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Up to 100 families were left homeless after a fire broke out at a neighborhood in Malate in Manila on Friday.

The blaze started from a two-story house along Leveriza Street in Barangay 705 at 9:24 p.m., according to a report from the Manila Police District.

The MPD said most of the destroyed houses were made of light combustible materials.

The Bureau of Fire Protection raised the first alarm at 9:33 p.m. and elevated it to second alarm two minutes after. The BFP declared the blaze controlled at 10:50 p.m. and fire out at 12:03 a.m. yesterday.

According to the MPD, the blaze displaced 70 to 100 families. Investigators initially estimated property losses to be at P500,000.

The fire victims are sheltered at the Dakota covered court at the corner of Quirino Avenue and Asuncion Street, the MPD added.

In a report by ABS-CBN News, Barangay 705 chairperson Lara Teves said some residents blamed people who burn copper as having caused the blaze.

If this were an edge-of-your-seat Netflix-style political thriller, it’s the kind where no one can tell just yet how the ending will unfold.

The plot, after all, has become so twisted in this flood-control corruption saga.

The grapevine is buzzing – speculating on different scenarios, each with its own ending. Here are the possible next chapters of this flood control series, based on the circumstances of alleged key players implicated in this mess:

Scenario 1: Zaldy Co returns and does a do-or-die tell-all

One possibility is that Zaldy Co, the ex-lawmaker and former House appropriations committee chairman, dramatically resurfaces and sings like a canary.

He would be doing exactly what New York mafia underboss Salvatore ‘Sammy the Bull’ Gravano did when he turned against the untouchable mafia boss John Gotti.

Gravano, once Gotti’s confidante, testified against the crime kingpin in 1992, paving the way for Gotti’s eventual conviction and life imprisonment.

In this plot twist, Co, whom witnesses say is a key player in this infrastructure kickbacks scandal, testifies that former speaker Martin Romualdez is the mastermind of the budget insertions and the whole caboodle.

If all that talk about Co is true, including the P1 billion in cash supposedly delivered to him in seven vans, then he will surely be a credible witness, as he can corroborate the testimonies of other respondents in the congressional inquiries.

It’s not going to be easy for Co, but when he runs out of places or countries to escape to, the only way out may be to come home and spill it all.

Such a bombshell will make Romualdez the face of this systematic looting of state coffers.

This, of course, is just a scenario, as both Co and Romualdez have repeatedly denied all the allegations against them.

Scenario 2: Marcos charges his cousin

Another hypothetical scenario, assuming the first scenario happens, is that President Marcos – who earlier said there would be no sacred cows – greenlights the filing of charges against his cousin, the former House speaker.

This may be a shining moment for Marcos but it won’t be easy because it will surely fracture the decades-long Marcos-Romualdez alliance. Is Marcos willing to take that political risk?

The repercussions of this are that Romualdez will retaliate, which may be a threat to the Marcoses. After all, as they say in the underworld, he knows ‘where the bodies are buried.’ In short, Romualdez, if he is guilty of allegations against him, knows where the money trail ends or who else received billions in kickbacks from insertions.

He may invoke his last card and remind the First Family that he helped keep them afloat during exile. If he retaliates, it may destabilize the administration and rivals may exploit it.

It may also boomerang back to Marcos himself as it will weaken him. What was once a family alliance turns into open political warfare, with the Dutertes circling like sharks.

Scenario 3: The Duterte camp exploits the rift

If the second scenario becomes a reality, it will be an opportunity for the Duterte camp to exploit the cracks in the Marcos administration.

Sara Duterte and her allies in both the Senate and the House will use Romualdez’s downfall to weaken Marcos further. New alliances will form and will paint the Marcos presidency as corrupt and compromised. Note that in politics, there are no permanent friends or enemies, only permanent interests.

For sure, the Dutertes will reassert themselves as the ‘cleaner’ alternative for 2028. They will take advantage of the public works corruption scandal, arguing that the investigations launched by the Romualdez-led chamber against Sara were merely a smokescreen to cover up his own crime.

The result is that Sara will gain momentum against both Marcos and opposition figures and will be a shoo-in for 2028.

Scenario 4: Nothing happens

Another scenario I see isn’t exactly a positive one, but it has a strong likelihood of happening in our storied nation of 115 million.

Despite the mayhem and the chaos, and despite all the promises of leaving no stone unturned, it’s possible that nothing will happen. There will be inquiries behind closed doors until the national attention moves to another big issue.

Maybe one or two underbosses of the underbosses will be charged, but the cases will drag in court for years until the rage dies down and the public forgets. Nobody will be sent to jail. The big fish will end up scot-free, lay low for a while and come up with another idea for a grand thievery.

In the end, just like in previous corruption scandals, it will be back to the good ol’ days.

