In August 2018, the Philippine inflation rate soared to 6.4 percent, the highest in the past nine years. The following month, the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) reported it rising to 6.7 percent—a small increase, but still far above estimates. The reason, as PSA reported, was due to price increases seen on food, transportation, and utilities.…
Tag: National Situationer
As part of the commemoration of the 46th anniversary of the declaration of Martial Law, a mob dubbed the “United People’s Action: Labanan ang Diktadura” was organized and held last September 21 in front of Luneta Park. The event aimed to unite various sectors of the Filipino society, to address the aftereffects of the Marcos…
Reports from Andrea Punzalan In an effort to engage the Filipinos in a discussion regarding the “true” state of the nation, a mobilization tagged as “United People’s SONA” was held yesterday, July 23, outside St. Peter’s Parish in Commonwealth Ave., Quezon City. Movement Against Tyranny, Anakbayan, Tindig Pilipinas, BAYAN, and members of the #BabaeAko movement…
A movement against the administration of President Rodrigo Duterte, tagged as “HINDIpendence Day,” was held yesterday at Liwasang Bonifacio, Ermita as a mobilization to commemorate the 120th year of the nation’s independence. Being part of the event, a Women’s Freedom March, dubbed “#BabaeAko,” also transpired, led by women’s issues advocate group, Gabriela. In…
Acting Chief Justice Antonio Carpio, one of the staunchest advocates on the maritime issues surrounding West Philippine Sea, delivered a talk titled “The South China Sea Dispute: Philippines vs. China” last March 1. The talk, organized by the International Studies Department, tackled the history and background of the territorial dispute, the actions currently being done…
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Federalism in the Philippine Context
Aside from his war against corruption and illegal drugs, one of the landmark aspects of Rodrigo Duterte’s presidential campaign is the shift to a federal government. Touted as the solution to the growing socio-economic divide between the capital and the far-flung regions of the Philippines, federalism aims to provide regions an equal playing field by…
Over the years, the Philippine tax system has been described as ‘unfair’, ‘corrupt’, and ‘complicated’ among other distressing adjectives. Congress has put forth numerous bills and exchanged multiple arguments to revamp the prejudiced Tax Reform Act of 1997, but it was only in December 2017 that it finally passed a new bill that promised to…
The threat posed by the Islamic State is still far from over as the five-month firefight between government forces and armed non-state actors or “militants” in Marawi City has supposedly come to an end. According to a November 2017 report by the Amnesty International, the conflict resulted to unlawful killings and hostage-taking by militants, ill-treatment…
In July 2016, the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) in the Netherlands issued a ruling in favor of the Philippines regarding its maritime disputes with the People’s Republic of China in the West Philippine Sea. The ruling was a product of a three-year process pursued by the Philippine government for a non-violent and legitimate means…
Various transport groups gathered for a protest against the government’s Public Utility Vehicle (PUV) Modernization Program last July 17 at various places in the country such as Metro Manila, Pampanga, and Zambales. Some of the transport groups involved were Pinagkaisang Samahan ng mga Tsuper at Opereytor Nationwide (PISTON) Partylist, United Transportation Federation of Makati (UTFM),…