MANILA - The House of Representatives has passed on final reading a bill that would allow candidates to promote themselves in public even before the actual campaign period begins, with legislators saying they approved the measure to protect the Commission on Elections from being swamped with election cases.

The bill, principally sponsored by Makati Rep. Teodoro Locsin, would amend the Omnibus Election Code that bars candidates from engaging in election campaign or partisan political activity outside the campaign period.

MANILA - The United Nations and other international agencies on Wednesday revised and increased their flash appeal to support humanitarian efforts in typhoon-ravaged Philippines from the initial $74 million in early October to nearly $144 million this month.

The latest assessments by UN agencies and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) show that some 4.2 million Filipinos are in still in need of humanitarian assistance, including more than 520,000 children below five years old.