Good day. Below are the top stories of The Manila Times for Oct. 21, 2021.
READ: 'Govt neglect fuels exodus of nurses'
NURSES are leaving the country because they feel unappreciated, Philippine Nurses' Association (PNA) chief Melbert Reyes said on Wednesday. Proof of this neglect is the meager pay and benefits given to nurses, he said. Reyes said that many nurses are leaving because they think the government has not given them enough support especially in the implementation of its Covid-19 response. Dr. Rene de Grano, president of the Private Hospitals Association of the Philippines Inc. (PHAPi), on Tuesday warned that the country may lose more nurses in the next six months. He said that around 5 to 10 percent of nurses in private hospitals left their posts to find greener pastures abroad. If this trend continues, hospitals' operations would be crippled, de Grano said.
READ: Transport groups rally behind BBM
VARIOUS transport groups pledged their support to the presidential bid of Partido Federal ng Pilipinas (PFP) standard-bearer Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. Transport group leaders recently met with PFP Secretary General Thompson Lantion and Executive Vice President Vic Rodriguez to declare their support for Marcos. Among the transport groups represented in the meeting were Pangkalahatang Sanggunian Manila and Suburbs Drivers Association (Pasang Masda), Federation of Jeepney Operators and Drivers Association of the Philippines, Philippine Confederation of Drivers and Operators–Alliance of Concerned Transport Organization (PCDO-ACTO), Liga ng Transportasyon at Operators sa Pilipinas, Alliance of Transport Operators and Drivers Association of the Philippines, and Tiger in Asia.
READ: OMBUDSMAN HITS PCIJ OVER SALN AMENDMENTS
OMBUDSMAN Samuel Martires on Wednesday took to task the Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism (PCIJ) for its opposition to proposed amendments to Republic Act (RA) 6713, or the "Code of Conduct and Ethical Standards for Public Officials and Employees. Martires said the amendments contained in a measure submitted to Congress aims to clarify existing provisions. He issued the statement in response to the criticism of the PCIJ that the draft bill containing the Ombudsman's proposals "raises red flags." The PCIJ zeroed in on the proposed provision banning commentaries on the SALN.
READ: Atienza gives up retirement for Pacman
IF it weren't for the People's Champ, Buhay Party-list representative and former Manila mayor Jose "Lito" Atienza Jr. would be sipping Piña Coladas with his wife in Hawaii by now and perfectly blending in with the islanders. But even if the 80-year-old born and bred Manileño had dedicated 50 years of his life to public service in various capacities, he realized it wasn't time to wear his floral shirt as Citizen Lito just yet when the man whom he calls "the David among Goliaths" in next year's presidential race, Sen. Emmanuel "Manny" Pacquaio, came to ask for his help. A seasoned politician, Atienza held three consecutive terms as Manila City mayor following a six-year mandate as vice mayor to the late former senator and mayor Alfredo Lim. Before his foray into local government, he was appointed National Housing Authority general manager under the first Aquino administration and later held office as Department of Environment and Natural Resources secretary in former president Gloria Macapagal Arroyo's Cabinet.
READ: Pig's kidney works in human body
SCIENTISTS temporarily attached a pig's kidney to a human body and watched it begin to work, a small step in the decades-long quest to one day use animal organs for life-saving transplants. Pigs have been the most recent research focus to address the organ shortage, but among the hurdles: a sugar in pig cells, foreign to the human body, causes immediate organ rejection. The kidney for this experiment came from a gene-edited animal, engineered to eliminate that sugar and avoid an immune system attack. Surgeons attached the pig kidney to a pair of large blood vessels outside the body of a deceased recipient so they could observe it for two days. The kidney did what it was supposed to do — filter waste and produce urine — and didn't trigger rejection.
Topping Business
READ: Banks commit to sustainable finance
BANKS in the Philippines have committed billions of pesos to finance sustainable initiatives in the country, according to the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP). BSP Governor Benjamin Diokno said during the Wednesday's launch of the country's Sustainable Finance Roadmap that seven local banks had issued a total of $1.15 billion and P85.4 billion in green, social and sustainability bonds since 2017. As of the end of September this year, Diokno said, 15 Philippine companies from the banking, electric and water utilities, renewable energy, real estate and supranational sectors had issued $4.8 billion in green, social and sustainable sustainability bonds, accounting for 29 percent of the total Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean)-labeled green, social, and sustainable sustainability bonds.
In Sports
READ: Bucks, Warriors win NBA season opener
LOS ANGELES: Giannis Antetokounmpo scored 32 points as the Milwaukee Bucks launched the defense of their NBA crown on Tuesday (Wednesday in Manila) with a 127-104 victory over the Brooklyn Nets, as LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers were outgunned by the Golden State Warriors. Antetokounmpo picked up where he left off in guiding the Bucks to victory in the NBA Finals last season, leading an emphatic all-round offensive display that included 14 rebounds and seven assists. In the other season-opener, the new-look Los Angeles Lakers suffered a humbling 121-114 loss to the Warriors at the Staples Center. James led the Lakers scorers with 34 points while Anthony Davis chimed in with 33.
READ: Bellinger blast rescues Dodgers vs Braves
LOS ANGELES: Cody Bellinger smashed a three-run homer as the Los Angeles Dodgers staged a late rally to beat the Atlanta Braves 6-5 and haul themselves back into their National League Championship Series on Tuesday (Wednesday in Manila). After Atlanta stunned the Dodgers with walk-off victories in the opening two games of the best-ofseven series, Tuesday's game three at Dodger Stadium had acquired must-win status for the reigning world series champions.
READ: UAAP ATHLETES GET COVID-19 JABS
THE Commission on Higher Education (CHEd) held a symbolic vaccination against Covid-19 for student-athletes of member schools of the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) on Wednesday. CHEd Commissioner and Registered Nurse Aldrin Darilag administered the Moderna vaccine shots to the student-athlete delegates present during the ceremonial vaccination. As the students get their vaccine jabs, they may return to training and the most popular collegiate sports tournament in the country may resume by mid-February 2022, said University of the Philippines College of Human Kinetics Dean Francisco "Kiko" Diaz.
READ: Opinion and Editorial
Featured columnists on the front page are Yen Makabenta, Antonio Contreras and Edcel Lagman. Makabenta writes about what's at stake in 2022; Contreras on the Schumpeterian tragedy; and Lagman on the Covid-19 initiatives of presidential candidates.
The Times, in its Editorial, talks about how the new ADB initiative will help boost infrastructure investment. Read the full version in the Opinion Section or listen to The Voice of The Times.
For more news and information, get a copy of The Manila Times on print, subscribe to its digital edition or log on to www.manilatimes.net. Follow us on Twitter, Facebook or Instagram and Keep Up With The Times.
This is Christian Crow Maghanoy reporting.