Category: Philippines Daily Inquirer

The Philippine National Police (PNP) on Wednesday said it will investigate violations of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s order to freeze the prices of basic goods until the end of the year.

‘The PNP is now fully mobilizing its investigative and enforcement units, treating violations of the price freeze, such as hoarding and overpricing, as serious criminal offenses tantamount to economic sabotage,’ Acting Chief Lt. Gen. Jose Melencio Nartatez said in a statement.

‘We have instructed all our regional and provincial directors to coordinate closely with local government units and DTI (Department of Trade and Industry) offices in monitoring compliance. If there’s a complaint of hoarding or overpricing, we will immediately investigate it and enforce the law,’ he added.

The police chief particularly noted that the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) as well as local police units were tasked to crack down on profiteering.

Malacañang press officer Claire Castro announced Marcos’ order on Monday as the peak of the Christmas season nears.

The price freeze ensures strict adherence to the maximum suggested retail prices for imported rice, canned sardines, canned meats, all kinds of milk, various instant coffee products, bottled water, instant noodles, bread, salt, soy sauce, fish sauce, vinegar, candles, and other manufactured basic commodities.

Rookie Nica Celis proved her worth as a starter in the last two sets to help Creamline end the first round of the PVL Reinforced Conference.

Celis scored five points in two sets played and delivered the game-winner in Creamline’s 23-25, 25-23, 25-23, 25-17 victory over Chery Tiggo on Tuesday at FilOil EcoOil Centre in San Juan City.

The second-round pick of the Cool Smashers said it felt fulfilling to contribute after they secured a top-three spot in Pool B with 3-2 record.

‘It feels really good to have helped the team. I’ve been trying to find ways to contribute,’ said Celis in Filipino. ‘I’m super grateful for the guidance from the seniors, for all my teammates on the court, and of course, for the trust that coach has given me.’

Seldom used in Creamline’s first games and previous stints in the PVL on Tour and Invitational, Celis stayed patient until she finally earned her time to contribute to the team.

‘My mindset has always been to just keep working. I know how big this team is and how much effort it takes to be here,’ she said.

After showing what she’s capable of, the former UP Fighting Maroon vows to stay ready to deliver for Creamline as they head to the next round against the bottom three of Pool A.

‘I still have a lot to improve, so I try not to get too comfortable or too happy with what I’ve done so far. I just want to keep pushing and getting better,’ Celis said.

‘It’s just about doing my job, staying focused and performing well. It’s just such a nice feeling,’ she added.

The Philippine Economic Zone Authority (Peza) is confident about reaching its investment approval target of at least P250 billion for this year despite the overhang from the US tariff and flood control scandal.

‘We’re hopeful . Our conservative [target] is P250 billion, but the ambitious target is P300 billion,’ Peza Director General Tereso Panga said on Tuesday.

The investment promotion agency has yet to release the amount of its approved investments from January to October this year. Panga only said Peza had approved around P20 billion more in investments, bringing the total to about P170 billion for the period.

Panga said some of the big-ticket investments were valued at least P1 billion each, although he declined to provide further details.

Investments

‘With maybe three or four board meetings to go, we’re hopeful that we can realize more investments, register more investments,’ he told reporters on the sidelines of the 20th Philippine Semiconductor and Electronics Convention and Exhibition in Pasay City.

From January to September, Peza approved P154.7 billion worth of investments, a 33.5 percent increase from the same period a year ago.

Panga said Peza is yet to feel any backlash from the 19-percent US tariff slapped on Philippine exports and the corruption allegations involving government-funded flood control projects. So far, he noted that the export sector had been able to sustain its uptrend.

‘. As we speak, it’s all positive for Peza when it comes to investments, exports and jobs. And investments have been going up; [there’s] upward trajectory, so we don’t feel that yet. Even in exports, we’re still up,’ he said.

Exemptions

Panga expressed hope that the United States would retain the tariff exemption on semiconductor exports.

The electronics/semiconductor manufacturing services sector is the country’s largest export earner.

Panga also said that ecozone exporters continued to ship to the United States, their strategic market, despite the 19-percent tariff. The country still had one of the lowest import duties levied by the US government, he noted.

