Good day. Here are the stories for The Manila Times for Thursday, June 8, 2023.
READ: PH has right to build up its defense – Gibo
THE Philippines has the right to build up a credible defense without any question coming from other nations, newly appointed Defense Secretary Gilberto "Gibo" Teodoro Jr. said on Wednesday. Teodoro said other countries should not question this right as the Philippines does not call out other nations engaged in the buildup of defensive and even offensive capabilities.
READ: NAIA privatization seen early next year
THE Department of Transportation on Wednesday said it is eyeing to implement the privatization of the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) by the first quarter of 2024. Transportation Undersecretary for Aviation and Airports Roberto Lim explained that NAIA's privatization will have "upsides" in terms of efficiency in passenger and flight movement, and generate income for the government.
READ: Herbosa vows to resolve health workers' concerns
NEWLY appointed Health Secretary Teodoro Herbosa vowed to resolve concerns regarding the release of health care workers' benefits. In a chance interview with reporters at the Department of Health office in Manila on Wednesday, Herbosa, who is a public health and emergency medical expert, underscored the importance of health care workers, especially during the Covid-19 pandemic.
READ: Filipinos can travel visa-free to Canada
OTTAWA on Wednesday said eligible Filipinos now qualify for "visa-free" travel to Canada under its electronic travel authorization (eTA) program. The Canadian Embassy in the Philippines said the decision supports Canada's Indo-Pacific Strategy, which aims to strengthen relations and invest in people-to-people ties between Canada and the Indo-Pacific region, including the Philippines. The Philippines is one of the 13 additional countries whose eligible citizens may benefit from visa-free travel, the embassy said in a statement posted on Twitter. In the last 10 years, Canada issued 466,936 temporary resident visas to citizens from the Philippines. These individuals, along with US non-immigrant visa holders, are eligible for visa-free travel. The embassy said it costs 7 Canadian dollars to apply, and most applications are automatically approved within minutes. To apply for an eTA, travelers need only a valid passport, a credit card, an email address and access to the internet.
BUSINESS: World Bank raises PH growth forecast
Over to business, the World Bank has raised its 2023 growth forecast for the Philippines to 6.0 percent from 5.6 percent previously, citing strong domestic demand. The Washington-based multilateral organization still expects a slowdown to follow, keeping its projections for 2024 and 2025 at 5.9 percent, figures released on Wednesday showed.
SPORTS: Gilas begins training camp for World Cup
In sports, Pilipinas naturalized players led by Utah Jazz star Jordan Clarkson, Justin Brownlee and big man Ange Kouame headline the 21-man national pool that is set to prepare for the 2023 FIBA Basketball World Cup set to start on August 25. The other members of the pool include 7-foot-3 young big man Kai Sotto, Dwight Ramos, June Mar Fajardo, Scottie Thompson, Jamie Malonzo, Chris Newsome, Jordan Heading, Kiefer Ravena, C.J. Perez, Roger Pogoy, Thirdy Ravena, Carl Tamayo, Japeth Aguilar, Poy Erram, Bobby Ray Parks Jr. and Calvin Oftana. Also named to the pool are former N.C.A.A. men's basketball champion and league Most Valuable Player Rhenz Abando and A.J. Edu. Gilas is slated to start its FIBA World Cup training on Wednesday at the Meralco Gym, and is expected to leave late this June for its Europe training camp that will include tune-up matches versus Estonia, Finland, Latvia and possibly, the under-21 national team of Lithuania, according to coach Chot Reyes. Fajardo, Pogoy and Aguilar are recovering from separate injuries sustained from the recent P.B.A. Governors' Cup won by T.N.T.
READ: Opinion and editorial
Antonio Contreras, Yen Makabenta, and Danton Remoto are today's front page columnists. Contreras weighs in on a priest accused of offending religious feelings, Makabenta prefers the country's name to be named "Filipinas", while Remoto discusses translating author Amado V. Hernandez's novels.
Today's editorial believes that a proactive approach is needed to clean up the maritime sector. Read the full version in the paper's opinion section or listen to the Voice of the Times.
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