We will not surrender our freedomsToday, Independence Day, we renew our pledge to serve the people, to continue speaking truth to power, and to guard and defend freedom of the press and of expression from all threats.Read More Covering the PandemicRead more Covering the CoViD-19 Pandemic Roque’s publicity stunt diverts media attention from tourism issues THE EIGHT months of strict lockdowns severely affected the country’s tourism sector with an estimated PHP190 billion in lost revenues. The restart is being done in phases. Only two major tourist destinations, Baguio City and Boracay Island, reopened to visitors in October, but with stringent requirements, including negative results... Cheers! Rappler takes a long hard look at misplaced priorities in 2021 budget MEDIA HAVE faithfully followed the budget discussion in the HOR. But much of the reporting has been limited to accounts focused on the deliberations on the allocations for each agency, basically picking up quotes from concerned parties, failing to see the forest for the trees. In general, media have... Is there more to the no-el trial balloon? THE MEDIA did not quite know what to make of the suggestion. Comelec officials were at the House of Representatives on September 24 to brief lawmakers about its budget of PHP14.6 billion for 2021. But instead of asking them how they are working to make sure a new generation... Inquirer calls out gaps in COVID response as cases reach 300K THE PHILIPPINES breached the 300,000 mark in confirmed COVID-19 cases on September 26, a most unwelcome development for a country that has imposed the longest lockdown in the world. The government’s heavily militarized quarantines have done little to stem transmission, as thousands of cases are still recorded daily. The... Reduced physical distancing: Another flawed policy from the IATF THE PROPOSAL to gradually reduce physical distancing in public transport served to demonstrate once again the flawed policy-making process that has marred the IATF’s response to the pandemic. In a statement last September 11, Transport Secretary Arthur Tugade announced that the current prescribed distance for physical distancing of one... House leadership brouhaha sidelines budget woes ALL EYES WERE on the House of Representatives amid rumors of an ouster bid against Speaker Alan Peter Cayetano (1st Dist., Taguig City) because of complaints over the budget allocations for congressmen’s infrastructure projects. In July 2019, Cayetano and Rep. Lord Allan Velasco (Marinduque) had arrived at a term... Task Force PhilHealth unable to explain why Duque got off THE PHILHEALTH scandal that diverted public health funds to private pockets made the pandemic even more difficult to bear for Filipinos already suffering economic deprivation and the continuing spread of the disease. When the anomalies in the medical insurance system broke out in August, the president promptly played up... SALN access restricted, but largely escapes media criticism THE LATEST MOVE to curtail the public’s right to know ironically comes from the government’s watchdog against corruption. Ombudsman Samuel Martires restricted public access to Statements of Assets, Liabilities and Net Worth (SALN) filed with his office, per Memorandum Circular No. 1, series of 2020, dated September 10 and... Duterte’s “solution”: Wait for a vaccine “WE ARE awaiting for God’s blessing na magkaroon tayo ng vaccine either from sino diyan na bright boy: China, Russia, America. I’m sure na kung meron na sila, they will share it with the rest of the world.” First said on April 1, two weeks after he ordered the... New PhilHealth Chief another link in the chain of crony appointees IN THE midst of the worst health crisis to hit the country and a corruption scandal hounding the PhilHealth medical insurance system, President Rodrigo Duterte appointed someone without any background in public health to head the agency. As the public gained more information about the corruption and fraud in... « Previous1…6263646566…203Next »
