US REPEATS WARNING TO CHINA AGAINST ATTACK ON PHILIPPINE FORCES

WASHINGTON - The United States on Sunday repeated a warning to China that an attack on Philippine armed forces in the South China Sea would trigger a 1951 U.S.-Philippines mutual defense treaty.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken made the comment in a written statement marking the fifth anniversary of a ruling by an arbitration tribunal repudiating China's vast territorial claims in the South China Sea.

China - which lays claim to most of the waters within a so-called Nine Dash Line, which is also contested by Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan and Vietnam - reiterated on Friday that Beijing did not accept the ruling.

"The United States reaffirms its July 13, 2020 policy regarding maritime claims in the South China Sea," Blinken said, referring to the rejection by former President Donald Trump's administration of China's claims to offshore resources in most of the South China Sea.

"We also reaffirm that an armed attack on Philippine armed forces, public vessels, or aircraft in the South China Sea would invoke U.S. mutual defense commitments under Article IV of the 1951 U.S.-Philippines Mutual Defense Treaty," Blinken added.

COMELEC REJECTS 9 PARTY-LIST GROUPS

MANILA — More party-list groups will not be able to participate in the May 2022 general elections.

The Commission on Elections has denied the applications for registration of nine party-list organizations, Comelec Commissioner Rowena Guanzon posted on Twitter.

Guanzon did not identify the party-list groups.

The Comelec First Division has denied the petitions for registration of 45 party-list organizations to join next year’s elections.

Guanzon said most of the party-list groups whose applications were rejected failed to include their manifestations of intent to participate in the 2022 elections.

The filing of applications for party-list registration ended on March 31.

PDP-LABAN CONFLICT MUST BE RESOLVED INTERNALLY, SAYS REGIONAL EXEC

MANILA - Ruling party PDP-Laban must resolve its conflict internally, a regional officer said Monday.

The camp of the party's acting president Sen. Manny Pacquiao over the weekend expelled vice chairman Alfonso Cusi, deputy secretary general Melvin Matibag, and membership committee Head Astra Naik for allegedly violating several provisions of the party's constitution.

"I think it’s something we need to resolve internally. Magkaroon ng (We need a) way forward for all the members to get past their conflict but at the same time continue standing on the principles of the party," Quirino Governor Dakila Cua told ANC's Headstart.

"Sa tingin ko naman kasi (I think) the rules of the party are crafted by the members. Di naman yan kung sino ang mataas na opisyal siya lang ang masusunod, ang masusunod diyan mga miyembro."

Cua said he hopes that the party would resolve its in-fighting during its national assembly on July 17.

"Ang worry ko yung moves like this, yung pag-expel, yung developments will further deepen the factions within the party. Nawawala na yung opportunity for dialogue," he said.

ROBREDO ON ARBITRAL WIN IN WEST PHILIPPINE SEA: 5 YEARS OF MISSED OPPORTUNITIES

MANILA — As the country celebrates its historic win against China Monday, Vice President Leni Robredo said today’s commemoration marked “five years of missed opportunities” after the government made little efforts to press its claim to the West Philippine Sea.

Five years ago, a United Nations-backed tribunal in The Hague, Netherlands invalidated Beijing’s sweeping claim over the South China Sea, including the West Philippine Sea.

Despite the victory, Beijing rejected the ruling, and the Duterte administration “set aside” the arbitral award to seek stronger ties with China.

“Since then, national leadership has yet to fully flex the ruling as an instrument to pursue our national interests, failing to invoke it in strong terms in the forums that matter the most,” Robredo said.

“Our fisherfolk remain unable to enter areas that have been the source of livelihood for generations of Filipinos. Alliances that could have strengthened were allowed to erode, while those who bully their way into our waters have been treated with deference, and at times, subservience. The dream of a regional architecture founded on respect and mutual prosperity has become even more elusive,” she added.

The vice president also stressed the Hague ruling “cannot be erased from the history books, and cannot be denied despite the unending lies spewed forth by a formidable machinery of disinformation.”

“Filing the case before the tribunal— standing up for what is right, against the economic and military might of a world power— yielded the admiration and respect of the entire world,” Robredo said.

“Today’s commemoration is a reminder, a challenge, and a promise: that if only we can remember, if only we can unite, if only we can rediscover our spirit and once again stand for what is right—we will find, beneath the rubble of cowardice and neglect, our courage, our dignity, and our national pride,” she added.

