SENATE RATIFIES TRADE DEAL

MANILA — The Senate on Tuesday night concurred with the ratification of the Philippines’ membership in the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement or RCEP, the latest country in Southeast Asia to join the world’s largest free trade deal.

Twenty senators signed the resolution concurring in the ratification of RCEP. Under the Constitution, any treaty or international agreement requires the concurrence of at least two-thirds of the Senate for it to be valid.

Sen. Risa Hontiveros voted no to the resolution while Sen. Imee Marcos, the sister of the president, abstained from voting.

President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. ratified RCEP in November last year and later submitted it to the Senate for concurrence. In his letter to senators, Marcos said he believes the Philippines stands to benefit from the China-backed free trade deal through enhanced market access and “stronger” protection of intellectual property rights, among others.

RCEP entered into force in January last year. That said, the Senate’s overwhelming concurrence made the Philippines the latest Southeast Asian member of the bloc, after neighbors Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam ratified the pact last year.

Other members of RCEP are Australia, Japan, New Zealand, South Korea and China.

The China-initiated RCEP is widely seen as an alternative to the US-led Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP). What gave RCEP a big push was former US President Donald Trump’s decision to abandon TPP, the previous iteration of CPTPP, as he pursued an “America First” policy.

RCEP, which excludes the US, covers about 30% of both global GDP and world population.

The Senate’s move defied calls from various sectors to reject the deal which, they said, could hurt the local agriculture sector. For these groups, the country is ill-prepared to compete with its regional counterparts under RCEP.

MISSING CESSNA PLANE’S WRECKAGE FOUND

MANILA — The wreckage of a missing Cessna plane that crashed in Bicol with four persons on board has been found on the slopes of Mayon Volcano, authorities reported yesterday.

Bad weather prevented members of the search and rescue teams from reaching the wreckage, which was spotted on Sunday on the west side slope at an elevation of 3,500 to 4,000 feet from the foot of the volcano.

An aerial team yesterday tried four times but failed to land in the area as thick clouds and strong winds blanketed the volcano, according to the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines.

CAAP spokesman Eric Apolonio told The STAR in a text message that crash investigators on board two helicopters of the Philippine Air Force and the Navy conducted reconnaissance flights yesterday.

Crash investigators positively identified the wreckage as that of the missing Cessna 340 Caravan.

“A high-resolution camera was used to identify the wreckage,” Apolonio said.

Before the wreckage was identified, Apolonio said another team would use an all-terrain vehicle to reach the crash site once the weather permits.

The plane took off from the Bicol International Airport on Saturday. It was operated by the Energy Development Corp. and found compliant with CAAP’s airworthiness certification.

MEANWHILE, 2 SAR TEAM MEMBERS SLAIN IN NPA ATTACK

Two Army soldiers involved in the search and rescue mission for the Cessna plane were killed in an attack by alleged New People’s Army (NPA) guerrillas in Camalig, Albay on Monday.

The Army said Pvts. John Paul Adalim and Mark June Esico died from multiple gunshot wounds.

Adalim and Esico were in a market in Barangay Cotmon to collect supplies for the search and rescue operations when at least five alleged NPA rebels shot them.

The Army’s 9th Infantry Division (ID) condemned the killing, saying the communists took advantage of the situation when the soldiers were focusing on a help mission.

CHURCH RESUMES ASH WEDNESDAY RITES

MANILA — More Catholic churches in the Philippines are expected to revert to placing ash on the faithful's foreheads on Ash Wednesday this year amid a continuous drop in COVID-19 cases.

The Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) has said it will not issue common guidelines for the observance of Ash Wednesday on Feb. 22.

CBCP President and Caloocan Bishop Pablo Virgilio David said the CBCP is leaving it to the judgment of individual bishops on whether or not they will mark foreheads with ash crosses to mark the beginning of the Lenten season.

Since the pandemic began in 2020, churches in the Philippines opted for the sprinkling of ashes on the faithful's heads to avoid the spread of the COVID-19 virus.

But as COVID-19 cases started to decline in 2022, priests were allowed to revert to the imposition of ashes on the forehead of the faithful during Ash Wednesday, while sprinkling of ashes on the crown remained an option, according to recommendations issued by the Episcopal Commission on Liturgy.

