Day: August 11, 2025

Manila: The Commission on Elections (Comelec) plans to request an additional PHP4 billion from Congress if the Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan Elections (BSKE) are postponed to next year. According to Philippines News Agency, Comelec Chairperson George Garcia highlighted the need for this supplementary budget to accommodate nearly 2.8 million new voters who registered during the recent 10-day voter registration period for the BSKE. Garcia explained that although the current PHP11 billion budget remains untouched, the potential reset necessitates additional funds for new ballots, precincts, and other election-related expenses, including salaries for teachers and procurement of election materials. Garcia emphasized that

Manila: The government is unlikely to extend the 60-day suspension on rice imports, Finance Secretary Ralph Recto said Monday. “The only reason for the suspension essentially is because it’s harvest season,” Recto stated at the sidelines of the 2025 Economic Journalists Association of the Philippines Economic Forum. According to Philippines News Agency, last week, President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. ordered a 60-day suspension of all rice importation starting September 1, 2025, to protect local farmers during the peak of the harvest season. The temporary suspension aims to help stabilize local palay prices and ensure farmers are not undercut by the

Tacloban: The Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) has warned against consuming shellfish taken from Cancabato Bay here after filtered water samples turned positive for red tide toxins. According to Philippines News Agency, in an advisory issued Monday, BFAR reported that paralytic shellfish toxin was found during laboratory examination by the BFAR regional office. As a precaution, the public is advised to refrain from gathering, selling, and eating all types of shellfish and Acetes sp., locally known as Alamang or Hipon, from this bay. Markets in Taiwan and Hong Kong regularly receive cockle clams from Cancabato Bay, highlighting the

Bacolod: Drug enforcement teams of the Bacolod City Police Office (BCPO) seized PHP4.76 million in shabu in a series of buy-busts between Sunday night and early Monday morning. ‘I commend the operatives for their dedication and commitment in the fight against illegal drugs in Bacolod City,’ BCPO Director Col. Joeresty Coronica said in a statement. According to Philippines News Agency, each gram of shabu has a standard drug price of PHP6,800 per gram. On Monday, operatives of the City Drug Enforcement Unit (CDEU) recovered 100 grams of shabu worth PHP680,000 minutes past midnight at Bangga Vista Alegre, Barangay Mansilingan. Suspects

Manila: Leptospirosis cases in the country are unlikely to rise in the coming days, as recent data shows a plateau in the number of cases daily, a Department of Health (DOH) official stated. According to Philippines News Agency, in a Bagong Pilipinas Ngayon interview, DOH spokesperson Albert Domingo explained that the incubation period for leptospirosis ranges from two to 30 days, with cases typically increasing one to two weeks after flooding. This explained the rise of leptospirosis cases in the National Kidney and Transplant Institute, Philippine General Hospital, and the San Lazaro Hospital. Domingo shared that the good news is