Category: Philippines Daily Inquirer

The middle portion of the Aquino Bridge in Tarlac City collapsed before midnight on Friday, Aug. 28, following heavy rains brought by the southwest monsoon or habagat.

Tarlac was placed under a red rainfall warning on Friday, according to the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC).

The bridge connects Tarlac City to the municipalities of Sta. Ignacia, Mayantoc, Camiling and San Clemente, with access toward Mangatarem, Pangasinan.

The Tarlac City government advised motorists using the Agana Bridge, an alternative route, to exercise caution and prioritize safety.

The Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) will also prohibit trucks and heavy equipment from crossing the Agana Bridge to prevent further damage.

Authorities have yet to provide details on the extent of the damage or when repairs to the collapsed portion of the Aquino Bridge will begin.

Nearly a decade after the 2017 Marawi siege, about 300 families continue to seek answers on the fate of relatives who disappeared during the five-month conflict.

Ahead of the International Day of the Disappeared on Sunday, relatives of the missing held gatherings in Marawi City and Iligan City, renewing calls for authorities to determine what happened to their loved ones.

The families continue to endure ‘ambiguous loss,’ a painful form of grief made more difficult by the absence of remains and official confirmation of death.

The uncertainty has also created practical problems. Without death certificates or formal legal status, some families have been unable to claim government benefits and insurance, while others continue to hope their relatives may still be alive.

One of them is Bolawan Buyog, whose eldest son and family breadwinner, Abdul Jabaar, disappeared during the 2017 fighting.

Compensation

Buyog said her family’s claim for compensation was rejected by the Marawi Compensation Board, which questioned missing-person attestations issued by humanitarian workers.

Sittie Jamerah Mohammad, a field officer for the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), said attestations issued for missing persons were initially recognized but later faced scrutiny, including allegations that some documents were fabricated.

‘If it weren’t for the ICRC, I don’t know what would have become of us. We didn’t even know if we would make it out alive,’ Buyog said, crediting the humanitarian group’s support sessions and livelihood assistance for helping her family cope.

In Iligan City, relatives offered prayers and flowers at Paseo de Santiago before proceeding to the Maqbara cemetery in Marawi, where unidentified remains of people killed during the conflict are buried.

Families also gathered in Marawi to remember their missing relatives and discuss the newly formed Marawi Family Association, which seeks to advocate for affected households.

The ICRC said finding and identifying the missing is an obligation of authorities under international humanitarian law, which also recognizes families’ right to know the fate of their missing relatives

With the 10th anniversary of the Marawi conflict approaching in May 2027, families said they hoped authorities would finally provide answers and the closure they have awaited for years.

The Department of Health (DOH) on Friday said cases of leptospirosis so far this year had decreased by 23 percent, with 5,486 cases recorded from Jan. 4 to Aug. 26 this year compared to 7,163 in the same period last year.

At a press briefing, Health Undersecretary Dr. Gloria Balboa noted that the National Capital Region (NCR), Cagayan Valley and Central Luzon had the highest number of cases in the country.

‘In connection with the widespread flooding in our country in the past week, the DOH is continuing and strengthening the surveillance of cases of leptospirosis through our epidemiology bureau,’ she said in Filipino.

Balboa said a total of 521 patients with leptospirosis had been admitted in DOH hospitals in Metro Manila alone as of Aug. 23. The majority of these patients or 158 are currently confined at San Lazaro Hospital in Manila.

‘Our reminder to our fellow Filipinos is if they waded through floods, whether they have a wound or not, with or without symptoms, they should go to the nearest health center for early intervention and to get proper advice from our health workers,’ she said.

‘Fast lanes’

Acting Health Secretary Dr. Edwin Mercado said cases are expected to further increase in the next two weeks. But health facilities will remain operational and will have sufficient supply of medicines, he said.

He noted that 33 leptospirosis ‘fast lanes’ have already been opened across DOH hospitals in the other affected regions, including the Ilocos region and the Cordillera Administrative Region.

He added that the DOH is coordinating with local health offices in Metro Manila to improve the referral system across hospitals as part of efforts to prevent a surge in the number of patients.

At San Lazaro Hospital, a tent has been erected to temporarily treat patients who may be infected with leptospirosis, Mercado said.

