Detroit Pistons bounce back from loss to 9^th win in 10

March 2, 2025 | 8:14 pm

JALEN DUREN powered for 18 points, 11 rebounds and a career-high six blocks and the host Detroit Pistons won for the ninth time in 10 games, downing the Brooklyn Nets 115-94 on Saturday night.

Detroit bounced back from a 15-point loss to Denver on Friday as Tobias Harris had 18 points and nine rebounds and Malik Beasley also scored 18. Beasley was ejected with 6:39 remaining after picking up his second technical foul.

Cade Cunningham tossed in 15 points with nine assists and Ausar Thompson added 13 points.

Tyrese Martin led the Nets with 23 points off the bench. Jalen Wilson had 14 points and Cameron Johnson added 13.

The Pistons jumped to a 39-22 lead by the end of the first quarter. Hardaway gave Detroit its first double digit lead at 14-4 with a 3-pointer. Beasley scored 14 points in the final five minutes of the quarter. He knocked down four 3-pointers during that span.

Brooklyn pulled within 11 at 41-30 on a pair of Martin free throws with 9:22 left in the first half but the Pistons scored the next six points, including another Beasley 3-pointer.

A three-point play from Harris with 5:53 left in the half upped Detroit’s advantage to 23, 56-33. Duren’s three-point play with 3:14 remaining in the quarter gave the Pistons their biggest lead of the half at 63-38.

The half ended with Detroit leading 68-45. Duren already had a double-double before the break with 13 points and 10 rebounds

The Nets opened the second half with a 14-5 run to pull within 14 points.

Johnson’s 3-pointer with 2:47 left in the quarter cut Detroit’s lead to 81-69, igniting a 9-0 Brooklyn run to end the quarter. Martin’s layup moved the Nets within six points at 81-75.

Detroit’s Tim Hardaway Jr. opened the fourth with a 3-pointer. After the Nets cut their deficit to eight points with 8:18 to play, Detroit scored eight unanswered points to put the game away.

Cunningham knocked down a 3-pointer and Duren had a three-point play. Cunningham then set up Harris for a dunk. Cunningham’s three-point play with 5:56 remaining pushed the Pistons’ lead to 20. — Reuters

Flag football

March 2, 2025 | 8:14 pm

When the Bynum Faith Foundation officially became recognized as a charitable organization in spring 2023, Camryn Bynum was already deep into underscoring his Christian and Filipino roots. Both were, needless to say, instrumental in framing his character growing up in Corona, California, and certainly when he felt moved to, as the nonprofit’s website noted, “leverage his platform to offer hope, assistance, and support to underserved communities in the United States and the Philippines.” By then, he was already the Vikings’ starting safety, if nothing else proof of his progressive body of work in the two years since the National Football League franchise drafted him in the fourth round.

Bynum became intent on doing all he could to provide assistance to underprivileged Filipinos in a visit to the Philippines during his rookie year. It was, in retrospect, providence, especially since he would not have otherwise been privy to the myriad problems faced by struggling communities in his mother Jennifer’s home country. As much as he had been touched by God, he, too, wanted to be the vessel for change as witness to his Christian faith.

Not coincidentally, providence was also how Bynum first met his wife Lalaine by chance in Dubai. There was instant chemistry, he said, and they got engaged not long after. Needless to say, they exchanged vows in the Philippines, and now devote much of their time steering the foundation’s outreach programs, including weekly food distribution in Manila and his yearly Camp Beezy. Initially set up to grow American football in the Pearl of the Orient, the latter is now committed to push for the formation of a Philippine flag football team in time for the 2028 Summer Games in Los Angeles.

To this end, Camp Beezy played host to some 75 flag football players from the Philippines and other Southeast Asian countries the other week in Cavite. Professional coaches subjected camp participants to a training regimen — and, of course, a series of games — designed to raise awareness of the sport. Given Bynum’s ultimate objective, the camp likewise sought to show how flag football’s unique set of rules benefits Filipinos and highlights their innate quickness, dexterity, smarts, and, yes, craftiness. After all, unlike American football, flag football allows little to no contact; instead, a tackle is made when a defender succeeds in removing a flag — in reality more closely resembling a pennant — on either side of the offensive player.

