POP NEWS PHILIPPINES

Gumaganda na ang kondisyong pangkalusugan ni dating Sen. Ferdinand ‘Bongbong’ Marcos Jr. makaraang ihayag sa resulta ng clinical test na isinagawa ng Research Institute for Tropical Medicine (RITM) na siya’y positibo sa COVID-19, ayon ka Atty. Victor Rodriguez, spokesperson ni Marcos. “Pagkagaling ko sa Europa, tumungo agad ako noong sumunod na araw, Marso 14 sa isang ospital upang magpasuri dahil sa medyo may pananakit ang aking dibdib at upang matiyak ang aking kondisyong pangkalusugan dahil sa mga panahong ‘yon ay lumalaganap na ang corona virus,” sabi ni Marcos, ayon sa paglalahad ni Rodriguez. Dagdag pa ni Rodriguez: “Pero umuwi na lang ako kasi sobrang dami ng pasyente noon sa pinuntahan kong ospital kaya hindi na ako nagpumilit na magpaasikaso upang mabigyan ng tamang atensiyon ang mga pasyenteng nauna sa akin... na maaaring mas masama ang pakiramdam.” Ayon pa kay Rodriguez, ang tanging pagkakataon na lumabas si dating Senador Marcos mula noon sa kanyang silid ay noon ...

Twelve lucky people will get to eat dinner with the Mother of Dragons. “Game of Thrones” star Emilia Clarke is asking people around the world to donate money to SameYou, her charity that assists people recovering from brain injuries and strokes. The organization’s new initiative aims to make beds for coronavirus patients and help people recover from brain injuries at home in order to free up more beds. Twelve donors will be randomly selected for a virtual dinner with Clarke. “We’ll cook it together and eat it together. And we will discuss lots of things — isolation and fear and also funny videos. And, you know, the fact that I can’t really cook. So it’s going to be fun,” Clarke said in an Instagram post. The Daenerys Targaryen actor is hoping to raise £250,000 for SameYou. The new initiative is in partnership with the Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital in Massachusetts and the University College London Hospital. “We are creating a virtual rehabilitation clinic so brain injur...

Award-winning actress Sylvia Sanchez and her husband businessman Arturo Atayde were tested positive for COVID-19. Sanchez made the announcement on her Instagram March 31. She is the third Filipino movie star to test positive for coronavirus. The two other celebrities - Christopher de Leon and Iza Calzado - have been discharged from the hospital. The complete statement of Sanchez: "Hi everyone❤️ On March 24, my husband and I were brought to Cardinal Santos as I was having chills and he had cough and shortness of breath; "We were made to take the covid-19 swab test and since then, Art and I have self-isolated. A week later, we finally received the results and we both came out positive for COVID19; "We would like to request those whom we saw prior to the community quarantine to monitor for symptoms of shortness of breath, cough, fever, LBM and sore throat. Art and I are getting better each day; "Although this is slower than our usual recovery, we ...

Workers of community-based livelihood projects continue to have a source of income while complying with the restrictions of the enhanced community quarantine, Sen. Cynthia Villar said. Villar, chair of the Committee on Agriculture and Food and Environment and Natural Resources, said community-based livelihood projects help workers have a steady source of income amid the implementation of quarantine measures. In Las Pinas, livelihood projects continue its operation including handicraft and blanket weaving, coconet weaving, plastic chairs production, organic fertilizer production, engineered bamboo production, citronella massage oil making, handmade waterlily paper making, urban vegetable gardening, urban aquaculture, and organic livestock raising. These projects are some of the livelihood projects Villar helped establish in over 7,000 locations nationwide. “Our workers need not worry about losing their income during the COVID 19 crisis because these community-based livelihoo...

Kapamilya star Iza Calzado was tested positive for COVID-19, according to her talent manager Noel Ferrer on March 28. Ferrer revealed the health status of Calzado on Instagram. On March 26, Calzado said on Instagram that she was hospitalized for pneumonia and has also been tested for coronavirus. The actress, he said, is recovering well. Ferrer's full statement: "Iza Calzado received her results yesterday that she tested positive for CoVid; "She is recovering well as she was aggressively treated for pneumonia and the virus. She can actually breath now without any oxygen assistance; "She will be tested again to see if she is already negative. Her husband Ben and others who interacted with her have not shown any symptoms; "She doesn’t know where she contracted the virus from, but it’s best for all of us to take seriously the advice of doctors and health authorities on proper hygiene, physical distancing, quarantine and social responsibility; ...

