Greenpeace Philippines on Monday urged the country’s corporate regulator to enforce stronger climate accountability on companies, after the soon-to-be host of the world’s Loss and Damage Fund was hit by strong storms killed at least 150 people.

In a statement, the environmental group said guidelines on sustainability reporting and climate disclosures operate under a “comply or explain” approach, limiting accountability in terms of corporate greenhouse gas emissions.

“If a company does not comply with the guidelines or fails to meet disclosure requirements, they can provide an explanation “for items where they still have no available data,” it said.

On Tuesday, community representatives including farmers and fisherfolk from a central Philippine province that was hit by Super Typhoon Haiyan (Yolanda) in 2013 hand-delivered a letter to the Securities and Exchange Commission asking it to enforce sustainability reporting and climate-related financial disclosures for publicly listed companies.

The lack of comprehensive transparency “undermines the principle of disclosure, which is an essential component of holding companies accountable if their operations or activities contribute to the worsening of the climate crisis,” they said in a letter to SEC Chairman Emilio B. Aquino.

In an email, Ryan Jay Roset, senior legal fellow at the Legal Rights and Natural Resources Center, which provides legal support to victims of Haiyan in Eastern Samar, said the SEC is “mandated to establish a socially conscious free market, and as such should ensure businesses are accountable not only to their shareholders but to the broader public as well.”

“In the context of the climate crisis, this duty includes ensuring that corporations, most especially those in environmentally critical or carbon intensive industries such as energy, oil, gas, and mining, comply with stringent requirements on climate-related financial disclosures,” he added.

Greenpeace campaigner Virginia Benosa-Llorin, who accompanied the typhoon victims to SEC office, said the government “must concretize the responsibility of businesses in the context of the climate crisis.” — Kyle Aristophere T. Atienza

THE Marcos government has suspended an anti-crime task force official following a supposed mistreatment of a Filipino as authorities served an arrest warrant in an alleged scam hub in Bataan province.

The Office of the President ordered Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Commission (PAOCC) spokesman Winston John R. Casio to submit a written explanation after his “alleged involvement in the incident involving the mistreatment of a Filipino national on October 31, 2024 at CENTRAL ONE in Bagac, Bataan.”

“This incident occurred following the execution of a search warrant at the location is reported to have been documented, with the footage now circulating on social media platforms.

In the footage, Mr. Casio was seen slapping a worker of a Philippine offshore gaming operators (POGO) during the Oct. 31 raid.

The palace said Mr. Casio has been “relieved” of his responsibilities as PAOCC spokesman “until the completion” of its investigation.

In a statement, Mr. Casio admitted his act and said he “should have simply filed the necessary charges against the person who flashed the dirty finger at us and insulted our office with vitriol.”

“Then again, my temper got the better of me.”

Mr. Casio said the public should never associate his actions with the entire PAOCC.

“As I embark on a period of reflection during this most humbling time, I subject myself to whatever administrative measures that the Commission will impose. No matter where this episode will lead me, I will continue to serve the Filipino people in whatever capacity.”

Mr. Casio has been the face of the PAOCC as the Marcos government wages a crackdown on POGOs, which have been linked to Chinese syndicates and transnational crimes.

POGOs, which mainly cater to Chinese markets and had been widely embraced by the previous administration, have been a major headache for the Philippine government, so much so that Mr. Marcos ordered a ban in July. — Kyle Aristophere T. Atienza