Category: Philippines Daily Inquirer

ZUS Coffee eked out a come-from-behind 24-26, 25-23, 17-25, 26-24, 15-7 win to stun last year’s runner-up Akari in an all-Filipino duel in the PVL Reinforced Conference opener on Tuesday at Ynares Center Montalban here.

With both squads forced to turn to their locals as the league and its foreign guest players await the International Transfer Certificates (ITCs) allegedly withheld by the Philippine National Volleyball Federation (PNVF), the Thunderbelles’ third-round pick Riza Nogales shone the brightest with 15 points, highlighted by five blocks.

Down 6-7 to start the fifth set, the Thunderbelles scored nine unanswered points, capped by Nogales’ timely hits and Fiola Ceballos’ two crucial aces to complete the comeback in the two-hour and 32-minute match.

‘We weren’t super prepared, but it’s okay. Like the players said, we’re always training and trying different combinations. And it’s not like the combos were new they’ve played together before. In recent practices, of course, we trained with the import, but given the situation, they couldn’t play yet. So we just went out there and played,’ said ZUS Coffee coach Jerry Yee, whose squad missed the services of American reinforcement Anna DeBeer.

Jovelyn Gonzaga and Chinnie Arroyo backstopped Nogales with 14 points each, while Ceballos and Kate Santiago added 13 and 11, respectively.

AC Miner also stepped up with 10 points, including the back-to-back hits in the extended fourth, to force a decider. Setter Clo Mondoñedo dished out 28 excellent sets, while libero Alyssa Eroa delivered 22 digs and 21 excellent receptions.

‘Even though we prepared with Anna, and it would’ve been better if she was there so we’d be complete, we still gave it our all today,’ said Miner.

Eli Soyud led Akari, which also has to wait for the debut of its import Annie Mitchem, with 22 points.

Chargers rookie Chennie Tagaod’s 18-point Reinforced debut went for naught, as well as the efforts of Alas players Fifi Sharma and Justine Jazareno. Sharma registered 13 points, including four blocks, while Jazareno recorded 32 digs. Mars Alba tallied 24 excellent sets in her debut for Akari.

When American investment bank Lehman Brothers collapsed during the 2008 global financial crisis, seven Philippine banks-with combined exposure amounting to $386 million-had to bite the bullet.

Ayala-led Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI) wasn’t one of them.

That BPI was the only major bank that emerged unscathed from the mortgage subprime crisis was largely due to banking luminary Xavier P. Loinaz.

As a member of the executive committee, he vetoed a proposal to buy any subprime instrument at a time it was the hot asset class on Wall Street.

‘I don’t care if it is triple A-rated. If we don’t understand it, we are not buying it,’ Loinaz said in a meeting that discussed the proposal. This is based on the recollection of Monetary Board member Romeo Bernardo, a former BPI director who had seen Loinaz at work for decades.

This is but one example of Loinaz’s ‘high level of diligence and risk management mindset,’ he said.’I have personally been educated on banking and good corporate governance, even before it became fashionable, by him in my two decades as a bank director-something I much value in my present job,’ Bernardo told the Inquirer.

The banking community is mourning the loss of Loinaz, who died on Oct. 4, about a week short of his 82nd birthday.

Known as ‘XP’ at work, Loinaz served as president and CEO of BPI from 1982 to 2004, one of the longest leadership tenures in Philippine banking.

BPI president and CEO Jose Teodoro Limcaoco said Loinaz’s leadership had defined an era of resilience and innovation for BPI, and guided the bank with discipline and foresight through some of the most challenging periods in Philippine history.

Loinaz helmed the bank through episodes of political turbulence and economic crises, including two people power revolutions, coup d’état attempts, the debt crisis in the 1980s and the 1997 Asian financial crisis.

After stepping down as CEO, he continued to guide the bank for another 16 years until 2020.

He retired due to health reasons and survived a previous bout with pancreatic cancer.

