News Roundup 30 November 2020
Nov 30, 2020 • 4 min Read
DOH: 1,773 new cases bring case total to 431,630 | PHILSTAR.COM – The Philippines reported more than 1,700 new infections of coronavirus, pushing country’s caseload to 431,630, the Department of Health said Monday. Forty-four new recoveries were recorded. The total number of recoveries reached 398,658 or 92.4% of the cumulative cases. But the respiratory illness claimed the lives of 19 more patients, raising fatality count to 8,392. Active cases in the country stood at 24,580, accounting for 5.7% of the total confirmed cases.
Pandemic means smaller balikbayan boxes, bigger fears for OFWs | PHILSTAR.COM – Every year, Overseas Filipino Workers Florence Fajardo and Bianca Balin make sure their pasalubong boxes are filled and ready by the first week of October: After all, the boxes of goodies they saved up for over the past year — food for Noche Buena and Christmas gifts for everyone — must arrive before the first Simbang Gabi. Fajardo and Balin, both 32 years old and working as nurses in Abha, Saudi Arabia said it took them longer to fill their boxes this year, but it was mostly due to curfews imposed in malls in their area. For thousands of OFWs forced to return to the country this year due to the pandemic, the Christmas celebration will not include the pasalubong boxes to dig through or a Noche Buena spread of treats from abroad
DOF to PITC: Return P1 billion in interest on ‘idle’ funds | INQUIRER.NET – Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez III is pressing Philippine International Trading Corp. (PITC) for the turnover to the national coffers of over P1 billion in interest on P33 billion in taxpayer money sitting idle in the accounts of the state-run procurement company, the Inquirer learned on Sunday. In a Nov. 27 letter, the head of the government’s economic team urged Trade Secretary Ramon Lopez, the PITC chair, to revert to the treasury P1.151 billion representing the balance of interests earned on funds held in trust by PITC for its client agencies to purchase various goods, such as fire trucks, army boots and first-aid kits. “Following our discussion, we would like to request the return to the Bureau of Treasury by PITC, the interest earned on such funds held in trust,” Dominguez said in the letter, a copy of which was sent to Senate Minority Leader Franklin Drilon, who had exposed the existence of billions of pesos in idle funds in the trading company overseen by the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI). “From 2018 to 2019, the interest earned on such funds totaled P1.151 billion,” said Dominguez, whose letter Drilon shared exclusively with the Inquirer on Sunday.
De Lima may avail herself of all legal remedies — Guevarra | Manila Bulletin – Justice Secretary Menardo I. Guevarra said on Sunday, November 30, detained Sen. Leila de Lima may avail herself of all legal remedies in connection with the dismissal by the Office of the Ombudsman (OMB) of the administrative complaint she filed against him. De Lima had filed in 2018 an administrative complaint for alleged gross neglect of duty against Guevarra before the OMB for using convicted prisoners as witnesses against her in her illegal drugs cases pending before the Muntinlupa City regional trial court (RTC). Published reports stated that De Lima has filed a petition with the Court of Appeals (CA) challenging the OMB’s dismissal order. In a published statement, De Lima was quoted as saying that “the law on Witness Protection, Security and Benefits Program (WPSBP) prohibits those convicted of crimes involving moral turpitude from becoming state witnesses…. The New Bilibid Prisons’ (NBP) convicts turned state witnesses against me by the Department of Justice (DOJ)… were convicted of heinous crimes, including kidnapping, murder, drug trading, among others.”
‘Apologies not enough for quarantine violations’ | Malaya Business Insight – The Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) will check out the recent mass gatherings attended by Sen. Emmanuel Pacquiao and presidential spokesman Harry Roque where safety protocols, specifically social distancing, to control the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) were said to be disregarded. Interior Secretary Eduardo Año yesterday said a “fact-finding” will be conducted on the Batangas and Bantayan, Cebu events where Pacquiao and Roque were separately seen speaking to a crowd where people sat close together in total disregard of the six-meter apart distance.