As with anything involving sports in the Philippines, the key is, to be sure, generating enough buzz to encourage and entice corporate support. For all the seeming advantages of Filipinos in the sport, financial backing is critical in terms of finding the best players, and then prepping them for the Olympics in three years. The good news is that this early, the endeavor already has one backer: service hospitality company RIESA Management, Inc., whose chief operations officer, Anthony Raymond, just so happens to be an avid flag football player. Still, is garnering critical mass wishful thinking? Don’t tell that to Bynum, who has encountered more than enough success amid adversity to know everything happens in His time.

Anthony L. Cuaycong has been writing Courtside since BusinessWorld introduced a Sports section in 1994. He is a consultant on strategic planning, operations and human resources management, corporate communications, and business development.

Philippines told to hedge vs Trump after breakdown of US-Ukraine talks

March 2, 2025 | 7:19 pm

U.S. President Donald Trump delivers remarks at the Roosevelt room at White House in Washington, US, Jan. 21, 2025. — REUTERS

By Kenneth Christiane L. Basilio and Adrian H. Halili, Reporters

THE PHILIPPINES should boost its military modernization push and pursue defense ties with other allies to hedge against US President Donald J. Trump’s so-called transactional diplomacy amid increasing tensions with China, political analysts said.

It should cut its dependence on the US to insulate itself from foreign policy shifts of Mr. Trump, whose meeting with Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky in Washington imploded on Friday after a heated argument, despite US commitment to their “ironclad” ties, they added.

“Manila should augment its own contingent plan and readiness for self-reliance even if the US still commits to their ironclad promise to the Philippines,” Chester B. Cabalza, founding president of Manila-based think tank International Development and Security Cooperation, said in a Facebook Messenger chat.

“Multiple defense partnerships with like-minded countries and continuous military modernization efforts are the best steps that Manila could take now,” he added.

During their meeting, Mr. Trump and the Ukrainian leader clashed in a heated engagement that led to the Ukrainian leader leaving the White House without signing a mineral deal seen by the US as crucial in ending the Russia-Ukraine war, Reuters reported.

Mr. Trump threatened to withdraw support for Ukraine, three years after Russia invaded its smaller neighbor, alarming Europeans who fear a rushed ceasefire could embolden an expansionist Russia.

Mr. Trump has shifted Washington’s policy on the Russia-Ukraine conflict since he took over, unravelling three years of US support to Kyiv and leading to the shock of its European allies.

The US, the Philippines’ oldest treaty ally, has been Ukraine’s most important bulwark against attacks by Russia, which invaded the Eastern European nation in February 2022.

“We do not like to hear from the US that one day, just like what Mr. Trump has said to Mr. Zelensky, that without their support, Ukraine can be easily defeated,” Mr. Cabalza said.

Manila should anticipate Washington’s leadership and diplomacy to be grounded on a transactional relationship, said Josue Raphael J. Cortez, who teaches diplomacy at De La Salle College of St. Benilde.

“The measures he employs to maintain American leadership in global affairs are way different from his predecessors,” he said in a Facebook Messenger chat. “We can expect that the manner of negotiations on agreements will be different this time.”

While Mr. Trump’s pivot to Russia may not have a direct impact on the Philippines, “it could influence regional dynamics and how the US may potentially engage with the Indo-Pacific region,” said Rocio Salle Gatdula, a defense economist taking up security studies at Georgetown University.

But defense ties with the US are “likely to remain strong” due to Mr. Trump’s hawkish stance against China, she said via Messenger chat.

The Philippines and China have been at loggerheads over disputed features in the South China Sea, which Beijing claims almost in its entirety. A United Nations-backed tribunal based in The Hague in 2016 voided China’s claim for being illegal.

“Washington is very much keen to continue promoting freedom of navigation as China’s dominance over these waters will undoubtedly generate negative impacts on American trading with their Southeast and East Asian partners,” Mr. Cortez said.

China claims sovereignty over almost the entire South China Sea, a vital waterway for more than $3 trillion of annual ship-borne commerce, putting it at odds with Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines and Vietnam.

The Philippines should consider forging stronger alliances with Canada, France and New Zealand to reduce US dependence, Ms. Gatdula said, citing the need for more diplomatic and economic ties with other countries to counter geopolitical pressures.

