Day: September 19, 2024

ZAMBOANGA CITY – Police nabbed three individuals, including a police officer and a Philippine Coast Guard member, and seized PHP13.6 million worth of shabu in an anti-drug operation here, authorities said Thursday. Col. Romeo Espero Jr., deputy regional director for operations of the Police Regional Office-Zamboanga Peninsula (PRO-9), identified the suspects as Staff Sergeant Siddih Aliuddin Jr., 44; Seaman First Class Mohammad Abbas, 30; and Mardie, Aliuddin’s wife and Abbas’ sister. ‘It took several days to convince them to finalize the transaction as they were elusive,’ Espero said during a local radio interview. The trio was apprehended during a buy-bust

Manila: The Department of Health (DOH) on Thursday said the country has logged 4,575 cases of leptospirosis from Jan. 1 to Sept. 7, eleven percent higher compared to the 4,112 cases recorded for the same period last year. Some 393 deaths were logged among the cases this year, which is 17 percent lower than the 475 deaths in the same period last year. While the overall tally of cases is higher this year, the DOH noted that there is a decreasing trend in leptospirosis cases in the recent weeks. “From 1,726 cases reported from July 28 to August 10, 2024,

Manila: The Department of Agriculture (DA) on Thursday said it is seeking to secure more funding for investments in the agriculture sector. ‘Your department is working at finding other funding sources from official development partners to implement necessary and relevant interventions needed to address critical sectoral and institutional challenges and investment gaps,’ DA Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. said in a statement. He said the DA has lobbied for infrastructure projects to the French government, particularly farm-to-market roads and bridges. The proposal aims to address the infrastructure gaps for efficient links, transport, and distribution of agricutural commodities, he said. He

Manila: Finance Secretary Ralph Recto has urged Singaporean investors to explore investment opportunities in the country’s infrastructure flagship projects. In his speech during the 4th Philippine-Singapore Business and Investment Summit (PSBIS) held on Thursday at Shangri-La, Singapore, Recto also assured investors that the much-anticipated enactment of the Corporate Recovery and Tax Incentives for Enterprises to Maximize Opportunities for Reinvigorating the Economy (CREATE MORE) will make doing business in the Philippines smoother. “The new amendments to the country’s fiscal incentives regime -known as CREATE MORE- are designed to attract even more Singaporean investors to lay down roots and flourish in the

Manila: The Commission on Elections (Comelec) on Thursday temporarily suspended the holding of plebiscites, as well as Special Sangguniang Kabataan Elections (SKSE) for the rest of 2024 until next year. In Comelec Resolution No. 11054 , the Commission en banc decided to delay such electoral exercises to focus on the holding three electoral exercises in 2025 — the midterm elections and the Bangsamoro parliamentary elections in May and the Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan Elections (BSKE) in December. “The forthcoming year 2025 is referred to as a ‘Super Election Year’ since three elections are about to take place… after the 2025