Good day. Here are the stories for The Manila Times for Friday, September 17, 2021.
READ: Duterte orders Red Cross audit
President Rodrigo Duterte has ordered the Commission on Audit (CoA) to look into the books of the Philippine Red Cross (PRC), claiming that Sen. Richard Gordon reaped undue benefits for serving as concurrent chairman of the private humanitarian organization. Duterte directed Solicitor General Jose Calida to relay the order to CoA Chairman Michael Aguinaldo. Insisting anew that there were no irregularities in the purchase of medical supplies for the government's Covid-19 response and that no member of his Cabinet has committed any wrongdoing, the President accused Gordon of being the one involved in corrupt practices.
READ: Travel restrictions could ruin aviation industry
Presidential Adviser for Entrepreneurship Jose Maria "Joey" Concepcion 3rd on Thursday reiterated his call to expand mobility for the fully vaccinated Filipinos after major airline groups expressed concern that stringent travel requirements imposed by the government could lead to the crash of the local aviation industry. Concepcion issued the warning after major airline groups sought his help in bringing forward their concerns to the government regarding the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on their businesses. The Go Negosyo founder said the companies asked for increased mobility among vaccinated Filipinos in terms of transportation in order to give them a shot at recovering some of the billions worth of revenues lost since the pandemic struck in March 2020.
READ: 136 infected as Covid hits 2 QC convents
The Quezon City government has launched a massive contact tracing operation after 136 individuals at two Catholic convents in the city tested positive for Covid-19. Placed under special concern lockdown, or SCL, were the Religious of the Virgin Mary (RVM) in Cubao and Convent of the Holy Spirit in Barangay Immaculate Conception. Dr. Rolando Cruz, head of the City Epidemiology and Surveillance Unit (CESU), said there were 114 Covid-19 cases at RVM, 50 of them members of the convent staff and 64 were nuns.
READ: Vaccinated elderly could still get severe Covid
A member of the Vaccine Expert Panel believes that elderly people and those with co-morbidities are still vulnerable to severe and critical breakthrough Covid-19 infection. Dr. Rontgene Solante said the decline in "cell-mediated response" among the elderly and persons with comorbidities is a main reason a third, or booster, dose is necessary for these groups. A cell-mediated immune response is a type of reaction induced through the use of T-cells to fight off viruses. It is different from the humoral response which uses antibody molecules to block viral transmission.
READ: 10M Pfizer shots due by month's end
The Philippines will get 10 million more doses of Pfizer-BioNTech's Covid-19 vaccine from the Covax Facility, vaccine czar Carlito Galvez Jr. said on Thursday. During a briefing with President Rodrigo Duterte, Galvez said the United States government initially pledged about 6 million Pfizer doses but later added 4.5 million doses. Galvez thanked the World Health Organization (WHO) for making good on its pledge for an additional 10 million doses of Pfizer. Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana and Foreign Affairs Secretary Teodoro Locsin Jr. went to the US to thank the US government for the vaccine donation, he added. The Philippines has received over 54.5 million doses, 13 million of which are from the Covax Facility and 3.6 million donated by other countries. This number included the latest delivery of over 700,000 Pfizer doses on Wednesday night.
READ: PH ready to address terror threats – Palace
Malacañang on Thursday gave its assurances that the police and the military are ready to counter any possible terror threats. Palace spokesman Harry Roque, Jr. said authorities have been on "heightened alert" since the Marawi siege in 2017 or way before the release of an advisory by the Japanese Embassy in Manila warning of possible terror attacks in Southeast Asian countries.
BUSINESS: Philippines to benefit from RCEP
In business, ratification of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) will benefit the Philippines and help the country recover, speakers told an online forum organized by The Manila Times on Wednesday. The RCEP is a free trade agreement between the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean), China, Japan, Australia, New Zealand, and South Korea. Signed just last November, it will have to be ratified by six Asean members and three non-Asean signatories to take effect. To date, only Singapore, China, and Japan have done so.
SPORTS: GAB requires boxers to undergo hematoma tests
In sports, the Games and Amusements Board (GAB) has required all boxers fighting locally to undergo a hematoma screening after every bout. This was disclosed by Dr. Radentor Viernes, chief of the GAB Medical Section, at the TOPS Usapang Sports online forum on Thursday. Viernes said the agency has four handheld brain hematoma screening devices distributed to its offices in Luzon, Visayas, Mindanao and the National Capital Region. The device was used for the first time on September 4 in a boxing event in Urdaneta, Pangasinan. All 20 boxers who saw action in the fight card were scanned for free, Viernes said. Viernes added that the portable device uses near-infrared (NIR) technology to screen for intracranial bleeding and other head injuries.
READ: Opinion and editorial
Rigoberto Tiglao and Ruben Torres are today's front page columnists. Tiglao mocks two senators over the recent probe on Pharmally Pharmaceuticals, while Torres discusses about Asean workers denouncing the Myanmar military junta.
Today's editorial talks about Afghanistan desperately needing foreign aid. Read a full version on the paper's opinion section or listen to the Voice of the Times.
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On behalf of The Manila Times, this is Aric John Sy Cua reporting. Have a safe Friday ahead.