‘BEST ALTERNATIVE’
China could benefit from Mr. Trump’s foreign policy shifts, such as what he did with Ukraine, according to Andy Mok, a senior research fellow at Beijing-based think-tank Center for China and Globalization.

“This disruption presents China with an opportunity to expand its influence in Southeast Asia, particularly in the South China Sea,” he said. “As traditional US partners question Washington’s reliability, China can position itself as a more stable and pragmatic force, deepening economic ties and reinforcing its regional claims.”

Mr. Cortez said China could use the Ukraine development to portray that it’s the “best alternative” as a global leader.

Meanwhile, the Philippines and Vietnam have agreed to strengthen maritime cooperation in the South China Sea, according to the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA).

Foreign Affairs Undersecretary Ma. Theresa P. Lazaro met with Vietnamese Permanent Deputy Minister and Chairman of the National Boundary Commission Nguyen Minh Vu in Hanoi last week, it said in a statement.

The envoys discussed “peaceful and constructive approaches in managing the situation in the South China Sea,” the agency said.

Last year, the two nations filed separate extended continental shelf claims before the United Nations over areas in the South China Sea, 200 nautical miles beyond their exclusive economic zones.

“They recognized the need for pragmatic maritime cooperative endeavors in the area, such as on marine environmental protection, conservation and sustainable use of marine resources, marine scientific research, safety of navigation and communication at sea, search and rescue operations, combatting transnational crimes, and in promoting the law of the sea,” the DFA said.

It said the officials also supported more coast guard-to-coast guard and military-to-military cooperation between the two countries.

They also said they want to resume the joint marine scientific research expeditions in the South China Sea, where experts from both countries will study the marine resources and the environment.

Ms. Lazaro also met with Vietnamese Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Bui Thanh Son, discussing the need to strengthen cooperation among Association of Southeast Asian Nations claimant states.

“They welcomed the broadening scope and increasing areas of collaboration between the two countries in the maritime domain and in economic interaction, as well as the regular high-level engagements that are set to take place in the coming months,” the DFA said in a separate statement.

Manila unlikely to give in to Chinese pressure to surrender missile system

March 2, 2025 | 7:18 pm

typhon-missile-system-in-the-phillipines — US ARMY PACIFIC

By John Victor D. Ordoñez, Reporter

THE PHILIPPINES is unlikely to succumb to Chinese pressure to give up Washington’s mid-range Typhon missile system amid worsening tensions between the Asian neighbors, security analysts said at the weekend.

“The Marcos administration understands that the issue about the Typhon is a sovereign, Philippine decision and it is an important military capability especially when faced by a large, aggressive expansionist power,” Raymond M. Powell, a fellow at Stanford University’s Gordian Knot Center for National Security Innovation, told BusinessWorld in an X message. “To unilaterally disarm while Beijing continues its aggression would make no sense.”

The Chinese Embassy in Manila did not immediately reply to a Viber message seeking comment.

The People’s Daily, the newspaper of the governing Communist Party, has urged the Philippines to give up the Typhon missile system, which was deployed by US forces to the Philippines in April last year as part of joint military exercises to keep the peace in the region.

This followed the Chinese Foreign Ministry’s Feb. 12 statement calling on the Philippines to “change the course” by reconsidering its plan to keep the US Typhon missile launchers.

Philippine President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr. earlier said he was willing to pull out the US Typhon missile once China stops its aggression in the South China Sea.

“It is China’s wishful thinking to think that we would just bend over backwards and release our capabilities or ensure that we do not have the capacity to defend ourselves based on international law,” Don Mclain Gill, who teaches international relations at De La Salle University in Manila, said in a Facebook Messenger chat.

He said Manila is has the right based on international law to boost its defense capacity and safeguard its borders against an “expansionist force.”

China claims sovereignty over almost the entire South China Sea, a vital waterway for more than $3 trillion of annual ship-borne commerce, putting it at odds with Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines and Vietnam.

A United Nations-backed tribunal in 2016 voided China’s claim for being illegal, but Beijing does not recognize the ruling.

Philippine Defense Secretary Gilberto Gerardo C. Teodoro, Jr. has said Manila would not be a “doorstep” and that acquiring the missile system is the country’s prerogative.

