New Zealand s Ardern pans mosque attacks film amid backlash
New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern on Monday criticised a planned movie about her response to the 2019 Christchurch mosque attacks as poorly timed and focussed on the wrong subject......»»
Ateneo pushes through with car park renovation project amid backlash
Ateneo's top official says only mahogany and gmelina trees will be cut down to make way for the car park's renovation, and they will be replaced by native trees in non-buildable areas of the campus.....»»
National Cybersecurity Plan seen as vital defense for digital economy
A consumer advocacy group has lauded the President’s approval of the National Cybersecurity Plan 2024-2029 amid the rising incidence of cyber attacks targeting the government and private sector......»»
Amid attacks, urban poor persist in fight for right to housing
The struggle for their right to housing taught them that they have bigger fights to win. The post Amid attacks, urban poor persist in fight for right to housing appeared first on Bulatlat......»»
SMNI suspension urged for alleged violations
Davao City-based legislator and Puwersa ng Bayaning Atleta (PBA) Partylist Representative Margarita “Migs” Ignacia B. Nograles has proposed a resolution urging the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) to suspend the operations of Sonshine Media Network International (SMNI). The resolution alleges that SMNI has violated the terms of its franchise and disseminated false information, failing in its responsibility to the public. This move is in response to multiple complaints filed against SMNI, including accusations of fake news peddling and baseless red-tagging of individuals, groups, and organizations. Specific incidents cited in the resolution include attacks on ACT Teachers Partylist Representative France L. Castro and false claims about House Speaker Ferdinand Martin Romualdez's foreign travel expenses. SMNI's host, Jeffrey “Ka Eric” Celiz, admitted to providing inaccurate information on air, further fueling the allegations against the network. Pending the Committee on Legislative Franchises' recommendations on SMNI's alleged violations, Nograles emphasized the urgency for the NTC to halt the deliberate dissemination of false information that may erode public trust. The 25-year franchise of SMNI was renewed in 2019, and the network has not yet issued an official statement regarding the resolution. In a related development, the House of Representatives Committee on Legislative Franchises cited Celiz and former National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-Elcac) spokesperson Lorraine Badoy-Partosa in contempt for refusing to disclose their source of erroneous information and being evasive about their income from co-producing their show. Both anchors will be detained at the House premises until the committee's report is adopted in the plenary. This story highlights the growing scrutiny on SMNI's operations and the calls for accountability amid allegations of spreading false information......»»
US Navy Seizes Attackers Who Held Israel-linked Tanker
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates - Armed assailants seized and later let go a tanker linked to Israel off the coast of Yemen on Sunday before being apprehended by the United States Navy, officials said.Two ballistic missiles fired from Houthi-controlled Yemen then landed near a U.S. warship in the Gulf of Aden, raising the stakes amid a series of ship attacks linked to the Israel-Hamas war.Yemen's internationa.....»»
US Navy Seizes Attackers Who Held Israel-linked Tanker
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates - Armed assailants seized and later let go a tanker linked to Israel off the coast of Yemen on Sunday before being apprehended by the United States Navy, officials said.Two ballistic missiles fired from Houthi-controlled Yemen then landed near a U.S. warship in the Gulf of Aden, raising the stakes amid a series of ship attacks linked to the Israel-Hamas war.Yemen's internationa.....»»
ICYMI: OpenAI Fires CEO Sam Altman, Rehires Him After Mass Employee Backlash
OpenAI, creator of hugely popular chatbot ChatGPT, fired its CEO Sam Altman, then rehired him amid massive employee backlash and threats of mass resignation, all in less than one week. What happened? OpenAI’s board of directors hastily kicked Altman, OpenAI’s CEO since 2019, out of the company on Friday. The AI company said in a […].....»»
Palestinians Flee Northern Gaza Amid Israeli Offensive
LATEST DEVELOPMENTS: Israeli military says it killed top Hamas weapons maker U.N. says number of people fleeing northern Gaza tripled between Monday and Tuesday Israeli defense minister says his troops are in Gaza City The Hamas-run health ministry in Gaza said the death toll from Israeli attacks has surpassed 10,500. G7 backs Israel's right to self-defense, while call.....»»
