GOVERNANCE/POLITICS

MANILA – The Marcos administration is putting a premium on the safety and welfare of media workers in the country, the Presidential Task Force on Media Security (PTFoMS) said on Wednesday.

The assurance was made during the recent participation of lawyer Perry Solis, officer-in-charge of the PTFoMS, in the 33rd session of the Intergovernmental Council of the International Programme for the Development of Communication (IPDC).

COTABATO CITY  – A remote village in Maguindanao del Sur has become the first barangay in the Bangsamoro region to be honored as winner for this year's 4th-6th Class Municipalities Category of the Lupong Tagapamayapa Incentives Award (LTIA) of the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG).

Barangay Kauran in Ampatuan, Maguindanao del Sur becomes the first awardee in the Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao (BARMM).  

The national awards ceremony was held Monday at The Manila Hotel.

COTABATO CITY - The Basilan provincial government received from President Ferdinand Marcos, Jr. Tuesday the vaunted Galing Pook Award in recognition of its gains in its domestic peace and development initiatives.

Basilan Gov. Jim Salliman received the award from the President in Malacañang, in the presence of government officials, among them Senate President Juan Miguel Zubiri, Local Government Secretary Benjamin Abalos, Jr. and Mel Senen Sarmiento of the Galing Pook Foundation.

MANILA – Department of Budget and Management (DBM) Secretary Amenah Pangandaman is scheduled to attend the annual conference of local budget officers in Mindanao on Monday.

In a press statement Sunday, DBM said Pangandaman will be the guest of honor of the three-day annual conference and seminar of the Mindanao League of Local Budget Officers (MLLBO) which will be held in Zamboanga City.

MANILA – President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. on Tuesday stressed the importance of preemptive evacuation to reduce the risk of losing lives in times of calamity.

In a post-typhoon situation briefing held in Antique, Marcos directed the local governments to ensure that all their constituents, especially those living near danger zones, are following the preemptive evacuation plans during emergency situations.

PARANG, Maguindanao de Norte – About 200 new police recruits took their oath as patrolman and patrolwoman during attrition program held here on Thursday afternoon.

Starting today, Nov. 5, the 200 police officers will start receiving their salaries and their Land Bank ATM cards had been released during the ceremonies held at Grandstand of Camp Gen. Salipada K. Pendatun, Barangay Making, Parang, Maguidanao del Norte.

MANILA – A total of 150 deaths have been reported so far from the onslaught of Severe Tropical Storm Paeng, the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) reported on Thursday.

Of the figure, 94 have been validated – 63 from the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM), 28 from Western Visayas, and three from Soccsksargen.

Caritas Philippines, the Catholic Church’s social action arm, is supporting a petition to strike down the law that mandated the postponement of the barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan (SK) elections.

Bishop Jose Colin Bagaforo, its national director, said they remain opposed to the move as it undermines the importance of the poll exercise.

“Postponing the barangay election for the third time since 2016 reflects how our national political leaders undermine the importance of barangay-level politics in the exercise of our democratic rights,” Bagaforo said.

MANILA – The Commission on Elections (Comelec) said it is prepared to hold the Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan Elections (BSKE) even this year and thanked the Supreme Court for acknowledging its efforts during the May 9 polls.

The Comelec aired its side during Friday’s oral arguments that tackled the petition of election lawyer Romulo Macalintal, who claimed Republic Act 11935 that reset the BSKE from December 5 to October 2023 is unconstitutional.

COTABATO CITY – The Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMm) is building 31 more 2-storey barangay halls buildings across the region totaling to P108.5 million at P3.5 million each.

On Thursday, the signing of Memorandum of Agreements for the implementation of this project was held at the Bajau Office of the Chief Minister, Bangsamoro Government Center, Cotabato City.