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The Spotlight, 900 San Marcelino Street, Manila (2026)

29/09/2026

𝗟𝗶𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗮𝗿𝘆 | 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗡𝗮𝗺𝗲𝗹𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝗖𝗮𝘁

Within the city, somewhere amongst the other residents at a condominium complex, lived a stray cat who had no name or home. With large green eyes, a bright pink nose, and a rub of her lithe feline body against a person’s leg, the cat took pride in knowing her charm was a catch for all who came across her, and it proved to be quite an advantage living as a stray.

People would clutch their tightening chests as their voices rose octaves higher at the stray’s sweet, melodic meows for food and her gentle, satisfied purrs whenever they stroked her silky white coat, spotted with dark shades of grey. But deep inside her furry white chest was the curdling longing to be carried into one of these humans' homes, to be named and known by an owner who cared.

Out here, she could run to and fro, chase things from small insects to rats nearly her own size, eat a different brand and flavor of kibble everyday, sleep under the starry night sky, and listen to the chatter of small groups on late night strolls.

Her life was indeed full of different people and challenges. Everyday was never quite the same, and there was a thrill in living in anticipation for what the next day might bring. Her world was quite large as it was, and it could get much bigger than that if she chose to wander from the residence.

She had met many people and seen even more places. And within the residential complex, she was familiar with everyone and everything, and many were familiar with her. But it all stopped at familiarity—there was no depth, no substance, no intimacy.

What use was having a big world if she knew only things that scratched the surface of what or who they actually were? It would be better if her world would just shrink into something personal, into something she knew like the back of her paw.

There was an ache in realizing she would never truly know the people who came to stroke her chin and feed her daily. In realizing she had been one of the residents of this area for years but would never know what it felt like to have a home within one of these buildings. In realizing she could explore as much as she so pleased, but would never know the stories behind the places she explored. And in realizing that she would never experience the warmth of a permanent home, nor a permanent companion.

However, she knew well enough that their validation was shallow, nothing but hollow gratification at the feel and sight of the feline. None of them had intentions of keeping her—their time, energy, and money were much too precious to allocate any of it to a stray.

And, come to think of it, being confined in the small apartment flat of a human sounded like a life sentence. She could run only within the confined space, chase only fake mice and synthetic feathers, eat bland kibble from the same bowl daily, sleep under a boring white ceiling, and only spectate the ant-like shapes of lively people from a window. The cat realizes how awful it must sound—to want to force her already free and full life into a predictable routine.

Still, she craved the idea of living the rest of her days with the warmth of one of those people.

She could only painfully imagine the joy of having an owner. Imagine one of those humans calling her an endearing name, carefully chosen as it would be what they called her by until cruel time caught up to them. How comforting would it be, she wondered, to have warm, familiar hands to pet her at the end of each day—for the rest of her days.

Without a home, it felt lonely knowing these people would eventually leave the complex to conquer dreams that were much bigger than this residence—dreams so big that she had no place in them.

The furry creature would have expressed these sorrows to a friend, but it had dawned on her long ago that humans did not enjoy the sound of coarse, gravelly yowls. Her defensive hisses when touches grew too rough caused people to look at her in disdain, without realizing the harshness of their own hands.

At the end of the day, no matter where she went, who she met, or what she did, no one would truly know her. Goodness, not one person knew even her name. And because she relied on their validation, neither did she know it herself.

For as long as no one gave her a name, she would remain without it, thinking she did not deserve one if it did not come from a human.

Piece By: Gabrielle Sophia Cadano
Layout By: Jorylle Vagallon

29/09/2026

𝗡𝗲𝘄𝘀 ┃ 𝗖𝗼𝗺𝗺𝘂𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗯𝗲𝗮𝗿 𝗵𝗶𝗴𝗵𝗲𝗿 𝗰𝗼𝘀𝘁𝘀 𝗮𝘀 𝗳𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝗵𝗶𝗸𝗲 𝘁𝗮𝗸𝗲𝘀 𝗲𝗳𝗳𝗲𝗰𝘁

Higher fares greeted commuters today, September 28, 2026, as the government implemented revised rates for several public transport services following the lift of the suspension on previously approved fare adjustments.

