Category: Philippines Daily Inquirer

Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla assured that the Office of the Ombudsman will not be used as a weapon against political rivals and critics of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.

‘When I became DOJ [Department of Justice] secretary, the first thing I removed was the weaponization of the law. It will not be weaponized. I will assure everyone,’ Remulla, speaking in Filipino, told reporters after his appointment as the new Ombudsman was announced.

Remulla’s nomination as Ombudsman was met with opposition after criminal and disbarment cases were filed against him due to his involvement in the arrest and subsequent transfer of former President Rodrigo Duterte to the International Criminal Court (ICC).

The criminal cases against him were eventually dismissed, and he received a clearance from the Office of the Ombudsman; thus, he was included in the shortlist of candidates.

On Tuesday, Malacañang announced his appointment replacing former Ombudsman Samuel Martires, whose term ended last July 27, 2025.

‘The job of the Ombudsman is for the entire Philippines, not for one political camp, so we will not spare anyone here,’ he said.

One of the pending cases at the Office of the Ombudsman involved confidential funds.

‘It’s already there at the OMB, those reports. We will open them, study them, and ask the current handlers and those with the duty to handle those cases before we proceed,’ he said, indicating an intention to address high-profile matters directly.

Remulla will take his oath on Thursday and officially assume his new position on Friday.

Meanwhile, Justice Undersecretary Fredderick Vida will be the DOJ’s officer-in-charge.

The registration of motor vehicles and driver’s licenses that expired on Sept. 30 will remain valid until Oct. 15, the Land Transportation Office (LTO) said in a statement on Tuesday.

LTO chief Vigor Mendoza II said the move was ‘in consideration of the cancellation of government work caused by heavy rains brought by the southwest monsoon and typhoons Nando, Opong, and Paulo, as well as the devastating earthquake that struck Cebu.’

A memorandum on the extended validity of registrations has already been issued to all LTO regional directors and district office heads, according to Mendoza. He also assured the public that no penalties will be imposed on affected motor vehicle owners and driver’s license holders.

The 15-day period for the settlement of traffic apprehension cases effective Sept. 26 will also be extended until Oct. 15, Mendoza added.

He said the move was the LTO’s way of providing assistance given how a lot of Filipinos were affected by the recent calamities.

The LTO had previously extended the validity of motor vehicle registration and driver’s license expiring on Sept. 30 to Oct. 3, and had likewise scrapped penalties for delayed renewals.

American singer-songwriter David Pomeranz has nothing but good words for Filipinos, admiring how they ‘carry with them their love for humanity all the time.’

The ‘Got to Believe in Magic’ artist spoke about this after he attended a fundraising event for Philippine Nurses Association in the United States, as per a video shared on his Facebook page on Monday, Oct. 6.

‘A couple of nights ago, I played in Maryland at a fundraiser for Philippine Nurses Association, and had a ball. But what blows my mind every time I play for Filipinos is how they walk the walk,’ he said.

‘They’re very, very-yes, many are very religious and such, but they carry their religion or the love for humanity with them all the time,’ he explained.

Pomeranz pointed out how most Filipinos would often be nurses, doctors or caregivers.

‘They help, help, help, help, help. And they’re so funny and so delightful and sweet,’ he added. ‘And if you know them, you’ll know what I mean. They’re gorgeous, gorgeous people.’

The singer also credited Filipinos for being a part of his career. ‘I love Filipinos. You’ve given me so much in my life, added so much to my life.’

Pomeranz has visited and performed in the Philippines several times before, even holding a benefit show in 2013 for the victims of the supertyphoon ‘Yolanda.’

During one of his visits, the singer said he is in love with the country and that he feels welcome and safe here.

Pomeranz is best known for his hits ‘King and Queen of Hearts,’ ‘On This Day,’ ‘Born For You,’ and ‘Until I Fall In Love Again,’ among others.

The Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice) is using drone technology to spray herbicides and manage weeds in rice plantations.

According to PhilRice, researchers discovered that drones can effectively control weeds in wet direct-seeded rice, which could transform weed management into a modern farming practice.

‘This is especially useful for large rice fields and areas with difficult terrain, where manual spraying slows down operations,’ PhilRice said in a statement on Monday.

