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  MANILA, Philippines --- While Senator Panfilo Lacson and his running mate Senate President Vicente Sotto III will not criticize other possible candidates in the 2022 national elections, they would respect the sentiments aired by party members on the activities of their rivals. According to Lacson, both he and Sotto maintain their stand that they would not be speaking about the "missteps" of other candidates. Lacson made the remark after he was asked during the Meet the Press forum on Thursday about his comment on the caravan held by former senator Bongbong Marcos and Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio. Like Lacson and Sotto, Marcos and Duterte-Carpio are also runnin...

Keep on reading: Lacson-Sotto tandem respects party members’ criticisms of rival bets

MANILA, Philippines --- Former Public Works Secretary Mark Villar has been included in the senatorial ticket of presidential aspirant Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. and his running mate Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio. During an event in Bacoor, Cavite on Thursday, the tandem endorsed the senatorial bid of Villar, who was earlier included in the initial slate of President Rodrigo Duterte's PDP-Laban faction. "(Nandito) si Secretary Mark Villar na susunod na senador, iluluklok po natin siya sa Senado (Here is Secretary Mark Villar, our next senator. We will elect him to the Senate)," Marcos said. Marcos cited Villar as having the track record of being one of the "hardwo...

Keep on reading: Ex-DPWH chief Mark Villar joins Bongbong-Sara senatorial slate

Yen Santos and American actor Jake Gyllenhaal led Google Philippines' most searched personalities for 2021, alongside celebrities Rabiya Mateo, AJ Raval and Olivia Rodrigo, among others. Santos was put under scrutiny by the public this year after she got involved in the split between fellow actors LJ Reyes and Paolo Contis. Meanwhile, Gyllenhaal gained social media attention after singer Taylor Swift released last month the 10-minute version of her song "All Too Well," which is speculated to be about her former relationship with the actor. Google released today, Dec. 9, its lists of top searches in the Philippines for 2021 under different categories. Aside from Santos, Mateo...

Keep on reading: Yen Santos, Jake Gyllenhaal top Google PH’s most searched personalities of 2021

  MANILA, Philippines --- The national government is aiming to fully vaccinate 77 million people against COVID-19 by the first quarter of 2022, Health Secretary Francisco Duque III said Thursday. The government is currently aiming to complete the doses of 54 million individuals before the year ends and Duque said he is confident this can be achieved. "Sana ito will pave the way for us to achieve the second milestone, which hopefully we will be able to accomplish in the early first quarter of next year and that is reaching 77 million Filipinos with completed jabs all over the country," he said in an awarding ceremony in Mandaluyong City. Ultimately, the administration...

Keep on reading: Duque: Gov’t eyes 77 million fully vaxxed vs COVID-19 by Q1 2022

  LOS ANGELES - The Houston Rockets pushed their NBA winning streak to seven games on Wednesday with a 114-104 victory over the short-handed Brooklyn Nets as the top three Eastern Conference teams suffered setbacks. Eric Gordon scored 21 points before he was ejected in the fourth quarter and Garrison Matthews added 19 for the Rockets, who have their first seven-game winning streak since they won eight in a row in November of 2019. James Harden, playing his second game in Houston since he was traded to the Nets in January, had 25 points for the Eastern Conference-leading Nets, who rested league scoring leader Kevin Durant and LaMarcus Aldridge. Cavs tame Bulls In Cleve...

Keep on reading: Rockets shoot down Nets; Bulls, defending champion Bucks fall

Homes are alight, carols are playing, and the magic of the holiday season is in the air. During this time of the year, beautiful moments are being shared - moments that deserve to be captured. When the holidays are over, the gifts that keep on giving are our memories. And what better way to keep great memories than with photographs of our cheesiest smiles or videos of our crazy holiday adventures? Make sure to cherish these stories by gifting yourself with the best phone for the job: the vivo Y76 5G. Looking through old snaps will be like being transported in time because of the vivo Y76 5G's superior features that capture the richness and dynamics of life. Christmas time is mea...

Keep on reading: Capture and share holiday moments with vivo Y76 5G

  MANILA, Philippines --- About 6.5 million minors aged 12 to 17 years have so far been vaccinated against COVID-19, vaccine czar Carlito Galvez Jr. said Thursday. "Tuwang tuwa kami kasi maganda na magface-to-face na ang ating mga estudyante," he said in an awarding ceremony in Mandaluyong City. (We are happy because students can now attend in-person classes.) The government started inoculating minors from 12 to 17 years old in October. Meanwhile, the total number of fully vaccinated individuals in the country is now at 39.7 million, Galvez said. About 57.64 million Filipinos have also at least received a first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine. Galvez said the g...

Keep on reading: 6.5 million minors vaxxed vs COVID-19; 39.7 million Filipinos fully vaxxed

SAN FRANCISCO --- One of the most prolific Russian-speaking ransomware gangs has claimed credit for a weekend attack on an Australian electric utility serving millions of people. Australian media reported on Monday that Chinese government hackers were behind the breach at CS Energy, which is owned by the Queensland state in northeast Australia. Those reports, which came amid high tensions between Australia and China, prompted the utility to issue a statement on Tuesday. There is "currently no indication that the cyber incident was a state-based attack," the statement cited CS Energy CEO Andrew Bills as declaring. The ransomware group known as Conti, meanwhile, named CS En...

