PH PROTESTS RADIO CHALLENGES, SIRENS BY CHINESE VESSELS IN SOUTH CHINA SEA

MANILA - The Philippines protested what it regards as fresh "provocative acts" by Chinese vessels in the South China Sea, the Department of Foreign Affairs said Wednesday.

In a tweet, the ministry said Chinese government vessels made "unlawful issuance of over 200 radio challenges, sounding of sirens, and blowing of horns" against Philippine authorities "conducting legitimate, customary, and routine patrols over and around" its "territory and maritime zones."

"These provocative acts threaten the peace, good order, and security of the South China Sea and run contrary to China's obligations under international law," the DFA said.

The agency did not specify when the incidents happened.

CHINA HOPES TO 'PASS ON OUR TRADITIONAL FRIENDSHIP FROM GENERATION TO GENERATION'

MANILA, Philippines — China hopes for better relations with Filipinos, its ambassador to the Philippines said at a ribbon-cutting ceremony at the Chinese Embassy where former Sen. Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. was a guest.

Marcos, his wife Louise Lisa, son Joseph Simon and Majority Floor Leader Martin Romualdez attended the ceremony to inaugurate a photo wall, the embassy said in a social media release.

One of the photos showed the signing of the official start of diplomatic relations between the Philippines and the People's Republic of China on June 9, 1975. The joint communique was signed by then-Chinese Premier Zhou Enlai and then-President Ferdinand Marcos, the ousted dictator and presidential candidate's father and namesake.

"While [we] always cherish and honor old friends, we hope that more and more people from our two countries will be committed to deepening our partnership and cooperation, so as to bring more benefits to our two peoples and pass on our traditional friendship from generation to generation," Chinese Ambassador to the Philippines Huang Xilian said in a Facebook post about the event.

IMMIGRATION WARNS ASPIRING OFWS OF NEW ILLEGAL RECRUITMENT SCHEME

MANILA — The Bureau of Immigration warned aspiring overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) against a new scheme by illegal recruiters that provide them with fake documents.

This was after immigration officers intercepted the flight of two passengers disguised as tourists who attempted to board an Emirates Airlines flight to Dubai on October 7 at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport.

Travel Control and Enforcement Units reported to Immigration Commissioner Jaime Morente that both passengers were first-time travelers who presented fake company identification and certificates of employment from an apparel company.

“They initially told our secondary inspectors that they were being sent by the apparel company to attend training as sales representatives in the UAE. However, our officers found inconsistencies in their statements,” Morente said.

The two passengers also admitted that they were never hired by the apparel company locally and later showed their employment contracts as household service workers for a manager working in the apparel company.

They also admitted that their recruiter only gave them travel documents before their flight.

Morente said: “The main reason why we require all departing OFWs to be checked first by the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) is so we are sure that nobody will suffer the consequences of human trafficking.”

He continued: “Be keen in transacting with these recruiters and always double-check their licenses and accreditations.”

The two victims were then turned over to the Inter-Agency Council Against Trafficking for assistance and further investigation.

The Philippine National Police in September activated its Task Force against Illegal Recruitment as it intensifies its crackdown on human trafficking amid the pandemic.

IATF STUDYING INCENTIVES FOR VACCINATED PEOPLE

MANILA — Incentives intended to encourage more Filipinos to get vaccinated against COVID-19 are now being studied by the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF).

In his report to President Duterte last Tuesday, National Task Force against COVID-19 chief implementer Carlito Galvez Jr. presented a list of suggestions from the private sector to boost vaccination by giving people incentives.

“It means those who are vaccinated are the only ones who will be allowed to get out, to dine in and be allowed to travel without restrictions,” Galvez told Duterte during the President’s Talk to the People.

He said among the suggestions of the private sector to encourage vaccination are allowing companies the right not to hire unvaccinated job applicants and requiring RT-PCR tests for existing employees who are not vaccinated at their own expense.

The list of suggestions also includes “mandatory vaccines for health care workers, school employees, public transport workers, civil servants, and for 4Ps; mandatory vaccinations for unrestricted access to public transport, travel, restaurants and tourism establishments.”

Galvez, the country’s vaccine czar, said the private sector wants to ramp up vaccination to achieve 1.5 million jabs per day by inoculating the willing in order to achieve a bandwagon effect.

