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While initial relief efforts have largely focused on Bogo City following the magnitude 6.9 earthquake that struck northern Cebu last September 30, latest data from the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council revealed Daanbantayan as the most severely-affected municipality in terms of population, housing damage, and humanitarian needs.

The latest situational report shows that Daanbantayan has an affected population of 90,498 individuals, slightly higher than Bogo’s 90,187.

Of these, 29,859 residents in Daanbantayan require immediate assistance, primarily food, compared to 28,001 in Bogo, where families also need sleeping kits, tents, and financial support.

Despite Bogo being the epicenter of the earthquake, Daanbantayan recorded more extensive housing damage, with 363 homes totally destroyed and 13,241 damaged.

Bogo City, in comparison, reported 158 totally destroyed homes and 2,711 partially damaged.

Other northern Cebu municipalities also suffered significant losses.

Medellin reported 371 homes totally destroyed and 4,626 partially damaged, while San Remigio recorded 2,802 totally destroyed homes and 9,842 partially.

Borbon listed 68 homes totally destroyed and 1,289 partially, and Madridejos, though not included in the housing damage breakdown, has 14,108 individuals needing food assistance.

Sta. Fe reported one home totally destroyed and 219 partially, Tabuelan had one totally destroyed and 13 partially, and Sogod listed 25 homes totally destroyed and 61 partially.

Even Tuburan and Cebu City were not spared, with Tuburan reporting two homes totally destroyed and 77 partially, and Cebu City listing one totally destroyed and two partially damaged.

The earthquake affected a total of 547,394 individuals across 205 barangays in Region 7, with 18,912 people displaced and staying outside evacuation centers.

The death toll stands at 72, with 559 injured and no missing persons reported.

A total of 35,925 houses were damaged across the region, 3,802 of which were totally destroyed. Infrastructure damage is also extensive, with hundreds of 733 public structures affected and thousands of classrooms along with some bridges, and government facilities.

The Daanbantayan public market bridge has been closed to all vehicles due to widening cracks caused by continuous aftershocks. Local authorities have designated alternative routes through Barangay Malingin, Sitio Dar, and Sitio Libertad to ensure public safety.

Yesterday, the Department of Social Welfare and Development, in partnership with Lamac Multi-Purpose Cooperative, began distributing food packages under the Walang Gutom 2027: Food Stamp Program.

A total of 704 beneficiaries in Daanbantayan –identified as the poorest among the poor and not enrolled in other social programs– received monthly food allocations worth P3,000 via Electronic Benefit Transfer cards. The packages included rice, bread, fruits, vegetables, spices, eggs, cooking oil, pork, chicken, and fish.

Essential services

Meanwhile, Vivant Corp. through Vivant Foundation has mobilized its subsidiaries and partners to ensure communities continue to have access to essential services while providing urgent relief to affected communities.

Despite being among the areas hardest hit by the quake, Bantayan Island remained powered as Isla Norte Power Corp. (INPC), a Vivant Energy subsidiary, continued its operations during this critical time. Meridian Power Inc. (MPI) also operated without pause, running 24/7 to support the Visayas grid even as the Department of Energy (DOE) issued a yellow alert following the quake-induced loss of 1,444 MW from tripped power plants.

Vivant also extended its efforts to address water challenges. Vivant Water deployed a mobile water treatment system capable of producing up to 150,000 liters of potable water daily, in partnership with Watermatic Phils. and Treasure Island Industrial Corp. The system sources water from rivers or deep wells, filters water from source, and delivers the treated supply to water tanks of Bogo and Medellin for distribution to affected residents.

The initiative comes as several treatment stations and pipelines were damaged by the earthquake, leaving households dependent on unstable water sources and costly refilling stations.

Vivant Water is also sending tankers filled with water from its Isla Mactan Desal Plant to towns and municipalities in the northern part of Cebu.

On top of providing continuous power and safe drinking water, Vivant Foundation with support from Peace and Equity Foundation has mobilized relief operations in coordination with local government units and partner organizations, working alongside members of Task Force Linog –a multi-sectoral initiative that brings together schools, faith-based groups, NGOs, and media to provide coordinated assistance.

