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LARGEST PRICE HIKES FOR DIESEL, KEROSENE THIS YEAR SCHEDULED TODAY By Alena Mae Flores

Fares on LRT 1, 2 higher by Aug. 2

CONSUMERS are facing price increases of as much as P3.50 per liter for diesel and P4.55 per kilo or P50.05 per 11-kilo tank of cooking gas today (August 1) to reflect the movement of prices of oil and liquefied petroleum gas in the world market. Oil firms implemented a big-time oil price hike of P3.50 per liter for diesel, P3.25 per liter for kerosene and P2.10

FARES for both the Light Rail Transit Line 1 (LRT-1) and the Light Rail Transit Line 2 (LRT-2) are set to increase beginning Aug. 2, Wednesday. The Light Rail Manila Corporation (LRMC), operator and maintenance

VOL. XXXVII • NO. 167 • 3 SECTIONS 12 PAGES • P20 • TUESDAY, AUGUST 1, 2023 • www.manilastandard.net • mst.daydesk@gmail.com

106 areas under calamity state Cagayan, Pampanga, Bulacan join group; ‘Egay’ deaths rise to 25

By Vince Lopez, Vito Barcelo, Othel V. Campos, Joel E. Zurbano and Macon Ramos-Araneta

TOTAL of 106 places across the country are now under a state of calamity, the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council said Monday, as Cagayan, Pampanga and Bulacan joined the list of provinces declaring a calamity state to tap their emergency funds after the onslaught of typhoon “Egay” last week and the incessant rains due to the southwest monsoon or “habagat”

The three provinces joined Ilocos Norte, Ilocos Sur, Abra, Mountain Province, Bataan and Cavite in declaring a state of calamity along with various cities and municipalities, mostly in Luzon, the NDRRMC said in a briefing. Egay unleashed strong winds and rains when it made landfall in Cagayan last week and pummeled other areas in Luzon, killing 25 at last count. The state weather bureau said more rains are expected in parts of Luzon and the Visayas in the next few days due to the southwest monsoon, enhanced by another storm, “Falcon.” In its latest report, the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) said the death toll from Egay had reached 25, while 52 others were injured and 23 remained missing, including four Philippine Coast Guard personnel whose boat capsized in Abulug, Cagayan last week. Some 2.3 million people or 654,837 families were affected by the storm across 13 regions in the Philippines, the NDRRMC said. The total damage left by Egay was adjusted to P5.4 billion, with damage to infrastructure worth P3.5 billion and agricultural damage pegged at P1.9 billion. The government has so far given out assistance worth P146.6 million, most

‘HABAGAT’ EFFECTS. In this aerial photo, houses are seen submerged in flood waters in Brgy. San Miguel, Calumpit, Bulacan, as residents wade through them or use bancas to move to drier ground (inset right). In Ilocos Norte, US Marines help their Philippine counterparts in loading generators for use at clear the Laoag International Airport and nearby communities (inset left) in Ilocos Sur, local police and disaster rescuers carry the body of John Paul Sabluden, 19, who was reported missing since July 26 at the start of the rains triggered by Typhoon ‘Egay.’ Maria Tan/ABS-CBN grab, PMC, MDRRMC photos

PBBM worried price of rice may rise with low PH stocks

Leptospirosis, dengue cases up amid rainy season—DOH

Moto riders face P1,000 fine for stopping under bridges

No online classes during calamities, DepEd clarifies

By Othel V. Campos

By Joel Zurbano

By Gabriellea Pariño

PRESIDENT Ferdinand Marcos Jr. is meeting officials of the Department of Agriculture (DA) today as he is worried that the recent storms and the worst of the El Nino season will leave the country without sufficient stocks of rice and send its price spiraling out of control. In a recent press conference while giving out aid to the storm-stricken provinces in Northern Luzon, the President said he was nervous that the market price of rice would skyrocket despite the government’s plan to import more of the staple

THE country has logged an increase in the number of leptospirosis and dengue cases amid the onset of the rainy season, the Department of Health said Monday. The DOH said 182 new leptospirosis cases were recorded from June 18 to July 1, a 42-percent jump from the 128 cases reported two weeks prior. Central Luzon, in particular, showed a continuous increase in leptospirosis cases in the past 6 weeks, the department said. As of July 15, some 2,079 reported cases of leptospirosis were recorded nationwide since the start of the year, with 225 fatalities.

THE Metropolitan Manila Development Authority said it will start penalizing today (Aug. 1) motorcycle riders using foot bridges and flyovers as shelters during heavy downpours. The agency said it will issue citation tickets and a fine of P1,000 will be slapped against the riders for road obstruction. MMDA acting chairman Romando Artes said motorcycle riders seeking shelter under flyovers are dangerous not only to themselves but to other motorists as well.

THE Department of Education clarified there will be no online classes during calamities after the Alliance of Concerned Teachers slammed the department for being “unrealistic and insensitive” for highlighting the shift to hybrid learning modes. DepEd spokesperson Michael Poa said his previous statement on online learning was related to moves to decongest schools and not to force learners to switch to hybrid mode during natural calamities.

EU vows support for PH in WPS, open Indo-Pacific European Union, PH restart talks on fresh free-trade agreement

By Charles Dantes and Macon Ramos-Araneta

EUROPEAN Commission President Ursula von der Leyen on Monday said the EU is ready to cooperate with the Philippines for a “free and open IndoPacific region.” “The European Union has been very supportive of a free and open IndoPacific, because an Indo-Pacific free of the threats of coercion is key to all our stability, to our peace, and to the prosperity of our people, von der Leyen said during her speech at the bilateral meeting with President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. in Malacañang Palace. The EU leader said they are ready to aid the country’s maritime forces

By Charles Dantes

EU-PH TIES. President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. and European Commission (EC) President

Ursula von der Leyen (left) hold a bilateral meeting and deliver a joint press statement at the Palace on Friday. Their discussions covered economic cooperation, including the resumption of the Philippines-EU Free Trade Agreement (FTA) negotiations. PCO photo

THE European Union and the Philippines will restart negotiations on a free-trade agreement as they seek to accelerate “a new era of cooperation,” European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said Monday. Talks began in 2015 under then-President Benigno Aquino but stalled two years later under his successor Rodrigo Duterte, whose deadly drug war strained diplomatic relations with the West and sparked an international probe. “I’m very glad that we have decided

to relaunch negotiations for (a) free-trade agreement (FTA),” von der Leyen told reporters at a joint news conference with President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. in Manila. “Our teams will get to work right now on setting the right conditions so that we can get back to the negotiations,” she said, noting an FTA has “huge potential for both of us” in terms of jobs and growth. The European Union is the Philippines’ fourth-largest trading partner and an FTA would be Manila’s second bilateral deal after Japan. Next page