QUEZON CITY, April 1 –It is not the usual umbrella for the rain or scorching sunshine. It is the state weather bureau’s series of new tools and information products, for the name Payong PAGASA also include the USAID-supported simplified templates for public dissemination of PAGASA materials. A play on the […]

MANILA, April 1 — Brace for the oncoming bad weather. Typhoon “Maysak” is forecast to intensify into super typhoon as it enters the Philippine Area of Responsibility by Wednesday evening according to state weather bureau PAGASA. Earlier in the morning PAGASA forecasts at 4 a.m., the eye of Typhoon “Maysak” […]

The 1st quarter nationwide simultaneous earthquake drill last March 27 wherein Marikina city also participated was hailed as a success. Playing lead roles were partner agencies’ National Disaster Risk Reduction Management Council (NDRRMC) and the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (PHIVOLCS), also tasked to strengthen people’s preparedness for emergencies […]

LEGAZPI CITY, March 31 – Safety and security during the on-set of the Semana Santa of residents, vacationers and tourists in Bicol has been the concern of the Philippine National Police in the region (PRO5). Now, it has assured their safety by beefing up police forces and intensifying presence. PRO […]

MANILA, March 31 — Increase in the daily subsistence allowance of uniformed personnel from P90 to P150 per day takes effect retroactively on the 1st day of January 2015. This after President Benigno S. Aquino III signed the joint resolution with Congress for the purpose. In a press briefing at […]

MANILA, March 31 — Just in the nick of time when the mass exodus and movement of people for the Holy Week and vacation, Phoenix Petroleum Philippines and Seaoil Philippines Inc. hikes pump prices of gasoline by P1.10 per liter and diesel by 60 centavos per liter on Tuesday. Phoenix […]

MANILA, March 30 — Free at last. It could be one of the short statement of women who will directly benefit with the approval of the law abolishing the Revised Penal Code provision that makes it illegal for a woman to marry within certain conditions after the death of her […]

CEBU CITY, March 29 — Cebu Archbishop Jose Palma has reminded the faithful to pray during the Holy Week instead of going into outing or vacationing. “We have 52 weeks in a year, one is intended for the observance of the Holy Week. This period of the year is dedicated […]

MANILA, March 29 — OPPAP’s Teresita Quintos Deles on Friday expressed hope that the peace process will emerge stronger despite recent challenges it faced particularly after the tragic Mamasapano incident. “I admit we are bruised and feeling battered but we are here to proclaim we still stand firm (in pushing […]

Watch Pope Francis on Palm Sunday at the Vatican. The event is scheduled for Sunday, March 29, 2015. Palm Sunday signals the beginning of a week long solemn Catholic religious observation that eventually centers among others the Passion of Christ. Here sharing the live stream coverage of the event direct […]

MANILA, March 29 -– Chief peace negotiator of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) Mohaqer Iqbal on Friday said that the proposed Bangsamoro Basic Law is “battered but not yet out.” The statement was made by Iqbal at the book launching marking the first anniversary of the signing of the […]

MANILA, March 29 — The Philippine government is doing everything it can to save a Filipina who has been sentenced to die in Indonesia after she was caught transporting illegal narcotics into the country, Palace official said on Saturday. “Ginagawa naman po ng ating pamahalaan ang ating magagawa within the […]

The lower house nears passage of SIM card mandatory registration bill, a consolidation of 9 proposed measures, with stiff penalties for offenders. Members of the House committee on Information and Communications Technology, led by its chairman and Rizal Rep. Joel Roy Duavit, unanimously approved House Bill 5231, otherwise known as […]

MANILA, March 27 — The Philippines is funding identified big ticket priority and vital government projects sourced through loan grants and developmental assistance programs from Japan. Some of these include four Official Development Assistance (ODA) grant projects amounting to JPY 2.789 billion (approximately PhP 1.195 billion) and two yen loan […]

MANILA, March 27 — Some 5,000 women from Metro Manila and neighboring provinces availed of the sari-sari store training and access to resources program of the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority. The event was held at the SM Mall of Asia, which coincided with the end of the celebration […]

MANILA, March 26 — Supreme Court (SC) Associate Justice Diosdado M. Peralta announced on Thursday that a College of Law graduate of the San Beda College in Manila topped the 2014 Bar Examinations. Peralta, who chairs the 2014 Committee on Bar Examinations, said that out of 5,984 Bar examinees, 1,126 […]

CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY, March 26 –- One way to push for, and attain peace is recognizing the people that are key to its realization. This could be one reason why the Jesuit-run Xavier University here will confer an award during a “convocation ceremony” today at the university gym to […]