Vivant reaffirmed its commitment to building energy and water resilience in the region as part of its mission to deliver essential services and stand with communities in times of crisis.

President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on Tuesday, October 7, appointed Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla as the new Ombudsman.

Remulla fills the seat vacated by former Ombudsman Samuel Martires, whose term expired on July 27, 2025.

The former Justice chief will now be responsible for investigating and prosecuting Philippine government officials accused of crimes, particularly graft and corruption.

Remulla was appointed secretary of the Department of Justice in July 2022. Before serving as justice chief, he represented the 7th District of Cavite in Congress.

He was also the top-paid government official in 2023, earning a net pay of P7.08 million, up from P5.28 million the previous year, when he ranked as the third-highest-paid cabinet official.

His inclusion in the shortlist was nearly derailed after Sen. Imee Marcos filed kidnapping and arbitrary detention complaints against him with the same office Remulla was appointed to lead.

However, he was cleared of the charges last month and was included in the shortlist by the Judicial and Bar Council on October 7.

The Senate will move to eliminate all unprogrammed funds from the 2026 national budget, Senate President Vicente Sotto III said yesterday, calling them a source of questionable insertions that have fueled recent controversies in government spending.

‘We will, as much as possible and, if possible, 100 percent no unprogrammed funds,’ Sotto told reporters, saying he had already discussed the matter with Senate finance committee chair Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian.

‘When we discuss the budget finally on second reading before third reading, there should be no unprogrammed funds. I-program natin kung anong kailangan… Para maliwanag, kitang-kita,’ he said, stressing it should be programmed if needed for clarity and transparency.

Unprogrammed appropriations, which can only be tapped if the government collects excess revenues or secures additional foreign-assisted loans, have long served as standby funds for extra projects.

But they came under scrutiny after lawmakers’ insertions pushed the 2025 unprogrammed funds to P531.7 billion before President Marcos vetoed P168.24 billion from the total.

Sotto said such last-minute amendments or additions – often done after second reading or during bicameral conferences – breed what he described as ‘insertions’ that evade proper scrutiny.

‘That’s what we shouldn’t tolerate. No matter how beautiful the insertion, what’s important is that you do it in plenary. Who is proposing it, what is being proposed and where it will be sourced should be clear,’ Sotto said.

He also welcomed the decision not to certify the budget bill as urgent this year, saying it would give lawmakers more time to review proposed appropriations before final approval.

‘Better if not approved the same day. You have three days to go over and review what you approved on second reading before you vote on the third reading,’ he said.

Gatchalian earlier said that removing unprogrammed funds from the 2026 national budget would help ensure ‘immediate funding’ for projects and reduce the country’s fiscal deficit.

He said only foreign-assisted components of unprogrammed appropriations – those backed by official loans – should be retained, while the rest should be folded into the programmed budget for greater transparency.

Overseas Filipino workers on death row in different countries decreased to 25 following reforms in Malaysia, according to the Department of Migrant Workers.

DMW Secretary Hans Leo Cacdac said death penalty cases involving OFWs worldwide have gone down from around 50 to 60 earlier this year.

The Philippine embassy in Kuala Lumpur had sought leniency for Filipinos amid Malaysia’s new sentencing rules, he noted.

‘We’re working very hard. This is the behind-the-scenes work not seen by the public, in coordination with the Department of Foreign Affairs and Office of the President. (Marcos) is very concerned with death row cases,’ Cacdac told the Senate during a budget hearing yesterday.

Efforts continue to ‘hold the executions at bay’ and secure commutations or acquittals, he added.

The Malaysian government repealed its mandatory death penalty in 2023, triggering a significant decline in its imposition, according to Amnesty International.

Cacdac said the DMW is handling 1,106 active and pending cases involving OFWs, most of which are in the Middle East.

Around 116 Filipino workers have been convicted of various crimes overseas.

Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian expressed support for increasing legal aid funding for OFWs, noting that the ratio of lawyers to OFWs stood at roughly one to 90,000.