At present, only 388,000 shots are being administered daily.

In the interest of protecting the economy amid the pandemic, the private sector also wants the government to accelerate inoculation in key cities and economic hubs, he said.

Another recommendation to the IATF is to remove capacity restrictions for all public transport and ease curfews as well as prioritizing the safe optional reopening of schools in areas with high vaccination rates.

Galvez said the private sector also called for a unified vaccination, testing and contact tracing data ecosystem.

MULTIPLE GUNSHOT WOUNDS IN SLAIN DRUG SUSPECTS, ABSENCE OF REPORTS DOMINATE DOJ DRUG WAR REVIEW

MANILA —The Department of Justice on Wednesday released a 20-page information table on 52 cases involving deaths during police anti-narcotics operations in the country.

Of the cases the DOJ reviewed, majority were buy-bust operations. The suspects allegedly drew their guns and resisted arrest, but some medical reports showed suspects tested negative for gunpowder nitrates.

In many cases, there were no ballistics or paraffin tests, autopsy report, death certificates, SOCO reports or other documents on record, the DOJ report showed.

Some of the suspects sustained multiple gunshot wounds, according to the review.

The DOJ said around 150 policemen were involved in the 52 cases. They were found administratively liable and meted penalties, ranging from reprimand and suspension to demotion and dismissal from service.

The National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) is now conducting case build-up for possible criminal cases.

Suspension was meted out to those involved in 35 cases, while dismissal from service was imposed on cops involved in 8 cases.

It is not immediately clear how many cops were suspended or dismissed from service because aside from the DOJ’s refusal to release their names, it also did not provide the number of cops involved in each case.

PNP BACKS CASE BUILDUP VS COPS IN PHILIPPINE DRUG WAR KILLINGS

MANILA—The Philippine National Police is backing the Department of Justice in its case buildup against police officers involved in 52 deaths linked to the country's war on drugs, a police official said Thursday.

PNP spokesperson Col. Roderick Augustus Alba said the police force would be "extending full support and cooperation" to the justice department.

"Ang tulong ng (The help of) PNP is to provide them with all the necessary data and information. We submit to the sound discretion nung ating (of the) Department of Justice. Kasi po (Because) we don’t want any of our actions getting in the way sa ginagawang (in the conduct of) case buildup ng (of the) National Bureau of Investigation," he told TeleRadyo.

The PNP also urged witnesses in these cases "to come forward" to hold the involved police officers accountable for their action, Alba said.

In a statement Wednesday, PNP chief Gen. Guillermo Eleazar welcomed the decision of the DOJ to release the summary of the 52 drug-war related cases.

He said it was "consistent with the PNP stand for transparency and accountability in the police organization."

However, Eleazar noted the sacrifices of policemen on the ground and the accomplishments of the campaign against illegal drugs.

The campaign, he said, resulted in "the confiscation of multi-billion peso worth of illegal drugs, the neutralization of key players in the illegal drugs trade in the country and the dismantling of shabu laboratories in the country."

Still, the PNP chief reminded police personnel to strictly follow operational procedures.

"Let this serves as a lesson to all our personnel that as police officers, we are law enforcers who are duty-bound to uphold the law. Tagapagpatupad tayo ng batas, hindi tayo ang batas (We implement the law, we are not the law)," he said.

‘ONLINE SHOP PLATFORMS LIABLE FOR SELLING SMS BLAST MACHINES’

MANILA — Electronic commerce (eCommerce) platforms, along with parties or merchants, can be held solidarily liable for the sale of SMS blast machines and other prohibited digital products under the proposed “Internet Transactions Act” filed by Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian.

Gatchalian noted that the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) had issued show-cause and cease-and-desist orders to Lazada, Shopee and Facebook Marketplace after advertisements for the sale of SMS blast machines were found on their respective sites.

In June, Gatchalian filed Senate Bill No. 1591, an act aimed at protecting consumers and merchants engaged in internet transactions, creating for this purpose the eCommerce Bureau.

“The reason why we included the joint and solidary liability in Senate Bill No. 1591 is to make these platforms responsible in protecting the interest of the consumers,” said the principal author of the bill.

“We want to facilitate the services offered online but there are still those who take advantage of this platform and this is what we want to address here in this proposal,” he said.

