PRESIDENT Marcos Jr. has finally ratified the long awaited Philippine Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) with Australia, Brunei, Cambodia, China, Indonesia, Japan, South Korea, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, New Zealand, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam, and set in motion the biggest regional cooperation agreement in the world.

It is such an important trade and development initiative, but the Philippine media could not even report it right. In reporting the event, the nation's daily broadsheets said the Philippine Senate 'ratified' the RCEP on Feb. 21, 2023, but that it took effect last year. This was a gross mistake, and it was shared by at least some highly credentialed syndicated columnists.