PALACE URGED TO FORM PANEL TO LOOK INTO INFLUX OF CHINESE NATIONALS

MANILA — Sen. Francis Pangilinan on Thursday called on Malacañang to form an

inter-agency task force to investigate the increased presence of Chinese

nationals in the country.

This comes after Pangilinan on Wednesday urged the Senate to conduct its own

probe on the security implications of the entry of about four million

Chinese nationals into the country since 2017.

The investigation conducted by the executive branch, he said, may be led by

an inter-agency task force composed of the Bureau of Immigration, the

National Bureau of Investigation, the Department of Labor and Employment,

the National Intelligence Coordinating Agency, and the Department of

National Defense.

"We must be on guard. If not, the next thing we know is we are already

sharing a bed with the enemy," Pangilinan said.

He stressed that not all Chinese nationals in the country should be treated

with suspicion or hostility. "Many have lived in the Philippines for years

and have become one among Filipinos," the senator said.

"But the surge in their numbers to millions in the past few years should not

be overlooked, especially in light of the territorial dispute in the West

Philippine Sea and over reports of some of their illegal activities."

Sen. Risa Hontiveros, who led the panel investigation into the money-making

schemes at the Bureau of Immigration flagged this data last October 20,

saying "four million Chinese nationals arriving here since 2017 is

comparable to more than the entire population of Quezon City."

"The BI can take off from this figure and find out where these four million

Chinese are and how they entered the country and for what purpose. The DOLE

should check their employment records and their work conditions. These basic

records should be available if they are indeed legally staying in the

country," Pangilinan said.

MORE QUEZON CITY EMPLOYEES REGULARIZED

MANILA — The Quezon City government has granted permanent status to another

batch of contractual employees as part of Mayor Joy Belmonte’s commitment to

regularize long-time city hall workers.

A total of 254 employees have been regularized after passing hurdling the

process of the Human Resource Merit Promotion and Selection Board earlier

created by Belmonte.

Among those who were regularized was 55-year-old Precy Linag, who has been a

contractual employee with the city’s Social Services and Development

Department for the past 22 years.

“Finally, I became a permanent employee. I have dreamt of this for so long,”

she said in Filipino.

Linag recounted receiving only P5,000 to P10,000 per month prior to

Belmonte’s directive to increase the salary of contractual workers to

“livable” wage as determined by the Department of Labor and Employment.

Linag was among the 31 city hall employees who were regularized after

working for at least nine years with short-term renewable contracts.

Aside from security of tenure, regular government personnel receive benefits

such as 13th month pay, performance-based bonus and other allowances.

Belmonte has committed to fast-track the regularization processes at city

hall, especially for contractual workers who have been serving the local

government for years.

“The time has come for Quezon City to depoliticize appointments and

promotions and adhere to meritocracy,” she said.

DOLOMITE SAND NOT WASHED OUT, STILL INTACT – DENR

MANILA — The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR)

maintained on Wednesday that the artificial white sand overlayed on a

portion of Manila Bay was not washed out but was only covered by black sand

caused by rains.

“There is no truth to the news reports that the dolomite sand has been

washed out to the sea,” DENR Undersecretary for policy, planning and

international affairs Jonas Leones said.

Leones issued the statement in response to reports quoting him as saying

that “about 10 percent of the dolomite sand in Manila Bay has been swept to

the sea by heavy rains.”

He said the white sand, made of crushed dolomite rocks, has been washed in

by black sand but still intact.

“Dolomite sand will not be washed out because of the geo-engineering

intervention used for the project,” Leones explained.

INCREASED MOBILITY TO CAUSE UPTICK IN COVID-19 INFECTIONS: OCTA RESEARCH

MANILA - There will be an increase in COVID-19 infections as public

transportation reopens in many parts of the country, but this should be

manageable if done gradually, OCTA Research Group said Friday.

The uptick can be expected as an increase in mobility means an increase in

chances of transmission, said Fr. Nicanor Austriaco, a research fellow and

professor of biology at the University of Sto. Tomas.

"It should not be surprising that we should expect an uptick of cases in the

weeks to come. But this is not something to be scared about, this is

something that we have to be ready for. We’ve been preparing for this for

the last 6 months," he told ANC's Headstart.

"There’s going to be an uptick, but the uptick doesn’t have to overwhelm or

drown us," he said.

The increase will be "gradual," and it will soon be apparent "whether or not

we can in fact deal with this uptick," he said.