Palestinians Flee Northern Gaza Amid Israeli Offensive
LATEST DEVELOPMENTS: Israeli military says it killed top Hamas weapons maker U.N. says number of people fleeing northern Gaza tripled between Monday and Tuesday Israeli defense minister says his troops are in Gaza City The Hamas-run health ministry in Gaza said the death toll from Israeli attacks has surpassed 10,500. G7 backs Israel's right to self-defense, while call.....»»
Nearly 29,000 people flee southern Lebanon
Nearly 29,000 people have been displaced in Lebanon amid deadly exchanges between Iran-backed Hezbollah fighters and the Israeli army, a United Nations agency said Friday. A total of 28,965 people have been displaced, mainly in the country’s south, the International Organization for Migration said in an update, adding that the figure had risen by 37 percent since 23 October. Some have found refuge with family members elsewhere in the country, while those who can afford it have been able to rent apartments on a short-term basis. But with Lebanon in the grips of an economic crisis that has plunged most of the population into poverty, many are living in makeshift shelters in the south’s larger towns. Since Palestinian militant group Hamas carried out an unprecedented attack on Israel from the Gaza Strip on 7 October, Lebanon’s southern border has seen tit-for-tat exchanges between Israel and the Iran-backed Hezbollah, a Hamas ally. At least 58 people have been killed in the cross-border exchanges of fire, most of them Hezbollah fighters but also including at least four civilians, one of them Reuters journalist Issam Abdallah. Soldiers and volunteers on Thursday were battling a blaze on Lebanon’s southern border caused by Israeli bombing overnight, local officials said. Mayor of the border village of Alma al-Shaab, Jean Ghafari, said fire broke out after Israeli bombing late Wednesday. “The blaze reached the edges of the village after midnight” and is still burning, he told Agence France-Presse, adding that it “has come close to houses.” The municipality said some 70 percent of the village’s population had fled due to Israeli attacks. The post Nearly 29,000 people flee southern Lebanon appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Biden warned Iran leader against attacks — White House
President Joe Biden sent a message to Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei warning against strikes on US troops amid the Israel-Hamas conflict, the White House said on Thursday. "There was a direct message relayed. That's as far as I'm going to go," US National Security Council spokesman John Kirby told reporters, declining to say how it was delivered. Later Thursday, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said US forces conducted precision strikes on two facilities in eastern Syria used by Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. The Pentagon says US and allied forces in Iraq and Syria have been attacked at least 16 times this month as tensions rise in the Middle East. It blamed "Iranian-backed militia groups." Biden told a press conference on Wednesday that he had warned Khamenei of a response if the attacks continue. "My warning to the Ayatollah was that if they continue to move against those troops, we will respond, and he should be prepared. It has nothing to do with Israel," he said alongside visiting Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese. Iran meanwhile warned Washington at the United Nations General Assembly over Israel's campaign of air strikes and artillery against Gaza following the 7 October Hamas attacks. "I say frankly to the American statesmen and military forces who are now managing the genocide in Palestine, that we do not welcome the expansion and scope of the war in the region," Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian said. "But I warn if the genocide in Gaza continues, they will not be spared from this fire." The United States has moved two aircraft carrier groups near Israel since the Hamas attacks in what it says is a bid to deter Iran and its allies from broadening the conflict. On Sunday, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin also ordered the activation of air defense systems in the region and notified additional forces that they may be deployed soon. There are roughly 2,500 American troops in Iraq and some 900 in Syria as part of efforts to prevent a resurgence of the Islamic State group, which once held significant territory in both countries but was pushed back by local ground forces backed by international air strikes in a bloody multi-year conflict. The post Biden warned Iran leader against attacks — White House appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Myanmar nationals ask Philippines to probe alleged war crimes
