Category: Philippines Daily Inquirer

A network of business process outsourcing (BPO) employees has filed a formal complaint against 30 call center firms based in Cebu province for violating labor and occupational safety laws during the 6.9-magnitude earthquake on Sept. 30.

BPO Industry Employees Network (BIEN) – Cebu lodged the complaint with the Department of Labor and Employment – Region 7 (DOLE – RO7) on Thursday.

‘BIEN-Cebu rejects this ‘business-as-usual’ approach of BPO companies and government neglect during this time of crisis. We call on all BPO workers to unite and fight back against this blatant disregard of workers’ rights,’ the group’s spokesperson John Kyle Enero said in a statement.

According to the group, they had received more than a hundred reports of agents being forced to report to work, despite their pleas to focus on their safety and their families in just two days.

Among these were agents who were allegedly forced back onto the production floor, and emergency exits were blocked in one company.

Another reported that they were offered double pay to continue working after the earthquake, disregarding safety concerns.

In another company, employees were ordered to resume work immediately after the quake, with some returning as early as 30 minutes post-event, without any safety memorandum or clearance. The group received multiple incidents of employees insisting on not reporting to work were met with notices to explain, administrative sanctions, loss of attendance incentives and benefits, among many retaliatory actions.

There were also reports of verbal threats, and concerns were downplayed, treating the crisis as ‘business as usual.’

Employees who went home after the Sept. 30 earthquake were marked as unpaid, lost attendance bonuses, and were suspended from work. Workers who did not return the following day were marked as unauthorized absences.

Some employees were even forced to sign memos prohibiting them from speaking about the situation on social media.

The group urged DOLE to investigate the allegations and hold negligent employers accountable under Republic Act No. 11058, or the Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) Standards law, and related labor issuances. When sought for comment, Labor and Employment Secretary Bienvenido Laguesma told the Inquirer that the agency is already investigating the case.

He said that the filing of complaint ‘is very welcome to enable the DOLE to establish the guilt and liability of employers being complained of.’

He added that, without preempting the outcome of the investigation, employers must not force their workers to report to work if the latter feel that their workplace is unsafe.

‘The company cannot just impose disciplinary action if the refusal or non- reporting is based on justifiable ground, i.e fear for their safety or health concerns,’ Laguesma said in a Viber message.

BIEN-Cebu also criticized the government for not declaring imminent danger in workplaces in the province, and instead passed the decision of how to handle the emergency situation to private companies.

‘This decision not only affects BPO workers at large, but the thousands of families and loved ones,’ Enero said.

‘If the government can suspend classes due to the need to inspect school buildings, they should also rightfully require BPO companies and their building administrators to provide a detailed inspection and safety report to ensure that resumption of work does not threaten worker safety,’ he added.

Meanwhile, Cebu City Vice Mayor Tommy Osmeña also urged employees who experienced the same workplace abuse to submit a report to him, by texting him at 09173299999 and providing all the details of the incident.

He assured complainants they should not fear retribution from their employers, as he would be the only one to read their text messages.

‘I need to be sure that this is true, but if this is true, we will do more than just file a complaint at DOLE,’ he said in his official Facebook account.

The government has not yet made any contingency plan in the event that arrest warrants are issued by the International Criminal Court (ICC) against allies of former President Rodrigo Duterte, Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla said on Thursday.

‘We have yet to talk about it. I do not think they want to leave the country. We will cross the bridge when we get there,’ Remulla told reporters.

Remulla made the statement after former senator Antonio Trillanes IV revealed that arrests warrants against Senators Ronald ‘Bato’ dela Rosa and Christopher ‘Bong’ Go may be issued early next year.

Trillanes recently returned to the country from The Hague after attending the 10th Seminar on Cooperation last September 16 to 18 at the ICC.

He is among the first to initiate the case for crimes against humanity against the former President.

The 80-year-old Duterte is currently in ICC custody after he was arrested in Manila last March on charges of crimes against humanity stemming from the brutal crackdown on illegal drugs.

The government said more than 6 000 people were killed in Duterte’s anti-drug war , though local and international human rights groups have a higher figure.

RJ Abarrientos and Ange Kouame joined Quentin Millora-Brown as new additions to the Gilas Pilipinas pool of coach Tim Cone.

The Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas made the announcement on Tuesday as the pool was expanded to a total of 16 for the 2027 Fiba World Cup Asian Qualifiers, which start late next month. Gilas will be facing Guam twice in the first window of the first qualification phase.

Kai Sotto is also part of the pool, and could likely see action for the November window if he fully recovers from an ACL injury.