‘To us at BPI, Xavier Loinaz was not only a visionary leader but also a mentor and an inspiration. He taught us discipline, integrity, and the importance of serving with purpose. The innovations he introduced, and the people he guided, continue to carry his legacy forward,’ Limcaoco said.

‘We will always be grateful for his steady hand and his belief in the Filipino spirit. He leaves behind an institution made stronger by his leadership-and a family of bankers who will forever remember him with respect and gratitude,’ added Limcaoco.

As BPI chief, Loinaz took the big steps and embarked on a number of mergers and acquisitions (MandAs) to scale up BPI.

Four significant MandA deals were done during his term: Family Bank in 1985, CityTrust Banking Corp. in 1995, Far East Bank and Trust Co. in 2000 and DBS Philippines in 2002.

Limcaoco noted that the purchase of Family Bank from the Gotianun family became BPI’s gateway into consumer banking.

‘Tough but fair’

His successor as CEO, Aurelio Montinola III, was among Loinaz’s mentees.

‘Xavier was my mentor and friend. He was a fearless, no-nonsense innovative leader who shaped BPI banking from 1979 to 2004. Tough but fair, feared by some but loved by all, intimidating but kind. We will all miss him,’ Montinola said in a text message to the Inquirer.

During his tenure, BPI became the first Philippine bank to introduce automated teller machines or ATMs in the early 1980s and later launched internet banking in 1999.

Aside from landmark banking MandAs, Loinaz’s acquisition of life and property and casualty insurance companies also marked the dawning of bancassurance in the Philippines, a pioneering step that integrated banking and insurance services for Filipino families.

Limcaoco recalled that Loinaz had led the purchase of Ayala Life, FGU Insurance Corp. and Universal Reinsurance.

‘He eventually merged UniRe with Malayan Reinsurance to form today’s Philippine National Reinsurance Corp.,’ he said.

In the bank’s official statement, BPI said Loinaz would be remembered ‘for his wisdom, integrity and commitment to excellence-values that remain a guiding presence for the institution long after his presidency.’

‘His vision was also not just for the bank, but for a stronger, more inclusive Philippines. XP’s legacy extends far beyond the walls of BPI. He touched the broader business community and the many lives of people he mentored, guided, and inspired along the way. To those who had the privilege of working with him, he was more than a leader-he was a model of excellence, humility and unwavering faith in the Filipino,’ the bank said. /cb

The Philippine National Police (PNP) has yet to record any crimes in Cebu province after the magnitude 6.9 earthquake struck last Sept. 30.

‘One commendable thing is that of our people are really peace-loving Filipinos, especially in Cebu. Zero recorded focus crime. That’s in Cebu,’ acting PNP chief Lt. Gen. Jose Melencio Nartatez Jr. said in a press briefing in Camp Crame on Monday.

Focus crimes include murder, homicide, physical injury, rape, robbery, theft, and carjacking.

‘The actual rehab [is now putting] northern Cebu, the entire Cebu into normalcy,’ the acting PNP chief further claimed.

The Office of Civil Defense previously said it had ended search and rescue operations in the province after all missing persons were accounted for.

However, the PNP remained on ‘full alert,’ focusing on relief and rehabilitation. More than 2,500 police officers from Central Visayas and surrounding regions have been deployed.

‘We supported them with the necessary administrative support like human resources, our logistics and just so that it will be continuous, we gave them subsistence allowances,’ Nartatez said.

In a phone interview with reporters in Camp Crame later on Monday, Police Regional Office Central Visayas (PRO 7) Director Brig. Gen. Red Maranan said they were now only deploying 1,500 officers as authorities turned to recovery efforts.

‘We’re now at the relief and rehabilitation phase. We’re helping deliver relief goods being brought to our areas,’ Maranan said in Filipino.

He further said police were helping to set up tent cities for affected individuals, opening police assistance desks at the evacuation sites to maintain peace and order.

At least 72 have died and 559 others were injured as of 6 a.m. on Monday, according to the latest National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) situation report.

