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Baste Duterte skips town, Nick Torre to wait at Rizal By Vince Lopez and Peter Atencio VOL. XXXIX • NO. 160 • 3 SECTIONS 16 PAGES • P20 • SATURDAY, JULY 26, 2025 •
SORRY to disappoint, but no supposedly “Fight of the Century” is going to take place because one of the protago-
nists has reportedly flown to Singapore and probably would not be back for Sunday’s bout at the Rizal Memorial Stadium in Manila. This as preparations for the unlikely match was in full swing, with Next page
SC junks VP impeachment Says new complaint can be filed Feb. 2026; Senators: Impeach court to proceed still By Pot Chavez, Ram Superable, Maricel Cruz, Charles Dantes and Joel Zurbano
HE Supreme Court blocked the impending Senate impeachment trial of Vice President Sara Duterte on Friday, saying it violated a constitutional provision against multiple impeachment proceedings within a single year.
T
The unanimous 13-0 ruling came just days before Congress was to begin its new session on Monday, when
President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. is also set to deliver his fourth State of the Nation Address.
The High Court, however, said impeachment proponents can file a fresh complaint against Duterte next year. The decision, penned by Senior Associate Justice Marvic Leonen, said: “No new impeachment complaint, if any, may be commenced earlier than February 6, 2026.” "The Supreme Court has ruled that the House impeachment complaint versus VP Sara Duterte is barred by the one-year rule and that due process or fairness applies during all stages of
the impeachment process," explained SC spokesperson Camille Ting. The first three impeachment complaints against Duterte were all filed in December 2024. The fourth complaint, filed in February 2025, was adopted by the House and transmitted to the Senate. The High Tribunal likewise clarified its ruling does not absolve Duterte from any of the charges against her.
Camille Sue Mae Ting, Supreme Court Spokesperson
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Healthcare access made easier with expanded 'YAKAP' By Charles Dantes PRESIDENT Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. yesterday launched the expanded version of PhilHealth's "Yaman ng Kalusugan Program Para sa Malayo sa Sakit" (YAKAP), a government health initiative that aims to bring essential medical services closer to communities and reduce preventable deaths due to delayed treatment. Speaking at the launch held at Quantum Skyview in Gateway Mall 2, Quezon City, the President said the expanded program is designed to address long-standing gaps in healthcare access, particularly in rural and underserved areas where patients often postpone seeking treatment due to distance, cost, or lack of available medical professionals. "This is not exactly a new program," Mr. Marcos said. "But we have expanded and strengthened it because we saw that people often arrive at hospitals when their conditions are already severe. That’s because hospitals are too far, and treatment becomes too difficult to access," he added.
WATERWORLD. Top photo shows aerial
view of flooded villages yesterday in Calumpit, Bulacan just north of Manila, after a river overflowed due to heavy rains brought about by Typhoon Emong (Co-May). Residents of Calasiao, in Pangasinan wade through a flooded street, bottom left, after the Sinucalan river overran its banks. In La Trinidad, Benguet, the popular strawberry farms were inundated by continuous rain, destroying precious produce. AFP, FB Calasiao Information Office via Edd Castro, via Florence Alfonso, D8TV News Intern/ Highlanderz Vlog/Facebook
Lawmakers heed ’Emong’ leaves PAR; storms salvo Romualdez call kills 26, damages in the billions for simple SONA By Rio N. Araja
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and Rex Espiritu
By Maricel V. Cruz and Ram Superable
YAKAP LAUNCH. In launching the Yaman ng Kalusugan Program (YAKAP) of PhilHealth, President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. emphasized the goal of strengthening preventive healthcare to prevent disease and keep Filipinos healthy. Under YAKAP, there are now more free medicines and there are also free laboratory tests and cancer screening, including mammogram, liver ultrasound, low-dose chest CT scan, and colonoscopy.
THE traditional red carpet will not be rolled out for the opening of the 20th Congress on Monday, Senate President Francis Escudero announced. At the House of Representatives, the stance by Leyte Rep. Ferdinand Martin G, Romualdez for austere preparations for the fourth State of the Nation Address (SONA) by President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. gained wide support among his colleagues. "No red carpet at the Senate… with suitable access and opportunity for media to perform their job of covering the
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Rest in peace, icons Hogan, 71, Mangione, 84,
Hulk Hogan
HULK Hogan, the 1980s icon of professional wrestling, and Chuck Mangione, a prolific composer and musician, both icons in their respective fields, have passed on. Hogan was 71, while Mangione was 84. Hogan, who helped propel the lowbudget spectacle into the global spotlight Next page
TYPHOON “Emong” weakened and was downgraded to a mere tropical storm as it passed close to the Babuyan Islands on its way to Batanes, leaving behind multiple fatalities, ruining crops, and destroying valuable infrastructure. It was forecast to head north northeastward and exit the Philippine area of responsibility this morning.
“Emong” will continue to weaken due to an increasingly unfavorable environment, and is likely to degenerate further today as it enters the East China Sea, the state weather bureau said in its 5 p.m. bulletin yesterday. The three storms in a row, Crising, Dante, and Emong, combined with the southwest monsoon, have claimed 26 lives as of the latest tally, the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) reported at 6 p.m. on Friday. Next page
LARGEST ROOFTOP SOLAR PV SYSTEM. SM Supermalls
Chuck Mangione
celebrated its 40th anniversary by unveiling the largest rooftop solar photovoltaic (PV) system on a commercial building in the country at SM City Fairview, reinforcing its commitment toward sustainability and its contribution to SM Prime Holding’s Net Zero 2040 goal. Front L-R: SM Supermalls VP for Mall Operations Engr. Junias Eusebio, Quezon City Mayor Joy Belmonte, SM Supermalls President Steven Tan, Quezon City District 5 Representative Patrick Michael Vargas, and SM SAVP for Mall Operations, Ronald Allan Brosas. Behind L-R: SM Supermalls EVP for Marketing Joaquin San Agustin, SM Engineering Design & Development SVP Engr. Teodoro Bautista, Department of Energy – Energy Utilization Management Bureau Director Patrick Aquino, and SM Supermalls VP for Corporate Compliance, Engr. Liza Silerio.