Five Myanmar nationals asked the Philippines on Wednesday to investigate alleged war crimes committed by 10 serving or former members of Myanmar's military against the mainly Christian Chin minority. Filipino lawyers representing the Myanmar nationals told reporters they lodged the "landmark" criminal complaint against junta chief Min Aung Hlaing and nine others at the Department of Justice in Manila. They asked prosecutors to open an investigation into alleged war crimes under a Philippine law penalising "crimes against international humanitarian law, genocide, and other crimes against humanity". The five Myanmar nationals are from western Chin state, but now live in Australia, Britain, Canada and India. They were at the justice department in Manila. "This is a landmark suit because this is the very first time that such a case is being brought before the Philippines," Romel Bagares, one of the lawyers, told reporters. Justice Secretary Crispin Remulla said his department would "evaluate" the complaint, which he described as "very novel". "If this is sufficient in form and substance, that's the time when we will require the respondents to answer these complaints," Remulla told reporters. Among the accused is Chin Chief Minister Vung Suan Thang, who is a former military officer. The others are serving members of the military. The complaint alleged that members of Myanmar's military killed a pastor and two church elders in Thantlang town, Chin, in September 2021. It also accused the 10 of "intentionally" directing attacks on churches and the burning of hundreds of houses in the same town between August 2021 and June 2022. They also allegedly blocked relief supplies from reaching people in Chin state in the aftermath of Cyclone Mocha in May. 'Truly historic day' Philippine law allows for the prosecution of war crimes committed elsewhere. One of the stipulations of the law is that the accused must be present in the Philippines. According to Gilbert Andres, another Filipino lawyer representing the Myanmar nationals, if the Philippine justice department were to decide to mount a case against the 10 accused, it could issue subpoenas to Myanmar's Central Authority or go through diplomatic channels. The toppling of Aung San Suu Kyi's civilian government in a 2021 coup sparked a huge backlash and the military junta is now battling opponents across swaths of Myanmar. Some of the bloodiest fighting has been happening in Christian-majority areas, including in Chin state. "This is a truly historic day," Salai Ling, one of the five complainants and also of the Chin Human Rights Organization, told reporters in Manila. "We are really hoping that with the solidarity and support from the Filipino people and people in the ASEAN region, that we will be able to get some form of justice for the atrocities that our people suffered." Myanmar and the Philippines belong to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). The regional bloc's efforts to defuse the Myanmar crisis have been fruitless so far. The Philippines is now the subject of an international human rights probe, with the Hague-based International Criminal Court investigating "possible crimes against humanity" during former president Rodrigo Duterte's deadly drugs crackdown. In July, President Ferdinand Marcos said the Philippines was "done talking with the ICC" but would continue to question the tribunal's jurisdiction. The post Myanmar nationals ask Philippines to probe alleged war crimes appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Gibo: DND’s order on use of AI system vital amid spate of gov’t hacking in Phl
Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr. said that his order limiting the use of Artificial Intelligence applications in the defense sector was part of the Department of National Defense’s operational security measures following the spate of cyber attacks against Philippine government agencies. The DND’s internal order, signed by Teodoro on 18 October, directed all the defense employees and personnel of the Armed Forces of the Philippines to refrain from using AI photo generator apps. Teodoro reiterated such a system may pose significant security risks and give access to hackers to attack individuals or the entire security organization. He clarified that the DND’s order is part of its monitoring measures to prevent non-state actors from including the country’s defense sector in their cybersecurity attacks. “These hackers are paralyzing the governmental system to get money. It has been happening in America,” he noted. Teodoro pressed the need to strengthen the country’s cybersecurity parallel to boosting our defense deterrent posture. “Kailangan pagtibayin natin ang ating operational security, unang una na po ang ating internet hygiene na ang bawat empleyado kawani ng (We need to strengthen our operational security, first of all our internet hygiene that every employee) of DND and AFP personnel,” he said. “We shall exercise utmost operation security, especially nowadays,” he added. Teodoro has again warned that AI-powered applications seemed “harmless and amusing” but could be “maliciously used” to create fake profiles that can lead to identity theft, social media engineering, phishing attacks, and other erring activities that compromise someone’s personal data. The post Gibo: DND’s order on use of AI system vital amid spate of gov’t hacking in Phl appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Pentagon amps up posture in Mideast in response to ‘escalations’
