Good day. Here are the stories for The Manila Times for Tuesday, December 26, 2023.
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READ: Bukidnon battle shatters NPA truce
NINE members of the New People's Army were killed in a dawn clash with government forces in Bukidnon on Christmas Day, shattering the two-day ceasefire declared by the communist rebels. Maj. Francisco Garello, spokesman for the Army 4th Infantry Division based in Camp Evangelista, Cagayan de Oro City, said the encounter took place in the hinterlands of Malaybalay City, the provincial capital. The Communist Party of the Philippines and N.P.A. called the ceasefire in observance of the C.P.P's 55th anniversary today, December 26. The military has not declared its own ceasefire and continues combat operations against the insurgents. No casualties were reported on the Army's side, Garello said. Before the Bukidnon clash, the N.P.A. said its units remained on high alert in case government forces launched an offensive.
READ: Sara thanks Pinoys abroad for Christmas 'sacrifice'
VICE President Sara Duterte thanked all Filipinos abroad for their continued sacrifices to their families back home and for helping keep the country's economy afloat through their remittances. In her Christmas Day message, Duterte said that overseas Filipino workers and Filipinos abroad are a "reflection" of Philippine progress and talent. She prayed that their efforts be rewarded by having a comfortable future for themselves and their family.
READ: Passenger arrivals continue to increase
THE Bureau of Immigration is confident that passenger arrivals would reach or even break pre-pandemic levels amid a significant increase in travelers during the Christmas week. Immigration Commissioner Norman Tangsingco on Monday said that as per immigration record, "we are already pretty close to the pre-pandemic numbers." Figures also showed that the volume of arriving and departing passengers continues to increase. Arrivals have increased from around 50,000 during the first week of December to almost 60,000 during the Christmas week. On December 1, the BI recorded 51,390 arrivals in all international airports of the country. The figure rose to 59,541 on December 22 and 58,993 on December 23. Tansingco shared that more than 85 percent of passengers arrive via the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA). There were 31,408 departures on December 23, far from the 25,759 on the first day of December
READ: Marcos sets into motion devolution plan for LGUs
PRESIDENT Ferdinand Marcos Jr. directed all national government agencies to come up with a list of functions that should be devolved to the local government units, Malacañang said on Monday. According to the Presidential Communications Office, the Chief Executive gave the order in a meeting in the Palace last week, where he reiterated the need to identify the priority core functions and services that should be devolved to the L.G.U's from the national government agencies. The funding and schedule of implementation of the functions and services they would provide — based on L.G.U. capacity and in accordance with minimum standards set by N.G.A's — shall be computed following the said assessment.
BUSINESS: Debt service bill plunges in October
In business, the national government's debt servicing dipped in October following a plunge in amortization charges, data released by the Bureau of Treasury showed. The government's debt payments slipped by 67.5 percent to 77.76 billion pesos in October from 238.99 billion pesos last month but were up 95.3 percent from the 39.82 billion pesos recorded in the same month last year. Interest payments dropped by 17.44 percent to 58.98 billion pesos from 71.44 billion pesos last month but were 77.7 percent higher than the 33.18 billion pesos in the same month a year earlier. Domestic interest payments declined by 29.11 percent in October 2023 to 39.619 billion pesos from the 55.892 billion pesos recorded last month but were 76.8 percent higher than the 22.407 billion pesos in the same month last year.
SPORTS: Tapales eyes massive upset vs Inoue
Over to sports, Filipino fighter Marlon Tapales looks to pull off a massive upset against Japanese Naoya Inoue in their super bantamweight unification bout at the Ariake Arena in Tokyo, Japan, on Tuesday, December 26. Seeking to defy the overwhelming odds, Tapales battles the undefeated and favorite Inoue at his home turf at 7 p.m. (Manila time). Holder of the World Boxing Association and International Boxing Federation crowns, Tapales aims to take Inoue's World Boxing Organization and World Boxing Council belts to become the first Filipino undisputed champion. As he seeks to make history that not even compatriot and eighttime world champ Emmanuel "Manny" Pacquaio managed to accomplish, Tapales looks to bring the fight to Inoue.
READ: Opinion and editorial
Antonio Contreras and Orlando Mercado are today's front page columnists. Contreras talks about challenges in conducting ethical research, while Mercado does not like grinches for Christmas.
Today's editorial says Pope Francis' decision to bless same-sex unions is a welcome development for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer Filipinos. Read the full version in the paper's opinion section or listen to the Voice of the Times.
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