MnK Soft

wage rise

Senate passes third reading of P100 wage rise measure.

With 20 votes in favor, 0 against, and 0 abstentions, the Senate passed a bill raising the daily minimum wage for private sector employees by P100. This bill will impact around 4.2 million workers countrywide. The chair of the Senate labor committee, Sen. Jinggoy Estrada, stated, "Let it be

Philhealth

Primary care providers get P257 million from PhilHealth.

As part of its initial tranche of capitation payments to primary care provider networks, PhilHealth has issued over P257 million to support the countrywide implementation of its comprehensive outpatient benefits package, Konsultasyong Sulit at Tama. According to a "sandbox" setup, PhilHealth had paid capitation monies to four of the first

employers confederation

It would be disastrous for employers to increase wages by P100.

The Employers Confederation of the Philippines opposes a Senate plan that would raise the minimum wage to P100 per day, and warns against it due to anticipated price increases and forced layoffs for struggling small businesses. Senate Bill No. 2354 was passed on second reading on Wednesday. Ecop president Sergio

oil spill

DOJ backs raps in relation to the Mindoro oil spill

In the wake of the oil disaster that contaminated nearby seas and caused many to lose their livelihood, the Department of Justice has recommended filing criminal charges against the owners of the MT Princess Empress and others for falsifying papers. The group of state prosecutors discovered that the business had

marijuana

Doctors warn of potential risk, but the FDA chief is receptive to medical marijuana.

Samuel Zacate, the head of the FDA, stated that he was open to medical marijuana use, but medical professionals cautioned that it might put Filipinos at unnecessary risk. A panel of the House of Representatives passed a bill legalizing marijuana but keeping it on the list of hazardous drugs. "Filipinos

NDRMMC

NDRRMC: Mindanao floods and landslides cause P738M in infrastructure damage

The National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council reported on Sunday that flooding and landslides in Mindanao resulted in infrastructure damage worth approximately P738.6 million. The most recent NDRRMC report projected that the infrastructure damage in the Davao and Caraga regions was P265.6 million and P473 million, respectively.

fuel

Prices for fuel will drop this week.

There will be a gasoline drop for local oil this week, so it's about time to fill up your vehicles. Local oil firms declared on Monday that starting Tuesday, February 13, 2024, fuel prices will decrease. There will be price reductions for gasoline, diesel, and kerosene by P0.60, P0.

chinese new year

Some highways in Manila are closed on Chinese New Year's Day.

If you are going out this Chinese New year and driving you need to know this because some highways are closed. A few Metro Manila highways will be closed in advance of Sunday's Chinese New Year celebration. The public information office (PIO) in Manila issued an advisory stating that the

University of the Philippines

Students at UP object to the growing commercialization of university areas.

Protesting against the commercialization of campus spaces, students at the University of the Philippines - Diliman in Quezon City claim that this goes against the university's mission of providing education for the underprivileged. They objected to plans to close vendors in preparation for the DiliMall's March debut. The UPD-SC claimed

Department of agriculture

Public is urged by the Department of Agriculture to consume more eggs.

Since eggs are now the least expensive form of protein, the Department of Agriculture (DA) is working with other government organizations to encourage Filipinos to include eggs in their diets. “That is why we want to promote it so more people will eat eggs,” he said in a television interview

Mayon Volcano

Mayon is spewing white smoke, alerting Albay.

The Albay Public Safety and Emergency Management Office has stated that, in the opinion of Albay Governor Grex Lagman, there is now no reason for alarm regarding the initial event. "I have talked with our APSEMO head Dr. Cedric Daep. He reported to me that it's just white steam. No

U.S.

Major PH energy and infrastructure projects to be funded by US offers

In an effort to increase power supplies, lower electricity prices, and draw in investors, the US is thinking of funding renewable energy and infrastructure projects in the Philippines through its development financing arm. To discuss this, US Undersecretary of State Jose Fernandez met with representatives from mining corporations and the

Duterte

Don't trust the Dutertes, cautions Marcos, according to former Davao hitman Lascañas.

