General

Batangas: The Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) has begun investigating the alleged overloading incident involving a roll-on, roll-off (RoRo) vessel at the Batangas Port. According to Philippine News Agency, the concerned vessel departed from the Batangas Port heading to the Port of Odiongan in Romblon, carrying 942 passengers and 29 vehicles at about 5 p.m. on Sunday. The RoRo’s maximum passenger capacity is 1,000 individuals. However, more than 100 passengers were reportedly left behind after the shipping line sold tickets beyond the ship’s capacity. The PCG coordinated with the concerned shipping company and was informed that an additional vessel intended for

Ilocos Norte: Ilocos Norte province is poised to bolster its agricultural sector with the construction of small water impounding dams, farm reservoirs, and solar-powered irrigation systems, all aimed at mitigating the impacts of climate change on farmers. A significant PHP305-million People’s Survival Fund (PSF) from the Climate Change Commission will be allocated for this initiative, officially titled the Ilocos Norte Climate Resilient Intervention Towards Sustainable Agriculture and Natural Resource Management. According to Philippine News Agency, this marks the first time Ilocos Norte has secured a grant from the PSF, which is dedicated to enhancing community resilience against environmental challenges such

Manila: Mandarin-speaking agents are now available to cater to Chinese tourists when they call the government-funded Tourist Assistance Call Center, the Department of Tourism (DOT) said Tuesday. The language is an addition to the English-, Filipino- and Korean-speaking call center agents since the creation of the call center in October 2023. According to Philippine News Agency, the DOT said the Tourist Assistance Call Center, with hotline 151-TOUR or 151-8687, would remain “active and live” during the Holy Week break. “With a total of four languages already available, the Department of Tourism’s Tourist Assistance Call Center aims to fulfill a key

Manila: Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) Commissioner Romeo Lumagui on Tuesday expressed confidence that the agency would reach its PHP3.23-trillion collection target this year amid the strengthened drive to encourage taxpayers to pay their dues. According to Philippine News Agency, preliminary figures for the first quarter of the year show that revenues as of end-March reached PHP668.79 billion, which is PHP3.2 million short of the PHP671.99-billion goal for the quarter. This indicates an improvement over the PHP593-billion revenue from the same period last year. Commissioner Lumagui noted that for 2025, the target remains PHP3.23 trillion. He expressed optimism that the

Manila: The Department of Education (DepEd) on Tuesday announced that it is ramping up efforts and collaborating with other government agencies to address the rising incidences of bullying in schools across the country. According to Philippine News Agency, DepEd Secretary Sonny Angara spearheaded the largest executive committee meeting to date, focusing on the troubling increase in bullying incidents within public schools. Angara emphasized the importance of prioritizing this issue, calling for a comprehensive approach that extends beyond school grounds to include households and communities. Currently, reported bullying cases have increased to 2,500 for the Academic Year 2024-2025, up from 2,268