resident Ferdinand "Bongbong" R. Marcos Jr. witnesses the signing of the Manifesto of Alyansa Para sa Bagong Pilipinas at the PICC Forum Thursday (Sept. 26, 2024). Signatories to the manifesto include (left to right) Secretary Mark Llandro Mendoza for Nationalist Peoples Coalition, Speaker Ferdinand Martin Romualdez for Lakas-CMD, Gov. Reynaldo Tamajo Jr. for Partido Federal ng Filipinas, Sen. Mark Villar for the Nacionalista Party and Rep. Luis Raymund Villafuerte for the National Unity Party.
President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. on Thursday announced the administration’s 12 prospective senatorial candidates for the 2025 midterm elections.
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The 2025 senatorial slate was divulged during the Alyansa Para sa Bagong Pilipinas Convention 2024 at the Philippine International Convention
Center in Pasay City.
The lineup was composed of candidates from various political parties, including the Partido Federal ng Pilipinas (PFP), Lakas-
Christian Muslim Democrats (Lakas-CMD), Nationalist People’s Coalition (NPC) and Nacionalista Party (NP).
These include Marcos’ sister, reelectionist Senator Imee Marcos from NP, along with her party mates Senator Pia Cayetano and Deputy Speaker and Las Piñas City Rep. Camille Villar.
Marcos also announced his support for the former senator Manny Pacquiao, Local Government Secretary Benjamin Abalos Jr. and Senate Majority Leader Francis Tolentino who are members of the PFP.
PBBM presents Alyansa senatorial candidates. President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. (center) raises the hands of Alyansa Para sa Bagong Pilipinas senatorial candidates for the 2025 midterm elections during their convention at the Philippine International Convention Center (PICC) Forum in Pasay City Thursday (Sept. 26, 2024). The slate includes (from left) DILG Secretary Benhur Abalos Jr., Sen. Pia Cayetano, Sen. Lito Lapid, Manny Paquiao, Tito Sotto, Rep. Erwin Tulfo, Deputy Speaker Camille Villar, Sen. Francis Tolentino, Sen. Ramon “Bong” Revilla Jr., Panfilo “Ping” Lacson, Makati Mayor Abigail Binay and Sen. Imee Marcos (not in photo).
A member of the Young Guns bloc of the House of Representatives on Thursday issued a challenge to Vice President Sara Duterte to take a lie detector test following the explosive testimony of a former Department of Education official who revealed monthly bribes to education officials during the VP’s tenure as secretary.
Zambales Rep. Jay Khonghun dared VP Duterte to take a lie detector test alongside former Education Undersecretary Gloria Mercado, who earlier bared she had received envelopes containing P50,000 monthly, allegedly from the Vice President, while serving as the Head of the Procuring Entity (HOPE) at DepEd.
“Kung talagang sa puso ni VP Duterte eh feeling niya nagsasabi siya ng totoo, mag-lie detector test na lang silang dalawa ni USec Mercado, para magkaalaman kung sinong nagsasabi ng totoo. Hindi na kailangan pang mag-deny at manira sa presscon,” Khonghun expressed.
Mercado told members of the House Committee on Good Government and Public Accountability in Wednesday’s hearing that she was pressured to resign from DepEd for expressing she wanted to abide by procurement laws as HOPE for the institution. She requested that she be allowed to retire, which was granted.
"Kung wala namang tinatago si VP Duterte, walang issue sa pag-take ng lie detector test. Mahalaga na malaman ng taumbayan kung sino ang nagsasabi ng totoo sa kanilang dalawa. Pondo ng bayan ang pinag-uusapan, and the Vice President owes it to the people to prove her honesty and integrity,” Khonghun said.
Mercado testified that she received nine envelopes between February 2023 and September 2023, each containing P50,000.
According to her, these envelopes were handed to her by Assistant Secretary Sunshine M. Fajarda, who claimed they came directly from Vice President Duterte.
