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Two months after National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) Director Jaime B. Santiago submitted his irrevocable resignation, President Ferdinand Marcos has named Angelito ‘Lito’ Magno as the officer-in-charge of the Bureau.

This, after the chief executive formally accepted the resignation of Santiago.

‘It is confirmed that the resignation of former NBI Director Jimmy Santiago has been accepted [by the President] and the current appointed OIC is Sir Lito Magno,’ Palace Press Officer Claire Castro said in Filipino in a press briefing in Malaysia last Monday.

Magno served as NBI’s Assistant Director for legal affairs. He also became NBI’s deputy director for investigative services and regional director in La Union.

When asked about the Marcos’ marching order to Magno, Castro said she has yet to ask the chief executive about the matter.

‘We haven’t discussed this yet and I just confirmed that it was just confirmed to us that the resignation of former NBI Director Jimmy Santiago has been accepted,’ Castro said.

Last August, Santiago resigned from his post on 15 August 2025 in response to alleged detractors, who are supposedly bent on removing him from his post after NBI assisted in the probe on missing sabungeros or cockfight enthusiasts.

Santiago, however, said he will continue serving as head of NBI until his resignation is accepted by the President.

A coalition of 48 labor unions and organizations wants lawmakers to legislate a higher tax exemption on workers’ income.

Federation of Free Workers (FFW) President Jose G. Matula said last Sunday the proposal aims to make the country’s tax system ‘more equitable and responsive to the needs of ordinary workers.’

‘Our message is simple: If you can hardly afford rice or viand, you should not be paying the same taxes as those who can buy yachts or helicopters,’ said Matula, who is also the chairman of the coalition where FFW belongs: the Nagkaisa (united) labor coalition.

Matula cited estimates from independent think tank IBON Foundation Inc. and former National Economic and Development Authority Secretary Ernesto M. Pernia showing that the living wage for a family of five ranges from P36,750 to P42,000 a month or about P450,000 a year to P500,000 a year.

He said exempting those earning below P500,000 annually from taxes would help ease the financial pressure on households and allow workers to retain more of their income.

‘That is the right reform: reduce taxes on the poor and the middle class, and impose taxes on excessive wealth. That is an economy with compassion and concern for the common good,’ he added.

Matula also said a solidarity wealth tax on billionaires would help fund social programs without burdening ordinary workers.

He noted that countries such as Germany and Spain have adopted similar measures-a 5.5-percent solidarity surcharge and a wealth tax on assets above pound 3 million, respectively-to promote fairness in revenue collection.

‘Tax justice means giving the hungry a chance to breathe, while asking more from those whose pockets are full,’ Matula said.

The call came as President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. announced last Saturday that the Department of Finance and the Bureau of Internal Revenue had submitted proposals to increase the ceilings for tax-exempt de minimis benefits.

The department, likewise, proposed increasing the tax-free limits for employee achievement awards, actual medical assistance and collective bargaining agreement incentives.

THE Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. (Pagcor) celebrated Filipino golf star Miguel Tabuena for his triumph at the recent inaugural International Series (IS) Philippines at the Sta. Elena Golf and Country Club in Santa Rosa City.

Tabuena closed out with a seven-under-par 65 for a 264 total to beat Japan’s Kazuki Higa (65) and Yosuke Asaji (67), who tied at 21-under.

‘It was good to win an IS event and I’m really glad that it was in the Philippines, my home country, in my home club, in front of my family, friends and everyone who’s supporting me,’ Tabuena said.

Tabuena’s victory earned him $360,000 (around P21 million), cementing his position among Asia’s golf elite.

The International Series Philippines, part of the Asian Tour’s exclusive lineup of events linked to the LIV Golf League, is a milestone moment for the Philippines’ growing presence in world golf.

Pagcor chairman and CEO Alejandro Tengco congratulated Tabuena for bringing pride to the nation and underscored the corporation’s support for Philippine sports and tourism.

‘This victory is a proud moment not just for Miguel, but for the entire country,’ Tengco said. ‘Pagcor is committed to uplifting our Filipino athletes by supporting world-class events such as this.’

He added: ‘We believe that investing in sports is investing in our nation because it inspires our people, promotes tourism, and strengthens our reputation as a world-class destination for international competition.’

Pagcor agency is among the major sponsors of the prestigious contest.