The US is the Philippines’ major security partner, with a 1951 Mutual Defense Treaty compelling both nations to defend each other in case of an armed attack.

Washington’s military has moved its Typhon launchers, which can fire multipurpose missiles up to thousands of kilometers, from Laoag airfield to another location on the island of Luzon, Reuters earlier reported.

The Tomahawk cruise missiles in the launchers can hit targets in both China and Russia from the Philippines. The SM-6 missiles it carries can strike air or sea targets more than 200 kilometers away.

Philippine Foreign Affairs spokesperson Ma. Teresita C. Daza earlier said the US had exempted security assistance to the Philippines worth $336 million from its foreign aid freeze.

US President Donald J. Trump earlier ordered a 90-day pause on existing and new foreign development assistance pending review to ensure they are aligned with his “America First” policy.

“President Marcos’ statement about removing them if China ends its aggression is a clear statement of reality,” Mr. Powell said. “It is the threat of Chinese military force that has generated their deployment in the first place.”

Armed Forces of the Philippines Chief of Staff General Romeo S. Brawner, Jr. has said the country is looking to buy more military hardware to modernize its arsenal, including additional BrahMos missiles from India and at least two submarines.

The Philippines has contested China’s sweeping claims in the waterway through diplomatic channels by filing more than 190 diplomatic protests since Mr. Marcos took office in 2022.

Foreign Affairs Secretary Enrique A. Manalo has said Manila plans to raise its dispute with China before the Association of Southeast Asian Nations when it takes the chairmanship in 2026.

“The Philippines will not bend according to the whims of an expansionist force,” Mr. Gill said. “Chinese state media thrives in fragmentation and in vulnerability so it would obviously not want the Philippines to be in a position that will allow it to defend itself.”

Analysts: VP trial delay could derail removal

March 2, 2025 | 7:18 pm

By Adrian H. Halili, Reporters

DELAYING the impeachment trial of Vice-President (VP) Sara Duterte-Carpio to July could frustrate the push to remove her from office, according to political analysts.

“If the Senate is serious about settling this business sooner than later, nominally they should,” Hansley A. Juliano, a political science lecturer at the Ateneo de Manila University, said in a Facebook Messenger chat at the weekend.

“There’s political risk doing it after the May elections since more people who are pro-Duterte getting into the Senate could be bad for the plan,” he added.

In a letter to senators last week, Senate President Francis G. Escudero proposed to start the trial on July 30, after newly elected stake their oath as impeachment judges on July 29.

“This current setup essentially means the midterm elections become a referendum to whether Sara should indeed be impeached or not,” Mr. Juliano said.

The House of Representatives on Feb. 5 impeached Ms. Duterte on charges of violating the Constitution, betrayal of public trust, graft and corruption and other high crimes shortly before Congress went on a four-month break for the 2025 midterm elections. Lawmakers will reconvene for a two-week session on June 2.

The impeachment complaint was filed and signed by more than 200 congressmen, more than the one-third legal requirement before it can be sent to the Senate, which will try her as an impeachment court. Under the 1987 Constitution, several congressmen will serve as impeachment prosecutors.

Michael Henry Ll. Yusingco, a senior research fellow at the Ateneo Policy Center, said preparatory work for the impeachment trial could be completed within the month.

The Senate president has created an administrative support group that would prepare and help the Senate when it convenes as an impeachment court.

“The impeachment trial can therefore start on April 1 or even earlier,” he said in a Messenger chat. “Starting it on July 30 disregards the constitutional command [to start proceedings promptly]. It diminishes the Senate as an institution.”

Opposition senators Aquilino L. Pimentel III and Ana Theresia N. Hontiveros-Baraquel earlier urged Mr. Escudero to call for a caucus where they could explain their stance on the trial.

Mr. Yusingco said there is no need to call for a special session because “the command to commence comes from the Constitution itself.”

The ouster charges against Ms. Duterte included seven articles of impeachment such as allegations of plotting the assassination of the President, misusing secret funds, amassing unexplained wealth and committing acts of destabilization.

