CHINA, VIETNAM VOW TO ‘MANAGE’ DISPUTE ON SCS

Beijing—China and Vietnam agreed on Tuesday to “properly manage” territorial disputes in the South China Sea, rounding off a leaders’ meeting in Beijing as part of a diplomatic blitz by Chinese President Xi Jinping.

The socialist neighbors both maintain sweeping claims to sovereignty in much of the contested waterway, parts of which are also claimed by Taiwan, the Philippines, Malaysia, and Brunei.

Trillions of dollars in ship-borne trade pass through the South China Sea each year, and naval vessels from the United States and other Western nations regularly sail through it, though Beijing has ignored an international court ruling that its claims have no legal basis.

Xi and other Chinese leaders met with Vietnam’s Communist Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong in Beijing, holding “an in-depth and candid exchange of views on maritime issues”, according to a readout on Tuesday from Chinese state news agency Xinhua.

Beijing and Hanoi “agreed to properly handle maritime issues and contribute to long-term peace and stability in the region”, the readout said.

They concurred that “it is crucial to properly manage differences to protect peace and stability in the South China Sea” and vowed to “actively negotiate transitional and temporary solutions that do not impact their respective positions”.

They also agreed to work together to counter terrorism, crack down on transnational fraud and rein in the illegal drugs trade, the report added.

MASK IN PUBLIC SCHOOLS OPTIONAL AS FULL IN-PERSON CLASSES BEGIN

The Department of Education said Tuesday it would follow a recent Palace order on the voluntary use of face masks in indoor spaces, effectively allowing students to remove their masks while attending in-person classes.

“We will follow [Executive Order No.] 7 and issue an amendatory [department order],” DepEd Spokesman Michael Poa said in response to a query on masking in classrooms.

“Schools may immediately implement optional masking indoors,” he added.

Meanwhile, the five-day full face-to-face classes in public schools will push through today, November 2, despite the DepEd acknowledging there is still a shortage of classrooms and teachers.

Interviewed on Super Radyo dzBB, Poa admitted to the perennial problems that several schools face a day before the implementation of full in-person classes.

“We have to admit, and we cannot deny that there is a shortage of classrooms and school buildings. That is something that, of course, we couldn’t solve overnight,” he said.

“We also have a shortage of teachers. What we do is we transfer teachers from other schools to those that are in need, subject to the rules on transfer,” the spokesman added.

As this developed, Senator Win Gatchalian is urging the DepEd and Department of Health (DOH) to exhaust all measures to protect learners and teachers from COVID-19.

Gatchalian called on the DOH and the DepEd to ensure maximum vaccination coverage among teachers and learners, including and especially those, who are already eligible for their booster shots.

The DepEd has refused to release data on COVID-19 cases in schools, leaving it up to local governments to publicize such figures.

Poa said the department, currently headed by Vice President and Education Secretary Sara Duterte, will “try to work on it” in the coming months and years.

FILIPINOS FLOCK TO CEMETERIES FOR ALL SAINTS' DAY

MANILA — Filipinos clutching flowers and umbrellas poured into cemeteries across the Catholic-majority Philippines Tuesday to pay tribute to their dead loved ones on All Saints' Day for the first time since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Rain fell as thousands walked or took free motorised tricycle services to tombs scattered across sprawling graveyards in the capital Manila where many poor families live alongside the dead in shanties or mausoleums.

Ahead of the "day of the dead", a powerful tropical storm unleashed landslides and flooding across the archipelago nation, killing at least 110 people and leaving dozens missing.

Among the tens of thousands of visitors to Manila North Cemetery was Leonardo Filamor, 58, who was paying his respects to a friend who died in 2017.

"Even a typhoon would not have stopped me from coming here," said Filamor, who left a card and a small bouquet of white flowers at the tomb.

It was the first time since the start of the pandemic that cemeteries were open on November 1 for the ancient Christian tradition, which honours all saints and martyrs who died for the faith.

Millions of Filipinos normally go to cemeteries on the day to remember their dead relatives by praying, lighting candles and leaving flowers at the gravesites.

People began lining up before dawn to enter graveyards in Manila.

Flower vendor Lucila Cleto said the weekend storm had dented sales and driven up the price of chrysanthemums and roses.

PAENG DEATH TOLL RISES TO 112; DSWD SPOX SAYS STORM MAY HAVE AFFECTED OVER 3 MILLION PEOPLE

MANILA - The death toll from the onslaught of Severe Tropical Storm Paeng has risen to 112, the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council said Tuesday night, while 34 others remain missing.