Under Section 17 of SB 1591, the proposed Internet Transactions Act, if the online eCommerce platform knows or should have known that the digital products sold do not comply with the law or if the online merchant is not duly registered with the appropriate regulatory agencies and the online eCommerce platform permits the online merchant to sell digital products, both shall share solidary liability.

The NTC said the sale of text or SMS blaster machines and similar equipment “appears to violate” the Radio Control Law and other regulations such as its Memorandum Order 01-02-2013 or the Prohibition of Portable Cellular Mobile Repeater and Portable Cell Site Equipment.

Gatchalian said the bill seeks to protect consumers from unethical, illegal and unscrupulous business practices of those engaged in eCommerce.

“Online shopping or eCommerce has radically changed the way we live our lives. Whether as a consumer or a seller, technology and the internet have dramatically transformed the way businesses and transactions are conducted,” he said.

NO SIGNS BSP WILL RAISE RATES IN NEAR TERM: MOODY'S ANALYTICS

MANILA— The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas is unlikely to tighten interest rates in the near term as the country still struggles to recover from the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, an economist from Moody's Analytics said Thursday.

The BSP has kept the benchmark interest rates steady at 2 percent for 7 consecutive meetings.

"My guess is, with the Philippine economy still struggling to recover, I don’t think there is any indication near term that the central bank of the Philippines will raise rates soon," Moody’s Analytics Chief APAC economist Steve Cochrane told ANC.

"I think they will remain accommodative, allow the economy to get back on speed even if inflation stays persistently above 4 percent," he added.

This is in line with BSP Governor Benjamin Diokno's earlier statement that the monetary board is unlikely to adjust interest rates for the remaining 2 consecutive meetings for the rest of the year.

Diokno said the uptick in inflation is "transitory" despite the monthly average consistently breaching the top band of the government's 2 to 4 percent target range for the past few months.

Cochrane said he expected a "modest path" in terms of normalizing interest rates in the region.

As to pandemic response, the easing of restrictions in the region is also likely to boost domestic demand and contribute to economic growth

He said the potential negative impact of another surge or a new COVID-19 variant would be different next time since vaccination rates are rising and policymakers are learning to deal with the pandemic without completely locking down the economy.

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PH REPORTS 3,656 NEW COVID CASES; FEW DEATHS, RECOVERIES DUE TO DATA SYSTEM ISSUE

MANILA - The Department of Health on Wednesday announced 3,656 new COVID-19 cases, the Philippines' lowest daily tally in three months.

The number of new cases is the lowest since July 13 or when the DOH reported 3,604 infections, according to the ABS-CBN Investigative and Research Group.

Of the total 2,735,369 confirmed cases since the pandemic reached the country last year, 67,061 or 2.5 percent are active infections, according to the latest DOH bulletin.

COVID-related deaths increased by five to 40,977, while 228 more recoveries were recorded, raising its total to 2,627,331.

The number of deaths is the lowest daily figure in nearly 7 months or since April 4 when two deaths were reported, excluding days when no fatalities were announced due to technical issues, the ABS-CBN IRG found.

SCHOOLS IN 329 AREAS MAY REOPEN FOR IN-PERSON CLASSES

MANILA — A total of 329 areas around the country have been deemed by the Department of Health (DOH) as places where K-12 schools may reopen for in-person classes even in the middle of the pandemic, the Senate was informed yesterday.

Addressing the DOH budget hearing, Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said, “We already gave them (Department of Education) a revised list of areas where schools can open. We now have 329 areas where they can open schools.”

Vergeire said the DOH’s recommendation is on account of its being a part of the team of experts assessing areas where schools can reopen.

“But as I’ve said, their process would be that every time that we submit the list, they do a reassessment, talk to the local governments and that will be the factor to consider if they will include it as part of the opening or not,” she explained.

Sen. Pia Cayetano, who presided over the hybrid hearing on the DOH budget, said she has found that while the objective is to reopen 100 schools for the pilot implementation of in-person classes, only 30 of 59 public schools earlier identified by the DOH will proceed with reopening on Nov. 15.

Cayetano then sought this clarification: “My question to the DOH, when you obviously had a hand in identifying these (schools), but did you actually just personally prepare the framework, or were you a part of the team that went around the schools to check preparedness for what needs to face opening?”

