The poor performance of our students in the Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) has elicited many comments on the education program and suggestions on how to improve it. In the 2022 PISA, the Philippines landed in the bottom 10 out of 81 participating countries in areas...
No need for reclamation. That, in a nutshell, was the clear message of Senator Cynthia Villar to all and sundry when she appeared as guest of the Kapihan sa Manila Hotel on July 31, 2024. She joined other senators and the public in clamoring for an end to reclamation, especially in...
Construct more water impounding facilities. This was the marching order of President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. given twice in succession this month — the first was on July 13, 2024, days ahead of the flooding that swamped Metro Manila and neighboring provinces; and the second on July 27,...
Beyond expediting the release of funds and imposing a price freeze on basic goods, the declaration last week of a state of calamity in Metro Manila and five adjacent provinces exposed perennial shortcomings in governance over essential concerns ranging from garbage disposal to environmental...
Nearly a million Filipino teachers, who are admired for their dedication to duty in shaping and developing young learners’ minds and character, have long endured slow progress in their career development. More auspicious horizons now beckon — a good augury for the new schoolyear that starts...
The heavy rains brought by Super Typhoon Carina and the enhanced southwest monsoon (habagat) on June 24, 2024 flooded many areas and showed the preparedness of government agencies to respond to the extraordinary rainfall dumped on the National Capital Region (NCR), Calabarzon, and several...
At his third State of the Nation Address (SONA) last Monday, President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr. elicited 125 rounds of applause and two standing ovations. The entire audience stood up first when he declared anew that the West Philippine Sea is ours, then thanked the armed forces who have...
A recent survey conducted by the Social Weather Stations from June 23 to July 1, had two significant findings. First, 58 percent of the respondents rated their families poor, up by 12 percent from the March 2024 figures. Second, 30 percent rated their families “not poor”, up...
Among the audience segments listening to President Marcos’ third State of the Nation Address (SONA) today, the Filipino youth — “persons whose age ranges from 15 to 30 years totaled to 31.40 million or about 28.9 percent of the household population in 2020” according to the Philippine...
Last week, fake news was serious enough for government agencies to issue advisories to the public. On July 18, two government agencies – the Social Security System (SSS) and the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) – issued warnings about...
A three-year collaboration program with the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) to enhance the country’s capabilities in geohazards monitoring and information dissemination is currently being implemented. The nationwide adoption of anticipatory action (AA) for disaster preparedness to...
“Prioritize watershed protection in the Upper Wawa Dam as well as the reforestation and biodiversity preservation in the Upper Marikina River Basin Protected Landscape.” This was President Marcos’ clearcut order to stakeholders during the recent ceremonial impounding process of the Upper Wawa...
