Category: Philippines Daily Inquirer

Large sections of this city were plunged into darkness Tuesday night after a strong earthquake struck near Bogo City, Cebu, prompting unscheduled power interruptions across several districts.

In an advisory, distribution utility MORE Electric and Power Corp. (MORE Power) said power went out at 10:01 p.m. on September 30, affecting the entire Molo Substation, Megaworld Feeder 6, and La Paz Feeders 1 and 3. Restoration work is ongoing as crews trace the cause of the outages as of 11:09 p.m.

The company apologized for the inconvenience and urged residents to remain safe as it works to restore electricity ‘as soon as possible.’

The blackout followed a magnitude 6.7 earthquake that jolted Cebu at 9:59 p.m., with its epicenter traced 17 kilometers northeast of Bogo City at a depth of 10 kilometers, according to the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs).

Phivolcs reported instrumental intensity VI in Cebu City and Villaba, Leyte; intensity III in San Fernando, Cebu; and intensity II in Laoang, Northern Samar. The tremor was also felt in parts of Iloilo.

As of press time, no major damage or casualties have been reported, though local governments in affected areas are conducting inspections.

Authorities reminded residents to brace for possible aftershocks

The Sandiganbayan has moved to November 7 the arraignment and pre-trial of former Energy Secretary Alfonso Cusi and others after granting the prosecution’s urgent motion to amend the information related to the 2019 takeover of the Malampaya gas project.

During Wednesday’s hearing, the anti-graft court’s Third Division gave the prosecution, under the Office of the Ombudsman, 30 days to submit the amended information.

Before granting the motion, the Sandiganbayan also declared moot the respondents’ motion seeking to invalidate the charges against Cusi and the other accused.

The charges against Cusi and others involve their alleged roles in railroading the sale of 45 percent of shares of the Malampaya gas project to a company owned by Davao businessman Dennis Uy.

The anti-graft court explained that the respondents’ motion to quash was anchored on the information dated November 24 of last year.

It added that resolving the motion to quash at this stage would be premature, because the prosecution has the right to file a motion to amend the information-a point that the defense later conceded.

Asked why it took a year to file the motion, the prosecution panel said the case was only assigned to them last month.

While the motion had already been drafted on September 23, it was formally filed only on Tuesday, as the panel needed to subpoena several documents to prepare a memorandum supporting the motion to amend the information.

Before the deferment of their arraignment, Cusi and 10 other former and present Department of Energy officials posted bail of P90,000 each for their graft charges on September 10.

Last August, Partido Demokratiko Pilipino-Lakas ng Bayan (PDP-Laban) confirmed that its vice chairperson, Cusi, had been indicted by the Office of the Ombudsman in connection with the Malampaya project.

PDP Deputy Spokesperson Ferdinand Topacio earlier said one count of graft had been filed against Cusi and several others before the Sandiganbayan.

The Ombudsman’s probe involving Department of Energy (DOE) officials began in 2022, following a Senate committee on energy report on the sale of shares in the Malampaya project.

According to the report, the DOE allegedly railroaded the approval of the $545-million sale of a 45-percent stake in Malampaya to UC Malampaya, despite the buyer’s failure to pass the financial capability test and to submit audited financial statements.

While the Ombudsman initially dismissed the graft complaint in 2022 for lack of evidence, it reversed its decision in 2024 and found probable cause to indict Cusi and several DOE officials.

Cusi was also recently affirmed by the Supreme Court as the legitimate president of PDP-Laban, the political party of former President Rodrigo Duterte.

State universities and colleges (SUCs) are critical pillars of higher education, human capital development, and technological innovation in the Philippines. As SUCs expand access to higher education, they act as equalizers that can level the playing field for the underprivileged. These institutions are essential in addressing educational disparities, promoting inclusive growth, and advancing research that contributes to national development. They serve as hubs for talent cultivation and skills training, supporting the development of a knowledge-based economy.

