Good morning. #WalangPasok… what a way to cap the week. Here’s a list of class suspensions due to the heat:

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 (public and private)

• Malabon City – face-to-face classes in all levels (public)

• Mandaluyong City – face-to-face-classes for preschool to senior high school (public and private)

• City of Manila – face-to-face classes in all levels (public and private)

• Muntinlupa City – face-to-face classes for preschool to senior high school (public)

• Navotas City – face-to-face classes in all levels (public and private)

• Parañaque City – face-to-face classes in all levels (public and private)

• Pasay City – face-to-face classes in all levels (public and private)

• Pateros – face-to-face classes in all levels (public and private)

Cagayan Valley

• Tuguegarao City – face-to-face classes for preschool to senior high school (public)

Calabarzon

• Bacoor City – face-to-face classes in all levels (public and private)

• Carmona City – face-to-face classes in all levels (public and private)

• General Trias City – face-to-face classes in all levels (public and private)

• Imus City – face-to-face classes in all levels (public and private)

• Kawit – face-to-face classes in all levels (public and private)

• Noveleta – face-to-face classes in all levels (public and private)

• Tanza – face-to-face classes for preschool to senior high school (public)

• Trece Martires City – face-to-face classes in all levels (public and private)

• Alaminos – face-to-face classes in all levels (public and private)

• Biñan City – face-to-face classes in all levels (public and private) until April 27

• San Pedro City – face-to-face classes in all levels (public and private) until April 27

• Catanauan – face-to-face classes in all levels (public and private)

Central Luzon

• Bataan – face-to-face classes in all levels (public and private)

• Angeles City – face-to-face classes in all levels (public and private)

Visayas

• Isabel – face-to-face classes in all levels (public and private)

Mindanao

• Ipil – face-to-face classes in all levels (public and private) until May 3

Stocks

Local News

💦 The Cavalry is Here

By Titus Bautista

Okay maybe it should be, the Navy has arrived! The United States and France officially began their multilateral maritime exercises yesterday, Thursday, in the disputed West Philippine Sea. Yes, this was supposed to send a message to our Chinese neighbors. This exercise is part of the Balikatan War games where our navies will participate in gunnery exercises and maritime search and rescue. “This multilateral maritime exercise would really help us build our defense capabilities.”

Of course, this comes at a perfect time with Chinese aggression increasing in quality and quantity the past few weeks. The water canons they’ve used have definitely not been the friendliest of maritime greetings. Maybe we can share some of the Philippine heat we’ve been experiencing to return the favor…

🌳 GCash Goes Green

by Tobias Bautista

GCash, the Philippines' go-to finance app, just dropped a new update that's turning heads: Green Transaction Alerts. Now, users can track the grams of carbon they're saving every time they zap money digitally or make a bank transfer.

It's like seeing your carbon footprint shrink in real-time, but without having to give up your daily latte. This nifty feature is GCash's latest move in their sustainability playbook. Remember those dusty old receipts and plastic cards? Yeah, those days are numbered, thanks to GCash.

CJ Alegre, the Sustainability Head at GCash, says it's all about making every tap count for the planet. And they're not just talking the talk. With GForest, their award-winning

gamified reforestation project, GCash users have already planted a whopping 2.7 million trees just by doing their digital thing.

But they're not stopping there. Nope. They're gearing up to roll out these eco-friendly alerts for even more transactions. So, get ready to feel good about your money moves – one tap at a time. 🌱

World News

💰 US Pumps in more Funds to Allies

By Titus Bautista

Uncle Sam is back with more. Or should we say Lolo Joe is? After months of legislative impasse, U.S. President Joe Biden finally signed a $94bn foreign funding law that focuses on military aid to Israel, Ukraine, and Taiwan - much to the dismay of Palestinian rights advocates.

“President Biden has betrayed the soul of our nation and disregarded the will of the American people, who overwhelmingly support a ceasefire and oppose unconditional aid to Israel.”

“It is beyond unconscionable that Congress and President Biden are sending the Israeli military billions worth of dollars worth of weapons - with no strings attached - to massacre, starve, and expel Palestinian civilians.”

Bernie Sanders called the signing a “dark day” for the US senate, as he is not a fan of supporting a right-wing leader like Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. However, Biden claims that his decision is a way to defend against Iran and make the world, especially the United States (US), safer.

