Day: September 4, 2025

Manila: Malaca±ang on Thursday called on government agencies to revisit their respective spending plans for 2026 to check for any possible budget insertions. In a press briefing, Palace Press Officer Claire Castro said other agencies should take the initiative to review their budget proposals in the 2026 National Expenditure Program to correct any discrepancies and prevent insertions. According to Philippines News Agency, the call was made a day after President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. ordered the sweeping review of the Department of Public Works and Highways’ (DPWH) proposed 2026 budget to make the necessary corrections, following concerns over double entries

Manila: The Department of Health (DOH) is seeking a PHP260.2-billion budget for 2026 to accelerate the implementation of Universal Health Care (UHC) across the country, with a focus on hospital services expansion, health facilities improvement, and preventive care programs. According to Philippines News Agency, Health Secretary Teodoro Herbosa emphasized during a budget hearing by the House of Representatives’ Committee on Appropriations that Filipinos should have experienced the benefits of UHC since its enactment in 2019. However, the DOH is still in the process of enhancing systems and services in hospitals and communities. He stated that the proposed increase in the

Manila: Malaca±ang on Thursday dismissed as a mere ‘wild imagination’ the insinuations that the Marcos administration is hatching a plan to jail Vice President Sara Duterte and her allies before the 2028 presidential race. Palace Press Officer Claire Castro stated that Duterte and her political allies, including Senator Imee Marcos, need not worry because there is no such plan, labeling the accusations as creations of “fertile and wild imagination.” According to Philippines News Agency, Duterte earlier expressed concerns that the Marcos administration seems to be ‘orchestrating something behind the scenes,’ especially while public attention is focused on the ongoing investigation

Manila: The Philippine Navy (PN) on Thursday reported the monitoring of two Chinese warships near Bajo de Masinloc in the West Philippine Sea (WPS). According to Philippines News Agency, the two warships, belonging to China’s People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN), were detected 40 nautical miles southeast of Bajo de Masinloc, as stated by PN spokesperson for the WPS, Rear Admiral Roy Vincent Trinidad. Trinidad informed reporters that these vessels were observed during the 10th Multilateral Maritime Cooperative Activity (MMCA), which involved the US Navy, the Royal Canadian Navy, the Royal Australian Navy, and the PN. The naval exercises took place

Manila: The Department of Human Settlements and Urban Development (DHSUD) and its attached agencies defended the proposed National Expenditure Program (NEP) for 2026 during budget deliberations at the House of Representatives, despite receiving a fraction of the funding they had requested. According to Philippines News Agency, the attached agencies include the National Housing Authority (NHA), Social Housing Finance Corporation (SHFC), National Home Mortgage Finance Corporation (NHMFC), Human Settlements Adjudication Commission (HSAC), and Pag-IBIG Fund. They initially proposed PHP225 billion for 2026 but were allocated only PHP5.562 billion. In a news release, the DHSUD said Secretary Jose Ramon Aliling led housing