PH SENDS MORE NAVY SHIPS TO WEST PH SEA, BUT NOT IN REEF WHERE CHINESE MILITIA SHIPS SEEN
MANILA — The Philippine military on Thursday said its chief Gen. Cirilito Sobejana has ordered the deployment of more Navy ships to the West Philippine Sea to beef up the country's maritime sovereignty patrols in the area, but not in the reef where Chinese militia ships were seen to avoid confrontation.
The deployment of more Navy ships came as China's maritime militia fleet remained at the Julian Felipe Reef (Whitsun Reef), despite mounting calls from the international community to have it recalled.
The reef is also within the Philippine EEZ and continental shelf, over which the country owns exclusive right to use resources, including fish, oil and natural gas.
The West Philippine Sea covers the country's EEZ in the disputed South China Sea, where China lays expansive claims.
"By increased naval presence in the area, we seek to reassure our people of [our] strong, unwavering commitment to protect and defend them from harassment, ensure they enjoy their rights over the country’s rich fishing grounds which is their source of livelihood," the military said.
The AFP said they cannot deploy their Navy ships to the reef because China's maritime militia vessels were supposedly considered civilian in nature.
To send a warship could be seen as antagonistic and might trigger China to send its own more powerful Navy, they pointed out.
The AFP, however, added that they already met with their Chinese counterparts on Wednesday conveying “the Defense Secretary’s demand for the vessels to leave Julian Felipe Reef where 183 vessels were sighted per AFP’s recent aerial patrol.”
"China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) representatives reiterated their government’s assurance that those ships were not manned by militia and that those were constrained to seek shelter in the area when inclement weather hampered their fishing activity,” the military explained.
There was no mention, however, whether the ships would leave once weather improves.
SATELLITE PHOTOS SHOW CHINA'S CONSTRUCTION ON SUBI REEF WHILE SHIPS SWARM JULIAN FELIPE REEF
MANILA — While Chinese militia ships swarm Julian Felipe Reef, Beijing continues its construction on Subi Reef in the West Philippine Sea.
Satellite images released by US-based Simularity showed significant construction activity by China on Subi Reef, located just 13 nautical miles from Pag-asa Island, between November 2020 and March 2021.
The report noted that most of the changes observed in the concerned areas are mostly land-related reshaping or reconfiguration.
"The volume of changes is significant, and may indicate the early phases of major construction on Subi Reef," Simularity said.
While the observable land-related changes are not easily characterized for now, the report said the changes are possibly for construction preparation, agriculture preparation, possible island repair or land reinforcement and significant movement of materials and supplies.
PALACE: DUTERTE HAS TALKED TO 'FRIEND' BEIJING ENVOY ABOUT CHINESE INCURSION IN WEST PH SEA
MANILA — President Rodrigo Duterte has talked to the Chinese envoy in Manila about the presence of some 200 Chinese ships at a West Philippine Sea reef, his spokesman said on Thursday.
Duterte and Chinese Ambassador to the Philippines Huang Xilian talked about the maritime issue "on the side" of a personal visit for the Filipino leader's upcoming birthday, said his spokesman Harry Roque.
Huang had requested the meeting to extend birthday greetings to Duterte long before reports about the Chinese ships at the Julian Felipe (Whitsun) Reef surfaced, said Roque, adding that the meeting happened while he was on quarantine after catching COVID-19. He has since recovered.
"Nagkausap po sila, pero hindi po 'yan lang ang pinag-usapan nila.
Before reports meron na appointment for birthday," he said in a press briefing.
"It was a personal visit between two very close friends. And on the side, siyempre po sinabi ni Presidente iyong mga sinabi niya sa UN," he added.
DUTERTE’S BIRTHDAY WISH: END OF PANDEMIC
MANILA — President Duterte’s wish for his 76th birthday is the end of the COVID-19 pandemic and a return to normalcy, Malacañang said yesterday.
“I’m sure the President wishes an end to this pandemic and he wants all of us to return to our normal lives. That means going back to our high annual growth rate because he promised a comfortable life for all,” presidential spokesman Harry Roque said at a press briefing.
Duterte, the oldest person to be elected Philippine president, was born on March 28, 1945.
For this year, it falls on Palm Sunday—the first day of Holy Week.
“Despite COVID, I’m sure his birthday wish is to achieve that more comfortable life, that everyone will recover from this pandemic,” Roque said.
He noted the President had joked about his date of birth when he was given advanced birthday greetings. “When I greeted him ‘Advance happy birthday,’ he said ‘My birthday will fall in January.’ Of course we know his birthday.”
