HEADLINES: PH to get $500M military aid from US | July 31, 2024

Good day. Here are the stories for The Manila Times for Wednesday, July 31, 2024.

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READ: PH to get $500M military aid from US

THE United States’ top diplomat and defense chief announced $500 million in military funding Tuesday to boost Philippine defenses and progress on a proposed military intelligence-sharing pact as both allies renewed their concerns over China’s continuing aggressive actions in the region. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin met with President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., who has fortified Manila’s decades-old treaty alliance with Washington as hostilities between Philippine and Chinese forces flared since last year in the disputed South China Sea. Marcos hailed “very open” communication lines between Washington and Manila, adding that the two countries’ treaty alliance and key issues in the South China Sea and the Indo-Pacific region “are continuously examined and reexamined so we are agile in terms of our responses.” He renewed the Philippines’ commitment to strengthen its working relationship with the US in terms of the two nations’ alliance and issues in the West Philippine Sea and the Indo-Pacific region.

READ: NHA suspends interest on housing loan payments

HOUSING loan borrowers can pay their obligations without any interest, even for those who pay late, a top official of the National Housing Authority (NHA) said on Tuesday. Assistant General Manager Alvin Feliciano said the agency has also implemented a one-month moratorium on the payment for housing program clients for the period of July 1 up to July 31, 2024.

READ: Master plan can fix 70% of flood problem

AT least 70 percent of Metro Manila’s problem with flooding is expected to be mitigated once the government fully implements its Comprehensive Flood Management Master Plan, Public Works Secretary Manuel Bonoan said on Tuesday. In a briefing in Malacañang, Bonoan noted that the Department of Public Works and Highways is now in the thick of engineering interventions to address the perennial problem of massive flooding in the National Capital Region, such as what happened last week during the onslaught of Typhoon Carina and the torrential rains it brought.

READ: Protect my family, VP Sara asks volunteer security

VICE President Sara Duterte on Tuesday asked that her family be protected, telling those who wanted to help with her security need not worry about her. Duterte’s statement came after Sen. Ronald de la Rosa asked former soldiers or ex-police officers in a Facebook post to volunteer to provide security to the vice president after the Philippine National Police (PNP) reassigned the 75 policemen assigned to her security detail.

READ: Yulo seeking gold in all-around event

SEEKING a gold medal, Carlos Yulo begins the first of his three final events at the Paris Olympics men’s artistic gymnastics at the Bercy Arena on Wednesday. The 24-year-old Filipino ace battles 23 other gymnasts in the event, which starts at 11:30 p.m., Manila time. Yulo’s opponents include defending champion Daiki Hashimoto of Japan and silver medalist Xiao Routeng of China. Hashimoto and Xiao placed third and fourth, respectively, while Yulo ended ninth during the qualification round, which ended early Sunday. Yulo, who will also vie for the gold in floor exercise on August 3 and vault on August 4, amassed 83.631 points in the allaround qualification, where the top 24 advanced to the final.

SPORTS: Bacyadan, Paalam begin gold bids in Paris

FILIPINO boxers Hergie Bacyadan and Carlo Paalam begin their respective Paris Olympics gold medal bids at the North Paris Arena on Wednesday. Making her Olympic debut, Bacyadan takes the four-corner ring first as she sees action in the women’s 75kg round of 16 at 6:04 p.m. The 29-year-old Igorot boxer gets an early acid test as she takes on Chinese Li Qian, who claimed the silver medal at the 2021 Tokyo Games and bronze at the 2016 Rio Olympics. Having changed sports from wushu to boxing to vovinam and back to boxing again, Bacyadan has now whole-heartedly accepted that she is destined for boxing.

BUSINESS: PH tourism recovery ‘lagging considerably’

Over to business, Southeast Asia’s tourism sector continues to recover from the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic, but the Philippines is “lagging considerably behind,” Bank of America (BofA) Global Research said in a new report. Tourists from China are aiding the recovery, BoFA said on July 29, with Malaysia expected to see the largest gain. Vietnam, following the relaxation of visa policies since August 2023 and the country’s increasing popularity among Korean tourists, was said to be the “clear leader” within the Association of Southeast Asian Nations. Tourist arrivals are currently at 105-110 percent of 2019 levels since March for Vietnam, BoFA noted, while the Philippines remains below 70 percent.

READ: Opinion and editorial

Rigoberto Tiglao and Fr. Ranhilio Aquino are today’s front page columnists. Tiglao looks back into a pact over the Ayungin Shoal, while Fr. Aquino writes a memo to his students in his seminary.

Today’s editorial hails the ruling on the Court of Appeals over the sinking of M/V Princess of the Stars. Read the full version in the paper’s opinion section or listen to the Voice of the Times.

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