The increase covers traditional and modernized jeepneys, city and provincial buses, airport taxis, and transport network vehicle services (TNVS), with rates varying depending on the type of vehicle and distance traveled.

Fares for traditional jeepneys now start at ₱14 for the first four kilometers, while modern jeepneys charge ₱17 for the same kilometers, with an additional ₱2 and ₱2.40 for every succeeding kilometer, respectively.

The adjustment also raises ordinary city bus fares to ₱15 for the first five kilometers and air-conditioned bus fares to ₱18, with an increase of ₱2.49 and ₱2.98 for every succeeding kilometer, respectively.

With the start of the implementation, the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) requires operators to display updated fare matrices inside their vehicles, while the discounts for students, senior citizens, and persons with disabilities remain in effect.

References:
Daguno-Bersamina, K. (2026, September 27). Jeepney fares up to P14 starting Sept. 28; buses, taxis, TNVS also hike rates. Philstar.com. https://www.philstar.com/headlines/2026/09/27/2559277/jeepney-fares-p14-starting-sept-28-buses-taxi…

Article by: Mary Pauline Delos Reyes
Layout by: Kimi Jenson Tuason

28/09/2026

𝗡𝗲𝘄𝘀 | 𝗣𝗡𝗣 𝘀𝗲𝗰𝘂𝗿𝗲𝘀 𝗠𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗶𝗮𝗹 𝗟𝗮𝘄 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝘁𝗲𝘀𝘁𝘀

MANILA, Philippines — The Philippine National Police deployed more than 17,000 officers on Monday, Sept. 21, as groups held protests marking the 54th anniversary of martial law.

Police officers were on standby and wore body cameras to record incidents, while the PNP urged protesters to follow rules and keep the rallies peaceful.

Manila also suspended classes on Monday after the Manila Police District recommended the move due to the planned protests.

Ahead of Monday’s protests, around 1,000 students and young people marched from La Salle Greenhills to the EDSA Shrine on Sunday, calling for action against corruption and other government problems.

Police increased security to prevent a repeat of last year’s Mendiola riot as protesters gathered in different parts of the country to remember martial law and raise concerns about corruption, human rights, and government accountability.

References:
Gregorio, A., & Cabalza, D. (2026, September 21). PNP on alert as protests commemorate martial law. Philippine Daily Inquirer.

PNP on alert as protests commemorate martial law

Article by: Mitch Jowelle Modesto
Layout by: Kimi Jenson Tuason

28/09/2026

Grade 11 students from the PRG, AREN, HUSS, and ATH pathways attended “San Vicente: Isang Sarsuwela,” a theatrical performance held at the AdU Theatre on September 24, 2025, with morning and afternoon showings. Through music, acting, and storytelling, the production brought the life and values of Saint Vincent de Paul closer to the students. Here are some of their thoughts and reflections on the experience.

Interview by: Athena Anicete, Ayasofya Vittoria S. Aguirre, Vyen Dzar E. Turingan, and Mhelwyn Reign B. Estrella
Photo by: Viel Villanueva, Mhelwyn Reign B. Estrella, and Vyen Dzar E. Turingan

28/09/2026

𝗟𝗔𝗧𝗛𝗔𝗟𝗔𝗜𝗡 I 𝗣𝗮𝗿𝗮 𝘀𝗮 𝗣𝗮𝗺𝗶𝗹𝘆𝗮

Sa isang mundong lahat ay tumatakbo, ang oras ay hindi na tunay na nababalikan.

