Philippines Morning News For March 12, 2019

Philippines gets $9.8 billion FDI in 2018, posts first drop in three years
Foreign direct investment (FDI) in the Philippines fell for the first time in three years in 2018 to $9.8 billion, nearly 4.5 percent lower than prior year’s record inflow, the central bank data showed on Monday.
— Reuters

Philippines news site Rappler loses appeal on foreign ownership
A Philippine news website critical of President Rodrigo Duterte violated a constitutional ban on foreign ownership in media companies, the Court of Appeals said in a decision released Monday.
— Bangkok Post

Duterte on budget impasse: ‘I will not sign anything illegal’
Manila, Philippines — President Rodrigo Duterte on Monday said he will not sign “anything that would be illegal” as the legislative branch has yet to transmit the 2019 national budget to Malacaang.
— Inquirer.net

PH out of ICC soon: Eyes on the Supreme Court to intervene
No decision is in sight from the Supreme Court (SC) to intervene, or at least to make guidelines, as the Philippines’ withdrawal from the International Criminal Court (ICC) becomes effective on March 17.
— Rappler

The Philippines Faces Budget Delays That Threaten Growth
The Philippines is facing further budget delays that threaten to cut growth and stall infrastructure projects as lawmakers continue to fight over their share in the spending plan.
— Bloomberg

Alcohol tax to raise P237-B in 5 years
A proposal by Senator Emmanuel Pacquiao to increase the excise tax on alcohol products will raise additional revenues of almost PHP237 billion over a five-year period and at the same time help reduce excessive consumption of alcoholic drinks or binge drinking that is linked to vehicular crash accidents, domestic abuse and other crimes.
— Philippine News Agency

Agricultural damage caused by El Niño reaches P464 million
Agricultural damage caused by the weak El Niño in the Pacific Ocean reached P464.27 million as of Monday, March 11, based on data from the Disaster Risk Reduction and Management (DRRM) Operations Center of the Department of Agriculture (DA).
— Rappler

BSP’s peso rediscount facility availments up 500% in end-Feb.
Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas’ (BSP) Peso Rediscount Facility availments jumped 500.6 percent to PHP34.895 billion in the first two months of 2019 against PHP5.81 billion during the same period last year.
— Philippine News Agency

ICC has been violating its own provisions: Palace
If the International Criminal Court (ICC) will force its jurisdiction over the Philippines to investigate the Duterte administration’s war on drugs, this would mean that it would be violating its own provisions, Malacañang said on Monday.
— Philippine News Agency

900 families homeless in Quezon City fire
An estimated 900 families lost their homes in a two-hour fire that hit a residential area in Quezon City yesterday.
— The Philippine Star

Billions lost from mining ban
Experts said the Philippines is losing billions of dollars in potential mining investments because of the policy stalemate plaguing the industry.
— Malaya

Government eyes up to $500 million panda bond issue in April
The government is eyeing to return to the Chinese onshore market in April with the issuance of renminbi-denominated panda bonds, the Bureau of the Treasury (BTr) said yesterday.
— The Philippine Star

Senate won’t push medical marijuana bill
SENATE PRESIDENT Vicente C. Sotto III on Monday said the Senate will not pass any measure legalizing medical marijuana following President Rodrigo R. Duterte’s turnaround on this matter.
— BusinessWorld Online

Philippine Navy’s first missile-armed frigate set for May launch
The Philippine Navy’s first of two missile-armed frigates will be launched in May this year.
— Inquirer.net

Philippines ‘careful’ with China loans
THE Philippines has not been put at a “disadvantage” when it entered into a loan arrangement with China, Malacañang on Monday, March 11, guaranteed Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad.
— Sun Star

62 congressmen affected by budget realignments
Senate Minority Leader Franklin Drilon on Monday bared that at least 62 lawmakers in the House of Representatives were affected by the “realignments” when their leaders tinkered with the bicameral conference committee-approved the P3.757-trillion national budget for 2019.
— Manila Bulletin

Filipinos can now secure business, investor visas to Japan
Filipinos can now secure business and investor visas to Japan following amendments to the trade deal between the Association of Southeast Asian Nations and Japan.
— Inquirer.net

Cloud-seeding in Philippines to trigger rains
The government is poised to embark on water conservation measures amid an expected extended dry season brought about by the El Nino.
— Gulf News

More priests bare death threats under Duterte’s watch
More Catholic priests came out on Monday, March 11, to expose death threats against them under the watch of President Rodrigo Duterte.
— Rappler

EU market may revive PH’s ‘dying’ copra industry – DA
The Department of Agriculture (DA) sees hope of reviving the country’s copra industry.
— UNTV News

Cavite creates PH’s first provincial task force against insurgency
Cavite became the first province in the Philippines to organize a Provincial Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (PTF-ELCAC) after the Provincial Peace and Order Council approved a resolution in a meeting last March 8 in Trece Martires City.
— Manila Bulletin

‘Think twice about your work ethics,’ Palace advises Filipino workers
Malacañang on Monday offered a piece of advice for Filipino workers and citizens who felt slighted by the latest controversial remark of special envoy to China Ramon “Mon” Tulfo Jr.
— CNN Philippines

Civilian workers of Army to get financial training
More than 90,000 soldiers and over a thousand civilian employees of the military stand to benefit from a financial literacy program launched recently by BDO Foundation in partnership with the Philippine Army and Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas.
— Manilastandard.net

