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Saturday, September 28, 2024 Vol. 19 No. 347
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BSP CONFIDENCE POLLS
SHOW SPLIT OUTLOOK By Cai U. Ordinario
P
ERCEPTIONS of the “pervasiveness of corruption in the government” have reduced the optimism of consumer expectations in the next 12 months, according to the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP).
MANUEL T. CAYON
“The slightly less optimistic outlook was due to the faster increase in the prices of goods and services, fewer available jobs, lower income, and perceived pervasiveness of corruption in the government.”— Redentor Paolo M. Alegre Jr., Officer-inCharge of BSP’s Monetary Policy Sub-Sector
tive territory at 0.7 percent from -0.4 percent in the second quarter of 2024. “They cited higher income from wages, salaries, remittances and other sources, additional sources of income, permanent employment and more available jobs and additional working family members,” the BSP said. Meanwhile, business confidence was more optimistic in the next 12 months, the next quarter, and the current quarter.
ANDRII YALANSKYI VIA DREAMSTIME.COM
Based on the third-quarter Consumer Expectation Survey (CES), the BSP said consumer confidence for the next 12 months was less optimistic as the confidence index (CI) declined to 9.9 percent from 13.5 percent in the second quarter 2024. Other reasons cited for the decline in optimism are high commodity prices as well as lower incomes in the next 12 months. “[The] slightly less optimistic outlook was due to the faster increase in the prices of goods and services, fewer available jobs, lower income and perceived pervasiveness of corruption in the government. Mind you, this is for the next 12 months,” Redentor Paolo M. Alegre Jr., the Officer-in-Charge of BSP’s Monetary Policy Sub-Sector, said in an online briefing on Friday. However, the optimism of consumers improved in the current and succeeding quarters. For the current quarter, optimism turned less pessimistic, -15.6 percent from -20.5 percent in the second quarter of 2024 survey results. For the next quarter, the data showed the outlook turned optimistic as the CI reverted to posi-
MINDANAO’S LONGEST BRIDGE CONNECTS TWO PROVINCES IN NORTH MINDANAO
Continued on A2
PRESIDENT Marcos leads the inauguration on Friday, September 27, 2024, of the P8.3-billion Panguil Bay Bridge. He highlighted that the bridge significantly reduces travel time from Tangub City in Misamis Occidental to Tubod town in Lanao del Norte from over two hours to just seven minutes, benefiting more than 10,000 travelers daily. Story on A2. PRESIDENTIAL COMMUNICATIONS OFFICE
A stinking problem: Population, tourist growth overwhelm Baguio’s sewage system of this predicament. The Department of Public Works and Highways could not help because the cost is high and DPWH itself is saddled with its own backlog. The Continued on A2
MARKER for the Baguio City Sewage Treatment Plant, the city’s only facility of its kind, which was donated by Japan in 1986. Located at North Sanitary Camp Barangay, the plant has a limited processing capacity of just 8,600 cubic meters per day. It has struggled to meet the demands of a growing population and an influx of tourists. MARILOU GUIEB
CHINA’S MILESTONE First Lady Liza Araneta-Marcos shares a light moment with Chinese Ambassador Huang Xilian and his wife Madame Cao Yiqun moments before the ceremonial toast at a jampacked reception marking the 75th anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China at the Shangri-La The Fort on Thursday night (September 26). Also gracing the ceremonial toast are Senate President Francis “Chiz” Escudero and Department of Foreign Affairs Assistant Secretary Ariel Peñaranda. Story on page A11 News. MALOU TALOSIG BARTOLOME
BAGUIO, a bustling urban center and premier tourist destination, attracts thousands of visitors yearly with its vibrant art scene, luxurious hotels, and lively tourism events as the country’s first Unesco Creative City. However, behind this glamorous façade lies a hidden environmental crisis. Decades-old sewage and septage systems are now overwhelmed by the city’s growing population and tourist influx. As a result, untreated wastewater and fecal matter flow into Baguio’s rivers, posing serious public health risks. MAU VICTA
By Marilou Guieb (First of two parts)
B
AGUIO CITY—Misty weather, distant blue mountains and the towering pine trees of the country’s summer capital exude a panorama of splendor and romance, making it a favorite tourist destination. But beneath the glitter and glamour of its façade—classy hotels and restaurants, flashy tourism events and a thriving art scene as the first Unesco-declared creative city in the country—it hides a dirty secret deep in its bowels, and
not figuratively, as this research has found. The growing population and the nonstop influx of tourists have overwhelmed the city’s sewage and septage systems, which were built for a smaller community decades ago. The result is that most of the city’s fecal matter and wastewater end up in Baguio’s four rivers, especially Balili River, posing potential public health problems. “This is why the river stinks. This is a mortal sin,” is the refrain often heard from Mayor Benjamin Magalong, whose administration is under pressure to get Baguio out
PESO EXCHANGE RATES n US 56.0170 n JAPAN 0.3869 n UK 75.1580 n HK 7.2017 n CHINA 7.9899 n SINGAPORE 43.6678 n AUSTRALIA 38.6013 n EU 62.6102 n KOREA 0.0427 n SAUDI ARABIA 14.9343 Source: BSP (September 27, 2024)