The United States warned against any "escalation" in the Middle East in the wake of Israel's war with Hamas, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said Sunday, hours after the Pentagon moved to step up military readiness in the region. The United States has seen a "prospect of a significant escalation of attacks on our troops" in the region, Austin said Sunday, adding that the US military was preparing for "the ability to respond." "If any group or any country is looking to widen this conflict and take advantage of this very unfortunate situation that we see, our advice is: don't," he told ABC News. "We maintain the right to defend ourselves and we won't hesitate to take the appropriate action," he added. His comments came hours after the Pentagon said it was upping readiness in the region in response to "recent escalations by Iran and its proxy forces." Austin ordered the activation of air defense systems and notified additional forces that they may be deployed soon. Austin did not say how many US troops would be added to those already in the region. The Pentagon's moves came after what Austin had earlier described in a statement as "detailed discussions" with President Joe Biden. "These steps will bolster regional deterrence efforts, increase force protection for US forces in the region, and assist in the defense of Israel," Austin said. The steps continued the Biden administration's response since Hamas militants in the Gaza Strip stormed Israel on October 7, taking more than 200 hostages and killing at least 1,400 people, according to Israeli officials. tensions rising Israel has since vowed to destroy Hamas, and says around 1,500 of the group's fighters were killed in clashes before its army regained control of the area initially under attack. Austin said he had activated deployment of a Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) battery and additional Patriot battalions "throughout the region." "Finally, I have placed an additional number of forces on prepare-to-deploy orders as part of prudent contingency planning, to increase their readiness and ability to quickly respond as required," Austin said. Tensions are rising along Israel's northern border with Lebanon after the Israeli army traded fire with the Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah amid fears of a new front opening as Israel battles Hamas. In south Lebanon on Saturday, Hezbollah said four of its fighters were killed. Palestinian militant group Islamic Jihad said one of its fighters was also killed. Armed factions close to Iran have threatened to attack US interests in Iraq over Washington's support for Israel. Multiple Iraqi bases used by US-led coalition troops have been targeted in several attacks in recent days. Israel's military said Saturday it would intensify strikes on Hamas-controlled Gaza ahead of a planned ground invasion. The military has pounded Gaza with relentless strikes in response to Hamas's 7 October attack. The bombing campaign has killed more than 4,650 Palestinians, mainly civilians, according to the Hamas-run health ministry, and reduced swaths of the densely populated territory to ruins. A first trickle of aid entered the Palestinian enclave from Egypt on Saturday, but the 20 trucks permitted to cross have been described as a "drop in the ocean" given the needs of 2.4 million residents. The post Pentagon amps up posture in Mideast in response to ‘escalations’ appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Casualties on Israel-Lebanon border as army trades fire with Hezbollah
Casualties were reported along the Israel-Lebanon border Saturday as the army traded fire with Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah amid fears of a new front opening as Israel battles Hamas. Israel already ordered the evacuation of Kiryat Shmona, a border town which is home to some 25,000 people, as the border area has come fire from Hezbollah and allied Palestinian factions. In Lebanon, Hezbollah said one of its fighters had been killed while in Israel, two Thai farm workers were wounded, emergency services said. A senior Hezbollah official warned that the movement stood ready to step up its involvement as Israel masses troops on the Gaza border, vowing to destroy Palestinian militant group Hamas in response to its shock cross-border attacks on October 7. "Let's be clear, as events unfold, if something comes up that calls for greater intervention by us, we will do so," said Hezbollah number two Naim Qassem. In northern Israel, a strike in the Margaliot area of the border wounded two Thai farm workers, Israel's Magen David Adom emergency medical service said. One was wounded in the