Covering the week’s most noteworthy news stories throughout the Philippines for the Filipino-American and Global Filipino community.
MALACAÑANG on Wednesday, June 16, maintained that International Criminal Court (ICC) Prosecutor Fatou Bensouda’s report on the country’s drug war is based on “hearsay information.” “We’re confident it will not prosper beyond this stage, because, in the first place, you need the cooperation of the state for a case buildup. But right now, what they…
PHILIPPINE President Rodrigo Duterte has extended the abrogation of the country’s Visiting Forces Agreement (VFA) with the United States for another six months, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) announced this week. According to Foreign Affairs Secretary Teodoro Locsin Jr., the chief executive relayed the decision in a meeting with him and Philippine Ambassador to…
THE Philippine government will never cooperate with any investigation conducted by the International Criminal Court (ICC) into President Rodrigo Duterte’s war against illegal drugs, according to Malacañang. Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque on Tuesday, June 15, stressed that the chief executive will not cooperate with ICC until the end of his term next year. “Hinding-hindi magko-cooperate…
THERE is no chance of a Duterte-Duterte tandem happening during the 2022 elections, according to Malacañang. Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque on Wednesday, June 9, said Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte will not run for vice president should his daughter, Davao City Mayor Sara “Inday” Duterte, decide to run for the country’s top post. “Sa tingin ko…
INBOUND travelers fully vaccinated in the Philippines will undergo a shorter quarantine period, according to Malacañang. Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque on Friday, June 4, said that the Inter-Agency Task Force on the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-EID) approved the guidelines on inbound international travel to any port of the Philippines of all fully vaccinated…
THE Philippines will be donating $1 million (P50 million) to the COVAX facility to repay its efforts in providing low-income countries access to COVID-19 vaccines. The COVAX facility is co-led by Gavi the Vaccine Alliance, the World Health Organization and the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI). President Rodrigo Duterte on Monday, May 31, noted…
PRESIDENT Rodrigo Duterte’s next role: vice president? The Partido Demokratiko Pilipino-Lakas ng Bayan’s (PDP-Laban) national council has adopted a resolution urging Duterte to run for the country’s second-highest office in the 2022 elections. Adopted during a National Council Assembly in Cebu City, the resolution also urged Duterte to name his running mate for president in…
PHILIPPINE President Rodrigo Duterte may run for the second-highest post in the country in the 2022 elections if there is a public “clamor,” according to Chief Presidential Legal Counsel Salvador Panelo. “Si presidente, tatakbo lang ‘yan pag nakita niya may clamor, ‘pag malakas ang clamor (The president will only run if he sees that there…
THE Philippine Department of Tourism (DOT) has proposed a reduced quarantine period for arriving overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) and foreign tourists who have been fully vaccinated against COVID-19. Tourism Secretary Bernadette Romulo-Puyat on Tuesday, May 25, said that the agency wants to cut the quarantine period for those vaccinated from the previous 10 days to…
MORE than three million COVID-19 vaccine doses have been administered in the Philippines, according to an official. National Task Force (NTF) Against COVID-19 Chief Implementer Secretary Carlito Galvez Jr. on Tuesday, May 18, said that the country has utilized a total of 3,114,847 doses since March 1. Meanwhile, NTF Against COVID-19 Deputy Chief Implementer and…
PHILIPPINE President Rodrigo Duterte has assured the public that the country will not abandon its claims in the West Philippine Sea. In a statement read by presidential spokesperson Harry Roque, Duterte maintained that his position in the West Philippine Sea will not waver. “Our principal position and stand on the West Philippine Sea remains. I…
AN additional 2.2 million doses of Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine from the World Health Organization-led COVAX facility will be arriving in the Philippines later this May, according to vaccine czar Carlito Galvez Jr. “Yung next delivery ng Pfizer, more or less sa 2.2 million (The next delivery of Pfizer, more or less 2.2 million [doses]) I…
THE Philippines on Wednesday, May 12, started inoculating its Filipino citizens with the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine. Some 193,050 Pfizer vaccine doses arrived in the country on Monday, May 10, and were distributed to Metro Manila and other areas which can accommodate the product’s storage requirements of -70 to -80°C. Among the first local government units…
AFTER months of getting delayed, an initial batch of 193,050 Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine doses arrived in the Philippines this week. The shipment of Pfizer’s jabs supplied by the World Health Organization-led COVAX Facility landed before 9 p.m. on Monday, May 10 at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport Terminal 2 in Pasay City. Among the key…
A 16-year-old Filipina is among the 11 winners of The Learning Network’s second annual STEM Writing Contest organized by the New York Times. Natalia Araña, a Grade 11 student from the Philippine Science High School in Quezon City, won with her essay titled “Mycowood Violins: A Different Kind of Time Machine,” which focuses on scientist…
