with communities under the Philippine Jesuit Prison Service Foundation, Inc. Those students, she told me, were unmotivated to do any class projects because they said they didn’t want to work with rapists, murderers, and thieves. My former student was, understandably, frustrated with her peers.

Both the conversation on getting an easy A and labeling people’s sins as permanent jarred me considerably because these conversations stood in such stark contrast to the student body’s loud protests against corruption-a sin that has stemmed from, among many things, the wish of people to take shortcuts; a sin that grew even more brazen during an administration that focused so hard on labeling the poor for their crimes that they grew blind to the maneuvers of the privileged.

Now, on a smaller scale, we have students who do not want to be challenged, learn something new, or exert effort. We have students who either stigmatize the poor or believe themselves to be the messiah that will save them.

We’ve heard students say that the tuition in Ateneo is so high, the students deserve an A-but that reduces school to a mere giver of letter grades, and students to mere recipients of scores.

This defines students as clients rather than learners, who unsurprisingly pick up little from their lessons because they come to class with the end, rather than the process, in mind. It ‘s also no surprise that many students feel alienated from their work, as though they no longer have control over what they do, and focus instead on checking off items from a never-ending list of requirements.

True, there are some instructors who set unreasonable deadlines, or who are disproportionately strict with the quality of student submissions. There are genuine cases where mental health has to take top priority. But for many cases, we too, want to see students grow with challenges rather than shrink into their comfort zones.

And as for those who refuse to help their marginalized communities, we are appalled. Despite all efforts to help all students see beyond their fences, we will always have (what we hope is) a minority that leaves college with no growth from when they first entered.

To both the seekers of convenience and the labelers of the marginalized, we say: we will all have to meet unreasonable deadlines, face the stress of work, deal with uncertain situations, and talk to people who disagree with us. Not all bosses will be considerate. Not all colleagues will work efficiently. Not everyone will be kind. No one will be sinless.

At that point, we can only meet the deadlines as best we can without sabotaging our health or well-being. We can only meet people where they are, with their quirks and foibles, their knowledge and ignorance, their crimes and their pasts. We can’t keep avoiding discomfort.

And when we speak up against a government and its bid to take the least difficult path to amassing money, we can’t make ourselves the exception to our own rules.

The stories I’ve told are, thankfully, rare. The uncaring student preoccupied only with grades and ignoring the poor is not the norm.

Many of my creativity students have shared their dismay not only at the government, but at their fellow students’ silence, and at how some of their peers believe that sharing memes and ranting online are enough to effect change.

Between sessions, my belly dance students and I talk about Palestine and the need to rebuild it on its own terms; the Senate hearings that are fast becoming a circus; the need to keep speaking up in a world that won’t always listen.

Some of my students call out their peers who complain too much, seek out convenience over effort, and put in too little work into class requirements.

That is true maturity and strength. Not the avoidance. Not the craving for that which is easy and clean.

The curiosity. The wanting to venture beyond one’s fences, even if one might discover one’s inadequacy-because that is the path of truly seeing and participating in the world. That is the making of a real ‘man and woman for others.’

The entire province of Cebu has been placed under a state of calamity following the widespread destruction caused by Typhoon Tino (international name: Kalmaegi), which battered the province on Tuesday, November 4.

Governor Pamela Baricuatro issued Executive Order No. 68, Series of 2025, late Tuesday, declaring the state of calamity to allow the provincial government and local government units (LGUs) to mobilize emergency resources for rescue, relief, and rehabilitation operations.

According to the order, Tino caused severe damage to infrastructure, government facilities, private establishments, and residential areas, resulting in fatalities, injuries, and the displacement of communities across Cebu.

The typhoon also disrupted basic services and posed ongoing threats to public safety, health, and security.

The Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (PDRRMO), in coordination with local disaster councils, confirmed the damage and recommended the declaration after assessments revealed widespread destruction and continuous risks to life and property.

Under the executive order, all provincial and local government offices are authorized to use their Quick Response Funds (QRF) and other appropriate funds for rescue, relief, recovery, and rehabilitation efforts, subject to auditing rules and regulations.

