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Speaker seeks dialog with oil firms as fuel subsidies handed out today By Darwin G. Amojelar, Maricel V. he will seek a dialog with oil firms to find a possible compromise to give moCruz, and Rio N. Araja torists a respite following nine straight THE government will start distributing weeks of oil price increases. “The government is not insensitive to fuel subsidies to public transportation drivers and operators today (Wednes- the sentiments of our people, especially Next page day) as Speaker Martin Romualdez said
VOL. XXXVII • NO. 210 • 3 SECTIONS 12 PAGES • P20 • WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 13, 2023 • www.manilastandard.net • mst.daydesk@gmail.com
Sept. 14 deadline for rice aid Gov’t wants to beat election ban on public fund disbursement By Charles Dantes and Maricel V. Cruz
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RESIDENT Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on Tuesday said the price ceiling he imposed on rice was “going as well as we can expect” as the government pushed to distribute all cash aid to small rice retailers affected by the move by Sept. 14.
FREEING FARMERS FROM DEBT. President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. (center) displays the implementing rules and regulations of RA 11953 and his
signed Executive Order extending the moratorium on payments of amortizations on agrarian debt at the Department of Agrarian Reform office in Quezon City on Tuesday. Witnessing (from left) are Senator Cynthia Villar, Special Assistant to the President Anton Lagdameo, Speaker Martin Romualdez, Senator Imee Marcos, Agrarian Reform Secretary Conrado Estrella III, and Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin. Rey Baniquet
New Agrarian Reform law benefits 610,000 farmers By Charles Dantes and Maricel V. Cruz
Emancipation Act. The law condones all loans, including inter interPRESIDENT Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on Tuesday ordered ests, penalties, and surcharges incurred by over the Department of Agrarian Reform to ensure the “smooth 610,000 agrarian reform beneficiaries (ARBs). and immediate” enforcement of the New Agrarian Reform Next page
The administration will also seek an exemption from poll authorities in case it doesn’t finish before Sept. 15, when an election ban on the disbursement of public funds for social services begins. A Commission on Election (Comelec) resolution prohibits the release, disbursement, or expenditure of public funds for social services from Sept. 15 to Oct. 30 ahead of the barangay and youth elections. Mr. Marcos noted that retailers have slowly adjusted to the price cap, even if some of them temporarily stopped selling the staple grain to avoid potential losses of up to P40,000 weekly, according to industry estimates. “We just had a meeting about that this morning, so far the implementation and enforcement is going as well as we can expect,” the President said in a chance interview. “Of course, some retailers are wary of the measure, and we can’t blame them because they are unsure of the aid we promised. We’ll see how it goes,” he added.
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PH facilities in WPS lagging behind other nations—AFP By Vince Lopez and Macon Ramos-Araneta
GMA News, which was onboard the patrol aircraft, said it found Barque Canada or “Maskardo Reef” occupied by Vietnam, teemOTHER claiming with activities ant countries in with ships and the Spratly Islands trucks in what aphave far more modpears to be a reclaern facilities than NEWS / A2 mation project. the Philippines, a Fiery Cross, also known as Kagitinmaritime domain patrol conducted by the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) gan Reef occupied by China, meanwhile, Next page Western Command (WESCOM) shows.
• Senate to tackle maritime zones
PH, US officials to visit EDCA sites; Senate vows ‘billions’ for military By Vince Lopez and Macon Ramos-Araneta
tween the two countries. Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) chief Gen. Romeo Brawner will acTOP Philippine company US Amand US military bassador MaryKay officials are set Carlson and the to visit today Commander of newly developed NEWS / A2 the US Indo-Pabases in Cagayan and Pampanga that American troops cific Command, Admiral John Aquican use under the Enhanced Defense lino, to Lal-lo Airport and Naval Base Next page Cooperation Agreement (EDCA) be-
• PH-AUS pact ‘assures peace in Indo-Pacific’
Ressa cleared on 5th charge of tax evasion by Pasig court NOBEL laureate Maria Ressa was acquitted Tuesday of her final tax evasion charge, the latest legal victory for the veteran journalist as she battles to stay out of prison. Ressa smiled as the judge delivered the verdict in a case that has dragged Next page
HAPPY WITH COURT VICTORY.
Journalist and Nobel laureate Maria Ressa laughs during an interview with Agence France Presse in Manila on Tuesday. AFP
OPENING STATEMENT. As the new college school year began at the University of the Philippines, the UP-Manila
Student Council hangs a banner on the Oblation statue calling for a halt to the reclamation projects in Manila Bay. President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has already ordered an indefinite suspension of 22 major land reclamation projects in the bay to allow a study of their environmental impact and legal compliance. Danny Pata
President spending 66th birthday in Singapore, speaks in Asian gab By Charles Dantes PRESIDENT Ferdinand Marcos Jr. will spend his 66th birthday today in Singapore, kicking off a five-day official trip to attend the 10th Asian Conference that will gather eco economic managers and business leaders in the region as well as the finals of the Formula One Singapore Grand Prix 2023. According to the Presiden Presidential Communications Office, Mr. Marcos will headline a 30-minute conversation at
3:30 p.m. today during the Asia Summit hosted by the Milken Institute. Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim is also scheduled to face the annual gathering from 12:30 to 2 p.m. today. It will be the first time a sitting Philippine President will address the Asia Summit that focuses on public health, environmentalism, economic policy, and globalization. The PCO said Mr. Marcos will stay in Singapore until Sept. 17, in time for the F1 finals which he will attend “upon the Next page