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President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has directed the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) to release P150 million from the Local Government Support Fund (LGSF) for the province of Cebu, in addition to P74 million allocated for the municipalities of San Remigio, Medellin, and Bogo City, which were severely affected by the 6.9-magnitude earthquake that struck on September 30.

The President stated that the funds are part of an ‘initial release,’ noting that a full assessment is still being conducted to determine the additional financial support needed in the province’s recovery.

On top of the DBM allocation, the Office of the President will provide P50 million in direct aid. Of this amount, P20 million each will go to Bogo City, San Remigio, and Sogod, while Daanbantayan, Madridejos, and Tabuelan will receive P10 million each.

Marcos visited Bogo City on Thursday to inspect the extent of the destruction and to assure quake-hit communities of immediate government support.

The September 30 earthquake, which registered a magnitude of 6.9, left at least 72 people dead and injured dozens more. The tremor also caused widespread damage to homes, schools, churches, and public infrastructure across northern Cebu.

It was strongly felt in neighboring provinces, including Negros Oriental, Bohol, and Leyte, and prompted thousands of residents to rush out of homes and establishments.

Authorities continue to conduct rescue and relief operations while structural assessments are being carried out to ensure public safety.

Hundreds of people got a taste of 16 pasta dishes during a massive ‘pasta party’ that opened this year’s Hotel, Restaurant, and Tourism (HRT) Month, showcasing the culinary flair of the summer capital.

Crowds flocked to SM City Baguio on Thursday, where top chefs and culinary students served portions from 2,400 kilos of pasta prepared in 16 oversized triangular trays – each measuring 12 feet by 4 feet and six inches deep.

The recipes drew from a variety of local and international flavors, featuring ingredients such as hamonado, longganiza, spicy sardines, tuna, pesto, garlic, olive oil, and fresh herbs.

Curated by local culinary figures, including Baguio Country Club chef Arthur Nucada, the pasta feast aimed to highlight Baguio and Cordillera-inspired tastes. Organizers said the servings were designed to feed up to 15,000 people.

Last year’s HRT Month opened with a similar showcase, featuring a collection of rice recipes presented as a giant fried rice festival at the same venue.

HRT Month started as the Hotel and Restaurant Association of Baguio’s (HRAB) annual HRT Weekend, organized to promote the city as a culinary and tourism hub while also highlighting the skills of its food industry and culinary schools.

This year’s event was made possible through the support of Baguio Country Club, sausage maker MV Alabanza, Hill Station, and eight local hotels, including El Cielito Hotel, Lafayette Suites, and Soto Grande Hotel.

For decades, HRAB has also been behind the city’s biggest tourism draw – the annual Panagbenga or Baguio Flower Festival.

Tropical Storm Paolo (international name: Matmo) intensified over the Philippine Sea, prompting the weather bureau to raise Tropical Cyclone Wind Signal (TCWS) No. 2 over parts of Luzon on Thursday, Oct. 2.

In its 11 a.m. update, the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa) said areas under TCWS are as follows:

TCWS No. 2

The southeastern portion of Isabela (San Mariano, Dinapigue, San Guillermo, Echague, Jones, San Agustin, Benito Soliven, Angadanan, City of Cauayan, Naguilian)

The northern portion of Quirino (Maddela)

The northern portion of Aurora (Dilasag, Casiguran, Dinalungan)

Areas under Signal No. 2 have a 24-hour lead time before experiencing Paolo’s effects. Winds in this category pose a minor to moderate threat to life and property.

TCWS No. 1

Mainland Cagayan

Isabela

Quirino

Nueva Vizcaya

Apayao

Abra

Kalinga

Mountain Province

Ifugao

Benguet

Ilocos Norte

Ilocos Sur

La Union

Pangasinan

The northern portion of Zambales (Palauig, Masinloc, Candelaria, Santa Cruz)

Tarlac

Nueva Ecija

Aurora

The northern portion of Bulacan (Doña Remedios Trinidad, San Miguel, San Ildefonso)

The northern portion of Pampanga (Magalang, Arayat, Candaba, Mabalacat City)

The northern portion of Quezon (General Nakar), including Polillo Islands

The northern portion of Catanduanes (Pandan, Bagamanoc, Panganiban, Viga)

The warning lead time for Signal No. 1 is 36 hours, with winds in this category posing minimal to minor threat to life and property.

