Manila Times
WHERE IT HAPPENED
A map of Lanao del Norte shows the town of Munai, where four government soldiers were ambushed, allegedly by a local terrorist group, while conducting non-combat activities on Jan. 23, 2026.
Read Full Story (Page 1)
FROST BLANKETS BENGUET AS TEMPERATURE DIPS
BENGUET — Frost has blanketed vegetable farms as temperatures in the towns of Atok and Kibungan, as well as in other parts of the province, continued to plunge to single-digit levels. On Friday, farmer PJ Haight, who has several temperature-reading...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
House rejects 2 more complai▪ts vs Marcos
TWO more impeachment cases were filed against President Ferdinand Marcos jrN at the House of Representatives on ThursdayL but the Office of the Secretary General refused to accept the complaintsN The earlier complaint was filed by militant groups led...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
Trillanes, civil society group accuse Duterte of plunder
FORMER senator Antonio “Sonny” Trillanes IV and a civil society group filed plunder, malversation and graft complaints against Vice President Sara Duterte before the Office of the Ombudsman on Tuesday. Trillanes and The Silent Majority said Duterte, a...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
Court orders Revilla detained in QC jail
FORMER senator Bong Revilla, facing charges over a P92.8-million ghost flood control project in Bulacan, was detained at the Quezon City Jail in Payatas upon the order of the Sandiganbayan’s Third Division. Reports from the Quezon City Police District...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
Lacson defends probe panel, tells critics to ‘shut the f... up’
SEN. Panfilo Lacson said the investigation on the ghost flood control projects led to reforms in crafting the national budget and the freezing of at least P21.7 billion in bank accounts owned by persons linked to the anomaly. Lacson, chairman of the...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
‘Ada’leaves 2 dead in Bicol
AT least two persons died as Tropical Storm Ada hit the Bicol Region, the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) said on Sunday. The NDRRMC said a 22-year-old male and a 19-year-old female were killed when a landslide...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
ICI HALTING OPERATIONS DUE TO LACK OF QUORUM
THE Independent Commission for Infrastructure (ICI) will submit a report to the Office of the President (OP), even as it remains unable to resume official operations due to lack of a quorum following the resignation of its two commissioners. In a...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
P10M bou▪ty offered for Ato▪g A▪g’s arrest
THE Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) has offered a P10-million bounty for whoever can provide information leading to the arrest of gaming tycoon Charlie “Atong” Ang, who has been charged as THE MASTERMIND BEHIND THE KIDNAPPING AND...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
45 Chinese ships spotted in WPS
FORTY-FIVE Chinese ships were spotted in various features of the West Philippine Sea (WPS) for the first week of 2026, the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) said on Tuesday. In Bajo de Masinloc, there were two People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Navy,...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
DAY OF PRAYER
A woman prays before the image of the child Jesus at the Sto. Niño de Tondo Parish in Manila on Jan. 11, 2026. The feast of the child Jesus is celebrated on Jan. 17, often capped with a grand procession.
Read Full Story (Page 1)
Traslacion a mix of piety, outrage
AMASSIVE crowd of devotees of the Black Nazarene joined the Traslacion, or procession, in Manila, with some using the gathering to express outrage over a corruption scandal involving Influential Legislators. After a midnight Mass joined by tens of...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
JUBILATION
Bar passers whoop it up after the Supreme Court released the results of the 2025 Bar Examinations in Manila on Jan. 7, 2026. A total of 5,594 out of 11,420 examinees made it, for a passing rate of 48.98 percent.
