Good day. Here are the stories for The Manila Times for Tuesday, July 23, 2024.
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READ: All POGOs banned
PRESIDENT Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on Monday ordered a total ban on Philippine offshore gaming operators (POGOs), saying these firms have veered away from offering online gambling services to venturing into “illicit” practices. During his third State of the Nation Address (SONA), Marcos instructed the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. (Pagcor) to “wind down and cease the operation of POGOs by the end of the year.” The President ordered the Department of Labor and Employment, in coordination with the administration’s economic managers, to use the time “between now and then” to find new jobs for Filipinos who will be displaced.
READ: Marcos: West Philippine Sea is clearly ours
He also said the country “cannot yield nor waver” in defending its maritime claims in the West Philippine Sea, insisting that those waters clearly belong to the Philippines. During his third State of the Nation Address (SONA), Marcos declared that the West Philippine Sea would continue to belong to Filipinos “as long as the spirit of the nation continues to burn.”
READ: PH disputes China’s account of Ayungin deal
ONE day after announcing it had reached a “provisional arrangement” with China covering resupply missions to Ayungin (Second Thomas) Shoal, Manila said Beijing’s account of the agreement was “inaccurate.” Both sides had earlier agreed on the need to de-escalate tensions in the South China Sea by carrying out a “provisional agreement” they agreed upon to manage their differences that did not compromise each other’s national positions. But China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA) on Monday reiterated its view that Ayungin Shoal was within its territory and that Beijing insisted on three points.
READ: Fewer poor Filipinos in 2023 – PSA
THE number of poor Filipinos declined last year to 15.5 percent of the population or 17.54 million people, the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) reported on Monday, putting the government on track to achieve single-digit poverty by 2028. The 2023 poverty level was an improvement from the 18.1 percent posted in 2021, PSA data showed. It also beat the government target of 16.0 to 16.4 percent for 2023. Poverty incidence among families — or the proportion of families whose incomes are insufficient to meet their basic food and nonfood needs — was recorded at 10.9 percent, equivalent to 3 million poor families in 2023. This was lower than the 3.5 million impoverished families recorded in 2021. Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Arsenio Balisacan said the decline in poverty incidence last year marks significant progress toward the government’s ambitious goal of reducing poverty incidence to a single-digit level of 9.0 percent by 2028.
BUSINESS: Business groups applaud SONA but note omissions
PRESIDENT Ferdinand Marcos Jr. addressed key issues during his State of the Nation Address (SONA), particularly the matter of Philippine offshore gaming operators (POGOs), but also failed to mention other critical concerns, business groups said on Monday. Marcos’ announcement of a ban on operations of POGOs — firms that offer online gambling services to markets outside the country — “was the most applauded part of the SONA,” Makati Business Club (MBC) Executive Director Roberto Batungbacal said. POGOs flourished during the term of Marcos’ predecessor, Rodrigo Duterte, but have been linked to illegal activities such as financial scams, human trafficking, kidnapping, and even murder.
SPORTS: Eala overwhelmed with Spain ‘fairytale’ finish
FILIPINO tennis sensation Alex Eala just couldn’t help but concede to an overwhelming emotion after capturing the doubles and singles championships at the W100 VitoriaGasteiz in Spain. Eala snared the doubles title with French Estelle Cascino as they outdueled the Bulgarian-Latvian duo of Lia Karatancheva and Diana Marcinkevica, 6-3, 2-6, 10-4 late Saturday night (Manila time). Ranked 155th in the world, the 19-year-old Eala then fended off Andorran Victoria Jiménez Kasintseva in straight sets, 6-4, 6-4, in the singles final on Sunday evening.
READ: Opinion and editorial
Antonio Contreras, Yen Makabenta, and Orlando Mercado are today’s front page columnists. Contreras says life-work balance is a Western concept, Makabenta says part of the future is visible today, while Mercado looks into “unrequited” love.
Today’s editorial discusses the new tenure of new Education Secretary Juan Edgardo Angara. Read the full version in the paper’s opinion section or listen to the Voice of the Times.
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