A price freeze and anti-profiteering measures were also implemented to prevent overpricing of basic necessities and prime commodities.

The Department of Trade and Industry and the Local Price Coordinating Council were directed to monitor prices and ensure the availability of essential goods during the emergency period.

The order mandates the Cebu PDRRMO to lead and coordinate rescue, relief, medical, and rehabilitation operations, and to mobilize necessary manpower and resources for immediate disaster response.

The state of calamity will remain in effect until lifted by the provincial government upon the recommendation of the PDRRMC

Lopez family-led First Gen Corp. is keen on participating in the rehabilitation of the Agus-Pulangi hydropower complex.

First Gen vice president Jay Joel Soriano, who also heads strategy and planning, said hydro energy was ‘a nice complement’ to other renewable sources, like geothermal, solar and wind energy.

‘We need the right mix of technologies. I think, to support all the solar that’s coming up, we need balancing technologies. And hydro is a great balancing technology,’ he said.

‘So any opportunity that comes up, for sure we will study it seriously,’ Soriano added.

Power Sector Assets and Liabilities Management Corp. (Psalm) president and CEO Edward Dela Serna previously said that they had received ‘a number of unsolicited proposals’ for the planned rehabilitation of the power plant complex in Mindanao.

However, he told Inquirer that Psalm was initially focused on the rehabilitation of the plant.

The complex, which consists of seven run-of-river hydroelectric power plants, has a combined capacity of about 1,000 MW. -INQ

Ombudsman Jesus Crispin Remulla said more high-profile politicians will soon be held liable either for directly facilitating or for turning a blind eye on corruption-tainted flood control and other infrastructure projects in the past several years.

Among the officials being subjected to ongoing investigations are Leyte Rep. Martin Romualdez, the former Speaker of the House of Representatives; resigned Ako Bicol Rep. Elizaldy ‘Zaldy’ Co, the former House appropriations chair; and former Senate President Francis ‘Chiz’ Escudero, Remulla said in a press conference on Tuesday.

Former Public Works Secretary Rogelio Singson said the Independent Commission for Infrastructure (ICI), of which he is a member, saw a possible ‘connivance’ among the people involved in what critics described as the country’s ‘largest corruption scandal’ to date.

Remulla said that in examining the cases involving Co, a pattern showed the former lawmaker’s coordination with some senators in crafting the final version of the national budget. The Ombudsman, however, did not name these senators.

Romualdez, on the other hand, was ‘responsible’ for Co’s appointment as chair of the powerful House committee on appropriations in the 19th Congress from 2022 to 2025, Remulla added.

‘Although Zaldy Co was elected on the floor, everybody knows that he was the [former] Speaker’s choice,’ he said. ‘That’s why we have to hold him (Romualdez) accountable for that.’

‘I know we’re crossing the boundary of a normal legal theory, but we have to stretch it a bit. The whole government machinery and the Filipino people suffered damages due to the acts of Zaldy Co,’ Remulla said.

He announced the direction being taken by his office as the ICI, chaired by retired Supreme Court Associate Justice Andres Reyes Jr., along with Singson, submitted another referral to the Office of the Ombudsman, accusing former Public Works Secretary Manuel Bonoan of allowing corruption to go unchecked on his watch.

Remulla said he is considering suing Romualdez for negligence, in line with the ‘leadership principle.’

‘The buck stops with you (Romualdez),’ Remulla said. ‘All the narrations from the beginning of the Senate [hearings] that led to these revelations, all of them will be used in putting up the theory of gross inexcusable negligence.’

Remulla said information obtained by his office showed that Co, who had not reported for work when the 20th Congress started its sessions in July until his resignation on Sept. 29, was moving between Spain and Portugal.

Denial

Earlier, Brian Keith Hosaka, ICI executive director, said Romualdez, at the closed-door ICI hearing on Oct. 14, denied allegations that he received kickbacks in the implementation of government infrastructure projects.