Out of the total reported deaths, 82 have been confirmed while 30 remain for validation, said the NDRRMC.

Over half of the fatalities were from the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao, where a series of flash floods and landslides unleashed by Paeng destroyed villages on Friday.

According to the agency's report, 61 deaths were recorded in BARMM, 22 were in Western Visayas, 12 were in the Calabarzon, while the rest were in Regions 4-B, 5, 7, 8, 12, and the Cordillera Administrative Region.

A separate report though by the Office of Civil Defense-Calabarzon as of Tuesday morning showed that deaths in the region stood at 32, and five others are missing.

The number of injured across all affected areas, meanwhile, stood at 103, of whom 65 have been confirmed and 38 are still for validation.

The NDRRMC said 751,800 families or 2,491,316 people were affected by Paeng, of whom 52,541 families or 189,392 individuals are staying in 2,724 evacuation centers.

Social welfare department spokesman Romel Lopez told ABS-CBN's TeleRadyo though that they are estimating the affected population to breach 3 million, from 7,492 barangays in all of the country's regions.

"Ngayon po, yung binabantayan natin sa mga evacuation centers, although it po ay nababawasan na pautay-utay, pero ito ay umabot ng 294,193 individuals. So 'yun yung ating mga kababayan na alam naman nating umalis lang sila sa evacuation centers dahil medyo gumanda na yung panahon. Pagbalik nila sa kanilang mga tahanan, yung normalcy ay hindi pa naman established. Kaya kailangan pa rin nating ayudahan," he said.

NATIONS PLEDGE AID FOR PHILIPPINES IN WAKE OF PAENG

MANILA — The United States, China, Japan, and Australia have pledged assistance for the Philippines after it was battered by tropical storm Paeng over the weekend.

In a Facebook post on Monday, the US Embassy in the Philippines said it supported the transport of 10,000 family food packs from the Department of Social Welfare and Development to South Cotabato, one of the provinces hit by Paeng.

"An additional 25 trucks are mobilizing to deliver emergency food and relief supplies from to families affected by the storm... We stand with our Filipino #FriendsPartnersAllies in this time of crisis," the US Embassy said.

China said it "took swift action to donate the first batch of disaster relief materials to Datu Odin Sinsuat, North Maguindanao Province," where Paeng triggered deadly flash floods.

The Chinese Embassy said it brought thousands of cases of distilled water, instant noodles, water containers, rice, toothbrushes, coffee, isopropyl alcohol, and anti-mosquito gels to the affected areas in Mindanao.

Japan's Foreign Minister Hayashi Yoshimasa expressed his condolences to the families of Paeng's victims and said that Tokyo is "ready to provide the maximum possible assistance to the Philippines."

Australian Ambassador to the Philippines HK Yu likewise offered assistance to the country.

"Australia offers its heartfelt thoughts to those in Philippines whose lives have been affected by #PaengPH. We stand with our friends at this difficult time and are ready to provide assistance as required," she said.

"Australia is providing life-saving family kits to the most affected communities in the BARMM. This assistance will ensure that those most severely affected by PaengPH will have fast access to priority needs," the envoy said on Twitter.

As of Monday, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs reported that over P51 million worth of humanitarian assistance has been provided to affected communities by government and humanitarian partners.

MUSK ANNOUNCES $8 MONTHLY CHARGE FOR VERIFIED TWITTER ACCOUNTS

SAN FRANCISCO, United States — New Twitter head Elon Musk said Tuesday the site will charge $8 per month to verify users' accounts, arguing the plan would upend the platform's "current lords & peasants system" and create a new revenue stream for the company.

The announcement comes days after the world's wealthiest man took sole control of the social media giant in a contentious $44 billion deal.

"Power to the people! Blue for $8/month," he tweeted, in reference to the platform's famous blue checkmark that signals a verified, authentic account.

The new plan's pricing would be adjusted by country "proportionate to purchasing power parity," Musk added in the replies to his original tweet, and would also include "priority" in replying to and searching posts, which he called "essential to defeat spam/scam."

There would also be expanded video abilities, fewer ads, and the possibility for users to get a "paywall bypass for publishers willing to work with us," he said.

"This will also give Twitter a revenue stream to reward content creators," Musk tweeted.

In addition to offering verification privileges, the new program would take over the existing functions of Twitter Blue — currently available for $5 per month — which, for example, allows users to edit their tweets.