Asked by Batangas Rep. Gerville Luistro if the envelopes could have been an attempt to influence her decisions as the HOPE, Mercado responded, “It could be.”
SURIGAO del Sur 2nd District Rep. Johnny Pimentel on Wednesday raised concerns over the alleged misuse of P112.5 million in confidential funds by the Department of Education (DepEd) under then-Secretary and Vice President Sara Duterte, allocated for questionable youth seminars.
The funds, supposedly earmarked for Youth Leadership Summits, are now under intense scrutiny due to a lack of proper documentation and questionable liquidation reports.
Pimentel, Commission on Appointments Assistant Minority Leader, brought these issues to light during Wednesday’s hearing of the House Committee on Good Government and Public Accountability, which is investigating Duterte's alleged mismanagement of government funds at both the Office of the Vice President (OVP) and DepEd.
Pimentel questioned how such a large amount could be justified for events involving relatively few participants.
“Pagpapakain lang ng almost 3,000 students, uubusin ba natin ng P112.5 million? Kahit na tatlong buwan silang mag-hotel, hindi maubos ang P112.5 million,” he pointed out.
The lawmaker cited audit observation memorandums (AOMs) from the
Commission on Audit (COA), which flagged cash advances and liquidation reports for the summits, raising concerns about the large sum used, allegedly without supporting documentation such as receipts and photographs.
In his interpellation, Pimentel highlighted two AOMs dated Feb. 1, 2024, and Aug. 8, 2024, both addressed to DepEd’s special disbursing officer Edward Fajarda.
According to Pimentel, Fajarda was responsible for the P75 million cash advance and its liquidation, but he was notably absent from Wednesday’s hearing, along with over a dozen OVP officials who were also invited but failed to appear.
“It is very important that the presence of Mr. Fajarda is required in this committee, as he is the one who made and liquidated the cash advance,” Pimentel stressed.
He then moved to issue a show-cause order to compel Fajarda to attend the next hearing.
Lawyer Gloria Camora, the team leader of the COA unit that audited the OVP's confidential funds, confirmed the existence of the AOMs, covering different periods in 2023.
Pimentel questioned whether the summits actually took place, as the liquidation documents submitted to COA only included certifications from military officers.
“Do we have documentation? Do we have evidence that indeed they conducted this Youth Leadership Summit or sa papel lamang ito?” he asked, underscoring the lack of supporting materials such as receipts or photos.
The certifications, issued by military officials, claimed that several Youth Leadership Summits were conducted, with one certification stating that 531 participants took part in 8 activities, while another mentioned 205 youth participants
Assistant Minority Leader and Camarines Sur Representative Gabriel Bordado Jr. today called on Vice President Sara Duterte to address the questions raised by legislators rather than resorting to histrionics.
This statement comes after the Vice President again failed to appear at the congressional budget deliberations for her office Wednesday afternoon.
Just last week, state auditors uncovered another questionable disbursement of P237 million by the OVP within a span of only seven months.
Bordado drew a stark comparison between the current administration’s handling of funds and the modest, transparent approach taken by former Vice President Leni Robredo.
"I rise today to express my deep concern regarding the current budgetary allocations and spending practices of the Office of the Vice President (OVP), particularly in comparison to the very modest and transparent expenditures during the
time of former Vice President Leni Robredo," Bordado said. "This comparison is crucial as we examine the sharp contrasts in budget requests, the handling of funds, and the outcomes delivered by the office over recent years."
Bordado emphasized the significant budget increase under Vice President Duterte, noting that the OVP’s 2025 budget request of P2.037 billion is nearly three times the amount allocated to the office during Robredo’s term.
"Under Vice President Leni Robredo, the Office of the Vice President operated with a budget of P703 million in 2022. Despite these constraints, her office implemented impactful, transparent programs focused on good governance and social service delivery, with every peso accounted for and allocated prudently," he said.
He further highlighted the controversial disbursement of P125 million in confidential funds granted to the OVP in 2022, which was spent within just 11 days.
