Category: Philippines Daily Inquirer

A majority of Filipino respondents expressed trust and satisfaction with the performance of the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG), although the Davao Region reported the highest level of distrust, according to pollster Octa Research.

Octa released the results of its third-quarter Tugon ng Masa survey on Wednesday, a day after Cavite Rep. Kiko Barzaga called for the abolition of the PCG, accusing it of corruption and of ‘inciting World War III’ in the West Philippine Sea (WPS)-remarks that drew a strong rebuke from the uniformed service.

Octa Research fellow Ranjit Rye clarified that the timing of their survey release was a matter of chance and unrelated to Barzaga’s statements.

The survey, conducted from September 25 to 30 among 1,200 adult respondents nationwide, found that 75 percent were satisfied with the PCG’s performance, while 71 percent expressed trust in the agency.

Meanwhile, 4 percent of respondents said they were dissatisfied, and 5 percent expressed distrust in the PCG.

‘These results reflect public recognition of the PCG’s professionalism, discipline, and visible leadership in maritime safety, disaster response, and the protection of maritime rights, particularly in the West Philippine Sea,’ Octa said in a statement.

Trust, satisfaction are high where PCG is needed

Regions prone to foreign and lawless maritime incursions demonstrated higher trust and satisfaction with the PCG.

Respondents from the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) recorded a 96 percent satisfaction rating, while 95 percent of those from the Mimaropa region shared the same sentiment.

Maritime areas in BARMM continue to face sporadic piracy threats from local extremist and militant groups, while Mimaropa-particularly Palawan-remains at the forefront of Chinese aggression in the West Philippine Sea.

The PCG also received a high satisfaction rating in the National Capital Region at 82 percent.

Trust ratings were highest in the Negros Island Region (96 percent), followed by BARMM (95 percent) and the Zamboanga Peninsula (93 percent).

Distrust highest in Davao

On the other hand, distrust in the PCG is highest in the Davao Region at 16 percent.

The region is a political stronghold of the Duterte clan, whose members-including Vice President Sara Duterte and Acting Davao City Mayor Sebastian Duterte-have expressed skepticism about the government’s policy on addressing Chinese actions in the WPS.

Former President Rodrigo Duterte, the clan’s patriarch, pivoted toward China during his administration, a period marked by limited transparency in the WPS, according to PCG spokesperson for WPS Commodore Jay Tarriela.

Next to Davao Region in distrust levels is the Bicol Region at 12 percent, followed by Caraga at 11 percent, and Calabarzon at 10 percent.

Respondents in Cagayan Valley (82 percent) and Ilocos (63 percent) were mostly undecided about their level of trust in the PCG.

‘Most respondents who are undecided about their trust in the institution reside in inland regions such as Cagayan Valley and the Ilocos Region, where regional dynamics or limited exposure to PCG activities may contribute to weaker familiarity with the agency’s work,’ Octa said.

Octa added that the findings suggest ‘trust in the PCG correlates strongly with visibility and exposure to maritime security and disaster response operations, as confidence tends to increase in regions where the PCG’s presence is more evident.’

Real estate giant SM Prime Holdings Inc. will raise up to P17 billion from the bond market next month as it undertakes an aggressive retail expansion.

The Sy family-led developer on Wednesday said the issuance would be composed of Series AB bonds priced at 5.9096 percent due in 2030, Series AC bonds at 6.0858 percent due in 2032 and Series AD bonds at 6.2855 percent due in 2035.

SM Prime will issue a principal amount of P12 billion, with an oversubscription option of up to P5 billion in case of high demand, the company said in a regulatory filing.

The offer period will run from Nov. 3 to 7.

This represents the third tranche of SM Prime’s P100-billion shelf-registered fixed rate bonds approved in 2024.

Ombudsman Jesus Crispin ‘Boying’ Remulla is looking into live-streaming the preliminary investigation (PI) hearing of cases, including those pertaining to the multibillion-peso flood control scandal.

