Good day. Here are the stories of The Manila Times for Saturday, August 7, 2021.
READ: ECQ residents to get cash aid next week
Residents in enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) can expect to receive the cash aid from the government by next week. The distribution of the cash dole-out was assured after the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) issued on Friday the order for the release of funds that will help tide over locked-down families. According to Interior Undersecretary Jonathan Malaya, the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) is expecting the release of the special allotment release order by Friday in order for local government units should start distributing by next week.
READ: Lockdown the 'right move' for NCR
The government made the "right move" in placing Metro Manila under a two-week hard lockdown, Presidential Adviser for Entrepreneurship Jose Maria "Joey" Concepcion 3rd said on Friday. Concepcion made the statement after 10,623 new Covid-19 cases were reported in the country, and the Department of Health (DoH) confirmed that the more contagious Delta variant has been detected in all the cities of the National Capital Region (NCR). For the third time since the start of the pandemic, Metro Manila is under an enhanced community quarantine (ECQ), this time to check the rise in infections attributed to the Delta variant, which experts say is at least 60 percent more virulent than the original Covid-19 strain. In a statement, Concepcion said the number of new cases - the highest since April 17- has validated the decision to place the NCR back under the strictest quarantine measures.
READ: Go-Duterte tandem almost certain
The ruling Partido ng Demokratikong Pilipino-Lakas ng Bayan (PDP-Laban) will most likely select Sen. Christopher Lawrence "Bong" Go as its candidate for president and President Rodrigo Duterte as his running mate during its national convention in September, a ranking party official said on Friday. During an online media forum, Melvin Matibag, PDP-Laban's secretary general, said a Go-Duterte tandem was already endorsed during a meeting of the party's National Executive Council on Wednesday. Matibag, however, said other nominations will still be entertained during the convention that will be held in San Jose del Monte, Bulacan. The nominees could even include Sen. Emmanuel "Manny" Pacquiao, Matibag said. He said he is inviting Pacquiao's supporters to attend the national convention.
READ: Gatchalian 'good choice' as Sara's running mate
Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian is being touted as a possible running mate of Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio if she decides to join the presidential derby in 2022. Albay Second District Rep. Jose Ma. Clemente "Joey" Salceda told a press conference on Thursday that Gatchalian would be a good choice as Duterte-Carpio's vice presidential bet. Salceda said Duterte-Carpio does not approve of teaming up with her father, President Rodrigo Duterte, who has shown interest in running for vice president next year. In July, Duterte said he might even join Duterte-Carpio's Hugpong ng Pagbabago (HNP) party if he decides to run for vice president. Salceda said Gatchalian is the most qualified among the vice presidential contenders because of his good grasp of economic and business issues.
READ: Paalam guns for boxing gold
Boxing flyweight Carlo Paalam will try to give the Philippines its second gold medal in the Tokyo Olympics when he fights Britain's top boxer today, August 7. If Paalam wins against Galal Yafai, who is also the 2018 Golden Belt champion in Iasi, Romania, he will also bag the country's first gold in boxing. The bout is set at 1 p.m. (Philippine time) at the Kokugikan Arena. Paalam racked up impressive wins against favored opponents en route to the final. The boxer from Cagayan de Oro City assured himself of a silver medal after a dominant performance against Japanese Ryomei Tanaka in the semifinal round on Thursday.
READ: Govt sets door-to-door jabs as Delta spreads in NCR
THE government will mobilize vaccination teams that will go door-to-door in the National Capital Region (NCR or Metro Manila) as part of a strategy intended to stem a new surge of infections caused by the highly transmissible Delta variant of Covid-19. Initial efforts by the government to encourage people to get inoculated through the local government units (LGUs) weren't enough as these were met with doubts and resistance fueled by "fake news" against vaccinations. Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra has recommended to the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-EID) to enhance its communication efforts, especially those related to imposed measures during the two-week ECQ on Aug. 6 to 20, 2021.
READ: Blogger under fire for 'exploiting PH culture'
Palestinian-Israeli YouTube blogger Nuseir Yassin, also known as "Nas Daily", is under fire online for allegedly exploiting Filipino culture. Gracia Palicas, granddaughter of legendary tattoo artist Apo Whang-od, posted on a Facebook group branding Yassin's Whang-od Academy for Tattooing as fake.
BUSINESS: ING Manila cuts GDP growth outlook
Topping business, the local unit of ING Bank has further downgraded its Philippine economic growth projection for the second quarter of this year, blaming the strict coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) pandemic-related lockdown reimposed in April. ING Bank Manila senior economist Nicholas Antonio Mapa said on Friday that the global bank now expects the second quarter gross domestic product (GDP) growth to be only 10.9 percent, down from 11 percent previously. His projection contrasts to declines of 4.2 percent and 16.9 percent in the first and second quarters of 2021 and 2020, respectively.
SPORTS: San-En supports Thirdy's stint with Gilas
In other sports news, the San-En NeoPhoenix will not get in the way of Thirdy Ravena's plans of playing for the Philippine men's basketball team. Ravena is part of the Gilas Pilipinas program built for the 2023 World Cup. He has played in one of the windows of the FIBA Asia Cup Qualifiers and just recently, he joined the Gilas Pilipinas team that finished fourth place in the King Abdullah Cup in Jordan. Thirdy made history last year when he became the first Asian Quota Import in the Japan B.League. His contract with the squad ended last June, but signed a multi-year deal extension with NeoPhoenix. The San-En NeoPhoenix intends on keeping Ravena for a long term as teams in the Japan B. League are allowed to have three imports, including Thirdy, being an Asian player.
READ: Opinion and editorial
Antonio Contreras and Yen Makabenta are today's front page columnists. Contreras discusses about a weakened generation, while Makabenta wants a House inquiry over Octa Research's "gaming" of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Today's editorial believes the Department of Agrarian Reform's recommendation that the farm consolidation may be the best path toward improving agriculture livelihoods and productivity is sensible. Read a full version on the paper's opinion section or listen to the Voice of the Times.
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On behalf of The Manila Times, this is Aric John Sy Cua reporting. Have a safe weekend ahead.