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Mapua rode on the stellar performance of Clint Escamis as it turned back an upset-conscious Arellano U, 90-87, yesterday to seize the solo lead in NCAA Season 101 at the Filoil EcoOil Arena.

The Season 99 MVP unloaded 29 points including a perfect four-and-four from beyond the arc and laced it with three rebounds and the same number of assists and steals.

It was a bounceback effort for Escamis after a forgettable eight-point performance in their 90-89 double overtime victory over Lyceum of the Philippines U in last Wednesday’s inaugurals at the Big Dome.

‘I just want to make up for that bad game,’ said Escamis, who is on his final tour of duty.

‘I know my teammates got my back but I really want to perform for them,’ he added.

It was another come-from-behind win for the back-to-back title-seeking Cardinals, who trailed by as many as 13 points in the second quarter before turning the tide around in the second half.

‘We showed the never-say-die mentality that we’re used to and our heart of a champion that refuses to lose,’ said Escamis.

In the other game, St. Benilde smashed Emilio Aguinaldo College, 74-63, to improve to 1-1.

Tuyo (dried fish) used to be considered as a poor man’s food. You eat it only when there is nothing more to eat at home – and always hidden from sight.

The reputation of tuyo, however, has changed completely, as it now goes into such gourmet dishes as Italian pasta and Chinese fried rice.

This pasta recipe of Chef Jackie Ang Po, which she developed for Arla and Global Pacific, makes full use of the tuyo’s flavor profile – salty, intense, flavorful – to give a Filipino twist to a pasta dish. It takes the place of anchovy and pairs up well with another uniquely Filipino ingredient, kamias, for a tangy, sour note on the palate.

‘The saltiness of the tuyo and the sourness of the kamias is great for this pasta recipe,’ Chef Jackie said.

Tuyo and Kamias In Tomato Cream Pasta

Ingredients:

1 pack Armando Linguine

Oil and drippings from 1 bottle tuyo

5 cloves garlic, sliced

1 pc. onion

1 bottle (120 grams) tuyo

2 cans Sunny Farms tomatoes

1 cup shrimp stock

4 pcs. fresh kamias, sliced

1 cup all-purpose cream

1 tbsp. sugar

Salt and pepper, to taste

Arla Apetina Cheese

Procedure:

1. Cook the pasta. For every 500 grams of Armando linguine, use 5 liters of water, and make sure the water is at rolling boil stage. Set aside.

2. Pour the oil and drippings from your bottled tuyo into a pan, and heat. Sauté garlic, onion, tuyo, and tomatoes. Pour in shrimp stock and add kamias. Once mixture simmers, add all-purpose cream. Season with sugar, salt and pepper. Simmer until sauce is reduced to sauce consistency.

3. To serve, arrange a mound of cooked pasta on plate. Top with sauce. Add more tuyo and sliced kamias for topping, if desired. Sprinkle with Arla Apetina Cheese.

4. Enjoy!

Conglomerate San Miguel Corp. (SMC) has expanded its river cleanup program to Alabang River in Muntinlupa.

SMC said the initiative includes clearing obstructions and widening narrow sections of the waterway to ease flooding that has long affected nearby communities and critical roads.

More than 26,000 tons of silt and waste from a 450-meter stretch of the river, starting at its mouth in Laguna de Bay and going upstream near Cupang Bridge, have been cleared in the two months since work started.

‘Our goal is to provide long-term solutions that would ease flooding for the city’s communities and critical roadways,’ SMC chairman and CEO Ramon Ang said.

‘We owe a great deal of gratitude to Mayor Ruffy Biazon for bringing together the concerned agencies to work with us on a comprehensive approach to solve the problem,’ he said.

The operations are part of remedial measures after severe flooding last July 8 left motorists stranded for hours along South Luzon Expressway.

SMC said that a subsequent investigation found that Alabang River was heavily silted and constricted that rainwater could not flow freely along the waterway.

Several sections of the river had also been narrowed by informal structures and new construction, the company said.