Meanwhile, according to Maranan, at least 193 PRO-7 personnel said the earthquake damaged their homes while more than 30 of the region’s police stations also sustained damage./apl /abc

President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. has acknowledged the potential of blockchain technology in enhancing data transparency in the national budget and government projects.

In the first part of the fifth episode of the BBM Podcast aired on Monday, Marcos was asked whether blockchain and artificial intelligence (AI) are among the solutions to ensure that future budgets are free of these insertions and anomalies.

‘I haven’t seen any AI that is specifically geared towards that. Blockchain is something that could work,’ he responded.

‘However, what has happened has been that we have violated the rules. Those rules exist and simply we don’t. In the last decade, they stopped following the rules,’ he also said.

Blockchain technology is a decentralized and immutable digital ledger that records transactions in blocks, linked chronologically in a chain, creating a shared, tamper-proof database stored across multiple computers in a network.

During last week’s hearing of the Committee on Science and Technology, Sen. Bam Aquino pushed for the proposed Senate Bill No. 1330, also known as the Philippine National Budget Blockchain Act, stating that it will strengthen collaboration among the executive and legislative branches of the government, as well as with other groups.

‘Through blockchain, all budget transactions become transparent, immutable, auditable, and accessible to citizens in real time,’ said Aquino.

‘To put our national budget on the blockchain answers many concerns and issues with our current system, where there are insertions and ghost projects. The public can see how people’s money is spent, he added.

Senate Minority Leader Alan Peter Cayetano on Monday pressed for his ‘national reset’ proposal, urging government leaders to answer first this primordial question: Are you willing to resign?

‘Are you willing to resign is the first and essential question. Just answer that first, please!’ Cayetano said in his latest post on social media, adding that resignation should come with a commitment that incumbent officials should not run for any position for one election cycle.

‘Believe me, once that’s settled, all the other questions will be easy to answer or discuss,’ he said.

To restore public trust amid the corruption scandal plaguing the government, Cayetano earlier called for the resignation of all national leaders and the holding of a snap election.

But Senate President Vicente ‘Tito’ Sotto III and Senate President Pro Tempore Panfilo Lacson, in separate messages to reporters, said nothing in the Constitution provided for snap elections.

Cayetano then clarified his proposal in his latest social media post.

‘It’s not my job nor my intention to tell anyone what to do, to tell anyone to resign, to tell the president, the VP, senators and congressmen and women to resign. My duty is to reflect on the problems our nation faces. Discern, pray, then articulate ideas,’ he pointed out.

He noted, however, that the ‘sheer massiveness’ of those allegedly involved in the scandal and the staggering amount of money stolen from government’s coffers, already call for ‘immediate, effective and decisive action,’ which he said ‘sadly and unfortunately is not happening.’

‘Thus, the need for radical solutions,’ the senator said.

Several lawmakers, including former Senate President Francis ‘Chiz’ Escudero and former House Speaker Martin Romualdez, have been dragged into the flood control projects mess, which has been the subject of separate investigations by Congress and the Independent Commission for Infrastructure.

‘Not everyone is dirty, but the system is broken, making accountability very difficult,’ Cayetano said.

‘Having a clean slate will allow us to act faster, be more effective, and decisive in finding and punishing those who are guilty. No hiding behind legislative immunity,’ he explained.

‘The question to the above officials is not ‘Is sacrificing for the nation possible? Can Comelec [Commission on Elections] do it and be fair? Is there a legal framework?’ he said.

‘The question is very simple. It’s a personal question. Are you willing to resign?’ he asked in his post.

A rice farmer from Nueva Ecija has maintained that what they need is higher buying prices for palay, not another wave of cash assistance, saying that the practice of providing aid makes it seem that they are beggars.

Farmer Danilo Bolos aired his view at the hearing of the House of Representatives’ committee on agriculture and food and the committee on ways and means on Monday regarding the rice importation moratorium.

Bolos said that they would not need the P7,000 cash aid pushed by House Speaker Faustino ‘Bojie’ Dy III if the government is just addressing the extremely low buying prices for palay – ranging from P8 to P10 per kilogram.