PhilRice at Central Luzon State University and the Department of Agriculture’s Research Outreach Station for Lowland Development conducted an experiment comparing the effectiveness of an agricultural drone with a traditional backpack sprayer in dealing with unweeded plots and manually weeded plots.

Drone allowed the spraying of 20 and 40 liters of herbicides per hectare.

Based on results, the 20-liter drone treatment attained 80 to 100 percent weed control without plant damage due to chemicals, matching the backpack sprayer in producing the highest grain yield.

Best practices

PhilRice aims to continue validating the results through trials in different sites and study the economic viability of adopting drones to ensure practical adoption by farmers.

‘This gives us a concrete basis for developing future standards and best practices in drone-based pest control,’ PhilRice Weed scientist Dindo King Donayre said.

Donayre said this research was crucial in developing the Integrated Pest Management (IPM) approach, which combines drone spraying with seeding and fertilizer application into a complete IPM system.

The system aims to reduce production costs, ensure safer and faster applications and enhance pest management while reducing its environmental impact.

Before tapping drone technology, PhilRice launched the Scaling, Modern, and Adaptive Rice Technologies for Better Rice-Farming Communities Program to modernize rice farming.

Precision tools

The program offers different digital precision tools to help rice farmers manage their harvests, including Binhing Palay, which presents a catalog of Philippine rice varieties, and eDamuhan, a tool for improved weed management practices.

It also features Rice Crop Manager, a site-specific crop and nutrient management tool, as well as the Minus-One-Element Technique and Leaf Color Chart App to help determine fertilizer needs.

The initiative also entails deploying high-yielding inbred varieties that are resistant to major pests, promoting saline-tolerant varieties for stress-prone areas and conducting training on hybrid rice production.

PhilRice will also introduce modern farm machines to reduce labor costs and boost productivity. INQ

The asset valuer of Villar Land Holdings Corp. has been ordered to explain its valuation of the properties, which are currently the subject of an ongoing probe by the Securities and Exchange Commission.

In a letter dated Sept. 29, the SEC Office of the General Accountant directed E-Value Phils Inc. to explain why it should not be penalized due to its valuation of 366.34 hectares of land owned by Althorp Land Holdings Inc., Chalgrove Properties Inc. and Los Valores Corp.

Villar Land bought the properties last year for P5.2 billion.

Trillion-peso valuation

Based on E-Value’s initial valuation report, the assets of these companies were valued at P1.34 trillion, leading to the controversial trillion-peso valuation of Villar Land.

The company led by the powerful Villar family was recently ordered to pay P12 million in fines for failing to submit its audited financial statements on time. It has since appealed this order.

‘The SEC will continue to investigate this matter thoroughly in the interest of upholding transparency and accountability in valuation practices and accuracy in financial reporting,’ the corporate watchdog said

Teduray leader Ramon Lupos, 60, was one of the remaining non-Moro IP leaders in Barangay Limpogo in Datu Hoffer town of Maguindanao del Sur, until he was killed, a member of the Bangsamoro Transition Authority (BTA) said.

Lupos, whose beheaded body was found in his hut in Datu Hoffer on September 30, was the 102nd non-Moro IP killed since the establishment of the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) in 2019, according to Climate Conflict Action (CCA), an independent nongovernmental organization that gathers and analyzes climate and conflict data to collaborate with affected communities.

BTA Member of Parliament Froilyn Mendoza, who represents the non-Moro IP in the Bangsamoro, also said that in the town of Datu Hoffer alone, Lupos was the 20th non-Moro IP member killed since 2000.

Mendoza called on the authorities to bring the perpetrators to justice and stop the senseless and unabated killings of IP leaders in the region.

‘Justice for Timuay Ramon Lupos is justice rendered for the IP communities,’ Mendoza said in a statement.

CCA put to task the police, military and the Office of the Presidential Adviser on Peace, Reconciliation and Unity for the continued killing of non-Moro IPs in the region.

Systemic violence

The peace monitor noted that the BARMM’s Indigenous Peoples Code ‘failed to protect’ those it claims to defend, and neither has the entire security infrastructure of the Philippine government nor the leaders and custodians of the Bangsamoro government.

‘Each killing is a reminder that promises of protection remain empty and justice remains out of reach,’ said the independent peace monitor previously known as International Alert Philippines.

