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‘Stronger proof’ sought in VP ouster

Vice President Sara Duterte arrives at the Department of Justice, May 9, 2025. — PHILIPPINE STAR/RYAN BALDEMOR

THE House of Representatives’ second‑largest political party urged complainants in Vice‑President (VP) Sara Duterte‑Carpio’s impeachment efforts to present new evidence, warning that a weak case was unlikely to gain their support, its chairman said on Monday.

Antipolo Rep. Ronaldo V. Puno said the National Unity Party (NUP) does not want to reduce the impact of the impeachment process by backing what it described as weak cases and will call for “stronger proof” for Ms. Duterte’s ouster proceedings.

“We will closely observe the hearings and carefully evaluate the evidence that will be presented,” he said in a statement. “We hope the committee will reveal stronger proof and, if warranted, the proverbial ‘smoking gun’ that would justify elevating the matter to the Senate.”

“The NUP does not want to send a weak case to the Senate only for it to be summarily dismissed,” he added, noting that a flimsy complaint could “weaken the credibility of the impeachment process and diminish the gravity of this constitutional mechanism.”

The House Justice Committee last week found two out of four complaints against Ms. Duterte were sufficient in substance, moving them to the next step of the impeachment process that will determine whether the charges should be elevated to the Senate for trial.

The Vice-President faces a range of accusations, including claims she misused hundreds of millions of pesos in secret funds under the Office of the Vice-President and the Education department during her tenure as its secretary.

Filings made also include accusations she amassed wealth disproportionate to her income, efforts to destabilize the government and plotting to assassinate President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr., his wife and former Speaker Ferdinand Martin G. Romualdez, charges which Ms. Duterte has denied. — Kenneth Christiane L. Basilio

Court allows seizure of Co’s assets

PHILSTAR FILE PHOTO

THE Philippines’ anti-graft court has issued a writ allowing the government to potentially seize the assets of a resigned lawmaker embroiled in a multibillion-peso graft scandal, which would be used as repayment for civil damages if he is found guilty in the case against him.

In a 13-page resolution dated March 4, the Sandiganbayan Fifth Division sided with government prosecutors’ motion to include 16 properties of former Party‑list Rep. Elizaldy S. Co, worth a total of P215 million, for possible repayment of damages tied to a faulty dike project.

Mr. Co and the co-accused “willfully misapplied public funds through falsified narrations and thereby caused undue injury to the government,” the prosecution’s motion read.

Lawyer Ruy Alberto S. Rondain, Mr. Co’s counsel, did not immediately reply to a Viber message seeking comment.

Mr. Co, who previously headed the House of Representatives Appropriations Committee, is at the center of a multibillion-peso graft scandal linked to anomalous flood control deals, with accusations that he allowed the system of kickbacks to persist while heading the budget panel. He has since left the country and has not returned. — Kenneth Christiane L. Basilio

Cebu, Iloilo ports exceed target

PHILSTAR FILE PHOTO

THE Bureau of Customs (BoC) said on Monday that the Port of Cebu generated 3.53 billion in revenue collections in February, surpassing the target set for the month.

In a social media post, the BoC said that the port exceeded the assigned target of P3.39 billion.

“This resulted in a positive deviation of P145.1 million, or 4.28% above the target, reinforcing the port’s steady contribution to the bureau’s overall revenue generation efforts,” it said.

According to the bureau, this marked the third consecutive month that the port has exceeded its monthly target under District Collector Alexandra Yap-Lumontad.

“These results demonstrate that with efficient processes and commitment, we can continue to deliver strong revenue performance while facilitating legitimate trade,” she said.

In a separate release, the BoC said that the Port of Iloilo also surpassed its revenue target for February after collecting P296.44 million last month.

This exceeded the month’s target of P233.21 million by 27.11%, or P63.23 million.

For the first two months, the port recorded P679.45 million in revenue collections, which also surpassed the January-to-February target of P584.65 million by 16.21%. — Justine Irish D. Tabile

SC affirms P2-M fine vs coal firm

BW FILE PHOTO

THE Supreme Court (SC) has affirmed the P2-million fine imposed by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on Abacus Coal Exploration and Development Corp. for committing material deficiencies and misstatements in its audited financial statements for 2008 and 2009.

In a 13-page decision promulgated on Oct. 22, 2025, and made public on Monday, the High Court’s third division denied the petition for review filed by the coal firm, ruling that it failed to record significant assets and equity despite obtaining regulatory approval for a capital increase.

