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SC ORDERS ADMIN TO REPLY TO ANTI-GAA PETITION
NEWS / A3
SolGen: Nothing illegal in PhilHealth fund transfer By Pot Chavez
VOL. XXXVIII • NO. 355 • 3 SECTIONS 16 PAGES • P20 • WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 5, 2025
Cheaper NFA rice available at P35/k
THE Solicitor General Menardo Guevarra on Tuesday dismissed allegations of wrongdoing in the transfer of P16 billion in PhilHealth funds to the national treasury . “I assure the honorable court and the people that, contrary to what has been portrayed by some critics, there was no dark nor sinister plan behind the transfer of the P16 billion peso fund balance from PhilHealth to the treasury,” Guevarra said during oral arguments on the consolidated petitions asking the HIgh Tribunal to declare the transfer unconstitutional.
PBBM appoints new PhilHealth president BUSINESS / B4 The Department of Finance (DOF) also defended the decision, saying it was a “prudent and moral” step to return only excess, idle, and unused government subsidies from 2021 to 2023, which amounted to P89.9 billion. “The DOF exercised a prudent and moral decision to limit the return to the excess, idle and unused government Next page
IN SESSION. The Supreme Court hears oral arguments on the consolidated
petitions against the transfer of Philhealth funds to the national treasury. Inset shows President Ferdinand Marcos swearing in Dr. Edwin Mercado as the new Philhealth president. Pot Chavez, PCO
DA also lowers imported rice max SRP: P55/k By Othel V. Campos
F
ILIPINOS will be able to buy even cheaper NFA rice at P35 per kilogram under the food emergency declaration that took effect Monday. The National Food Authority, however, stands to lose as much as P2.25 billion with the move. NFA operations manager Roy Hontiveros said the agency would sell at least 150,000 metric tons of rice to local government units at below the procurement cost. “Based on our actual buying price in 2024, the estimated loss is between P12 to P15 per kilo,” Hontiveros said. The NFA rice will be sold to LGUs at P33 per kilogram, and will in turn be sold to the public at a suggested price of P35 per kilogram -- one peso less than the original estimate of P36 per kilogram. Next page
Vloggers snub Tricomm, ask SC to stop probe By Pot Chavez and Maricel V. Cruz THE House Tri Committee on Tuesday began its hearing on concerns over disinformation and fake news on social media but many of the resource persons invited filed instead a petition
with the Supreme Court demanding a stop to the proceedings. The Tri Comm, composed of the Committees on Public Order and Safety, on Information and Communications Technology, and on Public Information,had invited political and social media content creators to discuss cybercrimes, online harassment, and fake news. Surigao del Norte Rep. Robert Ace Barbers emphasized that their objec-
tive was not to curtail free speech but to establish accountability in the digital space. He called for a regulatory framework for social media, similar to the ethical standards upheld by the Kapisanan ng mga Brodkaster ng Pilipinas (KBP) for broadcast media. “Our goal is to develop a code of conduct for content creators, ensurNext page
METRO TRAFFIC PLAN. President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. presides over a meeting
at the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) to discuss updates on the agency’s Comprehensive Traffic Management Plan (CTMP) for Metro Manila and its nearby provinces yesterday at Malacañang Palace. The CTMP establishes an inclusive, peopleoriented, sustainable mobility system by optimizing transportation infrastructure and implementing an effective traffic management strategy. Also present were Executive Sec. Lucas Bersamin, Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) Sec. Jonvic Remulla, Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) Sec. Manuel Bonoan and Department of Transportation (DOTr) Sec. Jaime Bautista.
Coordinated socmed network amplify pro-China messages By Maricel V. Cruz
VLOGGERS AT SC. Former Malacañang press secretary and now social media influencer Trixie CruzAngeles and other content creators show their petition asking the the Supreme Court to stop the proceedings in the House Tri-Committee investigating the lack of regulations for social media platforms. Danny pata
China embassy denies hacking attempts vs. PH envoy to US THE Chinese Embassy disputed Philippine Ambassador to the United States Jose Manuel Romualdez’s claims that he was repeatedly targeted by Chinese hackers. Romualdez said he informed the Chinese Ambassador to the Philippines Huang Xilian about the alleged hacking during a meeting in Manila and also discussed it at a forum in Washington. However, a Chinese Embassy spokes-
person said that Huang, after verification, was surprised by the claim, stating that he hadn’t met Romualdez in a long time and that they never discussed the hacking issue. The spokesperson added that Huang doesn’t know where Romualdez got the story. Romualdez, quoted by ABS-CBN News, maintained his account, suggesting Huang may not recall the Next page
A COORDINATED network of Chinese-linked social media accounts has reportedly been actively pushing anti-President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. content while simultaneously ampli ampli-
COURTESY CALL.
Former Speaker Jose “Joe” De Venecia Jr. pays a courtesy call on Speaker Ferdinand Martin G. Romualdez at the Speaker’s office in the House of RepresenRepresen tatives yesterday afternoon. Ver Noveno
fying pro-Vice President Sara Duterte’s narratives. Niceforo Balbedina II of PressOnePH presented to the TriCom hearing Tuesday its investigation into what it called Foreign Influence Operations Next page
Solons to PBBM: Certify as urgent wage hike bill By Maricel V. Cruz LEGISLATORS welcomed the House of Representatives’ imminent passage of a bill proposing a P200 daily wage increase for workers in the private sector. This came after the bigger chamber passed on second reading House Bill 11376 or the
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