SMC shared the findings with Muntinlupa City Mayor Ruffy Biazon, who then welcomed SMC’s deployment of dredging equipment to begin clearing the river a week after a meeting last July 25.

The company has since been coordinating with the Muntinlupa City Engineering Office, the Department of Public Works and Highways and a nearby private subdivision on efforts to restore the river to its natural depth and width.

SMC said that newly installed sheet piles by a private contractor had to be removed as they were obstructing the flow of water along the channel.

It said that efforts would have to include relocating informal settler families along the riverbanks through a well-coordinated relocation effort for affected families.

Apart from Alabang River, SMC has ongoing cleanup operations that have so far removed 268,979 tons of debris from 5.9 kilometers of Parañaque Rivers around NAIA, 256,920 tons from 2.8 kilometers of Navotas Rivers, 479,278 tons from 6.2 kilometers of San Pedro Rivers in Laguna and 19,842 tons from Las Piñas River.

In our Gospel today (Luke 17:5-10), Jesus tells us that even faith the size of a mustard seed can command a mulberry tree to be uprooted and replanted in the sea. What is meant here certainly goes beyond the literal. No person of faith should go around ordering trees to dig themselves up and plunge into the deep.

Similarly, no interpretation of this passage should ignore the verse before it where Jesus challenges us, ‘If [your brother] wrongs you seven times in one day and returns to you seven times saying, ‘I am sorry,’ you should forgive him.’

A mulberry tree is notorious for having a dense network of roots that can spread up to fifty feet from the tree. Imagine the effort needed to trace and untangle this root system that invades and damages building foundations. So too can the hurt from being wronged be described. It invades the deepest core of your being and destroys the foundations of relationships. To forgive is to root out all the ill feelings and risk again. Perhaps this is why the image of uprooting the mulberry tree is paired with planting it in the sea. For the ancient Israelites, the sea symbolized chaos. To forgive is to face turmoil instead of just hiding or running away. Only with faith can we do this.

But what is faith?

The passage about faith uprooting the mulberry tree must also be read with the passage after it. Brace yourself:

‘Who among you would say to your servant who has just come in from plowing or tending sheep in the field, ‘Come here immediately and take your place at table’? Would he not rather say to him, ‘Prepare something for me to eat. Put on your apron and wait on me while I eat and drink. You may eat and drink when I am finished’? Is he grateful to that servant because he did what was commanded? So should it be with you. When you have done all you have been commanded, say, ‘We are unprofitable servants; we have done what we were obliged to do.”

I am not sure how you feel about those lines. Would you prefer what Jesus said five chapters before: ‘Blessed are those servants whom the master finds vigilant on his arrival. Amen, I say to you, he will gird himself, have them recline at table, and proceed to wait on them’ (Luke 12:37)?

The former passage paints an aloof God, an employer instead of a Father. The latter shows us a more intimate Lord. And isn’t this what Jesus exemplified at the Last Supper? ‘He took a towel and tied it around his waist. Then he poured water into a basin and began to wash the disciples’ feet and dry them with the towel around his waist’ (John 13:4-5).

Is your God near or far?

While I am sure we would all prefer the God who is near, I think the answer closer to our experience is: God is both near and far.

We feel God close when blessings surround us, when peace, as the calming hymn sings, is ‘before us, behind us, and under our feet.’ But God may seem distant when those who are just suffer while those who oppress them prosper, when we cannot understand his mysterious ways. During those times, we need faith to hold on until God feels close again.

But what is faith?

Here is one way to understand faith: It is a personal relationship with God that allows us to trust that even when God seems far, he is still somehow near. Even when it seems that God is asking something impossible from us-like forgiving seven times in one day-our relationship with him will also give us the confidence to question and to complain, but ultimately, the strength to do his will. That is faith. It is wrestling with roots that may seem to have trapped us and then diving deeper into our relationship with him.