New DoLE policy eliminating bottlenecks in labor dispute resolution takes effect

March 2, 2025 | 7:17 pm

Mega sardines-factory-worker — Workers are seen inside a manufacturing facility in Sto. Tomas, Batangas, March 1, 2023. — PHILIPPINE STAR/KJ ROSALES

By Chloe Mari A. Hufana, Reporter

THE PHILIPPINES’ new labor dispute resolution rules, aimed at accelerating case processing and expanding coverage to include workers on contracting arrangements, took effect on Sunday.

Department Order No. 249, Series of 2025, updated the Department of Labor and Employment’s (DoLE) Single Entry Approach by easing rules on filing Requests for Assistance (RFA).

A labor leader said the enhanced policy is a gain for workers as it reinforces accessibility, efficiency, and fairness in workplace dispute settlement.

“An efficient dispute resolution system can indirectly support freedom of association and collective bargaining by fostering a more responsive labor relations environment,” Federation of Free Workers (FFW) President Jose Sonny G. Matula told BusinessWorld in a Viber chat over the weekend.

“When workers have accessible channels for resolving grievances, they may feel more empowered to exercise their rights without fear of undue delays or retaliation,” he added.

The reforms allow workers to file RFA at the nearest DoLE office, removing geographic constraints that previously slowed case resolution.

Representation procedures have also been simplified to lower barriers to participation, ensuring more workers can access mediation without unnecessary red tape.

“Workers who are unable to file their RFAs personally due to distance or incapacity can now authorize representatives to act on their behalf, ensuring that no one is excluded from accessing dispute resolution services,” DoLE said in a statement on Sunday.

The new rules also extend coverage to platform workers, freelancers, and contract-based employees, reflecting the evolving nature of the labor market.

A key component of the overhaul is the launch of the Assistance for Request Management System, a digital platform designed to enhance tracking and case management.

“This innovation reduces processing times and eliminates common issues like multiple filings and referral delays,” the agency added.

In 2024, DoLE, in collaboration with the National Conciliation and Mediation Board and the National Labor Relations Commission, processed 83,836 RFAs, securing P2.9 billion in monetary claims for 58,212 workers.

According to the labor leader, the new rules were developed through tripartite discussions, with workers being represented by labor groups, such as FFW, Sentro and the Trade Union Congress of the Philippines.

The private sector was represented by the Employers Confederation of the Philippines, the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry, among others.

DND told to secure gov’t sites

March 2, 2025 | 7:16 pm

THE Philippines’ Department of National Defense (DND) should enhance the security of key government facilities, such as military bases and embassies after the spate of arrests of alleged spies, a congressman said on Sunday.

In a statement, Zambales Rep. Jefferson F. Khonghun urged Defense Secretary Gilberto Eduardo C. Teodoro to secure the government from spies by strengthening physical security and improving cyber-defense capabilities.

“We need to modernize our counterintelligence. This isn’t just about physical surveillance — we need more effective cyber-defense, better intelligence-sharing, and higher levels of security in our military and government offices,” he said in Filipino.

Reuters reported Philippine authorities have detained five Chinese nationals accused of spying on military bases in the country.

The five men had flown drones to spy on the Philippines’ navy, said the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI), adding that it had found photos and maps of sensitive sites and vessels on their phones. A senior NBI official told Reuters that the men had been charged with espionage, which carries a prison term of up to twenty years.

The government should put in review and strengthen its “internal security protocols” to crack down on foreign spies, said Mr. Khonghun, noting the need to expand counterintelligence efforts.

“We need to strengthen our counterintelligence, ensure that we have adequate technology to prevent espionage, and expand the coordination of our agencies,” he said.

Beijing has vastly escalated its alleged state-sponsored cyber attacks since last year, according to a report by US-based cybersecurity company CrowdStrike.

“The underlying motivation is likely China’s desire for regional influence in the nation’s near abroad,” it said in its 2025 report.

The Chinese Embassy in Manila did not immediately respond to a Viber message seeking comment.

The Commission on Elections and Department of Information and Communications Technology should also ramp up its efforts to prevent foreign interference ahead of this year’s midterm elections, he added.

“It is more dangerous if espionage leads to election influence,” he said.

