Category: General

Manila: The Quezon City government said it would give PHP10 million in assistance to nine local government units (LGUs) in the Bicol region that were devastated by Severe Tropical Storm Kristine (international name Trami) last week. In a Facebook post on Wednesday, Vice Mayor Gian Sotto said the City Council approved Resolution No. SP-9833 S-2024, authorizing Mayor Joy Belmonte to extend financial assistance and donate P10 million to severely affected municipalities city in the region. ‘Severe Tropical Storm Kristine has caused extensive damage across the Province of Camarines Sur and Albay, affecting numerous municipalities, displacing residents, and significantly impacting local

Manila: The Philippine Ports Authority (PPA) has placed all its ports nationwide under ‘full alert’ to cater to the over 1.6 million passengers expected during Undas (All Saints’ Day) and to monitor Super Typhoon Leon (international name Kong-rey). PPA spokesperson Eunice Samonte on Friday said around 200,000 passengers are expected to flock to PPA ports within the day alone for the yearly Undas exodus. Some of the busiest ports, she said, will be the ports of Panay, Batangas, Mindoro, Negros Oriental, and Bohol. To date, she said there are no stranded passengers in any PPA ports, but some domestic sea

Manila: Leon (international name Kong-Rey) further intensified into a super typhoon as it continues to threaten extreme Northern Luzon, the weather bureau said Wednesday. The cyclone packs maximum sustained winds of 185 km. per hour (kph) near the center and gustiness of up to 230 kph, according to the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration’s (PAGASA) 11 a.m. bulletin. Leon was located 350 km. east of Calayan, Cagayan as of 10 a.m. More areas were placed under tropical cyclone wind signal (TCWS) no. 3 namely Batanes, the eastern portion of Babuyan Islands (Babuyan Is., Camiguin Is., Calayan Is.), and

Manila: Senator Imee Marcos said Wednesday the public deserves transparency on what happened to the PHP132 billion allocated since 2018 for flood control in Bicol after continued severe flooding in the region. ‘It is unacceptable that PHP132 billion has been designated for Bicol flood control projects, yet communities remain inundated, and families are suffering. The public deserves transparency on where these funds went,’ Marcos said in a news release. Based on the 2024 General Appropriations Act, Bicol received PHP31.94 billion this year alone, bringing the six-year total to nearly PHP133 billion. Of this amount, Marcos said more than PHP86.6 billion

Manila: Lawmakers lauded on Wednesday the Marcos administration’s shift in anti-drug policy, with focus on apprehending and rehabilitating drug suspects rather than ‘neutralizing’ them. In a news release, House quad committee lead chair Robert Ace Barbers and co-chair Dan Fernandez said the current administration’s campaign against illegal drugs is “bloodless,” a deviation from former president Rodrigo Duterte’s bloody war on drugs. Barbers said President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr.’s anti-drug campaign shifted its focus to respect human rights and high-impact operations. ‘The present national leadership values and respects the sanctity of life,’ he said. Barbers particularly cited recent Philippine National Police