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WUSHU’S WONG, SKATEBOARDER ALEGADO SAVE THE DAY FOR PH By Riera U. Mallari BANGKOK — When Team Philippines needed a lift on a long, emotional Sunday at the 33rd Southeast Asian Games here, Agatha Wong once again proved why she is one of the country’s most reliable champions. The 27-year-old veteran wushu artist steadied the national campaign by clinching the gold in the women’s taijijian and taijiquan, delivering the Philippines’ brightest moment of the day and her sixth career SEA Games gold medal at the Ratthaprasasanphakdi Building Government Complex. Wong topped the field with 9.783 points, edging Brunei’s Lachkar Basma (9.780) and Singapore’s Law Zeanne Zhi Ning (9.766), and capped another composed performance that reaffirmed her status as a pillar of Philippine wushu. Next page
WINNING FORM. The Philippines
dominated the women’s skateboard park event at the Extreme Sports Park in Bangkok, with eleven-year old Mazel Paris Alegado (left) and Agatha Wong, right, display the winning forms that won them gold medals in the women’s skateboard park and women’s taijiquan and taijijian events in yesterday’s SEA Games competition in Bangkok, Thailand. POC
VOL. XXXIX • NO. 303 • 3 SECTIONS 16 PAGES • P20 • MONDAY, DECEMBER 15, 2025
Senate vows pork-free budget Funding for medical program, farm-to-market roads flagged By Ram Superable
HE Senate is prepared to “fight to the very end” to ensure that the 2026 budget is free of pork-barrel-type provisions, Senate President Pro Tempore Panfilo Lacson said yesterday.
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In particular, Lacson and Senator Erwin Tulfo jointly flagged sharp funding hikes for the Medical Assistance to Indigent and Financially Incapacitated Patients (MAIFIP) program as well as for
constructing farm-to-market roads. He asserted that he would refuse to sign the bicameral conference committee report on the 2026 budget unless Next page
DPWH flood control budget being cut, but Project NOAH gets P1B By Ram Superable, Rex Espiritu, and Vito Barcelo HOT SEAT. Rep. Michaela Suansing, left, and Sen. Win Gatchalian, lead live deliberations of the Bicameral Committee on the second day
of the Bicameral Conference Committee meeting for the 2026 National Budget, at the Philippine International Convention Center (PICC) in Pasay City. SPPA POOL
DOJ says Madriaga’s testimony needs to be vetted By Pot Chavez THE sworn affidavit of Ramil Madriaga linking Vice President Sara Duterte to Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators
(POGO) and drug dealers are serious accusations, but needed validation, according to the Department of Justice (DOJ). Meanwhile, Presidential Adviser on Poverty Alleviation Larry Gadon rec-
ommended the transfer of Madriaga to a difference detention to ensure his safety In a message to Manila Standard on Sunday, Justice spokesman Polo Martinez Next page
LAWMAKERS are closely scrutinizing next year’s funding for flood control projects, with the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) fighting vigorously to persuade the Bicameral Conference Committee to spare it from significant budget cuts. On the second day of the bicam meeting, Public Works Secretary Vince Dizon spoke before solons to explain why his agency’s funding should not be reduced. Meanwhile, the proposed funding for Project NOAH (Nationwide Operational
Assessment of Hazards) coasted along the bicameral deliberations with relative ease, getting P1 billion for next year. The project, originally managed by the Department of Science and Technology (DOST), is currently operated by the University of the Philippines (UP) and remains the country’s flagship disaster risk reduction and management program. “We will work with urgency, discipline, and full accountability to ensure that every centavo of the ₱1 billion entrusted to us delivers meaningful and measurable value to the Filipino people,” said Project NOAH chief and UP Resilience Institute (UPRI) Next page
Tap UN anti-corruption treaty to go after Zaldy Co—Lacson By Katrina Manubay THE Philippine government can use a United Nations anti-corruption treaty adopted in 2003 to help locate and arrest fugitive ex-lawmaker Elizaldy ‘Zaldy’ Co, Senate president pro tempore Panfilo Lacson said on Sunday. Meanwhile, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said the Philippine
Embassy in Portugal has yet to receive information on the whereabouts of Zaldy Co in the European country, DFA spokesperson Angelica Escalona said. Lacson explained that the United Nations Convention Against Corruption (UNCAC), ratified by the Philippine Senate in 2006, remains a valid international agreement that allows Next page
Risa urges Coast Guard to provide regular escort to fishermen in WPS By Ram Superable and Katrina Manubay SENATOR Risa Hontiveros on Sunday urged the government to provide regular Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) escorts and ensure adequate funding to protect Fili-
pino fishers operating in the West Philippine Sea (WPS). This developed following reports that Chinese vessels fired water cannons at Filipino boats, leaving some local fisherfolk injured. Hontiveros said the incident high-
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FAMILY FIRST. First Lady Liza Araneta-Marcos shares the official Christmas photo of the First Family with the this caption: Shoot with the people I trust most -- a few laughs and a lot of love. FL Liza’s FB
70k cops to guard ‘Simbang Gabi’ masses—PNP By Vince Lopez THE Philippine National Police (PNP) will mobilize more than 70,000 personnel to ensure public safety around churches nationwide for the annual ‘Simbang Gabi’
rites, PNP acting chief Lt. Gen. Jose Melencio Nartatez, Jr. said on Sunday. The PNP is rolling out this measure under its ‘Ligtas Paskuhan’ 2025, placing all units on heightened alert as the traditional evening and dawn masses
begin on December 15 and 16. “Our goal is to make our countrymen feel safe as they go to the church for the traditional ‘Simbang Gabi’, and back to their homes. We are ready and Next page