487,200 DOSES OF ASTRAZENECA COVID-19 VACCINES FROM COVAX FACILITY ARRIVE IN PH
MANILA — The Philippines on Thursday received its first batch of AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine supply from the global vaccine-sharing initiative COVAX Facility, a boost in its immunization drive following the arrival of Chinese vaccine CoronaVac earlier this week.
The shipment of 487,200 doses touched down in Manila around 7:10 p.m., according to state media. These arrived a few minutes earlier than expected, via a KLM flight from the Netherlands. The plane is currently at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) in Pasay City.
The vaccines were towed to Villamor Air Base's Kalayaan Hall, before they were delivered to a warehouse of Metro Pacific Investment Corp in Marikina City.
President Rodrigo Duterte, officials from the inter-agency task force leading the country's pandemic response, Department of Health (DOH), World Health Organization, and UNICEF Philippines welcomed the vaccine's arrival at NAIA.
Duterte appealed to Filipinos to get vaccinated, as the national government aims to further reopen the Philippine economy, which has been battered since March last year by strict lockdowns to curb COVID-19 transmission.
“Please get vaccinated against COVID-19 and be the government partner in preventing further spread of the disease. I encourage you to get vaccinated the soonest possible time. These vaccines are safe and they are key to reopening our society,” the President said in a speech at the welcome ceremony.
WHO country representative Rabindra Abeyasinghe said the Philippines should expect another 4.5 million doses of AstraZeneca jabs to arrive in May through the COVAX Facility.
The Philippine government may begin distributing a shipment of AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccines to different hospitals late Friday, the country's testing czar said.
"Siguro po magsisimula either later today or tomorrow ang pagdi-distribute sa mga iba't ibang ospital ang AstraZeneca," testing czar Vince Dizon told Telerdayo.
FUEL COMPOUNDS COSTLY FOOD AS FEBRUARY INFLATION PEAKS ANEW
MANILA — Inflation soared to a level not seen since it eroded growth in 2018 as new sources of price pressure appeared with rising crude costs, exacerbating the impact of costly food yet to be convincingly addressed.
Consumer prices rose 4.7% year-on-year in February, up from 4.2% in January and the highest since December 2008 when a rice supply shortage cut through prices, the Philippine Statistics Authority reported on Friday.
The pain from expensive basic goods and services was more felt by the poorest 30% Filipino households, whose lower purchasing power made them experience inflation at 5.5% year-on-year, also the fastest since December 2018.
Costly food prices were again blamed for faster inflation outturn. Pork prices remain elevated because of tight supplies, as well as that of fish. The bright spot is prices of fruits and vegetables, which also tightened because of crop damage from typhoons last year, are beginning to taper off.
But with food inflation hardly resolved yet, other sources of inflation are also starting to emerge. Fuel prices, including cooking gas, are picking up following their global counterparts. Rice, which for most of last year was on a decline, has also seen upward movement in prices this month.
A government strategy to bring pork from provinces to replenish Metro Manila supplies and keep prices at bay also appeared to have backfired. While annual inflation in National Capital Region eased to 4.1% in February, that in other regions gained pace to 4.8%. A 60-day price cap on pork and chicken in the capital was also enforced this month.
CHINA TO DONATE 400,000 MORE COVID-19 VACCINE DOSES TO THE PHILIPPINES, SAYS DUTERTE
MANILA — President Rodrigo Duterte on Thursday said China would give another 400,000 COVID-19 vaccine doses to the Philippines this month, which would raise its total donation to a million shots.
Manila last Sunday received its first vaccine supply, courtesy of Beijing's donation of 600,000 COVID-19 shots from Chinese drugmaker Sinovac Biotech.
"I will be receiving another [batch], March. China would give us another 400 [thousand COVID-19 shots], making their donation to this country 1 million," Duterte said in a speech at the inauguration of a school building in Valenzuela City.
Duterte did not say which brand Beijing would donate.
The President said he preferred to get the COVID-19 vaccine from Chinese state firm Sinopharm.
"Hindi masyado ako ma-ano d'yan sa mga produkto ng puti," he said.
"For those of you who'd opt to take that vaccine, fine with me. Wala sa akin iyan (that is nothing to me). Others might prefer brands," said Duterte.
"The doctors are very discriminating. They're waiting for Pfizer," he added.
VACCINE ROLLOUT BOOSTS PRIVATE HOSPITALS WORKERS' CONFIDENCE IN SINOVAC JABS
MANILA - The country's coronavirus inoculation drive has bolstered the confidence of private hospital workers in receiving Sinovac jabs, an official said Friday.
Dr. Jose Rene De Grano, president of the Private Hospitals Association of the Philippines Inc, said many employees in private hospitals initially expressed reservation about the Chinese-made vaccines.