PHILIPPINE RECORDS 300,000 CASES OF ACUTE RESPIRATORY INFECTION

MANILA — More than 300,000 cases of acute respiratory infection have been recorded in the country in the first six months of this year, the Department of Health (DOH) reported yesterday.

Data showed that during the second quarter of 2022, a total of 340,031 people suffered from acute respiratory infection.

Of the 340,031 cases, 177,946 were females while 162,085 were males.

The DOH noted that the age group one to four years recorded the most number of cases with 92,350 composed of 47,129 males and 45,221 are females.

The five to nine years age group posted 48,225 cases composed of 24,475 males and 23,480 females.

The 29 days to 11 months age group recorded 39,070 cases composed of 20,110 are males and 18,960 females.

Among the regions, Central Luzon posted the highest number of acute respiratory infection cases with 134,113. It was followed by Calabarzon (Cavite, Laguna, Batangas, Rizal and Quezon) with 49,487 cases. The Cordilleras recorded 42,924 cases, followed by Cagayan Valley with 31,479 cases. and Bicol recorded 24,958 cases.

Health officer-in-charge Maria Rosario Vergeire said the harmful effects of fossil fuel is one of the leading causes of respiratory illnesses among Filipinos.

SC SAYS BAR EXAMS TO PUSH THROUGH DESPITE CALLS FOR POSTPONEMENT

MANILA — The 2022 Bar Exams will push through this November despite calls for the Supreme Court to postpone the test in light of the destruction caused by tropical storm Paeng.

“Per SC Spokesperson, Atty. Brian Hosaka: The 2022 Bar Exams will proceed on November 9, 13, 16, and 20 as originally scheduled and announced in Bar Bulletin No. 6, S. 2022,” the Supreme Court Public Information Office tweeted Tuesday.

Bar Bulletin No. 6 issued on Aug. 24 set the examination dates for the annual qualifying exams for lawyers for this year.

The exams will be held in 14 local testing centers and like the 2020/21 Bar Exams, it will be digitalized with examinees using their own devices. They will be monitored by in-person proctors and closed-circuit television cameras.

Nearly 10,000 Bar examinees are expected to take the exams, according to data from SCPIO.

THE REST

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OCTA REPORTS OMICRON CASES MAY BE ENDING

The wave of infection of the Omicron XBB subvariant of the coronavirus may be ending now, as COVID-19 positivity rates in the National Capital Region (NCR) and other areas in Luzon are decreasing, OCTA Research fellow Dr. Guido David said Tuesday.

David said that among the factors that placed NCR and 72 other areas under Alert Level 1 from November 1 to November 15 is their high vaccination coverage.

This dovetails with the expressed hope of President Ferdinand R. Marcos last week when he enjoined Filipinos to get back to their normal lives before the COVID-19 pandemic hit.

Mr. Marcos said it was crucial to show the world that the Philippines is slowly getting back on its feet.

“It is a good thing to remind people that the pandemic may have been difficult, the pandemic really put us through the wringer. But we are back,” he said in a speech in Bacolod City as he graced the culminating activity of the 43rd MassKara Festival.

“The pandemic is fading away. We are learning to manage it and now it is time for us to all go back to work, to all go back to our normal lives, to remind ourselves of all the opportunities that were before us before the pandemic…It is time for us to go back to all of those endeavors that we were undertaking before Covid hit,” the President added.

Meanwhile, the Philippines on Tuesday recorded 676 new COVID-19 infections, the lowest daily tally since June 28, when 576 cases were reported.

According to the Department of Health, active cases went down to 19,340 from 20,227 on Monday. The new infections pushed the nationwide tally to 4,005,157.

OCTA’s David, in a Super Radyo dzBB interview, said the positivity rate is decreasing in Metro Manila and other regions such as Calabarzon and Central Luzon, the suburbs of the big city.

PAGGUNITA NG UNDAS 2022, NAGING MAPAYAPA: PNP

MAYNILA -- Naging mapayapa sa pangkalahatan ang paggunita ng Undas ngayon taon, ayon sa Philippine National Police (PNP).

Ito ang unang pagkakataon na nakadalaw sa mga namayapang mahal sa buhay ang mga Pilipino dahil sarado ang mga sementeryo noong nakaraang dalawang taon, dahil na rin sa pandemya ng COVID-19.

"Naging maayos at mapayapa naman po sa pangkalahatan ang naging observance po ng Undas ngayong taon po," ani PNP spokesperson Col. Jean Fajardo.

