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The United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat) has turned over a thousand houses to internally displaced families affected by the Marawi last week. UN-Habitat awarded the last 462 permanent houses as it marked the end of its four-year engagement in the war-torn city. The funding support of US$10-million came from the Japanese government where the houses were built on the …

The town of La Paz in the province of Tarlac became the latest local government unit (LGU) recipient to unveil a fully-constructed Multi-Purpose Evacuation Center (MPEC) funded by the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (PAGCOR), following the facility’s inauguration on May 20, 2022. PAGCOR Chairman and CEO Andrea Domingo (3rd from right) and La Paz, Tarlac Mayor Venustiano Jordan (4th …

The Senate and House of Representatives should already prepare for the canvassing of votes for president and vice president, according to House Deputy Speaker Rufus Rodriguez.  He urged Congress to immediately coordinate with the Commission on Elections (COMELEC) for the expeditious transmission of certificates of canvass from provinces and independent cities to Congress.  “For the sake of transparency, a receiving …

Commission on Elections (Comelec) Commissioner George Garcia urged Congress to pass a law that would allow online voting (“internet voting”) in the next elections, after Comelec received reports that some over seas Filipino had difficulties voting in person.  Garcia attributed this to foreign employers who disallow their Filipino employees from going out, preventing them from exercising their right to suffrage.  “Ang …

The Commission on Elections (COMELEC) has appointed COMELEC Law Department Director John Rex C. Laudiangco as acting spokesman while his predecessor, James B. Jimenez, is undergoing an investigation.  COMELEC Chairman Saidamen B. Pangarungan told Laudiangco through a one-page memorandum: “You shall report directly to Commissioner George M. Garcia, the Commission-in-Charge (CIC)on Public Information and Education.”  Laudiangco said in a brief …

Senator Leila M. de Lima, who has been detained since 2017, wrote Justice Secretary Menardo I. Guevarra asking him to review the illegal drugs cases filed against her after former Bureau of Corrections acting chief Rafael Marcos Z. Ragos and self-confessed drug lord Erwin Espinosa recanted their testimonies against the senator.  De Lima said in a letter to Guevarra dated …

With less than seven weeks before he steps down, President Rodrigo Duterte offered this advice to his successor: Just “stick with the rules” and continue the fight against corruption.  “There are rules everywhere to be followed. Just follow the rules,” the President said in an interview.  The Philippines will be relatively better in the coming years, but this could only be …

The Philippines will have a new US Ambassador after the US Senate confirmed the appointment of Mary Kay L. Carlson last May 6, 2022, replacing Kristie Kenny.  US President Joe Biden nominated Carlson for the post last February.  Prior to her nomination, Carlson served as deputy Chief of Mission of the US Embassy in India and Argentina.  She held the …

Mother’s Day is now included among special Filipino traditions because of that indelible mother-children relationships that could not be severed even by long overseas deployment.  So, what makes Mother’s Day special for Filipinos?  1. Mother’s Day in the Philippines should be in December  Starting the 1920’s, Mother’s Day was traditionally celebrated on the first Monday of December.  In 1980, former …

The World Health Organization estimates that approximately 15 million people died during COVID-19 pandemic between 2020 and 2021, nearly triple the number of deaths officially attributed to the virus.  WHO’s estimate of the total pandemic deaths — including lives lost to its effects — puts the number on the broader impact of the crisis.  The figure gives a more realistic …