PHILIPPINE INFLATION QUICKENS TO 4.2 PERCENT IN JANUARY

MANILA - Philippine inflation quickened in January driven by higher food

prices, the state statistics bureau said on Friday.

The Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) said the consumer price index rose

at a faster annual pace of 4.2 percent last month, its highest since the 4.4

percent inflation seen in January 2019.

This was above the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas' forecast range of 3.3

percent to 4.1 percent.

Pork prices have risen as African swine fever (ASF) decimated hog

populations across Luzon, while chicken prices have also gone up as supplies

dwindled with many poultry farms gone bankrupt last year.

Pork prices rose 17.1 percent in January, PSA said.

Prices rose even faster in the National Capital Region which saw 4.3 percent

inflation.

The Philippines stands out among major Southeast economies for seeing prices

continue to rise. Other countries are even seeing deflation as the COVID-19

pandemic depresses demand.

The BSP is set to meet on Feb. 11 to make its first monetary policy decision

this year.

Benign inflation last year allowed the BSP to cut its policy rate by 200

basis points to a record low of 2 percent to support the economy which saw

its worst contraction since World War 2.

While the central bank at the start of the year said that inflation was the

least of its worries, it later said inflation may quicken in January.

CHINA CLAIMS NEW COAST GUARD LAW IN ACCORDANCE WITH INTERNATIONAL PRACTICE

BEIJING - China said Thursday that it has told its neighbor Japan that the

nation's new legislation that allows its coast guard to use weapons in

claimed waters is "in accordance with international law and practice."

At their high-level consultation on maritime affairs on Wednesday, which

senior bureaucrats of the two countries attended, China also asked Japan not

to take actions that would complicate the situation in the nearby waters,

according to the Foreign Ministry.

As Beijing claims that the Senkaku Islands, administered by Tokyo, in the

East China Sea are part of its territory, the latest legislation would

target Japanese vessels navigating around the uninhabited islets called

Diaoyu in China.

The law permits China's coast guard to use weapons when foreign ships

involved in illegal activities in waters claimed by the nation fail to obey

orders, while letting it demolish buildings constructed in those areas by

foreign organizations or individuals.

Despite China's insistence, many Japanese senior officials have expressed

fears that the legislation, put into force on Monday, might be enforced in

an arbitrary manner, which could trigger contingencies in the East China

Sea.

China "must not manage" the legislation "in a way that is against

international law," Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Katsunobu Kato said at

a press conference on Wednesday.

At their video meeting on maritime issues, Japan conveyed "strong concern"

to China over the legislation and it "firmly urged" the neighboring country

to exercise restraint in its actions, said Kato, the government's top

spokesman.

AS SENATORS SCOLD PARLADE FOR THREATENING REPORTER, NEW AFP CHIEF PROMISES

TO DO BETTER

MANILA - Two senators on Thursday night berated Lt. Gen. Antonio Parlade Jr.

for accusing a journalist of being a propagandist for communist rebels.

Parlade, spokesman for the National Task Force to End Local Conflict,

threatened to sue Inquirer.net reporter Tetch Torres-Tupas over her report

on two Aeta farmers who said that they were tortured into admitting that

they were members of the New People's Army.

The farmers implored the Supreme Court to allow them to join the legal

battle against the Anti-Terrorism Act, the same law under which Parlade

threatened to file a suit against Torres-Tupas for what he said was aiding

terrrorists.

Sen. Francis Pangilinan on Twitter called on Defense Secretary Delfin

Lorenzana to "show Parlade the door," as he did with Maj. Gen. Alex Luna.

Luna was sacked as military intelligence chief after military social media

accounts published an erroneous list of alleged communist rebels who the

military claimed were killed or captured.

People on the list, among them lawyers and former government officials, held

an online press conference to deny the claims and to show that they are, in

fact, alive.

"Enough of this unprofessionalism and lack of discipline with such baseless,

erroneous public statements," Pangilinan also said.

Sen. Panfilo Lacson, a principal author of the anti-terror law and chair of

the Senate defense committee, scored Parlade for constantly creating

unnecessary problems for the AFP by making "careless and insensitive

remarks."

"Coming at a time when the Solicitor General is defending the Anti-Terrorism

Act of 2020 against 37 petitions, particularly on the issue involving

'overbreadth doctrine' among others, such remarks from a high-ranking

military official [are] uncalled for and totally unnecessary."

Lacson claimed, contrary to many petitioners, that basic freedoms, such as

freedom of speech, "remain to be protected and upheld" under the contested

law.

"Accusing a journalist of 'aiding the terrorists by spreading

lies'....surely does not help the government to convince the magistrates of

the Supreme Court to rule in its favor."