Ash Wednesday marks the beginning of Lent, a 40-day period of repentance for Catholics.

The final week of Lent, known as the Holy Week, is considered one of the most important weeks for Catholics, in which they recall the passion, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

SUSPECT IN ADIONG AMBUSH KILLED: POLICE

MANILA — One of the suspects involved in the ambush of Lanao del Sur Governor Mamintal Alonto Adiong Jr. on Friday has been killed in an armed encounter, the Philippine National Police (PNP) said Tuesday.

Adiong and his staff member, Ali Macapado Tabao, sustained gunshot wounds while four others were killed in the ambush.

The slain suspect was identified as “Otin," while the 5 other suspects remain at large.

PNP chief Gen. Rodolfo Azurin, Jr. lauded the local police for the development.

"The successful pursuit operation shows that the PNP will not tolerate lawlessness and will do everything in our power to ensure the safety and security of our people," Azurin said.

Vice President Sara Duterte and mayors of Lanao del Sur condemned the ambush and demanded justice for the deaths.

DOJ LOWERS BAIL AMOUNT FOR INDIGENTS TO A MAXIMUM OF P10K; PLANS MORE REFORMS

MANILA — The Justice Department has come out with a new circular lowering the amount of bail for indigents who are facing criminal charges to a maximum of P10,000.

In a department circular issued on Monday, February 20, Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin “Boying” Remulla ordered prosecutors to determine, during an inquest or preliminary investigation proceeding, if the respondents are indigents and to recommend a much lower bail amount.

“In the event that, after the conduct of inquest or preliminary investigation proceedings, the investigating prosecutor finds probable cause with a reasonable certainty of conviction against the indigent respondent, he or she shall indicate in the criminal information only fifty percent (50%) of the recommended bail as stated in the 2018 Bail Bond Guide, or the amount of ten thousand pesos (P10,000.00), whichever is lower,” section 4 of the circular said.

The fact of indigency should also be indicated in the information or criminal charge, along with the recommended bail.

Indigents could prove their status by presenting to the prosecutor their latest income tax return or pay slip or other proof of income or a certificate of indigency from the Department of Social Welfare and Development or the office of the barangay chairperson.

The DOJ circular does not distinguish as to the nature of the crimes but sets a cap at P10,000 as the maximum amount for indigents.

Remulla said this exception applies to all bailable cases.

DOJ spokesperson Assistant Secretary Mico Clavano said the circular is effective immediately.

‘DOTR HAS NO JURISDICTION OVER RAILWAY FARE HIKE’

MANILA — The Department of Transportation (DOTr) has no jurisdiction over the proposed fare increase for railways in Metro Manila, progressive group Bagong Alyansang Makabayan (Bayan) said yesterday.

While the DOTr can regulate land transportation under existing policies, Bayan said that it is the Public Service Act – through the Public Service Commission – that “expressly and specifically regulates railways as a public service.”

The DOTr’s Rail Regulatory Unit (RRU), it said, was created by a mere department order that cannot be superior to a law such as the Public Service Act.

Bayan filed its supplemental position paper calling on the Light Rail Transit Authority (LRTA) and the DOTr to withdraw petitions for fare hike for the Light Rail Transit Lines 1 and 2 and the Metro Rail Transit Line 3 (MRT-3).

“We submit that the only regulatory power DOTr has with regards to railways, as per its enabling law, is the issuance of certificates of public convenience and inspection and registration,” said Bayan.

Bayan also stressed that the RRU, which is hearing the petitions for fare increases, is not an independent regulatory body since the DOTR secretary is its approving authority and that it is chaired by the DOTr undersecretary for railways.

“The DOTr secretary is also the chairperson of the LRTA, which is a petitioner for the fare hike. The DOTr secretary’s signature appears on the LRTA board resolution that approved the proposed fare hike,” read the supplemental position paper.

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WETTER STORMS, DEFORESTATION: MANILA FACES WORSENING FLOODS

BARAS, Rizal — From her house in a Manila suburb, Rowena Jimenez can't see the bare mountains around the built-up city. But she feels the impact of deforestation every time her living room floods.