VP ROBREDO SUGGESTS DECLARATION OF CRISIS IN EDUCATION

MANILA - Vice President Leni Robredo on Sunday urged the administration to declare a crisis in education to address the needs of students and teachers hit by the pandemic.

Robredo said government should focus on solutions rather than being defensive after a World Bank report found 80 percent of Filipino students fall below the minimum level of proficiency for their grade levels.

The report was based on the 2019 Program for International Student Assessment, the Department of Education said as it sought an apology from the World Bank. The financial institution has since issued an apology.

"Ang daming puwedeng gawin. Para sa'kin, yun nga, magdeklara na tayo ng education crisis kasi mas mabagal tayong nagre-react, mas gumagrabe ang problema natin," she said in her weekly radio show.

"In fairness sa DepEd, marami na silang ginagawa na hindi na-reflect dun sa World Bank study. Sana magkaroon ng update based on the latest data para mas alam natin kung nasaan tayo ngayon. More than a year nang wala sa paaralan ang mga bata, mas na-exacerbate pa ang sitwasyon. Sana mali ako."

Robredo also cited the poor assessment on students’ performance on major subjects like Math, Science and English.

The budget allocation for the education sector has taken a backseat from 2018 to 2021, she added.

“Dapat sana yung budget for education ay at least 6 percent ng GDP (gross domestic product) natin," Robredo said.

“Sana mas bigyan natin ng importansya yung education kasi ang laki ng problema natin as far as education is concerned.”

“Ang isang nakakatakot ay malnutrition, kasi 'di ba ang paniniwala, kapag malnourished ang bata, mahihirapan siyang mag-aral 'pag walang laman ang tiyan," she said.

There are also still challenges in providing quality education during the pandemic, such as teachers not being given the adequate support they need, according to her.

There is a wide divide in online class accessibility among private and public school students, Robredo added.

Some 41.2 percent of classes in private schools are done online versus 2.1 percent in public schools, Robredo said, citing 2020 DepEd data.

"Grabe yung digital divide ng mga bata sa public at private schools. Ang tanong, ano ba ang ginagawa natin para ma-close ang gap na to?" Robredo said.

600,000 DISENFRANCHISED VOTERS RENEW REGISTRATION

MANILA — Only 600,000 of 7.3 million deactivated voters have so far renewed their registrations for the 2022 general elections, the Commission on Elections (Comelec) said on Saturday.

Comelec Commissioner Rowena Guanzon posted the figure on her Twitter account, noting that voter registration will end on Sept. 30

Guanzon urged the 6.7 million more deactivated voters to avoid the rush and renew their registration so they could participate in the 2022 elections.

She said the poll body would not extend the deadline for the registration.

The Comelec has opened satellite voter registration centers in areas around the country where quarantine restrictions have been eased.

The poll body will sign an agreement today with Robinsons Land Corp. for the establishment of voter registration booths in select malls nationwide.

In another development, Comelec spokesman James Jimenez has suggested coming up with a drive against premature campaigners.

“Wouldn’t it be cool if someone sponsors a massive billboard ad that features a big red and says ‘Ekis na ang premature campaigner’ or some snappy copy like that,” Jimenez said on Twitter.

The Supreme Court has tied the hands of the Comelec with its ruling that there is no such thing as premature campaigning.

LGUS ADVISED TO USE STAYSAFE APP FOR CONTACT TRACING

MANILA — The Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) has advised local government units (LGUs) that do not have their own contact tracing system to use the StaySafe.PH application.

It said the LGUs that have not procured their respective systems could make use of StaySafe as its official app for COVID-19 health reporting and contact tracing efforts.

The LGUs, it added, should encourage their constituents, government offices and private establishments in their jurisdictions to utilize the application. This will help the national government in its contact tracing activities and efforts to cut COVID transmission in the country.

On the other hand, the DILG said LGUs that have their own contact tracing applications should ensure these are interoperable with the centralized COVID-19 Contact Tracing Application Services of the Department of Information and Communications Technology.

BSP SAYS PESO'S WEAKNESS 'NOT A CONCERN AT THE MOMENT'

MANILA — The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas is not worried about the current weakness of the peso, adding it is ready to step in to tame any sharp depreciation of the local currency.

In a Monday morning interview with ABS-CBN News Channel, BSP Governor Benjamin Diokno said the central bank is already intervening in the foreign exchange market to temper the local unit’s weakness by converting some of its dollar reserves into peso. But the BSP chief said monetary authorities still trust in the market-determined exchange rate.

