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  The outgoing Duterte administration, who went on a borrowing spree to fund the pandemic response and costly infrastructure projects, wants the next administration to impose new taxes to pay for the P5.3 trillion debt it contracted. In a statement on Sunday (May 29), ACT-Teachers Rep. France Castro said that the Duterte administration only “used the COVID-19 pandemic as an excuse to borrow trillions for infrastructure projects.” However, only 0.107 percent of the total borrowings of the government went to the COVID-19 response, Castro said, citing data from IBON Foundation, which said only P570 billion out of P5.3-trillion borrowings were actually spent for COVID-19 response from 2020 to 2021. Castro noted that the Duterte administration was not able to provide enough funds for aid and services during the pandemic but still managed to inflate the country’s debt. On May 25, outgoing officials of the Department of Finance (DOF) proposed a “fiscal consolidation” plan that the...

  [WAGE INCREASE ALERT] Download the full copy of the wage order here: bit.ly/3NAWmZG For more updates about local employment, please join our Viber Channel by clicking bit.ly/BLE_UsapangTrabaho .

  Luka Doncic, Mavericks embarrass Suns in Game 7 blowout to advance to West finals PHOENIX — It was a bad day for teams from the 2021 NBA Finals. And for fans of Game 7s. The  Dallas Mavericks  were dominant from the opening tip for a  wire-to-wire 123-90 win  over the  Phoenix Suns  in the Western Conference semifinals at Footprint Center on Sunday. The Mavericks advanced to the West finals against the  Golden State Warriors . Game 1 is 9 p.m. ET Wednesday in San Francisco. Earlier Sunday, the  Boston Celtics  eliminated the defending NBA champion  Milwaukee Bucks  with a 109-81 victory in the East semifinals. The top-seeded Suns had the best regular season record and were early favorites for the 2022 NBA championship. They certainly didn’t look like that on Sunday. The Suns shot a season-low 24.4% from the field in the first half for only 27 points at halftime. Meanwhile, Luka Doncic had 27 points of his own in the first hal...

  Putin coup is underway and 'impossible to stop,' says Ukraine's military intelligence chief A coup to overthrow Russian President Vladimir Putin is underway, according to Ukraine's military intelligence chief. The coup is "impossible to stop," Major General Kyrylo Budanov told Sky News. The Russian leader is in "a very bad psychological and physical condition," Budanov said. A coup to overthrow Russian President Vladimir Putin is underway and can't be stopped, according to Ukraine's military intelligence chief. Speaking to  Sky News,   Major General Kyrylo Budanov  said that a Russian military defeat would result in Putin's removal and the country's eventual collapse. "It will eventually lead to the change of leadership of the Russian Federation," Budanov said, per Sky News. "This process has already been launched." Budanov said "yes" when pressed by Sky News international affairs editor Dominic Waghorn...

  Marcos, son of Philippines dictator, wins election   Ferdinand Marcos Jr clinched a stunning landslide victory in the Philippines' presidential election on Monday, bringing the son of a former dictator back to lead the nation. An unofficial tally showed Marcos, popularly known as "Bongbong," with more than double the votes of his closest rival, setting the stage for a once unthinkable return to rule of the Marcos family, 36 years after its retreat into exile during a "people power" uprising. Supporters in Manila cheered as news came in. ISAIAH MIRAFUENTES: "After we vote we go here to support and wait for the result, and now we won, 20 million plus votes for BBM!" Marcos has presented no real policy platform, campaigning on a simple but ambiguous message of unity. Marcos was criticized for skipping presidential debates and made few media appearances during the campaign, enabling him to limit scrutiny and control his message via a network of influence...

  Various organizations and individuals gathered in front of University of the Philippines - Manila to mass up before heading to the Commission on Elections, Intramuros to condemn the unjustifiable outcome of the 2022 elections yesterday.

  Son of ousted Philippine dictator headed for landslide victory in presidential election Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr., the son of the dictator who stole billions of dollars in public funds during his two decades as president, is on track to become the next president of the Philippines,  The New York Times   reported  Monday. By early Tuesday morning, more than 90 percent of the ballots had been counted, and Marcos had reportedly received more than twice as many votes as his closest competitor — incumbent Vice President Leni Robredo. Robredo previously defeated Marcos in the 2016 vice-presidential election. The 64-year-old scion poised to succeed  President Rodrigo Duterte , who is constitutionally limited to a single term, served as a regional vice governor and governor during his father's dictatorship. The Marcos family was exiled from the Philippines when the elder Marcos was  overthrown  in 1986 but was allowed to return to the country in 1991. ...

