House, Senate strike a deal on land reform

By Roy Pelovello
THE House of Representatives and the Senate have agreed to restore the land acquisition and distribution component in the proposed extension of the agrarian reform law.

Drug trade booming despite high prices

By Macon Ramos Araneta
TAGAYTAY CITY—The country’s pharmaceutical industry has grown by over 230 percent from P47 billion in 1999 to nearly P150 billion today but remains in the stranglehold of multinational companies which control at least 70 percent of the market.

Energy ex-official accused of perjury

A FORMER assistant secretary of the Department of Energy is facing arrest on four counts of perjury for allegedly misdeclaring his statement of assets, liabilities and net worth.

Australia, RP hold anti-terror exercises

A LIVE simulation exercise of an attack on the Cebu International Port served to validate the capability of Philippine agencies such as the Philippine Office for Transportation Security, Cebu Ports Authority, Philippine Ports Authority and Philippine Coast Guard to respond to such incidents.

All-claimants’ talks on Spratlys pushed

Senator Francis Escudero yesterday called on the Arroyo administration to initiate moves for all-party talks among the six countries that are claiming ownership of the Spratlys to ease tensions generated by recent developments on the disputed group of islands in the South China Sea.

Finalists in civic journalism awards bared

The country’s most outstanding regional newspapers will again take the center stage on April 28 as the winners in the Philippine Press Institute’s Civic Journalism Community Press Awards are announced at the Diamond Hotel Philippines. This is the highlight of the Institute’s 13th Annual Membership Meeting featuring the National Press Forum on “Reporting the 2010 Elections Now.”