Nasa mukha ng bawat pamilya ang simbolo kung gaano kahalaga ang oras at ang bawat segundong inilaan sa klase, trabaho, at sariling panahon. Ito’y binigyang-diin ng Memorandum Circular No. 136 na nilagdaan ni Pangulong Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. para sa “Kainang Pamilya Mahalaga.”

Mula sa umagang bungad, si bunso ay naghahanda para sa kanyang pagpasok sa paaralan, si ate ay nag-aayos ng sarili, ang abalang nanay ay naghahanda ng baon ng buong pamilya, habang si tatay naman ay inaasikaso ang kanyang mga gagawin para sa araw. Umaga pa lamang, namumukod-tangi na ang paghahabol ng oras ng bawat isa sa pamilya.

Sa buong araw, umiikot ang buhay ng bawat isa sa iba’t ibang istasyon—sa kaibigan, katrabaho, paaralan, at iba pa. Sa gitna ng walang tigil na takbo ng buhay, tila naiiwan ang pamilya sa isang sulok ng oras, naghihintay ng pagkakataong muling magsama-sama.

Binigyang-halaga ito sa ika-34 na selebrasyon ng National Family Week sa Malacañang Palace noong Setyembre 17, 2026, na nagtakda ng suspensyon ng trabaho para sa lahat ng government workers noong Setyembre 28, 2026, mula alas-1 ng hapon.

Sa gabi, maaaring isang hapag-kainan ang maging unang bubungad sa pamilyang pagod sa buong araw. Sa simpleng salu-salo o panonood ng telebisyon, muling nagkakaroon ng sandalan at katahimikan ang pamilyang buong araw na hinabol ng oras—isang munting lakas upang muling magpatuloy sa susunod na araw.

Mula sa pagod ng araw hanggang sa pahinga sa gabi, ang bawat pamilya ay nararapat magkaroon ng pagkakataong bumagal sandali ang takbo ng mundo—para sa pamilya.

Artikulo ni: Trixie Ann Baldoza
Talatag ni: Chloe Joy Pablito

28/09/2026

𝗟𝗶𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗮𝗿𝘆 | 𝗨𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗹 𝗪𝗲 𝗔𝗿𝗲 𝗪𝗿𝗶𝘁𝘁𝗲𝗻 𝗢𝘃𝗲𝗿

what if the graffiti in españa was never really about being lost on our way, but about our journey and the people along with it?

maybe that’s why the question, “are you lost in the city, too?,” feels less like a question about where we are going and more like a question of whether someone else is wandering through the same uncertainty.

in a city moving as quickly as manila, where everyone seems to be rushing somewhere, it is easy to feel small and lost. sometimes, being lost means not knowing where your future is headed— questioning whether the roads we take or the university corridors we walk through will eventually lead us somewhere.

yet, somewhere along the way, we meet people without knowing how much they will come to mean to us. some stay only for a moment, while others remain long enough for us to imagine a future beside them, only to eventually become strangers we once knew by heart.

and maybe these people are only meant to cross our paths— to pause beside us, to make the unfamiliar feel a little less lonely, or to leave a piece of themselves behind. and when they leave, we are left standing still, unsure of what comes next as if the road has changed.

perhaps that is what makes a city feel so strange: thousands of people walking in the same streets, carrying lives we know nothing about. we are never told how long someone will remain or how far we’ll walk beside them before our roads begin to diverge.

then, on that same wall, new words appeared: love is all we have. a fresh beginning?

maybe that was the answer to the question written there before. if we are all a little lost, maybe what makes the wandering worthwhile is having someone to share the road with. and when they are gone, all we can do is carry a piece of them, letting it become part of us. what remains is not knowing where we are headed, but the courage to find our way even when the road feels unfamiliar.

it teaches us that love is not about making someone stay, but being grateful that they once chose to walk beside us through this tiring, uncertain journey.

españa, the yearning street. nakalaya na nga ba?