At least 70 percent of employees in private hospitals earlier agreed to be vaccinated against the disease.
"No'ng bigla pong sabihin na Sinovac, medyo bumaba. Pero pagkatapos po ng rollout sa PGH (Philippine General Hospital), sa mga different government hospital sa Metro Manila, medyo dumami na rin po ulit ang pumapayag. Sinasabi nila, kung ano man ang ibigay na bakuna ay tatanggapin na rin namin," he told Teleradyo.
DUTERTE HAPPY WITH VACCINE ROLLOUT
MANILA — President Duterte is happy with the rollout of COVID-19 vaccines, but wants to see a more massive inoculation so he can be confident of relaxing quarantine restrictions in the country, Malacañang said yesterday.
“He said he really wants to (loosen the restrictions). The first thing is that he’s very happy with the rollout, with what’s happening in the rollout. He wants to see more happening as a challenge to all of us. Perhaps he wants to see a more massive rollout,” Cabinet Secretary Karlo Nograles said.
Simultaneous vaccine rollouts would be held in the Cordilleras, Ilocos, Central Luzon, Calabarzon, Mimaropa, Bicol, Western Visayas and Eastern Visayas on Monday.
GUILTY UNTIL PROVEN INNOCENT: SOLON BLASTS BILL THAT AUTOMATICALLY PRESUMES DRUG SUSPECTS GUILTY
MANILA - A lawmaker on Friday slammed as "patently unconstitutional" a bill in the House of Representatives amending the country's drugs law that presumes drug suspects guilty until proven innocent.
Quezon City 4th District Rep. Jesus "Bong" Suntay raised concerns that House Bill 7814, which was approved in the lower House on third and final reading, "has far-reaching implications" on the person's individual rights.
"For me, it would be patently unconstitutional. It runs counter to Article 3 of the Constitution. It not only amends our Constitution, it also revises various penal laws, which provides the presumption of innocence on the part of a person accused," he said, referring to Section 14, Article 3 of the 1987 Constitution where the accused shall be presumed innocent until proven guilty in all criminal prosecutions.
"I would rather see 10 guilty people be set free than have 1 innocent individual wrongly accused and put to jail. Once you take away liberty from a person, once you take time away from that person, this is something you can't give back," he said.
Under the bill, an owner of a property where drugs are found is also presumed to be the owner of the drugs, he said.
If a drug bust was conducted in a bar, everyone inside is presumed to have knowledge of the presence of drugs, he added.
"While I'm also one with other legislators that we have to protect our children and citizens from the scourge of dangerous drugs, we should not sacrifice individual rights just because we want to strengthen our drug laws," Suntay, chairperson of House committee on human rights, said. Some 188 lawmakers in the lower House voted in favor of the proposed legislation.
Suntay stressed that the guilt of a person should be proven on the strength of the evidence of the prosecution.
For Suntay, Republic Act 9165 or Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002 "does not need any amendment at this time."
MASS EVACUATIONS AS LARGE QUAKES SPARK PACIFIC-WIDE TSUNAMI ALERT
WELLINGTON, New Zealand — Tens of thousands of coastal residents in New Zealand, New Caledonia and Vanuatu fled for higher ground Friday as a cluster of powerful earthquakes sparked a Pacific-wide tsunami alert.
Warning sirens sounded across Noumea as authorities ordered evacuations amid fears that waves of up three metres (10 feet) were headed towards the French territory.
"People must leave beach areas and stop all water activities, and should not pick their children up at schools to avoid creating traffic jams," emergency services spokesman Alexandre Rosignol told public radio.
In New Zealand, communities along stretches of the North Island were warned to flee as tsunami alert sirens wailed after an 8.1-magnitude quake, which followed earlier tremors in the same region measuring 7.4 and 7.3.
"Do not stay at home," the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) said.
"People near the coast... must move immediately to the nearest high ground, out of all tsunami evacuation zones, or as far inland as possible."
The largest of the quakes struck around 1,000 kilometres (640 miles) off the New Zealand coast at 8:28 am (1928 Thursday GMT), the US Geological Survey said.
The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said Vanuatu and New Caledonia were likely to experience the largest waves, measuring up to three metres.
"Based on all available data, hazardous tsunami waves are forecast for some coasts," it said.
It said initial smaller waves were already reported in Tonga, and small waves were also possible as far afield as Japan, Russia, Mexico and the South American coast.
No damage or injuries were reported from the earlier quakes, both of which generated tsunami warnings that were later lifted.