The court noted that the firm neglected to list coal mining rights worth roughly P2.7 billion as assets on its balance sheet, which resulted in a massive understatement of its actual value. Instead, the company chose to disclose the details only within the notes of its financial statements, a move the court found “insufficient” to meet legal transparency standards.

Associate Justice Maria Filomena D. Singh, writing for the court, said that such omissions “undermine the reliability of financial disclosures” and defeat the purpose of reporting rules.

“The values of these line items should be reported in order to aid its user or future investors in making sound decisions,” the decision read. The SEC had previously determined that the company’s reporting failure led to significant “material misstatements” by ignoring the impact of its increased capital stock. Abacus Coal argued it acted in good faith, but the tribunal said “the information disclosed in the Notes do not satisfy the requirements prescribed under the law.”

The finalized P2-million penalty covers two years of noncompliance. — Erika Mae P. Sinaking

Army de-escalates Moro groups clash

COTABATO CITY — Guns are silent for two days now at the border of Nabalawag and Midsayap towns in Cotabato, after scenes of deadly clashes last week between heavily armed Moro groups squabbling for control of strategic spots in the area.

Officials of the Army’s 602nd Infantry Brigade and the 6th Infantry Division (ID) separately told reporters on Monday, that the feuding groups, one identified with Nabalawag Mayor Renz Tukuran and the other, led by a certain Commander Kuntay, immediately disengaged and scampered away when soldiers came in on Friday to secure the areas where they figured in gunfights that displaced no fewer than 2,000 villagers. The clashes also killed two villagers, according to local officials.

Personnel of Army units under the 602nd Infantry Brigade, led by Brig. Gen. Ricky P. Bunayog, seized last week more than 20 assault rifles, grenade launchers, a K3 machine gun and an 81-millimeter mortar left by gunmen from both sides as they fled hastily when they sensed then that soldiers were approaching their locations from different directions.

Mr. Bunayog and his immediate-superior, Major Gen. Jose Vladimir R. Cagara, separately told reporters that nine of the combat weapons were found in the house of Mr. Tukuran.

Mr. Cagara, also commander of the 6th ID’s anti-terror Joint Task Force Central, said all of their pacification efforts in the conflict-stricken barangays at the boundary of Midsayap and Nabalawag are closely coordinated with the Coordinating Committee on the Cessation of Hostilities of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF).

A big group from the Joint Peace and Security and Team, or JPST, composed of policemen, soldiers and members of the MILF, was also deployed in the area to prevent a repeat of last week’s gunfights between the two groups. — John Felix M. Unson

Travel tax abolition bill hurdles House committee

STOCK PHOTO | Image by L.Filipe C.Sousa from Unsplash

A HOUSE of Representatives committee approved on Monday a measure to abolish the travel tax, citing the need to relieve the burden on travelers.

The House Ways and Means Committee approved an unnumbered substitute bill consolidating six measures seeking to remove the travel tax, a decades-old levy imposed under a Presidential Decree that had been designed to curb overseas travel at a time when the Philippines was seeking to conserve foreign exchange and promote domestic tourism.

The substitute bill will now head to the House Appropriations Committee, which will evaluate the measure’s funding provisions before being discussed on the House floor.

“We cannot allow our system of collecting funds for the government’s important programs to become regressive,” Marikina Rep. Miro S. Quimbo, who heads the House Ways and Means Committee, told the panel. “Our tax system must remain progressive.”

The proposal to cut the travel tax, which collects P1,620 from economy class air passengers and P2,7000 from first class passengers flying overseas, was designated a priority bill by President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr.

The levy was first imposed by Republic Act No. 1478 in 1956 and later amended through Presidential Decree No. 1183 in 1977. Exempt from travel tax are overseas Filipino workers, Filipino permanent residents overseas who stayed less than a year in the Philippines, and children aged two years and below.

Legislators have overwhelmingly backed moves to scrap the travel tax, saying the levy has outlived its purpose and now hampers travel for Filipinos, despite concerns from government agencies that rely on it as a steady source of funding.

“For flights scheduled on or after the date of effectivity, the collection authority shall immediately refund any previously paid travel taxes to the passenger,” according to the unnumbered substitute bill, a copy of which was obtained by BusinessWorld.

Under the current law, 50% of the proceeds from the travel tax collection go to the Tourism Infrastructure and Enterprise Zone Authority, with 40% earmarked for the Commission on Higher Education for tourism-related education programs. The National Commission for Culture and the Arts takes up the remaining 10%.

“The survival of these programs should not be dependent on the number of travelers or the amount of taxes that we collect from them,” Mr. Quimbo said. “They are far too important to be dependent on unpredictable numbers.”

