GOVERNANCE/POLITICS

COTABATO CITY - On 24 March 2022, MAGELCO implemented power curtailment with the power availability of an average of four (4) hours a day per municipality in its service area. These twenty (20)-hour power outages hampered the day-to-day activities and substantially burdened the Bangsamoro people in the affected municipalities in Maguindanao.

MANILA – President Rodrigo Duterte celebrated his 77th birthday Monday, with warm greetings from the public he vowed to serve.

People interviewed by the Philippine News Agency (PNA) including vendors, commuters, security guards, and construction workers expressed satisfaction with the president's performance, saying they felt positive changes during his administration.

Security guard Vicente Rosete, 48, of Tandang Sora in Quezon City, said six years of service for a hardworking president like Duterte is not enough because he has done his job well.

KORONADAL CITY – Taxpayers in the city of Tacurong and the nearby town of Isulan in Sultan Kudarat province need not go far for the online filing of their income tax return (ITR) and tax payment with the opening Thursday of the “BIR eLounge.”

Lumagda sa isang Memorandum of Understanding ang Cotabato Regional and Medical Center, Ministry of Health-BARMM at ilang mga kasapi ng Bangsamoro Transition Authority o BTA sa renewal ng paglalaan ng pundo sa nasabing pagamutan.

Isa sa mga kasapi ng BTA ay si Member of Parliament Bai Maleiha Candao na naglaan ng pondo para sa CRMC sa ilalim ng Tulong Medical Assistance Project.

Ang pundo ay mula sa Transitional Development Impact Fund O TDIF ng mga kasapi ng BTA.

KORONADAL CITY - The Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) in Region 12 has achieved a milestone as it exceeded its target for its yearly programs covering the period January 2021 to January 2022.

During that period, there were 59,841 tech-voc enrollees or an increase of 14% from the previous year amidst the ongoing pandemic. From the total, 23,639 individuals have already received their Certificate of Competencies on different programs.

KORONADAL CITY - The Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) has started building houses in Sumilom Island, Barangay Lipata, Surigao City as part of the agency’s contribution in helping the Odette victims recover and restart their lives.

Sumilom Island is about 45 minutes away from the mainland and could be reached via boat mode of transportation to and from the mainland.

MANILA – The two-day Bar Examination ended on Sunday but not all 11,790 who paid application fees showed up in the 31 local testing sites in 22 local government units.

The Office of the Bar Chairperson said Sunday at least 219 tested positive for Covid-19 while a still undetermined number of examinees were disqualified for violating policies and the Honor Code.

The number of positive tests is based on the antigen tests administered by the Supreme Court (SC) and the examinees who disclosed their results.

MANILA – President Rodrigo Roa Duterte on Tuesday called on the Filipino people to continue demonstrating compassion and unity as the country welcomes the 2022 Lunar New Year.

In his Chinese New Year message, Duterte said he hopes this year of the Water Tiger would bring the entire nation "good fortune and renewed strength as we recover from the Covid-19 pandemic and other challenges that have tested our mettle as a nation."

"Through our courage, faith, and determination, we have become more resilient and capable to build back better," he said.

MANILA –Task Force Bangon Marawi (TFBM) will see to it that at least 95 percent of Marawi City’s recovery projects from the 2017 siege will be completed by June.

TFBM chief and housing czar Secretary Eduardo del Rosario said former displaced families residing within the most affected (MAA) or the so-called "ground-zero" are now experiencing normalcy.

A Catholic bishop called on voters in next year’s elections to vote responsibly, saying that how they vote reveals who they are.

Bishop Jose Collin Bagaforo of Kidapawan, national director of Caritas Philippines, said the votes people cast are a mirror of them.

“Our choice reflects our values,” Bagaforo said. “It is an expression and affirmation of our human dignity, a foundational principle of Catholic social teaching.”

According to him, voting is God’s gift to people “and how we use this is our gift to our country”.