Marcos assures Xi of reg’l cooperation
PBBM seals tech, clean energy deals with Sokor NEWS / A2
White House restricts access to press office WORLD / A4
‘Anti-corruption drive boosts biz confidence’
Says PH-US task force on SCS won’t heighten tensions with Beijing
20 .00 IN METR
MANILAO
VOL. XXXIX • NO. 257 • 3 SECTIONS 12 PAGES NOVEMBER 2, 2025
By Charles Dantes
President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. said Saturday his administration’s commitment to combat corruption in governance has helped sustain investor confidence in the Philippines even as business organizations have voiced concerns over anomalous flood control projects. In a media briefing with reporters in South Korea, President Marcos said the government’s recent initiatives, including the creation of the Independent Commission for Infrastructure, have helped in the ongoing probe into the“ghost”infrastructure projects mess and assured investors corrective measures are being enforced. He said that rather than damaging the country’s image, the exposure of irregularities has strengthened investor trust. “If we had not exposed it, they would be saying there’s a problem,” Mr. Marcos said during the sidelines of the APEC Summit. “Now that we have exposed it, their confidence is stronger in the Philippines,” he added. The President said one of the companies he met during the summit has pledged more than P50 billion in additional investments, expected to create roughly 3,000 new jobs.
www.manilastandard.net • mst.daydesk@gmail.com
Turn to Page A4
Tropical depression ‘Tino’ to enter PAR today, may reach storm level—Pagasa STATE weather bureau Pagasa on Saturday forecast that the tropical depression outside the Philippine Area of Responsibility (PAR) will move generally west-northwestward until it enters the PAR today. The tropical depression was last estimated 1,375 kilometers east of northeastern Mindanao, moving west-northwestward at 15 kilometers per hour (kph). It had maximum sustained winds of 45 kph near the center and gusts of up to 55 kph. The tropical depression will be given the domestic name “Tino” upon entering the PAR. On the forecast track, Tino may make initial landfall over Caraga or Eastern Visayas between Monday evening and Tuesday morning. It is forecast to intensify before making landfall, possibly reaching tropical storm category within 24 hours and becoming a typhoon on Monday afternoon or evening. Tropical Cyclone Wind Signal No. 1 will be hoisted over Eastern Visayas and Caraga by tomorrow morning or afternoon. According to the intensity forecast, the highest wind signal that will be hoisted is Signal No. 4. Meanwhile, heavy rainfall may begin over Eastern Visayas and Caraga on Monday morning. With Minerva Newman
STRONGER TOGETHER. Handout photo from APEC 2025 via Yonhap taken on Saturday, Nov. 1, 2025, shows South Korea’s President Lee Jae Myung (center) posing for a group photo with leaders from the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation in Gyeongju. Inset photo shows President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. shaking hands with Chinese President Xi Jinping during the APEC Summit. AFP
By Charles Dantes
P
RESIDENT Ferdinand Marcos Jr. assured Chinese President Xi Jinping of “meaningful partnership and cooperation” in the region as China assumed chairmanship of the 2026 Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC). Mr. Marcos approached the Chinese leader at the Hwabaek International Convention Center in Gyeongju, where South Korean President Lee Jae-myung formally handed over hosting duties to Xi at the close of the 2025 summit. “I congratulated President Xi Jinping as China assumes the APEC Chairmanship in 2026 and reaffirmed the Philippines’ commit-
ment to partnership and meaningful cooperation in our region,” Mr. Marcos said in a social media post. The President’s gesture was seen as a balancing act – maintaining dialogue with Beijing even as tensions between the two countries remained high over China’s aggressive actions in the West Philippine Sea. In an interiview during the sidelines
of the APEC Summit yesterday, Mr. Marcos expressed confidence the new Philippines–United States task force for the South China Sea will not worsen the l tension between Manila and Beijing. “It’s basically organizing ourselves into a more cohesive unit in terms of the protection of the freedom of navigation in the South China Sea, the West Philippine Sea for us,” the President said. “It will not heighten tensions because it’s not something new. There’s nothing new being done. Tensions only heighten when someone tries something new,” he added. Last week, President Marcos assailed Beijing’s unilateral plan to establish a so-called nature reserve in Bajo de Masinloc