GOA, Camarines Sur, March 24 -– Members of the Philippine National Police-Bicol have started serving the arrest warrant issued by a regional trial court judge against 35 persons that include the mayor, vice mayor, councilors and village chiefs of this town. Judge Noel D. Paulite, presiding judge of RTC Branch […]

TIAONG, Quezon, March 24 — The briefing on the P13.1-billion Southern Luzon Expressway-Toll Road 4 (SLEX-TR4) extension project was held here with President Benigno S. Aquino, III in attendance. The 58-kilometer project will link Sto. Tomas, Batangas all the way to Lucena, Quezon. The four-lane project, which was mandated under […]

MANILA, March 23  -– Pilipinas Shell Petroleum Corp. (PSPC), Seaoil Philippines Inc (SPI), Petron Corporation, Chevron Philippines Inc. (CPI), Phoenix Petroleum Philippines and PTT Philippines will rollback pump prices of gasoline by Php 1.10 per liter on Tuesday. Eastern Petroleum will cut gasoline prices by P1.20 per liter. PSPC, SPI, […]

DAVAO CITY, March 23 — A former municipal councilor alleged to be a member of the international drug ring 14-K, together with his wife earlier caught of drugs valued at P400,000 are facing drug charges filed by the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA). Named respondents in the case for violation […]

MANILA, March 22 — Happy to learn that the Filipinos ranked the fifth happiest citizens in the world! according to the result of a global survey. The Philippines scored 80, based on a research conducted by the Gallup, a US-based performance-management consulting firm. Leading the survey is Paraguay which scored […]

KIDAPAWAN CITY, North Cotabato, Mar. 22 — As the dry spell affects more farmers here, the City Agriculture Office is asking for assistance from concerned agencies particularly the Department of Agriculture. Senior Agriculturist Nesmari Espejo said over P7 million worth of crops including rice, corn, banana and coffee have been […]

MANILA, March 21 — The Aquino government is taking the necessary steps to prepare for the effects of weather phenomenon El Niño in the country, a Malacañang official assured on Saturday. Deputy Presidential Spokesperson Abigail Valte said the Department of Agriculture was on top of the preparations. “Pagdating po sa […]

BACOLOD CITY, March 21 — This Visayan city is the target of a P35 billion real estate investment project. The biggest real estate investment in Negros Occidental so far, Megaworld Corporation’s development projects are expected to create new business districts and 250,000 jobs in the next 10 years. Megaworld senior […]

VIRAC, Catanduanes, March 20 — Can a bridge connect Catanduanes to the mainland Bicol and facilitate land travel bothways? Cantanduanes governor Araceli Wong made her thoughts ring loud and clear dreaming of the mega infrastructure now called the Friendship-Tourism bridge. Ambitious as it is, the 10.8-kilometer concrete bridge will traverse […]

MANILA, March 20 – Commuters brace for an alternative commute other than the trains. Operations of the Light Rail Transit (LRT) Lines 1 and 2 will be suspended for four days in observance of the Holy Week and at the same time to give way to annual maintenance works. According […]

MANILA, March 19 — The global movement Earth Hour led by World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) is giving out safe and economical solar lamps to hundreds of families in Palawan. It is this year’s Gift of Life project of the organization. “Solar lamps rely on power of the sun, […]

LIPA CITY, Batangas, March 18 — Police officers confiscated heat-sealed plastic sachets containing white crystalline substance believed to be metamphetamine hydrochloride or “shabu” weighing 25 grams with an estimated street value of P295,000 during a buy-bust operation late Monday afternoon at Lodlod village here. Police commander Supt. Jacinto R. Malinao […]

MANILA, March 18 – There is strong prospect that no additional power for President Benigno S.Aquino is in the offing to address the expected power shortage during the summer. The panel chairman of the House of Representatives committee on energy and Oriental Mindoro Rep. Reynaldo Umali expressed he had done […]

The Regional Tripartite Wages and Productivity Board in National Capital Region (RTWPB-NCR) has approved a resolution granting a P15 increase in the daily basic minimum wage and continuing a P15 Cost of Living Allowance in effect since January 2014. The new minimum wage in the National Capital Region has been […]

CAWAYAN, Masbate, March 17 — The appointment of vice-governor Vince Home Revil as acting governor of Msbate province is disrupting government funded projects in this town. Revil allegedly withholds funding of projects alloted to the municpality which are already financed by the provincial government while detained Governor Rozalina Lanete was […]

LIBMANAN, Cam. Sur, March 17 — An official of the Philippine National Police (PNP) and four of his men on board a police patrol car were critically wounded when they were ambushed by New People’s Army (NPA) at Sitio Binubon, Barangay Malinao, in this town, at 5:30 p.m. Saturday. Police […]