Former President Rodrigo Duterte has cautioned President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. not to put his trust in Vice President Sara "Tambaloslos" Duterte or the "monster from Davao," Rodrigo Roa Duterte. Retired police officer and former member of the Davao Death Squad Arturo Lascañas stressed the need for caution and not to

BIR

21 drugs for diabetes, hypertension, and cancer are free from VAT according to BIR.

Value added tax (VAT) is no longer applied to at least 21 medications that treat cancer, diabetes, hypertension, kidney disease, mental illness, and tuberculosis (TB), according to a Wednesday, January 31 announcement from the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR). After receiving a letter from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA)

CNN

CNN Philippines ceases operations on Jan 31

Due to severe financial losses, CNN Philippines will stop operations on January 31, according to a statement made on Monday by the network's operator, Nine Media Corp. (NMC). “It is with deep regret that the management of Nine Media Corp. announces the discontinuation of its news and production operations on

PCSO

A mathematician claims that data cannot detect cheating; only the PCSO lottery audit can.

By just matching six numbers, PCSO Lotto offers us the chance to win millions of dollars one day. However, there is speculation that PCSO is only playing games with us, trying to get us to buy more tickets but they are the one who is winning. The likelihood of winning

NASA

Hubble discovers water vapor in the atmosphere of a tiny planet

Water vapor has been found in the atmosphere of GJ 9827d, the tiniest exoplanet, by NASA's Hubble Space Telescope. An important step towards comprehending the diversity and abundance of atmospheres on rocky planets, this discovery may point to possible water-rich worlds with atmospheres in other stars. The finding advances the

DOH

Amid a modest COVID-19 rise, DOH decides against reintroducing obligatory masking.

The minor increase in COVID-19 cases, which is anticipated to continue during the holiday season, makes the Department of Health cautious to impose obligatory masking. “There are certain hospitals that already implemented stricter masking policies, like the PGH (Philippine General Hospital), but that doesn’t mean the DOH is saying

business news

PH welcomes a UN Special Rapporteur to evaluate the human rights system.

On Monday, Special Rapporteur Irene Khan of the United Nations (UN) touched down in the Philippines with the aim of evaluating the government's human rights apparatus, with a specific focus on freedom of opinion and expression. Khan landed at Ninoy Aquino International Airport at roughly 12:30 p.m. while

comelec

Longer voter registration period rejected by Comelec

The Commission on Elections (Comelec) is adamant about adhering to its schedule and not extending the more than seven-month timeframe for voter registration, even though it acknowledges that current efforts to change the Constitution may interfere with its plans for the 2025 midterm elections. “As of now, the Comelec has

China

China requests that ships in the Red Sea cease their "harassment."

Citing the conflict between Israel and Hamas as the reason, China has demanded a halt to Houthi rebel attacks on civilian ships in the Red Sea and urged for a seamless global supply system. "The top priority is to quell the war in Gaza as soon as possible to prevent

baguio

The Baguio gastro outbreak has been declared over.

Following suspicions that the increase in diarrhea cases was caused by seven private deep wells, Mayor Magalong pronounced the outbreak of acute gastroenteritis to be gone. They were instructed to close, get cleaned, and then reopen. The city epidemiologist, Dr. Donnabel Tubera-Panes, stated that water tests from 12 private facilities

dswd

A purported 4Ps masterlist on DSWD's website is refuted.

A website that purported to contain the master list of Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps) recipients and the dates of their scheduled payouts has been rejected by the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD). In compliance with the Data Privacy Act of 2012, the DSWD stated that it does

lotto

The 6/49 Super Lotto jackpot reward of P640,654,817.60 was won by a fortunate bettor.

The game is over because someone has now won the super Lotto jackpot. The Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO) released the P640,654,817.60 6/49 Super Lotto jackpot amount to one lucky bidder on Wednesday. According to the PCSO, the winning combination was 26-33-14-48-06-42, which was drawn on

Philhealth

PhilHealth is rocked by another data leak.

DCT Undersecretary Jeffrey Ian Dy claims that code mistakes, not cybercriminals, were the cause of the website malfunctions on PhilHealth. Now that the problem has been rectified, regular operations can resume. “It seems that there were some errors made in building the website. They fixed it already. It was a