Good day. Here are the top stories of The Manila Times for Monday, July 17, 2023.
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READ: Record heat waves hit US, Europe, Asia
Tens of millions of people battled dangerously high temperatures around the world on Sunday as record heat forecasts hung over parts of the United States, Europe and Asia, in the latest example of the threat from global warming.A powerful heat wave stretching from California to Texas was expected to peak, the US National Weather Service said, warning of an "extremely hot and dangerous weekend." Daytime highs were forecast to range between 10 and 20 degrees Fahrenheit above normal in the west. Arizona's state capital Phoenix recorded 16 straight days above 109 F (43 degrees Celsius), with residents facing temperatures of 111 F on Saturday, en route to an expected 115 F. California's Death Valley, one of the hottest places on Earth, was also likely to register new peaks on Sunday, with the mercury possibly rising to 130 F (54 C). Authorities have been sounding the alarm, advising people to avoid outdoor activities in the daytime and to be wary of dehydration.
READ: PH a prime spot for growth – Mills
THE Philippines is in an ideal spot for growth, and the country must do everything it can to capitalize on it, Asia CEO Awards Chairman Richard Mills said. Speaking in SMNI's weekly public affairs program "Business and Politics" hosted by The Manila Times Chairman and CEO Dante "Klink" Ang 2nd, Mills said several businesses are looking to locate in Southeast Asia, preferring it over China because of the region's young workforce. Mills said some sectors, such as the IT-BPO and real estate, are bullish in hiring talent, while manufacturing is still struggling to find talent. Asked how the country can improve its competitiveness, Mills suggested addressing issues that have long been hounding investors, such as red tape.
READ: Govt to seek out unemployed nurses for hospital jobs
THE Department of Health (DoH) said it would work with the Professional Regulation Commission (PRC) and the Department of Labor and Employment (DoLE) to find nurses who passed the board exam but are unemployed and convince them to work in government hospitals. The DoH said it was accepting the recommendation of Rep. Luis Raymund Villafuerte (Camarines Sur, 2nd District) to track unemployed nurses and hire them to reverse the worsening nursing shortage in the country. The DoH said it "will immediately work on the available vacant positions and will map these vacancies to ensure that the unemployed board passers and those who are not in the health sector are able to get opportunities to join the clinical field." The agency said that vacancies would be open in all regions to enable the nurses to work near their residences. The DoH also announced it would hold job fairs.
READ: Airlines grapple with rise in turbulent passengers
Viral videos of vulgar, intoxicated and violent airplane passengers have become common, but it is not just a social media trend; statistics confirm cases are on the rise. The surge in incidents comes as the aviation industry is bouncing back from the Covid pandemic, with airlines expecting to fly a near-record 4.35 billion passengers this year. Airline industry trade group IATA said one in every 568 flights had an incident linked to an unruly passenger in 2022, compared to one in every 835 flights in 2021. The most common incidents involved passengers smoking or vaping in the cabin or toilet, refusing to buckle their seatbelts, failing to respect baggage limits and storage instructions, and consuming their own alcohol on board. While incidents of physical aggression remain rare — only one flight in 17,200 in 2022 — that represents a 61 percent jump from the previous year.
In Business
READ: NG borrowings up in May
THE national government's gross borrowings rose in May from a month earlier and were significantly higher compared to a year earlier, data from the Bureau of the Treasury showed. At P146.78 billion, the amount was 13 percent higher than April's P129.9 billion. Domestic borrowings accounted for the bulk at P131.79 billion, up from P96 million a month earlier, while external borrowings totaled P14.99 billion, lower than the previous month's P33.78 billion. A year ago, meanwhile, the government paid off a short-term loan of P300 billion from the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas, which offset the issuance of P100.38 billion in fixed-rate Treasury bonds. Factoring in T-bill redemptions, gross domestic borrowings for May 2022 were a negative P270.67 billion. Gross foreign borrowings for that month, meanwhile, were just P11.71 billion. Year-to-date, gross domestic borrowings totaled P912.58 billion, while gross foreign borrowings came in at P343.87 billion.
Topping Sports
READ: Stephen Curry makes 152-yard hole-in-one
Golden State Warriors star Stephen Curry made a hole-in-one Saturday (Sunday in Manila) in the American Century Championship celebrity tournament. Fans roared as Curry hit the shot on the 152-yard par-3 seventh hole at Edgewood Tahoe, ripped off his hat, held a finger in the air and sprinted to the hole, smacking the flag like a runner crossing the finish line. The eight-point ace helped Curry maintain the lead in the modified Stableford event, three points ahead of Dallas Stars forward Joe Pavelski and former tennis player Mardy Fish. Players also receive a point for par, three for birdie and six for eagle and are deducted two points for double bogey or worse. Curry had 50 points after his 23-point round. Fish, the 2020 winner, had a 29-point day. Pavelski scored 24 points. Curry had his second career hole-in-one and the fifth in tournament history.
READ: Vondrousova is Wimbledon's first unseeded female champion
Marketa Vondrousova became the first unseeded woman to win Wimbledon on Saturday (Sunday in Manila), coming back in each set for a 6-4, 6-4 victory over 2022 runner-up Ons Jabeur in the final. Vondrousova trailed in each set but collected the last four games of the first, then the last three games of the second as Jabeur fell to 0-3 in major finals. The 28-year-old from Tunisia is the only Arab woman and only North African woman to make it that far in singles at any Grand Slam tournament.
READ: Opinion/Editorial
The Times, in its editorial, talks about submarines as a deterrent force in the South China Sea. Read the full version on print or digital or listen to the Voice of the Times. Columnists in today's front page are Rigoberto Tiglao, Fr. Ranhilio Aquino and Francisco Tatad. Tiglao says the country loses 19 percent of its territory if it complies with the arbitral ruling; Aquino on why the Philippines needs the Rome statute; and Tatad on in search of a new perspective.
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