Day: October 11, 2024

Manila: After three straight months of power rate hikes, the Manila Electric Company (Meralco) on Friday announced lower electricity rates in October. In a statement, Meralco said the rate this month will decrease by PHP0.3587 per kilowatt hour (kWh) to PHP11.4295 per kWh from PHP11.7882 per kWh in September. Lower charges from the Wholesale Electricity Spot Market (WESM) have driven the reduction in electricity prices this month. ‘WESM charges decreased by PHP5.1001 per kWh following the completion last month of the collection of deferred May 2024 costs ordered by the Energy Regulatory Commission,’ Meralco said. ‘Also contributing to the reduction

Malasiqui: Rate of price increases in the Ilocos Region slowed to 0.6 percent in September this year from 1.8 percent in August primarily due to sufficient food supply, according to authorities. Philippine Statistics Authority – Ilocos Region supervising statistical specialist Teresa Olarte said in a virtual forum on Friday that food and non-alcoholic beverages’ share to the downtrend in inflation in September was 80 percent, while transport contributed 20 percent. Inflation rate for food and non-alcoholic beverages decreased from 2.8 percent in August to -0.3 percent in September. Under the food groups, the inflation rate from August to September of

Cotabato: Anti-narcotics agents intercepted a village councilor in Jolo, Sulu during a drug bust on Thursday, seizing PHP20 million worth of shabu. Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency Director Gil Cesario Castro of the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) said 46-year-old ‘Yusop’ of Barangay Lakit, Panamao, Sulu was caught in Barangay Tulay after selling drugs to a poseur buyer. An accomplice fled after realizing they were dealing with undercover agents. Authorities recovered three vacuum-sealed packages of shabu weighing around three kilograms, along with the buy-bust money, mobile phones and a motorcycle. Yusop, a high-value target, remained in custody awaiting charges

Manila: PAL (Philippine Airlines) Express will launch daily flights between Manila and Cauayan, Isabela beginning Jan. 15, 2025, shortening travel time to and from northern Luzon to an hour compared to 10 hours by land. “Philippine Airlines looks forward to serving the people of Isabela province with our daily flights as our latest investment in building connectivity between key cities in Luzon for the benefit of local tourism and economic growth,” PAL Express president Rabbi Vincent Ang said in a statement on Friday. PAL will utilize an 86-seater De Havilland Dash 8-400 Next Generation aircraft for the Manila-Cauayan flights. The

Manila: The Philippine Army (PA) on Friday said it would not condone wrongdoings of its personnel following a shooting spree that day before. A soldier shot dead three people inside the 5th Infantry Division headquarters at Camp Melchor Dela Cruz, Upi, Gamu, Isabela on Thursday afternoon. Initial police investigation identified the arrested suspect as Sgt. Mark Angelo Ajel, assigned to the 503rd Infantry Brigade based in Tabuk City, Kalinga. The victims were the suspect’s wife, Erlinda, and mother-in-in-law, Lolita Ramos, and van driver Rolando Amaba. The suspect was immediately arrested while the victims were taken to a hospital. Amaba died