US ‘CONCERNED’ OVER DEBRIS ROW

Washington has expressed concern over the confrontation between Filipino and Chinese personnel near Pag-asa Island over the weekend, Philippine Ambassador to the US Jose Manuel Romualdez said Thursday.

Romualdez told radio dzBB the Philippines coordinated with the US government after Naval Station Emilio Liwanag (NSEL) and the Chinese Coast Guard had a confrontation off Pag-asa Island on Sunday.

That was when the Chinese, according to the Philippine Navy and Department of Defense, “forcefully took” an unidentified floating object that Philippine forces had retrieved, a report the Chinese embassy denied, saying the object was taken after “friendly consultation” on both sides.

Foreign Affairs Secretary Enrique Manalo said Thursday the country sent China a note verbale to seek clarification on the incident.

“Now, depending on how the reply comes out, then we will have to see what to do. But definitely, in order to begin the process, we would like to get an official comment from China, especially in response to our note,” Manalo said in an interview with CNN Philippines.

The Philippines has lodged 189 diplomatic protests against China so far this year, the Department of Foreign Affairs said on Thursday, as Beijing continued to press its stance in contested waters.

US MILITARY POISED TO RETURN TO SUBIC BAY, COUNTER CHINA'S PRESENCE

The US military will likely return to Subic Bay 30 years after relinquishing what was once their largest military base in Asia due to concerns over China's increasing maritime assertiveness, a top official of the local body overseeing the free port zone said.

The former US Naval Base Subic Bay, which faces the South China Sea, has become a bustling free port that employs about 150,000 locals, administered by the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority.

Manila and Washington have been in negotiations over setting up five more locations in the Asian country to build US military facilities and preposition weapons under the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement.

Rolen Paulino, chairman of the SBMA, told Kyodo News on Wednesday that he would be "very surprised" if Subic Bay does not become an EDCA site, as "during war, time is of the essence," a day before the 30th anniversary of the US Navy's departure from the harbor that it had controlled for nearly 94 years.

A series of events were held Thursday at the free port to mark the 30th Founding Anniversary of the SBMA, including a public display of civilian airplanes and a Philippine Navy helicopter at the Subic airport which is now being repurposed for surveillance and aviation training.

Signed in 2014, the EDCA is likely to continue beyond its 10-year period, as indicated by the United States' renewed interest in establishing new bases in the Philippines and fresh funding for upgrading existing EDCA sites.

Paulino said tensions over the Taiwan Strait and the growing animosity between the United States and China are causes for concern.

A former mayor of the adjacent Olongapo City, Paulino would prefer that his government maintains a defense alliance with the United States, adding that most Olongapo residents are "pro-Americans" given the very long time they have lived alongside US servicemen.

SKELETAL REMAINS FOUND AT EXCAVATION SITE IN DOJ

MANILA — Skeletal remains were recovered at an excavation site at the Department of Justice compound in Padre Faura, Manila on Thursday.

The excavation is for the construction of a new DOJ library building.

DOJ officials and National Bureau of Investigation personnel were seen inspecting what appeared to be a skull and skeleton recovered in the area around 3 p.m.

"We will have the same examined," Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla said of the remains.

Justice Sec Boying Remulla says this is not the first time skulls and skeletons were recovered inside the DOJ compound.

He has asked NBI Forensic Division to step in since a hole was found on the skull.

“It can be part of the war, we don’t know…Wasak lahat to.” pic.twitter.com/CbhDMruddy — Mike Navallo (@mikenavallo) November 24, 2022

But he said this is not the first time that remains were recovered inside the DOJ compound.

“Ang sabi sa akin, history talaga dito, when that was dug up, meron ding nahanap dyan eh,” he said, referring to the Prosecution Building.

“It can be part of the war, we don’t know. Remember during the war, wasak lahat to, everything was destroyed,” he added.

Remulla said he was informed about the remains around lunch time of Thursday.

He immediately called in the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) Forensic Division to investigate because of an initial finding.

He refused to provide more details, leaving it to the NBI Forensic Division to conduct further examination.

PNP KEEPING TRACK OF CASES FILED VS OWN OFFICERS

The Philippine National Police is keeping track of cases filed against PNP personnel amid reports that some police officers have gone into hiding after being charged in court.

