Category: Philippines Daily Inquirer

The Lingayen Airport in Pangasinan is closed until Sunday afternoon, November 2, to make way for visitors going to a nearby cemetery, the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP) said.

‘The airport is located adjacent to the Lingayen Public Cemetery and has long served as a shortcut for cemetery visitors heading to the graves of their loved ones,’ CAAP explained in an advisory on Saturday morning.

‘With thousands expected to flock to the area, airport operations during Undas pose safety and security concerns for both the public and flight operations,’ it added.

The temporary closure came through a notice to airmen (NOTAM) in effect from 7 a.m. on Friday, October 31. It will remain in effect until 4 p.m. on Sunday, November 2.

The NOTAM covers the Lingayen Airport’s flight operations, as well as the operations of the three flight schools there.

The Department of Health (DOH) is on ‘code white’ until Sunday, Nov. 2, amid this year’s commemoration of All Saints’ Day and All Souls’ Day or Undas.

‘The Code White Alert is a signal of hospitals’ and healthcare workers’ readiness in connection with a large activity like Undas,’ the DOH said in a statement on Saturday.

‘The operations centers of our hospitals are also on alert to coordinate with and report to the regional and central offices of the DOH,’ it added.

LIVE UPDATES: Undas 2025

The DOH noted that the alert level was in effect since Oct. 31.

It also noted that the DOH had a fully-equipped emergency ambulance standing by both at the Manila North Cemetery and the Manila South Cemetery.

The department further urged the public to observe cough etiquette, wash their hands and remember to drink water and bring their maintenance medicines.

I’ve learned and grown to like grief. I live with it; I don’t run from it anymore-terrified of the thought that it might come running after me years later when I think all is well. I hold its hand, let it listen to my favorite songs, and take it with me on a morning walk. I see it as love, love wearing a heavy coat, and some days I think of it as a companion, because after all, what is grief if not love persevering?

But some days, there’s no room for me to lie in my bed when the sadness has crept in to build a home in my head again. I treat grief like a friend, hoping it wouldn’t demand, wouldn’t persist in taking my attention on days I refuse to acknowledge it. Those days are very few. Today is one.

It’s Aug. 19, 22 years since my father passed unexpectedly. His life was cut short; none of us got to say goodbye. No waiting for each other’s turn, weeping outside the intensive care unit, praying he had one more minute so we could tell him we love him. No halfway empty bottles of medication to haunt us before mealtime. No piled up hospital bills one could lament over. No signs of where hope was, where prayers were, begging, kneeling for more time. Because we never had enough to even ask.

I was only 5, my younger sister barely 1. My mother was my age now when she lost her husband. My poor grandmother, barely a senior citizen, had to bury her ‘buridek’ (Ilocano for bunso) so early in her life. His three older sisters, two of whom were miles away when at dawn he passed, whose lives then revolved around his well-being and future, couldn’t even remember the last conversation they had with him. His oldest manang, his true definition of nemesis, his unfortunate manang, who had to see everything unfold with her own eyes, hated wearing anything black but wore the color heavily, grief and love and shock in its weight.

But Tata. Tata was only 29. He was going to turn 30 in a fortnight, the day he passed. He didn’t make it past August 2003.

Some nights, I think of what his dreams could have been at 29. I’m 27, and I have so many things I want to do. So many places I want to visit and take silly pictures of, so I can compile them and upload them to Instagram. So many books I want to read or inadvertently hoard and never remember to read until I see a review of it online. So many people I want to meet. But Tata, he was only 29. He never got to visit another country like my younger sister and I (did he even get a chance to take a flight? I’ll have to ask my aunties). He probably never watched an actual concert in his life-I wonder if he liked Oasis? I heard they peaked in the mid-1990s; Tata was in his mid-20s then. I wonder if he listened to their music when he was alive and if he’d be one of those cool dads crying their hearts out, eventually making TikTok, as soon as Oasis came back for a tour. Tata never had a son, only two daughters who can’t even remember the sound of his voice or his laughter.

When people ask me what it was like losing him, I could never find an answer that describes exactly how it felt, so I often resort to: ‘It’s difficult.’ And they always say they’re sorry. Sometimes there’s an urge to ask why, but I keep my lips shut and offer a smile. We’re made of flesh and bones; we’d take any form of consolation when it’s offered.

