No surprises in PVL Rookie Draft as Lamina, Pepito go 1-2

 

BY LANCE AGCAOILI

JUNE 4, 2026

Lams Lamina (leftmost) and Detdet Pepito (third from the left) are welcomed by their PVL team stalwarts Julia Coronel (second from the left) and Bella Belen (rightmost). —PVL PHOTOS

Asetter and a libero headlined the 2026 Draft class of the PVL on Wednesday night, with Lams Lamina being picked first overall by Galeries Tower and Detdet Pepito going second as picked by Capital1.

Galeries is banking on the two-time UAAP Best Setter to elevate its offense and maximize a core led by Jean Asis, Aiza Maizo-Pontillas, Gayle Pascual, Roselle Baliton and Erika Deloria.

“It’s really fulfilling because, wow, I was the one they chose for Galeries,” Lamina said in Filipino. “It shows the trust they have in me, and I’m very happy and grateful for that.”

DepEd-Caraga set for class opening with 33,000 teachers

By Philippine News Agency

Published Jun 4, 2026 06:36 pm

BUTUAN CITY – The Department of Education (DepEd) in the Caraga region declared all systems go for the opening of School Year 2026-2027 on June 8, with 33,637 teaching personnel, 22,674 classrooms, and over P1 billion in Maintenance and Other Operating Expenses (MOOE) allocated for elementary schools.

DepEd-13 Assistant Regional Director Pedro Escobarte Jr. said during a press conference on Thursday that the region is fully prepared, with Brigada Eskwela ongoing in different schools.

"The DepEd is not alone in the preparations for the opening of classes this year. The Brigada Eskwela, with the support of our stakeholders, the parents, will continue until the opening of classes," Escobarte said.

DepEd-13 has 33,637 teaching personnel assigned in 13 divisions, supported by 2,963 teaching-related personnel and 4,234 non-teaching personnel. A total of 2,515 teachers and school heads were recently promoted through the Expanded Career Progression System, and 2,041 newly created teaching items were added for Fiscal Year 2026.

For SY 2026-2027, DepEd-13 has been allocated P1.069 billion in MOOE for elementary, P548.4 million for junior high school, and P204.9 million for senior high school. Additional MOOE includes P6.9 million for elementary, P10.3 million for JHS, and P6.7 million for SHS.

The region has 22,674 classrooms ready for the school year, with an additional 5,518 proposed new classrooms being processed for implementation and construction. (PNA)

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Missing the forest for the trees

 

BY INQUIRER EDITORIAL

JUNE 5, 2026

CASUALTY OF DEVELOPMENT A mural showing a bird perched on a tree fittingly serves as the backdrop for the stump of a decades-old tree on Quirino Avenue in Manila, that was cut down to make way for an expressway. —NIÑO JESUS ORBETA

It took fierce public outrage and sustained protests by environmental groups, fisherfolk groups, and organized youth for the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) to pause what people have described as the “massacre of trees” along Quirino Avenue in Manila.

The tree-cutting will make way for the Southern Access Link Expressway (SALEx) project that will connect to the Metro Manila Skyway Stage 3. The Quirino Avenue SALEx segment will span 3.97 kilometers and feature four elevated lanes.

Over 225 trees have been felled, with the DENR permit indicating that a total of 617 trees were allowed to be cut. Only 27 trees have undergone earth-balling so far, as most of the trees cut down were sick, diseased, or too old to withstand transplantation, the DENR said.

Padre Pio church in Batangas elevated to international shrine status — CBCP

By Ellalyn De Vera-Ruiz

Published Jun 4, 2026 12:57 pm

The National Shrine and Parish of St. Padre Pio in Sto. Tomas, Batangas is the second Catholic church in the Philippines to receive international shrine status.

The Vatican has elevated the National Shrine and Parish of St. Padre Pio in Sto. Tomas, Batangas, to the status of an international shrine, making it only the second Catholic church in the Philippines to receive the designation, according to the Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines (CBCP).

In a statement on Thursday, June 4, CBCP said the Dicastery for Evangelization issued the decree on May 25, coinciding with the 139th birth anniversary of St. Padre Pio.

The designation places the Batangas church among a select group of shrines recognized by the Holy See as sacred places of pilgrimage and worship for the universal Church.

It joins the International Shrine of Our Lady of Peace and Good Voyage in Antipolo City as the only churches in the country to hold international shrine status.