Piece By: Alpha Grace Degillo
Layout By: Venice Pagal

28/09/2026

𝗦𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁𝘀 | 𝗬𝘂𝗹𝗼 𝗕𝗿𝗼𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝘀𝗼𝗮𝗿𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗿𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵 𝗔𝘀𝗶𝗮𝗻 𝗚𝗮𝗺𝗲𝘀

Carlos Yulo and younger brother Karl Eldrew powered the Philippines to three gymnastics medals, including two golds and one bronze, at the 20th Asian Games in Aichi-Nagoya, Japan, on Sept. 24 and 25.

Caloy opened the Philippines’ gold-medal campaign by ruling the men’s floor exercise on Sept. 24, scoring 14.666 points to secure his first-ever Asian Games gold in the event.

The golden boy continued his golden run the following day in the men’s vault, where he posted 14.599 points to claim his second gold medal of the Games.

Meanwhile, Eldrew made his Asian Games debut with a podium finish in the men’s horizontal bar final at the Nagoya General Gymnasium on Sept. 25.

The rising gymnast artist delivered a clean routine as the second performer, earning 13.666 points from a 5.0 difficulty score to capture the bronze medal and cap his first Asian Games campaign on the podium.

The Yulo brothers’ performances added three medals to the Philippines’ gymnastics haul as the country continued its campaign in the Aichi-Nagoya Games.

Article by: Llance Jhosua Joven
Pubmat by: Carlo Langit

28/09/2026

𝗦𝗰𝗶-𝗧𝗲𝗰𝗵 𝗜 𝗔 𝗻𝗲𝘄 𝗰𝗮𝘁 𝗵𝗮𝘀 𝗯𝗲𝗲𝗻 𝗱𝗶𝘀𝗰𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗱 𝗮𝗳𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝗮𝗻 𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗿𝗲 𝗰𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘂𝗿𝘆

If you ever thought the cat family would stop at tigers, lions, and cheetahs, you’d be wrong. After over a century, scientists have formally named the newest member of the feline family: the Tilcayo. But it wasn’t discovered on purpose; scientists identified it as a new species completely by accident.

The Tilcayo, in the genus Leopardus, is a spotted tiger cat with light brown fur and irregularly shaped rosettes (or spots) across its body. It is native to Bolivia’s Yungas forests, a region of misty mountain valleys and cloud forests. When found, though, scientists weren’t able to truly identify it as a ‘different’ species.

Instead, the Tilcayo was initially believed to be one of the many cryptid tiger cats, small wildcats grouped as a single species because they look nearly identical and are far too difficult to distinguish.

In the case of the Tilcayo, the ‘tiger’ part came from its fur, and the ‘cat’ part is from the fact that it’s actually smaller than a regular house cat, weighing an adorable three to four pounds. However, how does an entire species get discovered and labeled out of nowhere?

Of course, it’s not as if a cat just appeared. The Tilcayo actually split from its closest tiger relative over 1.6 million years ago. Ever since then, it has been interpreted as a tiger, a house cat, or a combination of both.

But its formal description and naming actually began when a resident mistook it for a tiny stray kitten in 2016, naming it Tigrino.

At the time, the owner paid no attention to its size or appearance, taking in the Tilcayo and keeping it on a diet of eggs and noodles. He kept it for an entire year, though he grew suspicious of this kitten’s increasingly aggressive behavior. Eventually, he realized that Tigrino may be a wild cat, prompting him to give this cat up to the Santa Verde Wildlife Sanctuary, a local sanctuary in Bolivia.

Observing this cat, experts were perplexed. Its characteristics did not match DNA from over 38 cats sampled across several South American countries. Particularly, Paola Nogales-Ascarrunz, a biologist and National Geographic Explorer working in Bolivia, noticed how ‘wrong’ its characteristics were. From the spots to its abnormally small size (in comparison to a tiger), it seemed as if this cat was a whole new species.