Romualdez, who resigned as leader of the House on Sept. 17, attended the hearing after being subpoenaed by the commission to ‘discuss his familiarity and personal knowledge as Speaker of the House relative to the national budget insertions, and as well as the DPWH (Department of Public Works and Highways) flood control projects.’

Hosaka explained that the information provided by Romualdez during the hearing was ‘helpful’ as he was able to clarify his and his colleagues’ role in the deliberations on the national budget.

Cash trail

Remulla said the Office of the Ombudsman had found links to connect Escudero to the flood control mess, based on the cash trail.

‘We have statements of a money trail leading to him, narrations of fact that are there already,’ Remulla said. ‘But of course, we want to buttress it with other evidence that we’re looking at right now.’

Singson said their investigation into the anomalies in flood control projects would go ‘wherever it leads’ them.

‘It started way back,’ he said. ‘It started in tiny bits in 2018, started to grow. When they perfected the system, it started in tremendous leaps and bounds,’ Singson told reporters in the same press conference.

‘The fact is that congressmen and senators are told by the DPWH on which district they can lay down their SOPs (standard operating procedure, used as code for kickbacks). It’s as clear as day,’ he said.

‘People were involved in the connivance that really brought this whole government machinery system [to] total breakdown.’

Whose money?

Remulla said the projects in Las Piñas and Bacoor ‘benefited the landowners of the area.’

‘It’s as simple as that. So, we will determine that later on with the costing of the project completed,’ he also said.

‘That’s around 11 kilometers, the road itself,’ he said. ‘So, this has to be examined by a specialized group. I think it should have been done a long time ago. It will be a priority.’ -WITH A REPORT FROM INQUIRER RESEARCH

As more Filipinas embrace their morena skin, Primo+Skin, a proudly homegrown skincare brand, is redefining what it means to glow. The brand’s message: Real glow isn’t about achieving fairness, but about having healthy, confident skin that celebrates every natural tone.

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Central to the Hydro Glow range are two powerhouse ingredients: Niacinamide, which helps brighten and even out skin tone, and Hyaluronic Acid, which locks in moisture for smooth, plump skin. These ingredients work in harmony, giving a hydrated, radiant finish that suits all shades-especially morena skin.

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Behind each product is a clear message: glowing skin doesn’t mean lighter skin-it means healthy skin that’s cared for and loved. Primo+Skin inspires Filipinas to embrace their natural glow with self-confidence and everyday care.

Miss Universe Thailand head Nawat Itsaragrisil issued an apology for the incident where he confronted Miss Mexico Fatima Bosch over a matter involving a sponsored shoot, which prompted her and other delegates to walk out from the event.

During the sashing ceremony on Tuesday, Nov. 4 in Thailand, a livestreamed video shared by Miss Universe Thailand organization showed some of the delegates leaving a conference hall even while Nawat was still speaking in front. This happened after Nawat, while on microphone, confronted Bosch for supposedly not taking part in a sponsor shoot.

Hours after the incident, Nawat went on live via his TikTok page and explained that several bets allegedly refused to film videos for pageants sponsors.

He also said that he has been facing ‘daily problems’ regarding the competition for three straight days now, noting that there were no Miss Universe Organization officials present in Thailand at the time.

Nonetheless, Nawat said that he would meet with the MUO executives to discuss the recent incident. He added that he had also apologized to the delegates who stayed in the conference hall during the sashing ceremony.

‘I always try to take care of everyone, to give a higher standard, five star service. I prepare everything for everybody, every country-that I wish to make a history of Miss Universe with the organization. This is my dream, but I know sometimes many conditions happen,’ he said.

‘If anything happened today; you are not happy; some delegate feeling not comfortable, I do apologize, and also [to] the fans around the world too. But please understand our side too,’ he added.

During his live, Nawat also told pageant fans not to worry as he will ‘take good care’ of Bosch and that they will talk the matter over.

