Day: October 22, 2024

Manila: Interior Secretary Jonvic Remulla on Tuesday said he is pushing for changes in the organizational structure of the Philippine National Police (PNP), including trimming down the number of police generals from over 130 to just 25. In a Palace press briefing, Remulla, installed as the new Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) Secretary two weeks ago, said addressing the ‘top-heavy’ police organization will be among his priorities. ‘There are a lot of generals without commands. Mayroon tayong APC, area police commands, na wala naman tao sa ilalim nila. So, marami tayong lugar na redundancies na kailangan i-trim

Manila: The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas’ (BSP) Monetary Board approved USD3.81 billion public sector foreign borrowings in the third quarter of the year. Data released by the BSP on Tuesday showed the public sector’s foreign borrowings from July to September this year went up by 36 percent from the USD2.81 billion in the same period last year. The borrowings include one bond issuance amounting to USD2.50 billion, two project loans worth USD535.97 million, and one program loan amounting to USD778.59 million. The bond issuance will be used to fund the government’s general budget financing and financing or refinancing of assets

Manila: Former president Rodrigo R. Duterte is planning to attend the Senate inquiry into his administration’s war on drugs, Senator Ronald “Bato” Dela Rosa assured on Tuesday. “The former President told me that he is going to attend the Senate hearing regardless of who is presiding,” dela Rosa told reporters in a Viber message. He earlier said Duterte will attend the investigation if he is the one who will invite the former president “because he’s more comfortable with the Senate compared to the House of Representatives.” Dela Rosa also dismissed calls for him and Senator Christopher Go to file an

Manila: Former president Rodrigo R. Duterte on Tuesday skipped the House quad committee’s (quadcom) hearing on the extrajudicial killings (EJKs) tied to his anti-drug campaign, citing health reasons. Duterte’s lawyer, Martin Delgra III, informed the mega-panel in a letter that the former president could not attend the hearing because he was not feeling well. ‘Unfortunately, despite his keen intention to attend, my client respectfully manifests that he cannot attend the public hearing set on 22 October 2024. Aside from the short notice given him, my client just arrived in Davao from Metro Manila last 17 October 2024. Considering his advanced

Manila: The National Irrigation Administration (NIA) on Tuesday assured preparations for the possible effects of Tropical Storm Kristine. During the Kapihan sa Bagong Pilipinas briefing, NIA Administrator Eduardo Guillen said regional offices are activated to immediately provide aid to farmers who will be affected. ‘Of course, ang ating utos ngayon sa regional directors na i-advise iyong mga farmers natin na (we instructed our regional directors to advise farmers to) harvest early,’ he said. ‘Iyong mga malalaking dams natin kapag mapupuno na… mag-pre-release sila para kapag may malakas man na ulan, makatulong pa rin (Our big dams, when they are nearly