Manila Water posted a record high PHP13.7 billion capital expenditures (CapEx) in 2021, surpassing the PHP10.7 billion recorded in 2020. “This is the highest CapEx record since the privatization of water service in the East Zone in 1997,” Manila Water spokesperson Jeric Sevlla Jr. said in a statement on Wednesday. He said the increase in capital expenditures was achieved “despite the continued challenges posed by the Covid-19 pandemic.” Major components of the investment are the construction of new facilities and networks to expand service coverage, rehabilitation and improvement on existing assets and facilities for both water and wastewater, compliance projects
The chairman of the House Committee on Energy on Wednesday said the proposed amendments to the Downstream Oil Industry Deregulation Act would help Filipino consumers, particularly the poor and vulnerable, to cope with the surging fuel prices. Pampanga Rep. Juan Miguel Macapagal Arroyo said the panel-approved bill that would amend Republic Act 8479 would prevent oil companies from raising prices of old stock and require oil players to increase their minimum inventory to prevent fluctuations in local fuel prices. Arroyo said fuel prices continued to soar amid the Russia-Ukraine conflict that disrupted global oil supply, subjecting local fuel prices to
The Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) has proposed the grant of a three-month wage subsidy for private-sector workers, particularly for minimum wage earners, amid soaring oil prices. Speaking to President Rodrigo Duterte during his Talk to the People aired Wednesday, Labor Assistant Secretary Dominique Tutay said the subsidy with a proposed PHP24 billion funding will cover around one million workers from April to June. “With the current wages, Mr. President, now it is extremely inadequate, particularly for the minimum wage earners and the government’s economic recovery in full swing, subsidies may still be extended to vulnerable workers, particularly those
President Rodrigo Duterte has approved the recommendation of the Department of Finance (DOF) to continue collecting the excise taxes on petroleum products. This, after Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez III warned that suspending the collection of fuel excise taxes would reduce the total government revenues by PHP105.9 billion in 2022. In a prerecorded Talk to the People aired Wednesday morning, Duterte said he convened a series of meetings with Cabinet secretaries because his decision would be based on their recommendations. “The Cabinet members aren’t there for nothing. Sila ‘yung magtrabaho at ako (They will do the job, and me), I will
Authorities seized PHP110 million worth of smuggled fake luxury goods at a warehouse in Manila last week, the Bureau of Customs (BOC) reported on Wednesday. In a statement, the BOC said the team led by the Customs Intelligence and Investigation Service Field Office-Intellectual Property Rights Division (CIIS-IPRD) inspected the warehouse located at a condominium in Binondo on March 11. During the inspection, the team discovered numerous items bearing the trademarks Hermes, Christian Dior, Louis Vuitton, Gucci, Marvel, Disney, Hot Wheels, Hello Kitty, Cars, Spiderman, Toy Story, Iron Man, among others. Further investigation is underway for possible violations of the Intellectual
The Department of Finance (DOF) has rejected proposals to suspend the excise tax on fuel as a way to reduce the impact on consumers of spiraling oil prices in the world market, asserting this move would instead end up subsidizing the expenses of affluent families more than those of low-income households. Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez III informed President Rodrigo Duterte during a meeting here with Cabinet officials on Tuesday night that the suspension of fuel excise taxes would lead to a massive revenue loss of PHP105.9 billion, or about a half-percent of the country’s gross domestic product (GDP) this year.