"We build a floodwall and we can see the wave is coming. We don’t know what

will happen when the wave hits the wall. Our hope is that the wall is strong

enough and tall enough that it will not be overwhelmed when the wave

arrives," he said.

Austriaco said decreased distance between passengers in public transport

meant having more people on board, which also leads to "more probability for

the virus to move from one person to another."

When the Department of Transportation reduced the space between passengers

to 0.75 meters from 1 meter in September, there was an uptick in the daily

number of cases in Metro Manila, he noted.

ut the "jump in mobility" last month is "more significant" than the gradual

reopening of public transport that is currently happening and the government

is also "in better shape" in terms of preparedness, so Austriaco believes

the same surge would not happen.

"The pattern can be explained best by suggesting that increased mobility led

to that uptick that we saw…There’s no reason to be scared of an uptick, it

just has to be managed properly because what we do not want is an explosive

increase in cases," he said.

"If we do it too quickly, if we do it in a very short period of time, the

uptick will be so large that our increased capacity on the ground will not

be able to deal with it…My hope is we will be ready when an uptick happens,"

he said.

The Philippines on Thursday recorded 1,761 new coronavirus infections,

pushing the nationwide caseload to 376,935. Total recoveries was at 329,848.

MANILA BANS GENDER DISCRIMINATION

MANILA — The Manila city government yesterday approved an ordinance that

penalizes discrimination against lesbians, gays, transgenders, queers and

intersex or LGBTQI.

Mayor Isko Moreno signed Ordinance 8695 or the Manila LGBTQI Protection

Ordinance of 2020.

The ordinance bans discrimination based on a person’s sexual orientation and

gender identity expression (SOGIE).

It defined discrimination as any “distinction, exclusion, restriction, or

other differential treatment that is directly or indirectly based on SOGIE,

which has the intention or effect of nullifying or impairing the

recognition, enjoyment or exercise on an equal footing of political, civil,

economic, social and cultural rights.”

“Everybody should be treated equally, respected, understood and be shown

compassion,” Moreno said. “In Manila, there are no poor, no middle class, no

rich, no gays, no man and no woman. We are all equal here. We will not allow

discrimination.”

Moreno said he recognized the contributions of the LGBTQI community in the

arts, business and government.

“There will be long, painstaking processes that we need to achieve, but the

very least that we can do for you is that our local government be with you,”

he said.

Manila joined Quezon City and a few other cities in the country with such

anti-discrimination laws.

MEGA TASK FORCE URGED: REVIEW PENDING CORRUPTION CASES, TOO

MANILA — Unlike the big “smoking” air purifiers, the Department of Health

(DOH) does not see any harm in the use air purifier necklaces for protection

against coronavirus disease.

“Such devices do not have smoke or mist. I think it is not going to cause

harm, and there is nothing wrong with using them,” Heath Undersecretary

Maria Rosario Vergeire said in a virtual briefing Wednesday.

The portable air purifier, worn like a necklace by many people including

President Duterte, supposedly surrounds the head with clean air by emitting

negative ions that push the pollutants away from an individual.

But Vergeire stressed that even a person wearing the necklace purifier

should still observe the minimum health protocol as a precaution against

COVID and other diseases.

The DOH, however, cautioned the public against use of air purifier and mist

machines in their homes.

“These air purifiers and mist machines that I see placed in rooms and emit

smoke, do more harm than good,” Vergeire noted, which was why the World

Health Organization does not recommend them.

Vergeire said the DOH has already issued a memorandum last April against

disinfectant fogging for general infection control as it can cause more harm

than good.

“It can cause aerolization of the virus, meaning the virus can stay longer

in the air if we use these kinds of technologies of misting and fogging,”

she explained.

THE REST

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DOH RECORDS 1,761 NEW COVID-19 CASES; PH OUT OF TOP 20 COUNTRIES WITH

HIGHEST INFECTIONS

MANILA — The Philippines recorded 1,761 new coronavirus infections on

Thursday, pushing the nationwide caseload to 376,935, data from the health

department showed.

Of the newly-reported cases, 1,622 or 92 percent occurred within the past 2

weeks. The top regions with cases in the recent 14 days were the National

Capital Region (431), Region 4A (322) and Region 3 (155).

Total recoveries has risen to 329,848, up by 740 from the previous day, the

Department of Health (DOH) said in its latest bulletin.