Vergeire said the DOH was part of the DepEd and experts’ team that formulated the guidelines for these face-to-face classes.

“But as to the assessment of schools using the tool that they use, it’s really Department of Education going around,” she said. “What we provide for them would be the list of these areas where the schools can open, depending on the alert level.”

ENTERTAINMENT & LIFESTYLE

'DUNE' IS FIRST MOVIE TO OPEN IN PH CINEMAS ON NOV. 10

MANILA – The highly-anticipated science fiction movie “Dune” is set to exclusively open in Philippine theaters on November 10 -- the first theatrical release in the country after cinemas have been closed for over 18 months due to the pandemic.

The big-screen adaptation of Frank Gerbert’s best-selling novel stars Timothee Chalamet, Paul Atreides, Rebecca Ferguson, Oscar Isaac, Josh Brolin, Zendaya, Jason Momoa, Javier Bardem, David Bautista and many more.

Directed by Academy Award-nominated filmmaker Denis Villenueve, “Dune” follows Paul Atreides, a brilliant and gifted young man born into a great destiny beyond his understanding, who must travel to the most dangerous planet in the universe to ensure the future of his family and his people.

As malevolent forces explode into conflict over the planet’s exclusive supply of the most precious resource in existence -- a commodity capable of unlocking humanity’s greatest potential -- only those who can conquer their fear will survive.

“I discovered the book in my teenage years and I remember being totally fascinated by its poetry, by what it was saying about nature -- the true main character of Dune,” Villeneuve said in a statement.

“Frank Herbert’s view of nature was absolutely mesmerizing — all those beautiful ecosystems he created. His exploration of the impact and chaos caused by colonialism was a portrait of the 20th century that is still relevant today. And through all of this was a young man struggling with his identity, trying to find his way in the world, as I was doing myself. The way Paul discovers his identity through another culture was, for me, amazing,” he added.

“Dune” will be distributed in the Philippines by Warner Bros. Pictures, a WarnerMedia Company.

SPORTS

TNT DEF. MAGNOLIA, 88-70 (PBA) FINALS GAME 1

TNT Tropang GIGA defeated Magnolia Hotshots, 88-70 to take a 1-0 lead in their best-of-7 series in the 2021 PBA Philippine Cup Finals on Wednesday at the Don Honorio Ventura State University (DHVSU) Gym in Bacolor, Pampanga.

Rookie Mikey Williams led TNT with a double-double performance of 21 points (8/15 FG, 5/6 3PT), 10 rebounds, 5 assists, 2 steals in 28 minutes of play. JP Erram with a solid game of 14 points on 6-of-9 shooting along with 7 boards, 3 blocks and an assist while veteran Kelly Williams added 10 points (4/7 FG, 2/2 3PT), 6 rebounds, 3 assists and 1 steal.

TNT spoiled Jackson Corpuz' double-double performance of 12 points (3/6 FG, 6/8 FT), 11 rebounds, one assist and 1 block. Paul Lee added 12 points on 3-of-12 shooting 2 rebounds, 1 assist and 1 block while Calvin Abueva finished with 11 points (3/11 FG, 0/2 3PT), 11 rebounds and 1 block. TNT shot 35/82 or 42% from the field including a 11-of-31 shooting from downtown and went 7-of-15 from the free throw line and committed 19 turnovers in the contest (Magnolia - 20/73 FG, 4/20 3PT, 26/44 FT, 28TO).

Finals Game 2 is on Friday, October 22 at 6:00pm.

The Scores:

TNT 88 - M. Williams 21, Erram 14, K. Williams 10, Rosario 8, Montalbo 7, Pogoy 7, Mendoza 6, Khobuntin 5, Marcelo 4, Reyes 3, Alejandro 2, Castro 1, Exciminiano 0, Javier 0, Heruela 0.

MAGNOLIA 70 - Lee 12, Corpuz 12, Abueva 11, Dela Rosa 7, Sangalang 5, Ahanmisi 5, Barroca 4, De Leon 4, Capobres 4, Jalalon 3, Pascual 2, Brill 1, Melton 0, Reavis 0.

Quarters: 24-14, 53-34, 74-48, 88-70.

INDICATORS

FOREX $1 = P 50.79

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

Love yourself first and everything else falls into line. You really have to love yourself to get anything done in this world. - Lucille Ball