‘We are looking at the design, where the PI can also be viewed live,’ Remulla said in a press conference on Wednesday.

Remulla said such moves are part of his office’s thrust for greater transparency.

‘We can look into the bounds of transparency we can adhere to in this office,’ he said.

Villanueva’s ‘secret’ case

In line with this transparency thrust, Remulla also said his office will publish the Ombudsman case of Senator Joel Villanueva under former Ombudsman Conchita Carpio-Morales and Samuel Martirez.

‘People are speculating as to which is which and what is what,’ Remulla said. ‘It is actually public property, these are already decisions that are presumed to be valid.’

In 2016, former Ombudsman Conchita Carpio-Morales ordered the dismissal from public service of Villanueva for his administrative liability over the alleged anomalous use of P10 million from his Priority Development Assistance Fund allocation as a former representative of Cibac party-list which advocates against anticorruption.

However, the Senate did not implement Villanueva’s dismissal order as its members at that time agreed that the Ombudsman lacks jurisdiction over members of Congress.

Remulla said he would write to Senate President Vicente Sotto III to enforce the former Ombudsman’s ruling on Villanueva.

However, Remulla later learned that Martires, in July 2019, reversed Morales’ 2016 order in what the former Department of Justice chief call a ‘secret decision’ which prevented the ouster bid of Villanueva.

According to Remulla, no one knew about Martires’ decision to reverse Morales’ 2016 order, and the Philippine media was not made aware of it either.

New Villanueva complaint

Villanueva, however, faces another complaint reaching the Office of the Ombudsman.

The senator is among the six individuals subject to the Independent Commission for Infrastructure’s (ICI) recommendation for criminal and administrative charges the body filed before the Office of the Ombudsman on Wednesday.

During a House tri-comm hearing last month, former Bulacan Assistant 1st District Engineer Jaypee Mendoza said Villanueva allegedly requested P1.5 billion from former Department of Public Works and Highways’ (DPWH) Bulacan district engineer Henry Alcantara for a multi-purpose building.

However, Alcantara, in a screenshot of a text message shown by Mendoza, allegedly said only P600 million could be purportedly allocated by former DPWH chief Manuel Bonoan.

Former DPWH engineer Brice Hernandez also alleged that Villanueva received at least 30 percent in kickbacks as a ‘standard operating procedure’ from the P600 million he purportedly appropriated to allocate in Bulacan.

Villanueva, who repeatedly denied such accusations, asserted his innocence once more in reaction to ICI’s move.

The local government of Bulusan in Sorsogon has refuted the claim of Vice Ganda that the Bagacay Elementary School was decaying, at the same time, clearing Heart Evangelista from insinuations that she had something to do with the school’s state of disrepair.

In a statement issued by Bulusan Mayor Wennie Raffalo-Romano, the city government belied Vice Ganda’s remarks made during the Oct 24 episode of ‘It’s Showtime’ wherein he described the condition of the school in ‘Heart Evangelista’s province’ as ‘bulok’ (decaying), and lacking in materials for schoolchildren.

Evangelista is the wife of Senator Francis ‘Chiz’ Escudero, who counts Sorsogon as his political stronghold, having represented the province as congressman in the past.

‘Nais ko pong bigyang-diin na wala pong kinalaman si Ms. Heart Evangelista-Escudero sa isyung ito (I would like to emphasize that Ms. Heart Evangelista-Escudero has nothing to do with this issue),’ the statement read.

Romano clarified that contrary to Vice Ganda’s claim, Bagacay Elementary School has sufficient reading materials provided by the Department of Education (DepEd) through its Project Target reading program launched on May 11, 2023.

According to the LGU, Vice Ganda pledged to help the school during a visit on September 26, 2023, followed by donations totaling ?67,360, which funded the repair of classroom walls and windows, the tiling of a comfort room, and internet installation with three months of paid service.