Some Republicans aren’t the biggest of fans sending money to Ukraine either. But again, Biden claims that their Ukrainian allies are in dire need of this support as Russia has been gaining a lot of ground in their current war. Of the $94bn in the fund, $61bn of it goes to Ukraine and $9bn to humanitarian assistance around the world, some of which can actually go to Gaza (trying to get the US senate $1bn to fund our newsletter… we’ll keep you all posted if it ever materializes). Given the state of both wars, it looks like Lolo Biden will stay busy in the coming months. But please Tito Sam, can you please keep the civilians and innocents away from the mess!

Sports

❌ Negros Muscovados’ Germy Mahinay suspended indefinitely for despicable act

By Koby del Rosario

The MPBL has given Negros Muscovados big man Germy Mahinay an indefinite suspension as well as a hefty P100,000 fine after he maliciously undercut Zamboanga Master Sardines guard Joey Barcuma during a layup attempt in their April 22nd regular season game.

Barcuma, consequently, hit his head on the floor after the hit as he was ruled out for the remainder of the game. As expected, Mahinay was tossed out of the game with 8:37 remaining in the final period while Zamboanga’s Jaycee Marcelino was handed a technical foul for shoving the controversial player after the incident.

Zamboanga went on to defeat Negros, 88-73. 

Yesterday, April 24th, the MPBL released a statement on the matter—where they gave Mahinay his well-deserved consequences. “This outcome takes into account the dangerous nature of the play, as well as Mahinay’s reaction immediately after the deplorable act,” the league said.

No place in any league for this kind of behavior.

🏀 Heat ties things up against Boston, Thunder continue to outshine New Orleans

By Koby del Rosario

The 2024 NBA Playoffs on April 25 had a double-header of the No. 1 versus No. 8 Game 2’s where different outcomes occurred.

As they continue to embody “Heat Culture”, the Miami Heat (No. 8) pulled through despite still being without their leader, Jimmy Butler, and nailed a 10-point victory, 111-101, against the first-seeded Boston Celtics. Sharpshooter Tyler Herro led the charge with 24 points and 14 assists while Bam Adebayo was doing his thing down low with 21 markers and 10 boards. Wing Caleb Martin also had 21 of his own with five threes in the win.

With the series now moving to Miami, the duo of Jayson Tatum (28 pts, 8 rebs) and Jaylen Brown (33 pts, 8 rebs) would need more production from their supporting cast in the hopes of getting the upper hand in the now 1-1 series.

Out in Oklahoma, the Oklahoma City Thunder (No. 1) now holds a commanding 2-0 series lead against the New Orleans Pelicans after squashing them, 124-92, in Game 2. MVP candidate Shai Gilgeous-Alexander continued his stellar play with 33 points on an efficient 13-out-of-19 clip. Supplementing him was Chet Holgrem with 26 markers and seven caroms as well as Jalen Williams with 21 points and seven dimes.

As they look forward to playing on their home floor for Games 3 and 4, Brandon Ingram and Herb Jones still managed 18 points apiece while center Jonas Valanciunas had 19 and 7 of his own in the loss.

The 2024 NBA Playoffs will have another exciting three-game showcase later today.

News Roundup

• Rotating Brownouts may hit Metro Manila due to forced outages in 47 power plants and the heat drying up 21 hydroelectric power plants.

• Beyonce sends her flowers (literally) to a two-year-old Filipino boy and says she can see his “Halo.” The boy named Tyler is the son of sports broadcasters Bea Fabregas and Nikko Ramos. The love was on top on this one as Queen B sent the flowers and a note after Tyler’s viral video saying he wants to meet her because they’re friends.

• The El Nino has caused 4 Billion pesos in agricultural losses, the palace says.

• ABS-CBN is back on Channel 2 after signing a deal with Villar-Owned Advanced Media Broadcasting System (AMBS).

Games

🎯 How well do you know the Philippines? (Answers in the bottom)

1. What do they call the traditional script in the Philippines?

2. Also known as Tandang Sora, who is the “Grandmother of the Filipino Revolution?”

3. What is the country’s national flower?

4. Who is in the 200 Peso Bill?

5. As of 2023, how many female Presidents have we had?

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Answers

1. Baybayin

2. Melchora Aquino

3. Sampaguita

4. Diosdado Macapagal, 9th President and Father of GMA

5. 2 (Cory Aquino and GMA)