Cebu province has been downgraded from stricter modified enhanced community quarantine to general community quarantine “with heightened restrictions,” Malacañang said on Sunday. Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque said President Rodrigo Roa Duterte approved the recommendation of the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-EID) to place Cebu province under GCQ from Aug. 1 to 15. “Cebu Province now under GCQ with heightened restrictions until Aug. 15,” Roque said in a statement. Last Friday, Roque announced that Cebu province and its city have been upgraded to MECQ until Aug. 15 “subject to further appeals by their local government

Residents and officials of Ilocos Norte look forward to converting discarded plastic materials into ecobricks which are even more durable than regular hollow blocks for construction projects. An eco hub facility will soon rise for this purpose in Sitio Bato, Barangay Tonoton of Piddig town, a joint undertaking of the Ayala-led renewable energy corporation, Green Antz Builders, with the provincial and municipal governments. Once fully operational, the facility, which broke ground last Friday, will be collecting and reusing discarded plastic materials and transform them into valuable resources like ecobricks for houses and buildings. Estrella “Baby” Sacro, head of the provincial

Over PHP100 million in assistance were distributed to more than 9,000 vulnerable workers from various municipalities of Mountain Province under the Tulong Panghanapbuhay sa Ating Disavantaged/Displaced Workers (TUPAD) program of the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) on Saturday. DOLE’s flagship TUPAD program provides emergency employment to informal sector workers affected by calamities or disasters, especially the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic. Worker-beneficiaries from five towns in the province trooped to Sabangan where the ceremonial payout of cash assistance was held and attended by provincial and town officials. Secretary Silvestre Bello III was joined by other DOLE officials from its national and

The National Capital Region (NCR) Plus travel bubble started Sunday in compliance with Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF) Resolution No. 130-A that placed added and heightened restrictions prior to the two-week enhanced community quarantine (ECQ). Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) Secretary Eduardo Año on Sunday said quarantine control points (QCP) manned by combined elements of the Philippine National Police (PNP), Armed Forces of the Philippines, Philippine Coast Guard, and the Bureau of Fire Protection will be placed at the borders of Bulacan, Rizal, Laguna and Cavite. As per the IATF resolution, only authorized persons outside of residence (APORs)

Men’s middleweight boxer Eumir Marcial assured the Philippines of its third Olympic medal this year after knocking out Armenian opponent Arman Darchinyan in their quarterfinal meeting on Sunday at the Kokugikan Arena in Tokyo. Just like his tournament opener against Algerian opponent Younes Nemochi, Marcial did not take long to finish off Darchinyan. Marcial quickly went on the offensive right after the opening bell, forcing Darchinyan to be on the defensive mode. The first breakthrough came right at the midway point of Round 1 when referee Wulfren Olivares had seen enough of Marcial’s quick combination on Darchinyan and made a