General

Iligan City: The city government on Thursday assured it is pushing forward with the completion of the new Pala-o Public Market through a newly contracted third-party firm while awaiting a ruling from the Court of Appeals (CA). According to Philippines News Agency, the pending case at the CA involves the city and the original contractor, BM Marketing, which was initially awarded PHP583 million for the project. The City Legal Office (CLO) alleged that BM Marketing failed to meet contract specifications, and an inspection conducted under Mayor Frederick Siao’s administration found the market to be only 69.05 percent complete, significantly lower

Hong Kong: The Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) has partnered with the Hong Kong Police Force to strengthen the protection of overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) amid an alarming surge in debt-related distress and suicide cases among them. Migrant Workers Secretary Hans Leo Cacdac announced that the DMW is intensifying support initiatives, particularly for OFWs burdened by unmanageable debt and predatory lending practices abroad, specifically in the Chinese special administrative region. According to Philippines News Agency, the collaboration with the Hong Kong Police aims to address the growing number of cases involving OFWs trapped in high-interest loans. Cacdac explained that while

Manila: The Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) on Thursday reported a 22.5 percent increase in annual income tax return (ITR) filings this year, attributing it to its early tax awareness campaign and digitalization efforts. During an interview on PTV-4’s Bagong Pilipinas Ngayon, BIR Commissioner Romeo Lumagui Jr. said the increase was seen from January through the April 15 deadline, with fewer people physically visiting revenue offices. According to Philippines News Agency, the increase was due to the early kickoff of the tax awareness campaign in February, now officially designated as ‘Tax Awareness Month,” as well as the improved implementation of

Manila: The Marcos administration will look for funding sources to bankroll the nationwide implementation of its PHP20-per-kg. rice initiative, Malaca±ang said on Thursday. Speaking to Palace reporters, Presidential Communications Office Undersecretary and Palace Press Officer Claire Castro said the government is addressing the logistics issues to make the PHP20 per kg. of rice available throughout the country. According to Philippines News Agency, the national government aims to implement the program until the end of Marcos’ term in 2028, even without the help of the local government units (LGUs). ‘Sa susunod pong taon, nanaisin po natin na mabigyan po ng sapat

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