Tag: Arjay L. Balinbin

MALACAÑANG on Wednesday said Secretary Carlos G. Dominguez III of the Department of Finance (DoF) “continues to enjoy the trust and confidence” of President Rodrigo R. Duterte amid calls for his resignation.

PRESIDENT Rodrigo R. Duterte has directed the Philippine National Police (PNP) and other concerned agencies to “strictly implement” existing laws, rules and regulations on firecrackers and pyrotechnic devices.

PRESIDENT Rodrigo R. Duterte has signed an order institutionalizing the Philippine Anti-Illegal Drugs Strategy (PADS), which the Dangerous Drugs Board (DDB) formulated to address the drug problem in the country.

PRESIDENT Rodrigo R. Duterte has issued an executive order (EO) regulating the barter trade in Mindanao, in part to “strengthen trade and commerce between and among the member states of the Brunei Darussalam-Indonesia-Malaysia-Philippines-East ASEAN Growth Area (BIMP-EAGA).”

THE GROUNDBREAKING ceremony for the rehabilitation of war-torn Marawi City finally pushed through on Oct. 30, with the Task Force Bangon Marawi (TFBM) head promising completion by 2021.

MALACAÑANG ON Tuesday maintained that President Rodrigo R. Duterte’s order for the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) to take over the Bureau of Customs (BoC) is constitutional, saying that soldiers will only be “assigned” to the bureau to “oversee” the operations there and “will not be appointed nor designated to civilian positions.”

FACEBOOK has agreed to “coordinate” with the Presidential Task Force on Media Security to address online attacks on media practitioners in the country, according to Presidential Communications Operations Office (PCOO) Undersecretary Joel Sy Egco.

PRESIDENT Rodrigo R. Duterte on Sunday reiterated his support for Finance Secretary Carlos G. Dominguez III, while also suggesting that Mr. Dominguez was ultimately responsible for the effects of the Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion (TRAIN) Law.

MALACAÑANG has ordered the abolition of the Philippine Sugar Corp. (PhilSuCor) because “it no longer performs the objectives and purposes for which it was originally created.”

PRESIDENT Rodrigo R. Duterte said he will not declare martial law in the second half of his term, but he will use the “strongest tools” to deal with crimes in the country, especially drug trafficking.

THE OPERATIONS Center (OC) of the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) was placed on red alert status on Monday as typhoon Rosita (international name: Yutu) was expected to make landfall in parts of Isabela and Aurora provinces on Tuesday morning, Oct. 30.

AT THE CELEBRATION of Bacolod City’s 39^th MassKara Festival, President Rodrigo R. Duterte gave village chiefs and policemen there a stern warning against drug trafficking, saying he will have them killed.

PRESIDENT RODRIGO R. Duterte on Thursday fired on the spot all Bureau of Customs (BoC) officials and moved controversial Customs Commissioner Isidro S. Lapeña to the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA).

MALACAÑANG on Thursday announced the appointments of Presidential Peace Adviser Jesus G. Dureza and newspaper columnist Ramon T. Tulfo, Jr. as special envoys to the European Union (EU) and the People’s Republic of China, respectively.

THE ARMED FORCES of the Philippines (AFP) and the Philippine National Police (PNP) are set to begin their assessment of the implementation of martial law in Mindanao next week, according to AFP Chief of Staff Gen. Carlito G. Galvez, Jr.

MALACAÑANG ON Thursday clarified President Rodrigo R. Duterte’s latest remarks on “online gambling,” saying the leader was only referring to operations that do not have permits.

PRESIDENT Rodrigo R. Duterte on Wednesday said he has ordered the arrest of former customs intelligence officer Jimmy S. Guban.

PRESIDENT Rodrigo R. Duterte on Wednesday formally conferred the Order of National Artist on seven veteran artists, all renowned in their respective fields. They constitute the first batch of National Artists under his administration.

THE NEWLY-FORMED coalition of groups opposed to the present administration formally launched yesterday its eight-member senatorial slate for the 2019 midterm elections, with Vice-President Maria Leonor G. Robredo urging voters to correct the “mistakes” made in the 2016 polls.

THE LAND Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) on Wednesday said it has been accepting applications for special permits for bus units that will be operating during Undas, the observance of All Saints’ and All Souls’ Days on Nov. 1-2. LTFRB Chairman Martin B. Delgra III, in a press briefing, said his agency has already received a total of 436 applications for 1,072 bus units.

THE FACEBOOK Newsroom said it has taken down “95 pages and 39 accounts” on the social media site, including accounts identified with Rodrigo R. Duterte’s supporters, for violating the site’s spam and authenticity policies.