MANILA, March 16 — Detained Senator Jinggoy Estrada was granted Monday a three-hour furlough by the Sandiganbayn to attend to his son’s high school graduation on Tuesday. The anti-graft court allowed Estrada to leave his detention in Camp Crame from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m., Tuesday to attend the commencement […]

MANILA, March 16 — Speaking on the funding issues surrounding the proposed Bangsamoro region, Department of Budget Secretary Florencio Abad said, “We must consider the prevailing conditions in the current Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM). The region requires strong and consistent funding support to lift it out of poverty.” […]

CAMP SIONGCO, Maguindanao, March 16 -– Joint police and military operatives arrested Sunday night Ustadz Mohammad Ali Tambako and four of his men in Gen. Santos City. Tambako is allegedly the leader of the Justice for Islam Movement (JIM), a splinter group of the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters. Tambako is […]

BACOLOD CITY, March 16– The landmass of the country has limited prospect of increasing, with China continuously chipping away a wide swath of Philippine territory in the South China, yet more local governments get created, like new cities, towns, provinces and now a proposed Negros Island Region, favoring an opportunity […]

LAOAG CITY, March 16 – Among the 81 provinces of the country, Ilocos Norte may be the first to have honored more homegrown heroes through the years. The second batch were honored with five more monuments of Ilocano heroes unveiled Tuesday at the Heroes Walk in Centennial Arena of Laoag […]

Executive Summary, Conclusions and Recommendations in the PNP-BOI Report on the Mamasapano incident MANILA, March 15 — Following are the complete texts of the Executive Summary, Conclusions, and Recomendations contained in the Philippine National Police – Board of Inquiry report on the Jan. 25 2015 Mamasapano incident: EXECUTIVE SUMMARY On […]

MANILA, March 15 — Is the Philippine government peace panel negotiating with Malaysian citizens masquerading as representatives of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front? This is the gist of the concern brought forward by a Davao city congressman. Congressman Karlo Alexei Nograles on Saturday called on the Ad Hoc Committee on […]

LEGAZPI CITY, March 14 – Despite the seeming unpreparedness in offering the proposed new senior high school (SHS) program, the Department of Education (DepEd) confirms that 1,251 schools in Bicol are ready (sic) to offer the K to 12 curriculum by 2016. DepEd V Education Program Supervisor Cecile Ferro disclosed […]

MANILA, March 13 — There will be no change in the composition of the government peace negotiating panel even with the urging of a senator to replace the peace adviser Teresita Deles and chief negotiator Miriam Coronel-Ferrer for talks with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front. In a privilege speech on […]

MANILA, March 12 – The Philippine Senate gave P5.1 million worth of financial assistance to the SAF troopers who were killed, wounded and survived the Mamasapano incident last Jan. 25. Before the Senate session ended Wednesday night, Senate President Franklin Drilon announced the financial assistance worth P100,000 each to the […]

LAOAG CITY, Ilocos Norte, March 12 — In the quest for free solar power, some 700 indigenous trees in Currimao town will be cleared for the purpose. That is why Father Robert Reyes, known as the “running priest” from Malabon, is in Laoag City to join young Ilocanos in their […]

ILOILO CITY, March 12 — Antique guv “cries” for slice of tourism pie, well not literally. The province of Antique appeals to the Department of Tourism (DOT) for a chance to show-off its natural and man-made tourism attractions which remained in oblivion. “Kami naman,” said newly installed Antique Governor Rhodora […]

DAVAO CITY, March 12 — Ten municipalities in the Davao Region earlier identified by the Regional Development Council XI may soon have access to free internet through the TV White Space Initiative of the Department of Science and Technology. Among the 10 municipalities in the region that will soon have […]

MANILA, March 12 — Philippine export of minerals and agro-based products registered strong growth in January 2015, but weaker demand in manufactures and lower sales from petroleum pulled down total exports, according to the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA). The Philippine Statistics Authority reported Tuesday that the country’s merchandise […]

COTABATO CITY, March 11 — The Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) on Wednesday said it is spending Php 12 million a week on food packs alone to support more than 70,000 individuals displaced in the ongoing military law enforcement operations against the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters in Maguindanao. ARMM’s […]

CAMP SIONGCO, Maguindanao, March 11 — The latest skirmishes between Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters (BIFF) and Philippine Marine troopers in Mamasapano, Maguindanao on Tuesday had twenty Moro bandits and two soldiers killed. Speaking for the 6th Infantry Division Capt. Joann Petinglay said the encounter between 8th Marine Battalion Landing Team […]