Speaking to ANC's Rundown, PNP spokesperson Jean Fajardo confirmed some police officers have gone AWOL after cases were filed against them.

"If in case there are arrest warrants issued against them, you can be assured that the PNP will help in locating these PNP personnel who went AWOL and bring them to the jurisdiction of the court once they are located," she said.

Asked if the conviction of a Caloocan cop for the torture and killing of 2 teenagers is an "isolated incident of justice" amid the thousands of killings during the drug war, she said the police force is constantly reviewing its strategies and will follow what is written in PNP policies.

"We should also consider the ballooning number of cases clogging our dockets. We really cannot control the progress of these cases," she said.

A Manila court found earlier this month that police officers Jefrey Perez and Ricky Arquilita tortured 2 teenagers in 2017. The officers also planted a weapon and drugs on one of the victims.

The teens -- Reynaldo De Guzman, 14, and Carl Arnaiz, 19 -- were later killed by the same officers, the court said.

Perez was jailed for life for planting evidence and given a minimum sentence of 20 years for torture, according to the court ruling. Arquilita died during the trial.

She said Perez was charged with grave misconduct and conduct unbecoming of a police officer, resulting in his dismissal.

"We never and will never condone any wrongdoing conducted by police officers/ What happened in this case is an isolated case. These are 2 police officers who committed illegal acts and do not reflect the culture of the whole PNP organization," she said.

She added: "These convictions (are) a clear indication that our criminal justice system is working. The conviction of this police officer would be a grim reminder to all of us police officers that no one is above the law. Even police officers are governed by law. Once you transgress the laws, there is a consequence for your actions."

TRANSPORT DEPT WANTS TO REQUIRE RFID REGISTRATION FOR VEHICLES

MANILA –– The Department of Transportation (DOTr) urged lawmakers Thursday to require radio-frequency identification or RFID for vehicles to make toll collection across various tollway systems seamless.

Transportation Undersecretary Steve Pastor made the pitch as part of the agency's recommendations to the House transportation committee which began deliberations on a bill that seeks to mandate the toll operators of all major expressways in Mega Manila to establish and utilize RFID.

"To further encourage RFID registration of motorists, we suggest to include a provision requiring RFID registration for motor vehicles yet to be sold or upon issuance of the certificate of registration and also as a requirement for renewal of motor vehicle registration," Pastor told the panel.

The agency sought flexibility in adopting toll collection systems that may evolve in the future.

"In the advent of recent technological advancements in toll collection systems, we respectfully suggest expanding the scope of the proposed bill not only to specific RFID systems but to the possibility of introducing other toll collection technology in the future," Pastor said.

"The Toll Regulatory Board (TRB), for its part, suggests inclusion of installation and integration of the automatic license plate recognition or ALPR system to improve RFID reading capabilities," he added.

The DOTR also suggested "expanding the coverage to cover nationwide enforceability than being specific to ETC systems in Metro Manila and existing tollways," Pastor said.

DOH, DMW BEGIN TALKS ON EXCHANGE PROGRAMS WITH NATIONS NEEDING HEALTH WORKERS

MANILA, Philippines — The Department of Health said it has started talks with the Department of Migrant Workers for possible exchange programs with other nations that need medical workers.

DOH officer-in-charge Maria Rosario Vergeire said this during a meeting with President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and representatives of the healthcare cluster of the Private Sector Advisory Council on Thursday, according to a release of the Office of the Press Secretary.

According to Vergeire, the DMW plans to secure deals with bilateral partners to provide funds for scholarships.

“So in turn, we are going to propose that if we can provide them with these numbers that they need, they [would] provide us also, for example, scholarships for a number of our healthcare workers,” she was quoted by the OPS as saying.

The health official noted that graduates have to stay in the country for two years before they can be deployed abroad.

Marcos said that while the government cannot prevent nurses and other medical workers from pursuing high-paying jobs abroad, healthcare workers must at least serve their country if they avail of the government scholarship program.

According to the Filipino Nurses United, more than 100,000 nurses in the private sector earn P537 per day in Metro Manila and much lower in areas outside the capital region. The minimum wage in the National Capital Region is P570.

The minimum salary of nurses in government-run health institutions is currently at around P35,000. While they have relatively higher pay, they also suffer from work and patient overload.

