Good day. Here are the stories for The Manila Times for Sunday, October 8, 2023.
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READ: CCG vows no letup in maritime patrol
THE China Coast Guard vowed on Saturday to continue carrying out law enforcement activities in Ayungin or Second Thomas Shoal, which it maintains is part of Nansha Islands, a day after Chinese and Philippine vessels nearly collided in disputed waters. In a statement shared by the Chinese Embassy in Manila on Saturday, October 7, Gan Yu, the spokesman for China Coast Guard, said that on October 4, two supply ships and two coast guard vessels from the Philippines intruded into the "adjacent waters of Ren'ai Reef in China's Nansha Islands without the permission of the Chinese government." Gan said the Chinese Coast Guard strictly warned the Philippine vessels in accordance with the law, tracked and monitored the vessels all the way, and effectively "regulated" them.
READ: AFP refutes China's 'indisputable' sea claim
Meanwhile, the Armed Forces of the Philippines on Saturday repudiated China's claim of "indisputable sovereignty" over the Ayungin Shoal, a submerged reef in the Spratly Islands that is located 105 nautical miles west of Palawan. A.F.P. spokesman Col. Medel Aguilar said the word "indisputable" is disputable in itself, as the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea already said China does not have sovereignty over the terrain.
READ: Boracay, Palawan, Siargao among top islands in Asia
THREE island getaways in the Philippines made it to this year's Condé Nast Traveler Top 10 Readers' Choice Awards. Boracay, Palawan and Siargao were ranked third, sixth and tenth, respectively, by readers of the respected luxury and lifestyle travel magazine from around the world. C.N.T. said that around 600,000 readers who registered to vote participated in the online survey, making the Readers' Choice Awards highly sought after by the travel industry and frequently seen to project travel trends. Boracay placed third in Asia with 90.74 points, followed by Palawan with 89.71 and Siargao with 87.37 in reader votes. Last year, Boracay topped the list of Asia's islands, with Palawan ranking eighth.
READ: Gilas made Filipinos proud – Marcos
PRESIDENT Ferdinand Marcos Jr. congratulated Gilas Pilipinas for bringing home the Asian Games basketball crown, which the Philippines last won in 1962, saying that every Filipino is proud to be called one. Gilas Pilipinas beat Jordan 70-60 in the finals on Friday, ending the country's 61-year gold medal drought in Asiad basketball. At the House of Representatives, House Speaker Ferdinand Martin Romualdez said Gilas' achievement would leave an indelible mark in the annals of sports history. Deputy Majority Leader and Ang Probinsyano party-List Rep. Alfred de los Santos said having a new coach has definitely improved Gilas' performance in the Asiad.
SPORTS: Cone: Mission accomplished!
TIM Cone completed the mission he failed to accomplish 25 years ago in Bangkok, Thailand. Cone, serving as Gilas Pilipinas' interim coach, went through all the challenges of preparing a national side that only had 12 days to train and try to win the gold medal for the 19th Asian Games men's basketball. While the team went through its own set of challenges, that include admitting five new players with less than a week before the start of the competition, Gilas did the improbable by beating erstwhile unbeaten Jordan, 70-60, in the Asian Games men's basketball final to finally, bring the gold back to the country after a 61-year title drought. The American mentor, who made a name for himself as the P.B.A.'s all-time winningest coach with 25 championships and counting, entered the tournament as the last coach to have given the Philippines a medal when the national squad, known as the Centennial Team, took home the bronze in the 1998 edition in Bangkok, Thailand. Twenty-five years later though, this new bunch of national players, led by naturalized player Justin Brownlee, backstopped by June Mar Fajardo, Chris Newsome, Ange Kouame, Scottie Thompson and Calvin Oftana, showed a "no-quit" mentality that enabled Gilas Pilipinas to knock out powerhouse squads en route to winning the gold.
BUSINESS: Meat substitutes to boost food security
In business, the Marcos administration may want to consider cultivating the plant-based meat substitute industry as part of its broader food security strategy, according to an agricultural economist in the academe. In an interview on Friday, Roberto Galang, dean at Ateneo de Manila's John Gokongwei's School of Management, also said meat production inherently generates a large carbon footprint. He was reacting to a plan of the Department of Agriculture to increase domestic meat production by about 500 percent before the current administration's term ends. Galang explained that aside from the waste directly produced by poultries and piggeries, there is also the waste generated by the growing of feeds that sustain the animal population during their life cycle.
READ: Opinion and editorial
Marlen Ronquillo is today's front page columnist, as he urges President Marcos to seize the lead on policy.
Today's editorial weighs in on the controversy surrounding drag queen Pura Luka Vega. Read the full version in the paper's opinion section or listen to the Voice of the Times.
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