Snippets from his live have been uploaded by pageant fans on TikTok. ‘No woman, under any circumstance, deserves to be insulted or humiliated,’ it said. ‘Today and always, Mexico is with you, Fatima. Your strength, your class and your voice represent the best of our nation.’

The incident happened weeks before the Miss Universe finals night scheduled on Nov. 21 in Bangkok, Thailand.

Ahtisa Manalo of Quezon is representing the Philippines in her bid to bag the country’s fifth Miss Universe crown

In true silver anniversary flair, the Miss Earth 2025 coronation night opened its stage with the reigning titleholders introducing this year’s eco-warrior beauties.

The 25th edition of the global tilt, held at The Cove in Okada Manila, in Parañaque City on Wednesday, November 5, kicked off with the elemental court opening the pageant through a VTR, with the candidates taking the stage in their sparkly silver mini dresses.

Reigning Miss Earth titleholder Jessica Lane of Australia and elemental titleholders Hrafnhildur Haraldsdottir of Iceland (Air) and Bea Millan-Windorski of USA (Water) stepped to the center of the stage to kick off the routine. However, Miss Earth Fire 2024 Niva Antezana of Peru was absent from the ceremony.

Before the opening performance, the candidates – while wearing their respective national costumes – were introduced through a VTR.

The Miss Earth coronation night started at 6:50 p.m. and is currently streaming on the Miss Earth 2025 YouTube channel.

Joy Barcoma is hoping to win the Philippines’ fifth Miss Earth crown after Karla Henry, Jamie Herrell, Angelia Ong, and Karen Ibasco.

Flag carrier Philippine Airlines (PAL) aims to make communication accessible to passengers stepping foot into their international destination with the launch of its eSIM service.

In partnership with travel eSIM provider Kolet, PAL passengers will gain immediate mobile data access upon activation. They will be entitled to 1GB of complimentary mobile data valid for two days.

With the launch of myPAL eSIM initiative, PAL seeks to eliminate passengers’ struggle with using physical SIM cards. The carrier also aims to help them avoid expensive mobile roaming costs.

Passengers can redeem complimentary data in two ways – either through the PAL Kolet co-branded website (Kolet – Next-gen eSIM) and the Kolet mobile application – using promo code FLYPAL.

Top-up plans available

The application also allows function to top up and avail of regional and global load subscription once free data has been fully consumed. The data plans are typically valid for up to 30 days.

‘The introduction of myPAL eSIM aligns with our vision of providing a complete and digitally empowered travel experience,’ said PAL vice president for revenue management Christoph Gaertner.

‘We are proud to offer our passengers a solution that not only simplifies connectivity but also enhances their overall journey with Philippine Airlines,’ Gaertner added.

Former Ako Bicol party-list Rep. Elizaldy ‘Zaldy’ Co reported a net worth of P4.1 billion in 2019-the year he was elected to the House of Representatives-according to his lawyer, Ruy Rondain.

Rondain disclosed this during a press conference Wednesday, arguing that Co had accumulated such wealth even before joining Congress.

‘I can answer that P4.1 billion in 2019. I did some research and who’s a richer senator you know? Mark Villar declared an asset a net worth of P1.4 billion. His mother, Cynthia, declared in 2020 a net worth of P3.8 billion. Next is Manny Pacquiao, P3.1 billion,’ the lawyer enumerated.

‘So, in 2020, when Rep. Co joined Congress in 2019, he was already richer than Cynthia Villar or Manny Pacquiao. Just to keep it in context,’ he added.

The lawyer did not show a copy of Co’s 2019 Statement of Assets, Liabilities and Net Worth (SALN) but said he was willing to provide one.

When asked about Co’s latest SALN, Rondain only provided an estimate, stating that it had increased by approximately P900 million, bringing the total to roughly P5 billion.

He, however, added that he had only ‘read it somewhere.’

Rondain also explained he only has Co’s 2019 SALN, as it is the only document relevant to the corruption allegations against his client.

Co came 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) urged 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 criminal and administrative charges 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 engineers Henry Alcantara, Brice Ericson Hernandez, and Jaypee Mendoza.