Galvez: Vaccine supply not a problem anymore
MANILA, Philippines — Vaccine czar Carlito Galvez Jr. called on all local governments to ramp up further their vaccination rollouts, saying the supply of vaccines against COVID-19 was no longer a problem. More than 1.3 million doses of Moderna arrived in the country on Saturday, bringing the total vaccine deliveries to 85,575,600 since February. According to Galvez, the country has been receiving a daily average of 1.5 million vaccines, with more than 14 million doses shipped to the country in the first week of October alone. Galvez said around 23 million Filipinos had already been fully vaccinated, or around 30 percent of the target population. Galvez earlier assured the public that the country had enough supply of COVID-19 vaccines for the rest of the year.
Source:Philippine Daily Inquirer
October 09, 2021 21:33 UTC
Some Cabinet members quit, join poll races
MANILA, Philippines — President Rodrigo Duterte has lost some Cabinet members to the 2022 elections, but he will also retain a few of them who did not push through with their plan to join the polls. But Duterte will get to keep his spokesperson Harry Roque, who had hitched his possible senatorial run to the presidential run of Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte. Mayor Duterte did not file her COC for president, so Roque did not pursue his plan to join the Senate. But speculations continue that Mayor Duterte would later seek the presidency as a substitute candidate, similar to the ploy used by Duterte in 2016. “Just because the secretary will be gone does not mean there will be a leadership vacuum because there will always be an OIC,” Roque said in a briefing last week.
Source:Philippine Daily Inquirer
October 09, 2021 21:33 UTC
Respect voters’ privacy, bets told
ADVERTISEMENT“Our forthcoming election would be different because I believe it will see the unprecedented use of technology and unprecedented use of data and personal data,” said Raymund Liboro, chair of the NPC. 10173, or the Data Privacy Act of 2012, specifies how to make inviolable the privacy of Filipinos’ communication and correspondence, as mandated by the Constitution, and also has penal provisions. He reminded political parties, candidates, social media networks, search engines, and telecommunication companies that they have obligations related to the handling of personal data. Liboro also called on the public to be vigilant and report to the NPC any practice that they believe to be a violation of their data privacy or similar to their experience. Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg himself admitted in a US congressional hearing that Facebook was involved in the data collection and apologized.
Source:Philippine Daily Inquirer
October 09, 2021 21:33 UTC
Trillanes: Isko bared true self
Trillanes said this showed that Domagoso was only pretending when he collaborated with Robredo on projects like the vaccination program. When he was triggered, his views came out and he used words that are only used by hardcore Duterte supporters. He outed himself prematurely, or maybe it was timely,” Trillanes said in a phone interview. Domagoso, in an interview with Esquire magazine in 2019, said the late dictator Ferdinand Marcos was his inspiration in the field of development. Trillanes said he considered both Domagoso and the ruling party’s standard-bearer Sen. Ronald dela Rosa as “Duterte enablers” and, therefore, Duterte candidates.
Source:Philippine Daily Inquirer
October 09, 2021 21:33 UTC
BOC seeks to stop smuggling of veggies
MANILA, Philippines — The Bureau of Customs (BOC) will update its protocols to prevent the smuggling of agricultural products into the country, particularly during the last quarter of the year, according to Assistant Customs Commissioner Vincent Maronilla. Maronilla said the BOC met with the Department of Agriculture (DA) to discuss measures to address the illegal entry of agricultural products. Maronilla said the BOC and the DA would identify loopholes in their respective processes to prevent the smuggling of agricultural products, especially at this time of year. “During the ‘ber’ months, we shift our attention to agricultural products. He said the agencies’ studies of their processes were meant to find ways to stop the illegal entry of the products.