Tengco added that Pagcor’s support for the event aligns with its broader mission to promote sports tourism as a key driver of economic and community growth.

‘Hosting premier tournaments like the International Series not only highlights Filipino talent but also showcases the Philippines’ capacity to host global sporting events that draw visitors, boost local economies, and foster national pride,’ he said.

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PEDRO TADURAN is now focused on a unification fight after successfully defending his International Boxing Federation minimum weight crown against fellow Filipino Christian Balunan via unanimous decision on Sunday night at the San Andres Sports Complex in Manila.

‘I want a unification fight,’ said Taduran, who improved his record to 19-4-1 won-lost-drawn with 13 knockouts

He wants Puerto Rican Oscar Collazo’s World Boxing Association and World Boxing Organization belts.

‘I’m looking forward to facing Collazo,’ said the 28-year-old two-time world champion. ‘I will prepare hard for that unification, it’s going to be difficult, but it will be a dream to unify the belts.’

International matchmaker Sean Gibbons told BusinessMirror that Taduran’s wish for a unification fight is now under negotiaton.

‘Pedro’s performance is proof that he’s really longing for it,’ Gibbons said. ‘He really wants it, and he deserves the unification.’

Collazo, 28, is unbeaten in 13 fights with 10 knockouts.

Another Filipino world champion, World Boxing Council king Melvin Jerusalem, meanwhile, will be fighting this week against South African Ayanda Kuse in the ‘Thrilla in Manila 2’ at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

THE Department of Finance (DOF) is aiming to complete the final draft of the implementing rules (IRR) for Republic Act 12253, also known as the Enhanced Mining Fiscal Regime Act, before the end of the year.

This was disclosed by Finance Undersecretary Karlo Fermin Adriano, Undersecretary for Fiscal Policy, who handles the Monitoring Group of the Department of Finance, during the recently-concluded Mining Philippines 2025 Conference and Exhibition.

In coming up with a final draft for approval by the Finance Secretary, he said a series of stakeholder engagements will be held next month.

Michael Toledo, chairman of the Chamber of Mines (COMP), said the new mining fiscal regime marks a turning point for the Philippine extractive sector, rehabilitating how revenues are shared, investments are attracted, and compliance is managed.

He said it is important, hence, to provide clarity on how the landmark reforms brought about by the law can support both responsible resource governance and development goals.

In his presentation, Adriano said the DOF is committed to fully implement the law, starting with coming up with the IRR.

‘The Department of Finance is committed to implementing this law swiftly, efficiently, and with full transparency. We will also continue to engage with all stakeholders,’ Adriano, who spoke about the Mining Fiscal Regime during a plenary session, said.

At the same time, the DOF is also working on expediting the share of local governments (LGU) that host mining operations.

For that, he said a Joint Administrative Order will be crafted in coordination with the DOF’s Bureau of Local Government Finance and the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG).

The Joint Administrative Order, he said, will be separate from the IRR of the Mining Fiscal Regime law.

Currently, he said, the DOF is working with the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) to provide clarity on the business tax for mining, in recognition of mining companies as contractors of the government, making them subject to 5 percent business tax.

‘The BLGF and probably DILG will soon be issuing this clarification,’ he said.

According to Adriano, the implementation of the new Mining Fiscal Regime law, signed by President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. last month, will be transparent, underscoring that stakeholders’ engagement will be done and made public.

Meanwhile, the official said a roadmap for each of the commodities, such as gold, copper, and silver, will also be crafted.

We will need to determine our place in this global economy. We must be able to identify what our competitiveness is and determine what we are lacking,’ he said.

THE National Privacy Commission (NPC) is urging the public to exercise ‘heightened vigilance’ following reports of a data leak allegedly involving G-Xchange, Inc., operator of GCash, which surfaced online on October 26,2025.

However, in a statement on Monday, GCash said there is no evidence of breach, but assured the public it is closely monitoring the situation and cooperating with authorities.

In a statement on Monday, NPC said it has immediately launched an investigation after a dark web post appeared claiming to sell user information.

NPC explained that the post, made by a threat actor using the alias ‘Oversleep8351,’allegedly offers merchant and basic user data, GCash account numbers, linked bank and virtual card accounts, and KYC (Know Your Customer) records containing names, addresses, employment details, and valid Philippine IDs.

Following this, the NPC’s Complaints and Investigation Division has issued a Notice to Explain (NTE) to G-Xchange, Inc. to obtain further details about the alleged incident.

