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GILAS BAGS FIBA OQT SEMIS BERTH DESPITE LOSS TO GEORGIA By Peter Atencio GEORGIA won over the Philippines via two charity shots from Goga Bitadze in the dying seconds, but the losing Gilas Pilipinas side moved on to the semifinals of the FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournaments 2024 at the Arena Riga. Next page
VOL. XXXVIII • NO. 140• 3 SECTIONS 16 PAGES • P20 •FRIDAY, JULY 5, 2024 •
AFP demands P60-m in damages from China Amount does not cover severed finger of sailor—Brawner By Rex Espiritu
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ANILA is demanding P60 million (close to $1 million) in damages from Beijing for the brutal harassment by China Coast Guard personnel against Philippine Navy troops on a resupply mission near Ayungin Shoal on June 17. Armed Forces chief of staff Gen. Romeo Brawner Jr. said the P60 million does not yet include compensation for the Filipino soldier who lost a finger during the clash. “In my letter, I demand the return of our seven firearms, those guns were in a box taken by the CCG, these seven rifles were in a box that they just took, and they damaged our equipment and we estimate the
IN COMMAND. President Ferdinand Marcos, Jr. leads the salute to the flag at the start of the mid-year command
conference of the Armed Forces of the Philippines. With him are Defense Secretary Gibo Teodoro and AFP chief of staff, General Romeo Brawner Jr. Also present were commanders from the General Headquarters, AFP-wide Support and Separate Units, Major Services, and Unified Commands, as well as officers from the army, air force, and naval units. PPA Pool
PBBM okays purchase of multi-role jets PRESIDENT Marcos approved the military's proposal to acquire multi-role fighters (MRFs) to boost the country's defensive capabilities, Armed Forces of the Philippines chief Gen. Romeo Brawner Jr. said on Thursday. The decision was reached during the AFP's first command conference with the President, Brawner said, adding that the military is also studying plans to “harden” its facilities to make these more resistant to hypersonic missile strikes and other forms of attack. "As to which MRF and how many units, no decision has been reached yet. But we urgently need these MRFs," he said in a press briefing shortly after the command conference. While the 12 units of FA-50s in the Philippine Air Force are quite formidable, these are still not enough, Brawner said. "We need to get more of these jet fighters and (the) Next page
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US missiles system stays indefinite, says Army By Rex Espiritu THE powerful mid-range missile system that Washington deployed to the Philippines for the Balikatan joint exercises will remain in the country indefinitely even after the conclusion of Salaknib Phase 2 in September, the Philippine Army clarified yesterday. Army spokesperson Col. Louie Dema-ala issued the clarification after
he said Wednesday the Typhon missile system will be returned to the US by September. He told Manila Standard the missile system will stay in the country until the training objectives of Salaknib have been met. “The employment and redeployment of the MRC will still depend on the result of the training evaluation that will be conducted to ensure that the
training objectives of Salaknib have been met," Dema-ala said in a text message. “As long as we have not met these objectives, we will still need the MRC here in the country," he added. Dema-ala said the Army plans to "maximize our personnel training takeaways with this capability (MRC) for us to be a responsive Army and be able Next page
LAB FOR ALL IN TACLOBAN.
Speaker Ferdinand Martin G. Romualdez delivers his message during the launch yesterday of the "Lab For All" program of First Lady Louise Liza Araneta-Marcos at the People's Center in Tacloban City. Present in the event were Tingog Partylist Reps. Yedda Marie K. Romualdez, Jude Acidre, Navotas Rep. Toby Tiangco, Health Secretary Teodoro Herbosa, CHED Secretary Prospero De Vera,Tacloban City Mayor Alfred Romualdez. Ver Noveno
P35 wage hike one step forward in improving livelihood, says PCCI By Othel Campos THE Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry’s (PCCI) leadership acknowledged that the recently approved PHP35.00 per day wage hike
for private sector workers in the National Capital Region (NCR) as a reasonable step to improve the lives of the working class. While mindful of the potential strain on businesses, particularly
micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs), the PCCI assured that its members in Metro Manila will comply with the new minimum wage. Next page
DA to sell rice at P29 per kilo under ‘Program 29 in Metro Manila, Bulacan By Othel V. Campos THE Department of Agriculture (DA) kicks off today, July 5, a largescale trial of "Program 29" to deliver high-quality rice at P29 per kilogram (kg) to as many as 6.9 million vulnerable households, or around 35 million Filipinos. Initially, 10 KADIWA centers in Metro Manila and Bulacan will participate in the program wherein to sell quality rice at P29 per kilo every Friday, Saturday, and Sunday.
The large-scale trial aims to collect comprehensive data on supply, demand, and logistics, crucial for a smooth nationwide rollout of the program. DA Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel asked consumers to practice prudence in buying affordable rice and refrain from taking any abusive steps to undermine the program. “We appeal to beneficiaries not to take advantage of this program by reselling the P29 rice from KADIWA centers. We want to ensure that the Next page
Angara unveils plans for DepEd, will focus on three priorities THE imminent leadership turnover at the Department of Education (DepEd) signals a shift in the agency’s priorities. Incoming education secretary and current senator Sonny Angara said that his main areas of focus upon taking the DepEd’s helm on July 19 are; streamlining the curriculum, improving quality of teach-
ing, and providing better benefits to teachers. "We’ll go back-to-basics; we must improve our reading education. The quality of education in terms of math, languages, and science has gone low. We must improve its system as this would help the country in general,” Angara told Next page reporters on Thursday.
Binay mulls ethics complaint vs. Cayetano By Macon Ramos-Araneta SEN. Nancy Binay on Thursday said she is contemplating on filing an ethics complaint against Sen. Alan Peter Cayetano after they traded barbs on the supposed P8.9-billion New Senate Building (NSB), whose contact price rose to P23.3 billion. Binay said she will talk to her
staff and check with her legal team if there is still a need to file a complaint in the Committee on Ethics chaired by Sen. Francis Tolentino. Cayetano, chairperson of the Senate Committee on Accounts that oversees the construction of the NSB, along with Senate President Next page