Imagine the comfort I felt when I read that Psychology Today says early parental loss is relatively common, affecting about one in 20 children, and that children dealing with prolonged grief from losing a parent are vulnerable to long-term emotional problems due to their failure to resolve their sense of loss. There’s a list from qualitative analysis of the impact of losing a parent at a young age. While the rest of the list is true to my experience, I feel that the last one hit me the most: re-grief. They say that grief is an ongoing process.

You’ve probably never heard of re-grief, so let me tell you what it’s all about: according to the ‘Handbook of Thanatology,’ re-grief is ‘developmentally appropriate processing of the experience from a different perspective than was possible earlier.’

For easier understanding, basically, what re-grief tells us is that when you lose someone at a certain developmental stage, you grieve in ways that your age and development allow you to. So, when I lost my father at 5 years old, I made sense of that loss as a 5-year-old, with the cognitive and emotional capacities a 5-year-old has. And then we age-I aged. I moved to the next developmental stage and the next.

I make sense of that loss in a new, more mature perspective, so sometimes, my grief feels new, and I cope differently. This is how I learned to live with it. I read about grieving as a child, as a teen, and now as an adult navigating through my late 20s.

Today, Aug. 19, I listened to Oasis’ greatest hits and wondered what Tata thought of their music.

The government-run Adela Serra Ty Memorial Medical Center (ASTMMC) here recently achieved a remarkable milestone after being ranked No. 1 nationwide among all Department of Health (DOH) hospitals for attaining the highest percentage of PhilHealth claims paid for calendar years 2018 to 2025.

Among others, this means that the benefits from Philhealth for its patients are released without delay.

The recognition underscores ASTMMC’s commitment to efficient and patient-centered healthcare management, ensuring timely reimbursements, reduced financial strain, and improved access to essential medical services, said Dr. Janice V. Pagaran-Alcordo, Medical Center Chief II of ASTMMC.

She credited the achievement to the collective effort of medical staff and personnel involved in claims processing and financial management.

‘We take pride in this recognition as it reflects our continuing pursuit of service excellence and integrity,’ said Alcordo.

The hospital’s achievement also coincides with its recent elevation to Level III status, making it the first hospital in the Caraga Region to earn this accreditation. According to Alcordo, the process took a year and a half and included establishing a Family Medicine Department, an operational morgue and freezer facility with a 12-body capacity, and compliance with green hospital standards-all key requirements for the Level III accreditation.

‘Our goal has always been to make healthcare accessible and dignified for every patient we serve,’ she added.

In terms of resiliency, Alcordo emphasized that hospital personnel have undergone intensive trauma and emergency response training, and that ASTMMC is capable of sustaining operations with a 72-hour food supply and preparing additional medicine storage in case of disasters such as the recent series of earthquakes.

Currently, ASTMMC has a 200-bed capacity, with construction underway for a six-story building that will expand its capacity to 300 beds.

However, Alcordo also acknowledged the continuing challenge of a limited number of doctors and specialists in the Caraga Region, emphasizing the need for sustained recruitment and professional development to meet the region’s growing healthcare demands.

‘We are determined to prove that world-class healthcare is possible in Caraga. ASTMMC will continue to innovate, transcend challenges, and strengthen partnerships in alignment with the national vision of Bagong Pilipinas: Bawat Buhay Mahalaga,’ Dr. Alcordo said.

During undas, people also take time to remember and visit their dearly departed pets.

A pet wall in Quezon City and a a pet cemetery in Marikina City serve as lasting tributes to them.

Rains are possible in parts of the country due to five weather systems on All Saints’ Day or November 1, Saturday, according to the latest update from the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa).

The northeast monsoon (amihan) is expected to bring light rains over the Batanes area, Pagasa specialist Grace Castañeda said in the agency’s morning weather forecast.

Meanwhile, scattered rain showers were expected over the Cagayan area due to the shear line.

‘It is possible we may experience strong rains,’ Castañeda added.

On another hand, the areas of Mimaropa and Bicol Region may experience isolated rain showers due to the easterlies or warm winds from the Pacific Ocean.