Despite the DMW’s request of P2.4 billion for its legal assistance and action fund, Cacdac said only P1.2 billion was allotted.

The DMW is hoping to increase the number of retained law firms by 50 percent and in-house lawyers by 100 percent next year.

The Philippines’ headline inflation rate saw a slight acceleration in September 2025, rising to 1.7%, according to the latest data released by the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA).

This marks a sharp decline from August’s 1.5% and September 2024’s 1.9% rates, falling within the central bank’s projected range of 1.5% to 2.3%.

The PSA reported that the uptrend in overall inflation was primarily driven by the annual increase in the transport index, which rebounded to 1.0% in September after recording a 0.3% annual decline in August.

Additionally, the food and non-alcoholic beverages index saw an increment, moving from 0.9% to 1.0% during the month.

Prices for restaurants and accommodation services also showed an accelerated annual increase, rising to 2.4% in September from the 2.3% rate observed in August 2025.

Core inflation. While the headline rate accelerated, core inflation, which excludes volatile food and energy items, slowed down to 2.6% in September 2025, falling from 2.7% in August 2025.

Food inflation. The PSA noted that food inflation at the national level recorded a faster hike of 0.8% in September, coming from 0.6% in the previous month. It is, however, lower than the 1.4% recorded in September 2024.

The acceleration in food prices was primarily driven by a faster year-on-year increase in vegetables, tubers, plantains, cooking bananas, and pulses, which soared to 19.4% from 10.0% in August.

A slower annual decline in corn, 4.5% from 11.8%, also contributed, alongside faster annual hikes in oils and fats (9.3%) and a slower decrease in rice prices, with 16.9% from 17% last month.

In a statement, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) noted that despite inflation expectations remaining well-anchored, it cautioned that potential supply-side pressures could arise from higher rice tariffs and rising global food prices.

Meanwhile, it also noted that the anticipated stability in global oil production-and the resulting lower oil prices-could help counterbalance the impact of higher electricity rates.

‘The Monetary Board observed that domestic demand has held firm. However, the impact of US policies on global trade and investment continues to weigh on global economic activity. This could temper the outlook for the Philippine economy,’ the BSP said.

On August 28, the BSP trimmed its interest rates by another 25 basis points, bringing the target repurchase rate to 5%.

Analysts anticipate that the BSP will maintain its key policy rate at 5.0% during its upcoming meeting on October 9, adopting a cautious stance due to lingering food price and currency risks.

The Philippine Stock Exchange Inc. (PSE) has cleared Maynilad Water Services Inc.’s planned initial public offering (IPO) this month, which has attracted more international cornerstone investors.

Maynilad has submitted its preliminary prospectus for its upcoming IPO with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the PSE, paving the way for the start of its roadshow to institutional investors in the coming days.

The PSE announced yesterday that it has approved Maynilad’s IPO of up to 2.29 billion common shares at an offer price of up to P20 per share.

The IPO consists of up to 1.66 billion primary common shares to be issued and offered to the public, up to 24.9 million primary common shares to be allocated and offered to First Pacific Co. Ltd., overallotment option shares of up to 249.05 million primary common shares as well as upsize option shares of up to 354.7 million secondary common shares to be offered by Maynilad Water Holding Co. Inc.

With the International Finance Corp. (IFC) and the Asian Development Bank (ADB) serving as lead cornerstone investors, Maynilad’s latest preliminary prospectus showed six other international cornerstone investors, including the United Kingdom’s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, acting through its Mobilising Capital through Listed Products (MOBILIST).

The participation of MOBILIST as a cornerstone investor in the offer is subject to the finally determined offer price not exceeding P15 per common share.

Also participating in the offer are abrdn Malaysia Sdn. Bhd., a fund management company incorporated under the laws of Malaysia providing asset management services; Maven Investment Partners Ltd., a proprietary trading firm incorporated under the laws of England and Wales; the Maybank Group’s fund management arm Maybank Asset Management Singapore Pte. Ltd.; global asset management firm Robeco Switzerland Ltd. and QRT Master Fund-Torus Fund SP.