Kuwento niya, walang naitalang mga insidente ng krimen sa mga malalaking sementeryo sa bansa, maliban na lang sa pagkakakumpiska ng ilang mga lighter at patalim.

Ayon sa opisyal, patuloy ang kanilang pagbabantay sa mga sementeryo ngayong araw para masiguro ang kaligtasan ng publiko.

"Inaasahan pa rin po natin hanggang ngayon po na may mangilan-ngilan pa rin po tayong mga kababayan na hahabol pa rin po sa Undas."

Mananatili sa red alert ang PNP hanggang Nobyembre 4 para siguruhin ang kaligtasan ng mga magbibiyahe pagkatapos ng Todos los Santos.

LPG PRICE UP BY P3.50-P3.55 PER KILO

Oil companies raised the price of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) or cooking gas by P3.50 to P3.55 per kilo, equivalent to P38.50 to P39.05 per 11-kilo tank to reflect the higher contract price of LPG in the world market.

Petron Corp., the country’s biggest oil company, announced the price increase effective Nov. 1 in an advisory.

“AutoLPG prices will likewise increase by P1.96 per liter at the same time. These reflect the international contract price of LPG for the month of November,” the company said.

Petron, however, said a price freeze would be observed in areas in a state of calamity.

Phoenix LPG Phils., Inc. and Solane LPG announced similar price increases effective Nov. 2.

An 11-kilo tank of LPG sells from P797 to P1,000 in Metro Manila, based on the monitoring of the Department of Energy.

On Tuesday, the oil firms cut pump prices by P0.60 per liter for diesel and P0.25 per liter for gasoline and kerosene to reflect the movement of prices in the world oil market.

This is the second consecutive week of oil price rollback driven by concerns of an economic slowdown from China due to rising COVID-19 cases and mobility restrictions.

QUEENIE WEAKENS INTO AN LPA; RAINS TO PERSIST IN PARTS OF MINDANAO

MANILA — Tropical depression Queenie on Tuesday afternoon further weakened into a low pressure area, which would continue bringing rains in parts of Mindanao, PAGASA said.

The weather bureau said Queenie at 2 p.m. weakened into a remnant low, which according to the US National Hurricane Center no longer has the characteristics required for a tropical cyclone.

Located 420 kilometers east of Hinatuan, Surigao del Sur at 4 p.m., the remnant low may dissipate in the next 12 hours, PAGASA added.

But the low pressure area will bring light to moderate with at times heavy rains over Caraga and Davao Oriental until Wednesday morning, PAGASA said in its 5 p.m. bulletin.

"Under these conditions, flooding and rain-induced landslides are possible," it said.

Caraga and Davao Oriental are among vast swaths of the country still reeling from severe tropical depression Paeng, which unleashed floods and landslides this weekend.

ENTERTAINMENT & LIFESTYLE

'MAY PINAGDADAANAN SILA': ARA MINA ON SUNSHINE CRUZ, MACKY MATHAY RUMORED BREAKUP

MANILA — Actress Ara Mina revealed that her half-brother Macky Mathay and his girlfriend Sunshine Cruz are going through a difficult time in their relationship.

In a press conference for her movie “Katok” last Friday, Ara said it is normal in any relationship to have challenges.

“Sa isang relationship naman, normal lang naman na nangyayari 'yon. I really don't know. I haven't talked to Shine. Gusto ko kasi pag nakausap ko sila personal. May naririnig lang ako tapos mine-message ko sila na 'I hope you guys are fine.' Si Shine kasi nasa lock-in taping. Si Macky naman sobrang busy. Mas maganda kasi marinig ko ng personal 'yung both sides kung ano man ang pinagdadaanan nila,” Ara said.

“Dumadating naman na alam ko nag-aaway sila noon pero hindi naman lumabas sa media. Siguro dahil busy si Shine, busy si Macky, siguro time for each other ang nawawala,” she added.

The former sexy star said she is hoping that Sunshine and Macky will be able to talk about their problems.

"Yes, of course. Siyempre hindi din biro 'yung six years,” she said.

“Basta mag-pray lang. Kahit anong mangyari, sana sila pa rin. Nasa pag-uusap lang 'yan ng maayos. Ramdam ko na may pinagdadaanan sila,” she added.

Ara will play Romina in the movie “Katok.” When Romina enters an old house said to be inhabited by wandering ghosts, she discovers spine-chilling mysteries about the place.

Directed by Joven Tan, it also stars Ynigo Delen, Soliman Cruz, Joyce Javier and Mia Aquino. "Katok" is now streaming on AQ Prime.

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THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

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