Philippines

MANILA, Philippines – Media titan ABS-CBN Corp. has filed a petition on Thursday and asked the Supreme Court for a temporary restraining order on the cease and desist order issued by the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC). “The continued operation of ABS-CBN Corporation is a matter of public interest and transcendental importance, it being among the largest broadcasting entities in terms …

MANILA – The Philippines has secured the top spot of the most fiscally transparent budget in Southeast Asia in in the 2019 Open Budget Survey (OBS) transparency index released on April 29. The country’s score exceeded its South east asian neighbor with Indonesia’s score at 70, Thailand’s 61, Malaysia’s 47, Timor-Leste’s 40, Vietnam’s 38, Cambodia’s 32 and Myanmar’s 28. Philippines …

Metro Manila – Veteran filmmaker and one of Philippine cinema’s greats died on Thursday morning. He was 76. Ricky Gallaga, his brother, told Visayan Star Daily that the award-winning director passed away at the Riverside Medical Center this morning due to “complications arising from past health conditions”. Gallaga was best known for his film Oro, Plata, Mata (1982) which bagged …

MANILA – Solicitor-General Jose Calida said on Wednesday that Congress and not the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) should be blamed for the network’s shutdown. “Why blame NTC when they are only following the law?” Calida, the Solicitor General said in a statement to the media. “Without a valid and subsisting franchise from Congress, the NTC cannot allow any broadcasting entity …

METRO MANILA – ABS-CBN, the country’s largest broadcast network, has been ordered to stop broadcasting immediately after the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) issued a cease and desist order against the Lopez-led firm. The leading media network in the Philippines received a cease-and-desist order one day after the media giant’s broadcast franchise has been expired. Just before its main channel went …

Laura Sarreal Elorde, Philippine’s Boxing Matriarch and widow of the late WBC and WBA junior lightweight champion Gabriel “Flash” Elorde, passed away peacefully on Sunday. She was 92. The grand old lady of Philippine boxing succumbed to pneumonia on Sunday morning. She was taken to Perpetual Help Medical Center ICU in Las Pinas three weeks ago due to low oxygen. …

MANILA – Share prices of the holding companies of the Zobel de Ayalas and Manuel Pangilinan picked up after President Duterte issued an apology during a televised speech. President Duterte apologizes for the “hurting words” about the two business tycoon whom he openly disliked. Applauding their help in fighting Covid-19 a peaceful settlement to the regulatory spat between them. “My …

Metro Manila – Former senator Jinggoy Estrada was arrested on Sunday and was brought to the San Juan police station for questioning over alleged violations of the enhanced community quarantine (ECQ). According to reports, Estrada was seen distributing relief goods in the city without quarantine pass or authorization to distribute relief goods. Estradahad no permit from the local government for …

Metro Manila – An online petition from several authorities and groups urging the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth) to withdraw the memorandum of increase rates in the premium contribution of overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) has received some 300,000 signatures. According to the memorandum, OFWs with income amounting between ₱10,000 and ₱20,000 will be required to pay 3 percent of their …

MANILA – The National Collegiate Athletics Association (NCAA) is considering to delay the opening of Season 96 to November due to the Covid-19 pandemic. The collegiate competition that usually opens in July, NCAA Management Committee chairman Peter Cayco said that this year they have discussed the possibility of the season being delayed to as late as November or even December …