MANILA, Philippines — Speaker Faustino “Bojie” Dy III on Friday expressed support for stronger protection for sugarcane farmers as the House brought discussions on the proposed TUBO Act directly to farmers and industry stakeholders during LegisHear in Victorias City, Negros Occidental. Speaking at the press briefing following the LegisHear townhall program, Dy said the consultation

BANGA, SOUTH COTABATO — The 14-year-old student killed in the Sept. 18 shooting at Banga National High School was laid to rest Saturday as family, classmates, teachers, friends and church members gathered to bid her farewell and call for justice. “Dianne,” not her real name, was buried at Banga Holy Trinity Memorial Park more than

DAVAO CITY — A female juvenile Philippine eagle ( ) was electrocuted in Sitio Panghaon, Barangay Guinalaban of Salay town, Misamis Oriental on Wednesday morning. The Department of Environment and Natural Resources in Northern Mindanao through the Community Environment and Natural Resources Office (CENRO) Gingoog City is now investigating the death of a Philippine eagle

MANILA, Philippines — The trough of a typhoon outside the Philippine area of responsibility (PAR) will continue to bring rains over Visayas and Mindanao, while Metro Manila may see fair weather conditions in the coming days, the state weather bureau said. Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa) reported in its 5 p.m. weather

TACLOBAN CITY — Commuters in Eastern Visayas will pay higher fares for public utility vehicles following the approval of a fare increase aimed at helping drivers and operators cope with rising fuel and operating costs. For traditional public utility jeepneys, the minimum fare has increased from P13 to P14 for the first four kilometers, with

COTABATO CITY — The Bangsamoro Federalist Party (BFP) said Friday it had secured the support of 46 of the 80 members of the Bangsamoro Parliament, giving its coalition a majority ahead of the inaugural session on Oct. 30. Member of Parliament-elect Naguib Sinarimbo, who issued the party statement, said the BFP was ready to organize

MANILA, Philippines — The segment of the Philippine-Singapore cable that went down was restored on Saturday, Oct. 3, bringing the internet service back to normal, a Philippine-based telecommunications company said.  InfiniVAN Inc., a Japanese-Filipino telecommunications and information and communications technology solutions provider, said in an advisory that the C2C Submarine Cable (Philippine-Singapore) segment has been

MANILA, Philippines — Deputy Minority Leader and ACT Teachers party-list Rep. Antonio Tinio on Saturday called for the full disclosure of government programs that received amendments during House deliberations on the proposed P7.2-trillion national budget for 2027. The House Budget Amendments Review Subcommittee (BARSc) began reviewing the amendments on Thursday. Tinio said P77.86 billion, or

CAUAYAN CITY — Two students, aged 7 and 8, died after being electrocuted along with two other children during a Color and Bubble Fun Run at Cauayan South Central School here on Saturday morning (Oct. 3), police said. The fatalities were identified by relatives and witnesses as an 8-year-old Grade 3 pupil, and a 7-year-old

COTABATO CITY — A drug den was dismantled in Midsayap, Cotabato, with three high-value targets arrested and two fragmentation grenades and P47,000 worth of shabu recovered, the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) said. The operation was conducted at 1:45 p.m. Friday in Barangay Upper Labas by the PDEA-Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (PDEA-BARMM). Eugene

SAN FRANCISCO, Agusan del Sur — The prices of basic necessities across Agusan del Sur have been frozen at their prevailing levels following the provincial government’s declaration of a state of calamity due to severe agricultural damage, critically low supplies of potable water and relentless high temperatures. The automatic price freeze took effect immediately pursuant

MANILA, Philippines — Bank and tax records to be presented next week before the Senate impeachment court could help determine whether former Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV’s recent claims against Vice President Sara Duterte are supported by the records, the prosecution panel said Saturday. During a press conference Friday, Trillanes said Duterte had peso and US

The Commission on Audit (COA) has flagged the Department of Agriculture (DA) for the failure of its Regional Field Office in the Bicol Region (RFO V) to distribute agricultural inputs to beneficiaries affected by Severe Tropical Storm Kristine and other storms.

MANILA, Philippines — Sen. Panfilo “Ping” Lacson on Saturday said information revealed by former Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV in connection with Vice President Sara Duterte’s impeachment case has “no probative value.” Trillanes on Friday held a press conference at which he revealed the contents of his testimony that was supposed to be presented to the

ILOILO CITY — A 100-kilo tiger shark accidentally hooked during a traditional jigging competition in Caluya, Antique, was released alive back into the sea on Saturday, Oct. 3, in another remarkable encounter with the rich marine life surrounding the island municipality. The shark, locally called “bagis,” was caught at around 10:30 a.m. by Barangay Alegria

Authorities have launched a probe into the building quality of a luxury residential development in one of Hong Kong’s most expensive neighbourhoods in the Southern district after receiving a complaint from an owner that insufficient steel bars were used during construction. The Buildings Department said on Saturday it was “highly concerned about the incident” relating to One Stanley in Stanley, but stressed that its previous inspections did not find any imminent danger. The department said it...

