Day: April 24, 2025

Vatican City: Vatican Secretary of State Pietro Parolin of Italy and Filipino Luis Antonio Tagle are leading the field of ‘papabili’ tipped to succeed the late Pope Francis, British bookmakers are saying. The Italian is currently favored with a 35 percent chance, while the Filipino holds a 25 percent chance. According to Philippines News Agency, other contenders in the top ranks include Hungarian Peter Erdo, Portuguese Jose Tolentino, and two other Italians-Matteo Zuppi of Bologna and Pierbattista Pizzaballa, the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem. African cardinals Fridolin Ambongo Besungu, Peter Turkson, and Robert Sarah are also in the mix as potential

Vatican City: Over 100,000 faithful were making their way to St. Peter’s Basilica on Wednesday to pay their final respects to the late Pope Francis, according to police reports. St. Peter’s Square was steadily filling with mourners arriving from Via della Conciliazione and surrounding streets, all seeking to take part in the solemn tribute. According to Philippines News Agency, security services monitoring the area estimated that the crowd in the square had reached close to 100,000 people as of their latest count. Pope Francis passed away on April 21 at the age of 88. His body, lying in state in

Manila: The streaming views of the drama “Conclave” by Edward Berger, starring Ralph Fiennes, have surged by 283 percent following the death of Pope Francis, as reported by the tallying site Luminate on Wednesday. The film, which explores the intricate maneuvers of cardinals during the election of a new pope, recorded approximately 1.8 million minutes watched on April 20, the day of Francis’ passing. By the end of April 21, this figure had skyrocketed to 6.9 million minutes. According to Philippines News Agency, another film featuring a papal narrative, “The Two Popes,” directed by Brazilian filmmaker Fernando Meirelles, also experienced

Vatican City: Huge crowds continued to queue outside Saint Peter’s Basilica on Thursday to pay homage to Pope Francis as his body lies in state for the second day following his death at age 88. According to Philippines News Agency, approximately 48,600 people visited the basilica between its public opening at 11 a.m. Wednesday and 8:30 a.m. Thursday. The basilica, originally scheduled to close at midnight, remained open until 5:30 a.m. due to the overwhelming turnout. About 13,000 mourners passed through during the overnight hours. Among those who paid tribute was Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni. The late pontiff’s body

Manila: The Philippines will host the East Asia and the Pacific International Public Procurement Conference from April 28 to 30. This event will bring together more than 150 procurement experts and officials from 15 countries within the region to address pressing challenges and reforms related to government spending and transparency. President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. is scheduled to lead the opening ceremony in Manila, as announced by the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) on Thursday. According to Philippines News Agency, the conference is co-organized by the DBM, the Government Procurement Policy Board – Technical Support Office (GPPB-TSO), and the