Nice words. Now here is something to make them real: I recently had a conversation with someone who enlisted in a Bible class I facilitate. I asked him why he was so interested in Scripture. He told me it was because, not too long ago, he had been diagnosed with cancer. His answer puzzled me until I prayed with this Sunday’s Gospel. When the diagnosis dropped like a judge’s gavel, God must have seemed infinitely far. Yet this man sought God even more.

Your prayer assignment for this week:

Imagine yourself in the shoes of that man diagnosed with cancer. What would you do? It may be cheesy, but the voice in my mind cannot help but sing these modified lyrics: ‘Near, far, wherever you are, I believe that our hearts do go on. Once more, you open the door, and you’re here in my heart. And my faith in you will go on.’

Inflation likely quickened in September, with most economists expecting it to return to the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP)’s two to four percent target for the first time in six months, following a sustained stretch of subdued price growth.

Forecasts gathered by The STAR show inflation may have accelerated to between 1.9 and 2.5 percent last month. If inflation does breach the target in September, it would mark the first time it has climbed above two percent since February’s 2.1 percent print.

Metrobank chief economist Nicholas Mapa expects inflation to rise to 2.5 percent in September, citing upside pressures in vegetable and fish prices due to the impact of recent typhoons.

Lower electricity rates could partly offset the upside pressures in food prices, while pump prices may provide limited relief. ‘Pump prices also could be a source of downside pressure, but to a lesser extent, as gasoline and diesel costs increased on a monthly basis, tracking global markets,’ Mapa said.

Rizal Commercial Banking Corp.chief economist Michael Ricafort placed his own September inflation forecast at 2.1 percent year-on-year. He also said inflation could rise to two percent levels for the rest of the year.

UnionBank of the Philippines chief economist Ruben Carlo Asuncion penciled in a milder two percent print, up from 1.5 percent in August and 0.9 percent in July.

‘Upside risks stem from weather-related supply disruptions, higher wages in Metro Manila and faster cost pass-through, with core inflation already at 2.7 percent in August,’ Asuncion said.

‘On the other hand, continued rice deflation from tariff cuts and imports, soft global oil prices, weak China producer prices and subdued fiscal spending continue to provide downward pressure,’ he added.

Jonathan Ravelas, senior adviser at Reyes Tacandong and Co., also expects inflation at 1.9 percent, attributing the increase mainly to food and transport costs.

‘The projected increase in September was mainly due to higher food and vegetable prices, plus some transport cost adjustments. It’s a reminder that food supply remains vulnerable,’ Ravelas said.

He added that inflation could edge higher in the last quarter due to holiday demand, weather risks and oil market movements. ‘But barring major shocks, it would likely stay below or at two percent,’ Ravelas said.

Bank of the Philippine Islands lead economist Jun Neri likewise projected a 1.9-percent reading in September or about 0.2 percent higher on a month-on-month basis. Neri attributed the uptick to higher fish prices amid heavy rains and rising rice costs following the government’s suspension of rice imports.

He pointed out that lower electricity rates, cheaper vegetables and softer oil prices partly offset these upward pressures.

Neri cautioned that inflation risks are tilted upward in the coming months, with rice supply pressures and base effects expected to push consumer prices higher in the early part of 2026.

‘Nonetheless, we still project inflation to stay at the two percent level through December, but could climb above three percent in the first half of next year,’ Neri said, adding that an influx of cheap Chinese exports may temper price pressures.

The Philippine Statistics Authority is set to release the official inflation report on Oct. 7, just two days before the BSP’s policy meeting, where markets are weighing whether the Monetary Board will slash policy rates further or keep the benchmark steady at five percent.

Economists agree that the upcoming inflation print will be a crucial input for the BSP’s next policy decision. A higher-than-expected number could bolster the case for a pause after the August rate cut, while a still-subdued print would leave room for the Monetary Board to ease further.

The central bank has already cut rates by 150 basis points since August 2024 to support growth amid benign inflation.

It took some time, but the Far Eastern University Tamaraws tallied their first win in the UAAP Season 88 men’s basketball tournament.