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PH LOGS 2,452 NEW CORONAVIRUS INFECTIONS; OVER 37,000 ACTIVE CASES, HIGHEST SINCE OCTOBER
MANILA — The Department of Health on Thursday reported 2,452 additional COVID-19 cases, bringing the country's total to 584,667 as inoculation against the coronavirus continued on its fourth day.
This is the highest tally of new cases since February 27. New reported infections counted at least 2,000 each for 7 out of the last 8 days.
Thursday’s tally did not include data from 4 laboratories that failed to submit results on time.
The DOH also announced 15 new COVID-related deaths or a total of 12,404 fatalities, accounting for 2.11 percent of the cumulative total cases.
NO WATER SHORTAGE THIS SUMMER – PALACE
MANILA — Metro Manila is expected to have enough water supply during summer and the rest of the year, as the government is working to finish long-term water security projects, Malacañang said yesterday.
“According to Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System (MWSS) chairman and OIC administrator Reynaldo Velasco, we expect to have a sufficient supply of water this year in Metro Manila. We won’t have water shortage here in Manila,” Cabinet Secretary Karlo Nograles said at a press briefing.
He said water supply infrastructure projects were discussed during last Wednesday’s Cabinet meeting and MWSS is fast-tracking several projects to secure NCR’s water supply.
These include the New Centennial Water Source–Kaliwa Dam Project, Long Term Water Source Development for Metro Manila Project (Upper Kaliwa and Kanan River), East Bay water Supply Project–Phase 1, East Bay Water Supply Project–Phase 2, Wawa-Calawis Water Supply Project–Phase 1, and Wawa-Calawis Water Supply Project–Phase 2 that could supply a total of 1,368 million liters daily.
“The tunnel boring machine for the Kaliwa Dam project is expected to arrive in May and the government is optimistic that the project will be completed by 2025,” he said, adding that government is in the “final stages” of drafting concession deals to be presented to Maynilad and Manila Water.
FDA WARNS PUBLIC: ONLINE SELLING OF COVID-19 TEST KITS PROHIBITED
MANILA — The Food and Drug Administration has reminded the public that COVID-19 tests are purely for medical professional use and are not sold online.
In an advisory, the FDA said their mandate to protect the public welfare and safety through regulation of health products covers in-vitro diagnostic medical devices in the country.
The regulatory body told the public and the general public “that online selling of all types of FDA certified COVID-19 test kits (RT-PCR, antibody, antigen based) is strictly prohibited.”
“These COVID-19 test kits with FDA special certification are strictly for medical professional use and not intended for personal use,” it added.
The RT-PCR of the Reverse Transcription Polyamerase Chain Reaction test, considered the “gold standard” in testing, detects the virus’ genetic material through nasal and throat swabs. The rapid antibody tests meanwhile detects the antibodies in blood of people believed to have been infected with the disease.
Antigen tests diagnose active COVID-19 infections with quicker turnaround period, although negative test results may need to be confirmed by an RT-PCR test.
ENTERTAINMENT & LIFESTYLE
ELLEN ADARNA DEFENDS BOYFRIEND DEREK RAMSAY FROM BASHER
MANILA — Actress-model Ellen Adarna called out a rude social media user after it maliciously commented on her post.
In her Instagram account, Ellen posted a photo of her fixing boyfriend Derek Ramsay’s hair.
An Instagram user commented on Ellen’s post, saying Derek is her new toy.
“He is the new FB toy,” the social media user commented.
Ellen clapped back on the basher.
"Because... if someone were to FB a face like yours, kennot. Kennot even toy it," Ellen replied.
Derek recently called out a social media user after it commented the name of his ex-girlfriend Andrea Torres to a video of him with current girlfriend Ellen Adarna.
“Andrea left the group,” the Instagram user commented.
“Don’t be like that, please,” Derek wrote as response to an online user.
Derek and Ellen recently admitted that they are now in a relationship after weeks of romance rumors.
GARY VALENCIANO: ABS-CBN IS 'PERFECT EXAMPLE' OF 'NEVER LOSING HOPE' DESPITE STRUGGLES
MANILA — Gary Valenciano remains to be an inspiration for many.
Whenever the singer-songwriter who is behind classic inspirational songs like "The Warrior Is A Child," "Gaya Ng Dati," "Sa Yaweh" and "I Will Be Here" speaks, people listen. And recentely, during his contract renewal with ABS-CBN, he showed why.
"No, I honestly never did," he answered Philstar.com's question if he ever lost hope during the pandemic.
Although he had his fair share of struggles, mainly concerning his health, he swore to have never lost hope.
"I never lost hope because you know... I don't mean to sound spiritual, Kat, or too spiritual here but you know, when you're in contact with the Lord and you read His Word, many of these things were already stated there. 'Yung mga pangyayari at this particular time of our lives. Many of it is already there, so I think and I've talked to my wife about this na instead of focusing on the problem, let's focus on just the faithfulness on how God is going to see us through. We don't know how but He's going to see us through," he answered.