Then, Metro Manila, Visayas and Mindanao may also experience rain due to the intertropical convergence zone (ITCZ) or where trade winds from the northern and southern hemispheres meet.

Lastly, a low-pressure area (LPA) west of the country is expected to bring rains over Palawan, particularly the Kalayaan Islands.

‘The rest of Luzon will experience partly cloudy to cloudy skies. It is still possible that there will be sudden and brief rain showers due to localized thunderstorms,’ Castañeda explained.

Despite the developments, Pagasa did not raise a gale warning over the country’s seaboards.

However, it did warn of moderate to strong sea conditions in the waters off northern and central Luzon with waves reaching between 1.5 to 2.8 meters; while the rest of the country can expect slight to moderate sea conditions with waves between 0.6 and 1.8 meters.

Cyclones

The LPA west of the country was last spotted 275 kilometers from Coron, Palawan.

‘It still has a low chance of becoming a tropical cyclone and we see its movement is westward or away from our landmass,’ Castañeda noted.

Meanwhile, another LPA east of the country became a tropical depression early Saturday morning.

The tropical depression was last spotted 1,430 kilometers (km) east of northeastern Mindanao, Castañeda said.

The cyclone is packing maximum wind speeds of up to 45 km per hour (kph) and gusts of up to 55 kph while moving westward at 15 kph.

Castañeda said the tropical depression does not have an effect yet on the country.

Once the cyclone enters the PAR, it will be given the local name Tino.

‘The possible landfall is over eastern Visayas or Caraga area by Tuesday morning. But, if the tropical cyclone moves faster, it may make landfall over these areas by Monday evening,’ Castañeda explained.

‘In terms of intensity, this tropical cyclone will intensify while it is moving over the Philippine Sea and it is possible it will intensify into the typhoon category before it makes landfall,’ she added.

Anne Curtis was spotted sharing a friendly moment with K-pop star Jackson Wang during a Halloween event, delighting fans who have long followed the Filipino actress’ admiration for Korean idols.

Curtis and Wang both attended Tim Yap’s Halloween party, Shake Rattle and Ball, on Thursday, Oct. 30, where the viral clips were taken from.

In one of the videos that circulated online, Wang was captured whispering something to Curtis, who then burst out laughing.

Some of the other clips showed the two stars closely posing for photos, with Curtis’s hands placed around Wang, from his shoulders to his face.

The moment garnered multiple reactions from netizens, with most teasing Curtis about how lucky she was as a fangirl.

Over the years, Curtis has openly expressed her love for K-pop and K-drama stars. She has previously gone viral for her interactions with Korean idols such as Gong Yoo, Park Bo-gum and Song Hye-kyo, among others.

Curtis is married to professional chef and content creator Erwan Heussaff, the brother of actress Solenn Heussaff. Curtis and Erwan share one daughter, Dahlia. The pair got married in 2017 in Queenstown, New Zealand.

Wang, meanwhile, is a Hong Kong-born rapper, singer and dancer best known as a member of the South Korean boy group GOT7 before launching his successful solo career under his self-founded record label, Team Wang.

Known for hits like ‘100 Ways’ and ‘Blow,’ Wang has established himself as one of the leading Asian artists in global pop.

The singer is currently in the Manila for the Philippine leg of his MAGIC MAN world tour on Nov. 2. He is set to perform at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

Wang recently met with members of the press, including Inquirer Entertainment, where he expressed his desire to experience Manila’s nightlife and uplift his fans through his music.

Quezon City Representative Juan Carlos ‘Arjo’ Atayde has maintained that there are no ghost projects in his district, saying that he has inspected flood control and drainage clearing initiatives under his jurisdiction.

Atayde, in a statement on Saturday, said that there are no bases for claims that there are ‘ghost projects’, or non-existent projects that have been paid using public funds, within Quezon City’s first district.

According to the actor-turned-politician, there might be a need for ‘proper coordination’ to ensure that the information being released is accurate.

‘There are no ghost projects with us. There’s no ghost in District One. There’s no basis for claims that these exist. Maybe there’s just a need for proper coordination so information about the projects is accurate,’ Atayde said.

The lawmaker said he visited flood control sites in Barangays Bahay Toro, Del Monte, Project 6, and San Antonio-confirming findings from the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) Quezon City 1st District Engineering Office (DEO).