The Tamaraws finally put themselves in the win column after quelling the gritty Adamson Soaring Falcons, 64-58, Sunday at the Mall of Asia Arena.

Mo Konateh powered the Tamaraws with a solid statline of 18 points and 21 rebounds, to go with three assists, two blocks and an assist. Kirby Mongcopa chipped in 15 markers, five boards and two dimes.

‘We’re grateful to be blessed to be in this moment. We’re grateful to be… that God put us in this place to be like an example of resilience because we could have easily already feel pretty down about ourselves,’ he said.

‘But what I liked about my guys was after the disappointing loss to La Salle, we actually worked even harder. And we know in anything in life, once you get your back against the wall, you go harder or you give up. So, I’m so proud of them,’ he added.

After leading by as much as 11 points, 56-45, with 8:09 remaining in the game after a Mongcopa deuce, the Falcons stormed back and sliced the deficit slowly.

They trailed by just three, 58-61, with 1:44 remaining after a short jumper by Ced Manzano.

But Janrey Pasaol hit the dagger triple to push the lead to six, 64-58, with 1:28 left.

On the other end, Manu Anabo and Ray Allen Torres missed their attempts that would have inched them closer.

But a steal by Pasaol, as well as another turnover by Torres, sucked the air out of Adamson’s lungs.

Pasaol contributed 13 markers, six boards, five dimes and two steals. Neil Owens produced nine points for FEU.

Monty Montebon was the only double-digit scorer for the Falcons with 14 markers and seven boards. Matty Erolon backstopped with nine points.

With FEU’s win, only the University of the East Red Warriors are the lone team without a victory thus far. The Tamaraws and the Soaring Falcons are now tied in the standings at 1-3.

As you may well know by now, the federal government is currently on shutdown since Wednesday. There has been no clear indication from either side whether it is willing to drop its well-entrenched demands or even ready to enter into a compromise. No one knows when this shutdown will end, not even the leaders of either parties. So what happens when the shutdown continues to drag for several more days or even weeks?

As far as immigration services are concerned, it depends which agency we are referring to. For USCIS, services remain undisrupted. It is a fee-based agency which means that its operations are funded from the fees it generates. So applications and petitions are still accepted, processed, and decided as normally as it does. So you can still continue to submit your applications and petitions, attend appointments, interviews, and naturalization ceremonies.

What about immigration arrests? These are being handled by Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Unfortunately, rounding up undocumented immigrants will continue as these are deemed essential law enforcement work. You will still see rampant deportation operations across the country bolstered by the fact that the agency also received a huge boost in funding from the recently passed One Big Beautiful Bill.

The immigration courts remain open but may have limited workload as it may only hear those who are in detention. However, because ICE operations still continue, immigration courts remain open so as to accommodate the hearing of cases that ICE officers filed.

The US Customs and Border Protection remain open as their services are deemed essential. CBP also received additional funding with the One Big Beautiful Bill so the additional money hedges whatever impact the shutdown has on its operations. It is and will continue to remain in operation.

Consulate interviews and appointments still continue as normal. Just make sure you check with the local consulate if there are any changes. But like USCIS, the US Department of State functions such as visa issuance and consular services rely on fees to keep its operation going, so there should be no disruptions expected for their operations

In all cases, check with the specific agency involved to see if there are any closures, limitations, or restrictions most especially as the shutdown drags on.

I would be remiss if I do not convey my deepest condolences to the families and friends of those who passed away as victims of the tragic earthquake. I am saddened to see the hardships and difficulties that our fellow Cebuanos are facing. These are trying times for the Cebuano community but we are a people of faith and steely resolve. Santo Niño has got our back and the shared unity, charity, and resiliency of all Cebuanos will help us rise from the rubble. We have endured far worse calamities and disasters and emerged far better and stronger. There is no reason we cannot do it again this time.

