Community fishingFor the record, I am not a fish lover; however, I consider myself a lover of sea and sand. Of course, I was rather surprised by this, considering that the community they serve mostly belong to the blue economy, since fishing was the main source of income. Hence this is why eventually, we thought of how to establish some kind of community fishing and environmental initiative in order to help people out. It is also worth mentioning that while community fishing matters in sustaining communities, commercial fishing is also an integral component to the overall ecosystem. Community fishing is so important because it serves as the foundation of food security and at the same time, fisherfolk are able to participate in management measures that will allow their communities to thrive.

MANILA, Philippines — President Ferdinand “Bongbong” R. Marcos Jr. on Thursday bared an alternative scheme to bring down the price of rice amid proposals to amend the Rice Tariffication Law (RTL). ADVERTISEMENTMarcos said that if rice prices are high, the government would release cheap rice into the market to force the prices down. While Marcos reiterated that he would certify amendments to the RTL as urgent, he has been speaking to both the House of Representatives and the Senate. The RTL limited the National Food Authority’s role in selling rice. The proposed amendments hope to allow the said agency to sell affordable rice during times of emergency or when prices increase.

Two spam call blocker apps – “CallApp” and “Truecaller” – upload and consolidate information of the entirety of the users’ contacts into the apps’ databases, rendering it available for search by other users, the Consumer Council has found. For CallApp, the council found that it automatically uploads and integrates all contact information into the traders’ databases for other users to perform a “reverse lookup”. Truecaller also accesses and uploads users’ contact lists in a similar manner, but only when the user downloads an APK file from its official website, installs the app, and enables the “Enhanced Search Functionality”. The names and other information of these number holders are also made available for viewing without any need for approval from the relevant people. The privacy policy of CallApp stipulates that users’ personal data and unlisted data will still be stored in the developer’s backup system despite the five years retention period.

According to official data, the net pay trend indicators (PTI) for civil servants in the upper, middle, and lower salary bands are 4.01, 4.32, and 5.47 percent, respectively. Alexa Chow Yee-ping, managing director at recruitment agency ACTS Consulting, said she was surprised by the latest findings in the 2024 Pay Trend Survey Report. Civil servants had their salaries frozen when the economy was bad and the accumulative salary hikes for civil servants in certain ranks still lag behind the inflation rate. Leung Chau-ting, chair of the Federation of Civil Service Unions, hopes the government will increase civil servants’ salaries in accordance with the indicators. Read more: Govt releases latest net pay trend indicators for salary adjustments of civil servants

House panel won't invite Rodrigo Duterte to EJK probeFormer president Rodrigo Duterte and former Philippine National Police chief Ronald dela Rosa attend the funeral mass of Archbishop Emeritus Fernando Capalla at San Pedro Cathedral in Davao City on Jan. 15, 2024. "I don’t even think that if we invite (Duterte and Dela Rosa) that they will be able to attend. They were denied their rights," Abante said. Will the findings of the House human rights panel be forwarded to the ICC? Official figures put deaths from Duterte's anti-narcotics campaign at more than 6,000, but estimates from human rights groups peg the actual number of fatalities as at least 30,000.

Marcos: All Tarlac politicians don't know Alice GuoMANILA, Philippines — President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said on Thursday that no single politician from Tarlac knows Bamban Mayor Alice Guo and that the government has been investigating her for some time over her alleged dubious records. ("I know all the politicians from Tarlac, and no one knows her. Marcos said the government earlier "caught" Guo after an official raid at Bamban surfaced her questionable documents. The president did not clarify whether this raid is the same as the raid conducted on a POGO compound in Bamban. Guo's identity came into question after a Senate hearing led by Sen. Risa Hontiveros found that the Bamban mayor did not have a birth certificate.

Marcos' education priorities: Climb world rankings, keep free tuition lawPresident Marcos and Vice President and Education Secretary Sara Duterte repaint chairs in a classroom during a visit to the Victorino Mapa High School in San Miguel, Manila yesterday as part of the annual ‘Brigada Eskwela’ aimed at preparing schools for the opening of classes on Aug. 29. Marcos said during the National Higher Education Day Summit on Wednesday that "much work still needs to be done" after no Philippine university broke into the top 100 schools in THE's 2024 Asia University Rankings. But we should also allow private parties to participate and not shove private parties to the sidelines," Marcos added. "When it comes to educating our youth, government and private schools are not competitors but must be regarded as equal partners," he said. Marcos said: "We know that whatever is spent on education, we should never regard as an expenditure.

Overseas tour groups on cruise boats will be able to enter and stay in China without a visa for up to 15 days, according to the National Immigration Administration. Source: AFP/Getty ImagesChina will allow visa-free entry for foreign tour groups that come to the country via cruise ships in a further bid to attract international visitors and boost its sluggish inbound travel market. Overseas tour groups on cruise boats will be able to enter and stay in China without a visa for up to 15 days, according to the National Immigration Administration. “The visa-free entry policy for foreign tour groups on cruise ships will provide policy support for the development of the cruise industry,” Mao said. A total of 107,000 passenger trips were made via cruise ships in China in 2023, according to Zhu.

