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LATEST COMMENTARY

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FIVE THINGS TO KNOW

3-minute read

WHY WINNING DOES NOT END A VOTE-BUYING CASE

If a candidate has already won and been proclaimed, can a vote-buying case still cost them the position? The Supreme Court’s latest announcement on two Candijay, Bohol candidates shows why the election result does not settle everything.

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5-minute read

HOW THE NEXT CHIEF JUSTICE IS CHOSEN

The Judicial and Bar Council has finished interviewing candidates to succeed Chief Justice Alexander Gesmundo, who is due to retire on November 6. GMA News reported the completed interviews on October 27. The interviews are one stage of a process that gives the President a choice, but also sets limits on who can be chosen and how the appointment is made.

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4-minute read

ABOUT COMPENSATION FOR WORK-RELATED HEAT ILLNESS

If someone becomes ill while working in extreme heat, the problem can continue after the shift ends: medical bills, missed work and uncertainty about where to ask for help. The Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) announced guidelines on October 23 for heat-illness claims under the existing Employees' Compensation Program (ECP).

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5-minute read

ABOUT BATO DELA ROSA’S ₱50-MILLION BOUNTY

The DILG announced a ₱50-million bounty for Senator Bato dela Rosa’s capture on October 23. The announcement came after months of talk about a possible reward—and days after Interior Secretary Jonvic Remulla said authorities knew dela Rosa was in Mindanao and were negotiating for his turnover.

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Afternoon6-minute read

ABOUT THE OVP’S 2027 BUDGET AFTER A 16-MINUTE SENATE HEARING

The Office of the Vice President’s proposed budget moved through a Senate panel today in 16 minutes. Vice President Sara Duterte was absent; her chief of staff answered for the office. Yesterday’s MCT explainer looked at parliamentary courtesy. Today’s question is what that short hearing actually did to the spending plan, and what it left for the Senate to examine.

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Afternoon6-minute read

ABOUT THE EDSA BUSWAY’S 2027 BUDGET GAP

The Department of Transportation is again asking Congress to fund the EDSA Busway. Its original ₱1.756 billion request received zero in the administration’s proposed 2027 National Expenditure Program. A House budget panel later inserted ₱75 million. Those two statements describe different stages of the same budget process. Neither tells us yet what Congress will finally approve.

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Afternoon7-minute read

ABOUT DECLARING AN AMBASSADOR PERSONA NON GRATA

Several lawmakers want Chinese Ambassador Jing Quan sent home. The Chinese Embassy has challenged them to follow through. That exchange leaves an ordinary reader with a reasonable question: if our own officials say an ambassador should leave, why is he still here?

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7:23 AM5-minute read

ABOUT LINO CAYETANO AND THE CHANGE AT THE PCO

President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. announced on October 11 that Lino Cayetano would replace Dave Gomez at the Presidential Communications Office. He said Gomez had been bypassed by the Commission on Appointments and that the change would be formalized when they returned from Singapore.

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6:10 PM4-minute read

ABOUT THE DISPUTE OVER CHANGING THE ORDER OF IMPEACHMENT WITNESSES

The argument at Thursday’s impeachment hearing was about which witness the prosecution could present next. It began with an absent lawyer and became a dispute over preparation and notice. Understanding the exchange helps explain why a courtroom can pause even when the parties, documents and another potential witness are already in the building.

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3:01 PM3-minute read

ABOUT MARK VILLAR’S MOVE TO THE SENATE MAJORITY

Senator Mark Villar has formally left the Senate minority and joined the majority. The October 8 move strengthens the bloc supporting the chamber’s leadership and gives Villar two significant positions. Its implications for Sara Duterte’s impeachment trial, however, require more than counting political allies.

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9:56 AM4-minute read

ABOUT THE MANAGER’S CHECKS AND THE QUESTIONS OVER SARA DUTERTE’S SALN

A bank balance can fall even when the value represented by the money has not disappeared. That distinction sits behind the prosecution’s questions about manager’s checks in Sara Duterte’s impeachment trial. To understand the October 7 testimony, we need to follow the instrument, the person entitled to its value and the declaration of assets for the relevant year.

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9:08 PM3-minute read

ABOUT WHAT COA’S REJECTION OF THE OVP APPEAL MEANS

COA has rejected the request to reconsider the ₱73.287-million disallowance involving the Office of the Vice President’s December 2022 confidential expenses. The October 5 resolution became public on October 7. Its significance is easier to understand when the amount, the audit finding and the available legal remedies are kept separate.