The day after a magnitude 6.9 earthquake shook Cebu, leaving destruction, injuries and deaths in its wake, the Senate, voting 15-3 and two abstentions, passed a resolution calling for the house arrest of International Criminal Court (ICC) prisoner Rodrigo Duterte, citing ‘humanitarian grounds.’ How compassionate of them. Their sense of humanity for the architect of the bloody drug war seems far more urgent than for the Filipinos reeling from an actual natural disaster.

Leading this display of moral piety was none other than Bible-quoting Senator Alan Peter Cayetano. Hallelujah! Always ready to act as the ambassador of Jesus Christ, he asserted that ‘humanitarian treatment and due process are essential to justice.’ How Godly cute of Alan Peter. This is coming from the same man who denied the existence of Duterte’s extrajudicial killings before the United Nations when he was secretary of foreign affairs, with the gusto of a militant Holocaust denier and flat-earther. This is also the senator who rationalized corruption as long as there is ‘repentance.’ If Alan Peter can’t get his brother, the ‘good Cayetano,’ Lino, to buy into his ‘holiness,’ perhaps he should keep his preaching to himself.

The resolution came after impeached Vice President Sara Duterte accused the ICC of inhumanely treating her father. Depending on the day, Digong is either frail, collapsing on the floor, battling early dementia or, if we are to believe Senator Bato dela Rosa’s latest melodrama, simply wants to go home and eat monggo. Shedding monggo tears to win sympathy? Such claims might sound plausible if Duterte were detained in Guantanamo Bay or some North Korean dungeon. But in the Netherlands, renowned for human rights and excellent health care? Please. Sara’s assertion, like a fat penguin, doesn’t fly. And why should people believe her? Just six months ago, she was quoting her father, likening his ICC detention quarters to those of a hotel.

So what is the most compassionate thing we can do for Digong? Let him stay exactly where he is. After all, the ICC facility is among the most humane in the world. And frankly, far kinder than our jails and the graves where thousands of his EJK victims now lie.

The resolution, of course, has absolutely no legal bearing on the work of the ICC. The ICC exists precisely as the court of last resort for people victimized by crimes against humanity and betrayed by their countries’ institutions. It is built to resist pressure from outside forces, especially from those it is currently trying. If anything, the Senate resolution only reinforced the argument for keeping Duterte in the ICC. It showed that he still influences Philippine politics, even from a detention cell in The Hague.

However, politically, the resolution did reveal one thing: the Senate remains the happy hunting ground for the Dutertes, even if their hardliners have slipped to the minority. The majority bloc led by Senate President Tito Sotto is proving to be challenging.

It also exposed the weaknesses of President Bongbong Marcos Jr. The resolution seemed like a barometer. Many senators are unimpressed with how Marcos has handled the flood control issue, with some getting ready to take their bets on the return of the Dutertes in 2028. This is not just about the ICC; this is a preview of the coming presidential race.

Senator Chiz Escudero had his own moment in the spotlight. Prior to the drama involving Duterte, the ousted Senate president took the podium and claimed that the corruption allegations against him were all part of a script by former House speaker Martin Romualdez, who had also lost his leadership post after being caught up in the same scandal. Romualdez shot back at Escudero, calling his speech a ‘DDS script.’

Yet, what made Escudero’s performance stand out was not only the sheer contradictions of his lines but whom he seemed to be most anxious to please in the audience – Sara Duterte, who was sitting in the Senate VIP gallery. Some said that Chiz’s performance felt less like a speech and more like an audition for Sara’s running mate in 2028.

‘Why me?’ Escudero whined before reminding his accusers that when you point a finger at someone, three fingers point back at you. Is this the best argument he has? If anything, this is no defense at all. It’s more like an admission. Like a man caught urinating on a wall, only to complain that he shouldn’t be singled out because others relieved themselves on the same spot.