CCA also pointed out that the violence against the non-Moro IPs in the Bangsamoro region ‘is not random (but) systemic,’ a ‘diabolical act designed to sow fear, drive the Teduray away from their ancestral lands, erase their identity and elicit another round of revenge killings.’

‘The blood from this act of violence against the non-Moro IPs is on the hands not only of the perpetrators but also of all those who allowed this to happen,’ the CCA said.

Bangsamoro Interim Chief Minister Abdulraof Macacua condemned the merciless killing, calling it an ‘affront to peace, justice and human dignity.’

‘This type of violence has no place in Bangsamoro,’ Macacua said.

He admitted that non-Moro IPs in the region continued to endure injustices even as he vowed to deliver justice.

Macacua ordered law enforcement and security agencies in the region to conduct a thorough and swift investigation to bring the perpetrators behind bars.

‘As we honor the life of Mr. Ramon Lupos, we reaffirm our solemn commitment that justice will be relentlessly pursued, not only for him and his family, but for all Indigenous Peoples who long for peace, dignity and protection in our homeland,’ Macacua said

Catholic bishops, lawmakers, a retired justice, and Malacañang on Monday poured cold water on Senate Minority Leader Alan Peter Cayetano’s call for a snap election, labeling it as ‘unconstitutional’ fodder for chaos and instability.

Cayetano, in a Facebook post on Sunday, floated a scenario for the President, the Vice President, and Senate and House of Representatives members to resign and allow a snap election. But he set one condition: No incumbent politician should run for one election cycle.

‘If we are really serious about restoring trust, then let’s go all in,’ Cayetano said. ‘Let everyone resign – from the President down to the last congressman – and let’s hold snap elections.’

The Clergy for Good Governance, composed of bishops and priests, said that the ‘answer to corruption is not a snap election – it is a snap of conscience.’

‘Before seeking new power, do justice first for our people. Hold accountable all who plundered our nation, whoever they are, however powerful. Let them face the law, stay behind bars, and be perpetually disqualified from office,’ it said in a statement.

‘No resignation, no political maneuvering can erase the injustice done to the Filipino people,’ it added.

The government has been rocked by allegations that senators, congressmen, and private contractors have siphoned off funds for flood control projects worth billions of pesos since 2022, when President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. assumed office.

Then Senate President Francis Escudero was ousted, and then Speaker Martin Romualdez stepped down as the scandal deepened. Allegations of corruption in government infrastructure projects also prompted the creation of an independent commission to probe these anomalies that triggered a series of street protests around the country last month.

Desperate statement

Senate President Vicente Sotto III and Senate President Pro Tempore Panfilo Lacson agreed that the Constitution does not provide for the holding of a snap election.

‘We have no constitutional nor legal framework for snap elections. We will be flirting with uncertainty and chaos,’ Sotto told reporters.

Election lawyer Romulo Macalintal said: ‘It’s a mere desperate political statement. Only a revolutionary government can conduct a snap election, not even if we are placed under martial law, since, under our present Constitution, a democratic government still exists.’

There are no specific and clear provisions for a snap election in the 1987 Constitution. Section 10 of Article VII states that in cases of vacancy in the offices of the President and Vice President, Congress needs to enact a law calling for a special election to elect the two top posts of the country, and it should be held not earlier than 45 days nor later than 60 days from the time of such call.

Retired Supreme Court Senior Associate Justice Antonio Carpio also said Cayetano’s single condition would invite legal challenges.

‘If this is put into law, its constitutionality will surely be challenged and will likely be declared unconstitutional,’ Carpio said in a message to the Inquirer. ‘This is the problem in Cayetano’s proposal.’

‘You cannot disqualify en masse all incumbent elected public officials from running for public office without a lawful cause as provided by law,’ Carpio added.

In the face of criticisms of his regime, then strongman Ferdinand Marcos Sr. called for special elections in December 1985. On Feb. 7, 1986, a snap election was held, but the results were marred by allegations of irregularities, triggering the ‘people’s revolt’ that ousted Marcos, the incumbent’s father and namesake, and catapulted his rival, Corazon Aquino, to power.

‘Irresponsible’

For political analyst Jean Encinas-Franco, Cayetano’s proposal smacked not only of unreasonableness but also irresponsibility.