"This amount was not even part of the budget approved by Congress. It was released through the Office of the President, and its sudden, rapid utilization has sparked justified inquiries," Bordado stated.
He also cited the Commission on Audit’s (COA) notice of disallowance, which requires Vice President Duterte to return P73.287 million due to insufficient documentation justifying the expenditures.
"Why, then, should the OVP be allocated such enormous sums when other agencies are better equipped to deliver these services?" Bordado asked. He also criticized the-
House Speaker Ferdinand Martin G. Romualdez, along with ACT-CIS Party-List Representatives, Cong. Erwin T. Tulfo and Cong. Edvic G. Yap, visited the Bureau of Customs - Manila International Container Port (BOC-MICP) on 25 September 2024 to inspect rice shipments following reports of port congestion due to delays in the releases.
During the inspection, BOC Commissioner Bienvenido Y. Rubio clarified that there is no port congestion, and all shipments have been cleared by Customs, addressing concerns that have circulated recently. Commissioner Rubio further emphasized that the delays are not caused by port-related issues but simply the practice of importers in maximizing the 30-day allowable period to claim their shipments upon settlement of customs duties and taxes due thereon.
Speaker Romualdez urged rice importers to expedite the release of tax-paid shipments and promptly pull out their shipments to ensure adequate rice supply and avoid potential price hikes, and refrain from illegal hoarding activities lest face the full force of the law.
In a statement, DBM Secretary Amenah Pangandaman said the national government acknowledges the SC ruling and would wait for its final decision on Sulu’s fate.
“Accordingly, while the decision states that it is immediately executory, it is prudent to wait for it to reach finality, considering the significant implications for its enforcement – to ensure that when commenced, the same had already attained a state of immutability,” Pangandaman said.
“In the meantime, we encourage all the stakeholders in the BARMM and in the province of Sulu to maintain the status quo,” she added.
She said the salaries and benefits of local government personnel in Sulu would continue and are to be charged against available local government funds.
Those for the personnel of the various provincial field offices in the different ministries under the BARMM government would continue to be charged against their corresponding appropriations from the annual Block Grant.
Pangandaman said the Marcos administration would exert all efforts to
The Department of Budget and Management (DBM) on Thursday urged the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) and Sulu to maintain “status quo,” following the Supreme Court’s (SC) decision to exclude the province from the region.
ensure a smooth transition, adding that it would take a whole-of-government approach for the continued delivery of essential government services.
She said the programs, projects, and activities for Sulu funded by the Bangsamoro Government under its 2024 General Appropriations Act of the Bangsamoro should continue until the finality of the SC ruling.
“Pertinent provisions on the validity of appropriations shall apply accordingly. Considering the SC Ruling, funding for PAPs for the Province shall already be excluded from BARMM’s annual budget for the succeeding fiscal years.,” she said.
She said future guidelines would be discussed by the national government and Bangsamoro government’s Intergovernmental Relations Body with President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. for the future transition, in compliance with the SC decision on Sulu’s separation from BARMM.
Pangandaman said "as a daughter of Mindanao and co-chair of the National Government–Bangsamoro Government
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The Bureau of Immigration (BI) reaffirmed its commitment to upholding justice and national security, as it joins the Department of Justice in its celebration of its 127th anniversary.
BI Officer-in-Charge Commissioner Joel Anthony Viado emphasized the Bureau’s dedication to combatting illegal immigration and human trafficking, key threats to the nation’s safety and security.
“As part of the DOJ family, the BI stands firm in its resolve to protect our borders from illegal aliens and human traffickers,” Viado said. “We are committed to ensuring that those who violate our immigration laws are brought to justice,” he added.
Under the guidance of the DOJ, the BI
has achieved significant milestones in recent years.
The Bureau has intercepted over 700 human trafficking victims and apprehended hundreds of illegal aliens, including 129 fugitives involved in serious crimes such as fraud and drug trafficking.
These efforts are part of the BI’s broader modernization initiatives, which include the upgrade of e-gates at airports and a shift to fully-electronic immigration-