Read Full Story (Page 1)
Marcos sig▪s P6.79T budget
PRESIDENT Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on Monday enacted the General Appropriations Act (GAA) for 2026 worth P6.793 trillion but vetoed NEARLY P92.5 BILLION IN UNPROGRAMMED ALLOCATIONS TO REINFORCE fiSCAL discipline, transparency and accountability. Marcos...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
FIRST SUNDAY MASS
Devotees of the Black Nazarene attend on Jan. 4 the first Sunday Mass of 2026 at the Minor Basilica and National Shrine of Jesus Nazareno or Quiapo Church, which was placed under heavy security ahead of the feast of the Black Nazarene on Jan. 9. The...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
NEW YEAR’S EVE WITH TRUMP
Filipino singer Marcelito Pomoy and US President Donald Trump during a New Year’s Eve celebration at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach, Florida on Dec. 31, 2025. Pomoy sang the classic ballad ‘The Prayer’ before the president, First Lady Melania...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
NEXT BIG RELIGIOUS EVENT
Catholic devotees flock to the Minor Basilica and National Shrine of Jesus Nazareno in Manila on Jan. 2, 2026, to hear the first Friday Mass of the year. Thousands more are expected to visit the shrine on the Feast of the Black Nazarene on Jan. 9.
Read Full Story (Page 1)
Fireworks injuries lower than last year
THE Department of Health (DOH) on Thursday reported that fireworks-related injuries across the country are 42 percent lower than last year. The latest data showed 235 cases of fireworks-related injuries were reported since Dec. 21, 2025, lower...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
Coast Guard challenges Chinese research ship
THE Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) on Tuesday challenged the presence of a Chinese research vessel operating near the northern coast of Luzon, even as maritime monitoring groups said Beijing has been conducting intrusive patrols in the country’s...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
RATIFIED
Senate President Vicente Sotto III signs the ratified bicameral conference committee report on the proposed P6.793-trillion national budget for 2026. Photo shows (from left) Finance Committee chairman Sen. Win Gatchalian, Sen. Lito Lapid, Sen. JV...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
Co▪gress set to ratify 2026 budget bill
LAWMAKERS on Sunday signed the bicameral conference committee report on the reconciled P6.7 trillion 2026 General Appropriations Bill, setting the stage for its ratification and submission to the Palace in a one-day extended session on Monday. The...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
GALLOPING TO 2026
A vendor uses an electric noisemaker that produces the sound of exploding firecrackers to attract customers to her stall which also sells golden horse displays, being the Year of the Horse in 2026, on Dec. 27, 2025. The prices of the horses range...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
NEW ASSIGNMENT
Executive Secretary Ralph Recto (left) administers the oath of office to Gen. Nicolas Torre III as the new general manager of the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) on Dec. 26, 2025. Torre has previously served as chief of the Philippine...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
Christmas spirit returns to war-weary Bethlehem
BETHLEHEM, West Bank — Thousands of people flocked to Bethlehem’s Manger Square on Christmas Eve as families there and at other sites across the Holy Land heralded a much-needed boost of holiday spirit, after two years of subdued celebrations because...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
CAPTIVE AUDIENCE
A young boy shows off his skills on a skateboard in front of a ‘belen’ or Nativity display mounted at the University of Perpetual Help System Dalta (UPHSD) and at the St. Joseph Parish or Bamboo Organ Church in Las Piñas City on Dec. 24, 2025.
Read Full Story (Page 1)
Recto to cooperate in Ombudsman probe of PhilHealth funds
EXECUTIVE Secretary Ralph Recto on Monday said he will cooperate with the Office of the Ombudsman in its investigation into the transfer of the Philippine Health Insurance Corp.’s (PhilHealth) P60 billion in unused funds to the National...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
PNP probes Cabral’s death
THE Philippine National Police (PNP) is gathering evidence to determine the circumstances behind the death of former Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) undersecretary Maria Catalina Cabral. “With the confirmation of her death, we were able...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
PHL Post eyes stronger role as PH heads Asean
THE Philippine Postal Corp. (PHLPost) is preparing to play a more prominent role within the Asean community as the Philippines gears up to assume the regional chairmanship in 2026, top officials said. In a discussion hosted by the Asean Gazette with...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
PH SNARES 5 MORE GOLDS IN SEA GAMES’PENULTIMATE DAY
BANGKOK, Thailand —- The Philippines banked on ice speed skating, bowling, beach volleyball, softball and women’s basketball to add to its gold medal harvest on the 10th and penultimate day of the 33rd Southeast Asian Games on Friday. Peter Groseclose...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
Senate, House pa▪els OK P6.793T budget
THE Bicameral Conference Committee (Bicam) of Congress has concluded deliberations on the proposed P6.793trillion national budget for 2026, after reconciling the differences between the Senate and House of Representatives’ versions of the general...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
PH ROWERS DELIVER GOLD, BRONZE
BANGKOK — Paris Olympic rower Joanie Delgaco and partner Kristine Paraon, as well as substitute Feiza Jane Lenton, topped the 33rd Southeast Asian Games women’s double sculls Tuesday morning, to spearhead the Philippine campaign on Day 7 of the...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
Govt eyes UN treaty to help nab Zaldy Co
THE government is looking to tap the United Nations Convention Against Corruption (Uncac) to track down and bring back to the country fugitive former lawmaker Zaldy Co, Malacañang said on Monday. Ratified by the Senate in 2006 and with 192 countries...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
‘No demoralization, corruption must stop’
SEN. Panfilo Lacson said there is no demoralization in the Senate amid the possible arrest of some senators linked to alleged anomalous flood control projects. Ombudsman Jesus Crispin Remulla earlier said arrest warrants could be is sued today, Dec....