MANILA, Philippines — Senator Robin Padilla wants the rice tariffication law amended as he seeks to restore the role of the National Food Authority (NFA) in managing the country’s supply chain. ADVERTISEMENTPadilla’s measure was lodged in light of the House of Representatives’ ongoing push for amending the Rice Tariffication Law. READ: House OKs proposed rice tariff law amendments on 2nd readingSenators Cynthia Villar, Sonny Angara and Nancy Binay earlier said the government needs to carefully study plans to reinstate the mandate of NFA to buy and sell rice. However, agriculture chief Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. clarified that the proposed amendments to the Rice Tariffication Law do not necessarily seek to bring back the “full power” of the NFA. Subscribe to our daily newsletter SIGN ME UPREAD: DA chief says RTL amendments won’t restore ‘full power’ of NFA

Philippines deports 165 Chinese nationals from Bamban POGO hubOne hundred sixty-five workers from Zun Yuan Techonology Inc. have been deported to Pudong District in Shanghai, China on May 14, 2024. MANILA, Philippines (Updated 5:08 p.m.) — A total of 165 out of 167 Chinese nationals, employed by a Philippine Offshore Gaming Operator (POGO) situated in Bamban, Tarlac, were deported on Tuesday, May 14. PAOCC spokesman Winston Casio said the cases of the two Chinese nationals left involve violations of trafficking in persons and serious illegal detention. The deported Chinese nationals will also be included in the immigration bureau’s blacklist. The 165 Chinese workers were involved in "scamming activities" and did not have proper travel documents, making them "undesirable aliens", the immigration statement said.

Going in circlesTo progress, one must move forward. The problem with our government is its propensity to make decisions that merely goes around in endless circles. It has not proven itself to be taking care of the welfare of the rice farmers and the consumers,” Villar said. Hardly did the rice price contribute to total food inflation.”But the Ukraine-Russian conflict caused fuel and fertilizer prices to soar. Going around in circles makes sense for our officials.

REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/IllustrationYouTube will comply with Hong Kong's court decision and block access to video links related to a protest anthem in the city. "We are disappointed by the Court's decision but are complying with its removal order," YouTube said in a statement after it blocked access to 32 video links deemed protest anthem in Hong Kong. YouTube said the geoblocking of videos would take effect immediately for viewers in Hong Kong, and the links to the videos will no longer show up on Google Search in the city eventually. Industry groups, including the Asia Internet Coalition, which represents big tech firms like Meta, Apple and Google, have said keeping a free and open internet in Hong Kong is "fundamental" to maintaining the city's edge. A Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman has said that stopping the song's spread was necessary for Hong Kong to safeguard national security.

Singapore's Minister of Finance and Deputy Prime Minister Lawrence Wong attends the G20 Finance Ministers Meeting in Nusa Dua, Bali, Indonesia July 16, 2022. He was promoted to deputy prime minister and led a high-profile public consultation exercise to chart a "social compact" between the government and the people on dealing with issues like sustainability, inequality and employment. Wong made a very minor cabinet reshuffle on Monday, promoting the trade minister to become his deputy, noting that continuity and stability were key considerations. Lee will remain in Wong's cabinet as senior minister, as former Singapore prime ministers have done, preserving the political clout of the long-serving Lee family. "As I prepare to hand over Singapore in good order to my successor, I feel a sense of satisfaction and completeness," an emotional Lee told the crowd.

READ: Overcast skies, rain expected over parts of extreme northern LuzonThe weather bureau said most of the country will still endure strong El Niño heat. In Kalinga province, a lightning storm near the boundaries of the towns of Pasil and Lubuagan killed Army Cpl. Andrew Five Monterubio and Army Pvt. ADVERTISEMENTArmy Maj. Gen. Audrey Pasia, commander of the 5th Infantry Division, and fellow soldiers extended their sympathies to the families of the fatalities. La Niña, which has the opposite effect of El Niño, is characterized by heavy rains that trigger floods an other rain-induced calamities.

Philippine-based Indian production company marks 10th anniversaryThe night was filled with music, dance and festivities attended by Indian expatriates, local Indian business owners and friends of the community. MANILA, Philippines — Philippine-based Indian production Desi Matters celebrated their 10th year anniversary in the business with "Baisakhi Fest 2024" held in Hilton Manila in Newport City recently. In an interview with the media before the event, Desi Matters Productions Rav Singh said that the production caters to Indian community in the Philippines. "Desi Matters Productions started as a small entertainment company which caters to Indian community here in the Philippines. At the same event, Singh announced that the production company now has a creative hub, Desi Matters Studio, and an events company, DMS Prime.