Atayde said that a September 19 letter from DPWH’s Quezon City DEO showed that ‘all projects are verifiable on site,’ referring to the seven projects questioned due to alleged lack of coordinates.

DPWH said that out of the 66 alleged ghost projects reported, only seven were in Atayde’s district. However, these projects were either completed or ongoing, with proper documentation, correct coordinates, and photographic evidence.

Atayde said that of the seven projects, five have been completed, while two were suspended due to issues. Among the verified projects are:

four flood control structures along Culiat Creek and Dario Creek in Barangay Bahay Toro

rehabilitation of Drainage Road 3 in Project 6

West Riverside Pumping Station in Barangay Del Monte

flood control structure along San Francisco River in Barangay San Antonio

Atayde said five of the seven projects were completed, while two were suspended due to pending issues.

‘The projects are not ghosts-they can be seen, touched, and are beneficial. It looks like Halloween came early for some people,’ he added.

Furthermore, Atayde said that he did not have a hand in the projects as these were part of the National Expenditure Program (NEP) or the budget submitted by the executive branch to Congress, which means the projects were already planned before the House got a chance to scrutinize the items.

Also, Atayde said he cannot ‘unilaterally include them’ in the General Appropriations Act or the Congress-approved and President-signed budget, as he is not a part of the bicameral conference committee-made up of a contingent from both the House of Representatives and the Senate, tackling differences in their proposed budgets.

‘We all want to end corruption and jail the corrupt, but we won’t succeed if we punish the wrong people,’ he said.

‘The evidence speaks for itself, and the evidence speaks the truth,’ he added.

Atayde has been criticized over the past few weeks for his alleged involvement in flood control projects, after contractor-couple Pacifico ‘Curlee’ Discaya and Cezarah ‘Sarah’ Discaya mentioned his name during a Senate hearing as among the House lawmakers who allegedly received payoffs in exchange for projects to push through.

Atayde, like other lawmakers, however, denied benefiting from any contractor. According to the lawmaker, old photos of him with the Discayas were taken from an unplanned meeting where they only exchanged pleasantries.

Atayde said he ‘never dealt’ with the couple, claiming that he had never and will never use his position for personal gain.

More than 42,000 passengers traveled through the Paranaque Integrated Terminal Exchange (PITX) on the morning of All Saints’ Day, November 1.

As of 9 a.m. this Saturday, PITX senior corporate affairs officer Kolyn Calbasa said the terminal recorded a total of 42,468 passengers, mostly those arriving and departing from Metro Manila.

The data on Saturday morning added to the almost 1 million passengers who have travelled via PITX since October 27 for the Undas break.

PITX earlier said that from October 27 to October 31, a total of 929,271 passengers arrived at the terminal – 188,624 on October 27; 181,090 on October 28; 185,051 on October 29; 194,468 on October 30; and 180,038 on October 31.

Daily traffic during this period was high compared to the usual 160,000 passengers on a regular day.

Most of the trips this Undas were bound for the Bicol Region, followed by Laguna-Batangas-Quezon, northern Luzon provinces, Occidental and Oriental Mindoro, and the Visayas-Mindanao regions.

Around 2.1 million passengers are expected to pass through PITX from October 27 to November 3.

No untoward incidents have been reported so far amid the commemoration of All Saints’ Day on Saturday, Nov. 1, according to the Philippine National Police (PNP).

The law enforcement agency previously said it deployed 50,253 police officers across the country for this year’s observance of Undas.

‘As of 6 a.m. on November 1, based on the collated data from the ground. [the PNP has] not monitored any incident or threat in all places of convergence, from transportation hubs to cemeteries and other places of convergence,’ acting chief Lt. Gen. Jose Melencio Nartatez Jr. said in a statement.

The top cop urged the public to avoid bringing prohibited items to cemeteries and columbaria, such as weapons and alcohol products.

Nartatez also assured the public that PNP will maintain its security measures for when travelers return from the holiday weekend, saying 1,478 motorist assistance centers were set up and 2,235 police officers were deployed in airports, seaports and busports across the country.

The PNP previously said 5,192 police assistance desks were also set up at cemeteries, columbaria, transport hubs and other places of high foot traffic to help travelers.