Keep on reading: Ransomware attack on Australian utility claimed by Russian-speaking criminals

Landing a top A-lister should be welcome news for any movie, but "Being the Ricardos" producers faced a furious backlash when Nicole Kidman was unveiled as the star who would play legendary comedian Lucille Ball. Fans of the seminal 1950s sitcom "I Love Lucy" railed against the Australian Oscar-winner's casting as the United States national treasure with such venom that Ball's daughter even posted a video imploring them to "stop arguing." "'She doesn't look like her.' 'Her nose isn't the same.' 'She isn't as funny.' Blah blah blah blah blah," said Lucie Arnaz in January. "Just trust us. It's going to be a nice film." Kidman and director Aaron Sorkin stuck to their guns, and ...

Keep on reading: Nicole Kidman feared ‘I Love Lucy’ casting in ‘Being the Ricardos’

  WASHINGTON --- The Democratic-controlled U.S. Senate on Wednesday approved a Republican measure that would overturn President Joe Biden's COVID-19 vaccine or test mandate for private businesses, with two Democrats joining Republicans to back the initiative. The vote sends the legislation on to the House of Representatives, where it faces an uncertain future....

Keep on reading: US Senate passes Republican bill to overturn Biden vaccine mandate

  HONG KONG - Asian stocks made broad gains in early Thursday trade, following another strong lead from Wall Street as Omicron coronavirus variant fears lessened. In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng Index was up 1.02 percent, though Tokyo dipped into negative territory. After a rollercoaster ride since Omicron first emerged last month, investors are now optimistic about the outlook in the run-up to Christmas. Drugmakers BioNTech and Pfizer have said a third shot of their vaccine is effective at guarding against the new strain, while a two-dose regime will leave Omicron "not sufficiently neutralized". Patrick J. O'Hare at Briefing.com said the emerging information about th...

Keep on reading: Asia markets follow Wall Street with opening gains

LOS ANGELES --- One month ago, Britney Spears' long-standing conservatorship was terminated, but the legal proceedings continue. On Wednesday, Spears' attorney Mathew Rosengart appeared at the Los Angeles Superior Courthouse on behalf of his famous client for the latest hearing in the case, as the singer continues to fight an uphill legal battle, Variety reported. Though the matters on the table were relatively minor, the judge granted Spears the power to execute documents herself, meaning "she has the power to do whatever she wants to do," Rosengart said outside the courthouse after the brief hearing. Inside the courtroom, Rosengart said to Judge Brenda Penny, "Ms. Spears, ...

Keep on reading: Britney Spears given power to execute documents as ‘independent woman’

MABALACAT CITY, Pampanga----The director of the Central Luzon police has warned the public against unscrupulous people using his name to solicit money after two persons employing the same "modus" were arrested Dec. 7 in Mexico town in Pampanga. "Let me remind the public to be discerning and do not easily trust anyone who will use the name of several personalities, including myself, to ask for a favor or money," Brig. Gen. Matthew Baccay, Police Regional Office 3 (PRO3), said in a statement. He had directed all police units to watch for these individuals who would try to deceive people. "I also urge everyone to immediately report to authorities if they fall victim to any scam...

Keep on reading: 2 nabbed for scam using name of Central Luzon top cop

      MANILA, Philippines --- COVID-19 prevention, the Korean series 'Squid Game', and the Miss Universe pageant were among Filipinos' top searches for 2021, search engine giant Google Philippines announced Thursday. Google Philippines said the coronavirus pandemic remains to be a top concern among Filipinos, with "COVID-19 prevention" topping the list of trending searches this year. "VaxCertPH" and "COVID-19 vaccine" placed fourth and sixth, respectively.     "NBA games today" also remains to be a consistent search among Filipinos as it placed second this year, similar to its rank in 2020. The K...

Keep on reading: COVID-19 prevention, NBA, Squid Game, Miss Universe among top Google searches in PH

ILIGAN CITY----Saying the goal is an urgent one, Maj. Gen. Romeo Brawner Jr. has vowed to focus on crushing the communist New People's Army (NPA) during his stint as Army chief, especially in the remaining time of President Duterte in power. Brawner told SMNI News Network in an interview Wednesday that it was urgent to end the NPA so that by the time a new leadership in the country takes over after the 2022 elections, "they will no longer have a problem with the local communist armed conflict." "With a new administration, there will already be sustained and unhampered progress in our country," he added. President Duterte appointed Brawner as Army chief on Tuesday, succeeding...

Keep on reading: New Army chief vows to crush NPA within remaining time of Duterte

MANILA, Philippines --- The Department of Education (DepEd) will conclude this month the pilot implementation of face-to-face classes in the country to determine whether it can be expanded to more areas. Education Secretary Leonor Briones said Thursday the pilot study of in-person classes, which started on Nov. 15, is successful so far, saying there has not been a single recorded case of COVID-19 among students. "Tatapusin na namin itong pilot na ito by December para ma-assess namin ang success. But so far very successful naman," she said in an awarding ceremony in Mandaluyong City. (We will finish the pilot by December so that we can assess its success. But so far it's ...

Keep on reading: DepEd to conclude pilot study of face-to-face classes this month

MANILA, Philippines---The Supreme Court declares as unconstitutional two portions of the feared Republic Act 11479 or the Anti-Terrorism Act. In an advisory issued by the Public Information Office (PIO), voting 12-3, the High Court strikes down for being overbroad and violative of freedom of expression the qualifier portion of Section 4 stating that "...which are not intended to cause death or serious physical harm to a person, to endanger a person's life, or to create a serious risk to public safety." Another portion that has been stricken down is the second method for designation under Section 25. The second method of section 25 states that "Request for designations by oth...

Keep on reading: Anti-Terror Law constitutional except for two parts, says SC