The IFC and the ADB are looking to invest up to $245 million in Maynilad as cornerstone investors for its upcoming P45.77-billion IPO.

IFC has agreed to participate as a cornerstone investor in the offer, with an investment size of up to $100 million in peso equivalent, at a subscription price of up to P15 per offer share, subject to certain closing conditions and customary requirements.

Meanwhile, the ADB is currently considering participating as a cornerstone investor in the offer, with a potential investment size of up to $145 million in peso equivalent, at a subscription price of up to P15 per offer share.

Joining as domestic cornerstone investors are BDO Capital and Investment Corp., BPI Asset Management and Trust Corp., Metropolitan Bank and Trust Co. and Security Bank Corp-Trust and Asset Management Group.

The offer period for Maynilad’s IPO is scheduled from Oct. 23 to 29, with Maynilad targeting a listing date of Nov. 7.

Maynilad said the submission of its preliminary prospectus forms part of the company’s ongoing compliance with regulatory requirements in connection with the proposed IPO.

The Department of Science and Technology (DOST) has launched the development of an electric passenger ferry, which aims to provide a cleaner and more efficient transport option for Metro Manila commuters.

Led by project head Dr. Lew Andrew Tria, the initiative received P54.3 million in funding under the DOST’s Grants-in-Aid program.

The project is being implemented in collaboration with the Maritime Industry Authority, Metropolitan Manila Development Authority, Partnership in Environmental Management for the Seas of East Asia and the Society of Naval Architects and Marine Engineers Inc.

The e-ferry is designed to help ease road congestion, reduce the transport sector’s fuel dependence and cut pollution in Pasig River and other waterways.

The system also aims to spur economic activity by improving mobility for commuters, businesses and tourists along key routes.

According to the DOST’s Philippine Council for Industry, Energy and Emerging Technology Research and Development, the ferry will operate along the Pasig River, connecting Pasig, Makati, Mandaluyong and Manila, with possible extensions to Marikina, Taguig and towns surrounding Laguna de Bay.

The e-ferry features an aluminum catamaran hull with a 40-passenger capacity and a crew of three.

DOST officials said the project supports the government’s goal of promoting sustainable urban mobility and reducing greenhouse gas emissions from public transportation.

In an urgent measure to prevent Basilan from plunging into darkness, government officials approved yesterday measures to address the persistent energy shortage and stop the local utility’s P4.3-billion debt from ballooning.

Basilan Gov. Mujiv Hataman, Energy Secretary Sharon Garin, National Power Corp. president Jericho Nograles and National Electrification Administration administrator Antonio Almeda discussed the looming energy crisis and multibillion-peso debt of the Basilan Electric Cooperative (Baselco) to the National Power Corp. (Napocor).

Hataman proposed a revised payment scheme between Baselco and Napocor and urged town mayors to support the power firm’s disconnection efforts against delinquent customers.

He underscored the critical power situation in the province with Baselco’s debt reaching P4.3 billion.

The power agencies highlighted the problem of power pilferage, noting that out of 600,000 residents, only 45,000 have operational meters – a disparity that contributes significantly to system losses and electricity pilferage.

Napocor pledged an initial P200 million to rehabilitate the electric cooperative’s infrastructure, part of a larger P600-million commitment.

Australian professional rugby league football club the Brisbane Broncos won its seventh National Rugby League (NRL) title, its first in 19 years, thanks in part to contributions to star Filipino-Australian prop Payne Haas.

Payne was included in this NRL season’s Dally M Team of the Year and Players’ Dream Team, the latter voted by fellow players, and top of four weekly awards from the NRL Fantasy League.

But amid the push for rugby glory, the former Philippine U-16 player has also been putting a lot of effort into finding ways to secure the release of his father Gregor.

The senior Haas was arrested last year in Cebu following an Interpol red notice of due to a criminal case that was filed against him in Indonesia.

Indonesia’s national narcotics board also issued an arrest warrant against Gregor in January that year due to drug smuggling, with Indonesian authorities claiming Gregor is linked to the Mexico-based Sinaloa drug cartel – one of the world’s largest drug trafficking organizations.