Source:Philippine Daily Inquirer
October 09, 2021 21:33 UTC
Praises pour in for Maria Ressa’s Nobel Peace Prize
MANILA, Philippines — Malacañang on Saturday remained silent on the Nobel Peace Prize award to Rappler CEO Maria Ressa, even as lawmakers and business groups described it both as an indictment of the Duterte administration and applause to courageous Filipino journalists under fire. “I have criticized Duterte but not on press freedom. The Magsaysay Award is the Asian equivalent of the Nobel Prize. Obviously the Nobel Peace Prize Committee does not share yours.”Another, Jose Mari Tirol, wrote: “Sir, your post again proves that you are still one of our country’s greatest fiction writers.”Ressa dedicated the award to all journalists. “This just shows that the Nobel Peace Prize committee realized that a world without facts means a world without truth and trust.
Source:Philippine Daily Inquirer
October 09, 2021 21:33 UTC
Text blasting machines illicitly sold; ‘weaponized’ by pols
A telco executive, who requested anonymity for this report, told the Inquirer that these text blast machines were “weaponized” and their use was already prevalent in smaller towns during the 2019 elections. After reviewing the specifications of the text blast machines, Cabarios said these were illegal and their suppliers were unregistered with the NTC. Text blast machines work by “spoofing” nearby cell towers or functioning as portable cell sites that can only send and not receive data. The use of text blast machines and rogue cell sites also raises questions on how these equipment were able to enter the country in the first place. As of this writing, all original listings related to text blast machines remained active on Facebook Marketplace, with two more ads appearing on Saturday.
Source:Philippine Daily Inquirer
October 09, 2021 21:22 UTC
Adapting to technological trends, consumer behavior beyond pandemic
Not one to be left behind, The Manila Times had been adapting to technological trends — perhaps the first print media company to establish its own digital TV and incorporated video content to its online news stories. The shockwaves imbalanced many, but The Times adapted to the digital trend with its pioneering online business forum events — curated and organized by the Marketing team of COO Blanca Mercado. We were not sure last year whether we could continue putting out a newspaper but somehow we found a way. Despite this, he said that The Times is one of the fortunate publications to have survived the pandemic's economic consequences. He also stressed the significance of upgrading the country's educational system in order to keep the newspaper industry alive.
Source:Manila Times
October 09, 2021 17:15 UTC
Police intercept P4.8-M smuggled cigarettes
Police photo shows the seized smuggled cigarettes from two speedboats that came from Sulu’s Jolo town on Oct. 8, 2021.CONTRIBUTED PHOTOZAMBOANGA CITY: Police seized 137 boxes of smuggled cigarettes in separate operations off the coast of Zamboanga City, officials said on Saturday. Zamboanga police chief Col. Rexmel Reyes said police forces intercepted two speedboats, loaded with cigarettes, near Manalipa Island on Friday. According to Reyes, the operation yielded illegal cigarettes with brands such as San Marino, Union, Cannon and Fort worth nearly P4.8 million. Reyes said the contraband was bound for Cotabato City, but he did not say whether the untaxed cigarettes came from abroad or not. "The ZCPO (Zamboanga City Police Office) will continue its strict border control maritime operations in the fight against criminality, illegal drugs, smuggling and all forms of illegal activities," Reyes continued.
Source:Manila Times
October 09, 2021 16:52 UTC
Explain nuke submarine incident, China tells US
BEIJING: The US should clarify an incident involving a US nuclear submarine, including the exact location of the incident, the intention of the US navigation, details of the incident, what the submarine collided with, whether it caused nuclear leakage, and whether it damaged the local marine environment, said a Chinese foreign ministry spokesman. Zhao Lijian made the remarks on Friday at a press briefing when asked to comment on the incident. Zhao noted the US deliberately delayed and concealed the details of the incident, lacking transparency and responsibility. China and countries around the South China Sea have no choice but to question the truth of the incident and its intentions. The US and the UK recently decided on nuclear submarine cooperation with Australia, a non-nuclear-weapon state, dispatching nuclear submarines to the Asia-Pacific region without scruples, said Zhao.