(Scarborough Shoal), a maritime feature within the Philippines’ 200-nautical mile exclusive economic zone. Mr. Marcos did not directly name China but said Manila is deeply concerned over “dangerous maneuvers and coercive actions” that interfere with legitimate Philippine activities in the WPS. As this developed, the President also held bilateral meetings with other leaders at the sidelines of the APEC Summit in Korea. Mr. Marcos and South Korean President Lee Jae-myung reaffirmed their countries’ deep strategic partnership, agreeing to expand cooperation in defense, infrastructure, and transnational crime prevention. Turn to Page A4
PH, US, Australia, NZ hold ‘more complex’ naval drills in WPS By Rex Espiritu THE Philippines conducted its 12th multilateral maritime cooperative activity in the West Philippine Sea with the United States, Australia, and New Zealand as part of broader efforts to promote rule of law in secur-
ing peace and stability in the region. In a statement on Saturday, the Armed Forces of the Philippines said this latest exercise, which included anti-submarine warfare, reflects the four nations’ commitment to strengthening maritime cooperation, enhancing interoperability, and
championing a rules-based international order in the Indo-Pacific. The activities, held from Oct. 30 to 31, were joined by the US Navy’s Arleigh Burke-class destroyer USS Fitzgerald, the Australian Defense Force’s HMAS Ballarat and MH-60R Seahawk, and the New Zealand De-
fense Force’s largest replenishment vessel, the HMNZS Aotearoa. The AFP, meanwhile, deployed the BRP Jose Rizal along with its NH441 AW159 and C-208 surveillance aircraft, as well as its A-29B Super Tucano close air support aircraft. Turn to Page A4
ICC prosecutors buck fresh appeal of Rody’s camp for his interim release
STRIKING DIFFERENCE. Filipinos flock to the Manila North Cemetery to visit the graves of their departed loved ones during this Undas weekend. In contrast, EDSA is virtually a ghost highway – almost car-free on both southbound and northbound lanes – on All Saints’ Day on Saturday, Nov. 1, 2025. Manny Palmero
Peaceful Undas observance; PBBM: Honor legacy of the departed By Joel E. Zurbano, Rex Espiritu and Charles Dantes THE Undas observance in cemeteries throughout Metro Manila yesterday was generally peaceful and manageable, the National Capital Region Police Office said.
Local authorities and police observed a rise in visitors paying tribute to their deceased loved ones, with enhanced security measures implemented in NCR cemeteries. The Philippine National Police said more than 2.4 million individuals have already visited cemeteries nationwide as of yesterday.
manilastandard.net
@ManilaStandardPH
The NCRPO has been on full alert status since Oct. 28, deploying over 20,000 police personnel to ensure public safety. As this developed, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on Saturday called on Filipinos to honor the legacy of their departed loved ones by transforming remembrance into meaningful action.
@mnlstandardph
Turn to Page A4
@manilastandard
THE Office of the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court has rejected the appeal of former President Rodrigo Duterte for his interim release. The prosecution told the Appeals Chamber that the defense panel failed to “establish any legal or factual error” in the ICC decision for Duterte’s continued detention. “Mr. Duterte’s three grounds of appeal fail to establish any legal or factual error. Rather, the Defense repeatedly expresses its mere disagreement with the Decision, mischaracterizes and ignores the Chamber’s reasoning, and misstates and misunderstands the applicable law. The Appeal should therefore be dismissed,” the prosecution said in the redacted version of its
@ManilaStandardYT
response to the defense’s appeal. “For the foregoing reasons, the prosecution respectfully requests that the Appeals Chamber dismiss the Appeal and affirm the decision (for Duterte’s continued detention).” Duterte’s lawyers earlier said the chamber “summarily” dismissed the conditions and state guarantees offered by a cooperating country willing to host the former President under surveillance. Earlier, the Appeals Chamber appointed a presiding judge to handle Duterte’s appeal challenging the ICC’s jurisdiction. In its decision dated October 29, the court named Judge Luz del Carmen Ibáñez Carranza as presiding judge. Turn to Page A4
Missed your copy of Manila Standard? Call or text our Circulation Hotline at 0917-8848655 or email: circulation@manilastandard.net . For advertisement: email: advertise@manilastandard.net •09173382170 / 85646229