Scenario 5: 2028

OK, this is not a scenario, it’s inevitable. But what happens in 2028 depends on how well Marcos will handle the biggest crisis his administration is facing. If the public is satisfied with the outcome, a Marcos ally may yet win against Sara Duterte.

If not, it’s Sara for sure – and the fallout from the ugly breakup of UniTeam will linger. The Marcoses and the Romualdezes may once again have to prepare for exile, assuming Sara is kind enough to simply send them abroad.

These are of course just scenarios in our TV-like story, hinging on whether the alleged masterminds are really who the witnesses claim them to be.

As for the rest of us, we can only hope there will be a day of reckoning when the guilty are finally charged. Now, that’s one happy ending.

It’ll be a big test for Ginebra coach Tim Cone to harness his resources in trying to beat Magnolia in the PBA Golden Season opener at the Smart Araneta Coliseum tonight. Filling the gaps is something Cone has to do with Japeth Aguilar and Isaac Go on the injured list and Jamie Malonzo gone abroad. That leaves Troy Rosario, newly-acquired Norbert Torres, Ben Adamos and possibly Stephen Holt to hold the fort inside the paint with size a major handicap.

Cone will likely play small with Scottie Thompson, RJ Abarrientos and Mav Ahanmisi rotating in the backcourt. Abarrientos started only once in 19 games in the Philippine Cup last season but may take a bigger role at point guard to slide Thompson at two. Ahanmisi could be the wildcard at two or three. Holt’s versatility will be useful as he can play multiple positions. For Ginebra, the key is controlling the pace. Cone employs a short rotation so Ginebra has to set the tempo for a deliberate, half-court battle. To control the pace, it’s critical to control the boards.

Ginebra was No. 1 in assists last conference with finding the open man a priority in creating motion to execute from the triangle. That’s where Abarrientos and Thompson come in as they averaged a combined 10 assists in the previous Philippine Cup. Ginebra will miss Aguilar’s norms of 16.3 points and 7.3 rebounds and Malonzo’s 13.1 points and 6.2 rebounds. It’ll be about stepping up and adjusting to maximize who’s available.

For Magnolia, new coach LA Tenorio knows Cone’s system like the back of his hand. They’ve been together for years since their Alaska partnership. Now, they’ve parted ways. Magnolia gave up assistant coach Johnny Abarrientos to Ginebra in a reunion with Cone and a happy get-together with nephew RJ. Kirk Collier traded seats with Abarrientos. Because Cone and LA know each other so well, expect a tactical chess match with both sides playing tit-for-tat.

The Hotshots will lean on Mark Barroca, Peter Alfaro and Rome de la Rosa to play physical backcourt defense. They’ll make it difficult for RJ and Thompson to set up. Ian Sangalang and James Laput will take care of the interior, leaving Lucero and Javi Gomez de Liaño to attack wherever there’s a mismatch. An advantage is Magnolia’s fully-loaded bench which led the past conference in points from relievers. Tenorio will remind his players not to fall in love with deep shots even as Paul Lee shot 48.7 percent and Alfaro 60 percent from four. The downside is Magnolia was last in three point percentage.

Investigation on massive corruption should expand from the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) to the Department of Health (DOH), Mayor Benjamin Magalong said on Friday.

‘Not only DPWH – what’s happening in DOH is getting close, too,’ Magalong said after corruption complaints were filed against Health Secretary Ted Herbosa and five other officials, specifically for misusing P44.6 million worth of government-bought psychiatric medicines, allegedly given to a private group.

‘Si Herboza, malapit na yan,’ he said in radio interview.

Lawmakers have also flagged DOH’s Health Facilities Enhancement Program (HFEP).

Many health centers supposedly built under the program turned out to be unfinished or unusable, and some were even described as ‘ghost’ facilities.

Lack of staff has made many of them non-operational. Magalong is part of Mayors for Good Governance.

Bicol Saro party-list Rep. Terry Ridon, however, questioned Magalong’s own record, citing his P110-million Baguio tennis and parking facility project linked to Discaya-owned St. Gerrard Construction.

Magalong, who resigned from the Independent Commission for Infrastructure on ‘conflict of interest’ concerns, may need to present more solid proof of corruption in the DOH, as he did in the case of the DPWH, according to his detractors.

Even before his shortlived stint as ICI adviser and investigator, he claimed to have already submitted documents and other pieces of evidence to President Marcos to back up his allegations against officials linked to anomalies in flood control projects.

The drivers and operators’ group Manibela has expressed support to the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board’s (LTFRB) public transport modernization program.

According to Manibela president Mar Valbuena, the LTFRB has shown openness and accountability when it consulted operators and transport cooperatives as part of efforts to make the modernization program more inclusive.

Valbuena criticized some groups for asking LTFRB chairman Teofilo Guadiz III to resign over alleged ‘irregularities’ in the agency.

