US, UKRAINE SIGN MINERALS DEAL, SHOWS TRUMP COMMITMENT WORLD/ A6
LET JUSTICE REIGN ON GARCIA CASE — MARCOS NEWS / A4
VOL. XXXIX • NO. 76• 3 SECTIONS 16 PAGES • P20 •FRIDAY, MAY 2, 2025 •
PNP to remove Que's son from respondents' list
CELEBRATING MAY DAY.
Workers march through the streets of Manila to mark International Labor Day and call for wage increases and better labor rights. Inset shows President Ferdinand Marcos, Jr. at the SM Supermalls and the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE)'s nationwide Labor Day Job Fairs at the SMX Convention Center Manila. With the President are (from left to right): SM Investments Corporation (SMIC) Vice Chairperson Tessie Sy-Coson, Presidential Communications Office Secretary Jay Ruiz, DOLE Secretary Bienvenido Laguesma, and Department of Health (DOH) Secretary Dr. Ted Herbosa. Edd Castro, PCO
By Vince Lopez The Philippine National Police on Thursday said it will ask for the removal of the son of slain FilipinoChinese steel magnate Anson Que from the list of respondents in connection with the kidnap-slay case. The decision came a day after the Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Commission and the Filipino-Chinese group Movement for the Restoration of Peace and Order questioned the claim of the suspect who implicated Que’s 42-year-old son Ronxian Gou or Alvin Que. PNP spokesperson, Brig. Gen. Jean Fajardo said David Tan Liao, who surrendered to the PNP, was
PBBM heeds call for better wages By Charles Dantes and Michael V. Cruz
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President Ferdinand Marcos, Jr., yesterday assured Filipino workers that the government is actively studying proposed wage increases across the country, amid continuing demands for better pay and job security as the nation celebrated its 123rd Labor Day. Speaking before labor officials, Cabinet members, and workers at a Labor Day ceremony in Pasay City, he said the government "hears the call of our workers for better wages," adding that the country’s 17 Regional Tripartite Wages and Productivity Boards (RTWPBs) are reviewing salary standards. "We hear the call of our workers for better wages and assure you that Next page
Comelec asks DA: Halt rollout of P20/kilo rice Says subsidized rice program may resume after May 12 elections
By Othel Campos and Maricel Cruz
WORLD'S OLDEST PERSON, A NUN, DIES AT 116 WORLD / A6
DND reviewing Ph defense pacts with other nations By Rex Espiritu The Department of National Defense (DND) is reevaluating its defense agreements with countries that do not support the Philippines’ territorial claims in the West Philippine Sea (WPS), according to DND Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr. “Our engagements have a strategic bent in mind and are all based initially on the acceptance of UNCLOS and the Philippine position in the WPS and the South China Sea,” Next page
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he Commission on Elections on Thursday called on the Department of Agriculture to halt the rollout of the 20/kilo rice project given the prohibition of ayuda distribution 10 days ahead of the midterm polls. Comelec chairperson George Erwin Garcia said suspending the rollout and its expansion across Metro Manila through Kadiwa ng Pangulo centers will prevent it from being politicized or being used during the home stretch of the campaign. “We are urging them to pause it temporarily. Maybe they can resume it after May 12, perhaps on May 13," he said in an interview with dzBB. "Comelec is not interfering with social services, but the law prohibits
politicizing of state resources," Garcia said. The DA said it was ready to move the launching of the expanded P20per-kilo rice program, dubbed “Benteng Bigas Mayroon Na (BBM Na)” in Kadiwa ng Pangulo centers across Metro Manila from the original May 2 target to May 13. However, the rollout of the subsidized rice initiative for the Visayas pushed through in Cebu yesterday. At least 800,000 households or the
“Today, Labor Day, we fulfill a promise made three years ago by President Bongbong Marcos to the Filipino people: to bring down the price of rice to P20 per kilo. That promise is now a reality.” — Agriculture secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr.
equivalent of 4 million people are expected to benefit from the program. “Today, Labor Day, we fulfill a promise made three years ago by President Bongbong Marcos to the Filipino people: to bring down the price of rice to P20 per kilo. That promise is now a reality,” said Agriculture secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. during the event held at the Cebu Capitol grounds. At the sidelines of the event, the Food Terminal Inc. and the Cebu provincial government signed a memorandum of agreement for the shared subsidy of the pilot test in the province. Cebu’s local governments have already begun withdrawing stocks of around 3,700 50-kilo bags of rice between April 29 and May 1 from the National Food Authority warehouse. Next page
House Speaker rallies support for all 11 Alyansa senatorial candidates By Maricel V. Cruz Speaker Ferdinand Martin G. Romualdez met Thursday with over 100 members of the House of Representatives to rally support for the 11 senatorial candidates of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s Alyansa Para sa Bagong Pilipinas. Speaking at a luncheon held at the Imelda Hall in Malacañang, Romualdez, who also serves as president of the Lakas-Christian Muslim Democrats (Lakas-CMD), urged
UNITY MEET. Speaker Ferdinand Martin G. Romualdez, Lakas-Christian Muslim Democrats (CMD) President, leads a unity luncheon meeting with over 100 members of the House of Representatives yesterday at the Imelda Hall, Aguado Residence, Malacañang. Ver Noveno
SCTEX PILEUP.
12 people were killed and 37 others injured in a multiple vehicular collision yesterday afternoon at the SCTEX Toll Plaza (northbound), according to the Philippine Red Cross Tarlac chapter. The vehicles involved in the accident include three SUVs, one container truck, and one Solid North bus. The report did not say the total number of people in the vehicles. PRC Tarlac Chapter
lawmakers to present a united front and mobilize their local machinery to secure a sweeping victory for the President’s slate. He emphasized the importance of aligning legislative efforts with the executive branch, especially during the midterm elections, which he described as crucial for sustaining national momentum. “In this crucial midterm election, unity is our strategy,” Romualdez said. “We must combine our netNext page
Beijing made uneasy by reports of deeper Manila-Taipei defense ties By Rachelle Tonelada China reiterated its firm opposition to any form of diplomatic engagement between the Philippines and Taiwan, following Manila’s recent move to ease travel restrictions and promote economic relations with the island. According to a report from China Daily, Director-General of the Department of Asian Affairs of the Chinese Foreign Ministry Liu Jinsong summoned Philippine Ambassador to China Jaime A. FlorCruz on Tuesday. The meeting was held to lodge a “stern representation” over what Beijing described as a series of recent “negative actions” by the Philippine side involving Next page
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