With few entry tests, Southeast Asia may gain most from China’s travel revival

SINGAPORE – Southeast Asia’s tourist economies are set to be leading beneficiaries of China’s scrapping of travel bans as they have steered clear of the COVID-19 tests before entry that Europe, Japan and the United States have imposed on Chinese visitors. Even as the virus tears through its 1.4 billion people, the world’s second largest economy is opening its borders from Sunday, a move that promises to unleash a […]

Death toll from flooding, landslides hit 33; rains expected in northern parts of PHL

THE DEATH toll from floods and landslides triggered by continuous rains since Friday last week in central and southern parts of the Philippines has reached 33, according to authorities. The national disaster management council’s report as of Thursday morning logged in 32 deaths, which does not include at least one more in Mati City in […]

Typhoon-hit families in 2 Leyte towns receive transition shelters from USAID, IOM 

FAMILIES from two coastal areas in Leyte who were displaced by Tropical Storm Megi, locally known as Agaton, in April have received transitional shelters from the United States government, its embassy in Manila said on Wednesday.   The 167 shelters, provided by the US Agency for International Development (USAID) and the United Nations’ International Organization for […]

DICT secretary appeals for cybersecurity budget in confirmation hearing

THE COMMISSION on Appointments on Tuesday approved the nomination of Ivan John E. Uy as Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) secretary.   During the hearing, Mr. Uy said his agenda was to enhance the country’s cybersecurity preparedness and appealed for budgetary support from Congress.    “It is a very relevant issue today as we see […]

Lapu-Lapu police chief urges public to refrain from using firecrackers during seaborne procession

THE public is urged to refrain from using firecrackers and other kinds of explosives during the seaborne procession of the icon of Nuestra Señora Virgen de Regla in Lapu-Lapu City on Saturday, Nov. 12, 2022. Lapu-Lapu City Police Office (LCPO) Director Col. Elmer Lim discouraged such activity to prevent injuries or inconvenience during the procession, […]

Agri damage from storm Paeng balloons to P4.37B

AGRICULTURAL damage caused by Tropical Storm Nalgae, locally named Paeng, has swelled to over P4 billion, affecting thousands of Filipino farmers and fisherfolk, according to the government.   In its situation report on Wednesday morning, the government’s disaster management council said Paeng left P4.37 billion in damage to agriculture, up from Tuesday’s running estimate of P3.08 […]

5 crowd-favorite tracks from ‘Midnights’

The devil works hard but Taylor Swift works harder. The proof? In the last two years, the pop singer released five full-length albums—two were re-recordings: “Fearless” (Taylor’s Version) and “Red” (Taylor’s Version)—like it was a mindless feat. Swift has quite a catalogue of masterpieces under her belt and her 10th studio album, “Midnights,” is a […]

Marcos gov’t told to fund weather bureau enhancement after storm Paeng’s devastation

A GROUP of Filipino scientists urged the government to provide a significant increase in the state weather bureau’s budget, citing escalating threats from changing climate patterns.    The call was made after Mr. Marcos directed government agencies to be “accurate” and “advanced” in weather reporting following the devastation from Tropical Storm Paeng, with international name Nalgae, […]