Day: September 12, 2024

MANILA – The government on Thursday officially relieved over 1,000 agrarian reform beneficiaries (ARBs) in several towns in Bulacan of their PHP274.9 debts and obligations on agricultural lands awarded under the agrarian reform program. This as President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. led the distribution of 1,119 Certificates of Condonation and Release of Mortgage, encompassing 1,728.349 hectares of land, to the ARBs in Bulacan during a ceremony at the Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) main office in Quezon City. The ARBs are from several municipalities in Bulacan, namely San Miguel, Baliwag, San Rafael, San Ildefonso, Angat, Bustos, Norzagaray, Balagtas, Bocaue, Pandi,

MANILA – The gravity of the country’s situation in relation to its geographical location demands a responsible and sustainable approach to development, Senator Loren Legarda underscored in a statement on Thursday. This, after the Philippines topped the 2024 World Risk Index (WRI) for the third consecutive year, indicating high exposure and vulnerability to various crises. Legarda said development should be pursued with responsibility, accountability, and proficiency for good governance for the benefit of society and the economy. “Development should reduce rather than produce risks to our society and our economy,” she added. Legarda admitted that the Philippines faces significant challenges

MANILA – Senate President Francis “Chiz” Escudero on Thursday expressed hope for a resolution to the current impasse between the House of Representatives and the Office of the Vice President (OVP), and suggested that both parties should set aside their differences. The House Appropriations Committee has twice deferred deliberations of the OVP’s budget proposal for next year after Vice President Sara Duterte refused to defend the budget, alleging political attacks by some lawmakers against her. “Budget deliberations are usually boring because of the numbers and while this whole thing is adding drama and color to it, I don’t think this

ILOILO CITY – Around 1,500 residents here gained access to potable water supply with the inauguration of the 925 linear meters pipe-laying project of the Metro Pacific Iloilo Water (MPIW) in Jaro district on Thursday. The PHP7 million project will serve residents in Sitio Ilaya, Barangay Tabuc Suba, and Barangay San Isidro, including the Uswag condominium. ‘This is just one of the projects that we rolled out. We still have ongoing projects in Barangay Lanit and four more in City Proper. Our target is to expand the water availability and service coverage here in Iloilo City,’ MPIW chief operating officer

MANILA – The Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) on Thursday destroyed PHP777 million worth of dangerous drugs and controlled precursors and essential chemicals (CPECs) in Cavite province. In a statement, PDEA said these include 1,474.92 kg. of solid illegal drug substances and 378.5 milliliters (ml) of liquid narcotics destroyed through thermal decomposition or thermolysis at the Integrated Waste Management Inc. (IWMI) in Barangay Aguado in Trece Martires City. These substances are broken down into 66.72 kg. of shabu; 1,390.74 kg. of marijuana; 14.15 kg. of ecstasy; 428.44 grams of cocaine; 1.67 kg. of ephedrine; 1.07 kg. of psilocin; 206.5 ml