BANGKOK, Thailand – Southeast Asian leaders met Saturday, November 2, in Thailand eyeing a breakthrough in talks over the world's largest trade deal to help throw off the torpor which has gripped the global economy since the start of the US-China tariff war. The 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) opened their annual summit in Bangkok hoping to secure a China-backed free trade pact knitting together half of the world's population and around 40 percent of its commerce. The Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) – a deal spanning India to New Zealand and wrangled over for several years

'We really must consider the alternative transport channel, as it…will give citizens from all walks of life an avenue for safe and easy mobility,' says Senator Zubiri. The bill that seeks to lower the income tax of companies and rationalize tax perks has successfully hurdled the House of Representatives. On Friday, September 13, lawmakers voted 170-8-6 in favor of House Bill (HB) No. 4157 or the proposed Corporate Income Tax and Incentive Rationalization Act (Citira) on 3rd and final reading. Citira is the renamed version of the Tax Reform for Attracting Better and High-Quality Opportunities bill that the House had passed in the previous 17th Congress. The Trabaho bill, however, ran out of time in the Senate and had to be refiled in the 18th Congress. Among those who voted no to the Citira bill was Albay 1st District Representative Edcel Lagman who said the measure is a “classic example of how skewed the Philippine tax system is against the poor.” “To deodorize Citira’s inequitable partiality to the rich, it is propagandized that Citira would purportedly generate employment and attract investments. These are overstated, and even contrived,” said the opposition lawmaker in explaining his no vote. The measure is the second tranche of the Duterte administration's Comprehensive Tax Reform Program.

'We really must consider the alternative transport channel, as it…will give citizens from all walks of life an avenue for safe and easy mobility,' says Senator Zubiri

"We need to create walkable, bike-able cities," said Senate Majority Leader Juan Miguel Zubiri on Tuesday, August 20, as he underscored the need for elevated walkways and bike lanes along the heavily congested EDSA. "An elevated walkway and bike lane along EDSA would open up a new people-centric avenue to connect Metro Manila’s major business districts," Zubiri said in a privilege speech. Elevated walkways and bikes lanes are among the easy interventions that the government can do to improve mobility along EDSA, some experts say. A quick look at EDSA sidewalks would show how "unfriendly" they are to pedestrians and PWDs – narrow and crowded with street vendors, parked vehicles, electrical posts, and occasional plant boxes.

The Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Bureau of Immigration will implement stricter rules on the visa upon arrival (VUA) policy, Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra said on Saturday.“The DOJ and the BI are tightening up the rules on the issuance of visa upon arrival (VUA),” Guevarra said in a message to reporters.Guevarra noted that they would “limit the maximum permissible period to 30 days, blacklist overstaying aliens, ensure non-convertibility to work visas, and impose sanctions on travel agencies breaking the rules.” Justice Undersecretary Markk Perete previously disclosed that the BI was already reviewing the system and identified some of its loopholes. According to Perete, one of the loopholes is that the time covered by the VUA — initially valid for three months — can be subjected to an extension of another three months.

The Bureau of Immigration (BI) is now reviewing the visa upon arrival (VUA) policy to determine if the scheme should be refined or be completely scrapped. Justice Undersecretary Markk Perete said the BI’s review started about a month ago and has already identified loopholes in the system. The VUA is a facility available to Chinese tourists only. Perete however said other foreign nationals can also avail of it if they fall under the following categories:1) Foreign investors/businessmen endorsed by the BOI, PRA, PCCI and other chambers; 2) athletes and delegates to sports competitions; 3) delegates/participants to international conventions; 4) foreign investors / executives in investments endorsed by the govt; and 5) officials of the WB, ADB and other development partners.