Good day. Here are the stories for The Manila Times for March 16, 2023.

READ: Teves not showing up anytime soon

NEGROS Oriental Rep. Arnolfo Teves Jr. has filed for a two-month leave of absence for security reasons amid calls from the House of Representatives for him to come home and face the charges filed against him in connection with the killing of Gov. Roel Degamo. In a letter addressed to House Speaker Ferdinand Martin Romualdez, Teves vowed to return once the threat to himself and his family has been "dealt with." Romualdez earlier urged Teves to return to the Philippines and face the music. The House Ethics and Privileges Committee, chaired by COOP Natcco party-list Rep. Felimon Espares, convened on Wednesday to discuss Teves' absence. The lawmaker's travel authority expired on March 9. Teves went to the US reportedly for a medical procedure. Espares said that Teves will be given five days to explain why he refuses to come home. Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla said on Wednesday that Teves has left the United States and is now somewhere in Southeast Asia.

READ: 7 to be charged in Salilig hazing slay case

THE Department of Justice (DoJ) said it will file hazing charges against seven suspects involved in the death of Adamson University (AdU) student John Matthew Salilig. In a statement on Wednesday, Justice spokesman Mico Clavano said a panel of prosecutors found probable cause to file charges against Earl Anthony Osita Romero alias "Slaughter," Tung Cheng Benitez Teng Jr. alias "Nike," Jerome Ochoco Balot alias "Allie," Sandro Dasalla Victorino alias "Loki," Michael Lambert Alcazar Ricalde alias "Alcazar," Mark Muñoz Pedrosa alias "Macoy" and Daniel delos Reyes Perry alias "Sting." The suspects had recruited Salilig to join the Tau Gamma Phi Grand Fraternity or Triskellion AdU chapter. The panel said they planned and participated in paddling or performing welcoming rites to Salilig last Feb. 18, 2023, in Biñan City, Laguna, which led to his death and injuries to the other neophyte recruit, Roi Osmond dela Cruz. Two separate charges against the respondents will also be filed before the Biñan Regional Trial Court (RTC). Dela Cruz is the complainant in the other case. Salilig's cadaver was found in a vacant lot at the back of a subdivision in Imus City, Cavite, weeks after he went missing. The fraternity members in his school were implicated in his death.

READ: CA upholds 'Dengvaxia' case vs DoH official

COURT of Appeals (CA) Associate Justice Marlene Gonzales-Sison has junked the petition of Dr. Socorro Lupisan, director of the Department of Health-Research Institute for Tropical Medicine (DoHRITM), seeking to dismiss the case filed against her in connection with the multiple deaths of schoolchildren allegedly after receiving Dengvaxia vaccine. The CA's Seventh Division chairman declared Lupisan's appeal unmeritorious. Gonzales-Sison said Ian Colite, father of Zandro Colite, an elementary student who died on Dec. 27, 2017 after allegedly receiving two shots of Dengvaxia, has sufficiently stated a cause of action in his complaint for damages against Lupisan and her correspondents that include former Health secretary and now Iloilo Rep. Janette Garin.

READ: Dominguez Gang members get life sentence for murder

QUEZON CITY Regional Trial Court Branch 215 Judge Rafael Hipolito has sentenced three members of the notorious Dominguez car theft gang to life imprisonment for the killing of car dealer Venson Evangelista in 2011. Jason Miranda, Roland Talban and Roger Dominguez, all detained at Camp Bagong Diwa in Bicutan, were handed the punishment of reclusion perpetua or 40 years imprisonment without the possibility of parole. Talban was said to be the gunman who shot Evangelista. The father of the victim, Arsenio "Boy" Evangelista of Volunteers against Crime and Corruption (VACC), attended the promulgation of the case.

BUSINESS: Remittances up 3.5% in strong start to 2022

Topping business, overseas Filipino worker (OFW) remittances started the year strong with a 3.5-percent year-on-year increase to $3.07 billion in January, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) reported on Wednesday. The result — up from $2.97 billion a year earlier — was attributed to higher remittances from land-based workers with contracts of a year or more and sea- and land-based OFWs with contracts of less than a year. Compared to the yearly peak in December, when money sent home by OFWs traditionally surges due to the holidays, remittances fell by 12 percent from a record $3.49 billion. Of the January total, cash remittances coursed through banks also rose by 3.5 percent to $2.76 billion from $2.67 billion a year earlier. This was again lower than the $3.16 billion recorded in December. The expansion was likewise driven by growth in receipts from land- and sea-based workers, the BSP said.

SPORTS: PLDT has option to choose semis foe

In sports, faced with a daunting task of choosing which team to meet in the Final Four, PLDT coach Rald Ricafort has opted not to look beyond the task at hand, that is, to hurdle past Choco Mucho in the final day of the elimination round of the Premier Volleyball League (PVL) All-Filipino Conference today, March 16, at the Philsports Arena in Pasig City. With a 5-2 win-loss slate, PLDT looks to tie early semifinalists Petro Gazz and F2 Logistics at 6-2 with a victory over Choco Mucho in their 4 p.m. encounter. Trailing the Angels and the Cargo Movers in tiebreak points, the High Speed Hitters need to win in three or four sets today to finish third in the final rankings and set up a clash with the No. 2 Angels in the best-of-three semis. Otherwise, PLDT will wind up at No. 4 and will meet topnotcher Creamline (7-1) in the final four.

READ: Opinion and editorial

Antonio Contreras and Yen Makabenta are today's front page columnists. Contreras asks if the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership is a threat or an opportunity for the country's economy, while Makabenta weighs in on the next joint military exercises involving Philippine and American troops.

Today's editorial calls on the Energy Regulatory Commission to expedite a decision on the price cap. Read the full version in the paper's opinion section or listen to the Voice of the Times.

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For The Manila Times, this is Kim Luden Salinas reporting.