Source:Manila Times
October 09, 2021 16:41 UTC
Afghanistan blast fatalities reach 55
Afghan Taliban members inspect the site of an explosion at a mosque in Kunduz city, northern Afghanistan, Oct. 8, 2021. (Photo by Ajmal Kakar/Xinhua)KUNDUZ: The death toll from a suicide bomb explosion at a mosque in Afghanistan's northern Kunduz city has risen to 55 while 143 others were wounded, a provincial source confirmed. The blast occurred inside a Shiite Muslim mosque building in the capital of Afghanistan's northern Kunduz province roughly at 2 p.m. (10:30 a.m. in Manila) Friday local time when worshipers were offering Friday prayers. The security situation has remained generally calm but uncertain across Afghanistan since the Taliban's takeover in mid-August. On Sunday, eight people were killed and 20 others wounded in an explosion outside a mosque in Kabul, for which the IS militants claimed responsibility.
Source:Manila Times
October 09, 2021 16:30 UTC
Ebola plagues Congo anew
GOMA: One Ebola case has been recorded in the Democratic Republic of Congo, five months after the latest epidemic of the disease in the country was declared over, the government said on Friday (Saturday in Manila). "The case concerns a three-year-old boy who was hospitalized and died on October 6," the health ministry said in a statement, adding that the case was in Beni, in North Kivu province. A sample taken from the child was sent to Goma, the provincial capital, and was found to be positive.
Source:Manila Times
October 09, 2021 16:17 UTC
PNP checks cops with kin running in elections
PNP checks cops with kin running in electionsMANILA, Philippines — Philippine National Police (PNP) chief Gen. Guillermo Eleazar has ordered an inventory of police officers who have relatives running in next year’s elections. Eleazar issued the directive so that PNP personnel who have family members running for elective posts in their areas would be transferred to other assignments. Doing so would prevent police personnel from influencing the outcome of the elections in favor of their relatives. Eleazar earlier warned police personnel against engaging in any form of partisan politics as they should remain apolitical. “The loyalty of the more than 222,000-strong PNP is to the Constitution and to the Filipino people and not to any political candidate,” he added.
Source:Philippine Star
October 09, 2021 16:00 UTC
SC upholds police ban on monitoring family
SC upholds police ban on monitoring familyIn a resolution promulgated on June 15 and made public on Friday, the SC denied the PNP’s motion for reconsideration, upholding the court’s permanent protection order in favor of Vivian Sanchez and her two children. MANILA, Philippines — The Supreme Court (SC) has affirmed its 2019 decision on the issuance of a permanent protection order prohibiting the Philippine National Police (PNP) from monitoring a family allegedly linked to the New People’s Army (NPA). Sanchez’s family was put under PNP surveillance after she was linked to the NPA due to her husband’s alleged association with the communist group. The SC also emphasized that the PNP should conduct a formal investigation “instead of a surreptitious surveillance” that infringed on Sanchez’s right to privacy. Justice Ramon Paul Hernando maintained his dissent and voted to grant the PNP’s motion for reconsideration along with Chief Justice Alexander Gesmundo, according to the SC.
Source:Philippine Star
October 09, 2021 15:56 UTC
P4.8 million smuggled cigarettes seized
P4.8 million smuggled cigarettes seizedZAMBOANGA CITY, Philippines — Smuggled cigarettes worth around P4.8 million were seized from two Malaysian-styled wooden-hulled motor boats, locally known as jungkong, near an island east of this city on Friday. Col. Rexmel Reyes, Zamboanga City police chief, said personnel of the 2nd Mobile Company and Customs intelligence service were conducting sea patrol when they spotted the watercraft in the vicinity of Manalipa island at about 1 p.m.“The two jungkong watercraft were from Jolo and reportedly bound for Cotabato City. They were loaded with 137 master cases of smuggled cigarettes,” Reyes said. He said eight crewmembers of the boats were arrested. The seized items were turned over to the Bureau of Customs for proper disposition and filing of cases.
Source:Philippine Star
October 09, 2021 15:56 UTC