Legazpi City, March 9– The controversial P47-million Malampaya fund that had been allegedly misappropriated during the 2009 Mayon eruption resurfaced here as Albay province claim it has been fully accounted for. Gov. Joey Sarte Salceda reportedly warned his provincial Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) officer to resign after […]

LEGAZPI CITY, March 9 — The suspect in the killing of a cousin of Camarines Sur Governor Miguel Luis Viilafuerte surrendered to Senior Supt. Marlo S. Meneses, Albay Philippine National Police provincial director, on Sunday morning inside Camp Gen. Simeon A. Ola. Meneses identified the suspect as Manny Rey, 40 […]

Filipino-American Ralph Kenneth de leon of Ontario, California was sentenced to 25 years in the slammer by a U. S. Federal Court on February 23. Federal Judge Virginia A. Philips handed down the sentence on the 26 year old De Leon for “conspiring to provide material support to terrorists.” At […]

Filipino-American Robert “Bobby” Murphy is listed by Forbes as one of the newest billionaires for 2015. He is listed to have a net worth of US $1.5 billion, making him the second youngest dollar billionaire. He owns an estimated 13 per cent in Snapchat. Murphy is currently the chief technology […]

MANILA, March 6 -– When there’s smoke, there’s fire. Malacanang on Friday denied speculations that additional funds will be given to lawmakers who will support the passage of the Bangsamoro Basic Law (BBL). ”They might speculate that we will use PDAF. There’s no more PDAF,” Palace spokesperson Abigail Valte said […]

MANILA, Philippines – Reports confirmed that as the Philippine government is hell-bent at passing the much maligned Bangsamoro Basic Law, while military forces are fighting the war with Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom fighters (BIFF) and the Abu Sayyaf Group, another radical Muslim group is emerging as a new player in the […]

MANILA, March 4 — In the continuing hostilities in conflict-torn areas in Mindanao, government forces suffered yet another set of fatalities. Three soldiers, two of them officers, were killed after the resupply column they were in were mined and ambushed by suspected Abu Sayyaf Group (ASG) bandits in Patikul town, […]

MANILA, March 4 — AFP pursuit operations are now being conducted against the five foreign terrorists, four of which are Indonesian and one Arab-looking, who are allegedly allied with Filipino bomb-maker Basit Usman. Lt. Col. Harold Cabunoc, Armed Forces of the Philippines public affairs office chief, said they believed that […]

MANILA, March 4 – Senator Grace Poe is still waiting for Smart Communications to contact her office regarding the Senate’s subpoena to produce records of short message services (SMS) between PNP chief Alan Purisima and other key persons involved in the Mamasapano debacle of the PNP SAF. ”We want to […]

MANILA, March 4 — Public hearings on the proposed Bangsamoro Basic Law (BBL) can continue even if Congress is in recess, according to Senator Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos, Jr. “We can still continue working during the adjournment. We can still hold hearings even if we are in recess,” Marcos said in […]

MANILA,, March 3 — If we are to believe that passing the Bangsamoro Basic Law into law will not solve the conflict in Mindanao, according to Prof. Miriam Ferrer, then why the heck they still stay at the government peace panel? Professor Miriam Ferrer, who chairs the side of government […]

MANILA, March 3 — A toxics watchdog warned that mercury-laden skin whitening cosmetics can pollute the household environment which endangers users and non-users, including young children who are most vulnerable to toxic exposure. The EcoWaste Coalition conducted yet another study on the amount of mercury that is released to the […]

LEGAZPI CITY, March 2 — Almost halfway through its construction phase, only then that a commercial building rising in the city center here is getting its building permit processed by the city engineering office. For months, works on the construction of structure attributed to as the Yashano Mall has been […]

Cry, anti-GMO people, organizations, advocates against the GMO gory phenomenon. The pro-GMO, it seems is gaining foothold in the country fast and easy, with the support of big money, corporations, public and private institutions and not to discount the government and its people within. The Philippines is now the number […]

MASBATE CITY , March 1 — A local tabloid publisher and editor in Masbate province was murdered Saturday. Ariel Verano Lerit, the publisher-editor of the tabloid Masbate Times was stabbed to death while inside a KTB bar in this city with fellow media personnel Bobby Bornillo. The unfortunate incident happened […]

LEGAZPI CITY, March 1– Like a broken record, the press information on Albay tourism bets high hope on visitors mostly from the Chinese mainland. One Chinese tourism agent confirms that his company have selected Albay as a tourism destination for the meantime. Terrence Fang of Yueqiho International Travel Agency recalled […]