Today, the Philippines has 113 SUCs operating nationwide. SUCs face common challenges such as financial constraints, regulatory barriers, and sub-optimal use of funds, which undermine long-term sustainability. A persistent issue is the lack of funding for capital outlays, leading to aging buildings, outdated and inadequate facilities, and the discontinuation or non-implementation of development plans despite a growing student population. Additionally, SUCs struggle to recruit specialized personnel like psychometricians and guidance counselors due to uncompetitive salaries, forcing them to rely on temporary staff. Retention of academic staff is also problematic when there is insufficient support for human resource development.

SUCs mainly depend on government subsidies for funding. They also generate income from tuition, auxiliary services, and income-generating projects (IGPs). Under the Universal Access to Quality Tertiary Education Act, the government now covers the tuition fees of undergraduate students. While research grants are sought, procedural barriers often hinder SUCs, especially lesser-known universities, from securing funding. SUCs face challenges like uneven budget distribution, limited financial independence, and multiple layers of bureaucracy that slow down effective use of funds. Many struggle to maximize revenue from IGPs and turn research outputs into profitable intellectual properties (IPs) because they lack entrepreneurial skills and necessary facilities.

To address these issues, it is essential to pursue strategic reforms in SUCs’ financing. International experience provides insights into how Philippine SUCs can become more financially sustainable. For example, Singapore funds its universities through block grants with a three-year budget cycle and strong endowment funds.

Singapore’s National Research Foundation Central Gap Fund actively promotes the commercialization of research outputs. Meanwhile, Thailand adopts a decentralized approach that grants autonomy to universities via block grants, allowing for more flexible fiscal management. This strategy has resulted in higher research budgets and increased operational efficiency.

Locally, the establishment of knowledge, innovation, science, and technology parks in SUCs, through the support of the Department of Science and Technology and the Philippine Economic Zone Authority, can further unlock the optimal utilization of land grants and foster industry partnerships. The UP-Ayala Land TechnoHub serves as a pioneer in this type of university-industry collaboration. This partnership fosters technology commercialization, business incubation, and job creation. Although there are debates surrounding this approach, such as the prioritization of IT services versus a more research-intensive focus, similar partnerships can facilitate a more optimal utilization of SUCs’ assets.

Other good practices include continuous investment in faculty and staff capacity building, especially for research, and emphasizing digitization for increased administrative efficiency.

The government should continue pursuing the creation of more fiscal space, allowing for more investments in higher education. Furthermore, strengthening university-industry partnerships and facilitating the commercialization of IPs and innovations can substantially improve SUCs’ funding and support the country’s development agenda.

Down the line, performance-based funding linked to clear and transparent key performance indicators can further enhance efficiency. A more ambitious reform for the Philippines is to grant greater financial independence to SUCs through block grants and multi-year budgets for internally generated income, giving them flexibility in resource allocation.

An effective tuition fee structure can support these block grants, which should be based on the standard cost of education delivery, a quality premium, and the capacity limits of SUCs.

To effectively serve as catalysts of social and economic progress, the financial sustainability of SUCs must be achieved through strategic reforms that free them from financial constraints imposed by conservative and rigid structures.

Senator Raffy Tulfo on Wednesday accused the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) of favoring and accepting bribes from multinational pharmaceutical companies, resulting in the continued sale of unregistered products and shutdown of smaller pharmaceutical firms. Tulfo made the pronouncement during a Senate panel hearing on the proposed budget of the Department of Health for 2026.

During the hearing, Tulfo questioned why despite continuously releasing advisories and warnings on harmful medical products, the FDA does not seem to actually enforce it.

FDA Director General Paolo Teston, for his part, said that the advisories already include an order for law enforcement agencies to prevent such products’ sale, adding that the FDA does not have enough capacity to do it by itself as it only has 890 plantilla and 300 contract of service personnel.

But Tulfo pointed out that even just one or two researchers can check if their advisories are being enforced.

‘I only have four plantilla researchers, and yet we were able to investigate this,’ said Tulfo speaking in Filipino, adding that they found one of the banned products in online shopping apps and even mainstream pharmacies.

‘Don’t use that excuse on me about having 800 personnel . that’s already more than enough. If there’s a will, there’s a way; if there’s none, there will always be excuses,’ he added in a mix of Filipino and English.

