Year: 2024

A New People’s Army (NPA) guerrilla was killed in a clash with the 26th Infantry Battalion (26IB) on Tuesday in the hinterlands of San Luis town, Agusan del Sur province. The 4th Infantry Division (4ID) reported Wednesday that 26IB troops were conducting a military operation in Sitio Tamyang, Barangay Binicalan when they encountered around 50 rebels from the Headquarters Force NEO and Regional Sentro De Gravidad Compaq of the NPA’s North Central Mindanao Regional Committee (NCMRC). The troops recovered a Bushmaster M4 rifle, ammunition, and personal items. The slain NPA member’s identity is still being verified. 4ID Commander, Maj. Gen.

An official of the National Security Council (NSC) is hoping that the agency’s proposed budget for 2025 will not be slashed, citing its effects to peace and development projects nationwide. In his message during the Bagong Pilipinas National Security Roadshow at the Baguio Convention Center here on Wednesday, National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC) Executive Director Ernesto Torres Jr. said there are 780 proposed projects for the Barangay Development Projects (BDP) for 2025. BDPs are identified by the communities as their priority needs and these include farm-to-market roads, school buildings, water supply and sanitation, health stations,

MANILA: Malacañang on Wednesday announced the suspension of work in government offices and classes at all levels in Luzon on Thursday due to expected heavy rains from Severe Tropical Storm Kristine (international name Trami). The Office of the Executive Secretary (OES) said work in government and classes in schools are ordered suspended on Thursday following the recommendation of the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC). The NDRRMC made the recommendation, because of the ‘forecasted continuous heavy rainfall due to Severe Tropical Storm Kristine, and to aid in the rescue and relief operations of the government.’ The OES initially

MANILA: The Cagayan de Oro-based company Rizome was feted with a US Department of State award for its pioneering use of engineered bamboo as a sustainable construction material in the Philippines. The American company is among the six firms that won the 2024 Secretary of State’s Award for Corporate Excellence (ACE), bagging recognition in the ‘Climate Resilience’ category. Rizome is the first company to produce a wide array of bamboo building products from its flagship project in the Philippines. It uses innovative technology to create a sustainable alternative to other construction materials, while reforesting with fast-growing bamboo. State Department Special

Senator Ronald ‘Bato’ Dela Rosa denied any involvement in the so-called Davao Death Squad (DDS) and questioned its existence, calling it a media creation used to describe killings of drug personalities. Dela Rosa made the statement in a press briefing on Wednesday during the Defense and Sporting Arms Show at the SMX Convention Center, addressing recent claims made by former Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO) general manager Royina Garma. In an affidavit submitted to the House Quad Committee investigating extrajudicial killings, Garma confirmed the existence of the DDS, citing her experience as a Davao City police officer. ‘It was propagated