However, he said some producers have scaled down their exports to America due to the ‘huge drop’ in demand for their products, particularly finished electronic products.

The country’s export sales totaled $55.7 billion in the January to August period, up 12.6 percent from the same period a year ago, data from the Philippine Statistics Authority showed.

Among commodity groups, electronic products topped the list with $29.48 billion, equivalent to 52.9 percent of the total.

The mind-boggling corruption in the government’s infrastructure projects has not only triggered public outrage – it has also led to calls for some form of relief for taxpayers whose hard-earned contributions to public coffers have been pocketed by corrupt officials and private contractors.

Thus, before President Marcos flew to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, for the 47th Association of Southeast Asian Nations Summit, the Department of Finance (DOF) and the Bureau of Internal Revenue proposed an increase in the ceilings for tax-exempt benefits of public and private sector employees that they said would ‘definitely make a significant difference for our workers.’

Under the proposal, the ceiling for nontaxable annual medical assistance will be raised to P12,000 from P10,000; laundry allowance from P300 to P400 a month; Christmas or anniversary incentives from P5,000 to P6,000, rice subsidies to P2,500 from P2,000, and annual uniform and clothing allowance from P7,000 to P8,000, among others.

The increase in the nontaxable allowances and benefits was supposed to make up for ‘inflation and rising living costs and enhance competitiveness across sectors, while maintaining prudent fiscal management,’ the DOF said in a statement.

Hardly enough

Mr. Marcos added in his pre-departure speech that these changes ‘are not just about numbers. They are about fairness and dignity in the workplace.’ But even with the best of intentions, the proposal has been received with more sneers than cheers.

After all, if squared against the DOF’s own estimates that the ghost flood control projects of the Department of Public Works and Highways have already cost the economy as much as P118.5 billion from 2023 to 2025 and wiped out the 266,000 jobs that would have been created by these programs, these are hardly enough to make even a tiny bit of a difference.

For one, the proposed package of incentives will just benefit those workers that have these incentives in the first place, therefore will not apply to the greater number of employees who are accorded the bare minimum benefits prescribed by law, if at all.

Self-employed, professionals, and informal workers who likewise have no choice but to pay value-added tax (VAT) on their consumption or whose income has been reduced because of withholding taxes will likewise not benefit from the proposed increase in the ceiling for exemptions.

Most heavily taxed

Cardinal Pablo Virgilio David, in a social media post, shared a list of 15 different taxes that Filipinos have to pay. ‘When you add it all up – every payslip deduction, every fuel refill, every purchase at the grocery, every property tax bill – it’s clear that Filipinos are among the most heavily taxed people in Asia. So the question is: Are we getting our taxpayer money’s worth in terms of public services – roads, hospitals, schools, flood control, disaster protection, etc.?’

Some quarters had already lobbied for an income tax holiday, even for just a month, as well as a cut in VAT, if only to get back some of the money from taxpayers’ pockets that have now been found to have financed the extravagant lifestyles of unscrupulous individuals who had no qualms about stealing from the government and the Filipino public.

The DOF was quick, however, to dash hopes of the tax breaks that many angry Filipinos are calling for, on the grounds that this medicine will be worse than the disease because of the outsized impact on government services and programs.

If that is indeed true, and the DOF is not just hyping the potential damage just to keep money rolling in, then the Marcos administration should extract every ounce of its creative juices to give the majority of Filipinos immediate and significant assistance, not just the few.

Stop-gap measures

A welcome move is the order for the Department of Trade and Industry to freeze the prices of basic goods, including rice, until the end of the year, as the peak Christmas buying season nears. The price freeze will apply to commonly purchased everyday items such as canned sardines, canned meats, milk, bottled water, instant noodles, bread, salt, soy sauce, fish sauce, vinegar, and even candles.

The Marcos administration, however, should not stop at these stopgap measures that are expected to appease outraged citizens and instead go to the root of the corruption problem, for instance, by delivering on its promise to ensure that there will be no more ghost, substandard, or unnecessary projects in the succeeding years, starting with the 2026 budget.