The bill proposes that government agencies affected by the tax cut and whose projects may be jeopardized be funded through the national budget “to ensure the continuity of programs and projects previously funded by travel tax collections.” — Kenneth Christiane L. Basilio

FTI to start sourcing onions from Occidental Mindoro

BOC PHOTO

THE DEPARTMENT of Agriculture (DA) said Food Terminal, Inc. (FTI) will start sourcing onions directly from farmers in Occidental Mindoro by the third week of March, citing the need to mitigate any possible drop in farmgate prices during the peak of the harvest.

“The intervention comes as harvest volumes are expected to surge starting March until April, a period when farmgate prices typically fall sharply due to oversupply and limited storage capacity,” the DA said in a statement on Monday.

The DA said FTI executives inspected a cold storage facility in San Jose, which can store up to 380,000 bags of onions, in preparation for the procurement program in the province.

The DA said the cold storage facility is scheduled to begin operations on March 10, ahead of FTI’s planned purchases.

Occidental Mindoro is one of the top onion producers with output of 7,177 metric tons in 2025, equivalent to 25.78% of the national total.

“We expect to limit the role of middlemen in determining onion prices and help growers obtain better prices for their produce,” Agriculture Secretary Francisco P. Tiu Laurel, Jr. was quoted as saying in a statement.

The DA said FTI procured 10,000 bags of red onion in Nueva Ecija and has targeted daily purchases of around 3,000 bags starting March 6. — Vonn Andrei E. Villamiel

PPP, national budget touted as alternate sources of tourism infra funding — analysts

PHILIPPINE STAR/EFIGENIO TOLEDO IV

By Beatriz Marie D. Cruz, Reporter

THE government must ensure alternate funding for tourism-related infrastructure if it abolishes the travel tax, citing risks to the growth of domestic tourism, analysts said.

“If the abolition of the travel tax creates a funding gap for tourism promotion or infrastructure, it will be critical to establish alternative mechanisms — whether through public-private partnerships or dedicated budget allocations, to ensure ongoing airport upgrades and destination development are not delayed,” Dino Mari G. Palanca, director for marketing and research at property consultant Savills Philippines, said in an e-mail to BusinessWorld.

The House of Representatives Committee on Tourism last month approved a proposal to abolish the travel tax, citing the financial burden on those traveling overseas.

Mr. Palanca said removing the travel tax would cut funding for domestic tourism infrastructure, such as improvements to airports, inter-island connectivity, and access roads.

“To safeguard the tourism industry, policy adjustments must be paired with sustained infrastructure investment and stronger destination competitiveness,” he noted.

The government collects a travel tax of P1,620 ($28.35) from economy air passengers and P2,700 ($47.24) from first class air passengers departing for overseas.

The Tourism Infrastructure and Enterprise Zone Authority (TIEZA), which develops and manages the country’s tourism facilities, earlier said that 90% of its budget is funded by travel tax.

The levy was authorized by a Presidential Decree at a time when the Philippines was trying to conserve foreign exchange.

“The travel tax is an antiquated tax and is not consistent with the modern times, where global travel is no longer considered a luxury,” Eleanor L. Roque, tax principal of P&A Grant Thornton, said via Viber.

The current law allocates 50% of the proceeds from travel taxes to TIEZA, 40% to the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) for tourism-related education programs, and 10% to the National Commission for Culture and the Arts.

Colliers Philippines Director and Head of Research Joey Roi H. Bondoc said the flood control corruption scandal of 2025 demonstrated that the government can do away with unnecessary levies if funds are properly allocated.

“The flood control issue only shows we actually have funds for infrastructure projects. It’s just that they were misallocated or being diverted to other uses,” he said via telephone.

The government could lose around P8 billion yearly if the travel tax is abolished, Finance Secretary Frederick D. Go has estimated.

In 2025, the authorities collected about P8.7 billion in travel tax revenue.

The removal of the travel tax, coupled with investments to improve tourism infrastructure, would help boost domestic travel in the long term, analysts said.

Mr. Bondoc noted that one benefit could be increasing purchasing power, with hotels, restaurants, and retailers poised to reap the dividends.

“Increased affordability often encourages more frequent travel overall, benefiting both international and domestic segments, particularly if regional airports and emerging leisure corridors continue to improve access and reliability,” Mr. Palanca said.

German-supported crop insurance program to be trialled on Samar, Leyte mangroves

PALAWAN municipality of Bataraza

THE PHILIPPINE Crop Insurance Corp. (PCIC) and German aid agency Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) signed a memorandum of agreement to launch a mangrove insurance pilot program in the Eastern Visayas GIZ said.

