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REMULLA: WE'RE NO. 1 IN THE WORLD IN ONLINE CHILD EXPLOITATION By Rey E. Requejo THE Philippines is the leading country in online child sexual exploitation, Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla admitted Thursday. “We’re No. 1 in the world,” Remulla
PROTECTING THE KIDS. United Nations Special Rapporteur Mama Fatima Singhateh (right) meets Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla at the Department of Justice (DOJ) to assess efforts to prevent the sale and sexual exploitation of children in the country on Thursday. Danny Pata
said when asked about the status of online sexual exploitation in the country. “This should be gone. The Marcos administration is making efforts to stop the Philippines’ status on being the leading country in child sexual exploitation,” the Justice chief added.
Remulla made the admission after meeting with Mama Fatima Singhateh, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the Sale and Sexual Exploitation of Children, who paid him a courtesy call. Next page
VOL. XXXVI • NO. 296• 2 SECTIONS 12 PAGES • P20 FRIDAY, DECEMBER 9, 2022 • www.manilastandard.net • mst.daydesk@gmail.com
Quimbo: We take the heat on MIF Admits starting on wrong foot on wealth fund, eyes smaller seed money
By Maricel V. Cruz, Macon Ramos-Araneta and Vito Barcelo
C
ONGRESSMEN on Thursday admitted taking the heat and getting off the wrong foot on the country’s proposed sovereign wealth fund, even as they broached a smaller starting amount for the fund with seed money coming from government banks and other sources.
Marikina Rep. Stella Quimbo, a coauthor of the Maharlika Investment Fund (MIF) bill being deliberated on in the House of Representatives, said initial funding for it should be about P150 billion, down from the P275 billion first proposed last week. Lawmakers on Wednesday decided to drop the planned contributions from the Govern-
ment Service Insurance System (GSIS) and Social Security System (SSS), the state-run repository of pension of employees in the country, as mandatory contributors to the MIF in the face of strong opposition to their inclusion and to allay the people's concerns. "The concept is good, but admittedly, we started on the wrong foot. And that's fine. We took the heat. There is no perfect
bill. This (MIF bill) was prepared by the economic managers, and of course, we assumed that there were sufficient consultations. But lo and behold, when we started hearing the bill, we realized that the consultations were not enough, and obviously, at this time, it is not right to include GSIS and SSS as mandatory fund contributors," Quimbo said. Next page
MARIAN DEVOTION. Catholic devotees line up in front of the Manila Cathedral during the celebration of the Feast of the Immaculate Conception of the Virgin Mary in Intramuros on Thursday, with December 8 observed as a national holiday. Norman Cruz
President calls on Catholics to believe in God By Vince Lopez and Vito Barcelo PRESIDENT Ferdinand Marcos Jr. encouraged Filipino Catholics to put their faith in God and in each other as the country celebrated the Feast of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary.
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Meralco bill up P80 next year—ERC
PBBM confident PH faces no recession with low jobless rate By Vito Barcelo and Vince Lopez
By Alena Mae S. Flores THE Energy Regulatory Commission said Thursday that electricity prices in the Manila Electric Co. (Meralco) franchise area would go up by about P0.30 to P0.40 per kilowatt-hour, or an average increase of P80 per bill for those consuming 200 kilowatt-hours per month, by January next year. ERC chairperson Agnes Dimalanta said the computation is based on the reports for October and November submitted by Meralco to the regulator's Regulatory Operations Service and monitoring of the Wholesale Electricity Spot Market by its Market Operations Service. "Average impact is about P80 for 200 kWh consumption bill," Dimalanta said. Next page
GOLDEN TREBLE.
HIDILYN ADDS 3 WORLD CHAMP TITLES TO HAUL SPORTS / B1
Hidilyn Diaz-Naranjo shows the form that helped her win three gold medals in the women’s 55-kg category of the 2022 World Weightlifting Championships in Bogota, Colombia (see full story in Sports, page B1).
Expert warns of hand-foot-mouth disease outbreak By Willie Casas
disease (HFMD) if more regions in This was seen as a subliminal advisory the country see an increase in cases, to parents to take precautions against THERE will be a declaration of an an infectious diseases expert said on HFMD, and that they should make sure Next page outbreak of the hand, foot, and mouth Thursday.
PRESIDENT Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. said he sees bright prospects for the country’s economy after the unemployment rate dipped in October, expressing confidence the nation would not slide into recession. In his video message, the President said he would ease people’s burden in the face of current challenges, particularly the
global rise in the prices of basic goods. “The report is that the inflation rate increased up to 8 percent last November. However, there is good news that the unemployment rate was reduced to 4.5 percent from 5 percent,” the President said. “It makes us stronger and I feel confident that there would be no recession in the Philippines because the unemployment rate is low. Let us work together. We can do it,” he added. Next page
Envoy pushes stronger AFP to protect country's territory By Macon Ramos-Araneta BOOSTING military forces is the best way to advance and assert the country’s sovereign rights, newly appointed Philippine Ambassador to China Jaime Florcruz said. In his confirmation hearing with the Commission on Appointments
(CA) late Wednesday, Florcruz was grilled by Senator Francis Tolentino on the reported harassment of Filipino fishermen as well as artificial islands reportedly being developed by China. "Our foreign policy should be based on strength which means we should ensure our armed forces, our Next page