As said in the latest and so far most biting statement yet issued Sunday by the country’s largest business organizations and trade unions, ‘the Filipino people are no longer just watching,’ but instead are clamoring for Mr. Marcos to confront what it described as ‘the largest and most brazen corruption scandal in our nation’s history.’

Mr. Marcos and his team should indeed take ‘bold, concrete actions’ now, as people’s patience is fast running out.

Akari head coach Tina Salak made key adjustments to her system following their first loss to Petro Gazz last week, setting her sights on sweeping the remainder of their first-round games in the PVL Reinforced Conference.

Salak admitted she’s still working on getting the Chargers fully aligned as a unit, but praised her Alas Pilipinas setter Mars Alba for quickly executing the adjustments in their bounce-back 25-11, 25-23, 25-23 win over winless Galeries Tower on Tuesday at the Filoil EcoOil Center in San Juan City.

‘We still need to work on our attitude toward the game and with each other as teammates. It’s a bit hard to get everyone aligned right now since we’re still adjusting to some changes in our system,’ said Salak in Filipino.?’I’m very lucky to have Mars as our setter. She’s really picking up the adjustments we’ve been working on.’

Alba, who tallied 20 excellent sets, had no trouble restoring order when Akari trailed 19-23 in the third set. Behind her steady hands and Grethcel Soltones’ service run-including the equalizing ace-the Chargers strung together six straight points.

Annie Mitchem then blocked Jean Asis to reach match point at 24-23 and Ced Domingo sealed the win with a quick attack off a broken play.

‘When the other team pulls away, we just regroup and remind each other to stay calm,’ said Alba, who also scored four points. ‘Sometimes we panic and rush to get the points back, especially when the gap gets big. But we take it one point at a time, listen to the coaches and stick to the game plan to keep the flow smooth.’

Alba is part of Alas Pilipinas’ 19-player pool for the 33rd Southeast Asian Games in Thailand, alongside captain Jia de Guzman and Galeries setter Julia Coronel.?While honored to receive the call-up, Alba is focused on helping Akari return to the finals after a breakthrough in last year’s Reinforced Conference.

Salak, whose team improved to 3-1, aims to finish strong in Pool B against ZUS Coffee on Nov. 4 at the Mall of Asia Arena.

‘The next round is going to be crucial, so we have to take all our adjustments seriously,’ said Salak. ‘We need to adapt to what we’ve been working on and review our past games carefully. Watching film will help us find more advantages against teams we’ve already faced.’

Mitchem led Akari with 14 points off 10 kills and four kill blocks. Eli Soyud added 12 points on eight spikes, three aces and a block. Soltones chipped in nine points, including four aces.

Galeries ended the first round at 0-5 and will face the top three teams from Pool A starting Nov. 6 at the same venue.?Jelena Cvijovic paced the Highrisers with 10 points, while Asis and Roselle Baliton finished with nine each. INQ

The Philippines has officially assumed the 2026 chairship of the Asean-Business Advisory Council (Asean-BAC), after Malaysia handed over the leadership of the regional body tasked to provide private sector feedback and guidance to boost the regional bloc’s efforts toward greater economic integration.

Jose Ma. Concepcion III, chair of RFM Corp. and head of the Asean-BAC Philippine delegation, went to Kuala Lumpur for the formal handover ceremony, which was one of the highlights of the Asean-BAC Events and Related Summits held from Oct. 24 to 27 in Kuala Lumpur.

George Barcelon, chair of the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry and Asia Brewery Inc. president Michael Tan traveled with Concepcion for the handover.

Asean-BAC Philippines is expected to build on the theme ‘Prosperity for All,’ which was the same guiding theme at its last chairship in 2017.

‘As we take on this new role, our goal is to build on this momentum, empowering MSMEs (micro, small and medium enterprises) and strengthening partnerships that drive inclusive growth and food security across the region. Together, we can ensure that the Asean spirit of unity, innovation, and entrepreneurship continues to thrive,’ said Concepcion. -Tina Arceo-Dumlao

More miles for PNB clients

The holidays are calling, and the Lucio Tan Group seems to be one of the first to have heard the carols.

