twitter.com/ MlaStandard
facebook.com/ ManilaStandardPH
instagram.com/ manilastandard
manilastandard.net
Missed your copy of Manila Standard? Call or text our Circulation Hotline at 0917-8848655 or email: circulation@manilastandard.net For advertisement: email: advertise@manilastandard.net • 85646229
NCR suspends classes amid smog blanket; not vog, says Phivolcs By Joel E. Zurbano, Rio N. Araja, Maricel V. Cruz, Macon RamosAraneta and Vince Lopez
heavy smog, which most mistook for volcanic smog or vog from Taal Volcano. By the afternoon of Friday, classes in all 16 cities and the lone municipality of Pateros had been suspended. Marikina City suspended LOCAL government units in Metro Manila classes from noon Friday until Saturday. suspended classes at all levels yesterday due to “As part of the precautionary measure, we
are advising the people, especially those with asthma, lung and heart disease, senior citizens, pregnant women, and even children, to wear face masks and limit outdoor activities,” Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) chairman Romando Artes said. Taguig City Mayor Laarni Cayetano said she
ordered the suspension of classes at all levels (from preschool to college) due to the potential health hazards from the smog. Still, city officials said the air quality in Taguig remains safe as particulate matter and sulfur dioxide are at minimal levels. But they, Next page
VOL. XXXVII • NO. 221• 6 SECTIONS 24 PAGES • P20 • SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 23, 2023 • www.manilastandard.net • mst.daydesk@gmail.com
HAZY IN MANILA. This photo from the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority shows the low visibility in the big city’s skyline due to dense smog, which was initially attributed to the volcanic smog or vog from Taal Volcano in Batangas. Classes were suspended across the region and residents were advised to wear face masks to avoid the ill effects of smog. MMDA photo
Food makers resist gov’t plea Just 6 of 29 manufacturers OK DTI call to defer price hikes for holidays By Othel V. Campos
F
OOD manufacturers are resisting government’s request to defer increasing the prices of their goods entering the holiday season, amid soaring prices of fuel, rice, and other raw materials.
Only six of the 29 manufacturers and industry groups who attended a meeting called by the Department of Trade and Industry Thursday night agreed to hold off any price increase, Manila Standard learned. Trade Secretary Fred Pascual met behind closed doors with manufacturers of bottled water, canned sardines, coffee, processed milk, bread, salt, detergent,
BSP: BIZ CONFIDENCE WEAKENED IN Q3 BUSINESS/ B4
candles, condiments, bottled water, canned meat, toilet soap, and batteries. The canned sardines group did not consent to the proposal, according to a TV report by ABS-CBN. “There were six (manufacturers) that did agree but they (DTI) included us all (in agreeing)… the sardines (makers), we did not, we requested the DTI to Next page
Marcos cutting validation time for imported rice to 7 days Inflation top issue By Charles Dantes PRESIDENT Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on Friday said the government no longer wants to wait 15 days for rice importers to prove that grain in their warehouses was legally imported, and wants the
validation process cut to seven days. Speaking during the distribution of smuggled rice that had been seized by the government, Mr. Marcos said rice importers should not be wary of the changes if they are following the legal procedures.
The government has been under pressure to charge rice smugglers and hoarders, following a series of raids on warehouses. Mr. Marcos said this delay was the result of waiting for the 15 days that the law says an importer has to prove his
import shipment is legal. “We are currently trying to reduce the 15 days to seven days. Because if you are a legal importer, you have all the documents. If asked, you can give them immediately. So why wait 15 days?” the President said in Filipino. Next page
INSIDE
A 12-PAGE TECH AND GADGETS ANNIVERSARY ISSUE
SectionS D, e & F
PH-CHINA TIES. Vice President Sara Duterte is shown on a video wall speaking in Mandarin as she greets the Chinese government on their country’s 74th founding anniversary. The Chinese Embassy led by Ambassador Huang Xilian (left photo, third from right) celebrated the event Thursday night in Makati City, as the envoy praised Duterte for speaking “very good Chinese.”
China denies coral damage; DOJ, SolGen to talk WPS case By Rey E. Requejo, Macon Ramos-Araneta and Vince Lopez
of the West Philippine Sea, saying the accusations have no factual basis. "We urge relevant parties of the Philippines to stop creating a political drama from fiction," China’s foreign CHINA on Friday denied it was involved ministry said in a statement. in the destruction of coral reefs in parts Instead, China urged the Philippines
LEADERS MOURN ‘BF’ FERNANDO, 77 NEWS / A2
‘ONLY LEGISLATION CAN BAN POGOS’ NEWS / A2
to remove the BRP Sierra Madre from Ayungin Shoal “if it is really concerned about the environment.” "If the Philippines truly cares about the ecological environment of the South China Sea, it should tow away Next page
Sigh of relief: Fuel prices rolled back next week CONSUMERS can heave a sigh of relief next week as fuel prices are expected to go down after 11 consecutive weeks of increases, according to the Department of Energy and industry sources. Oil firms are expected to cut the price of diesel and kerosene by P0.50 to P0.75 per liter, while gasoline may have no price movement or a
possible rollback of up to P0.15 per liter, sources told Manila Standard. DOE director for the Oil Industry Management Bureau Rodela Romero said, however, that gasoline may still increase depending on the movement of oil prices in the world market on Friday. "After the series of increases in the prices of petroleum products, we
will be expecting mixed movements based on the 4-day trading rate," Romero said. “This adjustment is attributed to the warning of the US Federal Reserves on higher interest rates, although expectations of tight supply still presented a positive outlook for crude," she said. Next page
in Q3, but execs downplay survey By Joyce Panares, Julito Rada and Othel Campos
THE rising prices of basic goods and inflation as well as the country's economic performance are the top important issues for Filipinos that President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. must address, a third quarter survey by PUBLiCUS Asia Inc. showed. Prices/inflation and economy were tied at the top spot with 18 percent each, followed by corruption (13 percent), poverty (9 percent), jobs(8 percent), education (7 percent) and agriculture (6 percent). PUBLiCUS said the economic concerns were closely related to the fundamental fears of households heading into the last quarter of 2023. "These fears include the inability to afford basic necessities andcommodities, difficulties in finding employment, concerns about being underpaid, and the looming possibility of unemployment. These economic and livelihood concerns are at the forefront of Filipino citizens’ minds," it said. Economic managers downplayed the outcome of the survey, which showed that economic headwinds Next page