The peso on Friday breached the P50-level for the first time in over a year to close at P50.08 versus the US dollar, its weakest performance since it finished at P50.19 per dollar on June 23, 2020. On Monday, the peso opened the trading week at P50.05 against the greenback and is moving sideways in the morning.

“The BSP will continue to adopt at market-determined exchange rate policy. That’s our approach. We deal with exchange rate volatility, looking at supply and demand of foreign exchange,” he said.

“At the same time, our role is smoothen the fluctuations, and to make sure market conditions are orderly rather than steering peso to a particular level, whether it’s stronger or weaker than other currencies,” he added.

YOLANDA SURVIVORS RECEIVE PROPERTY TITLES

TACLOBAN CITY  — Over P1,000 families who survived the devastation from Super Typhoon Yolanda have received titles for the property they are occupying at two relocation sites in this city.

The distribution of land titles for the beneficiaries of the Yolanda Pabahay Program was held on July 8 and 9 at the North Hill Arbours 1 and 2 located in Barangay 105 San Isidro.

The program was led by Mayor Alfred Romualdez and the city councilors, particularly Aimee Grafil who chairs the urban poor housing and resettlement committee, as well as officials of the National Housing Authority (NHA) in Eastern Visayas.

Romualdez said it has been his commitment to provide Yolanda survivors with land and housing units that they can call their own.

The land titles will be notarized for free at the Tacloban City Hall-north extension starting tomorrow, the city government said.

NHA-Eastern Visayas manager Constancio Enteniero thanked the city officials for supporting the housing program of the government.

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PH CONFIRMS 5,916 NEW COVID-19 CASES

MANILA - The Philippines on Sunday tallied 5,916 additional COVID-19 cases, the Department of Health (DOH) said.

The country now has 1,473,025 total novel coronavirus infections, of which 49,701 or 3.4 percent were still active, according to the DOH's latest bulletin.

COVID-related fatalities increased by 105 to 25,921. The case fatality rate remained at 1.76 percent.

The positivity rate is at 11.4 percent, based on the testing samples of 47,070 individuals screened for the disease on Sunday.

There were also 6,127 additional recoveries, resulting in a total of 1,397,403 or 94.9 percent of the running tally.

CENTRAL VISAYAS COVID-19 CASES 'SLOWLY' RISING: REGIONAL HEALTH DEPT

MANILA - COVID-19 cases in Central Visayas are "slowly increasing," the regional health department said Monday.

The upward trend in cases began during the last week of May, said Dr. Eugenia Mercedes Cañal, head of Department of Health-Central Visayas.

"Slowly, hinay-hinay po siya tumaas until po ngayon, up to the first week of July," she told ABS-CBN's Teleradyo.

Some 80 percent of coronavirus patients are asymptomatic, she added.

Cañal attributed the rise to virus mutation and increased transmissibility and the non-observance of minimum health protocols.

"The most misconception na nakikita po natin or naririnig natin sa mga kababayan natin, 'Vaccinated ako, okay lang na pagala-gala na ako.' That should not be the case po," she said.

"Hindi po natin mabe-blame sa LGUs kasi all the LCEs have put their best foot forward in terms of controlling the spread of the virus. It has to come from the public, individual and community as well, dapat i-own up po ang (they should own up their) responsibility."

The region as of Saturday has a total of 79,955 COVID-19 cases, with 2,973 active infections, according to the DOH website.

Of the total active cases, 695 were from Bohol, 672 from Cebu City, 663 from Negros Oriental, 520 from Cebu, 262 from Lapu-Lapu City, 146 from Mandaue City, and 15 from Siquijor, DOH data showed.

PUERTO GALERA ALLOWS ENTRY OF FULLY-VACCINATED TOURISTS WITHOUT SWAB TEST

MANILA - Tourist destination Puerto Galera in Oriental Mindoro no longer requires confirmatory swab tests for fully-vaccinated tourists, its mayor said Monday.

Travelers will still be required to undergo "a strict interview" and triaging upon arrival, Mayor Rocky Ilagan said.

"Yung amin strict border control ay mahigit 1 taon at kalahati nang pinapatupad. Until now meron po, RT-PCR pag di pa vaccinated. Yung fully vaccinated pinapapasok na namin," he told ABS-CBN's Teleradyo.