Then came Chiz’s pompous statement: ‘I can defend myself, but who will defend our institution?’ Really? He wants a reminder as to how the Senate lost its credibility under his short and chaotic leadership? First, he shelved Sara’s impeachment. Second, his P30-million donation from a contractor. Third, his alleged multi-billion budget insertions. Fourth, the Marcoleta-led flood control probe, where his contractor-friend, Senate allies and the Dutertes were untouched. Finally, the botched and hurried plan to turn the Discaya couple into state witnesses. He doesn’t need to worry about defending the Senate. The damage under his watch already did that.

This week gave us two lousy scripts: the ICC’s ‘inhumane treatment’ of Digong and Chiz’s non-defense defense. Different scripts, same teleserye – the endless squabbling of dynasties, where the people are reduced to extras.

It’s time to rip up their scripts, unmask the real villains and celebrate our true heroes, leading to 2028: former Justice Antonio Carpio, Akbayan Rep. Chel Diokno, Rep. Leila de Lima, Heidi Mendoza, Cielo Magno and Mayor Vico Sotto, to name a few.

We follow our own script now. It’s time to write our story, our history, our destiny.

Malacañang has declared special non-working days in four towns, two cities and a province to allow residents to participate in local celebrations such as founding anniversaries, festivals and historic events.

Proclamation 1045 declared Oct. 9 a special non-working day in San Isidro, Surigao del Norte,which will celebrate its 66th founding anniversary.

Proclamation 1046 declared Oct. 16 a holiday in Lapuyan, Zamboanga del Sur for the celebration of the town’s 68th Foundation Day.

Oct. 20 will be a special non-working day in Batac City in Ilocos Norte as provided under Proclamation 1047 to mark the 159th birth anniversary of Gen. Artemio Ricarte.

Proclamation 1048 declared Oct. 28 a special non-working day in Dingle, Iloilo for the commemoration of the Cry of Lincud, the first declaration of revolution against Spain in Iloilo and Panay Island.

Proclamation 1049 declared Oct. 29 a special non-working day in Mati City in Davao Oriental for the Sambuokan Festival.

Oct. 30 will be a special non-working holiday in San Isidro, Davao del Norte as provided under Proclamation 1050 for the celebration of the Sikwate Festival.

Proclamation 1051 declared Nov. 4 a special non-working day in Quezon province to commemorate the death anniversary of national hero Apolinario dela Cruz, also known as Hermano Puli.

Senate President Pro Tempore Panfilo Lacson said that he is considering stepping down as the chairman of the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee.

In a statement sent to reporters on Sunday, October 5, Lacson explained that he is contemplating resigning from the committee due to expressions of disappointment from some colleagues regarding its handling of the investigation into alleged anomalous flood control projects.

“Since all chairpersons of the Senate committees are elected by our peers, I serve at the pleasure of my colleagues, particularly the members of the majority,’ Lacson’s statement read.

‘Rightly or wrongly, when quite a number of them have expressed disappointment over how I’m handling the flood control project anomalies, I thought it’s time for me to step aside in favor of another member who they think can handle the committee better,” he added.

In a DZBB interview, Lacson said he is preparing his resignation letter and may “formally manifest it in plenary when the Senate resumes its session.”

On October 4, Lacson announced that the Blue Ribbon Committee hearing on the alleged anomalous flood control projects had been canceled.

Lacson said he had initially scheduled a hearing for Wednesday, October 8, at the request of Sen. JV Ejercito, specifically to summon former Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) Mimaropa regional director Gerald Pacanan.

Pacanan was one of ten DPWH officials who had received a show-cause order from DPWH Secretary Vince Dizon regarding their alleged lavish lifestyles and involvement in substandard projects.

However, due to the unavailability of necessary documents and conflicts with other hearings, Lacson said they canceled the probe until further notice.

He explained that, to maximize the discussions, he had checked with the Department of Justice regarding the availability of the supposed “tell-all” affidavits of the Discaya couple.

Furthermore, he contacted the Office of the Executive Judge of the Manila Regional Trial Court to verify whether they had concluded their investigation into possible violations involving the notarized document concerning Orly Guteza, former security consultant Rep. Zaldy Co (Ako Bicol Partylist), and Lawyer Petchie Espera.