‘The reason some groups are asking Guadiz to resign is because some of their demands were not granted,’ Valbuena said.

Earlier, the LTFRB reaffirmed its commitment to fully implement the program, assuring stakeholders that reforms in the sector remain a top priority.

Guadiz said the LTFRB continues to exert all efforts to ensure that the transition to a modernized transport system proceeds without interruption.

He added that the agency has been working closely with government financing institutions to aid operators of modernized jeepney fleets meet their loan obligations under the program.

The Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) has extended the deadline for the filing of tax returns, payments of taxes and submission of required documents in Cebu after a magnitude 6.9 earthquake struck the province on Tuesday night.

The BIR said the deadline extension covers all statutory tax obligations falling within this month, to provide taxpayers sufficient time to comply.

Submission of reports, attachments and other documents mandated by the tax agency under its existing revenue issuances is also extended.

The extension also applies to consolidated return of all transactions based on the reconciled data of stockbrokers from Sept. 16 to 30, as well as submission of engagement letters, renewals or subsequent agreements for financial audit.

Submission of all transcript sheets of official registry books used by dealers, manufacturers and importers of alcohol, tobacco, petroleum products, non-essential goods, sweetened beverages, mineral products and automobiles is also extended.

Revenue district offices covered by the deadline extension are the cities of Mandaue, Cebu, including the north and south areas, and Talisay as well as the large taxpayers’ division of Cebu.

The extension also applies to the filing of excise tax returns for cosmetic procedures with a monthly summary of procedures performed, as well as monthly remittance of value-added tax.

The country’s electricity rates are likely to decline by up to P3 per kilowatt-hour (kWh) by 2030 if upcoming power projects are switched on as planned, according to the Department of Energy (DOE).

Citing simulation results, Energy Secretary Sharon Garin told lawmakers that power bills could go down by ‘P2 to P3 per kWh’ if private developers execute all 200 proposed conventional and renewable energy projects on schedule.

‘This is assuming that all the green energy auction projects are delivered and all the fossil-based (projects) are also delivered,’ she said during a Commission on Appointments hearing.

Garin affirmed the DOE’s commitment to ensuring the timely and successful completion of these projects.

‘What we have to do is coordinate with all the agencies that are part of the permitting process and also with the local government units. We are practically handholding the process to make sure we address the problem or hasten the procedure,’ she said.

The Philippines had the second-highest electricity rates in Southeast Asia in 2022, trailing only Singapore, according to a report by the Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism.

In Metro Manila alone, power prices currently average around P13 per kWh, notably higher than the ‘less than P11’ rates seen in other neighboring countries, Garin said.

‘Our electricity is not subsidized. In fact, it’s even taxed. So those are issues that don’t give us a competitive advantage with the other countries,’ the DOE secretary said.

Based on DOE data in 2024, government subsidies in other Southeast Asian countries covered 36 to 66 percent of electricity costs.

In the Philippines, Energy Undersecretary Rowena Cristina Guevara earlier said a government subsidy for household consumers ‘is not possible,’ stating ‘we don’t do that unlike other countries.’

Aside from lowering power rates, Garin said the DOE was also aiming to achieve total household electrification within the next three years.

Garin estimates that the Marcos administration would need around P57.86 billion to electrify the remaining 3.17 million households by 2028.

‘We have the line extension, the solar home systems and the microgrid system. We’re trying to find a way to also (reach the target) without the budget,’ she said.

Almost 6,000 aftershocks have been recorded in Northern Cebu, state seismologists Phivolcs said on Sunday, October 5.

According to Phivolcs, there have been 5,982 recorded aftershocks from the magnitude 6.9 earthquake, which occurred on Sept. 30, 2025.

The latest number of plotted aftershocks reached 1,219 and 25 were felt by the public, according to state seismologists.

The strongest aftershock on Sunday, as of writing, was recorded at a magnitude of 4.4, with a depth of 10 kilometers in the City of Bogo, Cebu.

Reported intensities included Intensity II in Daanbantayan, Cebu, and Intensity I in Villaba, Abuyog, and Carigara, Leyte.

Geologist Mahar Lagmay, the director of Project Noah, explained that a large earthquake typically triggers many aftershocks because the fault is still adjusting.

He noted that these aftershocks may last for a month or more, but with a weakening trend.

‘Nag-aadjust pa ang fault. It may last for a month or more, but with a weakening trend,’ Lagmay said in an X (formerly Twitter) post.

(The fault is still adjusting. It may last for a month or more, but with a weakening trend.)

Death toll. The National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council recorded a death toll of 71 individuals and 559 injured due to the powerful quake.

Affected individuals and damaged properties. There were also 455,631 individuals, or 128,464 families, affected by the quake across 15 cities and municipalities.

Evacuated individuals reached 26,542, with 25,291 outside evacuation centers and 1,251 inside them.

