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China hits Blinken’s ‘thinly veiled threat’; Solons laud US-PH ties By Rey E. Requejo and Maricel Cruz THE Chinese Embassy in the Philippines lashed out at US Secretary of State Antony Blinken for his “thinly veiled threat” to invoke the US Mutual Defense Treaty with the Philip-
VOL. XXXVIII • NO. 40 • 3 SECTIONS 12 PAGES • P20 • THURSDAY, MARCH 21, 2024
pines amid tensions in the West Philippine Sea. “We firmly oppose the groundless accusations made by Secretary Blinken about China’s legitimate and lawful actions in the South China Sea and his thinly veiled threat to invoke Next page
Balikatan to go out of PH seas As Marcos says SCS threat ‘has grown,’ must do more in defense
T
HIS year’s Balikatan joint military exercises between the Philippines and the United States will have activities outside of the country’s territorial waters for the first time. The military made the announcement as President Marcos said the threat in the South China Sea “has grown” and the Philippines must do more to defend its territory. “The threat has grown. And since the threat has grown, we must do more to defend our territory,” Mr. Marcos said in an interview with Bloomberg Television. The Balikatan exercises are part of efforts to enhance the military’s capabilities, including external defense. Balikatan’s executive agent Col. Michael Logico said the joint military exercises will be conducted beyond 12 nautical miles or 22.22 kilometers off the west coast of Palawan. “We will be utilizing the western side of Palawan, extending beyond our 12 nautical miles,” Logico said. “So this is also a new thing. We have done group sails before but this Next page
NO BACKLOG. Speaker Ferdinand Martin G. Romualdez (inset) underscores the commitment
of the House of Representatives to support President Marcos in his closing message, then leads congressmen in a group photo at the Plenary Hall after the chamber adjourned its session for its Holy Week break on Wednesday. Ver Noveno
House OKs RBH 7 ahead of Holy Week recess By Maricel V. Cruz VOTING 288-8-2, the House of Representatives on Wednesday approved on third and final reading the proposed amendments to the Constitution’s restrictive economic provisions. The amendment proposals are con-
tained in Resolution of Both Houses (RBH) 7 authored principally by Speaker Ferdinand Martin G. Romualdez, Senior Deputy Speaker and Pampanga Rep. Aurelio Gonzales Jr., Deputy Speaker and Quezon Rep. David Suarez, Majority Leader Manuel Jose Dalipe, Senior Deputy Majority Leader
and Ilocos Norte Rep. Ferdinand Alexander Marcos, and other House leaders. Romualdez reiterated that the proposed economic amendments to the Constitution are the “last piece in the puzzle of investment measures” the administration of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has Next page
Lawmakers okay measure revoking SMNI franchise
Lawyers to challenge Quiboloy arrest at SC
House Bill 9710 seeks to effectively repeal Republic Act 11422, which extended the franchise granted to Swara Sug under RA 8122 for an additional 25 years in August 2019. The renewed franchise was originally scheduled to expire in 2044. The revocation of SMNI’s franchise was prompted by a series of alleged violations, including spreading fake news, involvement in redNext page
By Maricel Cruz and Vince Lopez my. I think it is doable,” he added. PRESIDENT Marcos expressed confidence the country will achieve an eight percent gross domestic product growth rate under his term even as he admitted that inflation remains the “biggest problem.” “You know, we always plan for the idea. We don’t plan for a mediocre result. We plan for a very good result,” Mr. Marcos said in an interview with Bloomberg Television yesterday. “We just have to adjust along the way as we continue to transform the econo-
VOTING 284-4-4, the House of Representatives on Wednesday approved on third and final reading a bill seeking to revoke the legislative franchise granted to Swara Sug Media Corporation, operating as Sonshine Media Network International (SMNI).
NEWS / A2
PBBM says 8% GDP ‘doable’ but admits inflation biggest problem
PCSO AT KAPIHAN. Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office General Manager Melquiades Robles discusses the additional P4 billion Medical Assistance Fund for PCSO and its proactive initiatives to help charitable projects of various organizations at the Kapihan sa Manila Hotel on Wednesday. Norman Cruz
The President, however, admitted the country is still battling inflation. ‘’Inflation is still our biggest problem. And when you, when you separate core inflation to inflation that involves agri products, for example, you can see that the core inflation, we’re doing rather well in terms of controlling it. But again, these shocks keep coming in,’’ Marcos said. Socio-economic Planning Secretary Arsenio Balisacan earlier said the country needs to grow beyond its current Next page
PRESIDENT URGED TO TAKE OVER NFA
‘NEW MANAGEMENT TO FIX NAIA WOES’
NEWS / A3
NEWS / A4
19,000 ghost students in private schools costing gov’t P7b—senator SENATOR Sherwin Gatchalian yesterday revealed there are 19,000 “ghost” or undocumented students in private schools supposedly enrolled through a state voucher program that so far, the lawmaker says, has cost the government P7 billion.
#ANONGBALITA
Gatchalian, chairperson of the Senate Committee on Basic Education, said this incident should be investigated because the government has been allocating billions of pesos for the vouchers intended for senior high school students. Last year, the government spent P52 billion for the Expanded Government Assistance to Students and Teach-
ers in Private Education (E-GASTPE) program. For this year, it has allocated P40.5 billion, the senator noted. Just last month, the Department of Education reported a 97-percent utilization rate of its 2024 budget for E-GASTPE, the government’s largest private school scholarship program, especially on the expansion of the ex-
isting Educational Service Contracting (ESC) scheme. But Gatchalian stressed that ghost or undocumented “literally means no students at all” as they were enrolled under the E-GASTPE senior high school voucher program. During the hearing of Gatchalian’s
Happinoys! PH second happiest in Southeast Asia
Fur babies online, solons support #JusticeForKillua
Trending Tondo street food goes posh in Taguig
NEWS / A2
NEWS / A2
NEWS / A2
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