Pagasa said Paolo was located 575 kilometers east of Infanta, Quezon.

The storm was packing maximum sustained winds of 75 kilometers per hour (kph) near the center, with gusts of up to 90 kph, and was moving west-northwest at 20 kph.

It is expected to make landfall over Isabela or northern Aurora by Friday morning, Oct. 3, before crossing Northern Luzon and emerging over the West Philippine Sea.

The storm is forecast to exit the Philippine Area of Responsibility by Saturday morning, Oct. 4

Tropical Cyclone Wind Signal (TCWS) no. 2 was issued over more areas in northern Luzon as Tropical Storm Paolo moves closer to the Philippine landmass on Thursday, said the state weather bureau.

The Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical, and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa) said at 7 p.m. bulletin, TS Paolo was last located around 370 kilometers east of Baler Aurora, moving 20 kilometers per hour (kph) west-northwestward, Pagasa reported.

According to Pagasa, the cyclone has maximum sustained winds of 85 kph, and gusts of up to 105 kph.

TCWS no. 2 was issued over the following areas in the state weather bureau’s 7 p.m. advisory:

Southern portion of mainland Cagayan (Peñablanca, Tuguegarao City, Enrile, Solana, Iguig, Tuao, Piat)

Isabela

northern portion of Quirino (Maddela, Aglipay, Cabarroguis, Saguday, Diffun)

northern portion of Nueva Vizcaya (Diadi, Bagabag, Quezon, Solano, Villaverde, Ambaguio, Bayombong, Kasibu)

southern portion of Apayao (Conner)

Abra

Kalinga

Mountain Province

Ifugao

northern portion of Benguet (Mankayan, Bakun, Buguias)

central and southern portions of Ilocos Sur (Gregorio del Pilar, San Esteban, Banayoyo, Cervantes, Burgos, City of Candon, Santa Lucia, Santiago, Lidlidda, Nagbukel, Suyo, Sigay, Galimuyod, Quirino, San Emilio, Alilem, Sugpon, Tagudin, Santa Cruz, Santa Maria, Narvacan, Salcedo)

northern portion of Aurora (Dilasag, Casiguran, Dinalungan)

Meanwhile, TCWS no. 1 was hoisted in the areas listed below:

the rest of mainland Cagayan, including the Babuyan Islands

the rest of Quirino

the rest of Nueva Vizcaya

the rest of Apayao

the rest of Benguet,

Ilocos Norte

the rest of Ilocos Sur

La Union

Pangasinan

northern portion of Zambales (Palauig, Masinloc, Candelaria, Santa Cruz)

Tarlac

Nueva Ecija

the rest of Aurora

northern portion of Bulacan (Doña Remedios Trinidad, San Miguel, San Ildefonso, Norzagaray, San Rafael)

northern portion of Pampanga (Magalang, Arayat, Candaba, Mabalacat City)

northern portion of Quezon (General Nakar, Infanta) including Polillo Islands

Camarines Norte

northern portion of Camarines Sur (Siruma, Tinambac, Lagonoy, Garchitorena, Caramoan, Goa, San Jose, Presentacion)

Catanduanes

The cyclone is expected to make landfall in Ifugao or in Aurora on Friday.

Boxes of alleged smuggled cigarettes valued at P9.5 million were confiscated by authorities in Maguindanao del Norte, the Philippine National Police (PNP) said.

The products were seized after the Datu Odin Sinsuat municipal police flagged a white closed van and a gas tanker at a checkpoint in Barangay Poblacion early Thursday morning, the PNP detailed in a statement.

‘The operation led to the confiscation of 266 boxes of smuggled cigarettes. marked ‘for export only.’ It also resulted in the arrest of two male suspects, aged 22 and 26, who attempted to transport the contraband,’ the police said.

The PNP did not identify the two suspects arrested.

However, it did state that the suspects were taken into custody by the municipal police to face charges for violating Republic Act No. 10863, also known as the Customs Modernization and Tariff Act.