Mr. Khonghun urged Filipino voters to be on the lookout for candidates who might be more interested in advancing the interests of other nations instead of the Philippines. “If there are politicians who serve foreign interests… they should be exposed and held accountable.” — Kenneth Christiane L. Basilio

EO vs Manila Bay reclamation pushed

March 2, 2025 | 7:16 pm

Manila Bay land reclamation — PHILIPPINE STAR/EDD GUMBAN

FISHERFOLK GROUP has urged Philippine President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr. to issue an executive order (EO) that would bar reclamation and quarrying projects in Manila Bay to deter further environmental damage.

“We demand an official written order from no less than President Marcos himself terminating reclamation projects across Manila Bay,” Fernando L. Hicap, chairman of the Pambansang Lakas ng Kilusang Mamamalakaya ng Pilipinas (PAMALAKAYA), said in a statement.

The group cited a February impact assessment study by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) and the University of the Philippines Marine Science Institute, which showed that these projects would worsen flooding in Metro Manila.

“Our protest will not end with the cessation of reclamation,” Mr. Hicap said. “Thousands of fishers and coastal poor communities continue to suffer from the destruction of extensive marine resources that are vital to our livelihood.”

In August 2023, Mr. Marcos suspended all reclamation projects at the bay, except for one, ordering the DENR to review their environmental effects.

Senators Juan Miguel F. Zubiri and Emmanuel Joel J. Villanueva earlier blamed the reclamation at Manila Bay for heavy flooding, especially in Manila, Pasay City and Bulacan province.

Based on DENR data, the government has spent about P1 trillion on flood control projects in the past decade.

“The recent cumulative impact assessment affirms the collective opposition of environmentalists and fisherfolk against this destructive activity,” PAMALAKAYA’s national chairperson said.

“Corporations and the government must be held accountable for their collusion in plundering our natural resources.” — John Victor D. Ordoñez

PDIC told to strengthen operations

March 2, 2025 | 7:15 pm

THE PHILIPPINE Deposit Insurance Corp. (PDIC) should strengthen its receivership operations to ensure measures are in place for depositors in small and medium-sized banks.

“Although some banks are placed in PDIC receivership every year, the adversely affected depositors number in the thousands,” Manila Rep. Joel R. Chua said in a statement.

“Closed banks worsen the unbanked situation of the country, especially in the countryside where small entrepreneurs and depositors are the casualties,” he added.

There were 369 lenders under liquidation by the PDIC as of December 2023, according to Mr. Chua, with 328 having no fixed asset distribution plans.

“A separate PDIC list has 363 banks with approved terminal reports,” Mr. Chua said, citing PDIC data.

Mr. Chua said the PDIC has disbursed P281.5 million in deposit insurance of 7,482 accounts by three shuttered lenders last year. — Kenneth Christiane L. Basilio

Drug den owner, 4 accomplices busted in Cotabato City

March 2, 2025 | 7:15 pm

COTABATO CITY — Agents of the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) clamped down a drug den owner and his four accomplices in an entrapment operation in Barangay Poblacion Mother in Cotabato City on Saturday.

All five suspects, including a 34-year-old woman, are now detained, Gil Cesario P. Castro, director of PDEA in Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM), said on Sunday.

They were immediately arrested after one of them sold P102,000 worth of crystal meth (shabu) to non-uniformed anti-narcotics agents in a tradeoff right in their drug den in Sitio Ulandangan 2.

Mr. Castro said the operation was laid with the help of Col. Jibin Bongcayao, Cotabato City police director, and his subordinate-officers.

PDEA-BARMM agents and policemen found drug-sniffing paraphernalia in the drug den of the suspects, now guarded by barangay officials and volunteer community watchmen.

Mr. Castro said the entrapment operation was premised on reports by vigilant Cotabato City residents aware of the drug trafficking activities of the suspects. — John Felix M. Unson

Over 90% register in Pangasinan’s health program

March 2, 2025 | 7:15 pm

BAGUIO CITY — Pangasinan’s Government Unified Incentives for Medical Consultation (GUICONSULTA) program, achieved over 90% coverage, ushering residents to conveniently register and avail of the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation’s (PhilHealth) outpatient benefits.

Over 90% of the 44 municipalities and three cities of the province have been serviced by the program, equivalent to some 1.2 million registered residents.