At the same press briefing, he revealed that Chinese Ambassador Huang Xilian met recently with Duterte to greet him a happy birthday. Other issues, including the presence of 220 Chinese ships at the Julian Felipe Reef, well within the Philippines’ exclusive economic zone and continental shelf, were also discussed.
“It was a social call because of the birthday of the President. So, it was a personal visit between two very close friends,” Roque said.
Duterte was expected to fly to Davao City yesterday for his “no fanfare” birthday celebration with his family over the weekend.
SUPPLIES OF COVID-19 THERAPEUTICS 'RUNNING LOW' AS PHILIPPINES BATTLES SURGE IN CASES
MANILA — The Philippines is facing a shortage of investigational drugs used to treat COVID-19 patients as the country battles a surge in infections, the Department of Health said.
In a statement Thursday, the DOH said the current stocks of antiviral drug remdesivir and anti-inflammatory treatment tocilizumab are “running low.” The use of these drugs in the country is allowed under the compassionate use permit issued by the Food and Drug Administration.
“The remaining supplies being used by select hospitals are donations from the World Health Organization,” the department said.
GOVERNORS, MAYORS, BARANGAY CHIEFS GET UPGRADED IN VACCINE PRIORITY LIST: DILG
MANILA - Governors, mayors and village chiefs are now fourth in line to get the COVID-19 vaccine, the Department of the Interior and Local Government said Friday, after they have been moved up in the country's vaccination priority list.
"That's why they don't need to jump the gun because they've been upgraded," Interior Undersecretary Epimaco Densing told ANC.
Over 1,700 governors and mayors and more than 42,000 village chiefs were reclassified last week into the A4 category as frontline essential workers, he said.
A4 refers to frontline personnel in essential sectors including uniformed personnel and those in working sectors identified by the Inter-Agency Task Force as essential during enhanced community quarantine.
Local officials were previously classified in the B3 category or other essential workers, which means they were supposed to be in eight place in the priority list.
"We found it justified that they're really frontliners. I mean they go out every day, look at their patients, at their constituency and they're really exposed on a daily basis. So, they're like essential workers," Densing said.
This came after the Union of Local Authorities of the Philippines and League of Cities of the Philippines requested to DILG to be upgraded in the list of priority groups for COVID-19 inoculation.
HOUSE URGED TO CONDEMN, PROBE INTO RED-TAGGING OF MANDALUYONG JUDGE
MANILA — The Makabayan bloc is asking the House of Representatives to condemn and investigate the red-tagging of a Mandaluyong judge who freed in February a labor organizer and a journalist.
The six-member group said that the red-tagging of Mandaluyong Regional Trial Court Branch 209 Judge Monique Quisumbing-Ignacio comes at a time when threats against members of the legal profession are at an “all-time high.”
“As members of Congress and as representatives of the people, we should not countenance these kinds of attacks against members of the legal profession, those tasked in the dispensation of justice in our country, and even, those against ordinary individuals,” the progressive lawmakers said in House Resolution No. 1674.
A month after she junked charges of illegal possession of firearms and explosives against labor organizer Rodrigo Esparago and journalist Lady Ann Salem, a tarpaulin linking her to the communist rebellion was hung along EDSA.
The tarpaulin, supposedly coming from communist rebels, thanked the judge for swiftly freeing their “kasama” (comrades) Esparago and Salem.
The Commission on Human Rights said the red-tagging of Quisumbing-Ignacio exposed her to “grave danger,” while the Integrated Bar of the Philippines called on all sectors to stop “terrorizing or attacking” judges.
The Makabayan bloc noted that this is not the first time that the judiciary faced threats, recalling that Calbayog City police asked on March 12 for names of lawyers who are representing alleged communist rebels.
“This created a ‘chilling effect’ against lawyers who are merely protecting the rights of their clients knowing that they are actively being surveilled by state security forces,” the leftist lawmakers said.
IATF ALLOWS LIMITED RELIGIOUS GATHERINGS IN 'NCR PLUS' FROM APRIL 1-4
MANILA — Limited religious gatherings will be allowed from April 1 to 4, Malacañang said on Friday, reversing an earlier announcement for Metro Manila and four surrounding provinces.
"Mabuting balita po para sa gustong magsimba ngayong Semana Santa. Pinayagan po ng IATF ang once a day religious gathering mula a-uno hanggang a-cuatro ng Abril," said Palace spokesman Harry Roque.
The inter-agency task force leading the country's pandemic response earlier banned gatherings of more than 10 people in Metro Manila, Bulacan, Cavite, Laguna, and Rizal—which government called "NCR Plus" bubble area.
In the new announcement, religious denominations should limit gatherings to 10 percent of a venue's capacity.