The country also recorded 33 new fatalities from the respiratory illness,

taking the death toll to 7,147.

NO CLASSES TOMORROW

Classes at all levels in public and private schools in Manila are suspended

tomorrow ahead of the observance of Undas.

Moreno suspended classes to allow students to spend time with their families

“since they cannot go to cemeteries.”

The Manila North and South Cemeteries are closed until Nov. 5 as part of

quarantine protocols to prevent the transmission of COVID-19.

Crematory and funeral services will continue during the closure of

cemeteries, Moreno said.

He also ordered the Office of the Senior Citizens Affairs to speed up the

distribution of financial assistance to the elderly.

“They need money for their maintenance medicines. Most likely their children

who are working are not earning enough,” the mayor said.

MAUTE GROUP REMNANT IN LANAO DEL SUR FALLS

MANILA - A member of the Dawlah Islamiya-Maute Group surrendered on Thursday

to government troops in Lanao del Sur, the Western Mindanao Command said.

In a Facebook post on Friday, WESMINCOM Commander Lt. Gen. Corleto Vinluan

Jr. said Samad Macaampon, alias Abu Samad, 40, and a resident of Barangay

Gacap in Piagapo surrendered to the 82nd Infantry Battalion at 10 a.m.

Thursday.

“Accordingly, Samad decided to come out after being on lie-low status since

he left the group sometime in 2017 because he wants to be with his family,

live a peaceful life, and be a productive citizen of this country,” Vinluan

said.

Macaampon, the military said, is a known DI-MG member under Abu Sierra, a

sub-leader of the Omar Maute Group.

He also handed over his M79 grenade launcher.

Macaampon was brought to the 82IB headquarters in Barangay Pawak in

Saguiaran for custodial debriefing and proper disposition.

PASIG MOST BIKE-FRIENDLY CITY

MANILA — Pasig has been named Metro Manila’s most bike-friendly city and

workplace in the first ever Mobility Awards.

The city’s Public Information Office said Pasig was conferred the Gold Award

for having sufficient infrastructure, integration of policies for bicycle

use and effective implementation of bike-related programs.

Pasig received a score of 83 percent, followed by the cities of San Juan

with 76 percent and Marikina with 71 percent.

A total of 12 local government units in Metro Manila competed for the award.

For the friendliest workplace award, Pasig’s transport sector obtained a

score of 81 percent followed by the GSIS-Pasay branch and the Medical

City-Ortigas with 80 percent each.

MALABON TRANSFORMS MOMS INTO ‘E-NANAYS’

In Malabon, at least 50 mothers were trained by the city government to edit

videos and make powerpoint presentations to help their children in blended

distance learning.

Mayor Antolin Oreta III said the mothers were given private tutors under the

“e-nanay” tutorial project held at the Malabon University.

Oreta said Malabon was the first local government to train mothers to

operate a computer or laptop and to use Word, Excel and Powerpoint as well

as operate Zoom meetings.

“They are also heroes of this pandemic as they have multiple tasks. So it is

appropriate to give back to them by equipping them with the necessary skills

to cope with the digital shift in education,” he said.

The mothers can then teach the skills they learned to their children for the

online classes.

ROLLY POISED TO STRIKE OVER CENTRAL LUZON, QUEZON

MANILA – Typhoon Rolly is expected to make landfall between Central Luzon

and Quezon province on Sunday evening or Monday morning, with a potential to

bring disastrous conditions, PAGASA said Friday.

The typhoon, with international name Goni, was last seen 1,185 kilometers

east of Central Luzon, the state weather bureau said in its 7 a.m. press

briefing.

Rolly is currently packing maximum sustained winds of 140 kilometers per

hour (kph) near the center, with gusts of up to 170 kph.

“Hindi natin inaalis ang possibility na mag-intensify pa siya pero nasa

typhoon category lang ‘yung nakikita based sa ating track,” weather

specialist Ezra Bulquerin told Teleradyo’s “Sakto”.

In anticipation of the arrival of strong breeze to near-gale conditions due

to Rolly, tropical cyclone wind signal (TCWS) number 1 may be raised over

several provinces in the Bicol Region on Saturday.

As Rolly is expected to further intensify, PAGASA may also issue TCWS number

3 and 4, which are associated with destructive typhoon-force winds.

Moving westward at 20 kph, the typhoon is currently churning the Philippine

Sea and may hit land at peak intensity of 165 kph to 185 kph.