GIZ said the pilot will introduce a risk-financing mechanism to enable rapid funding for mangrove assessment, cleanup, and restoration after climate-related events, particularly typhoons.

“Strong ecosystems are among the most effective forms of natural protection. Protecting mangroves through insurance helps safeguard coastal livelihoods while reducing recovery costs after disaster,” PCIC President Jovy C. Bernabe said at the signing event on Monday.

The PCIC said local government units (LGUs) will be the policyholders of record. They will pay insurance premiums; their indemnities will go towards mangrove restoration.

The PCIC said insurance payouts will be triggered by predefined parameters, particularly typhoon wind speeds or storm surge levels.

“We have indices that will serve as proxies for damage — storm surge wave height, and wind speed. We are looking at 100 kilometers per hour or above (for wind speed),” Israel Q. Dela Cruz, PCIC business development and marketing department manager, said.

The PCIC said the parametric design will hasten indemnity payouts and require fewer administrative costs because it does away with the need for assessments of actual damage.

“We do not need to send our adjuster to the field. Once the indices are triggered or reported by external data providers, such as the (government weather service), we are going to pay the policyholders,” Mr. Dela Cruz said.

The PCIC said product development will take about two to three months and will be followed by simulations in Northern Samar and Southern Leyte.

Mr. Dela Cruz said the product development phase will include studying the appropriate cost of insurance premiums and indemnity.

“Data coming from the LGUs will be taken into consideration, including how much they normally incur for mangrove restoration. That will be the baseline for the cost of indemnities,” he said.

The PCIC said it hopes to operationalize the product by year’s end.

The mangrove insurance pilot program falls under  the Strengthening Disaster Resilience and Risk Mitigation through Ecosystem-based Planning and Adaptation project, which has been allocated 5.5 million euros by the German government. 

GIZ will provide technical assistance and support the PCIC in developing and operationalizing the insurance product.

“By piloting mangrove insurance in this region, we demonstrate how nature-based solutions and innovative insurance mechanisms can work together to protect both ecosystems and coastal communities,” according to Nicole Kranz, climate action cluster coordinator at GIZ Philippines and the Pacific Island Countries.

GIZ said the partnership is expected to generate data to support the development of ecosystem-based insurance and other nature-based solutions in vulnerable coastal areas. — Vonn Andrei E. Villamiel

LTFRB calls provisional fare increase ‘last resort’

A jeepney driver receives payment from a commuter in Metro Manila. — PHILIPPINE STAR/WALTER BOLLOZOS

THE Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) is studying a possible provisional fare increase for public utility vehicles as a last resort, following the surge in fuel prices.

“If the fuel subsidy can’t support the hikes, then we are looking at service contracting; if that is not enough, we will be looking at provisional fare increases, which would be our last resort,” LTFRB Chairman Vigor D. Mendoza said in a radio interview on Monday.

Mr. Mendoza said the LTFRB is revising its recommendation for a provisional fare increase, noting that the earlier proposal of a P0.50 hike for public utility jeepneys and buses was set when fuel prices were at P60 per liter.

“We have a recommendation as far as provisional fare increase is concerned but we will have to re-do our numbers because of the jump in fuel prices. When we have our recommendation, we’ll have different figures,” he said.

On Monday, the Department of Energy said fuel retailers are set to hike prices of gasoline by P7- P13 per liter, diesel by P17.50-P23 per liter, and kerosene by P32-P36 per liter.

Mr. Mendoza declined to specify when the provisional fare increases might be authorized, noting that the LTFRB is watching for the impact of the fuel subsidy and whether it is sufficient to shield drivers and operators from rising fuel costs.

The Department of Transportation said last week that it is preparing to disburse P2.5 billion in fuel subsidies. — Ashley Erika O. Jose

PHL hoping to tackle measures to mitigate Persian Gulf disruptions at ASEAN forum

THE STRAIT OF HORMUZ — WIKIPEDIA

THE PHILIPPINES is looking to discuss measures to improve cross-border trade with its neighbors during the upcoming ASEAN Business Environment Forum (ABEF), citing the need to mitigate the disruptions arising from the fighting in Iran, the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) said.

“It is important that we can work closely with our ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) peers,” according to Benedict M. Uy, executive director of the DTI’s Foreign Trade Service Corps (FTSC).

Speaking to reporters on the sidelines of the Pre-ABEF briefing on Monday, Mr. Uy said: “The ASEAN economy must stay strong because that will shield us from all these global issues.”

