Good day. Here are the stories for The Manila Times for Saturday, July 27, 2024.

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READ: Race on to contain Bataan oil spill

THE Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) on Friday raced to remove 1.4 million liters of industrial fuel oil from a sunken tanker and prevent an "environmental catastrophe" in Manila Bay. One crew member died when the MT Terra Nova sank in rough seas nearly 7 kilometers off Limay town in Bataan early Thursday after setting out for Iloilo City. An oil slick stretching several kilometers was detected in the bay, which thousands of fishermen and tourism operators rely on for their livelihoods. Coast guard spokesman Rear Admiral Armando Balilo said on Friday the spill was "minimal" and that it appeared to be diesel fuel used to power the tanker and not industrial fuel oil cargo.

READ: Marcos eyes massive flood control plan

PRESIDENT Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on Friday proposed a national flood control plan following the massive flooding unleashed by Typhoon Carina and the southwest monsoon in Metro Manila and nearby provinces. During a situation briefing in Mauban, Quezon, Marcos said floodwaters could affect vast areas, "so flood control has to be a big plan." The President said that Metro Manila's flood control system is working, but it was overwhelmed by the combined effects of Carina, the southwest monsoon, or "habagat," and the high tide. In the long term, flood control projects must be all-encompassing and should cover a wide range of areas that are now prone to flooding, Marcos said. He said that with the rise in the sea level, the dikes built to protect lowlying communities could be breached during high tide.

READ: 700 schools may not be ready for opening day

THE Department of Education (DepEd) said 738 schools affected by torrential rain and massive floods spawned by the southwest monsoon and Typhoon Carina may not be ready for school opening day on July 29. A situation report DepEd issued on Friday listed 12,866 affected schools in the Cordillera Administrative Region, National Capital Region, Ilocos, Cagayan Valley, Central Luzon, Calabarzon (Cavite, Laguna, Batangas, Rizal and Quezon), Mimaropa (Mindoro, Marinduque, Romblon, Palawan), Bicol, and Western and Eastern Visayas. Of the number, 246 schools experienced damage from flooding, while 425 schools were designated as evacuation centers. As of Friday, 64 of the schools were still sheltering evacuees. Despite the number of affected schools, Education Secretary Juan Edgardo Angara does not agree with proposals to move back school opening day by a week.

READ: China welcomes POGO ban in the Philippines

THE Chinese Embassy in the Philippines has taken note of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.'s decision to ban all Philippine offshore gaming operators (POGOs), and stated that the move would benefit Filipinos and the Chinese. In addition, the embassy pointed out that Chinese law prohibits all forms of gambling. Further, it stated that the Chinese government forbids Chinese citizens engaging in gambling businesses abroad, including POGO, which breeds serious crimes such as kidnapping for ransom, human trafficking, and murder. POGO harms Philippine and Chinese interests, and China-Philippines relations.

READ: Delgaco, Yulo kick off PH campaign in Paris Olympics

ROWER Joanie Delgaco and gymnast Carlos Yulo kick off today, July 27, the Philippine campaign in the 33rd Summer Olympic Games in Paris, France. Delgaco will race in the women's single sculls heats at 4:12 p.m. (Manila time) at the Vaires-sur-Marne Nautical Stadium. The 26-year-old is on lane 4 in Heat 2 competing against Slovenian Kostanjsek, Algerian Nihed Benchadli, Dutch Karolien Florijn, Swedish Aurelia-Maxima Katharina, and Moroccan Majdouline El Allaoui. There are 32 rowers in the 2,000-meter race, but only the first three in each of the six heats advance to the quarterfinals. Rowers outside the top three will compete in the Repechage — an additional race given to advance to the next round. The 24-year-old Yulo competes in the men's artistic gymnastics individual all-around qualification at 9:30 p.m. (Manila time) at the Bercy Arena. Yulo, a world champion in floor exercise (2019) and vault (2021), is in subdivision 2. Fifty gymnasts are divided into three subdivisions, and the top 24, with a limit of two per country, will qualify for the allaround final. The top eight in each apparatus, again with a limit of two-percountry, advance to the event medal rounds. Yulo was a favorite to win the floor exercise at the 2021 Tokyo Olympics, but a fall during the qualifying round took him out of contention. He came up just short of a fourth-place finish in the apparatus but eventually became a world champion three months after the Olympics that year.

SPORTS: Catantan opens Olympic campaign vs Pistoia of Brazil

FILIPINO fencer Samantha Kyle Catantan will face Mariana Pistoia of Brazil in the table of 64 direct elimination (DE) when the clashing of the swords begin in the 2024 Paris Olympics right at the heart of the city at Grand Palais in France. Catantan, a first time Olympian who earned her spot in the Summer Games via the Asian Olympic Qualifying Tournament (OQT), emerged as No. 33 in the rankings after the draw on Thursday (Manila time) while Pistoia ended up 32nd out of 34 fencers. Martyna Jelinska of Poland (31), meanwhile, will take on Youssra Zakarani of Morocco (34). The winners of both matches will advance in the round of 32 of the DE. The winner of the Catantan-Pistoia match will play No. 1 Arianna Errigo of Italy, while the winner of the Jelinska-Zakarani duel will take on No. 2 and defending champion Lee Kiefer of the United States. Kiefer, whose mother Teresa is from Tagum City, Davao del Norte, won the gold medal in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics by dethroning Russian champion Inna Deriglazova in the finals 15-13.

BUSINESS: Inflation seen staying within target to 2026

Over to business, inflation will likely remain within the 2.0- to 4.0-percent target range over the next two years amid continued upside risks, analysts polled by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) said. The highlights of the June 27 meeting, which were released on Thursday, added that expectations "for 2025-2026 have eased further toward the midpoint of the target range." The survey respondents forecast a 3.7-percent result for this year, unchanged from May, while the projections for 2025 and 2026 edged down to 3.4 percent and 3.3 percent, respectively, from 3.5 percent and 3.4 percent previously.

READ: Opinion and editorial

Antonio Contreras, Yen Makabenta and Danton Remoto are today's front page columnists. Contreras hits the lack of critical thinking about citizens, Makabenta asks what the country is "Philippinizing" in politics, and Remoto talks about a certain novel going around the world.

Today's editorial asks for answers in the cleanup from the flood after the torrential downpours caused by a typhoon-enhanced monsoon earlier this week. Read the full version in the paper's opinion section or listen to the Voice of the Times.

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