Cone has retained the 12 players he had during the Fiba Asia Cup in Saudi Arabia, namely naturalized player Justin Brownlee, Dwight Ramos, Kevin Quiambao, AJ Edu, June Mar Fajardo, Scottie Thompson, Chris Newsome, CJ Perez, Calvin Oftana, Japeth Aguilar, Jamie Malonzo and Carl Tamayo. Millora-Brown was confirmed by Cone to be available for his Gilas debut after his appeal to be a local player was approved by Fiba.

Kouame will be a second option as naturalized player in case Brownlee isn’t available, while Abarrientos was among those cut from the Asia Cup pool.

Gilas will have a longer preparation for the upcoming window after the PBA decided not to hold games in the Philippine Cup for the period of Nov. 17 to Dec. 4.

The Government Service Insurance System (GSIS) said it would provide emergency loans to members and pensioners in Cebu, after a magnitude 6.9 earthquake struck the province this week, damaging buildings and disrupting daily life.

The GSIS Emergency Loan Program will be opened to qualified members and pensioners residing or working in Cebu, the pension fund said. Eligible members and pensioners may borrow up to P40,000 if they have an existing emergency loan, or up to P20,000 if they have no outstanding balance.

The loan is payable in 36 months at an interest rate of 6 percent per annum, with the first monthly amortization due after three months.

Loan proceeds will be credited electronically through the borrowers’ ATM cards, ensuring fast and safe release of funds.

Members may apply via the GSIS Touch mobile app, GSIS Wireless Automated Processing System kiosks, or through the GSIS e-service portals.

Romeo Migabon survived ‘Yolanda’ in 2013 but may now have to deal yet again with losing his home, one that was built for the victims of the supertyphoon.

Migabon looked despondently at his house, or what was left of it, after the magnitude 6.9 earthquake that struck Cebu province on Tuesday night.

But the Bogo City resident said he was still grateful to see all his family members merely sustaining injuries during the quake.

‘We can’t do anything about it; I’m just thankful we only got wounded. We can probably recover from this,’ said Migabon, one of the hundreds of villagers at Barangay Pulambato who were rendered homeless.

Their houses at Pulambato were part of the resettlement projects for Yolanda victims in the city.

Elsewhere in Bogo, responders as of this writing were trying to reach at least three bodies from the collapsed Condor Pension House in Barangay Gairan.

Erwin Castañeda of the local fire department identified the three victims as receptionists Mercedita Balleta and Gemma Gilig, and Gemma’s 4-year-old son.

‘We can see them from under the rubble, but they [are] covered by debris and we can’t get near,’ Castañeda told the Inquirer when contacted on the phone around 6 p.m.

Most of the confirmed quake fatalities in Cebu as of press time were in Bogo City (30), followed by the towns of San Remigio (22), Medellin (10), Tabogon (5), and one each in Sogod and Tabuelan, according to the Office of Civil Defense.

Many of the victims were crushed to death as they slept.

The local government of Zamboanga City sent off a 19-member team for a humanitarian mission to quake-hit Cebu on Wednesday.

Zamboanga City Mayor Khymer Olaso said the team was composed of personnel from the City Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (CDRRMO), the City Health Office, and the City Social Welfare and Development Office (CSWDP), to provide medical assistance and help in the relief, search, and rescue operations in the province.

The team left Zamboanga City on Wednesday evening and expected to arrive in Cebu on Thursday, bringing along 1,000 sacks of rice, 1,000 boxes of canned goods, and 1,000 jerry cans with water.

A 6.9 magnitude earthquake struck Cebu province around 10 p.m. on September 30, killing more than 70 people, mostly from badly-hit Bogo City.

In Pagadian City, Mayor Samuel Co is still coordinating with the Cebu local government to determine the unmet immediate needs of the people not covered by the assistance that has been pouring into the province.

Co, who also serves as vice president for Mindanao in the League of Cities of the Philippines (LCP), said that he is coordinating with members to send more assistance to Cebu.

President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on Thursday personally visited victims of the devastating 6.9-magnitude earthquake in Cebu province to oversee relief efforts and extend immediate assistance to affected residents.

President Marcos arrived in Bogo City, the epicenter of the Sept. 30 powerful earthquake, where he inspected some of the badly damaged structures and interacted with victims.

The President, along with local officials of Cebu province led by Governor Pamela Baricuatro, inspected the collapsed housing units at SM Cares Village in Barangay Polambato, which was established by SM Supermalls in November 2014 as a relocation site for survivors of Super Typhoon Yolanda.

Reports indicate that eight bodies have been recovered from collapsed houses in the area.

Marcos afterwards visited the Archdiocesan Shrine and Parish Church of St. Vicente Ferrer in Barangay Bungtod, as the church sustained heavy damage during the earthquake.

The President then went to the City of Bogo Science and Arts Academy in Barangay Cogon, a public school heavily damaged during the earthquake.