‘The Congress would have to pass the law [on special elections]. What would happen if there was no Congress?’ Franco, a political science associate professor at the University of the Philippines, said by phone.

Besides, she said Cayetano’s call would only fan instability after the military doused rumors of a coup against President Marcos.

‘The fact that it’s coming from an incumbent senator who should work towards political stability is a bit, I think, irresponsible,’ Franco said. ‘It’s really inviting political instability, and given that there were rumors of a coup a while ago, then I think it’s an irresponsible statement.’

Malacañang press officer Claire Castro called Cayetano’s suggestion ‘just his wishful thinking.’

‘We do not have time to talk about one’s personal desires,’ she added. ‘The President has no time for this kind of politicking. Let us all focus on the needs of the people, not on personal interests.’

‘Obfuscation’

If at all, the Makabayan bloc of lawmakers in the House described Cayetano’s call as a ‘typical’ example of ‘obfuscating’ the issue of corruption.

The Eastern Visayas Medical Center (EVMC) has issued an urgent advisory informing the public and healthcare facilities in the region that it has exceeded its authorized bed capacity.

As of Oct. 5, the region’s only hospital designed to treat level 3 cases has a 125 percent occupancy in hospital beds. The hospital’s emergency room (ER), meanwhile, is operating at 193-percent occupancy.

The ER’s bed capacity is only 60, but the hospital said it has been treating 120 to 130 patients at any given time.

‘In light of this situation, EVMC advises that only level 3 cases-those requiring urgent, life-saving interventions that cannot be adequately managed at local healthcare facilities-should be referred to the hospital at this time,’ the hospital said in its advisory on Tuesday.

The EVMC has a bed capacity of 629, but the actual number of patients has increased to more than 1,000, prompting management to use overflow areas, temporarily convert other parts of the facility for patient care, and increase the workload of existing staff.

‘Due to the current strain on resources, patients referred to EVMC may experience delays, and in the event of a surge in critical cases, referred patients might need to remain in referring ambulances while the hospital accommodates patients who arrived earlier,’ the hospital management said.

Many EVMC patients are transported directly from rural health units or by the Municipal Disaster Risk Reduction Management Office without seeking medical attention first from district and provincial hospitals.

The EVMC said it receives patients suffering from diarrhea, minor injuries, pneumonia, and normal birth deliveries.

The regional hospital assured the public that it is exerting all necessary efforts to address the overcapacity issue and manage patient care effectively.

The largest hospital in the region, EVMC, is confident of attaining its target of 1,500 hospital beds by 2028, nearly triple its current capacity

Earning membership to the Mythical First Team should give Robert Bolick reasons to chase bigger accolades going into the PBA season.

But Bolick insists that he’s more concerned about putting NLEX in a situation of exceeding what it had achieved in the Philippine Cup when the Road Warriors came up one win short of a semifinals berth.

‘I really want to get this team into the semifinals. We just have to continue what we did last conference and carry that momentum to this conference,’ Bolick told The Inquirer in Filipino as he and NLEX are set to open up their season-opening all-Filipino campaign on Wednesday against San Miguel Beer at Ynares Center in Antipolo City.

Bolick wound up second in the race for the Most Valuable Player, which was ruled once more by San Miguel’s June Mar Fajardo for a record-extending ninth time.

A deeper run by the Road Warriors on a consistent basis may raise Bolick’s chances, something that the prolific guard acknowledges.

But NLEX may be in for some pitfalls, given that some of the teams in the middle of the pack can pose as spoilers, namely Converge and Rain or Shine, the one that eliminated Bolick and the Road Warriors in the quarters despite a twice-to-beat advantage.

‘It’s going to be tough because there are a lot of strong teams out there,’ Bolick said. ‘Hopefully, we can sneak into the semis, get there on a consistent basis, and who knows, maybe I could get a better chance at the Best Player of the Conference, or beat June Mar for the MVP award.

‘But my main focus and mindset is to make the team successful. If we achieve our goals, then the individual awards could follow,’ he added.

Bolick averaged 20.6 points, 5.4 rebounds, a league-best 7.6 assists and 1.0 steals in 40 games for the Road Warriors, undoubtedly his best season yet.