They are urged to roll out a reservation system for those who want to join, Roque said in a televised public briefing.
The IATF has also banned religious gatherings outside a church or venue.
Live singing will be limited and recorded singing is encouraged, Roque added.
The IATF imposed additional restrictions like night curfews in the NCR Plus bubble until April 4 to curb an uptick in coronavirus infections. Some businesses in the area were temporarily closed or limited.
10 GUNMEN SURRENDER TO BARMM POLICE
COTABATO CITY — Ten gunmen identified with a slain mayor included on President Rodrigo Duterte's list of alleged narco-politicians surrendered to the police Thursday.
The group, led by Andih Anso, turned over assorted firearms, including a .50 caliber rifle to Police Maj. Gen. Albert Ignatius Ferro, director of the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group, during a simple surrender rite in a police camp in the city.
Anso also turned in three live rifle-propelled grenades and two 40 millimeter grenade projectiles.
Anso said they decided to yield through the intercession of two officials of the CIDG-Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao, Police Maj. Esmael Madin and Police Col. Tom Tuzon, and Police Lt. Col. Cyrus Belarmino, CIDG’s provincial officer for Zamboanga del Sur.
Ferro said credit for the surrender of Anso and his companions also has to go to the local government unit of Parang and its municipal police force.
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NEW RECORD-HIGH: PH LOGS 8,773 ADD'L COVID-19 CASES; ACTIVE INFECTIONS NEAR 100,000 MARK
MANILA - The Philippines on Thursday logged 8,773 additional COVID-19 cases, a new record-high in just 3 days, as ICU beds in the capital region fills up to a critical level in scenes reminiscent of last year's peak.
The day's tally, which does not include data from 6 laboratories, raised the country's cumulative number of infections to 693,048. It is the 8th straight day that new cases were over 5,000, according to ABS-CBN Data Analytics team.
Thursday's new COVID-19 cases surpassed the previous record of 8,019 announced by the Department of Health (DOH) on Monday.
Active cases continue to increase, hitting 99,891, also another record-high since the coronavirus outbreak hit the country over a year ago, surpassing Wednesday's tally of 91,748, according to the ABS-CBN Investigative and Research Group (IRG).
The virus claimed 56 more lives, raising the death toll to 13,095.
A total of 574 patients have recuperated from the disease, bringing the total number of recoveries to 580,062. This accounts for 83.7 percent of the total number of cases.
CAPIZ CARDINAL NAMED MANILA ARCHBISHOP
MANILA — Pope Francis yesterday appointed Capiz Cardinal Jose Advincula as the new archbishop of Manila, replacing Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle.
Advincula’s appointment was made public in Rome at 12 noon (7 p.m. local time) yesterday, the Feast of the Annunciation of the Lord, according to CBCPNews.
The Archdiocese of Manila had been vacant since the pope named Tagle as the prefect of the Vatican’s Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples in December 2019.
In February 2020, Pope Francis appointed Manila Auxiliary Bishop Broderick Pabillo as apostolic administrator of the Archdiocese of Manila.
In December 2020, Advincula was appointed as a member of the Congregation for the Clergy.
A former seminary formator, Advincula was appointed bishop of San Carlos in Negros Occidental in 2001 and was transferred to Capiz as archbishop 10 years later.
He was born in Dumalig, Capiz and was ordained priest in 1976. He finished Theology and Canon Law at the University of Santo Tomas.
‘ACTOR PRIORITIZED TO PREVENT VACCINE WASTAGE’
MANILA — It was the fear of seeing doses of vaccines go to waste that made the Parañaque City government decide to allow actor Mark Anthony Fernandez to be vaccinated against COVID-19 despite his not being a medical frontliner, Mayor Edwin Olivarez said yesterday.
In an interview over ANC News, Olivarez said Fernandez was allowed to take the place of a frontliner who did not show up at the last minute for the scheduled jab.
“If the 10 doses were not used, it would have been a waste. That’s why we used our substitution list, where the next group after health frontliners were senior citizens and persons with comorbidities,” Olivarez said, as he insisted that Fernandez has comorbidities – hypertension and depression. There are 10 doses in one vaccine vial.
“Our vaccine would be wasted, since the frontliner (who was supposed to take the vaccine) did not show up on that specific day. But there were doses already used in the vials, so if we do not use it, that would be wasted,” he added.
Olivarez maintained that the city has already inoculated 90 to 95 percent of health workers.
He also claimed that several individuals in the substitution list were inoculated with the vaccine on the same day as Fernandez.
The Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) will summon the Parañaque chief executive to explain his side on the issue.
