Good day. Here are the stories for The Manila Times for Friday, April 8, 2022.
READ: 'Social media helps shape youth vote'
MILLENIALS and the "Generation Z," who make up 52 percent or more than 30 million of the electorate, will rely heavily on social media in deciding whom to vote in the May elections, a public relations and media affairs expert said Thursday. Megaworld Corp. Senior Assistant Vice President and head of Public Relations and Media Affairs Harold Geronimo, who is also president of the Public Relations Society of the Philippines, analyzed the youth vote during an online forum of The Manila Times. Generation Z is the demographic sector made up of youths born during the late 1990s to the early 2010s. Geronimo said the heavy reliance of young voters on social media came about after the online culture became part of the new norm at the height of the Covid-19 pandemic. Online access rose dramatically as Filipinos began to adjust their lifestyle to their online regime and work-from-home "suddenly became the thing."
READ: Covid rapid test for arrivals approved
THE government's pandemic task force will allow the use of the rapid antigen test for Covid-19 as part of the entry requirements for travelers arriving in the country. The test must be administered and certified by a healthcare professional in a healthcare facility, laboratory, clinic, pharmacy, or other similar establishments from the country of origin of the arriving passenger, acting Palace spokesman Secretary Martin Andanar said in a statement Thursday. The Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF) also approved the recognition of the national coronavirus disease vaccination certificates of Bangladesh, Mexico, Panama and Slovak Republic, as part of arrival quarantine protocols, as well as for interzonal/intrazonal movement.
READ: Health experts back booster card proposal
MEDICAL experts backed the proposal of Presidential Adviser for Entrepreneurship Jose Maria "Joey" Concepcion 3rd to issue vaccination booster cards as a way to prevent a Covid surge after the elections. Concepcion has urged the government to push for booster vaccinations because around 27 million vaccine doses worth more than P100 billion are expiring in July. In a forum on Thursday, Philippine College of Physicians President Dr. Maria Encarnita Limpin said a separate card for boosters will make the differentiation between the primary series and the booster shot clear.
READ: Turkey sees better relations with PH
CITING its "very good" defense cooperation with the Philippines during the Duterte administration, the Republic of Turkey hopes to continue the good relationship even after the country swears in its new leader. Turkish president of the defense industry Prof. Ismail Demir led the turnover of two of the six T-129 ATAK helicopters procured by the Philippine government from Turkey as part of the Armed Forces of the Philippines' Horizon 2 modernization program. The remaining four choppers, tagged as "one of the best in the world in its class," are expected to arrive in the country later this year. The Turkish official believes that this will pave the way for expanded defense agreements between the two nations in the years to come.
READ: Comelec employees get month's bonus
THE Commission on Elections (Comelec) has approved a one-month salary bonus for its regular employees. Comelec Chairman Saidamen Pangarungan announced the bonus during a management committee meeting on Thursday. The commission also approved added allocations for transportation and communication expenses for election officers for six months to cover also the barangay elections in December 2022.
BUSINESS: 2021 GDP growth adjusted upward
Over to business, the country's gross domestic product (GDP) growth for the fourth quarter of 2021 was revised upward to 7.8 percent from the earlier 7.7 percent, the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) said on Thursday. National Statistician Dennis Mapa said the annual growth rate of GDP last year was also revised to 5.7 percent from 5.6 percent. Sought to comment on the revision, Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. (RCBC) chief economist Michael Ricafort said the upward adjustment could be attributed to the easing of quarantine restrictions in the fourth quarter of the year.
SPORTS: Alkhaldi banners PH swimmers in SEAG
In sports, Olympian Jasmine Alkhaldi will lead the Philippine swimming team in the Southeast Asian Games (SEAG) on May 12 to 23 in Hanoi, Vietnam. Also in the official lineup submitted by Philippine Swimming Inc. (PSI) to the Philippine Olympic Committee are Xiandi Chua, Chloe Kennedy Anne Isleta, Desiree Aubrey Mangaoang, Kirsten Chloe Daos, Thanya Angelyn Dela Cruz, Jessica Joy Geriane and Miranda Cristina Renner for the women; Luke Michael Gebbie, Jean-Pierre Sameh Khouzam, Jonathan Sebastian Cook, Adrian Philipp Eichler, Jerard Dominic Jacinto, Donovan Payne Lahmann and Jaden Christian Olson for the men; and Ariana Hannah Drake for women's diving.
READ: Opinion and editorial
Rigoberto Tiglao and Ruben Torres are today's front page columnists. Tiglao claims the estate tax issue of the Marcoses is "Hitlerian in nature", while Torres asks what is wrong with minimum wage fixing and implementation.
Today's editorial believes the world is gasping for clean air. 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 Friday ahead.