DFA urges delay in implementing P1.5K passport fee until 2028

GMA Network - Sep 18, 2026

The printing agency responsible for producing Philippine passports is seeking a price increase, but Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) Secretary Theresa Lazaro said the agency has been asked to defer the proposed hike until 2028.

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Singapore minister Chan Chun Sing’s Mandarin diplomacy strikes China chord

Sep 18, 2026

Singapore Defence Minister Chan Chun Sing’s use of Mandarin and Chinese philosophy in his speech at a major security forum in Beijing has won him praise on Chinese social media, while shedding light on how cultural familiarity and language can be diplomatic tools for the city state. Videos of Chan at the Beijing Xiangshan Forum quoting ancient philosopher Mencius, or Mengzi in Mandarin, have gone viral on platforms such as Weixin and Baidu, with users hailing his command of the language and...

Manny Villar confident Ombudsman's graft claims over PrimeWater issue can be 'addressed'

Sep 18, 2026

Business tycoon Manny Villar, former Senate president and patriarch of the Villar Group of Companies, expressed confidence Friday that he and his family can dispute the graft charges leveled by the Office of the Ombudsman over the alleged poor service of their PrimeWater Infrastructure Corporation.

DFA urges delay in implementing P1.5K passport fee until 2028

Sep 18, 2026

UP Diliman body condemns ‘violent dispersal’ at rally vs Pax Silica

Sep 18, 2026

MANILA, Philippines — A University of the Philippines (UP) Diliman committee condemned the alleged violent dispersal by the Philippine National Police (PNP) of a rally decrying Pax Silica. “We hold the Philippine government and the PNP to account for this blatant violation of the right to free assembly and speech,” the UP Diliman committee on

Thailand makes weight-loss pens prescription-only to counter glut of illegal medicines

Sep 18, 2026

Thailand has moved to make weight-loss pens prescription-only, as a glut of the GLP-1 medicines – which mimic the hormones released once someone is full – floods the black market and influencers swarm TikTok to extol the quick wins of the simple injections. The Southeast Asian nation, which is never far behind wellness or aesthetic trends and has a notorious black market in counterfeit drugs, has seen the uptake of GLP-1 medicines skyrocket, doctors say, including the market-leading Ozempic...

'Go die back home': Thai PM orders governors to speed up deportation of offending foreigners

Sep 18, 2026

Thai Prime Minister and Interior Minister Anutin Charnvirakul has instructed provincial governors to use their legal authority to swiftly deport foreigners who exploit, threaten, or engage in unacceptable conduct toward Thai citizens.

For Aznar Shipping, going public means growth – and dodging third-gen curse

Sep 18, 2026

'My main job is really to hand it over to the next gen,' the third-generation Aznar tells Rappler. 'Looking at the IPO process, the requirements, the standards that you are held to, it really coincided with my interest.'

US hands over 64 smuggled artefacts to China in diplomatic push before summit

Sep 18, 2026

The United States has returned dozens of cultural relics to China ahead of Chinese President Xi Jinping’s coming visit to Washington, a goodwill gesture to help pave the way for a positive summit. At the handover ceremony at the Chinese embassy in Washington on Wednesday, China officials received 58 cultural relics and palaeontological fossils from the cultural property, art and antiquities programme of US Homeland Security Investigations. A further six items were returned a day later by the...

Avoid sharing videos, unverified info on Banga School shooting, DICT warns

Sep 18, 2026

The Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) on Friday called on the public not to share graphic videos and images, as well as unverified information on social media concerning the school shooting incident in Banga, South Cotabato.

Quezon priest urges DOE review of Atimonan coal plant project

Sep 18, 2026

LUCENA CITY — A Catholic priest and environmental advocate has urged the Department of Energy (DOE) to conduct a fresh, thorough review of the proposed 1,200-megawatt coal-fired power plant in Atimonan, Quezon, along the coast of Lamon Bay. Fr. Warren Puno, convenor of Quezon for Environment (QUEEN) and director of the Ministry of Ecology at

Child rights advocates raise concerns over online safety bill

Sep 18, 2026

MANILA, Philippines — Children’s rights advocates on Thursday welcomed the House of Representatives’ approval of the substitute bill for the Children’s Social Media and Online Gaming Safety Act but raised concerns over provisions requiring parental consent for children to access social media and restricting short-form videos. The House Committee on Welfare of Children approved the

Najib's conditional pardon only applies to SRC International case - AG

Sep 18, 2026

Ex-PM still facing several other criminal charges in court.

DFA urges delay in implementing P1.5K passport fee until 2028

More News

Singapore minister Chan Chun Sing’s Mandarin diplomacy strikes China chord

Manny Villar confident Ombudsman's graft claims over PrimeWater issue can be 'addressed'

DFA urges delay in implementing P1.5K passport fee until 2028

UP Diliman body condemns ‘violent dispersal’ at rally vs Pax Silica

Thailand makes weight-loss pens prescription-only to counter glut of illegal medicines

'Go die back home': Thai PM orders governors to speed up deportation of offending foreigners

For Aznar Shipping, going public means growth – and dodging third-gen curse

US hands over 64 smuggled artefacts to China in diplomatic push before summit

Avoid sharing videos, unverified info on Banga School shooting, DICT warns

Quezon priest urges DOE review of Atimonan coal plant project

Child rights advocates raise concerns over online safety bill

Najib's conditional pardon only applies to SRC International case - AG

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