Flag carrier Philippine Airlines (PAL) and Philippine National Bank (PNB) have officially renewed their partnership, bringing some much-needed good news for travelers.

Under their new agreement, PAL-PNB Mabuhay Miles credit, debit and prepaid card holders may convert their reward points into Mabuhay Miles.

These coveted miles may be used to redeem flights and upgrades, among many other exclusive travel privileges.

‘This partnership celebrates the value our customers bring by ensuring their loyalty is rewarded in meaningful and exciting ways,’ PAL Holdings Inc. president and COO Lucio Tan III said in a statement on Monday.

‘This synergy not only enhances benefits for our customers but also sets new standards for innovation and excellence in the industry,’ Tan added.

Looks like that famous Mabuhay Lounge lugaw will be within reach again! -Meg J. Adonis INQ

President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. has come to the defense of the government’s slow pace in bringing into jail the personalities behind the multibillion-peso corruption in flood control and other infrastructure projects of the government. During a roundtable with journalists here on Tuesday, he admitted that he had been constantly receiving messages urging him to lift his hand and put behind bars those involved in the controversy, but the President stressed the need to follow due process and build strong cases against the real culprits.

‘We have to remind people that we have now moved from the political arena to the legal one. And in the legal arena, there are very strictly defined procedures,’ he said.

‘I get messages all day, every day – ‘Put them in jail already!’ ‘We already know who they are, imprison them!’ ‘Take all their money!’ ‘Sell their houses and return [the money] to the people!’ – but what would I be accused of if I did that?’ the President added.

He also warned that filing a case, even without strong evidence, would only lead to the acquittal of those accused.

‘Can you imagine these people, who have stolen billions from the government and the Filipino people, walking free because the evidence was poorly handled? That would be a much worse outcome,’ the President said.

Due process

‘Due process must be observed. We must make sure that we know the real culprits. We will make sure that all of them will be jailed, and all of the money they stole will be returned to the government and to the people,’ he added.

The country’s largest business and labor groups were among the latest to criticize the government’s slow progress in addressing the ongoing corruption scandal, almost three months after the President exposed this during his fourth State of the Nation Address in July.

They called on Marcos to conduct concrete actions ‘before the people’s patience finally runs out.’

The President acknowledged the anger of many Filipinos, admitting that he himself was ‘very frustrated’ on how long it is taking for authorities to convict and finally throw those corrupt officials behind bars.

‘The government’s lawyers told me of their adage, ‘The wheels of justice [turn] slowly but they grind very well.’ So we are counting on that,’ he said.

Marcos, however, warned that authorities could not just haphazardly jump to conclusions.

‘Why are they in a rush? That’s not possible, we will be compromising our cases,’ the President said.

‘I cannot just order the police to arrest all those alleged to be involved in corruption. It will destroy the integrity of our cases, and we cannot charge them again because of the principle of double jeopardy,’ he explained.

‘I understand the frustration because we do have a very good idea about who these people are. But you have to take them to court. You have to present evidence. They have to be convicted,’ the President added.

While none of those tagged in the corruption scandal has cases pending before courts, the President trusts that the Office of the Ombudsman and the Department of Justice will eventually file airtight cases, ‘with solid evidence that will not lead to an acquittal.’

‘They will pay for it with their liberty, and they will pay for it with treasure that they have taken away from the government,’ Marcos stressed.

‘We only have one chance. We cannot waste that opportunity to bring justice to those people – to bring those people to justice and to bring justice to the Filipino people,’ he added.

Not meddling

Marcos also believed that the decision of the Independent Commission for Infrastructure (ICI) to live-stream their investigation would not affect the credibility of its fact-finding process.

The President created the ICI to specifically investigate anomalous flood control projects and other infrastructure built by the government in the past 10 years.

He deferred to the ICI to ‘decide for themselves’ on their rules for the live-streaming of their processes, citing the independence he granted to the super body.

