Philippine Congress approves national emergency declaration

The Philippine Congress on Tuesday approved a bill declaring a national emergency and authorising the president to launch a massive aid programme for 18 million families and tap private hospitals and ships in fighting the coronavirus pandemic.President Rodrigo Duterte can reapportion the executive department’s budget under the legislation, which will also punish people disobeying quarantine orders and spreading “false information” about the outbreak, legislators said. The state of national…