Good day. Here are the stories for The Manila Times for Friday, March 1, 2024.
READ: 'We will not yield'
PRESIDENT Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on Thursday sought the support of Australia and other allies in its maritime disputes with China, saying the Philippines is on the frontline against actions that undermine peace and stability in the region. However, he vowed that the country will not yield. In his address before the Australian Parliament in Canberra, Marcos said he would not allow any foreign power to take "even one square inch" of the country's territory, and that the Philippines remained firm in defending its sovereignty.
READ: Marcos' visit to Germany to boost defense ties
Meanwhile, the President's visit to Germany from March 11 to 13 is expected to further strengthen defense cooperation between Manila and Berlin in the face of China's assertiveness in the West Philippine Sea, Consul General Maria Yvette "Ivy" Banzon-Abalos of the Philippine Consulate General in Frankfurt said Thursday. In an interview, Banzon-Abalos said the two countries already have an existing agreement for Germany to enhance the Philippine Coast Guard's capability to secure the country's coastline.
READ: 2nd bidding for online voting and counting system set
THE Commission on Elections (Comelec) has set the second round of bidding for the 465.8-million-peso Online Voting and Counting System, which will enable overseas Filipinos to cast their votes online for the first time in the 2025 midterm polls. Comelec spokesman John Rex Laudiangco said on Thursday that the second round of competitive public bidding for the O.V.C.S. will be done in the third week of March, with the deadline for the submission of bids on March 19.
READ: Marcos names Quevedo PCGG commissioner
PRESIDENT Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has appointed Rogelio Quevedo as commissioner of the Presidential Commission on Good Government, Malacañang said on Thursday. Quevedo was a member of the Government Corporate Counsel, a team of lawyers servicing government corporations and financial institutions, including the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. The P.C.G.G., which is under the supervision of the Department of Justice, was originally created to recover the alleged ill-gotten wealth of the late former president Ferdinand E. Marcos Sr., the President's father.
BUSINESS: Inflation likely higher in Feb – Bangko Sentral
Headlining business, inflation could have risen last month but remained within target, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas said on Thursday. The central bank issued a 2.8- to 3.6-percent forecast for February inflation, official data for which will be released on Tuesday, March 5. A 2.8-percent outturn would be unchanged from the January figure. Results in the rest of the range, while higher, fall within their 2.0- to 4.0-percent target.
SPORTS: Ajido sets meet record in golden performance
Over to sports, Filipino Jamesray Ajido seized the gold medal in the 11th Asian Age Group Championships 12 to 14 boys 100-m butterfly event on Wednesday evening, February 28, at the New Clark City Aquatics Center. Ajido clocked a new personal, national, and meet record of 55.98 seconds to also hand the Philippines its first gold medal in the Asian Age Group Championships history. It was not a total domination for Ajido, however, as he was running third after the first 50 meters, but turned up the heat in the final 50 at lane number 4. Ajido went neck-and-neck against lane number 5 swimmer Nishiono Yusei of Japan en route to winning the gold by a mere 0.7 second. Nishiono claimed the silver medal with his time of 56.05 that also surpassed the old meet record of 56.36 set by Wang Yu Xiang of Chinese-Taipei in 2019. Wang's compatriot Kan YungCheng submitted a time of 56.79 seconds to clinch the bronze medal in the third and penultimate day of the competition.
READ: Opinion and editorial
Rigoberto Tiglao and Francisco Tatad are today's front page columnists. Tiglao thinks President Marcos and his generals were deluded over the Bajo de Masinloc, while Tatad believes former president Corazon Aquino should have saved the country's charter change woes.
Today's editorial says there are still issues to be resolved a year after the Oriental Mindoro oil spill. Read the full version in the paper's opinion section or listen to the Voice of the Times.
For more news and information, read The Manila Times on print, subscribe to its digital edition or log on to www.manilatimes.net. Follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, TikTok and LinkedIn; and be part of our communities on Viber, Telegram, and Mastodon.