During the briefing, Mr. Uy said the global business environment has become unpredictable after the US and Israel attacked Iran, as well as the uncertainty over global tariffs.

“With such disruptions stifling progress, the same can be viewed as opportunities to capitalize and develop new trading dynamics,” he said.

He said the forum is expected to boost trade and investment within ASEAN.

“If our intra-ASEAN trade and investment is strong, then there’s no need for our member states to go as far as other continents to do business,” Mr. Uy said.

He added that other regions like Europe and the Americas are monitoring developments in ASEAN as they also seek to diversify their trading partners.

The ABEF will take place on March 11 in Taguig City.

The Philippines assumed the ASEAN Chairmanship this year, taking the lead on high-level economic meetings for the world’s 5th largest economy.

ABEF discussions will focus on strengthening public-private partnerships; leverage digitalization to promote transparency and efficiency; and enhance the business environment within ASEAN.

Speakers will include ASEAN ministers, senior government officials, and private sector officials.

This year’s ABEF is a side event to the ASEAN Economic Ministers’ (AEM) Retreat, which will take place on March 13.

Also on Monday, ASEAN members convened for the 18th Meeting of the ASEAN Digital Economy Framework Agreement Negotiating Committee (DEFA NC) in Taguig City.

DEFA seeks to establish a coherent, forward-looking framework to boost digital trade, enhance interoperability, and accelerate digital economic integration across ASEAN. — Beatriz Marie D. Cruz

Pharma, cosmetics expected to drive growth of region’s packaging industry

PROPAK ASIA

By Vonn Andrei E. Villamiel, Reporter

BANGKOK — Rising demand for innovative pharmaceutical and cosmetics packaging solutions is expected to drive growth in Southeast Asia’s packaging industry, according to Informa Markets.

Sanchai Noombunnam, country general manager of Informa Markets Thailand, said that while the food industry remains a major source of demand for packaging solutions, pharmaceuticals and beauty products are emerging as the key growth segments.

“Pharmaceutical, beauty products, and other consumer goods (are where) we would like to get more exposure, apart from food,” he told reporters at a briefing in Bangkok.

Informa Markets organizes the annual ProPak Asia, the region’s largest trade exhibition for processing and packaging technology. The company said it has seen rising interest from manufacturers in the two targeted industries seeking advanced packaging solutions.

Mr. Sanchai said that in 2025, about 24% of ProPak Asia visitors came from the consumer goods, pharmaceutical, and personal care industries.

Anupong Nakeenopakul, events manager at Informa Markets, said demand from the supplement and pharmaceutical manufacturing segments is “going up very fast” as companies look for smarter and safer packaging solutions.

“These industries are looking for full safety. Manufacturers are choosing the machines based on safety, and they are preparing for the future of automation. They are also looking into precision packaging,” Mr. Anupong told BusinessWorld.

He added that interest in sustainable packaging is also growing, particularly among larger manufacturers.

Meanwhile, Mr. Anupong said interest is growing among Philippine manufacturers in food processing and packaging machinery

“The Philippine Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) always sends buyers to our exhibitions. These are related to agricultural commodities like coconut and mango,” he said.

“In Thailand, we have small and big peeler machines for both. And we have a storage to ferment the mango, or to freeze them to extend their shelf life,” he added.

However, Mr. Anupong said Philippine agriculture has yet to fully maximize opportunities in value-added processing.

He said the country still largely exports raw agricultural commodities and lacks the economies of scale needed to support large manufacturing investment.

“You send the commodity out, and you buy the ingredient back,” he said. “It’s similar to Thailand, where we have a lot of commodities like cassava, which we send to India, to Europe. And then we buy back (cassava starch).”

Informa Markets has said the Philippine processing and packaging industry is expected to grow by about 3.2% annually.

“The overview of the processing and packaging industry in the Philippines is very interesting, with annual growth of around 3.2%,” Rungphech Chitanuwat, general manager for the Philippines at Informa Markets, said.

She added that packaging volume in the Philippines amounted to about 78.5 billion units in 2024 and is projected to rise to 91.8 billion units by 2029, reflecting increased consumption and continued innovation.

Informa Markets will hold the 2026 edition of ProPak Asia on June 10-13 at the IMPACT Challenger Hall in Nonthaburi, Thailand.

Now in its 33rd year, the event will feature over 2,500 brands from 45 countries, showcasing processing and packaging innovations across the value chain.

The exhibition will highlight more than 18,000 technologies and machinery aligned with ProPak’s 2026 to 2027 investment priorities, including artificial intelligence and machine vision, robotics and automation, among others.

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