Liam Demafelix
Reporting from the TSR newsroom.
Trump calls on all ICC members to resign immediately
U.S. President Donald Trump on Tuesday urged members of the International Criminal Court to resign and condemned what he called an “out of control institution” and “an evil group of people.” Trump told the United Nations General Assembly that the US would not allow military servicemembers…
California declares state of emergency ahead of El Niño
LOS ANGELES — California’s governor on Monday declared a state of emergency as the US west coast readies for what is expected to be a damaging El Niño. Forecasters say the coming months could bring powerful and damaging storms to the region because of this weather pattern, with the threat of…
CICC sets ultimatum for Reddit, Discord: Set up offices in PH within 24 hours or face restrictions
The Cybercrime Investigation and Coordinating Center (CICC) has given Reddit and Discord a 24-hour ultimatum to establish offices in the Philippines or face possible restrictions. The move comes as the CICC addresses growing concerns over the use of online platforms among the youth, citing the…
El Niño weather pattern enters record territory—scientist
The strengthening El Niño weather pattern has tied for the most intense on record on a widely-used metric, a senior scientist told AFP Monday, even as its influence is already being felt from Central America to Indonesia. Zeke Hausfather, a climatologist at Berkeley Earth and co-author of…
Global diesel prices hit record highs, further rises possible
Diesel prices have rallied in Europe and the United States to record highs as wars in Iran and Ukraine sharply cut exports from some of the biggest producers such as Russia, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, with little options to prevent further gains. Diesel futures in Europe closed at…
‘Metro Manila’s green lung’: One quarter of Quezon City is green space, and city planners are now connecting all of it into one network
Quezon City considers itself the green lung of Metro Manila, and with reason. La Mesa watershed alone accounts for nearly one quarter of the city’s total land area, complemented by the expansive UP Diliman campus and Quezon Memorial Circle at its center. This forms a continuous green mass that…
North and South Caloocan have never been directly connected by public transit. MRT-11 may finally fix that.
Caloocan City is unique among all 17 local government units in Metro Manila: it is the only city physically divided into two separate and unconnected halves—North and South Caloocan—with no direct public transit link between them. Caloocan City Administrator Aurora Ciego this gap, which has…
Gemini hacked three companies in first known breakout by Google’s AI
Google’s Gemini model accessed the internet and hacked other companies during a test of its cybersecurity capabilities, the first known example of the company’s AI systems autonomously committing such an act. The hacks occurred in May during a cybersecurity test conducted by Irregular, an…
What do Filipinos do when they win the lotto? PCSO chief reveals
Filipino lotto jackpot winners pick their numbers through birthdays, dreams, the sound of geckos at night, and handwritten notebooks full of personal number codes. And when they win, most say they will give to the church first, then think about the bank, then consider going into business…
PCSO gross revenues grew to ₱64 billion in 2025, and the charity fund grows with it
The Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office generated ₱64 billion in gross sales last year, revenue that flows directly into the charity fund used for medical assistance, educational grants, and mandatory contributions to government agencies, PCSO General Manager Melquiades “Mel” Robles said…
PCSO contributes to PhilHealth, CHED, PSC, DDB, DOE, and still pays taxes and dividends
The Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO) is mandated by law to contribute to approximately 14 government agencies and programs, including PhilHealth, the Commission on Higher Education, the Philippine Sports Commission, the Dangerous Drugs Board, and the Department of Energy. And on top of…
PCSO’s ‘Charitimba’ is now in its third generation: it holds food, can be sat on, stacked 10 high, and doubles as a water basin
The Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office’s (PCSO) Charitimba, a disaster relief kit packaged in a sturdy multipurpose pail, has reached its third generation of design. It is now capable of being sat on, stacked 10 units high without cracking, used as a food container, a water basin, and an…
‘Bayanihan on wheels’: how the Cebu earthquake produced the Philippines’ first mass mobilization of government ambulances
When a powerful earthquake struck Cebu in September 2025, the provincial governor made a single call to every mayor in the province. Because every municipality now had a PCSO patient transport vehicle, every single one was able to send an ambulance to the disaster site. This produced what PCSO…
Chinese EV maker BYD recalls more than 180,000 cars over brake pedal risk
China’s market regulator said on Friday electric vehicle maker BYD will immediately recall more than 180,000 cars to resolve a manufacturing defect affecting a brake pedal component. The exercise covers 183,211 Qin and Tang series vehicles produced between 2014 and 2022, as the defect in a…
PCSO earns responsible gaming certification from the World Lottery Association in two years, a process that normally takes six
The Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO) reached Level 3 of the World Lottery Association’s responsible gaming certification in just two years, a process that normally takes six. In addition, PCSO General Manager Melquiades “Mel” Robles has been elected Vice Chairman of the Asia Pacific…