Teston then responded that the agency is already coordinating with pharmacies and online shopping platforms to curb the illicit sale, but Tulfo interjected, insisting that the real reason it persists is due to the bribes the FDA allegedly receives from manufacturers and suppliers.

‘One of the most corrupt agencies in the Philippines is the FDA, and many pharmaceutical companies can attest to that,’ said Tulfo in Filipino.

‘So many small pharmaceutical companies are being forced to close because you favor these multinational firms,’ he added.

Tulfo then went on to cite a case he previously encountered where a smaller pharmaceutical firm introduced a mosquito spray that rivaled a popular brand.

The senator alleged that the FDA deliberately withheld the smaller firm’s license renewal over the flimsiest grounds-such as a typographical error in the address-to protect the larger competitor.

‘You withheld the license, you withheld the renewal because you were bribed,’ said Tulfo.

Tulfo then pressed the FDA chief on what concrete actions he will take to stop the continued online sale of banned products, warning that if the FDA continues to be ineffective, he would challenge Teston to step down.

At least 69 individuals reportedly died following a strong earthquake that jolted Cebu Tuesday evening, as authorities intensified its search and rescue efforts in the crucial first 24 hours when survivors trapped in the rubble could still be saved.

The quake damaged several heritage churches, residential houses and schools, while causing widespread power outages in the region.

Office of Civil Defense (OCD) Assistant Secretary Rafael Alejandro IV said most of the fatalities were in Bogo City-the epicenter of the quake-at 30, followed by 22 in San Remigio town; 10 in Medellin town; five in Tabogon town; and one each in municipalities of Sogod and Tabuelan.

‘That’s the number that we have as reported to us as of noon time (which is again for validation and verification),’ Alejandro said of the 69 death toll in a message to Inquirer.

At least 147 individuals were injured after the earthquake, Alejandro said, most of whom are in Bogo City at 119, followed by San Francisco town with 14, Tabuelan and Catmon with five each; and four in Daanbantayan.

The high number of casualties is due to the fact that the earthquake happened at night, according to the official.

‘In the morning, we are all alert, but at night when everyone is asleep. It takes time for us to react,’ he earlier said in a press conference in Quezon City.

The magnitude 6.9 earthquake occurred at 9:59 p.m., with the epicenter located 21 kilometers northeast of Bogo City with a shallow depth of five kilometers, according to Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology.

‘Golden hour’

With the earthquake occurring less than a day ago as of posting time, Alejandro said the rescuers are scrambling during this ‘golden hour,’ referring to the first 24 hours when likelihood of survivors remains high.

‘We’re still in the golden hour when we can still save more lives,’ he said, noting that many residents are still reportedly trapped by fallen debris.

The OCD has yet to release the data on missing individuals, and Alejandro said the total number of rescued individuals will be released ‘within the day.’

Military personnel on board two transport aircraft C-130 and coast guard personnel aboard two of its ships are now on their way to ground zero to augment the search and rescue efforts.

Alejandro also said the OCD alerted neighboring Singapore, Indonesia and Malaysia in case the country needs assistance.

But so far, he said local authorities can still manage the rescue operations.

Meanwhile, the entire province of Cebu has been placed under a state of calamity, allowing the provincial government to use quick response funds and also to conduct a 60-day price freeze of basic goods.

‘The Big One’

Alejandro said lessons in this earthquake should be applied when ‘The Big One’ hits the capital region.

‘We can never be 100 percent prepared . just really anticipate,’ Alejandro said, saying continuous public awareness and preparation are in place for The Big One.

‘Events like this [earthquake], for us also, is one way of practice. Can you imagine if it happens in Metro Manila at night?’ the official said.

In preparation of this grim event, government schools and offices have been participating in OCD-led earthquake drills in the capital region once every quarter of a year.

The Big One – or a magnitude 7.2 earthquake hitting Metro Manila – would lead to at least 52,000 deaths, and 500,000 injuries, according to the study of risk assessment and consultancy firm PSA Philippines Consultancy Inc. published in 2019.

Sitting on the Pacific ‘Ring of Fire’ where tectonic plates often collide, the Philippines experiences frequent earthquakes and volcanic activity.