"May kalayuan pa ang distansiya nito sa lupa. Marami pa siyang oras para

lumakas. Nasa dagat pa ho siya at favorable ang kaniyang environment

condition for intensification,” weather specialist Loriedin De La Cruz said

in a press briefing.

On Friday, the typhoon's trough or extension will bring cloudy skies with

scattered rain showers and thunderstorms over the Visayas, Bicol Region,

Northern Mindanao and Caraga.

Meanwhile, PAGASA is also monitoring another tropical depression outside of

PAR, located 2,320 kilometers east of Mindanao.

The new weather disturbance, with international name Atsani, is packing

maximum sustained winds of 65 kph, with gusts of up to 80 kph. It is

forecast to enter PAR on Sunday or Monday.

It will be locally named Siony, the 19th tropical cyclone to enter the

country this year.

The tropical depression is not likely to affect any parts of the country,

Bulquerin said.

ENTERTAINMENT & LIFESTYLE

RABIYA RECEIVES MISS UNIVERSE PH PRIZE — A BRAND-NEW CAR

MANILA — Newly crowned Miss Universe Philippines Rabiya Mateo appeared

overjoyed Thursday as she received one of her prizes — a brand-new SUV.

Ahead of a full day of activities, Mateo was handed the key to her blue 2019

MG ZS Alpha, the price of which ranges from P800,000 to P1 million.

Photos of Mateo’s reaction were shared on Instagram by her stylist Keith

Angelo and hair stylist Jonas Lucas.

“Ngiting tagumpay,” Angelo captioned a snap of a smiling Mateo seated on the

driver’s side.

The car will be chauffeured for the duration of Mateo’s reign.

Aside from the SUV, Mateo, as winner of the inaugural Miss Universe

Philippines pageant, has received or will also receive a cash prize, as well

as an apartment.

She, of course, also gets to wear the “Filipina” crown, and will have the

coveted job of representing the Philippines in the international Miss

Universe pageant.

SPORTS

NLEX PUTS AN END TO TNT’S UNBEATEN STREAK

NLEX Road Warriors dropped the upset axe on top seed TNT Tropang Giga,

109-98, in their 2020 PBA Philippine Cup clash at the AUF Sports Arena and

Cultural Center in Pampanga, Thursday night.

Coming off back-to-back losses and going up against the erstwhile undefeated

team, the Road Warriors found themselves staring at a 31-24 hole dug by TNT

after the first 12 minutes of play.

Thanks to a 9-0 run to close the first half, NLEX was able to take the

driver’s seat, 53-48. And although they had the lead for the rest of the

way, it took one big surge in the payoff period to finally repel the current

number one team in the league.

The upset thus led the Road Warriors back to the winning side with a 2-5

record, while they let the Tropang Giga have a taste of their first loss

after a 5-0 start to the conference.

Kevin Alas showed the way for NLEX with team-high 24 points and six

rebounds. Kiefer Ravena ended up with 16 points and nine rebounds, while

Jericho Cruz fired 19 points spiked by five triples.

Jayson Castro collected 27 points, eight assists, and five rebounds for TNT,

while Roger Pogoy and Ray Parks added 16 and 15 markers, respectively, in

the loss.

ALASKA PULLS AWAY WITH FOURTH-QUARTER RAMPAGE OVER PHOENIX

Alaska Aces went on a fiery fourth-quarter run and buried the Phoenix Super

LPG Fuel Masters, 105-97, in the 2020 PBA Philippine Cup Thursday at the

Angeles University Foundation in Pampanga.

Behind a strong start, the Fuel Masters had the lead for most of the first

three quarters and even appeared to be heading to a huge upset after leading

by as much as 14 points.

But the Aces slowly crawled back and went on a game-turning 18-2 assault to

take a 97-82 and never looked back.

Vic Manuel ended up with a team-high 24 points with seven boards, while Mike

Digregorio added 21 points, on 4-of-7 shooting from deep for Alaska, which

picked up its fifth win against three losses.

Matthew Wright finished with 27 points, nine rebounds, and five assists,

while Calvin Abueva had 18 points, eight boards, and five dimes in a losing

effort as Phoenix slid to a 4-3 slate.

INDICATORS

FOREX $1 = P 48.39

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

Not everything that can be counted counts, and not everything that counts

can be counted. - Albert Einstein