chest, the other sustained a limb injury, the service said. There are around 30,000 Thai labourers in Israel, many working in the agricultural sector. Since October 7, exchanges of fire across the border have killed at least four people in Israel -- three soldiers and one civilian. In southern Lebanon, at least 23 people have been killed. Most have been combatants, but at least four civilians, including a Reuters journalist, have also been killed. Saturday's exchanges came as Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant visited the northern border, where he called on troops to remain "vigilant". "Hezbollah has decided to participate in the fighting, and is paying a price for it. We must be vigilant and prepare for every possible (scenario). Great challenges await us," Gallant said. The Shiite Muslim Hezbollah movement, Lebanon's only armed faction that did not disarm after the 1975-1990 civil war, fought a devastating war with Israel in 2006. That war left more than 1,200 dead in Lebanon, mostly civilians, and 160 dead in Israel, mostly soldiers, in a conflict that left the border bristling with guns. The post Casualties on Israel-Lebanon border as army trades fire with Hezbollah appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
First relief convoy enters Gaza devastated by ‘nightmare’ war
The first aid trucks arrived in war-torn Gaza from Egypt on Saturday, bringing urgent humanitarian relief to the Hamas-controlled Palestinian enclave suffering what the UN chief labelled a "godawful nightmare". Israel has vowed to destroy Hamas after the Islamist militant group carried out the deadliest attack in the country's history on October 7. Hamas militants killed at least 1,400 people, mostly civilians who were shot, mutilated or burnt to death, and took more than 200 hostages, according to Israeli officials. Israel has retaliated with a relentless bombing campaign on Gaza that has killed more than 4,300 Palestinians, mainly civilians, according to the Hamas-run health ministry. An Israeli siege has cut food, water, electricity and fuel supplies to the densely populated and long-blockaded territory of 2.4 million people, sparking fears of a humanitarian catastrophe. AFP journalists on Saturday saw 20 trucks from the Egyptian Red Crescent, which is responsible for delivering aid from various UN agencies, pass through the Rafah border crossing from Egypt into Gaza. The crossing -- the only one into Gaza not controlled by Israel -- closed again after the trucks passed. The lorries had been waiting for days on the Egyptian side after Israel agreed to a request from its main ally the United States to allow aid to enter. UN chief Antonio Guterres warned Friday that the relief supplies were "the difference between life and death" for many Gazans, more than one million of whom have been displaced. "Much more" aid needs to be sent, he told a peace summit in Egypt on Saturday. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken welcomed the aid and urged "all parties" to keep the Rafah crossing open. But a Hamas spokesman said "even dozens" of such convoys could not meet Gaza's needs, especially as no fuel was being allowed in to help distribute the supplies to those in need. 'Reeling in pain' Tens of thousands of Israeli troops have deployed to the Gaza border ahead of an expected ground offensive that officials have pledged will begin "soon". As international tensions soar, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi was hosting a peace summit in Cairo on Saturday attended by regional and some Western leaders. "The time has come for action to end this godawful nightmare," Guterres told the summit, calling for a "humanitarian ceasefire". The region "is reeling in pain and one step from the precipice", he said. Guterres said "the grievances of the Palestinian people are legitimate and long" after "56 years of occupation with no end in sight". But he stressed that "nothing can justify the reprehensible assault by Hamas that terrorised Israeli civilians". "Those abhorrent attacks can never justify the collective punishment of the Palestinian people," he added. Egypt, historically a key mediator between Hamas and Israel, has urged "restraint" and the relaunch of the long-frozen peace process. But diplomatic efforts to end the violence have made little headway, without the participation of Israel and its enemy Iran, a supporter of Hamas and other armed groups. 