Read Full Story (Page 1)
FACE-TO-FACE
The Senate and the House of Representatives, for the first time, livestream the bicameral conference committee deliberations on the proposed 2026 national budget at the Philippine International Convention Center (PICC) in Pasay City, on Dec. 13, 2025....
Read Full Story (Page 1)
Interpol help sought in Zaldy Co manhunt
THE National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) has stepped up its efforts to find Elizaldy “Zaldy” Co by requesting the International Criminal Police Organization (Interpol) to issue a red notice for the former congressman. NBI spokesman Palmer Mallari...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
MACARIO LEADS PH ATTACK IN SEA GAMES FIRST DAY
BANGKOK — Taekwondo jin Justin Kobe Macario led the Philippine charge at the official start of the 33rd Southeast Asian Games on Wednesday here. Macario produced one gold in the men’s individual poomsae freestyle event and one bronze in the mixed...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
‘Senators may be charged next week’
THE Office of the Ombudsman said on Tuesday that cases against senators linked to the flood control scandal could be filed as early as next week, depending on the strength of the evidence. Spokesman Mico Clavano told reporters that some officials may...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
MARIAN PROCESSION
Devotees carry the image of Nuestra Señora De La Paz y Buen Viaje in Pasay City during a procession on Dec. 8, 2025.
Read Full Story (Page 1)
GRAND MARIAN PARADE
Thousands of devotees joined the Grand Marian Parade in Intramuros, Manila, on Dec. 7, 2025. The country marks the Feast of the Immaculate Conception today, which was declared a special non-working holiday.
Read Full Story (Page 1)
‘GET THAT BALL’
NU’s Jolo Manansala (center) battles for the loose ball against La Salle’s Mason Amos (left) and Mike Phillips during Game 2 of the UAAP Season 88 men’s basketball semifinals at the Araneta Coliseum on Dec. 6, 2025. The Archers upset the twice-to-beat...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
P13B assets in flood control mess frozen
THE Court of Appeals has issued a freeze order for assets totaling P1S billion believed to be owned by several individuals and companies implicated in massive flood control anomalies. The court order aims to prevent the movement of funds and...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
Sa▪dro testifies at ICI
HOUSE Majority Leader Sandro Marcos, son of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., on Thursday faced the Independent Commission for Infrastructure (ICI) to shed light on the allegations of former Ako Bicol Party-list representative Elizaldy “Zaldy” Co against...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
GALING POOK AWARDEES
President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. with Local Government Secretary Jonvic Remulla and Galing Pook Foundation Chairman Mel Sarmiento lead the 2025 Galing Pook Awards at the Ceremonial Hall, Malacañan Palace, on Dec. 3, 2025. The president honored 10...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
AHTISA IN MANILA
Miss Universe 2025 third runner-up Ahtisa Manalo waves to fans and supporters during a parade in Manila on Dec. 2, 2025. Manalo also paid a courtesy call on Mayor Isko Moreno and Vice Mayor Chi Atienza.
Read Full Story (Page 1)
NEW GRADUATES
President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. awards graduates of the Major Services Officer Candidate Course on Dec. 1, 2025. He urged the officers to remain loyal to the country. With him is Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr.