THE Philippine Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved the emergency use authorization (EUA) for Moderna’s COVID-19 vaccine. “Today, after rigorous and thorough review by regulatory and medical experts using the currently available published and unpublished data, FDA is granting an emergency use authorization to Zuellig Pharma Corp. for the…COVID-19 vaccine Moderna,” FDA Director General…
Country lifts some entry restrictions FOREIGN tourists are still prohibited from entering the Philippines, despite the country easing restrictions on certain foreign nationals. “Said restriction remains effective until it is lifted by the Inter-Agency Task Force on Emerging Infectious Diseases,” Immigration Commissioner Jaime Morente said Sunday, May 2. This clarification comes after Malacañang on Friday,…
PHILIPPINE President Rodrigo Duterte has extended the modified enhanced community quarantine (MECQ) in the National Capital Region (NCR) Plus until the middle of May. In his weekly public address on Wednesday, April 28, Duterte announced that Metro Manila, Bulacan, Cavite, Laguna, and Rizal will remain under the second strictest quarantine classification until May 14. Santiago…
RAPPLER co-founder and chief executive officer Maria Ressa is set to be awarded the prestigious press freedom prize from the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). Ressa has been named as the 2021 laureate of the UNESCO/Guillermo Cano World Press Freedom Prize, following the recommendation of an international jury of media professionals, the…
THE Philippines has now recorded over 1 million COVID-19 cases, becoming the second country in Southeast Asia to reach this grim milestone. The Philippine Department of Health (DOH) on Monday, April 26, logged 8,929 new infections, bringing the official tally to 1,006,428 — of which 74,623 are active cases. Of the active cases, 95.4% are…
THE Philippine Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) is urging community pantry organizers to coordinate with local government units (LGUs) and police to ensure the proper observance of health and safety protocols. “You may have given food, but this may lead to a (COVID-19) surge, outbreak or transmission, and you defeat the purpose,”…
THE Philippine Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted emergency use authorization (EUA) to two more COVID-19 vaccines. FDA director general Eric Domingo on Tuesday, April 20, confirmed that Johnson & Johnson and India’s Bharat Biotech have secured a EUA for their vaccines. “Our experts have evaluated their applications and decided that the benefits outweigh…
THE Philippines is “falling short” of protecting its frontline healthcare workers against COVID-19, a World Health Organization (WHO) official said Monday, April 19. In a Laging Handa public briefing, WHO representative to the Philippines Dr. Rabindra Abeyasinghe noted that only 63% of the country’s health care workers have been immunized under the government’s COVID-19 vaccination…
PHILIPPINE President Rodrigo Duterte has made it “very clear” that the country’s friendship with China has limitations, according to Malacañang. “He made it very clear ‘Kaibigan tayo, makikipagkaibigan ako (We are friends, I will make friends with you), but there is a limit to our friendship,’” Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque said Tuesday, April 20. “Pagdating…
FOREIGN travelers who were given entry exemption documents prior to the implementation of the travel ban in March may now enter the Philippines, according to the country’s Bureau of Immigration (BI). BI Commissioner Jaime Morente updated the advisory that non-Filipino citizens with entry exemption documents issued by the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) before March…
THE Philippines has extended its entry ban on foreign nationals until the end of April. Malacañang on Friday, April 16, announced that the Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF) for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases approved “the extension of the temporary suspension of foreign nationals until April 30, 2021.” Last month, the National Task Force Against…
MANY startups have attempted to unlock financial services in Southeast Asian emerging markets, where credit card penetration is under 10%. Consumers in the Philippines have lost trust in a system rife with illegitimate and predatory lenders. A new FinTech startup, Plentina, is leveraging machine learning and retail partnerships to help rebuild that trust. Plentina closed…
Malacañang expressed optimism that the Chinese vessels in the West Philippine Sea will leave “soon” due to the close friendship between the Philippines and China. “Inaasahan po natin na ‘yung malapit na pagkakaibigan natin, magiging dahilan kung bakit sila ay aalis ng maaga kaysa nang mas matagal (We expect that the close friendship will be…
A LOCAL beach in Pagudpud, Ilocos Norte in the Philippines has been hailed as one of the world’s most beautiful by an internationally renowned travel magazine. New York-based Travel + Leisure on Monday, April 12, included Saud Beach in its “25 Most Beautiful Beaches in the World” list. It is the only Philippine beach to…
PHILIPPINE Secretary Delfin Lorenzana and his U.S. counterpart Lloyd Austin III over the weekend discussed the situation in the West Philippine Sea. During a telephone conference on Sunday, April 11, the two officials discussed recent developments in regional security, adding that they were looking forward to this year’s joint military exercises after it was cancelled…