'Sliver of hope' A full-blown Israeli ground offensive carries many risks, including to the hostages Hamas took and whose fate is shrouded in uncertainty. So the release of two Americans among the hostages -- mother and daughter Judith and Natalie Raanan -- offered a rare "sliver of hope", said Mirjana Spoljaric, president of the International Committee of the Red Cross. US President Joe Biden thanked Qatar, which hosts Hamas's political bureau, for its mediation in securing the release. He said he was working "around the clock" to win the return of other Americans being held. Natalie Raanan's half-brother Ben told the BBC he felt an "overwhelming sense of joy" at the release after "the most horrible of ordeals". Hamas said Egypt and Qatar had negotiated the release and that it was "working with all mediators to implement the movement's decision to close the civilian (hostage) file if appropriate security conditions allow". Traumatised families with loved ones missing in Gaza demanded more action. "We ask humanity to interfere and bring back all those young boys, young girls, mothers, babies," Assaf Shem Tov, whose nephew was abducted from a music festival where Hamas killed hundreds, said Friday. Devastation Almost half of Gaza's residents have been displaced, and at least 30 percent of all housing in the territory has been destroyed or damaged, the United Nations says. Thousands have taken refuge in a camp set up in the city of Khan Yunis in southern Gaza. Fadwa al-Najjar said she and her seven children walked for 10 hours to reach the camp, at some points breaking into a run as missiles struck around them. "We saw bodies and limbs torn off and we just started praying, thinking we were going to die," she told AFP. In Al-Zahra in central Gaza, Rami Abu Wazna was struggling to take in the destruction wreaked by Israeli missile strikes. "Even in my worst nightmares, I never thought this could be possible," he said. Israel's operation will take not "a day, nor a week, nor a month" and will result in "the end of Israel's responsibilities in the Gaza Strip", Defence Minister Yoav Gallant warned on Friday. Regional tensions flare In Gaza, retired general Omar Ashour said the destruction was "part of a clear plan for people to have no place left to live". "This will cause a second Nakba," he added, referring to the 760,000 Palestinians who were expelled from or fled their homes when Israel was created in 1948. The United States has moved two aircraft carriers into the eastern Mediterranean to deter Iran or Lebanon's Hezbollah, both Hamas allies, amid fears of a wider conflagration. Fire across Israel's border with Lebanon continued overnight, with one Israeli soldier killed, Israeli public radio said. The military said it hit Hezbollah targets after rocket and missile fire. Violence has also flared in the West Bank, where 84 Palestinians have been killed since October 7, according to the Palestinian health ministry. The post First relief convoy enters Gaza devastated by ‘nightmare’ war appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
‘Refrain from using AI image generators’
Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr. has issued a memorandum order directing all employees of the Department of National Defense and personnel of the Armed Forces of the Philippines to refrain from using Artificial Intelligence photo generator applications, which may pose significant security risks. In an interview on Friday, DND spokesperson Arsenio Andolong said Teodoro’s internal order was primarily intended for the defense department and its attached agencies. “In light of the fact that the risks and threats posed by these AI applications have not yet been established with certainty, the Secretary of National Defense has deemed it prudent to advise our personnel and the bureaus, especially the AFP, to refrain from using these apps,” Andolong said. “We all know that the defense department and its attached bureaus have many high-profile personalities among us, and any violation of their privacy, of the theft of their data and their identities, poses a great risk to them,” he said. He added that such actions might have security implications amid the current state of available technologies. “I will not venture more into that because I’m not an IT expert, but this could be used for activities that may lead to compromising our national security,” Andolong added. In a memorandum order dated 18 October, Teodoro warned that AI-powered applications seemed “harmless and amusing” but could be “maliciously used” to create fake profiles that could lead to identity theft, social media engineering, phishing attacks, and other erring activities, which could compromise someone’s personal data. He said there had been a report of such a case. “The online trending digital application that uses Artificial Intelligence, which requires its users to submit at least 10 photos of themselves to generate an enhanced portrait, poses significant privacy and security risks. This application compiles its users’ data and creates a digital person that mimics how a real individual speaks and moves,” he said. The post ‘Refrain from using AI image generators’ appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Russia Reshuffles Military Ships Following Ukrainian Attacks – The Daily Guardian
Title: Russia Relocates Warships from Sevastopol to Novorossiysk Amid Heightened Tensions with Ukraine Date: [Insert Date] Sevastopol, Crimea – In response to the sustained Ukrainian.....»»
Should BSP defend the peso?