Additional nurses and ‘med-tech’ from Jose R. Reyes Memorial Medical Center and Dr. Jose Fabella Memorial Hospital were also deployed to San Lazaro to augment its medical staff

Bohol has declared a province-wide dengue outbreak after recording 1,883 cases and 21 deaths from the disease from Jan. 4 to Aug. 22.

Gov. Erico Aristotle Aumentado issued the declaration on Thursday after health authorities recorded 1,883 dengue cases and 21 deaths from Jan. 4 to Aug. 22, 2026.

The province had exceeded the dengue epidemic threshold for three consecutive weeks, with a case fatality rate of 1.12 percent, according to the executive order declaring the outbreak.

A significant number of cases were reported in Talibon, Tagbilaran City, Ubay, Getafe and Tubigon.

The Provincial Local Health Board, with the support of the Department of Health’s Central Visayas Center for Health Development and the Provincial Health Office, recommended the declaration based on the latest epidemiological data and the increasing pressure on local health facilities.

Control

‘There is an urgent need to escalate and intensify dengue outbreak management measures to control the transmission of dengue in the community and prevent the occurrence of deaths due to the disease,’ Aumentado said in the executive order.

The declaration calls for the immediate intensification of dengue prevention and control measures across the province.

These include the strict implementation of the enhanced 4S Strategy, the reactivation of local dengue task forces and the implementation of Aksyon Barangay Kontra Dengue.

Local governments were also directed to mobilize households, schools and communities in ‘Search and Destroy’ activities to eliminate mosquito breeding sites, particularly through the 4 o’clock habit.

Health authorities were instructed to intensify vector-control measures for confirmed dengue cases, while city and municipal health offices and hospitals were ordered to establish Dengue Fast Lanes to speed up consultation and treatment.

Local governments must also ensure proper patient referrals, allocate funds for essential dengue-control supplies and services and coordinate with government agencies and other stakeholders.

The Bohol Provincial Anti-Dengue Task Force will likewise be reconstituted and strengthened to lead the province-wide response.

Aumentado said the intensified measures were intended to curb dengue transmission and prevent further deaths from the disease.

American technology firm Meta Platforms Inc., which owns Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp, has made a commitment to the Philippine government to remove harmful artificial intelligence (AI)-generated deepfakes from its platforms and cooperate with investigations on cybercrime and other online threats.

A Philippine delegation met with Meta policy officials handling the Asia-Pacific region on Thursday in Singapore to discuss details of the company’s commitment in the wake of violent incidents that local officials suspect stemmed from social media content.

Among those who attended the meeting were Secretary Henry Aguda of the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT), Director Melvin Matibag of the National Bureau of Investigation, Laguna Rep. Ann Matibag who chairs the House committee on women, and representatives from the office of Sen. Risa Hontiveros.

‘We were able to convince Meta to commit to providing our authorities with subscriber information and traffic data once they identify a threat to the safety of our children, even before an actual attack takes place,’ Hontiveros said in a video message on Friday.

Hontiveros chairs the Senate committee on women, children, family relations, and gender equality.

Online risks

She said the ‘parallel development’ will further gain traction for Senate Bill No. 2424, or the proposed Child Online Safety and Protection Act, which seeks to regulate children’s access to social media platforms. The bill sets 16 years as the minimum age for social media use.

SB 2424, which was sponsored in plenary on Wednesday, will also obligate social media companies to protect minors from various online risks.

In a Viber message to the Inquirer, Aguda outlined Meta’s commitment, including the establishment of a technical working group with the Philippine government to improve coordination, response times, and action on harmful content; the designation of a point of contact to facilitate faster response time; and the sharing of crucial data when necessary.

‘Good step’

Aguda said Meta also pledged continued cooperation with Philippine investigations, ‘particularly (on) cases involving imminent harm to children or risk of death or serious physical injury.’

A team from Meta is expected to visit Manila in mid-September to formalize the framework and commitments made.

Senate President Sherwin ‘Win’ Gatchalian welcomed the development as a ‘good step.’

But it doesn’t mean that the Senate will no longer push for SB 2424, which also proposes that Meta set up a Philippine office, he told the Inquirer in a phone interview.

‘So if there’s a problem, we can easily coordinate with them and we can prevent future problems,’ he said.