Additionally, there were 713 reported cases of infrastructure damage, along with 18,154 damaged houses.

A special matchup for a special kickoff.

The PBA raises the curtains on its golden season tonight with fireworks from Manila Clasico, the fabled rivalry born during the late ’80s era of old-school hoops, short shorts, barreling drives and kalawit rebounds that stays burning in the hearts of the current generation.

Barangay Ginebra and Magnolia, archrivals with a large, passionate fan base, re-engage tonight to fire the opening salvo for the Season 50 Philippine Cup wars at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

And what makes the 7:30 p.m. tiff at the Big Dome – where the first PBA game was played back on April 9, 1975 – even more interesting are the men at the helm. It’s the Gin Kings’ multi-titled coach Tim Cone against his long-time player and coaching pupil LA Tenorio, who has jumped over to the Hotshots as mentor and reserve player after their Season 49 collaboration.

‘He’ll be a great coach because he is a great communicator and great with relationships,’ said Cone of Tenorio, with whom he has won seven PBA championships.

Amid all the hoopla, the debuting Tenorio is keeping his focus.

‘Yes, it’s the Manila Clasico. But at the end of the day, it’s just an ordinary game. It’s the same game we’re going to play the next day. It’s just a game. We just have to play it the right way,’ he told One Sports.

Both master and student are leading teams on a redemption tour.

Cone and the Gin Kings had their chance to win the Governors’ Cup and Commissioner’s Cup trophies last season, but were foiled by TNT each time.

Tenorio’s new charges, meanwhile, failed to get past the quarterfinals of the last four conferences to see their title drought extended to a seventh year or since the 2018 Governors’ Cup.

‘We were right there. We’re not too upset where we are as a team at this point. We know we can contend, we know we can compete,’ said Cone. ‘I think those things that happened to us last season will make our team stronger this season.’

Apart from clutch player Tenorio, Ginebra also lost wingman Jamie Malonzo (now in Korea) in the off-season.

I’m happy to have a spouse who continues to stand by me through all kinds of ups and downs, but my girl besties give me so much joy, as well. They gamely spend hours with me combing countless store racks, dress up a dreary-looking hospital room with the cutest pink bathroom and table accessories, regularly send recommendations for the latest K-dramas to binge on and even babysat me at home during a cancer bout, so my husband could work with less worry.

I truly believe that even the happiest of wives need their besties and I’m no exception. Liza, Rose Anne, Eliza, Nina, Kara, Chona, Janine, Lizette and Kara – to name a few. Life wouldn’t be the same without these girlfriends of 44 years and counting.

Marriage blesses us with a cherished partner to grow old with – but friendship gifts you with soul sisters for the journey. As the years pass, my female besties are more than just lunch dates and shopping companions. They are also anchors and cheerleaders in hard times, and the tears and laughter shared bind us securely, no matter how far or long since the last get-together. Being with my husband keeps me safe and loved, while being with my besties keeps me sane and young.

Husbands don’t do girl talk

Let’s face it: even the most loving husband has his limits. He’ll listen when you complain or vent, and nod along when sharing a story about work or home drama. But like most men, he’s not going to dissect every sarcastic statement uttered to you. Besties however, will dwell on this. They’ll replay the scene, suggest motives and even provide witty should-have-said comeback lines.

Besties keep us young

As women age, responsibilities pile up – kids, aging parents, a career, endless errands and more – so it’s easy to get caught up in routines. But time with girlfriends snaps us out of autopilot. Whether it’s giggling over the shenanigans of household help, taking short trips together, or sending each other silly memes, besties bring out our playful side.

They understand without speaking

It’s great to have people in your life who know you so well. A friend who instantly gets what you mean by your tone, remembers your family dynamics, or can read your mind even before you speak. With besties, you don’t have to give a lengthy backstory to be seen or understood – they already know, which is a big relief.

They are our emotional rechargers

Life always throws curveballs. Even in a stable marriage, it’s natural to face moments of stress, loss or self-doubt so besties are our cushions. They’ll cry, pray with and distract you with laughter until you’re ready to stand tall again. Having women in your corner doesn’t weaken a marriage – they enrich it because after bonding time with them, you go back to your spouse happier, lighter and more whole.

Our other forever

We all yearn for a ‘forever love’ but friendship is another kind of forever. Who doesn’t like celebrating romantic love but the quiet, steady love of a best friend deserves just as much credit. Aside from my husband, I know my besties will walk beside me through the gray hairs, midlife shifts and all other unwritten chapters of my life.

My husband is my forever plus-one but my besties are my forever plus-fun. So don’t feel guilty about spending time with girlfriends. Marriage and women friendships aren’t rivals – they’re teammates and when both are strong, life shines brighter. After all, while husbands and diamonds may be forever, besties sparkle even brighter.