Good day. Here are the stories for The Manila Times for Monday, July 1, 2024.
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READ: Sara's ratings decline
WHILE the overall performance rating of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. for the second quarter of 2024 stabilized, Vice President Sara Duterte's ratings saw another significant drop, down 20 percentage points from two years ago, the latest nationwide survey conducted by Publicus Asia showed. Based on the results of the independent and non-commissioned Pahayag Second Quarter 2024 survey taken from June 15 to 19, Duterte's overall ratings saw a sharp decline, with her approval dropping from 53 percent in the first quarter of the year to 46 percent in the second quarter. Her trust rating also fell by 5 points from 46 percent to 41 percent. Particularly notable is the drop in approval ratings in Northern Central Luzon, from 47 percent to 38 percent. In her stronghold Mindanao, approval ratings also decreased from 75 percent to 68 percent, and trust ratings fell from 67 percent to 65 percent. Despite the drop, the vice president remains the official with the highest approval and trust ratings.
READ: Inflation, corruption most important issues – survey
The same survey showed that Filipino households see rising prices and inflation as the most important issues for President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to address alongside strengthening the economy and curbing corruption. Respondents said they believed that tackling inflation was crucial as it directly affects Filipinos' ability to afford basic needs. At the same time, the Pahayag survey showed that while the economic and financial outlooks show a slight improvement from the previous quarter, they remain low. The same survey indicated that a growing number of Filipinos remain undecided on their stance toward both the current administration of President Marcos and the political opposition, with 43 percent and 52 percent saying they remain undecided, respectively.
READ: 5 dead, 38 hurt in firecracker depot blast
FIVE people, including a 4-year-old child, were killed in a massive explosion at a pyrotechnics warehouse in Mindanao, emergency services said Sunday. The Saturday afternoon blast at the Zamboanga City site tore a large hole in the ground, sent debris careening into nearby buildings and houses, and ignited a blaze, fire investigator Luigi Chan said. Four warehouse workers and the 4-year-old son of one of the staffers were killed, Chan said.
READ: Lawyers group backs Marcos WPS policy
THE foremost organization of Philippine lawyers, supported the stand of the Marcos government to assert the country's legal and sovereign rights over the West Philippine Sea. In a statement issued over the weekend, the Integrated Bar of the Philippines (IBP) cited the Treaty of Paris of 1898 and the Spanish-United States Treaty of Washington in 1900 as the basis for its argument. The IBP said Article III of the Treaty of Paris "clearly delineated the territorial boundaries of the Philippine archipelago" when Spain ceded to the US all rights of sovereignty over the Philippines, including the waters surrounding the islands. The Spanish-US Treaty of Washington supplemented this by clarifying and affirming the cession of additional islands to the US as part of Philippine territory, it said.
READ: Sofitel Hotel closes for good
The Sofitel Philippine Plaza shut down on Sunday after providing Filipino and international guests with unparalleled service standards that will be remembered for years to come. Designed in 1973 by National Artists Leandro Locsin and Ildefonso Santos Jr., the property entered the local market under the Westin brand, joining the hotels established to raise the Philippines' tourism profile in 1976.
BUSINESS: Inflation likely unchanged in June
Topping business, inflation could have steadied in June due to lower power rates and a moderation in food and fuel price growth, analysts said, further raising the possibility of interest rate cuts beginning August. The median forecast in a Manila Times poll of economists was 3.9 percent, unchanged from the May result and within the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas' (BSP) 2.0- to 4.0-percent target. It also fell within the central bank's 3.4- to 4.2- percent estimate for the month, which in comparison is lower than the 3.7–4.5 percent forecast it issued for May. All but one of the economists expect consumer price growth to have remained within target for a sixth straight month despite the rate having picked up since February. Official inflation data for June will be released by the Philippine Statistics Authority this Friday.
SPORTS: Two more delegations added in Palaro
Over to sports, the Department of Education announced Friday that the National Academy for Sports and Philippine schools from overseas will be joining the Palarong Pambansa 2024, adding two new official delegations to the event. Adolf Aguilar, assistant superintendent for the Cebu City Division, said that with these additions, the total number of participating delegations will rise to 19. Originally, only the 17 regions of the country were competing, with the exception of the newly formed Negros Island Region, whose provinces will still represent Central Visayas and Western Visayas.
READ: Opinion and editorial
Rigoberto Tiglao, Fr. Ranhilio Aquino, and Francisco Tatad are today's front page columnists. Tiglao outs three American officials in what is the "new Cold War" against China, Fr. Aquino looks into basic education, while Tatad rediscovers the province of Catanduanes.
Today's editorial looks into coalition-building as an exercise in political shape-shifting. Read the full version in the paper's opinion section or listen to the Voice of the Times.
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