With 17 affirmative votes, no negative votes and zero abstention, the Senate on Tuesday, December 9 approved on third and final reading House Bill No. 4058, which contains the proposed P6.793-trillion national budget for 2026. Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian, chairman of the Senate Committee on Finance...
Vice President Sara Duterte accused some members of the House of Representatives of weaponizing the impeachment process for political bargaining, saying renewed talk of filing a complaint against her is timed to coincide with the final passage of the 2026 national budget. In a strongly worded...
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...
Teachers’ groups have renewed their call for a substantial salary increase for public school educators and civilian government employees following President Marcos’ approval of a 15 percent base pay increase for military and uniformed personnel (MUP). The Teachers’ Dignity Coalition (TDC), in...
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...
The Senate approved on Thursday, December 4 the proposed P6.793-trillion national budget for 2026 on second reading. Senate Majority Leader Juan Miguel “Migz” Zubiri moved to close the period of amendments for House Bill No. 4058 under Committee Report No. 18. Senate President Pro Tempore...
Senate President Vicente “Tito” Sotto III said on Thursday, Dec. 4, that the Senate is working to resolve the remaining issues with proposed amendments to the 2026 national budget, to keep the timetable on track. In a chance interview, Sotto responded to questions on whether disagreements have...
DAVAO CITY – The 21st Davao City Council approved the proposed Fiscal Year 2025 Supplemental Budget No. 2 amounting to P881,074,646.71, covering the general fund proper, the development fund, and the city’s economic enterprises, on second reading on Tuesday, Dec. 2, at the Sangguniang...
The Department of Education (DepEd) on Wednesday, December 3, said it is preparing for one of the largest teacher recruitment waves in recent years. In a statement, DepEd said the Marcos administration’s proposed 2026 national budget allocates 32,916 new Teacher I items to help ease classroom...
Senator Francis “Kiko” Pangilinan has called on the Senate to support the Department of Agriculture’s (DA) appeal for additional funding for its 2026 budget to boost the country’s agricultural sector. Pangilinan, chairman of the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Food and Agrarian Reform,...
The Department of Education (DepEd) has ended a decade-long deadlock in textbook procurement, recording a dramatic 289-percent surge in approved titles within a single year—exceeding the total number of textbooks procured in the previous ten years combined. “Hindi puwedeng kulang-kulang ang...
Senate President Pro Tempore Panfilo "Ping" Lacson proposed on Tuesday, Dec. 2, a provision in the 2026 budget barring any political involvement in cash aid distribution to prevent politicians from abusing the ayuda (cash aid) distribution. During the period of amendments for the 2026 budget bill,...