The aftershocks from the magnitude 6.9 earthquake that jolted Cebu province could persist for days and weeks as authorities urged the affected residents to exercise caution when returning to visibly-damaged buildings.

At least 69 fatalities have so far been reported, while 147 others were injured due to the temblor, which caused massive damage to infrastructure and widespread power outages in the province.

The earthquake struck off Cebu province at 9:59 p.m. Tuesday, with the epicenter located 21 kilometers northeast of Bogo City, according to the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs).

Since then, at least 990 aftershocks have been detected, the Phivolcs said in its 7:30 p.m. report on Wednesday.

However, only seven of these aftershocks were felt, the strongest of which was measured at magnitude 4.8.

‘These aftershocks could persist for several days to weeks, and some may be felt in nearby provinces,’ the Phivolcs said on Wednesday.

Office of Civil Defense Deputy Administrator Bernardo Rafaelito Alejandro IV said it may not be safe for some affected residents to return home.

‘Aftershocks could still occur so if it is still not safe to return to your dwellings, offices, then let’s not do that until it’s declared to be safe,’ Alejandro said in a PTV-4 interview.

Some residents of Bogo City-the hardest-hit area where almost half of reported fatalities were recorded at 30-take this warning to heart.

Joan Ylanan, resident of Polambato village, said her family would be spending another night on a field even if their residence did not sustain any damage.

‘We’re still afraid because of the many aftershocks,’ Ylanan, 25, said in Cebuano in a Cebu Daily Inquirer interview.

Ylanan, who said her family has not had a wink of sleep since the earthquake, has only one wish: ‘I hope it does not rain.’

Cebu and neighboring provinces are situated in one of the seismically active regions in the country.

Among the earthquake sources there are the Bogo Fault, Daanbantayan Lineament, and the Cebu Fault System, as well as local inland and offshore faults.

Tuesday’s earthquake was traced to an ‘offshore active fault NE (northeast) of Cebu Island,’ according to Phivolcs.

The government has deployed the ‘full force’ of its resources to northern Cebu following a magnitude 6.9 earthquake that struck on Tuesday night.

Assistant Secretary Rafaelito Alejandro, deputy administrator of the Office of Civil Defense (OCD), said national agencies have been directed to support local governments in Bogo City and nearby towns, which bore the brunt of the quake.

‘The full force of the national government has been mobilized to assist the affected communities,’ Alejandro said in a press briefing in Quezon City.

He added that this includes deployment of the Armed Forces of the Philippines, Philippine National Police, Philippine Coast Guard, Department of Health and other agencies for search, rescue, relief and clearing operations.

Nat’l deployments and relief operations

The Philippine Coast Guard deployed BRP Teresa Magbanua (MRRV-9701), one of its largest patrol vessels, to Cebu with 36 doctors, nurses, and other medical personnel carrying emergency equipment from Manila. The ship is expected to dock in Bogo City to support hospitals and evacuation centers.

‘The Coast Guard will continue to assist in recovery efforts to ensure the safety and welfare of affected families,’ Admiral Ronnie Gil Gavan, PCG commandant, said. The service also dispatched additional vessels, K9 units, and portable desalination systems to supply water in areas where systems were damaged.

The Philippine Air Force likewise mobilized assets, sending a C-130 cargo plane with rescuers from the 505th Search and Rescue Group and deploying Black Hawk helicopters for rapid assessments and relief delivery. On the ground, the 560th Air Base Group joined Army responders in conducting search, rescue, and retrieval operations.

The Philippine Army said it deployed 158 troops from the 53rd Engineer Brigade for search and rescue missions in northern Cebu and nearby provinces. Army engineers brought an ambulance and mission-essential equipment, reporting that they had rescued five people, treated five injured, and retrieved four bodies in affected areas as of Wednesday.

Meanwhile, the Police Regional Office 7 said it had mobilized 1,356 personnel across Cebu province for rescue, security, and relief missions, including units from the Cebu City Police Office, Cebu Provincial Police Office, and regional mobile forces. Police also reported 27 damaged buildings and three police stations affected as of Wednesday morning.

