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Envoy: Gov’t ready to assist Pinoys in China amid COVID surge there By Maricel Cruz
VOL. XXXVI • NO. 325 • 3 SECTIONS 12 PAGES • P20 • THURSDAY, JANUARY 5, 2023 • www.manilastandard.net • mst.daydesk@gmail.com
THE government is capable of keeping Filipinos in China safe amid a surge of COVID-19 cases there, Philippine Ambassador to China Jame Florcruz said Wednesday.
“The government will continue to provide assistance to anyone in need,” he said in Filipino. To date, there are an estimated 14,000 Filipinos in China, Florcruz said. Florcruz said the COVID-19 situation
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Marcos, Xi set hotline on SCS Agree to ‘friendly consultations’ on maritime issues, energy exploration
By Vince Lopez
B
EIJING—The Philippines and China on Wednesday vowed to resolve maritime disagreements through consultation during the second day of the state visit of President Ferdinand Marcos amid heightened tensions over the disputed South China Sea.
Mr. Marcos and Chinese President Xi Jinping both called for “friendly consultation to appropriately resolve maritime issues and restart negotiations on oil and gas exploration,” during their bilateral meeting yesterday, China’s state-owned broadcaster CCTV said. Xi told Mr. Marcos that China wished to “contribute more positive energy to regional peace and stability” and “promote cooperation on oil and gas development in non-disputed areas,” according to CCTV. In response, Mr. Marcos said the continuing negotiation for the joint oil exploration is very important to the Philippines. “I really hope—I would very much like, as you have suggested, Mr. President, to be able to announce that we are continuing negotiations and that we hope that these negotiations will bear fruit because the pressure upon not only China, not only the Philippines but the rest of the world to move away from the traditional fronts of power,” President Marcos said. In a message after his meeting with Xi, Mr. Marcos said they discussed Next page
HIGH-LEVEL MEETINGS. President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. meets with his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, during the second day of his three-day state visit to China. Mr. Marcos also met with Chinese Premier Li Keqiang (lower right) and Li Zhanshu, chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress (lower left).
Finger-pointing heats up airport mess issue ahead of Jan. 12 Senate probe
Abalos asks top PNP officers to submit courtesy resignation By Joel E. Zurbano
By Darwin Amojelar, Julito G. Rada, Macon Ramos-Araneta and Maricel V. Cruz
in the air traffic navigation system that closed Philippine airspace and grounded more than 280 flights on Sunday. Transport officials had been quick to blame what they called an outdated sysFORMER and current officials of the De- tem, but a former undersecretary said the partment of Transportation (DoTr) traded fault lay with current officials who were barbs Wednesday over the technical glitch Next page
Interior Secretary Benjamin Abalos Jr.
INTERIOR and Local Government Secretary Benjamin Abalos Jr. on Wednesday called for the courtesy resignation of police colonels and generals as part of the government’s efforts to cleanse the ranks and get rid of “bad eggs” within the Philippine National Police (PNP). The PNP said it would comply with the request. At a press conference in police headquarters in Camp Crame, Abalos said he will create a special five-person team to investigate police officials
DOTr looks into moral, if not legal, obligation to refund affected flyers By Vito Barcelo
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OPS renamed, ‘Libreng Sakay’ may yet resume put under Office in 1st or 2nd quarter—LTFRB of the President PRESIDENT Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has renamed the Office of the Press Secretary as the Presidential Communications Office and placed it under the Office of the President. Mr. Marcos, through Executive Order No. 11, streamlined the administrative structure of the Office of the President as part of efforts “toward efficiency and responsiveness in the delivery of its critical mandates to the Filipino people.” The Office of the President will now consist of five offices: the Executive Office, Office of the Chief Presidential Legal Counsel, Private Office, Office of the Special Assistant to the President, and the Presidential Communications Office. Next page
THE government is looking to revive its “Libreng Sakay” program for the EDSA Bus Carousel either within the first or second quarter of the year, the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board said yesterday. “We’re looking at the second quarter. Hopefully, if it can be done in the first quarter, the better. But in case, maybe in the second quarter,” LTFRB technical division head Joel Bolano said in a television interview. He said this is because a budget has
already been allocated for the “Libreng Sakay” program. Bolano’s statement was a departure from the earlier pronouncement of Transportation Secretary Jaime Bautista that the program will no longer continue even if Congress allocated a P2.16 billion budget for the service contracting scheme. Bautista explained the program costs about P12 million a day or P4.38 billion a year – about double Next page
New Year’s Day, Transportation Secretary Jaime Bautista said Wednesday. In an interview on radio dzBB, Bautista THE government has no contractual obligation to refund passengers affected by said the legality of compensating affected the hours-long shutdown of the Philippine air travelers should be carefully studied. airspace due to a power supply glitch on Next page
SOON TO BE FREE AGAIN? A signage announcing that the EDSA Bus Carousel bus is no longer free of charge is seen at the Mega Q-Mart Station in Quezon City. The LFTRB says the free ride program might return with the first or second quarter of the year. Joey O. Razon
Pag-IBIG defers premium hike but SSS to push through with plan PAG-IBIG Fund (Home Development Mutual Fund) has deferred its scheduled monthly premium hike this year to 2024. “We affirm that Pag-IBIG Fund has
no proposed contribution hike this 2023,” Pag-IBIG said in a statement. The announcement came days after President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. ordered PhilHealth to suspend the in-
crease of its premium rate and income currence of our stakeholders to impleceiling for 2023 “in light of prevailing ment a planned monthly contribution socio-economic challenges” due to the increase from P100 to P150 in 2021. COVID-19 pandemic. “This was continually deferred in Next page In 2019, Pag-IBIG obtained the con-