NLEX, however, got booted out in the quarters of the Governors’ Cup and lost to Magnolia in a playoff for No. 8 in the Commissioner’s Cup.

It is easy to see the floodwaters. But what’s harder to grasp is what we’re drowning in.

This year alone, the Philippines has again faced the brutal cycles of flooding, storm surges, landslides, and typhoons-each leaving a familiar trail: lost lives, wrecked homes, halted schooling, destroyed crops, disease outbreaks, broken roads, and ruined futures.

But there’s a deeper flood now-a moral and institutional deluge. The top branches of government are cracking under the weight of scandal. The executive, legislative, and judicial arms are now perceived by many not as saviors from disaster, but as syndicates of self-dealing and plunder. Even our fiscal watchdogs, tasked with guarding public funds, have been accused of complicity. It’s no surprise that public trust is hemorrhaging.

Against this backdrop, the country’s long-standing struggle for flood control and climate resilience seems to vanish into the background. Dikes, river dredging, slope protections-these were always expensive, often fragmented, and frequently ineffective. But at least they were tangible. Now, even these are paused, as outrage redirects our collective energy to governance failure, impunity, and the looming threat of civil disorder.

It’s tempting to think we can only deal with one crisis at a time. But this is a dangerous illusion. If we lose sight of the strategic, long-term solutions to our recurring flooding nightmare, we may trade today’s rage for tomorrow’s ruin.

From eight years of working with LGUs and communities in the flood-battered towns in Pampanga, Bulacan, and Tarlac, we at Future Earth Philippines have learned one powerful truth: resilience is not just about hardware-it’s about systems, culture, and commitment. Here are five long-view solution pathways that deserve renewed attention:

1. Establish a regional flood and drainage strategy and plan. Most flood interventions are patchwork at best, contradictory at worst. Dredging in one town is negated by garbage clogging canals in another. The absence of a regional, science-based, long-horizon plan wastes money and increases risk.

Such a strategy could unify fragmented efforts-from slope protection to resettlement-and create a framework that connects local knowledge, hazard data, and inter-municipal coordination. It’s not just technical-it’s political and moral. It tells citizens: we’re thinking beyond the next term.

2. Rehabilitate and govern watersheds as natural flood barriers. Floods don’t start in the streets. They start in the uplands, in denuded forests, in silt-heavy rivers, and in the loss of mangroves along the coast. The lahar scars of Mount Pinatubo still bleed into lowland towns.

Restoring watersheds requires scientific cooperation, local land-use reforms, and livelihood alternatives for upland dwellers. It delivers not only flood prevention but also biodiversity gains, climate adaptation, and rural jobs. It’s a strategy rooted in nature’s logic-not political cycles.

3. Resettle and transform flood-prone communities humanely. Many families live where no one should. But resettlement is often done without dignity or strategy-dumping people in far-flung, unlivable sites with no livelihood or infrastructure.

What we need are in-town or clustered resettlement models-consultative, connected, and climate-smart. These should be supported by real urban planning and services. Resettlement isn’t abandonment-it can be an act of collective courage.

4. Build citizen organizations and local response systems. People’s capacity to respond to disasters is often ignored. Yet in our fieldwork, barangay captains, youth groups, fisherfolk, and mothers consistently provided the most durable insights.

Citizen monitoring of environmental law enforcement, solid waste practices, and local planning not only improves outcomes-it fosters ownership and pressure for accountability. Resilience must stop being a top-down project and become a neighborhood ethic.

5. Cultivate public understanding and collective commitment. This may be the deepest reform of all. Most people do not understand why flooding persists-how ground subsidence, geophysical shifts, unregulated groundwater extraction, and policy incoherence make solutions elusive.

We need national campaigns, not just on evacuation or cleanup, but on understanding complex causes and on mobilizing multi-stakeholder commitment. If citizens and officials see the deeper roots, they’ll resist superficial fixes and demand durable change.

The danger today is not just that we delay action. It’s that in our fury at government failure, we abandon the pursuit of transformation altogether. That we forget that it’s not just the government that must act-but every sector, every discipline, every community. Let us remind ourselves and one another: when governance fails, citizen coalitions must rise. In the shadows of Pinatubo and the floodplains of history, we can still build higher ground-together.