Day: September 24, 2024

An Abu Sayyaf Group (ASG) member involved in the infamous Lamitan siege in 2000 and with a PHP600,000 bounty for his capture was arrested by authorities in Basilan province, the police said Tuesday. Brigadier General Bowenn Joey Masauding, Police Regional Office-Zamboanga Peninsula (PRO-9) director, identified the arrested ASG member as Mobin Kullin, who has been hiding for over a decade. Masauding said Kullin was arrested in an operation on Monday in Barangay Tabiawan, Isabela City, the capital of Basilan province. ‘The PRO-9, together with our partner agencies, are focused on arresting individuals facing cases, especially those involved in terrorism and

Manila: A disbarment complaint was filed Tuesday before the Supreme Court (SC) against former presidential spokesperson Harry Roque in connection with his posts on social media. Former Duterte administration acting Cabinet secretary Melvin Matibag said he filed the complaint to give the high court an opportunity to set definite rules on the proper use of social media platforms by lawyers. “He is a friend. I cannot give you a copy of the complaint under the rules but hopefully this will provide an opportunity for the court to give guidelines on how officers of the court can use social media,” Matibag

The city government of Surigao is conducting a weeklong tourism campaign to highlight its cultural heritage, local creative industries, and economic potential. The 2024 National Tourism Week and Creative Industries Month in Sept. 23 to 27 will showcase local craftsmanship, foods, and goods from the city and nearby municipalities in Surigao del Norte. ‘The weeklong activity will also highlight creative festival performances and exhibits of our local artists,’ the city government said in a statement on Tuesday. City Tourism Officer Roselyn Merlin said the activities will promote Surigao City’s local creative industries to attract more tourists. The ‘Lunsod-Lunsad’ program, in

Manila: The number of Chinese ships spotted in the West Philippine Sea (WPS) from Sept. 17 to 23 has climbed to 251, higher than the 157 vessels detected from Sept. 10 to 16, the Philippine Navy (PN) said in a report Tuesday. This is the highest concentration of Chinese ships in the WPS so far this year, the Navy said. In an interview, Navy spokesperson for the WPS, Rear Admiral Roy Vincent Trinidad, attributed the sudden spike in the number of Chinese vessels to better weather conditions. He added that each time there is a weather disturbance, the number of

Affordable housing projects are up for implementation in two cities and four towns in Eastern Visayas, targeting to provide houses to 4,120 low-income earners in the region. The Department of Human Settlements and Urban Development (DHSUD) said the projects are in Ormoc City, MacArthur, Alangalang and Mahaplag in Leyte province; Catbalogan City in Samar; and Guiuan in Eastern Samar. Local governments are tasked with identifying beneficiaries who can afford to pay the monthly amortization in the six sites covered by the Pambansang Pabahay Para sa Pilipino (4PH) program. The project is funded by a private housing developer supervised by DHSUD.