While the LGU expressed gratitude for Vice Ganda’s generosity, they emphasized that his on-air comments may have unintentionally ‘brought shame to the school’ and discredited the efforts of teachers, parents, and education officials.

‘Nabalewala ang lahat ng pagsusumikap ng mga guro at pamunuan, mga magulang at mag-aaral, lokal na lider, at ng Kagawaran ng Edukasyon para mabigyan ng kaaya-ayang paaralan ang mga kabataan na angkop sa kakayahan ng komunidad,’ the LGU said.

(All the efforts of teachers and administrators, parents and students, local leaders, and the Department of Education to provide a pleasant school for the youth that is fitting to the community’s abilities have been ignored.)

The municipal mayor added that the local government, DepEd Sorsogon, and the provincial government remain committed to ensuring proper support for the municipality’s schools without ‘propaganda’ or misrepresentation.

Vice Ganda’s remarks earlier sparked a furious rebuttal from Evangelista’s longtime personal assistant Resty Rosell, who accused Vice Ganda of grabbing all the credit as reading materials have already been provided to the said school.

Escudero and Evangelista have recently been getting the heat due to corruption allegations being hurled at the senator in connection with alleged 2025 budget insertions, while their lifestyles are being publicly scrutinized.

Ex-prisoners were the students’ special guests at a recent Ateneo event. They were members of a program under the Philippine Jesuit Prison Service (PJPS), where they made and sold coffee as a way to return to society after years behind bars.

The program is called, playfully and meaningfully, Ex-Preso, a play on both the former prisoners’ past and the coffee they now serve.

There are next to no reintegration programs in the country, and the PJPS has worked for decades to help ex-prisoners, who often find themselves returning to a changed, unforgiving world.

Ex-Preso is not just a livelihood program that focuses on profits; it aids the ex-prisoners’ journey of formation. Coffee becomes a metaphor: its slow brewing is also an ‘intentional steeping of identity, trust, and integration,’ according to the PJPS website.

Ex-prisoners are educated not only on making coffee, but also on turning inward for reflection and outward for dialogue. The program allows them to gain control over their lives; to see places that they only ever dreamed of seeing as the Ex-Preso coffee truck hops from one location to the next; and to share their stories with those who are willing to listen rather than judge.

At the event, the students weren’t only given the chance to listen to the stories of former prisoners, but also to think deeply about what freedom means.

For the members of Ex-Preso, freedom was not gained by a mere change of location, but is constantly constructed through daily effort, as they rediscover who they are-and especially when they must fit into a society that sometimes sees crime as a permanent stain into families that once voted a president who condemned rather than sought out reformation, into a world where the stigma of sin is greater than a so-called Catholic society’s capacity to forgive.

Some of my former students were at the session, and they wrote lovingly of their encounters. Their small discussion circles helped my students exchange stories with the members of Ex-Preso, until they could see so few differences between themselves and people who had spent decades locked away from the world.

As one of the former prisoners said: ‘Lahat naman tayo may kasalanan, kami lang ‘yung nahuli. (All of us are sinners; we’re just the ones who got caught.)’

Last Sunday was Prison Awareness Sunday, and it was a timely reminder of the nature of incarceration. We often equate prison with jail: the hammer of justice banging down to keep a monster away from the world; the judgment that pronounces a human being as a bloodthirsty animal that must be restrained; the rage of society as it looks upon prisoners with fear and the formerly incarcerated with disdain.

Prison, however, also speaks to the bars we build around ourselves, and those we inherit. Philosophers and sociologists have used it as a metaphor for years: Jeremy Bentham’s panopticon represents surveillance and the surrender of civil liberties. Max Weber’s iron cage speaks of an industrial society in which people are so specialized and processes are so bureaucratized, all in the name of efficiency that has taken away our creativity and freedom.

