Good day. Here are the stories for The Manila Times for Thursday, May 20, 2021.

READ: Court upholds ruling vs ex-Comelec chief

THE Court of Appeals (CA) has affirmed the findings of the National Privacy Commission (NPC) that former Commission on Elections chairman Andres Bautista violated Republic Act 10173 or the "Data Privacy Act of 2012" in connection with the April 2016 data breach that placed the personal information of millions of voters at risk. The NPC recommended the prosecution of Bautista for the crime of accessing sensitive personal information due to negligence.

READ: DoH stops announcing Covid vaccine brands

THE Department of Health (DoH) said it would no longer announce vaccine brands that would be used in the country to prevent people from swamping vaccination centers giving their preferred jabs. The decision was made after big crowds converged in vaccination centers giving the Pfizer-BioNTech tozinameran vaccine. Health Undersecretary and National Vaccination Operations Center Chairman Myrna Cabotaje said the Health department would enforce a "brand agnostic"

READ: Covid-19 jabs free – Palace

Malacañang gave assurances on Wednesday that vaccines would be given to the public for free because the sale of anti-Covid jabs is not allowed in the country. Palace spokesman Harry Roque Jr. said nobody would be required to pay to receive a coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) vaccine. He said that vaccines purchased by the government would be distributed to target beneficiaries without any fee while those secured by the private sector must be given to their employees.

READ: 3 cities post virus spike

THE OCTA Group reported that three cities - Cagayan de Oro, Davao and Iloilo - registered sharp increases in the number of Covid-19 cases as the infection rate in the National Capital Region (NCR) continues to decline. The May 19 OCTA report said the highest increase was reported in Iloilo City - 99 percent or 58 new cases per day. Zamboanga City remains the only city outside of the NCR with the highest daily new case average of 158 per day. The number was down by 4 percent compared to last week's figure.

READ: Sayyaf sub-leader, 4 others killed in Sabah

Five Abu Sayyaf terrorists were killed following a gun battle that erupted during a police raid on their hideout near Taman Sri Arjuna in Beaufort, a small town in Sabah, reports said on Tuesday. The official Malaysian news agency Bernama said the fighting occurred on Monday at a mangrove area where police commandos and members of the elite Eastern Sabah Security Command also captured eight Abu Sayyaf terrorists and 29 other Filipinos, including women and children, during a special operation on May 8. Sabah Police Commissioner Datuk Hazani Ghazali said among those slain was Mabar Binda, a sub-leader of the pro-ISIS group, who was also wanted by the Philippine authorities. Three of those killed were Abhirsham Samsula, Jurakhdam Binda and Alsimar Sukarno. The other slain terrorist remains unidentified.

BUSINESS: DBCC raises 2021 budget deficit ceiling

Topping business, the government's fiscal gap ceiling this year was raised by the country's economic managers, who expect higher public expenditure on the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) pandemic response. Budget Secretary Wendel Avisado said on Tuesday night that the interagency Development Budget Coordination Committee (DBCC) revised this year's deficit program upward to 9.4 percent of the country's gross domestic product (GDP), following the 179th DBCC meeting. The current deficit-to-GDP ceiling is higher than the DBCC's earlier estimate of 8.9 percent and the actual 7.6 percent last year. Avisado said the adjusted ceiling was a result of the revised revenue and disbursement program. The 2021 revenue program was retained at P2.88 trillion.

SPORTS: PBA scrimmages still barred in NCR plus

In sports, teams from the Philippine Basketball Association, as well as clubs from other professional leagues, are still not allowed to hold training in te National Capital Region (NCR) plus. Games and Amusements Boards chairman Baham Mitra made the announcement, citing a clarification his office received from the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-EID).

READ: Opinion and editorial

Antonio Contreras, Yen Makabenta and Arch. Felino Palafox Jr. are today's front page columnists. Contreras talks about presidential gaslighting, Makabenta discusses about climate change activists fanning hysteria, while Arch. Palafox discusses the Philippines in 2050.

Today's editorial believes a mega vaccine center is not the best solution in the government's vaccination program. Read a full version on the paper's opinion section or listen to the Voice of the Times.

For more news and information, get a copy of The Manila Times on print, subscribe to its digital edition or log on to www.manilatimes.net.

Follow us on Twitter, Facebook or Instagram and Keep Up With The Times.

With Dafort Villaseran, this is Aric John Sy Cua reporting. May you have a safe Thursday ahead.