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7:47 AM3-minute read

ABOUT WHAT BANK SECRECY PROTECTS IN AN IMPEACHMENT TRIAL

The arguments over bank records in Sara Duterte’s impeachment trial involve several protections. The privacy of a peso deposit, the protection of a foreign-currency deposit, and the confidentiality of a report sent to the AMLC come from different rules. Understanding those differences helps explain what the court has allowed and what remains in dispute.

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8:43 AM8-minute read

ABOUT THE AMLC RECORDS IN SARA DUTERTE’S IMPEACHMENT TRIAL

₱4.4 billion is a figure that can dominate a conversation before anyone asks what it counts. AMLC Executive Director Ronel Buenaventura presented that approximate total in the Senate impeachment court on October 5, covering reported transactions involving Vice President Sara Duterte and her husband, Manases Carpio. He also explained that a bank correction had reduced the earlier figure of ₱6.7 billion.

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6:44 PM5-minute read

ABOUT THE COINS.PH CASH-IN RESTRICTION AND WHAT USERS SHOULD CHECK

If you use Coins.ph to receive money or pay bills, a failed cash-in can disrupt plans for the day. Coins.ph has announced that some incoming peso services are temporarily unavailable following a BSP directive to improve its internal controls. Its advisory also identifies services that existing customers can still use.

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12:00 PM5-minute read

ABOUT THE PROPOSED RULES ON SECONDHAND PHONES

A secondhand phone can put a useful device within reach of someone who cannot afford a new one. The problem comes when the buyer has no clear information about where it came from, what condition it is in, or who will fix it if it fails.

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8:35 PM6-minute read

ABOUT THE SUPREME COURT’S DECISION ON THE IMPEACHMENT VOTE THRESHOLD

The Supreme Court dismissed three petitions on September 30 challenging how the Senate impeachment court would count the votes needed to convict Vice President Sara Duterte. The dismissal leaves the Senate’s September 23 ruling in place, but it needs to be read carefully. A case can be dismissed because it does not meet the requirements for the Court to hear it, without settling whether the challenged action is constitutional.

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6:12 AM6-minute read

ABOUT WHAT BASTE DUTERTE SHOULD HAVE CHECKED AS MAYOR

Davao City Mayor Sebastian “Baste” Duterte told the Senate impeachment court on September 29 that he had been unfamiliar with GenCorp Industries Inc. before it came up in the proceedings. He also said he did not know about Vice President Sara Duterte’s declared business interest in the company.

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10:45 PM7-minute read

ABOUT THE OCTOBER WATER-RATE INCREASES

Metro Manila households served by Maynilad and Manila Water will see slightly higher water charges beginning October 1. The announced increases are small for many residential customers, but the figures vary by concessionaire and consumption level. That makes it easy to misunderstand a notice expressed only in centavos per cubic meter.

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7:21 AM6-minute read

ABOUT THE NOTE HANDED TO GIBO TEODORO IN SEOUL

Defense Secretary Gilberto “Gibo” Teodoro Jr. was answering questions at the Seoul Defense Dialogue on September 8 when a man handed him a note. He read it aloud, challenged its rejection of the 2016 South China Sea ruling and objected to being interrupted that way.

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9:55 AM8-minute read

ABOUT EL NIÑO AND PREPARING FOR LESS RAIN

It can be raining outside while PAGASA warns about El Niño. That can sound confusing when the immediate problem is a wet road or a flooded field. The two warnings describe different periods: the weather happening now and the rainfall conditions that may develop over the coming months.

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5:30 AM8-minute read

ABOUT THE NEW ARREST WARRANTS AGAINST ZALDY CO, MARTIN ROMUALDEZ AND TWO OTHERS

The Sandiganbayan has ordered the arrest of Zaldy Co, Martin Romualdez and two other accused in the plunder case filed on September 7. By Monday evening, authorities had served Romualdez's warrant and carried out booking procedures at Cardinal Santos Medical Center in San Juan. His arrest is a confirmed development; it does not establish that his three co-accused are also in custody.

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3:15 PM8-minute read

ABOUT THE PLUNDER CASE AGAINST MARTIN ROMUALDEZ

The Office of the Ombudsman filed a plunder case against former House Speaker Martin Romualdez at the Sandiganbayan on September 7 over his alleged involvement in flood-control kickbacks. The accusations have now reached the court that will handle the criminal case. Romualdez denies wrongdoing and remains presumed innocent.

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1:18 PM7-minute read

ABOUT THE NEW SWS POVERTY NUMBERS

Self-rated poverty and food poverty declined in June, but the figures also show how many Filipino families remain under pressure and why lower household budgets do not necessarily mean life became cheaper.

