President Rodrigo R. Duterte is currently observing mandatory quarantine protocols after exposure to a household staff who tested positive for Covid-19, Malacañang said on Thursday. “The Palace confirms that President Rodrigo Roa Duterte was recently exposed to household staff who tested positive for Covid-19. The President has since been tested for Covid-19, and while the results of the test came back negative, he is currently observing mandatory quarantine protocols,” Cabinet Secretary Karlo Nograles, acting presidential spokesperson, said in a statement. Nograles said Duterte’s last day of exposure to a Covid-19 positive case was last January 30. “His RT-PCR (reverse transcription-polymerase

Northern Samar is beefing up its measures to contain the African swine fever (ASF) as the disease continues to spread to new areas in the province this week. The inclusion of Catubig town in the list of areas with ASF infection has alarmed local authorities prompting the discussion of strategies on how to control or prevent the spread of ASF in their respective towns, said Northern Samar provincial information officer John Allen Berbon in a phone interview Thursday. “Among the recommendations from the office of the provincial veterinarian are the strict enforcement of biosecurity measures in the communities and border

The Northern Negros State College of Science and Technology (NONESCOST) in Sagay City, Negros Occidental is on its way to becoming the State University of Northern Negros (SUN-Negros), following the Senate’s approval of House Bill (HB) 10283 for its conversion. In a statement on Wednesday night, the city government said Second District Rep. Leo Rafael Cueva and Mayor Alfredo Marañon III thanked Senator Joel Villanueva, chairman of the Senate committee on higher, and technical and vocational education, for sponsoring the bill passed during the third and final reading on January 31. “This is just one step into becoming a law,”

As the country observes Civil Registration Month this February, the Philippine Statistics Authority in Bicol (PSA-5) is encouraging the public to verify their birth records with their respective local civil registry offices. Cynthia L. Perdiz, regional director of PSA-Bicol, on Thursday highlighted the importance of civil registration, including the rights and privileges of a citizen. In a radio interview, she said a birth certificate can establish civil status that will serve as an individual’s identity and filiation with his or her parents and other people, starting from the time the person goes to school until he or she gets a

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has released the draft memorandum circular that will implement a cap on interest rates and other fees by lending and financing companies, and their online lending platforms (OLPs). The proposed guidelines, released on January 27 for public comment, will operationalize Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) Circular No. 1133 Series of 2021, which prescribes the maximum interest rates and other fees charged by lending and financing companies, and their OLPs. The BSP fixed the maximum nominal interest rate at 6 percent per month, or about 0.2 percent per day, and the effective interest rate (EIR)

State-owned Development Bank of the Philippines (DBP) has approved a PHP2.5-billion credit assistance to Innov Block Development Corporation (IBDC) to finance the ongoing construction and completion of The Limketkai Podium –a lifestyle and commercial mall located in the northern part of Caloocan City. DBP president and chief executive officer Emmanuel Herbosa said the mall is set to develop a “Tiangge” center within its premises that can accommodate over 1,300 stalls for micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) looking for a viable site to cater to the needs of their target market. “We have been continually supporting infrastructure projects that can