MANILA – The average daily number of new Covid-19 cases in the National Capital Region (NCR) is down by 17 percent for the period June 4 to 10, 2021, the OCTA Research Group reported Friday. From 1,116 the previous period, the past week averaged 926 daily. In its latest monitoring, OCTA said the reproduction number in Metro Manila over the same period was 0.72 and the average daily attack rate (ADAR) was 6.7, meaning the risk level in the region is now “moderate”. The positivity rate in NCR also decreased to 8 percent and the hospital care utilization rate (HCUR)
MANILA – The Sandiganbayan anti-graft court on Friday found four individuals guilty for the falsification of a construction project in Bataan in 2004. In a 38-page decision written by Associate Justice Efren Dela Cruz, the Sandiganbayan sentenced Provincial Engineer Amelia De Pano, Assistant Provincial Engineer Angelito Rodriguez, field engineer Noel Jimenez, and architect Bernard Capistrano III to up to eight years in prison. The four were convicted for falsely making it appear that the construction of a mini-theater at the Bataan State College satellite campus in Abucay town has been completed and fully accomplished in accordance with the plans and
MANILA – People residing in the National Capital Region (NCR) Plus can now visit gyms and historical sites, Malacañang said on Friday. This, after the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-EID) approved Thursday the partial reopening of gyms and other indoor non-contact sports, as well as the historical sites and museums, in NCR Plus. Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque, also acting as IATF-EID spokesperson, said indoor non-contact sports can operations at “30 percent” of the venue capacity. “The Inter-Agency Task Force on Thursday, June 10, 2021, allowed the opening of indoor non-contact sports venues with Safety
MANILA – Coastal areas in seven provinces are positive for red tide, the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) said on Friday. The latest results indicated paralytic shellfish poison (PSP), or the toxin that causes red tide, is beyond the regulatory limit. The affected areas are the coastal waters of Dauis and Tagbilaran City in Bohol; Tambobo Bay, Siaton in Negros Oriental; Daram Island, and Zumarraga, Cambututay, Irong-irong, San Pedro, Maqueda and Villareal Bays in Western Samar; Calubian, Carigara and Ormoc Bays, and Cancabato Bay, Tacloban City, Leyte; Balite Bay, Mati Bay in Davao Oriental; Murcielagos Bay in Zamboanga
MANILA – The seven police officers who were charged with the killing of Calbayog City, Samar Mayor Ronaldo Aquino have been placed under restrictive custody. “I also directed the Regional Director, Police Regional Office 8 and Director, Integrity Monitoring and Enforcement Group (IMEG) to place implicated PNP (Philippine National Police) personnel under their restrictive custody,” PNP chief, Gen. Guillermo Eleazar said in a statement on Friday. He said this is to ensure the availability of seven police personnel for any further investigation on the incident. “Parusahan kung sino ang dapat parusahan (Punish who should be punished) but in the meantime,
MANILA – The resumption of peace talks between the Government of the Philippines (GPH) and the National Democratic Front of the Philippines (NDFP) is an “exercise in futility” at this time. The Office of the Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process (OPAPP), in a statement on Friday, rejected the renewed call to reopen the GPH-NDFP peace panel in the wake of continued attacks by communist terrorist groups (CTGs). “As these recent spates of attacks will bear us out, we believe the resumption of national peace talks at this point is an exercise in futility, given that the implementation of Executive
