Senate President Pro Tempore Panfilo "Ping" Lacson on Friday, Dec. 19, called the death of former Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) undersecretary Maria Catalina Cabral "unfortunate and tragic", since she could have greatly helped expose the extent of corruption in the department...
A last-minute switch in the list of farm-to-market road (FMR) projects worth P8.9 million under the Department of Agriculture (DA) budget was approved by the bicameral conference committee (bicam) on Wednesday, Dec. 17. This happened even after the bicam already approved the agency 's budget...
Senate Majority Leader Juan Miguel “Migz” Zubiri on Tuesday, Dec. 16, expressed full support for the Senate panel in the Bicameral Conference Committee (bicam) amid a reported deadlock over proposed cuts in the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) budget. In an interview, Zubiri...
Senator Raffy Tulfo reminded Department of Health Secretary Ted Harbosa to fulfill his commitment to remove Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Director-General Paolo Teston from his post. This was once Tulfo successfully facilitated the takedown of several products flagged by the FDA under its...
The third day of bicameral conference committee deliberations on the proposed ₱6.793-trillion 2026 national budget was suspended on Monday, Dec. 15, amid a deadlock over the Department of Public Works and Highways’ (DPWH) budget. Senate Finance Committee Chair Sherwin Gatchalian said the...
Senator Imee Marcos on Saturday, Dec. 13 flagged the sharp increase in the Department of Education’s (DepEd) classroom construction budget, despite the agency’s rather lackluster 23 percent absorption rate. During Bicameral Conference Committee deliberations on the proposed 2026 national...
With the annual Congress holiday break just around the corner, it seems that several individuals who were cited in contempt during previous hearings could remain in detention at the Senate during Christmas and the New Year--perhaps even longer. This was according to Senate President Vicente "Tito"...
Senator Francis "Kiko" Pangilinan has warned that Filipinos will continue to suffer from high food prices, prevalent hunger, and malnutrition if there is no adequate support for the agriculture sector. The senator emphasized that increased public investment was essential to ensuring food security,...
Finance Secretary Frederick D. Go pushes for the extension of the estate tax amnesty to the end of 2028, which could generate additional revenue while easing the burden for Filipinos settling their debts on inherited properties. This measure is among the priority tax measures the Department of...
Department of Education (DepEd) Secretary Sonny Angara reaffirmed his commitment to sustained reforms in the basic education sector as a growing network of organizations from the public, private, and advocacy communities expressed strong support for DepEd and its ongoing initiatives. In a statement...
A move is underway in the Senate to lower the value-added tax (VAT) imposed on purchased goods and services. Under Senate Bill No. 1552 filed by Senator Erwin Tulfo, Section 106 of the National Internal Revenue Code would be amended to bring down the current 12 percent VAT to 10 percent. The...
Senate President Pro Tempore Panfilo "Ping" Lacson clarified that more than P79-billion has likely been lost to ghost flood control projects dating back to 2016, not counting substandard ones. Lacson said that the initial figure of P180-B was an “extrapolation.” Lacson said this was based on...