  ‘Avatar: The Way of Water’ Trailer: James Cameron’s Long-Awaited Sequel Finally Debuts Footage After 13 years and numerous delays,  20th Century Studios  has finally released a glimpse into  James Cameron ’s “ Avatar  2,” due Dec. 16. This marks the long-awaited sequel to the highest-grossing film of all time. The sequel’s official title is “Avatar: The Way of Water.” After being re-released last year in China, the first “Avatar”  overtook  “Avengers: Endgame” as the most lucrative film of all time (according to ticket sales) when its revenue surpassed $2.8 billion globally. Its original run in the United States was unprecedented, with the film thriving in theaters for over 10 months. “ Avatar 2 ” is scheduled for release on Dec. 16. Cameron initially said he was aiming for a  2014 release , which was pushed back seven times until its current date later this year. Shooting for the film  wrapped back in 2020  in tandem with “Avatar 3,” ...

  Peso Poised for Deeper Drop as Marcos Jr. Eyes Presidency   By David Finnerty (Bloomberg) —The Philippines peso is in danger of extending this year’s decline as uncertainty over the policies of the front-runner in Monday’s presidential election adds to economic headwinds. While Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. is favored by 56% of respondents in a survey conducted from April 16 – 21 by pollster Pulse Asia Research Inc., he scored the second lowest in a Bloomberg poll of investors. “There is more uncertainty as to where Marcos Jr. stands on key policy issues,” said Euben Paracuelles, chief Asean economist at Nomura Holdings Inc. in Singapore. “His campaign has not said much and he has not attended presidential debates.” The peso has already fallen about 2.9% against the greenback this year as the central bank mulls when to lift its policy rate from a record low while peers including the Federal Reserve increase the pace of monetary tightening. The nation’s trade deficit has ad...

  Luka Doncic was brilliant, but the Mavericks have glaring issue vs. athletic Suns PHOENIX — Every time  Luka Doncic  turned a corner looking for daylight, there were dark jerseys around, equipped with long arms and anxious stares. He made mincemeat out of Utah defenders a few days ago, but the  Phoenix Suns  are quite different. Deandre Ayton comfortably switched on him, and later,  JaVale McGee  made Doncic the No. 1 entry on his career highlight reel with a steal and Statue of Liberty-style dunk that set the Footprint Center crowd off on a high. And that’s before you get to arguably the best collection of defensive wings in the game, led by Defensive Player of the Year finalist  Mikal Bridges . Defending a nuclear weapon like Doncic requires all a team has to offer, and while Doncic still had a productive night, it wasn’t nearly enough to make Game 1 of the Western Conference semifinal more than competitive in spurts. The Suns continue...

  Beijing residents feel 'caged' as restrictions tighten Beijing, with dozens of daily infections in an outbreak now in its 10th day, has not gone into a lock down. But on Sunday the capital tightened social distancing rules and launched a new round of mass testing in its worst-hit district. The city of 22 million has in the past week conducted mass testing in most of its 16 districts, suspended all entertainment venues and banned restaurant dining.

  ELECTIONS 2022: Marcos keeps lead in Pulse Asia survey with ‘high error margin’ The voter preference for dictator’s son Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. remains the same at 53% in Pulse Asia’s April 2022 nationwide survey, making him the frontrunner so far with only days away from the elections. However, some social media users are pointing out something odd about the survey: its representation of socio-economic classes. In Pulse Asia’s most recent survey, only six people responded for Class AB combined, 180 people responded for Class C, 1,839 people for Class D, and 375 people for Class E – totaling 2,400 people. The April survey’s error margins report also shows that AB has a 40% error margin, C has 7.3%, D has 2.3% and E has 5.1%. Class AB’s margin is anomalously high relative to surveys in the previous months. According to Statistics How To, a 4% margin of error in a survey with a 95% confidence interval means that 95% of the time, your statistic may be four perc...

  Bong Bong Marcos & Sara Duterte support by INC The Iglesia Ni Cristo (INC) is reportedly endorsing the tandem of Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte in the May 9 elections, Politiko has learned. The INC leadership is official announced the candidates will support in NET25. INC members are expected to follow the church leaders’ choice of candidates when they vote. Marcos and Duterte are currently leading the presidential and vice presidential races, respectively, based on the Pulse Asia and Laylo Research surveys released in April.