A network of business process outsourcing (BPO) employees has filed a formal complaint against 30 call center firms based in Cebu province for violating labor and occupational safety laws during the 6.9-magnitude earthquake on Sept. 30.

BPO Industry Employees Network (BIEN) – Cebu lodged the complaint with the Department of Labor and Employment – Region 7 (DOLE – RO7) on Thursday.

‘BIEN-Cebu rejects this ‘business-as-usual’ approach of BPO companies and government neglect during this time of crisis. We call on all BPO workers to unite and fight back against this blatant disregard of workers’ rights,’ the group’s spokesperson John Kyle Enero said in a statement.

According to the group, they had received more than a hundred reports of agents being forced to report to work, despite their pleas to focus on their safety and their families in just two days.

Among these were agents who were allegedly forced back onto the production floor, and emergency exits were blocked in one company.

Another reported that they were offered double pay to continue working after the earthquake, disregarding safety concerns.

In another company, employees were ordered to resume work immediately after the quake, with some returning as early as 30 minutes post-event, without any safety memorandum or clearance.

The group received multiple incidents of employees insisting on not reporting to work were met with notices to explain, administrative sanctions, loss of attendance incentives and benefits, among many retaliatory actions.

There were also reports of verbal threats, and concerns were downplayed, treating the crisis as ‘business as usual.’

Employees who went home after the Sept. 30 earthquake were marked as unpaid, lost attendance bonuses, and were suspended from work. Workers who did not return the following day were marked as unauthorized absences.

Some employees were even forced to sign memos prohibiting them from speaking about the situation on social media.

The group urged DOLE to investigate the allegations and hold negligent employers accountable under Republic Act No. 11058, or the Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) Standards law, and related labor issuances.

When sought for comment, Labor and Employment Secretary Bienvenido Laguesma told the Inquirer that the agency is already investigating the case.

He said that the filing of complaint ‘is very welcome to enable the DOLE to establish the guilt and liability of employers being complained of.’

He added that, without preempting the outcome of the investigation, employers must not force their workers to report to work if the latter feel that their workplace is unsafe.

‘The company cannot just impose disciplinary action if the refusal or non- reporting is based on justifiable ground, i.e fear for their safety or health concerns,’ Laguesma said in a Viber message.

BIEN-Cebu also criticized the government for not declaring imminent danger in workplaces in the province, and instead passed the decision of how to handle the emergency situation to private companies.

‘This decision not only affects BPO workers at large, but the thousands of families and loved ones,’ Enero said.

‘If the government can suspend classes due to the need to inspect school buildings, they should also rightfully require BPO companies and their building administrators to provide a detailed inspection and safety report to ensure that resumption of work does not threaten worker safety,’ he added.

Meanwhile, Cebu City Vice Mayor Tommy Osmeña also urged employees who experienced the same workplace abuse to submit a report to him, by texting him at 09173299999 and providing all the details of the incident.

He assured complainants they should not fear retribution from their employers, as he would be the only one to read their text messages.

‘I need to be sure that this is true, but if this is true, we will do more than just file a complaint at DOLE,’ he said in his official Facebook account.

‘I will personally contact every known local and overseas client that the company has to tell them what kind of company they hired. We will hit them where it hurts,’ he added.

A new coalition of communities and environmental groups has vowed to block the construction of a ?26-billion waste-to-energy (WTE) incinerator project in Smokey Mountain, Tondo, warning that it will worsen pollution, displacement, and corruption.

On September 30, hundreds of residents, including waste pickers and urban poor families facing eviction, gathered for the Day of Action Against Incineration to launch the Manila Against Incinerator Alliance (MAIA).

The group is opposing a priority project of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and Manila Mayor Isko Moreno that aims to burn garbage to produce energy while also addressing clogged drainage and flooding.

Communities push back

MAIA members warned that the project, to be built in Barangay 128, Smokey Mountain, will harm residents instead of solving Manila’s long-standing waste and flooding problems.

‘It is easy to put the blame on our litter as the source of flooding, but behind this narrative is the issue of persistent neglect of the need for comprehensive and transformative solutions to flooding and waste problems and the consistent rejection of hearing the pleas of marginalized communities,’ said Niña Fegi, coordinator of Panatang Luntian.