THE REST

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PHILIPPINES CONFIRMS 1,141 NEW COVID-19 CASES, 20 DEATHS

MANILA — The Philippines on Thursday confirmed 1,141 new cases of COVID-19, data from the health department showed.

With the addition of fresh cases, active COVID infections increased to 17,393.

The total number of coronavirus cases in the country is now at 4,029,201.

Meanwhile, the DOH reported 20 new COVID-19 deaths, pushing the overall number of people who succumbed to the respiratory disease to 64,524.

Health authorities also logged 650 people who have recently recuperated from COVID; this puts the total number of recoveries at 3,947,284.

On Monday, the DOH said the Philippines logged 8,004 additional COVID-19 cases in the past week.

NPC SAYS PHILIPPINES SPARED FROM AIRASIA MASSIVE DATA BREACH

MANILA — The initial findings of the National Privacy Commission showed that no data of Filipinos were compromised in the reported massive ransomware attack on the regional airline AirAsia.

The agency conducted a probe when AirAsia submitted a breach notification on November 20 through the NPC’s Date Breach Notification Management System.

In a statement, AirAsia Philippines said it has strengthened its cybersecurity system. The breach did not affect their operations in the Philippines.

"Capital A (AirAsia Group), after an attempted ransomware attack recently, is reinforcing its cybersecurity system. It’s business as usual in AirAsia Philippines. We are working closely with the National Privacy Commission on the aforementioned incident. Our company has added rigorous precautionary measures to prevent incidents like this from happening again," AirAsia Philippines said in a statement.

AirAsia Philippines said no sensitive data, such as passwords or financial information, were compromised.

The ransomware attack has reportedly exposed more than 5 million records online that are thought to include information on customers and employees.

DataBreaches, a website that reports data breach incidents worldwide, disclosed that AirAsia fell victim to a ransomware attack.

Hackers using spyware allegedly obtained the personal data of 5 million unique passengers and airline employees.

The data obtained include passengers’ names and employee details such as date of birth, location, and date of employment started.

In September 2022, the personal information of Philippine Airlines (PAL) Mabuhay Miles members was exposed in a data leak.

The flag carrier airline said it demanded its third-party service provider to improve its cybersecurity features.

PBBM NAMES LEDESMA ACTING PHILHEALTH CHIEF

President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. has named Emmanuel Rufino Ledesma Jr. as the acting president and chief executive officer (CEO) of the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth).

Ledesma took his oath on Thursday before Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin, according to a press statement from Malacañang. He replaced his predecessor Eli Dino Santos.

Aside from being PhilHealth chief, Ledesma is also a member of PhilHealth’s expert panel and board of directors. H used to be president and CEO of the Power Sector Assets and Liabilities Management Corporation (PSALM).

Rear Adm. Toribio Adaci Jr. on Thursday meanwhile officially assumed as the Philippine Navy’s (PN) flag-officer-in-command. He replaced Rear Adm. Caesar Bernard Valencia, who served in an acting capacity following the retirement of Vice Adm. Adeluis Bordado last September 9.

Before being named to the Navy’s top post, he served as commander of Naval Forces Western Mindanao and skippered four naval ships aside from commanding various naval task forces during his long career.

BELMONTE TOP PERFORMING MAYOR IN NCR – SURVEY

MANILA, Philippines — Quezon City Mayor Joy Belmonte has been named as the top performing local chief executive in Metro Manila, based on a survey released yesterday by the RP-Mission and Development Foundation Inc. (RPMD).

Belmonte earned an overall job performance rating of 90 percent.

“She enjoys high regard and popularity due to her creative service delivery methods in Quezon City and leadership style, including creating mini city halls in each of the city’s six districts where government employees can serve the public,” the foundation said.

The other top performing mayors in the National Capital Region were Along Malapitan of Caloocan who scored 78 percent, Jeannie Sandoval of Malabon with 74 percent, Vico Sotto of Pasig City with 72 percent and John Rey Tiangco of Navotas with 70 percent.

The RPMD lauded Malapitan and Tiangco for their projects and social services in their respective cities.

Sandoval, the first female mayor of Malabon, “won the hearts of her constituents as she laid forth her ideas that had gathered traction in the previous months,” the foundation said.

Sotto was recognized for his brand of leadership, good governance and the eradication of corruption.