Despite the enhanced community quarantine being imposed in Luzon and other parts in the country, Sen. Cynthia Villar said proper handling of waste products can still be done. Villar, chairperson of the Committee on Environment and Natural Resources, said it is important that garbage collection and recycling efforts continue in order to prevent additional health and sanitation woes. “We continue to generate waste even if we are under quarantine. Garbage will pile up if these are not collected and overwhelm our landfills if not properly segregated and recycled,” Villar said. The lady senator also added that used masks and gloves can easily mix with household waste when these should be treated as hazardous wastes. Villar urged local government officials to implement environmentally-sound practices alongside measures battling the spread of COVID-19. In her home city of Las Pinas, Villar said composting and recycling facilities continue operating to properly manage the city...

More than 200 cinemas in Shanghai will re-open Saturday, March 28, after nearly two months of enforced shutdown to stop the spread of coronavirus, Chinese authorities said. This makes the metropolis of more than 24 million one of China’s first major tier one cities to re-open multiplexes to the public, after others in more far-flung regions like Xinjiang or Sichuan provinces led the way last week. A first batch of 205 Shanghai cinemas will resume operations Saturday, while the rest will re-open “in an orderly manner when the conditions are right,” said the official Xinhua news agency, referencing comments made by Shanghai Municipal Government spokesman Yin Xin at a Thursday press conference about coronavirus prevention. There are currently more than 380 cinemas in Shanghai. In order to encourage viewers to actually frequent cinemas, the Shanghai Film Bureau will partner with the city’s propaganda bureau on a month-long program to subsidize film tickets. Until April 26, users ...

In March 1985, Lionel Richie, Michael Jackson, Cyndi Lauper, Kenny Rogers, Diana Ross and more than 40 other A-list recording artists came together to sing “We Are the World.” The cause: African famine. The sales: $63 million. The chorus: “There’s a choice we’re making, we’re saving our own lives.” Those words became part of a unifying, legendary anthem. Because of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, and the 35th anniversary of the release of the hit song, that chorus is on Richie’s mind today. He wrote the song with Jackson. “That line,” Richie, 70, tells PEOPLE exclusively, “came about as Michael and I were sitting there talking. We said, you can either say, ‘I’m saving my life’ or ‘We’re saving our lives.’ ’We Are the World’ is a statement we wanted to make. What do we do to save our own?” Richie, like many Americans, is sheltering in place with his loved ones. “We are all hunkered down. Family is the key to this. It is the soother,” he says. While at home, also like m...

GENEVA - FIFA, the international governing body of football, and the World Health Organization (WHO) have teamed up to combat the coronavirus (COVID-19) by launching a new awareness campaign led by world-renowned footballers, who are calling on all people around the world to follow five key steps to stop the spread of the disease. The “Pass the message to kick out coronavirus” campaign promotes five key steps for people to follow to protect their health in line with WHO guidance, focused on hand washing, coughing etiquette, not touching your face, physical distance and staying home if feeling unwell. “FIFA and its President Gianni Infantino have been actively involved in passing the message against this pandemic since the very beginning,” said WHO Director-General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus at the virtual launch of the campaign at WHO headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland. “Be it through campaigns or funding, FIFA has stood up to the coronavirus, and I am delighted that world ...

One of the hottest movies in the Warner Bros. library is a nine-year-old drama that kills off Gwyneth Paltrow in its first 15 minutes. Fears of the coronavirus have prompted movie fans to re-examine Steven Soderbergh’s star-studded 2011 thriller, “Contagion,” a fictional account of a pandemic that kills 26 million people worldwide. According to Warner Bros., the film was listed as No. 270 among its catalog titles at the end of December. Since the start of 2020, it has jumped to second, bested only by Harry Potter movies. “Contagion” is also trending on Amazon Prime Video and has flirted with the iTunes top 10. Barry Jenkins, the writer and director of “Moonlight,” the best picture winner at the 2017 Oscars, was one of the people who found himself interested in the film in recent days. He said he had watched “Contagion” with his girlfriend, Lulu Wang, the writer and director of the acclaimed 2020 indie hit “The Farewell,” while on location in Atlanta — the city, he was qu...

