FACT CHECK: Mini fire trucks in viral posts not purchased by DILG
The DILG says the mini fire trucks were bought by the Nueva Ecija local government and are being falsely linked to its planned procurement of fire trucks worth P10 million each
Edition
Rappler
Thursday, 22 October · 35 stories
Top stories
SBS 2026: Weaving a Decade of Youth Action for Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)
2030 YFPH marks 10 years of youth leadership and sustainable action at SDG Bayanihan Summit 2026!
FACT CHECK: Claire Castro not removed from her post, remains Palace press officer
The Palace press officer was still briefing reporters on the day the video was posted, while its thumbnail falsely suggests a supposed confrontation with First Lady Liza Araneta-Marcos
Tiu Laurel alleges smear campaign by rice smugglers amid import controversy
'I’m clearly under attack,' Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. tells a Senate panel during a budget hearing
FACT CHECK: Escudero did not suspend House prosecutor Zamora’s law license
Zamora faced sexist remarks over her questioning during the impeachment trial, but no revocation of her law license occurred afterwards, contrary to the claim
Nation
Where is Atong Ang? | The wRap
Today’s headlines: Atong Ang, Ping Lacson, Ombudsman
‘Justice is hope’: Here are Leonen’s 9 promises as aspiring chief justice
'Whoever is appointed, this reality remains: our people still suffer.... On our watch, we cannot fail them. I will not fail them,' says Senior Associate Justice Marvic Leonen
Rappler Recap: Race for next chief justice begins with Leonen, Caguioa
The Judicial and Bar Council interviews Marvic Leonen and Alfredo Benjamin Caguioa as part of its process of short listing nominees to replace retiring Chief Justice Alexander Gesmundo
Rosal downgraded to typhoon east of Batanes
The maximum sustained winds of Typhoon Rosal (Champi) are down to 165 km/h as of Thursday afternoon, October 22
SolgGen to seek clarification, partial reconsideration of SC ruling on unprogrammed funds
The Office of the Solicitor General notes that the 12 separate opinions accompanying the Supreme Court ruling 'reflect the complexity of the constitutional questions presented and the differing judicial perspectives on…
Former DOH chiefs alarmed over proposed cut for health promotion in 2027
Under the 2027 General Appropriations Bill, the House of Representatives reduced the health promotion budget to P485 million
View from Manila: Making sense of the gutter talk from China’s embassy
‘Let the good aspects prevail over bad ones. Otherwise we may easily fall into the situation of countermeasures and retaliation,’ China’s envoy says. Yet his taunts seem to be sending a different message altogether.
DSWD’s budget appeal: Give AICS at least P63 billion in 2027
The Department of Social Welfare and Development says AICS will be used to support those affected by El Niño and the Middle East conflict. But there are still concerns about the program.
FACT CHECK: Duterte not back in PH; post takes out of context old news report, video
On October 13, the same day the false post circulated, former president Rodrigo Duterte physically appeared at the fourth status conference of his case in the International Criminal Court
DFA to China embassy: Escalatory, undiplomatic posts not helping bilateral ties
‘The recent public statements of the Embassy do not reflect the longstanding spirit of constructive engagement between the two countries and the two foreign ministries,’ the DFA says
The tree Quezon planted, and Bacolod nearly forgot
The endangered tree was planted by the late president Manuel L. Quezon on October 19, 1938, to mark Bacolod's proclamation as a chartered city
Intense rain possible in Batanes even as Super Typhoon Rosal weakens further
Super Typhoon Rosal (Champi) will be closest to extreme Northern Luzon between Thursday afternoon, October 22, and Friday morning, October 23
5 practical effects of SC ruling on unprogrammed appropriations
Unprogrammed funds are here to stay, but they will ideally be harder to abuse
Part 1: New candidates in the running to be Marcos’ 2nd SC justice
This batch of new applicants is composed of big names, like COA chairperson Gamaliel Cordoba and Sandiganbayan chief Geraldine Faith Econg, among others
Regions
MovePH trains Movers in Cebu on local reporting, civic organizing
The MovePH workshop brings together Cebu community journalists and civic leaders to design campaigns around underreported community issues
Benitez-Bais spat puts Bacolod’s stalled P765-M project, flood contractor in focus
Representative Albee Benitez apologizes to Bacolod residents and Councilor Homer Bais for making a scene at a public dinner, but scrutiny continues over the unfinished building funded by a loan during his administration
Only 25 attend Murad party oath-taking as rival claims 46-member bloc
The political party of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front is not ready to concede the race for Bangsamoro's top leadership post
Business
Bangko Sentral raises interest rates to 5.50% as inflation, peso woes mount
Even as the central bank tries to keep inflation in check, higher interest rates can only do so much
Who is Ginbee Go, BPI’s next president and first female CEO?
The 23-year BPI veteran and current consumer banking chief will succeed TG Limcaoco in April 2027
[Good Business] The Rags2Riches story: Woven to last
Every sign pointed to closure. What Rags2Riches founder Reese Fernandez-Ruiz held on to, privately, was a sliver of hope.
[Puso at Diwa] Sara Duterte trial: Is the space for political impunity finally closing?
Can the Philippines begin to turn the corner from a culture of impunity toward one of responsibility and the rule of law?
World
Millions of hacking attempts as companies, governments rush to patch PHP flaws
The emergency shutdowns of banking, airline, rail, tax and government services show how much public and corporate systems rely on PHP, and how hard it is to fix such flaws quickly once they are made public
Asian governments step up cyber defenses after PHP flaw
The rush comes after government websites in Europe and elsewhere went offline, with the disclosure of the PHP flaws sending website operators scrambling to protect their systems
Meta ordered to pay $25-billion penalty to New Mexico in data privacy case
'Facebook's wrongdoing — over the course of years and systematically broadcast to the public — goes to the heart of Facebook's core business practices,' Judge Francis Mathew writes in his order
Taiwan probes organized crime links to China’s ‘transnational repression’
Taiwan has complained that Beijing is using various underhanded methods to go after Taiwanese who the Chinese government views as separatists or are otherwise politically suspect
Technology
Chinese-linked hackers compromise ConnectWise, target hundreds in global attack
The hackers, which Microsoft tracks as Storm-0940, use an open-source penetration testing framework called ARTEX to carry out the campaign
Government websites go dark after AI-discovered flaw sparks security scramble
Because a fix is now public and artificial intelligence tools are able to reverse engineer the bug with little effort, experts say they are bracing for a wave of intrusions as hackers jump to get ahead of the updates
Sports
Alex Eala bows out of Ningbo Open after loss vs Diana Shnaider
Shnaider says she is happy with her performance against Eala, referring to the Filipina tennis ace as a 'dangerous and tough opponent'
Entertainment
Rappler Live Jam: Cast of ‘Gregoria Lakambini: A Pinay Pop Musical’
P-pop meets revolutionary history at Rappler Live Jam with the cast of 'Gregoria Lakambini: A Pinay Pop Musical'
Opinion
[Rappler Investigates] High standards for the High Court
At a time when standards for choices of elective officials seem to be on the decline, many still look to the SC as a stronghold of justice and fairness to which high standards still apply. Has it lived up to those…
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