Honorary Lithuanian consul Rafael Evangelista was jolted from his Subic base reverie and had to fire off an e-mail to announce that he was very much alive, thank you, contrary to an item here on Monday.

PRESIDENT Benigno Aquino III on Tuesday said he will uncover more “landmines” left by the previous administration and present a true picture of the government’s financial status during his first State- of-the-Nation Address next week.

VIENNA—Nowhere in the world is the HIV virus spreading faster than in Eastern Europe and Central Asia, where more than 80 percent of those infected are under 30 years old, UNICEF said Monday.

The Philippine economy will grow at a faster pace of 4.5 percent next year, the International Monetary Fund said Tuesday, revising its earlier forecast of 4 percent in terms of the gross national product for 2011.

MANILA, Philippines – The International Transport Workers’ Federation (ITF), is urging President Benigno Aquino III to intervene in the Philippine Airlines (PAL) labor dispute.

HEALTH Secretary Enrique Ona on Monday said his department would push for the passage of the reproductive health bill, setting the stage for a confrontation between the Aquino administration and the Catholic Church.

PARIS – The first six months of 2010 brought a string of warmest-ever global temperatures, but connecting these dots to long-term climate change patterns remains frustratingly difficult, experts say.

The framers of our Constitution and those who conceived the party-list system in our country had the best intention to guarantee that only those “truly belonging to marginalized and underrepresented sectors, such as labor, peasants, fisherfolk, urban poor, indigenous cultural communities, elderly, handicapped, women, youth, veterans, overseas workers and professionals” represent these sectors.

THE PALACE yesterday announced a slew of appointments to key agencies and offices as the Aquino administration entered its third week in office.

MANILA, Philippines—Three more party-list groups were proclaimed winners in the May 10 polls by the Commission on Elections (Comelec) Monday but their first nominees still can’t take their seats when Congress opens on Monday.

SUPPORTING the access of entrepreneurs to credit may help a city become more competitive, according to a study by the Asian Institute of Management Policy Center.

Due to the recent economic crisis, high cost of operations, low sales or other business reasons, some establishments have been forced to close shop. Consequently, job security becomes tenuous at best. One of the ways to provide safety nets for retiring employees is the setting up of an employees’ trust fund.

THE Philippines is likely to experience a construction boom within the decade because of the urgent need to address the country’s infrastructure constraints, according to an economist from the University of Asia and the Pacific (UA&P).

A FIVE-PRONGED AGENDA for the Aquino administration’s first 100 days was bared yesterday by the country’s largest business group.

WHEN a credit card user does not pay the entire amount shown in his monthly statement of account, he is bound to pay more for his purchases because of interest and penalty charges. When this happens, the credit card issuers are the big winners because they make more money on unpaid bills. The smaller the…

CEBU, Philippines – ALU-TUCP yesterday denied former workers seized vehicles rented by Chagrin Inc., the company in barangay Pagsabungan, Mandaue City that is trying to shake off accusations of unfair labor practices.

VIENNA – Scientists on Monday reported a major stride towards a vaginal gel that can thwart HIV, a goal that would be of huge benefit to African women bearing the brunt of the AIDS pandemic.

UNLESS you have no idea what a car is—which is highly unlikely if you’re reading this column—you’ve surely heard of the “sudden unintended acceleration” that bedeviled Toyota from late last year to early this year, forcing the Japanese carmaker to recall millions of vehicles in the US alone. The complaints filed against the car company…

FOREIGN investors have taken a wait-and-see posture vis-à-vis the Philippine financial market pending a clearer policy direction from President Benigno Aquino 3rd during his upcoming State of the Nation Address (SONA), according to Merrill Lynch (Asia Pacific) Ltd. In a briefing, Stephen Corry, chief investment officer at the securities firm, said the Philippines has been…

HEALTH Secretary Enrique Ona is supporting the appeal of two concerned groups to release the 43 community health workers or the Morong 43, whom the military tagged as alleged members of the New People’s Army (NPA). According to Ona he will continue the call of former Secretary Esperanza Cabral, the Alliance of Health Workers and…

The Chamber of Mines of the Philippines (CMP) on Monday scored the Catholic Church for its “extremist view” against the exploitation and development of the country’s natural resources. In a statement, Nelia Halcon, the executive vice president Chamber of Mines, expressed disappointment over the letter of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) to…

Water faucets in Metro Manila’s west zone or those serviced by Maynilad Water Services Inc. may end up dry in the next two months should the rains continue to miss the Angat dam in Bulacan. Herbert Consunji, Maynilad Water officer-in-charge, said in a press conference Monday that this is the likely worst-case scenario facing the…

HONG KONG (AFP) – Hong Kong on Saturday passed its first minimum wage law, a controversial issue that has divided the city’s business sector and labour groups for more than a decade.

MANILA, Philippines – Health Secretary Enrique Ona yesterday met with a group of doctors and medical professionals to discuss the issues confronting the health sector.

MANILA, Philippines – A group advocating climate change preparedness has urged President Aquino to undertake “immediate and full-scale changes” in the Climate Change Commission amid the possible diversion of a P10.5-billion French loan without its knowledge.

Echoing the guiding principle of President Aquino that the Filipino people are his boss, Education Secretary Armin Luistro said all schoolchildren, whether in public or private schools, are his boss.

MANILA, Philippines – Former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo’s satisfaction rating improved in her final three months in power but remained negative as it was in the last six years of her nine-year governance, a recent survey by the Social Weather Stations (SWS) showed.

President Obama today called on the U.S. Senate to pass the Paycheck Fairness Act to close the pay gap that leaves women earning only 77 cents for every dollar that men earn. He says the Paycheck Fairness Act is a common-sense bill that will help ensure that men and women who do equal work receive…

A friend scoffed, a bit haughtily I thought, when he read about how the President’s newly formed Communications Group (I know, the name sounds so generic and so nonspecific although it does have a businesslike ring to it) intended to use Facebook and Twitter as communications platforms to bring Malacañang and P-Noy closer to the…

It’s a big deal when children reach the age of seven. Here in the Philippines, a more festive than usual birthday celebration greets a seven-year-old boy or girl. Old folks say that it is upon the seventh year that a child becomes less vulnerable to sickness or any other external threat.