Should the investigation confirm that the personal data of GCash users have been compromised, the NPC said it will take regulatory and enforcement action within its mandate under the Data Privacy Act of 2012.

‘GCash users should actively monitor their accounts, regularly update their MPINs and passwords, and enable additional security features to protect their information,’ NPC said.

The country’s privacy watchdog also advised users of the e-wallet app to ‘remain alert’ to phishing attempts and refrain from sharing personal or sensitive data while the investigation is ongoing.

Meanwhile, in a statement on Monday, GCash said there is no evidence of breach, adding, ‘Initial forensic analysis shows no compromise in GCash systems; data under circulation does not match official records or customer information.’

The e-wallet app said: ‘Initial findings show that the alleged dataset does not match data structure used within GCash systems. Further analysis reveals that it includes individuals who are not GCash users, and that many entries appear incomplete, inconsistent, or invalid.’

These findings, GCash said, ‘strongly indicate that the material being circulated did not originate from GCash.’

‘At this time, there is no evidence of any breach in GCash systems. All customer accounts and funds remain secure,’ added the e-wallet app.

GCash, however, emphasized that it continues to work closely with the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP), the NPC and the Cybercrime Investigation an Coordinating Center (CICC) to validate information from all possible sources and ensure that its systems remain protected.

‘We urge users to remain vigilant and to report any suspicious activity only through official GCash channels,’ it noted, adding that it remains ‘fully committed to safeguarding customer data, strengthening our defenses, and upholding the trust of millions of Filipinos.’

SteelAsia Manufacturing Corp. lambasted the Philippine Nuclear Research Institute’s (PNRI) order to take custody of 23 containers allegedly containing hazardous zinc dust exported by Zannwann International Trading Corp., saying it has no connection to these materials and stressed that containers did not originate from SteelAsia.

‘This is not our shipment,’ the local steel maker said in a statement over the weekend.

SteelAsia said the containers were rejected by Indonesia in late September and ordered returned to Zannwann, which sources zinc dust from various steel producers for export.

However, SteelAsia pointed out that PNRI, without following international nuclear safety protocols or conducting the required scientific tests, tagged SteelAsia as the source of the alleged radioactive materials while clearing Zannwann of responsibility.

PNRI then ordered SteelAsia to ‘entomb’ the 23 containers in its plant in Calaca, Batangas. The company said this could endanger the community and other corporate locators in that industrial zone-if indeed there is a threat of radioactivity.

If there is radioactivity, SteelAsia said it has no ‘technical capability,’ facilities, or training to handle radioactive waste.

The steel manufacturer pointed out that only PNRI is legally mandated to perform this function under Philippine law.

SteelAsia said steel manufacturing does not use and therefore does not produce radioactive materials.

‘The company manufactures and exports reinforced steel bars, not zinc dust, which is merely a by-product of its production process.’

It also noted that all scrap metals purchased for melting and production are tested for radioactivity, and none had ever tested positive.

Its radiation monitoring equipment is ‘regularly recalibrated’ under PNRI supervision.

The company said Zannwann, based on information from PNRI itself, also purchased zinc dust from other steel companies, including Cathay Pacific Steel and Real Steel yet only SteelAsia is being ‘unfairly’ singled out by PNRI despite the absence of any scientific or factual basis.

SteelAsia said PNRI’s supposed findings were used as a basis by the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) to order the steel manufacturer to stop operating its Calaca scrap recycling plant which is the firm’s ‘flagship facility’ and is touted as one of the most modern and environmentally sustainable in the world.

However, it pointed out that even prior to the DILG order and following meetings with PNRI, SteelAsia said it had already voluntarily suspended operations at the Calaca scrap recycling plant ‘out of an abundance of caution, without conceding the presence of any radioactive materials in the facility.’

The company said it has also been fully coordinating with PNRI throughout the process.

SteelAsia said it is taking legal steps to protect its interests and is continuing to pursue all remedies available under the law.

The firm said ‘PNRI’s illegal, baseless, and unscientific actions will lead to irreparable harm’ to the entire Calaca industrial zone, resulting in ‘economic dislocation, the loss of thousands of jobs, and the stunting of Calaca’s progress.’

With these developments, SteelAsia said it is open to engaging international experts from Japan and Western countries to help address the situation-Japan, in particular, having ‘extensive’ experience in managing radiation.

