SALN requests must be for legitimate reasons—Bersamin
Marcos seeks rules-based order during ASEAN meet NEWS / A2
ACCESS to the Statement of Assets, Liabilities, and Net Worth (SALN) of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and his Cabinet officials should only be granted for “legitimate reasons,” Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin on Saturday said. Bersamin underscored the need to also protect the privacy and security of elected and appointed officials. “There are guidelines that must be followed. We cannot just allow the indiscriminate freedom to access these SALNs. They contain details that might compromise the safety and security of public officials,” he said. “Our rules require that any person requesting a SALN should provide a good and legitimate reason.” “If the reason is legitimate and we are satisfied that it is for a valid purpose, we will provide it, with redactions. That’s normally done,”Bersamin added. Turn to A2
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READY FOR ASEAN. President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., together with First Lady Liza Araneta Marcos, arrives at the Bungaraya
IN METR
Complex in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia on Saturday, October 25, 2025. The President will attend the 47th ASEAN Summit and Related Meetings, where regional leaders are expected to discuss key political, economic, and security issues affecting Southeast Asia. PPA Pool
MANILAO
VOL. XXXIX • NO. 250 • 2 SECTIONS 12 PAGES OCTOBER 26, 2025
Ombudsman purge: New hires asked to submit courtesy resignation NEWS / A2
PBBM orders 50% cut in infra material cost www.manilastandard.net • mst.daydesk@gmail.com
Directs DPWH to ensure prices at ‘market cost’ to save P45b
By Charles Dantes
P
resident Ferdinand Marcos Jr. yesterday ordered the Department of Public Works and Highways to cut the cost of construction materials for infrastructure projects by 50 percent to ensure the proper use of public funds.
He said the DPWH had discovered that the prices of certain materials, including asphalt, steel bars, and cement, were overpriced by up to 50 percent. “Actually, there are some egregious examples where it’s even more than that,” he said in his departure speech at Villamor Air Base in Pasay City before flying to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia for the 47th Associa-
tion of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Summit and Related Summits. “In order to ensure that the costs of DPWH will reflect the costs of the market and to ensure that the people’s money is correctly spent, I have directed the DPWH Secretary to bring down the cost of materials by as much as 50 percent, which will result in savings in the capital outlay spending of
at least P30 to P45 billion,” the President added. DPWH Secretary Vince Dizon earlier bared his plan to cut the cost of materials for its projects per region to address overpricing and ensure value for money in public works spending. “The most important reform that we are doing now is to lower the cost of materials of the DPWH. Many of them were found to be higher than the real cost of materials all over the country,” Dizon said during a Senate hearing this week. Turn to A2
Marcos sets floor price for palay, orders full implementation of ‘Sagip Saka’ Act By Charles Dantes PRESIDENT Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has signed two major executive orders aimed at protecting farmers from low market prices and boosting food production through stronger government support and fair-trade mechanisms. Under Executive Order No. 100, signed on October 25, President Marcos established a floor price
for palay (unmilled rice) to shield Filipino farmers from volatile farmgate prices, particularly during the harvest season when market oversupply often drives prices down. “The absence of a just and equitable floor price for palay exposes farmers’ vulnerability to volatile market prices,” Mr. Marcos said in his order. “We must ensure a fair and just return to farmers by setting a floor
Carlos Yulo bags gold in vault at gymnastics worlds By Peter Atencio OLYMPIC double-gold medalist Carlos Edriel Yulo made it to the top of the podium again after receiving the highest score in the men’s vault event on Saturday at the 53rd World Artistic Gymnastics Championships in Jakarta, Indonesia. The 25-year-old Yulo performed before a familiar field at the Indonesia Arena and came out with an average score of 14,866 points. This was Yulo’s first gold in the meet, a day after he got another podium in the floor exercise finals where he could only finish third. It was a tightly fought finals, with the silver medal in the vault event snared by a familiar foe, Artur DavtyTurn to A2
GOLDEN AGAIN.
Carlos Yulo is up in the air in the men’s vault event on Saturday at the 53rd World Artistic Gymnastics Championships, making it to the top of the podium.
price that covers production costs and provides reasonable income while keeping rice affordable for consumers,” he added. The policy responds to longstanding complaints from local farmers’ groups who said farmgate prices have remained low at P10 to P12 per kilo, and in some areas have fallen to P8, despite import restrictions. Turn to A2
DTI charges 8 flood infra contractors, 8 more face raps
BEST MACROECONOMY REPORTER.
By Othel V. Campos and Joel Zurbano
Darwin G. Amojelar of Manila Standard receives the Macroeconomy Reporter of the Year recognition at the 34th Economic Journalists Association of the Philippines (EJAP) Business Journalism Awards on Oct. 24, 2025 at the Grand Ballroom of New World Makati Hotel. The ceremony had a ruby and silver dress code for attendees.
HAUNTED BY GHOSTS. Militant
THE Department of Trade and Industry has filed formal charges against eight major contractor-licensees for their alleged involvement in irregular flood control projects and possible violations of construction industry regulations. The companies charged were Legacy Construction Corporation; Centerways Construction & Development Inc.; Alpha & Omega General Contractor & Development Corp.; MG Samidan Construction; L.R. Tiqui Builders Inc.; QM Builders; EGB Construction Corporation; and Hi-Tone Construction and Development Corporation.
groups led by Akbayan gather at the People Power Monument on EDSA on Saturday afternoon, October 25, 2025, to stage a lightning rally denouncing government corruption. Some protesters wore Halloween costumes depicting ‘ghosts’ of corrupt public officials to symbolize the haunting presence of corruption in governance. Edd Castro
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