Church officials described the recognition as a historic milestone that is expected to deepen devotion to St. Padre Pio and encourage more pilgrims from the Philippines and abroad to visit the shrine.

“May this historic milestone inspire us to deepen our faith and devotion as we journey together in prayer and thanksgiving,” they said.

Preparations are underway for the formal declaration of the church as an international shrine on Sept. 23, the feast day of St. Padre Pio.

The elevation marks the latest chapter in the growth of the shrine, which was established as a parish in 2003, declared an archdiocesan shrine in 2008, and recognized as a national shrine in 2015.

The Archdiocese of Lipa had earlier expressed its aspiration for the shrine to attain international status.

In the 2024 book “Enlarging the Space of Our Tent,” the archdiocese said the goal reflected its desire to welcome pilgrims from diverse cultures and nationalities and expand its spiritual mission beyond local communities.

The shrine houses several first-class relics of the Italian saint, who was known for bearing the stigmata and for his reported gift of healing.

Sollen Beamte in die Rentenversicherung zahlen? Es gibt ein Gerechtigkeitsproblem...

Stand:04.06.2026, 18:05 Uhr

Von: Mike Schier

Es ist ein emotionales Thema: Sollen Beamte in die Rentenversicherung einzahlen? Finanziell brächte das kaum Entlastung. Trotzdem gibt es Handlungsbedarf, kommentiert Mike Schier.

Schon klar: Der Beamtenbund ist eine Lobbyorganisation – dennoch ließ es aufhorchen, wie die Gewerkschaft der Staatsdiener die Debatte um Renten und Pensionen als „populistische Forderungen“ wegen „gefühlter Ungerechtigkeiten“ abtat. Wenn die durchschnittliche Pension bei 3400 Euro brutto monatlich liegt, die durchschnittliche Rente aber nur bei 1300 Euro, ist da nichts „gefühlt“. Es ist ein Problem, das man angehen sollte. Aber nicht emotional, sondern mit kühlem Kopf.  

Es gibt ein Gerechtigkeitsproblem zwischen der Pension und der Rente. Ein Kommentar. © Fernando Gutierrez-Juarez/dpa ; Montage: Ippen.Media

Zunächst einmal zum wesentlichen Unterschied: Während sich die Rentenhöhe am durchschnittlichen Einkommen eines Arbeitslebens bemisst, liegt die Pension etwa bei 70 Prozent des letzten Gehalts. Das ist bei einer normalen Beamten-Laufbahn in der Regel das höchste. Hier könnte man ansetzen, müsste bei einer Neuregelung aber die großen Unterschiede bei den Pensionären berücksichtigen: Ein einfacher Justiz- oder Polizeibeamter bekommt viel, viel weniger als ein Ministerialdirektor. Doch Spitzenbeamte bewegen sich in Dimensionen, in deren Nähe selbst ein gesetzlich rentenversicherter Manager niemals kommen wird.   

Ein Einzahlen der Beamten in die Rentenkasse würde das Grundproblem nicht lösen

Eher wenig geeignet ist dagegen der Vorschlag, den Sozialministerin Bärbel Bas (SPD) derzeit forciert. Logisch: Bei jeder Veranstaltung zum 1. Mai gibt es tosenden Beifall, wenn ein Genosse fordert, die Beamten sollten endlich in die Rentenversicherung einzahlen. Dumm nur, dass dies wegen der Haushaltslage gar nicht finanzierbar ist. Denn der Staat müsste gleichzeitig die aktuellen Pensionäre bezahlen (Bestandsschutz!) und dazu Rentenbeiträge für die künftigen. Zudem ändert eine solche Reform nichts am Grundproblem der Rentenkasse: die Alterung – im Gegenteil: Beamte leben im Schnitt länger und beziehen länger Pension.  

Der Bas-Vorschlag ist aktuell kaum zu finanzieren

Mike Schier

So oder so: Einen schnellen Effekt wird keine Maßnahme haben. Wie auch beim Renteneintrittsalter wirken sich Reformen bei Pensionären erst nach Jahrzehnten aus. Und langfristig bietet sich noch eine andere Lösung an: Nicht jeder Beamte müsste unbedingt Beamter sein. Streikrecht hin oder her. Das würde irgendwann auch die Pensionszahlungen reduzieren.