Casualties

At least 69 people were killed and 147 others injured after a magnitude 6.9 earthquake struck Cebu and nearby areas late Tuesday, the Office of Civil Defense (OCD) said on Wednesday. Assistant Secretary Alejandro said most of the fatalities were recorded in Bogo City with 30 deaths, followed by San Remigio with 22, Medellin with 10, Tabogon with five, Sogod with one, and Tabuelan with one.

Of the injured, 119 were from Bogo, 14 from San Francisco, five each from Tabuelan and Catmon, and four from Daanbantayan. However, Alejandro said earlier that these numbers may still change as data from the ground is verified.

‘These numbers are still fluid,’ he said. ‘The figures may change as we continue to validate reports from the field.’

The ‘Big One’

Moreover, Alejandro said the destruction in Cebu underscored the country’s vulnerability to earthquakes and should serve as a wake-up call for other high-risk areas, particularly Metro Manila.

‘In preparing for the Big One, what I can say is we are trying our best to make the agencies concerned prepared in terms of manpower, resources, and equipment,’ Alejandro said. ‘We can never be 100 percent prepared. What we can do is practice our plan, improve it, and anticipate.’

He added that disasters like the Cebu quake also provide an opportunity to assess government readiness.

‘These events, for us, are one way of practice. Can you imagine if this happened in Metro Manila last night?’ he said. Seismologists have long cautioned that the capital region could face a catastrophic ‘Big One’ earthquake should the West Valley Fault move, potentially resulting in thousands of casualties and widespread destruction.

The National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-Elcac) on Wednesday maintained that the government’s Barangay Development Program (BDP), designed to eliminate communist influence at the community level, has no ‘ghost’ projects.

At a Palace briefing, NFT-ELCAC executive director Undersecretary Ernesto Torres Jr. explained the strict guidelines and monitoring taken by stakeholders to ensure that BDP projects are implemented properly ‘They have ownership in the implementation of the project. That’s why it’s really good. We really don’t have any ghost projects,’ Torres said.

‘Even though we are not engineers, we have an idea on what to inspect. So that is a very good system, that everybody is involved in seeing to it that these projects are implemented properly,’ he also said.

Meanwhile, Torres also expressed support for Senate Bill No. 1366, also known as the Terror Grooming and Radicalization Prevention Act, which seeks to stop radicalization and recruitment of vulnerable Filipinos to communist groups.

‘The Execom expressed support to the passage of the Terror-Grooming Prevention Act because this will strengthen our preventive mechanism against radicalization, recruitment, and indoctrination, especially among the youth and vulnerable sectors of our society,’ he said.

‘It is a critical shield to protect vulnerable Filipinos, youth, indigenous communities, and farmers from being exploited and radicalized by terrorists,’ he added.

Fight against communist insurgency

Meanwhile, Armed Forces of the Philippines vice chief of staff Lt. Gen. Jimmy Larida reported a decline in the number of communist guerrilla fronts in the country.

‘Based on the parameters on the clearing, we have seen a steady decline in all the insurgency parameters,’ he said.

In terms of manpower, Larida said that in 2022 there were 2,008 communist terrorist groups monitored. By the end of the first semester of 2025, the number of CTGs had gone down to 901.

At least 69 individuals are dead following the magnitude 6.9 earthquake off Bogo City, Cebu.

INQUIRER.net’s Neil Mercado gives updates on the situation in Cebu province on Wednesday, Oct. 1.

Petro Gazz has appointed Gary and Lisa Van Sickle-parents of reigning All-Filipino MVP Brooke Van Sickle, to lead the team in the upcoming 2025 PVL Reinforced Conference.

Gary takes over as head coach, replacing interim mentor Brian Esquibel, while Lisa will serve as assistant coach. Esquibel had guided the Angels following the departure of Japanese coach Koji Tsuzurabara during the PVL On Tour. The club announced the news on Tuesday night, describing the appointment as the start of a ‘new era’ under the Van Sickles.

‘They nurtured greatness at home, now they bring that same passion to the sidelines to guide our team to greater heights,’ the team said in the announcement.

Gary previously played for the University of Hawai’i from 1988 to 1990, while Lisa suited up for Hawaii Pacific University.