- Capitol proposes one timetable for calling off classes when the air turns bad
- A free 40-bed night shelter opens for Vicente Sotto patient watchers
- Minglanilla drops its town hall Christmas party to pay for El Niño preparations
- BIR shelves the 31 October deadline for posting its registration badge online
Capitol proposes one timetable for calling off classes when the air turns bad
Governor Pamela Baricuatro met the province's mayors and DepEd Cebu Province at the Capitol on Monday, 26 October, to settle how smog class suspensions are decided and announced. Her draft: an air advisory by 8 p.m. the night before, a final suspension call by 4:30 a.m., and afternoon-only suspensions by 11 a.m., each issued by one focal person per town. DepEd Cebu Province said its rules let mayors decide when PM2.5 is between 55.1 and 90, and make distance learning automatic above that. Metro Cebu's air read 133, unhealthy for sensitive groups, at 7 a.m. that day.
Carcar City suspended classes for smog on 12 October, so this is the rule that will decide how early parents here hear about the next one. Nothing is in force yet. Until the executive order comes out, keep checking Carcar City Hall and DepEd advisories in the evening, and keep children with asthma indoors on days the air is rated unhealthy.
Sources: SunStar, Cebu Provincial Government, SunStar
A free 40-bed night shelter opens for Vicente Sotto patient watchers
The Cebu Provincial Government opened the Pasilongan Center on Monday, 26 October; it takes its first occupants from Tuesday, 27 October. It sits near the Larsian food strip across from the Vicente Sotto Memorial Medical Center, with 20 foldable beds for men and 20 for women. It is open from 9 p.m. to 8 a.m. and is free, with a malong, pillow, mosquito net, bedsheets and toilets provided. VSMMC's medical social workers refer the watchers; provincial social workers check an ID and do a short interview. Cebu Province residents get priority, and beds are first come, first served.
If a relative from Carcar is confined at Sotto and you are the authorized watcher with nowhere to sleep, ask the hospital's medical social worker for a referral to the Pasilongan Center and bring a valid ID. Go early in the evening, since the 40 beds are not reserved.
Sources: The Freeman, SunStar
Minglanilla drops its town hall Christmas party to pay for El Niño preparations
Mayor Lheslen Enad has cancelled Minglanilla's annual employee Christmas party for 2026 and moved the money to El Niño preparedness and response. The town created the Minglanilla El Niño Task Force through Executive Order 17, series of 2026, signed on 7 October, to coordinate rapid response, protect local water supplies and help farming areas most at risk. The mayor has not said how much is being realigned or which projects get it. The town's Christmas lighting still goes ahead in December. PAGASA expects the El Niño to strengthen through December and last into the first half of 2027.
Minglanilla is the first South Cebu town we have seen put its party budget into drought prep. For households in Carcar, the practical side is the same as last week: store water in covered containers, fix leaks now, and watch for Carcar City's own El Niño measures.
Sources: GMA News, The Manila Times
BIR shelves the 31 October deadline for posting its registration badge online
The Bureau of Internal Revenue has suspended, until further notice, the rule that online sellers, content creators and other taxpayers display the BIR Registration Seal Badge on their online pages, along with the 31 October 2026 deadline. RMC 113-2026, dated 26 October, says no penalty applies only for not displaying the badge while the suspension lasts. Anyone who already has one may keep showing it. The badge stood in for posting the full Certificate of Registration online. The BIR cited data privacy, technical problems and the rule's scope, and will consult the National Privacy Commission.
If you sell from Carcar on Facebook, Shopee, TikTok or Lazada, or earn from content online, you no longer need to post the badge by Friday. Registration, receipts and tax filing are unchanged, so keep those up to date.