"Still maintained ang strict border protocol namin. Dadaan po sila sa minimum health standards na aming requirement."

Tourists are given a QR code to track their movements for contact tracing purposes, Ilagan said.

Some 2,600 residents have received their first dose of COVID-19 vaccine, while 600 are fully-vaccinated, he added.

DAVAO VILLAGE PUTS STICKERS ON HOMES OF VACCINATED RESIDENTS

Workers in Barangay Lasang, Davao City are visiting homes of vaccinated residents since Thursday to put stickers on their gates and houses.

This is part of the barangay’s initiative called household tagging and mapping to encourage other residents to get vaccinated against COVID-19.

Barangay Lasang chairman Allan Simo-ag said the barangay prepared 1,000 stickers. Indicated in each sticker is the name of the household and a checkbox if he or she is already vaccinated with first or second dose.

As of the latest count, there are 274 residents that have already received anti-COVID-19 vaccines in Barangay Lasang.

Based on the latest risk assessment of the Davao City government, Barangay Lasang is under moderate risk for COVID-19 infection.

As of July 8, Davao City has vaccinated 267,793 residents for first dose and 60,647 for second dose.

SKYWAY STAGE 3 STARTS TOLL FEE COLLECTION

Traffic builds along the Buendia exit of the Skyway Stage 3 in Makati City, as San Miguel Corp's SMC Infrastructure started collecting toll fees booths in the new highway section on Monday.

The 18-kilometer elevated highway, which connects the South Luzon Expressway and the North Luzon Expressway aims to cut travel time from 3 hours to 30 minutes.

SUSPEK SA KASONG RAPE NAHULI MATAPOS ANG 2 TAON PAGTATAGO

Higit 2 taon din nagtago sa batas ang 22 anyos na lalaking itinuturong suspek sa panggagahasa sa Ermita, Maynila.

Ayon kay Police Lt. Col. Evangeline Cayaban, commander ng Ermita Police, 2018 nang gahasain umano ng lalaki ang isang babae sa isang apartment bandang alas tres ng madaling araw.

Siya ang Top 5 Most Wanted Person sa Ermita, Maynila na may warrant of arrest dahil sa kasong rape.

Natunton siya ng mga pulis sa Barangay Sampaloc 1, Dasmariñas, Cavite kung saan siya nagtago at palitpat-lipat pa.

Payapa namang sumama ang lalaki sa mga pulis at haharapin na ngayon ang kasong rape na isinampa laban sa kanya.

ENTERTAINMENT & LIFESTYLE

PIA WURTZBACH LOOKALIKE HANNAH ARNOLD WINS BINIBINING PILIPINAS INTERNATIONAL 2021

MANILA — Binibini #17 Hannah Arnold of Masbate was hailed as this year's Binibining Pilipinas International at the conclusion of this year's Binibining Pilipinas pageant in Araneta Coliseum today.

Arnold won over 33 other candidates representing the country's provinces, towns and cities. She was also among the top choices for Best in Long gown for her dress with her favorite touch of pink that symbolizes her transformation.

During the pageant's question and answer portion, she was asked if she believes that genuine freedom of speech exists in the country, to which she replied: "First of all, freedom of speech is a basic human right that we all must remember It is important for a democracy. With our upcoming elections, we definitely need free speech. For example on Twitter, we are limited to few characters and what I’ve seen from these tweets has been powerful and has helped me think about who I would like to vote for in the upcoming elections."

A model and a scientist, Arnold first joined Binibini in 2019 and landed in the top 15. She was often described as Miss Universe 2015 Pia Wurtzbach's lookalike.

Standing at 180 cm tall, the 25-year-old Arnold hailed from Canberra, Australia and is born to a Filipina mom and an Irish-Australian dad. She graduated with a Bachelor of Applied Science in Forensic Studies from the University of Canberra.

Other Binibining Pilipinas 2021 winners include:

Cavite’s Samantha Panlilio got the Binibining Grand International crown

Cagayan de Oro’s Cinderella Obenita bagged Binibining Pilipinas Intercontinental

Batangas’ Maureen Montagne won Binibining Pilipinas Globe

Eastern Samar’s Gabrielle Basiano is the 1st runner-up

Valenzuela’s Meiji Cruz is the 2nd runner-up

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

Most of the important things in the world have been accomplished by people who have kept on trying when there seemed to be no hope at all. - Dale Carnegie