‘I really have an opinion, of course, but I want people to see that I and the executive branch will not interfere with them,’ Marcos said

Marjorie Barretto refuted the recent statement of her mother Inday Barretto against her which, the former said, was made in an effort to make her younger sister Claudine Barretto ‘look good and clean.’

Inday earlier had a two-part interview with showbiz insider Ogie Diaz, during which she spoke against Marjorie and how they do not get along well.

The Barretto matriarch also talked about the rift between Marjorie and her older sister Gretchen Barretto, echoing the supposed sentiment of some that such stemmed from ‘rivalry and inggit’ (envy).

‘Marjorie is very strong-willed. Sometimes lampas sa normal (it’s too much),’ Inday told Diaz. ‘We don’t get along fine.’

‘Tingin ko we’re made from the same pattern. Strong din siya, but parang I feel rejection from her,’ she continued. ‘I feel like she loves me but parang hindi ako enough sa kanya.’

(I think we’re made from the same pattern. She’s also strong but I feel rejection from her. I feel like she loves me but that I am not enough for her.)

Inday claimed that she does not get invited to Marjorie’s parties because the latter is allegedly embarrassed of her.

Inday then narrated instances where Marjorie apparently got mad at her after she was gifted by Gretchen with a brand new vehicle, and when Marjorie supposedly refused to eat food from a brand associated with Claudine.

‘Hindi ba inggit ‘yon?’ the matriarch remarked. (Isn’t that a sign of envy?)

Inday also disapproved of Marjorie’s ‘treatment’ toward her ex-husband Dennis Padilla. Inday even compared Marjorie and Padilla’s situation to Claudine and her estranged husband Raymart Santiago’s, and said the youngest Barretto is the ‘winner.’

Inday nonetheless clarified during the interview that she does not play favorites among her children.

‘People always say, ‘Envy ‘yan, rivalry ‘yan’-and I think so, too,’ she added, referring to her children’s feud.

‘I don’t want them together. They’re not good for each other,’ she continued. ‘But you know, I love Marjorie pero I’m not gonna beg for her love.’

Marjorie responds

Days after the interview was released, Marjorie broke her silence via her Instagram page on Wednesday, Oct. 29 and said that it was ‘false, unfair, and destructive.’

‘I woke up to frantic calls and messages from loved ones saying that my mom had said very hurtful and untrue things about me,’ she said.

‘I was shocked to learn that she and I were supposedly not on good terms, when we were just together every day, from that one day in the hospital to my brother [Mito’s] three-night wake and his inurnment. Was I not taking my mom home from the wake? Was I only dreaming that we were talking, hugging, and comforting each other?’ she stated.

Marjorie lamented how their non-showbiz family members were dragged into a ‘new scandal’ while they are still grieving the death of Mito.

‘Am I once again damage control? The Mission: Destroy Marjorie – to make the youngest child look good and clean,’ she said, apparently referring to Claudine.

Marjorie then claimed that it was her mom who asked her not to share photos of their gatherings ‘because Gretchen and Claudine might get upset.’ She added that it was also Inday who ‘begged’ her not to reconcile with her sisters so that their mother ‘won’t be left out.’

‘With my mom, if you are not a problematic child, you become the least favorite,’ Marjorie wrote.

She further lamented how for her mom, the ‘favored child’ can do no wrong and is always the victim.

‘In the interview, my mom implied I was ‘inggit,’ distant, and cold, then said she loved me. I’m confused because if she truly knew me, she’d know those words are the farthest from the truth,’ Marjorie said.

Concluding her statement with words for her Inday, Marjorie wrote, ‘Mom, I want you to know that I love you. And I have learned to accept whatever kind of love you can give me.’

‘You may ask why do I feel the need to clarify and explain, it’s because I am misunderstood. And when someone close to you distorts the truth in a very public way, it creates an ache that my silence cannot hold anymore,’ she added.

Amid continuous investigations on anomalous government infrastructure projects in the country, the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) has formed a group consisting of flood control experts in the country to ensure that flood mitigation structures in 2027 will be efficient and implemented properly.