He also inspected the Cebu Provincial Hospital in Barangay Taytayan, where he assured patients of immediate relief assistance. The hospital staff have put up makeshift wards at the parking lot to attend to the influx of patients.

The President gave instructions on relief operations to the Cabinet officials who accompanied him, including Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) Secretary Vince Dizon, Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) Secretary Rex Gatchalian, Department of Education (DepEd) Secretary Sonny Angara, Department of Tourism (DOT) Secretary Cristina Frasco, and Department of Health (DOH) Secretary Teodoro Herbosa.

According to the latest report of the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC), the death toll of the earthquake has climbed to 72, of which 30 were from Bogo.

At least 294 are reported injured, all in the Central Visayas region.

The NDRRMC has yet to determine damage to infrastructure and agriculture as of this posting.

Boxes of alleged smuggled cigarettes valued at P9.5 million were confiscated by authorities in Maguindanao del Norte, the Philippine National Police (PNP) said.

The products were seized after the Datu Odin Sinsuat municipal police flagged a white closed van and a gas tanker at a checkpoint in Barangay Poblacion early Thursday morning, the PNP detailed in a statement.

‘The operation led to the confiscation of 266 boxes of smuggled cigarettes. marked ‘for export only.’ It also resulted in the arrest of two male suspects, aged 22 and 26, who attempted to transport the contraband,’ the police said.

The PNP did not identify the two suspects arrested.

However, it did state that the suspects were taken into custody by the municipal police to face charges for violating Republic Act No. 10863, also known as the Customs Modernization and Tariff Act.

‘They’re probably still waiting for me,’ he quipped in jest during the launch of Titan’s adidas Gilas Pilipinas jersey customization at Bonifacio Global City. The joke landed, but the admiration behind it was genuine.

Now retired from the court, Pingris is best remembered as a cornerstone of the Gilas Pilipinas team that ended the ‘Korean curse’ in 2013. And the former national team enforcer knows exactly what wearing the flag means-and what it takes to win with it.

‘Their lineup now is really different from ours before,’ Pingris said. ‘I think [the current team has] a stronger lineup now. We just looked more solid [before] because of our bond. That’s something this team should have.’

It’s not a criticism, just perspective. The current Gilas squad, coached by Tim Cone, is brimming with talent. But with key players like Dwight Ramos, AJ Edu, and Kevin Quiambao scattered across overseas and domestic leagues, forging chemistry has become a race against time.

Cone barely had a full roster during preparations for the FIBA Asia Cup, where the team placed eighth. Stars like June Mar Fajardo and CJ Perez were tied up with the PBA Finals. Training was limited to a single complete week.

‘For me, the lineup is okay. They’re really strong,’ Pingris said. ‘But they lack the time to really get to know each other.’

Still, what he sees in the fight the current crop of Gilas players displays regularly on the floor gives him hope.

‘That’s always been our weapon,’ he said. ‘It’s not about talent. It’s all about our big hearts.’

Pingris knows what kind of leadership that heart needs, and he’s convinced Cone is the right man to provide it. He should know. He captained Cone’s San Mig Super Coffee squad to a rare Grand Slam in 2014.

‘Let’s just give him more time,’ Pingris said. ‘It’s better for us to see coach Tim run his plays.’

The triangle offense that Cone perfected in the PBA isn’t a quick fix. It demands trust, discipline, and-yes-time.

‘He won the Grand Slam because of the triangle,’ Pingris added. ‘He can teach that to the team. It’s up to them to apply it.’

Cone is currently back with Barangay Ginebra duties as the PBA’s 50th season kicks off, but the Gilas program resumes in two months for the 2027 FIBA World Cup Asian Qualifiers.

Until then, Pingris remains hopeful.

‘They may be smaller, but they fight,’ he said. ‘Their games are improving. The Gilas program is doing well.’

And if they ever do call on him again?

The original image, taken Monday at Saint Laurent’s spring-summer 2026 fashion show, featured Rose alongside singer Charli XCX, model Hailey Bieber and actor Zoe Kravitz. However, in Elle UK’s version, the Korean singer, who is also a global brand ambassador for Yves Saint Laurent, was left missing. The edit was noticed after W Magazine shared the full photo. Elle UK’s comment section quickly filled with accusations of racism, with users asking, ‘Why did you cut her out?’

The controversy deepened when Charli XCX also posted a picture where Rose was barely visible, obscured in a shadow.

A picture shows a less visible Rose (right), posted by Charli XCX. (Charli XCX’s Instagram)

Following the backlash, the Elle UK account uploaded individual photos of Rose on Tuesday.

Meanwhile, Rose and Bruno Mars won for song of the year at the 2025 MTV Video Music Awards for her breakout solo single ‘Apt.,’ making her the first Korean artist to win the award. This achievement marked a historic moment for K-pop, surpassing even BTS, which has never scored a victory in the category despite its global success.