Gatchalian added that a bill will make it easier to penalize social media companies for violations, citing the case in the United States where Meta was slapped with a multistate lawsuit accusing it of intentionally designing addictive social media platforms that harm children’s mental health.

The company entered into a landmark $18-billion settlement this month to resolve the cases.

But because there is no law in the Philippines yet, he said, it would be difficult to make social media companies accountable for harmful content.

‘For example, what happened in Zamboanga, the was uploaded and they did not stop it. They could be penalized [if a law exists],’ Gatchalian said. The senator was referring to the video of the Ateneo de Zamboanga University shooting earlier this month that was uploaded on Facebook but was not immediately taken down.

The livestream of the deadly incident remained online for about 14 minutes, according to reports. It stayed for five minutes before the Cybercrime Investigation and Coordinating Center (CICC) flagged it and notified Meta, which took approximately four minutes to take it off the platform’s video feed.

Agreeing with Gatchalian, Sen. Erwin Tulfo said ‘we still have to craft a law for all social media apps-to penalize them. We penalize all of them if they fail to follow their community standards.’

According to the CICC, which was also represented at the Singapore meeting, Meta will ‘readily provide the credentials and relevant data of users behind online sexual abuse and exploitation of children, child sexual abuse and exploitation material, obscene content and other forms of online abuse.’

Deepfakes

The CICC said the requested data will be provided once the NBI issues a subpoena, subject to legal requirements and applicable laws. This is intended to help investigators identify perpetrators behind online offenses and build up cases against them more quickly.

The CICC noted that one of the critical results of the talks was the establishment of a stronger mechanism for addressing AI-generated content, specifically deepfakes.

‘This is an important step forward because it gives us a more preemptive layer of protection. We look forward to working with Meta so that individuals who are targeted by deepfakes can receive assistance before the content causes further damage,’ CICC Executive Director Renato Paraiso said.

Under the proposed mechanism, individuals may apply for protection, allowing Meta to identify and remove deepfake content targeting them.

Harmful online content involving minors, including videos of the fatal school shootings in Zamboanga and Tacloban cities, has led to calls to ban Meta in the Philippines.

But with the social media giant now agreeing to cooperate, Paraiso said in a statement, ‘For now, banning is the last option.’

‘We now have concrete areas of cooperation, and we are looking forward to seeing these turn into actual improvements in online safety for Filipinos, especially for our children,’ he added.

Meta’s Facebook remains the top social media platform in the country, with 95.8 million users as of late 2025. This represents an 81.9-percent reach of the total population and 97.7 percent of the country’s internet users

Philippine trade deficit widened in July as heavy reliance on imported electronic components continued to outweigh gains from robust electronics exports.

Data released Friday by the Philippine Statistics Authority showed the trade gap expanded by 34.9 percent year-on-year to $5.97 billion.

From January to July, the trade deficit stood at $37.34 billion, 29 percent wider than a year earlier.

In a commentary, Chinabank Research said electronic products continued to drive Philippine trade in both directions, boosting exports while also fueling demand for imported components.

‘The sector is powering export growth, but its heavy reliance on imported components is also widening the trade deficit, with electronic inputs now rivaling oil as a major import item,’ Chinabank economists said.

‘The global AI (artificial intelligence) boom presents an opportunity to deepen local manufacturing and move up the value chain, allowing the Philippines to capture more of the gains from the electronics upcycle,’ it added.

Exports jumped by 10.8 percent to $8.15 billion during the month from $7.36 billion a year earlier, with electronic products accounting for more than half of total export earnings at $4.79 billion.

Under the sector, semiconductor exports rose by 26.1 percent to $3.7 billion. But as Chinabank pointed out, imports of electronic components likewise surged by 140 percent to $2.2 billion, underscoring the industry’s dependence on foreign inputs.

As it is, total imports reached $14.12 billion in July, rising by nearly 20 percent from a year earlier. Electronic products also dominated the import bill, accounting for 32.6 percent, or $4.6 billion, of the total.

‘This highlights an opportunity for the Philippines to deepen domestic electronics manufacturing and capture more value from the sector,’ Chinabank said.

‘A potential risk is a new round of semiconductor tariffs under US President Trump. However, any measures are likely to remain targeted and should have only a limited impact on the Philippine industry,’ it added.

