Good day. Here are the stories for The Manila Times for Friday, March 24, 2023.
READ: China, PH assess ties as sea row deepens
SENIOR Chinese and Filipino diplomats met in Manila on Thursday to review their relations amid thorny issues, including Beijing's alarm over a Philippine decision to allow the United States military to expand its presence to a northern region facing the Taiwan Strait and escalating spats in the disputed South China Sea. Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Sun Weidong and Philippine Foreign Undersecretary Theresa Lazaro led the talks aimed at assessing overall relations on Thursday. The discussions would focus on the long-seething territorial spats in the disputed waterway on Friday, the Department of Foreign Affairs in Manila said. But even as the talks opened in Manila, the Chinese military said it warned a US warship to "leave" waters in the China Sea on Thursday, claims swiftly denied as "false" by American forces. The 23rd China-Philippines Foreign Ministry Consultation started with diplomatic pleasantries and handshakes in front of the media without any mention of the sensitive issue.
READ: Marcos: Brace for a water crisis
PRESIDENT Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on Thursday admitted that the country is facing a water crisis and reiterated the need for the government to ramp up efforts to head it off. Speaking at the 6th Edition of the Water Philippines Conference and Exposition in Pasay City, the President also announced the creation of the Office of Water Management to deal with the water supply problem. Malacañang has yet to issue a copy of the circular, which will be in effect until pending bills in Congress seeking to create a Department of Water Management are signed into law. Marcos said he finds it ironic that the Philippines, being an archipelago, is being confronted with a water supply problem.
READ: Duterte links Teves to Degamo killing
Former president Rodrigo Duterte said he believes the allegations that Rep. Arnolfo Teves of Negros Oriental masterminded the killing of provincial governor Roel Degamo. Duterte also said that illegal drugs "played a role" in the killing of Degamo. The governor was gunned down in his residential compound last March 4. Duterte was in Cagayan de Oro on Thursday to accept the Distinguished Merit Award from the city's League of Barangays. Duterte said that on the strength of the accounts of the suspects who pointed to Teves as the mastermind, the police should file charges against Teves.
READ: Dolly de Leon bags new Hollywood project
FOLLOWING her award-winning role in the Oscar-nominated film "Triangle of Sadness," Filipino actress Dolly de Leon has been cast in the upcoming Hollywood actioncomedy film "Grand Death Lotto." Amazon Studios officially announced de Leon as one of the movie's supporting actors alongside Ayden Mayeri, Seann William Scott and Donald Elise Watkins. The company, however, did not reveal the roles de Leon and the others will portray in the project. Currently in production, "Grand Death Lotto," directed by Paul Feig, is led by John Cena, Awkwafina and Simu Liu. Based on its official logline issued in a press release, the film is set "in the very near future," where the Grand Lottery has been established in "economically challenged California."
BUSINESS: Smaller rate hike ordered
Topping business, monetary authorities raised key interest rates by 25 basis points (bps) on Thursday to anchor inflation expectations despite overall price growth having eased last month. The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas' (BSP) overnight repurchase, deposit and lending rates now stand at 6.25 percent, 5.75 percent and 6.75 percent, respectively. Key interest rates have now been raised by a total of 425 bps since May last year as inflation surged in the wake of Russia's invasion of Ukraine. January's 14-year high of 8.7 percent had prompted a 50- bps increase. But while headline inflation dipped to 8.6 percent in February, core inflation, which strips out volatile food and energy prices, rose to 7.8 from 7.4 percent.
SPORTS: Sister teams clash in PBA Final Four
Over to sports, after hurdling their respective quarterfinal foes successfully, the 2022-23 PBA Governors' Cup semifinals kicks off today, March 24, featuring a pair of games between sister teams. TNT takes on Meralco at 5:45 p.m. and San Miguel Beer battles Barangay Ginebra at 3 p.m. at the start of their highly anticipated best-of-five series at the Ynares Center in Antipolo City. TNT and Meralco were the last two teams to secure the semis seats last Wednesday after hammering out victories against respective opponents. The top seed Tropang Giga dominated eighth seed Phoenix Fuel Masters 132-105 while the fourth-ranked Bolts needed an extra five minutes to outlast the Magnolia Hotshots 113-107.
READ: Opinion and editorial
Rigoberto Tiglao and Francisco Tatad are today's front page columnists, as they both continue to tackle the sites that will be used under the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement between the Philippines and the United States.
Today's editorial talks about childhood obesity and the lure of junk food. Read the full version in the paper's opinion section or listen to the Voice of the Times.
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For The Manila Times, this is Kim Isabelle Dignadice.