Brooklyn DJ iMarkeeyz capitalizes on Cardi B’s viral Instagram video about Coronavirus to score his first Billboard chart entry. As preliminary reports indicated, the remixed tune “Coronavirus” sold 3,000 copies in the week ending March 19, according to Nielsen Music/MRC Data. The sales total prompts a No. 9 debut on Billboard’s Rap Digital Song Sales and a No. 13 start on the R&B/Hip-Hop Digital Song Sales charts dated March 28. In addition, “Coronavirus” picked up 626,000 U.S. on-demand streams in the same period. “Coronavirus” began as an Instagram rant from Cardi B on March 10 about the pandemic disease and its global repercussions. Within days, iMarkeeyz -- known for turning other viral moments into musical remixes -- chopped the clip’s audio and repackaged it with a hip-hop beat, with special attention given to the rapper’s delivery of the disease as “Corona-VIRUS!” and an off-the-cuff “sh-- is getting real” for the remixed song’s refrain. On Twitter, both t...

 Senator Cynthia Villar is joining nationwide efforts to provide much-needed support in the country’s fight versus the coronavirus or COVID-19 by turning over three buildings that her family built and donated for the temporary use of the Las Piñas General Hospital (LPGH) as extension of its facilities, temporary housing for healthcare workers and/or quarantine facility. On top of that, the Villar family will also take care of the daily food needs of the staff of the Las Pinas General Hospital. The said buildings are one of the two buildings of the Las Piñas Drug Abuse Treatment and Rehabilitation Center and the buildings of the Vice Mayors’ League of the Philippines (VMLP) and the Provincial Board Members’ League (PBML)— all are located in Barangay Ilaya, Las Pinas City.  “We are sharing the rooms and facilities of the said buildings to the Las Piñas General Hospital to provide their healthcare workers with a convenient temporary accommodation, so they don’t have ...

Let's help keep lolo & lola safe from #COVID19! This was the appeal of reigning Miss Universe Philippines Gazini Ganados and other non-government organizations after they launched a fund-raising campaign that would help protect the grandparents and seniors against the dreaded COVID-19. Ganados, whose advocacy as beauty queen focuses on care for the elderly, launched the project on Instagram. "Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) confirmed cases in the Philippines have drastically increased in the last 2 weeks. Alarmingly, 70 percent of the reported deaths are senior citizens (60 years old and above). This means that older persons are becoming more susceptible to this virus and puts them in danger; "With this, Coalition of Services of the Elderly, Inc. (COSE) & Project Duyan for Sustainable Geriatric Health & Wellness would like to ask for your financial & in-kind assistance to help provide personal protective equipment, health & hygiene m...

The enhanced community quarantine is a good time to start taking up productive hobbies like home gardening, Sen. Cynthia Villar said. Villar, chairperson of the Committee on Agriculture and Food and on Environment and Natural Resources, said work suspension and mandatory home stay created an opportunity to start worthwhile activities at home. “Sa atin na nasanay na laging may ginagawa, nahihirapan tayo paano papalipasin ang oras. Planting is something you can start alone or with your family. It’s a way of introducing agriculture to our children,” Villar said. Villar said there are tutorials accessible through the internet that can provide basic instructions on how to start your home garden. “Hindi kailangan ng malaking lupain. You can plant in small spaces or containers and start with crop varieties that are easy to grow like pechay, sili, tomato, eggplant, okra, calamansi, among others,” Villar said. Villar added that urban agriculture and vertical gardening should b...