Energy-related purchases also kept the import bill high, with mineral fuel imports climbing 34.8 percent to $1.95 billion. This came amid renewed tensions between the United States and Iran, which pushed Dubai crude prices to an average of $76.7 per barrel in July, up from $69.2 a year earlier.

Kai Sotto, CJ Perez and Scottie Thompson made sure their return to the Gilas Pilipinas roster would be impactful.

On Friday, the trio came together and gave the Philippines and its fans something to cheer about as it held off Jordan in overtime, 82-81, in the Fiba World Cup Asian Qualifiers that kept the Filipinos tugging at the coattails of the group leaders.

Kevin Quiambao, meanwhile, didn’t hesitate in grabbing the spotlight on what he later described as a game where he wasn’t as sharp, knocking down the go-ahead triple that broke a 79-all tie with 11.7 seconds left to also stand out as one of the reasons why the Filipinos were able to come through before a sellout crowd at Mall of Asia Arena.

It was a highwire win that put some sense of hope in the Filipinos’ quest to make the global main event for the fourth straight edition, and they get back to work Sunday when they battle formidable Iran with the stakes the same for Gilas-that match again being a must-win.

Quiambao’s three-pointer came off an assist from Perez who, before that shot, had kept Gilas in the game with basket after basket in regulation and the extra five-minute period.

‘I would just like to thank CJ for that pass,’ Quiambao told a courtside reporter later. ‘We will enjoy this tonight, but will be back to work (Saturday).’

But that shot almost went for naught after Thompson, who put the clamps on Jordanian ace Jalen Harris, committed a five-second inbound violation that gave Jordan the chance to salvage the game.

Jordan could not, as Abdullah Olajuwon, the son of NBA great Hakeem, ran into Sotto, who came through with a massive block that triggered a thunderous roar from the gallery as practically an entire country erupted in celebration when the final buzzer sounded.

Gilas snapped a four-game skid in the Qualifiers and improved to 3-4 to start off the second round and the fourth window. More importantly, it narrowed the gap not only with Jordan, but also with Iran, which earlier lost, 93-91, to New Zealand, also in overtime.

‘It’s a huge thing, because we’ll be back to close the gap even further if we beat Iran [on Sunday],’ Perez said as Gilas now sets itself for another difficult battle in less than 48 hours at the same venue.

Australia, which routed Syria, 123-64, earlier, remained unbeaten in Group E to be at 7-0, while New Zealand joined Jordan and Iran in a three-waytie at 5-2, with Gilas at 3-4 and Syria dead last at 2-5.

The top four teams in the group after the Qualifiers get to play in Qatar for next year’s World Cup. And Gilas regained a solid shot with the close win.

While it’s a huge win, the margin of error remains slim for the Philippines as one loss may still jeopardize its ambitions of a fourth successive World Cup appearance.

Philippine National Police chief Gen. Jose Melencio Nartatez Jr. has assured the public the artificial intelligence (AI)-enabled body-worn cameras ordered by the PNP will have better image quality.

These cameras ‘will enhance the PNP’s capability to document police operations with clearer and more reliable footage. This will help preserve evidence, support investigations, and promote greater accountability among our personnel,’ he said in a statement on Friday.

Nartatez also said there will be guidelines on the use of body cameras to comply with privacy and the handling of evidence.

‘We assure the public that these body cameras will be used to strengthen transparency and accountability in police operations. We will ensure that our personnel use the technology properly and in accordance with existing laws and policies,’ he said.

Interior Secretary Jonvic Remulla had earlier disclosed to the appropriations committee of the House of Representatives that the PNP has ordered up to 20,000 new AI-enabled body cameras.

A red rainfall warning was raised over Metro Manila and eight areas in Luzon due to prevailing heavy rains brought by the southwest monsoon, or habagat, on Saturday, the state weather bureau said.

In a weather advisory issued at 11 a.m., the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa) said that the following areas under red warning may experience more than 30 millimeters (mm) of rain within the next three hours:

Zambales

Bataan

Pampanga

Bulacan

Metro Manila

Tarlac (Camiling, San Clemente, Mayantoc, Santa Ignacia, San Jose, Capas, Bamban)

Batangas (Nasugbu, Lian, Calatagan, Tuy, Balayan)

Cavite (Magallanes, Maragondon, Ternate, Bacoor, Cavite City, Imus, Kawit, Naic, Noveleta, Rosario, Tanza, General Trias)

Rizal (San Mateo, Cainta, Taytay, Rodriguez, Antipolo, Morong, Teresa, Angono, Binangonan, Cardona)

Pagasa warned that flooding in the affected areas under red warning is threatening.