Reenacted budget will decrease PH growth rate: Duterte
MANILA — If the Philippine government continues to operate on a reenacted budget, the country’s growth rate will take a blow, President Rodrigo R. Duterte said on Monday night.
— Philippine News Agency

Cebu City to release P10-M to address drought
CEBU CITY – The city government is set to release PHP10 million to initially address the water supply problem in mountain villages that are now experiencing the effects of mild El Niño.
— Philippine News Agency

Morocco, Chile want aviation pacts with PHL
Morocco and Chile are looking at crafting air-traffic deals with the Philippines this year to strengthen their separate bilateral relations with Manila, a ranking government official said on Monday.
— Business Mirror

UP stat school: More Pinoys joined ranks of poorest in 2018
More Filipinos, especially fisherfolk and farmers, likely joined the ranks of the country’s poorest in 2018, according to a study from the University of the Philippines School of Statistics.
— Business Mirror

Conglomerate to build road from recycled plastics
San Miguel Corp. (SMC) yesterday said it will build the country’s first recycled plastic road as part of initiatives to address solid waste pollution.
— Malaya

Erap offers P100,000 reward to catch feces-dumping driver
Manila Mayor Joseph Estrada yesterday offered a reward of P100,000 to anyone who can identify the driver and owner of a truck caught on surveillance footage dumping human waste in front of a hotel in Malate on Feb. 4.
— The Philippine Star

Duterte names 37 new prosecutors
President Rodrigo Duterte had appointed 37 new prosecutors, according to Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra.
— The Manila Times

Cebu Pacific beefing up hub in Clark to cash in on northern market potential
Budget carrier Cebu Pacific, the largest airline in the Philippines by volume, is beefing up its hub in Clark with the introduction of three new domestic destinations out of the airport north of Manila.
— Business Mirror

Central bank to launch new clearing house for gov’t
THE CENTRAL BANK is looking to launch a new clearing house that will allow digital payments for government services, as part of a stronger push for online transactions.
— BusinessWorld Online

N.G.C.P. lays out crucial transmission projects
THE National Grid Corp. of the Philippines (NGCP) has enumerated a number of transmission projects that are part of its annual Transmission Development Plan (TDP) for 2019-2040.
— Business Mirror

Lower mobile phone rates for poor, gov’t urged
A senatorial candidate of Hugpong ng Pagbabago (HNP) called for several measures to bring more efficient and less expensive telecommunications services to consumers.
— Inquirer.net

Guv vetoes Antique’s P1.19-B executive budget
SAN JOSE DE BUENAVISTA, Antique – Antique Governor Rhodora J. Cadiao vetoed the PHP1.19-billion executive budget of the province that was recently approved by the Provincial Board and forwarded to her office on March 8.
— Philippine News Agency

Palace backtracks: PCSO chief quit, wasn’t fired
Malacaang has backtracked from its previous pronouncement that President Duterte fired Alexander Balutan as general manager of the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO).
— Inquirer.net

Ballot for overseas voting shipped soon
The Commission on Elections (Comelec) is set to deploy official ballots and other poll paraphernalia for the overseas absentee voting that will be held a month before the May 13 regular midterm elections.
— Inquirer.net

Most Filipinos are aging prematurely
A few wrinkles won’t kill you. Or, will they? Pay attention to the signs on your face.
— Inquirer.net

CV execs discuss project implementation in rebel-infested areas
CEBU CITY — Regional officials in Central Visayas (CV) have discussed ways to construct school buildings in far-flung villages of Negros Oriental, where contractors who have won the bidding are afraid to go because of threats from armed groups.
— Philippine News Agency

BOC-Zamboanga sets P1-B ‘self-imposed’ revenue goal
ZAMBOANGA CITY — The Bureau of Customs (BOC) is eyeing to collect PHP1 billion in tariffs and duties this year, a remarkable take-off from its earlier collection goal of less than half billion pesos.Segundo Sigmundfreud Barte Jr., BOC-Zamboanga district collector, described on Monday.
— Philippine News Agency

Duterte slams women for ‘depriving’ him of freedom of expression
MANILA, Philippines – President Rodrigo Duterte, at an event honoring women no less, accused women of depriving him of his right to freedom of expression.
— Rappler

S. Korea-backed project for Panay upland farmers may be replicated elsewhere
A five-year program seeking to turn Panay’s upland farmers into direct distributors of their produce will be replicated in other parts of the country, Agriculture Secretary Emmanuel F. Piñol said.
— BusinessWorld Online

Feature photo Brian Evans

Find our previous morning news feature photos in the AEC News Today Morning News Feature Photos gallery where you will find a pictorial display of daily life throughout the Asean Economic Community (AEC).

Philippines morning news by AEC News Today is your one stop source for Philippines news on matters of governance and policies affecting Asean business communities. It is published M-F by AEC News Today: Governance, not government; policies not politics.

Philippines morning news for March 12 added by Stella-maris Ewudolu on March 12, 2019
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Stella-maris Ewudolu

Journalist at AEC News Today

Stella-maris graduated with a Bachelor of Arts, Education from Ebonyi State University, Nigeria in 2005.

Between November 2010 and February 2012 she was a staff writer at Daylight Online, Nigeria writing on health, fashion, and relationships. From 2010 – 2017 she worked as a freelance screen writer for ‘Nollywood’, Nigeria.

She joined AEC News Today in December 2016.