MANILA, Philippines – Replicating their upset win in the classification round, the CEU Scorpions stung NCAA champion Marinerong Pilipino-San Beda Red Lions once more, 75-71, to take Game 1 of the PBA D-League Aspirants’ Cup semifinals on Thursday, April 25, at the Ynares Sports Arena in Pasig City.  CEU, which claimed an outright semifinal spot as the second seed, withstood a last-gasp stand by the Red Lions in the fourth quarter, as Daniel Marcelo drilled a banked trey that stretched the Scorpions’ lead to 5 in the final minute    “We don’t want to come into the game think ..read more

Here are today’s headlines – the latest news in the Philippines and around the world: Apollo Quiboloy still in Philippines, says DOJ; Cash keeps coming as gifts for his 74th birthday The justice department says fugitive doomsday preacher Apollo Quiboloy remains in the Philippines. His former followers claim the group’s fundraising efforts continue unabated in the Philippines and abroad. Hontiveros, Gatchalian urge DILG to suspend Bamban mayor Senators urge the suspension of Bambam Mayor Alice Guo due to alleged links to raided POGO Zun Yuan Technology Inc. Its premises at the Baofu Compoun ..read more

MANILA, Philippines – Red-hot Chery Tiggo, in a perfect test before the 2024 PVL All-Filipino semifinals, went through the wringer in its final assignment, downing the gutsy Galeries Tower Highrisers in five sets, 26-24, 23-25, 19-25, 25-12, 15-9, to win its seventh straight game and formalize its Final Four entry. Super sophomore Eya Laure, despite having an inefficient spiking game, went all-out in all departments with a 20-point finish with 5 blocks, 18 excellent receptions, and 11 excellent digs. Veterans Ara Galang and former MVP Mylene Paat backstopped with 13 and 9 points, respectively ..read more

Claim: The United Kingdom’s Royal Navy is donating its aircraft carrier, HMS Prince of Wales, to the Philippines amid ongoing tensions in the South China Sea. Rating: FALSE Why we fact-checked this: The YouTube video was posted on April 23 by a channel with 4,720 subscribers. As of writing, it has 40,166 views, 242 comments, and 1,100 likes.  The video’s narrator cited supposed reports of the UK intending to “permanently donate” the aircraft carrier, as well as alleged statements from the Philippines’ defense department. The bottom line: The HMS Prince of Wales (R09) remains on duty unde ..read more

NEW YORK, USA – Members of the K-pop supergroup ITZY are looking to show a new side of themselves as the band takes its Born to Be tour to fans around the world. The tour, which sees the girl band perform in 18 countries across Asia, Australia, New Zealand, Latin America, Europe, and North America this year, takes its name from the group’s third studio album, released in January. “There are our solo songs (on the album). So I think that’s a very big difference (from the previous world tour)… we have our own song (on) stage,” band member Ryujin told Reuters, in an joint interview with fellow me ..read more

LOS ANGELES, USA – When Zendaya first read the script for director Luca Guadagnino’s romantic sports film Challengers, she immediately understood that the tennis player turned coach she would portray was unapologetic about her own power and how she wielded it. “I also think that she isn’t immediately dislikable, and she isn’t perfect, and she isn’t trying to be and we’re not making any excuses for that either,” Zendaya said about her character, Tashi Duncan. At the Los Angeles premiere of the film, Zendaya took to the stage in her neon green halter dress and urged audiences not to judge t ..read more

NEW YORK, USA – New York’s highest court on Thursday, April 25, overturned the 2020 sex crimes conviction of former Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein, in the case that helped trigger the #MeToo movement. In a 4-3 decision, the state Court of Appeals said the trial judge made a mistake by letting prosecutors introduce testimony from women who claimed that Weinstein assaulted them, even though they were not part of the charges he faced. The appeals court also said the trial judge compounded the error by letting Weinstein be cross-examined in a way that portrayed him in a “highly prejudici ..read more

WASHINGTON, USA – US economic growth slowed more than expected in the first quarter, but an acceleration in inflation suggested that the Federal Reserve would not cut interest rates before September. Gross domestic product increased at a 1.6% annualized rate last quarter, the Commerce Department’s Bureau of Economic Analysis said in its advance estimate of first-quarter GDP on Thursday, April 25. Growth was largely supported by consumer spending. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast GDP rising at a 2.4% rate, with estimates ranging from a 1.0% pace to a 3.1% rate. The econo ..read more

Petsa de peligro is already a thing of the past for hundreds of employees of the Shangri-La Hotels. That’s because the Shangri-La group, which operates several five-star luxury hotels in the country, is among the Philippines’ pioneering adopters of earned wage access (EWA). “The whole Shangri-La group, the five hotels here in the Philippines are already part of it,” Paywatch president Rowell del Fierro said. “They were solving for a lot of problems with the employees. And they saw this as a really great fit to improve the employee benefits all around now.” To put it simply, EWA lets you withd ..read more

MANILA, Philippines – Some areas suspended face-to-face classes for Friday, April 26, due to high heat index levels. The heat index is measured using the air temperature and the relative humidity in a place at a given time. It is also called the feels-like temperature, and it typically soars during the Philippines’ warm and dry season from March to May. This list will be updated once local or national authorities make announcements. LUZON Metro Manila Caloocan City – face-to-face classes in all levels (public and private) Las Piñas City – face-to-face classes in all levels ..read more