Read Full Story (Page 1)
BLOCKED
Coils of wire separate protesters from police officers deployed to keep the peace during the Trillion Peso March in Manila on Nov. 30, 2025. The protesters demanded that officials involved in anomalous infrastructure projects should be jailed.
Read Full Story (Page 1)
TOP OF THE HEAP
The National University (NU) Pep Squad emerges on top of the UAAP Cheerdance Competition for the second straight year with its ninja-themed performance at the Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay on Nov. 29, 2025. It was also the ninth title for NU, breaking a...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
BIR files ▪ew charges over ‘ghost’ projects
THE Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) on Thursday filed a new set of criminal complaints against two construction firms implicated in ghost flood control projects in Bulacan.The charges deepened the government’s probe into what authorities describe as a...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
MORE EVIDENCE
Public Works and Highways Secretary Vince Dizon, together with Independent Commission for Infrastructure Chairman Andres Reyes, submits more documents as evidence in cases involving flood control anomalies to Ombudsman Jesus Crispin Remulla on Nov. 26,...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
Roque is a fugitive; P1M offered for O▪g
THE government on Tuesday said former presidential spokesman Harry Roque is now considered a fugitive from justice and offered a P1-million reward for information leading to the CAPTURE OF HIS CO-ACCUSED IN A HUMAN TRAFfiCKING case, Cassandra Li Ong....
Read Full Story (Page 1)
WELCOME HOME PARADE
Miss Grand International 2025 winner Emma Mary Tiglao is welcomed by her supporters during the homecoming parade held at the Ayala Triangle in Makati City on Nov. 24, 2025. She was joined by Miss Grand International 1st runner-up, Sarunrat Puagpipat...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
Eldrew Yulo captures bronze at Junior Worlds
HOME bet Karl Eldrew Yulo captured the floor exercise bronze medal at the 3rd FIG Junior World Artistic Gymnastics Championships at the Marriott Grand Ballroom in Pasay City on Sunday. Yulo scored 13.733 points on a 5.300 difficulty and 8.433...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
TACKLING FLOODS
President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., accompanied by businessmen Ramon Ang and Manny Pangilinan, Public Works Secretary Vince Dizon, MMDA Chairman Romando Artes, Labor Secretary Bienvenido Laguesma, Metro Manila Council President and San Juan City Mayor...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
PH digs out from ‘Uwan’ as death toll climbs to 18
RESCUERS using backhoes and chainsaws began digging the Philippines out from the devastation of Super Typhoon Uwan (international name: Fung-wong) on Tuesday, as floodwaters receded in hundreds of villages and the storm’s death toll climbed to...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
‘Uwa▪’ destructio▪ widespread
ENTIRE villages lay submerged, and scores of towns remained without electricity on Monday as Super Typhoon Uwan (international name: Fung-wong) left the Philippines after killing at least two people and displacing more than a million. “Uwan,” with a...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
1 million evacuate ahead of ‘Uwan'
MORE than a million people were evacuated, and at least one person was killed, AS flOODWATERS ROSE IN THE PHILIPPINES ON Sunday before Super Typhoon Uwan’s expected landfall on the east coastN The super typhoon, which comes just days after another...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
Govt on full alert as Uwan nears Luzon
THE government placed the entire Northern and Central Luzon on full alert on Saturday as Typhoon Uwan (international name Fung-wong) was expected to intensify into a super typhoon, barreled toward the Philippines. The Office of Civil Defense (OCD)...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
Govt prepares for strong storm
THE government has stepped up preparations as a potential super typhoon approaches the country. The Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) has directed local government units (LGUs) to complete by Sunday the mandatory evacuation of...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
Ex-DPWH district chief pinned as mastermind
aSWORN statement filed by two former engineers of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) has tagged their former chief, Henry Alcantara, and his chief of staff of orchestrating the flood control bribery scheme that enabled lawmakers to...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
Death toll from ‘Tino’ hits 98
CEBU CITY — Typhoon Tino has killed at least 98 people in Cebu, as rescue teams continued to recover bodies from floodwaters and debris-strewn communities across the island province. Cebu Gov. Pamela Baricuatro declared the entire province under a...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
AFTERMATH
CEBU — Typhoon Tino unleashed destructive winds and torrential rain across Cebu on Tuesday as the province remained under Signal No. 4 for much of the day. The storm’s impact, especially on Camotes Island and nearby coastal areas, created...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
FLAG DAY
A huge flag gets hoisted during the Stop and Salute flagraising to mark National Children’s Month at Rizal Park in Manila on Nov. 3, 2025.