DPWH Secretary Vince Dizon shared this development on Wednesday as he met with some of flood control experts in the country, including Department of Environment and Natural Resources Undersecretary Carlo David, University of the Philippines (UP) Professor and Project Nationwide Operational Assessment of Hazard (NOAH) Director Mahar Lagmay and Guillermo Tabios III from the UP Institute of Civil Engineering.

Dizon shared that about a month ago, the agency reached out to these experts to form a technical working group which will be tasked to create and vet flood control plans, pointing out his discovery that some flood control projects have no concrete plans at all.

‘I told them that I won’t allow any flood control project to be in the next budget if it has no plans and did not undergo clearance by this group,’ Dizon told reporters in an interview. Dizon shared that the team will be working in preparation for the 2027 budget of the agency, which will start around February 2026.

In line with this, he said that one of their immediate tasks is to come up with an initial plan of projects as the DPWH is still waiting for the 18 major river system master plan from its international partners such as the World Bank and Japan International Cooperation Agency. While he said that the agency will conform to the directive of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. that there will be no locally funded flood control projects in 2026 due to issues of anomalies, he emphasized the importance of having efficient flood control projects across the country.

‘I am asking this group to vet the plans and if they say the plans are good and the plans will have a positive effect on flood mitigation in various areas then we will put those plans in the 2027 budget,’ Dizon added. During a hearing of the Senate subpanel on finance last Monday, Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian asked Dizon if the agency detected any duplicate items in the agency’s 2026 budget. Dizon shared that the DPWH was able to review that 798 out of 946 projects were flagged as potential duplicates, which amounted to P11.656 billion out of the P14.455 billion.

Dizon also said that the DPWH was unable to verify all 946 projects, and asked for more time to finish the validation. With this, Gatchalian had given the agency until October 31 to verify.

Science-based approach

Meanwhile, Lagmay emphasized the importance of a science-based approach in forming and implementing plans for flood control projects. Lagmay also said that integrating ideas of Project NOAH, experts, and the DENR can help create an efficient flood control plan.

Project NOAH, launched by the Department of Science and Technology in 2012, is a platform tasked to enhance disaster risk reduction and management programs in the country.

‘I think this will be more efficient and more cost effective and more targeted expenditure because we won’t just spend any money,’ Lagmay said in a separate interview.

With this, he said that science-based plans will not be prone to corruption. ‘If you have a good plan based on good inputs. and you have a master plan. If that’s the basis of the [local government unit or] LGU and national levels, and not just some poorly formed plan,’ he added.

The Philippine National Police (PNP) has begun the early or ‘soft’ deployment of personnel across the country ahead of the Undas holidays, as millions are expected to travel to cemeteries and provinces later this week.

PNP acting chief Lt. Gen. Jose Melencio Nartatez Jr. said the measure aims to position police units and resources in advance to help manage traffic buildup, maintain public order, and assist travelers before the peak of the long weekend.

‘We have started our soft deployment of police personnel nationwide to ensure that our presence is already felt as early as now,’ Nartatez said in a statement on Wednesday.

He added that this proactive measure aims to ensure ‘smoother coordination and preparedness before the expected influx of travelers later this week.’

The PNP is on heightened alert from Oct. 29 to Nov. 3, with all police units directed to strengthen security measures and readiness to respond to any incidents or emergencies.

According to Nartatez, about 50,000 police officers have been deployed nationwide, which is higher than the 32,000 assigned during Undas 2024.

They will be supported by more than 16,000 personnel from the Armed Forces of the Philippines, Bureau of Fire Protection and Philippine Coast Guard, along with over 45,000 force multipliers.

‘As we expect large crowds in cemeteries, terminals and major thoroughfares, my order is to ensure that our citizens feel the presence of the police-not to intimidate but to reassure,’ Nartatez said. ‘Our presence should give comfort and peace of mind to the public.’

Regional and provincial directors have also been ordered to activate operational plans in coordination with local government units and other agencies. Checkpoints, police assistance desks and mobile patrols will remain operational 24/7 throughout the long weekend.

Nartatez also reminded police personnel to maintain professionalism at all times, and to treat the public, especially the elderly and visitors, with courtesy. He emphasized that their role is not only to ensure security but also to assist and serve the public.