Good day. Here are the stories of The Manila Times for Saturday, February 8, 2025.
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READ: Sara: 'God Save the Philippines'
FACING an impeachment trial at the Senate, Vice President Sara Duterte said on Friday that the only message she could tell the people is, "God Save the Philippines." Speaking to reporters two days after 215 members of the House of Representatives signed the impeachment complaint and sent it to the Senate, Duterte also said she has no intention of resigning the vice presidency. Duterte said she does not feel any resentment for the congressmen who voted for the impeachment complaint, especially those who she considered as political allies. She said she is not open to resigning as vice president to pave the way for her running for the presidency in the 2025 elections. She added that she wants to look first at how she fares in the opinion surveys in the next few years. She said that since the announcement of the impeachment, many lawyers have volunteered to join her defense counsel during the impeachment trial.
READ: PDP-Laban slams Sara impeachment
THE political party of former president Rodrigo Duterte has condemned the impeachment of Vice President Sara Duterte by the House of Representatives. In a statement issued on Thursday, the Partido Demokratiko Pilipino-Lakas ng Bayan (PDP-Laban) said the House decision to impeach the vice president is the "clearest manifestation of dirty politics" in the country. Ot expressed "its extreme disgust and condemnation over the railroaded and sham impeachment" of Duterte "less than halfway into a 6-year term where she received 32.2 million votes, the most votes cast for a candidate in the history of the Philippines." PDP-Laban also pointed out that President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. himself told the House to stop the impeachment complaint and to address more serious problems facing the country.
READ: Comelec steps up anti-vote buying drive
In other news, the Commission on Elections (Comelec) has intensified its campaign against vote-buying and the misuse of government resources in the run-up to the May 12 elections. Through a resolution, Comelec expanded the powers and functions of the Committee on Kontra-Bigay, integrating strict guidelines to curb electoral violations. The resolution seeks to address the long-standing problem of buying and selling votes. Vote-buying, as defined by the resolution, includes the distribution of money, employment offers, or other material incentives in exchange for votes. Vote-selling refers to the act of accepting such offers.Among the newly specified prohibited acts are the possession of large sums of cash near election day, house-to-house distribution of goods, and the holding of events such as talent shows with prize giveaways linked to candidates.
READ: Purchase of 350,000 MT Vietnamese rice delayed
Rice importers in the Philippines have delayed purchases of around 350,000 metric tons (MT) of Vietnamese rice and have been renegotiating deals, after a steep decline in prices, two trade sources with direct knowledge said. Rice prices in key exporting countries have dropped to about two-year lows after India, by far the biggest supplier of the grain, eased restrictions on overseas sales last year following a bumper harvest. Rice importers had signed deals at around $620 per metric ton, free on board, for Vietnamese fragrant rice late last year, but now the price has dropped to around $500 per ton, the two trade sources said.
BUSINESS: Factory output growth markedly slower in 2024
Topping business, manufacturing output rebounded in December from a month earlier, the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) reported on Friday, but overall 2024 growth — while positive — was substantially lower than in the previous two years. The Value of Production Index (VaPI) expanded by 0.4 percent, recovering from November's 3.5-percent contraction, and the Volume of Production Index (VoPI) also grew by 0.2 percent after falling by 3.9 percent. A year earlier, both VaPI and VoPI growth were substantially higher at 3.7 percent and 3.0 percent, respectively.
SPORTS: MMA champ is a big Creamline fan
In sports, Denise Zamboanga, the first Filipino to win a mixed martial arts (MMA) world title in the women's division, was among the crowd who cheered for Creamline in its straight sets victory over Chery Tiggo in the Premier Volleyball League (PVL) 2024-25 All-Filipino Conference at the PhilSports Arena in Pasig City on Thursday. Also known as "The Menace," the 28-year-old ONE interim women's atomweight champion revealed that she is a longtime fan of Creamline, a 10-time champion in the PVL. The 5-foot-2 fighter snatched the ONE crown after scoring a knockout win against Ukrainian Alyona Rassohyna last month.
READ: Opinion and editorial
Antonio Contreras, Yen Makabenta, and Danton Remoto are today's front page columnists. Contreras talks about the negative criticism on the 2025 national budget, Makabenta thinks the Congress will "fall flat" in plotting the impeachment of Vice President Sara Duterte, while Remoto continues his stories of Europe after World War II.
Today's editorial calls out the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority's initial decision to remove the EDSA bus carousel. Read the full version in the paper's opinion section or listen to the Voice of the Times.
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