The government’s Safety Seal Certification program, which certifies an establishment for its compliance with the minimum public health standards (MPHS), is one of the government’s public-private sector’s collaborative efforts to reopen the economy and ensure its growth path safely. Safety...
After more than a year of lockdown, fully vaccinated senior citizens are now allowed to go out in General Community Quarantine (GCQ) and Modified General Quarantine (MGCQ) areas, subject to presentation of a duly issued COVID-19 vaccination card and strict observance of prescribed health and safety...
Like most other countries, the Philippines is celebrating Father’s Day on the third Sunday of June. This is despite the fact that in 1998, President Joseph Ejercito Estrada transferred the observance of both Father’s Day and Mother’s Day to the first Monday of December, thereby superseding...
José Rizal was born a very small child on this day 160 years ago. His father, Francisco Mercado, was a successful farmer while his mother, Teodora Alonso-Realonda, a gobernadorcillio ’s daughter, had a flour mill, a drug store, and a general store to her name. Rizal’s parents were among the...
Electricity demand surge ushered in by the country’s bit-by-bit economic reopening is now wrestling with available supply – especially for Luzon grid – but news of greenfield power plant developments are still not up to expectations. The main power grid can still count on new plants coming...
Let us be reminded once again of the value of the bicycle, the simple yet efficient means of active transport. The pandemic and its social limitations have thrust bicycles to the forefront as one of the most accessible and possibly safest way to get around the city or neighborhood. In just over a...
The delivery service riders are now a regular sight around commercial and residential areas around the country. They are the frontliners who connect people in quarantine to the essential things they need. During the strict lockdowns until today when restrictions have been eased, the delivery riders...
There are no shortcuts when it comes to protecting the civil liberties and rights of peoples under a country’s constitution. Enforcing the people’s constitutional rights is no small matter and is of paramount importance, a particularly daunting task that rests squarely on the shoulders of the...
Today marks the 123 rd Independence Day of our country. It was on June 12, 1898 when Gen. Emilio Aguinaldo proclaimed our independence from foreign rule, ceremonially symbolized by the unfurling of the Philippine flag and the playing of our national anthem. What came after were a series of events...
Filipino golfer Yuka Saso made history last Sunday when she won the US Women’s Open championship at the Olympic course in San Francisco, California. Born in San Ildefonso, Bulacan to a Filipina mother and a Japanese father, she tied the record set by 2016 Olympic gold medalist Imbee Park who...
If not enough countries will band together and commit to vaccine equity, COVID-19 will continue to evolve and humanity may be consigned to a never-ending pandemic. It’s a race against time. While the first generation of vaccines has demonstrated high levels of efficacy, these need to be...
The Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) has reported that 1.43 million or 99.5 percent of all the income tax returns filed (ITRs) during the last tax filing season were filed online. In a report to the Secretary of Finance, the BIR said that only 7,139 returns were filed manually. This is clearly a...