Meanwhile, an orange warning, which predicts 15 to 30 mm of rainfall within the next few hours, was also placed over the following areas:

Laguna

Tarlac (Concepcion, Anao, Tarlac City, Gerona, La Paz, Paniqui, Pura, Ramos, San Manuel, Victoria, Moncada)

Batangas (Agoncillo, Alitagtag, Balete, Batangas City, Bauan, Calaca, Tanauan, Cuenca, Ibaan, Laurel, Lemery, Lipa, Lobo, Mabini, Malvar, Mataasnakahoy, San Jose, San Luis, San Nicolas, San Pascual, Santa Teresita, Santo Tomas, Taal, Talisay, Tingloy, Taysan)

Cavite (Alfonso, Amadeo, General Emilio Aguinaldo, Indang, Mendez, Silang, Tagaytay, Trece Martires, Carmona, Dasmarinas, Gen. Mariano Alvarez)

Rizal (Tanay, Baras, Jala-Jala, Pililla)

A yellow warning was also hoisted over Nueva Ecija, areas in Quezon and Batangas due to the projected 7.5 to 15 mm of rainfall that may prevail.

Light to moderate rains are affecting the following areas in Quezon province and may persist within the next three hours, according to Pagasa.

Quezon (Agdangan, Alabat, Atimonan, Buenavista, Burdeos, Calauag, Catanauan, General Luna, Guinayangan, Gumaca, Jomalig, Lopez, Macalelon, Mulanay, Padre Burgos, Panukulan, Patnanungan, Perez, Pitogo, Plaridel, Polillo, Quezon, San Andres, San Francisco, San Narciso, Tagkawayan, Unisan)

The weather bureau earlier said that heavy rains brought by the southwest monsoon will affect the western portion of Luzon on Saturday, Aug. 29.

The Philippines retained its ‘A-‘ investment-grade rating with a stable outlook from the Japan Credit Rating Agency (JCR), with the debt watchdog expecting the country’s strong external buffers to help it maintain its resilience against headwinds.

In its latest rating action on Friday, JCR-whose credit opinion is closely watched by Japanese investors-projected Philippine economic growth to settle in the mid-3 percent range this year, driven by a recovery in public infrastructure investment and the effects of price stabilization policies.

The debt watcher, however, expects the government debt-to-Gross Domestic Product (GDP) ratio to remain in the mid-60 percent range for some time as the pace of fiscal improvement slows.

‘The ratings mainly reflect the Philippines’ high and sustained economic growth supported by solid domestic demand, low-level external debt and resilience to external shocks supported by accumulated foreign exchange reserves,’ JCR said.

‘JCR believes that, as the government works to improve the investment environment and advance industrial upgrading, the economy will return to high growth rates over the medium term,’ it added.

A stable outlook means JCR is unlikely to change its rating over the next one to two years.

The debt watchdog pointed to the Philippines’ strong external position in 2025, with the current account deficit improving to 3.3 percent of gross domestic product, external debt standing at 30.3 percent of GDP, and foreign exchange reserves totaling $110.8 billion.

‘Despite increased uncertainty due to the deteriorating situation in the Middle East, the country’s foreign exchange liquidity position remains solid, and JCR expects the economy to retain high resilience to external shocks going forward,’ JCR said.

The Department of Finance said the affirmation reflected the country’s strong underlying credit fundamentals.

‘JCR’s affirmation of the Philippines’ A- rating and Stable outlook reflects the resilience of our economy and the government’s commitment to fiscal consolidation and long-term reforms,’ Finance Secretary Frederick Go said.

Meanwhile, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas said the rating action underscored the need to sustain reforms and sound policies that support investment and productivity.

‘The BSP will continue to promote price stability, safeguard financial stability, and ensure safe and efficient payments and settlements. These efforts support sustainable growth and broader economic opportunities for Filipinos,’ BSP added.