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2:02 PM11-minute read

ABOUT THE CHILDREN'S SOCIAL MEDIA SAFETY ACT

House Bill No. 9965 would bar children below 13 from having social media accounts, require parental consent for users aged 13 to 17, regulate platform algorithms, and impose fines reaching P50 million. It is still being deliberated in the House.

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12:02 PM7-minute read

ABOUT THE SEALED BIR BOX

Marcos authorized the BIR to comply with the Senate subpoena. That did not open the records to the public or prove the unexplained-wealth allegation.

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MCT Daily Brief

AI-generated editorial illustration of a fictional Filipino farmer checking corn in a field, with the official MCT logo.

EL NIÑO FARM LOSSES NEAR ₱10 BILLION AS FAMILIES FACE NEW PRESSURES

The latest farm-damage estimate puts a larger cost on the drought affecting growers across the country. Taxpayers have two separate deadline extensions to check, while Wednesday’s weaker peso changes the calculation for people buying dollars or sending money home. In Iloilo City, officials are asking households to look for mosquito breeding sites every day. Overseas, the Department of Migrant Workers has reported more assistance for Filipinos whose jobs have been disrupted in Saudi Arabia.

1

DA PUTS EL NIÑO FARM DAMAGE AT ₱9.99 BILLION

The Department of Agriculture’s latest assessment, reported on November 11, puts agricultural damage from El Niño at ₱9.99 billion. It covers 324,327 farmers and 323,419 hectares across 16 regions. The figures remain subject to validation as regional reports are checked.

Corn accounts for ₱5.63 billion of the reported damage, followed by rice at ₱3.65 billion. High-value crops, livestock and cassava make up the rest. These losses reach beyond the next harvest: a farmer who has already paid for seeds, fertilizer and labor may need another round of spending before earning from the same land.

Affected land should not all be counted as permanently lost. BusinessMirror’s report of the DA assessment says 248,129 hectares still have a chance to recover. That makes the condition of the crop and access to water important when deciding what help each farm needs.

The DA also reported ₱18.64 billion in interventions, including production inputs and financial assistance. Those program totals cover different forms of support; they should not be read as a cash payment received by each farmer in the latest damage count.

WHAT TO WATCH

The validated damage totals, which areas can still recover, and the delivery of water support, replacement inputs and assistance to affected farmers. A national spending total needs to be followed through to what reaches farms and when.

2

BIR EXTENSIONS HAVE DIFFERENT DATES AND COVERAGE

The Bureau of Internal Revenue has issued two separate deadline changes. Taxpayers need to check the form, original due date and office covering their registration before choosing which new deadline applies.

Revenue Memorandum Circular 118-2026 moves specified filing and payment or remittance deadlines to November 13 for taxpayers affected by the unavailability of the eBIRForms Offline Package. Its table includes listed October returns originally due November 10, along with specified one-time transactions and payment forms whose original deadlines fall from November 10 to 12. Some entries expressly apply to non-eFPS filers. Deadlines through other systems remain unchanged unless separately extended.

A different advisory moves statutory filing and payment deadlines falling on November 16–18 to November 19 for the NCR revenue offices and large-taxpayer divisions listed in that notice. It follows the special non-working days declared in Metro Manila for the ASEAN meetings.

The two notices do not give every taxpayer an extra week. Someone covered by the eBIRForms relief may still need to file and pay tomorrow, November 13. The original notices, rather than a general social-media headline, are the place to check the applicable form and jurisdiction.

WHAT TO WATCH

Whether your return and original deadline appear in the relevant notice, and whether your registered office is covered. Keep filing confirmations and payment records, and ask your revenue office about an unclear case before assuming the later date applies.

3

PESO CLOSES AT ₱63.25 PER DOLLAR

The peso closed Wednesday, November 11, at ₱63.25 to the US dollar, weakening by 34 centavos from Tuesday’s ₱62.91, GMA reported. Manila Standard also reported the ₱63.25 close. This is a completed trading-day figure, not a guaranteed rate at a bank, money changer or remittance counter this morning.

RCBC chief economist Michael Ricafort linked the move to higher-than-expected US inflation and expectations of further US interest-rate increases. That is his explanation of the market move. It does not tell a household what rate will be available when its next transfer is processed.

For someone buying dollars, a higher peso-per-dollar rate means spending more pesos for the same dollar amount. For someone converting dollars into pesos, it can mean a larger peso amount before fees. Whether a family actually receives more depends on the provider’s offered rate and charges, as well as how many dollars are sent.