According to the farmer, they are forced to dig into their savings or ask for loans since they have invested at least P14 to P15 per kilogram, only to have palay bought at low prices.

‘The speaker said earlier that they will give another aid worth P7,000. However, what happens is that we feel like beggars, because the aid is insufficient for us to make progress,’ Bolos said. ‘What is important for us is the price of palay – of our products – to increase so that our efforts would have value.’

‘Just think of it: Palay is sold at P8 up to P10 per kilo? But we invest around P14 to P15 per kilogram,’ he said.

‘Fertilizer is so expensive, inputs and pesticide. We cannot maximize income, so we have to borrow. Earnings are just around 3 percent for every month,’ Bolos told lawmakers.

The farmer said there needs to be a standard floor price for palay – or the lowest possible price at which palay can be purchased – or else several farmers would leave the agricultural industry within one to two years.

This means, Bolos said, farmlands may go to individuals who are not interested in farming.

‘This is the only way of living that we know, so I am appealing to the members of this chamber,’ he pleaded.

‘To you lawmakers, our lives are in your hands. If this scenario continues for one or two years, we have no choice but to leave. Our lands will go just go to anyone who will buy our lands,’ he lamented.

At the start of the hearing, Dy had said that at least one million rice farmers will get a P7,000 cash aid under the proposed 2026 national budget to ensure that the agricultural sector will thrive.

According to Dy, the Department of Agriculture (DA) needs to implement systems properly so that the country would not be reliant on importation.

After Bolos aired his sentiments, Dy told him and other farmers that they think highly of workers in the agricultural sector, and that the aid is just a manifestation of the government’s yearning to support farmers.

‘First of all, I apologize for these things. The aid is only out of the government’s yearning to address the needs of our farmers, but this does not mean that we think lowly of you,’ he said.

‘We regard you highly. We respect your efforts. If our hardworking farmers are not here, our country will not survive,’ he clarified.

‘You sacrifice a lot. Whatever your ill feelings are, whatever your resentments are, you are still there working hard and sacrificing for our people,’ he added.

Dy said that the House will work towards protecting farmers in the country.

‘Do not worry. We will do everything to ensure the welfare of each farmer here in our country is taken care of and protected,’ the speaker promised.

Agriculture panel chief and Quezon 1st District Rep. Mark Enverga also told Bolos that his request for amendments to Republic Act No. 11203, or the Rice Tariffication Law, which amended R.A. No. 8178, will be handled by the panel.

‘Sir Danilo, you can be assured that like what Speaker Bojie mentioned. We are one with the Department of Agriculture in addressing R.A. 11203, with the goal of helping you, making you happy working as farmers,’ Enverga said.

As early as June 23 – before the 19th Congress lawmakers ended their term – former House Speaker Ferdinand Martin Romualdez said that the chamber will focus on improving the capability of the the National Food Authority (NFA), so that the government can buy palay or rice grains at fair prices while selling them cheaper.

Romualdez eventually filed House Bill (HB) No. 1, or the proposed Rice Industry and Consumer Empowerment (RICE) Act, which seeks to amend R.A.No. 8178.

Based on the copy of the measure released by Romualdez’s office, the bill seeks to strengthen the regulatory powers of the NFA ‘to support the rice industry and ensure consumer protection through adequate supply and stable price of rice.’

Earlier, in his speech, Dy said the RICE Act will be tackled by the House being a priority legislation of the chamber and the entire Legislative Executive Development Advisory Council (Ledac).

In the 19th Congress, a proposal to amend the RTL was approved on third reading by the House of Representatives.

House Bill (HB) No. 10381 was approved last May 2024, with 231 lawmakers voting in the affirmative, three in the negative, and one abstaining.

However, the bill faced opposition in the Senate amid fears that giving back some of NFA’s mandates might lead to corruption again.

But according to Enverga, this would not happen as NFA will have a limited role in importation.

The 35 percent tariff on imported rice should be restored to protect farmers’ interests, House of Representatives Speaker Faustino ‘Bojie’ Dy III said on Monday.

