manilastandard.net
@ManilaStandardPH
@mnlstandardph
@manilastandard
@ManilaStandardYT
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
Ombudsman suspends Aplasca DOJ puts Bato on BI lookout list, NBI names Padilla ‘person of interest’
By Rex Espiritu and Rolando Ng III
A
CTING Senate Sergeant-at-Arms Mao Aplasca was placed under preventive suspension without pay for six months by the Ombudsman for discharging his firearm that triggered the shooting incident in the Senate last Wednesday. Senator Bato dela Rosa, on the other hand, was placed under Immigration lookout, with Justice Secretary Fredderick Vida ordering law enforcement personnel to arrest the senator if he tries to flee the country. Senator Robin Padilla, for his part, was named a “persons of interest” by the National Bureau of Investigation in
relation to Dela Rosa’s escape from the Senate early Thursday dawn.
‘Unacceptable’
SUSPENDED
IMMIGRATION LOOKOUT
PERSON OF INTEREST
Ombudsman Crispin Remulla said Aplasca’s admission that he was the first to fire a warning shot at NBI operatives was “unacceptable.”
Senate Sergeant at Arms Mao Aplasca
Sen. Bato Dela Rosa
Sen. Robin Padilla
Next page
VOL. XL • NO. 91 • 3 SECTIONS 16 PAGES • P20 • SATURDAY, MAY 16, 2026
DOJ Secretary Freddrick Vida
Ombudsman Boying Remulla
PAGASA warns of heat levels of 41-51 degrees in days ahead By Rio N. Araja
most of the country Ana Liza Solis, chief of Pagasa’s BRACE for widespread dangerous Climate Monitoring and Prediction heat index levels amid the peak of hot, Section, said heat index levels ranging from 42°C to 51°C fall under the danhumid and dry season. ger category. The PhilipShe said howpine AtmospherWater in 9 major dams ever, that the ic, Geophysical below ‘normal level’ warm and dry and Astronomiweather is a faccal Services AdNEWS / A4 tor to the develministration on opment of localFriday warned that scorching heat will prevail in the ized thunderstorms across the country, a coming weeks and trigger widespread usual pattern during the transition from dangerous heat index levels across Next page
CRISIS FUNDING. President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. meets with Asian Development Bank (ADB) President Masato Kanda at Malacañan Palace for a courtesy call focused on strengthening cooperation between the Philippines and the ADB amid the economic challenges posed by the ongoing Middle East Conflict. Story on B4. PCO
DOJ, Ombudsman open to joint Senate probe By Pot Chavez, Rolando Ng III, Rex Espiritu and Vince Lopez
DOJ spokesperson Mico Clavano Martinez told Manila Standard. Martinez said the existing memorandum of agreement between the DOJ and the Ombudsman, signed in 2012 during the tenure of then-Justice secretary Leila de Lima and former Ombudsman Conchita Carpio-Morales, could also apply to the case. The statement came after Ombudsman Jesus Crisp-
THE Department of Justice (DOJ) said Friday it is open to conducting a joint investigation with the Office of the Ombudsman into the shooting incident inside the Senate premises in Pasay City. “Possible. [The] DOJ and OMB collaborated previously on the flood control cases by virtue of a joint MOA,”
Brawner Jr. said the military must prepare for a new kind of warfare amid continuing tensions in the West Philippine Sea (WPS). The potential missile export follows Tokyo’s revision in April of its three prin-
By Alena Mae S. Flores, Othel V. Campos, and Vince Lopez MILLIONS of consumers in Luzon and the Visayas endured a third straight day of rotating brownouts Friday as persistent power plant outages, transmission line failures, and soaring temperatures continued to strain the country’s power grid. The National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP) placed the Luzon grid under red alert from 3 p.m. to 10 p.m. and under yellow alert from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. and 10 p.m. to 11 p.m. The Visayas grid was placed under red alert from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. and yellow alert from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. and 9 p.m. to 11 p.m. DOE Undersecretary Mario Marasigan said the agency is hopeful supply conditions will normalize over the weekend as electricity demand typically declines on Saturdays and Sundays. “Historically, demand is lower on weekends,” Marasigan said. “If so, even though Next page
An electric distribution tower. AFP
ciples on the transfer of defense equipment and technology, as well as the implementing guidelines, which eased restrictions on lethal weapon exports. Japan and the
Philippines aim to strengthen security ties amid China’s assertiveness in the East and South China seas. Defense Minister Shinjiro Koizumi told reporters Friday that “nothing has Next page
Gas prices seen higher next week as peso drops to new low By Alena Mae S. Flores and Thony Rose Lesaca PUMP prices may increase by as much as P2.50 per liter for diesel and P1.25 per liter for gasoline this week as the Middle East crisis continues to worsen. Meanwhile, the Philippine peso further weakened by 8.1 centavos to a fresh record low of 61.721 against the US dollar on Friday as markets expect the US Federal Reserve to keep policy
rates on hold for a longer period An industry source said that based on the first four days of the Mean of Platts Singapore and foreign exchange averages, diesel is expected to see a price hike of P2 to P2.50 per liter, while gasoline may rise by P0.75 to P1.25 per liter. “Upside pressure to diesel price reemerged due to high crude oil prices following a re-escalation of geopoNext page
Next page
Millions swelter as brownouts hit Luzon, Visayas
Japan considering sale of Type 88 surface-to-ship missile to PH THE Japanese government is considering exporting Type 88 surface-to-ship missile system to the Philippines, a source familiar with the matter said Friday. Meanwhile, Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) chief Gen. Romeo
in Remulla announced that his office would launch its own investigation into the incident. “We are in the process of forming a panel. That will be complete by the end of the day so we can issue a subpoena as early as next week,” Remulla said. He also pointed out that the Ombudsman should conduct the probe because the National Bureau of In-
ANTI-SHIP MISSILE. A Japanese Type 88 surface-to-ship missile system is launched during the Balikatan military exercises in Paoay, Ilocos Norte, the Philippines, on Wednesday, May 6, 2026. AFP
China offers US help in reopening Hormuz—Trump CHINA called on Friday for a lasting truce in the Middle East and for shipping lanes to be reopened “as soon as possible,” as the strategic Strait of Hormuz has been effectively closed during the war with Iran. Iran has largely blocked shipping through the vital strait since conflict broke out with the United States and Israel on February 28 and Washington has blockaded Tehran’s ports. Iran’s grip over the waterway has rattled global markets and given Tehran significant leverage. US President Donald Trump discussed Iran during a summit in Beijing with Chinese leader Xi Jinping. In an interview with Fox News after the first day of the summit wrapped, Trump said Xi had effectively assured Next page