Urban poor organizations Samahan ng Magkakapitbahay sa Upper Smokey Mountain – KADAMAY, Samahan Para sa Maayos na Tahanan at Hanapbuhay (SMTH), and Samahan ng Nagkakaisa at Nagdadamayang Marala Organization (NANAMOR) led the protest against what they called forcible evictions tied to the project.

Incineration is ‘not renewable’

Former Bayan Muna lawmaker Ferdie Gaite, now president of the government employees’ group COURAGE, said that while WTE is being closed down in Europe, it is being pushed aggressively in the Philippines.

He stressed that municipal waste is not renewable energy, yet WTE incineration continues to be falsely categorized as biomass energy. Such projects, Gaite added, move forward because proponents disregard legal bans on incineration and avoid genuine consultation processes.

Labor leader Leody de Guzman criticized the project’s priorities, arguing that funds should have gone to housing for the urban poor in Smokey Mountain.

‘They are not only stealing money from us, but they are also stealing clean air away from us,’ he said, warning that Manila risked becoming a dumping ground for imported waste.

Funding under scrutiny

The $500-million project is partly financed by a $415.2-million loan from the World Bank and the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank, with a $84.8-million counterpart from the national budget.

According to the Global Alliance for Incinerator Alternatives (GAIA), an international network focused on environmental justice, the World Bank and the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank continued to support the flood-control portion of the project despite earlier findings of corruption, land disputes, and inadequate assessments.

However, both institutions dropped the WTE component in 2024.

Still, GAIA noted that Malacañang pressed forward with the incinerator, tapping PhilECo, Kandenevia, and businessman Ramon Ang as potential investors.

Mayang Azurin, deputy director for campaigns of GAIA Asia Pacific, said the project ‘is moving so fast in a time with extraordinary exposés on corruption in infrastructure projects and breaches in environmental and climate thresholds.’

‘It is obvious that powerful elites of politicians, companies, and their international financial institutions, as their backers, can ignore everything to benefit from this WTE incineration project,’ Azurin added.

Ecowaste Coalition’s Kweyn Camillon Tagaduar, MAIA co-convenor, said corruption was diverting public funds from the people’s needs. ‘The people of Manila have greater force than the power of a few politicians and companies,’ she declared, as the crowd echoed her call to block the project.

MAIA urged the public to support its petition against the incinerator.

The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) appealed before the Senate panel on trade, commerce, and entrepreneurship for a boost in its budget for 2026.

At a briefing in the Senate on Thursday, DTI Assistant Secretary Kristian Ablan asked Sen. Rodante Marcoleta, who was presiding over the meeting at that time, to help the agency achieve an increase in its funding for next year.

‘May we solicit the assistance of the chair to help us have a higher budget for 2026? The DTI’s budget is one of the lowest budgets for a department-level office. For DTI Osec, our budget is just P6.9 billion together with our attached agencies, that goes to less than P10 billion. Together with our attached Government-Owned or Controlled Corporations (GOCCs), that’s just up to P12 billion,’ said Ablan.

According to him, the DTI initially requested a budget of ‘less than P20 billion,’ but was only given ‘about half’ of the amount.

‘So we would seek the assistance of the good chairman to help us. If funds will be realigned, may we get a little boost for some of our programs, particularly on our trade fairs as well as enforcing our fair trade laws?’ said Ablan.

Marcoleta, for his part, said the Development Budget Coordination Committee might have thought that the DTI’s GOCCs are earning well, but Ablan explained that the proceeds of the GOCCs do not revert to DTI.

‘Unfortunately, a big chunk goes to the national treasury,’ said Ablan.

Bangsamoro Chief Minister Abdulraof Macacua said on Wednesday he would look into the beheading of another Teduray leader in Datu Hoffer town of Maguindanao del Sur Tuesday night.

‘I will talk to the security sector first because I still don’t have the accurate information, but BARMM will (investigate) because we don’t want this thing to happen to our IP brothers,’ Macacua said when asked along the sidelines of the Mindanao Development Forum about the latest killing of non-Moro IPs in BARMM.