Gregor denies the allegation he shipped five kilograms of methamphetamine from Mexico. If he were put on trial in Indonesia and found guilty, the crime is sufficient for the death penalty.

The older Haas is still detained at the Bureau of Immigration Bicutan Detention Center in Taguig’s Bagong Diwa and Payne’s been looking for different avenues to secure his freedom.

According to the Sydney Morning Herald, Payne has met with the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade numerous times but to no avail.

Payne – who is also of Swiss and Samoan descent, which is why he represents the latter internationally – has even expressed concern for his father’s physical and mental condition in detention, seeking help from local contacts to bring his father home.

“I can’t control what my dad does,” Payne said in a previous interview. “That doesn’t make me less of a man because of what my dad does. That’s the life he chose. I grew up with my parents day to day and I know who they are as people.”

His mother Joan Taugua is incarcerated after a horrific December 2022 car crash in the Gold Coast that resulted in three fatalities. Earlier that July she was arrested for assaulting two casino security guards.

“They’ve made their mistakes, but I can’t control that. That’s their decisions and their life. But my parents also did a lot for me. It’s not all bad about my parents. They’ve made me who I am today,” Payne added.

Payne later also said he doesn’t want his kids to grow up in an environment like his own childhood. Payne has two children, Lalita and infant Luckee, with his partner Leilani Mohenoa and is the legal guardian of two younger siblings.

Last May the Court of Appeals blocked court order releasing Gregor from the custody of immigration authorities and remains detained.

The Embassy of Spain in Manila, through its Cultural and Education Office and the Instituto Cervantes, kicks off its month-long celebration of the Spanish National Day this October with a series of cultural events open to the public.

These events, ranging from movies and history to exhibits, design and engineering, are bound to pique anyone’s interest or passion.

Exhibits have long been a mainstay on the calendar of events. Not to be missed is the exhibition Mezcla: Interwoven Cultures and the Mantón de Manila, in collaboration with the Ayala Museum, which will run from Oct. 10, 2025, to Feb. 22, 2026.

The public may also view two ongoing exhibits: Four Centuries of Spanish Engineering Overseas, a permanent exposition displayed at the Centro de Turismo in Intramuros; and A Synergy of Ventures: The Post War Art Scene, hosted by the Ateneo Art Gallery in commemoration of Fernando Zobel’s centennial birth, running until February 2026.

Top Spanish industrial designer Héctor Serrano will take center stage at three leading Philippine universities: DLSU-St. Benilde (October 14), UP Diliman (October 15) and the University of Santo Tomas (October 16).

The world-renowned Spanish National Design Awardee for 2024 will present a conference entitled The Journey in Between, offering students and art and design enthusiasts a glimpse into the creative and design processes that have shaped his 25-year career. The public may also catch him at Manila FAME on October 17 and at the closing of Manila Design Week on October 18.

Spain’s preeminent expert on the Philippines, Lola Elizalde, will deliver three conferences: Permeable Borders: Interactions between Population Groups in 19th Century Philippines (October 14, Casa Azul, Intramuros); Modernizing an Old Empire? Controversies over the Introduction of a Reformist Policy in 19th Century Philippines (October 15, Centro de Turismo, Intramuros); and Leisurely Legacies: Social Histories of Recreation in the Spanish Philippines (October 16, UP Diliman).

October would not be complete without the Spanish film festival Pelikula, which will showcase movies from Spain and Latin America from October 10 to 16.

This year’s edition is made extra special with short films created by young Filipino filmmakers, including one in the Philippine creole Chabacano, highlighting the enduring Spanish influence on local languages.

As part of the celebration of the Spanish language alongside Pelikula 2025, the 7th edition of Jornadas de ELE Manila will take place on October 24 and 25 at UST.

Focused on lesson planning, content sequencing, and didactic resources, this annual event for Spanish teachers is organized by Ateneo de Manila, UP Diliman and UST, in collaboration with the Education Office of the Embassy of Spain and the Instituto Cervantes.