Addressing the controversies sparked by Parlade and Luna, Lt. Gen. Cirilto

Sobejana, who took over as armed forces chief on Thursday, promised Friday

that the military would learn from its mistakes.

However, he stopped short of disputing Parlade's accusations, instead

telling ANC's "Headstart" that the military will "validate the statement,"

discuss it, and then "present to the public whatever evidences we are able

to gather."

"Henceforth, my instruction was that whenever we talk, or whatever things we

do, we should be very deliberate, we should exercise due diligence,"

Sobejana also said on Friday.

"In that way, we can give good service to our countrymen, we should not hurt

anybody unless he is the enemy of the state."

ANTI-DISCRIMINATION BILL PROVIDES SAFEGUARDS VS ANTI-TERROR LAW, SAYS

LAWMAKER

MANILA - A lawmaker on Friday called for the passage of an

anti-discrimination bill to provide safeguards for Muslims and other

minorities against the contentious counterterrorism law.

"The passage of this bill, if it becomes a law, will somehow provide

safeguards on the consequences of discriminatory systems especially in the

implementation of the anti-terrorism law," Anak Mindanao (AMIN) party-list

Rep. Amihilda Sangcopan told ANC.

On Tuesday, the lower House approved on third and final reading House Bill

8243 or the Equality and Non-Discrimination on Race, Ethnicity, and Religion

Act, which punishes discriminatory acts based on race, ethnicity and

religion in the country.

A counterpart measure in the Senate is still pending at the committee level.

Sangcopan raised concern that Muslims and indigenous peoples would be

"greatly affected" by the anti-terrorism law, which grants state forces

sweeping powers to address terrorism.

She is part of a group of Muslim lawmakers, lawyers, and residents of

Mindanao who questioned the constitutionality of Republic Act 11479 or

Anti-Terrorism Act of 2020 before the Supreme Court in August.

They became the 22nd petitioners to challenge the new law, saying

deep-seated prejudice and Islamophobia could only lead to more Muslims

getting wrongly arrested.

HOUSE OKS ON FINAL READING BILL VS DISCRIMINATION ON RACE, ETHNICITY,

RELIGION

MANILA - The House of Representatives on Tuesday approved on third and final

reading a measure that aims to protect and promote the right to equality and

non-discrimination on the basis of race, ethnicity and religion.

With 208-0-0 votes, lawmakers passed House Bill No. 8243 or the Equality and

Non-Discrimination on Race, Ethnicity, and Religion Act, which would make

incitement to discrimination and harassment punishable.

According to the bill, discrimination is considered as any distinction,

exclusion, restriction or preference made on the basis of race, color,

descent, national or ethnic origin, religion or religious affiliation or

beliefs which has the effect or purpose of impairing or nullifying the

recognition, enjoyment or exercise on an equal footing of a person's human

rights and fundamental freedoms in the political, economic, social,

cultural, civil or any other field of the person's public life.

The measure also provided concise definitions of the terms ethnic origin,

ethnolinguistic group, religious affiliation or belief, stereotype and

stereotyping.

CLIMATE GROUPS LAUD DRAFT PLAN TO REDUCE CARBON EMISSIONS BY 75%

MANILA - The Philippine government's higher ambition of reducing carbon

emissions by 2030 is a welcome development for some climate groups, calling

it a "mighty start."

The latest draft text of the country's National Determined Contributions

states that the Philippines is committing to cut greenhouse gas emissions by

75% by 2030. This is a significant increase from the goal of reducing

emissions by 30% by 2040 in the initial draft presented last December.

"[This represents] the country's ambition for GHG mitigation for the period

from 2020 to 2030 for the sectors of agriculture, waste, industry, transport

and energy," read the draft text prepared by the Climate Change Commission.

At least 2% of this mitigation target will be implemented unconditionally

with nationally mobilized resources, while 72.67% will depend on support or

means of implementation provided under the 2015 Paris Agreement.

NDCs embody the efforts by signatories to the Paris accord to reduce carbon

emissions and adapt to the impacts of climate change.

The latest climate plan was presented at a stakeholder consultation

Wednesday.

LP EYES ROBREDO AS PRESIDENTIAL BET IN 2022

MANILA - The opposition Liberal Party (LP) is considering Vice President

Leni Robredo as its presidential candidate for the 2022 polls even if she

has yet to decide on whether she will run, party president and Sen. Francis

Pangilinan said yesterday.

He maintained that the LP has yet to discuss the May 2022 presidential and

national elections as the party and Robredo are focused on providing

economic and livelihood assistance to Filipinos badly affected by the

COVID-19 pandemic.

"Of course, she is the highest official of the party and the highest-ranked

elected official among us, so she is also being considered," said Pangilinan

when asked if LP is considering Robredo as possible standard-bearer for the

2022 polls.