During the joint hearing of the House committee on agriculture and food and the committee on ways and means on the moratorium on rice importation, Dy said that the 35 percent tariff on imported rice will strengthen local rice production because farmers would benefit from it.

‘May I reiterate na kung maaari lang na ibalik natin ang 35 percent na taripa (if we can just put back the 35 percent tariff)? Please, thank you,’ Dy said.

According to agriculture chairperson and Quezon 1st District Rep. Wilfrido Mark Enverga, they support Dy’s call, noting that this is the same suggestion made by the quinta committee during the 19th Congress.

‘We fully support the appeal of the honorable speaker. This is an output, if the good [Agriculture] Secretary [Francisco Tiu Laurel] and the DOF [Department of Finance] would remember, that this is an output of the Murang Pagkain committee in the previous Congress, is that we bring back the tariff to 35 [percent]. So, I think that has reached your desk,’ Enverga said partly in Filipino.

‘So, please. We join the Speaker in his appeal na ibalik po natin ‘yong (to bring back the) 35 percent tariff,’ he added.

Dy attended the hearing on the rice importation moratorium, announcing on the onset that at least one million rice farmers will get a P7,000 cash aid for 2026, with an allocation reserved under the proposed 2026 national budget.

The Speaker said this after saying that the Department of Agriculture (DA) needs to implement systems properly so that the country would not be reliant on importation.

‘Regarding this, I am happy to inform you that in our 2026 national budget, farmers will receive direct cash aid as part of the government’s wider support for the agriculture sector. Help will surely come. One million farmers will each receive P7,000 cash aid, to address the loss of income due to the low buying price of palay,’ Dy said.

However, a farmer from Nueva Ecija told the committees that what they need is higher buying prices of palay and not another wave of cash assistance, saying that the practice of providing aid makes it seem that they are beggars.

According to Danilo Bolos said they would not need the P7,000 cash aid pushed by the Speaker if the government addresses extremely low buying prices for palay – ranging from P8 to P10 per kilogram.

Bolos said they are forced to dig into their savings or ask for loans since they have invested at least P14 to P15 per kilogram, only for palay to be bought at low prices.

After Bolos aired his sentiments, Dy assured him and other farmers that they think highly of workers in the agricultural sector, and that the aid is just a manifestation of the government’s yearning to support farmers.

‘First of all I apologize for these things, the aid is only out of the government’s yearning to address the needs of our farmers, but this does not mean that we think lowly of you, we regard you highly, we respect your efforts, if our hardworking farmers are not here, our country will not survive,’ he said.

‘You sacrifice a lot, whatever your ill feelings are, whatever your resentments are, you are still there working hard and sacrificing for our people,’ he added.

Enverga also assured Bolos that his yearning to amend to Republic Act No. 11203 or the Rice Tariffication Law that amended R.A. No. 8178 will be addressed by the panel.

As early as June 23 – before the 19th Congress lawmakers ended their term – former House Speaker Ferdinand Martin Romualdez already said that the chamber will focus on improving the capability of the the National Food Authority (NFA), so that the government can buy palay or rice grains at fair prices while selling them cheaper.

Romualdez eventually filed House Bill (HB) No. 1 or the proposed Rice Industry and Consumer Empowerment (RICE) Act, which seeks to amend R.A.No. 8178.

Based on the copy of the measure released by Romualdez’s office, the bill seeks to strengthen the regulatory powers of the NFA ‘to support the rice industry and ensure consumer protection through adequate supply and stable price of rice.’

Earlier, in his speech, Dy said the RICE Act will be tackled by the House being a priority legislation of the chamber and the entire Legislative Executive Development Advisory Council (Ledac).

In the 19th Congress, a proposal to amend the RTL was approved on third reading by the House of Representatives. House Bill (HB) No. 10381 was approved last May 2024, with 231 lawmakers voting in the affirmative, three in the negative, and one abstaining.

However, the bill faced opposition in the Senate amid fears that giving back some of NFA’s mandates might lead to corruption again. According to Enverga, this would not happen as NFA will have a limited role in importation.

