Opinion and Commentary

Laurel: China: World's peacemaker

March 21, 2023, 11:16 am

President Xi Jinping arrived in Moscow to meet his “good old friend” President Vladimir Putin just about two weeks after the historic “miracle” China pulled off with Iran and Saudi Arabia sealing a peace pact that put an end to the nearly half-a-century conflict between the two major… Read More

Samonte: Completion of Mindanao Ave. Extension seen under PBBM admin

March 16, 2023, 1:48 pm

There is bright hope that the long-delayed Mindanao Avenue Extension from the North Luzon Expressway-Mindanao Avenue Toll Plaza in Ugong, Valenzuela City to Gen. Luis Street in Barangay Caybiga, Novaliches, North Caloocan City may finally be completed under the "Build Better More" Program of… Read More

Lauengco: Neurodivergence in PH: The fight for awareness, inclusivity

March 15, 2023, 2:46 pm

“We should celebrate neurodiversity – the world would be poorer and life duller if we were all the same.” – Neil Milliken “In a culture that believes great minds think alike, people whose brains work differently are often ignored or excluded.” – unknown author This week (March 13 to… Read More

Zaldarriaga: More players needed to lower ride-hailing fares

March 14, 2023, 12:24 pm

When ride-hailing giant Grab Philippines merged with its sole competitor Uber Philippines five years ago, there have been several criticisms about how the merger resulted in fewer choices for the commuting public as well as higher fares squeezing their pockets. Last year, online news outlets… Read More

Samonte: The 1st barangay polls in PH after the 1972 martial law

March 9, 2023, 9:14 am

A column in this Section last March 1 by Atty. Gilberto Lauengco about the importance of the coming Oct. 30, 2023 Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan (SK) polls prompted me to look back at the very first Barangay election held in the country a year after then President Ferdinand E. Marcos Sr. lifted… Read More

Lauengco: Attention economy, jeepney strikes, nat'l issues and goldfish

March 8, 2023, 9:02 am

“I sometimes worry about my short attention span, but not for long” - Herb Caen This week, a lot of people in Metro Manila gave their take on the week long jeepney strike. Social media is abuzz with one liner comments, posts, memes, rants, jokes about the said strike. One of the main… Read More

Zaldarriaga: Airports mirror country's image

March 7, 2023, 12:05 pm

The Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA), for the longest time, had been ranked among the worst and most stressful airports in the world, with travelers complaining of long queues, numerous security checks, lack of seats, delayed flights, and delayed luggage release, among other things. Last… Read More

Samonte: Kudos to new NHCP Chairman Emmanuel F. Calairo

March 2, 2023, 9:16 pm

Three days after assuming this month his new post as the chairman of the National Historical Commission of the Philippines (NHCP), Dr. Emmanuel Franco Calairo will be honored by his high school alma mater, the Novaliches-based Metro Manila College, as one of its Distinguished Alumni on March 4.… Read More

Lauengco: The importance of the 2023 barangay, SK elections

March 1, 2023, 2:14 pm

“The smallest part is worthy of the whole.”- Elsie De Wolfe On Feb. 28, the Commission on Elections (COMELEC) promulgated its latest resolution regarding the calendar of activities for the Oct. 30 synchronized Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan (SK) elections specifying the time for filing of… Read More

Zaldarriaga: MVP Group supports PH digitalization efforts

February 28, 2023, 10:30 am

In this rapidly evolving world, digital transformation has become a crucial key to achieving economic progress, as well as expanded opportunities and service improvements among businesses. Many countries are taking advantage on the benefits of digital innovations for their own economic… Read More

Laurel: Anti-war songs and betrayals

February 27, 2023, 10:31 am

In his speech to the Russian nation, which is the equivalent of the State-of-the-Union Address in the US or State of the Nation Address in the Philippines, President Putin justified the war as the defense of the very existence of the Russian motherland while castigating the civilizational decay of… Read More

Samonte: Novaliches: The 11th Metro Manila city that never was

February 23, 2023, 1:18 pm

In the 1987 Philippine Constitution, Section 1 of Article X (Local Government) says: "The territorial and political subdivisions of the Republic of the Philippines are the provinces, cities, municipalities and barangays." Corollary to that provision, the bicameral Congress enacted the local… Read More

Zaldarriaga: MPIC’s venture into agribusiness boosts PH food security

February 23, 2023, 9:42 am

The Philippines has long been facing challenges on food security despite having vast agricultural land ready for cultivation. To ensure food sufficiency, the country has depended on imports, such that our import dependency ratio in 2021 was at 25.1 percent, according to data from the Philippine… Read More

Lauengco: Thriving under the RCEP

February 22, 2023, 6:18 pm

On Feb. 21, the Philippine Senate ratified the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) with 20 senators (more than the required two-thirds vote), voting in favor of the Senate resolution regarding the same. The RCEP is a free trade agreement among the members of the Association of… Read More

Laurel: The 'spy balloon' saga bursts

February 21, 2023, 8:20 am

The NPR (National Public Radio) is a quasi-autonomous, government-funded nonprofit media outlet created by the US federal government. On its Feb. 16 headline blared ‘Biden says the 3 aerial objects shot down were not Chinese spy balloons’... President Joe Biden will soon speak with Chinese… Read More

Samonte: PNA hosted 1st ASEAN Editors' Conference in 1983

February 16, 2023, 3:39 pm

Many of the young Filipino journalists today may be interested to know that Manila once became a meeting place of publishers, top editors and writers of newspapers, television-radio stations, news agencies and magazines from across the Asian region in the 1980s. That was when the 10-year-old… Read More

Lauengco: Cold storage PPP and war against hoarders

February 15, 2023, 12:06 pm

“As long as greed is stronger than compassion, there will always be suffering.” - Rusty Eric There is an ongoing debate about imports and the effects of the same on farmers. There are several sectors who argue that imports hurt farmers and that there should be greater trade restrictions on… Read More

Cordevilla: PBBM visit deepens friendship, cooperation with Japan

February 14, 2023, 4:35 pm

When the leaders of the Pearl of the Orient and the Land of the Rising Sun meet, what’s the likely outcome? The Philippines and Japan have been through good times and bad times in equal measure throughout history. The convergence of common interests and shared experiences through thick and thin… Read More

Zaldarriaga: MMDA programs provide better service, safer roads

February 14, 2023, 3:09 pm

A new and better traffic management system is set to come our way this April after the Metro Manila council officially adopted a new traffic management system that would harmonize national and local road rules and make it easier for road violators to settle fines and penalties. According to the… Read More

Laurel: A war vs. US wars

February 14, 2023, 8:49 am

A huge anti-war protest rally is expected to be held in Washington this Friday (Feb. 17, 2023) on the anniversary of the Ukraine War and President’s Day Weekend, it’s dubbed “Rage Against the War Machine!” Speakers at the event are now famous anti-US wars dissenters Jimmie Dore, Medea… Read More