"The VP is really focused on the COVID-19 problem. She has said that she has

not yet made a decision, that much more could happen. so our focus now is

how we can help our people amid the COVID-19 pandemic," he added during an

online interview with Senate reporters.

Saying that the "election is still far away," he refused to comment on

reports that many groups are pushing presidential daughter and Davao City

Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio to succeed her father and run for the presidential

elections in May 2022.

He, however, acknowledged that the LP camp is making consultations and

recruitment to expand membership in preparation for the coming elections.

"(The elections in) 2022 is really all about voters. Let's just keep

recruiting at the bottom, helping to overcome COVID, economic issues first,

political issues can wait," Pangilinan noted.

As of yesterday, the online petition "I am Ready for Leni" that urges

Robredo to run for president has garnered over 20,000 signatures.

"It is our deepest desire to see the Philippines back on its way to being

one of the most economically progressive, politically transparent, humane

and respected countries in Asia. We believe that Vice President Leni Robredo

can lead us to this goal by leading the country as the next duly-elected

President in 2022," the petition stated.

THE REST

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MANILA EYES FREE COVID-19 SWAB TESTS FOR STUDENTS RETURNING FOR FACE-TO-FACE

CLASSES

MANILA - The City of Manila is eyeing free COVID-19 tests for students who

will be attending face-to-face classes, Mayor Isko Moreno said Friday.

The city has 3 RT-PCR machines and 2 laboratories, which can handle the

demand for swab tests, said Moreno.

"We can offer regularly para magkaroon sila ng (so they will have) peace of

mind. We can submit them to swab testing and it can be available for free so

as not to add cost to the students," he told ANC's Headstart.

The local government of Manila approved Wednesday the University of Santo

Tomas' proposal to hold limited face-to-face classes for medical and allied

health programs.

UST has laid out protocols for the reopening of classes, including reduced

occupancy capacity, crowd management, and random inspection by the local

government, said Moreno.

"The nitty-gritty are in place, and all we have to do is to trust the

institution. I think they are responsible enough to know all these things,"

he said.

Moreno said UST is the only school so far to seek permission from the local

government, but he is hopeful the institution will be a "good symbol" of how

face-to-face classes may be restarted.

DOJ PROBE TO INCLUDE POSSIBLE FAKE VACCINE ENTRY

MANILA - The National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) would use its assets in

monitoring the possible entry of fake coronavirus vaccines from China,

Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra said yesterday.

He instructed the NBI to beef up its monitoring efforts to prevent the bogus

vaccines from reaching the public in light of reports that China-made fake

drugs were also being sold to other countries.

Guevarra, as early as Dec. 28, had ordered the NBI to investigate the

reported importation, sale, offering of sale, distribution and

administration of COVID-19 vaccines that are not authorized by or registered

with the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

"I'm still waiting for the progress report," he said.

With the new report of fake drugs reaching the market, the NBI has been

given an additional task.

PH LOST P400 B IN POTENTIAL REVENUE FROM FOREIGN TOURISTS IN 2020 DUE TO

COVID-19: DOT

MANILA - The country lost an estimated P400 billion in potential revenue

from international tourists in 2020 as the country closed its borders due to

COVID-19, Tourism Secretary Bernadette Romulo-Puyat said Thursday.

In an interview on ABS-CBN's TeleRadyo, Puyat said the agency is expecting a

bigger loss in terms of domestic tourism, noting that it usually shares a

bigger chunk in the country's tourism sector.

"Ang masakit noon, this is only for international tourists. 'Di pa nakasulat

doon yung domestic tourism. 'Yun lang ang nawala sa atin because of the

travel restrictions from all over the world," she said of the P400 billion

loss.

"Mas malaki pa. 'yung domestic tourism. Ang hirap lang kunin yung sa

domestic tourism, but mas malaki -- kasi mas malaki ang domestic tourism

natin kaysa sa foreign travelers," she added.

The tourism chief earlier this year noted that the Philippines recorded a

decline of 83.97 percent in tourist arrivals in 2020, and that total

receipts from inbound tourism was estimated at only P81.40 billion the whole

year.

She had said that the country would boost local tourism in a bid to restart

the travel industry, even as COVID-19 restrictions remain in place.

ENTERTAINMENT & LIFESTYLE

'HOUSE ARREST OF US' STARRING KATHRYN, DANIEL IS TOP TRENDING CONTENT ON

NETFLIX PH

MANILA - Kathryn Bernardo and Daniel Padilla's first digital movie series

"The House Arrest of Us" is currently the top trending content on Netflix

Philippines.

This, just after three days since it began streaming on the popular video-on

demand platform following its successful run on KTX.ph and iWantTFC.