LA Tenorio was quick to deflect the full credit for emerging triumphant in his debut as Magnolia coach in the PBA Philippine Cup on Sunday, which came at the expense of his former team Barangay Ginebra.

Tenorio could only praise his players after the 80-73 victory for the way they were able to jump at the start with a 10-0 lead before foiling flashes of comeback by the Gin Kings before a big crowd at Smart Araneta Coliseum.

‘I guess they really want to get this first win for me so I appreciate my players and I hope this is the start of the journey for the Magnolia team,’ Tenorio said after also prevailing in his battle of wits with Ginebra counterpart and long-time mentor Tim Cone.

‘But it’s not about me. People only look at me but they have to see the bigger picture. I’m just here to guide them. At the end of the day, it’s them against the five Ginebra players on the court, not me against Coach Tim because we can only do so much.’

Magnolia got big contributions from Zavier Lucero, who picked up where he left off from making the Mythical Second Team and All-Defensive Team last season, with 17 points, seven rebounds, four assists and four steals.

Jerom Lastimosa and Javi Gomez de Liano were also vital in the win that should give the Hotshots some confidence in their quest to end the long title drought with Tenorio calling the shots.

Tenorio, however, doesn’t want to get carried away too much.

‘I feel great that we got the win, but we did not achieve anything. It’s just one win in the standings,’ he said.

The Bureau of Internal Revenue has extended deadlines for the filing of tax returns and payment of corresponding taxes, as well as the submission of other required documents for affected taxpayers in Cebu, which was hit by a 6.9 magnitude earthquake.

Taxpayers and BIR personnel under the jurisdiction of Revenue District Office No. 80 (Mandaue City, Cebu), No. 81 (Cebu City, North), No. 82 (Cebu City, South), No. 83 (Talisay City, Cebu), and No. 123 (Large Taxpayers Division – Cebu), including their authorized agent banks, will benefit from the extension of all deadlines falling within October 2025.

All tax obligations falling due within October 2025 may now be filed and paid on or before Oct. 31, 2025, as provided under Revenue Memorandum Circular No. 88-2025. The complete list of covered BIR forms and returns is enumerated in the circular.

Meanwhile, the Bureau of Customs (BOC) turned over abandoned and forfeited goods to the Office of Civil Defense to support relief operations for earthquake victims.

The donation, which came mostly from the Manila International Container Port, included 56 pieces of rapid emergency tents and 1,087 pieces of assorted tents to serve as temporary shelters, as well as 50 units of mobile power supply to provide electricity in affected areas.

The BOC also donated one bio-toilet unit to ensure proper sanitation for displaced residents.

The donated items were declared abandoned and subsequently forfeited in favor of the government./tad

It is an undeniable fact that beauty pageants for women are widely celebrated in the Philippines, while male pageants-often boxed in by stereotypes and marked by semiotic differences from female pageantry-receive less attention, reflecting how society succinctly perceives masculinity. However, with our very own Kirk Bondad recently named Mister International 2025 (see ‘Kirk Bondad of Philippines is Mister International 2025,’ Inquirer.net, 9/26/25), this narrative might be overturned, clarifying that male pageantry is more than just about the body or looks-it actually has substance as well.

It is well-known among many Filipinos that Bondad once represented the Philippines in Mister World 2024, where he finished in the Top 20 during the competition held in Vietnam. Afterward, he earned the right to represent the country in Mister International 2025, successfully clinching the coveted international title in Thailand.

Upon arriving in the host country, Bondad was already considered an early favorite to win by pageant fans across the globe. He did not disappoint his supporters, delivering a stellar performance throughout all events of the competition-up to the finals night-where his superb communication skills and charisma shone. I believe that male pageants have evolved into empowering platforms, and Bondad’s journey exemplifies this transformation.

Moreover, I hope to see more Filipino male contestants represent the country on the international stage, setting the bar high in communication skills and beyond, as audiences increasingly gravitate towards these qualities. I also look forward to the growing support that male pageants are receiving in the country.