A catechist or psychologist could talk endlessly about the prison of vices, greed, and desire. An atheist might call religious belief a prison for the mind. There is so much to be said about the bars, and yet so little to be said in the name of compassion for those who have left them behind.

In the last few years, we’ve seen a society grow online that has helped push the narrative of the hopeless, uncontrollable drug addict who is permanently a monster, responsible for all the ills of society, a pestilence that must be expunged.

There was no fair trial for the poor, no questioning of the broken social structures that actually led to the abuse, so little skepticism about the statistics being put forth that alleged how we were so awash in drugs that there was no other recourse but a purge.

The poor died on the streets, and the privileged wicked fled to their mansions. The accused left behind grieving families, and the still-living wicked treated theirs to luxury.

And when the instigator was taken to the International Criminal Court for trial, there suddenly rose a clamor for justice, understanding, compassion, and due process-none of which had been granted to the voices forever silenced, all of which are actually being served now, in an air-conditioned chamber in another country where prisoners are treated humanely.

The clamor is loud online, and the offline protests look ridiculous when put next to protests against corruption. In a call for freedom for the one person who had no compassion for those without it, the protesters are crafting their own iron bars, as they cling too hard to their beliefs, disregard all evidence implicating their idols in evil, and condemn those who speak the truth today.

The Ex-Preso were just caught, and are now freely brewing coffee. These fanatics, on the other hand, are still living in a prison they built around themselves.

A six-year-old Grade 1 pupil was killed after being struck by a stray bullet during a firefight between government troops and New People’s Army (NPA) rebels in Moises Padilla town, Negros Occidental, on Tuesday morning.

The victim, a student of Agogolo Elementary School, was hit in the head amid the encounter between soldiers of the 62nd Infantry Battalion and communist rebels at Sitio Inangao, Barangay Quintin Remo, according to Mayor Ella Garcia Yulo.

Vice Mayor Pimpoy Yulo visited the funeral home on Tuesday evening to extend condolences and provide financial assistance to the victim’s family.

The officials said they felt deeply saddened by the death of the child

The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) has reiterated its warning to the public to refrain from dealing with persons or organizations misusing its name, logo, or the names of its personnel.

This comes after the May 2025 public advisory against an entity misrepresenting itself as the ‘UNA Financing Corporation.’

Such entity had used the BSP logo and the names of its personnel without authorization, the banking regulator said in a statement on Wednesday.

‘The BSP reiterates that in performing its official functions, it does not solicit money, request personal or financial information, or offer investment opportunities or loans to the public,’ the BSP said in an advisory.

UNA Financing, which is registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission, has since clarified that it is not connected with the fraudulent act.

The scandal involving flood control projects becomes bigger every day. With every new revelation comes the realization that corruption in the Philippines is the norm rather than the exception. Behind the repeated promises to serve the ‘interest of the public’ citizens see only hollow words, leaving trust in politicians at an all-time low.

A Stratbase-commissioned survey by Pulse Asia, conducted in September, shows an alarming and sobering picture: 97 percent of Filipinos believe that corruption is widespread, and 85 percent say it has worsened over the past year. Fifty-nine percent agree that it is just ‘a normal part of politics.’ This is normalization’s ugly and dangerous face. Furthermore, 90 percent believe that there is collusion among public officials and private contractors in the misuse of public funds, especially in infrastructure projects.

What is happening is ugly because it takes so much away from the people who barely earn enough for the daily sustenance of their family, and whose lives and homes are put in harm’s way during bad weather and the resultant flooding. It is dangerous because when people accept corruption as normal, democracy becomes just for show. Accountability collapses-if it was ever there in the first place.

Thus, in the span of just a few months, coinciding with the time President Marcos first delivered his ‘mahiya naman kayo’ State of the Nation Address and the subsequent probes and revelations, corruption has jumped to become the second-biggest issue of concern for Filipinos, next only to the prices of goods. From just 24 percent of respondents citing it as an urgent national concern, now 51 percent say so, with corruption overtaking even the gut issues of jobs and poverty.