PhilHealth provides incentives for Pangasinan residents, including those in far-flung barangays, to register with the PhilHealth Konsulta without disruption to their livelihood.

Residents are either given a modest amount of money for their fare, or their day’s wages to enable them to register through the GUICONSULTA. Many need to leave their work just to register and possibly lose a day’s pay. Many also have to travel to urban centers to register.

To further minimize the inconvenience and disruption, the provincial government mobilized caravans to remote areas to bring the registration to the doorsteps of residents.

The program was launched in October 2024 upon the promulgation of Provincial Ordinance 330-2024 by the Sangguniang Panlalawigan where all of its members voted for the initiative.

Those registered with the PhilHealth Konsulta will be eligible to avail of medical consultation, health risk screening and assessment, selected laboratory and diagnostic tests, and selected medicines. — Artemio A. Dumlao

After clash with Trump, Ukraine’s Zelensky gets warm UK welcome

March 2, 2025 | 7:07 pm

LONDON — British Prime Minister Keir Starmer greeted President Volodymyr Zelensky with a warm embrace on Saturday after the Ukrainian leader flew to London for talks following his clash at the White House with US President Donald Trump.

In an extraordinary Oval Office meeting on Friday, Mr. Trump threatened to withdraw support for Ukraine, three years after Russia invaded its smaller neighbor.

French President Emmanuel Macron spoke to Mr. Zelensky and Mr. Trump on Saturday and called for calm in an interview following Friday’s White House clash.

In London, a crowd cheered as Mr. Zelensky arrived for talks with Mr. Starmer at his Downing Street office before a summit of European leaders that the Ukrainian president will attend on Sunday to discuss a peace plan for Ukraine.

“I hope you heard some of that cheering in the street. That is the people of the United Kingdom coming out to demonstrate how much they support you … and our absolute determination to stand with you,” Mr. Starmer told him.

Mr. Starmer told Mr. Zelensky he had “full backing across the United Kingdom.”

“We stand with you and Ukraine for as long as it may take,” Mr. Starmer said.

Mr. Zelensky said on Saturday he had “important and warm” talks with Mr. Starmer, with a discussion on strengthening Ukraine’s position and obtaining reliable security guarantees.

“During our talks we discussed the challenges standing before Ukraine and all of Europe, coordination with our partners, concrete steps to strengthen Ukraine’s position and ending the war in a just fashion, with reliable security guarantees,” Mr. Zelensky wrote on the Telegram messaging app.

Other European leaders also issued messages of support for Mr. Zelensky and Ukraine after his meeting with Mr. Trump, highlighting differences between traditional allies the United States and Europe over the war since Mr. Trump returned to office.

Senior Russian politicians have reacted with glee to what they see as Mr. Zelensky’s White House humiliation, saying the Ukrainian leader got what he deserved and that US military aid to Kyiv must now be cut.

‘EVERYBODY NEEDS TO CALM DOWN’
The French presidency said Mr. Macron had also spoken to British Mr. Starmer, European Council President Antonio Costa and NATO chief Mark Rutte, on the eve of the London summit.

“I think that beyond the frayed nerves, everybody needs to calm down, show respect and gratitude, so we can move forward concretely, because what’s at stake is too important,” Mr. Macron said in an interview with several Sunday newspapers.

Mr. Macron said Mr. Zelensky had told him he was willing to “restore dialogue” with the United States, including on a deal giving US access to revenues from Ukraine’s natural resources, but did not say what Mr. Trump told him in the call.

The White House had no immediate comment.

In an interview with CNN on Friday, Mr. Trump’s Secretary of State Marco Rubio called on Mr. Zelensky to “apologize for turning this thing into the fiasco for him that it became.”

In an interview with Fox News on Friday Mr. Zelensky said he believed his relationship with Mr. Trump could be salvaged and appeared to express some regret, saying “I’m sorry for this.”

The falling-out meant that Ukraine and the United States failed to sign a much-vaunted minerals deal Kyiv hoped would spur Mr. Trump to back Ukraine’s war effort and potentially win support from Republicans in Congress for a new round of aid.

Mr. Trump is not interested in revisiting the minerals deal at the moment, a senior White House official told Reuters on Friday evening. — Reuters