[Vantage Point] The price of control: Behind Metro Pacific’s P12.4-B Meralco bet

Your monthly electricity bill is the fundamental mathematics backing these multi-billion-peso corporate strategies

[The Laylo Lens] What a stranded container is really costing us

Government should implement a 100-day plan to enhance container movement reliability, ensure transparency in port charges, and separate regulatory and operational roles to prevent conflicts of interest

NESTED DICTATORS

China panics

China is in panic.

A need for ‘third spaces’ in Metro Manila

METRO Manila must invest in inclusive, accessible third spaces because its current urban form leaves residents with movement but no meaningful places to gather, rest or build community. Metro Manila is a region defined…

Character vs polls: Two kinds of redemption

Imagine you spent 20 years restoring a family name that half the country held in contempt.

A need for ‘third spaces’ in Metro Manila

METRO Manila must invest in inclusive, accessible third spaces because its current urban form leaves residents with movement but no meaningful places to gather, rest or build community. Metro Manila is a region defined…

Return to FAME

Last week I returned to the Manila FAME trade show after skipping it for several years.

Sara Duterte’s persecution theater

WHEN Atty. Shiela Sison called Vice President Sara Duterte’s impeachment “persecution,” she cast her client as victim and prosecutors as abusers. The word is powerful, but it cannot do the work of evidence. Persecution…

‘Hindi na sila nahiya’

The tragedy of this nation of 117 million is not that we find ourselves dealing with one crisis after another – from the Middle East war-induced global oil crunch and our geopolitical conflict with China to the Super El…

Evolution of presidential communications

First Word TO comprehend why President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has named another communications secretary for his one-term presidency, it helps to know the peculiar roots of the office and its many changes under different…

Mangled

History repeats itself. The 2027 national budget has been mangled at the Lower House in the same way the 2025 budget was.

A future without a political surname

A COCKROACH in India. A pirate flag in Indonesia. Young Filipinos demanding to know where the flood-control money went. These symbols may seem unlikely companions. But the anger behind them is familiar: a growing…

EDITORIAL - Respect for PWDs

Several laws have been passed, promoting the welfare of persons with disabilities. Republic Act 7277, the Magna Carta for Disabled Persons, was enacted in March 1992.

Another cloud of suspicion hanging over the customs bureau

THE following story is a bit outside my usual lane, but it is a potentially deeply concerning one that no one else seems to be talking about, at least so far, and so it deserves some attention, particularly in the…

When the rules bend, accountability breaks

THE Senate may explain each procedural shift, but together they risk turning impeachment from a constitutional trial into a test of political trust. If a referee lowered the winning score after play had begun…

The not so lost years

Last of two parts ASIDE from the document that establishes the “Hukuman ng Silangan” (Eastern Area) which gives us an idea of Emilio Jacinto’s continued revolutionary activities in Laguna even after the death of Andres…

Reflections from Saigon: Love of country as a driver of growth

AS I write this piece, I am enjoying the view of the Saigon River from my hotel, the Majestic Hotel which dates to 1925. The main center of the city is dotted by beautifully preserved and restored colonial buildings…

Hope in the horizon?

FINALLY, an end to the Batangueños' misery may be in sight. This was after the Manila Electric Co. (Meralco) announced that it was looking to expand its services in Batangas province to help end the frequent brownout…

France burns... who’s next?

ON Saturday, France was rocked by massive street protests involving more than half-a-million people. The peaceful protest turned violent at nighttime as riots and clashes broke out in the streets and police tried to…