ENTERTAINMENT & LIFESTYLE
SAMANTHA BERNARDO STUNS IN SWIMSUIT IN MISS GRAND INTERNATIONAL PRELIMS
MANILA — With an expert twirl to kick off her signature strut, the Philippines’ Samantha Bernardo showcased years of pageant experience Thursday night, during the swimsuit portion of the Miss Grand International preliminary competition.
Bernardo was one of 63 contestants who took part in the live-broadcast prelims leading up to the coronation night in Bangkok, Thailand on March 27, Saturday.
The two-hour prelims unfolded in two parts — the evening gown competition, and then the swimsuit round.
For her turn on stage during the first part, Bernardo opted for a reliable but no less sultry walk to put on display her “Lipad” gown.
She was then decidedly more energetic in the second portion, with snappy movements and a more playful gait, at one point even pointing at the camera.
As the prelims streamed live via YouTube, #GRANDnadaWalk, the coined term for Bernardo’s pasarela, topped the Philippine trends on Twitter, with many Filipino supporters commending the representative’s performance.
Bernardo has so far been a visible candidate in the ongoing pageant. Prior to the prelims, she was No. 1 in the list of candidates with most online votes for the earlier round of the swimsuit competition.
The Thursday prelims, which also included a swimsuit component, will determine the top 20 candidates during the finals night.
If Bernardo wins the crown, it would be the first for the Philippines from Miss Grand International.
SPORTS
NBA SCORES MARCH 24
FINAL
1 2 3 4 T
Pistons 12-31 24 27 28 32 111
Pacers 20-23 21 36 29 30 116
SCORING LEADERS
J. Grant DET
29 PTS, 6 REB, 2 AST
C. LeVert IND
28 PTS, 6 REB, 4 AST
FINAL
1 2 3 4 T
Celtics 21-23 30 29 27 33 119
Bucks 29-14 35 35 30 21 121
SCORING LEADERS
J. Brown BOS
24 PTS, 10 REB, 2 AST
K. Middleton MIL
27 PTS, 13 REB, 4 AST
FINAL
1 2 3 4 T
Nuggets 26-18 30 24 27 30 111
Raptors 18-26 38 34 26 37 135
SCORING LEADERS
J. Murray DEN
20 PTS, 2 REB, 7 AST
P. Siakam TOR
27 PTS, 8 REB, 6 AST
FINAL
1 2 3 4 T
Cavaliers 17-27 25 28 25 25 103
Bulls 19-24 25 30 17 22 94
SCORING LEADERS
D. Garland CLE
22 PTS, 4 REB, 9 AST
Z. LaVine CHI
22 PTS, 3 REB, 4 AST
FINAL
1 2 3 4 T
Hornets 22-21 26 32 35 29 122
Rockets 12-31 26 29 15 27 97
SCORING LEADERS
T. Rozier CHA
25 PTS, 3 REB, 4 AST
J. Wall HOU
20 PTS, 2 REB, 7 AST
FINAL
1 2 3 4 T
Mavericks 23-19 30 26 32 40 128
Timberwolves 10-34 33 22 18 35 108
SCORING LEADERS
K. Porzingis DAL
SCORING LEADERS
D. Booker PHO
25 PTS, 7 REB, 7 AST
FINAL
1 2 3 4 T
Grizzlies 21-20 26 23 33 34 116
Thunder 19-25 21 32 20 34 107
SCORING LEADERS
D. Brooks MEM
25 PTS, 3 REB, 0 AST
M. Brown OKC
19 PTS, 12 REB, 0 AST
FINAL
1 2 3 4 T
Clippers 29-16 41 26 35 32 134
Spurs 22-19 29 24 31 17 101
SCORING LEADERS
K. Leonard LAC
25 PTS, 7 REB, 3 AST
D. DeRozan SA
19 PTS, 3 REB, 3 AST
FINAL
1 2 3 4 T
Hawks 22-22 27 30 17 34 108
Kings 19-25 29 28 28 25 110
SCORING LEADERS
T. Young ATL
29 PTS, 3 REB, 9 AST
D. Fox SAC
37 PTS, 2 REB, 3 AST
FINAL
1 2 3 4 T
Nets 30-15 17 21 23 27 88
Jazz 32-11 38 25 27 28 118
SCORING LEADERS
A. Johnson BKN
23 PTS, 15 REB, 3 AST
D. Mitchell UTA
27 PTS, 6 REB, 7 AST
INDICATORS
FOREX $1 = P 48.58
THOUGHT FOR THE DAY
Courage is what it takes to stand up and speak; courage is also what it takes to sit down and listen. - Winston Churchill
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