The Manila Electric Co. (Meralco) has adjusted its energy sales growth forecast for 2025 to flat or slightly negative, marking the second downward revision this year as prolonged bad weather continues to dampen electricity demand.

Ferdinand Geluz, SVP and chief revenue officer of Meralco, told reporters the company now expects sales growth of flat to negative 0.4 percent to 0.8 percent by yearend, down from an earlier projection of 1 percent to 2 percent growth announced mid-year.

The revised outlook represents a deterioration from Meralco’s original target of 4 percent to 4.5 percent sales growth at the start of 2025.

Geluz attributed the downgrade to worsening weather patterns that have persisted throughout the year, contrary to the company’s expectations for normalization.

‘We were hoping for a normalization of weather patterns but we see worsening weather patterns,’ Geluz said during a briefing on the company’s nine-month financial results. ‘In fact, in the third quarter alone, we had 10 more suspension of classes and even government offices.’

He explained that the heavy rains and flooding impeded the mobility of both residential and commercial customers, directly suppressing power consumption.

The inclement weather particularly affected demand for air conditioning and cooling, which accounts for the bulk of electricity use in the commercial and residential segments.

‘Unlike commercial, bulk of the power requirements is really on cooling. So, if colder ang weather and impeded ang mobility ng customers nila so less ang requirement ang cooling power,’ Geluz said. ‘And that goes the same with residential.’

As of end-September, Meralco’s consolidated energy sales stood at 40,719 gigawatt-hours (GWh), virtually flat compared to 40,872 GWh a year ago.

The commercial segment, which contributed 37 percent of total sales, recorded 15,237 GWh in the nine-month period, nearly matching last year’s 15,261 GWh.

Growth was held back by ongoing real estate vacancies, weaker hotel demand due to fewer foreign tourists, and frequent heavy rains that caused class and work suspensions, reducing air conditioning use in consumer-facing businesses.

The residential segment accounted for 36 percent of total sales and declined slightly to 14,520 GWh from 14,758 GWh year-on-year, mainly due to a 0.52°C temperature drop and unpredictable third-quarter weather during the transition to La Niña that caused outages.

The industrial segment, however, grew to 10,852 GWh from 10,743 GWh, driven by strong demand in semiconductors and construction-related sectors.

‘Positive effect’

Despite the volume shortfall in the distribution business, Meralco remains committed to its P50-billion core earnings guidance for the year.

Meralco SVP and CFO Betty Siy-Yap said the company is relying on contributions from its power generation portfolio to offset any distribution utility shortfall.

‘We’re relying also on the contribution of power generation which has helped us cover any DU shortfall,’ Siy-Yap said. ‘Although overall we’re also looking at contributions from our subsidiaries. No matter how small it is, it still provides positive effect.’

The company is also implementing prudent cost management measures to cover for any shortfall from the volume effect, she added.

Meralco reported on Monday its consolidated core net income (CCNI) grew 14 percent to P40 billion in January to September from P35.1 billion in the same period last year. Consolidated reported net income went up by 9 percent to P36.8 billion from P33.8 billion.

Consolidated revenues rose 5 percent to P371.8 billion, driven by higher pass-through generation and transmission charges, improved revenues from power generation’s participation in the reserve market, and increased sales volume from retail electricity.

THE Special Program for Employment of Students (Spes) should contribute to senior high schools’ job-readiness.

Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian made the call at the weekend, urging the Department of Labor and Employment (Dole) to ensure that the Spes is worth investing in, after receiving a report showing that the program has had little impact on the academic and job readiness of youths.

He cited a report by the International Initiative for Impact Evaluation, which found that the Spes does not positively affect academic outcomes or work readiness in the medium term. The Dole, alongside local governments (LGUs), implement the Spes to give the youth temporary employment during school breaks. For 2026, P800 million is allotted for the program.

‘If we can link the Spes to our senior high school students, we can give them work and help them gain experience,’ said Gatchalian, Chairman of the Senate Committee on Finance.

Labor Undersecretary Carmela Torres said the department is working to ensure that students’ work assignments give them practical work experience, life skills, and exposure to real-world work environments.

Gatchalian also pointed out that helping senior high school students through the SPES can help address Filipinos’ dissatisfaction with senior high school.

In 2024, the Dole assisted 84,745 beneficiaries of the Spes.