Nel Lupos, 60, a former village councilor of Barangay Mantao and a resident of Limpongo village, Datu Hoffer town of Maguindanao del Sur, was killed at around 6 p.m. on Tuesday, said Timuay Leticio Datuwata, head of the Timuay Justice and Governance, the indigenous political structure of the Teduray-Lambangian tribe.

‘He was alone inside his nipa hut in his farmland when several armed men forcibly entered and brutally killed him by beheading him,’ Datuwata said.

Lupos was the 102nd non-Moro IP leader killed in BARMM because of issues related to their ancestral land, according to Datuwata.

The brutal killing came after the government failed to arrest the perpetrators of the previous killings, including that of Baywan Angan, whose wife personally knew the identity of the killers but was also killed days after her husband’s murder.

Datuwata said that Angan’s killers, who already had pending warrants of arrest, were still allowed to roam free.

The killings also continued to happen despite the increased deployment of security personnel in the area after Teduray leaders presented their case before a series of hearings conducted by the congressional committee on indigenous peoples early this year, Datuwata added.

According to Datuwata, Lupos left his house in Mantao village and settled in Limpongo following the killing of Angan, also a village councilor, in Sitio Kukor on December 7 last year.

Lupos was the second non-Moro IP leader who became a victim of beheading in Maguindanao del Sur this year.

In February this year, the decomposing body of Fernando Promboy, 65, an elder of the Teduray-Lambangian tribe, was found beheaded days after he was reported missing in Datu Hoffer town.

Promboy and his family were forced to leave their home and settle in Datu Hofer’s Limpongo village in December 2024, also after the killing of Angan.

On April 29, 2023, or almost two years before Promboy was killed, Promboy’s cousin, Juanito, the IP mandatory representative in the Tuayan Mother barangay council, was killed, also due to a land dispute.

‘This unending violence targets tribesmen who refuse to give up their ancestral lands. When you resist, they kill you,’ Datuwata said, adding the same group of gunmen involved in previous attacks could be responsible.

Datuwata said he would no longer issue formal condemnations because of the government’s failure to do something to stop the attacks.

‘The more I speak out, the worse the killings become,’ he said. ‘We’re tired of this cycle of violence against us, but still, there’s no direct action from the government,’ he said.

San Simon, Pampanga Mayor Abundio ‘JP’ Punsalan Jr. pleaded not guilty to graft and extortion charges during his arraignment on Wednesday before the Sandiganbayan’s Seventh Division.

He appeared in court nearly two months after he was entrapped by authorities at a restaurant in Clark Freeport while allegedly receiving a bag containing around P30 million in cash.

The entrapment, which was conducted by the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) intelligence division on Aug. 5, led to Punsalan’s arrest and the disarming of his six bodyguards.

A Sandiganbayan order dated Sept. 9 showed that Punsalan surrendered and posted a cash bond of P90,000 for the case filed against him. He is charged with violating Republic Act No. 3019 or the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act, and Article 293 of the Revised Penal Code (robbery by means of extortion).

Money demand, threat

According to the complaint filed by RealSteel Corp., Punsalan demanded P80 million in exchange for not overturning Municipal Ordinance No. 24-0025, which granted tax incentives to the San Simon-based company, which manufactures steel bars.

The demand was allegedly accompanied by threats that Real Steel’s incentives would be revoked if payment was not made.

The company also filed an urgent motion before the Office of the Ombudsman for Punsalan’s suspension in connection with an administrative case for grave misconduct and serious dishonesty. The motion remains pending.

RealSteel likewise lodged a separate administrative case against the mayor before the Pampanga provincial board.

Punsalan, however, returned to work early last month after a Muntinlupa court granted the petition for habeas corpus filed by his lawyer and ordered the NBI to release him, along with his bodyguards.

According to the court, the NBI failed to provide a sufficient legal basis that would allow it to maintain custody of the mayor and his companions beyond 36 hours.

‘Consequently, the lapse of the mandatory 36-hour period without the filing of charges in court or the issuance of a judicial order renders their continued confinement unlawful,’ the court said.