Good day. Here are the stories for The Manila Times for Wednesday, November 23, 2022.
BANNER: Remulla uncovers more scams at NBP
JUSTICE Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla on Tuesday said the New Bilibid Prison (NBP) in Muntinlupa City needs to be closed down because everyone there wants to steal from it. In an interview, Remulla said even the electricity at the NBP, the national penitentiary, is being "stolen" by jail guards. Chief Justice Alexander Gesmundo, according to him, provided this information in an email sent to him recently. Remulla said illegal electrical connections or "jumpers" were discovered running from the NBP's medium security prison going to at least 200 houses located outside the prison compound. These illegal connections were believed to have been installed by the jail guards. When he learned about these jumpers, the Justice secretary ordered suspended Bureau of Corrections (BuCor) Director Gerald Bantag to cut them off.
Embassy denies 'tension' over rocket debris
THE Chinese Embassy in Manila has described as "inconsistent with facts" the reported tension between the Philippine Navy and the China Coast Guard (CCG) over the retrieval of a rocket debris. The embassy on Tuesday, November 22, shared the statement of the Chinese Foreign Ministry on the incident that dispelled the reported stand-off between the two naval forces off Pag-asa Island in the South China Sea (West Philippine Sea).
Harris in PH to negotiate more EDCA sites – Tatad
FORMER senator Francisco "Kit" Tatad said negotiation for five more Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement (EDCA) sites in the Philippines was the "highlight" of the visit of United States Vice President Kamala Harris to the country. Tatad, in a forum organized by the Integrated Development Studies Institute (IDSI), shared the view of fellow speakers professors Butch Valdez and Harry Roque that EDCA "is unconstitutional."
QUEZON City First District Rep. Juan Carlos "Arjo" Atayde on Tuesday encouraged the government to make flood control measures a top priority and to appoint a flood czar to oversee the administration and execution of flood control programs, since paralyzing floods are becoming more frequent in Metro Manila. Atayde said that because the House "had delayed work in the past due to widespread flooding in the metro," lawmakers "are intimately familiar with this problem."
CA defers Tulfo's confirmation
THE Bicameral Commission on Appointments (CA) on Tuesday, November 11 deferred action on the interim appointment of the former journalist Erwin Tulfo as Secretary of the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD). The CA Committee on Labor, Employment, Social Welfare and Migrant Workers' decision to defer Tulfo's appointment was due to issues surrounding his citizenship and pending libel case before the Supreme Court. Rep. Oscar Malapitan raised the issue of Tulfo's citizenship, noting that the latter became an enlisted personnel of the United States Army from 1988 to 1992. Rep. Rodante Marcoleta, on the other hand, questioned Tulfo about his conviction at the lower court of four counts of libel. The case is now pending before the Supreme Court. During the deliberation on his appointment, Tulfo admitted that he was an American citizen until he renounced it before he was appointed as DSWD head this year. Tulfo requested an executive session to further answer the concerns of Malapitan and Marcoleta.
REGIONS: 9 regions still affected by ASF
THE Philippine Association of Feed Millers Inc. (Pafmi) on Tuesday said that at least nine regions in the country are still affected by the African swine fever (ASF), adding that the recurrence of the said viral disease, bird flu and the rising price of raw materials has affected the feed industry. In a forum on the key challenges in the agriculture industry organized by the Management Association of the Philippines and attended by various stakeholders, Pafmi Vice President Roderick Hernandez-Ramirez cited the crucial role of feed mills industry in agriculture and fisheries development. Hernandez-Ramirez noted that among those still affected by the ASF are 63 villages, 26 municipalities, 17 provinces and nine regions in the country. He said that among recently affected by the ASF are Iloilo province and Irosin in Sorsogon. According to Hernan - dez-Ramirez, the Regional Agricultural and Fishery Council has ordered a total ban in the movement of hogs Western Visayas amid the outbreak of ASF in Iloilo.
BUSINESS: Medalla: Inflation, Fed to influence policy
Topping business, inflation data due to be released in two weeks, as well as the outcome of the US Federal Reserve's (Fed) final meeting for the year will determine the Monetary Board's next moves, Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) Governor Felipe Medalla said on Tuesday. The Monetary Board ordered key interest rates to be raised by 75 basis points (bps) last November 17, matching a November 2 Fed decision. The US central bank, which embarked on one of its fastest rate-tightening campaigns early this year to combat inflation, is expected to deliver a 50-bps increase on December 14 after consumer price growth slowed in October. In the Philippines, inflation hit a near-14-year peak of 7.7 percent in October and is expected to go even higher before the year ends. November data will be released by the Philippine Statistics Authority on December 6.
SPORTS: Reboton wins 3 bronze medals in Denmark
Over to sports, Filipino powerlifter Joyce Gail Reboton claimed three bronze medals in the women's 76-kg open category and set a new Asian record at the World Open Equipped Powerlifting Championships in Denmark held on Saturday, November 19. The 30-year-old Reboton raised 150 kilograms in the bench press to erase her own Asian record of 147.5 kgs set at the World Games last July. She, however, finished sixth in the category. Reboton then lifted 225 kg in the squat in her first attempt to finish third and win the bronze medal. She copped another bronze after lifting 205 kgs in deadlift. She tried to match the Asian record of 212.5 kgs. She also competed at the World Games but failed. She bagged her third medal in the meet after placing third in the overall tally. Reboton is the first Filipino powerlifter to win medals in the overall category in both the World Equipped Championships and World Classic Championships where she won a bronze last year in Sweden.
Rigoberto Tiglao, Fr. Ranhilio Aquino and Francisco Tatad are today's front page columnists. Tiglao tackles Beijing's blacklisting of the Philippines because of the issues with POGO operators, Fr. Aquino discusses regulatory dissonance, and Tatad talks about the world's 8 billionth person.
Today's editorial believes the recent COP27 climate conference was disappointing. Read the full version in the paper's opinion section or listen to the Voice of the Times.
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This is Kim Dignadice reporting.