Good day. Here are the stories of The Manila Times for Monday, August 31, 2026.
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No respite from rains as monsoon intensifies
METRO MANILA and most of the country will have no respite from heavy rains and flooding at the start of the week as a tropical depression intensifies the southwest monsoon or “habagat,” the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa) said Sunday. Tropical Depression Pilandok was bearing down on Northern Luzon with 45-kilometer-per-hour winds and gusts of up to 55 kph, Pagasa said. While it is not expected to make landfall, the storm will enhance the southwest monsoon and induce it to unleash torrential rain that could last until Tuesday.
Lacson flags 4 ‘fraudulently’ titled lots in Taguig
FOUR parcels of alleged illegally reclaimed land in Taguig City are covered by “fraudulently” issued titles that will be turned over to the Office of the Ombudsman for investigation, Sen. Panfilo Lacson said. Four other parcels are not in the digital files of the Land Registration Authority (LRA), Lacson added. He said he revealed the details of the initial findings of his team “to dispel insinuations” that his exposé on illegal reclamation operations in Taguig was “fake news.”
Missing in Nepal-Tibet floods rises past 3,000
The number of people missing in the catastrophic flood that sliced through the border area between Nepal and Tibet exceeded 3,000 on Sunday, as rescuers searched for survivors. Figures from Nepal and from Chinese authorities in charge of Tibet put the total number of missing at just over 3,000, with 750 bodies recovered. Nepal says there are 2,498 people, including hundreds of foreigners, who are out of contact in the country. It reported an updated death toll of 734 people on Sunday.
Prosecution wants longer impeachment trial hours
THE Senate impeachment court should consider longer hours or adding more days to speed up the trial of Vice President Sara Duterte, a member of the House prosecution panel said. Former Surigao del Norte representative Robert Ace Barbers, an adviser to the panel, said the public is growing impatient because of delays in the proceedings due to weather-related suspensions and witness availability. He acknowledged that senator-judges must balance the trial with their legislative duties, but suggested moving legislative work to the morning and holding the impeachment proceedings later in the day.
BUSINESS: Poll: August inflation likely slowed to 6.0%
LOWER energy costs and prices of some food items could have pulled inflation down for a fourth straight month in August, analysts said. The median forecast in a Manila Times poll was 6.0 percent, within the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas’ (BSP) 5.5- to 6.6-percent estimate for the month. If realized, it would be lower than the 6.2 percent recorded in July. The projection is still well above the central bank’s 2.0- to 4.0-percent target and is also markedly higher than the 1.5 percent uptick seen in August last year. Data for the month will be released by the Philippine Statistics Authority this Friday, Sept. 4.
SPORTS: Eala’s US Open 1st round match set on Sept. 2
FANS will have to wait a little longer before Filipino tennis ace Alex Eala sees action in the US Open main draw. As per the tournament website on Sunday, Eala’s first-round match against Mary Stoiana is scheduled for Wednesday, Sept. 2, in Manila. The match will be held at the Louis Armstrong Stadium in Flushing Meadows following the ATP encounter between Adolfo Vallejo and Gael Monfils on Sept. 1 at 7 p.m. in New York (Sept. 2 at 7 a.m. in Manila). That would likely have Eala’s match at around 8:30 a.m to 9:30 a.m. on Wednesday in Manila.
Rigoberto Tiglao and Fr. Ranhilio Callangan Aquino are today’s front page columnists. Tiglao says that the economy is in crisis and President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. doesn’t have a plan. Aquino, meanwhile, talks about San Beda University and the education it provides to Filipinos.
Today’s editorial says the US is running out of options in dealing with Iran.
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