Read Full Story (Page 1)
MARCOS BACK FROM ‘VERY PRODUCTIVE’ APEC MEET
PRESIDENT Ferdinand Marcos Jr. is back in Manila from a “very productive” participation in the 2025 Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Summit in Gyeongju, South Korea. The chartered Philippine Airlines flight carrying Marcos and his delegation...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
‘US-PH task force boosts deterre▪ce’
THE United States and the Philippines have unveiled the creation of a task force to deter aggression in the South China Sea (SCS). US Secretary of War Pete Hegseth announced the “Task Force Philippines” alongside Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr....
Read Full Story (Page 1)
Marcos to Asia-Pacific CEOs: I▪vest i▪ PH
GYEONGJU, So”th Korea — President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on Friday made a fresh pitch for global investors to look to the Philippines, highlighting sweeping reforms and digital transformation efforts designed to b”ild “a connected, resilient and...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
THE LIVING AND THE DEAD
A woman lights candles at the tomb of a departed at the Manila North Cemetery on Oct. 30, 2025. Filipinos have started trekking to cemeteries and memorial parks to pay their respects and remember their dead.
Read Full Story (Page 1)
FILED
Independent Commission for Infrastructure Chairman Andres Reyes, along with volunteer lawyers, submits before the Office of the Ombudsman on Oct. 29, 2025, their recommendation to file charges against Senators Joel Villanueva and Jinggoy Estrada,...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
PH takes Asea▪ chair as sea dispute simmers
KUALA LUMPUR — Malaysia handed over the chairmanship of Southeast Asia’s regional bloc to the Philippines on Tuesday, with territorial disputes in the South China Sea set to dominate its agenda when Manila takes charge in 2026. Prime Minister Anwar...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
‘GHOSTS’ AT THE SENATE
Children dressed as ghosts and goblins have fun as they went trick or treating at the Senate on Oct. 27, 2025.
Read Full Story (Page 1)
ASEAN WITH TRUMP
US President Donald Trump (center) poses for a group photo with (from left Singapore’s Prime Minister Lawrence Wong, East Timor’s Prime Minister Xanana Gusmao, Vietnam’s Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh, Cambodia’s Prime Minister Hun Manet, Malaysia’s...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
MARCOSES IN MALAYSIA
President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., together with first lady Liza Araneta-Marcos, arrives at the Bungaraya Complex in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, on Oct. 25, 2025. The president is in Malaysia to attend the 47th Asean Summit and related meetings, where...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
Anti-graft court acquits Enrile
CHIEF Presidential Legal Counsel Juan Ponce Enrile was acquitted on Friday by the Sandiganbayan’s Special Third Division of 15 counts of graft over the alleged misuse of nearly P173 million of his pork barrel funds. Also acquitted were Enrile’s former...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
A HOUSE TO OWN
PRESIDENT Ferdinand Marcos jr. on Thursday vowed to keep breaking ground on the administration’s housing project to ensure a home for every Filipino. During the opening of the National Housing Expo 2025 at the World Trade Center in Pasay City, Marcos...
Read Full Story (Page 1)
FIRE!
Firemen put out the blaze that broke out at the Department of Public Works and Highways in Quezon City on Oct. 22, 2025. DPWH officials assured the public that no important documents were destroyed.
Read Full Story (Page 1)
TMT MODEL CITIES AWARDS HIGHLIGHT LGU INNOVATION
LOCAL government units (LGUs) from all over the country have submitted their requirements for The Manila Times Model Cities and Municipalities Awards 2025, with Ormoc, which joined and won a number of awards in previous editions, the first to provide...
Read Full Story (Page 1)