Korean actor Hyun Bin, star of the blockbuster Netflix series "Crash Landing On You," is set to star in a new movie called "Bargaining," it was announced on his official Facebook page. Hyun will appear in the new film opposite Hwang Jung Min. The two actors will start filming some scenes in Korea in April. Report said that the production of the movie was originally planned to be shot in Jordan by the end of March but had to cancel due to travel ban related to COVID-19.  The shooting abroad will be arranged later. - Robert Requintina

Superstar Mariah Carey joins the world in encouraging everyone to stay home these days due to the threats of COVID-19! "Staying home & keeping positive! Thank you @milliebobbybrown for the great idea!" said Carey on her Instagram March 21. Carey said that she got the idea of #istayhomefor from Brown, one of the stars of the popular Netflix series "Stranger Things." The "Hero" singer tagged some of her celebrity friends Kerry Washington, Oprah Winfrey, Ellen de Generes, and Kelly Ripa to do the same. Carey has also made a tik-tok with her daughters while washing their hands. Recently, Carey postponed her concert in Hawaii due to the threats of coronavirus. Aloha Hawaii!! I'm so so sad to have to announce that I'm postponing my show to November. I was so excited to come back to Hawaii on my "anniversary month" but evolving international travel restrictions force us to consider everyone's safety and well being. ...

Kris Aquino and her children Josh and Bimby are in isolation as they stayed in the house of one of her friends to protect themselves from the coronavirus. "I made the conscious decision to isolate ourselves, we found a friend and she kindly allowed us the use of their spare room, separate from their family’s area," Aquino said on Instagram March 20. Aquino said that she wanted to stay in the resort of game show host Willie Revillame but decided to leave because of her son's cough. "Nag magandang loob na si willie, nakakahiya kung may mahawa pa sa masamang ubo & pneumonia ni bimb. The 3 of us are the only family we have now kaya walang iwanan... Kuya is so tall, kaya diagonal sya sa bed." Aquino said that she wasn't able to sleep for 24 hours because she took care of Bimb who had bad cough and pneumonia. But her son has recovered, she said. "My prayers were answered, hindi nagka fever si bimb. He took his 2nd dose of antibiotics, ...

2018 Miss Universe Catriona Gray is taking advantage of the month-long "vacation" by writing her first book. "Using this time to write my #ConqueringYourUniverseBook! 🌌 So excited for you all to gain a deeper insight to my journey thus far!" said Gray on Instagram. Inspiring Queen Cat to finish her debut book is her dog Theo. "Bring your dog to work day...or wait. Is it bring your work to your dog? I have officially added hooman bed for doggo to my job title." In December 2019, Gray announced on IG that she would be writing a book titled "Conquering Your Universe." "Its about conquering yourself, conquering others and conquering for a purpose to conquer your dreams. Kiliiiiiig. I'm gonna be an author," the beauty queen said. - Robert Requintina

2015 Miss Universe Pia Alonzo Wurtzbach is keeping herself fit by working out at home with the aid of a mobile app. "There are so many ways to get a good workout in while staying at home. Shoutout to my trainer @gymbassy who trains me through an app. And I've been doing this for years now," said Wurtzbach on Instagram. The beauty queen said that she could not go out these days due to the threats of coronavirus so she, works out at home. "Hope you’re all staying home and making the most out of your time. 💙 I try to squeeze in a workout everyday (if time permits) and I love a good sweat! Working out can help you think clearer, gets you in a better mood, and helps build your immune system," she said. Wurtzbach has just arrived from Indonesia and Brazil where she shot her latest magazine cover. She also paid tribute to all the volunteers during the enhanced community quarantine in Luzon as a result of the COVID-19 breakout. On Instagram, Wurtz...

You feel safe from flu-related diseases after you had your annual flu jab. Think again! Dr. Jumel V. Bornilla, chief executive officer of the International Travelers Medical Center (ITMC) located at Makati Palace Hotel, pointed out that people who receive their annual flu shot are not spared from getting other diseases like the dreaded COVID-19. "First and foremost, the flu vaccine is designed to prevent infections with influenza viruses, which are very different than coronaviruses. However, if you had your annual flu shot and unluckily you were infected by the COVID-19, it would be easier for the health care workforce to delineate nonspecific symptoms such as fever and cough, which overlap with symptoms of COVID-19 and influenza virus," said Bornilla, during an online interview March 20. "As SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19) is spreading in communities around the world, distinguishing between flu and COVID-19 will become more difficult. On the bright side, it is ...