Firms told: Obey wage hike DOLE urges employees in Metro Manila to report violations VOL. XXXIX • NO. 140 • 3 SECTIONS 12 PAGES JULY 6, 2025
By Maricel V. Cruz
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MPLOYEES in Metro Manila were urged to report companies that do not comply with the P50 daily wage hike set to take effect on July 18, the National Wages and Productivity Commission said.
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“Labor Secretary (Bienvenido) Laguesma has given inin structions to regional and field offices in NCR to conduct lala bor inspections to ensure the compliance of establishments with the new minimum wage and other labor standards,” said Maria Criselda Sy, executive director of the NWPC. She said companies employing 10 workers or less as well as establishments severely affected by typhoons or man-made disasters may apply for exemptions. The NCR tripartite wage board recently approved a P50 daily minimum wage increase in Metro Manila, which will benefit about 1.2 million workers. The new minimum wage in Metro Manila now stands at P695, up from P645. As this developed, Cavite Rep. Jolo Revilla has refiled his bill seeking a P200 across-the-board daily wage increase for all private sector minimum wage earners. At the opening of the 20th Congress, Revilla refiled House Bill 78, also known as the Wage Hike for MiniMini mum Wage Workers Act, to push for long-overdue economic relief for the working class amid surging prices of goods and stagnant incomes. The measure was first filed by Revilla during the 19th Congress and was later consolidated with simisimi lar proposals calling for a nationwide wage increase.
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Dalai Lama turns 99, aims to live for decades more
IN FULL BLOOM. As sunflowers bloom along University Avenue, (photo below) graduating students of the University of the Philippines take photos with the Oblation statue on Saturday, July 5, 2025. Some 2,369 students will be graduating with Latin honors from UP Diliman today (Sunday), including 241 summa cum laude graduates. Manny Palmero
Pinoy ultra runner breaks own record SPORTS / B3
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DOST ready to help search for remains of ‘sabungeros’
Charges vs. Rody formally sent by ICC prosecutor
By Charles Dantes and Rex Espiritu THE bones of the missing “sabungeros” might be preserved in Taal Lake due to the lack of oxygen in its murky waters, Science Secretary Renato Solidum said amid growing calls for a full-scale search for the remains, allegedly dumped in the lake. “The bone doesn’t decompose. The bone doesn’t care about decomposition, only the flesh decays,” Solidum said in a news forum on Saturday. “If there’s no more oxygen, it won’t decompose. It will be preserved. So, it depends on the location,” he added. Solidum said the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) is coordinating with other scientists to assess the feasibility of using specialized marine equipment for the search. “We will have to find out if other cameras can handle the murky conditions of Taal
THE Office of the Prosecutor has formally submitted the “Document Containing Charges” or DCC against former President Rodrigo Duterte, ICC-accredited lawyer Gilbert Andres said in a radio interview Saturday. “This is the formal filing of specific charges against Mr. Duterte. We will now know the extent of the crimes charged against Mr. Duterte,” Andres told dzMM. He said specific charges could include allegations of genderbased violence, illegal imprisonment, and torture, among other inhuman acts during the Duterte administration’s bloody war on illegal drugs. “This (DCC) will define the evidence that the prosecution must present during the confirmation of charges on September 23,” Andres added. Earlier this week, the ICC denied the request filed by Duterte’s lawyers seeking to disqualify two judges from hearing the case against him. Turn to Page 4
Tropical storm ‘Danas’ may make brief reentry Monday By Rex Espiritu
WORLD / A4
yesterday. PAGASA said the reentry may be short and the typhoon is expected to exit PAR on Monday as well. The state weather bureau said“Danas” is forecast to intensify into a severe tropi-
cal storm within the next 24 hours and may weaken by Tuesday as it interacts with the landmass of eastern China. TROPICAL storm “Danas” (formerly “Bis“Considering these developments, the ing”) may re-enter the Philippine area of public and disaster risk reduction and manresponsibility by early Monday morning, agement offices concerned are advised to the state weather bureau PAGASA said continue monitoring for updates related to this tropical cyclone,” PAGASA said. As this developed, PAGASA deputy administrator Mar Villafuerte said the tropical cyclones that will enter the country this year will not be as severe as those recorded last year. “It will not be as severe as last year where from October to November, in a span of one month, we had six consecutive typhoon and super typhoon categories,” Villafuerte said. Science Secretary Renato Solidum said this was because the country is not suffering from La Niña this year, which is usually associated with above-normal rainfall conditions. PAGASA earlier said the country may log 16 to 19 tropical AFTER HEAVY RAINS. Video grab shows a flooded area at Valley Golf in Cainta on Saturday, July 5, 2025. Facebook post of Richard Lozada cyclones this year.
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Lake,” he said. The Department of Justice has already sought assistance from Japan for the use of remotely operated underwater vehicles (ROVs) to scan the lakebed. A suspect turned whistleblower, Julie Patidongan, who was previously identified as “Alyas Totoy,” earlier said the remains of 34 missing “sabungeros” were disposed of in Taal Lake between 2021 and 2022. He said the victims were strangled, tied with sandbags, and thrown into the lake’s deeper areas. As this developed, the National Police Commission on Saturday called on Patidongan to formally submit a complaint affidavit following his claims that certain police officers were involved in the disappearances. “Napolcom can move three times faster if he can file a formal complaint,” Napolcom vice chairperson Calinisan said in an interview. Turn to Page 4
Lipa archbishop elected CBCP president THE Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines elected Archbishop Gilbert Garcera of Lipa as its next president. The election took place on the first day of the bishops’ 130th plenary assembly in Anda, Bohol on Saturday Garcera, 66, currently serves on the CBCP Permanent Council as regional representative for Southeast Luzon. He will succeed Cardinal Pablo Virgilio David of Kalookan, who was elected to the post in July 2021 and will complete his second and final term as president in November. Also elected was Archbishop Julius Tonel of Zamboanga, who will serve as CBCP vice president. The 68-year-old will replace Bishop Mylo Hubert Vergara of Pasig, whose second and final term also ends in November. Garcera will lead the bishops’ collegial body for the next two years. He has been archbishop of Lipa, home to more than 3.3 million Catholics, since 2017, and has previously chaired the CBCP Commission on Mission and Commission on Family and Life. Before becoming a bishop, Garcera also served as assistant secretary general of the CBCP, executive secretary of the
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Archbishop Gilbert Garcera (right) and Archbishop Julius Tonel of Zamboanga, the newly elected president and vice president, respectively, of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines
Episcopal Commission on Mission, and national director of the Pontifical Mission Society. He was ordained priest for the Archdiocese of Caceres in 1983. In 2007, he was appointed bishop of Daet, a role he served until he was transferred to the Lipa archdiocese.
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