And rightly so. This surge reflects not just moral outrage, but the sense that corruption worsens inflation, weakens services, and consigns the poor to even greater poverty.

In addressing corruption, the people’s sentiments on the government’s efforts are dismal: just 17 percent approve of how the government is fighting graft, while a staggering 69 percent disapprove. What this tells us is that the people do not believe the government is doing enough to change deeply entrenched and widely practiced corruption among the ranks. A 19-point percentage jump compared to June also tells us that recent events have caused people to feel this strongly. The administration’s anticorruption narrative is no longer credible to most Filipinos, who perceive the system as self-protective and selective.

It only follows that when the nation is outraged, its trust and approval of top officials also suffer a blow. Mr. Marcos’ approval rating fell to 33 percent, while Vice President Sara Duterte’s approval slipped to 37 percent. Their trust ratings also declined, reflecting discontent with the state of governance.

Some 81 percent of respondents said they have little to no trust in the Department of Public Works and Highways. Even the Senate (37 percent) and Ombudsman (39 percent) received only moderate trust, reflecting an overall institutional credibility crisis.

The same surveys show that people are now trusting other institutions, specifically the media (51 percent) and nongovernment organizations (50 percent).

These survey results lay down an unequivocal message: the people are disgusted with corruption and their officials’ behavior and hypocrisy. And in their demand for transparency and accountability, what is being done is barely adequate to even scratch the surface of the crisis. As corruption worsens and government performance falters, Filipinos lose confidence in their leaders.

This crisis of trust gripping the nation has profound implications.

The decrease in trust suggests that citizens no longer see the government leadership as credible or responsive to their most pressing needs, including high prices of basic commodities, low wages, and persistent corruption. Increasingly, people are becoming aware that their hard-earned taxpayer money is being pocketed by dishonest government officials and used to fund lavish lifestyles.

What are Filipinos doing about their disgust and desperation? They are expressing them on social media. They are taking it to the streets. Students have been staging walkouts and there have been rallies, big and small alike, in many locations and by many groups.

How these sentiments will evolve in the following years will translate to votes in the next elections.

The people are demanding to see something drastic, substantial, sincere, and specific. Full transparency and accountability in procurement and performance. Greater power for independent oversight bodies. Institutionalized whistleblower protection and citizen monitoring mechanisms. Greater political accountability for criminal acts and ethical breaches that betray public trust.

The logical question is: What is the government going to do about it, when it appears that its current efforts are not enough?

Dindo Manhit is the CEO and founder of Stratbase Group.

Every investor wants to know if markets can truly be beaten.

This question has shaped the way people think about investing for decades. If prices will always move in step with information, then no amount of analysis or strategy would give anyone an edge.

But if markets sometimes misjudge, then opportunities exist for those who can spot the gaps.

In the 1960s, an economist by the name of Eugene Fama of the University of Chicago offered one of the boldest answers to this debate. He introduced the Efficient Market Hypothesis (EMH), a theory that argued markets are remarkably quick to absorb news and adjust prices.

Modern finance

Under this view, the moment information becomes public, stock prices should already reflect it. If this were true, no investor could consistently earn more than the market average because any new development would already be built into the price.

Even so, the EMH became one of the foundations of modern finance, shaping the way professionals, academics and regulators approached investing.

Yet actual market behavior often tells a different story. Prices do not always adjust in step with new information. Human emotions and biases often stand in the way.

Psychology

At times, investors push prices far above or below fair value. At other times, they react too slowly and prices lag.

These two tendencies, which are overreaction and underreaction, are among the clearest signs of how psychology affects markets.

Overreaction happens when investors panic in response to bad news or become euphoric when news is good. Prices move well beyond what fundamentals justify that lead to sharp drops or spikes that eventually correct.