Amid reports that the Philippine peso is now among the worst-performing currencies this quarter, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas is said to be mulling over intervening to defend the currency at P57 to the US dollar in hopes of arresting its slide. However, it also said it won’t intervene much if the peso slides along with other currencies. In light of present-day realities, should the BSP proceed with an intervention? As we all know, the exchange rate policy is a critical aspect of a country’s economic strategy, influencing its trade balance, inflation rates, and overall economic stability. A fixed rate of P57 to the dollar implies stability and predictability for businesses engaged in international trade. A stable exchange rate can foster investor confidence, attract foreign direct investment, and stimulate economic growth. On the other hand, a flexible exchange rate allows for adjustments in response to changing economic conditions, potentially aiding in external competitiveness. One of the primary arguments in favor of defending the Philippine peso at P57 to the US dollar is stability. A fixed exchange rate provides businesses with a clear and unchanging benchmark for international transactions, reducing uncertainty and mitigating risks associated with currency fluctuations. This stability can attract foreign investors, offering a predictable business planning and investment decisions environment. Moreover, defending the peso at P57 may help control inflation. A stable exchange rate can contribute to price stability by preventing imported inflation. If the peso depreciates significantly, the cost of imported goods and services will rise, leading to higher inflation rates. By defending the peso at P57, the central bank can act as a bulwark against inflationary pressures, ensuring the currency’s purchasing power remains relatively constant. In terms of trade dynamics, a fixed exchange rate can be advantageous. A strong and stable peso makes imported goods more affordable for consumers, contributing to a higher standard of living. Additionally, it can encourage domestic industries by making exports more competitive in international markets. This could lead to increased export-led economic growth, job creation, and reduced trade deficits. While defending the Philippine peso at P57 to the US dollar offers certain advantages, there are also compelling arguments against such a fixed exchange rate. One major concern is the loss of monetary policy autonomy. In a fixed exchange rate regime, the central bank’s ability to independently conduct monetary policy is limited, as it must adjust interest rates to maintain the targeted exchange rate. This lack of flexibility can be a significant drawback, especially in the face of changing economic conditions. Furthermore, a fixed exchange rate may not reflect the true market equilibrium. If the peso is overvalued at P57 to the dollar, it could lead to a loss of competitiveness for Philippine exports. This might hinder economic growth in the long run as industries struggle to compete globally. Additionally, an overvalued currency could contribute to persistent trade deficits, as the cost of imports remains relatively low. Another consideration is the potential for speculative attacks. If market participants believe that the fixed exchange rate is unsustainable, they may engage in speculative activities to profit from an anticipated devaluation. This can lead to increased pressure on the central bank’s foreign exchange reserves, making it challenging to maintain the targeted exchange rate. In conclusion, whether the central bank should defend the Philippine peso at P57 to the US dollar is nuanced, requiring careful balancing of economic objectives. While a fixed exchange rate can offer stability, attract investment, and control inflation, it comes at the cost of reduced monetary policy autonomy and potential distortions in trade dynamics. Ultimately, the central bank must consider the broader economic context, international market forces, and the long-term sustainability of its exchange rate policy. Flexibility and adaptability may be vital in navigating the complexities of the global economic landscape while fostering a resilient and competitive domestic economy. The post Should BSP defend the peso? appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Sara lauds support for OVP budget
Vice President Sara Duterte on Monday thanked President Ferdinand Marcor Jr. and other administration officials for defending the P125-million confidential fund of the Office of the Vice President. “I want to express my heartfelt gratitude to President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and to several officials of the Marcos administration who stood by the Office of the Vice President as it faced the storm of attacks on the 2022 confidential fund,” Duterte said in a statement. Duterte also expressed gratitude to Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin, Defense Secretary Gilbert Teodoro, and Marikina Rep. Stella Quimbo for standing by the OVP amid the issue. “These efforts are genuinely appreciated because they help counter the lies told by Rep. France Castro and the Makabayan bloc in Congress on the 2022 OVP confidential fund,” Duterte said. The Vice President slammed Sen. Risa Hontiveros and House Deputy Minority Leader France Castro of ACT Teachers Partylist who questioned the transfer of budget allocations in 2022 to OVP’s confidential funds, saying such an item was not provided under last year’s General Appropriation Act. “Senator Risa Hontiveros, while she amuses the nation with her flair for drama, could only wish the 2022 OVP confidential fund was accessed illegally,” Duterte said. “It’s a shame they still cannot produce any proof to support their dirty imagination. The indignity they have caused Congress and the Senate should be enough for us not to give them serious attention,” she added. “But I believe the lies they peddled to the public will eventually lose their charm and the OVP and DepEd will persist, be vindicated, and realize their aspirations for the Filipinos and the country.” Meanwhile, Hontiveros, in reply to Duterte’s statements, said that her questioning of the OVP confidential is “just work and no drama.” “VP Sara, I thought the OVP (Office of the Vice President) can live without confidential funds? Then why do you seem to be sweating out for only a budget hearing? All agencies are releasing their proposed budget,” Hontiveros asked. The post Sara lauds support for OVP budget appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»