PHILIPPINE FOREIGN Affairs Secretary Alan Peter S. Cayetano met with Foreign Minister Ri Yong-Ho of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) on Monday to convey the position of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) on the tense situation in the Korean Peninsula.

COMMISSION ON ELECTIONS (Comelec) Chairman Andres D. Bautista has defended that the allegations of ill-gotten wealth and offshore accounts filed by his wife, Patricia Paz-Bautista, at the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) are politically motivated and that he is just a victim of extortion.

THE LAPU-LAPU City Government spent P3.2 million to repair a 37-year-old road grader which has a book value of only P426,000, according to the latest report of the Commission on Audit (CoA). Worse, CoA found no actual repair has been made due to the unavailability of spare parts. CoA stated in its 2016 report that the city made a total of P3,239,100 advance payment, equivalent to 90% of the contract cost of P3,599,000 out of its Disaster Risk Reduction Management fund for the general rehabilitation of one unit LG2H model Mitsubishi road grader, even if contractor SSVF-ADD Trading had been in default in the performance of its contract. “The repair cost is considered uneconomical and unnecessary since the equipment had been unserviceable for more than 37 years already,” read the CoA finding. Mayor Paz C. Radaza reportedly approved the payment requests. The city’s legal office said that an administrative investigation against the personnel involved in the preparation of the advance payments is being conducted upon Ms. Radaza’s order. While the investigation is pending, the city said it will recover the payments from the contractor and will pursue possible civil and/or criminal cases, including the termination of the contract and/or blacklisting of the contractor. — The Freeman

GASOLINE prices are set to increase by P1.00 per liter (/L) this week, oil companies advised on Monday, as they scheduled one of the biggest price hikes so far this year. Diesel prices will also increase by P0.80/L while kerosene will rise by P0.85/L to “reflect movements in the international oil market,” the petroleum retailers said. Most of those sent their advisories will be raising prices at 6:00 a.m. on Tuesday, Aug. 8. For gasoline, the price increase will be second only to the P1.10/L rise recorded in the second week of April. This week’s adjustment is a big jump from last week’s rise in the prices for gasoline, diesel and kerosene at P0.35, P0.50 and P0.40, respectively. — Victor V. Saulon