THE Department of Justice (DoJ) is set to file, "not later than Friday" this week, a motion for partial reconsideration before the Makati Regional Trial Court (RTC)-Branch 148, which earlier denied its motion to issue an arrest warrant and travel ban against opposition Senator Antonio F. Trillanes IV.

PRESIDENT Rodrigo R. Duterte has signed Republic Act (RA) No. 11089 granting the Villar Group’s Streamtech Systems Technologies Inc. a telecommunications franchise for 25 years.

THE GOVERNMENT is set to distribute about 7.8 hectares of agricultural land in Boracay to 31 families belonging to the Ati indigenous community before Christmas, according to Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) Undersecretary Jonas R. Leones.

MALACAÑANG said the selection of a so-called “third player” for the telecommunications industry will be taken over by the Office of the President if a new entrant is not named by November.

THE MAKATI City Regional Trial Court (RTC) Branch 148 has dismissed the motion of the Department of Justice (DoJ) seeking the issuance of a warrant of arrest and hold-departure order against Sen. Antonio F. Trillanes IV, in connection with his coup d’etat case.

THE PHILIPPINE National Police (PNP) is exploring the possible involvement of communist rebels in the massacre Saturday night of nine sugar farmers at a village in Sagay City, Negros Occidental.

SPEAKER Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo on Monday recommended the Philippines’ withdrawal from the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) after it expressed its intention to visit the country to determine the “political persecution” of opposition Senators Leila M. De Lima and Antonio F. Trillanes IV.

MALACAÑANG on Friday opposed the proposal of the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) to conduct a surprise drug test for candidates of the 2019 midterm elections, saying that it is “violative of the Constitution.”

THE Philippines and the People’s Republic of China on Thursday tackled steps to enhance maritime cooperation in the disputed South China Sea (SCS) waters, especially in the areas of “search and rescue, safety, environmental protection, scientific research, and fisheries.”

“BE CAREFUL with that woman. She can oust even the Speaker. She operated in Davao.”

THE Dangerous Drugs Board (DDB) wants President Rodrigo R. Duterte to make public the names of candidates involved in illegal drugs, according to his spokesman.

Duterte still ‘open to reconciliation’ with Reds, says Panelo PRESIDENT RODRIGO R. Duterte, despite the suspended peace talks with the country’s communist groups, is still...

THE GOVERNMENT will cut spending on non-infrastructure items to weather the impact of billions of pesos in revenues to be foregone from the suspension of an oil excise tax hike scheduled in January and to keep the fiscal gap in check, the Finance chief told reporters on Monday.

AGRICULTURE SECRETARY Emmanuel F. Piñol on Monday said the suggested retail price (SRP) scheme for rice will be implemented by the end of October.

PRESIDENT Rodrigo R. Duterte on Monday said the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) and the Philippine National Police (PNP) should “stay neutral” as the 2019 mid-term elections draw near.

PRESIDENT Rodrigo R. Duterte has appointed J. Prospero “Popoy” E. De Vera III as Chairman of the Commission on Higher Education (CHEd), according to the commission’s OIC-Executive Director Cinderella Filipina S. Benitez-Jaro.

PRESSURE is building on the Executive and on Congress for suspension of an oil excise tax hike set in January, which a Finance official said will likely happen given current world crude price forecasts.

PRESIDENTIAL COMMUNICATIONS Operations Office (PCOO) Secretary Martin M. Andanar said a transition team is ready anytime if Chief Presidential Legal Counsel and Presidential Spokesman Salvador S. Panelo takes over the Office of the Press Secretary.

CHIEF PRESIDENTIAL Legal Counsel Salvador S. Panelo was appointed the new presidential spokesperson, according to Mr. Panelo himself and Special Assistant to the President Christopher Lawrence T. Go.

SUPREME COURT (SC) Associate Justices Lucas P. Bersamin and Diosdado M. Peralta have formalized their bid for the position of chief justice by accepting their nominations.

PRESIDENT Rodrigo R. Duterte’s order for the “unimpeded” importation of rice has caught economic agencies off guard, though they pointed to the ultimate goal remains a rice tariff accompanied by freer inbound movement of the commodity.

MALACAÑANG on Wednesday made public its “Secret Special Report” on the alleged involvement of high-ranking law enforcement officials in drug trafficking in the country.

PRESIDENT Rodrigo R. Duterte has ordered “unimpeded” importation of rice, adding to steps meant to ease inflation which has been hitting multiyear peaks, Malacañang’s spokesman said on Tuesday.

Chinese envoy ‘concerned’ over US naval exercises with Xi’s Manila visit MALACAÑANG ON Tuesday said the People’s Republic of China “has expressed concern” about the...