He also illustrated how he sees things in such a manner that one would be reminded of the many wonderful things that come out of losses and dire situations. He cited the way his home network of 18 years, ABS-CBN, that was able to bounce back less than a year since it lost its franchise.
"Perfect example? ABS-CBN. Who would have ever thought that we would come back on ABS-CBN? But the thing is, hindi lang tayo sa ABS lumabas, we're now also on A2Z and even TV5. So its something of a first in Philippine TV. Three networks to actually come together this way. And of course, there's also a pandemic that hit the world at this latitude.
"So, no I did not lose hope. There was frustration. I mean, merong mga, 'Sana wala nang ganito. 'Yung concert, sayang. Ay 'yung 'ASAP' wala na.' But then when you look above that, makikita mo 'yung halaga, buhay at puso ng bawat Kapamilya, Kapatid at Ka-A2Z and it encouraged me to write that song. It encouraged me to come up with online concerts for the benefit of different people who need help in that particular time. Up to now, marami pa rin ang nangangailangan," he shared.
Now that ABS-CBN, the home that gave him the channel to reach out to people, enables him to continue to do what he wants to do, he is optimistic that the good deeds will continue.
SPORTS
NBA SCORES MARCH 3
FINAL
1 2 3 4 T
Pacers 16-18 28 23 31 32 114
Cavaliers 14-22 28 33 29 21 111
SCORING LEADERS
M. Brogdon IND
29 PTS, 4 REB, 3 AST
C. Sexton CLE
32 PTS, 4 REB, 10 AST
FINAL/OT
1 2 3 4 OT T
Jazz 27-9 34 27 28 29 5 123
76ers 24-12 26 26 32 34 13 131
SCORING LEADERS
D. Mitchell UTA
33 PTS, 8 REB, 6 AST
J. Embiid PHI
40 PTS, 19 REB, 3 AST
FINAL
1 2 3 4 T
Pistons 10-25 43 26 29 31 129
Raptors 17-18 37 23 20 25 105
SCORING LEADERS
W. Ellington DET
25 PTS, 3 REB, 0 AST
N. Powell TOR
36 PTS, 5 REB, 1 AST
FINAL
1 2 3 4 T
Nets 24-13 30 37 34 31 132
Rockets 11-23 27 27 31 29 114
SCORING LEADERS
J. Harden BKN
29 PTS, 10 REB, 14 AST
J. Wall HOU
36 PTS, 2 REB, 5 AST
FINAL
1 2 3 4 T
Bulls 16-18 26 38 32 32 128
Pelicans 15-20 25 20 34 45 124
SCORING LEADERS
Z. LaVine CHI
36 PTS, 2 REB, 8 AST
Z. Williamson NO
28 PTS, 9 REB, 5 AST
FINAL
1 2 3 4 T
Hornets 17-18 36 26 36 37 135
Timberwolves 7-29 33 23 20 26 102
SCORING LEADERS
T. Rozier CHA
31 PTS, 3 REB, 4 AST
R. Rubio MIN
20 PTS, 4 REB, 9 AST
FINAL
1 2 3 4 T
Hawks 16-20 27 15 36 37 115
Magic 13-23 39 22 29 22 112
SCORING LEADERS
T. Young ATL
32 PTS, 4 REB, 8 AST
N. Vucevic ORL
29 PTS, 9 REB, 3 AST
FINAL
1 2 3 4 T
Thunder 14-21 23 19 19 17 78
Mavericks 18-16 25 24 26 12 87
SCORING LEADERS
S. Gilgeous-Alexander OKC
15 PTS, 3 REB, 3 AST
K. Porzingis DAL
19 PTS, 13 REB, 0 AST
FINAL
1 2 3 4 T
Warriors 19-17 29 27 24 26 106
Trail Blazers 20-14 28 27 27 26 108
SCORING LEADERS
S. Curry GS
35 PTS, 7 REB, 5 AST
D. Lillard POR
22 PTS, 5 REB, 6 AST
FINAL
1 2 3 4 T
Lakers 24-13 31 30 27 32 120
Kings 14-21 23 40 24 36 123
SCORING LEADERS
D. Schroder LAL
28 PTS, 1 REB, 9 AST
B. Hield SAC
29 PTS, 6 REB, 6 AST
INDICATORS
FOREX $1 = P 48.62
THOUGHT FOR THE DAY
Before I can live with other folks, I’ve got to live with myself. The one thing that doesn’t abide by majority rule is a person’s conscience. - Harper Lee (To Kill a Mockingbird)
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