MANILA, Philippines — The Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) is fast-tracking special permit applications for 1,003 buses ahead of the All Saints’ Day and All Souls’ Day holidays. Acting LTFRB Chairman Greg Pua said the board received 356 applications covering the buses, which will serve routes in various parts of the country during

CALAPAN CITY— A landslide triggered by heavy rains early Saturday, Oct. 3, blocked a portion of a road in Barangay Capaclan in Romblon, prompting local disaster response teams to immediately clear the area. Personnel from the Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (PDRRMO), Romblon Electric Cooperative and Provincial Engineering Office worked together to remove

SAN ILDEFONSO, Ilocos Sur — The city government of Laoag in Ilocos Norte has designated Fridays as an exclusive slaughter day for hogs raised by local farmers, giving them priority at the Laoag City Slaughterhouse. Mayor James Bryan Alcid issued Executive Order No. 017, series of 2026, limiting Friday slaughter operations to locally raised hogs,

LEGAZPI CITY — A rare green sea turtle found crawling weakly along the shoreline of Barangay Sabang in Calabanga, Camarines Sur, on Friday (Oct. 2) died despite residents’ efforts to save it. Fishermen and bystanders spotted the turtle at about 5:30 p.m. that day in Zone 7-B, Sitio Maligaya, with a wound on its head.

BAGUIO CITY — Police uprooted and burned about 2,500 marijuana seedlings worth P100,000 during an eradication operation in Bakun, Benguet, on Wednesday. The operation was conducted in Sitio Lubban, Barangay Kayapa, by personnel from the Bakun Municipal Police Station, Benguet Provincial Mobile Force Company, Provincial Intelligence Unit, Provincial Drug Enforcement Unit, Regional Intelligence Division and

SAN FRANCISCO, Agusan del Sur — Two high-profile fugitives—including the Davao region’s most wanted person and an alleged communist guerrilla medic—were arrested in separate manhunt operations across the Caraga region. The movements were done on Wednesday, Oct. 1, Police Regional Office 13 (PRO-13) said Saturday. Brig. Gen. Rolindo Suguilon, chief of PRO-13, said operatives tracked

Christie’s auctioneer Rupert Banner leans forward with practised showmanship as bidding stalls on a rare Yongzheng bowl near New York’s iconic Rockefeller Centre. He pauses as if willing offers from thin air, scanning dozens of in-person buyers and phone banks connecting with China, London, Texas. It will be a bad look if the frenzy abates for this delicate peach-decorated bowl highlighted on Christie’s glossy Chinese sale catalogue and online advertising. But bidding soon resumes with a...

CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY — Over P3.2 million worth of suspected “shabu” (crystal meth) was intercepted and four individuals were arrested during a back-to-back anti-drug operations here and in the island province of Camiguin. In an advisory Saturday, Oct. 3, Brig. Gen. Nestor Babagay Jr., Police Regional Office-10 (PRO-10) director, lauded the operatives and vowed

The US is set to deploy one of its signature anti-ship missile systems to the Japanese island closest to Taiwan, an unprecedented move that comes as tensions in the region between Beijing and Tokyo continue to simmer. The ground-based US uncrewed missile platform known as the Navy-Marine Expeditionary Ship Interdiction System (NMESIS) will be deployed on Yonaguni Island in Japan’s Okinawa prefecture during biennial joint exercises this month, according to the regional bureau of the Japanese...

Ombudsman Jesus Crispin Remulla on Saturday said the lack of data sharing with the Bureau of Customs (BOC) has hampered efforts to build strong anti-smuggling cases.

SAN ILDEFONSO, Ilocos Sur — A Grade 12 scholar of the Philippine Science High School Ilocos Region Campus shared the top spot in the 2026 Philippine Military Academy Entrance Examination (PMAEE). Gabriel James Valdez tied for first place with Jilian Alexis Chan Lapada of the Philippine Science High School-Cordillera Administrative Region Campus among 25,452 qualified

Four people were rescued after being adrift in a life raft in the South Pacific. One of them said he thought he had a better chance of winning the lottery than of being hit by a whale.

China has started limiting exports of refined products again as its own inventories of crude oil and refined products have dwindled.

North Korea said on Saturday it test-fired an intermediate-range ballistic missile that it claimed has manoeuvrable flight capabilities designed to evade missile defences in South Korea and Japan. The latest test comes amid heightened tensions between the two Koreas over border landmine blasts. Kim Yo-jong, the powerful sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, said her brother supervised the test of the missile, which she described as strategic, implying it was designed to deliver nuclear...