Underreaction is the opposite. Investors anchor themselves to their old beliefs and respond too slowly when new information arrives. As a result, stock prices move only gradually and often trail behind business fundamentals.

These behaviors break away from the idea of an efficient market.

In 1985, Werner De Bondt of the University of Wisconsin and Richard Thaler of Cornell University studied portfolios of hardest-hit stocks, called losers, and compared them with the strongest performers or winners.

What they found was striking. The losers did better in the years that followed, while the winners fell behind. Their study showed that markets tend to overreact. Some stocks were punished too much while others were rewarded more than they deserved.

But that was the long-term picture. In the short run, markets often behaved differently. A few years later, in 1993, Narasimhan Jegadeesh of Emory University and Sheridan Titman of the University of Texas found evidence of momentum.

Stocks that did well in recent months continued to rise, while laggards fell further. Their study showed that markets underreact in the short term and fail to reflect new information until much later.

Taken together, these findings reveal that markets can swing between extremes. Prices may overshoot in the long run, yet still drift slowly in the short term.

This paradox is what makes overreaction and underreaction two of the most enduring patterns in market behavior.

If we look at the Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE), we see that in 2023, the 10 biggest losers among index stocks mostly rebounded the following year. Six out of 10 recovered, which showed a clear sign of mean reversion at work.

Converge, for example, lost almost 50 percent in 2023 but rebounded strongly in 2024. Puregold, Monde, Globe, DMCI and Semirara likewise recovered after steep drops.

On the other hand, the winners in 2023 tell a different story. Out of the 10 best performers, eight continued to gain the following year.

For example, DigiPlus surged more than 200 percent in 2023, then doubled again in 2024. Chinabank and ICTSI led the six other blue chips to extend their gains into 2024.

If we put this side by side, the results tell a familiar story. The rebound of the biggest losers points to mean reversion, while the continued rise of many winners reflects momentum, with the market taking time to fully price in their strength and letting the rally run longer.

This year so far, the PSE Index has struggled, with 21 of its 30 constituents in the red. The five biggest losers are ACEN (-45.5 percent), San Miguel (-32.1 percent), Converge (-30.6 percent), Globe (-30.1 percent) and DigiPlus (-26.7 percent).

Overreaction

The question now is whether they will recover before year-end or, as history has shown, bounce back by next year as a result of an overreaction that corrects itself through mean reversion.

But not every loser recovers. Some stocks remain weak because of fundamental problems that sentiment alone cannot fix. In these cases, declines persist and allow negative momentum to run longer.

The tendency of markets to overreact or underreact is not a weakness but an opportunity. Losers often rebound when fundamentals are sound, while winners fade when those supports are absent.

By recognizing these swings, investors can buy when fear is excessive and sell when optimism runs ahead of reality. INQ

Ayala Land Inc. (ALI) has raised P15 billion from the issuance of sustainability-linked bonds to support the redevelopment of several properties across Luzon.

The Zobel family-led real estate giant on Wednesday said the bonds were linked to ALI’s achievement of two key sustainability targets:

42-percent reduction in greenhouse gas emissions across its malls, offices and hotels by 2030; and

EDGE Zero Carbon certification for 1.5 million square meters of office space by the end of 2025.

The offering includes five-year Series C bonds due 2030 at a fixed rate of 6.0671 percent per annum and 10-year Series D bonds due 2035 at 6.3192 percent per annum.

Sustainability war chest

‘With this issuance, we have raised a total of P56 billion, or approximately $1 billion-a milestone that reflects our collective progress in integrating sustainability into the way we fund growth,’ ALI chief finance officer Jose Eduardo Quimpo II said in a statement.

Of the total proceeds, 60 percent will be used to refinance existing debt, while the remaining 40 percent will support the redevelopment of the BPI Headquarters and Greenbelt 1 in Makati City.

Funds will also be earmarked for the development of Ayala Malls Evo City in Cavite province.