Belmonte, Malapitan and Sandoval thanked the RPMD for the survey results as well as their constituents for their continued trust.

ENTERTAINMENT & LIFESTYLE

NADINE LUSTRE WILLING TO WORK WITH JAMES REID AGAIN

MANILA – Actress and performer Nadine Lustre sees no problem working again with her former boyfriend and on-screen partner James Reid.

In an article by PUSH, Lustre did not hesitate to answer the question about her ex, saying she is open to working with him again.

“We will see. We don’t know what to expect. That’s what I’ve been telling everyone. If it’s a good project, why not?” she said during an interview for her upcoming film "Deleter."

“I’m a very collaborative person. Hindi naman kami magkaaway.”

The two stars, popularly known by fans as JaDine, last worked together in 2018 for the movie “Never Not Love You.”

Reid and Lustre broke up in 2020 but have continued working together. In fact, Reid was responsible for Lustre’s musical projects last year, including a digital concert, produced by Careless Music, which is co-owned by the actor.

The actress is currently in a relationship with her French businessman boyfriend Christopher Bariou.

Speaking with Boy Abunda in July, the actress shared that they met through common friends when she went to visit Siargao in July last year.

Lustre leads the cast of “Deleter,” which is an entry in the upcoming Metro Manila Film Festival.

In “Deleter,” the Gawad Urian best actress portrays Lyra, described as an “online content moderator who deletes a suicide video made by her co-worker.”

The “techno-horror” aspect of the story unravels when a “mysterious vengeful presence” starts to hound Lyra, who is also struggling to escape her “own troubled past.”

The film, which also stars Mccoy de Leon and Louise delos Reyes, marks Lustre’s return to the MMFF after “Beauty and the Bestie” in 2015.

SPORTS

BAY AREA DRAGONS DEF. TNT, 140-108 (PBA) NOVEMBER 23

Bay Area Dragons (10-2) defeated TNT Tropang GIGA (4-7), 140-108 to grab their 10th win and secures a twice-to-beat advantage in the quarterfinals in the 2022-23 PBA Commissioner's Cup on Wednesday, November 23 at the PhilSports Arena.

The Scores:

BAY AREA 140 - Powell 37, Lam 30, Zhu 22, Zheng 16, Reid 10, Yang 9, Song 7, Zhang 4, Blankley 3, Ju 2, Liang 0, Liu 0.

TNT 108 – Mobley 38, Pogoy 16, Erram 16, Tungcab 13, M Williams 11, Oftana 9, Ganuelas-Rosser 2, Soyud 2, Marcelo 1, Khobuntin 0, K Williams 0, Cruz 0, Heruela 0.

Quarters: 34-24, 80-60, 109-82, 140-108.

SAN MIGUEL DEF. TERRAFIRMA, 131-103 (PBA) NOVEMBER 23

San Miguel Beermen (5-5) defeated import-less Terrafirma Dyip (1-10), 131-103 to grab their fifth win in the 2022-23 PBA Commissioner's Cup on Wednesday, November 23 at the PhilSports Arena.

Jericho Cruz led the Beermen in scoring with 25 points on 9-of-11 shooting including perfect 6-of-6 from beyond the arc along with 1 rebound and 3 assists in 22 minutes of play. Devon Scott finished with a triple-double of 21 points (8/12fg, 5/6ft), to go with game-high 19 rebounds, 11 assists, 3 steals and a block. June Mar Fajardo had 20 points (7/11fg, 6/8ft), 9 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal and a block in his comeback while Vic Manuel added 19 points, 5 rebounds and 1 assist.

The Scores:

SAN MIGUEL 131 - Cruz 25, Scott 21, Fajardo 20, Manuel 19, Perez 12, Zamar 9, Enciso 5, Herndon 5, Ross 4, Faundo 4, Brondial 4, Canete 2, Lassiter 1.

TERRAFIRMA 103 – Tiongson 28, Gomez de Liano 17, Mina 15, Ramos 8, Munzon 8, Camson 7, Javelona 6, Gabayni 5, Alolino 4, Balagasay 3, Grospe 2, Cahilig 0.

Quarters: 29-19, 63-38, 96-67, 131-103.

INDICATORS

FOREX $1 = P 56.78

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

Ideas without action aren't ideas. They're regrets. - Jeff Hayden