Good day. Here are the stories for The Manila Times for Labor Day, May 1, 2024.
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READ: China Coast Guard attacks PH ships
CHINA Coast Guard (CCG) vessels fired water cannons at two Philippine ships Tuesday, causing damage to one of them, during a patrol near Bajo de Masinloc (Scarborough Shoal), the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) said Tuesday. Manila and Beijing have a long history of territorial disputes in the South China Sea, with several collisions involving Filipino and Chinese vessels in recent months, as well as the use of water cannons by the CCG. The latest incident happened near the China-controlled Scarborough Shoal, which has become a potential flashpoint, during a mission to resupply Filipino fishermen.
READ: Pagasa sees delayed rainy season
THE beginning of the rainy season will likely be delayed until the last week of June, affecting agriculture, water supply and weather patterns, the state-run weather bureau said Tuesday. At a Senate hearing, Marcelino Villafuerte, deputy administrator of the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa), said it is a direct result of the effects of the El Niño weather phenomenon, which brings drier conditions to affected areas. The El Niño will likely be followed by the La Niña phenomenon, and thunderstorms can be expected in the middle of May amid the scorching weather. Villafuerte told the Senate Committee on Basic Education there is no basis yet for using the heat index to cancel classes, unlike typhoons. Nevertheless, since 2013, Pagasa has been posting heat index information on its website and other social media sites. Villafuerte said this wasn't too important in the past under the old academic calendar when students went on summer break during April and May, the hottest months of the year
READ: Labor groups press P150 wage hike
ORGANIZED labor groups will march today, Labor Day, to Morayta Street in Manila to dramatize their call for a 150-peso legislated wage increase and a dialogue with President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. The labor groups, composed of trade union centers, labor federations and workers' organizations in both the private and public sectors, will march under the National Wage Coalition (NWC) banner. Leading them are the Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (TUCP), Kilusang Mayo Uno (KMU), Bukluran ng Manggagawang Pilipino (BMP) and Nagkaisa Labor Coalition (Nagkaisa).
READ: House to follow Senate's lead on Charter change
THE House of Representatives will follow the Senate's lead on the proposal to amend certain economic provisions of the 1987 Constitution, lawmakers said Tuesday. The House passed on third and final reading Resolution of Both Houses (RBH) 7, proposing these amendments. RBH 6, which proposes the same amendments as RBH 7, is pending in the Senate. On Monday, Sen. Robinhood Padilla filed RBH 8 for Charter change (Cha-cha) through a constitutional convention. Also on Monday, Senate President Juan Miguel Zubiri said RBH 6 was not among the Senate's priority measures before Congress adjourns in May
READ: Bell-Kenz dismisses allegations of bribery
BELL-KENZ Pharma on Tuesday denied allegations that it uses a multi-level marketing scheme to sell its medicines as the Senate began its inquiry into reports that the company gives doctors luxury cars as an incentive for prescribing its medicines. The denial was offered by Bell-Kenz chief executive officer Dr. Luis Go before the Senate Committee on Health led by Sen. Bong Go. Earlier, Sens. JV Ejercito, Jinggoy Estrada and Raffy Tulfo said the pharmaceutical company has been bribing doctors to prescribe their medicines in exchange for commissions. Ejercito said many pharmaceutical firms have been "influencing" doctors to prescribe their branded drugs.
READ: Duterte, Sotto top senatorial survey
FORMER president Rodrigo Duterte, former Senate president Vicente Sotto III and ACT-CIS Rep. Erwin Tulfo were the top three choices in the first quarter senatorial survey conducted by Oculum Research and Analytics. The poll, conducted from Feb. 21- 29, 2024, showed Duterte and Sotto tied at 53 percent among respondents, while Tulfo got 52 percent. Following the three were former Manila mayor Isko Moreno at 45 percent, former senator Manny Pacquiao at 43 percent, and Sens. Ronald de la Rosa at 41 percent and Bong Go at 40 percent. Tying in the eighth to 11th place at 35 percent preference were physician Willie Ong, reelectionist Sen. Imee Marcos, Pasig City Mayor Vico Sotto and reelectionist Sen. Pia Cayetano. In the 12th to 14th spot were Sen. Bong Revilla, former senator Panfilo Lacson and Sen. Lito Lapid. From 15th to 20th place were entertainer Willie Revillame, former vice president Leni Robredo, former senator Gregorio Honasan, former secretary Manuel Roxas III and former senator Francis Pangilinan.
BUSINESS: April inflation could have topped 4%
Over to business, rising food and energy costs, along with a weaker peso, may have driven inflation past the 2.0- to 4.0-percent target last month, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas said. The central bank on Tuesday issued a 3.5-to 4.3-percent estimate for April inflation, data for which will be released by the Philippine Statistics Authority on May 7. A 3.5-percent result — a slowdown from March's 3.7 percent — would snap a two-month rise, while 4.3 percent — the highest since October of last year — would mark the end of four consecutive months of inflation having stayed within target.
SPORTS: Yulo eyes redemption in Paris Olympics
Headlining sports, Carlos Yulo aims to channel all his frustrations from his previous Olympics stint in his revenge tour at the upcoming Paris 2024 Olympics. The decorated gymnast is keen on avenging his previous finish in the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, where he came up short to be in the podium. Now back in the Philippines after his gold-silver performance in the World Cup Series in Baku and Doha, Yulo shared that he is more mature to conquer tougher battles. After bagging the gold in the World Cup Series in Doha (parallel bar apparatus), Yulo now shifts his focus to what is coming and will test his proficiency in the upcoming Asian Championships.
READ: Opinion and editorial
Rigoberto Tiglao and Francisco Tatad are today's front page columnists. Tiglao calls to prioritize Philippine gas amid the extreme heat, while Tatad asks if the country is armed for nuclear war.
Today's editorial says asking for relief should not be politicized. Read the full version in the paper's opinion section or listen to the Voice of the Times.
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