Good day. Here are the stories for The Manila Times for Friday, September 2, 2022.
READ: ABS-CBN, TV5 drop merger deal
RIVAL networks ABS-CBN and TV5 have called off the investment deal they signed earlier following an initiative in the House of Representatives to have the agreement investigated. Competing cable companies Sky Cable and Cignal have also terminated their deal. In a statement it released on Thursday, ABS-CBN said: "In disclosures to both the Philippine Stock Exchange and the Securities Exchange Commission today, Sky Vision Corporation ('Sky Vision'), ABS-CBN Corporation, Lopez Inc. and Cignal Cable Corporation ('Cignal Cable') announced that they have mutually agreed to terminate the sale and purchase agreement dated August 10, 2022." The agreement involved the acquisition by Cignal Cable of a 38.88-percent equity interest in Sky Cable and the subscription by Cignal Cable to an "exchangeable debt instrument to be issued by Sky Vision and the proposed acquisition by Cignal Cable of a convertible note issued by Sky Cable." ABS-CBN said that the termination was formalized through a memorandum of agreement.
READ: Super typhoon weakens a bit as it nears Batanes
SUPER Typhoon "Henry" weakened slightly as it approached the northern tip of Luzon, the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa) said on Thursday. Signal No. 1 was up over Batanes and northeastern portion of Babuyan Islands as Henry continued a south-southwest track in the Philippine Sea northeast of Batanes, Pagasa forecaster Raymond Ordinario said. By early Friday morning, the typhoon could become almost stationary before eventually accelerating northward by Saturday. Henry could exit the Philippine Area of Responsibility on Saturday night or Sunday morning, Ordinario said.
READ: BBM seeks new nursing law
PRESIDENT Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. on Thursday joined the call for the passage of the new Philippine Nursing Practice Act to further advance the profession. Speaking at the 100th founding anniversary celebration of the Philippine Nurses Association (PNA) held at the Manila Hotel, the Chief Executive stressed that no monetary compensation or awards can measure up to the nurses' sacrifice, capabilities and dedication. Filipino health care workers, particularly nurses, have raised the barometer so high, added the President. Such is the standard they have set that they are the prime choice even of foreigners when it comes to providing medical care.
READ: DepEd to hire 10,000 teachers
THE 2023 budget of the Department of Education (DepEd) has an allocation to hire 10,000 teachers for the next school year. DepEd spokesman Michael Poa said on Thursday that DepEd Memo 76, dated August 30, aims to utilize all the existing vacant and newly created teaching items by end-of-month to ensure an adequate teaching workforce. Poa clarified that the memo was only a reiteration of the policy to fill vacant posts.
BUSINESS: PH recovery seen on track
Over to business, the country's economic recovery appears to be firming up but inflation and supply constraints remain a threat, a senior National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) official said on Thursday. Gross domestic product growth (GDP) — currently averaging at 7.8 percent following first- and second-quarter results of 8.2 percent and 7.4 percent, respectively — was broad-based, NEDA Undersecretary Rosemarie Edillon said during the kick-off of the 20th Development Policy Research Month. While growth had slowed quarter on quarter, it remains just over the government's full-year goal of 6.5 to 7.5 percent. Edillon noted, however, that some indicators, such as household final consumption expenditure, remained below pre-pandemic levels.
SPORTS: Eala vows to sustain PSC's programs
In sports, Jose Emmanuel "Noli" Eala, the newly appointed chairman of the Philippine Sports Commission, vowed to sustain the PSC's long term programs and at the same time, develop and promote sports at the grassroots level. Eala said this in a statement released to the media on Thursday. Eala, fondly called as "Kom Noli" in the sports community, rose to fame as a PBA commentator starting in 1992 before becoming commissioner of the league from 2002 to 2007. Eala then served as the founding executive director of the Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas (SBP) and helped develop the very first Gilas Pilipinas program with Serbian coach Rajko Toroman in the late 2000s.
Rigoberto Tiglao and Stephen CuUnjieng are today's front page columnists. Tiglao hits out at Sen. Loren Legarda over her links to Communist Party of the Philippines founder Jose Maria Sison, while CuUnjieng discusses on what is world class.
Today's editorial believes the no contact apprehension program needs a lot of fine-tuning. 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.