Slash-and-burn farming, illegal logging, open-pit mining and development fueled by population growth have stripped the once-densely forested Philippines of much of its trees.

In Manila, where more than 13 million people live, low-lying areas are often inundated when storms lash the Sierra Madre mountain range, which lies east of the city and acts as a barrier to severe weather.

But without enough trees to help absorb the rain, huge volumes of water run off the slopes and into waterways that flow into the metropolis, turning neighborhoods into disease-infested swamps.

Jimenez, 49, has lost count of the number of times the Marikina river has broken its banks and flooded the ground floor of her family's 2-bedroom concrete house, a few blocks from the water's edge.

"There is always fear that it will happen again." "Your heart sinks because you realize the things you worked so hard to buy will be destroyed again." said Jimenez.

Jimenez blames environmental "abuses" upstream in the nearby Upper Marikina River Basin -- a catchment spanning roughly 26,000 hectares (64,500 acres) in the southern foothills of the Sierra Madre.

Only 2.1 percent of the watershed was covered by dense "closed forest" in 2015, according to a World Bank report.

Runoff from the mountains drains into the basin, which is critical for regulating water flow into Manila.

The combination of development in the catchment and wetter storms caused by climate change have exacerbated flooding in Manila, said Rex Cruz, a watershed management expert at the University of the Philippines.

"The surface of the Marikina watershed has been modified into something that is not able to absorb a lot of rainwater," he said. This also leads to water shortages in the dry season.

Official data show "closed forest" cover in the archipelago -- which has a total land area of 30 million hectares -- declined from 2.56 million hectares in 2003 to 1.93 million in 2010. It rose to 2.22 million hectares in 2020.

Protecting existing forests and replanting others are made difficult by corruption and sometimes violent conflict over land ownership and usage.

Watchdog Global Witness ranks the Philippines as one of the most dangerous countries in the world for environmentalists, with 19 killed in 2021 and 270 slain in the decade preceding it.

Without a land use policy and integrated environment laws to govern the competing uses of resources, it has been difficult to develop sustainably, said lawyer Tony La Vina, describing it as a "wicked problem".

MAYORS, MMDA TO MONITOR MARKET PRICES

MANILA — The Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) will coordinate with mayors of Metro Manila to monitor prices at wet markets in the metropolis.

“We will coordinate with the Metro Manila Council (MMC) to conduct monitoring of prices in various wet markets in the metropolis,” MMDA Chairman Romando Artes said as officials of the agency, the Department of Trade and Industry and the San Juan city government inspected the Agora public market yesterday to monitor the compliance of vendors with the suggested retail prices (SRPs) of basic goods and prime commodities.

He said the mayors “will help in ensuring compliance with the SRP to protect consumers from unscrupulous sellers. “

San Juan Mayor and MMC chairman Francis Zamora said he initiated the market inspection to assure consumers of protection from price irregularities.

The MMDA said notices of violation were issued against two vendors at the Agora public market for selling imported onions above the P125 per kilo SRP.

Zamora said erring vendors will be penalized under City Ordinance 32, which created the price council.

NO MORE EXTENSION: FRANCHISE OF OLD JEEPNEYS ENDS JUNE 30

The franchise of most traditional jeepneys will expire on June 30, the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board said.

After extending four times the deadline for operators to form cooperatives for the purchase of modern jeepneys, the LTFRB said there will be no more extension this time.

“The CPC [Certificate of Public Conveyance] will be reverted to the state… It will be awarded [to those who have consolidated],” LTFRB Technical Division head Joel Bolano said.

The cooperatives are meant to help operators afford the purchase of modern jeeps worth at least P2.6 million each through loans from financial institutions.

Only operators who are in the process of transitioning into a cooperative or corporation will be allowed to ply their old jeepneys beyond June 30.

They have, however, until December to finish the consolidation process.

“We won’t allow a situation where our commuters won’t have any option for their transportation. The board will address that,” Bolano said.

ENTERTAINMENT & LIFESTYLE

LUIS MANZANO, JESSY MENDIOLA MARK 2ND WEDDING ANNIVERSARY

MANILA — Celebrity couple Luis Manzano and Jessy Mendiola on Tuesday celebrated their second wedding anniversary with a message for each other.