Well, nearly a decade after it was given to the sanctuary, and after multiple genome tests, scientists have concluded that it was because this cat actually was an entirely separate species. Now, the Tilcayo has been identified as the first wildcat species identified since the pampas cat in 1923.

Biology researchers are pleasantly surprised by this recent discovery, amazed at how an entire species was able to avoid detection simply because “nobody was looking.” Along with this, scientists note how this profoundly changes the way small cat specialists group small cat species, which may pave the way for even more cat discoveries.

But, unfortunately, this new species may currently be listed as ‘endangered,’ mostly because only Tigirno is under the care of Senda Verde. Many experts also stress that conservation efforts must increase urgently, especially given the small population discovered.

The Tilcayo is the newest member of the feline family, discovered after an entire century. Although the process leading to its eventual discovery, along with the potential it leaves behind for other potentially unknown species, is massive, there remains a large threat of extinction.

This is an amazing time to reflect on animal care practices, especially given the threat that we may wind up losing an animal that was just found. With all that said, everyone should make way for the Tilcayo, a tiny cat that will absolutely leave a massive paw print on history.

References:
Bittel, J. (2026, September 17). Meet the First New Cat Species Discovered in 100 Years. Animals. https://www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/article/meet-the-first-new-cat-species-discovered-in-100-years
Guardian staff reporter. (2026, September 17). New cat species identified for first time in more than a century in Bolivia. The Guardian; The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/sep/17/new-cat-species-identified-bolivia
Kuta, S. (2026, September 21). Meet the Adorable and Tiny Tilcayo, the First Brand-New Cat Species Identified in More Than a Century. Smithsonian Magazine. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/meet-the-adorable-and-tiny-Tilcayo-the-first-brand-new-cat-species-identified-in-more-than-a-century-180989528/
Bush, E. (2026, September 17). New wild cat species is identified for first time in 100 years, researchers say. NBC News. https://www.nbcnews.com/science/environment/new-wild-cat-species-identified-rcna598113
CBC. (2026, September 18). New cat species identified for the 1st time in a century. CBC. https://www.cbc.ca/news/science/Tilcayo-tiger-cat-new-species-9.7349140

Article by: Khalil Bucol
Layout by: Aryana Malagueño

28/09/2026

𝗡𝗲𝘄𝘀 | 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝘀𝗲𝗰𝘂𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝘀𝗲𝘁 𝘁𝗼 𝗮𝗿𝗴𝘂𝗲 𝘃𝗼𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗿𝗲𝘀𝗵𝗼𝗹𝗱 𝗶𝗻 𝗦𝗮𝗿𝗮 𝗗𝘂𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘁𝗲 𝗶𝗺𝗽𝗲𝗮𝗰𝗵𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗮𝗹

The Senate impeachment court is set to hear oral arguments Wednesday from the prosecution and defense on the voting threshold required to convict Vice President Sara Duterte. The session comes one week after the court sought guidance from retired chief justices amid the absence of three senators facing legal battles.

Rep. Leila de Lima will present the case for the House prosecution panel as one of the original endorsers of the impeachment complaint against Duterte. Meanwhile, the defense has declined to name its speaker as part of a deliberate strategy.

Each side will receive 15 minutes for its arguments before senator-judges pose clarificatory questions, after which the court will vote on the threshold.

A simple majority is sufficient to overturn the current 16-vote requirement for conviction, potentially reshaping the trial's procedural rules.

References:
Clores, K. (2026, September 23). Defense, prosecution to present oral arguments on voting threshold. INQUIRER.net. Defense, prosecution to present oral arguments on voting threshold

Article by: Mario Nathaniel Sicat
Layout by: Kimi Jenson Tuason

28/09/2026

In celebration of the Feast of Saint Vincent de Paul, the Adamson community anticipates a series of activities centered on the theme, “Rooted in Vincentian Mission: Growing with Excellence, Leading with Care,” held from September 24 to 29, 2026.

Interview by: Trixie Ann Baldoza
Photos by: Cheyenne Andaya

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