The movie series follows a couple "who decides to make their engagement

official by honoring tradition when a pandemic forces them and their

families to quarantine under one roof," according to its official synopsis

provided by Netflix.

Directed by Richard Arellano, "The House Arrest of Us" was first released on

October 24 on KTX.ph and iWantTFC. It had 13 weekly episodes, with its

finale streaming only last Saturday.

In a recent press conference, Bernardo and Padilla said they did not notice

how fast time flew even if they were just stuck at home most of the time

last year due to the coronavirus pandemic.

"Ang bilis ng panahon. Mag-one year na. Hindi natin napansin kasi lahat tayo

nasa bahay and busy sa kanya-kanyang work from home situations. Na-realize

namin ni DJ na tumatanda na kami. Magbi-birthday na naman ako. Parang

kaka-celebrate ko lang nung nag-start 'yung lockdown tapos paparating na

naman 'yung March," Bernardo said at the time.

"Parang kailan lang pinag-uusapan natin 'yung gagawin na show for pandemic

tapos ngayon finale na. Napakabilis ng mga bagay so don't take it for

granted," Padilla added.

Aside from the real-life couple, "The House Arrest of Us" also stars Ruffa

Gutierrez, Herbert Bautista, Dennis Padilla, Arlene Muhlach, Gardo Versoza,

Alora Sasam, Riva Quenery, Anthony Jennings, and Hyubs Azarcon.

SPORTS

NBA SCORES FEB 3

FINAL

    1    2    3    4    T

Pacers 12-10    21    30    21    38    110

Bucks 13-8    29    39    38    24    130

SCORING LEADERS

    D. Sabonis IND

33 PTS, 12 REB, 6 AST

    G. Antetokounmpo MIL

21 PTS, 14 REB, 10 AST

FINAL

    1    2    3    4    T

76ers 16-6    30    34    25    29    118

Hornets 10-12    13    29    34    35    111

SCORING LEADERS

    J. Embiid PHI

34 PTS, 11 REB, 2 AST

    L. Ball CHA

22 PTS, 7 REB, 3 AST

FINAL

    1    2    3    4    T

Mavericks 9-13    26    27    35    34    122

Hawks 10-11    22    34    27    33    116

SCORING LEADERS

    L. Doncic DAL

27 PTS, 8 REB, 14 AST

    J. Collins ATL

35 PTS, 12 REB, 1 AST

FINAL

    1    2    3    4    T

Wizards 5-13    31    24    22    26    103

Heat 7-14    34    31    17    18    100

SCORING LEADERS

    B. Beal WAS

32 PTS, 8 REB, 4 AST

    T. Herro MIA

20 PTS, 2 REB, 0 AST

FINAL

    1    2    3    4    T

Clippers 17-6    33    19    36    33    121

Cavaliers 10-12    25    24    25    25    99

SCORING LEADERS

    P. George LAC

36 PTS, 4 REB, 6 AST

    C. Sexton CLE

27 PTS, 1 REB, 5 AST

FINAL

    1    2    3    4    T

Rockets 10-10    25    18    15    29    87

Thunder 9-11    30    24    27    23    104

SCORING LEADERS

    E. Gordon HOU

22 PTS, 3 REB, 4 AST

    K. Williams OKC

19 PTS, 6 REB, 2 AST

FINAL

    1    2    3    4    T

Knicks 10-13    34    29    28    16    107

Bulls 8-12    17    35    24    27    103

SCORING LEADERS

    J. Randle NY

27 PTS, 6 REB, 6 AST

    Z. LaVine CHI

24 PTS, 5 REB, 7 AST

FINAL

    1    2    3    4    T

Timberwolves 5-16    33    32    25    18    108

Spurs 12-10    29    25    25    32    111

SCORING LEADERS

    M. Beasley MIN

29 PTS, 6 REB, 1 AST

    D. DeRozan SA

30 PTS, 8 REB, 6 AST

FINAL

    1    2    3    4    T

Suns 11-9    25    21    28    27    101

Pelicans 8-12    28    20    40    35    123

SCORING LEADERS

    D. Booker PHO

25 PTS, 4 REB, 2 AST

    Z. Williamson NO

28 PTS, 7 REB, 6 AST

FINAL

    1    2    3    4    T

Celtics 11-9    26    25    31    29    111

Kings 10-11    22    30    29    35    116

SCORING LEADERS

    J. Tatum BOS

27 PTS, 9 REB, 10 AST

    D. Fox SAC

26 PTS, 1 REB, 11 AST

INDICATORS

FOREX $1 = P 48.08

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

Whoever wants to be a judge of human nature should study people's excuses. -

Christian Friedrich Hebbel