In an Instagram post, Manzano looked back on how their relationship developed.

"One of the best decisions in my life was inviting you to my 2016 birthday (halatang napilitan ka lang at uwing uwi na), little did I know it was the start of a beautiful journey getting to know a friend, bestfriend, girlfriend, fiancée, wife and hot momma," Manzano said in the caption.

"Happy 2nd wedding anniversary and thank you for being the strength of this family. Peanut and I love you Mama!" he added, referring to their baby Isabella Rose.

For her part, Mendiola said that Manzano is an answered prayer.

"Isabella and I are so blessed to have you in our lives. I prayed for you every day, my love. God heard my prayer and gave me a good man," she said in the caption.

"HE knows how pure your heart is and I always tell you this, your kindness is one of the reasons why I fell for you. You are kind to a fault that others take advantage of your good soul.

"Maybe that’s why God put me in your life, para maging pulis sa mga epal na umaaligid sa 'yo. Just like what I promised you during our wedding 2 years ago, I will continue to be your bestfriend, lover, wife, confidant and protector until the end. Happy 2nd wedding anniversary, my love. Rosie and I will always be here for you, through thick and thin. I love you very much."

The celebrity couple recently shared their first family photo after becoming first-time parents with the arrival of their daughter last December.

SPORTS

PBA: ALL-STAR GAME IS FOR THE FANS, NOTES GINEBRA'S CONE

MANILA -- Barangay Ginebra head coach Tim Cone understands why some fans and players are disappointed about the results of the PBA All-Star voting process, after a handful of cagers were left out of the pool.

The PBA unveiled the list of 24 players who topped the All-Star voting last week, with the Barangay Ginebra pair of Japeth Aguilar and Scottie Thompson emerging as the top two vote-getters. They held the draft for their teams on Monday, with Thompson taking Ginebra teammate Christian Standhardinger with the first pick.

But even as the draft went on, there were still plenty of questions regarding the non-inclusion of certain players in the 24-man pool. Notably, players like Converge's Maverick Ahanmisi, NLEX's Don Trollano, and TerraFirma's Juami Tiongson were left out despite having solid seasons for their teams.

Ahanmisi, in particular, is putting up 18.9 points, 6.4 rebounds, 2.9 assists, and 1.4 steals per game for a Converge team that has a 5-2 win-loss record in the Governors' Cup.

Speaking a day before the draft process was conducted, Cone said the disappointment was understandable but stressed that ultimately, the All-Star festivities are geared for the fans.

"It's a fans' game. It's for nobody else but the fans. The All-Star Game is for the fans, totally," said Cone, who will coach Aguilar's team in the All-Star Game.

"Yeah, you wanna reward those guys who are deserving, I think that's important. But basically, it's a fans' game, so I don't have anything wrong with fans picking the team," he added. "The fans are seeing the players that they wanna see."

He sympathized with the players who didn't make the cut, and revealed that he actually voted for Trollano and Ahanmisi. NLEX's Trollano is putting up 10 points, 3.3 rebounds, and 2.9 assists per game while helping the Road Warriors build a 5-2 win-loss record.

"I thought Don Trollano deserved to be in. And, [Maverick] Ahanmisi had a really good, the way he's been playing. I tend to reward guys who are playing good now, right now. 'Cause they're playing well now," said Cone.

However, their non-inclusion doesn't mean that those who made it are not equally deserving, the Ginebra coach said. Moreover, Cone pointed out that this issue is not just a problem for the PBA -- even the results of the NBA All-Star voting is scrutinized by fans and analysts.

"There's always gonna be guys who are deserving who don't make it. Happens in the NBA, all the time, and in all sports. Whether it be baseball, football, basketball, soccer, it doesn't matter. All-Star teams always leave deserving players off," said Cone.

"That's just the nature of the All-Star. Not enough spots for everybody," he added.

The PBA's All-Star festivities will take place in Passi City, Iloilo on March 12.

INDICATORS

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THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

If there is a rumor in the air about you, you'd better treat it as you would a wasp: either ignore it or kill it with the first blow. Anything else will just stir it up.-- James Thom