Top News

House ‘railroading’ of PPP law to be questioned at SC

By Luis Leoncio The minority in the House of Representatives plans to question before the Supreme Court the “railroading” of President Aquino’s pet bill, the Public Private Partnership (PPP) Act, on the final session of Congress before it went on recess for the election period. 

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Diokno: No inclusive growth under Aquino

By Jerry Maglunog  Contrary to the Aquino administration’s proud boasts of inclusive and sustainable growth, the past five years of his term showed the economy failed where it mattered most—in the agriculture sector where a third of the Filipino workforce are employed. 

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‘No free lunch,’ Purisima says on PNoy’s SSS veto

By Luis Leoncio  The improved fiscal space that President Aquino and Finance Secretary Cesar V. Purisima have been citing for the string of ratings upgrade the country has received from credit watchdogs should have provided the source of funds for the proposed P2,000 increase in the monthly pensions for retired members of the state pension fund Social Security System (SSS), …

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BSP revising rules on realty exposure of banks

By Riza Lozada  The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) has sought the view of local banks on a proposal to redefine their real-estate exposure, to include investments in socialized-housing developments. 

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Aquino orders close DOH monitoring of Zika virus

President Aquino directed the Department of Health (DOH) to monitor the situation abroad and study the Zika virus to ensure public safety, a Malacañang official said.

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Zika not ‘new Ebola,’ warrants different response—UK think tank

London—Although some lessons from the Ebola outbreak can be applied, the recent spread of the Zika virus presents a different challenge and needs a different response, according to a commentary published Friday by a British think tank Chatham House. 

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Analysts see silver lining amid market down

By Luis Leoncio The current market downturn resulting from the flight of foreign funds from the Asian market has a good side to it, according to analysts who now consider the local stock exchange as a buyers’ market. 

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Abaya’s DOTC blamed for MRT-3 breakdowns

By Luis Leoncio  The sad state of the Metro Rail Transit Line 3 (MRT-3) system is due mainly the failure of the government to fully implement the provisions of its concession agreement with the Metro Rail Transit Corp. (MRTC), the Commission on Audit (COA) said in a report. 

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IMF downgrades growth outlook after WB, ADB

By Luis Leoncio  The country’s growth estimate for this year received another downgrade in the run-up to the national elections in May, as the International Monetary Fund (IMF) cut its 2016 projections to 5.7 percent, from 6 percent; and next year’s to 6.2 percent, from 6.3 percent. 

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Aquino legacy: Promises, promises, promises

By Dean dela Paz  The first promise was when Benigno Aquino III, still then a new president and still enjoying his political honeymoon, complete with his newly draped attendant mantle of trust, had boldly told businessmen across the country, then taking off from a 7.3-percent gross domestic product (GDP) growth during the last year of the previous administration, would henceforth be …

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