As a simple calculation, a 34-centavo change is ₱34 for US$100 before charges. The market move does not itself guarantee that difference in a remittance payout; providers’ quotes must be compared on their own terms.

WHAT TO WATCH

The next trading close and the actual rate, total charge and recipient amount quoted for your transaction. A headline exchange rate is useful context, but the amount available to the family is the figure to budget around.

4

ILOILO CITY CALLS FOR DAILY DENGUE PREVENTION

Iloilo City is urging residents to check for mosquito breeding sites every day as dengue cases rise. City Health Office figures cited in November 11 reporting show 785 cases and eight deaths from January 4 to October 31, a 37.7% increase in cases from the comparable period last year. These are city figures, not totals for Iloilo province.

Mayor Raisa Treñas’s appeal asks households to go beyond waiting for a scheduled weekly cleanup. The city is promoting its 4 O’Clock Habit of checking places where water can collect. The health office reported clusters in 28 barangays and four hotspots, making action in affected neighborhoods especially urgent.

The World Health Organization advises removing items that hold water and covering, emptying and cleaning domestic water-storage containers regularly. Mosquitoes that spread dengue are active during the day, so protection is needed outside sleeping hours too. A cleanup drive works best when breeding sites are also checked between organized activities.

Early medical care is important when someone becomes ill. WHO advises immediate care for severe symptoms such as persistent vomiting, severe abdominal pain or bleeding. The city’s case count is a reason to take prevention and illness seriously, not to diagnose every fever at home.

WHAT TO WATCH

Updated city case figures, barangay cleanup and prevention work, and access to prompt consultation. Households can start with water containers and discarded items around the home instead of waiting for the next community event.

5

DMW REPORTS AID FOR FILIPINOS AFFECTED IN SAUDI ARABIA

The Department of Migrant Workers says it has assisted more than 6,000 Filipinos in Saudi Arabia amid attacks and disruption there, according to GMA’s late November 11 report and Bombo Radyo’s November 12 account. More than 4,000 of those assisted were airport workers.

Secretary Hans Leo Cacdac described workers whose jobs had been interrupted, including ground and maintenance crews, duty-free and coffee-shop staff, concessionaire workers and flight attendants. For these workers, disruption affects earning a living as well as getting from one place to another.

The reports also say DMW signed an agreement with the International Transport Workers Federation to strengthen worker protection. The assistance count records people the agency says it has helped; it does not show that every affected worker’s employment, income or travel problem has been resolved.

Families arranging a return trip should check the specific flight with the airline and coordinate assistance with the relevant Migrant Workers Office. A description of limited airport operations in an interview should not be treated as a live schedule for every route.

WHAT TO WATCH

Updated assistance arrangements, the support available to workers still unable to resume their jobs, and confirmed flights for those seeking to return. Keep the worker’s location, employer and immediate need clear when seeking help.

BOTTOM LINE

The farm-loss estimate, tax notices, exchange rate and assistance reports all affect household decisions, but in different ways. Check which deadline covers a return, what a transfer will pay out, and what support has actually reached an affected worker or farm. In Iloilo City, the action can begin at home, with daily checks for breeding sites and prompt medical attention when needed.

SOURCES

  1. GMA News, November 11, 2026, 5:57 p.m.: Agri damage due to El Niño reached nearly ₱10 billion, says DA.
  2. BusinessMirror, November 11, 2026: El Niño damage to farms now nearing ₱10 billion, says DA.
  3. Daily Tribune, November 11, 2026: DA agricultural-damage assessment.
  4. Bureau of Internal Revenue, November 10, 2026: Revenue Memorandum Circular 118-2026.
  5. Bureau of Internal Revenue, issued November 10, 2026: Tax advisory on the NCR November 16–18 holidays.
  6. GMA News, November 11, 2026, 5:37 p.m.: Peso falls to ₱63.25 against dollar.
  7. Manila Standard, November 11, 2026, 7:55 p.m.: Local stocks end lower; peso weakens to ₱63.25.
  8. Philippine News Agency, November 11, 2026: Iloilo City intensifies anti-dengue drive.
  9. Panay News, November 11, 2026: Don’t wait for weekly cleanup to fight dengue.
  10. World Health Organization, August 21, 2025: Dengue fact sheet.
  11. GMA News, November 11, 2026, 11:57 p.m.: Filipinos in Saudi Arabia given aid, says DMW.
  12. Bombo Radyo Cauayan, November 12, 2026, 1:21 a.m.: DMW assistance in Saudi Arabia.
Photo credits

AI illustration / OpenAI OpenAI

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